Author: kareneisenbreywriter

Square Pig in a Round Hole-April 7, 2018

· Leave a comment ·

Square PigNaming a band is an act of concentrated creative expression. Square Pig in a Round Hole exists to reward five favorite band names each week. Winners are (usually) listed alphabetically.

Selection is wholly unscientific and subject to whim, with a bias toward wordplay, humor, and local flavor. In most cases, I won’t know anything about the bands at the time of selection. Thanks to the Seattle Times club listings for abundant source material!

In a major plot twist, last week’s mild head cold (which I thought would be over by now) revealed its true nature as a nasty chest cold. It’s bad enough that my list only goes to four instead of five. I don’t have it in me to look for a replacement for a choice that turned out to be an album title, not a band name. If you’re sick, too, please stay in and get lots of rest. Whiskey seems to help. If you’re not, by all means get out there but stay away from anyone with an ugly cough. I hope all members of these bands are in good health:

Aloha Mars

It’s fun to imagine a day when the Red Planet is just another travel destination.

Always Naked

Anyone else hearing the voice of Sam the Eagle? “Even the birds, under their fine feathers, are all …”

Medusa Stare

Don’t look now, but … Oops, too late. Turned to stone again. I hate when that happens.

Wolcott’s Instant Pain Annihilator

When you can’t lay your hands on an old-time remedy containing alcohol, opium, and cannabis, try music! Relieves the misery without the side effects. Might still be habit-forming.

Shameless Self Promotion: In case you didn’t know, I write about a lot more than band names! My young adult wizard fantasy novel Daughter of Magic releases May 22, 2018 from Not a Pipe Publishing. As part of the Year of Publishing Women, in 2018 Not a Pipe is publishing nine books by seven women; I’m honored to be one of them.

Review: Survivors’ Club

· 1 Comment ·

Survivor's Club coverSurvivors’ Club by M. K. Martin (April 2018, Not a Pipe Publishing)

I received a copy of the ebook from the publisher.

Survivors’ Club is a taut bio-thriller with an ensemble of protagonists so lovable you’ll want to take them home, and a threat so dire you’ll have nightmares. It reads as a prelude to an existential threat to humanity, of our own making. Out of control greed, corruption, and scientific hubris conspire to unleash a viral outbreak of monstrous proportions. The Infected become something else that want to infect and/or consume other creatures. This is the nightmare part.

Each chapter is narrated by a revolving ensemble of characters, all well drawn and believable with distinct voices and concerns. The main trio, the Survivors’ Club of the title, are Dr. Marius Tenartier, handsome young science prodigy/awkward nerd with heroic inclinations; Captain John Courage, head of security at Chrysalis BioPharmaceuticals; and Miranda Viers, smart and resourceful high schooler and daughter of Chysalis’ CEO. These three have seemingly little in common but bond over shared trauma and become the warm heart of this book. They pick up some equally appealing sidekicks during the course of increasing peril and ever more dangerous ideas for how to fight back.

The ending sets us up for at least one sequel. I’m looking forward to it—what happened in Argentina???—but I don’t plan to read it right before bed.

 

Survivors’ Club releases on April 17, 2018. Preorder from your favorite independent bookstore by asking for it at the front counter, or order it from one of these fine online booksellers:

Powell’s: HERE

Barnes & Noble: HERE

Amazon: HERE

Kindle: HERE

Want to meet Ms. Martin? Pre-order your copy and bring it to be signed at the launch party on Saturday, April 21 at 6 PM at Steelhead Brewery Eugene. RSVP for the event on Facebook HERE.

Square Pig in a Round Hole-March 31, 2018

· Leave a comment ·

Square PigNaming a band is an act of concentrated creative expression. Square Pig in a Round Hole exists to reward five favorite band names each week. Winners are (usually) listed alphabetically.

Selection is wholly unscientific and subject to whim, with a bias toward wordplay, humor, and local flavor. In most cases, I won’t know anything about the bands at the time of selection. Thanks to the Seattle Times club listings for abundant source material!

April Fool! It’s not March 31st at all. A head cold persuaded me to sleep late yesterday, leaving little time for blogging before we went out to celebrate #1 son’s 27th birthday with a matinee of Black Panther and dinner at The Shambles (both highly recommended.) But behold, an Easter basket of band-name treats:

At the Heart of the World

Mother Earth has molten core, a beating heart.

Dolphin Midwives

We’re not the only mammals who need help to bring forth the next generation.

Mean Grown Ups

Not exactly a band, but on the same bill with past honorees Butt Dial; close enough for me. Kids will regard as “mean” adults who don’t give them their way. That being said, when you are the grown up, remember how it felt and try to deal kindly with the child.

Pissed On

What a difference a preposition makes.

Ruptured Silence

That silence was broken and no mistake. I couldn’t find an online presence, alas.

 

 

Shameless Self Promotion: In case you didn’t know, I write about a lot more than band names! My young adult wizard fantasy novel Daughter of Magic releases May 22, 2018 from Not a Pipe Publishing. As part of the Year of Publishing Women, in 2018 Not a Pipe is publishing nine books by seven women; I’m honored to be one of them.

Square Pig in a Round Hole-March 24, 2018

· Leave a comment ·

Square PigNaming a band is an act of concentrated creative expression. Square Pig in a Round Hole exists to reward five favorite band names each week. Winners are (usually) listed alphabetically.

Selection is wholly unscientific and subject to whim, with a bias toward wordplay, humor, and local flavor. In most cases, I won’t know anything about the bands at the time of selection. Thanks to the Seattle Times club listings for abundant source material!

You know it’s really spring when you have several days of every kind of weather, sometimes all within an hour. Kind of it to be reasonably nice for March for Our Lives, but it still seems like a good weekend for indoor activities, such as going out to hear a band (or maybe a piano recital). These names sprouted up and caught my attention:

Epic Beard Men

Exactly what it says on the label. I appreciate the grandiose description of facial hair. This could be a Blood Bowl team; I’m thinking dwarves.

Mables Marbles

Toy company, children’s book, sculptor’s output, or what Mable is losing? Regardless, it’s fun to say. (I had already chosen this before I discovered that their bass player is none other than Ronnie Rodriguez, who figures prominently in the lyrics of “Tear-Shaped Bruise” by Your Mother Should Know (I play drums) and covered here by Dead Bars.)

Mind Beams

I want this superpower: the ability to project my thoughts without having to find the right words.

Racoma

Of course I will choose one that combines my favorite music genre with the City of Destiny, where I spent my first five adult years. Bonus points for going for the simplest spelling.

Shitty Person

This reminds me of a story my husband tells about being stranded by the side of the road and the sympathetic stranger who stopped to help. He spoke the same two words, “Shit, man,” as greeting, commiseration, and farewell, and is known around our house under his nom de  superhero, ShitMan.

Shameless Self Promotion: In case you didn’t know, I write about a lot more than band names! My young adult wizard fantasy novel Daughter of Magic releases May 22, 2018 from Not a Pipe Publishing. As part of the Year of Publishing Women, in 2018 Not a Pipe is publishing nine books by seven women; I’m honored to be one of them.

Square Pig in a Round Hole-March 17, 2018

· Leave a comment ·

Square PigNaming a band is an act of concentrated creative expression. Square Pig in a Round Hole exists to reward five favorite band names each week. Winners are (usually) listed alphabetically.

Selection is wholly unscientific and subject to whim, with a bias toward wordplay, humor, and local flavor. In most cases, I won’t know anything about the bands at the time of selection. Thanks to the Seattle Times club listings for abundant source material!

I didn’t come up with a list of Irish-themed band names, but I will still wish a Happy St. Patrick’s Day to all who celebrate it! My day will consist of editing and donating blood, but I plan to recover at home with corned beef and beer; celebration enough. Meanwhile, the bands continue to come through:

Death Coach

By happy linguistic accident, either funeral transport or end-of-life doula. A bit of personal serendipity: the book I will be editing this afternoon is book 1 of a trilogy; book 3 might be titled Death’s Midwife.

The Exquisite Taste of Plain Water

“If you’re thirsty, drink water,” Mom would say. Fortunately, we were on a well with excellent water; I grew up baffled by kids who had to have juice or pop. In case you didn’t know, Seattle has pretty great tap water.

Gloom

Yeah, it’s almost spring and the cherry trees are blooming, but don’t forget: Junuary is just around the corner.

(h)ourglasses

008
Our Glasses

They might not wear glasses, but I come from a long line of bespectacled people, back through time. (This group also shares a drummer with previous honoree Razor Clam!)

Mortuary Beach

Don’t look too close at the sand. Those aren’t shells.

 

Shameless Self Promotion: In case you didn’t know, I write about a lot more than band names! My young adult wizard fantasy novel Daughter of Magic releases May 22, 2018 from Not a Pipe Publishing. As part of the Year of Publishing Women, in 2018 Not a Pipe is publishing nine books by seven women; I’m honored to be one of them.

