Tag Archives: coming of age

The Innocence of Children – Island Santa by Owen Thomas @OTFiction

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Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

Island Santa by Owen Thomas is a cute, coming of age, holiday story about a child’s wishes, dreams and the innocence of her belief, at twelve years old, that Santa is real and how will he find them on vacation in Hawaii.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
3 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

The Nelson family is spending Christmas in Hawaii, a dubious proposition for Peter and his ten-year old sister, Katie.

Katie still believes in Santa Clause. Embarrassing, but true. Having finally come to grips with the tragic “extinction” of unicorns and the senseless exile of the Tooth Fairy, little Katie now clings to Santa with a tenacity so grim and so combative that her older brother and her parents can only exchange worried looks across the dinner table. Someone should talk to her about the real world.

But no one quite seems to have the courage.

Needless to say, the idea of running off to Hawaii just as Santa is loading up his sleigh is met with more than just a little resistance. After all, how is it reasonable to expect that the red-suited fat man will know to look for them in the middle of the Pacific Ocean? What will he think when he parks his reindeer atop their dark and empty home?

Peter, fourteen, has his own concerns, less about Santa than the sacrifice of holiday tradition. What about the snow and stringing the house with Christmas lights? What about the first-person-shooter zombie video games at the neighbors’ Christmas Eve party? More importantly, how can a Christmas away from home not have a devastating impact on the volume of Christmas-morning loot?

Not that the Nelson kids have any real say in the matter. The tickets have been purchased. The bags have been packed. Peter will have to console himself with the belief that his friend Cody is right: that the Islands are teeming with topless women. Katie, meanwhile, will just have to trust that Santa is capable of adapting to rapidly changing circumstances.

Neither of them is prepared to understand why their father seems to have forgotten his true age, or why their mother is calling him a sex pony, or even why he pushed for the trip to Hawaii in the first place.

In the end, everyone is going to believe what he or she wants to believe about the world.

It’s going to be an interesting Christmas.

  • Genre: Christmas, Comedy and Humor, Coming of Age, Fiction, Holiday, Novellas and Short Stories
  • Format: 69 Pages, Kindle
  • Published: November 25, 2014 by BookBaby

ABOUT OWEN THOMAS

Owen Thomas is a life-long Alaskan living on Maui because life is too short for long winters. He has written six books: “The Lion Trees” (which has garnered over sixteen international book awards, including the Amazon Kindle Book Award, the Eric Hoffer Book Award, the Book and Author Book of the Year, the Beverly Hills International Book Award and, most recently, a finalist in the Book Excellence Awards); “Mother Blues,” (a novel of music and mystery set in post-Hurricane Harvey Texas); “Message in a Bullet: A Raymond Mackey Mystery,” (the first in a series of detective novels); “The Russian Doll” (the second installment in that series); “Signs of Passing” (a book of interconnected short stories, and winner of fourteen book awards, including the Pacific Book Awards for Short Fiction, also named one of the 100 Most Notable Books of the Year by Shelf Unbound Magazine); and “This is the Dream,” (a collection of stories and novellas that explore that perplexing liminal distance between who we are and what we want). Owen maintains an active fiction and photography blog on Facebook, Tumblr and on his author website at www.owenthomasliterary.com.

For the ninth consecutive year since he has been measuring his commercial success as an author, Owen has not won the Orange Prize for Fiction. Also, to great acclaim, he has not won the Man Booker Prize. Most recently, in April of 2020, Owen was not nominated for a Pulitzer.

Owen makes his home in Alaska and Hawaii. When he is not writing, Owen can be found recreating and taking photographs in the grandeur of these wonderfully picturesque locations. Some of these photos are posted on Owen’s photo blog, 1000 Words per Frame.

Website / Twitter / Facebook / Instagram / TikTok / Tumblr / Pinterest / LinkedIn / YouTube

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Review & Giveaway – If The Sun Spares Us by Brenda Marie Smith @GoddessFish @bsmithnovelist

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IF THE SUN SPARES US by Brenda Marie Smith

GENRE:  Post-apocalyptic thriller

MY REVIEW

We begin If The Sun Spares Us by Brenda Marie Smith where If The Light Escapes Us left off. The books are best read in order, letting the characters seep into your heart, the danger get your pulse pounding, and your hopes for them come to fruition.

Oh man, I never saw Bobby doing what he did. Was it the right thing to do? Who knows in the crazy world they are living in.

It’s a year later and they have settled into their new home. They still have their highs and lows and are meeting and trading with others, taking in those who want a place in their community. Perhaps there is hope for humanity yet.

Life goes on and mistakes will be made. Rebuilding the world will not be easy, but taking one step at a time and letting bygones be bygones allows them to work together to create their new world one step at a time.

Braving The Light Series by Brenda Marie Smith has been a tragic, gut wrenching adventure filled with despair and hope and love.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

BLURB

Two years ago, a solar pulse destroyed modern life. Bea Crenshaw organized her starving, suburban neighbors into a farming community. But now Bea’s gone, and her grandchildren must carry her legacy forward.

In the post-apocalyptic pressure cooker of Austin, Texas, 19-year-old Keno and his younger cousins struggle to ensure their community’s survival even as they’re forced to relocate to safer grounds. Northern Lights that don’t belong this far south grow increasingly intense, making Keno fear what harm the sun will cause next.

Even worse, a marauding militia called the Raiders is closing in, led by a deranged woman who preys on teenage boys. Despite Keno’s debilitating flashbacks from a firefight, he and his wife have a new baby to protect. Though Bea is dead, her spirit desperately searches for ways to shield her grandkids. When Raiders target two neighborhood members, the only hope lies in the community’s strength, Keno’s ingenuity, and the family’s fierce love for one another.

EXCERPT

I’m half-starved, about to drop in my tracks, and emotional pain is clawing me up inside. Living through this apocalypse, I don’t know if it’s the deprivation or the heartache that will kill me first.

I think I’ve been scouting South Central Austin for a place to move my family and neighbors for about two weeks, but I’ve lost track of time, and I’m not finding a freaking thing. We have to move; we just have to. I was hoping to find a place with walls and water, but no such luck.

It’s dusk when I come upon a row of warehouses, looking for a spot to sleep. Most warehouse doors are bent, with the jambs and locks broken. All looted inside, messes that don’t look like they have anything worth scavenging. One door has a big hasp and a bigger lock intact. Maybe I’ll break it in the morning to see if I can find some food.

A few doors down, there’s a stairwell leading to a basement door. A good place to hide where I have an escape route. I duck down into it.

“We’re so screwed,” I grumble to myself as I lean my rifle on the stairwell and slide off my backpack.

“You got that right.”

F***. Who said that? I whip my face around, my hand on the pistol behind my back.

“I wouldn’t fire that if I were you.”

A face looms above me… behind a crossbow that’s aimed at my head. I throw up my hands.

“Don’t shoot!”

AUTHOR Bio and Links

2018-10-18_Brenda Marie Smith

BRENDA MARIE SMITH is attracted to stories where everyday characters transcend their limitations to find their inner heroism. She lived off the grid for years in a farming collective where her sons were delivered by midwives. A lifelong community activist, Brenda has managed student co-op housing, produced concerts, and raised a small herd of boys. She and her husband live in Kyle, Texas. They have more grown kids and grandkids than they can count.

SOCIAL MEDIA:

  • Website: https://brendamariesmith.com
  • Blog: https://brendamariesmith.tumblr.com
  • Twitter: @bsmithnovelist
  • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJlLSnORIyoaygvZ1j49ZKw

Buy Links for the Braving the Light Series:

  • IF DARKNESS TAKES US (Book One): https://amzn.to/461geyL
  • For IF THE LIGHT ESCAPES (Book Two): https://amzn.to/464zPOD
  • IF THE SUN SPARES US (Book Three): https://amzn.to/3LzIpwA
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MY BRENDA MARIE SMITH REVIEWS

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Review – If The Light Escapes Us by Brenda Marie Smith @GoddessFish @bsmithnovelist

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Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

If The Light Escapes Us by Brenda Marie Smith can be read as a stand alone, but I highly recommend beginning with Book I in the Braving The Light Series, If The Darkness Takes Us. An electromagnetic pulse has created an apocalypse and their Austin, Texas neighborhood has become dangerous and unable to sustain their small community long term. Decisions will need to me made, and disagreements will arise.

It’s four months after If The Darkness Takes Us.

The story is told through Keno’s voice, a teenager forced into adulthood before his time. He is not the only one, and when his wife, Alma, becomes pregnant he vows to protect her with his life. The choices seem monumental and his nightmares haunt him. Alma, grounds him and helps him see that everything is a process. One step leads to the next and the next and the next….

Milo can be reckless and I saw what was coming. I hated it, but, thank goodness, Mazie has a connection with him that nobody understands. I also knew there would be another character or two that would cause trouble.

We shall see, in If The Sun Spares Us and I can hardly wait!

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

The standalone sequel to IF DARKNESS TAKES US. A solar electromagnetic pulse has fried the US grid. Now, northern lights are in Texas—three thousand miles farther south than where they belong. The universe won’t stop screwing with eighteen-year-old Keno Simms. All that’s left for him and his broken family is farming their Austin subdivision, trying to eke out a living on poor soil in the scorching heat. Keno’s one solace is his love for Alma, who has her own secret sorrows. When he gets her pregnant, he vows to keep her alive no matter what. Yet armed marauders and nature itself collude against him, forcing him to make choices that rip at his conscience. If the Light Escapes is post-apocalyptic science fiction set in a near-future reality, a coming-of-age story told in the voice of a heroic teen who’s forced into manhood too soon

  • Genre: Apocalyptic, Dystopian, Science Fiction
  • 257 pages, Kindle Edition
  • Published August 24, 2021 by Southern Fried Karma
  • Series: Braving The Light, Book 2

ABOUT BRENDA MARIE SMITH

2018-10-18_Brenda Marie Smith

BRENDA MARIE SMITH is attracted to stories where everyday characters transcend their limitations to find their inner heroism. She lived off the grid for years in a farming collective where her sons were delivered by midwives. A lifelong community activist, Brenda has managed student co-op housing, produced concerts, and raised a small herd of boys. She and her husband live in Kyle, Texas. They have more grown kids and grandkids than they can count.

SOCIAL MEDIA:

  • Website: https://brendamariesmith.com
  • Blog: https://brendamariesmith.tumblr.com
  • Twitter: @bsmithnovelist
  • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJlLSnORIyoaygvZ1j49ZKw

Buy Links for the Braving the Light Series:

  • IF DARKNESS TAKES US (Book One): https://amzn.to/3Q6TvKU
  • For IF THE LIGHT ESCAPES (Book Two): https://amzn.to/464zPOD
  • IF THE SUN SPARES US (Book Three): https://amzn.to/3LzIpwA

MY BRENDA MARIE SMITH REVIEWS

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Giveaway & Review – Reflections On The Boulevard by L J Ambrosio @GoddessFish @authorlambrosio

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REFLECTIONS ON THE BOULEVARD by Louis J. Ambrosio

GENRE:  Coming of age

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

I read the first book, The Reservoir Man (he gives you the illusion of reality instead of reality itself), and loved it, BUT Reflections on the Boulevard by L J Ambrosio BLEW ME AWAY. It was so thought provoking, that I had to stop at times and let it simmer. My mind was overwhelmed by the writing of L J. I laughed and I cried.

I love car trips and we (Michael, Ron and I) traveled the west, hitting new to me places. I loved seeing it through the eyes of an innocent, absorbing the wonder of our parks. I have never been to Europe, but seeing it through Michael and Ron’s eyes, and L J’s vivid descriptions, the world came alive and we knocked out his bucket list.

Ron is on a journey of intellectual awareness without knowing it.

Find your truth, then you will find your freedom.

Michael’s heart has no limits. He strives to see the good in people and shares his life lessons frreely. He is gay, but his relationship with Ron is one of friendship. Helping someone who needs a hand can leave him open to those who want to take advantage, but not so with Ron. His help pays off as Ron creates a life he never envisioned. When he met Michael, he was just looking for a safe place to lay his head and food in his belly. Michael took a lost boy and helped him to become a man. The journey was amazing, and I am so glad I was able to be there with them.

When Michael talks about sitting at his friends side while they struggle through the final stages of Aids, his words rang true, sometimes a person needs permission to go. I sat at my father’s side in the hospital and said those words. Within moments, I heard his final breath. My older sister was in hospice and, for some reason, I got up in the middle of the night to sit by her side for a while. I told her she could go, and she passed in the night. There were more moments like that in Reflections on the Boulevard by L J Ambrosio and I took them all in.

At the end, I saw what was coming and knew it would break my heart. I fought it as long as I could, before tears began streaming down my face as I struggled to see the words. I got so deep into the story, I felt I was sitting on the bench with them. Michael and I both have an appreciation of the power of benches, the incentive to sit a while and watch life happen.

I have never thought of myself as an intellectual reader, but L J, you can put me on your super fan list.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Reflections On The Boulevard by L J Ambrosio.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
5 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Michael’s story continues from “A Reservoir Man” (2022) where we find him teaching at a university ready to retire. He unexpectedly meets a young man named Ron who becomes his protege and journeys in a haphazard adventure with him throughout America and Europe in Michael’s final journey in life, each twist and turn of the road bringing unexpected adventures. The journey taken is one of joy, friendship and discovery.

  • Genre: Action & Adventure, Comedic Drama & Plays, Coming Of Age
  • 238 pages, Paperback
  • Published April 23, 2023 by Film Valor

ABOUT L J AMBROSIO

Louis J. Ambrosio ran one of the most nurturing bi-coastal talent agencies in Los Angeles and New York. He started his career as a theatrical producer, running two major regional theaters for eight seasons. Ambrosio taught at seven universities. Ambrosio also distinguished himself as an award-winning film producer and novelist over the course of his impressive career.

  • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ljambrosioauthor/
  • Twitter: https://twitter.com/authorlambrosio
  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/louis.ambrosio
  • Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/ljambrosio
  • Blog: https://ljambrosio.blogspot.com/
  • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCI2XkCETDOj_VUtCFcB74ig
  • Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/reflections-on-the-boulevard-lj-ambrosio/1143396462
  • Amazon: https://amzn.to/3qIfb70
  • Apple Books: https://books.apple.com/us/book/reflections-on-the-boulevard/id6448296429
  • Rakuten Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/reflections-on-the-boulevard
  • Thalia: https://www.thalia.de/shop/home/artikeldetails/A1068548362
  • Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1384458?ref=draft2digital
  • Vivlio: https://shop.vivlio.com/product/9798985965162_9798985965162_10020/reflections-on-the-boulevard

MY L J ABROSIO REVIEWS

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Review – Sketching Rebellion by Felicia Ketcheson @booksirens

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I want to thank Book Sirens and Lava Lake Books for the opportunity to read and review Sketching Rebellion by Felicia Ketchseon.

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

I grabbed Sketching Rebellion by Felicia Ketcheson not realizing it was going to be a series. It seems like most of the books I read any more are series. It’s okay, as long as I get to find out the final result, beginning to end, but that doesn’t always happen. Anyways I did enjoy Sketching Rebellion. I was on a binge of apocalyptic/dystopian reading and got a little click happy, grabbing willy nilly.

Sketching Rebellion’s target audience is teen and young adult. I do enjoy a good coming of age story and Breel was a fascinating character. Normally, I like a little more brutality and depth of despair in my apocalyptic reading, but the blurb states that Breel is seventeen years old, so that is a clue for the target group.

As usual, those in power wield a heavy sword to keep everyone in line, using the threat of execution for the slightest infraction, like sketching/drawing, when she is forbidden to do so. How far can you push someone, no matter the age, before they push back? And what happens when they do?

One of the scariest things is…there is no punishment for those who report other citizens. In fact, they are rewarded for it. Who can you trust? You can never be sure what is going on in someone’s mind. Family turning in family, friends turning in friends, coworkers…Instead of ‘lock her up’, it’s take her out.

Some of the most unlikely people will be those who support taking action against the regime. Some will fall, and the ending….I was saddened, afraid for the ones who chose to reshape their world into something better. BUT, that is for another day. I am hooked and I look forward to finding out what comes next. I rated Sketching Rebellion with the target audience in mind.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Sketching Rebellion by Felicia Ketcheson.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
4 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Conformity is mandatory. But seventeen-year-old artist Breel rebels anyway.

In the city of Lexum, personal choice is nonexistent, and defiance is severely punished. Breel is alone in seeing the injustices in her world. Isolated due to her beliefs and haunted by the disappearance of her uncle, she finds solace in the forbidden act of drawing. Creating art is a rebellion against an oppressive regime that stifles self-expression.

When a glimmer of hope emerges in the form of a resistance group, Breel faces a decision. Will she risk execution to join their fight for a society which would celebrate rather than condemn her artistic skills? Or will she continue hiding her non-conformity?

The outcome of her choice will not only define her own fate but may also set in motion a revolution that could reshape her world forever.

2022 Killer Nashville Claymore Award finalist (Juvenile/YA) .

  • Genre: Apocalyptic, Dystopian, Fiction, Science Fiction, Suspense, Technothriller, Thriller, Young Adult
    [ Previously published as Intercludae.]
  • 320 pages, Paperback
  • Published July 1, 2023

ABOUT FELICIA KETCHESON

Felicia Ketcheson is the author of Intercludae, which was a 2022 Killer Nashville Claymore Award finalist (Juvenile/YA category). At age seven, she wrote her first book about a dog, cat, and bee. Four years later, she randomly started writing a short novel, catapulting her into the world of series writing. When she’s not devising ways to destroy the lives of her fictional characters, she works as a medical researcher and database developer. Database developing is a passion she simultaneously loves and hates. She lives in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada.

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Early Review – The Valkyrie’s Shadow by Tiana Warner @tianawarner #TheValkyriesShadow #NetGalley.

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The Valkyrie’s Shadow by Tiana Warner is up for preorder and will be released on 7.25.23. I want to thank NetGalley and Entangled Teen Publishing for the opportunity to read and review The Valkyrie’s Shadow.

Amazon / Goodreads

MY REVIEW

The Sigrid and the Valkyrie’s series by Tiana Warner has become an epic saga for me. I loved the first book, The Valkyrie’s Daughter, but got lost in The Valkyrie’s Shadow. The characters came to life on the pages in this coming of age story and, even though it is a long book, 435 Kindle pages, I read and read and read…

Because the series needs to be read in order, I will do my best to include NO spoilers.

We have some familiar characters and creatures. Royal politics are complicated and the lines of loyalty are often blurred. I am glad that Sigrid stayed leery, and even though she is a young woman, she does know the difference between right and wrong. Each individual is as important as any other.

Sigrid wants the best for everyone and slowly builds her self confidence as she is forced to make decisions that will affect the lives of many. She is an lgbtq character and I love that Tiana Warner adds that extra something to make her character stand out. The romance with Mariam was sweet and innocent.

Tora, what a fabulous character. She made me smile. Fisk is another outstanding and unique character that stuck with me.

I loved all the supernatural characters and creatures.

The Valkrie’s Shadow by Tiana Warner has so much depth and detail to the world she has vividly created. I traveled miles with the characters, and not all will survive. We walked, we flew, we sailed…We have valkyries, elves, humans, winged mares (so how do they reproduce), and an eight legged horse that once belonged to a god…We have loyalty and betrayal, friends and lovers…

There is 435 pages of deliciousness and I hated to read the final word. I was left with a feeling of happiness and hope. Tiana, you blew my mind with this awesome story! I don’t feel my review conveyed how much I loved this book, but, maybe I shared enough to make you want to read it for yourself. I do want to stress that it is best to read The Valkyrie’s Daughter first.

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of The Valkyrie’s Shadow by Tiana Warner.

Animated Animals. Pictures, Images and Photos
5 Stars

GOODREADS BLURB

Being both a valkyrie and a princess isn’t turning out quite the way Sigrid imagined. The other valkyries still treat her like a stable hand. Her relationship with Mariam is less “long-distance” and more “worlds apart.” And lately, she’s been wondering if Sleipnir, her new horse, isn’t making her a little bit…well, evil .

But Sigrid’s first official valkyrie mission sends ripples through the Nine Worlds. She’s attracted the wrath of not only the Night Elves but their sinister king, who wants nothing more than to bring darkness down on everyone. Worse yet, Loki might just be interfering with the balance of light and dark…

When war threatens the shores of Vanaheim and her friends are in danger of being exiled, Sigrid makes a deal with the new queen. She will ride Sleipnir against their enemies and use his might to defeat them, even as he pulls her closer to that line between good and evil.

What she becomes will either save everyone…or unleash disaster upon them all.

The Sigrid and The Valkyries series is best enjoyed in order.
Reading
Book #1 The Valkyrie’s Daughter
Book #2 The Valkyrie’s Shadow

  • Genre: Fantasy, Fiction, LGBTQ, Myths and Legends, Queer, Teen and Young Adult
  • 435 pages, Kindle Edition
  • Expected publication July 25, 2023 Entangled: Teen

ABOUT TIANA WARNER

Tiana Warner

Tiana Warner is an LGBTQ+ author from British Columbia, Canada, best known for her critically acclaimed “Mermaids of Eriana Kwai” trilogy and its comic adaptation. Tiana is a lifelong horseback rider, a former programmer with a Computer Science degree, and an outdoor enthusiast who loves to explore nature with her musician boyfriend and their hyperactive rescue mutt, Joey. Find her online at tianawarner.com.

Website / Goodreads / Instagram / TikTok / Twitter

MY TIANA WARNER REVIEWS

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Giveaway – Timeless: Zane & Fiona by Kaylene Winter @XpressoTours

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Timeless: Zane & Fiona
Kaylene Winter
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

TIMELESS:

A Steamy, Coming-of-Age, Friends-To-Lovers, Rockstar Romance

“I vowed nothing would keep us apart…”
Fiona Reynolds is my other half.
It’s been that way from the day I was born.
I’ve dedicated my life to keep my promise.
Fate just laughs in our face.
She’s always out of reach, this time for good.
I’ll do anything to prove she’s my destiny –
if only she’d trust me one more time.

“After what I’ve done, how can I deserve him?”
Zane Rocks is my everything.
There’s no one I love or trust more than him.
It wasn’t his fault when he left me.
I always knew he’d find his way back.
Fear overwhelmed me, and I broke his heart.
Will the most celebrated musician on the planet,
really give me another chance?

When a rash decision changes their lives forever, hope for their future is all but shattered.
Stakes are high.

But Zane’s determined to prove a love this pure is TIMELESS.

TIMELESS ENCORE:

A steamy, childhood-friends-to-lovers romance between a sexy billionaire rockstar and his plus-size soulmate

“Restraint is not my strong suit.”

I’m finally reunited with the woman I’ve loved since birth.
Why do I feel so untethered?
Fiona’s living her dream and I’m doing my best to support her.
But, with so many dark secrets revealed, my very foundation is rocked to the core.
Will we ever outrun our past to have the life we deserve?

“My lifelong dream blew up in spectacular fashion”

Zane and I overcame many obstacles to achieve our destiny.
We’re best friends and soulmates—with a love life other couples only dream of.
Anxiety and self-doubt still threaten my confidence.
When neither of us have reconciled our past,
Can we find the courage to embrace our future?

Happily ever after can mean so many things.
Life happens.
Faith is tested.

Will Zane and Fiona overcome decades of deception?
Is true love really TIMELESS?

TIMELESS ENCORE is Book 8 in the Less Than Zero Rockstar Romance Series, and is the sequel to TIMELESS

It is strongly recommended you read Books 1-4 before reading any of the “ENCORE” sequels, otherwise you’ll be spoiled!

Goodreads / Amazon


EXCERPT

It’s kind of like being suspended in time when you drown.

Slowly you slip down, sinking farther and farther into a vast, aqua-blue ocean. At first, the sun flitters at the surface, making the sea look like glittery, blue diamonds. It’s like heaven. Dreamlike. Floaty. Beautiful.

Once the light begins to dissipate, suddenly your surroundings feel ominous. The water feels heavy, not light. Stifling. Claustrophobic. The sea turns midnight blue. Then it is so dark you can’t even see your hand inches from your face.

That’s when survival instinct kicks in. Arms sluice upward. Your legs scissor and kick in attempt to reach the surface. All you want is to find the light again. Just one more time.

All of this happens in a minute, though it feels like hours. Days. Weeks. Years.

But it’s too late. Your lungs fill. When you try to breathe, all you do is suck water into your windpipe. You panic. Flail. Gasp. Scream. Fight with everything you have, because if you don’t reach the surface…

I shoot up in bed, clutching my chest. Gulping in air. Tears stream down my face. I can’t catch my breath. My heart pounds.

Goddammit.

This sucks so bad. I can’t keep having these drowning dreams. They’re freaking me the fuck out.

I’m pulled from behind into a full-body hug.

“Your doctor said this would pass in another week or two. Stick with it, Fee. Subconsciously you know I’d never let you drown.” He nuzzles my neck with his scruffy face, tickling me a bit.

I lean back against Zane. My best friend. My lover. My everything from the day I was born. “I know you wouldn’t. It’s just a lot freakier than they said it would be. If I’d known it was this hard to wean myself off Xanax, I’d never have started taking it in the first place.”

”You’ve been under tremendous amounts of stress with Mia’s custody stuff for so long, babe.” Zane eases me down so he’s spooning me. “It was either that or not sleeping. Now that Corey-fucking-Johnson is firmly in the rearview mirror, you just need a little recoup time and you’ll be as good as new. The world is ours for the taking. At-fucking-last.”

My entire body relaxes against him. “Yeah, I knew I had to stop when I realized I was taking double my dose. There’s no way I’m going down that path. Obviously.”

Addiction has taken so much away from my man, there’s no way I’d ever do that to him. Not after we’ve overcome so much to have our happily ever after.

Author Bio:

When she was only 15, Kaylene Winter wrote her first rocker romance novel starring a fictionalized version of herself, her friends and their gorgeous rocker boyfriends. After living her own rockstar life as a band manager, music promoter and mover and shaker in Seattle during the early 1990’s, Kaylene became a digital media legal strategist helping bring movies, television and music online. Throughout her busy career, Kaylene lost herself in romance novels across all genres inspiring her to realize her life-long dream to be a published author. She lives in Seattle with her amazing husband and dog. She loves to travel, throw lavish dinner parties and support charitable causes supporting arts and animals.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram


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Giveaway – FlightLog by Susan Humphrey @ireadbooktours

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Book Details:

Book Title:  FlightLog: The Novel Adventures of a Stewardess Wannabe Who Becomes a Flight Attendant by Susan Humphrey
Category:  Adult Fiction (18+),  338 pages
Genre:  Women’s Fiction, Chick Lit, Memoir(ish), Coming-of-age
Publisher:  Majuscule Press
Release date:   August, 2022
Content Rating:  PG. A few romantic encounters but light on the details. Reference to tobacco use.



Book Description:

“It was 1978. People didn’t have home computers, video players, or answering machines. We rented our telephones from local phone companies and hand-wrote letters. The terms ‘politically correct’ and ‘African-American’ had not been coined. ‘Eating disorders’ and ‘alternate lifestyles’ were not yet common household phrases. Only strippers wore thongs, which made perfect sense to me, as they only caused one to gyrate their hynie in a desperate attempt to dislodge the bothersome wedgie.”

So writes Sherri Van Ness, an unassuming girl from the burbs of Kansas who’s about to embark on the adventure of her life when she signs up to become a stewardess. But it’s much more turbulent than this doughy-eyed 19-year-old ever imagined as she tries to navigate past grouchy passengers, fly-by-night relationships and the unforgiving, relentless, humiliating, monthly weigh-ins. Some dreams come true. Others require a vomit bag.

That’s not to say Sherri doesn’t enjoy herself. Au contraire! There are friends to be made and men to be made and the maid who made up her room in New York is so nice!

Yes, the work is difficult at times and the money isn’t always good, but there are perks: free flights and an endless supply of tiny vodka bottles and salted peanuts (peanut allergies hadn’t been invented yet.)

Like Dorothy Gale sans Toto, Sherri leaves Kansas and finds herself amidst a cast of characters as strange to her as the Scarecrow and the Munchkins were to Dorothy. Her whirlwind journey takes her from innocent, insecure stewardess to mature and confident flight attendant. Or does she?

Book your flight now with this very enjoyable read, put your seat back in the upright position, and enjoy the ride!

BUY THE BOOK:
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Meet the Author:

Susan Jo Humphrey, the daughter of a diplomat, was born in Izmir, Turkey where she lived for three years. She also lived in Korea and Thailand, before returning home to the US with her family as a teenager. She has traveled all over the United States, and has called several parts of this country ‘home.’ Her many airplane rides as a child convinced her she must one day become a stewardess. Suz was a flight attendant for thirteen of her twenty-five years with UAL. She began penning FlightLog with the help of the Naperville Writer’s Group, outside of Chicago. There, she published in their annual pamphlet, had a humor piece printed in an online magazine, and contributed many articles to local newspapers. At the time of publication, she is busy working on FlightLog II.

Away from the keyboard, Suz loves yoga, reading, cooking, listening to music and playing her guitar. She still enjoys mapping out travel to faraway places she’s never seen, as well as planning return trips to her favorite spots.

She currently lives in Southern California and has two grown children. Today, she’s in healthcare, where she’s worked since 2014. Suz was the ‘baby’ of her flight attendant classes – and the ‘senior’ student in her nursing classes. She’s eager to write that story as well: a novice baby-boomer RN begins her dream career as a travel nurse – just as a pandemic breaks out!

connect with the author: website 


FLIGHTLOG by Susan Humphrey Book Tour Giveaway



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Giveaway – The Phantom Glare Of Day by M Laszlo @GoddessFish

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The Phantom Glare of Day by M. Laszlo

GENRE: Historical (Metaphysical) Fiction / Coming of Age Fiction

BLURB

In this trio of novellas, three game young ladies enter into dangerous liaisons that test each one’s limits and force them to confront the most heartrending issues facing society in the early twentieth century. The Phantom Glare of Day tells of Sophie, a young lady who has lived a sheltered life and consequently has no idea how cruel public-school bullying can be. When she meets Jarvis, a young man obsessed with avenging all those students who delight in his daily debasement, she resolves to intervene before tragedy unfolds. Mouvements Perpétuels tells of Cäcilia, a young lady shunned by her birth father. She longs for the approval of an older man, so when her ice-skating instructor attempts to take advantage of her, she cannot resist. Not a month later, she realizes that she is pregnant and must decide whether or not to get an abortion. Passion Bearer tells of Manon, a young lady who falls in love with a beautiful actress after taking a post as a script girl for a film company—and is subsequently confronted with the pettiest kinds of homophobia.

EXCERPT

London, 29 September, 1917.

In the dead of the night, Manon returned to her hotel suite and lay down in bed. Please, no more nightmares.

At dawn, she had a terrible dream.

A long, plump, phallic, pulsating Zeppelin approaches the city.

Like every other tenant, she exits Chelsea Court Hotel. Alas, as she races past one of the refuge islands rising above the thoroughfare, she trips and falls.

From all directions, meanwhile, various artillery units open fire—and the terrific cacophony of battle roars and blasts and rumbles and bawls.

As the shell-shocked crowds rush down into the neighboring tube station, a lady beggar approaches. “Stay where you are,” the wretched woman tells her. “It’d be your destiny to perish during a tribulation such as this.”

In time, a fragment of what looks to be the Zeppelin’s rudder plummets into the park not thirty feet from the place where Manon stands.

And now she looks up to find that a torrent of flames has engulfed the airship’s nose.

As the doomed Zeppelin drifts this way and that, the bittersweet-orange blaze spreads down the length of the passenger gondola.

With an awful hiss, the airship’s carcass descends toward her and then . . .

She awoke from the dream, quite certain that she must be tangled up in the gondola’s guy-ropes. Blinded by the morning light, she thrashed about.

Ultimately, she fell out of bed. How to go on living here?

At one o’clock, when she arrived at the offices of the London Moving-Pictures Company down on Coronation Avenue, she paused before the reeded-glass doors and debated whether she ought to resign her post. Why not go home to Manchester?

A dark presence rolled through the sky. Could it be a Zeppelin passing by overhead, the bomb bay slowly opening?

The darkness proved to be nothing more than a large skein of geese, but even so, she felt positively frantic—and now she continued through the door. Hopefully, the hall porter would be willing to tell Mr. Pomeroy that she had decided to back out. If so, she could be on her way before the production manager had even had a chance to protest.

AUTHOR Bio and Links

M. Laszlo is the pseudonym of a reclusive author living in Bath, Ohio. According to rumor, he based the pen name on the name of the Paul Henreid character in Casablanca, Victor Laszlo.

M. Laszlo has lived and worked all over the world, and he has kept exhaustive journals and idea books corresponding to each location and post.

It is said that the maniacal habit began in childhood during summer vacations—when his family began renting out Robert Lowell’s family home in Castine, Maine.

The habit continued in 1985 when, as an adolescent, he spent the summer in London, England. In recent years, he revisited that journal/idea book and based his first work, The Phantom Glare of Day, on the characters, topics, and themes contained within the youthful writings. In crafting the narrative arcs, he decided to divide the work into three interrelated novellas and to set each one in the WW-I era so as to make the work as timeless as possible.

M. Laszlo has lived and worked in New York City, East Jerusalem, and several other cities around the world. While living in the Middle East, he worked for Harvard University’s Semitic Museum. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Hiram College in Hiram, Ohio and an M.F.A. in poetry from Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, New York.

His next work is forthcoming from SparkPress in 2024. There are whispers that the work purports to be a genuine attempt at positing an explanation for the riddle of the universe and is based on journals and idea books made while completing his M.F.A at Sarah Lawrence College. 

NOTE: THIS BOOK WILL BE $0.99 DURING THE TOUR.

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Follow the tour and comment. The more you comment, the better your chances of winning. Follow the tour HERE.

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Giveaway – Paperboy by Dan Romanello @ireadbooktours @TheDanRomanello

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Book Details:

Book Title:  PAPERBOY (A Dylan Tomassi Novel) by Dan Romanello
Category: Adult Fiction (18+), 332 pages
Genre: Coming of Age Contemporary Thriller
Publisher: Sanitas Publishing, Inc.
Publication Date: August, 2022.
Content Rating: R: A series of explicit sex scenes, minimal bad language and drug use are utilized for character and plot development.
Book Description:

Abandoned by his father as an infant and raised by a single mother among the wealthy and privileged in Fairfield County, Connecticut, Dylan Tomassi grew up poor. As a boy he is befriended by a mysteriously reclusive widow he meets on his paper route. She mentors him with sage advice on matters facing a young man growing up without a father. She never pays for her newspapers, and he never asks for the money because of all the good advice she dispenses. When she finally does square up, it changes his life forever.

Dylan relocates to Florida and becomes a successful private investor, wealthy beyond his wildest dreams. His newfound socioeconomic status introduces him into the upper echelon of Florida society where he finds many things going on in the world simply don’t make sense. With the help of his old friend and mentor, he navigates life in a turbulent modern-day society and vows to use his wealth to make a difference when he’s not sidetracked running into nefarious characters or busy keeping his best friend, wealthy playboy Alex Malloy, out of hot water. With corruption, debauchery, deception, and murder swirling around him, Dylan proves nice guys can finish first.
Buy the Book:
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Indigo ~ Indiebound
BookBub
add to goodreads

PLAYLIST FOR PAPERBOY

  • Wake Up by Black Veiled Brides
  • Zombified by Falling in Reverse
  • Centuries by Fall Out Boy
  • Castle by Halsey
  • We Don’t Have to Dance by Andy Black
  • Happen to me by BENEE
  • Lie to Me by Tate McRae feat. Ali Gatie
  • Thnks fr th Mmrs by Fall Out Boy
  • I Think I’m Okay by Machine Gun Kelly
  • In the Link by Linkin Park
  • Demons by Alec Benjamin
  • Boulevard of Broken Dreams by Greenday
  • Come a Little Closer by Cage the Elephant
  • Much too Much by Lennon Stella
  • Someone You Loved by Lewis Capaldi

Meet the Authors:

DAN ROMANELLO began his career working for a large Florida newspaper before attending law school at the University of Florida. After serving as an assistant state attorney, he entered private practice where he spent more than 20 years as a civil trial lawyer litigating cases in courtrooms throughout Florida. He retired from the active practice of law in 2017 and, before writing PAPERBOY, spent four years coaching college athletics. He lives in St. Petersburg, Florida.

connect with the authors: website ~facebook ~ twitter ~ bookbub ~ goodreads

PAPERBOY Book Tour Giveaway



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