Double Cover Reveal: The Book of Phoenix Series by Kristie Cook

It's a double-cover reveal (and a sale!) for author Kristie Cook's The Book of Phoenix series! The cover of The Space Between (Book 1) has been made-over, and we're sharing for the first-time ever, the title and cover for Book 2 (see below).

THE SPACE BETWEEN by Kristie Cook

The Book of Phoenix #1

New Adult Paranormal Romance

When Life Falls to Pieces, Answers Lie in the Space Between

Leni Drago can't make a smart decision on her own, according to her mother anyway--the few times she's tried resulted in disaster. When her uncle sends her on a dance tour in Italy to find her real self, she returns to an empty home and any evidence of his existence wiped out. Then things get even stranger, like the mysterious appearances of Jeric Winters--inked, pierced and a hit-'em-and-quit-'em type. He's one decision that should be easy for Leni. Or is he?

Jeric doesn't do girlfriends. Unless they're someone else's. He left the fighting cage and modeling for a reason, and girls who want more than a night of fun are distractions he doesn't need. Especially when they come with as much baggage as Leni carries. But he can't shake the gut feeling that he needs to know her. All of her.

To discover the truth behind their connection and their ties to a journal from 1989, they must face painful secrets from their pasts. And they must do so quickly because their own existences are falling to pieces.

This first part of The Book of Phoenix takes you on a heart-wrenching ride as you discover the answers that lie in The Space Between.

THE SPACE BEYOND by Kristie Cook

The Book of Phoenix #2

New Adult Paranormal Romance

Expected publication: March 2014

(Working Description)

In this second installment of The Book of Phoenix series, Leni and Jeric are (re)learning their roles as the Phoenix Guardians and becoming the leaders they once were while taking on their first mission - guiding a Separated soul to the Gate. But that soul has her own issues, including supporting her sister and their deathly ill parent while dealing with an ex who doesn't want to be an ex anymore and a budding romance with a guy who could be her saving grace...or her fatal end. The last thing she needs right now is a couple of psychos trying to convince her that she'll never find her soul's other half except through them. What does that even mean, anyway? And why on Earth should she trust them when they don't even trust each other?

To celebrate, The Space Between is on sale for only 99c through January 1, 2014! 

 

Get it here:

www.TheBookofPhoenix.com

http://www.amazon.com/Space-Between-Book-Phoenix-ebook/dp/B00C3OQO2O/

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-space-between-kristie-cook/1114959553

https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-space-between/id628066630

http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/the-space-between

https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-thespacebetween-1148953-143.html

About this Author:

Kristie Cook is a lifelong, award-winning writer in various genres, from marketing communications to fantasy fiction. She continues to write the Soul Savers Series, a New Adult paranormal romance/contemporary fantasy, with the first four books, Promise, Purpose, Devotion, Power and Wrath available now. She’s also written a companion novella, Genesis: A Soul Savers Novella, currently available. Over 300,000 Soul Savers books have been sold, with Promise peaking at #54 on the Amazon Top 100 Paid list and at #1 in the Amazon Fantasy category.

The Space Between kicks off her second New Adult paranormal series, The Book of Phoenix.

Besides writing, Kristie enjoys reading, cooking, traveling and riding on the back of a motorcycle. She has lived in ten states, but currently calls Southwest Florida home with her husband, three teenage sons, a beagle and a puggle. 

She can be found at:

Author's Website & Blog: http://www.KristieCook.com
UK Fan Site: http://www.kristiecookfansite.co.uk/index.html
The Book of Phoenix Website: http://www.TheBookofPhoenix.com
Soul Savers Series Website: http://www.SoulSaversSeries.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AuthorKristieCook
Twitter: http://twitter.com/kristiecookauth

Tour: A Vampire's Christmas Carol by Cynthia Eden (Review/Excerpt/Giveaway) #AVampiresChristmasCarol

Title: A Vampire's Christmas Carol 
Author: Cynthia Eden

Genre: Paranormal Romance, Supernatural Fiction

Elements: Angels, Vampires, Demons, Shapeshifters
Setting Location: Desolate, North Dakota, United States ; New York, United States

Publisher: Cynthia Eden 

Format: Kindle Edition

ASIN: B00GJBUT5A

Release Date: November 6, 2013

Source: NetGalley

Content Warning: This book features one very tortured vampire, a sexy ghost from his past, and hot scenes designed to melt the winter snow. Plenty of action, adult situations, and steamy times are ahead. Happy holidays!

Rating: /5

Purchase Here: Kindle

Tagline: This holiday season has bite.

Summary: Ben Prescott hates Christmas—he’s a vampire, and to him, there’s certainly nothing jolly about the holiday season. While the humans are running around being merry, he’s hunting in the shadows. Ben plans to spend the holidays his way…by stalking deadly prey.

But fate has other plans for Ben.

Three visitors are coming Ben’s way…A demon who will force Ben to face his past, a ghost who will show Ben the present he could have, and a shifter who will reveal the darkness that waits in Ben’s future. Unless Ben can change his ways, he may just turn into a real monster, one who can’t be saved by anyone or anything.

’Tis the season…to be undead.

Ben’s redemption rests in the hands of the one woman he loved and lost—Simone Laurent. If Ben is going to have a chance at being more than just the beast in the darkness, he has to prove himself to the lovely Simone. A very hard task, considering that, once upon a Christmas Eve, Simone died in Ben’s arms…

Review:

In A Vampire's Christmas Carol, Cynthia Eden has brought us a paranormal version of the classic Christmas story. Ten years ago, as he was meeting his girlfriend to propose, Ben was attacked by a vampire, turned, and left with the message "Welcome to the darkness." It wasn't until the death of his girlfriend that he was really plunged into that darkness. Now, ten years later, Ben is really close to becoming the true monster that people fear in the darkness. But three people from his past have come back to show him the past, the present, and the future, in the hope that he will change and take hold of the second chance that he's being offered.

