Ingrid Hall's Blog, page 19

Luna’s Dirty Diary…

I haven’t really been shouting about it on this blog, but over the past few weeks my alter-ego, Luna Ballantyne has been publishing her sexy, tell-all diary.

The diary is a weekly feature on her blog and will be published every Wednesday.

It is graphic and explicit in nature and because of this it is intended for enjoyment by the over 18’s only.  I am not going to bang on about it constantly over here, but if you are interested, then you can find it by following this link. You can also find Luna on Twitter @LunaBallantyne

Near Death Experiences…

I haven’t handed the reins of my blog over to someone else for a while. However, I wanted a brief change of focus and Holly’s account of her Near Death Experience is fascinating. You can, of course, find out my take on NDE’s in The Tunnel Betwixt… in which a driver who is using his mobile (cell) phone causes a near fatal accident. If you have had a Near Death Experience that you would like to share, simply contact me via the contact form at the end of this post.  Don’t also forget that we are still taking submissions for our death-themed anthology.

  My Near Death Experience

Holly Lynn Payne

 It’s one thing to have one near death experience in a lifetime. It’s another to have two in the same year. Shortly after graduating from college, I stopped my car to give two mountain bikers a flashlight in Crested Butte, Colo. I had just been on a night hike. It was very dark, and I could barely see the boys in my rear view mirror and pulled over to see if they needed more light. We spoke briefly. I told them I had a flashlight in my trunk. When I got out of my car, all three of us were struck by a drunk driver.

 I don’t remember seeing the small pickup truck that struck us. I don’t remember seeing headlights. I don’t remember either one of the boys saying there was a car coming. I don’t remember flying through the air and landing on my back in front of my car, at the edge of the road—a few yards from the perimeter of the local cemetery. The truth really is stranger than fiction, and for this reason, I’ve rarely written about this experience, other than to cloak it inside my third novel, Kingdom of Simplicity.

 The only thing I could remember was  saying”East Coasters!” to the boys after learning we came from the same place. I remember laying on my back, looking up at the dark sky. It was a little after 10 p.m. I had just returned a video of “Patriot Games” to the only convenience store in the town. I found it in my car when we got back from the hike, and I didn’t want to be charged a late fee.

 While I lay in the road, I couldn’t feel anything. I couldn’t hear anything either, and the only sensory experience I had was sight. I’m not even certain I was anywhere near my body but floating somewhere else. At first, I experienced only thought. No sensations.

 Were those boys just killed? We’re we just hit by a car? Am I dead? In that order.

 Something urged me to move my right leg, the leg I landed on. It hurt, but I could move it. Then something urged me to move my left leg. When I did, I experienced a kind of pain I would never know again, even after giving birth to my daughter. It was the fullest sensation of intense physical pain I had ever had, and it informed me that I was alive.

 At that moment, while I stared up at the 12,000 foot mountain reaching into the dark summer sky, that I was going to live. And I heard a voice, which to this day, I believe was my grandfather—who had died the summer before when I was also living in Colorado.

 “It’s only broken bones,” the voice said. “It’s only broken bones.” I knew everything on the other side of this moment would change me forever. My life would never be the same.

 The boys survived too, after, being scooped up on the hood of the drunk driver’s truck and then hurled into the rancher’s barbed wire fence up the road. They would tell me later, when the driver, 25, stumbled out of his car after a baseball game and keg party that he didn’t even see me. “You probably killed her,” they told him.

 After the surgeon reattached the pieces of my femur with a titanium plate and ten screws, I lay in bed most days for six weeks, while my broken hip and pelvis stabilized, wondering if I’d be able to walk again. A few months later, after transfusions, surgeries and intense physical therapy, I left the country with crutches and a brace, determined to fulfill a teaching contract in southeastern Hungary—where I would finally walk again, unaided, almost one year later after surviving a bout of bacterial spinal meningitis (NDE #2). That’s another story, and one I haven’t written yet.

