Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Valentine's Day Book Blitz, Day 3: Becky's Kiss by Nicholas Fisher




Nicholas Fisher is a college professor and a sports enthusiast. He writes adult horror under another name, but thought of the idea for Becky’s Kiss while coaching his son’s baseball team. Since the story involved high school drama he decided to write his first young adult piece. When not writing or teaching, Nicholas Fisher enjoys pizza, reality television, and playing the banjo. He lives in Pennsylvania with his wife and his son goes to Arizona State University.




Synopsis:

Becky Michigan meets the boy of her dreams on her first day of ninth grade, a gorgeous blonde baseball player named Danny with crystal blue eyes, but no one else in the school ever heard of him. To make matters worse, Becky starts having dreams that she is the greatest pitcher on the planet, and when she throws an orange in the cafeteria at more than 90 miles per hour, she has some questions for the boy who keeps disappearing.

The stronger Becky’s feelings grow for Danny the faster she throws, and the faster she throws the less he shows up! Suddenly she is offered the opportunity to try out for the varsity baseball team, a shot at being popular for once, but does this mean she has to give up the hope of ever finding true love? All answers come to light out behind the high school at midnight, on an old overgrown ball field in the woods behind the real one, fifty feet off the third baseline. It is a magic field. One of dreams. Or possibly nightmares.




Top 10 Favorite Things!

1-Pizza
2-Baseball
3-Football
4-Heavy Metal
5-Horror Movies
6-Autumn
7-Tee shirts with cool logo graphics
8-Coffee mugs with cool designs on them
9-Red mustangs and other muscle cars
10-My red Mustang with a black rag top

Let's find out some fun info about the author!

1) I have always wanted to see a game in every baseball park in America.

2) I will never forget my wedding, the birth of my son, and the home run he hit in travel ball at age twelve, last inning, against a closer who threw 70 mph from fifty feet away (Cal Ripken distance).

3) The best thing about writing is being able to make up the rules for an invented world and then changing them.

4) When I am not writing I like listening to modern hard rock.

5) I am working on a horror novel under a different author’s name.


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Tuesday, February 2, 2016

Book Review: Burning Midnight by Will McIntosh


Burning Midnight, by Will McIntosh
2016, 320p, YA Science Fiction
My Rating=3.5 Stars
Source: Received a copy from the publisher for an honest review



This YA novel pits four underprivileged teens against an evil billionaire in the race of a lifetime.

Sully is a sphere dealer at a flea market. It doesn’t pay much—Alex Holliday’s stores have muscled out most of the independent sellers—but it helps him and his mom make the rent. No one knows where the brilliant-colored spheres came from. One day they were just there, hidden all over the earth like huge gemstones. Burn a pair and they make you a little better: an inch taller, skilled at math, better-looking. The rarer the sphere, the greater the improvement—and the more expensive the sphere.

When Sully meets Hunter, a girl with a natural talent for finding spheres, the two start searching together. One day they find a Gold—a color no one has ever seen. And when Alex Holliday learns what they have, he will go to any lengths, will use all of his wealth and power, to take it from them.

There’s no question the Gold is priceless, but what does it actually do? None of them is aware of it yet, but the fate of the world rests on this little golden orb. Because all the world fights over the spheres, but no one knows where they come from, what their powers are, or why they’re here.


Sully is 17 years old and sells spheres at a flea market, but it's not very profitable. Spheres just started showing up all over the place one day. As people burn them (which means they put two of the same color to their temples at the same time), they are given enhanced senses or abilities (Forest Green--enhanced sense of smell, Taupe--artistic ability, Cream--athleticism, Periwinkle--good with numbers, etc). There are 43 sphere colors and a rarity scale from one to ten. Sully seems to have the best luck with the ones on the lower end of the scale, but they aren't worth as much money. He did find a rare one once but got ripped off by a billionaire named Alex Holliday. He's trying to make ends meet so he and his mother don't need to move away to live in a relative's basement.

Hunter shows up at his booth one day with a sphere on the rare end. When their sale doesn't go as planned, they team up together to find even more rare spheres. That eventually leads to them teaming up with two more of Sully's friends, Dom and Mandy, and they end up on a wild adventure. 

I liked the way this book started! It was easy to cheer Sully on as he had been wronged in the past and was looking to improve his lot in life. Once he met Hunter, he was able to see how teaming up with her would be beneficial. They were creative and made sacrifices on their quest to find rare spheres. When the four teenagers got together, their motivations were different, which caused fights at times and solutions other times.

There was a point where I couldn't put this book down because I was so engrossed in it and then some things happened that felt out of place and I started losing interest. I kept with it, though, hoping it would pick up again. It did somewhat and I thought the ending was okay. The only content of note is that there is some language. Overall, I liked this book and think it will appeal the most to science fiction fans!


Will McIntosh is a Hugo Award-winning science fiction author, as well as a finalist for eleven other awards. His alien invasion novel Defenders was optioned by Warner Brothers for a feature film, while Love Minus Eighty, was named the best SF novel of 2013 by the American Library Association. Coming in 2016 are his first young adult novel, Burning Midnight (Penguin Random House), about a pair of teens hunting for mysterious colored spheres that give people enhanced abilities, and the wild SF adventure Faller from Tor Books.

Along with four novels that have been translated into five languages, Will has published dozens of short stories in magazines such as Asimov's Science Fiction, Strange Horizons, Daily Science Fiction, and Interzone. His stories are often reprinted in different "Year's Best" anthologies.

Will was a psychology professor before turning to writing full time, and still occasionally teaches a class at The College of William and Mary. He lives in Williamsburg, Virginia, and is the father of twins. 


Cover Reveal: Fear of Falling by Catherine Lanigan



On Tour with Prism Book Tours.

Welcome to the Cover Reveal for
Fear of Falling
By Catherine Lanigan
Coming March 1, 2016, from Harlequin Heartwarming...


Adult Contemporary Romance
Paperback & ebook, 368 Pages

Her best bet is to stay away

Was Olivia hearing this right? The one man in Indian Lake she'd found truly intriguing since, well, forever—the hopelessly handsome heir to the region's most successful farming operation, Rafe Barzonni—was involved in horse racing? That made him, and her sudden attraction, downright dangerous. He wasn't just out of her league. He was a gambler. Like her father. With the shame of her father's racetrack betting addiction still haunting her, Olivia can't be part of that world. Rafe's world. She can't trust him, or his magnetism. But there's something deep in his incredible blue eyes that keeps drawing her closer…


The Other Books in the Series

   

Catherine Lanigan is the bestselling author of over thirty published titles in both fiction and non-fiction, including the novelizations of Romancing the Stone and The Jewel of the Nile, as well as over half a dozen anthologies, including “Chicken Soup for the Soul: Living your Dream”, “Chicken Soup for the Writer’s Soul”, “Chocolate for a Woman’s Heart”, Chocolate for a Woman’s Spirit”. Ms. Lanigan’s novels have been translated into over a dozen languages including German, French, Italian, Spanish, Russian, Portuguese, Chinese, and Japanese. Ms. Lanigan’s novels are also available on audio-cassette, CD and on electronic format. A prolific writer, she is always writing wonderful stories. She has several titles only available in ebook format on Amazon.com Several of her titles have been chosen for The Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Clubs. Her novel, The Christmas Star, won the Gold Medal Award Top Pick from Romantic Times Magazine for December, 2002, and has also won Book of the Year Romance Gold Award from ForeWord Magazine as well as Book of the Year Romance from Reader’s Preference. In March, 2006 Divine Nudges: Tales of Angelic Intervention and the second in Lanigan’s Angel Watch series of books, was published by HCI, the Chicken Soup for the Soul publisher.

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3 ebooks of Fear of Falling

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Valentine's Day Book Blitz, Day 2: The Suspect's Daughter by Donna Hatch


 



Determined to help her father with his political career, Jocelyn sets aside dreams of love until she meets a mysterious gentleman with dangerous secrets. Working undercover, Grant’s only suspect for a murder conspiracy is the father of a lady who is getting increasingly hard to ignore. They must work together to find the assassins. England’s future hangs in the balance…and so does their love.







