Giveaway – This Is Not A Werewolf Story by Sandra Evans


On Tour with Prism Book Tours.

Book Tour Launch for
This is Not a Werewolf Story
By Sandra Evans

We hope you enjoyed coming along with us for some fun mixed with mystery at this boarding school where everything isn’t quite what it seems! If you missed any of the stops, go back and check them out now…

Launch – Author Interview

2. What do you hope readers take with them after they’ve read it?

I hope readers will want to visit Whidbey Island and Fort Casey. I hope they’ll think about the importance of preserving our national parks and the animals that seek refuge there. I hope some kids will feel reassured that even if your family isn’t 100% normal and maybe your parents and the people taking care of you aren’t doing a great job 100% of the time, that you’ll be okay, that you’ll find your people eventually, and that sometimes they are already around you. Also that, yes, we change. We change all the time, but part of us stays the same. So don’t be afraid to grow up. You’ll still be there when you get there.

The Silver Dagger Scriptorium – Newsletter, Page 1

Wishful Endings – Review & Newsletter, Page 2

“THIS IS NOT A WEREWOLF STORY is a story not to be missed! Full of endearing characters, some science, a little magic, and a whole lot of heart, it’s sure to delight readers. A perfect story for tweens, especially boys ages ten to thirteen, but highly enjoyable for all. . . . This is probably one of the best middle grade books I’ve read.”

Wishful Endings – Excerpt

I can’t believe my eyes. No kid has ever come to the school on the back of a Harley. Not in all the years I’ve been here, and I’ve been here longer than anyone. The driver spins the back wheel and a bunch of gravel flies up.

Katie’s Clean Book Collection – Newsletter, Page 3

With Love for Books – Review

“This Is Not a Werewolf Story is a fun book filled with beautiful words and wonderful magic. I immediately loved Raul. . . . I really enjoyed reading the vivid descriptions of Raul’s adventures and his surroundings. The ending of the story is surprising and I liked the angle Sandra Evans has chosen. This Is Not a Werewolf Story is a fantastic book for both children and grownups.”

Moonshine Art Spot – Excerpt

But then I freeze. I feel someone looking at me. And I know who it is before I even see him. When I look he’s staring at me. Mr. Tuffman.


Maybe he didn’t hear?


His jaw moves. His eyes are small. He didn’t miss a word. And Mr. Tuffman doesn’t want any more.

Beck Valley Books – Newsletter, Page 4

Falling Leaves – Excerpt

Gollum lands on his shoulder and skitters to the floor. She’s a long black streak, but Tuffman’s quick. He sprints after Gollum. Everyone stops screaming. Tuffman to the rescue. Then, at the exact same moment, we all notice the hunting knife in Tuffman’s hand. It’s huge. Everyone starts screaming again.

Mel’s Shelves – Review

“I loved the ending! It wrapped up enough to satisfy me but there is also more story that can be told so I hope there is a sequel in the works. This is a thick book but a fast read as it was hard to put down once I started. I also loved reading the Author’s Note and learning more about where she got the idea for her story. This is a book I would highly recommend to anyone who enjoys middle-grade fantasy and mystery!”

Letters from Annie (Douglass) Lima – Newsletter, Page 5

Life as Leels – Promo

100 Pages A Day – Review

” I loved how the mystery of the island and Raul’s transformative process took place and how it is loosely modeled after a twelfth century story called Bisclavret. Overall, an interesting and different middle-grade coming of age story with elements of beauty, forgiveness, magic and mystery that is anything but a werewolf story.”

Jessica and Gracie’s Tree – Review

“I am happy to say that I was sucked into the story after a few pages. The characters are memorable and all have their own quirks. The ending was awesome and unique. I actually did not see the story ending the way it did. This is a great read and I say everyone should read it at least once. I like it so much that I can’t stop telling my spouse and teenage daughter to read it as well.”

Books, Books the Magical Fruit – Newsletter, Page 6

Nish Homeschool Blog – Review

“The author Sandra Evans does a wonderful job of bringing Raul’s life to the hearts and eyes of the children that read this awesome story. . . . I recommend this book to other families and encourage all of you to purchase a copy today!”

Don’t forget to enter the giveaway below…

This Is Not a Werewolf StoryThis is Not a Werewolf Story
by Sandra Evans
Middle Grade Fantasy
Hardcover & ebook, 352 pages
July 26th 2016 by Atheneum Books for Young Readers

This is the story of Raul, a boy of few words, fewer friends, and almost no family. He is a loner—but he isn’t lonely. All week long he looks after the younger boys at One Of Our Kind Boarding School while dodging the barbs of terrible Tuffman, the jerk of a gym teacher.
 

Like every other kid in the world, he longs for Fridays, but not for the usual reasons. As soon as the other students go home for the weekend, Raul makes his way to a lighthouse deep in the heart of the woods. There he waits for sunset—and the mysterious, marvelous phenomenon that allows him to go home, too. But the woods have secrets . . . and so does Raul. When a new kid arrives at school, they may not stay secret for long.

GoodreadsAmazonBarnes & NobleBook Depository

Sandra Evans is a writer and teacher from the Pacific Northwest. Her forthcoming middle grade novel, This is Not a Werewolf Story (Simon & Schuster July 2016), was inspired by her favorite 12th century French tale, Bisclavret, by Marie de France. Born in Washington state, Sandra spent her childhood on U.S. Navy bases from Florida to Hawaii, and returned to the Northwest as a teenager. Since then, she has lived and traveled in France and Europe, but has never strayed far for long from the Puget Sound region.

WebsiteGoodreadsFacebookTwitter

 

Tour Giveaway

A hardcover copy of THIS IS NOT A WEREWOLF STORY by Sandra Evans plus Swag
Open internationally
Ends December 16th

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Bah…Humbug by Tony Bertauski @tonybertauski

I have been reading Tony Bertauski’s Christmas stories since the very beginning and have loved each and every one, so I was eager to get my hands on Humbug.

Be sure and check out his other books below, where you can find my review links.

Humbug: The Unwinding of Ebenezer Scrooge (Claus, #4)

Amazon  /  Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Fantastic twist on a familiar tale.

Tony Bertauski has come away with another winner in Humbug. This is one of those books that is hard to review without giving away all the goodies inside.

You may think you know the story, but when Tony Bertauski spins a tale, he creates a world of his own, original, unique and highly creative.

I immediately thought steampunk because of all the technology involved, but cyberpunk will do just fine.

Ebenezer is constantly riding around his castle on a Segway. He is overweight and a bit lazy. He wants what he wants when he wants it and expects his androids to deliver. He doesn’t leave his castle and doesn’t want any human contact. No one knows what he looks like because he projects a created image when he talks ‘face to face’.

At times I felt like Ebenezer got what he deserved and other times I felt sorry for him. After all, we don’t always know what happens to shape a person into who they have become.

We do travel to the future, visit the present and go back to the past to find out his story.

