Working it Out by Rachael Anderson - Excerpt!

Author Rachael Renee Anderson


Rachael Anderson is the author of four books: Divinely Designed, Luck of the Draw, Minor Adjustments, and The Reluctant Bachelorette. She's the mother of four and is pretty good at breaking up fights, or at least sending guilty parties to their rooms. She can't sing, doesn't dance, and despises tragedies. But she recently figured out how yeast works and can now make homemade bread, which she is really good at eating.

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Excerpt!

Her eyes continued to search his face—well, more like probe—as though she could see into his mind and thoughts. She held up the brochure she carried, showing Seth the face of the bachelor he’d just bid twenty grand for. He took it from her to get a closer look.

“What do you plan to do about the incredibly expensive date you won?” she asked.

Seth scanned through Cameron’s bio, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. He returned the brochure back to her and tapped the page. “Experience an unforgettable day of high adventure, apparently. Sorry if I, uh, took that away from you.”

She looked completely unfazed, as though this strange situation happened all the time. “You know he’s not gay, right?”

“I made that assumption, yes,” Seth said, wondering what was going through that pretty head of hers. “Why? Are you hoping I’ll hand the date off to you since I’m clearly not gay either?”

“Aren’t you?”

The way she said it made Seth’s jaw work back and forth. She looked so confident, so unshakable, reminding him of someone who got under his skin on a regular basis—Lanna. Except the two women looked nothing alike. Lanna was petite and fair, whereas this woman was taller, with darker hair and a darker complexion. But that expression—that impassivity—exactly the same. Maybe Lanna had given her lessons.

Yet for whatever reason, it bothered Seth that this woman might think he preferred men to women. “No, I’m not.”

“Then you won’t mind if I do borrow that date from you. I’m sure Cameron would prefer me over you anyway.”

If she didn’t look so sure of herself, Seth would have said, “Have it, it’s yours.” But something in the way she said it made Seth bristle. “Yes, I would mind, actually. I happen to like ziplining, parasailing, and  . . . romantic horseback rides.”

“And Cameron, apparently.”

Seth took a step forward, leaning close so his eyes were only inches from hers. “Like I told you, I’m not gay.”

“Oh yeah? Prove it. Give me the da—”

Seth immediately dipped his head slightly and covered her mouth with his. Her lips were warm and soft, and she smelled faintly of citrus. For a second, it seemed like she responded, but then she planted her palms against his chest and shoved him away.

Just This Once by Diana X. Dunn

FREE at Amazon >> Today to Aug. 10th!!!

Adopted by an international multi-governmental agency that doesn't officially exist, her only genuine identity is "F6" - the sixth female baby adopted into the program. Now she changes identities as often as other women change their shoes, moving through the world completing top-secret missions and keeping her distance.


A chance meeting with a handsome stranger tempts her to lower her guard. A second encounter turns up the heat until he finds himself in the middle of a murder investigation being conducted by one of F6's former lovers. Now F6 finds herself using her skills, training and multiple identities to help a friend in trouble. Something she has never done before; something she's prepared to do just this once.

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Excerpt!
___________________________

April 2120

Spring in the rebuilt city of New York felt just as magical as spring in New York should feel.  Older residents often grumbled about the city; many argued that the city had still not yet recovered properly from the fall of the Twin Towers that marked the very earliest stirrings of the Wars that would eventually follow.  But most modern day New Yorkers loved the city just the way it was.

The skyline had been forever altered by the Wars and the years of terrorist activity.  For a while most of the city had been too dangerous for all but the very bravest or desperate to venture into.  As the skyscrapers had tumbled or been abandoned, jobs and people had deserted the city and left most of it empty and forsaken.

Now the city was experiencing a rebirth as people and companies flooded back.  Property prices were suddenly racing upwards and abandoned buildings were being converted into luxury apartments at an astonishing rate.  For older residents, those that had chosen to make the city their home even during the worst times, the rebirth was a mixed blessing.

But today, as the birds sang in the replanted and newly budding trees and the traffic flowed smoothly with no hint of the jams that were sure to be a problem in the very near future, the city looked amazing.  The sidewalks teemed with young, healthy looking men and women in business suits, carrying MPPCs and briefcases presumably bulging with important papers.  Everyone seemed to be striding purposefully through the city.

As day turned to dusk, clothes designed for other pursuits replaced the business suits.   The beautiful people of the city were out in force once more, this time in short skirts and tight jeans, hair and makeup as extreme as they dared, now looking for love or romance rather than the next deal.

Of course a reborn and growing city also has to deal with growing pains, and New York was no exception.  Strictly enforced rules on identity cards, registered addresses, and required employment had cut down on the problems of homelessness and petty crime, but any big city would always have some level of street crime, no matter how hard the police and the government worked to prevent it.

At eight o’clock on a Friday evening a high-security door opened at a large apartment complex in the heart of the rebuilt city.  Three people stepped out from the door and made their way down the sidewalk.  They were clearly dressed for clubbing and it seemed likely, from their staggering walks and hysterical laughter that they had already started drinking or drug taking before they left home.

The two girls and one boy laughed and teased and flirted with one another as they made their way towards the bright lights of the club district.  Anyone watching would assume that they had all worked hard during the week and were determined to enjoy their weekend.  They wouldn’t have been far wrong.  The trio drew nearly everyone’s eyes as they made their way towards their favorite establishment.

