20-12-2012

Mid-Winters Eve Blog Hop Giveaway

It's that time of year again....I somehow always feel better this time of year which is good because it has been one lousy year for me with me having a depression. Luckily I'm feeling a bit better everyday! So that is a good reason for a celebration I think.

But on to the good stuff. Thanks to I am a Reader not a Writer and Oasis For YA for hosting this amazing and fun blog hop during the most fun time of the year.

So what will I be giving away this year???

A book of your choice up to €20,- from the Book Depository (as long as it ships for free to your country)

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED!!!!!

So how can you win??? Leave a comment and let me know which book you want to win and leave a way for me to contact you (email or twitter)

The giveaway will end on thursdaythe 27th of December.

Please don't forget to check out my giveaway policy.

20-11-2012

Fallen Legion by Laura Kreitzer


Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series: Timeless #4
Publisher: Revolution Publishing inc.
Buy the book: Amazon | Smashwords
Source: I received an ecopy from the publisher

The full force of the Empyrean Guard leaves Gabriella trembling where she stands. Even with the Fallen at her back, she lacks the proper training and knowledge to win the inevitable Angelic War. In the Timeless Oblivion, Gabriella seeks the advice of the one person who’s never failed her and comes back with more than she bargained for. Gabriella must do the unthinkable: break the most important law the Celestial Gods decreed thousands of years ago to protect the angels. Now that she’s crossed the line, will she find a way to save the angels? Or has she doomed them all?


Fallen Legion is the 4th book in the Timeless series. I am not a big fan of reading books out of order. But I already read Phantom Universe (The Summer Chronicles) by Laura Kreitzer, which I really enjoyed, so I thought I’d take a gamble. And I did not regret this.

15-11-2012

Traitor Angel by H. David Blalock

Today I welcome H. David Blalock, author of the Angelkiller Triad series, to the blog. And while he is telling us why he writes longhand, I will be reviewing Traitor Angel.

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I dislike word processors in general when it comes to creative writing. I see the creative process as personal, and the keyboard simply doesn't seem personal to me. There's too much mechanism between me and the work when I try to use the computer to do my first drafts. I can't touch the work, can't feel it. It's just electrons on a screen without substance. That's why I prefer to write all my initial drafts longhand. I can actually feel the flow of the work at the end of the pen, the pressure against the page is natural and subtly satisfying. I feel the transfer of idea from my mind to the page is more true to the spirit of the work.

07-11-2012

Guest Post Mike Kearby

Today I welcome Mike Kearby, author of The Devouring Kavachi's Rise, to the blog. And he will tell us what his writing day looks like.....

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Quirks of an Implied Author 

It’s 5:30 in the morning.
There is a routine: walk into the office, turn on the desk lamp, power up the Toshiba.
Down the hall, a motor hums. The kitchen beckons. Starbucks coffee streams from Kuerig to insulated mug.

Add Splenda.

26-10-2012

Spook House by Michael West


Genre: Horror
Series: Harmony #3
Publisher: Seventh Star Press
Buy the book: Amazon
Source: I received a copy from the publisher

There are some places in this world that go far beyond any normal definition of “haunted.” These places are so evil, so diabolical, that they become gateways to Hell itself. The Fuller Farm is one such place.

It is said that old man Fuller conducted unspeakable acts, blood rituals and human sacrifices, all in an attempt to gain the ultimate knowledge, the ultimate power. And then, he was killed–horribly murdered on his own lands, leaving the house to stand as a vacant monument to his wickedness. But once a door is opened, it can never really be closed.

Now, the stars are right. The gateway is ready to once more unleash unspeakable horror upon the town of Harmony, Indiana. And this will be one Halloween that they will never forget!


Spook House is a spooky read which keeps you on the edge of you seat. It’s a perfect Halloween read and definitely not for the squeamisch.

24-10-2012

Kingdom by Anderson O'Donnell


Genre: Sci Fi / Dystopia
Series: Tiber City #1
Publisher: Tiber City Press
Buy the book: Amazon
Source: I received an ecopy from the author

In a secret laboratory hidden under the desert, a covert bioengineering project—codename “Exodus”—has discovered the gene responsible for the human soul.
Somewhere in the neon sprawl outside the nation’s collapsing economic core, a group of renegade monks are on the verge of uncovering a secret that has eluded mankind for centuries.
In a glittering tower high above the urban decay, an ascendant U.S. Senator is found dead—an apparent, yet inexplicable, suicide.
And in the streets below, a young man races through an ultra modern metropolis on the verge of a violent revolution....closing in on the terrible truth behind Exodus—and one man’s dark vision for the future of mankind.
Welcome to Tiber City

Kingdom is a debut by Anderson O’Donnell en with Tiber City he has created a gritty disturbing world set in the near future.

The story is told from different point of views and this makes sure you get to see the whole thing from all the different angles this world has to offer.

22-10-2012

Bone Wires by Michael Shean


Genre: Science Fiction / Crime
Publisher: Curiosity Quills
Buy the book:  Amazon (Kindle)
Source: I received a copy from the author

In the wasteland of commercial culture that is future America, police are operated not by government but by private companies.
 In Seattle, that role is filled by Civil Protection, and Daniel Gray is a detective in Homicide Solutions. What used to be considered an important - even glamorous - department for public police is very different for the corporate species, and Gray finds himself stuck in a dead end job. That is, until the Spine Thief arrives.
 When a serial killer begins harvesting the spinal tissue of corporate employees all over the city, Detective Gray finds himself plunged into the first truly major case of his career. Caught in a dangerous mix of murder, betrayal and conflicting corporate interest, Gray will find himself not only matching wits with a diabolical murderer but grapple with his growing doubt toward his employers in the dawning months of the American tricentennial.
 A thrilling mystery set in the same world as the Wonderland Cycle, Bone Wires is a grim trip into the streets of the empty future.

