Giveaway – Body and Bone by L S Hawker @LSHawker_Author @partnersincr1me

Posted on June 28, 2016 by fundinmental

Body and Bone

by LS Hawker

on Tour June 2016

MY REVIEW

Between the cover and title for Body and Bone by L S Hawker, I don’t know which drew me in more. I love a mystery thriller and Nessa’s story supplied me with a steady supply of suspense.

Nessa’s mother haunts her every move and even worse, she married a man just like her…gimme, gimme gimme, mine mine mine. Usually a daughter marries a man like her father and I liked this nice little twist that L S Hawker supplied. But…wait…there’s more and you won’t believe where she takes the storyline.

Nessa is a strong woman, determined to manage her life on her own. She has secrets…many secrets…and she protects them by building a wall that no one can climb. No one, until Isabeau, her son’s nanny. I love this woman and she quickly becomes my favorite character. If you have a troll stalking you on the internet, she’s your gal.

But…L S Hawker made me question her motives. Could she be the troll that is stalking Nessa’s every move and trying to set her up for murder? Could the stalker be her crack addicted husband she kicked out and refuses to stay gone thinking she owes him everything she has? Could the stalker be the rapist from her past that was just released from prison? Well…I was kept guessing and I love that. I think you will too.

All the characters are richly developed with personalities that shine through, whether good or bad. Some you will love, some you will hate, but you will not forget them.

Nessa’s life is more than difficult, it is tragic. Bad choices left her with nightmares that follow her, dogging her every move. They have her looking over her shoulder, waiting for the hammer to drop. Imagiine that every noise, every knock on the door, every question asked is the one that will bring your world crashing down around you. How a person could even function at such a high level of leaves me wondering when the dam will break.

Body and Bone is a fantastic suspense thriller that has all the elements for excellent reading. L S Hawker’s writing is fast paced and jam packed with action at every turn. The twists and turns keep the mystery alive and I dare you to anticipate the ending. It blew my mind, again and again. Evil does walk among us and the worst kind of evil is the human kind. I must warn you though, once you start reading you won’t want to put it down, so plan accordingly. L S Hawker is an author I will be placing on my MUST READ list.

I received a copy of Body and Bone by L S Hawker in return for an honest review.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos 5 Stars

Synopsis:

LS Hawker returns with another atmospheric, twisting tale of suspense that questions the nature of identity and how far a young mother is willing to go to run from the mistakes of her past.

He wants to destroy her reputation.
He wants to destroy her life.
He wants to destroy…her.

Nessa Donati used to be a happily married mother with a successful music blog and satellite radio show. But that was before her husband John relapsed on drugs and went missing. That was before he was presumed dead. And before she was framed for his murder.

When a commenter on Nessa’s blog starts harassing her online, Nessa shrugs it off. Trolls are a part of internet life. But eventually the troll begins threatening her safety and releasing personal details… details only her husband would know.

As Nessa’s life is dismantled piece by piece, her only option is to find John and put a stop to the lies. But when their son becomes a pawn in his twisted game, she must face a disturbing truth: Maybe John isn’t tormenting her, after all. But if he’s not…who is? And how far will this monster go to exact revenge?

Book Details:

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Suspense
Published by: Witness Impulse/HarperCollins
Publication Date: May 2016
Number of Pages: 303
ISBN: 0062435221 (ISBN13: 9780062435224)
Purchase Links:

Read an excerpt:

CHAPTER ONE

Tuesday, May 31

Nessa Donati was going to have to sell her brand spanking new car. And all because the rear-view mirror hung in the perfect position to display an accidental glimpse of her reflection whenever she reached into the back seat. Typically she prepared herself before facing a reflective surface. But when she was caught off guard, without fail, her mother’s disappointed, sour Resting Bitch Face stared back at her.

It wasn’t that her mother was unattractive. She was, in fact, far more beautiful than Nessa could ever hope to be. It was that her mother had always used Nessa as a mirror in which to see herself without ever truly seeing Nessa.

So the new black Chrysler Pacifica would have to go.

It was nearing sunset when Nessa parked it on Crestview Drive by the Randolph Bridge, which spanned not only the Big Blue River but the northern tip of Tuttle Creek Lake as well. This was the last stop on a four-day camping trip, just Nessa, her three-year-old son Daltrey, and their Wheaton Terrier, Declan MacManus.

She checked on Daltrey, asleep in his car seat, listing to starboard, mouth open. He’d be okay for a moment, and she was glad she wouldn’t have to explain what she was about to do. She felt silly enough about it already.

Nessa and Declan MacManus exited the Pacifica, the dog running ahead, while Nessa locked and shut the door.

She walked the eighth of a mile to the river’s edge beneath the bridge as sparse traffic droned by overhead, tires making that phut phut phut sound as they traversed the seams in the asphalt. Nessa stood and watched the water flow past, appearing deceptively tranquil until a tree branch rushed by at break-neck speed. Declan sniffed happily around, pausing to mark every object he encountered with a lifted leg.

Nessa looked around to make sure she was alone, then reached into her pocket and withdrew the six-inch-long braid of her husband John’s hair. He’d cut it before their wedding five years ago. She had kept it in a velvet box all this time, never dreaming this day would come. She looked at the sky and the water, remembering all their good times on the river. This was the right place to let John’s braid go.

The water lapped against her tennis shoes as she wound up and let the braid fly. She watched it arc through the air, hit the rushing water with an inconsequential splash, and disappear. She watched for a moment and let herself cry a little. She needed this sort of closure ritual to move on with her life, like spreading his ashes. Except he wasn’t dead. Yet.

Nessa trudged back to the car, Declan MacManus meandering behind her. She unlocked and opened her door, and the dog jumped in and settled in the passenger seat. Nessa noted that Daltrey hadn’t even changed position while she was gone.

Nessa started the car, put it in gear, and headed toward home.

Forty minutes later, she parked in the converted hay barn garage behind her house and decided she’d wait until morning to unload the camping gear.

Declan MacManus jumped from the car and ran, whining, toward the other outbuildings, hops vines, and woods beyond, as Nessa climbed into the back to struggle with Daltrey’s carseat restraints. She draped him over her shoulder, and took him inside and upstairs to his big-boy bed. There, she pulled off his sandals and kissed his fat little feet before slipping him between the sheets. Good. He was out for the night. She left his door ajar, and went downstairs and out the back door to get their suitcase from the Pacifica.

Outside it was full dark, and the woods buzzed with late-spring insects. When she hit the bottom step, she saw Declan MacManus curled up in front of the outbuilding they called the boathouse. He sprang to his feet as if he’d just noticed royalty entering the room. This slowed Nessa down—what was he doing?—but she continued on to the garage, where she retrieved their luggage. When she closed the garage door, the dog jumped to his feet again, in the exact spot she’d left him.

Nessa stood staring at him, and he gazed expectantly back at her.

And then she saw it. The wooden carriage-house door’s lock was gone. In its place was a jagged hole, as if God himself had punched a massive fist through it in a fit of righteous anger.

Nessa froze, her breath captive in her throat.

She set down the suitcase and, after a moment of indecision, pulled out her phone and dialed.

Marlon Webb didn’t say hello, just, “With a student.” This was his way of saying he could be interrupted only for a very specific kind of emergency.

“Call me back,” she whispered. “I’m rethinking that whole restraining order thing.”

Author Bio:

LS HAWKER grew up in suburban Denver, indulging her worrisome obsession with true-crime books, and writing stories about anthropomorphic fruit and juvenile delinquents. She wrote her first novel at 14.

Armed with a B.S. in journalism from the University of Kansas, she had a radio show called “People Are So Stupid,” edited a trade magazine and worked as a traveling Kmart portrait photographer, but never lost her passion for fiction writing.

She’s got a hilarious, supportive husband, two brilliant daughters and a massive music collection. She lives in Colorado but considers Kansas her spiritual homeland.

Visit LS Hawker –

Tour Participants:

Don’t Miss Out on this Exciting Giveaway:

This is a rafflecopter giveaway hosted by Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tours for LS Hawker and WitnessImpulse. There will be 3 US winners of one (1) eBook copy of Body and Bone by LS Hawker. The giveaway begins on June 1st and runs through July 3rd, 2016.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Get More Great Reads at Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tours

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Giveaway – Oubliette by Vanta M Black @VantaMBlack

Posted on June 28, 2016 by fundinmental

Oubliette by Vanta M Black has a simple, yet awesome cover for a novel that was inspired by true events. Check it out closely and, if you see what I see, you will be eager to open the pages and learn what’s inside.

Be sure and scroll to the bottom of the post for the giveaway!

Oubliette: A Forgotten Little Place by Vanta M. Black

Genre: Fiction, Thriller, Paranormal, Historical Fiction, Genre-Fiction, New Adult, Horror

Publisher: Black Chateau Publishing

Date of Publication: March 2016

ISBN: 978-0-9964488-2-6 / ISBN: 978-0-9964488-1-9 / ISBN: 978-0-9964488-0-2

Number of pages: 566

Word Count: 247,912

Cover Artist: Black Chateau Enterprises

Book Description:

Veronica knows the monsters aren’t “just in her head”, but no one listens to the headstrong ten-year-old as they tie her to a hospital bed every night.

Years later, after being dumped by her business-partner/boyfriend, Veronica finds herself on the verge of bankruptcy. Then a late-night call promises the perfect solution — a job opportunity decorating a castle in France.

Will Veronica risk what little she has left to chase a fairytale?

When the shadowy things that once terrorized her come back, Veronica must decide how much she’ll sacrifice for them, for her sanity, and for her life.

This epic book consists of interwoven stories with paranormal twists. A horror-filled historical fiction adventure, it spans nearly two millennia.

You’ll be transported to an ancient Pagan ritual, Roman-ruled Gaul, the bloody Inquisition of the Knights Templar, France as it’s ravaged by the Black Death, the duplicitous Reformation, the Paris Catacombs, and the gory French Revolution, while you unravel Oubliette’s cryptic layers.

Amazon BN Author Website

PROLOGUE

LA Early 1900s

Veronica didn’t understand why they looked for the monsters in her head, that’s obviously not where they were. Instead of listening, the doctors stuck pads with wires to her temples and increased the dosage of an IV that dripped into her veins.

They also told the nurses to tie her down with thick, leather belts every night.

The tethers didn’t matter though, because when the monsters came, she wouldn’t be able to move anyway. The only thing Veronica could ever do was scream.

The doctors called them “night terrors”. The pudgy lady who talked funny –– she told Veronica it was her accent –– said they were “spirits”. Mommy used the term “shadow people”. Veronica just called them “monsters”, and wished they’d stop scaring her when she slept.

They wanted her. Deep inside, on a primal level, Veronica knew the monsters –– or whatever they were –– craved her, and if given the chance, they would do something very, very bad to her.

The little girl tried to explain this to the doctors, the nurses, the accent-talking lady, and her mother, but none of the adults really listened. Instead they argued and shouted at each other, and huffed in and out of the room –– but the thing that frightened Veronica the most, is when the adults would simply shrug their shoulders, and admit that they really didn’t have any idea what the monsters were at all.

It was almost ten o’clock –– shift-change time. The night staff would come now. The nurse on duty was a plodding and lazy lady who would only check on Veronica at the beginning of the shift, and then abandon her in favor of the nurses’ station and a VHS tape of the day’s soap operas. Veronica didn’t like her. Sometimes it would take “Nurse Lazy” a full five minutes before she’d respond. She never came fast enough.

Veronica tried to tell the doctors that the nurse was too slow, but the complaints of a ten-year-old weren’t taken seriously against the word of the lazy nurse who smiled sweetly and said, “Poor dear and those dreadful night terrors. I always come running as fast as I can!”

Veronica cringed as the television automatically turned itself off. It always happened at ten o’clock; it was on a timer. She wasn’t sure why, but she felt it protected her and wished more than anything it could stay on. The noise, the pictures, The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, there was something inexplicable about the TV that kept the monsters away.

Veronica’s pleas to leave the television on all night were never honored by the adults. Nurse Lazy actually once told her, “Oh, we can’t leave the TV on, it’ll give you bad dreams.”

Ha! Little did she know the TV prevented the bad dreams.

The door opened and in walked Nurse Lazy. Her metal nameplate actually read “Lucy”. She handed Veronica a little paper cup with a green pill inside and waited with a thin, forced smile. The longer Veronica took to take her medicine, the longer Nurse Lazy would have to wait until she could watch her soaps.

Veronica plucked the pill out of the cup. “Aren’t they ’sposed to be yellow?”

Lucy flared her nostrils ever so slightly as she replied, “No, your new doctor prescribed the green ones. Hurry up and take it.”

Veronica studied the pill closely, holding it inches from her nose. She looked at it slightly cross-eyed. “I don’t think I like the green ones though. Yellows are better.”

Lucy’s trembling hand clutched a Dixie cup of water. “That’s for the doctors to decide. Now eat it up! Time for sleep.”

Veronica painstakingly laid the pill on her tongue and grunted for the nurse to hand her the water.

Lucy thrust it forward. “Here, drink!”

Veronica pouted, though she knew the cute face wouldn’t work on ol’ Lazy.

“Thanks,” she muttered as the nurse buckled down Veronica’s arms and legs and pulled the covers up to her chest.

“Goodnight,” Lucy grumbled. She snatched the mermaid doll that sat by Veronica’s side, and tossed it on the nightstand before careening out the door.

Random acts of meanness like that weren’t uncommon for Lucy. Veronica sniffed as the silence left in the nurse’s wake permeated the room.

Then familiar, tinny tunes from a transistor radio wafted through the air. It hung from the janitor’s cleaning cart. He always blared it while mopping the halls. There was that song again. Some stupid radio station played it almost every night right around this time. Veronica stared at her doll on the nightstand, just out of reach, as the lyrics began:

Dream the dream that only you can dream

Sing the song that only you can sing

Dance with me, we’ll start slow

Clasp my hand, now lose control

Bite the monster only you can see

And dream the dream you only dream for me

Veronica tried to squish her head into the stiff pillow so her ears were covered, but it didn’t work. The heavy metal song’s pounding chorus kicked in.

Spirits in the maze

Burning brighter

Like a dream within the haze

Dancing fire

Deep inside malaise

Hungry spider

Force your screams to blaze

Spinning spiral

The song frightened her. It seemed to always precede a particularly bad episode. She really wished she had the yellow pills. She felt defenseless as sleep consumed her. The green pills would be no help if one of the bad ones came…the real Bad Ones, that is.

She twisted her head and glared into the large mirror on the wall across the room. People watched her from inside there. Veronica wasn’t sure if they were the doctors, the accent lady, or maybe even her mother, but every now and then someone would move, the light would catch just right, and she would see a figure behind the glass. Dimly, she watched them watch her. They studied her and talked about her and wrote notes about her on clipboards. Knowing they were there gave Veronica little comfort because they weren’t there to help; they were only there to watch.

Her sleepy eyes narrowed at the watchers and she whispered with dopey lips, “What, no popcorn? You gonna stare at me all night and you got no stinking popcorn? You’re all a bunch of stupid heads, ya’ know that? Stooopid heads…”

Sleep quietly took over while Veronica cursed the stupid heads behind the glass. She jerked her droopy neck to force herself awake, but the green pill was powerful. It pushed her into the darkness where the shadow people waited.

Veronica, here we are!

Veronica, time to steal your dreams.

Time to let us steal your dreams and break your bones and slip your soul right out of your slimy sack of skin…Veronica!

She fought to wake up. With all her might she tried to scream, but the green pill seized her motor functions and paralyzed her. She was like a petrified slab of meat laid out on a table –– unable to move, unable to cry out, unable to defend herself.

Do you know the evil that you dream, Veronica?

Do you know the song that only you can sing?

Veronica!

In the limbo between sleep and lucidity Veronica sensed their heinous presence with crystal-clarity. She was hyper-alert and instinctively knew these were the real Bad Ones. Without looking she saw one crouching in the far corner of the room. It glared at her intently and oozed animosity. It waited patiently, almost casually, for Veronica to succumb.

With a sudden surge of intense willpower she cried out — just a little — it was a tiny whimper that was barely audible. It wasn’t loud enough to scare the shadow people away though, and it definitely wasn’t loud enough for anyone living to hear.

Another Bad One pulled itself onto the foot of her bed. This one was small and hairy like an animal. Scrooching under the blanket, it crept slowly along the side of her bare leg. It felt for a nook to burrow — a soft place like her stomach or side so it could squirm and writhe itself into her flesh — where it could rip her apart from the inside out.

“Help,” Veronica whispered one last time before falling into the dark depths of sleep –– deep, down, spinning ‘round, until the darkness took a hold…

About the Author:

Vanta M. Black, author of Oubliette—A Forgotten Little Place, enjoys uncovering the dark mysteries of our Universe. In addition to writing, she enjoys traveling to provocative places and studying all things esoteric.

Black has degrees in English, communication and art. She resides in Southern California with her husband and two pug-mix dogs, and spends her time in support of causes that empower women and advance science and technology.

Website / Author: Facebook / Novel: Facebook / Goodreads / Twitter

Tumbler / Pinterest / YouTube / Author

GIVEAWAY

2 $50 Amazon Gift Cards

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Direct link to entry form: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/ba112ffc1379

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Release Day Giveaway – Unbridled Trails by Bonnie R Paulson @bonnierpaulson

Posted on June 28, 2016 by fundinmental

A vengeful cowboy seeking justice loses his heart to a damsel-in-distress, but can the results of saving her outweigh their chance at love?

Kyle Darby doesn’t want to be a lonely ranch hand forever. If he can help his cousin run a ranch, his chances at future foreman will be drastically increased. But his need to find revenge for his sister clouds his logic.

Sherry isn’t into dating or anything normal – she studies bugs for crying out loud. When Kyle rescues her one night at a bar, she finds it hard to believe his continued interest is sincere. Used to saving herself and her heart, Sherry has to accept that sometimes she needs help.

