Yvette M. Calleiro - Writing and Reviews
This is the official blog of Yvette M. Calleiro, author of young adult, fantasy/paranormal, and contemporary stories.
Sunday, September 8, 2024
#TankaTuesday 24 Seasons Syllabic #Poetry Challenge - #Syllabic #poem #poetrycommunity #seasonalKigo #Kigo #seasons #WhiteDew #tankaprose #MiddleEarth #hobbits @YvetteMCalleiro
Saturday, August 31, 2024
August Book Reviews #bookreview #books #amreading #readingcommunity #paranormal @KarensStories @YvetteMCalleiro
Hello, beautiful readers! School is back in session, so I am not reading as much as I could in the summer. Still, I managed to finish a great short story, so enjoy my review below.
When the goblin army invades Melonie's home in Rustic Acres, a telepathic cat and a wise old raven enter the battle to help her protect the little people who live there. But chaos erupts when an energetic pixie complicates the plan.
Sunday, August 25, 2024
#TankaTuesday 24 Seasons Syllabic #Poetry Challenge - #Syllabic #poem #poetrycommunity #seasonalKigo #Kigo #seasons #Shosho #haiku #Autumn @YvetteMCalleiro
Tuesday, August 20, 2024
#RRBC 9th Annual Writer's Conference & Book Expo #writersconference #readingcommunity #writingcommunity @YvetteMCalleiro
Hello, beautiful readers! I'm excited to share with you the RRBC 9th Annual Writer's Conference & Book Expo. This is an amazing event that is FREE to attend. Play the games and win some prizes. Meet new authors at their author books, and leave a comment to win free prizes. Pass by the Reading Room and listen to authors read a snippet from one of their books. (I am one of the readers.) You can also purchase access to writing workshops if you'd like. There are also raffle tickets you can purchase to win some fabulous prizes! You do not need to be an RRBC member to participate! Come join us this week. I promise you will enjoy your time at our event. :-)
Sunday, August 18, 2024
#TankaTuesday 24 Seasons Syllabic #Poetry Challenge - #Syllabic #poem #poetrycommunity #seasonalKigo #Kigo #seasons #Risshu #tanka #endofsummer @YvetteMCalleiro
Wednesday, August 7, 2024
#TankaTuesday 24 Seasons Syllabic #Poetry Challenge - #Syllabic #poem #poetrycommunity #seasonalKigo #Kigo #seasons #Risshu #tanka #endofsummer @YvetteMCalleiro
Saturday, August 3, 2024
#TankaTuesday 24 Seasons Syllabic #Poetry Challenge - #Syllabic #poem #poetrycommunity #seasonalKigo #Kigo #seasons #Taisho #Kimo #summerveggies @YvetteMCalleiro
Wednesday, July 31, 2024
July Book Reviews #bookreview #books #amreading #readingcommunity #paranormal #HarborPointeInnseries #shortstories @JanSikes3 @stacitroilo @linneatanner @JoanHallWrites @Pat_Garcia @KarensStories @harmony_kent @YvetteMCalleiro
Hello, beautiful readers! I came back from my summer trip to Italy and Greece at the end of June. I thought I'd have more time to read on the cruise, but every day was packed with activities. Still, I managed to read two short stories and start a novel. July has been full of appointments, beach time, revising, spending time with family, and reading (of course!). I published my short story, Karma Doesn't Kill, at the beginning of the month and would love for you to read it and share your thoughts with me. Now, let's get to my reviews for this month!
Brandon Miller has his dream job, financial security, and he's madly in love. Only one thing is missing—a commitment.
Angela Cooper's ex-husband left her with deep scars, souring her on the concept of marriage. She's not interested in a do-over. Not with Brandon or anyone. Her heart is locked securely away behind a thick wall.
With a ring in his pocket and hope in his heart, Brandon arranges a romantic getaway to the historic Harbor Pointe Inn, where he plans to pop the question.
Before they reach the inn, Angela's got her camera in hand and ghosts on her mind. But they arrive to find a much more tangible horror.
Accident or foul play?
Someone is up to no good, and Angela is the next target. When suspects can be worldly or otherworldly, danger and secrets lurk everywhere.
Poised at the perilous edge of too late, Angela and Brandon face the fight of their lives.
I love how this author connected the various books together as Brandon and Angi explored the area. I also love that it continued the paranormal theme. I felt so bad for Brandon that his plans kept going awry. I loved the relationship between the two of them and am happy with how the story turned out.
Genre: Mystery Romance, Contemporary Short Stories
Pages: 115 pages
Book Blurb:
The Harbor Pointe Inn has loomed on California's cliffs for generations of Hawthornes. For some, it's been a blessing. For others, a curse. Travel through two centuries of stories to discover the old inn's secrets.
A narcissistic patriarch. A mystical legend. A fathomless affair.
Most people wouldn’t dread a weekend at the historic Harbor Pointe Inn. Lorelei Audley isn’t most people. The fresh sea air, breathtaking vistas, and gourmet meals can’t buoy her spirits. She’s there to coordinate her father’s latest wedding. The bride is a nightmare, yet somehow, the groom is worse. Lorelei steels herself to suffer through a few days of psychological abuse and abject misery.
She’s unprepared for a paranormal encounter, missing persons case, and police investigation.
Not to mention a budding romance.
A lot can happen in a short time, far more if the supernatural is involved. Lorelei has a small window in which to solve some very big problems—problems as numerous as the sands at the foot of the scenic Harbor Pointe cliffs.
