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Life & Writing 11/27/2007 2:31:47 PM
Well, I had hoped to update my blog more often in the month of November, but I just don't seem to have much luck. Please forgive my tardiness.
It's been a great month. A busy month, but a great month. Thanksgiving was great. My family and I decided to go out of town. We went up north to Lake County in California which is just directly north of Napa County. I liked the fact I didn't have to cook... I did cheat though and bought 3 Marie Callender pies. I picked out the pecan, the blueberry, and the french apple. On Friday, the 23rd we went to Napa Valley and visited Sterline and Beringer Wineries. I love visiting California wine country. It really just inspires my writing juices and I'm always reminded of the movie, "A Walk in the Clouds." I liked the story, but Keanu Reeves's performances left a little something to be desired in my book.
I just want to thank Andrew Ian Dodge for a great review on "The Wolf's Torment."
November 4th, 2007 by Andrew Ian Dodge
The Wolf's Torment
by S. G. Cardin
I am fan of gothic horror novels, having written a few tales myself in the genre, but I do have a low tolerance for derivative novels that add nothing new to the genre. This is not one of those. Despite the fact the author has never been to places in the book; she has been in the region however, she evokes the feeling of that part of Central Europe oh so well.
The novel includes a pack of wolves, some witches and a bunch of vampires thrown in for good measure. For this story she has come up with a few legends and "facts" about supernaturals which is a nice touch. The legends of all intertwine in that part of the world; so the method used in this novel is accurate.
It reads well and does not hang around too long. There is none of the bloat that you find in modern gothic horror novels. While its plain to see that the author is a woman; from the romance aspects of the novel, there is none of the soap opera like plodding that can affect some novels in this genre. I found this far more enjoyable than the last few Anne Rice and Anita Blake novels.
The fact several of the Maine characters start out in London is a nice touch. The spoiled upper class girl who gets more than she bargained for is most amusing as well. Might be a lesson to some of those in the UK/US who marry Eastern Europeans without finding out who they really are first. But I digress.
Only one criticism and this is personal taste. Why does it always have to be the werewolf that is the evil one in the end? That said the author was keen to make sure her werewolves were not one-dimensional knuckle-dragging beasts.
Oh yeah one more thing. I hope to hell that she decided to publish this via iUniverse and its not because publishers rejected her novel. Because any publisher who rejected this novel needs to seriously have their head examined.
I enjoyed the novel immensely and was pleased to see that there will be a sequel in future. I hope that they author will include me on her review list once again. But please next time give the poor lycanthrope's a break? The fact I stayed up past midnight two days before my colon operation to finish this novel speaks volumes.
I'd been working with Reader Views to put together a Preview, an internet commerical for my book, the Wolf's Torment. I just want to give a shout out to Chris Hatcher who put the Preview together. It looks FABULOUS. He did a great job. If you want to check it out, you can find it at that following places:
I just got done reading SCHULZ and PEANUTS, by David Michaelis. It was a really interesting book about the life and times of Charles Schulz, the creator of Peanuts. It's a must for Peanuts fans. I learned that a lot of what played out in the strip was directly from what he was going through in life. If anyone has read it, drop a line and let me know what you think. I've got a ton of books on the reading list. I'm currently reading: A DOORWAY TO HEARTS by Sherri Gibson.
*****
I've got a great contest going on my official internet board. I'm looking for your best war poetry. If you get a chance, submit your piece - you could win a $25. GC to Amazon. Go to http://sgcardin.tripod.com and click on THE FICTION CAFE link.
*****
My book, ACROSS THE FICKLE WINDS OF HISTORY is a look at Czar Nicholas II's family, especially the oldest daughter, Olga, in the wanning years of the Romanov rule. I've always been rather parial to the royal family as the story of Alexi's hemophilia has always been rather sad and moving to me. Just recently, yesterday in fact, when I logged into the internet I saw an article about how ameuter sleuths had found the remains of Alexi and Anastasia (the daughter believed to be missing) several feet away from where the bodies of the other royals were found in 1991. It gives the Romanovs a definative ending, which in my heart I'm glad. If you get a chance, ACROSS THE FICKLE WINDS OF HISTORY will be a nice compliment to this story. HISTORY will also be my next featured book in my internet book signing in January. I still have yet to announce the date.
