Friday, September 30, 2016

Book Tour and Giveaway: Wicked Folk Witchy World Book Two by Jamie McFarlane

Wicked Folk 
Witchy World
Book Two
Jamie McFarlane

Genre: Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Fickle Dragon Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-943792-12-2
ASIN:
Number of pages: 266
Word Count: 86,837
Cover Artist: Silviya Yordanova

Book Description:

Late one night, a teenaged witch witnesses her uncle perform the forbidden ritual to summon a demon. His carelessness results in the demon breaking free and being released into the world. Drawn to the young witch's powers like a shark, the demon is only temporarily thwarted when she manages to escape.

Felix Slade is a wizard living far from the family he grew up with. Recently he's been unable to sleep as night after night a beautiful young witch is stalked by a demon in his dreams. Each night, new details are exposed and Felix is soon convinced that it’s up to him to prevent the woman’s demise. The dreams reach a critical point when Felix’s own family is threatened by the violence he’s sure is yet to come.

With his sister and the woman he loves by his side, Felix rushes to face the greatest challenge he’s encountered yet. There is great darkness inside him and he must choose to embrace or reject it in order to face the demon’s evil.


Excerpt:

Summoned
Faa Farmstead, just outside Eppy Faire, five years ago
Lace Faa stared out at the waning crescent moon through the wavy glass of the old farmhouse window, wishing for even the slightest breeze. The day's heat refused to dissipate from the humid, summer air which clung to her as she tried unsuccessfully to fall asleep. As if on command, a slight puff of wind rustled the sheer curtains of her second floor window, carrying with it the faint sound of chanting. She strained her ears, curiosity piqued, wondering who might be working her family's hidden craft so late at night. Her gaze shifted to the barn across the gravel driveway. A flickering glow between weathered siding exposed the presence of lit candles and a ritual in progress.
She dropped her legs over the side of the bed and placed her feet in just the right spot to keep the weathered floor from creaking. At the age of sixteen, Lace wasn't fully initiated in the subtle magics of her kin, but moving silently had been drilled into her from an early age. She walked carefully, rolling from heel to toe along the unseen joists that supported the floor, avoiding loose boards as she slipped from bedroom to hallway. The hem of her white cotton nightgown thumped quietly, caressing the wooden stair treads as she descended to the kitchen.
For a moment, she paused at the screen door and considered its habit of screeching when opened. Wetting forefinger and thumb in her mouth, she rubbed them on the old, rusted top hinge. Tall and slender, Lace slipped through the door, opening it only a crack. Relief from the heat held in the old house was welcome as she picked her way gingerly across the gravel. Her eyes focused on the flickering light leaking from the ancient barn.
Lace negotiated the piles of junk that had found their final resting place next to the building and carefully placed both hands on the rough siding, leaning forward to look through one of the many cracks in its façade. Her eye came to rest on the edge of a white circle, drawn on the dirt floor only feet from her position. With her limited view, she glimpsed two black candles burning brightly at the tips of what she suspected was a pentagram, although without full view of the circle, she couldn't know for certain.
"Phezore Gesteriph Feoro, I summon you." The bold voice, her uncle Willum Gordon's, resumed chanting in the ancient language Lace believed was only known by her extended family. Her heart thudded in her chest, recognizing the simple ritual - if only from her reading.
"Oh, Willum," she whispered involuntarily before bringing her hand to her mouth.
"Who's there?" Willum asked loudly from within the barn.
Lace stepped back, startled, catching her heel on a piece of long forgotten machinery. She spun, trying to save herself, but in the poor light her knee came in contact with a stack of precariously balanced wooden crates. She lunged from her position, diving away from the collapsing junk, all pretense of stealth abandoned.  The tall door of the barn slid open as she twisted, trying to free her legs.
"Madge?" Willum asked, the low angle of wavering candles illuminating him eerily from behind.
Lace hastily scrawled a rune in the air with her finger, turning away from Willum's position so he wouldn't see the faint sparkling trail as she did. As an initiate of her clan's magic, she'd mastered the one spell that had come easily to her – shadow walk.
Willum stepped from the barn, closing the door behind him. Lace used the noise to her advantage and gained her feet, moving slowly from her original position. Willum turned and stared directly at her, standing stock still – a hunter trying to locate its quarry. Lace froze. She knew him to be cruel when cornered and he would not take kindly to her spying on his ritual. A weak practitioner by family standards, he'd often taken out his frustrations on her. With the provocation of an interrupted ritual, Lace well understood the danger she'd placed herself in.
Willum took a few steps forward, cutting the distance between them in half. Lace breathed slowly, trying to calm her heart, the lack of oxygen demanding deeper breaths. Swiping the air between them, Willum moved toward her. Slowly, she stepped aside, anticipating his movements. Sweat beaded on her forehead as his fingers came within inches of her face.

