SOMETHING WICKED BLOGFEST

Hosts: Krista McLaughlin
 Krista Wayment

When: October 29th, 2014

Who: You, of course, and the villain of your choice.

What: The "Something Wicked" Blogfest is in honor of Halloween and the release of Krista W.'s new book in her Trusted series.

The rules are very simple - you have 400 words or less to write about a real villain, one you created in a novel, or write a flash fiction. Your villain doesn't have to be necessarily a murderer or stalker, but any anti-hero in your writing will work just fine!

Prizes: 4 winners!

Most Evil - Krista M.'s Winner
E-book copy of "Breathless" AND First 3 Chapter Critique
Guest Post on Krista McLaughlin's Blog

Most Creepy - Krista M.'s Runner-Up
E-book copy of "Breathless"
Guest Post on Krista McLaughlin's Blog

Most Villainous - Krista W.'s Winner
E-book of "Trusted: Dragons' Trust Book One" AND e-book of "Burned: Dragons' Trust Book Two"
Guest Post on Krista Wayment's Blog

Most Suspicious - Krista W.'s Runner-Up
E-book of "Burned: Dragons' Trust Book Two"
Guest Post on Krista Wayment's Blog

A short excerpt from "Tint" (a work in progress)

by Carolyn Brown

 

Shadows crept across the wall as the room swam and the figures in front of me merged and swirled into one.  I felt as if I would not be able to stand up straight for long.  The orange tablet they had made me swallow was taking effect and my mind was beginning to become foggy and unfocused.  I knew I was in trouble when I felt my heart beat faster and droplets of sweat formed upon my skin!

Slater walked into the room, I knew it was him even though my senses had begun to wane.  The others in the room parted as he strode past them, giving him a wide berth to move towards me.  I did not expect him to hit me, but he did, with the full force of his giant fist smashed into my cheekbone, sending me down towards the floor. 

Droplets of blood escaped from my mouth, dripping down my chin, but I was unable to wipe them off as my hands were bound behind my back.  I tried to gain some composure as I struggled to stand again, defiantly looking my once vampire lover in the eyes!  He hit me again and everything faded….

 ######

This excerpt is from a novel in progress titled, “Tint”, inspired by another writing blog fest where the phrase “…and everything faded,” was to be included in the writing. When completed, Tint will be a stand-alone novel targeting a New Adult to Adult audience in the paranormal genre (Vampire), with very dark concepts. 

The villain for the purpose of this blogfest is Slater, a very nasty vampire indeed. He has dark hair cut in an emo style, shaven close to his scalp with a long fringe falling over his left eye. Pure white skin, almost black eyes, lined with kohl, perfect white teeth and a look of superiority in his stance.

Posing as a model for a magazine named Tint, Slater has the fashion world wound up in the palm of his hand and is sought after by women everywhere he goes. He is an egotistical bastard with a very mean streak and has no remorse for humans or for those who defy him.

Carolyn

TEASER TUESDAY

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by

http://shouldbereading.wordpress.com/

of Should Be Reading.

Anyone can play along!

Just do the following

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE ANY SPOILERS!

Make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away!

You don't want to ruin the book for others!

Released 

(Romani Realms #1)

by Mia Fox

 

The discovery of an ancient bottle unleashes a Genie - and the wrath of the Demon Gypsies chasing her...

When Suzette (“Suki”) is released from her bottle by two teen girls, she is more than a bit surprised that a Genie of her calibre is beholden to two average high school students. After dealing with dignitaries and noblemen, however, she believes this will be a welcome break.

Until she discovers the teens’ hidden powers and that one will come to possess the Amulet of Pollox, a necklace that contains the secrets from some of the greatest minds throughout history. Unfortunately, she’s not the only one who notices. The Amulet draws the attention of the two powerful and vengeful Demon Gypsies who have pursued Suki through time and will stop at nothing to snatch the girls and the Amulet.

Suddenly, Suki is not just helping the girls navigate high school crushes, she’s safeguarding them from danger unlike anything they’ve ever known. To make matters more complicated, she must also fight her attraction to James - her protector through the ages - whose sudden arrival threatens her resolve and her heart. 

A time-traveling Genie and her unrequited love...

Demon Gypsies with an insatiable quest for power...

And the teen girls whose existence threatens them all.

