Blog Tour: Retrieved by Amber Polo (author giveaway)

This virtual blog tour is presented by ABG Reads Book Tours.

Click HERE for more tour information.

Welcome to The Wormhole and my day on the tour.

It is my pleasure to feature Amber Polo and

The Shapeshifters' Library: Retrieved.

Guest post from Amber Polo:

Mysteries in our Backyard

We all love mysteries. Being a writer allows me to solve mysteries. Being a fantasy writer allows me to make up solutions to mysteries. 

The ancient world has always fascinated me. I was told Egypt and Greece held our oldest history and Columbus “discovered” America.

All the mystery lay in exotic countries far away from anything our pristine new country held.

Later I learned about Machu Picchu and the studied the pyramids of South America and ancient cultures of the East.

Exotic romantic and distant, I wanted to know all about them.

When I heard stories of Atlantis, a mysterious continent, I believed, if found, it would certainly hold all the answers.

I grew up in Wisconsin and was told there were “burial mounds” scattered around. I lived in Ohio and heard little of its many mounds. Curious, I studied “alternative” history, the history my textbooks ignored.

I discovered Cahokia, near St. Louis, whose Monks Mound boasted a ten-story earthwork with a base larger than that of the Great Pyramid.

Moving the southwest I saw there was more than Mesa Verde and a few pueblo style housing built into the sides of mountains. There were signs everywhere. When visitors talk of coming to the West to see the Grand Canyon, I tell them that the Canyon is a natural wonder, but if I had a choice I’d visit Chaco Canyon and wonder at the mysteries of its civilization.

In Book 2 of The Shapeshifters’ Library I created a fictional mound in southern Ohio similar to real ones and invented a shifter fantasy history to explain its origins. In Book 3 I’ll explore more of my fantasy world and explain connections to Wisconsin’s Effigy Mounds and Illinois’ Cahokia. And lead my characters west to, where else, Chaco Canyon.

If I can’t know the answers, at least I can make them up.

About the Author:

A love of books drew Amber Polo into a career as a librarian. A greater love turned her into a writer. The Shapeshifters’ Library series is an urban fantasy filled with books, librarians and dogs and a library everyone will love.

The Shapeshifters' Library: Retrived by Amber Polo

Blurb:

Dog-shifters once again face the book-burning werewolves of Shipsfeather in this charming second installment of The Shapeshifters’ Library series. 

Godiva Anglesey, Chocolate Labrador, and the ruggedly handsome English Mastiff Cynerik are forced to team up against power-hungry werewolves when Cynerik discovers an ancient Ohio mound that may hold answers to their shifter history. Knowing the mound’s secrets could benefit the dog-shifters in the ongoing contest for power, ambitious werewolf pack Alpha Sybilla challenges timid Godiva to a battle for the territory. Already faced with a malicious book-worm infestation and a censorship threat to ban all anthropomorphic books in her library, Godiva, who has no interest in battling anyone, must turn from running her small town library to train for a challenge she believes she has no chance of winning. Just when things couldn’t get any worse, Godiva’s mother announces that family tradition dictates that Godiva must be married by Summer Solstice… to a Druid. Godiva doesn’t even know any Druids.

Godiva wants to run her library, retrieve books for library patrons, and keep people happy. She’s no hero. She doesn’t have what it takes to face down werewolves or save the world. Cynerik, however, believes differently. Together they must defeat the werewolves, save the town and its library, protect the most important archeological discovery in dog-shifter history… and, just maybe, find love along the way.

Where to find Amber:

Wordshaping Blog | Facebook | Goodreads | Twitter
Pinterest | Google+

Buy Links for Retrieved, Book two:

Blue Merle Publishing  | Kindle | Amazon Print | Barnes & Noble & Nook | Well Red Coyote Bookstore

Buy Links for Released, Book One:

Blue Merle Publishing | Kindle | Amazon Print | Barnes & Noble & Nook | Well Red Coyote Bookstore

***Review to post this afternoon ~ stop back and check it out***

Giveaway:

A Shapeshifter Public Library canvas book bag.