As a Crow Flies
Copyright – Fickle Dragon Publishing, 2016.
Maggie's ears were filled with the cries of her brother, the slumbering boy wizard. Their fates were intertwined from the day her mother, the mighty sorceress, had locked up their family home and slipped away in the night. Her only instructions to Maggie were that she now bear the responsibility of watching over the child who held so much power.
Unable to ignore his discomfort, Maggie flew to the second floor window of the old farmhouse and tapped on the thin glass. Inside the room she saw the twisted bedclothes winding around his legs as he thrashed. Her attempts to wake him were unsuccessful as his sleep was too deep.
She'd learned long ago that while a child's waking memories might be suppressed, it was another matter entirely to fool the subconscious of one so powerful. For the moment, his sleep was simply fitful, but she recognized the danger the quiet household faced. His latent powers had recently started to awaken and without a guide, he had no chance of learning how to control them.
Her sharp eyes caught the first signs of trouble as a quiet contrail of white smoke wafted up from carpet's edge and she knew the time to act was now. As a crow, she easily sat on the window's ledge, but lacked the strength to open the window.
Diving backwards from the window, Maggie gained speed and sailed around the farmhouse, her eyes spying an open window. Skillfully, she swept into the room, unable to take the necessary time to scout it out. To her relief, she discovered two children, asleep on bunks, snoring quietly as she lit on a bunkbed's steel frame.
Maggie smoothly invoked the magic she had controlled naturally for as long as she could remember and assumed her human form. Hunger gnawed at her as the transformation demanded its payment. Grabbing a too-small robe from the hook on the back of the door, she hurried from the room, trying desperately to translate her crow's memories into directions to young Felix's room.
The smell of smoke finally pointed her to the room her splintered brain couldn’t find. Upon entering, she found a fire already burning the edge of the carpet.
"Felix, wake up." She raced across the room and shook her brother. The sound of the hallway fire alarm pierced the night's quiet.
"Milt. There's fire!" A woman's voice rang out.
"FELIX!" Maggie screamed as fire raged behind her.
 "Get the kids!" Maggie recognized Milt's voice as the kindly farmer who'd taken in Felix.
His wife cried out. "The fire is in Felix's room."
To Maggie's relief, young Felix rolled over, slowly waking.
"Who's in there?" Milt called from the door. "Sarah, get out. Break a window and get onto the front porch. Quickly now, girl!" He had mistakenly identified Maggie's narrow form as the girl from whom she'd borrowed the robe.
Maggie jumped to action and pulled up on the double-hung window, pushing her foot into the screen.
"Sarah?" Felix asked, stumbling from bed.
Maggie reached behind and pulled on Felix's hand, dragging him through the open window and onto the roof of the front porch. Unwilling to be discovered, she ran to the edge and jumped off, transforming in mid-fall back to her crow.
***
The next morning, Maggie looked down from her perch on the phone wire as the car she'd been waiting for arrived. It was always the same. The families had good intentions, but no one needed a problem child. Felix quirked his head up at her, a hint of recognition and curiosity in his eyes as he exited the home, carrying his worn suitcase.

Someday, brother.

