Margo Bond Collins's Blog, page 75
January 18, 2015
Spotlight On: Final Life by Rose Garcia
Final Life by Rose Garcia
Book #1 in the Transhuman Chronicles
Nothing sucks more than being forced to move cross country during senior year. And Dominique Wells doesn’t think things can get any worse until she’s invited to a quirky neighbor’s party. When pressured into playing a magical card game, Dominique’s world goes from sucky to terrifying. She begins having visions of a red desert and an evil presence–a presence who hints at past lives and promises to kill her.
Plagued by fear and suspicion, and unaware of a family secret kept hidden from her, Dominique is determined to live. Together with a mysterious and gorgeous guy who’s moved in while his parents are away, and a hot, popular guy from school, Dominique must seek clues to her past if she’s to survive. That, and keep her emotions in check for the two guys she suddenly can’t stop thinking about because if she doesn’t, she’ll be dead. For real.
Available on Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo
___________________________________________________________
EXCERPT
The image
of blue sky, white sand, and calm waters popped into my mind, edging out the
fear and panic that had taken over me.
My body
slipped to the ground. My knees sank into the cool, pebbly sand. A soft breeze
flowed through my hair. Farrell stood beside me at the water’s edge, staring
out at the still water. He extended his arm and helped me to my feet. I brushed
myself off, recalling the terror and pain I had just left behind in the red
desert. I patted my chest.
“Am I
really here?”
“No,”
Farrell said sadly. “Only your mind is here.”
“Farrell,
am I—?” I paused, not wanting to say the words, as if keeping them to myself
would change my fate. “Am I dying?”
“Yes.” He
took my hand. “There’s nothing I can do.” His calmness filtered into me. And
for a minute there, death didn’t seem so bad.
My
attention turned to a bird in the distance that soared through the cloudless
sky. For eight lifetimes now I had died, and this was my last time. The world
would never be the same, and it was my fault.
Farrell
squeezed my hand. “Remember what I said? The last time we were here?”
Of course I
remembered. “You told me the end is not yet written, and to trust myself.”
The bird, a
white Egret, flew closer and glided right over us, wings outstretched. A lone,
feather escaped its plumage. The delicate quill drifted back and forth in the
sky. Just like the feather from my dreams and the feather Ms. Ryken had given
me that I had later seen at Jan’s. And then it dawned on me that it was the
same color as Farrell’s aura. I extended my hand, reaching out for it. When it
touched my palm, it disappeared.
Like
flipping a switch, I was back in the desert. Heat exploded inside me. The air
in my lungs had almost emptied. Warm, thick blood dripped from my fingers.
Farrell and Trent were on the other side of Tavion’s dark energy force, and I
was still inside, barely alive. Tavion continued to lift me at my throat,
squeezing the life out of me.
“Dominique!
Fight!” Trent yelled.
___________________________________________________________ABOUT ROSE
Rose Garcia is a lawyer turned writer who’s always been fascinated by science fiction and fantasy. From a very young age, she often had her nose buried in books about other-worlds, fantastical creatures, and life and death situations. More recently she’s been intrigued by a blend of science fiction and reality, and the idea that some supernatural events are, indeed, very real. Fueled by her imagination, she created The Transhuman Chronicles–a series of books about people who have overcome human limitations.
Rose lives in Houston with her husband and two kids. You can visit Rose at www.rosegarciabooks.com
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GIVEAWAY
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Spotlight On: The Real Deal, by Jane Leopold Quinn
The Real Deal
The Second Birchwood Falls Book
(the first: Lost and Found)
by Jane Leopold Quinn
Ellora’s Cave
http://www.ellorascave.com/the-real-deal.html
Blurb
When her fiancé is busted at a gentlemen’s club, attorney Norah Ballard calls off the wedding. Shocked and humiliated, she grabs her suitcase and takes the first train out of town.
Easygoing teacher Michael Banning spots the new woman in town and recognizes her from college. She’s even more gorgeous and sophisticated now. He’s no longer the nerd he was back then, and now that she’s on his turf, he’s going to touch and taste every sleek, beautiful inch of her. Whatever her reason is for being in his town, he’ll fulfill all her desires so she never wants to leave. Norah won’t let another man—no matter how sweet, smart and sexy—get close enough to hurt her again. Mike’s passionate pursuit of her, the way he seems to know just how to arouse her, turns her into the wanton woman she hadn’t known she was.
He’s accused in a local scandal, something he wasn’t involved in. Birchwood Falls is in danger of flooding. He has a hell of a lot on his plate. When Mike’s in trouble, Norah’s going to be there to help him. And when Birchwood Falls is in trouble, she’s going to help the town she’s fallen in love with too.
Excerpt
“…Falls, Ioway. Ten minutes.”
