Monday, February 9, 2015

Book Tour {Guest Post & Giveaway} DEAREST by Alethea Kontis


A themed tour with Prism Book Tours.


Dearest (Woodcutter Sisters, #3)Dearest
(Woodcutter Sisters, #3)
by Alethea Kontis
YA Fantasy
Hardcover & ebook, 320 Pages
February 3rd 2015 by HMH Books for Young Readers

“A fabulous fairy-tale mashup that deserves hordes of avid readers. Absolutely delectable.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review of award-winning series debut Enchanted

Readers met the Woodcutter sisters (named after the days of the week) in Enchanted and Hero. In this delightful third book, Alethea Kontis weaves together some fine-feathered fairy tales to focus on Friday Woodcutter, the kind and loving seamstress. When Friday stumbles upon seven sleeping brothers in her sister Sunday’s palace, she takes one look at Tristan and knows he’s her future. But the brothers are cursed to be swans by day. Can Friday’s unique magic somehow break the spell?

The Other Woodcutter Sisters Books
 Hero (Woodcutter Sisters #2)
Links for Enchanted

Links for Hero

Guest Post

A Weave of Words Fairy Tale Rant Intro

It was my friend Nicole who first introduced me to "A Weave of Words." This book, based on an Armenian folktale, was retold by fairy tale master Robert San Souci and beautifully illustrated by Raul Colon back in 1998.
 
The book, out of print now (but still fairly easy to acquire), is about a lazy prince and a weaver's daughter. In order to win her heart, the prince learns to read and write and weave. In return, the weaver's daughter learns to ride a horse and fight with a sword. When the prince is captured by an evil demon, he secretly weaves a carpet full of secret messages to be delivered to his true love...who subsequently hops on a horse and leads the army to rescue him.
 
A fairy tale starring two main characters who work hard and actually deserve each other! A win in my book, certainly. There was only one bit of sadness surrounding this tale (beyond it being out of print) -- Robert San Souci passed away this past December, right before Christmas. (For those unfamiliar with San Souci's work, he was a folklorist who wrote many wonderful picture books, and even consulted with Disney on Mulan.) My heart goes out to him, and thanks him (and Nicole!) most humbly for bringing this beautiful tale into my life. 



Alethea Kontis courtesy of Lumos Studio 2012
New York Times bestselling author Alethea Kontis is a princess, a fairy godmother, and a geek. She’s known for screwing up the alphabet, scolding vampire hunters, and ranting about fairy tales on YouTube.

Her published works include: The Wonderland Alphabet (with Janet K. Lee), Diary of a Mad Scientist Garden Gnome (with Janet K. Lee), the AlphaOops series (with Bob Kolar), the Woodcutter Sisters fairy tale series, and The Dark-Hunter Companion (with Sherrilyn Kenyon). Her short fiction, essays, and poetry have appeared in a myriad of anthologies and magazines.

Her YA fairy tale novel, Enchanted, won the Gelett Burgess Children’s Book Award in 2012 and the Garden State Teen Book Award i 2015. Enchanted was nominated for the Audie Award in 2013, and was selected for World Book Night in 2014. Both Enchanted and its sequel, Hero, were nominated for the Andre Norton Award.

Born in Burlington, Vermont, Alethea currently lives and writes in Florida, on the Space Coast. She makes the best baklava you’ve ever tasted and sleeps with a teddy bear named Charlie.

Check out Alethea's Road Tour HERE!


Tour-Wide Giveaway

3 Woodcutter Sisters Prize Packs (signed copies of Enchanted, Hero, & Dearest - US Only)
Ends March 8th



Follow the Tour
1 - Launch
2 - Lilac Reviews
3 - Special post @ Waterworld Mermaids

Prism Book Tours
Posted by at No comments:

Friday, February 6, 2015

Blog Tour {Excerpt & Giveaway} Maybe by Amber L. Johnson

  Maybe
by 
Amber L. Johnson
Maybe-Hi-Res-Cover

Release Date: February 12 , 2015
Genre: FICTION / Romance / General / Contemporary / Erotica
ISBN e-book: 978-1-61213-371-3
Available from: Amazon, Kobo, Barnes and Noble, and TWCS PH

~~SUMMARY~~

Maybe-3D-Paperback-eReader Emily Portman loves her job. A writer for Breakout! Magazine, she shadows and showcases up-and-coming bands. When her next assignment takes her to Austin, Texas, she can’t wait to add the city to her map of places she’s visited. Places she’s left without looking back. Her plan is to keep moving on, and the last thing she needs is a man holding her back. She’s not going down that road again. Tyler Macy is stuck in a rut. Despite his exceptional talent as a musician, he has chosen to take a backseat with his music and let others grab the limelight. Wounded and mistrustful, he doesn’t appreciate his friends’ efforts to bring him back to center stage. Emily comes onto the scene and sees his full potential, but he fights to stay in the shadows, shutting her out before she can add to the scars another woman gave him. For Tyler to find his music again, he needs to accept the help that Emily and their friends offer. When he discovers that his muse lies underneath Emily’s skin, it is still not enough to keep her from walking away. Neither will admit what they really want until it is too late. Emily is once again thrown in Tyler’s path when she is assigned to join them on tour. Despite the pain in his past, Tyler sees that she is worth it, even if she’s stolen both his heart and peace of mind. In order for them to be together, they both must discover whether the music and their passion are enough to overcome the obstacles that separate them. Maybe finding love is worth the risk.  


~~EXCERPT~~
Maybe-3D-Book-Stack-1Walking toward him is like trudging through the deepest mud, but I hold my head high, my hands in my pockets and strides long. When I'm less than a foot away, his head turns toward me without lifting his chin, and he looks up from under his brows. The white smoke from his cigarette causes his eyes to nearly close before he pulls it from his lips and exhales upward into the air. I'm struck by how incredibly handsome he is in black wool and new jeans. I want to know if his skin feels hot under his clothes and if his back feels the same when I scratch fingernails across his spine. My fists clench in my coat pockets at the thought. This is going to be so much harder than I'd been prepared for.

~~ABOUT THE AUTHOR~~
AuthPhotA true child of music, Amber's parents surrounded her with the loudest beats they could find, molding her into a girl who found inspiration and meaning in lyrics and chords. Raised on John Hughes movies, Luck Dragons, and pirate ships, she dreamed of love and adventure. When Amber began to create her own world, she envisioned a place where Happy Ever Afters do exist. Since then, she has authored several romance novels, all of which focus on songs and the way they can touch people's lives. Music may not be able to fix a broken heart, but it can provide one hell of a soundtrack for healing. A full-time wife and mother with a full-time job, Amber finds her muse in everyday life and the people who bring her inspiration.      


Be sure to look for her other book!
Eight-Days-a-Week-Hi-Res-Cover
 
 
 
~~CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR~~
 
Praise for Maybe
"The characters are fun, likable, and well done. It's such a feel good story with a wonderful romance. Honestly, if you want a good, easy read with a cast of characters that will make you laugh and cry, and a romance that will sweep you off your feet then give this book a read. You won't regret it. " - Jennifer
Maybe-3D-Paperback-1
978db-2twcs-blog-tour-banner
Posted by at No comments:

Cover Reveal for You and Me 4Ever by Isabella White {Giveaway}

Title: You and Me 4Ever 
Author: Isabella White 
Series: The 4Ever Series  (Book 1)
Genre: Contemporary/Erotica
Publisher: Fire Quill Publishing 
Cover Designer: Sandra Valente
Release Date: Mar 2015

Blurb/Synopsis

At 24 years old, Holly Scallenger has the perfect life. Everything a girl could want; a beautiful man, a stunning home, as well as being in the midst of preparing for the wedding of her dreams. This all vanishes the night she catches her fiancΓ©, Brandon Morgan, in bed with her worst nightmare, Donna Sinclair, just a week before Holly is set to walk down the aisle.

Attempting to recover from his betrayal, Holly swears off the affections of men in order to pick up the pieces of her crumbling life. Unfortunately, meeting Jake 'Hooligan' Peters is not part of her plan. The tall, dark-haired and handsome as hell med student, sweeps Holly away from the pain of her past and reveals to her the bright future that lays ahead. That is, until she falls pregnant just as Jake begins his internship at P&E; his family's hospital.

Will this love at first sight lead her to the fairytale she has always craved? Or, will she fall victim to a betrayal of the heart yet again?





Isabella White was born and raised in South Africa, where she still lives with her husband and two beautiful little girls. She always knew she was going to be a writer, but it only started to really happen about four years ago. In her free time―if she gets any because moms don’t really have free time―she loves to spend it with friends, whether it’s a girl’s night out, or just watching a movie. She’s a very chilled person. Her writing career started with Firebolt, book one in the Dragonian series under the pen name of Adrienne Woods. Her other series, Dream Casters, will be released mid-2015. She also writes in different genres, The Pregnancy Diaries, You and Me 4Ever has a total of 3 novels. More to come in the Pregnancy Diaries soon. And then, she has a paranormal series by the name of the Aswang series, which will consist of about ten novels. And if that wasn’t enough, there is another series, Guardians of Monsters, which will be released in 2016. Both novels are written under another pen name called Kristen Ping.

Places to find Isabella White 
Blog
Facebook Book Series Page
G+
Twitter
Website
Fire Quill Publishing


Posted by at No comments:

Thursday, February 5, 2015

Book Tour {Guest Post & Giveaway} Death & The Red Headed Woman by Loretta Ross

great escape tour banner large death and the red headed woman640

Death & The Red Headed Woman by Loretta Ross

Death and the Redheaded Woman
Paperback: 264 pages
Publisher: MIDNIGHT INK (February 8, 2015)
ISBN-13: 978-0738743936
goodreads-badge-add-plus

Synopsis

Auctioneer Wren Morgan is cataloging the contents of the Campbell house, an ante-bellum mansion with a Civil War-era lost jewels legend. She was hoping to find something interesting, but the naked dead guy on the stairs is an unwelcome surprise. When the body turns out to belong to a small-time criminal with ties to a more recent jewel heist, Wren suddenly finds herself face-to-face with Death.

Death Bogart (pronounced "Deeth") is a disabled Marine combat vet, down on his luck and trying to start over as a private eye and part-time bounty hunter. The stolen jewels he's searching for are the final evidence needed to convict a murderer -- and the reward money could turn Death's life around.

In Wren, Death finds a friend and a willing ally -- someone to help him learn to overcome his new physical limitations, and possibly even a second chance at love. But Death and Wren aren't the only ones searching for treasure. Two ruthless men are also on the hunt, and they will do anything to eliminate the competition. To survive, Death and Wren will have to solve two mysteries spanning a century and a half and outwit a pair of cold-blooded killers.

Guest Post

My first book, Death and the Redheaded Woman, is set in the fictional town of East Bledsoe Ferry, Missouri. While the location is made up, it's based on the small towns that surround my rural home, and there really is a place called East Bledsoe Ferry.

In the 1800's, Bledsoe Ferry provided a way across the Osage River at Warsaw, below Kaysinger Bluff. When Harry S Truman Dam went up in 1970, the land immediately below the dam on both sides of the river became a park. The west park contains the municipal ball fields and is a popular destination, but I prefer East Bledsoe Ferry Park. It's a triangular piece of land, nestled below a wooded bluff, with the Osage River to the west and the upper end of Lake Of The Ozarks to the east.

I wrote much of the first draft of Death and the Redheaded Woman at a picnic shelter overlooking the lake. My favorite place to sit is just a hundred yards or so from the boat ramp, and I fully expect to someday see someone sink a truck. The boat ramp area is also where returning fishermen clean their catch and dump the remains back in the lake, which attracts scavengers.

There's nothing to inspire a scene with a dead body like looking up to find yourself being watched by a flock of vultures.

A mile or so to the south of the Ferry Park, Warsaw's only remaining swinging bridge crosses the Osage. At the east end of the bridge, a big, square building with a two-story deck overlooks the river. Right now it's a bar and before that it was a bonds office, but when I was writing my first book it was a Chinese restaurant and was the inspiration for the Chinese restaurant where my main characters, Wren Morgan and Death Bogart, have lunch and read fortune cookies in chapter seven.

In other parts of the book I mention a character from Coldspring and a baseball game played at Tebo. Both place names really exist. Coldspring is the name of the road which, when it crosses Missouri state highway 7, becomes the Dam Access Road.

Tebo is the Anglicized version of the French Thibeaux or Thibaut. It dates back to the French occupation of Missouri in the first half of the eighteenth century and all three spellings are still common in the area. There is a Tebo Creek and a Thibaut Point and my parents are buried in the Tebo Baptist Cemetery at Leesville.

There's a mention in the book of "the Barker arm of Tebo Creek". Barker Creek is a smaller creek that feeds into Tebo Creek. If you ever visit Truman Lake, you'll find that the signs on bridges tell you what arm of the lake you're crossing. When the dam went in, water backed up on the Osage River and also along its many tributaries, creating a sprawling lake with a coastline longer than California's seashore. On a map it looks kind of like a bizarre lizard climbing up the state.

The Tebo arm and the Barker arm make up the northernmost portion of the lake. They're in a marshy lowland that's kept as a Wildlife Management Area by the Missouri Department of Conservation. There's also a Little Tebo Creek, and this is where Thibaut Point is located.

In my book, East Bledsoe Ferry is located in Rives County. Rives County is the old name of Henry County, where I live. When the county was organized in December of 1834 it was named in honor of William Cabell Rives, a Virginia politician who had studied under Thomas Jefferson. In 1841, because Rives had changed his political stance in ways which, to be perfectly honest, I'm not really clear about, the name of the county was changed to Henry after Patrick Henry.

The name Rives survives in a short, oddly-oriented street called Rives Road. (When I was in grade school my older brother, Danny, briefly owned a popular steak house on Rives Road. Unfortunately, it burned down after only about a year in business.)

The historic Campbell House in my book is inspired by several beautiful antebellum houses that survive, and the events that involved the historic Campbell family were based in reality as well. Henry County is only one county away from the Missouri-Kansas state line, scene of so much violence from the 1830's through the end of the Civil War. Indeed, the county to the west is Bates County, which was in the center of the district devastated by General Ewing's wildly unpopular General Order 11.

Faced with the task of fighting guerrilla-style Confederate marauders such as Quantrill's Raiders, Ewing ordered all residents of the district he commanded to turn over their grain to the military and evacuate their homes. Those who could prove loyalty to the Union would be allowed to move into the fortified cities, all others were required to leave the district. After the deadline, Union forces burned all remaining standing grain and any buildings deemed big enough to be useful to the enemy. What the soldiers spared, natural wildfires often did not. There is little left in Bates County now that predates the war.

Missouri painter George Caleb Bingham, who was a member of Ewing's staff, begged him to rescind the order. When he refused, Bingham painted a famous painting called Martial Law, showing weeping citizens being driven from their homes by a pitiless cavalry officer said to be modeled on Ewing. Before the war, Ewing had had political ambitions. After issuing General Order 11, there was never any chance that he'd be elected to office.

The naked dead man on the stairs at the beginning of the book is entirely a product of my imagination. I don't know if that will comfort of disturb you, but I do hope that, if you read my book, you enjoy it.

Author Photo
About This Author

Loretta Ross is a writer and historian who lives and works in rural Missouri. She is an alumna of Cottey College and holds a BA in archaeology from the University of Missouri - Columbia. She has loved mysteries since she first learned to read. Death and the Redheaded Woman will be her first published novel.


Purchase Links

Giveaway
Posted by at No comments:

Tuesday, February 3, 2015

Giveaway ~ Her by Felicia Johnson


Title: Her
Author: Felicia Johnson
Series: Standalone
Genre: YA/Fiction
Publisher: 8th Street Publishing
Release Date: June 2013
Edition/Formats Available In: eBook & Print (Soon to be a Movie)
Trigger Warnings: Borderline Personality Disorder, Eating Disorders, Depression, Child Abuse, Self-Harm

Blurb/Synopsis: 

In many ways, Kristen Elliott is a normal, seventeen-year-old girl. Kristen loves her family. She works hard academically, and tries to please her mother. She takes on the additional responsibility of caring for her twin siblings, Nick and Alison. She idealizes her best friend, Lexus, who not only seems to lead the perfect life, but also catches the attention of John, the boy Kristen secretly loves. However, as is the case with many teenagers, Kristen feels frustrated, isolated, and confused.


In other ways, Kristen is not like other kids her age. She knows something is wrong with her. Kristen feels like an utter failure. She is unable to please her abrasive mother, and scared to confront Jack, her abusive stepfather. She is also unable to protect Nick from Jack, making her fell all the more helpless. Adding to her problems, she knows she will never be as beautiful as her best friend Lexus. Kristen finds solace in self-injury, and the company of Mr. Sharp, her imaginary friend who encourages her feelings of self-loathing.


After a failed suicide attempt, Kristen is placed in the Bent Creek mental hospital, where she is diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder. While in the hospital, she meets a group of peers suffering with their own mental illnesses, and a compassionate staff of doctors and counselors. From there, Kristen begins her journey to survival. She discovers the circumstances that brought her to this breaking point, struggles to understand her mental illness, and fights to be a survivor against her own worst enemy: her self-blame.


Kristen’s tale of endurance illustrates the complex illness of Borderline Personality Disorder. Readers – including those suffering from BPD and their friends and family – can glean insight into the illness from Kristen’s humanity. Her story is an example of how, if we try to push the past away, we are either doomed to repeat it or let it haunt us to our graves.


Stop and think, and you’ll discover that you probably know someone who is going through this right now. Yes, 1 out of every 4 people struggles with mental illness – the dark secret so many live with.

One of the most corrosive aspects of living with mental illness is the urge to keep it a secret. Felicia Johnson learned that secrets can be lethal, and courageously shines a light on a diagnosis rarely talked about: borderline personality disorder, or BPD. Your audience will appreciate her candour and this opportunity for insight.


In Felicia Johnson’s book Her, we walk in the shoes of a girl suffering with borderline personality disorder, share her hopes and struggles as she desperately tries to understand what is happening. It is an example of how if we try to push the past away, we are either doomed to repeat it or let it haunt us to our graves. This powerful and compelling story enables those suffering from BPD, and their friends and family, to turn the abstract concept of BPD into a more real understanding.


Meet Kristen Elliott, a normal seventeen-year-old who loves her family and friends and strives for their approval. But Kristen knows something is wrong with her. In her pain and isolation, she finds fleeting solace in self-injury, and the company of Mr. Sharp, her imaginary friend who feeds her feelings of self-loathing.


After a failed suicide attempt, Kristen is placed in a mental hospital and diagnosed with borderline personality disorder (BPD). There, she discovers the circumstances that brought her to this breaking point, struggles to understand her mental illness, and fights to be a survivor against her own worst enemy: her self-blame. It is a story of endurance, survival and finding hope from within.


The story is inspired by Felicia Johnson’s own life of survival and her childhood best friend, Holly who, at fifteen, committed suicide – a silent victim of untreated Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) stemming from the trauma of childhood abuse. While Holly lost her battle with depression and BPD and at 15 years old took her own life, we can make a difference in showing teens that they are not alone on this journey and there is light at the end of the tunnel. Her also illuminates the harsh reality of child abuse in the home and the long term psychological effects it has on everyone involved.”


Through Her, Felicia Johnson helps to bring the understanding of BPD within reach of many young people and families afflicted by it, and continues to help many come to terms with mental health issues they face.

“We need help in turning this book into a movie, so we can reach thousands more and change the perception of mental illness and enable those who need the help to get it, help those going through this and also help families of those going through this to understand what their loved ones are facing. My goal is to help put an end to stigma on mental health and provide hope to those who seek help.”


Mental Health Novel-to-Film Adaptation

Giveaway 
a Rafflecopter giveaway

 Book Trailers 
 The Pain
 The Hope



FELICIA JOHNSON is a child abuse survivor, writer, sought-after speaker, mental health worker, and youth advocate. She loves ice cream, and seeing her little sister, Laura, smile. She is an active youth mentor at Youth Villages Inner Harbour and has been a volunteer with the Personality Disorder Awareness Network (PDAN). Johnson readily engages an audience with the moving story behind her latest book, Her. It is the story of a young woman with Borderline Personality Disorder who courageously peels back the layers of her complex and serious mental illness in a desperate attempt to understand it. 

Places to find Felicia Johnson
Amazon Author Page
Blog
Facebook Page
Goodreads
Her the Book Website
Twitter

Places to find Her
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Books A Million
Create Space

Book Trailers (Please Share These With Your Post)
The Pain
The Hope
Goodreads
Posted by at No comments:

Friday, January 23, 2015

Book Tour ~ Book Excerpt: Weclome to HELL by Demelza Carlton

About The Author

Demelza Carlton has always loved the ocean, but on her first snorkelling trip she found she was afraid of fish. She has since swum with sea lions, sharks and sea cucumbers and stood on spray-drenched cliffs over a seething sea as a seven-metre cyclonic swell surged in, shattering a shipwreck below. Sensationalist spin? No - Demelza tends to take a camera with her so she can capture and share the moment later; shipwrecks, sharks and all. Demelza now lives in Perth, Western Australia, the shark attack capital of the world. The Ocean's Gift series was her first foray into fiction, followed by her suspense thriller Nightmares trilogy. She swears the Mel Goes to Hell series ambushed her on a crowded train and wouldn't leave her alone.

About The Book

  Welcome To Hell

"Good morning. Welcome to HELL."


Mel hates job interviews - and this one's shaping up to be the interview from Hell.


From the grumpy receptionist to the disturbingly demonic interview panel and the sleazy CEO, it seems landing her first job is the least of Mel's worries.


Can she make it out of the office alive without selling her soul?

Book Excerpt

"Good afternoon, welcome to Hell-"
Did she really just say that? Mel wondered, staring at the receptionist.
"-lth, Environment, Life and Lands Corporation. How can I help you?"
"Ah, I'm here for a job interview?" Mel left the statement hanging as a question – half hoping she'd be told that there was no interview or vacancy, so she wouldn't have to undergo this ordeal.
"Oh, you're the girl from the agency? Take a seat and I'll let them know you're here," the girl said, waving toward the uncomfortable-looking bucket chairs. She picked up the phone receiver and stared at her until Mel's nervous knees folded, dropping her onto one of the seats.
"Hi, it's reception. I have an agency girl here who says she has an interview." The receptionist sniffed as if she felt the accuracy of this information was questionable. A pause. "No." The girl's chin pointed at Mel.
"What's your name, agency girl?"
"I'm Mel," said Mel.
The receptionist's shoulders slumped as her eyes implored Heaven for something she evidently lacked. Mel wondered if it was patience, good manners or the ability to smile, as the girl seemed to lack all three. "She says her name is Mel. Just…Mel," the girl said.
Mel summoned a smile. She could be both patient and polite – evidently it was a rarity in this office, if the receptionist was anything to go by. Perhaps the girl was only a teenager, too young to know better, or maybe she'd just had a bad morning…
"She's on her way," the receptionist said as she clicked the phone into its cradle.
Mel considered asking who the girl was referring to, but decided not to bother. She didn't expect any answer from her anyway, but if she was patient she'd soon see.
The door beside the reception desk opened and a red-suited woman emerged, scowling. She propped the door open with one shiny, red stiletto.
"Melody Angel?" she asked, squinting at the sheet of paper in her hands.
Mel winced. "I'm Mel," she repeated, extending her hand to shake the red woman's.
She ignored it. "Follow me."
She turned to her right and entered a small meeting room. No, an interview room, Mel told herself, looking at the office chairs circling the table. The furniture was occupied by two men, a jug of water and some empty glasses.
Oh Hell. I hope all my practise questions with Raphael were worth it – and that I don't forget anything, Mel thought, attempting to keep calm. Please, don't let me stuff this up.
The door clicked shut behind her with a terrible finality as Mel took her indicated seat.
 

Links

Posted by at No comments:

Book Tour {Guest Post & Giveaway} Prosecco pink by Traci Andrighetti

great escape tour banner large prosecco pink640

Prosecco pink by Traci Andrighetti

Prosecco Pink is a quick and entertaining read that will keep you on the edge of your seat wanting to know where each clue or plot thread was going to lead. The entire book is engaging without a dull moment. The murderer is cleverly kept under wraps, ramping up the suspense in a great way. ~Sapphyria's Book Reviews

The story is funny and easy to read it definitely keeps you turning the pages for sure, so don’t make my mistake and start it in the evening. :D You should also have some sort of deep fried pastry covered in powdered sugar on hand when you start. I guarantee you will be craving them. ~Tea and A Book

With a murder that will keep you on the edge of your seat, this whodunit with sweep you way reading into the night . What a great read. ~Shelley's Book Case

Colorful characters, antebellum mansions and life in the Big Easy take center stage in Prosecco Pink, Traci Andrighetti’s newest addition to the Franki Amato Mystery series. ~Queen of All She Reads

Pageflex Persona [document: PRS0000031_00001]
File Size: 1520 KB
Print Length: 274 pages
Publisher: Gemma Halliday Publishing (October 29, 2014)
Paperback: 274 pages ISBN-13: 978-1502974945
goodreads-badge-add-plus

Synopsis

**Now in development for a TV movie!**

For Franki Amato, life in New Orleans is anything but “The Big Easy.” When she met handsome bank executive Bradley Hartmann, she knew she’d finally found a man she could trust. But she can’t say the same for his sexy new secretary, who is about as trustworthy as Mata Hari and every bit as seductive. Meanwhile, Franki’s best friend and employer, Veronica Maggio, has named her the lead investigator in the murder of a gorgeous cosmetics CEO who was found lying dead in the master bedroom of a historic plantation home.

Now the pressure is on Franki to figure out what a bottle of pink lip gloss and the legend of a pink diamond have to do with the bizarre killing. The problem is that the plantation is notorious for being haunted, and Franki is less than enthusiastic about the prospect of meeting a ghost. Adding to her stress, her Sicilian grandma is up to her usual meddling antics—this time planning Franki’s engagement to Bradley before he’s even considered popping the question. As Bradley grows distant and plantation employees begin dropping like Southern belles during a sweltering summer, Franki turns to a psychic with a phobia of ghosts to solve the mysterious murders and her own relationship fears.

Franki Amato Mysteries:
Limoncello Yellow (book #1)
Prosecco Pink (book #2)

Guest Post

It is so appropriate for me to be on Kelly P’s blog to talk about the release of Prosecco Pink, the second novel in the Franki Amato mysteries. Why? Because my book involves so many p’s!

PROSECCO PINK
For starters, there’s the title. I always feature an Italian liqueur or wine and its color when I come up with a name for a book, and both are an integral part of the mystery. Since Prosecco is so popular right now, it seemed like an obvious choice for one of my titles. It comes in two colors, clear or pink, and there was no way I was going to call the book Prosecco Clear. Ugh!

PLANTATIONS
When I was creating the plot for Prosecco Pink, I decided to draw on the rich history of New Orleans and the surrounding area. The first thing that came to mind was all the fabulous plantation homes on Great River Road. I named my fictitious sugar cane plantation Oleander Place, and I set the murder in “the pink room,” which was inspired by Oak Alley Plantation’s gorgeous “lavender room.”

POISON
For my victim, I conjured up a beautiful cosmetics CEO named Ivanna Jones, who is found in a bed in the pink room laying like Sleeping Beauty and clutching a bottle of pink lip gloss. When I selected the manner of death, I was indirectly inspired by a true story from Myrtles Plantation involving a house slave named Chloe and oleander poison. But before you jump to conclusions about how and why Ivanna died, remember that I said “indirectly.”

PIRATES
To add some history to Ivanna’s murder, and to throw Franki and the cops off track, I made it appear similar to the murder of the original owner of Oleander House’s wife, Evangeline Lacour. Back in the 1800s, she was found in her bed in the pink room clutching an oleander flower. What happened to her? All I can tell you is that she was romantically involved with her husband’s brother, a notorious pirate who was the right-hand man of none other than Jean Lafitte. Blimey!

To find out more about my plot (and a few of its other p’s), be sure to get your copy of Prosecco Pink!
Traci Andrighetti-11b

About This Author

Traci Andrighetti is the author of the Franki Amato Mysteries. In her previous life, she was an award-winning literary translator and a Lecturer of Italian at the University of Texas at Austin, where she earned a PhD in Applied Linguistics. But then she got wise and ditched that academic stuff for a life of crime--writing, that is. If she's not hard at work on her next novel, Traci is probably watching her favorite Italian soap opera, eating Tex Mex or sampling fruity cocktails, and maybe all at the same time. She lives in Austin with her husband, young son (who desperately wants to be in one of her books) and three treat-addicted dogs.


