Amazing Books in the Blogger Book Fair

This list comes from the Amazing Kayla Curry over at Paranormal Lounge.  She has done a fantastic job of organizing this event, so make sure you stop by the home base for up to date information!

So many beautiful covers, I can't even stand it!!!  Make sure to check them all out and to stop by tomorrow for more posts for the fair.  See something you like? Be sure to follow the links below to the booths.

Book Fair Catalog

A Shadow of Time

Louann Carroll

Paranormal

BB-25, BB-21, BB-19

Awaited

Lynn Rush

New Adult/Paranormal Romance

BB-21, BB-19

Between the Land and the Sea: Book One of the Marina's Tales Series

Darrolyn Anderson

Young Adult/Paranormal/Urban Fantasy

BB-03, BB-19

Bitten By Regret: Book Two of the Just One Bite Series

Kay Glass

Paranormal Romance

BB-19

The Boots My Mother Gave Me

Brooklyn James

Young Adult/Women's Fiction

BB-23

Bound By Blood

P. A. Lupton

Paranormal/Urban Fantasy

BB-03, BB-19

The Boys of ’58

R. J. Burroughs

Humor

BB-24

Crimson Shadow: Noir-Book One of the Crimson Shadow Series

Nathan Squiers

Paranormal Thriller/Horror/Occult

BB-15, BB-19

Crimson Sunrise

Renee Reardon

Paranormal Romance

BB-21, BB-19

Critical Focus

Alan Zendell

Political Thriller

BB-16, B-18, BB-24

Dark Light of Mine: Book Two of the Overworlds ChroniclesJohn Corwin
Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance/Young Adult

BB-03, BB-19

Dark Matter: Elemental Enmity Series

Christie Rich

New Adult/Paranormal Romance

BB-08, BB-11, BB-14, BB-19, BB-16, BB-22

Demon Hunt

Christine Ashworth

Paranormal Romance

BB-21, BB-19

Diary of an Accidental Dad

Alex Goetchius

Humor/Parenting

BB-04

Fairyproof

Constance Phillips

Paranormal Romance

BB-21, BB-19

The Fate of the Muse: Book Three of the Marina’s Tales Series

Darrolyn Anderson

Young Adult/Paranormal/Urban Fantasy

BB-03, BB-19

The Firelight of Maalda: Book Two of Legend of the Raie’Chaelia Series

Melissa Douthit

Fantasy

BB-14, BB-08, BB-18, BB-19, BB-22

Five: Elemental Enmity Series

Christie Rich

New Adult/Paranormal Romance

BB-08, BB-11, BB-14, BB-19, BB-16, BB-22

Flight of Blue: Keeper of the Keys Chronicles

A. E. Howard

Young Adult/Fantasy

BB-01, BB-02, BB-20, BB-18, BB-19

Flights of Fanstasy: Volume One (Short Story Collection)

D. H. Aire and Barry Nove

Fantasy

BB-09, BB-18, BB-19

The Forever Girl: Volume One of the Forever Girl Series

Rebecca Hamilton

New Adult/Paranormal

BB-16, BB-08, BB-14, BB-18, BB-19, BB-22

Four in the Morning

Christi Goddard

Young Adult/Paranormal

BB-07, BB-16, BB-18, BB-19

Frostwalker

Brandon R. Luffman

Survival Horror

BB-06, BB-19, BB-22

Gemini Rising

Louann Carroll

Paranormal

BB-25, BB-21, BB-19

Genesis

Christie L. Rich

New Adult/Paranormal Romance

BB-08, BB-11, BB-14, BB-19, BB-16, BB-22

The Gift of Fate: Book One of the Fatum Saga

Valerie King

Young Adult/Fantasy

BB-20, BB-01, BB-02, BB-19

Guardian: Novella Book One of the Unseen Wings Trilogy

Valerie King

Young Adult/Fantasy

BB-20, BB-01, BB-02, BB-19

Heaven Can Be Hell (Short Story)