With her life hanging in the balance, Sherry has to learn to rely on someone else – Kyle.

Can she do it without losing her heart? Or are they both destined to just be along for the ride?

Buy on Amazon / iBooks / Kobo / Nook

About Bonnie R. Paulson Bonnie

Bonnie R. Paulson mixes her science and medical background with reality and possibilities to make even myths seem likely and give every romance the genetic strength to survive. Bonnie has discovered a dark and twisty turn in her writing that she hopes you enjoy as much as she has enjoyed uncovering it. Dirt biking with her family in the Northwest keeps her sane.

Follow on:

Facebook / Website/ Twitter / Goodreads / Newsletter/ Literary Addicts / Amazon

Reader Giveaway – Boxed Ebook Set of Westerns, cowboy soap, & $10 Amazon Gift Card. Fill out the form to enter. US addresses only 18+
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Giveaway – The Last Great Race by Mark Morey @markmorey5 @GoddessFish

Posted on June 24, 2016 by fundinmental

Guest Post For the Last Great Race by Mark Morey

I love learning about covers and characters and this is what Mark Morey has to say about The Last Great Race

ABOUT THE COVER: The Last Great Race is based upon the life and loves of 1930s Italian motor racing champion Achille Varzi, so the choice of cover was quite easy. Achille Varzi was a heavy smoker at a time when the health consequences of that were not known. His joining the Auto Union racing team in 1935 set in train a sequence of events which almost destroyed him emotionally. A picture of Achille Varzi in an AutoUnion smoking a cigarette is not only typical of the man at the time, it’s also poignant that a few weeks after that picture was taken at Monaco in 1936, he was about to suffer two savage blows which took him years to recover from.

ABOUT THE NAMES: I have followed Formula One car racing since the early 1970s, and through that I was aware of the story of Achille Varzi, a good driver of the 1930s, until his private life got in the way of his racing career. When I looked into the facts about Varzi I didn’t realise that he was the best racer in a legendary era, certainly one of the best of all time, and that his love affair with Ilse was so passionate and ultimately so destructive. I thought that passionate love, the tragedy that came out of it, and his recovery with the help of Norma who came back into his life, made a great story. Norma Colombo was a woman against the odds. She lived with Achille Varzi unmarried when women didn’t do that, and when Achille broke up with Ilse she came back to him. That was just as amazing as anything that happened between Achille and Ilse. One man and two women who adored him completely, totally and absolutely.

The names of most of the characters are real, except for the fictional characters Paul Bassi and PIa Donati. Paul (real name Paolo) is a straightforward name for a straightforward man, while I thought that Pia Donati was a particularly attractive name.

Thanks so much for sharing Mark. Now…on to the info about the book: The Last Great Race by Mark Morey.

I love reading about any type of auto racing and watch many of the races on TV. How about you? Are you a fan?

The Last Great Race by Mark Morey

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

GENRE: Historical Fiction

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BLURB

This story is based around the life of one of the most fascinating and enigmatic sportsmen of his era, Achille Varzi: multiple race winner, twice Racing Champion of Italy and a hero to his many followers. Told partly through the eyes of Varzi and partly by fictional Italian-Australian racing journalist Paul Bassi, we follow the many triumphs and tragedies of Varzi’s life: his passionate love affair with Ilse, his tragic morphine addiction, his recovery from his addictions, his marriage to Norma and his re-signing to race for Alfa Romeo.

Only war intervenes, and Paul and his wife Pia leave Achille to spy for the British at the naval base in Naples. Paul and Pia endure hundreds of Allied air-raids, they join the partisans who fought off the German army until the Allies could rescue them, and then they survive in a near-ruined city as best they can.

By 1946 Italy is still shattered but life is returning to normal, and no more normal is Achille Varzi winning the Grand Prix of Italy that year. Over the next two seasons Achille Varzi scores more successes, until he makes his only ever driving mistake and is killed in Switzerland in 1948. Even though he died too young, Paul and Pia know that Achille Varzi would never have lived in his life in any other way.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

EXCERPT

“Achille crashed,” she said and drank some more. “I have never seen anything like it. He was the only driver taking the banked curve at the end of the straight flat-out. Each lap I heard the exhaust note of his car never wavering as he took that curve with his typical, stylish precision. And then on lap fourteen a sudden gust of wind came in from the desert, blowing dust and debris. I held my hat and glanced at the Englishman nearby, just as the wind caught the front of Achille’s car and lifted the front wheels from the track. The car rose higher and higher like an aeroplane, flying away from the track until the rear of the car hit the ground and then the front, and it rolled over and over with the most terrible noise. Over and over until it stopped on its wheels in the middle of an orchard. There were Arab men dressed in robes and they ran to the car. I was on the wrong side of the circuit and checked that nobody was coming before I ran to it as well, and so did the Englishman.” She drank more water. “I thought he must be dead, nobody could survive a crash like that, but he climbed out of the wrecked car and brushed dirt from his overalls. He looked around and saw me but I don’t think it registered.”

“Is he alright?” Paul asked, worried.

“He’s fine although shaken. He didn’t even light a cigarette, and then he fainted. The Englishman Raymond Mays helped him, and he drove us back here.”

Paul contemplated what he heard, and that would have been a terrible thing to see.

“I have never seen anything like it,” Pia repeated and Paul hoped that Achille really was alright. If he was taking that curve flat-out he must have been doing about 300.

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Writing technical documentation and advertising material formed a large part of my career for many decades. Writing a novel didn’t cross my mind until relatively recently, where the combination of too many years writing dry, technical documents and a visit to the local library where I couldn’t find a book that interested me led me consider a new pastime. Write a book. That book may never be published, but I felt my follow-up cross-cultural crime with romance hybrid set in Russia had more potential. So much so that I wrote a sequel that took those characters on a journey to a very dark place.

Once those books were published by Club Lighthouse and garnered good reviews I wrote in a very different place and time. My two novels set in Victorian Britain were published by Wings ePress in July and August of 2014. These have been followed by a story set against the background of Australia’s involvement on the Western Front, published in August 2015. Australia’s contribution to the battles on the Western Front and to ultimate victory is a story not well known, but should be better known.

