Tag Archives: novels

Cover Reveal ~ DEATH SENTENCE by Sheryl Browne

Death Sentence Cover Reveal

Cover

Thriller/Psychological thriller/Crime thriller

Release Date: 1st June 2015

Reviewed by a top Amazon Reviewer at Best Selling Thrillers and given a glowing FIVE Stars, Sheryl Browne’s new thriller Death Sentence is now available on Amazon! “This was such an excellent read. I found myself having to force myself to breathe. Well done Sheryl! Once again you’ve produced a book with such an array of plots and yet showing that love is still possible throughout tragedy and conflict”. – Treebeard

*The title of the book, DEATH SENTENCE, was suggested by a chief constable who also offered the author guidance on forensics and police procedure.

Death Sentence – He’s killed your child and kidnapped your wife. What would YOU do?

Detective Inspector Matthew Adams and Patrick Sullivan, drug dealer, pimp, murderer: two men on opposite sides of the law. A history that goes way back. A bully even in his youth, Sullivan had made it his mission in life to make the goody-two-shoes copper’s life a misery. Now Matthew has made it his mission in life to make sure the pimping scum responsible for prostituting young girls, abusing them, and beating them to death, is locked up for life.

When Matthew’s child becomes a casualty of the war between them, does Matthew want justice? Or does he want retribution? When Patrick’s brother is shot down like a dog in a drug bust gone wrong, Patrick wants payback. He wants Matthew. Or the copper loses his pretty, pregnant wife. As far as Patrick is concerned, it’s quid pro quo.

An edge-of-your seat story of revenge.

WATCH THE VIDEO TRAILER! https://youtu.be/5hBOBLTiQxw

PLEASE NOTE: There is a review tour for this amazing book on 13th July – 24th July so sign up today! Email brookbooks@hotmail.co.uk to be a part of the tour!

BUY LINKS

Amazon UK

Amazon US

About Sheryl Browne

Sheryl and dogs 3

Heartache, humour, love, loss, betrayal – and a little Ohhhh la la! Sheryl Browne brings you edgy, sexy, thrilling fiction. A member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association and shortlisted for Innovation in Romantic Fiction, Sheryl has recently completed her MA in Creative Writing. She has seven books published and two short stories in Birmingham City University Anthologies. A further short, written to script, was performed live at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre. Sheryl was recently signed by Choc Lit, who acquired a contemporary romance novel recommended by the WH Smith Travel fiction buyer. When she’s not writing, Sheryl can be found doing strange things like skydiving from 20,000 feet or abseiling down buildings, which possibly makes her a little bit mad.

Author Links

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Buy | Buy US | Pinterest | Loveahappyending Lifestyle

Safkhet Publishing | Romantic Novelists’ Association

Giveaway

1st Prize – ecopy Death Sentence
2nd Prize – ecopy Warrant for Love
3rd Prize – ecopy Edge of Sanity
4th Prize – ecopy Recipes for Disaster

a Rafflecopter giveaway

death sentence

Review ~ WALKING IN THE RAIN by Julia Ibbotson

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Genre: Contemporary women’s romance fiction

Release Date: 30th March 2015

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3pUErb8cZc

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How do you cope when your worst nightmare comes true?

Jess happily marries the love of her life. She wants to feel safe, secure and loved. But gradually it becomes clear that her beloved husband is not the man she thought him to be. She survived civil war and injury in Africa, but can she now survive the biggest trauma of her life?

This is the second novel in the Drumbeats trilogy but can be read as a standalone. However, Drumbeats is so amazing you should just read it too!

Drumbeats

Walking in the Rain

Before I Die

Want to read Drumbeats first? Buy-link on Amazon for the first in the trilogy:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Drumbeats-Julia-Ibbotson-ebook/dp/B00LLJVFRG/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1404911650&sr=1-3&keywords=julia+ibbotson

And, for a taster, the book trailer video for Drumbeats:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OYlEXhHvsc&list=UUP3hKZjeUBuTMoyvZmBXbow

BUY LINKS

AMAZON UK

AMAZON.COM

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My review of Walking in the Rain:

With this being the second book in the series, I didn’t get to know Jess as well as I would have liked, but the book can still be read as a standalone.

I like suspense in a book and this one had it along with a few plot twists that I didn’t expect.

The author has a strong voice that draws you in and makes you feel what the characters are experiencing.

I’ll definitely be reading books 1 and 3 in the series.

4-stars!

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About Julia Ibbotson

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Julia Ibbotson is an author and academic, and lives in the middle of the English countryside in a renovated Victorian rectory with her husband, an orchard, a kitchen garden and far too many moles. Their four children are now grown up and they have four gorgeous grandchildren. She was a school teacher for many years before becoming a senior university lecturer, researcher and writer. She loves reading, travelling, choral singing, theatre, walking, swimming and gardening, as well as cooking for family and friends. Her books include a memoir/recipe book, The Old Rectory: escape to a country kitchen, and a children’s book (9-14 year olds),S.C.A.R.S, a fantasy story of dragons, knights and a boy who slips through the fabric of the universe into a parallel medieval world threatened by the evil Myrthor, the heart of darkness.

Author page on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Julia-Ibbotson/e/B0095XG11U/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1377188346&sr=1-2-ent

Author facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Julia-Ibbotson-author/163085897119236

Twitter:

https://twitter.com/JuliaIbbotson

Author website:

http://www.juliaibbotsonauthor.com

Pinterest page: includes boards with pics and images that inspired each book

http://pinterest.com/juliai1/

Goodreads author page:

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6017965.Julia_Ibbotson

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Giveaway
A signed paperback of Walking in the Rain
(Open Internationally)
a Rafflecopter giveaway

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MAGIC SPELLS presented by the Friends of the Prescott Library

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This promises to be a great event. I’m included in the lineup of authors taking part. We’ll be reading from our works and at the end of the afternoon (and maybe a short break in the middle), folks in attendance will have the opportunity to chat with us and buy our books.

The waterfront where the amphitheater is located is a beautiful setting so we can hope for good weather for the afternoon of June 28th. An indoor venue at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church at the corner of Centre and Dibble Streets is our alternate venue should Mother Nature decide to frown upon us.

Hope to see you here!

 

Photos and such…

This was first posted on Feb 26, 2011.

I posted a photo of my grandfather and his first wife that was taken presumably on their wedding day a few years ago. I’m reposting it along with two more from the family archives.

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Grandpa John Robertson with his first wife, Susan Christie

This photo was definitely taken in a studio setting and judging by their clothing and the way her hair is styled, it had to be a special occasion. Hence, the thought of it being a wedding photograph.

Grandpa Robertson was born in 1856 and married for the first time 20 years later. And yes, that is my grandfather, not great-grandfather or great-great-grandfather.

After looking carefully at the photo for a few minutes, close your eyes and imagine it in full colour, an oil painting of huge proportions… 6 ft by 8 ft (or larger still) and it’s hanging on a rich oak panelled wall. Can you visualize it in that setting?

That’s where it is in my novel. This is the Laird and Lady of Weetshill on their wedding day.

In my novel, the old Laird looks much more like this…

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Grandpa Robertson as an old man

This photograph of an older Grandpa Robertson was taken some time before his death in 1930. I’m thinking maybe between 1915 (the year my grandmother-his second wife) and 1917 (the year my father and four of his nine siblings were admitted to The Orphan Homes of Scotland). By that time, he’d had a stroke with loss of memory and was unable to keep up the farm.

This is how I envision the hero’s grandfather. White-haired, balding, mustache and beard.

The old Laird in my novel also walks with a cane.

And finally this photograph from the archives…

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Peter, Robert and Angus Robertson

This photo was taken on my Uncle Angus’s wedding day in Scotland. My father (Robert) was serving overseas with the Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry Highlanders at the time but was able to get leave to go back to Scotland for the occasion. It would have been the last time my father saw his brothers.

Now there’s no mistaking the men in this photo are related but look closely at the young man in the first photo, the old man in the second one and lastly (mostly Robert) the men in this photo. Perhaps, a natural progression of how my hero will age?

PANDORA’S PROPHECY by Julie Ryan ~ Review

Pandora's

PANDORA’S PROPHECY

by

Julie Ryan

Pandora's

Pandora’s Prophecy is the third in the Greek Island mystery series but can be read as a standalone although some characters from the previous books do make an appearance.

Lisa and Mark are going through a rough patch, Vicky is seventeen and has just discovered that the man she thought was her father really isn’t, Ruth is getting over her husband’s betrayal after nearly twenty-five years of marriage. On the surface they have nothing in common except that they are all staying in the same hotel on a Greek Island. As they each come into contact with the mysterious Pandora, their lives will change forever. Bodies begin to pile up as a serial killer is on the loose who might just be targeting the hotel. The Island’s Police Chief, Christos Pavlides, tries to solve the puzzle but he has problems of his own to resolve. It seems that the local celebrity author is the one who holds the key.

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My review:

I received a copy of this book through Brook Cottage Books in exchange for an honest review. This is the third book in Julie Ryan’s Greek Island Mystery series.

Lisa, Mark, Ruth and Vicky have nothing in common except they’re staying at the same hotel. Before the end of the story, they all have an encounter with Pandora, sister of the local celebrity author, who has the ability to see the future. Add a killer to the mix and you have the recipe for an un-putdownable story.

I loved the way Julie brought each character to life and her descriptions of the scenery. After reading Pandora’s Prophecy, I’m anxious to read the first two books in the series – Jenna’s Journey and Sophia’s Secret.

☆☆☆☆☆

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The Greek Island Mystery Series is available at these links:

Jenna’s Journey www.amazon.com/dp/B00EXPDZD2

Sophia’s Secret www.amazon.com/dp/B00LFJGCWA

Pandora’s Prophecy http://amzn.to/1LeurJ7

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About Julie Ryan

Pandora's

Julie was born and brought up in a mining village near Barnsley in South Yorkshire. She graduated with a BA (hons) in French Language and Literature from Hull University. Since then she has lived and worked as a Teacher of English as a Foreign Language in France, Greece, Poland and Thailand. She now lives in rural Gloucestershire with her husband, son and two cats, a rescue cat and a dippy cat with half a tail. She is so passionate about books that her collection is now threatening to outgrow her house, much to her husband’s annoyance, as she can’t bear to get rid of any! They have been attempting to renovate their home for the last ten years.

She is the author of the Greek Island Mystery series, Jenna’s Journey, Sophia’s Secret and Pandora’s Prophecy, each of which can be read as a standalone. She considers Greece to be her spiritual home and visits as often as she can. This series was inspired by her desire to return to Crete although there is a strong pull to revisit the Cyclades too.

www.facebook.com/Julieryanauthor

Twitter @julieryan18

Blogsite www.allthingsbookie.com

www.juliesworldofbooks.blogspot.co.uk

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GIVEAWAY

Ecopy of the book (International)
£5 Amazon voucher (UK only)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Pandora's

 

PANDORA’S PROPHECY by Julie Ryan ~ Promo Post

Pandora's

PANDORA’S PROPHECY

by

Julie Ryan

Pandora's

Pandora’s Prophecy is the third in the Greek Island mystery series but can be read as a standalone although some characters from the previous books do make an appearance.

Lisa and Mark are going through a rough patch, Vicky is seventeen and has just discovered that the man she thought was her father really isn’t, Ruth is getting over her husband’s betrayal after nearly twenty-five years of marriage. On the surface they have nothing in common except that they are all staying in the same hotel on a Greek Island. As they each come into contact with the mysterious Pandora, their lives will change forever. Bodies begin to pile up as a serial killer is on the loose who might just be targeting the hotel. The Island’s Police Chief, Christos Pavlides, tries to solve the puzzle but he has problems of his own to resolve. It seems that the local celebrity author is the one who holds the key.

**********

The Greek Island Mystery Series is available at these links:

Jenna’s Journey www.amazon.com/dp/B00EXPDZD2

Sophia’s Secret www.amazon.com/dp/B00LFJGCWA

Pandora’s Prophecy http://amzn.to/1LeurJ7

**********

About Julie Ryan

Pandora's

Julie was born and brought up in a mining village near Barnsley in South Yorkshire. She graduated with a BA (hons) in French Language and Literature from Hull University. Since then she has lived and worked as a Teacher of English as a Foreign Language in France, Greece, Poland and Thailand. She now lives in rural Gloucestershire with her husband, son and two cats, a rescue cat and a dippy cat with half a tail. She is so passionate about books that her collection is now threatening to outgrow her house, much to her husband’s annoyance, as she can’t bear to get rid of any! They have been attempting to renovate their home for the last ten years.

She is the author of the Greek Island Mystery series, Jenna’s Journey, Sophia’s Secret and Pandora’s Prophecy, each of which can be read as a standalone. She considers Greece to be her spiritual home and visits as often as she can. This series was inspired by her desire to return to Crete although there is a strong pull to revisit the Cyclades too.

www.facebook.com/Julieryanauthor

Twitter @julieryan18

Blogsite www.allthingsbookie.com

www.juliesworldofbooks.blogspot.co.uk

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GIVEAWAY

Ecopy of the book (International)
£5 Amazon voucher (UK only)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Pandora's

 

 

Cover Reveal~THE WIND WEEPS by Anneli Purchase

I’ve been shopping, found a designer I like, and bought a new outfit. Now I have a new image. It’s not for me, but for my novel, The Wind Weeps.

The Wind Weeps has so many tangible elements that I could have focused on any number of them for a cover image. The story involves boats, the BC coast, commercial fishing, handsome men, beautiful women, and the isolation of the coast. But my designer, Anita B. Carroll of http://race-point.com , suggested that since the book has so much emotion in it, why not go with a cover that reflects it.

Remember the terror Julia Roberts felt in the movie Sleeping with the Enemy? That’s the kind of terror Andrea feels about her husband, Robert. But in her case it isn’t so easy to escape him. He has taken her to live in a remote cabin on the coast, all communication unavailable to her.

We have love, anticipation, happiness, hope, desperation, indecision, ambivalence, frustration, fear and joy, just to name a few of the emotions found in The Wind Weeps.

Andrea once loved orchids, but Robert has turned them into a symbol of his control over her. The orchid on the cover seems to be weeping. The sky is blood red, the sea is dark and rough. And yet Andrea is determined to survive and get back to the man she wishes she had married, the one who has never stopped loving her.

wind

For more than just a romance, why not click on the link to download The Wind Weeps. You won’t sleep until you finish it.

Amazon.com

Or if you are in the UK:

Amazon.co.uk

For those with e-readers other than Kindle, go to Smashwords.com

AUTHOR BIO

wind
Anneli_Purchase

Anneli Purchase is an author and freelance copy-editor. She writes for the Loveahappyending Lifestyle Magazine, which she also helps to edit. Anneli lives on her little acre of paradise on Vancouver Island with her husband and two spaniels. She has published three novels and is working on her fourth.

 

 

Promo ~ CATCHING CASSIDY by Melissa Foster

cassidy

cassidy

CATCHING CASSIDY

HARBORSIDE NIGHTS, Book One

Release date April 28, 2015

“Catching Cassidy was laugh out loud funny, heartwarming, sexy, and hands down one of my favorite reads so far this year!” — #1 NYT Bestselling Author of The Bet – Rachel Van Dyken

Wyatt Armstrong never imagined that instead of celebrating his college graduation, he and his twin sister would be dealing with the death of their parents.  Then again, Wyatt had never been one to think past tomorrow. He heads to their summer home in Harborside, Massachusetts, with his best friend Cassidy Lowell in tow, to deal with his parents’ death and to try to figure out his next step.

Six foot two, infuriatingly handsome, and flirtatious, Wyatt Armstrong has always been there for Cassidy, helping her pass her classes and fend off unwanted advances, while driving her insane with his one-night stands—but that’s what best friends are for, isn’t it? Having each other’s backs. There was never any doubt that she would accompany him to his family’s summer home—but she never expected to begin seeing Wyatt as more than a friend. Or has she been ignoring her feelings all along?

It’s impossible to ignore the sizzling heat between them as Wyatt and Cassidy get even closer, but Cassidy knows Wyatt’s past, and she has a real job to begin in the fall. Wyatt may be a sure thing for the summer, but Cassidy needs more. For the first time in his life, Wyatt is forced to look toward the future if he doesn’t want to lose the one woman who’s shared his past and owns his heart.

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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 loving, raw, and emotional voice readers have come to love by New York Times & USA Today bestselling, award-winning author Melissa Foster.

Check out the awesome video trailer for CATCHING CASSIDY (Harborside Nights, Book 1). Releasing April 28!

PRE-ORDER links:
KINDLE: http://amzn.to/1xplPq5
NOOK: http://bit.ly/CatchingCassidy_Nook
KOBO: http://bit.ly/CatchingCassidy_Kobo
GPLAY: http://bit.ly/CatchingCassidy_GooglePlay
iBOOKS: https://itunes.apple.com/…/catching-cassidy-ha…/id907998032…
Paperback: http://amzn.to/1Ew4xv2

ABOUT MELISSA FOSTER

cassidy

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  World Literary Café and Fostering Success. 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 social media. Melissa enjoys discussing her books with book clubs and reader groups, and welcomes an invitation to your event.

Authors Links:

Website

Twitter

Facebook

Pinterest

Goodreads

Sign up for Melissa’s newsletter to stay up to date with releases and giveaways

http://www.melissafoster.com/newsletter/

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GIVEAWAY

3 ecopies of SLOPE OF LOVE

a Rafflecopter giveaway

ETERNAL SACRIFICE~Cover Reveal and Contest

From April 24th – 28th, THE SHADOW PRINCE & MORTAL ENCHANTMENT will be FREE on Amazon. http://www.amazon.com/Stacey-ONeale/e/B00IVS7FHE/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1429753849&sr=1-1

If you’re new to the series, this is the BEST TIME to check it out!!!

THE SHADOW PRINCE & MORTAL ENCHANTMENT are currently available for FREE on Amazon from April 24th through April 28th. I promise, this the ONE AND ONLY TIME I will do this, so pick up your copies NOW!!!

Click HERE for Links to FREE BOOKS!!!

And now, here is the cover of the last book in the series, ETERNAL SACRIFICE!!!

Drum roll, please…

eternal

Click HERE to add this book to your Goodreads TBR!

As promised, here is the Gift Card CONTEST!!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Finally, thanks so much for your participation. It means so much to me. Virtual hug coming your way!!!

THE STARLET SERIES by Carla J Hanna BLOG TOUR #StarletTour

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Titles: Starlet’s Man / Starlet’s Web / Starlet’s Run / Starlet’s Light
Series: The Starlet Series #0.5–#3
Author: Carla J. Hanna
Publication Dates: 2012-2014
Genre: Young Adult Romance
Series LinksGoodreads | Amazon
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starlet
Synopsis–Starlet’s Man

Lights, Cameras, and Lies. High school student athlete, Manny Biro, is caught between the boy he should be and the man he wants to become.

Everyone around him accepts the Hollywood life. He doesn’t. Manny wants no part of acting. On the surface, his childhood best friends seem to have it all: money, power, success. Between the lines, they are all confused. Alan is a messed up want-to-be director focused on pushing scenes to their sexy potential. Beth is an athlete driven to escape from a dark past. Janet is Manny’s kid sister caught up in fashion and trends. And Marie is a lonely actress exhausted by the culture that makes everyone’s favorite stories.

What is the price of fame for all the characters? Conflicts and truths will unfold in this thought-provoking installment of Carla Hanna’s young adult Starlet Series, Starlet’s Man.

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Synopsis–Starlet’s Web

Love. Lies. Acting. A novel about celebrity influence & teens in Hollywood. What makes a star shine? Humility empowers the spirit. Sometimes.

Discover the Starlet Series for new adult & college readers and uncover the life of a talented actress caught in Hollywood’s web of lies.

I’m actress Liana Marie Michael. I won an Oscar at 17 but whatever. Celebrity is what it is: marketing a product. I’m part of a tight-knit group. I keep to myself and don’t complain about my life. I’ve been happy until lately.

Evan dumping me leveled me. Matthew shocked me. I knew he couldn’t hurt me with my bodyguard so near, but his eyes…so I have trust issues. Dating super-hot Byron didn’t help clear the confusion either. I’m torn between going to church on Sunday and making a living from pop culture.

But experience builds perspective. My days of shutting up needed to end. First, I told Manuel. Then I told my mom. It turned out awesome until I learned the truth.

Now I’m screwed. Totally. Let’s face it: Hollywood’s web entangles everyone.

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starlet
Synopsis–Starlet’s Run
Love. Intentions. Acting. Life is more complicated than a Hollywood story.Fictional actress Liana Marie Michael writes her second memoir, Starlet’s Run, as she suffers through the Five Stages of Grief. But when Lia’s scripts speak for her and drama becomes her life, can she find the strength to run her own lines and shape her new role?
~ – ~
I’m actress Liana Marie Michael. Hollywood’s obsession with beauty made my actress-mother stay competitive. Athletes use steroids. Actors use plastic surgery and anti-aging drugs. So now I’m a physical mess inside, dealing with it, and starring in a major motion picture.Of course I can’t quit. I have brain surgery, feel alive at Grandma’s Montana ranch, go back to Hollywood and act. My boyfriend, Manuel, and I want to get married. Everyone has an opinion. I ignore the millions of naysayers until consequences turn dire.I believe that dwelling on pain is a waste of time. Indecision is exhausting. I want to write my own future. But I’m only eighteen years old.In a world where an actress is a product and everyone is a critic, can our young love survive? Should it?
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starlet
Synopsis: Starlet’s Light

Love. Trust. Acting. Cancer survivor-actress gives up the fight until she sees the light. Liana Marie writes her third memoir as she struggles with trust and commitment and shapes the role she plays.

I’m actress Liana Marie Michael and am dying. In my last two memoirs, I show how I’m the ideal Hollywood product. In writing Starlet’s Web and Starlet’s Run, I realized that the drama in our stories affects the lies in our real lives. The thin, young ideal of beauty is as much of a lie as the plot twists and dialogue we create to hide our insecurities.

In this memoir, I make a mess of my love life while shooting a film in Great Britain. I dump Manuel for his own good. I love him with all my heart. So how could I not when he has a bright future? My dad visits and puts my past in perspective. I spend weekends in the hospital. I learn to rely on Franz, Evan and Amelie. Yes, I hook up with my Swiss billionaire-heir friend Pierre even though I miss Manuel every minute. But it all makes sense, especially since I am so done with acting.

We are all flies and spiders in a web of stories. If I live a more authentic life, can love prevail despite my many faults? Can truth alter Hollywood’s web?

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Character Interview:
Thank you for featuring the Starlet Series on your blog! I’m so excited to share my memoirs with you: Starlet’s Web, Starlet’s Run, and Starlet’s Light. I wrote them in the hospital while I recovered from surgery. A spiritual counselor suggested I work through The Five Stages of Grief to help me find my own voice. I’ve been acting for so long that I didn’t even know how to use my own words to describe my feelings. Now, I no longer speak in scripts all the time. I write my own story and am excited about my future.You won an Oscar at 17. What was the role that you won it for?I play Muse in the feature film Muse Series, an immortal destined to
ignite the passions of revolutionary artists and leaders throughout time.
My Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role was for my characterization of a mixed-race black woman, aka Sally Hemings, in the controversial hit historical-fiction Jefferson’s Muse.Before you started dating Manuel, how did he fit into your life?Manuel has always been my best friend since we were in diapers. I don’t have many friends. People don’t know what to say to me on the street, and I don’t talk to strangers. I’ve only connected with Manuel. Everyone else thinks I talk like a fool, especially Manuel’s friend Beth. She and I were friends once but she didn’t like Kate, my former BFF. Kate was a great BFF who turned into total nightmare. I’m so grateful she and Manuel broke up so I could date him. I love him so much.How did you react to finding out you had cancer?I was so mad at my mom, Mommy Dearest squared. I threw-up and trembled at first. Then I thought about why she snuck me anti-aging drugs and just totally understood somehow. The pursuit for perfection in Hollywood is so intense. I was born into the mentality that I have to be sweet and nice and cute and sexy. If you’re not young and smooth, you can’t work. So I “get” my mom but I don’t like her. She’s said she’s sorry so many times. I know she is but I also don’t want to hear it. I want to forgive and forget, move on and heal. I also want to change Hollywood so that more kids don’t have to get cut up or take anti-aging drugs to compete. I see it like steroid use for athletes to be competitive. If the entertainment industry doesn’t stop pushing the Barbie body, every teen acting-hopeful
will do what they have to do to compete.

Assuming you had some time to travel when you were in Great Britain filming, did you get to tour around some of the country? Was there any particular place you liked best?

I did. The set was in Wales, outside of Newport. My nurse was from
Aberdare so I visited it with Pierre, Evan, and Amelie. We all loved it. I connected with Wales, appreciating the harsh working conditions of a coal-mining people in the setting of peaceful, rolling hills. I bought a t-shirt there of the Celtic knot and think it is a perfect reflection of how we are all interconnected. I liked London, too, but a piece of my heart stayed in Wales.

If you had the chance to do it all over again, what if anything would you do differently?

I’d stick up for myself. I did what I was told to do. I didn’t have a
backbone. When you’re an actor, you mold to the will of writers and your director. Since there is so much pressure, you deal by staying focused and playing a role. We call it compartmentalizing. But the truth is I succeeded because I was a wimp. Evan dumping me wiped me out. Kissing Byron after I had Manuel didn’t make any sense and tore at me daily. How could I be such a loser? It was different when I was sure I was going to die. I thought my actions were unselfish. But I learned from being in Wales and studying the Celtic knot that we are all tied to each other and need to be honest and accept that we can’t control our future. We have free will and have to choose an authentic path based on trust and the best intentions.

Thank you for stopping by today, Liana. I know the part of Wales you mentioned having been there myself. It truly is a beautiful part of the country.
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starlet
Author Bio
Carla J. Hanna lived in Santa Monica, CA where her children played with the children of celebrities. She mingled with plenty of nannies and a few good celebrity moms. Her award winning books, The Starlet Series, include Starlet’s Man, Starlet’s Web, Starlet’s Run, & Starlet’s Light. Starlet’s End is scheduled to release September 2015, subject to change from publisher interest.
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starlet
Giveaway: There is a giveaway for this tour. $25 Amazon/Barnes & Noble Gift Card or Book Depository Spree; One (1) Necklace (Based on Cover Image). Ends 5/1. The code is provided below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway