Anachron Press is Looking for Reviewers

Have you ever had a hard time convincing a publisher to send you a book to review? Did you know that publishers often have a hard time getting reviewers to agree to review one of their books? It's even harder for a small press to convince reviewers to review their book. Anachron Press, publisher of fantasy, science fiction, horror, thrillers, and weird tales, will send anyone a free ebook in any format in return for a fair review. The review can be on your site/blog, Goodreads and/or Amazon. This offer applies to any book in their catalog.

Print copies can be expensive for a small press, so they can only offer an ebook. If you like small presses and want to see more independent fiction, lend them a hand if you can. Don't see anything that appeals to you? Maybe you know someone who might and you can share this information with them.

To get your review copy of anything in the catalog, email Colin Barnes, and tell him what book you'd like to review and your email address. You can also sign up to join their roster of reviewers.

I'm not affiliated with Anachron Press in any way but the owner is an acquaintance of mine. I also like to see smaller presses make a go of it as it gives readers more books to read and a wider variety of books to choose from.

Goodreads chat with Terry Brooks April 29th.

Are you a fan of Terry Brooks? Love his Shannara series? Head over to goodreads on Monday, April 29 at 2pm ET/11am PT for a live video chat with legendary fantasy author Terry Brooks. He'll be talking about his latest book, "The Bloodfire Quest", the second in his series The Dark Legacy of Shannara, as well as his previous work and his life as a writer. Don't miss your chance to ask a question of popular author.

RSVP here to get a reminder email the day before the chat.

Click here to watch the chat and join the discussion.

New Look!

Well, as you've noticed, the Nook has a new look. I'd been wanting something different for a while but none of the Blogger themes were quite what I wanted and I wanted some functions, such as drop down navigation, that weren't available and I lacked the ability to do myself.

I poked around a bit and decided I liked Parajunkee's designs. She asked me lots of questions about what I wanted and I asked her lots of questions, which she patiently answered.

As you can see, some stuff went missing. Blogger decided it didn't want to play nicely and Rachel, Parajunkee, saved what she could of widgets and links. I'll be slowly adding back in the missing ones and moving things around but this is a good opportunity for me to do some cleaning and sprucing so some things might not come back. If you find you miss something, let me know and I can look at adding it back.

There's a new button so grab that if you want.

I'm so excited, I love the new design. I hope you do too.

*bounces around the room*

Blog Tour Review of A Murder at Rosamund's Gate by Susanna Calkins

Publisher: Minotaur Books
Format Read: Print ARC
Source: from the publisher in exchange for an honest review
Release Date: April 23, 2013
Buying Links:  Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository

Blurb from goodreads:

For Lucy Campion, a seventeenth-century English chambermaid serving in the household of the local magistrate, life is an endless repetition of polishing pewter, emptying chamber pots, and dealing with other household chores until a fellow servant is ruthlessly killed, and someone close to Lucy falls under suspicion. Lucy can’t believe it, but in a time where the accused are presumed guilty until proven innocent, lawyers aren’t permitted to defend their clients, and—if the plague doesn't kill the suspect first—public executions draw a large crowd of spectators, Lucy knows she may never find out what really happened. Unless, that is, she can uncover the truth herself.

Determined to do just that, Lucy finds herself venturing out of her expected station and into raucous printers’ shops, secretive gypsy camps, the foul streets of London, and even the bowels of Newgate prison on a trail that might lead her straight into the arms of the killer.

In her debut novel Murder at Rosamund's Gate, Susanna Calkins seamlessly blends historical detail, romance, and mystery in a moving and highly entertaining tale.

Bea's Thoughts:

Historicals tend to be hit or more miss for me and in the past few years I've mostly moved away from them. The blurb for this one though sounded so interesting that I couldn't pass it up. Calkins gives us enough detail to understand the time period and solidly base her story but doesn't go overboard and drown us in details. She did take a few liberties as she admits in her notes at the end. One liberty was in language; she opted not to make it completely accurate but instead it's a blend of authentic and modern without being screamingly modern. I appreciated that and found that it made for a smooth read.

