Eyes to See

Title: Eyes to See (Jeremiah Hunt #1)
Author: Joseph Nassise
Published: October 11th 2011
Synopsis from GoodReads

In an urban fantasy that charts daring new territory in the field, Jeremiah Hunt has been broken by a malevolent force that has taken his young daughter and everything else of value in his life: his marriage, his career, his reputation. Desperate to reclaim what he has lost, Hunt finally turns to the supernatural for justice.

Abandoning all hope for a normal life, he enters the world of ghosts and even more dangerous entities from beyond the grave. Sacrificing his normal sight so that he can see the souls of the dead and the powers that stalk his worst nightmares, Hunt embarks upon a strange new career—a pariah among the living; a scourge among the dead; doomed to walk between the light of day and the deepest darkness beyond night.

His love for his departed daughter sustains him when all is most hopeless, but Hunt is cursed by something more evil than he can possibly imagine. As he descends into the maelstrom of his terrifying quest, he discovers that even his deepest fears are but prelude to yet darker deeds by a powerful entity from beyond the grave…that will not let him go until it has used him for its own nefarious purposes.


"Eyes to See" was sent to me by the publisher for an honest review... and because we all know me... I won't hold back.



Jeremiah Hunt is a blind dude that used to be able to see and worked at Harvard and had a hot lawyer wife, a Nancy Drew reading kid, and a fabulous house in Boston. THat is until one day his little girl disappeared. But who took her? Was it a kidnapper? Did she just wander off? Was it someone in the family? Or was it him?



At least a neighbor lady said it could have been him. But how?



For a couple years the man and wife tried to put on brave faces but realized their lives together had come to an end.



Hunt is going downhill. His life has been engulfed with the mystery of where his little girl has been taken to. If he can't SEE her with his own eyes, then maybe he can see better without them.



In a bizarre sacrifice, Hunt is given the gift to see what you and I can only feel. Those cold spots in the room that make the hair on the back of our neck stand on edge, the sudden sounds off in the distance but have no explanation on where they came, the bumps in the middle of the nigh.... Hunt can see ghosts.



It's been years since the last time he saw her. There's no hope that she might be alive. Sure, he'd like to think that but he's not going to coddle himself. More than likely Elizabeth is dead and with his new 'sight' maybe he'll catch a glimpse of what was taken away from him.



Or maybe it's just an open and shut case... that is... until there's been another murder.


~ Greta's Thoughts ~

What made you want to read this book?
It was compared to Harry Dresden and that made me squee.



Was it anything like that?
Ironically, Hunt did wear a duster like Harry and he helps out with police stuff but that's about it. There wasn't anything fun about this book. I was really hoping for that. Where Harry would make me LOL this book just made me want to give it to a man who watches CSI.



So, this book wasn't for you?
No, it wasn't. I won't watch CSI or LAW AND ORDER or anything where police cars are shown in the background. They uber bore me.



But what about things like SOOKIE and HARRY?
Now, I haven't read all of those but what I enjoyed out of the ones that I did was the humor. This book was just too dry in my opinion.



This book is a horror. Is that what you would consider it?
Is there a difference between Urban Fantasy and Horror? If so, then I think this book was more Urban Fantasy. There weren't any parts that kept me up all night or had me wigging out when the cats were roaming around while I was in bed waiting for the sun to pop up. It just didn't frighten me. Sure there were some creepy parts but nothing that I would consider horror. But, maybe I'm being too picky. IT was however, very imaginative when the creepy parts were played out.



Who do you think would like this book the most?
Definitely fans of CSI type stuff that want a good ghost story. I'm sure they would eat this book right up and give it the proper admiration that this story deserves.



What do you mean by CSI type people?
You know those kinds of people who want technical stuff explained? And then they can counter back with more mumbo jumbo that might go over your heard? And then they can tear it apart even more to see between the lines? Those are the kinds of people who would love this book. As for me. I think I might have been a little too dumb for it. The author, clearly, knows what he's writing and as for me I was having a bit of trouble keeping it all in the ol' noggin.



What about the kids?
I think a 14 year old would do just fine with this book. But if you leary then read it first and see if it's ok for Little Billy.



How was the writing?
I found it to be written quite well. I felt it was drawn out in parts but it was definitely a man's voice for a man's pov. That was nice. And there wasn't very much cussing which I also found a relief.



