Book Trailer...

Author Carolyn Crane 

Just released her Book Trailer for her

First two Disillusion books!  

Mind Games and Double Cross  

Really a neat trailer.  Check it out!  What do you think?

What's your favorite part?  Do you think it relates to and gives the feel for the books?

I felt it showed the chaos of Midcity.  And I think my favorite part is the chess game where the woman says check and the man starts blinking... Reminds me of Justine doing a zing and the reaction of the man.  I love it!

I like the little question left at the end... What do you think will happen?  Makes me wonder...

Book Review: Mind Games

Mind Games

By:  Carolyn Crane

Publisher:  Del Rey Books

Publish Date:  March 2010

Genre:  Fantasy

Format:  Paperback, 371 pages - pocket size

Series:  1st book in Disillusionist Trilogy

Recommendation:  Yes! Quick moving Fantasy with mysterious thickening plot, and an amazing take on mental worries.

Book Synopsis:
Justine knows she's going to die.  Any second now.

Justine Jones has a secret.  A hardcore hypochondriac, she's convinced a blood vessel is about to burst in her brain.  Then, out of the blue, a startlingly handsome man named Packard peers into Justine's soul and invites her to join his private crime-fighting team.  It's a once-in-a-lifetime deal.  With a little of Packard's hands-on training, Justine can weaponize her neurosis, turning it outward on Midcity's worst criminals, and finally get the freedom from fear she's always craved.  End of problem.

Or is it?  In Midcity, a dashing police chief is fighting a unique breed of outlaw with more than human powers.  And while Justine's first missions, including one against a nymphomaniac husband-killer, are thrilling successes, there is more to Packard than meets the eye.  Soon, while battling her attraction to two very different men, Justine is plunging deeper into a world of wizardry, eroticism, and cosmic secrets.  With Packard's help, Justine has freed herself from her madness - only to discover a reality more frightening than anyone's worst fears.

First Sentence:
From where we sit I have the perfect view of Shady Ben Foley, dining on the other side if the lavishly decorated Mongolian restaurant.

My Review and Summary:
Justine our main character has vein star syndrome, or so she thinks.  She's a hypochondriac.  While Justine is having dinner with her boyfriend of two months, who seems to handle the hypochondria pretty well.  The restaurant they are in was a spur of the moment place because she saw a man go inside who hustled her father for all his money, causing her father to go broke when she was younger.  Justine being a strong, upstanding citizen walks up and confronts the young couple he is with, telling of his habits with stealing money.  The restaurant owner stops to the table and Justine returns to her table to prevent any problems.  Later when she is paying the bill, the restaurant owner saves her from this mans' torments.  At this time the restaurateur offers to help Justine with her other personal problem, of hypochondria.

Justine goes back to the restaurateur out of curiosity as she knows her friends all go through stages then leave because of her health obsession, and not wanting to loss her current boyfriend Cubby.  Once Justine makes this visit she finds herself with a whole new view of the world she lives in.  We get a better insite into the Highcaps , who have mental powers to do things such as telepathy, and many other things.  And there are energy barriers, and Disillusionists who try to help recondition evil people by breaking them down to rock bottom so they can build up in a better way.

I have to admit I was very curious about this story, and a little weary with the hypochondria angle.  I was afraid it would be over done.  To me it was NO where near being over done.  Yes, Justine had her moments where she was overboard on her worries, but this hit home the worries she really has and the condition she lives with.  These episodes helped give contrast to when she wasn't worried or living in fear.  Then her anxiety moments became a tall-tail for when she needed to zing someone.  I loved the idea of using mental worries to help or hurt us, to help break someone down to understand what they take advantage of and abuse in others and have them grow from this broken state to a better person in the end.  These are a great weapon, to manipulate with.

There were only two times I was concerned the section was going to turn technical and doctory on me.  When the characters started talking of Disillusioning people I was afraid I would get lost in a lot of technical terms, but didn't.  It never went over my head in speech or terms and was very easy to understand, or as we say in lame-mans terms.

I found the book to be a quick, easy read.  I had a hard time when I had to put the book down, as I didn't want to.  I felt I really connected with these characters from the word go.  It had me hooked to see what Justine, Packard, and the other characters where going to do.  And yes, there is that sexual tension between Justine and Packard.  I enjoyed the secondary characters just as much as the main characters.  There is loads of room for these characters to grow in future books.

The world here, is falling apart.  I started to see there were gray areas in what caused this world to be the way it is, and even in fixing it.  There really are two sides to every story.  And sometimes you need the bad to balance the good.

I am now looking forward to book 2, Double Cross, coming out September 28, 2010.  Can't wait!  If you haven't read this book yet, I say pick it up.  It is a fun fast paced fantasy with a new spin on our health worries, and then there are the love issues as well.


Would you like to visit Carolyn Crane's Site?  CLICK HERE.  Maybe her blog?  CLICK HERE.



This book was my own purchase for enjoyment.


This book qualifies for the Speculative Fiction Challenge hosted by Book Chick City.

Book Blog Chat...Mind Games, Stop 3

We are at our third and final stop of the book, Mind Games by Caroyln Crane.

It is time for the all out, no holds bar on the book.  So all of you who have been waiting to join in on the discussion for us to be done... Here we are.  I want to hear what all of you think: the good, the bad, the ugly.  If you just want to say you liked the book or loved the book, or anything else, please do.  You don't have to touch on our questions.  Join in any time you would like.

Remember, this post is here for good so if you have not read the book completely yet and want to come back later - please do.

If you have not read the book and planning on it.  Enter with fair warning, as there WILL BE SPOILERS found here.

So, now lets get started with our questions....

Discussion thoughts and questions from Carolyn Crane:

Which hero is the right one for Justine? (note: Actually, at the end of the book, I felt this was clear, but many smart readers out there differ with me on this!)

I actually thought a lot about the downsides of having a power like Packard's, to fully understand people's motivations and patterns. Sometimes when I was writing this I wondered what would be worse - telepathy, the way Sookie Stackhouse struggles with it, or Packard's total insight into people, even though he can't see their immediate thoughts or emotions. What do you think?

Do you like the gowns I made up in my head? LOL Just kidding. I spent WAY too much time on the gowns.

Robyn's Questions:

I kept waiting for Otto to be like, haha...I know who you are to Justine. Did you think that Otto was going to reveal who he really was to Justine? Or was he really that clueless?


Who do you think Justine deserves?

After reading the first book. What do you think will happen in the next one? What would you like to see?
 

Melissa's Questions:

Justine remembers Jordan the Therapist saying.  What do you think of the comment? When is good not good?  Is there a catch to this comment?
 
Will Justine accept what she does easier now or will she still second guess herself in the future?
 
Do you think there will be conflict between Packard and Otto in the future?  What about?

Book Blog Chat...Mind Games, Stop 2

Are you reading Mind Games by Carolyn Crane?  Have you already read Mind Games?

Why don't you join in with Robyn at The Bookoholic Zone and myself in our chat.  We have questions from the author to discuss and speculation questions of our own.  It is great to have many visitors chatting with us, as everyone has a different view on what they read and it is great to hear.  You may have picked up something I missed.

So, come join us at Robyn's blog ~ The Bookoholic Zone ~ for Stop #2.  CLICK HERE.  

What was Stop #2? It was page 251.

Did you want to read the thoughts at Stop #1?  It was page 125.  CLICK HERE.

Teaser Tuesday (38)

Teaser Tuesday

is a weekly event

Sponsored by MizB of Should be Reading

Here's how it works:

Grab the book you are currently reading (anything at all)

Open the book to any random page.

Share 2 teaser sentences from anywhere on the page

Please Make Sure They Are Not Spoilers!

(Don't Give Too Much Away)

Just enough to pique our interests

List the book and author so other participants can get their hand on it if they choose to read it as well.

This Week:

I immerse myself in the conversation, avoiding looking at Packard, but I can feel him all the same; being near him makes me feel intensely alive, as usual.  I remind myself that feeling alive is not always a good thing.  People feel intensely alive during hurricanes and wars.

Mind Games

By Carolyn Crane

pg 156

Book Blog Chat...Mind Games, Stop 1

Time to start Discussing!!  Books that is...

Mind Games By Carolyn Crane

is our first book discussion.  And I think we have a great one here.

So how is this going to work you ask.  We have some breaking points, which Carolyn was kind enough to help us with.  (Thank you Carolyn.)  Carolyn was kind enough to also suggest a few questions at each point and after reading the sections Robyn from The Bookoholic Zone and I have come up with many more thoughts too. 

Our Schedule:
     Thursday July 29th:  stop 1, page 125
     Thursday August 5th:  stop 2, page 251
     Thursday August 12th:  the end of the book

You are welcome to come back to this thread at ANY TIME.  Even if you don't get to reading the book until next week, next month, when ever.  It will be here.

Do keep in mind, if you have not read the book yet... there WILL BE SPOILERS here.

Today is July 29th.  Time to start in on the discussions...
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Let's start with Carolyn's great thought provoking questions, as I think the answers may lead into the questions Robyn and I have as well:
~ Does Justine have a right to be angry with Packard?  Was it a less than honest way to get into the business, being she was going to quit...
~ Does a person have a right to interfere with another person's life if they think it's going to save their life?

Now the questions Robyn and I have constructed:
~ Who is really Nemesis?  Do we believe it to be Henji?
~ Packard seems to have stirred up quite a bit of thoughts and questions...
      Was Packard right in doing what he did?  What do you think would have happened if he told her in the first place?  Would she have said no?  Why is Packard fast-tracking Justine's training?  With Packard being stuck in the restaurant like he is, how does he find out about the clients they are to work on? How does he get a read on them to know what person can disillusion them? He is the only one who can sense this and set it up, but he can never leave the restaurant.
~ Simon's jealousy of Justine.  Do you think it will effect the storyline in some way?  Could he turn against her for some reason?  Where do you think the jealousy stem from?
~ How do you think Cubby and her will end it?  Will he find out the truth?
~ The young woman Rickie... How is she connected with Packard?  In order to be trapped in her apartment just like Packard is in the restaurant.
~ Will Justine ever come to break free from Packard or will she come to accept him?

Any thoughts on other characters thus far in the book; Cubby, Chief Otto Sanchez, Shelby, or any of the other Disillusionists.

Are you a Fan of Urban Fantasy? What about a Blog Book Club?

Are you a fan of Urban Fantasy?  

Well, Robyn over at The Bookoholic Zone and I are and thought we would try something new.

What about a blog book club?  

We'll have posts that you can come back to and discuss throughout the week.  One week we'll discuss it at my blog and the next over at hers.  Even if you read the book you can join in on our discussions.

We're starting with Mind Games by Carolyn Crane.  Please remember, even if you have read the book, Please join us.

Mind Games is a book of 371 pages.  We are going to break it down to three separate discussions, flip-flopped between Robyn's blog and here at mine. The stopping points, if you choose to stop as you don't have to but these are what the discussion is based on, are pages 125, 251, and the end.  We have received a few great discussion ideas from the author, but we are not limited to discussing just these, we can discuss anything that comes up in the comments you would like to touch on.  We are looking to post these discussions on Thursdays, but you can comment at any time you would like.  Read at your own pace as the posts will be here when you are ready.  Keep you eye out for the next post.

We'll be starting with an introduction post so everyone can get to know each other.  If you have any questions please feel free to contact me or Robyn.