Straight Browsing From the Library: Fire Above by CH MacLean

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. C. H. MacLean will be awarding a $30 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

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I love her so much, I'd risk anything.

She and I don't have names. We're just slaves, after all. But our hearts don't care, and we're lucky, we have a chance at a scrap of happiness in our terrible lives. My father is the Queen's pet.

But when my love discovers the lords' newest atrocity, she lashes out, does the unthinkable, and attacks one of them. Her courage is heroic, but now they have stuffed her in prison, getting ready to slaughter her.

With nothing to lose, I dare to dream of a life far from the lords. I fight for our freedom, and escape to the woods with my love. We can do no less than free all of our people in the effort.

Our flight through the woods is only the start of our journey. The lords’ flaming attacks, their deception, the loss of so many of my people—I don't know if I will survive, or if I even want to. But for my love, I will do almost anything, even battle the fire above.

READ AN EXCERPT

As I entered the village, my heart dropped and my feet turned from trusted friends to tripping enemies. The lord was waiting by my brother's hut. Carry a package. When they’d said from our village, I’d had a feeling. From my brother’s hut, what else could it mean?

I plodded forward, dreading the next moments. It was an honor to be Chosen, right? Father had been Chosen, and look where he was now. Pet slave to the Queen herself.

I watched the lord push open the door and obediently followed her inside. She looked around, wrinkling her nose. It looked like a regular hut to me, with its dirt floor, cooking pit in the center, sleeping mats to one side. Neater than most, in fact. My brother's mate spun as we came in, my nephew on one hip. I saw my niece peep out from the sleeping mats out of the corner of my eye. Behind the lord’s back, I winked at her and tipped my head to get her to go back to hiding. She did.

My brother's mate's brown eyes shone black in the dim light. She flicked her eyes at the lord, and then at me, wide-eyed.

The lord peered at her and said, “That child is Called.”

My brother's mate's face flashed with fear and went slack. I dove toward her, managing to catch my nephew before his head hit the floor. Luckily, I bumped his stiff mother back into the wall instead of forward, so she shouldn’t be too injured. My nephew started screaming, and I couldn't tell if he had an injury or was just scared.

MEET THE AUTHOR

To young C. H. MacLean, books were everything: mind-food, friends, and fun. They gave the shy middle child’s life color and energy. Amazingly, not everyone saw them that way. Seeing a laundry hamper full of books approach her, the librarian scolded C. H. for trying to check them all out. “You'll never read that many before they expire!” C. H. was surprised, having shown great restraint only by keeping a list of books to check out next time. Thoroughly abashed, C. H. waited three whole days after finishing that lot before going back for more.

With an internal world more vivid than the real one, C. H. was chastised for reading in the library instead of going to class. “Neurotic, needs medical help,” the teacher diagnosed. C. H.'s father, a psychologist, just laughed when he heard. “She's just upset because those books are more challenging than her class.” C. H. realized making up stories was just as fun as reading, and harder to get caught doing. So for a while, C. H. crafted stories and characters out of wisps and trinkets, with every toy growing an elaborate personality.

But toys were not mature, and stories weren't respectable for a family of doctors. So C. H. grew up and learned to read serious books and study hard, shelving foolish fantasies for serious work.

Years passed in a black and white blur. Then, unpredictably falling in love all the way to a magical marriage rattled C. H.'s orderly world. A crazy idea slipped in a resulting crack and wouldn't leave. “Write the book you want to read,” it said. “Write? As in, a fantasy novel? But I'm not creative,” C. H. protested. The idea, and C. H.'s spouse, rolled their eyes.

So one day, C. H. started writing. Just to try it, not that it would go anywhere. Big mistake. Decades of pent-up passion started pouring out, making a mess of an orderly life. It only got worse. Soon, stories popped up everywhere- in dreams, while exercising, or out of spite, in the middle of a work meeting. “But it's not important work,” C. H. pleaded weakly. “They are not food, or friends, or...” But it was too late. C. H. had re-discovered that, like books, life should be fun too. Now, writing is a compulsion, and a calling.

C. H. lives in a Pacific Northwest forest with five pets, two kids, one spouse, and absolutely no dragons or elves, faeries, or demons… that are willing to be named, at least.

Website: http://chmaclean.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorCHMaclean
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/CH_Maclean
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CHMacLean
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/chmacleanauthor

Buy the book at Amazon.