Overall?
If you are looking for Harry Dresden's twin then this isn't it. BUT! If you are looking for Harry's grumpy cousin who can CSI your brains out, has a knack for some basic witchcraft, and helps the cops out just like Harry... then this book is right yup your alley.



As for me... I'm going to go order a pizza and leave it out for the fairies.

Jackson Pearce: The Famous Author Interview

Greta: Today, we have a famous author floating around the Wastelands! Can you smell her?!! She smells so clean, new, and shiny!

Darkfallen: Dude! Quit smelling her. It's probably wigging her out.

Greta: Oh right.... Sorry 'bout that.

Paranormal Wastelands is proud to present: An interview with Jackson Pearce. Famous author of Sister's Red and Sweetly.




Darkfallen: Hi Jackson!! Welcome to the Wastelands! Take a seat. Greta! Chop chop with the hor' dourves.

Greta: We're out of candy.
Darkfallen: Seriously, we don't have any leftover from Zompacolypse?
Greta: You made me throw it all out after Thanksgiving.
Darkfallen: Oh right.... Well, sorry, you'll just have to feast off our filling questions.

In "Sisters Red" the cat's anem is Screwtape. Screwtape? How did you come up with such a name? Did they like lose a bet when they named that cat? Did it almost get named Hammertapemeasure or something? I mean... what's a screwtape?
Screwtape is named after the CS Lewis book THE SCREWTAPE LETTERS. :)

Darkfallen: Oh, well we aren't that smart. So, Greta, what would you have named him?
Greta: Mr. Cuddles
Darkfallen: Uhhh.... that doesn't sound appropriate
Greta: Oh yeah, and what would you have named him?
Darkfallen: Overlord Snickerdoodle




We absolutely LOVE the idea of using THE FENRIS!! As an avid lover of Red Riding Hood retellings I thought that was most awesome. What made you decide to put THE FENRIS into Sister's Red and why NAME the werewolves that and not just one main wolf?
The Fenris/Fenrir is a Norse wolf monster. I liked the idea of mixing mythology and fairy tales together, since they're sort of like cousins anyhow. I also liked the idea of using an old monster. I'm not the only one that thought it was a good idea, I've realized-- in the Harry Potter series, the Death Eater werewolf is named Fenrir Greyback!

Greta: WOAH! I did not know that about Harry Plopper!
Darkfallen: You mean Spider Pig.
Greta: Oh yeah... SPider Pig

We really wanted to get into the head of A FENRIS. Any plans on doing something like that? Maybe a PETER AND THE WOLF book or something like that?
Probably not. The underlying theme of the series is that humans, by nature are not evil-- they just have evil thrust upon them. My monsters are soulless-- there's nothing but darkness in their heads.

Greta: Kind of like yours, Darkfallen.
Darkfallen: Why thank you... wait... did you just call me stupid?



Scarlett was the urban fantasy badass in my opinion. I was on Team Rosie and Darkfallen was on Team Scarlett. I really liked how she was missing an eye and was bitter because you know...the dang Fenris made her a pirate... but was it your intention to kinda make her like the YA version of the UF type of chicky? Like, I see her getting older, dressing in leather, and going around smacking things with her sword like the adult UF girlies do. Is that her future?
To be honest, I'm not sure what Scarlett's future is. People often ask me-- does she find love, does she stop hunting...but the truth is, Scarlett is fighting for a world without werewolves, which would be a world with no place for her. I'm sure she'll fight to the bitter end, but I'm not sure what that end will be-- or if she'll be wearing leather. :)

Darkfallen: Sigh
Greta: OMG! Quit crushing on her!
Darkfallen: She's just so awesome
Greta: Yeah, I'll say. You freaking wallpapered the walls of the Wastelands with her picture. Where did you find those anyways?
Darkfallen: Oh, I hired an artist.
Greta: With what money?
Darkfallen: Oh just some that I found lying around in a green wallet
Greta: Damn it! That was mine!
Darkfallen: Oops, my bad.





We totally dug how Silas was 20 something and Rosie was 16. We were like "YES!" but we've been told that we're odd. Did you get any guff about that? Silas being an adult and Rosie being a minor?
I get all sorts of guff about that-- mostly from adults. I want to remind them that at 16, they wouldn't have been too concerned if their kind, handsome, awesome boyfriend was 20. :)

Darkfallen and Greta: Fo shizzle!


