Blog Tour: Day After by Emi Gayle – What are the top 10 races Winn Thomas thinks Mac would never choose? + #Giveaway

I’m a HUGE fan of the 19th Year Trilogy, so I’m excited to be a part of this tour.

For my stop I have the geekalicious Winn Thomas himself, with his top 10 list of races he thinks Mac would never choose. But first, let’s take a look at this great book.

Demon crypts. Vampire lairs. Glowing angels. Sexy sirens. The stuff of fiction.

Or so Winn Thomas always thought.

Since being accepted into the fold of the supernatural, he knows better. None of what he imagined is true, but everything he feared is, and binding himself to his Changeling girlfriend until her nineteenth birthday will give him an education far beyond what he’d get at his human high school.

Luckily, Winn’s not giving up, he won’t back down, and he definitely isn’t going to run away with his tail between his legs. After all, only werewolves have tails. Right?

In this, the second of the 19th Year trilogy, Winn’s facing the challenge of one lifetime. If he doesn’t learn the truth about mythological creatures, his girlfriend Mac Thorne won’t either. That means, in six months, when she chooses her final form, she won’t know what to pick.

Winn, though, has his own ideas about Mac’s final selection—plans she knows nothing of.

He intends to have her pick human.

Whether she can or not.

~~~~~

Sounds awesome, right?

That’s because it is.

So, how about I introduce to a little Winn then?

Here’s his post:

~~~~~

Top 10 races Winn thinks Mac would NEVER choose.

1. Cyclops. She couldn’t stand only having one eye
2. Mermaid. No way could she ever deal with having a fish tale.
3. Chupacabra. Gross! Even I know that.
4. Leprechaun. Short!
5. Sasquatch. Yeah, no on that one, too. Can you imagine her hairy?
6. Sparkly vampire. Actual vampire, maybe, but even that might be on the list.
7. Acheri demon. Mac can barely stand people her own age, let alone little ones
8. Angel. Her arch nemesis is one, so obviously, that’s out.
9. Cupids. Um … naked babies? Yeah, no.
10. Ghouls. She does have some standards, geez!

~~~~~

Hehehehe, I think I might actually agree with him. Dude seems to know Mac pretty well.

Oh! But that’s not all. Nope. I have another treat for you.

How about an excerpt of this great book?

Yeah, that’s what I thought you’d say.

It’s all yours:

~~~~~

Sitting in front of the twelve most powerful non-humans on the earth would have shaken a lesser guy. In my case, I’d almost thrown up. Twice.

‘Don’t worry,’ Mackenzie Thorne, my girlfriend, had said. ’‘It’s just a formality.

She hadn’t known I’d have to go alone.

Only the intake and exhalation of air in the room made any sound. Eerie light flickered from the tips of candles mounted along dark, oak-paneled walls.

I refused to look anywhere but ahead of me. To the long, wooden, medieval-length table.

Waiting.

Watching.

Holding my own breath.

For a moment, it seemed the walls began to close in on me.

At almost midnight on the first day of the year, I prepared to accept a fate no other human had ever taken on, been given or even offered. In response, sweat pooled under my armpits as alternating cold and hot ran through me.

The scratch of wood against wood had heads turning. Mine included.

Nahir, the oldest of the twelve, rose from his chair. “Winford Richmond Thomas, please rise.” His voice had a gravelly, hoarse sound.

I did as requested, my knees pressing against each other.

Nahir moved closer to me, his grandfatherly, human form disappearing under protruding scales of deep green. His arms lengthened into dinosaur-like paws and hit the rock floor, making the room around us shake. Thick wings extended from his body, and a tail lashed out against the wall behind him, rattling the candles.

A dragon, in the color of tropical ocean water, stood before me, huffing air from horse-sized nostrils.

Oh. God. I’m going to die.

Not going to die. It’s part of the test. Remember, you have to see them all. Mac’s words flowed through my mind. 

Keep breathing.

“Master Thomas.” Josie, a siren and one of the most beautiful women I’d ever met, rose, her long flowing gown matching the color of her reddish-gold hair. I couldn’t help but stare at her. “You’ve been asked by our current changeling, Miss Maya Mackenzie Thorne, to be her teacher. Have you willingly agreed to take on this duty?” As Josie talked, she stalked forward, shimmering, shifting, the already-pretty woman becoming deadly man-hunting female—according to the legends I’d read.

Vibes ebbed from her like the rocking tide. If she sang, throwing up would be the least of my worries. I’d be dead by sexual self-implosion.

With a rough cough, I gathered my wits. “Yes. I have accepted. Willingly.” Every nerve ending in my body urged me to go to Josie, to let her take me and do with me whatever she wanted. A groan built in my throat, tension straining my limbs, most particularly, my crotch. Not now! The need to shift what grew sent heat to my cheeks even as Mac’s words played through again. Force yourself not to react to any of them. They’ll think you’re stronger than you are since you’re only human.

Only human. Problem number one.

~~~~~

And if we’ve now defo got your interest, you can grab yourself a copy of Day After at:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

OR ….

you can just try and win yourself a copy in Emi’s giveaway.

Yep, there are signed copies up for grabs, e-copies up for grabs–bookmarks, too.

All’s you gotta do is follow the RAFFLECOPTER!

Good luck!

p.s. you can read MY review of Day After over at Bookaroo-Ju.

~~~~~

Emi Gayle just wants to be young again. She lives vicariously through her youthful characters, while simultaneously acting as chief-Mom to her teenaged son and searching for a way to keep her two daughters from ever reaching the dreaded teen years.

Ironically, those years were some of Emi’s favorite times. She met the man of her dreams at 14, was engaged to him at 19, married him at 20 and she’s still in love with him to this day. She’ll never forget what it was like to fall in love at such a young age — emotions she wants everyone to feel.

Blog Tour: Silent Echoes by Aimee Laine: How Would You Interpret ‘What’s the Time, Mr Wolf?’ into a Game of Zeus?

Howdy, howdy, howdy, and welcome to my stop on the Silent Echoes Blog Tour.  I Luuurved Silent Echose–it’s a great addition to this series (and Tripp Fox in Hide & Seek is one of my top book boyfriends so he was a lot to live up to). And today, I have a real treat for you, because I’m handing over my blog to Aimee Laine for a special Games of Zeus post.