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Straight Chatting from the Library - Elf Hills by S.S.Dudley

 

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Prizes for the tour are as follows:

• One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card.
• One randomly chosen host will receive a $25 Amazon/BN.com gift card.

What are your future ambitions?

I have plans to write many, many books. With my first two books, I plan to publish at least seven this year, and more to come. My Elf Hills series I have planned to six books. And I have other series I am anxious to get to. I definitely want to grow my list and my distribution. As quickly as possible, I want to establish myself as a legitimate author who puts out fun, interesting stories for all ages. Right now writing is my other job, I want it to be my main occupation. At some point I will write novels for adults (already have several projects in early development) under a separate pen-name and I am thinking about writing a non-fiction novel, drawing on my experiences as a scientist studying tropical diseases.

Over and above writing lots of fun, interesting books, I want to push on the publishing. I am bilingual; my wife and children have Colombian citizenship. As soon as I can, I want to translate everything into Spanish (it is my second language). The Spanish language book market is very under-developed, especially in children’s literature. But it is also an immature book market. Latins don’t have the custom of reading with their children as much as other cultures. This is partly because books are so expensive. Ebooks can and will change this. I want to be part of that transition. And, of course, I want to push into other markets as well.

I know that there is a lot of noise of late about trends toward more multi-media content, merging video, audio, writing, etc. And some even suggest that reading is getting old. But I see trends in the opposite direction, too, as many people grow weary of the flashing lights and shallow writing so accessible on the web. Thus growth in long-form journalism, more interest in books, expansion of digital book markets, etc. There is still so much underdeveloped potential and value in books for the world as a whole and such a necessity to keep renewing the Literature. Not all books persist eternally, and neither should they. Certainly there needs to be innovation to facilitate book discovery and book accessibility. They'll come. I want to be part of all of that.

Are you a romantic?

Mmm... yes, I think so. But nowadays, with two kids, romance is a glass of wine and a movie before going to bed at 9.

What song would you choose for Karaoke?

Twinkle, twinkle, little star. I know the words. Mostly. Or maybe “La Bamba.” I can handle that, too.

Which Star Trek or Star Wars character are you most like?

I want to say Han Solo. But probably more like Luke early on. Awkward and kinda dopey.

Who would you most like to be stranding on a desert island with? Least? Why?

My brother. He is a bit of a McGyver. Least? Hannibal Lector...

READ THE BLURB

Something strange, something magical, is going on in the dusty hills behind the small town of Villaloma. Yet each time Linda Peters puts on her running shoes and sets out to find the enchanted kingdom she imagines—full of dancing elves, unicorns, and more—something stops her. And with school starting soon, she only has a few more chances to really search the hills. While Linda’s frustration and doubt grow, her cousin, Nugu, looks for answers in his books and wonders if maybe, just maybe, Linda’s stories are for real.

The day finally arrives when Linda can run far, the day she is sure she will find her magic city. But when she and Nugu feel their goal must lie just beyond the next hill, they only find more hill. Is it all a figment of an over-active imagination; a wistful fantasy?

Or is there truly something magical in those hills that only the strong of heart—and leg—can discover?

READ AN EXCERPT

Crack! Like a firecracker, the screen door’s sharp retort pierced the tranquility of the warm
summer afternoon. With it appeared a girl, beautiful as all five-year-olds are: tousled hair, rosy
cheeks, a smattering of freckles, and a flowery dress dancing around healthy legs bruised and
scraped by kicking balls and climbing trees. Her hair was the color of honey, her skin tanned
by long days in the sun. Her bright, green eyes exuded wonder and vibrancy. By all measures,
Linda Peters was a perfectly healthy, perfectly normal girl only days into kindergarten.

The flowered dress danced about her anxious feet as they thumped a rhythm on the wooden
planks of the big porch. Before the old screen door could bounce again off the doorframe, her
bare toes reached the cool, green grass of the lawn. They gently touched the ground as she ran
and giggled. Soon she was in the garden amidst the flowers. She stopped and looked around,
breathing only slightly heavier than normal. A strand of loose hair drifted across her eyes. She
tucked it behind her ear, reflexively. Around her were flowers of every color: reds and pinks and
whites and purples; but she wasn’t so interested in them, rather...

“Linda!” a small voice called. Linda looked to her left and saw an orange and black butterfly
gracefully drift toward her. She held out her hand and the butterfly landed on her finger, its
long proboscis gently probing her skin. Butterfly kisses. Her dad called this kind of butterfly
a "Monarch" and said it was special. Linda knew about butterflies. They were insects: head,
thorax, abdomen; six legs, four wings! And they ate nectar, while the babies, the caterpillars,
gobbled leaves to grow big and fat before becoming beautiful butterflies.
Only this wasn’t an ordinary butterfly. 

