Create a Playlist for Your Books by Deborah A. Bailey – Guest Blog and Giveaway

January 20, 2022 By 6 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Deborah A. Bailey will be awarding a $40 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Create a Playlist for Your Books

Usually when I write I always have music in the background. They include songs that might remind me of certain characters or give me a feeling. For instance, a romantic song would put me in the mood for writing a romantic scene.

What I’ve started to do lately is take some of those songs and put them into a playlist for the book. That way I can share the songs so that readers can hear them too.

But though I use Spotify for my playlists, YouTube is also a good place to create a playlist. The plus about using that platform is that it may also include music videos.

How easy is it to create playlist? Very easy! Just create a playlist then start adding songs to it, then share the link. Even if you continue to find songs to add, you can. Listeners will have access to the playlist even as you’re adding (or removing) your music.

What should the playlist include? Any music that fits the mood of your book. Do you have favorite songs or artists that relate to your story? Add them. I’ve found a few songs that sound as though a character could’ve written the words. Or they describe the action in a certain scene or chapter. Those are the songs I usually listen to as I’m writing. So of course, I make sure they’re included in the final playlist.

The important thing is to set the mood for your reader/listener. Music has been called a universal language. I think it’s a wonderful way to give your readers something special that they can enjoy while they’re reading your book.

Check out the Spotify playlist for Blood Red Moon. Happy listening!

Out of the ashes, a new beginning…

When his family and most of their kind were destroyed by the Guild, Derek inherited the position of Vampire Lord. Alchemists held the keys to creating portals to other worlds, knowledge they passed down to phoenixes. Their utopian society was crushed when the Guild invaded, intending to unlock the powerful secrets phoenixes possess. Lovers Derek and Avani met the night their city was sacked and after the city succumbed, they were lost to each other.

Love will be resurrected in blood and fire…

Having lost her memory, Avani became a protégé of the Guild Master, conditioned by magic to believe shifters and vampires were evil. Eventually, she was made Seeker, tasked with finding the Vampire Lord in order to gain access to phoenixes.

When Derek finds Avani, he neutralizes the magic that’s kept her from remembering who she is. However, the Templars have almost certainly made a pact with the enemy of all supernatural creatures, in order to gain access to the portals. Only a phoenix can save the world from utter ruin now, but that was precisely the asking price…

Enjoy an Excerpt

“You’re thinking about the Guild, aren’t you? They don’t deserve your thoughts, or anything else.” Derek was standing next to the tub, undressing.

How had he known? Could he read my thoughts? Another thing I’d heard that vampires could do. As if in response the stabbing pain increased, like something within me was fighting to get out. Each stab cut deeper and deeper and I doubled over.

The water was shut off. I felt pressure on my back, moving me forward. Then splashing as Derek joined me in the tub. He sat and braced his legs on either side of me. He put his arms around me, holding on as I shivered.

His presence surrounded me like the water. A vampire. My enemy. A dangerous predator who I’d been taught to fear and hate.

Derek pulled my hair back and bared my neck. Soon he would sink his teeth into me to save me. Or he would have his revenge for what we’d done to his people. Maybe that had been his plan all along. I’d be less trouble dead.

In the cooling water, his touch melted me as he glided his tongue over my neck. The pain in my chest slowly subsided. Not gone but not dominant anymore. My body was becoming attuned to him. My gasps of pain lessening as my breathing matched his. In and out. In and out. Steady. Deliberate.

The Vampire Lord and the Seeker. Finally, together at last. But not in the way I’d always thought we’d be.

About the Author: Deborah A Bailey’s Paranormal & Science Fiction Romance novels include suspense, a bit of mystery and a lot of romantic heat.
Her short stories have won awards from the Philadelphia Writers’ Conference and have been published in US1 Magazine and the Sun and are included in, Electric Dreams: Seven Futuristic Tales. She’s the author of non-fiction books, and articles for various online publications.
Visit her site https://dbaileycoach.com/brightbooks for more information and subscribe to the newsletter so you’ll be the first to find out about giveaways, book launches and sneak peeks.

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Flower Girl by Merida Johns – Spotlight and Giveaway

January 19, 2022 By 7 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Merida Johns will be awarding a $30 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Everyone wants to believe they can hold on to their anchor, the light of their North Star, and live their truth . . . Suzanna Jordan did too until she fell for a man with a movie-star presence and a dark alter ego. Losing hope of salvaging her life and gaining her freedom, an unlikely source serves up a platter of just desserts that even Suzanna’s treacherous abuser might not evade.

Enjoy an Excerpt

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 13, 1984

It’s five o’clock in the morning. A waterfall of worries washes over me, but one remains, one I cannot ignore, one that means my life or death—do I have the courage to stop this nightmare?

I hear muffled voices and hasty footsteps fading away in the distance. My crisis, already old news to them, cataloged on a forgotten document. They have abandoned me and left me alone with my fear.

Rolling to my side, my legs dangle off the bed, and gravity pulls my five-foot-five, slender body toward the floor. My feet rebel. They scream and cramp in pain as they hit the cold cement. My insides shake, and my body wobbles. My eyes blur, and my hands reach out to find the bed. I steady myself and count under my breath, “One, two, three . . .” The agonizing muscle spasms in my feet start to unwind.

My world plays in slow motion. My eyes drift across the brackish-beige walls, swamp-green curtain, stainless steel instruments, and electronic gadgets—my stomach knots, my heart falls, my mouth goes dry. Helplessness hits me like an animal in a snare.

I spot my possessions, swathed in clear plastic, in the chair’s seat in the corner of the room. I hobble over and open the bag and poke through it—a Victoria’s Secret midnight-blue lace bra, an OSU red T-shirt, a pair of Gloria Vanderbilt denim pants, a Coach purse, and white Reeboks. I loosen the ties of the rumpled steel-gray gown; it slips off and falls to the floor. Dressing in fancy lingerie is absurd, so I toss it on the chair and throw on the shirt and jeans.

I look down at my sneakers and stop. In my mind, I see my husband’s squinting eyes and hear his haunting disapproval. Quit wiggling your feet over the counters of your damn shoes, Suzanna. You’ll ruin them! I shake my head, clench my jaw, and disobey.

I have no strength to bend over and tie the shoelaces. Jonathan would have a nasty comment about this, too. I ignore him. My eyes close in victory. “Cherish every step. Each is a grand slam toward deliverance.”

My fingers run through my disheveled hair, soaked with sweat—my muscles loosen, my brain fog lifts, and the ache behind my forehead fades.

I pull back the curtain circling the bed and grimace—the overhead lights jar me. I pump myself up—One, two, three, go. I take off.

I shuffle through the corridor between the beds bordering the room and reach the doorway to the waiting area. If people are here, I do not notice them. My eyes fix on the escape at the end of the room—the pulsating red exit sign. The floor-to-ceiling doors open, allowing my aching body to limp toward daybreak. The heavy morning breeze hits my face, and the sickening, sterile scent covering me blows away. I clutch my heart and silently sob, Thank God I’m alive.

But the joy vaporizes into the humid air. The war has only begun. Clutching for courage, I console myself. You’ve gotten this far. You can make it! You can live your truth.

I look up above the horizon, and I see it! There’s my North Star, its five points shimmering in the dawn and guiding me toward my purpose—But before I can help others be their best, I must help myself be my best.

Outside the sterile walls of a hospital emergency room, I hold my own. I put a stake in the ground. I swear that the fight to flee my abuser’s snare, save my life, and follow the guidance of my North Star is worth it.

About the Author:Merida Johns writes about the human experience—that often is messy—and how ordinary people tackle challenges, live through sorrow and betrayal, struggle with doubt, but despite this, gather the strength to act on their aspirations and achieve flourishing lives.

“My insight into the power of fiction came during a conference call in late 2017 with a group of fellow life coaches when I asked, ‘What would it be like to help people achieve a flourishing life through storytelling instead of another self-help book?’

After that phone call, I got started answering that question. Almost three years later, the result was my debut novel Blackhorse Road, a heartfelt story of womanhood and the power of choice, gratitude, and forgiveness that was published July 21, 2020, by Coffee Cup Press. Now, I’m thrilled about the upcoming release Flower Girl—a story of a woman who must make sweeping changes in her life to live her truth.

Before writing fiction, I was a professor and author of health informatics and leadership textbooks. Later, I put my experience to use as a leadership coach, focusing on helping women break the glass ceiling and fulfill their leadership and economic potential.

My husband and I reside in the beautiful Midwest countryside. This is where I find the serenity and space for bringing to life the stories about everyday people who face and overcome extraordinary challenges by finding and following their North Star.

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It’s OK to Have Feelings by Aileen Pound and Michaela Robertson Keane – Spotlight and Giveaway

January 18, 2022 By 3 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Aileen Pound and Michaela Robertson Keane will be awarding a $15 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

It’s OK to have feelings.

Everyone has feelings. Happy, sad, and angry are feelings we all have felt at one time or another. As you grow up, you start to feel other feelings. Can you guess what some of them might be?

What happens to our bodies when we start to feel these feelings? When you’re happy, you feel like the sky is blue, the sun is out and you can see unicorns and rainbows. Your smile is bigger, and your eyes have a sparkle in them. What happens to your body when it’s a feeling you’ve never felt before?

Come along and join in with all the other children learning how to identify feelings and what happens to their bodies when they feel those feelings.

Remember, it’s OK to have feelings!

Enjoy an Excerpt

Has there ever been a day where you feel as happy as can be?
The sun is shining; the sky is blue… wait,
can you see a unicorn or two?
These are the best days; I definitely agree. When you
feel happy, your smile is bigger, your voice is full of
laughter, and your whole body is bursting with joy.
It’s OK to have feelings xx
On other days, you may feel sad . The sky appears
a little grey; the unicorns have gone away.
You may be teary and quiet, and perhaps you have no energy.
Just remember, though…
It’s OK to have feelings; these feelings of sadness will pass.
Tomorrow is another day.

About the Author: Aileen Pound and Michaela Robertson Keane are a mother and daughter team.

Michaela, who is six, is Aileen’s only child, and they spend a lot of time doing lots of fun things together: going on adventures, creating and being imaginative at home. So last year, when they were housebound during COVID, they started talking a lot about feelings, especially ones that Michaela had never felt before. So they decided to write a book together to help other children with their feelings.

Aileen and Michaela spent a long time talking about what feelings to put in the book, and Michaela provided Aileen all the examples that are in the book. As with everything, they wrote this book together, and Michaela had a very clear image of how she wanted the illustrations to look.

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Scandals of Tokyo by Heather Hallman – Spotlight and Giveaway

January 17, 2022 By 9 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Heather Hallman will award a $25 Amaon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

ENJOY THIS PREQUEL TO THE TOKYO WHISPERS SERIES

In the Foreign Quarter of Tsukiji, Tokyo, Japan, Victorian England is alive and well. Manners and etiquette are as valuable as gossip and deceit. Men are more rakish than ever – so far from home, societal rules seem to be relaxed. But courting young women still requires a deft hand, a smart wit, and a man with something to offer.

INTERNATIONAL SCANDAL

Intent on being an international journalist of repute, Evelyn Prescott will do what it takes to make her mark.

It doesn’t hurt that her father has built a newspaper empire, but finding a scandal in Japan is no easy task.

As much as she hates to admit it, she is forced to meet with the owner of the Tokyo Daily News, Ned Taylor, also an Englishman.

Ned holds a deep-rooted dislike of Evelyn’s father’s approach to journalism, and Ned, a notorious rake, pushes her to see just how far Evelyn is prepared to go to get her story.

From Reedsy Discovery: “Written as a prequel novelette to her forthcoming Tokyo Whispers series, “Scandals of Tokyo” drops readers into the immigrant quarter of Meiji era Tokyo, with hints of all of the glitz, the temptation, and the salacious gossip one could wish. At just under 30 pages, Hallman has a lot of ground to cover, introducing characters and a world that will be expanded on in future novels, but if “Scandals” is just a taste of this series, then it’s going to be huge.

Lovingly researched and brilliantly detailed, Hallman knows the place and time she’s writing about and it shows! Turn of the century Tokyo is alive and well on her pages and in her characters, and it is certain to delight.”

Enjoy an Excerpt

Tokyo 1896
Foreign Quarter of Tsukiji

Evelyn rested an elbow along the stone balustrade separating the Hotel Metropolis terrace from the glistening waters of Tokyo Bay and contemplated the man holding court near the hotel bar. “Are you positive that’s him?”

Aunt Prissy raised a fan between them for privacy’s sake as guests strolled past, their various languages lending a cheerful symphony to the evening atmosphere. Evelyn doubted they were inclined to pick up English phrases muttered between her and Aunt Prissy, but to make sure, she shifted nearer until they were shoulder to shoulder.

Aunt Prissy nodded at the man in question. “Without a shred of doubt. That’s Ned Taylor.”

Among tables filled with hotel patrons and waiters scurrying by with trays of champagne and sake, Mr Taylor stood beneath one of the terrace gas lamps, its light catching on his grin, which spread from his lips to the corners of his eyes and left affable creases atop his cheeks. His Japanese companions leaned forward as though to bask in its glow, pure and genuine as a freshly minted sovereign.

Invariably, the most accomplished charmers had that smile. Evelyn had met enough newspapermen in her twenty-two years to know. They lit up a room. Or the Hotel Metropolis terrace, apparently.

But the man not far from her couldn’t be older than thirty, which was too young to own a newspaper. Back in England, Papa hadn’t purchased his first broadsheet until he was nearly forty. Ten years later, he had more newspaper distribution outlets across the United Kingdom than one could count on two hands. Of course, Papa had been obliged to work his way through the ranks before investors were willing to back him. Ned Taylor, on the other hand, was the nephew of a duke, and nephews of dukes didn’t have to wait as long as sons of Hampstead brewers to establish themselves at the helm of their city’s foremost papers.

About the Author:

Heather Hallman writes witty, sensual, contest-winning romances set in Meiji-era Japan (1868-1912). She is the author of the Tokyo Whispers series that includes Scandals of Tokyo and Talk of Tokyo.

She is fluent in Japanese language, history, and culture, and earned a doctoral degree in cultural anthropology based on fieldwork research in Japan. She lives in Tokyo with her professor husband and two young daughters. In her free time, she can be found translating ancient Japanese poetry and observing the passing of seasons while sipping green tea. Just kidding, she has no free time. But she does watch something that makes her laugh while she does the dishes.

Perennial obsessions include the weather forecast (she checks three different apps at least three times a day, as no single app can be trusted), Baltimore Ravens football (hometown obsession), and making smoothies that taste like candy bars.

Feel free to chat her up about any of her obsessions, or, even better, about historical Japan—any era is fine, she loves them all. She also enjoys exchanging book recommendations, discussions about the craft of romance writing, and stories about life in present-day Tokyo.

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500mgs of Words per Day by Misty Mount – Guest Blog and Giveaway

January 14, 2022 By 4 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Misty Mount will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

500mgs of Words per Day

I still remember one of the first times it happened, when I got swept under a wave of fiction and lost myself in a sea of words. I was in third grade and it was free time in the classroom. This meant that while other kids were coloring, chatting, or grouping up to play board games, I was nose-deep into my own personal copy of The Boxcar Children #1 by Gertrude Chandler Warner. Just like the kids in the story, I was one of four children and, even though my siblings and I weren’t homeless orphans, this would not deter me from completely relating to the characters and—later—acting out scenes from the book in my backyard.

As I read the story for the first time, the sounds, smells and sight of my classroom melted away and became nothing but four orphans surviving on their own in an abandoned boxcar. I could see it happening in front of me like a movie directly downloaded into my brain.

I’m not even sure what broke the magical bond between me and the fictional world—maybe my teacher’s voice or a loud noise from one of my classmates—but when it finally happened I remember glancing at my surroundings in surprise. The noise from my classroom slowly filtered into my hearing like gradually turning up a dial, growing in intensity to a decibel that made me wonder how I could have ever tuned it out in the first place.

I remember looking around in surprise to find myself there at my desk. I had been “in the zone”—completely absorbed in the story so that the real world had no longer existed.

Instantly, I wanted more. I wanted to go back. I was addicted to the pleasure of escape and have spent my life chasing that fiction “high.”

Throughout my teen years, books were my answer to all of life’s problems. So I didn’t fit in? I knew tons of characters who didn’t fit in either. Problems with boys? Ew, fictional boys were so much better anyway. Just plain bored or depressed and in need of escape? Books were always there for me.

I think that books will always be my coping mechanism. I can’t imagine life without the possibility of getting lost in a fictional realm. Sure, I’ve been told that I should read less and get out more, but at the end of the day I think, “Eh, at least it’s not drugs or alcohol.”

Addiction is real, sure. So do books—not drugs.

A dismal pall hangs over the Colt residence. Since the death of his wife, Brendan Colt has struggled to care for his children, Kason and Meela. Each is lost in their own deep grief, but there is more to this family than meets the eye.

After her tumultuous childhood, Mallory Riscoe has deftly avoided change. But her life is due for an upheaval when she’s fired from her sales associate position and takes on the role of nanny in the Colt household.

Mallory soon realizes she might have taken on more than she can handle when she finds more than two mischievous children haunting the grand, creaky house. If it isn’t the children’s brash uncle or schoolyard bullies, she finds herself confronted with strange sounds coming from the attic and suspicious late-night behavior from Brendan Colt himself.

It’s only when Mallory begins to feel a connection between not just herself and the children but their father too, that an unspeakable secret is uncovered. Is this new bond—and possibly Mallory’s life itself—now at risk?

Enjoy an Excerpt

Brendan kept driving to the point that Mallory began to think he was leaving the city. Ghastly ideas were bouncing around inside her head as she was trying to figure out where Brendan could be heading. Did he know she was following him? Was he leading her away anyhow, just to see how far she would go? She had very nearly come to the worst conclusion possible when the Lincoln finally turned off onto a side street and parked alongside the curb…

She watched him walk across a dark lawn without so much as a glance to either side. He kept walking until his figure blended in with the night…

She knew she was being reckless and prayed no one would see her as she slipped out of the car and made her way through the shadows to the spot where she had watched Brendan disappear…

Her eyes were adjusting to the dark now, and with the moon up above she could clearly make out a tall iron fence, its gates standing open at the end of the path. Behind the enclosure were headstones of all sizes and shapes, some gleaming in the hazy luminescence, some dull and indistinct. Mallory hadn’t even realized she was at a graveyard before then, and she got a funny feeling in her gut when she finally became aware of the eerie setting.

A chilly breeze had picked up and it whispered all around her…

About the Author Misty Mount has written since age five and was first published at fourteen. She resides in Wichita, Kansas.

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The Descendants by Destiny D Hawkins – Spotlight and Giveaway

January 14, 2022 By 5 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Destiny D Hawkins will be awarding a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Fail the tests and become a slave. Display defectiveness and be put to death.

Monroe Academy was built to separate the weak from the strong. Pass the biyearly leveling and be released into society upon graduation. Fail to be promoted and be stripped of rank and forced into servitude. That was a rule that applied to all but Rayah Bardeau. A student of Monroe Academy, branded as a Null because of her absence of Lighter energy.

With her mother standing as a slave in her place, Rayah was given until the age of twenty to make level six, but at nineteen-years-old and with only eight months until her twentieth birthday, she was only a mere level one. The same level she’s been since she was ten. With the stress of her upcoming test, the loss of a friend, and the constant wrongdoings towards her, Rayah could only dream of escaping from Lytonia, and escape she did. Only, when she awakened in her dorm, she couldn’t distinguish if she had only dreamt of meeting Soren, a wild and adventurous defect in the Wild Lands, or if she had somehow used her Lighter Form to get there.

But only the elite ― the most powerful of Lighters ― could tap into their Lighter Forms. Right? And what was the dark energy she used when she and Soren were attacked by Depleters? Was Rayah really as powerless as she thought? Was she a defect? And if she used dark energy, could she call herself a Lighter at all?

Bestselling author Destiny Hawkins brings you the first installment of a gripping dark fantasy where a powerless girl must survive in a society that doesn’t accept the weak…or the defective.

Enjoy an Excerpt

Gone. One minute Tristan was here, and the next he wasn’t. Only two days ago we watched the two moons rise, and it was only two days ago when we almost kissed, but this morning he was taken away from me, and I will never see him again. Once a student was made into a slave, it was forbidden for them to ever see their friends or family again, and that was exactly what Tristan was going to be transitioned into in only a few hours. They were going to strip him of his rank, disregard that he was born into the vex class, and put a collar around his neck that could kill him with the push of a button.

This morning two officers marched into Tristan’s dorm and dragged him out. I stood there, shocked, as he kicked and screamed, begging for a second chance. He was a level five vex, which would have been alright if he hadn’t turned twenty today.

At the age of twenty, a student of Monroe Academy was to be tested on their lighter abilities and hopefully advanced up to level six. Ever since Tristan was enrolled ten years ago, he’d never had trouble leveling up, but this time he struggled to get his powers to strengthen. This time, the council didn’t believe him strong enough to earn a level six patch, and now he had to serve his nation in another way. He had to serve the high class vexes and ensure their happiness. The happier the people, the lower the chances of there ever being chaos in our world again.
At least that’s what we were taught.

About the Author:Destiny Hawkins is a multi-genre author with a dark imagination and a love for magic.

She enjoys working on her graphic designing business, Vibrant Designs LLC, writing, listening to music, reading, and of course watching some anime! Her favorite genres to read and work in are Fantasy, LGBT, Paranormal, Romance, Dystopian, Sci-fi, and young adult.

Destiny loves creating stories and building worlds that both teach and entertain! When writing she sticks to her slogan: Where beauty can be found in darkness.

Get ready for The Unbroken, Book Three of The Descendants Series!

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People of the Sun by Ben Gartner

January 13, 2022 By 6 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. One randomly drawn winner will receive a $50 Amazon/BN GC. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

The explosive reveal about who John and Sarah really are and why they’re traveling through time, with their most gut-wrenching challenge yet.

In the time of the Aztec, a scoundrel named Cortés arrives and the kids are forced to make an extremely difficult decision: If you could change history, should you? For more twists, more danger, and more fun, read the third book in The Eye of Ra series, People of the Sun!

Enjoy an Excerpt

The ground shook like the end of the world.

At least, that was how it felt to John, who had never experienced an earthquake while growing up in Colorado. And they’d only lived in Maryland for a month before taking this trip to California to visit their aunt. On their second day in the steep mountains of Santa Cruz, while hiking through an old-growth redwood forest that reminded John of a fairy tale, he suddenly felt woozy. But he wasn’t sick. His legs swayed like he was dancing the hula, as if the ground beneath his feet were the roiling sea. Birds took to the sky. Their aunt’s dog, Nickel, barked and snapped at the air, her ears tucked back and tail between her legs.

“Sarah?” John looked over to his sister and held out a hand to steady himself.

She wore the same expression of bewilderment for a moment, then realization dawned across her face. “Is this an earthquake? Cool!”

Her voice rose and fell with the waves just like her knees riding the shifting earth as if it were a skateboard or a pair of skis. Dander like fireflies floated down from the trees and sparkled in the sun’s rays.

“Earthquake,” Aunt Lorraine confirmed. “Just a little one. Hold on, it’ll end in—”

The earth eased to a halt.

“There ya go, all done.” Aunt Lorraine heaved a breath. “For now.”

“For now?!” John hunched over, ready to fall flat on the ground if it got any worse.

About the Author:Ben Gartner is the award-winning author of The Eye of Ra time travel adventure series for middle graders. His books take readers for a thrilling ride, maybe even teaching them something in the meantime. Ben can be found living and writing near the mountains with his wife and two boys.

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I’ve Landed a Personal Interview with Svadishana Caroline Elizabeth Lindqvist In Her Private G650 by Emancietta “Emasculetta” Berkley – Guest Blog and Giveaway

January 13, 2022 By 4 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

I’ve Landed a Personal Interview With Svadishana Caroline Elizabeth Lindqvist
In Her Private G650

I wouldn’t have stood a newt’s chance in hell to get this interview if not for the huge help of Ms Alyssa Lenz, who is Dr Lindqvist’s BFF since preparatory school.

Dr Lindqvist is more formidable in person than the stunning beauty of the media dazzle-‘em-senseless snatches. Her presence is naturally dominant, with no conscious effort. Part of her, like her golden skin. Beauty like hers could stop the Earth spinning around its axis, if the Earth had eyes. I have 30 seconds, so I plunge in.

EB: I hear you’ve finally met Europe’s undisputed Sexiest Heartthrob, Roman Castell.
[She looks at me with a quiff of her brow. Her eyes – lethal. The most gorgeous shades of grey-blue-turquoise-mother-of-pearl blends I ever saw. They stand out like stars at midnight in rural Australia. She absolutely rocks her genes]

SL: Indeed I have.

[I realize that’s all the answer I’m getting. She gave me half a minute, for crying out loud.]

SL: You accepted thirty seconds, Ms Berkley. You have twenty-one seconds left.

[I snap out of it]

EB: Your first meet—

[She cuts me off. She already figured where I’m going with the question]

SL: My impression? I believe Mr. Castell is fast, whatever he sets his mind on doing or achieving. He possibly lands on it at one hundred kph and still floors the accelerator all the way. It most likely forces him to crash-land often. And even then, he doesn’t quite apply the brakes. That was my first impression of him the first time I met him, Ms Berkley. That impression hasn’t changed.
[You’re worse than him, I think again, deciding that I’ll fill in most of the interview on my desk with descriptions of her jet and the now disappeared personnel who had just served us vintage Krug in tulips. I also have some photos from Ms Lenz’ websites. We sit facing each other in the spacious cabin, which is done up in minimalist but not frugal style. Huge designer panoramic windows – can one really call them portholes, I wonder? Dubs of beige, grey and turquoise-blue. I rest my arse on the seat with her initials like some sort of monogram: SCEL]

EB: Any plans to see Mr. Castell again, Dr. Lindqvist?

SL: That’s a question you should ask Ms Lenz. Ay you know, she’s the one romantically liaised with Mr. Castell. I met him through her.

EB: But his interests are in you.

SL: Wrong, Ms Berkley. His interests have lost nothing in me. There’s hardly enough room in me for my own interests.

[Damn. She really is worse than him]

EB: I think you know what I mean, Dr. Lindqvist.

[She smiles at me in a way that brings the cavewoman in me to the fore, hackles up: You can’t go having all the Alphas mounting you, you witch; we Beta females need f*ucks and spanking bairns too! And yet, even while I bristle, I can’t help thinking what an absolutely gorgeous pair they would make. He wants her with a vengeance, if what he told me in our one-minute-and-a-bit interview was the truth.]

SL: You think I read minds. [It’s a statement] I don’t. And your time is up, Ms Berkley. Thank you for stopping by. I have a skip over to Hong Kong to hop. [She calls out to Alyssa Lenz at the other end of the cabin] Hey, girlfriend. We’re done here.

I sigh but I know this is it. Thirty seconds agreed, thirty seconds given. To the dot. Break the Agreement and it’s your last interview with her ever. We haven’t even touched the champagne tulips. And I want more interviews with her in the future, so I behave.

I discreetly take more pics of her Gulf650 cabin on the way out, accompanied by Alyssa. Of course I couldn’t photograph her – part of the Agreement. But there were tons of photos of her on the Internet; you only had to know where to look.

I look over my shoulder at her as I leave – she’s got her laptop open again and she is bent over it, working. I think of some of us less privileged ladies who are reported to bitch and call her Ms Bank of Mum & Dad. Now I have the begrudging but strong feeling that Beauty does work hard for her Beast. If only… well, you know – the cavewoman in us all that survived the evolutionary processes by choosing who gets to make us pregnant and can protect us and our children?

So, if only she wasn’t such an effortlessly-Alpha-male-magnetic-field…

Golden_Shana_Der_Jaeger

An evening at the La Scala in Milan twirls the lives of five people into a web of rivalry, intrigues, heartaches, obsession, murder, loss, and revenge.

“… for those who love selective eroticism with substance. An exciting and sophisticated erotic thriller for the astute romance reader, woman or man.”

Love, a word Roman can hardly spell, hits him when he sees Shana one evening. She’s the first woman not dropping to her knees at his mere presence. Used to getting whatever he wants, he chases her. Only to discovers that she prefers the girls. Roman can’t let that deter him. But is he for once up against his own comeuppance? At any rate, he needs assistance, which comes in the form of Alyssa, Shana’s BFF. Trouble crops up when Alyssa is all too ready and willing to drop on her knees for him.

Roman can’t get anywhere near Shana on his own. Would he start anything with Alyssa as long as this finally leads him to meet Shana in person?

Then there’s Marie, his current companion, who has a life-changing surprise for him.

Roman: I never chased after a woman. Then I caught a glimpse of the woman I would kneel for, but didn’t even know her name. Heck, I determined to find her if it took me the rest of my life.

Shana: He stood in the room with her. The frisson in the currents freaking between them knocked her senseless. The mutual force of predator and prey, blasting into her core … her soul … Danger. Keep far away from him.

Enjoy an Excerpt

Was it love I felt for Svadishana? A woman I’d spoken three whiny words – Please call me! – to? Was it more than simple lust and desire? Did I want to possess more than just her body? Pondering these questions alone was so unlike me. That woman had turned me into an alien even unto my own self. What I felt, my inner voice said, was more than the thrill of the hunt. More than lust, desire, need, passion, the excitement of possession, and subjugation. Of course all that was part of it. But the basis or the source, the seedbed on which all that sprouted and was growing to full blossom in me, could well be something else.

When I thought of her, saw her image from Milan in my mind, watched how she moved in long smooth strides in YouTube, my brow beaded with sweat. I couldn’t pull my gaze away from the few photos I’d fished out of the Internet. Group photos at a family birthday or the authorized biography of her father. Her movements in a YouTube conference clip were springy and powerful even in their smoothness. She exuded strength all over the place, laughing, talking, gesticulating.

A breath-taking beauty. Such beauty that I dared not believe it at times.

And brains to go with it.

In love or not, I knew what I wanted and Svadishana was the answer. I wanted her and would do anything short of suicide to get her. Who knows – perhaps when it came to that as the only means available, I’d really murder too. I didn’t in the least care about the consequences, as long as they got me to where I wanted to get to.

Svadishana’s arms and knickers and… heart?

What obsession, Roman. Get back to real.

No chance. Real was Svadishana.

About the Author:

IMG_0350JPG

A P von K’Ory writes the kind of books she herself would like to read and is passionate about, whether romance, psychological thriller or nonfiction. She is the winner of six awards from four continents, the last one being the Achievers Award for Writer of the Year 2013 in the Netherlands. The Selmere Integration Prize was awarded her in 2014 for her engagement in helping African Women in the Diaspora cope with a variety of domestic and social problems. The Proposal, a short story, won the Cook Communications first prize in 2010 and is published in an American anthology Africa 2012. In 2012, she won the Karl Ziegler Prize for her commitment to bring African culture to Western society in various papers, theses, and lectures. Again in 2012, her book Bound to Tradition: The Dream was nominated for the 2012 Caine Prize by the Author-me Group, Sanford, and in 2013 she was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Writers Prize.

Von K’Ory is married to an aristocrat and politician of Franco-German descent, has a large extended family. She lectures Economics and Sociology in Austria, Germany and Switzerland. She’s migratory and – weather willing – lives in Germany, France, Cyprus, and Greece.

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The Light in the Darkness by Jo St Leon

January 12, 2022 By 9 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotion. Jo St Leon will be awarding a $15 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

The Light in the Darkness is a must-have companion for anyone living with a serious illness, or caring for a loved one with such an illness.

With this collection of reflections and personal essays, Jo St Leon shares her experiences, her darkest moments and her greatest joys. She tells of the journey from fear and denial to acceptance and a determination to live her best life. She shares her deepest thoughts and feelings, always with her characteristic blend of wry humour and wisdom.

The Light in the Darkness is the book Jo wishes she could have found when she first received her cancer diagnosis.

Enjoy an Excerpt

I was diagnosed with Sézary syndrome (a rare blood cancer) in 2016. It is notoriously difficult to diagnose, and at that point I estimated that I had had it for about 11 years. At least, that was when the itch began.

I was living in London and had a touring job: as principal viola with English National Ballet I spent four or five months each year on the road. I imagined little piles of skin and blood on bedlinen all over the country as I manically scratched night after night with no idea what ailed me. Once, the itch gave me two days respite, and I spent hours wondering what could have changed and how I could repeat that blissful itchless experience. I experimented with everything, but, of course, nothing worked. You cannot cure cancer by changing your washing powder.

I left London late in 2006 and returned to Australia to live in Hobart. Eventually, I took my itch to the doctor. She told me to take antihistamines. When I went back to tell her they didn’t work, she advised me to take more. I finally begged her for a referral to a dermatologist. Reluctantly, she agreed. I think her private opinion was that I was making a fuss about nothing, but she couldn’t say so. The dermatologist was not much more helpful, so I just carried on scratching.

Eventually, my feet and ankles became twice their rightful size and were covered in unsightly sores. Unable to wear shoes and desperate for answers, I changed my GP. He ordered blood tests for everything, and eventually Sézary was diagnosed. I didn’t much like the diagnosis, but it was good to know what it was.

It was also good to finally be taken seriously and not treated as an irritating hypochondriac who was taking valuable treatment time away from people who were actually sick. I now had a whole team of doctors who treated my comfort as a priority. They even respected me for managing to carry on working with the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra (TSO) despite a constant itch that seemed to go right through to the bone. Respect—imagine!

About the Author:Jo St Leon is a musician and writer living in Hobart, Tasmania. Receiving a cancer diagnosis in 2016 prompted her to transition from being a full-time musician who loved to write to being a full-time writer who loves to sometimes play the viola. She shares her house with two very pampered felines. She loves reading, cooking, swimming and yoga.

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Honorable Profession by Andy Kutler – Q&A and Giveaway

January 11, 2022 By 4 Comments

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Have you ever had an imaginary friend?
No, but I was a huge fan of Calvin & Hobbes when I was a kid!

Do you have any phobias?
Lakes, not oceans. Shery Crow music. Tomatoes.

Do you listen to music when you’re writing?
No, I need complete silence. I’m too easily distracted. And if there is music on, my awful singing along is not far behind.

Do you ever read your stories out loud?
No. I think I have a terrible voice and will never narrate my own audio books. You’re welcome, listeners!

Tell us about your main character and who inspired him/her.
He’s a middle-aged, former Secret Service agent. Still a very capable man, but he’s put on a few pounds and is otherwise showing every one of his forty-six years. In other words, he’s an authentic person. We are roughly the same age, and his simmering cynicism towards our political system is not unlike my own. We also have the same dry sense of humor and passion for sarcasm!

Honorable Profession: A Novel of American Politics is a compelling, hopeful story of a cynical former Secret Service agent and his idealistic daughter as they follow a longshot candidate into the perilous arena of presidential politics.

After resigning from his agency under an ethical cloud, 46-year-old Dan Cahill commits himself to rebuilding his relationship with Megan, the college-aged daughter in Las Vegas he has long neglected. She persuades a reluctant Cahill to join the student-led campaign of a popular professor competing in the Nevada presidential primary against impossible odds. As they face powerful forces conspiring to clear the field, Cahill’s deep-seated disdain for electoral politics collides with Megan’s higher ideals. Each of their faiths are tested by political allies and adversaries, all desperate for victory, no matter the costs.

Crafted by award-winning author Andy Kutler, Honorable Profession is an absorbing, modern-day political drama filled with authentic and indelible characters, each struggling with their own loyalties and principles as they duel with unscrupulous rivals and the meaning of public service.

Enjoy an Excerpt

Her eyes were pleading. “You have to win next week. Let me help you.”

“You are helping me, Hope. And I appreciate your good intentions. Your passion to fix what ails your brother, desperate for any solution, I’ve been there. I know what that pain in your heart feels like. But I didn’t get into this race to destroy others. I never wanted to be in a competition among rivals and enemies. I wanted to be in a competition of ideas. Ours are better, that I am certain of. And if this election proves I’m the wrong messenger, I want to see an army of others, like you, who will carry our movement forward. And make the Cure Initiative a reality.”

Hope stood, unenthusiastic, but at least offering a grudging nod as she lifted her tripod again.

Walter smiled at her. “Your integrity, my dear, and my conscience, will remain intact. But fear not, the Vice President will one day learn the same inescapable lesson I am now experiencing.”

“What’s that?”

“As the Buddhists say, there are three things that cannot long stay hidden. The sun, the moon, and the truth.”

About the Author: Andy Kutler is a writer and author of two award-winning novels, The Batter’s Box and The Other Side of Life. Andy has also written extensively for The Huffington Post and The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Over a 28-year professional career, he has worked in the United States Senate, the U.S. Secret Service, and the national security community. A Wisconsin native, Andy lives with his wife and two children in Arlington, Virginia.

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