Friday, April 30, 2021

BOOK: The Captain and the Ambassador by Carol Ann Kauffman

 



Ambassador Tull Redmond is looking for a quick ride home back to Earth after ending her twenty-year mission as peace negotiator. All she wants is peace, quiet, and to be left alone. She boards the Earth Starship Giuseppe Verdi with its questionable leader, Captain Ben Jacobs anyway. 

It's the fastest way home. Her quarters has a full bath, a space view window, and a large, real bed! How bad could this rule-breaking, authority-defying Captain Casanova be? High Council hates him, true, but his crew loves him. 

Surely, she's too old and tired to be drawn into this bad boy of the quadrant's personal circus. 

Will Ambassador Redmond get the quiet, uneventful ride home she craves?




Some Amazon Reviews:


"If you love Science Fiction, Romance, Adventure and a cliff hanger out of nowhere, then this book is for you. Carol Ann Kauffman writes clean romance and with her details and your own mind, you don’t need hot and sexy, it’s already there. I love that about her romance novels. She allows me to enjoy the true meaning of the story and lets my imagination do the rest.
This is about two people heading home to Earth. Neither expected love to come into play and neither expected huge trouble from an ex. But when you are told on ship that your spouse has passed away, well that gives you permission to move on, even if it is with the Captain of a spaceship.
Well there is a huge change of events with one going to jail, one being shot out of the garage shoot and one who just wants to be happy with a new life on earth. There is love making in front of a huge window looking out at the vast space and stars. There is vengeance and madness and down right evil. But there is a mystery mixed throughout it all and so many surprises along the way, especially the end.
I love Carol Ann Kauffman’s work and highly recommend her books to everyone!"



"'The Captain and The Ambassador' is an enjoyable blend of science fiction adventure, space-travel and lighthearted romance, with some well-developed mystery and drama woven through the story, infusing it with greater depth and tension.Regardless of the fact that the book is largely set beyond earth, Kauffman demonstrates the universal truths of human nature through her characters. It's easy to see that a character in a book is putting other concerns ahead of those of the heart, but on reflection, the reader understands that this is very often the sort of limitation that an individual puts on oneself for one or more different reasons. It takes only a little empathy for the reader to want the heroes of the story to end up happy, but this also carries the reminder that it's important for each individual, reader included, to choose the life that makes them happy, too. Whether it's because they have enjoyed them or because they haven't, everyone understands the value and importance of acceptance, love, personal freedom and justice, and it is those qualities that make 'The Captain and The Ambassador' a satisfying and enjoyable read."



"Kauffman gives a try at sci-fi and it's an amazing story!

Thursday, April 29, 2021

ENTERTAINMENT: Discovery of Witches (AMC)



If you like witches and vampires that swings from a historical setting to modern day college campus, beautiful costumes, and Matthew Goode, then this one is for you. 




 









VISIONANDVERSEDISCLAIMER:

Note:

Vision and Verse does not store any personal information like email addresses, home addresses, etc. We do not give any information to third parties. And cookies? We eat cookies.


Wednesday, April 28, 2021

INTERVIEW: Cozy Mystery Author Christa Nardi


Christa Nardi

College Station, Texas

USA



 

Good morning, Christa, and welcome to Vision and Verse, the site for


art and authors and those who love them. Can you tell us a little about 


what you've written?


Cozy mysteries mostly. I also co-author a teen/young adult mystery 


series with Cassidy Salem.




What is your favorite genre to write? 


Cozy mystery

   

                   


Favorite food. 


Chocolate




That's my favorite food group!


Tea or coffee?                    


Neither. Diet coke is my substitute.

 



Pizza or ice cream? 


Ice cream, please. Mint Chocolate 


Chip.



 

Wine or beer?

 

Definitely wine.


 

Where would you like to visit?

 

That list is very long – next up 


(assuming travel is safe) is the 


Panama Canal in 2022.



 

Favorite musical artist.  


Andrea Boccelli for calming/soothing 


sounds, Lady A the rest of the time. 

 



Do you listen to music when you write?

 

No, I prefer quiet. The voices in my head make enough noise.



 

What makes you laugh?

 

My 5-year-old granddaughter, Grace. She’s at that age.

 



Favorite work of art or sculpture.


Would have to be a Monet, probably 


Water Lilies 1916.




How old were you when you started 


writing?

 

In elementary school I think. I wrote 


on and off, some stories and some 


poetry in high school. 

 



Do you plan out your book with 


outlines and notecards? Or just 


write? 


I’m definitely on the pantser end of


the continuum. Definitely no 


outline. A general idea, main character(s), setting, and I start writing. It


doesn’t necessarily look the same when I finish as the first rough draft.



