Cat Pollock Writes

Happy Thursday, everyone. Here is July's book review for general consumption. Since the book I am reviewing is the third in a series, a potential  SPOILER WARNING   is in effect if you have not read the Ranks of Bronze series. The Excalibur Alternative (Ranks of Bronze #3) David Weber, 2002, Baen Books Summary: It's just another day at war for Sir George Wincaster and the group of 14th-century English soldiers he leads until they are abducted by aliens who are part of the Galactic Federation. Stuck in outer space and used as mercenaries to conquer the populations of low-tech planets, they wonder if they will ever make their way home. An unexpected opportunity comes their way when a member of another alien race, who is also being subjugated by the Galactic Federation, approaches Sir George with a proposition to take over the ship and win back their freedom. Will he take them up on it, and what will the consequences be? Opinion: I confess, I did i...

My second short story collection, Overload: Stories For When Your World Turns Upside Down  (which feels like it has taken forever to finish), releases July 10th.  Curious about the final cover? Here it is. Scroll down for excerpt from the first story titled "Scream". Read and enjoy!

Before I get into this review, I thought it prudent to let you know about a couple of things moving forward with any book review I post on this site. First, when I post a review, expect to see the following included at the beginning of the post moving forward: A disclaimer notice if I received a free copy from the publisher in order to write a review. A spoiler warning if the book is part of a series, especially if the book has only recently been released. Second is that I will try to post book reviews once a month now, depending on what else is going on with my editorial schedule moving forward. Some months may see two reviews, others may see none. Now, on to the important stuff related to the actual review… Disclaimer Notice : I received a free copy of The Wounded Shadow from Bethany House Publishers in exchange for a fair and honest review. I have no other affiliation with them. Spoiler Warning is in effect :  This novel is the third part of a serie...

I started a new crochet project a while back - a new project made up of components of an old one. Granny square afghan, but not the one I'm writing about. You see, a few years ago I crocheted an afghan with gigantic-sized granny squares for my bed. Shortly after I finished it, I got a new bed - a bigger bed than the old one and the afghan I had just finished was never going to fit it. So I packed it away figuring it would be useful at some point. I completely forgot about its existence until I was changing the sheets on my bed last week and looking for a clean afghan to use. I pulled the old afghan out of the linen cupboard and tried to spread it out on the bed. Of course, it didn't fit. It wasn't made for the bed I sleep in now. I left the afghan on the bed for awhile, though, because there was something bothering me about it that was not its size. The pattern. The answer came to me eventually, after thirty minutes of doing other things while I let my subconsc...

The attitude you start your day with is the attitude that will guide your actions (and reactions) for the rest of your day. Sounds like a really cool quote from someone famous who would know a thing or two about such things, doesn't it? Well, if someone said it, I haven't read it yet. I have, however, recently become to believe it to be true. Why? Well, there is a silly little thing I posted on Twitter on Friday... It wasn't the best start to a day. While I posted it with the tongue-in-cheek #not happening, it happened anyway. Frustration settled in and all the little things I would normally be able to let go of with a smile kept piling on. By the time my sister got in from training, I was ready to snap. And when I say snap, what I mean is burst into tears, because that is what I do when I get frustrated. I cry like a baby. Drives my family crazy. But that's not the point. The point is that I let the word frustration and my initial feelings of ...

I'm the public speaker you never want to listen to. No, seriously. I um and uh and am responsible for long and awkward pauses while I try to find my words. At least, this is the case when I am asked to speak on the spot. I'm sure I've blogged before about how my family loves to tease me about it, too. They do, and I laugh with them because I know it's true. There is a brain inside my head that works well enough to string words together on a piece of paper - or computer screen - in ways that make sense after I've had a decent amount of time to figure out what to say. For some reason, standing up and talking is a slower, bug-ridden process for that same brain. Speaking with my mouth is just hard. Without a prewritten speech (or detailed outline), I am completely unsure of what to say or how to say it, and it shows. And anyone who has been subjected to my lack of eloquence - I'm so sorry for having put you through that torture in the past. For real. No guar...

From weaponry to mutiny, friends. Welcome to week 28. Manners & Mutiny (Finishing School #4) Gail Carriger, 2015, Little, Brown and Company Summary : Manners & Mutiny is the final installment in the Finishing School series, following Sophronia Temminnick's four years in a finishing and espionage training school. In Sophronia's final year, all of her training is put to the test when the full scale of the Picklemen's plotting with mechanicals is revealed. Why I Read It: It is the last book in the series, and was a fabulous gift to receive from my sisters for my birthday last year. Side note: Now that we are out of borrowed territory, I feel like maybe this section can be eliminated? Let me know. Opinion: It was a series end fit for the Parasol Protectorate universe, that is for sure. The twists and turns made this one difficult to put down for even a few seconds before the afterword. If Sophronia was coming into her own in Waist...