Book Spotlight & Giveaway - The Kingdom of Vosh by Jason C. Conley

    

About the Author: In 1999, Jason Conley drew a picture of a young woman’s face. It eventually became the cover of the book you now hold. When not consumed by writing or art, Jason canoes, fishes, and hikes the rolling hills of Tennessee with his family. There are secrets to this world we live in. Some faintly whispered, others hidden in plain view. Some of those secrets have been carefully placed throughout this book. Truth and fiction, it is what we try to discern between every day, though I wonder is it even recognizable anymore? Do we know the truth or are we simply told what to believe in and what is real? It is a journey we are all on. It will be up to you to decide which parts are which. Break loose of those chains and look around you, because the truth… will set you free. 

Book Synopsis: Secrets have been formed in the dark corners of the kingdom. Change is in the air and whispers of new ideas and technologies have swept the land. Unfortunately, the King is old and simple and his daughter is concerned only with worldly possessions. A man by the name of Buul, a man long forgotten, has returned to pay a visit to the King on the King’s birthday. He has not come empty handed and will be the King’s undoing. The King, in moments of panic and war, can trust no one with the protection of his daughter. He quickly decides to entrust her life with a creature most vile and uncommon and chains her to a Vork. He does not leave her empty handed though. His last gift to the Princess is an amulet with powers even he does not comprehend. The land’s only chance, the only one loyal to the King’s memory, is the daughter that cares nothing of the Kingdom of Vosh.   

 Author Links: 

Website: www.thekingdomofvosh.com 

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TheKingdomOfVosh 

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/jconley78/kingdom-of-vosh/

 Giveaway!
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Tour Schedule and Activities November 20 Watch Play Read Review November 20 Beagle Book Space Contest November 21 Sapphyria’s Book Reviews Guest Post November 22 Jess Resides Here Guest Post November 23 Lost Inside the Covers Review November 24 Armand Rosamilia, Horror Author Guest Post November 25 The Official Writing Blog of Dee Dee Davies Guest Post November 26 Laurie’s Thoughts and Reviews Guest Post November 27 Spellbindings Review November 28 Workaday Reads Guest Post November 29 Bee’s Knees Reviews Review November 30 Azure Dwarf Review December 1 Vampires, Witches, & Me, Oh My! Guest Post December 3 Little Red Reviewer Interview December 4 Myriad Musings Guest Post/Interview December 6 Come Selahway With Me Guest Post December 7 Breath of Life Review December 9 Book in the Bag Review December 11 Angela Meadon Blog Review December 13 Deal Sharing Aunt Review December 15 SpecMusicMuse Review/Interview December 16 Word to Dreams Review December 18 A Haunted Head Interview December 19 Bookishly Me Review December 20 The Dan Brien Project Guest Post December 23 Sheila Deeth Blog Review   

Amazon Links for The Kingdom of Vosh Print Version http://www.amazon.com/The-Kingdom-Vosh-Chained-Princess/dp/1937035433  

Kindle Version http://www.amazon.com/Kingdom-Vosh-Jason-C-Conley-ebook/dp/B00DDU70AC

Book Blast, Excerpt & Giveaway - Building Attraction by Monique McDonell

Title: Building Attraction

Author: Monique McDonell

Published: October 31st, 2013

Word Count: 58,000

Genre: Chick Lit, Romantic Comedy

Content Warning: Adult Sexual Content

Recommended Age:  16+

Synopsis:

Hers has been a life of too many responsibilities and his has been a life of too few. Could the thing that initially repelled them from each other finally be the ultimate source of attraction?

Holly Adams has two jobs in the city, two petulant teenage sisters to support, a farm with a big mortgage and a terrible secret that propels her forward. Brad Winchester has a reputation for being a spoilt playboy who has abandoned his family business but he also has a secret that has finally brought him home.

When they are forced together at work (Holly works at the cut-throat PR Consultancy that handles his family’s account Winchester Homes – “They don’t build homes, they build dreams”)  a series of misunderstandings has them at odds.

Still working together they learn they have more in common than either might have imagined – common friends, family loyalty and dreams of something different. When life keeps pushing them in each other’s paths they must decide whether this is an attraction that might be worth building on after all.

