Cafe of Dreams ~ Book Reviews: June 2011

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Cafe of Dreams is taking a break!

It is time for some fun in the sun with the family. I will not be posting for a few days, but will back in full swing July 8th! Hope everyone has a great week and a fabulous 4th of July!!

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Review: How They Croaked by Georgia Bragg

How They Croaked: The Awful Ends of the Awfully Famous
By: Georgia Bragg

Reading level: Young Adult
Hardcover: 192 pages
Publisher: Walker Childrens (March 15, 2011)

How They Croaked is an amazingly fascinating book that will appeal to readers of all ages. Geared toward older children/young adults, this book is written in a way that will captivate even the pickiest reader's attention. As an adult, I had so much fun reading this book. I learned so many facts that I had never even known before - nor are probably made too apparent in history books.

Each historical figure is given their own section within How They Croaked. The section begins with a bit of background information on the figure as well as little known facts - such as George Washington, in fact, had no teeth when the picture of him, which appears on the dollar bill was taken. It then goes on to talk of little known aspects of the popular figure's death and ends with a section of little known facts and, at times, humorous statements which pertain to that individual's death. Such as, did you know that it was believed during the time of 1300 - 1800 that doctors believed burned and pulverized mummies which were made into oils and powders could cure abscesses, rashes, coughs, poisonings, etc, as well as being used in the mid-1800's mummy cloth was used to package meat, after being made into brown butcher paper? Ewww?!

Such historical figured spotlighted within How They Croaked are King Tut, Albert Einstein, Charles Dickens, Pocahontas, Cleopatra, Marie Antoinette, Edgar Allan Poe, and so many more. What a perfect way to introduce kids to historical figures and gain their interest in them. After reading How They Croaked, young readers will love to delve further into these people's lives and learn more. A bit on the macabre side, How They Croaked is delightful, entertaining, informative and yes, fun! The perfect solution to summer break boredom, I highly recommend How They Croaked for readers of all ages!!

About How They Croaked:

Over the course of history men and women have lived and died. In fact, getting sick and dying can be a big, ugly mess-especially before the modern medical care that we all enjoy today. How They Croaked relays all the gory details of how nineteen world figures gave up the ghost. For example:

It is believed that Henry VIII's remains exploded within his coffin while lying in state.
Doctors "treated" George Washington by draining almost 80 ounces of blood before he finally kicked the bucket.
Right before Beethoven wrote his last notes, doctors drilled a hole in his stomach without any pain medication.
Readers will be interested well past the final curtain, and feel lucky to live in a world with painkillers, X-rays, soap, and 911.

About Georgia Bragg:

Georgia Bragg’s father, mother, and brother are all artists, and Georgia is too. She was a printmaker, a painter, and a storyboard artist before becoming a writer. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, two children, and two cats.

Review: Julius Katz and Archie by Dave Zeltserman

Julius Katz and Archie
By: Dave Zeltserman

Format: Kindle Edition

File Size: 299 KB
Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
Publisher: Top Suspense Books (May 13, 2011)

Sherlock Holmes meets the game Clue. This is what ran through my head as I read Julius Katz and Archie. What an amazingly fun and entertaining read!

Hired to to a promo stunt on a murder investigation, Julius Katz finds himself doing a true and real investigation, when his client is found dead and a threat is made on his own life. Brilliance and genius are on Julius' side, as well as an incredible sidekick, Archie. Archie is not like any other sidekick, however. He is a a super intelligent mini computer disguised as a tie clip/pin. Archie is able to tap into any computer or technological piece. I would love to have an Archie! As the story goes on, Archie begins to feel more human feelings such as jealousy, pride, intuition and many other very human emotions. This was a fun development to follow along with.

I have to say that I love Julius Katz. He is a classic, loves fine wine and gourmet/fine foods - he is fairly obsessed with wine, actually. He is intelligent, incredibly self-confident and a brilliant detective. His interactions with the other characters make the story much more three dimensional and allows the reader to truly feel themselves, within the scenes. I also love his mannerisms!

Dave Zeltserman brings readers a classic whodunnit feel with Julius Katz and Archie. This is one of the aspects that I loved about the story. The twists and turns add intrigue and Julius and Archie's personalities quickly endure themselves to the reader. I have not had the opportunity to read the short stories which inspired this full-length novel of Julius and Archie, however, I hope to change that soon. While it was incredibly easy to follow along and fall into this novel, it would be tons of fun to get a bit more background on these characters in the prior short stories. I also truly hope that there will be further installments on the antics of Julius and Archie.

Julius Katz and Archie is a wonderfully fun, classic sleuth mystery story that will appeal to a wide audience range. I highly recommend this as the perfect way to relax and indulge in a bit of summer fun!

About Julius Katz and Archie:

The award-winning Julius Katz mysteries have delighted thousands of mystery fans since first appearing on the pages of Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine in 2009, winning a Shamus, Derringer and Ellery Queen’s Readers Choice Award . ‘Julius Katz’ introduced readers to Boston’s most brilliant, eccentric and possibly laziest detective, Julius Katz, as well as his sidekick, Archie, a tiny marvel of whizbang computer technology with the heart and soul of a hard-boiled PI. Now in Julius Katz and Archie’s first full novel, the stakes have never been higher when a famous Boston mystery, Kenneth Kingston, tells Julius he wants to find out who’s planning to kill him. The problem is almost everyone in Kingston’s life has good reason to want to kill him, and this case soon plunges Julius and Archie deep into the world of murder and publishing.

Excerpt:

“What do I want from you? Simple. Find out who’s planning to kill me.”
These words were spoken by one Kenneth J. Kingston as he sat across from Julius, his voice having a thick nasal quality that bordered on whining. Kingston’s legs were crossed, his manner seemingly casual and unconcerned, his mouth compressed into a curious smile that seemed at odds with what he had just told Julius.
Kingston was a well-known Boston-area crime writer. I’d say he was a bestselling writer, but he wasn’t, at least not with his last several books. He was forty-nine and physically almost the exact opposite of his fictional private eye, and he certainly had no resemblance to tough guy crime writers like Mickey Spillane or Robert B. Parker. Dressed in an Armani suit and wearing expensive Italian loafers, he was five feet eight inches tall, and thin with a slight build. I had seen his publicity photos, so I thought I knew what to expect, but those must’ve been carefully posed because in real-life he didn’t resemble them very much. From his demeanor you could tell that he believed himself to be good-looking, but he wasn’t. Even if his tight curly hair hadn’t begun receding up his forehead, he wouldn’t have been. Not with his thin nose being as pointy as it was, and not with his chin being even pointier, and certainly not with that mouth of his being too big and wide for his angular face when it wasn’t compressed into a curious smile. If I had olfactory senses, I would have been able to describe the cologne he was wearing, but since I don’t, I could only guess it was some sort of dense musk. Of course it was possible he wasn’t wearing any cologne, but he seemed like the type that would.
Kingston wasn’t the first person to ever sit in Julius’s office and speak those words, or at least words to that effect, but those other prospective clients appeared anxious and worried as they did so. I found Kingston’s smile and his overall behavior confusing, maybe even disconcerting. If it confused Julius, I couldn’t tell. Julius didn’t respond to Kingston’s bombshell. Instead, he sat expressionless, although the fingers of his right hand began drumming lightly on the top of his antique walnut desk, which indicated an annoyance on his part.

About Dave Zeltserman:

Dave Zeltserman won the 2010 Shamus Award forJulius Katz, Ellery Queen’s Readers Choice Award forArchie’s Been Framed, and is the acclaimed author of the ‘man out of prison’ crime trilogy: Small Crimes,Pariah and Killer, where Small Crimes was named by NPR as one of the five best crime and mystery novels of 2008, and Small Crimes and Pariah (2009) were picked by the Washington Post as best books of the year. His recent The Caretaker of Lorne Field received a starred review from Publisher’s Weekly, calling it a ’superb mix of humor and horror’, and was shortlisted by ALA for best horror novel of 2010. Outsourced (2011) has already been called ‘a small gem of crime fiction’ by Booklist and has been optioned by Impact Pictures and Constantin Film.

His latest book is Julius Katz and Archie (Top Suspense).

You can visit Dave’s website at www.davezeltserman.com. Connect with him on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/people/Dave-Zeltserman/1434849193.

*Please be sure to visit these other great blogs also on tour!

Monday, June 6

Interviewed at Virginia Beach Publishing Examiner

“These days I don’t take NY’s rejections seriously as I know it means absolutely nothing about the quality of the book.”

Tuesday, June 7

Guest blogging at The Dark Phantom Reviews

“I was seven when I first started reading mysteries with Encyclopedia Brown and Freddy the Pig Detective books, and that must’ve gotten me hooked because by the time I was 13 I was devouring all the Rex Stout Nero Wolfe books and Agatha Christies I could get my hands on, and at some point made the leap to the hardboiled PI novels from Hammett, Ross Macdonald, Jonathan Latimer and others. So why do I love these books?”

Wednesday, June 8

Interviewed at Book Marketing Buzz

“Getting a bookstore, like B&N, to recommend your book. This is something outside your control, but B&N recommended two of my print books, Small Crimes and Pariah, and two of my e-books, Bad Thoughts and Blood Crimes, and in all these cases it triggered a lot of sales.”

Thursday, June 9

Guest blogging at Writing Daze

“While Nero’s Archie Goodwin is a flesh-and-blood hardboiled PI, Julius’s Archie is something entirely different, although he has the heart and soul of a hardboiled PI.”

Friday, June 10

Guest blogging at Literarily Speaking

“You want to draw the reader in from the very first line. And keep building momentum from there.”

Monday, June 13

Interviewed at Pump Up Your Book

“I’d probably heard of them over the years, but didn’t pay much attention then. My publicists at Overlook Press and Serpent’s Tail do a good job with my print books, but with putting Julius Katz and Archie out myself as an e-book, I felt I needed to do something.”

