Viviana MacKade's Fall Book Fair Hop, Sept 3-7

Viv's Fall Book Fair Hop starts September with a bang!

This amazing Fall Book Fair hop brings me back to my own blog, after a long hiatus to write (I finished two novels and a novella - phew!) and to raise and train my beagle pup to the one-year mark, where he is  more mature and independent. Say hi, Benny.

I hope you enjoy this hop, as it has a genre for just about everyone - contemporary, suspense, historical, paranormal fantasy, young adult and new adult. The link to the entire listing is here, at Viviana MacKade's blog.

Friday is YA and NA day. Heart in a Box, my YA is on Friday's list, Below is the full Friday lineup of great reads!

Victoria Adams

Contemporary romance. First book in Circles Trilogy

Amazon

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Barb Caffrey

Allen and Elaine are graduate students in Nebraska, and love each other very much. Their life should be idyllic, but Elaine's past includes rape, neglect, and abuse from those who should've loved her—but didn't, because from childhood, Elaine identified as transgender.

When Elaine tells Allen right before Christmas, he doesn't know what to do. He loves Elaine, loves her soul, has heard about transgender people before, but didn't think Elaine was one of them—she looks and acts like anyone else. Now, she wants to become a man and is going to leave.

He prays for divine intervention, and says he'll do anything, just please don't separate him from Elaine...and gets it. Now, he's in Elaine's body. And she's in his. They'll get a second chance at love.


Why? Because once you find your soulmate, the universe will do almost anything to keep you together—even change your faces.
Amazon
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Mara Gan

Duty and prophecy get in the way of everything.

All I ever wanted to do was read my books, play my sports, and help people. Life and prophecy had other things in mind. Helping people is what I do; as an empath and semi-frequent telepath, I can easily sense and understand people's needs and emotions. Sometimes even before they do. Being able to read everyone’s thoughts and feelings all the time can drive me crazy with anxiety, but that moment when I can finally make someone’s life better makes everything worth it.

Unfortunately, I’m also the next in line to rule the galaxy, I’m the only diplomat most planets will listen to, assassins try to kill me on an annoyingly regular basis, and a much-vaunted Prophecy has decreed that I’m going to die. Oh, and someone blew up my home planet. Kind of a lot to deal with, right?

Too bad I just got another problem: a big, irritating, overbearing bodyguard with serious anger management issues. And I think I’m falling for him.

Amazon

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Julie Gardner

17-year-old Lily Anderson is ready to wrap herself in a big red bow and give Zach Hewitt the greatest gift in the history of Christmas: Her. But when she pulls a pair of booties from her stocking and learns her forty-year-old mother is pregnant, Lily finds herself adrift, unsure of Zach’s commitment.

Lily hopes Zach will anchor her with promises of love. Unfortunately, his chaotic home-life makes him afraid of those three little words; and Maddie Franklin-in her Amazing Technicolor Dream Thong–makes sure Zach can have her whenever he wants. With the help of her best friend Sarah, Lily plots to secure her place in Zach’s heart. But after a series of awkward rejections, Lily loses faith in her dream boyfriend, in herself, even in Sarah.

That’s when Lily turns to Adam Connolly, a transfer student whose lash-y eyes and comfortable silences make her question who it is she wants and what she needs. But Adam’s support can’t help her the day Lily discovers her parents’ game-changing secret. Faced with the truth, Lily must decide how to deal with her family’s past, take hold of her own future, and accept that there are many names for love. Don’t bother making wishes; what you get is more than enough. 

Amazon

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Scarlett Kol

A girl looking for a way out.

Being the daughter of New America’s leader, Mercury Masters has everything a girl could want. A glamorous life full of beautiful people, and the power to have anything she wants, except for one thing—to escape. Because Mercury’s perfect life comes with secrets to keep. Dangerous secrets that if made public would destroy her, her family, and her father’s reign. Then she meets Hawk. A boy looking to be a hero.

Hawk, a handsome prep school dropout turned vigilante, has his own family secrets. Deadly secrets that have haunted him since he was fifteen. But instead of fighting the ghosts of his past, Hawk has assembled a group of misfit hackers and thieves to save the future from the corrupt government of New America and the mysterious virus that is killing off its citizens. But trying to do the right thing is tough when the person you really want to save is your enemy’s daughter.

A love that could kill them both. 

Powerful forces keep them apart, but coming together could be the key to saving New America from destruction—even though it may cost both their lives.

Amazon

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Adam Mann

Two very short stories about a boy meeting a girl, or girls.

The first is at college, where it is not the number of girls but one very special girl who is as inexperienced as the boy. Hopefully she will take the lessons she has learned into her married life.

The second is a young man meeting a series of young ladies, but not always at work, although sometimes work related.

