Saturday, October 31, 2015

Book Blitz: Life After The Undead by Pembroke Sinclair @PembrokeSinclai @XpressoReads @XpressoTours #XpressoBookTours #Giveaway






Life After The Undead by Pembroke Sinclair 
Published by: Booktrope Publishing
Publication date: October 27th 2015
Genres: Post-Apocalyptic, Young Adult, Zombies





Synopsis:

Seventeen-year-old Krista must quickly figure out how she’s going to survive in the zombie-destroyed world. The one advantage humans have is that the zombies hate humid environments, so they’re migrating west to escape its deteriorating effects. The survivors plan to construct a wall at North Platte to keep the undead out, and Krista has come to Nebraska to start a new life.

Zombies aren’t the only creatures she has to be cautious of—the other survivors have a dark side. Krista must fight not only to live but also to defend everything she holds dear—her country, her freedom, and ultimately, those she loves.

Join Krista in her quest to survive in this thrilling apocalyptic novel by Pembroke Sinclair.


Goodreads ~ Amazon


Excerpt:

PROLOGUE

I will never understand peoples’ fascination with the apocalypse. Why would you waste so much time and energy worrying about something you can’t change? Besides, most of the time, it never comes to fruition, anyway. Remember Y2K? I don’t. I was too young, but I’ve heard stories. What a hullabaloo that was. People were so afraid of computers failing and throwing society back into the Dark Ages, they stockpiled supplies and moved into the wilderness so they could get away from technology. Why would they move to the wilderness? If technology was going to fail, wouldn’t they be just as safe in a city? I guess they were afraid when it did, everyone would go crazy and start killing each other. Either way, it didn’t happen. I wonder how those people felt afterward.

Then there was the whole 2012 scare. This one was supposedly based on an ancient prediction, so you know it was reliable. Are you kidding? Even the Mayans didn’t believe their own ancestors’ “vision.” What happened was there had been a tablet that had the Mayan calendar carved into it. The end was broken and faded, so no one knew what it said. Our culture, being the pessimistic lot we are, automatically assumed it was an end-of-the-world warning, but, again, nothing happened on December 21, 2012. Christmas came and went, and I think everyone everywhere, even the skeptics, had a little something more to be thankful for. Life went on as usual, and all those doomsayers faded into obscurity.

The day the world did end was pretty nondescript. By that I mean there was no nuclear explosion or asteroid or monumental natural disaster. There weren’t even any horsemen or plagues to announce the end was coming. The world ended fairly quietly. I couldn’t even give you a date because it happened at different times depending on where you were. It was never predicted, and I’m sure a scenario no one even considered. Who really thinks the dead are going to rise from the grave and destroy the majority of the population?  No one but Hollywood, and we all know those are just movies, but that’s exactly what happened. Those of us who survived were left wide-eyed, mouth agape, trying to figure out what to do next.

There were a few who were able to pull their heads out and organize those left behind. They made sure the populace had food, shelter, and protection. They were saviors, the United States’ heroes. Life wouldn’t have gone on without them, and it was pretty difficult those first few years after the zompocalypse.

Sometimes it’s difficult for me to remember what life was like before the rise of the undead. I was a teenager, though I hesitate to say normal. I wasn’t deformed or anything, but my classmates thought I was strange. I had a fascination with the dark, the macabre, although I wasn’t a Goth or Emo. I read books and magazines about serial killers. I didn’t idolize them or want to be like them—hell no—I was fascinated with how evil and black a human’s soul could get.

I wanted to be a psychologist and work with the criminally insane, maybe figure out why they did what they did. Apparently, when you’re fifteen, your friends think you’re weird if you have desires to help someone other than yourself. While they were worried about becoming popular and getting the right boyfriend, I tried to figure out how to make society better.

Of course, those dreams will never come true. Society doesn’t exist. Everything I once held dear is gone. I lost my parents to the horde, like a lot of kids. Unlike some of the others, mine weren’t taken by surprise or in some freak accident. They were taken because of their own stupidity. Some days I miss them a lot, but others I believe they got what they deserved. I might sound callous and uncaring, but what about them? Why would they abandon their fifteen-year-old daughter? It used to keep me up at night, trying to find the answer to that question, but I’ve given up asking it. No reason wasting time on things that could’ve or should’ve been.


As I stare out the passenger side window of the semi, I’m reminded how bleak the future has become. The truck rolls down a once heavily traveled highway that has been reduced to a cracked trail. Gas stations and towns dotting the landscape have been abandoned and are crumpling into the weeds that are taking them over. There are a few areas that still resemble pre-zombie destruction, and these are the military outposts set up along the road, used for protection and refueling. I use the term “military” loosely because there is no formal military anymore. It’s a rag-tag group of men and women who were lucky enough to get guns. I chuckle to myself. It’s been two years since I was last out in the world, and a lot has changed since then. I still remember the day the zombies attacked. It’s as clear as if it’d happened yesterday.




Guest Post:

Behind the Story: Life After the Undead
By Pembroke Sinclair

I am fascinated with zombies—obsessed, if you will—and I have been since the first time I watched Night of the Living Dead many, many years ago. When I get really stressed out, I often dream of the undead and have to find ways to fight against them. That is where the inspiration for Life After the Undead came from.

The dream occurred several years ago, and while I don’t remember the exact details, I recall that my spouse and I were hiding in a small town while all of the zombies were migrating through. They were heading West so the humidity didn’t cause them to deteriorate faster. I woke up and thought, “Hey, that’s a great idea!”  So I fleshed out the story.

It started out as a short story focusing on one small snippet in time. That story was published somewhere (I can’t remember and it’s no longer linked on my blog), and then I decided to expand it into a novel.

The first attempt was an adult novel. I’m fairly certain there were some cuss words in it and a bit more carnage. I decided to send out queries for the story to agents. For the first round, I sent it to 31 agents, all of which rejected it, except one who suggested I turn it into a young adult novel and then resubmit.

So I did. This required me to clean up the language a bit, take out some of the gore (although it still has its fair share), and make my main character a bit more naïve. I believe I also changed it from third person to first person. I sent it back in, feeling pretty good, and then she rejected it. But that didn’t discourage me. I sent it out again as a young adult novel.

For the second round, I queried 28 agents, all of whom rejected it. After that, I sent it to a few indie publishers, and one of them picked it up. I met a book cover designer online who painted (honest to goodness painted!) covers, so I commissioned him to create the cover.

The way the deal worked was that he would send the cover idea, then it was up to the publishing company to put on the title and my byline, which they did. The artist was then free to sell the original painting, which he did. However, I decided that I liked it so much I wanted one for my collection, so I asked him to create me another with my title and byline on it. It wasn’t something he normally did, but he did it for me. The painting proudly hangs in my house.

Life After the Undead is one of my favorite stories. One of the things I like so much about zombies is that they allow me to explore the question of what it means to be human. That’s a theme that runs through a lot of my books. Plus, I just really like zombies.

As the years went by, I wanted to breathe some life back into the story (pun intended), so I decided to republish with another publishing house. This allowed me to go back and make edits, expand the story and take out some things that bothered me, and I got a new cover.

It was a lot of fun to go back and reread the story and make changes. I’m feeling pretty good about the story, and I think it’s closer to my vision of how I originally imagined it. Every time I reread it, I find a new aspect that makes me enjoy the story all over again. I would have imagined that after all this time and changes the story would get old, but it hasn’t. It’s still one of my favorites.



AUTHOR BIO:


Jessica Robinson is an editor by day and a zombie-killer by night (at least in her books). Since the first time she watched Night of the Living Dead, she has been obsessed with zombies and often thinks of ways to survive the uprising. In addition to her nonfiction book, under the pen name Pembroke Sinclair, she has written YA novels about zombies and the tough teens who survive the apocalyptic world. She has also written nonfiction stories for Serial Killer Magazine and published a book about slasher films called Life Lessons from Slasher Films. 


You can learn more about Pembroke Sinclair by visiting her at: 





GIVEAWAY:


 Blitz-wide giveaway (INTL)

• Paperback copy of Life After The Undead
 

Book Blitz Organzied By Xpresso Book Tours
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Cover Reveal: Forgive Me - Callaway Series by Kaithlin Shepherd @KaithlinS @HotTreePromos #Giveaway






 Title:  Forgive Me
Author:  Kaithlin Shepherd
Release Date:  December 5th
Genre: Contemporary Romance with a hint of cowboy
Series:  Callaway Series, book 2
Cover Designer:  Claire Smith 
Publisher:  Hot Tree Publishing







Sometimes your first love is also your last.

Andrew Callaway doesn't do love - not since Amanda broke his heart and left him in a cloud of dust. Devoting himself to the family ranch, he's determined to be the man his dad would be proud of, minus the one-night stands and stream of mistakes. Five years after watching her drive away, his first love is back. Andrew finds himself wanting more than meaningless easy conquests, a lot more.

Following her dream of becoming a chef, Amanda Watkins left Montana with a beat-up pickup truck and a broken heart. Five years after watching Andrew fade away in her rear-view mirror, she's back and is dead set on avoiding the man she still dreams about. When she's hired to cater for a Callaway celebration, sparks fly and old emotions run hot. If she thought the boy she knew was dangerous, she's about to find out that the man he became is lethal. 

Blame is a dangerous game to play, but forgiveness takes courage that may just prove too difficult to reach.



Friday, October 30, 2015

Blog Tour + Review: Spectacle by S.J. Pierce @XpressoReads @XpressoTours #XpressoBookTours #Giveaway





Spectacle by S.J. Pierce
Publication date: July 13th 2015
Genres: Science Fiction, Young Adult


Synopsis:

Hunger Games meets Avatar in this spellbinding new Young Adult, Science-Fiction novel by bestselling author Susan James Pierce.

Two hundred years after the Great Disaster, the day earthquakes ravaged Earth’s landscapes, humanity has finally regrouped and is working toward a better future. But in New America – one of three remaining landmasses – the threat of overpopulation makes a better future seem bleaker by the year.

Mira (Mirabella) Foster and her parents are citizens of New America, and with the threat of starvation and disease looming on the horizon, a new discovery threatens to push everyone to the brink of chaos: blue markings develop on people’s skin. Markings that allow them to camouflage their skin, but also make them feared, and eventually, targets of violence.
Mira’s dad is one of them.



Purchase:



My Review:

I received a free copy of the book from the author for my honest opinion.

The earth was destroyed two hundred thousand years ago by earthquakes. They were so many that most of the land ended up in the ocean. Mira and her family lives in one of the three pieces of land that is left called New America. There are a lot of people where she lives and they are running short on food and supplies. There is a lot of sickness going around and a lot of people are dying. People are starting to lose it and there is a lot of chaos.

Mira learns that her father is not from earth that he is from another planet. Her father and around one hundred thousand people had to leave their own planet because people from another planet came in and took over their planet so they stole their pods and escaped to earth. Where they lived among humans in disguise for many, many decades. No one knew that they were from another planet. They lived and worked among the humans until they couldn’t hide their markings any longer.

Once everyone learned that they had been living with aliens it scared them. They really didn’t know what to do. They didn’t know if they could trust them or not. You would think that if they had been living with them for all these years that they would be no problems. But people are afraid of the unknown and they are also afraid of someone that is different than they are. Instead of trying to get to know them and learn who they are they finally rounded up all of the changers and sent them far, far away to live on an island all by their selves. All because they were afraid of them, they left them there to die. But Mira and her new family and friends fooled all of the humans they learned to adept to the land and how to survive.