Aimee, it’s all yours.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Silent Echoes is a “Games of Zeus” novel but it’s not a traditional mythological conundrum. No, as the author, I’ve taken quite the liberties in creating a situation Zeus could have use to mess with we puny humans.

So, to have a little fun as Silent Echoes releases this month, my host here at J.A. Belfield’s blog has challenged me to create a Game of Zeus out of What’s the time, Mr Wolf!

How could Zeus use What’s the time, Mr Wolf upon two unsuspecting humans? How could he manipulate a seemingly inocuous game into a maniacal, devious relationship conflict? Oh, let me count the ways … or rather, let me show you.

What’s the time, Mr Wolf?

From Wikipedia:

“One player is chosen to be Mr Wolf. Mr Wolf stands at the opposite end of the playing field from the other players, facing away from them. A call-and-response then takes place: all players except for Mr Wolf chant in unison “What’s the time, Mr Wolf?”, and Mr Wolf will answer in one of the two ways:

1) Mr Wolf may call a clock time (e.g., “3 o’clock”). The other players will then take that many steps out loud as they go (“One, two, three”). Then they ask the question again.

1. Mr Wolf may call “Dinner Time!” Then Mr Wolf will turn and chase the other players back to their starting point. If Mr Wolf successfully tags a player, that player becomes the new Mr Wolf for the next round.”

Before we get to the ultimate What’s the time, Mr Wolf? romance … let me tell you a little about Silent Echoes.

For years, Ian Sands has enjoyed his life as a bachelor, taking advantage of singlehood and exploring his own definition of passion—whoever she may be. Blonde. Brunette. Tall. Short. Hot. Not. Five months ago, all that changed.

Ian’s been celibate, frustrated and desperately seeking answers to why one woman, who doesn’t play by girls’ rules, haunts his every waking moment.

As a renovations specialist, Taylor Marsh lives, works and breathes construction—a profession her southern belle of a mother would rather Taylor not touch. The same goes for Ian; Mama Marsh would never approve of him.

Like Ian, though, each time he and Taylor draw near, something compels her to get closer.

Something else tells her to run away.

Fast.

As much as their histories suggest they shouldn’t be together, neither Taylor nor Ian can deny the pull, and the two succumb, indulging in a relationship that brings pleasure to body, mind and soul.

Doing so, though, also ushers in a series of events both should have foreseen as well as one final outcome neither expected.

And now … 

What’s the time, Mr Wolf?

This game reminds me of Red Light/Green Light. Of course, for J.A. Belfield, the ‘Wolf’ theme certainly does seem like it applies more given her propensity for wolves!

Now, how would the awesome Zeus take wolves or rather, this kids’ game and turn it into a conflict or conundrum for two characters? I’m thinking very very simply.

You know that prize you want? The one that been on your radar forever … maybe it’s a jewel. A book. A date with a Hollywood hottie. The lottery. Whatever it is, Zues would make sure that it’s unattainable.

Now, per the rules of the game, only one can be the Wolf and the other must be chasing after the Wolf, only to be chased BY the wolf.

So let’s have Him authorize Her forward.

One. Step. At. A Time.

Of course, He and She probably aren’t going to like each other too much. Maybe he has the prize. Maybe he’s letting her get closer with a date. A kiss. Something more. Something less.

Start. Stop. Start. Stop.

Will there be a point where he breaks the pattern and goes after her? Oh yeah. The twist in a good Zeus game is that she’ll then be able to start and stop Him. With a catch of course. The moment they switch places, she will no longer desire the thing that brought them together, but he will.

How does one resolve a situation that changes every time the lead shifts? Think like a wolf and I think you’ll have an idea.

And there you have it. What do you think? Is What’s the time, Mr Wolf? a possible Game of Zeus?

Aimee is a romantic at heart and a southern transplant with a bit of the accent (but not a whole bunch). She’s married to her high school sweetheart, and with him, she’s produced three native North Carolinians, two of whom share the same DNA.

With an MBA and a degree in Applied Mathematics, there’s absolutely no reason she should be writing romance novels. Then again, she shouldn’t need a calculator to add two numbers, either … but she does.

Find her here: Website | Twitter | Facebook

 

Blog Tour: Soul Avenged by Keri Lake: Guest Post + Giveaway

OOoooooookay. So, here I am on the blog tour for Keri Lake’s Soul Avenged, and I cannot tell you how excited I am.

Because:

1) I’ve read this, and LOVED it. Like, reaaaally loved it.

2) I have an absolute treat of a post for you guys today.

When Keri offered me early pick on my stop, I decided to be a little bit tough on her.

Because having read this, I already had a handle on the characters, and there is a mention in the story of a place called Obsidius. Now, I think I’m allowed to explain: Obsidius is kinda like a demonic prison for demons who have wronged, where they get tortured pretty horrendously, and two of the Sons of Wrath just happen to have spent time there–but, in Soul Avenged, because it occurred in times past, we don’t get to see it.

And I wanted to.

So I challenged Keri to write me a scene, from the POV of one of the brothers, of their time spent in this hellish place.

And because Keri loves a challenge (which I was counting on), she accepted.

But before I share it, let’s take a quick peek at this book I’ve been blathering on about for weeks.

Passion is blind in vengeance and love …

Ayden’s suburban home was invaded by a pack of Lycans.

The brutal attack is the only memory she carries of her former life.

Now, one motive burns in her soul:

KILL THEM ALL.

The Sons of Wrath—a brood of vengeance-dealing warrior demons—band with Ayden to hunt the Lycans on Detroit’s most deadly feeding grounds.

Kane Walker should’ve been her easiest kill.

Unfortunately, the newly bitten Lycan has something she wants—clues that may finally lay her past to rest. To reach them, she must be willing to submit to the sensual pleasures awakened by his touch.

Time is running out.

In seven days, Kane will become what Ayden despises most. She can halt his transformation but the antidote requires the ultimate sacrifice. As the beast takes hold, Kane becomes more of a threat.

Ayden must choose between her lust for revenge, or surrender to her enemy and discover a horrible truth.

