Wednesday, June 29, 2016

Book Blitz: Zenobia




Russ Wallace is life-long student of history, religion, politics, and social issues. As an instructor, he came to value the critical thinking so necessary to navigate the minefields of propaganda while searching for truths. As a world traveler, Russ learned the opposing views and prejudices underlying many of the problems in human society, ancient and modern.

He employs a vivid imagination to fill in the life of Zenobia, a real historical figure and one of the most fascinating women who ever lived. He is working on future books in the Zenobia book series.

Connect with the Author here: 

Sequel to the award-winning Zenobia - Birth of a Legend.

The continuing saga of the deadly young warrior who will one day challenge Rome for the supremacy of her world. As the dynamic girl continues her education in Egypt, for a time she is diverted from her warrior path. Complicating Zenobia's life is a budding romance with her brilliant and charismatic instructor. The challenge - he is the scholar, she the warrior. Can they blend their worlds to become the most exciting couple in Alexandria?

Learning of a slave trade in kidnapped young women, Zenobia determines to free the oppressed. Warrior skills will not be enough. Her new challenge - to become a pirate, then a temptress in her fight for justice.


              



Snippet
Alim Hasshel was rich and used to getting what he wanted, but his ambition had recently been thwarted. The person responsible had thus become his enemy. After considering the matter, he reached a decision – he would take his revenge in a special way. He smiled to himself and felt devilishly satisfied. But he had made a critical mistake, though one common to the arrogant –he had underestimated his target. It was an easy error in judgment because his opponent was only a girl, a pretty girl. How could he, or anyone for that matter, foresee that she was destined to grow into the deadliest woman on the planet? Or that he himself would provide one of the triggers to awaken her latent abilities?




To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page 



Monday, June 27, 2016

Book Blitz: My Pineapples Went to Houston



Lee Gaitan is a wife, mother, teacher, author and speaker, but above all she is passionately committed to overcoming life’s obstacles, surviving sometimes by the skin of her teeth, but always with humor and optimism. She shares her experience with anyone who will listen with the intent to encourage others to use humor to their benefit.

In the past twelve years Lee has had to deal with more than a healthy helping
of “are you kidding me?” moments. In 2002, she hit rock bottom. It was so bad shelovingly refers to it as a year of “shock and awfulness.” That year her father died,her mother was in the hospital, semi-comatose from grief, and her husband of 22 years lost every penny of their money BEFORE running off to Arizona with his girlfriend, who just happened to be a former stripper. 

That was just the beginning. She spent the next decade struggling with loss and challenges on every front, from finances and family to health and career.

While there have been many bounces up and down over the years, Lee has finally
bounced back and it was well worth the effort. She has happily remarried, working at a job she loves and has published her second book. She even has children on three continents and a granddaughter far too far away!
Connect with the Author here: 

Heartbreak, Humor and, ultimately, Hope
That’s the message that comes through loud and clear in My Pineapples Went to Houston,  Lee Gaitan’s personal and powerful tale of surviving a decade of relentless chaos and loss. The “shock and awfulness” began in 2002 when her father died, her mother teetered on the brink of a coma and her husband of 22 years secretly lost all their money and ran off with a stripper. And it was all downhill from there!   
 Then one day in the midst of all the chaos—somewhere between loud cursing and crying—she recalled an amusing anecdote she’d heard about pineapples that spoke to her circumstances in such an unexpectedly humorous way that she couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
“That moment of laughter was a small epiphany for me. I realized that I had allowed my sense of humor, which had always mitigated the bad breaks in my life and enhanced the good ones, to fall victim to the machete my ex-husband had taken to my life. I determined right then and there that I could no longer permit that. I instinctively knew that humor was the most potent, and just about the only, protection I had at my disposal to survive the crises unfolding around me, and I vowed to keep it alive.”


Told with honesty and insight—and, of course, humor—My Pineapples Went to Houston both inspires and entertains readers and offers hope and encouragement to those struggling with their own “plans gone outrageously awry.”




Snippet:
The cows, however, had left several calling cards behind. This had to be the richest soil west of the Fertile Crescent. Jif (my dog) was definitely in deep—shoulder-deep, to be specific—doo-doo. You know the old, rather crass, expression about being as happy as a pig in sh--? Well, let me tell you, a pig may stop at happy, but Jif went all the way to ecstatic. 


