Important Update - Changes here at CoaB

Well, things have been ungodly quiet around here and for that I apologize! I've been dealing with various things that have kept me away from the virtual world.  However, that is about to change! I've got quite a bit going on and working on getting things together for a massive giveaway that I may or may not be holding around my birthday...so KEEP YOUR EYES PEELED!  For announcements and things of that nature.  Gonna be a while yet.

On to the important things!

Review Guidlines/Rating System: Currently working on revamping my review policy and ratings break down.  There will be changes, some people will not like them. I am beyond the point of caring.  I need to get things sorted and will have those updated as soon as possible.

Archiving: Anything from my previous blog (the word press one) will no longer be available for viewing on this blog.  Things from my beginnings on blogger will be available here from now on.

New reviewer: I will be introducing a new reviewer, Agent Butterfly, is what she shall be called.  My roommate's daughter will be writing book reviews instead of book reports for her homeschooling and I will be reading the books as well, so yes, there will be double reviews of some books.  She however, will have her own personal space here at CoaB, where her reviews can be found. I encourage you to check her out.  Her first review will be going up by the end of the week.

Guest Posts: I'm looking for them, hungering for them!  If you want to do one, contact me and we can set things up!

Interviews: I miss doing these and I want to do more! Lots more! May even let Agent Butterfly do one if I can find an author she's read!

Alright, I think that is all I have for you at the moment.

There will be reviews coming later today!

Keep reading!

Guest Post: Jason E. Maurer

For my guest post, I’ve chosen to discuss self-worth and homosexuality and how the two go hand-in-hand, mainly because that is what my new novel “Trust and Love” is all about.

The main theme of my novel is the “It Gets Better” Campaign because it is the struggle of nearly all people in the LGBT community [LGBT stands for Lesbian, Gay, and Transgender] to overcome their own fears, and stand up for themselves in a world that still thinks of us as being sinners.

The “It Gets Better” Campaign stems from the unfortunate suicidal deaths of several gay teenagers, who were bullied in school by youngsters like themselves who do not understand that we are just as human as everyone else. My heart has broken so many times over the past few years to hear of another loss of someone who gave up the fight.

I look back on my own high school turmoil, and am thankful that none of my suicide attempts succeeded.

I had few friends, although the ones in my close circle were treasured more than I could ever describe. Some of us are close to this day.

Being gay was not something anyone talked about, except to make fun of those unfortunate boys who showed any sign of being a “sissy”.  I grew up listening to the negativity spouted by others, and realized early on that I was not “normal”, that the things I felt for the guy who lived next door were wrong.

I wish more than anything that the “It Gets Better” Campaign had been around when I was a teenager. My life in school would have been much, much different. I might have had the courage to stand up for myself, instead of having everyone harass and make fun of me, saying I was worthless and nothing but trash.

This is why I stand so adamantly behind “It Gets Better”. I want that tormented young boy who is sitting there holding a bottle of pills to know he is not alone. I want that young girl who is holding a knife to her wrist that I understand what she’s going through. I want them to know that suicide is NOT the solution to their problems. I want them to understand that their lives WILL get better.

It took many years for me to realize that I wasn’t a freak, that the way I felt toward others of the same sex was okay, that I wasn’t some piece of trash to be so easily discarded.

If you are one of those teenagers who feel like your world is crumbling down around you because the bullies won’t leave you alone, then I have some advice. It may sound hopeless and almost like wishful thinking, especially if you are afraid of them, but things are never as hopeless as they seem. My advice is this:

1. Stand up for yourself.

2. Never back down.

3. Fight for what you believe.

If one of those bullies is attacking you and your beliefs, you have every right as a human being to protect yourself. Stand up tall, look your enemy in the eye, and defend, defend, defend.

Even if you lose the fight, remember that the pride of standing up for yourself and fighting for your beliefs is better than not doing anything at all.

I survived my high school years, and you will too.

And do you know why?

Because there are others in this world who love you for being who you are, and will stand by you no matter what.

My novel “Trust and Love” may seem more like a fairytale than real-life, but the message remains:

Do Not Give Up On Yourself, Because We Will Never Give Up On You.

By writing my novel, I hope to assist everyone in realizing that suicide is not the answer, that your life is more precious than you might think right now, and that we are here to support you no matter what.

Visit www.itgetsbetter.org for information on how to help us win the fight.

To buy “Trust and Love”, visit http://www.amazon.com/Trust-and-Love-ebook/dp/B00AS5AEBM/ref=la_B0080HHLPC_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1356936849&sr=1-1

All my love to everyone and best wishes for a wonderful 2013!

Jason E. Maurer

http://jasonemaurer.blogspot.com

This Space Under Construction!!!

Greetings wonderful readers and followers,

I know things have been quiet around my little confessional, but worry not I have not forgotten you or stopped reading. The new year is fast upon us and it will be an exciting year for me in my little slice of literary heaven.

Get ready for a new look, updated review policy, updated rating system, lots of nifty features, giveaways, interviews, guest posts and reviews if course.

Things will be revealed on January 5th! Are you as excited as I am, are you ready for things to kick off and get rocking for 2013, I know I am.

I will also be featuring my top ten books of 2012 and my top ten least favorite books of 2012. What else do I have in store for you, you will just have to wait and see.

Love, kisses and great reads,

Martha aka Caedy

Hello to New and Old Faces! Some Important Information Ahead

To all the new followers, thank you, thank you and thank you a hundred times over and I am quite pleased that you've found my slice of literary heaven.  Some things in the works, I will be revamping my review policy, as well as further detailing a few things to stream line the process.  I will be attempting to get back into posting a blog schedule, and now that I am once more the proud owner of a Kindle (THANK THE GODS) I will have lots more books to read and review (including some from the 1300 in the archives of my amazon account that I've not yet touched). 

I will also be perhaps sharing with you some of my writing, though that might go to a separate blog in and of itself.  Beyond that, I've also got computer access again at home (for more than a handful of hours early in the morning on weekends) so I can post things more regularly. 

Also, if you like my reviews, and the content that I provide, I would highly recommend sharing me with your friends, finding me on Goodreads and ultimately following my reviews and things here.  I do post my reviews on goodreads as well, and I will be once more refreshing my smashwords account and posting things there (mainly because I have books that I need to grab there and redownload on my Kindle). 

If you are an author and following me here on my little piece of heaven, and would like me to review your book I am more than willing.  Digital copies are accepted (mobi/kindle format preferred above all others) and print copies as well.  If you send me a copy of your book (digitally or otherwise) allow me minimum of three (3) weeks to have time to read and formulate an opinion on your book to provide you with a proper review and not allow you to feel slighted. 

I will in the coming weeks be catching up on my backlog of reviews (and trust me when I say that there is a backlog!).  Those ultimately come first, and then I will be moving on to some of the newer material that I have received.  But, worry not, I will not allow your book to be lost in the shuffle like some have in the past.  I do apologize if you happen to be one of those authors (it was so very not intentional). 

Also, if you aren't an author, but you have an awesome book that you want to recommend to me, and it is available for lending via Kindle, you can of course always lend it to me and I will have it read and reviewed within the two (2) week grace period that is allowed for Kindle lending. 

Any other comments, questions, or concerns, please do not hesitate to email me and let me know.  Also, if you are looking for Beta readers, decidedly more than willing!

Review: Year of the Cat by Carroll Bryant

Title: Year of the Cat
Author: Carroll Bryant
Format: e-book (Kindle edition)
Read: Dec 9 - DNF
Rating: 1/5
Recommend: No

Summary: Lancaster Parks, an American Detective is sent to a tourist city in Mexico.  What exactly he's investigating is a string of deaths of male tourists over the past years.  The case he's on currently has 16 unsolved murders, all the victims American males and murdered between Spring Break and Memorial Day Weekend (the city's two biggest tourist times).  Oh, and there is this mysterious woman too.

Review: I am so usually not one to give into hype, drama or let other people's reviews color my opinion of a book.  So, up on receiving this book as a gift (which I usually do not turn down, but in this case I probably should have).

I could not even finish it, I have no desire to finish it.  Nor do I think any amount of money could make me finish this book. This author reminds me of Vizzini in <i>The Princess Bride</i> with his use of words improperly.

The on that made me giggle, seriously, was apparently the main character was going to spend "the next ions" of his life in the city he was transferred to in Mexico.  Dear Author, you are aware that the word that you should have used in that sentence was EONS.

Ions do not measure time.  Ions are an electrically charged atom, and is a term used in physics or chemistry.

Eons measure time.  They measure an indefinite amount of time.

So, your character would not be spending electrically charged atoms in a place, instead he would be spending eons (an indefinite amount of time) in the city in Mexico.

Then, there is this mystery woman.  I don't get entirely where she comes from (maybe I would if I finished the book) but to have her simply show up in this one mini flash back toward the beginning of the book is kind of disjointed and really doesn't make things flow nice and neatly in my opinion.

Anyway, that is my two cents and I bid you all a good day and happy reading.  Please do not bring your hate, drama and various other trivial things to my page.  I've now read the drama and the whirlwind of a shit storm that this book and the author has produced.  I do not want any part of it, and you will not hesitate to find yourself blocked, banned, or reported for bringing the drama here.