Review of John A. Karr's Rhone
Part sorcerer, part demon, but
most of all, loving father, Rhone of Iylan dares to battle a god bent on the domination of both mortals and immortals alike.
Rhone is an ex-soldier turned fisherman, who wants nothing more than a good catch and to raise his young daughter in peace.
Falling victim to the manipulative demi-god Ducain, Rhone believes his daughter is dead. In mind-numbing grief, he plays into
Ducain’s hands and vows to travel to the literal ends of the planet to save her soul and return her to the land of the
living.
Rhone
by John A. Karr is an action-packed tale that moves rapidly from one adventure to the next. Using a strong mythological background
and an intriguing setting, Karr weaves an intricate plot that leaves the reader guessing, while at the same time, sympathizing
with a father grieving for the daughter he’s lost. Be warned, this novel is not for the faint of heart. Rhone’s
journey is filled with gore and graphic violence, but in the end, Karr leaves the reader wanting to share more adventure with
the half-Demon hero who defied a god.
-- ML Hamilton
Author of Emerald
Review of John Sweat's Algul
“The seventh daughter of the seventh daughter…is a destroyer and a bringer of death…” and
oh what death she brings. Algul by John Sweat is not for the faint of heart or weak of stomach, but it is a novel
that keeps the reader going from the prologue to the surprising finish.
Young Jakub is certain of his destiny, after his kinsmen
and his love, Black Agnia, are murdered, but he finds that the terrors that haunt his dreams come not in the form he originally
believed, but from those who wield the greatest power.
Jakub and his liege lord, Colonel Valkris, set out on
a mission to destroy the Algul, a demon in the body of a young girl. Their journey takes them deep into a hostile land of
burning sands and court intrigues, where they come face to face with the very ghoul they hunt only to find their path is not
as certain as they once thought.
Sweat’s novel is written with the same brutality and beauty as his
setting, an unforgiving land where water is gold and all the riches in the world mean nothing under the blaze of the sun.
Possessing all of the standard elements of a dark fantasy, Algul looks deep into the darkest nature of people and
exposes human frailty and suffering far beyond our physical bodies.
If you’re looking for a light, escapist read,
look elsewhere, but if you want a book with grit and non-stop adventure, Algul is the book for you.
--ML
Hamilton
Author of Emerald
Review of the Latest Wild Wolf Novel Darkroom by Poppet
Darkroom is a Hitchcock-esque, psychological thriller
that leaves the reader pondering the dark and disturbing depth of suffering. The author skillfully weaves a tale that vacillates
between the protagonist and antagonist, but you find yourself wondering whose side you’re really on. Filled with mind-bending
plot twists, Darkroom is a terrifying journey into the psychology of torture and bondage that makes the reader fully
comprehend the Stockholm Syndrome and the soul shattering loss of identity suffered by such captives. In the end, you will
certainly want to lock your doors and windows at night.
-- ML Hamilton
Author of Emerald
Review of The Gypsy Morph
Here is the final review of Terry Brook's Genesis of Shannara
series, The Gypsy Morph.
Review of Emerald by W&D Books
"Here is yet another book put out by Wild Wolf Publishing and as it stands
it’s the best yet!" Check out the rest of this review on the link above.
Review of The Elves of Cintra
Check out my review of the second book in the Genesis of Shannara
series by Terry Brooks: The Elves of Cintra.
Review of Emerald by Star Shadow
Here's a sampling: The scope, the size of Emerald is impressive, but not overbearing.
Emerald is one book that doesn't follow
the often over used fantasy stereotype, which is a good thing, and leads to a very good read. Click on the link above
to read the whole thing.
Review of Armageddon's Children by Terry Brooks
Check out my review of Armageddon's
Children, the new series by Terry Brooks, on both the Fantasy Guide and the Fantasy Guide for Young Adults.
Elk Grove High School Library Blurb
ML Hamilton has been teaching high school English and journalism in Central California for the last 17 years. She
has been writing fantasy since high school, but realized that bringing her novel to fruition might take some time. She chose
the next best thing: sharing her love of literature with her students.
Emerald is her first novel, but she has written five other books in the World of Samar
series. She also has a contemporary fiction manuscript, entitled Ravensong, which made it to the second round of
the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Contest in 2009.
Former Pacifican publishes first epic fantasy
Pacifica Tribune
Posted: 05/04/2010 05:02:06 PM PDT
Updated: 05/04/2010
05:02:07 PM PDT
A book she started writing while attending Terra Nova High School, "Emerald," an epic fantasy by
M.L. Hamilton, was recently published by Wild Wolf Publications.
M.L. Hamilton is none
other than Michelle Hamilton, who lived on Fassler Avenue and in the back of the valley and graduated from Terra Nova in 1985.
While at Terra Nova, she was on the swim team and wrote for the school newspaper.
She left Pacifica
to attend college at UC Davis and received her teaching credential from Sacramento State. She has taught English at Elk Grove
High School for the last 17 years.
She has three sons. The eldest will be returning to the Bay Area
to attend college at UC Berkeley this fall.
"Emerald" has gone through many incarnations
since Hamilton began it in high school and she even self-published it in 2006. Last November, it was picked up by a publishing
company in the UK called Wild Wolf Publications.
The audience for "Emerald" is between
high school and adult and it is an epic fantasy. She has written five other novels in this series and hope to see them in
print one day.
Here is a synopsis of "Emerald" from the author.
In one terrible instant, Kai is thrown from his comfortable life and plunged into a conflict that began before
he was born. Worse yet, he learns that the one man who can help him is his enemy.
Kiameron is
the crown prince of DiNolfol. He is torn between two destinies — taking the crown upon his father's
death or answering the call of his non-human-like traits, traits associated with the mysterious Stravad.
The decision is made with the destruction of everything he holds dear. Armed with his strange powers and
a mysterious talisman he doesn't know how to use, Kai decides to attack Gava, the despot who destroyed his life.
Crippled by self-doubt and fear, he falters in his quest, until he meets a man who forces him to take action.
However, his new ally is hiding secrets, secrets that will rob Kai of everything he held sacred.
Lifestyle Blurb in the Elk Grove Citizen. April 6, 2010
U.K. publisher picks up EG woman’s book
Elk
Grove High School English teacher Michelle Hamilton wrote her first novel, Emerald, which will be released on April 12.
Hamilton wrote the book under the pen name M.L. Hamilton.
U.K. publisher Wild Wolf Publications picked up the book in November 2009.
Emerald is a fantasy novel about a young
man named Kai who was raised in the lap of luxury his entire life but discovers he is not who he thinks he is, the author
explained.
“It is fantasy with a tragic love story at its heart,” she said.
Hamilton wrote
five other novels in this series and hopes to see them printed in the future. The novels are targeted at high school to adult
audiences.
