Month: June 2016

Cover Reveal | #CoorahCreek my beloved Outback series by Janet Gover, has a lovely NEW BOOK! This is the third in the series set in a small towne you’d love to call home!

Posted Thursday, 30 June, 2016 by jorielov , , , 4 Comments

Stories Sailing into View Banner created by Jorie in Canva.

If your a regular reader or frequent visitor of Jorie Loves A Story, you know I’ve been smitten with the novelists who publish their relationship-based Romances with ChocLitUK for a good two years now! I love being on the cusp of learning about a ‘new release’ whilst I remain patient to see if the Digital First new ChocLit novel will make it to a print release further down the road of it’s lifetime. I don’t mind the gaps between the ebooks and the print editions – as it’s always given me the pleasure of balancing my ‘next ChocLit reads’ to include both Front List and Back List offerings. Thus, I am enjoying being a member of the Reveal Team at ChocLit whilst it gives me a chance to introduce my readers to a variety of sub-genres within Romance I appreciate picking up to read!

On my new position as a ChocLit Star member: Whilst I am part of the ChocLit Reviewers having brought reviews & guest author features to Jorie Loves A Story for the past two years, I have recently become a part of the Cover Reveal Team, as disclosed when I hosted the first Reveal on behalf of Sheryl Browne’s ‘Learning to Love’. This new team works with ChocLit providing honest feedback on ‘projects’ such as title & book cover design choices as well projects in development on behalf of the publisher. I accepted being a ChocLit Star as I felt my love of the stories would be a good fit to give in-depth responses to the projects pitched to the Stars. Therefore, when I blogged about the cover for “Revenge is Sweet” it was the first reveal where my input as a ChocLit Star helped the reveal become possible!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Celebrating the Coorah Creek series by Janet Gover

This is one of those lovely series which simply sweeps you into it’s heart and never quite let’s you go once  you’ve become entrenched into the lives of the residents of Coorah Creek! This charmingly small Outback towne is on the outskirts of everything but holds within it’s folds the beauty of community & the togetherness of family which extends itself into your life through close-knit friendships with people who genuinely care about your well-being. It’s the kind of place where you can take your baggage from life and find a caring place to heal whilst you transition forward into a new chapter where everything becomes possible again, simply because you’ve changed your setting & taken a chance on a towne that has more going for it than meets the eye.

My love of Coorah Creek has been widely blogged & tweeted about since I first laid eyes on ‘Flight to Coorah Creek’ (see Review) two years ago – as it gave me such a sweet hankering for a Contemporary Western Romance within the setting of this amazing place in a country I’ve been charmed by since I was a young girl! I grew up with Westerns – in both films and stories, fully in love with the companionship & workmanship surrounding horses, whilst enjoying the reprieve from reality getting caught inside the lives of those who either fought to carve out a new life on the wilds of the Frontier or tried to homestead their way into a new chapter of their ancestral saga.

Coorah Creek marked the first foray I had into Australian Outback fiction – granting me a new appreciation for Australian Literature, and a heart-warming story that treated me to such wonderfully crafted characters by an author who dearly knows how to capture everything you hope to find inside of a Contemporary story whilst anchouring you to the natural beauty surrounding her setting. It’s such a deeply enriched balance – it makes returning to Coorah Creek so wicked sweet for me, as the only story in the series I have thus far gone without reading or listening too is ‘Christmas at Coorah Creek’ which is not yet in audio or print.

I do elude to how Ms Gover treats us diehard series readers to inside information about this novella as she firms together the missing bits inside the second installment ‘The Wild One’. Thus, I consider this new title the third book in the series, but the fourth story of the overall saga. I dearly hope to have a good listen to the novella one day (*fingers crossed* it goes to Audiobook!) whilst re-reading the series start to finish; not that I am ever quite prepared for ‘the final chapter’ of Coorah Creek; I am sure at some point, there will come the time where the last chapter is revealled. It’s just hard to find characters such as these and a setting you feel so dearly attached too – this is one reason I have a penchant for serial fiction; you don’t have to retreat & leave everyone so quickly as you do in one-offs!

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Posted Thursday, 30 June, 2016 by jorielov in Australian Literature, Blog Tour Host, Book Cover Reveal, Book Spotlight, ChocLitUK, Indie Author, Romance Fiction, Small Towne Fiction, Western Fiction, Western Romance

Blog Book Tour | “Gray Widow’s Walk” (No.1 of Gray Widow Trilogy) by Dan Jolley Jorie reads her 2nd #SuperheroFiction novel!

Posted Sunday, 26 June, 2016 by jorielov , , , 0 Comments

Ruminations & Impressions Book Review Banner created by Jorie in Canva.

Acquired Book By:

I was selected to be a stop on the “Gray Widow’s Walk” blog tour from Seventh Star Press. The tour is hosted by Tomorrow Comes Media who does the publicity and blog tours for Seventh Star Press and other Indie and/or Self Published authors.

I received a complimentary copy of “Gray Widow’s Walk” direct from the publisher Seventh Star Press in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Why I wanted to take a second foray into ‘Superhero Fiction’:

Aside from my obvious affection for the #AwesomeJones series by AshleyRose Sullivan (see Review) you could say I’ve had a hankering for a sequel and/or a completely new slice of Superhero Fiction to take a bite out of whilst I’m awaiting the forementioned series to return! In addition, on the small screen I’ve become so entranced by the new SuperGirl series I can only hope the transition to a new network doesn’t prove fatal for it’s longevity and the integrity of the series remains true to it’s core; as noted on my Twitter Profile I self-declared I’m SuperGirl’s BFF! You could say I have a classic appreciation for certain superheroes and the legacy approach to continuing their stories; as to me, SuperGirl honours the legacy of her universe whilst bringing it forward into the 21st Century.

I caught sight of Gray Widow’s Walk earlier in the year whereupon I chose to contact the author via Twitter – as part of me questioned if this was a complete step outside my zone of comfort and/or slightly this side of the line to where I could lay my hat inside the universe Jolley created!

It’s always a good rule of thumb to contact an author if your on the fence about one of their stories and/or their debut; this is something I’ve started to get into the habit of doing since I began a book blogger, as much as finding Twitter is the bridge of equality between readers and authors directly. I cannot express how many times I’ve randomly reached out to authors; either who have found me or of whom I have found myself (via their tweets, my local library, another book blogger’s blog, Shelf Awareness, author and/or publisher newsletters or [insert] the myriad collective route I take through bookish news as a possibility!) on Twitter for a spontaneous convo either straight into our respective feeds or through DM. Sometimes I like to opt for a convo privately if it’s a questionable genre choice of mine, where I feel I have more freedom to articulate my concerns, as the word count is blessedly absent!

This is why I was full of gratitude to Mr Jolley (as expressed in this tweet) for taking a moment out of his hectic Hollywood meet & greet tour (on a potential project in development) to chat with me for a short spell! His honest feedback and method of illuminating an analogy of character development through another series (Jessica Jones) provided me with stellar fodder to chew whilst I made my final thoughts in regards to being tempted to read this novel or whether to take a pass on it. I watched the trailer for Jessica Jones even though my computer is deaf due to a lightning surge last Summer, I was able to gather the vibe about her fierce confidence and independent nature!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Here’s what truly stood out to me:

I wanted to ask you about Gray Widow — as I am a sensitive reader, are the darker elements in the story something a cosy girl could handle? I’m not into outright gore or anything and I’m not keen on a lot of strong language but do make exceptions if it’s not a norm but included here or there.

Jolley responds: Hmmm…the coarse language is not pervasive, so you should be okay there. A lot of the parts with the central antagonist, however, do get awfully intense–he’s the “horror” part of the book. It’s not overwhelming, though. Maybe if you read the parts with Simon knowing there’s something coming, you can prepare for it?

Gore intense or just psychologically intense? I can handle psychological intensity. Can you relate a film to the same level of emotional intensity, I might be able to know then if I could handle it. Good to know about the language!!

Jolley responds: I think, at its most chilling, it’s a bit like Se7en. I hope you do decide to give it a shot, though, because I’m very proud of Janey as a character, and I think she’ll resonate with a lot of people.

I never saw Se7en but I did see “The Bone Collector” with Angelina Jolie. I think those two are spoken about in the same line of breadth for chilliness so in this case, I think I’ll be alright! This is the upper tier of what I could handle, though. Thus, it will definitely push me a bit out of my comfort zones which is a good thing because I like doing that! I have the tendency to seek out literature that will challenge me – I am only cautious because I do get *freaked out of my skull* quite easily, but knowing this going in, I’ll know there will be bits of the story that will chill my bones!

I fell for the premise and I agree, Janey by appearances is writ strong and the type of girl you can stand behind as there is this layer of unknown she’s not even thinking of realising is at play in the overall scheme of things.

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

I am sharing this snippet of our conversation as a precursor of my review, if on the odd chance your a reader similar to me whose cautiously curious about new genres & new ways to bend a story into a new dialogue of exploration but aren’t entirely sure you can handle the components of the story — this will give you a good idea about my process as a reader & how I try to ask pertinent questions to flesh out whether or not I can handle reading a novel that may or may not previously have crossed my mind to read but has curiously caught my eye to read now! In other words, I purposely remain open-minded in regards to Literature’s corridors. Even if I run into disappointments, I never regret being open to new ideas and new styles of crafting a story.

As an aside, when Mr Jolley broached if I had ever attended a ComicCon, I had the sudden realisation I had completely missed an opportunity! I have future plans to attend book conventions, literary festivals, Steampunk conventions and literary symposiums but a ComicCon? I clearly overlooked something quite obvious – as being able to attend my second Sci-Fi Convention has been a goal of mine since I met Jonathan Frakes and Peter David in 1997!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Notation on Cover Art: One of my initial questions regarding this novel was about the cover art design; most specifically the shadowy & ominous background for which the Gray Widow is highlighted in the foreground; I elected not to reveal what Mr Jolley told me as he hadn’t spoilt it for me but clued me in a bit to what it wasn’t – as let’s just say I thought it parlayed closer to what a ‘widow’ might be in the world of ‘insects’ but it was actually a foreshadow to a larger part of the plot! From a ‘first look’ perspective I did not quite see it the same way; ergo, it was quite ingenious for those who are entering this story outside of reading Comic Books & Superhero Fiction as a mainstay of their literary wanderings! Keeps us guessing!

The tech of the suit for the Gray Widow is truly what caught my attention – that is one seriously creatively designed suit for a superhero, isn’t it? I could see how stealth & flexible the material was meant to jolt her through her actions but it’s just seriously a kickin’ wicked outfit! I also presumed she had some martial arts in her background given the weapons of choice in her hands!

Blog Book Tour | “Gray Widow’s Walk” (No.1 of Gray Widow Trilogy) by Dan Jolley Jorie reads her 2nd #SuperheroFiction novel!Gray Widow's Walk

“The only thing in this world you can truly control is yourself.”

Janey Sinclair’s ability to teleport has always been a mystery to her. She tried for years to ignore it, but when tragedy shatters her life, Janey’s anger consumes her. She hones her fighting skills, steals a prototype suit of military body armor, and takes to the streets of Atlanta, venting her rage as the masked vigilante dubbed “the Gray Widow” by the press.

But Janey’s power, and her willingness to use it, plunges her into a conflict on a much grander scale than she had anticipated.

Soon she encounters Simon Grove, a bloodthirsty runaway with a shapeshifting ability gone horribly wrong…

Garrison Vessler, an ex-FBI agent and current private defense contractor, who holds some of the answers Janey’s been searching for…

And Tim Kapoor, the first person in years with a chance of breaking through Janey’s emotional shell—if she’ll let him.

But as Janey’s vigilantism gains worldwide attention, and her showdown with Simon Grove draws ever closer, the reason for her augmented abilities—hers and all the others like her—begins to reveal itself. Because, high above the Earth, other eyes are watching. And they have far-reaching plans…

Gray Widow’s Walk is Book One of the Gray Widow Trilogy, to be followed by Gray Widow’s Web and Gray Widow’s War.


Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 9781941706398

on 13th May, 2016

Pages: 344

Published By: Seventh Star Press (@7thStarPress)
Available Formats: Softcover, E-book

Converse via: #GrayWidowsWalk + #GrayWidowTrilogy & #7thStar

About Dan Jolley

Dan Jolley

Dan Jolley started writing professionally at age nineteen. Beginning in comic books, he has since branched out into original novels, licensed-property novels, children’s books, and video games.

His twenty-five-year career includes the YA sci-fi/espionage trilogy Alex Unlimited; the award-winning comic book mini-series Obergeist; the Eisner Award-nominated comic book mini-series JSA: The Liberty Files; and the Transformers video games War for Cybertron and Fall of Cybertron.

Dan was co-writer of the world-wide-bestselling zombie/parkour game Dying Light, and lead writer of the Oculus Rift game Chronos. Dan lives somewhere in the northwest Georgia foothills with his wife Tracy and a handful of largely inert cats. Gray Widow’s Walk is his first adult novel.

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Posted Sunday, 26 June, 2016 by jorielov in Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Bookish Discussions, Content Note, Crime Fiction, Debut Novel, Fantasy Fiction, Genre-bender, Horror, Indie Author, Life Shift, Science Fiction, Seventh Star Press, Speculative Fiction, Superhero Adventure, Superhero Fiction, Suspense, Tomorrow Comes Media, True Crime, Twitter convo with Author ahead of reading story, Urban Fantasy, Vulgarity in Literature

Book Review | “The Golden Chain” (Charton Minster No.2) by Margaret James #ChocLitSaturdays

Posted Saturday, 25 June, 2016 by jorielov , , , 0 Comments

ChocLitSaturdays Banner Created by Jorie in Canva.

Why I feature #ChocLitSaturdays (book reviews & guest author features)
and created #ChocLitSaturday (the chat via @ChocLitSaturday):

I wanted to create a bit of a niche on Jorie Loves A Story to showcase romance fiction steeped in relationships, courtships, and the breadth of marriage enveloped by characters written honestly whose lives not only endear you to them but they nestle into your heart as their story is being read!

I am always seeking relationship-based romance which strikes a chord within my mind’s eye as well as my heart! I’m a romantic optimist, and I love curling into a romance where I can be swept inside the past, as history becomes lit alive in the fullness of the narrative and I can wander amongst the supporting cast observing the principal characters fall in love and sort out if they are a proper match for each other!

I love how an Indie Publisher like ChocLitUK is such a positive alternative for those of us who do not identify ourselves as girls and women who read ‘chick-lit’. I appreciate the stories which alight in my hands from ChocLit as much as I appreciate the inspirational romances I gravitate towards because there is a certain level of depth to both outlets in romance which encourage my spirits and gives me a beautiful story to absorb! Whilst sorting out how promote my book reviews on behalf of ChocLit, I coined the phrase “ChocLitSaturdays”, which is a nod to the fact my ChocLit reviews & features debut on ‘a Saturday’ but further to the point that on the ‘weekend’ we want to dip into a world wholly ideal and romantic during our hours off from the work week!

Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

Acquired Book By: I am a regular reviewer for ChocLitUK, where I hand select which books in either their backlist and/or current releases I would like to read next for my #ChocLitSaturdays blog feature. As of June 2016, I became a member of the ChocLit Stars Team in tandem with being on the Cover Reveal Team which I joined in May 2016. I reference the Stars as this is a lovely new reader contribution team of sending feedback to the publisher ahead of new book releases. As always, even if I’m involved with a publisher in this sort of fashion, each review is never influenced by that participation and will always be my honest impression as I read the story. Whether the author is one I have previously read or never had the pleasure to read until the book greets my shelf.

I received a complimentary copy of “The Golden Chain” from ChocLit in exchange for an honest review! I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein. It should be noted ‘The Golden Chain’ was requested prior to the two teams I joined on behalf of ChocLitUK. I simply have become more active with the Reveal Team & begun my journey as a ChocLit Star in-between receiving this novel and the day my review posts.

Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

Why Jorie Loves reading the Charton Minster series:

Ms James has such a keen writerly talent for inserting us straight into the Nineteen Hundreds as if we were always meant to re-visit them with such felicity of spirit and moxie as the story of Rose Courtenay translates inside The Silver Locket! I love the expressions and the centreing of this timescape, she does well to include a breath of pause for the traditionalism and the society conventions of the day, allowing us to see the full scope of what is causing Rose the most duress.

The background of the story is cross-set between the small countryside area of Dorset where Rose’s family estate resides and London; as the story first introduces us to her family before moving straight into the heart of war, where nurses are in limited supply! The moxie it would have taken for an eighteen year old not weathered on life or experience to embrace a full-on charge of nursing rotations is hard to get your mind around until you meet Rose Courtenay, who proves everyone is able to do far more than they originally dare possible! Ms James definitely sets a high standard for war dramas and for the glimpses of an era beseeched by war and the after effects of how war changes everyone involved.

How Ms James was able to write such convincingly real passages of WWI straight from the trenches to the field units for the nursing staff, I am unsure; as she is one historical author who grants you such a harrowing view of what it must have felt like to be there. Research is brilliant but James has found a way to see past what can be researched and grant us this portrait of trench warfare and on-call nursing staff that brings to full light the difficulties and the brutality of serving aboard during an on-going war.

-quoted from my review of The Silver Locket

You can well understand why I am quite delighted I can continue to read each installment of this series, and become caught up in the drama and lives of each of the characters as they make their entrance and take their cue to exit. It’s one of those timeless classics you hope you can stumble across & dearly love!

Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

 Book Review | “The Golden Chain” (Charton Minster No.2) by Margaret James #ChocLitSaturdaysThe Golden Chain

Can first love last forever?

1931 is the year that changes everything for Daisy Denham. Her family has not long swapped life in India for Dorset, England when she uncovers an old secret.

At the same time, she meets Ewan Fraser - a handsome dreamer who wants nothing more than to entertain the world and for Daisy to play his leading lady.

Ewan offers love and a chance to escape with a touring theatre company. As they grow closer, he gives her a golden chain and Daisy gives him a promise – that she will always keep him in her heart.

But life on tour is not as they’d hoped, Ewan is tempted away by his career and Daisy is dazzled by the older, charismatic figure of Jesse Trent. She breaks Ewan’s heart and sets off for a life in London with Jesse.

Only time will tell whether some promises are easier to make than keep …


Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

Book Page on World Weaver Press

ISBN: 9781906931643

on 1st May, 2011

Pages: 336

Published by: ChocLitUK (@ChocLituk)

Available Formats: Paperback, Audiobook & E-Book

Order of Sequence of Charton Minster series:

The Silver Locket Book One (review)

The Golden Chain Book Two | The Penny Bangle Book Three

The Wedding Diary Book Four | Magic Sometimes Happens Book Five

Converse via: #ChartonMinsterSeries, #HistFic, #HistRom + #ChocLit

About Margaret James

Margaret James

Margaret James was born and brought up in Hereford and now lives in Devon. She studied English at London University, and has written many short stories, articles and serials for magazines. She is the author of sixteen published novels.

Her debut novel for Choc Lit, The Silver Locket, received a glowing review from the Daily Mail and reached the Top 20 Small Publishers Fiction List in November 2010 and in the same year a Reviewers’ Choice Award from Single Titles. The Golden Chain also hit the Top 20 Small Publishers Fiction List in May 2011. The Wedding Diary was shortlisted for the 2014 Romantic Novel of the Year Award.

Novels: The Silver Locket, The Golden Chain, The Penny Bangle, The Wedding Diary and Magic Sometimes Happens which are part of the Charton Minster series.

Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo. Read More

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

  • 2016 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge
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Posted Saturday, 25 June, 2016 by jorielov in #JorieLovesIndies, 20th Century, Adoption, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, British Literature, Brothers and Sisters, Child out of Wedlock, ChocLitSaturdays, ChocLitUK, Coming-Of Age, England, Family Drama, Fathers and Daughters, Flashbacks & Recollective Memories, Green-Minded Publishers, Historical Fiction, Indie Author, Modern British Author, Mother-Daughter Relationships, Multi-Generational Saga, Romance Fiction, Siblings, Small Towne Fiction, the Thirties, Twin Siblings, Unexpected Pregnancy, Vulgarity in Literature, Women's Health

Cover Reveal | A debut novelist via a wicked sweet competition of whom I happily found via Twitter ahead of this Reveal! Romantic Suspense intermixed with Alt. Historical Fiction is a *new!* discovery of interest!

Posted Wednesday, 22 June, 2016 by jorielov , , 0 Comments

Stories Sailing into View Banner created by Jorie in Canva.

If your a regular reader or frequent visitor of Jorie Loves A Story, you know I’ve been smitten with the novelists who publish their relationship-based Romances with ChocLitUK for a good two years now! I love being on the cusp of learning about a ‘new release’ whilst I remain patient to see if the Digital First new ChocLit novel will make it to a print release further down the road of it’s lifetime. I don’t mind the gaps between the ebooks and the print editions – as it’s always given me the pleasure of balancing my ‘next ChocLit reads’ to include both Front List and Back List offerings. Thus, I am enjoying being a member of the Reveal Team at ChocLit whilst it gives me a chance to introduce my readers to a variety of sub-genres within Romance I appreciate picking up to read!

On my new position as a ChocLit Star member: Whilst I am part of the ChocLit Reviewers having brought reviews & guest author features to Jorie Loves A Story for the past two years, I have recently become a part of the Cover Reveal Team, as disclosed when I hosted the first Reveal on behalf of Sheryl Browne’s ‘Learning to Love’. This new team works with ChocLit providing honest feedback on ‘projects’ such as title & book cover design choices as well projects in development on behalf of the publisher. I accepted being a ChocLit Star as I felt my love of the stories would be a good fit to give in-depth responses to the projects pitched to the Stars. Therefore, when I blogged about the cover for “Revenge is Sweet” it was the first reveal where my input as a ChocLit Star helped the reveal become possible!

Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

On 18 June #ChocLitSaturday celebrated ChocLitUK’s 7th Birthday with an open topic of delightful joy wherein ChocLitSaturdayers joined the ChocLiteers for a lively celebratory bash where the convo happily alighted a spirit of joy in our hearts! Ms Stacey dropped in on the chat, too! She was quite keenly excited about her upcoming Reveal for this novel, and I was quite delighted for her in that regard! Seeing your debut go live must be a wicked stellar #awesomesauce moment!

Replay the Chat via Nurph!

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Posted Wednesday, 22 June, 2016 by jorielov in Blog Tour Host, Book Cover Reveal, Book Spotlight, ChocLitUK, Indie Author, Romance Fiction