Review - Asa is Back: A short story by Abigail Keam

• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0CKJ24CTX
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Worker Bee Press; 1st edition (October 16, 2023)
• Publication date ‏ : ‎ October 16, 2023
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• 
  

What a great little one shot for the character that I already love. Asa Reynolds is one of those enigmatic characters that you think of as beyond stoic, beyond a riddle -- she's a total badass of a character. And in her bad-assery, it's easy to forget that she is human.

As a prequel to "Death by Theft", this one totally knocks it out of the ballpark and then some. And I loved the tie in with one of Ms. Keam's other series, "The Last Chance Motel". Nice tight plot with action and a case Asa can sink her teeth into. Wounded from an earlier encounter/case, Asa is soon presented with another one. But does she have the physical wherewithal to solve it?

This short plays up on Asa's humanity and we get to learn a little more about her that explains so much. After reading about her in the Josiah Reynolds Mysteries, it's nice to peek inside of Asa's head for a while. See her inner thoughts. I've been waiting for this character to get spun off into her own series. I'm hoping this is the start.

5 out of five stars!!

Grab your copy - https://amz.run/7Crn and then, get Death by Theft on 10/30 - https://amz.run/7Crp

'Death By Poison' just might be the cure to the COVID blues!

**I received an Advanced Reading Copy for review.**

The latest in A Josiah Reynolds Mystery is undoubtedly the best of the series. But then I say that with every book, and quite frankly, I mean it too. These books get more and more intricate, the plotting gets more and more involved, and Josiah keeps me endlessly intrigued with her life as an amateur sleuth. 

In Death by Poison, Josiah has entered her American Paint horse, Morning Glory, in a parade to celebrate Kentucky’s Horse Capital of the World title. But just as she’s gotten the rambunctious pony hitched up and in the queue, infamous local horse whisperer, Velvet Maddox gives her a very grave pronouncement. “I see death around this horse.” What to do. It’s either pull the horse out of the line up or ignore all the hard work Josiah and boyfriend, Hunter Wickliffe, have put into the outing. 

Josiah decides, this time, Velvet is wrong and nudges the pony along. Which is when it all goes to hell and then something drops down just in time for the horse and cart to run over it. When Jo sees a leg protruding from beneath the cart—a human leg—the realization of Velvet’s assessment being right on the money comes too late.When the realization that it’s the bane of Josiah’s existence, it’s a matter of self-preservation that sets her on the path to finding out who killed the victim.

These characters are so real, so vivid, that they should be walking about in front of me. My own private movie and I sit with popcorn, reading until I’ve finished. The pacing is right on, keeping me drawn in but never slow enough to lose my attention. Twists and turns are a fact of the game but sometimes can be contrived. Not in the hands of a skilled author like Abigail Keam. Things happen organically, naturally, and the red herrings are plentiful and just as possible. When I say I couldn’t put this down, it’s not hyperbole. I had to know. I had to know what was coming next and how the hell she was going to piece this together. And when she finally did, the ending was very satisfying and I felt as if I’d been put through the ringer.

Another five star reading from an amazing and talented author. A definite must read, as is the rest of the series. 

Death by Poison by Abigail Keam is $4.99 for the ebook and $15.00 for the paperback. Set to be released on Monday, April 18, Preorder your copy today. You won’t be sorry. 

To Fanfic or Not to Fanfic -- That Is the Question

I love fanfiction. Love it, y' hear? Love it. Especially when it gets good and steamy. I love steamy fanfic. When you can read all about your current infatuation "in action". Especially when you can imagine that it's you that s/he is getting it on with. 

But writing it seems to be a different matter among many authors. I know of quite a few that refuse to release their characters to fanfic. Even going so far as to threaten legal action if they catch it happening. And I know of many other authors that don't mind as long as you stick to their canon. But I think they forget that there were some very famous authors who wrote and still write fanfiction. James Joyce wrote Ulysses, a fan fiction piece taken from the stories in The Illiad. Neil Gaiman wrote his Norse Mythology, as an unapologetic retelling of the Norse myths of Thor, Odin, and Loki. And let's not forget The Stan, aka Stan Lee who created his own fanfic in the form of his comics about the Norse Gods.

Do a Google search on famous authors who wrote fan fiction. You'll get a long list. 

I love reading fanfiction. But I also love writing it. Go on An Archive of Their Own and look for Lady Thomas Sharpe. I love writing Loki fanfiction -- based on the mythology and the Marvel character -- as well as Tom Hiddleston fan fic. And I write some serious NSFW (Not Safe For Work) stuff, too. 

If you ask me, I don't discourage it. No, you're not writing your own, but.... It will give you great practice in plotting, character development, and writing in the original landscape will teach you how to make your own. It takes work to write fanfic. To be faithful to the characters and the author's intent. Or the movie's intent. Once you learn the tricks of the fanfic trade, you'll be able to go in and make your own stories, your own characters. Once you learn how the originals plotted and then, you'll know what to do with your own worlds and genres.

Always a good thing. Find someone or some world that you feel passionate about and get to writing. Learn by doing. And then come back and give me a link in the comments. I promise, I'll be glad to read. I can't wait. 

Write on, Fellow Authors