Lisa Regan on Tour: Cold-Blooded

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Lisa Regan will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC  to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

Author Interview

1. Woohoo! You are a published author. Describe a strong character trait you possess, good or bad, and how it helped you become a published author. I am stubborn. I get it from both sides of my family. It can annoy the heck out of my husband but I find that in the grand scheme of things, it helps. When I set a goal, I will keep working toward it even when it seems like utter madness to keep going. That’s how I got to be a published author. It took me four and a half years to find an agent and then almost two more years to find my first publisher. Any reasonable person might conclude that it just wasn’t meant to be. Not me. Too stubborn.

2. Sometimes an author begins writing a story before they are aware of its genre. Did you choose your genre, or did it choose you? I think it chose me. As a child my favorite books were darker-themed books like Christopher Pike books and I loved Nancy Drew, passionately. In my mid-twenties I took a stab at literary fiction but even that turned into a crime drama.

  1. The plot thickens, or does it? Which one are you, a pantser or a plotter?  A little of both. I usually start going by the seat of my pants. I’ll write one scene and then go from there. As I go, I stop to plot a bit, then go back to flying by the seat of my pants. I tried being a total plotter and plotting a whole book before I wrote it but it took all the joy out of the first draft for me. So now I try to find a happy medium.
  2. Fear 101: As writers it is our duty to make our characters face their fears. Have you ever included one of your own fears in a storyline?

All of my books include some of my own fears! My first book, Finding Claire Fletcher explores my fear of being kidnapped. My second novel, Aberration explores my fear of being stalked. My third novel, Hold Still starts out with one of my greatest fears—being car-jacked with my daughter in the car and Cold-Blooded puts the main character, Jocelyn in a situation where she has to choose between saving a loved one and stopping a terrible situation.

5. Fear 102: Yes, deadlines are terrifying. Have you conquered the juggling act between writing and the rest of your life? What do you do when it feels like the balls are dropping all around you? I have not conquered it. I am almost constantly in a state of being completely overwhelmed and about to sent over the edge. I work full-time; my family has a host of minor medical issues; and I simply don’t have the energy I used to have. It’s very tough. I do the best I can. I’m constantly trying to figure out how to best manage my time to fit in the most writing. I don’t really allow myself too many deadlines because I would be afraid of not meeting them. When it feels like all the balls are dropping around me, I make lists. Lots and lots of lists! I find to-do lists really help me organize my thoughts and prioritize and getting to cross of things that I’ve taken care of is really gratifying. That gives me a little extra motivation to get through the extra busy and overwhelming times.

6. Switch positions with one of your main characters in a scene. What is the outcome, disaster or divine intervention?
Disaster. I’m not at all as articulate or courageous as my characters. LOL. I’d be standing there completely and utterly paralyzed in a scene where my life depended on my wits! I’m that person who always thinks of the best responses to confrontations five hours after the confrontation is over. It’s very disheartening. I like living vicariously through my characters.

7. Where is your favorite place to write? Add that one comfort food that you can’t do without. I have no favorite place. Any place where I can be uninterrupted for more than ten minutes is fabulous. I used to live in an apartment where I actually had a writing desk. My desk was by the window and always got the very best light. I put a bird feeder outside so I could see the birds while I was at my desk. That was absolute bliss. Unfortunately, I don’t even have a desk anymore, let alone a great window. So I write wherever and whenever I can.

  1. Writing inspirations? Karin Slaughter, Dennis Lehane, Chelsea Cain, Jennifer Hillier to name just a few. There are so many amazing writers in my genre. When I read great books by other writers in my genre, it really gets me fired up.
  2. You are introduced to your favorite author. Who is it, and what is that one burning question you must ask them?
    Oh dear. I actually met my favorite author, Karin Slaughter, in 2012 at Bouchercon. I practically hyperventilated. I mean I was a complete moron. I know that I babbled incoherently at her, but I have no idea what I said. I probably went about it all wrong. I saw her standing there with John Connolly (another of my favorites), which didn’t help my near-hysteria, and just went up to them. I honestly have no idea what I said. I probably should have just gone to their post-speech book signing and tried to meet them normally although I don’t think I’d ever be able to keep my composure around Karin Slaughter. I very nearly passed out. They were so gracious and I got a picture with them both but I always relive that moment with half-euphoria and half-horror. I wish I could have been cool about it. She was probably horrified. But if I could actually meet her again and have a chance to ask her a question I would ask her why she chose to kill off a particular series character and did she get a huge backlash from it?
  3. I’ve gone mad – why don’t you come with me? Some people just don’t understand us writers. Name a quirky, writer-thing you do that friends wish you didn’t. Besides sharing stuff about books and writing constantly on social media? I always say, “There’s a book in there somewhere,” meaning that when someone tells me something strange or unusual, I’m always thinking of how it could be made into a book or fit into a story.

 

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Cold-Blooded

by Lisa Regan

GENRE: Mystery/Suspense

BLURB:

Fourteen years ago, high school track star Sydney Adams was gunned down in Philadelphia’s Fairmount Park. The investigation yielded useless clues, and the case went cold. But homicide detective Augustus Knox never gave up on finding Sydney’s killer. Now, retired from the police force and with only months to live, he enlists the help of private investigator Jocelyn Rush to clear the case once and for all. Armed with little more than a theory as to who murdered Sydney, Jocelyn tries to lure a killer into the open. But unraveling the mystery means facing off against a cunning psychopath whose ruthlessness knows no bounds. When more bodies start to pile up, Jocelyn has to decide just how far she’s willing to go to catch a cold-blooded killer.

 

Excerpt:

She stumbled, crying out as her left foot tangled with a rogue tree root poking up through a crack in the concrete. Her hands shot out, prepared to break her fall, but her legs stuttered, almost of their own volition, finding purchase. She stopped, leaning against the offending tree. Her chest heaved. Sweat ran down her forehead and into her eyes, irritating them. Laughter erupted from her diaphragm. How many times had she run this path? Hundreds. Sprained ankle by way of tree root was a rookie move. This was exactly the problem. This distraction.

Pop.

It sounded like a firecracker and registered as a searing, stabbing pain in the back of her right thigh. Like a hot poker. Before she could react, another pop sounded, this one closer. Then two more. She suddenly tasted dirt in her mouth, and her temple was resting on that damn tree root before she could even begin to process what was happening to her. Her legs wouldn’t work. Panic, hot and frenzied, closed in on her. What was happening?

“Help,” she said, but her voice came out small and squeaky. She thought she heard footsteps approaching from behind. Sydney willed her legs to move, to stand, to scramble, to run. She reached forward with her right arm, feeling for the base of the tree. She had to get up. As her surroundings began to fade to an inky, charcoal blackness, she felt a tug on her lower body.

“Please,” she croaked.

Then the darkness swallowed her.

 

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Lisa Regan is an Amazon bestselling crime/suspense novelist. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in English and Master of Education Degree from Bloomsburg University. She is a member of Sisters In Crime, Mystery Writers of America and International Thriller Writers. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband and daughter. Her debut novel, Finding Claire Fletcher won Best Heroine and was runner up in Best Novel in the eFestival of Words Best of the Independent eBook Awards for 2013. Her second novel, Aberration won Best Twist in the 2014 eFestival of Words Best of the Independent Book Awards. Her third novel, Hold Still was released by Thomas & Mercer in 2014 and has been translated into German. She is at work on her fifth novel. Find out more at www.lisaregan.com.

Author Links:

Website: http://www.lisaregan.com/

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Lisa-Regan/e/B009YY091I/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Lisa-Regan-189735444395923/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Lisalregan

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6443334.Lisa_Regan

 

COLD-BLOODED BUY LINKS:

LINK FOR AMAZONhttp://www.amazon.com/Cold-Blooded-Lisa-Regan-ebook/dp/B017I2QP88/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1446571159&sr=8-3&keywords=cold-blooded

LINK FOR iTUNEShttps://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1055224082

 

LINK FOR NOOK: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/cold-blooded-lisa-regan/1122889576;jsessionid=53E1B483F296F6F3064D9B299C1D33A0.prodny_store01-atgap09?ean=2940152715040

 

LINK FOR KOBOhttps://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/cold-blooded-19

 

LINK FOR AMAZON UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Cold-Blooded-Lisa-Regan-ebook/dp/B017I2QP88/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1446601096&sr=8-1&keywords=cold-blooded+regan

 

 

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Tabitha Lord on Tour: Horizon

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Tabitha Lord will be awarding a $10 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

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Author Interview

  1. Woohoo! You are a published author. Describe a strong character trait you possess, good or bad, and how it helped you become a published author.

I’m more than a little obsessive about my work. It’s funny, because when I’m not in the middle of a draft, I love to have a million things going on and I thrive on the variety. But when I’m focusing on a particular project, I shut everything else out and pretty much eat, sleep, and breathe my work in progress. This is both good and bad I think!

2. Sometimes an author begins writing a story before they are aware of its genre. Did you choose your genre, or did it choose you?

I knew this one was going to be sci-fi! When I started thinking about Horizon, I had two distinct parts of a story floating in my head. The first was the opening crash sequence. It was more basic at the time of its inception – just a young man who crash lands on a planet, and a young woman, in some kind of trouble, who saves his life. The second part was more complex. I was playing with the idea of what would happen if one segment of an already small isolated population evolved differently, either naturally or by design, from the other. What if some had gifts that enabled them to imagine a different kind of future for themselves and their world? What if they were empathic and could sense each other’s emotions and thoughts? What if some of them could heal with their mind? How would the unchanged people feel about their neighbors? It created such an interesting premise I knew I had to find a way to make it into a story. And of course, it couldn’t really be anything but sci-fi!
3. The plot thickens, or does it? Which one are you, a pantser or a plotter?

I’m a loose outliner or plotter. Generally, I have the concept for the book well worked out before I dive in, but I leave plenty of room for interesting plot twists.

 

  1. Fear 101: As writers it is our duty to make our characters face their fears. Have you ever included one of your own fears in a storyline?

I’m not sure my characters face any of my personal fears, but at a writing conference I once attended, the speaker suggested that we artist types, through our work, like to contend with themes that are important to us. This really resonated with me. Some of the questions I need my characters to struggle with include: What decisions do we make large and small that come to define us when it matters? What does a hero look like? Who stands and fights, and who turns away? What is redemption and who finds it? I think about these things in the context of current world events, and I want to encounter these kinds of questions as a reader. I think it makes sense that I would write about them too.

 

  1. Fear 102: Yes, deadlines are terrifying. Have you conquered the juggling act between writing and the rest of your life? What do you do when it feels like the balls are dropping all around you?

Absolutely not! I’ll be honest – I struggle to find balance. It feels like there aren’t enough hours in the day to write creatively, promote my existing book, network, blog, edit, etc. And there is still a household to run! I have four kids, so a good bit of my world still involves baseball games, piano recitals, concerts, school plays, and feeding the masses.

I handle the madness by being an obsessive-compulsive planner. I have a daily to-do list, a monthly project list, and I live by my calendar. I’m a Board member at the Waldorf School where I used to work and teach, and I’m still on a few committees there, so I plan those things in as well. I try to hit four power yoga classes per week and I hike on Thursday mornings with some friends. I go out of my way to schedule my work around these two things, so I guess I may have found some measure of balance!

When I was working full-time outside my home, I made time to write and I protected that time fiercely. Now, other things weave their way into my day and cut into that valuable time. It requires real discipline, and a detailed calendar, for me to stay productive.

 

  1. Switch positions with one of your main characters in a scene. What is the outcome, disaster or divine intervention?

One of the first scenes in Horizon shows Caeli saving Derek’s life with her empathic/telepathic healing powers. I was an EMT for many years, and worked in the ER for several more. I’m actually a medical school dropout, but that’ a story for another day! It was important for me that Derek’s injuries, and Caeli’s approach to healing them, be accurate. BUT, if I had been out there in the middle of the wilderness instead of Caeli, well, that would have been pretty disastrous for Derek! I imbued Caeli with all the magical healing powers I always wished I had.

 

  1. Where is your favorite place to write? Add that one comfort food that you can’t do without.

Right now I’m at the kitchen table. In the winter, sometimes, I’ll grab the beanbag chair from my son’s room and sit in front of the fire to write. And in the spring and summer, I love to drag my computer and notes onto the porch to write outside. I really would suffer greatly without chocolate in any season!



8. Writing inspirations?

Star Wars! I even wrote a blog post about it! I was seven years old when I saw the movie for the first time and it impacted me in countless ways – from my toy collection, to the books I chose to read, to my later love of astronomy. And of course it influenced my decision to begin my writing career with sci-fi. In my opinion, Star Wars is still the most epic space opera ever to grace book or film!

9. You are introduced to your favorite author. Who is it, and what is that one burning question you must ask them?

I really don’t have one favorite author. I like different writers for different reasons. But, I’d love to ask the great Stephen King how he could possibly have so many stories floating in his head! He is one of the most prolific writers of our time, and an absolute master storyteller. If someone asked me to write a horror story about a car possessed by an evil spirit, or a rabid dog, or a kitty that comes back from the dead, I’d laugh. But honestly, Pet Cemetery kept me up all night with the lights on! I’m in awe of that. Not necessarily the ability to scare someone, but to be so powerful with your words that you completely immerse them in your world – as unbelievable as that world may be.

 

  1. I’ve gone mad – why don’t you come with me? Some people just don’t understand us writers. Name a quirky, writer-thing you do that friends wish you didn’t.

Well, this is more a quirky Tabitha thing because I did it even when I worked in an office. I talk to myself. And sing under my breath. All the time. One of my colleagues used to throw things at me, but most of them ignored me. Now at home nobody pays any attention. My daughter actually said to me, “Mom, writers have to be weird or their writing wouldn’t be interesting.” Thanks, I think!

 

MediaKit_BookCover_HorizonHorizon

by Tabitha Lord

 

GENRE: Science Fiction/Fantasy

 

BLURB:

Caeli Crys isn’t living—she’s surviving. On the run after the genocide of her empathic people, she witnesses a spaceship crash near her hidden camp. When she feels the injured pilot suffering from miles away, she can’t help but risk discovery to save his life.

Commander Derek Markham awakens stranded on an uncharted planet. His co-pilot is dead, his ship is in ruins, and he’s only alive because a beautiful young woman is healing him with her mind.

As Derek recovers, Caeli shares the horror of her past and her fear for the future. When Derek’s command ship, Horizon, sends rescue, Derek convinces Caeli to leave with him. But his world is as treacherous as hers—full of spies, interplanetary terrorist plots, and political intrigue. Soon the Horizon team is racing to defend an outlying planet from a deadly enemy, and Caeli’s unique skills may just give them the edge they need to save it.

 

Excerpt:

“Caeli, is everything okay?” he asked while they sat by the fire and she prepared their food.

She didn’t look at him but nodded. “It was a small group of Amathi soldiers. They were on the other side of the river coming through a pass, but heading in the opposite direction.”

“Do you think they might be looking for my ship?” Derek asked, a knot of dread forming.

“It’s possible,” Caeli acknowledged hesitantly.

“Shit,” he cursed under his breath.

“Or they could just be looking for ore deposits. Anyway, it would take some effort for them to get to this side of the river. It’s why I chose to make camp here. We’re okay. At least for a while.”

I don’t want to run anymore. Caeli didn’t speak out loud, but Derek heard her as clearly as if she did. Her face held a haunted look he hadn’t seen before, and despite her reassuring words, he knew she was more worried than she was letting on.

She passed him a bowl but didn’t take one for herself. Anxiety poured off her, and he didn’t have to be empathic to feel it.

Carefully, he put his bowl aside and turned to face her. “Caeli, how did you escape from Novalis?”

She looked in his eyes and then dropped her gaze to the ground. “I didn’t.”

 

MediaKit_AuthorPhoto_HorizonAUTHOR Bio and Links:

Tabitha currently lives in Rhode Island, a few towns away from where she grew up. She is married, has four great kids, a spoiled Ragdoll cat, and lovable black lab. The house is noisy and the dinner table full! She holds a degree in Classics from College of the Holy Cross and taught Latin for years at a small, independent Waldorf school. She also worked in the admissions office there before turning her attention to full-time writing.

You can visit her blog at www.tabithalordauthor.com where she posts author interviews, hosts guest bloggers, and discusses some favorite topics including parenting and her writing journey. Horizon is her first novel.

 

Twitter https://twitter.com/tlordauthor

Pinterest:  www.pinterest.com/tlordauthor

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/tlordauthor.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Horizon-Tabitha-Lord/dp/1940014794

 

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Cristelle Comby on Tour: Blind Chess

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Cristelle Comby will be awarding all four books of the series, signed by the author (International Giveaway) to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

 

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Author Interview

This is the fourth book in your ongoing series, the Neve & Egan cases, can you tell us how it fits in the series? Can it be read as a stand-alone?

Technically yes, it can. There’s some back-story in there, enough so that new readers should be able to understand what happened before and not be… lost. That being said, I’d strongly advise people to read the other books, especially book 3, Danse Macabre. That one ended on a huge cliff-hanger and the fourth book, Blind Chess, picks up right after that.

Blind Chess is perhaps the most important book in the series so far. It has the big reveal of who the bad guy is. It’s the resolution of a large story-arc that started in book one, Russian Dolls.

 

In this book, you’ve switched narrators. Can you explain this choice?

Blind Chess is the book I’d been looking forward to writing for two years now. I knew it was coming, I’d been working towards that. I wanted to place Egan in that situation where he is on his own and he has to investigate alone. It wouldn’t have worked earlier on, he wouldn’t have had the motivation for it. Now, he’s really attached to Neve and he wants to get the man who hurt her. No matter the cost, he’ll get there.

 

How challenging was it to write from a blind person’s POV?

It was a challenge — more than I would have thought actually. It’s crazy how much we writers rely on sight. When you write a book, it’s all about creating atmosphere, setting the mood… and a heavy chunk of that is done with visual descriptions. It’s hard to be forced to do without it. It forces you to really be creative.

I “wrote” a lot of the book with my eyes closed actually. I’d stand in the dark, close my eyes and try to perceive the world through Egan’s eyes. Then I’d dictate the story and type it down later.

To get the feelings right, I closed my eyes in the middle of a crowd a few times. I’ve done that once in the London Tube, at rush hour. It felt like I was part of a bank of fishes, all swimming in the same direction. One giant body made out of numerous individual parts. I followed the current, let the crowd carry me. It was a strange, surreal moment for me.

 

When can we expect book five?

Not anytime soon, I’m sorry. I’m taking a little break from the Neve & Egan cases. It’s all I’ve been doing for the past three or four years and I’d love to try something new.

I’m working on another series at the moment, in a new genre, Urban Fantasy, with a side of Greek mythology. It’s something darker than the Neve & Egan cases and I’m having a blast writing it. I hope to finish the first draft by spring 2016 and release the book by the end of the year.

That doesn’t mean the death of Neve & Egan though. I love these two and I’ll definitely come back to them. I have ideas for more books. I’m just giving them a holiday; I think they’ve earned it after what I put them through.

 

MediaKit_BookCover_BlindChessBlind Chess

by Cristelle Comby

 

GENRE: Mystery & Detectives

 

 

Blurb:

It is supposed to be Neve and Egan. Two partners, a team. What happens when a member of this team of Private Investigators is shot, prognosis unknown?

As Alexandra Neve lays comatose and defenceless, Ashford Egan must take on their enemy alone, and find the cagiest criminal Scotland Yard has seen in decades. Determined to succeed, Egan will stop at nothing. He’ll hit on married women, plant bugs, hire hitmen. And he’ll do it all blind, which makes things ten times as difficult.

Double-crossed by friends, convinced there is corruption in those sworn to uphold the law, Egan is forced to form unlikely alliances as he moves forward in a game that requires skills, nerves of steel, and a willingness to play against all odds.

 

Excerpt:

There is something Dimitri isn’t telling me. It is there in his voice. Hidden behind the words, behind the constructs he is trying to project. He isn’t being honest, I am convinced of it. He has the means to get in touch with The Sorter, if he so wants, but that service won’t come for free.

‘You’re a merchant,’ I say.

‘Da,’ he replies. ‘I am.’

‘And you accept all kinds of currencies?’

‘Da.’

‘Well,’ I sigh, ‘what will it cost me?’

Dimitri chuckles again. There is a dark sincerity to the sound. ‘I like you, Ashford,’ he says. ‘I have always liked you. You’re blind, but you see more than most. You understand how life works and you accept it. You’re not of my world, but you fit right in.’

I grit my teeth in reply, waiting for the penny to drop.

I hear Dimitri snap his fingers and then footsteps coming closer—a man, judging by the sounds, tall and a little on the heavy side, according to his stride and the echo his boots make on the tiled floor.

‘Sir?’ the newcomer says. He sounds younger than Dimitri, closer to Lexa’s age, I would guess, and eager to please.

Dimitri addresses him in his mother tongue.

‘Yes, sir,’ the newcomer replies before turning on his heel and walking away at a brisk pace.

‘There is a certain something you could help me with,’ Dimitri tells me.

‘Anything,’ I say.

‘A man I have been doing business with has… how would you say… played me.’ He spits the words out as if they are distasteful. ‘He’s been missing since Monday.’

‘What did he do?’ I ask.

‘He ran away with my money.’

‘And?’

‘And I can’t find him. He’s hiding, but his wife is still in town.’

‘And you think she knows where to find him?’ I ask, guessing what I am being “hired” for.

‘Maybe, maybe not. Alas, she has connections and I have to be careful.’

‘Connections?’ I ask.

‘Her sister is police.’ Again he says the word as if it leaves a bitter taste in his mouth. ‘My men are keeping an eye on her, making sure the husband doesn’t come for a visit, but that’s all we can do. We can’t be seen. I don’t want the cops to get near me. They are like bloodhounds once they have your scent.’

‘But,’ I say, ‘if someone who isn’t part of your organisation were to do the job and get caught by the dogs… it wouldn’t inconvenience you too much, would it?’

I can hear the smile in Dimitri’s reply. ‘No, it would not.’

 

MediaKit_AuthorPhoto_BlindChessAuthor Bio and Links:

Cristelle Comby was born and raised in the French-speaking area of Switzerland, in Greater Geneva, where she still resides.

Thanks to her insatiable thirst for American and British action films and television dramas, her English is fluent.

She attributes to her origins her ever-peaceful nature and her undying love for chocolate. She has a passion for art, which also includes an interest in drawing and acting.

Blind Chess is her fourth new-adult novel in the Neve & Egan series.

 

Links :

Website: http://cristelle-comby.com

Twitter: http://twitter.com/Cristelle

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=ntt_athr_dp_sr_1?_encoding=UTF8&field-author=Cristelle%20Comby&search-alias=digital-text&sort=relevancerank

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/CristelleComby

 

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Annette Oppenlander on Tour: Escape from the Past: The Duke’s Wrath

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Annette Oppenlander will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

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Author Interview: Annette Oppenlander

1. Woohoo! You are a published author. Describe a strong character trait you possess, good or bad, and how it helped you become a published author. I’ll give you two. One is the ability to concentrate which can be good or bad. I’m quite good at “disappearing” into my stories. The house could fall down around me and I wouldn’t notice. The other is tenacity. My writing journey began in the late 1990s with dabbling in children’s books and it’s taken more than 15 years to get to publication.

2. Sometimes an author begins writing a story before they are aware of its genre. Did you choose your genre, or did it choose you? Had you asked me what my least favorite subject was in high school I would have said history. Yet, historical fiction has become my favorite genre. It sort of crept up on me over the years and grown into a fascination of all things historic. So, I guess the genre chose me. By the way, though my first four novels are YA historical, my next one will be straight historical.

3. The plot thickens, or does it? Which one are you, a pantser or a plotter?I’m a pantser. When I begin a story I have an idea about the character and the time period. I also have researched historical characters I want to weave into the story. What actually happens, side characters, romances, plot twists and subplots develop as I write the first draft.

4. Fear 101: As writers it is our duty to make our characters face their fears. Have you ever included one of your own fears in a storyline? I think all writers draw from their own experiences. My subconscious mind cleverly introduces fears I’ve faced such as being publicly embarrassed in front of a group. Max ‘Nerds’ suffers through this kind of fear several times. Having written a number of books now I’m always amazing how a mind works experiences and feelings into the story. I have no idea how it works, but somehow things bubble up from the depth of my brain and flow through my fingertips onto the page.

5. Fear 102: Yes, deadlines are terrifying. Have you conquered the juggling act between writing and the rest of your life? What do you do when it feels like the balls are dropping all around you? I’m not very good at multi-tasking. As a result I on occasion neglect other parts of my life. Especially when I’m about to finish a manuscript I tend to get a little obsessive. My best technique to keep life organized is using daily lists and calendars. And my husband’s questioning look when it’s dinnertime and the stove is empty.

6. Switch positions with one of your main characters in a scene. What is the outcome, disaster or divine intervention? I’m not nearly as brave as my main character, Max. It’d be a disaster if I had to survive in medieval Germany. I’d probably hide and starve. Of course, sometimes Max’s rash behavior sends him into trouble. I’d be a whole lot more careful, but also way too boring.

7. Where is your favorite place to write? Add that one comfort food that you can’t do without. I typically write in my office, an ex-bedroom with lots of book shelves and a desk. I have a really great chair that allows me to sit for many hours. Some people love to write in a coffee shop, but I find that too distracting. You’re talking to a chocoholic, so anything with chocolate works for me and I eat way too much of it on a daily basis.

8. Writing inspirations? My trips provide almost unlimited ideas. I often visit historic areas in Europe, museums and castles. That’s how I came across the ruins of Castle Hanstein in Thuringia and learned about Knight Werner. On a daily basis I draw inspiration from my walks with my mutt, Mocha, an old graying dame. Thirdly, reading offers a constant flow of ideas.

9. You are introduced to your favorite author. Who is it, and what is that one burning question you must ask them? I have a number of favorites, but my all-time favorite is J.R.R. Tolkien who I can no longer ask. I’d love to know if he had the “Lord of the Rings” story in his head before he began or if he came up with it as he wrote. I just find it so fascinating how he developed these amazing characters and beings and this convoluted, connected story where every group plays a role. I found it challenging enough to write the “Escape from the Past” trilogy and make sure that I didn’t leave lose ends. His is way more complicated and remains my favorite fantasy read.

10. I’ve gone mad – why don’t you come with me? Some people just don’t understand us writers. Name a quirky, writer-thing you do that friends wish you didn’t. I could talk endlessly about the Middle Ages. Most of my friends don’t share this passion so after a few minutes I see their eyes glaze over. I usually catch myself and we move on to other subjects.

Thank you very much for hosting me!

 

MediaKit_BookCover_TheDukesWrath

Escape from the Past: The Duke’s Wrath

by Annette Oppenlander

GENRE: YA historical/sci-fi

 

 

 

Blurb: 

When fifteen-year old nerd and gamer Max Anderson thinks he’s sneaking a preview of an unpublished video game, he doesn’t realize that 1) He’s been secretly chosen as a beta, an experimental test player. 2) He’s playing the ultimate history game, transporting him into the actual past: anywhere and anytime. And 3) Survival is optional: To return home he must decipher the game’s rules and complete its missions—if he lives long enough. To fail means to stay in the past—forever.

Now Max is trapped in medieval Germany, unprepared and clueless. It is 1471 and he quickly learns that being an outcast may cost him his head. Especially after rescuing a beautiful peasant girl from a deadly infection and thus provoking sinister wannabe duke Ott. Overnight he is dragged into a hornet’s nest of feuding lords who will stop at nothing to bring down the conjuring stranger in their midst.

 

Excerpt:

“Mutter, I brought someone.” Bero slumped on the bench, scanning the table. I stood unmoving. Two tallow lamps flickered in earthen pots, barely making a dent into the gloom. The thick mixture of smoke, dust and body odor was worse. Disgusted, I rubbed my nose. It didn’t do any good.

The left side of the ceiling hung so low that I easily touched it with my hand. The other half was hidden by dense smoke. A scrawny fire smoldered in a stone hearth along the back wall. In front of it stood a woman of indefinable age, stirring a cast-iron pot.

“You’re late,” she said without turning. “Next time we eat without you.”

“I told you she’s mad,” said the girl who’d been shelling beans earlier.

“Hush, Adela,” the mother shot back. I looked back and forth between them, struggling to follow the weird speech while identifying the smell emanating from the pot. Nothing came to mind. Despite the terrible stench in the house, my stomach gurgled in anticipation.

“Nay, I was late because of this lad,” Bero said. “He needs shelter for tonight.”

At last, the mother turned around. Even in the gloom I could tell that she was shocked, maybe scared, her eyes blackish pools in the haggard face. She carefully placed the ladle on a stone plate and stepped closer—her eyes now squinting, scrutinizing. I wanted to bolt. A disgusting odor enveloped me. While Bero smelled of earth and pigs, the woman reeked of sweat and something sour. I tried breathing shallow breaths, thinking I should just leave and sleep outside. But then I thought of the rustling in the woods, the evil riders wielding their swords— worse, how clueless I felt.

 

MediaKit_AuthorPhoto_TheDukesWrathAuthor Bio and Links:

 Annette Oppenlander writes historical fiction for young adults. When she isn’t in front of her computer, she loves indulging her dog, Mocha, and traveling around the U.S. and Europe to discover amazing histories.

“Nearly every place holds some kind of secret, something that makes history come alive. When we scrutinize people and places closely, history is no longer a number, it turns into a story.”

 

Social Media Links:

Website: http://www.annetteoppenlander.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/annetteoppenlanderauthor/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25322486-escape-from-the-past?from_search=true&search_version=service

Twitter: @aoppenlander

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HN8EjprQZLU

 

Buy Links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Escape-Past-Dukes-Annette-Oppenlander/dp/1846949734/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1434917583&sr=8-1&keywords=escape+from+the+past

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/escape-from-the-past-annette-oppenlander/1121795814?ean=9781846949739

IndieBound: http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781846949739

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Vivian Lane on Tour: Protector

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http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2015/12/blurb-blitz-protector-by-vivian-lane.html

Vivian Lane will be awarding a paperback copy of Protector (International Giveaway) to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

 

Los Angeles cityscape

Protector

by Vivian Lane

 

GENRE: Urban Fantasy

 

Blurb:

First in a new series!

Carys Taylor has her life perfectly under control. Equipped with a nice inheritance, she goes where she wants, when she wants, pursuing anything that interests her. So when her old professor asks her to come on a research trip for his thesis, she’s eager to tag along.

Until that ill-fated trip to the South American jungle changes her into a supernatural being. Now she’s sprouting claws and stronger and faster than any human being in existence. The reclusive tribe calls her their Protector – but from what? And why now? Why her?

Carys is pulled into a world she never knew existed. Is she up to the task?

 

Excerpt:

Carys, next time someone asks you to go with them to the middle of nowhere, say no.

My old professor asked me to come along on a trip to study native music.  He was cataloging the songs of an obscure tribe.  I had nothing more important to do, so I said sure.  Got all the necessary shots and documents, and we made the long journey down.

Little did I know, it would be a life changing experience.

Our destination was a small village in the heart of the South American jungle.  How he ever heard of them, I didn’t know.  Took us three days by boat to get there.  Our team consisted of the professor, our guide/interpreter, the professor’s assistant who was using this trip as info for his thesis, and me.  As a music therapist, I used music to heal people’s souls, so I would be lending my expertise in the emotional resonance of the songs.

Approximately fifty people lived in the village, some of the nicest people I’d ever met, instantly welcoming and glad to share their musical history.  My job was recording the performances with the handheld camera.  They kept staring at me when they thought I wasn’t looking.  At first, I attributed it to them never seeing a fair-skinned woman before, but the stares continued through the week.

That should have been my first clue.

 

 

Author Bio and Links:

Writer of supernatural badasses.

Vivian Lane is an American author.  Born a Gemini, her interests fall under a myriad of subjects including classical music, American and World History; fantasy books, TV shows, and movies; travel, marine biology, and fashion.

Website: http://vivian-lane-author.weebly.com/

Blog: http://vivian-lane-author.blogspot.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Vivian-Lane/549836085124328

Twitter: https://twitter.com/VivianLaneWrite

 

Protector

Apple: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/children-of-ossiria-1/id1057655857?mt=11

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/noresults/children-of-ossiria-1-vivian-lane/1122933861

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B017WCKL84

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Peggy Lampman – Author Interview: Simmer and Smoke

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http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2015/12/vbt-simmer-and-smoke-southern-tale-of.html

Peggy Lampman will be awarding a $50 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

 

MediaKit_BookCover_SimmerAndSmoke

Author Interview: Peggy Lampman

1. Woohoo! You are a published author. Describe a strong character trait you possess, good or bad, and how it helped you become a published author. When I have a creative idea, I’m a dog with a bone, which no one can dislodge. I set monthly word count goals and insist on absolute quiet several hours most days to write. This is a good trait for a writer in that there will be a finished product, come hell or high water. Thus, I’m a published author.

It’s a bad trait for me in that I need to be open to new ideas on the book’s journey and willing to change with fresh input. When goal-oriented and driven, it’s easy to close into yourself. I make a concerted effort to get out there and suck in the people and environments of my characters, even if I get behind in my word count goal.

2. Sometimes an author begins writing a story before they are aware of its genre. Did you choose your genre, or did it choose you? My genre chose me. I enjoy writing in the genre I like reading. I’m drawn to women’s literary and high-concept fiction. It’s a slam dunk if that women’s fiction is set in the American South and/or has a food focus, like my book. Think Sue Monk Kidd, Laura Esquival and Pat Conroy. I also love Ann Patchett and Donna Tart. I tend to gravitate to women authors, but I just finished “Purity”, by Jonathan Franzen. Fabulous read; esp. loved the quirky mother-daughter relationship.
3. The plot thickens, or does it? Which one are you, a pantser or a plotter?  I’m a plotter and yes, my plot thickens (like a blackening roux) as the story progresses.  Occasionally I’m a panther, letting the journey––seatbelt unfastened––rip and ride, but I prefer using a road map.
4. Fear 101: As writers it is our duty to make our characters face their fears. Have you ever included one of your own fears in a storyline? Yes. I am fearful of bad things that have already happened to me (as are my protagonists) happening again. But it’s a form of neurosis to live your life fearful of the past. Another fear is losing myself (like protagonist Mallory) to the story. Am I writing the story or is my story writing me?
5. Fear 102: Yes, deadlines are terrifying. Have you conquered the juggling act between writing and the rest of your life? What do you do when it feels like the balls are dropping all around you? I worked with daily deadlines for a PR firm and then newspaper. I was disciplined and never missed a deadline that I can recall. Now, I make my own deadlines and stick to them. When the balls are dropping, I give myself slack; like a nice boss would give to a good employee. I work at being nice to myself! So, for the most part, I’ve conquered the juggling act (but I don’t have small children anymore, either.)  FYI: When balls are raining down, and I’m irritated and overwhelmed, it’s a good time to write Cliff notes about my feelings to later recreate in my stories.
6. Switch positions with one of your main characters in a scene. What is the outcome, disaster or divine intervention? I’m switching places with Mallory in one of the last chapters. In my book, “Simmer and Smoke”, things turn out well for Mallory in the end. But now I’m Peggy and things don’t go so well. After the incident in the smoke house, I don’t trot down the road of redemption. I don’t get rid of my “arsenal”. Indeed, I write the final note and swallow the bottle, washed down with a Burgundian Chardonnay.
7. Where is your favorite place to write? Add that one comfort food that you can’t do without. My favorite place to write is on the porch of my home overlooking Lake Michigan. My favorite comfort food is oyster stew; I had this every year on Christmas Day. The soup conjures up my mother and grandmother, stirring, stirring, stirring up the past. A slow-smoked barbecue sandwich served with hot slaw is another comfort food. And, oh, fried okra. I’m listing comfort foods that are typically served where I was raised: Alabama. There’s a cool whiskey bar and New Orleans diner about 10 minutes away from my home in Northern Michigan. The cooks are from the South so I’m never far from home.
8. Writing inspirations? Developing some form of intimacy with people, places and cultures that are unfamiliar to me. I can get this traveling to the other side of the planet, visiting an off-the-grid, off-the-wall distant relative, or even hanging out by the fish tank at Cabbalas. (Miss Ann, in part, was developed after one of those visits.) Can’t get enough of this. Entertainment, such as music, the visual arts, cinema, and literature can also be sources of inspiration.)

9. You are introduced to your favorite author. Who is it, and what is that one burning question you must ask them? Sue Monk Kidd: “I’d love to have you over for dinner. I’ll make your favorite foods and supply your favorite wines. Can you come?”
10. I’ve gone mad – why don’t you come with me? Some people just don’t understand us writers. Name a quirky, writer-thing you do that friends wish you didn’t. When I steal—that’s a bit rough—when I take artistic license with a friend or family member’s story, then exaggerate and distort their reality. In fact, I torture their story so much, they find this amusing and don’t seem to mind. Another writer thing: My husband and kids (when they’re around) are not thrilled with the zone of silence I cocoon myself into when I write. I get pissed when I hear so much as a sneeze––how obnoxious is that?

 

MediaKit_BookCover_SimmerAndSmokeSimmer and Smoke: A Southern Tale of Grit and Spice

by Peggy Lampman

GENRE:  women’s contemporary fiction

 

 

BLURB:

A single mother who dreams of becoming a chef.

A food writer who just lost the love of her life.

Two women discover what’s worth fighting for in this deliciously rendered novel that illuminates the power of food, love, friendship and family on the human heart

1. ASSEMBLE INGREDIENTS:

Shelby Preston–a young, single mother trapped in a hardscrabble life in rural Georgia–escapes her reality as she fantasizes herself a respected chef in a kitchen of gleaming stainless steel and pans shimmering with heat. Mallory Lakes–an Atlanta newspaper food writer–may lose her job, and searches for her muse in a shot glass of illusion.

2. SIMMER:

Mallory secures her job by crafting a zealous doppelgänger to satisfy the expectations of an illusive cyber audience. This also mollifies the memories of her lover who recently bolted; no warning. Shelby persuades her mother to take care of her daughter so she can pursue her dream of going to chef school in Atlanta. She cooks them a special dinner said to bring good luck; Lord knows her family could use a pot of something good.

3. SMOKE:

Chasing desires and ambitions, the women’s lives unravel down a path beyond the kitchen, then weave together in an unsettling culinary landscape of organic farms and shadowy borders–some borders not meant to be crossed. As Mallory combats her demons with booze and pills, and Shelby battles the odds stacked against her for becoming a chef, the women discover what’s really worth fighting for.

 

Excerpt:

Shelby

Ashes in a box vanished into the ground. All my life I’ve yearned for something more, something I struggle to define. An image lies in wait, appears in a flash, then gone. It’s in the brushed edge of a dream that leaves behind no memory, only a warming prickle of joy. It’s in the smell of fresh-turned soil after a frost, ancient and newborn. It’s in the taste of honeysuckle nectar—what the wood nymphs drink, I tell my child—that we dot onto our tongues every spring.

 

MediaKit_AuthorPic_SimmerandSmokeAUTHOR Bio and Links:

Peggy Lampman was born and raised in Birmingham, Alabama. After graduating from the University of Michigan with a degree in communications, she moved to New York City, where she worked as a copywriter and photographer for Hill and Knowlton, a public relations firm. She moved back to Ann Arbor, her college town, and opened up a specialty foods store, The Back Alley Gourmet. After selling the business, she wrote under a weekly food byline in The Ann Arbor News and MLive. This is her first novel.

 

Amazon Buy Link: http://www.amazon.com/Simmer-Smoke-Southern-Tale-Spice-ebook/dp/B0128KSSLW/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1447022165&sr=1-1

 

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25826817-simmer-and-smoke?from_search=true&search_version=service_impr

 

Author Page: http://dinnerfeed.com/simmer-and-smoke-a-culinary-tale/

 

Blog: http://dinnerfeed.com
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Allison A. Spector on Tour: Let’s Stalk Rex

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Tim Richards on Tour: Mind The Gap

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http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2015/09/blurb-blitz-mind-gap-by-tim-richards.html

Tim will be awarding an eCopy of Mind the Gap to 3 randomly drawn winners via rafflecopter during the tour.

 

BookCover_MindTheGap

Mind the Gap

by Tim Richards

GENRE:  Action/Adventure

 

Blurb:

He’s been threatened by a knife-wielding maniac on a London train, interrogated by a mysterious warrior woman beneath the city’s streets, pursued by a military death squad in Melbourne, had his new girlfriend kidnapped and held hostage in Prague, and been captured and taken to another world.

And it’s barely been three days since his life started to fall to pieces.

On top of all this, he’s developed a bizarre ability that allows him to teleport in quite unusual circumstances – an ability that several deadly enemies will do anything to gain control of.

In a desperate struggle involving alternate worlds, Egyptian mythology, ancient prophecy, malevolent felines, underground railway stations and the power of dreams, can Darius long survive the arrival of his newfound power?

 

Excerpt:

Central London was a hectic location, but it held calm places, and Regents Park was one of these oases. A swathe of green cut through the centre, punctuated here and there by lakes and paths. It was a place to feed the ducks or to take a brief lunch-hour stroll.

Madeleine Taylor had been walking in the park as usual, a golden Labrador tugging against the lead in her hands. Dalrymple was her employer’s dog, but she was fond of him. Being a live-in housekeeper was tiring work, and Dalrymple gave her an excuse to get outside for a while. Sometimes she wondered if she’d done the right thing in moving from Swindon to London, but a walk in the park usually helped to dispel these doubts.

Madeleine eyed the ducks as she walked toward a bridge leading across the water, feeling Dalrymple’s ever-enthusiastic pull. Then suddenly he stopped, and she almost fell over him as he stood stock-still, staring into the trees beyond the shallow lake.

She walked past him and tugged the lead gently to get him moving again. But Dalrymple didn’t budge.

‘Come on, boy,’ she said, lightly. ‘We haven’t got all day.’

Then Dalrymple began to growl.

Madeleine was about to speak again, then stopped as she followed his line of sight. There was a glint of metal in the trees, then an explosion of activity as three figures burst into the open and began running toward her. Each of them carried a long black cylinder strapped to one arm.

Dalrymple jumped forward with a jerk, and Madeleine felt the lead snatched from her hand. She watched in silent horror as the dog leapt at the closest figure and grabbed it by the leg. Casually, only momentarily stopping his forward motion, the figure swung the cylinder down to connect with the dog’s head. There was a flash of light and the animal crumpled to the ground.

Madeleine started screaming. And she was still screaming when a beam of light from the second stranger’s weapon struck her. As she collapsed, falling into unconsciousness, she dreamily noted the profile of a dog with a pointed snout on the gleaming black surface of the leading figure’s mask.

 

Author Bio and Links:

Tim Richards is a freelance travel writer based in Melbourne, Australia. His writing has appeared in numerous newspapers, magazines and websites, and in Lonely Planet’s guidebooks.

 

https://twitter.com/aerohaveno

https://www.facebook.com/iwriter.timrichards

http://www.iwriter.com.au/

http://www.aerohaveno.com/

 

Buy link:  http://www.amazon.com/Mind-Gap-Tim-Richards-ebook/dp/B00KEZ7W0C

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Wendy Byrne on Tour: Accused

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http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2015/08/nbtm-accused-by-wendy-byrne.html

Wendy Byrne will be awarding a $20 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

 

BookCover_Accused

 

Author Interview

Describe a strong character trait that you possess, good or bad and how it helped you become a published author? I’m stubborn, but you have to be in this business to survive. If you don’t have that ‘dig in your heels’ attitude you won’t make it. There’s so much rejection out there, you have to be stubborn to keep going.

Sometimes an author begins writing a story before they are aware of the genre. Did you choose your genre or did it choose you? I’ve always written romance, sometimes an integral part of the story, sometimes a smaller piece of the plotline. But it’s always been there.

Which one are you, a pantser or a plotter? I’m a reformed pantser than turned into sort of a hybrid plotter. I still do a lot of my writing as a pantser, but now I have a general idea of my story beats along the way.

Have you ever included one of your own fears in a storyline? In my latest book, Accused, my heroine is deathly afraid of heights—and that is so me.

Fear 102: Yes, deadlines are terrifying. Have you conquered the juggling act between writing and the rest of your life? What do you do when it feels like the balls are dropping all around you? Wish I could say I’ve tamed that beast, but instead I just get stressed out, as I sit writing blog posts all day today because of a deadline. J

Switch positions with one of your main characters in a scene. What is the outcome, disaster or divine intervention? Disaster for sure. My heroines are much cooler under pressure than I am.

Writing inspirations? I listen (see last question), I observe and then speculate. You never know where you’re going to find your next inspiration.

You are introduced to your favorite author. Who is it, and what is that one burning question you must ask them? It’s hard to pick one, but if I had to, I’d ask Lee Child what he has in store for Jack Reacher—hey I’d like a preview. And then I’d ask him if he was disappointed that Tom Cruise played his larger than life six foot five two hundred and forty pound character Jack Reacher character in the film version his book, One Shot. While I did like the movie, it was hard for me to get past the size differential.

I’ve gone mad – why don’t you come with me? Some people just don’t understand us writers. Name a quirky, writer-thing you do that friends wish you didn’t. I eavesdrop. I honestly can’t help myself. I find human interaction fascinating and great fodder for future stories.

 

BookCover_AccusedAccused

by Wendy Byrne

 

GENRE: Romantic Suspense

 

 

Blurb:

Spawned from the depths of every parent’s worst nightmare, Jillian Beckett’s 16 year old troubled son is charged with murder. He’s unable to remember what happened and swears he’s off drugs, but should she believe him? Her ex-husband doesn’t. The high-priced lawyer she hired doesn’t. Where does motherly instinct intersect with reality?

Afraid and alone, she reluctantly enlists the help of her son’s football coach to find the truth of what happened. As they battle to uncover the guilty party, confidences are shattered, lives are on the line, while her son is one step closer to spending his life behind bars.

 

Excerpt:

Sam spotted Travis sitting with his mother. In a sea of average, Jillian Beckett stood out. With a model’s face and body, she drew attention even when dressed in a pair of old jeans and a pink oxford shirt. There was a part of him that found her attractive—okay, a huge part of him—even though it made him feel like shit thinking of her like that. His first priority should be Travis, and it was. It wasn’t the kid’s fault he had a babe for a mom.

He watched her get up and start to pace while Travis sat at the table looking nervous. Neither one seemed to be talking and Sam could sense tension between them even from across the room. It didn’t feel right to interrupt, but he didn’t have a choice once Travis spotted him and waved him over.

Jillian turned and stopped her frantic pacing. Hesitation played out on her face once she saw him. Something was going on between her and Travis and she didn’t want Sam’s interference. Before he could reconsider, Travis walked across the room and ushered him back to their table. “We could use some help, Coach.”

Her face was pale as she shook his hand and they both sat down. At least she’d stopped pacing. Still, he fought the urge to touch her as she clasped and unclasped her hands.

“What’s going on?” Sam didn’t want to linger on thoughts of his past.

Travis looked at his mother, then at Sam, then hung his head. “I am so screwed. The blood on my shirt matches Max Gill’s and the gun I had in my room was used in a killing a while back. I swear I didn’t do either, but the evidence says otherwise.”

 

AuthorPhoto_AccusedAuthor Bio and Links:

Wendy lives in the Chicago area. She has a Masters in Social Work and worked in the child welfare field for twelve years before she decided to pursue her dream of writing.

Between teaching college classes, trying to get her morbidly obese cat to slim down and tempering the will of her five-year-old granddaughter, who’s determined to become a witch when she turns six so she can fly on her broom to see the Eiffel Tower and put hexes on people–not necessarily in that order–somehow Wendy still manages to fit in writing. She spends the remainder of her days inflicting mayhem on her hero and heroine until they beg for mercy.

She has written three books in the Hard Targets trilogy, Hard to Kill, Hard to Trust and Hard to Stop. In addition, she has a contemporary romance through Entangled Publishing called The Millionaire’s Deception, a self-pubbed Christmas short story called The Christmas Curse and two interracial romances, Fractured and Mama Said.

 

http://www.wendybyrne.net/

https://www.facebook.com/WendyByrneAuthor

https://twitter.com/wbyrneauthor

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4638594.Wendy_Byrne

https://www.pinterest.com/wtbyrne/

 

http://amzn.com/B011GKZIFO

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Beth Trissel on Tour: Traitor’s Curse

SBB_TourBanner_TraitorsCurse copy

http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2015/07/book-blast-traitors-curse-by-beth.html

Beth is awarding a $30 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn commenter.

MediaKit_BookCover_TraitorsCurse_w9629_med (1)

TRAITOR’S CURSE

by Beth Trissel

Blurb:

Halifax, North Carolina, 1783.

Captain Stuart Monroe returns home from the Revolutionary War to find Thornton Hall threatened by a peacetime foe: debt. He knows the location of a treasure amassed to pay for the capture of Benedict Arnold that would restore his manor to its former glory. The catch, it’s hidden in the graveyard, and coveted by old enemies.

Hettie Fairfax inherited the Sight from her Cherokee ancestors, and her otherworldly visitors warn her, and Stuart, away from the buried treasure. Half-dead from fever, she delivers a message: the treasure is cursed. But will he believe a girl half out of her mind with illness? Even when a very real enemy attempts to poison her? Stuart soon wants to marry Hettie, but she fears her “odd ways” will blemish his reputation. The spirits have their own agenda, however, and the battle against darkness tests everything the couple holds dear, including their love for each other.

 

Excerpt:

Stuart clasped her shoulders. She was flesh and blood beneath his grip, yet seemed not of this world. “What did he say?”

“To watch for your coming.”

“How could they possibly anticipate my visit?”

“That has not yet been revealed.”

Her answer baffled him, as did she. “Why did you call me master? Are you a servant?”

“No.”

He’d doubted she was in anyone’s employ. Her smooth hands, opulent coverlet, and refined manner, all bespoke gentility. And she smelled of violets, a costly scent.

He gazed deeply into those mesmerizing eyes. “Why are you here?”

“I seek the living among the dead.”

A peculiar reply from the haunting stranger. “Who?”

“You. Stuart Monroe.”

Again, the sensation of ants scattering down the nape of his neck. “How did you know I would come?”

“I was told. In a dream.”

She spoke like one in a dream. The cold mist, the woman—an apparition in the fog—seemed unreal. Yet she was no ghost.

“You can foresee events?” A sense of dread possessed him.

“In glimpses. Your father appeared to me.” Her barely perceptible voice faded entirely, and her eyes fluttered, then closed. She swayed against him, any further explanation muffled by his coat.

Stuart held her fast and kept her from sliding to the cold earth. What did his father have to do with this visitation? Was the woman in his arms some sort of witch?

 

MediaKit_AuthorPhoto_TraitorsCurseAuthor Bio and Links:

Married to her high school sweetheart, Beth Trissel lives on a farm in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia surrounded by her children, grandbabies, and assorted animals. An avid gardener, her love of herbs and heirloom plants figures into her work. The rich history of Virginia, the Native Americans, and the people who journeyed here from far beyond her borders are at the heart of her inspiration. She’s especially drawn to colonial America and the drama of the American Revolution. In addition to historical romance, she also writes time travel, paranormal romance, YA fantasy, and nonfiction.

 

For more on Beth visit her blog, One Writer’s Way, at: https://bethtrissel.wordpress.com

Connect with Beth on Facebook: Author Beth Trissel https://www.facebook.com/bctrissel?fref=ts

At Twitter: https://twitter.com/BethTrissel

 

Visit Beth’s Amazon Author Page where all her books reside: Amazon Author Page  http://www.amazon.com/Beth-Trissel/e/B002BLLAJ6/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1435416800&sr=8-1

 

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