The House Down Cherry Tree Lane
And the books just keep on coming!
The House Down Cherry Tree Lane is a story of murder and intrigue to the 100th power. The story mixes the historic Gild family from a small town in Illinois with a modern day sister family. When they purchase the Gild house from a nervous realtor things are never the same for them. It will make your beliefs about ghosts and paranormal change forever.
Written by Ramona Holliday, narrated by Jeffrey Kafer.
March 27th, 2006 at 8:06 pm
Wow! I just started listening to this today and after the first chapter I was hooked. I am on the third chapter now and I know I will be anxiously awaiting each new chapter. Great writing, intricately woven plot and wonderful narration. I would definitely reccomend this podiobook.
March 30th, 2006 at 2:40 pm
Thanks, Pam! Ramona and I have worked very hard to bring this book to Podiobooks.com. All told, it’s taken about a year to get everything recorded. This is our first podiobook production and it’s been quite a ride. Thanks for joining us!
March 31st, 2006 at 10:12 pm
Thanks, Pam. I started writing this book about 26 years ago and then threw it in the closet. I took it out about 7 years ago and completely revamped it. I am very satisfied with the results and I hope you will enjoy it to the end. Jeff has done a wonderful job in narrating this book and I’m looking forward to working with him in the future.
April 3rd, 2006 at 3:06 pm
At first, I admit, I was dubious that any literary work that was being given away for free could stack up to a real, physical book for sale. This book has totally proven me wrong. Keep up the GREAT work.
April 3rd, 2006 at 3:07 pm
Also, about how frequently are you planning to release new chapters? Just out of curiosity. . .
April 5th, 2006 at 1:31 am
Actually, 22 of the 27 chapters are fully recorded. They just need to be Podiobook-ified and uploaded. From there, they take up to a week for the over-worked Podiobook crew to post them.
That said, I submitted the next 3 chapters on April 3rd, so hopefully, you’ll be seeing them soon!
May 3rd, 2006 at 10:30 am
I enjoyed the narrator’s voice but it was disconcerting to hear a man reading as the main character which is female. Also the use of the word ya’ll for the singular word you, instead of plural (ya’ll = you all) was unsettling. Overall it was an interesting book, definitely an original story.
May 3rd, 2006 at 1:42 pm
I would agree that having a male read a book from a female perspective is not optimal. But we do what we can with limited resources and I hope I was able to convey the characters convincingly.
Thanks for listening and providng feedback, Carol!
May 3rd, 2006 at 4:03 pm
Ok, I only made it into the story two chapters before I couldn’t listen any longer. It sounds like a good plot, but the depth of writiing is weak. Before this book goes to print it meeds copy editing and peer imput to punch it up. Who know, perhaps had I listened longer those things would have been solved in later chapters, but for now this book is redeemable with a moionor re-write.
Also, Since the main character is a woman, there should be a woman narratror.
John
May 4th, 2006 at 9:39 am
I’m sorry you were disappointed by the book, John. Try to remember that these books are all self-published and edited. This is not to dismiss any criticisms you have, certainly a good professional editor could improve all the books here.
As for the narration, I agree. The ideal situation is for a woman to read the narration. Unfortunately, the cost of a professional reader for a book this size would be many thousands of dollars. This is why most of the authors here read the books themselves. I chose to do it at no cost to the author to better help the podiobooks effort.
Thanks for listening, I hope you find other books here that interest you!
May 4th, 2006 at 4:20 pm
Actually I’ve heard professional audio books where a man read a woman’s lines and vice versa. You don’t think anything of it if it’s done right but I see your point.
You have to admit with what little resources they had it turned out pretty good.
May 4th, 2006 at 5:04 pm
John, you can’t tell with only 3 chapters if it was punched up or not. There is plenty of action and suspense later on. You just have to hang with it. I’m sorry that I can’t please every reader or listener. Not even the most famous writer can do that. Stephen King is supposed to be the best writer in the world and he has a lot of books I don’t like.
Why don’t you give it a try on more chapters? You won’t be dissappointed.
May 11th, 2006 at 9:30 am
interesting story line and plot but i was disappointed also in the man reading the narrative. his reading was much too abrubt and angry sounding when acting as the woman - and totally over the top when the character was upset.
and please have somebody else read this book and fix the grammatical errors! those are simply unacceptable.
a good editor could tighten the narrative and elminate redundancies.
overall a good “read”.
lara
May 15th, 2006 at 4:24 pm
What can I say? I tried.
May 15th, 2006 at 4:30 pm
Sorry it didn’t work out for you, Lara. We’ve addressed your concerns in previous posts so I won’t revisit them. I hope you find other Podiobooks to your liking.
May 25th, 2006 at 1:10 pm
I loved the book. If there were grammatical errors, I didn’t notice them. I had no problem with a man narrating a story told from a woman’s point of view. It happens all the time (and vice versa) in “professionally” recorded audiobooks. Personally, I enjoyed the narration.
I would recommend this podiobook to anyone who enjoys mysteries with a bit of supernatural flair. My only frustration was waiting for the next chapter so I could see what happened next.
June 4th, 2006 at 4:47 pm
Thanks, Pam, for the comments. I didn’t think it could have too many mistakes. I had three retired teachers and an editor read it. If there are mistakes, no one has told me. Even my daughter, and she is an English major.
June 14th, 2006 at 12:56 am
I loved this book. I finished it in a few days, while caring for my newborn baby boy. The final revelation was unexpected but satisfying. However everything that happens after the revelation felt a little rushed to me. I am not sure I can explain why, I just felt wanting more at the end.
Overall a great story, and Jeff is a great narrator (listening to Sonic Fiction now).
June 16th, 2006 at 1:37 pm
I enjoyed the book and didn’t mind a male narrator but I too noticed the grammatical errors. They were obvious enough that they jarred me out of the mood when they happened. I don’t think they diminish the story, just something that would be caught if it were being published professionally. I would hope to hear more from this author.
June 16th, 2006 at 3:22 pm
In the published version on Cafepress.com all of the grammar errors have been fixed. It’s a lot smoother read now. Thanks for all the comments. And Jeff IS the greatest in his narration.
June 18th, 2006 at 3:00 pm
As an amature attempt, this was pretty good. The story-telling was a bit choppy, and I had trouble getting in and out of the dream sequence; but overall, you show some potential, Ramona.
Others have told you of the grammer and narration problems, so let me address some of the other specifics. Just keep in mind, I’m only telling you how to make a good try better. Nothing I say is set in stone, and you can blow me off as an idiot if you like. After all, it’s just one opinion.
Characters are made more interesting when they have quirks. Making David tall, dark, and handsome certainly makes him easy to swoon over, but making him tall, dark, handsome with unruly hair (or clumsy, or stuttering, or any of a thousand quirks that don’t ruin the overall effect of “Sir Swoon”) makes him someone you can identify with. You can get to care about the man and it will pull the reader deeper into the story. Same goes with the narrator. She was altruistic to a fault, with no dark thoughts about the sycophants around her. The only quirk she seems to have is an inability to keep her mouth shut when she sees the people around her moving away nervously. That’s not an endearing trait, and you’ll lose some readership because they’ll feel let down by the character they identified with.
There is a point when suspension of disbelief is tested in this novel. A ghost that appears and disappears at whim is no problem. It’s part of the ghost mythos; but having a ghost with the level of solidity of David pushes credulity. Because he is non-corporeal there should be at least some trade-off for when he manifests physically. Making him tire easily when taking corporeal form is an often used–and therefore accepted–tradeoff; making him require time to become corporeal (or loose corporeality) would also work, as well as give more drama to the script. Anything to heighten drama is fair game in novel writing!
Filling back-story with exposition slowed the tension in this piece. Check out Steven King’s book “On Writing” and you’ll find some great tools for doing away with exposition. That’s an overall dy-no-mite book from the Emperor of the Wordsmiths!
The ending was a bit of a black box solution. “Black box” is a term for a solution that doesn’t have any foreshadowing within the story. The “poor little match-stick girl who’s unknown aunt dies and leaves her millions” story is an example. The tension is sidestepped and there is no feeling of release. That feeling is what you need to try for. Having the solution told to our protagonist is disappointing at best. We’re rooting for her to discover it on her own. We want her to succeed on her own and be changed by the experience. We want to almost guess the solution or be absolutely sure of the solution; and then have a different solution to the puzzle show itself–which you do–that is painfully obvious if only we’d paid attention to the teapot on the mantle or the mark in the entryway or any of a hundred clues that were thrown at us–which you don’t do.
Again, you book was readable–believe me, that puts you in the top 50 percent of writers! Still, it reads a bit like a “teen wish fulfilment” story with a black box ending. Just a little bit of polish would really give you a home run!
June 18th, 2006 at 4:13 pm
I don’t know whether to be insulted or what.
I have seen lots of famous stories use your little “black box ending” and they came out just fine. I am one that doesn’t want the reader to see the end coming. That is more satisfying for me.
Have you ever seen Identity or The Village? Those are two stories that had ending nothing to do with the rest of the story. How could you have possibly guessed those endings? That’s how I like to write.
It must have touched something quite a bit in you, though. You almost wrote a book yourself.
June 19th, 2006 at 12:16 am
I apologize if my comments made you feel uncomfortable. I tend to be verbose when explaining complex concepts. It was definately not my intention to insult you. I simply tell the truth as I see it. (bear that in mind… it’s as I SEE IT. Don’t take it as gospel, just opinion.)
I obviously failed to illustrate the black box concept adequately even with the plethora of words, since I consider “The Village” to be the epitome of a surprise ending that doesn’t employ the black box. The entire short story does nothing but alude to the final scene, yet the reality of it–the horror of it–makes it impossible to consider. The tension and release built in that story has been the reason it has been used in English classes for the last 50 years.
I don’t know the other book: “Identity.” Thanks for letting me know about it. I’m eager to find it and have a good read.
June 19th, 2006 at 11:06 am
I think I understand what you’re saying about Black box endings. I’ve never heard that term before, interesting. If I can interject, it sounds like you are talking about your typical twist-ending and the clues that may or may not lead up to the exposition. The film Sixth Sense is a good example. The protagonist thinks he has it figured out and then we find out that the ending is completely different. However, we were given clues all along, but chose to ignore them or were led away from them by the narrative.
The latest book by Harlan Coben, Promise Me, has a contrived ending because it comes out of left field. There’s no way anyone short of a mind-link with the author would have been able to see that ending coming. Is this what you mean by a black box ending? A twist ending with no discernible clues beforehand?
June 19th, 2006 at 1:18 pm
Exactly! Thanks, Jeff, the Sixth Sense is a good example of the twist ending and I agree with you about the black box ending in Promise Me. Well put.
June 19th, 2006 at 1:58 pm
OK, I’m glad I was able to clarify that. And it seems that Ramona’s point was that she wanted it to be a completely surprise ending with no clues. Certainly both opinions are valid and worthy of discussion. Ah, the beauty of literature!
On that note, Ramona contributed to Sonic Fiction (http://www.podiobooks.com/podiobooks/book.php?ID=70), an anthology of short stories. And interestingly enough, her story in that book does foreshadow the end result. So certainly the skill is not lost on her!
Thanks for the lively discussion, Susan.
June 19th, 2006 at 7:08 pm
I wasn’t insulted by your comments. I was just confused. I really wasn’t getting what you were saying.
I know twist endings aren’t for everyone. My son-in-law hates them. He thinks they cheat the reader or movie-goer. He is more of a fan of a Sherlock Holmes type story. I, myself, enjoy getting hit up side the head.:-)
I thought David and Angela didn’t need flaws because for one, David was from the other side. There are tons of stories true and fiction that tell of ghosts being solid. It’s more common than you think. There doesn’t have to be a trade off for this because they don’t have to give up anything to come into this world. Do angels give anything up? Jesus, in his holy for, didn’t give up anything to show up here again and neither did a lot of other Biblicle people. Angela concentrated so much on trying to keep peace in her life that she never thought of bad or good. She just tried to do the best she could. She wasn’t perfect. I never thought I made her that way. I have had several newspaper interviews about the book and so far everyone has loved the way it ends. But to each his own, I guess. That’s what makes freedom in fiction.
Maybe you will receive my other books better. Or maybe you should listen to the book again. It’s possible you might have missed something.
Thanks for the comments. As they say, there is no bad press.:-)
October 14th, 2006 at 10:09 am
this is a very good book. It deserves better treatment. the chapters get cutoff in mid sentence and some chapters are skipped all together. Is this going to improve after I “donate?”
October 18th, 2006 at 2:16 pm
Hi Barbara, it sounds like you are having some technical problems. I assure yout the book is complete without any missing chapters. If you can tell me what client you’re using to download the files and where you’re having issues, I can try to troubleshoot. But as I said,t he book is complete for everyone, regardless of donations.
October 18th, 2006 at 4:16 pm
Thank you, Barbara.
I have been told that so many times. My only problem is that I don’t have the money to promote it. But I am glad you enjoyed it to such a degree.Thanks again.:-)
January 15th, 2007 at 2:10 am
I have listened to the book, which I enjoyed. I do agree that it is a light treatment, but sometimes that’s just what I’m looking for. I had no trouble with the narration. I agreed with some of Susan points, ei. the characters being “too perfect”, I like as much humanity in characters as can be realized on the “page”, flaws and all. Overall, a nice “read”, thanks Ramona and Jeff.
January 30th, 2007 at 4:31 pm
This book shocked me.
The opening tirade against people suffering from drug and alcohol addictions due to laziness presented one of the strongest themes in the book.
