Keys to the Kingdom: A Novel of Suspense by Senator Bob Graham

Keys to the Kingdom: A Novel of Suspense. Senator Bob Graham. Vanguard Press. June 2011. ISBN #: 9781593156602.

Ex-Special Forces government operative, Tony Ramos, an African-American Cuban skilled investigator is an expert on Afghanistan. Senator Billington and he believe that the Iraq war is a mission that is draining badly needed funds and on-the-ground military forces in Afghanistan and Pakistan. They see the latter as a powder keg waiting to blow, as the Taliban and Al-Qaeda have a huge amounts of funds and support to carry out terrorist attacks that will make 911 look like nursery play. In fact, they believe Saudi Arabia is supplying the bulk of finances and there are many suggestions that the U. S. Government is aware of the connection but choosing to do nothing because of the imminent election. Things begin to rapidly fall apart when Senator Billington is murdered, after receiving a threat of two bullets and neglecting to change his ordinary schedule of activities. The above is not a spoiler in any way, as the mission Billington leaves Tony begins to proceed in a careful, methodical, and deadly way where everyone connected to Tony all of a sudden become at risk potential targets!

Three women will prove to be pivotal in discovering the source of funding and former double agents hired by the U. S. Government and then spurned by the same will lead Tony to discover the source of the funding and the actual connections of the plot behind 911. But that is the goal that quickly becomes superceded by the revelation of the terrorists' larger plans. For they are planning three attacks, each of which will be larger than the former and will definitely result in world-wide chaos, fear and financial disaster. Tony is given the job of stopping the third attack and the sacrifices for achieving success will be huge!

Senator Graham has crafted a novel that poses as much questions as it does answers. There are as many missing as revealed connections, providing descriptions of betrayal that explain just why our Arab neighbors in the U.S.A. and the Middle East hate Americans fiercely. Governments' efforts to stop terrorism are portrayed as flimsy and downright obstructive, at best. Tony is a bit of a fickle character, claiming love and having hot sex with one woman, only to quickly flit to another and then another woman, albeit with some hesitation at first. The plot is tightly spun; and at the end of the novel, readers will be wondering how much is fact and how much is fiction. For this nightmare journey is all too plausible in a world still reeling from 911 and other devastating terrorist events. For those coping with the aftermath of war and terrorism, reading this novel will be memorable and fearfully fascinating - a timely tale sure to be read by those on all sides!

Open Wounds by Joseph Lunievicz

Open Wounds. Joseph Lunievicz. WestSide Books. May 2011. 352 pp. ISBN #: 9781934813515.

Cid Wymann's mother died during his birth, and his presence reminds his drunken father of that loss on a daily basis. This fact earns Cid frequent beatings, which his grandmother can do little to stop. But two things are his salvation. He makes two friends, Siggy and Tomik Kopecky, who help him battle the neighborhood bullies. He discovers his grandmother is not attending church services but really is going to the movies, a world Cid comes to revere as he is weekly thrilled by scenes in Captain Blood and other Erroll Flynn movies about swordplay duels. Cid yearns to learn to be a fencer and an actor but does'nt believe those dreams lie in the realm of possiblities. He is to be quite surprised!

Abandoned by his father and losing his grandmother eventually by death, Cid is now a homeless child with no known relatives. Siggy's mom and dad take him in for a while but are forced to find a relative as they have to move themselves during this period of economic decline and loss of jobs in early 20th Century New York. So begins an amazing adventure as Cid lives with Lefty, a distant cousin who was gassed in WWI and lost his left arm and leg as well. His passion was honoring the secret love he held for Cid's mother and acting. Cid now becomes the student of that latter passion, reading all of Shakespeare's plays and imagining the duels therein each play. Lefty teaches Cid to fight and his fencing lessons then begin with Lefty's friend, Nikolai Varvarinski, who is teaching him to fight for fighting's sake and not just for acting. The scenes of this very tough training are exhilarating, and the readers senses a huge battle coming!

Finally, the old bullies reappear surprisingly in an older, more sophisticated venue, and they are out for Cid, this time with death-dealing intentions. The remainder of the novel leads up to a climax in which victory, honor, and integrity fill the pages of this story for all involved, with some head-splitting, hair-raising battles added to spice the mix!

Open Wounds is well-written, plot-driven, with cultural additions about movies, plays, and The Great War, elements that combine to make this a phenomenal piece of historical fiction! Superbly done!

Loyalty Binds Me by Joan Szechtman

Loyalty Binds Me. Joan Szechtman. Star Publish LLC. May 2011. 212 pp. Pb. ISBN #: 9781935188254.

In the novel, This Time by Joan Szechtman, Richard III and his son, Edward, were brought into the 21st Century by scientists who invented a time machine financed by a wealthy businessman who yearns to be accepted as a Ricardian scholar. Richard marries the scientist who originally created the undeveloped time machine and her daughters come to cherish Richard as the solid, caring father they never had.

As this new story begins, the family has traveled to England to pay their respects as a family to Richard’s first wife and Edward’s mother, Anne, at Westminster Abbey. It’s a journey complicated by the fact that Edward is trying to cope with a new family and living in a totally different world, and Sarah and the girls are still moving through their own family adjustments. These insecurities lurking below the surface are about to be stretched to the limit!

On their arrival in London, Richard is accosted by British authorities who tell him he is about to be charged with the murder of Edward IV’s “missing Princes,” as they have come to be called throughout history. The accusation initially strikes the reader as ludicrous, until British and American agents, a dynamic British journalist, a Ricardian lawyer, and other characters become intimately connected with this family who just want to be left alone to grow as the loving family they are becoming.

When the allegations change to something even more drastic, the unfolding scenario becomes intricately complex because of the mixed motives emerging that tell a totally different story, one packed with suspense, intrigue, and even violence.

Loyalty Binds Me is a credible, finely plotted historical mystery that encompasses all possible theories about Richard III’s motives and acts in the 15th Century. It also challenges the traditionally accepted Shakespearean depiction of this “distorted” King and provokes readers to challenge historical interpretation in an intelligent, dynamic, and adventurous way. Well-researched and well-written, Loyalty Binds Me is an exciting, surprising, yet sensitive novel that will delight every reader appreciative of excellent historical and time-travel fiction.

Queen of Kings by Maria Dahvana Headley

Queen of Kings: The Immortal Story of Cleopatra. Maria Dahvana Headley. May 2011. Dutton: A Member of Penguin Group U.S.A. Inc. 416 pp. hb. ISBN #: 9780525952176.

"Everything is true. Once a story is told, it becomes true. Every unlikely tale, every tale of wonders, has something real at its core." This quote in the "Historical Note" section after the novel serves to properly introduce an amazing, wondrous tale. For when one begins this novel about the famous Queen of Egypt, Cleopatra, one is not expecting this story of love and war conducted on human, mythological, and supernatural multi-levels. The love of Antony and Cleopatra is well-known, but the devastation that follows Rome's defeat of Egypt sets loose days and nights of terror that will make the reader shiver many, many times in the following pages.

For Octavius, the Roman leader, sends a messenger to Cleopatra, telling her that Antony has committed suicide. Cleopatra does not discover the truth until much later, as she is busy creating an incomplete spell in which she attempts to invoke the powers of Sekhmet. Her goal is to defeat Roman power but what she unleashes are the powers of death, destruction, chaos, plague, and every form of evil one could possibly conceive. It's as if Pandora's box has opened to unleash the fury of darkness and chaos upon every corner of the world.

Cleopatra becomes Sekhmet's furious tool of evil, fueled by the blood of her hapless victims of both high and low birth. But the neatness of this story becomes even more complex when the powers of the mythological underworld,a priestess, sorceress, historian, serpents, gods, and goddesses take sides in a war between Cleopatra and those who support Octavius. Plague, war, thefts, battles, vicious murders, and ritual sacrifices fill these pages with a story that defies imagination yet seems all too real and horrific!

Maria Dahvana Headley has written a timeless, literate, and wonder-filled story that is an absolute must read. The list of sources and historical references after the story are quite impressive and provide a long list of material to be read for those who are as gripped by this story as this reviewer was and is. Superb story that was obviously fueled by the creative Muses - don't miss this gem!

Interview with Daphna Ziman - Author of The Gray Zone

INTERVIEW WITH DAPHNA EDWARDS ZIMAN, AUTHOR OF THE GRAY ZONE!

1. Q: Daphna, can you tell readers what provoked and continues to feed your passion for the cause of foster children and child abuse? What do you want readers to do with the awareness created by reading this novel?
A: I wrote this novel to create awareness of the resilience of foster kids who will either turn to crime or be reeducated and receive therapy to become useful, productive, whole members of society. I also want the readers to become aware of the problem of trafficking of children for abusive reasons that is still occurring through America. Money fuels the mistreatment, neglect, and abuse of children. Money, on the other hand, can fuel legislation, therapy, treatment, and mentoring to turn these children’s worlds around in many ways, with so many positive results. That is why all of the proceeds from this novel are going to the organization of Children Uniting Nations. (http://www.childrenunitingnations.org/)
This organization creates group and mentoring centers for foster children. It begins with providing backpacks, school supplies, and clothing for foster children. One thing that happens with neglected foster children is the fact that they are looked down on by other kids. When they receive these supplies that other children may take for granted, these foster children begin to have a sense that they are on the same playing field as other children, which begins to create a sense of self-esteem with peers. The next and most important work of this organization is education. I helped to push forward legislation that school must be a constant for foster children. Concerned adults and college students can become mentors – academic or otherwise. A university student could serve in this role while in college, after being trained in neurobiology. Change in thinking changes how the brain acts and reacts of life’s ups and downs. This training teaches how neglect and abuse creates cognitive issues and causes emotional, problematic issues; but it also teaches mentors how their therapeutic work retrains the brain. After consistent mentoring, these children begin to feel supported – someone is now there, a protective shield against more mistreatment and a forceful space to explore different opportunities that are life-giving in the sense of emotional, mental, and physical wholeness. Second, these children learn they can communicate with mentors and teachers, moving through fear of failure to ask questions and share their worlds so that they don’t eventually drop out of school for the wrong reasons.

2. Q: While we admire the intelligence and steeliness of Kelly, there is also a criminal element in the working out of her payback plan. Can you talk about how you see those skills Kelly portrays, which could be turned either way, to survival or crime?
A: Kelly’s character is the personification of many peoples’ characteristics. The lack of education, as well as the physical and emotional abuse, causes trauma to the vortex of the brain which actually suppresses cognitive abilities. Unknown to teachers, such children learn by auditory means – they listen for signals – and are initially unable to process visual learning. Without educational skills, they cannot excel in the world, so they develop street smarts for survival. If you think they have alternatives, they really don’t. Yet they do have a sense of morality, so bringing down the perpetrators doesn’t strike them as wrong due to the horrific wrong that has been done to them in the midst of a supposedly moral society that denies them a moral justice, the right of every single child. That is why Kelly, representative of single mothers who have evolved from an abusive world, uses her innate, incredible brain abilities in the “gray zone,” the foster child’s sense of true morality and justice.

3. Q: You talk about how a young mother can fight the entire justice system for the sake of her children? What kind of reform do you see happening which is mandatory in the American justice system to guarantee the safeguarding of our young children and teens?
A: 126 legislations have so far been passed for these children and issues, initiated, supported and followed by well-known politicians who share my passion for practically addressing these problems. They include Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Congresswoman Karen Bass of Los Angeles, Senator Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, Congressman Joseph Crowley of NY, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, Senator Diane Feinstein of California. An example of this legislation includes serving breakfast to these children in the first period of a school day because foster children frequently come late to school. If they don’t eat, they don’t learn well. Legislation has also been passed lowering the emancipation age so these children can be removed or leave these potentially devastating situations earlier. Legislation has also involved forgiving academic tuition for students who agree to mentor abused children. On July 28, 2011 a panel entitled “Keeping the Promise to our Children,” will address the issues in this novel about human trafficking and rape.
The public needs to support this legislation - call your local, state, and national politicians. Don’t wait for someone else to do it; be proactive and know you have made a substantial difference to specific children living in this world on a day-to-day basis. These issues are important to our country because 78.8% of criminals come out of the child welfare system; we need to change this statistic. Crime is committed on us. Make people aware of legislation so people can actively take part – get others to buy this book. This money will fund an educational therapist in one school; we are presently in 13 schools and going into 21 schools in the fall of this year. 99% of most American students stay in school; only 5% of those who don’t get help will go to college. Education, therapy and other significant help give these precious children a chance.

4. Q Can private foster-mentoring programs like Children Uniting Nations affect typical foster children agencies and institutions?
A: Yes, absolutely. We have created a coalition – ICAN – to create best practices guidelines. This is a policy committee where the head of every foster and orphanage institution has contact with ICAN. Every child has the right to a family – we also promote adoption and will shortly be holding an Adoption Day in LA.
I recently was speaking with an 8 year old foster child who had been returned to an orphanage. After a while, she asked me, “Will you always be my caregiver?” As my heart broke while listening, I responded, “I’m not your caregiver. I’m your friend.” She responded, “They’re not paying you to be with me?” What child should have to speak such words?


5. Q: Tell the readers, please, more about your mentoring foster children work.
A: Mentoring occurs on so many levels. It may involve academic tutoring, taking a child out to do something pleasurable. I once asked a group of foster children, “Who has never had a birthday party?” Every hand in the room went up. Hard to believe, isn’t it? It is for me, yet this is reality. So we might get some birthday gifts and have some celebrities give them to the children at a party. This isn’t public pandering; this is a “special” moment for these children, changing patterns of neglect and diminished sense of identity with one small but oh so special day. It might be chatting about nothing or upon establishment of trust sharing painful realities in each child’s world. The possibilities are limitless.

6. Q: What are Kelly and Jake’s weakest and strongest personality characteristics? Which are pivotal to you in portraying the “real life” aspects of their situation that would help a reader’s awareness of the issues depicted in this novel?
A: The question first must be addressed by considering situations, not personality characteristics. For example: What are the most important five aspects of life you treasure?
Q: Family, health, education, faith, and shelter.
A: Okay, give up one.
Q: All right. Education.
A: Well, a foster child who has no education must live by street smarts, and so it goes with the other four. They have to give up all five they day they are given as foster children to a family. The cumulative result is impulsive anger without training – we give them emotional training, teaching, and treatment, so they don’t do horrific things. That’s why we hired Dr. Vicky Stevens, a renowned expert in neurobiology, who has worked with 60 former foster kids who are now interns because of this program. Solid, real results!

7. Q: Since 1940s stars are part of the protagonist’s performances, disguises, and methods of being what she needs to be, how can we educate our children about the difference between fact and fiction – acting versus reality, admiring sexiness while realizing the appropriate and inappropriate use of such skills - after all, these actors and actresses are whom our children look to as models. The average reader may not have a problem with sex at all, but this is a problem that leads to so much abuse of children and teens. Could you please share your thoughts and feelings regarding this subject?
A: I recognized that if I used modern-day stars, I was actually condoning some of the things that are right now impacting our children. Romantic impact back then lacked today’s sensationalism causing present problems. We don’t really fully understand the development of the brain, and so what shapes our children’s minds should be in the forefront of our awareness. The Gray Zone is the world behind closed doors. We get kids adrenaline shot up, stimulate them, and then say their reactions are wrong. Consciousness here needs to transfer to parental responsibility out of this awareness.

8. Q: Since your protagonist lives a plot where all turns out well, what do you know about the all too many situations of abuse that remain undetected? And what is being done in a preventative way? I mean no offense here, but Social Services Agencies in most cities and suburban towns really are only partially effective for far too many of our young children and teens? How can the public be more proactive in this area?
A: The confidentiality part of the law, FERPA (Family Education Rights and Privacy Act, protects and yet harms all our kids in protective custody. This is why abuse is not exposed; but now after fighting for seven years, Assemblyman Mike Feuer of California, may see this law changed so that those files will be open and we will be able to check on these kids in protective custody. Congresswoman Karen Bass (CA), as well as Former California Governor Grey Davis and First Lady Davis, have been instrumental in support for this necessary change.

Q: You've hit a home run with this debut novel. Anything else in the works we can look forward to reading or seeing?
A: I am writing my next book right now. It’s called The Final Punch.


Visit the author’s website at http://www.daphnaedwardsziman.com

Visit the reviewer’s website at: http:crystalbookreviews.blogspot.com
















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The King's Witch by Cecelia Holland

The King’s Witch. Cecelia Holland. Berkley Penguin Group Books. June 2011. 320 pp. ISBN #: 9780425241301.

Picture a female doctor whose identity is unknown and therefore mysterious to all in this year of 1191. Spanning various cities between Europe and Jerusalem, this novel depicts the various Kings vying for control and power in the Crusade to defeat Arabs presently holding Jerusalem. Edythe is a secret Jew by birth but has no connection to that religion as Jews are anathema in Christian circles during this part of the 12th Century. She is known as the King’s witch because of her effective medical skills, displaying amazingly in various descriptions such as actually doing some head surgery, no mean feat in this time and place. Most notably, she manages to keep King Richard the Lionhearted alive throughout his bouts of a life-threatening illness. That is the only background to the respect she receives, and for that reason alone she remains free to come and go at her own pleasure and is not subject to the bawdy acts of men away from home on a brutal campaign journey.

Meet King Richard, a man who makes a vow to capture Jerusalem but cannot force his peers to stand with him to finish the job after Acre and Jaffa are successfully taken in formidable battles. Then we encounter Rouquin, a sidekick officer of Richard’s army, who possesses a secret about his own background that binds Richard to him beyond that of a King and servant. The plot thickens with the introduction of various characters all connected to Joanna, Richard’s sister, but using her to achieve their own military and religious designs. These characters the King of Jerusalem who lost his kingdom, as well as the representatives of France, Germany, etc. The notorious Knights of the Templare are also present in a rather vibrant but devious way. One character Richard particularly yearns to meet for a physical reason that is totally anathema in that day and age. Church and State are no friends in this race for power and victory!

Those who know history know Richard was unsuccessful in his Crusade quest, but Cecelia Holland tells such a riveting story that we forget what we know and find ourselves rooting for this dedicated leader striving to accomplish what he perceives as a holy war free of rivalry and defeat. Edythe and Rouquin finally dare to rebel and come to a peace about who they are – a process and subplot just as complex and fascinating as the story about the King.

Although the names and places appear initially complex, the reader will quickly be entranced by this totally beguiling, historical though general, and passionate story that does this author credit. The King's Witch is a fine beginning to the Heirs of Eleanor of Aquitaine series. Nicely done, Ms. Holland!

Fire on Dark Water by Wendy K. Perriman

Fire on Dark Water. Wendy K. Perriman. Berkley Trade Paperback Original. June 2011. 326 pp. ISBN #: 9780425241012.

Blackbeard the Pirate’s notorious deeds are famously portrayed in books and movies. Here, however, we learn about this adventurer through the voice of his thirteenth wife, known as Lolamura, Lola, London Lola, The Gypsy, or just plain Doxy. Deflowered at the age of ten in 1702, Lola spends the next ten years learning the art of begging, pick-pocketing, etc. in London, England because she cannot return to her gypsy family in her impure state. After being caught stealing, Lola is sentenced to being transported to America for seven years.

Lola’s journey to the New World is dangerous, tempestuous, and exhilarating. Then her adventures with her employers in the South range educate her about social status, medicine, and a slew of outrageous conflicts life-threatening for all involved. Lola inadvertently winds up abetting horrific events from which she must escape, next to the West India island of Nassau, this time with a hooker friend, Violet.

Here the action noticeably picks up as they meet with a surprising former acquaintance, all eventually vying for men with means. “Perhaps it’s the raw excitement of loving so close to the edge, that point where the dare fires the blood with thrill…Anyhow – the higher the rank the better the plunder – as all potential queens are well aware.”

And finally Lola meets Captain Edward Teach, the notorious Blackbeard, “the charmer (charismatic, seductive, learned and cultured…” and Blackbeard the pirate (cruel, brittle rapacious, and evil…”. Lola weds him, and the following pages recount in detail his various victories and his eventual downfall. Fire on Dark Water is a fascinating, riveting, cruel and sometimes kind tale of a notorious thief and his multi-talented, lustful, and savvy but temporary, thirteenth wife.