Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer

Friday, April 8, 2011

The Friday 56 - Sweet Valley Confidential

Billy Burgess The Friday 56 ,

Hosted by Freda's Voice

Sweet Valley Confidential: Ten Years Later

The moment passes, and I feel like it would be awkward
and unimportant to correct them.

page 56, Sweet Valley Confidential by Francine Pascal

Thursday Ramblings - April 7, 2011

Billy Burgess ramblings ,

I hate the weather here in Missouri, one day it is warm and next day it is in the 40s, and when the weather goes cuckoo, so does my sinuses. I've been taking things easy over the last few days, but I have planned out a steampunk plot that I hope to get started on this weekend. I hope to have my time-traveling story finished in a few days, and I plan on editing the Trick-or-Spells story.

Review - Beside Still Waters

Billy Burgess books , fiction

Beside Still Waters

BY: Tricia Goyer

PUBLISHED BY: B&H Publishing Group

PUBLISHED IN: 2011

ISBN: 978-14336-6868-5

Pages: 258

Reviewed by Billy Burgess

A horrible accident occurred the night Marianna Sommer was born. Eighteen years later, her parents are still grieving over that night. Marianna is looking forward to being baptized into the Amish church. She hopes to marry Aaron Zook, who promised her they will date the following year.

Her older brother, Levi, refuses to join the church, and he decides to leave the Amish community. Their parents decide that it would be best off if they move away from Indiana. Marianna doesn’t want to leave her friends, her future beau and her brother. Her mother is expecting another child and Marianna has no other choice, but to travel with her family to Montana.

With letters, she keeps in touch with her friends and Levi. She soon learns that the move will bring her closer to God.

I have read dozens of books about the Amish, but Marianna Sommer is probably my favorite character. She is a sweet, innocent girl who wants to honor her family, but she is a constant reminder to her parents of that horrible night she was born. My first thought was Levi was your typical Amish fiction character who loses his faith and leaves the community, but there is more depth to him. Throughout the story are neat journal entries and letters written by Marianna that help the book standout from other Amish fiction out there today. Overall, I enjoyed reading Beside Still Waters, and look forward to reading more from Tricia Goyer.

Blog Tour Schedule: http://litfusegroup.com/blogtours/text/13199255

About Tricia:

Tricia Goyer is the author of twenty-six books including Songbird Under a German Moon, The Swiss Courier, and the mommy memoir, Blue Like Play Dough. She won Historical Novel of the Year in 2005 and 2006 from ACFW, and was honored with the Writer of the Year award from Mt. Hermon Writer's Conference in 2003. Tricia's book Life Interrupted was a finalist for the Gold Medallion in 2005. In addition to her novels, Tricia writes non-fiction books and magazine articles for publications like MomSense and Thriving Family. Tricia is a regular speaker at conventions and conferences, and has been a workshop presenter at the MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) International Conventions. She and her family make their home in Little Rock, Arkansas where they are part of the ministry of FamilyLife. Visit http://www.triciagoyer.com/ for more info.

Review - Trickster's Girl

Billy Burgess books ,

Trickster’s Girl
BY: Hilari Bell

PUBLISHED BY: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children

PUBLISHED IN: 2011

ISBN: 978-0-547-19620-6

Pages: 288

Reviewed by Billy Burgess

Set in the year 2098, where there are border guards at every state border. A teenager, Kelsa, is mourning the lost of her father, an environmentalist. She had a close relationship with him. Every Sunday, they would take a hike. To honor him, Kelsa wants to continue the tradition, and that is where she meets Raven, a shape-shifting trickster. Kelsa soon learns that magic is real and that Earth will be destroyed if she doesn’t assist Raven on his quest.

Trickster’s Girl is a combination of supernatural and environmental genre, and it doesn’t mix well. I respect the authors concept of the Native American mythology, but the global-warming theme has been to death in novels, television and movies; and at times I felt the author was pushing the subject too much. I liked the idea that a person can’t cross a state line without a passport in the future, and overall the book was well written, but I had to push myself through it because I couldn’t get pass the boring plot.

*I would like to thank Houghton Mifflin and NetGalley for sending me a copy to review.

Review - April Fools by Tankersley Cusick

Billy Burgess books , fiction

April Fools
BY: Riche Tankersley Cusick
PUBLISHED BY: Scholastic
PUBLISHED IN: 1990
ISBN: 0-590-43115-3
Pages: 218
Reviewed by Billy Burgess

Belinda, Frank and Hildy went joyriding on the night of April 1st. Frank flickered the headlights on and off for fun, or so they thought. They caused a terrible car accident that night. The other car blew up, so there was no hope of survival. Belinda and her friends left the scene of the crime. Two weeks go by, and Belinda no has a guilty conscience. Her friends tell her to just forget about it and get on with your life.

The Friday 56 - dot.comdating

Billy Burgess The Friday 56 ,

Hosted by Freda's Voice

People marry later, work longer hours, have less time,
and live farther from their family members who
might introduce them to a neighbor's handsome,
eligible nephew or beautiful, single niece.

page 56, dot.comdating by Drs. Les & Leslie Parron

Thursday Ramblings - March 31, 2011

Billy Burgess ramblings ,

Wow! Tomorrow is the first of April, and my second year of blogging. Make sure you check out the April Fools Day Blog Hop I will be hosting on Friday.

Is it me, or has Television gotten worse over the years. I do not care for reality shows and no new shows interest me. Stargate SGU is ending, and the so-called SyFy channel will probably ax Sanctuary next year. I cannot wait for Burn Notice, Hot in Cleveland, Covert Affairs, Breaking Bad, Torchwood, and True Blood to return this summer.

The other night I glanced through my DVD collection and spotted the 2009 version of Sorority Row. I watched it once after I bought it last year and had forgot about even owning it. The movie follows the typical slasher genre, but with more of a 80s feel to it. After I re-watched it, I googled it, and was surprised to see so many negative comments about it. Do not get me wrong, it is not going to win an Oscar, but it is an entertaining thriller/horror film.

Last night, I re-watched the so-called remake of Friday the 13th, which the producers could have easily slapped a numeral on it and nobody would have been the wiser. Pros. that I liked about the movie: ten minutes longer than most F13 movies; Jason is no longer a zombie; and Jason is faster and smarter. Cons: Bad acting, bad dialogue, not really a remake; the graphic, overly long sex scene was not needed; and it took over twenty minutes to show the opening title. There is no plot to this movie; I am not saying that the other F13s had plots, except for ripping off small elements from F13 2-4. Most remakes/reboots are a disaster, because the writer/producers do not understand what a remake is. The horror movies that have come out over the last ten years have been sloppy filmmaking, excluding Rob Zombie's Halloween. That being said, I would still rank Friday the 13th above the last few sequels from the 80's and the low budget, mostly Jason-less, Jason Goes to Hell from the 90s. I did I enjoy the campy Jason X, and the slasher match up Freddy vs. Jason. I hope that if the new F13 3D ever gets the greenlight; hopefully it will involve an original, scary plot.

The Vampire Diaries: The Return: Midnight

This week I bought the following books: Darkness on the Edge of Town by Brian Keene, A Breath of Magic by Tracy Madison, An Original Sin by Nina Bangs, Crimson City by Liz Maverick; The 5th Witch by Graham Masterton, Brides of the Impaler by Edward Lee; The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker by Leanna Renee Hieber; and The Darkly Luminous Fight for Persephone Parker by Leanna Renee Hieber.

Books in the Mail this week: The Vampire Diaries: The Return: Vol. 3 Midnight by L.J. Smith, Ghost Town by Rachel Caine, and Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stoul, The Journey by Wanda Brunstetter, and Dot.com Dating by Drs. Les & Leslie Parrott.