Anyone who knows me, knows I am a huge fan of Stephen King. As such, I’ve reviewed every book of his that I’ve read. I haven’t loved every one. I have found value in every one. That being said, “Never Flinch” is not one of my favorites. The primary characters in this tale of suspense don’t pop off the page as many of his other … Continue reading Never Flinch by Stephen King
The Smoky Mountains is the most visited National Park in the United States. Straddling the border between Tennessee and North Carolina, the park offers hiking trails, camping, waterfalls, scenic drives, and historic sites. The Appalachian Trail also runs through the park. Every season offers something new to explore. In the fall, the mountains are filled with the beautiful, blazing colors of changing leaves. Nearby, in … Continue reading Missing in the Smokies – Dennis Martin
Books have been a central part of my life for as long as I can remember. My father read to me at bedtime from when I was very young, even after I could read. He didn’t confine the stories to popular fairy tales. Yes, there were Little Golden Books. But there was also “Alice in Wonderland”, “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”, and Sherlock Holmes stories. … Continue reading Three Books
Sticky post
Golden Ticket by Kathy Murphy I don’t usually publish stories by other writers. This particular story is on the Dragonfly Books Short Stories site. It is particularly significant to me since it is about me… in a way. I hope it amuses you as much as it tickled me. GOLDEN TICKET by Kathy Murphy For more short stories, check out Dragonfly Books Short Stories. https://dragonflybooksshortstories.weebly.com/ … Continue reading Dragonfly Books Short Story
Have you ever heard of Robert and Michelle King? While their names might not strike a chord, series like “The Good Wife”, “Brain Dead”, Evil”, and the recent “Elsbeth” will probably ring a bell. To be up front, I never got in to “The Good Wife”. (That may be about to change.) In 2019 I got hooked on the television series “Evil”. It is a … Continue reading Hidden Gems of TV Writing
I was robbed on February 15th, 2025. Excited by the discovery and revelation, I was equally disappointed that one of my favorite mysteries had apparently been solved. “Historian Russell Edwards says he has identified Jack the Ripper as Aaron Kosminski through a DNA match of a shawl found at the scene of one of his murders.” Like many earlier theories, this one has also been … Continue reading The Mystery of Jack the Ripper
After reaching the grand old age of seventy-two, I recently thought of questions I wish I’d asked my parents. Many of my queries seem frivolous. Nothing about the responses would change my life. They are simply curiosities, little puzzles that have popped into my head I know very little about my parent’s early relationship. I know my mother worked at a lunch counter in Grand … Continue reading Old Age Thoughts
While recently attending the Knoxville Book Festival I had the opportunity to meet author Pebbles Wireman. We spoke about her book “Finding Faith in the Storm” and the life experiences that led her to write it. Pebbles is a sparkly woman with a smile that immediately draws you in. As she related all the medical traumas she’d experienced it, was hard to understand how she … Continue reading “Finding Faith in the Storm” by Pebbles Wireman
I picked up a copy of “The Familiar” by Leigh Bardugo while on holiday last October. With a plethora of reading material on hand and on my Kindle, I didn’t get around to reading it until January. Let me begin by saying it was not an easy book to get in to. The story takes place during the Spanish Inquisition. While the author does describe … Continue reading “The Familiar” by Leigh Bardugo
If you could be a character from a book or film, who would you be? Why? This a challenging question. Would I want to be male or female? A hero or a villain? A monster or a victim? I love Jodie Foster and her character in “The Brave One” was both tough and vulnerable; a little crazy, but understandably so. Erica Bain has to confront … Continue reading Imagine That!
I write southern historical fiction, local history, and I've written a devotional book. The two novels I'm writing are set in Virginia and the Carolinas in the 1760s. My weekly blog started out to follow my journey as a writer and a reader, but in 2025 it has been greatly expanded to include current events and politics in the United States as I see our democracy under attack from within. The political science major in me cannot sit idly by and remain silent.
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Author Karina Kantas shares her latest news, books, reviews, awards and blogs as well.
My own curious world about books and writing
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