Dawno's Bookstore on Amazon is Open Again!

Hi again! Lots of life stuff happened between this and the prior post last August. Did some work for a couple staffing companies starting last September, turned out they weren't really right for me, though. So, in January I returned to my 'temporarily semi-retired' status.  Did two conventions (Her Royal Majesty's Steampunk Symposium on the Queen Mary in Long Beach, CA and ConDor in San Diego, CA - both tons of fun) selling my jewelry.

While I work on new pieces for the next con (BayCon in Santa Clara, CA over Memorial Weekend), I now have additional free time on my hands again so I thought I'd re-activate my Amazon shop and see if I can move some of my hardback books.

My books are mostly 'gently read once' books, many are also first editions. There are some that I've never read, too. Most are thrillers, mysteries, procedurals and military fiction. There are a few science fiction and fantasy books there that I have duplicates of. Hope you'll bookmark this link and come back when you are looking for something to read!

Nearly all the books are $3 or less, with $3.99 shipping. That means a nearly new hardback for less than the price of most paperbacks. Great for completing a collection or 'backtracking' the stories in a series you've just been introduced to with a later book.

See something you'd like to add to your bookshelf? Just click the title and you'll be at my store!

For those readers who are alphabetizing purists, the alphabetical list of titles are in the alphabetical order Amazon lists them on my storefront, so titles starting with "The" are listed with the others starting with T.

Alphabetical listing

206 Bones - (Temperance Brennan series #1)  Kathy Reichs
Absolute Friends - John le Carré
Airframe - Michael Crichton
Angels Flight (Harry Bosch series #6) - Michael Connelly
Balance of Power - Richard North Patterson
Betrayal: A Novel (Dismas Hardy series, #12) - John Lescroart
Billy Straight - Jonathan Kellerman
Blindman's Bluff (Decker & Lazarus series #18) - Faye Kellerman
Blood and Honor (Honor Bound series #2) - W.E.B. Griffin
Broken Prey (Lucas Davenport series #16 ) - John Sandford
Brother Odd (Odd Thomas series #3) - Dean Koontz
Certain Prey (Lucas Davenport series #10) - John Sandford
Chromosome 6 - Robin Cook
Closing Time (Catch 22 sequel) - Joseph Heller
Company - Max Barry
Conflict of Interest - Nancy Taylor Rosenberg
Dead Watch - John Sandford
Divine Justice (Camel Club series #4) - David Baldacci
Dust to Dust - Tami Hoag
Eleven on Top (Stephanie Plum series) - Janet Evanovich
Extreme Measures (Mitch Rapp series #11) - Vince Flynn
Fearless Fourteen (Stephanie Plum series) - Janet Evanovich
Final Justice (Badge of Honor series #8) - W.E.B Griffin
First Family (King & Maxwell series #4) - David Baldacci
Flesh & Blood - Jonathan Kellerman
Hidden Prey (Lucas Davenport series #15) - John Sandford
Holes (Newberry Award winning juvenile) - Louis Sachar
Knights of the Black and White (Templar Trilogy #1) - Jack Whyte
Lean Mean Thirteen (Stephanie Plum series) - Janet Evanovich
Monster - Jonathan Kellerman
Move to Strike - Perri O'Shaughnessy
Naked Prey (Lucas Davenport series #14) - John Sandford
Obsession - Jonathan Kellerman
Pandora - New Tales of the Vampires - Anne Rice
Pinion - Jay Lake
Prey - Michael Crichton
R is for Ricochet - Sue Grafton
Rage - Jonathan Keller
Red Rabbit - Tom Clancy
Retreat, Hell! (The Corpsseries #10) - W.E.B. Griffin
Scarpetta - (Kay Scarpetta series #16) - Patricia Cornwell
Secret Honor (Badge of Honor series #3) - W.E.B. Griffin
Servant of the Bones - Anne Rice
Shadow of Power (Paul Madriani series #9)
Simple Genius (King & Maxwell series #3) - David Baldacci
Son of a Witch (Sequel to Wicked) - Gregory Maguire
Sons of Fortune - Jeffrey Archer
Stone Cold (Camel Club #3) - David Baldacci
3 Complete Novels - A is for Alibi, B is for Burglar, C is for Corpse (Kinsey Millone series #1,2,3)- Sue Grafton
Supreme Courtship - Christopher Buckley
Ten Big Ones (Stephanie Plum series) - Janet Evanovich
The Brethren - John Grisham
The Burnt House (Decker & Lazarus series #16) - Faye Kellerman
The Camel Club (Camel Club series #1) - David Baldacci
The Closers (Harry Bosch series #11) - Michael Connelly
The Constant Gardner - John le Carré
The Fighting Agents (Men at War series #4) - W.E.B. Griffin
The First Law (Dismas Hardy series #8)
The Historian - Elizabeth Kostova
The House of Seven Mabels - Jill Churchill
The Investigators (Badge of Honor series #7) - W.E.B. Griffin
The Last Detective (Elvis Cole series #9) - Robert Crais
The Last Juror - John Grisham
The Last Precinct (Kay Scarpetta series #11) - Patricia Cornwell
The Lincoln Lawyer (Mickey Haller series #1) - Michael Connelly
The Narrows (Harry Bosch series #11) - Michael Connelly
The Paris Vendetta (Cotton Malone series #5) - Steve Berry
The Runaway Jury - John Grisham
The Second Chair (Dismas Hardy series #9) - John Lescroart
The Soldier Spies (Men at War series #3) - W.E.B. Griffin
The Street Lawyer - John Grisham
The Suspect (Dismas Hardy series #11) - John Lescroart
The Tailor of Panama - John le Carré
The Teeth of the Tiger - Tom Clancy
The Testament - John Grisham
The Two Minute Rule - Robert Crais
The Whole Truth (Shaw & Katie James series #1) - David Baldacci
The Yiddish Policeman's Union - Michael Chabon
Trace (Kay Scarpetta series #13 ) - Patricia Cornwell
Twelve Sharp (Stephanie Plum series) - Janet Evanovich
Unspeakable - Sandra Brown
Vittorio the Vampire: New Tales of the Vampires - Anne Rice
Void Moon (Cassie Black) - Michael Connelly
Without Remorse - Tom Clancy

