Shadow of the Witte Wieven by Debbie Peterson - Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Debbie will be awarding a $15 Amazon Gift Card to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Hello! I am so excited to visit with you today. Thank you so much for the invitation and the opportunity to give our lovely readers a story from my vast paranormal files!

When it comes to Shadow of the Witte Wieven—and because I am a writer of both fantasy and paranormal romance—my thoughts often turn to the many legends concerning ghost ships. After all, any sighting of Wolf’s ship as he sails in this dimension is deemed a ghost ship by those who can actually see his brigantine. Not many can, you know… ;)

Anyway, one of my favorite legends concerns the American schooner known as the Young Teazer, which targeted the sea trade of the British Empire during the War of 1812, and for a time, she was rather successful in her pursuits.

Yet, as fate would have it, in June of 1813, British ships finally trapped the Young Teazer in Mahone Bay which is situated between Mason Island and Rafuse Island. Escape was impossible and the hands aboard the Teazer knew it. Without delay, the British dispatched a five boat boarding party to take possession of their prize. But, as they made their approach, the Young Teazer suddenly and unexpectedly exploded.

Survivors later claimed they saw Frederick Johnson, the Teazer’s First Lieutenant, toss flaming embers into the cache of ammunition which instantly ignited. The ship caught fire and that fire spread rapidly. The tactic killed Johnson and many of his fellow crew members that day.

Not long thereafter, very credible reports about the sighting of a fiery ghost ship began to surface. Then one year later, on June 27th of 1814, the people of Mahone Bay swore up and down they saw a spectral ship sailing exactly where the Young Teazer had met its demise. The ship vanished in a huge cloud of smoke and fire, but not before the witnesses positively identified it as the Young Teazer.

Even without the help of Facebook or Twitter, it didn’t take long for this story to circulate coast to coast. As the anniversary of the event came around again, a throng of people gathered in Mahone Bay with high expectations of seeing the flaming ghost ship for themselves. They were not disappointed. From that day to the present, people continue to stand as witness to the reality of the phantom ship which continues to sail, two hundred years later. More often than not, Young Teazer can be seen on misty nights which fall within three days of the full moon…

So, tell me, what do you think of ghost ships… fact or fiction?

Despite a contract on her head, lone Drug Enforcement Agent, Aliyana Montijo must ferret out a mole and stop the assassination of top DEA officials, as so ordered by the Colombian drug lord she seeks to take down. The task is a daunting one, for there is no one she can trust. No one that is, until she encounters a most unlikely ally.

Former seventeenth century captain of the Dutch West Indies Company, Wolfaert Dircksen Van Ness, now from a parallel dimension, encounters the beautiful agent during an unearthly storm in the Bermuda triangle. Drawn to the Spanish beauty he rescues, he pledges his assistance, despite her reluctance to accept either his help or his heart.

Can Wolf bridge both space and time to claim the woman he loves?

Enjoy an excerpt:

Something terrible had happened. She could feel it. She raced toward her supplies and grabbed hold of her backpack. Her fingers shook as she unzipped the bag and yanked out her phone. She tried to call Greg several times over before it dawned on her that he had already boarded a plane headed for Colombia. She wouldn’t be able to contact him until the morning.

Despite all attempts to banish it, the dread grew stronger with each passing hour. A growing notion that Wolf and his crew never vacated the sub, took firm hold. The conscientious men of the Wieven could very well have remained behind to ensure that all went according to plan. The thought of such an occurrence made her sick to her stomach. She couldn’t sleep, and she couldn’t eat. All throughout the long hours of the night, she restlessly paced along the shore, waiting, hoping—and praying.

By the time the gloomy morning arrived, what little hope she’d carried throughout the long night, dissipated. Somewhere in her heart, she finally accepted that her beloved captain wouldn’t be coming for her. Not now. Not ever again. Excruciating pain accompanied that knowledge, and in that same moment, she could feel her heart shattering into an infinite number of pieces. Even though she had endured such pain many times before, it had never assaulted her with the intensity it did right now. She didn’t know if she could survive it. Indeed, she didn’t know if she wanted to survive it.

About the Author: Debbie has always had a soft spot for fairy tales, the joy of falling in love, and happily ever after endings. Stories of love and make believe filled her head for as long as she can remember. However, it was her beloved husband who encouraged, cajoled and inspired her to take up a pen and write some of them down. In 2012, The Wild Rose Press published her first novel, Spirit of the Rebellion.

When she’s not busy conjuring her latest novel, Debbie spends time with the members of her very large family. She also pursues her interests in family history which she also teaches, mythology, and all things ancient and historic.

Connect with Debbie:

Website: http://dk-peterson.com/
Blog: http://debbie-peterson.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DebbiePeterson1
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Debbie-Peterson-Author/214882805206529?ref=tn_tnmn

Buy Shadow of the Witte Wieven at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, or All Romance eBooks.

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Confessions of a Self-Help Writer by Benjamin W. DeHaven - Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour. Five other winners via rafflecopter will win a signed hardcover copy of his book (US only).

Lessons I've Learned from my Character

Never carry baggage
The best things are usually done on impulse.
It’s good to ask questions that make people uncomfortable.
A true friend is someone who accepts your faults and collaborates in their realization.
In the face of perfection, unity is a lost soul
Sometimes you only need a taste of success to realize what you've been missing.
If you second-guess your intentions, she will know.
Don’t trust actors.
Don’t let People you hate conform you
When you feel nothing, only death or incarceration gives you a rush.
Escape is impossible without knowledge.
If you’re not ready to receive the message, you will not hear it.
Ninety percent of success comes from showing up.
Give up control or you will surely fail.
Your reality can be as beautiful as you imagine it.
It’s easy to sell people with a glimmer of hope.
There are signs everywhere. The secret is reading them
Sometimes you feel like you don’t have any place to go, even when you’re home
There are some doors that can’t be shut once you’ve opened them.
If you can’t talk to people, you’ll never get anywhere.
It's a bad sign when you are less scared of death than someone who is actually dying.
Everything has a loophole.
Peace is found with honesty among wicked men. #confessionsofaselfhelpwriter
If you’ve got nothing, you’ve got nothing to lose. #confessionsofaselfhelpwriter
A favor that involves money creates change.
Self-destruction is inevitable because existence is a full-time job. #confessionsofaselfhelpwriter
Killing someone’s spirit is worse than murder, but setting someone free is close to divine.
It’s a freeing experience when u realize u teach people how to treat you.
When you bargain with yourself, you always lose
You must accept that your actions hurt everyone @realmichaelenzo
Beware of people who offer advice about problems that aren’t theirs; they usually don’t know what they’re talking about.
It takes no strength to fall in love, but more than most have to keep it.
You have to let guilt go. It’s your past that makes you who you are.
Not everybody can be what he or she wants to be. Suck it up

A ghost, a philanthropist, a con man, a devout Catholic, a gigolo, a savior, an heir, a common man, and an addict are just some of the words used to describe Michael Enzo, who some sources credit with ghost-writing more than 108 self-help books on behalf of celebrities, politicians and business leaders. After failing to make what he considered to be a positive impact on society he began to destroy those closest to him including Benjamin DeHaven, the author of this book, and former collaborator. Defrauding an industry for almost 20 years by exploiting people's insecurities and profiting from them, more than likely these friends contributed more to the field of self-help, while profiting from it, than they will ever know. Believing they could only understand people's problems by suffering along with them, they lived on the razor's edge. If you've ever picked up a tell-all biography of a celebrity or a title from the self-help section at the bookstore, certainly you would question the source.This is an inside look at the mind of Michael Enzo and it is the author's hope that people will start helping themselves again after reading it. Discover what turns someone from preaching salvation towards seeking its destruction. You won't believe this could be true.

