Crime and Punkishment compiled by Brenda Perlin - book review

My review:

Brenda Perlin has compiled a unique set of short stories reminiscing about the age of Punk when music expressed the anxieties of the world’s youth during a very unsettling time. The author has shared memories from her past as have the other artists not afraid to tell their story, and how the mores affected their coming of age. A very interesting look at another milestone in the history of the music culture. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about a generation younger than mine, and look forward to reading more from this author.

Available at:

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Smashwords

RED HEADED BOOK LOVER review of Scribbler Tales Presents: Escape from Berlin by Mary Ann Bernal

Scribbler Tales Presents: Escape from Berlin, Mary Ann Bernal

May 20, 2019 by Aimee Ann

Anthology, Literature & Fiction

Escape from Berlin is an excellent book written by the exceptional and talented author Mary Ann Bernal and wow what another stellar story courtesy of Bernal! Escape from Berlin is a book I was keen to read as I have read and loved two books by Bernal before so I was excited to get lost in another collection of short stories! Escape from Berlin is one of the most well written and well-developed books I have ever come across, and I truly mean this as Escape from Berlin is exceptional and should not be missed!

Escape from Berlin is a sensational book that will introduce the reader to five different stories titled: Escape from Berlin, Betrayal, Deadly Secrets, The Ritual and Murder in the First. I loved each of the five stories as I believe they read beautifully and the character and story development were to the highest standards, however! I do have two personal favorites which are Escape from Berlin and Deadly Secrets. Escape from Berlin is the main story in this fantastic book, and it follows a man called Mark Dresdner’s who has his cover blown, which forces him to leave Germany. However, he has fallen in love with a woman, and so matters get complicated quickly, especially when the border is blocked! The other story Deadly Secrets is just as sensational and will follow Lysandra,  a woman looking for a fresh start in America but soon her past will come back to haunt her, and this book lovers is the short premises of two of the five amazing stories featured in the incredible Escape from Berlin!

The story of Escape from Berlin is a thrilling one thanks to the enthralling moments as well as the unpredictable nature of the stories that will have the readers turning the pages with haste from beginning to end. I love books that involve a journey, and the reader has just this in Escape from Berlin as the reader is taken on an extraordinary journey from start to finish with each story featured. What I loved most about Escape from Berlin is that the reader is taken on an adventure in each story that is continuously evolving and changing which in turn kept me hooked from beginning to end.

Escape from Berlin is a remarkable, fascinating, and addictive read that managed to entertain me for many hours on end thanks to the unique premise of the stories as well as the excellent literature courtesy of Bernal. Escape from Berlin has fast become one of my favorite reads of 2019, and this is because the stories featured are sensational! Very rarely do I discover a book that captivates me as fast as Escape from Berlin has so the fact that I am so taken with this book shows you, readers, that this book indeed is incredible and not to be missed!

Mary Ann Bernal is an incredibly talented author who clearly knows how to write unique but engaging stories. It was evident to me from the start that Bernal is a passionate writer who surely loves entertaining readers with her literature and putting a smile on readers’ faces. I loved this about the author, but what I loved the most about Bernal’s writing is her remarkable descriptions because they genuinely amazed me.

Overall Escape from Berlin is a marvelous, stellar and supreme book that will entertain, delight readers from start to finish and so I, of course, have to award this book five stars! Be sure to have a read of the preview below book lovers; you won’t regret it!

Thank you so much for reading book lovers! I appreciate it so much, I love discussing wonderful books with all of you so please comment below and let me know your thoughts. Do you see yourself reading this book? Do you love the genre? Please let me know your brilliant thoughts below and I will be sure to comment back. Thank you so much again for reading.

Aimee Ann Red Headed Book Lover

***

Escape from Berlin
Mark Dresdner’s cover is blown, forcing him to flee East Germany, yet he refuses to leave the woman he loves. Finding the border crossing blocked, and the enemy closing in, will he evade capture or be forced to make the ultimate sacrifice?

Featuring
Betrayal
Aelia gives herself completely to the man she loves, revealing a life-threatening secret, trusting her husband unconditionally, but is he deserving of her trust?

Deadly Secrets
Lysandra seeks a new life in America, hoping to forget her past, but an accidental meeting with a man who knows her true identity endangers her happiness. 

