Categories
Virtual Book Tours

Tattoos by Stacy Overby – #NewRelease Interview

Greetings readers, bloggers, geeks, and authors and welcome to The ToiBox of Words. I’m your host Toi Thomas, author of Ain’t Nobody Got Time For Book Reviews!, and today I have a treat to share. A while back, I had the pleasure to interview a wonderful author named, Stacy Overby. A good time was truly had by all, and here’s how it went down…Be sure to check out the book trailer at the end.

Toi Thomas: Hi there Stacy! It’s so awesome to have you here at the ToiBox Blog. I’m excited to learn more about you and your work.

Stacy: Thanks, Toi. I’m glad to be here and am ready to share.

Toi Thomas: So tell me, who is Stacy Overby?

Stacy: Stacy Overby is a columnist and graphic designer at ourwriteside.com. Her short stories and poems have been featured in multiple anthologies, online, and in lit journals, in her poetry collection Scath Oran, and her new novel, Tattoos. Her day job as program director for an adolescent dual diagnosis treatment program provides inspiration for many of her stories. When not at work or writing, she and her husband are playing with their son, hiking, camping, or involved in other outdoor activities – if it is not too cold.

Toi Thomas: Well before we dive into your special message today, let’s get to know you, the person inside the author, a little better.

Wikipedia – The Powerpuff Girls: Bubbles (left), Blossom (middle), and Buttercup (right)

Toi Thomas: Who is so you and why?

Stacy: I did a Facebook quiz once that said I was a combination of Buttercup from Power Puff Girls, Batgirl, and Arya Stark from Game of Thrones. I thought it was an interesting combination, but friends told me it fit pretty well.

Toi Thomas: What makes you geek out?

Stacy: I am in love with the Lord of the Rings. Star Wars comes in a close second. Both universes are appealing for different reasons. I love high fantasy, of which Lord of the Rings is the epitome, but I also love space and astronomy type stuff. Hence Star Wars.

Goodreads

Toi Thomas: What was your favorite book or story, pre-teen years?

Stacy: I absolutely loved Melanie Rawn’s The Sunrunners trilogy. Between that and the old Dragonlance books, they were my first foray into adult reading. This was back about seventh grade or so.

Toi Thomas: In terms of interviews, whose brain are you just itching to scratch?

Stacy: Neil Gaiman. I’d love to sit down over tea and chat. He’s got such a diverse range of stories, some of which get pretty out there in terms of creativity. I’d love to know how some of these stories came into existence. Also, there’s just something about following him on Twitter that tells me he’d be a fascinating person to talk to.

Toi Thomas: Now that we know a little more about you, the person, let’s learn about you, the author, and dive into your special message.

Toi Thomas: So, whacha got for me today?

Stacy: Tattoos is a story about what happens when Eli’s Black Ops oaths come up against everything he values. Choosing to follow orders means going against his beliefs about protecting people–the very reason he joined Black Ops. When he defies orders to uphold his values, what Eli learns about the government he swore to serve and defend could bring about the downfall of that same government. But is that really a bad thing?

Toi Thomas: So who’s starring in this 2-dimensional script read of Tattoos?

Stacy: Eli Thorson is a Black Ops specialist. Part military, part police, part covert operations, his job is to take care of threats to the United Earth Government and protect the peoples of the UEG. He’s a loyal and intelligent person who stumbles onto something much darker than he ever expected. In deciding to right some terrible wrongs, Eli finds a purpose to his life he’d been missing for years.

Toi Thomas: What’s so special about this story that’s going to reel in the readers?

Stacy: This is a novel that touches on issues we face in the world today, but does it in a way that doesn’t shove it in the reader’s face. Eli and his best friend, Shawn, are an entertaining pair, but help remind us of what we need to be in our own lives.

Toi Thomas: Past, present, future, is there a rhyme or reason to your writing?

Stacy: I am not one to plan and organize my writing. My life is pretty chaotic with my day job and my family, so the time I get to write I spend writing the story. I’ve learned to write with quite a bit of noise–television, music, etc.–going on around me. My family is kind enough to put up with the occasional scribbling even at the dinner table when something strikes me. Tattoos was my NaNoWriMo project from 2011. Once I see this book in print, I’ll be working on the edits for its sequel, Scars.

