C.A. Milson's Blog, page 206

October 6, 2015

Book Tour – MY FATHER’S DAUGHTER, FROM ROME TO SICILY

My Father's Daughter banner

Title
: My Father’s Daughter, From Rome to Sicily

Author: Gilda Morina Syverson

Publisher: Divine Phoenix and Pegasus Books

Pages: 277

Genre: Memoir/Travel/Family Relationships


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In this multigenerational memoir, My Father’s Daughter, From Rome toSicily, our author travels with her Italian-born father, Italian-American mother, and very-American husband to the villages of her ancestors. This trilogy tale leads the reader through ancient sites of Rome, landscapes of a picturesque countryside, seaside villages of Sicily, olive trees in the valley of Mount Etna, while contrasting an emotional journey between a father and daughter.


Former North Carolina Poet Laureate, Joseph Bathanti, says, “My Father’s Daughter: From Rome to Sicily” is a travel book in every sense. Syverson – a savvy, funny, elegant tour guide – expertly escorts us through the gorgeous time-locked terrain of Italy, but also along the often precarious byways of the heart. This book risks everything: its humanity, its courage, its sheer unbridled candor, the moving sweep of its poetic language and its refusal to turn away from the breathtaking mystery of love and ancestry.


For More Information

My Father’s Daughter, From Rome to Sicily is available at Amazon.
Pick up your copy at Barnes & Noble.
Watch the book trailer at YouTube.
Discuss this book at PUYB Virtual Book Club at Goodreads.

Book Excerpt:


Sunday, October 15


Bright lights on the digital alarm blink 5:00 a.m. Five o’clock? What in the world am I doing awake? And what is this inner voice nagging me about room reservations in Rome? Something doesn’t feel right. Today? Sunday. Tomorrow is Monday. We’re leaving—Mom, Dad, Stu and me—for our trip to Italy and Sicily.


Why this message now and not when the itinerary arrived two months ago? Wait. I did wonder why the address for the hotel was different from what Carol, our travel agent, gave me on the phone. Why didn’t I pay attention to those feelings when the reservations first arrived?


I’ve been to Italy half a dozen times. Anything’s possible there. The building could be on a side alley, the address on the main road. Carol referred to the place as Hotel Columbus, and in her next breath called it Hotel Cristoforo Colombo.


It didn’t seem unusual to hear her use English and then Italian. After all, we both have Italian backgrounds. That’s why I used Carol to make the flight arrangements. I even chuckled when she rolled those rich flowing vowels off her tongue. Maybe I shouldn’t be so friendly and focus strictly on business.


One night on the Internet, I looked up the Hotel Columbus. Just like Carol had said, the address was Via della Conciliazione, Numero 34. The ad even touted that they were only blocks from the Vatican. I assumed the street address on the itinerary was simply an error. How many Christopher Columbus Hotels could there be, anyway? It wasn’t a chain— that much I knew.


At different times in my life, I’ve learned to let go and let others do things for me. But it didn’t come easy. Being the second oldest of eight children, I’ve often felt overly responsible.


I can’t be in charge of absolutely everything. At least that’s what I’ve tried to tell myself after having moved away from my large Italian-American family. Besides, our agent is not just any fly-by-night. She’s been in the business for over thirty years specializing in trips to Italy.


Now, here I am the morning before we’re supposed to leave, and I can’t stop churning. If I don’t get back to sleep, I’ll wake my husband. There’s no sense in both Stu and me being sleep deprived. I slip out of bed, climb the stairs to my art studio and quietly close the door. I hate following up after Carol, but I’m calling that hotel in Rome.


Buon giorno,” I say in my best Italian. “Parla Inglese?”


I’ve learned that if anyone there admits to speaking English, his or her verbal skills are much more fluent than my broken Italian. Luigi, the person on the other end of the phone, takes my last name and my parents‟ name, then asks for our reservation numbers.


“No problema,” Luigi says in his rich accent; we are booked.


To be absolutely sure, I say, “Now this is the Hotel Columbus two blocks from the Vatican, correct?”


“No, not correct,” Luigi replies. “We are about fifteen kilometers from the Vatican.”


Fifteen kilometers doesn’t register. I envision fifteen yards, fifteen feet, fifteen anything but kilometers.


Si,” I repeat, “fifteen kilometers is right down the street from the Vatican, correct?”


“No, not correct,” he says again. “Kilometers, kilometers,” he repeats, pronouncing each syllable—key lom e tours.


And then it hits me.


KILOMETERS?” I bellow, “But my travel agent said that you were in walking distance of the Vatican.”


“We are not,” he says. “You will have to take a bus or a tassi.”


Frantic, I hang up furious with myself for not having listened to my intuition after the itinerary arrived months ago. I ignored that internal voice trying to tell me something was awry and assumed my imagination had gotten the best of me, as I’ve been told most of my life it did.


I click on the Internet and find the phone number for the other Hotel Columbus and call. A woman named Stefania also replies yes to my question about speaking English.


“I’m sorry, Madam,” she says, “We do not have your name.”


She doesn’t have the reservation number that I read off either. Obviously, the confirmation system at one hotel is different from another. But I am grasping here. It’s pretty apparent that our reservations are with the first place I called.


I’m going to Rome with my mother and father, seventy- three and seventy-six, respectively. Although they’re not old, they’re not young and used to traveling either. And we’re not even staying close to the Vatican.


My father attends Mass every day, sometimes twice. Mom is not compulsive about daily Mass, but she is excited about being within walking distance from what we’ve always been taught is the seat of Catholicism.


Thanks to Stu, my Episcopalian husband, we’re scheduled to see Pope John Paul II in St. Peter’s piazza the morning after we arrive in Italy. Stu’s nephew’s wife’s father, a colonel in the U.S. Army, had once been stationed at the American Embassy in Rome, and he was able to arrange a papal audience for us. Well, the four of us and about 8,000 other people.


The plan is to walk to the piazza from our hotel. Since the year 2000 is the Catholic Church’s Jubilee Celebration, we do not want to fight the traffic with the thousands of pilgrims who will be flooding Vatican City from all areas of the capital. Even though the main impetus for the trip is to visit my parents’ ancestral towns in Sicily, how can we go to Italy with my folks and not visit Rome?


Now on the other end of the phone, Stefania, the woman from the hotel near the Vatican, is trying to calm my rattled nerves.


“Madam, stay in the hotel that you have a reservation for and then try to find another place after you arrive. Rooms are scarce here,” she continues. “You are lucky to have one at all.”