Author Links


Purchase Links

Giveaway
Posted by at No comments:

Sunday, January 18, 2015

Book Tour {Guest Post & Giveaway} One Garish Ghost & Blueberry Peach Jam by Jennifer Fischetto

 One Garish Ghost & Blueberry Peach Jam
(Dead by the Numbers Mysteries) (Volume 1)
Paperback: 218 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (October 24, 2014)
ISBN-13: 978-1502961587

Goodreads


Synopsis

From National Bestselling author Jennifer Fischetto comes a hauntingly humorous new series…

Gianna Mancini has chatted with ghosts most of her life. It’s never affected her much. Until now. The latest ghost in Gianna’s family-centric, boy-complicated, job-depleted world is Emma Tinsdale, a woman Gianna despises. Wanting Emma out of her apartment and her orbit, Gianna chooses to help her move on, but she doesn’t expect to come across poisonous jam, a vengeful cop, or a group of friendly clowns. When a relative is framed for Emma’s death, Gianna must dig deeper and faster to find out what really happened that fatal night on the beach. With help from her sister, her cop brother, and her ex-boyfriend, Julian, she gets close to figuring out the truth. But when the killer closes in, Gianna better watch her step unless she wants to become the latest member of the dearly departed.

Guest Post

Ghosts, or the idea of them, has always interested me.

As far back as I can remember, I’ve believed in the supernatural. I’m sure that comes from my mother and the rest of her family, but while some of them only believe in a few aspects of the paranormal world, my mom’s mind has always been widely open. It made ghost stories all the more fun. We never viewed it, or at least I didn’t, as something to fear. The unknown is simply unknown, which also makes it interesting and the possibilities exhilarating.

But, unfortunately, for someone who believes anything is possible, I only had a couple of experiences I consider to be supernatural.

One was the night my brother and I believed we saw a UFO flying past our apartment on Long Island. This was in the late 70s, my mother was vacuuming the living room. It was nighttime, and we were in my bedroom staring out the window, although I don’t remember why. Maybe it was just our thing, or we were bored. I’m betting on bored. There weren’t a lot of kids in the neighborhood who were my age, and I remember being bored a lot. :)

Anyway, this object, in typical saucer shape, slowly flew across the sky. My brother and I stared at it. Then we discussed the shape and its comparison to an airplane, the speed, and the probability. I was a young teenager. But we weren’t so young that we didn’t know what a plane looked like. We wondered if we were seeing things…for a few seconds. Then we screamed for Mom, but due to her cleaning she didn’t hear us, and neither of us wanted to get her and miss the action.

She eventually turned off the vacuum cleaner just as it passed. She didn’t doubt what we were told her. She just wished she’d seen it too. And I truly believed we saw a UFO for many years later. Now, I’m not so sure if that was one. Due to the shape and slow speed, I don’t think it was an airplane, but it could’ve been something else from our world. I wasn’t well versed in military aircraft. I’m still not, so who knows what we saw.

My very first brush with the supernatural went differently though. Rewind a decade.

Before my brother arrived, Mom and I lived in a smaller apartment. I had a toy box with a hinged lid. The sides of the box had some sort of nylon basket weave on it, and the top had an inch or so of foam covered in thick plastic.

I was lying on top of it, on my back, and my left arm dangled over the side, between the toy box and the wall. Granted, I was a toddler/pre-schooler, so my arm couldn't dangle that much.

All I remember is that I felt another hand, and it gripped mine. The actual memory is hazy, but I recall the feeling of the fingers gripping mine, of the bolt of fear that ran through me and made me jump up and cry to my mom.

She told me it was just a doll. And I was plenty of them. I was quite spoiled. ;) She said I must've grabbed a doll’s hand and thought it grabbed mine back. Despite my age, I knew that wasn’t true, and I never considered otherwise. I always knew and still know what I felt. :)

Years later, when I called Mom on it, she told me she only said that to calm me down, but she had believed me. Yay! ;)

When it came time to start a new book series, I knew I wanted it to have a paranormal slant. Dead by the Numbers deals with ghosts—just the souls of people who are now dead. Nothing dark or demonic. It’s all pretty straight forward. And fun. Who says the unknown can’t be hilariously fun? :)


About This Author

Jennifer Fischetto is the National Bestselling Author of the Jamie Bond Mysteries. Unbreakable Bond, her adult debut novel, has received a National Reader’s Choice award nomination. She writes dead bodies for ages 13 to six-feet-under. When not writing, she enjoys reading, cooking, singing (off-key), and watching an obscene amount of TV. She also adores trees, thunderstorms, and horror movies—the scarier the better. She lives in Western Mass with her family and is currently working on her next project.

Author Links
Website  Newsletter  Facebook  Twitter  Goodreads

Purchase Links
Amazon  B&N

Giveaway
Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)