Monday 19 November 2018

Berlin Butterfly: Ensnare




 Leah Moyes is from Arizona but experienced many parts of the world in thanks to a career in the airlines. Now most of her time, aside from writing, is spent with her family, reading Historical Fiction novels or studying ancient cultures as a student of Archaeology.


She always believed she was born in the wrong time period, but since she doesn’t have access to a time machine she must write and read intriguing stories of the past. 






Twitter ~ Goodreads ~
Amazon ~



Stay or flee? Life or family? An impossible choice.

It's Aug 13, 1961, in Berlin Germany. Nationale Volksarmee soldiers roll barbed wire across the war-torn city to create the first Berlin Wall.
Families are separated, livelihoods destroyed, death comes easily as crippling fear paralyzes the occupants on both sides of the wall. Fifteen-year-old Ella is faced with an agonizing decision. Does she risk crossing the wall and possible death to reach her family? Or does she embrace her new life and blossoming love that could be wrenched from her at any moment? West Germany and possible freedom or East Germany and controlled chaos?

Ensnare, the first book in the “Berlin Butterfly” series, is a story of life, love, survival and the struggle of living through the dark early years of the Berlin Wall. Readers will be captivated with Ella’s strength, determination, and vulnerability as she opens her heart amidst a dangerous and terrifying journey."




Snippet:


Bam! Bam! Bam! The heavy pounding launched me flat to the floor. Face down, I realized I’d done exactly what I had meant not to do— fall asleep. I rubbed my eyes and attempted to comprehend what was happening. They were blurry and strained. I heard another loud thud splinter the door as someone busted through. I leapt to my feet the very moment I heard the crunch of glass under heavy boots. They came in like I imagine a herd of wild animals would, how many I did not know. I no longer had time to get to the kitchen window as planned.

Their inability to be discreet allowed enough coverage for my brazen dash to the bedroom closet. It was the only place I’d possibly have a chance to hide. I maneuvered to the far corner with only a few of Mama’s dresses for cover. I smashed against the wall as closely as possible and pulled a long trench coat in front to make it appear as if it was the last item on the rack. A pair of winter boots was pushed forward to hide my feet. My toes curled tightly in the confined space behind them.

The brutes did not seem to mind that their audacious duty came without restraint or consideration for anyone or anything. The sound of furniture upheaved, and dishes broken amplified with each passing second.

I was fully awake now, struggling to calm my surging breath. I cringed at the thought they would find my small collection of belongings near the back window. This included all the Mark I had, yet I knew right now the money was the least of my problems. If they found me, I could be arrested or face far worse consequences. I’d heard stories of young women found at the hands of crazed, irrational soldiers. I had risked everything by staying in the flat.

Someone entered the bedroom and proceeded to flip the bed. If he touched it, he would have felt the warmth my body heat left against the blanket. It didn’t sound as though he had. Another man entered, and they talked about possible hiding places for valuables. The harder I pressed against the inner wall, the more I lost feeling in my limbs. I prayed they would not come over to the closet. It was useless. I knew they would check even before I heard the footsteps turn my direction.




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Thursday 15 November 2018

Time Twist





Arianna Miller tosses her luggage and her hopes into her Subaru and sets out to prove her talent—by decorating a Victorian mansion thirty miles from nowhere. She needs a fresh start and a break from painful memories. However, she is soon haunted by reminders of her past and endangered by foreboding mysteries.

Christopher Flemming is determined to stop his father's crime spree, which began in nineteenth century London and now threatens present day Colorado. He must find and destroy the time-traveling machine that brought them forward in time. More importantly, he needs to save Arianna.
Because of Christopher's blurred focus, Arianna finds her attraction to him untenable. She wants to help him, but he refuses to reveal his connection to the mansion.

Everything changes when Arianna stumbles onto the time machine before Christopher does. Will her future end up in the past?





   Jeanie Davis is an Arizona transplant—twenty-four years and counting. She loves peach ice cream, shopping, a clean house…oh, and chocolate, of course. She has traveled extensively—from Fiji to Africa and Europe to Costa Rica—but prefers being at home creating new adventures on her computer.

     Her four daughters have left her nest empty, but they return often with grandchildren who bring real fun and adventure to her life. And thankfully, Jeanie's awesome husband, Rick, loves to join in on all her escapades.

      A good romance will always capture Jeanie's attention; add suspense or historical ties and she's totally hooked. She's the author of a time-traveling adventure, Time Twist—the first of a romantic/suspense series with a twist of paranormal; an historical fiction novel, As Ever Yours, based on the lives of her grandparents, and a children's Christmas book, I Don't Know Why I Did It.

     Jeanie is passionate about writing, and she always has a new story to delve into or an older one to revise. She began by writing poetry and music, which she still enjoys, but now novels have moved to the forefront of her avocational pursuits.
     When she's not spoiling her grandchildren, Jeanie spends her free time curled up with a good book or typing away on her most recent mystery, adventure or romance.




Top Ten List
·        The house on the cover of Time Twist is eerily like my own house. I didn’t design the cover, my publisher in New York did.
·        (Not such a fun fact, but it’s interesting). Because I have secondary progressive MS, my doc said I’d be a vegetable by now. Should I send him copies of my books?
·        I have four daughters—all born in different states.
·        I have nine awesome grandkids!
·        My favorite Broadway play is Les Miserables
·        I also write music and poetry
·        Favorite treats: Utah mint truffles, homemade peach ice cream and caramel apples
·        I like my house to be clean—and will pay someone to make it so 😊
·        I’ve been to Niagara Falls five times—don’t ask
·        I’m uncomfortable making lists about myself 😉

Character Casting
Christopher: Tall, dark and British
Liam Hemsworth
Chace Crawford
Henry Cavill
Colin O’Donoghue

Arianna: Blonde, green/blue eyes
Blake Lively
Madison Iseman
Teresa Palmer
Amanda Seyfried






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Saturday 10 November 2018

Jaguar. Book 3 of the Uncanny Valley Trilogy






C.A. Gray is the author of the YA Fantasy PIERCING THE VEIL trilogy, as well as the YA Dystopian trilogy, THE LIBERTY BOX. By day, she is a Naturopathic Medical Doctor (NMD), with a primary care practice in Tucson, AZ. Additionally, she writes medical books under her real name.

Her favorite authors include J.K. Rowling and Suzanne Collins, and she also reads an exceptional amount of non-fiction. She is blessed with exceptionally supportive family and friends, and thanks God for them every single day!









Synopsis:

Sometimes the person you lie to the most is yourself.

The Silver Six have blown the Renegades’ underground compound to bits, killing several of Rebecca’s best friends in the process—and to her horror, the boy Rebecca had convinced herself she loved for all these years was the one to betray them all. At the same time, General Specs, the company Liam was once slated to inherit, has developed a superintelligent robot called Jaguar which is quickly becoming godlike in her omniscience. As the remaining Renegades flee to their last bastion of safety in the Caribbean, Liam makes his way back to London, in a last ditch effort to convince his father to destroy Jaguar before it’s too late.

Rebecca, meanwhile, finally understands her own heart: she never loved Andy. He was merely a ‘safe’ choice who would never require anything of her. Liam, on the other hand, exasperating as he was, had seen past her defenses. All of his teasing and provoking had been his attempt to get her to be real with him—but the more he made her feel, the further she had retreated. She had even substituted her companion bot Madeline for real, deep human friendships, and for the same reason: she’d been avoiding love to protect herself from another loss like the one she had experienced when her father was killed for the Renegades’ cause. Ironically, she only realizes this once Liam is on his way to a similar fate.  But she’ll be damned if she lets him go without a fight.

This high stakes conclusion to the Uncanny Valley Trilogy envisions a world not too far off from our own, in which superintelligence is a reality, humanoid bots have supplanted human power and influence, and there are eyes watching and reporting our every move. If humanity is to survive, the Renegades will have to galvanize support across the globe, under the radar—and it will require every last bit of ingenuity they possess. But is attempting to outwit a superintelligent being really the answer? Or will it require something much more fundamentally human?


And now for the Cover

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~ Website
Goodreads



Let's take a look inside the book with a Snippet:

“He can’t help us!” I shouted to Rick, “He’s unconscious!” 
With one glance back at the hovercraft, Rick tossed the hammer back inside and barked at Francis, “Cover us!” 
“What do you think I’m doing?” Francis yelled back. 
I realized Rick must have sliced open his hand on the jagged glass when he scooped Liam up over one shoulder, leaving trails of blood on his hospital gown. Rick scrambled back to the window, just as the chair in the doorframe slid all the way loose. 
“Closer!” Francis shouted to the hovercraft pilot bot. The hovercraft scraped the ledge now, but it was enough for Rick to leap up to the ledge and haul Liam’s shoulders aboard. I grabbed his legs, held them up, and shoved. 
“Stop!” called the bots in the doorframe. Francis opened fire, and I could hear the bullets glancing off the bots’ metallic bodies. You have to shoot them in the eyes! I thought frantically. The humanoid bots behind us fired bullets out of their wrists. Searing pain shot through my shoulder, just as a strong arm locked around my waist. Francis gave a cry, and just before I collapsed on top of Liam’s limp form, I saw the blossom of blood spreading across the side of Francis’s t-shirt. His face went white, and he let out a gurgle. 
No, I thought, just as Rick shouted at the pilot bot, “Go go go!” Then we rocketed up, leaving my stomach on the ground below.





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Wednesday 7 November 2018

Grimoricon - Pathway to Terah


Hi Everyone!

Today I'd like to present to you a new young person's novel by an exciting new writer. Grimoricon: Pathway to Terah is a middle grade, action fantasy adventure starring Ethan, a 12-year-old American kid who finds a strange book in an antique store - a book he simply can't put down. Reading this book takes Ethan to Terah, a world where he will discover he has an important role to play.


That's enough from me: let's take a look at the amazing cover - designed by ace cover designer, Mikey Brooks! (www.insidemikeysworld.com)


Isn't that an awesome cover? You can see that Ethan will not be alone on his adventure in Terah - he is joined and helped by the hunter Nera, her sister Trixxie, and Nera's striped bear Naveni. This fantastic cast makes for a truly enjoyable, and sometimes surprising, story!


Now let's hear a bit about the author, B.D. Suever:

B.D. Suever lives in a world where magic and monsters exist around every corner. At least, that’s what his mind tells him. 
So, who is he really? Well if you ask his kids, he's dad, if you ask his wife, he's the spider killer, if you ask his mom, he's her favorite child (don’t tell his sister). As for himself, he'd tell you he's a world class genius on the brink of making magic a reality. 
At a young age he was always drawn to fantasy whether it be in books, games, or toys. They all allowed him to expand his mind and imagine a world of his own. As he got older, B.D. Suever began to write and create the worlds in his head for others to experience. Now he is ready to present those ideas to the world.
As a freelance writer, he has had featured articles showcased on cultureofgaming.com. He is an active member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI).

When he's not writing, you can usually find him spending time with his two wonderful kids, watching the latest movie, or playing the latest video game (he must keep that imagination fueled somehow). 

Now let's read the back cover blurb of this exciting sounding book, and then we'll get to read a sneaky snippet!

Book Blurb:
A mysterious book leads to an adventure of a lifetime...

 Twelve-year-old Ethan knows it all, and if it doesn’t involve fantasy or video games, he isn’t interested. On a trip to an antique store with his father, Ethan comes across the mysterious book, Grimoricon. Unaware of the secrets this book holds, Ethan soon finds himself in the unfamiliar world of Terah, a world that brings to life all the wondrous and terrifying things from Ethan’s fantasy books.
Aided by a teenage huntress named Nera and her bear companion, Ethan must travel through this unfamiliar world of magic, danger, and intrigue all in an attempt to find his way back home.

However, dark forces have learned of Ethan’s arrival and are seeking to capture him before he can find the doorway between worlds. It will take all of Ethan’s courage and the help of his friends to overcome this enemy and open the doorway.

That all sounds pretty exciting to me! So let's continue and read a fascinating snippet from inside Ethan's story:


Chapter 1 Snippet:

He walked down the hall towards his dad’s office and saw the book on top of the bookshelf. As Ethan walked closer to the shelf, a flash of light filled the room, startling him. Just lightning, calm down, he thought. He reached up and pulled down the book. He hurried back to his room, turned on his reading lamp and opened the book. As he moved back the cover he could hear what sounded like a cracking noise. "Wow, this book is old. I wonder when it was written?" He turned to the front page and didn't see an author name or publish date. Maybe in the back? he thought. Nothing there either. "Oh well." He flipped back to the front and read:
The world of Terah groaned in pain as the darkness rose. Creatures of the night were on the move. Many were not as afraid to come out and attack the population as they were before. As each day passed, the darkness became stronger. The glow of the moons of Terah dimmed.
Ethan was glued to the book already. He couldn't wait to see what this story was about and where his imagination would take him. He turned to the third page and was breezing through the story. The light of the chosen shall awaken within and fight back against the darkness. Ethan had a large smile on his face. He was eager to read about all the interesting characters in the book and this new world called Terah.
As Ethan read further, he didn’t notice what time it was. He glanced over at his alarm clock: 1:47 am. Wow, I've been reading for a while, he thought. He peeked out his window and saw the heavy rain coming down. Just a few more minutes and I'll stop. As he continued to read, he imagined the world of Terah. The smell of the world, the feel of the wind blowing in this mysterious place. His imagination took him to this world of wonder and excitement. As he continued to immerse himself in the book, Ethan felt as if he were being drawn into this world. He didn't notice the flicker from his night light as the storm outside drew closer. Then, a bright flash filled Ethan's room.
CRACK!
The room went dark. A faint glimmer from the cover of the book faded into the darkness.



I think you'll agree that Ethan's story sounds well worth a read. If you know a middle grade child who loves fantasy, action, and adventure, then this book would make a fantastic Christmas present. It is scheduled for publication in print and ebook form within the next couple of weeks, so keep an eye on the author's website and this blog for more news. Now take another peek at the cover, just to whet your appetite!


Contact author B D Suever via his website
and Facebook: B D Suever

The Holistic Gut Prescription





The Holistic Gut Prescription is designed to be a simple guide to healing the gut, based on the following premise: if people give the body what it needs to heal itself and remove the obstacles to its cure, then within reason, healing will follow. 

Nature Cure is not easy to employ, but it is usually easy to understand. There are only so many building blocks, and there are only so many possible obstacles to cure. The physician’s job is not to “make someone well,” but rather to facilitate the process of healing. 

In this guide, Dr. Lauren helps readers recognize which obstacles to a healthy gut they face, how to remove them, and how to supply the specific building blocks they lack so that they can create their own personal path to optimal digestive wellness.

Review:
“The Holistic Gut Prescription is the most thorough guide to intestinal wellness I’ve seen to date. Readers can learn detailed programs to reverse leaky gut, chronic infections, candida and chronic inflammation. The book also gives deep perspective on how multifaceted the connections between gut health, lifestyle, and mindset are. Highly recommended.”Alan Christianson, NMD, New York Times bestselling author of The Adrenal Reset Diet







Dr. Lauren Deville is board-certified to practice medicine in the State of Arizona. She received her NMD from Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine in Tempe, AZ, and she holds a BS in Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics from the University of Arizona, with minors in Spanish and Creative Writing. 

She also loves yoga, piano, and good audiobooks. She writes fiction under a pen name in her spare time.









Snippet
This is the beauty of the naturopathic philosophy: our bodies are designed to heal themselves. If you give your body what it needs to heal and remove the obstacles to cure, health will generally follow. How simple or how complicated the interpretation of this principle becomes in a given case depends on a couple of main variables:
1) How many obstacles to cure are present, 
2) How many building blocks are missing, 
3) How long you’ve been in the present condition, and/or

4) How willing you are to make the necessary changes.





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Friday 2 November 2018

Nissa (The Widows of Wildcat Ridge Series)




My name is Robyn Echols. Zina Abbott is the pen I use for my historical novels. I’m a member of Women Writing the West and Western Writers of America. I currently live with my husband in California’s central valley near the “Gateway to Yosemite.”

I love to read, quilt, work with digital images on my photo editing program, and work on my own family history.

I am a blogger. In addition to my own blog, I blog for several group blogs including the Sweet Americana Sweethearts blog, which I started and administer.




A widow with two small children, Nissa Stillwell was forced out of the mining supervisor's house after her husband died in the mine disaster in Wildcat Ridge, Utah. She quickly learns before his death, he went heavily into debt. She leaves what few possessions remain behind and contracts with the Ridge Hotel to do their laundry and live in the laundry shed and drying yard next to the hotel. She is able to make ends meet—barely.

          Being left with only the furnishings and personal items that make up James Stillwell’s estate, Mortimer Crane goes after Nissa to pay the balance owed. She refuses, but he insists she work off the debt in his Gentlemen Only Salon.

          Rancher Dallin Walsh has been too busy building up his spread in the isolated mountains of western Colorado to look for a wife. He comes to Wildcat Ridge for a big horse auction. Between Crane and three drifters, he comes to Nissa’s defense more than once. Desperate to leave Wildcat Ridge, Nissa asks him to hire her as a housekeeper. Does Dallin want a housekeeper—or does he have something else in mind?

          Hal and Buck, two wranglers who work for Dallin, soon find most women in town are as eager to find husbands to move to Wildcat Ridge so they can keep their homes as they are to sell horses. A woman in difficulty captures Hal’s attention. Another woman finds Buck, but he definitely is not interested in a wife.

          Who will go to Colorado, and who will stay in Wildcat Ridge?



Snippet:

A light nudge on the bottom of his boot jolted Buck out of a deep sleep. He scrambled to his feet in an instant. With one hand on the butt of his pistol, he tossed aside his bedroll. It was only when, through his bleary sleep-hazed eyes he recognized Hal, he let out a sigh of relief and settled to a sitting position on the straw. Leaning back against the short wall where the roof joined it just above his head, he raked his fingers through his sleep-mussed hair and scratched his head. “What did you go and do that for? Took about ten years off my life.”

          Unrepentant, Hal leaned against the flat side of the livery building near the edge of the loft where the roofline was high enough he could stand at his full height. “You’re getting soft being in town. It’s daylight. Time to be up.”

          Buck grumbled as he pulled one boot off and wiggled his toes. “Says the man who spent the night in a soft bed at the hotel. You got to sleep all night without a care in the world. Me, on the other hand, every time one of these horses started to snort or stomp, I got up and climbed down the ladder to take a look-see, make sure everything was all right.”


          “Must you take those boots off, Buck? The stink of those socks is enough to stampede the horses right out of here.”




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