MEET THE AUTHOR

S. S. Dudley grew up in Wyoming, USA, an avid reader and lover of the outdoors. He studied at the University of Wyoming and the University of Illinois. He started his first book (an epic fantasy hand-written in with a blue fountain pen...) when he was 13, but never finished it. At some point (as his mother recently reminded him), he decided that he needed to go do something (like get a job) for a while before he could, or should, write. He did, and spent time in Colombia, Panamá, Antarctica and the dark recesses of large science buildings on college campuses. That done, he now writes, lives and runs in Northern California with his wife and two children. He can be found at http://www.ssdudley.com, http://www.facebook.com/author.ssdudley and on twitter at @SS_dudley.

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Straight Browsing from the Library - Elf Hills by S.S.Dudley

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. The author will be awarding a $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour, and a $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn host.

PLEASE NOTE: This book is free on Amazon from Dec 15 – 19, 2014. If you prefer print, the paperback is available through Createspace here. This is a code for a 15% discount off of the retail price ($8.99): 9DSCQ3UU.

READ THE BLURB

Something strange, something magical, is going on in the dusty hills behind the small town of Villaloma. Yet each time Linda Peters puts on her running shoes and sets out to find the enchanted kingdom she imagines—full of dancing elves, unicorns, and more—something stops her. And with school starting soon, she only has a few more chances to really search the hills. While Linda’s frustration and doubt grow, her cousin, Nugu, looks for answers in his books and wonders if maybe, just maybe, Linda’s stories are for real.

The day finally arrives when Linda can run far, the day she is sure she will find her magic city. But when she and Nugu feel their goal must lie just beyond the next hill, they only find more hill. Is it all a figment of an over-active imagination; a wistful fantasy?

Or is there truly something magical in those hills that only the strong of heart—and leg—can discover?

READ AN EXCEPRT

From the Prologue:

This fairy tale, as you might have guessed already, takes place on a hill. Or, rather, on many hills and a mountain or two in Northern California, near what people call the Great Valley. One hill in particular stands out, though, because that is where everything started. It was a nice hill; well rounded, not too high, not too low. It was distinctly a hill, snuggled up against a mountain like a nursing cub to its resting mother. For the most part this hill was well-dressed with dark green oak trees and tall grasses, usually yellowed and dry except for the four or five wet months of the year. Along one side, a seasonal creek slipped out and down into the plain. Here the vegetation—red-stemmed manzanita, prickly blackberry bushes, and other shrubs—was thick and difficult to move through.

From afar, the hill was not remarkable; it had many siblings stretching to the north and south as far as the eye could see. This hill was special, though. For one, a strange—some said magical—copse of trees stood near the base of the hill where the creek emerged. These trees were short, had long, dark-green leaves, and bore bright yellow fruit that, if eaten, were said to imbue a person with the strength of ten men. For another, the hill was haunted. On certain nights of the year a white light would shine from the very top of the hill. It was brighter than the brightest star; brighter even than a full moon, perhaps, and it cast long shadows across the plain. The first people that lived in the area told many stories about that hill, the light, and the spirits that lived there.

MEET THE AUTHOR

S. S. Dudley grew up in Wyoming, USA, an avid reader and lover of the outdoors. He studied at the University of Wyoming and the University of Illinois. He started his first book (an epic fantasy hand-written in with a blue fountain pen...) when he was 13, but never finished it. At some point (as his mother recently reminded him), he decided that he needed to go do something (like get a job) for a while before he could, or should, write. He did, and spent time in Colombia, Panamá, Antarctica and the dark recesses of large science buildings on college campuses. That done, he now writes, lives and runs in Northern California with his wife and two children. He can be found at http://www.ssdudley.com, http://www.facebook.com/author.ssdudley and on twitter at @SS_dudley.

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Straight Browsing from the Library - Robert B. Warren

This post is part of a book blast organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. One grand prize winner will win a $50 Amazon GC plus print or digital copy of book 1 or book 2 in the series, while 15 runners up will win an ebook of the winners' choice of book 1 or book 2. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

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When a band of super-powered humans stirs up trouble in New Olympia, Zeus knows just who to call.

Wisecracking private investigator Plato Jones is used to cleaning up the gods' messes. But this might be his most dangerous case yet, placing him deep behind enemy lines, in Tartarus Maximum Security Penitentiary. After infiltrating the enemy's organization, Plato inches closer to the truth. But he learns a hard lesson along the way: to defeat a villain, he might have to become one himself.

Olympus Confidential skillfully weaves humor and Greek mythology into this fast-paced fantasy. Whether new or returning to the Plato Jones series, fans of thrillers, contemporary fantasy, and Greek mythology will have a tough time putting this one down.

READ AN EXCERPT

“Have you heard about the recent bank heist?” Hermes asked.

I had. According to reports, four robbers, all resembling humans, used godlike abilities to murder two security guards, injure a dozen police officers, and cause extensive property damage. Three of them had been captured but no longer displayed superhuman powers. The fourth escaped by flying away, taking the entire haul with him—over a million stolen credits.

“Yeah,” I said.

“Then you know how important it is for us to handle this before it becomes a bigger issue,” Hermes said.

“What’s the matter? You and Daddy Dearest afraid of being overthrown by a few puny humans?”

Anger flashed in Hermes’s eyes. I was still too hung over to care.

“Excuse me?” he said.

“You heard me. Humans have been pushed around by the Gods from the very beginning. And it’s not just us; it’s other races too. Minotaurs, satyrs, giants, anything that walks, crawls, swims, or takes a dump. We’ve all had enough of your crap.”

Hermes grinned unexpectedly. “That’s borderline heresy, Mr. Jones. But considering what you’ve been through, I’ll give you a pass, this time.”

About the Author:

A fan of thrillers, fantasy, and science fiction, Robert B. Warren has been writing stories ever since he could hold a pencil. In 2009, he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and creative writing from the University of Alabama. He currently lives in the south.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Murder-on-Olympus-A-Plato-Jones-Novel/ 243157142416955
https://twitter.com/RobertBWarren1
http:// www.goodreads.com/author/show/4672699.Robert_B_Warren

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Straight Browing from the Library: King of Me by Mimi Jean Pamfiloff

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Mimi Jean will be awarding two signed complete sets of The King Trilogy plus a paperback copy of Accidentally Over, the finale of the Accidentally Yours series to randomly drawn winners via Rafflcopter. Click on the tour banner for more chances to win.

READ THE BLURB

You’re asking me to…love you?” asked Mia.
He slowly scratched his thick black stubble. “I suppose I am.”

What if you were asked to love the one man on earth you couldn’t trust, you feared, who betrayed you at every turn? Could you do it to save the people you hold dear?

Mia Turner is ready to give it all—her body, her heart, her soul—to the mysterious, ruthless billionaire who holds all the cards to saving her family. But when this dangerous, sinfully sexy man, simply known as King, demands something more, something horrifying, Mia will be forced to face the impossible truth about their lives.

Sometimes the truth brings salvation. And sometimes the truth breaks you.

Check out the author's website for excerpts from the book.

MEET THE AUTHOR

Mimi Jean Pamfiloff is a New York Times & USA Today bestselling author of Paranormal and Contemporary Romance. Her books have hit the Amazon and B&N top-100 lists multiple times and have been #1 genre sellers around the world. Both traditionally and independently published, Mimi has sold over 500,000 copies since publishing her 1st title in 2012, and she plans to spontaneously combust once she hits the one-million mark. Although she obtained her international MBA and worked for over 15 years in the corporate world, she believes that it’s never too late to come out of the romance-closet and follow your dream.

When not screaming at her computer or hosting her very inappropriate radio show, (Man Candy on Radioslot.com!), Mimi spends time with her two pirates in training, her loco-for-the-chili-pepper Mexican hubby, and her rat terrier, DJ Princess Snowflake, in the San Francisco Bay Area.

She continues to hope that her books will inspire a leather pants comeback (for men) and that she might make you laugh when you need it most.

Buy the book at Amazon, iTunes, Barnes and Noble, or Kobo.

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Straight Browsing From the Library: Into the Fire by Lindsey Fairleigh and Lindsey Pogue

Thanks to Goddess Fish Promotions for setting up this Virtual Book Tour for Into the Fire by Lindsey Fairleigh and Lindsey Pogue.

The authors will be awarding a $15 Amazon GC to one randomly drawn commenter during the tour via the Rafflecopter at the end of this post.

READ THE BLURB:

The Virus changed them, but that was only the beginning…

…death…mutation…insanity…corruption…terror…

…all that remains is hope.

In the wake of destruction left behind by the Virus, it took Dani and Zoe months to find each other. But their reunion was short-lived. Dani has been taken, and though little distance separates them, they might as well be worlds apart.

From the moment she hears Dani’s scream, Zoe’s only goal is to save her best friend. She and her companions scramble to come up with a rescue plan, but when a ghost from Jake’s past reappears, lines are blurred, decisions become harder, and secrets are revealed…and some secrets are best left buried. To keep heartache and fear from consuming her, Zoe must cling to her determination. She will see Dani again.

Dani awakens inside the final hold-out of civilization: the Colony. Remnants of the former world surround her—electricity, safety, social order—but all is not what it seems. As she faces her most manipulative adversary yet, she loses sight of who she is and who she can trust. Friends become enemies, enemies become allies, and allies will betray her. Dani will have to decide what she’s willing to do and whose lives she’s willing to risk if she is to have any chance of breaking free.

READ AN EXCERPT:

I froze. He’s leaving. I glared at Jake’s back, but feeling his misery, my anger quickly subsided. “We can figure something—”

“Stop!” He pulled his arm back and slammed his fist into the wall, denting it. “There’s nothing to figure out. My sister will not be used as a pawn.” His face fell. He leaned back and brought his hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose. “I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.”

He’s already made up his mind. Instantly, I started to question everything about Jake and me…about us. My reservations from the first time I met him—the first time he saved me, opened his mouth, and pushed me away—flared to life, and I chided myself for being so naïve. I knew something like this would happen.

The questions jumped off my tongue before I could contain them. “What about Dani? What about me? You’re just going to leave?”

When he didn’t respond, reality burst overhead like a looming storm cloud, clearing away the fog that had settled in my heart and mind. How could I have been so stupid?

The conversation we’d had on the dock back in St. Louis resurfaced from under a month’s-worth of foolhardy emotions. Jake’s words replayed in my mind.

“For whatever reason, I know you don’t want to let me in…or maybe you just don’t know how…what are you afraid of?”

This. This feeling of inexplicable loss was what I’d been afraid of—the living lump of hysteria swelling in my throat, the desperation in my heart. I couldn’t swallow it away.

Biting the inside of my cheek as hard as possible, I willed myself to calm down. Keep it together, Zoe.

Jake strode past me to Becca, pulling her up to her feet.

Lunging at him, I pushed against his chest as hard as I could. “You’re leaving?” He stumbled away from Becca, and I pushed him again. “You’re going to kill Dani!” I shoved against his shoulder. “You’re going to kill us all if you take her!” I smack his chest. “I won’t let you ruin everything.” I won’t let you break my heart! I pushed, shoved, and slapped him again and again. “You son of a bitch!”

Jake gripped my arms firmly, immobilizing me and forcing me to look up at him. His eyebrows lifted with sympathy…or is it sorrow? I was too upset to differentiate between his emotions and mine.

“Let go,” I warbled.

As he opened his mouth to speak, a gunshot cracked through the air, and Jake yanked me down to the floor.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:

Lindsey Fairleigh lives her life with one foot in a book—as long as that book transports her to a magical world or bends the rules of science. Her novels, from post-apocalyptic to time travel and historical fantasy, always offer up a hearty dose of unreality, along with plenty of adventure and romance. When she's not working on her next novel, Lindsey spends her time reading and trying out new recipes in the kitchen. She lives in the Napa Valley with her loving husband and confused cats.

Lindsey Pogue has always been a little creative. As a child she established a bug hospital on her elementary school soccer field, compiled books of collages as a teenager, and as an adult, expresses herself through writing. Her novels are inspired by her observations of the world around her--whether she's traveling, people watching, or hiking. When not plotting her next story line or dreaming up new, brooding characters, Lindsey's wrapped in blankets watching her favorite action flicks or going on road trips with her own leading man.

Links:

Website: http://www.theendingseries.com/
Blog: http://aftertheending-ae.blogspot.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheEndingSeries
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AfterTheEnding
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/series/99139-the-ending

Buy links:

Amazon:
Into The Fire (The Ending, #2) - http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GSY1UHY
After The Ending (The Ending, #1) - http://www.amazon.com/After-Ending-ebook/dp/B00BJDUBLU

Barnes & Noble:
Into The Fire (The Ending, #2) - http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/into-the-fire-lindsey-fairleigh/1117473144?ean=2940148750185
After The Ending (The Ending, #1) - http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/after-the-ending-lindsey-fairleigh/1114702967

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