Margo Bond Collins's Blog, page 66
March 12, 2015
Cover Reveal: Modern Monsters
Modern Monsters
by Kelley York
Release Date: 06/02/15
Entangled Teen
Summary from Goodreads:
Vic Howard never wanted to go to the party. He’s the Invisible Guy at school, a special kind of hell for quiet, nice guys. But
because his best friend is as popular as Vic is ignored, he went…
And wished he hadn’t.
Because something happened that night. Something terrible, unimaginable. And now, the victim has told
the police that Vic did it. Suddenly, Invisible Vic is painfully visible, walking through halls at school filled with hostility and violence seething just under the surface. Vic is determined to find out what really went down at that party, even if it means an uneasy alliance with the victim’s best friend, the beautiful but aloof Autumn Dixon.
But as Autumn and Vic slowly peel back the layers of what happened that night, they realize that while the truth can set Vic
free, it can also shatter everything he thought he knew about his life…
About the Author
“I like unicorns and cats and games…and stuff…” – quality author quote by Kelley
Kelley York was born in central California, where she still resides with her lovely
wife, step-daughter, and way too many cats, while fantasizing about moving to
England or Ireland. (Or, really, anyplace secluded.) She has a fascination with
bells and animals and Disney. Her life goal is to find a real unicorn. Or to at
least write about them. She occupies her spare time with video games,designing covers,
playing on Tumblr, and watching anime.
Kelley is a sucker for dark fiction. She loves writing twisted characters, tragic happenings, and bittersweet endings that leave you wondering and crying. She strives to make character development take center stage in her books because the bounds of a person’s character and the workings of their mind are limitless.
Author Links:
Cover Reveal Organized by:
March 11, 2015
Spotlight On: Ariel, by Donna McDonald
Paranormal
Date Published: February 16, 2015
Despite her sharp scientific mind and her degree in bio-molecular genetics, Dr. Ariel Jones hasn’t figured out how her life changed so much in a single day. Before she can blink and ask about what is going on, she’s being shot with a billion nanos and some very potent wolf blood.
Now she can suddenly turn into a giant white wolf with the bloodlust of a starving animal. And she’s an alpha wolf…or so she is told by the even larger, very male, black wolf who was used to create her. Hallucination? She wishes. Whether human or wolf, Reed talks in her head and tells her how to handle things…or rather how to kill them…starting with the men who hold them all captive. Too bad he can’t tell her how to put her life back like it was.
Admittedly, there are perks to being a werewolf, such as meeting sexy werewolf guys like Matthew Gray Wolf. It’s not like the science labs were overrun with sexy men in white coats. She also doesn’t mind learning about a side of herself she never knew existed. It’s great changing into a real wolf whenever she wants, but being a living experiment wasn’t part of the scientific career she’d planned for herself. Neither was falling for the local werewolf alpha, but what else is a newbie werewolf caught in her burning time going to do?
EXCERPT
Ariel shook with cold as she came up out of a deep, drugged sleep. Naked and shivering, she determined that she was lying on a small cot.
As she struggled to open her eyes, she could just barely make out the forms of Dr. Crane and his white-coated asswipe of an assistant. They were staring into the cages where they’d stashed the other two women who had been captured alongside her. There was a bunch of growling and hissing which kept getting louder as the men talked.
Dr. Crane looked extremely pleased with whatever was happening. The knowledge pissed her off, but her dark thoughts of doing vicious and hideously cruel things to both men surprised her.
Ariel lifted a pale hand in front of her face, which blurred out of focus, but finally came back in. So far, nothing overly unusual had happened to her body, unless you counted the sick headache she had at the moment. She felt strange though—very strange. Her stomach growled with fierce hunger and there was a steady fire burning between her legs. Those two white-coated bastards had better not have touched her. If they did, she was cutting off their man parts and throwing them in the recycler. Later, when she was more alert, she promised herself she would check her body closer.
A loud clanging against the bars of her cage had her covering her ears. Sound—all sound—hurt terribly and increased her headache. A percussion band played in her head as she fought the pain.
“I’m afraid your doctoral thesis is now a complete failure, Dr. Jones. Apparently, the metamorphosis strand is a deterrent to transpecies mutation as well as being something to shorten a person’s life. Now I have to decide what to do about you. We can’t just turn you loose in society and have you telling everyone what we’re up to here. You were certainly a waste of a couple billion very expensive nanos we can’t get back. Sadly, you’ve become the only failure case, rather than the pinnacle of our success.”
It took her a lot of effort, but Ariel finally managed to manipulate her hand enough to get her middle finger to stand up alone. Crane’s laugh at her silent rebellion grated on every nerve she had, not to mention how much his voice hurt her ears.
“When I get out of here, I may kill you just to watch you hurt,” Ariel croaked, her mouth dry as dust.
Crane laughed harder and walked away. At his departure, the growling and hissing in the cages next to her ceased. When the room was totally silent once more, she drifted back into a peaceful oblivion where she could pretend nothing had happened.
***
Dr. Jones—Ariel. Wake now, but do not shift. Wake in human form. Think of yourself as human and you will be one.
Ariel rolled to her side on the canvas cot and tried to pull the scratchy cover she’d found over her naked body. Even with her knees scrunched up, it was far too short. She covered her eyes with a hand as she fought off the nightmares which were now continuously talking to her. There must have been hallucinogens in what they gave her.
I am not a hallucination. I am Reed—a three hundred year old alpha. You are a two day old version. It is very wise of your wolf to hide itself from those who seek to harm you.
Ariel groaned and rolled to the other side. “Head hurts. Stop talking to me.”
I know you are in pain, but you must fight off the drugs now. Crane returns soon. He is planning to move you to another facility and dissect your body to find out why conversion failed with you. They have identified another experiment victim and she arrives tomorrow. You must rescue the others and kill Crane before he can turn more.
“Kill Crane? Sure. I’d love to do that,” she repeated, covering her eyes with her hands.
Yes. I regret the extremeness of the step, but Roger Crane must not be allowed to continue his work. You will have to destroy the lab as well. Accidents happen all the time in Alaska. I doubt Feldspar Research will fund any other scientist if we completely destroy the proof of Crane’s success.
“O—K.” she said groggily, working her body into an upright position. Sitting up hurt as much as anything else did. “And I thought my divorce was traumatic. Either my nightmares are getting bossy or I’m hearing real voices in my head.”
Putting a hand up to her head, she rubbed the base of her skull where they had shot something into her brain stem.
“Hey nightmare, since we’re on a speaking basis, do you know what the hell Crazy Crane shot me with in the back of my head?”
My blood—I believe. He took it at the pinnacle of my wolf’s lunar cycle. Since I was already in my wolf form when he caught me, hitting the lunar pinnacle was evidently strong enough to cause a species turning. I had heard the legends, but human turnings have not been done since the middle ages. Packs prefer to propagate organically. Unfortunately, Crane found a way to take the choice from me.
Ariel laughed. Her intuition spoke to her all the time, but it usually didn’t announce she was a wolf in human form. “Hey Nightmare, are we going to keep talking in my head?”
Yes. I am your alpha. You are an alpha in training. So yes—we will talk in your head—until we can do so differently. I cannot shift from my wolf until the bullets and collar are removed from me. Silver has a restraining effect.
“Being shot with your blood doesn’t make you my dad or anything, does it?” Ariel could have swore her nightmare wolf tried to laugh. He huffed like a dog doing it.
No. But it does make you my responsibility until you take a mate who can look out for you. Being part of a pack is like having a large family. I think you might like it once you understand it.
Ariel snorted. “So I’m an alpha. Does being alpha mean you’re top dog or something?”
We are canis lupis, not dogs. Alaska is home to more than eleven thousand wolves. More than half are what humans call werewolves. This is what you have become, Ariel Jones. You are now both human and wolf, as are the other two females. They are your charges and the first of your pack. They are your responsibility and will look to you for guidance on how to adjust to their new lives.
His comments—which she was starting to believe weren’t just voices in her head—had Ariel standing on wobbly legs and walking to the bars of her prison. In the cages next to hers, two multi-colored wolves paced restlessly. They were less than half the size of the black wolf, but still real enough to convince her she wasn’t just having a nightmare. Oh no—she was living one.
“Brandi. Heidi. Relax. We’re going to escape. I promise.” When both multi-colored wolves sat and turned to her expectantly, Ariel shook her head. She knew their names and could command their obedience. Though she’d never been a person given to swearing, there were no normal words to express the enormity of her shock. Was she truly going to one day be a wolf as well?
“Un—fucking—believable,” she whispered. She turned her head until she saw the edge of the giant black wolf as he leaned against one side of his cage. “Reed? Is the giant black wolf you?”
Yes, Ariel. The giant black wolf is me. You should see the alpha of the Wasilla Pack. Matt’s wolf is even bigger.
She felt like peeing herself when the black wolf turned his head and met her gaze like a human would during a conversation. He had the greenest eyes she’d ever seen on a man or animal. They were filled with a kind of determination she’d never felt before, but had a feeling she was about to get an education in it.
Crane returns. I know it is him. His stench will haunt me for the next hundred years of my life.
“Okay. I’m wide awake now and mostly willing to believe you,” she said, hoping all three wolves understood she was working her way to acceptance as fast as she could. She went back to her cot and huddled under the short cover. “Hey Reed, did I get bigger or something?”
Yes. And you are strong enough to kill the men who will be trying to kill you. You have to try, Ariel. It is important to me that you and the other women survive. When they open the cage to take you out of it, call your wolf to help. She will be more than happy to answer. I’ve been helping you hold her back until the time was right.
“My mind is having a hell of a time trying to believe all of this is real, but I’m sure as hell not ready to die. Let’s say I believe you. What does my wolf look like?”
Until she comes, none of us will know. I just hope she’s big and strong. Rest now and pretend to be weak. You do not want them to know what you really are until it is too late.
Ariel leaned back on the cot and tried to look as pathetic as possible so her captors would believe she was just as harmless as they assumed she was.
Inside, she was praying that Reed—or whatever inner voice was helping her survive—was right about her being able to free them all.
About the Author
Donna McDonald is an active dreamer and finds writing to be the best way to use her creativity.
Needing to satisfy both sides of her brain, she is a cross-genre author of contemporary, fantasy, and paranormal romances. Her books appear on bestseller lists for humor, romantic comedy, space opera, and more.
She craves laughter from her readers and focuses her attention on making that happen as often as possible. She loves to hear from anyone who has read her books.
Author Links
Website
Facebook: Donna Jane McDonald
Donna McDonald SciFi Romances
Twitter: @scifiwoman13
Blog
Buy Links
Amazon US
Amazon UK
iBooks
Barnes and Noble
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GIVEAWAY
5 copies of Ariel in ebook format (any channel)
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Paranormal Love Wednesdays Blog Hop ~ Legally Undead ~ Elle meets Malcolm
Welcome to Paranormal Love Wednesdays! Take a moment to check out the excerpt from Legally Undead (on sale for $.99 this week only!), then HOP on over to the rest of the participating blogs to find new authors and great reads!
A reluctant vampire hunter,
stalking New York City as only a scorned bride can.
Elle Dupree has her life all figured out: first a wedding, then her Ph.D., then swank faculty parties where she’ll serve wine and cheese and introduce people to her husband the lawyer.
But those plans disintegrate when she walks in on a vampire draining the blood from her fiancé Greg. Horrified, she screams and runs–not away from the vampire, but toward it, brandishing a wooden letter opener.
As she slams the improvised stake into the vampire’s heart, a team of black-clad men bursts into the apartment. Turning around to face them, Elle discovers that Greg’s body is gone—and her perfect life falls apart.
Excerpt:
The guy I’d flattened was standing over me, looking concerned.
And no wonder. I was wearing athletic shoes, jeans, and a lacy black bra. I had Vampire-Greg’s blood–black and foul-smelling–smeared down one arm, and I suspected I had my own blood welling out of my back where he had grabbed me. My jeans were ripped, my hands and knees were skinned, and I had dirt smudged across my hands, my face, my torso. I was a mess.
And for one insane moment, I was intensely grateful I’d chosen to wear my nice bra that day. God forbid someone should see me running for my life in a tatty bra. I giggled a little wildly.
The guy frowned and knelt down beside me. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath to choke off any impending hysteria.
_____________________________________________
99-cent Sale Links
Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Legally-Undead-Vampirarchy-Margo-Collins-ebook/dp/B00KKV44BK/
Nook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/legally-undead-margo-bond-collins/1119607989?ean=2940149615803
Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/legally-undead
Universal Kindle Link: http://bookShow.me/B00KKV44BK
_____________________________________________
About the Author
Margo Bond Collins is the author of urban fantasy, contemporary romance, and paranormal mysteries. She has published a number of novels, including Sanguinary, Taming the Country Star, Legally Undead, Waking Up Dead, and Fairy, Texas. She lives in Texas with her husband, their daughter, and several spoiled pets. Although writing fiction is her first love, she also teaches college-level English courses online. She enjoys reading romance and paranormal fiction of any genre and spends most of her free time daydreaming about heroes, monsters, cowboys, and villains, and the strong women who love them—and sometimes fight them.
_____________________________________________
Connect with Margo
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Email: MargoBondCollins@gmail.com
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Spotlight On: The Infinite (Gates of Thread and Stone, #2), by Lori M. Lee
The Infinite (Gates of Thread and Stone #2)
by Lori M. Lee
Release Date: 03/10/15
Skyscape Publishing
378 pages
Summary from Goodreads:
The walls of Ninurta keep its citizens safe.
Kai always believed the only danger to the city came from within. Now, with a
rebel force threatening the fragile government, the walls have become more of a prison than ever.
To make matters worse, as Avan explores his new identity as an Infinite, Kai
struggles to remind him what it means to be human. And she fears her brother, Reev, is involved with the rebels. With the two people she cares about most on opposite sides of a brewing war, Kai will do whatever it takes to bring peace. But she’s lost her power to manipulate the threads of time, and she learns that a civil war might be the beginning of something far worse that will crumble not
only Ninurta’s walls but also the entire city.
In this thrilling sequel to Gates of Thread and Stone, Kai must decide how much of her humanity she’s willing to lose to protect the only family she’s ever known.
Excerpt:
“You’re late.”
My stomach gave a familiar flip. Avan stood on the flagstones, a smile tilting his lips. His dark hair was combed neatly back, the steel bar in his eyebrow had been long removed, and he was dressed in the finery of his new station. This wasn’t the boy from the Alley. Unlike my dress, his appearance wasn’t a costume.
I took his hand, my fingers brushing over the calluses on his palm. Did he ever look in the mirror—at the tattoo and the scars and the calluses, grave markers of his past—and wonder, Who are you?
Book One:
(cover linked to Goodreads)
On sale for only $2 for the month of March!
About the Author
Lori is an avid writer, reader, artist, and lover of unicorns. She should probably
spend less time on the internet (but she won’t). She has a borderline obsessive
fascination with unicorns, is fond of talking in capslock, and loves to write
about magic, manipulation, and family. She lives in Wisconsin with her husband,
kids, and a friendly pitbull.
Author Links:
GIVEAWAY:
Cover Reveal: Always Remembered, by Kelly Risser
Always Remembered
by Kelly Risser
Release Date: 05/19/15
Clean Teen Publishing
Summary from Goodreads:
One clue… what does it mean?
Ken, the leader of the Blue Men of the Minch, has kidnapped Evan. Before they
left, Evan was able to leave a package for Meara—her grandfather’s necklace
wrapped in a cloth napkin with one word written in blood. Azuria. Unfortunately,
Meara doesn’t understand it and neither does her dad or Kieran.
When Dad and Aunt Brigid attempt to rescue Evan, Meara and Kieran begin to
train the clan on how to fight and defend their home. A war is brewing, and
Meara is determined their people must prepare for the battle. The training
sessions are long and arduous, but the Selkies work hard to learn.
Meanwhile, Evan wakes and finds himself in Belle Tresor, the home of sirens.
He’s bound to his blue form, unable to transform to human, and Ken has plans to
use Evan’s powers to destroy the Selkies. Thankfully, he’s not alone. He
befriends a siren named Deanna and several Blue Men. Can he trust them to help
him escape or do they have ulterior motives?
As both sides prepare for an ultimate confrontation, the stakes are high and
friendships are tested. Some will rise to be victorious. Some will be
destroyed. But love and loyalty will be always remembered in this exciting
conclusion to the Never Forgotten series.Books in this series:
(covers linked to Goodreads)
About the Author
Becoming a published author is a lifetime dream
come true. As a child, I subjected friends and family to my
“KellyMark” greeting cards (“When you care enough to make the
very best.”), poetry, homemade magazines, and short stories. In high
school, my short story, “If Only to Escape” was published in the
local paper, and I won a writing contest for my children’s story,
“Televisella.” In college, my creative writing tapered off, but I
still managed to write the occasional review for The Marquette University Tribune.
Once I graduated, I mixed creative writing with business writing, and I’ve held
positions in Advertising, Marketing, and Instructional Design/eLearning Development.
Today, I am busy writing the next book in Meara’s story. When I’m not writing,
I’m reading, hanging out with my husband and two kids, or playing with our
Whoodle puppy
Author Links:
Cover Reveal Organized by:
March 9, 2015
Spotlight On: Captivated by Sarah Mäkelä
Captivated (Courts of Light and Darkness, Book 1) Sarah Mäkelä
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Publisher: Kissa Press LLC
Date of Publication: February 20, 2015
Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1AcOhRN
Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1w5y7tR
Add to Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24974133-captivated
Book Description:
When a mercenary whose purpose is to dispose of wicked Unseelie fae meets a dark elf, she’ll question her mission and become captivated…
After her family was killed by a dark elf, mercenary Honora Butler’s purpose is the disposal of wicked faeries, elves and other Unseelie beings, but she’ll find herself questioning her mission when she meets Brennan, a dark elf who doesn’t conform to what she believed his kind were like.
Brennan O’Niall doesn’t know what it is about Honora that makes him crave her, but he wants to find out. However, when she’s charged with the murder of a friend, he’ll have to discover the truth and decide just how much she means to him.
Captivated (Courts of Light and Darkness Book 1)
Happy Release Day! Red by Alyxandra Harvey
Red
by Alyxandra Harvey
Release Date: March 2015
Entangled Teen
Summary from Goodreads:
Bad girls burn hot… Red is the color of Kia Alcott’s hair.
It’s her temper, which blazes hot and always gets Kia into way too much trouble.
And it’s the color of fire. Fires that Kia can start…just by thinking about them.
When her latest “episode” gets her kicked out of school, Kia is shipped off to her grandmother, who works for the wealthy Blackwoods. It’s an estate shrouded in secrets, surrounded by rules, and presided over by a family that is far from normal…including the gorgeous and insolent Ethan Blackwood.
Ethan knows far more about the dangers of the forest surrounding the estate than Kia can ever imagine. For this forest has teeth, and Ethan is charged with protecting the outside world from its vicious mysteries.
But inside, even the most vibrant shade of red doesn’t stand a chance against the dark secrets of the Blackwood family…
Buy Links:
Amazon│Barnes & Noble│Kobo Books
Excerpt: Kia from “Red” by Alyxandra Harvey
I flipped through the glossy school pamphlet Abby had left on my desk. Havencrest Preparatory Academy. The photos showed roses everywhere and smiling well-groomed students in uniforms. Uniforms. Shoot me now.
I’d stumbled into someone else’s story. I was in a strange house with a strange woman; the fact that she was my grandmother didn’t change that. I barely knew her and she definitely didn’t know me. Even my dad didn’t know me anymore, and I was closer to him than anyone. I had secrets now, dangerous ones, so maybe it was best that I was stuck here on a secret lake no one knew about. Even if I already missed Riley and Dad and my tiny cramped bedroom strung with Christmas lights. Kia Alcott didn’t belong in a castle or a prep school. She belonged in a fourth-floor walk-up with hallways that smelled like cabbage rolls. She belonged to litter-choked downtown streets, comic book stores, and donut doughnut shops that stayed open all night. She didn’t know the first thing about fashion magazines or name-brand clothes.
Mr. Yang, the counselor who ran the anger-management classes I’d had to take, would say I was making snap judgments about people out of fear. I was stereotyping them before they could stereotype me. I was building walls.
Easy for him to say.
Because the truth was, I wasn’t going to fit in at a school full of kids who went horseback riding or had their own sailboats, or whatever it was rich country kids did in their spare time. And while I didn’t actually mind being on the fringes, I did mind having to start from scratch. At my old school I’d already scoped out my territory, I knew where to hang out, who to avoid, and which teachers turned a blind eye to a few skipped classes.
Now I knew nothing. Not even who I was.
About the Author
Alyxandra Harvey lives in a stone Victorian house in Ontario, Canada with a few resident ghosts who are allowed to stay as long as they keep company manners. She loves medieval dresses, used to be able to recite all of The Lady of Shalott by Tennyson, and has been accused, more than once, of being born in the wrong century. She believes this to be mostly true except for the fact that she really likes running water, women’s rights, and ice cream.
Among her favourite books are ‘The Wood Wife’ by Terri Windling, ‘Jane Eyre’ by Charlotte Bronte, and of course, ‘Pride and Prejudice’ by Jane Austen. Elizabeth Bennet is her hero because she’s smart and sassy, and Mr. Darcy is, well, yum.
Aside from the ghosts, she also lives with husband and their dogs. She likes cinnamon lattes, tattoos and books.
Author Links:
GIVEAWAY:Book Blitz Organized by:
Guest Post: Soundtrack to The Thorn and the Sinking Stone, by CJ Dushinkski
The Soundtrack to the Thorn and the Sinking Stone
As with many writers, music is a huge inspiration to my work. I don’t generally play music while I write; I tend to require complete silence in order to let the scene come to life the way I truly intended, without outside influence. But, prior to actually putting the words on paper, a lot of my scenes, characters, and elements are completely inspired by music. I’ve actually had this list of songs in a word document titled Song List since 2009, the year I began writing The Thorn and the Sinking Stone. Every song on the list somehow inspired the story, as you’ll be able to see quite clearly after reading. I never intended to share the list, but now that it’s all over, it seems like the story can’t quite be fully appreciated without the soundtrack that inspired it. Some songs you may know, most you won’t, so I encourage you to check them out, because if nothing else, there are some great tunes on this list. For your listening pleasure, here it is…
Rain City – Turin Breaks: Well this one is quite obvious, isn’t it? This is how Rain City came to be. Something about this song always captured the city in my head. It was a little haunting, but hopeful too, just like the city where Sebastian and Valencia live.
O’ Valencia – The Decembrists: Again, another obvious one. And this is a big one. This song inspired the whole story. There are elements that are taken, quite literally, from the lyrics. Forbidden love, two warring families, a murderous brother… this, folks, is where it all began. This is the song that made me sit up one day and say hey, I should write a story about this, it’s so good.
Run – Snow Patrol: I don’t think a more beautiful song exists. This song has always given me chills. I could still listen to it all day, every day and never get sick of it. The desperation, the longing…it completely captures how I wanted Valencia and Sebastian’s love to feel to the reader—the kind that makes you sad and happy at the same time.
Volcano – Damien Rice: I debated keeping this song on the list because it actually inspired a secondary relationship to the story that didn’t make the final cut. But it felt wrong to remove it, since it was very much part of the initial process. A very dark, one-sided type of love. Maybe it can make a reappearance elsewhere, in another story, another time.
The Funeral – Band of Horses: This is the song that inspired the opening scene. I struggled for a long time on the perfect place to begin the Thorn and the Sinking Stone. And then one day while driving in my car this song came on, and I thought, ‘Yes, that’s it. We’ll begin where another story ended…with Lucky’s death.’ This is the song I imagine playing in Sebastian’s head as he watches his brother carry his father’s casket to the boat.
Swords – Band of Horses: Another Band of Horses song you say? Well, yes. Because they are awesome. And if you don’t know them, check them out. This song really reminded me of the Two Daggers and the Leolds and their bond as brothers. It helped shape them as a family more than a gang, which is drastically different than that of the Black Roses.
Night-watchman – Bell X1: Another stellar Irish band (after Snow Patrol). Something about this song was so, so sad to me and reminded me of how Valencia must feel when she looks out of the city and how alone she must feel in her Curse, hunted and unwanted. And somewhere in there, just the little bit of hope, like how she feels with Sebastian. And now you know why the Watchmen are called the Watchmen.
Simple Song – The Shins: Just a simple song. I love this, because that’s exactly what it is. It feels so simple. So peaceful. So loving. And I feel as if this is what Sebastian strives so much to achieve. A way to lead a simple life…
I’ve Got Friends – Manchester Orchestra: Just a little bit of angst here. But you can’t really write about being a teen without a dash of angst. And for me, this song sums it all up. When I listen to this, I feel like I can actually hear Sebastian and Valencia screaming it, while their respective families stand in the background, wanting to tear them apart.
Yellow –Coldplay: Everyone needs a little Coldplay in their writing. To me, this is exactly how Sebastian feels about Valencia. There is nothing he wouldn’t do for her, to reach her. To him, she is perfect. She is everything he is fighting for.
Crawl – King of Leon: A little anger to go with that angst. This isn’t a perfect love story, as most in real life go. There is a lot of crap these two must go through for even the sliver of a chance to be together. For me, this song really summed up the struggles of their relationship. This is a little bit of both Sebastian and Valencia at their worst.
I’ll believe in Anything – Wolf Parade: This song is a rarely known gem. This is mainly for Valencia, when her walls begin to fall and she first falls in love with Sebastian. She is blinded by him and all the beautiful things in him she’s never seen in anyone else. She’s always been somewhat naïve, and now, in her eyes, he can do no wrong, and she would follow him anywhere.
I Will Wait – Mumford and Sons: Would you wait for the one you loved? Despite distance and blood feuds and loyalties? This song inspired a lot of the challenges Valencia and Sebastian face throughout their growing relationship. I can’t listen to it without wishing that all love in the world felt the way this song makes me feel.
Well, that’s it! I hope you take the time to listen to a few of the songs that inspired the Thorn and the Sinking Stone and I hope they allow you to imagine the world of Rain City a little more vividly.
CJ
The Thorn and the Sinking Stone
by C.J. Dushinski
Release Date: March 2015
Entangled Teen
313 pages
Summary from Goodreads:
Warring families. Forbidden love. And danger they can’t escape… Daggers. Roses. Cowboys. Boat Men. Survivors of Earth’s Last War, four “families” vie to rule the dreary streets of Rain City through violence and blood. Valencia Hara, Princess of the wealthy Black Roses, is raised in warrior ways with sharpened steel. But she is no ordinary Rose. She is Cursed—tainted with the ability to see seconds into the future…
To avenge his father’s death, Sebastian Leold, of the rival gang Two Daggers, must face off against the Black Princess, he with his dagger, she with her katana sword. Yet a secret from a shared past leaves him unable to kill beautiful Valencia; nor can she kill him. For they once knew each other beyond their blood feud…and they have more secrets in common than they know.
But in a world filled with vengeance and violence, there can be no room for love…
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About the Author
While attempting to navigate life as a responsible human being, CJ graduated from university with a B.Comm and worked her way along as marketer, copywriter, and graphic designer to earn a paycheck while pursing her passion for creating fantastical stories set in dark and wondrous corners of the world. Born amongst the wheat fields and open skies of the Canadian prairies, CJ’s imagination has always run wild, taking her on adventures across the world from modeling in Seoul, South Korea to backpacking through Europe and surfing (poorly) in Hawaii.
After wandering through ancient cities and civilizations, learning from diverse cultures, and surrounding herself in new experiences, CJ was inspired and began work on her debut Young Adult novel THE THORN AND THE SINKING STONE, to be published by Entangled Publishing 2014/15. CJ currently resides in Calgary, Alberta Canada – home of the Canadian Rockies – and keeps one hand on her passport and pen at all times, ready to pick up, see the world, and weave her experiences into stories.
CJ is represented by Marlene Stringer of the Stringer Literary Agency LLC.
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March 8, 2015
Freebies from S.M. Blooding!
Start the series with these freebies from author S.M. Blooding.
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Pilot Episode
Graveyard of Dreams
Genre: Fantasy Adventure
Publisher: Whistling Book Press
Date of Publication: January 3, 2014
Cover Artist: Frankie’s Mind Design
Book Length: Novella/40,000 words
Book Description:
My name’s River, and I’m a dream killer.
The Sea of Dreams spat me out without any memories of who was or where I came from. I’ve spent years traveling Dreamland in our gypsy caravan, searching for clues. All I’ve discovered is that the all-powerful elders are collecting people like me—Dreamlanders who don’t fit in.
Then I met a man who sails the Sea of Dreams, the one place all Dreamlanders fear. One touch of those ocean waves could shred the soul. Yet, he’s like me. He can hear the water’s whispers, touch her waves, and watch her dreams. My answers are out there—on his ship, on that sea.
Somewhere out there is the graveyard of dreams.
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Episode 1
Old Beginnings
Genre: Dark Paranormal Thriller
Publisher: Whistling Book Press
Date of Publication: October 31, 2014
Cover Artist: Frankie’s Mind Design
Book Length: Novella/25,000 words
Book Description:
Detective Paige Whiskey comes from a long line of witches. They may not all be the most powerful, but they are outspoken and supportive of their community. She alone has no gifts. She can’t summon fire, can’t read minds. She knows the arcane. She’s studied it. That, along with her connection to the Whiskey Witches, lands her some pretty strange cases.
Like the sacrificial murders of St. Francisville, Louisiana. There’s a killer on the loose, choosing people in a vain attempt to raise a demon. Once she gets there, she realizes the murders were nothing more than an elaborate invitation, tempting her into the claws of the killer.
She does have a gift, a very powerful and terrifying one.
The killer is after her.
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FREE
Episode 2
Hauntings
Genre: Dark Paranormal Thriller
Publisher: Whistling Book Press
Date of Publication: November 14, 2014
Cover Artist: Frankie’s Mind Design
Book Length: Novella/25,000 words
Book Description:
There’s only so much you can do when there are no new clues. Wait. That’s never been Detective Paige Whiskey’s strong-suit, though. With her memories and her gifts back, she’s faced with a whole new ball game. She now has a better understanding of who the killer might be and what he wants.
But when she’s attacked by a ghost—of all the dumb things—on a paranormal investigation of the Metley plantation, she realizes the situation’s worse than she thought. If that’s possible at all.
The gate has already been opened.
So why in the seven blazing pits of Hell does the killer still need her?
…………………………………………….
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Legally Undead ~ On Sale for only 99 Cents ~ This Week Only!
A reluctant vampire hunter, stalking New York City as only a scorned bride can.
Elle Dupree has her life all figured out: first a wedding, then her Ph.D., then swank faculty parties where she’ll serve wine and cheese and introduce people to her husband the lawyer.
But those plans disintegrate when she walks in on a vampire draining the blood from her fiancé Greg. Horrified, she screams and runs–not away from the vampire, but toward it, brandishing a wooden letter opener.
As she slams the improvised stake into the vampire’s heart, a team of black-clad men bursts into the apartment. Turning around to face them, Elle discovers that Greg’s body is gone—and her perfect life falls apart.
A Top-10 Preditors and Editors Readers’ Poll Best Science Fiction and Fantasy Novel
Excerpt
The worst thing about vampires is that they’re dead. That whole wanting to suck your blood business runs a close second, but for sheer creepiness, it’s the dead bit that gets me every time. They’re up and walking around and talking and sucking blood, but they’re dead. And then there’s the whole terminology problem–how can you kill something that’s already dead? It’s just wrong.
I was twenty-four the first time I . . . destroyed? dispatched? . . . a vampire. That’s when I found out that all the books and movies are wrong. When you stick a wooden stake into their hearts, vampires don’t disintegrate into dust. They don’t explode. They don’t spew blood everywhere. They just look surprised, groan, and collapse into a pile of corpse. But at least they lie still then, like corpses are supposed to.
Since that first kill (I might as well use the word–there really isn’t a better one), I’ve discovered that only if you’re lucky do vampires look surprised before they groan and fall down. If you’re unlucky and miss the heart, they look angry. And then they fight.
There are the other usual ways to kill vampires, of course, but these other ways can get a bit complicated. Vampires are notoriously difficult to trick into sunlight. They have an uncanny ability to sense when there’s any sunlight within miles of them, and they’re awfully good at hiding from it. Holy water doesn’t kill them; it just distracts them for a while, and then they get that angry look again. And it takes a pretty big blade to cut off someone’s head–even an already dead someone–and carrying a great big knife around New York City, even the Bronx, is a sure way to get arrested. Nope, pointy sticks are the best way to go, all the way around.
My own pointy stick is actually more of a little knife with wood inlay on the blade–the metal makes it slide in easier. I had the knife specially made by an old Italian guy in just about the only ratty part of Westchester, north of the city. I tried to order one off the internet, but it turns out that while it’s easy to find wood-inlay handles, the blades themselves tend to be metal. Fat lot those people know.
But I wasn’t thinking any of this when I pulled the knife out of the body on the ground. I was thinking something more along the lines of “Oh, bloody hell. Not again.”
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99-cent Sale Links
Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Legally-Undead-Vampirarchy-Margo-Collins-ebook/dp/B00KKV44BK/
Nook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/legally-undead-margo-bond-collins/1119607989?ean=2940149615803
Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/legally-undead
Universal Kindle Link: http://bookShow.me/B00KKV44BK
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About the Author
Margo Bond Collins is the author of urban fantasy, contemporary romance, and paranormal mysteries. She has published a number of novels, including Sanguinary, Taming the Country Star, Legally Undead, Waking Up Dead, and Fairy, Texas. She lives in Texas with her husband, their daughter, and several spoiled pets. Although writing fiction is her first love, she also teaches college-level English courses online. She enjoys reading romance and paranormal fiction of any genre and spends most of her free time daydreaming about heroes, monsters, cowboys, and villains, and the strong women who love them—and sometimes fight them.
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Connect with Margo
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Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/margocollins
Email: MargoBondCollins@gmail.com
Website: http://www.MargoBondCollins.net
Blog: http://www.MargoBondCollins.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MargoBondCollin @MargoBondCollin
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Goodreads Author Page: http://www.goodreads.com/vampirarchy
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