Since Simone's death, Ben's been hunting criminals and killing them. But while he's in his own dark world, there are many things happening around him that he should have noticed but didn't. If he continues along his current path, he will be lost forever and this is what motivates someone from his past to risk everything to save him. Three visitors - a demon, an angel, and a shifter - show him key moments from his past, present, and possible future in an attempt to show him that he need to change. That his existence influences more than just himself. That he can do more than just kill. That he has worth.

I have loved every book by Cynthia Eden that I have read to this point, and it's no different with A Vampire's Christmas Carol. The characters are likable, and I really took a shine to William and Jamison. Ben became a broken man when he lost Simone, and even though he is very close to losing himself to the darkness completely, you can still see pieces of who he was before he was turned. And Simone is definitely completely devoted to Ben, even when she was away from him for so long. I had to admire her. And I even liked Cale. He has a small role in this story, but it's a very important one.

A Christmas Carol is one of my all time favorite Christmas stories, and it was just really awesome to read a paranormal version from one of my favorite authors in this genre. Although the characters are different, the story is just as powerful in its message. Even the most dark person can change for the better given the right motivation. All it takes is one moment to change everything.

EXCERPT:

Lust clawed through him. The need, the red-hot desire, seemed to burn Ben from the inside. He grabbed Simone, yanked her flush against him. His mouth locked on hers. He’d always tried to be so careful with her in the past. Played the gentleman because she mattered.

He wasn't a gentleman any longer. Ben wasn't even sure what he was. He just knew he needed Simone naked, and he had to be in her.

He carried her back to his bedroom. He ignored the glittering New York skyline. She was the only thing he could see. Desire pounded through him. His cock was so swollen that he hurt and—

His teeth were extending. Stretching in his mouth.

Ben dropped Simone on the bed and stepped back, horrified.

“Ben?” Simone sat up on the bed and pushed back the blonde hair that had tumbled forward. “What’s wrong?” She was so gorgeous and sexy staring up at him. Looking at him with those wide, dark eyes.

I’m going to hurt her. He grabbed for the control that he’d always held so easily in the past. Only that control was broken. Shattered. “You need to leave.”


About this Author:

USA Today Best-selling author Cynthia Eden has written over twenty-five novels and novellas. She was named as a 2013 RITA® finalist for her paranormal romance, ANGEL IN CHAINS, and, in 2011, Cynthia Eden was a RITA finalist for her romantic suspense, DEADLY FEAR.

Cynthia is a southern girl who loves horror movies, chocolate, and happy endings.  She has always wanted to write (don’t most authors say that?), and particularly enjoys creating stories about monsters–vampires, werewolves, and even the real-life monsters that populate her romantic suspense stories.

Cynthia’s foreign sales for her books include translations to Japan, Germany, Thailand, Greece, and Brazil.

(Back in the day…) Cynthia graduated summa cum laude from the University of South Alabama where she studied Sociology (because people interest her) and Communication (because she likes to write about said people).  Cynthia has worked as a college admissions counselor, a teacher, and as an editor. But now, Cynthia is thrilled to be spending her days making up stories.

Author Links:

http://www.cynthiaeden.com/
https://twitter.com/cynthiaeden
https://www.facebook.com/cynthiaedenfanpage
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/153738.Cynthia_Eden

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Book Blitz: Entwine by Rebecca Berto (Excerpt/Giveaway)

Entwine by Rebecca Berto 
New Adult Contemporary
Publication date: November 25th 2013

Add to Goodreads!
Buy from Amazon // B&N!

Sarah Langham’s life was the epitome of normal until her dad slept with another woman when she was sixteen. It ripped her family apart.

Twenty-two-year-old Sarah has it together, though.

Waiting at the train station to go home from her first day of her first proper job out of university, she spots a man.

He is an enigma to her. She’s drawn to him, with his square jaw; buzz of hair; and his tall, solid frame, seen under the contours of his business suit. And he’s been looking at her, too. Fate pulls them together that night on a whirlwind date, exceeding anything Sarah’s experienced before. He’s even more into her than she’s into him. Finally, she wants to trust a guy for the first time since she was sixteen.

But then they discover something.

Something that meant they were never two strangers at a train station.

And it threatens to tear their future apart before it, really, ever begins.

EXCERPT:

When Sarah first came home her ears had a faint ring in them, and now, in the aching silence, they buzzed at her fiercely. Her first thought was Ah! Relative quiet for once. I’ll just sneak in and get my mobile phone. Now she wished her dad had been doing anything else, even playing that stupid rock ‘n’ roll music. She had a solution for that: plug in her Favourites playlist and turn the volume up.

She heard the first moan, whispering through the walls. She was drawn toward the sound in her parents’ bedroom; it was like the undeniable dread of watching someone being bullied from afar. It was being unsure how to make it stop.

But Sarah’s mum was out, and there was definitely two people making those sounds in there. For the first few moments, Sarah wondered if her mum had suddenly materialised here. Why else would her dad be moaning in sync with that female voice, and the bed legs be screeching in that way?

She remembered arriving into the silence that had encased her, replacing the throbbing sounds from the party she’d just been at, thinking it all seemed too quiet in here.

She was right.

Sarah felt the blood drain from her face. A sense of nothingness washed over her as she braced her palm to the wall outside her parents’ bedroom, narrowly preventing her wobbly legs from taking her down.

What should she do?

She willed her ears to block out what she heard, but she knew sticking her fingers in the holes wouldn’t help a bit. And her dad didn’t deserve to be the reason she harmed herself if she poked inside too hard.

Sarah wished she could run, but instead her feet stayed rooted against the wall, and she shivered at the choice she had to make. What would she do, tell her mum that she could hear the bed creaking against the frame, that her dad’s friend wasn’t trying to be quiet at all?

The sounds triggered a memory. She’d caught a weird text message when sitting at the kitchen bench, her playing with her dad’s phone, her mum still at work. Her dad had snapped his mobile phone from her fingers and told her to go to her room. Her shock back then debilitated her choice to tell her mum. Her voice didn’t work when she tried to speak, and her throat was tight even when she swallowed. Now, hearing what was happening behind the wall, she had no idea where to even begin.

Sarah clamped a hand over her mouth in case she sobbed loudly, forced her other hand to push her from the lure of the wall where she had been frozen, and to walk herself out the front door.

Back to that party. Back through the shadows of darkness and odd orbs of light, along the sidewalk, back to the noise and the alcohol, and the people trying to forget their responsibilities.

About this Author:

Rebecca Berto writes stories about love and relationships. She gets a thrill when her readers are emotional reading her books, and gets even more of a kick when they tell her so. She's strangely imaginative, spends too much time on her computer, and is certifiably crazy when she works on her fiction.

Rebecca Berto lives in Melbourne, Australia with her boyfriend and their doggy.

Author Links:

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

ENTWINE is launching at $0.99 for a LIMITED TIME!

GIVEAWAY:

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Cover Reveal: Out of the Ashes by Diana Gardin

OUT OF THE ASHES by Diana Gardin

Ashes #1

New Adult Contemporary Romance

Publication date: December 12th 2013

Cover designed by OctagonLab  

Out of the frying pan and into the fire…

Paige Hill is discovering who she is again after losing everything she loves in a tragic fire. She’s endured a long road to recovery with the help of her best fiend Gillian and is finally beginning her life again: college, a job, and a blossoming love she never even saw coming.

Clay Forbes is the notorious campus playboy. He’s a star athlete, a senior architecture major, and the only son in a family with power and money back in his hometown. When he crashes into Paige, his whole perspective on life shifts, and his world as he knew it becomes nonexistent. He’s wrapped up in her.


They’re both learning how to love, but Clay’s ex-girlfriend Hannah won’t make it easy for them. She puts a target on Paige’s back, and won’t stop until she’s derailed their budding romance once and for all. Who will be left standing after the ashes settle for the second time?

Goodreads Link:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18659203-out-of-the-ashes 

About this Author:

I'm a wife of one and a mom of two. Writing is my second full time job to that, and I love it! I write Contemporary Romance in the Young Adult and New Adult categories. I'm also a former Elementary school teacher. I love steak, sugar cookies, and Coke and I hate working out. Look for more Contemporary Romance Titles from me soon, including Out of the Ashes (Ashes 1) and Wanted (Nelson Island 1).

Author Links:

http://www.dianagardin.com/ 

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7319252.Diana_Gardin 

https://twitter.com/Dianalynngardin 

Cover Reveal: Tousle Me by Lucy V. Morgan

TOUSLE ME: A New Adult Parody by Lucy V. Morgan

New Adult Contemporary Romance

Publication date: December 13th 2013

Cover designed by Kenny Wright

He’s exquisitely hot. Exquisitely tousled. Exquisitely screwed in the head.

Cammibelle Hicks just wants to survive her first year of college. Desperate to forget her troubled past, she throws herself into her degree and book review blog. So what if her life is one long tumblr page of grumpy cat GIFs? She doesn’t need to get out more, and she definitely doesn’t need a man.

Hunter von Styles approaches life like he’s spoiling for a fight: with a tempting scowl. A cage-fighting, ex-rocker billionaire, it’s unclear why Hunter’s at college. Frankly, it makes no sense. Then Cammie falls into him—literally—at a party, and he’s obsessed. He needs her more than a moist towelette at a barbecue.

Though Cammie’s friends warn her against Hunter, she can’t resist his charms; especially not when he buys her shoes. And GoodReads. And a unicorn. But when her handsome best friend, medieval reenactor Archer Riddick, makes a play for her heart—and challenges Hunter to a jousting match—it turns out that Hunter has demons of his own. Demons that aren’t real ones, but metaphorical ones—which are MUCH WORSE, when you think about it…

Join Hunter and Cammie on an emotionally exhausting journey into love.

And co-dependence.

And probably therapy.

Goodreads Link:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18723826-tousle-me 

About this Author:

Lucy writes sharp contemporary fiction, usually with a liberal splatter of filth. She is a Lyrical Press author, an editor and a screenwriter.

Her new adult novel, TWISTED SUMMER, is a gutsy take on forbidden love starring an even gutsier heroine.

Her contemporary series, encompassing CHAIRMAN OF THE WHORED and THE WHORED'S PRAYER, features slick London lawyers with a penchant for sensual violence. BEAUTIFUL MESS, her romantic comedy novella, is a snarky, sexy friends-to-lovers romp.

In TOUSLE ME: A New Adult Parody, Lucy pays homage to the books she loves in the best way she knows how...by mocking them mercilessly.

Lucy lives amid a graveyard of scented candles and half-read books. She's still trying to kick her dirty Pepsi habit.

Author Links:

http://www.lucyvmorgan.com/

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5222742.Lucy_V_Morgan

https://www.facebook.com/LucyVMorganAuthor

Release Day Blitz: Hard As It Gets by Laura Kaye (Review)

Title: Hard As It Gets
Series: Hard Ink #1

Author: Laura Kaye

Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Setting Location: Baltimore, Maryland, United States

Publisher: Avon Books

Format: Kindle Edition

ASIN: B00BATNM50

Release Date: November 26, 2013

Source: Edelweiss

Rating: 5/5

Purchase Here: Kindle

Tagline: Tall, dark, and lethal...

Summary: Trouble just walked into Nicholas Rixey's tattoo parlor. Becca Merritt is warm, sexy, wholesome--pure temptation to a very jaded Nick. He's left his military life behind to become co-owner of Hard Ink Tattoo, but Becca is his ex-commander's daughter. Loyalty won't let him turn her away. Lust has plenty to do with it too.

With her brother presumed kidnapped, Becca needs Nick. She just wasn't expecting to want him so much. As their investigation turns into all-out war with an organized crime ring, only Nick can protect her. And only Becca can heal the scars no one else sees.

Desire is the easy part. Love is as hard as it gets. Good thing Nick is always up for a challenge...

Review:

Becca Merrit was sent a cryptic message from her brother telling her to find a member of their father's former Special Forces team, a man named Rixey, and to ask for his help. But when she enters the Hard Ink tattoo parlor and finds Nick Rixey, he wants nothing to do with the situation. She leaves feeling completely hopeless. Nick has his reasons for not getting involved with his former CO's daughter. But after she leaves Hard Ink, Nick can't help but check up on her. What he finds makes him realize that a whole lot more is going on than he first thought. It's a dangerous game they're involved in, with a life in the balance. Nick knows that he needs to gather his former teammates together and reconcile with them is they have any hope of protecting Becca, saving her brother Charlie, and clearing their names in a massive coverup.

As you're reading, there are times when you think you have the whole story figured out, but then something else happens to change all that. There are twists and turns, some expected and others that are a complete surprise. I just really like this story as a whole. The relationships that are formed and those that are reconnected have really strong bonds. The romance was complicated to say the least. The physical attraction was instant, but the feelings of love didn't come so easy. Becca and Nick had a lot to work through, mentally and emotionally. And when things seemed to be getting too serious and heavy, there were moments of humor. Hard As It Gets had a very well-balanced storyline that I enjoyed immensely.

You know, I really liked Nick. He's kind of down on himself, because he feels responsible for what happened to his team. He feels he should have noticed something sooner, and because he didn't half his team lost their lives. But you can see that he deeply cares for those that were lost and those that still remain. If it weren't for Becca entering his life, thought, there are a lot of chances that he would have missed out on. Not only does he find love with Becca, but because of what's happening to her and her brother, he was able to get the remaining members of the team together an reconcile with them the fact that he pretty much abandoned them after they returned stateside.

I really admired Becca. Even though her life is in great danger, she's willing to do anything to find and save her brother, Charlie. Her strength in the face of possibly losing the only family she has left and learning the hard truth about her father is amazing. A lot of people would bow beneath the pressure, but Becca carries it like a champ. And I loved how she was able to gain all the team's respect, knowing what her father did to them.

Shane McCallan, Beckett Murda, Edward Cantrell, and Derek DiMarzio are the remaining members of the team. I liked all of them, but I'd have to say that my favorite team member was Marz. He's probably to most easy-going guy on the team. He suffered the most debilitating injury of those that survived, but he doesn't let that stop him. Then there is Nick's younger brother, Jeremy, and his funny t-shirts. And I can't forget my favorite three-legged puppy. The naming process was really entertaining and the Hard Ink Puppy (I'm not saying her name!) was just so darn adorable. I wish she were my puppy.

I am really looking forward to what happens next in this series. Hard As You Can continues with Shane as the main character. And the same baddies and their nasty plot continue to haunt our Hard Ink heroes. It sounds pretty darn exciting!

About this Author:

Laura Kaye is the New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author of contemporary and paranormal romance. Laura's hot, heartfelt stories are all about the universal desire for a place to belong. Laura grew up amidst family lore involving angels, ghosts, and evil-eye curses, cementing her life-long fascination with storytelling and the supernatural. Laura lives in Maryland with her husband, two daughters, and cute-but-bad dog, and appreciates her view of the Chesapeake Bay every day.

Author Links:

http://www.LauraKayeAuthor.com 
https://www.facebook.com/LauraKayeWrites 
https://twitter.com/laurakayeauthor 
https://www.goodreads.com/LauraKaye 
 

Review: Wild Cards by Simone Elkeles

Title: Wild Cards
Series: Wild Cards #1
Author: Simone Elkeles
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary Fiction
Setting Location: California, United States ; Illinois, United States ; Texas, United States
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Format: Hardcover, 342 Pages
ISBN: 9780802734372
Release Date: October 1, 2013
Source: Wentworth Library
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13065327-wild-cards
Rating: 5/5

Tagline(s): Love is the toughest game of all.

Summary: After getting kicked out of boarding school, bad boy Derek Fitzpatrick has no choice but to live with his ditzy stepmother while his military dad is deployed. Things quickly go from bad to worse when he finds out she plans to move them back to her childhood home in Illinois. Derek’s counting the days before he can be on his own, and the last thing he needs is to get involved with someone else’s family drama.

Ashtyn Parker knows one thing for certain--people you care about leave without a backward glance. A football scholarship would finally give her the chance to leave. So she pours everything into winning a state championship, until her boyfriend and star quarterback betrays them all by joining their rival team. Ashtyn needs a new game plan, but it requires trusting Derek—someone she barely knows, someone born to break the rules. Is she willing to put her heart on the line to try and win it all?

Review:

Wild Cards brings us the story of Derek and Ashtyn. Derek Fitzpatrick moves to Chicago with his stepmother after he is expelled from his private school for letting loose some pigs as a prank at the senior graduation. It is there, in his new home, that he meets Ashtyn Parker. Through a series of events Derek and Ashtyn learn what it means to love and forgive, while navigating the world of high school football.

Derek was a prodigy quarterback on the fast track to the NFL, when his mother was diagnosed and later died of lung cancer. At the end, when she was calling for him, Derek chose to go to football practice before going to the hospital, and when he finally got there is was too late. That choice has haunted him ever since, and he hasn't touched a football again. He doesn't take anything seriously anymore and only has casual hookups with girls, but when he meets Ashtyn when he moves to Chicago with his stepmother, that begins to change.

Ashtyn is the kicker for her high school's varsity football team, and recently appointed captain. She is the opposite of Derek in almost every way. She takes everything seriously and only wants a serious relationship. She wants someone who will love her unconditionally and won't leave her like so many others in her life have. They both have one thing in common: football. One will do anything to play the game, and the other will do anything to avoid going out onto the field.

I fell in love with this story from the very beginning. I really liked the dynamic between Derek and Ashtyn, not to mention the steamy makeout sessions. Everyone loves those swoony moments. I also like how football factors into the whole story. It's a prevalent part of the story and plays a major role in all the characters lives. There is one character that I found immensely entertaining and that was Derek's grandmother. She is a total snob and isn't afraid to say what she's thinking, but underneath all her haughtiness you can tell that she truly cares for Derek. She just covers it up with her snobbery.

Wild Cards ends with a very emotional and satisfying conclusion. I'm really looking forward to seeing where this series will go next. Will the next book be from a new characters point of view or will it continue with Derek and Ashtyn? Either way, I can't wait to read about the Fremont High football gang again.

About this Author:

Simone Elkeles is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of novels for teens. Simone’s books have won many awards including being YALSA Top Ten Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, being named to the YALSA Popular Paperbacks and Teens Top Ten lists, and added to the Illinois “Read for a Lifetime” Reading List. Simone also won the coveted RITA award from the Romance Writers of America for her book Perfect Chemistry. Simone is especially proud of the fact that the Illinois Association of Teachers of English named her Author of the Year.

Simone was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago, where she still lives today. Simone went to the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign and received her Bachelor’s of Science there in Psychology in 1992. She continued her education at Loyola University-Chicago where she received her Master’s of Science degree in Industrial Relations while working for a manufacturing company creating diversity programs for their employees.

She loves animals (she has two dogs – a labradoodle and a German Shepherd), kids (she also has two of those) and her family. In her spare time she’s the Hockey Mom for her kids hockey teams and is an active Girl Scout leader specially trained in outdoor education. She also spends time mentoring other teen and adult authors. (She also loves sushi, which you can probably tell by reading her books.) Simone writes about teens because she was a teen in the 80’s (when spiked hair and blue eye shadow were “rad”) and she loves writing about those exciting teen relationships and romances.

Cover Reveal: Someone Like You by Addison Moore

SOMEONE LIKE YOU by Addison Moore

Someone to Love #2

New Adult Contemporary Romance

Publication Date: January 28, 2014

A sexy, romantic read from the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Someone to Love.

When coed Ally Monroe literally falls into the arms of a tattooed bad-boy one summer night, she can't seem to let go. Morgan Jordan is everything Ally doesn't want—he's a playboy from a blue collar background, and Ally's looking for upper-class stability. Though their relationship starts off as a one-night stand, once Ally learns Morgan is her best friend's brother, there's no escaping him . . . or the growing fire between them. As Ally and Morgan become closer, they confront bitter enemies, his sister's disapproval, and paths pulling them in different directions at summer's end.

The second book in the bestselling Someone to Love series proves that in love and passion, sometimes two wrongs do make a right.

Goodreads Link:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18071024-someone-like-you 

About this Author:

Addison Moore is a New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author who writes contemporary and paranormal romance. Previously she worked as a therapist on a locked psychiatric unit for nearly a decade. She resides on the West Coast with her husband, four wonderful children, and two dogs where she eats too much chocolate and stays up way too late. When she's not writing, she's reading.

Author Links:

http://addisonmoorewrites.blogspot.com
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Addison-Moore/140192649382294
https://twitter.com/AddisonMoore

Book Blast: The Flowering Series by Sarah Daltry (Giveaway)

Lily of The Valley
Flowering 1.5

You met them in Forget Me Not. Now, hear Jack’s story.

Add to Goodreads - Series!
Buy from Amazon - Series!

Plagued by a dark past, Jack sees college as a way out. Desperate to escape the area where he grew up, the people who know his secrets, and his own family, he deals with his problems through alcohol and sex.

When he first sees Lily, she’s the epitome of everything he hates. Yet something about her makes Jack rethink everything he knows and assumes about other people. Now, with the help of his best friend and lover, Jack has to decide if he wants to pursue something that he knows will only end badly.

Can Lily be one of the few people who can see Jack for who he really is – or will his darkness be too much for her to handle?

About this Author:

Sarah Daltry writes about the regular people who populate our lives. She's written works in various genres - romance, erotica, fantasy, horror. Genre isn't as important as telling a story about people and how their lives unfold. Sarah tends to focus on YA/NA characters but she's been known to shake it up. Most of her stories are about relationships - romantic, familial, friendly - because love and empathy are the foundation of life. It doesn't matter if the story is set in contemporary NY, historical Britain, or a fantasy world in the future - human beings are most interesting in the ways they interact with others. This is the principle behind all of Sarah's stories.

Sarah has spent most of her life in school, from her BA and MA in English and writing to teaching both at the high school and college level. She also loves studying art history and really anything because learning is fun.

When Sarah isn't writing, she tends to waste a lot of time checking Facebook for pictures of cats, shooting virtual zombies, and simply staring out the window.

Author Links:

http://sarahdaltry.com
https://www.facebook.com/SarahDaltryErotica
https://twitter.com/SarahDaltry
http://pinterest.com/sarahdaltry/boards/
http://www.tumblr.com/blog/sarahdaltry

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Tour: Fire & Ice by Lacey Weatherford (Review/Giveaway)

Title: Fire & Ice
Series: Book of Shadows #1

Author: Lacey Weatherford

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Supernatural Fiction

Elements: Witches, Warlocks, Demons

Publisher: Moonstruck Media

Format: Kindle Edition

ASIN: B00F1W2TFQ

Release Date: September 8, 2013

Source: Girls Heart Books Tours

Rating: /5

Purchase Here: Kindle

Tagline: He was on the run. Love wasn't an option, But Fate had a different plan. Magic abounds and sparks fly, when destiny brings Fire & Ice together.

Summary: Time passes . . . sometimes too quickly, other times not fast enough, but that’s not what’s important. The essential thing is what we learn about ourselves during that passage of time and how we apply it. Will we continue to follow the destructive paths we find ourselves on? Will we give in to circumstances that seem completely unchangeable? Or will we desperately fight to hold onto those we love and to what’s good inside us—no matter how terrible the cost?

I only know I would do whatever was required of me to keep Portia, but in a world of witches, warlocks, and demons, anything can happen.

My name is Vance Mangum, and this is my story.

Short Review:


I have to be honest, I haven't read the story from Portia's point of view in the Of Witches and Warlocks series yet, so I'm kind of doing it backwards from everyone else by starting from Vance's point of view in the Book of Shadows series. I always really enjoy reading a story from both the male and female point of view, because it offers elements to the overall story that you would otherwise not know from just one point of view. And because I haven't read the first series yet, it's interesting to read these point of views in a different way by starting with the male point of view.

About this Author:

Lacey Weatherford was born in Ft. Meade Maryland while her father was serving in the military. She has been a life long resident of Arizona, spending most of her time growing up in the small rural town of Clay Springs.

It was while she was attending the small country school in Clay Springs, that she read her first "big" book at the age of eight. It was a Nancy Drew novel and Lacey was instantly hooked. She read every book that she could find in the series and decided that she wanted to write stories too.

Lacey spent a lot of time at the library from that time forward, even volunteering in her later teen years and early twenties. She would don a crazy clown outfit for the Friends of the Library fundraisers in an effort to help get the new town library built.

When she and her husband moved away from the area, Lacey took the opportunity to take some creative writing classes at the local college to help further along her interests. Several years later, they were blessed with the opportunity to move back to Clay Springs with their family. The town had finally succeeded in building their library and Lacey had the opportunity to be President of the Friends of the Library for a very short time, before relocating.

Lacey and her family still live in the White Mountains of Arizona, where she continues to write young adult novels that have a fantasy/fairytale or paranormal bent to them, as well as being sure to include a great romantic storyline!

Author Links:

http://www.laceyweatherfordbooks.com
https://twitter.com/LMWeatherford
http://www.amazon.com/Lacey-Weatherford/e/B0033DCQBC
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3297510.Lacey_Weatherford
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lacey-Weatherford-Author/294193747306212

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Tour: Sia by Josh Grayson (Review/Giveaway)

Title: Sia

Author: Josh Grayson

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary Fiction
Setting Location: California, United States

Publisher: Josh Grayson

Format: Kindle Edition

ASIN: B00GRUVUE2

Release Date: November 18, 2013

Source: NetGalley

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18482726-sia
Rating: 5/5

Purchase Here: Kindle

Tagline: Forgetting was only the beginning.

Summary: When seventeen-year-old Sia wakes up on a park bench, she has no idea who or where she is. Yet after a week of being homeless, she’s reunited with her family.

At school, she’s powerful and popular. At home, she’s wealthy beyond her dreams. But she quickly realizes her perfect life is a lie. Her family is falling apart and her friends are snobby, cruel and plastic. Worse still, she discovers she was the cruelest one.

Mortified by her past, she embarks on a journey of redemption and falls for Kyle, the “geek” she once tormented. Yet all the time she wonders if, when her memories return, she’ll become the bully she was before…and if she’ll lose Kyle.

Review:

Sia Holloway wakes up in a park not knowing where or who she is. Only the words "Sia's Playlist" on the iPod on her arm gives her any clue on who she is. Lost and alone, Sia ends up on the street homeless for a week. If not for the help of a fellow homeless woman named Carol who befriends her, Sia may not have survived. One day after being chased out of the soup kitchen by a volunteer for some unknown reason, she is hit by a taxi and ends up in the hospital where she is reunited with her family. As she tries to piece together her fractured and forgotten life, she learns things about herself that are hard to hear, and she vows to change herself for the better.

Sia impressed me greatly in this book. If there were more people like Sia in this world, there would be no homelessness or hungry people. Even though she has gone through a pretty serious trauma, she still looks for ways to help others. And then when she begins to learn about who she was, how horribly cruel she was before her amnesia, she tries to find ways to better herself.

I liked how that story focused on Sia's journey, and not on the romance between her and Kyle. Usually when a love interest is introduced, the story tends to focus more on that relationship than the storyline the book began with. I also like how Sia and Kyle didn't have an insta-love. They worked toward a relationship and had to overcome some pretty big hurdles in the process, namely Sia's amnesia and whether she would revert to how she was before when her memories returned.

With stories like this, which are standalone novels, I like when there is a conclusion that ties up all loose ends, and you're not left hanging on anything in the end. Sia has an epilogue that takes place two years after Sia's amnesia that ties everything up real nice. There's a definitive ending to this book, and it's a happy one.

About this Author:

Josh Grayson was born in Mexico, raised in Massachusetts, and now lives in Martinsville, Virginia. It was his move to the South that stirred his imagination and gave him the courage to start writing. During his free time, Josh enjoys reading, jogging, swimming, and watching YouTube videos.


Josh currently works as a medical driver, shuttling people all over Virginia and North Carolina. He has also worked as a machinist, film sales rep, administrative assistant, and telemarketer (he apologizes if he called you).


Sia is his debut YA novel. 

Author Links:

http://joshgrayson.com/
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7132257.Josh_Grayson
https://twitter.com/josh_grayson
https://www.facebook.com/joshgraysonauthor

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Book Blitz: The Perimeter by Shalini Boland (Excerpt)

The Perimeter by Shalini Boland
(Outside #3) 
Young Adult Dystopia
Publication date: November 18th 2013

Add to Goodreads!
Buy from Amazon US // Amazon UK // B&N // Smashwords // iTunes

In this fractured world, a sinister force is coming for Riley, and the only things keeping her safe are a perimeter fence and the people she loves. As her life is threatened, she must make impossible choices. But help comes from the most unlikely of places, and all Riley needs to know is: who can she really trust?

Meanwhile, a repentant killer searches for peace and salvation, but what he gets is the exact opposite. Now he’ll have to make the hardest decision of his life.

The Perimeter is a darkly captivating dystopian tale of adventure, danger, love and redemption that will have you on the edge of your seat and up at night turning the pages to find out what happens next . . .

EXCERPT:

"Have you done things you’re ashamed of, Jamie?"

An image of the dead girl flashed into Jamie’s mind. Shiny beads of blood and glass.
 

"I can help you come to terms with those things. I can give you peace. Absolution. Are you tired, Jamie? Are you sick of the road and the hostility of your fellow man? Do you crave a warm bed and a clear purpose?"

 

Jamie wanted to tune out Mr Carter’s voice, but the soft seductive words crept into his brain like a virus. Part of Jamie knew that this man was skilled in the art of telling people what they longed to hear. That he wasn’t doing anything out of the goodness of his heart. That he had an ulterior motive for approaching him. But the other part of Jamie was tired. Bone-weary in fact, and this Mr Carter bloke knew it. Knew how to press his buttons and get him to do what he wanted.

About this Author:

Shalini lives in Dorset, England with her husband and two noisy boys. Before children, she was signed to Universal Music as a singer songwriter. Now, writing novels has hijacked her life and she is usually to be found with a laptop welded to her fingers and the house in a permanent state of neglect.

Author Links:

http://www.shaliniboland.co.uk 

http://www.facebook.com/ShaliniBolandAuthor

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4727364.Shalini_Boland

http://twitter.com/ShaliniBoland

http://pinterest.com/shaliniboland/

Release Day Launch: The Thrill of It by Lauren Blakely (Giveaway)

THE THRILL OF IT:

Add to Goodreads!
Buy from Amazon // B&N // iTunes!

A new adult story of Love. Sex. Addiction. Blackmail. And Power...

Some say love can be an addiction. Others say it's the thing that makes life worth living. Let me tell you everything I know about love...Love isn't patient, love isn't kind. Love is a game, a chase. A thrill. Love is wild and war-like, and every man and woman must fight for themselves. At least that's how it was for me. A high-priced virgin call girl by the time I started college, I was addicted to love and to sex. Even though I've never had either. I controlled love, played it, and held the world in the palm of my hands. Then I fell down from those highs, and I'm being blackmailed for all my mistakes, forced to keep secrets from everyone, except the only guy I don't regret.

Trey...

With all the other women, I knew what they were. They were temporary. They were pills, they were bottles, they took away all the pain, and numbed the awful memories that wore down my ragged, wasted heart. Until I met Harley. She's the only girl I ever missed when she walked away. But now she's back in my life, every day, and there are no guarantees for us, especially since I don't know how to tell her my secrets. What happened to my family. All I know is she's the closest I've ever come to something real, and I want to feel every second of it.

How can you love with no regrets when regret is all you know?


About this Author:

Lauren Blakely writes sexy contemporary romance novels with heat,heart, and humor, and her books have appeared on the New York Times, USA Today, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iBooks bestseller lists. Like the heroine in FAR TOO TEMPTING, she thinks life should be filled with family, laughter, and the kind of love that love songs promise. Lauren lives in California with her husband, children, and dogs. She loves hearing from readers! Her novels include Caught Up In Us, Pretending He's Mine, Playing With Her Heart, Trophy Husband, and Far Too Tempting. On November 21, she'll release the edgy new adult novel THE THRILL OF IT. She also writes for young adults under the name Daisy Whitney.

Author Links:

http://www.laurenblakely.com/
http://laurenblakelybooks.blogspot.com/
https://www.facebook.com/LaurenBlakelyBooks
https://twitter.com/LaurenBlakely3
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6860216.Lauren_Blakely

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Review: Reality Boy by A.S. King

Title: Reality Boy
Author: A.S. King
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary Fiction
Setting Location: Pennsylvania, United States ; Washington DC, United States ; North Carolina, United States ; South Carolina, United States ; Georgia, United States ; Florida, United States
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Format: Kindle Edition
ASIN: B00BAXFBQO
Release Date: October 22, 2013
Source: NetGalley
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17332968-reality-boy
Rating: 5/5

Tagline(s): He's not the boy you saw on TV.
You think you know everything about me. You. Know. Nothing.

Summary: Gerald Faust started feeling angry even before his mother invited a reality TV crew into his five-year-old life. Twelve years later, he's still haunted by his rage-filled youth - which the entire world got to watch from every imaginable angle - and his anger issues have resulted in violent outbursts, zero friends, and clueless adults dumping him in the special education room at school. No one cares that Gerald has tried to learn to control himself; they're all just waiting for him to snap. And he's starting to feel dangerously close to doing just that.

In this fearless portrayal of a boy on the edge, highly acclaimed Printz Honor author A.S. King explores the desperate reality of a former child "star" who struggles to break free of his anger by creating possibilities he never knew he deserved.

Review:

Gerald Faust was an angry kid way before his mother called Network Nanny to come to their house. But it hit a whole new level when the TV crews began invading their house. To show hi anger he used to punch holes in the walls, but after the TV show came, he began crapping on tables, in shoes, pretty much anywhere but the toilet. This earned him the nickname "The Crapper" and it has followed him to now, twelve years later. No one realized that he was trying to bring to their attention a very serious and life-threatening problem in their home, and it is still very much present now. And Gerald is still angry.

Gerald is a character that seems to have lost all hope of a future after Network Nanny ruined his life. He's been in anger management classes and been put into the special education class at school. The anger management he needed, but the special education he did not. People think that they know Gerald, but they do not. And when you learn the reasons behind his behavior as a small child, your heart really goes out to him. It isn't until Gerald meets Hannah that he begins to realize that he can make his own future, one where he can succeed. Network Nanny was one turning point in Gerald's life and meeting Hannah was another. One turning point was for the worse, and the other was for the better.

Reality Boy shows us the negative effects fame can have on children, or in Gerald's case "infamy." Even when the people involved in the show (particularly the fake nanny) realized that something wasn't quite right in that house, they did nothing to help the situation. They only cared about the ratings for their show and not how it affected those they were exploiting. Whether Reality Boy is an accurate depiction of the effects showbiz has on children or not, for this story it is not something I would ever want to involve my children in if I had any.

I really liked how the story went from Gerald's life now, to scenes of the Network Nanny show when he was five years old. We get a really good look into what was happening during that time to make Gerald the way he is now. There were some pretty entertaining moments, and seeing Gerald finally take a stand after so long was a great thing to witness. And that he was able to find love in the process made it all better. Gerald's not angry anymore.

About this Author:

A.S. King is the author of the highly-acclaimed REALITY BOY, LA Times Book Prize winner ASK THE PASSENGERS, 2012 ALA Top Ten Book for Young Adults EVERYBODY SEES THE ANTS, and 2011 Michael L. Printz Honor Book PLEASE IGNORE VERA DIETZ. She is also the author of the ALA Best Books for Young Adults THE DUST OF 100 DOGS as well as a collection of award-winning short stories for adults, MONICA NEVER SHUTS UP.

Look for Amy's work in anthologies DEAR BULLY, BREAK THESE RULES and LOSING IT. (And brace yourself for 2014's novel, GLORY O'BRIEN'S HISTORY OF THE FUTURE.) Find more at www.as-king.com.

Book Trailer: The Fire Walker by Nicole R. Taylor

Dylan “Dee” Cosgrove is one fourth of Australian band, The Devil’s Tattoo. Loveable, cocky as hell, but one thing is missing. He’s never  been in love. He doesn’t want meaningless, he wants meaningful and all he keeps hearing is I’m sorry… Forever the good guy finishing last.

A year after their first tour, The Devil’s Tattoo are making it big in LA recording their next album. For Dee, all he wants is to stand on stage and play. After all, music is his first love. He could care less about the money and the fakery that comes with the LA scene and the big executive types with dollar signs in their eyes. But in walks the woman who is about to obliterate him and she’s one of them. So, what’s a guy to do when one look is all it takes?

Jessie Ware is an intern at Galaxy Records, New York. When she’s asked to go to LA to help her boss schmooze with the latest big thing to come out of Australia, The Devil’s Tattoo, it’s her chance to get her foot firmly wedged into the door. If she can pull this off, then there could be a permanent job in it. But she didn’t count on one thing. Dee Cosgrove and his cocky Australian attitude. He makes her question everything without even trying and it might just push her over the edge… if she doesn’t give her heart to him first.

The more Dee gets to know Jessie, the harder he falls and he’d walk over fire and back to win her over. That’s if she doesn’t deliver him  straight into the ranks of the scarred and broken first.

—

The Fire Walker is a companion novel to The Devil’s Tattoo. It has a dose of drama, some colourful language, a HEA and some sex scenes.
It’s recommended for readers 18 and up.

Cover Reveal: The Fire Walker by Nicole R. Taylor

THE FIRE WALKER by Nicole R. Taylor

Devil’s Tattoo #2

Adult Contemporary Romance

Publication date: December 16th 2013

Dylan “Dee” Cosgrove is one fourth of Australian band, The Devil’s Tattoo. Loveable, cocky as hell, but one thing is missing. He’s never  been in love. He doesn’t want meaningless, he wants meaningful and all he keeps hearing is I’m sorry… Forever the good guy finishing last.

A year after their first tour, The Devil’s Tattoo are making it big in LA recording their next album. For Dee, all he wants is to stand on stage and play. After all, music is his first love. He could care less about the money and the fakery that comes with the LA scene and the big executive types with dollar signs in their eyes. But in walks the woman who is about to obliterate him and she’s one of them. So, what’s a guy to do when one look is all it takes?

Jessie Ware is an intern at Galaxy Records, New York. When she’s asked to go to LA to help her boss schmooze with the latest big thing to come out of Australia, The Devil’s Tattoo, it’s her chance to get her foot firmly wedged into the door. If she can pull this off, then there could be a permanent job in it. But she didn’t count on one thing. Dee Cosgrove and his cocky Australian attitude. He makes her question everything without even trying and it might just push her over the edge… if she doesn’t give her heart to him first.

The more Dee gets to know Jessie, the harder he falls and he’d walk over fire and back to win her over. That’s if she doesn’t deliver him  straight into the ranks of the scarred and broken first.

—

The Fire Walker is a companion novel to The Devil’s Tattoo. It has a dose of drama, some colourful language, a HEA and some sex scenes.
It’s recommended for readers 18 and up.

Goodreads Link:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18485109-the-fire-walker 

About this Author:

Nicole R. Taylor is an Australian born paranormal, fantasy and contemporary fiction author. She is a graduate of the University of Ballarat Professional Writing and Editing programme and is a former music memorabilia sales person and grocery merchandiser.

She currently lives in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia with a two year old rescue cat named, Burger. She enjoys reading, writing (of course!), traveling and a little too much chocolate. One day she hopes to sky dive, but has to work up the courage first.

The first in her new paranormal fantasy series, The Witch Hunter Saga is available in e-edition and print from March 20th 2013

Author Links:

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter