Wednesday, June 28, 2017

Book Blitz and Giveaway: Tales from the Harborsmouth by E.J. Stevens





Tales from Harborsmouth
E.J. Stevens
(Ivy Granger Psychic Detective, #0.5, #1.5, #2.5, #5.5)
Publication date: July 11th 2017
Genres: Adult, Mystery, Paranormal, Urban Fantasy
In Tales from Harborsmouth, readers get the chance to delve deeper into the award-winning world of Ivy Granger.

Ivy Granger is a psychic detective with ties to Harborsmouth’s paranormal underworld. Too bad those ties tend to ensnare Ivy and her friend Jinx in the Machiavellian schemes of the city’s teeming population of bloodsucking vampires and psychotic faeries.



Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo

QUICK SNEAK PEEKS:

It’s hard to pay the bills when you’re dead, but if you die in a city filled with faerie magic and have Ivy Granger on the case, you sure as Hell can settle your debts.
—Ivy Granger, Frostbite
A detective’s job is to take note of the little things, the small details that can break a case wide open, but having anthropomorphic snot treat you like you smelled worse than a troll fart could give a girl a complex.
—Ivy Granger, Frostbite
There was a serial killer in Harborsmouth with a penchant for murdering faeries. Happy freaking holidays.
—Ivy Granger, Blood and Mistletoe
If a faerie, a vampire, and a demon walk into a bar, you wait for the punch line.  At Private Eye, when a faerie, a vampire, and a demon walk through the door, it’s just another day at the office.
—Ivy Granger, Blood and Mistletoe
I blew a stray lock of hair from my eyes while running a damp cloth over the bar.  The raven black curl froze at the edge of my vision, ice crystals from my breath coating it like the dust of fractured diamonds.  But within seconds the damp chunk of bangs thawed from the perpetual heat of the club. The heat was one of the many things that I despised about bartending at Club Nexus.
—The Ice Faerie Beryl, Club Nexus – Iced
Deviance is nothing if not full of variety and Puck had discovered how to capitalize on each and every one of our desires.  In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if the imp was purposely late to our meetings to build the suspense, and empty my wallet.
—The Vampire Cyrus, Club Nexus – Dusted
It had been centuries since a human had piqued my interest, longer still since anyone had stirred feelings of lust and longing, but there was something unquestionably magnetic about the woman my eyes now frantically sought.
—Forneus, Club Nexus – Demonized
Of all the nightclubs, in all the cities, in all the world, the freakin’ demon had to walk into Club Nexus.
—Jinx, Club Nexus – Jinxed
I’d seen a lot in my nine lives, but nothing so strange as Ratfink’s Family Fun Palace and its tone-deaf taxidermied talent.
—Torn, Thrill on Joysen Hill


Author Bio:
E.J. Stevens is the bestselling, award-winning author of the IVY GRANGER, PSYCHIC DETECTIVE urban fantasy series, the SPIRIT GUIDE young adult series, the HUNTERS' GUILD urban fantasy series, and the WHITECHAPEL PARANORMAL SOCIETY Victorian Gothic horror series. She is known for filling pages with quirky characters, bloodsucking vampires, psychotic faeries, and snarky, kick-butt heroines. Her novels are available worldwide in multiple languages.
BTS Red Carpet Award winner for Best Novel, SYAE finalist for Best Paranormal Series, Best Novella, and Best Horror, winner of the PRG Reviewer's Choice Award for Best Paranormal Fantasy Novel, Best Young Adult Paranormal Series, Best Urban Fantasy Novel, and finalist for Best Young Adult Paranormal Novel and Best Urban Fantasy Series.
When E.J. isn't at her writing desk, she enjoys dancing along seaside cliffs, singing in graveyards, and sleeping in faerie circles. E.J. currently resides in a magical forest on the coast of Maine where she finds daily inspiration for her writing.
Connect with E.J. on Twitter @EJStevensAuthor. For more, including a list of her books, freebies, and upcoming events visit www.EJStevensAuthor.com.
Website / Goodreads / Facebok / Twitter


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Tuesday, June 27, 2017

Review: Fire Brand by Diana Palmer

Fire Brand by [Palmer, Diana]





He'll risk his whole heart to save her from the past 
Gaby Cane was always a bit afraid of her attraction to Bowie McCayde. Even when she was fifteen and Bowie's family took her in, she had sensed his simmering resentment. Now ten years later, she's an aspiring journalist who can hold her own with any man professionally, the dark shadows of years gone by far behind her. Then Bowie strides back into her life—only this time, he needs her, and the pull of loyalty to his family is too strong to ignore.  
When Bowie asked Gaby to help save his family's Arizona ranch, he never expected the girl he once knew to return transformed into a stunning, successful woman. As they work together, Bowie is shocked to find that her innocence and beauty stir a hunger he can't deny. But the rogue rancher can sense something holding her back, and he's determined to uncover the terrible secret Gaby is fighting to keep hidden

I won't say how long I've been reading Diana Palmer books suffice to say its been a long long time. Her stories are always a great romance story with angst, conflict, and most of all love. This one is no different.

But I did notice a one big difference in this book. The hero wasn't as much of an ass as some of her others have been. And the heroine Gaby maybe innocent but she holds her own. Seems like we got both their points of view more in this one that we have in the past with Ms Palmer's books and I liked that. Her books are an auto buy for me and I love that I can share them with my aunt and SIL. 

