Finding a new home has never been so dangerous. Andromeda has spent all seventeen years of her life aboard a deep space transport vessel destined for a paradise planet. Her safe cocoon is about to break open as Paradise 21 looms only one month away, and she must take the aptitude tests to determine her role on the new world and her computer assigned lifemate. As a great-granddaughter of the Commander of the ship, she wants to live up to her family name. But, her forbidden love for her childhood friend, Sirius, distracts her and she fails the tests. The results place her in a menial role in the new colony and pair her with Corvus, “the oaf”. But when Andromeda steps foot on Paradise 21, her predestined future is the least of her worries. Alien ghosts from a failed colonization warn her of a deadly threat to her colony. And when Sirius's ship crashes on the far ridge in an attempt to investigate, she journeys to rescue him with Corvus. Andromeda now must convince the authorities of the imminent danger to protect her new home. What she didn't expect was a battle of her own feelings for Sirius and Corvus. Can she save the colony and discover her true love? Author Bio: Aubrie Dionne writes science fiction fantasy with romantic elements. Her writings have appeared in Mindflights, Niteblade, Silver Blade, Emerald Tales, Hazard Cat, Moon Drenched Fables, A Fly in Amber, and Aurora Wolf. Her books are published by Inkspell Publishing, Entangled Publishing, Lyrical Press, and Gypsy Shadow Publishing. She’s also a professional flutist in New England. Please visit her website: www.authoraubrie.com Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2964057.Aubrie_Dionne Twitter: @authoraubrie Blog: http://authoraubrie.blogspot.com Giveaway!– Open for US and UK only.
Because it takes a lot of work to make Mondays fun, we at Inkspell decided to start a new blog feature we like to call Eyecandy Monday. Each Monday we will feature the characters from one Inkspell novel and share with you all the fine details and tasty tidbits we can dig up about these interesting and well written main characters. Stepahie Lawton's book, Want, has captured the hearts of many readers. They love the spunky heroine and her passion for music. A few weeks ago we took at look at the two men, Dave and Isaac, who loved Juli. Do you have a favorite? I won't tell you mine! But this week, we are going to take a gander at the young woman who has both of them head over heels! Character Name: Julianne (Juli) Casquette Age: 17 Hair: red Eyes: blue Height: 5' 8" Distinguishing features: Flaming red hair, tall athletic build; a bit of a walking contradiction Most resembles: Model Ebba Zingmark (I think she may actually be the girl on the cover) Teaser: Juli's a tough nut to crack--she's both strong and frail, bold and shy, determined to get what she wants, yet gives up too easily. It takes a special guy to handle her and earning her trust isn't easy, but once she lets you in, she's loyal to a fault. Her stellar musical talent makes people respect her, but they're a little afraid to get too close. She loves her brother, dirty jokes and Rachmaninoff. She's drawn to people who challenge her and force her to reach higher, do better, dig deeper... just don't push her too far or you could do permanent damage. And if you missed our Eyecandy Monday blog post where we took a deeper look at Dave and Isaac, you can find it HERE. Brooke Moss is an award winning author of books that touch the heart of the reader. The Carny is a story that shows that love is possible even against great odds. Today she's dropped by to share her thoughts on her writing, her life and her books. Welcome Brooke! When did you first start writing? What made you want to be a writer? I knew that I wanted to be a writer when I was a little kid. Probably 6-7 years old. I used to cut pictures of people out of my mother’s Sears and JCPenny’s catologues, and then line them up on paper. I would create a bio for each person in the “family” (fave color, age, interests, etc.), then make up stories about the family. This was the beginning of what would turn into an obsession with making up stories about people… What inspired you to write The Carny? I had a dream about a handsome Carny, which—in and of itself—is a contradiction. Carny’s are usually creepers. But then once I started writing the story, the characters begged to be an interracial couple, and for me to tackle the subject of interracial love in small town America. I love following my character’s whims! Are you a pantser or a plotter? I am a LOOSE plotter. I start the story, then go back and plot out the remaining chapters once I am about halfway through. I only do it so that I won’t wind up with a 200K word saga. :) Do you have any writing rituals or special processes you complete before sitting down to write? I need music, hot cocoa to sip on (or diet wild cherry pepsi), and I have to turn my Internet off. If it’s not off…I’ll be distracted. I’m like an animal that way. Distracted by the shiny Internet. What authors inspire you? I am always inspired by Kristan Higgins, Jane Porter, and Liza Palmer. But most recently, I’ve been amazed by the work of Scott Westerfield and Lauren Oliver. Freaking brilliant! If you could only write in one genre for the rest of your career, what genre would you choose? Why? I could never choose. Never ever. Though I do have to say that my comfort zone (meaning the genre where writing comes the most easily) is in the contemporary romance genre. Which of the characters in your current release is your favorite? Why? I love Vincent. He is so charming and amazingly patient. But under the surface, he has a lot of pain, and angst. I liked bringing his not-so-lovely qualities to the surface, and breaking through his“happy-candy-shell”. Are any of your characters modeled after real people? If so, which ones? The character of Charlotte was absolutely modeled after actress Ginnifer Goodwin. She has played a multitude of characters who really needed more confidence and were desperate for an ego boost. Which, is basically Charlotte in a nutshell! What music was on your playlist while writing your novel? Want to know the weirdest thing ever?? I was obsessed with Cher music while I was writing The Carny. I have no idea why…I just was. I even included her in my acknowledgments. It was the darndest thing… Morning person or grumpy bear? Grumpy bear. My nickname growing up was actually “Bear”, and that is exactly why. Because I was grumpy as a bear. Tell us one thing it would surprise us to know about you? I was once asked to be a guest on the Maury Povitch show. I didn’t do it. I was afraid I’d never be able to face my friends and family again. What is next for you? I have a romantic women’s fiction coming out in August, entitled Keeping Secrets in Seattle. It is best described as “Bridget Jone’s Diary”meets “My Best Friend’s Wedding”…with a dark twist. Do you have any unique skills or talents? If so, what? I was a florist for a number of years before pursuing writing. I specialized in wedding work. :) If I were to look in your closet right now, would I find frills and lace or demin and tees? None of the above. I have a lot of what many consider to be an author’s uniform. Pajama pants and sweatshirts. My poor husband…it’s good he loves me despite my fashion sense. Thank you Brooke for stopping by and sharing with us! If you haven't bought or read The Carny yet, you can buy it today at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, as well as the Inskpell Store! Don't forget to get the companion short story "Charlotte's Wedding" which shares with you some sizzling action in Charlotte's life before she found Vin again! At a town fair on the coast of Oregon, handsome Native American carny, Vincent Youngblood, bestows an unforgettable kiss on shy, awkward teenager, Charlotte Davenport. Then disappears without another word, leaving her baffled and enamored. Ten years later, Charlotte is still living in the small fishing town of Astoria, while being trained to--reluctantly--take over for her philandering hotelier father when he retires. After all, who else will do it? Her two perfect sisters are busy being married to their flawless husbands and having cookie cutter children, while Charlotte remains single, childless, and every bit as mousy as she was a decade ago. As Charlotte struggles to climb out from underneath her judgmental parents thumb, the carnival rolls back into town, and Charlotte finds herself face to face with Vin again. He's back to run his father's carnival, walking away from a promising career in medicine he started in Chicago. Will her biased and judgmental family accept her relationship with a man who is not only a Native American, but works as a carny for a living? And what unsavory secrets bind the well-educated and seemingly superlative Vin to that ramshackle carnival? After all, you can’t judge a carny by its cover. Because it takes a lot of work to make Mondays fun, we at Inkspell decided to start a new blog feature we like to call Eyecandy Monday. Each Monday we will feature the characters from one Inkspell novel and share with you all the fine details and tasty tidbits we can dig up about these interesting and well written main characters. Every girl dreams of a famous person falling for her, but for Claire, her dream becomes a reality. In Hollywood Ever After, Josh Wiley is a hot Hollywood heartthrob who falls for Claire. Their story is one created among the stars. Happy Monday! Or, here’s hoping my eye candy will help it become a happy Monday. :) I honestly love my hero for Hollywood Ever After. What’s not to love? Josh is this mix of sincere, funny, sexy, and direct guy who goes after what he wants –no holds barred.
The heroine for Hollywood Ever After is a very relatable woman. She’s celebrating her 35th birthday on a trip – the first she’s taken on her own since her messy divorce. But she’s looking forward to a low key break, with lots of rest and relaxation. Name: Claire Collins Age: 35 Height: 5’6 Eyes: Blue Teaser: Claire’s vacation is full of surprises. Meeting Josh changes everything. Yes, she’s still a single mom to two great kids. But he makes her feel like a woman – one who might be worthy of love. Thanks for letting my share my inspiration for Josh and Claire. I love their story and hope you will too! This Wednesday for our Writer's Spotlight we are fortunate to have a guest post by amazing author, Shirley Kennedy. Her books are wildly read and highly recommended. Shirley is writing today about the importance of research and getting it right. If you want to see more about Shirley Kennedy, check out her website at: www.shirleykennedy.com. A Writer’s Adventures in Researchland, The Good, the Bad, and the Very Annoying by Shirley Kennedy I once knew a writer named Glenn who didn’t believe in research. He was writing a fabulous men’s adventure novel which, style-wise, rivaled Clive Cussler, Tom Clancy, and throw in a little Mickey Spillane. Just one little thing: Glen’s hero landed at generic airports throughout the world, stayed at generic hotels, dined on generic food at generic restaurants. No detailed descriptions, ever. Surprise, surprise. Glenn never got published. Of course, a good writer must do research. But how much is too much? Authors must tread a fine line between nothing at all to long, boring paragraphs of description which scream “Skip me!” Equally annoying are authors who did the research and feel they must cram every factoid they discovered into the story. “Without warning, Snerdly pulled his Ruger SR9c compact pistol from his pocket—a menacing weapon weighing 23.40 ounces, overall length of 6.88 inches, with a standard magazine that could hold ten rounds…” E’nuff said. Get it right or else! My earlier books were all Regency romances, a genre wherein the author enters the treacherous world of Regency England at her peril. Get every detail correct or a legion of dedicated fans will let you know YOU MADE A MISTAKE. To this day, my one-and-only horrendous slipup is on display for the world to see. See Three Wishes for Miss Winthrop on Amazon. Among the reviews are two entitled, “A Great Story, slight Marred by Error,” and (yikes!) “A hole you could drive a truck through.” These sharp-eyed reviewers were, much to my dismay, correct. My hero, John Weston, Lord Granville, would not have remained a member of the House of Commons after his father died. Instead, he would have then belonged to The House of Lords. After all my in-depth research, how could I have made such a blunder? How could my editor have let it slip by? (Palm slapped to forehead here.) At least I was able to correct my error in the e-book edition. If you look in the “Comments”section under the reviews you will see my very humble apology and assurances such an atrocity will never happen again. Back in the day, a diligent writer spent hours in the local library pouring over rows of card catalogs. Usually made of sturdy oak, these catalogs consisted of long, narrow drawers filled with a separate card for every book in the library. We hauled these heavy drawers to a table, thumbed through hundreds—thousands! of cards, copied down long, intricate numbers from the Dewey Decimal System, spent more hours combing the stacks for the actual books. Now computers save us countless hours of work. Not all answers can be found in a book. That’s why I love the Internet and enjoy using it. In one of my Regency romances, my heroine was an avid bird watcher. (Off topic note: Don’t laugh. All heroines should have some kind of special interest—not easy back when women didn’t do much except marry and have children.) What kind of bird would my heroine see in the woods outside of York, England in 1815? I went on-line and found The York Ornithological Club. Its president, a friendly professor, went out of his way to describe birds that lived in the York area during Regency times. I ended up using a Yellowbird—easy to describe because that nice man even sent me a picture. A lovely experience. Sometimes both books and the Internet are not enough. For my paranormal romance, Deadly Gamble, I had to conduct in-person interviews with casino employees in order to know what really goes on behind the scenes. Since my story goes back in time, via the Internet I discovered the Old Spanish Trail cut right through Las Vegas before it was even a town. Back then, it was all of three springs called ‘The Meadows’, or in Spanish, ‘Las Vegas.’ You could not drown in these springs! Even if you wanted to! Bubbling cauldrons at the bottom would keep you afloat—and yes, I could not resist such a fascinating factoid. It’s in the book. Somewhere there must be a graveyard for old card catalogs, typewriters, carbon paper, and ink erasers. Some things never change, though. One way or another, authors must still do their research, or perish career-wise, like poor old Glenn. Dating is hard enough these days without finding out that the girl of your dreams believes you must save the world. For Kellen St. James, the girl of his dreams comes with family issues and a prophecy. We know that you are going to enjoy this action packed story filled with mythical creatures and magical powers. Just read for yourself! The world is about to be cloaked in darkness. Only one can stop the night. Kellen St. James has spent his entire life being overlooked as an unwanted, ordinary, slightly geeky kid. That is until a beautiful girl, one who has haunted his dreams for the past eleven years of his life, shows up spinning tales of a prophecy. Not just any old prophecy either, but one in which Kellen plays a key role. Suddenly, Kellen finds himself on the run through a Celtic underworld of faeries and demons, angels and gods, not to mention a really ticked off pack of hellhounds, all in order to save the world from darkness. But will they make it in time? You can pre-order it here and read it first!! Giveaway Details(Open for USA and UK) Celtic knot designed antiqued bookmark – Will go very good with this book! :) Enter the giveaway below! Our Cover Reveal Hosts!
Inkspell Ambassadors! http://www.alwaysyaatheart.blogspot.com/ http://memybooksandi.wordpress.com/ http://www.sherylbrowne.com/ http://www.janicehortonwriter.blogspot.com/ http://www.melanierobertson-king.com/ http://richardfholmes.org/author/richardfholmes/ http://www.carolewyer.co.uk/ http://nickywellsklippert.wordpress.com/ www.BonnieTrachtenberg.com/Bonnies-blog http://www.leisurereads.com/ http://havebookwillread.com loveahappyending.com Living Fictitiously http://www.booksandbeyond.net/ http://lisavoisin.wordpress.com/ Because it takes a lot of work to make Mondays fun, we at Inkspell decided to start a new blog feature we like to call Eyecandy Monday. Each Monday we will feature the characters from one Inkspell novel and share with you all the fine details and tasty tidbits we can dig up about these interesting and well written main characters. Max and Amy started out as friends in Familiar Ties. They leaned on each other while raising their daughters but the spark of passion ignited and they became more than friends. Can you see how easy that would be with these two good looking people? Wouldn't you risk your friendship for love? Name: Max Nathanial West Age: 27 Hair: Blonde Eyes: Blue Distinguishing Features: Cheeky Grin Famous Person they resemble: Chase Crawford /Kellan Lutz Character Teaser: A single father who looks after his 4 year old girl while chasing his dream of becoming a writer as well as going after the girl he really loves. Although a dedicated father Max is torn between doing what he thinks is right for his daughter and what is really right for her. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Name: Amy Sue-Ann Riley Age: 26 Hair: Brunette Eyes: Grey Distinguishing Features: Always wears a silver necklace Famous Person they resemble: Sophia Bush Character Teaser: Amy, a fashion designer who has achieved her dream of becoming a mother as well, is always looking for love. Thinking she found it in her boyfriend Jack, she was faced with disappointment when he left her and their daughter for his directing job on the other side of the world. A girl can dream about a life with her favorite Hollywood hunk but few people get a chance to have that dream come true! However, Claire gets her chance at a happily ever after with the man of her dreams, if they can get through the tabloids and paparizzi! Now the book that has charmed the reviewers is finally available to purchase. And now you get to enjoy your own Hollywood Ever After! When we asked Sasha about her book, she said, "Hollywood Ever After is all about believing and trusting in yourself. I hope readers enjoy Claire and Josh’s journey and, for a little while, enjoy the ride towards happily ever after." And guess what, we have an Hollywood offer too! Enjoy 30% off till 28th July, only at our store! Genre: Contemporary Romance Format: eBook and Paperback Length: Super Novel eBook: 978-0-9851483-4-8 Paperback: 978-0-9851483-3-1 Price: $10.50 (Paperback) (only till 28th July!) $3.50 (eBook) (only till 28th July!) She wasn’t meant for movie stars, Hollywood, or happy endings. And then she met him. Happy Endings are for fairy tales. Or the movies. Not for real life. At least, not in Claire’s life. Even though she’s starting over, she knows better than to want too much this time. But when she falls, literally, into the strong arms of Hollywood’s ‘it’ boy Josh Wiley, Claire’s in for some surprises. Her plans for rest and relaxation are forgotten as one incredible night with Josh becomes two… And her heart begins to want him as much as her body. Will two kids, one bastard ex-husband, and Josh’s juggernaut career mean the end of their affair? Or can Claire find her happy ending after all? A girl can dream...in fact we often do. As we watch the heroes on the movie screen, we wish we could be the girl in their arms or we wish to take that sexy man home with us. In honor of Sasha Summer's upcoming release- Hollywood Ever After, we asked Inkspell authors about which Hollywood heartthrob they would love to marry and why. See if you agree with them! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ T. Michelle Nelson: Considering I’m already married, “the hubs” probably wouldn’t like me mulling over this question too much, however, for the sake of the blog, and all… Although Hollywood has some fine new arm candy out there these days, ahem Channing Tatum and Jason Momoa, I’m going to have to go old school on this one. Let’s flashback to the early 90’s. In “Last of the Mohicans” I became enamored, but it was “Age of Innocence” that sold me on Daniel-Day Lewis. Edith Wharton is my all-time favorite author, so I might be a bit biased, but Daniel Day-Lewis did such a fabulous job of playing Newland Archer (and he looked good while doing so). In 2002, he solidified his position at the top of my hottie list when he played Bill “The Butcher” Cutting in “Gangs of New York.” I do like the bad boys, and he can pull that off as well. But THE biggest reason I like Daniel-Day Lewis so well… his uncanny resemblance to the aforementioned “hubs.” Hubby is on the left, Daniel-Day Lewis on the right. Not bad, eh? Sasha Summers: I have a massive (I mean MASSIVE) celebrity crush on Chris Hemsworth. I’m sure the roles he plays is part of it – the whole, stop at nothing to help/protect his woman… Which makes him an ideal husband, right? In his interviews he comes across as a normal, funny guy that happens to be amazingly gorgeous. So, yea, I’m all about Mr. Hemsworth! :) Here are 2 pictures – I just can’t choose :) One is him looking yummy. The other looking oh-so-perfect with his baby girl. Annabelle Blume: Johnny Depp. No question about it. I find his artistic idiosyncrasies endearing and he's ridiculously gorgeous. He's pretty enough to convince people he's a good guy but got enough ink to make you suspect he is anything but. Plus, I have a sneaking suspicion he has sold his soul to the Devil as he never seems to age. He's like a modern day Dorian Gray. Lisa Voisin: Who in Hollywood, indeed! There are so many to choose from, but if I had to pick only one, I'd have to say Hugh Jackman. He's been a favorite of mine for years. He's certainly gorgeous, but his charm is what wins me over. I have friends who worked with him here in Vancouver when he was filming the X-Men series, and they tell me he was one of the nicest guys they ever met. I love how dedicated he is to his family, his sense of humor, the fact he can sing, dance, and act. Most of all, I love that he's spiritual. He meditates every day, which, to me, is a sign of a man who knows who he really is. It's hard to disagree with these choices, but what do you think? Who would you marry if you could marry a Hollywood Hottie? Don't forget to read about one woman's story of a Hollywood Ever After when it releases in a few days.
Because it takes a lot of work to make Mondays fun, we at Inkspell decided to start a new blog feature we like to call Eyecandy Monday. Each Monday we will feature the characters from one Inkspell novel and share with you all the fine details and tasty tidbits we can dig up about these interesting and well written main characters. The characters of the Shadow of the Witte Wieven are a little different than your average romance heroes and heroines. Wolf crossed over into a different dimension when he was serving as a captain of a Dutch shipping company and Aliyanna is a kick-butt DEA agent who is always willing to risk her life to capture the bad guys. With two strong characters, you'd expect some ecceptional eye candy and we won't disappoint. Name: Aliyana Rosa Montijo Age: 28 Hair: Black Eyes: Green Height: 5’ 5” Distinguishing features: Aliyana has the coloring of her Hispanic bloodlines, but she also has these gorgeous green eyes that she inherited from her Swedish mother. Famous person she most resembles: Genesis Rodriguez (but with green eyes) Character Teaser: Aliyana works undercover for the DEA. She knows firsthand, the inner workings of a Colombian drug cartel because she has infiltrated it. And now the drug lord wants her dead. Name: Wolfaert Dircksen Van Ness Age: 30 (at the time of he crossed into a different parallel dimension). Hair: Brown Eyes: Blue Height: 6’ 4” Distinguishing features: Very muscular build, beard, and mustache. Famous person he most resembles: Chris Hemsworth Character Teaser: Wolf was born in the Netherlands in the year 1601 and left it, in a manner of speaking, in the year 1632. He knows what happens when you go through a storm in the Bermuda Triangle. If these two hotties aren't enough for you to be excited about Shadow of the Witte Wieven, the story has ghosts, gun fights, and tropical locales. Pick it up today!
|