Monday, November 21, 2016

Blood Kiss By Karen Tjebben






 Psychological Romantic/Suspense
Date Published:  June 2016

Alisha Woods knew she was in trouble. The situation was progressing. The harmless flirtation had long past intriguing and now bordered on terrifying. She had to take action, go on the offensive against her stalker. As she opened the door of Young Guns, she promised herself that she’d be ready when he came for her. She would survive.
Mike Lewis lived each day knowing that life could evaporate in a moment. Ghosts followed him, haunting his soul. He craved redemption, a chance to right the wrongs of his past. And when Alisha walked in, he recognized his chance at redemption. He would save her.
After everything Mike had done to prepare her, she thought she was ready. But as the blood spilled from her lips, Alisha’s mind raced for what she could have done differently…
She should have listened to Mike. 

Review 


What a great read. The book was written really well. It started off with a bang. As the story progressed I began liking the characters a lot more as well. The plot was fantastic. I have been writing a book about a stalker so reading this was a learning experience for me. The development of the stalker was also fantastic. It really gets you into the story when you don't know what the stalkers next move was. So it definitely keeps the reader on the edge of your seat. Especially as to when the person being stalked will come face to face with her stalker. It was a great book. Definitely will recommend it to my sister who are avid readers and friends as well. 




Karen Tjebben lives in central North Carolina with her wonderful husband, twin daughters, and two hamsters. When her girls left for kindergarten, Karen discovered that she needed to fill her days with something, and that was the beginning of her new career in writing. She loves to create worlds filled with unique characters that she hopes will delight and raise goose bumps on her readers. In her free time, she enjoys traveling with her husband and seeing the world through her daughters' eyes.


Contact Links


Purchase Links
Barnes & Noble – http://tinyurl.com/oh359kw
Createspace – http://tinyurl.com/o89e4or


Wednesday, March 9, 2016

Lyla Payne - Secrets Don't Make Friends *REVIEW*

Jeyne Dalton has graduated from College, medical school, and has slogged through half of a surgical internship year with flying colors, which she figures HAS to mean she's put past - and her family - behind her for good. If only she hadn't answered a random ad for a roommate, her life would be pretty damn perfect.

Dinah Robbins knows that, no matter what she does, the horror that is her life will never be behind her... unless her controlling threatening, abusive boyfriend finally kills her. She's floating, waiting, and advertised for a roommate as a last ditch, listless effort to save herself a few beatings here and there.

Jeyne and Dinah may have been roommates for months, but they're not anything like friends. In fact, they hardly know each other at all - until the night Jeyne comes home late to find Dinah in a heap of trouble. The two girls then find themselves sharing a secret that brings them together in a way they never expected. And upends their lives in a way they may never be able to set right.

Review and Thoughts 


This was such a great read. Since day one that I picked up my tablet and began reading I was hooked. It even got me out of my reading slump. I loved the characters. I even loved hating Tritt. I will admit that I almost cried for Dinah. I hurt for her. The amount of abuse she went through was horrifying. Especially since basically everyone knew the way Tritt treated her and didn't do anything about it. That's the worst part of it all. But the only good thing that came out of such a horrible event was the bond formed between Jeyne and Dinah. It brought them together and not only with her but also with Eli. I really enjoyed that it was a written in Dinah and Jeyne's point of view with each girl going through different situations but who are keeping the same secret.. It helps for the ones reading to connect with other characters. Personally my favorite guy in the whole book was Nathan. The author did a wonderful job, I was definitely impressed with the writing style. And the book ended on a really good note. It has earned a 5/5 star rating. 





Lyla Payne has been publishing New Adult romance novels for a little over a year, starting with Broken at Love and continuing with the rest of the Whitman University series and the Lowcountry Ghost stories. She loves telling stories, discovering the little reasons people fall in love, and uncovering hidden truths in the world around us - past and present. In her spare time she cuddles her two dogs, pretends to enjoy exercising so that she can eat as much Chipotle as she wants, and harbors a deep and abiding hope that Zac Efron likes older women, She loves reading, of course, along with movies, traveling, and Irish Whiskey.  

Lyla Payne is represented by Kathleen Rushall at Marsal Lyon Literary Agency. 

If you want to know more, please visit her at http://lylapayne.com/

If you're a fan Young Adult Fiction--Science Fiction or otherwise--please check out her work that's published under the name Trisha Leigh... http://trishaleigh.com/



Purchase Links 


Amazon
Barnes and Noble
iBooks 
Google Play



Friday, September 4, 2015

PROMO!! Blessed Are Those Who Morn by Kristi Belcamino





Mystery / Detective

Date Published: September 29, 2015

Publisher: HarperCollinsPublishers



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San Francisco Bay Area reporter Gabriella Giovanni has finally got it all together: a devoted and loving boyfriend, Detective Sean Donovan; a beautiful little girl with him; and her dream job as the cops' reporter for the Bay Herald. But her success has been hard-won and has left her with debilitating paranoia. When a string of young co-eds starts to show up dead with suspicious Biblical verses left on their bodies—the same verses that the man she suspects kidnapped and murdered her sister twenty years ago had sent to her—she begins to question if the killer is trying to send her a message.



It is not until evil strikes Gabriella's own family that her worst fears are confirmed. As the clock begins to tick, every passing hour means the difference between life and death to those Gabriella loves...







EXCERPT



Chapter 1

Saturday

The setting sun turns my family into dark silhouettes as I step onto the warm sand. The beach is nearly deserted, except for a lone figure walking north of us along the sand where the waves are crashing in from the Pacific Ocean.

A cool breeze makes me glad I trekked to the car to retrieve my daughter’s little lavender parka. We promised her we’d stay until the sun set.

Donovan’s back is turned, phone held to his ear. He’s pacing in his bare feet, his jeans rolled up, a scowl on his face from what he’s hearing. A murder. Every once in a while he glances back at Grace kneeling in the sand playing.

Grace has dug deep channels with a small red shovel, chatting to herself, weaving tales about mermaids and sea creatures and fairies. She bounces a plastic dinosaur along the sand, a prize won in kindergarten for reading two books in one week.

Everything I’ve ever wanted is on that beach—Donovan and our daughter, Grace. My own little family. My life.

I’m still far away, closer to the parking lot, when I see the figure walking along the shore is growing closer. It’s a man. His shadow, with its elongated arms and legs, stretches across the beach until it seems to take on a life of its own. Something about his movements seems angry and frenetic—instead of the wandering gait of a casual sunset stroll—and sets off  small alarms in my head. I walk faster, the sand seeming to reach up and grab at my ankles, slowing my progress.

Donovan’s pacing takes him in the opposite direction, away from Grace. He’s not paying attention to anything besides his phone call. The man is now closer to Grace, who seems alone on the beach, although Donovan is twenty feet away. Donovan squints up into the pink and orange clouds, raking a hand through his perpetually spiky hair.

The man’s path takes him straight toward Grace. My heart races. I can’t tell for sure, but it seems like he’s watching her. He walks at a determined clip, covering ground much faster than me in my flat, strappy sandals. I lean over in mid-stride and rip a sandal from one foot without stopping. Then I scoop up the other in one fluid motion.

Still, each step feels like my bare feet are being sucked into quicksand. I hurry, but feel like I’m moving in slow motion.

“Grace.” I shout, but my words are carried away on the wind. I’m breathless from fighting the sand tugging at my feet. The breeze, which has grown stronger in the past few minutes, whips my hair. Grace’s brown ringlets bob as she hops her plastic dinosaur around, not noticing anything else.

Donovan isn’t far from Grace, but now the man is closer.

At the same moment Donovan turns and sees the look on my face, the man reaches Grace. His long shadow falls over her small figure. She looks up with a smile and starts chatting. He leans down. His hand reaches toward her, his fingers millimeters from her arm. A wave of dread ripples through me. My feet feel cemented into the sand. My mind screams, but no words come out of my open mouth. Inside, I’m flailing and thrashing to get to Grace, but on the outside, I’m struck immobile.

The man reaches down and grasps Grace’s arm, turning her toward him, and the spell is broken. I’m on wet sand running, the scream caught in my throat coming out as a birdlike garble. I scoop Grace up onto one hip and take a step back. I gasp for air, but I can’t breathe. My heart is going to explode in my chest.

The man looks at me with surprise and for a split second, there is something in his eyes that sends panic racing up into my throat, but then the look is gone, as if I imagined it.

“Gosh. I’m so stupid,” he says in a nasally voice. He wipes his palms on the legs of his jeans, as if he is sweating even though the temperature is rapidly dipping along with the sun.

Donovan is at my side. “Gabriella, is everything okay?”

He’s used my full name and he’s looking at me instead of Grace in my arms. Guilt flicks through me. I’m not acting irrational or hysterical. A strange man walked up to our daughter and grabbed her arm. Any mother would react the same, wouldn’t she?

At first glance, the man seems boyish with his bowl haircut, baggy jeans, and sneakers. Up close, a few crow’s feet shows he is older. Maybe even my age—thirty. He has feminine pink lips, and piercing blue eyes, the color of the arctic sea. The collar of his black jacket is pulled up. His smile is all “gee, golly, shucks,” abashed and embarrassed but doesn’t reach his eyes. He paws at his jeans with his palms. He’s done that twice now. He’s nervous.

When he meets my eyes again, I realize that something about him seems off, something about his eyes, more than just their intense color. One eye is close to his nose and the other set far apart. It’s jarring and somehow unsettling to make eye contact.

“I’m so sorry,” he says in that same stuffed-up sounding voice. “What a knuckle-headed move. I should know better than to walk up to someone else’s kid like that.”

Donovan grips my arm.

“What’s going on here?” His words are clipped.

I’m panting, but finally able to catch my breath. Still, the words will not come.

“Your kid is so darn cute. She looks just like my little sister used to look. I just wanted to say hi to her and didn’t even think that was a total bonehead move to walk up to someone else’s kid when her parents weren’t around.” He gives an odd smile as he says this.

 “We were around.” Donovan says in a monotone, staring the man down.

The man looks down at the sand.

Grace is kicking and trying to get down. My knuckles are white gripping her.

“Ow, mama, you’re hurting me,” she says and tosses her curls in irritation.

Donovan shoots a glance our way before turning his attention back to the man.

 “You live around here?” Donovan asks, seemingly casual, but the muscle in his jaw is working hard. His dark eyes under thick eyebrows have narrowed and hold a glint of menace. In a second, it alters him from the man on the cover of the “Sexiest Bay Area Cops” calendar into something feral and dangerous.

The man meets Donovan’s eyes and for a second it looks like he is challenging Donovan to dispute his story, but then he looks down again and digs a sneakered toe into the sand, reinforcing my impression that he’s a kid not a man.

“Marin. Meeting some friends here in the city for dinner. Was early so came here to kill some time.  I didn’t mean to cause any problems. I just wanted to say hi to her. Maybe you’re over-reacting a bit.”

Donovan runs a hand through his hair. His posture relaxes. Instinctively—or luckily—this man has honed in on Donovan’s Achilles heel. We’ve talked at length about our tendency to be overprotective parents because of our jobs, me as a crime reporter, and him as a detective. Donovan has argued we can’t let this affect Grace’s childhood. We need to protect her, but let her grow up carefree. I agree. But it’s easier said than done.

We’ve, also, talked about my irrational fear that something will happen to Grace.

This man may not realize it, but he’s instantly off the hook with this one simple word—Overreacting.

“Why don’t you go head on out,” Donovan says, dismissing him.

“My bad, really. Wasn’t using my head. Have a nice night,” the man says and turns to leave.

I set Grace down and Donovan wraps his arm around me.

“You okay?”

“I don’t know.” I don’t tell him that it felt like I was having a heart attack, that I couldn’t breathe or move. A stranger walked up to my daughter and I stood there, weak, helpless, frozen.

Donovan gives me a look before we both turn and watch the man’s figure growing smaller. We watch without saying a word. We stand there until the man turns and heads toward the wooden boardwalk bordering the road. He never looks back.





About the Author




Kristi Belcamino is a writer, photographer, and artist. In her former life as a newspaper crime reporter in California, she flew over Big Sur in an FA-18 jet with the Blue Angels, raced a Dodge Viper at Laguna Seca, watched autopsies, and interviewed serial killers. She is now a journalist based in Minneapolis and the Gabriella Giovanni mysteries are her first books. Find Kristi on Facebook www.facebook.com/kristibelcaminowriter or on Twitter @KristiBelcamino



Contact Links














Purchase Links













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Monday, May 4, 2015

7 Years Bad Sex By Nicky Wells *****Book Review*****



7 Years Bad Sex

One wedding. One curse?  Disaster ever after…

A seven-years-bad-sex curse? Surely not! Yet something went wrong when rock singer Casey and drummer Alex got married on that beautiful yacht anchored off St Tropez in the south of France. Something went badly wrong. For even on their wedding night, the young couple discovers a complete and somewhat surprising inability to make love. Muddling through their honeymoon with a string of thin excuses for their predicament, the lovers defer finding a solution (and panicking) until the return to their home in London. After all, they married for life and to make rock music, not for the love of sex. Right?

But when they resume life as normal in London, all hell breaks loose. Increasingly frantic in their quest for release, the unhappy newlyweds embark on a string of hilarious and occasionally harmful antics that drives them, their band, and an assortment of random strangers to the brink of despair. But it ain’t over ‘til it’s over or, in this case… it ain’t over ‘til the newlyweds sing.


Thursday, April 23, 2015

Drumroll Please!!!! Presenting Nicky Wells new book

                                   
7 Years Bad Sex

One wedding. One curse?  Disaster ever after…

A seven-years-bad-sex curse? Surely not! Yet something went wrong when rock singer Casey and drummer Alex got married on that beautiful yacht anchored off St Tropez in the south of France. Something went badly wrong. For even on their wedding night, the young couple discovers a complete and somewhat surprising inability to make love. Muddling through their honeymoon with a string of thin excuses for their predicament, the lovers defer finding a solution (and panicking) until the return to their home in London. After all, they married for life and to make rock music, not for the love of sex. Right?

But when they resume life as normal in London, all hell breaks loose. Increasingly frantic in their quest for release, the unhappy newlyweds embark on a string of hilarious and occasionally harmful antics that drives them, their band, and an assortment of random strangers to the brink of despair. But it ain’t over ‘til it’s over or, in this case… it ain’t over ‘til the newlyweds sing.




EXCERPT FROM 7 YEARS BAD SEX BY NICKY WELLS
RELEASES 14 MAY 2015!

There was a stunned silence in the room while Alex and Casey tried to assimilate the importance of this statement. She remembered all too well her conversation with Alex on the yacht after they had trawled through the wedding video. He had pointed out to her even then that she hadn’t looked at him.
Casey shivered. She caught Alex’s eye and saw nothing but utter confusion. Liza was still standing up, one fist raised in an air punch. Sasha had taken one of Casey’s hands into her own.
Eventually Alex spoke. ‘Maybe we didn’t look at each other. So what?’
Liza and Sasha shared another look. ‘The seven-years-bad-sex curse!’ they shouted as one.
Alex burst out laughing. ‘The seven-years-bad-sex curse?’ he repeated. ‘You’re taking the mickey, right?’
Myles was chuckling so hard, he toppled over sideways on the sofa and had to hold his stomach. ‘That’s why we had to rush over here? To tell them about a seven-years-bad-sex curse?’
‘Laugh all you want,’ Liza said calmly. ‘But you’re watching it in action.’
Casey swallowed hard. She didn’t believe in curses. They were nothing but delusory superstitions from the middle ages. But still, both Sasha and Liza looked utterly serious.
‘So—so what does that curse entail?’ Casey asked, her voice almost a whisper.
Sasha produced her smartphone and called up a website. ‘It says here,’ she said, ‘there’s a superstition in many parts of southern Europe about how not looking at each other when clinking glasses during a toast brings couples seven years bad sex.’ She angled her phone so that everyone could see the screen.
‘And you were in France when you committed this ritualistic mishap,’ Liza offered helpfully. ‘So that definitely applies.’



About Nicky Wells: Romance that Rocks Your World!

Ultimate rock chick author Nicky Wells writes romance with rock stars—because there’s no better romantic hero than a golden-voiced bad boy with a secret soft heart and a magical stage presence!

Nicky’s books offer glitzy, glamorous romance with rock stars—imagine Bridget Jones ROCKS Notting Hill! If you’ve ever had a crush on any kind of celebrity, you’ll connect with Nicky’s heroes and their leading ladies.

Born in Germany, Nicky moved to the United Kingdom in 1993 and currently lives in Lincoln with her husband and their two boys. Nicky loves listening to rock music, dancing, and eating lobsters. When she’s not writing, she’s a wife, mother, occasional knitter, and ad-hoc radio show presenter. Rock on!

***Coming May 2015: 7 Years Bad Sex!***


Did you know? There’s a single out now by Nicky’s fictional rock band Tuscq come to life! “Love Me Better” is available for download from Amazon, iTunes and many other places




                         

Monday, February 9, 2015

Darkness By Ciye Cho Review



A dire prophecy has emerged, and the mer believe that humans and merfolk are in grave danger. Terror is closing in, but only one person holds the key to stopping it: Florence Waverley. However, her mission to save two worlds will lead her far, far out into the Darkness--a shadow-realm full of monsters, magic, and wicked tides that could tear apart bodies. 

With the help of her friends, Florry must uncover a secret about humans and mer. A long-lost secret that could change her life. And above all else, she must fight hard to light the darkness. Everything depends on her mission: her friends, her world, and the one she loves. 

The past, present, and future are about to collide--but can she stay afloat? One way or another, nothing will be the same when she enters the Darkness...

Darkness is the third book in the Florence Waverley series

       First of all this book completely blew my mind. With each book I fall more and more in love with the characters. Florence and Rolan have been through so much together that I cannot picture them ever being apart. Ciye Cho does a magnificent job, his writing style is just wonderful that you instantly like his characters and fly through each of his books. I really enjoyed the plot of the book, because we have been waiting for that big change Florence was going to go through sooner or later. Now that its happened its like okay can it get any better than this and then bam it does. The books are not that long but when you are reading them there is so much detail, action, drama put into the books that you pretty much get everything you bargained for.

     Cornelious and Oliana, I literally started jumping up and down when Florry finally met them. Honestly, I was really scared that something really bad was going to happen I was on the edge of my seat while reading the book. But I'm so glad nothing did. All in all it was everything I expected it to be and more! If you haven't read this series you definitely should. I highly recommend this book! Also thank you Ciye Cho for giving me the opportunity to enter into this new adventure along with Florry and Rolan. You are such a talented author and your Mer World is absolutely breathtaking!



Tuesday, January 27, 2015

*Release Day Blitz* No One Gets Out Alive by Mindy Larsen *Pre-Earth Series*

























Title: No One Gets Out Alive


Series: Pre-Earth #3


Author: Mindy Larson


Publisher: Lavish Publishing




 Release Date: January 27, 2015






Synopsis




While
Dominic Morris is struggling to exist in the afterlife, Hope and Sebastian
Wilkes live out their 'happily after' on Pre-Earth. With a baby on the way life
for them is nearly perfect. But when Hope's father, Oliver Luck, is tempted to
reconnect with his soul mate, Phoenix, he threatens to take Hope down with him.


Drowning in sorrow and thinking he's getting a second chance to help Phoenix,
Dominic follows her to The Other Place.

The place no one wants to go.

Will Dominic help Phoenix escape The Other Place? And more importantly, will he
be able to leave himself?

One thousand years later, Hadley Christensen is back on Earth, but as Hayden
Caldwell. With the help of her deceased fiancé, Luke, and her handsome doctor,
Dexter Martin, Hayden considers what to believe.

Hayden has a choice.



A choice to believe or to stay blissfully unaware.

Will she follow a path of no return and challenge The Masters once and for all?
Or will she succumb to staying in the dark and remain closer to her happily
ever after.



































Links to Buy





AMAZON US / UK











Also Available














AMAZON US / UK














AMAZON US / UK



































Author Bio







Born
in Provo, Utah in 1977, Mindy Larson is the oldest of four children and the
only daughter. This Morning I Woke Up Dead is her first published novel. She
lives happily ever after in Southeast Idaho with her four children, and the
love of her life. When she isn't writing she can be found traveling, running,
baking, cooking, or chasing after her kids, cats, and dog.













Author Links



























Giveaway