She jerked out of a surprisingly deep sleep at the conductor’s clipped announcement. It had been unusually quiet on the train, no babies crying, no kids racing up and down the aisles to disturb her. Amazed she’d slept the night through, she blinked her eyes out of a muzzy-headed stupor, not sure why the conductor’s call woke her this time. She yawned, stretched the kinks out and gazed out the window all the while taking deep breaths to quell the thumping of her heart from the sudden awakening. As a counterpoint to her emotions, the train puttered slowly along a rushing river, water leaping and sparkling in the morning sunshine. A glance across the aisle showed rocks and greening foliage on the side of a hill.
“Birchwood Falls comin’ up,” repeated the conductor.
She heard the rustling of clothing and thumps of suitcases hauled down from the overhead bins. Outside the window, now that they’d passed warehouses, the sun hit her full force and lit the town with an enchanted glow. Enchanted glow? Where did that come from? Nothing in her life was enchanted right now and it was supposed to be. Right this minute she should be enjoying married life. This was to have been her honeymoon and a month off work. She teared up at the memory of her beautiful expensive gown. What a waste. Again she realized she missed that more than the SOB groom. Brought roughly back to reality when the train came to a halt at the station, she glanced out the window, spotting a sign.
Birchwood Falls—You’ve Come Home.
A sign. An omen? The town literally glowed in the sun. Like Brigadoon. She’d recently seen a revival of the classic musical, the story of two hunters discovering the magical Scottish town as it materialized from the morning mist. Just as Birchwood Falls appeared to her, aglow and radiant in the sunrise. The beginning of a new day. A new life?
She froze in her seat for a moment staring at the sign. This town called to her. In a daze, she gathered her suitcase and jacket. Alighting from the train, she stepped out onto the wooden platform, bemused at not knowing what the future held. She watched as the train rumbled down the tracks leaving her in this strange place. Alone for the first time in her life, she had no plans, nowhere to go and nothing to do. She cracked a slight smile at her unexpected freedom. She’d have to find someplace to eat, then a place to stay.
Then cold hard reality hit her and she shivered abruptly with fear. She’d have to find a doctor and get tested for STDs. Garrett might have endangered her life. God forgive him, because she never would.
Bio
Sensual fantasies were locked in my mind for years until a friend said, “Why don’t you write them down?” Why not, indeed? One spiral notebook, a pen and the unleashing of my imagination later, and here I am with more than a dozen books published. The craft of writing erotic romance has become my passion and my niche in life. I love every part of the creative process — developing characters, designing the plot, even drawing the layout of physical spaces from my stories. My careers have been varied — third grade school teacher, bookkeeper, secretary — none of which gave me a bit of inspiration. But now I’m lucky enough to write romance full time — the best job in the universe!
My Books
Ellora’s Cave
Lost and Found
The Real Deal
Indie
Valentine’s Day
His Hers & His
The Keeper
Soldier, Come Home
Winning Violetta
A Promise at Dawn
Jake and Ivy
Wooing the Librarian
Home to Stay
The Long Road to You (coming soon)
Siren
Undercover Lover
Mercenary Desires
I’ll Be Your Last
Jane Leopold Quinn
My Romance: Love With a Scorching Sensuality
http://janeleopoldquinn.BlogSpot.com + https://twitter.com/jelquinnauthor
January 17, 2015
SPOTLIGHT ON ~ Debt Collector: Season Two by Susan Kaye Quinn
The Debt Collector
Season 2
by Susan Kaye Quinn
Blurb:
What’s your life worth on the open market?
In this gritty urban fantasy, debt collectors take your life energy and give it to someone more “worthy”… all while paying the price with black marks on their souls.
“Wraith is amazing and just as compelling as Lirium—once again I’m hooked!!”
“I loved being back in this world! Wraith has captivated me.”
Wraith is a shadow in the night, haunting the bedrooms of the rich “high potentials” who have stolen life energy from the desperate and dying. The justice and the sweet mercy hit that follow keep her from falling into her own personal abyss. Her secret nighttime work also keeps her on level for her real mission: carrying on her father’s legacy of attempting to bring an end to debt collection as a whole. But when a mysterious debt collector interrupts her in the act and discovers her secret, everything Wraith loves may be destroyed by the one thing she can never fix– the original sin of being a debt collector herself.
Contains mature content and themes.
OPTIONED FOR VIRTUAL REALITY BY IMMERSIVE ENTERTAINMENT
2014 Semi-Finalist in Science Fiction in the Kindle Book Awards
The nine episodes of Season Two of the Debt Collector serial are collectively 125k words or about 500 pages.
It is recommended that you start with the first season, but each season is a complete story for that debt collector and can serve as an entry point to the series. There are five planned seasons in the Debt Collector series, the first four each from the perspective of a different debt collector with the fifth season bringing all four together.
Available for purchase at
Excerpt
Excerpt Debt Collector Season Two, first episode – Wraith
“I… what…” He’s still breathless. But he’s smart, too, and quickly figures it out. His legs are trapped under the blanket, but his arms are free, so he lunges for me—the typical response. If he tried to twist away, making me lose contact with his bare skin, I might actually get into trouble. But my targets almost always go for my throat, especially the men. And most of them are men. I’m not biased—I’ll hunt down anyone who trafficks in life energy—but while the occasional socialite, movie star, or female corporate executive might make my list, it’s usually the men who think they can make deals with the mob and get away with it. And when they see a woman in a skin-tight suit perched on their chest in bed, they automatically assume they have the advantage.
Odel’s back arches again, but the pleasure is all mine.
Damn, I’ve missed this.
Might as well get used to that, too.
“What do you want?” His words are wheezy.
“I can… I can pay you,” he says, already reaching the desperate, bargaining stage. That was fast. “Anything you want.”
“Please.” God, he’s starting to tear up now. These pampered high potentials can be so soft once you get them out of the boardroom. “Please don’t kill me. I’ve… I’ve got a family.” He doesn’t try to escape my hold on his forehead this time, like he’s finally figured out my palm is a gun barrel pressed against his skin. But he flails his arm to the side, reaching for something.
“Is there something you need?” I ask.
I lean back and look, even though I know better.
I hold my free hand out to him. “Give it to me.”
My palm is still plastered to his forehead, but I ease up on the pressure a little. It’s starting to sweat, making the contact slick. I need to move this along.
“I… I swear, I don’t know those people.” The desperation in his voice is inching up to hope, like he thinks he can talk his way out of this.
Odel has gone very still with my words, and I can see it on his face: he’s gotten to the stage where he realizes he’s not getting out of this. That anything he says will probably only make it worse. What he doesn’t know is that’s what I was waiting for: the look that says he understands what’s happening. And he knows he’s going to pay.
About the Author
Susan Kaye Quinn is the author of the bestselling Mindjack Trilogy and the Debt Collector serial, as well as other speculative fiction novels and short stories. Her work has appeared in the Synchronic anthology and has been optioned for Virtual Reality by Immersive Entertainment. Her business card says “Author and Rocket Scientist” but she mostly sits around in her PJs in awe that she gets to write full time.
You can find her at
Giveaway
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Presented By
January 16, 2015
Spotlight On: Battle Cry, by Melissa Snark
Survival demands sacrifice. Healing requires forgiveness.
After losing her lover and then her mate, Victoria Storm builds a new life in Sierra Pines, California. When the Norse Fates predict the she-wolf will destroy the world to save her unborn child, her duties as Freya’s priestess conflict with her responsibilities as Odin’s Valkyrie.
Sawyer Barrett has hunted Victoria so passionately, he doesn’t know whether he loves or hates her. Desperate to end the fighting, he will take chances with everything—except his heart. This hunter harbors a deadly secret he can’t reveal without risking the tentative ceasefire and his father’s continued disapproval
Men revere him; monsters fear him. Jake Barrett—the notorious Hunter King—values loyalty to family above all else. When he believes his eldest son was murdered by a wolf ally, he releases a chain reaction of violent destruction that claims the lives of both wolves and hunters.
An ancient vampire plots the destruction of wolves and hunters alike. If the embittered rivalry doesn’t end quickly, there is no hope for the Hunters, Victoria’s pack, or the mortal world.
Attribution: Norns weaving destiny, by Arthur Rackham (1912). Public domain.
Excerpt
Shadows enshrouded Skuld, and her voice manifested upon the air, thick and oppressive, closing in from all sides. “Your daughter will not grow to adulthood in Midgard.”
Victoria’s heart slammed against her breastbone. Her breath expelled in a horrified gust. The bowl dropped from her hands which flew to protect her abdomen. “What do you mean?”
“Your daughter will be taken from you on the eve of her third birthday,” Skuld said. “The one you trust most, a member of your own pack, will give the child over to your greatest enemy.”
A growl trembled in Victoria’s throat, and her entire body shook under the dual assault of fear and rage. The suggestion of betrayal from within her own pack filled her with disbelief to the core of her being. It was unthinkable. Gritting her teeth, she sought a solution, refusing to dwell on it. “How am I to prevent this?”
“We speak of what will come to pass,” Verðandi said in a sympathetic tone.
“Your predictions are not carved in stone,” Victoria said. Arguing with Fate was a foolish endeavor, but she refused to accept their prophecy.
The old woman, Urðr, smiled with a frightening gleam in her eyes. “Predictions, carved into the trunk of the World Tree, carved into the spiritual fabric of the world.”
Stubborn determination settled over Victoria like armor. Her mother had taught her there was no absolute fate, just as there was no absolute free will. Life consisted of a wide range of possibilities between the two extremes. She refused to allow her daughter to die at three years of age. She would move worlds, alter fate, slay gods.
Whatever it took.
“Do you wish to save your child?” Skuld asked.
Victoria answered without thought. “Yes. I’ll do anything. Tell me. Please.”
“The final days are upon us,” Verðandi said.
Skuld took over speaking. “To save your daughter, you will side with Loki against the Aesir. You will use your enchanted dagger to cut the binding of the great wolf Fenrir. You will be responsible for freeing the beast that kills Odin.”
Victoria’s stomach turned. Her head shook in automatic denial. “When the gods imprisoned Fenrir, my people pledged fealty to the Aesir. We have served them loyally ever since. Even when we were driven from the homeland, almost a millennium ago, we remained faithful. I will never cut Fenrir’s bonds. To do so would end the world we live in and doom us all.”
Skuld’s gaze held steady. “You will.”
Victoria snarled her denial. “No. I will never become the servant of the Trickster or willingly take part in bringing about Odin’s death.”
Skuld turned her head and pinned Victoria with one black eye that rolled in its socket like a liquid marble. “To save your daughter, you will.”
BATTLE CRY by Melissa Snark
Book #2 in the Loki’s Wolves series
Genre: Folklore Fantasy/Occult
Word Count: 96,000 approx.
ISBN (ebook): 978-1-942193-02-9
ISBN (print): 978-1-942193-03-6
ASIN: B00QSPEXZE
Cover Artist: Farah Evers
Available for purchase:
Enter Goodreads book giveaway to win one of four signed paperback copies.
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/enter_choose_address/121354-battle-cry
Fast Facts About Melissa Snark:
Melissa Snark is published with The Wild Rose Press & Nordic Lights Press with six unique titles.
Her Loki’s Wolves series includes THE CHILD THIEF, HUNGER MOON and BATTLE CRY.
She lives in the San Francisco bay area with her husband, three children and a glaring of cats.
She is a professional cat herder and unrepentant satirist who blogs about books and writing on The Snarkology.
Connect with Melissa Snark:
Email: melissasnark at gmail.com
Twitter: @MelissaSnark
Spotlight On: The Missing, by Necole Ryse
The Missing (The Birthright Trilogy Book 2)
by Necole Ryse
Release Date: 12/16/14
Cover Designed by: Najla Qamber DesignsSummary from Goodreads:
Reeling from her boyfriend’s disappearance, Raevyn Jones is shocked to learn that she is considered suspect number one. To make matters worse, rumors are swirling that golden boy, Jeffrey Donnelly, isn’t just missing…he may never be coming back.
And Raevyn is being framed.
Her second semester at Benjamin Wallace Fitzgerald University, the nation’s first Ivy League institution for African Americans, is full of twists and turns.
Soon Raevyn will learn not to trust anyone, not even the people she calls friend.
Buy Links:
Amazon
Excerpt
“C’mere,” Brandon said. And when he reached for me, I felt myself stagger into his body. He was soft, but solid. His body was unfamiliar, stronger, much stronger than Jeffrey’s. Jeffrey. Was it possible to miss someone so much it hurt?
Brandon wrapped his arms around me and I felt his fleshy lips land on my forehead, soft and gentle like falling into a pillow.
I didn’t realize I was crying until I heard a sob fill the empty hallway. He brought his finger to my chin, exactly how Jeffrey used to. My stomach stirred. My heart stumbled out of my chest, landing in a broken clump on the carpet. Carefully, he brought his face closer to mine like if he handled me any differently I’d break apart. His breath danced on my lips when he said, “You don’t have to cry about him anymore.”
Book One:
The Legacy
by Necole Ryse
Release Date: 06/17/14
Summary from Goodreads:
Nineteen-year-old Raevyn Jones has never worn a designer gown. She’s never had access to unlimited champagne or chauffeured limo rides. But when she is dropped in the midst of the Black Ivy League–against her will–she has to pretend that everything is normal, as if she belongs.
When her new friends start to question her sketchy past and her shaky legacy at Benjamin Wallace Fitzgerald University, Raevyn realizes she will have to rely on her street smarts more than ever before.
Raevyn starts to receive cryptic text messages and emails from an anonymous sender and she soon discovers that not only does someone want her to leave B.W.Fitz–someone also wants to end her life.
Buy Links:
Amazon│Barnes
& Noble
About the Author
Necole Ryse graduated from Towson
University with Bachelor’s Degree in Mass Communications. Bored
with life as an adult, Necole decided to follow her dreams to write fiction and
she hasn’t looked back. She enjoys chocolate covered pretzels, Criminal Minds
marathons, and all things Harry Potter.
Author Links:
GIVEAWAY:
Book Blitz Organized by:
January 15, 2015
P&E Readers’ Poll Results: Taming the Country Star ~ Best Short Romance
The Preditors & Editors Readers’ Poll is one of my favorite competitions, because it’s all about the readers and fans! And I am delighted to announce that not only was my novella Taming the Country Star named Best Short Romance, but that all of my books published in the last year were top-ten finalists!
Check them out!
Taming the Country Star (Entangled Bliss) (Hometown Heroes)
Bound by Blood was #5 in the Best Short Horror category.
Bound by Blood: A Night Shift Novella
Legally Undead was #10 in the Science Fiction and Fantasy category.
Legally Undead (Vampirarchy Book 1)
Spotlight On: Thunderstone, by Barbara Pietron
Thunderstone by Barbara Pietron
Genre: YA paranormal romance
Published: November 12, 2013
Sneaking out at night, driving without a license, and falling for a guy weren’t things fifteen-year-old Jeni expected to do while visiting Lake Itasca, Minnesota. Then she meets Ice, the local medicine man’s apprentice. Suddenly, her simple family gathering becomes an exciting – and terrifying – week of self-discovery. At first Jeni doesn’t believe Ice’s claim that she can touch the spirit world and has somehow released a mythical underwater monster. However, she’s forced to reconsider when a teen swears a monster killed his father while fishing on the lake. Just as she comes to accept truth, Jeni finds she is the only one who can imprison the monster, making her the creature’s next target. She’ll need immense faith in her newfound ability to put herself in harm’s way and face down the monster. And even if she succeeds in delivering the local population – and Ice – from the creature’s wrath, there is no guarantee Jeni will escape with her own life.
Purchase:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble
____
The Prequel:
Heart of Ice by Barbara Pietron
Currently FREE! Visit Heart of Ice on Scribe-Publishing.com to download!
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Excerpts
Heart of Ice Excerpt:
Ice’s ankle was held fast in a
large leg-hold trap. He groaned as the metal teeth seemed to press deeper into
his skin and grate on his bones. Stooping, he attempted to pull the jaws of the
trap open and release his foot, but was unable to get the right leverage. Teeth
gritted against the pain radiating up his leg, Ice dug his phone from his
pocket then heard the crunching sound of footsteps. “I’m here,” he shouted,
relieved that the medicine man had heard his cry.
He waited as the footsteps drew
near, calling out again.
But the figure that emerged from
the forest wasn’t the medicine man.
It was Nesbitt.
And he
carried an axe.
Horror engulfed Ice and he froze
momentarily, his thoughts scrambling for a means of defense. He had no weapon.
No bear spray. Nothing. Then he realized he still held his phone in his hand
and fumbled it in his numbed, shaking fingers.
Nesbitt was making his way through
the trees quickly. Humming.
Ice thumbed to the contacts in his
phone and found his favorites. He glanced up and realized Nesbitt’s eyes glowed
with an odd, yellowish hue from out of his emaciated skull. He managed to get
his thumb on Nik’s name before the demented man smashed into him.
Dropping the phone to free his
hands, Ice grabbed Nesbitt’s arm that held the axe and shoved it away from him
as he fell. Before the man could topple onto him, Ice scurried backward,
yowling in pain as the trap bit harder into his ankle bone. He’d reached the
end of the chain fastened to a tree and the more he jerked against it, the
tighter the jaws clamped down on his leg.
Nesbitt rose first to his knees and
then to his feet, in no hurry since he knew his prey was tethered.
Ice crawled sideways using his
elbows and feet, although he realized if he wrapped the chain around the tree,
it would only grow shorter. His hands clawed the ground around him, searching
for a branch or stick, anything he might be able to swing at Nesbitt.
The madman moved forward, breathing
heavily and drooling. Ice found a stick and wrapped his fingers around it,
yanking it from the dead foliage. He jabbed at the man as he came forward and
yelled in despair as the stick snapped easily.
A foot rammed into Ice’s chest and
he hit the ground hard, gasping for breath. Before he could rise to his elbows,
the foot pressed down with force, pinning him. “Don’t do this,” Ice
begged, his voice ragged. “Mr. Nesbitt!” he shouted.”Please
don’t do this!” He hoped somewhere inside the crazed man a person still
resided: a teacher, a human who wouldn’t kill another human.
Nesbitt paused for a second, his
face blank, eyes distant. Then he rasped, “Hungry,” and swung the
axe.
_______________
Thunderstone Excerpt:
Ice sat motionless, staring at his knees.
How had he managed to make such a mess of things? He’d felt comfortable with Jeni and her
family too; thought the evening had progressed smoothly.
Then he’d looked down into Jeni’s upturned
face and lost it. Despite the smoky bonfire, he could smell her; the fragrance
of an apple orchard in the fall. Then his gaze fell to her glossy, ripe lips
and the reasonable explanation he had in mind vanished. Instead he’d just
blurted something out and completely blew it.
With a heavy sigh, Ice stood. His
footsteps dragged as he headed between the cottages to the resort drive.
“Ice.”