About the Author:

Jamie McFarlane is a graduate of Colorado School of Mines with a Master of Science in Mathematics. An avid reader, tinkerer, woodworker and metal sculptor, Jamie is just as likely to be seen smelting aluminum cans in his garage as he is tacking random, discarded iron objects into a small army of beasties that adorn his home’s landscaping.

Jamie’s writing career began as something of a dare which later turned into a tribute. In his late teens, Jamie was well known as the family story-teller, spinning fanciful yarns about ordinary events, usually with the objective of escaping well-deserved trouble.

One day, his mother, often the target of his mischievous tales, challenged him to commit his words to writing. Jamie promised he would but time passed, as did his beloved mother. In 2014, Jamie made good on his promise and published his first book.

Jamie is the author of a growing library of novels and novellas including the space opera series - Privateer Tales, and the urban fantasy series - Witchy World. Jamie lives in Lincoln, Nebraska with his wife and enjoys spending time with family and friends.





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Thursday, September 29, 2016

Blog Tour and Giveaway: Wolf on Board by Heather Long


Follow the tour on September 26th – 30th, 2016! Five grand prize winners will receive a WOLF ON BOARD Charm!



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About WOLF ON BOARD:

tle: WOLF ON BOARD
Author: Heather Long
Series: Wolves of Willow Bend
Genre: Paranormal
Publisher: Independent
Format: Digital

Synopsis:

Meet Jake Danes of Hudson River, Lone Wolf, avid gamer, extreme sports enthusiast, and surfer.  He’s spent the last two years roaming free, exploring the world and escaping the dark place his pack had become after betrayal and murder tore them apart.  Sure life has changed at home, but Jake’s having way too much fun to return.  Riding the waves in Monterrey, and living out of a van…it’s the prefect life, one he never wants to give up no matter how many calls he’s fielding from his big brother…then he catches her scent.

Mimi Chase wanted one perfect year.  One year away from pack politics and her mother’s matchmaking efforts.  Ever since her big brother settled into mating with a healer, Mimi’s mom seems to have gone into overtime in throwing her at every eligible male in the pack.  Choosing to roam seemed the best option, and California an ideal location to get away from everything pack related.  Her plans for art classes, yoga on the beach, maybe a cooking lesson or two while living a hippy dippy lifestyle are all she cares about…until another worlf butts into her every activity - doesn’t he know the rules?

Lone Wolves aren’t supposed to form relationships, so why doesn’t he catch a hint?  Worse, why isn’t she working harder to make sure he does?

Find out more at: Amazon | B&N | iBook | All Romance | Kobo
  
Read an Excerpt from WOLF ON BOARD

Mimi grabbed a blanket and her yoga mat from the back of her Mini Cooper. She loved the tiny little vehicle. No matter how often her brother scoffed at the minute size of the car, she didn’t care. It was perfect for her. Compact, like she was, and capable of great speeds—just like her. Locking it up, she glanced east at the rising sun and smiled. It was a little after six in the morning and she’d already had a bit of a run, a lovely cup of hot tea with lemon and ginger to cleanse her system, and she would enjoy the full sunrise and rolling surf with her yoga.
Pausing, she took a deep breath of the salt flavored air. She loved the way the beach smelled. Warm sand. Cool water. Brine. Fish. Birds. Even the coconut oil favored by some of the sunbathers and honest sweat from those running on the paths—they all combined to soothe her soul. Tucking the rolled blanket and yoga mat beneath her arm, she closed the hatch on the car and pivoted to walk toward the beach.
A hint of wolf on the breeze had her pausing to scan the area. Other than a handful of vehicles in the lot, and a couple of runners jogging farther away, she didn’t see anyone. Still, she tested the scent once more. It was faint, as though diluted by the breeze and time. She tracked it all the way to a dilapidated Volkswagen van. It reminded her of the Mystery Machine from Scooby Doo without the paint job.
The scent of wolf grew stronger. The van had to belong to whomever the wolf was, but the lack of fresh markers told her while his scent lingered, he wasn’t present. Adjusting her grip on the rolled blanket and mat, she circled away from the van and continued toward the beach all the while reminding herself that other Lone Wolves may choose to wander California for the same reason she did. No one claimed the beautiful state…well at least not this far north. The closest pack to her location was Sutter Butte, but she’d never heard any word of them taking an interest in the beaches.
Then again, she didn’t talk to a lot of people about the political geography of packs. If it’s all the same, I’d prefer not to encounter any of them. They have a bad rap and I’m on a journey of serenity, and self-discovery…and totally avoiding Mother’s matchmaking. The little voice at the end sounded way too much like her brother Owen’s, and she giggled. Owen, at least, had been sympathetic to her cause when she’d told him and Mason why she wanted to take the time to study in the Golden State.
Her mother’s habit of making pro and con lists for all of the pack’s current eligible bachelors had been bad enough, but when she’d talked to Gillian about potential mates in Hudson River and began colluding with Claudia Buckley about Delta Crescent, Mimi wanted out.
It was so bad, she’d actually asked Owen to get Gillian pregnant just to distract their mother. The silence on his end of the phone had been priceless, followed by peals of laughter from Gillian. Fortunately, her desperation had communicated itself well enough and he’d endorsed her request. Mason made her promise to return at the end of one year, even if she was enjoying herself, and she would be free to return to her studies after, if that was her desire.
Mason is the bomb. She hopped over the rocks to land on the sand and began to stroll in search of a spot that would speak to her. Not only had her alpha understood her dilemma and sympathized with it, he didn’t chastise her for the need to stretch herself beyond the confines of pack and parental expectation. Mimi’s skills for tracking had earned her high marks growing up, and more than one offer from the Hunters to apprentice. It made sense—both her father and her brother were Hunters. Even her two younger brothers were well on the way toward Hunter apprenticeships. Felicity had zero interest in the Hunter parts of their DNA, she preferred her flowers and cultivation, working closely with Tiffany Huston. Still, Mimi didn’t share her sister’s interest in horticulture or her mother’s desire to educate their young or her father and brothers’ drive to protect the pack.
She was…not sure who I am, which is why I am doing this.  The year away from her mother served two purposes; she could take some classes and test her areas of interest from art to acting to writing. She could study yoga and find some serenity. Maybe even figure out who she was, because wasn’t that the whole point of a roam? Most wolves took time to roam the country; some even went around the world.
Murphy had done that and came home with a mate. Mimi grimaced. She loved Murphy, but really, could she have not brought home some gorgeous Italian and mated him with all the requisite gossip? It had Mimi’s mother nudging her to consider a year abroad in…where else? Italy. Shaking her head, she paused on a perfectly smooth area of sand and spread her blanket before unrolling her yoga mat in the center.
Closing her eyes, she took several deep breaths. Inhaling calm, and exhaling the stress. Her mother was in Willow Bend. Mimi was in California. No ridiculous blind dates or not-so-casual meetings with eligible bachelors. Thank God Dylan mated before her mother got it into her head to throw Mimi at every male who came along, she’d actually had a crush on Dylan and he definitely fell into the category of eligible before Chrystal.
Growling, she opened her eyes and glared at the water. She was hardly alone on the beach. Laughter drifted towards her from where the surfers made their way toward deeper water, or where some sat astride their boards waiting for the water to come in. She was supposed to be letting go of her anxiety and not stressing about her mother, mating, or any of a dozen other issues being so far away from the pack could rouse in her.
She’d been in California for three weeks. Three gloriously wonderful, and peaceful weeks. This morning marked a full forty-eight hours since her mother’s last phone call. As loathe, as she was to hurt her feelings, Mimi couldn’t help but be relieved that distance had finally done what she hadn’t been able to manage.
Her mother was quiet.
So hush… Telling herself repeatedly didn’t silence the nagging internal monologue. Mindful of her surroundings, she quieted her growl and concentrated on her breathing. Mountain pose let her stretch her hands toward the sky and raise her face to the breeze. It elongated her spine and let her stretch the muscles from her hamstrings to her deltoids. The wind caressed her face and tousled her hair and batted away the riot of thoughts invading her mind.
From mountain she went to tree pose and rested her right foot against the side of her left knee. Her muscles quivered at first, but gradually she relaxed into the sturdiness. Like the tree she emulated, she let the woes of her mother’s romantic aspirations blow past her. The steadiness bolstered her confidence.
Warrior pose drew away the last curtain and let her mind relax. Her wolf stretched within her, their hearing seeming to sharpen as they noticed the increase of traffic beyond, the crash of water against the shore, and the call of birds overhead. Wolf and woman catalogued the sounds as she pushed her body, identifying any potential threats or lack thereof and remaining mindful.
By the time she drifted into a graceful downward dog, she’d relaxed her breathing and banished her anxiety. Curling her toes, she concentrated on feeling the wholeness of the position, the hinging arch of her hips and the warmth of the sand beneath the mat and blanket.
From triangle pose to seated twists to bridges, she pushed her body to achieve perfect serenity while maintaining her sense of being in the present. The sun warmed her as it continued a steady rise, and she basked in the rays as they heated her skin. When she finally settled into a lotus pose, she let her mind drift, as though flotsam upon the waves before her.
The world withdrew, leaving her alone with the lapping water, humming cars, and screech of seagulls…then water dripped on her. The icy sensation of splashing drops was cold against her skin. Though there had been no call for rain in the forecast, she fought to hold onto her sense of inner peace and deepened her breathing…only to inhale a lungful of coconut and brine mingling with the green scent of dewy sea grass atop the sand dunes with slivers of mint and…
Mimi jerked her eyes open and stared into the blue eyes of the wolf squatting right in front of her. His long, straggly hair clung wetly to his face and shoulders. The wet suit left little of his physique to the imagination, and he canted his head as though trying to figure her out. This close, however, she couldn’t miss a single nuance of his expression or the drops of water sliding off of him to splash wetly against her legs.
How the hell had he approached her so stealthily that she hadn’t sensed or scented him before he dripped on her?
Worse…who was he and what did he want?
“Hey, gorgeous,” he said, as though aware of her racing her thoughts. “What brings a sexy little wolf like you to my stretch of beach?” A slow grin spread his mouth wide, and her stomach did a little flip flop. He was gorgeous and damn if he didn’t know it.
Just what she needed…a hot, sexy wolf who was most assuredly male and made her wolf stand up to take notice. Ignoring her animal’s very natural curiosity, she narrowed her eyes. “I was enjoying a quiet morning. Now go away.”
One thing about having Owen for a brother, she wasn’t helpless, even if she was tiny. Closing her eyes again, she forced her muscles to relax and prayed he’d take the direction well, even as she prepared for the worst.
  
Other Books in the Wolves of Willow Bend Series:

DESERT WOLF
Cassius, Alpha of Sutter Butte, leads the most ruthless and dangerous pack in the United States. A pack comprised of misfits who didn’t fit in their previous packs, cast offs discarded by their packs and forgotten wolves who rose to create a pack more than a century before it utter defiance of the order of the day. Sometimes pitiless and cruel, he wants more for his people than a yearly bloodbath as they fight for a new place, a better spot in the pecking order. To change his pack, means to change himself and he will find rebellion on all sides, not the least of which is his own defiant heart.
Sovvan Stark, Omega of Delta Crescent, lives a cherished, beloved life in the center of her pack, a delicate and hard won balance. Though she is not the only Omega, she is the most experienced with the tremors of pack upset when power shifts from Alpha to Alpha. When her Alpha approaches her about Sutter Butte’s request, Sovvan considers the matter for several long months. While she might hold within her the key to helping the Sutter Butte Alpha, the undertaking could very well kill her. 
Accompanied by a single Hound, Sovvan begins a journey to help Cassius rebuild the foundation of his pack, but first she will have to transform him…
Book 8 available at: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | iBooks

SNOW WOLF
Ranae is the youngest of the Buckleys, and the only girl amongst three powerful male siblings. Her restlessness and dominant nature has affected every relationship within Willow Bend, not to mention testing the patience of her Alpha. Apprenticeship to the Hunters fed her desire for a purpose. When her Alpha and eldest brother ask her to undertake a mission to the Yukon territory, she’s thrilled at the opportunity for a real chance to be useful. Clashing with the Alpha was the last thing she expected on the dangerous assignment.
The oldest Alpha in the U.S. packs, lives a gray existence. The loss of his mate so many decades before wears away at him, until he doesn’t give a damn about anything. The problems of the other packs are not his, and he prefers to be left to his isolation. The arrival of the Chief Enforcer annoys him, but it is the wolf traveling with him who wakes the predator in Diesel. The scent of mate clings to her, but she rejects his overtures and challenges him on every level.
War may be coming for the Yukon, but Diesel’s battle is very personal… 
Book 9 Available at: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | iBooks | ARe


About Heather Long:

National bestselling author, Heather Long, likes long walks in the park, science fiction, superheroes, Marines, and men who aren’t douche bags. Her books are filled with heroes and heroines tangled in romance as hot as Texas summertime. From paranormal historical westerns to contemporary military romance, Heather might switch genres, but one thing is true in all of her stories—her characters drive the books. When she’s not wrangling her menagerie of animals, she devotes her time to family and friends she considers family. She believes if you like your heroes so real you could lick the grit off their chest, and your heroines so likable, you’re sure you’ve been friends with women just like them, you’ll enjoy her worlds as much as she does.

Connect with Heather: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon


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Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Blog Tour and Giveaway: Scottish Werebear: The Complete Collection by Lorelei Moone

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Scottish Werebear: The Complete Collection

by Lorelei Moone
Scottish Werebear Boxset, #1-6
Publication Date: September 25, 2016
Genres: Adult, Paranormal Romance, BBW, Shifters, Novella, Romance

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BUY:

Amazon (#FREE with #KindleUnlimited): http://amzn.to/2d0z8g7
Synopsis: In present-day Scotland, not everyone is who they appear to be. Shifters have been hiding in plain sight for generations. It all starts with a single bear who falls for the most unlikely partner: a human. Bears and humans simply can’t pair up, or can they? Fall in love today with the Scottish Werebears and get the complete saga in one handy collection. Includes: An Unexpected Affair, A Dangerous Business, A Forbidden Love, A New Beginning, A Painful Dilemma and A Second Chance. FREE BONUS STORY: Sugar & Spice: A Scottish Werebear XmasScottish Werebears: An Unexpected Affair
When romance novelist, Clarice Adler, hides herself away in a secluded holiday cottage to finish a book, the last thing she needs is another relationship. Imagine her surprise when she falls head over heels for the man who runs the place. Derek McMillan knows Clarice is his mate, but he’s a bear shifter and she’s human and the two simply don’t mix. They are literally worlds apart; can they find a way to come together?Scottish Werebears: A Dangerous Business
As part of the Alliance, bear shifter Aidan McMillan is hunting the Sons of Domnall, a secret society of humans sworn to destroy all shifters. Along comes Heidi Blackwood, his fated mate, and it suddenly becomes nearly impossible to focus on the job.Scottish Werebears: A Forbidden Love
Alison Campbell has been told that shifters are evil and the world would be a better place without them. In her efforts to infiltrate the Alliance to gather intel for The Sons of Domnall, she comes across Jamie Abbott, bear shifter and Alliance leader, who doesn’t seem so bad at all. In fact, he seems to be all her heart desires and the feeling is mutual. Where will her loyalties lie when it becomes time to pick a side once and for all?

A New Beginning
Ever since developing delusions about turning into a bear at the most inopportune moments, Matt Argyle has been keeping to himself. When curvaceous beauty Leah Hudson moves in next door, suddenly his carefully orchestrated life becomes unsustainable. He feels compelled to get to know her, and in the process must learn some important truths about himself.

A Painful Dilemma
Henry Weston is a good man, and a good Alliance agent. But when he is ordered to spy on his own people, he knows he must rebel. He finds the perfect partner in Gail McPherson when they connect in a way only true mates can. There’s only one problem: Henry already has a mate whom he refuses to abandon.

A Second Chance
Journalist Charlie McAllister watches the New Alliance reveal itself on live TV and can’t believe her eyes; one of the shifters looks so familiar… Could that really be her friend James, whom she grew up next door to? The same James she had the biggest crush on, but who disappeared on her after they shared their first and only kiss? The void he left behind in her heart still aches, still she vows to track him down for an exclusive interview.

This boxset contains all six novellas in the steamy Scottish Werebears shifter romance series; each book features a different alpha bear and his fated mate and includes plenty of sizzling action, irresistible attraction and a happy ending for the couple, while the overarching plot of the series continues. Shifter fans love this series! One-click now to find out what all the fuss is about.

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ABOUT LORELEI MOONE

Lorelei Moone
Lorelei Moone is an up-and-coming author of paranormal romance based in London. Her first book, Scottish Werebear: An Unexpected Affair has hit the virtual shelves on Amazon on 25 September 2015, and her second, Scottish Werebear: A Dangerous Business a month later on the 25th of October. A lover of all things sweet, and caffeinated, when she’s not writing about sexy bear shifters and their strong-willed curvaceous love interests, Lorelei can be found baking cookies or cakes for her family.

ENTER THE GIVEAWAY

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Tuesday, September 27, 2016

Book Tour and Giveaway: Lucky Blow; Gods and Pawns by Amanda Washington


Lucky Blow        
Gods and Pawns
Book 1
Amanda Washington  

Genre: Urban Fantasy/Paranormal

Date of Publication: 9/27/16

ISBN: 978-1537101279
ASIN: B01KUEPQM2

Number of pages: 189
Word Count: 55,746

Cover Artist: Lindsay Cimina

Book Description:

Thanks to the deities in her family tree, Romi has been enslaved to a life of larceny since birth. Well, except for that one night, four years ago, when the goddess of love and debauchery sprang her from her prison, slipped her some sort of magical roofie, and introduced her to an irresistible blacksmith for a little tryst resulting in a child. So when two powerful gods show up and offer her a way out of her thieving lifestyle for good, she jumps at the opportunity. All she has to do is blow on a magical sword and imbue it with luck.

Then she can finally find that guy she’s been dreaming about and introduce him to their son. If only she knew the blacksmith’s name…

But when the same gods use the sword to rip Zeus’s essence from his body, Romi’s son is kidnapped and held for ransom. Now Romi, her mysterious fling, and her teenage griffin babysitter have to steal back Zeus’s essence from a cast of powerful gods, or they’ll lose the child forever.

Amazon    AmazonUK    BN   

iTunes    Kobo    Google Play





Excerpt:

MY DAY STARTED upside down. No joke, I was harnessed, suspended midair, with my feet up and head down, looking over a room full of priceless artifacts when the antique grandfather clock beside the door struck midnight. Dings and dongs thundered, reminding me I was running out of time. As much as I’d like to pretend my days didn’t normally begin in an upside-down race against the clock, I’m not a liar, just a thief. But hey, a girl’s gotta make a living somehow, and this was what I was created to do—there’s a contract and everything—but that’s a story for a time when my life isn’t literally hanging from the ceiling.
As I released another inch of rope and lowered myself further, the black cocktail dress I’d hastily tucked into the knife sheaths around my thighs tumbled free, covering my upper body in chiffon and revealing my panties to the vacant room. I sighed. This was exactly why I hated dresses. But since I couldn’t magically make my normal work pants and T-shirt appear, I ignored my wardrobe malfunction and focused on my objective.
My target rested two feet, five inches below my head, locked away in an engraved metal display box chained to a pedestal, which was bolted to the wooden floor and surrounded by trip wires. Red lasers sliced the air between me and the box, rotating randomly. Randomly…that’s what the alarm company’s brochure says.
I smirked. Human security…so quaint.
Everything has a pattern if you’re patient enough to find it, and I was so patient, my new harness dug craters into my shoulders while I memorized the cycle. Random, my ass. As my opening approached, I bent at the waist and let out a foot more rope. The lasers shifted. I spit a small key out of my mouth and sprang back down, sliding it into the lock. I technically didn’t need the key, but picking the lock could potentially take longer than I had between laser cycles.
Besides, the owner of this building was a sleazeball who’d been too busy “accidentally” bumping into his party guests to notice my hand sliding into his pocket. A little piece of me felt like I was doing a solid for women everywhere by ripping the jerk off.
Getting back to the task at hand, I turned the key and popped open the box. Magic flooded the room like a pulsating glow of sunlight and power. Music sprang forth—some sort of ancient battle song—forcing a vision into my mind. I suddenly found myself in a bed chamber, watching an enormous brute swing a singing sword back and forth as he advanced on the figure asleep in the bed. Shaking myself free of the vision, I ignored the deafening tune and fought to stay focused on my orders. Get in, get the weapon, get out.
The bedchamber dissipated and I was once again in some rich guy’s trophy room, hanging upside down and staring at a metal box. Within the box, a magical sword almost as long as my legs and hooked at the end like a sickle, kept right on singing, declaring its greatness to the world.
The lasers were coming back around. I should have grabbed the sword, but the familiarity of it gave me pause. I pulled back from the lasers and struggled to process what I was seeing. I’d stolen some pretty high-value goods before, but this sword…I knew this sword. I’d seen pictures of it in books and read the lore about it. I was almost certain I knew what I was looking at, but I couldn’t accept it.
The Harpē?
It seemed to glow brighter in response.
It can’t be.
Nobody seems to know where the Harpē came from, but its lore began when Gaia, the goddess of earth, and Uranus, god of the sky, birthed a handful of hideous children, known as the cyclops and giants. Uranus sent the uglies to live in a hell-like prison for deities, pissing off Momma Gaia so much she gave the weapon to their son, Cronus, and asked him to whack off his father’s junk.
And I couldn’t think of a single reason why a weapon powerful enough to take down the god of the sky would be locked away in the trophy room of a human.
Was he human?
I’d done my homework. Public records had the owner of this place listed as Aaron Blake, some corporate CEO spawned from old money and raised to power on the backs of blue-collar workers. The guy was textbook for a hit. I had no reason to believe he was anything more than some greedy player.
Stupid, Romi.
If Aaron Blake wasn’t human, what was he? A god or a demigod in disguise? Everyone called the disguises glamours. They were more like a trick of the eye…easy to create. I’d used the same type of magic to disguise the daggers strapped to my thighs, assuring nobody would see so much as the outline of them through my dress. Yet I hadn’t even looked for a glamour surrounding Mr. Blake.
I wasn’t prepared to go up against a god, but the more I stared at the sword, the more certain I was of its identity, which meant touching it would bring someone’s ire down upon me.
Damn. What does Shade want with the Harpē?
Shade was terrifying enough without a magical sword at his beck and call. He already wielded me like a weapon, and the idea of arming him with the Harpē made my stomach churn.
No. I won’t take it! I won’t give him this.
Determined to follow through with my decision, I pressed the button on my harness and let the rope retract. Pain blossomed inside my chest, and the further I got from the sword—and the task Shade had ordered me to complete—the more I hurt. My insides seemed to fold inward, squeezing the air from my lungs. I knew from experience it wouldn’t let up. The pain would drive me crazy until I gave in and did my sire’s bidding. 
Stars danced before my eyes, I smelled copper, and felt blood welling up in my nasal cavity, especially unpleasant due to my upside-down position. Swearing, I pressed the button again, halting my retreat. I’d only managed to get about five feet away. I dangled midair, cursing both my sire and the mother who’d abandoned me with him. Once again accepting the fact I had no choice, I lowered myself back down to hover above the sword and wait out the next cycle of lasers.
Giving in to Shade’s commands despite my personal convictions always left a sour taste in my mouth, but I couldn’t disobey. Not with my kid counting on me to make it home.
   
About the Author:

Amanda Washington is a lover of wacky animals, enthralling books, dark chocolate, and red wine. She's always up for a good adventure (real or fictional), and when she's not building imaginary worlds, she's dipping her toes into reality in southwest Washington with her husband and their boys.







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