Toi Thomas: Now this is where the questions get a little kooky; are you ready?

Stacy: Oh, for sure!

Toi Thomas: If you could only watch one movie for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Stacy: Oh my, that’s a tough question. Do I have to pick just one Lord of the Rings movies, or can I have them all and count it as one? I suppose the same rule applies for Star Wars as well?

Toi Thomas: When the soundtrack of your life is playing in your head, what songs express your glee and what songs bring out your rage?

Stacy: Some of my favorite music includes the likes of Linkin Park, Godsmack, Three Days Grace, Five Finger Death Punch, Shinedown, and the like. They all made at least one appearance on the playlist I created for this book.

Toi Thomas: Let’s play zombie urban survivor. What 3 things do you need to survive a black-out in Central Park the day zombies attack?

Stacy: A flamethrower to beat back the zombies
An armored vehicle to get out of Central Park with
Uncontaminated food and drink to survive longer than a couple days

Toi Thomas: What’s the most fun experience you’ve ever had, to date?

Wikipedia

Stacy: Taking my son to Disney World. We went just before he turned five. All of the characters were real. The rides were amazing. Watching my son experience the magic of all of his favorite characters coming to life was amazing. His experience there helped renew my ability to see that magic again. The endless possibility and wonder that children have.

Toi Thomas: Last question of the day; here we go.

Toi Thomas: Not that you can see into the future, but in your opinion, what does the future hold?

Stacy: If I’m not totally crazy by then, I’ll still be running my adolescent treatment program, Tattoos and the sequels will be a big hit, and I’ll be learning to deal with my own teenager rather than just the ones at work. Hopefully, by then my writing will support some of my other hobbies as well–such as traveling.

Toi Thomas: Thank you so much, Stacy, for spending time with me today.

Stacy: Thanks for having me, Toi. It was fun.

Okay readers, bloggers, geeks, and authors, that’s all for today. Be sure to follow this blog to see who will be visiting next time. For more from Stacy Overby, check out these great links:

Website: ThisIsNotHitchhiker’sGuide.com
GoodReads: Stacy Overby
Facebook: ThisIsNotHitchhikersGuide
Twitter: Stacy Overby @dontpanic2011
Pinterest: S. Overby’s This is Not Hitchhiker’s Guide
Amazon: Stacy Overby
Tattoos purchase link: Amazon.com

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Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Categories
Books

#Review: CassaFire #sci-fi #book

Goodreads

Title:  Cassafire

Series: Cassastar #2

Author: Alex J. Cavanaugh

Genre: Space Opera

Pages: 240

Reading Level: Adult

Content: PG (military subject matter, some violence, & adult situations)

After reading book one in this series, I needed a break. The first book caught me off guard. I had no idea it would be so emotional. I fear I may have waited longer than necessary, but the wait was totally worth it. Like the first book in this series, this sequel has its action packed moments, psychologically challenging struggles, and of course, its gut wrenching moments of joy, sorrow, despair, and then hope.

In CassaFire, we find our hero, Byron exploring the known universe in the service of scientists. To put it plainly, the world’s greatest combat pilot is a taxi driver for smart people. Of course, we know he’s doing this to fulfill a promise he made to Bassa, from book one, but what we don’t know is just how exciting space exploration is about to become for the not-quite-middle-aged pilot.

This installment of the Cassa series does two things right away that as a fan of this world pleased me to no end. It brought in more galactic races and it uses more “special abilities” or powers. The geek in me loves that Cassians can’t live without their telepathic abilities and it’s interesting to see how these abilities are perceived by others in the universe.

Author Cavanaugh does an excellent job of touching on some very sensitive subject matters without bringing the story down or belittling the subjects’ importance. He touches on subjects such as: racism, superiority and right, colonization, choice vs duty, and more. There is even a slight, yet significant romance to keep you wondering what will come in the future.

