Margo Bond Collins's Blog, page 81
December 5, 2014
Spotlight On: Burdenend, by Peiri Ann
Burdened (Book 1)
by Peiri Ann
Release Date: April 2014
Summary from Goodreads:
Eighteen-year-old Tracey Warren is a ‘run-of-the-mill’ high school student on the verge of graduation. She has her friends and her fun; she has life all figured out. Or she thought she did.
Her pedestrian reality crashes around her after an innocuous touch from a diabolically handsome stranger. Just one touch from Nathan Newcomb and her head and her world spins out of control. Soon she discovers that the only cure for the uneasy feelings and pain is Nathan himself. A man whose very existence balances between violent chaos and rigidly controlled dangers.
Nathan knows that the life of a woman mated to a burdened Sephlem is destined for peril beyond a human’s reckoning. But Tracey calls to his desire to experience love in spite of the hazards. And Nathan’s impossibly potent magnetism draws Tracey into a bonding that will put her in mortal danger again and again.
Once the pair becomes one, the threat escalates and nowhere is safe. There are enemies that lurk behind every
corner. But the greatest danger may be in the bloodlines that course through Nathan’s veins.Can a love for all time survive or will their burdened souls surrender and fade away?
(Warning: Burdened contains mature contact and strong language some may not find appropriate for readers under the age of 18.)
Buy Links:
Amazon│Barnes
& Noble
Excerpt
Scott stays at least ten blocks away from us. This is going to be a long walk.
“So, I’m the first guy you’ve ever introduced to your mom as your boyfriend?”
I feel my cheeks warm. “Yeah, I don’t introduce my mom to guys. I haven’t cared much about her meeting them, especially if I wasn’t sure they would stick around.”
“So you met my family; I met your mom. I think we can make this official, so the next time you’re introducing me and what I am to you, you won’t have to think about it.”
“So us meeting each other’s family is what makes us official? What about the whole having sex part?”
“Hey!” He throws up his hands. “You’re the one who’s uncertain. I know what you are to me.”
“And what is that?”
He throws his arm around me. “You’re my mate, my girl, my love, my heart—and my future wife and mother of my children, when we are both ready.” He double steps. “No confusion here.” This is free-and-relaxed Nathan—light voice and not intense. This ‘him,’ makes me incredibly comfortable, like he’s normal.
“Clearly,” I say. “But I wasn’t confused. I just didn’t know how to introduce you to her. Like I said, I’ve never done it before, and I didn’t know how she was going to react.”
“She was cool about it. Not a hair out of place. I think she likes me.”
“She might. I think she just thinks you’re cute.”
“Do you think I’m cute?”
“I think ‘cute’ is an understatement. When God made you, he was breaking all the limitation rules.”
“You think God made me?” he asks, more serious.
“Of course. Who else?”
“Well, considering I’m half demon and all.”
“It’s not what you’re made of, it’s what you make of yourself. You make who you are—no one else. We are not who we are because of where we come from or what people make us out to be, but because of what we want to be.
“You’re not a demon,” I continue. “You just possess demon behaviors, but you know that, you don’t let it consume you, and you’ve bettered yourself—which means you were made by God and not by a demon.”
He doesn’t respond. I stay quiet too, holding onto his hand that hangs over my shoulder.
My mom’s words start playing back in my head. I can’t imagine what it is that they want to talk about. And keeping a clear schedule for two days? When my dad comes back, we usually do things as a family, staying out all day or going away for a few days.
To be without Nathan for a full day makes me remember that ache in my chest.
“What are you thinking about, babe?”
“Keeping a clear schedule.”
About the Author
I fell in love with the short story writing after I
started reading a lot of fiction fantasy. I loved the idea of creating new
worlds and placing people to live within them. Then came the love. Awe…love.
Specifically I love to write paranormal romance, adding a twist to everyday
life. I’m a lover of YA and NA, but I’ve written some middle grade fantasy
fiction that is soon to be released.
You can never write ‘too much,’ you can never read
‘too much,’ you never learn ‘too much,’ and there is never ‘too much’
imagination and creation. Everyday is a new day to dream, to create,
to love, to try again and again, to live, and to explore. Time may be
short but we have to take as much of it as we can, to make sure it doesn’t
slip away.
My moto, “Love Life’s Loves because Life Loves
You”
If you love something, do what you need to do to
have it, the only person holding you back is you.
Author Links:
GIVEAWAY:Book Blitz Organized by:
December 4, 2014
4 for Friday Blitz!
Welcome to the 4 for Friday Blitz for A Murder of Magpies by Sarah Bromley, Shadows Fall Away by Kit Forbes, Call Me Grim by Elizabeth Holloway, and Daughter of Chaos by Jen McConnel, presented by Month9Books!
Be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post.