Kay Glass

Paranormal Romance

BB-19

The Heaven I Found in Hell

Ashley Andrews

Young Adult/Romantic Humor

BB-05, BB-14

Her Sweetest Downfall: The Forever Girl Series

Rebecca Hamilton

New Adult/Paranormal

BB-16, BB-08, BB-14, BB-18, BB-19, BB-22

Highmage’s Plight

D. H. Aire

Fantasy

BB-09, BB-18, BB-19

Hollywood Ever After

Sasha Summers

Contemporary Romance

BB-21

Into You

Riley J. Ford

Young Adult

BB-20, BB-08, BB-16, BB-19

January Black

Wendy Russo

Young Adult/Fantasy

BB-21, BB-19

The Journey Begins: Prequel novella to the Legend of the Raie’Chaelia Trilogy

Melissa Douthit

Fantasy

BB-14, BB-08, BB-18, BB-19, BB-22

Just Another Night: Crimson Shadow Series (Short)

Nathan Squiers

Paranormal Thriller/Horror/Occult

BB-15, BB-19

The Kingdom

Jennifer M. Barry

Fantasy

BB-11, BB-19

The Last Fernandez

Sandra Perez Gluschankoff

Historical Fiction

BB-17

Lichgates: Book One of the Grimoire Trilogy

S. M. Boyce

Fantasy

BB-18, BB-01, BB-02, BB-08, BB-16, BB-19

Love Bite: Book One of the Just One Bite Series

Kay Glass

Paranormal Romance

BB-19

Magic Murderer: Book Two of the Crimson Shadow Series

Nathan Squiers

Paranormal Thriller/Horror/Occult

BB-15, BB-19

Maligned

Kathleen Papajohn

Science Fiction/Dystopian

BB-10, BB-11, BB-19

Mark of the Seer: Seer Society Series

Jenna Kay

Young Adult/Paranormal Romance

BB-19

Medusa, A Love Story

Sasha Summers

Romance/Fantasy

BB-21, BB-19

Memoirs of a Trumpet Teacher

Sam Bennett

Memoirs/Humor

BB-24

The Moon and the Tide: Book Two of the Marina’s Tales Series

Darrolyn Anderson

Young Adult/Paranormal/Urban Fantasy

BB-03, BB-19

Moonlight Bleu: Tueri Fated Souls Series

Renee Reardon

Paranormal Romance

BB-21, BB-19

Obsidian: Book One of the Mystic Stones Series

Kayla Curry

Paranormal

BB-08, BB-18, BB-19, BB-22

Particular Stones

David J. Kirk

Science Fiction/Young Adult/Dystopian

BB-10, BB-19

The Portal

Alan Zendell

Science Fiction/Time Travel/Paranormal Romance

BB-16, BB-18, BB-24, BB-19

The Portrait of Alatiel Salazar

Steven Katriel

Gothic/Horror

BB-06, BB-19

Prelude to Darkness

Lynn Rush

New Adult/Paranormal Romance

BB-21, BB-19

The Raie’Chaelia: Book One of the Legend of the Raie’Chaelia Trilogy

Melissa Douthit

Fantasy

BB-14, BB-08, BB-18, BB-19, BB-22

The Return: Book Three of the Legend of the Raie’Chaelia Trilogy

Melissa Douthit

Fantasy

BB-14, BB-08, BB-18, BB-19, BB-22

Revamp

Beck Sherman

Horror/Paranormal

BB-06, BB-16, BB-19

Rift Healer

Diane M. Hayes

Young Adult/Paranormal Romance

BB-21, BB-19

Shades of Grey (Short Story Collection)

Michael Cargill

Thriller

BB-17

Side Effects

Jennifer M. Barry

Young Adult/Romance

BB-11

Suburban Hustler

Robin Boren

Thriller

BB-11

Sweet Blood of Mine: Book One of the Overworlds Chronicles

John Corwin

Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance/ Young Adult

BB-03, BB-19

Table of Blood (Short Story)