Murder in the First
As judge, jury, and executioner, Bethel decides the fate of the man responsible for her plight, but things go terribly wrong and the predator becomes the prey.

The Ritual
Devona’s initiation into a modern-day pagan sect on All Hallows’ Eve sends the terrified young woman fleeing for her life amidst a raging storm. Escaping the sacrificial altar, will she survive the tempest?

Scribbler Tales - a collection of short stories - five volumes available in one edition

Scribbler Tales
Contemporary Short Stories

Genres

Crime, Fantasy,  Historical, Horror, Mystery, Occult,  

Romance, Spies & Espionage, Thriller & Suspense

Scribbler Tales

Volumes One - Five
All five volumes in one edition
Mary Ann Bernal

Scribbler Tales Volume One

Desperate Measures: What happens when Audrey learns of Paul’s duplicity? Cloning experiments have gone awry.

 Forbidden Lore: Arianna and Ethan are locked inside a haunted cemetery. Will they survive the night?

Forever Lost: Rina and Adrian are star-crossed lovers. Will love prevail?

Sail with Me:  Aaron reflects upon his childhood. Confessions of a military brat.

The Hourglass:  A covenant with the Devil. How far will Flair go to keep Brice alive?

 Scribbler Tales Volume Two

Broken Promises: Madeline’s love for Nathan clouds her judgment as the Wall Street titan denies any wrongdoing.

Deception: Vigilante vengeance. The criminal justice system fails when the guilty walk free.

  

Endgame: It was a dream government job until Sandy learns the truth. Covert operations shrouded in secrecy.

 Malice: Proving innocence. Andrew’s life falls apart when he is falsely accused of rape.

  

The Portrait: Demonic possession. All Geoffrey wants is a family, but Holliday and Olivia have other plans.

  

Scribbler Tales Volume Three

Hidden Lies: When classified schematics are stolen, evidence points to an inside job. Industrial secrets compromised.

Nightmare:  Phantom Legacy. Melanie wants to sell her ancestral home, but the specter of her dreams has other plans

Payback: A psychopathic killer is on the loose. Detective Newport must stop an assassin

targeting prosecuting attorneys.

The Night Stalker:  Deadly Obsession. Pamela must prove her suspicions before the police can protect her

Turning Point: Personal vendetta. Is a decorated firefighter an arsonist? A Fire Marshall wrestles with the truth.

Scribbler Tales Volume Four

Abducted:  Threatened with death. When Katrina Cooper is kidnapped, can the money be raised in time?

Cunning: Lethal folklore. Charlotte stumbles upon the truth behind Transylvanian vampires.

Enamored: Pursuing love. Aging Lady Margaret is besotted with a much younger man.

Reckless: Eluding capture. Peter’s latest victim survives, informing the authorities.

Safeguard: Self-defense or Murder? Sarah awakens covered in blood.

Scribbler Tales Volume Five

Bloodlust: Lilly considers a Satanic covenant on All Hallows’ Eve as she seeks immortality.

Illusion:  Felicity stumbles upon tomb robbers in the Valley of the Queens. Dream vacation has gone awry.

Manhunt: Perilous flight. Tami and Mick plan one final heist, but will it lead to their downfall?

Pandemic: Facing extinction. Dr. Lancaster must find a cure for a mutated virus strain.

Revenge:  Criminal behavior. Can Angela rid herself of her abusive husband?

Purchase Links

          Amazon US   Amazon UK   Smashwords   Barnes and Noble   iTunes   Audible

Author Web Page   Whispering Legends Press
author.to/MaryAnnBernal

Author Brenda Perlin is featured in the 2014 Flash Fiction Anthology

The Indies Unlimited 2014 Flash Fiction Anthology features a year's worth of winning entries from the IndiesUnlimited.com weekly flash fiction challenge. It contains 50 stories by 34 different authors from around the world, with full color pictures by award-winning photographer K. S. Brooks and thought-provoking prompts by five-star author Stephen Hise. From a magic marmot to a zombie trick-or-treater, there are a myriad of genres and stories to appeal to every taste.

Best viewed on a color reader.