Lucy and her fellow servants have a good employer and are treated well. Lucy, I suspect, takes more liberties than was customary but again, Calkins handles it well and makes it feel realistic. As the story progresses, Lucy is treated more like a member of the family than a servant. I liked that the story wasn't rushed and we got glimpses of daily life and the law. English courts and law were very different in 1665 and I was fascinated by the procedures and the differences from modern day procedures and laws.

Events occur over the course of a little more than a year. The murder is actually not the central plot to the story; there are several plot lines including a potential romance with a man not of Lucy's own class and rank. I wish there had been a little more emphasis on the murder but eventually Calkins winds things up. I didn't figure out who the culprit was but looking back, there were clues.

Calkins has a easy style, never pretentious, and she drew me in right from the beginning and held my interest all the way through. She's planning more books featuring Lucy and I look forward to reading them.

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GIVEAWAY

Like the review? Want to read the book? Click here to enter a giveaway. There are 3 prizes: A $40 Amazon.com gift card and two hardback copies of Murder at Rosamund's Gate for a total of 3 winners.

You can also follow the tour:  http://cozymysterymarketing.com/?p=39

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Cover Reveal - Breaking the Reins by Juliana Haygert

I have a cover for you, for a New Adult Romance scheduled to release in August, and it has horses! Horses, people. How could I pass this up? Horses in the book and a horse on the cover. :) Yep, I was one of those horsey girls growing up and while I haven't ridden in years, I'm still fond of horses.

So, besides horses, what else does "Breaking the Reins" have? How's about a blurb? :D

Blurb from the author (I was sooo tempted to say 'from the horses's mouth' :D)  ~

Horses, mansions, tea parties, and lies are twenty-year-old Hannah Taylor’s life. To others, her family and her relationship with Eric is perfect. But she knows the truth. She lives it.

After a fire takes her grandma’s life and kills her horse, Hannah’s immaculate life spirals out of control. Her father disapproves of her decision to run her grandma’s ranch instead of focusing solely on learning the family business; Animal Control brings her Argus, a mistreated horse that she can’t turn away even though she’s not ready for another horse; and her boyfriend, Eric Bennett, a world famous polo player, becomes possessive and authoritarian. Despite her best efforts to disguise it, Hannah grows wary of him.

Then, Leonardo Fernandes struts onto the polo scene. A cocky rookie with a messy life of his own, he’s drawn to Hannah and isn’t afraid of showing it, even when Eric makes it clear she is his and he’ll do whatever it takes to keep it that way. Hannah suffers for Eric’s jealousy. The abuse only gets worse when Leo steals the title of best polo player in the world from Eric.

But the title isn’t enough for Leo. He wants Hannah too, and she can’t deny her attraction to him either. Somehow, she must find a way to break free from abusive Eric before he breaks every bone in her body.

So, horses, abuse, romance (non-abusive), and a ranch - sounds good to me. Want more? How about a teaser?

Click to enlarge image

A little info about the author -

While Juliana Haygert dreams of being Wonder Woman, Buffy, or a blood elf shadow priest, she settles for the less exciting—but equally gratifying—life of a wife, mother, and author. Thousands of miles away from her former home in Brazil, she now resides in Connecticut and spends her days writing about kick-ass heroines and the heroes who drive them crazy.

Find Juliana online:

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

And now, for the cover. *pats the horse*

Now, I'd buy it just for the horse alone (look at those eyes!). I'm not so sure that the cover reflects that the story is a romance or that it deals with an important topic such as abuse, but it's an attractive cover.

Cat Thursday - Cats and the Internet

Welcome to the weekly meme hosted by The True Book Addict that celebrates cats; their foibles and humorousness and the joy they bring. You can join in by posting a favorite LOL cat pic you made or came across, cat art or share with us pics of your own felines, then post your link up at The True Book Addict.

New Cover! Making It Last by Ruthie Knox

"Making It Last", a novella sequel to "How to Misbehave", the first story in Ruthie's Camelot series, is due in mid-July and it now has a cover. We get to see Amber and Tony again, something I'm looking forward to very much. I loved their romance and enjoyed the small glimpses we got in "Along Came Trouble".

The tentative blurb from Ruthie's site:

The final Clark family story of the Camelot series revisits Tony and Amber Mazzara twelve years after How to Misbehave. Work and parenthood have challenged the foundations of Tony and Amber’s happy ever after. Can they turn a few stolen days in Jamaica into the chance they’ve been needing to find each other again?

40,000 words. More details to come!

There are four books in the Camelot series:

1. How to Misbehave
2. Along Came Trouble
3. Flirting with Disaster (Release date, June 10th)
4. Making it Last (Release date, July 15th)

*bounces around the room* Is it July yet?

 

What do you think? Will you read it? Does the cover grab you?

*bounces some more*

Blog Tour: Review, Excerpt & Giveaway of Whiskey Tango Foxtrot by Heather Long

Publisher: Decadent Publishing
Series: The Challenge Series, Always A Marine #10
Format Read: PDF
Source: From Full Moon Bites Promos for an honest review
Release Date: January 8, 2013
Buying Links:  Amazon  Barnes & Noble  ARe  Decadent Publishing

Blurb from goodreads:

For single mom and widow Melody Carter, six months passed since an IED ripped her life apart. Everyone is sympathetic and offers platitudes of comfort and support. Everyone thinks they know why she’s grieving but Melody isn’t mourning her broken heart. She’s ashamed to be grateful her abusive husband won’t hurt her anymore and scared for her child. Born with a mild heart defect, her daughter needs lifesaving surgery and with her funds tight and her emotional scars tighter, she’s running out of options. When she receives an offer for assistance from Mike’s Place, can Melody put her faith in the men her husband called friend?

Have you ever woken up, day after day, to discover your body’s betrayal?

Marine Captain, Joe Anderson Cooper, received the Silver Star for Valor when he led his unit through heavy fire to rescue fellow Marines. Despite numerous injuries, the Captain refused medical aid, insisting that the medics attend others. A broken back and shattered bones put Captain Cooper in a wheelchair and every day is a battle to keep his recovery on track and his sanity intact. When a single mom moves in to the apartment next door to his and he recognizes a kindred—damaged—soul, can he overcome her fear and be the man she’s always needed?

Can these two lonely souls rise to the challenge or will their scars trap them forever?

Bea's Thoughts:

I've been wanting to read Heather Long for a while now so when the opportunity to review this came up I jumped at it. When I received the PDF, I had it converted for my kindle and in the process discovered that I had apparently downloaded for free a Christmas story she wrote in the Always a Marine series. I read it then this one and decided that I like her writing style and that she needs a better copy editor. For such short stories, there was a high level of mistakes. Additionally, the hero in this book has an ever changing surname.

When Joe meets Melody, he introduces himself as Joe Cooper, Captain Joe Cooper, and several times refers to himself in his thoughts as Coop. Then, later, when he and Melody are on the hospital shuttle, he is called Captain Anderson several times. Towards the end of the book he is suddenly Joe Cooper Anderson. It was confusing and annoying. The other problems were incorrect grammar and punctuation, and typos. I can understand a few that are missed but for the length of the piece, there were too many.

Now, the story; I liked it. It's a sweet and romantic story with a happy ending. Long does an excellent job showing us Melody's fear of men, of anyone really, and the lingering effects of abuse. Melody is a devoted mother, and a terrified mother. Her daughter's health is failing and the surgery may not work. After years of abuse, she's scared to reach out to others and she's been isolated from her family. She's relieved that her husband is dead and feels like a fraud for accepting help for her daughter. I did think she recovered a bit too quickly but recovery is so individual that's it not impossible for it to happen so fast. I'd have liked to see some mention towards the end of whether or not she had reconnected with her family but that's a nitpick. :)

Joe is practically perfect, as Melody herself says several times: patient, understanding, always willing to help, never pushes her, etc. But Long also shows us his thoughts so we know that it's not always easy for him and he sometimes has to make an effort to control himself and of course, we see his bitterness over his injuries. Despite his near perfection, he feels real, and so does his family. His mother is overbearing, a pushy broad as my dad would say, but wonderful.

