Carol Van Atta

Guest Post by Carol Van Atta

 Guest Post

Heroines Times Two = Action Times Ten

When I was in the plotting and planning stages for She Kissed a Vampire, I was having a difficult time determining from whose point of view (POV) to tell the story. I knew, without doubt, I had to continue with Chloe and Zane’s relationship. After all, they’d yet to get their Happily Ever After. I’d also ended I Kissed a Dog with a major cliffhanger and a tasty teaser for book two. For these reasons, Chloe Carpenter just had to return, but in what role? Not to mention she was a ‘love her/hate her’ kinda gal. If you think I’m exaggerating, take a peek at some of the old book reviews to see exactly how divided readers were (still are) over my feisty, frequently frustrating, leading lady! Because of her sassy, brassy, sometimes bitchy behavior, I wanted her to grow up in the second book and become more levelheaded. She also needed more sexy-time with her alpha werewolf.

What to do next? Who else to feature? Those were the questions begging for an answer.

So many urban fantasy/paranormal romance books are told from the first person point of view. Others jump between the hero and heroine, a format I do enjoy, and then there are some with the need to cover a lot of ground with multiple viewpoints in third person. On occasion, you will find a mix and match of third and first persons. So many choices for today’s writer! Where certain stories demand a first person telling, others desperately need several third person points of view to carry a complex storyline with numerous locations and subplots.

With all the various options spread out before me, I was uncertain, frozen by indecision. I wanted to do something different, something fun, and make my paranormal fantasy adventure unique in a market overflowing with new and delicious books just waiting to be devoured by hungry readers. I didn’t want to do the back and forth between-lovers-dance, and I’d already started off book one using Chloe to tell the tale in first person. But now I found myself with two primary female characters with equally important roles and romances to share.

Why not let them share the spotlight?

That was my thought, and I stuck with it. Doing something I hadn’t really seen a lot of. I decided to reveal my world from the first person viewpoints of two female characters (best friends who’d drifted apart) and had come together again in a time of crisis. The result: two intertwining stories, two romantic journeys, two plotlines that crisscrossed and built on the other in order to reach a shared and climatic conclusion. Did it work? You’ll have to tell me!

Ultimately, I believe having two heroines increased the romantic elements, added more depth, created deeper conflicts, and triggered more action and adventure. In my mind, that’s good stuff! Two Heroines equal Ten Times the action … that’s an equation for supernatural satisfaction.

I hope you will join Chloe and Melanie as they struggle to fix their friendship, redeem their relationships, and, of course, save the world. You can read their stories in She Kissed a Vampire. Oh, and I’ll let you in on a little secret. They’ve both kissed vampires, but only one of them takes a bite.

She Kissed a Vampire

Werewolves of the West 

Book 2

Carol Van Atta

Print Length: 278 pages

Publisher: Cambridge Press US 

December 16, 2013

ASIN: B00HG7GHY8

Description:

Best selling author Melanie Larson’s relationship with her friend, Chloe Carpenter, is bleak. Falsely accused of murder, Chloe’s future rests in the hands of her mate, Zane Marshall, and the Pacific Pack’s purebred werewolves. In an effort to help, Melanie joins forces with the pack and soon discovers the monsters she writes about in her paranormal novels really do go bump in the night.

As Chloe struggles with legal troubles, an unwanted blood bond with a master vampire, and a reunion with her mate, Melanie untangles the attention of multiple supernatural suitors determined to claim her as their own. Strangely attracted to a brazen vampire, she must decide if the blurred line between passion and pain is worth crossing.

Werewolves, vampires, and fae royalty race to unearth an ancient artifact with the power to extend their existence. Can Chloe and Melanie restore their friendship in time to stop magical mayhem from ruining everything they’ve worked so hard to redeem?

Amazon Kobo Nook

I Kissed a Dog
The Werewolves of the West Series Book One
Carol Van Atta

Genre: Paranormal Romance/Urban Fantasy

Publisher: Charles

River Press

ISBN: 1936185725
ISBN13: 9781936185726
ASIN: B009SV179U

Number of pages: 446

Cover Artist: Ann Falcone



Book Description:

Chloe Carpenter isn't like other women. She can communicate with animals. A gift she unwrapped following one of her frequent dances with death.

In her otherwise wacky life, she's finally found a semblance of sanity working at the Plum Beach Wildlife Park, where her unique talents can make life or death differences for the animals in her care. That semblance is shattered when a new veterinarian roars into the park in his spiffed up sports car and sets his golden gaze on her. If she had her way, he'd roar right back out.

Problem: He's her new coworker and he's saved her life twice - in the past twenty-four hours.

Zane Marshall, Enforcer for the Pacific Pack of purebred werewolves, has a job to do - figure out who or what is mutilating the young men of Plum Beach.

With orders to find the woman who talks to animals, he accepts a position working alongside the fiery Chloe Carpenter, a female who ignites his interest far more than he ever expected. Remarkably, she's the one elusive female with potential to bring meaning and passion to his empty existence.

Problem: She despises him.

Together, they're forced to unravel a mystery of supernatural proportions, a murderous mystery with eternal implications for everyone. In the process, they discover opposites really do attract.

Major Problem: Zane is pledged to another woman, and she'll do anything to keep him from Chloe.

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Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/jeuDqevNSXM

About the Author:

Like most authors, Carol Van Atta is no stranger to the written word. She penned a short novel at age 12 (somewhat frightening illustrations included, and lots of bunnies were involved), and had a creative writing piece published in her high school newspaper (about David Bowie's Diamond Dogs LP). Yes, she's an ex-80's chick.

Devouring books from numerous genres, Carol developed a deep thirst/hunger for more reading material, and could almost always be found with her nose in a book.

She has contributed to several popular inspirational anthologies and devotional books, and lives in the rainy wetland of Oregon with a terrifying teen (another in college) and a small zoo of animals. She is taking an undetermined hiatus away from inspirational writing to delve into her darker side. (Though you can check out her latest spiritual suspense novel, Soul Defenders). It is rumored that this genre-jumping occurred after Carol discovered too suspicious red marks on her neck, and experienced an unquenchable urge to howl at the moon.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Werewolves-of-the-West-I-Kissed-a-Dog/153030771437034

https://www.facebook.com/carol.vanatta.1

http://www.werewolvesofthewest.com/

http://vampswereswhyohmy.blogspot.com/

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1237874.Carol_Van_Atta

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C. Elizabeth Vescio

Giveaway by C. Elizabeth Vescio and Review by Cloey

Release Date: 8/1/2012

Number of Pages: 248

ISBN-10: 9781938697

ASIN: B008R54B7I

Genre: Action & Adventure, Contemporary

ELEGANTLY WASTED by C. Elizabeth Vescio

On the eve of her high school graduation, proper socialite Francesca “Frankie” Fairholm rebelled against her elitist and controlling family to pursue the dark lifestyle of a contract killer for the enigmatic Osiris Corporation. Years later, with her training complete, she believes she's doomed to the life of a sociopathic lone gun until a botched hit brings two unlikely allies, her cousins Addison and Katharine.

Using Katharine’s etiquette school, Elegance, Inc., as a front, the trio weave through Frankie’s dark underworld, carrying out contracts, drinking too much wine, and trying not to get each other killed.

Trouble follows the team home when the death of the cruel Fairholm matriarch reveals more than they ever wanted to know about their family. As the funeral preparations play out, the trio begin to realize there is much more to their employer than meets the eye and their family connections run deeper than they ever imagined.

Elegantly Wasted: Amazon | Nook | Series Website | Goodreads | Facebook

Review

Frankie's family is a mess no wonder she grew up into a sociopath. Francesca Fairholm is the black sheep of her family but this story doesn’t even end with her issues. The entire family has issues! Appearance is everything in the Fairholm family and money rules and this makes an interesting tension between family members. This is a 5 out of 5 star story that I am looking forward to reading again.

What I liked about Elegantly Wasted was the story telling of C. Elizabeth Vescio. Her story is written in a conversational way – which I enjoy. There were times when I felt like I was listening to a friend telling me about something that happened during her weekend.

The characters are well developed and easy to relate to as well. I especially loved the story of Frankie's 16th birthday and still giggle when I think about that plastic lobster bib...WTH??

I would have liked to read more about other family members just to see if there were any normal people in Frankie's family. And I felt like the book was too short. There are funny scenes in this story – I found myself laughing at parts that should have been serious. But maybe they were written to be funny?

This book should go on your To Be Read list because it is a good story for a long weekend. I found myself liking the contract killer named Frankie and her crazy cousins.

ABOUT C. ELIZABETH VESCIO:

Author C. Elizabeth Vescio likes to play in the dark world of cynicism and death. Her first novel, Elegantly Wasted touched on the demented and humorous side of a delightfully dysfunctional family.

She enjoys cynical debates, cupcakes, making her mother-in-law sew her aprons that she never wears, zombies, the Fifth Element and Tomb Raider. She gathers her life inspirations from Neil Gaiman, Julia Child and Paul Simon. When she isn't out photographing her next project, she's studying color, concept and design or writing stuff down in hopes it makes sense one day... or she's on Pinterest. 

She lives in Las Vegas with her husband and three dogs.

Author Links: @CaraVescio | Facebook | Goodreads | Wasted Series Website

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Tamara Linse

Guest Post and Giveaway by Tamara Linse

Guest Post

Top 10 Reasons Why Reading Is a Risky Proposition

“It is very risky. But each time a child opens a book, he pushes open the gate that separates him from Elsewhere.” ~ Lois Lowry

Thank you so much for having me today, Cloey! I got this quote off your wonderful Goodreads page and it got me thinking. Reading is indeed a risky proposition.

1. The dreaded paper cut! Need I say more?
2. You’re taking your life in your hands with the lack of exercise. You’re supposed to get, what, 30 minutes a day? In the thrall of a good book, you’re lucky to make it to the bathroom.
3. Your job, which you love so much, will suffer. Because you stayed up till three in the morning finishing that book, which made you cry like a baby for another hour, you’re tired. Oh so tired. Then, when your boss asks about TPS reports, rather than thinking of your future and that of your family, you pull a Bartleby the Scrivener. Or a Conan the Barbarian.
4. They’re going to kill off your favorite character! In the case of George R. R. Martin, 100 of your favorite characters. Ack!
5. You’re starting dangerous habits of empathy and critical thinking in your children. The world is a much more comfortable place when you can rest easy in the bubble of your preconceived notions.
6. The people around you don’t seem nearly as interesting as your current fictional BFF. Why be friends with Mary Ellen Page when you can be friends with Bridget Jones! Elizabeth Bennett! Jason Bourne!
7. You might have to shed your inner bigot. Welfare Queen? Redneck? Soccer Mom? Wait. I just spent 428 pages living her hopes and dreams. How dare you reduce her to a stereotype?
8. You associate with people who are crazy and dangerous. If you were in your right mind, would you associate with Humbert Humbert? Patrick Bateman? Any of the Lannisters? In real life, you’d avoid them like the plague.
9. You’re closer to the inside of another person than you ever have been. There’s nothing more dangerous than baring our souls. Or seeing the bared souls of other people. Bared souls are dangerous.
10. It’s a gateway drug. Once you try reading, you’ll never get enough. Before you know it, you’ll be mainlining Tolstoy.

How to Be a Man
Tamara Linse

Genre: Literary Short Story Collection
Publisher: Willow Words

Print 

ISBN: 0991386701
ISBN-13: 978-0-9913867-0-3

Epub
ISBN: 099138671X
ISBN-13: 978-0-9913867-1-0
ASIN: B00HKSLFSQ
Number of pages: 238
Word Count: 59,650

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Book Description:

“Never acknowledge the fact that you’re a girl, and take pride when your guy friends say, ‘You’re one of the guys.’ Tell yourself, ‘I am one of the guys,’ even though, in the back of your mind, a little voice says, ‘But you’ve got girl parts.’” – Birdie, in “How to Be a Man”

A girl whose self-worth revolves around masculinity, a bartender who loses her sense of safety, a woman who compares men to plants, and a boy who shoots his cranked-out father.

These are a few of the hard-scrabble characters in Tamara Linse’s debut short story collection, How to Be a Man. Set in contemporary Wyoming—the myth of the West taking its toll—these stories reveal the lives of tough-minded girls and boys, self-reliant women and men, struggling to break out of their lonely lives and the emotional havoc of their families to make a connection, to build a life despite the odds. How to Be a Man falls within the tradition of Maile Meloy, Tom McGuane, and Annie Proulx.

The author Tamara Linse—writer, cogitator, recovering ranch girl—broke her collarbone when she was three, her leg when she was four, a horse when she was twelve, and her heart ever since. Raised on a ranch in northern Wyoming, she earned her master’s in English from the University of Wyoming, where she taught writing. Her work appears in the Georgetown Review, South Dakota Review, and Talking River, among others, and she was a finalist for an Arts & Letters and Glimmer Train contests, as well as the Black Lawrence Press Hudson Prize for a book of short stories. She works as an editor for a foundation and a freelancer. Find her online at tamaralinse.com and tamara-linse.blogspot.com

Letter to the Reader

The stories in How to Be a Man were written over the course of the last fifteen years. Some came hot and fast and did not need much fiddling (“Men Are Like Plants,” “Oranges”) and some were the result of years of revision (“Nose to the Fence,” “Mouse”). The oldest story in the collection is “Snowshoeing,” and it’s flaws make me uncomfortable, but I love the striving to capture something inexplicable that motivated it. The youngest story is “Dammed,” and it’s a good example of my writing process now—I tend to revise extensively as I go and write a lot in my mind before I put it down on the page. Once I get started, it only takes me a session or two to get it all down.

Author’s often get the question, “Where do you get your ideas?” I’ve never had a problem getting ideas, and I mourn the loss of the multitude of ideas that have come and gone, unfulfilled. I think there are lots of ideas out there—it’s just a matter of recognizing them for what they are, and when I’m writing—not blocked—the ideas come thick and fast. I may start with a voice, which happened with “Men Are Like Plants.” I was lying in bed trying to go to sleep, and her voice came to me so strongly I risked my husband’s displeasure—he hates it when I stay up late—and got up to write it down. I wrote most of that story in one sitting. What prompted “Revelations” was a contest a couple of years ago that had to include the year 2010. It got me thinking about the end of the world and Revelations, and so I wondered what a modern-day devil might be like. “Snowshoeing” started with the idea of conveying that feeling of separateness that sometimes comes upon a couple, that realization that you can’t always take your partner for granted. “Oranges” arose in one sitting on a plane coming back from a writer’s conference, the result of guilt over abandoning my kids for a week. “A Dangerous Shine” is based on a real incident that took place at the Buckhorn where I bartended. And on it goes.

Putting together a collection is tough. The idea of revising so many stories at one time and the nakedness that will result from other people seeing them all together is enough to stop the hardiest souls in their tracks. And what order do you put them in? Do you treat them like a mix tape—starting with an attention grabber, turning it up, taking it back, orchestrating peaks and valleys? Or do you arrange them on merit only, putting the best ones first? My protagonists are of different ages—should they be organized by age? I ended up putting what I think of as my best stories first and last, but then also taking into account the mood of the story. I tried to start with some positive stories and then place some of the darkest stories toward the end. I also tried to group them tonally, thematically, and by protagonist, so “Mouse” and “Oranges” are together because they’re about young girls dealing with their parents. “The Body Animal,” “Revelations,” and “Dammed” are together because they’re about the body and violence and alienation. “Wanting” is last because it’s a strong story but it also is historical, while all the others are contemporary.

I’ve always loved when authors tell the story of the story, and so I thought I’d choose a few and talk about how they came into being. “How to Be a Man” was written in response to “How to Date a Browngirl, Blackgirl, Whitegirl, or Halfie” by Junot Diaz. I had long resisted writing a second-person story because it seemed so cliché—the young writer thinking herself so edgy, taking such an avant garde point of view. Then I read a couple of kick-ass second-person stories, and it began to work on me: Why couldn’t I write one? Then I heard Edwidge Danticat read Diaz’s story and I was hooked. The story wrote itself fairly quickly until I got to the ending—well, the first ending where she becomes a whiskery-chinned old batty. I stopped there. But I didn’t like that ending. I didn’t want her life to end that way. I wanted her to have a chance at happiness. Then I thought, why can’t I have two endings. I’m the god in this little world. I can do whatever I want. So I added the second ending. “Wanting” is another story I wrote in response to a story. Growing up in the West, I had strong Hemingway tendencies—clipped sentences, withheld emotion, huge psychic distance—and so to try to remedy that, I decided to take a great story that was a little more lush to imitate it in sentence construction, paragraphing, even down to where the dialog rests. The story I chose was Karl Iagnemma’s “Children of Hunger.” So I tried to maintain the feel of his story and mimicked it as closely as I could in my own story. It was a very helpful exercise, I think, and I really like the results. “Mouse” began as a writer’s exercise at a conference workshop presided over by Steve Almond. He had good advice about the mouse-killing scene: “A little blood and gore goes a long way.” I later expanded the scene into the story.

I will always write short stories. They are harder than novels, in a way, because they require the precision of a diamond cutter. They have to be so much more concise, clear, compact, and well-written than a novel. In a novel, you can get away with pages of loose extraneous stuff, while a short story must have no fat. And I love reading short stories. I think we’re in a renaissance of good short-story writing, and for that I’m very thankful.

About The Author:

Tamara Linse grew up on a ranch in northern Wyoming with her farmer/rancher rock-hound ex-GI father, her artistic musician mother from small-town middle America, and her four sisters and two brothers. She jokes that she was raised in the 1880s because they did things old-style—she learned how to bake bread, break horses, irrigate, change tires, and be alone, skills she’s been thankful for ever since. The ranch was a partnership between her father and her uncle, and in the 80s and 90s the two families had a Hatfields and McCoys-style feud.

She worked her way through the University of Wyoming as a bartender, waitress, and editor. At UW, she was officially in almost every college on campus until she settled on English and after 15 years earned her bachelor’s and master’s in English. While there, she taught writing, including a course called Literature and the Land, where students read Wordsworth and Donner Party diaries during the week and hiked in the mountains on weekends. She also worked as a technical editor for an environmental consulting firm.

She still lives in Laramie, Wyoming, with her husband Steve and their twin son and daughter. She writes fiction around her job as an editor for a foundation. She is also a photographer, and when she can she posts a photo a day for a Project 365. Please stop by Tamara’s website, www.tamaralinse.com, and her blog, Writer, Cogitator, Recovering Ranch Girl, at tamara-linse.blogspot.com. You can find an extended bio there with lots of juicy details. Also friend her on Facebook and follow her on Twitter, and if you see her in person, please say hi.

www.tamaralinse.com

http://tamara-linse.blogspot.com

www.facebook.com/tlinse

www.twitter.com/TamaraLinse

www.pinterest.com/tlinse

https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/1481856-tamara-linse

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Shona Husk

Spotlight on Shona Husk's Temptation in a Bottle

Excerpt

Sasha glanced away before she became trapped in his beautiful wild eyes. Her heart pounded like she’d received a shot of adrenaline. Either she walked away and went home, regretting not giving him a chance, or she gave him a chance and regretted giving him the opportunity to hurt her. “You’re making this hard. I should be leaving.” The clock was ticking to the start of her shift.

“We’re just getting started.”

He tipped her chin for another kiss. This one was almost chaste, a brush of lips that heated her blood and sent it scorching around her body at speeds that made her dizzy. She reached up for more, but he pulled away.

She caught herself before she begged for more. He was addictive. She glanced around, looking for Logan to save her, but he’d been sidetracked by Evie. Gage still held her. Without thought, her fingers traced along his jaw, his golden stubble rough on her skin. He couldn’t hurt her if she didn’t let him. Sex was easy; lust was good. Love was for idiots who believed in happily-ever-afters.

Yet she wanted more than one night. She wanted to know who he was. Could she find out without her heart getting trampled?

“What do you do, Gage, when you’re not riding mechanical bulls and chatting up girls at a party?”

He blinked as if surprised. “I do most of the running around on the farm.”

Sasha gave him another once-over, taking in his boots, jeans and shirt and the hint of a silver chain around neck. “What type of farm?”

“Cattle.”

“You’re a real cowboy?” Of all the men she could’ve kissed at the party, she’d picked him, as if she’d known there was something different and he didn’t belong.

“Yes, ma’am.”

A little shimmer of attraction ran down her back. But she wasn’t going to let him off that easy. “How come you’re in the city?”

“I had a few things to do. And what do you do when you’re not talking to strange men?”

“Paramedic. I have an early start tomorrow.”

“And you’re brushing me off.” He gave her a rueful smile.

Was she? He’d be gone in a few days. What did it matter what she did with him? Maybe they should complete his dare. Her skin warmed at the thought of getting naked with Gage. It had been a long time since a man had sparked this much interest, and he wouldn’t be hanging around. He had a time limit. Neither of them would have the chance to get too involved. He was her idea of a perfect date, yet she was standing here, gazing into his eyes instead of getting in his jeans. What was stopping her?

“I’m wondering how far you want to take that dare,” she finally said.

His eyes narrowed a fraction. “What do you mean?”

“We could find somewhere quieter…” She held her breath. Was she being too forward?

“Where did you have in mind?” Gage took her hand and kissed her knuckles.

Sasha let out a sigh, while lust danced through her blood. She hadn’t planned on finding anyone tonight, but Gage was making it hard to think. Being alone with him seemed like a really good idea. Lust and excitement mixed with nerves that weren’t usually there. For half a second she didn’t want to be his easy city girl. But that was who she was…but not who she’d be when she moved.

“This music is giving me a headache.” A smile graced his lips.

Was he playing, knowing she’d jump to the wrong conclusion? Well, she could play too. Her mind skipped through the possibilities. The music filled the house and the back yard. She wanted something a little private…but not too private. “I know just the place.” She took Gage’s hand and led him into the house, through the mass of bodies singing into a karaoke game and down the hallway at the front of the house.

She opened the door that led into Evie’s study. The modem blinked at her, but the computer was off. She drew Gage in, and he gave the door a nudge so it almost closed. The sliver of light cast the room in shadows that pulsed with the music, but the edge was gone and they could speak in soft tones.

“Quiet enough?”

“I think so.” He pulled her into his arms. “I can actually hear you.”

“What were you doing before, lip-reading?”

“You do have lovely lips.” He brushed his mouth over hers in a kiss that was a promise of what could happen if she wanted it to go further.

Temptation in a Bottle
In a Bottle
Book 2
Shona Husk


Genre: paranormal romance

ISBN: 9780992423902

Word Count: 22000

Cover Artist: Helen Katsinis


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Book Description:

His only wish is to be free…

For centuries Gage has existed only to fulfill the most intimate desires of the woman who holds his bottle. Now Gage has a wish of his own—to be a real man and a have a real life even though he knows it’s an impossible dream. This time he plans to take his bottle and break it just to see what will happen.

Paramedic Sasha Watts has seen the damage falling in love does to people and she has no intention of being another of Cupid’s victims. She accidentally frees Gage without knowing what he is. After one kiss he walks away and she never expects to see him again, but the goddess Inanna has other ideas.

As punishment for breaking his bottle she erases Gage’s memory of everything but Sasha. Only Sasha can give him the life he longs for and only Gage can be the man she’s always dreamed of, but first she’ll have to open her heart and he’ll have to finish the job Inanna gave him. If he fails, he’ll cease to exist.

About the Author:

Three time ARRA finalist Shona Husk lives in Western Australia at the edge of the Indian Ocean. Blessed with a lively imagination she spent most of her childhood making up stories. As an adult she discovered romance novels and hasn’t looked back. Drawing on history and myth, she writes about heroes who are armed and dangerous but have a heart of gold—sometimes literally.

With stories ranging from sensual to scorching, she is published with Carina Press, Ellora’s Cave, Samhain Publishing and Sourcebooks.

You can find out more at www.shonahusk.com

www.twitter.com/ShonaHusk

www.facebook.com/shonahusk

Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/lySiD

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J. Perry Kelley

J. Perry Kelly Spotlight and Contest

A metaphysical quest turns dark and lethal

The Sibyl Reborn
A Metaphysical Adventure
J. Perry Kelly
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Speculative Fiction
Date of Publication: October 1, 2012

ISBN-10: 1481042653
ISBN-13: 978-1481042659

Number of pages: 565
Word Count: 190,000

Cover Artist: Amber Shaw

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Book Description:

Like wildfires loose on a western mountain, the karmas of eight people, a teenage ghost, the CIA, mankind and its parent race converge on Bighorn Peak in Colorado, forcing Cassandra, the sibyl reborn, to outwit the bane of our spiritual past and solve a seemingly hopeless riddle: how to save her species from enslavement and her planet from her species.
From the Inside Flap:

An ancient riddle for a modern crisis

Buried in the human psyche lies the key to humanity's fate. Psychologists call it "cognitive dissonance." Poets of old called it a curse. In The Sibyl Reborn, our parent species coins it "The Taint," a trait so fearsome they banished us to save a planet only to endanger Earth.

Never believed when she told the truth, a princess in a town called Troy once shared the dooms of family and friends, enslavement and violent death, when they laughed at her futile warnings. As the earth grows ever hotter and humans quibble over climate change, whom but this tragic heroine should Karma send to defend forever? Armed with quantum metaphysics, might she alter her fate and remake her legend, or would history repeat itself at horrific costs to Man and Earth?

The Sibyl Reborn: where a newlywed's quest to make a difference and a chilling premise that's all-too-real sound a battle cry for an Earth in crisis.

About the Author:

J. Perry Kelly lives in Colorado near the foot of Pikes Peak with Selene, his wife of twenty-eight years who entices him daily to leave his computer to meet her as she returns from Cassandra-like rambles on mountain paths.

Website: www.thesibylreborn.com

Book Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WG3zsk2ojHg

Blog: www.quantumfires.wordpress.com

Author Facebook: www.facebook.com/JPerryKelly.writer

The Sibyl Reborn FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/TheSibylReborn

Twitter: @TheSibylReborn

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Theresa Meyers

Guest Post, Excerpt, and Contest by Theresa Meyers

First off, thank you Cloey, for letting me visit today. (My daughter’s name is Chloe, and she was named after her great-grandmother Cloie, so this makes me feel right at home.)

Deep down we’re all a little werewolf inside. Okay, now before you hold up your hands, shake your head and say, “Oh, no. Not me,” let me ask you a question. Have you ever wanted to take a chance, been tempted in that one moment to try something you’ve never dared to try before? Have you ever told a friend a story about something you’ve done and had them be shocked that you did? If so, you, my friend, do have a little of the werewolf.

You see, the thing about shifters is that they aren’t always what they seem on the outside. Sometimes, they have deep, hidden depths that give them that edge that makes them stronger, more focused, able to do things the rest of us only speculate about. What we see on the outside is just a normal person—until they shift into their inner form. The truth is what’s on the inside doesn’t just go away. It’s still in there, even when the person appears perfectly normal.

Take my heroine, Jessica Brierly. She’s an elementary teacher in a small town. She doesn’t even realize she’s got the nascent were potential in her. She just assumes that her life is always going to go along the predictable route planned out by her three older brothers who think they know what’s best for her. But Jess yearns for something more. Just one night. Just a fling on the wild side with someone that hasn’t been part of the town she’s always know all her life where everyone knows everyone and her teachers at school taught her parents and knew her grandparents. 

But that one night fling with werewolf Tyee Grayson has unintended consequences. Not only does she realize she’s found someone who is just as alpha as her brothers (which she never intended for a boyfriend) but that she that the comfortable little world she’s always known has a dark side, and that she’ll need someone as strong and prepared for it as Ty to save the town of Sinclair and protect her and her unborn babies (yes, more than one, because you know I torture my characters for a living, LOL. And while an unplanned pregnancy is a challenge, one with multiples who are part Were is even more mind-bending for an expectant mom.)

But like Jess, when life throws us a curve ball, we can take in stride if we reach down and summon that little bit of Werewolf deep down. There are a few things you ought to know about my Weres. First, they are either born with the virus that causes them to shift – handed down from parent to child – or they become Were by having the virus introduced into their body when the natural immune system is unable to fight it off. So everyone in my fiction world has the potential to turn Were.

Second, Weres are loyal. In fact you could say it’s almost their biggest fault. What they believe in, or who they love is a constant. They don’t give up on family. They are ferocious about protecting their own. (Sound like you whenever someone’s given your friend a hard time at work, or made one of your kid’s cry?)

Third, my Weres are not fearless, but rather they believe that it is not fear, but the determination that something matters more than fear, that drives them to do great things. I believe we all have that potential within us – to do great things, in spite of fear, because something matters to us more.

So ask yourself, have you ever gotten a cold? If so, then you could have the potential to become a Were in my world. Viruses are everywhere. Two, are you a loyal person who’d do anything to protect those you love? If so, you’ve got another reason you could deep down be a Werewolf. Third, can you decide to overcome your fears to reach out and do something, because accomplishing that thing, whether going back to school, raising your kids, speaking up for yourself, applying for a new job, might be more important than holding onto that fear? Then you, my friend are definitely tapping into your inner Were.

I hope you get a chance to read, One Night with the Shifter, and see how just an ordinary person from a small town turns into something extraordinary, then let me know what you think.

Oh, and one last question for you: if you could have any superpower, what would it be? (You never know, your superpower and name might end up in a future story someday.)
Thanks for visiting with me!

EXCERPT

The air was clean and cold outside. Ty’s head cleared, his senses grew sharper. The cool evening breeze, heavy with the salty scent of nearby Puget Sound, ruffled Jess’s hair, sticking honey-colored wisps to her full, rosy lips.

“You okay?” he asked as he gently tucked the strands back behind her ear.

Jess blinked, and stared up at him, a mixture of curiosity and disbelief in her eyes. “What just happened in there?”

He tried to give her a lopsided grin, but it turned into a wince when he found his jaw was tender from the hits the vampire had landed. He rubbed the soreness. The night air chilled the dribble of blood from the cut on his cheek, making it wet and cold, but there was no scent of vampire. The third one must have been smart enough to ditch his buddies. His body ached from the fight, but it would heal fast enough. “A bar fight with strangers.”

“You didn’t know those guys?” she asked, looking around her nervously. “They seemed pretty intent on messing with you.” She grazed the corner of his mouth with her fingertips. “You’re hurt.”

The light touch was enough to send a powerful surge of awareness pounding through him that wiped away any of the ache that remained. Damn. There was no doubt in his mind there was a strong Mesmer forming with this woman.

He gently moved her fingers away from his mouth, keeping them folded in his. Her hands were fine boned and slender and feminine. “No big deal.”

Her full lips tipped up into a soft smile, making him crave to kiss her. “Tough guy, huh?” She pulled a car remote from her pocket and pushed it, making the lights flash on a silver pickup on the edge of the dirt-and-gravel parking area beside the bar.

“Sounds like you’ve been around a few.”

She opened the driver’s door to the pickup and turned, standing in the gap, staring at him, her head tilted. “A few. But they’re nothing like you.”

Ty closed the gap between them, putting one hand on the door frame, shielding her from view of the parking lot but maintaining space between them. He knew better than to get close enough to be swamped by temptation. The Mesmer might be working on him, but that didn’t mean she’d understand if he came on too strong. Especially not after the fight.

“If you want to head home, I understand. I’ll stay here awhile and make sure those guys don’t follow you home.”

She reached out and grabbed fistfuls of his T-shirt near his collarbones, pulling him close until he was chest to chest with her. The soft swells of her breasts pressed against him and the minty scent of her hair, and hint of lilac on her skin teased his sensitive sense of smell. Everything within him went silent and still, fixated on the lush curve of her mouth so damn close to his he could feel the warmth of her breath.

“What I want is for you to come home with me.” Jess stood on her tiptoes and looked up into his face, the dark fringe of lashes around her eyes making the blue luminous. Her rapid pulse beat against his chest, taking over the rhythm until his matched the pace she set. For a second the world tilted sideways.

Ty’s gaze dropped to the silky, damp edge of her lips and he was lost. He dipped down and kissed her. Her lips were soft and willing, tasting of peppermint. She tasted so damn sweet, hot and spicy all at once. A warm, viscous heat flowed through his veins, coating and drowning out every other sensation until he was hot and hard at the same time.

Ty gripped the edge of the truck’s door frame, nearly denting the sheet metal with his fingertips. But he was determined to keep his hands to himself, even though they itched to touch her. Heat seeped through his shirt, the temperature difference amplified by the chill in the air. The kiss turned deeper, slicker, the tip of her tongue brushing against his. The spicy fragrance of female that spiked the air left no doubt she was aroused. When they broke apart, both of them were breathing hard, their breath creating misty white clouds.

“You sure about this?” He could control his body, but not the rough edge of his voice as he struggled to maintain composure. “I could follow you.”

Jess looked up at him, her dark lashes dropping a fraction, giving her a sultry look. “Hop in.”

He was smart enough not to argue with her, but that didn’t mean that the little voice of human reason in the back of his head wasn’t screaming loudly that this was stupid and rash. He should take his own vehicle so he didn’t get stuck who knew where. He didn’t know a damn thing about her. Couldn’t read her mind and certainly hadn’t asked enough questions. But this was a Mesmer, the wild Were instinct side of him shouted back. No one, Were especially, could blame him for responding so quickly and profoundly to her. And hell, he could always follow his nose and walk back if he needed to.

“Anything you say,” he answered. He waited until she climbed up into the cab, admiring the way the dark denim jeans hugged the curve of her ass, then closed the truck door and walked around the back of the pickup. An uneasy sensation raised the hairs on his skin. He glanced over his shoulder one last time to make sure they weren’t being followed.

One Night with the Shifter
Sons of Midnight Series
Book 4
Theresa Meyers


Genre: Paranormal romance
(vampires and werewolves)

Publisher: Harlequin Nocturne
Date of Publication: February 2014


ISBN: 978-0-373-88590-9
ASIN: B00EFPXT7W

Number of pages: 304 pages

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Book Description:

A one-night stand with a werewolf has unexpected consequences in Theresa Meyers's latest romance in the Sons of Midnight series.

After he is exiled from his pack, Tyee Grayson must learn to make it on his own. But one night with a beautiful stranger who has luminous blue eyes changes everything…. Especially when his instincts shout that she is the one.

All elementary school teacher Jessica Brierly wanted was a night on the wild side, but when she finds herself pregnant, all the rules change. Not only does her lover have more secrets than she ever imagined, but suddenly they're both fighting off vampires.

When vampires attack the town she dearly loves, Ty must work with his old pack to save them from a ruthless enemy who could kill not only his mate and his unborn child—but the entire human race.

About the Author:

Raised by a bibliophile who made the dining room into a library, Theresa has always been a lover of books and stories. First a writer for newspapers, then for national magazines, she started her first novel in high school, eventually enrolling in a Writer's Digest course and putting the book under the bed until she joined Romance Writers of America in 1993. In 2005 she was selected as one of eleven finalists for the American Title II contest, the American Idol of books. She is married to the first man she ever went on a real date with (to their high school prom), who she knew was hero material when he suffered through having to let her parents drive, and her brother sit between them in the backseat of the car.

They currently live in a Victorian house on a mini farm in the Pacific Northwest with their two children, three cats, two horses, an energetic mini-Aussie shepherd, a rabbit, parakeet and an out-of-control herb garden.

You can find her online at her website www.theresameyers.com or frequently on Twitter @Theresa_Meyers

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