lunedì 31 ottobre 2016

Book Blast & Giveaway: Paranormal Bar & Grill Tour


Paranormal Bar & Grill Tour

Will O’ the Wisp
by Craig Boyack

A Thousand Yesteryears
by Mae Clair

Vampire Island
by Sandra Cox

The Glade
by Harmony Kent

Love Set in Stone
by Staci Troilo


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GENRE: Paranormal

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BLURB:

October starts out warm and sunny, but this is the month when everything changes. Mornings grow frosty, leaves change colors, and the breeze takes on a bite.

Summer dies.

It’s a time for harvest celebrations. A boy loans a girl his coat. She snuggles a little closer and takes his hand. A riot of autumn splendor accompanies the farmer’s market where they stroll.

But the vibrancy of daylight doesn’t compare to the darkness of night. Is that chill on your neck the breeze or something else?

October night

You walk a tad faster and look over your shoulder. The trees creak when the wind whips through their branches—at least, you hope that noise came from the undulating bows.

You check under the bed and inside the closet before climbing under the covers. Sleep doesn’t come easy. The old house groans its complaints, and the night magnifies every innocuous noise until terror paralyzes you—because you know nefarious things go bump in the night.

Welcome to the Paranormal Bar & Grille Blog Tour

…where you can rub elbows with everyone from a gargoyle or vampire, to a creature from urban legend, or the ghostly realms of myth. Step up to the bar, grab a booth. You never know what’s on the menu, or if you might end up there yourself.

Sound like your kind of hangout? Then you’ve come to the right place. We’re a group of five authors who love nothing more than to trigger the chill that crawls up your back, the nervous glance tossed over your shoulder. We invite you to discover outstanding books and check out our awesome tour prizes.

Just be careful of what the bartender serves you. That heady brew may not be a beer, and witches can’t be trusted to provide effective antidotes.

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EXCERPT:


Love Set in Stone



He gasped but only succeeded in inhaling thick embers. “I hate it when you do that to me, Anael. What the hell?”

“Not what, Damien,” Anael said. “Where. It’s against the rules, but you needed to see.”

“Hell.”

“The first level.”

Damien choked on clouds of brimstone and looked around. Bodies hung on racks, some scourged by demonic creatures wielding whips of fire, others stretched until their limbs tore off only to reassemble and stretch again. Some souls were skinned and devoured, the torment cyclical, never-ending. Giant beasts with nine-inch claws and twelve-inch teeth tore people into bloody shreds. They gnawed on the bones of writhing beings, snarling and snapping at anything near them.

There was no blessed retreat into unconsciousness or death. This was their other side, their ever-after, their eternity. The tormented endured each torture, alert and unprotected. Impossibly hot gusts of wind howled through the cavern, tossing the departed from one horror to the next. And the maniacal screeches of the tormentors were only overpowered by the anguished wails of the damned.

“I’ve seen enough.” Damien’s words were barely intelligible through his coughing and wheezing.

“Are you certain? This is only the first level. The second level hosts souls feeding on their own entrails, or having a myriad of sexual violations forced upon them. Rape. Sodomy. Bestiality. And then there’s—”

Damien clutched Anael’s arm. “Enough!”

“Do you understand now?”

Damien looked up and howled, his throat burning, his voice mingling into the sounds of all the other lost souls, an agonizing dirge melodic only to Satan himself.

When he thought the devil’s name, the most sinister laugh echoed through the cavern, a shadow given voice and power. It sent chills down his burning spine. The demons cheered, their victims cowered, and Damien cringed, seeking escape that would only be denied him.


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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Author Bios

Craig Boyack

Just a fiction writer, trying to reach the world.

Craig came to fiction writing later in life than most authors. He always had to write, to one degree or another as part of various jobs. Early one winter morning, he conquered the Internet and didn’t feel like shoveling the sidewalk until the
sun came up. He tried a few pages of fiction and got hooked.

Craig doesn’t like limitations and calls himself a writer of speculative fiction. It’s a broad field, but he limits himself to science fiction, paranormal, and a bit of fantasy.

He has eight published works—six novels and two collections of short stories.

