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Positive Reviews for The Van Helsing Paradox in May 2019

7 June 2019 by Evelyn Chartres 1 Comment

The #IndieApril movement on Twitter was a boon for independent authors, and this trend seems to have spilled into May. Overall, a good month for reviews for my latest dark fantasy release, The Van Helsing Paradox. In all, I caught six reviews on Amazon.com, and for your convenience they are included below:

Fast-paced, intriguing, and I love Clara as a protagonist.

Five-Star - A fantastic read! - I really, really enjoyed The Van Helsing Paradox! Fast-faced, intriguing, and I love Clara as a protagonist. Appreciate the slang glossary too, nice touch! — Five-Star – 6 May 19 – A fantastic read!

I’d recommend reading, especially to those who love a good femme fatale or noir story!

Four-Star - Well written with a great plot -I enjoyed reading The Van Helsing Paradox. It was very well written and the plot kept me interested throughout. I wish there was a bit more background on the order Clara had joined as there were parts of the book that confused me a bit until later on. I’d recommend reading, especially to those who love a good femme fatale or noir story! — Four-Star – 6 May 19 – Well written with a great plot

An exciting tale packed with adventure and interesting characters…

Five-Star - Supernatural thrills and a feisty heroine! - Clara is a hunter of supernatural creatures for a mysterious organisation. Set mainly in the 1910s to 1920s, this is an exciting tale packed with adventure and interesting characters, especially young Clara. I would recommend this to any lovers of fantasy and strong female characters! — Five-Star – 22 May 19 – Supernatural thrills and a feisty heroine!

Entertaining and delightful and I look forward to reading more by this author

5-Stars - Entertaining and delightful story - The Van Helsing Paradox follows the story of Clara Grey, from a young girl into a grown woman as learns about the monsters of the world and how to kill them. Through it all her faith in God as well as herself is tested. I found the story to be entertaining and delightful and I look forward to reading more by this author. — 5-Stars – 23 May 19 – Entertaining and delightful story

This is a very creative, well thought out story

4-Stars - The Van Helsing Paradox, A Review - This is a very creative, well thought out story. The author has captured the flavour of the time well. It must have taken a lot of research, as the descriptions of people and places are almost like you're there. But there were parts of the story where the author seemed to leave out explanations of what was happening. Other than that, an interesting story with a great main character. — 4-Stars – 23 May 19 – The Van Helsing Paradox, A Review

If you enjoy vampire tales, Indiana Jones, detective mysteries and all of that with a slice of horror, this book’s for you.

4-Stars - Horror meets Sherlock Holmes and Indiana Jones - With a strong female lead, The Van Helsing Paradox is a complex and detailed read in which the character investigates and fights against paranormal activity on Earth in the early part of the 20th Century. I enjoyed the story, despite being a little confused about genre and the flow of events. I am enthusiastic about picking up the next book to continue to follow Clara on her adventures, and also to see if any of the characters that make cameos, such as Evelyn, return. If you enjoy vampire tales, Indiana Jones, detective mysteries and all of that with a slice of horror, this book’s for you. — 4-Stars – 27 May 19 – Horror meets Sherlock Holmes and Indiana Jones

Of note, two of the reviews were removed from Amazon.com. The reasons for which are unknown, and only found out when making this post, because my screen captures of reviews found, did not match what exists on the site now. Either way, I can’t complain. These are unsolicited and positive reviews, what more can a writer ask for?

#IndieApril Has Been a Boon For the Van Helsing Paradox

1 May 2019 by Evelyn Chartres 2 Comments

The #IndieApril hashtag came into being on Twitter this year, and has proven to be a boon for indie authors like myself! Not only could we advertise our books more often, it also reached a greater number potential readers. So what does that mean for an author who gives their work away? Well for other than roughly one-hundred purchases in the month, four times the norm, and translated to a jump in reviews!

Overall, I managed to wrangle up five new reviews under Amazon.com this month. These were also unsolicited, well written, and positive!

For the curious, the reviews are below:

This novel features what I crave the most out of a story: a main character whom I love to follow!

Mighty Tid - 5 Stars - Clara Grey: An intelligent action heroine I love to read! - April 13, 2019 - "Whoever said that getting there was half the fun, had never travelled with a nun hell-bent on getting there." This line is only one of many which illustrate the fun writing style Evelyn Chartres uses in telling the story of The Van Helsing Paradox. This novel features what I crave the most out of a story: a main character whom I love to follow! Clara Grey, the protagonist of the tale is innovative, snarky, both respects and defies authority, and knows how to pay attention to the world around her and use that knowledge to her advantage. The Van Helsing Paradox features more than just a scrappy fun main character: it delves in vampires, religion, and nefarious villains with unwholesome plans that need to be stopped. And it all centers on Clara from child to adulthood, an intelligent action heroine who at the same time is relatable as a person. I was immediately hooked by the end of the very first paragraph, when Clara as a child wakes with a need to go use the outhouse, and has to do her best in hand me down clothing too big for her. It's these kinds of details that help bring the story to life. I would have liked to see some details expanded which were only quickly mentioned in the story. For example, Clara's mischief in school is barely touched upon, and I'd like to learn more about the mysterious people who created her base of operations called The Tower. But Ms. Chartres's storytelling weaves the ongoing tale in a way that makes these questions simply a case of "leaving the audience wanting more" in the best possible way. Beyond the story itself, the book also showcases a wonderful immersion into the timeframe of the story. The narrative goes deep enough that Ms. Chartres has even provided a glossary in the back to help understand some of the dated terms. Barneymugging has become my new favorite word! I enjoyed and highly recommend the Van Helsing Paradox, and I look forward to exploring more of the fantastic stories Evelyn Chartres has available. — Clara Grey: An intelligent action heroine I love to read!- 4 Stars – Mighty Tid

I had no trouble dropping into this word and enjoying the ride.

Reader Who Hikes - 4 Stars - A Fun Read - April 15, 2019 - This book made me laugh out loud a few times and was a good match for my downtime. I had no trouble dropping into this word and enjoying the ride. — A Fun Read – 4 Stars – Reader Who Hikes

Clara, the main character, will be a favorite if you like the intellectual type of heroin that’s always ahead of the game.

Samantha Kroese - 4 stars - Entertaining tale if you enjoy stories about monster hunters! - April 24, 2019 - This is a pretty solid story. Clara, the main character, will be a favorite if you like the intellectual type of heroin that's always ahead of the game. Definitely worth a chance if you enjoy the monster hunter thing. — Entertaining tale if you enjoy stories about monster hunters! – 4 stars – Samantha Kroese

Clara isn’t ordinary and it’s clear at a young age, she can kick undead arse.

Nick Braker - 5 stars - Ghouls and undead monsters abound! - April 26, 2019 - Clara isn't ordinary and it's clear at a young age, she can kick undead arse. I enjoyed the story and the gory details of her maturation to adulthood. The priests and nuns play a very cool part in the story and it gets revealed slowly that most of them aren't as bad as Clara thought. Sister Maria, for example. Evelyn, you knocked it out of the park! More please. Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase Clara isn't ordinary and it's clear at a young age, she can kick undead arse. I enjoyed the story and the gory details of her maturation to adulthood. The priests and nuns play a very cool part in the story and it gets revealed slowly that most of them aren't as bad as Clara thought. Sister Maria, for example. Evelyn, you knocked it out of the park! More please. — Ghouls and undead monsters abound! – 5 Stars – Nick Braker

In any case, it’s an interesting read with several intriguing scenes and thoughts as well as what is revealed to be The Van Helsing Paradox itself

Sahreth 'Baphy' Bowden - 4 Stars - Interesting Theory of Static Individuals... - April 28, 2019 - The story is very intelligently written in the sense of vocabulary, sentence structure, and grammar and while the overall plot is good, I would approach reading the book from a philosophical state of mind rather than that of a general story-telling. Clara is a static character who never truly changes throughout the course of her existence. I believe this was purposeful in order to properly deliver what seemed to be the driving message of the story, however the lack of emotion portrayed in the story left it feeling somewhat dry. The beginning and ending are both excellent, but I feel the story's impact would have been greater if the middle had been shortened. In any case, it's an interesting read with several intriguing scenes and thoughts as well as what is revealed to be "The Van Helsing Paradox" itself. — Interesting Theory of Static Individuals… – 4 Stars – Sahreth ‘Baphy’ Bowden

I am sure this trend will not continue beyond April 2019. Still, this was an interesting experiment to see unfold and remain curious to see if this phenomenon will be repeated next year.

A Van Helsing Paradox Review – Fun Read

19 April 2019 by Evelyn Chartres Leave a Comment

I had no trouble dropping into this world and enjoying the ride.

I found another wonderful 🌟🌟🌟🌟 review of The Van Helsing Paradox on Amazon.com! It’s simple, and to the point. Elegance in itself!

