LASR Anniversary Scavenger Hunt: In the Crosshairs: the Body on Leffis Key by M. S. Spencer

Thanks for joining us on our 17th anniversary scavenger hunt! There are two ways to enter to win and it’s easy to play– first read the blurb below, then answer the question on the first Rafflecopter. You might win a $100 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC (along with other prizes). Follow and visit authors’ social media pages on the second Rafflecopter and you’re entered to win another $100 Amazon/BN GC (along with other prizes)!

Palmer Lind, recovering from the sudden death of her husband, embarks on a bird-watching trek to the Gulf Coast of Florida. One hot day on Leffis Key she comes upon—not the life bird she was hoping for—but a floating corpse. The handsome beach bum who appears on the scene at the same time seems to have even more secrets than the dead man.

His story begins to unravel as the pair search for answers to a growing pile of dead bodies. Spies, radical environmentalists, and wealthy businessmen circle around each other in a complex dance. Which one is lying? What do a seemingly random group of individuals have in common, other than being targeted by a crossbow?

Facebook | X

Buy the book at Books2Read, Wild Rose Press, I Tunes, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Google, or Kobo.

SCAVENGER HUNT:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

SOCIAL MEDIA:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

LASR Anniversary Scavenger Hunt: Ana Diamond

Thanks for joining us on our 17th anniversary scavenger hunt! There are two ways to enter to win and it’s easy to play– first read the blurb below, then answer the question on the first Rafflecopter. You might win a $100 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC (along with other prizes). Follow and visit authors’ social media pages on the second Rafflecopter and you’re entered to win another $100 Amazon/BN GC (along with other prizes)!

Mortician, Lily Reynolds is used to seeing bodies, but not the type murdered in her own funeral home. As Detective James Rivers zeroes in on her as the town’s number one suspect she must rise above the accusations and rumors to solve the case herself while keeping her attraction to the troubled detective at bay. 

James has a past. The last time he let someone into his life she wound up dead. Vowing never to let that happen again he has sworn off dating for good. Until he meets Lily. In his gut he knows she’s not the murderer but pressure to solve the case puts him on the wrong trail while he struggles to keep Lily off the case. 

Can she solve the case on her own or will their scandalous romance get in the way of proving her innocence?

 

Buy the book at Books2Read.

SCAVENGER HUNT:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

SOCIAL MEDIA:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

LASR Anniversary Scavenger Hunt: Heir by J L Wilson

Thanks for joining us on our 17th anniversary scavenger hunt! There are two ways to enter to win and it’s easy to play– first read the blurb below, then answer the question on the first Rafflecopter. You might win a $100 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC (along with other prizes). Follow and visit authors’ social media pages on the second Rafflecopter and you’re entered to win another $100 Amazon/BN GC (along with other prizes)!

Jessa was held prisoner for the first 16 years of her life until she was freed by Nick Kingson, a young police officer.

Now Nick is back in her life, 40 years later, to protect her when Jessa’s father searches for the daughter he abandoned years ago. There is a lot of money involved and also a lot of social prestige and those two elements mean that Jessa may not live to see an inheritance.

Jessa and Nick go back to where it all started, to that town where she was once held captive. But now she’s not The Girl in the Tower. She’s a grown-up and she knows what she wants to do … but will she get the chance to be the person she was meant to be?

Or will an old enemy stop her before she can gain her inheritance?

Buy the book at Books2Read.

SCAVENGER HUNT:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

SOCIAL MEDIA:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

LASR Anniversary Scavenger Hunt: Joanna Campbell Slan

Thanks for joining us on our 17th anniversary scavenger hunt! There are two ways to enter to win and it’s easy to play– first read the blurb below, then answer the question on the first Rafflecopter. You might win a $100 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC (along with other prizes). Follow and visit authors’ social media pages on the second Rafflecopter and you’re entered to win another $100 Amazon/BN GC (along with other prizes)!

Decatur, Illinois/1986 – A nasty divorce leaves Cragan Collins with a mountain of bills and her grandmother to support. She takes a job as an ad salesperson for The Gazette. The market is tough, but Cragan finds a mentor in business reporter, Robert Smithson. One icy January day, Robert is found dead in a city park. His murder is dismissed as gay-on-gay crime. Cragan asks The Friday Night Mystery Club to find justice for Robert. Will Cragan’s quest for the truth land her on the obituary page?

Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest

Buy the book at Amazon.

SCAVENGER HUNT:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

SOCIAL MEDIA:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

LASR Anniversary Scavenger Hunt: Stephanie Hansen

Thanks for joining us on our 17th anniversary scavenger hunt! There are two ways to enter to win and it’s easy to play– first read the blurb below, then answer the question on the first Rafflecopter. You might win a $100 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC (along with other prizes). Follow and visit authors’ social media pages on the second Rafflecopter and you’re entered to win another $100 Amazon/BN GC (along with other prizes)!

Cable Girls meets Peaky Blinders meets Titanic

The girls had forged a bond together like iron that could not be broken. Claudia, Kiersten, Lina, and Florian were on the brink of making history with their powerful feminist movement, but then they suddenly disappeared without a trace.

Alexander was a desperate bootlegger who was willing to risk it all to search for them. Not only were they in cahoots with him to help smuggle feminist contraband and forbidden booze, but Claudia had also unknowingly captivated his heart. He vowed to find them at any cost, but little did he know that their disappearance was part of a much bigger and sinister plot from the upper echelons of society.

Set in 1920s Paris of the Plains, Armored Hours is a thrilling tale of love and mystery interwoven with hints of magical realism.

Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | TikTok

Buy the book at Amazon.

SCAVENGER HUNT:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

SOCIAL MEDIA:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

LASR Anniversary Scavenger Hunt: January Bain

Thanks for joining us on our 17th anniversary scavenger hunt! There are two ways to enter to win and it’s easy to play– first read the blurb below, then answer the question on the first Rafflecopter. You might win a $100 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC (along with other prizes). Follow and visit authors’ social media pages on the second Rafflecopter and you’re entered to win another $100 Amazon/BN GC (along with other prizes)!

A gripping thriller that explores the lengths one will go to for family, and the resilience needed to stand against the darkness.

In the shadow of Alaska’s towering peaks, Anna Hale is haunted by a past painted in flames and betrayal. Marked by the tragic death of her mother and the scars of a childhood marred by violence, Anna has fought tirelessly to build a semblance of normalcy, only to have it shattered again and again. The latest blow comes when her sister, Tia Pace, vanishes without a trace, reigniting old wounds and casting Anna into a nightmare where she’s the prime suspect.

As she grapples with her stepfather’s execution and the weight of suspicion, another crisis looms: Zoe Pace, her other sister, has disappeared in an eerily similar manner. The only clue a sinister black rose and a chilling letter. When her brother Josh, now a dedicated cop in the Anchor Police Department, begs for her assistance, Anna is pulled back into the fray. Despite the agony of reopening old wounds, she embarks on a desperate quest to unravel the mystery of her sisters’ disappearances.

Faced with the unforgiving Alaskan frontier, Anna must confront a tangled web of corruption and deceit, with a copycat killer moving in the shadows. With every tick of the clock, Anna’s hope for a normal life slips further away, but her resolve to find her sisters and bring them home burns fiercer than ever. Will Anna’s journey through the cold, dark paths of Alaska lead her to her sisters, or will she find herself lost in the depths of a conspiracy that threatens to consume everything she holds dear?

Dive into this chilling tale of loss, courage, and the relentless pursuit of justice against the backdrop of Alaska’s unforgiving wilderness. Order your copy now.

 

Facebook

Buy the book at Amazon.

SCAVENGER HUNT:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

SOCIAL MEDIA:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Lonely Australian of the Asian Night by Gregory Pakis – Spotlight and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. The author will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner. Please click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Hookers and hawkers.
Mosques and mosquitos.
Paul has had enough of Southeast Asia.
He’s only here ‘cos it’s cheap.
He’s on the run from police after leaving Australia.
No, that place wasn’t much better either.
Well, it was when he was young.
When his life was full of promise. An up-and-coming boxer. And he had friends. And fun.
Then a bit of bad luck later and he found himself on the run in outback Australia. Paranoid. Hiding from shadows. The heat. The dust. The sweat.

Next stop, Southeast Asia.

 

Enjoy an Excerpt

Cigarette in mouth, Paul stood on the hotel balcony and stared nervously out into the hot Cambodian night. He hated Asia. He didn’t know why so many loved it. Of course deep down he knew – cheap holidays. But to Paul, Asia was hell – hot, dangerous and always just a bit of bad luck away from some sort of disaster.

Not much could be seen from his balcony. His hotel was down a small street off the main road that led to the tourist centre of Siem Riep. He could see people drifting down the main road, mostly tourists clutching dollar beers. Directly across from him was the construction site of a new hotel.

Paul took another drag from his cigarette, grabbed his beer off the balcony railing and walked back into the hotel room. He looked at his boots next to his duffel bag. He was sick of those stinky boots. He looked at the grime on the duffel bag. That grime was from India. Indian grime was unique. Black. Oily. Nowhere else that he had been in Asia left that kind of grime. It came mostly off the train floors. As he stubbed his cigarette out in the ashtray, he remembered what his feet looked like in thongs at the end of those long train trips – black.

About the Author: Gregory Pakis is an Australian author, film-maker, actor and wacky vlogger.
He has written the short story, The Lonely Australian of the Asian Night; the soon to be released horror-suspense novellas, The Regressor and He., and Memoir of a Suburban Hoe-Bo, which is partly an account of when he lived out of a van for ten years in Melbourne.

Gregory Pakis is also the writer / director of the feature films, The Garth Method (2005) and The Joe Manifesto (2013), which have won national and international awards and been distributed through Accent Entertainment, Label, Vanguard Cinema.

Gregory’s more informal video projects are the feature documentaries, Garth Goes Hitch-Hiking (2007) and Garth Lives in a Van (2011) which have screened at film festivals in Australia.

More recently, he has created the comedy series, suBURPieS and his Wacky Vlog which can found on his socials.

Gregory has been featured in articles in newspapers, The Age, The Herald Sun, Beat Magazine, Inpress, FILMINK, and the Neos Kosmos. He has been interviewed on radio by the ABC, 3RRR, SYN FM, 3CR.

Books Website | Films Website | Instagram | TikTok | Facebook | Twitter | Book Trailer | Author Chat to Camera Video
Buy the book at Amazon.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Death Secrets by January Bain – Spotlight and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. January Bain will be awarding a limited edition print of a wolf family to a randomly drawn winner. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

A gripping thriller that explores the lengths one will go to for family, and the resilience needed to stand against the darkness.

In the shadow of Alaska’s towering peaks, Anna Hale is haunted by a past painted in flames and betrayal. Marked by the tragic death of her mother and the scars of a childhood marred by violence, Anna has fought tirelessly to build a semblance of normalcy, only to have it shattered again and again. The latest blow comes when her sister, Tia Pace, vanishes without a trace, reigniting old wounds and casting Anna into a nightmare where she’s the prime suspect.

As she grapples with her stepfather’s execution and the weight of suspicion, another crisis looms: Zoe Pace, her other sister, has disappeared in an eerily similar manner. The only clue a sinister black rose and a chilling letter. When her brother Josh, now a dedicated cop in the Anchor Police Department, begs for her assistance, Anna is pulled back into the fray. Despite the agony of reopening old wounds, she embarks on a desperate quest to unravel the mystery of her sisters’ disappearances.

Faced with the unforgiving Alaskan frontier, Anna must confront a tangled web of corruption and deceit, with a copycat killer moving in the shadows. With every tick of the clock, Anna’s hope for a normal life slips further away, but her resolve to find her sisters and bring them home burns fiercer than ever. Will Anna’s journey through the cold, dark paths of Alaska lead her to her sisters, or will she find herself lost in the depths of a conspiracy that threatens to consume everything she holds dear?

Dive into this chilling tale of loss, courage, and the relentless pursuit of justice against the backdrop of Alaska’s unforgiving wilderness. Order your copy now.

Enjoy an Excerpt

Anna Hale cranked up the volume on her headphones, desperate to study for her high school English exam scheduled for the morning, but the hypnotic beat couldn’t mask the loathed voice of her stepfather growing louder by the second.

“You whore! Sneaking around and giving me those pious looks. You don’t think I don’t know better. I should throw you out right now, you and your bitch of a daughter!”

The soft sounds of her mother trying to pacify him were indistinct, impossible for her to hear.

Pass out already, old man.

She tried forcing her mind on the textbook, but the lines of printing blurred, making it hard to concentrate. If the subject at hand was a math or science quiz, she’d ace both without much effort. And that one computer module they’d had this semester had fascinated her. She yearned for a career in data processing, discovering all the secrets. That was if she got a choice. Her stepfather was threatening to make her leave school early to help bring more money into the household. She rolled her eyes in disgust. The guy just couldn’t hold down a job. Never his fault, like his shitty attitude wasn’t a factor. Or that his breath so often stank of booze, and his body of stale sweat.

The conversation from earlier between her and her mom bothered her like a harbinger of things to come, making it harder to focus. “I’ve made arrangements. If anything happens to me—go next door. Alex and Cindy Pace will look after you. And you get along so well with Josh and the twins.”

Her mom had talked over Anna’s every denial of anything ever happening to her. Anna was going to keep her mom safe. Learn karate or something badass at the gym to give her the upper hand. But her mom had made her promise and she had gone along with it. Anna didn’t want her mom worrying more than she already did, not that she wouldn’t stay and help her if worst came to worst. She’d never desert her mom. They had to stick together, no matter what.

Another loud series of barks drew her attention away from her favorite daydream of getting a high-paying job, of taking her mother far, far away. She’d also warned her to stay out of it, that her stepfather couldn’t help himself having to work at a job he hated, but Anna’s stomach churned with the effort. She wiped her damp palms on her patched jeans, straining to hear, the test long forgotten.

A loud crashing sound of something falling erupted downstairs. She dumped the headset and jumped off the bed, then raced down the narrow staircase in her sock feet, her pulse hammering in her ears, her head about to explode. She rounded the sharp corner that composed the L-shaped kitchen and living room, the clean but faded linoleum with most of the square-shaped pattern worn down to gray splotches, slippery beneath her feet. Her disgusting bear of a stepfather stood over her mom, his meaty fists raised like a boxer, his pugnacious face darkened by raw hatred.

About the Author: January Bain is an award-winning author who firmly believes that stories unite us, that good stories help us to discover the commonality of the human experience by supporting values, empathy and understanding. She writes with her heart, mind, and soul, hoping that her novels will touch your life, giving you moments of freedom as you fly with her to other worlds.

Bain has had the pleasure of select novels being turned into games, and her work is also available in different languages.

January and her husband live in rural Canada on peaceful acreage where a variety of wildlife comes to visit regularly and expect to be fed and paid attention to.

Website | TwitterFacebook | Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram | TikTok

Buy the book at Amazon.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Proven Innocence by Mary J. Rocco – Spotlight and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. The author will be awarding a $20 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Cynthia Evans wakes up in the trunk of a car, no idea how she got there, only to discover she’s wanted for the murder of her husband and children. With no memory of life prior, Cynthia is sure she did not commit the crime.

Only problem is-how does she convince anyone she’s not a murderer when she is not sure who she is?

With the help of a downtrodden diner waitress, Gabrielle, Cynthia fights to prove her innocence.

One thing is clear: Rick Evans is dead. But who is the real killer?

Enjoy an Excerpt

My eyes are open, but there is no sight to see. Darkness remains. It is black—pitch black. I squint and shut my eyes to adjust to the darkness faster, but it does not help. No shadows lurk in the night for me to redirect my corneas upon. The darkness encloses me, encasing my body in its depth. My body is not upright. It is stretched horizontally across the ground. I am lying down. I try to stand, but my weak body forbids me. My left hand falls upon the surface I am lying on. The ground feels furry, almost carpet-like. I am not outside.

Where am I?

My best deduction indicates I am trapped in a restrictive box. My head has only four inches to move before hitting the top, and my legs are bent at the knees with my toes resting upon the opposite wall from my head. I look up and find a wall of darkness just inches above—pure darkness with no stars or moonlight.

Am I buried alive?

Every human’s worst nightmare is to be mistaken for dead and lowered six feet underground where no one can hear the perilous cries for help. I try to scream, but no sound escapes from my vocal cords. Thoughts of Edgar Allen Poe’s Tell-Tale Heart filter into my brain.

What if the people walking above can hear the faint beating of my heart from the depths below?

Get a hold of yourself!

I raise my right hand slowly to dislodge the top of my coffin. My arm shakes as it rises off the ground above my head. I am limp and exhausted. A sharp pain pulsates throughout my entire right side as I try to move. Electric shock waves run from my toes to the left side of my brain. It is not a comforting sensation, and I would rather not move ever again in my life than experience such agony once more. The only options are, however, shift my body to experience discomfort for a slight moment or lay still awaiting death.

My head is pounding from an obtrusive headache. It is as if a jackhammer is chiseling through the right side of my outer cranium. I wince in pain as I raise my hand to the right side of my head. An overbearing shockwave shoots out of my brain when I touch that area. The hair follicles are mushy, raw, and tender where they meet my skull. The hair is matted to my brain. A huge, painful lump has started to protrude underneath the skin. I am not sure how it got there. I am not sure how I got into the situation I am in at the present moment.

My fingers are sticky from whatever substance has glued my hair to my head. I try to smell them by placing my fingers underneath my nose, but I cannot ascertain the odor. I bring my index finger to my mouth to utilize one of my other senses. It is the last one available to unveil the mysterious substance. My saliva moistens my tongue to activate my taste buds. I recognize a fluid taste mixed with a hint of salt. It is blood––my own blood.

Why am I bleeding? How did this happen?

About the Author: I have dreamed of being an author since the age of ten. I have been writing and crafting stories for the last twenty years, mostly because, well you know, life… and I got in my own way. After finishing law school, graduate school, travelling the world, getting married and starting a family I figured now was the time.

I was born and raised on Long Island, New York and spent ten years in my early adulthood living carefree in New York City. I currently reside with my husband and two beautiful children in the western suburbs of Chicago, Illinois, where I am a practicing attorney.

I hope to continue to publish many more novels that entertain and thrill readers.

Amazon Author Page
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Death Secrets by January Bain – Spotlight and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. January Bain will be awarding a limited edition print of a wolf family to a randomly drawn winner. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

A gripping thriller that explores the lengths one will go to for family, and the resilience needed to stand against the darkness.

In the shadow of Alaska’s towering peaks, Anna Hale is haunted by a past painted in flames and betrayal. Marked by the tragic death of her mother and the scars of a childhood marred by violence, Anna has fought tirelessly to build a semblance of normalcy, only to have it shattered again and again. The latest blow comes when her sister, Tia Pace, vanishes without a trace, reigniting old wounds and casting Anna into a nightmare where she’s the prime suspect.

As she grapples with her stepfather’s execution and the weight of suspicion, another crisis looms: Zoe Pace, her other sister, has disappeared in an eerily similar manner. The only clue a sinister black rose and a chilling letter. When her brother Josh, now a dedicated cop in the Anchor Police Department, begs for her assistance, Anna is pulled back into the fray. Despite the agony of reopening old wounds, she embarks on a desperate quest to unravel the mystery of her sisters’ disappearances.

Faced with the unforgiving Alaskan frontier, Anna must confront a tangled web of corruption and deceit, with a copycat killer moving in the shadows. With every tick of the clock, Anna’s hope for a normal life slips further away, but her resolve to find her sisters and bring them home burns fiercer than ever. Will Anna’s journey through the cold, dark paths of Alaska lead her to her sisters, or will she find herself lost in the depths of a conspiracy that threatens to consume everything she holds dear?

Dive into this chilling tale of loss, courage, and the relentless pursuit of justice against the backdrop of Alaska’s unforgiving wilderness. Order your copy now.

Enjoy an Excerpt

Anna Hale cranked up the volume on her headphones, desperate to study for her high school English exam scheduled for the morning, but the hypnotic beat couldn’t mask the loathed voice of her stepfather growing louder by the second.

“You whore! Sneaking around and giving me those pious looks. You don’t think I don’t know better. I should throw you out right now, you and your bitch of a daughter!”

The soft sounds of her mother trying to pacify him were indistinct, impossible for her to hear.

Pass out already, old man.

She tried forcing her mind on the textbook, but the lines of printing blurred, making it hard to concentrate. If the subject at hand was a math or science quiz, she’d ace both without much effort. And that one computer module they’d had this semester had fascinated her. She yearned for a career in data processing, discovering all the secrets. That was if she got a choice. Her stepfather was threatening to make her leave school early to help bring more money into the household. She rolled her eyes in disgust. The guy just couldn’t hold down a job. Never his fault, like his shitty attitude wasn’t a factor. Or that his breath so often stank of booze, and his body of stale sweat.

The conversation from earlier between her and her mom bothered her like a harbinger of things to come, making it harder to focus. “I’ve made arrangements. If anything happens to me—go next door. Alex and Cindy Pace will look after you. And you get along so well with Josh and the twins.”

Her mom had talked over Anna’s every denial of anything ever happening to her. Anna was going to keep her mom safe. Learn karate or something badass at the gym to give her the upper hand. But her mom had made her promise and she had gone along with it. Anna didn’t want her mom worrying more than she already did, not that she wouldn’t stay and help her if worst came to worst. She’d never desert her mom. They had to stick together, no matter what.

Another loud series of barks drew her attention away from her favorite daydream of getting a high-paying job, of taking her mother far, far away. She’d also warned her to stay out of it, that her stepfather couldn’t help himself having to work at a job he hated, but Anna’s stomach churned with the effort. She wiped her damp palms on her patched jeans, straining to hear, the test long forgotten.

A loud crashing sound of something falling erupted downstairs. She dumped the headset and jumped off the bed, then raced down the narrow staircase in her sock feet, her pulse hammering in her ears, her head about to explode. She rounded the sharp corner that composed the L-shaped kitchen and living room, the clean but faded linoleum with most of the square-shaped pattern worn down to gray splotches, slippery beneath her feet. Her disgusting bear of a stepfather stood over her mom, his meaty fists raised like a boxer, his pugnacious face darkened by raw hatred.

About the Author: January Bain is an award-winning author who firmly believes that stories unite us, that good stories help us to discover the commonality of the human experience by supporting values, empathy and understanding. She writes with her heart, mind, and soul, hoping that her novels will touch your life, giving you moments of freedom as you fly with her to other worlds.

Bain has had the pleasure of select novels being turned into games, and her work is also available in different languages.

January and her husband live in rural Canada on peaceful acreage where a variety of wildlife comes to visit regularly and expect to be fed and paid attention to.

Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram | Tiktok

a Rafflecopter giveaway