Lucky is not how I’m feeling. I explain to Stefania how my parents are older, that it’s my mother’s first trip abroad, and we are willing take any available rooms. After several apologies and her sympathy, Stefania says they are totally booked. Exasperated, I go back to bed and crawl beneath the covers. So much for trying not to rouse my husband.


“Stu,” I whisper, “Those hotel reservations in Rome… they’re not at all near the Vatican.”


His eyes pop open.


Now we’re both awake for the day. I wait until almost 8:30 before I call our travel agent at home. Carol and I spend most of Sunday on and off the phone. Even though she looks on numerous Internet sites for another place near the Vatican, none of her attempts meet with success.


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About the Author


Gilda Morina Syverson 


Gilda Morina Syverson, artist, poet, writer and teacher, was born and raised in a large, Italian-American family in Syracuse, New York. Her heritage is the impetus for her memoir My Father’s Daughter, From Rome to Sicily. Gilda’s story was a Novello Literary Award Finalist previously entitled Finding Bottom: an Italian-American woman’s journey to the old country.


Gilda’s award winning poems and prose have appeared in literary journals, magazines and anthologies in the United States and Canada.  She is also the author of the full-length poetry book, Facing the Dragon, and the chapbook, In This Dream Everything Remains Inside. Her commentaries have been aired on WFAE, Charlotte, N.C.’s public radio station.


Gilda moved to Charlotte, NC after having received an MFA in Fine Arts from Southern Illinois University. She received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Art Education from Buffalo State College. Gilda has taught in the Creative Arts for over 35 years including memoir classes and workshops for Queens University of Charlotte, The Warehouse Performing Arts Center in Cornelius, N.C. and at various other locations. Her fine art has been exhibited regionally, nationally and internationally. Her angel drawings and prints are in a number of collections throughout the United States, Canada and Italy.


Gilda lives outside of Charlotte, N.C. with her husband Stu.


For More Information



Visit Gilda Morina Syverson’s website.
Connect with Gilda on Facebook.
Find out more about Gilda at Goodreads.
Visit Gilda’s blog.
Contact Gilda.


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INTERVIEW


What inspires you to get out of bed each day?


Being alive inspires me to get out of bed each day, along with my passion for creativity. I have been in the creative arts all of my adult life and before. I wake up with a passion to work hard, create hard, be present for my husband, family- which includes my parents and siblings, close friends, students who have been a huge part of my life, along with colleague/friends – both artists and writers.


If you could hang out with one famous person for one day, who would it be and why?


Since you did not ask whether the person is living or dead, today I would choose Hildegard of Bingen. (Tomorrow it could be Catherine of Siena, Elizabeth Gilbert or even Caroline Myss). Since I have always been interested in the mystics, I choose Hildegard because of her interests in art, writing, poetry, natural and medicinal herbs, role as an abbess, along with her courage and tenacity to stand up to a male-dominated system that did not, at that time in history, appreciate or even understand the value of the intuitive female.


What’s the story behind your latest book?


My story is a multigenerational memoir about traveling with my Italian-born father, Italian-American mother and very-American husband to the villages of my ancestors. My trilogy tale leads the reader through ancient sites of Rome, landscapes of a picturesque countryside, seaside villages of Sicily, olive tress in the valley of Mount Etna, while contrasting an emotional journey between my father and myself.


Tell us your writing process


Most often I begin my process by writing in my journal when I first wake up and again before I go to sleep. After breakfast, I take my journal entries, bring them to the computer and type them into a word document where I keep writing, until the story is written and ready for editing and revising. When I was in the heat of my memoir, I would often get up early and go right to the computer where I would work on a new chapter or edit one that needed revision. The days that I teach, I have to wait until evening when I can work on my writing. Once I’m into the writing, I have a hard time stopping. I get totally engrossed in the process and can easily lose track of time and stay up into wee hours of the morning.


When did you realize you wanted to be a writer?


I came into the creative arts as a Fine Artist–drawing, painting and mixed media. It was 1985 that I found writing or writing found me, and I fell totally at home in the process.


Tell us about your main character:


Since my book My Father’s Daughter, From Rome to Sicily is a memoir, I think of the story as having four main characters. Because I write from my perspective, I will talk about me as one of the main characters. I am obsessive about getting to my father’s village in Sicily with him, and excited to be able to visit my mother’s family’s village only a few hours away. My obsession does not stop with getting to those villages but continues throughout the whole story with worry over whether we have the right rooms in Rome, arrive at the papal audience on time or get to the train with time to spare. I pay attention to the details of every need my parents might have either before they have them or even if they never have them. The bottom line is that my character is a bit obsessive and out to uncover a heritage that possibly helped create such a personality.


What are you working on next?


I have a story I’ve written about my initial discovery and experiences in Healing Touch, an energy modality like Reiki, that I got involved in soon after 9-11 took place.


Do you have any special/extraordinary talents?


Besides being a writer, I have been an artist all of my adult life and before. I also discovered that I have the ability to do energy work (Healing Touch), where I am able to sense and feel energy around people.


Who are your favorite authors?


This has always been a tough question because there have been so many over the years. I will give a few of who I am “presently” obsessed with, which means it could change next month. These are but a few authors whose books are sitting on one of the surfaces next to where I read:  Elizabeth Gilbert, Adriana Trigiani and most recently I’ve become enamored with Elena Ferrante.


What do you like to do with your free time?


I like to walk, bike, read, hang out with my husband, Stu, and I/we love to travel.


Tell us about your plans for upcoming books.


One of my books is about Healing Touch. I also have stories about the angels that I have drawn for the last two or more decades. I know there are at least two more books from the poems I have written and continue to write. There are a few other possibilities that I think about.


 


Any final thoughts?


My memoir My Father’s Daughter, From Rome to Sicily, has been an experience that has helped me to discover my passion for story. I am not talking only about my stories, although that’s where it begins. I’m also talking about the accounts of the people I teach in classes and workshops and meet at writing events. It is important for us and for humanity to get our stories written. I believe if we don’t capture our tales, the truth of our life will be lost.


Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: FROM ROME TO SICILY!, Gilda Morina Syverson, interview, MY FATHER’S DAUGHTER, Pump Up Your Book, PUYB, PUYB Virtual Book Club
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Published on October 06, 2015 14:23

Book Tour – Lake of Sins

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Lake of Sins

by L. S. O’Dea


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BLURB:


In a world where class distinction means the difference between imprisonment and freedom and even life and death, being chosen to stay in the encampment and breed is the only way to guarantee survival for a teenage Producer.


