​Two nations. Two cultures. One trapped in the narrow alleys and quarters of their tightly packed city; the other trapped in ancient feuds and traditions. Both are determined to exist. 


Frost’s novel holds no punches and is as sharp as the rock from which it is named. In Frost’s own words, each of her characters are like obsidian–sharper and harder because they have been broken. 
The story opens with a captured woman facing the man that slaughtered her people, the Vilarhiti of the White Desert. He demands information from her–information that would lead to the demise of her culture as she knows it. But this Bhavari woman is strong and refuses to speak even under penalty of death. So her captor chooses life as her punishment–she will live as his prisoner, his wife, and be forced to watch any children born to her be raised by her enemy and transformed into the next conqueror of her people. 
Next we meet Hasheem, a former male prostitute turned assassin who now flees the city that used up his youth for its pleasures. Hasheem, too, is one of these sharp-edged people, and this flight to freedom drives him into the White Desert where his ability to survive in the dark alleys of the city will be of no help. Little does he or either nation know that his escape will signal the resurgence of conflict, shaking both peoples to their very core. 
Obsidian is a dark tale of political intrigue, secrets, depravity, and love. Each of the characters flow with passion–hatred, desire, ambition. Each character wants something and will stop at nothing to achieve their goals. They are broken. They are survivors. They are dangerous. 

They are Obsidian itself. 

This story is not for the faint of heart. Frost takes off the rose-colored sheen of the world and explores deeply the dark, hidden places of human existence. With beautiful prose, exceptional story-telling, and captivating visuals, she brings the reader along on a journey that keeps them turning pages, drinking in more. Her characters worm their way into your heart and mind, and you find yourself thinking about them hours after the book has been closed. 

If you are up for the soul challenge, I recommend this book for you. 

Barbara Avon’s Revived
A Review
 
            Avon sums up her main character best by stating that Steven Gold was a man who turned heads. Men in suits wanted to be him. Women wanted to know him. Little old ladies wished to adopt him to fill the void of missing grandsons. 
 
            But Steven Gold has secrets, many secrets in fact. Behind each of his successes–his marriage of eleven years to a beautiful woman, his career as an award-winning journalist–there is a dark secret waiting to catch up with him. And, after a close encounter with death, these secrets, or these bodies rather, decide they’ve waited long enough in the shadows and draw near to claim Gold as their own. 
 
            Using vivid imagery, Avon paints pictures of an idyllic life, but even from the beginning, hidden in every scene, is just a hint of the macabre or of something not quite right. At first, the reader focuses on Steven’s wife Cassie, thinking that the mystery revolves around her as she battles decaying mental health and slowly falls into hallucinations and delusion. Everything changes, however, after Steven’s accident where a head injury causes him to enter delusions of his own. 
 
            As Steven’s visions grow more intense, the reader is forced to weigh this man, not only by his appearance but by the content of his character as well. Is he as truly as golden as his name? Or is there more corruption than shine? 
 
            This book was a good, quick read. The characters are likable and convincing–you find yourself rooting for them even, perhaps, when you should not. Avon does well to portray the difficulties of living with a mental illness and the complications that this can bring–especially when delusions encounter real life. She also brings out how trauma can impact this healing and how some things ‘forgotten’ can impact us to our very core. 
 
            If psychological thrillers are your thing, I recommend this book for you! ​

The post I had planned for today fell through, so we’re going to review a throwback Thursday novel, ENDER’S GAME by Orson Scott Card!
 
This book, made famous by the Hollywood movie of the same title, was first published in 1985 during the thriving era of several sci-fi classics, STAR WARS probably being the most popular title of that time. I, however, did not read this novel until this summer. I sought out Card’s popular novel after reading his book on writing entitled ELEMENTS OF WRITING FICTION: CHARACTERS AND VIEWPOINT at the suggestion of an editor. I truly enjoyed that book and intend on reading it again. 
 
But I was less than thrilled about ENDER’S GAME. 
 
I know, who am I to criticize a man who has made millions of dollars in his writing career? But the writing landscape has changed a lot since 1985, and I wonder if ENDER’S GAME would have ended up on the slush pile of a number of agents had it been submitted today. Don’t get me wrong, the plot is intriguing – I thoroughly enjoyed the movie and especially the twist at the end. For those who are unfamiliar with the story, here’s the gist (spoilers not included). 
 
Sometime in the distant future, the world has united to prepare for the next ‘Bugger’ invasion – an attack from a distant alien race that has nearly destroyed Earth in previous wars. Now the nations are gathering the best and brightest children with plans on training the next generation of military leaders. Among those chosen is Ender, the third child chosen from his family for the training, and the one with the most promise. 
 
Everyone identifies brilliance and leadership in Ender the moment he steps into the school. Instructors rave about him, competitors despise him, and his companions immediately seek to follow him, even at his very young age. Fearing that special adult attention will stifle his drive to problem solve and advance, however, Ender receives no help from his guardians when interactions with competitors turn confrontational – even when violence is involved. In fact, if anything, the adults in Ender’s life do whatever they can to create more challenges for Ender whether that be by isolation, sleep deprivation, or extreme physical exertion – all in the pursuit of creating an unbeatable commander to destroy the ‘Buggers.’
 
As I said, this is an exceptional plot (and I’d love to see the movie again) but what I found disappointing was the actual writing. Now, that’s not to say the writing was bad, but it was functional at best. Not much attention was given to prose. Perhaps that was in the interest of word count – there was a lot to fit in this novel meant for children – but there were, I thought, several pacing issues, and the final act was a bit rushed. Much of the literature is about emotions and, although I felt sympathy for Ender in many situations, it never translated much into empathy. 
 
I bring up this novel today more to note the change in literary expectations from then to now. It’s not enough anymore to write well or to have a good story. There has to be a spark, a life behind the words that pierce the soul. Competition has never been so high in the self-publishing era. With the click of a button, anyone can publish their thoughts, but not everyone can sell. Indie authors ESPECIALLY know this, but the Big 5 Publishers are feeling the pinch as well. I don’t have any advice about how to proceed in this current climate – I’m trying to figure that out as well – but it’s always interesting to look back to see what was considered great for the time as compared to now. 
​

J. S. Frankel's Randor's Moon -- A Review

Complex intergalactic conflict? Political intrigue? Deception and betrayal? If these things are your cup of tea, then Randor’s Moon is a must-read for you! 
Randor, a young scientist – one of the last living scientists among his people – is tasked with the impossible: finding a cure to a virus found in a race of creatures he’s never met until that afternoon. And if he doesn’t? No big deal. The creatures of Falanar will just keep bombing his planet into extinction. 
With the fate of his people hanging in the balance, Randor journeys with Minnara, the Crown Princess of this warring nation, to Falanar in order to run his tests and apply a cure, but things go terribly wrong when their navigation system forces their spacecraft into the tail of a passing comet. This freak accident (or was it an accident?) destroys their craft, marooning them on a moon inhabited by fearsome and horrific creatures. 
If Randor and Minnara wish to survive, they will have to find some way to put aside their grievances and work together. Things only get increasingly complicated, however, when the sentient inhabitants of the planet become hostile, Minnara starts to show symptoms of the virus, and help is slow to arrive. If Randor’s wits and Minnara’s strength fail, it’s only a matter of time before they succumb to the terrors of this frightening world, and with their deaths will come the extinction of both of their peoples.   
J. S. Frankel keeps you on your toes and guessing all the way to the end of this Young Adult Sci-Fi tale of self-resilience and survival! ​