Events moved a little too fast for my own preferences, especially towards the end, but "Whiskey Tango Foxtrot" is a wonderful love story of hope and faith. Joe and Melody are people I'd like to have as friends.

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 Also be sure to check out the rest of the Always a Marine series!

Once Her Man, Always Her Man

Retreat Hell! She Just Got Here

Tell It To The Marine

Proud To Serve Her

Her Marine

No Regrets, No Surrender

Merry Christmas Marine,
Semper Fi & Good Night

The Marine Cowboy

The Two and The Proud

A Marine and A Gentleman

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot

Combat Barbie

 

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 Excerpt

Letting herself out of the apartment, she locked up and turned to find her neighbor locking his door. He caught sight of her and smiled. “Good morning.” His deep baritone hummed over her senses. She appreciated the low voiced greeting.

“Good morning.” She wanted to say something more, but her brain locked up around the words. He eased his wheelchair back until nearly off the sidewalk and motioned for her to precede him. Biting her lip, she found another smile for him. “Thank you.” Her heartbeat accelerated and sweat cooled her spine. She didn’t hug the wall, but she couldn’t help widening the distance between them.

The wheels made the faintest squeaking noise after she passed, and she glanced back to see him following her down the path toward the parking lot. Maybe she should have offered to push. He wore an olive green t-shirt and a matching pair of slacks, though they were cut up the side of the large cast encasing his right leg from mid-thigh to his toes.

He—Joe, he said his name was Joe—met her gaze and gave her another easy smile. His eyes crinkled at the corners and the dimple in his cheek deepened. The sidewalk widened and she slowed to let him catch up.

“I’m sorry. I’m not the best company this morning.”

“No worries, ma’am. Little ones take a lot out of a body.” The buttery softness of his voice washed over her like a soothing balm—like the night before when he knocked on her door and introduced himself. He scared the hell out of her, but not in the same breath.

I must be tired. I have no idea what I’m feeling from one moment to the next. As if summoned by her thought, fatigue wavered through her and she stumbled. The diaper bag swung down her arm. She couldn’t catch it and hold the baby at the same time. Joe stopped the bag’s arc, and gave her a chance to catch her balance.

“May I?” He offered, still holding the bag.

May he what…? He wanted to carry the bag for her and she winced. It was heavy and he…

“I have plenty of room and then you don’t have to worry about it taking you off balance again.” The sound logic quashed her natural objections. She shifted Libby carefully and let the strap fall off her arm. Her internal alarms sounded. Giving him the bag didn’t give him some kind of power over her, but her gut tightened at the surrender of her possession.

He settled the bag against his lap and nodded encouragingly. “Just point me to your car…”

“Oh, I don’t drive. Well, I do but I’m not driving here. I’m actually just staying here for a few weeks and I’m waiting for the shuttle.” She tacked the last on with a grimace. “And apparently I’m as muddleheaded for real as I feel. Sorry. Thank you. The shuttle is scheduled to pick us up here in about…” She couldn’t look at her watch.

“Two minutes.” The captain supplied. “I’m waiting for the same shuttle.” His warm brown gaze turned studious. “Are you okay?”

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About Heather ~ 

Heather Long lives in Texas with her family and their menagerie of animals. As a child, Heather skipped picture books and enjoyed the Harlequin romance novels by Penny Jordan and Nora Roberts that her grandmother read to her. Heather believes that laughter is as important to life as breathing and that the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy and Santa Claus are very real. In the meanwhile, she is hard at work on her next novel.

Find Heather online:

Website | Facebook | Series Facebook | Twitter |

 

Decadent Publishing

Sign up for Decadent Publishing’s Newsletter | Follow on Twitter | Like us on Facebook |

For more information about Decadent Publishing authors, books, and their submissions guidelines, visit www.decadentpublishing.com.

 

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There's a tour wide giveaway for 2 Ebook copies of a backlist book in the Always a Marine series by Heather Long (winners choice).

Follow the tour  

Ends 04/30/2013

a Rafflecopter giveaway