Square Pig in a Round Hole-March 10, 2018

· Leave a comment ·

Square PigNaming a band is an act of concentrated creative expression. Square Pig in a Round Hole exists to reward five favorite band names each week. Winners are (usually) listed alphabetically.

Selection is wholly unscientific and subject to whim, with a bias toward wordplay, humor, and local flavor. In most cases, I won’t know anything about the bands at the time of selection. Thanks to the Seattle Times club listings for abundant source material!

PSA: It’s TIME CHANGE NIGHT! If you’re still analog enough to rely on a clock you have to set, remember to “spring ahead” one hour so you won’t be late for church!!! We will be making an early night of it for this very reason. If you don’t have to get up in the morning, by all means go out and support your local bar band. If you’re still up at 2 am, you can watch DST begin. I’ve heard it’s an unforgettable experience.

The Lone Bellow

This can be a complete sentence about a solitary subject and their loud utterance; or a description of a loud utterance in isolation; or the title of a work about a decrepit organ in its last gasp.

Opposite Armor

After the battle, trade uniforms and go home friends.

Pairanoiseum

When single-celled animals collide with a sense that everyone’s out to get you, you get NOISE. And of course, it’s a two-piece.

Trash Panda

The humor and aptness of the words make this a memorable insult for Starlord to throw at Rocket. Rhythm, repeated vowel sounds, and percussive consonants that crash and thump make it a perfect band name.

The What For

When you’re getting a stern lecture but don’t know why.

Shameless Self Promotion: In case you didn’t know, I write about a lot more than band names! My young adult wizard fantasy novel Daughter of Magic releases May 22, 2018 from Not a Pipe Publishing. As part of the Year of Publishing Women, in 2018 Not a Pipe is publishing nine books by seven women; I’m honored to be one of them.

 

 

Review: The Supernormal Legacy: Book 1 Dormant

· 3 Comments ·

DormantThe Supernormal Legacy: Book 1 Dormant by LeeAnn McLennan (Not a Pipe Publishing, February 2018)

I was predisposed to like this story of a reluctant teen superhero in the Pacific Northwest; it’s my sub-sub-genre, too. McLennan delivers the goods with a relatable young protagonist in a recognizable real-life setting. Dormant provides a nice twist on the origin story, too: rather than being surprised by the sudden advent of powers, Olivia has known about them her whole life and doesn’t want them.

Who wouldn’t want superpowers? But 14-year-old Olivia has good reason. Descended from a long line of “supernormals,” as a child she witnessed her mother’s death in action and blames herself. She rejected her powers and that side of her family, suppressing abilities that should have manifested when she was 13. When a bank robbery compels her to use her abilities, Olivia is drawn back to the “family business” and begins training with her cousins to learn to control her powers and help protect the city of Portland from supernormal bad guys and monsters. (I really loved that her superteam is a group of cousins, a special kind of friend-relative that everyone should have a bunch of to grow up with.) When more than one local landmark is violently destroyed in her presence, Olivia and her family begin to wonder if she’s turning into a villain herself, unconsciously using powers when upset or angry. Meanwhile, she’s trying to keep up her old normal life of school, friends, and boyfriend while avoiding a mean girl who has it in for her; but the universe—and her aunt and uncles—have other ideas. Plenty of action–and humor–keep this from devolving into an angsty-teen emo-fest.

For someone who spends most of the book rejecting or suppressing her powers, Olivia takes great delight in using them. She knows deep down that this is who she is and what she does. I especially liked those scenes, which showed she was still capable of joy. Although she had good reason for turning away from that identity, embracing it seems like her one hope for healing from her early trauma. By the end of Book 1, she has endured more than one tragedy, but has excellent motivation for training and using her abilities. Book 2, Root, comes out in June. Read Book 1 now so you’re ready.

Square Pig in a Round Hole-March 3, 2018

· Leave a comment ·

Square PigNaming a band is an act of concentrated creative expression. Square Pig in a Round Hole exists to reward five favorite band names each week. Winners are (usually) listed alphabetically.

Selection is wholly unscientific and subject to whim, with a bias toward wordplay, humor, and local flavor. In most cases, I won’t know anything about the bands at the time of selection. Thanks to the Seattle Times club listings for abundant source material!

It has been a busy musical and literary week here at Square Pig HQ: spouse’s piano recital last Saturday, memorial reading for Ursula LeGuin on Sunday, free improvisation on Monday, writing group on Tuesday, last-minute rock & roll trouperism at the Skylark on Thursday, Seattle Composers Salon on Friday. It’s like I have a life, in spite of appearances. And I’ve earned a Saturday at home. If you have something left in the tank, consider going out and appreciating a well-named band; perhaps one of these:

Bigger Than Mountains

Oceans. Planets. The sky.

Brianna Skye & the Dark Clouds

I’m a perennial fan of classic X and the Y structure, especially when there’s clever or poetic connection between the name of the band leader and the name of the band. By happy coincidence, my garage-rock fairy tale The Gospel According to St Rage includes an important character named Storm Skye. I wonder if they’re related.

DANGG

A mild swear powered up with a touch of reverb.

Good Old War

Nostalgia is strange. “…wars and lechery, nothing else holds fashion.” (Troilus and Cressida, Wm. Shakespeare)

Riot at the Dojo

Over-the-top fight scene. Everyone bows at the end. (The resident young person was hoping for an exclamation point after “Riot.” You can’t always get what you want.)

Shameless Self Promotion: In case you didn’t know, I write about a lot more than band names! My young adult wizard fantasy novel Daughter of Magic releases May 22, 2018 from Not a Pipe Publishing. As part of the Year of Publishing Women, in 2018 Not a Pipe is publishing nine books by seven women; I’m honored to be one of them.

Square Pig in a Round Hole-February 24, 2018

· Leave a comment ·

Square PigNaming a band is an act of concentrated creative expression. Square Pig in a Round Hole exists to reward five favorite band names each week. Winners are (usually) listed alphabetically.

Selection is wholly unscientific and subject to whim, with a bias toward wordplay, humor, and local flavor. In most cases, I won’t know anything about the bands at the time of selection. Thanks to the Seattle Times club listings for abundant source material!

OK, Winter, you’ve had your say. Having faith in Spring, I planted peas before the snow fell. I also believe in band names; they never fail to cheer me up, no matter the weather. These five warmed the end of a cold week:

Blacklite District

A different and groovier vibe than the other common ___-light district.

The Common Names

I’m a fan of shining a spotlight on the ordinary. In a humorous twist, they seem to be hiding behind a blank wall; they have no obvious web presence.

Icon for Hire

I like that it’s icon rather than hero. An icon is a window to inspiration and could go more than one way. Appropriately, this group is not hiding.

Mythical Vigilante

Who to call when you need to track down the villains of lore and legend.

The Square Feet

Another common concept in the spotlight, also with no obvious web presence. Although square feet might make it hard to dance, claiming squareness probably means you’re the opposite.

Shameless Self Promotion: In case you didn’t know, I write about a lot more than band names! My young adult wizard fantasy novel Daughter of Magic releases May 22, 2018 from Not a Pipe Publishing. As part of the Year of Publishing Women, in 2018 Not a Pipe is publishing nine books by seven women; I’m honored to be one of them.

Review: Shadow Girl

· 1 Comment ·

Shadow GirlShadow Girl by Kate Ristau (Not a Pipe Publishing, February 2018)

I received an advance review ebook from the publisher.

This book begins in a strange place. No, literally, with main character Áine (pronounced ON-ya) crossing from the world she knows into the mysterious and dangerous Shadowlands. I didn’t know where I was or what was happening, but Ristau’s writing is so assured that I could relax and enjoy the ride.

In a neat reversal on the usual fairy story, Áine comes from the Aetherlands, a place of magic and immortality where Oberon and Titania are real, and her crossing brings her into 21st century Ireland, the land of her long-ago birth. She’s searching for answers about her parents and the traumatic events that led to her own disappearance from the human world. That part of the story is serious, sad, and scary. The mood is lightened by Hennessy, the human girl who attaches herself to Áine as sidekick, tour guide, friend, maybe more than friend. There’s a lot of humor to be had in the person-from-another-world plot, but it’s not overdone. The growing affection between the two girls is touching and real; they have chemistry, above and beyond their willingness to sacrifice for each other. This budding relationship is complicated by Áine’s loyalty and fondness for her childhood friend Ciaran, who makes his own dramatic entrance into the story.

Ristau writes dialogue without explicit dialect, yet I could hear the Irish in it. That’s a magic touch. She brings folklore to life in the experiences of a character who feels like a real person. Áine has magic, too, but it’s not reliable and she has to work at it, which adds to the suspense. I was not ready for the (cliffhanger) end to this book and look forward to the next exciting episode.

Available in Kindle, paperback, and hardcover here.