Fire and Ash by Anne Patrick - Book Blast - Win $25

Fire and Ash by Anne Patrick

Fire and Ash is the story of female fire investigator Sadie McGregor.  When she was a child, Sadie lost her family in a horrific fire that still haunts her.  She's now been called in to investigate a fatality fire in her hometown of Emerald Point, Missouri. What Sadie and the handsome new police chief discover will not only affect those close to them, but will rock the entire community.

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Reviews and Awards

"This is a beautiful, yet hard-hitting story, fluently written, presenting characters you fall in love with." 
~ Reviewed by Fennel at LASR

"A Top Pick! Another Fantastic Novel!!!! Anne Patrick's novel, "Fire and Ash" is a well-written novel that flows wonderfully. A fantastic read!" 
~ Night Owl Reviews

"A wonderful read, this book had me laughing and crying. True to life characters and vivid descriptions, along with comedy and heart stopping moments, make this a page turner you'll want to read again." 
~ Happily Ever After Reviews

"As a forensics show enthusiast, I found that Anne Patrick, in her book, Fire and Ash, goes into great, minute detail of the fire investigation, that puts you on the scent of a perpetrator.  Her unique ability to incorporate multiple plots to throw you off course makes the pages fly by to connect the dots."  
~ Onedesertrose's Christian Book Reviews Blog</ span>

"As a retired fire investigator I have to say kudos to Ms Patrick on her research. I normally don’t read romantic suspense, but this book sounded intriguing so I couldn't resist. I WAS NOT DISAPPOINTED" 
~Review from 'Fireboy' at Christianbook.com

Received Four Stars from Romantic Times Book Reviews!

LASR BEST BOOK of 2010 Nominee!

'Best Inspirational' 2010 at The Romance Reviews!</ span>

#1 Bestselling Suspense eBook, and #1 Bestselling Romance eBook at Christianbook.com!

Amazon Top 100 Bestseller in Christian Fiction!

Author Anne Patrick

Anne Patrick is the author of more than a dozen novels of Romance, Mayhem & Faith, including the award winning and bestselling WOUNDED HEROES SERIES, FIRE AND ASH, and TIES THAT BIND. When she isn't working on her next novel she enjoys spending time with family and friends, and traveling to foreign countries to experience new cultures and adventures. Born and raised in Oklahoma, she now makes her home in Kansas. 

Website * Blog * Twitter

She loves to hear from her readers!

Book Blast Giveaway
$25 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash
Ends 4/10/13

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer http:// iamareader.com and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

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To Love or Die in a Steamy-Reamy World by Emily White - Book Blast - Win $100

To Love or Die in a Steamy-Reamy World


10 Tales of Steampunk Silliness and Spookery
In the cozy seaside village of Steamville, New Hampshire, an unfaithful zombie, out of control werebots, succubi in corsets, and more wreak havoc in this short story collection from the author of Elemental.

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Just .99 cents

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Praise

"Well written and very fast paced. You won’t get bored or find your mind wandering. I’d love to see a sequel to this collection and see what happens next. I give this book five out of five donuts."

"This book starts off dipping its toe right into the heart of the story, not unlike Ms. White's YA novel Elemental, and the story never really slows down to a lazy pace; making it a very easy and fast read."

"Ms. White wonderfully succeeded in instilling humor into ten short stories about vampires, zombies, ghosts, and one mad scientist. Each story is brilliantly linked. The Victorian era setting delightfully adds to the humor."

"This is a wonderful mix of Steampunk and Horror written in Emily White's unmistakable brilliance and style. Does it get any better than that?"

About Author Emily White

Emily White lives in NY, wedged between two of the Great Lakes and a few feet of snow and ice. She's spent most of her life running away from the cold, and even spent a year in Iraq, but now contents herself with writing her characters into warm, exotic places in faraway galaxies. When not tapping away at her computer keys, she can be found reading, reading, and reading some more. And when she's not doing that, she's usually playing video games with her husband, peek-a-boo with her kids, or walking through her garden, wondering why the bugs insist on eating all her vegetables.

