A Book and a Chat with John Paul Jaramillo

John Paul Jaramillo is my guest on today’s “A Book and a Chat”. He grew up being told stories by a crazy grandfather, something he has always tried to keep up with. A failed poetry writer in his early years he went on to creating as he says “failed stories” before he found his writing style and voice.

Writing in a writing more minimalist style he began to create stories about his younger days in Colorado.

Thus “House of Order” was created, John Paul began getting down stories about the neighborhoods he grew up around in southern Colorado. 

He found his inspiration in the old house he’d grown up in and in the old folks of his family. 

John Paul has been trying to capture their stories and re-imagine old family stories and myths since then. These have now come together in his debut book “House of Order”

About “House of Order” : (Taken from Amazon)

The House of Order, the first collection of composite stories by John Paul Jaramillo, presents a stark vision of American childhood and family, set in Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico. Manito Ortiz sorts family truth from legend as broken as the steel industry and the rusting vehicles that line Spruce Street. The only access to his lost family's story is his uncle, the unreliable Neto Ortiz.

The book has already received many great reviews

“Jaramillo creates vivid and engaging characters you can't help but either outright dislike or feel for as their story unfolds before your eyes. I found the dynamic between the father and uncle the most interesting; one trying to teach his children the value of working hard, while the other teaches them how to gamble at the track. Despite the father's (or, the Jefe, as they call him) faults, he does have that good quality about him. He wants his children to do the right things and work hard for what they get in life.

I recommend this book to anyone who likes character-driven stories and are not  put off by bad language and mild adult situations.

The more you read “House of Order” the more you get drawn into the characters and their situations. With another book underway we will I’m sure hear a lot more of John Paul Jaramillo

 

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with John Paul Jaramillo

Barry

Direct link to the show
A Book and a Chat with John Paul Jaramillo

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"John Paul Jaramillo"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
">"John Paul Jaramillo - House of Order"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

My Blogs:

Book Information and Things UK - Across the Pond

Book and a Chat Radio Show Guests - A Book and a Chat

Funny, Weird Or Just Interesting News From Around the World - Laugh I Thought My Trousers Would Never dry

A Book and a Chat with Holly Bush

My guest on today’s “A Book and a Chat” is historical romance writer “Holly Bush”

Holly was raised in a house full of books she is a voracious reader of a wide variety of fiction and non-fiction and has been writing all her life.
Life delayed her blossoming into the writer that she has become, in fact she actually wrote two of her books while watching her daughter playing softball.

 In 2011 however she produced her first historical romance book “Romancing Olive” set as are her other books in the late 1800’s.
This first book firmly put the name Holly Bush on the historical romance ladder, receiving many praise worthy reviews about her novels and story lines.

This early success was soon followed by a second and equally successful book “Train Station Bride”.

Again set in the late 1800’s and with more travel by train (there is a book coming soon with travel by a boat instead of a train…honest). The again received a very warm response with such comments as

“"Train Station Bride is a beautiful tale of love, family and redemption . . . I could smell the bread baking in the oven and hear the corn stalks rustling in the field. Train Station Bride is the perfect historical romance."

Now Holly has produced a new historical romance novel “Reconstructing Jackson”

About “Reconstructing Jackson” : (taken from Amazon)

1867 . . . Southern lawyer and Civil War veteran, Reed Jackson, returns to his family’s plantation in a wheelchair. His father deems him unfit, and deeds the Jackson holdings, including his intended bride, to a younger brother. Angry and bitter, Reed moves west to Fenton, Missouri, home to a cousin with a successful business, intending to start over.
Belle Richards, a dirt poor farm girl aching to learn how to read, cleans, cooks and holds together her family’s meager property. A violent brother and a drunken father plot to marry her off, and gain a new horse in the bargain. But Belle’s got other plans, and risks her life to reach them.
Reed is captivated by Belle from their first meeting, but wheelchair bound, is unable to protect her from violence. Bleak times will challenge Reed and Belle's courage and dreams as they forge a new beginning from the ashes of war and ignorance.

The book contains enough language and love scenes to make it believable and has received reviews such as…

I felt like I was transported through time...it has romance, history, villains and heroes...wonderful. One of the things I like most about Holly's novels is that they are so realistic. The love scenes are just enough...if there is a bad guy...there is bad language (just enough...again believable). You are outraged in parts...can understand why Jackson feels how he does and even the hatred some of the other characters hold on to. I loved, loved, loved this book.

With a new book “Cross the Ocean” (yes a boat not a train) coming soon, the name Holly Bush is one that many historical readers will be looking for on the book shelves.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Holly Bush

Barry
Direct link to the show
sh">A Book and a Chat with Holly Bush

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Holly Bush"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Holly Bush - Reconstructing Jackson"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

My Blogs:

Book Information and Things UK - Across the Pond

Book and a Chat Radio Show Guests - A Book and a Chat

Funny, Weird Or Just Interesting News From Around the World - Laugh I Thought My Trousers Would Never dry

A Book and a Chat with Kathi Macias

Today’s guest on “A Book and a Chat” is one of my most popular and frequent visitors Kathi “Easy Writer” Macias. Kathi has come a long way since her early days of writing teens and children’s religious/help books such as “Life Can Be Tough” and “Mummy Where Are You”.

 Her writing grow as did her following with the “Tony Mathews Mystery Series” before she found her calling both the literary market and in her life by spreading the word about issues and Christians around the world facing the ultimate test of faith.

Her book “No Greater Love” about forbidden romance, an unlikely martyr and an even more unlikely hero in South Africa, launched her “Extreme Devotion Series”. This was followed by “More Than Conquers” (Mexico), “Red Ink” (China) and “People of the Book” (Middle East). The series brought many awards and plaudits to Kathi spreading her name as she spread the knowledge of social injustice around the world.

Firmly now in the literary map, Kathi continued with her new “Freedom” series where “Deliver Me From Evil”, “Special Delivery” and “The Deliverer” which through powerful, heart retching words shared a story about human trafficking that brought a fresh influx of readers and awards.

After a break with the first of her Christmas books “A Christmas Journey Home” Kathi is back with another series that will touch people’s hearts as well as educate them, as well as a second Christmas story.

 “Unexpected Christmas Hero” is Kathi’s Christmas book for 2012 which not only has proved yet another huge success but has a story within itself. A powerful story of the homeless and how it can happen to anyone at any time it is a novel that can bring tears and smiles. Willard Parker, the homeless man who appears on the cover of Unexpected Christmas Hero was recognized by a family member and has now been reunited with his daughter and grandchildren.

 “The Moses Quilt” is the first in a new “Quilt” three (for now) book series, which shares life and it’s issues.

 About “The Moses Quilt” (taken from Kathi’s web site)

 The Moses Quilt is a contemporary novel that bridges racial and generational divides. With a realistic and compassionate look into a twenty-first-century dilemma, multiple award-winning author Kathi Macias introduces readers to a confused and apprehensive young woman, Mazie Hartford. Facing major decisions about the love of her life and her future, she must also wrestle with a nagging question about her family’s past. She finds the answer to her questions in a most unexpected way—her great-grandmother’s Moses quilt. As her great-grandmother begins to explain how each patch represents a story of courage and freedom, Mazie must decide if she has the courage and freedom to overcome her own personal fears and prejudices.

 As one reviewer described the book…  

Kathi Macias is a master storyteller, weaving a tale within a tale, of factual acounts regarding the life of Harriet Tubman and the Gee's Bend quilters. This book is incredibly well researched and accurate in detail. Family dynamics are beautifully presented through three generations of women and their relationships and importance to one another. 

The characters in this book are well developed and believable, unforgettable characters to love and cherish. "The Moses Quilt" affected me on many personal levels, as a quilter, as a grandparent to a biracial grandson, my personal freedom from prejudice in my own life, and on an emotional level that is unforgettable. I highly recommend this sensitive, poignant, well-written, authentic story within a story! I will read this book again and again.

The book and the series once again will have the awards and request for more knocking on Kathi’s door.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining one hour special as I chat with my guest today on A Book and a Chat with Kathi Macias

Barry

Direct link to the show
A Book and a Chat with Kathi Macias

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Kathi Macias"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Kathi Macias - "

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

My Blogs:

Book Information and Things UK - Across the Pond

Book and a Chat Radio Show Guests - A Book and a Chat

Funny, Weird Or Just Interesting News From Around the World - Laugh I Thought My Trousers Would Never dry

A Book and a Chat with Kaylin McFarren

Linda Yoshida, aka Kaylin McFarren was previously on my show chatting about her debut romance novel “Flaherty’s Cross”, today she returns to talk about her latest series of books which have already won several awards.

