Saturday 26 December 2015

Q & A with Angela B. Chrysler

Dolor and Shadow (Tales of the Drui)
by Angela B. Chrysler

As the elven city burns, Princess Kallan is taken to Alfheim while a great power begins to awaken within her. Desperate to keep the child hidden, her abilities are suppressed and her memory erased. But the gods have powers as well, and it is only a matter of time before they find the child again.

When Kallan, the elven witch, Queen of Lorlenalin, fails to save her dying father, she inherits her father's war and vows revenge on the one man she believes is responsible: Rune, King of Gunir. But nothing is as it seems, and the gods are relentless. A twist of fate puts Kallan into the protection of the man she has sworn to kill, and Rune into possession of power he does not understand. From Alfheim, to Jotunheim, and then lost in the world of Men, these two must form an alliance to make their way home, and try to solve the lies of the past and of the Shadow that hunts them all.

Paperback, First Edition, 520 pages

Published May 31st 2015


Find it on Goodreads

Buy it on Amazon

Read It & Reap:  July 3, 2016  


Angela B. Chrysler is a writer, logician, philosopher, and die-hard nerd who studies theology, historical linguistics, music composition, and medieval European history in New York with a dry sense of humor and an unusual sense of sarcasm. She lives in a garden with her family and cats.


I love adverbs, prepositions, and splitting my infinitives. I also write "can not" and never "cannot" because it's just wrong smashing a verb and an adverb together to make a verby adverb.



Q & A with Angela B. Chrysler  

Q:  Tell us a little bit about your main characters.
I have three main characters.


Kallan is an elfin witch and queen of the Dokkalfar. Despite being very passionate about her people and duties, she is spunky, strong-headed and defiant. A slight bit of immaturity is still present due to her youth (for an elf that is. She’s only 700 years old after all).

Rune is Kallan’s nemesis and king of the opposing kingdom at war with Kallan’s city. He is far more mature, having inherited his father’s kingdom years prior to Kallan, he has forced to mature far sooner making him more patient and forgiving than Kallan. Bound by a vow to protect Kallan when Rune and Kallan are thrown into a live or die scenario, Rune does all he can to help Kallan who is out to kill him.

Bergen is Rune’s “little” brother, being born a whole 2 minutes after Rune. To Kallan, he is the heartless Dark One who is consumed by a Darkness that seeks to destroy the world and all that is good. To Rune, Bergen is his laid back, carefree brother who is tightlipped when it comes to a good chunk of his past. To the ladies, Bergen is about as suave, arrogant, and sexy as they come. And he knows it. And to this author, he is a pompous over bearing Nord Lord who won’t stay out of my Guinness. He has a most genuine soft side buried beneath a rugged, scarred exterior.


Q:  Who designs the covers for your books and what is that process like for you as an author?
My cover artist is a company called Indigo Forest Designs. Phenomenal artist! I tell the artist what mood, genre, and demographic I’m going for, a little about what I see and then give the artist carte blanc to reach their artistic visions.
The first draft is what is published. I adore the cover process and my artist pegs my vision every time!


Q:  Describe your ideal writing spot.
My desk, closed away from the world. It’s always messy because I rarely take time out to clean my desk.


Q:  What is the best advice you have been given?
The “Advice” I received was really an inspiration that came from Tom Clancy on the writing of Hunt for the Red October. Clancy did SUCH a good job at the research that the government showed up and said, “You can’t publish our secrets.” Clancy explained that everything in Red October was information available online if people bothered to do the research. He had to show the government exactly where he found all his research.

The lesson learned? To be so thorough, that you fool the experts.


Q:  As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A composer for the movies like James Horner. I studied until I was 20 years old. I provide more of these details and why I stopped in Broken. I also wanted to be an actress.


Q:  Which do you prefer: hard/paperbacks or ebooks?
When I’m serious about the read and really want to enjoy it, I go paperback. When I browse the selection and have to read through for a review, eBook. I would have to say, paperback when I read as a reader/fan. Ebook when I read as an author or business.


Q:  If you could have any supernatural power, what would you choose and why?
To never have to poop, exercise, eat, or sleep. So much time wasted on those things.


Q:  What book are you reading now?
I am reading my own fantasy, Dolor and Shadow, to prep for finishing its sequel. I also will be starting Crown of Stones by C.L. Schneider and Along Came a Wolf by Adam Dreece. I will be reading all three of these books online as part of “Story Time” on my site.



Monday 21 December 2015

Wicked Edge by Rebecca Zanetti

Wicked Edge (Realm Enforcers, #2)Wicked Edge by Rebecca Zanetti
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Wicked Edge is the second book in the Realm Enforcers series by Rebecca Zanetti. It is explosive from beginning to end...buckle your seat belt you are in for a wild ride.

Daire Dunne is one lethal Coven Nine Enforcer. He is ready for a little down time from his duties. Nothing like a sexy blonde to take his mind off of his mission...too bad she might be a little more than he can handle. One passionate kiss is enough to intoxicate him or was it the drugs she pumped in him before she trashed his apartment, stealing sensitive information. Now, he is on the hunt for this elusive woman. Can he track her down and secure the files she stole before it is too late?

Daire is one sexy, dangerous witch who takes his job as an enforcer seriously. He is definitely not a person you want to cross. Cee Cee will have to learn the hard way about his dangerous side. Cee Cee may look fragile, but she is cunning and just as dangerous as any enforcer. When Daire and Cee Cee are together sparks fly or is that just debris from their explosive encounters? This is one book I didn't want to put down. Can't wait for the next one!

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Thursday 17 December 2015

Q & A with Bobby Treat

The Fire Within 
Kell of the Deep Space Corps, Book #1 
by Bobby Treat  

At the end of the 21st Century, the United Nations includes Texas, The States, Luna, Mars and Ceres. The Deep Space Corps of Engineers went to the stars and returned with friends — the walking celery Spruigh and the levitating knotted-snake Bokka. Nanotech medicine pushes life expectancy past a hundred years. Babel provides worldwide communications and virtual reality via brain modem. Life is long, and it’s better than ever.

But the Corps is hiding the existence of alien enemies. Skirrl dragon-lords circle like vultures, and it falls to Kell Stark to catch them at it. Attending the DSC Academy (AKA the Rock) has been her dream since she was three, but her application to the Rock and her meta-human abilities put her in the crosshairs of the telepathic Skirrl. The Commandant of the Corps leaves her to fend for herself, and the warrior Spider hired to guard her has PTSD and a shadowy past.

Nothing in Kell’s life has been simple — certainly not her cousin Jimmy’s trial for sexually assaulting her at sixteen. She’s angry, isolated, volatile, and not always herself. Sex is a handy distraction, but it’s not enough.

The challenges she faces are daunting — but she has a fire in her belly. She will not yield. This is the story of a young woman fighting to save her life, the human race, and hardest of all — her soul.

Warning: This story includes violence and sexual scenes, both straight and lesbian, and is not intended for children or young teens.


Kindle Edition, 425 pages
Expected publication: December 18th 2015 by Bobby R. Treat

Find it on Goodreads
Buy it on Amazon

Read It & Reap:  
July 17, 2016  


About the Author:

B. R. Treat hails from Snyder, Texas, which everyone agrees is "smack dab in the middle of nowhere", but a great place to grow up. It was an oil boom town in those days, but today it's a wind-farm boom town. Ah, progress!

His science fiction is influenced by E. E. (Doc) Smith's Lensman series, Clifford D. Simak's "Time is the Simplest Thing", Tanith Lee's "Birthgrave", Robert Silverberg's "To Live Again", Roger Zelazny's "This Immortal" and "Lord of Light", Isaac Asimov's "The Gods Themselves", and Gordon R. Dickson's Dorsai/Childe series.

He retired from the US Air Force and along the way earned a B.S. in Math at Texas Tech in Lubbock; an M.S. in Operations Research at AFIT in Dayton, Ohio; and a Ph.D. in Management Science & Information Systems at U.T. Austin. He was Volunteer of the Year at the Austin Rape Crisis Center in 1988.

His wife, Elizabeth Slaughter, is his best reader and sounding board by far.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14696616.Bobby_Treat

Q & A with Bobby Treat

Q:  Kell us a little bit about your main characters.

23-yr-old Kell Stark believes she was made more than human in the womb. She’s angry, volatile, and not always herself. Sex is an easy distraction, but it’s not enough. Her cousin Gretel hires Cardiff, a former soldier and long-term war-crimes suspect, to protect Kell from an unexplained threat Kell doesn’t believe in. The Deep Space Corps Commandant, Captain Stevenson, is hiding alien threats, but Kell Stark discovers them the hard way.

Q:  Who designs the covers for your books and what is that process like for you as an author?
Terry Rodgers at https://www.behance.net/observaterry designed both my covers. I had gathered stock images and tried to design a cover myself, but was STUCK for weeks. Terry came up with a workable concept in two days. I’d been trying to come up with covers that depicted my main characters photographically, but I was advised to pick something more symbolic. That’s what eventually worked, and I love the result. Terry used some of my images and made them work.

Q:  Describe your ideal writing spot.
I spend a lot of time writing at a local fried chicken place, but I get more output lying flat on my back in bed, with my Macbook Air on my stomach — between midnight and four in the morning! I’m a night-owl.

Q:  What is the best advice you have been given?
“Teeth, without gums, fall loosely in the mouth.” J. M. May
Just kidding. No, I’m not. I don’t listen to writing advice, if that’s what you mean.

Q:  As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
Spiderman — or even better, a telepathic warrior from the Lensman Series (Doc Smith).

Q:  Which do you prefer: hard/paperbacks or ebooks?
I loved paper books for fifty years, but now an eBook is easier on the eyes and cheaper. We have close to 2,000 paper books around the house, but that’s enough! It’s more practical to put the next 2,000 on my e-reader.

Q:  If you could have any supernatural power, what would you choose and why?
I don’t write telepathy and teleportation as “supernatural” powers precisely, but those would be my choice.

Q:  What book are you reading now?
I just finished “The Healing Power of Sugar” by C.L. Stone. The series is a guilty pleasure, oddly going nowhere but addictive!


Tuesday 15 December 2015

A Whisper of Death by Paul Barrett: Interview + Giveaway



A Whisper of Death
The Necromancer Series, Book 1
by Paul Barrett

Genre: YA Dark Fantasy
Publisher: Fiery Seas Publishing, LLC
Cover Artist: Jess Small

Born with the power of ultimate evil, he is the world’s only chance at survival.

Erick Darvaul is a Necromancer, a descendant of the original sorcerers who turned against their dark masters and exiled them. Now these beings have returned, it falls upon Erick and a cadre of newfound allies to rally against these powerful entities and defeat them again.

Through fire, ambush, and betrayal, Erick and his companions claw their way to Broken Mountain to reunite with others who share his ability. There, Erick battles the mortal foe of his ancestors pushing the limits of his Necromantic magic, a force that seeks to corrupt him every time he summons it.

Find it on Goodreads
Amazon    Barnes & Noble 





Paul has lived a varied life full of excitement and adventure. Not really, but it sounds good as an opening line.  

Paul’s multiple careers have included: rock and roll roadie, children’s theater stage manager, television camera operator, mortgage banker, and support specialist for Microsoft Excel.

This eclectic mix prepared him to go into his true love: motion picture production. He has produced two motion pictures and two documentaries: His film Night Feeders released on DVD in 2007, and Cold Storage was released by Lionsgate in 2010.  

Amidst all this, Paul has worked on his writing, starting with his first short story, about Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, at age 8. Paul has written and produced numerous commercial and industrial video scripts in his tenure with his forcreative agency, Indievision. He has two published short stories (As You Sow and Double Cross) and one self-published novel (Godchild). He lives with his filmmaker/graphic artist partner and their three cats.



Q & A with Paul Barrett

Q:  Tell us a little bit about your main characters.

Erick is a 17-year-old Necromancer who has been tasked, almost against his will, with traveling to Broken Mountain to meet with other Necromancers. He’s bitter at his parents leaving him, and angry at the town below his manor that has spurned his family for being Necromancers. He’s bright but lonely, his only friend his familiar, a homunculus named Blink.  

Elissia is a 16-year-old girl who is also angry because her father exiled her to the island where the book starts because she…nope, not going to tell you. She is independent, intelligent, good with knives, and full of secrets.

Corby is a 15-year-old scribe and scholar who travels with Erick to chronicle their adventures. He’s incredibly intelligent, has an eidetic memory. He is fairly literal and emotionless, having trouble dealing with people because of his inability to relate to them and his shyness. He also has a secret that he fears will destroy his budding friendship with Erick.

The thing these three share is they are all, in their way, outcasts.

Q:  Describe your ideal writing spot.
My ideal writing spot would be a beach on the Bahamas, but that ain’t gonna happen anytime soon. So I have an office set up with movie soundtrack music, a view of the outside, and three cats that run the place like they own it. When I was younger, I also enjoyed writing at 3AM at International House of Pancakes, but that doesn’t happen as much anymore.

Q:  Who designed the covers for your book and what was that process like for you as the author?
Since this is my first book I didn’t have much say in the cover design. I got to look at the initial cover design and offer my two cents. And to the credit of Fiery Seas, they incorporated some of my suggestions. So the process has been pretty painless, like most all of the process has been. The cover was designed by Jess Small.

Q:  What is the best advice you have been given?
In writing or in life? In writing, it’s been “just write.” You can read all the books and take all the classes and learn, but the only way you’re ever going to get better at writing is to just write, and see what works for you and what doesn’t. In life, it was “never run barefoot in a yard full of dogs.” Okay, that’s probably not the best advice I’ve ever gotten, but it’s still pretty solid.

Q:  How do you keep busy when you're not writing?
I work as a props master and set dresser on TV shows and movies, and I also enjoy board gaming, video games, and, of course, reading. The influx of great TV shows also has me sitting on the couch watching for many an hour.

Q:  If you could have any superhuman ability, what would you choose and why?
Wow, that’s a tough one, there are so many good ones. Probably the ability to fly, because I enjoy flying in airplanes, and it would be so much easier getting from place to place. I’d probably take more vacations if I could physically fly to all the great vacation spots.

Q:  Which do you prefer: hard/paperbacks or ebooks?
I think they both have their place. This may border on TMI, but I love to read while taking a bath, so obviously a physical book is the safer option there. But ebooks makes it pretty convenient to read anywhere without the danger of setting down the book and forgetting it. Plus, seeing what other people highlight as something that resonated with them is a kind of cool feature.

Q:  What book are you reading now?
I’m currently reading two books: Zeroes by Chuck Wendig and From the Stone by John Hartness. I’m also listening to audiobook The Aeronaut’s Windlass by Jim Butcher.


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Thursday 12 November 2015

The Tomorrow Heist by Jack Soren


The Tomorrow Heist 
Monarch, #2
by Jack Soren 

Genre: Fiction/Thrillers/Technological 
Publisher: HarperCollins/Witness Impulse 

Readers looking for twisting, fast-paced suspense will be swept away by Jack Soren’s newest tale of thrilling international adventure... 

Jonathan Hall and Lew Katchbrow intended to leave life as international art thieves behind them-if only the money hadn’t run out. But when a shadowy organization approaches the duo offering compensation, protection, and prestige in exchange for their skills, Jonathan and Lew think it’s the answer to their problems… 

But the nightmare has only just begun. 

Suddenly Jonathan and Lew are thrust headlong into a race against time and a technology that science says shouldn’t exist. With the very nature of life and death on Earth hanging in the balance, it’s up to Jonathan and Lew to discover the truth behind Ashita—a terrifying futuristic city in the depths of the Pacific Ocean—and stop it. But the clock is ticking. If Jonathan and Lew fail this heist, millions will die—and the human race will never be the same.

Find it on Goodreads


About the Author: 
JACK SOREN was born and raised in Toronto, Canada.

Before becoming a thriller novelist, Jack wrote software manuals, drove a cab and spent six months as a really terrible private investigator. His debut novel The Monarch was nominated for the Kobo Emerging Writer national book award. He lives in the Toronto area.

@jacksorenwrites 


Q & A with Jack Soren
Q. Tell us a little bit about your main characters.
The main characters for my Monarch series (The Monarch and The Tomorrow Heist) met years ago when they were both disenchanted with their own attempts to make a difference in the world. Jonathan Hall is an ex-spy and Lew Katchbrow is an ex-soldier. Together they become known as the master art thief, The Monarch. 

Q. What is the best advice you have been given?
Finish what you start. So many writers second-guess themselves and end up killing projects before they’re done. As Hemingway said, “the first draft of anything is shit”. But you need to get that first draft down. Then you can revise and hone and polish.

Q. Which do you prefer: hard/paperbacks or ebooks?
I much prefer physical books to ebooks, but I have been coming around lately. That said, if I had a choice I’d probably always choose physical. It’s a different reading experience.

Q. What book are you reading now?
American Gods by Neil Gaiman


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Tuesday 10 November 2015

Dissident by Cecilia London

Dissident 
Bellator Saga #1
by Cecilia London 

What would you do for love of country?

In a new America where almost no one can be trusted, Caroline Gerard lies unconscious in a government hospital as others decide her fate. She is a political dissident, wanted for questioning by a brutal regime that has come to power. As she recovers from her injuries, all she has are her memories of a rich and beautiful past.

What does it take to heal a broken heart?

As Caroline clings to life her thoughts drift to before the regime, when she was a rising star in the House of Representatives, widowed, and raising two precocious children. She remembers her unexpected attraction to fellow politician playboy Jack McIntyre. Jack captures her attention with his rakish grin, disarming attitude, and dry wit, and soon their friendship blossoms into much more.

Who can you trust?

Under the new political system, Caroline doesn't know what to believe, even her own vivid memories. Is the life she led real, or just a mirage? And is Jack truly the one to help her move on? Or are they just pawns in a political power play?

The Bellator Saga is a six part series. Each full length novel ends in a cliffhanger. For readers 18+. This saga contains adult situations, including non-gratuitous violence, explicit (consensual) sex, psychological and physical trauma, and an oftentimes dark plot. 

Paperback, 1st Edition, 268 pages
Published March 17th 2015 by Principatum Publishing

Find it on Goodreads
Amazon    Barnes & Noble 

Read It & Reap:  November 10, 2015  



About the Author
Cecilia is my pen name. I may or may not live in San Antonio, Texas. I've been known to apply quotes from 'The Simpsons' to everyday life. I live for baseball season.


Q & A with Cecilia London

Q:  Tell us a little bit about your main characters.
My heroine, Caroline, is a bit quirky. Highly intelligent, a little irreverent…when we first meet her in Dissident we discover that she’s had a rough year. Recently widowed, she’s made some poor decisions while on the campaign trail, including making some none too charitable comments about our hero, Jack. But she makes amends, and demonstrates rather quickly that she’s likable, sympathetic, and compelling. A series like this depends on a captivating heroine or it will fail. And in Conscience, she demonstrates overwhelming strength and resolve in almost unbearable circumstances. She really carries the second book, though we’re still treated to plenty of Jack.

Jack breaks a lot of molds. When we first meet him in Dissident, he isn’t terribly likable. But he continues to evolve over the course of the series, largely because of his relationship with Caroline. He is not a perfect man, and he and Caroline have to take time to learn to communicate and form a partnership. But that’s the beautiful part of the evolution of their relationship over the course of the first two books, seeing how they come together to support and love one another no matter the circumstances. He is sexy, kind, and loving, but can also be a pure, delicious, devoted alpha male (without going over the top). I love Jack.

And their relationship with each other is…well…you’ll have to read to find out! The first book is pretty much contemporary romance blended with suspense, political fiction, and speculative/dystopian fiction, but later installments come closer to erotic romance. And Jack and Caroline are always there, bound to each other.

Q:  Who designs the covers for your books and what is that process like for you as an author?
I design my own covers. I suppose that could change down the road, but I dig them so far. I have different covers for ebook and print, demonstrating both the romantic and darker elements in the books.

Q:  Describe your ideal writing spot.
Right now it’s a tossup between the recliner in our living room (where my laptop is located) and our home office (where my brain is usually located). LOL!

Q:  What is the best advice you have been given?
Just keep swimming.

Q:  As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I wanted to be a lawyer, and I also wanted to be an author. Technically, I’ve now done both, which is kind of cool.

Q:  Which do you prefer: hard/paperbacks or ebooks?
It depends. When I want something very quickly, I reach for my Kindle. But if it’s a book or series I adore, I need hard copies.

Q:  If you could be any paranormal creature, what would you choose to be and why?
A Pegasus. I’d better be sentient, though! Flying at my leisure would be wonderful.

Q:  What book are you reading now?
Well, if this is posted during the beginning of November, I’m definitely reading The Queen, the last installment in Tiffany Reisz’s phenomenal Original Sinners series. Otherwise I’m probably reading and editing my December release. 



Monday 9 November 2015

Dragon on Top by G.A. Aiken

Dragon on Top (Dragon Kin, #0.4)Dragon on Top by G.A. Aiken
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Dragon on Top is the second book I have read in the Dragon Kin series. It is what I have come to expect from G.A. Aiken...plenty action, playful banter, interesting characters, and steamy love scenes. What a winning combination!

Glheanna is known as the Decimator for good reason. She is one fierce dragoness on the battlefront and off...an unrelenting warrior trained since a hatchling. Why then is Glheanna cowering in her cave, drowning her sorrows away? One insignificant dragon will not keep Glheanna down long, especially since Queen Rhiannon has a mission for her. Bram is a quiet dragon who enjoys reading and is well skilled at brokering alliances. He is the exact opposite of Glheanna who kills first and then asks questions. Bram and Glheanna will have to learn to work together to secure a truce for their queen. Will they be able to complete their task? Will they test the theory that opposites do attract?

Glheanna loves fighting whether it be the enemy or her family. She knows no other way. Glheanna and her siblings enjoy taunting each other, but in the end they will always protect one another. Bram may be known as the Merciful, but even he has his limits. The good natured teasing between Glheanna, Bram and the other characters is what makes this a fun read. I would definitely recommend it.

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