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Dream Walking- October Frights 2020

Hello Lovelies,

I’m so excited to be part of Anita Stewart’s October Frights Blog Hop, 2020. For those new to October Frights, a group of phenomenal authors get together and share fun posts to get you in the Halloween spirit. Some are short stories, some are scenes from a book, but all are designed to help you get in the mood for my favorite holiday of the year! And for those who like to experience that mood all year long, there’s usually a pretty awesome giveaway too, so be sure to read through this whole post to learn about the other stops and how to enter into the giveaway!

October Frights Past

Here is my entry from 2018, sharing Survivalist Bible

Dream Walking

I am falling! But this time it is different. I can see a blurry shape above me, perhaps a bridge? I feel big fat raindrops falling on my face and in my open mouth as I scream… yet no sound comes out. I wait for the moment when I awake. This happens every time, right before I hit the ground, but this time I hit and sink and don’t wake up.

Instead my head submerges in icy cold water, and I can feel it rushing in my mouth and out my nose. My eyes slam close, yet the water gets in anyway. I can feel myself being tossed about in the tumultuous waves. My lungs are burning, but every time I try to splutter the water out and inhale fresh air, a wave forces more water in! I try to swim, but the heavy wet clothes pull me down.

The panic is rising, along with the water. I shrug out of my coat and feel the water rip it away from me. The world is going dark, and the burning sensation in my lungs feels like it is numbing. Sluggishly, I try to swim, but to where? After only a few seconds, I give up. It is too hard.

My head hits something really hard, the pain pulling me back from the cold darkness. I open my eyes and see red all around me. I panic, trying to get to up, but I don’t know which way that is….

And then I woke up.  This was the most vivid dream I had ever had, and at 7 years old, I had no reference for what I had experienced. I remember running to my mom’s room crying, and her pulling me into bed only to realize that I was drenched in sweat. She gave me a warm bath, but the water terrified me. After getting me into a clean pair of pajamas, she took me downstairs and made me a glass of warm milk. While I sipped on the milk she assured me that it was just a dream and that I was fine. When she put me back to bed she sang me to sleep for the first time in a very long time.

The next weekend, my family went with some friends on a hike in Yellowstone, a pretty common experience for us. As we were heading in, there was a traffic stop. My brother and I were playing in the backseat and didn’t really pay attention to what was happening.

We arrived at the trail head that we enjoyed most, as it led down to the river. The river was a lot of fun, because you could see fish and birds, and you could find the absolute best skipping stones! My mom’s friend Jeff was teaching me to skip stones and I was really excited.

As we were walking up to the bridge, I got a sort of sick feeling in my stomach. Going over the bridge I got dizzy and slowed down. Mom noticed me lagging behind and gestured for me to keep up. When we got to the other side, Jeff sent us looking for stones. “Be careful on the water’s edge, the storms the last week have caused the river to swell,” he admonished.

The rushing water wooshed along, causing a dull roar. The normally placid river was frothing and murky from all the sand being kicked up. Looking into the water, I could see sticks and logs, and other objects being sucked along. Watching the objects being pulled under, and then coming back up reminded me of the nightmare that had scared me so badly earlier in the week.

I didn’t want to skip rocks anymore. I didn’t want to be anywhere near that water! I stayed close to the tree line, wandering along and looking at the animal tracks in the mud. Away from the water, my anxiety eased a bit. A Western Meadowlark was singing in the trees and I searched for her, hoping to see her nest and maybe some babies. I was obsessed with babies.

The wind started picking up, and the sky grew stormy. The spring storm moved in quickly and the adults gathered us to head back. As big icy drops began falling from the sky, I stared up in absolute horror. I was frozen in fear. There was no way I was going anywhere near that bridge. Jeff had to scoop me up and carry me. He carried me all the way back to the car. By the time we got back to the car it was storming and we were all soaked to the bone. My mom started the car and waited for the windows to defog before pulling out onto the road. The weather left the children quiet and staring out the windows.

“I sure hope they find that poor girl,” Jeff muttered to my mom. My ears perked up, curious about what girl they were referring to.

“Can you imagine, being lost in Yellowstone for almost a week? Poor thing.”

“These storms are no good,” Jeff added darkly, “washing away tracks and scents, and leaving her soaked.” He shook his head.

“Do you think she is still alive?” My mom asked.

“Hard to say. If she were smart, could start a fire, maybe….” He left the thought hanging. I didn’t think he sounded like he thought she was still alive.

A week later, my mom was listening to the radio while she was making dinner. My brother and I were playing with his cars in the living room. The news came on and my mom turned it up as one story caught her attention.

“The body of 15 year old Sarah Margoulis was found this morning by searchers in Yellowstone. She was caught in a pile of debris floating in the Yellowstone River. Although they do not know exactly how she died, it is presumed that she drown. She has been dead approximately two weeks.  Our hearts and prayers go out to her family….”

It is presumed that she drown… that was what I had dreamed that night. Drowning! Is it possible that I was there with her, my spirit wandering in my dreams as the Native Americans taught? Although the idea scared me, I couldn’t help wondering if she knew I was there. If my presence made her feel less alone.

October Frights 2020

Here are the other amazing participants this year:


Night to Dawn Magazine & Books LLC

Hawk’s Happenings

Curiosities

James McDonald

Always Another Chapter

Spreading the Writer’s Word

Yours in Storytelling

Carmilla Voiez

Hello Romance

GirlZombieAuthors

Frighten Me

M’habla’s!

Angela Yuriko Smith

Brain Matter

NLCARTERWRITES.COM

The Giveaway

Love all the thrills you’ve seen through the hop? Be sure to take advantage of the 22 books that these amazing authors are also giving to those who participate in the blog hop. I’ve read The 13 Tales of Illusory by Stephanie Ayers, and am so excited to enjoy these other books!

The October Frights Giveaway  

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The Music Behind Riftmaker

The Music Behind Riftmaker

A guest post by Phoebe Darqueling

Hello Lovelies, 

Today we have a delightful guest post from steampunk and portal fantasy author Phoebe Darqueling, as one of the stops on her tour for her latest novel Riftmaker. This is such a fun post as we haven’t had anyone talk about music recently. I hope you enjoy! 

There are a few topics that come up in online writing groups over and over again. How to get over writer’s block in its various iterations takes the #1 spot, but the question of what music people listen to while writing easily comes in somewhere in the top 5. While many people prefer silence, I am definitely one of those people that needs a little something extra going on in the background in order to find my flow.

Movies and Soundtracks

While I was writing Riftmaker, I had two methods for creating the right environment for writing this adventure about a dog who wakes up in a human body after falling through a rift in time and space. The first was to put on movies in the background. No just any movie would do, though. I would cycle through the Harry Potter films, then all of Lord of the Rings, then Pirates of the Caribbean. Then it would start all over again. This would drive a lot of people absolutely insane, but for me, it just worked. For one thing, I’d seen them all several times already, so I wasn’t distracted by the plots. But I also think a huge reason for their appeal was that they had soundtracks that captured the kind of mood I wanted to write.

Hans Zimmer, who wrote the music for both Pirates of the Caribbean and the recent Sherlock Holmes films, immediately comes to mind. He has a very old world feeling that really lends itself to writing Steampunk/Gaslamp Fantasy. The Harry Potter films had various composers, but one thing that’s true for all of the movie soundtracks I enjoy writing to is that there are string instruments involved. I never played the violin myself, but I find that it speaks to me in a way that really gets my creative juices flowing.

Old Meets New

Which brings me to the other music that inspired Riftmaker. Around the time I started writing this book, I also discovered Lindsey Stirling. She’s a fantastic musician who mixes her classical violin training with contemporary music styles like electronic dance music and dubstep. It was love at first listen, and I started building a playlist on Pandora around her music. Soon, that led me to artists like Caravan Palace and Beats Antique, that borrow from older musical traditions and mash them up together or with new beats.

The songs of movie soundtracks and of the artists I mentioned have two important things in common. They rarely have words and they always have a driving beat. I find this kind of stimulation propels me forward to the next sentence, and pretty soon I’ve got a paragraph, and then a chapter.

More than Just Background Noise

But the influence of these string/electronic mashups didn’t stop at just helping me feel motivated to write. When I sat down to start Riftmaker, I was sure of two characters, but the rest just sort of showed up of their own accord.

I knew that one of these people needed to have a best friend, but I hadn’t gotten any farther than that when I had to idea to make him a musician. Suddenly, Jeremy sprouted fully formed from my brain and the scene that opens the book fell into place. (If you’d like to find out more about Jeremy, you can check out this character spotlight I did earlier in the blog tour.) I’d always heard that music could be inspiring, but I’d never realized how influential it can be in the turning points of creating a story. From a electronic remix of Bach’s Fugue in G Minor, I gained a whole person, and Jeremy’s complicated feelings about his friend and his place in the world became central to telling my story about prejudice, acceptance, and finding your way to who you want to be as an adult.

For your listening pleasure, I created a Spotify playlist with just a few of the songs that are the soundtrack of this book. Listen now.  If you don’t already have Spotify, you can sign up for free and listen on your computer or phone. Find out more.

Riftmaker is available for $3.99 from Amazon and a variety of other e-book retailers. Print price is $18.99 from Amazon and the Our Write Side store.

Find more character spotlights, book reviews, guest posts, and interviews with Phoebe Darqueling during the Riftmaker blog tour, Jan 24 – Mar 6.  

Do you like free books? Sure you do! Sign up for Phoebe’s monthly emails and get a FREE COPY of The Steampunk Handbook right now.

​​

Phoebe Darqueling is the pen name of a globe-trotting vagabond who currently hangs her hat in Freiburg, Germany. In her “real life” she writes curriculum for a creativity competition for kids in MN. She loves all things Steampunk and writes about her obsession on SteampunkJournal.org. She’s been part of several Collaborative Writing Challenge releases, and you can also find her short horror retelling of Pinocchio in The Queen of Clocks and Other Steampunk Tales. Her first novels, Riftmaker and No Rest for the Wicked, are hitting shelves Spring 2019. You can find more of Phoebe’s antics on her website, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Thanks so much for joining us! Look forward to a review from me shortly on Riftmaker as I have thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

Until next time, 

Keep Reading!

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Book Review: Anaerfell by Joshua Robertson

Aenerfell Book Review

Hello Lovelies,

Happy New Year and let’s start it off right! I have an exciting new review for you!

Genre: High fantasy

Synopsis: The Blood of Dragons: Book 1

2017 International Award-Winning Novel in Epic Fantasy

Drast and Tyran might be considered a bit black-hearted, or even immoral. Drast is cunning but reckless, hunting for admiration. Tyran is calculating but tactless, searching for affection. When the two brothers set aside their ambitions to fulfill their father’s desire for immortality, they readily discover many opportunities for redemption. Now, while wielding a powerful magic that drains their life, Drast and Tyran will embark on a maddening quest, facing skin-switchers, dragons, and the God of the Dead.

My take: Anaerfell is a delightful introduction to the Thrice nine Legends world. The same world where Kaelandur series takes place and man, Robertson once again grabs you by the guts, twists, and rips them out. The characters you want to love and care for, you end up hating and the ones you love end up being not the characters you should. (Except Erzebeth. SQUEE!!!) This is not a story for people who want heroes and clear cut good and evil. This is not a story for those who want a happy ending or who want a satisfying wrap up to a story. But I really understand even more why Robertson lists George R.R. Martin as one of his inspirations. Anaerfell has beautiful world building that is not so daunting as Martin’s work, and action scenes that play just like a movie in your head as you read. For those who are lamenting the end of GoT, this is definitely a very satisfying replacement to that series with characters that I think are just as fun to love and hate and long for their deaths.

Take a peek inside on Amazon

If you want to learn more about the Thrice Nine Legends world, or the Blood of Dragons series, or Joshua Robertson, or just to see some fantastic fantasy geekiness then visit his website RobertsonWrites. Trust me, you will not be disappointed!

Don’t miss my review of Book 2 in the series, Dyndaer and book 3, Maharia 

 

Until Next Time,

Keep Reading!

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Under a Hunter’s Moon Re-Release

Under The Hunter's Moon Re-release

Hello Lovelies, 
As some of you may recall, about a year ago I reviewed Under A Hunter’s Moon, an interesting urban fantasy shifter novel by Timothy Bateson. *Hint, I enjoyed it!*
Well, Tim has some exciting news:
He’s got “Under A Hunter’s Moon” re-release on wide distribution, with a live date of June 26th 2018, and currently available for pre-order at many ebook retailers. I absolutely LOVE the new cover!

​​About “Under A Hunter’s Moon “Richard Parsons is a maverick wolf-shifter with a tendency to find trouble. When a traveling exhibition returns to the McCaw Museum Richard finds that he has personal reasons to visit after hours. His audacious plan goes awry when a particular display forces painful memories to the surface. Can Richard face down the demons of his past before the police become aware of his presence? Where to order: 
AmazonSmashwordsKoboBarnes & Noble & iBooks

Retail Price for eBook: $0.99 (USD)eBook ISBN: 9780463358368eBook ASIN: B07CS1SQ8T  

About The Author
Timothy Bateson is a writer who broke into the market in 2014, with three short stories being featured in Halloween and science-fiction anthologies. In 2016, Bateson self-published a re-release of “Under A Hunter’s Moon”, the first of several stories set in the “Shadows Over Seattle” world, which he co-writes with his wife, Sandi Bateson is also a blogger who often spotlights books and fellow indie authors, alongside his other interests, such as the Brain to Books Cyber Convention events, falconry, journaling, quotes, and reading.

So go get this fun summer read and get hooked on the world of Shadows over Seattle today! 
Until next time, 

Keep Reading!

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Army of Brass, a Steampunk Adventure, Release Announcement

Army of Brass Announcement

Hello Lovelies,

Steampunk celebrates its 31st birthday on April 27, so join in the festivities with the high-flying adventure, Army of Brass.

“Steampunk” began as a literary genre, but has expanded to include fashion, music, art, and live events all over the world. During 2017, in honor of author K.W. Jeter coining the term in 1987, Steampunk Journal editor Phoebe Darqueling and the Collaborative Writing Challenge joined forces to create an amazing work that blurs the line between science and magic. Twenty international authors contributed chapters to this story full of gadgets, romance, and political intrigue set against the backdrop of a fantasy world informed by the culture of the 19th century.

What is Army of Brass About?

When the mad conqueror haunting Elaina’s dreams invades her adopted homeland, the real nightmare becomes what she’s willing to do to stop him.

The dreaded Hunter Baron has landed on the shores of Mailderet, but Master Tinkerer Elaina Gable believes she has the solution. Giant automatons sit rusting in the valley, waiting for someone with the drive and ingenuity to bring them to life. But the king, swayed by the destruction his ancestors wrought centuries before, harbors a deep-seated fear of the machines. Though he will not allow the alliance of Tinkerers and Smiths to complete the work, Elaina resolves to bring the machines back to life in secret—with the help of a famous airship pilot.

From the safety of the swamps, a woman with silver skin jealously guards the secrets of the automatons. Though the Silver Woman also wishes the past to remain buried, she must weigh the value of secrecy against the thousands of innocents her hesitation might send to the grave.

As they discover the link between the toxic valley and the inner workings of the automatons, Elaina and her allies are drawn into a web of deceit threatening the balance of power across two continents—and proving the truth behind the deadly legends surrounding the Army of Brass.

Read Chapter 1 NOW on Steampunk Journal

Pre-order your ebook copy of Army of Brass for $.99 and receive it on Friday, April 27!

Plus, Join us on Facebook April 28-29 to meet the writers, participate in giveaways, and more!

Speaking of giveaways, we’ve got one going on for the entire blog tour, so between April 13-May 13, enter to win ebooks from our writers.

Collaborative Writing Challenge: www.collaborativewritingchallenge.com

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Meet the Author with Nancy Christie

Nancy Christie

Hello Lovelies,

I am so delighted to introduce you to a wonderful woman whom I have been following for quite some time. Nancy Christie is the author of Rut-Busting Book for Writers (Mill City Press), Traveling Left of Center and Other Stories (Pixel Hall Press) and The Gifts Of Change (Atria/Beyond Words). Her short stories and essays have appeared in numerous print and online publications. A professional writer based in Ohio, Christie provides copywriting services to agencies, businesses and organizations nationwide through her company, Professional Writing Services. A member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors, Florida Writers Association and Short Fiction Writers Guild (SFWG), Christie teaches writing workshops at conferences, libraries and schools. She is also the founder of the annual “Celebrate Short Fiction” Day.

​​Hello, Nancy, welcome to An Angell’s Life of Bookish Goodness. How are you?

Wishing I had a personal assistant or publicist or, at the very least, someone to clean my house! Seriously, like most writers and authors, I am simultaneously focusing on multiple tasks: completing copywriting projects for clients, working on my upcoming “Celebrate Short Fiction” Day event and promoting my newest book—the latter involving events in both Ohio and Florida!

I totally understand wanting a Personal Assistant. You are definitely very busy! What is the current book you are promoting?

That would be Rut-Busting Book for Writers—my newest baby! Rut-Busting Book for Writers, offers strategies to get you unstuck, along with inspiring words and proactive suggestions from other writers who have “been there and done that” and are now willing to share their knowledge and experience. By following the tips in this book, you’ll spend less time trapped in your particular writing rut and more time following your creative passion!

I remember when you asked me for permission to use a quote from our interview a few years ago to go in the book. What inspired this book?

​​ The book is an outgrowth of my popular “Rut-Busting” Workshop for Writers that I’ve been offering for several years. Every time I presented it, attendees asked if there was a book that went with it. So this past April, after I finished the edits to one of my novels and my second short story collection, I set myself a goal to have the manuscript drafted and ready to send to my editor, Ann Henry, by June 1st. I was a little behind schedule but I got it to her, made the recommended changes, then turned it over to Mill City Press for production.

What is your next project?

I actually have two in mind. The first involves my second short story collection, Peripheral Visions and Other Stories. I have plans to bring it out next year—either traditionally published or with Mill City—and I’m very excited about it! The other is my novel-in-progress, Reinventing Rita. One of the publishers I had submitted it to wants to see if after I complete some revisions, so with the help of Dawn Reno Langley, I’m going to make some major improvements that I hope will pass muster!

If you could never write again, what would you do?

I’ve no idea. Being a writer is so much a part of me—it is me—that I can’t envision a life where I am not writing. I started writing in second grade and have pretty much kept at it. And those times in my life when, for one reason or another, I wasn’t writing or couldn’t write, were dark days indeed. I like doing other things, but there is nothing that is as necessary for me as writing.

Thank you for joining us, Nancy, and congrats on Rut-busting book for Writers. I can’t wait to read it. Want to take a peek inside?

Want to learn more about Nancy? Visit her website at www.nancychristie.com

Find her on Social Media:

Amazon Author page

Facebook Page

LinkedIn

Twitter: @NChristie_OH

Goodreads

And to learn more about her Short Fiction Celebration Day Here.

Until next time, 

Keep Reading!

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Malpherities from Konn Lavery’s Mental Damnation

Malpherities from Konn Lavery's Mental Damnation

I have a delightful Halloween treat for you! Remember when we had Konn Lavery over for an interview? Well he is back to introduce us to one of his more delicious characters. With that, I will let him introduce you to:

Malpherities, the ghostly companion of Krista

​​ Malpherities is a ghoul who crosses between the real world and in Krista’s dreams, in the realm known as Dreadweave Pass. He accompanies her throughout the novel Dream: Part 2 of Mental Damnation, informing her about the do’s and don’ts of the realm-crossing ‘gift’ as he refers to. He shrouds himself in mystery and leaves bitter remarks with everyone she encounters. He proves himself to be more of a nuisance than helpful. Despite his busyness of informing Krista of the horrors of Dreadweave Pass, today we are lucky enough to peg him down to share more about his personality, past and why he is so vague to Krista.

Malpherities, thanks for taking the time to talk with us, care to tell us a bit about yourself?

You caught me with a moment to spare, so let’s chat a bit before I have to return to Krista and her dilemmas at the High Barracks. I am a ghoul, a creature that is born from Death’s Vortex. I am able to enter and leave the afterlife as I please. I have explored many worlds in many realms throughout my lifetime.

Death’s Vortex? That sounds dangerous, what is it?

*chuckles* every mortal says a variation of that. It is an endless spiral of souls moving ever closer to the bliss of the universe.

That’s rather vague… can you tell us more?

​​ That is what it is, it is not my fault you cannot conceptualize it for what it is. What else can I say? Unless you experience the spiral, you do not truly know it for what it is.

Alright, moving on, you mentioned you have explored many worlds and realms in your life, how have you been able to do this?

Unlike mere mortals, I have mastered the ability known as “realm-crossing”. Something that you can train your mind to do with enough practice. Chances are you have heard of meditation, it is very similar to this but you are able to project yourself into another existence with the raw ability of your will. Some mortals referred to this ability as astral projection. For me, it is a way of life, not merely a projection or something you experience in your sleep.

That is an amazing feat to accomplish, did it take you a long time to be able to do this?

I’ve lived many lives with many different beings, this has been thanks to mastering the ability of realm-crossing where I can visit those that cannot be reached through the physical world, bound by distance. I have spent countless decades mastering this ability and have perfected it. Anywhere I wish to go, I can. Anyone I want to see, I will. I suppose I learned this ability while descending into the endless spiral that is Death’s Vortex. I had nothing else to do, so why not meditate on realm-crossing?

On the note of realm crossing, why have you taken such an interest in Krista?

The reptilian girl? She happens to hold the same gift, one that she denies, as do the humans in the High Barracks of Zingalg. I am simply here to guide her through the gift of realm crossing, she can cross into the afterlife by will once she knows how. Currently she does not appreciate her gift of crossing into the realm known as Dreadweave Pass. This isn’t something anyone can do, she should be embracing her ability to see what lies beyond death. That is why I have taken interest in her.

Don’t you think that realm-crossing be rather frightening to a girl?

Yes, it would be traumatizing for anyone who is not familiar with the process. That is why I am here to help guide her. Did I not explain this to you? She will deal with her emotions as she needs to and I will guide her to being self-aware of her realm-crossing abilities.
SLXLM

​​

 

Self-Aware? She doesn’t know she can cross realms?

I have told her she has this ability but she has not fully grasped this ability. This is a lot of back story that requires too much time for me to share with the likes of you. I’ll make it brief. Krista obtained her realm-crossing gift from a mark of a gatekeeper. Gatekeepers mark the innocent to cross realms and be brought to their master, the Weaver. He claims he needs the blood of the innocent for a ritual that will break the prison that restrains him. This would kill Krista in the process, hence why here I am trying to help her understand the seriousness of her situation.

So you care about Krista’s wellbeing, why? Do you two have a past together?

No, we do not. I’ve been along for far longer than you and have seen the agendas at play in the afterlife with the Heavenly Kingdoms and Hell. Krista is being sucked into something she doesn’t understand, her realm-crossing gift is merely scraping the surface of what she has to deal with. I am merely dealing with the collateral damage of the Weaver and the gods’ ill foresight of their choices.

Gods’ ill foresight, the Weaver’s damage, wait what?

Look, our chat has been a relief from my current affairs with Krista but I must go now. I can sense her wakening from her sleep and I must confront her before she gets herself involved with too many of the unnecessary affairs of the High Barracks of Zingalg. Goodbye.


It would seem that is all we have to share with you today from Malpherities. If you want to find out more from the ghoul or to learn of Krista’s gift, visit the Mental Damnation website .

Or take a peek inside the first book Reality or the second book Dream , both available in ebook and paperback from Amazon.

Until next time, 

Keep Reading!

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Bookish Awesomeness this week

Bookish Awesomeness this week

Hello Lovelies, 

So there’s a ton of awesome bookishness out there this week. Firstly, just a quick reminder of the Facebook launch Party for Shark Bait by Nancy E. Miller this is Friday and Saturday and it looks like there are a ton of awesome authors who will join this event, so you can bet there will be tons of goodies and giveaways! ​​

James Dorr, who’s been our guest quite a few times this year with awesome discussions about short​​stories, has Tombs: A Chronicles of Latter-Day Times of Earth on preorder for the paperback. Grab your copy today! It had been a time when the world needed legends, those years so long past now. Because there was something else legends could offer, or so the Poet believed. He didn’t know quite what—ghouls were not skilled at imagination. Their world was a concrete one, one of stone and flesh. Struggle and survival. Survival predicated on others’ deaths. Far in the future, when our sun grows ever larger, scorching the earth. When seas become poisonous and men are needed to guard the crypts from the scavengers of the dead. A ghoul-poet will share stories of love and loss, death and resurrection. Tombs is a beautifully written examination of the human condition of life, love, and death, through the prism of a dystopian apocalypse.​​ Author A.F. Stewart is giving away a copy of Ruined City through Instafreebie. I grabbed a copy, you should too! In the Northern Pass stands the city of Elowen, the glittering guardian between the Empire of Aloquis and the Kingdoms of Immra. It exists proud and prosperous, never dreaming its dark past was coming to call…

On a bright winter’s day a stranger arrives in Elowen, bearing a secret. From this man a dark blight of ruin descends over the great city and henceforth the day becomes known as Winter’s Bane.
The day the world changed for the people of Elowen.
The day their existence turned into a recurring nightmare.

Read of the aftermath of revenge through the eyes of a shopkeeper, a child, ghosts, a blacksmith, a guardsman, an innkeeper, and even a King.

Twelve Stories, One Evil.

​​
Joshua Robertson’s Anaerfell is on sale through May 31st for only 99 cents. I grabbed my copy and can’t wait to read it! 

The Blood of Dragons: Book 1
A Novel You Cannot Put Down
Drast and Tyran might be considered a bit black-hearted, or even immoral. Drast is cunning but reckless, hunting for admiration. Tyran is calculating but tactless, searching for affection. When the two brothers set aside their ambitions to fulfill their father’s desire for immortality, they readily discover many opportunities for redemption. Now, while wielding a powerful magic that drains their life, Drast and Tyran will embark on a maddening quest, facing skin-switchers, dragons, and the God of the Dead.

​​ Today is the last day to get First There Was Fear by Regina Puckett. Grabbed this one too!It’s just another day at work until the dull calm is shattered by a spacecraft that blackens the sky as far as the eye can see.

Glimmer of Steel by K.E. Blaski has a Goodreads Giveaway and looks like an awesome Sword and Sorcery tale. Stories will save her soul, but not her heart.

​​
Damen has a plan to save the life of his childhood friend before she’s forced to marry the evil Noble Tortare: switch her soul with some other girl and let the other girl die in her place. Only he didn’t count on the other girl’s determination to live, he certainly didn’t count on her soul coming from a different planet—Earth, and falling in love? No, he never planned on that. Told from alternating viewpoints: Damen, a truthsayer from Astrune, and Jennica, the soul snatched from Earth.

Like Scheherazade from 1001 Nights, Jennica, the bride with the Earth girl soul, tells tantalizing stories about her planet so her beastly husband will keep her around past the wedding night. But Noble Tortare is no Arabian prince. He’s a monster from the tip of his metal tail to his penchant for sucking the souls from his wives. 

Damen must be present while Jennica speaks to Noble, to verify she isn’t lying. As Noble’s faithful servant, he does what Noble asks. Only he didn’t plan to spend so much time with Jennica, and he certainly didn’t plan to care about her so deeplyIn the Northern Pass stands the city of Elowen, the glittering guardian between the Empire of Aloquis and the Kingdoms of Immra. It exists proud and prosperous, never dreaming its dark past was coming to call…On a bright winter’s day a stranger arrives in Elowen, bearing a secret. From this man a dark blight of ruin descends over the great city and henceforth the day becomes known as Winter’s Bane.The day the world changed for the people of Elowen.The day their existence turned into a recurring nightmare.Read of the aftermath of revenge through the eyes of a shopkeeper, a child, ghosts, a blacksmith, a guardsman, an innkeeper, and even a King.Twelve Stories, One Evil. he can think of no one else. Now Damen needs a new plan: free Jennica from Noble’s clutches, free himself from a life of guilt for stealing Jennica’s soul, and free his heart to love—all without telling even the tiniest of lies on a world where deception is like oxygen. 

If only that Earth girl wouldn’t have so many plans of her own: like keeping Noble Tortare’s soul trapped on Astrune, because after listening to her stories, Noble craves something more than Jennica’s soul—Noble wants to go to Earth.

​​The Zodiac Turner: The Five Trials by Serena Winter also has a goodreads Giveaway.  Let me tell you the tale of the lone Zodiac Turner who changed the fate of the universe.The girl who was spoken to have eyes reflecting the fire of an inferno and the strength of a thousand men rested in her hands; the unexpected runt, almost, as her power had spread across the world of Gardian’s tales in one sweep.Now she wasn’t just the girl you could go skipping past like a deer. This girl would stare you down, drowning your thoughts in only one look shot like daggers from her eyes. You’d know immediately if you were gazing at the Scorpio; she was able to tell your true intentions to the world in one glance, no looking back. She was extraordinary, alright, but her power went unnoticed for sixteen years, and when it finally was revealed to her trusted ones, let’s just say they no longer were trusted.

The girl… she was spoken of in a prophecy millions of years before everyone had managed to forget it, after the legendary Zodio War that tackled the last remaining strand of DNA for Zodiac Turners. The war that changed all fates of zodios in each Union and the rest of humanity and every living being, as the course of even time was shifted backward. The Conviction and Societal Unions clashed like two tigers in a pin, with the Scorpios fiercely defending their identity while Gemini lashed out at their power. Gemini, of course, had won due to their wealthiness and ever last Zodiac Turner was killed. Many years later was the prophecy and power reborn into a young, expecting girl. But even with her fiery soul, and the power of the ancient Zodiac Turners,she has the story of how she struggled and fought through an inferno of a prophecy.


Those are the deals I found this week. Do you know of any deals? Let us know in the comments below. 

Until next time, 

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