Audio Book Review: Dead Before Dying

Dead Before Dying

By:  Kerry Schafer

Publish Date:  February 9, 2016, Audiobook Release October 30, 2019

Format:  Audiobook - 7 hrs 46 mins
Narrated By:  Teri Clark Linden

Genre:  Paranormal, Mystery Thriller

Series:  1st in The Shadow Valley Manor Novel series

Impression:  Paranormal thriller with a grip.

Synopsis:
Sidelined by an on the job injury, veteran paranormal investigator Maureen Keslyn reluctantly accepts an assignment at Shadow Valley Manor, an upscale retirement facility where someone—or something—is picking off residents and staff at a grisly clip.

With her resources dwindling one death at a time and unnatural forces on the loose, Maureen’s experience fighting the supernatural provides her only hope to destroy a clever and powerful evil before everybody in the manor—and the town—winds up dead. Together with a ragtag team that includes the local sheriff, the undertaker's daughter, and the facility cook whose knife skills in the kitchen could prove deadly out of it--Maureen is on a mission to bring rest to the weary, and peace to the dead...

First Sentence:
I don't care what his nametag says, the young man standing by my bed can't really be a doctor.

Purchase At:
Amazon  /  Barnes & Nobles 

Audible

My Thoughts and Summary:

*I was given this free review copy of this audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

The book starts with getting a great view into Maureen's personality. I loved it! Kerry's writing and Teri's voice adding the personality makes a perfect fit for Maureen out of the gate. I also can relate to the sound and feel of Maureen at the opening, both writing and vocals make it easy to believe and relate to. Listening to this story, I feel Teri is a perfect match for Maureen's personality. Wow. I never questioned the character tones or personalities as Teri voiced them all. I slipped into the story, listening and ready to learn what I could.

I really enjoyed Kerry's writing as we walk into empty homes and areas of the manor. I feel as though I'm with Maureen and don't know what we'll find, just creeping along taking in the sights with her. I'm drawn into the moment and wondering what we'll find. I love when this happens, as I don't feel as I'm just listening to a story but a part of it with the character and learning things as she does.

I love Maureen! She's got a strong personality and she doesn't fear anything. She speaks of what's on her mind when it comes to Ed and Abel. She's older than your normal main character, but she's got loads of experience to rely on. She's one strong woman who can battle through troubles and make it out the other side.

I felt like the world of paranormal was a huge secret here with how Maureen works and steps around all the questions. There feels to be a big presence that's not a good one in the paranormal world. There also feels to be a huge, dark research group that are hiding in the shadows of the world. So much more to the hushed world of paranormal here. We start to peel back the layers of this onion, slowly so we get to learn what's here and keep the suspense going. By the end, we get our answers on what's happened. However, even though we got answers, there's lots of elements that could be investigated and found.

Okay. I this is a new favorite paranormal series. I love the paranormal present in the book. We have illegal research that's happened and there are creatures out there that are dangerous. I love how the characters match even though they are not trusted by each other. Great blend of everything here! I will totally be watching for more books in this world!



****If you found my thoughts helpful, please click Yes at Amazon and/or Audible. Thank you!

YOU can help make book 3 possible!

Yep. You get to help make book 3, The Nothing, by Kerry Schafer possible.

Lets start at the beginning...

Kerry started a trilogy The books of the Between. The first book, Between, was released January 2013. The second book, Wakeworld, was released January 2014. Kerry describes them as a blend between Urban and High Fantasy. (sounds like winners to me!)

Between
Description:
"Vivian Maylor can’t sleep. Maybe it’s because she just broke up with her boyfriend and moved to a new town, or it could be the stress of her new job at the hospital. But perhaps it’s because her dreams have started to bleed through into her waking hours.

All of her life Vivian has rejected her mother’s insane ramblings about Dreamworlds for concrete science and fact, until an emergency room patient ranting about dragons spontaneously combusts before her eyes—forcing Viv to consider the idea that her visions of mythical beasts might be real.

And when a chance encounter leads her to a man she knows only from her dreams, Vivian finds herself falling into a world that seems strange and familiar all at once—a world where the line between dream and reality is hard to determine, and hard to control…"

Wakeworld
Description:
Vivian Maylor is trying to hold it together. But her attempts to build a life with the man she loves seem doomed by the dragon inside her yearning to break free. Vivian is a dreamshifter, the last line of defense between reality and the dreamworld, and the only one of her kind.

Weston Jennings also believes he is the only one of his kind. He fears his powers as a dreamshifter, and resists learning to control them. After suffering a tragic loss, Weston heads deep into the woods of the Pacific Northwest to embrace a safe life of solitude. But when a terrible mistake leads to an innocent’™s death, his guilt drives him to his former home, where he encounters what he never thought he would find: another shifter.

Now Vivian and Weston must work together to defeat a new threat to the dreamworld.




I know there are tons of people out there that enjoyed these books. But, unfortunately, it wasn't tons enough. The publisher has decided to not continue with the series. Now those people are waiting for book three and the conclusion to the trilogy. AND those of us who have the first two books to read on our shelves NEED to know there is a book three we can conclude with.

This is where you can help.

Kerry has a kickstarter going on right now to sponsor the book, and receive a copy at if you please, and get that book out in the world.

Briefly about the third book, The Nothing:
Dream worlds are dying and taking dreamers with them. Vivian hates sorcery, but her only hope of saving both worlds and dreamers lies with the Sorcieri. She will have to risk everything she has ever loved to claim her own neglected power and stop Aidan, the evil Dragon Queen, from her plan of total annihilation.


Are you up to helping? You can head over to Kerry's Kickstarter and find the level of Pledge that you feel comfortable with.

Thank you!



NOTE:
If you are curious and want to learn more about the books...
Kerry shared about her dragons here:  Let there be Dragons
Kerry shared about her Bigfoot here:  Beware the Bigfoot

And you can visit Kerry's site with all her information and about her books:  http://www.kerryschafer.com/

Mythical Monday (58)

It seems there are many books based on or influenced by Myths and Mythological Beings.

There are so many different Mythology and Mythological Beings recorded. Some are very popular and well known, others not so much. There are many similar beings, yet different depending on the culture it’s based in.  The definition of Myth covers about anything in the Urban Fantasy/Fantasy realm to me.

I’ve invited authors to share briefly the Mythological being or Myth that influenced their character(s) or story, or what their character(s) are based on influencing their books.  Hosting here, one author and being or myth per week.

This week we have:

Author Kerry Schafer

Talking of Bigfoot.

Beware the Bigfoot

Since I write books set in the Between – that place between dreaming and waking where anything is possible— I have the pleasure and privilege of bringing in any sort of creature I choose. All of the Between books have dragons. Between features a penguin. (It was a happy surprise to discover that penguins are one of the totem animals for dreamers and visionaries). The third book, The Nothing has griffins.

And in Book Two, Wakeworld, I borrowed some myths from my local Pacific Northwest.

Sasquatches.

You probably call the creatures Bigfoot (Bigfeet?) You've seen TV ads that turn them into a joke, and maybe even some of those reality shows where not so bright, so-called researchers set out into the wilderness tracking tales of a big hairy beast that they assume has a brain the size of a pea and no inclination to the destruction of humans. Because, you know, if you do find a Big Foot he's going to be fuzzy and cuddly like a giant teddy bear.

I even saw one TV show where a group of women, sleeping in a flimsy little tent without any meaningful protection, were convinced they could lure the beast out with their feminine voices. As in, it would be sexually attracted and come out to investigate. I'm assuming that in the reality world if there is such a thing as a Sasquatch and if it decided a human was worthy of its sexual attention, it might not be a pleasant experience and you might not live to trade gossip with your friends.

Here's the thing. The Native Americans have legends of the Sasquatch, and in those tales the creatures are supernatural and unfriendly, not something that you play around with. They have an ability to mess with things like, oh, time for example. Guns misfire in their presence, or don't fire at all. They can raise the water level in a lake and drown you if they feel like it.

Oh, and they stink like something between carrion and skunk.

Not exactly a sexy beast that you want to get it on with.

It seems logical to me that if there is a Between, why wouldn't Sasquatches belong there? And if they are found in the forests of the world, it's probably because some dreamshifter got careless and let some slip through into the waking world. Which is pretty much what happens in Wakeworld. Weston, aka Morgan, is a reluctant dreamshifter who uses his ability to help hunters tag something a little more exotic than usual. He uses Sasquatch tales to his advantage:

"He had permitted rumors of Sasquatch sightings to judiciously leak into the community. Bigfoot hunters paid even better than the average sportsman. Truth was, he’d had a few glimpses of the big beasts in the dream landscape, including one too-close encounter that left him wary, but although he saw them often enough, they always slipped out of sight and left him well alone."

Which is all fine and wonderful, until it all goes terribly wrong with a hunting party consisting of an old man, Carpenter, and his granddaughter:

"Hell and damnation. They hadn’t followed. He could barely make them out down in the shadows, braced back to back with rifles ready. Down the ravine on either side, branches swayed. A loud banging sound, as of sticks against tree trunks, and then that howling again that turned his bowels to water.

He tried to shout but found he had no voice. He ordered his body to go back down, told himself that he must not abandon his party. Throughout his long life he’d faced down all manner of creatures without fear. Now he stood silently cursing himself, shivering like a rabbit under the paw of a coyote, and watched the hunting party, his hunting party, that he had abandoned and run away from.

Two dark shadows were visible now, emerging from the trees. The offensive stink was almost unbearable, wafting up to him in waves that set him retching.

The beasts were well within range, out of the trees now and visible. They were roughly man-shaped but covered in brown fur, bent forward a little at the hips, with long apelike arms and human hands. As they moved, they banged on tree trunks with sticks, keeping up a constant howling.

Carpenter’s rifle leaped and then exploded in a burst of fire. The man went down with a scream and one of the beasts leaned over him, blocking him from sight. The girl, still self- possessed and externally calm, took aim in turn. Her finger pulled the trigger. The rifle clicked. Nothing happened. She tried again. Another click.

Still the creature advanced toward her.

At last she screamed and broke into a run. One of the man-creatures shambled in pursuit, graceless and awkward, but fast.

Dropping to one knee, trying to steady his shaking hands, Morgan drew a bead on the Sasquatch and fired. It kept running. He fired again. Saw in disbelief a little puff of dirt and rock as the bullet struck way wide of his target.

But even as he fired again it picked up speed, long legs covering the ground in a shambling stride, caught Jenn around the waist and swung her up over its shoulder. She struggled and fought, beating with her fists on the beast’s back. Her eyes found Morgan and she began to scream, still not in a panicked fear but half plea, half command. “Help me! Morgan—”

Both of the creatures turned then to look up at him. He felt the full force of their burning eyes, a pressure on his brain, a searching.

Revenge."

There are two takeaway messages from this sad story.

1) If you encounter a Sasquatch out in the wild (or definitely if you find one in the city, since it's probably rabid) run like hell.

2) Remember that it came from the Between, and look out for an open door.

Author Bio:

Kerry Schafer is licensed both as a Mental Health Professional and an RN, and spends most of her daylight hours helping people--usually even with a smile. In books, she gets to blow stuff up and kill people (or possibly dragons and exploding slime toads). She has published two novels with Ace Books: Between and Wakeworld. She is also the author of The Dream Wars e-novellas.

Kerry and her Viking live in Colville, Washington, in a little house surrounded by rocks, trees, and gangs of deer and wild turkeys.

Find Kerry:

Her Site & Blog

Twitter:  @KerrySchafer

Facebook

Goodreads

Pinterest

Purchase at:

Barnes & Nobles:

Between

Wakeworld

Book Depository

Between

Wakeworld

Mythical Monday (57)

It seems there are many books based on or influenced by Myths and Mythological Beings.

There are so many different Mythology and Mythological Beings recorded. Some are very popular and well known, others not so much. There are many similar beings, yet different depending on the culture it’s based in.  The definition of Myth covers about anything in the Urban Fantasy/Fantasy realm to me.

I’ve invited authors to share briefly the Mythological being or Myth that influenced their character(s) or story, or what their character(s) are based on influencing their books.  Hosting here, one author and being or myth per week.

This week we have:

Author Kerry Schafer

Talking of Dragons.

Let There Be Dragons

Why dragons?

The world of the Between is open to pretty much any sort of creature that has ever squeaked, creaked, or roared its way into a tale (or a nightmare). And, in fact, there are plenty of other creatures that do find their way into the books, some of them entirely of my own creation. The Slime Toad, for instance, big as a dragon with dangerous teeth and a sticky tongue and acid slime that will burn holes in your skin. Or the flying fire ants that literally set you alight wherever they touch clothing or skin.

But dragons are different. Dragons go deep.

They wind their sinuous way through the mythologies and fairy stories of nearly every culture. Some breath fire and destruction across the skies, steal the villagers sheep, burn their cottages and eat their young. In fairy tales they are often cast as the greatest obstacle a young hero must face in his pursuit of both a princess and a kingdom. In the biblical version of the epic clash between God and the Devil, the dragon represents the greatest evil possible, wreaking destruction even in heaven.

Fire dragons, water dragons, dragons of ice and air. Sometimes greedy, sometimes wise, always powerful and capable of great destruction.

When a dragon finds its way onto the pages of a book—no matter what kind of a dragon the writer turns it into—all of those historical and mythical echoes come along. Which is awesome all in itself.

Add in the tales from eastern mythology about the dragon ladies, and it just keeps getting better and better. Yep, the oriental folk stories had dragon shifters long before modern writers decided to tap into that idea. One of these is the tale of Toyotama-Hime, The Dragon Princess of the Sea. It goes, more or less, like this.

Once upon a time, Toyotama-Hime lived at the bottom of the sea with her father. One eventful day a young hunter chose to spend his time fishing rather than hunting. His name was Hikohohodemi-no-Mikoto. (I am not going to type that again, and I have no suggested translation, so we're going to call him Mikoto). Mikoto had borrowed his brother's best fishing hook for the day, and somehow managed to lose it. He was so desperate to find it that he ventured below the waves and down to the sea bed in a quest to retrieve it.

In the way of fairy tales, Toyotama-Hime saw him and fell instantly in love. She begged her father to help the handsome young man, and her father, who could refuse her nothing, agreed. As fate would have it, when Mikoto saw Toyotama-Hime in her human form he fell in love with the beautiful princess, forgetting all about his brother and the fishing hook. The two were married and lived happily together, but only for a time.

There came a day when Mikoto began to pine for the world above the sea - for the wind in the trees and the grass beneath his feet. He begged his beloved wife to come live on dry land with him and, because she loved him and was pregnant with his child, she agreed. The young hunter built a house for her and for a short while they were happy once more.

When the time came for her to give birth, the princess urged her husband to leave her alone, and not to look until she gave him permission. Long he waited outside, pacing and worrying. At last he broke his promise to his wife and peered in through a window. There he saw a black dragon holding a newborn baby. Toyotama-Hime was so embarrassed to be seen as her dragon self, that she fled back to her old home beneath the sea.

No HEA for this couple.

Being a dragon shifter causes some complications for Vivian, the heroine of the Between stories as well. She's chosen to spend her life as a healer and is working as an ER doc in a small town when things get weird. Discovering that she's got some dragon blood in her is a little, shall we say, disconcerting for her and learning to accept this aspect of who and what she is causes her distress along the way.

To make matters worse, there is Zee. Zee is born to be a dragon slayer; this is as deeply embedded in his genetic code as Vivian's dragon nature is in hers. As you can imagine, this serves to complicate the love that is growing between them.

Will they do better than Toyotama-Hime and Mikoto in the HEA department? Only time will tell. In the meantime, as the books are more adventure than romance, they've got a lot of other things to think about. Dangers to face. Slime toads, for example. Nefarious plots. And a dark and powerful dragon who wants to destroy all the worlds.


Author Bio:
Kerry Schafer is licensed both as a Mental Health Professional and an RN, and spends most of her daylight hours helping people--usually even with a smile. In books, she gets to blow stuff up and kill people (or possibly dragons and exploding slime toads). She has published two novels with Ace Books: Between and Wakeworld. She is also the author of The Dream Wars e-novellas.

Kerry and her Viking live in Colville, Washington, in a little house surrounded by rocks, trees, and gangs of deer and wild turkeys.

Find Kerry:
Her Site & Blog
Twitter:  @KerrySchafer
Facebook
Goodreads
Pinterest

Purchase at:


Barnes & Nobles:
Between
Wakeworld

Book Depository
Between
Wakeworld