Mark your calendar! Maggie Wheeler, author of the Farran Mackenzie Mystery series will be in the ‘hot seat’ so to speak on September 19th!
Category Archives: Novels
The Face in the Stones
It’s only recently, I saw the face in the stones in this photograph.
This picture has been the wallpaper on my computer since the end of 2014 when its predecessor decided it was time to have a major malfunction.
The stone circle, located in rural Aberdeenshire, Scotland, features in my debut novel – A Shadow in the Past – and its not yet published sequel – Shadows From Her Past.
This type of stone circle, known as a recumbent stone circle, is unique to Aberdeenshire. You can find out more about them here.
Located on the top of a hill on a working farm (we gained permission from the owners to enter), in a field with cows and one bull, we had to watch where we placed our feet. Initially afraid of us, it didn’t take long before the cows became inquisitive (sounds so much more polite than nosy) enough to set fear aside and come see what we were doing.
This particular cow looks like she’s resting her chin on the recumbent stone. Hers isn’t the face in the stones.
Do you see the face in the stones?
It’s Book Lovers Day!
Happy Book Lovers Day!
This unique holiday can also be celebrated on the first Saturday in November. So why not celebrate it both days?
Hardcover, paperback, ebook. What’s your preference? Both have their advantages. Ebooks are usually less expensive than a paperback and definitely more so than a hardcover.
One hundred books on an e-reader weigh far less than the same number of physical books and take up a lot less space – better for travel.
For the person who likes mystery and suspense with romance…
When a contemporary teen is transported back in time to the Victorian era, she becomes A Shadow in the Past…
Nineteen year old Sarah Shand finds herself in Victorian Era Aberdeenshire, Scotland and has no idea how she got there. Her last memory is of being at the stone circle on the family farm in the year 2010.
Despite having difficulty coming to terms with her situation, Sarah quickly learns she must keep her true identity a secret. Still, she feels stifled by the Victorians’ confining social practices, including arranged marriages between wealthy and influential families, and confronts them head on then suffers the consequences.
When Sarah realizes she has fallen in love with the handsome Laird of Weetshill, she faces an agonizing decision. Does she try to find her way back to 2010 or remain in the past with the man she loves?
Buy links for A Shadow in the Past can be found here.
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For those who prefer short stories…
The Consequences Collection is an eclectic compilation of twelve stories ranging from non-fiction through creative non-fiction to pure fiction, in prose and poetry.
The story of a Scottish Home Child is based on fact and told from the child’s point of view; The Mystery Woman of Kinettles is a non-fiction article on the appearance and subsequent disappearance of a woman’s body near the Wellington County House of Industry (Poor House) in 1879 Southwestern Ontario.
Some of these stories are lighter than others, and some might even beg you to leave the lights on.
The Consequences Collection is available for the kindle on all amazon platforms and in epub format at lulu.com
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And a middle grade Christmas novelette…
For Tim Frost, Christmas 2011 is a washout. No Santa. No presents. Nothing. His father lost his job when the mill closed and now the family is on the verge of losing their home.
A chance encounter with Nick Kringle, a modern-day Santa Claus teaches Tim that the greatest gift you receive is the gift of giving.
Tim’s Magic Christmas is currently only available in paperback. To find out how to get your copy, contact me via email. Watch for it coming in kindle and epub formats.
The Haunted Heart of Rory O’Dannon ~ COVER REVEAL
THE HAUNTED HEART OF RORY O’DANNON
by
DELIA COLVIN
Is the love of Megara’s life a hallucination — or a ghost?
The Irish poet Rory O’Dannon came to Megara during a high fever, but she never forgot. Twenty years later she still mourns him. Her marriage to charismatic Ken Benedict was a pragmatic decision as she no longer believes in true love.
Until a car accident catapults her back to 19th century Ireland–and into Rory’s arms.
Finally united with the love of her dreams, and believing she has died, Megara commits her heart to him. But when she wakes from a coma, she is forced to accept that Rory was fictional–until she finds the wedding band he gave her.
Will she choose life with her husband, or death and a mere chance for love with Rory?
ABOUT DELIA COLVIN
Delia is the international bestselling author of The Oracle Series. She is both a screenwriter and a novelist and has been a featured author on several popular blogs, books and magazines including Southern Writers Magazine and others.
She has worked as an entrepreneur, in sales and advertising, in Air Traffic Control, and as a Russian interpreter. Delia lives in Granada Hills, California.
For more information about Delia J. Colvin and her upcoming releases, contact her at:
DeliaJColvin@gmail.com
www.DeliaColvin.com
Join the mailing list to be notified when the book becomes available to pre-order / buy http://bit.ly/HauntedHeart
GIVEAWAY
Two $25 Amazon Gift cards
5 eBooks The Sibylline Oracle
Discovering Delilah by Melissa Foster
Discovering Delilah
by
Melissa Foster
DISCOVERING DELILAH
HARBORSIDE NIGHTS, Book Two
HARBORSIDE NIGHTS is a sexy, hot, and evocatively real New Adult Romance series that follows a group of friends who have known one another for years as “summer” friends, and now come together after college to build their lives. They’re tough, edgy, and accepting—most of the time. This series is written in the same loving, raw, and emotional voice readers have come to love by New York Times & USA Today bestselling, award-winning author Melissa Foster.
In DISCOVERING DELILAH…
After the death of her parents on the day of her college graduation, Delilah Armstrong thought she could finally follow her heart and come out to her closest friends, but the guilt of going against her parents’ beliefs haunts her. The feelings she has for her best friend, Ashley, are stronger than anything she’s felt before, but Delilah has never even kissed a girl, and fear stops her at every turn.
Ashley Carver promised herself that she would never again date another girl who wasn’t out, but that was before she met intoxicatingly sweet and sexy Delilah.
When another girl offers to teach Delilah the ropes, it changes Delilah’s whole world and gives her the courage to go after the only girl she really wants. But coming out isn’t as easy as Delilah imagined, and moving past her parents’ death and the feelings of guilt she is left with is even harder. The intense passion between Ashley and Delilah is too strong to deny, but coming together means risking everything.
Discovering Delilah is an edgy, evocative, romantic story of friendship, family, and the courage to love.
Buy links
About Melissa Foster
Melissa Foster is a New York Times & USA Today bestselling and award-winning author. She writes contemporary romance, new adult, contemporary women’s fiction, suspense, and historical fiction with emotionally compelling characters that stay with you long after you turn the last page. Her books have been recommended by USA Today’s book blog, Hagerstown Magazine, The Patriot, and several other print venues. She is the founder of the Women’s Nest, a social and support community for women, the World Literary Café. When she’s not writing, Melissa helps authors navigate the publishing industry through her author training programs on Fostering Success. Melissa has been published in Calgary’s Child Magazine, the Huffington Post, and Women Business Owners magazine.
Melissa hosts an annual Aspiring Authors contest for children and has painted and donated several murals to The Hospital for Sick Children in Washington, DC. Melissa lives in Maryland with her family.
Visit Melissa on The Women’s Nest, Fostering Success, or World Lit Cafe. Melissa enjoys discussing her books with book clubs and reader groups, and welcomes an invitation to your event.
Author Links
GIVEAWAY
The prize is the previous book in the series Catching Cassidy
a Rafflecopter giveaway
SUMMER MOVED ON by Joanna Lambert plus Guest Post
SUMMER MOVED ON
BY JOANNA LAMBERT
After a long-buried secret tears her family apart, Jess Hayden moves to the South Devon village of Lynbrook to live with her uncle. Rufus owns the village pub, The Black Bull, and having visited before, Jess knows the villagers well…especially one of them.
Talún Hansen has a reputation, making him the kind of man no decent girl should get involved with. Jess, however, has been under his spell from the moment they first met. Although they always seem to bring out the worst in each other, there is no denying the attraction that simmers between them – an attraction Jess knows she needs to keep under control after repeated warnings from her uncle.
As she settles into village life she begins to learn more about this wild, dark-haired gypsy with the compelling eyes, and realises their lives hold many similarities. Despite her uncle’s warnings, she begins to spend time with him. For Jess, the coming summer holds passion; for Talún the hope that he has at last found someone who truly cares for him.
But as autumn approaches, a dark shadow from Jess’s past returns, bringing far-reaching and unwanted changes for both of them.
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HEROES AND VILLAINS
Once you’ve worked out how you’re going to kick start your latest WIP the next important thing is to look at your cast in more detail: to put flesh on bones, give them personalities and a background. I usually create a bio for each character central to my story, giving them a real identity –physical features, education, and a personal history – so I’m able to write as if I actually know them.
As significant as all these details are, however, it’s what the individual will come to represent in the book that is as important. One of the central characters in many romance novels is the antagonist – the villain. This is the person who, for whatever reason, causes trouble and puts obstacles in the way of our two would-be lovers. If he/she weren’t around then life would be plain sailing and the story would be over before it had a chance to begin.
I’m a prolific reader as well as a writer with romance definitely one of my favourite categories. It’s a fairly broad genre which can cover many different aspects of relationships. It can be light-hearted or serious and the settings for the stories can be historical, futuristic or contemporary. For me, however, romance is only one side of the coin. I also enjoy exploring relationships and how peoples’ actions can impact on others and change things, either for good or bad. My books are therefore a blend of romance and drama and because of this I find the villain a very powerful character. They drive the conflict, keeping the reader constantly turning the page to find out what happens next.
In my trilogy – When Tomorrow Comes, Love Lies and Promises and The Ghost of You and Me – trouble came in the form of central character Ella’s mother Melissa (Mel). She was glamorous, vain and totally self-absorbed. She made Ella’s life an absolute misery, constantly interfering in her love life in her search for the ‘right kind’ of husband for her daughter. None of this was for Ella’s benefit, of course, it was all about promoting Mel’s social ambitions.
Book four – Between Today and Yesterday – caught up with the same characters in the late 1980s. This time, Marcie Maguire, a famous American diva and someone from Ella’s husband Matt’s past returned. She was looking for revenge after losing him to Ella many years before. By the fifth and last book of the series – The Other Side of Morning – Matt and Ella had settled down to a peaceful life together and it was the turn of the next generation. This story focussed on their niece Charlotte. In love with handsome Italian restaurateur Marco D’Alessandro, she fell foul of his stepmother Thérèse who had plans to marry her stepson off to a young Chianti heiress in order to expand the family’s business empire.
In my latest book – Summer Moved On – we meet Lily, the newest female to take on the role of the woman everyone loves to hate. She is twenty years old; much younger than her three contemporaries in my other books, but just as destructive. Her character was influenced by a novel I read back in 1998 called ‘Concerning Lily’ by Sally Brampton. In it, we are introduced to Lily Clifton, a young woman who manages to cause irreparable damage to the lives of three couples who befriend her. The Lily in Summer Moved On has a lot of similarities to her namesake. She lacks a conscience and is totally focussed on taking what she wants and causing trouble, especially for the main character, Jess.
Of course, we haven’t seen the last of Lily because I’ve a sequel to write. Watercolours in the Rain will see her back again as we take up the story six years after the first book ends. What sort of problems will she be causing? Well, that’s still very much under wraps at the moment. All I can say is her behaviour will be as controversial as it has been in Summer Moved On! Watch this space…
About Joanna Lambert
Jo Lambert was born and brought up in rural Wiltshire in a small village on the edge of Salisbury Plain. She has spent most of her working life in Senior PA or Admin Management roles both in the private and public sectors. Her love of reading soon spilled over into writing and her first novel When Tomorrow Comes was published in 2009. Four other books – Love, Lies and Promises, The Ghost of You and Me, Between Today and Yesterday and The Other Side of Morning followed. They formed a series following the lives and loves of four Somerset families.
Jo lives on the eastern side of the Georgian city of Bath with her husband, one small grey feline called Mollie and a forty eight year old white MG Midget called Bridget. She loves travel, red wine, rock music and cooking for friends.
Summer Moved On, her sixth novel, is the first part of a two book love story set in South Devon.
email: taurusgirl185@gmail.com
googleplus: google.com/+JoLambert
twitter: @jolambertwriter
website: http://jolambertbooks.com
blog: http://jolambertwriter.wordpress.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jo-Lambert-Author-Page/288274811277692?fref=ts
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GIVEAWAY
2 E-COPIES OF THE BOOK
THE GIVEAWAY IS OPEN INTERNATIONALLY
**********
BOOK PROMO ~ Secrets of the Pomegranate by Barbara Lamplugh
SECRETS OF THE POMEGRANATE
by BARBARA LAMPLUGH
Contemporary Women’s fiction/ Reading Group fiction
Release Date: 23/4/2015
Publisher: SilverWood
Passionate, free-spirited Deborah has finally found peace and a fulfilling relationship in her adopted city of Granada – but when she is seriously injured in the Madrid train bombings of 2004, it is her sister Alice who is forced to face the consequences of a deception they have maintained for ten years. At Deborah’s home in Granada, Alice waits, ever more fearful. Will her sister live or die? And how long should she stay when each day brings the risk of what she most dreads, a confrontation with Deborah’s Moroccan ex-lover, Hassan? At stake is all she holds dear… ‘
Secrets of the Pomegranate deals with topical themes such as inter-cultural relationships and the moral dilemmas around truth and lies – whether personal or political. It explores, with compassion, sensitivity and – despite the tragic events – humour, the complicated ties between sisters, between mothers and sons and between lovers, set against a background of cultural difference and prejudices rooted in Granada’s long history of Muslim-Christian struggles for power.
“Lamplugh does a great job of unveiling a little at a time – but still maintaining tension until the surprise of the final revelation.” Rebecca Foster, Bookbag
Buy Links
About the Author
Barbara Lamplugh has been writing since the 1970s. Her love of adventure and travel took her first on an overland journey to Kathmandu, which inspired her to write Kathmandu by Truck (1976) and then on the Trans-Siberian railway, by boat to Japan and around SE Asia, which led to her second book, Trans-Siberia by Rail (1979). Becoming a mother put a stop to such long travels but not to writing. She turned instead to fiction, inspired by the often fascinating and unexpected stories of ordinary people she came across in her work in the community. She also wrote occasional articles for magazines and newspapers, including The Guardian and Times Educational Supplement. In 1999, with her two children now independent, she moved to Granada in Spain, where Secrets of the Pomegranate is set. Her encounters and experiences of life in Granada provide her with abundant inspiration. For several years she worked as a features writer for Living Spain magazine, contributing around a hundred articles on topics ranging from Olive Oil to Machismo to Spanish names. Alongside her writing, she teaches English, edits and translates. With two children and five grandchildren in the UK, she makes regular visits there. Other passions include cycling, dancing, travel, jazz and reading.
Author Links
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100008901106533
Website www.barbaralamplugh.com
GIVEAWAY
A SIGNED COPY OF THE BOOK (Open Internationally)
Prescott, ON Farmers’ & Crafters’ Market ~ July 25, 2015
Farmers’ & Crafters’ Market ~ July 25, 2015
Prescott, ON
The canopy was brought out for the first time this year for the Prescott Farmers’ & Crafters’ Market. No time to linger over my morning coffee, checking Facebook, Triberr and my own blog stats. We had to leave the house about 6:30 in order to be there for 7:00! It’s a good thing, I live within 20 minutes of the venue.
My 6-foot table display usually looks Christmassy, or Scottish with the red table cloth and tartan topper but since this was #ChristmasinJuly, I decided to bring out three of my nutcrackers who stood guard and performed their duties admirably.
This was the first time I brought my 4-foot table to use in conjunction with the larger one so I put them together in an L-shape. Having a tartan tablecloth (had to go on a quick hunt before we left the house to find it) that almost matches the topper perfectly, that small table made a great place for two of my nutcrackers and a wonderful place to stash my boxes out of sight and still have plenty of leg room under the main table.
I sourced some funky bags (polka dot and zebra stripes for books and the lettered one for calendars – 2016 not available yet) last year in two different sizes but never had any place handy to put them. Usually they were under the table stacked on top of a box and most inconvenient. So I asked my hubby this week, if he could make me a bag tree. I told him roughly what I was thinking of and this is what he came up with.
My bag tree isn’t finished yet. It will have a proper base under it and we’re going to get a ball post cap for the top. Still it worked well in its initial stages. This isn’t where it spent the day. It was in the inside corner of the “L” but this location was more photogenic.
The soldiers from Fort Wellington were there and this one was persuaded to pose for a photograph with my nutcracker whose uniform was the same colour.
There were a number of cardboard hats from the Fort at the event and my husband took my nutcracker in the red jacket over to their table and they modified a hat to fit him. If you click on the photo and zoom in, you’ll see the modified head gear. To get a better look at it, the person in front of the blue canopy in the photo is wearing one.
Networking is always a good thing and today was no different. I’m looking forward to doing something with Fort Town Treasures in the future.
If you look closely in this picture by Fort Town Treasures, you can see my bag tree standing proudly in the “L”.
RECKONING TIDE a new novel from Anneli Purchase
FREE!
If you have not read The Wind Weeps, grab your free digital copy now on amazon or on smashwords. Follow it up with the conclusion to Andrea’s story in Reckoning Tide. Here is a sample of the beginning of Reckoning Tide.
You’re mine!
To have,
To hold,
No matter how hard.
You’re mine!
Give me honour,
Obey,
And do as you’re told.
You’re mine!
In sickness,
My sickness,
Comes hell.
You’re mine!
This day forward,
Til death,
Do us part.
Chapter 1
“Nurse!” I screamed. “Nurse, come back!” Robert’s smile vanished. He advanced and tossed the three orchids onto the foot of my bed.
I twisted around grasping for the cord with the call button. “Get away from me!” I hit the button frantically.
Robert lunged at me. “No, Andrea. Don’t!” He ripped the cord away from me. I pulled my fist back to punch him, but he was quick and caught my wrist in an iron grip. His eyes narrowed into slits.
“Nurse!” I yelled again. He clamped a hand over my mouth. Flashbacks of what that hard hand had done to me went through my mind. I bit down on his fingers, my terror lending me extra strength.
“Arrrgh! You bitch!” Robert’s eyes grew wide. He stared at me with a glassy look that I remembered too well. He drew his arm across his chest to backhand me, but dropped it when the nurse appeared.
“What’s going on here?” the nurse demanded. Margaret was a hefty woman. She filled most of the doorway as she stood with her hands on her hips. “Sir! Come away from the bed.”
“She bit me!” he said, unable to keep the whine out of his voice. “I brought her flowers—orchids, her favourite kind—and she bit me!”
I gasped at his outrageous boldfaced ploy, twisting the truth. “He tried to kill me. Don’t let him near me. He’s the one I told you about.”
“Now, Andrea.” Robert’s voice, silky smooth, sent ripples of terror up my spine. “You know that’s not true.” He turned to the nurse and slowly shook his head. “I’m her husband. You see, she’s had quite a shock. We had an argument and she set fire to our cabin and ran away when she thought I had died in the fire. I guess she’s surprised to see that I’m still alive.”
The nerve of him! I tried to get out of bed. “No! No-no-no!” I had to get the nurse to believe me. “He’s twisting it all around. He tried to kill me.”
The nurse was quick to put her hand out. “Stay in bed, Andrea.” She looked flustered and tried to calm us both. But no wonder she was confused. The whole situation was so bizarre. She looked from Robert to me and back to Robert again.
Would she side with Robert?
“Sir,” she said, “would you mind going to the waiting room down the hall? I’m sure the RCMP would like to speak with you, too. They’ll be here soon to interview Andrea.”
Robert raised his chin and gave me a smirk. “That was fast,” he said. “We’ll soon get to the bottom of the situation then.”
The nurse escorted him out the door. “We called them this morning when she woke up,” I heard her say as they walked down the hall.
The nurse had explained to me earlier that the police have to make a report in cases where there has been violence, especially since a gun was found in my fanny pack. The gun I pointed at him last week. Should have pulled the damn trigger.
*****
You will find paperback and digital versions of Reckoning Tide on amazon outlets and on smashwords.com (for e-readers other than Kindle). Just click on the links:
For more about Anneli Purchase and her books, visit her at http://anneli-purchase.com/
BOOK PROMO ~ Cradled Dreams by Beverly Hoffman
CRADLED DREAMS
By Beverly Hoffman
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Release Date: April 2013
Publisher: Abbott Press
As her family gathers for Thanksgiving, Georgie’s heartbreak is hard to conceal. After years of pursuing her dreams of motherhood, she has recently learned that her last option to conceive has failed. Grim amid the festive holiday celebrations, Georgie feels that she has little reason to give thanks.
Her sister-in-law, Robin, desperate to ease Georgie’s suffering, struggles for a way to help. On loving impulse, she offers a solution-surrogacy.
Flush with excitement, neither woman can predict how her life will change. But each is comforted by the knowledge that her love for the other will guide the way. Soon, after in vitro using a relative’s sperm and her own egg, Robin shares the joyous news that she is pregnant. Every conversation sparkles with her private joy at the gift she could give her sister-in-law. But she encounters unexpected criticism when discussing the plan with others. She must now deal with judgment and questions about ethics. Relationships are strained. Both must pay emotional costs they never anticipated. Soon, questions they never asked begin to haunt them both.
Where do boundaries of possibility meet long-term responsibility? Under what circumstances does science need to pause to consider moral outcomes? When organs and tiny bones grow in spite of circumstances never seen in nature, where does motherhood begin and end?
And most haunting of all is the question Robin couldn’t ask herself on that first day: Will she really be able to give up the child for the sake of Georgie’s dream?
Buy links
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Beverly Hoffman spent her childhood in Texas eating barbeque and drinking Big Reds. After college, she and her husband, Marty, moved to Panama, where she taught English for twenty-six years. Beverly loved to push her students to realize their full potential. She was able to help her students by taking huge assignments apart and helping them accomplish discrete pieces and then put all of them together into a finished project.
While in Panama, Beverly explored the country. She rode her bike 57 miles in one day from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, paddled the Panama Canal twice, and participated in Green Hell, an obstacle course, which included rappelling out of a 30 foot building.
Beverly and her husband later retired to Sequim, Washington, where they enjoy the bounty of fresh Dungeness crab, Washington wines, and family.
Beverly has a Masters degree in English and has been in a writing group for over six years. Beverly loves writing and hopes that through her books, she can get people to explore new concepts. Join Beverly on Facebook for giveaways, scenic photos, and more information about her books at https://www.facebook.com/AuthorBeverlyHoffman.
Giveaway
Copy of the book!
A paperback copy of the book (U.S only)
Ecopy of the book (outside U.S)