Loch Ness Monster – Shade and the Crystal Orb by Marilyn Peake #MarilynPeake

Posted on April 8, 2022 by fundinmental

Shade and the Crystal Orb is the finale for the series by Marilyn Peake. I have enjoyed my adventures with her and look forward to what comes next for Marilyn.

Shade and the Crystal Orb (Shade Series, #6)

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Shade and Kai are off to school…senior year at Ocean View College. Shade is a Ghost Whisperer and Kai is an empath. They are BFFs.

We are off to a good start. Shade has the same roommate, Carrie, who went to Romania with her, and they are in the same dorm room, #58. The familiar gives her confidence, makes her feel more comfortable coming back.

I love going to dinner with them. The servers and guests…well, ya have to read it to enjoy it as much as I did. Put a smile on my face, cracking me up. Yeah, it does bring to mind Harry Potter, but that just makes it easier to visualize and makes it that much more enjoyable.

Shade will be studying Kelpies this year and is off to Scotland for a research project. Her friend Li will be accompanying her. Will they see the Loch Ness Monster?

Kelpies are shapeshifting spirits inhabiting the lochs in Scottish folklore. It is usually described as a black horselike creature able to adopt human form. I love the shapeshifter that can become whatever she wants, whether whale, dolphin, fish… We have selkies, which are seal shapeshifters. That’s pretty darn cool too.

“The magical world is as complex as the real world.”

Things are going too smoothly and I am waiting for the proverbial other shoe to drop. I hope my spidey sense are wrong, but what would be the story in that?

Then, POW. Marilyn, you rocked my boat. I am amazed.

Marilyn Peake’s writing is enthralling, riveting. I cannot look away.

There are six books in the Shade series and I am sad to see it end. The books are not filled with gore, erotica, or savagery, but draw the reader into circumstances and characters and we have to know how it will end…and talk about surprises…the stories about the Loch Ness Monster are true, but..

I love how Shade came full circle.

I cannot imagine how Marilyn Peake could have done any better. The finale hit all the buttons and I am sure my review did not do it justice. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVED IT!

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Shade and the Crystal Orb by Marilyn Peake.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos — 5 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Crystal orbs are tricky things. They can be windows into the future or nothing more than smoke and mirrors.

During the first semester of her senior year at Ocean View College, Shade takes a class on the kelpies and begins researching their situation. This group of magical beings is confined to a very small area of the Earth: the lochs and pools of Scotland. The Blue Men of the Minch or storm kelpies are confined to an even smaller area: the stretch of water between the northern Outer Hebrides and mainland Scotland. The kelpies are considered dangerous. Having the power to control weather, they’ve been blamed for storms and shipwrecks. Shade wonders if they’ve been falsely accused and turned into scapegoats.

At the beginning of their second semester senior year, Shade and her friend Li Zhang receive financial grants to go over to Scotland to complete a research project on the kelpies. While there, they meet a number of these magical beings. Things take a dangerous turn when Shade and Li get swept up in a situation among the kelpies and two other magical groups, the Fin Folk and asrai. When Shade and Li meet Nessie the Loch Ness Monster, things take twists and turns that forever change the lives of everyone at Ocean View College.

SHADE AND THE CRYSTAL ORB is Book #6 in a YA Paranormal Mystery / YA Urban Fantasy series. This is the final novel in the main storyline of the SHADE series.

ABOUT MARILYN PEAKE

Marilyn Peake is the author of both novels and short stories. Her publications have received excellent reviews. Marilyn’s one of the contributing authors in BOOK: THE SEQUEL, published by The Perseus Books Group, with one of her entries included in serialization at THE DAILY BEAST. In addition, Marilyn has served as Editor of a number of anthologies. Her short stories have been published in seven anthologies and on the literary blog, GLASS CASES.

Awards: Silver Award, two Honorable Mentions and eight Finalist placements in the ForeWord Magazine Book of the Year Awards, two Winner and two Finalist placements in the EPPIE Awards, Winner of the Dream Realm Awards, and eight Top Ten Finisher Awards in the Preditors and Editors Readers Poll.

Stalk Marilyn Peake: Website / Twitter

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Dinosaur Lake by Kathryn Meyer Griffith – Creature Dines on Crater Lake Smorgasbord

Posted on March 15, 2013 by fundinmental

Dinosaur Lake by Kathryn Meyer Griffith

An awesome and amazing cover to go along with an awesome and amazing book. I love monster books and movies. Not much can beat Godzilla, Sharktopus, Anaconda, Jaws, Jurassic Park……on a weekend afternoon.

I can definitely see this as a movie!

Add To Goodreads

Crater Lake was formed by a volcano. When Mount Mazama erupted, it left a caldera. It filled with rain and snow, making it into the lake it is today.

Henry’s friend and fellow ranger, George Redcrow, thought it was warming since the earthquake two years ago. They both wondered what damage had been done under the lake.

While showing tourists the lake, another earthquake hit. Henry looked around for any damage. He loved dinosaurs. He read all the Godzilla and Jurassic Park books, so when he spotted the bones, he thought he would come back later and check them out. They looked too big for a bear.

In the morning, Henry ran into George. George told him he had been out to the island and found a lot of carcasses. They were surrounded by monster sized tracks that looked like nothing he had ever seen before. Henry thought back to yesterday. A woman had been telling him about her friend that had visited the Park the year before. Her friend had told her she saw the Lock Ness Monster in the lake.

Henry called in a Paleontologist from John Day Fossil Beds National Monument. Dr. Justin Maltin introduced himself to Henry and told him he didn’t know what kind of bones they were. He had never seen fossils like these, ever. Justin talked about his concern for any damage under the lake. They agreed to meet for dinner to discuss the situation further.

Justin told Henry the water temp was still rising and there was ongoing volcanic activity. It was not inconceivable that it could destroy the Park. What upset him the most was a huge track he had found. If it were real, it was from a creature he had never seen before.

Justin believed that dinosaurs were extinct because they couldn’t coexist with humans. Some were just too vicious. Think of King Kong and what happened to him. Or the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park.

With all the changes around the lake due to the earthquake, could it be possible?

If so, where did it live? How would they find it? What would they do once they did find it?

5 STARS – Would Buy It For Them (lol)

I found the book full of suspense and anticipation. The writing led me into the story and never let me go. The book was so good, I didn’t want to quit reading. What was going to happen? What were they going to do? I started reading it too late, otherwise I would have read it straight through.

It captured enough details of the characters daily activities to allow me to imagine their lives and know them as if they were my neighbors. I like that it included things about the current economy and joblessness. It seems I am reading a lot of books that talk about current events. It makes the stories seem real to me.

Henry and Justin were both concerned about damage to the park when the news came out. What would happen to the Park when it was invaded by seekers of the creature? Americans are known in other countries as being rude and crude, disrespectful of the environments around them.

Henry calls it Godzilla. I love it. Some of my best weekend afternoons have been spent watching cheesy B rated monster shows. I think they are a blast to watch and I find I get into the books even more so. If there is a creature on the cover, I want the book. I am rarely disappointed.

They search the caves for a voracious meat-eater – Jack in the Box.

I loved the book and look forward to reading more from this author.

I received this book in return for an honest and unbiased review.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

I’ve been writing for over 41 years now…published for 30 of those years since 1984; have EIGHTEEN novels, 2 novellas and 12 short stories to my name…and more coming. Aug. 30, 2012: I (first time ever!) SELF-PUBLISHED MY 16TH NOVEL *DINOSAUR LAKE* TO AMAZON KINDLE DIRECT! January 2013 I SELF-PUBLISHED MY 17TH NOVEL *HUMAN NO LONGER*, my fourth vampire novel. Also in January 2013 I self-published my rereleased murder mystery (originally a 2003 Avalon Books hardcover) SCRAPS OF PAPER-Revised Author’s Edition and FOUR SPOOKY SHORT STORIES, a collection of 4 horror/romantic horror short stories.

I write traditional supernatural horror, SF horror, romantic time-travel, murder mysteries and paranormal romance. I’ve been writing about ghosts, ancient Egyptian spirits, haunted places and evil vampires WAY LONG BEFORE Stephanie Meyer (no relation to me even though my maiden name is Meyer) and the rest of the vampire author crowd, ha, ha. And now ALL 15 of my older Zebra, Leisure paperbacks, Avalon Books murder mysteries and my Wild Rose Press books have been revised, reprinted and rereleased for the first time in many years (and in e-books for the first time ever) from DAMNATION BOOKS www.damnationbooks.com and ETERNAL PRESS www.eternalpress.biz and AMAZON KINDLE DIRECT. Yippie! So look for them.

I’m a wife of almost 35 years (husband, Russell), mother (one son, James) and grandmother (two grandchildren, Caitlyn and Joshua). I was a graphic designer in the corporate world for 23 years; and have published with Dorchester, Kensington, Avalon Books, The Wild Rose Press, Amazon Kindle Direct, Damnation Books and Eternal Press, and Amazon Publishing. Six years ago I crossed over into e-books as well as paperbacks and now ALL my old/new books are in ebooks…and soon to be in AUDIO BOOKS from ACX. I love cats and nature, classic rock and country music (my brother, JS Meyer www.jsmeyermusic.com, is a singer/songwriter and does the songs for all my self-made book trailers that are on my websites). VISIT me at www.myspace.com/kathrynmeyergriffith or www.bebo.com/kathrynmeyerG or www.authorsden.com/kathrynmeyergriffith to see all my book covers and trailers.

My published books: (ALL OF THESE OUT AGAIN…PLEASE LOOK FOR THEM!) Human No Longer (2013),Dinosaur Lake (SF horror), Scraps of paper-Revised Author’s Edition, Evil Stalks the Night (supernatural horror), Leisure 1984; The Heart of the Rose (historical romance) Leisure 1985; Blood Forge (supernatural horror), Leisure 1989; Vampire Blood (romantic supernatural horror), Zebra 1991; The Last Vampire (supernatural horror), Zebra 1992; Witches (romantic horror), Zebra 1993 & Pinnacle 2000; a novella called The Nameless One in Dark Seductions, an erotic horror anthology, Kensington, 1993; The Calling (supernatural horror), Zebra 1994. The Nameless One, a short erotic novella in the 1994 Zebra Anthology Dark Seductions. And Scraps of Paper (hardcover mystery) Avalon Books, 2003; All Things Slip Away, the second mystery in the series came out also from Avalon Books in February 2006 and now both are out again from Amazon and both in ebooks for the first time ever. And my three novels and two short stories from The Wild Rose Press are out again from ETERNAL PRESS: Egyptian Heart(ancient Egyptian time travel romance); Winter’s Journey(a romantic suspense novel); The Ice Bridge, (a contemporary romance e-novel with a dose of murder mystery) and two ghostly short stories, Don’t Look Back, Agnes and In This House. BEFORE THE END: A Time of Demons, an apocalyptic saga from Damnation Books, June 2010. THE WOMAN IN CRIMSON, a vampire eternal love story, is out now from ETERNAL PRESS http://www.eternalpress.biz. The Complete Guide to Writing Paranormal Fiction: Volume 1 (I did the Introduction) 2011 and Telling Tales of Horror 2012(I did the chapter on Putting the Occult into your Fiction)***

Website

These are just a few of the many books published by Kathryn Meyer Griffith. Click on the cover to purchase, or be taken to Amazon for more of her books.

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The Monster Has Arrived In the Delta – Review

Posted on August 31, 2012 by fundinmental

Delta Legend by Kelan O’Connell

BLURB

When I first picked this book up all I saw was a monster in the water, super, right up my alley. I love these stories. As I read along, it became apparent it was much more than that. Kelan did a great job with the small town descriptions and details of the people lives that brings them together to save their town and themselves, detailing their acts of heroism, growth and change, bringing out the best in people.

Calvin was mechanically inclined and from early on he had been able to make broken things work, to take something apart and put it back to working order. He was the McGyver of the Ghetto.

He knew it was wrong to go out with Rashawn, his childhood friend, but he did it anyway. Rashawn had talked him in to hot wiring his Escalade, said it was his ride and he wanted it back. It had been impounded. Of course, they got busted. Angela, Calvin’s mother didn’t expect this kind of problem from Calvin because he had a mind of his own and didn’t follow the pack. She knew it had to be because of his loyalty to Rashawn. In Juvenile court, the judge told Calvin cocaine had been found in the car.

Angela was sending him away for the summer. His Uncle Samuel had a place in the Delta and he was to go there and give him a hand in his shop. Angela kept his Ipod and cellphone and put him on the bus to the Delta.

Samuel wasn’t too sure about having Calvin for the summer, but what could he do? He had a soft spot for his niece and her take no prisoners attitude. Calvin, with his mechanical abilities, might come in handy at Samuel’s Maritime Repair Shop.

When Samuel picked up Calvin at the Greyhound Terminal, he offered his hand. He liked that Calvin had a good handshake. It said a lot about him. He knew Calvin would feel like he had come to the end of the earth, but he hoped he would come to love the Delta just like Samuel had.

Samuel turned suddenly and drove down a dirt road to a produce stand. He thought Calvin would follow him out of the truck, but he ended up introducing him to the Cheng’s through the truck window. Mei-Li worked the stand with her mother and was happy to have a distraction. Dent, Mei-Li’s younger brother, quickly won Calvin over. As they pulled away from the stand, Calvin couldn’t help but look back and saw Mei-Li watching as they drove away.

Calvin and Jess were sitting in the cafe when someone came roaring up to the gas dock in their boat. It was obvious something was very wrong. They were shouting at the sheriff that he had to come see what they found – a woman’s mutilated head. As they tore off heading to Desperation Slough, Jess led Calvin on a tour of the marina.

Jess took Calvin out on the water in the ski boat. When he radioed his mother to let her know, she knew he would be heading out to Desperation Slough. Calvin liked the speed of the boat as he sat on the back of the seat. Not bad, he thought.

As they passed a huge freighter, they rode the wake, flying through the air. Speed, machine, water. Calvin was really beginning to enjoy the day.

They kept going toward the Slough passing the rich boys on the way and came up on the Casa del Agua, which was overdue back at the marina. Jess thought it looked empty, but it was one of theirs and late, so they stopped to check it out. There was music playing and melted drinks and the dingy was gone, so Jess just figured they left the boat for lunch and headed on to Desperation Slough. As they reached the area of the Sheriff’s boat, Jess kept his distance, but picked up the binoculars to watch the sheriff scooping things from the water – body parts. As he watched, he saw them pull something red from the water and realized it was the dingy from the Casa del Agua. Jess called Sergeant Ray Cruz and told him he thought it was the rich Vegas couple who had rented the Casa del Agua. Jess figured it wasn’t a boat accident, there was no way a propeller would chop them up like that.

Crawfish : Single vector lobster isolated on white background.

When Heustus left the Crawdaddy Club drunk, Danny had kept his keys. He didn’t realize Huestus had a spare in his pocket. As he zigzagged down the road trying to light a cigarette, he didn’t see the turn and drove right into the levee. He was so drunk he got out to check under the hood, not realizing he was standing in water. The lights were still on and he saw something unusual in the water that sobered him up. He dove through the window of the car, but before he could pull his legs in, he was pulled back out of the car.

As Calvin settled in, he found it wasn’t so bad. He liked working in the shop, alone, late at night. He even got used to the quiet, with just the hum of the insects.

As Samuel finished up his phone call, Calvin was prowling around in the back of the shop. He uncovered an old Yamaha Wave Runner. Samuel told him he could have it to work on as long as the paying jobs came first. He told Calvin that Jess could probably help him, if he needed it. Jess invited Calvin skiing and used the loan of the tools to get him to show up. When Mei-Li arrived he tried to back out, but she was not going to have it. Jess smiled to himself as he started the boat.

When they came back in another dead body was being bagged. They were beginning to add up.

A lot of the kids would be going to One Plank – the huge summer party. Even though some were forbidden to go, they snuck out anyway. Ray had the sheriff’s boat out , just close enough, in case of an emergency. Him and Burt, his deputy, were patrolling the area, but saw nothing unusual. He knew what was going on, had been at the party himself many years ago. It was harmless enough, just kids letting off steam.

Three of the kids wandered off on their own to a secluded cove. They were skinny dipping and playing Marco Polo. When Stocky jumped off the diving raft, he jumped right into the monster’s mouth. What was it? The screaming brought the rest of the kids to the cove.

When the creature attacked them, Calvin couldn’t figure out why it didn’t eat them – the monster and Mei-Li were eye to eye and it left them to return to the cove.

Then Mei-Li took them to her grandfather who proceeded to tell them about the legend.

5 STARS

I won this book in a Giveaway on fuonlyknew’s blog. Thank you Kelan and Laura for the giveaway. It included some good swag.

I love creature stories, so it’s easy for me to rate this one very high. The cover was over the top. Simple, yet complex, as you delve into the eye trying to see what’s there. The cover and title related well to the book, it’s important to me that they do.

I really got a feel for the small town setting, where the cafe seemed to be the focal point and you could hear what was going on. The cops even hung out there. I used to visit a small southern town in Mississippi, and their local hangout was a gas station, where everyone would meet, drink colas and play checkers. Very quaint.

Characters were well developed, seemed very real, and I could picture them in my mind. I could relate to them. Some of the characters were hateful and disgusting, others so much like your next door neighbor. Just living their lives. When Kelan described Huestes as a Weeble, I busted out laughing . It brought back memories of buying them for my son when he was young. Can’t you just picture Huestes? “Weebles wobble, but they don’t fall down.”

Laid a good base in the first half to crank it out in the second half.The suspense kept building and I kept waiting for the creature to appear. Every time someone went near the water, I was waiting for the monster to get them. Just like Jaws. Don’t go in the water. How many times do you have to be told, don’t go in the water. LOL!

Just like the Loch Ness Monster, Bigfoot, Aliens……would you believe it if someone was trying to tell you what happened if you weren’t there to see it for yourself?

There were two surprises at the end, one I saw coming and I figured Kelan threw that one in to distract me from the other one, which I didn’t see coming. lol Even though there is a Book II, this tied things up nicely, while leaving it open enough to continue the story. I can hardly wait to find out what happens next, so I hope you are busy writing, Kelan.

The history leading to the legend was well-developed and detailed, going in to depth about Chinese history in relation to building the Transcontinental Railroad System and the Sacramento – San Joaquin Delta.

I can absolutely see this as a movie. As I was reading along, the scenes played out in my mind as the story unfolded. I saw the ending as if I was watching it.

ABOUT KELAN O’Connell

As a young adult, Kelan O’Connell spent her summers aboard a family houseboat in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Apparently, she still harbors suspicions about those deep murky waters. Though she’s been writing in one form or another since the age of 20, Delta Legend is her debut Young Adult Crossover novel.

Kelan began writing in college, creating character monologues as a way to stand out in auditions while also cranking out sketch comedy. She holds a degree in Theatre Arts from San Francisco State University and has worked in the Entertainment Industry in Northern California and Los Angeles, among her many other day jobs.

She currently lives in Northern California with her partner, Sound Engineer/Producer Tom Size, and the incredibly spoiled pets of Camp Runamuck.

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/Kelan_OConnell

Be sure to visit Kelan’s blog: http://kelanoconnell.blogspot.com

and the Delta Legend website: http://deltalegend.com