Review: Haunting the Deep

 

 

 

 

 

 

Synopsis:

The Titanic meets the delicious horror of Ransom Riggs and the sass of Mean Girls in this follow-up to the #1 New York Times bestseller How to Hang a Witch, in which a contemporary teen finds herself a passenger on the famous “ship of dreams”—a story made all the more fascinating because the author’s own relatives survived the doomed voyage.

Samantha Mather knew her family’s connection to the infamous Salem Witch Trials might pose obstacles to an active social life. But having survived one curse, she never thought she’d find herself at the center of a new one.

This time, Sam is having recurring dreams about the Titanic . . . where she’s been walking the deck with first-class passengers, like her aunt and uncle. Meanwhile, in Sam’s waking life, strange missives from the Titanic have been finding their way to her, along with haunting visions of people who went down with the ship.

Ultimately, Sam and the Descendants, along with some help from heartthrob Elijah, must unravel who is behind the spell that is drawing her ever further into the dream ship . . . and closer to sharing the same grim fate as its ghostly passengers.

Rating: 4-stars

Review:

Haunting the Deep by Adriana Mather is deeply engaging. Spooky, intriguing, and mysterious scenes keep me turning the pages. I love historical events. Here, the writer has brought another historical event to life. The terror of the horrible fate is relived once again. That alone brought chills to my spine. Then, there was the drama that the teen, Sam, faced. Someone is causing her trouble and if it’s not stopped soon, she could be added into that terrible fate…

Adriana Mather’s writing is good. I felt intrigued. My curiosity got the better of me as I continued to read. The main protagonist, Sam is very likable. Sam seems like a very normal teenage girl her age. She goes through the same issues every teen girl goes through…which makes t easy enough to connect with her. Themes of witchcraft and bullying are found on these pages. The ties to Salem witch trials and the Titanic made this one spectacular read. Overall, I enjoyed following the characters. I can’t wait to see what comes next. I recommend Haunting the Deep to readers everywhere.

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Review: A Gleam of Light

Synopsis: 

In 1995, at the age of eight, Una Waters survived a terrifying encounter at 30,000 feet aboard Flight 564 from Dallas to Las Vegas. It changed her forever. After 21 years, and a decade away from the Hopi Reservation where she grew up as a child, a surprise plea for help brings Una back, to solve a mystery that threatens their traditional way of life. The U.S. Army’s sudden interest regarding a cave discovery in the Sacred Peaks has triggered alarm, leading to violence. With the help of friends, new and old, Una must confront her painful past, seek proof to qualify the ancient site for protection under law, and stand up to a stiff-necked general, whose agenda is more concerned with retrieving a mysterious power source. 

Rating: 3-stars

Review:

A Gleam of Light holds a promising adventure ahead. The characters’ struggles were realistic. The plot itself held some suspense over me. I was instantly intrigued as to what was going on that was so interesting that the army wanted to find. Then both Jack and Una have fears. Una’s fear is the greatest. Her fear of planes is one that I could definitely relate to. The writers, T.J. & M.L. Wolf both combined multiple words within this one read. The Native Americans and that of the white Americans worlds. Loneliness, survival, and violence break out on the pages. The journey was good. However, I felt someething was missing. The pace seemed to be at a constant steady walk. A cave discovery held the entire interest. I felt that Una got her peace that she was searching for too soon. The ending itself didn’t feel complete. As for characters like Jack, I didn’t really get to connect with him as much as I did with Una. I would have liked to have explored more on him and Colin as well. Other than that, I liked reading A Gleam of Light. 

Review: Stray Son

Synopsis:

Stray Son is an adult novel telling the story of a haunted Vietnam vet in the year 2000, reduced to working for a Santa Barbara mortuary, picking up dead bodies. One day he picks up a live one—his elderly father’s young ghost, a WWII Marine who starts following him around town. Then son receives a phone call that his old father just died. At that moment the young Marine knocks on the son’s trailer door. The grieving, confused son can no longer keep this apparition from his wife and kids—and opens the door. The Marine finally declares why he is there: to straighten out his stray son—and bum a ride to see his dying mother in a 1942 Sioux City, Iowa hospital. The son needs to take his family to Sioux City in the year 2000 to attend his father’s funeral. So the young father and the old son take their battles back to World War II on a trip across a wartime America towards death and an elusive reconciliation.

Rating: 5 stars

Review:

Stray Son by Richard Slota is an interesting piece of literature. Here, readers go one a ride of a lifetime. Traveling between the character’s past and present. Themes like family, love, and redemption are woven into the tale. Stray Son is a novel that leaves readers following Patrick. Patrick defys the norm when it comes to fictional characters in a way. He’s day job is peculiar yet he pays the bills. Bills like the months of rent. His job is to pick up dead bodies. Bodies of people that just died. Then, there’s his life background that made me feel sympathy for him. Soon, he sees a ghost and thinks he’s losing it. Only he can see a Marine. A Marine ghost that doesn’t stop following everywhere. Until, he introduces the ghost to his family once he found out that his father died. Sort of. Now, as a ghost and staying near the son he kicked out…is a lot to swallow. I found this tale stunning, heartbreaking, and realistic. The emotional journey of father and son is one that readers won’t be forgetting. It will stay with me forever. The sadness became my own. The life that the older son, Patrick had to live through because of his mother and father…was crazy. Yet in the end, it was good. Saddening in a good way. Then, somehow, when readers will least expect it, Richard Slota, surprises readers once more. Stray Son, is a great story. So much was packed into it. I felt like I was swallowed into one of those movies that make the watcher cry endlessly. Sad but good tears. Overall, I loved this powerful yet gritty novel. I recommend it to readers everywhere. 

About the Author
My life is about going for the long odds, so of course I’ve written a literary novel, Stray Son. I assisted at autopsies in the army during Vietnam and worked countless hard scrabble jobs since. I earned my Masters in Creative Writing, have BA’s in Theater Arts and Psychology and I am a produced playwright and published poet.