BLOG TOUR: The Amazing Journey by Grady Hicks with contributions by Austin Hicks

True story of a Father and Son's Odyssey Around the World

My thanks to Wisdom House books for sending me a review copy and inviting me onto the blog tour.



 

Synopsis

The Amazing Journey is a fast-paced, true story of Grady and Austin Hicks, a father and son who travel the world for twenty-eight days before Austin attends college. Austin is the first of three Hicks children who embark on this globetrotting tradition with their father.

In the spirit of adventure, their route and activities are kept secret even from family. They complete daily, self-imposed Journey Tasks that deliberately immerse them into cultural authenticity, and far outside their comfort zones. As the journey unfolds, it becomes clear that these travellers are in store for much more than unfamiliar landscapes. From foreign militaries to spiritual clairvoyance, from serious illness to unnerving dares, The Amazing Journey reminds us to connect with people—be it those closest to you or those across the world—to test your limits, and to trust the Journey.

My Thoughts


I love books about travel. The ability to experience places you never thought possible, without even leaving home. This however is so much more than a travel book. It is the true story of a Father and a Son and the once in a lifetime trip they took together around the World. In some senses it is also a coming of age story.

Of the places Grady and Austin visited, I have only been to Paris and obviously London. It was magical to get a very real glimpse of places such as China, India, Nepal, etc. I also found it interesting and educational to read about certain countries political issues. I must admit to being a little naive about that and also History has never been my strong point, so I feel as if I really engaged with this book and even learnt things along the way.

This story also made some interesting points about being accepting of others, and aware of how fortunate we are in the Western world. Things that we take for granted and indeed often moan about, would be considered such a privilege to people in other countries and cultures.

A very interesting and educational read, that was entertaining and exciting. It really was a non stop trip. I still don't know how they managed to fit such a packed schedule into 28days.







Grady Hicks

Grady is a native Texan whose family has lived and worked in North Texas since the 1850s. He is an avid traveller who has made his home base in Arlington, TX, where he returns to relax in the backyard with his family and to plan his next destination. He lives with his wife of 27 years, Belinda. Their three children now attend university, majoring in mechanical engineering, business communication, and elementary education. Grady is currently writing the second book in The Amazing Journey series and planning the global adventure that will become the third book.

My earliest dreams were of travelling; I wanted to see every country on the map. Throughout my years as a teenager, my grandmother took me on international excursions, which instilled in me a lasting hunger for intercultural experiences. My grandmother and other strong females in my family influenced me to act independently of the crowd, to attempt the improbable, and to be undaunted by the thought of being unsuccessful. These qualities have led me to many feats in my life, including starting my own business in 1999 and campaigning for the 2012 Olympics to be held in Dallas, TX. The Olympic campaign ran for five years and, while we fell short, the regional cooperation continues to be a success. My business, Hurricane Waste Systems, is a family-owned company that is now one of Texas’ largest independent waste and recycling transporters. I always set big goals and high expectations for myself, not only in my career but also in
my personal pursuits, including travel.

As a father, I have included my family in my dreams of travel. Our earliest vacations included diversions into daily life; simply visiting a local grocery unveiled truer perspectives of a country far beyond touristy markets most travellers pass through. We have also enjoyed cruises and resorts, but not as much as tasting a day in the life of someone outside of our own realm of experience. Then my wife Belinda and I began to discuss our eldest son Austin’s high school graduation gift taking the form of a journey, which seemed to be the best gift for a person who is making their debut in the real world: a gift of experience. Austin’s and my trip inspired the gift of a journey to my two other children upon their high school graduations. It has become inherently clear as they draw their own maps for college careers and life beyond that my independence and
freethinking have been passed on to them along the way.

The Amazing Journey books are the result of wanting to share the mental, physical, and spiritual experiences of travelling. Writing a book has always been on my bucket list, even though my life as a writer began recently. I had stories to tell that I wanted to share with people in my family, in my immediate community, and in all the communities across that world that I have been privileged to experience. So, I began to compile notes from before, during, and after the first journey. When the pages began to resemble a book, I continued to refine them until I had a completed manuscript. Writing The Amazing Journey has been a journey in itself. The process took much longer than I originally anticipated, but it was all for the best. I enlisted the help of several creative thinkers, mentors, and editors in order to polish the book. Then I found Wisdom House Books, an independent publisher, and self-published the first of three of The Amazing Journey books in the spring of 2015.

Although the first two journeys are father-son stories and the third a father-daughter journey, the messages within The Amazing Journey books transcend these relationships, reminding us to pause the convenient—if impersonal—texting and emailing and to spend quality time with people. The characters we met, whether visiting a nearby town or a faraway village, convey the importance of human connection no matter how temporary or geographically distant. The Amazing Journey books are fast-paced but insightful, escorting both seasoned travellers and arm-chair adventurers alike into exciting, off-the chart destinations that inspire and astound.

A Man Called Ove by Fredrick Backman

Published in Paperback 7th May 2015 by Sceptre. My thanks to the publisher and Bookbridgr for sending me a copy.


At first sight, Ove is almost certainly the grumpiest man you will ever meet. He thinks himself surrounded by idiots - neighbours who can't reverse a trailer properly, joggers, shop assistants who talk in code, and the perpetrators of the vicious coup d'etat that ousted him as Chairman of the Residents' Association. He will persist in making his daily inspection rounds of the local streets.

But isn't it rare, these days, to find such old-fashioned clarity of belief and deed? Such unswerving conviction about what the world should be, and a lifelong dedication to making it just so?

In the end, you will see, there is something about Ove that is quite irresistible...

My Thoughts:

 This book was somewhat of an unexpected delight and will undoubtedly go into my favourites this year. Nothing is lacking in the translation from Swedish which has been expertly done by Henning Koch.

I was originally drawn in by the quirky premise for this story. What I hadn't appreciated was how much I would love Ove and all of his idiosyncrasies, I guess I shouldn't, after all what do I have in common with a grumpy old man.

This story is an excellent study of what it is to be human, not just grumpy but about how we all have our own ways about us.

Poignant in places as Ove looks back over his life, it is also funny and we are introduced to a wonderful cast of characters how allow Ove to maybe let go a little, maybe begrudgingly at first but in the end, I think he made some real friends.

I can't wait for this Authors second book.

About the Author

Fredrick Backman is a Swedish blogger, columnist and author. This is his debut novel. I am much anticipating his second novel, My Grandmother Sends Her Regards and Apologises.

Fredrick can be found on twitter : @Backmanland

BLOG TOUR: Lives Lost by Britta Bolt

Published 7th May 2015 by Mulholland books. My thanks to them and Bookbridgr for sending my review copy, also to Becca for inviting me to kick off the blog tour today.

A minute can make all the difference...


Pieter Posthumus is enjoying a quiet drink in his favourite bar when the screaming starts. A minute later, the owner of the guesthouse next door rushes in: one of her tenants has been murdered. 


Marloes, the guesthouse owner, is an odd but kind soul. Posthumus cannot believe it when she is arrested - for both her tenant Zig's murder and another death years before. He knows there are questions unanswered: what is the link between the two cases? Why are people so keen to think Marloes is guilty? And why did Zig paint just one picture every year - a copy of a Dutch master, but with one peculiar twist? 


As his investigation progresses, he comes to see that a few minutes can mean all the difference in the world: between saving a life and taking one; between innocence and guilt. And that sometimes asking questions leads to a truth that's hard to bear.

My Thoughts:

This is the second in the Pieter Posthumus mysteries, The first Lonely Graves was published last year. Whilst I don't think it is essential to have read it to enjoy this one, it might have provided some more fleshing out of the characters.

This book is set in Amsterdam and the author manages to create vivid descriptions of the place and I personally found it quite interesting to read a book set in that location.

I enjoyed the characters, particularly Pieter Posthumus himself, who is a humble, kind man who works for The Lonely Funeral Team, as a civil servant. He also can't stop himself from getting involved with a bit of sleuthing from time to time.

This wasn't the fast paced thriller I was expecting but it was an excellent mystery and it all came together well in the end. It was quite unusual. Whether some of the pace was lost in translation, I don't know but I will certainly be reading more from Britta Bolt.

About the Author:

Britta Bolt started when Britta Boehler a lawyer and Rodney Bolt who writes Biographies and travel stories, joined forces.They decided to write a series based in Amsterdam.

I am delighted to welcome Britta Bolt here today, they have written an exclusive piece to share with you. 

Posthumus Blog The Lonely Funerals Team

Amsterdam really does have a ‘Lonely Funerals Team’, which gives a good send-off to those who die alone, and to anonymous corpses found within the city limits. The city council commissions a poet to write an elegy, pays for flowers (and a few cups of coffee, should anyone attend), and at least one of the team goes to the funeral. It’s a touching institution, and for us one that has something of the essence of quirky, convivial Amsterdam about it. Of course, the original raison d’être for the municipal department is so that workers can look for wills and insurance policies, for evidence of friends or family connections, and to see if there is enough money in bank accounts to pay for the funeral. Our hero, Pieter Posthumus, takes this a little bit further. His insatiable curiosity, and a working day spent making stories from the flotsam and jetsam of people’s lives, mean that if he spots something that doesn’t quite fit, as he’s sifting through photos, looking at bookshelves, flipping through a CD collection, he just can’t let it go. And that gets him into all sorts of trouble….

The real Lonely Funerals Team has had some odd experiences over the years, such as finding a wardrobe stuffed with tens of thousands of euros; as well as many sad ones, such as the lonely man who committed suicide, leaving his body to science, but was not discovered until it was too late even to end up as a cadaver for dissection. Some true-life stories from the real team make it into our books (look out for the headless corpse in Book Three!).

Being Someone by Adrian Harvey

My sincere thanks to Matthew at Urbane Publications for sending me a copy of this book.

James has fallen through life, plotting a course of least resistance, taking each day as it comes and waiting for that indefinable ‘something’ to turn up, to give his story meaning. His journey lacks one vital element – a fellow traveller.
Then he meets Lainey. Confident. Beautiful. Captivating. And James rewrites himself to win her heart. Lainey gives James a reason to grow, paints a bright future, promises the happy ending he has sought so keenly. But when we discover we can live the greatest story of all, are we able to share the pages with someone else?
 
Being Someone is an emotive tale of love, of self-discovery and adventure – a story of the eternal search for happiness in another, without ultimately losing ourselves.

My Thoughts:

This books starts us off in India a long time ago with an elephant that went by the name of Iravatha. Admittedly not the start I was expecting upon reading the synopsis. It soon becomes clear though, when in the following chapters we change time and location altogether and meet James the main protaganist of the story. 

James, James, James. I went from wanting to take him for a pint and give him a good talking to, to falling out with him. In the end all I felt for him was compassion. It took the full 255 pages to finally understand him. You can't love somebody if you don't value yourself.

I would suggest that all the characters we meet in Being Someone are flawed. They are my favourite kinds. Afterall, which one of us is perfect? 

Lainey is not really as centralised a character as I would have anticipated but I think this is intentional.

This book is a wonderful examination of human emotions and human reactions. Which one of us can 100% guarantee what we would do in a certain time and certain place. It is also about how in the blink of an eye things can change irrepairably. 

There are not that many writers who can conjure up such imagery with their words, the writing is poetic, vivid, flowing. From the streets of India to the streets of North London with a trip to New York and Scotland thrown in for good measure, it felt like I was there and living the story. Some passages were sublime and truly evocative of time and place. 

 The passages about Iravatha and Annayya were wonderful and symbolic. You would have to read the book to understand it all but in the end I think James is a lot like Iravatha, he makes his pilgrimage back to India, back to different times and back to when there was hope. Back when one mistake hadn't changed the course of events.

Being Someone is a wonderful story of love and what it really is like to make mistakes and live and learn from the consequences.

 Highly recommended.


 About the Author:

Since escaping the East Midlands to find his fortune in the big city, Adrian Harvey has combined a career in and around government with trying to see as much of the world as he can. He lives in North London, which he believes to be the finest corner of the world’s greatest city. Being Someone is his first novel.

Find out more :
http://adrian-harvey.com/