Sunday, December 5, 2021

Day 7: Realms of Light by Sandra Fernandez Rhoads

 

On tour with Prism Book Tours

Realms of Light
(The Colliding Line, #1)
By Sandra Fernandez Rhoads
Young Adult Urban Fantasy
Hardcover, Paperback & ebook, 320 Pages
April 13, 2021 by Enclave Escape

From the Ashes, Spring Will Rise

On the run from the brutal Sage and his army of Legions and Cormorants, seventeen-year-old Cera Marlowe knows the only place strong enough to protect her is the Alliance Council Estate.

Cera’s introduction to the Estate is far from welcoming. As a Blight, her dueling powers of light and darkness make her a half-breed threat to the Alliance’s sacred powers. Cera’s ability to decipher hidden messages in classical artwork buys her shelter temporarily, but the clock is ticking as she’s faced with a daunting choice that could cost her everything.

(Affiliate link included.)

Excerpt

Chapter One - Uriel’s Sunbeam

I bounce my foot as Devon drives us deeper into the forest at a crawling pace. Maddox sits beside me, tapping a restless beat on his knee as the rumbling engine fills the growing silence. Autumn leaves blanket our path, and the bleak horizon blocks out the rising sun, but I know it’s there, hiding behind the clouds, waiting to break through.

“Is the wound bothering you?” Harper flattens the edge of the bandage wrapped around my burnt calf. “The serum will probably wear off soon.”

“It’s fine, really.” I’m far from fine. But it’s not the wound that troubles me. With every passing minute, I get closer to the Alliance Council Estate—the one place Mom has spent the last ten years keeping me safe from. And I’m terrified.

“Keep watch for any creatures. We’re not in the clear yet.” Devon’s weary eyes meet mine in the rearview mirror.

I’ve been watching and listening for hours, sandwiched in the back, caught next to Harper, who keeps shooting Maddox a side-eyed stare, making him shift uncomfortably. Every now and then he glances at me, tightening his lips, holding back words his eyes are fighting to say. But words can’t erase the awkwardness between us.

I look out the window. No violent wind signals beastly Cormorants overhead, and no misted Legions creep along the prickly underbrush, tracking our path. “We’ve set good distance. Nothing’s in sight.”

Excerpted from Realms of Light by Sandra Fernandez Rhoads. Copyright © 2021 by Sandra Fernandez Rhoads. Published by Enclave Escape.

Other Books in the Series

(Linked to an Amazon affiliate link.)

About the Author


Sandra Fernandez Rhoads is the young adult fantasy author of the Colliding Line Series: MORTAL SIGHT and REALMS OF LIGHT. She was born in Queens, New York to Cuban-Colombian parents, but grew up in Texas with a love for classical art and literature, specifically Renaissance artists and Late Romantic poets. She attended the University of Texas at Austin and earned a degree in English, and then went on to earn an MA in her “seventeenth century crush,” John Milton. Sandra’s past experience also includes a background in acting, directing, as well as script writing for stage and short film. She has a deep love for the artist community and the arts, and enjoys venturing out and trying new art forms. Currently, she is learning to play the cello she’s named Lysander, and one day hopes to play the theme to Jurassic Park.
Tour Schedule
(Posts go live on the day they're scheduled.)

November 28th: Launch
November 29th: Elayne Audrey Becker - Forestborn
November 30th: Michelle Diener - The Turncoat King
December 1st: Jes Drew - Agents Adam and Eve
December 2nd: Sharon Hinck - Windward Shore
December 3rd: Kara Linaburg - The Broken Prince
December 4th: Cathy McCrumb - Recorder
December 5th: Sandra Fernandez Rhoads - Realms of Light
December 6th: Chawna Schroeder - The Vault Between Spaces
December 7th: Melissa Wright - Beneath Stone and Sacrifice
December 8th: Kristen Young - Elite
December 9th: Grand Finale

Tour Giveaway


One winner will receive a $50 (USD) Amazon eGift Card

Open internationally
Ends December 13, 2021

ENTER HERE
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Saturday, December 4, 2021

Day 6: Recorder by Cathy McCrumb

 

On tour with Prism Book Tours

Recorder
(Children of the Consortium, #1)
By Cathy McCrumb
Science Fiction
Hardcover, Augiobook & ebook, 367 Pages
November 9, 2021 by Enclave Publishing

The Consortium is All. But Recorder Can No Longer Obey.

Recorder has no family, no friends, and no name. Donated to the Consortium before birth, her sole purpose is to maintain and verify the records. A neural implant and drone ensure compliance, punishing for displays of bias.

Suddenly cut off from controlling technology, Recorder tastes what it means to be human. But if the Consortium discovers her feelings, everyone she knows will be in danger.

With no name, no resources, and only an infinitesimal possibility of escape, Recorder's time is running out.

