Alan McDermott's Blog, page 4

Entangled Dreams

My good friend Carmen DeSouza is offering her romantic-suspense novel Entangled Dreams FREE for the first time ever!  This offer is only available from September 25th to September 29th, so don't miss out!!

Entangled Dreams
When Alexandra’s choices dissolve into Entangled Dreams, pushing her down a dark and dismal path, she must trust her instincts to escape danger, but be able to surrender all to find her happily ever after. Knowing how to decipher the difference will be her toughest challenge.
Genre: A sensual and, at times, heartbreaking romantic suspense
Rating: A spicy PG13 (nothing erotic or graphic)











A note from the author :
We live in a world where few people find their happily ever after, even though most of our childhood stories preached that to us. Wait a minute. Did they? I keep hearing…and I’ve been known to write this statement, “I’ve obviously read too many fairytales...” But when I looked back, the fairytales weren’t all sunshine and roses. In fact, many of the characters in what we tag as ‘fairytales’ were beaten, banished, orphaned, poisoned, lost, and on and on…
So where does the fairytale aspect actually play out? Is it when the dashing prince on the white stallion sweeps in and they live happily ever after? Chuh! But hey, the protagonist had to go through many trials to get there. So what’s so bad about that? Personally, I don’t think there’s a problem, except for putting all your dreams in one knight in shining armor who turns out to be a frog. But you can still work at your happily ever after, with or without the prince, right? Though, in my opinion, I think we’re all looking for someone who completes us.
The fact of the matter is a troubled past helps us appreciate a wonderful present. When we experience trials, we often seek out God and loved ones for support and are that much more thankful when the trial ends. So, I don’t have trouble with fairytales; that’s why I write them, modern-day fairytales, that is. I put my characters through trials and tribulations because I know that somewhere, someone can relate. Yes, there’s normally a knight in hidden-armor, who usually requires some polishing before he’s fit to be a prince. But again, isn’t that what great relationships do? They feed off each other to become better partners.
This is what I write about in all my stories. People who have flaws, but learn to overcome, trust when all else fails so they can love again, and forgive so they can know peace.
In Entangled Dreams, I tackle these and many other issues head on. So, for my version of a modern-day fairytale, read on for how to get your FREE copy!
Happy reading,
Carmen

Where to download your free copy
Amazon USAmazon Worldwide Link

Gray Retribution Giveaway

The 4th Tom Gray adventure, Gray Retribution, is due for release on July 8th 2014.  To celebrate, my publisher and I are offering you the chance to win free copies of the book through Goodreads.  For US readers, there are 20 copies up for grabs.  UK readers are fighting over ten copies, but these will be personally signed by me to make up for the lack of numbers.

Just click on the button below to enter.

Best of luck!

UK Readers
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Goodreads Book Giveaway Gray Retribution by Alan McDermott Giveaway ends July 08, 2014.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads. Enter to win

US Readers

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Goodreads Book Giveaway Gray Retribution by Alan McDermott Giveaway ends July 08, 2014.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads. Enter to win

Cover Reveal: Gray Retribution

I love this part of the writing process, because it means the book is just about ready to be unleashed into the wild.  
It has been a while since I completed Gray Retribution, and in the intervening months I have been through a series of developmental edits and proofreading, and several iterations of covers.  We finally settled on the one below, which I think looks really good.


Why a picture a plane crashing into the jungle?  You'll have to wait until July 8th to find out!
On a different note, I've been told that AmazonCrossing are going to be translating the first Tom Gray novel, Gray Justice, into German.  They hope to have it ready for the end of this year, and hopefully I'll find a Teutonic fan or two!
Okay, back to writing book 5...

Fantastical Reads

Fantasy Novel Extravaganza! 


On February 1st through February 8th, Fantastical Reads will have their first Facebook event, where they will have games and offer an array of prizes for book lovers. 

Join the fun here:https://www.facebook.com/events/205889079615386/
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Visit their blog for a chance to win the paperback of “Tolomay’s World and the Pool of Light” by M.E. Lorde and “The Hunt for Xanadu” by Elyse Salpeter via Goodreads Giveaway: http://fantasticalreadsevent.blogspot.com

Fantastical Reads— Only The Best Reads And Reviews!

2013 - not a bad year, all things considered.

I know there are another three months to go before we welcome 2014, but I think now is the right time to let you know how 2013 has been treating me. 
Sales of the Tom Gray thrillers have exceeded all expectations.  In fact, I was forced to register for UK VAT earlier this month after reaching the threshold.  The early months were nothing special, but once Gray Justice went onto the Amazon free list in late February, they exploded.  Gray Justice spent over 8 weeks as the Amazon UK number 1 free download, which led to bumper sales of Gray Resurrection and Gray Redemption.  To everyone who purchased a copy, I'm truly grateful.
Sadly, the tax man will get roughly half of the royalties, and my wife has her eye on a new bathroom and kitchen, so I can kiss goodbye to the rest.  I was hoping to use the money to fund a 2-year hiatus from the day job so that I could write full time, but after the above have had their share, I’ll be lucky to get two weeks off.
In the meantime, there’s good news and bad news for Tom Gray fans.  I’ve been working hard all year on his next adventure, and I’m close to finishing it.  The bad news is, it isn’t going to be released until Spring 2014 at the earliest.Why not, I hear you cry?It’s because I was approached by Thomas and Mercer, an Amazon imprint, and offered a 4-book deal for the Tom Gray series.  I penned the agreement a few days ago and they are currently working to edit and proof the first three books prior to a re-release in December, along with some brand new covers.  Book 4 is going to be put through the wringer, too, and while that’s going on I’ll start work on my next title.  At this stage I don’t know if book 5 will be another Tom Gray thriller, but I’ll keep you all posted.  As it is an Amazon company, the books will be exclusive to that site, so if you’ve previously purchased the Tom Gray books from other distributors, I’m afraid you’ll have to download the Kindle app to continue enjoying the series.
I’m really excited about this deal.  Every author wants to get noticed on Amazon, and my books should get a fair few days on the front page.  You can’t ask for better exposure than that.  I may realise my dream of paying off the mortgage and quitting work to write for a living, I may not.  I guess I’ll know in the next 12 months.
So, all in all, not a bad year for Tom Gray and the gang.

P.S.  a few months ago I purchased 100 copies of Tom Gray, The Complete Trilogy, in paperback. Amazon are not going to be bundling the books, and I have around 60 copies left.  No more copies will be printed, ever, but you can have a signed book for just £15 including postage and packaging.  The perfect Christmas gift!!  See here for details.

Book Launch - A Difficult Mirror

Four-year-old Justine has been lost to the world and with her an ability feared by many. But the balance of power has been shifting for years, and Justine may be able to tip those scales for good...if someone can find her in a pitiless place of sorrow and pain.
When Marie Evans meets a strange man on a deserted road and a body is found mutilated in the desert, a deep resentment teetering on the edge of release is about to explode. Someone, somewhere has drawn a line in the sand, and when Harlan Reese, Marie's ex-lover, enters a forest in central Arizona looking for his daughter, that line will be crossed.
In a world between Heaven and Hell, the past becomes the present as Harlan and Marie find each other once again. Their journey across an unforgiving land to find a way home with Justine by their side will be wrought with both pain and triumph.
Life is, after all, A Difficult Mirror.
Launch date: September 23rd 2013
Quotes
"Combining horror, fantasy & mystery with elements of the traditional hero's journey, A Difficult Mirror contains a unique & detailed plot, rich characterization & a very real sense of danger..." - Michael K. Rose, author of Sullivan's War, Chrysopteron and Darkridge Hall
"...Wretlind conjures visions beyond your wildest nightmares" - Bruce Blake, author of the Icarus Fell series and Khirro's Journey epic fantasy trilogy
About the author Benjamin X. Wretlind ran with scissors when he was five. Consequently, he likes llamas, although it's widely known that llamas don't care one way or another. He is the author of Castles: A Fictional Memoir of a Girl with Scissors, Sketches from the Spanish Mustang and Regarding Dead Things on the Side of the Road: Collected Stories.He lives in Colorado with his wife and kids...but no llamas (yet).

Where to find Benjamin:http://bxwretlind.com/mirror.php
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18462418-a-difficult-mirror
http://bxwretlind.com/blog/
http://www.amazon.com/Benjamin-X-Wretlind/e/B004X2O624/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1
https://www.facebook.com/bxwretlind
https://twitter.com/bxwretlind

Book Launch - Creatus by Carmen De Sousa

In every myth there is a modicum of truth…CreatusThe reason we believe in Fairy Tales—and Monsters.
As the sun’s rays peeked above the horizon, lighting the abyss below her, she inhaled a deep breath, closed her eyes, and jumped. She didn’t scream; she didn’t look down. As much as she hated her life, she hoped it wouldn’t end this way. She’d really like to see him one more time.
Her life didn’t flash before her eyes as she’d always heard. Just an image of her mother covered in blood and her Dark Angel telling her he was sorry.
Creatus, by best-selling author Carmen DeSousa, is a new romantic-suspense novel with a supernatural edge that answers the myths and fairy tales you’ve heard about preternatural sentient beings.
Prepare yourself to believe.
Download Creatus:Amazon USAmazon UK
In order to spread the news, we are also giving away a $50 gift card! In order to qualify, just share this post’s URL in the Raffle Copter and share via Twitter. You can enter once a day.
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Contest ends midnight, Monday September 2, 2013. The drawing, which includes all participating websites, will be held Tuesday, September 3, 2013. The winner will be posted the same day.

NEW TWEEN WEBSITE LAUNCHED: EMBLAZON!

Elise Stokes, author of the Cassidy Jones series of books, invited me to participate in the launch of a new website about tween literature called Emblazon.Emblazon is a blog written by a collection of indie and traditionally published authors who care about producing high quality stories for kids, with a particular focus on middle schoolers, those kids ages 11 to 14 (tweens) in sixth, seventh, and eighth grades. The purpose of Emblazon is to celebrate tween literature and to draw attention to this subgenre, interact with other enthusiasts whether child or adult, and encourage new writers.The list of contributing authors is impressive. The EmblazonersLisa RiveroAlex BanksAlan TuckerElise StokesD. Robert PeaseMichelle IsenhoffCordelia DinsmoreLois D. BrownLia LondonStephanie JeffersonAnsha KotykSharon LedwithMikey BrooksLisa OrchardMonique BuchegerL.R.W. LeeLynn KelleyRecognize a few? You should. They are some of the best the subgenre has. While you’re at the site, don’t forget to check out the tab where you’ll find a list of free books!If it sounds like something you’d be interested in, then what are you waiting for? Check outEmblazon. I’m inviting you to read their very first post: What Characterizes Tween Literature?About these ads

Split Decisions by Carmen DeSousa

Split Decisions is a follow-up novel to the romantic-suspense bestseller She Belongs to Me. While you do not have to read the first book to enjoy the second, we believe you should have the option, so click hereto avoid spoilers.
If you’re still here, read on for a first peek at Split Decisions and a chance to win a $10 Amazon gift card.
Book Description:
Sometimes you want something so badly you are willing to abandon everything you’ve ever known—including yourself.
Eighteen years ago, Jaynee Monroe married the man of her dreams, became the mother of four, and fulfilled her career goals. About to turn forty, she senses something is missing from her idyllic life. While Googling her name in an attempt to find herself, she unearths something so impossible, she contemplates her own sanity. Seeking answers, she embarks on a journey to discover the truth, only to end up abducted by a deranged stranger who insists on calling her Caycee.
Caycee took the road less traveled. Rejecting a marriage proposal from the only decent man she ever knew, she ventures to California to become famous. Eighteen years later, success has left her alone and miserable. Attempting to locate her lost love on Facebook, she discovers his infatuation with her. Not only does his presumed-dead wife have Caycee’s uncommon middle name, it appears he has photo-shopped her face over hers.
Never could Caycee and Jaynee have imagined decisions they made years earlier would threaten not only their lives but also their loved ones. Caycee must now reunite with the southern gent she dismissed eighteen years ago and convince him to accompany her to New York to locate his wife, the most important person in both their lives.
Download Split Decisions here:Amazon USAmazon UKBarnes & NobleiTunes

Now all you have to do to register to win the $10 Amazon Gift Card is share this page via Raffle Copter. Contest ends 7/1/13 at 12:00 a.m. EST and you can share daily if you want. Good luck!

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Book Launch: Cassidy Jones and the Seventh Attendant

For fans of the Cassidy Jones Adventures, created and written by Author, Elise Stokes, the day you have been waiting for is finally here! The third book in the series, CASSIDY JONES AND THE SEVENTH ATTENDANT, has been released, and just in time to be added to summer reading lists.
DESCRIPTIONSome Secrets Are Better Left Buried…When the mysterious Gavin Phillips returns to Seattle after a prolonged and unexplained absence, he threatens to expose fifteen-year-old Cassidy Jones’s incredible secret: she is a superhero. But his presence is far more sinister than she realizes, for it soon becomes apparent that his hidden agenda holds a dark and dangerous intent that will unleash an unparalleled evil upon an unsuspecting world. Can Cassidy stop him before all is lost?
EXCERPTA police car screamed past me as I veered off Fifth Avenue and into an alley. Sirens came from every direction on their way to the museum. I ran until I was sure no one was pursuing me and slid into the shadows of a doorway to assess the damage. A small cry of panic tore from my throat when I saw the ravaged costume, spotted with blood. I had been shot so many times, it was a miracle I hadn’t been cut in half.“No, no, no, no,” I chanted, worming a trembling finger into a bullet hole. Due to the hardness of my skin, I couldn’t feel anything through my numbed fingertips, so I ripped away the costume and lifted the black tank underneath, exposing my stomach, which was peppered with bullets. They reminded me of corks lodged in wine bottles. Small amounts of blood burbled up around the bullets, as if they plugged a dam.Tears of relief smarted my eyes. This was one of those rare occasions when I was grateful to be a mutant.“It’s going to be okay. These can be removed. I’ll heal.” I dried my eyes with my forearm and suddenly realized I couldn’t hear Emery in the earpiece, nor the background noise of the coffeehouse. We had somehow lost our phone connection. I retrieved my phone and punched the speed dial.“Are you all right?” Emery answered. The sounds of sirens,the museum’s alarm, talking, shouting, and a police officer on a megaphone flowed through the receiver along with his voice. “Cassidy,” he said again when I didn’t answer.“I don’t know what to do.” I wiped back a sudden flood of tears with the tattered sleeve of my mummy costume. “My head’s scrambled. I can’t think straight.”“Do you know where you are?”“Yeah.” I glanced around. “No. I’m not sure. It’s weird that I can’t feel any pain. I should feel pain.”“Cassidy, listen carefully,” Emery said slowly and calmly,which meant he wasn’t calm at all. “You’re only four blocks from Riley’s office—”“How do you know—” I began to ask, then remembered GPS. I struck my forehead with my palm in an attempt to clear the haze.“You’ll be fine,” Emery soothed. “I’ll take care of you. Please concentrate.”He explained how to get to the back of Riley’s building through alleys, avoiding the main streets. I would have known this if I could think properly.“There are a lot of people on the streets now, so take care not to be seen. I’m only two blocks away from Riley’s office. I’ll let you in through the emergency exit in back. Everything will be fine, Cassidy. This is almost over. Repeat back to me everything I just told you.”I tried but couldn’t. The bullets felt heavy in my stomach. A horrifying thought struck me: What if my skin suddenly softens and the bullets get swallowed up in my flesh?“Hurry, Emery.” I disconnected the call and shot toward the street. We need to get these bullets out of me!At the street, I looked around, recognizing where I was—or believing I did. Spying an alley, I ran across the street toward it, leaping over a parked car. I saw two men and a woman in the alley ahead. One man held a switchblade to the other man’s throat while the woman riffled through his pockets. I moved so fast, none of them saw me until the mugger with the switchblade was yanked off his feet by the back of his jacket collar.“Help!” he screamed as I dragged him behind me, arms flailing, boot heels bumping along the asphalt.I emerged from the alley into a street bustling with activity and flung the mugger toward an oncoming police car. Lights flashing,siren blaring, the police car screeched to a halt and the mugger hit the hood,tumbling over it with the switchblade still gripped in his hand.I jammed the cell phone between my teeth and took a flying leap at the nearest building, catching a windowsill on the second floor. I scaled the protruding bricks as swiftly as a spider scurrying up a wall and heaved myself over the ledge and onto the roof. Pausing to catch my breath, I spat the phone into my hand and looked down. A small crowd had gathered below to gape at me.The dazed mugger, sprawled atop the police car, dropped his switchblade, which clattered across the hood and onto the asphalt. The officer in the passenger’s seat stared up at me with a radio microphone to his mouth,but his lips weren’t moving, as if he were at a loss about how to call in what he had just witnessed.
ABOUT ELISE STOKES

Elise Stokes lives in Washington State, with her husband and four children. She was an elementary school teacher before becoming a full-time mom. With a daughter in middle school and one in high school, Elise’s understanding of the challenges facing girls in that age range inspired her to create a series that will motivate girls to value individualism, courage, integrity, and intelligence. The stories in the Cassidy Jones Adventures series are fun and relatable, and a bit edgy without taking the reader uncomfortably out of bounds. CASSIDY JONES AND THE SECRET FORMULA and CASSIDY JONES AND THE VULCAN’S GIFT are the first two books in the series.
To purchase CASSIDY JONES AND THE SEVENTH ATTENDANT
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Barnes and Noble