Every year after harvest, the finest examples of teenage Producers are assigned mates; the rest are loaded onto carts and hauled away, never to be seen or heard from again. Trinity, a sixteen-year-old Producer, knows that she has no chance of being chosen to stay. She isn’t even full-blooded Producer. Her father is a House Servant and she’s spent her entire life hiding her differences, especially her claws and fangs.


She has one week to sneak into the forest and discover what happens to those who are taken. Her plan is simple, but she doesn’t count on being hunted and captured by predators long believed to be extinct. Can she elude her captors to uncover the fate of her kind and return to camp before her escape is discovered?


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Excerpt:


She ran blindly away from the sound of the Guards, her backpack slamming against her spine with each stride.  If they catch my scent, they will find me.  She skidded to a stop.  The forest had ended.  A rock wall loomed in front of her, stretching to both sides as far as she could see.  Little crevices and divots peppered the wall, but it was too steep to climb.  She had to make a choice.  The wrong one would cost her freedom, maybe her life.


The trees rustled behind her.  Too late.  They found me.  This had all been for nothing.  Now, the best she could hope for was to be taken with the others.  Her chest tightened.  She had to make sure that her mom and Remy weren’t punished because she escaped.  She raised her hands to her shoulders and slowly turned.  Her breath caught in her throat.  A Tracker, the deadliest of predators, stood on its back two legs, towering above her, front legs hanging down like arms.  Brindle fur covered its body and its eyes glowed yellow in the shadowed forest.  Its tongue lolled out the side of its mouth, exposing a row of sharp teeth on the other side.  Someone should tell it that they no longer exist in the wild.


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AUTHOR BIO:


L.S. O’Dea grew up the youngest of seven. She always wanted to do what her older siblings were doing, especially reading stories.


Ill at a young age, she immersed herself in books. Her life changed when she read a short story written by her older brother and realized that normal (somewhat anyway, since her brother was a bit weird in her opinion) people created these amazing stories. From that day forward, she wanted to write.


However, as with all good stories, obstacles rose in her path (mostly self-created obstacles) and it took her many years to put finger to keyboard and type her first book.


Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/11771298.L_S_O_Dea?from_search=true


Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-of-Sins-Escape/1525911114338421


Twitter: https://twitter.com/lsodea


Website: http://www.lsodea.com


Blog: http://www.lsodea.com/4/feed


Amazon Author Central: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00RNMCAQU


The first book of the series is on sale for $0.99 until the end of the tour.


Amazon Buy Link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00RI7GKMU



character image Tim title
character image producers_title
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GIVEAWAY 


Prizes for the tour are as follows:



One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card.
One randomly chosen host will receive a $25 Amazon/BN.com gift card.

 Enter to win a $50 Amazon/BN GC – a Rafflecopter giveaway


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INTERVIEW


What are four things you can’t live without?

I’m a realist (seems odd since I am also a fiction writer).  So, if I answered this question honestly, the answers would be air, food, water and some type of shelter or safe place to rest.  Those are really the only things that we need to survive.


However, I think that the above answer does not address the spirit of the question.


So, the four things that I would not want to live without are:


My family.  I have been blessed (although I did not always consider six older siblings a blessing) with a large and loving family and would truly miss not having them to reach out to for a chat.


My pets.  This answer is kind of cheating since I consider my pets my family.  They are my companions and as much as they exasperate me sometimes, I love each one (yes, even you Jack! – he’s a bit of a high energy dog with digestive issues).


Nature.  I used to want to live in New York City with the hustle and bustle.  Now, I know that I would be miserable in any city.  I crave the wide open spaces and the greens and browns of nature.


Finally, Pepsi.  I truly love that sugary, carbonated drink.


What is your favorite television show?


Hmm.  I have a lot of shows that I like.  Some, I love the concept more than the actual show itself (Walking Dead – they could do so much better with their episodes and characters).  Some are guilty pleasures (reality TV – Survivor and yes, I admit it – Big Brother).  But, right now, I’d have to say that my favorite show is Game of Thrones.  It is so well written and acted that there is nothing else out there even close to it.


If you could be any character, from any literary work, who would you choose to be? Why?


I’m a wimp and I know how tough real life is so, I’d choose to be a heroine from any of the contemporary romances.  Sure, life is tough for a bit but I’d end up with a hunky guy (probably rich) who adores me and a happily ever after.


What have you got coming soon for us to look out for?


Currently, I am working on the next three books in the Lake of Sins series.  It was supposed to be two but the third one is way too long, so I’m probably going to make it into two books.  I have also just finished (in rough draft) a novella about Christian, the River-Man and how he became a River-Man.  I hope to have that one released in a month or so.  I may send it to Kindle Scout which will delay the release, especially if it is accepted.  I am toying with the idea to release this story as both a novella and as a graphic novel.  I have to get a quote from the illustrator who’s been creating images of my characters.


What books or authors have most influenced your own writing?


I really don’t have any one.  Over the years, I have gone through many favorite authors – Stephen King, Carl Hiaasen, Julia Quinn, Shakespeare (of course) just to name a few.  I don’t really know if any of them have influenced my writing but I suppose that they have in some way.  I am really more of a “book/story” reader.  I may read several books by the same author but then I flood my system and tire of that author (I’m not suggesting that any of you should tire of me as an author – of course J) because their stories become boiler plates.  I’m hoping to avoid that myself, but I’ll probably fall into that trap too.


Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: @lsodea, Book Excerpt, dystopian, Goddess Fish Promotions, L. S. O’Dea, Lake of Sins, sci-fi/fantasy
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Published on October 06, 2015 13:26

October 5, 2015

Book Tour – Mrs. John Doe

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Title: Mrs. John Doe

Author: Tom Savage

Genre: Thriller


In the adrenaline-laced new novel of suspense from Tom Savage—hailed by Michael Connelly as “a master of the high-speed thriller”—an American actress in Europe races to find the truth behind her husband’s mysterious accident. What she uncovers makes her the target of a shocking conspiracy.


Nora Baron’s life is perfect. She lives on Long Island Sound, teaches acting at a local university, and has a loving family. Then one phone call changes everything. She’s informed that her husband, Jeff, has died in a car crash while on a business trip in England. Nora flies to London to identify the body, which the police have listed as a “John Doe.” When she leaves the morgue, a man tries to steal her purse containing Jeff’s personal effects. Clearly, all is not as it seems.


