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Giveaway Date
2/1 to 2/15 Open to US
Giveaway will be 2 weeks long. Make sure if you are purchasing links they will be valid that long. We don't want blank entries. Prize: $500 Traveling Certificate that may be used for either airline or hotel)
The more bloggers promoting ~ the bigger the results ~ the more giveaways we get to do together. Sign Up Here or Below Co-Hosts Needed $5 for 5 additional links (up to 8 total) plus a backlink to your blog. Adding social links $1.50 each or 3 for $4, limit 3
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Posting will be required within 24 hours of launch. I hope to see you there.
If you have any questions about this giveaway please email Amy at grovesamy81@gmail.com or amy@aarlreviews.com
Hi lovelies! It gives me great pleasure
today to host Tawny Weber and her new book, “Call to Honor: A SEAL Brotherhood
Novel – Book #1”! For other stops on her
Goddess Fish Promotions Book Tour, please click on the banner above or any of
the images in this post.
Be sure to make it to the end of this
post to enter to win a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble Gift Card! Also, come back daily to interact with Tawny
and to increase your chances of winning!
Thanks for stopping by! Wishing you lots of luck in this fabulous
giveaway!
“No man left
behind” is inscribed in the DNA of every SEAL and Lieutenant Diego Torres is no
exception. But with a team member killed—and the body missing— Diego’s honor is
sorely tested. Now his career and reputation are on the line, and a traitor is
hiding among them. Diego wants answers...and only one woman has them.
Single mom
Harper Maclean has two priorities—raising her son Nathan and starting a new
life. Her mysterious new neighbor may be impossibly charming, but Diego asks
too many questions about her past—and about the father of her child. Questions
she fears will reveal her burning attraction for Diego, and ultimately put them
all in danger’s path.
Harper’s
frown intensified. All of this dating and sex talk was stupid. All it did was
stir up thoughts of Brandon, bad memories and hurt feelings. And like anything
to do with Brandon Ramsey, the second one thought occurred, a million followed.
He was the poster boy for taking a mile when an inch was all she’d offered.
No
more, she ordered herself. He wasn’t a part of her now, and her past was over.
“Registered
letter for one Mr. Nathan Ramsey, care of Harper Maclean,” Andi said, coming
back waving a large envelope. “Who’d get his name wrong?”
The
bowl of cleaned berries suddenly shaking in her hands, Harper set it on the bar
with care and stared. Her chest hurt. She couldn’t think for the buzzing in her
ears.
Ramsey.
Harper’s
heart raced so fast, it tripped over itself. How was that possible? Why whould
Brandon contact Nathan? As far as he knew, she’d followed his instructions to
end the pregnancy. How did he know she’d had the baby? How did he know Nathan’s
name? Had he always known?
The
air locked in Harper’s chest, vicious and tight, cutting off her breath,
sending shards of pain knifing through her.
Why
was he contacting her? Contacting Nathan?
Was he going to try to get custody?
Or
had his parents gotten wind of unaccounted Ramsey DNA and tracked down their
heir apparent?
Harper
looked toward the stairs with a desperate gaze. She should get Nathan. They
should go. Now.
As
soon as she thought that, Harper squared her shoulders.
To
hell with that. Nathan was her son. This was her home. She’d be damned if
Brandon or his rich parents were going to screw with either.
Still,
her hand trembled so much as she took the letter that she dropped it onto the
marble countertop as if it were on fire.
Knowing
Andi would keep it up until she did, she huffed out a hot breath. Sliding her
thumbnail under the flap, Harper reluctantly tugged the paper out.
She
noted the official-looking insignia and the fancy lettering denoting it to be
from Admiral H. M. Cree, Special Ops commander.
Her
brow creased as she read.
The
room narrowed, and all the air disappeared. The words spun into a swirling blur
of black on white. She needed to sit down. But she managed only a single step
before her legs gave out and she sank to the floor, the letter clutched in her
hands.
“What
is it?” Instead of pulling her back up, Andi dropped down next to her,
gathering Harper into her arms. She tried to read the paper, but Harper
couldn’t let it go. “Sweetie, what does it say?”
“He’s
dead,” Harper murmured, her voice sounding as if it were coming from the other
end of a long tunnel. “Brandon is dead.”
New York Times
and USA TODAY Bestselling author of more than forty books, Tawny
Weber loves writing about sexy heroes, most notably her popular
Navy SEALs series. Her sassy, emotional
romances are filled with men dedicated to being the best—and women determined
to have the best. Tawny credits her
ex-military alpha husband for inspiration in her writing, and in her life. The recipient of numerous writing accolades,
including Romantic Times Reviewers Choice and in addition to the NY Times and
USA Today bestseller lists, Tawny has also hit the number one spot on Amazon
and Barnes & Noble.
A homeschooling
mom, Tawny enjoys scrapbooking, gardening and spending time with her family and
dogs in her Northern California home.
You can find
Tawny on Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest – see links below!
**This post contains affiliate links and if clicked and a
purchase made I may receive a small commission to help support this blog. This does not cost you anything, it just
helps pay for all those awesome giveaways on here.**
This contest is sponsored by a third party. Fabulous and
Brunette is a registered host of Goddess Fish Promotions. Prizes are given away by the sponsors and not
Fabulous and Brunette. The featured author and Goddess Fish Promotions are
solely responsible for the giveaway prize.
Hi lovelies! It
gives me great pleasure today to host D.C. Fergerson and his new book, “The
Singer and the Charlatan”! For other
stops on his Goddess Fish Promotions Book Tour, please click on the banner
above or any of the images in this post.
Be sure to make it
to the end of this post to enter to win a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble Gift
Card! Also, come back daily to interact
with D.C. and to increase your chances of winning!
Thanks for stopping
by! Wishing you lots of luck in this
fabulous giveaway!
The Singer and the Charlatan
Book One of
The Wicked Instruments
by D.C. Fergerson
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GENRE:
Fantasy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
Leanna Moonbody
dreams of playing at the Saul Amphitheater. With just one adventure to fund her
trip, she meets up with a priestess that dreams of a massive flock to take on a
pilgrimage. Together, Leanna will set up the crowds, and Priestess Trixi will
bring them to Our Lord.
With an elf, dwarf,
rogue, pixie and a paladin on their side, they set out to realize both their
dreams. They just have to maneuver past a lovesick noble, the clergy, a
deranged halfling that can’t seem to die, and a plague.
What could possibly
go wrong?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT
ONE:
“Ooh,
this is exciting,” Leanna said with a smile, grabbing up Tear and Jonathan’s
hands.
With
the circle complete, Trixi looked to the ceiling.
“Lord.
Oh, Lord, who is great and true. Take this offering of Form R226 and whatever
leftovers we have here from dinner. Commune with me so that I may be a better
Fawnspear, walking the path of truth. May it be really, really funny.”
With
that, the scroll burned away before their eyes. Then, nothing. The silence
became awkward.
“Did
it not work?” Jonathan asked.
“Quiet,”
Trixi demanded, turning her ear to the table.
The
faint sound of terribly boring music filled the space all around the table. Any
old ear would think it came from the building next door, but the trained ear of
a Thistlite knew better. She listened to the song for a moment with her eyes
closed.
Leanna
joined in, leaning in to try and make out the tune. Suddenly, a loud voice
spoke out, scaring her so bad she almost fell out of her chair.
“Our
Lord is currently speaking with another faithful! You are very important to Our
Lord! Your prayer shall be heard in the order it was received!”
Leanna
broke the circle. “Oh, come on! Why did that have to be the loud part?”
“Leanna,
you must be quiet,” Trixi whispered. “I’m sure he’ll be here soon.”
The most common
advice you’re given as a writer is to ‘write what you know’. That’s easy, right
up until you bump into the other half of the population that isn’t your gender.
How can I, as a male writer, have two female leads in The Singer and the
Charlatan that don’t fall into a male perspective of humor?
Just recently, when
I got back my manuscript for the second book, The Princess and the Holy
Juggernaut (coming February/March!) from my editor, Michelle Luxembourger, it
was fascinating to see where she notated the jokes that really cracked her up.
They were always more subtle and born from knowing the characters very well.
They were intimate jokes, for lack of a better term. I’ve been able to
cultivate a lot of that intimate humor through world building, but I honestly
couldn’t have done any better than roleplay.
A nerd to my core,
my wife and I were brought into Dungeons and Dragons and other tabletop
roleplaying games by my sister and her husband. Two guys, two girls. By
assuming the roles of these characters, I was able to see things from such a
different perspective, one I can’t really take credit for. The life and
complexity of Leanna Moonbody and Priestess Trixi in The Singer and the
Charlatan was due entirely to the love my wife and sister had for these
characters. They sat down and asked the questions, ‘Where is she from? What
makes her tick? What does she want in life?’ I can write them all I want, but
these characters, and the depth within, comes from a place I never wrote. I got
lucky to watch them unfold as people, to know them like friends, and to be able
to put their story to paper.
Early on in the
book, the dwarf Cort confronts their employer, Lord Lloyd Demarq, about a bit
of dark business the main characters had undertaken for him. Cort believes Lord
Demarq is an evil undead that has tasked them with finding his remains for some
nefarious purpose.
(From
The Singer and the Charlatan)
“Wait,” Leanna
said. “Are you guys saying he’s hundreds of years old?”
“I’m saying good
old Lloyd here was after this urn because he’s in it,” Cort replied.
“But he’s up there
on the stairs, Cort. Have we thought this through?”
These kinds of
interactions and banter just aren’t possible exclusively from a male point of
view. If there were no women in this scene to bring levity and common sense,
it’s a more serious, jump-to-conclusions-and-kill-him action scene. I owe a lot
of laughs and a lot of my insight to having my wife and my sister play these
characters, reacting as Leanna and Trixi would react, almost cheating to get a
genuine female voice when I don’t understand the first thing about being a
woman or seeing the world through their eyes.
I’ve been very
lucky to have surrounded myself with some of the funniest, greatest women I
know. The Singer and the Charlatan is a fantasy story that doesn’t mind poking
fun at its own genre, and it does so because of that intimate element of humor
and two incredible female leads. Any other writer would have jumped on
supporting character Jonathan Twilight - the well-dressed, good looking rogue
that is quick with a dagger and full of secrets. Or perhaps they’d find the
paladin Sante best to carry the story - fresh from his military training and
out on his first mission, leaving his new wife back home so that he can safely
escort Leanna Moonbody to the city of Saul. These guys can carry action movies,
and that just wasn’t me.
The best thing I
can say about writing women in comedy is this - surround yourself with smart,
witty women and soak up conversation like a sponge. Nothing can substitute for
a woman’s perspective and voice.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR
BIO:
An avid reader,
fantasy gamer, humorist, husband, and father. I wear a lot of hats, some of
them terribly silly, with feathers and such. I’ve channeled years Dungeons and
Dragons campaigns and late-night stand-up comics into a series full of wit, charm,
magic, and laughs.
**This post contains affiliate links and if clicked and a
purchase made I may receive a small commission to help support this blog. This does not cost you anything, it just
helps pay for all those awesome giveaways on here.**
This contest is sponsored by a third party. Fabulous and
Brunette is a registered host of Goddess Fish Promotions. Prizes are given away by the sponsors and not
Fabulous and Brunette. The featured author and Goddess Fish Promotions are
solely responsible for the giveaway prize.
Hi lovelies! It gives me
great pleasure today to host N.S. Wikarski and her new book, “The Sage Stone
Prophecy”! For other stops on her
Goddess Fish Promotions Book Tour, please click on the banner above or any of the
images in this post.
Be sure to make it to the
end of this post to enter to win a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble Gift Card! Also, come back daily to interact with N.S.
and to increase your chances of winning!
Thanks for stopping
by! Wishing you lots of luck in this
fabulous giveaway!
The Sage Stone Prophecy
by N.S. Wikarski
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GENRE: Adventure, Mystery
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
Where
do you hide a mysterious artifact that could change the course of history? You
scatter clues to its whereabouts across the entire planet. Five objects buried
beneath the rubble of lost civilizations point to the hiding place of the
fabled Sage Stone. A secret society and a fanatical religious cult vie against
one another in a global treasure hunt to claim the prize. The Arkana wants to
preserve it for posterity. The Blessed Nephilim wants to exploit it to create a
terrifying new world order. Only one faction can win. More importantly, only
one can survive.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT THREE:
Hannah
heard the key slide into the lock just in time to throw her e-book reader
inside a dresser drawer and bury it under a pile of stockings. She whirled
about as Joshua entered the room.
His
face was grim. “For someone who doesn’t speak, you certainly provoke a lot of
chatter among the community. Tongues are wagging about Mother Rachel’s last
visit to you and the tragic aftermath. No one can seem to talk of anything
else.”
The
girl gave a slight smile and shrugged.
Joshua
stared at her intently. “You think you’re clever, don’t you?”
Hannah
regulated her expression to its characteristic blankness.
“You
have them all fooled, not simply my father. No one can believe a child who
looks so sweet and innocent could be capable of such monstrous duplicity. But
you are, Sister Hannah, and I intend to prove it.”
The
spymaster removed a small object from his pocket and set it on the dresser. It
appeared to be some sort of digital recording device. He switched it on and
then turned back to the girl.
“The
Brotherhood is in crisis. My father has set us on a path to destruction and I
alone can avert disaster. To do that, I must persuade the Diviner that I am the
only one he can trust—the only one who has his best interests at heart. And
you’re going to help me convince him.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
REVIEW:
Such
an exciting and suspenseful climatic end to a seven book series! This book takes you on a fun and thrilling
adventure that keeps you guessing to the very end! There are so many cringe-worthy moments that
keep you gasping waiting to find out what happens!
First
off, I was truly impressed with the start of this book. At the beginning of the book is the “Author’s
Note,” which thoroughly explains the characters, happenings, and lingo of the
other six books. This is truly great for
readers, like me, who are new to the series and also as a refresher course for
others that are more familiar with these books.
This definitely allows for anyone to be able to pick up this book and
fully understand what is going on. I
also loved that it gave personal details like: Abraham Metcalf was “in his
seventies,” and Annabeth was “nervous and high-strung.” I felt like I was well aware and caught up on
the characters and their personalities/traits.
I really liked the characters as they are well developed. They were easy to picture and identify with. Even the bad guys like Abraham Metcalf you will also enjoy!
I
liked that this book had many, but short chapters as they were clean, well-written, concise, and easily flowed.
Even though this book deals with complex matriarchal societies and difficult deciphers it is written in an easy to understand and follow clarity.
I’ve
heard many other people compare this book to Dan Brown’s books, and yes, I did
see many similarities. I would also
compare it to the National Treasure movies.
The reason I say that is because I feel Dan Brown’s books are more on
the biblical sense and these books are more on the historical, but fun
side. These books are less dramatic and
intense than Dan Brown’s books. Yes,
there are serious moments and end of the world drama, but I felt it was more on
a lighter side - still very enjoyable!
This
book was strongly researched and well backed up. I feel that this is extremely hard to do for
a fiction author. However, Nancy aka
N.S. has a profound educational background that is not only impressive, it allows
for her to write with such articulacy.
The story is fluid and credible.
This
book is mostly direct. It does lavish on
some details, but it is mostly to the point.
For instance, I feel even though it was a long journey to the end, every
chapter and scene was needed to make this book the success that it is.
I love treasure hunt books and movies and this book series definitely fits that bill. I have always found secret societies intriguing and this book truly captures all of the mystery and mystic of those groups! This book will leave you in awe and at the edge of your seat page by page!
Although like I said, this book can be read on its own.However, it is such an exciting hunt that I am sure you’d love to have followed the stories from day one – or well book one.
I
would absolutely recommend this book and this book series to anyone interested
in an exciting, thrilling, mystifying, and suspenseful read!If
you love a good treasure hunt – these books are for you!
**Disclaimer: I received a
complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.**
Did you find this
review helpful?
If so, please, please,
please mark it as helpful on Amazon here:
"There's
a 52% chance that the next Dan Brown will be a woman ... or should we just make
that 100% now?"
--Kindle
Nation Daily
Nancy
Wikarski is a fugitive from academia. After earning her Ph.D. from the
University of Chicago, she became a computer consultant and then turned to
mystery and historical fiction writing. She is a member of Mystery Writers of
America, the Society Of Midland Authors, and has served as vice president of
Sisters In Crime - Twin Cities and on the programming board of the Chicago
chapter. Her short stories have appeared in Futures Magazine and DIME
Anthology, while her book reviews have been featured in Murder: Past Tense and
Deadly Pleasures.
She
has written the Gilded Age Mystery series set in 1890s Chicago. Titles include
The Fall Of White City (2002) and Shrouded In Thought (2005). The series has
received People's Choice Award nominations for Best First Novel and Best
Historical as well as a Lovey Award for Best Traditional Amateur Sleuth.
Her
seven-book Arkana Archaeology Mystery Series is a #1 Amazon Bestseller. Titles
include The Granite Key (2011), The Mountain Mother Cipher (2011), The Dragon’s
Wing Enigma (2012), Riddle Of The Diamond Dove (2013), Into The Jaws Of The
Lion (2014), Secrets Of The Serpent’s Heart (2015), and The Sage Stone Prophecy
(2016).
**This post contains affiliate links and if clicked and a
purchase made I may receive a small commission to help support this blog. This does not cost you anything, it just
helps pay for all those awesome giveaways on here.**
This contest is sponsored by a third party. Fabulous and
Brunette is a registered host of Goddess Fish Promotions. Prizes are given away by the sponsors and not
Fabulous and Brunette. The featured author and Goddess Fish Promotions are
solely responsible for the giveaway prize.
