Lila Munro’s LOVE VINDICATED BOOK BLAST – Win $25 & Gift Basket!

Pump Up Your Book and Lila Munro will be giving away a $25 Amazon Gift Card plus a GIFT BASKET during Lila’s Love Vindicated Book Blast today ! This promotion starts at 12 a.m. June 20 and will end at midnight. To enter, fill out the Rafflecopter form below and good luck!

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ABOUT LOVE VINDICATED

In 1980, Kyle Montgomery’s life was seemingly perfect. Heavily recruited by Force Recon fresh from the Naval Academy, he’d been working black ops for the Marine Corps for six years and was on the cusp of being promoted to Major. He was on the fast track to bigger and better things, had all the right people vetting him, and he’d married the woman of his dreams and was exploring a lifestyle which could have ended his career. With the Iranian embassy under siege and the Middle East in turmoil, Kyle was sent on a mission which would change the course of his life forever.

Returning home after three months of being invisible, Kyle finds his wife has been murdered by the very people he’d been sent to protect. And instead of the government retaliating, they hand him his walking papers with the agreement they’ll never speak of the events again. It’s like Kyle never existed. His wife never existed. And the people who maimed and tortured her never existed.

Resigned to never again walk that path, Kyle opens the first Steele Image club with the thought of providing a safe haven for others like him, those who were invisible to the public and most of the government. Those who had eclectic sexual tastes. Those who would later become his allies. And his enemies. And both will drive him back to the place he’d thought he’d let go of forever to vindicate his love…

AMAZON | ALL ROMANCE EBOOKS

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ABOUT LILA MUNRO

Lila Munro currently resides on the coast of North Carolina with her husband and their two four-legged kids. She’s a military wife with an empty nest and takes much of her inspiration for her heroes from the marines she’s lived around for the past fifteen years. Coining the term realmantica, she strives to produce quality romance in a realistic setting. Her genre of choice is contemporary romance that spans everything from the sensual softer read to BDSM and ménage. When she’s not writing, she enjoys reading everything she can get her hands on, trips to the museum and aquarium, taking field research trips, and soaking up the sun on the nearby beaches. Her works include The Executive Officer’s Wife, Bound By Trust, Three for Keeps, the Force Recon series, the Slower Lower series, the Identity series, and the Private Collection. Currently she is working on two new series set to release summer of 2013, the At Your Service line and the Steele Image line. She’s a member in good standing of RWA. Ms. Munro loves to hear from her readers and can be contacted at lilasromance@gmail.com .

Her latest book is the BDSM contemporary romance, Love Vindicated.

Visit he website at www.lilamunro.com.

FACEBOOK | TWITTER

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Pump Up Your Book and Lila Munro are teaming up to give you a chance to win a $25 Amazon Gift Card and Gift Basket!

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Book Review: Lakota Honor, by Kat Flannery

Lakota Honor is an exciting read filled with romance, drama, action, and elements of the paranormal.

It’s the late 1800s, and Otakatay is a bounty hunter, a slayer of men and women. Embittered by the past, he’s ruthless and unforgiving. Now his conscience haunts him day and night, and he believes himself to be evil, to be death itself.

Black-haired, blue-eyed beauty Nora Rushton is a healer, a gift that her father considers a curse and tries to keep secret from everyone around them. To protect her from those who would accuse her of witchcraft as they did her mother, he keeps her locked up in the house all day. But Nora feels like a bird in a cage and she wants to be free.

Then one day, in a twist of fate, she meets Otakatay, and she’s instantly mesmerized by his looks and aura of danger, need, and hunger. Though he won’t admit it at first, he’s also taken by Nora’s kind blue eyes – – but he warns her that she better stay away from him if she knows what’s good for her. Also on the scene is Elwood Calhoun, a rich miner who will stop at nothing to possess Nora.

But then, the man who has been paying money to Otakatay to kill people has one last job for him, and this time he has put a price on Nora’s head…

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this historical western romance. Nora is a very sympathetic heroine with a warm heart yet willful, feisty personality. Otakatay is the ultimate tortured soul, a man sunk in darkness and trying to find the light.

At first his past crimes put me off, but the author did a good job in revealing his feelings and showing his deep remorse, which eventually redeem him. It was interesting to watch his character arc evolve and change throughout the story.

There are quite a number of exciting action segments and the sensual scenes are written in good taste. I also enjoyed the ending, which revealed some unexpected story twists.