At her hotel, Nora receives a cryptic message that leaves her with more questions than answers. She follows the message’s instructions to France, where a fatal encounter transforms her into a fugitive. Wanted for murder, on the run in a shadowy landscape of lies, secrets, and sudden violence, Mrs. “John Doe” must play the role of a lifetime to stay one step ahead of a ruthless enemy with deadly plans for her—and for the world.


Author Bio

Tom Savage is the author of six suspense novels: Precipice, Valentine, The Inheritance, ScavengerA Penny for the Hangman, and Mrs. John Doe. He wrote two detective novels under the name T. J. Phillips, Dance of the Mongoose and Woman in the Dark. His short stories have appeared in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, and anthologies edited by Lawrence Block, Harlan Coben, and Michael Connelly. His short story, “The Method In Her Madness,” was nominated for the Barry Award. His bestselling novel, Valentine, was made into a Warner Bros. film.  In his younger days he was a professional actor, and he also wrote a Broadway show, Musical Chairs.


Tom was born in New York and raised in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. He attended Point Park College and Hofstra University, majoring in drama and minoring in English. After acting and writing plays, he worked for many years at Murder Ink®, the world’s first mystery bookstore. He’s a member of Actors Equity Association, ASCAP, the Authors Guild, Mystery Writers of America, the International Association of Crime Writers, and International Thriller Writers. He has served as a director on the national board of MWA, and he’s served several times on the Best Novel committees for MWA (Edgar® Awards) and IACW (Hammett Prize). He is a founding member of MWA’s Mentor Program, assessing and encouraging new mystery writers. He lives in New York City.


Links

Website: http://tomsavagebooks.com/


Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tom-Savage/1474719352776870


Buy the Book:


Amazon


B&N


Books-a-Million


Google Play


iTunes


Penguin Random House


Goodreads


Book Excerpt


She heard the words, and they registered; she understood. Something happened inside her, a sudden feeling that she was on a stage and they were speaking lines that had been written by a playwright. She gripped the receiver carefully in her hand and spoke slowly, distinctly, so the audience could hear.


“How, Bill? How did it happen?”


“He was in one of my company’s cars in Kensington, on Holland Park Avenue. He seems to have swerved off the road and struck a wall. He—he was gone by the time the emergency people got to him. I’m so sorry. I’ve only just learned of it myself. It happened yesterday evening.”


“You’ve only just learned of it?” Nora was aware that she was still enunciating everything carefully. She didn’t sound like herself; she sounded like a character in the play she was performing. She wondered if this was a symptom of shock.


“Yes, that’s the odd thing about it. It seems he didn’t have anything on him, any identifying cards or papers. Nothing in his wallet but money, and pictures of you and your daughter. The police didn’t know who he was until they traced the car to us. I—I went to the morgue and, um, identified him. I’m just now back from there.”


The woman she was playing said, “Was anyone else hurt? Was he—”


“He was alone in the car, and no other cars were involved, so far as they know. None that stopped, at any rate . . .”


She weighed those last six words. “What are you saying, Bill? Do they have reason to believe it was anything other than an accident?”


Bill Howard gasped; that’s how it sounded, anyway, and his voice trembled with emotion. “Oh, Nora, I don’t really know anything at this point. I think you must—you must . . .” He was Jeff’s longtime friend and colleague, she reminded herself, and he was floundering, apparently searching for words in his own distress.


“I’ll come,” she heard herself say. “I’ll get a seat on the soonest flight.”


Now he seemed to pull himself together, and his voice took on a clipped, authoritative tone. “Let us do that for you, Nora. My assistant can handle all the business with the flights—”


“No,” she said. “No, thank you, Bill. I must—I’d rather be doing something. I’ll call you as soon as I know when I’m arriving.”


“We’ll book you in the Savoy—”


“No, nothing big. That little place in Gower Street where we usually stay.” We. She and Jeff . . .


“The Byron,” Bill said. “We’ll handle that, at least. Let me know your flight, and I’ll meet you at Heathrow. I’m so very sorry, Nora.”


She winced; she would have to get used to that sentiment. “Thank you, Bill, for—for being so kind.” She hung up before he could say anything more.


The bedroom was dark now. The receiver missed the cradle on the table and fell silently to the carpet. A car accident. She’d often wondered how it would be, what news she might hear. Jeff traveled so much with his business. But she’d never thought of a car accident. A plane, maybe . . .


A plane. The character she was playing took over once more. Nora Baron shut her eyes for a moment and listened to the silence in her house, in her body, in her mind. Then she opened her eyes, switched on the bedside lamp, picked up the receiver from the floor, and called the airline.


Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: Book Excerpt, book tours, Enchanted book promotions, Mrs. John Doe, Tom Savage
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Published on October 05, 2015 14:07

October 4, 2015

Book Tour – The Blue Dragon

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The Blue Dragon


by Yiola Damianou-Papadopoulou


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GENRE: YA/ Middle Grade Fiction


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BLURB:


The Blue Dragon describes the terror of the catastrophic tsunami that hit Sri Lanka in December 2004. The novel focuses on a group of children—Hanseni, and her siblings Awade and Manori, and their friend Nishian—their individual experiences, and how they managed to pull through this horrendous event. Overcoming their fears the children struggle against the forces of nature, fighting against the odds to save themselves and their friends. Their stories portray courage and hope, and demonstrate the inner strength and determination that exists in the human spirit when faced with an unforgiving natural disaster. This emotive and heartfelt story shows how even, in the most terrifying of circumstances, the will to live triumphs.


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Book Excerpt:


Chapter 1: “Mangona Village, Southern Sri Lanka


“I’ll go there too someday,” Hanseni murmured to herself, as she played with the pure white pebbles at the sea’s edge. She always picked this spot to play as she could look across to the other side. The house with the red windows high up on the hill occupied her thoughts. Schools in Sri Lanka were closed for the Christmas holidays, but the tutorial center never closed. The house on the hill was a school for foreign languages. Earlier that day she had seen the children making their way uphill. If only she could go too. In her mind, foreign languages were a passport: she could fly away, travel, see the world… Her eyes plunged into the azure sea and set sail for unknown lands.


BookCover_TheBlueDragon


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AUTHOR BIO:


Yiola Damianou-Papadopoulou was born in Nicosia and spent her childhood in the Congo and Nigeria. She studied Journalism in Athens and has worked with a number of radio stations, magazines and newspapers in Cyprus. She has published short stories for adults as well as novels. She has also written children’s and young adult fiction.


