Release Day Blitz: Broken Dolls by B.R. Kingsolver

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Broken Dolls
BR Kingsolver
Genre: Urban Fantasy / Paranormal Suspense
ISBN: 9781301813568 (ePub)
Number of pages: 235
Word Count: 79,600
Cover Artist: Mia Darien

Book Description:

Private investigator RB Kendrick makes her living nailing cheating spouses, digging up other dirt to help in a divorce, finding long-lost relatives, and occasionally sniffing out criminal activity and fraud.

When she takes a job to find a missing girl, she has no idea she is headed for the most dangerous case of her career. Usually, her ability to read minds gives her an edge. But when the people she’s hunting are also telepaths, that advantage is limited.

The search takes her into the dark underbelly of telepathic society, where anything, and anyone, is for sale. She discovers that telepathic women and girls are being trafficked as the ultimate sex slaves.

With people trying to kill her, she’s on the run, not knowing who she can trust. Will she find the missing girl, or become a victim herself?

Excerpt:

I walked into the restaurant to meet my prospective client, scanned the diners and slipped into the booth with her. She started to say something, then her eyes widened and nothing came out of her open mouth.

“Mrs. Sanders? I’m RB Kendrick,” I said, extending my hand.

“Oh, my,” she breathed. “The description you gave me is wholly inadequate.” She stared at me for a minute, then said, “Copper.”

Confused, I looked around. There weren’t any police in there. “Huh?” I said intelligently.

“Your hair. It’s not ginger, it’s like polished copper. It shines.”

Women notice different things than men. As I suspected from our conversation on the phone, Sylvia Sanders was a norm and so was her husband. What I read in her mind matched what she told me verbally. It’s so much easier when clients tell you the truth. I understood why she had suspicions about her husband. The changes in his behavior and schedule screamed other woman to me also.

“So what do you want, Mrs. Sanders? A report, photos, a confrontation? A basic report of what and who he is or is not doing will run a thousand pounds. Photos catching them in the act are another thousand, if I can get them. Unlike the telly, most people don’t conveniently provide evidence in front of windows with the shades open. If you want to confront him in the act, I’ll accompany you for an additional fifteen hundred pounds.”

She blanched at my rates.

“If what he’s doing isn’t obvious, and I have to put him under surveillance for an extended period, my rates are five thousand a week.”

“I don’t think that will be necessary,” she said with a quiver in her voice. She gave me a thousand and I wrote down all the pertinent information.

“I’ll check on it this afternoon. I’m going to be out of town for a few days,” I told her. “If I don’t find anything by tomorrow morning, I’ll call you when I get back.”

“Thank you, Miss Kendrick. This has been going on for several months. I don’t think it’s going to change.”

“Mrs. Sanders, you need to think about what you’re going to do if your suspicions are correct. Are you going to confront him and hope he ends it? Or do you plan to divorce him? It’s something you should decide before hand.”

“I want a divorce,” she said. “I know he’s cheating on me. He called a little while ago and told me he had to work late this evening.”

~~~

Edward Sanders worked about a mile away. I took the Tube to his building. About twenty minutes after I arrived, I saw him come out and head for the Tube station. Obviously, he wasn’t working late.

I followed him and sat behind him on the train. I read his mind to get his destination, then sat back and used my phone to check my email.

When we left the tube station, I took a slightly different route than Sanders to reach the house of his mistress. I stood across the street and watched as she answered the door for him. I could understand why he was attracted to her. She was even more beautiful than what I had expected from the images in his mind.

I read her mind, also. She was the lonely trophy wife of a successful businessman who traveled often. Edward Sanders was good looking, and twenty years younger than his mistress’s husband. She wasn’t in love with him, but considered him a wonderful diversion. He wasn’t in love with her, either, but was infatuated that such a rich and beautiful young woman wanted him.

The shades in the living room weren’t drawn, and the amorous couple started their activities immediately upon his entering the house. I pulled my camera from my bag and walked across the street and across her lawn. There was a small tree in an ugly plastic pot sitting in the middle of the lawn, and I had to detour around it.

I could see glimpses of the lovers through the living room window, but reflections in the glass prevented me from a good view. It appeared he was doing her on the dining room table. This was going to be the easiest thousand pounds I’d ever made.

I was so focused on what was going on inside that I didn’t see the hole hidden by the small tree sitting in front of it. I should have realized what a potted tree was doing on the lawn. Someone planned to plant it.

I took a step and my left foot found only air. The world spun around and the camera slipped out of my grasp. My chin hit something hard and I bit my tongue.

When I came to my senses, my right leg was sticking straight up and the rest of me lay twisted in the bottom of a hole. My chin felt like it was on fire, and my tongue hurt like mad. It took me some time to get myself situated and crawl out onto the grass. I looked back. The hole was about two feet deep. I spit, and a spot of bright red blood landed on the green lawn.

I picked up my camera and checked it to make sure it was still working. Looking around, I didn’t see anyone. I waited until my head stopped spinning, then crept up to the window. They were still going at it on the table. I took some pictures, but had to wait for them to shift positions so I could get his face. After a few minutes, I had all I needed.

A sudden noise behind me caused me to turn around. A white-haired woman with binoculars hanging from her neck stuck her head out of the window of the house next door.

“You clumsy cow,” she shouted at me. “Get out of the way. You’re blocking the view.”

I retreated in a hurry, and she raised the binoculars, trained on the window through which I’d been snapping pictures.

Case closed. I walked back to the Tube and went home, holding a handkerchief to my still-bleeding mouth.


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Book Spotlight & Giveaway: Beautiful Sorrow by Jenn London

Beautiful Sorrow
by Jenn London
Memoir
Available from amazon

Beautiful Sorrow is the almost unbelievable true story of Jenn London. Her memoir touches on a multitude of topics from overcoming childhood obesity, immense family tragedy and her brother's suicide to pursuing a career in music and her active involvement in animal welfare. Her optimism, determination and drive only begin to scratch the surface of this dramatic, yet humorously written, inspiring journey towards finding peace and happiness.

Excerpt:


I was born Jennifer Faye London, a Gemini! By the time I was thirteen, I weighed 205 pounds. By twenty-one, both parents had died (at different times, different circumstances). At twenty-six, my only brother committed suicide. These events do not define me. I am a musician, a poet and an entrepreneurial spirit. “I am defined by me, and only me.”-J. LondonNovember 15, 2010

Chapter I   Hello

Writing a memoir is something I had been wanting to do for years. I started a couple of times but always stopped after a page or two. This time it was different, it flowed in a way it hadn't before and just kept going. I once read a book that a co-worker lent me called Living in the Light by Shakti Gawain.

It said that you don't have to push all the time, that when the time is right to write, it will be easier and quicker than to struggle through before its time. She was referring to the book she wrote and it certainly was true for me with this project. You may be wondering why you should read a book by someone you don't know.

Someone who isn't even famous but all I can say is: 1. Trust me, it will be interesting. 2. I hope you see a little of yourself in me, in my story. Perhaps connect with some of the challenges I've faced and realize there's a happy ending if you create it. 3. Do you really have something better to do at this very moment? If you do, get to it; if you don't, thank you and please read on… As I was saying, I didn't set out to write it this time, it just happened. I hope there are some lessons to be learned here, and if nothing else, some engaging stories and at times some laugh-out-loud humor. But you are the audience, so you be the judge. I'm merely a pawn in this puzzle. The game of life.

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Giveaway:

The author has kindly agreed to give away 10 ebooks of Beautiful Sorrow.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Author Interview: J. Carrell Jones

About the Author:

Born and raised in Southern California, J Carrell Jones has worked in the Customer Support field (private and Government) for over 30 years. His current position as a Technical Support Manager for a Digital Telephone Service Provider allows him to feed the family and pay some bills. He is an Army Veteran, where he worked in Computer Operations – last active duty mission served was for Project Restore Hope. Currently, he lives in Inglewood, California with his wife, a beautiful daughter, a female cat named Perilous and a dozen fish.


Do you plan everything or just let the story flow?

I don’t let the story completely guide my hand, but I don’t outline every paragraph in every chapter either. I spend days letting ideas flow into me. I’ll daydream scenes and build from there. Once I have an idea on the beginning and end I’ll start writing. I’ll work my way toward the scenes I have in mind and start the process all over again. I view everything with a beginning, middle, and end. More times than many I’ll start with the middle and work until I get to a new beginning, which is usually a chapter.

Do your characters ever want to take over the story?

Often. I learned to discuss the chapter with them. Sometimes a character will want to go places that is totally inappropriate to the story. We sit down, discuss, and decide the best direction to take. Sometimes, not often, I’ll have to slap a character down hard for being totally disruptive. In the last Act, Book Three, of GRID Traveler Trilogy I wanted two characters to engage in sex. Both told me I was crazy and said I was a pervert. I pushed back by setting the scene up but the sex never happened. They took me to a better place and the scene turned out better. In another chapter I wanted two characters to talk. But said no and kissed each other. Well, that tossed my idea out the window.

What is your favourite food?

Steak, pasta, sushi, soup. There.

Are you a morning person or a night owl?

Both. I can function on four – five hours of sleep per day for weeks at a time. Working two full-time jobs, twice, helped. There was a time I worked 45+ hours and went to school fulltime - for two years! So, there are times I’ll work late and get up early.

Where do you dream of travelling to and why?

Space and the depths of the Oceans. Both are new frontiers and prime for new discoveries. On a terrestrial level, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Scandinavia. I’ve been to Korea, Germany and France. Japan and Canada would be on my bucket list, too. I just love the British, Irish, Scottish and Australian (all dialects) accents. What American doesn’t? The UK holds wonder and mystery and history, so much history. Australia is the same. Lots of history, struggle, difficulties, yet just as many successes. For New Zealand – LOTR and the Hobbit! I’d like to visit Scandinavia because I have ancestors from there. I know Africa, but up north? Not a clue.

Do distant places feature in your books?

If not in deep space it’ll be far off lands. In my Karen Bechard series we visit the Middle East. In the Blessed Land Series we visit an alternative reality Egypt, with eventually seeing Japan and the New Americas.

Do you listen to music while writing?

99 percent of the time. I like silence, but I also like melodic sounds playing in my head, too. I listen to just about anything and everything. When I started the Interview, “I am the Doctor” was playing. Tracks from Oblivion and Pacific Rim played. Right now, “Your Body,” from Christina Aguilera is playing. I’m about to start “Like a Champion,” from Selena Gomez. Interestingly, “Dance of the Persian Slaves,” from Khovanshchina just started.

Could you tell us a bit about your latest release?

Certainly! GRID Traveler Trilogy consists of the first three books in the GRID Traveler series: Distant Reality, Alien Shores, and Lines Crossed. The series is about Sean Blakemore and his path to redemption. It involves ancient alien technology, the concept of old world magick, and what the consequences are when the two combine.

What have you learned about writing and publishing since you first started?

As a small-press publisher, you have to love the story. There is no way around it. You have to edit, promote, and spend money of someone else’s book. Not loving the story makes the entire process, from beginning to end, painful. As an author, you have to love your story. No exceptions. If you can’t read your story, at least, five times from beginning to end, your story sucks.

Is there anything you would do differently?

Not really. I’m creating and flushing out a “Becoming a Publisher” book. Of course, it won’t be ready for some time, but when I run across a “should’ve/would’ve/could’ve” I’ll write it down and I’ll get back to you.

Who, or what, if anything has influenced your writing?

Robert A Heinlein and CJ Cherryh, I would say, influenced me the most. Also, E. E. “Doc” Smith and his Triplanetary novel shaped my younger adult mind. My early love of Sci-fi was fueled by marathon showings of the 1930s Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers ever New Year’s eve. Then along came Star Trek and Star Wars. Back in the mid/late-80s I belonged to a STARFLEET International Star Trek club and wrote original character Trek fiction.

Anything you would say to those just starting out in the craft?

You must never stop writing. There’ll be Nay-Sayers whispering in your ear – ignore them. They are idiots and just jealous. This is your passion and your dream, not theirs.

What are three words that describe you?

Patient, clever, dangerous.

What's your favourite book or who is your favourite writer?

“The Number of the Beast,” by Heinlein. ‘nuff said.

Blurb of your latest release or coming soon book

“Long ago we were visited by aliens. They shared knowledge and told us stories of life. They showed us magick and made us believe. Then one day they left. We wondered what happened to them. We searched the skies.

Through the years we performed "magick" hoping they would return. Epochs passed and we went searching for them to discover proof the Elders and Ancient Ones existed.

Toward the end of the last war a hero fell from grace. Our journey begins here . . .

Sean Blakemore, Commander of the GRID Battlecruiser Reginald L Johnson, wallowed in self-loathing. He drank too much, suffered from depression, and swam in self-pity. He figured life could not suck any worse when he received new orders. He had to hand the Johnson over to another commanding officer. God hated him he thought.

Then . . . Dr. Loggar, head scientist in charge of this new mission, drew him into the semi-secret world of The Most High Goddess. She gave him hope.

GRID Traveler Trilogy is a story of Sean’s redemption, from rock bottom to discovering Humankind’s true origins and possibly its inevitable future.”

List of previous books if any

The three GRID Traveler Books

Two Karen Bechard Adventure books: Action and Rage

Blessed Lands Egypt – an alternate history contemporary romance with magic.

Any websites/places readers can find you on the web.

http://mythicallegends.com

Amazon.com – search “J Carrell Jones”

I belong to the TrekCreative Yahoo Group.

I also sell 3D Content on http://contentparadise.com for Poser.

Book Spotlight: Woman King by Evette Davis

Woman King
by Evette Davis
Paranormal/Sci-fi/Thriller

Meet intrepid political consultant Olivia Shepherd. Born an empath, she inherited the ability to read people's emotions. Since her youth, however, she has rejected her gift-that is until an ancient time walker helps her reclaim her skill.

Olivia's powers draw the attention of the Council, a secret supernatural political organization. When Olivia accepts an assignment to run a high-profile campaign, she's quickly drawn into the Council's perilous politics. A chance encounter introduces Olivia to William Ferrell, a man with his own connections to the organization. Romance is always complicated, even more so for William, who after more than a century of solitude finds himself in love for the first time.

Book one of a paranormal trilogy, Woman King is a story of personal discovery, intrigue and love that will transport readers from the dark, mossy hollows of Golden Gate Park, to the subterranean pools of Hearst Castle, and then on to the streets of Paris, where dramatic confessions reveal long-kept secrets that will change Olivia’s fate forever.

Readers who enjoyed A Discovery of Witches, The Night Circus, and The Historian will enjoy Woman King.

Woman King is FREE on Kindle, Kobo & Smashwords.  A paperback version is also available online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.  For more information, you can visit www.evettedavis.com, or follow Evette on Twitter at @SFEvette.

About the Author:


Evette Davis is the author of Woman King, the first installment of a thrilling supernatural trilogy. She’s also a San Francisco political consultant. When she's not writing novels, Davis runs political campaigns and dispenses advice to some of the country’s largest corporations, non-profits and institutions. What she knows about politics and business could fill a book!

In addition to being a writer, Davis also serves on the board of the Litquake Foundation, founders of San Francisco’s iconic literary festival. And, she is a member of the Board of Directors of Swords to Plowshares, a veterans service organization.

Prior to establishing her firm, Davis worked in Washington as a press secretary for a member of Congress, and as a reporter for daily newspapers in the San Francisco Bay Area. She earned her bachelor’s degree in communications from Mills College in Oakland, California. She lives in San Francisco with her husband, daughter and dog.

You can find Evette at www.evettedavis.com or @SFEvette.

Author Interview: Amy L. Peterson

About the Author:


Amy L. Peterson became a stepmother in 1994 after unwittingly falling for a guy with four great kids, ages three, five 13 and 15. Since many other stories about step motherhood were as uplifting as lead balloons, Amy wrote From Zero to Four Kids in Thirty Seconds, a humorous memoir filled with over 50 tips. Consider Tip #22: A teenager can say, “I love you, I hate you, you’re cool, you suck,” in one breath to the same person. And mean every word. And Tip #38: A woman’s desire to get rid of junk is directly proportional to a man wanting to hang onto it.

At the same time Amy was getting used to becoming a stepmother, her husband, Mark was bringing home one pet after another. Something Furry Underfoot is Amy's humorous, heart-warming memoir about frogs, iguanas, hedgehogs, ferrets, hamsters, mice, gerbils, guinea pigs, dogs, mynah birds, and tropical fish Mark wanted, and, well, admittedly, Amy's the one that brought home the cat, a domestic duck, and a rabbit, but only because Mark encouraged her. As with her first book, Something Furry Underfoot includes lots of tips.  Consider Tip #25: Most pets bought for children end up being cared for by the most responsible adult in the family. And Tip #26:  Sometimes the person you hope will be the most responsible adult isn’t.

Amy also created four animal photo e-books for kids, each of which rhyme and are told from the animal's perspective.  Goodnight, Big Wuzzy, is a ferret’s story about life with two dogs, a cat and three other ferrets.  Purrkins, the Cat, is a cat’s perspective on a less than perfect life in a pampered house. Bumpkin Gets Big is about a domestic duck. And Dusty, the Angel Pup is about the very best guard dog in the world.  Each photo e-book ends with a message to parents.

When Amy’s not tending to or writing about pets, she feeds dozens of birds and squirrels in her backyard, spends time outdoors, and photographs wildlife. She also enjoys traveling, especially if it involves fishing and having a go at catching more fish—or bigger fish—than Mark.  Such adventures may be the making of her next book.


Do you plan everything or just let the story flow? 

Both of my books—From Zero to Four Kids in Thirty Seconds and Something Furry Underfoot—are memoirs, so it was easiest to tell the stories in chronological order.  That didn’t require too much planning on my part.  My husband, however, did a lot of planning. Consider the planning involved in getting my sister to drive eight hours from St. Louis, Missouri, to Michigan just so our female hedgehog could mate with a male hedgehog from a different gene pool.  Then consider the planning involved in getting rid of several litters of baby hedgehogs. Indeed, my husband is a good planner. I just wrote about it.

Do your characters ever want to take over the story?

Something Furry Underfoot ends with a few little blurbs told from some of the pets’ perspective, so you could say my characters took over at the end.  I included the pets’ perspective mainly to show that no matter what I did to try to spoil all of the pets, some (especially the stray cat we took in) let me know that I still have a lot to learn.

What is your favourite food?

On week days, it’s anything my husband cooks that allows me to get back to writing and marketing quickly.

On the weekend, I seek good Mexican food with a tall glass of beer in a frosty mug complimented with a slice of lime.

Are you a morning person or a night owl?

I’m the regular-working-hours type of person, because I have a 9-5 type job.  I do most of my writing after work and after everything else is done:  dinner, some exercise of some kind, and all the critters are taken care of.  Our critter count right now is one middle-aged cat, seven mostly older hamsters, two young mynah birds, two puppies, and a mouse we trapped in a live trap in our basement, released, and caught twice in our barbeque grill before taking him in and allowing him a plush retirement in an aquarium in our bathroom.

Where do you dream of travelling to and why?

I dream of going back to the Amazon River to go peacock bass fishing a second time.  I was blessed with a trip in February 2013 and it was the most intense fishing trip I’ve been on—I spent 8 hours dragging these 6-inch lures with propellers on them across the water to attract a fish that hits harder than any other fish I’ve gone after. After about four days, my hands were all puffed up and yet I couldn’t wait to get out on the water. It was loads of fun.

Do distant places feature in your books?

Not yet. But I hope my next book will be about some of the places I’ve visited and how I tend to get into trouble everywhere I go.  For example, I was scolded for touching a seahorse while scuba diving in Bonaire; pulled over by a park ranger in the dead of winter in Yellowstone National Park for driving my snowmobile too close to the center of the road; accused of teaching a baby dolphin to bite while snorkeling in Honduras; and frowned upon for feeding a Kea (a type of parrot) an apple while in New Zealand . . . near the “Do Not Feed Kea” sign. - oh, we remember the Keas very well when were in New Zealand, they were very keen on biting anything rubber, car tyres, windscreen wipers etc. :)

Do you listen to music while writing?

No, because I’m usually writing at the kitchen table, where I am already surrounded by pets in need of spoiling and where my cute, chatty husband likes to tell me about the fishing lures he just ordered and for which lake. It’s hard enough tuning them out; music would put me over the edge.

Could you tell us a bit about your latest release?

Something Furry Underfoot is about raising and falling for a whole bunch of pets my husband kept bringing home.  He starts with a few frogs and iguanas, which, thankfully, find permanent homes elsewhere, but then the pets start coming to stay:  one female hedgehog is joined by a male hedgehog and the first litter of babies are born a month later; one ferret get three ferret pals to play with; the first frou-frou dog gets a frou-frou puppy pal to play with; the stray cat develops a unique relationship with a rescue rabbit; and one of our female hamsters has eight babies and we keep all of them. And that’s only some of the pets.  In every case, I’m right there trying to spoil each one. Something Furry Underfoot also includes 50 tips, mostly about pets but also about the spouses that love them.  Some proceeds will benefit animal rescue organizations.

What have you learned about writing and publishing since you first started?

Book marketing takes up as much time as writing a book and there’s usually nobody there to cheer you on.  Some nights, it’s about as rewarding as vacuuming or going to the grocery store, both of which are also under-rated sports.

Is there anything you would do differently?

Buy a new computer with a “market-book” button on it that would automatically send my book to a marketing company so they could market my book while I start writing the next one.  How nifty would that be?  -oh,  that would be wonderful, wouldn't it? Especially if it was free ;)

Who, or what, if anything has influenced your writing?

Erma Bombeck set a high standard for humor writing, and I set out at first to be like her. Yet as I wrote, I found I had a serious message underlying my writing.  In the case of my first book, From Zero to Four Kids in Thirty Seconds, it’s that with the right guy, being a stepmom (to four kids in my case) is a great experience.  In the case of Something Furry Underfoot, it’s that every animal has a story and I think our job as humans is to make their stories as good as possible.

Anything you would say to those just starting out in the craft?

Opportunities like this here interview are great for self-published authors, so be sure to take advantage.  And say thank you!

What are three words that describe you?

Funny, feisty, animal-lover.

What's your favourite book or who is your favourite writer? 

Erma Bombeck. Hers is funny, journalistic writing that pulls the reader in.

Blurb of your latest release or coming soon book

From Something Furry Underfoot:


“Want to know what it’s like living with a houseful of pets while still holding onto your sanity?

Then you’ve got to read Something Furry Underfoot, Amy Peterson’s warm and funny book about her experiences coping with and caring for all manner of animals. Not only will you get a lot of laughs but you’ll also pick up some valuable tips about co-existing with your own critters!” - Bob Tarte, author of Enslaved by Ducks, Kitty Cornered, and Fowl Weather.

List of previous books if any.  From Zero to Four Kids in Thirty Seconds.

Any websites/places readers can find you on the web.

Amylpeterson.com is my web site.  My books are at Amazon and Smashwords

Book Spotlight & Giveaway: Catwalk Messiah by Nick Kelly

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Catwalk: Messiah 
Leon “Catwalk” Caliber Series
Book One
Nick Kelly
Genre: Sci-Fi
Number of pages: 249
Cover Artist: Heidi Sutherlin
Amazon


Book Description:         

Nitro City, 2033.

Leon "Catwalk" Caliber left his cop job in DC behind, heading to the City of Angels to earn a living off the grid. He took a few odd jobs that called for his particular skill set – extortion, espionage, and the occasional hit – and managed to carve out a niche for himself among the Downtown dwellers.

All the changed when a new breed of MetaHuman cyborg appeared on the streets with explosive violence. Cat’s quiet existence is sent into turmoil when he finds himself right in the crosshairs. He must evade the assassin squads sent by a vengeful pimp, uncover the origin of these mysterious new mechs, and keep the cops off of his tail. Simple enough, except that the cybernetic technology that powers his body threatens to sever his humanity at any moment. Can the killer with a conscience find a cure, solve the case, get the girl, and live to see another day?

***

Excerpt: 

“Okay, Sweetie, open your eyes.”

Leon “Catwalk” Caliber takes a long drag off of his cigarette. The voice on the vidscreen triggers the same sick taste in his throat as the first time he pressed the play button. The series of events on-screen remains the same: the awkward smile of the girl in the frame, the sweet and self-absorbed tone with which the man just off-camera delivers his dialogue, the slight, excited shaking of the camera as she looks up at him. Once again he asks the young girl which hand holds the coin, even though only his left hand is extended. She’s nervous. Her shoulders are pulled up, and her arms are tight to her body. She shifts to accommodate the tight fit of her school uniform. She blushes, the ghost of Shirley Temple, complete with pigtails and storybook innocence. She giggles and touches the back of the man’s gloved hand with a finger. She’s correct.

It’s the right hand that wields the bone saw.

Catwalk stops the recording. The glass next to him is empty, the bottle of bourbon almost the same. The dull glow of the paused recording is the only light in the loft, save a few blinking sensors from the bay that hosts his motorcycle and gear. He stares mutely at the image on the screen. He already has the rest of it memorized. The girl survives for another two minutes and 17 seconds. She doesn’t suffer long. Thank whatever God she believes in that she doesn’t feel what happens next. This killer doesn’t keep his victims alive along. He saves the mutilation and sex acts until after they’re dead. He doesn’t get off on torture, just the rush of ending a life … even that of an eight-year-old girl.

Cat takes a hold of his whiskey tumbler, mindlessly raising it to his lips. The lack of liquid distracts him from the screen. The video was an unexpected test. Someone hoping to remain anonymous had paid a deposit for his services. The instructions were simple. Watch the video. Find the killer. Get vengeance for the victims. Get proof. Get paid.

His yellow eyes return to the screen. His lips curl into a sneer. After watching the recording once, he was willing to do the job for free. That feeling amplified each time he watched the girl die. Cat chuckles out loud. He’s curious at his reaction. This chit never bothered him before. Why now? Why her?

He stands and walks away from the screen. He needs a break. He stands and stretches. The muscles along his arms and sides are sore. His legs and spine don’t protest. They’re hard-wired into his nervous system. Thanks to modern cybernetic technology, he can leap from the sidewalk to the top of an apartment complex, and outrun most of the commercial vehicles on the market.

The benefits aren’t without a curse. His immune system has never quite solved the riddle of his experimental cybernetics. Treatment is painful and expensive. He could use the money this job would bring in.

Catwalk stands in front of one of the windows, listening to the endless clamor of sirens, screams and gunfire in the distance. He’s chosen a nasty part of Downtown. It’s dangerous, but it’s very private. As a professional hitman, that’s worth the risk.

Running his hands through his jet black hair, he ties it into its customary ponytail. He looks over his shoulder at the custom-crafted, armored helmet resting on the counter. The triangular yellow cat’s eyes stare back at him. Cursing under his breath, Cat walks toward the helmet and the armored motorcycle behind it with cold intent.

There’s work to be done.

***

About the Author:

Nick grew up on sci-fi, horror flicks, Dungeons and Dragons, good music, and recycled comic books. He has been published internationally as a comic book author and musician. He’s spent over half his life on stage from New York to Las Vegas. He is outspoken, supportive, and willing to take a good kick to the ribs for the right cause. When not touring the world, Nick lives at home with his blushing bride (and co-author), Dr. Stacia Kelly, their son, and a rotating roster of cats and dogs.

www.nickkelly.com
www.facebook.com/NickKellyAuthor
twitter @Nick_Kelly
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00BQD7J2W/

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Giveaway:

10 ebook copies open internationally
5 physical copies open to US Shipping



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Author Interview & Free ebook: Juli D. Revezzo

About the Author:

Juli D. Revezzo is a Florida girl, with a love of fantasy, science fiction, and Arthurian legend, so much so she gained a B.A. in English and American Literature. She loves writing stories with fantastical elements whether it be a full-on fantasy, or a story set in this world--slightly askew. She has been published in short form, and recently released her debut paranormal romance novel Passion’s Sacred Dance.

Do you plan everything or just let the story flow?

I'm a plantser so I do a  little of both. I might start out with a line and want to see where it takes me, and sometimes that journey may need a more detailed map down the road.

Do your characters ever want to take over the story?

All the time, pesky characters! :)

What is your favourite food?

Italian. I am particularly fond of lasagna. ;)

Are you a morning person or a night owl?

Lately, I'm in the middle of some revisions so I've been burning more of the midnight oil.

Where do you dream of travelling to and why?

I'd like to go to Italy or Ireland, because my ancestors are from Italy, and Ireland, well, I feel a kind of nostalgic, daydreamy connection to the country.

Do distant places feature in your books?

Yes, actually. My heroine  in PASSION'S SACRED DANCE, Stacy, has ancestors from Ireland who insert themselves into the story from time to time.

Do you listen to music while writing?

Sometimes. My mood and the tone of the story often dictates my listening choices. While I worked on Passion's Sacred Dance I listened to a lot of Heart as well as some Celtic flavored music like Lorenna McKennit (no shock there, I'm sure).

Could you tell us a bit about your latest release?

Passion's Sacred Dance is a paranormal romance about a woman who controls a sacred battleground. When a warrior of the Tuatha dé Danann comes to her and requests use of that ground she finds she may not have a choice but to hand it over. However, if the wrong side gains control, the world as she knows it will be in deep trouble.

What have you learned about writing and publishing since you first started?

That publishing sometimes moves a lot slower than you'd like and no matter how much you worry, there's a great deal of luck involved.

Is there anything you would do differently?

I've always been a huge Heart fan, but alas, I have not seen them as much as I'd like to have. If I could I probably would've gone to every single show--period. ;) In terms of what I might've done different in my writing career? I may've self published a little sooner than I did (I self-published my first novel, The Artist's Inheritance).

Who, or what, if anything has influenced your writing?

First and foremost my stories, particularly Passion's Sacred Dance, are influenced by Celtic Mythology. Then I'd have to say the works of Michael Moorcock as well as that of indie author Jolene Dawe.

Anything you would say to those just starting out in the craft?

Keep trying. No matter how difficult it seems, don't give up. Keep learning, keep writing and sending your stuff out. And be ready to tear your own book to shreds--I mean, revise extensively. ;) It's the only way you'll succeed. And don't let anyone--especially yourself--tell you you can't!

What are three words that describe you?

Tenacious, determined and creative.

What's your favourite book or who is your favourite writer?

My favorite writer is Michael Moorcock and I love his Elric series! If it wasn't for that series, I wouldn't be a writer.

Blurb of your latest release or coming soon book

Passion's Sacred Dance:

Battling mounting debt, Stacy Macken is determined not to lose her historic art gallery. When Aaron Fielding appears and offers to help, she fights to keep the attraction sizzling between them from clouding her judgment. He may be her savior in disguise--but can she trust him?

Aaron intrigues her with tales of the Tuatha dé Danann, sworn warriors who protect humanity from the monsters seeking their destruction. If Aaron can prove what he claims, she would give up anything to help--even the gallery he claims is sacred ground. But with her property set to stage the next epic battle, she needs answers. An old family diary will confirm the ancient legend is true, if only they can find it in time.

If the battle is lost, the enemy will take control of Earth for the next five hundred years. Stacy and Aaron's budding love might only complicate things.

PASSION’S SACRED DANCE is available at Amazon |  Amazon UK

 The ebook is free from Sep 24-28.

List of previous books if any:

I've also penned The Artist's Inheritance and Caitlin's Book of Shadows, the first two installments in my paranormal fantasy series Antique Magic, and a short supernatural Gothic fantasy story by the name of House of Cards.

Any websites/places readers can find you on the web.

Yes. Your readers can learn more about PASSION’S SACRED DANCE, the Harshad Wars series and all my other works  at http://julidrevezzo.com

Author Interview & Giveaway: Aileen Harkwood

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About the Author:

Aileen Harkwood is a die hard fan of the mysteries, thrills and romances life has to offer and has wanted to write her own since she penned her first, safely-hidden-away-in-a-drawer-never-to-see-the-light-of-day novel in high school. She has a B.A. in Creative Writing, and resides in the Southern Rockies of the United States with her family, a Labrador with an extensive chew stick collection, and two cats named after birds.

blog | goodreads | twitter


Do you plan everything or just let the story flow?

I always start out with a premise that includes a set-up, main characters and a potential problem. I never start writing until I know how the story will end. Too easy to get lost without a goal in mind. Usually I’ll flesh out a minimal plot in a set of notes that covers the major points where the story changes and moves off in a different direction. A few paragraphs, a page, no more. For me, the fun of writing is discovering the story as you go along, watching it unfold like a movie.

Do your characters ever want to take over the story? 

Yes. Definitely. And I don’t mind. I like to let my characters tell the story rather than forcing them to do what I’d like.

What is your favourite food?

I wouldn’t be human if I didn’t say chocolate. But living in New Mexico, I’m also addicted to Hatch green chile. It goes in, on, and with almost anything, including chocolate. The annual harvest is just coming in and the chile roasters are already fired up outside local grocery stores. I wish I could send you the scent online. It’s heavenly.

Are you a morning person or a night owl?

Night owl. My favourite time to write is late night to early morning. Sometimes I’ll write all night and my need to get the words down won’t let me go to sleep until the sun rises.

Where do you dream of travelling to and why?

I would love to visit Hong Kong and go shopping. I’m a tea person rather than a coffee person, so shopping for tea there sounds like a huge treat. Another place I’d love to go is home to California. The high desert is stunning, but I miss walking on the beach, and seeing the neighborhood where I grew up. Shopping at the Rose Bowl Flea Market in Pasadena would be awesome. Finally, I’d love to return to the U.K. where I took a semester in college. I’d create a little Austen tour for myself and visit the places featured in her novels.

Unfortunately, work obligations on the day job mean the longest getaway I can afford for the foreseeable future is a day trip to Santa Fe, which is exotic in its own right.

Do distant places feature in your books?

In a way. I’ve lived in many parts of the U.S., so I have a fairly large repertoire of places to choose from when selecting a setting for a novel. The only country I’ve visited—beyond quick jaunts to Canada and Mexico—is the U.K. London was fantastic. Loved the bleak romanticism of Scotland in January, as well. It doesn’t feel like I know any part of the country well enough to write about it, however.

Do you listen to music while writing?

Nope. No music. I prefer the whirring of a portable room fan. White noise that drowns out everything else. Though right now I’m listening to thunder over the mountains behind me. I love that sound.

Could you tell us a bit about your latest release?

DANGEROUS DREAMS is the first novel in a trilogy featuring The Dreamrunner Society. Dreamrunners are psychics with a special ability for sending a duplicate of their living, breathing bodies to anyplace on the planet they can accurately visualize, either from memory or with the aid of photos and videos. As you might imagine, the gift is one that people in power would like to exploit or destroy. Imagine what someone with that talent could do. Travel to and eavesdrop on enemies or competitors, free captives or, alternatively, position themselves to assassinate someone. No place is secure from a dreamrunner if the runner knows what a target location looks like beforehand.

Of course, the runners aren’t interested in doing any of this. They’d prefer to live their lives ethically and on their own terms. They don’t want to be anyone’s pawns or tools. Sadly, their enemies are determined to capture the best and kill the rest.

What have you learned about writing and publishing since you first started?

It takes persistence. And a lot more time than you would expect to make an impact on readers. I don’t see myself as landing on many readers’ radar until I get to my fifth or sixth book. If I’m lucky. ;-)

Is there anything you would do differently?

Start earlier. Years earlier.

Who, or what, if anything has influenced your writing?

Nature has a huge influence on how and what I write. It inspires me. It sets a mood, and once I’ve found the atmosphere for a book or novella it’s much easier to find the story’s voice. People think of writers as having a voice or style, but in my mind, it’s the story that owns the voice, not the writer.

Anything you would say to those just starting out in the craft?

Keep going. No matter what. If you want it, go for it. Don’t let people tell you your writing isn’t good enough. Just start work on something. Finish it. And repeat.

What are three words that describe you?

Procrastinator. Stubborn. Kind.

What's your favourite book or who is your favourite writer?

As you might guess, I’m a cliché. It’s Jane Austen, and Pride and Prejudice. I love Hemingway and Ian Fleming and am fascinated by the work of Sebastian Junger and Kazuo Ishiguro, as well. For total popcorn, I never miss a Kay Hooper novel. Other favs are most of the paranormal themed books by Nora Roberts, Melinda Leigh’s romantic suspense, and anything by Susanna Kearsley.

Blurb of your latest release or coming soon book

Dangerous Dreams 

The Dreamrunners Society, 

Book One

Aileen Harkwood         

Genre: Paranormal/Romantic Suspense

ASIN: B00DGL0HBC

Number of pages: estimated 220 pages

Word Count: 65K

Amazon

Book Description:

Plagued by nightmares of terrorist bombings, Lara Freberg is a so-called Lost One, unaware of her psychic gift for literally being in two places at once. While her true body sleeps, her twin is helplessly drawn to scenes of unspeakable horror. 

Kidnapped by a corrupt, CIA-like organization determined to exploit her abilities, Lara is given no choice. Cooperate or die. Until the midnight spying missions that make her the willing prisoner of an erotic stranger. Does she dare trust him with her warning of a future attack on American soil?

Jack Mayfield will never forgive himself for being too late to free Lara from the Greys, The Dreamrunners Society's sworn enemies. An elite front line operative, Jack is able to find and save the Lost Ones no one else can. Nothing, however, can prepare him for the shock of losing the woman who holds the key to unlocking his war weary heart. Now Jack is in a race for her life. Lara's dreaming half may be able to drive him wild with passion, but can he believe her when she says the Greys haven't turned her against him and the Society?

It won't be easy to rescue his one true love from certain death.

List of previous books if any

Wolf’s Den: Legacy of the White Wolf (paranormal shifter novella from The Wild Rose Press) Available here:

Amazon US | Amazon UK

As you might tell, I love British literature and contemporary fiction, so it’s wonderful to have a chance to connect with U.K. readers. Thank you so much for the opportunity!

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Giveaway:

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Book Spotlight & Giveaway: The Art of Forgetting by Peter Palmieri

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The Art of Forgetting
by Peter Palmieria
Medical Thriller
Amazon


Book Description:

Dr. Lloyd Copeland is a young neurologist who is tormented by the conviction that he has inherited the severe, early-onset dementia that has plagued his family for generations – the very disease which spurred his father to take his own life when Lloyd was just a child. Withdrawn to a life of emotional detachment, he looks for solace in hollow sexual trysts as a way to escape his throbbing loneliness. Still, he clings to the hope that the highly controversial treatment for memory loss he’s been researching will free him from his family’s curse.

But when odd mishaps take place in his laboratory, his research is blocked by a hospital review board headed by Erin Kennedy: a beautiful medical ethicist with a link to his troubled childhood. The fight to salvage his reputation and recover the hope for his own cure brings him face to face with sordid secrets that rock his very self-identity. And to make matters worse, he finds himself falling irretrievably in love with the very woman who seems intent on thwarting his efforts.

Praise for The Art of Forgetting:

"Read this one!" Bobby Garrison, Amazon Reviewer

"Entertaining medical thriller!" Roy Benaroch, MD

"The Art of Forgetting is unforgettable!" Apollonia D., Amazon Reviewer

Excerpt:

Chicago, June 6, 1982

“What is my penance, Father?”

For the past five weeks Anne Langdon had come to Wednesday afternoon confession, sometimes waiting for the other penitents to leave before stepping into the box to disclose her petty transgressions: returning a book to the library past its due date, slipping into a movie matinee and then fibbing about it to her husband, pretending not to be home when Mrs. Murphy, that crusty owl of a next door neighbor, rang her door bell to borrow a cup of sugar.

It seemed as though Mrs. Langdon were holding something back. Father Roy felt it the day he bumped into her in the canned food aisle of the supermarket. She had startled when he said hello, dropping the can of green beans whose label she’d been inspecting, and blushed when he’d kneeled to pick it up. And he had felt it during mass when his gaze fell upon her eyes as he delivered his sermons. Sad serious eyes. Beseeching eyes, glazed with a somber emptiness. In her mid-twenties, Mrs. Langdon had the mien that Father Roy had only seen in souls burdened by the yoke of a life-long secret too shameful to reveal.

Now, he spied her through the grid separating the compartments of the confessional. Motes of dust floated in the hazy light which outlined her profile, the effect making her seem even younger – plain yet exuding that curiously poignant allure borne of vulnerability: the naïve appearance of a peasant saint. She smiled as if they were sharing a moment of innocent intimacy.

“What is my penance, Father?” she asked again.

He leaned towards the grid. “Is there anything else you wanted to tell me?”

She took a deep breath and looked down at her hands which lay folded on her lap. “Yesterday, I was looking out my kitchen window at my neighbor’s back yard. She has a row of tulips; yellow, pink and red, all lined up like perfect soldiers. And suddenly – I really don’t know how the thought got in my head – I imagined what it would feel like to step on them; to crush the flowers under my feet. And I felt such a thrill, as if I were really doing it. I just stomped and stomped and stomped, and I could see, in my mind’s eye, how the stems were left all bent, the petals torn, but what’s more… I could feel them under my feet.”

A bang echoed in the church. A worshipper had dropped a kneeler in a nearby pew.

“I could feel it, Father,” she whispered. “It was absolutely delicious.”

“You didn’t trample Mrs. Murphy’s flower bed now, did you?”

“I did in my heart.”

“I don’t think that rises to the level of a transgression.”

“But Father, isn’t it a sin when we think something... when we think of something so much that we start to feel it with every fiber in our body.” She was breathing heavily now. She looked at him through the grid, her eyes watery, her lips slightly parted. “Isn’t that a sin, Father, when you imagine the impossible and live it in your thoughts?”

Father Roy brought his fist up to his mouth, turned his head slightly and coughed. He felt a bead of sweat trickle down his back. Mrs. Langdon’s demeanor, the shape of her mouth, the subtle heaving of her chest thrust forward like an unexpected belch the memory of that summer his family vacationed in Door County before his sophomore year in high school – the last family vacation. He had met a girl – Kathleen was her name – the daughter of a man who sold fresh produce out of an old, converted gas station. Auburn hair, lanky legs bronzed by the sun and lively green eyes that beamed with all the incandescent self-assurance of sixteen-year-old beauties.

Roy’s mother referred to her as “that jaunty lass”.

“Do you intend to whittle away the afternoon with that jaunty lass again, Roy?”

“Her name is Kathleen.”

“The way she looks at you…”

“We’re just friends, mother.”

One afternoon they had gone swimming on a secluded rocky beach; not another soul in sight. When Roy inched his way deeper in the lake, toes curled, arms raised as if he had a gun pointed at him, gasping as the frigid water lapped at his waist, Kathleen chopped the placid surface of the lake with an outstretched palm spraying chilly droplets across his back. Roy arched his spine and jutted out his shoulder blades as if in the throes of a spasm while the jaunty lass snorted and snickered.

“It’s not funny!”

She splashed again and giggled.

“I’m warning you, you little vixen.”

Kathleen’s jaw dropped at this last word but then her eyes lit up and again she started splashing with renewed zeal using both hands.

Roy chased her in the shallow waters, plodding clumsily on the smooth pebbles that rolled and shifted under his feet. She attempted a half-hearted escape, trudging backwards, but soon Roy was upon her (she, by now, paralyzed by howls of laughter) and he wrapped his arms around her.

“So you think that’s funny? You think that’s funny? Now I’m gonna dunk you. Let’s see how funny that is!” He grinned at her with clenched teeth as he gaped in those bottomless emerald eyes.

She grabbed his shoulders, pressed them, kneading his taut muscles. “As if you can,” she said in a tantalizing voice.

He widened his eyes, then squeezed her more tightly, lifted her off her feet. She palmed the nape of his neck, just pitting his skin with her nails. Roy plopped her back on her feet and they wrestled playfully, reveling in the contact of their bare flesh. At last, he was able to grab both her forearms just above the wrists and immobilize her as she twisted her torso.

Then Roy saw her as he had never seen a girl. Her chest was heaving, her skin glistening with tiny droplets, her auburn hair tousled over half her face, her white bikini top pushed below her left breast exposing a bright pink nipple. He let go of her arms, took a step back. She said nothing, just stared at him, her mouth open, breathing more heavily still. Then she lowered the rest of the bikini top letting it flip over her toned midriff. Roy gawked at her smooth, downy skin, at the pale, plump breasts. His Adam’s apple lurched up towards his throat. She gently clasped his wrists, brought his hands to her breasts and pressed her open mouth to his lips.

“Isn’t it a sin to have some thoughts, Father Roy?” Mrs. Langdon said in a near whisper.

Father Roy was breathless. “About tulips?” he asked, attempting to sound nonchalant, but his voice quivered.

“As a man, do you ever feel the urge to –”

“I am not the one in confession, sister,” Roy said. It was not the first time someone had tried to ask him that question – a query impertinent souls seemed compelled to ask a young priest with the looks of a Hollywood movie star.

“I’m so ashamed, Father. I don’t know what’s happened to me. I just don’t know what to do any more.”

Father Roy grasped the silver crucifix hanging over his chest and rubbed it between thumb and forefinger. He considered giving a short discourse on the tenth commandment but decided on a more pragmatic approach.

“When our path grows dim and we’re in peril of losing our way, it’s helpful to remind ourselves of our commitments. Our commitments define who we are. When I step in the shadows, I remind myself of the covenant I made with God.”

“My husband sickens me.”

The suddenness of the statement left Father Roy speechless.

“We haven’t had sex in over six months,” she said. “I wanted you to know that.”

“The Diocese offers couple’s therapy for marital conflicts. Perhaps –”

“Couple’s therapy!” Mrs. Langdon said with a sour chuckle. She shook her head. “I’m such a fool. For some reason I was under the impression that we…” She pulled a crumpled handkerchief out of her handbag, dabbed her nose and sniffled. “Tell me my penance, Father.”

Roy hesitated. “Your penance is to reflect on the holy sacraments of our church. And… say a rosary.”

“Am I absolved of my sins?”

Father Roy made the sign of the cross, trying not to make it appear perfunctory and said, “Go in peace, sister.”

He listened to the clicking of her heels resonating off the church’s tiled floor as she walked away, brought a knuckle to his lips and inhaled deeply through his nose. How was it that he had still not learned to recognize when women were attracted to him?  Was he doing something to garner this type of attention?  Could he whole-heartedly deny that he enjoyed it?

A figure entered the confessional and sat heavily on the wooden bench. “Forgive me father, for I’m about to sin.”

The musty smell of stale beer and sweat permeated the enclosed space making Father Roy sit back and turn away.

“How long has it been since –”

“You know damn well the last time I went to church, Roy.”

“Andrew?” Father Roy studied the silhouette through the perforated partition. “Is something wrong?”

“It started, Roy.”

“I’m sorry?”

“It has begun. How did Churchill phrase it?  Not the end of the beginning but the beginning of the end… or maybe I’m saying it all wrong. I don’t know, you’re the one with the fancy schooling.”

“Maybe we should go in the Parish office.”

“It’s been going on for months. I know you’ve seen it too. You just didn’t want to say anything and of course I’ve been trying to hide it. That’s the Copeland family way, isn’t it?  Ignore things, deny they’re happening, hide all the evidence and go about your business with a stiff upper lip. Isn’t that what Pops did?”

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About the Author:

Peter Palmieri was raised in the eclectic port city of Trieste, Italy. He returned to the United States at the age of 14 with just a suitcase and an acoustic guitar. After attending public high school in San Diego, California, he earned his bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Animal Physiology from the University of California, San Diego. He received his medical degree from Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine and completed his pediatric training at the University of Chicago and Loyola University Medical Center. More recently, he was awarded a Healthcare MBA by The George Washington University. A former student of Robert McKee's Story seminar and the SMU Writer's Path program, and a two-time attendee of the SEAK Medical Fiction seminar taught by Tess Gerritsen and Michael Palmer, Peter is now busy practicing general pediatrics at a large academic medical center while working on his next medical suspense.

blog | facebook | twitter

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Author Interview: Garrett Robinson

About the Author:

Garrett Robinson was born in Los Angeles, California. Throughout his childhood and into adulthood, he was encouraged to learn by his parents, who not only ensured he had access to thousands of books whenever he wanted, but who traveled with him around the world and helped him do so once he was out in the world on his own. Throughout high school, Garrett excelled in creative writing, churning out millions of words and far surpassing all of his classmates.

After school, Garrett discovered a love of, and has had a budding career in the independent film industry. In today's digital age, however, he has discoverd that new creative models are necessary to succeed. To that end, he has begun turning all of his film ideas into self-published books, in hopes of drumming up support and readership for the stories he has created.

Do you plan everything or just let the story flow?

GR: I'm a relentless planner. If I try striking out into the wild blue yonder without a road map, I end up all over the place. Without a careful outline of the entire story, I end up going on tangents and, several thousand words later, I have no idea where I am any more. And not in a good way.

Do your characters ever want to take over the story? 

GR: Oh, this happens all the time. Even with careful outlines, my characters and the story itself will take unexpected twists. And if that happens WITH an outline, you can imagine how bad it would be without one!

In particular, my "bad boy" characters are the ones who will unexpectedly come up with some idea I'd never thought of before, that I know they have to do, but that's now a major pain for me, the author, to figure out how to get them out of!

What is your favourite food?

GR: Sushi and steak. In that order, and not together.

Are you a morning person or a night owl?

GR: I'm writing right now at 3:41am. So...

Where do you dream of travelling to and why?

GR: This is a poor answer, but I just want to go back to New Zealand. Once I have the money in place, I want to move there to live. I've been twice, and fell absolutely in love with it. My wife, on the other hand, thinks I'm crazy. - We would love to live there too, we've been twice as well :)

Do distant places feature in your books?

GR: Depends on the book. My first three books were all set in Los Angeles, where I'm from. Then my next two were fantasy, and so the worlds were not real. I guess that counts as far away?

Do you listen to music while writing?

GR: I have to listen to Rise Against or I just can't get anything done. I don't know why, but that's just the way it is.

Could you tell us a bit about your latest release?

GR: Realm Keepers is a Young Adult fantasy series about six mismatched kids who start traveling to another universe called Midrealm every time they go to sleep. On the other side, they discover they're powerful wizards who are the only things standing in between Earth and destruction by an evil warlord who commands the power of Chaos. The thing is, they're still on Earth every day, too, and time spent here is time away from there. So they have to strike this balance between their normal lives on Earth and their utterly extraordinary lives in Midrealm, where the fate of an entire world is resting on their shoulders.

What have you learned about writing and publishing since you first started?

GR: That I need to spend more time in editing. My first three books were published first drafts—no joke. I've gotten much better now, and I'm more pleased with the published version of Realm Keepers than anything else I've ever done.

Is there anything you would do differently?

GR: I would have started earlier. I've been doing it less than a year, but I've had story material for three. If I'd started three years ago, I can only imagine where I'd be at right now.

Who, or what, if anything has influenced your writing?

GR: Realm Keepers is very strongly inspired by Animorphs, my favorite series as a teenager. Other than that, the sci-fi and fantasy classics of the past are my greatest inspiration. I have a few gripes with most modern science fiction and fantasy, namely that everyone seems to be going too dark for my tastes. It worked for Game of Thrones because that series was the first one to make it popular. Now everyone has to kill off major characters and put other ones through the most grueling scenes of torture, death and dismemberment—blech. Give me a barf bag, please.

Anything you would say to those just starting out in the craft?

GR: 1. Be self aware. If you're not good enough to edit your own book, get a professional. If you can't design a decent cover, get a professional. Know your limits. 2. Build a platform before you publish. If you've already published, you'd better start building that platform right away. 3. Your cover and your blurb sell your book. The content of your book will get it spread by word of mouth. Don't confuse the two—i.e., don't expect an excellently written book to sell itself, and don't expect an excellent cover and blurb to get you referred by word of mouth.

What are three words that describe you?

GR: Sleepless, Fast, Narcissistic

What's your favourite book or who is your favourite writer?

GR: I know this is SO mainstream, but my favorite book of all time is unquestionably Lord of the Rings. There's just never been anything with that amount of depth that I've seen. You can spend your whole life exploring his universe. Nobody else even comes close.

Blurb of your latest release or coming soon book

Between Earth and Chaos, Six Children Battle For Our Survival

What if you and your friends went to another world every time you went to sleep?

What if you spent half your life on Earth and the other half fighting to survive against foes too terrible to be real?

And what if you could never tell anyone?

This is reality for the Realm Keepers: six kids from Earth thrust into a terrifying war between Midrealm and Chaos. Plucked from their ordinary lives and given extraordinary powers, they're the only thing standing between us and destruction.

In Episode One, Sarah is living the life every high school student dreams of: she works hard, does well, and has her whole life laid out before her. Until she ends up in detention and mysteriously falls asleep, along with everyone else in the room. Waking up, Sarah finds herself in another world — and another life, one more fantastic and more dangerous than she could ever have imagined.

"An excellent beginning to this fantasy adventure. I look forward to reading more of this series." -Ray Alan Nicholson, Amazon top 1,000 reviewer

Your adventure in Midrealm begins here.

List of previous books if any

ADULTS ONLY
Touch: Trilogy
Non Zombie & Non Zombie II
Hit Girls

OTHER YA
The Ninjabread Man

Any websites/places readers can find you on the web.

http://garrettbrobinson.com

Book Spotlight: Sweet Song of the Siren by William Peskett

Sweet Song of the Siren
by William Peskett
Short Story Collection/Literary Fiction
Amazon ebook | Paperback | Author website


In this third collection of short stories, Thailand-based author William Peskett introduces us to a murderer who sees himself carved in stone, a writer whose dead wife returns to him through time, a robot community waiting for their saviour, a man who falls in love with part of his own body, a woman dying slowly of dementia and a troupe of wise-cracking monkeys.

Humour and melancholy, comfort and suspense, this collection possesses all of these qualities, sometimes within the same story. Most are set in Thailand and provide insights into the lives of the varied populations of that exotic land; others could have happened anywhere. But what marks them out is the diversity of the story lines, the quality of the writing, and engagement with interesting characters who have something to say.

Author Interview: Rupansh Gupta

About the Author:

Rupansh is a Chartered Financial Analyst, Chartered Accountant, Master of Business Administration by qualification. He won a gold medal for securing highest marks in Chartered Accountancy Exams in India. Apart from writing, he is also fond of creating music. He has produced the music album, 'Aziende' and is working on his forthcoming music album. His writing endeavors include, 'The Sojourn' which has won him, 'Contribution of CA towards Society Award' and Special Recognition Award from Nishkam Sewa Bharti Trust and his forthcoming novel, 'Pulchritude - An Eternal Love Story'.


Do you plan everything or just let the story flow?

I plan the plot and then let the story within it and details flow.

Do your characters ever want to take over the story?

Every story is made of characters. In some stories, all chracters combined make the story while some stories revolve around one character who takes over the story.

What is your favourite food?

I like healthy food, fruits and green vegetables.

Are you a morning person or a night owl?

If I am working on a project, i usually work on it even at late hours but at other times, I am a morning person.

Where do you dream of travelling to and why?

Peaceful and calm atmosphere always attracts me. I dream of travelling to such places especially those having exquisite natural scenery as I am very fond of nature which my book, 'The Sojourn' shows.

Do distant places feature in your books?

Yes, as a matter of fact, my novel 'Pulchritude - An Eternal Love Story' is based in Europe.

Do you listen to music while writing?

Sometimes I do. Depends upon the kind and part of story i am working on.

Could you tell us a bit about your latest release?

'The Sojourn' is a poetry book on secrets of the Universe. In this book, the nature speaks to tell about the things which everyone should know.

What have you learned about writing and publishing since you first started?

If you have the strength to begin, you will definitely take it to the end. When you start writing your first page, everything will follow if you are just persistent enough.

Is there anything you would do differently?

No, I consider everything as a learning experience whether good and bad. Every moment is worth enjoying.

Who, or what, if anything has influenced your writing?

Nature, my experiences and books I have read have influenced me in my writing.

Anything you would say to those just starting out in the craft?

Be creative and original. Do not follow the trend, but make your own trend.

What are three words that describe you?

Creative, Persistent, Spiritual.

What's your favourite book or who is your favourite writer?

'The Da Vinci Code' by Dan Brown is my favorite book.

Blurb of your latest release or coming soon book

'Pulchritude - An Eternal Love Story' is a novel set in 15th Century Europe. Rest of the suspense will be revealed by the book.

List of previous books if any

'The Sojourn' is my first book.

Any websites/places readers can find you on the web.

http://www.rupansh.com

http://www.facebook.com/Rupansh.Net

http://www.twitter.com/RupanshGupta

http://in.linkedin.com/in/rupansh/

Release Day Blitz & Giveaway: Demon Chained by Erica Hayes

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Demon Chained
Shadowfae Chronicles
Book Five
Erica Hayes
Genre: paranormal romance, urban fantasy romance
Word Count: 83,000
Cover Artist: Ravven
Kobo | BN | iTunes | Smashwords

Book Description:

A powerful djinni, enslaved to her lamp. An undead thief, bound to a cruel demon's whim. A passion that will outlast death itself...

A dark, delicious urban fantasy romance from the author of Shadowfae.

Jewel is a djinni of the lamp, an enchanted slave, bound to her owner by dark magical cravings she can't resist. She burns for freedom, and when her lamp is stolen—by Tam, a hot and dirty bad-boy thief—she vows to be rid of her new master at any cost. Even as she plots Tam's demise, the lamp's dark fascination makes her long to claim him as her own.

But the last thing Tam wants is a spellbound djinni who can't say 'no'. Cursed by a demon to suffer living death, he's tormented by undead longing for pain, pleasure, any sensation he can get. To have this exquisite, besotted Jewel at his bidding is pure torture... because Tam refuses to succumb to her magical allure.

Not when he knows she can't truly be attracted to an ever-dying freak. And not when he’s already on a mission from his cruel demon master: capture and deliver one djinni...

Warning: this novel contains a feisty magical heroine, a besotted fairy best friend and the hottest wise-ass dead-guy hero in town.

Excerpt:

Demon Chained
Chapter One

The worst thing about being dead? Low blood pressure. Getting a hard-on is just about impossible.

But I've sure as hell got one now. Squeezing a smug murdering asshole's throat between my thighs does it for me every time. I jam my pistol harder into his forehead, banging his blond head into the metal floor, and I can't deny that adds a certain something, too.

Spit leaks in my mouth, thick and tasty, and I savor it. He can't move his arms, and his cool sweat soaks into my jeans. Bitch of a chafe there tonight. I remember to breathe, and the warm nightclub air tastes good, gritty with smoke and fear. "Tell me what you did wrong, bug guts."

My friend Gavain giggles. He's still lounging in the corner, shirt off, dark hair in tangles, blood-tinged fae sweat glistening on muscles stretched tight like wire. Gavain thinks all kinds of weird shit is funny. That's why he helped me lure this dog to his death. But I don't want to think about Gavain right now. I'm having too much fun.

The gangster grits broken teeth, his hair plastering in splashes of his own blood. "Don't know what you're on about."

Bzzt! Wrong answer. First rule of dealing with a reanimated psycho bent on revenge: tell him what he wants to hear.

I squeeze tighter, lean closer. My oily breath wets his face. "You killed me, motherfucker. You blew my goddamn brains out in front of my little girl. I'm still picking out bone splinters. Ringing any bells?"

Vertebrae pop as I twist my neck to show him the hole, black and sticky with rot beneath my long hair. I was going for a haircut that day, too, before the ambush. If they'd waited half an hour, kids would be running from me in the street. As it is, I can pass for living, just, so long as no one gets too close.

He chokes, either the smell or the pressure, and struggles, bare skin sticking on the metal floor. But he can't shift me. Not with the added weight of anticipation. I've waited a long time for this.

"Jesus, Tam, Joey pulled the goddamn trigger, you know that, I never knew he was gonna—"

"Do I look like I give a shit?" My finger jerks tighter on the trigger, and my teeth clamp together, gums crunching. Joey DiLuca's already top of my face-down-in-a-garbage-skip list. This asshole was just easier to catch. Fury dizzies me, and now my dick's so hard, it hurts. "Blood on my little girl's dress. Bits of my brains in her hair, you shit-eating little worm."

I'm trying to be cool and bad-ass, but my vision smears, black blood staining my tears.

Dying's nothing like they say. I remember everything, and I didn't see white light, or my grandmother strumming a harp, or any shit like that. Everything just stops, like you've pulled the plug on a movie projector. Hell's nothing like people say, either, except for one thing: it's full of snot-faced bureaucrats. Deals with demons take time, and I slammed back into my body too late. My daughter's corpse, flowering scarlet in her dead mother's arms, her murderers long gone. I hadn't spoken to my ex for eighteen months, and I wasn't allowed to see Katie, but it didn't mean she wasn't my sunshine.

My enemies kidnapped her to get to me, and when they had me, they killed her anyway, just for spite. She died because I was too slow. I can't bring her back. But I'll make this slick pretty-boy gangbanger regret ever laying his sleazy hands on her.

His chest heaves under my ass as he struggles to breathe. "Jesus, don't shoot. Crazy motherfucker, get off me—"

"Shut the fuck up." I drag his head back, and my fingers smear his hair. His wet blue eyes lock with mine. He sees his death, and pisses himself. I breathe again, and the warm salt tweaks my sluggish sense of smell. Jesus. The stink feels so good, a shudder rips through me, my balls tight and burning. Sensation plays hard to get when you're dead. If I come when I shoot him, I'm not responsible.

Mouth or jugular? I tap my pistol against his teeth, but he squirms and squeezes his lips shut. I trace the barrel down to his throat, where his pulse flutters, and shove it in tight. "See you in hell."

And that's when she walks in, and everything turns to shit.

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About the Author:

Erica Hayes was a law student, an air force officer, an editorial assistant and a musician, before finally landing her dream job: fantasy and romance writer.

She writes dark paranormal and urban fantasy romance, and her books feature tough, smart heroines and colourful heroes with dark secrets.

She hails from Australia, where she drifts from city to city, leaving a trail of chaos behind her. Currently, she's terrorizing the wilds of Northumberland.

Website: www.ericahayes.net

Twitter: www.twitter.com/ericahayes

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ericahayes.author

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