Amazon

About the Author:

Monique is an Australian author who writes contemporary women's fiction including chick lit and romance. She lives on Sydney's Northern Beaches with her husband and daughter, and despite a dog phobia, has a dog called Skip.

Monique has written all of her life, especially as a child when she loved to write short stories and poetry. At University she studied Creative Writing as part of her Communication degree. After wards she was busy working in public relations and didn't write for pleasure for quite a few years although she wrote many media releases, brochures and newsletters. (And she still does in her day-job!)

When Monique began to write again she noticed a trend - writing dark unhappy stories made her unhappy. So she made a decision to write a novel with a happy ending and she has been writing happy stories ever since.

Amazon Author Page | Facebook | Twitter | GoodReads | Website | Blog

Excerpt:

'Bradley Winchester dove into his red convertible BMW and discreetly followed Holly home. She was fascinating. Mesmerizing even. He’d never seen anything as erotic as that woman bent over the car hood fixing her engine and snapping her knife shut against her thigh. It was primal and capable and so completely foreign to him. He was used to women who needed help to open their champagne let alone fix their cars.

He knew from the minute he walked into the EPR boardroom today that Holly Adams did not like him. He was an hour late, but that had been a genuine mix-up. His secretary had given him the wrong time. He was normally fastidious about punctuality. However, he knew it was more than that.

Holly Adams had him pegged as a guy punching above his weight, so to speak. She saw him as a guy who was handed a job on a silver platter that he wasn’t qualified for. She was right to an extent, but she didn’t know the full story and he couldn’t tell her, even if he wanted to. Not that it had been any of her goddamned business in the first place. He had tried to smooth things over with her at the time and she had been nothing but courteous but her distrust of him was obvious.

Holly did a left-hand turn into a driveway. It was the driveway of St Anne’s School for Day Students and Boarders. Why was Holly going into an exclusive girls’ school at seven at night? He turned into the driveway and shut his lights. She had gone right so he turned left and pulled his car into a park behind a bank of trees. He got out of the car and watched Holly. She parked. She went around to the passenger side and hauled out her briefcase. He watched her head towards a doorway and it swung open…light spilled through the doorway and an imperious woman filled its frame.

“Cutting it fine aren’t you Miss Adams?”

“Nothing to worry about Sister Evangeline, I’m here now.”

The door slammed and the yard was dark. Brad looked along the bank of buildings. Brad had dated a few St Anne’s girls back when he was in high school but he’d never been to the school before and never at night.

Upstairs he could see school girls talking on a veranda. He saw Holly approach. She was backlit and her golden hair looked like a halo.

“Holly! You’re here!” One girl trilled. “I have so much to tell you!”

“OK Maddy, you will have to wait and tell me after study hall. Come on girls everyone inside. You all know the drill.”

Holly Adams worked at the school. How fascinating, Brad thought. He had so many questions.

He saw the downstairs door open again and the large woman peer out.

“Who are you? We don’t need any Peeping Tom’s around here. You’ve got two minutes to skedaddle or I’m letting the dogs out.”

Oh heck, thought Brad, and he climbed in his car and burnt rubber getting the hell away from St Anne’s.'

Giveaway Details:

There is a tour wide giveaway. Prizes include the following:

• $20 Amazon Gift Card

Giveaway is International.

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Review - Outback Dreams by Rachael Johns

Outback Dreams by Rachael Johns
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Paperback, 352 pages

Published October 1st 2013 by Harlequin Enterprises Australia 

Source: Publisher Review Copy

Synopsis:

'Faith and Monty are both looking for love...but they’re looking in the wrong direction.

Faith Forrester is at a crossroads. Single, thirty and living on a farm in a small Western Australian town, she’s sick of being treated like a kitchen slave by her brother and father. Ten years ago, her mother died of breast cancer, and Faith has been treading water ever since. She wants to get her hands dirty on the family farm. She wants to prove to herself that she’s done something worthwhile with her life. And she wants to find a man...

For as long as he can remember, Daniel ‘Monty’ Montgomery has been Faith’s best friend. When he was ten, his parents sold the family property and moved to Perth, and ever since, Monty’s dreamed of having his own farm. So for the last ten years, he’s been back on the land, working odd jobs and saving every dollar to put toward his dream. Now he finally has the deposit. But there’s still something missing...

