lovesick by spencer seidel (arc)

Title: Lovesick
Author: Spencer Seidel
Pages: 376
Rating: 4.5/5

Summary (from arc):

THERE’S SOMETHING WRONG WITH LEE…

Late one night out on the Eastern Promenade Trail in Portland, Maine, the police discover an incoherent teenager sitting in a pool of blood, holding the body of his best friend and the murder weapon. The girl they both love has been missing for weeks. Dr. Lisa Boyers, forensic psychologist, receives a call from an old friend, a connection to her troubled past. Attorney Rudy Swaner wants her to interview the young killer, Paul Ducharme, who is claiming he doesn’t remember the events leading up to the murder.

In her jailhouse interviews, Lisa helps Paul to recover his memories. But Paul’s disturbing love story forces her to confront her own ugly, violent secrets. Lisa soon finds herself the focus of an over-zealous reporter and media hype that drags her unwilling into the spotlight and threatens to uncover secrets she’d rather not share.

My Two Cents:

I'm totally glad to have such a hope from the author. Since his debut novel; The Dead of Wynter, I knew the author is someone so promising with these kind of book genre.

Maybe the best part of his book is that they sound like a psycho books that will grab your attention real quickly with so many assumptions, doubts and feel like, " I knew it!". His style of writing does not differ much from The Dead of Wynter but I could tell that Lovesick consists like two parts of story. Either way, the book is still good. Psycho thrillers are the best because even though you like the story, you will at least felt that the book is violating your minds, but in a good way. You can't stop hating and loving the same the character at once! Other good part is that, reading the book also was like puzzling your mind to keep guessing what will happen next, and what's the ending would be. I think you can guess it right, it's very spot on, but tricky as well.

I have o complain for the book because I love it just the way he wrote it. You'll love it immensely once you start reading it too. I highly recommend it!

Disclaimer: I received this review copy from publicist Meryl L. Moss Media Relations, Inc. for an exchange of a review. These are my honest review and receiving a copy in no way will ever reflected my review.

interview: Author Spencer Seidel

Today we have Author Spencer Seidel to share some interesting part of his life and his latest book; Lovesick! I've read The Dead of Wynter by him last year and totally love the book. I'll share the review once I've finish writing it.

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D: Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?

SS: Just that I’m so glad I have readers! Thank you for spending time with my characters. I hope we have a long, complicated relationship!


D: Where do you do most of your writing?

SS: At a small wooden desk my father made for me in a small office with the lights off and the door shut tight.


D: Do you have any quirks that come out while you are writing?

SS: I think I’m secretly half-terrified that some psychologist will casually pick up one of my books and have a long, hard look at those quirks. “Perhaps a long rest in a relaxing countryside villa is in order, Mr. Seidel? Or these medications, maybe?”


D: What is your daily routine as a writer?

SS: When I’m trying to finish a manuscript, I write every day for about two hours when possible. I get uncomfortable missing more than one day of writing because then I risk losing momentum, and that can be a death sentence for a new manuscript, particularly a first draft. Oh, and I’ve begun to write in the evenings, after dinner. I like the open-endedness of writing in the evenings.


D: If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in your latest book?

SS: Of course! I never feel that a book is perfect or complete. I could edit and revise forever. But I really do like Lovesick and my characters and believe in them, so I have to stand behind it as is.

Thanks so much to Spencer Seidel. For more giveaways, guest post and all, visit this SITE.

About the Author

Spencer Seidel’s love of reading and writing began as a child after he discovered Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. His first novel, Dead of Wynter, was published in 2011 and was well-received by critics and readers alike. When he’s not writing novels, Spencer enjoys playing loud rock guitar, something he’s been doing for over twenty-five years.

interview: Author Nelle Davy

Nelle Davy is the author of THE LEGACY OF EDEN, as Jenna Blum, a bestselling author of Those Who Save Us and The Stormchasers described Nelle Davy's THE LEGACY OF EDEN as "a combination of Daphne DuMaurier with Jane Smiley and this dark tale of a golden farm family is a wonderfully Gothic read."

I just started reading the book and quite enjoy it. Today I got lucky to interview the author, Nelle Davy. Please join her book blog tour and you can win giveaways! (Look at the end of the post!).

About the Book

For generations, Aurelia was the crowning glory of more than three thousand acres of Iowa farmland and golden cornfields. The estate was a monument to matriarch Lavinia Hathaway's dream to elevate the family name - no matter what relative or stranger she had to destroy in the process. It was a desperation that wrought the downfall of the Hathaways - and the once prosperous farm.

Now the last inhabitant of the decaying old home has died - alone. None of the surviving members of the Hathaway family want anything to do with the farm, the land, or the memories.

Especially Meredith Pincetti. Now living in New York City, for seventeen years Lavinia's youngest grandchild has tried to forget everything about her family and her past. But with the receipt of a pleading letter, Meredith is again thrust into conflict with the legacy that destroyed her family's once-great name. Back at Aurelia, Meredith must confront the rise and fall of the Hathaway family... and her own part in their mottled history.

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D: There are some darker elements to this book–what did you draw from to write that?

ND: Nothing tangible. It was the natural course for the story to take. I don’t shirk from darkness. I was raised on it.


D: Are any characters in the book based on people you know or have met in your personal life?

ND: No – though I think Lavinia is the part of me I could have taken if I had chosen a different path in life.

D: Which part of THE LEGACY OF EDEN was the most enjoyable to write?

ND: The part where Cal announces their affair and Lavinia threatens to stab him in his sleep if he ever hits her again at the traffic lights once they leave to go to the farm. That cemented everything for me about the kind of person she was.

D: Which part was the least enjoyable?

ND: The end rape scene and Meredith’s reaction. I had to do it in a way that was unforgivable without making the audience hate her and also understand why she reacted the way she did. Not a pleasant moment.


D: How did Aurelia come to be during the course of writing the book? Was it always the way it is in the published novel?

ND: Yes – lots of things have changed or developed over time but Aurelia was a constant. It was the fixed point around which the novel rotated.

Thanks so much Nelle!

Head to BookTrib page and participate a scavenger hunt HERE!

About the Author

Nelle Davy was born in Grenada in 1984 and was raised in London within an Anglo-Caribbean family. She studied English with creative writing at the University of Warwick and then undertook a master of philosophy degree in creative writing at Trinity College Dublin. She currently lives in London with her husband, where she works in publishing. THE LEGACY OF EDEN is her first novel and she is currently working on her second.

guest post: Author Cynthia Kocialski

To Be Successful or Not? To Live One’s Dream or Not? These Are the Questions?

Everyone has dreams. Everyone wants to be successful. Yet, few achieve what they want or hope. Have you ever wondered why that is? What is it successful people have that others don’t?
If you ask people, they will tell you it’s a talent. If the person is a rock star, people will say it’s because they are a great singer. If the person is a scientist, it’s because they are smart. If they are an artist, it’s because they are creative. Underlying these statements is the belief that those who are successful have an extreme talent for something. They are the lucky ones who were born with something that’s rare.

Yet, many secretly want to be that person. Every year, every child is asked by a multitude of people, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” As children grow, what they wanted to be in preschool is completely different from what they want to be in high school. Preschoolers shoot for the stars. They want to be the champion, the best at something. As children get older, they lower their expectations. Why? Somewhere along the way, they are led to believe that extreme success is preordained at birth. It’s the result of an innate talent. But is it? Is there no hope for those who are just average?

Of course not, there is always hope and in fact, the odds of success are actually in their favor. Over my career, what I’ve learned is success in life doesn’t hinge upon having an extreme ability or getting the top grades. There are lots of average people who are highly successful. If talent alone were the determining factor, we wouldn’t see drop outs being billionaires. The best corporations would be headed by the alumni of the top universities, and that’s not true either. Scientific breakthroughs would be discovered only by those with the highest IQ’s, and studies have disproved this as well. So much for the theory of success and talent.

To achieve, it all begins with a change in one’s mindset as to what is truly required. It starts by accepting that an extreme talent isn’t necessary. It begins by dispelling some of those concepts we learned in school, notions meant to help us learn knowledge, but don’t necessarily hold true for reaching our dreams.

In the first chapter, Out of the Classroom Lessons in Success opens with why straight A’s are not required. Too many people equate academic success with future professional success, and this book begs to differ. Why average works for success is because it’s not one single talent that matters as much as the combination of qualities. Any one talent simply needs to be ‘good enough’.

We’ve all heard that talent is a gift. Imagine you bought an item as a gift for someone. When you see them next, you thrust the gift into their hands and say, “Here, this is for you!” Now imagine a slightly different scenario, you purchased the item, wrapped it up, put a bow and ribbons on it, and presented it to the recipient in a unique manner with an eloquent speech. The later just has that WOW factor even if the actual gift is just ordinary. Package up the average and it becomes successful. Don’t package up the extraordinary and it will get a lackluster reception.

The book further discusses some of those misconceptions and half-truths, which when taken for literal or face value will hinder success. It also elaborates more on the packaging needed to reach success. Every school child has heard it, “It’s not whether you win or lose. It’s how you play the game.” It works in a classroom where the focus is on learning. It keeps harmony on the playground. In the world after school, this is no longer true. Yet, many still cling to this concept. Would you engage a lawyer who lost all his cases? Would you go to a physician who patients are never cured of their ills? Would you go to an investment advisor who clients all lost their money? Of course not. You want to employ people who are winners. Success is never easy. It only appears that way in the press and media. In childhood, we learn that it’s easy to accept failure and to not achieve our goals – we played the game without the intention to win. Like it or not, winning matters. It’s not a matter of ‘effort and reward’ because reward doesn’t necessarily follow effort. The middleman is missing. It’s the effort that produces results, and it’s the results that bring the reward. Many unsuccessful miss simple points such as these.

Regardless of whether it’s your dream or your child’s, whether it is lofty or down to earth, each and every child wants the same thing. No one wants their dreams to stay just dreams. They want their dream to become a reality.

If there is any big secret to success, it’s that extreme talent isn’t necessarily required. If there is one big misstep, it’s that success hinges upon perfecting a specific talent, to focus and hone that one skill and neglect all others. It’s the combination of talents and skills that make people a success. Wow, that’s a huge shift in thinking, because it means it is possible for just about anyone to be successful.

About the Author

Cynthia Kocialski is the founder of three tech start-ups companies. In the past 15 years, she has been involved in dozens of start-ups. Cynthia writes the Start-up Entrepreneurs’ Blog www.cynthiakocialski.com. Cynthia has written the book, “Out of the Classroom Lessons in Success: How to Prosper Without Being at the Top of the Class.” The book serves up tips, insight, and wisdom to enable young adults and parents of kids to know what it will take to forge a successful career, no matter what their academic achievement.