Winter in Black Orchard, Wisconsin, is long and dark, and sixteen-year-old Vayda Silver prays the snow will keep the truth and secrecy of the last two years buried. Hiding from the past with her father and twin brother, Vayda knows the rules: never return to the town of her mother’s murder, and never work a Mind Game where someone might see.
No one can know the toll emotions take on Vayda, how emotion becomes energy in her hands, or how she can’t control the destruction she causes. But it’s not long before her powers can no longer be contained. The truth is dangerously close to being exposed, placing Vayda and her family at risk.
Until someone quiets the chaos inside her.
Unwanted. That’s all Ward Ravenscroft has ever been. To cope, he numbs the pain of rejection by denying himself emotions of any kind. Yet Vayda stirs something in him. He can’t explain the hold she has on him–inspiring him with both hope and fear. He claims not to scare easily, except he doesn’t know what her powers can do. Yet.
Just as Vadya and Ward draw closer, she finds the past isn’t so easily buried. And when it follows the Silvers to Black Orchard, it has murder in mind.
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Chapters Indigo! | TBD | IndieBound
Sarah Bromley lives near St. Louis with her husband, three children, and two dogs. She likes the quiet hours of morning when she can drink coffee in peace, stare into the woods behind her house, and wonder what monsters live there. When she’s not writing or wrangling small children, she can be found volunteering at a stable for disabled riders.
Connect with the Author: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads
Mark Stewart is one incident away from becoming a juvenile delinquent, and his parents have had enough. They ship Mark off to London England to stay with his eccentric aunt Agatha who is obsessed with all things Jack the Ripper. After a strange twist of luck, Mark is struck by lightning, and he wakes to find himself in 1888 Victorian London.
His interest in a string of murders Scotland Yard has yet to solve make him a likely suspect. After all, why would a young boy like Mark know so much about the murders? Could he be the ripper they’ve been searching for? Convinced the only way to get back home is to solve the murders, Mark dives headfirst into uncovering the truth.
Mark’s only distraction comes in the form of the beautiful Genie Trembly, a girl who is totally out of his league and who may have already caught the attention of the infamous ripper. To save her, he’ll endanger both their lives, and risk being trapped in the past forever.
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Chapters Indigo! | TBD
Kit Forbes has been a lover of books, history, and all things paranormal for as long as she can remember. She lives in Western Pennsylvania with her youngest daughter and an assortment of cats who give new meaning to the world bizarre.
Author Links: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads
The truck should have turned Libbi Piper into a Libbi Pancake — and it would have, too, if Aaron hadn’t shown up and saved her life. The problem? Aaron’s the local Grim Reaper… and he only saved Libbi’s life because he needs someone to take over his job. Now, Libbi has two days to choose between dying like she was supposed to, or living a lonely life as Death Incarnate. Talk about a rock and a hard place.
And the choice goes from hard to sucktastic when her best friend shows up marked: condemned as a future murderer. Libbi could have an extra week to stop the murder and fix the mark… but only if she accepts Aaron’s job as Reaper, trapping herself in her crappy town forever, invisible and inaudible to everyone except the newly dead. But, if she refuses? Her best friend is headed straight for Hell.
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Chapters Indigo! | TBD | iBooks
Elizabeth Holloway is a registered nurse living in Southern Pennsylvania with her two teen children, Bam-bam the dog, and Tinkerbell the cat. CALL ME GRIM is her first novel.
Author Links: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads
There comes a time in every witch’s life when she must choose her path. Darlena’s friends have already chosen, so why is it so hard for her to make up her mind? Now, Darlena is out of time. Under pressure from Hecate, the Queen of all witches, Darlena makes a rash decision to choose Red magic, a path no witch in her right mind would dare take. As a Red witch, she will be responsible for chaos and mayhem, drawing her deep into darkness. Will the power of Red magic prove too much for Darlena, or will she learn to control it before it’s too late?
DAUGHTER OF CHAOS is the first in the RED MAGIC paranormal YA trilogy.
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository | IndieBound
Jen McConnel now lives and writes in the beautiful state of North Carolina. When she isn’t crafting worlds of fiction, she teaches writing composition at a community college. Once upon a time, she was a middle school teacher, a librarian, and a bookseller, but those are stories for another time.
Author Links: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads
Complete the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win!
December 3, 2014
Character Cards: Compulsion by Martina Boone
Compulsion (The Heirs of Watson Island #1)
Release Date: 10/28/14
ISBN: 1481411225
Simon Pulse, Simon Teen
448 pages
Summary from Goodreads:
Three plantations. Two wishes. One ancient curse.
All her life, Barrie Watson has been a virtual prisoner in the house where she lives with her shut-in mother. When her mother dies, Barrie promises to put some mileage on her stiletto heels. But she finds a new kind of prison at her aunt’s South Carolina plantation instead–a prison guarded by an ancient spirit who long ago cursed one of the three founding families of Watson Island and gave the others magical gifts that became compulsions.