Authors with stories in the anthology include: Annette Rochelle Aben, Ralph L. Angelo, Jr., R.L. Austin, Laurie Boris, Melissa Bowersock, Christian A. Brown, Lynne Cantwell, A.V. Carden, Victoria A. Carr, Joan Childs, DW Davis, Leland Dirks, Jennifer Don, Ed Drury, Kathryn El-Assal, Sylvia Heike, Jamie R. Hershberger, Yvonne Hertzberger, Chris James, Howard Johnson, Vickie Johnstone, A. L. Kaplan, K.L. Kelso, L.A. Lewandowski, Angela Luo, S.A. Molteni, Kevin D. Montgomery, Arlene R. O'Neil, Sasha A. Palmer, Brenda Perlin, Sara Stark, Kathy Steinemann, Dick C. Waters, and Mandy White.

Amazon US

Scribbler Tales (Volume Two) by Mary Ann Bernal available for pre-order

 

“Scribbler Tales is a unique mix of genres in one anthology rich with tension, humanity and genuine emotion. Unconventional settings and unexpected twists are bound to leave you pondering long after you close this book.”

 

Madeline’s personal feelings clouds her judgment in Broken Promises where she must choose between love and obeying the law.  When the guilty walk, a vigilante executes the criminals in Deception.  Endgame finds a government researcher running for her life after discovering a horrific CIA secret in the isolated facility.  A modern day Don Juan’s life is turned upside down in Malice when he is falsely accused of rape.  In The Portrait, Holliday is obsessed with a formidable ancestor whose spirit wishes to possess her soul.

Amazon Link

 

 

Best Years of Our Lives (bullying sequence from Ultra Violence) by Mark Barry featured in Green Wizard Publishing's anthology, Reality Bites

Excerpt from Best Years of Our Lives

You are thirteen and it is your turn today.

You don’t know why it’s your turn today but all you know is that it is.

The atmosphere has been building up for weeks.

Those little incidents.

Brief encounters.

Minor skirmishes.

You’ve never experienced anything like this anticipation before and you’re scared. Your stomach is turning over as if you’re staring down the side of a skyscraper. You are tense and dizzy and you wish you hadn’t had seconds in the dinner hall.

Manchester Tart. 

Two slices.

You’re thirteen, sitting at a large school desk, your satchel packed and blazer on.

Five boys are staring at you. You know it’s your turn.

You’re paralysed. Panic. You cannot move. You’ve never known a feeling like it. Trepidation courses through your veins. Your body is charged and you want to cry. But you don’t. Weeping will only make things worse.

You wish it isn’t your turn today but it is.

You pray.

That’s what they taught you to do at Primary School. Pray. When in trouble. Pray. God will provide. God will save. They taught you to pray before they taught you to read, those nuns. You really need him now but as you’ve long suspected, he isn’t there and somehow even if he is out there, you know he isn’t going to help.

You’re on your own.

Amazon US Link - http://www.amazon.com/Reality-Bites-Green-Wizard-Publishing/dp/1484077113

Amazon UK Link - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Reality-Bites-Green-Wizard-Publishing/dp/1484077113

Ophelia written by Claire Appleseed featured in Green Wizard Publishing's Anthology, Reality Bites

Excerpt from Ophelia

One of the memorable incidents was the bath night. He’d gone out for a game of poker and I ran a deep bath; it soothed and relaxed me. He came home early and the moment he walked in to the bathroom I realised I was in trouble.

Before I knew it his hand was on my face, forcing my head under the water. I thrashed about, floundering like a man on fire; body lurching in pain, contorted with fear, gasping for breath. To imagine the fear, you couldn’t, it’s impossible.

Be smart, the voice said inside my head, Be smart, the voice repeated.

I lay still in the water not struggling, eyes opened and waited.

Praying.

Hoping.

A thought, brief in its intrusion, Did I look as beautiful as Millais’ image of Ophelia floating in the river just before she drowned? Open arms and upwards gaze. Saint or martyr …? Was that my choice?

He removed his hand and I gasped for breath, coughing and spluttering for air. He got up and walked out of the bathroom. I sat in the bath hugging my knees to my chest whilst the water emptied. The cold forced me to get dressed.

He knew he’d gone too far. Breakfast in bed and the promise of a trip to the seaside was his way of saying sorry and erasing the guilt. He grovelled again, asked for forgiveness and sobbed in my lap.

“I can fix this,” he would say to me.

How could I not forgive him? After all he said he was sorry. He said it wasn’t his fault; it was the booze and a bad night of poker.

I believed him. Like a fool, I believed him.

 Amazon US Link - http://www.amazon.com/Reality-Bites-Green-Wizard-Publishing/dp/1484077113

Amazon UK Link - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Reality-Bites-Green-Wizard-Publishing/dp/1484077113

 

Out of the Depths by Mary Ann Bernal featured in Green Wizard Publishing's Anthology, Reality Bites

Excerpt from Out of the Depths

When did I first suspect that Helen had been unfaithful.  To be honest, I never suspected; I had to catch her in bed with her lover before admitting the truth to myself.  I remember coming home unexpectedly to find her in our bed, our marital bed, which is sacrosanct, with Trevor, her boss, of all people!  I could not believe Helen could betray me like this, especially after making love to me earlier that morning in the very same bed.

What hurt the most was her lack of remorse.  She even laughed at my pain, her hurtful words a floodgate of loathing.  While I thought our relationship was fine, and that we would survive the storm, she, on the other hand, was seething with rage and resentment.  She was tired of supporting me, physically, mentally and financially.  She had had enough, but why did she not tell me.  Perhaps she tried, and I did not listen.

 

You think I was at fault, that my drinking pushed her away, do you not?  You have no use for my self-pity, do you?  Ah, what makes you so righteous?  You think you would have behaved differently.  I dare say, not!  You would have wallowed in self-pity just like I did, only your way of dealing with your demons might have been different.  Instead of alcohol you might have turned to drugs, or threw yourself into your job, or took up religion.  How do you know what you would have done until you have actually experienced the pain?

 

Amazon US Link - http://www.amazon.com/Reality-Bites-Green-Wizard-Publishing/dp/1484077113

Amazon UK Link - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Reality-Bites-Green-Wizard-Publishing/dp/1484077113

Ngaire Elder Spotlights A Taste Of Reality From Mary Ann Bernal

http://adventuresofceciliaspark.blogspot.com/2013/11/a-taste-of-reality-from-mary-ann-bernal.html

A Taste Of Reality From Mary Ann Bernal

About the Author

Mary Ann Bernal, author of The Briton and the Dane novels, is an avid history buff whose area of interest focuses on Ninth Century Anglo-Saxon Britain during the Viking Age.  While pursuing a degree in business administration, she managed to fit creative writing classes and workshops into her busy schedule to learn the craft, but it would take decades before her “Erik the Viking” novel was ultimately published.

Mary Ann is also a passionate supporter of the United States military, having been involved with letter writing campaigns and other support programs since Operation Desert Storm.  She has appeared on The Morning Blend television show hosted by KMTV, the CBS television affiliate in Omaha, and was interviewed by the Omaha World-Herald for her volunteer work.  She has also been a featured author on Triangle Variety Radio, The Phil Naessens Show, and The Writers Showcase, and has been interviewed extensively by American and European bloggers.

Mary Ann is a New York “expat,” and currently resides in Omaha, Nebraska.

Author, Mary Ann Bernal

Today the spotlight is on Mary Ann Bernal's short story, Out of the Depths,  from the anthology Reality Bites, published by Green Wizard Publishing.

Excerpt from Out of the Depths (Reality Bites) written by Mary Ann Bernal:

When did I first suspect that Helen had been unfaithful.  To be honest, I never suspected; I had to catch her in bed with her lover before admitting the truth to myself.  I remember coming home unexpectedly to find her in our bed, our marital bed, which is sacrosanct, with Trevor, her boss, of all people!  I could not believe Helen could betray me like this, especially after making love to me earlier that morning in the very same bed.

What hurt the most was her lack of remorse.  She even laughed at my pain, her hurtful words a floodgate of loathing.  While I thought our relationship was fine, and that we would survive the storm, she, on the other hand, was seething with rage and resentment.  She was tired of supporting me, physically, mentally and financially.  She had had enough, but why did she not tell me.  Perhaps she tried, and I did not listen.

You think I was at fault, that my drinking pushed her away, do you not?  You have no use for my self-pity, do you?  Ah, what makes you so righteous?  You think you would have behaved differently.  I dare say, not!  You would have wallowed in self-pity just like I did, only your way of dealing with your demons might have been different.  Instead of alcohol you might have turned to drugs, or threw yourself into your job, or took up religion.  How do you know what you would have done until you have actually experienced the pain? 
http://adventuresofceciliaspark.blogspot.com/2013/11/a-taste-of-reality-from-mary-ann-bernal.html