Review of 'Dreamwalker' by James Oswald

Dreamwalker by James Oswald


It's been a (very) long time since I've read any fantasy fiction and I only got Dreamwalker as a freebie for my Kindle on the strength of having enjoyed the author's Inspector McLean Mysteries so much. I'm so glad I did as I have really enjoyed discovering the world and characters that James Oswald has created. The parallel lives of Sir Benfro and Errol and their adventures have really captivated my imagination and I can't wait to see how their fates intertwine, so have already purchased Books 2 and 3 of the trilogy. The book is beautifully written and I loved the snippets inserted from various ancient tomes of dragons and men at the start of each chapter. You'll love it if you like fanatasy fiction and worth a try even if you think you don't!

View all my reviews

September Sales on my Zazzle.com Store (Kaleidoscope Kreations)

I've had another good month for sales on Zazzle.com from my KALEIDOSCOPE KREATIONS store. One order was from a customer in Australia for 24 assorted postcards, another for a wallclock to a customer in California and I've sold another tie to a customer in Michigan.

I was also delighted to sell a case for one of the new iPhone 5 mobile phones to a customer in Connecticut, USA. I had only just put up a load of cases for this model when I sold this one and she picked one of my favourite designs as well!

My other big sale was 3 throw pillows/cushions with a monogram design to a customer in La Habra, DE (not sure where that is!.
Smaller sales did well too, I sold several magnets with Rudolf Valentino, Theda Bara and Mae Murray designs to a customer in Toronto, Canada, and a customer in Texas bought a selection of my kaleidoscope designs on Greetings cards.

I have also been busy adding new designs and products to my VINTAGE VARIETY store, which is quite an eclectic collection of vintage material, old adverts, engravings, fashion, movies etc, anything that catches my eye and I like enough to add. Hopefully people will like my selections enough to buy them :-) So please check it out.

Kaleidoscope Kreations Monogram Letter A Pillow by CharmaineZoe
View other Kaleidoscope Pillows

Kaleidoscope iPhone 5 Case by CharmaineZoe
Shop for additional iPhone 5 cases at Zazzle

Kaleidoscope Kreation No.SC2 Clock by CharmaineZoe
Browse other Kaleidoscope Wall Clocks

Swirling Leaves Tie by CharmaineZoe
Create your own neck ties with zazzle.com

Grandson Jonah Comes to Visit

Had my little grandson Jonah to stay again last night and we had a great time. He's a lovely little boy who's been through a bad time with leukemia, but seems to have come through all the chemotherapy etc ok and actually started school this week, so he was chattering away ten to the dozen telling us all about it. I let Grampy put him to bed and read him a story last night :-) I've got him ensconced in front of some Tom & Jerry YouTube videos on Grampy's laptop at the moment while we have breakfast :-) He's off with his Mum & Dad in a fortnight to Disneyland Florida thanks to the Wish Upon A Star Charity, so looking forward to that with great excitement.

August Sales on my Zazzle.com Store

Quite a few multiple sales this month for things like greetings cards, postcards, stickers and magnets, to customers in the U.S., Netherlands, Germany and the U.K. I had one customer in Michigan purchase a tie and then return and buy another one a week later. So he obviously liked my designs. I love selling ties, as they are such personal items and the thought of someone on the other side of the world walking around wearing my designs gives me a real thrill, and is such a compliment to my work. I have loads of lovely designs at THE TIE RACK. So thanks Harry and to all my customers this month.

Golden Swirls Tie by CharmaineZoe
View more Kaleidoscope Ties

So what's new at the store this month? Well, I've been working on some of the new products now available from Zazzle. These include clocks, pitcher jugs, teapots and playing cards, as well as cases and covers for iPad's, iPod's, Kindles and Laptops etc., - so if your looking for something a bit different to decorate your home or electronics then check the store out at KALEIDOSCOPE KREATIONS, where there are over 3,000 products to explore. New customers always welcome :-)

July Sales on my Zazzle.com Store

This month sales have mostly been American again (most of my customers are in the U.S.) but also had sales in Australia, Germany and what I think is my first sale to Finland. Most sales have consisted of smaller items such as greetings cards, and postcards, stickers, magnets buttons/badges, and keychains, but also sold a hat (the Finland sale) and a big canvas print of the boys (Pepsi and Max), which went to a customer in Florida and a bumper sticker. So to all my customers, many thanks :-)

So what's new at Kaleidoscope Kreations? Well, the really big news is my new Pillow throw/Cushion Dept. I now have hundreds of gorgeous designs to choose from at http://www.zazzle.com/charmainezoe/gifts?cg=196221954003498549. These are split over 6 different collections to make it easier to browse through them.

My New Cushion Shop Opens!

I had my lovely little Grandson stay over with his Mummy and her friend for the weekend. We were going to the Company BBQ this afternoon but got some sad news which meant we didn't go in the end. My Son in Law had gone up to visit his Grandfather who he hadn't seen in years but who was seriously ill. Sadly he died this morning but at least Dan had a cahnce to say goodbye and know that his Grandad had not forgotten him and recognised him, and was even able to do a bit of reminiscing with him before he died. Caiti of course wanted to be at home when Dan got back to be able to comfort him so they decided to leave early and we made the decision to forgo on the BBQ as none of us were in the mood. We just made ribs with grilled sausage in buns and a salad for lunch before they left, which was easy and suited everyone.

While they were amusing themselves watching the TV I was working away on my PC. I wanted to bring my Zazzle Store up to speed with some of the new products that are now available, so spent some time adding some great designs to a load of cushions and pillows. These are now available in my new 'store within a store'. Below are some of the many designs available, just click on the link underneath to visit and see the rest.

VISIT MY NEW CUSHION STORE AT KALEIDOSCOPE KREATIONS

Support a new album all about Science!

Visit their KICKSTARTER Page to help these guys out.

From the creator of SYMPHONY OF SCIENCE comes an original folk/rock album about the most awe-inspiring scientific ideas.

Terra Lumina is a new musical project by John D Boswell, aka melodysheep, the creator of Symphony of Science, and Will Crowley, fellow musician and collaborator for the band Hudson.

We're looking to create and publish an album of songs covering a topic that is under represented in today's musical scene - science. John has pioneered a new form of inspirational and educational music through his Symphony of Science music video series, which has garnered millions of views and inspired thousands of people to pursue scientific interests; Will Crowley is a scientifically educated multi-instrumentalist and has worked for years in the public school system as a math and science educator.

The album promises to be an epic collection of songs about topics that are endlessly fascinating, yet rarely represented musically. Themes we want to cover include photosynthesis, gravity, supernovae, natural selection, and much more.

We need your help to fund the creation of this album. The money will be going to studio time, hiring additional musicians, artwork, and printing physical copies, shirts and posters.

We have worked together in the past creating concept albums under the name Hudson. Please take a listen to those two albums to get a taste of what we have done previously. We are aiming to make a series of songs that carry over the inspirational content from Symphony of Science; it will be a mix of folk/rock with some electronic thrown in.

Please consider supporting us in this unique endeavor. We will be striving to create something as epic and inspiring as possible, with educational value.

To the makers of music - all worlds, all times! Thank you!

John & Will

Kaleidoscopes for Fun

Click on pic to shuffle stack

Hooked on Pinterest!

Well peeps, it's been quite a while since I posted anything. I have only a one word excuse and that word is Pinterest.com For those of you not familiar with this website I can only describe it as addictive. It allows you to 'pin' pictures and graphics (and now YouTube videos!) that you find on the web, or on other users Boards to Boards of your own. You can build up huge collections of pins and boards (I now have 450 Boards, & nearly 75,000 pins!). Visit my Boards at Pinterest.com/charmainezoe

Each pin links back to the webpage it was originally pinned from, a useful reference resource and a great way to find exciting new websites and blogs.