A Fun Read April 15, 2019 – Published on Amazon.com Format: Kindle Edition – This book made me laugh out loud a few times and was a good match for my downtime. I had no trouble dropping into this word and enjoying the ride. — Review of The Van Helsing Paradox on Amazon.com

In the mood for dark fantasy story about a girl who grows up to hunt things that go bump in the night? Learn why a gal has to look out for herself after all. So why not check out The Van Helsing Paradox for free? Get it now!

Not Available For Purchase – Understanding How Amazon Links to Markets

22 March 2019 by Evelyn Chartres Leave a Comment

Not Available For Purchase – Understanding How Amazon Links to Markets was originally posted on Renée Gendron‘s Word Crafting site.

The most important step in getting your books into the reader’s hands is directing them to a storefront. Since Amazon has the largest market share globally, many opt to target them exclusively and gain access to features such as Kindle Unlimited.

Authors will typically provide a link to their book from Amazon.com or their regional counterparts. These links can be used on Twitter, Facebook, other social media, and the author’s blog. For example:

Author advertising with a link to their book

Does that link work for everyone? How about those that shop in a different market? Good question, but first we need to explain what an Amazon market is.

Amazon is separated into regional market places, normally but country. This is why you will find sites like Amazon.com (United States), Amazon.ca (Canada), Amazon.co.uk (United Kingdom) and so forth. For various reasons, not all goods can be purchased in a market that is not your own, and this extends to Kindle eBooks. So how does this apply when people are sent to the wrong market? The answer is nuanced.

On a computer, Amazon will inform readers that they are not in their market and will redirect them. That is not the case for mobile readers, the example below shows a case where the user is not in their default market (Amazon.com).

Page viewed on Amazon.com, not the user’s default market

Since the user is in the wrong market, they are told that This title is not currently available for purchase. Some potential readers will know what is going on and change the link. Doing so will lead to the following page:

Page viewed on Amazon.ca, the user’s default market

What if the user is not aware this problem exists and/or how to correct? What happens then? The simple answer is that the user moves on, or contacts a confused author. This may lead to one less sale, and the opportunity to get a positive review or build a fan base.

So how do we fix this? Here are three easy methods.

Authl.it

Update: This service has been down for a while. While the primary site is up and running, the redirection system fails.

Authl.it is a service that provides a jump page for the user. When someone clicks on the generated link, they will see the novel, synopsis and shows readers various markets. This service requires no account, and comes with a really short link mimicking services like Bit.ly.

Note that the page shows which market is most likely correct, reducing the chances for someone choosing the wrong market. Also note that not all markets are available through this service.

BookLinker

BookLinker is a site that offers the ability to create market agnostic links. The links are free for the basic service, easy to create, and provides a simple link to Amazon that you can pass on. These links can also be customized, so they are easier to remember. When a reader click on the link, they are redirected to their market, a the process that is invisible to them.

Relinks.Me

Relinks.Me service is similar to BookLinker where links automatically redirect readers to the appropriate marketplace, and supports both the Amazon and iBooks storefronts. This service is entirely free, and offers a shortened link similar to Authl.it.

Universal Books Links

Universal Books Links is a service offered by Draft2Digital and offers a similar service to BookLinker. The difference is how this service also links storefronts other than Amazon, such as iBooks, Kobo, and Barnes and Noble. The service is free, and Universal Books Links are created automatically when you push books through Draft2Digital.

You can also add links that Draft2Digital will not target, such as Smashwords. Overall this is a great solution for those who go wide. Readers who click on the links will get the option of choosing their storefront and will be redirected to the book. Links on this service can also be customized, just like BookLinker.

Launch page created by Universal Book Links

Note: All of these services can be paired with a web link shortening service such as Bit.ly. This can be invaluable on sites like Twitter with a limited character count, and provides the ability to track links for statistical analysis.

In short, Amazon has multiple markets to sell Kindle eBooks. A link for one country may not redirect readers and result in a lost sale.

Using services like Authl.it, BookLinker, Relinks.Me and Universal Books Links helps you provide one link which negates this problem. Readers end up where they need to be, and you can grow your fanbase from there!

Review – Clara’s Journey

1 March 2019 by Evelyn Chartres Leave a Comment

Evelyn Chartres does an amazing job of guiding us through Clara’s journey into becoming a hunter…

Found this wonderful 🌟🌟🌟🌟 review for The Van Helsing Paradox on Amazon.com! The biggest surprise? This was for the paperback edition of the book! It gives me a warm feeling to know that one of my books is adorns someone’s shelf!

In the mood for dark fantasy novel about the life and times of a femme fatale hunter? Curious to find out why a gal has to look out for herself after all? Why not check out The Van Helsing Paradox for free? Get it now!