"A Candle Loses Nothing By Lighting Another Candle" - Father James Keller


Wednesday, August 31, 2011

My Review of “Boyfriend from Hell” by e. van lowe


Book Description:

Aww, Hell No!

Fifteen year-old Megan Barnett and her single mom, Suze, have a special relationship—they are friends, close friends, who do almost everything together.

“But come on, guys, she’s my mother… Can I really tell her that while we’re snuggled up on the sofa watching Spider Man Three, I’m secretly undressing James Franco with my eyes? Of course not…”

The special bond takes a turn for the worse when Suze decides to start dating again. She hasn’t had a man in her life since Megan’s father left ten years ago.

Enter two mysterious young men, Megan’s new classmate, sinfully attractive bad boy, Guy Matson, and the dangerously handsome art dealer, Armando. Before long Megan and Suze both wind up in steamy relationships. But neither of the handsome guys is quite what he seems. In fact, one of them is Satan, with his sights set on a new bride. Megan has precious little time to figure out how to stop him. If she doesn’t, either Megan or Suze are quite literally going to HELL.

Boyfriend From Hell is the first book in the Falling Angels Saga from the author of the gruesomely hilarious, Never Slow Dance With A Zombie

Publication Date: September 2011 www.whitewhiskerbooks.com

My Book Review:

There is just no star rating for this one for me (by the way am I the only one who thinks the star rating system needs some guidelines? LOL)! What I mean by this is that as I read this book – liking it at times, not liking it as much at others, then really getting into it for awhile – I realized that my problems with it were probably what would make it a great YA book. Go ahead and laugh, but what I mean by this is that I am a mother of teens, and I think when I became annoyed with the main character Megan it was because the author had captured the true essence of a teenager. *shakes head* You know, the good, the bad, and well the illogical, Jeckyl & Hyde, mouthy, stand by what you believe at the moment even if you don’t have a leg to stand on, downright crazy at times transition from child to adulthood…

Megan Barnett had quite the personality – and, okay, quite a lot to deal with since her mom started dating Satan!

I found the plot cute, maybe a tad to clique at times, but definitely well thought out and laid out for the subject matter. It kept my interest, and I found myself reading away, a slight frustrated sigh at times and then a smile, etc. I think this book would be great for the younger YA crowd, especially since this author kept the book nice and clean besides a few kisses.

But, let me just mention, and this should grab the teens nicely, if you like books with big - BIG – twists at the end, then this one is definitely for you. I was blown away by all that happened at the end. Oh, and huge kudos to the author for making the outcast into a nice friend :) Talking myself into four stars if you are an adult reader and five if you are a teen! LOL

About The Author:

E. Van Lowe is an author, television writer, screenwriter, Playwright and Producer who has written and produced such shows as The Cosby Show, Even Stevens, and Homeboys In Outer Space. He has been nominated for both an Emmy and an Academy Award. Van Lowe recently stepped into the young adult fiction genre with his comedic novel, Never Slow Dance With A Zombie. It was a selection of the Scholastic Book Club, and a nominee for an
ALA Award. Boyfriend From Hell is Van Lowe’s second YA novel.

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Six Sentence Sunday August 28th, 2011


Go to the official site and read more six sentences from many wonderful authors: http://www.sixsunday.com/

This week my six comes from my historical, paranormal erotic romance, Torn Asunder.

The roses, elegant in their refinement, fell from one another with little grace as she undid the paper around them. Staggering back a few steps until her back met the wall, she slid down to the floor letting the wrapping and flowers fall where they may. Aubrey wrapped her arms tightly around her midsection. Her chest ached more with each beat of her heart as she swallowed hard, blinked away the mistiness over her eyes, and remembered.
      It had been the beginning of the season, a bit over a fortnight ago, when she first encountered Edmund Bryant, the Marquess of Dalysbury. Although she rolled her eyes still at the title, she felt compelled to live through it all again—through the days of fantasy in which she had allowed herself to participate. 


 Kiki Howell spins a wonderful tale of passion, magic, betrayal, and a love that conquers all. Enjoy."  ~NY Times Bestselling Author, Hannah Howell
FUNNY NOTE: Because everyone keeps asking, our names are a coincidence. For the full story read my blog post Dreams Do Come True

Blurb: Aubrey Griffen is a witch whose true reasons for coming to London soon fall to the wayside when she catches the eye of Edmund Bryant, the Marquess of Dalysbury.  He seduces her into a whirlwind romance until the lies and threats of his mother force her to flee to Triaill Brimuir, a secret island of her ancestors off the coast of Ireland. Edmund goes after her only to be hit by Aubrey’s confusion and anger when she magically transforms him into an elemental beast of her own creation.   

However, it is when Edmund’s lust mysteriously turns him back into a man that the couple are forced to deal with a family secret and untold of powers.  Now, Edmund must learn to shift himself into the beast in order to save her in a battle of black verses white magic. 

Fraught with scenes of explicit intimacy, romantic spells and mystical shapeshifting, Torn Asunder is a unique blending of the age of manners with sexual magic.

Genres: Historical (Regency), Paranormal (Witches & Shifters), Erotic Romance
Adult Content Warnings: Explicit Graphic Language, Violence
from Excessica Publishing

Purchase Novel in eBook $2.99 and Trade Paperback $9.99 online at retailers like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, All Romance Ebooks, and Smashwords

Torn Asunder 5 Star Reviews:

What a truly memorable and original novel! Torn Asunder brings to life the very essence of 19th Century England and Ireland, and in doing so, provides the reader with the feeling they are actually there! Only a rare talent can accomplish this, full of magic, drama and romance, Kiki Howell joins the ranks of the very top supernatural writers!  ~A JAMES MASON COMMUNITY BOOK CLUB MUST READ, RICK FRIEDMAN, FOUNDER 

Kiki Howell I feel has a major hit on her hands with Torn Asunder. I was so glued to this book that I was up til 4AM reading it…On a scale of 1-10 I give this book a 10 and encourage everyone 18 and over to get a copy of this book and fall under Aubrey and Emund's spell. It is so worth the ride.  ~  Review by Raquel Vega-Grieder for Sinfully Tasty Reads
"Never having read any of Kiko's books before, I was a tad unprepared for the exquisiteness of her story telling."  ~Vampirique Desire for Blood, Lust and Erotica  

Thursday, August 25, 2011

My Review of “Night Secrets” by BK Walker


After having the wonderful group of authors last week on ABA from the Romancing Your Dark Side Tour, I had to pick one of their books to read. I chose “Night Secrets” by BK Walker first, and was not disappointed.

Blurb:
Keara Crosby had the perfect life. Her family was not hurting for anything. When her parents are suddenly killed, Keara must learn to live without them. After mourning their death for two months, Keara starts to live again. She follows her favorite band, hangs with her best friend Jared, and falls for the new kid on the block.


When her favorite band is playing at Night Secrets, a new club downtown, she takes her first outing since her parents death and finds this mysterious boy watching her. Mesmerized by his lapus blue eyes, she can't help but feel drawn to him. Her body responds to him in ways she never thought possible, and she needs to figure out why. What is it about Channing that has her yearning for his touch?


Not only is Keara drawn to Channing, but the owner of Night Secrets seems to be drawn to her. Giving her special treatment, she can't help but wonder what he's hiding, and the sense she's seen him before. When she's attacked in the parking lot, her world turns inside out, literally. Keara will soon learn that secrets of the night, just may be the death of her.

My Review:

I have to say that I love paranormal stories like this one that not only include many different creatures from vamp to shifter to witch, pretty closely following the traditional lore with a few added additions to keep things fresh, but also, on top of that, throw into the mix some Celtic lore and any mention of Ireland… In this story, Night Secrets, the author, BK Walker, even added in quite well-written Irish slang.

The heroine, Keara, is strong despite the tragedies and obstacles thrown at her, even though she also reacts with the sadness and taking time by herself that you would expect of  the situations and her age – she is real and easy to identify with. Plus, she has all of these hunky Alpha males practically dying to protect her, so you want to live vicariously through her as well ;)  For a YA character, she was pretty hip (showing my own age with that word, right? LOL). But, being a mother of teens, she was into what teens are into these days. There were nice touches of culture with great music and clothing references.

Just as much as I love reading, I love listening to music. So I really liked the sub-plot with the band and the groupie type situations and settings. Some stories just have that something unique that draws you in and makes you remember the novel. For me, I will always remember her interaction with a certain band member :)

Speaking of memorable, there were some great surprises in this tale. BK Walker pens a great story for when you are in a fantasy mood and want to relive your teenage years with witches and shifters and vampires and more…


About the Author:

BK Walker currently lives in Central Pennsylvania with her three children, Brittney, Hunter and Danny, her dogs Rancid, Sadie and Haven, a cat named Whiskers and a goldfish named Fat Albert. She has always had a love for reading and writing, even as a child she created stories reading them to her stuffed animals. With a love for vampires and werewolves, you will not be disappointed with her writing as she mixes up the paranormal juice. Aside from writing, BK also supports Indie Authors organizing virtual book tours, helping them to market and promote their work. Her book review site, BWB Reviews, is just another small way she contributes to the reading world. With many stories floating around in her head, she writes when she gets the time between working as a Pediatric Home Care Nurse, being a single mother, and continuing her college education in Graphic Art Design.When she's not arguing with her muse, you will often find her at a baseball game with her boys or drinking iced coffee from Dunkin Donuts enjoying a good book.

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Jennifer Labelle Reviews “Irish Fling” by Valerie Douglas


Irish Fling Blurb:
At a crossroads in her life and career, orphaned Ali Dearborn had
always been the smart one. With near perfect recall, she accomplished
a lot in a very short time. A meteoric rise led to an equally meteoric
fall. With her life and career in shambles, she goes in search of her
mother's roots in
Ireland. Lost, she offers handsome Aidan O'Connell a
lift from his broken-down car and she gains an impromptu tour guide.
But is Aidan only looking for a brief Irish Fling?

Click Here to Purchase at Amazon

Review of Irish Fling:
The author does an amazing job with this well written tale of love at
first sight. Ali Dearborn is at a crossroads in her career and in
life. Orphaned at a young age, she moved around living in various
foster homes. She travels to Ireland with a dual purpose in mind, one
is to re-visit the Irish roots belonging to her mother, making her
feel connected to a family she’s longed for, and the other is to put
her new business plan into action.

Her sense of direction is horrible, lost almost immediately after her
arrival fate steps in, in the form of a gorgeous dark haired, blued
eyed Irishman named Aidan O’Connell. He’s stranded by the side of the
road with a broken-down car, and she’s in need of directions. While
entranced by his sexy good looks, easy going attitude, and sexy Irish
brogue, he designates himself as her very own personal tour guide, and
she accepts. Having him around will certainly make her life easier.
There’s a chemistry between the two of them, and there are several
historical spots along the way that she’d like to see, but is Aidan
only looking for an Irish fling or is he willing to accept her heart
with something more permanent before it’s too late? Ali is full of
surprises, and it isn’t until he almost loses her that he gets a
wake-up call, and Ali is deemed a hero.

This is the second book I’ve read in this Valerie Doulgas series about
a group of four friends, Ali, Cam, Maggie and Jesse who didn’t have a
normal family life, but found each other and made their own. So far
I’ve read Ali’s Story “Irish Fling”, and Maggie’s story “Director’s
Cut”, and I’m looking forward to reading about
Cam in “Dirty Politics”
and Jesse in “Two Up”. What can I say, I’m hooked!

Reviewed By:
Jennifer Labelle, Romance with a dash of spice, Author of “Meant To Be”



Meant To Be Blurb:
Jenna Baker is shaken up after her recovery with a near death
experience. As if, being haunted with visions and losing her husband in a car accident weren’t hard enough. Could she be losing her mind? She finally moves on, only to have the husband she thought was dead suddenly reappear.

After the shocking task of convincing Jenna that she’s not seeing his ghost,
Tyler becomes overwhelmed with guilt for saving himself and leaving her to almost die. Jenna’s recovery takes its toll while Tyler’s vulnerability gets the best of him. He’s harbouring secrets that will devastate her and as Jenna unravels the truth her life takes an unexpected journey.

Rated "Best Book" By Whipped Cream Reviews:
http://whippedcream2.blogspot.com/2011/03/meant-to-be-by-jennifer-labelle.html

Available in Ebook and in Print!
http://secretcravingspublishing.mybigcommerce.com/products/Meant-To-Be.html

Kiki here! I have to chime into this guest review because I loved “Meant To Be” by Jennifer LaBelle. So, sharing my review too: http://authorsbyauthors.blogspot.com/2011/05/my-review-of-meant-to-be-by-jennifer.html

Monday, August 22, 2011

Guest Post: Authors Who Have Inspired Me by Stacey Thompson-Geer


First, I wanted to thank Authors by Authors for having me today. I feel honored to share my work and my time with you guys. :)

I was asked to talk about authors that have inspired me. That is a long list and only getting longer as I find more authors who I love to read. I'll start with some of the authors I remember from when I was younger.

I think the biggest inspiration for me and my writing comes from Stephen King. I started in horror and still venture back into it from time to time. I love the way he captures you in a story and keeps you guessing. He really knows how to create a character you love to hate or really want to see get through what he puts them into. I have my old tattered copy of Firestarter sitting on my shelf. It's my favorite book from him.

I also have books from Kelley Armstrong. She was one of the first paranormal authors I read. I love her characters and how she constructs a story. The first book I read from her was Dime Store Magic. I read it in less than three days and moved on to Industrial Magic and the rest in her Otherworld Series. I'm reading her latest, Spell Bound right now.

Another author I enjoy is Vicki Petterson. She has a tough style that I find fun to read. I also love her personality. She is nice to those she runs across and is a fun person to talk to. If you can run into her at a convention, do it. She's a really great person.

These are only a few of the writers I enjoy or have inspired me. There are so many out there and so many to find each day. The total list is just too long to write out. :P


Silver Moon By Stacey Thompson-Geer

After 130 years, you’d think I would know better than to go looking for trouble, but I just can’t seem to help myself. The council wants me to catch a werewolf. I just want to paint my nails. Rose is a bitchy sarcastic vampire that ends up hunting a werewolf in, of all places, Las Vegas. She finds very quickly that things are not going to go as planned.

Links: 

Wicked Nights: 


About Stacey Thompson-Geer

Stacey is a wife and mother of three. She started writing in High School with horror short stories. One of her first is now published through the kindle - Silver Bullet. When she's not dreaming up her next story or novel, she can be found hanging out with her kids or reading one of her favorite authors. She is also an avid Facebooker and Twitter user. Stop by her website to see what she's working on and any of her backlist work. 

www.staceythompsongeer.com

www.staceythompsongeer.co.cc

Twitter @staceytg

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=1529648509

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Six Sentence Sunday August 21st, 2011

Go to the official site and read more six sentences from many wonderful authors: http://www.sixsunday.com/

Another six from my angel and demon novella, A Questionable Hero, published by kNight Romance Publishing.

“Breathe, Abdamas,” she said, exhaling.
“I am fine. Don’t pull your hand from me, not yet.” His deep, full groan of ecstasy was
strangled by a hiss of despair.
Their shame-tainted bliss mingled as she battled her own demons.
There was no denying the way she responded.

A Questionable Hero Blurb:
Born of a mortal woman but raised in Hell by the demon that sired him, Abdamas is a Halfling—proof incarnate of the war between good and evil that exists in each of us. Shaebiel is an angel warrior earning her ultimate salvation in Heaven by fighting demons like Abdamas who are in search of human souls on Earth.

In the heat of a raging battle , Abdamas sees Shaebiel and wants her. When the blade of another demon aims for her, Abdamas is injured himself trying to save her. Shaebiel can’t believe a demon has rescued her from certain death and takes her questionable hero home with her to heal him.

As they both fight and surrender to their desires, the conflict around them continues, and there is Heaven and Hell to pay for their actions. Through divine intervention they are offered a gift. But Hell is nowhere near finished with either of them, and the stakes are getting higher and higher.

Can a questionable hero sacrifice enough to redeem himself in the eyes of Heaven so that he may claim the love of an angel? 

I recently finished up the wonderful paranormal romance "A Questionable Hero" By Kiki Howell. Once I started reading this love story I had a difficult time getting my nose out of my Nook and back into reality since it was action packed from start to finish with very little breathing room in between the pages! ~Punky’s Book Raves
 
“The world-building Kiki Howell did in this story is uncanny as this is what I always believed angels and demons to be.  The romance and characters came alive on the page for me. I was personally involved in their happiness and craved the resolution as deeply as Abdamas and Shaebiel did!”  ~Nas Dean, Romance Book 
Paradise

“A Questionable Hero kept me pulled into the storyline from page one and I read it in one sitting. You realize quickly that the battle between good and evil aren’t black and white, there are shades of gray. If you like a fast hot read, with a touch of paranormal, and good versus evil thrown into the mix, then I would recommend this  book.” ~Gracen Miller, Author of Pandora’s Box

Genres: Urban Fantasy (Angels and Demons), Erotic Romance
Adult Content Warnings: Explicit Graphic Language and Violence

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE  KINDLE EDITION FROM AMAZON
CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE  NOOKBOOK FROM BARNES & NOBLE

Saturday, August 20, 2011

Romancing Your Dark Side Tour – BK Walker Interviews Kristie Cook



This interview was conducted by BK Walker,  author of Night Secrets ,  and she is interviewing Kristie Cook, author of Promise

About the Author, Kristie Cook:
Kristie Cook is a lifelong writer in various genres, from marketing communications to fantasy fiction. Besides writing, she enjoys reading, cooking, traveling and riding on the back of a motorcycle. She has lived in ten states, but currently calls Southwest Florida home with her husband, three teenage sons, a beagle and a puggle. She can be found at www.KristieCook.com.

About The Book, Promise:
Promise will be re-released with a new cover and new content. While nearly the same as the 2010 release, this revised version tells the author's original story with a twist in events and a telling scene that had been deleted from the 2010 edition. Discover the story as the author intended - "the way it really happened." 

The Interview:
1. What inspired this particular novel?
Promise actually was inspired by the writing of Purpose, the second book in the series. The seed of angels and demons had been germinating in my mind for years, but it wasn’t until I made a conscious decision to start writing fiction again that any real idea came. A pivotal scene in Purpose first came to mind and I wrote it out, just playing around. Then I knew how this interaction between the two characters would lead to a climax – the ending of Purpose. But first, I had to go backward, to figure out how these people arrived at that pivotal scene. Promise eventually became its own book.
2. What made you decide to make it a series?
Promise and Purpose were originally written as one book and by the time I finished the first draft, I knew it was just the first installment of a long tale. I originally thought five books, but then Promise and Purpose became two instead of one, making six, and then a new plot twist added during revisions made me realize another book needed to fall in there. That book is Devotion, the third one, coming out February 2012. There will be a total of seven, along with some side stories, such as the upcoming Genesis, a prequel of sorts.
3. Who is your favorite character and why?
Ooooh. That’s a hard one. I love Alexis, the main character, like a daughter. Tristan makes me swoon and my heart hurts for all he has to deal with—he has a composed exterior, but he’s horribly scarred on the inside. Much of that still hasn’t come out in the books, but Iknow, so I hurt for him. I also love Owen and Dorian and even the main villain so far (which may surprise readers, but as you get to know her more, you’ll see why). There are other characters who haven’t had prominent face-time yet, but they do in future books, so I’m just starting to get to know them.
4. When wrting, I often find myself arguing with my muse, do you ever find this happening to you, trying to make the story go one way and your muse refuses to give in?
Heh. Yeah. I’ve tried. I lose. Every single time. Well, actually, I won with the original release of Promise, which was a mistake. I should have let the muse have her way. She’d been nagging me for a year that it was wrong. And now she’s won with the re-releases this month, which tell the stories “as they really happened.” She and I feel so much better to have the “truth” out there. When I’m writing, I’ve found that writer’s block hits me when I’m trying to make something go my way, rather than letting the muse/characters tell me how it really goes. I learned early to pay attention to the muse while writing. Now I’ve learned to never stop listening, all the way through revisions to the final copy.
5. Often when reading, we find ourselves imagining the characters as an actor/actress that we've seen on TV or movies. Who do you see playing the parts of your characters?
Any time I think about it, I always come up with composites – a little bit of this person and a little bit of that, with a third person’s nose/hair/body/etc. But I don’t ever cast my characters publicly. I prefer the reader to make the characters theirs. I give them a few attributes to get started, but then let them decide what, for example, “Mr. Beautiful” looks like to them. I think it makes for a more personal reading experience. I know I, as a reader, prefer not to have an exact face provided for me. I want to imagine it on my own. For this same reason, I don’t like faces of my main characters on my covers.
6. What was the most difficult part of writing Promise?
The first third and the ending, which took an emotional toll on me. The beginning has been rewritten a gazillion times. When I decided to re-release the books, I went back through drafts to remind myself what parts I wanted put back in and found so many different takes on the same scenes. I also found some deleted scenes that I miss just as much, but I know they weren’t really best for the story. So what has been put back in is what needed to be in, not just a restoration of the first drafts. The point is that there are scenes in the beginning that need to be there for the rest of the book – or the rest of the series – but they still had to be interesting, full of tension, help move this part of the story forward, etc. It was difficult pulling it all together. As for the ending, you just have to read it and you’ll understand.
7. What have you learned about yourself through becoming a writer?
I’ve discovered my true passion and my purpose. Writing has been a part of my life since I was 8 years old and penned my first short story. But I didn’t ever think I had a novel in me and about the time I became an adult, I also became practical (funny how that happens) and decided fiction writing wasn’t my forte. I was supposed to use my talents in the world of business, I decided. I think I needed that experience to get me to a place to write fiction again. Once I did, it just started flowing and I’ve loved every minute of it. Well, not revisions so much, but even through those, my passion burns because I want the best story possible. I won awards for my writing in business and many people benefitted, but with fiction, I can touch so many more lives. Even if it’s just an escape from their stress-filled worlds for a few hours, I’ve given them a little bit of enjoyment. And I think that’s what I’m supposed to do with the gifts I’ve been given. I’m lucky to have discovered this now. I wish I had earlier in life, but am glad that I at least did discover it.
8. Have you always thought of yourself as a writer?
Since I was 8 and in the third grade. My whole life, through various stages and careers, has included writing as a significant part of it.
9. What do you hope readers will take away from your books?
The satisfaction of reading a good story. And that there is hope for all of us, even the most depraved – we just have to embrace it.
10. What can readers expect in the future from this series?
Promise and Purpose are primarily about the love story between two people, from star-crossed lovers to husband and wife. The rest of the series is about different kinds of love – love for family, for friends and community, for strangers and even for our enemies. There will be battles and all-out war. There will be heartbreaking losses and soul-lifting wins. These first two books are just a springboard into the real action of the story. The best has yet to come. J

Thank you, BK, for interviewing me! These were some great questions. Thank you, too, Kiki, for hosting us. And thank you, readers, for giving your time to get to know more about my books. I hope you’ll take a peek at them.

Thank you too Kristie! I love getting to know you better.

*Virtual Gift Basket Giveaway - Ebooks upon Ebooks, swag, goodies.*
Comment to enter all week long, August 14 – 20th Winner will be chosen on the 21 :)

In accordance with the new FTC Guidelines for blogging and endorsements, Kiki Howell of An Author's Musings, would like to advise that in addition to purchasing my own books to review, I also receive books, and/or promotional materials, free of charge in return for an honest review, as do any guest reviewers.