DANGEROUS WATERS: Interview with C.M. Michaels
Posted By J.C. Martin on February 3, 2014
About the Author
C.M Michaels grew up in a small town in northern Michigan as the youngest child of a close-knit family of seven. He met his wife, Teresa, while attending Saginaw Valley State University. Together they've provided a loving home for several four-legged "kids", including Sophie, their eternally young at heart, hopelessly spoiled Spaniel.
He has always enjoyed writing, and still has fond memories of reading his first book, a children's novella, to local grade schools when he was 14. Dangerous Waters, the first book in the Sisters in Blood series, is being published by Freya's Bower on September 5th, 2013. C.M. is currently working on the second book in the Sisters in Blood series along with a Fantasy romance.
When he's not writing, C.M. can be found curled up with a good book, watching movies or hitting the hiking trails with his wife. An avid reader since discovering Jim Kjelgaard novels in early childhood, his favorite authors include Kelley Armstrong, Peter V. Brett, Richelle Mead, Rachel Caine, Cassandra Claire, J.R. Ward, Laini Taylor and Tessa Dawn.
C.M. currently resides in Louisville, Kentucky.
Do you write about what turns you on?
I write in the genres I love to read. While my books do have some steamy romantic trysts in them those scenes are not what motivate me to write them. I usually start with a high level idea for a series, kick it around for a while to refine it, do a lot of up front research, define the supernatural powers/characters and then put together a detailed plot arc for the first book.
If we were to come to your house for a meal, what would you give us to eat?
My specialties are homemade three cheese meat lasagna and Granny Smith apple pie. I really enjoy cooking, although I don't have the time to make things from scratch as often as I'd like anymore. It's been years since I've made my mother's spaghetti sauce.
Are you a romantic?
I like to think so. I don't buy flowers or jewelry regularly but we still go out on weekly dates after being married for 17 years, and we love spending time together. We are each other's best friends and soul mates.
Do you listen to music when you're writing?
Sometimes I'll listen to mood appropriate music for the scene I am working on to help set my frame of mind, but once the words start flowing the music is turned off. I generally find it distracting, as it pulls me out of the dialogue and scenes that are running through my head.
Do you ever read your stories out loud?
All the time. Once I have finished my initial edit on a scene the next step is to read it out loud. It really helps me to flag sentences that don't sound natural and paragraphs that just don't flow together. When I finish a chapter I do the same thing.
Dangerous Waters
For Emily Waters, a nature-loving, small-town girl with an overprotective father, heading off to Boston University to study conservation biology is a dream come true — until a chance encounter catapults her into a mythical world she'd do anything to escape.
The latest victim in a rash of abductions near campus, Emily is brutally attacked before being rescued by a powerful new friend. She survives the ordeal, only to find herself held captive and presented with an impossible choice. While preparing for the unimaginable life she must now embrace clues soon emerge that Emily may not be entirely human, and her physical transformation awakens goddess-like powers that her new family cannot begin to explain. Dealing with her human first love, the not-so-platonic relationship with her coven "sister," and her new vampire sort-of-boyfriend further complicates matters, not to mention being secretly hunted by the psychopaths who attacked her. And as the only known offspring of a once all-powerful race, the climactic battle is only the beginning of her journey.
Book Shout-Out: ETERNAL NIGHT
Posted By J.C. Martin on January 3, 2014
"What makes Kerrion's writing so compelling is the beautifully flawed characters that find themselves in unexpected relationships…these kind of character level conflicts make Kerrion's writing so deliciously addictive."—Noor A Jahangir, Author of The Changeling King
"Everything you want in a great story. Love, intrigue, action, betrayal, and understanding."—Ch'kara Silverwolf, Author of Daughter of Light and Dark
Alone for a millennium, since a human murdered her beloved consort, Ashra, the immortal icrathari queen, rules over Aeternae Noctis, the domed city of eternal night. Her loneliness appears to be at an end when her consort's soul is reborn in a human, Jaden Hunter, but their reunion will not be easy.
Icrathari are born, not made. If Ashra infuses Jaden with her immortal blood, he will be a vampire, a lesser creature of the night, a blood-drinker rather than a soul-drinker.
Furthermore, Jaden is sworn to protect his half-sister, five-year-old Khiarra. She is the child of prophecy, destined to end the eternal night and the dominion of the Night Terrors—the icrathari and the vampires.