Praise for the Book

"McCrumb achieves a fascinating coming-of-age story in a convincing far-future technical milieu containing credible characters with consistent and powerful motivations. Readers looking for hard science fiction with heart should snap this up." - Publishers Weekly

(Affiliate link included.)

Excerpt

The moon’s moon gleamed clear and bright, and I stood transfixed by the canopy of stars, their faint colors shining against the velvet vastness of space. Ceres hovered above the horizon, a pale, blue speck, while Thalassa’s lights flashed overhead, only a few degrees below the orange point of New Triton. My drone’s tendril gently twined about my shoulders, and my implant magnified the deep sounds of space. The stars’ dissonance rumbled underneath the team’s voices and my own pounding heart. I smiled at the beauty of it—

Jagged pain shattered the stillness.

I staggered slightly, and for half of a second, anger splintered through me. The blame, however, was mine. I had allowed the sky to distract me from my task. Turning away from the heavens, I dimmed the invisible light and muted sounds inaudible to human ears. My drone hovered at my side, a delicate tendril still wound about me.

After triggering a calming release of neurotransmitters, I checked my connection to the six additional drones. All functioned properly, and their perspectives created a kaleidoscope of light and shadow in my internal feed. Satisfaction with the successful check almost erased the mortification of the reprimand.

Almost.

I clenched gloved hands and crossed to the metal access point. Sand and rock crunched under my boots when I passed Timmons, whose shadow reached across Pallas’s red-orange crust toward the dimness beyond our lights. My drone released me when I stopped three meters from the heavy, sealed hatch.

Excerpted from Recorder by Cathy McCrumb. Copyright © 2021 by Cathy McCrumb. Published by Enclave Publishing.

About the Author


Cathy graduated from Biola University with a degree in English Literature and a love for stories. She and her husband, whom she met while writing letters to soldiers, have five children and currently live within the shadow of the Rocky Mountains. While writing is one of her favorite things to do, she also enjoys reading, long hikes and long naps, gluten-free brownies and raspberries, and crocheting while watching science fiction movies with friends and family. Most of her imaginary friends are nice people.
Tour Schedule
(Posts go live on the day they're scheduled.)

November 28th: Launch
November 29th: Elayne Audrey Becker - Forestborn
November 30th: Michelle Diener - The Turncoat King
December 1st: Jes Drew - Agents Adam and Eve
December 2nd: Sharon Hinck - Windward Shore
December 3rd: Kara Linaburg - The Broken Prince
December 4th: Cathy McCrumb - Recorder
December 5th: Sandra Fernandez Rhoads - Realms of Light
December 6th: Chawna Schroeder - The Vault Between Spaces
December 7th: Melissa Wright - Beneath Stone and Sacrifice
December 8th: Kristen Young - Elite
December 9th: Grand Finale

Tour Giveaway


One winner will receive a $50 (USD) Amazon eGift Card

Open internationally
Ends December 13, 2021

ENTER HERE
Grab Our Button!

Friday, December 3, 2021

Day 5: The Broken Prince by Kara Linaburg

 

On tour with Prism Book Tours

The Broken Prince
(The Broken Series, #1)
By Kara Linaburg
Young Adult Fantasy
Paperback & ebook, 191 Pages
June 3, 2019

In all the fairy tales the maiden falls in love with the prince...but she has to remember that this isn’t a fairy tale...

Born into a kingdom where those of magical Gifts are rejected, feared, and even killed, Serena has spent her life striving to hide her ability and keep her younger brother safe.

The bastard son of the hated king and father he hardly knows, Prince Milosh is considered an outcast. He never expects to feel anything but contempt for the peasant girl who unexpectedly shows up in his life, forcing him to answer questions he never wished to ask.

When two very different worlds are thrown together under less than desirable circumstances, both hold deep judgement towards the other. But will they learn to see beyond their stations and birth so that they may defeat the coming darkness, or will labels given to them at birth continue to define them?

A heart-stopping tale about the power of human love, and how each of us are never truly alone.

(Affiliate link included.)

Author Interview

Three words to describe your writing process of “The Broken Prince”?

Crazy. Crazy. Crazy. I wrote this book in a crazy place mentally back in high school, and the whole manuscript was just a mess starting out.

What did you edit out of “The Broken Prince”?

So much! Haha. There’s a big plot twist at the end of the book, but thankfully my editor saved the main character from a horrible fate and helped switch that around so it would be more accepting for the reader.

How many unpublished or half-finished books do you have?

*Hides* A lot.

What was the first book that made you cry?

After my mom finished reading me “The Last Battle” when I was a kid, I remember just crying. That series really made me want to write and create my own fantasy storyworld that made people see their own world differently.

How did you pick the names for your characters?

Google. For my fictional country of Sindaleer in “The Broken Prince”, I based the culture off of Native American Indians and the Norse Viking culture, and I tried to find names that reflected the culture I was attempting to create.

What are your future plans?

Continue pursuing a certificate in Editing and Publishing through UCLA, build my editing business, and continue trying my hand at books with real characters going through things that don’t hide the darkness but also remind us how to find the light. Monarch is publishing my YA contemporary (with thriller vibes!) June 7th, 2022. My probably-never-going-happen dream is to start public speaking, advocating for mental illness. Oh! And I also want to go to Hawaii. ;) Basically, I never stop!

Other Books in the Series

(Linked to an Amazon affiliate link.)

About the Author


Queen of awkward and writer before she could spell properly, Kara Linaburg is passionate about creating stories with beauty in brokenness. A wearer of many hats, when she's not found editing for her clients, writing stories that make her cry, or planning her next adventure, she's probably watching the sunset.
Tour Schedule
(Posts go live on the day they're scheduled.)

November 28th: Launch
November 29th: Elayne Audrey Becker - Forestborn
November 30th: Michelle Diener - The Turncoat King
December 1st: Jes Drew - Agents Adam and Eve
December 2nd: Sharon Hinck - Windward Shore
December 3rd: Kara Linaburg - The Broken Prince
December 4th: Cathy McCrumb - Recorder
December 5th: Sandra Fernandez Rhoads - Realms of Light
December 6th: Chawna Schroeder - The Vault Between Spaces
December 7th: Melissa Wright - Beneath Stone and Sacrifice
December 8th: Kristen Young - Elite
December 9th: Grand Finale

Tour Giveaway


One winner will receive a $50 (USD) Amazon eGift Card

Open internationally
Ends December 13, 2021

ENTER HERE
Grab Our Button!

Thursday, December 2, 2021

Day 4: Windward Shore by Sharon Hick

 

On tour with Prism Book Tours

Windward Shore
(The Dancing Realms, #1)
By Sharon Hinck
Epic Fantasy, Christian Fantasy
Hardcover, Paperback & ebook, 270 Pages
May 11, 2021 by Enclave Publishing

The island world of Meriel faces an old adversary and a new danger. Will the reformed Order die before it has a chance to blossom?

Storm clouds loom on the horizon as Carya and Brantley struggle to overcome wounds of the past and build a future together. The fragile new Order is on shaky ground, with too few dancers and sparse resources. Then trouble erupts—and now an insidious rebellion and a new foe threaten their entire world.

When she uncovers an old enemy behind all the destruction, Carya realizes the past is not done with her. With conflict tearing apart the dancers and villages, rimmers are soon overrun, and Carya must unite her people by leading the battle to protect the very heart of her world … or lose it all.

(Affiliate link included.)

Excerpt

Chapter One

Where could he be? I squinted toward the horizon, where stormy sky met turbulent sea. Brantley had planned to be back by midday, but the primary sun was already lowering beyond the churning waves. Not a good sign. Wind howled from the ocean, and the ground bobbed. A gust slapped into me, rippling my tunic and forcing me to lean forward to keep my footing. My toes dug into the tangleroot.

Shielding my eyes against the subsun, I hoped to spy the silhouette of a herder balanced on the sleek back of his stenella, his determined form rising behind the graceful curve of the creature’s neck. Surely he’d seen the storm moving toward our island. Why hadn’t he raced home? Had he gone out too far? His new mount, Makah, was young and early in her training; she wasn’t as skilled and reliable as Navar had been.

The island’s rim lurched, forcing me to retreat. I could dance a pattern to change the wind’s course and coax the storm away, but I had no idea where Brantley and Makah were. My interference could send the storm straight into them. A sigh ripped out of me. All I could do was wait.

My arms cradled the gentle swell of my belly. I’d hoped news of a babe on the way would cause my husband to take fewer risks. I shook my head, letting the wind tug my hair free from my braid. I didn’t truly want him to change. But I did wish he had a more experienced stenella. Brantley still grieved Navar’s loss. So did I.

The clouds broke open and rain sheeted down, driving me to seek shelter. Our home welcomed me with warmth and light. High windows under the eaves let in the glow of the setting subsun that penetrated even the storm, and torches brightened the wall by the hearth, competing with the flickering fire. A smoky scent curled through the air.

I added a log, grateful for the refuge. A home like this was a luxury I’d never dreamed to experience. Shelves lined one wall, filled with food staples, tools, parchment, and neatly folded fabric. Through a low doorway, I could glimpse the cheerful quilt covering our bed. Spare tunics and cloaks hung from pegs.

I brushed moisture from my shoulders and rested on a bench near the table in this main room. Our bonding cup held a place of honor in the center of the table. Delicate carvings embellished the polished sides with images of land and sea, stenella and forest hound, and a man and woman. A rolled parchment rested against it as if in opposition. I pressed my lips together. As much as I longed for Brantley’s safe return, I dreaded the confrontation that simple missive would bring.

Excerpted from Windward Shore by Sharon Hinck. Copyright © 2021 by Sharon Hinck. Published by Enclave Publishing.