The twists and turns kept me entertained and I surely never saw the end coming. I loved it.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Humbug by Tony Bertauski.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos4 Stars

AMAZON BLURB:  Jacob Marley is dead. His business partner, Eb Scrooge, is left to run Avocado, Inc., an innovative technology business, all alone. An introverted shut-in locked away in a Colorado mansion, he changes the company’s mission statement. Only his servant droids keep him company.

Until the gifts arrive.

Each Christmas, a messenger forces Eb to look at his life in hopes he will change. But change does not happen in a single night. And only Eb can make it happen.

But who is sending the messengers?

ABOUT TONY BERTAUSKI

Tony BertauskiGet my books FREE. Tell me where to send them at http://bertauski.com

My grandpa never graduated high school. He retired from a steel mill in the mid-70s. He was uneducated, but he was a voracious reader. I remember going through his bookshelves of paperback sci-fi novels, smelling musty old paper, pulling Piers Anthony and Isaac Asimov off shelf and promising to bring them back. I was fascinated by robots that could think and act like people. What happened when they died?

I’ve written textbooks on landscape design, but that was straightforward, informational writing; the kind of stuff that helps most people get to sleep. I’ve also been writing a gardening column with a humorous slant. That takes a little more finesse, but still informational for the most part.

I’m a cynical reader. I demand the writer sweep me into his/her story and carry me to the end. I’d rather sail a boat than climb a mountain. That’s the sort of stuff I wanted to write, not the assigned reading we used to get in high school. I wanted to create stories that kept you up late.

Fiction, GOOD fiction, is hard to write. Having a story unfold inside your head is an experience different than reading. You connect with characters in a deeper, more meaningful way. You feel them, empathize with them, cheer for them and even mourn. The challenge is to get the reader to experience the same thing, even if it’s only a fraction of what the writer feels. Not so easy.

My reviews for Tony Bertauski’s books:


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Giveaway – Giant Slayers by the Jeff & Ken Altabef

 

Giant Slayers
by Jeff Altabef & Ken Altabef
Genre: YA Historical Fiction/Fantasy
Release Date: September 20th 2016


Summary from Goodreads:


The Kingdom or the Girl?


Demons attack him.
Spirits protect him.
A seer foretells his shocking destiny.


In a primitive land filled with magic, witches and giants, a sixteen-year-old musician named David is summoned to chase away the nightmares haunting the King each night. But more than bad dreams trouble the King. Demons torment him, and David will need more than music to break the curse.


Demons are only the first sign of a deeper and darker evil that plagues the countryside. Bent on revenge and an insatiable thirst for power, the Witch of Endor and a giant named Goliath lead an invading force against the kingdom. King Saul’s army is crumbling and only a champion can save them, but who would be fool enough to face the giant?


Princess Michal is frustrated by the constraints of palace life, but David’s arrival makes things infinitely more interesting. She finds herself drawn to him, but the King strictly forbids her from having a romance with a poor musician. Only by defying her father’s wishes and risking her freedom do they have a chance to be together.


Armed with just his sling and his love for Michal, David must prove his worth by defeating Goliath against impossible odds. Worst of all, he must choose between saving the kingdom or being with the girl of his dreams. He can’t do both.

 
 
 
Buy
Links
: Amazon
 
EXCERPT:
Look closely at a woman’s face and you can read her entire life story. It’s all there in the crevices and contours, the tiny expressions and doubts. Such little things, but they combine to give away her secrets. Men’s faces, however, were still mysteries to Michal. She’d spent so little time with men that their lines seemed written in a foreign language, unique and indecipherable.
           
In Hadi’s face, Michal saw rivers flowing down cheeks rich with experience. The canyons carved into her forehead spoke of a tough life, one without the blessing of children, where she had served as a house servant for as long as anyone could remember. The old woman’s walnut eyes sparkled with a hint of summer wheat, still sharp and bright and full of mischief, and the wrinkles creeping from the corners of those eyes had been etched by laughter.
           
Michal frowned at the way Hadi’s tunic drooped over her shoulders and hung low on her thin frame. She had lost weight in the past month, and her back seemed more sharply stooped than it had been only a few weeks ago. She must be ill, thought Michal. But whenever I try to summon a priest for help, she shrugs me
off.
           
Hadi slid close to Michal. Her whisper sounded coarse, as if age had stolen its smoothness.  “This is too dangerous. I should never have told you about the staircase.”
           
“It’s too late for that. You know I’ve been waiting my whole life to see the Ark.”
           
“Your whole life,” Hadi chuckled. “You’re just fifteen. Barely a babe. Only yesterday, you were toddling around learning your first prayers.”
           
“That was a long time ago. Tonight’s my only chance to see the Ark before everything gets turned upside down for the festival. Who knows how long I’ll have to wait if I don’t go tonight?”
 
           
Hadi sighed and shuffled farther into the cellar. Her small lamp cast just enough light for them to make their way, brightening small swirls of dust ahead. The cool air smelled both sweet from raisins and acidic from the large oak casks of wine. It created an odd mix and Michal wondered if it meant a good omen or a bad one.
 
About the Authors
 
Jeff Altabef lives in New York with his wife, two daughters, and Charlie the dog. He spends time volunteering at the writing center in the local community college. After years of being accused of “telling stories,” he thought he would make it official. He writes in both the thriller and young adult genres. Fourteenth Colony, a political thriller, is his debut novel. Jeff has a blog designed to encourage writing by those that like telling stories. You can find his blog, The Accidental Writers Workshop, on The Patch. Jeff also rights a column for The Examiner under the byline – The Accidental Writer.
Author Links:
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Ken Altabef – As a Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America member, my short fiction has frequently appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. I also had stories in Interzone, Buzzymag, Abyss & Apex, Unsettling Wonder and Ominous Realities. 
ALAANA’S WAY, my 5-part series of epic fantasy novels is published by Cat’s Cradle Press. Described as “cutting-edge fantasy from the top of the world” the arctic setting and unique characters will bring something new to even the most jaded fantasy enthusiast. You can preview this work and others at my website www.KenAltabef.com
Author Links:
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Review – The Mermaid and the treasure of the Bay by A Algeri @AAlgeriLaSirena

mermaid banner newI am a huge fan of mermaids, so I have to share The Mermaid and the treasure of the Bay by A Algeri.

Check out this beautiful cover by Cora Graphics!

the mermaid bayMY REVIEW

The Mermaid and the treasure of the Bay by A Algeri is fantasy and science fiction with a little history thrown in. Wrapped within the fantasy, I read about court life and  a woman’s place in the world. The Mermaid and the treasure off the Bay is a character driven novel, telling Brinn’s story and sharing the people that surround her.

Brinn is a free spirit that feels like she is being placed in a cage where all her actions will be dictated by others expectations. As she struggles to retain her identity, she also delves into the legend of the lost treasure of Nyar Kaad. Could finding the treasure allow her the freedom she desires so much?

Even though The Mermaid and the treasure of the Bay is not really a suspense novel, A Algeri’s writing kept me in a state of unrest…expectancy. A hint of malice followed Brinn throughout the story. I love suspense thrillers, so I kept expecting Gilbert to… or for her to be discovered breaking into…I love how he blended all these elements together leaving me no option but to read on.

I grabbed at the chance to read The Mermaid and the treasure of the Bay because of the cover and…MERMAIDS. I am always on the lookout for another “fishes of the sea” story. A Algeri doesn’t hide the fact that Brinn is, or will be, the mermaid. Her love of the ocean drives her to defy her mother and the aristocratic dictates others expect of her. If she had her way, she would never leave Nyar Kaad for the court life. She just needed a way to make that happen. A Algeri kind of skipped over the part where she learns how to transform and I would have liked to have more of that…a lot more. I wanted to swim in the ocean with her, race the fishes and feel the water washing over my “skin”.

I am very impressed by this debut novel and I wonder…is there more to Brinn’s story?

I received a copy of The Mermaid and the treasure of the Bay by A Algeri.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos 4 Stars

SYNOPSIS

“The Mermaid and the treasure of the Bay” is the first adventure of Brinn, a young woman who had recently returned to her homeland, Nyar Kaad, after years of being away.

For her mother and sister it’s only supposed to be an episodic stay, because their intention is to return to the capital, Adaria, held by both aristocrats, by then, to be their home. Brinn, however, isn’t interested in living in the golden cage of high society and aspires to a different existence, that will push her to oppose the decisions of her family and to pursue a destiny according to her own wishes.

The accidental discovery of what looks like a map to hidden treasure, buried in Nyar Kaad, according to tradition, by pirates once dwelling in the settlement, will push her to search for the hidden riches- an undertaking that the protagonist will face courageously, at the cost of challenging her fears, the rigid social conventions, and more literal dangers to her person, venturing on a journey into the local legends and the past of her own family, until reaching an unexpected epilogue.

Set to Isara, a fantasy world inspired by the period between the seventeenth and the first decades of the nineteenth centuries, “The Mermaid and the treasure of the Bay” is a journey full of mystery in the universe where real and supernatural coexist intersecting in a subtle and insidious way, a world divided between palaces and largely unexplored expanses, an opulent capital and boundless oceans.

“The Mermaid and the treasure of the Bay”, is the first publication of A. Algeri, the author of the novel. He began writing while he was a teenager, setting most of his stories in the world of Isara, a fantasy universe of his own creation, where Brinn, the main character of this adventure, is often the protagonist.

EXCERPT

I decided to head towards the beach. I had always felt a special bond with the sea, since I was a child and my return to the ocean shores was for years my secret aspiration that I had long believed would remain unfulfilled. I wanted to fully appreciate it as long as it was possible to stay lost in this fantasy. Beyond the living room window, passing the garden surrounding the manor, there was a beach that went gently down towards the ocean where the waves died on the shoreline in large surf, leaving white foam on the sand of the foreshore. On the horizon the blue green Nahanshe Sea mixed with the sky mottled only a few white clouds pushed by the breeze.

I put my diary and a book I was reading in my bag and upon reaching the door of the house, I walked along veranda and descended the stairs leading to the boulevard and then after opening my parasol, I continued along the same walkway, crossing first the garden then the sparse blot populated by a few plants that grew near the seashore. At the end of the walkway, I took off my flats and walked barefoot on the beach that already scorched a bit and I headed towards the ocean waves. I loved walking along the coast and being immersed for hours in the pristine waters of the shallow sea bottom letting my long brown hair float, almost immobile in the green blue waters.

A very light breeze blew on the beach and once I was near enough to the shore I felt it caress my arms, barely noticeable. In the air, I only heard the sound of the sea whose waves stretched out along the sand and in the distance the call of marine birds. The air however was full of the smell of salt and ocean water that stretched out infinitively in front of me. In the cerulean blue sky I noticed some seagulls and terns flying.

In my diary I wrote down, with a bit of melancholy, my difficulty choosing the right words to describe the beauty of that moment because I already knew that these would be my last weeks in Nyar Kaad surely for many years.

A part of me forced myself to believe in the possibility of making my mother reconsider her decision, persuading her in some way to not cede the Dawn’s Light if not to directly stay in the province of Salaara, yet I realized that this, more than a possible chance, was my only hope.

My glance lingered on the pristine horizon, where the sky united with expanse of the ocean before starting to write again. I wanted that in the following months I could retrace my words and remember how green the sea was and how the sun warmed me, reopening that page on a boring day in the last months of the year in the cold rooms in the manor in Adaria.

I tried to drive away the thoughts of those freezing fall afternoons in which the city seemed just an entire series of gloomy grays of stones and brooding blacks of slate roofs on which the rain fell non-stop where the only colors that stood out were the sad colors of the few bare trees and the dead leaves that rotted at the feet of their trunks. I tried to bring my mind back to the caress of the hot summer sun on my bronze skin sprinkled with freckles.

I observed a crab moving slowly along the foreshore and a fish jump, breaking, for a moment, the peace of the apparently still water. I half closed my eyes for an instant hearing only, other than the gentle coastal breeze, the slow melody of the waves. How many days I had spent on that beach as a child…before everything changed when I still could take for granted a happiness that seemed to me in that moment distant and unreachable, as if it belonged to a time that was over and lost forever.

I found myself thinking about my father, about our long walks on the beach, and the times that, during the day or evening, the coast was hit by the occasional summer downpour or the summer was interrupted by a rare rainy day. Initially I looked fearfully out my window at the sea, the white crested waves and the sound of the gale on the stormy nights during which the thunder accompanied the winds, howling furiously and in which it seemed possible to me to hear the spirits of men lost among the sea waves whose names were by then forgotten for time immemorial. Then the moment arrived in which the storm had passed and the rays of sun broke up the still thick cloud cover, shining onto the beach in flashes until one ray after another, the light came back to illuminate the heavens and the clouds disappeared, leaving space again in the sky that was clear or veiled only by a few clouds.

My memories came in succession, I wrote down the most moving writing with the style on the white pages, smiling, my soul divided between the pleasure of reinvoking those memories and the bitterness of being aware of the imminent loss of those places and those memories.

Before abandoning myself completely to melancholy, I got up off my beach towel, put my diary back in my bag and headed towards the foreshore. A young lady immersing herself in the water, even wearing a bathing suit that had been part of the traditional culture of Nyar Kaad since before the imperial colonization, would have been simply inconceivable in the cold Adaria with all its absurd rules and little rules. On the other hand, I never cared how inappropriate such a behavior could be considered for the daughter of a lady known for the enormous weight she gave to her respectability.

I went down to the shoreline, walking on the wet sand to appreciate the coolness brought by the ocean; I stood still a moment letting the waves brush my ankles. I started taking my first steps into the lagoon, the shallow sea bottom went on for a dozens and dozens of feet before slowly getting deeper. The water was pristine like crystal. When the water started to touch my waist, I let myself slip under the water, coming out a bit later with my head and letting myself float in the water of the bay.

I half closed my eyes- above me was the clear sky, I perceived the caress of the breeze while the warm water cradled me. I imagined that this had to be the closest feeling to what must have been the feeling of a perfect moment, even if a part of my heart remained shadowed. I stayed in the water for several hours, slowly losing awareness of time as often happened to me when I swam.