Mira missed her mom and dad very much but she had some great friends who helped each other through their lost. Mira learned to hunt for food just like the guys did but she also loved working in her little garden. Everyone on the island had a job to do and they each knew what that job was and they did without any questions. Mira was just as good of a hunter as any of the guys and even better than some. Mira cared a lot for the people she loved and would put her own life in danger before putting one of her friend’s lives in peril. Mira was a strong young woman both mentally and physically. Mira would do anything for one of her friends.

I loved the world that the author created for Mira and her friends. The author drew you into Mira’s life and made you feel as if you were right there beside her wanting to help every step of the way. Mira and Luxxe were two of the best characters who could make you laugh one minute and crying the next. Spectacle pulled you in from the very first page and didn’t let go until the very end. Well ok maybe I am stretching it a little bit there it didn’t let go at the end it is still hanging on making you want more. It has the tendency to make you get lost in its story so deep that you may not find your way back out if you are not careful. In my opinion if like dystopian stories then you are going to love Spectacle. I know I did. I am hooked on dystopian stories at the moment and can’t seem to let them go and Spectacle has made it to my top ten list of dystopian books to read.

AUTHOR BIO:



Susan James Pierce has a degree in Marketing Management, works for a Fortune 500 company in Atlanta, Georgia, and devotes her precious, spare time to writing Fantasy, Paranormal and Sci-fi novels.

Please visit www.sjpiercebooks.blogspot.com and sign up for her mailing list or subscribe to her blog if you'd like to hear when new books come out! Coming soon:

Iris (Novella: The Captivated Series) Available now!!!

Fight for Me (Book Two: The Captivated Series)

Links:



GIVEAWAY:


 Blitz-wide giveaway (INTL)

• 10x eCopy of Spectacle
 



Book Blitz Organzied By Xpresso Book Tours
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Release Day Blitz: Cursed: Black Swan - A Fixer Novel By Ryan T. McFadden @RyanTMcFadden @GHBTours







Cursed: Black Swan
A Fixer Novel
By- Ryan T. McFadden
Genre- Fantasy/Dark Fantasy
Published By- Dragon Moon Press
Publication Date-October 30th


"Let's get one thing straight—I'm a fixer. You need someone murdered? Then hire an assassin. You need something stolen? Call a thief. But if there's something no one else can do, or a job that no one else wants, then you talk to me."
Nathaniel specializes in the strange, the weird, and the dangerous. But no matter how far he runs, he can't leave behind his bloody past, nor the ghosts that chase him.
His latest job was supposed to be simple—recover the sword Black Swan. Except there's no such thing as a simple job. When the operation goes bad, the Crucifiers, the Crooked Hand, assassins, and Crusaders are all hot on Nathaniel's trail...for a sword he doesn't even have. All he has to do to get it back and set his world right is to find the woman of his dreams...and kill her.


   

Release Blitz: The Devil Wore Sneakers - Love & Mystery in the 6-oh-3, Book 2 by Nora LeDuc @HotTreePromos #Giveaway





Author: Nora LeDuc
Title: The Devil Wore Sneakers
Series: Love & Mystery in the 6-oh-3, Book 2
Genre: Mystery/Romantic Suspense
Release Date: October 29, 2015
Cover Designer: Patti Roberts

 Add to Goodreads



Who shot Lucy Watson's estranged brother, the popular high school teacher who brought snacks for the staff and volunteered to help troubled students?

When Lucy Watson returns to her hometown in New Hampshire to bury her brother, she learns law enforcement is looking into several suspects. But soon the search for the killer grows intensely personal for Lucy. The police discover a fierce argument occurred the day of the murder between Lucy's brother and his best friend Liam McAllister, Lucy's first love. The cops shift their focus to Liam. Determined to get justice, Lucy becomes involved in the mystery and must choose to put her faith in Liam one last time, or face the truth; she is in love with her brother's murderer.


