Tuesday, May 15, 2018

Blog Tour: The Forest Beyond the Earth by Matthew S Cox

Title: The Forest Beyond the Earth
Author: Matthew S Cox
Genre: Young Adult, Post-Apocalyptic
Release Date: February 6, 2018

Summary:
Under the watchful eye of the Mother Shrine, twelve-year-old Wisp ekes out a simple, but challenging life with Dad, foraging for food and losing herself in old books from the world that came before. She loves the Endless Forest ― except when the Tree Walkers come for her.

In ages past, the great rain of fire and ash destroyed the Earth, wiping out the ancients and everything they had made. Nature has reclaimed much since then, spreading out in a vast forest full of wonder and dread. Ever in fear of being taken away, she follows Dad’s rules without question while learning to survive off the land.

No longer a small child, she accompanies Dad on one of his treks, her first time more than a few steps away from the cabin. A day exploring with him is the happiest time of her life, but joy is short-lived.

A monster follows them home.

Safe in her Haven, she hides while Dad goes outside to confront the beast. She wakes alone the next morning, and waits. Alas, her hope of his return fades with the daylight. Desperate, she breaks his strictest rule and goes outside alone. Not far from the cabin, she discovers his rifle abandoned next to the monster’s strange footprints.

Afraid but determined, Wisp sets off on her own into the Endless Forest to find Dad ― before the Tree Walkers catch her.

What is the biggest influence/interest that brought you to this genre?
I’ve had a fondness for the post-apocalyptic genre ever since I was maybe eleven years old and got my hands on a computer game: Wasteland. Obviously, being around 1984, the graphics were quite crude, but the game included a paragraph book that essentially made it a combination of a novella with a game. Something about that setting clicked with me and I’ve been a fan of the post-apoc genre ever since.

When writing a book, what is your favorite part of the creative process(outline, plot, character names, editing, etc)?
Hmm. I’d have to say the editing phase. During the initial draft, I have this annoying drive to finish the book. Like every waking minute simply must go toward finishing that manuscript. During the edit, that pressure is gone and I find going back over already-written stuff to be more fun.

When reading a book, what genre do you find most interesting/intriguing?
I love cyberpunk, science fiction, and post apocalyptic stories the most. I’m not the biggest fan of zombies though. And, any story with child characters being killed is one I avoid.

If you could co-author with any author, past or present, who would you choose?
Either William Gibson, Philip K. Dick, or J.R.R. Tolkien. (Though I have a feeling being a co-author with Tolkien would be a maddening endeavor.)

Have you always wanted to write or did it come to you "later in life"?
The most accurate response to this I think is that I always wanted to write but it took me quite a few years to realize it. An urge to create has always been present, and it took several different outlets on the way until I finally decided to try writing seriously in my late thirties. If I regret anything, it’s not doing this twenty years sooner. (Of course, twenty years ago, it was quite a bit more difficult to get books out there so perhaps things came together as they should have. Who knows?)

Author Bio:
Born in a little town known as South Amboy NJ in 1973, Matthew has been creating science fiction and fantasy worlds for most of his reasoning life. Somewhere between fifteen to eighteen of them spent developing the world in which Division Zero, Virtual Immortality, and The Awakened Series take place. He has several other projects in the works as well as a collaborative science fiction endeavor with author Tony Healey.

Hobbies and Interests:

Matthew is an avid gamer, a recovered WoW addict, Gamemaster for two custom systems (Chronicles of Eldrinaath [Fantasy] and Divergent Fates [Sci Fi], and a fan of anime, British humour (<- deliberate), and intellectual science fiction that questions the nature of reality, life, and what happens after it.

He is also fond of cats.


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Book Blitz: Forged in Ember by Trish McCallan

Title: Forged in Ember
Author: Trish McCallan
Series: Red-Hot SEALs #4
Genre: Adult, Romantic Suspense
Release Date: May 15, 2018
Summary:
In the final novel in the scorching Red-Hot SEALs series, a desperate mother and a Navy SEAL fight fire with fire to protect their love and save the world…

Amy Chastain has made a lot of enemies—none so ruthless as the insanely powerful New Ruling Order (NRO). When they killed her husband, it was hell. Then they targeted her children by injecting them with a dangerous, experimental isotope. Now Amy trusts only one man to help her: the ex-commander of SEAL Team 7.

In the company of Navy SEALs, Jace “Mac” Mackenzie was in his physical element. Now he’s on the run from the same cabal that poisoned Amy’s children. That doesn’t stop him from launching a mission to bring down the NRO—and find an antidote. But the clock is ticking. And as the sparks fly between him and Amy, Mac realizes he has more to lose than ever before.

As Mac closes in on the NRO, he uncovers a plot that threatens more than Amy’s children. Now it’s a race against time to stop a global conspiracy, save the woman he loves, and protect the family that’s starting to feel like his.


Setting her jaw, she picked up her pace and focused on the pair of fluorescent-green shoulders fifteen feet ahead. The knot in her belly loosened. The four men fanned out in front of her were all business. They slipped through the brush and trees with tense muscles and fluid strides. One of the men halted for a moment. His torso twisted as his goggle-shrouded face looked over his shoulder, directly at her.

Mackenzie.

From this distance the four men looked identical. Lean, muscular bodies. Smooth, athletic strides. Helmets, with attached NVDs, shrouded their heads, so their hair was covered. Nothing about the man who’d turned pointed to Mackenzie.

Yet she knew with absolute certainty that he’d been the one to check on her. She knew it was him by the way her muscles loosened and the churning in her belly stilled. By the calmness that fell over her, reining in her heart rate and respiration.

The man had a soothing effect on her. His presence acted as a sedative, easing the sharp edges of memories and fears. He made her feel . . . indestructible. Safe. Capable of handling anything, including the men who’d pinned targets on her children’s backs.

She had no clue why Mackenzie had such a profound effect on her. It made no sense whatsoever. The commander was a foul-mouthed, misogynistic jerk with a short temper and a chip on his shoulder. Qualities she normally loathed in a man.

In a world gone suddenly crazy, her reaction to such an alpha jackass was one of the craziest things of all.

But then the few times he’d tried to pull that alpha jackassery on her, she’d shut him down fast. Oh, he’d been irritable about it, but she’d gotten her way. He might not bury her in compliments or seek out her counsel, but he listened to what she had to say and acted on it more often than not.

For such a suspicious man, he’d made some pretty stunning concessions for her. This was the second mission he’d led that she’d been included in. And she’d been included in everything from planning to insertion. Which meant he trusted her in the field.

Even back in the beginning, in that horrible house when Mac and his team had swept in to rescue them, he’d trusted her enough to pass her a gun . . . twice. He’d relied on her to protect herself and her boys. For a man like Mackenzie, that spoke volumes.



Author Bio:
Trish McCallan was born in Eugene, Oregon, and grew up in Washington State, where she began crafting stories at an early age. Her first books were illustrated in crayon, bound with red yarn, and sold for a nickel at her lemonade stand. Trish grew up to earn a bachelor’s degree in English literature with a concentration in creative writing from Western Washington University, taking jobs as a bookkeeper and human- resource specialist before finally quitting her day job to write full time.

Forged in Fire, the first book in her Red Hot SEALs series, came about after a marathon reading session, and a bottle of Nyquil that sparked a vivid dream. She lives today in eastern Washington. An avid animal lover, she currently shares her home with four golden retrievers, a black lab mix and two cats.


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Forged in Ember #4

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Promo Blitz: Sexuality and its Impact on History

Title: Sexuality and its Impact on History
Authors: Hunter S Jones, Emma Haddon-Wright
Annie WhiteheadJessica Cale, Maryanne Coleman
Judith ArnoppGayle Hulme, Dr. Beth Lynne
Genre: Non-Fiction, History, Women & Gender, Sexuality
Release Date: March 30, 2018
Summary:
Discover the ménage that changed the course of the Anglo-Saxon throne, go undercover to explore Courtly Love, learn about the business of Tudor marriages. Read of a possible dalliance involving Queen Anne Boleyn, and the controversial marriages of Mary, Queen of Scots. Peek into the bedrooms of Victorian prostitutes. Each story provides shocking detail about what was at the heart of romance throughout British history.

Would you swig a magic potion or plot to kill your husband in order to marry your lover? These are just two of the many romantic and sexual customs from British history that you will explore when eight authors take us through the centuries, revealing that truth is stranger than fiction when it comes to love. From bizarre trivia about courtly love, to techniques and prostitution, you’ll encounter memorable nuggets of provocative info that you'll want to share with friends and co-workers.

It's all here: Lady Godiva and Peeping Tom, ménage a trois, chastity belts, Tudor fallacies, royal love and infidelity, marriage contracts (which were more like business arrangements), and brothels, kept women, and whorehouses. Take a peek at what really happened between the sheets. Each story provides you with shocking detail about what was at the heart of romance throughout British history.

The Impact of Sexuality in History: The British Stripped Bare chronicles the pleasures and perils of the flesh, sharing secrets from the days of the Anglo-Saxons, medieval courtly love traditions, diabolical Tudor escapades—including those of Anne Boleyn and Mary Queen of Scots—the Regency, and down to the ‘prudish’ Victorian Era.


Learn more about the scandals and romance that shaped Great Britain and ultimately influenced the United States…Nashville, Tennessee during the Union Army’s Occupation during the Civil War, settlement of the American West, and the development of America’s first art form in the sultry brothels of New Orleans.

This provocative collection of essays depicts the cultural and societal kinks of the British because the truth is stranger than fiction when it comes to love. This scholarly yet accessible all-female project brings to light the myriad varieties of sexual and cultural mores which shaped history and the effect on women and gender roles into the early twentieth century.

What Others Are Saying:
“A fascinating new book” --Mail On Sunday and Daily Mail, U.K.

"A balance of both entertaining and educational reading in equal measure” --Dr. Roxanne O'Neill 

“The work is well written and researched. Each essay could be its own book. Well done, ladies.” --ocmd, Vine Voice Reviewer

Author Bio:
Hunter S, Jones is passionate about the history of romance, science and music, a.k.a. sex, drugs and rock & roll. She has a popular history blog, and is a historian for Past Preservers Casting. When she isn’t writing, talking or tweeting about kings, queens and rock stars, she’s living the dream in Atlanta, Georgia with her Scottish born husband.

Look for her first collection of historical essays, Sexuality and Its Impact on History: The British Stripped Bare, available early 2018 from Pen and Sword Books. She is delighted to work with the talented team of Emma Haddon-Wright, Annie Whitehead, Jessica Cale, Maryanne Coleman, Judith Arnopp, Gayle Hulme, and Dr. Beth Lynne.


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