So when Faith embarks on a mission to raise money for a charity close to her heart, and Monty’s dream property comes on the market, things seem like they are falling into place for them both. Until a drunken night out ends with them sleeping together. Suddenly, the best friends are faced with a new load of challenges...

Monty and Faith are both ready to find a life partner and settle down, but have they both been looking in all the wrong places?' 

My Thoughts:
When I first started reading Outback Dreams my initial thoughts were "Great, another 'friends since forever and only just realising they love each other' kind of story". I have read so many other books like this that I was praying this one would have something a little more.

Luckily, it did. Yes, the above theme was definitely a strong part of the plot, but the book did actually contain other elements as well that kept my interest and made it more of an enjoyable read, such as the individual personal journeys that Faith and Monty underwent, the issue of dealing with someone who has autism, and also with losing a loved one just to name a few.

Monty was definitely my favourite character because he was easy to relate to and seemed like your typical Aussie bloke. He is a very determined person, knows exactly what he wants to achieve in life and is willing to work to get it.

Faith on the other hand annoyed me a little. She seemed to just drift along as an extra on her family farm doing nothing more than being the cook and cleaner to a totally oblivious father and brother. When she finally realises that her life has been a bit of a waste and decides to do something about it, she seems to get so defensive about her position which bothered me to no end because it was her decision to live that life in the first place.

I really enjoyed reading an Australian novel for a change (being Aussie myself) as it was so much easier to relate to the language and slang used throughout as well as picture the scenery described.

This is the first time I have ever read a story by Rachael Johns and I liked how realistic her characters were and how easy her style of writing was to read. I'll definitely read another novel by her in the future if the opportunity comes up.

Links:
Amazon

Book Spotlight - Nightlife by Matthew Quinn Martin

Nightlife

by Matthew Quinn Martin

on Tour October 14 - December 14, 2013

Book Details:

Genre: Horror/Thriller Published by: PocketStar / Simon & Schuster Publication Date: Oct 21, 2013 Number of Pages: 332 ISBN: 1476746893 ISBN13: 9781476746890 Purchase Links: NOTE: Excessive strong language, Graphic violence

Synopsis:

For centuries an ancient evil has slept beneath the streets of New Harbor. This Halloween, it wakes up. An action-packed debut horror novel from talented new writer Matthew Quinn Martin, NIGHTLIFE pits a feisty bartender and a mysterious loner against bloodthirsty terrors as alluring as they are deadly. Nightclub bartender and serial heartbreaker Beth Becker might be a cynic. But when her best friend goes missing Halloween night, Beth knows it’s up to her to find out what happened. Her quest will take her on an odyssey through the crumbling city of New Harbor, Connecticut. Along the way she meets a homeless prophet warning of something he calls the “Night Angel”…a bloodthirsty creature that has been feeding on the forgotten. And she will form an unlikely bond with a hunted stranger who knows all too well what is stalking the streets at night. He reveals to her to the hideous truth about the nightmare creatures that have haunted mankind’s imagination for eons––creatures the world calls vampires. Together they are the only hope for New Harbor, but to defeat what lurks in the shadows they are going to have to conquer something far stronger than fear––their own desires.

Read an excerpt:

Beth was alone. She looked down at the wallet still in her hands. Behind a scratched plastic window was a picture of her and Ryan, both of them smiling at her from happier times. Had he gone missing the same as Zoë? What was happening? She shook her head. Maybe she’d finally gone around the bend. Could she really have just seen a man get shot, bleed white, and then liquefy into nothingness—and all because of a box of salt? “Get a grip, Becker.” She reached for the nearest bottle, not even sure what was in it, and poured herself a full glass. “You’re seeing things.” She was about to take a sip when she heard the sound of footsteps from the shadows. She turned to spot a faint outline form in the blackness, almost as if it was born from it. It was a man, and the slightest flicker gleamed from his eyes as he moved into the light. Beth’s glass slipped from her grasp, shattering on the floor as she saw just who it was. “Ryan!” she called out, rushing over. “Oh, my God, Ryan!” But something about him made her stop just shy of the slick spreading out on the floor where the corpse had been lying only minutes before. She looked at Ryan. Something wasn’t right. His hair was different, longer, the way he wore it back when they’d first started dating. He was dressed in clothing he’d thrown out years ago. The same clothing he’d had on in the photo in her wallet. His gaze landed on her, and in that moment, Beth had never wanted him more. Those eyes—so inviting, so mesmerizing, so . . . hungry. He shifted closer. He had yet to speak a single word. “Ryan,” she said. “I was so worried.” But even as she spoke the words—even as she felt that if she’d just let him take her in his arms, all her troubles would disappear—she knew something was terribly wrong. She started to inch backward. “Ryan, why don’t you say something? You’re scaring me.” He sniffed the air, almost gulping at it. Then he cocked his head at an angle that didn’t seem natural—or even human. Suddenly, he leaped for her, covering the three yards between them in a single bound. She dodged. He missed her by inches. But he now stood between her and the door, cutting off any possible escape. He moved closer, hands grasping for her. Beth ducked around a table and shoved forward with all her strength, crushing him against the wall. Ryan screamed. It was that same high-pitched wail she had heard coming from the man who’d been shot. The one Jack said was “hardly a man.” Ryan pawed at the table, sending it flying end over end as if it was made of papier-mâché. Planks splintered against the brick wall. Beth swept up a board. She hit him hard, right across the face. The board cracked in half, and her hand sang with a dull thwack. It did nothing. He simply shook it off and stepped forward, closing the gap between them as he pegged her against the bar. His hands clamped down on her. His grip was like quick-drying cement. She couldn’t move. Beth’s knees began to give out as a heady brew of terror and desire overtook her. She felt the hard press of his hand pushing back her head, exposing her throat. She felt herself giving in. She wanted to go where Ryan had gone, to see what he’d seen, to become whatever it was he’d become.

Author Bio:

Matthew Quinn Martin was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania and raised in New Haven, Connecticut. However, it wasn’t until he moved to Manhattan that he realized he was a writer. These days, he lives on a small island off the North Atlantic coast of the United States where it gets quiet in the winter…perhaps too quiet.

Catch Up With the Author:

 

Tour Participants:

Cover Reveal & Giveaway! - Embrance the Mystery by Caris Roane

COVER BLURB: Mastyr Quinlan pursues the artist, Batya, with only one thing in mind but soon discovers that his desire for her is just the beginning of an earth-shattering affair… He doesn’t want a woman in his life… Quinlan must keep Grochaire Realm safe from the enemy at all costs.  As ruler of his realm, a woman has no permanent place in his day-to-day existence. But when his lust takes him to Batya’s bedroom, he soon discovers he’s deep into a powerful experience that threatens to blow his life apart.  He wants Batya with a feverish desire that makes no sense in his logical, warrior world.  But when an ancient fae attacks Batya’s gallery, he launches into protector mode and soon finds himself embroiled -- body, soul, and fangs -- with a woman he’d only meant to bed a couple of times.   She has no desire to get involved with a mastyr vampire… Batya’s intense desire for Mastyr Quinlan stuns and baffles her.  She doesn’t want to be involved with the vampire on any level.  His sole focus of ruling Grochaire Realm has kept him from staying with one woman longer than the proud length of his fangs.  Besides, she’s built a life for herself in Lebanon, Tennessee as an artist and healer to the realm ex-patriot community. But when the ancient fae attacks Quinlan at her gallery, then attempts to kidnap her assistant, Batya finds herself catapulted into an astonishing adventure.  Even so, she works steadily to get back to her free-clinic and her painting, but how can she leave Quinlan behind when he’s commanded her like no other man ever has? READ MORE:…http://www.carisroane.com/3-embrace-the-mystery/ 

BIO: I confess I've had a love affaire with vampires for several years now, especially warrior vampires, the kind found in the books of Sherrilyn Kenyon, Lara Adrian and JR Ward. Though I've been published in Regency Romance under the pseudonym Valerie King--and yes one of my Regency Novellas features a vampire--one day I woke up knowing I had to create my own contemporary world of the warrior vampire. For some mystical, magical reason, early in the process, my vampires appeared with enormous beautiful wings and it has been the most amazing experience to include flight in my novels, in both battle scenes and scenes involving spectacle. My special vampire world, published by St. Martin's Press, is introduced in the first book called, ASCENSION (12-28-2010). The second book, BURNING SKIES (May of 2011), opens up the world a little bit more. And even as I write this, I'm on the final draft of my third novel, WINGS OF FIRE (September of 2011). What a thrill it has been to live with my ascended vampires through the creation of this extraordinary, multi-dimensional world! For more information about my unique take on the vampire mythos, check out my website at carisroane.com and my book release video on YouTube by putting in the search phrase, Caris Roane Ascension.
SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS: Website:  http://www.carisroane.com/ Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/caris.roane Twitter:  https://twitter.com/carisroane Goodreads:  http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3500801 EXCERPT: From Chapter Two: Mastyr Quinlan, having survived an enemy attack because Batya healed him, has to brush out his long warrior hair. Batya helps him out… Quinlan showered, washing out the mass of his hair twice then applying Batya’s crème rinse until he’d have a half-way decent shot at getting the snarls out with a brush. Using her blow dryer, he scowled as he watched his damn hair fly around. Why couldn’t a vampire, especially a Guardsman, have some kind of preternatural power to remove snarls and dry his hair without electricity? “Want some coffee with your ‘shits’ and ‘damn-all-the-elf-lords-to-hell-and-back’?” He met Batya’s reflection in the mirror, and saw a mug extended in his direction. He shut the dryer off, turned around, and took the cup. “That bad, huh?” Batya chuckled. She had dimples, two of them. Not deep, but they were definitely there, beside her mouth. He’d never noticed before, but then most of his seduction work had taken place at a distance. “Turn around. I’ll work the back section.” He didn’t hesitate, something that resonated deep in his brain as a serious warning of some kind, but he wasn’t sure in what way.  She picked up the brush he’d been using and started at the tips. He couldn’t even feel the tugs so he drank his coffee and released a sigh.  His thoughts turned to Grochaire, the realm he ruled. “I need to get word to my Guard, to warn them about what they’re up against. But my telepathy isn’t working through your shield and my phone got blasted by one of those wraith-pairs.” “You can try my phone, but I can’t guarantee you’ll get through, not with the shield I have in place. Sorry, but staying alive has a priority here.” He smiled because he couldn’t have agreed with her more. She brushed through a long length, hit a snag and started working it. He could see her in the mirror, brow furrowed. He’d seen that look already, more than once just conversing with her. She had a seriousness about her that he approved of, maybe because it matched his own.  He sipped some more and watched her. She was a beautiful woman and tall, maybe just under six feet. He wouldn’t have to lean too far down to pull her into his arms and kiss her. She wore her hair loose with clips holding it away from her face.  She had strong cheekbones and a straight nose. Her chin was definitely fae, more pointed than a human’s would be, but exquisite.    He knew her ancestry, half-fae, half-troll, her genetics having fallen on the fae side. Realm-DNA did that when the species mixed. The offspring landed one way or another, the same if more than two lines made up the code. Genetics always picked a lane. He realized that he liked her looks, really liked them. “Have you ever done a self-portrait?” She picked up another long hunk of his hair and once more started at the tips, working swiftly. “I don’t really do faces. I’ve always been into landscapes and the occasional still-life if the objects intrigue me enough.” “Do you go out, snap photos of woodlands, that kind of thing?” “Sometimes.” She stopped brushing and scratched her cheek with her thumb. “But more often than not I’ll get these rich images in my head and that’s what I’ll paint.” “Sounds fae.”  She started brushing again, making quick work as he sipped his coffee. “Maybe. Probably. I don’t think about it. I just paint and let the spirit move me.” He smiled. “The spirit, huh?” “It’s a good earth-saying, don’t you think?” “I suppose it is. So you like being here on human earth?” “I do. In fact, I love it. I didn’t know what happiness or freedom was until I moved here.” She met his gaze in the mirror. “And I don’t plan on ever returning to the Nine Realms. The day that we made our treaties with the US, turned out to be the best day of my life…”  

GIVEAWAY:   signed copy of BORN IN CHAINS, e-copies of EMBRACE THE DARK, EMBRACE THE MAGIC, and EMBRACE THE MYSTERY, small tote, notepad, versatile calendar, sticky notes, and RTC cards!!!  International winner receives gift card compensation!!!

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