Kirkus Reviews Praises Jo Moonstone and The Atlantis Diamond

Kirkus Reviews is one of the premiere trade review sources in the book world, so I am super excited to share this enthusiastic review of Jo Moonstone and The Atlantis Diamond! Here’s the review:

JO MOONSTONE AND THE ATLANTIS DIAMOND

An invigorating kickoff to a fantasy series.

In Hegarty’s middle-grade SF adventure, a tween orphan and her new friends use their developing powers to save an underwater city.

Twelve-year-old Joyu Moonstone knows little about her “gifts,” supernatural abilities she’s not allowed to hone or even talk about. Right before she’s to leave for something called Outsiders Camp to meet other youngsters like herself, Jo and her guardian aunt narrowly survive an attack from a powerful prison escapee named Tiye. Neither her aunt nor Tespu, an ally who knew Jo’s late parents, really explains what’s going on. Tespu rushes her to the camp, which is in Atlantis, the mythical but very real underwater city. Every camper there trains to use their gifts, from healing to communicating with animals. Tiye, it transpires, has only just gotten started; she goes after the Atlantis Diamond, threatening the city’s energy source and maybe Earth itself. To get to the artifact first, Jo and her assigned Outsiders team of Hunter, Ciana, and Darius must sneak into the lair of a half-dragon, half-octopus sea beast while fending off Tiye. Hegarty jam-packs details into this opening installment of a prospective series as Jo learns about her parents’ deaths, the Atlanteans’ origins, and that colossal sea creature. She makes a convincing hero—Jo may be more powerful than her peers, but she doesn’t instantly master her newfound abilities. (“I’ve got to do something! But Tiye is some kind of supervillain. And I’m a kid!”) Jo quickly warms up to her teammates, who display a variety of personalities—there’s super-smart Darius, arrogant but courageous Hunter, and Ciana, who harbors a selfless motive for being at the camp. As the characters have mere days to retrieve the Atlantis Diamond before there’s real trouble, they’re quickly immersed in a string of exhilarating action scenes. The author further enriches the narrative with a sublime aquatic setting featuring ridable, feather-finned seahorses and schools of iridescent fish constantly swimming by.

New Providence, NJ Book Festival

I’ll be there! Discover great reads from local authors! And have some fun finding your inner hero!

It’s All About the Fun

Nice story in the latest Book Lovers Dispatch. It’s wonderful to have such a vibrant community of local authors. Made me think–do you know other local authors? Please share their names with us! See the complete newsletter here bit.ly/BookLoversDispatch-006

LAUNCH DAY!

Looking for a fun summer read? I am super excited to announce the launch of Jo Moonstone and The Atlantis Diamond. I hope you have as much fun reading this adventure quest story as I had writing it. You can now read it as a paperback or e-book. As a very special celebration, the e-book is on sale for $.99 for a limited time, so grab yours today! And thank you for your support!

Five Star Review for Atlantis Diamond!

I am thrilled to share this first, official review of Jo Moonstone and The Atlantis Diamond. Thank you, Readers’ Favorite, for this wonderful, pre-publication five-star review! The book launches August 1. Grab your copy by pre-ordering now at the opening price of $.99!

Here’s the Review:

Hop on for an action-packed sci-fi adventure with Jo Moonstone and The Atlantis Diamond by Pamela Hegarty. Jo Moonstone’s seemingly humdrum life at a small lighthouse cottage with her Great-Aunt Ellie changes irrevocably after an impromptu attack by the supervillain Tiye, who has recently escaped prison. With Protector Tespu Amunet, Jo travels to the underwater city of Atlantis, where similarly gifted youngsters like her learn to use their powers. However, soon after her arrival, the powerful Atlantis Diamond disappears, and now, Jo and her team must help the Atlanteans retrieve it before Tiye gets her hands on it and uses it to conquer the world. But their quest is full of dangers as they must enter the sea monster Luska’s lair. Additionally, there is a traitor in their midst.

Fast-paced and filled to the brim with mystery, action, and intrigue, Jo Moonstone and The Atlantis Diamond takes readers on a wild rollercoaster of a ride you don’t want to miss. Featuring giant monster octopuses, mega sharks, and a host of other creatures, Pamela Hegarty has spun a fascinating adventure yarn that entertains from start to finish. Imagine the Harry Potter series but set in a futuristic underwater sci-fi setting, and you will end up with something like this. Apart from the absorbing plot twists and turns and the imaginative worldbuilding, I was impressed by Hegarty’s handling of the characters, especially the dynamic between Jo and her friends. Young readers who enjoy science fiction and action-adventure stories will love this book. Highly recommended.

Goldenfire, High Stakes History Thriller Book 3 Now on Amazon!

In Goldenfire, historian Christa Devlin and FBI Special Agent Braydon Fox race into their most exciting quest yet. And, dear readers, this hunt is for more than history’s most elusive artifact. Christa is determined to dig up the truth about the tragedy that stole her mother away from her thirteen years earlier. Take a look…

A powgoldenfire-new-2024-300-dpierful artifact. A hidden temple. A fight to the death.

The Power to Kill…

On a remote Peruvian mountaintop, a firebolt from the sky strikes down four elite soldiers searching for an ancient tomb.

Are they victims of a mysterious artifact’s power? Or a deadly new weapon?

The Power to Heal…

Historian Christa Devlin is called in to solve the mystery of these men’s deaths. With FBI Agent Braydon Fox, she is in the highest stakes quest of her life—to find the Goldenfire, the power within the Ark of the Covenant. But this is more than a treasure hunt.

Thirteen years ago, Christa’s parents journeyed deep into the Peruvian wilderness searching for these same answers. Her mother never returned. Had she vanished, like so many who ventured into this wilderness? Or could she still be alive, healed by the Goldenfire?

Christa and Braydon race into the past, chasing the history of the Ark through France, Scotland, and mountains once ruled by the Inca empire. They delve deeper into danger on a trail twisting and turning with enigmatic symbols, legends of the Knights Templar and a centuries-old map. A ruthless adversary is on their heels, determined to find the Goldenfire first and turn it into a powerful weapon.

Fans of Dan Brown, Indiana Jones, and Lara Croft will love this action-packed quest for history’s most elusive and perilous treasure.

90-year-old Woman Forgoes Chemo For Trip of a Lifetime

The first explorer whom I want to celebrate in my new blog series is not a famous adventurer but a  woman who inspires us all by following her heart. Thank you, azcentral and others who shared this on Facebook. Here’s her story:

Two days after her husband died, Miss Norma was told she had cancer. Instead of undergoing chemo and radiation, she told the doctors, “I’m 90 years old, I’m hitting the road!” She hopped in her son’s RV and set out to live life to the fullest. And she did.

According to her family, Miss Norma passed away Sept. 30 after a year on the road. She was 91 years old. http://azc.cc/2dnSHk1

The Da Vinci Code – Decoding Plot-Driven vs Character-Driven Novels

Robert Langdon, literature’s most famous symbologist, is called in to solve a bizarre murder at the beginning of The Da Vinci Code. The murder sets the plot in motion, driving the hero into a race to solve the puzzle before the villains. Certainly, The Da Vinci Code must be a plot-driven novel.

BUT Robert Langdon uses his specialized knowledge to advance to the next step in solving the puzzle, so The Da Vinci Code must be a character-driven novel.

Writers have been arguing the advantages and disadvantages of plot-driven versus character-driven novels since the birth of genre fiction. At a recent workshop, best-selling thriller writer, William Bernhardt, had a different take.

Plot and character must be interwoven for a story to be successful. The character is chosen for the plot. The plot is chosen for the character.

Every scene should have something happening that changes the protagonist’s life. That change, in turn, affects the next plot twist. The character is revealed by how she reacts under pressure. The greater the pressure, the deeper the revelation.

So don’t try to define your novel as plot-driven or character-driven. To be successful, it has to be both.

The Surprising Secret of Bestselling Fiction? Using Non-Fiction

Here’s proof that thriller writers have more fun.

In his workshop on using non-fiction techniques in fiction, bestselling thriller author, Douglas Preston, pointed out that successful thrillers like Coma, The Firm and Raise the Titanic are, at their core,  non-fiction. So how do you integrate your passions about the real world into your fictional world?

First, write down three areas of your specialized knowledge. I chose Travel Writing, History and Public Relations for the federal government. You might think that last one is boring, but consider where Dan Brown’s latest blockbuster, The Lost Symbol, is set.

Now write down five goals you want to achieve before you die. As you can see from my author bio, I’ve been lucky enough to experience many wonderful adventures. In the workshop, I came up with five more:

  1. Go on another African safari, this time with my family.
  2. Go on an Alaskan wilderness trip.
  3. See the Taj Mahal.
  4. Stay at one of those huts perched over the beautiful waters off Bali.
  5. Raft the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon with my family.

The goal of these exercises is two-fold. You not only should integrate your life into your fiction, but integrate your fiction into your life. For instance, if your novel involves a car chase, go to a hands-on lesson on race car driving. You’ll not only have a blast, but will use that reality to make your fiction more believable.

In my case, I used my interest in history and my goal to see the Taj Mahal by integrating the fascinating story behind the Kohinoor Diamond into The Seventh Stone. Preston told us his readers thank him for teaching them about an aspect of the real world through his entertaining stories. As a reader, I always enjoy learning through fiction, whether it’s historical, an insight into another culture or a scientific concept.

So go ahead and pursue your passions in your real life so your fiction can be more “real.” Your readers will thank you.

Jurassic Park meets Inception in New Thriller Book

I am thrilled and relieved to announce that The Emerald Tablet, the second book in the Christa Devlin series, is now available as an ebook and print book on Amazon. Check out this description of what I’ve been working on for 2+ years:

emerald-tablet-new-2024-300-dpi

NEW HIGH STAKES THRILLER FROM BEST-SELLING AUTHOR ASKS READERS, WHAT DO YOU DREAM?

Trapped between a man who vows to save her future and a lover from her past, Princeton historian Christa Devlin is thrust into a heart-pounding quest for one of the world’s most dangerous and powerful artifacts. . . the Emerald Tablet. Last seen in the hands of Alexander the Great, the Emerald Tablet can open the portal between life and afterlife, between man and spirit and, Christa hopes, between her and the traumatized mind of her beloved father. Her ruthless adversary will stop at nothing to find the Tablet first and weaponize its power using the mind-controlling nanobot technology at the island’s prototype Dream Resort. Christa races through the jungle-choked island where the imagined becomes real, prehistoric animals morph into nightmarish beasts and love can twist into evil. She must find the Emerald Tablet and solve its ancient puzzle before the world spirals into a catastrophic future and she loses her father forever.

FROM THE AUTHOR: What if technology could tap into your inner thoughts and make the imagined become real? Some might develop this as the ultimate amusement ride or, taking it deeper, realize that it’s a portal to our inner soul, a way to strip away physical limitations and discover what truly makes us human. But this concept is as old as humanity. I knew little about the Emerald Tablet before writing this book. The more I learned, the more it emboldened me to weave its history into an action-packed adventure that, I hope, inspires as well as entertains. It’s a thrill ride through history, from Merlin and dragons, to the Greek Minotaur, to a mysterious vanished Mesoamerican civilization, looped together by the Emerald Tablet.

Thank you to all my readers and friends for your support! If you choose to buy it, I hope you enjoy it. If you enjoy it, I hope you review it on Amazon.