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Child Taker is a British action thriller focusing on the efforts of a grandfather and his pals to recover his kidnapped grandchildren. Five year old fraternal twins Sarah and Zak are abducted from their tent while on a family camping trip. Their mother, Hayley, is understandably distraught and welcomes her father's help in trying to find the children. The Major, a counter terrorism agent, and his elite team pull out all the stops in their search for Sarah and Zak.

When I began listening to and reading The Child Taker, I was leery that a female narrator could pull off a believable action thriller. In spite of my reservations, Julia Farhat does, in fact, do a splendid job with the multitude of characters in the book. The pacing of the novel and the narrative performance kept me so involved I devoured the book in a single day.

Anyone with issues regarding child and sexual abuse should look elsewhere as those themes are integral to this story.

I bought the Kindle book and received the Audible book from the author in exchange for my honest review.

Reblog from Interesting Literature

For the April Fools Day tomorrow, here are 10 quotes from writers – about fools, folly, and foolishness

1. Here cometh April again, and as far as I can see the world hath more fools in it than ever. – Charles Lamb, cited in Wordsworth Book of Humorous Quotations
2. A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools. – Douglas Adams, Mostly Harmless
3. My nose itch’d, and I knew I should drink wine, or kiss a fool. – Jonathan Swift, ‘Polite Conversation’
4. In university they don’t tell you that the greater part of the law is learning to tolerate fools. – Doris Lessing, Martha Quest
5. If fifty million people say a foolish thing, it is still a foolish thing. – Anatole France, cited in Listening and Speaking: A Guide to Effective Oral Communication
6. Surprises are foolish things. The pleasure is not enhanced, and the inconvenience is often considerable. – Jane Austen, Emma
7. He who lives without folly is not as wise as he thinks. – François de la Rochefoucauld, Maximes
8. Education: That which discloses to the wise and disguises from the foolish their lack of understanding. – Ambrose Bierce, The Devil’s Dictionary
9. I have great faith in fools — self-confidence my friends will call it. – Edgar Allan Poe, Marginalia
10. In politics, what begins in fear usually ends in folly. – Samuel Taylor Coleridge, cited in Little Oxford Dictionary of Quotations

Stop scrolling. Don't just like this post and roll on by. I need your attention, please. This is not a promotional message about one of books, and this isn't a review of any kind. Someone needs your help. His name is Steven Beltzer, his son Nick is disabled. The family car, the only vehicle they have, was recently totaled in a hit and run accident. There's more info on the Facebook page I'm going to link you to. I would like to ask all of you that follow me to share this post. Even if you cannot donate to the fund, share this post. Someone is bound to have some money to share or a vehicle to donate or something, anything, to help these folks out. Steven's good people. He's only ever been friendly to me. 

Let's make a difference.

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Mr. Howard is a professor of esoteric studies and aids the local police using his psychic skills. A bit of a recluse,   Mr. Howard only teaches night classes due to a skin allergy to the sun. I am sure it is obvious to even casual readers that Mr. Howard is a vampire.

Mr. Howard's latest blood donor is from a wealthy family so the police are under intense pressure to find the girl. Willard, a state police detective, is soon on the hunt to unmask Mr Howard. However, the character Willard is so abhorrent - calling his family names and beating his kids - that the reader has zero affection or respect for him. While Mr. Howard kills, he is remorseful about the killing and seeks to return his victim's remains to their families.

The writing is fine and the story moves along nicely. Although while I could accept the premise of a wealthy vampire, the exorbitant payout to a private detective would draw suspicion and attention that was unwanted by the main character. Sometimes fairly minor details like this throw the reader out of the story and detract from its enjoyment.

Received free copy in exchange for honest review

I'm proposing the start of a Movement.

What is this movement, you ask?

Well, it seems, at least to me, that book blogging and reviewing are becoming more about defending ourselves against charges of bullying than about actual reviewing and blogging about books.

The Movement is very simple. I'm suggesting to all book bloggers and reviewers that they dedicate a blog to how book bloggers and reviewers are not bullies. We are simply folks with opinions about books who write down those opinions, good or bad. UN World Book Day is on April 23rd, a perfect date for the Movement. 

In blogging or reviewing, we (in the US) are exercising the concept of protected speech (this is not the same as the First Amendment right to free speech). This allows us to express our opinions in pretty much any manner in which we choose to within the law.

The United Nations has declared the Right to Freedom of Expression to be a Universal Human Right. Part of that covenant reads, "Everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression."

Now, it seems that there are people who don't want book bloggers and reviewers to be able to freely exercise our rights. They want to censor us. They want to marginalize and diminish us with labels such as 'bully,' or 'thug.' Why? Because exercising our right to freely express our thoughts and opinions enrages them. They desperately want to control what book bloggers and reviewers write. Why, again? Because they are afraid of other people's opinions. They want to be Emperors with a glorious new wardrobe followed by sycophants whispering praises in their ears while at the same time shuttering out those who are pointing out their nakedness.

Many of us live in free countries. We hold our freedoms and liberties dear. Just think of the millions upon millions of people who have died, or have been wounded or maimed defending the ideas of freedom and liberty from oppressive tyrants. Now, I'm certainly not saying that those who wish to shout us down are oppressive tyrants. I'm pointing out that the right to the freedom of expression has been a hard fought battle. No other citizen has the right or authority to tell book bloggers and reviewers, or anyone else for that matter, what and how they may express themselves. 

(Editorial pause. The number of people who have died directly or indirectly in the fight against oppressive tyrants throughout our history is more likely in the hundreds of millions, but stating that might seem like hyperbole.)

