Showing posts with label adventure. Show all posts
Showing posts with label adventure. Show all posts
Monday, 2 September 2013
I Got Pulled Over - Again: Nairobi 12
I don’t mean to sound like I’m bragging, because I’m really not, but I’ve been pulled over so many times by the police that I’ve lost count.
That’s not as bad as it sounds. I mean, if you drive in Kenya long enough (that is, for more than the average length of a tourist trip), you will be pulled over. Guaranteed.
You’ll be pulled over at arbitrary checkpoints, roadblocks, airport entrances, roundabouts.
You’ll be stopped if you’ve done something wrong, if you haven’t done anything wrong, if the police decides you need to have done something wrong or if it’s been a long month and someone needs an early payday.
Your chances of getting pulled over jump dramatically at the end of the month (someone has to pay the bills) and exponentially during December. Interestingly, the same holds true of getting carjacked or your house broken into.
So the point is that, basically, me being pulled over countless times is pretty much what you should expect if you live in Kenya.
Was I guilty of any traffic offense? Not to sound elusive or anything, but that’s kind of hard to say. In some cases, clearly not. In others, possibly, although I would swear on any holy book in any court that there wasn’t a sign post telling me not to turn at that corner, and the lines that were supposed to be on the road hadn’t yet been painted. And – I admit it, although I’ll deny it if you ask - a few times, yup, I was guilty.
And I talked my way out of each situation.
Meaning: I never paid a bribe to get out. And that is no small accomplishment.
An extract from Nairobi 12, a humorous novel about life in Nairobi. Release date: Working on it!
Don't forget to visit Africa Creates & listen in to the radio show
Wednesday, 9 January 2013
Dragon's Mind: The Book Trailer
Jalal, my 12 year old son, has taken an interest in the movie making software on the computer. He was playing around with the book cover image for Dragon's Mind, and this is what he came up with. I'm pretty impressed! Leave him a comment and let him know what you think!
Monday, 7 January 2013
The Popobawa: Part 1.4, African Paranormal Series
Happy New Year! I've been offline for the past month, enjoying the holidays, but I'm back, and so are the African Spooks!
The bat-like creature puckered up its
thick, dark lips. 'Good gracious,' I
thought. 'What is it doing now?'
Jonas collapsed onto the ground, covering
his head with his arms. Now what was he doing, I wondered?
And that’s when I remembered the bit of
rather critical information I had previously forgotten: the Popobawa’s third
power. It can spit poison. And I was straight in its line of fire.
Rather than spit, the Popobawa bared its
pointy teeth at me in quite a vulgar fashion. Bits of raw meat were stuck in
between and the breath… Well, I won’t attempt to describe the debilitating
stench but shall leave it to your vivid imagination.
“If I was you,” I informed it pertly, “I
would file down my teeth to a polite length and chew on mint leaves.”
It leered closer.
“Really, your manners are atrocious,” I
continued, the shotgun shaking in my hands. “Even the European Vampire has more
sense of decorum.” I’d hoped by that last inflammatory statement to offend the
creature’s sensibilities so that it would fly of in a huff. But luck and
offended sensibilities had both abandoned me.
At my wits ends, I prodded Jonas with my
foot. “What should I do?” I wailed, gesturing at the Popobawa with the antique
weapon.
Now Jonas is many things, but a poker
player he is not. He glanced up at me through his arms, not daring to stand. His
expression quite clearly stated, ‘She’s
kidding, right?’ But being the polite, silent type, he simply gestured with
his eyeballs towards the gun.
“I can’t kill it,” I protested. “Apart
from the obvious fact that I’ll be splattered with giant bat blood, it’s a
valuable specimen. Every cryptozoologist will be begging for a chance to study
it.”
Jonas’s expression shifted to ‘She’s really not kidding. God help us.’
With a long-suffering sigh, he rose
up and began babbling in Swahili at the Popobawa. I couldn’t really follow the
one sided conversation, but I did manage to understand a few words: ‘ugly bat
wings’ and ‘chief’s cow in the next village’. After Jonas finished, he opened
his precious jar of pig fat and blew over the top of it towards the demon. The
smell drifted towards the tree.
With a screech of protest, the
Popobawa flapped its wings twice and flew off. I couldn't blame it, although I was slightly disappointed at the loss of such a fine specimen.
With a satisfied smile, Jonas
closed the lid on the jar, turned around and headed home for tea.
And on a completely unrelated note, Dragon's War has been published! Read the exciting sequel to Dragon's Mind: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AXM22WO
What do you think of the cover? (If you don't see an image below on your email, hop on over to http://veredehsani.blogspot.com)
Wednesday, 3 October 2012
Cassidy Jones and the Vulcan’s Gift, by Elise Stokes: 5 star
I hate giving 5 stars. Here’s why:
a)
There are people out there who
suspect that 5 stars are from best friends or review swaps or paid for etc (I
write only honest reviews, with no incentives or favours given or received);
and
b)
What if the author’s next book
is even better and you can’t give out more stars?!
But sometimes I just can’t resist. This is
definitely one of those times. I loved this book! Seriously, and I’m not a
young adult. In ‘Cassidy Jones and the Vulcan’s Gift’, Cassidy and Emery are
back for more adventure as they try to capture a runaway tiger and stop an evil
plot that could lead to world domination. What’s not to love, right?
More specifically, I loved the complex
characters that Elise Stokes has created. Even the ‘minor’ characters are real
and have a life. Cassidy and Emery don’t fit into the typical YA lit
stereotype, in which one character (usually the girl) is waiting to be rescued
or protected by the other; nor are they trying to prove anything or kill off
another tribe or gang or whatever. I like how Cassidy’s family is united
without being sappy about it. The parents are actually intelligent and
connected with their kids’ lives. There’s a good balance of adventure, mystery,
drama and humour with a touch of romance (but not too much, thank heavens).
What I don’t like: Book #3 isn’t out yet. Ugh.
I want more.
Definitely highly recommended for anyone
looking for a fun read!
Thursday, 27 September 2012
A Job from Hell, by Jayde Scott: 3 stars
Jayde Scott started this
off brilliantly. Literally, I was almost breathless reading the opening
chapters. A young woman arrives to work as the housekeeper in a creepy, remote
mansion for a man who’s never around when she’s awake. The writing was good,
the witty conversation great. And then it went kind of mushy after that. Not
necessarily in a bad way, but just not up to the same strength as the
beginning.
The storyline of A Job
from Hell is pretty solid if not basic, with a few original twists and
characters: turns out Amber won a paranormal prize she wasn’t aware of winning,
and the problem is, she’s mortal. Enter Adrian, the mystery employer, who’s
determined to save Amber and win her heart, if he doesn’t kill her first.
Stuff I loved: smart
one-liners, great humor and snappy conversations. This was definitely Jayde
Scott’s strength. There were also a few unusual characters in the mix,
including Satan’s daughter, and a species called the Shadows that I really want
to know more about.
Stuff I didn’t like as
much: I already mentioned the mush. I’ve got nothing against romance, but I
have to admit to a tendency I have: I start rolling my eyes when a story relies
heavily on soul mates, predestined love and repeated declarations of undying
adoration, unless it’s very well done. And even then, I don’t want to read
about it every few pages.
Amber kept flipping
back and forth between “No way can I stay with him, he’s way too dangerous” to
“I’d give up everything to save him”. Seriously, make up your mind. And there
were a few inconsistencies, like how does a vampire wake up with his heart
beating rapidly? Being dead kinda implies his heart no longer works, right?
But that’s just me. I
actually think it was a decently written story, despite the bits I rolled my
eyes at, and I know other more romantically inclined readers will enjoy it.
Friday, 21 September 2012
One foot in the grave, by Jeaniene Frost: 5 stars
So after devouring the
first book in this series, I immediately bought one Foot in the Grave, which
continues the story of Cat and Bones. Cat has a new boss now and a new support
team, but we know where her heart and mind really are. The energy and intensity
is still high and the action is non-stop.
If you like the Sookie
Stackhouse stories, you’ll love this series. It’s not as dark and even more
fun. Jeaniene Frost maintains her strong writing style and great story flow,
and gives us more insights into this crazy world she’s created. Love it! Not
for the kiddies to read…
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