Engulfed in despair, Ice didn’t register
the whisper until it came the second time. He turned to see Jeni’s head poked
out the side door. She edged outside when she saw him stop. She took a step
toward the porch rail. “I’m sorry. I overreacted.” She hugged her
arms around her torso. “I…I do that
sometimes. I should’ve at least given you a chance to explain why you wanted my
statue.”
Ice moved closer. “Yeah…well, I
didn’t mean to say…ask…not like that.” Jeni watched him, waiting. Ice took a deep breath. “Thing is,
you’re not going to like the explanation anyway.”
“Well,” she contemplated the toe
of her shoe as she bounced it on the rail. “I can’t promise I’ll like it,
but I’ll listen.” When she looked up she wore the ghost of a smile.
Ice searched her face and thought for a
long moment. No more lies; time to lay the cards on the table. He wasn’t hopeful for any particular outcome,
only resigned to do what he felt was right. “I owe you a story about the
monster your statue represents, don’t I?”
She nodded slowly, wearing a puzzled
expression.
“Let’s start there then.” So he told her how long ago, when the
underwater monster swam freely, the people were plagued by bad fishing,
overturned canoes, and children drawn under by whirlpools when they went
swimming. “Eventually,”
Ice explained, “the medicine men of neighboring tribes joined together to
lure the creature here. They trapped him in a cavern near the sacred burial
mounds of Lake Itasca and charmed him to sleep.” Ice paused, and then
finished his story with the events of the past two days. “Then, about a
hundred years later, a priestess…” He stopped to look at her, “…buys an
artifact and falls into the water with it in her pocket. Her connection to the
spirits combined with the power of the statue wakes the underwater monster. So
the local medicine man sends his apprentice to find the girl and get the statue
back. If he fails, the monster will likely escape and people will start
disappearing.”
Jeni narrowed her eyes at him for a moment
and then laughed. “I get it. Cute. You made it sound like I was part of
the story.”
Ice maintained a level stare. “You are
part of the story.”
___________________________________________________________
About the Author
After years in the corporate world, Barbara found herself with a second chance to decide what she wanted to be when she grew up. Her lifetime love of books and the written word returned one answer: writer. Drawing from her experience with technical writing, she began by writing non-fiction magazine pieces and achieved both regional and national publication. Her success encouraged her to complete a novel. She learned much from her first manuscript, critiques, books, contests, and blogs. In 2012, her novel Thunderstone, was a quarterfinalist in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest and won a critique by Publisher’s Weekly. A few months later, she was offered publication by Scribe Publishing Company.
Barbara has a few other novels in the works, including a Thunderstone sequel. If she’s not reading or writing, Barbara likes to walk, garden, and sew. She works in a library and lives in Royal Oak, Michigan with her husband, daughter, and their cat – who often acts like a dog.
Find Barbara online:
Website | Facebook
___________________________________________________________
GIVEAWAY
___________________________________________________________
Win a new young adult novel!
(Before it’s in stores!)
Barbara Pietron, author of Thunderstone, is running a contest to title her next novel.
If your title idea is chosen as one of the top four
suggestions, you will win the book!
Here’s how it works:
Based on the cover summary below, you
think of an amazing title. You know, the kind of title that compels a potential
reader to take the book off the shelf.
Then go to http://www.barbarapietron.com
and click on the News/Events page. You
can make your suggestion in the comment section of the post about the contest,
or click on the link which will take you to the Scribe Publishing website suggestion form . Your email will be added to Barbara’s
list so she can keep you in the loop about the contest and the book.
If your suggestion is chosen as a top
four, you will win the new novel! Those top four entries will be posted for
readers to vote on their favorite. If your suggestion becomes the book title,
you’ll be mentioned in the book!
Summary:
Sixteen-year-old
Jack Ironwood knew exactly what he wanted. Until he got it.
Jack
was content to stay unnoticed by pretty and popular track-star, Natalie
Segetich, until her best friend Emma disappears. Natalie swears something took
Emma, and though most people write Natalie off as traumatized and confused,
Jack is a soulshifter and he knows the human-stealing Enuuki—hell’s
messengers—are real.
As a
soulshifter, Jack can cross into the underworld so he sees Emma’s rescue as an
opportunity to prove himself a valuable member of his transcendental sect—and a
way to secure a future otherwise out of his reach. Although he needs Natalie’s
help to prepare for the mission, Jack intends to go to the underworld alone.
But as a viable plan takes shape, it’s clear the best chance of success means
Natalie must accompany him.
On
the eve of the quest, when Jack is promised the hand of a respected elder’s
daughter—a dream come true—he realizes he’s no longer sure what he wants. But
it’s too late to back out, not with the sect and Natalie counting on him.
Pursued by the dark lord’s henchmen and ghastly mutant creatures, Jack and
Natalie struggle to come out ahead in a battle and barter for souls. In the
end, Jack will have to decide his own fate, because nothing short of a deal
with the devil will get all three of them out of hell alive.
Part one of the contest will run through
January 31st, 2015 and the voting will take place in February.
Dreaming of Books Blog Hop ~ Things Unwritten
This week, I sent my latest book off to my editor, and then I sat down with my day-planner and started working out my writing schedule for 2015.
While I was doing that, I realized that if I wrote a whole book every single month this year, I still would not complete all the books I had hoped–in some delusional, dreaming part of my mind–to work on in 2015.
Now, some of those books are short–novellas and novelettes that I want to write to bridge some of the stories I’ve already written, or plan to write.
But still, that’s a lot of writing. (Yeah. I’m going to try. But I’m not counting on it!)
So for this Dreaming of Books blog hop post, I’m concentrating on things unwritten.
Therefore . . . this post has a theme song!
I’m giving away a paperback copy of Charles Martin’s novel, Unwritten.
January 14, 2015
Spotlight On: Tied With a Bow and No Place To Go, by Ann Everett
Tied With a Bow and No Place To Go
Mystery / Humor
Date Published: August 2014
Texas Ranger Ridge Cooper has investigated some odd cases during his career, but when local chicken farmer, Jay Roy Hobbs, is found dead, wearing nothing but boots and a bow, it becomes the strangest one yet. On the positive side, the lawman won’t lack for suspects. Turns out the victim got up close and personal with most of the girls in his graduating class and they’re in town for a reunion. All Ridge has to do is tolerate a talking parrot and consult a color wheel as he tries to determine if the culprit is one of Jay Roy’s three ex-wives or a high school conquest.
While her husband looks into his latest murder case, Tizzy Cooper has problems of her own. She’s joined forces with first cousin and local PI, Jinx Monroe, to follow a possible cheating husband, confront their Nana about baking Boom Brownies, and drench-a-wench at the local Renaissance Faire.
Excerpt
Jay Roy Hobbs held the county record for talking women out of their panties. At least that’s what Tizzy Cooper had heard. Rumor said ladies ignored his lack of good looks and fell for his quick wit. Now, staring at him through binoculars, she wasn’t so sure humor was his main appeal.
She swallowed the lump that’d been lodged in her throat since arriving on the scene. It wasn’t the sight of a dead body that bothered her. She’d seen plenty of those over the years. Her talent for talking to the dearly departed made it a frequent occurrence. But while the rest of Brownsboro’s citizens were having their first cup of coffee, she was five miles out of town, at the edge of a field, swatting mosquitos. Not the way she intended to start her day.
Sunlight filtered through naked limbs of an old tree and cast shadows across colonies of Bishop’s Weed standing tall like lacy parasols. The only thing ruining the spring array, Jay Roy’s lifeless body.
At first, Tizzy considered he might be asleep or unconscious, but after calling out to him with no response, and given the color of his skin, along with the buzzards overhead, she decided on a third choice.
Stepping onto an old stump to get a better view, she focused the field glasses. About fifty yards away, the man lay naked, except for boots and a bow, on a patch-work quilt, face toward heaven, arms outstretched. Something twisted in Tizzy’s chest. Jay Roy and her mom had graduated high school together which made him much too young to die.
A few feet to the right, Tizzy’s friends, Synola Harper and Rayann Tatum, shaded their faces and squinted toward the dead man. Tizzy stepped off the stump, adjusted the straps of her sundress and decided they must be as surprised as she by the sight, because neither of them said a word until she passed the field glasses to Synola.
“Lord, can you believe the size of that thing?” Synola let the binoculars dangle around her neck. She tugged her red tank top against warm mocha skin, tucked it into the slender waist of her jeans and smirked at Rayann. “I don’t suppose you’ve ever seen anything that big.”
Rayann tossed her head, blonde curls bouncing with the movement, then narrowed her green eyes and frowned. “Of course I have. I watch HBO.”
About the Author
Ann Everett embraces her small town upbringing and thinks Texans are some of the funniest people on earth. When speaking to writing groups, businesses, book clubs, and non-profit organizations, she incorporates her special brand of wit, making her programs on marketing, self-publishing, and the benefits of laughter, informative and fun.
An award winning author, she’s also a member of Northeast Texas Writers’ Organization and a top ten reviewer on thenextbigwriter.com
When Ann’s not writing, she spends her days listening in on people’s conversations at the local Wal-Mart, beauty shop, Goodwill, and numerous other gathering spots. She draws from that research to pen her romantic suspense novels full of southern sass and Texas twang. For her new adult romance stories, she blends her dramatic writing style with a kick of humor.
Author Links
Website
Blog
Buy Links
Amazon
Giveaway
$10 Amazon Gift Card
a Rafflecopter giveaway
January 13, 2015
Spotlight On: Let Me Love You, by Iris Blobel
Blurb:
Oliver Dempsey, pitcher for a Melbourne baseball club, loves the women, and they love him…
But he keeps them at an arm’s length, and when he meets Tamara, he’s unprepared for the attraction he feels for her. Told by his coach that she’s off limits, only draws him in more.
Tamara Amis moved to Melbourne to find some distance between her past and herself…
With the help of her uncle, the coach of a Melbourne baseball club, she quickly finds a job, and a place to live. Yet, one meeting with the handsome pitcher stirs unexpected emotions that threaten to overwhelm her.
It’s Oliver’s injury that brings them together, but as they find out about each other’s pasts, how can they be ready to share a future?
Author:
Iris Blobel was born and raised in Germany and only immigrated to Australia in the late 1990s. Having had the travel bug most of her life, Iris spent some time living in Scotland, London, as well as Canada where she met her husband. Her love for putting her stories onto paper only emerged a few years back, but now her laptop is a constant companion. Iris resides west of Melbourne with her husband and her beautiful two daughters as well as their dog. Next to her job at a private school, she also presents a German Program at the local Community Radio.
Buy Links:
Publisher: http://www.limitlesspublishing.net/product/let-me-love-you/
Amazon Australia: http://bit.ly/1Aq2J7r
Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1AzCCfB
Where to Find Iris:
My Blog: www.iris-b.blogspot.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/irisblobel
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4067254.Iris_Blobel
Twitter: @_iris_b
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/iblobel/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/107759085454255573026/posts
Excerpt:
Sweat ran down Oliver’s back, soaking his shirt. He’d been on the field for a couple of hours, but frustration grew in him with every ball he missed. He placed his hands on his knees and took a deep breath, fixing his stare at the ground. For Pete’s sake, he was a pitcher, not a hitter, and well known for his fastballs as well as his perfect curveballs. Alas, he had neglected his hitting. Today, his swing was below average, and, unable to focus, he walked over to the bench where he spotted Coach Becker shaking his head towards him.
Pointing his finger back towards the field, the coach said, “Head right back out there, Oliver. You need to improve your hand-eye coordination. I want to see more, and better.”
Oliver cursed under his breath. “It’s not going to happen. My shoulder’s killing me. It’s been a long day.”
Coach Erik Becker rubbed his face.
“It’s not gonna happen today,” Oliver persisted.
With a grimace on his face, his coach nodded.
“Righteo, call it a day. But I want you back out there again in the morning, though.”
Oliver eased off his gloves and shoved them into his back pocket, before removing his helmet.
The coach gave him a gentle slap on his back. “I need you to concentrate more tomorrow. Remember what I told you. You need to focus on your proper stance as well as swinging the bat. Keep your eye on the ball as it comes towards you. Try to connect the bat with the ball, preferably at the fat of the bat. We have a game coming up soon. Go and deal with the shoulder issue. Check in for a massage.”
Oliver wiped his forehead with his arm when he noticed a woman standing in the coach’s shadow. Raising his eyebrows, he nodded towards her as to ask who she was.
Erik turned slightly. “Oliver, this is my niece, Tamara. She’s moved here from Perth. Tamara, this is Oliver.”
Oliver extended his hand towards her. “Nice meeting you.”
She ignored his hand and took a step back. Taken aback by her reaction, Oliver instinctively checked his hand for dirt or sweat. Questioningly, he looked at his coach.
Erik ignored the situation and simply said, “Have your shower and see me before you head off to discuss your training schedule.”
Nodding, Oliver took another quick look at Tamara. For a brief moment, their eyes met, and he was puzzled by her expression. It seemed as if her intense blue eyes were trying to hide something. The distant look in them was almost mysterious, and combined with her body language, he couldn’t help but get the impression something was wrong. She was very guarded.
With one last look towards Tamara, Oliver turned and left.
As soon as he got to the locker room, he peeled off his t-shirt. Pain shot through him the instant he lifted his right shoulder. He’d been ignoring the twinge during the training session, but knew he had to have it looked at. The fucking skateboard rider had nearly knocked him over the previous day when he came out of nowhere. Oliver hadn’t had a chance to move out of the way fast enough and slammed his shoulder into a post.
He slowly stripped out of his track pants before grabbing a can of Coke out of his bag. Leaning against the wall, he chugged half of the drink while enjoying the quietness around him. Everyone else was still out on the field trying to please Coach Becker. He choked a laugh, hoping his mates would put Erik in a better mood than he had. They had a few important games over the next few weeks before the season ended, and for the first time in years, the club was doing well.
As he walked to the showers, he thought about his training session and wondered whether his shoulder was to blame for the bad hits, or his lack of training. But who was he kidding, he always liked to throw everything he had at people, yet was hopeless in receiving anything thrown at him. That applied in baseball and in life. When he’d been to see his first baseball game as a kid in Los Angeles, he’d known he was born to pitch.
