Katy Huth Jones's Blog, page 18
April 18, 2016
Cover reveal by one of my favorite authors!

About the book :
Life moves on — no matter what...
Following his father’s puzzling disappearance and his mother’s death, ten-year-old Samuel Baker goes through the motions of living in a world turned upside down. He wears an Apache talisman, a long ago gift from his father, in hopes its promise of strength and guidance is true. But what he truly wants is the power to bring back his parents.
Heartless Aunt Janis is elated at the prospect of becoming Samuel’s legal guardian. She is sure an orphan boy will elicit such an outpouring of public sympathy that her husband will win his Senate bid by a landslide. But when Grandpa Tate arrives, things don’t go as expected, especially when black lightning strikes!
Excerpt from Chapter One: Samuel stood beside his mother’s rain-speckled casket. He had cried his tears dry, so there was no point in trying to find more.
“Chin up, young man,” Aunt Janis said as her fingers nudged Samuel’s jaw upward. “Death is just part of life, and our photographer needs a good picture of you for the newspapers.”
A camera flashed, leaving Samuel’s red and swollen eyes burning as if stung by the sun instead of grief.
So many important days had come and gone without his father, but surely he would come home today, wouldn’t he? Samuel closed his eyes. He pretended his father was beside him holding his hand. They had a right to hold hands, he told himself. Not because he was ten, but because it was his mother’s funeral. Two years had passed since his father left, never to be seen again. Vanished, was the word his mother had used. Into thin air, she’d said.
“Take that silly thing off.” Aunt Janis flicked Samuel’s wood and bead necklace.
“No,” he said and shook his head. “My dad gave it to me.” It was a pinewood tile, the size of a domino shaved nickel-thin, which hung from a leather cord around his neck. Burned onto the front side of the wood was a lightning bolt. Its flipside bore the blackened imprint of a tribal dancer. It had a turquoise nugget and a shiny black hematite bead strung together on each side. His father had given the talisman to him with a promise: It will guide you and give you strength when you need it most.
Today, dressed in a black suit and starchy white shirt, Samuel wore it in hopes the promise was true.
EARLY REVIEWS for Black Lightning: “If you’ve forgotten the magic that lives in a child’s heart, this book will remind you. Black Lightning is a rare and beautiful mythic journey about one boy’s struggle with paralyzing grief and the powerful bonds that can carry a person through this world and beyond...”
W. Michael Gear and Kathleen O’Neal GearUSA TODAY and NEW YORK TIMES bestselling authors of People of the Thunder
This MG fantasy/sci-fi will be released May 17, 2016 !
Buy/Pre-Order Links:Amazon link: http://viewbook.at/BlackLightning or http://www.amazon.com/Black-Lightning-K-S-Jones-ebook/dp/B01E6C041C
Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/black-lightning-ks-jones/1123660287?ean=9781987976120
eBookMall: http://www.ebookmall.com/ebook/black-lightning/k-s-jones/9781987976113

Author K.S. Jones, whose first name is Karen, has two published books — Shadow of the Hawk, a young adult historical, and her newest title called Black Lightning, which is a middle-grade sci-fi/fantasy. Her debut novel won a gold medal in the Literary Classics Book Awards and recently placed first in the esteemed Chaucer Awards. Karen lives in the beautiful Texas Hill Country with her husband, Richard, and their three dogs, Libby Loo, Red Bleu, and Jack Black.
Contact the author at these social links:
Website: http://www.ksjones.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Karen.S.Jones.Author?ref=hl
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KSJones2011
Linked In: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/karen-s-jones/42/597/417/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/KSJones
Published on April 18, 2016 06:41
April 5, 2016
New Release from Heather Sutherlin!
I'm excited to share a new release by a fellow author of flinch-free fantasy and member of Clean Indie Reads, Heather Sutherlin.
BUY THE BOOK
Amazon: http://amzn.to/1pM3reDiBooks: http://apple.co/1M1RsElBN: http://bit.ly/1Rz9M4hKobo: http://bit.ly/22QrMC1
ABOUT THE BOOK
Archer is a magician with a few more tricks up his sleeve than even the savviest street performer could imagine. Devilishly handsome and full of dark secrets, his devil-may-care attitude came at a price and unfortunately for him, the devil may care after all.
When he meets Hannah, a runaway whose art is more than it seems, he’s determined to keep her and her drama at arm’s length. But their souls are tied together with bonds that won’t be ignored and it’s going to take all his skill to keep her safe from the horde that follows her every move.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
WEBSITE / FACEBOOK / TWITTER / PINTEREST GOODREADS / YOUTUBE
Heather Sutherlin lives in Arkansas with her husband and three children. She is the author of fantasy adventures for young adults. She loves all things creative and enjoys the worlds she dreams up, longing to live the adventure alongside her characters. When she’s not at her writing desk, she is busy exploring and learning with her children or cooking big, elaborate meals in the kitchen with her husband.You can see more of Heather at her website, HeatherSutherlin.com

BUY THE BOOK
Amazon: http://amzn.to/1pM3reDiBooks: http://apple.co/1M1RsElBN: http://bit.ly/1Rz9M4hKobo: http://bit.ly/22QrMC1
ABOUT THE BOOK
Archer is a magician with a few more tricks up his sleeve than even the savviest street performer could imagine. Devilishly handsome and full of dark secrets, his devil-may-care attitude came at a price and unfortunately for him, the devil may care after all.
When he meets Hannah, a runaway whose art is more than it seems, he’s determined to keep her and her drama at arm’s length. But their souls are tied together with bonds that won’t be ignored and it’s going to take all his skill to keep her safe from the horde that follows her every move.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Heather Sutherlin lives in Arkansas with her husband and three children. She is the author of fantasy adventures for young adults. She loves all things creative and enjoys the worlds she dreams up, longing to live the adventure alongside her characters. When she’s not at her writing desk, she is busy exploring and learning with her children or cooking big, elaborate meals in the kitchen with her husband.You can see more of Heather at her website, HeatherSutherlin.com


Published on April 05, 2016 05:46
March 30, 2016
New Release: Finders Keepers
I'm excited to share the new release of a fellow member of Clean Indie Reads, J. J. DiBenedetto!
1,400 miles.
3 countries
2 men she can't trust.
What could go wrong?
FINDERS KEEPERS is the first book in the new Jane Barnaby Adventures series:
About the author J.J. (James) Dibenedetto's fans would swear he's got a sixth sense when it comes to seeing into the minds of others and often wonder if his stories could possibly be fiction. He enjoys suspending disbelief with suspenseful paranormal tales that are a perfect blend of reality meets fantasy. His popular Dream Series continues to delight readers with each and every exciting installment. Born in Yonkers, New York, he currently resides in Arlington Virginia with his beautiful wife and a cat he is sure has taken full advantage of its nine lives. When it comes to the cat, he often wonders, but then again it might just be his imagination. You can follow him at his website, on Facebook and on Twitter. And you can find all his books (including the complete Dream Series) on Amazon and on audiobook at Audible.com Here's an excerpt from Finders Keepers:

Last, but not least, to celebrate the launch of FINDERS KEEPERS, the author is giving away a signed paperback copy of either this new book, or any one of his Dream Series novels (winner's choice). For your chance to win, just click HERE to enter!)

1,400 miles.
3 countries
2 men she can't trust.
What could go wrong?
FINDERS KEEPERS is the first book in the new Jane Barnaby Adventures series:
It should have been a simple job. All archaeology student Jane Barnaby had to do was pick up a box her professor needed and deliver it to him at his dig site, along with his new car. Yes, his office was in Oxfordshire, and his dig site was in Spain, a trip of 1,400 miles across three countries and two bodies of water. Still, it should have been simple. And it was, until Jane discovered she picked up the wrong box by mistake. Not the one with boring pottery samples, but instead the one with priceless ancient Egyptian artifacts. The one that a team of international art thieves is after. Now she’s chasing – and being chased by – the thieves. And she’s picked up a pair of passengers who claim they can help her outwit them, get her professor’s pottery back and return the artifacts to their rightful owner. If only she could figure out which one of them is working with the thieves and which one she can trust in this high-stakes game of finders keepers.It's available everywhere eBooks are sold: Amazon (Kindle or Paperback) Smashwords Barnes & Noble (Nook or Paperback) Apple iBookstore Kobo

About the author J.J. (James) Dibenedetto's fans would swear he's got a sixth sense when it comes to seeing into the minds of others and often wonder if his stories could possibly be fiction. He enjoys suspending disbelief with suspenseful paranormal tales that are a perfect blend of reality meets fantasy. His popular Dream Series continues to delight readers with each and every exciting installment. Born in Yonkers, New York, he currently resides in Arlington Virginia with his beautiful wife and a cat he is sure has taken full advantage of its nine lives. When it comes to the cat, he often wonders, but then again it might just be his imagination. You can follow him at his website, on Facebook and on Twitter. And you can find all his books (including the complete Dream Series) on Amazon and on audiobook at Audible.com Here's an excerpt from Finders Keepers:
The thieves simply made a mistake. Whether Tom had put his box in the wrong room, or whether the thieves had gotten their wires crossed, who knew? She’d had trouble reading Professor Welldon’s writing; she hadn’t been sure if she was meant to go to Room 16 or Room 18 herself. It hadn’t mattered because the thieves had already gotten there and made the choice for her. “When they finally got where they were going, they opened it up, and you can imagine their surprise.” Jane noted the vagueness there; she assumed Alex knew exactly where that was and, for whatever reason, didn’t want to say. She didn’t challenge him; she kept up her happy façade instead, and he went on. “They knew they couldn’t go back and steal the right box, but they had the label on your pottery, they knew where it was supposed to go.” “They’re headed to Mallorca!” Jane couldn’t help herself; the words just poured out. “They’re going to wait there until I show up and try to trade, the pottery for the artifacts!” She knew she’d said too much. Alex’s eyes lit up, just for an instant, when she mentioned Mallorca. That was something, obviously, he hadn’t known. But he caught himself almost immediately, and so did she. She wondered if he knew that she knew he was putting on an act. She wondered if he knew that she knew that he knew she was, too. And she wondered if she had any aspirin in her purse, because that train of thought was giving her a headache.

Last, but not least, to celebrate the launch of FINDERS KEEPERS, the author is giving away a signed paperback copy of either this new book, or any one of his Dream Series novels (winner's choice). For your chance to win, just click HERE to enter!)
Published on March 30, 2016 07:36
March 28, 2016
New Release: A Christian Western Series Completed!







Published on March 28, 2016 04:58
March 11, 2016
New Steampunk by H. L. Burke!

H. L. Burke is the author of several works of fantasy ... many of which involve dragons. Her latest is a YA Steampunk Novella, which she describes as Jules Verne meets Mary Shelley meets H. G. Wells.
Nyssa Glass and the House of Mirrors is set in an alternate world not completely unlike our world in the Victorian age … but with technology Jules Verne could only dream of, mostly powered by the Steampunk staples of coal and steam.Within the world women wear corsets, high-button shoes, and veiled fascinator hats … along with their goggles (it's not Steampunk without goggles). The protagonist, Nyssa, is a reformed thief, plucked from a life of crime and retrained at Miss Pratchett's School for Mechanically Minded Maids to pursue an honest trade as a electrician's apprentice.Technology in New Taured is advanced, due to geniuses like Professor Dalhart, who invented videophones so people can chat in real time through devices that resemble old fashioned, black and white television sets.Dalhart's best technology, however, didn't make it to market before his untimely disappearance. His last projects centered around robotics. He was determined to fully mechanize menial labor and improve the quality of human life … but then, for reasons unknown, he shut himself in his mansion with his teenage son and almost two dozen members of his household staff and never came out again.The loss of this great mind slowed technological development to a crawl. Dalhart's more business-minded but less creative partner, Mr. Rivera, continued to expand the company's line of videophones and radiosets. However, without the brilliant Dalhart, the next big innovation remained just out of reach.Desperate to recover anything Dalhart left behind, Rivera and his many competitors began sending agents to Dalhart Manor, only to have them vanish as completely as Dalhart himselfIn a world dependent on coal power, the promise of robots capable of mining, working 24/7 without rest and on limited fuel, would revolutionize New Taured. The man with this technology would be the country's de facto king. If only they could find a person skilled enough … or desperate enough … to brave the deathtrap known as Dalhart Manor.

An addictive personality, she jumped from one fandom to another, being at times completely obsessed with various books, movies, or television series (Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, and Star Trek all took their turns), but she has grown to be what she considers a well-rounded connoisseur of geek culture.
Married to her high school crush who is now a US Marine, she has moved multiple times in her adult life but believes that home is wherever her husband, two daughters, and pets are.
She is the author of a four part fantasy/romance series entitled "The Scholar and the Dragon," YA/Fantasy "Beggar Magic," and MG/Fantasy "Thaddeus Whiskers and the Dragon," among others. Her current projects are a young adult Steampunk fantasy and an epic fantasy trilogy.
Social Media Links:
www.hlburkeauthor.comwww.hlburkeblog.comwww.facebook.com/hlburkewriterwww.instagram.com/burkesdragonswww.twitter.com/typativemamacatauthor.to/hlburke (amazon)
Published on March 11, 2016 07:18
February 22, 2016
Ten clean indie authors. Sixteen gripping stories. One HU...





















Published on February 22, 2016 05:15
February 17, 2016
Cover Reveal for a new DRAGON book!

Today, fantasy author Kandi J. Wyatt is introducing book three in the Dragon Courage series, Dragon's Revenge.
Book one took the reader to the northern canyon country of Three Spans Canyon where Kyn became a dragon rider.
Book two followed Braidyn, a youngling born in the canyon country, who moved to the south along the River Sur. When some nestlings are stolen, Braidyn goes seeking retribution. His search takes him to the sandhills to the east of the inland sea. In book three, our story revolves around Kyn. He travels across the inland sea to a new land of marshes and red dragons.Blurb:In search of his place in the world, Kyn visits his new friend, Ben’hyamene. Together, they meet an ailing dragon rider from the marshes of a land called the Carr. The rider recounts a people beset by anger, depression, and despair. After befriending and healing the rider, the group travels to the rider’s home. There they discover a breed of wild dragons, called drakes, which have been at war with humans for four hundred years.
One sleepless night, Ben’hyamene uses his new abilities to communicate with the lead drake. This sets Kyn and Ben’hyamene on a path that could bring peace to a conflict that’s nearly destroyed a whole people. Can revenge be set aside and enemies be called friends?Trailer:https://youtu.be/PXabYw2HG4kFind the author:You can find her on her website, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter.
And now for the cover!

Published on February 17, 2016 02:00
February 15, 2016
Monday Book Review: Cora and the Nurse Dragon by H. L. Burke

Cora and the Nurse Dragon by H. L. Burke feels like a historical fantasy, because the author has obviously done a lot of research to make her setting feel like the early 20th century, with the addition of very believable dragons. The main character, Cora, is smart and spunky, and I loved taking this journey with her.
The writing was superb, and sucked me in from the very first page. The story is compelling and full of suspense as the stakes (and the danger) grow ever higher. The supporting characters are well-drawn, and Cora's best friend Abry makes me wish I had a friend like her, who is loyal AND good at math!
I don't want to reveal too much about the plot, but just be prepared to fall in love with the dragon pictured on the cover, and don't begin reading this book at bedtime, or you will stay up late to finish it. It's THAT good!
I whole-heartedly recommend this to dragon lovers of any age, but young fantasy readers especially will enjoy the story and feel like they've made several new friends, both human and dragon.
I bought both the Kindle AND the paperback. You can, too: http://www.amazon.com/Cora-Nurse-Dragon-H-Burke-ebook/dp/B01ACV79BO
Published on February 15, 2016 14:34
February 8, 2016
Monday Blog: I'm not in Texas any more...

It's not chemo brain. It's just that I'm not living in 2016 Texas right now.
Let me back up. In November I signed up to participate in NaNoWriMo for the first time, and successfully managed to get my writing focus back. Yay! I finished book 3 in my fantasy series and got a good head start on book 4. Feeling a great sense of urgency, for I don't know how long I'll stay in remission this time, I wanted to keep pressing with the daily word count and signed up for an 85K writing challenge (85,000 words in 3 months, from January 1 through March 31). I'm almost halfway to that goal, which means more than halfway through book 4. I'm so totally immersed in my fantasy world that I get annoyed when I have to do mundane tasks, like washing clothes, ironing, cooking for my Twin Towers (my 6'4" hubby and his father, who lives with us).
I'm living in Levathia, circa 1100's, with dragons and some of my favorite characters ever.
A very nice young man named Joshua Smolders redid my hand-drawn map of Levathia, with stunning results! Now I know where I'm going in Levathia, and you are welcome to journey with me!

Published on February 08, 2016 07:17
January 28, 2016
Enter to win a Fantasy Winter Escape


a Rafflecopter giveaway
Published on January 28, 2016 18:57