A print copy of "Retrieved," dog biscuits, and a tuft of genuine wolf fur. This giveaway tour wide and is open only to US/Canada residents.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour: The Cat's Meow by Stacey Kennedy (International giveaway)

This virtual book tour is presented by Bewitching Book Tours.

Click HERE for more tour information.

Welcome to The Wormhole and my day on the tour.

It is my pleasure to feature:

 Stacey Kennedy and The Cat's Meow.

About the Author:

Stacey Kennedy’s novels are lighthearted fantasy with heart-squeezing, thigh-clenching romance, and even give a good chuckle every now and again. But within the stories you’ll also find fast-paced action, life-threatening moments, and a big bad villain who needs to be destroyed. She lives in Southwestern Ontario with her husband and two children. If she’s not plugging away at a new story—which is rare because her muse is annoying—you’ll find her camping, curling up with the latest flick, or obsessing over Sons of Anarchy, Games of Thrones, Supernatural and Dexter.

Website - http://www.staceykennedy.com/

Blog - http://www.staceykennedy.com/blog

Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/AuthorStaceyKennedy

Facebook Fan Page - www.facebook.com/StaceyKennedyFanPage
Twitter - https://twitter.com/#!/Stacey_Kennedy
Goodreads - http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3473046.Stacey_Kennedy
Amazon Author Page - http://www.amazon.com/Stacey-Kennedy/e/B004G9KR9A/

The Cat’s Meow

Witch’s Brew Book One
by Stacey Kennedy

Genre: Urban Fantasy Romance
Publisher: Entangled Publishing
Number of pages: 256 pages
Word Count: 75,000 words

Book Description:
Libby is an Enchantress—a witch gifted by the Goddess to conjure spells. When a magical presence is detected around a recent string of feline slayings, Libby takes the case to uncover the reasons behind the odd deaths. Much to her displeasure, the coven also sends a sexy warlock, Kale, to assist her.
While having the muscle around proves to be useful, fighting the attraction between them is worse than a hex, especially considering Kale is keeping secrets. But soon, Libby has bigger problems than the elusive warlock when her spells turn up clues that point to something far more sinister than slaughtered cats.

Now Libby has landed herself in the midst of an uprising. She trusts no one and isn’t safe—not from the warlocks stirring up trouble. Not from the worrisome rebellion she can’t escape. And certainly not from Kale, who is weaving a very dangerous spell over her heart.

Excerpt:
“At first, it didn’t seem malicious and no human deaths resulted from the dead cats.” She shrugged. “Now, with this many felines dead, it could be an animal ritual.”


“Possibly,” I agreed. Charleston’s last case of a warlock tapping into dark magic happened only a week ago, but it got cleaned up quickly enough and the warlock received his death sentence. Compared to that, a few dead cats wouldn’t concern the coven, but then why did it now?

Furthermore, why hadn’t the coven contacted me? Peyton held the ability to sense magic’s presence. I am an Enchantress, a witch gifted to work spells. We both held an important role in the coven, as did every witch and warlock who worked for them. Peyton located the scenes tainted with magic, I found the offenders, other witches assisted with different gifts, and warlocks killed the guilty.

If the coven had been as concerned as Peyton seemed now, I would’ve been brought into this a lot sooner. They would’ve requested I take on the case to search around and see if I discovered a reason behind it. That I knew with total certainty. The coven didn’t take chances on these things. The longer we waited to act on someone who harbored evil, the higher the chance they would succeed.

“The coven clearly wasn’t worried about the past deaths, so what’s happened to change their opinion?”

Peyton nibbled her lip. “They didn’t think much of it before because the level of magic isn’t dangerous. Strong, yes, but not dark.” She continued to rub her arms, shifting uneasily on her feet. “I’ve been watching over the matter to see if things worsened, but the only change has been more deaths.” She tilted her head. “One cat can be shoved aside as maybe someone who practiced their magic. This many deaths can’t be overlooked.”

The coven obviously requested that she see if the levels of magic had increased. Yet, why did Peyton call me and not the coven? An order had never come to me in this manner before and it made me curious. “Who told you to ask me to come here?”

“Glenda.” Peyton grimaced at Fluffy. “There’s a reason behind this. The Goddess is warning me.”

I refused to look at the mangy beast and attempted not to inhale the odor of decomposed flesh beneath me. Instead, I scanned the area. Within the dark night the old trees around me created shadows. The stars above twinkled in the sky and the damp grass below my boots glistened with dew. A typical night for me—I hadn’t seen a sunny day in the five years I’d been employed by the coven.

Danger happened during the witching hours of midnight to three in the morning because magic held the most strength then, so the coven stuck to the night shift. I’d become so accustomed to it I never missed the days I had lounged in the sun anymore.

On a sigh, I continued to ponder the fluffball at my feet. If magic were present, clearly someone had either spilled its blood as an offering to dark magic, or simply practiced a spell to kill. Either one sucked, at best. Resolved I’d get nowhere in discovering the truth right now, I moved along. “What does the coven expect me to do about this?”

Peyton rolled her eyes, giving her customary flippant look. “Find who’s responsible.”

I snorted. “What am I, a pet detective?”

International Giveaway:  1 ecopy of The Cat's Meow  by Stacey Kennedy ~ please fill out form below.



My Thoughts:
This was not my first Stacey Kennedy book.  So I began reading with some expectations.  One being great characters.  Characters that you latch onto from the start and are loving all through the story.  The second being a well written story with a carefully constructed and intriguing plot that flows easily and finishes with me saying, "Wow, I really enjoyed that book."  I was not disappointed.  Once again I found myself in love with the characters (Kale - how could you not want to really meet this man!) and into the story with interest.  They pages turned effortlessly and I found myself lost in the world that she had created.  Suspenseful and unique, this is one you don't want to miss out on.  I can't wait for more books in this series.

Blog Tour: Ocean Kills by Jade Hart

This virtual book tour is presented by Bewitching Book Tours.

Click HERE for more tour information.

Welcome to The Wormhole and my day on the tour.

It is my pleasure to feature Jade Hart and Ocean Kills.

Jade has stopped by for an interview:

? When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer? I wanted to become a writer when I was little, but it wasn’t until I was older and still a complete book-worm that I decided to get my ideas onto paper.

? How many jobs did you have before you became a writer?

I’ve been very lucky in my life to have some interesting jobs. I was a flight attendant. A travel agent and owned my own business before becoming a full time writer. (Can you guess I love to travel!)

? How long does it take you to write a book? Depends. I write in blocks. So some days I can do up to 12,000 words. But then I might not touch the manuscript for the rest of the week. So I’d say from start to finished copy it would be about 2-3 months.

? What would you say is your most interesting writing quirk?

Um, I often make up words because I speak faster than my brain catches up. For example I’ll go to say excellent, but have fantastic in my mind so it will come out as: Fancellent.

? Do you have a routine that you use to get into the right frame of mind to write? Not really. It has to be deathly quiet though. No TV, music or husband. And I love to have a glass of Coke Zero to sip while my fingers type furiously.

? Where do you get your ideas or inspiration for your characters? Ideas just spring out of no-where, but Ocean Kills came to me in a dream. I dreamt I teleported and it killed me with a migraine. I thought it’d be cool to have a heroine with a special gift but has to pay such a high price to use it.

? How do you decide what you want to write about? I pick my projects. For instance, this year I aim to have 3-4 Ocean Breeze books out. And inbetween publishing those I will have a contemp romance that are stand alone. The first New Adult Contemp Romance will be released in March and it’s called Coffee and Cockpits. (Can be found on Goodreads)

? What books have most influenced your life?

I really like long series. Diana Gabldon (Jamie Fraser and Clare. Swoon)

Terry Goodkind and Seeker of Truth / George R R King – Game of Thrones. But the biggest one that influenced my writing style is Laini Taylor, Daughter of Smoke and Bone. Loved her lyrical writing.

? What is the first book you remember reading by yourself?

Do picture books count? Haha. Um, I can’t remember exactly but it would have been either a Nancy Drew or Goosebumbs.

? What are you reading right now? Currently I am reading No Time For Love. Written by two of my fabulously talent critique partners. The next on my list is Bared to you by Sylvia Day.

? What do you like to do when you are not writing?

Travel. Hubby and I adore traveling. If we don’t go somewhere exotic often I go mad. If I can’t travel we go for a walk or the movies. I also enjoy doing arty stuff. J

? What is your favorite comfort food?

Because I was born and raised in Hong Kong to English parents, my palate is a little different. My fav food is Peking Duck. Yum… drooling right now.

? What do you think makes a good story?

Great writing, a unique concept, characters you root for, and a worthwhile theme.

? Who would you consider your favorite author and why?

Liani Taylor – for her wonderful writing and showing me how to paint with colour, rather than type in black and white.

? What book, if any, do you read over and over again? I haven’t read books over for a long time, but I could re-read Jean M Auel – Clan of the Cave bear again. They were fantastic and you learn so much from all the research the author put in. Fascinating.

Fun random questions: 

·        dogs or cats? Neither – House rabbits. I have one – she’s adorable.

·        Coffee or tea? Neither – don’t like hot drinks. Only things I drink are Coke Zero and water.

·        Dark or milk chocolate? Milk

·        Rocks or flowers? Rocks. Can’t stand paying money for flowers and they die. Not very romantic am I? J

·        Night or day? Both. I love night as I’m a night owl, but if it’s sunny and hot then day. J

·        Favorite color? Black and Purple. (can I have two?)

·        Crayons or markers? Crayons.

·        Pens or pencils? Pens

More about the author:
Jade Hart is a self-confessed book worm who is happiest glued to a lap-top with an eternal battery life, and typing up stories running rampant in her head.

Her three favorite things are:
1. Unlimited books on an Ebook Reader
2. Cracking the sugar on a creme brulee
3. Travelling

She writes New Adult 'smexy' fiction.

www.dreamwritepublish.blogspot.com - www.falling4fiction.blogspot.com - Twitter: @jadehart8 - http://www.facebook.com/JadeHartAuthorPage - http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6544592.Jade_Hart

 

Ocean Kills: Ocean Breeze Series Book One by Jade Hart
Genre: new adult sexy urban fantasy
Number of pages: 344
Word Count: 97,000

Book Description:

Around the world, murderers and rapists pick off the innocent. Killing loved ones, separating families, and ruining lives.

As an eight-year-old girl, Ocean witnessed her family’s massacre and something altered inside her. Twisting her genetic code… unlocking an ability to teleport.

Ocean Breeze was never destined to be normal, especially being named after air-freshener. She’s a shadow, a ghost—a dark savior of the innocent. Armed with a switchblade in her bra, and a box-cutter in her pocket, she hunts the filth of the world.

Callan Bliss is a Sydney Police Officer whose skill set is far above a normal cop. All his fellow officers see is a hard-worker who loves to catch perpetrators and surf, but that’s because they don’t know his past. When Callan arrests a suspicious looking prostitute, coming face to face with a self-confessed vigilante, his secrets aren’t that easy to keep silent anymore.

Ocean hates the police with a passion, and has no intention of being held captive by a cop, even if he is sexy as hell. Teleporting from under his nose, Ocean hunts her next target—a man responsible for the largest sex ring in South Africa—and he’s about to die. But she doesn’t count on Callan giving chase, nor the body-quaking lust which consumes them. However, Ocean's dark hobbies take precedence over what her heart wants—her thirst for murdering is killing her too, and not even Callan can save her.

Excerpt:

My name is Ocean Breeze. Yep. Ocean freakin' Breeze. It was my mom's attempt at some posh-sounding name. She was inspired by—get this—a bottle of toilet air-freshener. My heart squeezed at the thought of the cookie-scented woman with hugs as warm as sunshine.

The sound of my Nikes pummeling the pavement chased away my thoughts, and the slapping of rubber against asphalt was similar to the slap the last prostitute-abusing john gave me. Stinking bastard. No one raises a hand to Ocean Breeze without losing an appendage. Or more, as the case may be.

I swiped my hands on my red vinyl miniskirt. It wasn't exactly an attractive outfit—Nikes with a miniskirt? But I'd learned the hard way. Running in heels never worked. Ever. The sleazy men who paid for sex didn't care what was on my feet, only what was between them.

I jumped and jived through the crowd. It was two in the morning, and the streets of Kings Cross, Sydney, were a hive of activity. Drunken students hauled themselves from karaoke clubs. Rich business men back-slapped each other for the lap dance from the uni-student, who pocketed their tips to pay for her law degree. This place was full of clichés and smut.

And I loved it.

I could disappear here. I was a nobody. Even boasting a pair of ruby lips and a figure that could've graced the center fold of Playboy, I didn’t stand out. Beauty was coveted in the Cross, and plastic surgery was the salvation if nature didn’t do the work.

So why was I running?

I just killed a guy. That's why.

 My Thoughts:

Fantastic story!  Well-written, engaging, and wonderfully paced.  The author is descriptive and detailed without being long winded or weary.  The setting changes rapidly and often but the reader is never left behind or confused.  The characters are amazing.  They are interesting, well developed and impossible not to completely invest in.  The story is an action packed edge of the seat read.  It has you balancing on the fine line between justice and vengeance.  I couldn't put it down.

Blog Tour: My Fallen by Ashlyn Mathews (Author Giveaway too)

This blog tour is presented by Goddess Fish Promotions.

Click HERE for more tour information.

Welcome to The Wormhole and my day on the tour.

It is my pleasure to feature: Ashlyn Mathews and My Fallen.

Ashlyn Mathews is a paranormal and contemporary romance author. She is fascinated with strong men and women who walk a fine line between good and evil, happiness and loneliness, and duty to family and love. 

A big fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Japanese Anime, she incorporates various weapons into her paranormal romances and gives her characters out-of-this-world names just because she can. She lives in the inspiring gloom of the Pacific Northwest with her husband, four young boys and a Golden Retriever that likes to boss her around. When she’s not writing, you can find her at her day job, shuttling her boys to and from soccer practices and games, listening to music, reading, or connecting with others on Facebook and Twitter.

Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/ashlynmathewsauthor

Twitter:  @ashlynmathews

Website:  www.ashlynmathews.com

When a normally quiet and polite Vampire Slayer is tasked to help an arrogant and selfish demon, only trouble can ensue.

Guilt-ridden by a mistake that cost her fellow Slayers their lives and the subsequent tarnished reputation of her brother’s business, Slayer-born Elise Castle agrees to work with the sexy, but arrogant and selfish, Xavier Doom, by bringing in his demon-turned-vampire friend. If she succeeds, her brother can hire more Slayers while Xavier’s status guarantees them more clients.

Xavier is a Fallen, a special kind of demon with an insatiable appetite for women, money and power. When his best friend is kidnapped and turned into a vampire, he hires the best Slayer money can buy. If the Slayer fails, Xavier stands to lose not only his childhood friend, but the opportunity to skyrocket his wealth with the top secret information hidden in his friend’s mind.

Xavier’s arrogance grates on her nerves while his concern and charm reels Elise in. But can she give her heart to a creature like her father, a Fallen, who had abandoned his family for the appeal of money and power? Or will she see Xavier for the good and loyal man he truly is?

Defiant and strong-willed, Elise is a challenge. Yet her strength and courage appeals to Xavier while her no sex policy has him hot for her. As his feelings for her grow, he must make a decision. Give his heart and soul to a woman who can only offer him her love, or walk away from her and seize the chance for more money and power?

Lives and friendships are at stake while love and loyalty is put to the test. Will Elise and Xavier come out unscathed and together? Or will a secret from Elise’s past tear them apart?

Excerpt:

“Why is a human pacing outside your door?” Elise said.

Over her shoulder, she glanced at the man, the glass pane of the door giving her a full view of him. When he noticed she stared, he stopped his pacing and stared back. Hard. Elise swallowed then hissed when she realized he reacted to her perusal of him, one of his brows lifting while his lips curved into a salacious grin. Ignoring the out of control beats of her heart, she redirected her attention back to her brother, Sam.

On the way home from her nightly run, Elise had noticed a light on in her brother’s office window. Rather than head straight to her apartment, she had rushed to Sam’s office in the same building. In their dangerous job of hunting and recovering monsters, the close proximity of his business to their personal residences could easily make her and Sam targets for trouble.

Yeah, Sam might be a grown man, capable of taking care of himself, but Elise still worried for his safety. The past decade of her life had been full of one tragedy after another, and no way would she risk losing her baby brother.

“He’s here for you, Elise. He wants you to hunt a friend of his who was turned by a vamp a couple of hours ago.”

“What?” Can’t be. Human men didn’t stray near her, and the one that had had died.

Author Giveaway:

Ashlyn will be awarding a backlist eBook in the winner's choice of format at every stop. The grand prize will be a jewelry holder (similar to the one in the picture) to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour, and coffee beans from Seattle's Cafe Vitta and Seattle Theo organic chocolate bar to a randomly drawn host. (US ONLY)

My Thoughts:
I am loving this story.  The characters are wonderful, perfectly flawed and flawless all in one.  The story is different than anything I have read, with a twist on the "infected" or newly turned so it rings with originality. The relationship, so to speak, between Xavier and Elise is fun to watch unfold.  I can't wait to get to the end.  

Book Blast: Wind's Aria by Tessa Stockton (author giveaway)

This book blast is presented by Goddess Fish Promotions.

Click HERE for more tour information.

Welcome to The Wormhole and my stop on the book blast!

It is my pleasure to feature:

Tessa Stockton and Wind's Aria.

A veteran of the performing arts and worldwide missions, Tessa Stockton also contributed as a writer/editor for ministry publications, ghostwriter for political content, and she headed a column on the topic of forgiveness. Today she writes romance and intrigue novels in a variety of genres. In addition to her fantasy romance, WIND’S ARIA, she’s the author of suspense/thriller, THE UNSPEAKABLE, political intrigue/romance, THE UNFORGIVABLE, and a literary short story, LOVE AND LULL, with more in the works.

www.TessaStockton.com ~ https://twitter.com/TessaStockton ~ https://www.facebook.com/tessastockton

Wind's Aria by Tessa Stockton
Blurb:

Elected as the Songstress, Aria takes her place on the sacred platform to sing before every dawn. As long as she does so, peace and abundant life belong to her people. One morning, amidst a strange wind that brings with it a curse in its eerie howl, Aria loses her ability to make music. But the encroaching death that transpires isn’t her biggest tragedy. It’s that she adores the cause of her blunder, for he’s a magnificent winged creature who’s stolen more than her voice.

Excerpt:

Fog continued to dance around them covering most of his body, to her dismay. Just curious, she convinced herself. She closed her eyes and squeezed the bridge of her nose to concentrate . . . something that seemed hard to do at that moment.

“Feeling better?” The smooth notes of his words swam through her ears.

“Mmm.” She nodded. “I guess.”

He continued to stare.

Aria cleared her throat. “Um . . . can I ask you a question?”

“You may ask . . .”

“But will you answer?”

“That depends.”

“Oh. Well. How did you get to be so huge when all the Meleyans are rather small? And why haven’t I seen you before?”

“That’s two questions.”

“S-sorry.”

He exhaled a steady stream of air, adding to the mist, as if deliberating.

Aria felt the strength of his breath, blowing strands of her hair across her face.

Slow, yet with precision, he lifted a lock from the curve of her mouth and rubbed the strands between his fingers. He murmured, “Soft and orange, like the petals of prairie-tails.” Then he bent and smelled her hair, closing his eyes. “And sweet like the honey of bees.” Again he held her gaze. The corner of his mouth twitched upward. “Do you have a sting?”

“I asked you a question first—”

“Two,” he corrected. Then he smiled.

Tessa will be awarding a $50 Amazon Gift Card

 to a randomly drawn commenter during this tour and her reviews tour.

Follower Love Giveaway Hop

This Giveaway hop is presented by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and

Co-hosted by The Reader's Antidote

You can go to the giveaway Linky by clicking HERE.

Welcome to The Wormhole and my stop on the Hop.

This is stop #137.

The stop on the linky before mine is: 136. Writers Corner

Giveaway details:

Must be 13+ and a follower of The Wormhole

Fill out form below completely.

Thanks for following - Thanks for entering - Happy Reading