Recommended for fans of historical and western romances.

Purchase on Amazon US /  Amazon CA / Amazon UK 

Review originally published in Blogcritics. 

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Book Review: The Adventures of the Lone Jack Kid, by Joe Corso

Reviewed by Susan Keefe 

 

With the Civil War raging around and death a normal occurrence, knowing whom you can trust can mean the difference between life and death. When a stranger stands beside Charles Longstreet in Lone Jack, Missouri during a gunfight, neither man could possibly realise how the events that day will shape both their futures.

 

The story which follows, is a brilliant Wild West adventure, with a strong storyline, which quickly immerses the reader into what life was like at that time. A time when cowboys and Indians ruled the Wild West, gunslingers and sheriffs are in every town, love is to be taken when it can, lawlessness is at a peak and life is cheap.

 

Even if you are not a Wild West fan already, you will be when you’ve you read this book, which contains many of the names of legend along with a new one the Lone Jack Kid. 

 

Available at Amazon in Paperback here 

The Adventures of the Lone Jack Kid: Joe Corso, Hercules Editing and Consulting, Marina Shipova: 9781484839003: Amazon.com: Books

 

at Amazon on Kindle here http://www.amazon.com/Adventures-Lone-Jack-Kid-ebook/dp/B00CKA6TL2/ref=sr_1_1_title_0_main?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1369653674&sr=1-1&keywords=The+Adventures+of+the+Lone+Jack+Kid+by+Joe+Corso

and at Barnes & Noble as a Nook Book here 
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-adventures-of-the-lone-jack-kid-joe-corso/1115276042?ean=2940044502413

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Book Review: The Woodcutter, by Steven Bartholomew

The Woodcutter is a Western  Historical novel that is intriguing and interesting, and will keep the reader wondering what will happen next until the end. 

The novel is set in Virginia in the winter of 1888.  A reporter, Dana Reynolds gets fired from as a reporter in San Francisco and is forced to relocate in Virginia.  It is a very different place from San Francisco.  It is much smaller and the people are very different. The author’s portrayal of the characters that Dana met along the way is fascinating and quite intriguing.  The reader will be transported to the place and setting. 

Dana Reynolds gets a job in Virginia as a reporter.  He has a difficult time finding stories to write about until he gets to know quite a bit about the place and how the US government tries to take care of their Native American population.  Dana tries to avoid controversy while writing stories which will be intriguing to all the readers.  This can be a very hard combination, and one in which facts are balanced with interesting anecdotes. At the same time, while Dana was writing these stories he was trying very hard not to get himself into the same trouble as he did in San Francisco when he lost his job. 

As Dana writes his stories, he meets a man named Wovoka.  He is known as the medicine man.  But as Dana gets to know him, he is so much more. He is also known as the Woodcutter because he is a strong and powerful man. It doesn’t take very long for Dana to develop a hunch that the Indian agent in charge of giving U.S. goods to the Indians is taking a generous cut of both goods and money prior to sending it on to the tribe. The Native Americans also suspect this too.

The reader will see first hand what comprises the life of a writer. It is a lonely endeavour, one that can very quickly be speckled with controversy.  The reader will almost be able to picture Dana sitting all alone in his hotel room, eating, and writing stories that will help readers realize how hard the lives of Native Americans really is. This is a GREAT story idea, but will it get Dana into trouble again?

The story is spell-binding and captivating.  Bartholomew develops some very intriguing characters. The reader begins to understand the ways the characters think and feel.  The reader will feel transported right into the story and cheering on Dana as he tries to make things better for the Paiute Indians.

Reviewed by: Irene S. Roth

This book review initially appeared in Blogcritics.

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{Virtual Book Tour} Q&A Video with Morrie Richfield, author of ‘Revelation’

ABOUT THE BOOK

Mr. Breeze is back; so is Michael Ryan and Rover, the magical dog.

MR. BREEZE fans can rejoice. REVELATION, Morrie Richfield’s much-anticipated sequel to his novel MR. BREEZE, has arrived. Readers new to the strange but inspiring tale of a super being and his attempt to set mankind on a straight and moral path for its very survival can immerse themselves in what critics and readers alike are calling an “inspirational fantasy” with important lessons for all of us.

In MR. BREEZE, published in 2011, Richfield introduced readers to Zackary, aka Zack, aka Mr. Breeze, an ancient being who claimed to be mankind’s creator and who still exerts a powerful force on the human race and its very existence. Zack appeared on earth as a powerful man who did miraculous deeds. He chose journalist Michael Ryan to tell his story in a book that, he hoped, would show mankind how to stop its self-destructive ways and bring paradise on earth. With man’s fate hanging in the balance, Zack disappeared, leaving humans to their fate and Michael wondering what his role really is.

REVELATION moves the action two years into the future. The situation looks bleak. Mankind has slipped back into its old, destructive ways and Michael has become a dissolute recluse. There are people who view Michael as a savior and others who see him as a threat to be eliminated.

Along this strange trip, Michael meets new friends and reunites with old companions, the most significant of which is Rover, an abused dog whom Zack endowed with superpowers. Rover becomes Zack’s messenger to Michael, as Michael tries to get Zack’s original message out to the world:  If mankind doesn’t straighten out, he will destroy the human race.

Richfield plays down the description of REVELATION as an “inspirational fantasy.” He calls it a “self-help book, a textbook, a reality series on paper. It is what we see when we look in the mirror.”

If MR. BREEZE focused on Zack and his message, REVELATION focuses on Michael, following his struggle to understand his role in Zack’s master plan and to find his soul, Richfield says. “Michael’s final revelation is that we just don’t learn. Without the threat of destruction, we go back to our old ways. Our time is almost up and we need to do something. We need to show Mr. Breeze the human race deserves a chance to continue to exist.”

AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Morrie Richfield lives in Pennsylvania with his two sons, his dogs and his cat. He is working on his next novel, and he still dreams that someday the world will be a better place for all of us to live.

His latest book is the inspirational fantasy novel, Revelation: The Return of Mr. Breeze.

Visit his website at www.mrbreezethenovel.com.

 

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Book Review: The First Secret of Edwin Hoff, by A.B. Bourne

This is a heart-stopping, spaghetti bowl of a thriller.  Smart, complex, graceful and filled with the type of insider information (the tech world, government intelligence, Jihadist hierarchy) that drives me, as a reader, to distraction. 

The story takes place at the turn of the millennium and centers around the title character – Edwin Hoff – a mysterious and brilliant leader in the tech industry.  One of a handful of Ivy League wunderkinds who became an overnight billionaire during the tech boom of the 1990s, Edwin is anything but the frivolous materialist.  Unlike a certain other young billionaire from a different franchise, he doesn’t need to distract himself with a chorus of babes and an array of unusual sex practices.  Nor does he need to work through his ennui – a now painfully clichéd side effect of having too much too soon, or so we readers have been told. 

On the contrary, Edwin hides a dark and secret past and carries the weight of the world on his muscular shoulders.  Instead of offering on-premise sushi bars and other perks to his already spoiled team, he gives inspiration, the chance to make history, and he delivers unapologetic discipline – moral and otherwise.  His own indelible character takes root inside those around him, bringing out qualities they didn’t know they had.  Or had not existed before Edwin came into their lives.  In short, Edwin Hoff is a leader – the kind we ache for.  

And Edwin Hoff is also something else. 

Edwin Hoff, we learn, is a spy of the highest caliber. 

From the dizzying heights of the high tech revolution to the terrifying events of 9/11, The First Secret of Edwin Hoff shows us that nothing is as it seems.  A.B. Bourne takes us not only through the evolution of the characters she’s written, but the reinvention of the world as we know it, and with a skill that’s uncommon for a first time novelist.  She’s like Daniel Silva in a dress, and writes with a classical notion of masculine valor, yet one imbued with the unmistakable touch of a woman. 

The First Secret of Edwin Hoff is well worth the read, and will undoubtedly leave you eager to get your hands on an advance copy of the second secret.  All in good time, Edwin Hoff might say.

A.B. Bourne is the author of The First Secret of Edwin Hoff, c. 2011 Watch Hill Books.  The thriller reached #4 on Amazon’s Hot New Releases in Spy Stories and Tales of Intrigue, and spent over a year as one of Amazon’s Top-Rated Spy Stories and Tales of Intrigue.  In her cover life, Annie Bourne is also VP of Business Development and General Counsel at Kinvey, a start-up in Boston, MA.  She mentors start-ups at TechStars Boston and serves on the board of Libboo, Inc.  Previously she worked  at Akamai Technologies in multiple executive roles and managed Akamai’s IPO, raising $234 million in 1999.  Before joining the start-up world, the author graduated from Yale College and the University of Michigan Law School and practiced law in Boston.  She lives in Massachusetts with her family, writing The Second Secret of Edwin Hoff. 

About the reviewer:

Victoria Dougherty has for nearly twenty years distinguished herself as a master storyteller, writing fiction, poetry, drama, speeches, essays, and television news segments/video scripts.  

In Prague, Ms. Dougherty co-founded the acclaimed Black Box Theater, translating, producing and acting to sold-out audiences in several Czech plays – from Vaclav Havel’s riveting “Protest” to the unintentionally hilarious communist propaganda play “Karhan’s Men.”  Black Box Theater was profiled in feature articles in USA Today, International Herald Tribune, and numerous European publications. 

Currently, Ms. Dougherty lives with her family in Charlottesville, VA, and has recently completed a thematically linked Cold War thriller series.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Book Review: Before He Kills Again, by R. Barri Flowers

Book Description:

From R. Barri Flowers, award winning crime writer and international bestselling author of Dark Streets of Whitechapel and Killer in The Woods, comes a gripping new psychological thriller, Before He Kills Again: A Veronica Vasquez Thriller.

FBI psychologist and criminal profiler Veronica Vasquez returns to her hometown of Portland, Oregon to assist police in apprehending a ruthless serial killer dubbed “The Rose Killer,” who kills beautiful women in pairs, leaving a rose on top of each corpse.

Heading the investigation is homicide Detective Sergeant Bryan Waldicott. Veronica must win him over, along with the entire task force, and prove herself worthy of the job. Since losing her husband three years ago, Veronica had been focused on her work to escape the pain of loneliness and separation. A romance with Waldicott, who has issues of his own, complicates things for them both as they try to stop a serial murderer before he kills again.

When she begins to suspect that the new husband of her estranged sister Alexandra could be the killer, Veronica pursues that delicate angle and, in the process, becomes a target herself.

Before He Kills Again is tense thriller that will keep readers on edge till the very end.

My thoughts:

Before He Kills Again is indeed  a very entertaining read, one of those suspense thrillers that will keep you turning pages late into the night. At least, this was my case. I finished it in 2-3 days, as I couldn’t put it down. The heroine, criminal psychologist and FBI profiler Veronica Vasquez, is a sympathetic character, smart and independent but with a gentle side. I found all the information about serial killers fascinating, and thoroughly enjoyed all the setups, twists and red herrings devised by the author. Just when you think you know who the killer is, something happens to deter you from suspecting. The love story between Veronica and Homicide detective Bryan Waldicott  adds some spice without getting in the way of the mystery. The novel does have some graphic violent scenes, so if you’re squeamish about this sort of thing, be warned.

If you’re a fan of thrillers about serial killers, you should pick this one up!

Purchase:

Amazon Trade Paperback / Kindle /Kindle UK / Kindle CA / Barnes and Noble Nook eBook / Smashwords / Kobo

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“Writing for Self Discovery,” by Jason Miner

One of the reasons I love to write is that I have a hard time understanding myself. I know it sounds odd. After all, who would understand you better than you do? But to some people like me contemplating your navel just is not in the books. We have too much to do and learn and see of the outside world to spend time trying to reach our inner child. However that can sometimes mean that we have a difficult time sharing ourselves with others. After all, if you do not know what is going on inside how can you share yourself with another person?

Although some people recommend therapy or talking it out, I go by a different approach. I use writing to discover myself. At first this was quite accidental. I wrote fiction for fun in my off hours and slowly started to see a pattern in my stories. I could see how characters would react and through that I learned about different aspects of myself.

For example I wrote several stories in which the main character was thrown into difficult situations and used their mental abilities to figure out a solution. Similarly when I run into an issue in my life I try to come up with a strategy to deal with it independently rather than giving into emotion or trying to cooperate with others. My characters did a lot of planning and scheming and very little off the cuff reaction. It was an interesting insight to say the least.

This also translated into my romantic relationships. In my stories I could have characters enter into these complex relationships where neither of them really talked too much but they still managed to have strong and loving partnerships. After quite a bit of trial and error in my own life I realized I was looking for the wrong things in my relationships. When I changed my thinking and went for partners patterned after the ones I wrote I was much more successful in my search.

Beyond just fiction however I have found that keeping a journal every day, like 750words.com, has helped me to be able to process my emotions and get more in touch with my feelings. This has allowed me to become a more well rounded person and given me the ability to coherently share my likes and dislikes with others rather than distancing myself from them.

Before I started writing for self discovery I found it very hard to deal with my inner thoughts and feelings. However once I can see it out on paper, no matter how garbled or translated, I can begin to work on the issues that bother me and focus my energies on the positives. Although this might not be the best idea for everyone, it definitely works for me.

Jason Miner plays a vital role for www.blogcarnival.com.  He is an expert in writing topics of different categories.  He is helping the carnival team to grow & working on making this an even better place for bloggers.

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Pearl: A Historical Fiction Based on the Early Years of Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author, Pearl S. Buck, by R. Lee Salkind-Meliment

      Pearl is a wonderful nostalgic historical fictional novel of the early years of Pearl Buck. The story weaves the story of the life and background of this wonderful writer and author. It is an inspiring and spell-binding book, one that will be read and re-read by many.

The story begins when Pearl is quite old and disabled. She feels like a black pearl but not a white one, as when she was young. She is living in an old Vermont Farmhouse all alone.  All she has are her memories. She feels like her life is getting close to the end.

Then the story weaves back in time to when she lived in China. Most of the story focuses on her home life and how they moved a lot because her father was a missionary. Her Dad wasn’t home a lot either. So, her mother had to take care of the family on her own. Pearl also remembers her teachers and what an important role and influence they had on her formation as a writer. She felt completely indebted to them for who she became later.

She was always a writer first and foremost. She kept a diary from a very early age.  One of Pearl’s favourite pastimes was to sit down and write about her experiences and feelings. Some of her journal entries are contained in the book. They are warm-hearted and the reader is able to see what she felt at the time and what was going through her mind. There are quite a few gems of wisdom in the book as well which the reader could take to heart, such as Never stop educating yourself, When you come to a fork in the road, follow your heart, and so on.

What a splendid book!  I enjoyed reading it from beginning to end. It transported me to a world of the writer and how at the end of one’s life one should take stock looking at all the good and difficult things. It is also a ponderous book that feels a bit like a memoir. All the reader has to do is to sit back, grab a java, and be transported into Pearl’s world and feelings. Thank you Ron for such a wonderful book!

Article first published as Book Review: Pearl: A Historical Fiction Based on the Early Years of Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author, Pearl S. Buck by R. Lee Salkind Merliment on Blogcritics. 

Irene S. Roth is an freelance writer, author, editor, and book reviewer. She writes nonfiction books for kids, teens, and tweens. She also has a novel in the works for adolescents. For more reviews please visit
http://rothsbookreview.wordpress.com

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K. Baskett’s No Greater Illusion Book Blast today!

Pump Up Your Book and K. Baskett will be giving away a $25 Amazon Gift Card/Paypal Cash plus an autographed paperback & ebook copy of her book on her No Greater Illusion Book Blast today ! This promotion begins on April 1 ends on April 26. The winner will be announced on April 27. To enter, fill out the Rafflecopter form below and good luck!

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ABOUT NO GREATER ILLUSION

A number of unacquainted adults, from various walks of life, routinely enjoy the benefits of residing in a nation where liberty and justice are among its chief luxuries. Having different statuses of education, income, and ethnicity, all are suddenly forced to cope firsthand with the “domino effect” of America’s violent reaction to the assassination of a promising female presidential nominee, Gov. Ceinwen Jarvis. In a day and time where the advancement of technology allows one’s voting status, banking information, and even medical history to be accessed by microchip scan, they quickly realize that America – as well as their own lives – will never be the same.

Purchase your copy:

AMAZON| PUBLISHER

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ABOUT K. BASKETT

Jack of all trades, master of none – save for the art of procrastination – K. Baskett lives by the motto, “Never do today what can be put off until tomorrow.” K. firmly believes that you aren’t really interested in the author’s hometown, spouse, children or pets, and has therefore decided to spare you the details.

No Greater Illusion is the author’s debut novel.

WEBSITE | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | YOUTUBE

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Pump Up Your Book and K. Baskett are teaming up to give you a chance to win some fabulous prizes! Win a $25 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash, one paperback copy of No Greater Illusion or one ebook copy of No Greater Illusion!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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