Sunday 31 October 2021

Simple Tryst of Fate Tour and Giveaway! #Review

 

 


Simple Tryst of Fate

The Tryst Series Book 1

by D.M. Barr

Genre: Contemporary Dark Romance 

A desire for a more conventional life once propelled travel writer Dani Barrett into a disastrous marriage. Ten years later and newly divorced, she’s back on the road with a series of rules to protect her heart and a secret sideline as an erotica author.

On a press trip, she meets James Aldridge, a charming yet cynical publisher who arouses her interest. Little does Dani know James is secretly an investigative journalist with his own kinky streak, and that rather than writing a travelogue, his undercover probe into political corruption will suck her into a treacherous journey across South America that could either end at James's gravesite or in his loving arms.


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MY REVIEW:
Simple tryst of fate is my first book by D.M. Barr. The quick wit and intriguing storyline kept me turning the page to find out more.

Dani’s not willing to jump heart first into love again. After a failed marriage, she wants to learn from her mistakes. When her work takes her on a trip, she meets James whose in a similar line of work. The pair hit it off and find they have more than work in common.

Can Dani overcome her past and risk her heart to find love?

I enjoyed this. I haven’t been reading much at the moment, and I found this a little different to my usual romance choice. I would recommend this book.

*I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.



By day, a mild-mannered salesperson, wife, mother, rescuer of senior shelter dogs, competitive trivia player and author groupie, happily living just north of New York City. By night, an author of sex, suspense and satire.

My background includes stints in travel marketing, travel journalism, meeting planning, public relations and real estate. I was, for a long and happy time, an award-winning magazine writer and editor. Then kids happened. And I needed to actually make money. Now they're off doing whatever it is they do (of which I have no idea since they won't friend me on Facebook) and I can spend my spare time weaving tales of debauchery and whatever else tickles my fancy.

The main thing to remember about my work is that I am NOT one of my characters. For example, as a real estate broker, I've never played Bondage Bingo in one of my empty listings or offed anyone at my local diet clinic.

But that's not to say I haven't wanted to...


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Glory Bishop by Deborah L. King #Blitz

 

Glory Bishop
Deborah L. King
Publication date: June 4th 2019
Genres: Women’s Fiction

“Deborah King has written a compelling, thought-provoking novel that engages readers and made me wish the story would never end.” -Chicago Writer’s Association Windy City Reviews

Glory Bishop lives her life in pieces. At work and with her friends, she reads novels, speaks her mind, and enjoys slow dances and stolen kisses with her boyfriend, JT. But at home, Glory follows strict rules and second-guesses every step. Though she dreams of going to college and living like a normal teenage girl, her abusive mother has other ideas.

When JT leaves to join the navy, Glory is left alone and heartsick. The preacher’s son, Malcolm Porter, begins to shower her with lavish gifts, and her mother pushes Glory to accept his advances. Glory is torn between waiting for true love with JT or giving in to the overzealous Malcolm.

When a stranger attacks Glory on the street, Malcolm steps in to rescue her, and her interest in him deepens. But the closer she gets to him, the more controlling he becomes. Glory must eventually decide whether to rely on others or to be her own savior.

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EXCERPT:

She was standing at a softly rumbling dryer, folding “mountain fresh” scented towels, when she heard the door opening behind her.

“Hello, Miss Glory.”

She continued folding, pretending not to hear.

“I said, hello, Miss Glory.”

She would not give that devil’s son the satisfaction of responding.

The door closed, and she hoped he’d gone, but then he was behind her… his arms around her waist… his lips touching her shoulder. “Remember the first time you let me kiss you? You said you’d be my wife.”

Glory shrugged off the kiss and tried to ignore him—tried not to notice his scent or relax in his arms. She tried not to respond to his voice… tried not to care.

His lips touched the back of her neck. “Remember the second time you let me kiss you? You said you’d be my girl.”

Glory deliberately brushed his kiss from her neck and moved to the washing machine, careful to keep her back to him.

“Oh… so it’s like that now, huh? No problem. I’ll just sit down and watch you work. I’ve got all night. And you know, I always did appreciate you from behind, too.”

Glory growled under her breath, taking her annoyance out on the wet towels she pulled from the washer. She heard him sigh loudly as he settled down on the old couch. She whispered a prayer for patience and strength.

“Know what?” he asked. “I feel like singing.”

Glory continued her work and tried to ignore him as he flubbed his way through “Ribbon in the Sky” and “Isn’t She Lovely,” but when he started singing “Brick House,” she threw down the towel she was folding and gripped the edge of the table.

“Josiah Jackson, you leave me alone. Right now!”

“Oh… so you’re talking to me now, huh? I win big. I get to hear your pretty voice and look at your fine a—”

“No!” Glory turned to face him, arms folded, seething, channeling every bit of hurt and anger into a glare that she wished would burn him to cinders. “No. I’m not talking to you. I’m asking the devil to leave me alone! I’m asking Satan himself to leave me alone and never speak to me again.”

“Well,” he said, standing and moving toward her. “Your prayer is gonna be answered. I’m leaving for the navy tomorrow.”

He smiled. He actually smiled. That no-good lying two-timing devil smiled his smug smile—that I’m the finest boy in the world, and I know you agree smile. That I win smile.

Glory hated that smile. And she loved that smile. And all she could do was squeeze her eyes shut to keep the tears from spilling out.

“How could you do that to me, JT?” she whispered. “How?”

“I’m sorry, Miss Glory.” He tried to take her hand, but she pushed him away. “I’m leaving in the morning and I need to make things right with you. Please, just listen to me. You don’t hafta talk to me. You don’t hafta forgive me. Just listen. Then if you still hate me, I swear I’ll never bother you again.”

Glory opened her eyes. The smug smile was gone—no mocking, no joking, only the slightest hint of a plea in his voice and in his eyes—the force of will that always made her trust him… or used to make her trust him.

Glory sat away from him on the couch, arms still folded, not looking at him. She listened to his tale of a weekend with his cousins and wine and reefa and the twenty-two-year-old next door and his not really remembering it until his aunt called his mother about a baby that looked like him. She tried to stay angry and to push him away when he knelt in front of her, begging forgiveness. She tried not to see the tears in his eyes.

Author Bio:

Deborah King has been a writer and storyteller her whole life. She published her first short story when she was seven years old. When she’s not writing, Deborah enjoys cartoons, cooking, photography, and Star Trek. Born and raised in Chicago, Deborah has managed to achieve all of her childhood dreams and still lives in the area with her husband and two youngest children. According to her daughter, she has “literally aced her life!”

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Started with a List by Tinia Montford #CoverReveal

 

It Started with a List
Tinia Montford
Publication date: January 25th 2022
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, New Adult, Romance

A BUCKET LIST. THE POPULAR GUY. A LONER. WHAT COULD GO WRONG?

Time’s up for Vassa Blackwell.

With her college graduation looming, Vassa reflects on the past four years. After a devastating betrayal from her closest friend leaves her ostracized, she trusts no one. Now she is mega disappointed. No wacky misadventures, no drunken nights, and no regrettable mistakes that you can NEVER tell your parents. Work and class, class and work. That’s it. College is supposed to be the best years of your life… Right?

Vassa feels as though she’s cheated herself out of a full college experience. Notable with romance and boys and stuff. So, she makes a college bucket list. Then the worse thing ever happens. Her list falls into the hands of Lazarus Gilbert. King of the baseball team, sworn enemy (in her opinion), and her annoying upstairs neighbor. He thinks he’s found something fun to do. She thinks she’s in trouble. That’s until she discovers there’s more to Lazarus than he lets on…

With the pressures of post-college decisions and failing classes, can they complete the bucket list before the semester runs out? Are Vassa and Lazarus just too different to get along? Will they both come out winners in the end, or will she retreat to her safety-zone? Is it too late for her to learn to live and let live, and let love enter her heart?

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Author Bio:

Tinia (TUH-NIA) Montford is a Pisces who’s a sap for romance, especially when there’s (tons of) kissing. Loves eighties sitcoms and will consume anything with chocolate. She graduated from the University of San Francisco with a degree in English and Graphic Design.

She is a world traveler having climbed a volcano in Nicaragua, scaled Angkor Wat in the blistering sun, and roamed the Acropolis of Athens. Oh, she also dabbles in short stories occasionally.

If you can’t catch her writing, you can bet she’s overindulging on poke bowls, listening to the same four songs, or chilling with her adorbs doggie. She is currently pursuing her MFA in Fiction.

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Erinath-5 #Blitz

 

 

Knolan Cycle, Book II

Science Fiction

Date Published 11-01-2021

Publisher: PhoenixPhyre Publishing


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After returning from a successful mission with the Knolan Shock Forces, Hāthar needs a break. With Arra his mate pregnant and he still recovering from his last mission, Hāthar has compelling reasons for sticking close to home. But newly developed stealth technology has enabled Knola’s enemies the Valdrōsians to ambush one of Knola’s Deep Space Fleets, inflicting heavy losses.

Intelligence has identified the facility from which the new technology originated. Developing countermeasures, however, will require a raid to steal the technology and abduct the stealth project managers. Having recently defeated just such a raid, Hāthar is asked to evaluate the feasability of the Knolan plan.

The plan is insanely risky, but Hāthar senses he is the best choice to lead it. With the fate of his adoptive home hinging on the success of the mission, he sets aside his personal preferences in favor of duty. Eryinath-5, The Dancer Nebula continues the chronicle of Knola’s thousand-year war with the Valdrōsians—and the coming climactic clash that will determine the fate of Earth and our corner of the galaxy.


About the Author

Dirk’s path to authorship wasn’t quite an accident, but almost. It’s not that he didn’t write. He did. Still, through two previous careers, first as a Marine officer and subsequently as a corporate trainer, Dirk started way more stories than he finished. But in the backwash of the 2008 financial meltdown, his employer filed for Chapter 11. Cordially invited to leave and not return, Dirk found himself out of work and excuses.

Since then, Dirk has published West of Tomorrow, Best-Case Scenario, Act I of Nyra’s Journey, a collection of short fiction entitled, Through the Windshield and Tier Zero, Vol I of the Knolan Cycle. All are available from Amazon in paperback and Kindle. His latest work in progress is The Year of Maybe, Act II of Nyra’s Journey, due out in 2022.


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We the Dreamers #Blitz

 

 

Children’s fiction / Picture book

Date Published: November 1, 2021

Publisher: Cayena Press, Inc.



We the Dreamers” describes the journey of immigrating to a new place through the eyes of a child. The narrative text is poetic and full of emotion. The illustrations, which seem to dance and sing, convey the story of crossing borders as a child.

This children’s picture book, told alternatively in English and in Spanish, highlights all the emotions immigrants experience throughout their journey: the characters end up feeling mystified, bemused, or even bewildered upon entering the United States.

Using colorful, imaginative illustrations and poetic narrative, “We the Dreamers” connects with its readers in an emotional and compassionate way, and it opens up the floor to holding conversations about immigration with children.


About the Author

She has a doctorate in leadership in higher education and works as a public librarian. She is the author of “Mama Tingo,” “María Montez, the Queen of Technicolor,” and “Little Giants: 10 Hispanic Women Who Made History.” “We the Dreamers” is her second fiction book for children. She lives in New York with an untamed Shih Tzu, Toby, and a much-attached Chihuahua, Maya. She spends her free time thinking (and drafting) about books to write, painting, crocheting, and crying over abused dogs.


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From Dog to Wolf #Blitz

 

 

Coming of Age

Date Published: May 5, 2021

Publisher: MindStir Media



How did the first Americans end up last in America?

From Dog to Wolf is the story of Daniel Graywolf, an Oglala Lakota teen struggling to survive on the impoverished Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. Shy and a loner, young Daniel escapes the drama of life there by wandering the creek beds and washed-out roads in search of specimens for his rock collection; a practice that has earned him the regrettable nickname "Rock Dog." One day he meets Dr. Robert Timberland, a geology professor from the nearby university. Together they solve the mystery of an important find Daniel has made while searching ancestral lands near the reservation. With the help and wisdom of tribal elders, they devise a plan that brings about the long-deserved restitution for his Sioux ancestors. To succeed will require considerably more of Daniel than just human resolve.


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Shade of Santa Fe by Eva Pohler #Blitz

 

The Shade of Santa Fe
Eva Pohler
(The Mystery House, #7)
Publication date: October 31st 2021
Genres: Adult, Mystery, Supernatural

A haunting in Santa Fe will either reunite Ghost Healers, Inc. or disband the group forever.

When Ellen decides to buy a fixer-upper in an art community in Santa Fe, New Mexico, she’s reassured by the realtor that nothing evil has ever occurred there. What she doesn’t know is that the bridge near the back of the property is notoriously known in the town as Suicide Bridge. As she and her friends try to uncover why so many people have taken their lives there, they are shocked by what they find. Can the reunion of Ghost Healers, Inc. untether the troubling spirits near Ellen’s fixer-upper, or will their discoveries be too much for them this time?

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EXCERPT:

“Ready for our hike?” Tanya asked.

“Do pigs fly?” Sue said with a laugh.

“The sooner we do our hike, the sooner we can get on the road to Santa Fe,” Ellen pointed out. “Just think, in five hours, we could be shopping in the plaza.”

“Is that supposed to motivate me? That’s just what I’m looking forward to, more walking.”

“Oh, come on, Sue,” Tanya said. “This will be more of a stroll than a hike. I promise.”

Ellen and her friends put on their walking shoes and then took the trail beside their cabin into the canyon.

Ellen breathed in the cool, morning air. The beauty of the canyon elevated her mood. Some of the stone formations were thick and striated, while other rocks formed mounds of crushed granite. In the distance was a tall formation that reminded Ellen of the sphinx.

“Watch your step,” Tanya said from up front as she stepped over a large rock.

“This feels so good,” Ellen said from where she took up the rear. “I feel like we’re one with nature.”

“And nature is so majestic, isn’t it?” Tanya said. “Doesn’t that big rock look like the tower of a magical castle?”

“I thought it looked more like the sphinx,” Ellen said.

Sue shook her head. “You see a castle and Ellen sees a sphinx. What does it say about me that I see a penis?”

Tanya scoffed. “You know what it says about you.”

“Don’t tell Tom,” Sue warned. “He’ll say my mind is in the gutter.”

“Isn’t it?” Ellen asked.

“Yes, but there’s no need for Tom to know that.”

The three friends chuckled. Ellen realized that if someone had overheard Sue, they might think she was a promiscuous woman who hid her extramarital interests from her husband, but her friends knew she just liked to make people laugh.

Tanya asked, “You think there’s any truth to what that psychic said about there being a shade in Santa Fe? What if there is? What if he confronts us?”

“Oh, Tanya,” Sue said, “you know as well as we do that there are ghosts everywhere. I’m sure there’s more than one shade in Santa Fe.”

“But why would the psychic warn us?” Tanya wanted to know.

“If anyone can handle a confrontation with a ghost, it’s us,” Sue said. “Don’t let fear get in your way of having a good time.”

Ellen heard a shriek as Tanya stopped short.

“Tanya? What are you screaming about?” Ellen asked from the rear.

“That wasn’t me,” Tanya said, backing up. “It was that tarantula. See it?”

On the trail two feet in front of Tanya, a hairy tarantula stood on its hind legs shrieking like a small child. The spider was as big as Ellen’s hand.

“Turn back” Sue said, as she pushed Ellen in the direction from which they’d come. “I’ve had enough of nature for one day.”

“So much for not letting fear get in the way of having a good time,” Ellen teased.

“I can handle just about anything but a hairy spider,” Sue said. “Especially one that screams.”


Author Bio:

After earning her Ph.D. in English and teaching writing and literature for over twenty years, Eva Pohler became a USA Today bestselling author of over thirty novels in multiple genres, including mysteries, thrillers, and young adult paranormal romance based on Greek mythology. Her books have been described as "addictive" and "sure to thrill"--Kirkus Reviews.

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Saturday 30 October 2021

High Risk Blitz

 

 

A Strong Woman Medical Romance

MetroGen Downtown Forbidden Love Duets, Book 2

Romantic suspense, multicultural romance, action adventure romance, medical romance

Release Date: October 31, 2021


One overworked lady doctor has found the perfect guy. He's smoking hot, a fabulous dancer, and amazing between the sheets. It'd be great if he weren't an off-limits MEDICAL STUDENT!

Dr. Angela Perkins might be a cardiology superstar, but her love life is DOA. Her ex told her with curves like hers, he expected a sex kitten, not a medical workaholic. Rather than doom her next relationship with hospital issues, she lets her new date, Michael, believe she's an elementary school teacher.

Medical Student Michael Harper has found third-year is everything TV promised it would be. The hours are long, the pay is non-existent, and the cardiology department is rumored to be run by sadists. He could use a break and the cute teacher, Angela, seems heaven-sent.

When the truth comes out, Angela will have to choose - him or the hospital . . .

WARNING: This forbidden love steamy romance will cause shrieking with its cliffhanger ending, but you'll love it anyway. You should only read if you wish Grey's Anatomy and Chicago Fire had more medical students who put on private post-call strip shows. Just SAYING!


Other Books in the MetroGen Downtown Forbidden Love Duets Series


Smolder: A Strong Woman Firefighter Romance

MetroGen Downtown Forbidden Love Duets, Book 1

As fire chief, he's a ruthless, heartless, ice-cold professional. So how did he succumb to temptation and end up in bed with a rookie female firefighter?

Firefighter Erin Hudgens found a new firehouse family at Firehouse 15. Things were great until her captain retired, and personal problems dissolved the firehouse into chaos. It’s bad enough the all-business-no-fun Fire Chief has to step in. Did she mention he’s really attractive? Spontaneous combustion hot!

Fire Chief Noah Baker does not have time for this. As the city’s youngest chief, he’s sacrificed his personal life to rebuild the department. His efforts are about to pay off when he has to deal with the disaster brewing in Firehouse 15. But he didn’t plan on Erin Hudgens snapping his cool, calm professional facade.

She’s a complication he doesn’t need, but once she's in his arms, he can't stop taking what he needs . . .

WARNING: This steamy romance may lead to actual smoldering when you get hot and bothered after it ends in a HFA since the sexiness continues to a second book. You should only read if you wish Grey's Anatomy and Chicago Fire featured a shirtless fire chief who can paralyze you with the power of his eyes . . . and abs.

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Inferno: A Strong Woman Firefighter Romance

MetroGen Downtown Forbidden Love Duets, Book 3

The story continues in 2022 when the Firehouse 15 meets MetroGen 216 as Erin’s and Noah’s love life heats up!


Compromised: A Strong Woman Medical Romance

MetroGen Downtown Forbidden Love Duets, Book Four

The series concludes in 2022 when everything is revealed. Will Angela’s and Michael’s love survive?

https://carinaalyce.com/forbidden-love-duets-2/



About the Author

Carina Alyce is the pen name of the Amazon Best-selling author and full-time triple board-certified physician who started writing dramatic medical romances after twenty years in the trenches of health care. She promises she never had sex in a call room - the mattresses are not comfortable - or had a fistfight with a patient - though she did work as a fight doc at the Octagon. Her stories are sexy, snarky, and real with all the romance and drama of the lives of our first responders.

She writes the MetroGeneral Downtown series that tackles the personal and professional challenges facing our front-line providers. Her stories have the drama of Grey’s Anatomy, the comedy of Scrubs, the sexiness of Outlander, and the medical details of Forensic Files. They feature fast, witty dialogue, strong women with goals, and quirky ensemble casts.

When not working or writing, she is a brown belt in judo, an avid reader, and an attending surgeon in stuffed animal veterinary medicine for her six kids. (No one trusts her husband’s medical skills because he’s just a lawyer.)


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Darkest Vampire by Juliana Haygert #Blitz

 

The Darkest Vampire
Juliana Haygert
(Rite World: Vampire Wars, #1)
Publication date: October 29th 2021
Genres: New Adult, Urban Fantasy

Supernaturals around Portland are turning up dead. I’m next … if the vampire I just made a powerful bond with doesn’t kill me first.

Magic is in a short supply for a half-witch like me, which makes things very difficult when I’m bound by a blood promise to avenge my parents.

With no leads left to follow, I make a bargain with a demon for help. Bad decision. The quest the demon sends me on binds me to a vampire named Killian, a half-mad, half-naked monster who hates my guts almost as much as he longs to drink my blood.

Killian swore to kill all witches on sight, but we agree to work together to solve the murders ravaging the city. He despises me, and I can’t stand him… but there’s an unexpected connection between us, something I can’t help but be curious about.

No, I can’t let anything distract me. Not even a hot and enraging vampire who presses all of my freaking buttons. I’m determined to find my parents ’killers, and stop the chaos taking over the supernatural world.

If only love didn’t get in the way.

A delicious slow-burn enemies to lovers novel, The Darkest Vampire is a new adult urban fantasy that’s full of dark romance, adventure, and twists you won’t see coming. Fans of Linsey Hall, Leia Stone, and Jaymin Eve are going to become obsessed with this brand-new paranormal series by Juliana Haygert!

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EXCERPT:

The smoke disappeared and I gasped as I took the figure in—a man. A half-naked, half-mad man, with murder written all over his face. He was large, with wide shoulders and very ripped arms, rags for clothes, and an attack stance.

“What—?”

I didn’t have time to say or ask anything.

The man moved like the wind. In a flash, he had his hand around my throat and my back pressed against the bookshelf. Panic laced its way around my spine as I fought his steel-like grip, my legs dangling and my feet off the ground. My flashlight slipped from my hand.

“H—“ I tried telling him to stop, to listen, but my voice wouldn’t come out.

He snarled at me and in the near dark, all I could see were the dark veins around his dark eyes and his fangs—two long fangs. Holy shit, he was a vampire. The panic tightened around me. I had never seen a vampire before but I had heard they were fast and vicious and dangerous.

The vampire’s gaze fell to my neck.

Oh, shit.

I swung my legs and kicked him in the thigh—or at least, I tried to. He probably felt nothing more than a scratch. But it had been enough to take his attention from my neck. His eyes locked on mine as he snarled again.

Then, as quickly as he came, he backed off.

My feet hit the floor with such impact, I thought I would kiss the carpet, but I was able to hold on to the bookshelf and stay upright. My lungs screamed as I inhaled deeply.

I grabbed the dagger from inside my boot and pointed at the vampire. “Stay where you are or I’ll use this.” I was sure I couldn’t really hurt him if he didn’t allow me, but it was all I could do not to panic some more.

The vampire took two slow steps back, his eyes wide, his hand over his heart. “It’s you,” he rasped.


Author Bio:

While Juliana Haygert dreams of being Wonder Woman, Buffy, or a blood elf shadow priest, she settles for the less exciting--but equally gratifying--life of a wife, mother, and author. She resides in North Carolina and spends her days writing about kick-ass heroines and the heroes who drive them crazy.

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BLUE by L.E. DeLano #Blitz

 

Blue
L.E. DeLano
Publication date: October 26th 2021
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult

When Blue Mancini’s mother picked her name, it ended up being a self-fulfilling prophecy.

A year ago, Blue’s brother, Jack, was involved in a car accident that killed the father of her classmate, Maya Rodriguez. Luckily for Jack, he got out of a manslaughter charge and into a plea bargain thanks to the top-notch lawyer hired by Blue’s wealthy parents.

The fallout is now affecting Blue as Maya returns to school determined to carve out a pound of flesh from the only member of the Mancini family she can reach. On top of that, Blue has a demanding mother, a father who’s never around, a drama-addicted best friend, and a secretive new guy who’s determined to make Blue his own personal cheer-up project. It’s a perfect storm of misery.

When Maya’s social media taunts and in-person digs finally push Blue to retaliate, they find themselves in afterschool detention and forced into a project meant to foster cooperation and civility. As the layers of their tangled drama unravel, Blue learns more about Maya’s life—and her own sense of privilege—when secrets are revealed that cast a new perspective on everything in Blue’s world.

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EXCERPT:

My stomach tightens so hard I feel like I’m going to puke. I glance at my phone again, and the texts from last night are still there.

Maya’s back at school

my mom saw her mom at Target

Maya is back

did u see her pic on IG

Did you hear about Maya?

I shove the phone back down in the pocket of my coat and I blow on my fingers to get them warm. I should have remembered my gloves but the whole morning is a blur and I had to get out of my house and now I’m sitting in my car in the cold and I can’t bring myself to turn the key in the ignition.

The phone comes out again. I have got to get a grip on myself. I know better, but I open up Instagram and find her picture. She looks good. Well, better than the last time I saw her, which wasn’t a great time for her. Or me.

Last night, I stayed up trying not to obsess about this and nursing a throbbing hand—which makes me tired and wishing more than anything I could go back to bed and forget the rest of this semester. I’m going to be late for school if I don’t get it together. The phone drops from my hand when a fist slams repeatedly into my window, scaring the hell out of me.

“Jules!” I shriek. “What the—”

“Got tired of waiting,” she says, opening the door and sliding into the passenger seat. “You better get moving or we’ve got another unexcused tardy.”

I suppose it’s a good thing she lives four houses down, but right now I wish she lived in a neighboring town and took the bus.

“Let’s go.” I stuff my phone down into my coat pocket, trying to ignore the way it’s vibrating again. Jules’s eyes drop down, having heard it.

“So is everybody all up in your business?”

“Oh God,” I moan. “All day yesterday and still going this morning. This is such a non-event. It really is.”

“Did you see her pic?”

“Yeah, but I don’t think that was meant for me.”

Jules raises her brows. “You don’t?”

“Nah,” I say with what I hope is a careless shrug.

“Back at Audubon and nobody’s gonna keep me down,” Jules reads aloud while looking at her phone. Obviously, she had the picture open. Maya, in her bedroom, wearing a blue hoodie and smiling, both thumbs up. Her hair is longer now and she looks really pretty.

“I think she means more like, the world in general isn’t going to keep her down,” I tell her.

“I guess,” Jules agrees, only she doesn’t sound like she agrees even a little bit. “Lauren says Maya’s got Poly Sci third block with Jones.”

“Well then,” I force a smile as I start the car. “I guess we’ll find out if my theory is right.”

“She better not think she can start something.”

“Jules.” I give her a look. “Drop it, okay? I mean, she and I barely know each other.”

“I don’t think that’s true anymore.”

“No, it’s still true.” I reverse out of the driveway so fast, Jules rocks sideways in her seat.

“Whoa! Don’t go psycho on me! I’m just sayin’!”

“And I’m just saying; drop it. I’ve got enough of a feeding frenzy going on around me without you hopping on the boat, too.”

“You really don’t think that pic was meant for you?”

I stomp the brake just as we’re moving forward, and Jules rocks in the seat again.

“You honestly think I’m trying to keep Maya down? Like I don’t want her to succeed? In spite of—in spite of everything?”

Jules holds up her hands, finally realizing, I guess, that my nerves are a jangling, dangling mess.

“I’m not busting on you. I’m on your side, remember?”

“There aren’t any sides here,” I remind her with a sigh. “Not for Maya, or for me. Neither one of us had a thing to do with it.”

“Yeah, but dude—your brother killed her Dad.”

I put the car in gear and drive.


Author Bio:

L.E. DeLano comes equipped with a “useless” Theatre degree that has opened doors for her in numerous ways. Though mostly raised in New Mexico, she now lives in Pennsylvania with two adventurous kids and two ridiculous cats. When she’s not writing (which is almost never), she’s binge-watching Netflix and planning road trips.

Her debut novel, TRAVELER was selected as a Keystone To Reading Secondary Book Award finalist for school year 2018-19 by the Keystone State Reading Association (KSRA) and also voted one of The 20 Most Beautiful Books in the World for 2017 by MTV UK.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Amazon


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Dating the Duke will release on Apple, B&N, & Kobo on January 7th for three days, then it will release directly into Kindle Unlimited on the 11th.

 


 

BLURB:

A duke and a writer walk into a bar, and the barman says—never mind. They’re in the library, and they’re not wearing any clothes. Oops.

My name is Adelaide Astley, and if there was anything remotely exciting about me to tell you, I would.

Sure, my uncle is the Duke of Leicester, and my mother bucked family tradition to marry “below” her and open a hotel, but I’m nothing but an aspiring author with a Tudor era obsession.

Oh, and I’m spending the summer tutoring the daughter of the current Duke of Worcester—who happens to be a regular in my highly inappropriate midnight dreams.

Thirty-year-old Alexander Winthrop-Bentley is so not my type, but hours of chess games and arguments over Tudor dynasties mean we’re thrown together more often than we should be. And when he shares with me that he needs a date for a charitable event, my mouth betrays me by offering myself up for the evening.

How I find myself naked in the library is another matter entirely. Ahem.

When the society papers declare us an item, neither of us have the heart to tell our families the truth. Only my twin sister and best friend know the truth, but they both agree we need to keep up the charade, even if only for the summer.

But when the end of August comes and my return home beckons, I have to ask myself a question.

Is it only his daughter who’s stolen my heart, or has Alexander done the very same thing?

Pre-Order Now: Coming January 7th Apple Books: https://emmahart.pub/DTD-AppleBooks Nook: https://emmahart.pub/DTD-Nook Kobo: https://emmahart.pub/DTD-Kobo

Direct to KU January 11th Amazon Universal: https://geni.us/Bw3DFJ

Start the series now with Love Language in KindleUnlimited! Love Language: https://geni.us/7IZwO

About Emma:

Emma Hart is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of over thirty novels and has been translated into several different languages.

She is a mother, wife, lover of wine, Pink Goddess, and valiant rescuer of wild baby hedgehogs.

Emma prides herself on her realistic, snarky smut, with comebacks that would make a PMS-ing teenage girl proud.

Yes, really. She's that sarcastic. Follow Emma: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EmmaHartBooks/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emmahartauthor/ Spotify: https://emmahart.pub/EmmaHart-Spotify Goodreads: https://emmahart.pub/EmmaHart-Goodreads Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/authoremmahart Twitter: https://twitter.com/emmahartauthor Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/emma-hart Amazon: https://amzn.to/30bnIiY TikTok: https://emmahart.pub/EmmaHart-TikTok

 

Friday 29 October 2021

Hearts Set Free Tour

 


Inspirational Literary/Historical Fiction

Date Published: March, 2019

Publisher: Azure Star, LLC


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Seven Lives Inexorably Intertwined. Over Eighty-Six Years. That Will Bring a Revelation Beyond What Any of Them Could Imagine.


An award-winning work of Christian-themed literary fiction

 

The Alaska Territory, 1925. When Yura Noongwook’s husband abandons her and her thirteen-year-old son, she vows to win him back and destroy the woman who stole his heart. They embark on an epic cross-country quest that leads them to the Nevada desert, where they meet a man who has turned into the last thing anyone expected him to become …

 

David Gold. Reno, 1930. A Bible-school dropout known as the Pummelin’ Preacher. His boxing career is fading, just like his faith. But then a former call girl shows up, tells him about the rag-tag congregation she’s part of; how their pastor was murdered. And that the Spirit is moving and David’s destiny is to lead their tiny flock.

 

Las Vegas, 2011. Cable TV star Tim Faber is an atheist bent on proving God is only alive in people’s imaginations. But Joan Reed, his producer, is trying to recapture the faith of her youth. And both of them are driven to unravel a mystery surrounding the Big Bang theory, never dreaming the answer will forever change their lives.


To do that, they have to meet with the now 99-year-old Luke Noongwook and David Gold’s grandson, Daniel.


The veil is being pulled back, but none of them are prepared for what they’ll find on the other side.

 


"Lederman’s powerful debut interlaces three stories that span nearly a century and are tied together by a church of outcasts in Las Vegas...Readers of inspirational fiction will love this moving story that affirms the power of God's mercy."

--Publisher's Weekly

 

 

EXCERPT

Chapter Two

David: Paris, 1914

“Do you think a loving father could ever be persuaded to slit his own

son’s throat?” asked David Gold, a tall, broad-shouldered young man

with a boxer’s chiseled physique. It was a beautiful fall morning, and

he and his two companions were lingering over coffee and croissants at

Les Deux Magots. “Even if God Himself commanded him?”

“What a horrid thing to bring up at breakfast, Davey!” Lucille

Johnson exclaimed. She was twenty-one, plump and plain, and dressed

in the latest Paris fashion. “What is he talking about, Jack?” she asked,

turning to her husband.

“Abraham and Isaac. It’s in the Good Book,” Jack Johnson explained,

patting one of Lucille’s jewel-bedecked hands. He had recently defended

his title as heavyweight champion of the world, prevailing, at the age of

thirty-six, in a fight staged not far from the Eiffel Tower.

Everyone in the café was angling to get a look at the famous

pugilist, a black man resplendent in a white linen suit, derby hat, and a

silk tie that shone like sunlit daffodils. Although not as large as David,

who’d been his sparring partner for the past two years, Johnson had

an aura of happy confidence which overshadowed the younger man.

No one cared that he was black and Lucille was white; those backwater

Americans might get worked up about such things, but to the Parisians,

he was a hero, the first of his race to take the title. One great white hope

after another had been pitted against him, and he’d battered each into

oblivion without breaking a sweat. His allure was further enhanced

by reports that he was an outlaw, a fugitive from justice in the United

States. He’d been sentenced to a year and a day in prison for violating

the Mann Act, which, the French discovered, prohibited transporting a

woman across state lines for immoral purposes.

“In America, that is a crime?” asked the Parisians, nonplussed.

“How completely absurd!”

Of course, they would forget him the moment he lost.

 


 

About the Author

After I graduated with a degree in music from Columbia University, a lust for expensive pianos drew me into an unexpected career in finance. It turned out that I had a knack for business; I gained much that the world had to offer and became a hedonist, a gambler who haunted the poker rooms of Las Vegas, and an arrogant atheist. I’ve written fiction for most of my life, and at one point I quit work to devote myself to writing a novel. During that time, my late first wife, Teri, and I lived in Paris, down the street from where Hemingway once lived, and later in the mountains of Idaho. But the novel was never published, for my soul had not yet awakened, and I did not yet have anything important to say. So I went back to the business world.

One day, when we were living in Dallas, Teri heard a radio interview with Francis Collins, an eminent scientist who wrote The Language of God, which tells the story of his journey from atheism to becoming a disciple of Christ. Collins’ book led us to the writings of C.S. Lewis and George MacDonald, who became the midwives of our rebirth from above.

There’s no hiding from the Hound of Heaven, once He’s on your trail!

Several years later, Teri was diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease) and we left Dallas and the business world behind and moved to a small town in Alaska. There we looked out on the glory of God’s creation and read to our heart’s content during the last two years of her life. Faced with tragedy, we learned to trust utterly in Him, and He blessed us with the peace that surpasses all understanding.

It was after Teri’s death, while I was still living in the far north, that the idea for Hearts Set Free—which opens in the Alaska Territory in 1925—was born. People who know that the novel contains autobiographical elements (and several historical characters) sometimes ask me, “How much of the story is true?’ And I answer, “Perhaps twenty percent—and the rest is even more true!” What drives my writing is the desire to convey truths that transform lives. Truths of the heart.

In 2013, I met a wonderful woman—my current wife, Ling—and soon we began talking about having children. “Impossible!” said our doctors. “According to your test results, there’s no chance at all, even using the latest techniques.” Of course, within two months of that pronouncement, Ling was pregnant with little David, who just turned three, and we subsequently adopted Daniel, who’s now twelve.

After David’s birth, we moved to southwest Washington. I’m currently at work on a novel that begins in the last days of the Wild West and ends in Las Vegas in 1955. When I’m not writing or chasing my sons around, can usually be found at the piano playing Chopin nocturnes for Ling.


Contact Links

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Blog

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Purchase Link

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