Excerpt: http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Blue-Dragon-ebook/dp/B00BC6S6AW/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1360753618&sr=8-6


Publisher Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WattlePublishing?sk=app_190322544333196


Publisher website: www.wattlepublishing.com


Buy Links:


Kindle Edition: US http://www.amazon.com/The-Blue-Dragon-ebook/dp/B00BC6S6AW/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&qid=1360230589&sr=8-15&keywords=The+Blue+Dragon


UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Blue-Dragon-ebook/dp/B00BC6S6AW/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1360753618&sr=8-6


iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/book/the-blue-dragon/id604203855?mt=11


Kobo https://store.kobobooks.com/en-gb/books/The-Blue-Dragon/fLmNm9BNgE-hjg4lpFYkmw?MixID=fLmNm9BNgE-hjg4lpFYkmw&PageNumber=1&s=y_Ine0YWBUiHRERNkeksvw&r=4


Paperback Edition:


US http://www.amazon.com/The-Blue-Dragon-Yiola-Damianou-Papadopoulou/dp/1908959126/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1412159533&sr=8-1&keywords=9781908959126


UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Blue-Dragon-Yiola-Damianou-Papadopoulou/dp/1908959126/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1368379009&sr=8-1&keywords=the+blue+dragon+by+yiola+damianou-papadopoulou


Wordery: https://wordery.com/the-blue-dragon-yiola-damianou-papadopoulou-9781908959126


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GIVEAWAY 


Yiola will be awarding a $10 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

Enter to win a $10 Amazon/BN GC – a Rafflecopter giveaway


Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: Book Excerpt, Book Giveaway, Goddess Fish Promotions, The Blue Dragon, Yiola Damianou-Papadopoulou
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Published on October 04, 2015 16:05

October 3, 2015

Book Tour – Unbelievable

unbelievablebanner


About the Book


Title: Unbelievable

Author: Trev Brown

Genre: Literary Fiction


Starting in the 1970s, an adventure which follows the trials and tribulations of a young guy trying to make an improvement in his nation’s agricultural and industrial initiatives. He finds that good things can happen from bad, and bad things can happen from good. The story contains an underlying indigenous theme.


9781742845227_Front


Author Bio


At age 59, this book was started over 20 years ago. Now a retired teacher and full time carer of an invalid father residing in Forster NSW. When the book was being written, the thought of a musical came to mind. With a little help from his friends, the author completed the musical in 2003. The cost of publication has always been a worry. His second book “Trolling For Sharks” was released on Keeaira Press in 2005.


Links


http://trev-brown.com


Buy on Amazon (Paperback): http://www.amazon.com/UNBELIEVABLE-Trevor-Brown/dp/1742845223/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1431641259&sr=8-1&keywords=9781742845227


Buy on Amazon (Kindle): http://www.amazon.com/Unbelievable-Trevor-Brown-ebook/dp/B00WS8YDIM/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1431641259&sr=8-1


Buy on Bookpal: http://my.bookpal.com.au/Bookstore/b/10808-UNBELIEVABLE


Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: Enchanted book promotions, Trev Brown, Unbelievable
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Published on October 03, 2015 15:45

October 2, 2015

Book Signing – C.A.Milson

rise of the darkness final


Award winning author and indie filmaker, C.A.Milson will be signing copies of his book, The Rise Of The Darkness, at the OzAuthors Stall at Brimbank Shopping Centre on Saturday October 17th from 11Am til 1PM.


If you are in the area, drop in and meet the author.


Oz Authors will feature some great books by talented Aussie authors at the Brimbank Shopping Centre for the week starting 12th October and finishing on the 18th. Be sure to get down and check out the titles


 


 


Filed under: Events Tagged: #C.A.Milson, author book signing, Book Signing, Brimbank Shopping Centre, The Rise Of The Darkness
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Published on October 02, 2015 19:43

October 1, 2015

Book Tour – Casablanca: Appointment at Dawn

NBTM_TourBanner_Casablanca

Casablanca: Appointment at Dawn

by Linda Bennett Pennell


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GENRE: historical fiction with romantic elements


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BLURB:


Casablanca, 1943: a viper’s nest of double agents and spies where OSS Officer Kurt Heinz finds his skill in covert operations pushed to the limit. Allied success in North Africa and the fate of the First Allied Conference—perhaps the outcome of the war—hang on Kurt’s next mission. The nature of his work makes relationships impossible. Nonetheless, he is increasingly torn between duty and the beautiful girl who desperately needs his protection and help.


Sarah Barrett, U.S. Army R.N., is finished with wartime romance. Determined to protect her recently broken heart, she throws all of her time and energy into caring for her patients, but when she is given a coded message by a mysterious dying civilian, she is sucked into a vortex of danger and intrigue that threatens her very survival. The one person who can help Sarah is Kurt Heinz, a man with too many secrets to be trusted.

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Book Excerpt:


Kurt watched in dismay as the man in gray picked up his fedora and rose from the table next to the one recently vacated by the two women. This had to be his contact. The man had watched Kurt on the sly since he arrived at the restaurant. Moreover, the guy matched the description right down to the red pocket square in his suit breast pocket and the thin, pale scar running along his left jawline. Making a quick decision, Kurt pushed his chair back and tossed some cash on the table.


“It’s been interesting guys, but I’m calling it a night. Use this to cover my tab.”


“What’s the rush, Heinz? We haven’t even ordered dinner.”


“I guess my sins are catching up with me. It’s return to quarters and bed for me.”


“You headed back with us on the return flight tomorrow?”


“Nope, I’m here with the Old Man for the duration. You boys have a good trip.”


The street was nearly deserted when Kurt stepped out onto its glistening concrete surface. Misty rain created halos around the sparse street lamps and obscured most objects more than a few feet distant. Only the two women, Sarah and Agnes, stood under an umbrella waiting for a taxi. Kurt watched them from the restaurant’s portico. Focused on their conversation, they seemed oblivious to anyone behind them.


Glancing to his right, Kurt saw his man in gray scurrying toward the cross street. He stepped onto the sidewalk and crept along a good twenty paces behind. When his quarry slowed at the corner and looked back over his shoulder, Kurt stepped into the shadow of a doorway behind the taxi stand and waited. If this guy didn’t want to make contact, he wouldn’t appreciate being followed.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~


AUTHOR BIO:


AuthorPhoto_CasablancaAppointmentAtDawn


I have been in love with the past for as long as I can remember. Anything with a history, whether shabby or majestic, recent or ancient, instantly draws me in. I suppose it comes from being part of a large extended family that spanned several generations. Long summer afternoons on my grandmother’s porch or winter evenings gathered around her fireplace were filled with stories both entertaining and poignant. Of course being set in the American South, those stories were also peopled by some very interesting characters, some of whom have found their way into my work.