Stuck with the ghosts of a generations-old feud and hunted by forces she cannot see, Barrie must find a way to break free of the family legacy. With the help of sun-kissed Eight Beaufort, who knows what Barrie wants before she knows herself, the last Watson heir starts to unravel her family’s twisted secrets. What she finds is dangerous: a love she never expected, a river that turns to fire at midnight, a gorgeous cousin who isn’t what she seems, and very real enemies who want both Eight and Barrie dead.
Buy Links:
Compulsion is available anywhere books are sold. Signed copies are available from One More Page Books. You can also order with the special “I have a Compulsion for reading” bookplate from Eight Cousins.
About the Author
Martina Boone was born in Prague and spoke several languages before learning English. She fell in love with words and never stopped delighting in them.
She’s the founder of AdventuresInYAPublishing.com, a Writer’s Digest 101 Best Websites for Writers site, and YASeriesInsiders.com, a site devoted to encouraging literacy and all this YA Series.
From her home in Virginia, where she lives with her husband, children, and Auggie the wonder dog, she enjoys writing contemporary fantasy set in the kinds of magical places she’d love to visit. When she isn’t writing, she’s addicted to travel, horses, skiing, chocolate flavored tea, and anything with Nutella on it.
Author Links:
Website | Blog | Tumblr | Facebook | Pinterest | Instagram | Twitter
GIVEAWAY:
Book Blitz Organized by:
Bathory Gate Press book release party ~ online, Dec. 4
Bathory Gate Press is hosting an all-day book release party for Bound by Blood by Margo Bond Collins and Night Home by Rose Titus.
Sometimes the monsters in the dark are real…
As a child, Lili Banta ignored her grandmother’s cryptic warnings to avoid children outside their Filipino community in Houston. When many of those other children fell ill, Lili ignored the whispers in her community that a vampiric aswang walked among them.
Years later, Lili returns to Houston to work for the Center for Disease Control—but she is plagued by dark, bloody dreams that consume her nights and haunt her days. When a strange illness attacks the city’s children, Lili is called in to find its source, and maybe even a cure.
But in order to save the city, she must first acknowledge the sinister truth: A monster stalks the night—closer than she ever expected….
Excerpt
Sitting straight up in bed, I gasped and threw myself back against the headboard, the thud dying away along with the remaining shreds of my dream.
But the word still ricocheted through my mind.
Aswang.
Until yesterday, I hadn’t thought of the term in years—not since I’d left Houston for med school in Maine, determined to get as far away from home as I could.
But this resurgence of the same, odd illness that had swept my city years before was apparently also dredging up the old stories from deep in my subconscious: the aswang, a vampiric woman who lived a quiet life by day and fed on children in the night, flying back home on bat-wings just before dawn.
My unconscious mind had clearly also expanded on the idea, casting me in the role of aswang and adding schizoid conversations with a chorus of internal voices.
Great. I’m insane in my dreams.
And I’m a monster.
Shuddering, I wiped my hand across my gritty, raw eyelids.
_____________________________________________
Buy Links
Only $.99 via Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Bound-Blood-Night-Shift-Novella-ebook/dp/B00PB3AIGC/
Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Bound-Blood-Night-Shift-Novel/dp/0990743365/
_____________________________________________
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
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/margobondcollins
Email: MargoBondCollins@gmail.com
Website: http://www.MargoBondCollins.net
Blog: http://www.MargoBondCollins.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MargoBondCollin @MargoBondCollin
Google+: https://plus.google.com/116484555448104519902
Goodreads Author Page: http://www.goodreads.com/vampirarchy
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/MargoBondCollins
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/mbondcollins/
_____________________________________________
Trailer Reveal: The Letting, by Cathrine Goldstein
The Letting
by Cathrine Goldstein
Release Date: 12/15/14
335 pages
Summary from Goodreads:
What if the Devil doesn’t know he’s the Devil? This is the question Veronica “Ronnie” Billings poses to Phoenix, her sworn enemy, the leader of the Peaceful Revolution, and the one she loves.
Kidnapped by Phoenix’s rebels, Ronnie learns how wrong she has been. She had no idea that her patriotism was wasted on a corrupt government. Ronnie was proud to be a Leader; taking hundreds of harvested girls to the Letting facility. After all, she was saving them from future Couplings and bringing them to the safety of the New World. Or so she thought…
Confused, Ronnie realizes the only way to discover the truth is to trust her heart. Together, Phoenix and Ronnie devise a plan to stop their corrupt government and preempt the dangerous rebel coup which is approaching. But when their plan goes awry, will Ronnie be strong enough to save Phoenix, her country, and herself?
Buy Links:
Amazon
About the Author
Given my love for cities and all that is gritty, my new obsession with trees really has me stumped. (Sorry.) Maybe it’s because trees are the inspiration behind my new YA/NA novel, theLETTING.
Whatever the reason for my new infatuation, some things remain constant — like my love for: coffee (although sadly, it’s now decaf); yoga; Luna bars (I am petitioning for them to bring back Chocolate Raspberry!); running in my neighborhood; Hemingway; Bukowski… and, above all, my husband and my girls.I am the author of the bestselling novel, Sleeping With Mortals: The Story of a New York Mistress, and I’m also a playwright. I have my B.A. in English and my M.A. in Theatre.
Author Links:
Trailer Reveal Organized by:
Release Day Blitz: Inner Fire, by R.L. Stedman
Inner Fire
by R.L. Stedman
Release Date: 11/30/14
Summary from Goodreads:
‘‘Maybe it would be better if I started at the beginning.’ Gran watched me carefully. ‘This ability we have; my mother, me. You. We draw heat along our bodies; anger makes us flame.’
When her friend is assaulted, Corrine Peterson can’t help reacting. But she didn’t think and now her hands are burnt, Gran is coming to look after her and, scariest of all, strange men are watching her house. Could they be terrorists? Secret agents?
It seems that Gran’s idea of a solution is to introduce Corrine to Rowan. Okay, sure, maybe eighteen year old Rowan is gorgeous – but he has his own troubles. And right now, Corrine doesn’t need complications in her life.
But in a world of surveillance and secrecy, complexity is inevitable. And as the tension mounts Corrine realizes – maybe Gran can help her, after all.
Buy Links:
Amazon
Excerpt
The car roared along, going faster, and our lights flicked along the hedgerows. Leaves brushed against the sides. It was like passing into hyperspace, or traveling backwards through time. These hedges, these roads, were ancient.
‘Like it?’ asked Rowan
Unthinkingly, I had moved into the middle of the seat, so my chin was resting on my hands, between his shoulder and Gran’s.
‘Yeah.’ I had never traveled so fast down these lanes. It was kind of hallucinatory.
‘Rowan!’ Gran was gripping the dashboard.
‘Ah, Mrs Walker,’ said Rowan. ‘We can see someone’s coming by their headlights. Don’t worry.’
He rounded a curve and passed into an even narrower lane. ‘Is this really a road?’
He turned his head, grinned. ‘Yes. This is the back way to your Gran’s house. I’m giving you the scenic tour.’
I laughed. In the dark the scenery was fairly limited. ‘Thank you.’
‘You’re welcome,’ he rounded a corner, the motor roaring. ‘Shit!’
Shit was a deer, stuck in the headlights like a statue. Staring straight at us.
Things happened in slow motion: Gran clutched the dashboard; Rowan hit the brakes; the wheels locked. We slid toward the deer. Desperately, Rowan spun the steering wheel back. The car righted itself, slowing to a stop just as the deer leapt up, up and out of the lane. Clearing the hedge, it seemed suspended in the dark. Its eyes were black as the night but in the headlights of the truck its skin appeared almost translucent. It was easily the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.
Rowan stopped the truck. We sat in the dark, all of us panting as though we’d run a long race. There was a faint smell of burning plastic from Gran’s fingers squeezing the dash. Quickly, she tucked her hands into her lap.
‘Shit,’ he said again.
I couldn’t stop laughing.
‘What’s so funny?’ Gran sounded angry, so I tried to hold the giggles in, but it was really, really funny. The look on her face. The look on Rowan’s face. Both of them, stuck in the headlights, just like the deer.
Rowan started to laugh too, like he had just realized what an idiot he’d been, or how lucky he was. Or both. Gran stared at him and at me, then shook her head. ‘Teenagers!’
‘Terrible, aren’t we?’ Rowan started the truck again, driving slower now.
And strangely, I didn’t feel annoyed at Gran, or worried about the men in London, or guilty about Mr Patel at all. I felt free, light as thistledown. As if it was me, not the deer, that had jumped the fence and galloped away into the dark.
My name is Rachel Stedman. I’m a physiotherapist (physical therapist) by background, but now I work as a freelance contractor. I live in the wild and windy place of Dunedin, New Zealand, with my husband and two kids.
I write mostly for children and young adults. In 2012 I won the Tessa Duder Award for an unpublished YA work and my first novel, A Necklace of Souls, was published by HarperCollins in 2013 (available in the United Kingdom and on Book Depository from June 2015). This year, A Necklace of Souls was awarded Best First Book at the 2014 New Zealand Post Book Awards and won a Notable Book Award from Storylines. Inner Fire is my second novel.
Author Links:
GIVEAWAY:Book Blitz Organized by:
December 2, 2014
Spotlight On: Daughter of Isis, by Kelsey Ketch
Title: Daughter of Isis
Author: Kelsey Ketch
Series: Descendants of Isis #1
Release Date: October 26nd, 2013
Genre: Upper Young Adult Fantasy
“Her mouth parted slightly, waiting for Seth to breathe life into her own body, just like in the story. She wanted him to awaken her senses.”
Their worlds collide in California’s high desert.
The last thing Natara “Natti” Stone wants to do is to start anew at Setemple High School. She wished she had never left London. Yet the brutal murder of her maternal grandmother has made her life very complicated. The only clue related to her murder is an ancient, encrypted necklace Natti discovered after her grandmother’s death. And if trying to adjust to American life is not enough, Natti is being stalked by a mysterious, charming high school senior, Seth O’Keefe, who is annoyingly persistent in his attempts at seduction.
Seth O’Keefe is secretly a member of the Sons of Set, an order that worships the Egyptian god of chaos. Seth’s blessing from Set, his “charm,” never failed, except with one person: Natti Stone. Her ability to elude him infatuates and infuriates him, and he becomes obsessed with the chase. But the closer he gets to her, the more his emotions take a dangerous turn, and he risks breaking one of the most valued covenants of his order. The punishment for which is a fate worse than death.
The adventure this unlikely couple becomes engulfed in could cost them their lives and their souls.
*Note: Content for Upper YA*
Purchase for just 99¢
Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Kobo | Smashwords
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
•Excerpt•
Seth let out a deep breath as Natti waited, hoping. He ran his
fingers through his hair before his face came inches from her.
“The traditional story told to me began during the days before Ra
had left Earth. His council told him that if the goddess, Nut, bore any
children one would end his reign. So, to protect his power, he placed a curse
on Nut, one where she would not be able to bear children on any day of the
year.
“Desperate, Nut went to Thoth, the god of wisdom, for help. Thoth
knew that once spoken, the curse could not be recalled. However, he discovered
a loop hole, went to the moon god, Khonsu, and tricked him into giving up some
of his light. From it, Thoth created five extra days which were set between the
end of the old year and the beginning of the new.
“On the first of these days, Osiris was born. The second day was
set aside for the later birth of Horus, Osiris’s son. On the third day, the
second son of Nut was born, Set. Isis, Nut’s first daughter, was born on the
fourth day, and her second daughter, Nephthys, was born on the fifth. And when
they finally grew up, Osiris married his sister, Isis—”
“Ugh, gods.” Natti rolled her eyes. “Why do they always have to
marry their siblings?”
“Well, who else were they supposed to marry?” Seth asked.
“I don’t know. Maybe a mortal for a change.”
Seth crinkled his brow. “The gods are too great to marry a mortal.”
“And how would they know? Have they ever dated one?” Natti trailed
off when Seth placed his finger gently on her lips, letting them tingle under
his touch. Oh, how she was beginning to love that feeling. She let it consume
her.
Seth smiled. “Do you want to hear the story or not?”
Natti focused on his eyes. “You have my full attention.”
“Good. . . . As I was saying, Osiris married Isis, and together
they traveled the land. Now before Osiris, the people of ancient Egypt were
considered barbarians. Chaos reigned through wars and cannibalism. But when
Osiris and Isis spread their knowledge, the people learned to plant grains like
wheat and barley; how to tend and water the crops; how to cut the corn when
ripe and thresh grain; and then how to dry the crop, grind it, and make bread.
They even taught the people how to plant vines, and turn grapes into wine. For
his teachings, Osiris became the ruler of all Egypt.
“Set, however, was not pleased by his older brother’s rise to
power. So he laid out a plan to kill Osiris and rule in his place. Aided by
seventy-two of his most loyal worshipers, Set obtained the exact measurements
of Osiris’s body and carved a beautiful box that would only fix to his exact
size. Set then threw Osiris a grand feast, the greatest feast Egypt had ever
known. He called for only the best food the realm could provide and for the
strongest wine to be served. And the dancing girls, they were the most
beautiful creatures anyone had ever seen as their bodies swayed to the hypnotic
music—”
“That part of the story would get your attention, wouldn’t it?” Natti teased.
Seth’s cheeks turned a slight pink, and the corners of his lips
pulled into a smile. He let his finger slide across Natti’s lip again. A
delightful shiver silenced her thoughts.
“As the festivities continued, and Osiris drank, Set commanded that
the box would be brought to the grand hall. Osiris marveled at the rare cedar
inlaid with ivory, gold, silver, and painted figures of the gods and their
creations. Using his charm and deception, Set made a grand gesture. He offered
the box to whoever could fit inside. A few people tried and failed. When Osiris
finally took his turn, though, it fit perfectly, and the lid slammed shut, locking
him inside to die. Later, Set returned, dismembered the body into fourteen
pieces, and scattered them across the desert.”
The imagery that crossed Natti’s mind caused her whole body to
cringe. Seth took her wrist and rubbed his thumb over her hand. The soft
tingling sensation soothed her nerves, making her feel all warm and gooey
inside.
“When Isis heard what happened, she and Nephthys set out to look
for the pieces, gathered each one, and carefully wrapped Osiris in strips of
cloth. Unfortunately, this was not enough. The manner in which he had died had
prevented his entry into Amenti, the
place for those who have passed judgment. So, ultimately, Osiris would not be
able to rest in peace.
“However, Isis was clever. She crafted a magical serpent out of
dust and Ra’s spittle and placed it in the sun god’s path. The serpent bit him,
and Ra—being the most powerful god of all—commanded the poison to leave his
body. Yet his magic would not work, for the serpent was made from Ra’s spittle,
and therefore, he was unable to cure himself of the poison running through his
veins. He called upon Isis, a great healer herself, to withdraw the poison.
Isis, though, told him she could only heal him if she knew his secret name. A
large request, considering. You see, knowing a god’s true name gives the other
person their power. In this case, Isis would gain the power of creation
itself.”
Natti thought back her first day at Setemple High when Seth had
“stolen” her name in gym class. She understood exactly how the Egyptians felt.
It left her feeling violated and betrayed.
“As the pain of the poison spread, Ra finally submitted. He gave
her his name in secret and in confidence that no one other than herself shall
ever know. Isis agreed and cured Ra of her serpent’s poison.” Seth’s voice
became soft and slow. “When she returned to her husband’s side, she took him
into her arms, called on the power of Ra, and breathed life back into his body.”
Focused on Seth’s words and his eyes, Natti hardly realized how
close his lips had come to hers. They brushed up against her mouth, sending
sparks across her flesh. Her heart galloped with excitement. Her mouth parted
slightly, waiting for Seth to breathe life into her own body, just like in the
story. She wanted him to awaken her senses.
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
•About the Author•
During her high school years, Kelsey Ketch could always be found tucked away in a little corner of the hall or classroom, writing her fantasy worlds and creating illustrations and maps. Today is no different, except now she’s writing in the break room at her office building or at the tables of the Barnes and Noble Café in Cary, North Carolina. She is also an avid reader, a part-time book blogger at Ketch’s Book Nook, and lives with her two orange tabbies and awesome and humorous flat-mate.
For more information, please visit her site at kelseyketch.com.
Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Facebook
Spotlight On: Mysticism & Myths ~ A Paranormal Sampler
THIS SAMPLER IS A MUST READ FOR FANS OF THE MYSTERIOUS WORLDS OF GHOSTS, SEA DWELLERS, SHAPESHIFTERS & ENTICING STORIES THAT SPAN THE GLOBE!
Pre-order your copy today – ONLY $0.99! Final price will be $2.99, so be sure to secure your order today.
Available through AMAZON
Release Date: December 15, 2015
~~~~~
Bound By Blood (A Night Shift Novella)
By Margo Bond Collins
Sometimes the monsters in the dark are real… As a child, Lili Banta ignored her grandmother’s cryptic warnings to avoid children outside their Filipino community in Houston. When many of those other children fell ill, Lili ignored the whispers in her community that a vampiric aswang walked among them.
Years later, Lili returns to Houston to work for the Quarantine Station of the Center for Disease Control—but she is plagued by dark, bloody dreams that consume her nights and haunt her days. When a strange illness attacks the city’s children, Lili is called in to find its source, and maybe even a cure.
But in order to save the city, she must first acknowledge the sinister truth: A monster stalks the night—closer than she ever expected….
Isa: Gift of the Baloma
By Perri Forrest
Isa: Gift of the Baloma is a fantasy tale created from a myth that derives from the Trobriand islands (today officially known as the Kiriwina Islands). Isa is the beautifully tortured soul who has never known love, and who has pretty much travelled through life alone.
When tragic circumstances lead her into the depths of the sea, she has no idea what her fate may hold, and thus prepares for worst.
However, as in life, sometimes we have to go through our very worst to get to the place we were destines to be. Such is the case with Isa.
Just when she thinks all is lost, she meets Chief Topileta, headman of the villages of the dead, and an unexpected love affair ensures. As Isa will soon find, nothing in her life stays peaceful for long, and before she knows it, she is separated from the only person to ever care for her.
When tragedy strikes and Isa finds herself awake after two years of falling into a deep sleep, she is surprised to find that all thoughts are still with the man she has not forgotten. But has he forgotten her? Will he come for her? Will she find love again?
This is only the beginning of Isa’s story, in the full length novel that is set for 2015 release, readers will find out the many layers of Isa and be able to journey with her as she finds out about her lineage and the family she was sure did not exist.
Micco, Anguta’s Reign
By Dormaine G.
Revelation can be a disheartening truth.
Micco, a captivating Native American man with a desirable physique and statuesque features, radiates a mysterious allure. Living on the reservation with his unapproachable father, he doesn’t believe in the old ways and works as a cop in the local town.
The only reason he lives on the land is Nara, his childhood friend and the love of his life, who is married to a cruel reservation man.
Waking up in the heart of a murderous scene, he flees for his life, unfamiliar with his surroundings or how he arrived there.
To his horror, he’s assigned to the case. As he works with the local detective, more murders transpire with unusual, terrifying sightings of wolves.
His behavior starts to drastically change, forcing others to take notice. Although trying to avoid the inevitable, Micco is forced to accept the undesirable truth, unable to fight what has been awakened, and all that he has forgotten is finally revealed.
Cursed: A Yorkshire Ghost Story
By Karen Perkins
She’s back. This time no one is safe.
A skeleton is dug up at the crossing of the ways on Hanging Moor, striking dread into the heart of Old Ma Ramsgill – the elderly matriarch of the village of Thruscross. And with good reason. The eighteenth-century witch, Jennet, has been woken.
A spate of killings by a vicious black dog gives credence to her warnings and the community – in particular her family – realise they are in terrible danger.
Drastic measures are needed to contain her, but with the imminent flooding of the valley to create a new reservoir, do they have the ability to stop her and break her curse?
Carnem Levare
By Jaxx Summers
We are born, live and eventually leave the mortal world. For Stefano Bonaro the same can be said, with a powerful exception. He was born to live and love in Venice, beyond death.
Stefano is passionately in love with Anastasia Soranzo. They grew up with the promise of a future together, through family bonds and emotional ties. Then suddenly their lives are torn apart by unforgivable deception. For the sake of family, Stefano and Anastasia can no longer have a future together. While Anastasia can easily move on, Stefano refuses to do so.
During Eighteenth Century Carnival, Stefano seals his faith when he commits a crime of passion that ends with him even taking his own life. But this is not the end for the jilted lover, when he is suddenly brought back to life a year later. Stefano’s spirit continues to hope in love, even as he becomes ruled by madness. But will it ever truly end for Stefano Bonaro?
The Life Keeper
By Abby L. Vandiver
The bloodline of Romania, older than the legend of the vampire, the strigoi are vile, evil creatures who suck the life from the people of the villages that line the impenetrable forests of the country. In this tale with a twist, Jessica Petrescu dotes on her grandmother and takes care of her family in the aftermath of the fall of communism in Romania. Her family is disrupted by a red headed, indigo colored eyes cousin, who turns her household upside down in his quest to discover whether a strigoi is living among his relatives.
Connect:
Website: http://mythsandmysticism.wix.com/mam1
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mysticism-Myths/532514463552553
Margo Bond Collins
Perri Forrest
Dormaine G.
Karen Perkins
Jaxx Summers
Abby L. Vandiver
Spotlight On: Life in the No-Dating Zone, by Patricia B. Tighe
Life In The No Dating Zone
by Patricia B. Tighe
Release Date: 12/02/14
Swoon Romance
Summary from Goodreads:
After surviving her parents’ relationship drama when her older sister elopes, Claire Gardner vows not to date during high school. Now, three years later, Claire is thrust into new relationship drama–her two best friends have boyfriends. Which means Claire is spending more and more time alone. And she’s more than a little peeved. Enter Gray Langley. His year-long crush on Claire’s friend Lindsey has made him desperate enough to ask Claire for help. Hesitant at first, Claire agrees–anything to get rid of Lindsey’s current evil boyfriend. But as Claire and Gray plot together, an attraction develops, and now she must decide if being with Gray is worth the pain that will come from confronting her parents with the reasons for her vow.
Buy Links:
Amazon
Excerpt
The next morning I felt a lot better. I’d had my afternoon of feeling sorry for myself and it was over. Time to move on. Yeah, I’d felt jealous of Rose’s new relationship, but I was over it. Sort of. I wouldn’t be a very good friend if I didn’t want her to be happy. I supposed I was mature enough to handle any changes that might come from Rose having a boyfriend.
The doorbell rang. I started to get up, but remembered Mom was down there with Jack. I
went back to the novel I was reading.
But then her voice came ringing up the stairs. “Claire, you have company!”
Uh-oh. I jumped up. Grayson. Or Gray. Was it already eleven o’clock? I’d completely lost track of time. “Coming,” I yelled.
I yanked on a pair of shorts, brushed ginger cookie crumbs off my T-shirt, then went to the mirror to make sure there were none in my teeth. I tried to smooth down my hair, but I had serious bedhead, so I pulled it into a ponytail. I didn’t even have makeup on. But whatever. He was here for advice, not to take me out. That wasn’t even an option, anyway.
I jogged downstairs, figuring I shouldn’t leave him in my mother’s clutches any longer than necessary. She could get someone’s life history in about three minutes. I peeked around the kitchen doorway. Gray sat at the kitchen table next to Baby Jack in his highchair. My mom was putting the iced tea pitcher back in the fridge.
Gray wore basketball shorts, a Notre Dame T-shirt, and flip-flops. His dark blond sun- streaked hair poked out in different places. I’d never seen it like that. In fact, it hit me he was really tan. Normal, of course, for the summer, but I hadn’t realized he was such an outdoorsy guy.
About the Author
I’m not the writer who’s been writing for as long as she can remember. In fact, I didn’t start writing fiction until I was almost thirty. But, I’ve always been a reader. Which, of course, is one of the basic requirements for being a writer. I’ve read everything from horse novels and spy thrillers to historical romance and fantasy sagas—and lots in between. There’s something wondrous about picking up a book and entering a new world with new adventures. And I don’t plan on stopping any time soon.
When I’m not reading, I hang out with my husband and two old dogs, plus my grown sons whenever I get the chance. In the fall I spend way too much time yelling at my TV while watching football. I’m also addicted to British TV shows. Top Gear, anyone?
Oh, yeah. And I write. Kissing books. Or at least books that include kissing. Hope you enjoy them!
Author Links:
GIVEAWAY:Book Blitz Organized by:
Spotlight On: Beautiful Curse, by Jen McConnel
Beautiful Curse
by Jen McConnel
Release Date: December 2014
Swoon Romance
Summary from Goodreads:
Sixteen-year-old Mya Jones is cursed.
She is, hands down, the most beautiful creature on earth. But beauty can wound, and Mya finds herself reviled and shunned by her peers. If there is even a chance that she could start over, Mya longs to take it, no matter the risks.
So when the strange Mr. Merk offers her a new life away from home, Mya is hesitant but hopeful. Only she didn’t count on the mysterious Ross, or her feelings for him.
BEAUTIFUL CURSE is a contemporary retelling of the myth of Psyche and Cupid.
Buy Links:
Amazon
Excerpt
Dumping my bag in the half-painted kitchen, I pulled out my cell phone. Elaina had been really cold to me at lunch, and we didn’t have any classes together; maybe I should text her to see if she wanted to come over. I stared at the phone for a moment, considering, but then I shook my head. She’s probably just having a bad first day. Trying not to think about her, I rummaged through the fridge, hoping I could find something with either copious amounts of chocolate or salt, but all I came up with was an apple. I sat down at the kitchen table and sighed before biting into the red skin.
“Mya, is that you?” Mom called from upstairs, and I swallowed the bite of apple.
“Yeah.” I sort of hoped she wouldn’t come down. I didn’t really want to re-hash the awful day, but I heard her soft steps on the stairs.
She came around the corner and looked at me expectantly. “Well, how was it?”
I sighed. “Okay, I guess. Elaina and I had a fight.”
“About?”
I took another bite of my apple. “I’m not sure,” I lied. I didn’t want to tell Mom that we’d fought about my looks. It seemed like a ridiculous reason to argue, and I hoped Elaina would get over whatever was bothering her by tomorrow.
Mom squinted at me. “What did you do to your face?”
I stopped chewing. “What do you mean?” I reached for my cell phone to check my reflection in the screen, but Mom’s next words stopped me.
“You look different. Fake, somehow. Are you wearing new makeup?”
I shook my head. “You know I hate wearing makeup.”
Mom cocked her head to one side. “Still, something’s different about you.”
I slumped into my seat. Desperate to change the subject, I gestured at the kitchen. “Are we out of paint?”
She nodded, but her eyes studied my face for a moment before shifting to look at the half-finished walls. “Yes. I was
going to run out and get some more, but—“ She cleared her throat. “I guess I got distracted upstairs.”
“I can get it.”
“Don’t you have homework?”
I shrugged. “It’s not a far walk.”
Mom hesitated, glancing at the door, but then she nodded. “Okay.” She leaned forward and kissed my forehead. “Thank you.”
I hopped up and tossed my apple core in the compost bin on the counter. “Another gallon?”
She nodded, and then she pulled me into a tight hug.
Confused, I looked up at her. “You okay?”
“Yes.” Mom pulled away and pursed her lips. “Are you sure you don’t want to wash off whatever’s on your face first?”
I sighed, exasperated. “I told you, Mom, it’s just me.”
She laughed, but it sounded forced. “No one looks that good when they’re sixteen, sweetie.”
About the Author
Jen McConnel first began writing poetry as a child. Since then, her words have appeared in a variety of magazines and journals, including Sagewoman, PanGaia, and The Storyteller (where she won the people’s choice 3rd place award for her poem, “Luna”).
She is also a former reviewer for Voices of Youth Advocates (VOYA), and proud member of SCBWI, NCWN, and SCWW.
A Michigander by birth, she now lives and writes in the beautiful state of North Carolina. A graduate of Western Michigan University, she also holds a MS in Library Science from Clarion University of Pennsylvania. When she isn’t crafting worlds of fiction, she teaches college writing composition and yoga.
Once upon a time, she was a middle school teacher, a librarian, and a bookseller, but those are stories for another time.
Author Links:
GIVEAWAY:
Book Blitz Organized by:
