Just because you don’t drink doesn’t mean you can’t ring in the new year in style. Have fun and flavor with Mocktail Club’s non-alcoholic can drinks! These are exotic and tastefully yummy alternatives to the sugary alternative because these drinks are low in calories and actually good for you! Non-GMO and Vegan- friendly. Read on for my full review of Mocktail Club Non-alcoholic can drinks.
What better day to release your book than on your birthday! Happy birthday to author Whiney Dean! And happy book release day of A Kingdom of Frost and Fear read on!
A Kingdom of Frost and Fear (The Four Kingdoms #2)
After years of wondering where she came from and what her story was, Raven received the answers she had been craving: she has a family and is the true heir to the throne of Seolia. But the answers she so hopelessly sought only bred more questions. As she digs deeper into her past, she wonders if maybe she should have stayed hidden in the shadows, safe from the pain and agony of knowing her happily ever after may not be so happy after all.
Zeke had been right all along: she hates him for what he’d hidden from her. Now, with Raven desperate to learn who she is, he’s desperate to win her back. But while still holding secrets of his own, doing so will come at a price he may not be able to pay.
And all the while, magic is slowly reawakening in the realm of The Four Kingdoms, and not a soul is prepared for the new black magic Raven is now in possession of.
This is book two of an epic dark fantasy adventure series and contains graphic and mature content scenes. Reader discretion is advised.
At ten years old, Raven was mysteriously willed to be the next ruler of Seolia, a kingdom nestled within the realm of The Four Kingdoms. Orphaned as a baby, she has spent fifteen years ruling over a kingdom she believes she did not earn, all while hiding secrets: she possesses dark magic, and she thirsts for blood. Now at almost twenty-five years old and with a sudden addiction to stealing life, Raven must fight through her newly procured darkness to save her soul, but when a mysterious stranger arrives in her kingdom, she starts experiencing vivid dreams that detail who she truly is. As she slowly starts to unravel her story, what she uncovers at the end of the spool will change the course of her life and her kingdom forever.
Whitney was born in Fayetteville, Arkansas, and raised in Allen, Texas. She resides in a quaint little town in Arkansas with her husband, two children, and her labradoodle, Simba.
Her love of reading came from the Harry Potter series when she was seven years old and frequent trips to the most magical place on earth. Because of it, the fantasy realm has taken up residence in her brain for a very long time.
While her writings include real-life pain and angst, she is a fan of happily-ever-afters and always strives to bring that forth in her stories.
Joining with R&R Book Tours for this special holiday book blitz Monday, let’s join our favorite veggie-eating T-Rex as he celebrates his very first Christmas!
The Littlest Dinosaur’s First Christmas (The Littlest Dinosaur Series)
Publication Date: September 5, 2022
Genre: Children’s Books/ Picture Books
The Littlest Dinosaur is excited to play in the snow for the first time. He wishes he could play in the snow forever, but Christmas is a busy time of year, and Mama Tyrannosaur has plans for those presents under the tree!
Bryce Raffle was the lead writer for the video game studio Ironclad Games. He also writes stories for young adults and designs book covers.
Steven Kothlow is making his debut as a children’s book writer. He hopes to tell many more stories that help spread a message of diversity and inclusion, especially in children’s literature.
Tessa Verplancke is a sound designer by day and an illustrator by night. She lives to tell stories through as many mediums as possible.
A Kung Fu master becomes a Jesuit priest ordained as an exorcist fighting demons in the streets, demons in the souls of the possessed, and wrestling with his own. Inspired by Historical Events.
John Ozuna in Demon Fighter (image courtesy of CRAEntertainment)
A former martial artist and underground fight clubber, old habits die hard for Father Michael (Mike) Martinez (John Ozuna), it seems. A priest by day, an underground fight club fighter, and city streets vigilante by night. Father Mike knows all too well the unknown evil that lurks in the world and in people, as we see in flashbacks to his childhood via his nightmares. When a stranger Hank Jefferson (Robert Crow), stops him asking for help for a friend and his family Father Mike reluctantly agrees. Now, Father Mike must prepare for a fight not only for their souls but for his own as well.
