Wynne Channing's Blog, page 3

Enter K.A. Last’s Immagica at your own risk…Oh, and here’s a map to help you!

I’m pleased to help unveil the illustrated map for Immagica, the latest imaginative tale by author K.A. Last. The map was created by artist, Lawrence Mann.

To celebrate the reveal, Last (and a bunch of great authors, ahem) are giving away some prizes!

Synopsis:

Immagica

Where anything is possible.

Enter at your own risk.

The night before her fifteenth birthday, Rosaline Clayton uncovers a deep family secret. She receives an amulet from her deranged father, and he tells her she must find the book in order to save him. Rosaline is used to her dad not making any sense, so she dismisses their conversation as another of his crazy rants.

When Rosaline’s brother, Elliot, drags her to their Nana’s attic to explore, they find the old leather-bound book tucked away in a chest. It sucks them into its pages, transporting them to a magical world. Along the way Rosaline and Elliot are separated, and the only thing she wants is to find her brother and go home.

The creatures of Immagica have other ideas. After years of war their land lies in ruin. Using the amulet’s power, they want Rosaline to defeat the dragon and restore Immagica to its former glory. But Rosaline is bound to Immagica in ways she doesn’t understand, and when she discovers the truth about her family, she must follow her heart to save them all.

About the author: K. A. Last was born in Subiaco, Western Australia, and moved to Sydney with her parents and older brother when she was eight. Artistic and creative by nature, she studied Graphic Design and graduated with an Advanced Diploma. After marrying her high school sweetheart, she concentrated on her career before settling into family life. Blessed with a vivid imagination, she began writing to let off creative steam, and fell in love with it. She now resides in a peaceful leafy suburb north of Sydney with her husband, their two children, and a rabbit named Twitch.

Website, Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, Goodreads!

You can stop holding your breath: Heritage (Grimoire Saga #3) by S. M. Boyce is out!

Amazing news! The long-awaited Heritage, written by my good friend and fantasy and paranormal author S. M. Boyce, is now available. This is the third novel in the four-part Grimoire Saga series, so make sure you have books 1 & 2 before you dive in.

About Heritage,  Grimoire Saga #3

Kara Magari isn’t normal, even by Ourea’s standards—and in a world of shape-shifters and soul stealers, that’s saying something. To the royalty, she’s a loose cannon. To the masses, she’s a failure. But Kara’s arrival in Ourea started a war, and she’s going to end it.

An ancient isen named Stone takes an interest in Kara’s training, and it turns out he has more answers than he originally led her to believe. In an effort to unearth a secret that might end the bloodshed, Kara instead discovers an ugly truth about her family—and how much she has in common with an infamous mass-murderer.

Braeden Drakonin has slowly rebuilt his life after the betrayal that tore it apart. His father wants him dead, and frankly, his so-called allies wouldn’t mind that either. Private alliances are formed. Secrets are sold. Tension is driving the armies apart. A single battle will end this war, and it’s coming. Braeden may be a prince, but it will take more than that to survive. He must take the fight to his father’s door—and win.

Books in the Grimoire Saga

#1—Lichgates | #2—Treason | #3—Heritage | #4—Illusion

Buy your copy

Boyce’s Store: ePub | Mobi | Autographed Paperback

Amazon: USA | UK | Germany |  France | Spain | Italy

Kobo | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords

Add to Goodreads

About the Author

International Amazon Bestseller. Fantasy Author. Twitter addict. Book Blogger. Geek. Sarcastic. Gooey. Odd. Author of the action-packed Grimoire Saga.

S.M. Boyce is a novelist who loves ghosts, magic, and spooky things. She prefers loose-leaf tea, reads far too many books, and is always cold. She’s married to her soul mate and couldn’t be happier. Her B.A. in Creative Writing qualifies her to serve you french fries.

Boyce likes to update her blog a few times each week so that you have something to wake you up in the morning.

Here’s a real show: Cover reveal for Circus of Lost Souls

Cirque du Lune is killing off teenagers, but it’s all part of the act.
Or is it?
As the body count rises with each performance, one girl at this infamous theatre-based summer finds herself contemplating what’s real and what’s not.
What if it’s not just a horror show, but a live snuff performance? What if the murders . . . are real?
* * *
Sign Up For Release Notification — When you do, you are automatically entered to win a free copy of the book, and you will also have an opportunity to purchase the book at the new release discounted price. We will only email you once for these purposes, and your email from this list will not be used for any other reason at any other time.

Book excerpt: Jade Kerrion’s Perfection Challenged

“The best of the four books…the perfect ending to an amazing series.”

Enjoy an excerpt from Perfection Challenged, the thrilling conclusion to Jade Kerrion’s multiple award-winning, bestselling DOUBLE HELIX series. If you’ve never picked up the DOUBLE HELIXseries, keep reading for a special offer on the six-time award-winning novel, Perfection Unleashed.

Perfection Challenged

“I have to get back to work,” Danyael said, adjusting the crutch under his left arm.

Alex Saunders, director-general of the Mutant Affairs Council, frowned. “Did Abd-al not explain to you the dangers of pushing your body too hard, especially given your situation?”

Danyael shrugged. “Live or die, the bills have to get paid, and gene therapy is expensive.”

“That’s what I’ve come to talk to you about.” Alex gestured at the lounge area tucked in a corner of the hospital suite. “Will you sit?”

Since Alex had been kind enough to open with politeness instead of threats, Danyael complied. Alex waited until Danyael claimed the armchair before lowering himself onto the couch. “We’ve been monitoring you, Danyael. I’m sure you know that. You’re one of the world’s most powerful alpha empaths, and you don’t have the luxury of privacy.”

Danyael said nothing.

“I know you want nothing to do with the council, and I’ve done my best to respect your decision.” Alex looked pained. “When you went to Nelson Harris to schedule the amputation, it was all I could do not to interfere. We both know the council healers could have healed you. In fact, they want to help. You have many friends, whether or not you know it, or care. You’re a fighter, Danyael. I don’t doubt your will to survive, but this…this newest crisis is beyond you. You’ll have enough difficulty finding a donor. Paying for gene therapy—”

“I may not be able to afford gene therapy but I can’t afford the council’s favors either.”

“Danyael, we can help. We want to help.”

He looked away, a bitter smile twisting his lips. “You need stronger psychic shields, Alex. I can sense the lie. What is the trap that you want me to walk into?”

Alex shook his head, the gesture sad and slow. “We need you to bring Galahad in.” He slid a tablet across the coffee table.

Danyael picked up the tablet and perused the article as Alex continued speaking. “You know Senator Sullivan’s daughter, don’t you?”

“Yes, Chloe. We dated briefly when we were at Harvard University.” Danyael’s brow furrowed. “What does Galahad have to do with the senator’s death? The article specifically says that he died of smoke inhalation.”

“John Sullivan was one of Galahad’s genetic donors, and the twenty-fifth of thirty donors to die in the past three years since Zara freed Galahad from Pioneer Labs. We don’t have physical evidence to tie Galahad to any of their deaths—”

“Yet you’ve judged him guilty based on circumstantial evidence.”

Alex winced. “You must understand. We have an obligation to investigate and to keep his surviving donors safe. If he’s guilty, if he is indeed hunting down his donors, you’re the only one of the five remaining donors who can stop him. No one else stands a chance against the epitome of perfection.”

“I’m surprised you think I do.”

“No one else can kill with a touch.”

PERFECTION CHALLENGED

An alpha empath, Danyael Sabre has survived abominations and super soldiers, terrorists and assassins, but he cannot survive his failing body. He wants only to live out his final days in peace, but life and the woman he loves, the assassin Zara Itani, have other plans for him.

Galahad, the perfect human being created by Pioneer Labs, is branded an international threat, and Danyael is appointed his jury, judge, and executioner. Danyael alone believes that Galahad can be the salvation that the world needs, but is the empath blinded by the fact that Galahad shares his genes, and the hope that there is something of him in Galahad?

In a desperate race against time and his own dying body, Danyael struggles to find fragments of good in the perfect human being, and comes to the wrenching realization that his greatest battle will be a battle for the heart of the man who hates him.

E-books available at Amazon / Amazon UK / Apple iTunes / Barnes & Noble / Kobo /Smashwords

Paperbacks available at Amazon / Amazon UK

PERFECTION UNLEASHED

“Higher octane than Heroes. More heart than X-Men.”

Recipient of six literary awards, including First place in Science Fiction, Reader Views Literary Awards 2012 and Gold medal winner, Science Fiction, Readers Favorites 2013.

FOR A LIMITED TIME, E-BOOKS AVAILABLE FOR JUST $0.99 (Discounted from $2.99)

E-books available at Amazon / Amazon UK / Apple /Barnes & Noble / Kobo / Smashwords

Paperbacks available at Amazon / Amazon UK / Barnes & Noble / Book Depository

Connect with Jade Kerrion: Website / Facebook / Twitter

Cover reveal: The Making of Nebraska Brown

Immortal Ink Publishing has revealed the cover for The Making of Nebraska Brown by Louise Caiola. Check out the intriguing blurb:

The last thing eighteen-year-old Ann Leigh remembers is running from her boyfriend in a thick Nebraska cornfield. This morning she’s staring down a cool Italian sunrise, an entire continent from the life she once knew. The events of the eighteen months in between have inexplicably gone missing from her memory.

All at once she’s living with Tommy, an attractive, young foreigner asking for her continued love. Though he’s vaguely familiar, she recalls a boy named Shane in America who she reluctantly agreed to marry. Juggling a new world while her old one is still M.I.A is difficult enough without the terrifying movie scenes spinning a dizzy loop in her mind: glimpses of a devastating house fire, a romance gone wrong, an unplanned pregnancy, and a fractured family – each claiming to be part of who she once was – a girl and a past somehow discarded.

Ann Leigh must collect the pieces of herself to become whole again, but she doesn’t know who to trust especially when Tommy’s lies become too obvious to ignore.  And above all, her heart aches to discover what became of the child she may or may not have given birth to.

The Making of Nebraska Brown tells the story of one girl’s coming apart from the inside and the great lengths she’ll go to reclaim herself and find her way home.

Sign up here to be notified of its release!

Cover reveal: Perfection Challenged by Jade Kerrion

Perfection Challenged, the thrilling conclusion to Jade Kerrion’s multiple award-winning, bestselling DOUBLE HELIX series, will be released on September 17th and will be available in paperback and all electronic formats. Beta readers have declared Perfection Challenged “the best of the four books…the perfect ending to an amazing series.”

If you’ve never picked up the DOUBLE HELIX series, keep on reading for a special offer on Perfection Unleashed, the book that launched the DOUBLE HELIX series.

PERFECTION CHALLENGED

An alpha empath, Danyael Sabre has survived abominations and super soldiers, terrorists and assassins, but he cannot survive his failing body. He wants only to live out his final days in peace, but life and the woman he loves, the assassin Zara Itani, have other plans for him.

Galahad, the perfect human being created by Pioneer Labs, is branded an international threat, and Danyael is appointed his jury, judge, and executioner. Danyael alone believes that Galahad can be the salvation that the world needs, but is the empath blinded by the fact that Galahad shares his genes, and the hope that there is something of him in Galahad?

In a desperate race against time and his own dying body, Danyael struggles to find fragments of good in the perfect human being, and comes to the wrenching realization that his greatest battle will be a battle for the heart of the man who hates him.

PERFECTION UNLEASHED

Recipient of six literary awards, including first place in Science Fiction, Reader Views Literary Awards 2012 and Gold medal winner in Science Fiction, Readers Favorites 2013.

“Higher octane than Heroes. More heart than X-Men.”

Danyael Sabre spent sixteen years clawing out of the ruins of his childhood and finally has everything he wanted—a career, a home, and a trusted friend. To hold on to them, he keeps his head down and plays by the rules. An alpha empath, he is powerful in a world transformed by the Genetic Revolution, yet his experience has taught him to avoid attention.

When the perfect human being, Galahad, escapes from Pioneer Laboratories, the illusory peace between humans and their derivatives—the in vitros, clones, and mutants—collapses into social upheaval. The abominations, deformed and distorted mirrors of humanity, created unintentionally in Pioneer Lab’s search for perfection, descend upon Washington D.C. The first era of the Genetic Revolution was peaceful. The second is headed for open war.

Although the genetic future of the human race pivots on Galahad, Danyael does not feel compelled to get involved and risk his cover of anonymity, until he finds out that the perfect human being looks just like him.

FOR A LIMITED TIME, E-BOOKS AVAILABLE FOR JUST $0.99 (Discounted from $2.99)

E-books available at Amazon / Amazon UK / Apple / Barnes & Noble / Kobo / Smashwords

Paperbacks available at Amazon / Amazon UK / Barnes & Noble / Book Depository

To be the first to receive news of Jade Kerrion’s latest book releases, sign up for her New Release Mailing List. If Perfection Challenge makes it to the bookstores before September 17th, you’ll be among the first to know.

Connect with Jade Kerrion: Website / Facebook / Twitter

The stunning new face of S.M.Boyce’s Grimoire Saga

My great friend, fantasy and paranormal novelist S. M. Boyce has released brand new covers for her best-selling YA fantasy series, “The Grimoire Saga” and they are amazing. I’m so proud to share them with the world.

    

Lichgates (Grimoire Saga #1)

Fans of The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and Eragon will enjoy this contemporary remix of the classic epic fantasy genre.

—————-

Kara Magari is about to discover a beautiful world full of terrifying things—Ourea. Kara, a college student still reeling from her mother’s recent death, has no idea the hidden world of Ourea even exists until a freak storm traps her in a sunken library. With no way out, she opens an ancient book of magic called the Grimoire and unwittingly becomes its master, which means Kara now wields the cursed book’s untamed power. Discovered by Ourea’s royalty, she becomes an unwilling pawn in a generations-old conflict—a war intensified by her arrival. In this world of chilling creatures and betrayal, Kara shouldn’t trust anyone… but she’s being hunted and can’t survive on her own. She drops her guard when Braeden, a native soldier with a dark secret, vows to keep her safe. And though she doesn’t know it, her growing attraction to him may just be her undoing.

For twelve years, Braeden Drakonin has lived a lie. The Grimoire is his one chance at redemption, and it lands in his lap when Kara Magari comes into his life. Though he begins to care for this human girl, there is something he wants more. He wants the Grimoire. Welcome to Ourea, where only the cunning survive.

Grab your FREE copy

Amazon: USA | UK | Germany | France | Spain | Italy | Buy the Paperback

Kobo | Apple | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords

Add to Goodreads | Watch the Trailer 

Treason (Grimoire Saga #2)

Kara Magari ignited a war when she stumbled into Ourea and found the Grimoire: a powerful artifact filled with secrets. To protect the one person she has left, she strikes a deal that goes against everything she believes in. But things don’t go as planned.

Braeden Drakonin can no longer run from who—and what—he is. He has to face the facts. He’s a prince. He’s a murderer. He’s a wanted man. And after a betrayal that leaves him heartbroken, he’s out for blood. To survive, both Kara and Braeden must become the evil each has grown to hate.
Grab Your Copy

Amazon: USA | UK | Germany | France | Spain | Italy | Buy the Paperback

Kobo | Apple | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords

Add to Goodreads

Heritage (Grimoire Saga #3)

Available Fall 2013

In 2013, the saga continues with Heritage. Kara is forced to face a past she never knew existed, and Braeden must prove his loyalty to the brother who still wants him dead. (Set to release in Fall 2013.)
Bookmark Now

Add to Goodreads

Illusion (Grimoire Saga #4)

Available Fall 2014

In 2014, the Grimoire Saga ends with Illusion. Blood is spilled. Love is tested. Loyalty fades. Peace will come at a hefty cost. And in the final moments of the war, both Braeden and Kara must make a heartbreaking sacrifice to win. (Set to release in Fall 2014.)
Bookmark Now

Cover reveal! I AM FOREVER, the sequel to What Kills Me

You’ve been asking. Now, here it is!

Introducing I Am Forever, the sequel to my debut novel What Kills Me. I’m so grateful to Liliana Sanches Davis, the brilliant artist who is in charge of creating the gorgeous face of the adventure series. (I think I like this cover better…what do you think?)

We worked on this cover together in April. The concept is inspired by a key scene in I Am Forever where Axelia is under attack and discovers terrifying news about her family.

We wanted the same elements from the first: the stormy skies, the fading effect off of her dress.

Check out the teaser synopsis for the second book in the series which is due out in Winter 2013:

The prophecy said a girl would kill them all.

Against an army of vampires, Axelia fought back and survived. Once fated as the destroyer of the vampire race, she is now welcomed into the immortal empire and revered as a god. But she is not safe. The empire is rife with danger and deceit — and Axelia and her companion, Lucas, are caught in the middle of a bloody war.

With everyone’s lives at stake, Axelia must battle to protect those she loves.

Sign up to be notified of it’s release and for early excerpts, here!

If you haven’t yet read the exhilarating first book, What Kills Me, which has an awesome 4.6 out of 5-star rating on Amazon (184 reviews), buy it here:

Amazon US | Amazon UK | B&N | Kobo | iTunes | Goodreads

An ancient prophecy warns of a girl destined to cause the extinction of the vampire race. So when 17-year-old Axelia falls into a sacred well filled with blood and emerges a vampire, the immortal empire believes she is this legendary destroyer. Hunted by soldiers and mercenaries, Axelia and her reluctant ally, the vampire bladesmith Lucas, must battle to survive. How will she convince the empire that she is just an innocent teenager-turned bloodsucker and not a creature of destruction? And if she cannot, can a vampire who is afraid of bugs summon the courage to fight a nation of immortals?

Connect with me please (I get lonely, especially at night)!

• Email: wynne@wynnechanning.com | Twitter: wynnechanning

Website | Blog | Facebook | Goodreads

Google+ | Pinterest | Instagram | YouTube |Amazon Author Page

About me: Wynne Channing is an national newspaper reporter and best-selling young adult novelist. Wynne loves telling stories and as a journalist, she has interviewed everyone from Daniel Radcliffe and Hugh Jackman to the president of the Maldives and Duchess Sarah Ferguson. The closest she has come to interviewing a vampire is sitting down with True Blood‘s Alexander Skarsgard (he didn’t bite). She briefly considered calling her debut novel “Well” so then everyone would say: “Well written by Wynne Channing.”

Pay It Forward: A.E. Howard gets hooked on Keith Robinson

Finally, this feature concludes with the wonderful A.E. Howard. So grateful for everyone’s participation this week. If there’s an author that you appreciate or love, send them a note. I’m sure they’ll be glad to hear it!

I’m paying it forward to a fellow MG writer, Keith Robinson. I recently finished all of his Island of Fog books.

After reading the first one, I was interested in the rest of them. But after book two, I was hooked and lost hours of sleep to finishing the rest of them. I love a good fantasy tale as I think the elements are timeless regardless of whether or not it was written for children. So while Island of Fog is definitely an excellent middle grade fantasy, it’s just a great story, period. Robinson’s world is very well built with lots of detail and intrigue to keep you guessing as you follow the kids on their adventures and discoveries. It’s also very creatively done, and stands out as its own unique world while living pretty solidly in a contemporary fantasy genre.

The characters are fun and well-developed, and Robinson does a good job of living inside the heads of these kids and keeping their reactions and such true to age.

Overall, I really enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone who like fantasy, regardless of age.

Read the blurb from the first one and try it for free here: http://www.amazon.com/Island-Fog-Book-1-ebook/dp/B002JCSA22/

ISLAND OF FOG is a story of intrigue and conspiracy. The reader follows Hal Franklin as he struggles to accept that he and his friends are something more than ordinary children, and that their parents have been covering up the truth the whole time. With their trust shaken and the unexpected arrival of a strange woman from Out There, the children hide their frightening shapeshifting abilities and pretend nothing is wrong.

About A.E. Howard: Once upon a time there was a little girl who read a book and thought, one day, I’ll find another world. Many years later, after a near death experience at a traffic light, she passed a possum dying on the side of the road. She stopped, and with its dying breaths, the possum imparted a tale so wondrously strange, she drove home realizing the new world she’d been searching for was right there all along. So she embarked on a quest of mythic proportions, traveled far and wide to the farthest corners of this world to uncover its secrets. Now she’s bringing the story to you.

Between chasing chickens off the porch and raising her son, A.E. Howard tells tales of the three Realms, and the boy who changed it all.

Visit her personal blog: wayfaringartist.com

Pay It Forward: Michelle Cunnah changed Kate Lutter’s life as a writer

The love fest continues with author Kate Lutter. 

(Anyone is free to “pay it forward” to an author in the comment section and let them know so they can name someone else and so on, and so on.)

“I recently published my first book, Wild Point Island, and like most authors had no trouble listing in the Acknowledgement section the names of all the people who helped and supported me along the way. For me, it was no problem listing the names. I guess I am what you would call a collaborative person.  Over the years, I’ve worked in several critique and plotting groups and count a lot of writers as my friends.

But if I have to be honest with myself and go way back to the beginning—to the first time I joined a professional writing organization, to the first time I joined a critique group, then I’d have to put Michelle Cunnah at the top of that list. Michelle was the one who reached out and asked me if I wanted to join her group, and after that, my life as a writer was never the same.

She was born and bred in England and was here in the states because of her husband’s job transfer so she had the loveliest British accent. She was the first one in our little critique group to get published with a big publisher – she wrote chick lit and her books 32AA, Call Waiting, and Confessions of a Serial Dater sold well. She modelled for us how to act—that writers were writers — regardless of whether they were lucky enough to have found publication or not.  She understood, even then, how volatile and tricky the business can be. She was never cruel or mean in her critiques, always honest and helpful, even when she was drawing giant black X’s through my abundant wordiness. In truth, she taught me how to write.

The day she moved back to England, I didn’t lose a friend, but I knew that my life as a writer would never be the same. We still write and see each other at conferences. I still dream that she’ll come back to America. She writes young adult now under the pen name Michelle Bradford.  Good writers never die; they just continue to write and inspire.

* * *

To be eligible to win a $25.00 Amazon gift card, visit Kate’s website: www.katelutter.com

Her debut book, Wild Point Island was published by Crescent Moon Press in 2012.  It’s now available from Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble.com in print and e book formats.

The back cover blurb:

Banished from Wild Point Island as a child, Ella Pattenson, a half human-half revenant, has managed to hide her true identity as a descendent of the Lost Colony of Roanoke.  Thought to have perished, the settlers survived but were transformed into revenants–immortal beings who live forever as long as they remain on the island.

Now, Ella must return to the place of her birth to rescue her father from imprisonment and a soon to be unspeakable death.  Her only hope is to trust a seductive revenant who seems to have ties to the corrupt High Council.  Simon Viccars is sexy and like no man she’s ever met. But he’s been trapped on the island for 400 years and is willing to do almost anything for his freedom.

With the forces of the island conspiring against her, Ella must risk her father, her heart, and her life on love.