You can find him at the following locations:


| His blog: Entertaining Stories  https://coldhandboyack.wordpress.com/






Mae Clair

Mystery & Suspense…with a dash of Myth & Romance

 Genres:
Mystery, Psychological Thrillers, Supernatural Suspense, Romantic Suspense
Quirky fact I don’t want anyone to know:
(or maybe I do)….I saw a UFO when I was six. Probably why I write some of the stuff I do.
~ooOOoo~

Bio:
They say everyone has a story to tell.

I wrote my first childish “masterpiece” at six and was immediately bitten by the writing bug. Since then, I’ve been composing nonstop, and have dabbled in multiple genres over the years, writing everything from fantasy, westerns, and horror to inspirational fiction, romance, and sci-fi. It took me a while to find my niche, but I’ve settled comfortably into the mystery/suspense genre (with a just a dash of romance tossed in).

Several of my earlier works have strong romantic themes, but all are infused with threads of mystery. I have a passion for folklore, myth, and urban legends and that attraction often factors into my writing. You’ll find threads of archaic tales and mysterious places woven throughout many of my novels.

I am a member of the International Thriller Writers and a past president of the Central Pennsylvania Writer’s Organization. If I’m not camped out at my keyboard or have my nose buried in a book, I’m likely looking up blurry images of cryptids on Google, sorting through vintage photographs or imagining life as a cat.

Relevant Links:

Sandra Cox


Living life. Writing fantasy.

Sandra writes YA Fantasy, Paranormal and Historical Romance, and Metaphysical Nonfiction. She lives in sunny North Carolina with her husband, a brood of critters and an occasional foster cat. Although shopping is high on the list, her greatest pleasure is sitting on her screened in porch, listening to the birds, sipping coffee or a latte and enjoying a good book. She's a vegetarian and a Muay Thai enthusiast.
Relevant Links:

Harmony Kent

The author who gets write into your head.
  Genres: Multi-genre
Quirky Fact I don’t want anyone to know: Wrote the entirety of The Glade while listening to the Twilight movie soundtrack. And she’s not mentioning the glass of white (ahem) ‘grape juice’ that kept finding its way to her computer station.

Author Bio:
Harmony Kent is famous for her laughter, and has made quite the name for herself … she’s also, um, a writer … and fairly well known for that too. She’s even won a few awards. Harmony lives in rural Cornwall with her ever-present sense of humour and quirky neighbours and refuses to admit to her age.

If you catch her at work, you’ll see that she also offers editing, proof reading, manuscript appraisal, and beta reading services. Not to mention being passionate about supporting her fellow authors.

Links to Harmony and her books:

Twitter: @harmony_kent







Staci Troilo

Staci Troilo. Writing Relationship Wrongs.

 Genres:
Romance, Suspense, Paranormal, Mystery, and Mainstream

Quirky fact I don’t want anyone to know:

The socks in my sock drawer and the books on my shelf are arranged in rainbow order.

Bio:

I’ve always loved fiction, ever since my parents read me fairy tales when I was little. Today, my interests are much more eclectic. I love getting lost in sci-fi battles, fantasy realms, horror worlds, suspenseful intrigues, and romantic entanglements.

As goes my reading, so goes my writing. I can’t pick a single genre to focus on, so I don’t even try. I’m proud to say I’m a multi-genre author.

When I’m not reading or writing, I’m spending time with family and friends, possibly cooking for them, or maybe enjoying an afternoon in the pool. To learn more about me, visit me at http://stacitroilo.com or connect with me on social media.

Relevant Links:


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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE


The authors will be awarding a $50 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

domenica 30 ottobre 2016

Review & Giveaway:Body on the Bayou by Ellen Byron

corrected-body-bayou-large-banner640Body on the Bayou
by Ellen Byron

BODY ON THE BAYOU

Body on the Bayou by Ellen Bryon

 2 in Series
Genre – Cozy Mystery
Series: A Cajun Country Mystery (Book 2)
Hardcover: 320 pages
Publisher: Crooked Lane Books (September 13, 2016)
ISBN-13: 978-1629537689
E-Book – ASIN: B01H082DPY
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Synopsis:

 The Crozats feared that past murders at Crozat Plantation B&B might spell the death of their beloved estate, but they’ve managed to survive the scandal. Now there’s a très bigger story in Pelican, Louisiana: the upcoming nuptials between Maggie Crozat’s nemesis, Police Chief Rufus Durand, and her co-worker, Vanessa Fleer.
When everyone else refuses the job of being Vanessa’s Maid of Honor, Maggie reluctantly takes up the title and finds herself tasked with a long list of duties–the most important of which is entertaining Vanessa’s cousin, Ginger Fleer-Starke. But just days before the wedding, Ginger’s lifeless body is found on the bayou and the Pelican PD, as well as the Crozats, have another murder mystery on their hands.
There’s a gumbo-potful of suspects, including an ex-Marine with PTSD, an annoying local newspaper reporter, and Vanessa’s own sparkplug of a mother. But when it looks like the investigation is zeroing in on Vanessa as the prime suspect, Maggie reluctantly adds keeping the bride-to-be out of jail to her list of Maid of Honor responsibilities in Body on the Bayou.

My Review:

 It's a good read, full of twists and suspected with so many quirky characters and many cute puppies.
   Maggie returns to her hometown in Louisiana to help her parents manage their B & B. In the meantime, she should also make bridesmaid to a colleague very demanding that fills her with homework. When arrives an invited unwanted and is killed, the tasks of Maggie increase even more.
The characters were well-developed and very funny, especially the secondary ones. Beautiful and engaging the setting's descriptions, really seemed to be in Pelican with Maggie.
It was a fun and fascinating read with a perfect blend of humor and suspense. Family, traditions, food, plantations, marriage: is hard not to love this story
Highly recommended especially for those who love coy mystery set in the South.




ellem byronAbout The Author –
Ellen’s debut novel, PLANTATION SHUDDERS: A Cajun Country Mystery, has been nominated for an Agatha Best First Novel award, a Lefty for Best Humorous Mystery, and a Daphne Award for Best Mainstream Mystery. The second Cajun Country Mystery, BODY ON THE BAYOU, will be available in September 2016. Ellen’s TV credits include Wings and Just Shoot Me; she’s written over 200 magazine articles; her published plays include the award-winning Graceland and Asleep on the Wind. Ellen Byron is a native New Yorker who lives in Los Angeles and attributes her fascination with Louisiana to her college years at New Orleans’ Tulane University.
Purchase Links:
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giovedì 27 ottobre 2016

Review & Giveaway: The Woman He Married by Julie N. Ford


The Woman He Married
by Julie N. Ford

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GENRE: Women's Fiction

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BLURB:

Once an aspiring young attorney, Josie looked forward to taking on the injustices of the world—one case at a time. Eleven years later, she’s a stay-at-home mom and battling demons that don’t require a law degree. Only keeping up pretenses proves more than she can bear when a bracelet that should have been hers shows up on the wrist of another woman. Her marriage slowly begins to unravel as an ex-lover comes back into her life. When he offers her the dreams she thought she’d lost, Josie must chose between the man she married and the one she let get away.


John has always known exactly what he wanted. A career as a high-powered attorney, followed by the perfect family of six, and then elected public service. So it was no surprise that the first time he laid his eyes on Josie, he knew she was the one he’d share his dreams with. More than a decade, and one tragic miscalculation later, all he has worked for is slipping through his fingers. Powerless to stem the flow, the one thing he remains certain of: he can’t lose the woman he married.

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My Review:


It's a strong and very realistic story, unfortunately, many women have found themselves in the same complex and difficult situation of Josie.
Josie dreamed of a wonderful career as a lawyer then met the man of her life and everything changed. She has became a full-time mom, a wife always present and a part-time assistant. Her life seems wonderful even without having realized her dream but one day discovers that her husband is not faithful and her whole world collapses. When she meets another man, kind, caring, loving doesn't know whether to abandon everything to try to live a better life. Will she be able to leave the man she loves but who hurts her deeply?
Josie is a normal but wonderful woman, a  credible and realistic character, in which each one can easily identify with. Instead, I hated the cold, detached, attitude of her husband.
It was an exciting and interesting read, very realistic and well-written.




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EXCERPT:

Josie’s first big mistake, as it turned out, was putting John’s goals, his dreams and wishes, ahead of her own. As with the law, apparently so went marriage. Once a precedent had been set, it was next to impossible to overturn.

In this modern age, with so many women balancing career and family, she hadn’t expected to have to choose between the two. Nor had she realized there were still men like John who believed his success should be enough for them both; much less women like herself, who’d willingly exchange her dreams for the love of one such man.