About the Author: A Graduate of Columbia College in Chicago, Benjamin DeHaven keeps his heart in Chicago and his soul in New Orleans. He holds a MBA from Tulane and a film degree from Columbia. Once ejected from a community college for arguing Frost cried out for acceptance in Birches, he has since written screenplays, traded futures in Madrid, and was Editor in Chief of the Nola Shopper Newspaper, a free art newspaper and the 2nd largest monthly paper in the New Orleans, MSA. . He also has a "shout out" in a Jay "Z" Song.

DeHaven, who currently resides in Las Vegas began his writing career with Stone United, a Chicago based Film Company, which works primarily in independent film. As an unknown fiction writer, he feels the best description of himself is a sarcastic one and is as follows:

Benjamin W. DeHaven was born on a pool table after a Waylon Jennings' concert in 1977. His personal success is outweighed only by his stunning good looks and adherence to unwritten moral guidelines. He has been described as a thinking man's Tucker Max as well as an idiot's Hunter S. Thompson. His goal is to die from an unwavering commitment to be more like Hemingway.

He and Michael Enzo were friends.

Website: https://bdehaven.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/ben_dehaven
Facebook: http://facebook.com/bendehavenws
YouTube: http://Youtube.com/benjamindehaven
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Benjamin-DeHaven/e/B00HNEHH34/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7701189.Benjamin_DeHaven

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Honor Bound by Kat Loveland - Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Kat will be awarding a $40 Amazon gift card to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

A Visit from Kat Loveland and Friends

I thought I would do something a little different here and introduce you to two of my characters (well technically three) from Honor Bound and then answer the questions myself.

First up - Twins John and Clara - High fashions models that can speak mind to mind and teleport things back and forth to each other, then Cesco, he tends to move much faster than normal humans can.

“Hello, Kat dragged us into this by threatening to reveal that one super embarrassing moment from our childhoods if we didn’t help her out. So here we are. Clara gets to handle the fun fact and I’ll give you an interesting one,then Cesco can take over. Clara?"

"A fun fact about us? We grew up in Japan where education is highly prized, I am abysmal at math, he’s not. There are perks to being able to talk mind to mind when you’re taking math tests and you are much more interested in flirting with the boy in front of you then actually trying to pass the test. It’s handy when the answers just pop into your mind as a gift from your math genius brother. John?"

"Good job, Clara, let’s just tell everyone we’re cheaters, shall we? An interesting fact. Hmmm, Clara can’t cook worth a damn. She tries; she does but I am a much better cook than she is. I have much more patience and I find it fun to add my own little flair to a recipe. Once Cesco, with his heightened senses joined us it became even more of a challenge to make the food that much better. When someone can smell the food you’re cooking from fifty feet outside the front door of a rather large house or farther if he tries you really want to make sure what you’re cooking actually smells enticing. Cesco?"

"Thanks John, and trust me, I have smelled plenty of craptastic cooking in my life. I appreciate that you take the time actually cook and not just burn things. I guess I can share an embarrassing fact. I’ve always moved much faster than normal people but when I was younger my enthusiasm sometimes got ahead of me. When I started really getting into Parkour I trained a lot at an abandoned building by my house that had several dumpsters that were always filled with stuff in the alley next to it. There was this girl who had seen me pulling tricks and vaults off at school and showed interest, in me and the tricks so of course I had to try impress her. I had her meet me at the abandoned building and there was this spot on the second floor that had a few old desks, a pretty tall filing cabinet and the window had been completely broken out. The dumpsters sat in the alley on the opposite side of a brick wall beneath this window. I had done this run several times, I would vault over the desks, land on top of the last one, use it to vault to the top of the filing cabinet and dive roll out of the window onto some mattresses I had placed on the ground to cushion the landing. I decided to add something extra to it before this girl came to watch me. I dragged a desk out from the bottom floor and placed it on the other side of the mattress, plan being to roll out of the landing from the second floor, vault onto the top of the desk and use that to jump from and land on the top of the wall. Well the first part of it went well; I hopped the desks, landed on top of the filing cabinet, dove out the window, she screamed, I landed, hopped onto the last desk and jumped to the wall. Well, I didn't account for the fact that I had started moving a bit faster than normal people and my extra speed took me over the wall and right into the dumpsters which were filled with who knows what. I was so mad at myself and embarrassed I got out of the dumpster and bolted home without even talking to her. Needless to say that story made it's way around school pretty quick and I got the nickname DD for Dumpster Diver for awhile. Kat?”

"Yikes, that's not exactly the recommended way to impress your date, Cesco. I'm sure it left an impression though, just not the one you were going for. Fun fact about me, I've done and will get back into doing Parkour, sparring and archery when the ball of death that is currently inhabiting the sky here in Arizona goes away again. I love writing fight scenes which I get complimented on repeatedly, rum and coke is my drink of choice and I'm doing GISHWHES this year. If you don't know what that is, Google it. Thanks for letting me entertain you for a bit on a Wednesday."

AWAKENINGS

X-Men meets the Real World. "This was an amazing book while steeped in fantasy it tackles a huge subject , the subject of human trafficking. Instead of a bland preachy PSA against it, this story uses amazing imagery, action, intensity, and heart to keep you reading well into the night."

Children and teens with unique abilities are being sold on the black market. When twins John and Clara made a vow several years ago to help children that had abilities, they never thought they would be forced to fight hardened criminals. Honor Bound Awakenings shows the beginning of the journey they and their friends from idealism to reality and what sacrifices they will be forced to make to keep their vow.

SACRIFICES

Picking up the moment Awakenings end – John and Clara are forced to choose which of them will continue to put themselves in the line of fire, Cesco has to make peace with what he may have to become to keep the others safe, Min-Ji confronts her painful past head on, Sarah and her family must learn to adapt to the results of her Awakening and Jessie has to struggle to keep the group emotionally stable.

Enjoy an excerpt from Honor Bound: Sacrifices:

He couldn't move, Min-Ji was screaming, he felt searing heat and smelled burning flesh, pain raged through his shoulder. Min-Ji, she couldn't!

“Min-Ji! Don't!” Cesco screamed. His eyes flew open, harsh light blinded him. Someone was holding him down. His right arm wasn't moving, his left arm shot full speed at the face hovering over him, the punch connected, flinging the man across the room where he landed against the wall. Cesco tried to get up, as soon as he moved the intense pain in his shoulder and face floored him causing him to curl into a tight ball. “Min-Ji! Holy crap! What happened?” The phrases coming between waves of pain.

“Cesco! Stop!” John's voice barely cut through the pain.

"John?"

“Yes, I'm here. Lay back, you're hurt.”

“Where are we? Is everyone ok?”

John's hands pushed against his chest easing him onto his back.

“My shoulder, I can't move it.”

“You were shot. The bullet shattered your collarbone and put a hole in your shoulder blade. You just punched Dr. Rothstein. He was sewing you up. Clara was shot too but she's all right. Doctor, are you ok? Sorry about that.”

First priority was to try to forget everyone else's emotions. She slowly started unraveling those in her mind, hellish pain and agony, that wasn't her. She had developed a visualization to help her through things like this, she imagined all of the emotions that weren't hers as clothes she was wearing and would slowly strip away the layers until she got down to just her own skin. It worked fairly well.