To me, the most startling thing about our critics is that many of them are authors. Authors have born the brunt of tyrannical displeasure over the millennia for writing things which embarrass or criticize those in positions of power. Throughout history, philosophers and authors have been murdered, exiled, tortured and imprisoned for speaking their minds or writing their opinions.

It simply boggles my mind when an author supports censorship or pushes to ban anonymous speech. These authors are working against exactly what their predecessors and countless other people have fought and died for.

Citizens of our societies have earned their right to stand on the soap box in the public square and speak their mind. No one has the right to tell us we can't do so.

Remember, UN World Book Day, April 23rd. Book reviewers are not bullies.

If you liked this blog, please feel free to re-blog it. Spread the word.

Second book about Edward, a 42 y o with Asperger's, and his life after losing his job and going on a road trip to see his old neighbors. The book is very well done and compells the reader to care about the main character deeply while learning to understand how he thinks.

Read through Kindle/audible Whispersync/immersion reading. Great narration in Audible book by Luke Daniels.

Eta - I had purchased both Edward books by Craig Lancaster along with Audible versions. Just found them in Kindle Unlimited with Narration so encourage any subscribers to put them on your list

I had purchased and read Diary of a Small Fish last year. The writing is excellent and I enjoyed the humor and legal wrangling. Since it was written in the first person voice of the main character, Paul Forte, I had a little difficulty, as a female reader, staying in the story.

Nonetheless, when the author offered the audio book on Goodreads I was anxious to give it another go. I am so glad I did as the narration by Keith Sellon-Wright is absolutely perfect for the main character. Mr. Sellon-Wright also did a superb job of conveying the character when he narrated female character dialogue.


Small Fish is a very enjoyable book and the Audible version takes the story to a whole new level. Kindle version purchased and Audible version received from the author. My opinion is my own.

When one has read a book, I think there is nothing so nice as discussing it with some one else - even though it sometimes produces rather fierce arguments.

 C.S. Lewis

Discussing books and reviews is awesome. Sometimes, however, you wish to stay inside of your friends' circle and now you can. The updated option for comments allow you to choose who can stay inside your circle and comment on your blog. We've also retouched the compare books option - now you can compare books on BookLikes' members blogs and share the news with your friends. 

Comments

The new comment options can be found in Settings/Blogs, in response to you requests we've added new comment possibilities. Now you can choose from the following:

You can choose the options as you wish, tick the boxes that will work best for your blog. Remember to Save the changes in Settings. 

Compare books

We've also retouched the Compare books option - now it can be found on a public blog of any BookLikes member. You can also go directly to the compare books page - choose Apps/Compare books from the main menu. 

If you wish to compare the books simply click the chart icon in the upper right corner on the blog page and you'll see how many books in common the both of you have.

The comparison includes books, ratings, book categories, and reviews. You can also share the news with  your friends with the social share buttons. 

Update

Now when you set your books with a currently reading status the start reading date will be set automatically to today's date.

When you finish the book, click Finished! on your Dashboard - the finished reading date will be set automatically to today's date. Books with filled up reading dates are added to your reading challenge. 

You can update the dates any time in the book popup by using +Shelf advanced options or in your Shelf table view. 

In recognition of Black History Month, Audible is giving away audio performances of plays highlighting famous black Americans.

I am eagerly anticipating Jump at the Sun about Zora Neale Hurston as I just read Their Eyes were watching God today.

Click below 

http://www.audible.com/mt/4forFeb?source_code=FBIGBWS02021590UG

Well isn't Mr Rod Labbe a right little charmer. I wasn't aware that looks or gender affected anyones ability to write. It seems this author thinks female horror authors look like hags. The link explains more of the situation, which only makes it all the more shocking that he has said/treated a fellow author in this way.

http://abrokenlaptop.com/2015/02/16/this-is-exactly-why-we-need-women-in-horror-month-you-jerk/

"The sheer number of people who call themselves "horror writers" astounds me. I consider myself just a writer, somebody who's up for anything if the challenge is interesting enough. In college, I wrote for the campus newspapers, edited the literary magazines and jumped into freelancing once I had my diploma. I pretty much worked in anonymity, and I like that. Now, however, with the publication of my first novel and a second one to come later this year, I've found that I must "network" to get my name "out there." And via this networking, I've encountered people who VERY SERIOUSLY consider themselves horror writers of the highest caliber.
They don't welcome criticism on any level and don't appreciate being questioned. They form "horror writing groups and associations" and band together with other like-minded writers for support and promotion. They do library readings, sign their novels on people's lawns, pose for pictures as ghouls and monsters (the women are especially guilty of this; most of them look like hags anyway), and self-publish their work.
As a result, the marketplace has been flooded with junk, which brings down the overall quality of everything being offered. Their stuff will appear on Amazon.com, all wildly applauded by friends and family, who eagerly post to "lift up" the poor writer and perhaps push for more sales. "Five stars!" they'll gush, when all the while, the book/novella/short story is full of typos and misspellings and bad syntax. Shameful.
Everywhere I turn, I encounter these deluded individuals. They obviously have some great need to be "somebody," and it makes them feel good to be recognized. Hey, I'm all for that--but I also believe you must hone your craft, educate yourself, and pay your dues. You don't become a horror writer merely because you suddenly feel like one. It's like any creative art. First, you need the talent, and then you need to polish it to a high sheen.
Skipping these steps results in what I've been seeing: deluded "writers" who proudly strut around with absolutely nothing to back up the bravado." - Rod Labbe

One way is to say that, if you do not offend my sensibilities, I will refrain from offending yours. That approach sounds nice, and it’s popular in many quarters, but if applied in a consistent and democratic way it will lead to a tyranny of silence.

Flemming Rose