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).

Book Reviews: The Ascendance Trilogy

On By cherylmahoneyIn Reviews, Young Adult3 Comments

I had an excellent time reading The False Prince by Jennifer A. Neilson, so I went very quickly on to the rest of the Ascendance Trilogy: The Runaway King and The Shadow Throne. This continued to be a very entertaining series—although the trilogy developed a few issues too. Unavoidable spoilers ahead for the first book!

Book 2 opens with Jaron (Sage) trying to convince his council and his country of his fitness to rule, while neighboring countries are rumbling about war. One of the most immediate threats is from a band of pirates who are allied with an enemy nation. Jaron sets out in disguise to infiltrate the pirates, and to find an old enemy.

The story is exciting, and there are enough twists and turns and obstacles (some Jaron anticipated, and others not) to keep the pace going. Some characters from the previous book return and grow in complexity, including Imogen (the girl Jaron cares for) and Amarinda (the princess he’s betrothed to). Continue reading “Book Reviews: The Ascendance Trilogy” →

Blog Hop: Bookcase Delights

On By cherylmahoneyIn Blog Hop10 Comments

book blogger hopThis week’s Book Blogger Hop question: How many bookcases do you have, and how do you organize the shelves?

My primary goal in organizing my apartment, when I moved in, was to fit in plenty of bookcases! I still feel short of space sometimes, but I make do… I have three large bookcases (six feet high)—one for children’s fiction, one for scifi/fantasy, and one for general fiction (which should give you a not-unexpected sense of the balance of my reading…) I have two much smaller bookcases, one for classic children’s fantasy, and one with nothing but L. M. Montgomery books.

My books are in fact meticulously organized, although they might not look it. Books are arranged alphabetically by author, within the aforementioned subject matter divisions. It looks more haphazard because several authors have their own shelves—J. M. Barrie, William Shakespeare, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Tamora Pierce and all Star Trek titles. Multiple titles by one author are usually in series-order or alphabetical if that’s not relevant. The Star Trek books are loosely in order by internal chronology. Montgomery, who did not write all of her series books consecutively or even in order, is the most organized but looks the least, because I put her books in chronological order by original publishing date.

It all makes sense to me. 🙂 And I can find any title quickly, which is really the end-goal, right? Do you have an organizing system, and does it make sense to other people, or just to you?

Book Review: Sisterhood Everlasting

On By cherylmahoneyIn Reviews1 Comment

I recently reviewed the first four books in Ann Brashares’ Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, and today brings me to the final book, Sisterhood Everlasting.  Spoilers ahead–not so much for this book, but for the previous ones, as is unavoidable when talking about much later events in the characters’ lives.  You’ve been warned.  I also warn you that this book is not as light as the previous ones (but I promise the ending is, mostly, a happy one).

Sisterhood Everlasting picks up ten years after the previous book, with the four girls about to turn 29.  Carmen is living a glamorous, high-speed life as an actress in Manhattan, engaged to a news executive none of her friends like very much.  Lena is an art teacher in New Jersey, a quiet homebody who avoids risks professionally and romantically.  Bridget lives in San Francisco with her long-time boyfriend, but can’t seem to put down roots or settle into a career.  And Tibby moved away to Australia with her boyfriend Brian a few years before, and has fallen strangely out of touch. Continue reading “Book Review: Sisterhood Everlasting” →

Book Review: Return to the Hundred Acre Wood

On By cherylmahoneyIn Fantasy, Juvenile, Reviews10 Comments

I always take a rather dim view of new authors writing sequels to classic fiction. Sometimes it works, but I’m always suspicious—so Return to the Hundred Acre Wood by David Benedictus proved to be a pleasant surprise.

It might have helped a great deal that he began with an Exposition, a kind of foreword, of the author speaking to the characters about the possibility of a new story (Eeyore is sure it will all turn out wrong). The author concludes that he can really only guess and hope that he will guess right–and the characters promise faithfully to help him get it right.  And this at least makes me feel that he has a good firm grasp of the size of the shoes he is attempting to fill, which makes me feel much better on the whole subject. Continue reading “Book Review: Return to the Hundred Acre Wood” →

You Can Get a FREE Copy of The Wanderers!

On By cherylmahoneyIn Novel NewsLeave a comment

Wanderers 8 - Small CopyIt’s not a contest…and there’s no limit to the number of copies available!

For two days, my novel The Wanderers is free as a Kindle download on Amazon!  The promotion only runs from July 27th-28th, so get your copy now.

If you already bought a copy…well, that moves you automatically into my “awesome person” category 🙂  And you can be awesome to someone else by telling a friend about the offer!  I’ll even pre-shorten the URL for you to use on Facebook or Twitter: http://amzn.to/1nz0fyt

If you’re not already won over by the cat on the cover, find out more about The Wanderers–and you also may be interested in the companion novel that will be out in October!