I absolutely loved the premise of this story and the story itself did not disapoint.

Dan Grey works as a homicide detective and dreams of a big break (or a sexy case as he calls it) so he can get his Amber badge. And this happens when he gets three homicides in the same week. Working to solve these cases with limited resources Dan will find out not everything is what it may seem.

13-10-2012

Tideline by Penny Hancock


Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Simon and Schuster UK
Buy the book: Book Depository 
Source: I received an arc from the publisher
One winter's afternoon, voice coach Sonia opens the door of her beautiful riverside home to fifteen-year-old Jez, the nephew of a family friend. He's come to borrow some music. Sonia invites him in and soon decides that she isn't going to let him leave.As Sonia's desire to keep Jez hidden and protected from the outside world becomes all the more overpowering, she is haunted by memories of an intense teenage relationship, which gradually reveal a terrifying truth. The River House, Sonia's home since childhood, holds secrets within its walls. And outside, on the shores of the Thames, new ones are coming in on the tide...

When I received this book and read the backcover I wasn’t all to eager to read it. But once I started reading Tideline I was pleasently surprised. This story is wel written and the ending holds a big, but disturbing surprise.

12-09-2012

Guest Post Anya Wylde

Today I have the lovely Anya Wylde over on the blog. She is the author of The Wicked Wager, a humorous murder mystery & romance set in Regency England.

And as you know I always like to hear about any quirks or habits authors have and this is what Anya had to share about them.......

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On my quirks and habits

No one asks a waiter, cobbler or a property salesman how they prepare for their work day. A quick Google search tells me that one famous author wrote completely supine, sipping tea, sherry, or brandy throughout the day. Another famous author painted himself green and went off to write in a sleepy little village where no one knew him. Another wrote entirely in his underwear. Some forgo even that article of clothing. No wonder an author’s quirks and habits always seem to interest the reading public.

I don’t paint myself green, don a moustache and leave for an undisclosed location to write. Nor do I have a particular music play list that I listen to over and over again. I like silence.

31-08-2012

Guest Post Aida Brassington + Giveaway!


So today I am very happy to welcome Aida Brassington back to the blog. And today she will share with us the role food plays in her stories.
Also at the botom of the post Aida will tell you how you can win a digital copy of her latest novel 'Chasing Fools'.
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I seem to always be writing about food. Don’t believe me? The last time Kim was good enough to host me, I talked about therole of food in my debut novel, BETWEENSEASONS. So maybe it’s no surprise that my new novel, CHASING FOOLS, is so food-focused: it tells the story of Varda Dorfman, a woman who makes her living as an illegal foods smuggler.

30-08-2012

Guest post R.J. Sullivan



So today R.J. Sullivan stops by for his Haunting Obsession Blog Tour.
I asked him to tell us a little bit about his writing habbits/quirks and this is what he had to share about it which includes his little mermaid mug.....


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The Mermaid Mug and a Few Other Things

Welcome to day six of the R.J. Sullivan blog tour. Today I want to thank Bookishly Me for hosting this post and thank Seventh Star Press as always for setting up this opportunity.

So--the topic is personal writing quirks and habits. So let's begin with, anyone who follows me on Facebook knows I frequently begin my day reference that I am drinking coffee in my ceramic Little Mermaid Mug. Let me assure you that every time I post this, it is absolutely true.

26-07-2012

Blogtour Waiting for Daybreak - Amanda McNeil



Today I welcome Amanda McNeil to the blog for the Waiting for Daybreak blog tour. I asked her a few questions and she was kind enough to answer them.
Also don't forget to stop by all the other tour stops [schedule]

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*Please tell us a bit about yourself.
I’m a 20-something, and I’ve been living in Boston for the last seven years, but I grew up in Vermont. I have my BA in History (concentrating in US History) and English and American Literature with a minor in Religious Studies and my masters in Library and Information Science. I’m currently employed as a medical librarian in the Boston area. When I’m not working, writing, or reading I’m working out, cooking, or exploring Boston.

16-07-2012

Interview Katie Christine

Today I have Katie Christine over on the blog. She is the author of Impeccabe Petunia, Claws, Paws, Feathers and Jaws. 

Follow Petunia, the backyard hen, through a hazardous world as she discovers hidden talents, a mischievous cat named Macy and encounters all things feathered and furious (synopsis) 

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Please tell us a bit about yourself. 
I live in Seattle with my wonderful husband, Jonathan, who also illustrates my stories. I love animals, especially our Sheltie and 2 cats. I'm learning how to garden and am always on the look out for new music.

Could you tell us in short what this series is about?
The story centers around a backyard hen named Petunia who, to the chagrin of her flock, discovers she has a special talent. This takes her away from her home and her friends into the new and unfamiliar human world. 

11-07-2012

Interview Julie Hill

Today I welcome Julie Hill to the blog. Her debut novel Saving Grace is out now and so it is time to get to know her a little better. So without further ado........

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Please tell us a bit about yourself.
I’ve been married for almost twenty-two years (whoo-hoo!), and I’m a stay-at-home mom of five great kids. Four of them I homeschool, and the oldest will start his sophomore year in college this fall.
I was born and raised in Colorado Springs, CO, but now live in the great state of North Carolina. I’m a music junkie—iTunes ADORES me. I love too many movies to list, but a few of my favorites are: Pride & Prejudice, Princess Bride, Moonstruck, and While You Were Sleeping. But, most importantly, the first three Rocky movies. Yes, really. I catch so much grief for this, but there’s just something about Sly. I would LOVE to meet him! It’s okay, my husband knows all about this.

Could you tell us in short what this book is about?
Family. Loss. Guilt. Forgiveness, and of course, Love.

05-07-2012

Interview Dennis Bradford

Today I welcome Dennis Bradford to the blog. He has written several non-fiction books, and A Dark Time is his first fiction novel. 


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Please tell us a bit about yourself.
Etymologically, a philosopher is a lover of wisdom. I’ve been a philosopher for nearly 50 years. I was a philosophy professor for 32 years and now I do information marketing online. I’m healthy and happy. I live alone in a cottage on the shore of Conesus Lake, which is the westernmost of New York’s Finger Lakes. In addition to regularly reading and writing, I practice zazen meditation daily. I also do regular strength training and, when I’m being good, high intensity interval training for cardio. (For more information, go to the “About Me” tab at the book’s website: http://adarktime.com/ )

Could you tell us in short what the book is about?
A student vanishes from SUNY Geneseo in upstate New York. Her worried grandfather asks one of her favorite professors, Max Stephansson, to solve the mystery of her disappearance. What Max discovers is tragic. The suspense surrounding her disappearance unfolds to yield insight, but at the cost of danger and death. I intended it to be more than a page-turner involving suicide, rape, incest, and death as well as a story of a love affair. I intended its themes to include such important ones as the nature of justice and the justification for our acts.

27-06-2012

Guest post Stephen Zimmer

Today Stephen Zimmer is stopping by on the blog for his Spirit of Fire Blog Tour. Spirit of Fire is the third book in his Fires in Eden series.




 
My Writing Environment: Setting the Right Mindset 

All writers certainly have their quirks, and I am no exception. In a recent interview, I was asked about what kind of coffee shops or bookstores I like to write in, and I had to chuckle because I’m afraid I would completely flop in any attempt to write in such public places. I really admire the ability of those who write in that kind of environment and can keep distractions at bay. 

As for me, there is nothing exotic to my particular method, but I have found that the approach I have come to embrace really works for me in terms of setting the right mood.

There are some intrinsic components to establishing my optimal writing environment.

14-06-2012

Interview Kari Lee Townsend + Giveaway

Today I welcome Kari Lee Townsend back on the blog. Her second book in the Fortune Teller Mystery series - Corpse in the Crystal Ball came out this month and I am currently reading it and I can tell it is as much fun to read as the first in the series Tempest in the Tea Leaves.
Don't forget to check out the giveaway at the end of the post.
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Please tell us a bit about yourself.
Well, what can I say? I am a mom of four (3 boys and 1 diva) and I’ve been married for 23 years. I love to do adventurous activities, go wine tasting, travel and any related to photography. When I’m not running the roads to some sports activity J My background is in English education, but I have to say I’m most happy working from home writing books.

Could you tell us in short what this series is about?
This series is about a psychic who moves from the big apple to the small town of Divinity in upstate New York to make a fresh start. She opens her own fortune-telling business in an ancient Victorian house she bought that the entire town thinks is haunted. But Sunny suspects the mysterious happenings are coming from the big white cat named Morty that came with the house. Each book will focus on a different fortune-telling tool as Sunny helps the police in Divinity solve crimes as a consultant; much to the dismay of the cynical Detective she nicknames Grumpy Pants. So if you like a good mystery, a bit of romance and a lot of humor, then this series is for you.

All he saw was the Girl by Peter Leonard

Genre: Thriller
Publisher: The Story Plant
Buy the book: Book Depository
Source: I received an e-copy from the publisher
Rome: McCabe and Chip, two American exchange students, are about to become embroiled with a violent street gang, a beautiful Italian girl and a flawed kidnapping plan.Detroit: Sharon Vanelli's affair with Joey Palermo, a Mafia enforcer, is about to be discovered by her husband, Ray, a secret service agent.Brilliantly plotted and shot through with wry humour, All He Saw Was the Girl takes place as these two narratives converge in the backstreets of Italy's oldest city

Two months ago I had the pleasure of being introduced to Peter Leonard's storytelling with Voices of the Dead which I really enjoyed. So I was absolutely stoked to be able to read his next book All he saw was the Girl.

07-06-2012

Love thy Neighbor by Mark Gilleo

Genre: Thriller
Publisher: The Story Plant
Buy the book: Book Depository
Source: I received an e-copy from the publisher
Clark Hayden is a graduate student trying to help his mother navigate through the loss of his father while she continues to live in their house near Washington DC. With his mother’s diminishing mental capacity becoming the norm, Clark expects a certain amount of craziness as he heads home for the holidays. What he couldn’t possibly anticipate, though, is that he would find himself catapulted into the middle of a terrorist operation. As the holiday festivities reach a crescendo, a terrorist cell – which happens to be across the street – is activated. Suddenly Clark is discovering things he never knew about deadly chemicals, secret government operations, suspiciously missing neigh- bors, and the intentions of a gorgeous IRS auditor. Clark’s quiet suburban neighborhood is about to become one of the most deadly places on the planet, and it’s up to Clark to prevent the loss of hundreds of thousands of innocent lives in the nation’s capital.

Love thy Neighbor is a very enjoyable read, it is well written and thought out story. 

Clark is a grad student from Virginia Tech, moving back home to take care of his mother. He is your friendly neighbor who helps where ever he can. And the nieghbors have helped out with his mom. But how well does he actually know his neighbors and can they be thrusted?

19-05-2012

0.4 by Mike Lancaster


Genre: Sci Fi | Young Adult
Series: Point 4 #1
Publisher: Egmont UK
Buy the book: Book Depository 
Source: Bought
'It's a brave new world. 'My name is Kyle Straker. And I don't exist anymore.'
So begins the story of Kyle Straker, recorded on to old audio tapes. You might think these tapes are a hoax. But perhaps they contain the history of a past world. If what the tapes say are true, it means that everything we think we know is a lie. And if everything we know is a lie does that mean that we are, too?


This book is about Kyle Straker, who has told his story on three tapes. During a local talent show, he volunteers in a hypnotising act with three others. When they wake up they find everybody else frozen. Whilest trying to figure out what happened to them, everybody else 'wakes' up again, but everybody is acting weird including his parents. As one of the 0.4 he is now on the run with the three others, trying to figure out what happened.
Now his story is written down, but if what Kyle is speaking of is the truth that will change the way we will look at things or thought we knew.

14-05-2012

From the Ashes by Jeremy Burns

Genre: Thriller
Buy the book: Amazon
Source: I received an e-copy from the author

A DEADLY CONSPIRACYGraduate students Jonathan and Michael Rickner, sons of eminent archeologist Sir William Rickner, are no strangers to historical mysteries and archeological adventures. But when Michael is discovered dead in his Washington, D.C. apartment, Jon refuses to believe the official ruling of suicide. Digging deeper into his brother's work, he discovers evidence that Michael was murdered to keep his dissertation research buried.A DEVASTATING NATIONAL SECRETJoined by Michael's fiance Mara Ellison, Jon travels to New York where he uncovers the threads of a deadly Depression-era conspiracy - one entangling the Hoover Administration, the Rockefellers, and the rise of Nazi Germany - and the elite cadre of assassins that still guard its unspeakable secret.THE LABYRINTHINE PATH TO THE TRUTHFinding themselves in the crosshairs of the same men who killed Michael, Jon and Mara must navigate a complex web of historical cover-ups and modern-day subterfuge, outwitting and outrunning their all-powerful pursuers as they race through the monuments and museums of Manhattan in a labyrinthine treasure hunt to discover the last secret of John D. Rockefeller, Jr., before their enemies can bury the truth - and them - forever

I am one of those people who loves a good conspiracy theorie. And From the Ashes does give a good (political) conspiracy.

11-05-2012

Interview with D.A. Adams

Today I welcome D.A. Adams to the blog. He is the author of The Brotherhood of Dwarves series and I had the pleasure of asking him some questions about this series and his writing.

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*Please tell us a bit about yourself.

I’m pretty boring, actually. My family is from the foothills of the Smokies in Tennessee, and most of my childhood was spent playing outdoors. Those experiences help me tremendously when I’m writing in a fantasy setting because I have a wealth of firsthand information from which I can draw. Also, pretty much everyone I knew was either a farmer or a laborer, so my writing reflects that red and blue collar upbringing because I have a deep appreciation and understanding of the nobility of labor. That’s why I gravitated towards dwarves; they are the blue collar class of fantasy fiction.

*Could you tell us in short what this series is about?

I’m interested in camaraderie, self-sacrifice, redemption, and perseverance, so each book revolves around those themes. The central plot revolves around a young dwarf named Roskin who leaves his peaceful kingdom to seek adventure and the ordeals he faces in a world torn apart by racial strife and war. However, I’m trying to allow each main character to grow and mature as unique individuals, so they often take the story off in unexpected tangents. There’s also a sub-context of the importance of interpersonal relationships over materialism, but I try not to be too heavy-handed with it.


06-05-2012

Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood

Genre: Historical Paranormal Romance YA
Series: The Cahill Witch Chronicles #1
Publisher: Putnam Publishing Group
Buy the book: The Book Depository
Source: Won an ARC from Wendy over at The Midnight Garden

Everybody knows Cate Cahill and her sisters are eccentric. Too pretty, too reclusive, and far too educated for their own good. But the truth is even worse: they're witches. And if their secret is discovered by the priests of the Brotherhood, it would mean an asylum, a prison ship--or an early grave. 
Before her mother died, Cate promised to protect her sisters. But with six months to choose between marriage and the Sisterhood, she might not be able to keep her word... especially after she finds her mother's diary, uncovering a secret that could spell her family's destruction. Desperate to find alternatives to their fate, Cate stars scouring banned books and questioning rebellious new friends, all while juggling tea parties, shocking marriage proposals, and a forbidden romance with the completely unsuitable Finn Belastra. 
If what her mother wrote is true, the Cahill girls aren't safe. Not from the Brotherhood, the Sisterhood -- not even from each other.
I must say this story actualy surprised me, well not the story itself, but that I actually finished it. When I was 90 pages in I was sure that I knew what was going to happen further on in the story. And for a few not so important surprises, that was exactly what happened. But Jessica Spotswood's writing style kept me reading. Also at first I was terified all I was going to get was a love triangle and quarreling sisters, but both weren't all too bad.

28-04-2012

Changes

I have been planning this for a long time! No seriously I think I have been playing with this idea for about a year now or longer, but now I finally did it.

I changed my blog name!

So from now on I'll go by the name Bookishly Me, which has a better ring to it than Kim's Bookish Place (don't you think) and I am real happy with it. It has been a long search and I googled my ass off.
And since I already was changing names I thought I might as well change my Twitter name with it. So from now on you can find me on twitter as @Kim_BookishlyMe

25-04-2012

Killer Bytes by Alan Williams


Genre: Thriller/Suspense
Buy the book: Amazon
Source: I received an ecopy from the author
A killer is stalking London; a banker is already dead, killed in an explosion, and there are more victims in the killer’s sights.
Techno geek and Internet journalist, Wil Jackson becomes inadvertently embroiled in the investigation when he interviews one of the murder victims, and the killer starts communicating with Wil via the Internet. Can Wil help the police stop the killer before the body count increases further?


This is a debut novella and yes here and there you can tell, but I do think Alan Williams is on the right track here. The story starts of with a prologue which immidiately draws you in and from then on you will read this novella without putting it down.  This story is fast paced and the writing style makes it easy to read. 

19-04-2012

Gods and Fathers by James LePore

Genre: Thriller/Suspense
Publisher: The Story Plant
Buy the book: Book Depository
Source: I received a copy from the publisher
Matt DeMarco is an accomplished Manhattan attorney with more than his share of emotional baggage. His marriage ended disastrously, his ex-wife has pulled their son away from him, and her remarriage to a hugely successful Arab businessman has created complications for Matt on multiple levels. However, his life shifts from troubled to imperiled when two cops – men he's known for a long time – come into his home and arrest his son as the prime suspect in the murder of the boy's girlfriend.
Suddenly, the enmity between Matt and his only child is no longer relevant. Matt must do everything he can to clear his son, who he fully believes is innocent. Doing so will require him to quit his job and make enemies of former friends – and it will throw him up against forces he barely knew existed and can only begin to comprehend how to battle.

This is the first book I read by James LePore, but it defenitely isn't the last book I will read by him. 

Gods and Fathers is a well written and developed story and with it's only 260 pages a fast read. Due to the different points of view you get a good look from different sides of the story, but it does not give anything away about the plot of this story. That is the strongest part of this book: not knowing what will come next. It also made me flip page after page just to see what would happen next.

13-04-2012

Guest post Dakota Banks + Giveaway!

Today I welcome Dakota Banks to the blog and today she will be talking about Friday the 13th, because you know it's Friday the 13th so read the post, don't forget to enter the great giveaway at the end and go and hide under covers again. Or if your just like me an owner of a black cat leave the house!

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First, I’d like to thank Kim for letting me visit. It’s a pleasure to be here!

You’re reading this on Friday the 13th, a day when superstition causes people to put off travel plans, skip attending events, and not start any new projects. If you’re one of them, you have a lot of company. Approximately 20 million Americans take this unlucky day seriously to some degree, from mild (not getting on an airplane with flight #1313) to staying home in bed under the covers all day. I’d like to stay in bed under the covers, but it won’t be because I’m worried about the day of the month. 

09-04-2012

Voices of the Dead by Peter Leonard

Genre: Thriller/Suspense
Publisher: The Story Plant
Buy the book: Book Depository
Source: I received a copy from the publisher

The year is 1971. The place is Detroit. Harry Levin, a scrap metal dealer and Holocaust survivor, has just learned that his daughter was killed in a car accident. Traveling to Washington, DC to claim the body, he learns that the accident was caused by a German diplomat who was driving drunk. This is only the beginning of the horror for Harry, though, as he discovers that the diplomat will never face charges – he has already been released and granted immunity. Enraged and aggrieved, Harry discovers the identity of his daughter’s killer, follows him to Munich, and hunts him down. What Harry finds out about the diplomat and his plans will explode his life and the lives of everyone around him.

This was a story which was hard to put down and I read it in a day. Harry Levin wants to get justice for the dead of his daughter. But the drunk driver who killed her is a German Politician named Hess and is granted immunity. He follows Hess to Germany. This also brings back memories of the Holocaust which Harry barely survived. In the pursuit of his daughters killer he finds out something even more disturbing about Hess that will put his own life and that of the people around him in danger.

25-03-2012

Cruise to Murder by Zoey and Claire Kane

Genre: Cozy Mystery

Series: The Zoey and Claire Mystery Series #2
Publisher: Breezy Reads
Buy the book: Amazon | B&N | Smashwords
Source: I received an ecopy from the author

When The Sunburst, an elite celebrity cruise ship, sets sail to Kinikiwiki Island, trouble follows billionaire Felix Belmont across the high seas. The curiosity of a mother-daughter-duo gets them tangled up in voodoo, murders and an international conspiracy surrounding him. The islanders don't know it, but their lives are all in danger, too... And their only hope is vacationers Zoey and Claire Kane. 

After the whole ordeal with their new home the Hillgate Mansion Zoey and Claire are in need of a vacation. To bad this is not going to be one where they can relax. This time they go on a cruise and keep bumping into dead bodies, if only that was the worst they will encounter on this vacation.

The Riddles of Hillgate by Zoey and Claire Kane

Genre: Cozy Mystery
Series: The Zoey and Claire Mystery Series #1
Publisher: Breezy Reads
Buy the book: Amazon | B&N  | Smashwords
Source: I received an ecopy from the author

Zoey is known around her town of Riverside for making bad decisions when it comes to auctions and real estate investments. When her savvy daughter, Claire, learns her most recent purchase is eighty acres on the haunted, desolate side of town, she is simply flabbergasted. This purchase soon reveals some hidden inconveniences, like—murder, skeletons, secrets, and the riddles of Hillgate Manor
This was a very entertaining and fun read. Zoey purchases a piece of land and when Zoey and her duaghter explore the it they find it houses an old, big and gorgeous house. Claire comes up with the idea to turn the house into a hotel. As soon as they open the hotel strange things start to happen.

19-03-2012

Guest post Zoey and Claire Kane



Courage in The Dark

Zoey: Claire and I used to always think that the world was full of nice people, like our grocer and next door neighbor, and that there was nothing bad happening around us except for what was aired on the nightly news. It was quite by accident that we discovered a darker side to people; the nice guy with a criminal mind. Seeing this other side to life certainly has brought adventure to our ordinary circumstances, like investing in property, taking a cruise, and so forth.

07-03-2012

Brutal and Perfection by Joel Andre + Giveaway



Look for the giveaway of "Kill 4 Me" by Joel Andre at the end of this post.


Genre: Horror
Buy the book: Amazon

Carol and Tammy Long have fought a constant battle with their weight all their lives. When a stranger on the television offers an amazing new diet plan with a weight loss success rate of 100 percent, Tammy feels like it was an answer to their prayers.As the pair ventures off to the Verde Valley Weight Loss Clinic things start to take a darker turn. The owner Kathy Black gives them a new take on the classic idea of perfection.Now, placed in a medical facility where they are constantly monitored, the women learn there is something wrong with perfection.

Genre: Horror
Series: Brutal #1
Buy the book: Amazon
One dark and warm October night in the heart of Arizona, a group of friends are out for an evening of fun. It was a night for celebration, and to draw them away from the world.
As they drink the night away, a dark and handsome stranger watches them in the distance. His observations going unnoticed as the girls focus on their own conversation.
Too drunk to make it home on their own, the stranger offers the group a ride home in his taxi. Reluctantly, the girls agree.
What follows is a dark and brutal act of revenge decades in the making.

27-02-2012

Guest post Joel M. Andre


Writing is essentially a part of my soul. I find that I need to continue to write to remain happy and to stay focused in life. Not a day goes by that I am not writing something, even if it is as simple as a poem on the back of a napkin.

Usually, I will have an idea come to me when I am doing something random, then I will have the urge to sit down and write as much as I can, until the story is done or I have hit a wall. While most people will allow writer’s block to slow them down, I take it as a sign that I need to move on to something new.
Right now, I have several different stories in the works that I pick up and work on until I come to a point where I am not sure what direction to take the story. From there, I will pick up a different title as I consider my options for the one I just put down. This does take some discipline and taking the time to keep notes about where I have left off and the history that is there.

01-02-2012

Amongst my Enemies by William F. Brown

Genre: Thriller
Find the author: Website | Facebook
Buy the book: Amazon | B&N
Source: I received an ecopy from the author

Inside an old German U-Boat rusting on the bottom of the Baltic are millions in gold bars, stolen art, and a secret that could tear NATO apart. The only one who knows the truth is Mike Randall, a battle-scarred American who survived four months in the frozen Hell of northern Germany at the end of the war. When he does speak up, he puts a target on his own forehead, one which the Russians, the West Germans, the U-boat’s former owners, the Israeli Mossad, and even his own government quickly take aim at. Some want the gold, some want him dead, and some want proof about a high-ranking spy inside NATO itself. Randall’s wants are much simpler. Caught between the Kremlin and a new, deadly, 4th Reich, he wants revenge and to satisfy some old debts with a steel-jacketed bullet.

Mike Randall ends up in the hands of the Germans after his bomber goes down. He and his friend Eddie survive the crash but Eddie does not survive the war. After several months Mike takes a chance and hides in a U-boat to try and get out of the hell he's been in. He's found on the U-boat but the captain lets him go at the coast of (neutral) Sweden. But before the captain and his crew are able to return to the safety of the sea they get hit twice by a English bomber and are lost. And so is the cargo that was on the sub and Mike is now the only person who knows what happened to this U-boat and what it's cargo was.

Guest post William F. Brown

Today I have William F. (Bill) Brown over on the blog to tell us where the ideas for his stories come from. I just finished Amongst my Enemies (yes I just put it down) and I really enjoyed it and my review will be up later today.



People often ask writers, “Where do you get the ideas for your stories?”   For me at least, each of my six novels has taken its own tortuous path.  Some come more easily and develop more successfully than others; but I usually start with a simple, one-line concept that sets the hook into the reader and pulls him into the story.  In screenplays, they call these a ‘log line.’  To be effective, it needs to be incongruous, immediate, and jarring, as “Snakes on a plane” was.  That is one of the simplest and very best.   Screenwriters and movie producers use them in a pitch to sell a story, but they can be equally useful for a writer to set the tone and keep his story focused.  Call it a concept, a premise, or a log line, but every successful novel has a strong one; and no amount of writing, re-writing, special effects, car chases, sex scenes, vampires, or dead bodies can make up for a weak one.  
The challenge for the writer is to expand that concept, line by line, page by page, asking the ‘whos’, the ‘hows’, the ‘whys’, and all the other questions until a full-blown plot and characters are formed and they all fit together.   Take my recent e-book novel The Undertaker.  “A guy opens the newspaper one morning and reads his own obituary.”  That’s the one-liner that struck me one day, and grew into a novel.  How could that happen?  Was it a mistake?   All the details in the obituary are spot on; it is him!  Worse, he sees a companion obituary for his wife!  Who’s doing this?  Why are they doing it?  What’s at stake?  He goes to the funeral home and sees two coffins.  That adds a spooky, terror twist that takes the reader from the basement of the funeral home in Ohio, to bumper-tag on the Dan Ryan, snipers in New York’s Washington Square, a bloody Back Bay townhouse, sleazy lawyers, corrupt County sheriffs, mafia hit men, the FBI, an army of Chicago cops, and the upper berth of an Amtrak train.  Someone with a penchant for sharp scalpels and embalming tables is planting bodies under other people’s names, and our hero knows he’s next.   So far, that obituary has gotten me 16 Five-Star and 16 Four-Star Amazon reviews out of 34 posted.
The novel I’m currently working on, Through the Glass Darkly, began with, “A guy’s in the window seat of an air liner coming in to land at O’Hare.  He looks down, and sees a man strangling a woman on the roof top of a building below.”  Again, who were they?  What building was that?   Why would he kill her?  What’s at stake?  A crime of passion?  Was the hiding something?  Or was the guy trying to shut her up?  And who is our guy in the airplane?  What is he going to do about it?   What is going on in his life that this situation will make even worse?  In the end, it may look like plot pacing and imagination, but I think it is simply posing and answering questions.  While I am picking at those threads, I flesh out the main characters and add minor ones as they are needed to fill various rolls in the plot; because it is meaty characters that drive the story and make it logical, inevitable, and whole. 
My most successful novel, Thursday at Noon, published in hardback by St. Martins and in various paper and foreign editions by Harlequin, began with, “A burned out CIA agent in Cairo stumbles home one night and finds a severed head sitting on his rear stoop.”   That would sober you up; but who is the dead guy?  That’s the first and most obvious question.  Who left him lying there?  Why?  And what is our protagonist going to do about it?   Each of the other characters fill a specific role.  A few are there to help him, but most are out to stop him, to frustrate him, to create hurdles for him to get over, or to kill him.  These include a top Egyptian police detective, the radical head of the Moslem Brotherhood, and his own Embassy and CIA people.  From that first scene, our hero find himself in the middle of a murder mystery, inside a coup, inside somebody else’s war, each of which gets peeled away to keep pulling the reader along. 
Anyway, that’s how I try to do it.  Download a copy of The Undertaker or Against My Enemies and see if you think I got it right.
                                                                                  Bill Brown



If you would like to learn more about Bill Brown you can visit his WEBSITE and/or FACEBOOK

Want to read his books? 
Buy Amongst My Enemies: AMAZON | B&N
Buy The Undertaker: AMAZON | B&N

25-01-2012

Guest post Aida Brassington + Giveaway!

Today I welcome Aida Brassington to the blog. She'll give some inside on the role of food in her novel Between Seasons. And let me tell you I for one was craving pancakes while reading Between Seasons. 
Don't forget to look for the giveaway at the end of the post.



Food is our common ground, a universal experience. I didn’t say that – chef and food writer James Beard did. We can all agree it’s true, though, because food is something we all need, like air and water. But what would you miss if you couldn’t eat?

The main character in my paranormal romance novel, Between Seasons, is a ghost named Patrick Boyle, and it’s one of the things about being alive he misses quite a bit – eating. The very act of it and the flavor of it. The moist chocolate cake his mother makes roils around in his brain for the forty years he’s stuck alone, haunting his childhood home. And when Sara Oswald buys his house after all that time, he’s drawn to her, spying on her in the kitchen.

The woman flapped her hand at Sara and pulled out a chair before sliding into it. “No worries. If I’d been thinking I would have brought you some coffee. I’m a bear when I haven’t had a few cups in the morning.”

“Would you like a cookie at least?” Sara took the plastic wrap off the plate and held it out. Patrick hovered over the food, fingers twitching into a chocolate chip as he looked on in longing. It had been forever since he’d had a cookie, and he could just imagine how it would crumble in his mouth, the chocolate like silk on his tongue. He groaned and stepped away, wishing he could grab the plate and run away to gorge himself.

“Nope. You’ll need something fattening and completely terrible for you after getting your house in order.” The neighbor grinned. “I just wanted to welcome you to the neighborhood and introduce myself.”

Sara set the plate on the counter and chuckled. “I’m an ass – I haven’t even told you my name. Sara Oswald.” She placed her fingers over her chest, drumming them twice against her prominent clavicle.

Eating is a social event for many of us. Clinical studies have demonstrated that the elderly feel most lonely when they eat alone, and this phenomenon applies to other age groups as well. It’s one of the main reasons why I chose to focus on food as one of the things Patrick misses about his life: being alone for decades is bad enough, but compounding it by really missing food makes it so much worse.

It’s also not uncommon to associate food and eating with emotion. Sara is dealing with heavy emotional turmoil when she buys Patrick’s house, the result of which is she’s not eating as she should. And that cake Patrick misses so much is something he associates with motherly love and comfort. Without the food to nourish them physically, the characters in Between Seasons lack emotional comfort as well. As things change between Patrick and Sara, so do their relationships to food.

If you became a ghost tomorrow, what would you miss most about your life? What foods and flavors would leave you longing?  

Aida Brassington lives in a haunted house in the suburbs of Pennsylvania with her husband of five years and a Great Dane named Patrick. She loves all things related to Halloween and spooky movies, but not because she shares her house with a ghost (and it should be noted her ghost does nothing more than occasionally appear in the second floor hallway and hide her keys) — she just likes being scared. She is a former political junkie with a deep interest in artisan food, reading, and scuba diving.

Find her at Twitter, her Website or Goodreads 

Buy Between Seasons:

Thank you so much Aida for stopping by today! I think I would really miss brownies and I'm a big tea drinker so yeah would probably miss that too.


Giveaway:

Thanks to Aida I will be giving away an ecopy of Between Seasons.

* To win an electronic copy (Kindle, Nook, or PDF) of Between Seasons please leave a comment with your answer to Aida's question

If you became a ghost tomorrow, what would you miss most about your life? What foods and flavors would leave you longing?

* Don't forget to leave an emailadress so I can contact you if you win.
* Giveaway is international.
* This giveaway ends Februari 4th and the winner will be chosen by random.
* Please don't forget to read my giveaway policy

No answer and/or email = no entry

22-01-2012

Between Seasons by Aida Brassington

Genre: Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Green Needle Press
Buy the book: The Book Depository
Source: I received an ecopy from the author

Patrick Boyle dies in the fall of 1970, just days before he's due to report for the Vietnam War draft, which seems like a good thing until he realizes he's stuck in the house with no indication of when he'll be escorted to heaven. And after his parents leave the house, he's trapped without company -- until a mysterious woman who can channel his memories buys the house forty years later. The spring brings with it new life, but falling in love with the new owner may only bring heartbreak to them both.

The story starts of with Patrick's dead and Patrick trying to figure out why he's stuck in the house and not in Heaven like he's supposed to be. The real story starts when Sara comes and live in the house. Without knowing it Sara gives Patrick the feeling he isn't alone anymore and the fact that Sara talks to herself makes for some entertaining conversations between the two and Patrick starts to fall in love with her. 

This is a sweet love story which made me laugh out loud and also made me sad at times. Aida Brassington did a great job with the characters. Patrick is a teenager from the seventies and everything he says/thinks reflex this. He's also a really sweet guy. You can't help but feel for him when he's trying to figure out why he's stuck there and when his parents leave him. Sara had a nasty divorce and moves to escape her past and to try and start over. Being in that house gives them both the feeling they are not alone and that is where this impossible relationship starts to blossom. 

The story takes you on a rollercoaster of emotions and is written in a way that makes you flip page after page just to see if Patrick will ever be able to get free from the house. The ending of this story is a big surprise, I did not see this coming and it's a great twist to the story. The sad thing is it ended so abrubly. But there will be a seque so there is more to come.

My rating: 4/5

19-01-2012

Wolfsbane by Ronie Kendig


Genre: Romantic Suspense
Series: Disrgarded Heroes series #3
Publisher: Barbour Publishing
Buy the book: The Book Depository
Source: I received an ecopy from the publisher via NetGalley

Former Green Beret Captain Canyon Metcalfe is unnerved when Nightshade is sent to a South American jungle that holds an eerie similarity to a dark tragedy from his past. Addicted to painkillers, Canyon struggles to hide his secret. Escorting Danielle Roark, a demolitions expert who knows the location of a secret nuclear weapons silo, proves treacherous when they’re ambushed and captured. Rescued, Canyon is furious to discover Dani was left behind, intentionally—because she’d unearthed blame that lies at the feet of many on the Hill, including her own father. Armed with truth, they must fight their way back to the States and freedom. (Goodreads)


This is the third in the Disgarded Heroes series, but the first I read. And to have missed the first two books in the series isn't a problem to follow this story.

I really enjoyed this book. This book is full of action and even when there is just a family party going on Ronie Kendig knows how to keep your attention. Roarke is a strong female. Even after all she has been through, being held captive by the VFA in Venezuela, she escapes and when she comes home she's being accused of being a traitor. She wants to clear her name and this is where Canyon comes in place. His team will take Roarke back to get the proof she needs to clear her name.

The rivally between the brothers Canyon and Range about Roarke isnt one I love, but that's a personal thing. I just don't like this kind of thing in life or fiction. Other then that this was a really great story which made flip page afte page just to see what would happen next. Also the side story that was told by a dying woman gave the story an extra twist.

This might have been the first in the series I have read, but I will definitely check out the other books in this series.

My rating: 4/5

18-01-2012

Cinder and Ella by Melissa Lemon

Genre: Fairy Tales retold
Publisher: Bonneville Books
Buy the book: The Book Depository
Source: I received an ecopy from the publisher via NetGalley

After her father's disappearance, Cinder leaves home for a servant job at the castle. But it isn't long before her sister Ella is brought to the castle herself. What Ella finds there starts a quest that will change her life and the entire kingdom. Cinder and Ella is a Cinderella story like no other, and one you'll never forget. (Goodreads)

This is not your average fairy tale and to be honost besides the name it doesn't resemble Cinderella in any way. It's a totally different story, it's a little darker, no handsome prince, no fairy godmother and no happy ending. Well the latter isn't really true but it's not really a happy ending yet, let's keep it to that. No this is a story about a girl named Ella, a girl named Cinder and an evil prince.

To be honost I really love fairy tales, but this goes for the ones I grew up with. Cinderella may be one of them, but this one isn't. Fairy tales that you remember are very different from fairy tales you read now. I never reread the fairy tales I used to I just remember them as they were when I was little. I used to reread them but the more I read the more the whole magic from the story got lost. I'm sorry I'm just not impressed with the character development in fairy tales and that is fine as long as the story is good. besides I still remember them so no need to reread them.

But that is the thing with this story. I really enjoyed the story. And even more because of the darker setting and the lack of the 'and they lived happily ever after' but I just couldn't feel that connection with the characters. They just felt flat and didn't exacly stand out. I did however really love the idea of a life being connected to it's own tree. for a 'good' life, you should take care of your tree. The most enjoyable is the writing style. It's written in the style as I remember the fairy tales as I used to know them. Even though this is a new story the whole fairy tale vibe is there.

My rating: 3/5