Layer after layer came off. Eventually she cleared everything away so she only had her emotions left and could take inventory of her mental state. The storage facility office froze in her mind, blood on the floor, dismembered people, Min-Ji screaming and Cesco on the floor. As an empath she had learned how to face her own emotions along with manipulating and controlling others. She took a deep breath and allowed herself to relive the moment. Sheer panic and disgust hit her, her heart started to race and her stomach clenched again as she smelled the blood and charred flesh. How badly she had wanted to run the other way, but she couldn't. She couldn't at the time and she sure as hell wouldn't now. Forcing herself to stand there, she allowed the whole scene to slam into her mind over and over until it no longer affected her.

Eventually she could look at it without her pulse skyrocketing so she moved to the next one, driving the car as John shot the people they were chasing. That wasn't so bad, she and John were focused so their emotions weren't out of control and the blood and gore was manageable for her to look at. The last one she didn't want to face but she had to. Her view of Min-Ji coming out of the office and setting a person on fire, the emotions that Min-Ji had felt had been so intense. She and Min-Ji had bonded so often to keep Min-Ji stable that Jessie was starting to think it had almost become permanent. She picked up on even small shifts in Min-Ji's emotions now without having to touch her.

John went to check on Clara, he had felt her mind start stirring.

“Clara, you need to rest.”

“That's a bit complicated,” a gentle laugh brushed against his mind. “You haven't been blocking all that well. I know about Min-Ji and Cesco. I know about how you almost blacked out. I drifted for a bit and slept but there's too much going on and I am picking up on it. I held back as much as I could until you had a quiet moment. We have a lot to figure out.”

“You're taking this rather well.”

“Not really. Just pushing it down for now.” As she said that he felt her let him in a bit more and was suddenly glad she had been pushing things down. She was in a panic, if he had been feeling that along with his emotions he would be a wreck. He put his blocks up so she wouldn't have to do all the work.

“Thank you,” he told her.

“You're welcome.”

“Sarah is on the way to help with Cesco. I am not sure how much she will be able to do. Dr. Rothstein said he can repair the shoulder later if we are staying in town and wrote prescriptions for drugs. You should be able to walk well enough for the show. Maybe Sarah can heal it fast enough so you're not in pain. It's just a small wound, nothing is broken in your leg. We need to get Cesco in the car and get back to the condo and we still have a million things to do for the show. We have more press tomorrow, we're going to look like hell.”

She squeezed his hand back. “When...I did what I did to you,” she shuddered a bit at the memory, “I wasn't panicking. I know you thought I was but I wasn't. I wanted to protect Chad and hurt you, but I didn't know it was you because it felt like I was being kidnapped again.” She paused, her voice growing soft. “All I thought was what would be the fastest way to make you stop, I wasn't really scared, I was angry. I don't want to say anything else right now, please Dad.” The memory of that moment was pushing her close to the edge. She looked down at the armrest of the seat one of her hands had been resting on it, it had started rippling and shifting form. She quickly pulled her hands away from the chair and away from her Dad's hand then held them up in the air. She couldn't shift things if she wasn't touching them.

“You don't have to. I understand now.” He reached his arm around her and pulled her close. “We will get through this, somehow we will. I promise you.” He said as he kissed the top of her head. They stayed like that the rest of the flight.

About the Author:Who is Kat Loveland? Why does she write?

Good questions. Complicated questions. Questions that make you say hmmmmmmm.

Kat is a person of great charm and grace, she lights up whatever room she walks into. Her stunning fashion sense mesmerizes all who see her. Witty rejoinders and endless amounts of relevant and thoroughly researched facts and tidbits flow effortlessly from her mouth.....

Yeah, ok, Not so much. I've got the witty rejoinders but not the fashion sense. I like comfy, simple clothes and sparring with weapons. I occasionally try my hand at archery and artistic photography, sometimes I'll even hop a wall or vault a bench. I'm a tomboy at heart, what can I say.

Why do I write? My imaginary friends are endlessly entertaining and they always do whatever the hell I tell them to. Besides it's fun to play Goddess, most authors won't admit that but I'm pretty blunt. It's fun to torture, harass, endlessly confound and every once in a while make a character a bit happy with life. Not too often though, that's just silly.

My editor tells me and I quote : “Only a genius can write three books at the same time, work all the time and shoot arrows into the air and hope and pray what goes up does not come down on top of her.” Have I mentioned she's an awesome editor?

Website ~ Facebook ~ Twitter Buy the book at Amazon.

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How Not To Write a Novel in 30 Days by Becky Wicks - Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Becky will be awarding an eCopy of Before He Was Famous to a randomly drawn commenter at each stop during the tour, and a Grand Prize of an eCopy of Before He Was Famous as well as a print copy of Latinalicious, Becky's last travel memoir (HarperCollins) to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. (International winner) Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

HOW NOT TO WRITE A NOVEL IN 30 DAYS

OK writers, and anyone who’s ever wondered what the hell it’s like to try and write a book reasonably quickly. Here are a few tips from my own personal experience. I may not know what to do exactly, but by now I think I know what you should NOT do.

1. Do not sit down at your desk and then remember that oops, you can’t start writing yet because you haven’t folded the end of the loo roll into a hotel style triangle/ensured your bike isn’t on fire outside/plucked your eyebrows/painted each toenail with a different intricate design based on flowers from around the world. Start writing NOW and don’t stop till you’ve done something you’re proud of. Even if it’s just one paragraph.

2. Do not write when you’re drunk or high. Well, maybe write when you’re high because who knows, you might unlock something marvelous within the deep recesses of your tragic mind, which will render you the literary mastermind of your generation and score you a Pulitzer. But chances are you’ll just sound like a wanker and hate yourself when you read it back.

3. Do not stop what you’re doing to read a book that someone says sounds a bit like yours. Chances are it will be better and you’ll feel like shit, or it will be worse and you’ll still feel like shit because now the pressure’s on to write something better. Write your story your way and fuck everyone else. Unless it’s about vampires. Then just don’t bother… please.

4. Do not keep checking your word count. We’re all guilty of this. You might reach 35,099 words and think “yay me!”, how fabulous, I’m a third of the way there, and later realize you have to cut that 5000 words you wrote in one day from the point of view of the hamster who witnessed the murder. Because you were drunk. Or high. Oh dear. You wanker.

5. Do not pitch your top, future award winning novel to every agent you see online (or in the Writers & Artists Yearbook) before it’s finished. Whereas some agents might only ask for the first 30 pages or so, most will want the whole manuscript and the last thing you need is for them to love a 30 page murder mystery told through the eyes of a hamster, only to find you’ve run out of weed and can’t write the rest. Again: Wanker.

6. Do not set yourself a word count per day. Seriously, if you order yourself to write 5000 words every day and then find you’re too tired, or uninspired, or just drunk or high or busy having sex with your muse you’re going to feel like you’ve failed. Unless your muse looks like Ryan Gosling and is offering to build you a house AND take you on an inspirational tour of all the Nicholas Sparks movie locations. In that case, fuck the book. Life has favored you. You’re already winning.

7. Do not distract yourself from the task in hand by spending your entire working day Googling all the luxury places you’re going to go on holiday when the six figure advance for your book comes in. Honestly, on a good day we can get ahead of ourselves and it’s great to be confident in our abilities, but planning that hazy, dreamlike future as a minted fiction writer when you should actually be writing fiction isn’t doing you any good. You’re just a poor, deluded wanker with a laptop. And no weed.

8. Delete your Facebook account. Or if that’s too extreme, set aside some special time with it each day and don’t let it draw you in outside of your appointment.

9. Do not procrastinate by writing lists for other writers about what not to do when writing. You’re wasting your time and everyone else’s. And you sound like a wanker. Just write goddammit. Write write write write WRITE!!!