My Review:
Book six of the Harbor Pointe series focuses on Lorelei going to the inn to plan a wedding for her dad and bride number three. She isn’t at all happy about it, especially since she feels as if her father is getting conned. From the moment she arrives, one thing after another goes wrong.
The author does a great job of drawing you into all of Lorelei’s drama. I really felt bad for her. I loved how the author brought in the inn’s folklore and mentioned events from the other books. She did a convincing job of adding a fantastic twist at the end. I would have loved to keep reading more on what happened next, but as a short story, it is complete as is it told.
This was another great addition to the series, and I can’t wait to read the next one!
Genre: Greco-Roman Myth & Legend Fantasy
Pages: 402 pages
Book Blurb:
A Celtic warrior queen must do the impossible—defeat her sorcerer half-brother and claim the throne. But to do so, she must learn how to strike vengeance from her father’s skull.
AS FORETOLD BY HER FATHER in a vision, Catrin has become a battle-hardened warrior after her trials in the Roman legion and gladiatorial games. She must return to Britannia and pull the cursed dagger out of the serpent’s stone to fulfill her destiny. Only then can she unleash the vengeance from the ancient druids to destroy her evil half-brother, the powerful sorcerer, King Marrock. Always two steps ahead and seemingly unstoppable, Marrock can summon destructive natural forces to crush any rival trying to stop him and has charged his deadliest assassin to bring back Catrin’s head.
To have the slightest chance of beating Marrock, Catrin must forge alliances with former enemies, but she needs someone she can trust. Her only option is to seek military aid from Marcellus—her secret Roman husband. They rekindle their burning passion, but he is playing a deadly game in the political firestorm of the Julio-Claudian dynasty to support Catrin’s cause.
Ultimately, in order to defeat Marrock, Catrin must align herself with a dark druidess and learn how to summon forces from skulls to exact vengeance. But can she and Marcellus outmaneuver political enemies from Rome and Britannia in their quest to vanquish Marrock?
My Review:
Genre: Suspense Thrillers
Pages: 104 pages
Book Blurb:
The Harbor Pointe Inn has loomed on California’s cliffs for generations of Hawthornes. For some, it’s been a blessing. For others, a curse. Travel through two centuries of stories to discover the old inn’s secrets.
Suicide, accident, or murder?
After an argument with her fiancé, up-and-coming actress Leah Myers booked a room at the Harbor Pointe Inn. Near the end of her stay, someone found her body at the bottom of the nearby cliff. The police ruled her death a suicide.
Five years later, four people from Leah’s past visit the inn on the anniversary of her death. Her fiancé, her brother, her psychologist, and her close friend, Adele, who was a guest at Harbor Pointe the night Leah died.
Deputy Brad Sherman, assistant to the lead detective, has always believed something was amiss with the investigation. When he learns Leah’s former acquaintances are staying at the inn, he decides to look at the old case file.
The four guests soon learn each other’s identity and begin to discuss the events leading up to Leah’s demise. But someone doesn’t want them to know the truth. When Adele confesses she is haunted by the possibility she saw something important that fateful night, it puts her in grave danger.
Now it’s a race against time before she becomes the killer’s next victim.
My Review:
Genre: Later in Life Romance, Short Story
Pages: 29 pages
Book Blurb:
Stationed within an International Explosive Ordinance Team (EOD) in Germany for six years, Gianluca Abate has never anticipated that unexpected incidences could throw his life off balance. He didn't think there was a situation that could touch him so closely until the day he experienced an explosive blast underwater. His life spirals downward, and he loses all hope of ever being normal again.
At a train station, he is waiting for a train to come to end it all and is so involved in what he is about to carry out that he doesn't see the woman running toward him who is about to change the trajectory of his destiny, forever.
My Review:
Genre: Contemporary Fantasy Fiction, Short Story
Pages: 34 pages
Book Blurb:
Decades later, Colette Latraviatta exhibits capabilities that far exceed those expected from a seven-year-old child. As her abilities become widely known, she follows her grandmother's footsteps and uses her power to help others. But when Axel Travaglia realizes the child's ability will soon surpass his, he sees her as a threat and will stop at nothing to keep her from reaching her pinnacle of power.
My Review:
Genre: Ghost Suspense, Ghost Thrillers
Pages: 95 pages
Book Blurb:
The Harbor Pointe Inn has loomed on California’s cliffs for generations of Hawthornes. For some, it’s been a blessing. For others, a curse. Travel through two centuries of stories to discover the old inn’s secrets.
When guilt-ridden Mia checks in to a suicide hotel, but can’t go through with the final act, vengeful ghosts gather to torment her.
Set in the near future, the post-war world is in turmoil.
Mia Hawthorne suffers an emotional breakdown, following the death of her wife, and loses everything to a corrupt government.
In an ironic twist of fate, the government suicide department, The Last Sanctuary, allocates a desperate and destitute Mia to the very hotel and family heirloom which she has so recently lost.
On her first day at the Lighthouse Inn, beset with painful memories, doubts, and questions, Mia finds herself coming face to face with angry ghosts, who gather to goad and torment her.
Lost and alone, can Mia find enough strength and purpose to avoid her final, frightful fate?
Possible Trigger Warnings:
This novella contains many references to suicide and suicidal thoughts. It also references off-page bereavement and off-page female to female marriage.
Some references to violence are mentioned, but remain vague and mostly off-page.
No profanity is used.
If any of these are likely to trigger you, please use your discretion when purchasing/reading this book.