As Ashra struggles to sustain her crumbling kingdom in the face of enemies without and treachery within, Jaden fights to defend his sister and unravel a greater mystery: what is the city of eternal night, and how did it come to be?
READ AN EXCERPT
With Tera beside her, Ashra strode forward. A wall of vampires parted to reveal the other two icrathari, Siri and Elsker. A dark-haired human slumped at Elsker's feet, his wrists cuffed behind his back. Ashra stifled a chuckle. Surely Tera was overreacting; the human was by far the weakest creature in the chamber.
Tera knelt down, wrapped her fingers into the human's hair, and pulled his head back. The human's face was handsome enough—the slash of his cheekbones accentuated his perfectly proportioned, sculptured features—but taken as a whole, he was not compelling enough to justify the fuss.
Ashra shrugged. "You're wasting my time, Tera."
Apparently undeterred, the icrathari warlord shook the human hard. His eyes flashed open. They were brilliant green, the exact color of the emerald ring Ashra wore on the index finger of her right hand. His gaze was unfocused, and the reflexive narrowing of his eyes matched the clenching of his jaw, hinting of wrenching pain.
Tera looked up and met Ashra's gaze. "Taste his soul."
Ashra recoiled, her upper lip curling in disgust. She had no desire to taste a human's soul. Over the centuries, humans had grown weak, their small lives consumed by superstition and fear. It was better to live on the edge of perpetual starvation than fill her hunger with the pitiful excuse humans called a soul.
"Go deep," Tera said.
But why? Ashra's brow furrowed. She glanced at Siri and Elsker, but the two icrathari shrugged, apparently no more clued in than she was. She looked back at Tera. The icrathari warlord known as Ashra's Blade was the epitome of calm understatement. If she was so insistent, she must have had a reason.
Ashra knelt beside the human. Without flinching, she placed her hand against his muscled abdomen. It was bloody, his flesh ripped by a vampire's talons.
The man tensed at her touch, and his eyes flared wide with agony when her soul-sucking powers leeched into him. His breath came hard and fast, his chest heaving with the effort as he twisted in Tera's unyielding grip, trying to break free.
Ashra's eyes narrowed. The human was weakened—tapped into his life source, she waded through his dazed thoughts and shivered from the echo of each spasm of pain that wracked his body—but still, he fought Tera on the physical plane and Ashra on the psychic dimension, denying her access to his memories and to his soul.
She frowned and slammed her will against his, tearing an anguished scream from his throat, but still, his will did not crumble.
Askance, Ashra looked at Tera. "Did you taste him?"
Tera nodded. "It wasn't hard the first time; he didn't know what to expect, but apparently, he does now and is doing a fine job of fighting back."
Was that grudging respect she heard in Tera's voice? "Does his soul really matter?"
The icrathari nodded again.
Ashra's shoulders shifted with the motion of a silent sigh. His resistance left her with little choice. She leaned forward and glided her lips over his in a whisper of a kiss.
Human myths spoke of succubi and incubi—demons that, with a touch, could stir lust in their unwilling victims. All myths were based in reality. The maddening beauty and soul-sucking powers of the icrathari had spawned the legends of succubi and incubi. With a touch, the icrathari could lure their victims into a state of sexual ecstasy, bending the will and baring the soul.
The human tensed against Ashra, resisting the intimate contact. She almost recoiled. Had the centuries dulled her innate powers? Surely she had not forgotten how to lure a man.
She closed her eyes and remembered love.
As always, Rohkeus's fine-featured face—those beautiful gold-flecked green eyes, so unusual for an icrathari, and teasing smile—came to the fore. With a dreamy half-smile, she deepened the kiss, driving the memory of love before her like a sharpened stake.
At last, the man relaxed, succumbing to the kiss. She leaned into him, heedless of his crimson blood staining her white gown. He was warm, feverish even. Just skimming over six feet, he had more than twelve inches on her, but his physical strength, compared to hers, was puny. She was well aged; over four millennia old, she was the oldest of the icrathari and the strongest. She could have broken his neck with as little effort as a human child snapping a twig.
Her hand trailed across his muscled torso. He made it easy for her to be gentle. His body trembled as if he longed for her. His mouth was hungry for her kiss. He arched up against her, as if craving more. His need was like a living creature, wild and aching for her touch.
Eyes closed, Ashra shivered. Only one other person had desired her as much.
And he was dead.
