Carries Book Reviews

 

Hello Readers! Welcome to the Release Day Celebration for

The Tick Tock Man by R.M. Clark,

presented by Tantrum Books / Month9Books!

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Be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post.

 

Happy Book Birthday, R.M. Clark!

 

 

When the clocks in town stop, thirteen-year-old CJ discovers an unusual “clock world” where most of the citizens are clock parts, tasked with keeping the big clocks running. But soon the seemingly peaceful world is divided between warring factions with CJ instructed to find the only person who can help: the elusive Tick Tock Man.

With the aid of Fuzee, a partly-human girl, he battles gear-headed extremists and razor-sharp pendulums in order to restore order before this world of chimes, springs, and clock people dissolves into a massive time warp, taking CJ’s quiet New England town with it.

The Tick Tock Man by R.M. Clark

Publication Date: May 2, 2017

Publisher: Month9Books/Tantrum Books

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The clock on the radio displayed 4:05. I compared it to my watch, which I had put back on before sitting at the head of the table. The time was frozen at two o’clock. How strange. My watch always worked perfectly. When Uncle Artie gave it to me, he said it was a one-of-a-kind watch that would never need winding. I decided it was best not to tell anyone.

We drove through what we called downtown Hambleton, and only a few people were on the road. It was Thanksgiving, so this was not too surprising. In fact, it was one of the reasons we went for a drive on major holidays. Most people were home, and we usually had the roads to ourselves. Dad and Grandpa liked it that way.

 

R.M. Clark is a computer scientist for the Dept. of Navy by day and children’s book writer by night. He lives in Massachusetts with his wife and two sons.

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Life
Elise Noble
Publication date: April 30th 2017
Genres: Adult, Comedy, Romance

At twenty-eight years old, the only men in lawyer Cate Jenkins’ life are her two cats, Thor and Loki, unless you count her not-so-secret love affair with Ben & Jerry.

Escape comes in the form of art classes, where life drawing model Joe provides a welcome distraction from the monotony of her job. Each Thursday for five weeks, she gets to lose herself in a world of twinkling blue eyes and chiselled abs.

Meanwhile, next-door neighbour Dane is determined to win her heart. Can his gifts of coffee and kitty treats win out against muscled perfection?

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EXCERPT:

Meeting Joe

“Ladies and gentleman.” Delores glanced over at Miguel, the sole male in the room. “We’ve got a treat tonight. The lovely Joe is going to model for us.”

She beckoned to someone behind us, and jaws dropped as Joe ambled to the front of the class, wearing only a sheet around his waist. He perched on the stool while Delores arranged the fabric to cover the good bits, and then he followed her directions to, “Lean forward a bit. Move your hand.”

Beside me, Marie’s pencil rolled out of her fingers and under Miguel’s chair, and it took him a second or two to snap his eyes away from Joe and retrieve it for her.

Finally happy with Joe’s pose, Delores clapped her hands. “This evening, we’re going to practice our sketching. Joe’s going to move every twenty minutes, which will give you the chance to explore various positions.”

From the way the other girls were salivating, I knew exactly which positions they wanted to explore. Even Marie, who had a boyfriend. I reached over and tapped her pad.

“We’re supposed to be drawing.”

“I’m committing his muscles to memory before I start. Wonder what would happen if I visited the ladies’ room and accidentally tripped over that sheet?”

With Marie, I could never quite tell if she was serious. This was the woman who’d once scrambled over a screaming crowd to clamber on stage with Justin Timberlake and managed to squeeze his ass before security hauled her away. I knew because she showed me the video on her phone. Loosening Joe’s sheet would be nothing for Marie.

Author Bio:

Elise Noble is an English rose with a few thorns who loves chocolate, sleep, and well-defined abs. Not hers, unfortunately. She lives near London with a sexy chef, a horse who eats all her money, and a dog who eats her car keys. Always a reader, she took up writing after inspiration struck in an old manor house, and still pinches herself at the fact that people read her books. She spends her days working in an office and her nights dreaming up new characters for you to fall in love with. Elise currently writes the Blackwood Security series of romantic thrillers and the Trouble series of romantic comedies.

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The Chocolate Touch by Melissa McClone
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

After leaving the Air Force York Parker wants nothing more than to spend the free time he has before starting his new job with his two sisters in Marietta, MT. Since the chocolate shop is a bit overwhelmed at the moment York has agreed to help out and work there with his sister until starting his new job but York never expected to meet chocolate expert Chantelle Cummings at his new job.

Chantelle is in Marietta to research the quaint local chocolate shop for her family who runs a billion dollar chocolate company in France. Chantelle never expected to find herself working behind the counter along side York when one of the store employees went into labor or finding herself falling for the handsome York Parker.

The Chocolate Touch is the eighth book in the Love at the Chocolate Shop series but as each of the books feature a different couple they all can be read as standalone novels. However, as usual with the stories in these books you do get glimpses of the Marietta residents from previous books all throughout the stories for those fans that have read all of the series. I particularly enjoyed this installment featuring the chocolate shop owner and employees a bit more than others had in the past.

It’s really become tough for me to dislike any of the chocolate shop stories since each brings back the small town charm of Marietta along with some very likable characters. York and Chantelle were a great couple together and it certainly kept my interest to see how they would work out a relationship with both of their backgrounds in the story. If any complaint could be had with the story is it seemed to feature way more delicious chocolate and may make a reader gain a few pounds just from reading about the deliciousness.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

The Things They’ve Taken by Katie McElhenney

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

All Lo Campbell has ever wanted was to just be a normal teenager instead of being dragged from one place to another with her mother all her life. But Lo and her mother are not normal in the fact that they can see what others can’t from the supernatural world.

One night Lo finds herself in a living nightmare when her mother is taken by a demon so now Lo will do anything to find her mother and bring her back. Starting off on a journey by visiting another demon Lo seeks answers into what happens and finds herself teamed up with a tracker in the quest to find her mother.

The Things They’ve Taken was a rather fast paced young adult fantasy dealing with demons and all kinds of other creatures. While I enjoyed the pace of this one, the interesting characters, situations and not having the romance thrust into full gear right away I did find a few other flaws in my opinion bringing my rating down to 3.5 stars.

First, I was expecting the story to start off with a mother and daughter living in a normal type world but it jumped right into Lo needing to find her mother with very little world building to introduce the story. Also, while I did enjoy the adventure that Lo tackles in order to find her mother and the different characters brought in the story seemed to have a rather abrupt ending making this feel more like the beginning of a book. As much as I tried to turn the pages the book was over leaving me with questions and no word of a sequel which was disappointing.

Overall, 3.5 stars, even with the flaws I still enjoyed the fast pace of the story that was there and would continue reading about these characters if the story is continued.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

 

 

 

Excerpt:

Late February, 2006

Four Seasons Ranch

Shawneetown, Southern Illinois

Chloe bolted up, willing the fog in her head to dissipate. The bed sheets were twisted around her ankles. Sweat trickled down her back. The terror froze her limbs while she struggled to calm her thudding heart and listen for the sound all horse owners dread. But it was the smell that made her realize this was not a terrible dream.

Smoke.

Instinct took over and she scrambled from the four-poster, making a beeline for the back door and the barn. Her toe smacked against the corner of a wall as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. Oh god, not my babies. Not Bunny. Panic weighed down her legs as her bare feet hit the gravel. Everything seemed to move in slow motion. She tried to run down the long driveway, her eyes riveted to the red-orange flames shooting up into the black sky. Paul, her trainer, emerged from the darkness, his signature white hat on his head, his face colored yellow from the fiery glow. He signaled for her to take the front of the building as he disappeared around the back.