This book gets 4 stars from me and I was given this book via Netgalley in consideration of a review and that in no way influenced my opinion of this book. If you like sweet romances try hers. You can buy this one here.

Sunday, June 25, 2017

Book Tour and Giveaway: Immortal Love Series by Anna Santos






Soul-Mate
The Immortal Love Series Book 1
by Anna Santos
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy




Annabel is a bad-ass hybrid hunter, seeking revenge from the vampire who killed her parents and put her brother in a coma. Arriving in a new town with an undercover identity to protect and the mission to find a pureblood vampire to save her brother’s life, the last thing Annabel needs is to fall in love with the sexy, persistent werewolf who thinks she’s a helpless human in need of a knight in shining armor.

Shane is a dominant werewolf who also happens to be the local sheriff. He has almost lost hope of finding his better half. So when his beautiful soul-mate shows up and rogue vampires try to kill her, he does what any smart wolf would do: he saves her and takes her home, hoping to convince her that they belong together.

When sparks fly between them, Annabel has to decide if she tells him who she really is or runs the other way to protect her secrets.

This is Book One in the Immortal Love Series, and it’s also a great standalone paranormal romance with a HEA. No Cliffhanger. This story is steamy, sexy, and a page turner.

Book 2&3 already available with a new feisty heroine.

**On Sale for .99 on Amazon!!**





The Witch and the Vampire King
Immortal Love Series Book 2



Jessica is a young and powerful witch on a desperate mission to find her soul-mate—a hot vampire king who haunts her dreams with steamy memories of their blissful past life. The problem is that he could already be dead. To complicate matters further, a psychotic vampire is after her. He wants the grimoire she stole.

For protection, she can only rely on her best friend’s family. When she arrives at Affinity, she is brought closer to her goal. But encountering the man of her dreams is only half the battle. Convincing him that she is his reincarnated love may prove to be next to impossible.

Some memories should remain hidden. If unlocked, death will claim Jessica before her enemy. Although, her survival won’t matter if she faces a rejection that will shatter her very soul.

Author's Note: This is the long awaited book 2 of the Immortal Love Series. Yet, you don't need to read Soul-Mate to read this one. Book 3, Spellbound is already published.




Spellbound
Immortal Love Series Book 3



Jessica is on the run, but this time she’s evading her own mate so that she can secure their happily ever after.

Ruthless and biased vampire Alaric put a bounty on Jessica’s head. She’s the only one who can break his curse—or so he thinks.

The witch isn’t going to wait for him to make his move. She decides to take matters into her own hands and cooks up a plan to find his whereabouts and end his reign of terror. With the help of her friends, they embark on a dangerous mission to find and kill their ruthless enemy.

Yet, despite the team’s good intentions, their plan can go seriously wrong and lives might be lost in the process.

This is book 3 of the Immortal Love Series and the continuation of The Witch and the Vampire King. You'll need to read book 2 first before this one. Book 1 can be read as a standalone. Book 4 coming in 2017

Warning: This book contains violent and sexual situations. Reader’s discretion is advised







About the Author
Anna Santos is a Bestselling Author in Paranormal Romance.
She likes to write steamy and happily ever after romances with magical and complex characters. All her books feature clever, witty, and strong heroines and dominant males who either get what they want or get what they deserve.
When she isn't writing, Anna is considering plot twists for her next novel or delving into the world of her favorite authors. She loves superheroes, and she’s a geek at heart. She grew up watching Star Wars and plotting a way to become a Ninja. She has a fascination for Chinese Kung Fu movies, and cherry blossom flowers.
She also enjoys writing poetry, watching a good movie, and spending time with her husband and family


Follow the tour HERE! for exclusive guest posts and a giveaway!

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Saturday, June 24, 2017

Review: Snared by Jennifer Estep

Irony 101—The Spider herself snared in someone else’s web …
Another week, another few clues trickling in about the Circle, the mysterious group that supposedly runs the city’s underworld. Gathering intel on my hidden enemies is a painstaking process, but a more immediate mystery has popped up on my radar: a missing girl.
My search for the girl begins on the mean streets of Ashland, but with all the killers and crooks in this city, I’m not holding out much hope that she’s still alive.
A series of clues leads me down an increasingly dark, dangerous path, and I realize that the missing girl is really just the first thread in this web of evil. As an assassin, I’m used to facing down the worst of the worst, but nothing prepares me for this new, terrifying enemy—one who strikes from the shadows and is determined to make me the next victim.

I have made no secret that I love this series and recommend it to anyone who loves Urban Fantasy as much as I do.  But I am constantly amazed at how Ms. Estep keeps coming up with the sick and twisted characters she does. Probably says something about me that I love it so much lol. But the main bad guy in this one is truly one sick twisted freak.
We also have the whole gang back in this one. I love that about her books. Even though most are not blood kin they are kin that were chosen and that type of family is usually the best to have. We also find out more about Gin's mama and see snippets of her past.  And as in real life we learn in this book that most folks aren't truly good or evil they sort of walk the grey line. Makes for more interesting lives and books.

On one hand I am hoping that we find out about the circle soon and that Gin kills them all but on the other I hope that doesn't mean the end of this series.  Either way I'm eagerly awaiting the next installment. I give this book 5 stars and I was given it in exchange for consideration of a review which in no way influenced my opinion of this book.

Book Blitz and Giveaway: The Lunam Deception by Nicole Loufas


The Lunam Deception
Nicole Loufas
(The Lunam Series #2)
Publication date: June 20th 2017
Genres: New Adult, Urban Fantasy
Kalysia has lived her life according to others – a fate she will not pass on to her child. When a conspiracy to bring down the pack threatens to uncover her darkest secrets; Kalysia must fight to protect the truth about the man she wants, at the expense of the man she was fated to love.
Jase has fought his entire life. For his honor, his freedom, and his family. Nothing in his past could’ve prepare him for her. Kalyisa is everything he never knew he always wanted. Is he willing to risk his life, her honor, and Dillan’s pride to win her heart?
EXCERPT:
“In here,” I call to him and try not to laugh. I don’t know why I always get giggly when I’m trying to be sexy.
Dillan appears in the doorway.
“Oh baby, you have no idea how hot you look right now.”
He steps into the room and pulls his shirt off. “I’m one lucky bastard.”
“Yes, you are,” I agree.
He unhooks his belt with one hand and kneels on the bed. He bends down, and kisses my knee as his hand rubs up my leg; then stops short. He crawls up the bed toward my face.
“My hands are dirty.”
I run my fingers through his hair.
“Really? Where have your hands been?” I tease.
“I drove the Jeep from the brew-house. Who knows what kind of germs are on that steering wheel.”
He kisses my neck and presses his hips against me. The thin material of his boxers can’t contain his excitement.
“Thank you for not contaminating my lady parts.”
I pull his mouth to mine and taste today’s batch on his tongue.
“I care deeply about your lady parts.”
He licks my breast, and chills cover every inch of my body.
“My kid is cooking in there.”
He moves his hand to my belly as his tongue circles my nipple.
“I want his environment to be as germ-free as possible.”
“His?” I tease.
“Did I say his?” Dillan gives me a coy smile.
I know he’s hoping for a boy. All the guys are.
Dillan rolls me over, so I’m on top of him in all my naked and bloated glory. My swollen belly doesn’t affect his arousal. I moan so loud when he slips inside me; I’m sure Leah will comment on it later. I’m never more certain of my feelings for Dillan than when we’re having sex.
I look at him from across the lodge and sometimes as he sleeps. My heart still stammers when he kisses me or takes my hand when we’re walking. But there is always a sliver of doubt that crosses my mind. A certain way he smiles at Cassie or the sadness that creeps into his eyes when he thinks nobody is looking. I wonder if he feels it too. The only moments of peace come when we’re tangled up naked in our bed. Only then does the world feel right.
Dillan and I lie in bed afterward, watching the light in the room fade into night.
He kisses my head. “I needed that.”
“Hard day at the brew-house, dear?”
Dillan tightens his grip on me. “I got a call from my father.”
“It wasn’t good news, I assume.”
It never is where Lowell is concerned.
“He called to congratulate me on becoming a father.” He smirks. “I asked him which baby he was congratulating me on.”
“What did he say?” I try to sit up so I can see his face, but he won’t let me.
“He’s honoring his promise to Conall.” Dillan pauses. “I’m sorry, babe. I tried to reason with him, but he wouldn’t listen.”
“It isn’t your fault.” I don’t sound very convincing.
If we both just accepted our roles, none of this would be happening. Dillan sits up and turns on the lamp beside the bed. He runs his hands over his face and groans.
“What am I supposed to do?”
I assume his question is rhetorical.
If Dillan supports Lowell and claims Cassie’s child as his trueborn heir, he maintains his place in the pack, inherits Sierra-Duke, and his family’s fortune. Sometimes I believe this is a good thing; our child won’t be obligated to the pack the same way we were. Call it ego or pride, but the thought of Cassie’s child ruling over mine, makes me want to break things. When I say things, I mean Cassie.
“Do what’s right,” I tell him.
Unlike Lowell, I refuse to bully Dillan to my side. I don’t have to. Dillan loves me; therefore, he loves our child. He would never dishonor either of us.
“I will lose everything when I claim our child as my heir.” He turns around to look at me. “I’ll just be another employee of Sierra-Duke. I get nothing.”
Dillan doesn’t just lose his inheritance; he also loses status. Each leader must have a Lunam child that is accepted by the council. If Lowell gives his support to Cassie’s child, the council will honor his request. It isn’t a matter of screwing me over—these things have been done for hundreds of years.
Dillan may lose his title as future leader, but I’ll still maintain power. As long as we’re together, nothing else matters.
“You get me.” I reach up and touch his face. “Forever.”
Dillan climbs on top of me and pulls the sheets from between us. He examines my naked body and says, “I think I can live with this for the next fifty years.”
We miss the dinner bell.
We miss breakfast too.

Author Bio:
Nicole was born and raised in California. She claims to be a San Francisco native, however she's lived in both Northern and Southern California. She credits her creativity to the fact that she attended 12 schools between kindergarten and her senior year in high school. Her nomadic childhood allowed her to reinvent herself often. Some might say she was a liar. While others see the stories she told as a coping mechanism. Twelve schools, in six cities, in twelve years - give her a break. Today she channels her storytelling ability into writing novels. Long story short - kids that lie become writers.

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Wednesday, June 21, 2017

Cover Reveal and Giveaway: Turned by a Tiger by Felicity Heaton


Turned by a Tiger (Eternal Mates Romance Series Book 12)
Felicity Heaton
On the verge of bleeding out and hunted by his merciless torturers, Talon has no choice but to seek sanctuary at Underworld, a nightclub run by a jaguar shifter liable to kill him on sight for being a tiger shifter male. What he finds in the old warehouse isn’t the grim shadow of Death though but an angel of mercy, one who offers him salvation and revenge—one who happens to be his fated mate.
Tending bar at Underworld is never dull when you’re a mortal surrounded by immortals, but when a gorgeous tiger shifter covered in blood stumbles into the club, and set’s fire to her boss’s temper, Sherry’s entire world is in danger of being turned on its head. Something about the mysterious warrior has her stepping in to save him, something that ignites her heart and stirs her soul, and no matter how fiercely she fights it, she can’t hold herself back.
When Talon reveals the name of his captors, and his plan to head back in to save his friends, will Sherry be brave enough to embrace the feelings he stirs in her and step deeper into the world of immortals? And will Talon be strong enough to resist the lure of Sherry to protect his family’s secret or will he risk everything to claim his eternal mate?


The special sneak preview for Turned by a Tiger begins on June 25th, exclusive to Felicity’s mailing list. Every subscriber is entered into the giveaway to win a signed personalised paperback copy of Turned by a Tiger, with a chance to win a copy in each of the three exclusive sneak peek chapters being sent out on the 25th, 27th and 29th.
Not only will joining her mailing list ensure you’re in with a chance of winning one of the signed copies of Turned by a Tiger, it means you’ll start receiving her newsletters, where she gives away 2 x $25 Amazon Gift Cards in each issue, and rewards subscribers with exclusive excerpts, teasers, flash fiction and cover reveals, and plenty of fun! Plus, you’ll receive FOUR FREE EBOOKS in her Series Starter Library just for signing up!


Sherry knew the appeal of the no-strings-attached style of relationship, normally went in for that herself.
So why did the thought of a roll in the hay with Talon followed by a kiss goodbye leave her cold?
She busied herself with the coffee maker while Talon prowled around the small kitchen, taking up far too much space and making it impossible for her to pretend he wasn’t there and get her head straight.
And her heart.
She blamed it for her sudden desire to have more than a one night stand with a hot guy.
“Milk, Tony?” She poured two mugs of coffee.
He froze with his head in the refrigerator, withdrew and slowly turned towards her, the scowl back in place.
His deep voice rolled through the room, curled around her and did wicked things to her body.
“Talon,” he said with determination, with a hard edge that was both a demand and a command, one that thrilled her as she imagined him ordering her around in the bedroom in that same voice. “Talon. Say it.”
A sudden onset of nerves swept through her as she looked into his hard amber eyes, looked at him for all that he was, and realised that if she said his name, the flimsy barrier she had tried to construct between them by avoiding using it would fall.
Leaving her exposed.
He straightened to his full height, towering over her, at least the same height as Kyter’s six-five. Talon was broader though, heavy with muscle, cutting an imposing figure as he stared her down, silently demanding she do as he wanted.
“Tiger,” she blurted and went to face the coffee mugs again.
Talon moved in a blur of speed, suddenly pressed right against her, and had her cheek in his palm again, bringing her head back around to face his.
“Talon.” His tone could have made diamonds it was so hard, so sharp and pressing.
She swallowed hard, trembling from head to toe as she drowned in his amber eyes, watching the gold shimmering among the amber.
Her mouth turned dry.
She swept her tongue across her lips to wet them.
His gaze fell there, grew hungry and heated, and turned the fire up inside her.
“Talon,” she whispered.
His eyes shot to hers.
His throat worked on a hard swallow.
“Dear gods,” he muttered and just as quickly as he had closed the distance between them, he opened it up again, disappearing into the living room.
She stared at where he had been, reeling from the suddenness of his disappearance, and how shocked he had sounded. How pained.
What the ever living fuck?






Felicity Heaton is a New York Times and USA Today international best-selling author writing passionate paranormal romance books. In her books, she creates detailed worlds, twisting plots, mind-blowing action, intense emotion and heart-stopping romances with leading men that vary from dark deadly vampires to sexy shape-shifters and wicked werewolves, to sinful angels and hot demons! If you're a fan of paranormal romance authors Lara Adrian, J R Ward, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Gena Showalter and Christine Feehan then you will enjoy her books too.
If you love your angels a little dark and wicked, the best-selling Her Angel series is for you. If you like strong, powerful, and dark vampires then try the Vampires Realm series or any of her stand-alone vampire romance books. If you’re looking for vampire romances that are sinful, passionate and erotic then try the best-selling Vampire Erotic Theatre series. Or if you prefer huge detailed worlds filled with hot-blooded alpha males in every species, from elves to demons to dragons to shifters and angels, then take a look at the new Eternal Mates series.
If you want to know more about Felicity, or want to get in touch, you can find her at the following places:

Tuesday, June 20, 2017

Review: Abduction by Cynthia Eden

Abduction



Once the town troublemaker, Sheriff Hayden Black became the teen hero who saved young Jillian West from a savage kidnapper. He never got over their brief affair. Now the ex-SEAL and the burned-out FBI agent have reunited in their Florida hometown and rediscovered their powerful attraction. But as they hunt down a long-forgotten killer, will they get a second chance at happiness? When a series of accidents begins to plague Jill, Hayden won’t let her fall victim again. There’s too much history between them…and too much desire.

Excerpt

“So what’s a hotshot FBI agent like you doing in a small town like this?” His index finger slid along her inner wrist, a careless caress.
Or maybe a very careful one. Even he wasn’t sure about that.
“Hiding.” And this time, her smile broke what was left of his heart. “Because I’m really not so much of a hotshot.” She looked down at their hands. “I’ve got too much blood on me.”
Alarm pulsed through him. “Jill?”
“Let me go,” she said once more.
Another caress, a gentle touch right over her rapid pulse point, and his hand slid away from her.
“I need to head home,” she said, then seemed to catch herself. “Head to the cabin. I rented a place on the beach. The beach is supposed to be good for the soul, right?”
He wouldn’t know. The only thing that had ever been good for his soul…well, that was Jill. She’d changed him, though he didn’t think she realized just how much. He didn’t think Jill even realized how influential she’d been in his life.
She’d always thought that he’d saved her.
Oh, baby, that could not be further from the truth.
She slipped by him and started walking toward the parking lot.
“Jillian West.” Her name pulled from him.
She hesitated.
“We’re not kids any longer.”
Jill glanced over her shoulder. “I haven’t been a child since I was thirteen years old.”
No, she hadn’t been. He knew that. One terrible act had changed her world.
“I came back to Hope for many reasons,” Hayden said. Maybe she deserved that warning. “I didn’t expect to see you so soon.”
“So soon? Why expect to see me at all?”
Ah, now that was just cold. “Do you ever think about us?”
She faced the front again. “I try not to.”
He took that hit straight on his heart. “Really? Because I pretty much think about you every single day.” Though the nights were the worst. When he’d been fighting, when he’d been in one hell after another, memories of Jill had always come to him at night.
But a memory wasn’t walking away from him right then. No memory, no ghost.
He’d watched her walk away before, but this time, things were going to be different. This time, he was fighting for Jill.
She just didn’t realize it yet.

REVIEW:

This was an excellent read. It was fast paced right out of the gate. The beginning chapter sucked me right in and the book kept me engrossed throughout. I couldn't put it down. I read this book in one sitting and that is unusual for me. Jill was an intriguing heroine. Tough but with with issues. Of course you couldn't really blame her. Now Hayden was my kind of hero a total badass but a softy inside for his lady.

I couldn't believe who the bad guy was in this book. I am pretty good at figuring out who it is but in this book I really didn't want it to be who it was. So I tried to find someone else lol I loved the ending I give this one 5 stars and if you've not read this one give it a try. I was given this book via Netgalley in consideration of a review.


Saturday, June 17, 2017

Book Blitz and Giveaway: Rise by Sierra Cross





Rise
Sierra Cross
(Coven of Fire, #1)
Publication date: June 15th 2017
Genres: New Adult, Urban Fantasy
I closed the door on magic long ago…the day it made me an orphan.

Ten years ago, the Coven of Fire sacrificed their lives—my mother among them—to hold off an overwhelming demonic force. Now it’s back.
As a poorly-paid bartender, how can any of this be my problem? But Callie, another orphan of that battle, swears I’m the key to reviving the coven. And there’s an incredibly sexy guardian stranded on my couch who’s promising to help me stop the demons and keep the veil between the realms standing.
One problem: I’ve never been able to use magic. Our local bad boy warlock assures me I have the talent, but even if I did, we don’t have enough witches to complete a coven. The only way to survive is to pull together this pack of magicborn misfits, who have more secrets than spells, into a makeshift coven.
Can we—three untrained witches, a sarcastic warlock, and an overly intense guardian—take back the city…before the demongate falls and the forces that killed my mother destroy us too?

Goodreads / Amazon

EXCERPT:

Startled, I flailed backward. Losing my grip on all six bottles. With a sickening crash they toppled to the stone floor, exploding on impact. The crisp smell of alcohol punctured the dank air.
My heart was still thundering, but I saw no one. “Who’s there?” I demanded.
A figure came into view. Not like he stepped out of the shadows…more like he materialized in front of me. Tall. Powerfully built. With short brown hair and a lean angular face covered in bruises and bloody scrapes. I could have drawn that rugged face, and all its battle scars, from memory.
I forced myself to look into his dark, knowing eyes. The eyes that I’d once allowed to see into my deepest grief. “Matt?” My voice came out higher, younger than I expected. “I didn’t think you were ever coming back.”
“Alexandra…kid, we need to talk.” Matt’s gravelly voice—a voice I hadn’t heard since I was fourteen years old—was low and serious. “I’ve waited over a year for you to come down here. Don’t know how much longer I can hold this form. So listen and don’t interrupt.”
I’d almost forgotten how bossy Matt could be for a ghost. Well, ethereal being anyway. Despite his torn T-shirt and jeans, he had a palpable air of authority, like some kind of rogue commando. The impatient blaze in his eyes would be intimidating, if I didn’t know him. Actually, it still was. But as blown away as I was to see him again, my life had changed since the last time he’d paid me an astral visit. Since then, I’d learned that I had no business interacting with supernatural beings.
“I’m not a kid anymore, Matt,” I said, as firmly as I could. “And I’m not part of your world. Look…you helped me back then, I’ll always be grateful. But I think it would be best if you left now.”
“That’s because you don’t have all the information yet.” He folded his muscular arms, which looked so real and powerful I had to remind myself that they, like the rest of his strapping body, weren’t physically here in the room but in another realm entirely. “Once you’re up to speed on the magical dangers facing our city—”
“Thanks, but I have enough problems to deal with. You know, in the real world.” I couldn’t bring myself to tell Matt that I’d been officially declared magically deficient. Not when he’d always referred to me as “the next coven leader,” after my mother. Instead, I glanced at the shards at my feet and shook my head in despair. Randy was definitely going to make me pay for these broken vodka bottles. Just add it to my tab. “Sorry, but you need to leave me alone, so I can deal with this, okay?”
I started upstairs to get the broom…but didn’t make it past the third step before his form appeared again on the next highest step. Inches between us.
“You have no idea what your real problems are, Alexandra.”
I froze.
Walk right through him, I told myself. You’ve done it before. But Matt’s chiseled face, swathed in desperation, held my full attention. Something had changed there since I last saw him—startling, given that he was incorporeal. In the last ten years, he hadn’t aged one hour. Funny, how I used to think of him as an older guy. Now he looked about my age. The dark purple bruises flowering along his square jaw hadn’t healed. Nor had the bloody gash down his pillowy lower lip—the one part of him that looked incongruously boyish. It was his eyes that had changed.
“I need your help, Alexandra.” His dark eyes, once warm and charming, burned with an urgency that put fear into my heart. “Please.”




Author Bio:
Spells and skyscrapers. Warriors and warlocks. Coven secrets and forbidden romances. Sierra Cross lives for urban fantasy, for modern magic and the bold supernatural beings who stalk our contemporary world. Her Spelldrift universe stars kickass witches and their heroic guardians, as well as vampires, shifters, mages, Fidei, and the dark  demonic forces that threaten them all.


GIVEAWAY!

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Thursday, June 15, 2017

Book Blast and Giveaway: The Goddess's Choice by Jamie Marchant



The Goddess’s Choice
by Jamie Marchant

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GENRE: Fantasy (epic)

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BLURB:

In a world where the corrupt church hides the truth about magic, the fate of the joined kingdom falls on the shoulders of two young people from opposite ends of the social hierarchy.

Crown Princess Samantha’s life begins to fall apart when she starts seeing strange colors around her potential suitors. She fears that she’s going insane--or worse that she’s defying the Goddess’s will. Robrek is a lowly farmboy with incredible magical powers. He has been biding his time waiting to get revenge on those who call him a demon.

Thrown together by chance, they must overcome their differences to fight their common enemy Duke Argblutal, who, with dark magic, is slowly poisoning the king’s mind and turning him against his own daughter.  Time is running out for those chosen by the Goddess to prevent the power mad duke from usurping the throne and plunging the joined kingdoms into civil war.


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EXCERPTS

He returned to the horses, loaded the supplies on Wild Thing, and rode in silence to the abandoned stable. Robbie led the horse inside. When he lit the lantern he kept there, he let out a whistle of amazement. The horse was a bronze-colored mare that looked more like it was forged out of metal than living flesh! But the horse’s impossible color wasn’t the only thing that struck Robbie. Sores spotted the beast’s body; puss and blood oozed from under the saddle. The horse’s coat was matted with dried blood. Her ribs stood out in stark detail. How could anyone neglect a horse so badly? “Where could you have come from, girl?” Robbie could feel a wail building up inside the horse, so he hurried to take the armor and other equipment off her back, unsaddled her, and removed her harness.

 “I don’t think you’re a demon. But I don’t know what you are. By the look of the armor you must have been some knight’s lady. But what happened to him? Sores like these don’t form overnight. If he’s still alive, he obviously doesn’t deserve a lady like you. So how about it? Will you be my lady?” He paused at the sound of his own words. Milady. “I had a lady once. For one day, that is. My brother didn’t approve—I’m sure he wouldn’t approve of you, either.”


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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Jamie began writing stories about the man from Mars when she was six, and she never remembers
wanting to be anything other than a writer. Everyone told her she needed a back up plan, so she pursued a Ph.D. in American literature, which she received in 1998. She started teaching writing and literature at Auburn University. One day in the midst of writing a piece of literary criticism, she realized she’d put her true passion on the backburner and neglected her muse. The literary article went into the trash, and she began the book that was to become The Goddess’s Choice. She is now releasing an expanded edition of the novel. Her other novels include The Soul Stone and The Ghost in Exile. In addition, she has published a novella, Demons in the Big Easy, and a collection of short stories, Blood Cursed and Other Tales of the Fantastic. Her short fiction has also appeared in the anthologies--Urban Fantasy and Of Dragons & Magic: Tales of the Lost Worlds—and in Bards & Sages, The World of Myth, A Writer’s Haven, and Short-story.me. She claims she writes about the fantastic . . . and the tortured soul. Her poor characters have hard lives. She lives in Auburn, Alabama, with her husband and four cats, which (or so she’s been told) officially makes her a cat lady. She still teaches writing and literature at Auburn University. She is the mother of a grown son.

Links

Website: http://jamie-marchant.com/
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/jamieofkorthlundia/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JamieMarchantSF
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5258855.Jamie_Marchant
Newsletter Sign up: http://jamie-marchant.com/newsletter/




Buy Link:

https://www.amazon.com/Goddesss-Choice-Book-Kronicles-Korthlundia-ebook/dp/B071RQ786T/

 and it will be .99 on release day only.


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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE


Jamie will be awarding a $15 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.


a Rafflecopter giveaway



Thursday, June 8, 2017

Blog Tour and Giveaway: Bear with Me by Jennifer Blackstream







Title: Bear With Me
Series: The Blood Realm Series #4
By: Jennifer Blackstream
Publication Date: April 4, 2017
Publisher: Skeleton Key Publishing
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Cover Designer: YOCLA Designs



#bearwithmetour



A PRINCE TRAPPED IN THE BODY OF A BEAR

Torben is a bear shifter struggling to pass a test laid on him by his power-hungry stepmother. Bound into his beast form during the day, able to be human only at night when the darkness hides him, he must find a wife. She can know him only as a bear and a bodiless voice in the night. For one year, she must let him keep his secrets, trust him as a wife should trust her husband. But what woman will climb into bed with a bear and trust it is a man waiting for her?

A BARD LOOKING FOR HER VOICE

After witnessing her mother's murder left her blind, Leta had to put away her sword and her dreams of becoming a bard. Now she is resigned to a calm life where the best she can hope for is a good marriage that will take the burden of her care from her father's shoulders. When her father claims the gods have sent a man to be not just her husband, but perhaps her savior, Leta has to take a leap of faith...and hope she falls in love.

Even a blind woman can see when something is worth fighting for...







Amazon US - http://amzn.to/2s6WyXK

Amazon UK - https://goo.gl/0PZ3pm

Amazon CA - https://goo.gl/y5ey1u

Barnes & Noble - https://goo.gl/Ig6RNA

Kobo - https://goo.gl/Q3XmsN

iBooks - https://goo.gl/s1jfvd








The Blood Realm Series #3




The Blood Realm Series #2




The Blood Rose Series #1



It was on the tip of Leta’s tongue to argue, to tell her father what he could do with his suitor who thought he could fix the poor little blind girl. But she bit it back. This was what they’d hoped for, what they’d thought would be impossible. This was no time for her battered pride to make a stand. 

“I’ll meet with him.” She took a deep breath and straightened her spine. “Perhaps you could invite him to dinner this week?”

Her father cleared his throat. “He’s here. Now.”

She slumped, hands going limp in her lap. “What? What do you mean he’s here now?”

“He’s here…for you.”

“He’s…” Her voice was a pathetic squeak, and now it was her turn to clear her throat. “Father…are you telling me you’ve already given him my hand?”

“I signed the marriage contract five minutes ago.”



His voice was a whisper, so quiet she might not have heard it two months ago, before she’d lost her vision, when her other senses had not been quite so keen. She swayed and put a hand on the floor to steady herself. She’d agreed to an arranged marriage, had given him her blessing to find her a suitor. But…

“I don’t understand. Why so quickly?”

“Leta, it’s been two months. I’d hoped you would come through this on your own. I prayed you would come through this on your own. But you haven’t. I don’t know how to help you. I…” His voice broke and he groped for her hands, took them in his trembling fingers. “Leta, you need someone who will make you feel safe, who might be able to bring you through—”

“And what if there is no through this? What if this is who I am now, what I am now?” Her muscles tingled with the urge to stand, to stalk away from him, storm off in a healthy fit of justified indignation. “You couldn’t let me have any dignity? Couldn’t let me go into this arranged marriage like any other woman? You had to send me off to be fixed, as though I were a table with a wobbly leg?”

Experience kept her kneeling on the floor. If she tried to fly off in a rage, she would succeed only in humiliating herself. High emotions flustered her, made it harder to remember where all the furniture was, how far the wall was. A broken nose or bruised shins wouldn’t help anyone, and it certainly wouldn’t do her wounded pride any good. And so she sat there, a prisoner. Locked in a dark world.

“Well then,” she said, her voice tight, “I suppose I’d better go meet the man who will be my nursemaid from now on.”

“Leta—” 

“Are you going to escort me out, or would you like me to feel my way there, give him a good idea of what he’s getting himself into?”

“Leta, please—”

“Very well.” She was being childish now, but she didn’t care. She surged to her feet and stuck her arms out in front of her, swinging them side to side as she took small steps toward where she thought the doorway was. Her nerves screamed with heightened awareness, bracing to be struck by something, as if the room were suddenly full of stalactites. Ignoring her father’s protests, she shuffled forward, feeling in front of her with the toes of each foot and the tips of her fingers. 

Her father tried to take her arm when she reached the door, but she shrugged him off. Composing herself as best she could, she groped along the wall of the hallway, inching closer and closer to the main room of the house. She was grateful there were no stairs, and she was able to make it to the sitting room attached to the foyer without falling or striking anything. 

It was hard to describe how she knew someone was in the room, even though she couldn’t see. Something about the hairs on the back of her neck, a tingle down her spine that screamed at her she was being watched. She always knew when someone else was in the room with her, but this time there was something more. A thrill that brushed her fight-or-flight reflex, filled her with a strange, warbling anxiety. Someone was watching her. Someone…big.

Don’t be ridiculous. You can’t possibly feel size, her mind chastised her. Still, her senses stubbornly refused to admit any doubt. Whoever was watching her had a weight to his presence, and she could feel it. She blinked and moved her eyes around, trying to see something, anything, a slice of shadow or light that would give her a clue. But the darkness remained as thick as it always was, silent and impenetrable. 

A strange scent wafted past her nose. Musk and the crisp scent of the wind off the mountains to the north. The faintest hint of sea air. The floor creaked as someone shifted their weight. Her heart skipped a beat and her instincts crowed in vindication. There was definite weight to that sound. 

If that was her husband, he was not a small man. 

“Are you really going to let the blind woman stand here wondering if she’s alone in the room?”

“You seem very aware that you are not alone.”

The voice was masculine, and so deep that it vibrated things low in her body, quickened the pulse in her neck. She angled her ear toward that voice, forming a mental picture of the room and her visitor’s location based on where his voice had come from. It was lower than she’d expected, as though he were sitting down.

“Leta, this is Torben Biorna. Torben, this is my daughter Leta.”

“I understand I’m your wife now.”

She threw the words down like a gauntlet, using her tone to make it clear what she thought of such things being settled without her presence, let alone input. The floor creaked again, and somewhere underneath that was a different sound that she wasn’t familiar with. Something hard sliding against the wood. It was brief, too brief for her to consider it closely. She frowned and tilted her head a little more, waiting to hear if it would happen again.

“Yes, you are my wife.”

Again his voice did strange and wonderful things to her body, teasing sensations from her with that hint of promise, that faint brush of heat. Warmth washed over her cheeks, and she was horrified to realize she was blushing.

If he noticed her embarrassing reaction, he kept it from his voice. “Things progressed quickly, and I don’t blame you for being displeased at your lack of participation. It is not how I would have liked to begin our relationship, but I hope you’ll give me a chance to make it up to you.”

She groped for her temper, needing it to bolster her defenses against that voice. “My father says you think you can fix me.” 

“Leta,” her father warned.

“No, it’s all right. I would be offended too, were I in her place.” 

Another creak of the floorboards, followed by that same sound. Leta leaned forward, and it stopped immediately.

“You do not need to be fixed, Leta. You are not broken.”

Her father had spoken those same words to her, more times than she could count. But they were different coming from this man. He spoke with a definite authority, an unwavering confidence that said he knew he was right. It touched something inside her, something frightened. A tiny knot of tension she hadn’t been aware of relaxed.

“Torben was a solider.” Her father’s voice was gentle now, encouraging. “He’s known a lot of men who had very strong reactions after witnessing horrible things. He’s helped them.”

“Your father told me what happened to your mother,” Torben said quietly. “I’m sorry for your loss.”

Echoes of her mother’s screams filled Leta’s ears. Her chest rose and fell more rapidly, her breaths sharper, painful. Ice water trickled through her veins, chasing away the warm feeling Torben had summoned with his words, his voice. The knot of tension returned, trailing a string of others until she stood hunched in on herself, falling into an all-too-familiar nightmare. 

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Her voice was weak, strangled by the memory peeking out at her like a monster from the mouth of a cave. She held her hands out, feeling around herself for orientation.

“Leta, here, come sit down.”

Her father took her arm, and she wilted with relief and let him lead her to a chair. Sitting calmed her, took away the awful feeling of disorientation that struck her when her emotions overwhelmed her spatial sense. She fought her way out of the panic, tried to reorient herself, remember where her husband was. 

“We don’t have to talk about it.” He spoke as if he’d sensed her discomfort, her need to know where he was. “Know only that I am here to listen if you change your mind.”

She bobbed her head, grateful for his willingness to let it go. “You’re going to stay with us for a while, then?”

Awkward silence billowed into the room like dense fog. 

“Leta…he’s your husband.” Her father shifted on his chair, his discomfort announced by every squeak of the wood. “You’re leaving with him.”



Jennifer Blackstream is a USA Today bestselling author of fantasy/paranormal romance. Urban Fantasy will soon be joining her repertoire, and if she doesn’t get hold of the insidious roving gang of plot bunnies, there’s going to be steampunk sprinkled in there too…

For news, new releases, and a free copy of What Big Teeth You Have, sign up for Jennifer’s mailing list on her website at jenniferblackstream.com.

Jennifer has unfailing affection for the authors who have influenced her, including Laurell K. Hamilton, Jim Butcher, and the sorely missed Sir Terry Pratchett. Her books include humor, romance, and action, with enough darkness to keep things very interesting.

When Jennifer isn’t writing, she can be found re-watching Boondock Saints, Noises Off, or Gross Pointe Blank. With one of those classics in the background, she might also be searching Amazon for something she wants, but doesn’t need (Is there any such thing as a kitchen gadget that isn’t an absolute necessity? And don’t even get me started on office supplies…).


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