She forced her way through the memories of pale bodies tangled upon cool silk sheets. When her soul-sucking power leeched out, it found no opposition. Images of the human's life rewound in a blaze of vivid sights, sounds, and sensations.
Ashra looked up at Tera, her smile little more than a barely perceptible curve of her lips. "He fancies himself the protector of the child of prophecy. Was she among those taken tonight?"
Tera nodded.
Ashra chuckled, the sound without humor. "It's a pity her genetic heritage wasn't sufficiently superior to prevent her from being culled."
"There's more. Go deep."
She pushed past the blackness at the start of his memories, expecting deeper darkness. Instead, the colors shifted into shades of ochre and gray. Memories, older than his body, resided in his soul; memories of an Earth long since lost to them—a planet surrounded and nourished by water; images of tall buildings glistening beneath a benevolent sun, and of thriving cities filled with the bustle of humans; memories of quiet and intimate conversations beneath a silver moon, the same silver moon that now graced Malum Turris with its light, though a thousand years older and viewed only from beneath the protection of the dome.
She saw herself as he must have seen her, a much-younger icrathari, still hopeful for the future, never realizing that the Earth they had all known and loved was irretrievably lost. Had she ever looked that vulnerable? Had her smile ever been so beautiful, so filled with love as she looked upon—
"Rohkeus?" Oh, blessed Creator, was that stricken whisper her voice?
HO HO HO!
Posted By J.C. Martin on December 26, 2013
Just a quick one to say Merry Christmas and happy holidays to all my followers and blog buddies! May 2014 be the best year yet! See you in the New Year!
Book Shout-Out: BLOOD FROM STONE by Frances Fyfield
Posted By J.C. Martin on December 18, 2013
Blood From Stone by Frances Fyfield
on Tour Nov 25 – Dec 25
Book Details:
Genre: Crime Thriller
Published by: Witness Impulse
Publication Date: 11/26/2013
Number of Pages: 336
ISBN: 9780062301864
Synopsis:
Marianne Shearer is at the height of her career, a dauntingly successful barrister, respected by her peers and revered by her clients. So why has she killed herself? Her latest case had again resulted in an acquittal, although the outcome was principally due to the death of the prime witness after Marianne's forceful cross-examination. Had this wholly professional and unemotional lawyer been struck by guilt or uncertainty, or is there some secret to be discovered in her blandly comfortable private life? Her tenacious colleague Peter Friel is determined to find out of that last trial held the reason for her taking her own life. The transcript holds intriguing clues, but it is another witness at the trial who holds the key to the truth.
Read an excerpt:
The trial had gone wrong on her, with the right result, certainly, one achieved through exploitation of weakness, legal argument, bullying, manipulation and luck. The suicide of the prime witness could only be called a misfortune. A thoroughly professional hatchet job on her part, in other words. It was for the prosecution to prove their case and for her to destroy it; she had done the latter but the result would not cover her with glory simply because it would be seen as an outrageous piece of cruel luck, rather than advocacy.She would not want to say goodbye. She would never want to see him again, but he was fresh out of jail and for the first time he was leaving the court via the front door and not via the prison van. The prison van, he had told her, was an exquisitely uncomfortable mode of transport, like traveling on the inside of a human time bomb complete with molded plastic seats and manacles.
Author Bio:
"I grew up in rural Derbyshire, but my adult life has been spent mostly in London, with long intervals in Norfolk and Deal, all inspiring places. I was educated mostly in convent schools; then studied English and went on to qualify as a solicitor, working for what is now the Crown Prosecution Service, thus learning a bit about murder at second hand. Years later, writing became the real vocation, although the law and its ramifications still haunt me and inform many of my novels.
I'm a novelist, short story writer for magazines and radio, sometime Radio 4 contributor, (Front Row, Quote Unquote, Night Waves,) and presenter of Tales from the Stave. When I'm not working (which is as often as possible), I can be found in the nearest junk/charity shop or auction, looking for the kind of paintings which enhance my life. Otherwise, with a bit of luck, I'm relaxing by the sea with a bottle of wine and a friend or two."-Frances Fyfield
Book Review: KING OF BAD by Kai Strand
Posted By J.C. Martin on December 17, 2013
Jeff Mean would rather set fires than follow rules or observe curfew. He wears his bad boy image like a favorite old hoodie; that is until he learns he has superpowers and is recruited by Super Villain Academy – where you learn to be good at being bad. In a school where one kid can evaporate all the water from your body and the girl you hang around with can perform psychic sex in your head, bad takes on a whole new meaning. Jeff wonders if he's bad enough for SVA.