The frigid night air slapped her awake, but a horrifying screech from a panicked horse kicked in her adrenaline. Chloe reached the big, sliding doors and tugged them open. Heat smacked her face, and the smoke assaulted her lungs. Coughing, tears running down her cheeks, she slid back the bolts and opened the stall doors. On the other side, Paul’s voice faintly reached her over the crackle that filled her ears.

“Hiya! Move it, move it.”

The fire had consumed the other half of the barn where the arena was located. Above her was the loft, filled with winter hay and the last of her savings, now adding fuel to the already intense blaze. She pushed the thought from her mind as the flames shot through the center of the alleyway and the arena caved in.

Grabbing one of the lead ropes that hung at each door, she smacked the first horse on the rump and sent him flying out of the barn. The first three horses on each side followed their stable mates into safety with little persuasion. But Duchess, her mother’s old mare, wouldn’t budge. Chloe threw the lead rope over her neck and forced a calm tone. “Easy, girl. That’s my girl. Walk on, now. Walk on.”

The old horse snorted and pranced but followed her out of the stall. When they neared the opening, she withdrew the rope and whacked Duchess’ hindquarters. With a leap, the horse disappeared into the gray haze. The acrid odor of scorched hair and burnt wood filled her nostrils. Embers popped. She felt her cheek blister and wiped at it with her shoulder, while leading two more horses out by hand. She could hear BW’s shrill bark and knew he was herding the animals into a paddock as she sent them out.

Crack!

Above her, a beam gave way and formed a fiery V. The horses must have sensed it also because they lunged ahead, snapping Chloe’s shoulders forward. She struggled to maintain her balance but fell to the matted floor, her knees striking the hard rubber. A boom behind her sent a spray of sparks, and pain shot along her backside. From the corner of her eye, she saw a strand of her hair spark. She beat at her neck frantically, putting it out with her bare hand. The heat was sweltering now. Images wavered in the flames that licked at the dry timbers of the remaining stalls and the heavy beams above.

Scrambling to her feet, Chloe ran outside into the frigid night and stumbled down the drive to help Paul. As she reached the other side of the barn, she doubled over as a coughing spasm racked her body. Hands on her knees, gasping to pull air into her tight chest, she heard him yelling over the crackle and whinnies.

“Bunny won’t leave the stall, and won’t let me near her foal.”

“What about Jack?”

“He’s good. C’mon, the roof is gonna give.”

His hand tightened around her arm and pulled with such force her feet almost left the ground. Plunging back into the smoking hell, they entered Bunny’s stall and found the foal in the corner.

“Paul, I’ll get the foal then Bunny will follow.”

Another loud snap from above. She grabbed the lead rope dangling from the horse’s halter and handed it to the trainer. Running a palm down her mare’s neck, she spoke soothingly, “Atta girl, Bunny. There’s my girl. Let’s get your baby out of here.” The mare’s ears perked at her voice and words. Chloe tossed a rope around the foal’s neck and pulled. The baby gave to the pressure and followed Chloe out.

Behind her, a loud, splintering crash was followed by a shrill squeal. Her stomach twisted as she turned to see Paul pulling at the lead rope. A fiery beam pinned Bunny as she thrashed, her legs flying in the air. One hoof caught the man in the head, and he crumpled to the ground.

Fighting for air, her chest a tight ball of agony, Chloe stumbled back in and grabbed Paul under his arms. BW appeared at her side. Together, they dragged him out of danger. With the last of her strength, she shuffled backwards until her feet tripped on something solid. She fell, his body tangled in her legs as they both landed with a thud.

A sob ripped at her raw throat at the sound of a muffled shriek. Tears spilled down her burning cheeks as she shook the lifeless body on top of her. BW licked at his master’s face. Chloe collapsed, her hand still on Paul’s chest, finding hope in the slight rise and fall of his shallow breathing. In the back of her brain, the sound of sirens wailed faintly. Above her, a shadow loomed. Mike? How did he get here so fast? And then her world went black.