10. Don’t argue. Go write. Now.


I’m going to fold my loo roll again…

Falling in love with your best friend isn’t always a great idea, especially when he’s Noah Lockton - the sexiest, most famous new talent on the planet. When 21-year-old small-town photographer Chloe Campbell is offered the chance of a lifetime – to join her celebrity childhood friend Noah on tour as an exclusive blogger for a New York magazine – she’s certain both have put what happened four years ago behind them. But his eyes still burn; his voice is still a jackhammer to her heartstrings; all his songs are about her. Is it possible that that night still haunts them both?

The music industry is a machine, spinning hype and rumors as much as his records. It’s not just Noah’s girlfriends who’ve got it in for Chloe (there’s no stopping the Twitter-obsessed, cat-loving pop-star Courtney Lentini for starters). Pretty soon, the jealousy and media frenzy surrounding these so-called-friends takes a life-changing turn and it seems making love means making enemies at every turn. When tragedy threatens to pull the final curtain on their relationship, both Chloe and Noah must make a choice. As much as this world leaves them starstruck, is living their dream really worth living without each other?

A story of lifelong friendships, love and hope, set in a world of celebrity, fame and social media gone very, very wrong.

About the Author:

Becky Wicks is a HarperCollins author going indie! Itchy feet has led her to live and work all over the world since leaving England at age 21, including NYC, Sydney, Bali, South America and Dubai. Right now she’s scribbling the second book in the HotFlush series in Vietnam, and will soon be in Vancouver if any hot Canadian men want to make her a cup of tea?

Becky has also written three funny travel books about her time in Dubai, Bali and South America (HarperCollins). Her first book, Burqalicious - The Dubai Diaries, her second book, Balilicious - The Bali Diaries and her third, Latinalicious -The South America Diaries are out now as ebooks.

Becky has also written a comedy romance with author Sarah Alderson under the name Lola Salt, called The Extraordinary Life of Lara Craft (not Croft) which should raise a giggle or two... think Bridget Jones if Jackie Collins had written it!

Follow her on Twitter at bex_wicks and her blog www.BeckyWicks.com. Also, Facebook, Goodreads, and Google+.

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Five Things You'd Never Guess About Shawna C. Jones - Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Shawna will be awarding the winner's choice of a $50.00 Amazon Gift certificate, a half hour psychic reading of your choice of readers (up to $60.00), or a $50.00 Starbucks gift card to a randomly drawn commenter. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour. NOTE: During the tour, the book is available for only $0.99--it's a great time to check it out!

Shawna grew up with a secret that she couldn't share with anyone. She thought of it as her "inner demon" and it shaped her life. When she became an adult, it sent her on a quest to try to find her Real Home. In Paris, she fell in love with a fellow traveler who changed her life, for better or worse. Their relationship was full of discovery and of lessons learned.

How could she come to terms with her "inner demon"? Can we change our fate or karma? Does love really conquer all?

This book is based on a true story of an independent woman's search for her true self and the meaning of life, and how she found answers in unexpected places.

Thank you for inviting me to your blog.

Five things you’d never guess about me: These things could only happen to me, I’m telling you.

1) When I lived in London, I hopped on a train to visit my in laws. This particular car had self-containing areas, meaning the only door to each compartment was to the exterior of the train. Think of each room as being like a stagecoach, where there was no way to move from compartment to compartment. The bench seats faced each other with racks above for storage. I used to like them because I could have the whole place to myself once the train started moving. Well, as we were boarding, some older guy walked by and leered in, then left. I didn’t think much about it. Right as the train started pulling out, he jumped into my compartment. I glanced at him, and he continued to stare at me. I didn’t notice when he took out a paper bag and started doing something naughty into it. I was horrified when I saw what he was doing, but there was nowhere to go, unless I wanted to jump off the train. He leered at me the whole time, and then got quickly off the train at the next stop.

When I told my mother in law about the incident, she remarked, “Well, next time pull the emergency cord.” Now she tells me!

2) While doing a psych RN travel assignment in the southern part of the US, I had a strange experience. I was passing medications to my patients. Because I’m the impatient sort, I went looking for them, rather than waiting for them to come to me. I had my tray with all the medications and was almost done. I had about three patients left. I found the patient I was looking for, but she rubbed her stomach like she was sick. So I helped her to the restroom, but her roommate was in there. By this time, I’m near the two beds in the room. The patient suddenly now tries to vomit on me. And she appears to be doing it deliberately. I’m backing away from her and getting deeper into the room, with no easy way out. I’m now backed into the wall with beds on either side. She sticks her finger down her throat and I freak. I put my hands out to keep her away, and the medicine tray goes flying. I then jump on the bed, and continue with my hands on her head to keep her away from me. A wonderful, older patient comes by and looks in. He shouts out, “We need some help in here.” And I finally got rescued by my co-workers. I later found out that she thought I was trying to poison her with the medications.

3) A couple of years ago, I channeled my inner 21 year old, and put on a backpack and traveled to India by myself. I was staying in an ashram that was more like a hotel. I had a one bedroom apartment for ten dollars a day. I even had a beautiful view of the Ganges River.

One day, I left my French doors open on the balcony. I was in the kitchen and turned around to see a large, red monkey walk in as if he owned the place. They are known to be aggressive.I had no idea what to do. He jumped onto the dining room table and grabbed the banana that was there. When he tried to grab my London shopping bag, I screamed at him, and lunged forward. This scared him away. While closing the doors, I looked at the balcony to see two more monkeys showing up.

I kept the doors closed after that incident. A monkey warning sign would have been nice, don’t you think?

4) My current husband and I got married in a hot air balloon in Arizona, at dawn. I have to say it was the most peaceful, stress free ceremony. Later that same day, after breakfast, we went hiking in the Grand Canyon. On our anniversaries, we watch the DVD of our wedding and relive the whole experience again.

5) I’ve lived in 14 states (which includes travel contracts), and 2 provinces so far (not to mention other countries). Is that all?

Please share your own stories, or let us know what you think about these.

About the Author: Shawna C. Jones lives in the US, when she's not traveling the world. She lives with her husband, and "inner demon" quite peacefully now. She is continuing her mission of helping others, and encouraging young people to travel and follow their dreams.

https://www.facebook.com/ShawnaJonesAuthor
http://www.shawnacjones.com/
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Timeless Escapes by Julie Rowe and others - Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

The authors will be awarding the following prizes during the tour:

First prize - $50 gift certificate plus ebook Timeless Keepsakes by Ruth A. Casie, Lita Harris, Emma Kaye, Nicole S. Patrick, Julie Rowe

Second prize - $25 gift certificate plus 3 ebooks 1) Molly Gets Her Man by Julie Rowe 2) Knight of Runes by Ruth A. Casie 3) Timeless Keepsakes by Ruth A. Casie, Lita Harris, Emma Kaye, Nicole S. Patrick, Julie Rowe

Third prize - 3 ebooks 1) Love at Christmas by Lita Harris 2) Time for Love by Emma Kaye 3) Timeless Keepsakes by Ruth A. Casie, Lita Harris, Emma Kaye, Nicole S. Patrick, Julie Rowe

Five Things You Wouldn't Guess About Julie Rowe

So, five things that most people would never guess about me…

1. I don’t have a university degree. I have a diploma in Med Lab Technology from a technical college, but no degree. It always shocks my students at the college where I teach business writing and other communication courses. Then I tell them that writing romance novels is my full-time job and they’re very confused indeed.

2. I drive a standard/manual transmission car. Love it! Automatics have always seemed boring to me. I find it somewhat annoying that men seemed shocked when they discover I drive a stick. I’m good at it, too! Just ask my husband. *wink*

3. I’ve struggled with depression most of my adult life. I was comparing notes with a cousin a couple of days ago and we realized something kind of shocking. Nearly every female relative we had (including each other) struggles, or has struggled, with depression or other mental illnesses. So, I guess that makes me… normal?