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Book Blast Giveaway
$100 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash
Ends 3/24/13


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Just What is "New Adult" Anyway?

With the sudden popping up of New Adult books, seemingly everywhere, I am sure I'm not the only one with questions about it, so we have BR Kingsolver, a New Adult author, here today to discuss what New Adult really is. Please feel free to add your opinions.

New Adult Literature – What is it?
Guest Post by BR Kingsolver

Publishers and bookstores, just like libraries, are obsessive in categorizing books. They need to be in order to file things properly so that they, and their customers, can find things. Unfortunately, this has a downside. What do you do with something that doesn’t fit? 

Young Adult, or YA as it’s called in the industry, was invented when publishers discovered that kids in high school know how to read. Prior to that time, there were children’s books and adult books. With the publication of Harry Potter, many adults discovered the YA category. In addition, high school kids grow up, but continue to read.

For some reason, publishers haven’t figured that out.

One of the myths in publishing is that adults want to read about adults, and children want to read about children. Teenagers read YA because they relate to the characters. And since college-age people don’t read fiction, books with college-age characters won’t sell.

As a result, authors who write about characters between high school and their mid-twenties are told that there’s no market for their books.

In the same way, many authors have been led to believe that the category of New Adult, where the characters are of that between age, are being read by people of that between age. And so a debate rages within the New Adult community as to exactly what it is.

Is New Adult aimed at readers between 18 and 25, or is it stories with characters between 18 and 25?

I know that many authors and readers in that age group feel the books are aimed at them. But if they stop and think about it, they might have read Harry Potter, Twilight or the Hunger Games when they were much older than the characters in the books.

A couple of years ago, St. Martin’s Press put out a call for New Adult books and coined the term. Some incorrectly classify it as a genre, but it is actually a category. Within the category, books in many genres have hit the market. What do I mean by genre? Science Fiction, Fantasy, Romance, Westerns, etc., are genres.

So what exactly is New Adult?

Some in the media have labeled New Adult as YA plus sex. But it is much more than that. After a character graduates high school, they are technically an adult. Faced with a new world of jobs, college or university, and adult romance, they have different motivations and challenges than they did as a teenager in high school. They are able to explore a wider world, travel, and experiment with sex. But that doesn’t automatically mean a story about someone who is 20 includes them having sex.

In another era, such stories were often called “coming of age” novels. Think about Pride and Prejudice, Catcher in the Rye, or Anna Karenina. I’ve often wondered if The Devil Wears Prada might be classified as New Adult.

As I said earlier, often people in that 18 to 25 age group feel such books are aimed at them and identify with the characters. They therefore fall into the same trap as the publishers, thinking that age group is the only market for the stories. But a much wider audience will read such books, both younger and older.

Many authors who have unwittingly written books with characters in this age range are surprised when they are rebuffed by publishers. The reasons are always the same. There’s no market. Agents and publishers suggest making the characters younger, getting rid of the sex. Or maybe make the characters older. Change the conflict. In other words, write a different book.

Self-publishing changed that. The growth of New Adult and the fact that some of the big six publishers are now soliciting NA manuscripts is directly attributable to sales of self-published novels, proving there really is a market.

In my own case, I was told that I should make my characters younger, get rid of the sex, and perhaps include some vampires. In other words, write a different book. Thankfully, what people read is no longer exclusively dictated by six large publishing companies. I just received a letter from a fan who raved about my new novel, Succubus Rising, the third book in the Telepathic Clans Saga. He’s read all three books and he definitely falls in the age range for New Adult novels. He’s 72.

The Succubus Gift
The Telepathic Clans, Book 1
by BR Kingsolver

The history of the Clans, called the Sidhe by the Irish, stretches back to antiquity. The Goddess blesses Her people with 25 Telepathic Gifts. In addition to Telepathy, the Gifts include command over Air and Fire, Telekinesis and Teleportation. In over 2,500 years, She has never bestowed more than 15 Gifts on a single person.

Brenna Morgan was orphaned at eight when her parents were killed in a plane crash. Through one foster home after another, she carried the ornate, carved wooden box her mother had left with her, keeping it always a secret. Then one night she stumbles over a man who claims her as family.

Brenna’s life isn’t the same after she discovers her unusual and mysterious heritage. In addition to being a telepath, Brenna learns she has the Succubus Gift.

That’s just the beginning of her problems. Someone is stalking her. Then there’s the tall, dangerous woman who shadows her and hints a Goddess has linked them. And what is she going to do with a handsome, charismatic, womanizing man she knows she should avoid?

Some days a girl just wants to pull the covers over her head and stay in bed -- with a willing young man of course.

Urban Fantasy with a dash of romance. The Succubus Gift is a completely different take on the succubus myth. Beautiful women and hot men in a world with a hidden telepathic subculture. 

Find out more about The Telepathic Clans on Goodreads. 

About the author:

I write books combining Adult Urban Fantasy, Paranormal Romance, and Science Fiction. I believe in fiction as an escape, with devastatingly beautiful women and incredibly sexy men.

In my books, you will find characters with psychic abilities, such as telekinesis and telepathy, and a completely different view of a succubus than you've ever encountered before.

I made silver and turquoise jewelry for almost a decade, ended up in nursing school, then took a master's in business. Along the way I worked in construction, as a newspaper editor, and somehow found a career working with computers.

I love the outdoors, especially the Rocky Mountains. I've skied since high school, with one broken leg and one torn ACL to show for it. I've hiked and camped all my life. I love to travel, though I haven't done enough of it. I've seen a lot of Russia and Mexico, not enough of England. Amsterdam is amazing, and the Romanian Alps are breathtaking. Lake Tahoe is a favorite, and someday I'd like to see Banff.

I have a very significant other, two cats and two Basset Hounds. I'm currently living in Baltimore, nine blocks from the harbor, but still own a home in New Mexico that I see too infrequently.

Find out more at BRKingsolver.com and Twitter.
 
If you are a New Adult author and would like to submit a guest post about what New Adult really is, please feel free to email me.

Falling in Love with Your Characters - Guest Post by Merry Farmer - Win a Starbucks Gift Card

Falling in Love with Your Characters
Guest Post by Merry Farmer
  
Conventional wisdom in the writing world says that you should write the kind of books that you want to read. That is absolutely true. But I am going to take that a step further for those of us who write Romance. When writing Romance, you should not only write the kind of story you want to read, you should create the kind of hero that you would fall in love with.

Falling in love with your hero is the best part of the process of writing a Romance, as far as I’m concerned. Just like a relationship in the real world, writing a first draft is like those first few weeks of dating. You’re getting to know the guy, his habits and his quirks. You’re exploring those things that drew you to him in the first place. And as the first few chapters develop into something more, you get that delicious, twitterpated feeling every time he walks into the room. The blush of first love is sweet indeed!

The best is yet to come, though. Over time you really get to know that character. You often get to see him at his worst as you put him through the trials and tribulations of the plot. The awesome thing about a hero in a Romance setting is that you get to see him hit rock-bottom, and then you get to witness the turn-around. Because in Romance the hero always rises above the pain of his circumstances. He stands by his woman and sacrifices for love. In Romance there is always a Happily Ever After. And that’s what makes the hero so irresistible!

I love every one of the heroes I’ve written so far. Okay, maybe that borders on polygamy a bit, but each one of them has something about them that really shakes my jig. I love Crispin in The Loyal Heart for his steadfast devotion to Aubrey, in spite of impossible odds and her own rather mean rejection (at first). I love Jack in The Faithful Heart for the sheer joy with which he faces life and the fact that he will do whatever it takes not only to win Madeline’s love, but to help the people who depend on him. I love Ethan in The Courageous Heart for his willingness to change when he hits rock-bottom – perhaps the rockiest bottom I’ve ever given one of my characters.

But lately I’ve been thinking a lot about my hero Michael West from Our Little Secrets. I could make the case that Michael is my favorite hero of all and that if every hero I’ve written was lined up in front of me, he would be the one I would go for. The thing is, Michael is not an alpha hero. He’s fast approaching middle age, he’s not particularly tall or handsome, and he wears glasses. He may also be the most tortured soul I’ve written. He can’t let the secrets of his past go, even when he can see the promise of the future in front of him.

Yep, I love a good tortured soul. And even though my best friend tells me I should stop making friends with crazy people, I can’t help but love Michael for all the whacky ways of thinking and painful missteps he makes throughout Our Little Secrets. He’s a great guy at heart, he just needs his heroine, Charlie, to bring it out in him. I cheered for him throughout the entire process of writing and revising that book, in spite of the facepalm-worthy mistakes he made along the way.

I love Michael as though he is a real person. And in the end that love shows through the pages. He’s real to me. All of my characters are real to me and they deserve all the love I can give them. In his book On Writing, Stephen King talks about how we as writers have to really know and respect our characters, even if we aren’t in love with them, but as I said at the start, I am a firm believer in the fact that in Romance love is most definitely the answer.

So who do you love? Which characters, of your own creation or someone else’s creation, are you head-over-heels for? Leave a comment below letting everyone know. One lucky winner will land themselves an eBook of Our Little Secrets so you can see who I’m in love with and a Starbucks gift card. Good luck and good loving!

Our Little Secrets
by Merry Farmer

Michael West swore he would never fall in love again. So when the beautiful and wily Charlotte steps off the train looking for a new life he jumps at the business opportunity she presents. Engaged forty-five minutes after meeting, married the next day, Michael thinks he’s found everything a respectable man should have. Except that Michael is as far from respectable as they come. They agreed not to ask questions about each other’s pasts, but when the past seeps into their present Michael suspects his passionate new wife is not who she says she is. Too bad he’s already fallen in love with her.

Charlotte Baldwin has a secret. She fled Philadelphia to escape the sins of her past but someone is following her. What better way to hide than by marrying Michael West, Cold Springs, Montana’s enigmatic shopkeeper? A new name, a new life, and a passionate husband is exactly what she needs to leave her sins behind. But when it comes to keeping secrets Charlotte may have met her match in Michael. When a connection neither of them expects catches up with them, the shocking revelation means Charlotte may have run right into the arms of her enemy.

No sin stays a secret forever…. 

About the author:
Merry Farmer is an award-winning novelist who lives in suburban Philadelphia with her two cats, Butterfly and Torpedo. She has been writing since she was ten years old and realized one day that she didn't have to wait for the teacher to assign a creative writing project to write something. It was the best day of her life. She then went on to earn not one but two degrees in History so that she would always having something to write about. Today she is a giant History nerd and a hopeless romantic waiting for her own love story to start. Her first book, The Loyal Heart, is a swashbuckling Medieval Historical Romance involving a love triangle that will keep you guessing.  Both The Loyal Heart and its sequels, The Faithful Heart and The Courageous Heart, are available wherever eBooks are sold.  She has also begun a new Western Historical Romance series set in Montana in 1895.  The first of that series, Our Little Secrets, is now available.  The second, Fool for Love, will be released in early 2013.  Merry is also passionate about blogging, knitting, and cricket and is working towards becoming an internationally certified cricket scorer. 

Find out more at MerryFarmer.net.

Giveaway:
As mentioned above, Merry is giving one lucky winner an eBook of Our Little Secrets and a Starbucks gift card. To enter, leave a comment answering the question asked by Merry. Then, to keep you from having to publicly display your email addresses, please fill out the Rafflecopter form after you have commented.

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What Do We Learn From Issue Books, Besides the Issue? Guest Post by Kim Purcell & Win a Signed Copy of Trafficked

What Do We Learn From Issue Books, 
Besides the Issue?
Guest Post by Kim Purcell

I like to think of Trafficked as a page-turner that helps people escape their problems for a while, and I believe this is one of the gifts of any good book, but I also hope that it, like other issue books, gives readers something to think about when it's done. A good issue book teaches us not only about the issue, but also about human nature, revealing our own weaknesses and strengths as people.

I wrote Trafficked because I was shocked that people were kept as slaves in regular homes in many developed countries, especially in this day and age. I figured that modern-day slavery happened in developing countries, but certainly not right where I live, in my own neighborhood. Since the book has come out, many readers have told me they had no idea this happened in America. So, on a basic level, issue books do teach us about the issue, but there is so much more beneath any issue.

In many cases, what is beneath the issue is fear, which is something we all experience. When I did more research into human trafficking, I learned that in most cases, these girls and women had chances to escape and they chose not to because they were too afraid of what might happen. This fascinated me because I realized then that they weren’t any different from any of us who want to do something, but we don’t, out of fear. I hope readers see themselves in the main character, Hannah, as I saw myself. We all have fears to overcome. As a writer, I had so many fears about rejection and failure to overcome. I think when you see a rawness of emotion in a character, in this case, fear, you can’t help but look at your own life and think, I’m afraid too.

Issue books aren’t about weak victims, so different from ourselves, but rather they are illuminating the human experience and exploring issues that touch everyone, whether we know it or not. When people read Trafficked, I hope they see that modern-day slaves aren’t so different from themselves. I hope they read it and think, this could happen to someone like me and it could happen to someone I know. This book is about a foreigner who comes to America with a dream. Don’t we all have dreams? What do we do when it looks like those dreams won’t happen for us? Do we push harder or do we give up?

Sometimes we separate ourselves from an issue, saying I don’t know anyone who does that. Really? How can any of us be sure that a particular issue doesn’t affect us? Estimates are that around 16 thousand foreigners are trafficked into America each year, and 100 000 American kids are trafficked within America every year. If we separate ourselves from people in any terrible situation, it keeps us from seeing what’s happening just down the street, or maybe in our own house. This is true whether we read a book about trafficking, or about suicide, cutting, depression and bullying. We are all affected in some way.

When we create awareness about issues through fiction, we de-stigmatize all issues and provide a dialogue for people, a forum for people to come forward about any problem. We take away the shame and we create the impetus for change.

I hope when people read Trafficked, they will be motivated to do something about this terrible problem: maybe push for stricter laws, start fundraisers for victims, or simply pass the book on to create more awareness. If nothing else, I hope that after reading this book, people will be kinder to those they meet who don’t speak English perfectly. Maybe they will expand their awareness and notice people who are in trouble. Most of all, I hope that some girl somewhere will read this book and when a trafficker approaches her with his empty promises, she’ll walk away. 

Trafficked
by Kim Purcell

A 17-year-old Moldovan girl whose parents have been killed is brought to the United States to work as a slave for a family in Los Angeles.

Hannah believes she’s being brought from Moldova to Los Angeles to become a nanny for a Russian family. But her American dream quickly spirals into a nightmare. The Platonovs force Hannah to work sixteen-hour days, won’t let her leave the house, and seem to have a lot of secrets—from Hannah and from each other.

Stranded in a foreign land with false documents, no money, and nobody who can help her, Hannah must find a way to save herself from her new status as a modern-day slave or risk losing the one thing she has left: her life. 

About the author:
Kim Purcell is a journalist, teacher and novelist. When she’s not writing or teaching writing workshops, she loves doing yoga, going for long runs with her dog, playing board games with family, and dancing in empty elevators to cheesy elevator music.

Find out more at KimPurcell.com and on Twitter. Check out Trafficked on Goodreads.

Giveaway:
1 winner will receive a signed copy of Trafficked.

Giveaway details:
Open to the US and Canada. Giveaway is open until midnight March 17, 2013. Must be 13 or older to enter. Winner will be chosen using Random.org. Winner will be emailed and must respond within 3 days or a new winner will be selected.

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Winner: Jess

Souls of Darkness by Eleanor T. Beaty - Excerpt & Giveaways

Excerpt: 
It took two extra turns before the car obeyed. They almost ran off the road. Alex couldn't hold back any longer and burst out laughing. "Did you ever consider Googling this island… getting an update?" The bumpy road made it hard to talk.

"Gosh, no… since the phone number hadn't changed."

"That should've been a clue: same number for thirty years? And how did you rent this wicked piece of metal?"

"The guy from the hotel… I should have suspected, he only charged me a hundred dollars for three weeks."

"And you thought you got a great deal!" Alex groaned. "The house is probably a shack with an outhouse where snakes make their nests. Spiders all around."

"The lack of progress is…."

"Suspicious."

"Disturbing," Charlotte half-whispered.

Ten minutes later they came upon a clearing to the left. As if in a suspense film, Alex and his mother held their breath while they drove up the short driveway and then stared speechless at the house.

"Wow… it's cute… and well cared for." His mother turned off the engine.

"It looks almost… American. It reminds me of Grammy's old house in Fort Lauderdale."

"You're right, those 1960's wood houses. Huh. This is great!"

Alex wrinkled his nose. "Too good to be true?"

"Let's check it out before we unload. If it's bad, we can stay at the Mayan Hotel."

His mother inched the door open, as if she expected something to jump out.

"Will you just go in," Alex said, looking around the thick and dense vegetation next to the house. He had the strange sensation of being watched. Maybe a wild animal. Oh, God, what type of wild animals do they have on this island?

"Wow, it's not bad. Not bad at all," his mother said.

Alex agreed as he stood in the small kitchen, which opened into a dining room/living room. A porch stretched out beyond the spacious room.

Charlotte turned into a hall on the left, across from the kitchen. "Two bedrooms and two bathrooms; actually one's a suite."

Alex played with the light switch near the door. "We've got light!" He looked around, "And no TV and… and no phone? No. This is bad. Mom, there's no phone!" So much for bringing my computer. And so much for buying the PC card. Cris had told him to get one in the event his only option was dial up.  He crossed to the porch. The beach seemed to be a mile in length and wide enough to make him feel lazy about going for a swim. A low stone wall ran along both sides of the house. He took out his cell, turned it on and began looking for a signal.

His mother came up from behind. "Oh, my God! This is paradise. Look at this amazing clean and empty beach, blue-green water!"

Alex cringed. "Yeah, I'm blown away."

Charlotte laughed. "I guess this isn't your definition of paradise."

Souls of Darkness

by Eleanor T. Beaty

Alex’s life is turned upside down after his father’s sudden death. An old pamphlet found in his father’s belongings leads Alex and his mother, Charlotte, to a remote Polynesian island. His mother longs for a place untouched by past memories, and Alex hopes the trip will help her to heal.

Their arrival on the island elicits an eerie episode of déjà vu for Alex, and he begins to wonder about the pamphlet and his father’s past. Why did he have it? Had he been there before?

Alex senses something is off with the island. Progress is unwelcome by the inhabitants. A local girl reveals the history of the island and its dark spirits. She warns him to never be caught outside after dark, but Alex finds it all hard to believe... Until inexplicable and terrifying events begin to unfold. While digging for information, Alex finds his presence on the haunted island is not by chance. Rangur, the most evil of souls, aims to use him to acquire great power. There's only one way Alex can stop him and for that he must uncover his father's past connection to the island. 

Purchase Links:

Amazon eBook: http://www.amazon.com/Souls-of-Darkness-ebook/dp/B00BC5KWM8

Amazon Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Souls-Darkness-Eleanor-T-Beaty/dp/0988590115

  
About the author:
Eleanor T. Beaty is a Young Adult Paranormal author. A worldly person born in beautiful Brazil and spent much of her childhood in several places (Argentina, Switzerland, and the US to name a few). She holds a BA in English Literature and is published in both Brazil and Turkey.

Eleanor loves spirituality and magic - both have allowed her to gain a strong grip on life and enjoy what it has to offer. She believes that everything has a reason and understanding those reasons help us deal with the difficult moments. Eleanor currently enjoys life with her husband in Brazil.

Follow her at EleanorTBeaty.com.


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