Other Books in the Series

(Linked to an Amazon affiliate link.)

About the Author


Award-winning author Sharon Hinck writes “stories for the hero in all of us,” about ordinary people on extraordinary faith journeys. Hidden Current, the first book in her Dancing Realms Series, has been honored with a 2020 Christy Award in the Visionary category. Passionate about the intersection of faith and art, she spent ten years as the artistic director of a Christian performing arts group. That ministry included three short-term mission trips to Hong Kong. She has been a church youth worker, a choreographer and ballet teacher, a home-school mom, a church organist, and a bookstore clerk. One day she’ll figure out what to be when she grows up, but in the meantime she’s pouring her imagination into writing. When she isn’t wrestling with words, Sharon enjoys serving as an adjunct professor for the Creative Writing MFA program at Concordia University, and also shares with conferences, retreats, and church groups. She and her family make their home in Minnesota.
Tour Schedule
(Posts go live on the day they're scheduled.)

November 28th: Launch
November 29th: Elayne Audrey Becker - Forestborn
November 30th: Michelle Diener - The Turncoat King
December 1st: Jes Drew - Agents Adam and Eve
December 2nd: Sharon Hinck - Windward Shore
December 3rd: Kara Linaburg - The Broken Prince
December 4th: Cathy McCrumb - Recorder
December 5th: Sandra Fernandez Rhoads - Realms of Light
December 6th: Chawna Schroeder - The Vault Between Spaces
December 7th: Melissa Wright - Beneath Stone and Sacrifice
December 8th: Kristen Young - Elite
December 9th: Grand Finale

Tour Giveaway


One winner will receive a $50 (USD) Amazon eGift Card

Open internationally
Ends December 13, 2021

ENTER HERE
Grab Our Button!

Wednesday, December 1, 2021

Day 3: Agents of Adam and Eve by Jes Drew

On tour with Prism Book Tours

Agents Adam and Eve
(Kristian Clark and the American Agenda, #1)
By Jes Drew
Sci-Fi, Spy-Fi
Paperback & ebook, 428 Pages
April 16, 2019 by Boo's Books

Dream not of other worlds...

They call him agent and he answers. They tell him conquer and he does. But there's something they don't know. He's beginning to remember. His name is Kristian Clark. He has a wife and four children. Or he did. But he will find them again, whoever is left, wherever they are, and whatever it takes.

They call her the Aisling. She does their missions only as far as it helps her accomplish her own: to find and rescue the children of a fallen woman. And she will not let anyone get in her way- most certainly not the brainwashed father who has for so long been an unthinking weapon for the government. To save the innocents, she will not hesitate to do whatever it takes- no matter how much it condemns her.

They are the root of a conspiracy that would bring two worlds together, for good or for evil, for better or for worse, for life or for death. Their choices shall echo throughout all eternity.

Advanced Praise for Agents Adam and Eve:

"Agents Adam and Eve is the kind of book you can't put down, the kind that has you laughing and crying. Jes Drew successfully keeps you turning the page and renders you longing for more when the last page has been turned." - Karsyn Shae, Creative Writer

"Kristian Clark is back in an all-new duology after the birth of his twins. Are he and his wife finally able to enter parenthood safely without the threat of anarchist groups, or will Kristian have to sacrifice everything to save those he loves?" - Allyson Kennedy, author of Speak Your Mind

“I love the story! It felt so real and very intense! I felt like I was in the story with the characters!”
- Shine, author and blogger of Hauntingghosttown

(Affiliate link included.)

Excerpt



I teleport the door toward the motorcycles, causing them to crash into each other and knocking off those still on them. Then I drop down and teleport myself to the nearest gunman and wrestle his weapon from his hand. I elbow him in the face and his grip loosens enough for me to take it and shoot at the engine of one of the motorcycles, making it blow up into an inferno that the men scurry to avoid.

Striding forward, I taser one of the fleeing men before tasering another. Then I dive backwards as another man shoots at me before teleporting behind him and putting him into a strangle hold while using his body as cover from his contemporaries.

Three of them try to approach me. Only to freeze mid-step.

I turn to see Aisling darting through the darkness with two figures coming up behind her—making their way to the truck.

Being the gentleman that I am, I teleport to the truck and open the front door for her before grabbing the driver and teleporting us away where I can punch him in privacy.

Then a gun goes off behind me, causing a hot sting in my newly healed shoulder, but this time I’m sure it’s just a graze.

I sigh, and without turning around, I teleport behind the shooter and taser him in the back. See how he likes it.

Mid-tasering, the NEO truck drives past me.

Sighing again, I retract my taser. Then I teleport into the truck—the backseat to be exact.

Aisling is driving, and a very pale man wearing a rumpled suit is sitting shotgun. A man of Indian descent is sitting next to me, trying to ask Aisling, “What just happened?”

“I did,” I answer, tugging off my shirt with my good arm.

The man next to me screams at this and jumps to the farthest end of the row away from me.

“Please,” I mutter, pressing my hand to my bleeding shoulder. “It’s not that bad.”

Aisling glances at the rearview mirror before groaning. “You.”

“And to think,” I tell my backseat buddy, “just moments ago, she couldn’t keep her hands off me. Split personality or what?”

He just whimpers at me like I’m some sort of ghost.

And the other man whirls around before narrowing his eyes on me. “You.”

“Wow, it’s really weird how you said it just like she—”

He cuts me off by lunging at me.

“Man,” I gasp as he wraps his hands around my neck and mine reach for his unused seatbelt. “You should really—” He tightens his grip. “Wear a—”

I click the seatbelt over him and tighten it so he’s trapped in his position. Then I use the middle seat belt to wrap around him too before teleporting to the space my attacker is no longer occupying in the shotgun seat.

And find a revolver aimed at me.

“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t use this on you,” Aisling hisses as she turns the truck down a side-street with one hand.

“There is none!” my attacker yells behind us. “Shoot him!”

I eye the revolver. Beautiful thing. Familiar thing. “Because it’s just cruel to kill a man with his own weapon?”

She switches off the safety. “Not good enough.”

Because I can teleport away anyway? “Because I want in on whatever you’re in on. I need out of my old agency.” At least long enough to work through the grieving process out of sight of their watching eyes. And to find out everything I can about Aisling, my wife, and this battle I’ve been a drone in for far too long.

But most of all, I need it to be long enough to be able to return to the Amerios with enough information to rescue my children.

“We can’t trust him!” my attacker yells. “You of all people know what he’s done.”

“I also know we can’t fight him, Peter.” Aisling lowers the gun. “You’re in.”

“What!” Peter demands, and his friend—Robbie?—whimpers.

I push Peter a bit more out of my seat to get a little more comfortable, despite my wound. “So, what agency do you work for anyway?”

“Oh,” Aisling says, stopping at a red light. “The NEOs.”

Excerpted from Agents Adam and Eve by Jes Drew. Copyright © 2019 by Jes Drew. Published by Boo's Books.

Other Books in the Series

(Linked to an Amazon affiliate link.)

About the Author


Jes Drew is the author of the Ninja and Hunter trilogy, the Howling Twenty trilogy, the Kristian Clark saga, the Castaways trilogy, The Dystopian Takeover trilogy, The Clockwork Faerie Tale Novellas, The Summers of Yesteryear series, Legends of the Master Spy, The New ESE Files, Tales from Parallel Worlds, Genie and Serena, PIs, and Accidentally on the Run. Her true love is Captain Steve Rogers, and there is a possibility that she may or may not be a superhuman, but she hasn't discovered her powers. Yet. Also, she might be a spy, but that's classified. You can contact her at author.jes.drew@gmail.com.
Tour Schedule
(Posts go live on the day they're scheduled.)

November 28th: Launch
November 29th: Elayne Audrey Becker - Forestborn
November 30th: Michelle Diener - The Turncoat King
December 1st: Jes Drew - Agents Adam and Eve
December 2nd: Sharon Hinck - Windward Shore
December 3rd: Kara Linaburg - The Broken Prince
December 4th: Cathy McCrumb - Recorder
December 5th: Sandra Fernandez Rhoads - Realms of Light
December 6th: Chawna Schroeder - The Vault Between Spaces
December 7th: Melissa Wright - Beneath Stone and Sacrifice
December 8th: Kristen Young - Elite
December 9th: Grand Finale

Tour Giveaway


One winner will receive a $50 (USD) Amazon eGift Card

Open internationally
Ends December 13, 2021

ENTER HERE
Grab Our Button!

Tuesday, November 30, 2021

Day 2: The Turncoat King by Michelle Diener

On tour with Prism Book Tours

The Turncoat King
(The Rising Wave, #1)
By Michelle Diener
Fantasy, Romance
Paperback, Audiobook & ebook, 312 Pages
January 12, 2021 by Eclipse

A thirst for revenge . . . Ava is committed to vengeance against the man responsible for the death of her parents. The same man, the Queen's Herald, kept her prisoner for two years, until she escaped with Luc, a warlord bent on vengeance just as fierce as her own. He's forged a powerful army of people from all through the region, called the Rising Wave, to march on the Kassian royal family and smash its corrupt power under the weight of their anger. But for Luc, just as for Ava, his true motive is a lot more personal.

A hidden magic . . . Luc suspects Ava has magical abilities, suspects he's benefited greatly from them, but he's no stranger to the burdens of power, and he's prepared to let her tell him in her own time—after all, she's his heart's choice and he will give her all the time she needs. Except time is running out for both of them. As they near the Kassian stronghold, forces from within their own camp and without will use every trick they have to stop both Luc and Ava and tear them apart.

A secret laid bare . . . Luc knows Ava has a secret she's keeping from him—but what he doesn't realize is she has many. And when those secrets are exposed, everyone will have to grapple with the consequences. Ava is prepared to sacrifice her happiness and even her life to save the Rising Wave and Luc—but she would prefer to use her heart and her head to outwit her enemies instead.

Author's note: The Rising Wave series begins with a prequel novella, The Rising Wave. It isn't necessary to have read The Rising Wave to enjoy The Turncoat King, but it will give readers a better grounding in the world of the story.

(Affiliate link included.)

Excerpt

The guard assigned to lead them to the Skäddar warrior paused to speak to someone in low tones. When he turned back to Luc and Dak, he was grinning.

“The Skäddar warrior is this way. He's sparring with one of our best fighters and we're hoping he wins.” His smile widened as he led the way.

“Why are you hoping he defeats one of your own?” Dak asked.

“Because she's from the mountain border with Skäddar, and has been teasing us steppe-dwellers about how the highlanders are superior. It will be very good to see someone land her on her arse.”

“None of you have been able to?” Dak lifted his brows.

The guard gave a grunt. “Not yet.”

Luc could tell they were close to the sparring match. The sound of cheers and whistles started up, and ahead of them was a circle of soldiers, all looking inward.

The guard led them around the side, to where the crowd wasn't as thick.

The sun had almost completely set, so two torches had been driven into the ground to illuminate the fighting ring, and the opponents were already circling each other.

The man was obviously Skäddar. Luc had met only a few of the northern dwellers before, but they all had markings on their faces like this one.

The Venyatux highlander was much smaller than her opponent, and had her back to them.

Luc felt the air freeze in his chest and throat as he recognized her hair first—a little longer than it had been since he'd last seen her a month ago but still much shorter than everyone else's.

Ava.

Excerpted from The Turncoat King by Michelle Diener. Copyright © 2021 by Michelle Diener. Published by Eclipse.

About the Author


Michelle Diener is the bestselling, award-winning author of historical, fantasy and science fiction romance novels. Having worked in publishing and IT, she’s now very happy crafting new worlds for her readers to escape into. She lives in Australia with her husband and children.
Tour Schedule
(Posts go live on the day they're scheduled.)

November 28th: Launch
November 29th: Elayne Audrey Becker - Forestborn
November 30th: Michelle Diener - The Turncoat King
December 1st: Jes Drew - Agents Adam and Eve
December 2nd: Sharon Hinck - Windward Shore
December 3rd: Kara Linaburg - The Broken Prince
December 4th: Cathy McCrumb - Recorder
December 5th: Sandra Fernandez Rhoads - Realms of Light
December 6th: Chawna Schroeder - The Vault Between Spaces
December 7th: Melissa Wright - Beneath Stone and Sacrifice
December 8th: Kristen Young - Elite
December 9th: Grand Finale

Tour Giveaway


One winner will receive a $50 (USD) Amazon eGift Card

Open internationally
Ends December 13, 2020

ENTER HERE
Grab Our Button!

Monday, November 29, 2021

Day one: Forestborn with Elayne Audrey Becker

On tour with Prism Book Tours

Forestborn
(Forestborn, #1)
By Elayne Audrey Becker
Young Adult Fantasy
Hardcover, Paperback & ebook, 368 Pages
August 31, 2021 by Tor Teen

A young, orphaned shapeshifter in a world that fears magic must risk everything if she hopes to save her only friend in Elayne Audrey Becker's Forestborn, first in a new fantasy series with a timeless feel.

TO BE BORN OF THE FOREST IS A GIFT AND A CURSE.

Rora is a shifter, as magical as all those born in the wilderness―and as feared. She uses her abilities to spy for the king, traveling under different guises and listening for signs of trouble.

When a magical illness surfaces across the kingdom, Rora uncovers a devastating truth: Finley, the young prince and her best friend, has caught it, too. His only hope is stardust, the rarest of magical elements, found deep in the wilderness where Rora grew up―and to which she swore never to return.

But for her only friend, Rora will face her past and brave the dark, magical wood, journeying with her brother and the obstinate, older prince who insists on coming. Together, they must survive sentient forests and creatures unknown, battling an ever-changing landscape while escaping human pursuers who want them dead. With illness gripping the kingdom and war on the horizon, Finley’s is not the only life that hangs in the balance.

(Affiliate link included.)

Excerpt

Finley’s eyes are glazing over, far too fast, the pupils dilating as if he’s concussed. He shakes his head, holds out a hand, clutches mine when I step close to steady him. “I think—”

“Finley!” I cry, catching him when his knees suddenly give way. I’m dismayed at how easy it is to support his weight, considering he’s only one year younger than me. Or two, or three. It’s all a guess, really. “Fin, talk to me,” I say, my heart flinging itself wildly against my ribcage as I watch his eyes lose focus once more. His hand loosens its grip on mine, and both of us sink to the forest floor.

“Let him go,” I beg, bending over the body gone rigid, the heaving chest, the quivering, waxen skin. Alarm bells are screaming through my head, loud as the clocktower tolling the hour, and with them, the tingling in my core returns. Threads of numbness engulf my limbs. Fur along my back, then feathers all over—my body torn between the urge to hide or to flee, far away from this scene I never saw coming. “Please. Not him, too.”

I ignore the gathering sounds of creaking, groaning wood overhead with a vengeance. Tears are welling in my eyes, but I blink them away and shake my head, refusing to let them fall. Refusing because this day of truth has always been tainted by lies, so what’s one more to add to the tally? In the darkening wood, I set each one before me, all of the lies I reach for when the nightmares, the dirty looks, the hidden scars and endless self-loathing begin to drag me under—that my mother loved me before she left me, that my brother and I are not a curse, that I can be good and selfless and worthy of love in spite of the things I’ve done. I assemble them all, then set one more on the shelf: that my best friend, my only true friend aside from Helos, isn’t dying.

But the trees around me, leaves and branches straining against their holds, limbs pointing to Finley like a circle of swords—the trees all tell a different story.

Excerpted from Forestborn by Elayne Audrey Becker. Copyright © 2021 by Elayne Audrey Becker. Published by Tor Teen.

Other Books in the Series

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About the Author


ELAYNE AUDREY BECKER (she/her) is a storyteller with a passion for history, myth, mountains, and magic. She holds a B.A. from Vassar College and a master of science from the University of Aberdeen, and she has worked as an editor at a New York publisher. Born and raised in Georgia, she grew up with a lake and woods as her backyard, spending long days outside and visiting national parks with her family. Forestborn is her first book.
Tour Schedule
(Posts go live on the day they're scheduled.)

November 28th: Launch
November 29th: Elayne Audrey Becker - Forestborn
November 30th: Michelle Diener - The Turncoat King
December 1st: Jes Drew - Agents Adam and Eve
December 2nd: Sharon Hinck - Windward Shore
December 3rd: Kara Linaburg - The Broken Prince
December 4th: Cathy McCrumb - Recorder
December 5th: Sandra Fernandez Rhoads - Realms of Light
December 6th: Chawna Schroeder - The Vault Between Spaces
December 7th: Melissa Wright - Beneath Stone and Sacrifice
December 8th: Kristen Young - Elite
December 9th: Grand Finale

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Friday, November 26, 2021

Golden Crown book blitz

Golden Crown
Kathleen Mare’e
(Arthur Academy, #2)
Publication date: November 26th 2021
Genres: New Adult, Romance

“If the world is full of monsters, how do we know who wears the crown…”

Hendrix:


In the dark of the night he bared his soul, delivering a shocking event that should’ve changed everything.


So why in the light of day, does everything appear the same…?

The further I’m immersed in this world he calls the ‘elite’, the more I don’t understand. And it’s not only his world I’m afraid I’m falling for, but the Golden Crown himself as well.

But Pax still has secrets.

And I want him to trust me, like a flame wanting fire.

Because despite his world being nothing as it seems, I’m not sure I could walk away even if I wanted to.

Because the truth be told, I don’t want to


I want him.
Paxton:
In the dark of the night I revealed a truth, delivering the brutal reality of what the elite really means.


So why in the light of day, does everything appear the same…?

It’s the same cat and mouse games, and the same political, power tricks where the Golden Crown is all they see. It’s all they want to see.

Except for her.


But there are things I can’t tell her. Things I don’t think she’ll understand yet.

And I need her to trust me, like a fire needing flame.

Because despite me knowing what this world does to those who fall victim to it, I’m not sure I could walk away from Hendrix, even if I wanted to.

Because the truth be told, I don’t want to


I want her.

Goodreads / Amazon

EXCERPT:

I took my lip beneath my teeth before opening my soul up as much as I was capable of. The words I were about to ask, meant more to me than she would ever know.


“I need you to trust me.”


I held my breath. Ready to wait for her reply but was surprised at how fast it actually flew from her mouth.


“I do.”

I stilled. “What? You trust me?”

I didn’t believe it. I was almost angry at Hendrix’s answer.

How could she trust me after everything I’ve put her through?

Everything I’ve hidden. It didn’t make any sense.

What also made no sense was her reaction either because she shook her head before taking a seat on the edge of her bed (which was too far away from me) where she played with the hem of her tee that was resting on her lap.

“Crazy huh? That I trust you. But… I can’t explain why I do. I’ve just always….”

“You’ve always what?”


She glances up, piercing my heart with her hazel eyes honing in on me with so much raw emotion. “I’ve always…” she starts, before seemingly coming to some realisation within herself. “When I was younger… I always sensed when things were wrong you know? Like that sixth sense that something bad was about to happen, or when danger was nearby. Even when I was too young to really understand my situation, I always knew deep down the kind of dangerous situation I was in. That it wasn’t normal. Well, it wasn’t everyones normal at least. I don’t expect you to understand, but I’m sure from those photos you saw that you have some idea of what I grew up in.” She pauses and my fists ball at the reminder instantly. I don’t have time to let that anger consume me though before she continues. “But I’ve just always trusted my instincts. They’ve never let me down and I guess in a lot of ways I’ve relied on it since I had no actual family to have my back. And…” she pauses again, nervously this time, when she notices me taking slow, measured steps toward her.

“And….?” I whisper, until I’m standing over her causing her head to tilt back to look up at me.

“And my gut? For some reason it trusts you Paxton. Despite you making me nervous, despite the things you say and the things you do. I feel safe around you. Protected. Like the only person capable of hurting me when you’re near – is no one else. Only…. you.”


My hand finds her cheek, letting her warmth seep into my palm. A palm, that was capable of so much destruction. So much hurt. But everything she just said was true. Because I’d always had this sense to protect her, like somehow our souls recognised the pain and destruction we both endured in our lives and wanted to somehow heal together. In most of our time together though, I wanted to protect her from me too. But this girl….

I held her as delicately as a guy like I could, when she gave me something of hers that was beyond precious. Her trust. I almost couldn’t believe she was giving it to me but it was something I was determined to keep. No matter the cost.

“You never asked me you know.”

“I never asked you what?”

“If I had something to do with… You never asked me.”

Her small fingers wrap around my wrist that’s still cupping her cheek and her eyes never sway from mine. “I may not know everything about you Pax, but I know you aren’t capable of something like that. I’ve been around monsters my entire life and you aren’t one. You’re not.”

I suck in a breath, wanting so much more in this moment when I breathe, “You called me Pax.”

She tilts her head, a knowing smirk crossing her delicate face. “It’s your name isn’t it?”

“I guess I like how it sounds coming from you.”

Then for the first time in a long time, I let myself feel…

Author Bio:

Kathleen grew up in the south-western suburbs of Sydney, where family holidays by the beach and tormenting her two younger brothers, was how she spent her early years. But at the young age of 11, when she submitted a short story to a talented writing competition through the NSW schools program, not only did she win it, but she quickly found a love for it as well.

Throughout her schooling, writing was a hobby, along with sketching and various sports. But fast forward to her adult years when she moved to Europe to follow her husbands field hockey dream, and her love for writing surged to the surface.

Her debut story, Cut, was penned over two years where her hobby seemed to lead to the completion of Pennys' world. The rest of the series came the following year.

Kathleen enjoys writing stories full of self-discovery, emotional journeys and of course, love.

Something else she loves is hearing from her readers, so feel free to follow her blog or drop her an email.

For signed copies of her novels, more information about upcoming stories, or to follow her blog, please visit her website www.kathleenmaree.weebly.com

Dream often. Believe always.

Kathleen xo

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Thursday, November 4, 2021

In His Eyes is now Live! Check it our on KU


 
IN HIS EYES
by Michelle Mankin



NOW LIVE! In His Eyes by Michelle Mankin is only $2.99 for a limited time + FREE in Kindle Unlimited!

Get your copy now ➩ https://geni.us/InHisEyes

A Standalone Enemies to Lovers Best Friend's Boyfriend Rockstar Romance by New York Times bestselling author Michelle Mankin.





Dolly Byron
I’m the lead singer. Centerstage is my role, but I prefer being the person behind the scenes helping others. My best friend Jo is the driving force behind our all-girl band. Jo says I’m the heart, and that I give away too much of it without looking after myself, but that’s the way she sees me. The tall and devastatingly handsome but grumpy drummer for the Heavy Metal Enthusiasts seems to see me differently. After watching the hot sex video Jo did with him for the RFC, I’m looking at Tyler Vaughn differently too. Usually Ty and I just fight, but now I’m wondering what it would be like for him to do me like he did Jo in that video.

Tyler Vaughn
Dolly Byron is a sweet, fiery little pixie, and every curvy inch of her is sexy as hell. With those dimples and highland green eyes, she’s the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, not that I would ever tell her any of that. She hates me. Since Jo broke up with me, Dolly is all I can think about. But she’s not impressed like the other chicks are that I’m a rockstar. She seems to see through all that to the real me, not a good thing for a guy too difficult for even his parents to love. So the question remains. How do I get her into my bed?

In His Eyes is an unputdownable, standalone spin-off from the completed RFC series. It’s 73 chapters long, an enemies to lovers, best friend’s boyfriend, rockstar romance trope packed with emotion, angst, and scorching heat. If you prefer that your hero and heroine not have combustible chemistry or serious obstacles to overcome to be together, do not read this book.


Check out Destiny Fulfilled. Plus enter the giveaway

Destiny Fulfilled Laire McKinney Publication date: August 7th 2018 Genres: Adult, Fantasy, Romance Only love can save them… W...