Dr John Reynolds
​​​-Author-Teacher-Songwriter-Broadcaster-
​FOLLOW ME
BOOKS
Starblaze Publications
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I have written five books, and my wife Bess has written one. They have all had positive comments from readers and reviewers. To view and/or purchase, please click on the Amazon links beside each book.
Hot off the Press!
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Low Flying
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John's new novel, set in New Zealand, Russia and Afghanistan. A story of violence, betrayal and love, set against a backdrop of smuggling in light aircraft.
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Extracts from BooksGoSocial reviews:
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"Full of deceit, suspense and unexpected action."
"The lazy days of Auckland summer mask the storm that's brewing."
"With great character building and easy-to-read writing style."
"Intriuiging historical background."
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Check the following links:
Paperback: https://tinyurl.com/y3azfvkn
eBook: https://tinyurl.com/yzajuqje
Like a personally signed copy?
Email John at: jbess@xtra.co.nz
Phone: +64 021 430500
$15.00 plus p&p
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Now an audiobook!
Listen to John narrating his Low Flying audiobook.
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An exciting new young adult fantasy!
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Kidnapped from Zandrus City by the evil Voodons, Princess Kimnos is desperate to escape from their prison, deep in the depths of Voodon Valley.
She knows the city's inhabitants are too terrified of the creature's powers to rescue her. Is there no escape? Will she forever be a Voodon slave?
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OnlineBookClub reviews:
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"A delightfully entertaining teenage fantasy filled with adventure, rivalry and menace."
Author Vicky Adin
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"The writing flow was smooth and articulate and created a good reading experience."
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"I love the role music played in this story. It also created an excellent opportunity to use some amusing puns during conversations."
"I give it 4 out of 4 stars. I would recommend it to young teens who like fantasy and musically-themed books."
Take a journey to the Valley of the Voodons by clicking the following links:
Ebook: https://amzn.to/3maoFTN
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Print: https://amzn.to/3noxsRu
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If you'd like a personal copy signed by John, email him at: jbess@xtra.co.nz
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Writing Your First Novel
A book for aspiring and experienced writers
Reviews
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"Writing Your First Novel is based on John’s writing experiences .
He has created a practical guide for aspiring writers that
succinctly covers all the basic questions to which a new writer
needs answers. Using examples from John's novels and the
works of a variety of international fiction writers, the book
covers key areas such as Making a Start, Plot, Characters,
Dialogue, Love and Sex, Marketing and Selling."
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"This is a clearly written, practical and highly readable text."
"A unique aspect is the chapter on “Love and Sex”, not often
in such manuals and one that I guarantee will amuse and
be of benefit to many writers. John Reynolds has a knack
for being able to deconstruct the difficult aspects and
make the main issues simple and clear for the aspiring novelist.
"Authors of genres other than fiction could well benefit
from this work. There is something for all new authors to
get their teeth into here and it is a terrific text for the beginner"
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"I was really impressed by how succinct the author was able to
make this book. There were no superfluous sentences. It is obvious that Reynolds paid attention to detail when writing this book."
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"Reynolds' does not pretend to be the perfect writer. He
shares his mistakes and admits to having asked others for constructive criticism with regards to his writing. He also acknowledges that there is no one set method to writing a
novel. I believe that all writers would relate to
Writing Your First Novel."
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Purchase Writing Your First Novel from
Amazon https://goo.gl/YU1CPU
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See John expand his ideas on these Youtube videos:
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Interview with Gerard Smith "The Beat Goes On"
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The opening sentence - on YouTube
Creating compelling characters - on YouTube
​View interview with author - on YouTube
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Robyn Hood - Outlaw Princess
An exciting novel with an historical twist!
Purchase it NOW direct from Amazon:
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Click the following link: https://goo.gl/MJloj1
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This young adult novel Robyn Hood: Outlaw Princess is based
on his first rock musical, with the plot and characters
considerably expanded. It tells the story of rebellious
secondary school girl, Robyn Howard, who dreams of
becoming a famous historical figure. As a result of a violent thunderstorm she is transported back into medieval England, f
inding herself in Sherwood Forest as Robyn Hood, the leader
of a band of outlaw women. After leading her outlaws in a
series of challenging encounters and actions against the
Sheriff of Nottingham’s soldiers, she is finally captured. The triumphant Sheriff holds a show trial in the Nottingham
marketplace and Robyn is condemned to death. Escape seems impossible.
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Its release on social media resulted in a flood of positive reactions. Here's a sample:
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"This is a pretty impressive story!"
"4 out of 4 stars! A great story idea."
"Need to see the musical. I loved it."
"A perfect story... filled with adventure and life lessons."
"A fun twist on the classic tale. A YA story that is a must read for anyone that likes the genre."
"We loved this book! This is an excellent read for young and old. Strong characters and well written! Everyone will love this read!"
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Recent Award
Silver Award from BooksGoSocial. Review Panels comments included:
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"This is an engaging story. I like the idea of changing the
gender of Robin Hood and the time travel twist."
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Uncommon Enemy
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​A World War II alternative history novel
with a definite twist!
Purchase it NOW direct from Amazon
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Click the following link: https://goo.gl/NyQbu5
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What would life in New Zealand have been like if it had been
occupied by Nazi Germany? Uncommon Enemy, a thriller,
paints a realistic picture. Would New Zealanders have resisted or collaborated? Hamish Beavis quickly joins the New Order
and shows all the brutality of a collaborator towards his
fellow New Zealanders. The beautiful Carol Peterson,
carrying a dark secret, is pressured into an engagement
with Hamish but is increasingly drawn towards Stuart
Johnson who has joined the expanding resistance network.
Carol’s crucial decision and its repercussions are set
against a background of violence and betrayal in
post-war New Zealand under Nazi rule.
Uncommon Enemy moves along at a cracking pace and
the reader will find it hard to put down. This alternative
history novel paints a chilling picture of what might easily
have been - and what could occure when a democratic
country is subject to a military dictatorship.
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Reviewer's comments:
"I started to read it with some degree of reluctance and, to
my surprise, found I couldn't put it down ... after being
initially sceptical, the further I read the more possible things became ... Reynolds is a good storyteller."
Warwick Roger, North and South magazine.
"A good entertaining story that accurately portrays the paranoia and attitudes of the postwar period."
Daily Post, Rotorua
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"A fast-paced, action-filled novel. It is a well -researched,
deeply provocative book and makes the reader truly
consider the issues raised. It is the story of love, betrayal,
and patriotism. It paints a chilling and frightening picture
of life under Nazi occupation...This book is definitely a
must-read for readers of all ages and nationalities."
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"I give Uncommon Enemy 4 out of 4 stars. This book
was such an adventure. You do not have history to rely
on to know how it ends which made it more thrilling."
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"...a fascinating alternative history depicting the events
that could have unfolded had the Nazi’s won the war."
"I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novel. The characters
had depth, the drama was rich, and the storyline was believable.
I appreciated the maturity of the subject. World War Two
was a horrible event which took millions of lives. I was
concerned that an alternative history could be taking this
subject matter lightly. I felt that the author was successful
in handling the events of the war respectfully."
"I feel that anyone interested in romance, drama, danger,
history, and action will love this book."
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Gold Award from BooksGoSocial for Uncommon Enemy. Review Panel's comments included:
" ...an interesting alternative history story, with careful
attention to detail and plausibility."
",,,the story flowed well and was thought provoking."
"...It well deserves its gold status"
"This is an intriguing story, well thought out and well constructed.
The flipping of events at the end of the war from one side to the o
ther and the resulting state of the world has been
carefully constructed."
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Now an audiobook!
Over a three-month period I narrated Uncommon Enemy
in an Auckland recording studio - a challenging but enjoyable experience.
It is now available on the AudiobooksNZ website where you
can listen to a sample chapter and then, if you enjoy it,
download it and hear the whole novel at your leisure.
Click on the following link:
https://audiobooksnz.co.nz/book/detail/236142/uncommon-enemy
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Silly Sebastian
Click on the following link:
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All the cats in our family slept inside, but Silly Sebastian
always slept outside in all weathers, until one day .
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This delightful children's book, written by Bess Reynolds,
is based on one of our family cats who lived with us for 19
years. It is beautifully illustrated by Linda Wills.
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Review from International Review of Books:
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"Silly Sebastian by Bess Reynolds is a delightful children’s book.
Little ones to early elementary age will enjoy this book, whether
they enjoy cats are not, because it is a sweet story featuring well done watercolour illustrations. An extra special thing about this book is
letting readers know the writer based the story on cats on which
she shares her home. Something about that really adds an extra
touch to the story bringing the cats alive for readers.
One of the cats is Sebastian and he loves sleeping outside.
This is his story. He is always sleeping, always outside and
they call him Silly Sebastian. The other cats enjoy inside,
but not Sebastian – it is outside happily for him. The beautiful
illustrations and writing capture the character and actions of
cats anyone around a cat will recognize throughout the book too,
which is enjoyable."
General thoughts on the Novel:
"This is a sweet story with beautiful illustrations. Children will
enjoy learning about this silly cat. Especially children loving cats
will take a liking to this story. The writer and illustrator have
captured the life of cats with great care and character."
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Silly Sebastian is an ideal book to read to pre-school children or
for early readers to read to themselves or with the help of adults.
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Silly Sebastian is available as an eBook on Amazon.com.
A copy signed by Bess can be posted to you if you email her at jbess@xtra.co.nz ($15.00 + p&p)
or phone her at: 64+ 021 253 3203
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Starblaze
Women space pirates!
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Starblaze is a novel based on the successful musical of the same
name that I co-wrote with NZ composer Shade Smith many moons
ago. The initial review of the novel was very encouraging and
concluded:
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Review from International Review of Books:
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"John Reynolds’ writing is spot on for this age group, and I wasn’t
surprised to read in his short bio that he used to be a teacher.
The editing is of a high standard, which helps to make this story
easy-to-read. With a superb plot, great characters and a
meaningful message, Starblaze is a great, fun book for
children to read on their own or with their parents."
Click the following link: https://tinyurl.com/y222929m
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If you'd like a personal copy, signed by John Reynolds,
email him at: jbess@xtra.co.nz ($15.00 + p&p)
or phone him at: 64+ 021 430
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Gold Award from BooksGoSocial for Starblaze
"With a gripping opening, Starblaze is a fast-paced story that will
grab younger readers and keep them turning pages. With excitement
from start to finish, this is a great children’s science fiction adventure."
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