 

        



Donna Hatch is the author of the best-selling “Rogue Hearts Series,” and a winner of writing awards such as The Golden Quill and the International Digital Award. A hopeless romantic and adventurer at heart, she discovered her writing passion at the tender age of 8 and has been listening to those voices ever since. She has become a sought-after workshop presenter, and also juggles freelance editing, multiple volunteer positions, and most of all, her six children (seven, counting her husband). A native of Arizona who recently transplanted to the Pacific Northwest, she and her husband of over twenty years are living proof that there really is a happily ever after.

Facts About the Author

1. I will never forget ...how scary it was to submit my first manuscript

2. The Best thing about writing is ...that moment when I know the story is working. Writing "The End" is a very close second.

Connect with the Author:

      

   

Excerpt:

Grant hung back, saying nothing, except a nod when Jocelyn introduced him. As she spoke to Lucy, Grant picked a tiny wildflower, crouched down, and presented it solemnly to little Flora. She took it, just as solemnly, and curtsied. His expression softened. Flora smiled. Two year-old Mary approached shyly, and did a little twisting kind of dance, chewing her lip and eyeing Grant expectantly. Kneeling to get eye-level with her, he offered her a flower as well. She beamed and accepted his gift as if he’d handed her a treasure. His eyes softened and his mouth curved. A smile.

Jocelyn’s heart turned into the consistency of warm pudding. The crusty Grant Amesbury was gentle with children. And he’d smiled.


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Book Blast: Falcon Song by Kristin Cross


Falcon Song by Kristin Cross

Kate can handle that Jason Falcon is gorgeous.

And she can handle that he is fantastically talented, and competent, and funny, and sweet, and . . . .  well, all of the things he is.

What she isn’t sure she can handle is that he and his country band have suddenly become wildly famous.

Even though she has always known that he near worships her, with millions of girls now throwing themselves at him, Kate is afraid that Jason will find he no longer loves Kate best.  Then, when she discovers something completely earth shattering, it only makes her more unsure.

Realizing that she can never settle for less than absolute devotion, as she is struggling to find what her place will be in Jason’s new top of the charts world, Kate wonders how you can ever truly know that things will work out.

Does True Love Always Lead To Happily Ever After?

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Praise for Falcon Song
“So much emotion came through the words of this story. I felt it all—regret, forgiveness, redemption, and a powerful love that wrapped it all together. I had a hard time putting it down. This story really touched me!” DL

“I loved this story! Jason is one of my favorite heroes ever. I felt like I was right there with them through it all.” JM

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Excerpt

Kate found Jason asleep on the porch swing again. Her drive had left her drained, without answers and somewhat resigned. As she looked down at him sleeping, still, the only thing she really knew was that she loved him. Loved him dearly. In spite of everything.

When it came right down to it, that was what made her happy. She wished there was a way to separate this crushing heartache from the sweet peace she felt when she was with him. Who knows, maybe she could get really good at ignoring the parts of his life she didn’t understand. She sat down on the edge of the swing and touched his beautiful hair.

His eyes opened slowly and this time there wasn’t a smile, but there was a sweet, sincere tenderness as he quietly watched her for a few seconds. She stroked his cheek and then ran a finger over his sensuous bottom lip. Even if he wasn’t perfectly trustworthy, he was definitely beautiful. She kissed the tip of her finger and put it back there on his lip and said softly, “Wake up, sleepy head. You’re gonna get a million ‘squito bites out here.”

He sat up and reached out to touch her cheek. “I’ll live. How was Texas?”

She sat down beside him. “Still big.”

He smiled sadly, “I told Cody you’d driven to Texas to talk to God. He said he didn’t even realize God lived there. He’s decided that’s why Texans are egotistical.”

She laughed. “That’s exactly what I needed just now. Laughing feels good. I thought I didn’t get to see you until tomorrow? What brings you tonight?”

He groaned and made a sound of disgust. “Ah, I Googled myself. It was awful.”

She pushed the porch swing with her foot. “I know.”

“I’m not really as bad as it looks. I swear.”

“I know.”

Author Kristin Cross

Kristin Cross was a mostly obedient child—unless her mom wanted her to put her book down.