He may never find out. Classmates vilify him when he develops good manners. Then he's kidnapped by those closest to him and left to wonder who is good and who is bad. His rescue is the climactic episode that balances good and evil in the super world. The catalyst – the girl he's crushing on. A girlfriend and balancing the Supers is good, right? Or is it … bad?
Review
I was hooked by the premise of this book: people with supernatural abilities that develop in their teens, X-Men style, are either born as superheroes, or super villains. Jeff, a juvenile delinquent, discovers his superpowers, and is recruited into the Super Villain Academy, where kids are trained to harness their abilities, and taught how to be good at being bad. But when Jeff starts developing good manners, he wonders if he's bad enough to be a super villain … or if the line between superhero and super villain is really that clear after all.
I found a likable protagonist in Jeff, the bad boy with a streak of good and lots of charm. The supporting characters in the book, namely Source, Oceanus, and Jeff's dad, are all interesting and also likable in their own ways.
Strand created a fantastical yet feasible world where young people with extraordinary abilities are recruited into secret training academies to train the world's next generation of superheroes or super villains. The descriptions of the different classes students have to take at the academy kinda reminds me of a Despicable Me/Hogwarts hybrid school. It was great fun to read!
Having said that, after the fun and surprises of the story, I found the ending a bit of an abrupt anti-climax. Without revealing spoilers, let's just say that everything was tied up too neatly in a convenient little bow. Considering this is supposed to be the first book in a series, there are no juicy unresolved issues that would compel me to pick up book 2.
Additionally, although I felt the premise, setting, and writing style of the book was targeted at the Middle Grade, there are some rather steamy and suggestive scenes that seem inappropriate for readers of that age. As such, I'm more inclined to class this as Young Adult, which is a shame, because I really think that Middle Grade readers would love the superhero/super villain world created by the author.
In summary, despite the disappointing ending, King of Bad is a fun read, and could have been a great Middle Grade book, but for some (in my opinion) inappropriate scenes.
4 stars!
Book Shout-Out: CUT SHORT by Leigh Russell
Posted By J.C. Martin on December 9, 2013
Cut Short by Leigh Russell
on Tour Nov 25 – Dec 31, 2013
Book Details:
Genre: Mystery & Detective; Women Sleuths
Published by: HarperCollins
Publication Date: Nov 26, 2013
Number of Pages: 300
ISBN: 9780062325594
Synopsis:
The park – a place where children play, friends sit and gossip and people walk their dogs. But in the shadows, a predator watches, waits – and chooses his first victim. But someone has seen the killer and come forward as a witness – someone who the killer must stop at all costs. For detective Geraldine Steele it is a race against time to find the killer as two more bodies are found. A gripping psychological thriller introducing Geraldine Steel, a woman whose past is threatening to collide with her future.
Read an excerpt:
He scrabbled at brittle leaves with clumsy gloved fingers then, crouching low, wriggled through the bushes. He glanced around to make sure no one was watching before he trudged away along the path. He'd been clever, careful to leave no clues. No one would find her in the park. It was his secret, his and hers, and she wouldn't tell. He had no idea who she was, and that was clever too. It meant she didn't know who he was.
He hadn't chosen her because she was pretty. He hadn't chosen her at all. She was just there. But she was pretty and he liked that. No woman had looked at him since school; she had stared into his eyes. She only said one word, 'No!' but she was speaking to him and he knew this was intimacy, just the two of them. It was a pity he wouldn't see her again, but there would be others. It was raining hard. He sang softly, because you never knew who was listening.
'Sweet the rain's new fall, sunlit from heaven, like the first dew fall, on the first grass, praise for the sweetness of the wet garden…'
The rain would wash her clean.
Author Bio:
Leigh Russell studied at the University of Kent, gaining a Masters degree in English. For many years a secondary school English teacher, she is a creative writing tutor for adults. She is married, has two daughters, and lives in North West London. Her first novel, Cut Short, was shortlisted for the CWA John Creasey New Blood Dagger Award in 2010. This was followed by Road Closed, Dead End, Death Bed, Stop Dead and Fatal Act, in the Detective Inspector Geraldine Steel series. Cold Sacrifice is the first title in a spin off series featuring Geraldine Steel's sergeant, Ian Peterson.
