Harmony Kent's Blog, page 119

New Book Release: Password by Staci Troilo

 

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Hi everyone!
Today, I introduce author Staci Troilo’s new book: PASSWORD …
I have this on preorder and am excited to read it!

From Staci …

Thanks for inviting me here today, Harmony. I appreciate having a chance to talk to your readers about my new novel. Hi, everybody!

Every story needs a villain. And in my opinion, the worse the villain, the better the story.

In Password, the villain shows up in the very first scene. And what an appearance he makes! He literally bursts onto the scene fishtailing around the corner and squealing his tires as he targets our heroine.

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We don’t know who he is, though. Nor do we know his motivations. But one of the best parts of thrillers is finding out not only who did it, but why.

The target of this villain is Dr. Braelyn Edwards, a quiet and unassuming woman. The world knows her as a chemist who works for an educational think tank in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She has a large family she doesn’t see often, a small and select group of friends, and a pitifully small social media presence. That’s right—she doesn’t even have “computer” friendships. Why did someone so… boring attract the attention of this villain?

When he’s introduced, he’s only on the page for a moment. Yet he makes a big impact. And, like all villains, he’s the driving force behind the development of the plot. Have no fear, though. Later in the story, we learn more. A lot more. It’s a twist that’s hard to see coming. I know our hero and heroine were surprised.

If you like this novel, you’ll love this announcement. Password is the first book in a new series (Nightforce Security Series). The second story, a novella for Susan Stoker’s Special Forces Kindle World, will be released in March. So if you enjoy this one, you won’t have long to wait before the next installment is released.

Blurb:

Some passwords protect more than just secrets.

Danny Caruso was glad to be back in the United States, back to his regular job. Back to his comfortable routine of all work and no play. But when his friend Mac asks a favor of him, he can’t refuse. He owes the guy everything. So he accepts the job, even though it means a twenty-four/seven protection detail guarding a particularly exacerbating—and beautiful—woman.

Braelyn Edwards is careful to stay out of the spotlight, preferring to hide in the background and skip the trappings of a vibrant social life. But her privacy is threatened when there’s an attempt on her life and a bodyguard is foisted on her. Compounding problems? He doesn’t just want to protect her. He wants to investigate every detail of her life, starting with her top-secret job.

Danny casts his sights on Charlie Park, her coworker, her partner… the one man who knows all Braelyn’s secrets. She’s frustrated by the distrust until she realizes jealousy fuels Danny’s suspicions as much as instinct and proof. One of them is right about Charlie—but by the time they figure it out, it may be too late to save their relationship. And Braelyn’s life.

Universal US Purchase Link

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Staci Troilo writes because she has hundreds of stories in her head. She publishes because people told her she should share them. She’s a multi-genre author whose love for writing is only surpassed by her love for family and friends, and that relationship-centric focus is featured in her work.

 

Connect with Staci on Social Media:

Web | Blog | Newsletter | Facebook Group | Twitter | Facebook | Other Social Media Links

 

Friday Writing Question

A thought-provoking writing question from P.H. Solomon over on Story Empire today …

 

Hello, Story Empire readers! Today, I get honor of throwing out the first writing question of 2018. Lately, I’ve really struggled with handling all the different tasks of being an author beca…

Source: Friday Writing Question

Let’s all find that Jewel in the Mud

Help me celebrate the launch of my latest book today over on Craig Boyack’s blog! …

 

Harmony Kent is a good friend of mine, and she’s here to tell us about her newest publication today. Let’s all help her out by using those sharing buttons and spreading the word. Author…

Source: Let’s all find that Jewel in the Mud

Personality Types for Characters

A fun post on Personality Types and researching your characters over on Story Empire by author Mae Clair!

Book Review: The Hat by C.S. Boyack

Hello everyone!

Today, I am posting a review for author C.S. Boyack’s latest book THE HAT.

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FIVE STARS!

Lizzie St Laurent has a lot on her … erm … head! When she picked up the old box behind her uncle’s back, she got a lot more than she bargained for. The hat is reminiscent of J.K. Rowling’s talking hat, and as soon as Lizzie dons it, she finds herself transported elsewhere with a pop. What is this hat? Where did it come from? What does it want?

A wonderful thread of humour runs throughout this engaging and entertaining story. In particular, I love the odd graphic that appears here and there, which emphasises the narrative beautifully. In addition to the humour, you will find action and drama and suspense with several twists and turns.

All in all, this is a fun and feel-good quick read at just over a hundred pages. I recommend it highly.

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THE BLURB:

Lizzie St. Laurent is dealing with many of the struggles of young life. She lost her grandmother, and her living arrangements. Her new roommate abandoned her, and she’s working multiple jobs just to keep her head above water.

She inherits an old hat from her grandmother’s estate, but it belonged to her grandfather. This is no ordinary hat, but a being from an alternate dimension. One with special powers.

Lizzie and the hat don’t exactly hit it off right away, but when her best friend’s newborn is kidnapped by a ring of baby traffickers, Lizzie turns to the hat for help. This leads her deep into her family history and a world she’s never known.

Lizzie gives up everything to rescue the babies. She loses her jobs, and may wind up in jail before it’s over. Along the way, she and the hat may have a new way of making ends meet.

Humorous and fun, The Hat is novella length. Wonderful escapism for an afternoon.

I hope you enjoyed reading about The Hat.

If you’d like to pick up a copy, on sale at just 0.99!, then here are the Amazon links:

AMAZON US 

AMAZON UK

 

(Please note, these are not affiliate links, and I in no way profit from this review or blog post.)

Thanks for stopping by!

Writing Lessons Learned from the Work of Dr. King

 A lovely post today from Staci Troilo over on Story Empire about how Martin Luther King can aid us in our writing …

Today, we celebrate the life and accomplishments of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. We remember him as a Baptist minister, a civil rights leader, an advocate for nonviolent assembly and change, the youn…

Source: Writing Lessons Learned from the Work of Dr. King

Between the Lines

Hi everyone!

Today, I’ve written a bit of flash fiction based on a photo prompt supplied by author Joan Hall over on Story Empire. The link to the post is: https://storyempire.com/2018/01/05/friday-fiction-prompt/

And here is the picture…

 

Now for my little tale …

Between the Lines

In the soft early evening glow, the sun glinted dully from the train tracks. Emma shuddered from more than just the chill in the air, wishing that her flaming red hair offered actual heat rather than limiting itself to wild and vivid colour.

Over and over, her terrified teenaged brain chanted Don’t step on the cracks or you’ll break your mamma’s back. Eventually, after about three miles, the words developed a regular cadence that took on lullaby qualities and helped to soothe her frayed nerves.

If she concentrated hard enough, she could almost—almost but not quite—forget the hooded stranger who walked behind her, gun in hand and aimed at her back. She swore her spine tingled in the exact spot the bullet would rip into if he fired.

On her left, a rotting wooden post held a signal sign in the shape of a V. Despite her mortal fear and fatigue, Emma snorted when her brain supplied V for Victory. If only.

What could have possessed her to take part in this stupid but deadly game? At the time, ten miles hadn’t seemed that long, not really. The devil lay in the detail, though. Once you stepped onto that narrow iron rail …

Don’t step on the cracks or you’ll break your mamma’s back …

Of course, it wasn’t cracks she had to worry about but tracks. Or, more to the point, the innocuous-looking wooden sleepers which lay between the cruel cold metal rails.

The very moment she lost her balance, she would lose her life. The deal dictated that she walk ten miles without pause or rest or setting foot on anything but that narrow never ending rail track. As thick across as her sneakered foot, it had seemed plenty wide enough. Easy money.

Right.

Then you mount the metal. Take that first step. Feel your body stiffen in sudden unwelcome fear. And all at once, your job becomes that much harder.

Fear is not your friend. And you cannot force relaxation … what an oxymoron.

The thing was, the food stamps were never enough. The thing was, no one in her family had earned enough credits for medical care. The thing was, she hadn’t had a choice. Well, certainly, you always have a choice, just that sometimes it won’t ever come out clean no matter what you try.

So, here she was, playing some stupid game, alone except for the TV Cam drone and the erstwhile gunman.

Only seven more miles to go.

Soon, it would grow dark.

They had prohibited any aids, including flashlights.

What would she do when she could no longer see where to put her feet? How far could she reasonably expect to get? The faint light from the drone camera wouldn’t offer any help.

A distant horn yanked Emma from her thoughts. She stumbled. Righted herself.

Beneath her aching feet, the track vibrated.

I hope you enjoyed this bit of flash fiction and would love to know what you think!

Please do check out the other contributions by popping on over to the Story Empire blog.

Here’s the link again: https://storyempire.com/2018/01/05/friday-fiction-prompt/

@harmony_kent Harmony Kent Author Pages: Facebook / Amazon

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Circumstances of Childhood

Circumstances of Childhood.
By John W. Howell

Click for Amazon Kindle

Shipping on October 1st. Priced at $0.99 for the introduction.

This is a different story for John. It is in the Family Life genre and tells the story of brotherly love, riches to rags, redemption and a little paranormal thrown in. Normally John writes thrillers but this time he has stepped into a different place. This book was written with love for the story and the hope it will be an enjoyable read.

Here is the blurb:

When a former pro football star and broadcaster, now a Wall Street maven is accused of insider trading, will he be able to prove his innocence and expose those who are guilty?

Greg and his boyhood pal dreamed of big success in professional football and then later in business. Greg was the only one to live the dream. Now the founder of an investment fund Greg is faced with a routine audit finding by the SEC. The audit points to irregularities and all the tracks lead to Greg. The justice department hits him with an indictment of 23 counts of fraud, money laundering, and insider trading. His firm goes bust, and Greg is on his own.

His best friend knows he is innocent but has been ordered under penalty of eternal damnation not to help.

If you enjoy stories of inspiration, riches to rags, redemption, brotherly love, and a little of the paranormal, Circumstances of Childhood will keep you riveted.

Here is an excerpt.

I look down at my drink and wonder what will happen tomorrow. My daughter Constance wants to come and visit. She lives in New York, and before all hell broke loose, we didn’t see each other often. I missed her so much, and it seemed as if I had to beg her even to talk on the phone. Now, it’s like she wants to be here every weekend. It’s only an hour’s flight by the shuttle or three by train, so she can come when she wants. I just can’t figure out why she got so clingy. I have my troubles, but it doesn’t have anything to do with her. No use in asking her husband either. Though a nice enough guy, I always wonder if he has someplace important to go when I visit. He never sits still and stays busy on the phone or at the computer. He makes a good living, but it seems a person could take an hour to sit and talk. I’d looked forward to some kind of relationship when he and Constance got married. It’ll never happen with him.

When I take another pull at my drink, I notice the burn feels less. It happens every time. First sip initiation, I call it. It’s like the first puff of a cigarette, hits hard then, after, nothing. I decide to let Constance pretty much have the agenda tomorrow. She and I have not had a chance to talk about anything deep for a while. It could just be that she blames me for her mother running off with that guy with the house on the Hudson. He has a title, and the old gal couldn’t resist, but I think the daughter always felt I should have done something. Her mother’s sleeping with another guy and what the hell can I do about that?

I’ll just go with the flow. If she wants to go out, we will. If she wants to stay in, we can do that too. I better think about getting some food in the house. Of course, we can always order take out. I need to move on to my drink and let this go. Tomorrow will be what it is. I remember the day she was born. I looked down at her in my arms and promised I would do anything for her. I love her more than life itself, and I hope we can somehow get to the root of whatever’s wrong. She sounded strange on the phone this morning, and I feel helpless to do anything about it. I hope she opens up when she gets here.

For some reason, I feel tired. Perhaps I’ll go ahead and finish my drink. Maybe I’ll just go home and forget the burger. First, though, I’ll just shut my eyes for a minute. My hands feel good when I put my head down.

“Hey, Greg,” Jerry says. I barely hear him. “What’s the matter? You taking a nap? Greg?” I can feel him shake me, but I have no interest in waking up. His voice gets further away, and I think he says, “Oh, my God, Sophie, call 911, quick.” Now the room goes silent.

Author Bio.

John began his writing as a full-time occupation after an extensive business career. His specialty is thriller fiction novels, but John also writes poetry and short stories. His first book, My GRL, introduces the exciting adventures of the book’s central character, John J. Cannon. The second Cannon novel, His Revenge, continues the adventure, while the final book in the trilogy, Our Justice, launched in September 2016. The latest Circumstances of Childhood a family life story is available as of October 1st, 2017. All books are available on Amazon in paperback and Kindle editions.

John lives in Port Aransas, Texas with his wife and their spoiled rescue pets.

John’s other books.

Available on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/author/johnwhowell

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Time for a bit of Quantum Wanderlust!

Awesome new anthology coming soon from AIW Press … Quantum Wanderlust! I am thrilled to be one of the authors included! ….

What if you had all the time in the world?

Thirteen authors answer that question with short stories about time travel. Go back in time to right a wrong, forward to see the future. No jump is too large, no method unfeasible, no lesson beyond learning.

Visit the past to learn a family secret.
See the formation of a future dictatorship.
Assume responsibility for weaving the fabric of time.
Travel back in time to WWII.
Use a family heirloom to solve problems.
Wear an inheritance to visit ancestors.
Leave a dystopian future for the hope of something better.
Make history come true in an unexpected way.
Fight evil fairies to protect a chosen angel.
Live with the childhood memory of visitors until the day they arrive.
Seek medical help for a memory issue and get way more than bargained for.
Discover that with great power comes great responsibility.
Uncover the secrets of a pharaoh’s tomb and curse.

Do the characters observe or interact? Is the outcome better or worse than the original timeline? Read these stories to learn how far they go, how they get there, and what happens when they return.

The scope is virtually limitless, definitely timeless.

Coming Soon!
Quantumn Wanderlust
13 Time Travel Tales

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RRBC Spotlight Author Natalie Ducey!

Thank you for joining me today. It’s the kick-off for the “Spotlight” tour!

Cheers to you all!

Today, I’d love to share a little about my life’s journey and how writing came to be the light that guided me home.

 

 

A Writer’s Story by Natalie Ducey

Life can change in an instant. Chances are, if you’re 20 years or older, you know this truth. Life, in its majestic wonder, can sometimes be unkind with its paths of uncertainty and forced goodbyes. In the blink of an eye, all that was once familiar, secure, and steady is now out of reach. No misdeeds necessary. No signature required. The current just suddenly shifts, setting us adrift in uncharted waters with no map or plan of rescue.

August 30th marked 25 years since the car accident that forever changed my life. I sustained a spinal cord injury returning home after a fun weekend away with friends. I was 18 years old and just four days shy of starting University. Life changed in an instant. Thankfully, the driver and other two passengers were okay. I fractured two vertebrae in my neck (C5 & C6) and lost all movement and sensation from my neck down. Instead of University, I spent the next nine months in the hospital and rehabilitation centre. It was tough, and looking back on that time is rather surreal. I fought every day to regain movement and independence I once took for granted. Moving my toe was indeed cause for celebration. It was hope – my heart’s currency. The doctors were cautious and said I probably wouldn’t walk again. I know they meant well, after all, few people did recover, but I did walk away from that rehabilitation centre. The injury did not leave me without challenges, though. I never regained full mobility. I require a crutch to walk and always will, but it was a victory considering the odds against it.

The sudden loss of my mom in 1997 nearly broke me. She was only 50 when she died, and I miss her every day. Lives changed in an instant.

I’ve had the privilege of working in the counselling field for approximately 15 years. I’ve seen lives changed in an instant, and over time I absorbed the loss too. But I’ve also witnessed the remarkable power of the human spirit.

Loss, in any form, is painful (family, friends, health, mobility, love…). We know the agony of it because we live and love deeply. Simply put…if it doesn’t hurt, it probably didn’t matter. I cried many tears for the losses in my life. It was never a burden, but a true testament to the joy and love that existed.  I wouldn’t change the course because of the outcome. It was worth it.

Today, I write this with a smile and a grateful heart because my journey has been a remarkable one, an incredible voyage of self-discovery. I tell you this because maybe you can relate and perhaps you will consider yours in the same light. Here you are … and hopefully you are smiling too. We survived the swift current, rocky shores, and relentless winds. Some wounds are cloaked by time, other scars claim a place on our skin. Despite it all, we are here, my friends. We are still here.

 

I’ve come to understand that life is a continuous journey of becoming. If we anchor ourselves to yesterday, we are bound to miss the beauty that lies before us. And there is so much beauty. Remarkable things transpire from this awareness and acceptance. But to begin we must let go. Let go of the fear of failure, the fear of rejection, the fear of the unknown. Fear claims too many dreams; and weary hearts make easy prey.

It’s in this light that I penned my first poem. I let go.

Without knowing it, my journey as a writer actually began 25 years ago when the current shifted … it wasn’t until 22 years later, however, that I discovered its magnificent power. Writing my first poem ignited the light that guided me home.

Writing is my saving grace. Through poetry and verse, I aspire to write stories that are universal in truth, and, hopefully, resonate in a way that is cathartic and soothing. I hope we can travel back with welcomed reflection, find solace and wisdom in the present, and feel inspired for the journey that lies before us.

In 2015, I stepped miles outside of my comfort zone and published my first book of poetry, The Heart’s Journey Home. Again, I let go. The Heart’s Journey Home is a collection of poems celebrating the fragility and resiliency of our hearts.

In July 2017, I published my second collection of poems, The Heart’s Lullaby. The Heart’s Lullaby is a candid portrayal of love in all its splendor and pain. I honoured my soul’s quest to delve deeper and explore/translate the intricate beauty that lies within our hearts. Again, I let go.

My journey has taught me that there really are no certainties in life. Every step is one of faith. A compilation of the trials we’ve overcome and the desire to carry on, and, in some cases, begin again. So, let’s embrace the journey, love deeply, and hold no burden of regret when night settles in.

Be bold, be brave, and just breathe … let’s release our fears into the custody of the wind.

And … let go.

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In celebration of my “Spotlight” tour, I’m delighted to say my second and recently published poetry collection The Heart’s Lullaby is currently available for .99 cents!

 

 

About Natalie

With a BA in Psychology, Natalie has worked in the Counselling field for 15 years. Through her work and personal journey, she has witnessed the remarkable power of the human spirit. Now, as an author and poet, she is passionate about stories that touch the heart and awaken the soul. Through words, she aspires to offer solace and hope, love and understanding. Natalie is the Co-owner and Writer of Peace by Piece Puzzles. She is the Owner/Writer/Designer of Whispers of the Heart (printable art/poetry/verse). She was born and raised in beautiful Newfoundland, Canada, with her two brothers and twin sister. She now resides in Ontario, Canada, with her husband, a Soldier in the Canadian Armed Forces, and their little dog, Bella. She loves kayaking and the freedom and serenity of being one with water. She is an avid reader, passionate writer, and seeker of tranquility along life’s mystifying journey.

 

You can connect with Natalie on:

Website/Blog – www.natalieducey.com

Facebook – Whispers of the Heart

Twitter – @NatalieDucey

Pinterest – Natalie Ducey

Author Page – Natalie Ducey

Google +1 – Natalie Ducey

GoodReads Author Page – Natalie Ducey

LinkedIn – Natalie Ducey

 

 

 

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