Another Book Signing Scheduled

October is going to be a busy month.

Review for The Ring of Remaliha

Here is first review for my new book The Ring of Remaliha.
Thanks, Shauna!!!

Review

Enjoy!!!

The Ring of Remaliha

Coming soon to wherever Deseret Books are sold and Amazon!

When Egyptologist April Tanner is asked to translate the hieroglyphs on an ancient ring, she is unwittingly drawn into a world of danger and intrigue. Her colleague, Dr. Peter Scherril, believes the glyphs will lead to a treasure hidden nearly two thousand years ago by an Egyptian man named Remaliha. The problem is the glyphs don t make sense. A week after Peter is killed in a suspicious car crash, the ring shows up in April s mail. She vows to decipher the ring s secrets and figure out why someone wanted Peter dead. Her inquisitions put her in the path of dashing archaeologist Nathan Hayes and his mysterious friend James Reddingham. Nathan invites April to join his expedition near Luxor. Once she arrives in Egypt, April aggressively pursues her investigation of the ring. But soon she suspects the motives of both Nathan and James and finds herself dodging thieves and assassins at every turn. In the end, uncovering the secrets of the ring could lead to Remaliha s treasure . . . or April s own tomb.

Book Signing in Portland

Yay! I'm finally doing a book signing in Portland. Check it out!!!

Seeress and the Stone

Here are a few more chapters to read. Enjoy!!!

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Books Again

I suppose I've been a bit of a slacker, seeing how I haven't posted for almost two months. It has been a crazy two months. I've been recuperating from this nasty bit of a cold/bronchitis for the last month. I'm finally on the mend and catching up.

In the mean time I have had the chance to read a whole bunch of books. Yay!!! So you know what that means.

First off some advice. I've had the chance to sign up to get deals on books and some of them are free. It's been fun reading, but a word to the wise, read the Amazon reviews on any books before you purchase them and be sure to read lots of reviews. I read some reviews for a couple of books, but I didn't delve deep enough and I ended up getting some books with unsavory junk in them. Luckily, Amazon lets you delete those purchases. (whew)

So onto my suggestions. The first is a delightful mystery set in Victorian San Francisco. I loved the main character and her independent nature as well as her ability to get into and out of scrapes with beautiful finesse. The name of the book is Maids of Misfortune by M. Louisa Locke and for now it is still free for Kindle. I loved this book and am planning on purchasing the rest of the mysteries when I get a few extra dollars.

Locke has created the perfect atmosphere of Victorian San Francisco and stayed true to the time period. I enjoyed her writing style and the fact that her book remained free of the junk that you find in a lot of books like this. I highly suggest you pick this one up.

Next, is a police hostage drama that actually caught my attention and kept it throughout the story. All Fall Down by Julie Coulter Bellon. It is part of a series, but the books are also independent stories. This was an action packed book from beginning to end with lots of twists and turns that kept me turning the pages.

Bellon crafted a great drama with a tiny twist of romance that tied me even closer to the characters and the outcome of the story. Though some events seemed a bit fantastic, I also didn't mind it because it was how the story was laid out and the motives of the characters were totally plausible. I enjoy a good murder mystery, this book brought the action to a whole new level.

The Taming of Lady Kate by G. G. Vandagriff, is a delightful Regency romance. The story was more than a romance but a story of treason, love, and desperate actions led by fate.

Lady Kate Derramore and the Marquis of Northbrooke have one thing in common: In order to receive their inheritances, they must marry. Kate sets her sights on Jack, the Marquis of Northbrooke. Jack, meanwhile has tumbled into love with Kate at their first meeting. Because of Jack's "other life," the mysterious job that calls him out of town at the most inopportune moments, he unwittingly puts Lady Kate's life in danger, and while attempting to rescue her comes up against her "reins-grabbing" nature. Despite Kate’s penchant for disaster, will he be able to save her life and his own?

Lastly, I finally read the Fablehaven series. Yes, I now want to own the books and not just the e-books. I want the physical book on my bookshelves so I can read them again and again. I loved the series and I'm glad I took the time to read them. I highly suggest anyone who has a love of fantasy mixed with the real world to check them out and read them and then read them to your kids or let them read them and thoroughly enjoy them as I have. 

So that's all for now. I'm sure I will have some more suggestions in the near future. Happy Reading!!!

Dear Editor

Dear Fantasy Novel,

I know you are waiting with baited breath for me to finish you, but right now I've got romance on the brain, so you'll have to wait. Sorry,

Sincerely Yours,

Romance Author

Dear Sequel,

Yes, we've got sort of a timeline, but I have research to do, along with all the flying stuff that makes your existence possible. Patience. Be like the characters: anxious and waiting. :)

Thoughtfully yours,

Published Author

Dear Romance,

Why is it when I think one thing is going to happen that you twist me around and make something entirely different happen? Really? Come on, I thought I had you all planned out in my head and you go and change things. Grrr. Don't get me wrong, I know the changes are for the better, but seriously.

Halted in Love and Happy Endings,

Author

Dear Middle Grade Fiction,

You are the hardest one of all to work on. This time of year is especially hard, so as in patience you have begun, so in patience you will continue. Someday we will complete this journey together and you will be amazing and hopefully you will be able to help others cope with the loss that I have dealt with.

Thankfully yours,

Melanie Mason

More Books

So I recently returned from a book signing in CA and because I fly standby I experienced a decent amount of airport appreciation time both in Fresno and in Seattle. During all this airport appreciation time I discovered an author that I quite enjoy. That enjoyment spread through three of her books. Sherwood Smith. Sherwood Smith (born 1951) is an American fantasy and science fiction writer for young adults as well as adults. Smith is a Nebula Award finalist and a longtime writing group organizer and participant.

Now granted, I haven't read any of her other books, so I can't guarantee that they are all clean, but three out of three is a good record so far. :)

Crown Duel: A compilation of two novels both Crown Duel and Court Dual. This was a delightful fantasy with all the fun of kingdoms, wars, magic, and mystery with a thread of romance all rolled into an amazing adventure. I thoroughly enjoyed this story. I also enjoyed the fact that it was clean, not overly violent and blood, and no language. For anyone who enjoys a good adventure this is a great read and I highly recommend it.

Second on my list by the same author is A Posse of Princesses. This was also a fun story though deeper in the adventure of young love and romance Smith weaves an adventure that is unexpected and enjoyable with twists and turns that bring the reader happily along. I also recommend this one. Again clean, not violent, and no language. Yay!!!

Enjoy!

Successful Book Signing

Me with Leon, one of the owners of Far West Books.

Well I just returned home late Sunday night from an amazing book signing in Fresno, CA. I had the opportunity to meet the owners of Far West Books. Check out their website here. They were so kind and helpful and inviting. It was wonderful to see so many friends and meet new people. I thoroughly enjoyed the time spent there and I hope to be able to return for another signing.

Thanks to everyone who helped set this up. It was amazing, successful, and fun.

Books

So I've been busy reading and writing and I wanted to post some more books to read. I'm in the middle of the Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer. I highly suggest them. They were suggested to me by my sister and I'm really glad she did. I've read the first two and am anxiously awaiting the third from the library.

Next I recently read Wicked Jealous by Robin Palmer. What a delightful modern day spin on Snow White. I loved it and it was clean. Yay!!!

Also The Amaranth Enchantment by Julie Berry. An exciting fantasy that kept my attention from beginning to end.

These are the stories I've been reading beside starting a few more of my own. Enjoy!!!