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Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Book Spotlight: Midnight Cravings by Joelle Sterling

Title: Midnight Cravings (Eternal Dead, #1)
Author: Joelle Sterling
Genre: Horror/ Coming of Age
Tour Dates: April 29 – May 19
Tour Organizer: B3 Tours


Synopsis: The first book in a new trilogy is a supernatural fest with teenage witches, vampires, and zombies in an urban setting.
With her acne under control, the braces off, and a new haircut, Holland Manning has discarded the nerdy girl image for a bold and edgy look. This is the year that she’s finally going to snag her long-time crush, football star Jarrett Sloan. But being realistic, how can a bookworm like Holland compete for Jarrett’s attention when Chaela Vasquez, his uber-gorgeous ex-girlfriend, is going full throttle to get him back?
Holland’s mom claims to be a witch, but her spells go awry and sometimes even backfire. Holland warily asks her mother to cast a love spell on Jarrett, and not surprisingly, the spell doesn’t work. But something strange is happening at home. Night after night, Holland awakens to flitting shadows outside of her bedroom window and eerie whispers, causing her to suspect that her mother may have mistakenly opened a pathway that unleashed something unspeakably sinister.
Discovering her own powers of sorcery that have been lying dormant, Holland sets off on a dangerous mission to vanquish the nest of teenage vampires that are picking off the students at her school, one by one.

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Holland Manning’s hand wandered to the nape of her neck. She cringed as she touched

the area where her newly shorn hair came to a point. She felt utterly naked—completely

vulnerable with short hair. Hair that once hung to her shoulders, now abruptly stopped at her jaw

line on one side. The other side had been raggedly hacked at the top of her ear.

She’d asked for a layered cut—an asymmetrical bob.

“No problem,” the stylist had reassured her when Holland gave her a picture of singer,

Rihanna. The stylist did a hack job. A first grader using a pair of safety scissors could have done

a better job than that so-called professional.

Staring in the mirror, Holland winced as she analyzed her reflection. She tried to focus

on her good points. Her skin was smooth and flawless, showing no signs of her long battle with

acne. And with her braces finally off, straight teeth were a major improvement. Sadly, neither of

these enhancements could deflect attention away from her scraggly hair. Allowing her hair to be

hideously butchered like this was total self sabotage.

Holland zoomed in on her nose, which had always been a problem area, and her nostrils

seemed more pronounced, flaring unattractively. Her chin looked particularly elongated and

pointy.

Oh, God! Angst-ridden, she closed her eyes. She envisioned streamlined nostrils and at

least an inch of chin surgically removed.

Chaela Vasquez and lots of other girls at school had gone under the knife to enhance their

looks. If Holland’s mom could afford it, she’d get some work done on her nose. Not a full nose

job—more like a mini procedure. A few tiny snips to her nostrils would make a huge difference.

Glancing in the mirror, she turned her face to a different angle. There was no

improvement, she still looked gross! Getting her hair cut was the worst decision she’d ever

made. This horrendous style magnified her worst features. Heartsick, she fought the urge to cry.

There was no time for tears; summer break would be over in less than a month, and she needed

to come up with a solution.

Frustrated, she grabbed the swath of hair that hung limply in her face. This piece of hair

had no purpose. She grabbed a pair of scissors and considered cutting it. With lots of gel and

hairspray, perhaps she could give herself a mini-mohawk. Bad idea. Creative hairstyling was not

one of her strengths. Imagining a far worse hair disaster, she put down the scissors, and released

the handful of hair.

Trying to blend in with the popular girls…the cool kids with perfect hair and impeccable

fashion sense, Holland had attempted to step up her game, but now she wished she’d never

bothered. She should have been content staying under the radar. Now, with such a noticeably bad

hair cut, she could count on lots of negative attention.

Holland wouldn’t be able to handle kids pointing fingers at and laughing at her. To

become the butt of cruel jokes would totally destroy her.

Her best friend, Naomi was taunted every day. For some unknown reason, she never

went to her parents or asked any authority figure at school to intervene. She bravely endured the

heckling and jeering and withstood all the cruel pranks that were played on her. Now Naomi’s

off the hook. Somehow, her parents found out what was going on, and had her transferred to an

all girls’ academy.

It was painful to think about how cruelly Naomi was treated at school. No one should

have to live like that. Thankfully, Naomi’s new school had a zero tolerance for bullying.

Holland returned her attention to the mirror. Hoping to find some redeeming qualities,

she scrutinized her hair once again. Nothing had changed, and was terrifying to imagine how

Chaela Vasquez and her groupies would react to her on the first day of school. God, I wish I

could crawl into a hole and hide there forever.

All of her problems would be solved if she could go to the academy with Naomi. But that

was out of the question, her mom could barely afford their regular monthly bills. Private school

tuition was out of the question. Maybe she’d consider the idea of home schooling me—at least

until my hair grows back.

Way to go, loser, she chided myself as she imagined her heartthrob, Jarrett Sloan’s

appalled expression when he took a look at her stupid hair.

Holland noticed her mother standing in the doorway, observing her. Her expression was

hard to read, but Holland could feel her emotions: a mixture of pity and concern. To no avail, her

mother had tried to talk Holland out cutting her hair.

“I thought I’d look edgy,” Holland said in an apologetic tone.

“It’s not that bad, Holland,” her mother replied, wearing a weak smile that failed to

reassure. “It’s not like you lost a limb. It’s only hair…it’ll grow back.” Her words were followed

with a headshake, which Holland interpreted as an unspoken, ‘I told you so.’

“Do you know any hair-growing spells? Something that works really fast?” Holland

giggled as if she was joking, but the desperation in her voice spoke volumes.

“Well… I suppose I could do some research. Or I could ask one my coven sisters,” her

mother said as she turned to go to her work area that was once the family dining room.

Her mother belonged to an online witch’s coven. She spent more money than she should

on occult paraphernalia. Their modest home was overrun with candles, weird herbs, crystals,

vintage jewelry, and all sorts of witchery tools. She’d recently launched a website, offering

love and money attraction spells. Business was not exactly booming, but Holland’s mother was

confident that word of mouth buzz would eventually send traffic to her site.

For as long as Holland could remember, her mother had dabbled in the occult, boasting

that she and her daughter were the last descendants of a long line of witches. Holland had never

taken her mother’s claims seriously. There was no proof that either of them had any special

powers,

Last year, her mother was into astrology and numerology. Before that, she was reading

auras and tea leaves. Her mother was such an embarrassment with her various new age interests,

and lately she’s been getting a lot worse. Her interest in witchcraft was becoming an obsession—

an expensive obsession. Her mother was spending so much money on the tools of her trade, she

was neglecting important bills.

Still, in her desperation to get her hair back, Holland was willing to try anything—even

one of her mother’s half-baked spells.

While her mother researched spells, Holland mixed a potion of her own: L’Oreal, copper-

blonde hair color. Grabbing the long hank of dark brown hair that hung in her eyes and down to

her cheek, she squirted the contents of the plastic squeeze bottle.

The end result, was streaked hair that didn’t look too bad. After flat ironing the front of

her hair and applying gobs of hair gel to close cropped parts on the back and the right side, she

miraculously ended up with spiked hair that looked sort of awesome.

Impressed with the results, she beamed at her reflection.

After a couple more approving glances in the mirror, she galloped off to show her mother

her stunning hairdo.

In the dining—slash—work room, Holland was greeted by the sight of her mother sitting

cross-legged on the dark tile floor. The table and chairs were pushed against the wall. She sat in

the center of chalk-drawn circle.

It was on the tip of Holland’s tongue to blurt out that she didn’t need the spell anymore,

but her mother was already mumbling a chant—something repetitive and indecipherable. Her

eyes were closed while four white candles burned inside the circle.

Holland gave a little sigh.

Geeze, Mom! This is seriously overkill, she wanted to say, but her mother was so deep

into the spell, she didn’t have the heart to tell her that she no longer required her witchcraft

services.

In a moment of panic, Holland’s eyes darted to the curtains. She was instantly relieved

to find them closed. The neighbors didn’t need to witness this embarrassing spectacle. They’d be

freaked out if they could see her mother right now.

It was bad enough that whenever her mother went out to the grocery store, the dry

cleaners, or wherever, she’d walk up to total strangers and pass out her card, attempting to drum

up business. It was so embarrassing the way people recoiled after her mother announced that she

was a witch, and she could cast love and money spells. People sort of automatically assume that

being a witch is synonymous with being a devil worshipper.

She hoped that her mother’s witchcraft obsession would end soon. Holland would be

ridiculed endlessly if the kids at school found out that my mother was a witch for hire.

Holland gazed at her mother again, and decided that it was only fair to respect her efforts.

She was after all, acting on her daughter’s behalf. Giving her mother some space and privacy,

Holland quietly slipped out the front door.

At the end of the block, she veered off the main street, and zipped onto the dirt path,

taking the short cut to Naomi’s house.

Naomi and Holland used to share the same social status at school: unimportant and

invisible. Holland and Naomi had both always been more interested in having their noses stuck

in a book than keeping abreast of the latest fashion trends. They were both on the D list as far as

popularity went. But at some point during ninth grade, Naomi had dropped down to the F list.

For no apparent reason other than the fact that she was a super smart, straight A student, she

became a target for bullies.

With Naomi going to a new school, Holland would be utterly alone. It was clearly time

for her to make an attempt to fit in with other students—the cool crowd. Though she hated to

admit it, Holland was seriously considering dumbing down this year.

Copyright 2012




Cover Reveal: Just One Cup by Cassandra Giovanni!!




Book Info-
Title- Just One Cup
By-Cassandra Giovanni
Genre-New Adult
Publication Date-June 20, 2013


Blurb:
Emma Walker was a writer who'd lost herself to someone else's anger--who had given up on ever feeling like herself again.Evan Levesque was a rock-god--the one all the woman wanted, but he'd never gotten used to the loneliness between the stage and real life.With just one cup of coffee they'll begin a journey of self-discovery at each others sides, but can Emma handle Evan's fame while dealing with her own demons? Emma's checkered personal past, a bad relationship that haunts the edges of her memories, threatens to make everything implode on them when Evan takes matters into his own hands.Sticks and stones may break my bones, but your words...they'll destroy my soul--Can Emma handle being put back together and facing who she's become because of it?

Links-
Goodreads- http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17457178-just-one-cup



Cassandra doesn't remember a time when she wasn't writing. In fact, the first time she was published was when she was seven years old and won a contest to be published in an American Girl Doll novel. Since than Cassandra has written more novels than she can count and put just as many in the circular bin. Her personal goal with her writing is to show the reader the character's stories through their dialogue and actions instead of just telling the reader what is happening. In 2012 she became a published Young Adult author, releasing In Between Seasons (The Fall, #1) and Walking in the Shadows. In 2013 she branched out by using her artistic illustrating talents to publish her first Children's novel, The Adventures of Skippy Von Flippy: Tales of Friendship (Skippy Tales, #1). Cassandra will also release her first New Adult novel, Just One Cup, in the Spring of 2013.

Cassandra is a freelance professional photographer known for her automotive, nature and architectural shots. She is the owner of Gio Design Studios, a photography and publication marketing company that designs covers and marketing materials for authors utilizing the company's photography. She is currently studying to receive her associates degree in Marketing. Cassandra is happily married to the man of her dreams and they live in the rolling hills of New England with the other loves of her life their dogs, Bubski and Kanga.


Links-



Saturday, April 27, 2013

Blog Tour: Wombstone by Jessica Roscoe!


Title: Wombstone: A Vampireland Novel
Author: Jessica Roscoe
Genre:  YA Paranormal (Warning - Mature Readers only 15+. Book includes violence, swearing and sex scenes) 
Publisher: Indiana Ink Publishing
Release Date: March 1st, 2013
Edition/Formats available: Ebook


Synopsis: 
Mia Blake wasn’t the first girl to be taken by the vampires. She is kidnapped and held prisoner by Caleb, the world’s oldest and most powerful vampire. Turned against her will, Mia must find a way to free herself from Caleb’s grip and get back to those she loves. But defeating the world’s most powerful vampire isn't going to be easy…

Friday, April 26, 2013

Blog Tour: Morrigan by Laura DeLuca!

Title: Morrigan
Author: Laura DeLuca         
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Tour Host: Lady Amber's Tours


Synopsis: Shuffled from place to place in the foster system, Morrigan doesn't know the meaning of home. Plus, she is different. She has power over fire, the ability to move objects with her mind, and glimpse into the future. Just when she believes her life can’t get any stranger, she discovers her true identity.
Filtiarn, a knight with a dark past and a surprising secret, has been tasked with guiding the heir of Tír na NÓg through countless perils to be returned to her family. Once Morrigan has been reunited with her mother and grandmother, their triad can save the forgotten land of magic from being devoured by an ancient evil.

Spotlight: Her Warriors' Three Wishes by Carrie Ann Ryan!


Her Warrior’s Three Wishes
Dante’s Circle #2
by Carrie Ann Ryan
Release Day: April 23, 2013



Blurb:
Humans aren’t as alone as they choose to believe. Every human possesses a trait of supernatural that lays dormant within their genetic make-up. Centuries of diluting and breeding have allowed humans to think they are alone and untouched by magic. But what happens when something changes?Ambrose Griffin is older than most, if not all, civilizations. As each year passes, he submerses himself into his training, only relaxing around his protégée and friend, Shade.  After losing his wife and children in the last Angelic Wars, he guards his heart and has no desire to share it with another.Bookkeeper and romance novel enthusiast, Jamie Bennett dreams of being swept off her feet by a white knight. However, her life is no romance book. Since meeting Ambrose—a sexy, delicious angel—she’s been twisted inside out and doesn’t know why.  Things are happening that she can’t control and now her life is in danger.
Balin Drake is stuck in hell, literally. His life of refusing to take souls, even though it’s part of his demon nature, has caught up with him. He’s dying and now must search for his true half, but even a mating may not save him. When he meets the two people who could fill that part, he’ll need to fight for something he hasn’t felt in over a century—hope.Warning: Contains a rigid angel who needs a certain sexy woman to help him unwind, a book keeper who finds herself the creamy center of the best cookie ever, and a demon who has a certain taste for pressing them both against walls.


Blog Tour: Enlightened by Melissa Lummis!

What do you get when you mix vampires, yogis and healers? Enlightened!

Vampires and healers and yogis, OH MY!  There’s light and love waiting for Loti Dupree, if only she can figure out how to stay alive.


Title: Enlightened
Author: Melissa Lummis           
Genre: Paranormal
Tour Host: Lady Amber's Tours


Synopsis:Loti Dupree’s meager healing abilities have been more a curse than a blessing.  What’s the point if she can’t even save her husband from cancer?  Harboring a painful secret, Loti flees the life they had in a small Appalachian town for the ashram, the spiritual retreat where she trained to be a yogini.  But she finds herself running from more than grief when an ominous nightmare sets her on a dangerous path of self-discovery that challenges everything she believes, and threatens her life.
While dodging psychic attacks from an unknown assailant, Loti races to understand who and what she is before her enemy can catch up with her. To make matters worse, events throw her into the arms of a handsome but frustrating vampire.  Love and light are waiting for her—if she can only figure out how to stay alive.


Thursday, April 25, 2013

Blog Tour: Intangible Series by J Meyers!



Book Info-
Title- Intangible
Series- Intangible # 1
By J. Meyers
Publication Date-January 31, 2012


Blurb-Twins Sera and Luke Raine have a well-kept secret—she heals with a touch of her hand, he sees the future. All their lives they’ve helped those in need on the sly. They’ve always thought of their abilities as being a gift.
Then Luke has a vision that Sera is killed. That gift they’ve always cherished begins to feel an awful lot like a curse. Because the thing about Luke’s ability? He’s always right. And he can’t do anything about it.

Links-


Amazon-

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Book Info-

Title-Imaginable
Series-Intangible # 2
By J Meyers
Expected Publication Date-April 16, 2013


Blurb-Twins Sera and Luke Raine’s unusual abilities are growing. Sera is healing vampires now, making them human again. And, at times, Luke can actually change the future he Sees.
But Sera’s healing has dangerous consequences, and though Luke is altering the outcome of more visions, he can’t control them yet.
Now Sera is in danger as the dark creatures of the Realm seek to use her. As Luke struggles to master his gift in order to save his sister, he discovers even more about his powers.
And what he learns just may put him in greater danger than Sera has ever been.

Link:



Sera’s 10 Favorite Songs!


1. “In Your Arms” by Kina Grannis
2. “A Thousand Years” by Christina Perri
3. “Life is Wonderful” by Jason Mraz
4. “Here’s to Never Growing Up” by Avril Lavigne
5. “We Owned the Night” by Lady Antebellum
6. “Just the Way You Are” by Bruno Mars
7. “Jar of Hearts” by Christina Perri
8. “My Immortal” by Evanescence
9. “I’m Yours” by Jason Mraz
10. “If I Lose Myself” by One Republic





J. Meyers grew up in Vermont, spent three years in Germany when she was a kid, and now lives in Central New York. When she's not reading or writing, she's chasing after her four kids, exploring the outdoors with her family, baking sweet treats, and forgetting to make dinner. She's the author of Intangible, Intuition, Indomitable, and upcoming Imaginable, due out in April 2013.


Links-










 “I’m going to tell my friends about you,” Meghan said. Then she glanced over Sera’s shoulder, and her face paled.
“No, please—”
“Thank you,” Meghan said in a quiet rush, then turned and ran.
“—don’t.” Sera said, but Meghan had already disappeared around the corner. Sera turned to look over her shoulder to see what it was that had scared Meghan off.
Jonas. From the other night outside the hospital, about a block away. Looking dark and dangerous.
“Great Hills,” Fey whispered, staring after Meghan. “Sera, what have you done?”


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Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Book Spotlight: Night Aberrations by JD Nelson!

Night Aberrations
Book One of the Night Aberrations Series
Mature 18+ for explicit adult situations.



Emelie is betrothed to marry a king.Any ordinary woman would consider it a fairytale come true.For Emelie, this is a nightmare made manifest.
When Emelie Andersdotter learns the outcome of a decades-long warhinges on her arranged marriage to an infamous royal known for hisdark reputation, she sees no choice but to accept her fate. Resignedto her unavoidable destiny, she travels to her parents’ ancestral homeunder the protection of a trusted family friend, where she prepares tonavigate a world ruled by dark magic, mystery, and intrigue.Nothing can prepare her, however, for the surprising affection shefeels for the man she has always thought of as her uncle, Soren Vidar- or for the alluring reality of her intended mate, Kristian Vasen.Powerful and darkly handsome, her betrothed is far from the nightmareshe envisioned, and Emelie finds herself torn between the intense pullshe feels for her fated mate, and her heart’s desire for Soren.
Night Aberrations is a romantic tale, set in a complex world,populated with interesting and entertaining characters sure to leaveyou cheering for the heroes while casting reproachful glares at thevillains.





JD Nelson is a scenic artist for the entertainment industry, the author of the Night Aberrations Series, the Wicked Ways Series, and
the owner of Chaste Moon Publishing.
When she's not spending time with her husband, you can find her writing, reading, or on her commute to work.

Links:

JD Nelson's Goodreads Page -
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6060770.J_D_Nelson
JD Nelson's Facebook Page - www.Facebook.com/NightAberrations
JD Nelson's Facebook Fan Page - www.Facebook.com/JDNelsonsNightAberrations
JD Nelson's Super Secret Fan Club - http://www.facebook.com/groups/269730583130725/
JD Nelson's Blog - www.NightAberrations.Blogspot.com/
JD Nelson's Google + - https://plus.google.com/u/0/115772111161122207827/posts
JD Nelson's Twitter - https://twitter.com/NightAberration
Official JD Nelson Merchandise - http://www.zazzle.com/nightaberrations



We went inside after the fire started to die down and challenged Nils
and Cedric to a game of billiards, boys against girls.
I thought that this would be a good way to keep Nils at bay, but in
typical Nils’s fashion he tried to show me the correct position for
every shot I took by standing behind me and positioning my hands.
Katrine, amused by this, eventually asked if he was planning to hump
me right on the table.
I blushed at her comment, but almost melted into the floor when he
answered her, “If Emelie was game, I would do anything and everything
to her on this table, under the table, against the table...” I scooted
out from under him and sat next to Katrine. “Okay, okay, that’s enough
of that.”
Nils barked out a laugh and racked up the balls for the next game.
Katrine nudged me and whispered in my ear. “He is very beautiful, is he not?”
“Who? Cedric?” “Although he is scrumptious, I meant Nils.” She said
with a growl in her voice.
“Yes, he is. They all are, really; Viggo and Jakob in their tall,
dark, and delicious way, Nils in his rugged Viking warrior way, and
Soren in his…” I trailed off thinking how to best describe Soren’s
beauty. “Being with Soren is like being immersed in the winter’s
night.”
“That’s a very poetic description, Emelie; some might say romantic.”
She arched her brow.
“I know what I’m here to do, Katrine. I just wish the circumstances
were different. I really like Soren and I’d like to experience love
just once before becoming my people’s Savior.”