All three were strikingly beautiful, but in very different ways.  They seemed to radiate youthful energy and an abundance of enthusiasm for living life to the fullest.

Rys Rising by Tracy Falbe

Ready for a FANTASTIC adventure?

Try this Epic Fantasy

It is the first book in an awesome series!


Dacian is a young and powerful rys who has been training to enter an elite priesthood. In this scene he suffers an ultimate rejection that will alter the course of his life and the history of all civilizations that he touches.

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Excerpt!

"The Nebakarz priests flanking Dacian radiated disapproval in thick mental waves that even a human could have felt. Dacian knew that he had behaved badly and more than once. His esteem for law and order that his teaching master had instilled in him seemed no longer sufficient to control his behavior. Willfully he rallied his determination to salvage his education as the priests marched him into the hallowed audience chamber of the Grand Lumin.

The thin elderly tabre male in his red robes looked deceptively weak and benign, but Dacian sensed his immense power.

Dropping to his knees, Dacian said, “Great Grand Lumin, my Master, forgive me.”

The attending priests went to the sides of the Grand Lumin and placed themselves near the hovering crystal orbs. Their stance was defensive, and Dacian cringed in shame.

After a painful silence, the voice of the Grand Lumin cracked out words. “After everything else, you even dare to speak first.” The Grand Lumin then proceeded to harangue Dacian for his impudence and interference at the punishment of the rys female. Respect for authority was paramount in a society composed of magic beings, the Grand Lumin insisted. Dacian’s crime had been doubly wrong because he had done it in public!

Studio Relations by Georgie Lee

Vivien Howard hasn’t forgiven Weston Holmes for almost derailing her career five years ago. Female directors in 1930s Hollywood are few and far between, and a man who coasts by on his good looks and family connections can’t possibly appreciate what it took for her to get to where she is. But when the studio head puts Weston in charge of overseeing Vivien’s ambitious Civil War film, she realizes she has a choice: make nice with her charismatic new boss or watch a replacement director destroy her dream.

Weston Holmes doesn’t know much about making movies, but he knows plenty about money. And thanks to the Depression, ticket sales are dangerously low. The studio can’t afford a flop—or bad press, which is exactly what threatens to unfold when an innocent encounter between Weston and Vivien is misconstrued by the gossip rags. The only solution? A marriage of convenience that will force the bickering duo into an unlikely alliance—and guide them to their own happy Hollywood ending.

 Amazon

Book Genre: Historical Romance

Excerpt!

"Earl tossed the paper with the photograph on his desk. “It’s one thing for a single woman to direct a film, and quite another for her to spend the night at a single man’s house.”

“I was only there because I was sick.” Vivien sank down on the couch, dropping her head in her hands. “I can’t believe this is happening. What am I going to do?”

“I know what you’ll do.” Earl sat back, a proud smile on his pudgy face. “You’ll get married.”

“What?” Vivien’s head popped up. “To whom?”

“To Weston, of course.”

Weston and Vivien exchanged horrified looks.

“Are you mad?” Vivien jumped to her feet. “We’ll kill each other.”

“Well, you’d better learn to live with each another because I don’t see how you’re going to come out of this with your reputation intact unless you get married.”

“Now, wait just a minute, Uncle Earl. Let’s not do anything hasty,” Weston cautioned, but Earl shook his head.

“You got her into this mess; you can get her out.” Earl picked up the phone. “Jenny, get me Eve in wardrobe and Ben in props. I’ll also need Lou from publicity. Get them on the phone at once.”

“We can’t get married,” Vivien protested, realizing Earl was serious.

“It won’t be a real marriage. Judge Paxton, he’s a friend of mine. We golf together and he owes me a favor.” Earl picked up the phone. “Hotel 550,” he said to the operator. He kept the phone loosely pressed to his ear as he waited for Judge Paxton and continued to explain his harebrained scheme. “He’ll give us a wedding license and do the ceremony today. Only we’ll have him date it for yesterday. Once the movie is finished shooting and it’s a hit at the box office, we’ll get Judge Paxton to get you a nice, tidy annulment.”

Weston took a deep breath, responding in a measured tone. “Earl, it isn’t that simple. My mother has expectations. My lawyers have expectations.”

“Are you saying I’m not good enough to marry?” Vivien demanded, insulted.

“I’m saying I can’t get married on a whim.”

“This time you’ll have to or it’ll be your reputation on the line too.” Earl pointed a fat finger at Weston. “What do you think the Hays Office will say about morality in Hollywood if the people in charge are seen to have lax morals?”

“The Hays Office isn’t worried about me,” Weston scoffed.

“Come here.” Earl hung up the phone and waved Weston forward, then threw one arm around his shoulders and led him to the window. “Think about Vivien,” he said in a low voice that Vivien strained to hear. “If you don’t do this, you’ll walk away with only a few little problems but it’ll ruin Vivien’s life. Not only will she lose her livelihood, but society will knock her down faster than you can spit. Now, the three of us know what happened last night and we can tell the press all about it, but it won’t matter to women like Mabel McGrath. So think about that before you say no.”"

Rift Healer by Diane M. Haynes

Rift Healer is the first installment of the ‘Forest Magic’ series, a Young Adult Fantasy/Romance set in Central and Western Massachusetts.

After a minor earthquake, the enchanted forest in Bidwell, MA, is infested with monster-spewing rifts. Gisele Westerfield’s great nephew, the gifted Micah, and his distant cousin, Selena, arrive to assist. Together with Gisele’s summer students, twins Haley and Lacey, they will try to heal the magical forest.

Much to the consternation of the beautiful Selena, Micah identifies Haley as The One whom he’ll share his future. But after witnessing a terrifying display of Micah’s Gift, Haley cools to his advances and unexpectedly discovers her own Gift– she can heal the earth.

Monsters, mayhem, and teenage angst follow the small group as they confront evil in the forest and a dangerous prediction that ‘one will fall’. Will they heal the rifts in time? Can they save the unicorns? And is Haley really destined to be with Micah?

 Amazon

Snippet!

He tore his eyes from the ceiling, caught and held her gaze. “I can make people do anything on command.”

            “Like, hypnosis?” she asked, blinking under the over-bright fluorescent lights, her spoon halfway to her mouth.

            “Almost,” he said.  “Except, a hypnotist is unable to persuade his clients to do anything they wouldn’t ordinarily do. And I can.” He shrugged his shoulders, almost as if he were apologizing.

              Haley frowned as she sorted through this weird information. “So, let me get this straight. You think you could tell me to do something—anything–and I’d do it?” Her brows knitted together and she shook her head in disbelief.

            “I don’t just think.  I…know.” He lowered his voice as he leaned forward. “I could make you run around doing cartwheels in the parking lot if I wanted to. You would be unable to refuse.”

             At that, she sat straight up, staring at him. She didn’t believe it—not quite, but she was too afraid to disbelieve.

            “It’s true.” He nodded. “Fortunately, I have a strong code of honor that I adhere to and I do not abuse my Gift. But I could make you do whatever I want.”

            She shook her head. “I don’t believe you,” she said in a low voice.

            “I guess I’ll have to prove it to you. Put that spoon down,” he ordered.

            She looked at it, all but forgotten until now. Realizing she wanted to let go of the spoon, she frowned. “No,” she said between clenched teeth as she fought the urge to comply.

            “Haley,” he took a deep breath.  “Put the spoon down.”

            The fingers holding her spoon twitched as she looked into his eyes and said, “No,” in a voice she almost couldn’t hear herself. Her mouth went dry with the effort.

            “Put-the-spoon-down-now.” His glacial blue eyes bored into hers. Her right hand trembled with the effort of resisting his will. Then she watched, wide-eyed, as her traitorous thumb lifted on its own, causing her spoon to waver and fall to the table with a clatter in the quiet restaurant, spilling its load of ice cream.

            She swallowed. “How did you do that?” she asked, now truly frightened.

            “I told you, it’s my Gift,” he said, using his napkin to wipe up the mess. “It’s not one I use often and never on my friends. Never, ever.”

            Haley swallowed once or twice while wondering how fast she could get away from this beautiful, fascinating, irresistible boy with his dangerous Gift. Terrified, yet inexplicably still drawn to him, she slapped her palms down on the table and leaned forward, ready to shove away, to flee at any moment. His eyes softened as he saw the movement and he covered her small hands with his. Her breath caught. What’s he going to do to me?

“Don’t be afraid,” he pleaded.  “I would never, ever, take advantage of you.  Please believe me.”

            “Are you doing it again?” she asked, because all of a sudden she did believe him. And she knew she would always believe him. Could she ever trust her own feelings around him?

            “No, I’m not doing it again, but I am telling the truth. And now, let me tell you about another Gift I have.” He never blinked as he readied himself.

            “I don’t think I want to know–”

            “You do. I promise you do,” he said, holding her there with his eyes.

            She drew in a breath, steeling herself against whatever was about to come.

            He touched a spot in the center of his forehead. “In my mind’s eye, I see people who will be important to me in my future.”

            She frowned and shook her head slightly, not understanding. “And–”

            “And you are all over my future.” He smiled as if that should explain everything.

Cover Reveal & Excerpts! My Own Mr. Darcy by Karey White

After being dragged to the 2005 movie Pride and Prejudice by her mother, sixteen-year-old Elizabeth’s life changes when Matthew Macfadyen’s Mr. Darcy appears on the screen. Lizzie falls hard and makes a promise to herself that she will settle for nothing less than her own Mr. Darcy. This ill-advised pledge threatens to ruin any chance of finding true love. During the six intervening years, she has refused to give any interested suitors a chance. They weren’t Mr. Darcy enough.

Coerced by her roommate, Elizabeth agrees to give the next interested guy ten dates before she dumps him. That guy is Chad, a kind and thoughtful science teacher and swim coach. While she’s dating Chad, her dream comes true in the form of a wealthy bookstore owner named Matt Dawson, who looks and acts like her Mr. Darcy. Of course she has to follow her dream. But as Elizabeth simultaneously dates a regular guy and the dazzling Mr. Dawson, she’s forced to re-evaluate what it was she loved about Mr. Darcy in the first place.

Excerpts anyone? Keep reading!

Moonlit by Jadie Jones

Eighteen-year-old Tanzy Hightower knows horses, has grown up with them on Wildwood Farm. She also knows not to venture beyond the trees that line the pasture. Things happen out there that can’t be explained. Or undone. Worse, no one but she and the horses can see what lurks in the shadows of the woods.

When a moonlit ride turns into a terrifying chase, Tanzy is left to question everything, from the freak accident that killed her father to the very blood in her veins. Broken and confused, she turns to Lucas, a scarred, beautiful stranger, and to Vanessa, a charming new friend who has everything Tanzy doesn’t.

But why do they seem to know more about her than she knows herself?

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Snippet!

“Tanzy.” Vanessa’s voice is low behind me. A jolt of heat zips through my body, followed by an icy wave of dread that wraps around me like a wet blanket and starts to squeeze. I can hear myself gasping, but my lungs don’t recognize the oxygen each time it rushes in and out. I’m suffocating on air. I wait for her to gasp or yell, but she is silent. She walks over to “John,” in a plain, unhurried stride and then toes at him with her silver shoe. He lets out a low moan.

“We need to call an ambulance,” I stammer, wrapping my sweaty arms around my trembling frame.

“The hell we do. He’ll be fine,” she says and glares down at him.

“I think I really hurt him.”

“I saw what he was trying to do. That’s no way to treat a lady,” she scolds. He tries to yell but it comes out as a gurgle. “See, he’s fine,” she says as she kneels beside him and fishes his wallet out of his back pocket.

“What are you doing?” The whispered words claw their way up my throat.

“What do you know? His name really is John,” she says as she tucks his cash into the neckline of her dress and drops his credit cards and driver’s license down the storm drain. I hear her toss his wallet into a stack of cardboard boxes piled against the brick wall, but I can’t tear my eyes away from John’s face, which is such a bloody mess that I can’t remember what he looks like underneath.

“Come on, let’s go,” Vanessa says and puts a hand on my back.

“We’re just going to leave him here?”

“Of course we are.”

I stare at her, incredulous.

“This is his fault. If he hadn’t tried to do God knows what to you out here, then none of this would’ve happened,” she says. “Someone will find him, don’t worry. I’ll make sure of it, if it makes you feel better.”

Innovera Yakov: The Journey of a Thousand Eyes by Kia Garriques

The Journey of A Thousand Eyes takes you into a world of excitement and danger where thoughts and feelings are overheard and minds can travel to other worlds. Be prepared to immerse yourself in a world where falling in love could cost you your life and nothing is as it seems.

Innovera Yakov – The Journey of A Thousand Eyes is the first book in an action-packed fantasy drama series where characters with powers of healing and destruction live, love, compete and disappear without a trace while they are being prepared for the Journey.

Audio Link

Innovera Yakov - Audio of Chapter 1

Read the First Chapter

Innovera Yakov - Chapter 1

Snippet!

Blu Tara stared her sister in the face. ‘Let me tell you what you don’t know about love, Gamma. It is a curse. You will scoop out your core and abandon it just to have the Being that you love. You will steal another person’s life force if it makes it easier to get it. You will abandon the world you have been cradled in, betray everything and everyone you care for. You’ll give up your name for it.’

Snippet: The Tale of Mally Biddle by M.L. LeGette

 When Mally Biddle agreed to spy upon the King of Lenzar and his overbearing knights she knew she was heading into danger. She didn't know she'd find a family unlike any other.

Posing as a servant in Bosc Castle, Mally serves tea and tends fires for the most dangerous men in the kingdom. Her goal is to learn the truth of what happened sixteen years ago, when the infant princess met her death ... a death that is surrounded by more questions than answers.

Along her search for the truth, Mally meets the energized Lita Stump, the strict and matriarchal Meriyal Boyd, and the opinionated Archibald Diggleby. Then of course there are the knights: Leon Gibbs who is slicker than a greased hog, Adrian Bayard, hot tempered and violent, and the worst of the lot: Sir Illius Molick, Captain of the Knights. And then there is Maud, a mysterious woman who just might know everything...

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Snippet!

Whether it was due to the stress of nearly poisoning herself or Gibbs’ new tendency to lash out at everyone, Mally couldn’t decide, but four days after the mushroom incident, Lita was in the sickroom, covered by three wool blankets, and still had chills.

“How am I supposed to help you find you-know-who when I’m laid up in bed?” she asked thickly.

“Badger the other poor souls who are just as miserable as you?” Mally shrugged.

“How are you not sick?” Lita grumbled, wiping her streaming nose.

“It’s all that country air I grew up in,” Mally replied playfully.

Lita’s watery eyes scowled at her sourly. Thankfully, Gladys took that moment to interrupt.

“Mally, are you doing anything?”

“Well—”

“Excellent!” Gladys thrust a small moneybag and a list in her hands. “Go to Maud’s and pick up the ingredients for my cold tonic. I’m much too low.”

“Who’s Maud?” Mally asked.

“The only reliable apothecary owner in the city,” said Gladys.

Lita suddenly snickered.

“Something wrong, Lita?” Gladys asked primly.

“Crazy, batty Maud,” Lita teased, wiping her nose across her sleeve and staring at Mally wickedly. “Ooooh, be careful, she might cut off your hair! She’ll bargain for your fingernails!”

Snippet: Trail of Bones by Chris Salisbury

Ready for a new adventure? Are you a fan of fantasy, young adult, science fiction and action stories? “No mercy, No rules - Welcome to the Trail of Bones!”

Run with Purpose – battle cry of the Shade Wolves Magnus, the runt of a litter of Shade Wolves, wants nothing more than to be a loyal, strong member of the pack. But when an ancient enemy threatens his friends and family, he faces a choice that could tear him from all he's known and loved.

Born in captivity, the giant panther Kelor knows nothing but suffering and loss. He struggles to find his place in this world of terror, and he battles to protect his family without succumbing to the darkness lurking inside him. 

Falling captive to the evil Warden, the two are forced to fight in the battle of the beasts known as 'The Trail of Bones'. How will Kelor and Magnus learn to work together? How will they escape a fate of despair and death? How will their choices affect their comrades? Their enemies? And the forgotten magic that could doom all life of their world?

Let the adventures begin!

A fun, exciting, clean read for teens, young adults, adults and readers of all ages. Pick up your copy of this fantasy adventure today!

Are you a fan of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Robert Jordan, Orson Scott Card, Jim Butcher and other fantasy and science fiction authors? You’ll feel right at home with Trail of Bones. This fantasy story offers a strong moral message, suspense, action, and mystery, in a world full of magic, unlikely heroes, and devious villains.

Amazon

Snippet!

“You’ve seen a Shade Wolf? While the sun was overhead?” Chief Draghone asked. The boy nodded. “Then you were too close to their dens. I thought we talked about this Adolphus? You could endanger the entire village with your foolish desires.”

            “But you said the Shade Wolves are our friends. That they protect Thornmount and the forest just as we do,” the boy said.

            “True, but neither man nor beast likes it when an intruder comes to his home uninvited. And with a new litter coming, you’re lucky they didn’t tear you apart and feed you to the cubs for their first meal.”

            Surprisingly the boy did not back down. Mildly irritated, the chief still admired his son’s conviction and passion. “I did no harm, father, I swear it. He even spoke to me. He warned me to go away,” Adolphus said with the excitement only a boy could display.

            “And what did this Shade Wolf say?”

            “He said run with purpose.”

            “And did you?” the father asked.

            “Of course. I’ve never run so fast. When I made it back to the village, the wolf was gone,” Adolphus said excitedly.

            Thayne Draghone bellowed with laughter, and put his massive arm around his son. They all fear what they do not understand,he thought. That is why you are chief.

            “You still have much to learn, young one. Listen closely, son, for this is truth,” he said as he knelt next to his boy so they could see eye to eye. “Run with purpose is not a warning, it is an ancient wolf saying.”

            The boy was perplexed; this was not at all what he thought happened during his brief encounter with the wolf. “I don’t understand. What does that mean?”

            “Run with purpose. It means do not waste energy, life, seasons. When you hunt, hunt until your prey is in your jaws. If you fight, fight with all your strength until you win your enemy’s throat. If you love, love until your heart stops beating.  And if you must run, go swiftly until you run with your pack once more. This is the way of the wolf. This is the way of the warrior. And I pray to the gods it will be your way too,” the chief explained.

            Adolphus looked back in the direction of the wolves with a new understanding and appreciation. His fear vanished, replaced with admiration and a sense of wonder. I want to see a Shade Wolf again. I’ll be brave, he thought.

            “Come boy, the night grows darker still. Your mother will whip your hide… and mine if we don’t return to the cooking fires soon,” said Thayne.

            “Can’t we stay a while longer? I want to listen. I wonder what they’re saying now, Father,” said the boy.

            “When the sun rises I’ll travel to their den and pay my respects. I will offer gifts of meat and dugan entrails in celebration of new life. I was hoping my son could accompany me, but I fear if he doesn’t find his bed soon, he’ll be too weary,” said the chief.

He barely finished his sentence before the boy scrambled down the watchtower and scurried toward home. The father chuckled as he watched his son dash away. Run with purpose, young one. Now you’re getting it, he thought.

The Storm Bottle by Nick Green

Swimming with dolphins is said to be the number one thing to do before you die. For 12-year-old Michael, it very nearly is.

A secret boat trip has gone tragically wrong, and now he lies unconscious in hospital. But when Michael finally wakes up, he seems different. His step sister Bibi is soon convinced that he is not who he appears to be.

Meanwhile, in the ocean beyond Bermuda’s reefs, a group of bottlenose dolphins are astonished to discover a stranger in their midst – a boy lost and desperate to return home.

Bermuda is a place of mysteries. Some believe its seas are enchanted, and the sun-drenched islands conceal a darker past, haunted with tales of lost ships. Now Bibi and Michael are finding themselves in the most extraordinary tale of all.

Amazon 

Snippet!

I went to Michael’s room. He was propped up in bed. With his broken ribs he had to rest a lot. Music was playing, a choir all holy and echoey, with a boy’s solo voice soaring over it. Laura had been putting this CD on for him, hoping it would help. The soloist was Michael Brook.

            I turned the volume down. Michael’s eyes looked at me. I took a deep breath.

            ‘You’re not Michael, are you?’

            The bedclothes crinkled around him.

            ‘Are you… Were you…’ I made myself say it. ‘Are you a dolphin?’

            A huge sigh.

‘Yes. I’m a dolphin.’

‘But how –?’

‘A rainvoice,’ he added. ‘We call ourselves rainvoices.’

‘Why?’

            It wasn’t top of my list of questions, but hey.

Journey of Promise by Vickie Hall

When converts Richard and Leah Kenyon leave Wales and heed the call to Zion, they are unprepared for the toll exacted by the journey.

To face the incredible odds mounted against them they call upon the Lord's tender mercies to see them through and strengthen their love for one another.

Their story will remind you where to turn during your trials.









Snippet!

Her heart thudded in her chest as she turned and walked up the gangway. Richard paused and looked back to say something to the Saints, but she didn’t stop to listen, making her way onto the ship. She stood on the deck of the steamer as the autumn breezes blew cool and damp off Cardiff Bay. Her heart knotted as she looked out over the pier, hoping against hope that her mother might come to say good-bye. I don’t want to leave . . . I can’t . . . this is home . . .

            She pressed her lips together and choked back tears as her eyes scanned the fringes of her native village. Her gaze rose to the hills, still green, to the sky awash in clouds, then down to the surging bay. The smell of briny water filled her nostrils and the call of seabirds cried overhead. Leah closed her eyes, attempting to etch the pictures in her mind, and called upon her memory to remember Wales and never forget.

            Richard slid his arm around Leah’s shoulders. “ ’Tis hard, I know,” he said as if he could read her mind.

            His touch gave her a sense of reassurance. She could feel his strength lending itself to her, lifting and carrying her beyond doubt. Richard kissed her temple and held her as the ropes were loosed from the moorings. She turned to him, her eyes burning into his. “Let me look at you, Richard.Let me look to you and our future. I cannot bear to watch us leave . . .”

            She buried her face against his chest. Richard encircled his wife and held her as the steamer pulled away.

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Motherhood Matters by Connie E. Sokol

Motherhood Matters Motherhood is a divine calling---but it may not always feel that way. Now you can show the women in your life how much they matter to you, with this delightful and heartwarming volume of wit and wisdom about the divinity, reality, and rewards of motherhood. Fresher than flowers and sweeter than chocolate, it's a perfect gift for the women who give so much. In these hectic days where life's demands can quickly become a heavy burden, Motherhood Matters helps you find more memorable moments and take the stress out of the to-do lists. Written with clarity, concision, and wit, this short, yet indispensable handbook is better than flowers, more guilt-free than chocolate, and gives back to the woman who sacrifices so much of herself every single day.



Joy in Motherhood

It’s all around us, present each day, and yet too many of us can’t see or feel it—the tangible joy in motherhood.

We stand with our fixed faces and hands on hips and point and shoot interrogations—“Did you clean your bathroom? Did you do your homework? Did you take care of your chores?” Somewhere between barks we can lose that lovin’ feeling.

I was strongly reminded of the need for joyful awareness at my youngest daughter’s dance class. A host of six-year-olds, giddy with newfound freedom, leapt and turned and laughed and ran all over the dance studio. The room felt fairly alive with their complete joy of movement. I turned to one of the mothers next to me and said, “We need this as moms.”

The very next morning I attended my Zumba exercise class, where women do enjoy the fun but let’s face it, are motivated by the calorie-burning benefits. This time our instructor had us do a particular Latin dance where we gathered in a circle and started in slow movements, then got faster and faster until we were moving lightning fast in the circle.

Laughing and throwing our arms in and out with energetic abandon, we then held hands and gathered in the center, to which I hollered, “Whoo pa!” Our shift in attitude and energy was incredible!

That’s the gems of everyday joy we can find and feel: make a special cake for when the kids come home, just because. Forgo ego—and calorie-burn—and allow our children to beat us in a wii bowling tournament (which, frankly, is not that hard). Read with one child, cuddling on her bed for special time together. Enjoy the unexpected joke, the stunning sunset, the newly-discovered giant moth on the front porch.

These are the moments not to be missed, but to be tasted and savored, felt and remembered. 

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Blue Hearts of Mars by Nicole Grotepas

Blue Hearts of Mars by Nicole Grotepas


Retta Heikkinen knows the unspoken rule of society: love between androids and humans is forbidden. A simple enough edict until Hemingway Koskinen spends an evening charming her with his intense gaze, bewitching smile, and sparkling conversation that hints at so much more than the usual obsessions of high school boys. Rules were meant to be cast aside, especially when love beckons.

If only it were as simple as being in love.

Trouble is brewing, not just for Hemingway--for all androids. Secrets have been kept, lies propagated, and Retta soon discovers that a frightening future awaits thousands of androids if she doesn’t do something to stop it. Worse yet, she will lose the one love she’s ever endangered herself for: Hemingway.

Amazon

Snippet

I took a deep breath. “What’s it like? I mean, being you?”

He brushed his hands off on his pants and then pulled me close. “I wonder the same about you, Retta. What’s it like to be you? To be so human that no one questions what you are? I’ve been what I am my entire life. I don’t know how to be anything else. The real question is, do you want someone like me?”

I nodded, feeling breathless. Speechless.

“Good. Then let’s just be together for now. The rest will figure itself out.” He leaned down and kissed me.

The wind picked up, hot against us—a dry, desert heat that was so familiar, it felt like Mars cradling me, whispering to me to wake it from its dormant repose. I breathed Hemingway’s breath. He held me. We kissed and then fell onto the dense field of wheat and lay there, laughing, staring up at the sky as it bled to black and the stars lit up.  

Snippet: Starseed by Liz Gruder

Starseed
Author: Liz Gruder
ISBN: 978-1937178291
Publisher: WiDo Publishing
Published: February 2013

SUMMARY


*************************
Starseed concerns a sixteen-year-old girl who falls in love with a starseed boy who reveals that she, too, is half extraterrestrial, and is forced to choose her allegiance between Earth and her star family.
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Kaila Guidry has always known she is different. When she meets Jordyn Stryker at school, she finds out just how different.

Jordyn was born and raised far from Earth, a starseed, one of six new students sent to Louisiana's Bush High to learn human ways. But Jordyn didn't count on meeting someone like Kaila.

When Kaila is pushed to her limit by high school bullying and cruelty, Jordyn awakens her to a new reality—and to love. But to prove herself, Kaila must look the other way as the real purposes of the starseeds unfold.

As the horrific plan behind the starseed visit to Earth moves inexorably forward, Kaila and Jordan, caught in an impossible love, must determine where their true loyalties lie.

Snippet!

Kaila’s mind split in panic. Help, she called telepathically. Help me!

 She yanked her wrist, trying to free her hand, but Wade restrained her wrist like a manacle.

Instantly, Jordyn appeared by Kaila’s side. “What are you doing?” Jordyn shouted, as he quickly assessed Wade holding up Kaila’s four-fingered hand and everyone laughing. His hazel eyes turned to solid black.

“Oh my God,” someone said, seeing Jordyn’s eyes.

“Shut up!” Jordyn commanded. “All of you. Animals!”

Jordyn’s eyes went wider and blacker. Wade snarled as he pulled back his fist to swing. Before Wade could punch, Jordyn thrust his head forward, slamming an invisible force at Wade who went flying into the air, his back crashing against the wall.

As Wade crumpled to the floor, Jordyn leaned over him, saying, “May you have your worse nightmare.” Jordyn stared at Wade, commanding, “Look at me. Look at me!” Wade couldn’t look away from Jordyn’s entrancing eyes. A moment passed. Then Wade held his ears and screamed. Wade squeezed his eyelids shut, his face twisted in agony. His scream was so shrill, penetrating, and filled with terror that all the students backed away.

The students in the hall stared, unable to process what they’d just witnessed.

Mrs. Bourg pushed through the crowd. “Jordyn,” she said. “Suspend time. Now!” Jordyn’s eyes again went solid black. He peered intently at the students assembled in the hall. Each person froze like a statue. Jordyn didn’t put Kaila under the spell. One girl stood with her mouth open, her eyes wide with fear. Another guy had stopped with his hand over his mouth. Another held his foot in the air, stopped mid-run.

“I am concerned about you, Jordyn,” Mrs. Bourg said, arms akimbo. “Every day I see more emotion.” She motioned to the suspended students in the hall. “This is a terrible mistake. Do you understand?”

“Some of these humans piss me off.”

“I don’t care!” Mrs. Bourg shouted. “We are on their turf and are not to be discovered.” Mrs. Bourg wagged her finger at Jordyn. “You are becoming infected. You do as I say, you understand?”

Kaila held still so as not to draw attention to herself. She held her breath, her heart pounding like a jackhammer.

 “Sure, I’ll listen,” Jordyn said. His eyes again transformed from hazel to solid black. As he stared at his mother, Mrs. Bourg’s face went limp. She froze, her finger stuck in the air. “And now,” he said. “You will listen to me. You are a human. You were a carrier of me as an embryo. But that is all. You are not my ruler, and we are sick of taking orders from you. You will have no memory of this. You will remember that you walked through this hall to the office and that is all.”
           Jordyn put his hands on his hips on his silver overalls; he walked around the hall, surveying the frozen students. A girl’s eyes bulged, her mouth open, revealing her braces as she was paralyzed mid-scream. “And the rest of you,” Jordyn said, “will only remember that Kaila tripped. Wade caught her, and it was a moment that you will barely recall. It was nothing. In fact,” he added, “you all thought Kaila looked beautiful today and that she is one of the hottest girls in this school. You will tell her so.”

Snippet: Ixeos by Jennings Wright

The McClellands are enjoying a lazy summer vacation at the beach when they are lured from our world into Ixeos, an alternate Earth. Finding themselves lost in a maze of tunnels under Paris and surrounded by strangers, they discover that they have been brought to Ixeos for one purpose:  to take the planet back from humanoid aliens who have claimed it. With the aid of the tunnels and a mysterious man named

Landon, the teens travel the world seeking the key that will allow them to free Darian, the long-imprisoned rebel leader. But the aliens aren't the only problem on Ixeos -- the McClellands have to deal with brutal gangs, desperate junkies, and a world without power, where all the technology is owned by the aliens, and where most of the population has been killed or enslaved.

The worst part? There's no way home.


Snippet!

Marty chewed his crusty bread thoughtfully. “They’ve got a pretty amazing set up down here,” he observed. “Fresh food, the air is okay, there’s apparently water for drinking and washing and bathing. Dorms, a library… It’s pretty sweet!”

“Sweet?” Clay asked in amazement. “We’re two hundred feet underground, apparently recruited to fight some kind of alien serial killers, and we can’t get home! How is that sweet?”

Neahle laid a hand on his wrist just above his tattoo. Her thumb rubbed the spot. “We’ll be okay, Clay,” she said quietly. “We just need to get our bearings. You know. Figure out what we’re supposed to do.”

Clay put his hand over hers for a minute, then pulled his arm away. “How do we know that what these people are saying is true? It’s nuts! And this Landon — who’s he supposed to be? How come he can leave here, and we can’t?”

“We’ll find more out tomorrow,” Marty said. “But we were chosen, dude. There’s something we can do here to make a difference in this rebellion thing, and that makes us special. I mean, Landon chose us for a reason, right?”

“Because we were the only ones stupid enough to follow the ducks…” Clay muttered, taking a large swallow of water from his mug.

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Snippet: Max Xylander and the Island of Zumuruud by Jon Thomason

Blog Tour & Giveaway!

Max Xylander and the Island of Zumuruud


Max has anger management issues. But she has a secret, too. She can make things happen. Like magic. She almost killed a loser skate punk and nearly used it on her stuck up older sister. The question is, can she do anything other than blow things up? Can she learn to control it? And is it really possible that an obscure teenage girl is the key to keeping all of humanity safe?




Snippet:

Maxine Xylander ran through the driving Seattle rain. Technicolor afterimages chased her, screaming in tortured surround sound. Blood and glass, like rubies and shattered crystal carelessly strewn about.

Her ears were still ringing from the blast and the screams. She tried running faster to outrace the memories. Did she kill him? She couldn’t seem to catch her breath. A fire truck splashed past going the opposite direction, howling and strobing through the rain. More sirens wailed and converged as she ran and ran.  I’m bleeding! I can’t see anything! Glass everywhere. Blood. The boy in agony. His shredded hoodie.

And then she was throwing up in the gutter. She heaved between ragged breaths. The raging water rushing through the gutter washed the foulness away, but could do nothing for the sour taste in her mouth. She staggered to her feet, but she shook so violently she could barely walk. Even though she ran here every day, nothing looked familiar.

Sometime later—seconds?—minutes?—instinct took over and she started off again. Her teeth chattered and her knees knocked. Her soggy ponytail whipped back and forth. But she kept going. On automatic. Pounding out a run. She couldn’t go home. And definitely not back to school. The scene of the crime. The memories were still hissing at her. The boy moaning. The witnesses screaming. A bomb? Terrorists?

She knew better. She unleashed a power on the kid. Not dynamite or a gas explosion. Not a suicide bomber: she did it. She flashed back to the boy’s ugly face through the plate glass. He’d made a crude, racist insult to Angie and Jill, who happened to be beautiful, smart, and Asian in addition to being Max’s best friends. His group of losers had been taunting them for weeks. But today, it was too much for Max. She’d had enough. An angry fire burned inside her. It was fueled by rage, by hate, and by the unfairness of every second of her thirteen-year-old life. When the creep sauntered out the door and turned to flip them off through the window, the fire inside her went wild. Uncontrollable. She couldn’t help but release it…

…and the window exploded. Jagged slivers of glass tore the boy and showered the crowds of kids hanging around after school.

Blood and glass.


Max Xylander and the Island of Zumuruud is a fast-paced fantasy adventure for all ages (10 and up) and is the first of a planned trilogy. Fans of magic, swordplay, secret agents, and conspiracies set in a modern everyday world will not be able to put the book down. Jon Thomason is a debut author and paints a vivid world of magic right under our noses and delivers rapid-fire action that keeps the pages turning.

Purchase

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Snippet: Steel, Magick and Faith by T.P. Grish

Back cover blurb:

Steel, Magick and Faith is a dark, realistic fantasy novel with magick and mythological elements.

In the ancient and wild world of Glenryth, Fey creatures and a nascent humanity have come into conflict, the motives of each other mutually unfathomable and alien.

Technological cults and Monotheistic religions are worshipped, any suspicion of pagan or Fey magickal taint is reviled. Prophets spread far and wide, offering hope and comfort to the beleaguered masses. Mankind is not totally separate from the energies that suffuse Glenryth, as an unfortunate few are born as Touched.

When local dwarves put a curse upon the town of High Peaks, Remus, the aloof and irritable woodcutter and sage, must try and ebb the tide of xenophobic anger that could engulf himself and any other folk that are labelled as outcasts. But when a caravan of technocrat pilgrims fails to arrive, and the body of a local child is found in the woodlands, Remus, along with the capricious Touched Elaina, must try to understand the nature of morality in a world cloaked in suspicion and fear, and, ultimately, to prevent a brewing war that could send the region spiraling into chaos and destruction.

Snippet:

'Then somewhere in the fickle mists of creation came humanity, clawing and afraid, grasping and ambitious. Enveloped in a dangerous world, these creatures lived as scavengers; afraid of the greater things of the world. They were beset by disease, lack of claws or fangs, and the lack of habitat to call their own. These fleshy, naked beings were doomed to die of attrition... Ancient forces began to pay attention to the growing incursion, plaguing them, slaying stragglers at night. But still the humans held on to the edge of the precipice, knuckles white with effort'

Snippet: Death and the Journalist by J.L. Petty

The flight attendant faced the passengers. Over the roar of the engine, she spoke in a firm voice with a hint of quiver, “We are going to be okay, please put your oxygen masks on,” then she sat down and buckled her seat belt. The fat man and I were still standing. Grimacing at my cramping hands, I kept my grip on the black metal bar.

In the midst of the now-panicked passengers sat one woman, calmly flipping the pages of her Cosmopolitan magazine and taking occasional sips of her Pepsi. She seemed so calm and serene; I couldn’t take my eyes off her. She had long black hair and her face was like that of a fashion model or actress. She was wearing a black dress and needed no jewelry to define her long ivory-colored neck. This woman had the whitest skin. Her limbs were long. She seemed to ignore everything around her and was patiently waiting for the plane to crash.

As though she felt me staring at her, she turned to look at me. Gooseflesh popped up all over my skin when I looked into her cold gray eyes, then shifted my eyes to the ground. I could smell the heavy smoke rising from the engines I stared at the rain drops that splattered against the exit window. Smoke drifted into the cabin of the plane.



 

Find Death and the Journalist by J.L. Petty at Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Smashwords

Website: www.deathandthejournalist.com