For the first time in years, tonight she’d caught a glimpse of her old self, of the woman who had once been too brave for her own good. Who wasn’t afraid to speak her mind, to fight for what was right. Unfortunately when John had said he was leaving, that woman had panicked and shamelessly thrown herself at him . . . An offer he’d flat-out refused . . . That refusal had struck like a single kill-shot, finishing off what was left of Josie’s self-worth, and she’d let him go without further argument . . . Where he could be at this hour, she refused to imagine. Not even in her mind could she stomach the sight of John’s body wrapped around that of another woman’s, his hands touching her in places he’d once promised to only touch Josie. With each passing hour, her hurt and humiliation had slowly been replaced by the numbness she’d grown much too accustomed to . . . She’d been trying to live this suburban life for too long, forcing herself to become a brand of woman she didn’t know how to be. The kind of woman she’d never wanted to be. She needed to stop, to just say no, but she couldn’t figure out how. How did a mother of three young children—angels she loved beyond belief—with a beautiful home and a handsome, successful husband justify not wanting her life anymore?

John had never given much credence to self-help jargon like doormat, codependent, inner-child. Baggage. But for the sake of argument, he spared a thought to what so-called baggage he’d been lugging around since his childhood. The image of a weighty chip, a sarsen that looked a whole lot like his old man and had been clinging to his shoulder for as long as he could remember, leapt to mind. How had he failed to recognize that the one person he loathed most had been the very person dictating his behavior all these years? Wasn’t life peculiar? The way clarity and perspective came not in moments of peace and quiet reflection, but in times of turmoil, when one’s world had been knocked about and was just beginning to settle upright again.


   
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

A graduate from San Diego State University with a BA in Political Science, Julie N. Ford also earned a Masters in Social Work from the University of Alabama, which has only made her better able to recognize the unhealthy, codependent relationship she has with writing. Professionally, she has worked in teaching and as a marriage and family counselor. She is the author of six women’s fiction novels, including Count Down to Love, a 2011 Whitney Award finalist. When she’s not writing, she entertains delusions of being a master gardener, that is, when she’s not killing the unsuspecting plants in her yard with her good intentions. She lives outside of Nashville, Tennessee, with her husband, two daughters, and the cutest Scottish fold cat you’ve ever seen.

The Woman He Married will be $0.99 during the tour.
Amazon:

Website/Blog:

Facebook:

Twitter:


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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE

Julie N. Ford will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review & Giveaway: An Act of Murder by Mary Angela

an-act-of-murder-large-banner640

An Act of Murder
by Mary Angela



AN ACT OF MURDER
Series: Professor Prather Mystery (Book 1)
Setting – South Dakota
Paperback: 236 pages
Publisher: Camel Press (October 15, 2016)
ISBN-13: 978-1603813754
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Synopsis

In the sleepy college town of Copper Bluff, South Dakota, English professor Emmeline Prather is enjoying the start of a new semester. But when one of her students dies working on the fall musical, it disrupts life on the small, quiet campus. Although the police rule the death accidental, Prof. Prather has good reason to suspect foul play.
Unmasking the murderer proves much more challenging than finding dangling participles, so Em recruits fellow English professor Lenny Jenkins for assistance. Together, they comb the campus and vicinity for clues, risking their reputations and possibly their jobs. After an intruder breaks into Em’s house, Lenny advises caution–and perhaps a change of address. Em, on the other hand, is all the more determined to forge ahead, convinced they’re on the brink of an important breakthrough.

My Review

Great debut for this new series and for this author, her style is very brilliant  and flowing.
Emmeline teaches English in a college and really loves her job. But one day the peace is shattered by a murder. She can not help but investigate.
The characters are believable and engaging. Emmeline is a smart woman, determined and stubborn, she continues the investigation nonetheless everyone is opposed.  I really loved the setting of the story, this friendly college town of South Dakota.
The story is well written, full of twists and very addictive that really seems to be along with Emmeline to solve the mystery. This was a great read that left me turning the pages, eager to know what was going to happen next.
If you love mystery setting in college this book is to be read



mary angela

About The Author

Like her protagonist in the Professor Prather mystery series, Mary Angela lives on the Great Plains and teaches college writing and literature. When she’s not grading papers (when is she not grading papers?), she enjoys reading, traveling, and spending time with her family. She and her husband have two amazing daughters, one adorable dog, and a cat who would rather not be limited by an adjective. For more information, go to www.maryangelabooks.com.
·         Author Links
Twitter: @maryangelabooks
·         Purchase Links


