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I Feel Okay
By Deborah Slappey Pitts

Authorhouse (2005)
Reviewed by William Phenn for Reader Views (1/06)

Deborah Slappey Pitts is a woman of great courage and determination. This lady struggled through a medical system full of practitioners because no one would admit to being an expert on the human body, especially not the medical doctors. This is Deborah’s story, a story of anguish, heartache and uncertainty while trying to maintain a household, be a mother to two growing boys, work full time and still manage to keep her sanity. This woman’s struggle in life was to find out what was wrong with her husband, that all of medical science could not figure out. You will see (when reading I Feel Okay) that Ms. Pitts is a very strong, God fearing woman - a woman of action and determination that will not be defeated.

I Feel Okay is a heart retching saga of the Slappey family in crisis. It’s a story about an illness that struck this woman’s husband down in the prime of his life. He contracted a disease, primary amyloidosis, caused by the abnormal accumulation of protein molecules in body tissues that affects eight people out of a million. Pitts’s compelling volume tells of their fight to seek answers from so many doctors and hospitals. One after another, trying different cures for what they perceived to be the problem, cures that did not work. With every attempt at a cure, hopes were dashed even further down to the pit of despair.

I feel Okay is more than a story about a man with a disease. It is a story of life and faith, and how the Slappey family kept the faith against insurmountable odds. It is a story of how strong they were in the face of adversity, yet able to keep a positive mental attitude.
I Feel Okay has my highest A+ rating, the book is a, “must read,” in my opinion. It is well written, an exciting read and above all, a lesson in life.

William Phenn is a reviewer for Reader Views
http://www.readerviews.com

Perhaps it’s my miniscule attention span that causes my mind to wander during the complicated and technical bits that run rampant through most contemporary spy novels. I tend to doze off as soon as the technology reaches beyond my limited comprehension and the politics become too arcane.

Imagine my surprise, then, when I found myself completely wrapped up in the plot of Devil’s Halo, the newest offering by Chris Fox. It’s about a sort of movie spy, but not in the martini swilling, woman chasing James Bond sense. No, our hero is a family manalbeit a family of brainiac aerospace typeshired to foil a scheme hatched by foreign evil doers to steal one of America’s most precious commodities: blockbuster movies. Now, that’s something to which even I can relate.

To be sure, Devil’s Halo has its share of space age devices and political scheming, but it’s expertly woven into a storyline with human interest, romance, murder and even a dash or two of well-placed humor. Add a damsel in distress, a child in peril and a decidedly heroic protagonist, and you’ve got what it takes to keep me turning pages.

Mr. Fox has most certainly done his research and that, combined with his elegant prose, makes his explanations of even the most fiendishly complex mechanisms and devices a pleasure to read. Moreover, he spices his narrative with delightful bits of esoterica (would you know where to find a portrait of Einstein in stained glass?) that one can save up for those ever so boring dinner parties.

The Devil’s Halo can be had at Amazon U.K. for now, but Americans will be seeing it in bookstores by this summer. Intellectual pirates beware; you’re being watched.

By Raechel Donahue

Raechel Donahue is the author of The Ropes, released last summer by Dutton and of a series of books called The Golden Rules. Featured in the Museum of Television and Radio and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for her work in the media, Donahue is also a documentary filmmaker. Her website is http://www.raecheldonahue.com

Moon Child by Simone Maroney is a larger sized adventure,
fantasy novel with 55 chapters. The story line involves
complex relationships between six main characters, which
are delicately balanced leaving room for intrigue.

Hanna, the chief character, was selected from birth by the
Goddess, given special training and endowed with ‘gifts’ the
elders call the ‘Memories’. As Hanna goes through many
travelling adventures, she becomes respected and known
as the ‘One’ a ‘Reader’ and a ‘Healer’.

Her father, a priest and a shaman in the village tries to
protect her while making Hanna learn to stand on her own.
Manon, a dear friend and fellow ‘Healer’, helps Hanna find a
position in the same village that tried to kill her. Raer, her
childhood friend, whose brain was inadvertently injured
during play, becomes a valuable aid to Hanna and her
adopted village. Janna, Hanna’s archenemy, keeps people
at attention with her evil and treacherous behavior. A little
romance is thrown in with Jio, also known as ‘Maih’, who is
actually Janna’s brother.

So much is going on in the book that readers may find
themselves stopping to retrace a few pages. I enjoyed
reading this novel and found that it reminded me a little of
Clan of the Cave Bear - because of the tribal differences,
traveling and ‘gifts’ the chief character endures. Sometimes
being selected by the Gods brings a tumultuous life!

ISBN#: 1933157046
Author: Simone Maroney
Publisher: Draumr Publishing

~ Lillian Brummet - Book Reviewer - Co-author of the book Trash Talk, a guide for anyone concerned about his or her impact on the environment Author of Towards Understanding, a collection of poetry.
http://www.sunshinecable.com/~drumit