Fantasy Chat: Three Cover Reveals

 

For today's Fantasy Chat, I have three book cover reveals, including J.A. Belfield's Cage, an urban fantasy novel and book three in the Holloway Pack series, Christine Rains' 1303 - The Dragonslayer, the third book in the 13th Floor series, and Julie Flanders' Polar Night, a thriller with a supernatural twist. They're such fantastic covers!

Caged

A Holloway Pack Story (#3)

by J.A. Belfield

Release Date: August 5, 2013

If the meek can become deadly, the strongest can be weak. 

For Ethan Holloway, his mission to find a missing werewolf should be simple. Crack a few heads, bust a few chops and the solution always reveals itself. Always.

Not this time.

Ethan’s reputation precedes him, and because it does, someone is ready. Waiting. Unbeknownst to Ethan, he’s about to go down. Hard. Against a foe he never suspected and in a world he never imagined could be real.

What awaits Ethan is a fight not only for his reputation, but also his pack, his female, and his life. If he survives, damage control will become priority number one. 

If he survives.

Because even Ethan’s not sure he’s strong enough to take on an entire race all by himself.

Especially one hell bent on exposing who and what he is in the name of sport.

Other Novels in this series include:
Darkness & Light (#1)
Blue Moon (#2)

In-between release novellas include:
Instinct (#0)
Eternal (#.5)
Resonance (#2.5)

1303 –The Dragonslayer 
The 13th Floor series, #3

Christine Rains

Release date: February 13, 2013

On the rooftop of neighboring building, dragonslayer Xanthus Ehrensvard fires at his target, Governor Whittaker. How he missed the shot, he doesn't know, but fleeing the scene, he picks up an unwanted passenger. Gorgeous reporter Lois King saw Xan's face, and she believes it's the story to make her career. Except he can't let her walk away knowing what he looks like. Xan has to show her the Governor is a bigger threat to the world than he is.

Xan knows dragons never went extinct. They evolved with human society, taking on mortal forms, and slithered their way into positions of great influence and power, just like the Governor. But it's no easy chore proving to someone that dragons still exist, and even more so, they're disguised as famous people. Xan must convince Lois or find another way to silence her. An option, as he gets to know her, he likes less and less.

After all, dragonslayers are no longer celebrated heroes but outlaws. Just as the dragons wish it. But this outlaw must make a plan to slay the dragon or risk its retribution.

Other Novellas in the Series:
1301 - The Marquis
1302 - The Alpha
 

Author Bio:

Christine Rains is a writer, blogger, and geek mom. She has four degrees which help nothing with motherhood, but make her a great Jeopardy player. When she's not writing or reading, she having adventures with her son or watching cheesy movies on Syfy Channel. She's a member of S.C.I.F.I. The 13th Floor series is her first self-published series. She has four novellas and eighteen short stories published.

Website / Blog / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads

Polar Night

Julie Flanders

Release Date: February 7, 2013

 

When Detective Danny Fitzpatrick leaves his hometown of Chicago and moves to Fairbanks, Alaska he wants nothing more than to escape the violence and heartbreak that left his life in pieces. Numbed by alcohol and the frozen temperatures of an Alaskan winter, Danny is content with a dead-end job investigating Fairbanks' cold cases. That all changes when a pretty blond woman goes missing on the winter solstice, and Danny stumbles upon some surprising connections between her disappearance and that of another Fairbanks woman three years earlier. Forced out of his lethargy, Danny sets out to both find the missing woman and solve his own cold case.

The investigation points Danny towards Aleksei Nechayev, the handsome and charming proprietor of an old asylum turned haunted tourist attraction in the Arctic town of Coldfoot. As he tries to find a link between Nechayev and his case, Danny's instinct tells him that Nechayev is much more than what he seems.

Danny has no idea that Nechayev is hiding a secret that is much more horrifying than anything he could ever have imagined. As his obsession with finding the missing women grows, Danny finds his own life in danger. And when the truth is finally revealed, the world as he knows it will never be the same.

Bio: Julie Flanders is a librarian and a freelance writer who has written for both online and print publications. She is an avid animal lover and shares her home in Cincinnati, Ohio with her dog and cat. Polar Night, a suspense thriller with a supernatural twist, is her first novel. It will be published by Ink Smith Publishing on February 7, 2013. Find Julie online at her blog, on Twitter, and on Facebook.

Book Chat: Cover Reveal and Recent Releases

 

There's been a lot going on in the book world lately, it seems. So today, I have a cover reveal and some book releases to mention.

The Summer I Became a Nerd by Leah Rae Miller is forthcoming from Entangled Teen on May 7, 2013. I just love the cover art for it! You can add the book on Goodreads here.

On the outside, seventeen-year-old Madelyne Summers looks like your typical blond cheerleader—perky, popular, and dating the star quarterback. But inside, Maddie spends more time agonizing over what will happen in the next issue of her favorite comic book than planning pep rallies with her squad. That she’s a nerd hiding in a popular girl's body isn’t just unknown, it's anti-known. And she needs to keep it that way.

Summer is the only time Maddie lets her real self out to play, but when she slips up and the adorkable guy behind the local comic shop’s counter uncovers her secret, she’s busted. Before she can shake a pom-pom, Maddie’s whisked into Logan’s world of comic conventions, live-action role-playing, and first-person-shooter video games. And she loves it. But the more she denies who she really is, the deeper her lies become…and the more she risks losing Logan forever.

Leah Rae Miller

Born and raised in northern Louisiana, Leah Rae Miller still lives there on a windy hill with her husband and kids. She loves comic books, lava lamps, fuzzy socks, and Cherry Coke. She spends most of her days reading things she likes and writing things she hopes other people will like.

Follow Leah on Twitter and her blog. 

Talli Roland has a new book out called The Pollyanna Plan. You can add it on your Goodreads list here.
 

Is finding true love as easy as an attitude change?

Thirty-something Emma Beckett has always looked down on 'the glass is half full' optimists, believing it's better to be realistic than delusional. But when she loses her high-powered job and fiancé in the same week, even Emma has difficulty keeping calm and carrying on.

With her world spinning out of control and bolstered by a challenge from her best friend, Emma makes a radical decision. For the next year, she'll behave like Pollyanna: attempting to always see the upside, no matter how dire the situation.

Can adopting a positive attitude give Emma the courage to build a new life, or is finding the good in everything a very bad idea?

Make Believe by J.A. Belfield, Jennifer M. Eaton, J. Keller Ford, Terri Rochenski, Lynda R. Young, and Kelly Said is now available from J. Taylor Publishing. This was such a great short story collection, and you can read my review here. Add to Goodreads here.

Sacrificial Oath by Terri Rochenski
An impetuous act unwittingly makes Alesuela the fulfillment of the Sovereign’s Blood Oath to their Goddess. In five days, she’ll be forced to make the greatest choice of her life: become the virginal sacrifice already promised, or force the man she loves most to die in her place.

With an impossible choice in front of her, she searches for ways to undo the oath, and in her quest, finds not everything in her life is as she expects.The Amulet of Ormisez by J. Keller Ford
There is only one way to save Elton Fletcher’s brother from an insanity-ridden death.

After years away from home, fighting for his people, Elton returns to discover his only sibling, Cayden, possessed by greed and malice, and responsible for malicious, unthinkable deeds. Cayden, though, isn’t the only one afflicted by the Amulet of Ormisez, and Elton finds himself in yet another battle, where the price of failure could be his own life.Birthright by Lynda R. Young
Christa can mask the pain and hide the scars, but running from a birthright is impossible.

She’s tried to escape her grief by fleeing to a small town in Florida. Much to her frustration, the locals think they recognize her even though she's never been there before. To make things worse, a man named Jack spouts outrageous theories about her.

Both spur Christa to bolt, to start fresh yet again, but there’s something about Jack that intrigues her enough to stay. The only problem? Someone else wants her to leave, and they won’t stop until she’s dead.Petrified by Kelly Said
A mysterious storm has replaced summer with winter, devastating crops and smothering Castle lands in snow. Prince Sterling August stands alone as a leader, lost in personal grief as well as a desire to help his people but with an inability to do either.

The answers he needs await him, but without Lochlyn, a woman who’s just as isolated as Sterling, he’ll never see what stands before him, cloaked in illusion.Last Winter Red by Jennifer M. Eaton 
Emily is a Red, a woman whose sole purpose in life is to produce offspring. When her husband dies and leaves her childless, she risks her life and forsakes the safety of Terra—a disease-free city born after the nuclear holocaust. Beyond its boundaries, she knows, survives a man with whom she can be properly paired.

The Outside, though, holds secrets the government struggles to keep, and what Emily discovers on her quest for a mate will change her life forever.Escort to Insanity by J.A. Belfield 
From a charity auction, to a stroll in the park, to the craziest night of her life. Nicole Harrington can’t help but wonder how a simple event went so drastically wrong.

Of course, the male escort she booked is wholly to blame. Not only charming but shrewdly intelligent, Benjamin Gold drags Nicole into a platoon of unimaginable problems—ones from which she’ll have to find the courage just to survive.

Kyra Lennon recently released book two of the Game On series. Blindsided looks so good and perfect for the holiday season. I read her novella If I Let You Go over Thanksgiving break and loved it, so I'm excited to read Game On and Blindsided soon. You can add Blindsided to your Goodreads list here.

After a successful first soccer season in L.A, Jesse Shaw heads to London with his best buddy, Hunter, but his world is turned upside down when a dangerous prank threatens his career and his blossoming relationship with Hunter’s cousin, Isabelle.

Isabelle Mills lives in Notting Hill with her parents and her twin sister, Georgia. When she finds out her cousin is coming to stay, along with his famous soccer player friend, her first instinct is to hibernate until they’ve gone. However, once she meets Jesse, everything changes. He’s everything she ever wanted, but with so many obstacles in their path, can she really risk putting her heart on the line?

And earlier in November, M. Pax released her The Renaissance of Hetty Locklear. You can add on Goodreads here. I'm hoping to read this title soon.

Graduation from community college isn’t the magic elixir Hetty Locklear counts on for becoming an adult. Her parents, who work the Renaissance fair circuit, insist she spend part of the summer with them. Hetty doubts pretending to live in the Middle Ages will help her find her way. To make it worse, an entity haunts her at her dead-end job, warning her of a dangerous man she doesn’t know. The ghost leads her to a lover who has a lot of secrets. He pulls her farther into peril and into a strange, hidden world of genetic experimentation. New Adult Urban Fantasy with a contemporary sci-fi twist. Mature content.

So, do you know of any new releases? 

Fantasy Chat: Cover reveal of RISE OF THE MAGI by Jocelyn Adams

 

I'm so excited to reveal the cover art for Rise of the Magi by Jocelyn Adams. I completely love the Lila Gray series, and I can't wait to read this book. It has adventure, suspense, romance, and hot fae folk. And now you have time to catch on the series before book three comes out in June! And I have to say this is the best cover of the three. I love it!

 

Rise of the Magi

A Lila Gray Novel #3

by Jocelyn Adams

Release Date: June 4, 2013

Target Reader: Adult

Keywords: Fantasy, Fairy

 

Back of the Book

 

 

In a battle of wills, who is strongest? The one who hates or the one who loves? 

 

In a test of faith, who will fight the hardest? The one who has everything to lose or the one who believes only in herself? 

 

For Lila Gray, the answer is both.

 

For the Magi, the questions are pointless since they can’t lose, and they’ve been waiting since before Lila’s birth for this one moment. 

 

Lila only needs to find them to understand her entire purpose in life. 

 

This time, though, instead of protecting her people, Lila may be leading them all, including her unborn child and the man she loves, to their deaths — and not by accident.

 

In the ultimate trial of heart and soul, and the conclusion to the Lila Gray series, Lila will learn that the greatest weapon of war is herself, with one ultimate unknown.

 

For which side will she fight?

 

 

URL: http://www.jtaylorpublishing.com/books/28

Other Books in this series include:
The Glass Man (#1)
Into the Unknown Anthology - Tempted (#1.5)
Shadowborn (#2)

CRUX Winners

 

The winner of the Crux water bottle is:

Christine Rains!

Congratulations, Christine! I'll send your prize shortly.

The winner of the bookmark is:

M. Pax!

Congrats, Mary! I'll email you shortly for where to send your prize.

Interview with Julie Reece, author of CRUX

 

Today I would like to welcome Julie Reece, author of Crux, to the blog! At the end of the interview, there is also a giveaway!

My comments in bold.

Julie, tell us a little about yourself. Hello. I’m an artsy, animal loving, movie watching, wife and mom who loves to write. My favorite place to read is in a hot tub full of bubbles, which is why I don’t own a Kindle. I stick my Hershey’s candy bars in peanut butter when I’m depressed, and really want to jump out of a plane before I die … that and see Italy.

In two sentences, describe your novel Crux. Charged with ending a curse, seventeen-year-old Birdie Orin must free Viking souls trapped in an ancient battle using the power of a magic amulet. When she shares the news with new friend Grey, he follows uninvited, and she must choose between fulfilling her quest and protecting the guy she’s falling for. (Can I just say I sucked at that?)

The two-sentence description is really hard, isn't it? How did you come up with your idea for Crux? I had a dream. (Sheesh, sorry, I know, but it’s just true.) A pretty blond trailed behind a man with a suitcase through a crowd in Paris. He stopped, unzipped the bag, faced the girl and I woke up. I followed my nose from there. I just had to know what was in that suitcase and what happened next.

I find inspiration from dreams too. No shame in that. *grins* I love the mythology and history in Crux. Why did you decide to go with the Norse? Also, how much research did you do for your novel?  Aw, thanks! I’m a fan of mythology as well, huge, in fact. I’m a closet, comic book artist and Thor was my hero. (Truth? Had he been real, I would have wanted to have his children.) When I thought about trying something different from what other YA authors were doing, my brain kept heading north to the Vikings. They were also a big inspiration to Tolkien for Lord of the Rings, one of my favorites. 

Thor's not real? How disappointing! I've always been a fan of Odin. How did you discover J. Taylor Publishing and decide to have them publish Crux? I belonged to a writing critique site and met some wonderful aspiring authors. One of my critique partners on the site had just recently had a book accepted by J. Taylor and suggested I try Crux there. I took a deep breath, sent it and heard back right away. Yes. They wanted my book! I still pinch myself this is actually happening to me.

Yay for critique partners! What are you working on now? Ah, I have a couple irons in the fire. A historical, paranormal (sizzling) romance is finished, and I’m editing it now. Beyond that, I’m a third finished with another urban fantasy and have plotted a contemporary romance. All YA.  Young Adult is my heartbeat.

YA is awesome! If you could recommend one book, what book would that be and why? You know that question is like asking me to eat one potato chip, or take a bite of chocolate and stop, right? Okay, I’d tell you to read Jane Eyre. The trials Jane overcomes twist my heart every single time I read it. The mind games that Mr. Rochester plays with his woman are cruel in the most sick, satisfying sort of way. Devotion. Passion. Oh my gosh, it’s fantastic. *sigh*

I'm a fan of Jane Eyre too! Thank you!

Thanks for having me! So much fun and great to meet you.

Julie has sent me some items from Crux for a giveaway! Now you can also have a chance to win bookmarks and a water bottle of Crux. All you have to do is comment below to be entered. I will announce the winner on Thursday.

About the Author:

Born in Ohio, I lived next to my grandfather’s horse farm until the fourth grade. Summers were about riding, fishing and make-believe, while winter brought sledding and ice-skating on frozen ponds. Most of life was magical, but not all.

I struggled with multiple learning disabilities, did not excel in school. I spent much of my time looking out windows and daydreaming. In the fourth grade (with the help of one very nice teacher) I fought dyslexia for my right to read, like a prince fights a dragon in order to free the princess locked in a tower, and I won.

Afterwards, I read like a fiend. I invented stories where I could be the princess... or a gifted heroine from another world who kicked bad guy butt to win the heart of a charismatic hero. Who wouldn't want to be a part of that? Later, I moved to Florida where I continued to fantasize about superpowers and monsters, fabricating stories (my mother called it lying) and sharing them with my friends.

Then I thought I’d write one down…

Hooked, I’ve been writing ever since. I write historical, contemporary, urban fantasy, adventure, and young adult romances. I love strong heroines, sweeping tales of mystery and epic adventure… which must include a really hot guy. My writing is proof you can work hard to overcome any obstacle. Don’t give up. I say, if you write, write on!

 

About the Book:

She should have run. Now, she’ll have to fight.

Eighteen year old Birdie may be homeless, but she’s surviving, that is until a mysterious guy throws money in the air like a crazy game show host, and she grabs some with the idea she’ll be able to buy dinner that night.

In that singular moment, unassuming Birdie becomes the girl in everyone’s viewfinder. Thugs want to kill her. Money-guy wants to recruit her. The very hot, very rich, and very out of her league Grey Mathews wants to save her.

Birdie, though, wants nothing to do with any of them, until she realizes fate didn’t bring them all together.

Her heritage did.

Now, with only twenty-one days left, she’s got to decide whether to follow in the footsteps of those before her or risk her life for people she’s only just met.

Links:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13265572-crux

http://blog.juliereece.com/

http://www.jtaylorpublishing.com/books/13

Cover Reveal: MAKE BELIEVE by J.A. Belfield, Jennifer M. Eaton, J. Keller Ford, Terri Rochenski, Kelly Said, and Lynda R. Young

Make Believe

by J.A. Belfield, Jennifer M. Eaton, J. Keller Ford, Terri Rochenski, Kelly Said, Lynda R. Young

Release Date: December 3, 2012

Target Reader: Adult

Keywords: Fantasy, Paranormal Romance, Romance

Back of the Book


Sacrificial Oath by Terri Rochenski

An impetuous act unwittingly makes Alesuela the fulfillment of the Sovereign’s Blood Oath to their Goddess. In five days, she’ll be forced to make the greatest choice of her life: become the virginal sacrifice already promised, or force the man she loves most to die in her place.

With an impossible choice in front of her, she searches for ways to undo the oath, and in her quest, finds not everything in her life is as she expects.

The Amulet of Ormisez by J. Keller Ford

There is only one way to save Elton Fletcher’s brother from an insanity-ridden death.

After years away from home, fighting for his people, Elton returns to discover his only sibling, Cayden, possessed by greed and malice, and responsible for malicious, unthinkable deeds. Cayden, though, isn’t the only one afflicted by the Amulet of Ormisez, and Elton finds himself in yet another battle, where the price of failure could be his own life.

Birthright by Lynda R. Young

Christa can mask the pain and hide the scars, but running from a birthright is impossible.

She’s tried to escape her grief by fleeing to a small town in Florida. Much to her frustration, the locals think they recognize her even though she's never been there before. To make things worse, a man named Jack spouts outrageous theories about her.

Both spur Christa to bolt, to start fresh yet again, but there’s something about Jack that intrigues her enough to stay. The only problem? Someone else wants her to leave, and they won’t stop until she’s dead.

Petrified by Kelly Said

A mysterious storm has replaced summer with winter, devastating crops and smothering Castle lands in snow.  Prince Sterling August stands alone as a leader, lost in personal grief as well as a desire to help his people but with an inability to do either.

The answers he needs await him, but without Lochlyn, a woman who’s just as isolated as Sterling, he’ll never see what stands before him, cloaked in illusion.

Last Winter Red by Jennifer M. Eaton

Emily is a Red, a woman whose sole purpose in life is to produce offspring. When her husband dies and leaves her childless, she risks her life and forsakes the safety of Terra—a disease-free city born after the nuclear holocaust. Beyond its boundaries, she knows, survives a man with whom she can be properly paired.

The Outside, though, holds secrets the government struggles to keep, and what Emily discovers on her quest for a mate will change her life forever.

Escort to Insanity by J.A. Belfield

From a charity auction, to a stroll in the park, to the craziest night of her life. Nicole Harrington can’t help but wonder how a simple event went so drastically wrong.

Of course, the male escort she booked is wholly to blame. Not only charming but shrewdly intelligent, Benjamin Gold drags Nicole into a platoon of unimaginable problems—ones from which she’ll have to find the courage just to survive.

URL: http://www.jtaylorpublishing.com/books/17