Urban Fantasy Author
Book Bling Blog
When friends fail and cities fall, when enemies grow strong taking every thing you treasure, what can you do? Strike back. Sebastian and Melanie crusade against the cyborg enemy risking everything against betrayal’s cruel bite. The steam academy is rebuilt, but the city is not the same. The fortress of science, the last sanctuary from the marauding cyborg army sweeping the land, is being twisted by refugees as they flood to the city for protection. The world changes, power corrupts and the enemy becomes harder to identify. Dark deeds are afoot, and friends are not who they appear to be as Sebastian and Melanie embark on an adventure leading them into the very heart of the enemy’s territory where they must face their darkest fears and lose everything important. Decay is a dark and moody Steampunk. The tone is well set and the characters well developed. To make sure the cause of hopelessness and despair don't lack purpose, there is an endless supply of cyborgs for the humans to defeat when they aren't struggling against food shortages and each other. In outback Australia, the humans have built a walled city. Sebastian and Melanie, are young residents who attend the Steam Academy there, or they would if they weren't involved in a dangerous adventure that makes them doubt their very belief system and suspect even their most trusted allies of duplicity. The fortress of science is no longer the refuge it was before it was overrun with refuges. Unemployment, limited resources and malcontent fuel desperation and the search for scapegoats. It soon becomes evident that there is a traitor. Someone is feeding information to Cyborgs and helping them sneak into the city itself. Sebastian and his cohorts risk everything to sneak into enemy territory and end the war. This Young Adult Steampunk is bound to be a success. Book Bling gives this novel FIVE STARS! Mark was first published at the ripe old age of eight, when a local newspaper published his review of Disney on Ice. The next time his name was in print was a life time later at the age of fifteen, when a national magazine ran his review of the Commodore 64. It was downhill from there, picking up a weekly column in the Sunday Times which funded a rather noncommittal path through university, studying a wide range of topics from Robotics, Anthropology, Philosophy, Computer Science, and Psychology. In fact so many subjects were studied he was eligible for graduation at the end of his second year, based purely on attendance. He finally left and joined the corporate world before realizing work isn't that much fun, and going back to study. Further writing followed with regular columns for various technology magazines and newspapers around the country. Then as the reality of permanent food and shelter began to bare its teeth, another attempt at the corporate world beckoned as a technical writer, which turned out okay. Shifting from technology companies to resource companies provided the opportunity to travel and live in some desolate and exotic locations where the locals don't like you much.
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Reese Tarrant is an L.A. cop pursuing a serial killer. His chase ends with a dead murderer, his own retirement, and a bunch of loose ends pointing toward Cirrus Industries, the world’s largest supplier of medical blood products, owned by the mysterious Ajax Rasmussen. On the other side of the world, archaeologist Rusty Webber, hired by Ajax Rasmussen to look for the resting place of Vlad Tepes, descends into a tomb in Transylvania, unaware that her project is about to come under attack. In the wake of the chaos, both Reese and Rusty find themselves drawn back to Santa Marina, where the reclusive billionaire’s fortress home overlooks the seaside town, and where old corpses and new disappearances are piling up and beginning to draw attention. Their investigations focus on the original Spanish mission that the town grew around, which Rasmussen seems to have an old connection to. The ex-cop and the archaeologist are determined to uncover the truth… and the mounting evidence suggests that Rasmussen may be a vampire. A police procedural that segues into a vampire horror novel? Yes. Strangely, it works. Most of the time. Trolson's novel may defy genre classification (a marketing nightmare), but his writing style and storytelling talent save the day for his readers. Main protagonist, Reese Tarrant, an LA cop without enough legal "evidence" to get a serial killer convicted goes rogue retiree. Enter a series of gory crime scenes dripping with evidence he no longer wants to bag and tag. He does, however, want to follow the clues to a serial killer, and they continue to point to Cirrus Industries, the world’s largest supplier of medical blood products, owned by the mysterious Ajax Rasmussen. Billionaire Ajax Rasmussen likes to sink his teeth into more than corporate blood products. He hires archaeologist, Rusty Webber, to find the tomb of Vlad Tepes. Through a string of converging events, both Reese Tarrant and Rusty Webber end up in the small town of Santa Marina, where Rasmussen has a fortress home that overlooks the seaside town. They are drawn to the ancient Spanish mission and the clues that suggest Rasmussen may have a connection to the religious icon the town grew up around. Against all logic, but in the face of irrefutable evidence, they have little choice but to admit that Rasmussen must be a vampire. Were I to shelves this novel, I would have to place it in the thriller/horror category. Though a thread of suspense and investigation runs though the central theme, the delightfully complex plot and subplots scream explicit paranormal gore at its finest. Book Bling gives this novel 4 stars. C.R. Trolson lives in Northern California with his wife and a Norwegian Elkhound named Bird. The dog, given her genetic propensity for the darker themes of Ibsen and Hamsun, enjoys listening to the author's work and often howls with delight at the prose, especially after eating a page or two. Winner of the Sunday Times' Best Crime novel of the year, Desmond Cory returns with a near-perfect mystery novel , written with intelligence and laced with wit. For John Dobie, absent-minded maths professor, the death of a student provokes bewilderment, but little else. Who was Sammy Cantwell, after all? But being drugged, tied up and made witness to another murder forces his usually dormant curiosity, especially when the murdered woman turns out to be his errant wife. With the discovery of a second murdered woman in his bed in the space of a few hours, it is obvious he needs help. The police? No, help from someone with sense. Who better than the ex-student's agreeable landlady, pathologist Kate Coyle, to mould him, albeit unwillingly, into amateur sleuth? "Rich in wonders of computers and intangibles. Wry, scatty with a decisive byte" SUNDAY TIMES "A gas - even for high-tech dunces" THE GUARDIAN "Cory goes in for complex plots, but the joy of the book lies in the wit of its writing" TABLET The main character of this story reminded me of the Tell-Tale Heart narrator. Not that math prof John Dobie is crazy (or the killer), but Shaun McCarthy (aka Desmond Cory) gets the reader so solidly into his head they can actually experience the intellectual genius personality of a man who is so engrossed in his mathematical world-view he is out of step with the rest of the world, or the norms by which others perceive and react. It makes him the perfect logic-only amateur sleuth, and his no-clue bumbling and odd social quirkiness.
When one of his students commits suicide, he can't even recall the student, but finds it interesting that there seems to be no logical reason for the act. The total irony of how and why he is motivated reflects nerd to today's audience. Though this book was published in 1991, readers can still relate to the mystery and plot. Some characterizations may seem a bit outdated, but when one recalls Cory wrote during the reign of the 007 series, it makes sense. Cory did, in fact, help spawn the "Spy Novel" genre, with his Johnny Fedora novels - spy thrillers set in the world of the secret agent. His Lindy Grey novels - detective puzzlers featuring a charismatic protagonist were preceded by his Mr. Pilgrim novels - which introduced Cory’s readers to life behind the Iron Curtain during the Cold War. Then there were some of my favorites, his Psychological thrillers – which achieved great success, some being made into TV series and movies by 20th Century Fox (featuring international celebrities such as Michael Caine in "Deadfall"). Which brings us to his Prof. John Dobie series- a Mathematics professor embroiled in many ingenious (and humorous) mystery murders. Cory wrote over 45 thriller/detective novels published in over 10 languages (winning accolades such as the Sunday Times' Best Crime novel of the year, and Crime Critic’s choice of the year). The Strange Attractor is the first in Cory's 3 book Prof. John Dobie mystery series. It's witty dialogue, and entertaining nerd sleuth have me eager to read the next two. Book Bling gives this FIVE STARS! Meet Rolland Wright - a seventeen year old orphan living out of his car in rural Woodland Hills, California. Aside from grappling with the fact of being abandoned by his drunken father two years previous, following his mother's mysterious murder, his life mostly revolves around finding a warm place to sleep at night. When one day he is attacked by men claiming to have killed his father, Rolland discovers a strange ability to slow the flow of time around him, beginning a journey that takes him to places outside of time, space, and eventually to the early 19th century to fight the sinister General Andrew Jackson. With the help of a rag-tag group of historical and mythical figures with various supernatural abilities of their own (Joan of Arc, Jesse James, etc) known as the Knights of Time, Rolland solves the mystery behind his mother's murder, falls in love, battles the evil Edward Vilthe - reaper of souls, and finds a home of his own in the paradise known as Eden. A novel Kirkus Review calls a 'blend of X-Men and Doctor Who with a side of historic fact' Time is Relative for a Knight of Time is fantasy fiction at its finest. The Time is Relative series chronicles the origin story of the mythical figure Father Time, beginning with the award winning first novel, Time is Relative for a Knight of Time. All dates and events are historically accurate. The participants... maybe not. TIME IS RELATIVE FOR A KNIGHT OF TIME (a mouthful of a title that might have been Time Knight) is about a boy who, like the novel's legendary "father time" is a keeper of time. His present, the past, there are no limitations for where, when, or with whom he will show up. With his sometimes motley, but always funtastic crew of fellow time travelers, Rolland Wright takes coming of age to a whole new dimension. Literally. Abandoned by his father after his mother is murdered, the young Rolland tries to survive on his own, living in a car, struggling to hang onto the everyday remnants of his former life. It did not kill him, but when his father's murderers seek him out to do the same to him, he is strong enough for the test. He discovers in a moment of desperation, of instinctive survival, that he can bend time, slow it down or speed it up at will. When Rolland discovers that he can indeed travel through time, he joins such heroic and unlikely fellow knights as Joan-of-Arc and Jesse James, to battle "bad guys" such as Andrew Jackson. Add to this action a horrific villain, with the fittingly dastardly name of the Reaper of Souls, and it sometimes seems all must be lost despite Rolland's ability to bend time as though it were indeed made up of wrinkles. Though it starts off a bit slow, it does indeed build up speed to become a full-fledged, action packed, fantasy tale filled with adventures and love and good triumphing over evil. It begs for a sequel. Book Bling gives this 4 Stars! Brett Matthew grew up with a passion for both film and history. He began his career fresh out of high school as a Production Assistant & football player on NBC Universal's television series Friday Night Lights (of which he can be seen in the first two seasons as a member of the championship team - Go Panthers!). He quickly moved on to serve as an Original Series intern with the USA Network in Studio City, California. Following work on shows like Monk, Psych, and Burn Notice, Brett returned home to Texas to continue his education, graduating with his degree in History from Texas State University. A proud Master Freemason, Brett thoroughly enjoys fantasy fiction, watching Netflix, running, baseball, Shakespeare, and spending time with critters.
Title: Come and Get Your Love
Author: Tina Donahue
Hosted by: Beautiful Promotions
Their desire wasn’t supposed to be real… With millions willed to her in an incentive trust, Lissa can get the dough to start her own country music label when she meets one of the no-contest clauses. Namely, reach middle age in twenty years, work in the hated family business for a decade, or marry someone not in the music biz. Marriage it is, at least for a year to satisfy her greedy brother who wants the inheritance. Enter Cass, a hot Texas rancher who dampens Lissa’s panties. With a pile of medical bills from his brother’s accident, Cass agrees to wed Lissa. She’s sweet to look at, surprisingly pleasant for an Atlanta debutante, and makes his jeans feel tight as hell despite their no-sex contract. Uh-huh. The devil’s in the details. Longing gazes turn to tender intimacy and wild nights with pretend feeling all too real. Damn shame it may be too late with her brother gunning for them both. About The Author:Tina Donahue is an award-winning, bestselling novelist in erotic romance, and an admitted chocoholic known to down semi-sweet candy bars in grocery checkout lines. She lives with her family in Palm Springs, California, where tires melt in the 120-degree summer heat and an occasional earthquake puts everyone on notice to bolt things down. When she’s not writing her steamy stories, trying to stay cool, or crawling beneath her desk during a trembler, she loves shopping, eating at her favorite Mexican restaurant and meeting other authors. Before she wrote romance, Tina was the editor of an award-winning Midwestern newspaper and worked in Story Direction for a Hollywood production company.
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To be honest, I spend so much time reading other people's manuscripts I have joined another blog hop group that requires weekly posts from your WIP to force myself to WRITE!
Why? Because I was using that as an excuse to avoid taking a long, hard look at my own manuscript. Frankly, it has more wrong than right. I won't be throwing it all away, but I will be using a hacksaw rather than a red pen. It hurts to face this truth, but I finally did. I am shocked at how liberated I feel. Now if I can just get past my other fear...what if I just don't have what it takes any more? Eeeeeeck! Posting: The first Wednesday of every month is officially Insecure Writer’s Support Group day. Post your thoughts on your own blog. Talk about your doubts and the fears you have conquered. Discuss your struggles and triumphs. Offer a word of encouragement for others who are struggling. Visit others in the group and connect with your fellow writer - aim for a dozen new people each time. Let’s rock the neurotic writing world! Twitter hashtag is #IWSG IWSG awesome co-hosts for the August 5th posting will be Nancy Gideon, Bob R Milne, Doreen McGettigan, Chrys Fey, Bish Denham, and Pat Garcia! Weekend Writing Warriors is a weekly hop for everyone who loves to write! Share an 8 to 10 sentence snippet of your writing on Sunday. Visit other participants on the list and read, critique, and comment on their #8sunday posts. Spread the word, share the love, warriors - Hashtag #8sunday. He said. She said. Dialogue. Often tough, but one of the most useful tools for building tension or inferring personality and budding relationship. Give and take between the sexes is especially necessary in the romance genre. Here's the first conversation between my h/h in this YA Urban Fantasy/Romance. #8Sunday From: Daughter of Ancients “I’m Hunter Nye,” whispered a deep voice in my ear.
I went perfectly still instead of jumping, even though he startled me. “Nice to meet you, Ms. Smithers. Do you have a first name?” Mr. Wow was granted a brief, frosty smile. His face rested on his fist, an effective mask for tempting lips that barely moved upward and still teased a dimple from his only visible cheek. Glancing at Mr. Wiltin whose attention I had captured enough for one day, I decided to use caution as well. “ Stefanie,” I said softly. Easy and Refreshing Drink for those Dog Days of Summer!
Not a fan of "watered down" icy drinks? Try this drink from "Delish," made with FROZEN chunks of WATERMELON! Delish indeed! Thanks guys!
It’s time for Weekend Writing Warriors! Every Sunday, a bunch of writers post 8-10-sentence snippets from their WIPs on their blogs. There’s a lot of reading, commenting and great writing. Click on the link below to see the full list. Sometimes I have to write a scene that takes me back decades, and I have to remember how it felt to be a young adult, how much I cared, however foolishly, about peer pressure. As if that weren't difficult enough, I have to make sure today's young adult readers can relate to the scene too. Here's a scene that I came up with while attempting to do just that:
From My WIP, DAUGHTER OF ANCIENTS I tried to ignore the mass intake of breath behind me. Focus. The class held their collective breath. Focus. They waited for Mr. Wither’s response. As did I. I had to focus. Middle-aged and arrogant, the man’s stern gaze wavered. I saw the second he realized that he was about to lose the upper hand. Ha! The worst possible fear for a control freak like Wiltin. His eyes widened in alarm. He panicked. My sense of injustice and indignation helped me bore deeper into his brain. Mentally I pushed one final time. Lately I had little problem using whatever this mind control power was. The apology sputtered between his reluctant lips. In truth the nasty bastard should be apologizing to the entire class for his vile tirades and abuse of power. For now an apology for embarrassing my shy friend, Abasi, would do. It’s time for Weekend Writing Warriors! Every Sunday, a bunch of writers post 8-10-sentence snippets from their WIPs on their blogs. There’s a lot of reading, commenting and great writing. Click on the link below to see the full list. I like to kickstart any new writing piece with a brief scene that contains the major whatifs, whys and whosits that the novel presents, explores and answers. Some people call this the plot in a nutshell. Here's my latest... From my WIP, Daughter of Ancients (A New Adult spinoff from my adult series, Illuminati)The sacred mark the high priest applied gleamed of purest gold no ink master could conjure. A royal symbol, it sealed the child's destiny as well as her identity. The queen swaddled the babe, then snuggled her close. Secret words were murmured into the child’s ear, words that would someday save her life. Then, tearfully, the regal mother handed her daughter to the woman who had vowed to keep her hidden, and safe.
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The Keeper's Secret: Tell-Tale Publishing's Annual Horror Anthology
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