The narrator’s sister was an alcoholic by choice. When she was done with that phase, she said she was never drinking again and apparantly never did. She represented the paragon of self-control.
The narrator responded rudely to the welcoming gift of champagne, cattily assuming the giver should know they “don’t do alcohol” in the house. Champagne is a generic and inoffensive gift unless the giver explicitly knows the prohibition of the receiver.
I pity any reader who has a friend or relative who suffers from drug or alcohol addictions. The coarse, unsympathetic treatment of these diseases maligns those who legitimately suffer and does a disservice to the education about and understanding of these diseases.
The narrator was shallow, bitchy, one-dimensional, ignorant and uncivil.
There was no character development.
The plot was incomprehensible, resolving its unexplained peculiarities in a bizarre and incomplete sweep.
The chapter headings by Meat Loaf’s songwriter added an air of incalculable frivolity.
I am sure there are worse books out there, but I have not been so unfortunate as to have found them.
Keep up the good work. I will recommend this book as a warning to anyone considering self-publishing.
January 31st, 2007 at 6:33 pm
Well, since you think that I don’t understand things, let me explain a few things.
The main character went through the same things that I did when I was young. When I was 8, my mom went to work and I soon took over the household chores. By the age of 10, I was cooking and cleaning. There was no after school activities because I had to help my parents. Later I cared for my kids and raised my nephew. Until I became disabled, I still appreciated being able to do these things plus yard work. I mentioned this in the part where Angela cleaned up the cemetery. It was a reflection of what I could do before becoming disabled. I could put down a floor, build walls, paint a house, you name it. Now, I can only write. I can’t read because my eyes are bad. That’s why I like audio books. Writing is my only outlet.
On the part of not understanding alcoholism, I do. My brother has been an alcoholic since he was 15. He is now 51. The characters of Peggy, Cindy, and Linda are a “split” if you will of him. Linda–he was nice when he was young. Cindy–He became a drunken dope addict that had been through every program to quit that I know of either court ordered or not. Peggy–He couldn’t keep a mate if he wanted to because of his terrible temper. He is in the middle of losing his daughter because of his temper.
I know about self control and what alcohol can do. My brother brought a living terrible presence in our lives that made us afraid and sick. My kids still remember the nights we ran from him during the night to get away from his tirades.
I am so sick of people saying my characters are un-flawed and I write in the simplest form. Maybe I do, but so does Clint Eastwood. He cuts the fat off of a story, so the writer or whatever doesn’t get all caught up in descriptions and flash backs and all that other clutter that make a story put you to sleep. I want my stories to be read BEFORE bedtime and not the reason the person GOES to sleep.
I don’t expect everyone to slobber all over my writing, but the next time you put down your judgmental hand, you might want to do some research on what people know and don’t know.
February 2nd, 2007 at 4:09 pm
Wow, Louisa, apparently you have no problem dealing out harsh criticism in the faceless world of the internet. I’m wondering if you would have been so rude if you were face-to-face with Ramona. I’m assuming we shouldn’t look for a donation from you any time soon.
You assume that because the main character had opinions about alcohol abuse, that the author holds those same views. Think about the implications of that. Does that mean that the author of Silence of the Lambs has cannibalistic tendencies? Or the writers on the Sopranos are secretly mafioso wannabes? Probably not. Most books are written from the perspective of the main character, not necessarily the author. Perhaps this is one of the flaws that the character has.
And even if these views do coincide with Ramona’s (I don’t know if they do), why is her opinion less valid than yours? Why is it not understandable for some people to think that those who have problems with addiction are somewhat responsible for their own plight? Calling alcoholism a “disease” tends to remove all the personal responsibility from the issue. You don’t “catch” alcoholism like you do a cold. You become an alcoholic because of your actions (along with possible genentic dispositions).
Obviously you’ll disagree with the above statements. Kudos to Ramona for crafting a character you dislike so much as to post to this blog. if the character was flat an uninteresting, you wouldn’t care about her “opinion”. But obviously you do care, because you’re so angry. But isn’t the point of literature to get people to think and talk about issues? Doesn’t controversy in opinion make for more stimulating debate? By hurling insults and making personal attacks on Ramona and her efforts, you’ve blocked any real chance of dialogue on this issue. You’ve lost your chance to learn about what others might think and, more importantly, your chance to change some minds.
February 2nd, 2007 at 5:46 pm
Thanks, Jeff, for your kind words. This so-called opinion of my almost lifetime work actually made me cry a lot. I am glad to see you came to my defense as well as your own. Your work on this book was outstanding and I look forward to working with you again. I feel when they insult this particular book, they insult you as well.
Even though this so-called opinion rattled me, it will in no way make me quit writing. As my daughter told me, it was probably done on a drunken drive-by anyway.
Thanks, again, Jeff. You really made me feel A LOT better.:-)
February 3rd, 2007 at 8:55 am
Since the only authors you mentioned are Clint Eastwood and Stephen King, I am no longer rendered aghast by the writing quality.
You can’t expect a writer with such influences to write the kind of book discerning people like to read any more than you can expect a child with vegan parents to grow up and work at Ruth’s Chris.
If you want to talk about writing in “the simplest form” the name you really want to drop is E. Hemingway.
And your daughter, English major as she may be, is no substitute for a professional copy editor. I have edited as a hobby since getting my bachelor’s in English, but I would never profess to catch every error. There are grammar rules I don’t know. I would certainly never be the last word on a manuscript bound for publication. My amateurism would be an insult to the author.
When you write a book, you put a big chunk of yourself out there for people to love, hate, criticize, learn from or mock. It sounds like the issues you wrote about are still to close to your heart for you to take negative responses to the book.
I’m not saying you are a bad person or that your experiences are worthless.
I am saying that you are a bad writer and your writing does not show the reader your experiences.
Authors get bad reviews all the time. Even great authors get them. Great authors, however, do not respond personally to their bad reviews with a sob story about their childhoods. You are making excuses about your book. Shame on you.
February 3rd, 2007 at 6:51 pm
I still don’t understand you, Louisa. You are one big contradiction.
“I’m not saying you are a bad person or that your experiences are worthless.I am saying that you are a bad writer and your writing does not show the reader your experiences.”
You say you didn’t insult me, but you out and out did. You did nothing to critique. You insulted. Out and out insulted. There was no, “Well, a better thing to do would be..” or ” I liked this, but you could have done this….” It was, “You write crap. You think crap and you are crap.” That was your review, which was NOT a review. I don’t care what you say. READ MY LIPS, “YOU INSULTED ME AND MY WORK.” And, I feel, you insulted Jeff’s work as well. He put the acting part of the story in. I think Jeff is a genius, but I don’t EVEN want to know what you think.
You really don’t know writing if you think the likes of Stephen King or Clint Eastwood are crap. Eastwood is an Oscar winner for acting, directing, and writing over and over for over 50 years. King has everything he writes made into a first class movie. He has even had some of his stories win awards and his movies have been nominated and WON Oscars. If I’m not supposed to use work like that as inspiration, then what do I do? You think you know so much.
And I am not sobbing about my childhood. It happened that way. I don’t care. I just put it in the book to FORM Angela’s background. You are supposed to know, but don’t, that writing is like sculpting. You sculpt your characters from personal life situations or situations you know about. Whether they whine, mope, laugh, cry, is what you see in life. For example, you see an old lady on a park bench and think of what she might be thinking. That makes a character for a story. It’s like that, for me anyway. What else would one draw on for inspiration if it’s not life experiences or others’ work? You take that away and you have nothing left.
If you insist upon taking the “Simon Cowell” point of view for critiquing, then don’t come back here until you have constructive things to say. “I hate you and/or it!” is not a critique. Or “You suck!” is not a critique either. If I did anything wrong, it was probably feeding you as a troll. I also think you need a new hobby and/or a new degree. And point the “Shame on you.” crap your way. You should be ashamed for the way you are acting here on this blog.
February 3rd, 2007 at 9:52 pm
Oscars are not book awards.
Granted, Stephen King has two books–The Stand and It–in the Modern Library’s Reader’s List of the Top 100 Novels. He has none in the Board’s List. Don’t cry: Clint Eastwood didn’t make either list.
Me? I am a Board’s List reader. I am a snooty reader. I am a picky reader. I am a crabby reader. I am elitist. I am the kind of reader who would not read your book under any circumstances other than the following: it was free, I had a seventeen-hour drive ahead of me, and no one would find out. I want other people to judge me by the covers of the books I read. I want my friends to question me, maybe beat me up a little–just a couple punches or a shallow stabbing–if they saw me with a romance novel, a mystery story, or a fantasy. I have protection against books like yours. This is why I thought it was so bad. I simply haven’t been exposed to the poverty of writing you employ.
I take reading seriously.
Jeff did a dandy job on the narration. The characters were distinct and consistent throughout the reading. The pacing was a good, and emotional levels held true to the action. The Southern girl sounded a little like a tranny when I first heard her, but I’m very interested in trannies and it does not take much to tip my hat in that direction.
I didn’t explain my reaction about alcoholism properly. Given that I heard the book only once and I do not have a copy to go back to for citations, please do not expect thesis-quality explication here.