Staying within the realm of historical fiction, one of the most successful sportsmen of the 1930s, Achille Varzi, lived a dramatic and tumultuous life. It is a wonder his story hasn’t been told before, beyond non fiction written in Italian. The Last Great Race follows the highs and lows of Varzi’s motor racing career, and stays in fascist Italy during the dark days of World War Two.

Mark Morey

http://markmorey.blogspot.com.au/

@markmorey5

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

GIVEAWAY INFORMATION

Mark Morey will be awarding a $10 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

ENTER THE RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY HERE

Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here: http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2016/05/vbt-last-great-race-by-mark-morey.html

To see all my Giveaways, go HERE.
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Giveaway & Review – The Eaters by Corrie Brundage @Corrie_Brundage

Posted on June 23, 2016 by fundinmental

The Eaters: Book One of the Origin by Corrie Brundage has an amazing cover and I was very excited to be a part of the tour and given an opportunity to review the book.

I am very curious about the story inside. How about you?

The Eaters by Corrie Brundage

MY REVIEW

The cover for The Eaters by Corrie Brundage is so eerily intriguing that I can hardly wait to share the marvelous story inside with you. What do you think of the cover? What do you think the story will entail?

Dr Mina Brice works with non human species. She has a special relationship with animals, a telepathy of sorts. She is heading into the dangers of Nigeria. I am right there with her, with the animals, with the people and with Jack MacConnell, a hot and sexy doctor. Her fantasies run wild when she thinks of Jack and so do mine. Will there be a romance? It sounds like they will make a great team, so…Let’s see what kind of trouble will befall them.

Mina is a klutz. It makes her very human to me, until…She dies in a tsunami, awakening 500 years later in Utopia. Now, she is a clone, but not a “normal” clone. How? Why? Did Jack make it? Are things too good to be true? The saying: If it seems too good to be true applies. There is always a cost.

Due to climate change, global warming and animal extinction, she wonders if anyone is “out there”, watching. We did this to ourselves, so why would they save us if they were?

The Eaters by Corrie Brundage sent alarm bells ringing in my head. I am always looking for conspiracies and The Eaters raises many questions making me wonder about my own reality. I am super curious about this series. I love when reality crashes into science fiction and fantasy. It makes we wonder what will become of us, considering how badly we treat our world. I can see where the main storyline is going, but the parts and pieces along the way twisted and turned and I am LOVING it. Aliens….clones….

I was engrossed early on, quickly involved and I believe much trouble is coming her way. As my suspicions arise, so does my anticipation of what is coming. The pace picks up as the questions increase, my doubts growing.

I loved this original and creative world written by Corrie Brundage and can hardly wait to see where she takes the series. This 260 page paperback copy was jam packed with aliens and science fiction goodness, suspense, danger and romance. The characters…well…if you are like me, some you will love and some you will hate, but they all have their contribution to make to this fantastic story. The conclusion was abrupt, but I can live with it, even if it ended here and now….but wait…there’s more, so stay tuned for the next book in the series.

I received a copy of The Eaters by Corrie Brundage in return for an honest review.

5 Stars

About Origin, The Eaters #1

So not your usual post-apocalyptic, clone vs. hybrid romance-adventure…

Brilliant, brave, determined, and just a little bit…distracted. Meet Dr. Mina Brice, dedicated savior of species, and scientist with a secret. On a planet ravaged by climate change, her ability to mind-meld with earth’s imperiled beasts has made her a valued member of a team dedicated to saving as many as they can from extinction.

Unfortunately, Mina’s inability to connect with her fellow humans has kept most of them at arms length. Except for Jack—handsome, dashing-with-a-touch of goofy, totally distracting Jack. Dr. Jack MacConnell was never supposed to be part of Mina’s gameplan. But when thrown together on a crazy-dangerous mission, both fate and a deadly tsunami seem determined to propel them down the same fraught—and occasionally delicious—path. Perhaps forever?

But forever turns out to be a fluid commodity when both awaken 500 years into the future in a city called Origin. Presided over by aliens known as The Travelers, it is a world at once familiar and totally strange. And for Mina and Jack, it will become a battleground…against a hybrid race of predators loosed on the human population, against those whose dark side is so very carefully hidden, and even, as fate throws a heartwrenching twist their way, against…each other?

Corrie Brundage kicks off The Eaters trilogy with an intoxicating tale of pulse-pounding action for fans of urban fantasy and science fiction to devour and savor.

Goodreads | Amazon

ABOUT CORRIE BRUNDAGE

Corrie Brundage is a former model, opera singer, and personal trainer who, out of sheer boredom and personal relief from planetary insanity, completed five novels in the space of twelve months. She pumps iron, is a political junkie, and is a dedicated animal advocate.

Instagram | Tumblr | Twitter | Goodreads

***

GIVEAWAY

$25 Amazon Gift Card (INT)

Ends July 27th

Prizing is provided by the publisher, hosts are not responsible. Must be 13 or older to enter and have parental permission if under 18. Void where prohibited by law. No purchase necessary to win.

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Giveaway & Review – Turning Grace by J Q Davis @JoJoQD

Posted on June 22, 2016 by fundinmental

The cover for Turning Grace by J Q Davis grabbed me and wouldn’t let me go. It is so creepy, I can’t help but think there is a great story hidden “between the pages.”

What do you think? Is this something that whets your appetite?

Add to Goodreads

Turning Grace (The Turning Series #1) by J.Q. Davis

Genre: YA Horror/Sci-fi

Release Date: June 10th 2014

MY REVIEW

LOVE LOVE LOVE Turning Grace by J Q Davis!

The cover is amazing and it shows both sides of Grace…

Grace has an unusual appetite…She’s always Hungry, HUNgry, HUNGRY! I think she would be a definite winner of Nathan’s Hotdog Eating Contest. She loves horror movies and is becoming a star in a horror story of her very own. She believes in murdering masked men and serial killers, but zombies? Everyone knows they aren’t real. Maybe that’s why she doesn’t she see it coming? I guess, even if I was voraciously hungry and my body miraculously healed some pretty horrendous wounds, I would have a hard time believing I was a zombie too. She lives a normal life, otherwise, the usual school days and hanging with friends.

