Check out my new YA book blog, Story Carnivores!

It's been an exciting week! I'm almost done with the 1st draft of my brand new (top secret!) YA novel, and my friend Shaunta Grimes and I just launched a new YA book blog called STORY CARNIVORES! It will have book reviews, movie reviews, news, interviews, videos, and more! Just published to the blog are a welcome video from Shaunta and me, and an interview with KL Going (Fat Kid Rules the World)!

Story Carnivores!

New 5-Star Review of The Vampire Underground!

Wow, I've received some great feedback on The Vampire Underground during these last two months, but nothing has compared to this sparkling review by Jennifer at Goodreads! Check out what she had to say about it below...

Brian Rowe knows how to captivate his readers. He develops characters and plot lines that are hard to resist. This read was like a roller coaster ride for me. The anticipation while getting buckled in and comfortable not knowing what to expect then you take off and there are twists and turns some slow moments then off and roaring. Getting a little scared but then calming down. When the ride ends you know there is nothing like what you just experienced. There’s the excitement of “oh man that was cool” or “I almost lost my cookies back there”. Definitely nothing like it.

That is how I felt about this book. Having read the Birthday trilogy by Brian Rowe I knew this was a ride I was willing to take. I got comfortable on the couch and dug right in. At first Brian is building the story and developing the characters. Then the story takes off and there are thrills along the twists and turns of the plot. There was humor, horror, and action along this ride. At the end I thought I was going to just unbuckle and go about my business but oh no. Brian throws in something that has me chomping at the bit to get on this ride again. Can’t wait!!!

Vampire Underground is something different in the vampire genre. It’s not the romantic but the horrific. I loved the idea of the underground world of the vampires. It was an underground scary circus. I kind of pictured in my mind the scene in the movie Interview with the Vampire where the vampires turned their killing into a show for an audience. It was brilliant and scary.

By far the character that stole the show and my affections was Ash. OMG, he was the humor to the story. A movie buff that loves the horror genre, doesn’t put up with remakes of classics, and is a loyal friend. He was the comic relief to the seriousness of what was going on around him. Loved that dynamic. 

This is a fantastic read for any fan of books with great story lines. This is worth taking a chance on but hold on to your seat because you are in for a thrilling ride. 
* I received a copy for an honest review


Excellent review! Thanks Jennifer!!

May Update!

Hello all!

It's been an exciting month! I finished the new draft of The Zombie Playground, the second book in my Grisly High series, and I started the first draft of a brand new original YA novel (details coming later this summer) that is the most daring, crazy idea I've ever had. I'm about 45,000 words in, and I'm aiming for 70. I just bought a ticket to the RWA Conference in Anaheim, California, at the end of July, and I'm super excited for that. I finished two graduate level creative writing classes at the University of Nevada-Reno (and got two As, hurray!).

Equally exciting to all of this was my trip over Memorial Day Weekend to Portland, Oregon. I saw a lot of the city, but the place I definitely spent the majority of my time was the famous Powell's Books. If you ever go to Portland and love books as much as I do, you MUST check this place out. It's like Disneyland for literary buffs. I could have bought a hundred titles but I kept it down to seven. Here's what I got...

Finally, I just dropped my newest book The Vampire Underground to 99 cents!! Pick up a copy today, its action-packed sequel is coming in July!

Buy The Vampire Underground for 99 cents!

The Vampire Underground is FREE!

Check out my newest YA novel The Vampire Underground, FREE on Amazon through Tuesday!

Click here for Vampire Goodness!!!

20,000 words into the new YA novel

Working hard on a new YA book, a total original that's not related to any of the trilogies or series I've worked on before. I've been writing since last weekend and already have 20,000 words. This one's unlike anything I've done before. I'm stepping up my game and trying to write something romantic, magical, thrilling, and epic.

Do I have a hint for you? I'll give you one word. Dinosaurs.

More details later this summer!!

My Review of The Avengers!!

Hello all! I am busy writing the second draft of my new YA novel THE ZOMBIE PLAYGROUND, coming this summer to Amazon, but in the meantime I did get a chance to check out the first movie of the summer, The Avengers, and I had some things to say about it! Check out my review below...

When Joss Whedon was directing the pilot to the television version of a flop movie, shot in crummy full frame 16mm, way back in 1996, he probably had no idea the kind of influence he would have over pop culture throughout the next twenty years. Not only did he create the finest television show ever put on television—Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, which played from 1997 to 2001 on the WB and from 2001 to 2003 on UPN—he was a big part of the genius Angel, Firefly, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, and to a lesser extent, Dollhouse. He’s one of the most gifted writers in the industry, and a stellar director as well. Who would have thought back in those early days of Buffy that Whedon would one day helm a big-budget comic book movie that would gross 207 million on its opening weekend? It may not have been expected, but not only has Whedon delivered a top-grossing movie; he’s made one of the best summer movies in recent years, an entertaining, rousing achievement.

The film has been in the planning stages for many years. When Iron Man opened to giant grosses and solid reviews back in 2008, who would have thought we’d be watching one movie after another that would introduce us to all the superhero characters that would one day team up for one magnificent movie? Iron Man and Iron Man 2 introduced us to Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), and Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson), Thor introduced us to a hammer-wielding force of nature (Chris Hemsworth) and his vindictive brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston), Captain America introduced us to the old-fashioned Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), and The Incredible Hulk re-introduced us to Bruce Banner (who is now played by Mark Ruffalo). The Avengers also tosses in a few new faces—namely Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner). It seemed almost exhausting, having to see all these movies that introduce us to characters who we’ll see all in a film later. But thankfully, with the exception of the abysmal Iron Man 2, all of these films have been good! Which one’s the best? The Avengers, no question. Is it a game-changer on the level of The Dark Knight? No. It’s pure entertainment through and through, and it doesn’t have that special element to make it a true original masterpiece on the level of Christopher Nolan’s 2008 epic. But this film is fantastic, and probably the best summer entertainment since that 2008 blockbuster.

The Avengers could have been so horrible on so many levels. It could have been a loud, confused mess of a movie, with no direction or humor or sensible plot. It could have tried to do too much with one character (namely Tony Stark) and not enough with another character (say, Bruce Banner), but one of the joys of the Avengers is the way that writer/director Whedon manages to weave half a dozen stories and a dozen or more characters into a story that flows at the perfect pace, with humor, action, and even moments of unexpected sadness. Of course the fact that Whedon could perform this balancing act is no surprise at all; all of his television shows managed to keep us invested in not a few but a ton of well-developed characters. We get plenty of witty one-liners from Mr. Stark, but we also get more-than-expected material and depth with Black Widow and Nick Fury, and even Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg), who gets more than a few terrific scenes.

But the real surprise in the film is the Hulk. He was a part of not one but two decent but unspectacular films (2003’s Hulk and 2008’s The Incredible Hulk), and finally, in The Avengers, this goofy character is given his proper due. Mark Ruffalo seemed an unlikely choice for this character, but it turns out his casting was a masterstroke. He brings a great sense of empathy to the role, and the actual moments of large green Hulk-ness provide the most applause-worthy scenes in the whole film. The confrontation between Hulk and Loki brought the house down; it was one of those genius unexpected Whedon moments that really brought the enjoyment of the film to a whole new level. It may seem difficult to find any of Whedon in this sprawling epic action piece, but for his fans, it’s easy to find him all over this thing. Each scene sparkles with dialogue, each action scene is well-constructed, and the moments of humor are Whedon all the way through. (And be sure to stick around for the final end-credits scene, which is minor but kind of brilliant in a way, and most assuredly a Whedon idea.)

You know what’s even more impressive about Whedon? In between making The Avengers, he co-wrote and produced the fun Cabin in the Woods and wrote and directed a low-budget film version of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing (still to be released). And when asked about what he would do if he got the chance to direct an Avengers 2? A more intimate, smaller film that puts the characters through further jeopardy. If the executives in black suits make any smart decisions down the line, it will be this: no matter how Whedon wants to make his films, keep him on board. This man is the real deal.

April Update!

It's been a busy month, and I'm currently hard at work on the second draft of my YA horror sequel THE ZOMBIE PLAYGROUND! Here's some news about all my projects, and what to expect from me in the coming months...

The HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME trilogy continues to get great reviews all over the web. I put up Book 2 for free a few weeks back and I had nearly 8,000 downloads! In the year since I published the first book, over 500 people have added it to their TBR list! I had some terrific 4-star reviews on Goodreads, as well as this 5-star review from Adam Smith:


This book kept me engaged all the way through till the end. The characters were varied and interesting; each with their own problems and quirks. Especially Liesel. Can't wait to read book 2.

Happy Birthday to Me Again also received some great reviews, including this one from STAR:


Happy Birthday to Me Again is definitely a great installment in the series with the characters becoming even richer and fuller. There are still lots of laughs mixed into the serious subject matter - a nice balance of drama and humor was achieved by Mr. Rowe. Now I'm even more excited to read the last book in this series!!

Plus, here's her review of Happy Birthday to You!


I think Happy Birthday to You is a solid ending to this trilogy. It explains some of the lingering questions left from the first two books and the ending will bring you to tears. Cam is really growing up (and not just chronologically) over the course of the books and we find the most maturity from him in this final novel. Liesel to me has always seemed a bit "off" to me, but everything pulls together at the end. A quick read (I read this at lunchtime) with action and drama, Happy Birthday to You is a great addition to Mr. Rowe's resume and a great finale to this trilogy.

Of course the big release in April was for my BRAND NEW YA novel THE VAMPIRE UNDERGROUND, the first installment in a seven-book YA horror series, a kind of cross between Fear Street and The X-Files. 


So far it's received three 5-star reviews! Here are some quotes it's received...

This is a story I would definitely recommend. I was so caught up in it from page one. I cannot wait for #2!

The Vampire Underground was funny, interesting, and freaky. Brian Rowe is a great storyteller and I can easily see this becoming a movie. It was such a fantastic read, Brian Rowe has a new fan!

And this week I started revising the follow-up to The Vampire Underground, the aptly named THE ZOMBIE PLAYGROUND! This novel picks up right where the first one leaves off, and it takes the characters into an unexpected battle with ugly, ravenous zombies. No cover yet, but soon! Look for The Zombie Playground to be released on Amazon this July!

That's all for now. I have a top secret YA project brewing that I'm going to start working on in May, but I'll have more details about that later this summer. Ta ta for now!