Kaylin has writing in her blood, her great aunt “Bessie B. Cordell”,  was an evangelistic missionary during WWII,  and was instrumental in opening an orphanage in Tientsin, China. She though, also wrote two published novels, Precious Pearl and Blossoms of the Flowery Kingdom, about her dangerous, harrowing experiences.

Kaylin is now following down the same road to success with her latest novel “Severed Threads” the first in the “Threads” series of romance suspense/adventure novels.

When asked what was the hardest thing re writing a romance suspense thriller, Kaylin replied…

“The most difficult task to writing a suspense story is to keep the action moving while revealing character traits and emotions along the way. Severed Threads contains an array of characters and each serve their purpose in revealing a twisting and turning plot that ultimately leads to a pleasant resolve. However, keeping the voices of each person unique also proved to be a challenge.”

About “Severed Threads” (taken from the authors web site)

Believing herself responsible for her father's fatal diving accident, Rachel Lyons has withdrawn from the world and assumed a safe position at a foundation office. When called upon by a museum director to assist her former love interest with the recovery of a cursed relic from a sunken Chinese merchant ship, she has no intention of cooperating - until her brother is kidnapped by a drug-dealing gangster. In order to save him and gain control over her own life, Rachel must not only overcome her greatest fears, but also relive the circumstances that lead to her father's death.

Using knowledge from her own travels along with research in underwater treasure hunting Kaylin has penned a novel that already has people asking for more, a wish that will soon be answered when further books in the series “Buried Threads” and “Banished Threads” become available.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Kaylin McFarren

Barry
Direct link to the show
A Book and a Chat with Kaylin McFarren

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Kaylin McFarren"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Kaylin McFarren - Severed Threads"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

My Blogs:

Book Information and Things UK - Across the Pond

Book and a Chat Radio Show Guests - A Book and a Chat

Funny, Weird Or Just Interesting News From Around the World - Laugh I Thought My Trousers Would Never dry

A Book and a Chat with Liz Fichera

Each year a group of debut YA and mid-grade authors form a group to help each other, over the last few years many of these authors have not only appeared on “A Book and a Chat” but gone on to bigger and perhaps better things. Today on the show is the first in this years “Class of 2K13" Liz Fichera”.

While Liz is a debut “YA” author she has already two fiction publications to her name.

Liz is one of the few authors that include Native American people as main characters in her stories. Living in Phoenix, Arizona, she surrounded by over 20 Native American communities.

Her first book “Captive Spirit” was set in the sixteenth century in the area now known as Phoenix, Arizona we follow the story of Aiyana, a young tribal woman of the White Ant Clan.

This was followed by “Craving Perfect” described by one reviewer as…

A wonderful novel that takes you on a magical treadmill ride. Downtrodden Grace isn't happy with her lackluster life and yearns to be someone people pay attention to. And then -- after a spectacular treadmill fall -- she suddenly is. But is perfect really all she hoped for?
'Craving Perfect' has the perfect ingredients for a delicious summer read.

Liz writes about ordinary teens who do extraordinary things. This is very true about her debut YA novel “Hooked". 

About “Hooked” (taken from Luna’s Little Library):

When Native American Fredericka ‘Fred’ Oday is invited to become the only girl on the school’s golf team, she can’t say no. This is an opportunity to shine, win a scholarship and go to university, something no one in her family has done.

But Fred’s presence on the team isn’t exactly welcome — especially not to rich golden boy Ryan Berenger, whose best friend was kicked off the team to make a spot for Fred.

But there’s no denying that things are happening between the girl with the killer swing and the boy with the killer smile.

Though this is her debut YA novel a companion novel “Player” is already optioned to soon hit the book shelves and with several other books in the pipeline we shall, I am sure, hear a lot more from Liz Fichera.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Liz Fichera

Barry

Direct link to the show
A Book and a Chat with Liz Fichera

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Liz Fichera"

You can find out more about my guest at:
Liz Fichera - Hooked


Barry Eva (Storyheart)

My Blogs:

Book Information and Things UK Including my Olympic Blog - Across the Pond

Book and a Chat Radio Show Guests - A Book and a Chat

Funny, Weird Or Just Interesting News From Around the World - Laugh I Thought My Trousers Would Never dry