This is the world of “Released,” book one of The Romani Realms series by Mia Fox, a Young Adult trilogy featuring elements of paranormal romance and steampunk.
MY TEASER:

I looked from Samantha to Charlotte and found it hard to believe that these were the same girls I had been listening to over the past week. Samantha, who was so full of bravado, remained so still with one foot in this life and one daring to tiptoe into another . Charlotte enjoyed the sleep I had instilled in her for she had fought it so much during the last few days. Normally quiet and reserved, she had fought her fears with such bravery in order to remain strong for Samantha. The two of them deserved a reunion and I was looking forward to our introduction.

Fox, Mia (2013-12-11). Released (Romani Realms) (pp. 45-46). Evatopia Press. Kindle Edition.

TEASER TUESDAY

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by

http://shouldbereading.wordpress.com/

of Should Be Reading.

Anyone can play along!

Just do the following

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE ANY SPOILERS!

Make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away!

You don't want to ruin the book for others!

Rising Tide: Dark Innocence 

(The Maura DeLuca Trilogy #1)

by Claudette Melanson

 

CHOSEN AS ONE OF 400 FOR THE SECOND ROUND OF THE AMAZON BREAKTHROUGH NOVEL AWARD FOR 2014!!!

ARE YOU A FAN OF VAMPIRE ACADEMY, VAMPIRE DIARIES OR TWILIGHT?

Rising Tide will sink its fangs into you, keeping you awake into the wee hours of the night

Could Maura's life get any worse? ...turns out it most certainly can.

Isolated and sheltered by her lonely mother, Maura's never been able to make friends. She seems to drive her classmates away—except for the odd times they pay enough attention to torture her—but she doesn’t understand why. Maura considers herself to be a freak of nature, with her unusually pale skin and an aversion to the sun that renders her violently nauseous. Her belief is only worsened by the fact that almost everyone around her keeps their distance.

Even her own father deserted her before she was born, leaving Maura alone with her emotionally distant mother, Caelyn. Even though Maura is desperate for answers about her unknown parent, Caelyn remains heartbroken and her daughter can’t bring herself to reopen her mother’s wounds. Or is there a more sinister reason Caelyn refuses to utter a word about her long-lost love?
When a cruel prank nearly claims Maura’s life, one of her classmates, Ron, rushes to her rescue. Darkly handsome & mysteriously accepting, Ron doesn’t seem to want to stay away, but Maura is reluctant to get too close, since her mother has announced she’s moving the two of them to Vancouver…nearly 3,000 miles away from their hometown of Indiana, Pennsylvania.

If life wasn’t already challenging enough, Maura begins to experience bizarre, physical changes her mother seems hell bent on ignoring, compelling Maura to fear for her own life. Vicious nightmares, blood cravings, failing health and the heart-shattering loss of Ron—as well as the discovery of a tangled web of her own mother's lies—become obstacles in Maura's desperate quest for the unfathomable truth she was never prepared to uncover.

Sure to become of the Books to Read of the year, Rising Tide: Dark Innocence isn’t the usual tale of vampire erotica. This novel is a YA Vampire Romance that is certain to become one of the classic books of its time. Maura doesn’t live in Castle Dracula in Transylvania, but she must still discover the bloodlines constructing the creature she is destined to become.

MY TEASER: 

If the color of my skin hadn’t been enough to drop me into the freak category, I had also been born with an extreme sensitivity to the sun . In fact, most fair-skinned people are struck with this affliction , but I didn’t just burn easily, the sun made me physically ill. I couldn’t be out in direct sunlight for little more than a half hour without becoming violently nauseous. It was beyond embarrassing, besides making me feel like a carnival attraction. I’d once ruined the interior of my mother’s new car, due to the sun shining on the side of my head for too long. She’d quickly invested in the darkest window tint she could have installed.
Melanson, Claudette (2014-02-15). Rising Tide: Dark Innocence (The Maura DeLuca Trilogy (YA Vampire Romance) Book 1) (p. 6).  . Kindle Edition.

NEW RELEASE - THE INITIATE, BY M. PAX

I received my pre-ordered copy of M. Pax's new release, 'The Initiate,' today from Amazon and am looking forward to reading it. 

I thoroughly enjoyed reading book one, 'The Rifters' of The Rifters Series, and I am sure book two will not disappoint.

Don't forget you can still get a free copy of book one, 'The Rifters,' just follow the link below.

 Carolyn

The Initiate

by M. Pax

 

To trust unquestioningly is the first lesson Daelin Long must learn as the newest Initiate of the Rifters. Her first day is a disaster. She stands on a deserted street in a town smaller than a city district, courting killer rocks from another world with her ancestor from the Revolutionary War. Normal no longer exists.

While she struggles, Earl Blacke grapples with atoning for his past ill deeds, running far and fast from Settler, Oregon. The Shaman of the Desert promises him redemption, and an old mine puts the possibility of a gold strike in his grasp. His luck has changed for the better, but he can’t have both.

 

 You're never a hero until you are.

Amazon / 

 Amazon UK / AmazonAU / AmazonCA / 

 AmazonDE / iTunes / B&N / Googleplay

AmazonFR / AmazonES / AmazonIT / 

AmazonJP / AmazonBR / AmazonMX

 

 

The Rifters

by M. Pax

 

A junction erupts between the worlds.

The Gold Rush trickles to a fool’s quest and a string of stagecoach heists. In 1888, Earl Blacke decides to make a new start and become a better man. He escapes into the mountains, heading north. In the wilds of Oregon, a rift inside an ancient volcano opens and sends him into the future, into the present day. It also shaves forty years off his age, forty years to live over again and atone for what he’s done.

Starting over is hard to do. In current day New York, Daelin Long’s dream job at a publishing house goes the way of the dinosaurs her sister chases. With no money and nowhere else to go, Daelin accepts the librarian position in her sister’s dinky town in the middle of Oregon. Nestled inside ancient volcanic peaks, the town of Settler holds onto many secrets. Residents roam the streets with weirdly fashioned devices, and odd lights pulse in the night skies. People whisper of a phantom outlaw and start dying, murdered and missing their heads. On top of it all, Daelin’s sister is missing, and Daelin doesn’t know who to trust.

Earl knows more than he’s saying. He shares a notorious history with the phantom, one he’ll see remains buried. Keeping Daelin’s sister’s secrets is his only chance at redemption, and the only way to keep this world safe.

Get Your Free Copy!

 

Ebook: Amazon / Amazon UK / AmazonDE / AmazonAU / 

AmazonCA / 

 B&N / Smashwords /  Googleplay / iTunes /

Versent Books / inktera /

AmazonFR / AmazonES / AmazonIT / AmazonJP / AmazonBR / AmazonMX / AmazonIN

 

SPOOKTACULAR GIVEAWAY HOP

5th Annual Spooktacular Giveaway Hop 

OCTOBER 15 - 31ST

Hosted by I AM A READER, NOT A WRITER

This is Kathy's biggest hop of the year and one of the few hops that she personally still hosts.

 

For this hop I will be giving away a $10 Amazon Gift Card.

Please enter the Rafflecopter below for your chance to win.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I HAVE ALMOST REACHED  
1000 GOOGLE FRIEND CONNECT FOLLOWERS!
 

SO TO CELEBRATE,  
THE LUCKY PERSON WHO BECOMES 
THE 1000TH FOLLOWER OF THIS BLOG, 
THROUGH GOOGLE FRIEND CONNECT,
WILL RECEIVE A BONUS $10 AMAZON GIFT CARD!

BE SURE TO FOLLOW, FOR YOUR CHANCE TO WIN!!!

TEASER TUESDAY

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by

http://shouldbereading.wordpress.com/

of Should Be Reading.

Anyone can play along!

Just do the following

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE ANY SPOILERS!

Make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away!

You don't want to ruin the book for others!

My Familiar Stranger (Knights of Black Swan #1)

by Victoria Danann

BEST PARANORMAL ROMANCE Series of 2013 - Reviewer's Choice Awards, The Paranormal Romance Guild

"...my god is this spectacular!!!" - Quote the Raven

WHAT IF YOU SUDDENLY LOST EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE YOU KNEW? In a matter of minutes Elora Laiken lost everything familiar. She escaped assassination by being forced into an experimental device that left her broken, physically and emotionally, in another world. She woke up to find modern day knights, elves, vampires, werewolves, witches, demons and fae. This is the story of how they became her allies, friends, and family. 



MY TEASER:

They were near the end of the grim formality when there was a sudden, upward shift in temperature, like a hot sirocco wind blasting a door open. That was followed by a flash of light and a pop as something the size of a person rolled into the fetal position materialized above the floor at waist height. It did not hover, but fell instantly to the stone floor, making a sickening plopping noise on impact. It appeared to be a bloody, quivering mass of scored meat partially covered by shreds of fabric that were either black or blackened by blood.

Danann, Victoria (2012-04-25). My Familiar Stranger: Romancing The Vampire Hunters (Knights of Black Swan Book 1) (p. 14). 7th House. Kindle Edition.

SOULESS BLOG TOUR - CRYSTAL COLLIER

Today, I have the pleasure to present an excerpt from Crystal Collier's new release, "Soulless," the second book in the series, 

 Maiden of Time.

I have to say that I love the cover! It really looks great!

I hope you enjoy the excerpt and don't forget to add Soulless to your Goodreads, TBR list. 

To celebrate, Crystal has book 1, Moonless available for free

October 13, 20, 27,31 and Nov 7,

(Mondays, Halloween and the last day of the Blog Tour)

Help Crystal out by spreading the word!

Also, make sure you enter the rafflecopter draw for your chance to win some really great prizes.

Title: SOULLESS
Series: Maiden of Time
Author: Crystal Collier
Pages: 263
Pub Date: October 13, 2014
Publisher: Raybourne Publishing
ISBN: 9781629830032

The Soulless are coming.

Alexia manipulated time to save the man of her dreams, and lost her best friend to red-eyed wraiths. Still grieving, she struggles to reconcile her loss with what was gained: her impending marriage. But when her wedding is destroyed by the Soulless—who then steal the only protection her people have—she’s forced to unleash her true power.

And risk losing everything.

BUY

What reviewers are saying:

"5 Stars." - Invincible Love of Reading Book Blog

"I LOVED it! So good. Seriously...exceeded my expectations." -Kristin Smith, advanced reviewer

"Entirely unique and chilling." Gabby @ What’s Beyond Forks

"Unputdownable." T.C. Mckee, BookFish Books

Excerpt:

Kiren lay, unmoving except for the slow rise and fall of his chest. His pendant bulged beneath his coat. No harm could come of examining it closer while he slept, could it? He might never know, and Alexia was dying to understand its importance.

She pulled back the curtain, sending a stream of light across his comatose body. She neared slowly and glanced again at the open door. To close it, to isolate them...

Breathe.

She knelt. The cool buttons loosed easily beneath her fingers and his coat fell back. The charm had found its way between his vest and thin shirt. She touched the chain tentatively, sliding along its length, gliding toward the treasure beneath his waistcoat...

Fingers seized hers.

She jumped.

Fierce blue eyes sought hers beneath lowered brows, the purest night sky littered by a sea of stars. She looked away, furtively.

“Are you undressing me?” he whispered.

“What?” Her cheeks flamed. She backed away.

Kiren rolled onto his elbow and pressed off the floor, stumbling. Alexia reached to steady him as he propped against one of the bed’s four posters. He shook off the dizziness and pulled her close.

Her breath caught. The press of his hands on her back, the heat of his body so near hers, the aroma of his oaken musk...
Her heart thumped like a rabbit’s, and she couldn’t help thinking very soon he would be hers.

She couldn’t meet his stare. “Kiren, I-I was not attempting to—”

A finger landed across her lips as he probed her gaze. His eyebrows tightened. He released her.

“Shall I assist you?” He slipped out of his coat.

She gasped. “Kiren!”

He chuckled, unbuttoning his waistcoat.

Alexia could not believe what he was doing and she couldn’t look away. He wouldn’t honestly undress before her and chance such overwhelming temptation, would he?

The waistcoat dropped to the floor, leaving a thin shirt to veil his chest. His pendant sat atop, a flattened pewter diamond with symbols etched across the surface like calligraphy-styled runes. A larger Z with a cross stroke and rounded tail engraved its center, encircled by a ring of smaller characters.

“So, which is it that has you?” His head tilted.

She staggered backward and landed on the bed, her headache thumping dully. Each of his arms propped by her sides, his alluring lips hovering within inches.

“The necklace or the man?”

Giveaway:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Get your free copy of book 1, MOONLESS, October 13, 20, 27, 31 or Nov 7.

Author Bio:

Crystal Collier is a young adult author who pens dark fantasy, historical, and romance hybrids. She can be found practicing her brother-induced ninja skills while teaching children or madly typing about fantastic and impossible creatures. She has lived from coast to coast and now calls Florida home with her creative husband, four littles, and “friend” (a.k.a. the zombie locked in her closet). Secretly, she dreams of world domination and a bottomless supply of cheese. 

You can find her on her Blog, Facebook, Goodreads, or follow her on Twitter.