Monday, March 31, 2014

Release Announcement: The Devil in Midwinter

“THE DEVIL IN MIDWINTER” / ELISE FORIER EDIE


Alpena, MI (March 31, 2014– World Weaver Press (Eileen Wiedbrauk, Editor-in-Chief) has announced The Devil in Midwinter by Elise Forier Edie, a new paranormal romance novella, and previously featured in A Winter’s Enchantment, will be available in trade paperback and ebook Tuesday, April 8, 2014.
A handsome stranger, a terrifying monster, a boy who burns and burns… Mattawa, Washington, is usually a sleepy orchard town come December, until a murder, sightings of a fantastic beast, and the arrival of a handsome new vintner in town kindle twenty-year-old reporter Esme Ulloa’s curiosity—and maybe her passion as well. But the more she untangles the mystery, the more the world Esme knows unspools, until she finds herself navigating a place she thought existed only in storybooks, where dreams come alive, monsters walk the earth and magic is real. When tragedy strikes close to home, Esme finds she must strike back, matching wits with an ancient demon in a deadly game, where everything she values stands to be lost, including the love of her life.

The Devil in Midwinter will be available in trade paperback and ebook via Amazon.com, Barnesandnoble.com, Kobo.com, other online retailers, and for wholesale through Ingram.

Be part of the Devil in Midwinter Cover Feature Blitz April 14-18. Visit The Devil in Midwinter to sign up as a blog host.
Elise Forier Edie is an author and playwright based in southern California. Recent works include the play “The Pink Unicorn,” which performed at the United Solo Theatre Festival in New York, a short story, “Leonora,” published in Penumbra magazine and several plays, included in the anthology “Original Middle School Scenes and Monologues,” edited by Kent R. Brown. She is a member of the Authors Guild, the Romance Writers of America (RWA) and the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). She is married to actor Keith Edie. When she is not writing, she likes to make quilts and soup, but rarely at the same time. Visit Elise Forier Edie on these sites to follow her or list her as one of your favorite authors: AmazonGoodreadsFacebook, Twitter @EliseForierEdie, and www.eliseforieredie.com.
World Weaver Press is a publisher of fantasy, paranormal, and science fiction, dedicated to producing quality works. As a small press, World Weaver seeks to publish books that engage the mind and ensnare the story-loving soul.


Publication Date: April 8, 2014 • NA Paranormal Romance

$9.95 trade paperback, 225 pages  • $4.99 ebook

ISBN: 978-0615990002

Publicity/review requests: publicity@worldweaverpress.com

Information:


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Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Blog Stop and Interview: Andrea Janes


Praise for Glamour:

“Glamour is pure fun! Characters crackle with humor and unexpected adventure, compel with heart and interest, and live off the page in a delightfully witchy world.”
— Leanna Renee Hieber, bestselling author of the Strangely Beautiful saga

“An exciting and fast paced story, with a wicked-witted heroine that’s simply quite adorable.”
— Katie M John, author of The Knight Trilogy

“Filled with magic and sharp wit. I can’t wait to see what Andrea Janes brings us next!”

—       Rebecca Roland, author of Shards of History

Summary:
Townie. That’s what eighteen-year-old Christina Sundy is. All year round she lives in a one-stoplight town on Cape Cod and when summer comes she spends her days scooping ice cream for rich tourists, who she hates. So when one of them takes a job in the ice cream shop alongside her, she’s pissed. Why does a blonde and perky Harvard-bound rich girl like Reese Manning want to scoop ice cream anyway?

Something else weird is happening to Christina: tiny blue sparks seem to be shooting off her fingers. It isn’t long before she realizes the truth about herself — she’s actually a powerful hereditary witch. But her newfound powers are too intense for her to handle and, in a moment of rage, she accidentally zaps Reese into another dimension.

So that no one will notice that the rich girl has disappeared, Christina casts a disguising spell, or “glamour,” and lives Reese’s life while she tries to find a retrieval spell. But as the retrieval spell proves harder than anticipated, and as she goes about living Reese’s life without anyone on the outside noticing the switch, Christina realizes that there’s nothing to stop her from making the glamour permanent… except, of course, her fellow witches, a 16th century demon, and, just maybe, her own conscience.


Interview:
Which authors inspire you the most?
I love the dark domesticity of Shirley Jackson, she’s definitely one of my favorites.
When did you first know you wanted to write?
I have wanted to be a writer since I was six, so basically I can’t remember why or remember a time when there was ever any other idea in my mind.
How did you get the inspiration for your novel?
GLAMOUR, was in a large part inspired by some of the friendships I’ve been lucky enough to have in my life. All friendships are subject to the wax and wane of the natural course of time. It’s also partly inspired by trips to New England summer towns, which are seriously filled with more ice cream shops than you can shake a stick at. I’m a big fan of beaches and beach towns. I’ve also always been really interested in witches for some reason.
So throw witches, water, New England, and nostalgia into a blender, and you get GLAMOUR.
I was also really inspired by John Updike’s The Witches of Eastwick, which is less about three women throwing themselves at a man and much more about female friendship that you would think. Here are the beautiful last lines from the novel:
"The witches are gone, vanished; we were just an interval in their lives, and they in ours.
But ... rumors of the days when they were solid among us, gorgeous and doing evil, have flavored the name of the town in the mouths of others, and for those of us who live here have left something oblong and invisible and exciting we do not understand. We meet it turning the corner where Hemlock meets Oak; it is there when we walk the beach in off-season and the Atlantic in its blackness mirrors the dense packed gray of the clouds: a scandal, life like smoke rising twisted into legend."

What is your favorite part about being an author?

I like making up stories, watching them grow. Creating characters, giving them little lives and personalities, watching them run around like little sea monkeys.

What is your least favorite part about being an author?
Very intricate plotting is hard work for me. My least favorite things though, hands down, are sitting still for hours at a time, and working forever and ever without pay.

Could you write a bit about what your publication process was like?
GLAMOUR took a long, roundabout journey. In 2004, I wrote a screenplay called SCOOPs, with Reese as the main character. It wasn’t very good, so I put it away for a few years and then when I was ready, re-wrote it with Christina as the main character. It was at that point I decided to make them have magic witch powers to spice things up. The screenplay was now pretty good, but who in their right mind would buy it? An indie movie with two female leads and lots of costly special effects? That’s a hard sell. So then I re-wrote it as a novel. At some point I also adapted it into a short story, because why not? So it took ten years and four different forms before it became what it was.
Do you have any upcoming projects?


Yes, I’m currently writing a horror novel about a haunted condo in Rockaway Beach Queens.

Glamour is available in trade paperback and ebook via

Amazon
Barnesandnoble
Kobo 
OmniLit 
 Ingram, and other online retailers.

Andrea Janes writes horror, dark comedy, thrillers, and historical slapstick. She is the author of Boroughs of the Dead: New York City Ghost Stories<http://boroughsofthedead.com/homepage/#shop>. She is also a licensed NYC tour guide, and offers a variety of ghostly tours around the city. Her many obsessions include New York City history, old photographs, Mabel Normand, all things nautical, and beer. She maintains a personal blog over at Spinster Aunt<http://bourbonandtea.blogspot.com/>, where she discusses these obsessions in more detail than is probably healthy.
World Weaver Press is a publisher of fantasy, paranormal, and science fiction, dedicated to producing quality works. As a small press, World Weaver seeks to publish books that engage the mind and ensnare the story-loving soul.


Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Review: Hollowland (The Hollows #1)

Title: Hollowland (The Hollows #1)
Author: Amanda Hocking
Page Count: 312 pages
My Rating: 4 TURTLES: A great read, I definitely recommend.


Synopsis:

Hollowland - the first book in the young adult dystopian series The Hollows... "This is the way the world ends - not with a bang or a whimper, but with zombies breaking down the back door." Nineteen-year-old Remy King is on a mission to get across the wasteland left of America, and nothing will stand in her way - not violent marauders, a spoiled rock star, or an army of flesh-eating zombies.

My Review:
Wow, what a thrill ride this one was! This was my first Amanda Hocking book (and, coincidentally, my first zombie book), which I had been meaning to read for a long time since I got it for free on Amazon. I'm super glad I finally got to it.

First off, I loved how tough Remy was! She definitely deserves to be up there with all the YA kick butt heroines! She was basically the only reason the people traveling with her were alive. Because of this she had to be tough as nails, but she also has a soft side which made her more likeable and human, and not just a zombie killing machine. I also loved how fast paced this book was! I recently finished Divergent, and I felt that this was even a bit more of a page-turner than that was. There was not a dull moment in the book, and the plot did not feel choppy, like some plots do when writers are trying to hurry from one action scene to the next.

Now, when I read any type of action novel, the type of writing I like best is the type that allows the story to move quickly. Some of the other reviews I have read of this book have complained of Hocking's minimalist style, but I thought it really fit with the story. There wasn't much flowery language, in fact, the little there was seemed out of place, and this, in part, enabled the pace to go as fast as it does. What did slow down the book for me was the amount of typos. It detracted from my reading when I was in the middle of an intense fight, and at times had to go back to reread something that didn't make sense, only to realize it was a typo.


All in all, the good definitely outweighed the bad. I don't know how Hollowland compares to other zombie novels, but as an action novel it is right up there. I definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for an exciting, dystopian read. I am looking forward to reading the second book in this series.

Buy Hollowland on Amazon

Monday, March 17, 2014

Blog Tour Stop: Baby Gone Bye

Baby Gone Bye
By Marilee Brothers
Genre: YA, Fantasy
Publisher: Bell Bridge Books (November 29, 2013), 212 pages

Baby Gone Bye Synopsis

High school senior, Gabe Delgado, is trying to trade his bad-boy ways for clean living. He remembers nothing about the night a mysterious girl loved him and left him at a party, except … there was a kind of magic around her that had nothing to do with his hangover the next day. Now he finds that “magic” in a basket on his doorstep, cooing at him like a happy little bird.

The note attached to the baby’s blanket says, “Gabe, you probably already know our baby is, well, different. If not, you’ll find out soon enough. Let’s just say she has certain qualities most babies don’t have. The thing is, I’m scared. I’m on my own and can’t keep her safe. But, you can. You’re strong. You have a family to watch out for her. Bad people want her. That’s why I left her with you. I don’t really understand what’s going on, but it has something to do with The Abolesco. Don’t try to find me. Please, take care of our baby girl and love her. Okay?”

Gabe soon discovers there are bad people on baby Birdie’s trail, but why? Suddenly party-boy Gabe has to man up to protect his daughter. Not so easy when her talents include vanishing into thin air. It’s up to Gabe and his girl-pal Abby—who has some extraordinary secrets of her own—to find out what’s up with something called the Scientific Academy of Merit, what the goons want with Birdie, and whether other people like Birdie can be saved too.

Interview
When did you first know you wanted to write?
I grew up loving books, but due to working full time and raising three sons, I had little time to write. I wrote poetry and short stories but didn’t tackle a book until my kids were grown. I sent a short story to a writing coach for evaluation and she said, “You need to write a book.” Without her encouragement, it wouldn’t have happened.

Which authors inspire you the most?
That’s like asking me which one of my kids I like the best – LOL. I read in many different genres but mystery is my hands-down favorite. I’m in awe of Elizabeth George, an American writer who writes British mysteries with great accuracy. And, for a thrill a minute, you can’t beat Lee Child’s Jack Reacher series. In the world of non-fiction, I loved Jeannette Walls’ The Glass Castle and Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand.

       How did you get the inspiration for your novel?
           As a school counselor, I worked in an alternative school that had 
           child care for the teen parents, predominantly girls. After rearing
           three sons, I wanted to explore the challenges faced by a teenage boy   
           suddenly presented with a five-month old infant, especially one with
           magical powers.

    What is your favorite part about being an author?
I believe we all have the desire to express ourselves creatively. Since I’m not capable of creating anything artistic with my hands—it’s like my fingers are blunt instruments—I try to paint a picture with words. I love creating characters, figuring out what makes them tick and then building a story around them.


     What is your least favorite part about being an author?
The promotional and marketing end of publishing are so important and, unfortunately, very difficult for me.

    Could you write a bit about what your publication process was like?
My first book, Castle Ladyslipper, was a medieval romance published by a small press. When I finished my second book, a romantic suspense titled The Rock and Roll Queen of Bedlam, I pitched it to an editor who rejected the book but suggested I concentrate on writing for young adults. I eventually sold Rock and Roll Queen to Medallion Press and then began writing Moonstone, which would become the first book in a 5 book series, Unbidden Magic. I entered the first few chapters in a contest. At the time, I had no idea Debra Dixon, one of the publishers at Belle Books, was a judge. When they started a new imprint, Bell Bridge Books, she hunted me down and asked me to send her Moonstone. That book led to a six-book contract. Baby Gone Bye is the sixth book. Yes, a lot of luck was involved and I’m very grateful.

 Do you have any upcoming projects?
Having finished my contract, I’ve decided to concentrate on the adult market again. I’ve just started a book tentatively titled Affliction with a twenty two-year-old protagonist, Honor Melanie Sullivan. My original intent was to aim for the new adult genre but the book seems to be morphing into a hybrid, combining romantic suspense with a bit of magic. Honor has been diagnosed with Asperger’s because she is socially awkward and doesn’t make eye contact. Real reason she doesn’t make eye contact? She can read people’s souls and, most of the time, she doesn’t like what she sees.


   Describe in three or fewer sentences what makes your book   unique and why a reader should buy it.

High school senior Gabe Delgado is trying to trade his bad-boy ways for clean living. He remembers nothing about the night a mysterious girl loved him and left him at a party, except … there was a kind of magic around her. Now he finds that “magic” in a basket on his doorstep, cooing at him like a happy little bird.

Author Info

Marilee Brothers is a former teacher, coach and counselor. The author of eight books, Marilee and her husband are the parents of three grown sons and live in central Washington State. After writing six young adult books, Marilee is currently hard at work, writing an adult thriller. She loves hearing from people who have read her books. Feel free to contact her at www.marileebrothers.com.

Links

My Twitter account is: @MarileeB.
My Facebook author page is: www.facebook.com/marilee.author.
My website is: www.marileebrothers.com.