Filming of Demon Fighter. (center) John Ozuna, (right)NJ Brown
Written and directed by David J. Espinosa, his overall tone and direction here remind me of reading a Stephen King book. I always found the beginnings of his books a bit slow, but he keeps you engrossed enough not to shut the book, and by the end, boy, are you glad you didn’t. That is how I felt with Demon Fighter. Espinosa starts out a bit slow but keeps you enticed, rewarding you in the end. This is also thanks to the cast, who delivered impressive performances. Jeff Hatch (Nicolas Stark) and Jeanne Young (Vivian Stark) are powerful in their 180-degree performances. My breakout star, though, is Jeffery Battaion (Anthony Stark). When they are all praying in the end, and Battaion gets on his knees… oh boy! It wasn’t the line that struck me but how he delivered it. I felt it. I connected with it. I’ve watched many horror exorcism films but never not emotional over one. That is due to Espinosa, Ahrens (producer), and the cast.
Kudos also to the makeup crew of Dan Acosta and Robert Vargas. For being an indie film, I was impressed by their work and how they transformed beautiful Jeanne Young evil looking, though Hatch looked a bit like a purple spotted leopard on his body. I went with it, though. I got it; he was possessed.
Scene from Demon Fighter Jeanne Young
The best BEST moment had to be when the neighbor friend(The brilliant NJ Brown) came in mid-exorcism asking if anyone wanted a burrito. I nearly fell out of my seat!
Demon Fighter’s only downside is I wish Espinosa had the chance to expand the story more and delve deeper into the characters. As with indie and any film, there are always time and budget constraints. Demon Fighter showed that a bit. With a bigger budget and time, Demon Fighter could be more intense than it already was. Still, it’s another good one under Ahrens and Espinosa’s belts.
Happy Thursday! Today am spotlighting the sultry Peter Pan retelling The Heart of Neverland by Natalie J. Reddy. Joining with R&R Book Tours Let’s dive in!
The Heart of Neverland (The Neverwitch Chronicles #1)
Expected Publication Date: November 30th, 2022
Genre: Fantasy/ Romance/ Adventure/ Pirates/ Pan Retelling
One night.That’s all it takes to turn my life upside down. It’s not like I had the most stable childhood to begin with. Most of it was spent on the run from the villains in my mom’s head. It isn’t until after she’s murdered right in front of me that I realize maybe they weren’t in her head after all.
After her death, I go to stay with an uncle I didn’t know existed to try to make sense of my life and find some answers about who I really am. As I search for the truth, a guy named Peter shows up and makes it his mission to constantly get in my personal space. He’s gorgeous, flirty, and completely infuriating. And possibly not actually human or from this world.
The things he tells me sounds insane, and I don’t think I can trust him. It doesn’t matter that each heated touch draws me deeper into his web. Things like magic, pirates, and Peter Pan just aren’t real.
Natalie J. Reddy is a Canadian Author who spends her days trying to escape reality by making up stories about the characters in her head.
Natalie realized at an early age that she had a passion for storytelling and that passion followed her into adulthood. She loves nothing more than to be pulled into a fictional world, whether it’s in her own writing or the writing of others. Natalie is the author of the Scar of Days Forgotten series, a New Adult Urban Fantasy series with characters who have supernatural abilities and dark and sometimes unknown pasts to overcome.
When she’s not writing, Natalie can be found having all sorts of real-life adventures with her husband and daughter or curled up with a good book and a cup of tea.
To keep up to date on upcoming books, subscribe to Natalie’s newsletter at nataliejreddy.com.
While you’ve all seen my wizardry in informative writing. I thought I’d treat you all to my creative side. I home-school my son, who is autistic, and in his ELA class, he was to do 15 minutes of journal writing. To help motivate him, I sat next to him and said I would write too, and I wrote this little diddy (under 15 minutes at that). Per request, I read it to my boys at bedtime for their bedtime story. They loved it and said I should post it online. So for your reading pleasure, I present to you…
The Turkey That Loved Thanksgiving
Tibby The Turkey loved Thanksgiving.
Insane! Do you say?
Well, let me tell you the story of Tibby The Turkey.
Tibby, just like any turkey, lived on a farm.
Wait, what did you say? Not all turkeys live on a farm. Some live in the wild, you say?
Our Tibby lives on a farm (if that’s okay). Her friends were a barn cat, a goat, a cow, a rooster, and a dog named Libby.
Huh? Libby is not Tibby’s friend? What? Who told you that?! Sal, the mouse! Where did he come from?! Okay, whatever moving on.
Tibby’s life was content on the farm with everything a turkey could want, and Thanksgiving was Tibby’s favorite holiday.
Happy Thursday to all! Move over Nancy Drew as Angela Hardwicke is back in HOT ASH by Russ Colchasmiro. Read on to find out more.
Hot Ash
Publication Date: September 6th, 2022
Genre: Sci-Fi Mystery
Intergalactic private Angela Hardwicke is Eternity’s most daring spy for hire…
Following the mysterious and ill-timed death of her elderly husband, Camille Engquist was set to inherit the family’s real estate development company. But her stepkids stole it from her first. Or so she claims.
As Hardwicke and her protégé Eric Whistler dive into the world of affordable housing, synthetic concrete, and corporate succession planning, their investigation puts them face-to-face with the haves and have-nots, a new form of cocaine, a boundary-pushing neurobiologist, a majestic domed city and a violent conspiracy that stretches farther and deeper than they ever could have imaged. But the most insidious betrayals are sometimes closer to home.
In Hot Ash, Russ Colchamiro’s most action-packed Sci-Fi mystery yet, Angela Hardwicke must grapple with the worst pain of all—that the people we love are the ones we should fear most.
And don’t miss the first two books in the series, Crackle and Fire and Fractured Lives!
Russ Colchamiro is the author of the rollicking space adventure, Crossline, the zany SF/F backpacking comedy series Finders Keepers: The Definitive Edition, Genius de Milo, and Astropalooza, and is editor of the SF anthology Love, Murder & Mayhem, all with Crazy 8 Press.
Russ lives in New Jersey with his wife, two ninjas, and crazy dog Simon, who may in fact be an alien himself. Russ has also contributed to several other anthologies, including Tales of the Crimson Keep, Pangaea, Altered States of the Union, Camelot 13,TV Gods 2, They Keep Killing Glenn, Thrilling Adventure Yarns, Camelot 13, and Brave New Girls.
Three days to Halloween, the paranormal ghost story Fountain Dead is getting a stunning new cover for its audiobook edition! Joining with R&R Book Tours once again, I REVEAL THE COVER!
Fountain DeadExpected Publication Date: Fall 2022Genre: Mature YA/ Paranormal/ Ghost Story
Mark is uprooted from his home and high school in the Twin Cities and forced to move with his family into a Victorian in Nowhere-ville. Busy with the relocation and fitting in, Mark’s parents don’t see what’s unfolding around them—the way rooms and left behind objects seem alive with a haunted past. Of course, Mark keeps his ghostly encounters to himself, all the while sinking deeper into the house’s dark, alluring, and ultimately terrifying history. As romantic entanglements intensify, the paranormal activity escalates. Past and present come together. Everything is connected—from the bricks in the walls to the hearts beating in their chests, all the secrets of Fountain Dead are finally unearthed...
Coming Soon!
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Theresa Braun has a Master’s degree in English literature and lives in South Florida, where she has been teaching literature and writing for over 20 years. Traveling, ghost hunting and all things dark are her passions (when she is not coming up with romantic subplots). She has presented at HWA conferences, as well as Utah Quills Conferences. Her published works include novels and short stories in various horror fiction publications. In 2018, she was included in a Best Speculative Fiction anthology.
It is Halloween week, and what a TREAT! We have a double-spook feature book spotlight for you! Welcome to Defilement, a terrifying collection of short stories by Jesse Nolan Baily! Perfect for tucking yourself in on Halloween night! Open the cover if you dare!
DEFILEMENT and Other Stories
Publication Date: October 10th, 2022 (Exclusively through Barnes and Noble)
Genre: Horror/ Short Story Collection (TWs will be provided before each story)
A boy and his father find impossible fossilized bones in their backyard…The disturbing contents and origin of a mysterious magazine conjure paranoia…Neighbors welcome a new couple by bragging about a miracle doctor who works from his garage…Memories from childhood fail to reconcile an old photo featuring an unidentified cryptid…Archaic gym equipment proves treacherous…A teen boy is plunged into a nightmarish realm known as Eden…
In these six stories, evil abounds, ready to defile.
Enthralled by the magic that written stories contain, Jesse Nolan Bailey has always wanted to be an author. With his debut novel, THE JEALOUSY OF JALICE, and his shorter fiction, AMETHYST, released to the masses, he can now claim such title with relief. He lives in Durham, North Carolina, where he has embraced the equally gratifying lifework of hosting a trio of spoiled cats and two mini-aussies.
Nothing better than curling up on All Hallows Eve with a good book. On Book Spotlight Thursday, we are spotlighting a creepy one for you in a brand new horror novel, Come One, Come All by E. Gilliland, as I am hopping on the blog tour hosted by R&R Book Tours.
The Pied Piper Circus lures in the lost, the lonely people who wish to be stronger or faster or prettier…but once you join, you can never leave.
Louisa knows the dangers of the traveling carnival, but she cannot afford to stay away. Not if she wants to get rid of the white owl that’s been haunting her, invading her dreams. Not if she wants to know about the dark, sinister mark in her eyes that convinces people to follow her every whim, no matter how terrible. Not when she fears what she might do with that power.
Ringmaster Amos Cain has the answers Louisa seeks, but like everything else in the Pied Piper Circus, they won’t come without a price. And there’s something hungry living in the heart of the carnival that will never be satiated, no matter how many lost souls She consumes.
Louisa had thought the Pied Piper Carnival looked surreal in the scant photographic evidence she’d managed to piece together in her search, but if anything, it was even more bizarrely gaudy in person, tinged with the smell of desperation. Look at me! The freaks and contortionists all but shouted from their faded, patched tents; and from the pretty girls with their barely there costumes fraying at the seams, Love us!; and underneath it all, a whisper so faint it could barely be noticed under the glitz of the peeling-painted signs and the shriek of the dissonant, jarring music: Come.
And people did. In droves, they answered the call of the traveling show, stumbling up to it as if they scarcely understood why they were there but were drawn all the same. Embarrassed at first but lured in by those too-bright lights.
At least all of her fears about sticking out like a sore thumb had been in vain. No one here seemed inclined to gawp at any of their fellow voyeurs—not even those, like she, with hair shorn so close to the scalp that bits of skin poked through. It had been an impulsive decision made once the adrenaline from nearly jumping off the roof had worn off, and she’d decided, for better or worse, to come on this bizarre journey she could not quite explain, even to herself—that was if there’d been anyone left to explain it to.
The owl made me do it, she thought wryly to herself, running a self-conscious hand over her freshly buzzed hair. The tinsel dress had been replaced with a flannel shirt two sizes too big, jean shorts, and a sensible, sturdy pair of boots so heavy that if the moon drifted off and took all the gravity with it, there she’d be, still rooted to the earth. The only concession to any kind of glamor was the heavily-coaled eyelids that were not so much an invitation as a warning. Come too close, and I’ll bite.
Despite the rather strange figure she cut, people were too caught up in the shoddy showmanship around them to notice or care. Something about the flashing lights and blaring music distracted them from the blatant disrepair: the signs hanging off their hinges, the pockmarks plastered over with pancake makeup. Simple minds and all. Still, scoff all she liked, Louisa had to stop herself more than once from leaning in toward a shiny bauble or taking an outstretched palm.
“Pretty lady looking for a good time with a handsome fellow?” one of the popcorn vendors leered at her as she passed, scratching at the dark tendrils of hair protruding through his unbuttoned shirt.
Louisa knew she shouldn’t, but she couldn’t help herself, truly. “Yeah.” She took in a step closer, all big-eyed innocence. “You know any?”
At once, the grin dissolved into a gleaming snarl. “Think you’re funny, huh? I’d watch my back if I were you.”
But Louisa only smirked to herself as she drifted back into the faceless crowd. Just try it, she dared him silently. We’ll see who walks away from it smiling.
“Happy hunting.”
She swiveled to see a woman sitting in a tassled, red velvet-upholstered booth, the hand-painted sign overhead reading ‘Madame Kassandra, Soothsayer.’ Underneath it sat a woman, so ancient her skin had begun to shrink in on itself. Her eyes were a milky, unblinking white, her hair a platinum bob cut just below her chin. She stared straight ahead, not seeming to see anything, though Louisa could not shake the feeling that the old crone was looking straight through her.
Curiosity finally winning out, Louisa ventured another step closer. “You talking to me?”
Madame Kassandra beckoned her even closer with the crook of a gnarled, veined finger. Once Louisa was directly in front of her, she cupped a hand over her mouth, giving a hot, exaggerated whisper. “I know what you’re looking for.”
Oh, this ought to be good. “Do you, now?”
“Three.”
Despite herself, Louisa felt a chill course down her spine. But that was the way these shoddy carnival tellers worked, wasn’t it? Trail little breadcrumbs of generalities mixed with a healthy helping of bullshit make people believe you could peer into their souls.
“Three what?” she bluffed as if the number meant nothing to her, though she caught herself holding her breath as she waited for the answer.
“One for each of the ones you took.” Madame Kassandra’s small, withered hand was surprisingly strong as it encircled her wrist. “But you should have kept running, Lovely Louie. This place is gonna gobble you up.”
Elizabeth Gilliland mostly believes in ghosts and other supernatural spooks, but she has a standing agreement with them to keep a respectful distance. When she isn’t writing, she is most likely sneaking classic Gothic novels into her class curriculum or arguing why we need to value adaptations as art. She is also the author of the Austen University Mysteries and lives in Alabama with her husband and son.
Freelance Writer Janny(Jan Marie)C 