Darkfallen: So, Jackson, like Greta said, me and her were torn in half over Rosie & Scarlett.

Greta: What the hell? What do you mean like 'I' said? I changed that question to make it look like we both asked that.

Darkfallen: Why did you do that?

Greta: To make it seem more you know.... uhhhh.... Team Us.

Darkfallen: Oh well... sit over there and shut-up while I ask this. As I was saying....
While Greta was lost in swoon-town with Rosie & Silas; I was on the brink of tears over Scarlett. I mean the one thing she despises more than anything is the soulless Fenris, only if you think about she is soulless now. The Fenris stole her soul the day they took everything else. Was that your intent? To split the readers down the middle? And, speaking in code so we don't spoil anything, the ending! Bittersweet work of art. I think that was the part when my heart officially split in two separate halves. Was that your goal?
Scarlett has definitely sacrificed a huge part of her life/heart/soul to hunting the Fenris-- but I wouldn't say the Fenris stole that from her. I think she gave it up willingly to hunt them down. I didn't necessarily have a goal in mind as far as the readers go though-- my goal was to create a character who was deep, conflicted, and perhaps a little dark herself.

Greta: Fine then! I'm going to ask my own personal question. So naaaaaa.

Darkfallen: What does Naaaa mean?

Greta: It's me sticking my tongue out and Naaaaa'ing at you.

Darkfallen: Is that how you spell it?

Greta: I don't know.

Darkfallen: I don't think it's spelled right.

Greta: Well, how would you go about spelling it?

Darkfallen: Not like that. That looks like a dog tried to write.

Greta: Dude! Shush!
Anyways, this question is about Sweetly. First off.... as a Greta I am really really picky about Hansel and Gretel stories. And I super loved that you did it in a good way. No fat German kids pigging out on sundaes like in Bugs Bunny, but 2 teens that got tossed out because of Daddy dying and Step Mommy saying "toodles". Most awesome! But what got me was how you changed the names to ANSEL and GRETCHEN. Gretchen?!!! Did you ever consider the name, GRETA? Gretas of the world want to know ;)

Darkfallen: Sorry Jackson, she has an obsession with her name. *Darkfallen rolls eyes*
Jackson: Haha, nope, it was always Gretchen!

GRETA: What?!! I'm crushed!
Darkfallen: I'm sure you'll live
Greta: No way! I'm devastated.
Darkfallen: And you'll live.
Greta: No I won't! I demand retribution.
Darkfallen: Do you even know what that word means?
Greta: Not really
Darkfallen: You're so lame, you know that?




So, like are the Fenris kind of like a zombie plague? We ask this because Sister's Red takes place in Georgia while Sweetly takes place in South Carolina. Are we doomed to howl at the moon? (not that that's a bad thing)
Nope, the Fenris are everywhere-- but just like any large predator, they do better in areas where they can stay hidden one way or another. Cities and rural areas provide that-- suburbia, it so much.

Darkfallen: Did you hear that?
Greta: Hear what?
Darkfallen: What sound... it sounded like something scratching at the door.
Greta: Do you think it's a....
Darkfallen: I don't know. Go check it out.
Greta: Are you insane! You go check it out.
Darkfallen: Ok.. Ok... Tell you what, let's go together....

*Darkfallen takes a few steps then walks back to the couch leaving Greta to fend for herself and the possible door monster.



Darkfallen: I heard that you learned how to make chocolate before writing this. Did you have any cavities during the making of this novel?
Ugh, I always have cavities. I brush my teeth, but I've got a million!

Darkfallen: Wow! That sounds like Greta's mouth. Hey Greta! You hear that! Your teeth suck!

Greta: *shouting* What? Hey! Where are you?
Darkfallen: Nevermind that... go see what was at the door.



Darkfallen: Greta believes that retelling of fairytales is the next zombie vampire. Do you have any advice out there for the struggling author that is writing their own retelling? Or, you know, how to get an agent to read more than the first 10 pages? lolz
My advice is to read as many different versions of the fairy tale you can find-- and to experiment with different ways of changing the story. Don't be afraid to leave things out or add your own spin; the original fairy tales are your base, not your bible. :)

Darkfallen: YOu hear that Greta!?!
Greta: What?
Darkfallen: Jackson just gave you some useful information.
Greta: What?!!
Darkfallen: Are you done with shooing away with what ever is at our door?
Greta: What?!!..... Ahhhh!!..... What the hell is this thing? Oh snikeys!! Look at it's teeth it's. .....


