When an old friend disappears, Martin learns nothing is what it seems…

Martin Russell can barely face the future. With dismal life prospects and an estranged family, he is at the end of his rope. When an old friend, Hannah, elbows her way back into his life, Martin’s luck begins to turn around.

Hidden within the shadows of evil, there must be some good…

Ex-policeman Bobby Tanner lost everything one rage-filled night. Now he runs a reading group for alcoholics where he meets a young drug dealer, Zack, who disturbs him in a way that’s hard to define. Bobby soon discovers the teenager is in over his head and has been dealing with a despicable individual known as The Chemist.

The roots of evil run deeper than we imagine…

Martin’s lucky streak begins to unravel when Hannah suddenly goes missing, and he turns to a friend of a friend, Bobby, for help. Thrust into an underworld empire of corruption and half-truths, he learns his friend may not be who he thought she was.

In a shadowed world of deception, stalkers, and despicable drug dealers, Bobby and Martin must uncover the truth, and fast…

Several lives depend on it.

A large part of The Chemist’s wealth came from something that started out as a petty sideline but now provided an ever increasing income—money lending, loan sharking, pawn broking. It served a double purpose. Obviously it created wealth, but it also increased the footfall of deprived humanity passing through the front door of Shortcross Drive. This meant that when the police did a stop-and-search on visitors leaving The Chemist’s house, all they found were small amounts of cash in new white envelopes. Positive feedback within the local police force went up the line, and it was duly noted that local drug related problems were on the decline. Statistics made fine reading at County Hall and everyone was happy. No matter how much Mario increased the interest rates to his borrowers, people paid their debts. It was an undisputed fact. No matter how much financial difficulty The Chemist’s borrowers were in, they always found a way to pay up. If anybody at County Hall had bothered to correlate the figures, they could surely not have missed the numbers showing that criminal break-ins and burglaries within a twenty mile radius had increased even more markedly.
 
The largest amount Mario had ever lent to one person was £1,000. It went to a young local tearaway who was quite happy to agree to repay Mario the sum of £1,200 within three days. The young thug duly turned up on the Friday with the cash and a nice bottle of champagne to go with it. Next day, while Mario was sitting down with his copy of The Sun, he read that there had been a robbery at a Post Office in the Peak District, and that the Post Mistress was in a coma after being attacked with a sledge hammer. The paper stated that the thieves got away with over £6,000. Mario felt something akin to parental pride. Mario carried on lending monkeys and tons to his regulars until he received a phone call that came out of the blue. The request came as something of a shock, even to Mario’s fireproof ears.
 
“Hello, my name’s Jeremy. I’d rather not go into any more detail over the phone, but I was given your name by Eddie Parsons.”
 
Eddy Parsons, The Peak District thief.
 
The rather snooty voice continued, “I want to borrow ten-thousand pounds for ten days. I can pay you back the second of next month. Guaranteed.”



It was a strange and twisting road that led to the publication of my first novel. From my humble beginnings, as an office clerk, to ownership of a multi-million dollar business I always maintained my love for literature.
 
Born and raised in Bristol, England. I spent most of my life in business, my companies turning over in the region of $500 million. The majority of that time marketing cars, eventually owning the largest Saab specialist in the world, before a bitter divorce forced me rethink my priorities. Particularly between 2003 and 2005 when I had to accept that I was no longer a millionaire but literally penniless. I avoided bankruptcy by the skin of my teeth and slowly rebuilt my life.
 
This led me to the life changing decision to leave the bustling city and move to live halfway up a mountain in the Welsh valleys. At the same time I started a part time six year English Literature course at Bristol University, and attended creative writing classes at Cardiff University. I left school at sixteen and this was my first taste of further education and an immense challenge.
 
I eventually adjusted my thinking to the academic life, and on 30 June 2015 had confirmation of my 2.1(Hons) degree from Bristol University. At the same time I also won the prestigious Hopkins Prize for my essay on Virginia Woolf and the unsaid within her text. Now the university courses are finished it will, with any luck, gives me plenty of extra time that I can devote to my fiction writing.
 
Thanks to the university experiences, my interest in English literature has flourished over recent years. Hopefully I have evolved as a writer from my earlier work in short stories (over ninety of them.) Although interestingly my first three novels have all been developed from a long forgotten short story.
 
Life is, once again, very good, and I live very happily halfway up a mountain, in the Welsh Valleys, with my wonderful partner Mari, and our rescue dog Wolfie.

When American Indians from the future move their entire island nation to our Earth, Ell Harmon makes the first alien contact. The take-charge Seattle biologist has yearned to find intelligent aliens, and her dream comes true when she meets Prince Tro Eaglesbrood.

Ell and Tro are quarantined together, while the fearful world wonders whether the newcomers are friends or foes, neighbors or conquerors. Ell knows Tro is honorable and Kwadrans are peaceful … but how to convince the world?

They broadcast a show, which she flippantly titles Alien Contact for Idiots. Every day, Ell interviews Tro and tries to humanize Kwadrans. The show is wildly popular, and the romance developing on-screen between Ell and Tro reassures the world. If a smart woman like her can fall for a Kwadran, they must not be monsters, right?

But Tro’s duty lies with his people, and soon that duty threatens not only the show but Ell’s heart -- as well as the peace and survival of our world.

When Ell turned to leave, Tro placed his hand on the wall between her and the door. "What are you doing?" she asked in a small voice.
 
She was small and fragile. Her gentle fragrance enveloped Tro in a cloud of swarming, buzzing sensations. He touched her cheek, smooth and warm. Many women's cheeks felt smooth and warm—but this was different. Ell's skin transmitted something unknown and unexpected, something from a long-forgotten dream of youth and innocence. Maybe it was that she hailed from an alien Earth alien, or the memory of her law-abiding robe. Perhaps it wasn't her at all, but an enchantment stemming from the magical transformation of disaster into the anticipation of a woman's embrace.
 
Whatever it was, he wanted more. He slid his hand to her neck, causing the lapels of her robe to part. A sliver of cleavage escaped from hiding and peeked shyly out at him. That narrow ribbon of flesh, dimly seen in the shadows, inflamed his desire more than full nudity. He cupped her nape, exposing more cleavage. Running his fingers into her hair, he urged her toward him.
 
"Tro," she demanded, her voice louder, "what are you doing?" She knew, surely, yet her stern demeanor commanded a response.
 
Oh, very well, then. "Something really bad," he whispered, "for a really, really good reason."
 
He lowered his mouth toward hers.

What kind of guy writes romance? A guy who married his high school sweetheart a week after graduation and still lives the HEA decades later. A guy who’s a certifiable Harlequin hero—he inspired Vicki Lewis Thompson’s Rita Award finalist Mr. Valentine, which is dedicated to him.

Ed started out writing contemporary romances for Silhouette Books, but these days he concentrates on science fiction romance. He’s been a teacher, principal, technical writer, salesman, janitor, and symphonic oboist. He and wife Judi live in Tucson, Arizona. They have three sons, a daughter, a mutt, and the galaxy’s most adorable grandson. Visit him at http://eahoornaert.com

Ell Harmon is a Seattle biologist who has always wanted to find intelligent life from another planet, but she may have gotten more than she hoped for when she meets Prince Tro Eaglesbrood, an American Indian from the future who must move his entire island nation to earth. 

Ed Hoornaert demonstrates his ability to incorporate humor into his writing in a unique and entertaining way in this sci-fi romance. The scientist and alien are quarantined together while the terrified world waits to see if the aliens are friend or foe, so Ell broadcasts a show which she titles Alien Contact for Idiots.  She interviews Tro and tries to humanize Kwadrans (the alien American Indians). And of course one can't fail to see the twisted humor of calling American Indians from the future aliens on planet earth.

Their budding romance reassures the human populace, but the Prince's loyalty lies with his own people. Nothing ever runs as smoothly as one hopes.

There's a lot going on, so take your time settling in or you may miss some important details in the initial world-building. The characters are worth getting to know.

Book Bling gives this a solid 4 Stars! 

Buy Links:
Alien Contact for Idiots will be $0.99 during the tour.
Amazon.com  http://www.amazon.com/Alien-Contact-Idiots-Edward-Hoornaert-ebook/dp/B00TRRRBY0/
Amazon Canada  http://www.amazon.ca/Alien-Contact-Idiots-Edward-Hoornaert-ebook/dp/B00TRRRBY0/
Amazon UK  http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00TRRRBY0/
Amazon Australia  http://www.amazon.com.au/Alien-Contact-Idiots-Edward-Hoornaert-ebook/dp/B00TRRRBY0/
Smashwords  https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/520283
Barnes and Noble  http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/alien-contact-for-idiots-edward-hoornaert/1122134901?ean=2940151968041
Kobo Books  https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/alien-contact-for-idiots
iBooks https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/alien-contact-for-idiots/id1005743678?mt=11
​

Sabinne ‘Saber’ Darrieux’s father, the billionaire CEO of Frontenac Global Security has been kidnapped. His ransom is not cash in a numbered offshore account, or a briefcase of Bearer Bonds but something utterly unique, incredibly valuable, and until recently, hidden away from the world. 

The kidnapper seems to know Saber very well, and knows that the next day, through her work as an elite translator she will be in the same location as the Object. She must steal the Object and deliver it to the kidnapper to ransom her father. 

Adrian Steele, a British Intelligence agent has just come off of two harrowing missions. Upon returning to London for a well-earned rest, he learns that his friend and fellow agent, has been murdered in Moscow, but not before he made use of a unique Object as a mobile ‘drop site’ for the valuable intelligence he was carrying. 

The drop site is traveling from Moscow to England. Steele insists on completing the mission to honor the death of his friend, Gerry Cornell. 

At an ultra-chic quasi-diplomatic gathering in a mansion in Windsor, England, Saber and Steele meet and find themselves faced with a powerful, undeniable attraction. But at the moment, this compelling attraction is very inconvenient. 

In reality they are at the mansion to check out the security arrangements — for their own reasons — to steal the Object, a Fabergé egg worth thirty million dollars. But who will get to the egg first? 

Fabergé eggs are very famous for their unique surprises. Saber and Steele are about to be very surprised, indeed. 

And when Saber clashes with Steele; more than sparks will explode! ​

He was more striking close up. The wire-framed glasses that had given him that bookish look were gone. As a matter of fact, at that precise moment there was nothing about him that was the least bit bookish. Now he looked more like a feral choirboy.
           
Saber lowered her eyes taken in by the seductive curve of his jaw, and his lips parted in an expression of amazement that drew her closer, hypnotically, begging to be covered with her own. She pulled herself back, reminding herself why she was there, what she must do. Leaving him to be found by the Sheikh's security men would be a pity, but she had a job to finish.             
           
She knew her job, too, she was slick, professional. Her contribution to the family business was to test the security systems that were installed by Frontenac et Cie. She was always on-call to the "Uncles" between her translation assignments to do this testing. And she was very good at it. When caught in a tight spot, she was focused on the job at hand, holding back emotion, the fear of "capture" pushed away. Her focus was laser-like in intensity. She infiltrated the secured areas of high-security targets, grabbed the "package" then ex-filtrated as invisibly as a wisp of smoke. Reflection and reactions came after, as she wrote up her reports and advised the designers on flaws and vulnerabilities in their systems.
           
But all this slipped away as she felt the light touch of his hands, feeling their heat through thin black leather gloves. They slid very slowly up her thighs, coming to rest lightly and seductively around her waist. She stifled a gasp as she felt his hot fingers press into her, very much a lover's caress. 
           
In scant seconds Saber's focus for the job at hand, the reason that she was there to begin with, melted away as she felt his hands tighten around her waist. Her grip on the gun weakened as a wave of heat suffused through her.
           
With a swiftness that took her breath away he closed the narrow gap between them. A hot flash of desire surged through her as his lips took possession of hers. Taking advantage of her surprise, he dashed the gun from her hand, sending it spinning away out of her reach. He flipped her over so she was now under him. Saber stared up at him wide-eyed, his lean, hard body on hers evoking a reaction from deep within her that was as intense as it was unexpected. Shocked, confused, she twisted her head away from his, but her eyes still kept a sidewise watch on him.
           
He bent in closer. Dark eyes flashed dangerously through the long shag of hair that fell over his face. Then, very, very slowly as though savoring every moment, he slid his gloved hand along her arm, around her shoulder, then up her pale exposed throat.  
           
Steele's hand paused, feeling her pulse flutter wildly under his fingertips, before moving up to thread through her silky raven hair. His grip tightened and he turned her head to face him.
           
"Mmmm... I can do it, too," he breathed softly into her ear.

This story is best marketed as a romantic suspense, because the plot revolves around the conflict between Saber and Steele, who both need to acquire a Faberge' egg, but for different reasons.  Saber needs it to ransom her missing father. Steele must find it to bring justice and honor to his murdered friend.

These two lives become entangled around a beautiful egg that holds an important secret and a 30 million dollar value.  Their quest take them from London to New York and Las Vegas. Eventually they are led to a rich psychopath's mountain stronghold.

The twists and turns keep coming in this fast-paced spy fest. Romance fans who demand an intricate plot and more to their characters than live libidos will love this suspense thriller.

Book Bling gives this 4 1/2 stars. 

Amazon:   http://bitly.com/1DfbHEv
 Nook:   http://bitly.com/1fLUVYJ
 Smashwords:   http://bitly.com/1O8zwU3
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 Website:   www.tymslyder.com
 Twitter:   @tymslyder
  
BIOGRAPHIES
​
 LESLEY MERYN
 Enjoyed an exotic, adventure-filled childhood, following her anthropologist father and travel writer mother to the farthest corners of the world. She later took inspiration from her Aunt Sophia Francesca and became the author of romantic adventure novels. She alternates her time between Los Angeles, and a family property located in Yorkshire England.
 
ELLE BROOKES
 She is the author of the first two books of the Time Frame Series. Loves travel, discovering new foods to try, reading and writing. She currently lives in the central highlands of Costa Rica with her dog Pixie and her hedgehog Quiller.