Book Blitz & Giveaway ~ Promises In The Dark by Princess Racena McConell

Book Title: Promises In The Dark

Series: Secrets of the Mystic

Author: Princess Racena McConell

Genre:  Paranormal Romance

Released:  November 17, 2013
Length:  345 Pages Print

Presented by: As You Wish Tours

Banner Made by: Julia Hendrix

 BLURB

What began as a casual dinner with friends quickly blossoms into a beautiful friendship for Rachel Adams and Derek Williamson. In time, it will develop into something much greater than either could have ever imagined. The pair have each had their share of tragedy and heartbreak that time has yet to heal. As their friendship evolves into something much more, Rachel begins to open up to the man she has fallen in love with about secrets that have consumed her life for so long.

Just when life seems to be opening up possibilities for the two of them, inexplicable and unsettling things start to happen. When these mysterious occurrences begin to invade their happiness, they are faced with the reality that they must find the truth about what haunts them. Will they survive as they uncover some of these long-kept secrets? Will the mystical forces that linked the lovers together so long ago be the same to destroy them in the end?

A Valentine's Date with Derek

Will you be mine? Is it possible to dream that I can have you in my heart forever?

If you will let me, I will love you beyond every realm you've ever imagined possible.

My lovely, when it comes to you, it's not about flowers, or candy, or romantic cards...it's so much more. It's about making you understand with my heart,my soul and my body what you are to me...and how you own me completely.

So I ask you again my love...will you be mine, not just for this day,but for eternity? I want this night to be the first night of forever for our love.

On Valentine’s Day, and everyday all I want is you…in my arms, and in my bed. I want to be inside of your head, inside of your heart, and more than anything…inside of you.

After I take your mind to another plane of ecstasy with my hot sweet kisses, I will drive your body wild with my magical fingers as you experience the hidden talents that a mystic man like me possesses.

I cannot wait to feel every depth of your hot, wet sweetness as you surround me. I want to taste your lips on my mouth, and when my lips travel to every part of your hot naked body; I want to hear you say my name again and again, as you beg me for more.

When I can’t resist you any longer and I thrust myself deep inside of you…baby you’ll hunger for all of me, you will be consumed by the mystical forces that are a part of me.

After I have loved your body and your soul, and after we have each found our sweet release over, and over...I will make sure I leave the imprint of my love in your heart forever.

My love is otherworldly, you will see.

You have never been loved by a man like me.

Book Links

AUTHOR BIO
Princess Racena McConnell( who has never and will never go by her first name) was born in Kings Mountain NC and now resides in the busy little town of Summerville SC with her husband of 32 years. She is the mother of 3 and grandmother to 4 with a 5th one on the way! "Promises In The Dark"; her debut novel—is part 1 of a story that has been in her mind for many years, and finally had to be told! She enjoys spending time with her family, and is so thankful they all live within 20 minutes! She also enjoys reading, writing and anything horror related. Her dream is to someday see her books splashed across silver screen!

Author Links

Presented by

GIVEAWAY

First Prize: Promises In The Dark Signed Paperback & Set of Earrings

Second Prize: Promises In The Dark eBook & Set of Earrings

Third Prize: Promises In The Dark eBook & Signed Bookmark

a Rafflecopter giveaway

BookBlast Giveaway ~ Paris Cravings by Kimberley Montpetit

 

Paris Cravings

Can life really turn on a dime, a missed bus— or a stuck pastry shop door?

Chloe Dillard’s life has always been complicated. Her mother is a neurotic romance novelist and her boyfriend, Mathew, has been pressuring her to go “all the way”.

But after The Worst Night of Her Life, Chloe escapes on her Senior Class trip to the swoon-worthy city of Paris which takes her mind off her troubles—temporarily. On the final leg of her dream trip, Chloe squeezes in one final run for a last-minute box of decadent pastries. Add a stuck door, subtract a broken four-inch heel from her cute strappy sandals, and Chloe ends up one stuck girl on the bakery shop floor with a sprained ankle.

