Then, in the fall of 1975, in the sleepy, picturesque town of Palmer, Alaska, the unthinkable happens. There’s a serial killer on the hunt and one of Shelby’s best friends has disappeared.
The sudden loss of her friend in such a violent manner awakens something in her, an ability to communicate with the dead….visions. In the midst of all this, Shelby falls in love for the first time only to discover the shocking truth about her boyfriend.
Can she accept him for who – what he is? Can her friends and family accept him?
Shelby has a vision of the killer stalking another of her friends and is desperate to stop him before it’s too late. Instead of an enjoyable senior year of high school, Shelby and her friends must come to grips with life and death – and all they hold – in their quest to find a monster before he kills again.
A nutshell excerpt:
You know how we make a smooth transition from an old year to a new year? How, despite the big fuss everybody makes on New Year’s Eve swearing the new one will be better than the last, nothing mind-blowing happens with the changing of the calendar? How life just marches on tossing things your way, here and there, for better or worse? Well, on January 1st as we hung up our shiny new calendar, we looked forward with eager anticipation to a year that had to be better than the last. After all, we said, it can’t be any worse. Famous last words...
Even though it started out just like any other year, 1975 turned out to be quite a pivotal time in our lives. Not due to popular songs or oil pipelines; in part due to the ending of a long and brutal war that killed thousands of fathers, sons, and brothers along with my own, but mostly because of what happened later right here in the sleepy little town of Palmer, Alaska.
About the Author :
C.Y. Bourgeois is a freshman author and an avid
reader. After having spent countless enjoyable hours over the years reading
other people's narratives, she realized that she too has stories to
tell.
C.Y. considers herself a native of Alaska, having lived there since the age of two. She and her husband recently moved to northernIdahowhere they now reside with their two dogs and three cats and where she is currently working on her second Shelby Leight novel, Visions of Mortality.
Find her on her website at: http://www.cybourgeois.com/home
The Dame's Review :
This is a first attempt by an author who has a wonderful comedic streak! I enjoyed her wit and she had moments when she caught me off guard. I really laughed out loud when I least expected to. But, all in all, it's still a first-timer's attempt at writing. Much of the writing itself is good; however, Ms Bourgeois could have made a much bigger splash had she taken time to get an editor who knew how to help her craft her book better. It was simply too wordy and weighty. Which can be deadly in this era of the quick read and run...
The characters in this book are very good. I liked Paul, the sadly creepy, "sanguine" teen aged boy; and Shelby, the main character, a clumsy and slap-happy girl who sees the light visions. Shelby is nothing if not charming; flying, screaming, generally "falling" with all caution to the wind in pursuit of a predator/serial killer of young girls. And, Paul is the strong, gorgeous but mysteriously too different, hunk of the 1970's post-Vietnam era. Fantastic characters...weighed down by too much fluff.
What's also really good about this book is the time setting. I love that Bourgeois chose to set the cast in this post-Vietnam era. Not much has been written in this time frame, particularly having to do with fantasy/syfy, so she's really found a niche if she can fine tune her work and snap up the space quickly. The cult references to such things as "Lost in Space," and Springteen's "Born To Run," help the book, not only in cementing the era, but in buying Baby Boomer readers. It's great fun to be pulled in to such a novel, speaking as a child of the '60s and 70's. :] Trekkies also get a shout out here.
In summary, I wanted very much to like this book. I did like a great deal about it, but I can't recommend it to my readers at this point. C. Y. Bourgeois has promise. She has a wonderful flavor to her storytelling. A flare, really. The only problem is that her light is hidden under a bushel....it has to be dug out to be appreciated.
That being said, this is actually a fun book to read if you know the pitfalls! I'm offering a GIVEAWAY to anyone who is going to read it and review it for my blog within the next month. Just leave a comment and your email to be chosen.
My advice: Buy yourself a great editor, C. Y. You're headed for some big times in writing if you'll just find the professional help you need.
This time, it's a 3 stars. Looking forward to next time....
Deborah/TheBookishDame
C.Y. considers herself a native of Alaska, having lived there since the age of two. She and her husband recently moved to northernIdahowhere they now reside with their two dogs and three cats and where she is currently working on her second Shelby Leight novel, Visions of Mortality.
Find her on her website at: http://www.cybourgeois.com/home
The Dame's Review :
This is a first attempt by an author who has a wonderful comedic streak! I enjoyed her wit and she had moments when she caught me off guard. I really laughed out loud when I least expected to. But, all in all, it's still a first-timer's attempt at writing. Much of the writing itself is good; however, Ms Bourgeois could have made a much bigger splash had she taken time to get an editor who knew how to help her craft her book better. It was simply too wordy and weighty. Which can be deadly in this era of the quick read and run...
The characters in this book are very good. I liked Paul, the sadly creepy, "sanguine" teen aged boy; and Shelby, the main character, a clumsy and slap-happy girl who sees the light visions. Shelby is nothing if not charming; flying, screaming, generally "falling" with all caution to the wind in pursuit of a predator/serial killer of young girls. And, Paul is the strong, gorgeous but mysteriously too different, hunk of the 1970's post-Vietnam era. Fantastic characters...weighed down by too much fluff.
What's also really good about this book is the time setting. I love that Bourgeois chose to set the cast in this post-Vietnam era. Not much has been written in this time frame, particularly having to do with fantasy/syfy, so she's really found a niche if she can fine tune her work and snap up the space quickly. The cult references to such things as "Lost in Space," and Springteen's "Born To Run," help the book, not only in cementing the era, but in buying Baby Boomer readers. It's great fun to be pulled in to such a novel, speaking as a child of the '60s and 70's. :] Trekkies also get a shout out here.
In summary, I wanted very much to like this book. I did like a great deal about it, but I can't recommend it to my readers at this point. C. Y. Bourgeois has promise. She has a wonderful flavor to her storytelling. A flare, really. The only problem is that her light is hidden under a bushel....it has to be dug out to be appreciated.
That being said, this is actually a fun book to read if you know the pitfalls! I'm offering a GIVEAWAY to anyone who is going to read it and review it for my blog within the next month. Just leave a comment and your email to be chosen.
My advice: Buy yourself a great editor, C. Y. You're headed for some big times in writing if you'll just find the professional help you need.
This time, it's a 3 stars. Looking forward to next time....
Deborah/TheBookishDame
1 comments:
It looks good. I don't mind lengthy books. : ) I'll have to give it a try. I love coming to this blog because I get introduced to so many books I didn't know were out there. And in my busy life, I just don't have time to hunt. I just come to your blog and make my list! : ) So thank you for taking the time to read all of these books and then talk to us about them. It's really awesome! You're such a gem!
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