Interview with Emily Kimelman of the Sydney Rye series
Posted By J.C. Martin on December 2, 2013
Introduction
Emily Kimelman lives on a boat in the Hudson Valley with her husband, Sean and their dog Kinsey (named after Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone). Kimelman has a passion for traveling and spends as much time as possible in the pursuit of adventure.
Her "Sydney Rye Series" are dark murder mystery novels which features a strong female protagonist and her rescue dog, Blue. This series is recommended for the 18+ who enjoy some violence, don't mind dirty language, and are up for a dash of sex. Not to mention an awesome, rollicking good mystery!
The first four books in Kimelman's series, UNLEASHED, DEATH IN THE DARK, INSATIABLE and STRINGS OF GLASS are available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iTunes, and Kobo.
What are 5 things within touching distance?
Pillows, my husband, my computer, my notebook, my dog.
Do you have a crush on anyone?
Yeah, my husband. He is SO cool.
What is your least favorite word?
Don't have one.
What part of the writing process do you dread?
The days when I don't feel like it. When all I want to do is go watch Nashville but there are no new episodes.
What is your favorite joke?
The knock knock joke where the punch line is "orange you glad I didn't say Banana."
The Sydney Rye series
The Sydney Rye series of mysteries features a strong female protagonist and her rescue dog, Blue. This series is recommended for the 18+ who enjoy some violence, don't mind dirty language, and are up for a dash of sex. Not to mention an awesome, rollicking good mystery!
Books 1-3, The complete Series Box Set (Value Pack)
This box set includes all three of the Sydney Rye Books.
UNLEASHED (A Sydney Rye Novel, #1)
When the series begins Sydney Rye is named Joy Humbolt. She does not like people telling her what to do, so it comes as no surprise that she was just fired from her last job. When she buys Charlene Miller's dog-walking business on Manhattan's exclusive upper east side, it seems like the perfect fit: Quiet environment, minimal contact with people.
But then one of her clients turns up dead, and Charlene disappears. Rumors say Charlene was having an affair with the victim–and of course, everyone assumes Joy must know where she is. Joy begins to look into the crime, first out of curiosity then out of anger when there is another murder and threats start to come her way.
When police detective Mulberry is assigned to the case, Joy finds a kindred spirit–cynical and none-too-fond of the human race. As they dig deep into the secrets of Manhattan's elite, they not only get closer to the killer but also to a point of no return. One last murder sends Joy Humbolt hurtling over the edge. Her only chance of survival is to become Sydney Rye.
DEATH IN THE DARK (A Sydney Rye Novella, #2)
At the beginning of Death in the Dark we find Joy Humbolt hiding, not only from the law, but also from her past and the mistakes she's made. Living this isolated life doesn't last long though when a visit from Mulberry brings Joy to accept her new identity as the Private Detective, Sydney Rye. To complete the transformation, Joy must learn to control her emotions as well as her giant aggressive dog, Blue. With the help of an expert trainer, Joy learns to fight with her mind as well as her body. However, when the daughter of a close friend is brutally murdered in the desert, Rye turns away from her mentor to seek revenge. Sydney's quick temper and deadly intentions lead her into a trap that she will need all of her new skills to survive.
INSATIABLE (A Sydney Rye Novel, #3)
The third book in the series begins with private detective Sydney Rye living a simple, disciplined life in London, but when a dangerous man from her past calls, Rye finds she cannot turn him away. Robert Maxim explains that the daughter of a powerful friend has gone missing and he wants Rye to find her. In exchange he offers her something she had given up hope of ever having; freedom from her past.
With her dog, Blue, at her side, Rye meets up with her new partner, a handsome man she's not sure she can trust. Heading for Mexico City, they go undercover, posing as husband and wife. After meeting with the bereaved parents, Rye starts to sense that there is more going on than just a missing girl. But it isn't until they arrive in the Yucatan Peninsula, hot on the girl's trail in Paradise, that all hell breaks loose. Sydney has to reach out for help from old friends and deal with the consequences of her past, if she's going to find the girl and keep them all alive.
New release! STRINGS OF GLASS (A Sydney Rye Novel, #4)
STRINGS OF GLASS is the fourth novel in Emily Kimelman's Sydney Rye Series of dark murder mystery novels. This series features a strong female protagonist and her rescue dog, Blue. It is recommended for the 18+ who enjoy some violence, don't mind dirty language, and are up for a dash of sex. Not to mention an awesome, rollicking good mystery!
Sydney Rye is hanging out in India with her boyfriend, Dan, reading paperbacks and sipping beer. No violence and no reminders of her past. But when she and Blue, are attacked by a pact of wild dogs, Sydney starts to feel that old itch again; to do good by being bad.
Trouble finds Rye when she stops the attempted rape and murder of Anita, a reporter working on a story of corruption and human trafficking. The atrocities Anita describes send Sydney, Blue and Dan on a quest that takes them across India after a dangerous and, up until now, untouchable, figure. While Sydney struggles to accept her true nature she realizes that it is the only way to end decades of abuse and exploitation. But Rye fears that she will lose herself, becoming no better than the monster she fights against.
Book Shout-Out: FLICK by Keira des Anges
Posted By J.C. Martin on November 28, 2013
Leanna Matthews enjoys flying below the radar. She does well in school, has a few close friends and hides the fact she's an astral-traveling telekinetic. But there's no escaping her creepy dreams or Simora, the bizarre little spirit lady, that suddenly pops out of nowhere to warn her against keeping secrets and predicts an encounter with a sinister evil. For the first time in forever someone … or something … is on to her.
But life turns around when Leanna meets Piper one sunny afternoon. She's inexplicably drawn to him, almost as if she's been waiting for him to come. Forbidden to have a boyfriend Leanna throws caution to the wind, lying to her family and friends to be with him, while ignoring Simora's ominous message.
Yet Piper has a secret of his own. He is on a mission and Leanna, unwittingly, is the key.
Excerpt
Leanna Matthews craved for ordinary in the least extraordinary way. She enjoyed a few close friends, shopping at the mall and perhaps a nice romance novel every now and again. Routine was good, early mornings were better…and life was extremely complicated.
She squirmed restlessly in Biology – the final, insufferable class of the day – listening to Ms. Alvarado drone on-and-on about non-polar bonds in her last, torturous act of the term. Somewhere between 'atom' and 'electronegativity,' Leanna nodded off, nearly conking her head on the desk while daydreaming of summer vacation: shopping, beach, friends, shopping, vacation, shopping, sun, shopping, but not necessarily in that order.
Someone snickered from behind, no doubt amused by her wobbly head, as her eyelids grew heavier. Shut-up Ms. Alvarado, she thought bitterly. Thank God that in less than 20 minutes ninth grade would be officially over! School, and all its stupid inhabitants (present company included), would be history for a good two months; or rather two months too short – but it didn't matter. Somewhere a beach chair sat waiting on white, fluffy sand and a plane ticket had her name stamped all over it. The fun was just about to begin!
Or so she thought.
That next morning, instead of awakening to the sweet taste of freedom, Leanna lay whimpering, shivering feverishly in her sleep. She curled tightly into a knot as a tiny beam of light crept through the shutters while she slept, casting eerie shadows on the wall – one of which grew abnormally in size until completely encircling the white canopy bed.
About the Author
By day, Keira des Anges has the distinct pleasure of assisting teenagers with disabilities find employment, empowering one life at a time. By night, she is a chew toy for her dog and cat and avid reader of anything spooky, magical and totally out of this world. She lives in sunny Florida with her husband and two kids.
Thank You! Gratitude Giveaways Hop
Posted By J.C. Martin on November 15, 2013
As our American friends celebrate Thanksgiving, it is time once again for I Am A Reader's annual Gratitude Giveaways Hop!
Here are some things I am thankful for this year:
Baby Martin! (he's almost one now!)
My new job
Our move home
It is so true that when a door closes, a window of opportunity opens. I would not have considered moving home had my UK visa renewal not been rejected. Likewise, I couldn't have moved without first getting a job. I could not have gotten my new job any earlier, as the school has only just opened. And with all the new schools cropping up back home, Baby Martin has plenty of options when he's older.
The timing for everything could not have been more perfect!
We're settling down well in Malaysia, so I just had to participate in this year's Gratitude Giveaway! I'm not a religious person, but I do believe that some universal force must have been involved for everything to have fallen into place so well!
This giveaway is also to say a big THANK YOU to all my followers for being patient with me. I know I've not been blogging regularly, and writing even less, so thank you so much for sticking with me! (And if you don't already know, I have a super-sekrit 5-year project in the works, so new releases are on their way!)
Here's what's up for grabs:
1 x Book of your choice from Amazon (up to a value of £10 or $15)
The giveaway is international. All you have to do to enter is…
Let me know in the comments below how you follow my blog.
That's it! Simples! I will pick a random winner when the hop ends on 30 November.
And do check out the other blogs participating in this giveaway hop. There are plenty more goodies you could win!
Good luck!
Series Shout-Out: Tallent & Lowery by Amy Lignor
Posted By J.C. Martin on November 9, 2013
13 (Tallent & Lowery, #1)
In 1902, in a dark room on the fifth floor of Carnegie Hall, thirteen people came together to continue a tradition that had been set in stone thousands of years before.
In 2012, Leah Tallent is Head of Research at the New York Public Library. Stoic and stable, brilliant and cynical, she has forever enjoyed her existence among the book stacks. But even with her unparalleled intellect, there was no way to know that on the historic steps between America's famous lions, she would become involved with a crazy man on a fanatical quest.
Gareth Lowery has spent his life searching for the ultimate artifact that he is certain exists. His life's pursuit has been to retrieve twelve keys hidden by men whose job it was to protect the single biggest secret ever kept. To find the keys he must enlist the help of an unwilling guide who, unfortunately, knows much more than he bargained for.
From the first page to the last word, this fantastic duo become immersed in a whirlwind treasure hunt with historical and passionate repercussions. From the strange and eerie Winchester House to the blustery darkness of Loch Ness, Gareth and Leah will quickly learn that the theory of duality is correct: For every bad there is a good and, for Heaven, there most assuredly exists … Hell.
THE SAPPHIRE STORM (Tallent & Lowery, #2)
After going up against a man who believed he was the Devil, himself, the beloved characters from 13 – Leah Tallent and Gareth Lowery – are beyond exhausted. Now they are about to embark on the most terrifying journey imaginable … a trip to meet Leah's parents.
When Leah arrives where the 'home fires burn,' her sarcasm burns even brighter, while Gareth Lowery – the handsome adventurer – uses his charm to sway the 'odd' Tallent clan. But when a frightening call from Gareth's sister arrives telling him that her love has disappeared, the daring duo is soon running away from one horrific situation directly into another. A new puzzle from the past has come to life. Following clues left behind, the courageous couple becomes embedded in a world filled with liars, killers and greed.
And when the riddle of a famous 'Bard' is solved, a strange woman appears who has far more in common with Leah than she can possibly imagine! The heart-stopping suspense of this new quest takes them from Coptic Cairo to the magical world of Petra, in search of a cave deep underground that once housed a true 'Illuminator.'
Yet again, they must find the answers and stay one step ahead of true villains who are determined to make sure that – this time – Tallent & Lowery do not survive.
THE HERO'S COMPANION (Tallent & Lowery, #3)
With their second battle behind them, Leah Tallent and Gareth Lowery find themselves still knee-deep in hell. What should've ended with a celebration of passion wrapped in each other's arms becomes a nightmare once more, as a mysterious man demands Leah to return home, or else her beloved father will be found at the bottom of the sea.
Scrambling to figure out what's happened Tallent & Lowery walk in on a family that has literally gone insane: A mother filled with accusations, three sisters who wish them nothing but certain death, and a frightening story of a blood-red eye that leads to a puzzle with immense repercussions. The woman named Anippe who readers questioned in The Sapphire Storm is back, with an item in her possession that will have Tallent & Lowery heading out on an adventure based on pure emotion and ultimate fear – where victory may just depend on their willingness to sacrifice each other.
The time has come for Tallent & Lowery to go head-to-head with the mysterious voice from 13, as a villain is unveiled … and a war begins!
About the Author
The daughter of a career librarian, Amy Lignor's first love has always been books. She began her career in publishing as the Editor-in-Chief of Grey House Publishing. Working in the industry for twenty years, she is now the Owner/Operator of the Write Companion, an editorial house offering authors a range of services.
Appointed the Editor-in-Chief of a brand new traditional publisher — Hallowed Ink Press — Amy somehow finds the time to do it all while still putting out the most amazing series that has received every 'Top Pick' readers can think of!
Her popular YA series, The Angel Chronicles (Until Next Time, Gilded Wings, and A Privilege), introduced her to fans who now wait with bated breath for the next Tallent & Lowery suspense/thriller to arrive.
Inducted into the International Thriller Writers Organization, Amy is also a writer/contributor for various magazines, companies, and review organizations; Authorlink, The Feathered Quill, Suspense Magazine, and more.