Rescued by the shop owner’s dreamy son with chocolate-syrup eyes, the beautiful city of Paris suddenly becomes Chloe’s personal secret adventure. And even though Jean-Paul, the oh-so-kind La Patisserie shop boy is the gentlemanly guy Chloe has always dreamed of, even he has a girlfriend.

The police are tracking her down as a run-away, Mom’s having a nervous breakdown over her daughter’s “disappearance”, and Chloe’s just trying to have a Happily-Ever-After even as her dreams with Matt are swirling down the drain.

Could being lost in the city of Paris be just what the doctor ordered? What’s a girl to do in the most romantic city in the world?

Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Kobo * Smashwords

Praise for Paris Cravings:

"PARIS CRAVINGS is such a fun read, I couldn't put it down! This is a humorous, delicious, and dreamy romance set in Paris about pastries, growing up, dating, and making those hard decisions about the kind of guy you want to be with, and who is best for you." ~Milyssa Rivera

"Who can resist a book set in Paris amidst a Patisserie shop full of eclairs and pastries?! I'm excited this is a series, because anything with a bakery involved and I am in! Paris Cravings started out with a girl, a big box, some high heels and a mishap with a door. Insert cute worker with Hershey brown eyes, a French accent and a missing passport and you have the beginnings of romance." ~Fire & Ice Blogger

Excerpt:

Dear Diary:

I have a confession to make: I’ve become a total idiot over French pastries.

They’re my new favorite food.

My new-found edible souvenir.

My new favorite sin. Drizzled chocolate, sugar-dusted raspberries, flaky crusts with perfect crimped edges. I’ll have to run a marathon when I get back home to New York just to burn off my new five pounds. French beignets are the worst temptation. Those yeasty chocolate-filled pastries call to me the way Prada handbags call to my mother from Fifth Avenue.

Dunkin Donuts—so yesterday.

Climbing the Eiffel tower, running through miles of hallways at the Louvre Museum, gourmet lunches on the Seine River . . . yes, those are all must-sees . . . if you don’t mind vertigo-dizzying heights and enough paintings to saturate your brain for the rest of your life.

But once I discovered La Patisserie, the rest of Paris became a mere backdrop for my guilty pleasure. What’s a girl to do?

Author Kimberley Montpetit

Kimberley Montpetit once spent all her souvenir money at the La Patisserie shops when she was in Paris—on the arm of her adorable husband. The author grew up in San Francisco, another swoon-worthy city, loves all things Parisian and chocolate and lives in a small town along the Rio Grande with her family.

Kimberley has won many awards for her work, including the Southwest Book Award, the Whitney Award, the Arizona/New Mexico Book Award, is a Crystal Kite Finalist (SCBWI) and included in the Bank Street College Best Books of the Year.

She once stayed in a haunted castle tower room at Borthwick Castle in Scotland, sailed on the Seine in Paris, walked the beaches of Normandy, eaten in numerous French cafes, ridden a camel in Petra, Jordan, sunbathed on Waikiki, shopped the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, and spent the night in an old Communist hotel in Bulgaria.

She adores all baked goodies; brownies, éclairs, donuts, tarts, and pie, and makes a lot of chocolate chip cookies while revising.

Kimberley is, of course, hard at work on her next novel(s).

Facebook * Twitter * Website

BookBlast Giveaway

$50 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash

Ends 3/14/14

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

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Tour & Giveaway ~ Wildwood Creek by Lisa Wingate

There is a mystery in Wildwood Creek's history, a mystery that affects Allie's present...

Wildwood Creek
by Lisa Wingate
Christian Romance
Paperback, 384 pages
February 4th 2014 by Bethany House Publishers

Allie Kirkland has never been one to take wild risks. But when she’s offered a costuming assistant’s job on a docudrama in the hills near Moses Lake, she jumps at the chance. She’s always dreamed of following in her director-father’s footsteps, and the reenactment of the legendary frontier settlement of Wildwood is a first step. The family expectations will have to wait.

But in 1861, the real Wildwood held dangerous realities. Town founder Harland Delevan held helpless residents, including young Irish schoolteacher Bonnie Rose, in an iron grip. Mysterious disappearances led to myths and legends still retold in the folk songs of Chinquapin Peaks. Eventually, the entire site was found abandoned.

When strange connections surface between Allie and the teacher who disappeared over a century ago, everyone in Wildwood, including Allie’s handsome neighbor on the film set, Blake Fulton, seems to be hiding secrets, and Allie doesn’t know who she can trust. If she can’t find the answers in time, history may repeat itself . . . with the most unthinkable results.

Prologue continued

The man trails the steeple along his bottom lip. “Yes,” he says quite slowly, thinking the words in the speakin’. “Yes, you will do nicely, I believe.” Again, a sentence drifts away between us, unfinished somehow.

I’m feeling there’s more unspoken than’s been spoken. I wish I could be asking, Nicely . . . for what purpose? But I’ve been warned. I’ve been warned to take care. By its nature, the position he’s offering is one of few a girl soiled as myself might be considered for.

His gaze lingers there on my cheek, skimming as light as grassfeathers ’cross my ear, touching the skin at the edge of my collar. I finger the cameo locket the good reverend’s wife has given me, then I tug the new bit of ribbon we’ve strung it on. I wonder if the scars show, red and anger-filled.

“You are not afraid to go into the wilderness?” he asks.

“I see no point in it,” I say. “Fear changes nothing. A circumstance is still a circumstance.”

“Fear motivates. In fact, I find it to be the most certain motivator of all.” His long, thin fingers take up the pen and into the ink he dips, then signs a paper before pushing it my way. He turns the pen in his hand, extending it. “Sign here. I assume that you have no problem in working with Irish. Many of my laborers are Irish, which of course means that the whelps are Irish as well. The remainder in the settlement are Germans, for the most part.”

“My parents were Irish. I was born there, but I do not remember it well,” I say, though to be sure, he’s seen it in my surname and in the look of me. It can’t be missed.

I take the paper, begin to pen my signature.

After my first name and my middle adorn the paper, he stops me. I’ve lifted the pen to dip the ink. “That will do,” he says. His lips curve again, and I feel that we’re sharin’ a secret together, but I’ve no way of knowing what it is.

“It is Bonnie Rose O’Brien, sir,” I tell him, reaching toward the well of black liquid again.

 

He touches the pen to take it from me. “It is Bonnie Rose now.”

His flesh meets mine. Our eyes tangle. He is young to own so much. “It is better this way, don’t you think?”

Suddenly, I’ve an understandin’ of it.

I open my hand, let the pen slide through my fingers. A drip slips ’cross my skin, to splash on the desk. He takes a kerchief from his breast pocket. It’s clean and white. With- out a thought, he soils it beyond repair. The blackness seeps through and spreads as he strokes the linen over my palm. I can’t help watching it.

He, instead, is watching me.

My wits gather up, and I look at him, then lose my compo- sure at the meeting of our eyes. I’ve been offered something, but I neither know what it is, nor understand the terms of it. Anonymity? Absolution? A future for Maggie May?

What price does he ask to purchase it?

He smiles then, and this time I find some warmth in it. Or am I only seeing it because I need it to be so?

“I will expect you to be prepared for travel by the first day of the coming month,” he says. “Arrangements will await you at the river port. I have ownership of a stern-wheeler that has made the run up the Trinity as far as Porter’s  luff thrice this winter, bearing both passengers and freight. You will travel with the New Ila as  ar as Trinidad, then overland with the ox freighter who transports my supply shipments.” He rises, and I bolt from my seat, afraid even of smoothing my shirtwaist as he speaks.

“Set your affairs in order, Bonnie Rose. Pack well. It is a long journey to Wildwood.”

Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Book Depository

Lisa Wingate is a journalist, inspirational speaker, reviewer for the New York Journal of Books, and the author of over twenty novels.  Her novels combine elements of history, romance, mystery, and women's fiction with nuggets of Southern culture, from the sublime to the humorous. She is a seven-time American Christian Fiction Writers Carol award nominee, a Christy Award nominee, an Oklahoma Book Award finalist, a Christianity Today Book Award nominee, an Inspy Award nominee, and a two-time Carol Award winner. Her works have been selected for Booklist’s Top Ten List in 2012 and in 2013. Recently, the group Americans for More Civility, a kindness watchdog organization, selected Lisa along with Bill Ford, Camille Cosby, and six others, as recipients of the National Civies Award, which celebrates public figures who work to promote greater kindness and civility in American life.

Website * Southern BelleView Daily Blog 
Goodreads * Facebook * YouTube * Pinterest

Tour-Wide Giveaway

February 10 - March 2nd  US Only

See Rafflecopter for restrictions.

1 Winner, 1 Amazing Prize Pack:
   $50 Amazon Gift Card
   Print copy of Wildwood Creek by Lisa Wingate
   Handmade-by-author Prayer Box with notepads

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Follow the rest of the tour!

2/10: Launch

2/11: LDS and Lovin' it 

2/12: Mythical Books 

+ Christy's Cozy Corners 

+ I Am A Reader, Not A Writer 

2/13: Kelly P's Blog 

2/14: Mel's Shelves

2/16: Brooke Blogs 

+ Tell Tale Book Reviews 

+ Paulette's Papers

2/17: My Love for Reading Keeps Growing 

+ The Written Adventure 

2/18: My Devotional Thoughts 

2/19: Getting Your Read On 

+ Bookworm Lisa 

2/20: The Wonderings of One Person 

+ Platypire Reviews

2/21: Katie's Clean Book Collection 

+ Reviews By Molly 

2/22: Grand Finale

Are you a blogger and want to receive information about new tours? Go HERE.

Are you an author or publisher and would like to have us organize a tour event? Go HERE.

Lumière by Jacqueline E. Garlick $50 Book Blast

Lumière by Jacqueline E. Garlick

One determined girl. One resourceful boy. One miracle machine that could destroy everything…

After an unexplained flash shatters her world, seventeen-year-old Eyelet Elsworth sets out to find the Illuminator, her father’s prized invention. With it, she hopes to cure herself of her debilitating seizures before Professor Smrt—her father’s arch nemesis—discovers her secret and locks her away in an asylum.

Pursued by Smrt, Eyelet locates the Illuminator only to see it whisked away. She follows the thief into the world of the unknown, compelled not only by her quest but by the allure of the stranger—Urlick Babbit—who harbors secrets of his own.

Together, they endure deadly Vapours and criminal-infested woods in pursuit of the same goal, only to discover the miracle machine they hoped would solve their problems may in fact be their biggest problem of all. When darkness is safer than light…

Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Praise

“One of the most inventive story worlds I’ve read in years…” Donald Maass, Author of Writing the Breakout Novel, Writing 21st Century Fiction, and The Fire in Fiction

“Such an engaging story featuring witty dialogue, gripping action scenes and a romance that will make your heart melt!” Laurel May

“I liked the mix of reminders I got from authors like Mervyn Peake, L.Frank Baum and Ray Bradbury. I'm sure that every reader will find shades of other famous writers, including or excluding these three.” Richard L. Bunning

“Eyelet and Urlick, the two main characters... There's so much to love! They are like salt and pepper: totally different, spicy, argumentative, and brilliantly smart.” Rosemary Danielis

Excerpt From Lumière:

“Wait!” I shout, surging forward, shouldering my way through the crowd. I fight my way to the front and pound on the doors of the carriage. “Please!” I shout. “I need to speak to you!” But the stranger doesn’t hear.

He brings his whip down hard over his horse’s back and the carriage leaps forward, parting the angry crowd like soil in a furrowed field. “Wait!”

I hoist my skirts and chase after the carriage. “Please!” I shout. “Please! Wait!” A second crack of the whip and the carriage moves faster. I race on, struggling to keep up to its side. If I lose sight of the carriage, I’ve lost everything. All hope of ever leading a normal life.

I can’t let that happen.

Won’t let that happen.

He will not take my father’s machine.

“Please, I beg you, stop the coach!” I lunge, throwing myself at the back of the coach, barely catching a toe on the edge of the running boards, embedding my nails into the carriage’s seams. The carriage bursts forward through the streets of Gears, the city fast becoming a memory.

“Stop!” I plead as my boot slips from the running boards. I swing out to one side and dangle by one arm.

The stranger at the mount turns his head. “What are you doing?” he shouts. “Get off!”

“Get off?”

I kick my way back up onto the platform.

“I said get off!” he shouts again.

“I won’t!” I say, hoisting, myself up higher onto the cab.

My foot slips again and I sink beneath the rooftop, striking my chin hard on the way down. Grasping at the coach’s seams I desperately try to hold on, the toes of my boots burrowing twisted trenches in the dirt road below. My heart lodges in my throat as I lose my grip and swing out again to the opposite side.

“Bloody Hell!” I hear the stranger curse. His face appears over the top of the cab seconds later. His eyes are lit like flares. I hang by the tips of my fingers, shocked, staring up at him. I don’t know whether to scream or cry.

Author Jacqueline E. Garlick

I'm Jacqueline Garlick. Author of YA, New Adult, and Women's Fiction. I love strong heroines, despise whiny sidekicks, and adore a good story about a triumphant underdog. I love to read, write, paint (walls and paper) and plan cool writing events for cool writers. I have a love/hate relationship with chocolate, grammar, and technology. I prefer creating things to cleaning things, and baking to cooking. I believe laughter is a one-stop-shop solution to all that ails you and if that doesn’t work there’s always Ellen Degeneres. You will always find a purple wall (or two) in my house (perhaps even a door) and a hidden passageway that leads to a mystery room. (Okay, so you won’t find a hidden passageway but a girl can dream, can’t she?) Oh, and tea. There will always be tea. I love specialty teas...and collecting special teacups from which to drink them. (See website for collection.)

In my former life, I was a teacher (both grade school and college-don't ask) and more recently I've been a graduate of Ellen Hopkin’s Nevada Mentor Program and a student of James Scott Bell, Christopher Vogler and Don Maass. An excerpt from Lumière earned me the 2012 Don Maass Break Out Novel Intensive Scholarship.

Lumière—A Romantic Steampunk Fantasy—is my debut novel, Book One in my young adult The Illumination Paradox Series. I am represented by Josh Adams of Adams Literary.

Website * Twitter * Facebook * Pinterest

BookBlast Giveaway
$50 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash


Ends 3/14/14


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

Book Tour & Giveaway ~ My Date From Hell by Tellulah Darling

My Date From Hell (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy, #2)

by Tellulah Darling

Release Date: 10/31/13

Summary from Goodreads:

Sophie Bloom’s junior year has been a bit of a train wreck. After the world’s greatest kiss re-awakened Sophie’s true identity as Persephone (Goddess of Spring and Savior of Humanity), she fought her dragon-lady guidance counselor to the death, navigated mean girl Bethany’s bitchy troublemaking, and dealt with the betrayal of her backstabbing ex, Kai (sexy Prince of Darkness). You’d think a girl could catch a break.

Yeah, right.

With Zeus stepping things up, it’s vital that Sophie retrieve Persephone’s memories and discover the location of the ritual to stop Zeus and Hades. So when Aphrodite strikes a deal that can unlock Sophie’s pre-mortal past, what choice does the teen goddess have but to accept?

