Monday, April 29, 2013

PROMO: Magic in Us by Natalie Tinti


Children's Chapter Book
Date Published: March 2013

Sewing a Friendship 2: Magic in Us.

Magic in Us is a sweet, hopeful, energetic story that creates a lively pace and makes reading aloud a pleasure. It's an inspiration for children to learn and grow into well-rounded individuals, to realize the power of friendship, to learn about the value of problem solving and discover hidden talents. It told by 10 years old Natalie Tinti who is not only a multi- awarded talented writer, she is also an amazing artist!
The Power of Imagination (book 1)

When a secret agent dog, Dogon, informed four best friends that Nina has a bad horrible scratch and she won’t be able to 
play her musical instruments, they must quickly come and make her feel better. While deciding what to do next, there's a veritable blizzard of ideas put forth, and the girls have to sift through them all to come up with a plan of action. Together they create a magical world full of adventures where every obstacle can be overcome with mutual support and joint creativity.


Author Bio:
At age thirteen Natalie Tinti is a multi-award winning author, illustrator, of 12 children’s books and an inspirational public speaker who promotes varied uplifting messages for her peers as well as their parents. Despite this early success as an artist Natalie was recommended to repeat Kindergarten as her teacher thought she didn’t have adequate language function and memory recall. However, this apparent set back would later serve as a valuable growth experience in her social awareness and desire to help her classmates. Natalie’s books gave her a platform for speaking at various venues where she promoted the empowerment of children to include: the value of social skills for overall happiness and as a tool in dealing with bullies, appreciating one’s unique talents and personality to bolster self-confidence, and challenging children of all ages to build friendships by having the courage to include others.
Contact Links

LINKS TO BUY

Amazon

Saturday, April 27, 2013

Blog Tour: Security by Mandy Baggot


Romantic Suspense
Date Published-  April 4, 2013


Autumn Raine is a pop vocalist at the very top of her game. She’s a style icon, the paparazzi’s darling and everyone wants to be her friend. But when her safety is threatened, her whole life starts to unravel.
Eluding kidnap and trying to stay alive, can Autumn find the strength to be the person she longs to be? And can two people, poles apart, forge something strong enough to survive anything?


My Review:
So I loved this, I honestly wanted to read it because it seemed like it would be a bit like the Bodyguard. What I loved about this, was that it took that above and beyond. For starters Nathan is Ex-Special Forces. Hot Military Man... check! I love military heroes and my books! 

And besides that, this novel is very gripping. It really does consume the reader and the suspense and mystery is really well done. I was on the edge of my seat just waiting to figure out how it would all turn out. 

I loved the development of the relationship between Autumn and Nathan. I think it was well done and not too forced. 




Mandy Baggot is a self-confessed Twitter addict who likes to sing on You Tube. She regularly guests on book blogs and is a featured author on the innovative website loveahappyending.com. She is also a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association.
Mandy lives near Salisbury, Wiltshire, UK with her husband and two daughters.

Website: 
Twitter Handle: @mandybaggot
Facebook: 
Publisher Author Page


Thursday, April 25, 2013

Blog Tour: Samuel J.M. King


Sci-Fi
 Jacobs Project and The First Angry 'Man' (a total of 15,000 words)

The mid 22nd century. It is in many respects a world we would recognize. Like our own,  it’s a world with instantaneous, worldwide communications, computers of ever increasing  sophistication and permanent human occupancy of outer space. But it is also a very different  world—a world where the riddle of “artificial intelligence” has been solved and our intelligent  creations live amongst us… And that’s the problem. Technology’s ability to create these marvels has outpaced society’s ability to cope with them.  Imbued with all of the characteristics that make us human, they are none-the-less not human,  and… they are sold in stores to anybody with the means to pay. The ramifications are obvious,  yet for some reason they weren’t seen in advance, and as SYMBIOSIS unfolds, that failure leads  to tragic consequences.


EXCERPT

23 June 2047
Office of Dr. Irwin C. Jacobs, Chairman
MIT Cybernetics Dept.

Irwin Jacobs, renowned cyberneticist, waited impatiently for neurologist Tom Wilson's
answer. "Well?"
Tall and impeccably dressed, Wilson shook his head emphatically. "They'll absolutely tear
you to pieces, Irwin."
"They'll have to catch me first."
The neurologist cast a dubious glance at his squat, balding and rumpled friend. "Well, that
should take all of three seconds," he said, laughing.
"Never mind. What I want to know is whether you'll join me or not. You're the best brain
man in the business, and I could sure use your help. It'll be one hell of a journey."
"Oh, I'm sure it will be—straight into professional obscurity. I just don't understand why
you're going down this path. It's not as if no one has ever experimented with neural arrays
before."
"Ah, but no one else has seen their full potential," Jacobs countered. "Annnd, no one else
has ever built an organic array."
"Right, and there's a very good reason for that. Nobody knows how. And even if you solve
that problem you've still got to interface the damn thing with your electronics. Another near
impossible task. So, I'll ask you again, why go there?"
"You of all people should know, unless you've got a line on hardware that can match the
networking and switching capacity of the brain. Throw in the ability to create new pathways by
rewiring itself, and I'd say you're on to some piece of hardware."
"You're insane."
Jacobs laughed. "Maybe."
"Maybe? You've spent your entire career establishing yourself as the go to guy in AI and
cybernetics. You're throwing it all away."
"What I've spent my entire career doing is failing, forty years of it. Forty years of
developing increasingly complex systems. Forty years of designing algorithms so elegant they're
virtual works of art but ultimately take me farther and farther from where I want to go. The
simple fact is, no matter how sophisticated we make the computers and the programs that run
them, they're still incapable of doing what a six year old child can do… think."
"By think, you mean self aware?"
Jacobs hesitated. His friend's question sounded very much like an indictment. "So?"
"So, nobody serious has thought about doing that for quite a while now, and you know it.
It's no longer the Holy Grail of AI."
"Well, it's still my Holy Grail. It's the reason I went into this field." He lowered his voice and
added, "I really want to do this, Tom. I always have, ever since I was a kid. Getting older hasn't
changed that."

My Review
I never thought I would say this, but I completely connected with AI's... how odd is that. I love the way that Samuel L. King has made these characters so captivating. 

I really liked the writing style. Often times when a story is this short, you either feel very rushed or like you are missing parts of the story. I think King did a great job of balancing this out. 

This is a very quick read and definitely worth it for anyone who is a fan of Sci-Fi type novels. 



Samuel J.M. King was born in Boston, Massachusetts, grew up on the “South Shore” and
attended high school in historic Plymouth. Tired of school at the tender age of seventeen,
he joined the Marine Corps and after basic training, spent the next eighteen months—you
guessed it!—going to school. A stint at the Naval Communications Training Center in Pensacola,
Florida was followed by nine months at the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California
studying Russian. He spent the remainder of his four-year enlistment in Japan.

After receiving an honorable discharge, he attended a computer programming school and
spent a number of years in computer applications, first as a programmer and then as a systems
analyst, designer and project leader. Later, he traded in his application’s hat for a more
technical role, becoming a field software support specialist for Digital Equipment Corporation,
the largest of the late, great mini-computer companies. After moving to New Hampshire, he
studied Computer Engineering Technology at the New Hampshire Technical Institute and went
on to design and program computerized industrial control systems for companies across New
England.

Having written a prodigious amount of technical documentation, he began to write fiction in
2002. In addition to Symbiosis, he has written a screenplay, as well as several other novellas
and short stories. He currently resides with his wife Donna in the heart of New Hampshire’s
“Lakes Region” where he is working on the final novel of the Symbiosis series: East of the Sun
and West of the Moon.

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Blog Tour: Girls Love Travis Walker by Anne Pfeffer




New Adult Contemporary
Date Published: 3/15/13

To nineteen-year-old high school dropout Travis Walker, women are like snowflakes-- each one different, but beautiful in her own way. He can charm any girl he meets, and yet down deep he fears he'll always be a loser like  his jailbird father. As the landlady threatens to evict him and his sick mother, Travis  takes a job he hates and spends his evenings picking up girls at a nearby night spot. When he enlists in a teen program at the local fire station, he finds out he’s amazing at  it. Then he meets the smoking hot Kat Summers, enlists Kat’s friend Zoey to help him  woo her, and falls in love for the first time ever. But he keeps the details of his life secret. His girl will never love him back if she knows  the truth about him….

My Review:
Oh Travis, you are the epitomy of a player who girls want to conform. I absolutely loved reading this book from his perspective. Usually you have the girls view on how the guy gets reformed, but this is so unique in the way that Travis goes from class A Jerk to Nice guy. 

If that isn't enough reason to love him, reading about his crap luck since pretty much forever, really gives the reader an even bigger connection to him. You start to not think about the fact that he was a player and more about how he is not more screwed up.

Zoey is such a wonderful Heroine. I absolutely loved her and could not have put together better characteristics in Travis's other half. I think the really are perfect together and their romance is an adorable one.

I will admit I was in TEARS at a point in this story. It is just so sad how much bad luck some people have in life. Really puts things in perspective! 

LINKS TO BUY

Anne Pfeffer is the author of Any Other Night and The Wedding Cake Girl.  She lives in Los Angeles, CA.

Contact Links
Twitter @AnnePfeffer1






Blog Tour: The Only Exception by Magan Vernon



NEW ADULT CONTEMPORARY

**Due to sexual content and heavy subject matter, this book is recommended for ages 16+**

Fiercely liberal Monica Remy prefers to blend in. Despite her tattoos, piercings, and outspoken
personality, she transferred to Central to escape before she finds out that her next door neighbor is the
uber conservative governor's son, Trey Chapman.

No matter how hard she tries to avoid Trey, he still finds a way to get under her skin. Monica cant
stand his crisp white shirts or his staunch views on women. But she cant help counting every freckle
on his face and wondering what it would feel like to have him stop talking politics and kiss her.

A class debate project forces the unlikely pair to work together, and the political lines are blurred in
late-night make out sessions. But despite their fiery chemistry, Treys politics threatens to smother
their relationship for good.

My Review:
Wow, I really loved the premise behind this story. A girl who has a reason to have the political views that she does and a boy who has been groomed to have the opposite opinion fall in love. The first interactions between these two characters are definitely a  bit heated. They really do not like one another besides the fact that dang attraction has to put a wrench in things. Add to that Monica's roommate who has an even bigger dislike of Trey, and there are all kinds of road bumps for this couple. 

The relationship really did unfold slowly and I am a huge fan of that in my books. I like when there is something behind it. Not everyone in this world has insta-love based on attraction and the fact that this story dealt with some serious real-world topics, its good that the author chose to have it be a real-world like love. 

I'm also really happy with the growth the characters showed. I think instead of one of them learning something about themselves and battling demons, they both did. 

Great New Adult read! 

Author Bio
Magan Vernon is a Young Adult and New Adult writer who lives with her family in the insurance
capital of the world. She is in a very serious, fake relationship with Adam Lambert and constantly asks
her husband to wear guyliner. He still refuses. She also believes her husband is secretly an alien,
disguised as a southern gentleman.

Links:



Giveaway:



Cover Reveal: Blue Lines by Toni Aleo


Blue Lines - Cover Reveal
Toni Aleo
Contemporary Sports Romance
Date to be Published: August 13, 2013

Synopsis: 

Opposites do more than just attract in Toni Aleo’s latest Nashville Assassins novel about a very bad boy and the good girl he can’t resist.

The instant Piper Allen sees Erik Titov, she wants him—wants his rock-hard body, sure, but the strength and mystery that lies behind that superstar hockey jock demeanor, too. So when he sidles up to her at a bar and slinks his arm around her waist, she’s lost. What follows is the wildest night of her life . . . followed by inevitable heartbreak the next morning. And then, a few weeks later, a very big surprise: two blue lines on a pregnancy test.

Only a check to the head could make Erik fall for a nice girl like Piper. But since their crazy-sexy night together, he’s been trying to forget about her alluring body by falling into bed with every woman in Nashville, and it’s not working. So when Piper shows up at his house with a baby-bomb to drop, it doesn’t take much for Erik to suggest the nuclear option: marriage. While it’s supposed to be all for show, the second they say “I do,” the ice between them starts to melt into sizzling steam.

About the Author:

My name is Toni Aleo!
I am a wife, mother, and hopeless romantic.
I have been told I have anger issues, but I think it's cause of my intense love for hockey!
I am the biggest Shea Weber fan ever, and can be found during hockey season with my nose pressed against the Bridgestone Arena's glass, watching my Nashville Predators play!
When my nose isn't pressed against the glass, I enjoy going to my husband and son's hockey games, my daughters dance competition, hanging with my best friends, taking pictures, and reading the latest romance novel.
I love things that sparkle, I love the color pink, and did I mention I love hockey?


Get the first 3 books in the series:



Saturday, April 20, 2013

Blog Tour: Pain and Gain by Marc Schiller


Memoir/True Crime
Date Published: 1/25/13

Pain and Gain – The Untold True Story’ is a gripping memoir that tells the true story behind the Paramount film Pain and Gain. Written by the real Sun Gym Gang victim, Marc Schiller, ‘Pain and Gain – The Untold True Story’ will take readers on an adrenaline rush with a shocking ending.

This is the untold true story of one citizen’s pointless torture and month-long captivity. The story, formerly mistold if not utterly overlooked, has been made into a feature film. Even as a dark comedy, there is little amusement to be found in human suffering. The sick and twisted minds of Mr. Schiller’s captors would be fodder for the Darwin Awards if the results were not so alarmingly inhumane. Physical, mental and emotional torture, as well as sensory deprivation and starvation, the prisoner of war like conditions differed only in the fact that Mr. Schiller was completely alone during his extended stay at the warehouse he refers to as Hotel Hell. An early victim of identity theft in the years following Hurricane Andrew in Miami, Mr. Schiller chronicles his story in tortuous detail. His humiliation, pain and suffering at the hands of these perverted social misfits is a shocking revelation. 
What is it like to be imprisoned in near dungeon-like conditions? All this mayhem on American soil toward the end of the last millennium. 
Greed, lust for power and the desire to inflict pain and misery were the apparent motivating forces behind this gruesome incident. 
Truly a harrowing tale and one that you won’t soon forget.



My Review:
This one really puts things in perspective with the events of the last week. I think that sometimes events such as these really don't get the same attention and after reading about the horrific events he was put through, its really sad that they dont. 

I think it's very brave and really nice (while heartbreaking) to get the actual inside perspective on this story. Especially since the movie is coming out and seems to focus more on the criminals than the victim. 

The fact that he could separate himself enough from the event to write such a detailed account of the incident is mind-blowing. I'm not sure how he managed to do it, but kudos to him.

This is definitely a powerful read! 


BUY LINKS 


Marc Schiller was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina immigrating to Brooklyn, NY with his parents when he was seven years old. An early entrepreneur, he started several small businesses by the age of nine. He attended high school in Brooklyn, participating in sports and was member of the school’s track team.

Marc received a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a MBA from Benedictine University. Marc has had a long and diversified career both as a professional and entrepreneur. His professional career has spanned the U.S. as well as internationally. On an entrepreneurial level, Marc Schiller has launched several successful businesses including two accounting practices both in Miami and Houston, a delicatessen in Miami and an options and stock trading company.


Marc Schiller currently works as an accounting and tax resolution specialist for a national tax resolution company. He has two grown children: his son graduated from the University of Colorado-Boulder with a degree in economics and his daughter currently attends Loyola Marymount University in California.


‘Pain and Gain – The Untold True Story’ is Marc Schiller’s first literary publication.
Twitter  @painandgainbook


Thursday, April 18, 2013

Blog Tour: When Summer Comes by Brenda Novak


Contemporary Romance
Date Published: February 2013

One day, Callie Vanetta receives devastating news . . . 
She needs a liver transplant. But her doctors warn that, in her case, the chances  of finding a compatible donor aren’t good. Determined to spend whatever time  she has left on her own terms, she keeps the diagnosis to herself and moves out  to her late grandparents’ farm. She’s always wanted to live there. But the farm  hasn’t been worked in years and she begins to fear it’s too much, she’ll have to return to town.
One night, a stranger comes knocking at her door… 
He’s an attractive and mysterious drifter by the name of Levi McCloud who  offers to trade work for a few nights’ shelter. Callie figures she doesn’t have  anything to lose. He needs a place to stay until he can fix his motorcycle; she  needs an extra pair of hands. The arrangement seems ideal until what was  supposed to be temporary starts to look more and more permanent. Then she  realizes she does have something to lose — her heart. And, although he doesn’t  yet know it, Levi stands to lose even more. 

My Review:
This is part of the Whiskey Creek series, while it can be read as a stand alone, having read the first few in the series really does give you more background on the characters and secondary characters. 

Callie is very secretive about her illness and I just really wish that she would let others in. Having to deal with something like that alone could not be easy, and with so many people around her you would think she would let others in. 

I really liked the meeting and development of relationship between Callie and Levi. I think it was well done and believable. 

As always, there are plenty of secondary characters for you to learn about and hope are the stars of the next book.

This is definitely an emotional ride, but all of the situations seem real and the characters feelings/reactions really do resonate with the reader. 



Buy Link

 This book will be on discount from $6.99 to $1.99 across all ebook platforms for a limited time (Apr 1 - Apr 30).  



New York Times & USA Today Bestselling Author Brenda Novak is the author of more than forty-five books. A three-time Rita nominee, she has won many awards, including the National Reader’s Choice, the Bookseller’s Best, the Book Buyer’s Best, the Daphne, and the Holt Medallion. She also runs an annual on-line auction for diabetes research every May atwww.brendanovak.com (her youngest son has this disease). To date, she’s raised over $1.6 million. Come meet the long-time friends who have made Whiskey Creek the “Heart of Gold Country” with WHEN WE TOUCH, WHEN LIGHTNING STRIKES, WHEN SNOW FALLS and WHEN SUMMER COMES.

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Blog Tour: Dead Peasants by Dustin Stevens


Drama- Literary Fiction
Date Published: 2/22/13

Bargain Mart, long a fixture in the Missoula economic structure has fallen on hard times. Things are dire,

and if a financial windfall doesn’t arrive soon, their doors will close.


Across town, a woman grieves her recently deceased husband. Sitting alone at her kitchen table trying

to put her life back in order, a call arrives asking where his quarter million dollar life insurance policy

should be sent. A quarter million dollar life insurance policy she never knew existed.


Answering the phone on the other end of her call for help is Drake Bell, third year law student at the

University of Montana. Joined by his partner Ava, and his loyal friends the Zoo Crew, Drake must

attempt to make sense of the case Alice presents him.


A case that only grows more complex as people continue to pass in Missoula, all with ties to Bargain

Mart, all with large life insurance policies attached to them. Policies known in the corporate world as

Dead Peasants…


My Review:
The Zoo Crew is a group of people who you wouldn't think would be a group of friends who have banded together. They help each other in their times of need. Drake is the head of the family of sorts. What we embark on in this novel is a search for answers in which the questions were never known before the death of a woman's husband. 

I like the fast paced writing style that Dustin Stevens has. It really grips the readers attention and keeps them for the entirety of the book. The characters are wonderful and the way they are loyal to each other is endearing. Drake is a great lead character, he is multi-dimensional and likable. 

The plot was well developed and the mystery/suspense was well executed. I really enjoyed this novel! 



BUY LINKS 


I originally hale from southern Ohio, growing up in the heart of
farm country, and still consider it, along with West Tennessee,
my co-home. Between the two, I have a firm belief that football
is the greatest of all past-times, sweet tea is really the
only acceptable beverage for any occasion, there is not an
event on earth that either gym shorts or boots can't be worn
to, and that Dairy Queen is the best restaurant on the planet.
Further, southern accents are a highly likeable feature on most
everybody, English bulldogs sit atop the critter hierarchy, and
there is absolutely nothing wrong with a Saturday night spent
catfishing at the lake.

Since leaving I've been to college in New England, grad school
in the Rockies, and lived in over a dozen different cities
ranging from DC to Honolulu along the way. Each and every one of
these experiences has shaped who I am at this point and I have
developed enormous affinity for locales and people of every size
and shape.

By day I work as a healthcare attorney in Honolulu, focusing
largely on health policy and implementation. By night I am
usually found barefooting along one of Oahu’s many beaches
before heading inside to write. Dead Peasants is my eighth
novel, and the second in The Zoo Crew series. I am currently
working on the follow-up, along with a handful of independent
projects.