That said, my impression was that two different characters–the narrator and the psychologist–expressed the same opinion. If the narrator alone held that opinion it would make sense. Her sister’s behavior would have formed that opinion. Besides, the drunk girl in the story fits into this idea, too. She drinks because she is lazy and quits when she feels like it. Thus the ‘drunks are lazy’ opinion is not just a quirk of a single character, it seeps up from the author’s own opinion.
Thank you, Jeff, for your response. You’re right that lcoholism is not contagious, but people can be predisposed to it and in some cases will-power alone is not enough to overcome it. One may get there on his own, but it is pitiless to think that he can get out on his own.
I don’t think Thomas Harris ate people–but I may have suspected he wanted to had several characters voiced their support of it in scenes throughout the book. “The Sopranos” is a TV show, not a book. I don’t look at TV.
I insulted your work. I insulted this one book you wrote. I did not insult you. (In fact, you look great. Have you lost weight? Maybe it’s just that great haircut you have. It looks fab.)
If you cannot separate the two, you should not be publishing. Writing is theraputic. Maybe your writing would serve you just as well if it were private.
And the Simon Cowell schtick? His whole purpose is to tell crappy singers that they’re crappy. Then the crappy singers say they’re great, and America laughs at their delusions. How apt a metaphor.
Thank you, faceless internet, for allowing me this coruscant pleasure.
February 3rd, 2007 at 11:49 pm
I get it now. I would bet dollars to donuts your real name is Trixie Geisler. That’s it, isn’t it?
How would you know whether or not I’ve lost weight? It fits. The swallowed-a-dictionary writing, the Terminator stance. It all fits. Wow, small world. Still stalking Dean?
I think you are really jealous of this book. You wish you could write like this. That’s the problem. You actually think it’s good and YOU can’t admit it. This is just too cool.
If you had to stand in the same room with me, you’d have to say you love it. You’d be cornered into admitting it. You really love this book. That’s why you didn’t quit listening to it. You had to finish it to see what happened next. And the notes? The same. You have to study my style. Oh, man. 
This is way cool. 
“It can’t be reasoned with. It shows no pity or remorse. And it will not stop until you are dead.”-T1
By the way, I reported you to Podiobooks for your harassment. Keep flaming on.
February 4th, 2007 at 9:55 am
You’ve found the one compliment I have to give: I did listen to the whole book because I was curious as to what would happen next.
I love the smiling faces. I think John Steinbeck–you may have heard of him, he was nominated for an Academy Award–used those in “Of Mice and Men” but they had to be cut out due to limited printing resources.
February 6th, 2007 at 5:47 pm
ok, ok settle down kids. This is not the place for silly flame wars.
Louisa, we get it. You didn’t like the book. But since Ramona is not trying out for American Idol or trying to dazzle the world with her writing ability or trying to land a $3 million book deal, perhaps the Simon Cowell approach is a bit cruel. Are you going to go to your local talent show and boo the performers? Do you harass the members of a high school play until they cry? Ramona is doing this as a hobby, so maybe you should cut her some slack. There are plenty of other books here at Podiobooks.com. I encourage you to check some of them out.
Ramona, she didn’t like the book. Not everyone is going to. Despite how insulting the words might have been and no matter how personal the book might be, the insults were directed at the book and not you. Try not to take it too personally. Water off a duck’s back, my dear. We’ll wow em next time with Not of This World.
Everyone, move along, nothing to see here. These are not the droids you are looking for…
February 7th, 2007 at 9:38 pm
Hi Ramona
As I said before, I liked the book. I appreciate how difficult it must be to write a book, God knows I couldn’t put out anything passed “It was a dark and rainy night…”.
I love that there are all kinds of books available on Podiobooks. Sometimes I want a light escape like this one, and sometimes I want to rip into something like “Ancestor”, it really depends on how I feel at the time.
Just because these audiobooks are offered at no charge does not diminish their value. I have a feeling that many of the books offered here will be published traditionally one day.
Don’t bother about nasty comments. There’s always a heckler or two in every crowd. Accept the compliments and honest criticisms as they are intended and ignore the nasty people, who only wish to feel powerful. My mother has a response of fancy words for people like Louisa:
“If you insinuate that I should tolorate such diabolical insult from a microscopical specimen of your ilk, you may presume that your presumption is precisely incorrect; therefore, making you intoxicated by the exuberance of your own verbosity.”
Take care,
Joan
February 9th, 2007 at 10:20 pm
“Everyone, move along, nothing to see here. These are not the droids you are looking for…”
That is so funny, Jeff. And thanks Joan for the kind words. I in no way plan on stopping my writing. I love it and it is one thing that I don’t care how it turns out as long as it does in an orderly manner. I had said before that I don’t expect people to slobber all over my writing and I don’t. It is a lesson learned and I won’t be caught off guard next time. I’ll take it a whole lot better. I promise. As Jeff said, just wait until my next book comes out. I can truly say there’s nothing like it.:-)
February 22nd, 2007 at 2:56 pm
I enjoyed listening to this book. However, It felt like there was a chapter missing somewhere around or after 19 - It was a surprise when a comment was made about where they discovered David’s body.
March 5th, 2007 at 11:19 pm
Hi Ramona and Jeff,
I downloaded the book from iTunes, and listened to the whole thing in three days. Loved it! I left a five-star review there and ordered the sequel from CafePress. Can’t wait to read it.
When I found this response page, I was disappointed to see negative reviews and hateful criticism. If I may add my two cents:
1) I loved the twist ending. As with “The Sixth Sense,” it made me reevaluate earlier aspects of the plot in a new light.
2) Sure, there were a few grammar/editing mistakes, but who among us is perfect? If your daughter and three teacher friends didn’t catch them, it was only because they were too engrossed in the plot.
3) I’m from Texas and have a bachelor’s degree in speech-language pathology and audiology, so I therefore feel fully qualified to tell you that “y’all” can be singular or plural depending on the regional dialect of the speaker.
3) I didn’t mind hearing a man’s voice speaking Angela’s narration. Ever listen to the Harry Potter audiobooks? The male narrator produces a different voice for every character, including the females, to much the same effect.
4) I felt the alcoholism was sufficiently explained. I have one in the family too, so I get it.
5) *SPOILER* Thanks for explaining that all dogs really do go to heaven. I actually cried during the final chapter when Carolyn told Angela that the dogs were with her. (I used to work as a vet tech, so I’ve seen a lot of good dogs leave this earth.)
6) As for elitism, someday when the Angela King books are a bestselling series, I’ll be able to say with great snobbery that I discovered them back when the author was unkown to all but a few internet fans.
I’m partial to ghost stories, and this was a good one. Kudos to you both, and keep ‘em coming.
Jessica
March 8th, 2007 at 7:43 pm
Thanks, so much Jessica for your very nice comments. I enjoy working with Jeff. I think he is under rated as a narrator. He should be in a higher class, but we’re working on it.:-) If you like this book, you will probably love our next project. We’re both excited about it. Keep an eye out for it here.
I enjoyed writing the book because a lot of it is close to my heart. Some of the events are taken from real events from family stories. The house is actually based on two houses. I think the only one that isn’t a composite character is the dog.:-)
Yeah, I’m the same way you are with Jeff. When he’s rubbing elbows with Robin Williams and Owen Wilson, then I can say, “I knew you when….”
Thanks again for the great comments. You made my day.
March 16th, 2007 at 2:24 pm
The House Down Cherry Tree is the first book i`ve ever downloaded it was GREAT, I`m in my late 50s and thought that MP3 Players were only for the kids, Wish i`d got one years ago. I give it 5 stars!
May 8th, 2007 at 8:08 am
I listen to audio and podiobooks all day long at work, and I have to say this is one of the best Ive ever heard. Its so good that I keep telling friends and loved ones about it, and wish it were in print so I could give my mom ( ipod resistant) a copy. Thank you so much, you guys are so talented!
May 8th, 2007 at 2:30 pm
Thanks for the compliments, Gia. You can get a hard bound copy of this or any of Ramona’s other books at http://www.cafepress.com/ramonasrags
December 7th, 2007 at 5:31 pm
I’m posting this despite my distaste at criticizing another person’s work publicly. The reviews on the front page make it seem like a must read but with all respect, it’s not.
This podiobook has really disappointed me.
I’ve had some minor, internal complaints with a few other podcasts because of diction or due to the narrator’s lack of enthusiasm while reading but this is the first that has actually disappointed me. You had a great idea in the plot. It was a story I wanted to hear. I found it a bit odd you chose a man to narrate a story written from the female first person but he has a good voice so a few episodes in I didn’t think about it anymore. The problem is the writing. A few times I thought the narrator had flubbed a word here and there but by episode five I realized the problem was in the manuscript. I’m not just talking about editing mistakes. There are inconsistencies in the story from the beginning. The relationships and dialog between the sisters are flat. The characters themselves are lacking in dimension. The emoting of the characters ranges from irrational to nonsensical. The characters’ language is pedestrian, but it’s not done for effect as it’s the consistent theme outside the “quotes” as well. The overall voice of the story -not the narrator, but the writer’s “voice”- is adolescent at best.
In one of the first two episodes you tell the story of Peggy’s husband and pack in all of these derogatory things about him to set the plot for why she was suddenly single and needs to lean on her sister. He’s an unemployed, drunken, wife-beater- a common and sadly, realistic type of ex-husband. Then you go on to say, after all the negative build-up, that he’s gay and left her for another man. That’s the most preposterous thing I’ve heard in a long time and was clearly thrown in there just to make him seem more “evil” and repulsive in the eyes of narrow minded people. A gay man who’s comfortable enough with his sexuality to leave his wife for man, especially one so visible as a wealthy real estate tycoon, is not the type of man who is suffering from the kind of oppression and self-loathing that would cause him to beat his wife. The other ridiculous aspect of this is Peggy staying with him and taking his abuse for so long, because in your words, “he’s so handsome”. Battered wives don’t stay with their husbands because they’re nice to look at when they’re no hitting you. There are many psychological reasons but if you ask a woman who is currently living through it 9 times out of 10 she’ll tell you she’s staying out of love. Not just her love for him but her belief that he loves her despite his actions. You’ve trivialized something that plagues women around the world for the sake of telling a story. Not even telling a the whole story, just to introduce a character. So here’s Peggy introduced. She’s not weak or timid and she doesn’t bat an eye at her sister Cindy getting drunk and beating her closest sister with a broken champagne bottle, something that would be a trigger for a person who’d lived through the marriage you described. Yet somehow by episode 11 she’s raging and ready to walk out on Angela because she’s talking about ghosts. As has already been mentioned, your oblivious inclusion of opinions about addiction only serve to underline the adolescent nature of the writing. The point of view the story was written from is inexperienced, inconsiderate and narrow. The writing is empty, redundant and barely mediocre in it’s expression. In reading some of your comments above I’m surprised to see that you had other people read this through for grammatical errors, I assure you there are many.
One last thing, in episode 11 the narrator is chewing gum or the like while recording the podcast, bad form.
December 7th, 2007 at 9:20 pm
Your points are valid. But I was not chewing gum while narrating.
December 7th, 2007 at 10:08 pm
You have some valid points. But I can assure you I was NOT chewing gum…
April 29th, 2008 at 4:19 pm
I thought this was a very good book and I really enjoyed the narration. Pay no attention to any of the snobs or their critics. Their just bored old snooty’s with nothing more to do then insult some elses hard work and passion. As for Onion Petal..The narrator was swallowing..not chewing gum..I think maybe his mouth was dry and please keep your opinions about spousal abuse to yourself, I’ve been there and you obviously are basing your stream of crap on numerous episodes of Oprah and Dr Phil! Nine times out of ten a woman stays because she feels trapped! Or frightened! and what makes you think a gay man is incapable of abuse??? and one more thing, what’s with all the question marks????? Enough said this is obviously upsetting me…I LIKE THE BOOK AND THE READER!!! Hope to hear alot more from you Ramona and Jeff!!!
May 9th, 2008 at 3:51 pm
Thanks for the kind words, Kimberly. Due to external issues, this is our only collaboration together. However, you can find more of Ramona’s writings at her website.
May 18th, 2008 at 5:22 pm
The book itself was quite interesting, however considering the main character is female, it would have been nice to have a female narrator. Why was a male chosen as a narrator?
May 18th, 2008 at 10:42 pm
This topic has been beaten to death already in the previous comments. Bottom line, yes the ideal narrator would have been female, but many other factors went into play here, including budget, availability, experience, etc.
Regardless, this is a moot conversation. Ramona and I have severed our professional relationship, so future titles, if any, won’t be narrated by me.
September 22nd, 2008 at 7:59 am
Good lord. I’ve never seen such behavior on podiobooks.com!! Ramona, don’t let that baiters get to you. You don’t have to respond to ANY posts here, good, bad or indifferent. You can’t do anything about what’s already happened, but after your next book comes out, just read… don’t post back. Take the good for the good and try to learn from the bad and just go on.
Good luck, dearie.
September 22nd, 2008 at 8:01 am
“don’t let baiters”
can’t even write one paragraph without a mistake!!
October 5th, 2008 at 3:42 pm
What a great story! I find that Jeffrey does a fantastic job of narrating. I also hope to hear many more books by Ramona. A most enjoyable experience!
November 8th, 2008 at 10:53 pm
I personally loved the book.
To Ramona and Jeff, thank you for brightening up my days. I really appreciate this free Podiobook!!
My one and only comment is that I’m not at all sure which has been more exciting, the book or the nail biting commentary of all the “helpful” listeners.
Criticism in the manner in which it has been posted here is NOT constructive only destructive.
If you don’t like the book, delete it, don’t listen. See, simple.