by Author


Sons of Fortune - Jeffrey Archer


Divine Justice (Camel Club series #4) - David Baldacci
First Family (King & Maxwell series #4) - David Baldacci
Simple Genius (King & Maxwell series #3) - David Baldacci
Stone Cold (Camel Club #3) - David Baldacci
The Camel Club (Camel Club series #1) - David Baldacci
The Whole Truth (Shaw & Katie James series #1) - David Baldacci

Company - Max Barry

The Paris Vendetta (Cotton Malone series #5) - Steve Berry

Unspeakable - Sandra Brown


Supreme Courtship - Christopher Buckley

The Yiddish Policeman's Union - Michael Chabon

The House of Seven Mabels - Jill Churchill

Red Rabbit - Tom Clancy
The Teeth of the Tiger - Tom Clancy
Without Remorse - Tom Clancy

Angels Flight (Harry Bosch series #6) - Michael Connelly
The Closers (Harry Bosch series #11) - Michael Connelly


The Lincoln Lawyer (Mickey Haller series #1) - Michael Connelly
The Narrows (Harry Bosch series #11) - Michael Connelly



Void Moon (Cassie Black) - Michael Connelly

Chromosome 6 - Robin Cook

Scarpetta - (Kay Scarpetta series #16) - Patricia Cornwell
The Last Precinct (Kay Scarpetta series #11) - Patricia Cornwell
Trace (Kay Scarpetta series #13 ) - Patricia Cornwell

The Last Detective (Elvis Cole series #9) - Robert Crais

The Two Minute Rule - Robert Crais


Airframe - Michael Crichton
Prey - Michael Crichton

Ten Big Ones (Stephanie Plum series) - Janet Evanovich

Eleven on Top (Stephanie Plum series) - Janet Evanovich
Twelve Sharp (Stephanie Plum series) - Janet Evanovich
Lean Mean Thirteen (Stephanie Plum series) - Janet Evanovich

Fearless Fourteen (Stephanie Plum series) - Janet Evanovich


Extreme Measures (Mitch Rapp series #11) - Vince Flynn

3 Complete Novels - A is for Alibi, B is for Burglar, C is for Corpse (Kinsey Millone series #1,2,3)- Sue Grafton
R is for Ricochet - Sue Grafton

The Brethren - John Grisham
The Last Juror - John Grisham
The Runaway Jury - John Grisham
The Street Lawyer - John Grisham
The Testament - John Grisham

Final Justice (Badge of Honor series #8) - W.E.B Griffin

Blood and Honor (Honor Bound series #2) - W.E.B. Griffin

Retreat, Hell! (The Corpsseries #10) - W.E.B. Griffin
Secret Honor (Badge of Honor series #3) - W.E.B. Griffin
The Fighting Agents (Men at War series #4) - W.E.B. Griffin

The Investigators (Badge of Honor series #7) - W.E.B. Griffin
The Soldier Spies (Men at War series #3) - W.E.B. Griffin

Closing Time (Catch 22 sequel) - Joseph Heller

Dust to Dust - Tami Hoag

Blindman's Bluff (Decker & Lazarus series #18) - Faye Kellerman
The Burnt House (Decker & Lazarus series #16) - Faye Kellerman


Billy Straight - Jonathan Kellerman
Flesh & Blood - Jonathan Kellerman
Monster - Jonathan Kellerman
Obsession - Jonathan Kellerman
Rage - Jonathan Kellerman

Brother Odd (Odd Thomas series #3) - Dean Koontz

The Historian - Elizabeth Kostova

Pinion - Jay Lake

Absolute Friends - John le Carré
The Constant Gardner - John le Carré
The Tailor of Panama - John le Carré

Betrayal: A Novel (Dismas Hardy series, #12) - John Lescroart

The First Law (Dismas Hardy series #8) - John Lescroart

The Second Chair (Dismas Hardy series #9) - John Lescroart

The Suspect (Dismas Hardy series #11) - John Lescroart

Shadow of Power (Paul Madriani series #9) - Steve Martini

Son of a Witch (Sequel to Wicked) - Gregory Maguire

Move to Strike - Perri O'Shaughnessy

Balance of Power - Richard North Patterson




206 Bones - (Temperance Brennan series #1)  Kathy Reichs

Pandora - New Tales of the Vampires - Anne Rice
Servant of the Bones - Anne Rice
Vittorio the Vampire: New Tales of the Vampires - Anne Rice

Conflict of Interest - Nancy Taylor Rosenberg

Holes (Newberry Award winning juvenile) - Louis Sachar

Broken Prey (Lucas Davenport series #16 ) - John Sandford
Certain Prey (Lucas Davenport series #10) - John Sandford
Dead Watch - John Sandford
Hidden Prey (Lucas Davenport series #15) - John Sandford
Naked Prey (Lucas Davenport series #14) - John Sandford

Knights of the Black and White (Templar Trilogy #1) - Jack Whyte

Dawno's Bookstore is "Open" for Business (on Amazon)

A few minutes ago I loaded my 56th gently used hardback book to my Amazon bookstore. I'm going to  share about these books here and hope you'll be interested in buying one (or two!).

Where did all my beads go?
Oh, way back there behind all those bins...

First off, why am I doing this? My husband and I bought a new house. The detached garage had been converted into a studio and I immediately started drooling over the prospect of having a space for my creative endeavors. Well, until this is cleaned up, I'm going to have to wait:


We had a lot of books stored in bins and boxes which all ended up in the studio. I've just scratched the surface with the ones I've listed so far.

So, what will I be selling? Lots of procedurals/mysteries/thrillers of the detective, medical, legal and political sort, military fiction, spy fiction, humor, and a few non-fiction books, too.  I've collected a number of series books in hardcover over the years, mostly first editions and all of them are gently read. Most only once.

Now that I've got an iPad I download those kinds of books and rarely buy hardbacks anymore.  I also have tons of science fiction in both paper and hard back, but I haven't decided if I 'm going to part with them yet. Probably will.

Anyway, I want to tell you about the books so I'm reviving this old blog for that purpose. If you were following it for reviews of POD books, or to read about my NaNoWriMo experience, that might come up again too!

Next time: W.E.B Griffith novels.

Going Back to Just a NaNo blog

I've not updated here in over a year because I've been very busy with other opportunities and challenges. Until, and if, I decide to do reviews again, this will revert to it's original purpose as a journal of my NaNo experience. I am planning to do NaNo in '08 - I've even started outlining some ideas! I probably won't post much here until October.

Drive By Booking Hosts Christine Norris on Her Virtual Book Tour!

Who is Christine Norris? According to her author bio:

Christine is the author of several works for children and adults. She spends her time divided between her writing, substitute teaching, and caring for her family of one husband-creature, a son-animal, a large dog whose greatest achievement is sleeping in one position for an entire day, and a small feline who is very adept in his position as Guardian of the Bathtub. She also works at English Adaptations of novels translated from other languages.

To learn more about Christine Norris, please visit christine-norris.com. You can send an email to Christine at risseybug@aol.com or through her MySpace page, at www.myspace.com/christinenorris

I also had the opportunity to conduct a virtual interview with Christine, where I relentlessly peppered her with probing questions, utilizing a technique I stole learned from Mike Wallace of 60 Minutes fame, known for making world leaders cry. Here's the straight scoop:

Q1: First, and most importantly, Drive By Booking readers want to know: Eggplant or Orlando?

A: Hmm. On one hand, you've got a purple squash, and purple is a nice color. On the other hand, you've got Orlando, named after a character from Shakespeare and a city in Florida. I hate eggplant, even fried, so it's gotta be Orlando.

Q2: Speaking of that, we first met on Absolute Write and many of my readers are also regulars there. What's a nice YA author like you doing in a place like that?

A: Hopefully being a good influence and rubbing off on them. They're a great bunch,and it's a good retreat the road-weary writer who feels isolated because they've chosen to be a writer and no one around them understands that when they say 'I'm writing', it means 'don't disturb me, because my work is just as important as yours.' LOL. Isn't that the way, people who aren't writers just don't understand.

Q3: Is there anything normal people need to be careful about when first encountering fantasy writers?

A: Oh my yes. First of all, fantasy writers live on a different plane than most people, so don't upset their delicate balance with too much 'reality'. That'll just make them mad. Don't argue with them about the existence of Dragons. Dragons are real, and it's not my fault you've never seen one. Make a fantasy writer angry and you could find yourself being eaten by said Dragon in the author's next book. Dragons generally prefer their people crispy and with ranch dressing.

Or the fantasy writer could just turn you into a toad, and then where would you be?

Q4: What drew you to writing Young Adult fantasy, in the first place - are young people even reading anymore with all that YouTube, Wii and Facebook stuff going on?

A:Because I love YA fantasy. Adults are too involved with relationships and feelings, whereas kids want good characters and action. They want heroes who save the day and happy endings, and plot twists that surprise. It's just more fun to write for kids, and they appreciate good fantasy and magic more, I think.

Actually, yes kids are reading. Harry Potter, bless his little heart, has kindly breathed life back into the art of reading, although I don't think it ever really died. The shelves are stuffed with good books for kids. When I substitute teach, I see lots of kids reading. Some love it, some hate it, some would rather set their hair on fire, but they do read. In the lower grades it's required, so they don't have a choice. I also run across kids who read a lot of manga, it's hugely popular now in the U.S., which means they're at least going to the bookstore.

Q5: Do you think you'll keep writing for Young Adults and in the fantasy genre?

A: Oh yes, I have more stories brewing in my head all the time. I grew up on a steady diet of fairy tales and Peter Pan and The Wizard of Oz. So it's pretty much what I know, and I love it. I don't want to write anything else, at least at the moment.

Q6: Uh, you don't think 50 is too old to be considered a Young Adult, do you? What about older readers - do you get any feedback from them about your books? (aside from reviewers)

A: Oh, no! You're never too old for YA books. This was a topic of discussion at a convention I went to last year - that so many adults are now reading YA fantasy or sci fi books, because the stories are usually better crafted and not bogged down in...adult-ness. I get lots of adult readers, and they all seem to like the books. My editor at one of my publishers loves my stuff as a reader. I read tons of YA books myself, there are some really great ones.

Q7: How did you come up with the idea for a 'virtual' book tour? Is it fun? Do you miss getting frequent flyer miles and stale pretzel snacks?

A: I can't take the credit for the virtual book tour. I had the idea to have one, then found out that they're getting more popular. There are companies out there that run them for authors, for a fee. I'm cheap, so I organized my own. And this is a very 'green' way to do a book tour - no gas wasted, no greenhouse emmissions! And no, I don't miss crowded airports, airline food or hotel rooms. I get to go all over the world without leaving home! Which is good, because I don't think my son would do too well with that. He's Mommy's boy.

Q8: What's next for you in your writing?

A: I have a book coming out next year from Samhain Pubishing. The book is titled THE CROWN OF ZEUS. It'll be out in e-book form in early 2008, and in print probably towards Christmas that year. It's the first of a series. I have the second book finished, and I'm waiting on a decision from Samhain about that, and I'm halfway through the third book. It's really turning out to be very thrilling and promises to get even moreso. And I'm working on a full-length book for the Wizard Academies series (www.myspace.com/wizardlings ). I wrote two short stories for the anthologies, but we've found that agents and bigger publishers don't really want anthologies. We're considering combining the first two shorts of mine into one book too. That would take some work, but it's possible.


Next, Christine gave me an advance copy of Return to Zandria to read - the following is a brief overview.

First of all, this is a sequel to Talisman of Zandria, published in 2005 - but you don't have to have read Talisman to understand and enjoy Zandria. Both books recount the adventures of Ivy Peterson, a young woman who starts off feeling quite ordinary at the beginning of Talisman and ends up being pretty extraordinary by the end. Return to Zandria is set a few years after that adventure with a 14 year old Ivy who feels about herself, as the first lines of the book put it, "Ivy Peterson was not ordinary. Nor was she extraordinary or unusual. Ivy Peterson was More-Than-Ordinary."

In Return to Zandria Ivy is asked to return to help solve the kidnapping of the Empress's daughter, which has plunged Zandria into an extended winter as the weather there is sensitive to the prolonged depression of the Empress as her daughter remains a captive. Ivy is re-united with companions from the first book, the young apprentice Connor and the Wizard Arden, amongst others - along with some new characters. She learns from Arden that the princess is undoubtedly on "Otherside," what the people of Zandria call our reality, taken there by Duke Drake de Faeolin, the empress’ cousin.

The kidnapping turns out to be a plot within a plot...well, to tell you more would spoil the story.

Return to Zandria is a fun, well paced, YA fantasy adventure. The dialog, action and fantastic elements fit together into a well paced story with a satisfying ending. I think not only has Ivy matured, but Christine's writing has as well. I look forward to her next book, and the ones after that.

Earrings of Ixtumea by Kim Baccellia

Title: Earrings of Ixtumea
Author: Kim Baccellia
Price: $5.95 from publisher, $4.76 through June 30, 2007 on Mobipocket
Genre: Fantasy
ISBN: 978-0-9782157-1-2 (ebook only)
Publisher: Virtual Tales Book Published by Intellectus Enterprises (in association with Virtual Tales)First Edition: June 2007
Point of Sale: Virtual Tales, Mobipocket

Earrings of Ixtumea blends contemporary fantasy, native Mexican mythology, and teenage self discovery. The author, according to her bio:

[W]as a bilingual teacher in Los Angeles County for eight years. As an educator, Kim didn’t find many books for Latinas that were upbeat or dealt with their heritage. During the time she wrote this novel, she was learning about her own Mexican heritage and decided to write a story that a teenage Latina could relate to while also learning about her own rich culture.

The book opens early one morning in the apartment the protagonist, Lupe, shares with her grandmother, her abuela, in Tustin, California. The story immediately introduces you to a glimpse of Lupe's culture with a sprinkling of Spanish, descriptions of the dress, food and the topics of gossip that engage Lupe's grandmother and her friends. This morning they are talking about the prophecy surrounding the savior of Ixtumea, which Lupe overhears.

Lupe is less interested in these tales of "her Mexican ancestors" than she is about her favorite music and getting along at school. As she is leaving for school her grandmother presses a pair of earrings into her hand, insisting she must take them.

Unfortunately for her, she's fated to be a central figure in those ancestral stories and she only makes it as far as the bus stop before she is confronted with the reality of those tales. A vision of Ixtumea comes upon her when one of the girls at the bus stop touches her earrings, sees the same vision of warriors killing innocent people, and faints. Lupe, appalled and ashamed, runs away from the bus stop but soon is confronted by a young man who tells her he is there to escort her to Ixtumea.

Interspersed between these early scenes featuring Lupe, we are introduced to Malvado. He, too, is from modern Los Angeles, but he's somehow come to Ixtumea to find wealth and power through the auspices of the God of the Underworld, Tezcatlipoca, who has promised him not only the kingdom Malvado rules, but godhood, as well. Malvado doesn't simply believe the ancient stories, he's living them, and he knows that Lupe is the key to his ascension.

Of necessity, the author needs to help the reader understand the mythology, describe the people and surroundings of Ixtumea to provide the context of the conflict between Lupe and Malvado. However, I found some of the descriptive passages slowed the pace too much and some of the dialogue, especially that of Malvado and his minions, seemed stilted and a bit one-dimensional. I'm not sure a YA reader would have the patience to persevere through to the more action oriented scenes.

About half way through the book, Lupe encounters Ixchel, a goddess who protects the people of Ixtumea, learns about her mother whom she thought was dead. She struggles against her own feelings of inadequacy, and her confusion about her mother's role in not only Malvado's plot but in her life, as well.

In the end, Lupe ends up a captive of Malvado. He brings her to a ritual altar where he thinks he will be able to sacrifice her and attain his godhood, but instead there is a great battle of powers and Lupe comes into hers (and finally understands the full potential of her earrings) to fulfil her destiny. These final pages are fast moving, for the most part, and do show how Lupe reconciles the stories of her grandmother, her new knowledge and her new ability, to become the force that overcomes the enemies of Ixtumea, as prophesied.

As a first effort for the author, it shows promise. Overall it's a fair read, with some excellent parts, but to really grab the intended audience, I think some work on tighening up the mid-book descriptions and work on dialogue, would be helpful. Also, I'm not sure there's enough said early on about who Lupe is in this world to make her a character the YA audience can relate to before she's carried off into the fantasy world of Ixtumea.

Oops

Well, I hadn't factored in the whole "my son is visiting", and the trip we took to Disneyland over the weekend, in my last post that said that a review was going to go up over the weekend. It's obvious that one didn't. I'll get working on it and post as soon as I can. My apologies to anyone who has been disappointed.

A Review Will Go Up Next Weekend

I didn't have a submission in the queue to read last week, but I do, however, have a new book to read and review now. It's a Young Adult (YA) multicultural fantasy, Earrings of Ixtumea, by Kim Bacellia, published by epublisher Virtual Tales. The author notes "My story will be coming out in print through Amazon next month."

Thank you, Kim, for giving me the opportunity to review your book!