Kay Glass

Paranormal

BB-19

Taste of Grief: Book Three in the Just One Bite Series

Kay Glass

Paranormal Romance

BB-19

Thief of Hope

Cindy Young-Turner

Fantasy

BB-24, BB-18, BB-21, BB-19

Treason: Book Two of the Grimoire Trilogy

S. M. Boyce

Fantasy

BB-18, BB-08, BB-16, BB-19

The Turning Tides: Book Four of the Marina’s Tales Series

Darrolyn Anderson

Young Adult/Paranormal/Urban Fantasy

BB-03, BB-19

Underneath

Michael Cargill

Thriller

BB-17



Vaempires: Revolution (The Evolutionary War)

Thomas Winship

Urban Fantasy/Horror/Sci-Fi

BB-19, BB-22, BB-18

Vaempires: White Christmas (Prelude to The Evolutionary War)

Thomas Winship

Urban Fantasy/Horror/Paranormal Romance

BB-19, BB-22, BB-18

The Vanishing: Prequel Novella to the Legend of the Raie’Chaelia Trilogy

Melissa Douthit

Fantasy

BB-14, BB-08, BB-18, BB-19, BB-22

Vigilare

Brooklyn James

Paranormal Thriller

BB-23, BB-19

Vigilare: Hell Hound

Brooklyn James

Paranormal Thriller

BB-23, BB-19

Wasteland

Lynn Rush

New Adult/Paranormal Romance

BB-21, BB-19

Wednesday’s Child

Alan Zendell

Thriller/Time Travel/Paranormal

BB-16, BB-18, BB-24, BB-19

What Kills Me

Wynne Channing

Young Adult/Paranormal

BB-22, BB-16, BB-08, BB-19

Wicked Paints: Prequel to the Crimson Shadow Series

Nathan Squiers

Paranormal Thriller/Horror/Occult

BB-15, BB-19

Wild Point Island

Kate Lutter

Paranormal Romance

BB-12, BB-19

Cover Reveal--Genesis (Elemental Enmity Book Three)

I am so excited to share my latest cover for my upcoming book (releasing this Friday!) Genesis (Elemental Enmity Book III)

Genesis is all about an awakening, and I hope you will see it in this cover.  Once again Amber McNemar from eThink Graphic Solutions has outdone herself in this one.  I absolutely LOVE this one, and I hope you do to.  So without further adieu...

Here is the Blurb:

Having just escaped the nefarious plans of the Order, Rayla Tate thinks all she has to do now is rescue her family and sort through her feelings, but bonding with five men might just be her undoing.  Not only does she have to deal with all of them reading her mind, Rayla must choose a bondmate before she will be allowed to venture into the mortal realm to save those she loves most.

She has three weeks to get to know each lord, but her journey turns into far more than a simple choice of the heart.  Rayla comes face to face with the underhanded dealings of the fae political system where good is a matter of taste and evil lurks under beautiful shells.  Long held judgments crumble when she discovers the heart beneath the men she has come to count on.  Rayla must overcome long held fears, discover the truth behind the creatures of the dark realms, and conquer her greatest weakness before she can take her place as the new queen of the fae.

However, her world crumbles when she discovers following her heart’s desire might just mean the destruction of the world.  Will Rayla have the courage to choose the man who has risked everything to win her, or will she succumb to the manipulations of the fae council and those who would use her power for evil?

One choice:  five men.  The stakes have never been higher, but which one will prevail?  

Look for a couple of giveaways this week at the Blogger Book Fair for a chance to win a digital copy of all my books including Genesis.  Make sure to stop by on Friday.  I will be giving away three suites of my books right here.

Happy Reading Everyone!

Christie

Blogger Book Fair

Hello Everyone!

I'm excited to announce I will be doing a string of posts related to the Blogger Book Fair hosted by Kayla Curry at Paranormal Lounge.

42 authors and 75 books are participating in the first ever Blogger Book Fair! Tons of genres are being represented and there will be lots of giveaways, specials, and even some books going for absolutely free during the event.

Keep up to date during the fair by visiting Paranormal Lounge.  Also running during the fair is the Reader's Choice Awards. Anyone can vote for their favorite book in a genre category. All participating authors have been entered in at least one category, provided their work had already been published, and each category has at least 3 books and two authors competing. The winning author/book in each category will receive a web badge and will be featured on the new Blogger Book Fair site once it's up and running. The voting goes throughout the fair and will be held at the blog Shut Up and Read run by Sheri.

I hope you all will stop by my blog and the others during the fair for fun, free stuff, and more.  P.S.  Five (Elemental Enmity Book I) by yours truly will be offered free during the fair at Smashwords' Summer Promotion.  All you have to do is enter the coupon code SSWIN at checkout to download any ebook format you can think of HERE.  I hope you pick up a copy.

Also, next week, during the fair, I will be hosting several amazing authors here.  Come by to find out more about Rebecca Hamilton, S.M. Boyce, Melissa Douthit, Riley J. Ford, Wynne Channing, and Kayla Curry.  Each one of these authors holds a special place in my heart, and I am excited to share their books, interviews, and some exerpts with you.

Tomorrow, I will be revealing the cover of my upcoming title:  Genesis (Elemental Enmity Book III).  I love this cover, and I hope you will, too.  I will be sharing the first chapter of Genesis, as well, so I hope to see you here.

Happy Reading~

Christie

Experience or Perfection--Why do you read?

I just bought another book about writing. I know. Another one? It's just another opinion about how to do something that is, what I am now realizing, very personal. It was a pretty good book, but I expected more based on the blurb. See what you think:

This guide reveals how writers can utilize cognitive storytelling strategies to craft stories that ignite readers’ brains and captivate them through each plot element.

Imagine knowing what the brain craves from every tale it encounters, what fuels the success of any great story, and what keeps readers transfixed. Wired for Story reveals these cognitive secrets—and it’s a game-changer for anyone who has ever set pen to paper.

The vast majority of writing advice focuses on “writing well” as if it were the same as telling a great story. This is exactly where many aspiring writers fail—they strive for beautiful metaphors, authentic dialogue, and interesting characters, losing sight of the one thing that every engaging story must do: ignite the brain’s hardwired desire to learn what happens next. When writers tap into the evolutionary purpose of story and electrify our curiosity, it triggers a delicious dopamine rush that tells us to pay attention. Without it, even the most perfect prose won’t hold anyone’s interest.

Backed by recent breakthroughs in neuroscience as well as examples from novels, screenplays, and short stories, Wired for Story offers a revolutionary look at story as the brain experiences it. Each chapter zeroes in on an aspect of the brain, its corresponding revelation about story, and the way to apply it to your storytelling right now.

Pretty great, right? Imagine my surprise when, at the end of this book, I learned that this writer has not published a novel. In fact this book is the only published title to her name. Hmm? Credibility anyone?

The idea of this book is fantastic, and the science is intriguing, yet toward the end the author suggests that you have to rewrite-rewrite--and you guessed it--rewrite some more to make your book perfect for the reader to engage. Here's where it all fell apart for me. I was with her when she was giving examples using imagery. I was with her when she had some pretty stellar science to back her claims, yet when I hit her "STORY SECRET: There's no writing; there's only rewriting" I went huh? (This little tidbit is in the index, by the way. Shame on me for not looking there before I scanned the rest of the sample. :))

She proceeded to quote famous authors that tout her mantra. There are plenty of them, but the premise of this book speaks otherwise. Our brains are wired to EXPERIENCE story. We are imperfect beings for heaven's sake. How could any writer possibly write a perfect story? Not to mention the science says we look to story to learn. I have to agree with that hypothesis.

I'm not saying that stories don't need refinement. They do. No author should ever write a first draft and slap that puppy onto Kindle before their keyboard turns cold. We need unbiased minds to tell us where our stories might have glitches before the book is released to readers, but to think that you might have to wade through no less than one hundred drafts before a story is ready is absurd to me.