The mission: stop media mogul Hermes from turning Bethany into a global mega-celebrity. The catch? Aphrodite partners Sophie and Kai to work together … and treat this suicide mission as a date. Which could work out for Sophie’s plan to force Kai to admit his feelings for her–if she doesn’t kill him first.

Add to that the fact that BFF Theo’s love life and other BFF Hannah’s actual life are in Sophie’s hands, and suddenly being a teenager—even a godlike one—seems a bit like … well, hell. Whatever happened to dinner and a movie?

The YA romantic comedy/Greek mythology fireworks continue to fly inMy Date From Hell. Love meets comedy with a whole lot of sass in book two of this teen fantasy romance series. Breaking up is easy; dating is deadly.

What Inspires You, Tellulah?  Hot men and bad boys and guys that are swoony Smart chicks and smart mouths that don't fall too soony Banter and sly looks you hope they don't see  This is just some of what inspires me  Flirting and friendships and having that first date Falling so hard and then finding your soul mate Sneak attack kisses that amp a degree This is just some of what inspires me  Sizzle and fire and sexy behaviour Playing it cool with a smooth "see you later" Misunderstandings that you don't foresee This is just some of what inspires me  So freaked is he So scared is she Will my story mend I simply remember what inspires me And then it's true love, in the end **And that, darlings, is both what inspires me and why I am not a famous lyricist on Broadway. All kidding aside, I write about love and so every human interaction regarding love (and hate) fascinates and inspires me. It doesnʼt have to be romantic relationships either. Iʼm inspired by great friendships, and sometimes, why those friendships become more, but other times how perfect they are as is.  My inspiration comes from watching teens laugh on the bus, parents and kids locked in sullen silence, or elderly couples holding hands at the beach. If Iʼm not eavesdropping on actual people, Iʼm losing myself in fictional characters because I find inspiration in other peopleʼs stories – both excellence I want to try to attain and ways in which I absolutely do not want to spin my tales. Iʼm inspired by humour in the midst of sadness and moments of drama when itʼs been so comedic up until now. Iʼve drawn inspiration from literal situations Iʼve lived and thematic premises drawn from the human condition. And the fun of being inspired by people and life and love and hate is that sometimes what I'm most judgemental about or find the most idiotic, turns out to give me my favourite story and character moments.   Hope you enjoyed this and thanks for having me! Tellulah

Add to Goodreads

My Date From Hell (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy, #2)

 

My Ex From Hell (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy, #1)

A Date of Godlike Proportions (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy, #2.5)

Release Date: 12/20/13

Summary from Goodreads:

There’s bound to be pressure when it takes 2500 years to get to a second date. Which is exactly why Theo Rockman, a.k.a. Prometheus, would rather not go. With his best friend gravely injured and the fate of humanity still on the line, Theo has all sorts of creative excuses to avoid dating swoon-worthy god and love of his life, Hephaestus. 

YA romantic comedy gets an epic mythological twist in the free (at select retailers) short story A Date of Godlike Proportions (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy Book 2.5). Being human hasn’t killed Theo, but this date just might.

Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and Book Depository

About the Author

Tellulah Darling
noun

Sassy girls. Swoony boys. What could go wrong?
1. YA romantic comedy author because her first kiss sucked and she's compensating.
2. Alter ego of former screenwriter.
3. Sassy minx.

Geeks out over: cool tech.
Squees for: great storytelling.
Delights in: fabulous conversation.
Writes about: where love meets comedy. Awkwardness ensues.

Tellulah Darling is a firm believer that some of the best stories happen when love meets comedy. Which is why she has so much fun writing young adult romantic comedy novels. Her tales span contemporary, teen fantasy romance, and YA Greek mythology, and range from stand alone books to series. For Tellulah, teen romance is the most passionate, intense, and awkward there is – a comedy goldmine. Plus smart, mouthy, teen girls rock.

Author Links:

    

***GIVEAWAY***

1 mobi or epub of My Ex From Hell, My Date From Hell and A Date of Godlike Proportions.

Open internationally.

RULES AND RESTRICTIONS:

Contest is void where prohibited. Entrants must be 13 or else have parent or guardian’s permission to enter. Winners will be notified via email and will have 48 hours to respond  or another winner’s name will be selected. Winning entries will be verified for authenticity.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour Hosted by:

YA Bound Book Tours

Blog Tour Spotlight & Giveaway ~ Mooncalf by Linda Zern

 

Tour Schedule

Mooncalf by Linda Zern

Over Olympia and Leah's heads, Americans race the Russians to the moon; on their television sets young men fight and struggle in the mud of Viet Nam; and America holds its breath between heartbreaking tragedies.

But on Miss Brinker's school bus, in the seat with the rip in the green plastic, Olympia and Leah fall in love, the way children do: immediately, completely, and without knowing or caring why they shouldn't. Olympia Crooms, with her happy hair, and Leah Breck, with her silly red dog, are two smart girls.

Olympia's father works other men's orange groves in rural Central Florida and tells his daughter that school is the best way to reach for the stars. Leah's father moves his family from the Space Coast to the country where she and her brother can climb orange trees, imagine lions in the tall grass, and learn to feed baby cows milk from a bottle.

At Evegan Elementary, two smart girls find each other and have to decide if they will learn the hardest lessons of all: the false traditions of their fathers.

Excerpt

The bus engine growled, loud enough to rattle the windows.

“Hey! There’s a big, red monkey riding on the roof of that car,” a girl sitting behind Leah hollered.

“No, it’s a dog—a big, red dog. And it’s surfing right up on top of that roof.” Across the aisle from Leah, a boy with big horse teeth pointed, screaming with laughter.

“That is so far out and gross!” someone else said.

“Hey, green sweater girl!” One of the big kids in the back of the bus started yelling at one of the little kids sitting in the front of the bus.

Leah was one of the kids sitting in the front of the bus, and she was little.

She did not turn around. He couldn’t be yelling at her, not on her first day at a new school. He’s not. It was a mistake. Leah looked down at her green sweater and started to count the pearl buttons. Why couldn’t she be a turtle with no ears and disappear inside her green sweater shell? It was probably pretty quiet inside a turtle’s shell.

Amazon

Praise for Mooncalf

"One of the most admirable things about Mooncalf is that it's difficult to find a single wasted word in the entire book. Granted the book is short; yet, it is very rare to find a book which treats with such delicacy the choosing of each word--each adjective, verb, and noun. Themes, motifs, and symbols are everywhere throughout Mooncalf, and most impressive of all none of it is discarded. Motifs and themes exist in big and small circles in Mooncalf, circling back in on themselves as well as intertwining themselves with the plot and the characters that inhabit it. And those motifs and themes, those messages and those symbols, don't go away once you've finished the book. They stick with you. It's hard to forget Mooncalf." ~ The Thousander Club

"I never expected to be moved to tears by a book meant for adolescents. Buy it, read it, share it, and let yourself be changed by it." ~Lacey Smith

Author Linda Zern

Linda Zern is a native of Florida where she learned to be moonstruck. She wrote her first children's chapter book, The Pocket Fairies of Middleburg, in 2005. Writer's Digest called "the perspective of these tiny beings [the pocket fairies] refreshing, enchanting, and intriguing." Florida Publisher's Association was kind enough to award her little book the President's Book Award for best children's book of 2005.

Mrs. Zern has since published an inspirational book, The Long-Promised Song, serving as both writer and illustrator. Three collections of her humorous essays (ZippityZern’s Uncommon Nonsense) can be found at Smashwords.com, and her award winning essays have been recognized and published at HumorPress.com. Her current project, Mooncalf, is her first work of historical fiction for Middle School readers. Set in rural Central Florida, the author tells the story of two misfit girls and the hard lessons they must learn about friendship and love from their friends, their families, and their world.

The mystical state of Florida remains an enchanted and delightsome place for both Mrs. Zern and her husband of thirty plus years, and so they continue to make their home among the palmettos and armadillos in the historic town of Saint Cloud.

Website * Blog * Twitter * Facebook * Pinterest

Blog Tour Giveaway

$25 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash

Ends 3/9/14

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

  a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour & Giveaway ~ WEB OF LIES by Sara Dailey & Staci Weber

Web of Lies (The Red Ridge Pack # 3)

by Sara Dailey and Staci Weber

Release Date: 11/25-13

Summary from Goodreads:

In the midst of a struggle for control of his pack, eighteen-year-old werewolf enforcer-to-be Luke Stanton meets the one girl who will destroy everything…or complete him.

Eighteen-year-old Luke Stanton is focused, strong, and intimidating as hell. He has to be. As the future enforcer of Red Ridge, it will be his job to keep the other weres in line. So avoiding close friendships, pack drama, and especially pack females is in his best interest. He witnessed firsthand what love did to his father, so casual human hookups are enough.

Then she arrives: Scarlett Reed. She arouses something primal in him, something undeniable. But just as Luke gives himself permission to finally experience something real, the truth bursts free. The were beauty is harboring a secret so devastating it has the power to destroy him. At the same time, the pack is splintering over a battle for leadership, and Luke’s strength is needed more than ever. It is a time of upheaval, of the destructive power of lies. Everything he thought to protect is in danger: his family, his friends…and most of all, his heart.

I

I hurried to gather the last of my stuff, but Gavin was determined to do this…again. Before I could zip up my suitcase, he was at my bedroom door. “You really sure you want to do this, Scarlett?”

“Gavin, we’ve already been through this,” I told him.

He ran his hands through his hair and said, “I still don’t know why Dad talked you into going back to Red Ridge with him and Drew. This is some serious shit. You realize that, right?”

“Of course I realize this is serious. That’s why I agreed to go. If we don’t do this, our entire pack will suffer,” I reminded him.

“Don’t you think I know that? But come on, you seriously don’t have a problem with our own father asking you to hook up with a guy in order to screw with his head? I don’t know how else to say this, but it kinda sounds like he’s whoring you out.”

Whoring me out?! He crossed a line with that one. I pushed Gavin toward the door, but he hardly budged, which made me even angrier. “Did you just call me a whore? Are you fucking kidding me right now? He is not whoring me out! How dare you—”

Companion Books 1 & 2 in this series:

Pack of Lies (Red Ridge Pack, #1)

Circle of Lies (Red Ridge Pack,#2)

About the Authors

Both Sara Dailey and Staci Weber are avid readers, English teachers, friends, wives and soccer moms. They have been teaching together for the past ten years and writing together for six.

Born and raised in Houston, TX, Staci Weber is a graduate of the University of North Texas. Staci is a junior high school teacher with an addiction to reading romance novels. She considers herself incredibly lucky to have a close family, some good friends, a fabulous husband and two beautiful little girls.

Sara Dailey co-authored the Red Ridge Pack Novels with her good friend and co-worker Staci Weber. She has a degree in literature from U of H Clear Lake and is a graduate of The Institute of Children’s Literature. Sara is a native Texan and lives with her wonderful husband and son in League City, TX.

Author Links:

    

Blog Tour Schedule:

http://yaboundbooktours.blogspot.com/2013/12/blog-tour-sign-up-web-of-lies-by-sara.html

***GIVEAWAY***

One e-book copy of Circle of Lies and one e-book copy of Born of Lies. (INT)

RULES AND RESTRICTIONS:

Contest is void where prohibited. Entrants must be 13 or else have parent or guardian’s permission to enter. Winners will be notified via email and will have 48 hours to respond  or another winner’s name will be selected. Winning entries will be verified for authenticity.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour Hosted by:

YA Bound Book Tours