Fifteen minutes later, a rap on her door startled her. "Who is it?" "Liam." The sound of his voice added a spring to her step. She smoothed her hair before opening. "Why aren't you downstairs enjoying your win?"
"I missed you. I want to be with you, Luce, no one else." Her heart thundered in her ears. "But people expect you to stay. Won't they be upset?" "That's my Luce. Okay, listen for a second." He held up a finger. "What did you hear?" "Music. Voices. Laughter." "Exactly. The party goes on without me." "I'm not sure how to take that, Liam." "I'll tell you." He took her hands. "Lucy Watson, when I lost you, I lost my guide, my conscience, my-" His words triggered feelings she couldn't hide or control. She kissed him with a hunger that had been lurking deep inside. For a moment, she forgot worries and fears. Then she moved away from him. Hadn't she been the one discouraging their relationship? Her cheeks burned. His hand came around her waist, and the familiar glint lit his eyes. "I want us to spend tonight together." He searched her face. Hope whirled and rose higher. "What do you say, Luce?" His voice was low, husky. "One night?" Her last chance with him was now. "Yes." He smiled, bent to kiss her, and stepped back. "Hold on." He walked to the window. What was he doing? He'd changed his mind? Already? "I thought…"


Love & Mystery in the 6-oh-3 Series

Book One
Available HERE



The Devil Wore Sneakers is Nora's second book in the series- Love and Mystery in the 6-oh-3. Book three is in progress. She lives in New England where she binges on Investigation Discovery, true crime shows, and stories of romance. If you enjoyed The Devil Wore Sneakers, please leave a review at Goodreads.com, Amazon.com, or your favorite online retailer. Nora would love to hear what you liked best in this story so she can continue to write the type of books you love to read. Drop her a email at Nora LeDuc@ yahoo.com. And be sure to check Nora's website: NoraLeDuc.com.





Thursday, October 29, 2015

Blog Tour: If I Seem Dangerous by Rose Sawyer @_RoseWrites @HotTreePromos #Giveaway






He's preparing for the fight of his life.

Title: If I Seem Dangerous
Author: Rose Sawyer
Genre: MMA Romance
Release Date: October 20, 2015
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Hot Tree Publishing
Cover Designer: Claire Smith


Darkness shrouds Noah James' past. Drugs, alcohol, abuse-they cloud the few memories he has and threaten to eat away at his future. The only brightness in his life is Caitlyn Hale. She came crashing into his world the day he met with her father, the sports agent who could possibly give him a new start. That day, he left the agent's office with a professional fighting career ahead of him and the image of a hazel-eyed beauty imprinted in his soul. 

Rarely does life offer a glimpse of happiness without snatching it away. Just like he's always feared, the monster that haunts him comes roaring back. His entire life shatters, threatening to return him to the darkness he came from. The light-heavyweight champion is about to face the fight of a lifetime. He can only hope to make it through each round without losing the few things he has left.


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Book Blitz: The Libby Garrett Intervention (Science Squad) by Kelly Oram @kellyoram @YABoundToursPR #YABOUNDBOOKTOURS #Giveaway







The Libby Garrett Intervention (Science Squad)
by Kelly Oram 
Release Date: 10/24/15
Bluefields Publishing

Summary from Goodreads:
Libby Garrett is addicted to Owen Jackson's hot lovin'. But the sexy, popular college basketball player doesn't appreciate all of Libby's awesomeness. He refuses to be exclusive or even admit to people that they're dating. The relationship is ruining Libby and she's the only one who can't see it.

When Libby's behavior spirals completely out of control, her best friend Avery Shaw and the rest of the Science Squad stage an intervention hoping to cure Libby of her harmful Owen addiction. They put her through her very own Twelve Step program-Owen's Anonymous-and recruit the help of a sexy, broody, hard as nails coffee man to be her official sponsor...

Adam Koepp has watched Libby Garrett for years. How could he not notice the sassy girl with the purple skateboard and helmet plastered with cat stickers? But in all the years he's crushed on her, Libby has failed to take notice of him. Why would she when he was just a nobody high school drop out who served her apple cider several times a week? Especially when she was hooking up with a guy like Owen Jackson-a guy with a college scholarship and more abs than Kyle Hamilton.

Adam finally gets the chance to meet Libby when his co-worker Avery Shaw recruits him to take Libby on the journey of a lifetime. With his ability to play Bad Cop and his experience with the Twelve Step program he's the perfect candidate to be Libby's sponsor. But will he be able to keep his personal feelings out of the matter and really help her the way she needs? And will Libby hate him when he forces her to take an honest look at herself?

This follow-up companion novel to The Avery Shaw Experiment can be read as a stand alone. (But where's the fun in that?) ;)




Buy Links:
Amazon * iBooks * Kobo Nook

Excerpt:

Libby

“He’s got some faults but nobody’s perfect.”

Some faults?” Adam rubbed his head as if it hurt. “Libby, he makes you miserable. I saw you the other morning in Jo’s when he insulted you. You looked like you were about to cry. You shouldn’t be with someone who’s capable of treating you like that. You shouldn’t want to be.”

He made it sound so black and white. But it wasn’t that simple. Nothing in life was that easy. “Of course you don’t get it. People like you never get it.” The bitterness in my voice couldn’t be helped.

“What do you mean people like me?”

“Good looking, confident people who don’t have any trouble getting a date.”

Adam blinked. “You think that’s me?”

Adam’s surprise was confusing. Judging by the way he got all up in my personal space last night, he knew the effect he could have on the female of the species. “I have eyes, Coffee Man, and they don’t exactly hurt when I look at you.”

Adam didn’t say anything to this. I couldn’t read the look on his face, but it almost seemed like I’d offended him somehow. He turned his attention out the window to the mountains that had swallowed us up when we entered Provo Canyon.

“Avery doesn’t get it either,” I said, needing to fill the silence. “She’s too optimistic. I mean, look at her and Grayson. The girl is practically Cinderella. She was the nerd girl who won the perfect prince. Grayson is nice, funny, gorgeous, and faithful. It’s ridiculous how much he loves her. Plus, Avery isn’t exactly unattractive. Yeah, she was a geek, but she was one of those movie geeks—invisible until she took off her glasses and shook out her hair then suddenly all the guys wanted her.”

“Don’t get me wrong,” I said when Adam cast me a curious glance. “I love Avery and I’m happy for her—she certainly deserves Grayson—but now her perception of reality is totally skewed. She thinks everyone has a fairytale ending coming to them. She doesn’t understand that most of us won’t be so lucky. Especially not someone like me.”

Adam kept his gaze on the window and let out a breath. “Someone like you?”

“Yeah, someone like me. Fat girls don’t exactly get a lot of love.”

He pulled his eyes away from the view to glare at me for that one. I wasn’t sure what his problem was. It’s not like my weight was a secret.

“Maybe I’m not three hundred pounds, but I’m definitely pushing it when I use the word chubby. In high school that equates to being the fat girl, and before you ask, I can’t just lose the weight. I have hypothyroidism. I was diagnosed when I was eleven because I became borderline diabetic. I’ve been on a strict diet and exercise program ever since so that I don’t develop more serious health problems. I’m actually in decent shape cardiovascularly speaking; I just can’t get rid of all the weight. This is as good as I will ever get.”

Adam pulled his eyes away from the window and shifted his entire body so that he was facing me. “You don’t think you’ll ever find someone that loves you because you’ll never be thin?”

I scoffed. “This is real life, not Hairspray. There is no Link Larkin out there waiting for me. Don’t even try to tell me that there is. You know there’s not. It’s a miracle Owen even gives me the time of day.”


About the Author
Kelly Oram wrote her first novel at age fifteen-a fan fiction about her favorite music group, The Backstreet Boys, for which family and friends still tease her. She's obsessed with reading, talks way too much, and loves to eat frosting by the spoonful. She lives outside of Phoenix, Arizona with her husband and four children.
Author Links:
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