I think this book is suitable for all readers, though younger children may not understand some of the deeper points and those averse to sci-fi themes may have trouble seeing beyond the setting to appreciate the true message of this piece, which I believe is love and loyalty grounded in personal experience and not simply tradition and duty.

See my review of CassaStar here.

I give this book a 5.

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This review has been posted to GoodReads.

If you’d like a Kindle copy of this book, try this link: Amazon

Get a print copy with free international shipping at this link: Book Depository.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords

Categories
Movies

John Carter #Review – Mock Squid Soup No.15 #cinephiles #film #sci-fi

Wikipedia

Let’s recap my clues from last week:

Clue #1– It’s a 2012 Disney live-action, sci-fi release with a PG-13 rating. The title also has a handful of aliases.
Clue #2– Written and Directed by the same guy, known for his work with Disney animated features.
Clue #3– Most viewers either loved it or hated it, but it definitely tanked when compared to its production budget.

So what do you think, was I too vague or was my movie just too obscure? I think I had most people stumped, but for the Ninja Captain, Alex, this was easy.

If anyone is interested in my experience of watching John Carter, click here to see my notes.

This review will consist of me asking myself 10 questions and answering them to the best of my ability.

1. What is this film about?

This is a space opera with a time travel feel. There are so many elements at play with this story that you may not catch them all in one viewing. In any case, John Carter is a Civil War vet, I think, running from his past and pledging allegiance to no one. In pursuit of a treasure, John defeats an attacker and ends up on Mars somehow. Yes, there are green men, but also white men, and white apes… don’t recall seeing too many black people, but I’m used to that. Anyway, a reverse Krypton-like affect aids John in his quest to return to earth, which somehow throws him into the path of yet another civil war and the destiny of 2 princesses (one is never recognized, but I picked up on it)

2. What did I think of the title, poster, and or trailer?

I remember thinking the trailer was very confusing the first time around and after going back and watching it again, I realize that it was extremely misleading and heavily edited. The trailer is probably why I never saw it in the theater, that and the fact that so many didn’t like it at the time of its release.

3. What did I think of the main character(s) and how the actors performed them?

I thought the actors did a fine job. There were no standout performances, but no stinkers either. I liked the aboriginal-like Mars characters with all their faults and flaws. John was a good character to slowly warm up to.

4. What did I think of the direction and cinematography?

Considering the time and how many were still not doing such a fine job, I thought the effects and CGI were well-blended in with the live action. The lighting was good, not too dark in the dark scenes; that’s always an issue for me.

5. What did I think of the soundtrack and score?

I slept on this one. Sorry. I’ll make a point to pay more attention next time.

6. What did I like about the story as a whole?

I liked how the Mars John paralleled the Earth John without him realizing it. I also like the connection between ships that sail on water and ones that sail on light. There were many small or subtle details that made this film enjoyable, even some of the not so in-your-face themes such as: oppression, prejudice, and science vs magic.

7. What did I not like about the story?

There are a few cheesy moments and some logistics I didn’t quite get, but I can’t complain too much. This movie didn’t blow my mind, but it was still pretty cool.

8. Would I recommend this movie to others?

Yes, and I will.

9. If yes, who? What would I rate this movie?

I’m sure there are others who stayed away from this film for reasons similar to mine. I’m going to share this with all my friends, even the ones who don’t like sci-fi. Maybe this will become a cult classic if it’s not already.

On a scale of 1 to 5 movie reels, I give this film 4 reels.

MLikeIt

10. Was there anything in this movie that could be related to me or anything I have written?

Not yet really, but it’s perfectly in line with a new fantasy I’m working on. I like the world building of this story and am inspired to continue working on aspects of my story that have kept me stumped for a while.

Watch, rent, or buy this movie here.

Mock Squid Soup – Film Society

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MOCK! and The Armchair Squid are proud to introduce Mock Squid Soup: A Film Society. Each month, on the second Friday, we shall host a bloghop devoted to movie reviews. We invite others to participate and post their reviews…Don’t be shy; come join the fun! 😀

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you like it let me know and share it with others. See you next time, Toi Thomas. #thetoiboxofwords