A Vampires Awakening 
August-2013 by S.E Stenner

I’ve been writing children’s and teenage fiction for over ten years, as a hobby at first, but finally decided to take the plunge and publish my work. Paraestrals is the first volume from my young adult mini series which followers a school girl, Samantha LeFay and the trials life throws at her.

Paraestrals synopsis:

A narrative coming of age horror/thriller, about a young girl whose world is turned upside down as the origins of her dark lineage surface. 

‘My name is Samantha LeFay, I’m young, popular, with my whole life ahead of me, what can go wrong – everything! After turning sixteen and suddenly becoming allergic to the sun along with a few other weird afflictions, my life begins to unravel at the seams, as my friends desert me, my boss at my weekend job forces me to quit and my stepmother nags me to the point of insanity.

My life’s different now, I’m different. As the people at school would put it I’m a freak - Sammy LeFreak. I don’t know if they’re right, all I know is the sun burns my skin, I suddenly have the strength to throw a guy ten foot in the air and my body craves a particular substance..…Blood!’

Paraestrals is no ordinary Vampire tale, my story takes the reader along with Sam as she discovers this hidden side she never knew she had, and follows the decisions she makes when it comes to how she’ll use these new found powers she possesses.

I started writing because I wanted to challenge myself and being dyslexic, writing a book was probably the most challenging thing I could do.

I’ve long had a fascination with vampires, there’s just something that sets them apart from the other monsters that go bump in the night, which is not only alluring, but down right frightening at times and these two elements written well can make for one hell of a read. Don’t forget to check out the official website, Facebook page and Twitter link for all the up coming info on the Paraestrals series…..

Well I hope you enjoyed my guest post, all the best, Sara.

S.E.Stenner has always loved stories, however being dyslexic she came late to the world of literature, but she hasn’t let that hold her back and along with having her debut novel published she also has half a dozen poems and a short story under her belt.

Along with competing in several novel and short story competitions over the years. S.E.Stenner is also part of the online book community Authonomy which is run by Harper Collins.

While the Paraestrals series is S.E.Stenner current commitment, she hopes in the future to publish many other book series she has in the pipeline, which cover themes from the mythical world of magic to the futuristic near future of space travel.

Paperback: 288 Pages

Adult-Thriller

Review Copy/TLC Tours

Warnings: Heavy drug reference, violence, language, sexuality

3/5 Stars (for ages 18&up)

Whatever you do, don’t read this one on the beach.

Six strangers wake up on a remote island in the Florida Keys with no memory of their arrival. They soon discover their sole commonality: all are heroin addicts from the slums of Miami. And all of them are aching for their next fix.

As the excruciating pangs of withdrawal become more and more pronounced, the six face their captors across open water. The four shadowy figures on the yacht are dangerous predators who know that their victims’ need never falters—and that the creatures that swim beneath the waves have equally rapacious appetites.

There is a note. No one is coming to your aid. We have ensured this. So begins a dangerous game. The six must make an unimaginable choice—swim to the next island where a cache of the purest heroin awaits; or die trying. As the fight to survive intensifies, the astonishing motivations of the men on board ship emerge, raising the stakes to towering heights.

Thoughts

Although Bait takes place on a beach, its certainly not a beach read. By the premise it sounds like a jacked up episode of Survivor, but Ill warn you its a much more jacked up story about drug addiction and violence than it is about surviving an obstacle course.

Messum with the use of six characters takes readers into a dark world of drug abuse and the instinct to survive, or should I say the instinct for these individuals to find the next hit at any cost, including the unthinkable. Bait not only recreates a Jaws nightmare, but also adds contemporary drama by adding each persons background story with sharp writing and well developed personas. Not saying that I liked everything about this book because the violence was disturbing for me, but between the fast moving plot, and gruesome outcomes, it was easy to get sucked into the drama unfolding.

If I could see anything positive while reading this, it probably was about second chances and the strength of human determination. None of these characters had redeeming backgrounds, they were all junkies with no futures and no benefit to society as a whole. They fit in the stereotype perfectly, and while I saw the second chance thread and it made me ponder how I cast individuals with a drug problem, it didn't change my mind. As much as I wanted to feel sorry for these characters, I didn't, and as much as I wanted to see them get across to the Island, I didn't want them to. Sounds harsh, but unless you've been touched by the world of a drug addict, wishful thinking is low on the list, even for a make believe story.

Other than throwing druggies to the sharks, perhaps what the book was saying is that drug addicts can be saved with aggressive therapy, however that is stretching the message a bit and of course there is no Island with man-eating monsters wanting to eat your face off for the real life heroine addict, a scenario that forced these fictional characters into immediate detox. For now is all we have is 30-day rehab in posh hospitals that have over a 60% failure rate....perhaps its time to start rethinking those sharks.

This is not for everyone, the language is crude (at times offensive) and many of the violent scenes are stomach turning foul. I myself would only recommend this to readers who enjoy disturbing thrillers and can handle gruesome bloody violence.

J. Kent Messum is an author, musician, and always bets on the underdog. He lives in Toronto with his wife, dog, and three cats.

Connect with the author on his website, Twitter and on Facebook.

Its time for Shelf Cravings!! A random dish on all things book. 

New releases, coming soon, just discovered and deals for my Kindle. This week Im excited for:

~COMING SOON~

How to Love by Katie Cotugno
October 3, 2013 by Quercus

This is a love story. But it’s not what you think. This is not a first kiss, or a first date. This is not love at first sight. This is a boy and a girl falling in messy, unpredictable, thrilling love. This is the complicated route to happiness that follows. This is real. This is life. This is how to love.

BEFORE:
Reena has loved Sawyer LeGrande for as long as she can remember. But he’s never noticed her, until one day… he does. They fall in messy, complicated love. But then Sawyer disappears from their humid Florida town, leaving a devastated – and pregnant – Reena behind.

AFTER:
Three years later and there’s a new love in Reena’s life: her daughter Hannah. But just as swiftly and suddenly as he disappeared, Sawyer turns up again. After everything that’s happened, can Reena really let herself love Sawyer again.

Servants of the Storm by Deliah Dawson
Spring-2014 by Simon Pulse

A year ago Hurricane Josephine swept through Savannah, Georgia, leaving behind nothing but death and destruction — and taking the life of Dovey's best friend, Carly. Since that night, Dovey has been in a medicated haze, numb to everything around her.

But recently she's started to believe she's seeing things that can't be real ... including Carly at their favorite cafe. Determined to learn the truth, Dovey stops taking her pills. And the world that opens up to her is unlike anything she could have imagined.

As Dovey slips deeper into the shadowy corners of Savannah — where the dark and horrifying secrets lurk — she learns that the storm that destroyed her city and stole her friend was much more than a force of nature. And now the sinister beings truly responsible are out to finish what they started.

Dovey's running out of time and torn between two paths. Will she trust her childhood friend Baker, who can't see the threatening darkness but promises to never give up on Dovey and Carly? Or will she plot with the sexy stranger, Isaac, who offers all the answers — for a price? Soon Dovey realizes that the danger closing in has little to do with Carly ... and everything to do with Dovey herself.

The Impossible Knife of Memory by Laurie Halse Anderson
January 7, 2014 by Viking

For the past five years, Hayley Kincaid and her father, Andy, have been on the road, never staying long in one place as he struggles to escape the demons that have tortured him since his return from Iraq. Now they are back in the town where he grew up so Hayley can attend school. Perhaps, for the first time, Hayley can have a normal life, put aside her own painful memories, even have a relationship with Finn, the hot guy who obviously likes her but is hiding secrets of his own.

Will being back home help Andy’s PTSD, or will his terrible memories drag him to the edge of hell, and drugs push him over?

The Affairs of Others by Amy Grace Loyd
August 27, 2013 by Picador

Five years after her young husband’s death, Celia Cassill has moved from one Brooklyn neighborhood to another, but she has not moved on. The owner of a small apartment building, she has chosen her tenants for their ability to respect one another’s privacy. Celia believes in boundaries, solitude, that she has a right to her ghosts. She is determined to live a life at a remove from the chaos and competition of modern life. Everything changes with the arrival of a new tenant, Hope, a dazzling woman of a certain age on the run from her husband’s recent betrayal. When Hope begins a torrid and noisy affair, and another tenant mysteriously disappears, the carefully constructed walls of Celia’s world are tested and the sanctity of her building is shattered—through violence and sex, in turns tender and dark. Ultimately, Celia and her tenants are forced to abandon their separate spaces for a far more intimate one, leading to a surprising conclusion and the promise of genuine joy.

Amy Grace Loyd investigates interior spaces of the body and the New York warrens in which her characters live, offering a startling emotional honesty about the traffic between men and women. The Affairs of Others is a story about the irresponsibility of life and desire, no matter the sorrows or obstacles.

The Silent Wife by A.S.A Harrison
June 25, 2013 by Penguin

Jodi and Todd are at a bad place in their marriage. Much is at stake, including the affluent life they lead in their beautiful waterfront condo in Chicago, as she, the killer, and he, the victim, rush haplessly toward the main event. He is a committed cheater. She lives and breathes denial. He exists in dual worlds. She likes to settle scores. He decides to play for keeps. She has nothing left to lose.

Told in alternating voices, The Silent Wife is about a marriage in the throes of dissolution, a couple headed for catastrophe, concessions that can’t be made, and promises that won’t be kept. Expertly plotted and reminiscent of Gone Girl and These Things Hidden, The Silent Wife ensnares the reader from page one and does not let go.

Unbreakable by Rebecca Shea
July 23, 2013 by R. Shea- Indie Pub

Jessica Harper is the epitome of perfection. She’s a good daughter, makes excellent grades, and always strays on the safe side of life. The last thing she thought would ever happen was falling in love with her best friend’s brother. But sometimes fate just has a way of bringing two people together.

Wide receiver for the University of Arizona, Gabe Garcia, seems to have it all. When his feelings for Jessica come to surface, Gabe will give up everything to be with her. But what happens when a tragedy abruptly changes the course of your life? For Jessica and Gabe, everything they thought they knew about each other will be questioned. Sometimes, there are scars in life that are cut too deep to completely heal. Will their love prove to be unbreakable, or will it shatter and prove fate is just another lie?

Hi Tina. Thanks for having me back in the Saturday Spotlight. 

Today I'm writing about fish out of water, a theme in my latest book. Public School Princess revolves around Her Royal Highness Hollister Bucksey-Breiten, an entitled celebutante who finds herself far out of her privileged L.A. comfort zone and smack dab in the backwoods of New Jersey (yes, there are backwoods in New Jersey. Despite popular belief, the entire state isn't a New York suburb full of people who act like Real Housewives). Hollister is accustomed to people literally rolling out the red carpet for her. When family circumstances force her to move in with her half-brother and his father, Hollister expects the usual special treatment from her fellow students and teachers. Her world is turned upside down when she finds she can no longer rely on her name and status to get her way. People in Franklin High are more concerned with part-time jobs and saving for college than New York Fashion Week. Slowly Hollister starts to see herself as well as those around her in a new light. 

The fish out of water theme transcends genres. Although Public School Princess is a YA contemporary story, we've seen this theme play out in: fantasy novels like Harry Potter (Harry's sad life with his aunt and uncle as well as Harry's introduction to Hogwarts); classic novels such as Pride & Prejudice (where the Bennetts are arguably out of their depth among the wealthy and fashionable Darcys and Bingleys), Anne of Green Gables(plucky orphan Anne Shirley goes to live with a spinster and her brother), and Alice in Wonderland (self explanatory); and YA urban fantasy novels like Wicked Lovely (Aislinn's induction into the faerie world and her role within it).

It is her experience in an unfamiliar and unwelcome environment that allows Hollister to transform. Had she stayed in her comfort zone, she would have had no impetus to view her world differently and to change. Like the indomitable Anne Shirley, Hollister not only learns to adapt to her new surroundings, but she manages to change the people around her as well.

Public School Princess is currently available for $2.99 on Amazon and Barnes & Noble and will soon be released on iBooks.

Paperback, 384 Pages

Adult - Mystery/Thriller

Review Copy/ TLC Book Tour

Warning: Violence, mild sexuality

4.5/5 Stars (Recommended to Adult readers)

Family secrets can bind and destroy.

Kate is ready to put her nomadic, city-dwelling past behind her when she marries Joe Krause and moves with him to the Iowa farm that has been in his family for more than 140 years. But life on the farm isn’t quite as idyllic as she’d hoped. It’s filled with chores, judgmental neighbors, and her mother-in-law, who—unbeknownst to Kate until after the wedding—will be living with them.

As Kate struggles to find her place in the small farming community, she begins to realize that her husband and his family are not who she thought they were. According to town gossip, the Krause family harbors a long-kept secret about a mysterious death that haunts Kate as a dangerous, unexplainable chain of events begins.

Thoughts

The Krause family are no strangers to town gossip, nor are the Krause men strangers to hard work, but for the women who marry them a life a struggle, disappointment and judgement usually follows. This is where we find our main characters Kate and Hannah- both women married to a Krause man, one in the 1890's and one in present day. The tale flows through both characters voice and alternates chapter by chapter weaving a story of murder, gossip and secrets.

From page one this alluring story cast its spell on me, the writing and tone of the novel set a great atmosphere for a Gothic read, although this book falls into the contemporary-mystery genre, McConkey did an outstanding job blending modern day and the late 1800's into a creepy mystery, one that at times actually gave me the creeps......one that had me thinking after the lights went out. The book is by no means scary, but scary in the sense of what gossip and hate can do to a family and sad at how some stay forever trapped in the past. From both women's perspective we see the issue of abuse, fierce parental love (good and bad) and secrets that destroy families and while I very much connected with Hannah, the stronger character of the two, I admired the growth in Kate and came to appreciate and understand the choices she made.

The ending was tremendous bringing both stories together and shedding light on the true mystery surrounding the Krause clan, boiling down to one hauntingly fun read and for sure worth the wait getting there.

I would highly recommend The Widows of Braxton County to contemporary, thriller, mystery and Gothic ghost story lovers. For sure the sleeper hit of the summer, don't miss it.

Jess McConkey, aka Shirley Damsgaard, is an award-winning writer of short fiction and the author of the Ophelia and Abby mysteries and Love Lies Bleeding. She lives in a small Iowa town, where she served as postmaster for more than twenty years.

Love at High Tide Book-Excerpt:

An unreadable emotion flickered across his eyes so fast she almost missed it. In a low mutter, he said, “Don’t call me a hero.” He hit the hard-packed sand at the edge of the water and stopped walking.

Modest, heroic and gorgeous. And it didn't take even a fraction of her eight years of training in cultural anthropology to figure out he was attracted to her. They’d long since hit land, and yet he made no move to put her down. Not that she was complaining. She’d happily continue to sit cradled in his arms. It gave her an up-close view of his chiseled cheekbones, sharp enough to etch glass. Her fingers brushed through the salt-spiked tips of his blond hair. No doubt about it: she’d found the man candy Trina had promised. One bite of him would be as sinful and addictive as a chocolate honey truffle.

“Well, I can’t call you Mr. In-The-Right-Place-At-The-Right-Time.” When his lips curled up showing off his dimple, Darcy’s interest kicked up a notch.

“Good point. I’m Cooper Hudson. Coop, to my friends.”

“Darcy Trent.”

“It’s been a long time since I met an ocean virgin.”

“Oh, but only in the aquatic sense, I assure you.” What? Why wave her long-vanished virginity under his nose? Now he probably thought she had the morals of an alley cat. But hearing the hottest man she’d ever seen use the word virgin threw her for a loop. Not the standard nice-to-meet-you conversation, by a long shot.

He flashed an easy smile. “Don’t worry. I hadn’t planned on delivering you as a virgin sacrifice to appease the volcano gods over at the mini-golf course.”

Okay, now Darcy could add funny to the list of his overwhelming awesomeness. Maybe she really had blacked out and was hallucinating her ideal man while unconscious, underwater. What else could explain such perfection?

“Darcy, what happened?” Trina’s yell preceded her appearance in front of them. After a quick yank upward to her scrap of a top, she rested her hand on Darcy’s leg. “Why’s he carrying you? Did you get stung in the foot by a jellyfish? ’Cause if you did, I’ll pee on it. That’ll take the sting away.”

That certainly settled the whole am-I-hallucinating question. Never, ever would Darcy fantasize about her best friend peeing on her. The situation had to be real. And if Trina in all her adorable annoyingness was real, then her hot hero hunk had to be real, too.

To her dismay, Cooper lowered her to the ground.

“Your friend’s fine,” Cooper announced. “A wave almost rolled her, so she’s a little shaken up, but uninjured.”

“You keep your distance,” Darcy warned with a hand raised to keep Trina at arm’s length. “Don’t even think about peeing on me. Not even if I get attacked by an entire school of jellyfish.”

Trina wrinkled her nose. “Okay, but if the situation arises, just remember that I would be willing to make that sacrifice.”

“Friendship is a beautiful thing.” Cooper’s sardonic tone belied the sincerity of his expression.

Christi Barth earned a Masters degree in vocal performance and embarked upon a career on the stage. A love of romance then drew her to wedding planning. Ultimately she succumbed to her lifelong love of books and now writes contemporary romance. Christi is President of the Maryland Romance Writers and lives in Maryland with her husband.

Its time for Shelf Cravings!! A random dish on all things book. 

New releases, coming soon, just discovered and deals for my Kindle. This week Im excited for:

~COMING SOON~

Life, Love & Lemons by Magan Vernon

Young Adult-Contemporary Romance

The Love of Writing
by Shay Lynam- 2013

I love writing. I love writing stories about characters I've made up or about people I've met in my life. About events that have transpired or places I've been. I love writing fiction. I'd like to think I'm even somewhat decent at it. But when it comes to blog posts...well...all I can ask is that you just bare with me.

Here's something not many people know about me. I've been writing all my life (not what I'm talking about) but my recently published book The Tree House was not actually my first serious piece of work. When I was in tenth grade I actually was really into vampires (surprise!) and wrote my very own vampire novel. It was called Undying and is actually not absolutely terrible.

It stars 16-year-old Xavier Reid who is bitten by this crazy bat-human hybrid and becomes a member of the undead. Now, mind you, this was before I had read Twilight or even thought about vampires as these super romantic beings so my vampires were these epic soldiers taking part in a battle against the human race. After I finished this book, my sister actually had it bound and I now have it on my bookshelf nestled among the rest of my books.

That being said, I feel like I've been blessed with this gift of writing and it's really cool to look back at that book and then look at the one I just recently self-published and see just how far I really have come skill wise. I feel like I can now encourage others that are passionate about something to pursue what they love and know that, if it's really what they are meant to do, they will be successful with it and have something to be truly proud of.

Shay Lynam works as a humble cashier in her hometown in Washington. She lives with her husband, Mike, and puggle, Lucy and spends her free time writing and crafting. She's a lover of all things spicy and though she doesn't drink much coffee, drinks soda like it's water.