Five Star Review From Josephine's Library!

 
There was a very pleasant surprise waiting for me this morning. A stellar review of The Nightmare Birds from Josephine's Library! Here's a preview of the five star review:

"When I read Strange Luck, it was unlike anything I'd ever read before. It was an amazing mixture of mystery and fantasy...And with The Nightmare Birds Ms. Winters has succeeded in leaving me mesmerized all over again...With a dazzling array of characters and a vibrant plot, it's no wonder this book is near impossible to put down."

You can read the full review HERE. If you'd like to check out her review of Strange Luck, you can find that HERE.

I'm so happy that the sequel is being so well received. Phew! I poured so much of my heart and soul into this story and have made it my mission to create something unique, mysterious, and imaginative, so reviews like this seriously make my week! Thank you so much. :D

If you've read my book(s), I'd love to hear what you think. Shoot me an email, post in the comments below, or send me a link to your review. Readers, like you, have the power to make or break a book, and every bit of feedback is appreciated.

 

Linz the Bookworm's Review of Strange Luck

"This book managed to take me from going "Oh this is a cute adventure" to "Wow, this is kind of dark" in a very short amount of time. I'm actually kind of impressed by that. Most of the story felt really upbeat, and then in the crucial parts it got pretty dark. It was a nice change of tone to set the scene...I didn't feel there was a dull moment in the story."

I'm so thrilled that Linz the Bookworm enjoyed reading Strange Luck. I love it when people tell me that they read my book in a day or two because they couldn't put it down. Best feeling ever! :D

Linz will also be reading The Nightmare Birds, so be on the lookout for that review. I'm ecstatic that she chose The Nightmare Birds as her first ever cover reveal on her blog. Check it out here! 

Read what else Linz the Bookworm had to say in her awesome review of Strange Luck.

The Lucky Cricket Is Real...Well, Sort Of

I don't know about you, but I love discovering little secrets behind a book like that Ernie Prang and Stan Shunpike, the driver and conductor of the Knight Bus in Harry Potter, were named after J. K. Rowling's grandfathers. It's so much fun discovering these little secrets, so I thought I'd share some secrets of my own about Strange Luck. Enjoy!

 

1.   The fortune-telling cricket is real! Well, sort of. Growing up, my parents always had a little cricket statue in our living room. When I got older, I asked where it had come from and my mom told me it was given to her by my great grandma who said it would bring their home good luck. I always thought that was neat, so when it came time for me to live in a house of my own, my mom gave me the cricket. Since then, it's traveled across the country with me and it currently resides in my living room.

2.   Although Sea Salt, CA is a fictitious town, it is based on a combination of my favorite ‘real’ towns in California - Half Moon Bay, Santa Cruz, Pescadero, and La Honda.

3.   Daisy’s relationship with Roger started out in a similar way to how one of my high school relationships started.

4.   Roger’s dog, Millie, is based on my first dog ever with the same name.

5.   I love to antique! A lot of the antiques in the shop were inspired by real things I’ve seen or read about over the years.

6.   The idea of “collecting memories” in a fantasy world came to me as I passed by a cemetery on my way to work one day.

7.   My grandmother, Mary, died before she got to read this book, so I wanted to find a way to remember her. Her favorite flower was a daisy and one of my favorite memories was planting daisies with her. There was never any other name I entertained for the protagonist.

8.   I wrote the first two chapters of Strange Luck and then abandoned it or forgot about it for some reason. About a year later I was cleaning files on my computer and found the story and decided to finish it.

9.   I literally chose from over 100 cover designs for this book. I couldn't be happier with the result :)

10.  The Nameless world was inspired by Fantastica from The Neverending Story (book and movie) and The Labyrinth (movie).

Bonus: This book was fueled by cappuccino's and chocolate...and I enjoyed every tasty minute of it. 

Now you share! What are some secrets from your favorite books?

Video Review of Strange Luck by Christie Stratos - Best Fantasy Subgenre

I'm so excited to share an awesome video review of Strange Luck by my new favorite person in the world - Christie Stratos. Please take a moment to watch her video and like it :)

By the way, if you haven't read Anatomy of a Darkened Heart yet, which is the first book in Christie's Dark Victoriana series, seriously go and buy a copy today! I haven't been this excited about a book in a long time and I'm dying to read her next book. You can read my review of Anatomy of a Darkened Heart here. She also regularly posts insightful articles about writing and creativity on her blog as well as really neat videos on her YouTube channel. Enjoy!
 

Strange Luck Review From Spines & Covers!

Today I was blown away by a wonderful review of Strange Luck from Spines & Covers. Getting good reviews is seriously the best thing in the world for an author! Whenever I get a new review I'm on the edge of my seat as I read every word. Then I'll re-read it like 3 or 4 times. Needless to say, this review certainly made my day.

Here’s a sample of the review: "It is a funky mixture of mystery and fantasy, leaving the reader to wonder if they had actually read the book or if it was all a dream." Check out the full review here.