Tuesday, June 14

Interviewed at Review From Here

Wednesday, June 15

Book reviewed at Book Reviews by Molly

Thursday, June 16

Interviewed at The Writer’s Life

Friday, June 17

Guest blogging at A Cozy Reader’s Corner Reviews

Monday, June 20

Guest blogging at The Book Boost

Tuesday, June 21

Guest blogging at Beyond the Books

Wednesday, June 22

Interviewed at Paperback Writer

Thursday, June 23

Guest participant at Literarily Speaking June Book Panel

Friday, June 24

Book reviewed at Life in Review

Monday, June 27

Interviewed at As the Pages Turn

Tuesday, June 28

Interviewed at Cafe of Dreams Book Reviews

Wednesday, June 29

Book reviewed at Cafe of Dreams Book Reviews

Thursday, June 30

Interviewed at American Chronicle

Monday, June 27, 2011

Interview: David Zeltserman, Author of Julius Katz and Archie

I am so thrilled to welcome author David Zeltserman to Cafe of Dreams today! He is busy promoting Julius Katz and Archie, which is the first full-length novel with these characters. Previously, Mr. Zeltserman has written short stories with this characters, but this is the first full blown novel and what a novel it is!! Please be sure to check back tomorrow when I post my review of this wonderful and unique book!

For now, please help me in welcoming David Zeltserman!

Who exactly are Julius Katz and Archie?

Julius Katz is Boston's most famous, eccentric and laziest detective. Archie is his sidekick. While Archie has the heart and soul of a hardboiled PI, he is maybe the most unusual detective sidekick in the annals of mystery fiction.

Where did these characters and their story stem from?

I wrote the novella, 'Julius Katz' for the Black Orchid contest that is run by Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine and the Wolfe Pack (a group of Nero Wolfe fans). While the novella didn't win this contest, Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine bought it and it later won the Shamus Award for best PI story. My second Julius Katz story, Archie's Been Framed, also was published by Ellery Queen and ended up being picked by their readers as their favorite story published in the magazine in 2010. Given the way readers have reacted to these stories, I thought it was time to write a full-length Julius Katz mystery.

Could you please tell readers about your other works, Dave?

I'll write about a sampling. My works runs the full gamut--from light and charming (Julius Katz) to extreme dark (Pariah). My crime noir novel, Small Crimes, is about a corrupt cop who redemption, but it's just not in the cards for him, and this novel ended up being picked by NPR as one of the 5 best crime and mystery novels of 2008, along with The Girl with the Golden Dragon Tattoo. My Whitey Bulger inspired crime novel, Pariah, which is about as fierce a crime that you'll find, was picked by the Washington Post as one of the best novels of 2009. The Caretaker of Lorne Field is part fable and part horror, and the ALA shortlisted it as one of the best horror novels of 2010. My recent novel, Outsourced, is a bank heist novel where unemployed software engineers who see their middle-class existences crumbling apart think they come up with a brilliant plan to rob a bank. I have a film deal for this one with Impact Pictures, and it's looking like this should go into production soon. My next book, A Killer's Essence, is out in September, and it's probably my best crime novel.

Dave, are you an author who creates his stories and characters or do they create themselves through you?

I'd say a little of both. I outline all my books before writing them, but as I'm writing them it because something organic, and my characters come alive and the book may take detours that I hadn't planned on.

What words would you use to specifically describe your novel, Julius Katz and Archie?

Charming and filled with humor, and just a fun read, and that seems to be the reaction from all readers so far.

If you could give your main character, Julius, any piece of advice, what would it be?

Ah, Julius is living the life. He lives exactly the way he wants to. I'm waiting for Julius to give me advice!

What are some of your favorite ways to promote your writing and yourself?

I enjoy bookstore events and meeting fans. What I'm hoping is in the very near future I get to see how film adaptations of my books help with promotion!

Who are some of your favorite authors and books?

Joseph Heller, Bruce Jay Friedman, Dasheill Hammett, Rex Stout, Jim Thompson, Ray Bradbury, Flannery O'Connor, and many more.

My all-time favorite crime novel is Red Harvest by Hammett.

What are you reading right now?

I'm on a Richard Stark kick, and I just finished The Mourner. I'm going to go through all 26 of the Parker books.

Thanks so much, Dave, for your time and for your fabulous work!!

Thanks, April.

A bit about David Zeltserman:

Dave Zeltserman won the 2010 Shamus Award forJulius Katz, Ellery Queen’s Readers Choice Award forArchie’s Been Framed, and is the acclaimed author of the ‘man out of prison’ crime trilogy: Small Crimes,Pariah and Killer, where Small Crimes was named by NPR as one of the five best crime and mystery novels of 2008, and Small Crimes and Pariah (2009) were picked by the Washington Post as best books of the year. His recent The Caretaker of Lorne Field received a starred review from Publisher’s Weekly, calling it a ’superb mix of humor and horror’, and was shortlisted by ALA for best horror novel of 2010. Outsourced (2011) has already been called ‘a small gem of crime fiction’ by Booklist and has been optioned by Impact Pictures and Constantin Film.