She grew up in the Rockies and traveled with her family enough to want to travel more and have adventures in all those exotic looking places on the map that she hasn’t been to—yet. Now, as an adult, she also loves relaxing at home in the mountains and coming up with stories about those places.
Motherhood has been her best time yet, and she wishes she’d had more than just four marvelous children. She loves a good storm, a beautiful sunset, the wind in her face, puppies, and fresh mangos with her shrimp.
And her husband, DJ. She truly adores DJ.



Book Blast Giveaway – $100 Amazon Gift Card or $100 in Paypal Cash

Ends 2/12/16

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader and sponsored by the participating authors. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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Monday, February 1, 2016

Valentine's Day Book Blitz, Day 1: Cross Examination by Denise Moncrief




Denise is a Southern girl who has lived in Louisiana all her life, and yes, she has a drawl. She has a wonderful husband and two incredible children, who not only endure her writing moods, but also encourage her to indulge her writing passion. Besides writing romantic suspense, she enjoys traveling, reading, and scrapbooking.

Accounting is a skill she has learned to earn a little money to support her writing habit. She wrote her first story when she was a teen, seventeen handwritten pages on school-ruled paper and an obvious rip-off of the last romance novel she had read. She's been writing off and on ever since, and with more than a few full-length manuscripts already completed, she has no desire to slow down.




No longer able to tolerate her husband Scott’s abuse, Tamara Slay packs up her daughter, Gabby, and moves to Louisiana, hoping a new life and a new identity will give her a fresh start. An unexpected phone call from a Sheriff’s deputy in Florida shatters her sense of security. Scott hides a much darker secret than abusing his wife. Above all else, she must protect Gabby from Scott.

Lt. Martin Beck of the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Department has been investigating the death of Brandy Fuller for years. Sidetracked for a while by his wife’s murder, Beck finally reopens the cold Fuller case and discovers a thin lead. The new evidence takes him to Louisiana to meet the estranged wife of his primary suspect. Together, Beck and Tamara conclude that Scott not only murdered Brandy Fuller, but seven other women on the Florida Gulf coast.

As Beck dives deeper into the investigation, he draws closer to Tamara. Passions ignite as the one woman who wants Scott dead the most allies with the one man who wants Scott dead the most. Can Beck protect Tamara and Gabby from Scott and stop a serial killer from killing again?


No longer able to tolerate her husband Scott's abuse, Tamara Slay packs up her daughter, Gabby, and moves to Louisiana, hoping a new life and a new identity will give her a fresh start. An unexpected phone call from a Sheriff's deputy in Florida shatters her sense of security. Scott hides a much darker secret than abusing his wife. Above all else, she must protect Gabby from Scott. Lt. Martin Beck of the Santa Rosa County Sheriff's Department has been investigating the death of Brandy Fuller for years. Sidetracked for a while by his wife's murder, Beck finally reopens the cold Fuller case and discovers a thin lead. The new evidence takes him to Louisiana to meet the estranged wife of his primary suspect. Together, Beck and Tamara conclude that Scott not only murdered Brandy Fuller, but seven other women on the Florida Gulf coast.As Beck dives deeper into the investigation, he draws closer to Tamara. Passions ignite as the one woman who wants Scott dead the most allies with the one man who wants Scott dead the most. Can Beck protect Tamara and Gabby from Scott and stop a serial killer from killing again?



Ten of my Favorite Things 
(Not Necessarily in Order Of Preference)

1. Writing
2. Tex Mex Food
3. Coffee
4. Snuggling with my children
5. Snuggling with my husband
6. Sleeping Late on A Cold Morning
7. Reading a Book On the Sofa Under a Warm Blanet
8. Shopping With My Daughter
9. Playing Mario Kart 8 With My Son
10. Laughing with Family and/or Friends

Six Questions

Readers would be surprised to know ... that I have a distinctive southern drawl.

I have always wanted to ... sing in front of a large audience and receive a standing ovation.

I will never forget ... how it feels to struggle toward a dream and experience rejection because every rejection brought me closer to living the dream. I never want to take my dream for granted.

The Best thing about writing is ... building new characters and watching them grow throughout the book. By the end of writing a book, if I’ve written my character well, the character becomes very real to me.

When I am not writing, I like to .... hang around with my family. My husband and children mean more to me than anything else in the world.

I am working on ... the sixth book in my Haunted Hearts series. The first in a new five book set in the series set in south Louisiana.



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Book Blitz: Valentine Pets & Kisses Anthology


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Nothing is more heart-warming than kisses from the pet who adores you and the man who loves you, so snuggle up with VALENTINE PETS & KISSES — an anthology of fourteen sweet romances from USA Today bestselling and award-winning authors — and strike the perfect mood for moonlit walks and candlelight dinners with your pet and sweetheart.

Check out descriptions and excerpts from two of the stories featured in the anthology!

Valentine Hound Dog
- Rachelle Ayala

Fashion icon Jenna Hart, along with her basset hound puppy, tries to convince a burned former fireman that beauty is never skin deep and love's arrow strikes not only the beautiful, but the bold.

Excerpt

Unfortunately, now that Connor was promoted to chief, he didn’t hang out as much anymore, which meant Larry was facing a Friday night with a TV dinner in front of a basketball game.

A piercing wind blew as he lifted the dumpster lid, threatening to blow it down. Larry held the lid with one hand and hefted the trash bag into it. Letting the lid slam, he turned toward the warmth of the building.

Something moved near the dumpster, darting behind it. Probably a rat. He should set traps, but not tonight. The wind whined and howled as he opened the door.

Another whine and something furry touched the back of his leg. It was a puppy, likely a basset hound, with a brown and black patchwork face and white paws.

“What’cha doing here, boy?” Larry bent down and held his hand out for the puppy to sniff. There was no collar, but the puppy appeared well groomed and plump. “Did you get lost?”

The puppy licked his hand, and Larry scooped him up. “I bet you’re hungry. Tomorrow I’ll put up a poster. See if anyone lost you.”

He rubbed the puppy’s head and long ears while the puppy licked his jowls and yawned. How could he resist such cuteness?

The Crazy Girl’s Handbook
- DelSheree Gladden

Spending the weekend babysitting her two nephews and a puppy was supposed to be fun. Sweating to death at a baseball game while getting gum in her hair, soda down her shirt, and an ice cream pedicure wasn't part of the deal. Neither was finding out the best guy she'd ever missed a blind date with had witnessed it all. Longest. Weekend. Ever.

Excerpt

We looked both ways before crossing the street. Both boys held my hand and Thor stayed right at my heel with the leash wrapped around my wrist. The second we set foot on the sidewalk on the opposite side of the street, the boys took off and Thor made a valiant attempt at following them. Problem was, his leash was still looped around my wrist so I could hold the boys’ hands more easily. So when he lunged forward to follow, I didn’t have any control of the leash to stop him from taking me down.

Pain blossomed in more than one spot as my elbows and palms hit the cement and my head whacked into the decorative stone edging that lined the grass. Thor yelped as my dead weight kept him from getting any farther, then doubled back to see what was wrong and stomped all over me at least three times before settling on my head. By the time my senses cleared, I was so tangled in leash and puppy I couldn’t even figure out where to start. My head and arms throbbing didn’t help at all.

“Thor, get off,” a firm voice said.

I thought I wanted to die when I got gum in my hair, or soda ice down my shirt, or an ice cream pedicure. Those were nothing compared to having to be rescued from an over-enthusiastic puppy by Roman Carpenter while covered in dirt, grass, and blood. It was a miracle I didn’t give up right then and just start crying. I loved my nephews, but I was never going to be able to show my face in this neighborhood again.

The heavy weight of the squirming—and rather large—puppy was finally removed from my face. I heard Roman ask one of the boys to hold the leash, but I kept my eyes closed out of pure shame. Not until a pair of hands pressed against my face did I even dare to breathe. Even then, it was a gasp at the urgency behind the touch.

“Greenly, are you okay?” Roman demanded.

The hint of worry in his voice forced me to peel my eyelids apart. I peeked up at him through half-opened eyes and was startled not to find him laughing at me again. There was real, honest fear in his expression and it left me speechless.

Author Bios:

Rachelle Ayala

From romantic suspense to sweet contemporaries, I write from my heart and love to include children and pets in my stories.

DelSheree Gladden

DelSheree Gladden is a USA Today bestselling young adult and romance author, whose writing includes everything from dystopian and Native American mythology to sweet and funny romances.

Author Links

Rachelle Ayala


DelSheree Gladden


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