 I refused to let the drunk driver takeaway my dreams. While he might have taken away my ability to walk—I hoped temporarily, there was no way I would let him significantly alter my future again, though he would when I realized that forgiving him would be the only way to heal completely. That process took fifteen years and resulted in my novel about an Amish teenager forced to forgive the man who destroys his family, Kingdom of Simplicity. My life would have been completely different if I had simply let go and forgave immediately. We all have our own process and timeline. I’m no longer afraid of death, only dying without having learned how to love and live fully.

  Website:  http://www.hollylynnpayne.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/hollylynnpayne

Twitter: https://twitter.com/hollylynnpayne/

[contact-form]

 

 

 

Review of Theodora’s Descent by J.E. and M. Keep

REVIEW BY JOANNE ARMSTRONG

About the authors:

J.E. & M. Keep are dark fantasy fiends.

With a lust for fantasy and science fiction, they bring you an eclectic selection of works. They write for both male and female readers, with rich detail, developed characters and settings, and explicit sex. All stories are erotic, with many dark romances, and they range from demons and elves that jump into bed at the slightest provocation, to the slow, exquisite tortures of denial. Fall in love with the characters, root for the villain, and always come back for more.

About Theodora’s Descent:

Dante’s Inferno and Hieronymus Bosch – that’s what this book was. I have to admit that I didn’t pick it at first. Prolific as they are, I’ve never read these authors before, and to be honest, I never have any idea what Ingrid Hall is going to throw at me next (hurrah! I love surprises!), so I really had no idea what to expect, and no pre-conceived notions.

Theodora’s Descent started out as a pretty staid gothic novel. Can I say boring? It started out pretty boring. Ho-hum. A young woman inherits her aunt’s estate. Guess what, she’s rich. Guess what, she’s beautiful. Guess what, she’s strong and independent and very modern for her era. And oh, guess what, there’s a dark and mysterious set of stairs leading downwards that she simply must explore.

I’m sorry but my eyes glazed over and I was about to throw it back Ingrid-ward. I’m not sure how many more times I could hear that Theodora was petite. And that her large, pale blue eyes shimmered. And she had a tiny frame. And that she had lustrous golden hair. Gawk.

But then – oh my gosh. How did I ever get past the first few chapters? I have no idea but thank God I did. What an absolutely mesmerising read. Once she does descend those very suspicious stairs, she finds herself in a nightmare. I’m not exaggerating; a nightmare. Creature after sickening creature attempt to kill, devour, enslave or rape her, each more grotesque than the last.

That’s when Bosch’s work sprung into my mind.

I used to pore for hours over his work, the twisted details of his perverse imagination fascinating and disgusting at the same time. And this book was exactly like that. Theodora’s story is so sick it became fascinating. And much as the authors dwelt on their main character’s perfection at the start, so too did they dwell on the horrifying ugliness of the creatures that she found in the world below.

I couldn’t stop reading. It did tend to go on… I think I would have liked the book to have been shorter, and an epilogue about eight chapters before the end did throw me rather, but it was lengthy. But the surprises were well-timed and cunningly laid. Like the traps which Theodora falls into time and again, the reader falls into icky gooey rotting traps too. Clever.

The authors’ hero is a monster. I’m not kidding, he’s gross. But they play with our understanding of a hero most beautifully, presenting us with what we have come to expect from him and yet questioning the need for him to be attractive. Or even – um – human. I found it interesting on so many levels. The story, and especially the characterisation, made me consider quite deeply what is necessary in our protagonists in order for us as readers to find satisfaction. What makes the hero heroic? What makes a villain villainous? (Or in this case, many many villains villainous?)

Think Beauty and the Beast – but the uncut non-Disney version. This is the X-rated version that comes on TV after 11pm. Beast is not just a little fluffy round the ears, he’s actually got extra pairs of arms, triangular eyes and a snake-like tongue. I kid you not.

So, basically, Theodora descends into the bowels of hell where it’s dark and creepy and everything that moves is a threat. Except for one guy (I use the term loosely) who wants to protect her. She spends the rest of the book trying to escape either him or everything else. And most of all to get back to the surface where she came from. Of course he doesn’t want her to leave, but he also wants her to be happy, so it’s a little tricky. Will she fall in love with him? (ew, gross!) Will she ever leave? And what would happen to him if she did?

A simple story. But told in such a fascinatingly creepy and mesmerizingly tangible way, you’ve just got to see it for yourself.

You can find out more about J.E. and M. Keep here on their website http://jmkeep.com/

Where they have an enormous list of novels and novellas for you to browse – there will surely be something for everyone.

 Joanne Armstrong is enjoying the change from Spring to Summer and getting back to writing her second teen novel, the follow-up to Unworthy, which you can read about here on her blog. http://unworthynovel.blogspot.co.nz/

A little something for Halloween, or ‘Sleep Tight – Don’t let the bed bugs bite”

Author Ingrid Hall:

Happy Halloween!! Seeing as I haven’t had time to write my own post today, I am pinching this one from Lenora’s blog!

Originally posted on The Haunted Palace:

The Upper Berth₁

From Punch Magazine 1891

There is nothing more enjoyable during the long cold winter evenings then sitting down and scaring yourself witless reading a good ghost story. It was during one of these rare moments (granted it wasn’t evening, cold or winter but I was by myself!) that I began to re-read one of my favourite ghost stories, ‘The Upper Berth’ by the American writer, F. Marion Crawford. Apparently I am not alone in my feeling that this is one of the creepiest stories ever written. Rumour has it that the master of the ghost story, M.R. James also found the story pretty darn scary. In brief, the story is recounted to a group of friends by the main character, Brisbane who tells them what happened to him whilst travelling to England aboard the Kamtschatka and his grisly experience of the ‘dead thing’ in cabin…

View original 2,561 more words

Review of The Diary of Nicholas Oldman Book One by M.G. Atkinson

 

The Diary of Nicholas Oldman Book One – Review by Joanne Armstrong

By MG Atkinson

H’mmm… where to start…

The Diary of Nicholas Oldman is a fanciful flight into the prehistoric past. It is 272 pages that explore the question: “how would modern man survive alongside dinosaurs?”

About MG Atkinson

MG Atkinson has an eighteen-year-old daughter who, he says, is going on thirty. He is currently employed as a Steward for a cancer care hospice, but writing has recently become a passion and he published his first book, The Diary of Nicholas Oldman, on Kindle in August 2014. His favourite book of all time is Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings. He says that he has lost count of the number of times he has read it.

 About the Diary of Nicholas Oldman

MG Atkinson has a flair for description and wordiness. He takes ten words where I would use one. This is not a bad thing, in fact I envy authors who can do this. I sit in front of my screen for hours on end, willing my short paragraphs to turn into entire chapters, but it seems I simply don’t write this way.

Atkinson, however, does it well and does it consistently. 272 pages of descriptive language, and I can feel the hot sun of the desert on my parched lips, I can feel the danger lurking just beyond my eyesight in the jungle, and I can feel the buoyancy of the raft beneath me. I take my hat off to him for this. His descriptive scenes were mesmerising and beautiful, clad in elegant language which encouraged me to keep reading.

However, I do have some caution to give. The shape of the book was non-existent. Nothing happened.

Or rather, everything happened.

Constantly and without rest, the reader is bombarded with adventure after adventure, the book becoming a series of anecdotes about survival in a prehistoric landscape burgeoning with danger. And I suppose that is exactly what a diary is. A compilation of anecdotes which come together to give a picture of an individual’s ongoing daily struggles. However, there is a reason why we don’t publish our teenage diaries. Diaries lack shape, are often disjointed, and are thoroughly egocentric. All of which this book is.

I have no solution to the egocentricity. Nicholas Oldman is, quite simply, the only human on the planet. Therefore the book will be centred on himself, as there is no-one else to write about. However, the repetition of the first pronoun begins to give the book a vaguely indulgent air.

I struggled to get a grasp on his character, which seems an odd thing to say after complaining that “it’s all about Nicholas”. However, I wonder if much of our perception of characters comes through the eyes of others, and through their interaction with other characters, and this of course is lacking here. There is no opportunity here to see Nicholas through anyone else’s eyes. Perhaps the addition of some stories from his life “before” would help here.

The book trudged on, and I trudged with Nicholas, him in search of somewhere to live, me in search of some purpose to the whole thing. The same level of alertness and emotional investment was kept throughout, and then suddenly, at the end, an epilogue. There is someone else in the book; there is another story line! I loved this part, but wondered if bringing it in and out throughout the 272 pages would have added more intrigue. An extra thread to weave into Nicholas’ trudging. The finding of the bones, the classifying, the inspection, the missing of their importance, then, finally, on the day of his birth, the revelation.

I love this description around page 200 when Nicholas discovers his raft, which he had thought to have lost, and is so desperate to get to it.

“I remember pacing the bank up and down like a trammelled wild thing, looking out over the river and at my raft some hundred-odd metes away. My eyes never left the raft, even as I turned to pace back the other way, my body swivelled beneath my head and my eyes stayed firmly fixed on my target. Its outline was sparkling with that hunters gleam that only my frenzied eye could see.”

It becomes clear to the reader that Nicholas is going mad, the days of isolation and his sole focus on survival at all cost taking their toll. However, the beautiful description which unfolds to us is then kinda blown away a few paragraphs later by him telling us that he had gone mad. Summarising in case we had missed it. The spelling out of such a situation dulls its effect for me, and as a reader I personally prefer not to be spoon-fed.

This book is a fantastic debut. Atkinson had an idea, and saw it through. It was a mammoth task, and I cannot imagine the hours of work in penning and honing that has gone into it. It is near perfect in terms of grammar and style, and I know that there will be many fans of descriptive work who will adore this book, and be relieved when they find that there will be more.

You can find more at: http://mgatkinson.wordpress.com/

Joanne Armstrong’s book Unworthy can be found here, and her follow-up is currently sitting on her laptop. Ingrid Hall will have to stop sending such awesome books for her to review if she is ever to get it written.

Review of Love Spirits – What Happens in Venice – Book 1 by Diana Cachey

Louisa Mangotti is an American lawyer and Interpol expert who after being offered a job working with the international crime unit in Venice receives a postcard asking for help from the Venice ghosts…

Okay, so this book has some rave reviews on Amazon that you might want to check out. My take on it is a little more muted. First the positives: the author clearly has an intimate knowledge of Venice; the most romantic of Italian cities.  This knowledge shines through with some beautifully written descriptions of the city and inhabitants.

Now for the not so positives: The book is not meant to be a travelogue.  The mystery and romance elements are there – they are just too slow in developing for my taste. I like fast-paced, on the edge of your seat mysteries and red hot romances.  This was neither. Don’t get me wrong – I have no doubt whatsoever that there is a mass market for Cachey’s novels.  This one just didn’t grip me enough to make me want to read more.

You can find more at: http://dianacachey.com/

Top 5 Tips for Getting Your Book Reviewed…

Hey,

It is a while since I have done a post on this blog that:

* 1. Is not a book review.

* 2. Is not a blatant promotional post for Freedom

Forgive me if I am a little rusty, and it is kind of linked, but here goes!

I am in the curious position at the moment of being a book reviewer that also desperately needs her own latest release reviewed and I have started the process that I am normally at the end of! While there are gazillions of sites offering reviews, the first port of call for any author looking for reviews, should be The Indie View.  This site contains the most comprehensive list of reviewers that I have ever come across – and is by far the most widely respected.

Forgive me if I switch hats a couple of times during this post! As a book reviewer, I get anywhere between 5-10 requests for book reviews each and every day. It is also abundantly clear that the vast majority of people who submit their book for review, haven’t bothered to read my guidelines. (Which can be found here.)  Sometimes this irritates me, sometimes it does not. To be honest, it depends on how busy and stressed I am.  I am a nice reviewer though, and generally failure to follow my guidelines would not result in your email being deleted.  Not all reviewers are as forgiving as me, and the question is, “Do you really want to risk pissing a book reviewer off?”  * RULE NUMBER ONE -  ALWAYS READ AND FOLLOW THE GUIDELINES.  Yes, it is time-consuming – Yes, it means trawling through multiple websites and multiple review policies – but hey, you want your book reviewed, don’t you?

There really is no such thing in life as a free lunch – At least not in the reviewing world.  You wouldn’t go to your local MacDonalds and expect to get your Big Mac free…So okay, no reviewer worth their salt will charge for writing a review, but they sure as hell are not going to BUY your book as well.  I DO get annoyed when authors get irked at the prospect of having to provide a free review copy.  RULE NUMBER TWO - ALWAYS BE PREPARED TO PROVIDE YOUR BOOK IN MOBI, PDF, AND EPUB VERSIONS. Yes, all three – the person you are sending it to might have a team.  Sending in multiple formats gives them maximum flexibility as to who they ask to review it for you.  Increasing your chances of getting a review.  Because, hey, you want your book reviewed, don’t you?  There is no excuse not to do this.  It doesn’t cost you a dime/penny.  There are loads of FREE word to mobi – word to epub – word to pdf converters. Be prepared. Have it ready.  Here is a link to one in case you are new to this. http://ebook.online-convert.com/convert-to-mobi Please don’t ask if you can send the document as a word file.  It is simply not professional.  (Plus, there is a greater risk of piracy.) You have to raise your game to succeed in this business.  You owe it to YOURSELF to take the time to research what it is that you need to do…and then do it!  If you don’t, then how can expect anyone else to give a toss?

Be polite.  This should go without saying, but you would be amazed at the amount of emails that I receive that lack basic manners.  Or presume, that it is a given that their amazing book must automatically be reviewed.  RULE NUMBER THREE – SAY PLEASE, IT DOESN’T HURT.   Because, yes, you get the drift…You want your book reviewed, don’t you.

A lot of authors seem to forget that book reviewers have lives of their own.  Some are authors; some have full-time jobs, some have other family commitments.  Our lives do NOT revolve around you! It really annoys me when I get a snarky follow-up email maybe a month or two after a book has been submitted – demanding to know either why it hasn’t been reviewed, or when it is going to be reviewed.  Or, asking if we hated the book… Chances are it hasn’t even been sent to a reviewer by that point.  Every reviewer has a different policy; a different take on what they will and won’t accept – which is why it is VITAL that you follow RULE NUMBER ONE.  Personally, I will automatically accept any and all requests for reviews onto my list.  Great, you might think! Well, yes and no…Just because it goes onto the list doesn’t mean that it will be reviewed in a timely manner, or even reviewed at all! I have some books that have been on the list for over 12 months. Others get reviewed a lot quicker.  At present, there are just two of us.  We both have our own books to write and promote. We both have other family commitments.  So, RULE NUMBER FOUR – DON’T SEND FOLLOW-UP EMAILS – EVER – THERE IS REALLY NO NEED.  Rather than make me want to read and review your book, it just pisses me off…come on everyone, shout out loud…hey, you want your book reviewed don’t you?

Finally…she says heaving a big sigh.  I am an author.  I love my books. I love my characters. I think they are the dog’s bollocks, and I want the whole world to know it.  Unfortunately, I also live in the real world, and I know that just because I think my book is the best thing since sliced bread, not everyone else is going to think so.  In requesting a review, you are giving the reviewer a license to say WHAT THEY THINK…TO TELL THE TRUTH…RULE NUMBER FIVE –  DON’T ARGUE WITH A REVIEWER…OR EVEN WORSE, ASK THEM TO CHANGE THEIR 3 STAR REVIEW TO A 5… It simply isn’t polite.  Read the comments, take what you can from it and move on…I know, I know, that I keep banging on about this…but follow RULE NUMBER ONE – By reading each and every reviewer’s personal guidelines you can avoid sending your beloved book to someone that is going to hate it (and by default maybe give you a negative review)

I was  AMAZED at the amount of reviewers that won’t accept erotica.  Maybe I shouldn’t have been LOL.  BUT, by reading the guidelines, I was able to filter out those reviewers that simply wouldn’t appreciate my filth…

I hope this helps you get your book in front of the best possible reviewers.  You are welcome to all continue sending books to me for review. Please read my guidelines. Please understand that although I will automatically accept your book onto our list there is absolutely not a cat in hell’s chance that we will get through the volume of requests that we receive this life-time…It is nothing personal; it is just the way it is!

Love Ingrid aka Luna

P.S If you haven’t checked out my ‘Bastard of Bilbao’ yet, you can do so here.

Please also show some love for the luscious Luna.

a FAB review of Freedom!

Author Ingrid Hall:

Thanks to Olivia M. Ravensworth for the review and to Poetry Pasta for blogging it. You can find Olivia at http://oliviamravensworth.weebly.com/ Freedom is available for download from http://smarturl.it/FreedomLuna

Originally posted on PoetryPasta :

Freedom
byLuna Ballantyne, Ingrid Hall(Goodreads Author)

Olivia M.‘s review
Oct 17, 14
5 of 5 stars
Read in October, 2014

Luna Ballantyne’s Freedom, Book I of the Sensual Liaisons series, is a rollicking 4.5- or 4.75-star erotic romance that alternates between sultry and serious with the same aplomb that its plot travels from the uninhibited yet familiar world of 2014 to the unfamiliar yet equally sensual world of 1630s England.

As the novel opens, the newly divorced Zara is ready to celebrate her first night of freedom after five stultifying years of marriage. The once-shy blonde who married with stars in her eyes at the age of eighteen is happy to be rid of the dull and unfulfilling Pete, but she is still woefully inexperienced sexually. Therefore the long-haired siren, immaculately gowned and coiffed, heads out to Newcastle’s hottest nightclub with a gaggle of mischievous…

View original 240 more words

The Official “Freedom” Twitter Party…

Hi…

Thank you to everyone who joined me on Facebook yesterday.  This is just a reminder that the official “Freedom” Twitter Party kicks off in under 90 minutes on Twitter.

@authoringrid #thehighwayman

What better way to spend a lazy Sunday?

Join me and Carmilla Voiez for a chance to win some incredibly naughty prizes! I will be taking questions – the more outrageous, the better!

If you haven’t already done so, you can grab your copy of Freedom at:

http://smarturl.it/FreedomLuna

 

Freedom by Luna Ballantyne – 50 Shades meets the Newcastle Witches

Author Ingrid Hall:

This is the first in what will probably be a flurry of promotional posts this weekend.

Originally posted on The Haunted Palace:

Freedom by Luna Ballantyne

This is just a quick shout out for my good friend Luna Ballantyne (aka Ingrid Hall) who is launching the first in her new series of erotic time-slip novels this weekend.

As Zara sets out on her ‘Freedom’ night – to celebrate her divorce from staid ex-husband Pete – she finds herself tangled up in the web of the mysterious ‘Max’ aka the Bastard of Bilbao. Pulled from the flames of a burning pub by a mysterious stranger Zara is whisked away on a raunchy week-long sexual odyssey of self-discovery. Zara soon finds that there is more to her rescuer than meets the eye. Raunchy sex, time-travel and a twisted love that stretches back into the dark days of the Newcastle witch trials – Zara’s life will never be the same again as she looks beneath the mask of the time-traveling highwayman.

The first in a series of erotic fiction, Freedom

View original 159 more words