Nina Blakeman's Blog

Art instillations in the woods . . . got to love it! Lincoln, Montana

We’ve made the move to Montana, thinking at least, the rules of nature would remain constant.

Back in Texas, it was the buck with the biggest rack that got the does. But just about everyday at our new house in Montana, these deer show up. The buck has eight does with him and I just don’t get it. Let’s just say, as far as racks go, this buck is not well endowed at all. What do these does see in him?

Then I figured it out. Things are really n o different here than any where else. This buck must come from money.

I don’t believe so, but I have caught a few interesting photos of them around our property.

It was my pleasure to be the guest speaker at the Retired Teacher’s Association in Tulia, Texas on February 7, 2022. The topic was characterization. We had a good time discussing the characters we love to hate, love to love, and those that fall somewhere in between (sort of bad, but we can’t help liking them anyway). Thank you for having me!

Also, a good review came in from Book Commentary on Blind Vision. Let’s take a look at it.

Blind Vision by Nina Blakeman is a gripping psychological thriller with strong medical themes and unforgettable characters. Callie Wallace and Richard Cotez are long-time friends who met in med school. Now, they come back to the small town of Sperling to set up their neurology practice. When Mr. Clyde Murphy dies in suspicious circumstances, the deceased’s wife is out for revenge and her target is Callie Wallace, the physician who admitted the patient. Callie has her own demons to deal with and as the drama unfolds, her sanity is put into question, and the health administrator orders psychological and health tests. When the last blow falls, shall she be found standing or crumbling?

This is a story with a beautiful setting in a small town. The characters are genuinely flawed and relatable and the author creates nonstop drama with situations that are real and a crisis that grows in magnitude as the reader moves from one page to the next. Callie is a character that instantly arrests the attention of readers; she is both emotionally and psychologically flawed. Her odd behaviors include arguing with an invisible opponent, feeling jealous when she finds out that Dr. Cortez is dating Sara Townsend, and the nightmarish conversations with her dead father. The plot is imaginative and superbly written. The prose is excellent, littered with engaging dialogues that highlight the drama elevating the quality of entertainment in Blind Vision. Readers who enjoy nuanced characters and heart-stopping psychological drama will find delight in reading Blind Vision. It is pitch-perfect and themes of family, mental health, friendship, and revenge are ingeniously woven into the fabric of the gripping plot.REVIEWED BY MATTHEW NOVAKReview Date: January 25, 2022

Category: Fiction – Womens

I’ve found that life is like my garden. Hard work doesn’t always equate to a good yield. In fact, some years, it’s just plain sad. But we need to be patient. A relatively mild summer and some descent rains can produce a bountiful return. My advice: Count your blessing where you can find them . . . and cut out the middle-man, be your own farmer’s market.

Reviewed By Stephanie Chapman for Readers’ Favorite

Nina Blakeman has crafted a twisted thriller in her book Blind Vision. Dr. Callie Wallace and her long-time friend Dr. Richard Cortez have opened up a neurology clinic in the small town of Sperling. When Clyde Murphy dies, his wife automatically targets Dr. Wallace. Meanwhile, Callie has been seen mock fighting with an invisible opponent by Gus Ferguson, has inadvertently belittled Marcus Davis, and while on call, her boyfriend reports Jane Timmons’s substance abuse impairment. The odd behavior has the hospital administrator ordering her to undergo psychological and health tests. Dr. Cortez starts dating Sara Townsend, and immediately Callie feels jealous of possibly losing her best friend. To make matters worse, Callie starts having nighttime conversations with her deceased father. If you are looking for a book full of well-developed characters, then Blind Vision will not disappoint. Nina Blakeman kept me on my toes with the multiple storylines, as well as adding mystery when it appears there is foul play. I honestly felt that Callie and Dr. Cortez would end up being with each other after I read the first few chapters. The end of this book threw me for a loop because I never predicted the conclusion. I disliked Sara Townsend almost as much as Callie did. The viewpoints of several characters are depicted and the transitions between them were effortless. I liked how part of a chapter would show what the after-effects of events were with suggested ideas, then it would display what had actually happened. The family dynamics thrown into the mix kept me from putting this book down, and I have no qualms in rating it a perfect 5-star story.

I was really pleased how well Blind Vision did in the Next Generation Indie Book Awards, placing in an international book contest. I’ve only been writing a few years, but I always liked to try new things. Some of you may know that I recently took up the violin. How are those string crossings, you ask? Well, let’s just say, they still need work, but I’ll keep at it. If my violin instructor doesn’t give up, neither will I. You can imagine the delight I felt the day she put a smiley sticker on my bow. Did that sticker carry are less satisfaction to me than the book medal? The answer is no, because I’ve learned the value comes from the ability to try.

Blind Vision by Nina Blakeman: 2021 Next Generation Indie Book Award (NGIBA), Awards Finalist, Chick Lit Fiction. NGIBA is the largest international awards program for indie authors and independent publishers. The winners and finalists will be honored June 25 in an online event which will stream live on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NextGenerationIndieBookAwards at 7:00 pm (Eastern Time) and 4:00 pm (Pacific Time).

Seems like a good time to share this review in Goodreads, BookCoffee’s Reviews, https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4030728525

Blakeman’s latest is a tense and enthralling page-turner that offers plenty of intrigue, mystery, and murder.

Dr. Callie Wallace, a young promising neurologist, is back in her hometown of Sperling, Texas, to set up her neurology practice with her business partner and friend Dr. Richard Cortez. When one of Callie’s patients unexpectedly dies, she finds herself left flabbergasted, trying to understand the reason for the sudden death. More deaths follow, leaving Callie questioning her own sanity. Struggling with her personal dilemmas, Callie must sort out the mystery or risk losing both her reputation and her medical license.

Blakeman writes with an assured hand, depicting in poignant and surprising style everything – from the intricacies and changes happening within Callie’s relationship with Richard, Zane, and her mother to the conflicted situations she consistently finds herself in. She beautifully conveys her characters’ inner upheaval and the underlying restlessness, while exploring the visceral level connection between lovers, friends, and parent and child, the questions of friendship, paternal love, and what it means to love truly and wholeheartedly.

Callie, with her vulnerabilities as well as her innate strength remains a sympathetic protagonist. Zane, with his single-mindedness and resilience shines, making the reader root for throughout his pursuit of sorting out the complexities of Callie’s life. Richard, who holds the power initially when it comes to Callie, loses his shine in front of Zane as the narrative progresses, fading in the background almost. Dynamic and multifaceted, the secondary characters are sketched with equal skill and precision.

The narrative is expertly paced and the hefty dose of mystery mixed with science and magical realism adds to the intrigue of the story. Blakeman capably uses every device in the novel from red herrings to blind alleys, from low-key twists to instant shocks, keeping readers glued to pages. Imbued with the textures and traditions of a small Texas town, the story is driven by the effortlessly incorporated mystery as shocking, unexpected deaths brings chaos in Callie’s life. Evocative, intelligent, crisp prose pulls the reader deep into the intriguing storyline.

The book is as much about the very nature of the enduring relationship and its intricacies as it is about the questions of trust, family ties, friendship, betrayal, and revenge.

This absorbing story of murder, mystery, and relationship intricacies is sure to wow both the fans of finely constructed mysteries and literary fiction.

Available at Amazon.com, Barnes and Nobles, and Apple iBooks.

Being born and raised in West Texas, one would think there’s a possibility that an aoudad, an exotic African transplant, might someday cross one’s path. Especially if said person spent a substantial amount of time trekking canyon rims through cacti, yucca, cedar, and mesquite, in rattlesnake country. One would think, but for me, it wasn’t in the cards. In 1957 and 1958, Texas wildlife officials released about 40 aoudads as legal game into the state’s Palo Duro Canyon, to develop more income opportunities for private ranchers. A 2018 census found nearly 5,000 aoudads populating two mountain ranges in West Texas; decades of costly reintroduction efforts have nurtured a smaller population of desert bighorns, now tallying about 1,500 across 11 mountain ranges, (Renault, 2020). But for me, they’ve been as elusive as the mystical jackalope.

Then, minding my own business in a vacation rental in Doves Rest Cabins (located on Palo Duro Canyon’s rim), I was on a Zoom call with family in Alaska. Out of the corner of my eye, these guys (youngins and all) moseyed right up to the back porch. Who knew?

Marion Renault, January 13, 2020, Texas Can’t Quit the Aoudad, The Atlantic, https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2020/01/how-aoudad-invaded-texas/604834/

As one gets older, there are lessons to learn about what is a “Go” and what is a “No-Go”. A recent trip to Pagosa Springs, Colorado told me snowmobiling was a “Go”, but dog-mushing was a definite “No-Go”. In fact, it was a “Hell-No”!