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Review & Giveaway: The Corpse With The Ruby Lips by Cathy Ace

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The Corpse With The Ruby Lips
by Cathy Ace


Ruby Lips cover high res
The Corpse with the Ruby Lips (A Cait Morgan Mystery)
Cozy Mystery
TouchWood Editions (November 1, 2016)
Paperback: 240 pages
ISBN-13: 978-1771511957
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Quirky criminology professor Cait Morgan is invited to be a guest lecturer at a Budapest university, and although she’s hesitant to go without her husband and trusted sidekick, Bud, who must stay home to care for his aging parents, she decides to make the month-long trip on her own.
Soon after arriving, one of her new students, Zsofia, pleads with Cait to help her uncover any clues about her grandmother’s unsolved murder, which happened decades ago on the campus of Cait’s own home university in Canada. Cait agrees, but when she is repeatedly hassled by an creepy colleague, and as bizarre details about Zsofia’s family members come to light, Cait is beset by uncertainty.
As she gets closer to the truth, Cait’s investigation puts the powers-that-be on high alert, and her instincts tell her she’s in grave danger. Bud races to Budapest to come to Cait’s side, but will it be too late?
My Review

I am very fascinated by the city of Budapest, I would love to visit it and I am really happy to do this virtual walk.
Cait is not excited like me to visit this mysterious city without her devoted husband Bud. He has had to return home to attend to his mother and she had to face alone this experience to teach in a foreign university. One of her students involves her immediately  in a unsolved case of many years ago, the murder of her grandmother.
This book is part of the "A Cait Morgan Mystery" series but can be read as a stand alone, I have only read another book in this series, and I had no difficulty understanding this story.
Cait is really a great protagonist, intelligent, curious, meticulous, with great investigatve qualities even without the support of her beloved life partner.
It was a fun, smart and cozy mystery. The author is very good at describing places, knows how to make live the cities which set her stories and knows how to make us feel the smells, the tastes and atmosphere of these lovely places. The plot is well developed, flowing, full of clues and suspects, captures you from the first page.
Highly recommended



cathy

About The Author –

Cathy Ace loves crime! It’s true – she discovered Nancy Drew in her local library, then found Agatha Christie on her Mum’s bookshelves, and she never looked back. Cathy happily admits that the characters she met between the book-covers as a child have influenced her writing. “Nancy Drew was plucky, strong and independent, and Agatha Christie’s puzzles engaged me every time. I love the sort of book that mixes intricate plotting with a dash of danger, and that’s what I’ve tried to create with my Cait Morgan Mystery Series. Beginning my new series, featuring the women of the WISE Enquiries Agency, I have been able to indulge my love of stately homes, village life and the interplay between characters that can take place in that sort of setting.”
Born and raised in Swansea, South Wales, Cathy is, like her heroine Cait Morgan, now a Canadian citizen. “Cait’s Welsh Canadian, as am I. They say ‘write what you know’, so a short, plus-sized Welsh woman, who’s quite bossy, fits the bill! But Cait and I are not one and the same: she’s got skills and talents I don’t possess,and I’m delighted to say that I don’t usually encounter corpses wherever I go! I’ve also chosen to burrow even deeper into my roots by creating a new cast of characters in the WISE women who come from all four corners of the United Kingdom and work in a uniquely British setting – a ducal estate set in the rolling Welsh countryside of the Wye Valley in Powys, where I spent a good deal of time when I was young.”
With a successful career in marketing having given her the chance to write training courses and textbooks, Cathy has now finally turned her attention to her real passion: crime fiction. Her short stories have appeared in multiple anthologies. Two of her works, “Dear George” and “Domestic Violence”, have also been produced by Jarvis & Ayres Productions as “Afternoon Reading” broadcasts for BBC Radio 4.
Cathy now writes two series of traditional mysteries: The Cait Morgan Mysteries (TouchWood Editions) and The WISE Enquiries Agency Mysteries (Severn House Publishers).
Cathy is proud to be Chair of Crime Writers of Canada,  a member of Sisters in Crime, the Crime Writers Association, and Mystery Writers of America.
Author Links:
Website:  www.cathyace.com
Twitter: @AceCathy
 Purchase Links


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