That being said, I think this book does have merit. I thoroughly enjoyed 80% of this book, but the other 20% left me shaking my head in sadness. Stories come to writers for a reason. If you have a story, you should tell it the best way you know how, polish it the best way you know how, ask trusted readers what they think, then publish it or send out queries if that is your thing.

When a reader goes into a book looking for problems, they will find them (even in the book above I found missing words when I wasn't looking for them); yet, when a reader goes into a novel looking for an experience, guess what? They will find that too if they connect with the story. I found the science absolutely fascinating, and I want to know more. You see, I've been on a mission lately. It's pretty simple: read to feel. That's right. I want to feel while I'm reading. Don't you? Being able to experience a thrilling life without the risk of facing the consequences is pretty appealing.

Finding books that meet my expectation hasn't been as hard as you might think. Just as an aside, I'm still looking for a book to rival what I felt while reading CRUX by Julie Reece. If you haven't read it, and you love YA, go get it Here. The kindle edition is only $4.99. Sorry for the aside, but it was that good.

So on to my process. First of all, where I can, I always sample a book before I buy it. Even if a book has been recommended to me by a trusted friend I follow this process. If the cover captures my attention I'll read the blurb. If that keeps my attention I'll read the sample. If the sample makes me want more, I'm pretty sure I'll have a winner.

I think when we writers focus on the story the writing will follow, but when we focus too much on the writing, the story will suffer. Just my opinion, but from what I've seen, it stands. Who hasn't read a book with beautiful prose that should sweep you in, yet falls flat somehow? Who hasn't looked at a book after thinking the cover was amazing and the blurb wasn't half bad just to find the in between lacking? So there you have it folks. My quest continues to find the real reason we connect with story, but until that happens, I'll stick to my process and HOPE it works.

So, how do you choose your books? Do you have a system? What makes you connect with a story? Do you read for the experience or to find perfection?

Happy reading everyone!~

Oh, and tune in next week for the Blogger Book Fair.

I will be revealing the cover for Genesis, the third book in my Elemental Enmity Series, which I will release July 27th!!!! I'm so thrilled; can you tell?

I'm also interviewing some amazing authors throughout the week and will have some excerpts for you to peruse.

Hope you stop by...

Christie

Book Review--Joe by H.D. Gordon



First the cover:

Outstanding!  This cover rocks--I love the eyes.  So wide and haunted.  Perfect, especially after reading this book.

The blurb: 

From the author of the Alexa Montgomery Saga, comes a book that will take you into the mind of a geniune pyschopath, the lives of six ordinary people, and the world of a very special girl named Joe.

Joe is seemingly an ordinary college student. She works, studies and reads. But in between these activities Joe has a gift that promises to add a dose of color to her life at any given moment. Joe sees things before they happen. Bad things, and the worst thing she has ever faced is just around the corner. Someone is planning a massacre at the college university that Joe attends, and the only person with a hope of stopping the pyschopath is her.

Oh, the beauty of foresight. More like a curse. Joe has four days to figure out the mystery, make plans to take down the pyscho, and save the lives of people. People like you and me. Ordinary people.

My review:

I struggled to review Joe by H.D. Gordon for a few reasons, but the main is this is not my normal read.

I go for rainbows and sunshine, which this book had very little of. I'm a huge fan of H.D. Gordon and I still am. Although I did not like much of this book, I felt emotion throughout the whole thing. When I say I didn't like it, what I'm saying is I don't like to know the inner workings of a psycopath. I did not like being in his head. He was one major mess job, and that is the beauty of this book. Ms. Gordon has once again created characters that feel real.

She has infused this story with tension and flat out horror if you ask me. I felt many things while reading Joe...sick to my stomach first thing...sorry for Joe...sorry for other characters...frustration for some of them...anxiety for all of them up until the end.

I pretty much figured out what was going to happen before it did, but that didn't matter because it played out like a nightmare almost. Especially the climax where Joe has to face the Decider. That scene is written so well that it makes me gasp to think about it.

Great job, Ms. Gordon...now I want more of Alexa Montgomery. LOL. She is more to my taste, but this was a book I will remember for a very long time.  If you like thrillers that give you chills, this is your book.

I do want to leave a warning here, though, this is not a book for children. 18+ in my opinion.

 

Five stars from me for the emotional ride and original tale.

 

 

Hear ye--Hear ye--Tournament of Monsters to begin soon!

Who is the ultimate monster? Find out with the Tournament of Monsters July 26-29!

Posted on July 11, 2012 by Melissa Leong

Who would win in a no-holds-barred battle to the death? Vampires or Zombies? Imhotep the Mummy or Pennywise the Clown? In two weeks, this space will become a cage match for the most horrible monsters. In honour of the inaugural Blogger Book Fair (All’s Fair in Blogs and More!), Wynne Channing is hosting a TOURNAMENT OF MONSTERS!

Cheer for your choice. Make their headshots your profile pic on Facebook. Tweet with the hashtag #MonsterMash.  Tell Wynne who should win. (Hey that rymes.)  Trash the losers. Don’t see your favorite monster on this list? Let us know who you would throw into the ring!

Tune in next week when she announces the list of fantastic authors who will be defending these monsters and which creatures will be facing off in the first round!

Wynne Channing's Blog

Book Review--Vaempires by Thomas Winship

First--The cover:

See the blood dripping from the world?  There's a good reason for that blood to be there.  LOL.  Cool cover.  The red, black, and white is eye-catching, and the E--what's with the E?  I'll get to that later.

Onto the blurb:

It is the morning of Princess Cassandra’s sixteenth birthday. Everyone’s attention is focused on the heir to the vampire throne. World leaders, the rich and famous, and VIPs from every corner of the globe have gathered in the nation’s capital to celebrate the momentous event.

Cassandra’s boyfriend, Daniel, is late for the party. He’s still outside the city when all hell breaks loose. What he believes is an act of terrorism proves to be a full-fledged revolution. Væmpires—former vampires who mutated into warm-blooded creatures with an insatiable hunger for cold blood—have launched coordinated attacks across the globe, with three goals: the eradication of humanity, the enslavement of vampires, and the ascension of væmpires as the dominant species on the planet.

The vampire and human leaders are killed. Cassandra is missing. Daniel is the acting king. Desperate to find the princess, Daniel and his friends fight their way across the besieged city. With the hopes of the free world resting on the shoulders of four vampire teenagers, væmpires unleash their secret weapons—væmpires with special powers.

What can four teens do against an enemy that can shape-shift, fly, or walk through walls?

My Review:

I met the author online and he was such a sweetie, I had to read his book.  I'm glad I took a chance on this one.

The first thing I thought about this book was, "Vaempires? Why is there an e in there?"  The E is for evolution.  Vampires evolving into Vaempires, but the E could also stand for exciting.  The questions kept coming in this action packed thrill ride through the post apocalyptic world Thomas Winship created. I'm not usually into books that straddle the edge of horror. My vampire exposure has mostly been those of the sparkling kind, so this whole idea of Vampires who are cold blooded undead, and Vaempires who are a mutation to warm blooded super vamps intrigued me. There are no lulls in this book.  You catch your breath just in time for more battles.

From the very first page you are immersed in the war that the Vaempires have unleashed on humans and vampires alike. Some of the images are haunting to say the least, and me being the squeamish sort, I found myself skimming some of the fight scenes toward the end because I am a wimp like that.

That being said, I thoroughly enjoyed my read, and the story kept me turning pages until the climactic end. Mr. Winship, really? You had to leave it there? Just kidding. I love cliff-hanger endings, and this one is major. So there you have it. Great book, and I can't wait to see more from this amazing author!

If you like your Vampires bloody, you will most likely enjoy this book.  But caution to those of you with sensitive stomachs, be prepared to cringe.  :0D

Five Stars from me--squeamish and all.  LOL.

Find Thomas Winship on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/#!/vaempires
Find Vaempires on Goodreads here: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13014543

Happy Reading Everyone!

Hugs,

Christie