Darkfallen: Hmmm.... I should probably be concerned but ummm... I'm sure she can handle herself. Thank you Jackson for stopping by the Wastelands. It's been most awesome and I'm sure Greta will have the door cleared of any kind of door monster before you get the coat. We totally love your books. Are are truly a fabu author and we can't wait for more. So tell me... What's next? We know that Fathomless is the title of your next project and from the Goodreads page it says it is going to be the retelling of The Little Mermaid.

*Greta walks with her clothes torn to shreds.

Darkfallen: Hey, Look what the cat drug in!
Greta: That was NOT a cat!!
Darkfallen: So, I'm wrapping things up here.
Greta: What?!! Without me?!!
Darkfallen: You took to damn long.
Greta: But....
Darkfallen: Ok fine, you big baby... you can ask the last question.
Greta: About "Fathomless"
Darkfallen: YUP!

Greta: Ok then, just so you know I'm super excited to see how you modernize this... but am very curious... will we see a seashell bra in this?
No seashell bras! In fact, no clothes at all...hm...

Greta: No way!! Do you think it will get made into a porn?
Darkfallen: You see the things I have to put up with?

THANKS FOR STOPPING BY THE WASTELANDS, JACKSON!!!!!

Unholy Ghosts

Title: Unholy Ghosts (Downside Ghosts #1)
Author: Stacia Kane
Published: 2010
Synopsis from Goodreads

THE DEPARTED HAVE ARRIVED.

The world is not the way it was. The dead have risen, and the living are under attack. The powerful Church of Real Truth, in charge since the government fell, has sworn to reimburse citizens being harassed by the deceased. Enter Chess Putnam, a fully tattooed witch and freewheeling ghost hunter. She’s got a real talent for banishing the wicked dead. But Chess is keeping a dark secret: She owes a lot of money to a murderous drug lord named Bump, who wants immediate payback in the form of a dangerous job that involves black magic, human sacrifice, a nefarious demonic creature, and enough wicked energy to wipe out a city of souls. Toss in lust for a rival gang leader and a dangerous attraction to Bump’s ruthless enforcer, and Chess begins to wonder if the rush is really worth it. Hell, yeah.

I have to admit. I love a good story about an addict. I swear, I'll watch "Intervention" all day long just to learn those addicts stories.... But this book, well, while it did have an addicted heroine (har de har har) the plot rather confused me like uber tons.

Chess is kind of like a ghost bust (in a way). She goes to people's houses to kinda sorta exorcise their ghosts. She works for the Church of Truth which is now the only religion. I think the book was trying to say there is no longer a god and only magic but like I said... I got really confused reading this.

Chess winds up having to work for a drug lord or two to pay off her hefty bill and that's where she runs into Terrible.

Ok oK... HIs name was kinda way too "Black Dagger Brotherhood" for me but he was really interesting and by the end I was swooning for the big lug. Although... Does anyone else out there think he was Canadian? He had a funny way of talking and kept saying "AYE" a lot... and not like the swoony Highlander "AYE" (I) but I think we were supposed to say "AYE" (a) like "Got some maple syrup, aye?"

At least that's what I took from it.

The first 150 pages are sooo super duper out there that I had such a hard time connecting with the book. But I trudged through it because I was told by a couple people that is was necessary. It does get better but I still found myself getting confused by characters that popped up in the beginning of the story then multiple chapters later popped up there.

I did like the chapter sizes, though. I found it easy to read a chapter (about 10 pages) and then go sweep the floor or something so I wouldn't get too bored (like I said... it's rather hard for me to read a book that's confusing like this one)

As I said earlier, Chess is a drug addict but I found her way to "In control". I mean, I would think with all the dope she was doing that she would be high as a kite and drooling on herself but she kinda went into HOUSE mode and was able to pop this and that and then go hunt monsters. I probably would have been drooling on myself.

I think people who enjoy UF and Scooby Doo type mystery machine books with a dose of Intervention would really dig this book. While this probably won't be my favorite, I do wonder about the next one in hopes that Terrible will pop up and make me go RAWR!