I was still absorbed in my thoughts when my mother, leaving the house and stopping at the edge of the beach began calling me loudly, making sure that I didn’t have any reason to not be able to respond: “Brinn! Come to the shore, you’ve been in the water half the morning!” Her tone gave away her slight annoyance.

My mother Karen was wearing a faintly colored cotton satin dress, as was used in the southern imperial colonies. It was a simply cut dress, tight at the waist thanks to the corset worn underneath the clothing that modeled one’s profile into an elegant hourglass figure. The neckline was very modest and the sleeves at three-quarters, the only concession to the hot temperatures in which these were worn. Her hair, a chestnut brown the same shade as mine, was gathered up as was required by etiquette when a lady intended to go outside of her home. Her long limbed figure was immobile on the beach, waiting to be joined. In her hand she held a small parasol the same color of her dress, a pink that softened into white. Both Jennifer and I at first glance looked a lot like her, even if in the bay several ladies maintained that, most of all in the face, I took after my paternal grandmother Claire just as much, and it was not as evident in my sister who seemed to have instead inherited mostly from the lineage of the maternal branch of our family.

I ignored my mother for a bit- it was the method I turned to so as to communicate to her my lack of interest in leaving the water. But after being called two or three times I couldn’t stay any longer and I had to start swimming, not too quickly, towards the shore and return to the beach. I laid down on my beach towel after roughly drying myself.

Annoyed, she came over to me and punctually scolded me. “How many times must I tell you that now you are almost eighteen! Do you realize that you are absolutely not decent? You aren’t a five year old child, you are a woman!”

I looked at her for a few minutes: “I know that I am not a child, and anyway I put on a swim suit on purpose mom. Our ancestors used it since before the expansion of the empire into our land.” I responded without losing my composure.

She responded with a slight but noticeable annoyance: “You know perfectly well that for the etiquette of Adaria…” she paused briefly, inhaling while she reflected on the term to use “similar behavior is frowned upon.”.

I smiled for a moment: “I don’t recall ever having taken a swim in the capital, mom. The sea is too far away.” I said, and she looked at me with a look of clear disapproval as her response.

“Come back in the house as soon as you’ve finished drying off” she concluded curtly, taking her leave, but still maintaining that look before distancing herself and then going back into the manor.

I stayed on the beach, seated on the towel that I had laid on the hot sand. I didn’t want to go home nor be involved in the conversations of my mother and Jennifer, who were busy talking only about our imminent return to the capital at the end of the vacationing season. Both were normally so taken by their futile conversations that they didn’t notice my absence so I decided to keep waiting until I could go back in the water with having mom pay attention.

I should have let my bathing suit dry, in which case she would have insisted anyway that I came back in so I decided to wait on the shore. To further discourage my mother from attempting to establish a conversation, which would have probably led to a heated discussion, I opened my diary and began writing some of my impressions of that luminous tropical morning, avoiding so much as turning my head towards the Dawn’s Light.

The sun burned in the sky and its rays caressed my skin; the breeze lightly ruffled my hair and lifted the wide brim of my straw hat for a few seconds. My bathing suit was quickly drying and I continued to observe the aquamarine colored ocean, staying turned towards the shore.

Buy now: ebook kindle or paperback

ABOUT A ALGERI

A. Algeri is the author of “The Mermaid and the treasure of the Bay”, his first published novel. He began writing while he was a teenager, setting most of his stories in the world of Isara, a fantasy universe of his own creation.

Author Links:

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Blog Tour Schedule:
June 27:
History from a Woman’s Perspective – http://www.historywomanperspective.com/
– Review
3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, &, Sissy, Too! – http://3partnersinshopping.blogspot.com
– Review
Literary Musings – www.literarymusing.weebly.com
– Promo
June 28:
3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, &, Sissy, Too! – http://3partnersinshopping.blogspot.com
– Promo
The Recipe Fairy – http://recipe-fairy.weebly.com/
– Review
Zerina Blossom’s Books – http://zerinablossom.blogspot.com/
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June 29:
YA Book Divas – http://www.yabookdivas.com
– Review
The Avid Reader – http://the-avidreader.blogspot.com
– Promo
Happy Tails and Tales Blog  – http://happytailsandtales.blogspot.com
– Review
Just Us Book Blog – http://justusbookblog.blogspot.com/
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La tartaruga si muove – http://latartarugasimuove.blogspot.it
– Review
Reading, Writing and What Not – http://pixiescanread.blogspot.com/
– Review
The Book Adventures of Annelise Lestrange – www.anneliselestrange.wordpress.com
– Promo
Reading Addict – http://readingadd.blogspot.com/
– Promo
June 30:
POTL: Books, Writing and Inspiring Others – https://princessofthelight.wordpress.com
– Review
I Read Indie – http://twimom101bookblog.blogspot.com/
– Promo
deal sharing aunt – http://www.dealsharingaunt.blogspot.com
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WordishWonderland – www.wordishwonderland.wordpress.com
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July 1:
My Crazy Corner – http://mycrazzycorner.blogspot.com/
– Promo
fundinmental – http://www.fundinmental.com
– Review
The Page Unbound – http://thepageunbound.com
– Promo
deal sharing aunt – http://www.dealsharingaunt.blogspot.com
– Promo
Kovescence of the Mind – http://kovescenceofthemind.blogspot.com/
– Review
A New Look On Books – www.anewlookonbooks.wordpress.com
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Review for A Thousand Yesteryears @MaeClair1 & Sin City @lucyfarago

Inside the Book:

 
 
Author: Mae Clair
Release Date: April 26, 2016
Publisher: Lyrical Underground
Genre: Thriller/Suspense
Format: Ebook
MY REVIEW
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WOW  OMG, I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!
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A Thousand Yesteryears by Mae Clair is a story about tragedy in a small town. Murder, UFO’s, myths and legends kept me spellbound. Unputdownable!
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After reading A Thousand Yesteryears, I see why the title is so very appropriate. I love when it fits so perfectly.
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There is so much I want to share about A Thousand Yesteryears, so I must be careful not to “spoil” you. If you are a fan of myths and legends, creature features, tragedy that leaves the residents stuck in place, unable to move on, then A Thousand Yesteryears is a must read for you.
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Eve had lost her father and best friend to the collapse of the Silver Bridge (really happened) and had been gone since her mother took her away right after the tragedy struck. Now she’s back. Is it true…You can’t go back home again…or is home where the heart is?
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“You should leave before you get hurt.”

As she meets old acquaintances and begins to reconsider the direction her life is headed, the threats and danger begin. Eve will have some difficult choices ahead of her, if she can manage to stay alive.

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photo courtesy of angelwing314.deviantart.com

The legend of Mothman (rumored to live in Point Pleasant), the curse of Chief Cornstalk, UFOs, a collapsed bridge that killed many and a man that killed his share of victims. A Thousand Yesteryears is about the tragedies of the small town of Point Pleasant and the residents struggles to continue on with their lives.

A Thousand Yesteryears brings to light small town living. The longer Eve stays, the more she sees that her preconceived ideas and people she dismissed so easily in her youth will come to mean everything to her as she grows and opens her mind. Rumors and gossips…pranks gone wrong…

The more I read, the harder it is to stop, even for a moment. Eve has grown and developed into a caring, loving person, making new friends, finding lost love, grasping her Point Pleasant legacy with both hands, bravely searching for answers to the mystery and danger she found herself in because she refused to be run out of town.

Katie, what a wonderful, misunderstood girl who Eve’s Aunt Rosie took under her wing, mentoring and loving her as the daughter she never had. Caden, Eve’s childhood crush, who is so laden with guilt over his sister’s death on the bridge, that he cannot move on. All the other characters are just as complex and carry their own baggage, but once their personalities shown through, they found their place in my reading family. All except…

And Mothman…what can I say about Mothman. Not much because it will give too much away, but this is one myth that lives and thrives in the real town of Point Pleasant, West Virginia.
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Mae Clair’s writing created so much tension, that it took all I had not to skip ahead! The romance, mystery, myth and suspense kept me white knuckled, on the edge of my seat, talking to myself…oh no…hurry, hurry…must know. I gobbled the words like Lays potato chips and I know one Point Pleasant and Mothman book is never going to be enough. A Thousand Yesteryears by Mae Clair can stand alone, but she leaves the characters wide open for more adventure.
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Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos  5 Stars
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You can check out the Mothman Museum in Point Pleasant West Virginia HERE.
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ABOUT THE BOOK

Behind a legend lies the truth…

As a child, Eve Parrish lost her father and her best friend, Maggie Flynn, in a tragic bridge collapse. Fifteen years later, she returns to Point Pleasant to settle her deceased aunt’s estate. Though much has changed about the once thriving river community, the ghost of tragedy still weighs heavily on the town, as do rumors and sightings of the Mothman, a local legend. When Eve uncovers startling information about her aunt’s death, that legend is in danger of becoming all too real . . .

Caden Flynn is one of the few lucky survivors of the bridge collapse but blames himself for coercing his younger sister out that night. He’s carried that guilt for fifteen years, unaware of darker currents haunting the town. It isn’t long before Eve’s arrival unravels an old secret-one that places her and Caden in the crosshairs of a deadly killer . . .

“Masterful, bone-chilling fiction…one intense thriller. A Thousand Yesteryears will keep you guessing, gasping and turning the pages for more.” —New York Times bestselling author Kevin O’Brien

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Meet the Author:

Mae Clair opened a Pandora’s Box of characters when she was a child and never looked back. Her father, an artist who tinkered with writing, encouraged her to create make-believe worlds by spinning tales of far-off places on summer nights beneath the stars.

Mae loves creating character-driven fiction in settings that vary from contemporary to mythical. Wherever her pen takes her, she flavors her stories with conflict, romance and elements of mystery. Married to her high school sweetheart, she lives in Pennsylvania and is passionate about writing, old photographs, a good Maine lobster tail and cats.

Visit her website

 Inside the Book:
Author: Lucy Farago
Release Date: April 26, 2016
Publisher: Lyrical Press
Genre: Romance
Format: Ebook

There are some secrets even Las Vegas’s 24/7 glitter can’t hide. Lucy Farago’s dazzling new series ups the ante as a fiery stripper fights to protect an elite detective from danger–and both their killer pasts…

Living in the red-hot now is how Rhonda Deagan survives. Onstage, this sexy Goth stripper always stays on top, no matter how much her real-life dreams shatter. So why not risk a scorching fling with a gorgeous groomsman after her best friend’s wedding? Too bad Blake Cameron is in someone’s lethal sights. And saving this cool-headed investigator’s life just put Rhonda on the run with him–and on his personal, oh-so-seductive hit list…

For Blake, figuring out who doesn’t want him dead is easier than keeping his new raven-haired friend safe. The only way he can buy time to out-think their pursuers is to hide them both in the aristocratic world he thought he’d escaped. But there’s no escaping the incendiary attraction between him and Rhonda. Walking the knife-edge between desire, lies, and naked truth may be their best chance to live–if it doesn’t cut too deep to survive…

 

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Meet the Author:

Lucy Farago knows there is nothing like a happy sigh at the end of a good book. With the encouragement of her loving husband, she wrote her first manuscript. An unpublished historical, it sits in a file on her computer, there to remind her how much fun she had learning the craft and becoming part of an industry whose books make you believe anything is possible. A big fan of Agatha Christie, she set out to write her first romantic suspense novel. Thrilled to be a published author, Lucy also teaches yoga, enjoys cooking, and saying what other people are thinking. In her fantasy world, her beautiful Siberian husky, Loki, doesn’t shed and her three kids clean up after themselves . Alas, that fantasy will never see fruition.

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Tour Schedule

 Monday, May 2 – Books featured at The Review From Here
Tuesday, May 3 – A Thousand Yesteryears featured at 3 Partners in Shopping
Wednesday, May 4 – Sin on the Run featured at E-Romance News
Thursday, May 5 – Books featured at Harmonious Publicity
Friday, May 6 – Books featured at Literal Exposure
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Monday, May 9 – Books featured at The Bookworm Lodge
Tuesday, May 10 – A Thousand Yesteryears featured at Deal Sharing Aunt
Wednesday, May 11 – Sin on the Run featured at Authors and Readers Book Corner
Thursday, May 12 – A Thousand Yesteryears featured at Celticlady’s Reviews
Friday, May 13 – Books featured at Write and Take Flight
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Monday, May 16 – A Thousand Yesteryears reviewed at Fundinmental
Tuesday, May 17 – A Thousand Yesteryears featured at Chosen By You Book Club
Wednesday, May 18 – A Thousand Yesteryears reviewed at Books and Needlepoint
Thursday, May 19 – A Thousand Yesteryears featured at Authors and Readers Book Corner
Friday, May 20 – A Thousand Yesteryears reviewed at Stormy Night Reviewing
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Monday, May 23 – Sin on the Run featured at Deal Sharing Aunt
Tuesday, May 24 – Books featured at A Title Wave
Wednesday, May 25 – Books featured at Voodoo Princess
Thursday, May 26 – Books featured at Bent Over Bookwords
Friday, May 27 – Books featured at The Literary Nook
________

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Giveaway for Lying, Cheating Heart by Mindy Ruiz

LCH - Tour banner

LYING, CHEATING HEART, the long awaited second book in Mindy Ruiz’s Game of Hearts Series is finally here! Be sure and grab book 1, ENCHANTED HEART while it’s FREE for release week only!

LCH - coverAmazon

Add LYING, CHEATING HEART on Goodreads

LYING, CHEATING HEART Synopsis

No More Lies!

Cassie Vera thought the biggest threat to her life disappeared the night her boyfriend, A.J. Vasillios, used his one-time-use power and saved her from certain death.

She was wrong.

The mythological hit list she was on is nothing compared to her freshman year at the University of Las Vegas. Rooming with Vegas’s future female royalty has pushed her estrogen tolerance to its limit. Worse, Cassie must take place in a time-honored tradition that tests her faith, while her boyfriend’s new job threatens to shatter her heart.