As for my venture in writing, it has allowed me to reinvent myself. We humans are truly multifaceted creatures, but unfortunately we tend to sort and categorize each other into neat, easily understood packages that rarely reveal the whole person. Perhaps you, too, want to step out of the box in which you find yourself. I encourage you to look at the possibilities and imagine. Be filled with childlike wonder in your mental wanderings. Envision what might be, not simply what is. Let us never forget, all good fiction begins when someone says to her or himself, “Let’s pretend.”


I reside in the Houston area with one sweet husband and one adorable German Shorthaired Pointer who is quite certain she’s a little girl.


“History is filled with the sound of silken slippers going downstairs and wooden shoes coming up.” Voltaire


~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Books:


Al Capone at the Blanche Hotel from Soul Mate Publishing

Confederado do Norte from Soul Mate Publishing

When War Came Home from real Cypress Press

Casablanca: Appointment at Dawn available 8/28/15 from the Wild Rose Press


Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorLindaBennettPennell

Website: http://www.lindapennell.com/

Twitter: @LindaPennell


Buy link for Al Capone at the Blanche Hotel: http://amzn.to/16qq3k5

Buy link for Confederado do Norte: http://amzn.com/B00LMN5OMI

Buy ink for When War Came Home: http://amzn.com/B010RXNZRO

Buy link for Casablanca: Appointment at Dawn: http://amzn.com/B0121Q6S88


~~~~~~~~~~~~~


GIVEAWAY


Linda will be awarding $20 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.


Enter to win a $20 Amazon/BN GC – a Rafflecopter giveaway


~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Author Interview


Linda, thanks for being my guest today. Tell us about you.

I have been in love with the past for as long as I can remember. Anything with a history, whether shabby or majestic, recent or ancient, instantly draws me in. I suppose it comes from being part of a large extended family that spanned several generations. Long summer afternoons on my grandmother’s porch or winter evenings gathered around her fireplace were filled with stories both entertaining and poignant. Of course being set in the American South, those stories were also peopled by some very interesting characters, some of whom have found their way into my work.


As for my venture in writing, it has allowed me to reinvent myself. We humans are truly multifaceted creatures, but unfortunately we tend to sort and categorize each other into neat, easily understood packages that rarely reveal the whole person. Perhaps you, too, want to step out of the box in which you find yourself. I encourage you to look at the possibilities and imagine. Be filled with childlike wonder in your mental wanderings. Envision what might be, not simply what is. Let us never forget, all good fiction begins when someone says to her or himself, “Let’s pretend.”


I reside in the Houston area with one sweet husband and one adorable German Shorthaired Pointer who is quite certain she’s a little girl.


Favorite quote regarding my professional passion: “History is filled with the sound of silken slippers going downstairs and wooden shoes coming up.” Voltaire


What inspires you to get out of bed each day?

My life is far too full to lollygag in bed all day! Staying in bed is not an option.


If you could hang out with one famous person for one day, who would it be and why?

My choice may seem somewhat unusual because the person I admire greatly is probably only known to musicians with an interest in the choral literature. I choose Morten Lauridsen, composer of some of the most beautiful sacred music it has ever been my privilege to sing. Here is the wonderful King’s College choir singing his O Magnum Mysterium



What’s the story behind your latest book?

I have always been interested in World War II history and wanted to write in that era. Casablanca: Appointment at Dawn was originally entitled Wings and was about a ninety-day-wonder, as Army Air Corps pilots in training were known, and an army nurse set in Hialeah, Florida. It might have been an okay story, but it just wasn’t working for me. When a fellow author, who was also a WWII pilot, mentioned a friend who had been stationed at Casablanca during the war, I did some research and decided the First Allied Conference provided much more fascinating possibilities for murder and mayhem.


Tell us your writing process

I am a plotter with pantser tendencies. I usually know the beginning, the end, and the major plot points and themes before I start. I also usually have my title before I begin as well. The rest just sort of reveals itself as I go.


Do you have any tips for authors who want to get the word out about their book?

I have two words: Social Media, often and early!


When did you realize you wanted to be a writer?

When I was a senior in high school, I enjoyed my creative writing class very much. Once I got to college, however, I got caught up in writing research papers for my degree in history and later for my degrees and certifications in education. I ultimately retired from public school administration. It was the best gift I have ever given myself, but the sudden release from having a life lived by the school bell left me somewhat adrift and uncertain at first. If I wasn’t the school administrator, then who was I? Traveling full circle to the creative writing that I had so briefly loved in high school gave me the answer.


Tell us about your main character:

There are two, actually. Here is a little about each.


OSS officer Kurt Heinz is a second generation German-American from Boerne, Texas. He grew up on a dairy farm with extended family, including his paternal grandparents who insisted that only German be spoken in the home. As a result, Kurt speaks perfectly unaccented German. He also looks like a poster boy for Himmler’s SS and excels at the covert skills he learned during his OSS training. His very specialized skill set becomes critical to the Allied war effort in the weeks leading up to the First Allied Conference in 1943 at Casablanca. Meeting Sarah and falling for her was never on his agenda, but the situation she is in pulls them both into a vortex of danger and intrigue that could prove fatal.


Army nurse Sarah Barrett is from Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. She grew up on a farm riding in the back of pick-up trucks and with only a passing acquaintance with the greater world outside her Appalachian Mountain home. When the US enters World War II, she decides to do her part for the war effort by joining the army after graduation from nursing school. Nothing in her training or life in Virginia prepared her for what she would experience as a wartime army nurse or for Kurt, a man with too many secrets to be trusted.


What are you working on next?

My work in progress is set in Miami and Havana. It features my history professor from Al Capone at the Blanche Hotel. This time she is chasing Meyer Lansky, a.k.a. the Mob’s accountant and a founding member of Murder Incorporated.


Do you have any special/extraordinary talents?

My great love in life, aside from family, friends, and writing, is choral music. I sing 1st soprano with the Texas Master Chorale and my church choir.


Who are your favorite authors?

Oh, my. So many authors, so little space! Here are a few in no particular order, but covering most of my reading experience: Victoria Holt, Anne Perry, Daphne Du Maurier, Elizabeth George, Ellis Peters, PD James, Harper Lee, and Kathryn Stockett.


What do you like to do with your free time?

I sing and volunteer with my church and local arts organizations.


Any final thoughts?

