Author: cherylmahoney

I'm a book review blogger and writer. I have published four novels, The Wanderers; The Storyteller and Her Sisters; and The People the Fairies Forget; and The Lioness and the Spellspinners. All can be found on Amazon as an ebook and paperback. In my day job, I'm a Marketing Specialist. Find me on Twitter (@MarvelousTales) and GoodReads (MarvelousTales).

A Beyond the Tales Update on an Atypical Fairy

On By cherylmahoneyIn Novel News4 Comments

Hello talented, discerning and patient readers of fantasy novels!  It’s been a while since I last updated on my next book…the third installment in my Beyond the Tales series, The People the Fairies Forget.  I’ve been hoping to share the cover soon–but it’s still under wraps for final edits.  So today I’m offering up the spine and back of the book instead–which is exciting too, because it has more details on the plot than I’ve previously announced…

PFF Back and Spine
I have more updates coming–like a cover, a release date and a give-away.  Not to mention, of course, the novel!  More soon…

Book Review: Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee

On By cherylmahoneyIn Historical Fiction, Reviews2 Comments

I don’t usually pick up the latest sensation in books, but I couldn’t resist Go Set a Watchman, the new manuscript from Harper Lee. Especially after The New York Times ran a good half-dozen articles about it! I love To Kill a Mockingbird (though I admit it’s been several years since I read it) and after all the hoopla and mystery around this one, I was pretty curious. And in the end…I have to highly recommend To Kill a Mockingbird.

Go Set a Watchman tells the story of Jean-Louise Finch, twenty-six and visiting her hometown of Maycomb, Alabama after living in New York. In between childhood reminiscences, she discovers a disturbing trend towards racism in her childhood friend and boyfriend Hank (also called Henry), and even more alarmingly, in her sainted father Atticus.

That’s a really bad plot description—but to be honest, it’s not much of a plot. For a good quarter of the book I had no idea where this was going (I mean, apart from what I’d read in those NY Times articles), and once it gets into the meat of things, it’s largely Jean-Louise freaking out…only to never really come to a meaningful resolution on the primary issues. Continue reading “Book Review: Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee” →

Blog Hop: Holiday Reviews

On By cherylmahoneyIn Blog Hop4 Comments

book blogger hopThis week’s Book Blogger Hop question: Do you ever do a review post based on a holiday? For example review Christmas theme books in December.

Frequently!  Although it often turns into movie reviews for holidays–somehow I tend to tie my holidays to movies more than to books.  I usually try to do something Christmas-related for December, I posted about Mr. Smith Goes to Washington for the 4th of July, and I reviewed Jesus Christ Superstar on Good Friday.  Although I did miss Guy Fawkes Day for V for Vendetta.

Among my more unusual holiday posts was reviewing Casablanca on Pearl Harbor Day, and the time I shared an old Star Trek fanfiction piece about a very unfortunate redshirt for Friday the 13th.

Bloggers, do you do holiday-themed reviews?  Readers, do you like to read holiday books close to their related day?

Book Review: The Mark of Athena (Heroes of Olympus)

On By cherylmahoneyIn Fantasy, Reviews, Young Adult1 Comment

After reading the Roman-set Mark of the Thief, I was happy to turn to another Roman-inspired book…and one I had more confidence in!  The Mark of Athena is Book 3 in Rick Riordan’s Heroes of Olympus series, modern demigods who have to save the world from monsters and villainous gods.  I enjoyed and reviewed the first two books (The Lost Hero and The Son of Neptune) and was happy to find the third book equally satisfying.  Some spoilers to follow for the first two books…

This third book opens with the Percy/Annabeth reunion I felt cheated of in Book 2, so that was a good way to begin the story!  The Greek and Roman heroes of the first two books are finally united here, to set off in their flying ship, the Argo II, towards the ancient lands of Rome and Greece.  This will be the battleground to try to stop the waking of Gaea, a very unmotherly Mother Earth who wants to destroy humanity.  Obstacles come thick and fast, from tensions within the group and from monsters at every turn. Continue reading “Book Review: The Mark of Athena (Heroes of Olympus)” →

Blog Hop: Bookish Collections

On By cherylmahoneyIn Blog Hop4 Comments

book blogger hopThis week’s Book Blogger Hop question: Do you collect things that are book related? Like bookmarks, nameplates, 1st editions…

I mostly just collect books!  I wouldn’t say I have any collections of bookish things, but I do have a handful of souvenirs that I bought because of their bookish connections…

P1030436I visited the Harry Potter Studio Tour earlier this year, and couldn’t resist buying a wand at what must be the coolest gift store ever (boxes of wands, piled everywhere!)  You can get pretty much any character you could possibly want, but I decided on Hermione’s, because it’s gorgeous but more importantly because–seriously, Hermione?  SO awesome. Continue reading “Blog Hop: Bookish Collections” →