Sons of Wrath
Never gamble with vengeance

See? Sounds awesome, right?

You can buy it at: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords

So you ready to see my–I mean, Keri’s post?

Below …

but WARNING: Contains Strong Language so please do not read if easily offended by profanity.

~~~~~~~~~~

A Night in Obsidius

The bone gavel cracked against the sound block.  Its echo traveled Gavin’s spine and for a brief moment, tested his nerve.  Jaw clenched, he leveled his gaze in the direction of the high demon official who’d just committed him to fifty years in the most feared prison of the Underworld.

Obsidius.

Only the craziest bastards were sent to Obsidius.  Gavin questioned his own sanity as held out his hands, allowing the Enforcer Demon to shackle him.  What the hell kind of freak volunteers to spend five decades in hell’s prison?  No doubt his brother was thinking the same thing.

Gavin looked beside him.

Logan—the youngest of Wrath’s sons—stood with a frown, his gaze cast downward, away from Gavin.  “Why?”

“Because whether you believe me or not, I am your brother.  You are a son of Wrath.  We are bound by blood.”

“They say that even those who survive here never escape the hell.”Logan’s voice carried a chilling edge of intrigue than despair.

“All the more reason I’m glad to have cut your sentence in half,” Gavin said before the yank to his bindings jerked him forward.

A century of misery had been doled out to Logan for killing a high-ranking demon official who murdered his mother.  As his brother’s Brozszius, or advocate in the demon realm, Gavin agreed to half of the punishment.

A door on the opposite side of the Orcosii’s court opened to a dark corridor and silence.  Only the drag of chains against the concrete sliced through what felt like a momentary suspension of Gavin’s existence.  Like the final breath just before death seeped out from the shadows to swallow his soul.

As if being sentenced to five decades of torture wasn’t enough, the Enforcer that led them down the path to this twisted Disneyland of pain had to be one of the meanest looking bastards in Orcosia.  Enforcer Demons, their breed designed to dish punishment as both tormentors and mercenaries, were often hired as bounty hunters in the human realm.  Covered in a black carapace with a medieval looking weapon like a double sickle sword, they were about the most intimidating beasts Gavin had ever seen—andWrath Demons weren’t easily intimidated.

Pulling a set of keys from its holster, the Enforcer stopped before a black door that Gavin estimated to be about ten feet in height.  Heat bled through the gaps—an ominous sensation that crawled over Gavin’s skin.  The patterns of rot etched into the wood looked almost like the blackened souls of the victims punching through from the other side, eternally trapped within its threshold.

No going back. 

Not that he would.  No brother of Gavin’s was going to take a full term punishment in this place.  Even if Logan hadn’t yet accepted him as his own blood, Gavin couldn’t bring himself to let his brother suffer an unjust sentence.

He shot one glance at Logan, whose face remained stoic as ever.  Christ, did the kid ever show the slightest bit of fear?  His nerves must’ve been fashioned with some impenetrable grade of steel only found in the ‘batshit crazy’ bin of demon body parts.

The door swung open to the orange glow of flames in the center of a circular path.  Hell’s fire burned much hotter than the earthly variety—the same brand of pain that his brother Ferno carried, makinghim the one of the more dangerous Wrath Demons.

Impervious black doors lined multiple levels overlooking the pyre that licked the boundless darkness above them.  Ash rained from the sky like snowflakes and for a moment Gavin wondered if they were the vestiges of victims who’d been burned alive.  With a sharp exhale from the corner of his mouth he blew the hot cinders off his cheek.  Screams echoed from all directions, a blanket of suffering that settled over him as he scanned the surroundings, squinting his eyes to keep the ash out.  The cries weren’t the shallow screams of new horrors, but the tired wailing of long-lived agony.

The words of his Divine Matron drifted through his mind.  Stay strong.  Stay true.  And above all else, never let it break you.  She’d also called him insane.  But then, for whatever reason, Cefirinahad always harbored some distaste for Logan.

His vision told him at the very least, he’d survive it in the end.  But fuck if it didn’t give him a single clue as to what happened in between.  The down side of being half-seer:  half-ass predictions of his future.

This would be the first of many nights.  Daylight never touched Obsidius—only nightmares that arrived in a relentless stretch of midnight—or so the rumors went.  He’d be tortured in ways he couldn’t even begin to imagine.

The clinking of chains tapped an unfaltering cadence as they clambered the black tarry-looking stairs to the second level.   Gavin peered over the railless ledge at the other Enforcers moving below with purpose, like oversized warrior ants at a flesh picnic.  The one leading himcame to a halt in front of two adjacent doors.Dread churned in Gavin’s stomach.  Their chambers were side by side—meaning his brother’s sufferance would be his own.

Logan stood behind his assigned Enforcer who unlocked the door, and glanced over at Gavin.  “See you on the other side.”  Not an ounce of humility in his voice.  His eyes appearedfocused and unfettered as if his mind was resolved to the possibility that his immortal body might be sacrificedfor the gruesome torment that awaited him.

Gavin nodded and entered his own chamber.  In spite of the fire that burned outside of the room, a cold emptiness lingered on the inside.  Gray stone walls didn’t carry evidence of life like many prisons with markings and chipping.  Instead their dull, smooth surface told a story of forgotten death.

The slab of concrete in the center of the room, with spattered flecks of blood, would serve as Gavin’s bed for the next fifty years. A tug on his shackles brought him standing before the Enforcer Demon.  His binds were removed and the Enforcer paused, a silent command that prompted Gavin to climb atop. The uneven surface bit into his flesh—a far cry from the plush mattress and satin sheets of his own bed back at the manor.  One by one his hands and legs were bound at the corners.  The flicker of light from outside the room faded to complete blackness and the thump of the door.  A soft white glow blossomed from somewhere below Gavin, casting enough light to see his reflection in the mirrored ceiling.What kind of twisted bullshit … and yet at the same time, it didn’t surprise him.

Lifeless, beady eyes of Gavin’s captorobstructed his view and stared down at him like those of a shark—undeterred by emotions, driven by instincts.  Sick fucks were masters of both physical and mental torture.  There’d be no mercy.  No admiration for volunteering on his brother’s behalf.  Only pain.  The kind of dark shadows that nested deep inside the soul and remained dormant.

Wrath demons didn’t register pain likemost species of the Underworld—their bodies were designed to endure physical destruction.  Yeah they had nerves and could sense an assault to the flesh, but their wounds healed so quickly, the agony tended to be short-lived.  Obsidius had methods of punishing all breeds of demon though, with centuries of effective torture tactics, perfected to break a victim—by any means.

The Enforcer pulled a small blade from a side holster and as he held the gleaming metal in front Gavin’s face, tipped his head.  Goddamn if those beady eyes didn’t squint into something of a smile.  The blade disappeared from Gavin’s view and he lifted his gaze once more toward the ceiling.  In the reflection, the Enforcer zipped the blade across his chest, the sound of tearing trailing his movement as he sliced away Gavin’s black t-shirt, exposing his bare skin.  He tried to imagine what his flesh might look like near the end of his punishment.

So much for a great complexion.

Gavin sucked in a breath through his nose, rolled his shoulders back against the rough concrete, flexed his arms and gave a sharp tug of his bindings.  “Let the fucking games begin,” he muttered.

~~~~~~~~~

Gavin. *sigh* Logan. *rubs thighs*

Man, oh, man, I kinda adore these guys.

Anyway, moving swiftly on before any kind of salivating kicks in, let me tell you about the contest!

To celebrate the release of Soul Avenged, Keri is holding one BADA$$ giveaway.

Here’s what you can win:

Soul Avenged Blog Tour “Fire & Ice” Giveaway

Grand Prize:  (Valued at approximately $280)

1-Kindle Fire HD (approximate value $199)

1-Signed Paperback Soul Avenged (Sons of Wrath, #1)

1-Sons of Wrath t-shirt

1-Sons of Wrath coffee mug

1-Soul Avenged Notebook

1^st Runner-Up:  (Valued at approximately $75)

1-$25 iTunesgiftcard

1-Signed Paperback Soul Avenged (Sons of Wrath, #1)

1-Sons of Wrath t-shirt

1-Sons of Wrath coffee mug

1-Sons of Wrath notebook

2^nd Runner-Up: (Valued at approximately $35)

1-Signed Paperback Soul Avenged (Sons of Wrath, #1)

1-Sons of Wrath t-shirt

See? BADA$$

And to enter, all’s you gotta do is clicky on the Rafflecopter LINK!!!!!!!

Off you go, go, gooooooooooo!

You can also check out the tour schedule HERE!

~~~~~~~~~~

Keri Lake is a married mother of two living in Michigan.  She writes paranormal romance, urban fantasy and loves a good, tragic love story.  Though novels tend to be her focus, she also writes short stories and flash fiction whenever distraction manages to suck her in to the Land of Shiny Things.

When she isn’t toiling away on plots and protagonists, she enjoys reading, music and travel.  If she could create mystical powers for herself, she’d have the ability to flash to anywhere in the world.  And if she could flash to anywhere in the world at this very moment, she’d be staring at the ocean from her adirondack chair on the shores of North Carolina.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Amazon Author Page

Resonance Blog Tour Sign-Ups are now OPEN!

Yep, the Resonance two week-long Blog Tour will be beginning in April to mark the release of Holloway Pack 2.5. And throughout it, we’ll be running a month-long giveaway, with the intention of getting Resonance into the hands of my readers.

Here’s the scoop on how it’s gonna work (from my website):

~~~~

April 2nd 2013 marks the official release of Resonance upon the world, and yes, Resonance will be available to purchase at all of the usual outlets. However, because I love and appreciate my fans so much, I decided I wanted a chance to give something back.

A little while back, discussions were had with my editor, ones that went along the lines of: ‘But I want to be able to give it to my fans for free.’

So, after much back and forthing, we figured out a way to do exactly that.

Resonance’s Blog Tour, which will run from April 2nd to April 16th, will primarily promote this giveaway. And the giveaway will remain open for the entire month–until May 2nd. 

The prize?

I vow to give away a FREE copy of Resonance to everyone who submits a valid entry between April 2nd and May 2nd (inclusive).

And one main-prize winner will receive a swag-bundle (contents will be revealed throughout the blog tour).

So what do you have to do to enter?

Simples. Read on.

Resonance is, by no means, intended to be read as a standalone. If you haven’t read at least Blue Moon, then you will have absolutely no idea what is happening in Resonance. Also, if you haven’t read Blue Moon, then you will be hit upside the head with one massive spoiler for how the book ends if you read Resonance first.

Here’s the deal. You can enter in any (or all, if you wish) of the following ways:

1) 

Post a picture of you with your precious copy or Blue Moon somewhere on the Internet. 
It does not have to be a hard copy (paperback); it can be the cover image on the screen of your Kindle/e-reader/reading tablet. No, pdf’s do not count. If you have a pdf, then it’s most probably an illegal copy, and so will only upset me. 
Once said picture is posted, link me up so I can see it. If you stick it on FB, then tag me, but remember, I have a space (for some bizarre reason) between my initials on there. So, make sure you use @J. A. Belfield in your tag. NB: There will be a space in the Rafflecopter form to paste in a link to your pic, also, just in case I miss any or the tagging doesn’t work. If you stick it on Twitter, then be sure to mention: @JABelfield so I can see your entry. And if you happen to stick it anywhere else, then be sure to forward a link to the post to j.a.belfield72 at gmail.com and include ‘The Big Resonance Giveaway’ in the subject line. 

2) 

Post a review for Blue Moon. 
Obviously, I’d prefer amazing ones, but I get that my writing won’t jive for everyone, so any review over 100 words will be accepted, even if it doesn’t rave and include 4/5 stars. However, I will read each review carefully (because I always do), and ascertain that I believe the book has actually been read rather than a review being composed out of a rewrite of the blurb (yes, this does happen on occasion). 
Where you post your review is up to you. On Goodreads. Amazon. B&N. On your blog. Completely up to you. But the Rafflecopter form will have separate entry options for each of these places, and each one will be included as an entry toward the main prize.

Make sense?

Excellent!

