Thursday, October 2, 2014

Cover Reveal - Brokenness by Erika Ashby

Releasing: November 2014
Cover Credits:

Cover Artist- Perfect Pear Creative Covers:  https://www.facebook.com/PPCCovers

Synopsis

**Brokenness is a companion novel to Broken Wings** 

TEN YEARS AGO, I fell in love with a boy. 
In the blink of an eye, the boy I loved was ripped from me. 
TEN YEARS LATER, I ran into the boy I had lost. 
Yet, he's no longer a boy. 
He's a man. 
A deeply wounded man. 

Dustin Adams was once known for his down to earth, care free spirit. He was the well rounded kid with a promising future. 

Until the girl he loved was yanked from his life. 

Now, Dustin is known for his distance and the coldness he radiates. He is simply a shell of the boy he once was.

Living the Army life, the close calls he's surrounded by daily have done nothing but further harden his heart.

Until the girl he once loved reappears in his life. 

Can what they shared so long ago be restored? Or is Dustin fated to live a life of brokenness?


Excerpt
Prelude 

TEN YEARS AGO I fell in love with a boy. All it took was one sideways grin with his perfectly dimpled cheek for me to know I was a goner. My days and nights were consumed by him—if not physically, he was there mentally—always on my mind. I loved him with everything within me. The love we shared was the kind I thought would stand the test of time.

Everyone says your first true love isn't in fact true, but more of a fling. That epic love comes from enduring every facet of life with that person. Rather it be happiness, sadness, loss, gain—you can't truly love someone until it's been tested. 

The one day in a blink of an eye, the boy I loved was ripped from me. My overly religious parents didn't like their daughter falling in love so young. It was simply unacceptable to them when I was supposed to focus on God, school, my future and nothing else. 

He was my future and when they ripped my future away, I rebelled. I was barely showing by time graduation rolled around. Thank God, because I would have surely been an outcast at my new school. Not to mention what would have happened if my parents would have found out. There was no way I was letting them get their hands on the last thing I had of the boy I loved. 

Eighteen, pregnant and sitting at the bus station, I found a friend. One that took me under his wing and I grew to love. It was then I realized the different types of love. He was everything I needed when I had nothing. I love him for the life he has brought me when every option I had was filled with uncertainty. I will forever be in his debt. 

Ten years later, I ran into the boy I had loved, yet he's no longer a boy. He's a man. A deeply wounded man. Even though the flesh on his outside is still fully intact, nothing compares to the scars and pain he's carried around on the inside for so long. 

Ten years later and I still have the same feelings for him...but they seem so much more intense. Was my first love my one true love? Now that he’s reappeared in my life, my thoughts are consumed by him. But, now they are paralleled with guilt. I love two men, but I love them differently. And, as of right now, I only know one for sure loves me back.



I’m caught between what’s wrong and what’s right…what’s fair and what’s unjust. I know what my heart wants, but is what it wants, what’s right? Feelings can cloud moral judgment. I don’t want what I feel to take over what I know to be right. But, I’m having a hard time sorting out the differences. I’m walking an emotion packed tight rope, and I know I’m going to fall. I’m just unsure who’s going to catch me.


Teaser


MeetTheAuthor

Being born an "Army Brat", Erika Ashby has been residing in Oklahoma the last 10 years finally putting an end to the nomad tendencies she had grown accustomed to. She's a happily married woman who has 5 kids between her and her husband. She has an insane passion for music and a sweet spot for drummers. It wasn't until the age of 29 that she realized she also had a hidden passion for reading; before then she claimed to have hated it. Six months after unlocking that deep desire she never knew she held, she turned the key to another chapter of her life which has become the desire to write. And the rest is still history in the making.

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RESISTING by Chelle Bliss COVER REVEAL

IzzyNovellaAnthology-2
Title: Resisting
Author: Chelle Bliss
Release Date: November 10, 2014 as part of OWNED: An Alpha Anthology
 
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Blurb
I belong to no one. It’s the way I’ve chosen to live. Master of my own destiny, finding my way through this bullshit thing called life. I learned from a young age how to get my way. Being a woman isn’t a weakness. It’s the opposite. I’ve spent my life being surrounded by four overbearing brothers, but I’ve never been a wallflower. Independent and unwilling to be tied down, I grabbed life by the balls and lived it to the fullest. I was enjoying myself, minding my own business at my brothers wedding. Then WHAM. Ever have a man walk into your life and alter your entire universe? My answer would’ve been no before he tempted me into his bed. I’m talking about the big damn bang. Everything that I thought was right, suddenly spins on its axis and bitch slaps me in the face.   resistingteaser1     10703629_770165543029560_3459311776545750900_n
Men of Inked
Do you like pierced and tatted ALPHAS? You need to read the Men of Inked series!
Throttle Me ~ Book 1: http://amzn.to/1ApcSSD
Hook Me ~ Book 2: http://amzn.to/1ApcUKf
Throttled ~ Book 3: http://amzn.to/1mUoWko
Resist Me ~ Book 4: http://amzn.to/1t5S6TG
   
OWNED: An Alpha Anthology
OWNED ANTHOLOGY KINDLE EBOOK COVER
Prepare to be Owned...
Lose yourself in this collection of never before seen novellas from eleven best selling authors from around the globe.
And the best part - they contain controlling alphas, feisty females and story lines that will have you holding your breath.
 
Pre-Order OWNED today!
   
Giveaway!
 
About the Author
Chelle bliss 
  Chelle Bliss is a USA Today Best Selling author and the creator of the best selling series, Men of Inked. She taught high school for over ten years and has a Master’s of Education. Recently, she’s been able to leave her teaching position to focus solely on writing.
Twitter: @ChelleBliss1 | Facebook Fan page: Search for Bliss’ Book Hangout
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Blog Tour for My Coyote Ugly Life (My Life #1) by Jessica Spoon

Synopsis
“How on earth do I get myself in these situations? I swear it’s like a never-ending bad dream. One of all my mistakes that continuously bite me in my size ten ass.”

Azaria ‘Ree’ Gable had her one experience with heartbreak and that was enough for her. She’s perfectly satisfied with her ‘One Month Rule’ and doesn't need her life changing anytime soon.

When circumstances take her back home, she learns things have changed…

A lot…

First and foremost being with the complete and astonishing overhaul and revamp of the Belton Police Department, where apparently the application was changed to state ‘Ugly Men Need Not Apply’ and the only requirement is ‘How Well Do You Look In This Uniform?’

Ree unexpectedly catches the eye of the new ‘gina-quiver inducing Chief of Police Grayson Cole, which starts an endless game of cat and mouse.

Will Ree let go of her misconceptions about relationships and allow Grayson to show her how beautiful life can really be?
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Excerpt
It’s now six o’clock and I’m sitting down to try to get ahead on a little work for an author friend of mine that wants me to help her come up with some graphics. I just get my program pulled up when the doorbell rings. 
I walk out of my office, turn and head to the door. I look out the peephole and see Chief Cole standing there. I immediately duck down, because everyone knows that cops can see through those little holes. It’s some kind of special tactical training they have to go through at the academy. 
I, ever… so… quietly, walk backwards down the hall. Then there is a pounding at the door (you know the one I’m talking about. Cop Move 2. The three quick pounds on the door that are able to wake the dead.). I freeze and don’t breathe for a moment. Just in case.
“Ree! Open the damn door!” he says, sounding exasperated. 
I continue my mission impossible escape back into my office. My desk faces the front windows, so I covertly move to the side that has the string to close the blinds. I plaster my back against the wall and, slowly, pull on the string. The blinds are on the opposite side from the string, and they are almost all the way to me when a face appears on the other side of the glass next to me.
“Aaaaeeee!” I scream out, hands flailing, ducking down and throwing my hands over my head.
“Ree,” he says seriously; his voice muffled through the glass, “Open the damn door.” 
I lift my head and look up at him through the window, “No.” I’m pretty proud of the fact that my voice comes out strong and defiant, despite the fact that I totally freaked out. 
“Ree.”
“No!” I stand up and put my hands on my hips. “You can’t make me.” I grab the string and close the blinds the rest of the way, then go back to my desk, sit down and decide to get back to work.
Except it’s kind of hard, knowing he’s just on the other side of the window… 
Nope. Back to work. 
I bring up a couple pictures and begin to manipulate them. I push away all thoughts of Chief Panty Melter and begin to work diligently. I look at the clock on my computer, after what feels like an hour, and realize it’s only been two minutes. I look back at my double monitors; I haven’t done anything other than stare at the pictures. I can’t freaking concentrate!
Fuck it!
I get up and walk over to the window. I pull the blinds apart and deftly look out. 
Hmm. 
He’s not there. 
I open them further and look all around my front yard. There is no trace of him. 
Damn.
I mean, good. Yeah. It’s good news.
“Looking for something?”
“What the fuck!” I scream, spinning around, my hand flying to my chest. Chief Panty Melter is leaning against the wall, arms crossed, smiling at me. “How the hell did you get in here?!” I demand.
He tilts his head back, “Back door was unlocked,” he answers.
“So, you… you just came right in?” I demand, my voice a little weak. Dammit. 
“Well,” he raises his brows, looks down at himself and the fact that he is very much in my house, then looks back up at me, “yeah.”
“That’s a B&E and you’re a cop!”
“And?”
 “And?” I jerk my head back. “And?” I demand, getting closer to him and in his face, “You can’t just break into someone’s house!” I screech, stomping my feet and holding my fists tight to my sides, arms straight. 
He moves quick. Really quick. One second, I’m in his face yelling, the next he has my back against the wall, his body holding mine in place and his hands resting against the wall on either side of my head.
His eyes roam over my face with an intensity I don’t recognize.
“Fuck,” he says quietly. “Has anyone ever told you how unbelievably sexy you are when you’re mad?”
I blink.
I blink again.
One more time.
Did I just hear him right?
“What?” I breathe out in shock.
“Baby, I’ve never been more turned on than I am at this exact fucking moment.”

Teaser


MeetTheAuthor
My first book, Darkness Deserved, released July of 2013. It is the first book in the Shattering the Darkness Series.

I'm crazy and love my friends, family and booze.

I used to never read when I was growing up. My mother always tried to get me to read and I wanted no part in it. I figured why read when it's going to be a movie? (Yes, like I said crazy.)

Well a few years ago I jumped on the Twilight band wagon. I've always loved supernatural movies and when I saw the previews I knew I wanted to see it. And see it I did. I immediately went out and bought the books and became hooked.

They came to me at a very special time in my life.

I discovered I loved to read and found my nitch in the paranormal and romance genre. I started a book club with a cousin and all of a sudden these thoughts kept assaulting my brain.

So I wrote them down. Then, deciding that I wanted to write, I contacted some wonderfully amazing women who helped me through the process.

I now have three books under my belt and am still learning constantly.

My Life Series, is by far my favorite to write. There are some events in the story that are based on actual events that have happened in my life.

I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I enjoyed living them.

   



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Blog Tour - My Heart to Fear by Lulu Astor

Synopsis
Devious. Dangerous. Demonic. Damien.

People were either slavishly devoted to Eric Damien or they jealously hated him. Sometimes even both.

Eric Damien hunted and fed off shyness and innocence. Ali Spencer was a sitting duck.

He would learn all of her secrets while he had her locked in his rooms and at his mercy. Appeasement of all of his desires was his own personal manifest destiny—he honestly believed that was true.

REVIEW

Ali Spencer has lived her life flying under the radar, the man radar, so to speak. Being assaulted as a child has left physiological scars far deeper in reach than any physical reminder of that night. At 23, Ali is stunningly beautiful yet unaware of how her body and demure behavior attracts the opposite sex. Much to her surprise and disbelief, in just two short weeks Ali has not one but two men vying for her attention. On on hand she has her very intelligent Art professor Geoffrey Blake and the other she has Eric Damien, a mongol in the business world and a self made millionaire. Both men are extremely attractive and asserting and both men play to win. Will Ali be able to see through her haze of lust and see the right man for her? Or will listening to her body destroy her heart?


Oh my, this book was delicious, intriguing and AMAZING! I was up until 1:30am reading it because I HAD TO KNOW what happens and how the book ends. The author writes in such a way that as a reader, I was constantly waiting for the 'shoe to drop,' so to speak. It was exciting and it kept me glued to page after page, only to find myself dreaming of this book when I finally went to bed! This book was a bit stiff and too formal in dialogue between some of the characters and that is the only reason I have to give a 4 star rating. I know that you love angst, romantic triangle books then you will love this book! I can NOT AT ALL wait for the second book to come out! This book does end in a cliff - hanger for those of you who hate the wait. I still think you should read it though... with this book the wait will be worth it :)


Reviewed by: Maggie Wadsager


Excerpt
Portland, Oregon
June 2001

The small room was illuminated only by moonlight that trespassed between the wide slats of the white plantation shutters. By day the bedroom was cheerful, awash in feminine shades of the palest pink and green with scalloped white wood furniture and a small white iron chandelier dangling daintily from the ceiling. Now, after midnight, it was dark with silvery light pooling just below the large window. The room’s inhabitant was long asleep, her dark hair fanned out across the shell-pink pillow, framing her China doll face and roseate lips. She’d been tired, having endured a long day of anticipation. Right now her peaceful slumber was interrupted by an abrupt inability to breathe. The resulting gasping caused her to waken suddenly, panicked.
 “Shhh. It’s just me. Stay still.”
The gravelly voice came out of the darkness. Ali knew it belonged to her aunt’s boyfriend. He’d told her to call him Uncle Joel but Ali had just met him four days before. Aunt Lauren and Joel were staying the week with Ali and her mother, visiting for Ali’s birthday—a surprise to make up for the fact that her father was away. But why did Joel keep coming into her room? Last night she’d awakened to find him looming over her with scary eyes. The night before that she bolted up from a deep sleep, afraid that someone was hiding in the shadowy corner near the drapes. And now this, tonight.
 “Stop! Get off me! I can’t breathe… Maaaaa!” she screamed, feeling his hands all over her body. He clapped his huge hand over her mouth mid-scream, roughly grinding her lips into her teeth, abrading her gums. The taste of salty blood and her inability to draw any breath caused her to kick her legs wildly in boundless terror. Undeterred, his other hand yanked down her white cotton underpants covered in tiny blue rosebuds, as she desperately tried to squirm away, but he had her pinned down. A few inches were all she managed to travel before he swiftly halted her progress, grabbing her with both of his meaty hands and dragging her toward him. “Come back here, you little bitch. I’m not done with you. If you scream again, I’m going to spank your heinie bloody. Now shut up and be nice to me!”
He tore off her pajama gown and touched her naked body everywhere, putting fingers into her private places, licking her with his gross tongue, grunting and breathing noisily. He got spit all over her skin and it smelled sour. The nauseating odor rushed saliva into her mouth where it roiled with blood, and she began to choke as it trickled down her throat. Ali heard him unzip his pants and she didn’t know why but she was too frantic to wonder. He was in the process of flipping her over onto her stomach when she again screamed, this time at the top of her lungs, and then the door flung open so hard it slammed into the wall with a thunderous bang, leaving a crater in the wall the size of the doorknob.
She’d never heard her mother sound like she did, the blackest fury barely contained as she attacked the man with her voice. “Get off my daughter, you disgusting, vile piece of nothing,” her mother screeched at a bloodcurdling pitch. “I’ll rip your balls right off and make you eat them.”
Joel stood up. That’s when Ali saw he was in his boxer shorts, his pants around his knees. He scurried out of the room like a panicked rat, without a backward glance, as her mother came forward to embrace her daughter in her arms. The girl was trembling from head to toe and her nostrils were still filled with the man’s rank odor of stale beer and old sweat. She didn’t think she’d ever forget it.
 “Shh, come sleep in my bed tonight. Everything will be fine, I promise,” her mother’s voice crooned but Ali had never heard it so shaky. As she hugged her mother, it was hard for her to tell which one of them trembled more. “Tomorrow is your birthday and we’re going to have so much fun. I’m so sorry, Ali. It will all be okay.” She tightly grasped her daughter, rocking her back and forth, over and over. They sat like that for nearly an hour. Ali sensed her mother’s uncertainty.
Finally, she released her grip and Ali scampered into her mother’s room, climbing up into the big bed. Nothing was as comforting as a mother’s bed and so she managed a small smile and curled up into a ball. If she made the ball really, really tight, the shivering stopped. From that night on, it was how she always slept, in a tight fetal position, impregnable and protected by her hard outer shell. Tonight, sleep was long in coming and she so wanted to get there so she could wake up and it would be morning—and not just any morning, but the morning of her tenth birthday.
MeetTheAuthor
Lulu Astor is a New York City girl, born and bred. She met her husband at a doggie play group in Tribeca in the ‘90s and together they embarked on adventures, moving first to Chicago, where their first son was born, then on to Santa Fe, New Mexico, followed by Los Angeles, Cali. Eventually they headed back to NYC where their second son made his debut shortly thereafter.

Beginning her writing career with nonfiction, she began writing short fiction (her first love) in grad school, moving on to longer works shortly thereafter. She wrote the Complements series in 2010, and it was published on KDP in 2013. Three and a Half Weeks was initially conceived as a short story but evolved into a full-length (very full) novel as time went on.

Immersing herself in fiction (whether reading or writing) every minute possible, she also teaches writing and literature as an adjunct professor in the New York-Connecticut area where she currently resides. Her books are available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and Goodreads. You can follow her on Facebook, Goodreads, and Twitter (reluctantly).
 








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