Review - The Eternal Child by David Wasserman

The Eternal Child by David Wasserman
Released: September 25, 2011
Publisher: Outskirts Press
Age Group: Young Adult
Pages: 222 pages
Format: Paperback
Source: Author
Rating: 3/5

For centuries, Alex Montera has led a life of running and hiding. That all changes when he comes to the rescue of Iris Lisanté. He finds himself mysteriously drawn to her, and as the two grow close, Iris soon discovers a world beyond her wildest imagination, a world of vampires, werewolves, and other creatures hidden from the rest of the world.

Let me begin by saying I applaud David Wasserman for his imagination and effort in his book The Eternal Child. David is only a senior in High School and has already taken his first big steps in making a wonderful career as an author!

The Eternal Child is an awesome story with some pretty peculiar characters but I feel it would have benefitted so much more with an editor's helping hand to smooth over some of the spelling errors and out of order passages like on page 32 Alex tells who came into the classroom and sits beside him, which was a guy named Ben, but then on the very next page when Ben passes by his table in the cafeteria he asks his new friends who he was. Other than small things like that a few of the biggest things that bothered me was for one the story itself just had a rushed feel to it. It seemed the guy had done saved the girl, fell in love with her, became her boyfriend, and fit in at her school like he had lived there forever in the first 30 pages? The other thing was during much of the reading I felt like I was being "told" the story instead of "showing" it to me. I have to have alot of visuals to enjoy what I am reading.

Other than those issues the actual story was full of awesomeness and I hope to see more from David in the years to come!

Review - Shadows and Fire by Jennifer Fales

Shadows and Fire by Jennifer Fales
Released: November 1, 2011
Publisher: Outskirts Press
Age Group: Adult
Pages: 114 pages
Format: Paperback
Source: Author
Rating: 3/5
Author Site: Jennifer Fales

In the parallel world of the future, mankind has created its own worst enemy - a supernatural species of animal-human hybrids that exact a high toll in return for peace. Step into the dark, and occasionally funny, world of the domes where a brother and sister bridging the gap between these two species struggle to reunite with one another. Meet the menagerie of creatures that impact their lives and a man who would bring redemption, providing he doesn't get lost along the way.

A debut with lots of promise is what Shadows and Fire was to me. I was able to slip just enough away into the story to get a tiny glimpse of what I think will become a fantastic fantasy world full of memorable supernatural creatures and adventure. The book was just a bit to short for me to really make alot of noise over but it will be interesting to see brother and sister reunite and channel their powers and also to get to know the rest of the characters better. Jennifer has done an excellant job at laying the groundwork for a great story in the next book for sure!

Review - STOMP OUT the Bullying by Angel McGowan

STOMP OUT the Bullying by Angel McGowan
Released: October 7, 2011
Publisher: Outskirts Press
Age Group: Childrens
Pages: 30 Pages
Format: Paperback
Source: Publisher/Author
Rating: 4/5
Authors Site: Angel McGowan

Mikey lies awake in bed at night because he is worried about what is going to happen in school the next day. Mikey's frustration grows and he almost makes a wrong decision, because he listens to a friend. Finally, Mikey learns that his teacher, Mr. Jones, can do more than teach math.

This was a great children's book letting kids know about bullying and how to deal with it. It explains how fighting and running away only adds fuel to the flames and that you should advise a trusted adult of your situation.

I loved that this was a story geared towards a smaller childs point of view because bullying needs to be identified and "stomped out" at an earlier age before it becomes a bigger problem.


Angel McGowan is a fifteen-year old junior at JL Mann High School in Greenville, South Carolina. She is a member of the National Honor Society, Beta Club and basketball team. She is also a two-time USAIGC National Gymnastic Champion. Angel enjoys writing, playing basketball and spending time with her family and friends. Ultimately, Angel plans on becoming a pediatrician. The Illustrator, Matthew Linn is a fifteen-year old sophomore at JL Mann High School in Greenville, South Carolina. He is an avid soccer player. He plans to pursue a career in art after college.