Nothing more than to say thank you so much for hosting me!!


Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: @LindaPennell, Book Excerpt, Casablanca: Appointment at Dawn, Goddess Fish Promotions
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Published on October 01, 2015 15:54

Heartbound Book Blitz

Heartbound Book Blitz Banner 2


We’re happy to be hosting P.I. Alltaine and her HEARTBOUND Book Blitz today!


About the Book:

Heartbound


Title: Heartbound

Author: P.I. Alltraine

Publisher: Soul Mate Publishing

Pages: 177

Genre: YA fantasy romance


Petyr has never found it necessary to consider the humans as anything more than distant, inferior beings–until now. They are the cause of the fatal disease that has plagued his realm, taking the lives of too many of his kind. As a future leader of a realm in peril, Petyr must find a way to resist and cure the affliction. He must enter the unfamiliar realm, appear to be an ordinary eighteen-year-old human, observe, and learn.


However, things don’t exactly go according to plan. Instead of embarking single-mindedly on his sober mission, Petyr meets an 18-year-old girl who does things to his emotions that he can’t quite fathom or control. Petyr is falling in love, and he almost forgets the gravity his choices have on his entire world. Despite the risk it poses to his life and hers, he wants to know her, and he wants her to know him–and his world.


For More Information

Heartbound is available at Amazon.
Watch the trailer at YouTube.
Discuss this book at PUYB Virtual Book Club at Goodreads.

Book Excerpt:


I defied my fate the moment I leapt out of my apartment’s third-story window. I landed on the pavement without a sound. In the same instant, my feet blended into the measured pace in which humans carried themselves.


Gazing up at the sky, I tried to find something to remind me of my home, of my duty. The future leader of a realm in peril cannot be overcome by irrational desires, I thought.


Thick smoke obscured the heavens so much even the brightest stars were dull and barely visible. A reminder I was trapped in this city, in this realm. Too far away from everything I knew, too restrained, too human.


Through the chaos in my mind, I captured the image of the girl with brown and dark-auburn tones in her hair, the shine that bounced from her loose curls, the depth in her hazel eyes, and even the awkward half-smile when she caught me looking at her. But the memory wasn’t enough. I needed to see her again.


I kept walking until I reached the riverbank in the heart of London. The water rippled with a disheveled mesh of gold and red, reflecting a large architectural structure. My gaze lingered on the clock tower adjacent to the building, gauging its height. A temptation to feel even a fraction of my true nature became a need in every fiber in my body. No longer able to rationalize, my muscles coiled, and I let go. Wind enveloped me with its familiar warmth as I sprang across the River Thames. I aimed to land on the lower portion of the tower, to indulge in the pleasure of my ascent. Though too fast for human eyes, each maneuver, each somersault, each back flip was slow enough for me to savor every moment of my liberation.


On a part of the roof concealed from the passersby below, I was closer to the heavens than I’d been since arriving in the city. Still, I didn’t belong here. Hundreds of lights sparkled below me, each representing a life I didn’t comprehend. Allowing myself to break free from my human façade had made me a liability to the others. For a few moments of freedom, I let myself forget the importance of my purpose here—the lives that depended on it.


Somehow, having the girl’s image in my mind brought calmness within me. One that felt permanent. One that extinguished the sense of entrapment, despite the thick layer of smoke that was still very visible to me. I held on to the calmness as I regained the confidence to face the others.


Watch the Book Trailer!


About the Author

P.I. Alltraine


P.I. Alltraine is an award winning poet and author. She has won several international poetry competitions, and her poems have been published in separate anthologies.


She teaches English Language and Literature in London. She earned her degree in BA English from Queen Mary University of London, a Post Graduate Certificate in Education and Master’s in Teaching at the UCL Institute of Education, University of London.


Before moving to London, she lived in the Philippines where she was ensconced in the rich culture encrusted with dark myths and enchanted tales. She draws inspiration from these in her writing. Although she has lived indifferent places and experienced different cultures, she always enjoyed the constancy of writing in her life. Her favourite authors include John Milton, Virginia Woolf and James Joyce.


Her latest book is the YA fantasy romance, Heartbound.


For More Information



Visit P.I. Alltraine’s website.
Connect with P.I. on Facebook and Twitter.
Find out more about P.I. at Goodreads.
Contact P.I.

Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: @pialltraine, Book Excerpt, Heartbound Book Blitz, P.I. Alltraine, Pump Up Your Book, PUYB
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Published on October 01, 2015 14:29

September 30, 2015

Book Tour – The Murder Road by Stephen Booth

The Murder Road by Stephen Booth


Title: The Murder Road

Author: Stephen Booth

Publisher: Witness Impulse

Genre: Mystery/Suspense

Format: Kindle/Hardcover/Paperback


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For fans of Broadchurch, Louise Penny, and Peter Robinson comes a spellbinding new novel from internationally bestselling author Stephen Booth


Welcome to the picturesque English village of Shawhead, where there’s one road in and one road out. And on that road this morning is an abandoned vehicle…with an ominous bloodstain inside.


It’s a mystery. It could be a murder. Where—and who—is the driver? Whose blood has been discovered? Why are the people of Shawhead so hostile toward Detective Ben Cooper, sent in to take charge of the investigation?


As Cooper peels back layers of lies and exposes dark secrets to the light, he draws ever closer to a killer hiding in plain sight. Packed with atmosphere, suspense, and surprises, The Murder Road is Stephen Booth’s most unforgettable novel yet.


Order The Murder Road at:

Amazon

B&N

Add to Goodreads Shelf.


About The Author


Stephen-Booth-204x300


A newspaper and magazine journalist for over 25 years, Stephen Booth was born in the English Pennine mill town of Burnley. He was brought up on the Lancashire coast at Blackpool, where he attended Arnold School. He began his career in journalism by editing his school magazine, and wrote his first novel at the age of 12.


After graduating from City of Birmingham Polytechnic (now Birmingham City University), Stephen moved to Manchester to train as a teacher, but escaped from the profession after a terrifying spell as a trainee teacher in a big city comprehensive school.


Starting work on his first newspaper in Wilmslow, Cheshire, in 1974, Stephen was a specialist rugby union reporter, as well as working night shifts as a sub-editor on the Daily Express and The Guardian. This was followed by periods with local newspapers in Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire. He was at various times Production Editor of the Farming Guardian magazine, Regional Secretary of the British Guild of Editors, and one of the UK’s first qualified assessors for the NVQ in Production Journalism.