 

Describe your perfect evening. 


Dinner with my husband and 


friends, glass of wine, maybe 


dancingand


relaxing with no thoughts of to-do 


lists or work.



 

Where do you get your inspiration? 


From people and situations I’ve 


encountered over my life time and a 


career in mental health.


 


What do you do when you get a writer's block?


I do something else for a few days and let my subconscious work on it. 


Then I go and do what some say you should never do. I start at the 


beginning and re-read what I already wrote, editing as I go, and add on 


from where I left off.              



 

Who is your favorite author? 


Another hard one. General fiction 


would be Louisa May Alcott – I 


read them all and Jo was my all-time 


heroine. In mystery from years ago, it 


would be Daphne du Maurier. 


Romantic suspense would be Kathleen 


Brooks (I’m addicted to the Bluegrass 


series). In cozy mysteries, I enjoy 


many of my fellow writers including 


Larissa Reinhart, Anne Celeste 


Burke, Ellen Crosby, and Deborah Garner. I also read sci-fi/fantasy – 


Tolkien, Robert Heinlein and Mercedes Lackey. 


 



Best book you ever read. 


That would be a toss-up between 


Rebecca (du Maurier), Little Women 


(Alcott), and The Hobbit (Tolkien).

 



Last book you read. 


Tall Tales Secret Book Club 


(CeeCeeJames)

 



What would you do for a living if you 

weren’t a writer?

Mental health services or teach.

 




Who is the one person who has 


influenced your personal life the most 


and why? 


My father. He supported me in 


whatever I wanted to do, whatever I set 


as my goal. 





 




If you could sit down and have a conversation with ONE person, 


living or dead, real or fictional, who would it be and why? 


Not sure who that would be. I would like to visit the Blossom Café in 


Keeneston, KY (Bluegrass series) where everyone hangs out. The 


dynamic portrayed and orchestrated by three senior women (and then 


others as they age out) draws me in.



 

What advice would you give someone who aspired to be a writer? 


Sit down and write. With or without an outline. Write what you feel 


and what you would want to read. At the same time, get involved in 


writer groups (in person or virtual). I’ve found other authors to be 


helpful.




***Note to My Gentle Readers: Look for my review of  Wine and Dead, Another Murder by Christa Nardi here in the Achives at the bottom of the page, posted on March 23, 2021.

 

Do you have some links for us to follow you?

 

https://www.amazon.com/Christa-Nardi/e/B00G8SBCKK


https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7257539.Christa_Nardi


https://www.facebook.com/christa.nardi.5


https://twitter.com/ChristaN7777


https://www.bookbub.com/authors/christa-nardi


https://www.pinterest.com/cccnardi/


https://cccnardi.wixsite.com/mysite


Newsletter sign up: https://cccnardi.wixsite.com/mysite/contact


Blog: https://christanardi.blogspot.com

 










VISIONANDVERSEDISCLAIMER:

Note:

Vision and Verse does not store any personal information like email addresses, home addresses, etc. We do not give any information to third parties. And cookies? We eat cookies.












Tuesday, April 27, 2021

BOOK REVIEW: Love Notes in the Key of Sea by Anna Celeste Burke





A New Mystery Brought Georgie And Jack Together. Will An Old One Drive Them Apart?

In midlife, Georgie Shaw and Detective Jack Wheeler have a second chance at love, despite the fact they met during a murder investigation. A murder at Catmmando Mountain wasn't Georgie's first brush with murder and mayhem. Decades earlier, Georgie was nearly killed in an attack on the beach that left one man dead and two others missing including her fiancé, Danny Farrell. 

˃˃˃ Haunted By A Song From The Past

When Georgie returns to Corsario Cove, more than memories haunt her as a song Danny wrote just for her echoes in the air: Love Notes in the Key of Sea. Who else, other than she and Danny could know that song? Is it possible Danny's still alive? Or is the person who assaulted her on the beach after her again? 

˃˃˃ USA Today & Wall Street Journal bestselling author, Anna Celeste Burke invites you to find out!

RECIPES INCLUDED AND ALWAYS FREE TO READ ON KINDLE UNLIMITED!



My Review:
I enjoyed Love Notes in the Key of Sea by Anna Celeste Burke. A woman can’t move on with her love life until she gets some answers about a heartbreaking event from her past. When she reaches out to help a friend deal with a similar situation, she finds herself embroiled in a small resort town mystery than put her life in danger. Well written, solid characters, and great locale make this a good read.

Amazon Link:








VISIONANDVERSEDISCLAIMER:

Note:

Vision and Verse does not store any personal information like email addresses, home addresses, etc. We do not give any information to third parties. And cookies? We eat cookies.