See you in April.

~~~~~

And sign-ups for the Blog Tour are now OPEN!

If you want to take part, even if it’s only to post about the giveaway, then please fill in the sign-up form HERE!

Please note: Signs-ups will only remain open for ONE WEEK, due to early interest and bookings already flying in. Posts will be offered on a first-come-first-served basis. Anyone I’m unable to accomodate with their post request will still be given the option to participate in hosting the giveaway.

As always. Thank you so much. Without you guys helping out the way you do, I’d still be flailing around trying to grab attention.

Blog Tour: An Interview with Reaper’s L.S. Murphy :D

Here I am on my stop for the Reaper Blog Tour, and man, do I have a treat for you.

She’s as quirky as Quincy, as witty as … well, me (ha!), and a whole lotta fun to stalk.

Yep, that’s right, my guest for today iiiiiiiisssssssssssssss

L.S. Murphy: Author of YA novel Reaper.

*Cue the clackers*

Howdy, LS. Lovely to have you here on my blog. Now I’ve read Reaper, so I already know what it’s about, but how about doing a quick tagline for my visitors who haven’t?

Thanks for having me.

Reaper is the story of sixteen-year-old Quincy Amarante who discovers her destiny is to become a grim reaper, and she’s not exactly happy about this.

Yup, that about sums it up in a nutshell.

As mentioned above, Quincy is a pretty quirky character. Did you base her on anyone you know? Or was she plucked straight from the wisps of your mind?

Quin sprung from the depths of my imagination, but some of her more witchy attributes are accumulative of things I saw/witnessed/was the brunt of during my own high school days.

Yeah, love those high school kids, eh?

How about Ben? He’s a cutesy, for sure. Base him on a childhood crush, mebbe?

More like he’s based on my adult crush on Billie Joe Armstrong from Green Day.  *sigh*

Hehehe, cute.

So what else can we expect from you in the future? You’ve recently had an adult contemp romance published: A Reason to Stay, but will you be wowing us with more YA fun?

*crosses fingers* I have quite a few things going on. In June I signed with an amazing literary agent , Julia Weber of J. A. Weber Literaturagenturwith a YA contemp about seventeen-year-old Victoria Hudson who joins a boys summer baseball league without her ambitious father’s knowledge. Currently I’m in the rewriting stage for another YA contemp about seventeen-year-old Piper Marks who is forced to move from the big city to a small town in Iowa where she meets a boy with a deeply buried secret. And I’m outlining something else. No rest for the wicked, right?

That’s great to hear. Good luck with the subs.

Now time for a little bit about YOU!

Anyone who reads LS’s Tweets or Blog will know who Bean is. For those who don’t, Bean is Ms Murphy’s wee girl, who comes out with even more wit than her mother. So, LS, how about sharing with us, your absolute favourite ‘Beanism’ to date?

There are too many! Okay, okay, don’t twist my arm.

1)      Bean was sitting on the counter, helping her daddy make mac-n-cheese. She pointed at his belly and asked, “Do you have a baby in there?”

2)      The hubs loves watching home movies. He put in the one from the day we brought Bean home. When he explained what was going on, she smiled and said, “And you let me stay? Thanks, Daddy.”

 Aww, too cute. 

Also, anyone who spies on the public conversations between myself and LS will have no doubt picked up on her love of all things Brit (which is possibly why she loves me—ha!). So, where did this love of the land across the pond come from? A visit … your own imagination …?

It’s the accent. I freakin’ love British accents. True story: One time at a high school marching band event, I pretended I was British. I thought I could fake a good accent. So I flirted with another drummer from a different school in my wonderfully fake accent. A few of my friends from my own drumline, as well as a few of the guys I knew from other schools, laughed at me, but this dude bought it hook, line, and sinker. After the show, as I walked in the parking lot with him, I let the fake accent slip. I turned and walked away without looking back.

LOLOLOLOL

And finally:

Steak or fish or Oh heck, no, pure veggie, baby!?

Frog legs. I’m a country girl at heart.

O_o

O_O

o_O

Cats or raccoons? What? This is L.S. Murphy. No point asking her normal stuff. O_o

Another true story: I grew up on a farm in Northeast Missouri. We had this huge cat named Sally. She was as big as a Tom and as mean as one too. One night, my mother heard a massive cat fight outside. Since we only had one cat, she had to investigate.  Naturally. Well, our old farmhouse was getting a new basement wall at that time so there was a huge hole outside the kitchen door. Mom waved around her maglight until she finally found the source of the noise. Sally sat by the new basement wall licking her paws. Beside her was a opossum. Dead. You didn’t mess with Sally.

So, cats.

Cripes. O_O

Current favourite author?

J.A. Belfield. :)

See? I told you she was cool. Ha! (psst, I’ll drop you the payment later, LS)

Aaaaaaaand favourite flavour ice-cream (very important detail for understanding a personality *nods head*)?

Oh, I am sorry to disappoint, but I like vanilla. Simple and pure. When I was a kid, my grandfather would make homemade ice cream. Always vanilla. It’s one of the few memories I have of him.

I can relate. Mr B is a total vanilla ice cream fan.

Thank you soooooo much for stopping on by. Please check out L.S.’s recently released fun YA title. Here’s what I’ve been blathering on about:

There’s no way sixteen year old Quincy Amarante will become the fifth grim reaper. None. Not over her shiny blue Mustang. Her Jimmy Choos. Or her dead body.

She’s supposed to enjoy her sophomore year, not learn about some freaky future Destiny says she has no choice but to fulfill.

It doesn’t take long for Quincy to realize the only way out of the game is to play along especially since Death can find her anyway, anywhere, anytime. And does.

Like when she’s reassuring her friends she wants nothing to do with former best friend Ben Moorland, who’s returned from god-knows-where, and fails. Miserably.

Instead of maintaining her coveted popularity status, Quincy’s goes down like the Titanic.

Maybe … just maybe … that’s okay.

It seems, perhaps, becoming a grim reaper isn’t just about the dead but more about a much needed shift in Quincy’s priorities—from who she thinks she wants to be to who she really is.

You can go the Reaper’s Goodreads page by clicking on the image. Purchase links for Reaper can be found HERE!

And if you’re cool enough to stalk L.S., you can do so here: Twitter | Facebook | Blog |

Don’t forget to tell her I said ‘Hi!’

L.S. Murphy lives in the Greater St. Louis area where she watches Cardinals baseball, reads every book she can find, and weaves tales for teens and adults. When not doing all of the above, she tends to The Bean (aka her daughter), her husband and a menagerie of pets. “A Reason to Stay”, a contemporary romance novella, is available as of November 2, 2012. Reaper is her debut young adult novel and will be released on January 7th, 2013.

She is a co-rep for the Southern Illinois region of Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) and a member of the St. Louis Writer’s Guild.

Digging the pink hair.

{Blog Tour} After Dark: An Interview with Emi Gayle

I’m very excited to be a part of Emy Gayle’s Blog Tour for After Dark, book 1 in The 19th Year Trilogy.

And for those of you who’re wondering exactly what After Dark is, let’s take a look.

What eighteen year old Mac Thorne doesn’t know will probably kill her.
In exactly eight months, five days, three hours and thirteen minutes, Mac has to choose what she’ll be for the rest of her life.

She has no choice but to pick. As a Changeling, it’s her birthright. To Mac, it’s a birthchore. Like going to school with humans, interacting with humans, and pretending to be human during the pesky daylight hours.

Once darkness descends, Mac can change into any supernatural form that exists—which makes her as happy as she can be. That is, until Winn Thomas, the biggest geek in her senior class figures out there’s more to what hides in the dark than most are willing to acknowledge.

In this first of the 19th Year Trilogy, Winn might know more about Mac than even she does, and that knowledge could end their lives, unless Mac ensures the powers-that-be have no choice but to keep him around.

You can add After Dark to your Goodreads shelves by clicking on the cover image. Please do. It’s an awesome read. 

And so let’s move on with the post …

She makes YA PNR fresh and original. She also makes geeky guys sound HOT! Yep, it’s Ms Emi Gayle.

So, how about you tell us where, exactly, the crazy idea came from for the 19^th Year Trilogy. And did the trilogy in its entirety flood to you at once? Or just the idea for After Dark and you took it from there?

The beginning and the end came to me right from the start, but the idea just ‘hit me’ one day, and I had to write it. Period. I knew it would start with Mac ‘meeting’ Winn and I knew in the end Mac would ‘make a choice.’ How it played out in the middle just happened as I wrote. 

Tell us a little more about the MC, Mac. She’s feisty and arrogant, with great character development as After Dark unfolds. Did you base her on anyone you know?

I did not. I pulled all the snotty, stubborn pieces from some, the naiveté from others (though if anyone told Mac she was naive she’d probably hurt them), the looks without caring from others and the chance for change from others. Little pieces all around.

What about you? If you were in the same position, which form would YOU choose?

Ooh, such a hard question. Like my favorite paranormal creature, I’d want to be a shape shifter. 

And no way can I let up the chance to discuss Suze. Anyone who hasn’t read After Dark won’t know who Suze is, but trust me when I tell you he is one of the whackiest characters I’ve ever read, and I absolutely adore him. Where, on earth, would you get the inspiration for a character like that?

Well … Suze just kinda … happened. I needed someone to … uh … balance Mac’s stubbornness. I figured a kooky character would do it. The beauty of Suze and why he is how he is will come in Book 3, but the more he ‘grew’ in my mind, the more I knew he was the perfect complement to Mac (outside of Winn). Suze is … just Suze. 

Let us not forget Winn. *sigh* Talk about making the readers fall in love with a geek. I understand fully why this particular kind of male counterpart was necessary for Mac—anyone who’s read After Dark would, I imagine—but I know from reading your adult titles that Winn is a swerve away from the Alpha males I just happen to know you have a bit of a thing for (*cough* Tripp *cough*). So, maybe you could divulge, who’re your top three fictional Alpha males.

My top five? Oh, boy. Hmmm… I actually prefer an Alpha/Beta male, but let’s see. From my own work, Tripp Fox is definitely there. I also absolutely love Roarke from J.D. Robb. I also adore Ethan Holloway from this chick in Britain. Oh … ha! That’s you.  

*snicker* Yeah, Ethan’s defo winning the ladies over.

And onto some more personal questions. O_O

Ice cream: Cookie Dough or Pfish Food?

Blech. Neither.

WTH?!?!?! This confirms it: the woman is a machine.

Shoe size? What? I kid, I kid. :p Steak or fish?

Steak, but ONLY if it’s a filet.

Kindle or paperback?

Kindle!

And last but not least, tell us why YOU think we all should read your book.

Because I make geeky guys hot and hot girls fall in love with them … genuinely fall in love with them.

Yes, yes, she does.

Thank you so much for stopping by.

You can find out more about Emi at her Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

I had a really great bio in my head around midnight one night …. right before I fell asleep and it disappeared into the nothingness of unconsciousness. Bummer. So here’s something less well thought out.

I want to be young again, so I’m kinda sorta living it again. At least on paper. You see, I write paranormal romance. Now, that stuff can get really hot, and really gritty and well … mine does. But! My characters are teenagers, 18 and under. Like I was once … and want to be again.

Why would I want to be a teenager again? Geez. Because! If you met the man of your dreams at 14 was engaged to him at 19 and married him at 20, wouldn’t YOU want to do all that over again? Especially if you were still in love with him? I mean, c’mon! It’s love! That’s why I write, too.

You see… just because you pass a certain age doesn’t mean you forget what it was like to be 14, 15, etc. Actually, because I kinda grew up with my husband, we both still feel like the 14 and 17 year old kids we once were. So that’s where I’m coming from. You might think it’s totally lame, but you know what? That’s ok! Maybe you’ll like my other me instead. 

Scheduling the Make Believe Blog Tour!

If you were about a fortnight ago, you’ll likely have seen my post about scheduling the Blue Moon Tour. Well, this week, I’m scheduling stops for the Make Believe Tour. And so, yet again, I’m ‘calling all bloggers!’

Make Believe is NOT a Holloway Pack novel, nor does it contain a Holloway Pack story. It is an anthology, with an alluring array of short stories by six different authors–which means the reader will get six totally different tales for their money. If you’d like to know a bit more about Make Believe, you can find details on its page HERE!

And here are the blog tour details:

I am looking for blogs to host tour stops between these dates:

• December 3rd – January 3rd

The post will need to be one of the following:

• Author interview
• Character interview
• Guest post
• Post a Review
• Other – if you have a better idea, feel free to hit me with it

Please note: the tour stops do NOT have to be just for me. As the anthology contains stories by SIX authors, participants are more than welcome to arrange stops for just ONE or ALL SIX of them–whatever best suits the post you’d prefer to host. Maybe you’ve read the blurb and connect better with one blurb than the others, and so have questions or post ideas for that particular author? That’s fine. Simply specify in the sign-up form which author that is, and we’ll try our best to accommodate that. However, please be aware that I’m not responsible for the other anthology authors contacting you once your request and details have been forwarded to them.

The Tour Page for Make Believe is already live. As soon as requests come in and are confirmed/scheduled, I shall try my best to keep that updated–though, please try and remember, keeping track of what six people are booking, rather than just myself, is going to be more difficult than I’m used to.

So if you’re interested in signing up and participating in the tour, please complete THIS FORM, and I, or one of the other authors, will get back to you as soon as possible. The sign-up form can also be found at the bottom of the Tour Page.

Cheers in advance.

Surrender Blog Tour: An Interview with Cael Aldridge! Roawrrrrr!

Welcome, welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Surrender by Aimee Laine. Before we move on, let’s take a look at the book in question:

Face the past or look to the future? Both will hurt. One could kill her.

All her life, Lily Crane has supressed her childhood memories, masking the signs of abuse with a variety of looks. From brunette to blonde, tall to short — as a Mimic, changing shape is her gift. Her right. Her achilles heel.

It’s Lily’s latest likeness, chosen simply by accident, which threatens to repeat a history she’s desperate to forget. Worse, she must do so without the one man who takes all her pain away: Cael Aldridge.

Cael has no intention of leaving Lily on her own. He never has. Now, with the woman he loves in the hands of a predator who wants Lily for her genetics, Cael will do everything he can to bring her home.

Alive.

He can only pray he isn’t too late.

Love, love, LOVE this cover & blurb. Though, if that’s not enough to convince you, you can check out my review HERE!

Now, to celebrate the release of this awesomesauce 2nd novel in the Mimics of Rune series, on my blog today, I have the totally hawt and swoon-worthy Cael Aldridge. Chestnut hair. The. Most. Amazing. Eyes. So blue, they’re almost violet. And even through his checquered shirt, anyone with visual ability can see he is totally ripped.

One must remain professional about this, however—here goes:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“So, Cael … how you doing?”

“I’m alright.”

“Tell me: is this you I’m looking at now?”

“Is this the real me?” He looks off the side with a smirk on his lips. Back to me, he says, “If you could look like this, would you be your real self?”

“Touché! Though in all fairness, I’d rather not look like a dude. However hot.” I cough. “Moving swiftly on: I think it’s safe to say looks aren’t the deciding factor for you when it comes to the opposite sex.” I smile. “Does that mean then, if Lily had never entered the picture, I’d be in with a shot?” I stare innocently. “With a bloke like yourself?”

He sits back and stretches one muscular arm across the back of the chair next to him. “Sorry, but no. Lily has always been the one for me.”

“Yeah, Lily. What can you tell me about the bird that caught the worm?”

The smile that creases his lips probably tells more than anything he could utter. “Let’s just say that Lily is beautiful inside and out no matter what she thinks of herself. She’s kind, incredibly caring, an amazing chef, loves me and … loves me.”

Yeah, that smile really does give away his feelings. Ladies are gonna be swooning everywhere. I sigh. “So how about we go back to my initial question, give the readers a clue as to why I’d even ask that at all?” I lean in closer, wiggle my eyebrows. “Willing to divulge?”

“You want to know if I’m me?” He chuckles. “I’m always me, whether I’m mimicking some short geeky scientist, a high powered CEO or a housewife from New Jersey.” A huffed laugh escapes. “Yeah those are fun, and yes, I did say housewife. I have to give most of you women credit for what you go through with all the war paint on your faces and having to pee sitting down.”

“Finally! Recognition for the trials of being a woman.” I laugh. “You’ll defo have to tell me some time about your gender switch antics, for sure,” I say, giving him a wink. “So, being a mimic pretty much means you can look like whoever you want. Yes?”

He nods. “Yup. It does.”

“Doesn’t it ever get confusing when you all keep switching up your appearances? I mean, there’s how many of you all living together? All of you with the ability to constantly look different?”
Cael’s lips quirk up. “We know how to recognize each other, but to the outsider, yes, it could get really confusing. Charley, for example, used to love to screw with James and me. She was the best at truly mimicking someone because of her photographic memory. Lily, on the other hand …” he sighs “… she has tells that most anyone can decipher. Even you.” He bobs his head in my direction.

“Oh, yeah?” I sit forward as intrigue kicks in. “Such as? Do you all have tells? How about you? Care to share yours?”

“I’m tell-less.” With a wink, he adds, “Lily though, she can’t hold her form well and so who she is often starts to bleed through who she’s trying to be. It’s never been a real problem though because we don’t keep her on the front line of projects. She’s always behind the scenes.”

“Must have been hard then, when she went and stuck herself on the forefront of the latest project. For you and for her.”

He turns toward the side, happiness evaporating from his expression. With his head dipped down, he says, “That’s not really something I want to remember.”

“Then I’m, er … sorry I brought it up?” I clear my throat, coz, damn, I just wanna cuddle this dude; he looks so sad. “How about you wrap up by sharing a memory that you hold tight to instead?”

The twinkle in his eye reappears as does the grin. “There’s never a better memory that sitting at the bar in our kitchen with Lily at the helm. She makes the best blueberry pancakes. Totally from scratch. Everything we’ve ever been through is worth a slap on the back of my hand as I try to pilfer blueberries from her mix. She’s the most ‘at home’ then, and everything she does is a hundred percent her. No pretense. No faking. Nothing but Lily. That’s what I love … when she’s just being her.”

I heave a huge sigh. Complete with goofy smile. I think I may just be in love.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So, has he sold ya yet? Whaddaya waiting for?

Purchase links for Surrender can be found HERE! It is available NOW!!!!!!

You can add Surrender to your Goodreads pile by clicking HERE!

And if that’s not enough and you just so happen to have a yen to stalk Aimee Laine (you should: she’s awesome), you can do so at the following places:

BLOG | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | GOODREADS

Aimee is a romantic at heart and a southern transplant with a bit of the accent (but not a whole bunch). She’s married to her high school sweetheart, and with him, she’s produced three native North Carolinians, two of whom share the same DNA.

With an MBA and a degree in Applied Mathematics, there’s absolutely no reason she should be writing romance novels. Then again, she shouldn’t need a calculator to add two numbers, either … but she does.

Thank you so much for stopping by. Please feel free to leave a comment for Aimee, Cael … me … AND remember to check out the rest of the Surrender blog tour by clicking HERE! (psst, there’s bound to be some giveaways, too ).

Scheduling the Blue Moon Blog Tour!

Yep, it’s that time again. A new release due out in a few months means the organisation of a blog tour is essential. Which means I need to call on the help and support of bloggers.

*bows down in their direction*

If you want to know a bit more about Blue Moon, you can find out on its page HERE! I’ll hang on whilst you go look.

Back?

Coolio.

Okay, here are the blog tour details:

I am looking for blogs to host me along the tour between these dates of December:

• 1^st to 31^st

The post will need to be one of the following:

• Author interview
• Character interview
• Guest post
• Post a Review
• Other – if you have a better idea, feel free to hit me with it

Some dates have already been arranged for the stop. For more information on those, please refer to the Blue Moon Tour Page. I shall do my best to keep that updated as new stops are scheduled.

So … if you’re still interested in signing up and participating in the tour, please complete THIS FORM, and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible. The sign-up form can also be found at the bottom of the Tour Page.

Don’t forget to check back in a couple of weeks when I shall be announcing sign-ups for the Make Believe Blog Tour.

Cheers, guys.

Author Love: J.C. Martin {Oracle Blog Tour}

Welcome to my stop on the Oracle Tour Olympics! I’m very excited to that J.C. is here today. So, with little messing about (which is unusual from me), let’s move on with the show!

Having read Oracle, I found myself impressed—as I often am when reading a crime thriller—with the weaving of the elements and the unfolding of the plot. Did it come naturally to you to write this kind of novel or was it challenge?

Having read crime and mysteries all my life, from Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys as a kid, to James Patterson, John Sandford and others today, I was brought up on puzzles and whodunits. While an intimacy with the genre is an advantage, there is always the challenge of revealing just enough to keep readers intrigued, but not so much that the big revelation becomes obvious too early on—that is a fine balance to strike. I find a clear, in-depth plot outline, including a chapter-by-chapter breakdown, helps immensely in mapping out the reveals of different elements and clues.

Before we move on, let’s take a quick look at the book we’re talking about:

As the countdown begins, the body count rises.

With London gearing up to host the Olympics, the city doesn’t need a serial killer stalking the streets. They’ve got one anyway.

Leaving a trail of brutal and bizarre murders, the police are no closer to finding their latest murderer than Detective Inspector Kurt Lancer is in finding a solution for his daughter’s disability.

Thrust into the pressure cooker of a high profile case, the struggling single parent is wound tight as he tries to balance care of his own family with the safety of a growing population of potential next victims.

One of whom could be his own daughter.

Fingers point in every direction as the public relations nightmare grows, and Lancer’s only answer comes in the form of a single oak leaf left at each crime scene.

Sounds pretty cool, eh?

Oracle is set around the time of the London Olympics. Was it a race against the clock to go through submissions and find a publisher able to release it in time-line with the actual Olympics?

Heck, yes! Especially once I started writing the story and realised just how slowly the wheels of publishing turn! When I finished Oracle, I had two choices: find an agent/publisher, or self-publish to release it in time for the Olympics. I had some agent interest, but it was all just too slow: even if the agent had offered representation, there was no guarantee he could get a publisher to release it in time. Luckily, I found a publisher on my own. J. Taylor Publishing not only liked the book, they can actually get it released in time for the Games! Win-win!

 

Definite win-win! I love how your blog name ‘Fighter Writer’ reflects exactly who you are. You teach martial arts outside of writing. Did that kind of knowledge/training come in handy when writing Oracle?

Definitely! Like myself, Kurt Lancer also practices Wing Chun kung fu, and I got him into a few sticky situations which required some knowledge in self-defence to get out of.  It was definitely handy to have a few tricks up my sleeve.

 

And of course, let’s talk Detective Inspector Kurt Lancer for a second: How did you come up with his character? Coz, you know the ladies are going to find him hawt, right?

Detective Lancer was inspired by the cultural melting pot that is London, especially East London. I wanted a protagonist who reflects the multi-ethnicity of the city, so I came up with a half-English, half-Nigerian detective with an interest in Chinese martial arts. To add to his complexity, I got him to practise a ‘soft’ martial art, one that is not strength-oriented, despite his considerable size and muscles.

I’m hoping the ladies will find him as hawt as I do.

 

Oh, I’d say they will. And we’ll get to see more of him, right? Say it’s so …

You may be happy to hear that I am currently working on a second Lancer book.

Wahoo! Yes, that does, in fact, make me very happy! Thanks so much for stopping by, J.C..

And here’s the lady herself:

J.C. Martin is a butt-kicking bookworm: when she isn’t reading or writing, she teaches martial arts and self-defence to adults and children. 

After working in pharmaceutical research, then in education as a schoolteacher, she decided to put the following to good use: one, her 2nd degree black belt in Wing Chun kung fu; and two, her overwhelming need to write dark mysteries and gripping thrillers with a psychological slant. 

Her short stories have won various prizes and have been published in several anthologies. Oracle is her first novel. 

Born and raised in Malaysia, J.C. now lives in south London with her husband and three dogs.

You can follow along in J.C. publishing exploits on Twitter, Facebook, & her Blog.

So, does Oracle sound like your kind of read? If so, you can find purchase links HERE! And in the meantime, why not add it to your TBR pile by clicking on the cover image above.

And before you go: J.C. has a GREAT contest running over on her blog, with a prize that just gets better as Oracle climbs up the Amazon ranks. Check it out HERE!