Freelance work began with rugby reports for national newspapers and local radio stations. Stephen has also had articles and photographs published in a wide range of specialist magazines, from Scottish Memories to Countrylovers Magazine, from Cat World to Canal and Riverboat, and one short story broadcast on BBC radio. In 1999, his writing career changed direction when, in rapid succession, he was shortlisted for the Dundee Book Prize and the Crime Writers’ Association Debut Dagger competition for new writers, then won the £5,000 Lichfield Prize for his unpublished novel The Only Dead Thing, and signed a two-book contract with HarperCollins for a series of crime novels.


In 2000, Stephen’s first published novel, Black Dog, marked the arrival in print of his best known creations – two young Derbyshire police detectives, DC Ben Cooper and DS Diane Fry. Black Dog was the named by the London Evening Standard as one of the six best crime novels of the year – the only book on their list written by a British author. In the USA, it won the Barry Award for Best British Crime Novel and was nominated for an Anthony Award for Best First Mystery. The second Cooper & Fry novel, Dancing with the Virgins, was shortlisted for the UK’s top crime writing award, the Gold Dagger, and went on to win Stephen a Barry Award for the second year running.


In 2003, Detective Constable Ben Cooper was a finalist for the Sherlock Award for the Best Detective created by a British author, thanks to his exploits in the third book of the series, Blood on the Tongue. The publication of Blind to the Bones that year resulted in Stephen winning the Crime Writers’ Association’s ‘Dagger in the Library’ Award, presented to the author whose books have given readers most pleasure. The same book was nominated for the Theakston’s UK Crime Novel of the Year award in 2005. Subsequent titles have been One Last Breath, The Dead Place (both finalists for the UK Crime Novel of the Year in 2006 and 2007), Scared to Live, Dying to Sin, The Kill Call, Lost River, The Devil’s Edge, Dead and Buried and Already Dead. The 14th Cooper & Fry novel, The Corpse Bridge, was published in the UK in June 2014 and will be followed by The Murder Road in 2015. A special Ben Cooper story, Claws, was released in 2007 to launch the new ‘Crime Express’ imprint, and was re-issued in April 2011.


All the books are set in England’s beautiful and atmospheric Peak District. At the end of 2006, the Peak District National Park Authority featured locations from the Cooper & Fry series in their new Peak Experience visitors’ guides, recognising the interest in the area inspired by the books.


The Cooper & Fry series is now published by Little, Brown in the UK and by the Witness Impulse imprint of HarperCollins in the USA. In addition to publication in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, translation rights in the series have so far been sold in fifteen languages – French, German, Dutch, Italian, Swedish, Danish, Finnish, Norwegian, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Czech, Romanian, Bulgarian and Japanese.


While living on a smallholding in Yorkshire, Stephen began breeding pedigree dairy goats as a hobby (and as an extreme contrast to working in busy news rooms!). He later served on the British Goat Society’s governing body and judged at shows all over Britain. He has been chairman of several clubs, including the charity fund-raising Just Kidding Goat Society, and probably his most unusual role was as a director of an artificial insemination company. Specialist publications he’s been responsible for include a book on one of the country’s oldest goat breeds, The Toggenburg. He is a former President of the Toggenburg Breeders Society.


Stephen left journalism in 2001 to write novels full time. He and his wife Lesley live in a village in rural Nottinghamshire, England (home of Robin Hood and the Pilgrim Fathers). They have three cats.


In recent years, Stephen Booth has become a Library Champion in support of the UK’s ‘Love Libraries’ campaign, and a Reading Champion to support the National Year of Reading. He has also represented British literature at the Helsinki Book Fair in Finland, filmed a documentary for 20th Century Fox on the French detective Vidocq, taken part in online chats for World Book Day, and given talks at many conferences, conventions, libraries, bookshops and festivals around the world.


More info:

Website

Twitter



Filed under: Guest Authors Tagged: @stephenbooth, Pump Up Your Book, PUYB, Stephen Booth, The Murder Road
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Published on September 30, 2015 14:19

The Worlds First Full Virtual Reality Book (VR Book) Experience

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The First Virtual Reality Book


Melbourne, Australia – September 22 2015: ASJ Publishing have just released the first virtual reality book for Oculus Rift. The book will offer readers a visually immersive reading experience.


mAccording to the CEO of Sega, Mike Hayes, the virtual reality industry will be worth a staggering $6 billion within the next two years. The majority of this will be attributed to the Oculus Rift device, which has had drastic improvements to its functionality since it was initially announced in 2012. Different uses are constantly being created for the device, which is bound to change the way people experience art and entertainment.


 


With several virtual reality games and movies already available for people to enjoy, it is easy to see that many industries have already accepted the Oculus Rift as the device of the future. Just last week the virtual reality television show Sleepy Hollow won an Emmy award, which will certainly encourage the television industry to produce more shows of the like.


Whether it is stepping into their favorite game, watching an immersive movie, experiencing destinations around the world or spending time with friends, the Oculus Rift offers users a unique experience. The Melbourne-based publishing house ASJ Publishing believes that not only will virtual reality change the way people experience art and entertainment, but it can also change the way people read.


We are stepping outside the limitations of a traditional book.” explains Chris Jackson, the founder of ASJ Publishing. “Imagine being able to visually immerse yourself into a book. For instance, you could be reading a book of a woman walking through a forest and be entirely surrounded by detailed foliage and staggeringly tall trees. As you continue reading, the breeze will come through the trees and blow the leaves around you. The content of the scene will set the mood of the story. This is unlike anything you have ever experienced while reading a book.


ASJ Publishing have just released the first virtual reality book for Oculus. Written by Ken Maxon and developed by Kevin Gulling, the book is a poetry piece titled“A Chapter Finished, A Page Turned, the Sunset will Come Back.” It was initially published by ASJ in 2012 and the company has decided to use it as their first virtual reality book due to its relaxing tone and atmosphere. While reading the book on a virtual reality device, readers will experience a “book reading simulation” whilst on an island. They will be sitting in the sand, under a palm tree and be able to watch the waves roll in and the birds flying above.


As the popularity of virtual reality continues during the near future, ASJ Publishing hopes to release many more virtual reality books. To find out more information visit www.asjpublishing.com.


Get it on Oculushttps://share.oculus.com/app/a-chapter-finished



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Filed under: Events Tagged: ASJ Publishing, Kevin Gulling, Oculus Rift, Virtual Reality Book, VR Simulation
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Published on September 30, 2015 14:00