Blue Wolf Reviews

Tag: changes

  • Playing for Keeps in Starr’s Fall

    Playing for Keeps in Starr’s Fall

    When Maggie Parker’s life comes crashing down upon the death of her husband, she is left devastated, filled with guilt and wondering how she and her son Ben are going to get through the grief and begin again. Ben has been badly bullied at school and is now home schooled.

    On a miserable Thanksgiving they make the decision to return to Starr’s Fall, a place they both have happy memories off, maybe to begin again. A car trip to the little town sees them make a life changing decision; to lease one of the many empty shops long the main street and open up a gaming Café; gaming being a passion of Bens’.

    The move is on and it is the bleak month of January when they pull up outside what is to be their new home and business. Ben is morose, but willing to help and once the removal van has departed they set about beginning the next chapter in their life.

    As the day’s pass Zack Miller comes into their life, offering to help out with shelving and anything else that may need to be done. He is far to handsome and has a reputation of a player with the ladies. He and Ben bond over an online Game RainQuest which they both play.

    Zack and Maggie also begin to appreciate each other, a soft and gentle friendship forming which seems to be leading down a road Maggie is unsure of wanting to travel. Zack is far younger than she is but believes he has found the perfect woman he has been looking for since high school, Maggie.  

    Kate Hewitt has carried on the special magic to heal and find love in Starr’s Fall, with this delightful second book Playing for Keeps in Starr’s Fall, as Maggie and Zack fall in and out and in love and Ben begins to discover true friends as they put their past firmly behind them and begin again.

    Playing for Keeps in Starr’s Fall is the perfect companion for a lazy day on the couch.

  • Model Minority Gone Rogue

    Model Minority Gone Rogue

    A first-generation Chinese Australian, Qin Qin (previously Lisa Qin), was very good at school, and playing the piano; in fact, she was a model student. Like many immigrant children, she was scared of disappointing her parents, who had given up so much in order to give their off spring a better life.

    As she achieved great heights both academically and, in her career, she realized that it didn’t really make her happy. This led her to start questioning what she had been taught about her place and role in the world. She knew that she had to create her own path to make sense of the world and achieve real happiness.

    Covering her years in four countries and nine cities, Qin Qin has not sanitized any aspect of her life and her desire to change the world. Instead, she exposes the reader to the ups and downs, which included drug taking, acknowledging her queerness and escaping abusive relationships.  

    Her journey of self-discovery, resulted in finally coming to the conclusion that there is no such thing as a risk-free life and that she didn’t need to burden herself with the guilt and expectations of others.

    The comprehensive ‘Selected Sources’ at the conclusion of this memoir provide the reader with further material to enhance their own path of self-discovery. For a little light relief, the author’s explanatory footnotes are not only interesting but also amusing.

  • Astrolations!

    Astrolations!

    Jill Carr like so many others, begun studying her Astrological star sign as a young teenager, wondering what the day, month or year ahead held for her. This fascination with Astrology continued on leading her to study both Western and Chinese astrology deeply and with an ongoing fascination as to people and their innate characteristics.

    Her fascination remains particularly in regard to the aspect of how people relate to one another and why. Why, when you meet someone for the first time do you feel like you are comfortable within their field of energy, or instantly discover hackles raised for no specific reason. 

    What particular combination of Astrology makes a relationship gel and work, while others fail makes fascinating reading, as she details how, over seven specific sections, getting it right, or understanding the pathway you are on with relationships, both on a personal and community level, is so important.

    Both the Western or Sun Sign and the Eastern or Moon Signs combine to shape your character and how by understanding these various influences, you can better understand yourself and those around you.

    Well set out and presented in easy to understand language, each of the sections provides a raft of fascinating AH HA moments, which are edifying to the novice or the more informed reader.

    Should this be your first journey into the fascinating world of Astrology, Astrolations will guide you gently towards discovering more about who you are, with a little bit of fun along the way, as you begin to establish what it is that makes you, well uniquely you!

  • How to Have an Epic Retirement

    How to Have an Epic Retirement

    Whether your retirement is well into the future or you are thinking of retiring or you have already started making plans to retire, Bec Wilson’s, ‘How to Have an Epic Retirement’ is a must read for you.

    Despite the numerous books on the market, the founder of the hugely successful online platform ‘Start at 60’, has created a readable informative book, which provides the reader with a holistic approach to retiring and retirement. It encourages the retirees to not only have a financially secure after work life but also to make the most of their new-found freedom; to have a purposeful, satisfy and meaningful life.  

    In this indispensable manual the author has identified time, money, health, happiness and fulfillment, travel and your home as the six really important pillars of an ‘epic’ retirement. By fully exploring each of the pillars Bec Wilson guides the readers through the pleasures and pitfalls, the adjustments and challenges, which will set them up for the exciting 30+ years of a possible happy, healthy and prosperous retirement. 

    Readers will find the ‘Epic Retirement action plan’ extremely useful as it provides a list of things which can be done to prepare for this exciting new phase.  For those who are already retired, it’s an excellent reminder to ‘get their house in order’. 

    As it’s never too soon to start planning for the time when regular employment ceases, this comprehensive guide is a perfect gift for loved ones.  It is a no-nonsense guide for them to start taking control of their future.

  • Three Legs in the Evening: A Novel

    Three Legs in the Evening: A Novel

    Funny, quirky and all too true to life, this delightful look at growing older from Bette Anne Moskowitz is definitely well worth the read, especially if you are growing older, and even if you are not!

    There are three distinct sections to Three Legs in the Evening, naturally you could say a beginning a middle and an end but that is a bit clinical, although that is exactly what it is, the three stages of maturing, once you reach a certain age, but not exactly like a fine wine.

    Sally is at her long-time friend Susie’s funeral; it is a hot day, she is dressed to the max in a sharp red dress, high heels and has a hanky pinned to her hair. She is beginning to wonder why she wore a red wool dress when a grieving relative ‘accidentally’ knocks her into Susie’s grave, where she landed on top of the coffin, breaking her ankle!

    Having made the decision to retire she sells up her greeting card business, and as the days pass she grieves for her friend Suzie, her husband who passed several years before from Cancer and for her former life.  Mindlessly watching the television, at first she thinks the terrible events of the Bombing of the World Trade Centre in New York was just fiction, but once she realises it is fact, she like many others becomes obsessed with the event.

    She finds this very unsettling, more than normal, which coincides with other events in her children’s lives and the possible advent of new man, or men in her life, a huge worry about a red car that appears to be abandoned, which in her mind, as she linked it to the World Trade Centre bombing, is disconcerting.

    As each incident unfolds, she begins at times to question what is right and what is not; is she over reacting, should she be enjoying a new ‘love affair’ even though she has been widowed for some time. Many seemingly small aspects of her life in general appear to be far more problematic than before and reality is what she wants to make of it, at any given time.

    Bette Anne Moskowitz has delicately created a gentle pathway into the issue of the mental health that often comes with growing older. She has used wisdom, humour and a lovable character in Sally, who it is very easily able to relate to, who could be your mother, grandmother or yourself.

    Three Legs in the Evening is a must read for anyone who is perhaps approaching a certain age and really understands the many idiosyncrasies of growing older, with a certain flair and pizazz.

  • Spirituality, Healing and Me

    Spirituality, Healing and Me

    In her second book Spirituality, Healing and Me, Ilana Estelle once again uses her personal journey to share the wisdom she has gathered as she has faced the many challenges of growing up and living with Cerebral Palsy, which she was not diagnosed with until she was in her forties.

    Having made the decision not to focus on the negatives that life can bring, she began writing to try and understand better her pathway in life and perhaps more importantly, begin to learn about who she was and what she really wanted to do with her life.

    In an abstract manner, Spirituality has or has always been a part of her life. As a child she understood there was something around her that was different, not just physically but mentally and emotionally. It was not until she decided she need to make some serious changes to her lifestyle and ventured down the Spiritual pathway, she really began to understand the true beauty and richness that can be life and living.

    Spirituality, Healing and Me could be considered as a hand book for those about to embark on a voyage of personal discovery, as Estelle has set out each of the sections with an introduction to the subject matter to be offered within the Section, then subheadings dealing with everything from Understanding Spirituality to, interestingly, the effects COVID has had and is still having on our lives and society structure, which makes a somewhat fascinating conclusion to the Book.

    As the pages turn, she shares her thoughts on so many of the everyday aspects we all ponder over and frequently wonder about, such as Accountability, The Law of Cause and Effect, The Loss of a Loved One, Mirroring Internal Thoughts and so very much more.

    Perfect for the person beginning their Spiritual Journey Spirituality, Healing and Me can be read in sections, dipped into to seek an alternative point of view, to bring healing and understanding, or read from cover to cover and then returned to relevant areas to select the piece that resonates.

  • Six Days In Rome

    Six Days In Rome

    It was to be a romantic getaway to Rome. Instead it becomes a solo journey of unexpected self-discovery against the backdrop of ancient historic Rome.

    Emilia, a thirty one year old accomplished artist with a significant following on social media, and her boyfriend had booked an idyllic six day break in Rome, however after a messy break up (he was married), she became a solo traveller. She decided to follow the itinerary which had been meticulously planned to include favourite places she hadn’t visited since childhood, as well as those included by her ex-boyfriend.  As she traveled around the city, Emilia reflected on her past memories; both pleasant and challenging.

    Francesca Giacco weaves the narrative of Six days in Rome in and out of Emilia’s memories, emotions, personal relationships and experiences of Rome. Emilia takes the reader on a journey not only through Rome, the city, but also through her life and loves in New York. She is a deeply observant and self- reflective narrator.

    Her descriptions of food, scenery, and the atmosphere of this magnificent city will transport readers, who have previously visited Rome, back in time; wonderful descriptions of Italian cuisine and the sweltering heat of Rome in July.

    Some readers may find the story line in this slow burn debut novel hard to follow at times, as the narrative jumps back in time, goes off at tangents and then returns to the present. However, Six Days in Rome will definitely resonate with readers, who have ever spent time travelling alone.   

  • The House on Pleasant Street

    The House on Pleasant Street

    The House on Pleasant Street is a brightly coloured and detailed picture book that captures the eye immediately. It shows Pleasant Street, but with a most unusual house and weird characters around it. A rather forlorn looking boy is staring hopefully down the street. You see, Alby has just moved into the district with his embarrassing Dad and strange Mum. We know how hard it is to meet new neighbours, and develop new friendships, but when your pet is a dragon…….!

    Fortunately, it is the eve of Halloween. Alby decides to go trick or treating and his Mum insists that Dad go as well. Things go smoothly until Dad interferes and Alby is forced to use Delia, his new pet, to complete a trick. Surprisingly this really impresses the local kids, who all want to discover more about the newcomer and his family.

    The artwork creates an atmosphere that enhances the story. The expressions on faces says it all. The details shown are humorous, such as the banister of the staircase being made of leg bones, and dad looking like a cool vampire.

    Lucky for Alby, his involvement in the Halloween celebrations, cement his relationships with the neighbours. This is one strategy for developing new friends. It is also a great way to share a story with others.

  • Blue Hour

    Blue Hour

    Spanning over a period of four decades, ‘Blue Hour’, explores the ways the indescribable trauma of war impacts upon the complex, lives and marriages of Kitty and her daughter, Eleanor; both of whom were married to war damaged veterans. Mother and daughter have an uneasy relationship but share the legacies of war; the grief and the suffering.

    Eleanor flees her disastrous marriage to Vietnam veteran Leon and escapes to the mountain of her childhood with her daughter Amy. During her long drive she begins to recall times in her tumultuous childhood with her mother, nurse Kitty and broken WWII veteran father George. 

    The rare beautiful moments of the shared passion with her father for nature are overshadowed by Kitty’s ability to manipulate and punish her daughter for her own sorrow and disappointments. Her mother’s own marriage is impacted not only by George’s frequent breakdowns but also by her infidelity.

    Although many of the multi-faceted characters are far from likeable, they provoke the readers’ sympathy for their inability to move on from the PTSD that blighted their families.  Readers will get caught up in the intricacies of their lives, their feelings and the actions which define them. 

    ‘Blue Hour’, Sarah Schmidt’s second book, is a slow burn in which the horror builds slowly, thus resulting in a powerful, harrowing and difficult read. Some readers will find the topics covered most disconcerting as the darker side of humanity is explored.

  • The Way From Here

    The Way From Here

    Secrets within families have a strange way of eventually surfacing. Sometimes they are acknowledged and dealt with, sometimes they lie beneath the surface and fester a little. Jane Cockram has chosen an unusual storyline to deal with the issue of secrets. The mystery is in the letters.

    The Way From Here begins with sisters, Susie and Camilla, (Mills). They were raised on a station in the Kimberley’s, where life was a struggle. After University, Susie decides she wanted to travel, moving to London and eventually on to the Isle du Clair, where she finally beings to come to terms with so many secrets held deep within the family. At this stage the story runs in a parallel sequence. One chapter is told by Susie, then Camilla relays a chapter.

    Camilla is following in Susie’s footsteps. You see, Susie sent her sister a series of letters, and asked if she could retrace her journey of discovery. Camilla was the more responsible sibling who was always bailing her troublesome sister out of danger, and so responded.

    This adventure tells Susie’s story, and also reveals Camilla’s devotion in coming to terms with her sister’s travels and indiscretions. In the letters, Susie leaves clues for Mills, knowing that she can’t resist a challenge. Surprise connections are made, which link other members of the family to people Susie has met. Her grandmother, Nellie, in Australia, gives Susie some names of people to seek out when she arrived in London.

    The story is engaging and becomes increasingly complex, as Margaret, the girls’ mother, comes to England to help Camilla solve the puzzle that Susie has created. As the story unravels it seems that Margaret is very involved in the puzzle and that all of the family will be affected by what is revealed.