When age-old traditions change …

Cassie’s school year is interrupted when the future queens are ordered to represent their houses in an annual high-stakes competition. While at her ancestral home in Malaga, Spain, Cassie discovers the Greek gods have gifted her with new abilities. Cassie takes matters of righting an eighteen-year-old wrong into her hands. However, actions have consequences, and Cassie’s may very well end up costing her and the House of Hearts everything.

With her family’s future at stake and the love of her life choosing sides, Cassie must cheat death one more time.

When duty requires you to do the unthinkable, where will your loyalties lie?

Only a Cheating Heart Knows.

EXCERPT

Crazy had a way of becoming normal, even expected in Las Vegas. What used to have us gaping and entranced now became predictable. Which made me worry. How would all of this look in four years? How much would we have changed? And how different would we be when we were our mothers’ ages?

In front of us, Helen walked, spinning around every few steps to make sure she took in all of Freemont Street. Mesmerized by the sites and the sounds. She bumped into a girl wearing a G-string and tasseled pasties on her boobs, passing out flyers for a topless bar. Helen’s face blushed, and she couldn’t get away from the girl fast enough. Olivia kept walking, and Gia next to me barely gave the incident a second thought. The extraordinary had already bled out of those two future queens.

Gia pulled me closer to her. “The morning before I left, I did a shore run. Three miles to your house, three miles back to mine.”

“Yeah?” I already knew where this conversation was headed.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were putting the Malibu house on the market?”

“Why? You interested? I can guarantee you it doesn’t have any happy memories radiating from the walls. And the people who made it a home are gone.” I chewed on the inside of my cheek, willing the emotions to stay away.

“Maybe it’s waiting for you to make new ones.”

“And maybe you should wake up and smell reality.” I pulled in a deep breath, my nose wrinkling at the stench of the Shadows Catacombs at the end of the street. “This is our future, Gia. This and that.” I pointed at the cursed man in a black hood watching us. Even at this distance, the lack of life in his eyes made people walk around him, avoid him. “There is no going home.”

“You know I don’t believe that. My mom made a new home. She had a career in front and behind the camera. She had friends. She had people who loved her. You don’t have to follow in Carina’s footsteps, being lonely and sad.”

I tried to pull my arm from Gia’s, but she clamped down on it, refusing to let me go.

“Gia.”

“You know I’m right.”

The perky cheerleader from my past life stood toe-to-toe with me, a small muscle undulating along her jaw as she ground her teeth.

“I know everything I thought about Carina was wrong or misinterpreted. I know there are things you want me to acknowledge, emotions I have to feel.” I stomped my foot, wanting to take the stupid move back the minute it left my brain. “Carina keeps telling me to grieve, not stuff my emotions. I’ve done it. They’re gone, Sara and Steven, they’re dead . . . because of me. I accept that. Keeping a house or talking about what they meant to me isn’t going to make my future any better. The best thing I can do is leave the dead as food for the worms.” I started to leave, tears thickening in the back of my throat, but Gia wouldn’t let go that easy.

“You don’t get to steal the best line from Dead Poets Society and leave. You have to own your past, or you will repeat the mistakes. Here is where you own what happened. Here, where this all started, is where you come to terms with the fact that you’re not alone. You have us.”

“Ladies.” Olivia wrapped an arm around my waist; her eyes searched mine, looking for something. She’d probably had a talk with Carina, as well. They were all waiting for me to lose my shit and go Richter. Helen laced her fingers with mine. The chaos of Fremont Street dulled, the lights didn’t shine as bright, the noise muted—even the tourists seemed to slow down. In our own cocoon of silence, the four of us looked at each other, wondering what would happen next. What did the future hold for us?

“Great bonding exercise, Gia,” Olivia sassed. “Don’t pout, you’ll get used to my barbed love bites, but I gotta ask: why right now?”

Gia looked around our little group. “Because you can’t build a future on a foundation of lies.”

“I never lied,” I bit back.

“You did to yourself when you put your parents’ house on the market and said it didn’t matter,” Gia answered.

 

Read ENCHANTED HEART, the award winning first book in the Game of Hearts series while you wait…

 

Front CoverENCHANTED HEART Goodreads ** Amazon

About ENCHANTED HEART

Cassandra Vera never ever breaks the rules.

Ever!

She’s also had a nonexistent social life since her best friend moved to Vegas. Armed with a new set of resolutions, the promise of a hot date, and her adoptive parents out of town, Cassandra agrees an overnight road trip to Las Vegas to celebrate her birthday is the perfect way to ring in the New Year. After all, it’s Vegas, the city where secrets are meant to stay hidden. Little does Cassandra know the secrets of her own pastare buried there, as well.

In the shadows of the glitz and gaudy lights of Vegas lies a power struggle centuries old. One wrong step and Cassandra could destroy the delicate web of secrets. Now an enemy she never knew existed is after her and the one boy who may be the missing piece to the puzzle —and her heart— is the one person she can’t afford to trust.

Author PhotoAbout Mindy Ruiz

Mindy Ruiz lives in a sleepy Beach Town in Southern California. When she’s not writing, she spends her time chasing after three boys, making flirty eyes at her hunky husband, watching fantasy television shows, cheering for the Dallas Cowboys, and hanging out at the beach with her very large and loud Italian family.

Her career in publishing started in the 4th grade with a story about a magic, museum-hopping, chair. Now, Mindy writes young adult, new adult, and adult paranormal romance. Her books always include tormented heroes, snarky heroines, and lots of swoon-y moments that will put a smile on your face or make your heart race. Mindy is the lover of a good romance, the underdog and John Hugh’s 80′s teen movies.

When her toes aren’t in the sand or her mind isn’t in the clouds, Mindy loves hearing from readers.

Facebook ** Twitter ** Instagram ** Author Goodreads ** Pinterest

Check out all the stops on Mindy Ruiz’s LYING, CHEATING HEART – Review & Excerpt Tour!

April 5th

A Sky Full of Stars blog – Excerpt

SassyCat’s Books Review – Review & Excerpt

Grownup Fangirl – Excerpt

April 6th

Movies, Shows & Books – Excerpt

Book Junkie: Not-So-Anonymous – Review & Excerpt

BooksChatter – Excerpt

April 7th

A book whores obsession – Excerpt

T&L Book Reviews – Excerpt

Those Crazy Book Chicks – Excerpt

April 8th

Witchy Richey’s Booktastic Reviews – Excerpt

Happy tails and tales – Review & Excerpt

Molly E. Lee – Review & Excerpt

April 9th

Extreme Bookaholics – Excerpt

Mommy’s Naughty Playground – Excerpt

Fundinmental – Excerpt

April 10th

Evermore Books – Excerpt

NightWolf Book Blog – Excerpt

Southern Vixens Book Obsessions – Excerpt

April 11th

Brittany’s Book Blog – Excerpt

I Heart YA Books – Excerpt

Tia Bach, Author – Excerpt

April 12th

Lost to Books – Excerpt

Maari Loves Her Indies – Excerpt

The Phantom Paragrapher – Review & Excerpt

April 13th

Typical Distractions – Review & Excerpt

Vampire Book Club – Excerpt

Vera is Reading – Excerpt

April 14th

LuLo Fangirl – Review & Excerpt

KatyaRath – Review & Excerpt

Teatime and Books – Excerpt

My YA NA Book Obsession – Review & Excerpt

April 15th

Alpha Book Club – Excerpt

Bad boys and Bedtime stories book previews – Excerpt

book review virginia lee – Review & Excerpt

G & T’s Indie Café – Excerpt

Us Girls & A Book – Review & Excerpt

GIVEAWAY

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Release Week Blitz Giveaway – Shearwater by Derek Murphy @Creativindie

ShearwaterRDB

 

Hello readers! Welcome to the Release Week Blitz for

Shearwater Part One
(an Ocean Depths Mermaid Romance)

by Derek Murphy!

Do you love mermaids? Then this is the book for you!
And don’t get me started on the awesome giveaway found below.

Happy Book Birthday Derek!

Make some noise and celebrate!! Whoo hooooo!

 

Shearwater Cover

“I watched the colored lights and sparkles coming off of Sebastian in the dark water, as the ocean began the process of rebuilding his tail. I longed to join him in the water, to wrap my arms around him and let him carry me under the sea; but I wasn’t ready. For him, the ocean was a home; for me it was death. Without being able to transform, the ocean depths would suffocate me, the pressure collapse my bones and flesh.”

After her parent’s accident, Clara is shipped off to live with a grandfather she never knew, in a town she can’t pronounce. In Ireland, she soon discovers that her mother’s secret past is filled with tragedy. Trying to track down the truth, she begins going through changes of her own, until she’s not sure just who – or what – she is anymore.

Then she meets the mysterious Sebastian, who won’t leave her alone, and Ethan, who apparently can’t stand to be near her. Both of them seem to have supernatural powers, and she’s not quite sure whether they want to kill her or kiss her. Just when things are getting interesting, someone attacks her, and she gets a revelation that destroys everything she thought she knew about the world, humanity, and herself.

>>>Explore the magical coast of Northern Ireland, and an new interpretation of the Tuatha de Danann, the Fomorians, and mermaid mythology.

>>>An innovative paranormal romance with a brand new magical system, and a version of mermaid biology that actually makes sense.

This is PART ONE of the first book (Shearwater), of the Ocean Depths Series.

add to goodreads

Shearwater Part One (an Ocean Depths Mermaid Romance)
by Derek Murphy
Publication Date: January 26, 2016
Publisher: Urban Epics

Available for Purchase:
Amazon

 

About-the-Author2

Derek Murphy

Derek Murphy is a philosophy major turned book designer finishing a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature. He recently decided to stop studying and designing books, and start writing his own.

giveaway2
Complete the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win these mermaid bookends!

 

Bookends

 

Chapter-by-Chapter-blog-tour-button

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To see all my Giveaways, go HERE.

If you like what you see, why don’t you follow me?

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Teaser Tuesday #58 – Northwoods by Bill Schweigart

.
TeaserTuesdays-ADailyRhythm3Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of adailyrhythm.

Anyone can play along! Just do the following: Grab your current read. Open to a random page. Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page. BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

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Over the weekend, Mr Wonderful and I had the opportunity to see Todd Rundgren.

It was a blast from the past and we had a great time.

What fun stuff was on your agenda?

Todd Rundgren in Biloxi Mississippi 1/30/16

Todd Rundgren in Biloxi Mississippi 1/30/16

I was so excited when I got a copy of Northwoods by Bill Schweigart from Netgalley for review. So far…I am not disappointed.

Check out the cool cover.

What do you see?

Northwoods

 

MY TEASE

“The spirits are angry and they are making themselves known. It’s not theoretical. It’s real. The Northwoods are filled with bad omens Either they”re displeased with us or something else is out of balance, but regardless, we Anishinaabe must address it. It’s time to put your textbooks away and wade in.”

(24% on Kindle)

GOODREADS BLURB:  Some borders should never be crossed. From the author of The Beast of Barcroft comes a waking nightmare of a horror novel that’s sure to thrill readers of Stephen King and Bentley Little.

Ex–Delta Force Davis Holland, now an agent for the Customs and Border Protection, has seen it all. But nothing in his experience has prepared him for what he and the local sheriff find one freezing night in the Minnesota woods.

Investigating reports of an illegal border crossing, the two men stumble across a blood-drenched scene of mass murder, barely escaping with their lives . . . and a single clue to the mayhem: a small wooden chest placed at the heart of the massacre. Something deadly has entered Holland’s territory, crossing the border from nightmare into reality.

When news of the atrocity reaches wealthy cryptozoologist Richard Severance, he sends a three-person team north to investigate. Not long ago, the members of that team—Ben McKelvie, Lindsay Clark, and Alex Standingcloud—were nearly killed by a vengeful shapeshifter. Now they are walking wounded, haunted by gruesome memories that make normal life impossible. But there is nothing normal about the horror that awaits in the Northwoods.

 

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Awesome Mermaid Giveaway and Novella – How to be a Mermaid by Erin Hayes

HowToBeAMermaidBlitzBanner1

I am so excited to be able to share Erin Hayes new novella, How To Be a Mermaid.

I have the option to share so many things, it was hard to choose. Everyone likes a bit of music, so I chose to share the song list. Here is a little something to listen to while you see the great things I have to share.


How to be a Mermaid Soundtrack:

Below is a list of songs that I listened to while writing How to be a Mermaid. Each of these songs helped to get me into the right mindset in order to pretend that I was a mermaid!

  1. Go – Grimes featuring Blood Diamonds
  2. Can’t Hold Us – Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
  3. Never Let Me Go – Florence and the Machine
  4. What the Water Gave Me – Florence and the Machine
  5. Start a Riot – Jetta
  6. Believe – Mumford and Sons
  7. I Will Wait – Mumford and Sons
  8. Dirty Paws – Of Monsters and Men
  9. Anything Could Happen – Ellie Goulding
  10. Part of Your World – Jodi Benson from The Little Mermaid ß No mermaid soundtrack would be complete without that song!

Check out the beautiful cover, keep scrolling to check out more about the story and enter the awesome giveaway! I want to wish you good luck in the giveaway, but I want to win it too. LOL

Mermaid

Add me to Goodreads now.

_________

 
How to be a Mermaid by Erin Hayes
(Falling in Deep Collection, #10)
Publication date: July 7th 2015
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult
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SYNOPSIS
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All Tara ever wanted was to be a mermaid.

So she takes a year off between high school and college to don a fake tail and tour aquariums across the country in a professional mermaid troupe.

Everything’s great until she meets a gorgeous real-life merman named Finn. Suddenly, what she thought was a dream turns out to be a nightmare — she’s turning into a mermaid herself. For real.

Yet when she returns to the sea to seek out Finn and reverse her transformation, she finds herself in the middle of an impending war between the land and sea. Tara may have always wanted to be a mermaid, but now it’s sink or swim. In order to survive, she has to learn how to be one, too.

Beauty model girl splashing water with her hair

Summer 2015, award-winning, and best-selling authors will bring you romantic tales of mermaids, sirens, sprites, and other creatures of the deep! Keep in touch as we reveal each title in our collection!

Purchase:  Amazon  I  B&N
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ABOUT ERIN HAYES

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CASTKatie_McGrathSci-fi junkie, video game nerd, and wannabe manga artist Erin Hayes writes a lot of things. Sometimes she writes books, like the fantasy mystery novel Death is but a Dream, the sci-fi middle grade book Jacob Smith is Incredibly Average, and the Her Wolf paranormal series.She works as an advertising copywriter during the day, and she moonlights as an author. She has lived in New Zealand, Texas, and now in Birmingham, Alabama with her husband, cat, and a growing collection of geek paraphernalia.You can reach her at erinhayesbooks@gmail.com and she’ll be happy to chat. Especially if you want to debate Star Wars.

Author links:  Goodreads  I  Website  I  Facebook  I  Twitter
Giveaway Picture
GIVEAWAY
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Blitz-wide giveaway (INTL)
  • A mermaid care package to help you be the best mermaid:
    • A signed copy of How to be a Mermaid
    • Tara’s necklace
    • Two Mermaid Mix soaks
    • A mermaid mirror compact
    • Six starfish hairpins
    • A mermaid wallet
    • Mermaid perfume
    • Mermaid Tail Nail Polish
    • A mermaid makeup bag
    • Four Little Mermaid Buttons
    • And one mermaid handbag to carry all your dinglehoppers

ENTER THE RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY HERE

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To see all my Reviews, go HERE.
To see all my Giveaways, go HERE.

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~~~~~~~~~~~~

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Giveaway – Luck of the Irish by Sara Humphreys

 

Luck of the Irish
by Sara Humphreys
Series: Leprechaun’s Gold, #1
Genre: Paranormal Romance/Fantasy Romance
Release Date: June 30, 2015

 

“Ms. Humphreys continues to possess the gift of storytelling and gathering the hearts and souls of her audience.” – Night Owl Reviews

A leprechaun is powerless without his gold….

Banished to the mirrored realm for hundreds of years, Declan Aherne had nothing but time to plot his revenge and mourn the loss of his beloved wife. But when a beautiful human woman, with a familiar amulet, stares into the mirror….Declan’s luck was about to change.

 

The gold emblem, the one that matched her necklace, sat at the top of the oval gilded frame, and when she leaned closer she realized that it was a recessed space. She ran her finger over it and let out a shuddering breath. Maggie had a sinking suspicion that the amulet around her neck would fit perfectly in that space.

“A key,” she whispered through trembling lips. “Aunt Lizzie said the amulet was a key to release the leprechaun from his prison.”

Rising to her feet, Maggie carried the mirror down the narrow hallway to her bedroom. She bumped the door open with her hip and stepped into the small, cozy green and white room. When she changed clothes earlier she’d already removed the old print and left the blank spot above her dresser for her long sought after prize.

With great care she hung the mirror onto the nail and adjusted it so that it was straight. She stepped back and inspected it as she removed the amulet and gold chain from around her neck. The heavy, gold disc felt warm in her palm as she curled her fingers around it and debated what to do next.

Part of her was as eager as a kid on Christmas Eve brimming with anticipation. She wanted to slip the amulet right into that spot on the frame and see if the fairy tale was true. But the other part of her, the one that dominated at the moment, was reluctant. Not because she was afraid of a leprechaun jumping out of the mirror.

In fact, it was exactly the opposite.

What if after all this time and all the searching she puts the amulet in the mirror and nothing happens? That would be a big, fat, fucking let down of colossal proportions.

Tears stung her eyes and she sniffled, laughing out loud at her foolishness. How long had she been searching for the mirror never really believing she’d find it? The hunt for this treasure was what kept her going after family was gone. It was like an invisible tie that kept her connected to them, but now she’d found it and the hunt was over.

It was a stark reminder that her family was never coming back.

Maggie was alone.

“I wish the story was true, Aunt Lizzie,” she whispered. “But true or not, thank you for sharing it with me….I miss you all so much.”

She turned her teary gaze to her reflection as she ran her fingertip over the amulet. It was time to face the truth and stop hiding inside her own fairy tales, the ones she perpetuated every time she went in search of the magical mirror from Aunt Lizzie’s stories. She had to face the reality of the world she lived in.

Her family was gone and they weren’t coming back. The mirror wasn’t magic and she wasn’t anything special, and the only way to really face it was to put the amulet in the mirror—and watch as nothing happened.

Fairy tales weren’t real.

Neither were leprechauns or warlocks.

No more hiding from the world or retreating into fanciful stories.

“Time to face the truth.”

Maggie pressed the amulet to her lips before reaching up and slipping the disc into the recessed spot at the top of the mirror. The moment it clicked into place she whispered the Gaelic phrase Aunt Lizzie always uttered when she told this part of the story. “Scaoileadh mé tú.”

At first nothing happened and Maggie was ready to drown herself in the rest of the chardonnay. She was about to leave the room in search of the wine when a ripple in her reflection caught her eye. Maggie swallowed hard and squinted, not sure she was actually seeing what she thought she was seeing. But sure enough the glass surface of the mirror began to undulate and swell like silver waves in an otherworldly ocean.

She backed up as her image in the mirror blurred and a low, pulsing throbbing sound began to rumble through the room. Maggie scrambled backward and up onto the bed as the deafening noise grew louder by the second. Her hands flew to hear ears, the pulsing noise permeating every single cell of her body making her teeth clatter. It felt like the entire building would come down around her any second and if she wasn’t completely paralyzed by fear, she might have run.

But Maggie couldn’t move. She curled up into the fetal position, hands over her ears, as the world rumbled around her. She half expected the ground to open up and swallow her whole.

A split second later, the mirror erupted in an explosion of light and Maggie squeezed her eyes shut. As a scream threatened to rip from her throat the world went completely silent and still. No more bone rattling throbbing running through the air. The shaking and trembling had ceased, except for her body. She was quivering like a damn leaf and cowering on her bed like a total coward.

Her heart hammered against her ribcage and her eyes were screwed tightly shut as the unmistakable sound of someone breathing heavily filled the room. At first, she thought it was her own breath because she was huffing and puffing like she’d run a freaking marathon. But about a second later, it became glaringly clear she was no longer alone.

The fairy tale was true.

 

 

 

Sara Humphreys is a graduate of Marist College, with a B.A. Degree in English Literature & Theater. Her initial career path after college was as a professional actress. Some of her television credits include, A&E Biography, Guiding Light, Another World, As the World Turns and Rescue Me.

In 2013 Sara’s novel UNTAMED won two PRISM awards–Dark Paranormal and Best of the Best.

She loves writing hot heroes and heroines with moxie but above all, Sara adores a satisfying happily-ever-after. She lives in New York with her husband, their four amazing sons, and two adorable pups. When she’s not writing or hanging out with the men in her life, she can be found working out with Shaun T in her living room or chatting with readers on Facebook.

For a full list of Sara’s books and reading order, please visit her website.

 

 

 

 

 

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