To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page 



Saturday, June 25, 2016

Loving the Book Announcement


We are sad to inform you that Jess is no longer with our team. Her husband recently graduated from the Police Academy and we are so happy for them. They have now moved and she is spending time focusing on her 3 kiddos, husband, and her new MaryKay business. We’re very excited to see her thrive.

However, we are excited to announce that we have a new team member! Welcome to Corinne Prost – our new Freelance writer. Her responsibilities will include writing fabulous articles about writing, reading, reviewing, and blogging. She’ll be putting together some great tips for all book lovers, and helping up as we build our blogger/review team.

To celebrate her joining us, we are doing a giveaway and showing her some support at the same time! In order to see some of her fantastic articles, sign up for our monthly newsletter. 

Also, our other team member, Katie, is opening up her own Facebook page. This will allow us a better reach with our events, and better access for you to join our events. Come support her by befriending her new page below. 

And, of course, just helping spread word about our services will also give you entries into our fabulous giveaway!

We love you all and we are grateful for your support!

Introducing our new team member

Corinne is a BA at Hillsdale College, and her declared major is American Studies with a projected minor in Journalism. Although these choices sound informed and thoughtful on Corinne's part, what really happened is that a really cool, successful senior did the same major and minor and went on to do really cool, successful things. So even though Corinne doesn't know what she will do with these life choices, she does know one thing: her dream is to become as great as the classical authors.

While growing up, Corinne battled a severe condition that afflicted her for many years: she could not see because her eyes were glued permanently to books. This caused her to be the girl at recess who hid in the shade to read from her pile of library books, and her occasional companion was the library lady. One day, Corinne finally found she could look up, and after the initial shock she realized that her college applications would need to say more than "loves to read". Her solution: to become involved in as many things as possible. 

As a result, Corinne came to the realization that she also enjoys creative writing, drawing or painting, traveling, playing tennis, and spending inappropriate amounts of time thinking about the money it would take to adopt all the unclaimed dogs at the animal shelter. In the near future, she hopes to spend less time thinking about those dogs and more time writing.


Come get to know a bit more about Corinne with an
Interview (Part 2)

6. Now that we've gotten to know each other, tell me a story. It can be long or short. From your childhood or last week. Funny, sad, or somewhere in between. Just make sure it's yours. What's your story?
Let’s talk about a dinner I had with my professor, Dr. Hart. The first week of finals, my friend’s boyfriend had stopped me after an exam and asked me if I’d like to come along to an auction dinner he’d won. In addition to my friend and her boyfriend, another fraternity brother would be coming along for a homecooked meal at our professor’s house. I accepted, all grins despite nearly two hours of exam-induced cold sweats. I would be able to have a regular conversation with the professor that gave students a hell worth enduring. Without fail, his lectures were peppered with student answers and explanations to the readings, most of which we never fully understand--and it showed. By mid-semester, those of us who hadn’t had the pleasure of being in his class knew the routine. Dr. Hart would pose the tail end of an insanely convoluted statement as a question, usually one bridging political philosophy with history. The two students in charge of discussing for the day would stare past him at the whiteboard or pretend to flip through their book, waiting until the other would answer. Dr. Hart never broke these silences. Eventually, one blurted out half of a sentence, paused. Every student trained their eyes on Dr. Hart from behind the podium. His face would twist and coil in shows of discontent, confusion, or thought. He would stare up at his victim from a tilted head, one fingerless glove on the reader, the other adjusting his glasses. Once his mouth opened, all other students would put down their pencils. If the student was lucky, he would get a simple, “No, that’s wrong” or “Yes, but there’s more”. Most of the time, Dr. Hart would dismantle an answer--while the valiant but clueless student squirmed and chewed at his mouth--before he redirected the question. As a victim of several of these encounters, this invite should have induced anxiety rather than excitement. And yet, there was something about Dr. Hart in his complex and paradox personality that made his presence slightly more intriguing than anything else. Each class, without fail, he dressed the part of a senile retiree who appeared to believe he was both a competitive biker (hence the fingerless gloves) and a gentlemen in the roaring 20s. His appearance played as a heavy distraction from his manner, but his ability to command a room incited respect and awe. What was the explanation for the large discrepancy between the outer shell of this man and his inner wealth of knowledge?
I must tell you, it is the disturbing result of a man who has amassed great knowledge on top of his lack of empathy and caring. His wife, the woman who set the table, took our coats, and waited on us while dinner finished cooking, was the first and ongoing victim of the evening. While she shared the story of how she met her husband, Dr. Hart chewed on in grimaced silence. His ashen face with eyes peeking over lowered glasses was no different than the look he gave to students as they spoke. And just as in class, he interrupted her to trump or correct her details about just how long they spent at a place or why they met. “It felt like we were there forever!” She would gleam in a false-show of a tough time passed in her youth, cut short by his “We only spent two weeks there, at most.” Each time, she would smile wider with his answers. When she had finished, Dr. Hart gave a smile. It didn’t quite reach all of his eyes, only the corners, and he showed no teeth. “The only reason we started dating is because your friend turned me down,” he began. All four of us emitted short, abrupt laughs, and I snuck a look to my friend seated next to me. I didn’t want to appear rude and turn my head, so I only glanced for a second. Her eyes had widened, too. Dr. Hart went on to explain that while his wife’s old college friend was much more attractive, she didn’t reciprocate his advances. So, he settled for talking to his wife. He did not end the story with a sweeter tone. Just as with his students, he left his response cutting and incomplete.
He offered us wine. All four of us shifted uncomfortably, not sure if accepting the gesture would be appropriate since we were underaged. “Do your parents normally let you have a glass with dinner?” He posed a question, and when none of us spoke he made several comments about how we shouldn’t be so modest, us being college students. Three of us obliged, but my friend insisted that she was driving and shouldn’t anyways. “Oh, so good.” He purred, almost sarcastically. Everything he said, no matter what it was, had some trace of sarcasm to it. He even asked what the dinner was for, anyways, and my friend’s boyfriend reminded him it was a part of the auction. Dr. Hart gave no other response than a shrug; he would sip his wine when he didn’t want to continue the subject.
When my friend notified Dr. Hart that her and her boyfriend were dating because of his class, he didn’t bother looking up at her from cutting his steak until she finished. All he said was, “Are you boyfriend and girlfriend too?” He chuckled to himself, brandishing his steak knife at the fraternity brother and I. The brother beat me to a response:  “Actually, no we’re just friends,” and I gave a nervous, close-lipped smile. My friend folded her hands in her lap and tore at the edges of her napkin. On the car ride over, she’d told me how her boyfriend had talked with Dr. Hart about her before they’d even had a conversation. It seemed as if he didn’t remember.
The wine loosened the boys up a bit, and they engaged in politics with Dr. Hart. Most of the conversation went along like this: the professor posed a statement and questions, and the boys would answer and debate. Half an hour after that, both dessert and the topics were finished up. Before the silence passed too long, Dr. Hart’s wife wrapped the dinner up with a pleasant remark on how nice it was to have us over. We shuffled out, half turned to the couple and to the door. With our coats in hand, we gave quick waves at the two and thanked them until we stepped outside. When we reached the car across the street I turned to look at them one last time, but the door was already closed.

Join our party for loads of fun and even more chances to win some fabulous prizes!!!



Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Book Blitz: Zenobia




Russ Wallace is life-long student of history, religion, politics, and social issues. As an instructor, he came to value the critical thinking so necessary to navigate the minefields of propaganda while searching for truths. As a world traveler, Russ learned the opposing views and prejudices underlying many of the problems in human society, ancient and modern.

He employs a vivid imagination to fill in the life of Zenobia, a real historical figure and one of the most fascinating women who ever lived. He is working on future books in the Zenobia book series.

Connect with the Author here: 

In the 3rd century a girl of uncommon abilities was born in the desert wilderness of Syria. Rescued from death by her courageous mother, Zenobia masqueraded as a boy to stay alive. She grew up to become one of the toughest, deadliest women who ever lived. 

Brilliant and beautiful, Zenobia carried the greatest female military mind in history. She eventually came to control the second most powerful army in the world. When her love of justice brought her into conflict with the strongest empire on earth, she set her sights on the greatest conquest of all - Rome. 

This book traces Zenobia's life from age nine to fifteen, setting the stage for her amazing rise to power. It includes the beginnings of her legend and her budding romances. 

No one who reads her captivating story will ever forget Zenobia.



