Getting reviews is painful. There’s the struggle to actually get the review, as most readers don’t bother to review the book (even though that’s the best thing that they can do for an author). The other is the fear from putting yourself out there for critique and the knowledge that a bad review can sink a book’s sales. In fact, many reviewers and other authors will give their competitors 1 star reviews out of spite. That makes me so angry that my eyebrows furrow into one Uberbrow (the Uberbrow is a fearsome beast). We’re not competitors. It’s not like there’s a limited number of books to read, and the goal is to hook new readers for everyone. Once someone gets the book bug in them, they’re a reader for life.

Reviews are rare, so it’s perfectly acceptable for me to jump up and down when I get one, especially when it glows like Bruce Leroy at the end of The Last Dragon (and if you haven’t seen The Last Dragon, watch it RIGHT MEOW). Here’s the review:

The Watchmage was an intriguing read, with its mixture of fantasy and real world, mystical beings living amongst humans, hiding their true nature. The story centres around the kidnapping with the use of magic, of Stuart Vanderlay, the baby son of a rich family, based in Old New York. Jonas Hood, a municipal Policeman has been tasked with finding the child and enlists the help of his father, the watchmage, Nathaniel Hood. They hit many obstacles in carrying out their task, which all part of the fun of reading this book. I love the old world feel of the story, and the authentic old world language used in the dialogue. A job well done.

The story was cleverly written, and I loved the fact that both Nathaniel and Jonas were written in the first person POV, and the author made it quite clear, who’s POV it was at the heading of every chapter. There are some intriguing supporting characters within the story. One of my favorites would have to be Hendricks, the trainee/servant in Nathaniel’s household.

This is a must-read for people who like a bit of a magical fantasy.

*I was given a free copy of this book for an honest review  

In more Watchmage news: the sequel Cold Iron under review from my critique group, and I am writing the 1st draft on the 3rd book, tentatively titled The Fiddler’s Bow. I’m still looking for agents, but it’s hard to catch their eye with a self-published book. Alas, this is the path that I chose. I was jaded by the publishing industry after previous attempts to get over on me. I struck out on my own, but my own is a lonely place to be.

Talk to ya later. Keep reading, keep writing, and KEEP LIVING!