Things get continually worse for her…at 36%…in the bathroom…I cringed and felt like upchucking. My reaction was like fingernails on a chalkboard. Even my teeth hurt as I scrunched into myself.

Grace and her best friend, Phoebe, are planning a double date on Halloween. I wouldn’t mind having Phoebe for a friend myself. What do you think their costume will be? Correctamundo…ZOMBIES. I don’t think it will go well.

There is a YA triangle, but this one is different than the usual and worked just fine for me.

Tristen loves Grace and will do anything for her…or will he once he knows the facts?

If you want gross, Turning Grace by J Q Davis is a MUST READ. Horror, plenty of that. Suspense, yep. With every putrid breath she breathes, I wonder what will happen next.

I received a copy of Turning Grace by J Q Davis in return for an honest review.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos 5 Stars

Summary from Goodreads

**Medal Winner of the 2014 New Apple Book Awards in the E-Book Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror Category**

Life or death?

It all seems to be the same for Grace…

Some of us have been there before — falling for the hot, popular jock who just so happens to be dating the hot, popular girl in school.

Your snarky-but-always-right bestie insists you make a move, but you’re not so

much into putting yourself out there.

Then it happens, and suddenly you find yourself eating a cat on your neighbor’s porch.

No? Never happened to you?

Well, Grace Watkins can’t say the same. Her hunger is growing with each day that passes and her urges are getting harder to control.

No one can explain why her body is changing, except one man.

About the Author

J.Q. Davis is from New Orleans, Louisiana. She and her husband, an active duty Marine, have no children but consider their pooches, Lucy and Bella, their daughters.

When she was little girl, she aspired to become a writer. But then one day, she learned about zombies…and now she wants to be a zombie.

Author Links

Website │ Goodreads │ Twitter │ Facebook

GIVEAWAY

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Blog Tour Organized by: YA Bound Book Tours

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Giveaway – Mythical by Michael Weekly @michaeldweekly

Posted on June 21, 2016 by fundinmental

I forgot to include the giveaway for Mythical by Michael Weekly.

Be sure and scroll through to enter the Rafflecopter and good luck!

Mythical (Mystical #2)

by Michael Weekly

Genre: YA/NA Urban Fantasy

Limitless Publishing

Summary:

When you’re a witch in a kingdom of Elves, there’s bound to be conflict…

Eliza Rose finds herself in a world full of Elves—the very creatures she is sworn to kill. To make matters worse, she is forced to slay her own mother. But one question remains. Why was her mother in such a horrid place to begin with?

Eliza and Donovan cannot face the dangers of Ellevil alone…

When the Elf, Christian, meets Eliza for the first time, he knows he must have her. As a master of manipulation, he will do anything he can to get his way.

Donovan has left his old gang life behind. In his journeys with Eliza, he has seen her talents as an assassin bloom. He wants what is best for her, and he is certain that Christian is anything but.

In a land of pure beings called Mystics, not all of them are what they seem…

When Eliza falls in love with Christian, only Donovan knows the Elf can’t be trusted. Christian manipulates the myth within her to come forth, and Eliza’s hidden power is unleashed, bringing her true nature to light.

Answers might be found in the fairy and mermaid kingdoms…

To discover why Eliza’s mother was in Ellevil, Eliza and Christian must embark on a journey to the fairy and mermaid kingdoms. As challenges continue to unfold, Eliza is forced to choose between her hidden power and the witch she truly is.

Eliza Rose must unlock her hidden power in order to survive, but time is running out. Corruption may overcome her—the same way it consumed her mother.

In a race against time, Eliza Rose must discover her true power, or risk becoming corrupted.

Mystical, Book One

About the Author

Michael Weekly is a professional writer known for his ability to construct detailed, believable worlds and then to inject them with captivating stories and relatable characters. His big break came three years ago when he started writing on a site called Wattpad. Prior to that, he had written mainly as a hobby and as an exercise in relaxation and meditation, using writing as an escape out of the world and into his own mind.

Writing in the genres of Urban Fantasy, Dystopian YA, and NA, Michael is the author of Mystical, which has earned a ton of positive feedback. Mystical was picked up by Limitless Publishing in 2015, and since then, Michael has been working on additional entries to the series.

When he is not writing, Michael also enjoys playing video games such as League of Legends and World of Warcraft. He enjoys being a shopaholic and a professional foodie. He lives in Virginia with his imaginary fury companion CoCo, where the two live happily.

Author Links: Website│Goodreads│Twitter│Facebook

GIVEAWAY:

ENTER THE RAFFLECOPTER GIVEAWAY HERE

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Giveaway & Review – Marionettes by Kerry Alan Denney @KerryDenney

Posted on June 16, 2016 by fundinmental

Marionettes by Kerry Alan Denney

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

GENRE: Supernatural thriller

Cover designed by Nicolle Brown

MY REVIEW

The creepy cover of Marionettes by Kerry Alan Denney hints at the story inside. This supernatural thriller has enough twists and turns to keep me reading and marveling at the thought provoking scenarios David is forced to work through as he battles the evil lurking around every corner.

David Flint awoke in a hospital bed, confused and struggling to remember what happened. All he could think was WTH is going on. Have you ever had an out of body experience? David Flint has, but it goes so much further than that…he is the Marionette Man. He can mind jump. He not only knows what people think and feel, but he can control their actions.

I loved the scene in the hospital with the junkie. I wonder if I would have done the same…or worse, but you will have to read the book to find out more.

The Marionettes takes place in Gulfport, Mississippi, a place I know very well. In fact I just returned from a trip there on Tuesday. I know the devastation of a hurricane, which is what killed David Flint. His wife had died in a senseless accident some time before but her family still welcomed him with open arms. Eleana, his mother-in-law, is a hurricane force of her own, giving and well intentioned. Benny, his father-in-law, has a funny streak and is quite the comic, but can be counted on when needed. Shaina, his sister-in-law, has always been in love with him, yet she is determined to be his best friend, if that is what he needs to recover from Karin’s loss. She suffers from Karin’s loss too. She is quite the character and I wonder what their relationship will be.

When David Flint pisses off the wrong guy who is capable of so much more than David, I wonder how he could come out of this alive. The evil grows and challenges every resource he has.

I chuckled at the shower scene…and it’s 5 0’clock somewhere, so if David’s having a beer, I don’t want him to drink alone…so CHEERS.

What would be the repercussions of mind jumping? What moral and ethical dilemmas would arise? Maybe some secrets are best kept.

Marionettes makes me ask the question, “How far would I go to save the ones I love?”

I haven’t read a story quite like Marionettes and I love it. Kerry Alan Denney’s imagination and creative writing lend the story a sense of reality and brought mind jumping to life as I wondered if I would be able to follow the straight and narrow or would I bend the rules for my own personal gain? As David deals with his demons Kerry Alan Denny gives me food for thought and I feel the questions will linger long after I finish reading

I will be checking out more of Kerry Alan Denney’s award winning work and I look forward to taking another fantastic adventure through the pages with him.

I received a copy of Marionettes by Kerry Alan Denney in return for an honest review.

5 Stars

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

BLURB

Resuscitated after he drowns and dies in a flood, David Flint discovers he has returned from the other side with an uncanny ability: He can “jump” into people’s bodies and minds, and control their thoughts and actions.

David believes it’s a gift, and wants to use it to help people. Then four members of a ruthless drug ring savagely attack his fiancée and leave her in a coma, and David tries to use his new power to destroy the whole ring. But the ringleader, a voodoo priest known as the Zombie Master, is a formidable man with a deadly secret: He has the same incredible ability as David.

When the two human marionette masters clash in a brutal bloody showdown, using the ring’s members as their puppets, David discovers he’s battling for much more than his life—he’s fighting to rid the world of an evil human abomination.

Marionettes illuminates the greatest achievements of the human spirit and the darkest corridors of our minds, and answers the age-old question: What are the consequences of absolute power?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

EXCERPT

My whole life changed after I drowned and died in the flood.

Upon my resurrection, I thought I was dreaming. My head felt fuzzy. A little man inside it was drilling away at my brain with a tiny but immensely effective jackhammer. My mouth felt like it was glued shut, my tongue ten times normal size and made of sandpaper. A crew of little men sliced furrows in my throat with dull rusty swords, cackling merrily as they destroyed my trachea.

Some sadistic bastard apparently burned a branding iron into my corneas.

It was far worse than any hangover I ever had—and I’d had some doozies since Karin died and left me alone, lost, and unmoored in a callous world.

When I woke, the acrid tang of antiseptic mixing with an unpleasant odor stung my nostrils. Through a crimson haze, I saw a pretty nurse gaze down at me and smile. She looked like an angel.

“Hi, David!” she sang, her perfect white teeth gleaming as if lit from within. “Welcome back.” She caressed my face with a warm hand, glanced at some monitoring equipment beside the bed I lay in, and turned and hit a switch behind me. “Laura, page Dr. Yamaguchi. Mr. Flint’s awake.”

The angel turned back to me. “I bet you’re thirsty. We’ll fix that shortly, okay? After the doctor sees you, maybe we can give you some ice chips.”

I shut my eyes to block out the combined glare of her smile and the overhead fluorescence. When I opened them again, an attractive Asian woman in her forties with close-cropped black hair streaked with gray stood over me. Her brow wrinkled, a tentative smile curling the corners of her lips upward.

“Welcome back, Mr. Flint,” she said. “I’m Dr. Yamaguchi. You’re lucky to be alive. It’s a miracle the couple who brought you in were able to resuscitate you. We almost lost you twice last night. Apparently you lead a charmed existence. Don’t try to speak yet.”

I tried anyway, but couldn’t. The miniature swordsmen in my throat were having a blast trying to cut their way out. I nodded, then grimaced as the movement made the mad Lilliputian with the jackhammer pound more little holes in my brain. I shut my eyes again and drifted off.

It was all surreal. I remembered my name and profession, but I couldn’t remember what happened to me. Every time I strained for the memory, it receded while raging torrents of dark waters overwhelmed me.

Consciousness was an assault upon my senses. But in what I initially mistook for dreams, my perception and sense of taste, touch, and smell were immaculate.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AUTHOR Bio and Links

Colleagues and readers have dubbed Kerry Alan Denney The Reality Bender. The multiple award-winning author of the paranormal thrillers Dreamweavers (Juju Mojo Publications, August 2015) and Soulsnatcher (Juju Mojo Publications, April 2014), the post-apocalyptic sci-fi/ horror thriller Jagannath (Permuted Press, February 2015), and numerous short stories published online and in anthologies, Kerry blends elements of the supernatural, paranormal, sci-fi, fantasy, and horror in his work: speculative fiction at its wildest and craziest. With joy, malicious glee, and a touch of madness, he writes reality-bending thrillers, even when the voices don’t compel him to. His protagonists are his children, and he loves them as dearly as he despises his antagonists… even when he has to kill them.

On July 24, 2015, Jagannath became a #1 Amazon bestseller. On March 31, 2015, Soulsnatcher won 2nd Place as 2014 Book of the Year in The Drunken Druid’s International Book Award competition. Jagannath and Soulsnatcher each received a rave blurb from New York Times bestselling author James Rollins.

Kerry lives in Stone Mountain, Georgia with his golden retriever Holly Jolly, a veteran professional Therapy Dog, where he is currently writing his next supernatural thriller… and deciding who to kill in it.

Be on the lookout for Kerry’s new post-apocalyptic/ paranormal thriller A Mighty Rolling Thunder, coming December 3, 2016 from Burning Willow Press.

Website / Twitter / Goodreads / Facebook / Amazon / Google+

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

GIVEAWAY

Kerry Alan Denney will be awarding a $20 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

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Free Book & Giveaway – Ghost Hope by Ripley Patton @rippatton @XpressoTours

Posted on June 15, 2016 by fundinmental

Ghost Hope
Ripley Patton
(The PSS Chronicles #4)
Publication date: June 15th 2016
Genres: Paranormal, Thriller, Young Adult

Olivia Black does not feel safe. Nightmares plague her sleep and haunt her days. If she has to endure one more minute stuck in a safe house in rainy Portland, she’s going to lose it. When Mike Palmer sneaks off to find her sister Kaylee without her, it’s the last straw. She has to do something.

Then Palmer’s hackers find the Dome on a satellite feed: dark, abandoned and smack in the middle of the Oregon desert three hundred miles from where it started. If they can reach it before anyone else, they can crack the computer systems and access every piece of information on PSS the CAMFers and The Hold have ever collected.

But in order to do that, Olivia must return to the origin of her fears in a race against all the forces that have ever pitted themselves against her. She must unravel decades of deceit to reveal the true origins of Psyche Sans Soma to the world at last.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble

Previous books in the series:

**Grab Ghost Hand (book 1) for FREE! Plus, book 2 & 3 are on sale for 99cents – until the end of June only!**

—

EXCERPT:

“Olivia!” My mother’s voice jolted me awake.

I sat up in the rental van’s passenger seat, wiping drool from my cheek. Chase and T-dog’s Westfalia had stopped in front of us at a massive gate rising out of the darkness, topped with barbed wire and sporting several Danger: High Voltage and No Trespassing on Federal Land signs.

We had arrived at Umatilla, and I’d fallen asleep, like I always did in a moving vehicle, before I’d explained to my mother that I’d lied about our destination. We were not on a scenic over-nighter up the Columbia River Gorge. That had just been a cover story.

“Olivia Anne Black,” she said, pointing at the gate. “What is that?”

“Um—I don’t know,” I stammered. “We must have taken a wrong turn.”

“Is this the motel?” Grant asked groggily from the back. It sounded like I wasn’t the only one who’d taken a nap.

“No, it’s not,” my mother answered testily. “What the hell is he doing?”

She was referring to T-Dog, who had gotten out of their van carrying something bulky under his arm. When he set it down and started fiddling with a controller in his hands, I realized it was one of those personal drones. Suddenly, the little thing lit up and went whirling into the air, kicking up dust and flying over the gate. On the other side, it dipped down and stopped, a green light flashing on its undercarriage as it hovered over some kind of control panel. As I watched, a green light began flashing on the panel too, like they were communicating with one another. Because they were. T-dog was hacking into Umatilla. He was breaking into a federally-owned chemical depot.

I could feel my mother turning toward me, a question in her eyes, her lips parting to ask it.

Headlights, high and wide, flashed in the rearview mirror, blinding me. They were barreling down on us, but I only heard the rev of the engine just before the crunch of impact.

The whole van jerked forward, shoving us toward the back of the Westfalia and stopping only inches from its rear bumper.

“What the—?” Grant yelled, and I heard cries of alarm from Passion and Samantha.

My seatbelt dug into my waist and my shoulder, but the airbags hadn’t deployed, so that was good.

In front of us, T-Dog scrambled back into their van and slammed his door. The gate started to open, the drone hovering on the other side, still blinking green.

There was another crunching sound and a slight tug backwards. Then, more revving.

“Hold on. They’re coming again,” my mother said, jamming the van into drive and laying on the horn like a mad woman. We couldn’t go anywhere. The Westfalia was right in front of us and some lunatic was behind us, gearing up to rear-end us a second time.

“We have to go through,” I told my mom, gesturing at the gate.

“I know,” she said, glaring out at the windshield and revving our engine now. “Get out of my way, you two. What are you waiting for?” she mumbled under her breath, laying on the horn again and not letting up.

The vehicle behind was almost upon us. I could hear it coming.

Up ahead, T-dog glanced at me in his side view mirror, but it was too dark to read his expression. Had he and Chase set us up? Was this their doing?

The gate was open wider now, maybe wide enough for the Westfalia, but would it be enough for our bigger van?

“Hold on,” my mom said, glancing in the rearview mirror and slamming her foot on the gas.

I braced myself, this time for impact from the back and front, but it didn’t come.

We surged forward, gently kissing the back bumper of the Westfalia, both of us racing through the still opening gate. I heard a horrible sound, metal screeching against metal, and sparks flew in a shower away from us as the huge closures of the gate scraped down both sides of our van.

As soon as we were free and clear, Chase veered off to the right and pulled to a stop. As we drove past, I could see T-Dog holding the drone remote out his window, working it frantically, trying to close the gate before our attackers made it in. But he wasn’t fast enough. The pick-up truck that had rear-ended us roared forward, squeezing through just like we had. For a moment, I thought it had a really weird hood ornament, but then I realized it was the drone, flying low and toward us in front of the truck.

“Get higher,” I murmured to the little thing. As if hearing me, it did, rising above the front of the truck only to plummet a second later just as the vehicle overtook it.

And then it was gone, sucked under the huge wheel of the big truck with a soft crunch and a shower of shrapnel spraying from its undercarriage.

“Stop the van,” I told my mother, but she’d already turned and was pulling up alongside the guys.

“Who is that?” I shouted out my window at Chase, pointing at the truck as it pulled up, headlights blinding us all, the gate clanging shut behind it.

“I have no idea,” he shouted back. “But I think we’re about to find out.”

A truck door slammed.

A dark form moved, crossing the dusty swathe of its high beams, and a man emerged, tall, wrinkled, and tan, a long rifle dangling from his right hand.

Author Bio:

Ripley Patton lives in Portland, Oregon with one cat, two teenagers, and a man who wants to live on a boat. She doesn’t smoke, or drink, or cuss as much as her characters. Her only real vices are writing, eating M&Ms, and watching reality television.

Ripley is an award-winning short story writer and author of The PSS Chronicles, a young adult paranormal thriller series. The first book in the series, GHOST HAND, was a semi-finalist for The Kindle Book Review 2013 Best Indie Book Awards and a Cybil Award Nominee.

The second book in the series, GHOST HOLD, was released in September 2013.

The third book in the series, GHOST HEART, was released in October 2014.

And GHOST HOPE, the final book of the series will be released in the Spring 2016.

You can find out more about Ripley and her fiction on her website at ripleypatton.com.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter