Shadow Books

Best pre-teen novel for readers 9-13 on cats as and about astronauts in outer space.

The failed American military involvement in Laos presents a tough target for any researcher, but Dr. Castle successfully negotiates the obstacle course to gain access to and declassify critical documents which form the foundation for this valuable look back on an episode in danger of being forgotten. Well-documented interviews with key players of the time fill in many but not all of the gaps. Those readers more interested in the personal impact on the families of those lost in action during this failed campaign will find Castle's follow-on book "One Day Too Long" a more direct fit to their needs.

Well, this book is kinda nice. It is about how 2 or 3 kids, I forgot, save the entire town from these grasshoppers-like mutants. They discover that there used to be a dine, but some workers got trapped there and somehow became mutants.I think I'll let you figure out the rest yourself, if not e-mail me , and I'll tell you the rest!

By Wixa (Acworth, Georgia United States) - See all my reviews

When I started reading this book I didn't realized how quickly I would be caught up in the lives of the characters. I found myself feeling how the characters felt. Their anger and their joys. I laughed at how perfectly Theresa Chaze described the cats personalities. It is so obvious that she has furry children. I finished the book in two days and was disappointed when I realized I had reached the end of the book! I want more. Thank you for writing this book.


By Catherine J. St Amour "Kate St.Amour" (United States) - See all my reviews


Magic, Mystery, and Murder. The three M's! Ms. Chaze shows colorful, visual language that will even keep the romance novel buff obsessed in finishing this novel in one read! The pacing is excellent the main character strong and likeable, and the hint of romance to come in the final installments of the trilogy. I must say I'm already addicted to Ms. Chaze's writing style! A guaranteed page turner! Bring on the rest of the trilogy!

The Conclusion Is Here!, July 31, 2006
By Cate Cavanagh (USA) - See all my reviews

Ms. Chaze sustains what is now a proven trademark of excellency in plot and story development. This taut final book will continue to hold readers within the grasp of danger as the finely realized characters fight to sustain themselves against the evil that would destroy them. A must read book by breakout author Theresa Chaze who continues to weave suspenseful storylines while developing authentic characters. No fluff here! As an author in the genre I attest to the truth in Ms. Chaze's writing as she writes of Witches, evil and spells! If you want truth in fiction, Ms. Chaze is a must read! Fans of the genre will not be disappointed and will experience hours of being drawn into the reality of Witchcraft as never before depicted.

Kudos, Ms. Chaze! Fine work!


Buy this book! I found myself smiling when I finished the last page of Awakening The Dragon--Book One of the Dragon Clan Trilogy (formally Dragon's New Home), by Theresa Chaze. I've read a pretty good number of books in my life, but none have given me quite the mix of emotions that this books has. Let me explain.
The Dragon Page reviews science fiction and fantasy from large publishing houses, small houses, and self-published authors. With few exceptions, a wide gulf separates the large houses' books from the others in terms of the quality of prose. Even when large publishers send me books I don't like, from a purely technical standpoint those books tend to be far better written than the small press stuff. Even the small press books that I like.
Now, Dragon's New Home isn't a well-crafted book. But the book has something that most small press books don't even have a sliver of. Potential. Dragon's New Home feels like a diamond in the rough. I think that given a few hundred thousand more words, Ms. Chaze will become one damn fine author. She's just not quite there yet with this book.
The Gist: Kevin Mitchellson's mother murdered his grandmother. His guilt for letting her get away with the crime is eating him alive, but he will not break his word to his father to protect her secret. So, one night, under the influence of potable spirits, he beckons spirits of another sort to take the problem out of his hands, and expose his mother in a way that cannot be denied. And damn if they didn't hear him.
Rachael Franklin, a Wiccan Priestess, has just won the lottery, and has an inclination to set up a New Age bookstore called Dragon's Den (great name.) She calls on the Goddess to send her to a new home where she can make a difference. She throws a dart at a map and eventually finds herself on the front step of Kevin's grandmother's abandoned house with the local agent from Century 21.
So, in one corner, wearing the red trunks, we have Rachael and her three cats: Merlin, Tara, and Ralph. In the other corner, wearing the blue, is Lady Katheryn, the murder, and the House of Christ, the local Christian cult that thinks that whole "live and let live" thing is for sissies.
And the bell rings.
The Good: Is it right to point out the good points of a novel by pointing out the mistakes the author could have made, but didn't? Forgive me if it's not kosher, but as I write this I can't stop making comparisons in my head between this book and other small press books I have reviewed.
For instance, most first time, small press authors try to tell big stories, and tell them too small (all life on earth my be destroyed by a world wide phenomenon. Let's tell the story of one family driving across country.) Ms. Chaze's story, on the other hand, has a simple, relatable plot, and doesn't skimp on the ensemble needed to tell the story.
Most genre books in general are plot based. This story is character driven, which I have firmly come to believe is the better route to take. Every plot-advancing decision Rachael Franklin makes comes from who she is as a person, not from what decision needs to be made to advance the plot in a certain direction. This gives the book a believability that many sci-fi and fantasy stories lack.
And, finally, it doesn't hurt that the reader might be learning something new. Not being knowledgeable about Wicca myself, I enjoyed reading a book told from the perspective of a philosophy I'm not accustomed to.
The Bad: The book suffers mostly from what most first time authors suffer from - amateur writing syndrome. The dialogue has no real spark. It's too on the nose. The story has no irony. In what could have been a very scary and engrossing story, there was only occasional suspense, and not very strong suspense at that.
Not only that, but the author tends to write too much about things that are obviously important to her, but are not important to the story. At all. Not even a little. It is not hard to see that Ms. Chaze loves animals, but why do why have to plod through pages and pages of Rachael feeding the cats, sleeping with the cats, potty training the dog, etc? Dragon's New Home is the first book of a trilogy. I have the sneaky suspicion that once the series is done, it will be apparent that instead of three short novels, the book could have been one moderately-long novel, if the writing were more focused on the story and less sidetracked by animals, visions, astral projection trips that don't really go anywhere, and the like.


By "gemstonedeva" (the Netherlands) - See all my reviews

Theresa Chaze has written the first part of a magickal tale. I could hardly put the book down once I had picked it up and am looking forward to the sequel to this intriguing tale of magick


"Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live." Words the members of the House of Christ live by, and killed by.

Rachel Franklin knew from the first moment she laid eyes on it that the cottage was hers. She felt its pull, could sense the magic within its walls. She was home.
However, the members of the House of Christ church had different ideas. The cottage was evil, the home of a witch, and all good Christians know that witches are evil beings, consorts of the Devil; their houses are evil and should be destroyed.
But, the cottage's owner, Kevin Mitchellson would not allow that. He forbids any member of the church to set foot on the property left to him by his grandmother, Sarah, and the conflict rages, as Wicca and Christians team up, prepared to do battle with the bigotry and ignorance of the House of Christ fanatics.
Therese Chaze draws her readers in from the first page and refuses to release them until the last word of this fantastic tale of witches, magic, love and betrayal.
Set in the village of Coyote Springs, Dragon Domain is a book of lessons; lessons on love, forgiveness, and above all truth to oneself.
In the grand traditions of Anne McCaffrey and Marion Zimmer Bradley, Therese Chaze captures the imagination as well as the heart of her readers.
Dragon Domain is an open door to a world of wonder, and from the first page to the last, you will be hard pressed to put it down.

Linda Rucker

Back To A Shadow In The Night: Music Writings And Interviews 1968-2001 by music critic Jonathan Cott (who is a contributing editor to "Rolling Stone" magazine), is a selection of compiled interviews, articles, and reflections on and about famous personages of popular music, ranging from the late 1960's to the opening years of the twenty-first century. The unabashed thoughts of such luminaries as John Lennon, Bob Dylan, Mick Jagger, and many others fill the pages of this erudite compendium which is strongly recommended for jazz, classical, and popular music enthusiasts.

This book is out of print, but do your best to find it anyway, it is worth the search. If you liked the L-Shaped room you will love this. It is well written, interspersing humour with passages of great feeling and emotion. Simply wonderful.

Beautiful British model, Adele Marriot, is so tired of riding the diet and exercise treadmill, and when a handsome young doctor offers her free surgery that will keep her beautiful and thin for the rest of her life, she jumps at the chance. However, something strange and sinister is going on at Dr. Stefan Soivak's mountain clinic. But, it is far too late for Adele to back out now! It seems that the clinic's patients are mostly vampires, whom the good doctor can surgically cure by switching their vampirism to another unfortunate...for a price.

And now, a horrified Adele turns to the only man she hears can help her, Barnabas Collins. Barnabas is willing to help her, but it seems that someone is on her trail, someone who will stop at nothing to make sure that her transformation is permanent. And soon Adele and Barnabas, joined by his charming but hunted cousin Quentin, are playing a game that could mean destruction for all of them!

Canadian author Dan Ross, under the pseudonym of Marilyn Ross, wrote this suspenseful, Gothic horror story, along with 31 other Dark Shadows novels. These novels were based on the American television show Dark Shadows (1966-71), but as they were written at the same time as the show was unfolding, there are some discrepancies between the books and the show. In spite of that, though, Ross's characters are wonderfully fleshed out, and story itself is absolutely gripping - and romantic.

So, if you are a fan of Gothic horror, you will like this book very much. If you are a fan of Dark Shadows you will absolutely *love* this book. (I did.) I highly recommend this book!

Buildings cast literal shadows, creating real darkness that many people cannot bear. People cast figurative shadows, creating unreal expectations that many people cannot bear. One particular building and a certain Batman are casting huge shadows over Gotham City, especially to the discomfort of one Poison Ivy, who at the moment cannot bear either one. Ann Nocenti's cautionary and metaphorical tale about casting shadows explores the highs and lows of reaching for the stars, again both literally and figuratively, mostly through the eyes of our lovely yet lethal Ms. Ivy. The highs and lows are both exemplified by one particular skyscraper that is blocking the sun from entering Ivy's plant adorned cell at Arkham, while at the same time contrasted against Batman's tireless and noble yet arguably fruitless and detrimental mission in life. Poison Ivy's multi-faceted character with its' many different shades of gray, or in this case green, ideally befits this style of story, where things and people are not as simple and straightforward as they appear. Nocenti succeeds at producing a story that makes one ruminate afterwards, and kudos to her for accomplishing that rare and laudable feat.

"Before the Last Shadow Fades" is volume three in a series by Shadow Poetry and is, for the most part, an excellent read. Poets have a talent for painting masterpieces with words as is the case of Jerry Quinn's description of "Loneliness" in only 19 words and in the recollections of youth as recalled in "In the Distance" by Charles Griffith and in "Early Mornings Were Best" by Jeanne Hyland Johnson. Limited space here does not allow me to list all the featured poets in this review. I enjoyed this book so much that I ordered the first two in the Shadow series. I highly recommend "Before the Last Shadow Fades".

Written by a former adversary of Covenant Eschatology, the author set out to refute preterism, and became an advocate! Excellent introductory work form a very unique perspective!