4. Watching Big Brother is my guilty pleasure. I have all the seasons recorded and enjoy putting them on as background noise while writing or cooking or doing laundry. My husband has stopped complaining out loud, but he does give me that, “Oh my God, how can you watch that crap?” face pretty often. He he he.

5. I love action flicks, but can’t stand romantic comedies. Give me some explosions, awesome fight scenes and a hero who can’t win, but somehow pulls it out at the last second any day!! My hubby likes thrillers and movies that make you think, so I go to the movies with my best girlfriend instead (who loves to sigh over good abs as much as I do).

Book Description: Escape to the Virgin Islands where the bonds of marriage are renewed, friends become lovers, and new love is given a chance to thrive.

Ruth A. Casie ~ Second Chance by the Sea Married for ten years, she and her husband have grown apart. When they go back to the Virgin Islands for a family funeral, they find their marriage was never registered. Will an impending disaster be the final straw that breaks them up or will it rekindle their love and send them back to the altar for a second chance?

Lita Harris ~ Chasing Fireflies Soured on love by a recent breakup, a travel agent with a fear of flying and open water takes a trip to the U.S Virgin Islands. She meets a boat captain who challenges her fears. Will she survive her breakup and find happiness in the arms of another man?

Emma Kaye ~ In Her Dreams When an author escapes to the Virgin Islands to work on her latest book, she’s swept back in time to Regency England and must decide whether the love she finds with an English lord is real or only in her dreams.

Nicole S. Patrick ~ Poseidon’s Strength A beloved hero’s death leads his sister and his best friend, who have never seen eye-to-eye, to discover that helping family can be their happy medium, and possibly lead them to uncover a love that's meant to be.

Julie Rowe ~ A Pirate’s Vacation A doctor grieving the death of her husband, buys a B&B in the Virgin Islands in need of a lot of fixing. Her old flame arrives to help with repairs, but will she let him heal her shattered heart?

About the Author:

Julie Rowe’s first career as a medical lab technologist in Canada took her to the Northwest Territories and northern Alberta, where she still resides. She loves to include medical details in her romance novels, but admits she’ll never be able to write about all her medical experiences because, “No one would believe them!” In addition to writing contemporary and historical medical romance, and fun romantic suspense for Entangled Publishing and Carina Press, Julie has a short story in The Mammoth Book of ER Romance (September 2013). Her book Saving the Rifleman (book one of the War Girls series) won the novella category of the 2013 Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence. Her writing has also appeared in several magazines such as Today’s Parent, Reader’s Digest (Canada), Canadian Living, and Romantic Times Magazine.

For more information about Julie, please visit her online at www.julieroweauthor.com, on Twitter @julieroweauthor, or at her Facebook page: www.facebook.com/JulieRoweAuthor.

The Maggie Ryan Series by PM Carlson - Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. One randomly chosen commenter will win a $50 Amazon/BN gift card. Click on the tour banner to see the other stop on the tour.

WARS, ASSASSINATIONS, AND FLAKY DUDES

Why do people turn to violence against each other? What effects does violence have on survivors? How can we respond helpfully? These questions intrigued me as a psychologist and as a writer when I was working on the Maggie Ryan mysteries, and they continue to haunt me today as I see wounded veterans or traumatized survivors of school shootings attempting to rebuild their lives.

The Maggie Ryan books are set in the Vietnam era, and the war and the social upheaval of the times loom over the characters in the series. Civil rights marches, peace marches, riots, the universal draft,showed angry divisions between Americans who believed in the causes and those who were opposed. Even people in supposedly peaceful academic settings, such as AUDITION FOR MURDER (set in 1967), MURDER IS ACADEMIC (1968), MURDER IS PATHOLOGICAL (1969)–– had to deal with the war and the shifting social situation.

In MURDER IS ACADEMIC, Maggie is running from bad memories, immersing herself in her graduate studies. But the chaos of the times forces itself into the ivory tower. In 1968, many academics believed the Vietnam war harmed US interests more than it helped them. As time went on everyone became more and more frustrated–– supporters of the war because the US was not winning, anti-war marchers because the war still went on.

Women had a new frustration, too. They began to notice that, whether they supported the war or protested it, in both camps they were treated as less than equal. In the military they couldn’t officially be front-line soldiers, so they were denied the promotions open to men who served. Even in the peace movement, they weren’t supposed to be the leaders, just the coffee-fetchers for the leaders. Soon women too began to organize for their rights.

Besides the devastation in Vietnam and the clashes at peace marches and civil rights demonstrations, there were assassinations. President Kennedy had been assassinated in 1963; in 1968, when MURDER IS ACADEMIC is set, his brother Bobby Kennedy was assassinated too, and Martin Luther King Jr.

And of course the everyday non-political crimes continued. Whether there are wars and social upheavals or not, crimes are committed by people who fear losing jobs or money or prestige or loved ones, or by people who have not dealt with trauma in healthy ways. In MURDER IS ACADEMIC, a serial killer is raping and murdering women on the highways near Maggie’s university–– including a fellow student. She and a group of women ask a woman psychology professor for help:

“Professor Freeman, can’t we do anything?” Terry Poole was vivacious, black, intelligent, usually smiling but today very grim.

“You mean for a memorial?”

“Hell, no!” said Maggie. “We want to find out how to stop guys like that. Why do they do it? How can we fight back?”

“Right!” agreed Terry. “This is just the last straw. Vietnam and assassinations and riots, maybe we can’t do anything about those. But why the hell can’t we stop just one flaky dude?”

They form a group called Women Against Rape to study the psychology of rapists and the police and court responses to rape. They begin to study self-defense, practising with each other. Maggie asks her brawny actor friend Nick O’Connor to play the villain for a few moments. Despite the lessons and her determination and athleticism, he’s able to win the first rounds, and she wants explanations. Nick says:

“You can try a feint to the eyes or the throat first to distract him, then grab. But don’t just stand back and kick. You can be flipped back off balance.”

“Yeah, I know, you just demonstrated.” Maggie looked at him resentfully. “Where did my sweet, pacific Uncle Nick learn all these dirty tricks?”

“Contact sports. Army. Stage combat lessons. Working as bouncer in a bar.”

“All the things women aren’t supposed to do. Because we might get hurt.”

“Yep.”

“All right, then.” Maggie bounced to her feet resolutely. “Private Ryan reporting to Parris Island, sarge. What’s lesson three?”

As I wrote these mysteries, I didn’t find out how to abolish violence. But as I investigated how good people attempt to deal with it, facing it to increase their understanding and skills, my hope and admiration for human resilience grew.

In the book, Maggie and her friends don’t stop the war, or assassinations, or riots. But they do figure out how to stop one flaky dude.

MURDER IS ACADEMIC (Maggie Ryan 1968)
An Anthony Award nominee

Vietnam, assassinations and riots. In the spring semester of 1968, a series of brutal attacks draws campus women together to study self-defense and the psychology of rape. Graduate student Mary Beth Nelson struggles to keep the Lords of Death at bay by immersing herself in researching Mayan languages. Her new housemate, Maggie Ryan, has her own secrets. When murder strikes close to home, Maggie investigates with a little help from her friends.

About the Author:

P.M. Carlson taught psychology and statistics at Cornell University before deciding that mystery writing was more fun. She has published twelve mystery novels and over a dozen short stories. Her novels have been nominated for an Edgar Award, a Macavity Award, and twice for Anthony Awards. Two short stories were finalists for Agatha Awards. She edited the Mystery Writers Annual for Mystery Writers of America for several years, and served as president of Sisters in Crime.

Author Website: http://www.pmcarlson.net
Publisher Website: http://www.crumcreekpress.com/carlson

Buy the book at the publisher(print, Kindle, Nook, other e-books).

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Swept into the Darkness by Lataeya Lane - Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. LaTaeya will be awarding a $50 Amazon GC and an autographed paperback copy of the book (US ONLY) to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Five things that readers don’t know about me

First and foremost I would like thank It’s Raining Books for being a tour host during this promotion. Thank you so much for your support. I will not be able to comment during the day because I work in the class, but as soon as I can I will stop by. Thanks! L.L.

There are so many things that my readers don’t know about me. I’ve thought long and hard about this question and I hope everyone finds my responses entertaining.

1. I love to go out and dance and have a good time. There was a time during my early twenties when I was out every weekend clubbing in New York with my friends. Our weekends started on Thursday nights and ended on Sunday nights. I think that I’ve been to almost every club or bar in Manhattan, and Queens. Now that I am a wife and mother, I can’t remember the time I’ve been to a club. (LOL) Sleep is my best friend now, Smile.

2. My husband and I got married in Las Vegas. We a small wedding ceremony at a beautiful little chapel, then had our reception at the Mandalay Bay hotel and Casino.

3. I don’t drive on the highway. I’ve been driving for over ten years and I can truly say that I have never driven on the highway. There is something about the highway that really scares me.

4. I love watching General Hospital. I started watching it in the 90’s. I love the excitement, the danger and all the other things that make the show so interesting and intriguing.

5. I started writing when I was seven years old. I wrote my first novel when I was 16. Strangely it wasn’t in the fantasy genre, since fantasy is my first love. My very first book was a crime novel about two bothers Jonathan and Edward Carmain. One bother was a police detective and the other was a mob boss. The story was about how Jonathan (the detective) struggled to survive and fight against crime and corruption in a city as his bother makes every attempt (no matter how deadly) to recruit him to join the mob.

Meet the Author: Years of exposure within the writing and publishing world have made a lasting impact on Author LaTaeya Lane. Writing since she was seven years old, Lane began jotting down phrases and themes later turning them into poems and short stories. Writing became such a passion throughout her youth that she became the Junior and Senior editor of her High school newspaper. She wrote her first novel at age sixteen but was not seeking publication at that time in her life. Lane entered several creative writing contests during her early years of writing and won a few of them. Always captivated by the supernatural and elements of fantasy, Lane was inspired to write a series of books that focused on going beyond the boundaries of life and imagination. The angel vampire fantasy "Swept into the Darkness" is Lane's first published book in a series called "Chronicles of the Celestial." Lane completed a degree in Liberal Studies and currently works to support the education of special needs, middle school students. Lane resides in New Jersey with her husband Leo and son, and is working on writing and publishing the other four books in the series, Dark Betrayal, Dark Revenge, Dark Defiance, and Dark Revelation. Lane also loves to draw and paint. Traveling and experiencing a variety of different foods is also a deep passion of hers. Lane loves watching horror and fantasy movies and is a believer of the Ancient Alien Theory. Some of her favorite authors include, Charline Harris, Stephen King and Erick Von Daniken.

http://www.authorsden.com/lataeyalane
http://www/goodreads.com/LaTaeya
http://www.facebook.com/#!/AuthorLaTaeyaLane
https://twitter.com/LataeyaLM
http://lataeya.com/
http://www.nightowlreviews.com/v5/Authors/Lataeya-Lane

Sydney London is no ordinary twenty-four year old. Ever since she was a child she has had unique out of this world abilities. Suffering from a near death experience and surviving a deadly car crash Sydney is no stranger to death and loss. Cut off from the world around her she encounters an Angel and eventually falls for him inspired by deceitful magic.

Her one true love awaits in the shadows attempting to guard and protect her by risking his immortality. Traumatized by the murder of her best friend she sets off on an unspeakable journey to bring the dead back to life. Sydney's journey of self discovery opens her up to learn of her true angelic identity. She is led in the middle of an inter dimensional war among a hybrid breed of Angel Vampires and the Hierarchy of the Angelic clan. Will her unique powers and the love she bears for her guardian be enough for her to save the Earthly Realm or will she be Swept into the Darkness?

Buy the book at Amazon

The Life List by Chrissy Anderson - Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Chrissy will be awarding a $50 Victoria’s Secret Gift Card to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Hi Guys,

Thanks so much for hosting me on your fabulous blog! I’m so happy to be here and even happier to share 5 things you’d probably NEVER guess about me, Chrissy Anderson, author of The Life List,(part I of The List Trilogy). To be honest, I share so much about myself in my real life love story that it’s challenging to come up with some secret stuff, but here’s my attempt….

1) The Bridges of Madison Country is the scariest movie I’ve EVER seen. If you’re an ounce of the truly, madly, deeply gal I am, you understand why.

2) I really did buy my first house when I was 23. (Had to! It was on the list!) It was a shack in the middle of the woods and for a short time my neighbor was Richard Allen Davis. Scary!

3) I never considered jogging until I needed to run away from my own thoughts and fears. Now I’m addicted and get in about twenty miles a week. (You might actually be able to tell if I didn’t drink so much wine.)

4) Two of my best friends were actually diagnosed with cancer and on the exact same day. (One friend with pancreatic cancer and the other with breast cancer.) The Life List was originally written to reflect this sad truth. The breast cancer storyline was later edited out because focus groups found the coincidence to be too unbelievable.

5) I have a reccurring dream and it goes like this…:

Buriiiiiing, buriiiiing, buriiiiing…
“Hello?”

“Hi, is this Chrissy Anderson?”

“Yes, it is.”

“Hi, hunny, this is Rita Wilson. It’s an honor to speak to you.”

(Long dubious pause on my end of the receiver)

“Hunny…are you there?”

“Rita Wilson? The Rita Wilson…as in Mrs. Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson?”

“Yep! Hey, listen, I read The Life List and I have to tell you I was blown away. It’s not your average chick-lit read and Chrissy’s not your average chick-lit heroine; she’s opinionated, judgmental…snarky. I found her personality hysterical, clever and totally relatable!”

“You did?”

“Are you surprised?”

“Well, no, not surprised with what you said. It was my intention to write about myself as an authentic person that women of all kinds-twenty-somethings, housewives and super woman wanna-bes- could relate to. I think all of us can connect to the pressure of constructing the ideal life, only to fall short. I guess…I’m surprised the book found its way to you. I’ve been trying to get a copy of it in your hands for over a year. I think the closest it got was to your agent’s assistant’s assistant.”

“Are you kidding? I found my way to your book! Everyone in Hollywood is reading it. You’ve created something really special and I want to help you take it to the next level. It’s got to be a movie.”

“That’s exactly what I think!”

“You know what I love the most about it…well, beside the fact that the role of Chrissy’s therapist, Dr. Maria, is made for me!”

(OMIGOD, OMIGOD, OMIGOD! I’ve been blogging about that for over a year!)

“I love that The Life List is part I of a trilogy. This whole project has the shelf life of a can a soup! It’s going to last forever. And the whole love triangle thing happening between Kurt and Leo, and how you took two men who are polar opposites, sexy and compelling in their own right, and made them both these guys that Chrissy could easily fall in love with…it makes me giddy with excitement! I went to your website and voted for my choice. Love how you have the ability to do that there! It’s so cool to see how the votes are split between the two guys, isn’t it?”

(OMIGOD, OMIGOD, OMIGOD! Rita Wilson went to my website!)

“I go crazy thinking about the marketability of your work, Chrissy!”

“I know, right? Show me one woman who can’t identify with something I went through in this book, and I’ll show you a woman who is either very young, very much in denial, or the very luckiest woman on earth.”

“Well, hunny, I hope right now you feel like the luckiest woman on earth, because we’re about to make all of your dreams come true. Your convoluted and chaotic real life love story is about to become the American version of Bridget Jones’s Diary. Are you ready?”

Aaaaaaand this is where I usually jolt awake with a huge smile on my face.

Thanks again for hosting me guys! Hope I made you laugh a little and I hope even harder a few of your readers check out my reviews on Amazon (260 reviews/4.8 star!) and get started with the first two books in the trilogy, The Life List and The Unexpected List. The last book, The Hope List, will be released in the next few months. It’s all very exciting stuff! Next up is a test pilot for a TV series. Yep…I’ve been contacted by a screenwriter to begin this exciting journey. Can’t wait to get started.

When she was just sixteen, Chrissy Anderson made a life list…

…The outcome is a dream husband, a career to envy, and the kind of best friends every girl wants. Then out of nowhere…an affair. What would you do if you realized the life you created wasn’t right for you? You think you know the answer? Think again. Follow Chrissy as she lies and cheats and ultimately learns to tell the truth to herself and those that she loves.

At twenty-eight, Chrissy has been steadily checking off the boxes on her life list as she mocks the style and life choices of everyone around her. She’s got it all—or so everyone thinks. Her life begins to fall apart when she unexpectedly meets a much younger man, Leo, who makes her question just how perfect her “perfect life” really is. With the help of her no-nonsense therapist, Dr. Maria, Chrissy learns more about herself than she anticipates. But it isn’t until she stares an untimely death in the face that Chrissy is catapulted into an overdue reality check. Only then does she scramble to correct the mistakes of her past…trying to figure out if it’s her husband Kurt, her lover Leo, or both that she has to leave behind to make everything right.

Women of all kinds will be able to relate to the pressure of constructing the ideal life, only to fall short. Not everyone will agree with Chrissy Anderson’s decisions, but all will pause as they follow along on her journey to ask, “What would I do if I were her?”

The Life List, book ONE of The List Trilogy, will take you on a rollercoaster of emotional highs and lows as Chrissy makes mistakes on her bumpy road to happiness. Come along for the ride and you’ll be left breathless and ready to find out what she does next in book TWO, The Unexpected List.

About the Author: CHRISSY ANDERSON spends her life doing exactly what she always wanted: doting on those she loves. A former fashion executive, she is a writer, wife, and mother whose own life events inspired The Life List. She lives in Portland, Oregon, with the love of her life and her beautiful daughter.

www.askchrissy.net
www.facebook.com/chrissyandersonbooks

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Freedom of Love by G.S. Carr - Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. The author will be awarding a $20 Amazon gift card, a swag pack with bookmarks, bracelets, key chains etc. related to Freedom of Love, and two paperback copies of her favorite romance novels, to a randomly drawn commenter. (US ONLY) Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Five Things You Would Probably Not Guess About G.S. Carr

First, I would like to say thank you so much for having me today. I’m looking forward to connecting with the many awesome readers out there. So, five things you would probably never guess about me:

1. I generally march to the beat of my own drummer in most aspects of my life, especially my fashion. One year when I was in high school I received a pair of knee high rainbow socks from an aunt. I had no idea what to do with knee high socks but I didn’t want to make her feel bad for giving me a gift I would never wear. So in the middle of January when I went back to school I cut a pair of jeans into shorts that stopped at the knee and wore those rainbow knee highs out in the freezing cold. People either thought I was crazy or bold. I think it was a mix of both.

2. I once had a Christmas tree that I kept until April. It was the first plant in a long time that I was able to keep alive for so long and I was super excited about it. I even kept the decorations on it because they were so beautiful and it made me feel happy just looking at it.

3. The song that I will walk down the aisle to when I get married will either be Beyonce “Diva” or Rhianna “Rockstar”. I intend to have to aisle look like a runway and I am going to strut down in like I am a supermodel.

4. My youngest brother was born when I was 17 years old. Once, when he was about 2 years old I was tasked with watching him during the day over my summer vacation. Like most teens I stayed up on the phone the night before and attempted to sleep in until noon during the day. I laid on the sofa and would occasionally open an eye to make sure he was still breathing. At one point it got very quiet. I went looking for him and found him covered from head to toe in blue marker. I had to spend the evening explaining to my mother why my brother looked like a Smurf.

5. I have a day job as an accountant. One day (with the help of the amazing readers out there) when I have a few bestselling novels I would like to quit my job and be a vagabond. I want to travel around the world with nothing but my tablet and write and eat.

About the Author:

Raised in Charlotte NC, G.S. Carr has always enjoyed indulging in her imagination. At a very young age she had a thirst for reading and the many possibilities it helped come alive in her mind’s eye. She consumed books like they were the air she needed to survive. It seemed inevitable that her love of reading would transcend into a desire to create her own stories. She began writing poetry and stories at the age of 10. By the time she was thirteen she found her passion in the romance genre and has not looked back ever since.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/G.S.CarrBooks
Twitter: https://twitter.com/GS_Carr

The stunning daughter of the French nobleman Dominique, marquis d’Chartes and the African beauty Imani Marsan, Soleil is captivated by everything during her first trip to America including Alex. She loves him almost from their first meeting. However, their love is interrupted when she is abducted and sold into slavery. Alone and scared she only wishes to regain her freedom.

Alexander couldn't help but love the exotic beauty with the caramel skin that made him want to taste it. Losing her was the hardest day of his life. After years of searching she appears as if conjured by his deepest desires. But she returns far from the same. Can they rekindle their love or will they never find the freedom only love can bring.

Buy the book at Barnes and Noble or Amazon.

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Five Things You'd Never Guess About Nana Prah - Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Nana will be awarding a $20 Amazon GC to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Five things you’d never guess about Nana Prah

1. I’m pretty sure one of my cousins thinks I’m a lesbian, but I’m not. Back in college a friend of mine and I used to frequent a homosexual dance club to get our grove on. I could dance to some awesome music and not worry about a man trying to pick me up because, well, they were gay. I projected heterosexual vibes so the women left me alone, too. I ran into my cousin at this club. He was in the closet at the time, but I knew he was gay long before he came out. We never spoke about our encounter, but I have a feeling he presumed about me, what I knew about him.

2. I love the drama of being a teacher. When I stand up in front of a class, I consider them to be my captive audience and the actress I should have been comes out. Sometimes my jokes or imitations bomb big time, but when I’m hot, they sometimes get too lost in the entertainment to remember that they’re learning. Don’t think I’m soft when it comes to exams, though. I’ll make them laugh in class, but if they don’t study, they’ll be crying during the assessment.

3. I used to annoy my mother with my negativity, yet at the same time I would trust everyone I came into contact with. Over time I’ve become a more positive person, but I’ve learned to trust less easily.

4. Take a look at my picture. Aren’t I adorable with my chubby cheeks? Do I look like a black belt in karate? Well I am and I’m pretty good. Unlike my heroine, Jasmine, in Love Through Time, I’ve never had to use my skills outside of my imagination and the training center (dojo), and I hope I never have to, but I would. My friend tells me that’s what makes me so dangerous. I look too sweet to be able to beat the crap out of someone with my bare hands. By the way black belts don’t have to register their hands as a lethal weapon.

5. I loved the show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Loved it! So much that I mentioned it in my book. The conversations in that show were so snarky that I learned a thing or two. Plus Buffy could kick ass. There is nothing I enjoy more than reading about or watching the strength of a woman displayed.

About the Author:

Nana Prah was born in Ghana, West Africa, raised in the US and currently resides back in Ghana where she loves her job as a writer and nurse educator. She has been writing since she can remember (in her journal) and has been an avid reader of romance novels since the eighth grade. She has finally been able to utilize the years and years of inadvertent research into writing her own romance novels where love always conquers all.

Blog : www.nanaprah.blogspot.com
Facebook: Nana Prah, Author
Twitter: @NanaPrah

Defending her family – no problem. Recalling past lives – maybe just a small problem. Taking a chance on love again – well…

Jasmine Gibson has her world turned upside down when she meets gorgeous Sean Taylor. He’s the first man she’s been attracted to since her fiancé dumped her two years ago. But when the disturbing daydreams start, Jasmine begins to fear that her actions in a past life may have finally caught up with her.

Sean finds it impossible to stay away from Jasmine even though he can’t shake the inexplicable feeling of betrayal, simmering deep inside him every time he sees her.

To complicate things, someone is out to hurt Jasmine and every time she and Sean are together, the police have to be called. Even if Jasmine can make Sean trust her, the two of them may not stay alive long enough to enjoy their love this time around.

Buy the book at Black Opal Books, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, ARe, or Kobo.

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Five Things You Might Not Know About Charmaine Gordon

Picture this: Wearing only a blanket with panties underneath, on stage in a play Off Broadway, I sat on the bed with my lover. Act 1. I had said blanket tucked under my arms and toga style slung over one shoulder. The full audience laughed, enjoying the comedy drama before them but the biggest laugh came when I stood up and crossed while talking, forgetting to clutch the blanket. What happened next you ask? Left breast exposed for all who paid to see, I didn’t miss a beat as I covered up and finished the scene. Heart beating a bit too fast. When my stage lover asked for a peek at my right breast, I slugged him with a script. Not too hard. We had to get ready for Act 2.

Before I had total left hip replacement, I built patios. Show me a rock and I’d drag it home. We drove upstate NY where flagstones abound. I’d yell, “Stop the car and open the trunk.” Out I’d run looking this way and that like a thief in the night only it was daytime on a country road, no homes for miles around. My husband didn’t get it or me; my need to create and build with found material. I’m bereft since I can’t do that anymore. On the plus side, all my creative juices flow into writing.

Born in the thirties, yes my secret is out, girls were expected to be good daughters, wives, and mothers. I, the first girl, lived in a world surrounded by men, brothers, cousins, uncles, a virtual sea of male domination. Women were designated slaves to the kitchen and home. Secretly I wanted to be a triple threat; dance, sing, act. Years flew by as I fulfilled everyone’s wishes except mine and then when my youngest and only daughter turned sixteen, I developed wings and became an actor to work professionally in NYC. Not a star. Just a ripple in a large pond but I did it on my own.

There I was on set in Working Girl. “Don’t talk to the stars.” During a break, I sauntered over to Harrison Ford and he smiled that crooked grin. We shared a hot dog and sang “Don’t know much about history. . .” He didn’t care about rules nor did I. Anthony Hopkins, call me Tony, invited me to lunch with him one day on the set of another movie at Lake Mohunk. Nice gentle man.

My book To Be Continued has been optioned for a television movie. YIPPEE!

About the Author:

Charmaine Gordon writes books about women who Survive and Thrive. Her motto is take one step and then another to leave your past behind and begin again. Six books and several short stories in three years, she’s always at work on the next story. The books include To Be Continued, Starting Over, Now What?, Reconstructing Charlie, Sin of Omission and The Catch. Plus four long/short stories in a new series of Mature Romances. Young at Heart, Instant Grandpa, Before the Final Curtain and now No Time for Green Bananas.

“I didn’t realize at the time while working as an actor in NYC, I’d become a sponge soaking up dialogue, setting, and stage directions. I learned many tools of writing during the years watching directors like Mike Nichols and actors including Harrison Ford, Anthony Hopkins, and Billy Crystal. And would you believe, I was Geraldine Ferraro’s stand-in leg model, my first job giving me entrée into all the Unions needed to work. When the sweet time ended, I began another career and creative juices flowed.”

You can reach Charmaine at http://authorCharmaineGordon.wordpress.com
And on her FB page http://www.facebook.com/charmaine.gordon

My latest release is book four in a series of Mature Romances, a relatively new genre. Since I’m a senior (when did that happen?) I know about the good life we still have.

AVAILABLE IN ALL EBOOK FORMATS

NO TIME FOR GREEN BANANAS
by Charmaine Gordon
Series: The Beginning…Not the End, Book 4
Celeste Hamlin, the seventy-five year old widow, CEO of O.U.R. Airlines specializing in chartered vacations, has a goal... She needs to once more conquer the six mountains in the Saranac Lake region before deciding what to do with the rest of her life.

Sixty-two year old Professor Paul Harris, is on sabbatical to hike and relax. When he meets the dynamic Celeste, he recalls the last words his wife said before she passed. “Find another love and begin again.”

What happens next between an older woman and younger man is a story of gentle passion and discovery of The Beginning... Not The End.

Buy the book at Amazon, All Romance, Smashwords, Apple, or Barnes and Noble.

Check out the book video:

Strange Jobs by D. Melhoff -- Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Leave a comment or ask a question for a chance to win a $25 Amazon/BN gift card. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Top 5 Strangest Jobs that Supported My Writing Career
By D. Melhoff

It’s no secret that artists have to make sacrifices for their art. On top of living in less-than-five-star accommodations, forgoing expensive dinners for Ramen noodles, and choosing whether or not prescription medications are really worth it on a case by case basis, we often end up with a weird assortment of jobs just to pay our bills.

Which brings me to the topic I’ve been asked to talk about today: the top five strangest jobs I had while writing Come Little Children.

P.S. If you’re a writer or actor or any other artist, feel free to add your own resume in the comments. If nothing else, it’ll give someone else a laugh.

5. Bank Teller

For a few months, I worked as a teller on the floor of a local Credit Union. The glorified title was actually “Member Service Representative”, but let’s call a spade a spade here. Also, you should know that being able to see how much money other people make is in no way comforting to a fledgling author.

4. Hockey Scorekeeper

No, I do not mean a referee (that would be a lot more fun and pay better). I merely worked the clock and kept track of goals for a minor league hockey division.

3. Assistant Meat Packer

This is a bit of a stretch, but I used to help my grandmother and grandfather cut up buffalo carcasses on the family farm. We would spend one day a year carving up the different cuts of meat and filling their two deep-freezers, and at the end of it all, my payment would be a carload of take-home steaks, ribs, and pot roasts. Magnificent.

2. Projectionist

For a few years I was a projectionist at the local movie theater. This was before the days of digital projectors and all this 3D crap when the job still entailed lugging around two-ton canisters of film and splicing the reels together, then winding them onto platters, threading the machines, and flicking the motors to life. Those were the good old days.

1.Game Show Host

Without a doubt, this is the strangest job I’ve ever had. Two winters ago I found myself hosting a game show called “Face The Music” at corporate Christmas parties for companies like BMW and KFC. I was pretty good too, if I don’t say so myself, because by the end of the night I usually had everyone dancing on the tables and galloping around the room to songs like “Mony Mony” and “Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy”. The money was good and the travel was exciting, but the season was short, so that only lasted something like five or six weeks. If you’ve got any jobs that top Game Show Host, I’d love to hear about them in the comments.

About the Author:

D. Melhoff is the author of Come Little Children, a supernatural thriller about a family of morticians who are connected to a string of paranormal murders in the town of Nolan, Yukon.

Official Website: www.dmelhoff.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/dmelhoff
Twitter: @dmelhoff
GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/dmelhoff

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