I am so excited that UNLEASHED by Bella Jacobs is available now and that I get to share the news!

If you haven’t yet heard about this wonderful book by Author Bella Jacobs, be sure to check out all the details below.

This blitz also includes a giveaway for a $10 Amazon GC, Moon Charms, & eBooks courtesy of Bella and Rockstar Book Tours. So if you’d like a chance to win, enter in the Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post.

Title: UNLEASHED

Author: Bella Jacobs

Pub. Date: August 17, 2018

Publisher: Bella Jacobs Books

Formats: Paperback, eBook

Pages: 298

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, Amazon UK

One woman on the run. Four dangerously sexy bodyguards. And a war brewing that will change the shifter world forever…

I’m living on borrowed time, fighting for survival against a deadly new virus that has no cure and a cult doing its best to brainwash me. But when a mysterious note shows up on my windowsill one night, its chilling message--Run, Wren--launches me out of the frying pan and into the fire.

Within hours, everything I thought I knew about my life, my family, and my origins is obliterated, and I'm racking up enemies at an alarming rate. Between the cult I've just escaped, a violent shifter faction out for my blood, and an ancient evil who eats "chosen ones" like me for breakfast, my last hope is to join forces with four dangerous-looking men who claim they were sent to guard my life.

Luke, a werewolf with a rap sheet. Creedence, a lynx shifter who never met a mark he couldn’t con. Kite, a bear kin with a mean right hook and heart of gold. And Dust, my childhood best friend and dude voted least likely to be a secret shape-shifting griffin.

But are these men really what they seem?

Or are my alpha guardians hiding a secret agenda of their own?

I’m not sure, but one thing is for certain—choosing the right allies will mean the difference between life and death. For me, and everyone I love.

UNLEASHED is book one in the Dark Moon Shifter’s series. It is a true reverse harem featuring one woman and her four mates.

Excerpt

Kite’s breath rushes out, his shoulders sagging with a relief that makes me feel like I’ve done something more important than answer a question. “Good. Keep trusting me, bird girl, and I’m going to show you a whole new world. A world where you can be the powerhouse you are on the inside.”

The backs of my eyes begin to sting, but I’m smiling when I say, “There’s no cure, Kite. I might never go back into remission, let alone get better.”

He pauses, seeming to debate something silently before he whispers, “But then again, you might.” Before I can assure him that hope is a lost cause in this case, he leans down and gently presses his lips to mine and I am the one who’s lost.

My eyes slide closed as my heart lights up, each warm, sweet brush of his lips against mine making my body fill with magic. Electricity floods my nerve endings and my pulse races so fast I know I would fall over if Kite let me go. But he doesn’t let me go, he wraps me up in his big strong arms, hugging me close as he lifts me off my feet, bringing our lips onto a level playing field as he takes charge of holding us both steady. 

With a soft sob of gratitude for this kiss, this miracle, this moment of feeling like the luckiest girl in Seattle, I wrap my arms around his neck and kiss him with everything in me, not caring if I use up all the energy I’ll need to get home. 

I’m always so careful—I’ve had to be in order to keep working and having some semblance of a normal life long after most people with my condition would have taken to their beds for good—but I don’t want to be careful right now. I want to be alive and wanted and on fire. I want to burn with this man who makes me hungry in a way I’ve never experienced before. 

In just a few moments, Kite banishes every teenage kiss and lukewarm make-out session from my early twenties from my memory, leaving nothing but his smoky, sexy taste in my mouth and his campfire and almond scent swirling through my head.

About Bella:

Bella Jacobs loves pulse-pounding action, fantasy, and supernaturally high stakes, mixed with swoon-worthy romance and unforgettable heroes. She's been a full time writer for over a decade and hit the USA Today Bestseller list multiple times in contemporary romance under her other pen name. She writes as Bella for her trips to the dark side and can't wait to take you on her next adventure. xo! 

Website | Newsletter | Facebook | Amazon Author Page

Giveaway Details:

1 winner will receive a $10 Amazon Gift Card, International.

1 winner will win a signed paperback of UNLEASHED, US Only.

1 winner will receive a Moon Charm (photo below), US Only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Welcome to my stop in the blog tour.

About the Book:

Dickensen Academy

by Christine Grabowski

Genre: YA Paranormal

Release Date: September 12th 2018

The Wild Rose Press, Inc

Summary:

This school may be her dream come true...or her worst nightmare.  Dickensen Academy isn’t a typical boarding school. The faculty is hiding an unbelievable secret within their fine arts program. When Autumn Mattison receives an invitation to attend the high school, she yearns to escape her overbearing father yet remains reluctant to leave her mother and brother. Her doubts fade away when a vivid dream convinces her she belongs there. Away from home, Autumn discovers a unique school environment that awakens her creative potential, and her new friends become like a second family. However, as she uncovers more about the dark side of the school and struggles with its curriculum, she questions whether Dickensen Academy is truly where she belongs. When tragedy strikes, Autumn must learn to believe in her own power and stand up to her greatest fear or risk having her memories destroyed to protect the school’s secrets. Caught between secrets and dreams, can she find her true self?

Add to Goodreads

Buy Links:

Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/dickensen-academy-map-success/dp/B07G71747S

Barnes & Noble:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dickensen-academy-christine-grabowski/1129315140?ean=2940161849330

Apple:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/dickensen-academy/id1419915501?mt=11

The Wild Rose Press:

https://catalog.thewildrosepress.com/all-titles/6044-dickensen-academy.html

Book Trailer:

https://youtu.be/sgjRes7zPLQ

Dickensen Academy is Christine’s debut YA novel. After graduating from the University of Washington, she earned her MBA at the University at Albany. She honed her technical writing skills in marketing and consulting but attributes the creative part of the process to her passion for reading. When she isn’t reading or writing, Christine can often be found running, skiing, or hiking. She lives in Newcastle, Washington, with her supportive husband, two avid teen readers, and their energetic wheaten terriers.

Author Newsletter Sign-up:

bit.ly/ContactList-CG

Connect with Christine online at:

Website:

http://christinegrabowski.com

Facebook:

Http://facebook.com/christinegrabowskiauthor

Goodreads: Christine Grabowski

Instagram:

www.instagram.com/christinegrabo

Twitter:

http://twitter.com/christinegrabo

Bookbub Profile:

https://www.bookbub.com/profile/christine-grabowski

Amazon Profile:

https://www.amazon.com/Christine-Grabowski/e/B07G7D9LJ2/ref=dbs_p_pbk_rwt_ab

Author Interview with Christine Grabowski:

Tell us bit about yourself?

I am a debut author, and I live in Newcastle, Washington with my husband, two kids, and two dogs. I’ve been fortunate to stay home for the past decade to focus on my family, and in recent years, have been able to carve out time to begin writing more seriously. 

Tell us about your debut novel?

Dickensen Academy is a young adult book about a girl who is selected to go to a fine arts boarding school. Once she gets there she learns the faculty is hiding an unbelievable secret. Although the book is labeled as a fantasy or a paranormal, at its heart it is a coming of age story set in a unique environment. Autumn must separate from her father’s controlling influence, learn to believe in her own abilities, and begin to stand up for herself.

Give us an insight into your main character.

Autumn is a freshman in high school. At the beginning, she has low self-confidence caused by living with a very controlling father who always compares her to her "perfect" older brother. As the book progresses, she needs to learn to overcome her desire to please her father and learn to please herself. 

Is this book part of a series? 

I originally imaged Dickensen Academy as the first book in a four part series and completed an outline of the next book. But I ended up writing it as a stand alone and will see if the readers want to continue to follow Autumn’s story throughout high school.

How long have you been writing?  

I began writing fiction about four years ago. Prior to then, my personal writing was limited to journaling and writing an annual holiday letter. I honed my writing skills (albeit not very creative) as a marketer, a human performance consultant, and an insurance adjuster. 

What do you like best about writing?

When I’m in the zone, I lose myself, and the time flies by. As I am drafting a novel, I’m trying to type as fast as I can so I can find out what will happen next.

Do you work to an outline or plot or do you prefer just see where an idea takes you? 

I’m somewhere between a plotter and a pantser. I always have a high-level outline when I begin, but I usually get so excited to start the new project that I take off writing. The more I write, and the more I get to know my characters, I continue to add details to the outline so ideally by the time I get to that part in the book, I have a good idea of what I need to include in a particular scene. 

How do you keep yourself motivated? I’m a numbers person. I like to keep track of my increasing (and later decreasing) word counts. When I am drafting, I write the number of new words on a wall calendar at the end of each day. Usually I have a monthly goal (rather than a daily one) since my family responsibilities vary day to day. I tend to overwrite, so when I’m editing, I get the same satisfaction from cutting words as I work down to an appropriate word count. 

What’s a perfect writing day?

After I get the kids off to school around seven, I write a couple of hours before going to the gym. Afterwards, I write a couple more hours at a coffee shop then come home and walk the dogs. When the kids return home, they miraculously don’t need me, so I write until dinner.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing? 

Hang out with my kids, watch a movie with my husband, hike with the pups, and read when I have a moment of free time alone. Our favorite family activity is skiing in the mountains. 

Do you have any specific advice for aspiring writers? Find a critique group, educate yourself, and immerse yourself in the writing community (local or online).

What part scares you? The blank page. 

What is the hardest thing about writing? Like most other flexible, work-from home jobs, it is hard to put it away and not let it interfere with my personal life. Sometimes I find it hard to be present when I’m at home because I always have work to do. As I move forward in my career, I hope to establish better boundaries between work and my personal life. 

What surprised you about becoming an author? How much of my time is now devoted to non-writing activities, especially marketing. 

What part of your writing time do you devote to marketing your book? As I prepare for the release of Dickensen Academy, I’d say about 65% of my time is devoted to marketing and 35% is devoted to either my work in progress or critiquing others’ works. I’m hoping once the book comes back I can flip that percentage. Since this is my first book, there are also lots of administrative marketing tasks. For example, creating author profiles on sites such as Amazon and Goodreads. Fortunately, once these are done, I won’t need to recreate them for future books. 

What do you think of book trailers? That’s a great question. Ask me in a few months on whether I believe they help with book sales. I honestly hadn’t seen many trailers prior to developing one of my own, but since my core readers will be teens, I believe they will be more interested in watching a video than if I was aiming for an older audience. My trailer launched a few weeks ago, and it has been shared all over Facebook and Twitter. You can view it here: 

https://youtu.be/sgjRes7zPLQ

Aside from preparing for the launch of Dickensen Academy what other projects are in the works? I’m working on a fairy tale reimagining of Sleeping Beauty. I was inspired to do a retelling after reading Cinder a couple years ago. What are your favorite books? I have too many to list, but they often fall into young adult, historical fiction, memoir, or women’s fiction. Check out my Goodreads account http://bit.ly/Goodreads-Christine where I have reviewed hundreds of books.

If you could have been the original author of any book, what would it have been and why? I’d have to say Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. I don’t think I need an explanation. 

Do you have any general advice to give to aspiring writers? Write because you love to write. And then make time for it and don’t give up. Also, don’t compare yourself to other writers; everyone is on their own journey.

Excerpt 

"I feel like there’s something big we don’t know about. Something those students were protecting. I mean, really, why are we here?" I thought it was just me who was confused."Well...the recruiters said we’re creative and focused." "Yeah, that’s what Principal Locke said too." "And we have the right personality." Ben looked up at the sky, sighed then turned toward the forest. "What did he say...something about how it will soon become clear why we’re here, and there’s some ultimate purpose for our creativity?" "I know. That whole creativity part was a bit bizarre." He shrugged. "It seems everyone is going with the flow. But I have so many questions." Then he touched my arm to stop me, so I turned toward him. "I’m thinking they’re isolating us for some special reason," he admitted in an embarrassed tone. I tried not to laugh—he was acting paranoid. But I didn’t know Ben well. Maybe he was joking, trying to freak me out. Or was he hitting on me? The flutter in my chest moved to my stomach. I was already anxious about being away from home and whether or not I could hack the academics. I didn’t need to obsess about anything else. But I still had to know about Ben’s dream. "So...I also had a dream about Dickensen before I accepted the offer." Ben’s head snapped toward me. "You did?"

Giveaway:

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/9e540ef9501/

Release Day Blitz- Renegade

Hi! All my dear fellow bookworms, I am back. 

I am excited that RENEGADE by Mallory McCartney is available now and that I get to share the news!

If you haven’t yet heard about this wonderful book by Author Mallory McCartney, be sure to check out all the details below.

This blitz also includes a giveaway for a copy of the eBook courtesy of Mallory and Rockstar Book Tours. So if you’d like a chance to win, enter in the Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post.

Title: RENEGADE (Black Dawn 0.5)

Author: Mallory McCartney

Pub. Date: July 3, 2018

Publisher: Clean Reads Publishing

Formats: eBook

Pages: 250

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon

“The time for Kiero’s reign in prosperity is over.”

Six years before the Black Dawn Rebellion, Adair Stratton and Emory Fae are following in their parent’s footsteps and living at The Academy, a home for those who are gifted.  The pressure to uphold the future of their parent’s dream falls on them. An outcast and feared by most, Adair longs to break away from the expectations dictating his future. Even if Emory tries to make him see differently. An unexpected group of friends keep him there, but as whispers of unexplained disappearances start reaching from the capital, Adair starts to doubt The Academy is all it seems.

An unexpected visit ignites new tensions as the roguish king from across the Black Sea, Tadeas Maher of the Shattered Isles, and his heir, Marquis Maher sail to Kiero. Notorious for their pirating and wrath- for the first time in years, they demand the Fae’s listen to their proposition for a new treaty, holding the news of Nei’s father’s abrupt death over them. Caught in the middle of politics- Adair and Emory, with the help of their best friends Brokk and Memphis search for the one thing that matters most- finding out the truth.

In this gripping prequel to Black Dawn, their world is tipped upside down as unlikely alliances are made. War ravages through Kiero and is torn apart by acclaimed Kings. Through the throes of betrayal, lies, hidden magic and love, Adair is faced with a life changing decision- to fight or to bow to the darkness within him.

Title: BLACK DAWN (Black Dawn #1)

Author: Mallory McCartney

Release Date: February 14, 2017

Publisher: Clean Reads Publishing

Pages: 352

Formats: Paperback, eBook

Find it: Amazon, B&N, Goodreads

Emory Fae enjoys leading a quiet, normal life. That is until two mysterious, and handsome soldiers show up at her apartment, and the life she knew is instantly whisked away. Memphis Carter and Brokk Foster come from the magical and war ridden world of Kiero, and bringing Emory back she will discover she is the long lost heir to the Royal Line and is thrown into the Black Dawn Rebellion with a dynamic role to ignite the rebels and reclaim her throne.

With both men being darkly woven in her past Emory uncovers hidden secrets, a power held long dormant, and will soon realize there are worse things than supernatural humans, love, loss, betrayal, and a Mad King.

Some things are better left in the shadows.

Exclusive Excerpt!

Exhaling, the prince took him off guard as he lifted his eyebrow. “What I don’t understand is how the Faes have achieved such loyalty. What did they do?”

He chewed his bottom lip as he hopped over a fallen tree trunk. He looked to Marquis. “They were the dreamers in a time when culture, creativity, and equality were being butchered. The Academy was the foundation of that dream, for desolates, for the people with weaker abilities. For everyone. The people of Kiero followed Roque because they can’t fear him, they can only admire him. How brave he was for standing up to his father, for breaking free of his reign to start his own.”

Marquis chewed his lip. “It sounds like you have a different opinion of him.”

He threw out his hands. “I was born at the Academy. Raised in the Academy. Who am I to doubt the intentions of the Faes? They are practically family.”

Shrugging, Marquis cooed, “Sometimes it is the ones closest to us that betray us first.”

About Mallory:

Mallory McCartney currently lives in Sarnia, Ontario with her husband and their three dachshunds Link, Lola and Leonard. When she isn’t working on her next novel or reading, she can be found day dreaming about fantasy worlds and hiking. Other favorite pastimes involve reorganizing perpetually overflowing bookshelves and seeking out new coffee and dessert shops.

Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Goodreads

Giveaway Details:

One lucky winner will receive an eBook of RENEGADE, International.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: Telling Tales by Penny Perrick

About the Book

 

Telling Tales

The Fabulous Lives of Anita Leslie

by Penny Perrick

Description

The poignant biography of Anita Leslie, the only woman to have won the Croix de Guerre and the Africa Star in WWII.

Anita Leslie (1914-85), best known for the popular biographies of her extraordinary relatives, including Jennie Churchill (Winston's mother) and sculptor Clare Sheridan, was also a most unlikely war heroine. In 1940 Anita volunteered for active service, and by the end of the war she had been awarded the Croix de Guerre for outstanding bravery on the battlefield in France.

While Anita always insisted that everything was "delightful and amusing," her life after the war was clouded by destructive love affairs, depression, and domestic and financial chaos.

This revealing biography describes the complex character behind the sunny facade she was at pains to project. Drawing on copious correspondence, Penny Perrick brings to life Anita's true anguished self: the intense joy she took in her children, her passionate love of Ireland, her career as a writer and the dramatic family squabbling that resulted from the muddled management of the Castle Leslie. Telling Tales is a scintillating and poignant account of this flamboyant woman.

Penny Perrick, who lived for many years in the west of Ireland, was a fashion editor for Vogue, a columnist on the Sun and The Times and a fiction editor for the Sunday Times. She is also a novelist and the author of Something to Hide, a biography of the poet Sheila Wingfield. Penny lives in London.

Review

Penny Perrick has written biography of Anita Leslie named Telling Tales. Penny Perrick beautifully illustrates the life of a flawed woman. Actually, the many lives of this flawed woman. This was an interesting and sometimes not so interesting read. I am back to reading after a while so I was expecting every book to be cool and interesting. This book at some points bored me. 

But then maybe that's what biographies do.

Overall, it was knowledgeable and interesting.

Do I Recommend It?

It depends. If you are looking for a book that is interesting and keeps your interest till the end, then this might not be for you. But if you love biographies and memoirs, then it's for you!!

Let's Connect!

Do you like non-fiction? Which is your favourite non-fiction book? Share in the comments below!!!