Straight Browsing from the Library: Willow Bloom and the Dream Keepers

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. E.V. Farrell will be awarding the use of the winner's name in the sequel to Willow Bloom and the Dream Keepers to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

READ THE BLURB

Willow Bloom’s biggest challenge is to organise her thirteenth birthday party. However, a walk in the woods near her home provides some big surprises – a mystical guardian from another world, a magical forest, and the discovery that her parents are part of a secret order that protects dreams. With the discovery comes a calling. A prophecy tells of a young one who can push back the dark forces that threaten to corrupt our hopes and dreams. Is Willow that young one? Can she take on the forces of evil, the Underlord Maliceius, and win?

READ AN EXCERPT

“Isn’t that normal? How else are you meant to make things happen?”

“Willow, let me put it another way. Imagine that you are following a chocolate cake recipe to bake a birthday cake. This recipe has been developed and tested by others over and over so that you can make it too. It’s a ‘normal’ cake recipe that everyone follows. Now, what if you wanted to make this cake a little more special because it was for someone you really love? You think about this person while you are mixing the batter when suddenly, ‘out of nowhere’, you get the idea to add raspberries to your batter. Now your cake is no longer the original recipe. You didn’t need the raspberries to make the cake work, but you were inspired to create something different, inspired by someone special to you. You changed the world, just a little, by adding the raspberries.”

“Really, Mum, it’s a cake.”

“It’s an analogy, Willow.”

“I know. What you’re saying is that too many of us are making the same chocolate cake, following other peoples’ ideas. But to help things change, we need to create using inspired thought too. Right?”

MEET THE AUTHOR

E.V. Farrell lives in rural Victoria with her husband and two sons. This is her first novel.

http://www.hooklinebooks.com/young-adult-novels.php
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ev_farrell
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com
Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Willow-Bloom-Dream-Keepers-Farrell-ebook/dp/B07GDPSRH5/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/gb/en/ebook/willow-bloom-and-the-dream-keepers

ENTER THE GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Straight Browsing from the Library: Until We are Free by TM Blayte

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. TM Blayte will be awarding a $10 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

READ THE BLURB

Nyl Jayms is tasked with kidnaping the Elder princess, to force her brother, the king, to negotiate with humans. The alternative is a war that could lead to the annihilation of both humans and Elders.

A Rider Council faction, led by Nyl’s father, is opposed to any negotiations. They will do anything, including sabotaging his assignment, to trigger a war.

Nyl and his team have to outsmart the king’s elite Royal Guard, to get to the princess, and somehow stay one step ahead of the faction opposed to negotiations. Everyone will be forced to re-evaluate ideology they were raised with, as an impending war looms ever closer.

Join these elite teenage rebel warriors on a journey of war, betrayal, and political scheming, in Until We Are Free. In this debut novel from TM Blayte, faces of friends, family, allies and enemies will blur. Loyalties will be tested, until the determination to be free becomes the only thing that matters. After all, does one person’s freedom mean another person’s oppression?”

READ AN EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT

As a member of a family whose head can be targeted by different kinds of psychos, you get used to awkward things happening. Since it is not yet clear who attacked the parliament, all council members and their families are to stay safe and guarded. I was not surprised for instance, when one day a small army of guard’s, that I am sure are not government or Rider, arrived to guard our house. I was not surprised when every now and then, the guards practiced drills and fired random shots at dodgy looking people near the house, only to find out they were civilians passing by. So far, they'd managed to track down sixteen potential attackers headed to our house. Number of suspects injured by the guards: eight. Number killed or died as a result of injuries inflicted by the guard: five. Number of actual persons who turned out to be attackers: zero. So, one can easily guess, I'm not really confident about them.

Maybe that is why when a loud explosion comes from the gate one Tuesday morning, neither Dad, Mom, nor I, are concerned.

“I do wish they would stop that,” Mom says, “it makes me nervous.”

“Necessary measures,” Dad soothes, “until we apprehend the traitors in our midst, we cannot be too careful.”

It is the first-time Dad has said a word concerning the events at parliament a week ago. I take advantage of the topic being brought up.

“Traitors, Dad?”

“Of course, Nyl. True enough, the attackers at parliament were masked, but they couldn't have killed as many of our security as they did. How can four men, without any special weapon I might add, kill almost thirty people? It was someone the guards trusted.”

I shake my head as another explosion sounds outside, “But why would our own people do that?”

“Power. Power, the great poison of love. People will do anything for it. Remember not many weeks ago, I told you about factionalism among council members? That attack was evidence of what I told you.”

MEET THE AUTHOR

Aspiring journalist by day, reader by night, and author somewhere in between, TM Blayte is the author of Until We Are Free. He is published by Alban Lake Publishing. He is also the author of short works such as: Till Death Do Us Part, The Last Children, and The Power of Legend.

Until We Are Free can now be bought from:

Physical book: https://www.infiniterealmsbookstore.com/product-page/until-we-are-free-by-tm-blayte
eBook: https://www.infiniterealmsbookstore.com/product-page/until-we-are-free-by-tm-blayte-1
The Power of Legend is available for free reading on T’s blog at https://www.tmblaytespeaks.wordpress.com/
T’s biggest dream is to … Nah, it’s personal!
Follow him on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/tmblayte
To hear more about T’s work, and receive exclusive content, subscribe to his free newsletter. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeDnT36u5d62e0CwQhWLyW2NAjL5NE6UvLnBZPD_qlXCeOiqg/viewform?c=0&w=1&usp=mail_form_link

ENTER THE GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Straight Chatting from the Library: Charles Irwin

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

READ THE INTERVIEW

If you could have one paranormal ability, what would it be?

I would like to have the paranormal ability to heal sick people by using the energy of thought projection.

What is one thing your readers would be most surprised to learn about you?

Horses for courses. After reading the story of my life so far, some readers would be surprised that I have some common sense. While others would be surprised by my lack of it. Considering all the options, I believe the surprise would be that I am an ordinary, reasonably sensible man living my life to the full. At the same time embracing the Scout Law ‘To help other people at all times’.

When writing descriptions of your hero, what feature do you start with?

A reflection from a looking glass!

Are you a plotter or a pantser?

All the material in the seat of my pants bare witness of my propensity to ‘Fly by it.’ Becoming an author just happened when my autobiography decided to be born. Previously, I had written articles for journals and year books on different topics. The research I needed to do required plotting. Thereafter, the articles virtually wrote themselves. I can therefore admit to being a bit of each.

Did you learn anything from writing this book? If so, what? Yes. I learned that the way I write, is not the way people read. My communication fortẻ is speaking, I have learned it is essential to tailor the speech to the caliber of the audience. The same applies to readers, but as they are an unknown demography, it is hard to assess their levels of comprehension. My sense of humour is dated, as it is subtle and not always in your face. Adjusting to today’s dumbed down society and their sense of humor is a very difficult undertaking for me. However, while I’m learning I’m still living!

READ THE BLURB

Having survived quite a few birthdays and had some interesting experiences, I wrote them down. That's how "My Wonderful Wobbly Life" was conceived. It was nearly born in 2004, but decided to hang on until 2018 to become 'Born again' Alleluia!!!!

READ AN EXCERPT

My SURVIVAL Lesson

Contemplating my entry into this incarnation, from where I am now, I am able to formulate various scenarios regarding it.

• At the moment of my conception, my soul knew of the difficulties my mother would experience while giving birth to her child and therefore chose to be born to my parents in a damaged physical body.

• The forceps slipping during my delivery was an unforeseen accident, as was the subsequent struggle for life of the child. During this struggle, my present soul took over from the soul which had originally chosen my parents to fulfill its karmic requirements.

• However it was organized at birth, the result is I AM HERE NOW. My soul has experienced much during the seventy-one years it has inhabited this damaged body on its way to fulfilling the contract it made with spirit prior to incarnation.

My gut feeling is I am a ‘walk in.’ When the soul, which had chosen my parents as its vehicle to incarnate through, found the physical body had been damaged due to an accident it returned to the Soul Pool. When the soul left the damaged body and the baby was dying, my soul, which was waiting in the Soul Pool for an appropriate vehicle to incarnate into, ‘walked in.’ This is one explanation for the lack of feeding and lethargy during the first few days of my life.

MEET THE AUTHOR

Charles was born in London U.K. in 1932. During his birth the forceps slipped, resulting in brain damage to the motor control nerves of his right side and causing total body spasticity. However, his intellect was not damaged. Throughout his life the two adversaries, controllable brain and semi-controllable body, always needed to be balanced. After several years of work and study he became a Chartered Production Engineer. In 1971 he emigrated to Australia and became a senior examiner in the Australian Patent office. This autobiography illustrates the rhyme: “He started to sing as he tackled the thing, That couldn’t be done - but he DID IT!” Charles chronicles his journey from useless to useful, with humour and joie de vie. He pays tribute to friends who only gave him help when it was asked for. At a young age he recognized his psychic abilities and, by using lessons at the end of each chapter, shares some insights with readers.

https://wobblycharles.com

Buy Link: BOOK IS ON SALE FOR $0.99 DURING THE TOUR

Amazon https://www.amazon.com/My-Wonderful-Wobbly-Life-Autobiography-ebook/dp/B077PF88CT/ref=sr_1_1
BN: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/my-wonderful-wobbly-life-charles-irwin/1127552673

ENTER THE GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Straight Browsing from the Library: A Lord for Christmas

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. The authors will be awarding a $50 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn commenter. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.
READ THE BLURB

A Lord for Christmas: Heart-warming Regency Yuletide Tales is a collection of novellas with both holiday themes as well as those of love, passion, intrigue, and romance running throughout. With each story, you’ll long for your own Lord for Christmas.

Marriage by Twelfth Night by Ella Quinn – Lady Euphrosyne Trevor knows exactly what she wants in a marriage when she meets the Marquis of Markville. But when her father, the Duke of Somerset, refuses the suit out of hand and betroths Euphrosyne to another man, they must find a way to defy the duke and save the only chance they have for love.

The Rogue's Seduction by Lauren Smith - Perdita, London's favorite lady is desperate to avoid a fortune hunter and enlists the help of London's most wicked Rogue to fake an engagement, but her rogue has every intention of claiming Perdita as his wife.

A December with a Duke by Collette Cameron – After a horrific marriage, Everleigh vows to never marry again, but the enigmatic Duke of Sheffield is determined to woo the beautiful widow and make her his own.

A Match Made at Christmas by Jenna Jaxon — Sophia must allow her grandmother to arrange a match for her, the name of the groom to be announced at a Christmas house party. So when Sophia finds the true love of her life, she has no idea if he is her grandmother’s choice or not.

READ AN EXCERPT FROM A December with a Duke by Collette Cameron

For the second time that night, Everleigh stopped on the last riser.

He truly didn’t know?

“Yes, my daughter, Meredith.”

She touched the locket again. A lock of wispy, thistle-down soft white hair lay tucked inside. Struggling to wrestle her grief into submission, she focused on the long case clock’s pendulum swinging back and forth.

She paced her breathing with the slow tick-tock for a handful of rhythmic beats.

Did a parent ever recover from the loss of a child?

No. Life just took on a new reality.

“Tomorrow is the three-year anniversary of her death.”

Why had she shared that?

The Duke of Sheffield did the most startling, the most perfect thing in all the world.

He drew her into his arms and held her. He didn’t offer condolences or advice. He didn’t try to change the subject or pretend he hadn’t heard her at all.

He simply offered her comfort, and it felt so utterly splendid, just allowing someone to hold her. Someone who permitted her to show her grief for a child conceived in the worst sort of violation and violence, but who had been adored nevertheless.

For this brief interlude, Everleigh didn’t have to be strong. Didn’t have to maintain her frigid façade, and it was wonderful to be herself. That almost brought her to tears as well.

What was more astonishing was she wasn’t afraid of his touch.

How long had it been since she didn’t flinch when a man touched her?

They stood chest to chest and thigh to thigh in intimate silence for several moments until the clocked chimed the quarter hour, interrupting the tranquility. They really must join the others for dinner, or God only knew what sort of unsavory tattle might arise.

“Thank you for your kindness, Your Grace.”

She disengaged herself, more aware of him as a man than she’d any business being.

He simply nodded, though the amber starburst in his eyes glowed with a warmth she couldn’t identify.

MEET THE AUTHORS

USA Today bestselling author Ella Quinn’s studies and other jobs have always been on the serious side. Reading historical romances, especially Regencies, were her escape. Eventually her love of historical novels led her to start writing them.

She is married to her wonderful husband of over thirty years. They have a son and two beautiful granddaughters. After living in the South Pacific, Central America, North Africa, England and Europe, she and her husband decided to make their dreams come true and are now living on a sailboat. After cruising the Caribbean and North America, she completed a transatlantic crossing from St. Martin to Southern Europe. She's currently living in Germany, happily writing while her husband is back at work, recovering from retirement.

Website: http://www.ellaquinnauthor.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/EllaQuinnAuthor
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ellaquinnauthor
Blog: http://ellaquinnauthor.wordpresscom/

USA Today Bestselling Author Lauren Smith is an Oklahoma attorney by day, author by night who pens adventurous and edgy romance stories by the light of her smart phone flashlight app. She knew she was destined to be a romance writer when she attempted to re-write the entire Titanic movie just to save Jack from drowning. Connecting with readers by writing emotionally moving, realistic and sexy romances no matter what time period is her passion. She’s won multiple awards in several romance subgenres including: New England Reader’s Choice Awards, Greater Detroit BookSeller’s Best Awards, and a Semi-Finalist award for the Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley Award. She is a 2018 RITA ® Finalist in the Romance Writers of America Contest. To connect with Lauren, visit her at www.laurensmithbooks.com

Website: http://www.laurensmithbooks.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LaurenDianaSmith
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LSmithAuthor
Blog: http://theleagueofrogues.blogspot.com/

USA Today Bestselling, award-winning author, Collette Cameron pens Scottish and Regency historicals, featuring rogues, rapscallions, rakes, and the intelligent, intrepid damsels who reform them.

Blessed with fantastic fans as well as a compulsive, over-active, and witty Muse who won’t stop whispering new romantic romps in her ear, she lives in Oregon with her mini-dachshunds, though she dreams of living in Scotland part-time.

You’ll always find dogs, birds, occasionally naughty humor, and a dash of inspiration in her sweet-to-spicy timeless romances®.

Website: https://collettecameron.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/collette.cameron.5
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Collette_Author

Jenna Jaxon is a multi-published author of historical romance in all time periods because, she says, “passion is timeless.” She has been reading and writing historical romance since she was a teenager. A romantic herself, Jenna has always loved a dark side to the genre, a twist, suspense, a surprise. She tries to incorporate all of these elements into her own stories. She’s a theatre director when she’s not writing and lives in Gloucester, Virginia with her family, including two very vocal cats and one silent one.

Jenna is a PAN member of Romance Writers of America as well as an active member of Chesapeake Romance Writers, her local chapter of RWA. She has four series currently available: The House of Pleasure, set in Georgian England, Handful of Hearts, set in Regency England, and Time Enough to Love, set in medieval England and France, and The Widows’ Club series, also set in Regency England and available from Kensington Publishing in both print and digital.

She currently writes to support her chocolate habit.

Website: https://jennajaxon.wordpress.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jenna-Jaxon/146857578723570
Twitter:: https://twitter.com/Jenna_Jaxon

BUY LINKS: - on sale for only $0.99

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07JK77K9V/ref=x_gr_w_bb
BN: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-lord-for-christmas-lauren-smith/1129769409

ENTER THE GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Straight Browsing from the Library: The Sweetest October by Megan Slayer

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Megan Slayer will be awarding a prize pack featuring a necklace made by the author and a signed swag pack to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

READ THE BLURB

Love and Halloween are an odd couple, but they can be the best means to heal a broken heart.

Allison Prince never planned on leaving her job with the Waite Gazette, but when the chance to discover her past comes along, she can’t say no. She’s determined to learn about her grandmother and make the advice in her column more relatable. With her rescue dog, Woofy, beside her, she sets out to learn as much as she can about Hallowsville, Ohio.

Erik Greene doesn’t believe in love and isn’t fond of Halloween. He’s convinced his broken heart won’t heal—until he meets Allison and visits the local animal shelter. He doesn’t want a journalist snooping around Hallowsville. But Allison isn’t all she seems and the pup at the shelter proves love is possible.

Can he open his heart to new opportunities and chase the love of his life? Or is he destined to be the Dandy Devil of Hallowsville all alone?

READ AN EXCERPT

©2018 Megan Slayer, All Rights Reserved

“I knew about you long before your emails, even if I didn’t realize I did.”

“Erik?” He had to have said something. He hated her.

“Mr. Surly?” Delilah laughed and shook her head. “No.”

“Does he ever smile?” She toyed with the class covering the counter. “Or would that break his face?”

“He’s good at distant.”

“Too bad. He’s cute.” She hadn’t wanted to blurt that out. “But petulant.”

Delilah’s brows rose and she stopped laughing. “Remember the cute comment when you’ve fallen in love with him and he doesn’t return your feelings. Trust me. He’s cute, but he’s a handful very few women want to take on.”

“He can be all the cute he wants. I can tell you he won’t make a move.”

“Why wouldn’t he ask you out?” Delilah asked. “You’re adorable. It runs in the family, you know. We’re all adorable.”

“Compared to you and the other women I’ve seen, I’m nothing great. I’m short, curvy and not perfect,” Allie said. She knew her limits. Her exes liked to remind her as to where she could improve. Erik would be the same. “Why aren’t you with him? Or are you? You make a handsome couple.”

“Erik? No.” Delilah rewrapped a spool of ribbon around the cardboard. “He’s not my type, but I’ve dated him. It was a disaster.” She tapped the spool on the counter. “You’re more his type.”

“No thanks.” She refused to even try when she had the feeling she’d be shot down on the first date.

“Well, don’t think you’ll cure him. He’s beyond help.”

“I don’t know what you mean, but I won’t.”

“Remember that.”

“I’m not looking to date anyone. I dumped my boyfriend right before I left because I found out he’d cheated on me. I don’t have time to go through that again. Plus, once the month-long trip down memory lane is over, I’m back at the Gazette.” So she’d slipped and said she was home. So what? The word change was a simple goof-up. Nothing more.

“We don’t have a paper here in Hallowsville,” Delilah said.

“Okay?” She didn’t understand. “You share one with the next town over? The county?”

“Nope.” Delilah put the ribbon down. “You are an Astor. You’ve got the right to stick around and since you’re in the newspaper business, you’d know how to run one. Why not stay a while after the month and give us a newspaper? There’s still a press and once people found out we had a paper again, you’d have business.”

“I write columns, not oversee publications.” Running a newspaper? Half the time she struggled with balancing her checkbook. The thought of accounts, advertising, stories…she’d sink in weeks.

“You helped run the student paper in college.”

“It was a free paper and mostly used by the students to line bird cages and for house-breaking dogs.” Her heart sank. “I don’t know anything about the day-to-day operations of a paper.”

“It’s not like you’d be running it alone.” Delilah left her stool and retrieved three spools of ribbon from the other end of the counter. “Hallowsville is a remarkable place. When we see a need, we find a way to fill it and come together while doing so. You might be better at running the paper than you think.”

“Delilah.” No matter what she said, she wouldn’t change her cousin’s mind.

“I hope you rethink the paper, but I really hope you stick to your gut feeling concerning Erik.”

MEET THE AUTHOR

Megan Slayer, aka Wendi Zwaduk, is a multi-published, award-winning author of more than one-hundred short stories and novels. She’s been writing since 2008 and published since 2009. Her stories range from the contemporary and paranormal to LGBTQ and BDSM themes. No matter what the length, her works are always hot, but with a lot of heart. She enjoys giving her characters a second chance at love, no matter what the form. She’s been the runner up in the Kink Category at Love Romances Café as well as nominated at the LRC for best author, best contemporary, best ménage and best anthology. Her books have made it to the bestseller lists on Amazon.com.

When she’s not writing, Megan spends time with her husband and son as well as three dogs and three cats. She enjoys art, music and racing, but football is her sport of choice. Find out more about Megan and Wendi at: http://wendizwaduk.com/indexMegan.htm. Sign up for the newsletter here: http://ymlp.com/xgjmjumygmgj .

Website: http://wendizwaduk.com/indexMegan.htm
Blog: https://wendizwaduk.wordpress.com
Fan Page: https://www.facebook.com/wendizwaduk.meganslayer/
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Megan-Slayer/e/B008BJCFSC
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/megan-slayer
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wendizwaduk/
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5330530.Megan_Slayer
Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/MeganSlayer

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GV43J1Q/
Universal Link: https://www.books2read.com/u/3G97vr
BN: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-sweetest-october-megan-slayer/1129446661
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-sweetest-october
iBooks: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-sweetest-october/id1434747968?mt=11&ign-mpt=uo%3D4

ENTER THE GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Straight Chatting from the Library: Krysten Lindsay Hager

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Krysten Lindsay Hager will be awarding a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

READ THE GUEST BLOG

10 Things You Didn’t Know About Can Dreams Come True

1. Blue Arbor is a lake town I made up. Since I have a series set in Grand Haven, Michigan where they also visit Saugatuck, I wanted to create a separate town from those, too. I imagine Blue Arbor as a mix of Holland, Michigan and Spring Lake.

2. I watched (and read) a ton of music bios and documentaries while working on this story. Everyone from Ed Sheeran to Elvis, Marvin Gaye, Ariana Grande, George Michael, and many more. It helped me see what that celebrity lifestyle was like with all the pressures.

3. While I was working on the book, my music crush since I was a kid (George Michael) died. I stopped writing for a bit because he had inspired me a lot to write this. His music kept me going though.

4. I was very close to my aunt, so I wrote an aunt character for Cecily to confide in.

5. I visited two piers while working on this story for the music video shoot scene. One was in Holland, Michigan, and the other was in Grand Haven. Going to places in person and walking the path my characters take helps me set my scenes better.

6. I have had some interesting comments about the Zach character from readers. A lot of mixed feelings there about him because apparently a lot of people know someone like him. I had a male tell me he saw himself in Zach a bit more than he was comfortable with!

7. Cecily feels uncomfortable after her guidance counselor doesn’t seem to think much of her extracurricular activities. I wrote in an assistant principal character who gets Cecily’s love of reading to show that everyone has their unique strengths.

8. Mr. Warwick is loosely based on my father. He loved reading and took an interest in helping his students. I remember him telling me he knew a little girl who loved reading, but she didn’t have books to read at home, so he brought some of his old Hardy Boy books to her classroom.

9. F. Scott Fitzgerald is one of my favorite writers, so I had Cecily start reading him after her assistant principal suggested him to her and found a documentary on him to watch.

10. The documentary Andrew and Cecily both like is Great Gatsby: Midnight in Manhattan. I found it at the library and really got into it. I checked it out so many times that I finally just tracked down a copy of my own.

READ THE BLURB

Cecily has always had a huge crush on singer Andrew Holiday and she wants to be an actress, so she tags along when her friend auditions for his new video. However, the director isn’t looking for an actress, but rather the girl next door—and so is Andrew. Cecily gets a part in the video and all of Andrew’s attention on the set. Her friend begins to see red and Cecily’s boyfriend is seeing green—as in major jealousy. A misunderstanding leaves Cecily and her boyfriend on the outs and Andrew hopes to pick up the pieces as he’s looking for someone more stable in his life than the models he’s dated. Soon Cecily begins to realize Andrew understands her more than her small-town boyfriend—but can her perfect love match really be her favorite rock star?

READ AN EXCERPT

Andrew sat back and nodded. “Well, Dimitri got the song, you know? He understood what I was looking for—a relationship where two people understand each other on a spiritual level. You know, where their souls connect. Make sense?”

“Yeah, is that what you have with your girlfriend?” I asked hoping it didn’t look like I as phishing for info on who he was dating.

He shook his head. “Nah, I’ve never had anything like that before. But it’s the ultimate idea though, you know? How about you?”

“No, never,” I said and then I felt guilt wash over me. “I mean, I’ve had deep connections with people—just not what you’re talking about or what Dimitri said—the whole deep mystical thing.”

Andrew stared at me and I felt like he was looking into my soul. “Sometimes it feels like it’s impossible to get that connection with anybody. Or you think you’re halfway there and they say they get you, but then something happens and you know they weren’t as deep into it as you were—or at least as deep as you were hoping. That’s the inspiration for next song I’m working on. It’s about when you want to believe so badly that you have a soul connection, then something happens and you realize it was just another superficial relationship. That’s the title: Just Another Superficial Relationship.”

“Wow, I can’t wait to hear it.”

“I can sing you the chorus if you want,” he said.

Holding my breath, I tried to be cool and not squeal with delight that my favorite singer was about to not only sing for me, but let me hear an unreleased song. This was like a dream come true and it made me question if I hadn’t indeed fallen into the water and hit my head on some rocks, and was now either dreaming this in a coma somewhere or this was my own personal version of heaven. I felt guilty for inwardly gushing over Andrew when I had a boyfriend. But this wasn’t about me being interested in going out with Andrew. It would never happen anyway. This was just me meeting my crush who happened to be a singer, who I felt understood my feelings more than anyone else.

Andrew sang the chorus and a warmth washed over me. The song was perfect—the yearning, the longing—I had experienced all of it myself. It was like he had taken all my innermost thoughts and somehow put them into words.

“Amazing,” I said. My whole body was warm as my mind raced. Was I actually sitting here with him and having him trust me enough to share a new song? This was beyond anything I had dreamt of happening today.

MEET THE AUTHOR

Krysten Lindsay Hager writes about friendship, self-esteem, fitting in, frenemies, crushes, fame, first loves, and values. She is the author of True Colors, Best Friends...Forever?, Next Door to a Star, Landry in Like, Competing with the Star, Dating the It Guy, and Can Dreams Come True? True Colors, won the Readers Favorite award for best preteen book and the Dayton Book Expo Bestseller Award for children/teens. Competing with the Star is a Readers' Favorite Book Award Finalist.

Krysten's work has been featured in USA Today, The Flint Journal, the Grand Haven Tribune, the Beavercreek Current, the Bellbrook Times, Springfield News-Sun, Grand Blanc View, Dayton Daily News and on the talk show Living Dayton.

WEBSITE: http://www.krystenlindsay.com
INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/krystenlindsay/
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/KrystenLindsay FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/KrystenLindsayHagerAuthor
PINTEREST: https://www.pinterest.com/krystenlindsay/
AMAZON BIO: https://www.amazon.com/Krysten-Lindsay-Hager/e/B00L2JC9P2/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1518310668&sr=8-1

Buy links:

Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079S3KJSH
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B079S3KJSH
Amazon IN: https://www.amazon.in/dp/B079S3KJSH
Amazon Germany: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B079S3KJSH
Amazon Canada: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B079S3KJSH
Amazon AUS: https://www.amazon.com.au/Dreams-Come-True-Cecily-Taylor-ebook/dp/B079S3KJSH
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/can-dreams-come-true-krysten-lindsay-hager/1128104849?ean=9781621357469

ENTER THE GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Straight Celebrating from the Library: Goddess Fish 10th Anniversary

This post is part of the Goddess Fish 10th Anniversary Celebration. And, even though it's their anniversary, they are giving away some awesome prizes. See the giveaway at the end of the post for two different groups: one Rafflecopter for everyone and one Rafflecopter for authors only.

READ THE INTERVIEW

What did you read as a kid?

Judy: I read everything and anything – yes, I was that kid sitting at the breakfast table reading the back of the cereal box. I even read things that my mom would tell me (after the fact) she thought they were too old for me (picture From Here to Eternity – read in the 4th grade – yeah, there were things I didn't understand. I just skipped over them).

Marianne: Nearly anything, including the dictionary. I was a library assistant in middle grade and fell in love with the entire “Wizard of Oz” series (I wanted to be Ozma in the worst way). As I grew older, I gravitated toward fantasy (I did a book report on “The Hobbit” in 4th grade…my teacher didn’t believe I’d actually read it). I read my first Harlequin romance in Junior high and I’ve been just as eclectic since, reading everything from horror, to sci fi, to romance and nearly anything in between. No genre is safe from me!

A few short answer questions:

Tea or coffee?

Judy: both.. Coffee in the morning, sometimes hot tea in the morning, ice tea in the afternoons.

Marianne: coffee mainly, though now and then (especially in the winter), I’ll have tea.

Do you prefer the sea side or the mountains?

Judy: the seaside

Marianne: that’s HARD, but if I had to choose, I’d have to choose the mountains.

Sweet or salty?

Judy: both, preferably at the same time

Marianne: both. I have severe cravings for both at different times of the month…

Print or ebook?

Judy: again, both. Print in the pool or at the beach/ebooks at night or while traveling

Marianne: both. Actually, as I’ve gotten older, my vision is really degrading, so I find eBooks are actually easier to read. Plus, my husband wasn’t happy with how many print books I had (he’s not a reader and just doesn’t understand “no such thing as too many books”), so … mainly I read digital nowadays.

ABOUT THE CELEBRATION

Welcome to the Goddess Fish Promotions Tenth Anniversary Month Long Celebration!

Who is Goddess Fish Promotions? And what do we do? We're glad you asked!

We didn't want your visit here to be dry and boring, so we decided to have a poetry competition and put what we do into verse. Here are the initial entries:

Marianne:

Roses are Red.
Violets are Blue.
I'm awful at poetry.
Coffee.

Judy:

We can edit your book
find things you didn't see
It will be fun to look
at the changes from me.

Yeah, for some reason, Judy won!

Even better, her poem is correct. We DO offer editing as one of our options. Here are a couple of testimonials from clients:

I worked with Marianne on a complete edit and was very happy with the results. Her feedback was clear, easy to follow, and she probed on things I hadn’t thought of. She was also responsive whenever I had questions and helped me work through a few issues. Her feedback and guidance improved the quality of my manuscript, all at a very fair price. I’m working on my next book and plan to use their services again.

-J B Glazer, author, In Search of Mr. Anonymous

Choosing the right editor for a project is incredibly important to an author. Let’s face it, we want the best for our books. When I was considering editors for my first indie-published book, Regenerate, I naturally thought of Goddess Fish Promotions–and I’m so glad I did.

Marianne Arkins and Judy Thomas are incredibly attentive and professional during the entire editing process. Their input was invaluable and the story is much stronger because they cared enough to help unsnarl plot points and find order in the chaos..

I can’t wait to work with them again. Truly, a top-notch editorial team! – Sarita Leone, award-winning author of Regenerate

We also offer Virtual Book Tours, Graphic Design, Social Media Promotion and more. You can see more testimonials here.

We hope you enjoyed getting to know us a little (more information is below) and we'd like to do the same. We'd LOVE to see a little poem that tells us a bit about you in the comments. We'll be awarding random book giveaways and $5 Amazon GCs to some of the best poetry we find. It might not be at every stop, but when something really makes us smile, we'll reward it! Come on, be daring...

MEET THE PEOPLE OF GODDESS FISH PROMOTIONS

Goddess Fish Promotions was established October 14, 2008. Why? Well, when Marianne became a published author and got her the first taste of trying to promote a book on a budget, there was only one other virtual book tour company in place at the time, and their fees were simply too high for a small press author. After coordinating and running her own tour, she knew other authors could use the same service for a reasonable price. Thus, Goddess Fish Promotions was born.

Because both Judy and Marianne were authors and editors prior to running Goddess Fish Promotions, they approach the business with a unique point of view, and treat their clients how they would expect to be treated.

The people behind the fish

Judy Thomas

Judy has a college degree in English and she’s worked in retail, education, at her local library as well as an editor for a small press and for the now defunct ShadowKeep Ezine. She’s also a published author so can see things from both sides of the fence. In 2013, she “retired” and now spends her days helping authors make their dream come true—as well as working as much as she can with her local theater group.

Marianne Arkins

Grammar freak and coffee lover, Marianne wrote her first novel at ten years old, built her first commercial website in 2000, and published for the first time in 2006. She worked as a professional editor for just over a year, and knows what it’s like to write, edit and promote a book on a budget.

Website: http://www.goddessfish.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GoddessFishPromotions
Twitter: https://twitter.com/GoddessFish
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/goddessfish/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mariannejudy/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/+Goddessfish

ENTER THE GIVEAWAY

For Everyone: One $50 Amazon/BN GC, two $25 Amazon/BN GCs, Two $10 Amazon/BN GCs a Rafflecopter giveaway For Authors: 2 $10 GC for any Goddess Fish Promotions service, Winner’s choice of either a free blurb blitz (2 wk) or book blast (5 day), 50% off any tour (excludes Review tour or Full Service Tour), 4 free 25 page complete book edit, 2 Winner’s choice of teaser or social media cover graphic design a Rafflecopter giveaway