Snippet
Zenobia - Birth of a Legend, Chapter 37:
“All is fair in love and war!” he yelled back.
Her adrenaline kicked in and she tore up the stairs after him and grabbed onto his tunic with both hands and hung on with all her strength. He dragged her up for a few steps and then he collapsed and they both burst out in gasping laughter.
She pulled herself up alongside him until their faces were less than a cubit apart. “And which is this, Salim,” she asked with a pant, “love or war?”
He put his hands up defensively and said, “Zenobia …”
She put a hand on each of his shoulders and pulled herself closer. “Am I making you nervous, warrior?” she asked teasingly, but keeping her voice down. She did not want the sound to carry.
“Yes, you are,” he answered seriously.
“Good!” she said emphatically as she clasped her hands behind his neck. “You have been avoiding me since we climbed the pyramid. Why?”
He tried unsuccessfully to pull away. “Not my idea, I assure you.”


To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page 



Wednesday, June 15, 2016

Cover Reveal: BoyzNite by Xane J. Fisher

front-boyznite
Pre-sale Date: July 3, 2016
Blog Tour: July 24-31, 2016
Release Date : August 1, 2016
Published by Royal James Publishing

ABOUT BOYZNITE:

Law school wonder student Ian Peters chronicles his first night home for the summer in Piedmont, Washington. What starts with a pleasant drive up the Pacific Northwest Coast leads him into a night of self discovery, contemplative self-assessment, and ultimately the question of what kind of man does he want to be? Along the way, he reconnects with friends, family, and an old flame who changes his world forever. What started as a typical night of partying quickly becomes BoyzNite.

About Xane Fisher:

XaneFisherAuthorShot


Originally from the Salt Lake City area, Xane Fisher has spent most of his life living out of a backpack or suitcase. Along his travels, he has been blessed with an amazing family, a college education, and the opportunity to see the world from the skyscrapers of Abu-Dhabi to the third world markets of Angola. From a young age, he has felt compelled to write and share experiences through a pen or keyboard. He is currently living in southwest Germany, serving in the United States Air Force with his wife Autumn and their son Judah. He hopes to have his first novel completed soon. To read more about Xane, you can visit him on his website.

Beyond the Rising Tide Blog Tour



I'm happy to be part of Sarah Beard's blog tour for her new release, Beyond the Rising Tide. I had the opportunity to read this book, and I highly recommend it (read my full review below). Don't forget to enter to win at the end of this post!

Kai was seventeen when he died saving Avery’s life, though he didn’t really have much to live for. After spending half his life being shipped around to different families, the only place he felt at home was on a street corner with his guitar. Now, it’s been six months since his death. Six months adapting to a new kind of existence where instead of making music, he uses his new healing powers to save lives. But in his off hours, he watches helplessly as Avery’s life is unraveled by his death. 

Avery doesn’t know that it was Kai who saved her life in the ocean, because her rescuer’s body was never found. Wracked with guilt, the ocean she once loved is now her tormentor. As her surfboards collect dust in the garage, the weight of her grief destroys her relationships and stretches her to a breaking point.

Always willing to break rules for those he loves, Kai steals a ring that temporarily gives his body substance. With limited time, he does all he can to restore her life to the way it was before his tragic death, but Kai’s half-baked plans rarely turn out the way he thinks they will.

Excerpt
My mind retraces the past few months, all the conversations Tyler and I have had, the words we’ve said and haven’t said, all stemming from one incident, one day. And then I’m thrown back to that afternoon, back into the ocean and the cold, roiling waves. I feel them around me, tossing me this way and that, pounding over my head like a stampede of wild horses. I feel the salt stinging my eyes and see the abyss below me in the moment I dove under to find the boy. I saw him there, motionless and suspended in the deep, just out of reach.
            Just out of reach.
           My face feels hot, and I can’t breathe. But I keep my panic cloaked beneath my skin. A violent earthquake rattles my insides, but I tense my muscles, holding it in, restraining it, refusing to let it show. I dig my nails into my arm, anchoring them there, anchoring me into stillness, and I focus all my attention on the present physical pain in my arm.
            Kai’s hand reaches for mine. His touch stills my insides, draws out the tremors as though they’re water and he’s a sponge.  




MY REVIEW:
In an uncertain world where choices between light and dark aren’t as clear as they seem, Kai risks everything to save the girl who he already died to save once. Beyond the Rising Tide is a beautifully written story of love, hope, and redemption.

Avery is a strong young woman who fights to overcome the tragedy that saved her life, but took the life of a stranger. Kai is a courageous young man who hasn’t let a heartrending life change the core of who he is, in spite of a few stumbles along the way. Choosing between right and wrong has never been so unclear, with a price so high.

Beard creates a marvelous story of two people who come together in an explosion of fate. Once again, Beard’s superb writing and fantastically descriptive imagery pull the reader along on a wave of emotion and satisfaction. I couldn’t help but feel that I was right by their sides as Kai and Avery rise and fall with the tide of life. These two beautifully drawn characters will captivate your heart.




Other Praise for Beyond the Rising Tide
“Vividly imagined, this novel is the perfect mix of modern love story and literary fiction. One brimming with genuine emotion that had me re-reading passages simply because they were too beautifully written to experience just once.” --Julie N. Ford, author of With No Regrets

“This book is not only an engaging and satisfying supernatural romance, but also a beautiful story about life, death, and the gray places in between.” --E.B. Wheeler, author of The Haunting of Springett Hall

"This is one of those stories that stays with you long after the closing scene. It was beautifully imagined and vividly written and I absolutely loved it!” --Teresa Richards, author of Emerald Bound


About the Author
Sarah Beard is the author of YA novels Porcelain Keys and Beyond the Rising Tide. She earned a degree in communications from the University of Utah and is currently pursuing an MFA in writing from VCFA. When she's not writing, she referees wrestling matches between her three boys and listens to audiobooks while folding self-replicating piles of laundry. She is a breast cancer survivor, a baker of sweets, a seeker of good love stories, a composer of melancholy music, and a traveler who wishes her travel budget was much bigger. She lives with her husband and children in the shadow of the beautiful Wasatch Mountains. 

Twitter: @authorsarahb
Website: sarahbeard.com
Facebook: facebook.com/authorsarahbeard


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Monday, June 6, 2016

Book Tour: The Journal of Rabbi Levy Wang



Three Friends, Two Countries, One Priceless jewel

1937 China; the Japanese Imperial Army is chewing up China. Three middle-aged friends, Westerners, who have lived in China for decades, are about to lose everything to the onslaught. Leave China or die. As their world collapses around them, a fur trader from New York, a Russian, and a Rabbi from Germany, learn that a race of Chinese Jews is about to become victims of a German and Japanese alliance to acquire a valuable ruby, supposedly hidden in their village of Kaifeng.
The three friends embark on one last adventure before leaving China, to save the Jews of Kaifeng and the jewel. Can they reach Kaifeng before the alliance bent on the destruction of the village gets to them? It’s a deadly pursuit across 1937 China, through Japanese controlled territory, Chinese bandits, and countless dangers and obstacles. The only clues to its location are written in a cryptic, twenty-year-old diary of a disillusioned Chinese Rabbi; the Journal of Rabbi Levy Wang. The three friends are tested to the extreme in a desperate attempt to warn their friends and find the jewel.






David Harris Lang, a current resident of Hong Kong, has lived and worked in Asia much of his life. Besides being a prolific author of Asian-based thrillers, he is an international architect who brings an indelible sense of place’ to his writing as well as a deep understanding of Asian cultures, locales, and customs. His vivid fight scenes come from a life-long practice of the martial arts. 


Connect With the Author Here:
 ~ Website ~ Amazon ~ Goodreads ~ Facebook ~


Top Ten List
Being out in nature hiking.
Snorkelling in water so clear it is like it is not there.
Fishing. Don't even have to be catching, I am happy even with a line in the water.
Cooking with my daughters.
Wrestling with my dog.
Writing a chapter and having no idea where the ideas came from, feeling like I am channeling some writing muse.
Exploring exotic places and ancient architecture.
Communicating successfully in a language other than my native tongue.
Slipping a jab.
Being warm under the covers when it is storming outside

Snippet
Within fifteen minutes of friendly questioning, Hattori knew all about Rabbi Wang, Rabbi Wang’s journal, Wudang Mountain, and the Five Dragons Monastery. When he was satisfied that he had gotten all the information possible from Yingfei, Hattori stood up, severed Yingfei’s head, and replaced the sword back in its scabbard.

“To the trucks! We leave for Kaifeng immediately!” Hattori shouted.

Hattori’s plan was to capture the three Westerners at Kaifeng. He not only wanted to stop them from finding the jewel first, but he also now knew that he needed the rabbi to read the Hebrew journal of Levi Wang. These Westerners were getting to be more annoying every day.



To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page