Michael Phillip CashBesprekingen

Teenager Wyatt Baldwin, his little brother, and his friends are invited to the opening of a new unusual amusement park. It is similar to Jurassic Park but with vampires, werewolves and zombies. It’s not just one park but many all over the world will open at the same time. What sounds exciting and fun soon turns scary and life-threatening.

This is my first time reading this author, Michael Phillip Cash, and I did enjoy it. It was written well and the characters were memorable. The amusement park was described very much like Disneyworld only much darker which I found funny. I could see this as a PG-13 movie.

I liked it but I did not love it, because it was predictable. I am not sure how it could have gone any other way than it did. It was okay.

It was a quick read and had some fun moments and I could see this book getting a sequel. It is certainly set up for one. I have a pile of books from this author that I will be delving into soon.

Rating: 3.5* of five

The Publisher Says: After a vicious fight with her boyfriend followed by a night of heavy partying, college freshman Amanda Greene wakes up in her dorm room to find things are not the same as they were yesterday. She can't quite put her finger on it. She's sharing her room with a peculiar stranger. Amanda discovers she's registered for classes she would never choose with people that are oddly familiar. An ominous shadow is stalking her. Uncomfortable memories are bubbling dangerously close to her fracturing world, propelling her to an inevitable collision between fantasy and reality. Is this the mother of all hangovers or is something bigger happening?

I RECEIVED AN ARC FROM THE AUTHOR. THANK YOU.

My Review: More of an eerie, unsettling read than a horror novella, the point of the tale is to recognize how little we actually pay attention to our busy existence...our one and only life doesn't get our full attenention very often. Which of course leaves a lot of room for unexpected events to catch up, or just plain catch, us. There is a lot going on in this short span. It's not always an avantage to be quite this concise as details can feel more like clutter when they simply accumulate but aren't made integral to the central storyline.

Fans of time-travel tales and aficionados of past-life fiction are strongly encouraged to give this one-sitting novella a whirl.½

This was a new author to me and I have had this book on my tbr for a long time, so I decided to read it after seeing so many good reviews of it.

This was a very poignant haunting love story of a man that loses his wife to cancer and how he has to cope with life without her. Paul Russo and his children are trying to get their lives back on track after the death of his wife. Paul tries to get back into work as well as he owns a real estate business. An opportunity becomes available to sell a house a/k/a Stillwell Manor that is believed to be haunted.

The journey from this point on becomes haunting for Paul as he finds out that the house is somehow connected not only his wife but to himself. The book moves at a fast pace and it is surrounded by mystery along with the haunting of the manor. Lots of twists and turns throughout the book along with the heartfelt sadness of Paul losing his wife. Giving this book four stars.

Remy Galway plans to buy the old long island home as a sign of her Independence after a long recovery from her bitter divorce. With her parents support she has slowly rebuilt her life and opened her own business. Now she is ready for her and her daughter to stand on their own. What she doesn’t know is that her home is haunted by a crusty whaling captain who is not amused by two females moving into his house, changing things. It doesn’t help that Olivia seems to be able to see him and isn’t at all frightened. His childish attempts to get them to leave is lost in the mystery of bad luck seemingly following Remy. Her home and business are vandalized and her car is run off the road. She doesn’t see any connection, however she can’t shake the feeling that someone is watching her and when she begins to receive phone calls that don’t show up on her cell phone history she begins to doubt herself. Luckily Hugh, a friend of her mother’s, is there to help see her through the trouble.
This is the second book written by Mr. Cash that I have read and I continue to appreciate his writing style. His characters are larger than life and his story is exceptional. The historical aspect of the tale fit together beautifully with the modern day story. While this story focuses on Remy and her new found life, it is really about Captain Eli. I loved how Hugh, in his role as curator of the local maritime museum, holds the key that may give the Captain a chance to finish his tale.
I would appreciate longer books from this author, but I can honestly say this book was exactly as long as it needed to be and there were no loose ends or rushed storylines.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest written review.

Just not very good. I mean, it could have been a lot better. Its more of a heart-breaking love story and story of acceptance and reconciliation as opposed to a "Haunting on Long Island."

The characters are fairly well written, not cardboard, rather nuanced, realistic. The setting is all right - and the historical tidbits are nice. But the plot is frustrating and the actual supernatural element are awful.

Author Cash was a new name to me, but after reading so many of the passionate reviews Stillwell has accrued I decided to give it a go. What a treat this really was. Cash’s writing is very descriptive and it easily conjured up images in my mind as I read. Especially the nightmare and trepidation scenes, very visual. Paul was a very sympathetic character, and I found myself drawn to him early on and also felt real empathy for his struggles.

All in all a really enjoyable book, and I look forward to checking out more book’s from Cash pretty soon.

The History Major was an interesting read. It definitely was not what I expected. When Amanda wakes up from a bender, after a huge fight the night before with her boyfriend, things are not how they should be. This leads the reader to wonder...Alien abduction? Did she travel to another dimension? The reason I mention the latter is because things in her world are the same, but not the same.

So, I can't go into detail here because it would give the whole story away. I will say that the story definitely keeps you reading, and being a novella, it doesn't take long to get through it. The book has a message contained in its short pages, and it even ties in some history and an occurrence not unlike some recent current events.

I wouldn't necessarily classify this as horror, but it is eerie enough to feel a few chills on the back of your neck.

(I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review)

I read Stillwell: A Haunting on Long Island with my Shelfari horror group.

It started off as a promising story. Paul Russo lost his wife to cancer. Feeling very sorry for himself and for his three children, Paul struggles to keep his head above water with daily life.

Then the nightmares begin. And he isn't the only one having them-his son Jesse is too. These were the best parts of the book, in my mind, and I enjoyed the dream sequences a lot. However, they were not enough to elevate this story above the level of just okay.

I will leave off the plot at this point and just share my thoughts. This book was very fast paced and I did enjoy that. Approaching this story as a fan of horror, I did feel let down. There were no true scares and the ending wrapped up way too nicely for me to thoroughly enjoy it. There were a good amount of grammar and editing errors, too. For instance, when someone shuttered in fear, that made me laugh and took me right out of the story.

To sum up, I thought this was just an okay read. I would recommend it to those readers who like their horror light. I think a true, experienced horror fan will find this book a little bit boring and short on scares. I do think the author has potential though, and I am not ruling out reading more of his work at some time in the future. Just not the near future.

I received a copy of this novel for an honest review.

This was a quick read and a good read with a twist that kept you wondering. I felt as if I was reading an episode of the Twilight Zone.

It wasn't without some faults, but it was a solid book that I would recommend to others.

With such an interesting idea for a plot, I was let down by the final project. I did like the how the spells were written, which were cute.

The main character, Wes, is very flawed, arrogant, sneering, disrespectful and goofy. Not my idea of a good romantic lead, or a sympathetic character.
Morgan Pendragon, besides a long running joke in which she fools her "best" friend into thinking she is learning how to practice witchery, is vulnerable, not very bright, but brave. Maybe they do deserve each other, but at any rate they immediately feel strangely strong attraction from their first meeting. As the story unfolds, I found that I was not invested in what happened to them.

Add on cookie-cutter sinister female characters, with a warped, unoriginal grand evil plan. Throw in a bit of gross-out gore, and characters making mistake after mistake. End with all the loose ends being tied up improbably and neatly (including loose ends thrown in mere seconds before being tied nicely up).

Would recommend for YA who liked light, modern witch stories, with reservations about the complete lack of male villains compared to the many female villains.

**eARC netgalley**

Absolutely fell in LOVE with this book!!!! I have picked up quite a few of Cash's books over the last year but they keep finding themselves just sitting there on my TBR, waiting to be read. I grabbed this book to take with me on a trip, figuring I may start it. Well....about 3 hours later I had just devoured the whole damn thing! Amazing read!!

I was so impressed with this book that I have gone through the rest of his that I have collected. I loved the storyline, the historical facts that were mixed in (THAT really gets me every time I see that happen in a book. I`m a bit of a history geek :) )and the way the characters were so relatable really made The Flip a really fun and fast read for me. I completely recommend this book and author to anyone who asks. I look forward to finishing the rest of his works and anything else that comes from him :)

I don't know anything about poker except what i've seen on tv.....how boring, how very boring. Cash tho, has done it yet again!
WHAM and it's a home run if read with an open mind and light heart. I've said it before and will undoubtedly say it again and again....he has this incredible ability to take the highly impossible and make it at least a wee bit possible?
Comedy, spirits, and poker.....who knew?

It’s the beginning of a new school year. Amanda Green is rooming with friends. However, the night before classes are to start, Amanda has a heated argument with her boyfriend; his demands seem completely out-of-line. She crosses to the other side of the local watering hole and commences to tie one on.

The next morning she has a monster of a headache, and there is a strange female in her room who is insisting that she is late for class and that they are roommates. In addition, something menacing is hanging around, just outside her peripheral vision.

By the time Amanda gets it together enough to head for class, she’s not only late, but there seems to be a mix-up in her schedule. She would never, ever take a history course. Receiving no help from the college, she goes to class.

Things there are just a little weird. It seems the entire student body is taking the class. The professor is a wacko, that weird vision is beating on the closed doors, and the only person who seems to notice her is the guy in the next seat, Nick Fortune.

This is an odd little story that is compulsively readable. I had had to know what the heck was going on, yet in my wildest dreams, I hadn’t thought of the answer that Cash provides. I wish I could talk more about the ending, but no spoilers allowed.

I give The History Major 4 out of 5 stars. It gets knocked down a star for the format; that line space between each paragraph is not necessary and drove me nuts.

Arielle Harmond doesn’t know it, but her family has been living under a curse since it was put on them back in 1649. Way back then Reverend Harmond knocked up Goodwife Bennett’s granddaughter, and there is reason to suspect he may have killed the underage girl.
Arielle, seventeen years old in contemporary times, is fighting off her boyfriend, Chad, the hottest and handsomest guy in school. Chad is going everything he can to get in her pants. Arielle is doing everything she can to thwart him. The setting is Long Island, New York, beneath its infamous hanging tree.
But the two are not alone. Sitting on the branches, watching the action below, are the spirits of Goody Bennett and other members of the Harmond family. Goody Bennett can’t decide if she should interfere with the couple, while others urge her in both directions (she should/she shouldn’t).
The plot shift between the present and the past, giving readers a sense of how those that haven’t yet left this earth got there.
It’s an interesting story/ I give it 4 out of 5 stars…mainly because I wasn’t satisfied. I wanted more, especially those souls in the trees. The novella should have been a novel, and maybe someday author Cash will pursue that thread.

The cover of this book of this book is awesome. A churning sea, an empty boat, and an old house with a light glowing from an upper window. Looks like the creepy, scary kind of book that I like.

Remy Galway and her ten-year-old daughter, Olivia, have just moved into a three-hundred-year-old house in Cold Harbor Springs on Long Island. Remy is trying to rebuild her and Olivia’s lives after a failed marriage. She’s making a go of it as a yoga instructor.

The old house is charming, but old houses have their problems. Remy had been told that the house a once belonged to a whaling captain and his family. The reader knows this is true because Cash starts the novel with the Captain and his crew chasing one of the largest whales he was ever seen. The novel alternates between the two stories---Captain Eli Gasper and Remy and Olivia. It’s easy to follow and well delineated.

Olivia feels the presence of Eli’s spirit first. Remy doesn’t want to believe in anything she can’t see. Eli is ticked that two new people have moved into his home and goes about making a mess. The mess looks like vandalism to Remy. The he manages to set the place on fire and break a few windows.

Hugh, the mayor, get involved. Cold Springs Harbor is a small town; he takes an interest in the people who live there. However, Hugh harbors more than a superficial interest in Remy.

As they struggle through the mess, the reader also gets to see what Eli is doing and thinking. He hates that new people now inhabit his home. He liked it better when Pat lived there---no television, no Internet, no comings and goings of other people.

What isn’t clear right away is the presence of two other spirits. It took a while, but I think surmised that they were Eli’s angel guardians and watched over him while he was bound to earth.

This book was labeled as horror, but it doesn’t really fit that genre. It reminded me more of The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, without the romance between the Remy and Eli.

Still, I give it 4 out of 5 stars. I would have given it five if the two other ghosts were more clearly defined.

I’m a big fan of Michael Phillip Cash’s. He’s one of those wonderful writers no one knows in the paranormal/fantasy genre. I first read Stillwell back in 2013, but never got around to writing my review. I recently picked it up again so I could write the promised review.

I am glad I re-read this little gem. I like a good ghost story, and Cash never fails to deliver. I especially like his paranormal stories.

Paul Russo is trying to get his life---and his kids’ lives---back to normal following the death of his wife, Allison. It was a quick. Relatively. Six months ago Allison was diagnosed with cancer, and now she’s gone. Thank God he has sister, his parents, and his in-laws to help.

His career as a real estate agent is in shambles. Leads that came in while Allison was sick eventually went to someone else. There is one bright spot. His old friend Craig Andrews needs to sell his parents’ Long Island mansion, Stillwell Manor. The commission on a $20 million dollar sale could put his finance back in order.

Stillwell won’t be an easy sell, though. It’s the site of a murder-suicide. The cleaners did a remarkable job, but the stigma attached is hard to overcome. There’s also something else happening.

There are rumors that the house is haunted. Local police believe it’s kids, but soon Paul discovers that no humans are involved in what is happening at Stillwell.

Can’t giveaway anymore ‘cause that would give away a great read. Very realistic. I couldn’t read fast enough. Be prepared to sleep with the lights on. Thankfully it’s a short read that can be completed in a couple of evenings.

I give Stillwell: A Haunting on Long Island 5 out of 5 stars.

Pokergeist is the fourth novel by as-yet-to-be-discovered author Michael Phillip Cash that I’ve read, and I think this one is his best yet.
The story opens in Las Vegas. Poker legend Clutch Henderson comes from a poker legend family; his grandfather was a champion player. He taught Clutch how to play the game.
Clutch is good. After all, this is his nineteenth attempt to win the million-dollar gold bracelet in the International Series of Poker. His opponent is an Internet poker sensation, Adam “The Ant” Antonowski. It’s the final hand; Clutch can practically feel the bracelet’s weight on his wrist. Everything he ever dreamed of is just a card away. Suddenly, Clutch can’t breathe. There is a heaviness in his chest. Words fail him. He falls to the floor.
One year later, Telly Martin has lost everything. It started with a layoff and spiraled down from there. Now he and his girlfriend Gretchen are living in a seedy hotel, barely able to eat and make the rent.
Telly also has dreams of winning the International Series of Poker. He’s a pretty good player, but with luck he could go all the way. All he needs now is the ten thousand dollar buy-in fee. Yeah, right, like he has that kind of money lying around.
Then Clutch shows up in ghost form to act as Telly’s mentor.
There are no real surprises in this plot line. Still, it’s well done and interesting reading. It’s a lot of fun too.
I give Pokergiest 5 out of 5 stars.

All Clutch ever wanted to do was win the International poker competition to once and for all prove to his grandfather he was the best. In the final round, It can me down to just him and the "Ant". He thought he was going to finally win the gold bracelet when tragedy struck. After that, his life was never the same, mainly because he was dead. He thought his dream had died with him until a young wannabe poker player crossed his path and made a wish that would bind them together. Along the way, they both learn a lot about themselves and what life truly means.
This is a wonderful book which lives up to its title it is fun, heartfelt and well-rounded the whole story flowed well. The characters were well balanced and believable. The ending was satisfying and there were no loose ends. I would highly recommend this to anyone who likes funny books, ghost stories or tales where the underling comes out on top.

After messing up on the job and losing a prisoner, Wes was given one last chance by the chief who was also his father. He was assigned to an obscure department who's sole purpose was to provide protection to witches. When he started it was all he could to finish the task then get out of there but what he found out surprised him so much he could not let go.
This is a must read for fans of witches, this author, or a good fast paced book with well-developed characters, and rounded plot line. It was funny, witty, and action-packed. I found myself wanting to read it again as soon as I was finished. Well, worth the read I highly recommend this book.

This author never ceases to amaze me. This book has it all, a little bit of romance with a paranormal house-flip and a bit of history tossed in. I usually read more than one book at a time and whenever i pick up one of MCP, i smile, i know i am in for a good read.

Once again i must say that altho this book is out of my realm of subjects i'd pick, i loved the History Major as well as the author and his others. A quick read, i think you may find yourself as confused as the main character until it all ties together as time progresses. Cash has no qualms about taking topics that are out there and making them as real, as possible ,as the sun rising and setting. I can NOT stress enough how much i enjoy his writing.
The thing about this book ( stop reading if you want no hints ) is that in college i DID have dreams where i was constantly lost or was going to class in pajamas.....an ongoing anxiety dream i know but who knows....
" WHEN WE SLEEP, the lines of judgement between fact and fantasy become blurred, which leads to the amazing inventions of imagination."

Darracia, Darracia, Darracia, everything in this series happens in threes. This is a trilogy, with each book themed on the introduction of one of the essential corner stones of harmony (the balance of air, land and sea) and development of the main species associated with each. There are three elements, which take on glowing forms as conversing elementals, three colours which represent an individual’s inner intentions, three systems of social control and three main species (or so you’d think). The baddies come in ones: one evil goddess, one badly behaved race, one nasty organic drug.

Just as religions describe three aspects of something that can also be thought of as melded into a single concept or gestalt entity and tripartite governance involves an equal division of power between three chambers that are still one and the same government, the theme of this book is the reconciliation and unification of three competing sides into one movement that may provide direction, equality and justice for all, three cheers, or fail spectacularly. What a mouthful. On Earth, lots of people usually have to suffer very badly before any kind of improvement happens because vested interests don’t like it (Vesta = goddess of things on fire) and that also turns out to be the case in this story.

I mistook this series for science fiction before I started reading, which was entirely my mistake for judging a book by its cover image and typeface. Although it has extra-terrestrial species and interplanetary travel, there are almost no science fiction predictive ideas or mechanisms because it is not that angle of imagination the author is exploring here. There is magic (forces not appearing in the Newtonian model) that they tap into, so I would therefore classify this as a swords and sorcery fantasy story with an encouraging line in right-on social direction: emancipation, equality and racial bonding etc. The monarchy remains intact as an institution, although the story is quite rough on individuals, so I guess the author decided the chopping of the social order had to stop somewhere, i.e. while the reformers still held the moral ascendancy. The metaphors associated with our world and social change are never deeply disguised, so the audience can’t miss their free education.

I noticed there are no actual countries on the worlds that this author has created, just planets and their leading species, so these creations club together by genetic type rather than also by geographical similarities or which side of a border they birthed in (as we do). Life must be so much simpler for them. Although, they do form factions in power struggles, which is the truck engine that drives the plot. They can also breed across the species barrier, which (on Earth at least) indicates a common ancestor not too far back, which reinforces the idea that they could live collectively.

The author’s writing style is planned and professional rather than soulful and poetic or erratically unique, so all the little pay-offs I got came from the plot rather than the exquisite jam sandwiches of vocabulary. I keep wanting to tell authors that decimate affects only ten percent, but that’s picky.

Once you’ve got used to the fiery swords and treachery, seen the high brought to their knees, the unworthy elevated to untenable positions of despicability and travelled with the heroes as they’ve been dragged through and around the mulberry bush a few times to earn their scratches and let you know they’ve been altered by the experience, the story grips and swings you along through the alien trees, beneath the waves, past two good twists and then on to its predictable conclusion.

It’s quite an entertaining ride with a balanced range of characters and some atmospheric scenes, notably going along tubes within a hollow volcano and abseiling down the purple cliffs of Binna or whatever it was to harvest plants growing on the sheer rock face. The battle ending to each part was the standard resolution we’ve come to expect from these things, with reinforcements in the nick of time (Blücher at Waterloo, Gandalf at Helms Deep) but used sensibly enough to make us feel we might be reading web-footed salvation for the first time in fiction. Noticing the patterns of three, I rooted for the heroes, booed the bullies and had moments where I got entangled, so that’s my expectations fulfilled really.

Amanda Greene, a freshman in college, wakes up in her dorm room only to find that things are completely different. And it's not because of the fight she had with her boyfriend and the partying the night before. She's sharing her room with a complete stranger, she's enrolled in classes that she doesn't like and didn't sign up for, and an ominous shadow seems to be following her around campus.

I appreciate the creativity and concept for this novella, but I could never really get into it.

This is a relatively short, easy read. Given that the story revolves around a recently widowed man--Paul Russo--and his family, dealing with grief is one of the main themes, as is facing one's demons. In that manner, the tale is somewhat allegorical, although the vast majority of the plot plays out with Paul denying any supernatural involvement as he tries to move on with his life and his job as a realtor by selling a local mansion. "Stillwell", however, relied too much on horror tropes--lost loved ones who haven't moved on, haunted houses, good vs. evil--so the story was rather run-of-the-mill and not very memorable.

The Battle For Darracia Saga continues as a majority of the key characters find themselves at a soul-defining crossroads for themselves and their entire planet. The tensions between the social classes on the planet of Darracia have now reached their respective boiling points. Peace talks between the Darracians and their nearest neighbors the Quyroo people have essentially collapsed with the assassination of the Quyroo ambassador. Crown Prince V'sair's villainous uncle Staf Nuen has also attempted to stage a coup to seize his brother's throne, but although King Drakko was assassinated and Staf Nuen escaped, his conspirators were captured and brought to justice.

As Darracia is being rocked by the waves of violence and societal turmoil, certain members of the royal family find themselves separated from each other and spread throughout the galaxy searching for a meaning to the death of a much beloved and benevolent monarch. Shaken by his father's assassination - and unsure how capable he will be in ruling a kingdom that he views as still belonging to the late king - Prince V'sair struggles to hold the fractured kingdom together. Despite being surrounded by many of his father's most trusted advisers, V'sair still feels extraordinarily isolated and alone without so many of his loved ones by his side.

V'sair's mother, Queen Reminda's own faith in the elusive Elements that have guided Darracians for centuries has been shaken to its very foundations. Although she grieves the loss of her husband, she remains steadfast in her support of her son as he contemplates his upcoming coronation. V'sair's stepbrother Zayden has spent much of the past year since his father's death searching for his uncle's whereabouts. He is on a self-imposed mission of vengeance - ranging from one side of the solar system to the other - determined to bring Staf Nuen back to Darracia to face justice; or die trying.

Reminda's handmaiden Tulani is trying to navigate both of her worlds, attempting to find the best way to bring them together. While she essentially grew up in service to the Darracian royal family - Tulani is still a Quyroo - and her family lineage requires that she leaves service to the Darracians to begin training among her own people. Tulani's grandmother Bobbien is in fact the High Priestess of her tribe, and she wants her granddaughter to succeed her. Tulani loves her grandmother very much and feels obligated to fulfill Bobbien's wishes; but she is also devastated to be leaving behind Reminda and V'sair - the only family she has ever really known.

The villainous Staf Nuen has gone into hiding after orchestrating the initial coup. Having lost his wife, only son, and youngest daughter in the coup, Staf Nuen realizes that his own life is essentially forfeit if Zayden ever finds him. Although that coup wasn't entirely successful - and his cohorts were dealt with appropriately - Staf Nuen is still determined to form other nefarious alliances with certain diabolical new allies elsewhere in the galaxy.

However, like the vibrant comet zipping across the horizon, all the various factions of Darracian society are heading into a direct collision course. They are heading along a path that will test the power of their belief in themselves, their planet, and ultimately, in the power of the Elements that have guided them for centuries. This is a battle that will test the boundaries of their faith and challenge the balance of power.

I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. While the plot definitely reminded me of Star Wars, the story was intriguing and highly original. I avidly wanted to know what happened next. I look forward to reading the conclusion to this trilogy; and give this book a definite A+!