More Amazing New Reads of all Kinds!

Wow, there are so many great books launching this spring! Here are some I can totally vouch for:

DRAWN by Christopher Ledbetter

YA dark fantasy

Caught between the sweltering fall landscape of Wilmington, NC beaches and southern illusions and expectations, all 16 year-old Cameron Shade thinks about is art. That, and for Farrah to view him as more than just a friend. Cameron hopes he can win her heart through art.  After several warm interactions with Farrah, including painting together at the beach, Cameron discovers just how complex Farrah’s life is.  To impress her, Cameron sketches her portrait into a mysterious notebook. He nearly jumps from his skin when the drawing moves and communicates with him. Farrah's now in grave danger because the sketch he drew of her sucked her real-life’s soul into the sketchbook. Cameron now has 28 days to extract Farrah. To save her, he must draw himself into the book. If he fails… they both die.

                                      Pre-Order DRAWN at Amazon

Once Upon a Nightmare by Cherie Reich

This fantastic collection of dark fantasy includes the novelette Once upon a December Nightmare, the novella Nightmare Ever After, and the short story "Good Nightmare, Scary Monster.

Get the Once Upon a Nightmare ebook at Amazon 

Dragon of the Stars by Alex J. Cavanaugh

Space Opera (novel) 

The future is set for Lt. Commander Aden Pendar, son of a Hyrathian Duke. Poised to secure his own command and marriage to the queen’s daughter, he’ll stop at nothing to achieve his goals. But when the Alliance denies Hyrath’s claim on the planet of Kavil and declares war on their world, Aden finds his plans in disarray. Entrenched in battle and told he won’t make captain, Aden’s world begins to collapse. How will he salvage his career and future during Hyrath’s darkest hour? One chance remains–the Dragon. Lost many years prior, the legendary ship’s unique weapon is Hyrath’s only hope. Can Aden find the Dragon, save his people, and prove he’s capable of commanding his own ship?

Get Dragon of the Stars at Amazon, B&N, Smashie 

Amazed & Elated: Depressed and Deflated by Aron Lee Bowe

a graphic novel about the joys & horrors of growing up

***highly recommended by yours truly*** see my review on Amazon

Aron Lee Bowe’s mother says, “If Aron is such a good artist, why in the hell does she paint the crap that she does?” Not daunted, Bowe turns her wonderfully wretched life into a gut-tickling romp. Bowe won the Charles Schultz award for digital cartoons and the first place Humor prize from the National League of American Pen Women. She is artistically committed to telling stories of great significance through the eyes of a goofball. To goof off too, visit her website.

Get the Amazed & Elated paperback

Rice Cooker Revenge - About a vengeful rice cooker (!) by S.J. Pajonas

speculative fiction, short story

It sits there on the counter, quiet and contemplative. Who knew rice cookers could be so vengeful? Ryu must decide whether to stay or leave The Chef’s kitchen, so he turns to an unlikely ally for help. 

Shhh… Listen To The Gods. 

The Japanese believe the gods live in all things. Trees, appliances, animals, buildings — they all have a spirit living within them. Maybe, if you listen carefully, you can hear them too. 

Get Rice Cooker Revenge at Amazon ebook

To check out all of S.J. Pajonas' books click here.

Full Moon by Kristy Centano 

A Secrets of the Moon book—dark fantasy

Hidden lies…hidden demons…hidden battles…All leading to the ultimate sacrifice… She knows what really brought me here. She knows the motives that lead to our friendship. She doubts what’s in my heart. What she doesn’t know…all I’m willing to sacrifice in order to ensure eternity for her.

Get Full Moon at Amazon ebook, B&N

 See Kristy Centano's novels here.

The Biggun a story by LX Cain
zombie horror, short story

A desperate woman hides in a fortified farmhouse. Outside, her former neighbors and friends prowl the night. Dead. And hungry. Her only ally in the coming battle — Biggun. If there’s blasting to be done, Biggun is ready for it.

Get it at Smashie





What new reads have you discovered this spring? 

Evernight Teen turns two, & there's a huge party & giveaways this week, including an iPad Mini!!!

Happy Birthday 
to EVERNIGHT TEEN!!!

Evernight Teen turns two this month and we’re having a HUGE party to celebrate! It may be Evenight Teen’s birthday, but YOU get the presents. So, grab a piece of cake, hop from blog-to-blog and discover EVERNIGHT TEEN!

Be sure to visit every stop on the hop and answer each question. The more you blogs you hop, the more chances to win the GRAND PRIZE of an iPad Mini sponsored by Evernight Teen (one entry per blog). Plus, hop each blog for a host of other fabulous prizes.

Have your TBR list handy. We have lots of new titles for you to add, including my featured book DORIANNA, which just won 2014 Best Horror Book in the Kindle Hub Awards!

Here are two key songs from the Dorianna playlist to entertain you... or creep you out, followed by a mini-excerpt. Hey, this is dark fantasy, peeps.

Bring Me to Life by Evanescence
Demons by Imagine Dragons  

Evanescence's Bring Me to Life

Imagine Dragon's Demons

Now, a mini-excerpt. This scene comes after Dorianna discovers weird changes on the videos made of her by videographer Wilson:

This isn’t happening. I hunch over and clutch my ribs as I play the thing again. At least the YouTube verbal shit-storm isn’t as bad as the one on my DVD copy, I rationalize. What can I do? Each video is changing in its own way, at its own pace. It’s horrid not being able to control this. It’s as if some insidious spam keeps infiltrating no matter what.

Scrolling down to see the latest YouTube comments, I gasp.
The lady doth protest too much—cackle, cackle, cackle
u might b hella changin but u still shine big
Sungirl’s turning into a sun-witch. Bring it on, evil girl
Hangin’ out at sungirl.com to watch u turn b-b-bad to the bone

There's a huge amount of hits—over five thousand. Where do these flipping trolls come from? I can’t take my evil outburst, even if my viewers can. I make a beeline over to my bookshelf to get my aunt’s money. “I’ll return it,” I pledge, but my hand freezes in mid-stream. Finally, I understand the phrase “frozen in place”—more than I ever wanted to. 

Wilson might’ve lied about not altering the YouTube beach scene, but this DVD copy? He had nothing to do with this. He was right after all. These consequences are unacceptable. I’ll have to work harder to thwart them. That revolting DVD cannot stay on my desk. No one can ever, ever see it. I hide it in my bookshelf, behind a row of novels.

Where does Wilson—the so-called Prince of Darkness—get his powers? How exactly has he transferred them to me? And who’s behind the whole operation? That question is almost the scariest part.

You could win the mug AND ebook!

Enter for a chance to win EVERNIGHT TEEN’s GRAND PRIZE of an iPad Mini and my blog prize of a Dorianna coffee mug with an ebook of Dorianna by answering this question (be sure to include your email address to be eligible to win):
What book scared the bloody effing bejezus out of you, and WHY? (If you absolutely cannot think of a book you can say a film, but props go first to peeps who think of books).

The ET birthday blog hop continues here: