Three New 5* Reviews on Amazon for Sun Dragon

Three great new five star reviews for Sun Dragon have been posted on Amazon:

"All in all a book that is well worth a read and is an enjoyable, interesting story that will definitely be read again!"

"Great descriptive writing of the space setting, ships etc which really set the scenes in my mind as i was reading, if you want a good sci-fi read this is one I certainly recommend."

"This book helped fuel my interest in the cosmos just as the Rosetta Mission landed on the Asteroid."

Buy now from Amazon (US): http://amzn.to/ZRrQ5v
Buy now from Amazon (UK): http://amzn.to/12zV5eX

There's still time to enter the Goodreads giveaway for a chance to win one of five signed copies:

https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/114649-sun-dragon

Friday Poem - A Frenchie Double Bill

For this week's Friday Poem Francine Samuel provides a double dose of verse. Take a look below:

My Ink, My Tears, Same Crimson...

When the infant girl asks for what crime
She is buried alive, when the young mother
To be is snatched in the night to abort
the baby female she is carrying,
When the young girl is forced to marry her rapist,
When no one is interested in their single story,
My ink turns to blood, crimson, grime!

When religions or cultures override and take over
Common sense, what can be done to thwart
The ignorance of mankind, for centuries continuing.
Don't they know it is the male sperm, the basic
That decides of the child sex, such vain glory,
My ink turns to poison, oozing acid, grime!

When the young mother is beaten by her in laws
For giving birth to a daughter, why don't they blame
Their son who carried the seed. Him, they should hound.
When the rich replace baby girls with stolen baby boys
When the young child dare not exposing her abuser,
My pen bleeds and cries, forced to write words so grime!

Enough, no more violence against women. Pause.
Let our girls grow secure, remove the veil of shame
From my sisters. O mankind, when you are underground
The infant girl questions you for what sin you cut her voice
When you showed no mercy, none will be for you, loser
My ink, my tears, the same crimson, as I think of your crime.

Not the end

I wrote this one because the plea of women in the world concerns me. As a woman and a poet, I make it my duty to pass on a message. Yes, many women are still oppressed because religions and cultures are overriding comon sense. It is up to us to break the circle for girls to grow without fear. Baby girls are still considered as bad luck or a financial in some cultures, many men still divorce their wives for giving birth to girls. Poor education, neglect is their lot.

The rhyming is a fancy rhyming, each end rhyme rhymes with the next chapter..

The discarded rose (new beginnings..)

Walking by the ocean today, I found a discarded rose
A beauty long forgotten by a careless mind...
I picked it up to take it home, to nurture it back to life.
The rose revived and blossomed under my gentle care,
You see, with a little love, a little tenderness, everything grows.
But you have to learn to break the ties, bad memories that bind.
Learn to love again, slowly, dare to hope, not giving up the figh.t
Once upon a time, I felt like a discarded rose, but I feel it no longer.

One of my favourites. I was looking for some image on Google when I stumbled upon this one. Immediately, the words of the poem came to me. 

Check out Uncaged Emotions for more great writing - http://uncagedemotions.com/

ABC Drabbles of Death - W is for Warrior

My choice for this week's latest in the ABC Drabbles of Death series is a little obvious. But after watching the second season of Vikings (which is excellent by the way) it also seemed like an appropriate and fun idea :-)

Only three drabbles left in the series and then I shall start a new series of drabbles. If you haven't read the previous drabbles in this series then you can find them all here:

http://thecultofme.blogspot.co.uk/p/welcome-to-first-drabble-in-my-new.html

W is for Warrior

The morning frost is hard and cold beneath my feet. Across the valley the mist rises from the ground, becoming one with the breath of men and horses.

Voices cry their rage and fear into the sky and in answer the sky’s tears muddy the ground. The earth trembles from their charge. We lock our shields and brace against the weight of our foe.

The clash of steel and screams blend into a single song. The ground grows slick with blood. All too soon only I remain, yet I stand and fight until I can swing my axe no more.

Book Review - Deeply Twisted by Chantak Noordeloos

I'm a big fan of short fiction and this is an excellent collection horror stories. There's a good variety here, both in length and subject. The stories cover a range of horror staples, but usually provides an interesting angle to the story.

All of the stories were a decent read, but a few of them stood out for me. The first was the dinner party with an unusual guest. It's an idea that I've seen before and this version was well put together. I would have liked to see more of the aftermath!

Another story that stood out was one about a sick young girl. While it's fairly obvious what's going on it's well written and poignant tale that stuck in my memory.

The same issue is evident in a few of the stories, but the quality of the author's writing means that they're still a good read. I always appreciate a twist in a story and there's some surprises here.to be enjoyed. Overall this is a well written collection with some fine stories - well worth a read.

A mother murders her eldest daughter. A clock appears in the middle of a park. A one-eyed man with a raven on his shoulder joins three homeless men on a chilly night…

Embrace the night and all its terrors in this macabre gallery of monsters. The living and the dead, the spectral and the material—horrifying visions from the tormented mind of Chantal Noordeloos. Your nightmares will never be the same.

Click here to buy Deeply Twisted from Amazon US / Amazon UK (and it's an excellent collection of horror tales)

Blog Shout Out - The Ivory Tide

This week's blog shout is for Caroline Clemens's blog - The Ivory Tide. Discover more below:

Thank you in advance for showcasing my blog theivorytide.com. I'm an online journalist with The Guardian Liberty Voice and a blogger. I've been writing for four years and published on Amazon just before this big self-publishing craze hit in 2012.

I've written poetry and am collecting those either for submission in a contest and/or publishing. My biggest or most difficult writing fete thus far is a novel based in Paris and the Loire Valley. The title "Into the Vines" is for middle grade readers and contemporary fiction readers.

This new blog will at times feature places or ideas related to this novel. The main idea is about a pilot who performs rescue missions around the globe, either on a small scale with his business or a large scale involving countries joined together in unison. The missions are for natural disasters and terrorism. The ivorytide will not be just about my book, but also art, music and news stories relevant to the world.

My career in Nursing continues as I work in reconstructive breast health for a large hospital in the South. What I am not is an English major, in fact, I suffered my only D ever in school my senior year in English. I was caught passing notes to my best friend and giggling. They put me in advanced classes like math and science and then I wouldn't study or do the homework. Once I got to college though, I studied hard.

Actually, I was quite creative in my youth through sewing, cooking, cheer leading, drill team, four high school musicals, chorus, tennis, etc. I received no encouragement what so ever as far as reading, writing, painting but I did play piano and organ.

I think blogging is a form of engagement through interaction and comments, a group coming together about a topic for learning or just plain fun! In a sense, you feel as though you are part of a community. I hope to learn as I go along in publishing this blog exploring coastal areas, other lands, and music through art and/or the news. The format could change if needed. I think people are bombarded with news and information. I'd like to see it given more personally with an unbiased viewpoint.

Regularly, my plans will be for one to two news posts/week with additional features such as places in the world ie: Sydney Opera House, Giverny, the Grand Canyon, etc. I could have other writers come aboard if success dictated, meaning interested followers.

I love doing the music videos and leaving a couple paragraphs of what I remember or how the music affected me. I'd love to get others to leave feedback on this with their own ideas. My plan is to continue, showcasing others, famous and not so famous.

The film slot could be reviews or just a place to showcase movies coming out and who is in them. News is tragic, so at times things will be grim, but through other posts/followups I hope to bring hope!

P.S. I'd love to have an app and people just tap the app.