Amazon

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Brooke Moss

Posey Briggs has a chip on her shoulder the size of Whidbey, the island off of the Washington Coast where she’s stuck with her annoying foster family, and their band of mismatched, screw up kids. The last thing she needs while she rides out these last few months until she’s eighteen and finally free from the system, is to be saddled with some bogus tutoring assignment given by an English teacher with a God complex.

Drew Baxter has the world in the palm of his hands. Best athlete in school, coolest guy on campus, nailing the hottest girl in school whenever he wants. What more could he ask for? Except for his dad to stop making his life a terrorizing game of whose face will get pounded tonight? He’d rather do just about anything other than sitting around listening to the school loser lecture him about Shakespeare every day.

Sometimes the universe has a way of thrusting two people together, even though they’d rather drink poison than sit across a library table from one another. And in this case, the universe knew something Drew and Posey never saw coming: they would become the single most important person in each other’s lives, and save each other from completely unraveling.

Will the explosion, save them or destroy them?

Amazon

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Connie Smith

Lila and Austin have known each other since she befriended his younger brother when she was a toddler. In fact, since her parents moved from her hometown, Lila's lived with Austin's family. The two are friends, though more of the teasing, taunting breed than the BFF variety.

But all it takes is one moment for everything to change...
For Austin, that moment comes when Lila performs a rumba in the school's auditorium to qualify for the state dance competition, the young woman on stage so far-removed from the little girl in his memories.
For Lila, the moment is a reflected image of Austin preparing for prom, the guy standing in front of his mirror hardly resembling the child that spent so much of his youth pestering her.
Will they find a way to admit to themselves and their families that their feelings are deeper than friendship? And can Lila focus on this building relationship – and deal with her unstable ex – and still win the dance contest?

Amazon

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Catherine Stine

Each heartbeat leads Joss closer to a shocking truth that will change everything.

Joss Olstad wins the fight to switch from her private school to a public high to “find her pieces” she lost when the artist father she never knew died. There, Joss struggles with a slutty friend, who flirts with her new love, Will; girls who press her on her embarrassing past, as well as her stoner mother’s lies back at home. Armed only with her handmade heart boxes that hold private messages, Joss’s search for identity leads her to a scary industrial section of Queens, and a shocking family secret that changes everything. This novel has been on Amazon’s top 100 in Teen and Alternative Family for over two years.

Amazon, Kobo, Apple, Nook

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Lisa Voisin

A fallen angel seeking redemption. A demon seeking revenge. The teenage girl caught between them.

Mia Crawford is being hunted. When a horrible creature appears out of thin air and attacks her, she knows Michael Fontaine is involved, though he claims to know nothing about it. Secretive and aloof, Michael evokes feelings in Mia that she doesn't understand. Images of another time and place haunt her. She recognizes them--but not from this lifetime.

In search of the truth, Mia discovers a past life of forbidden love, jealousy and revenge that tore an angel from Heaven and sent her to an early grave. Now that her soul has returned, does she have a chance at loving that angel again? Or will an age-old nemesis destroy them both? Ancient history is only the beginning.

Winner of the Chanticleer Grand Prize for supernatural fiction, The Watcher is the fast-paced, achingly romantic start to The Watcher Saga, a Young Adult urban fantasy series.

Amazon

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Lee Ann Ward

No nightmares about my dad’s car crashing or my sister’s tiny face vanishing in a window of red. No, not anymore. Now when I sleep I fall into an expanse of frozen wilderness, the other life I’ve lived…

The one I’ve lived with him.

Anna experiences vivid dreams from a past-life she lived in the 1800s with her husband Robert and their children in the wilderness of the Michigan Territory. Much like her own mother grieving the man and child she lost, Anna can’t simply let go of the memories that haunt her.

But when she runs into Robert in this lifetime, a whirlwind of their past lives—and deaths—rocks her modern world to the core. What will she be willing to risk to spend every lifetime with Robert? 

In the twists and turns of “repeating” their lives over and over through time, Anna must sacrifice everything for a glimpse of immortal love.

Amazon

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Spirits in the Water, Elements anthology #4 is OUT! Plus Elements book #1 goes FREE.

Spirits in the Water is a new anthology of eleven magical tales by Untethered Realms, masters of fantasy & sci-fi. Take a haunted journey on a riverboat, meet water sprites borne of pennies, preternatural creatures, ancient serpents, and the Lady of the Lake who lurks in dark waters. Experience raging storms and magical rainbow fountains. Water is beautiful but treacherous. To celebrate the launch, Spirits in the Water is only 99 cents & book 1, Twisted Earths goes FREE!

Get Spirits in the Water (bk. 4): Amazon, UK, AU, CA, Apple, Kobo, B&N, Google Play, Smashwords

Get Twisted Earths (bk. 1) : Amazon, UK, CA, AU, Apple, Kobo, B&N, Google Play, Smashwords

Gwen Gardner gives us Shake, Rattle and Row. Harlow Grayson has the chance to rid herself of a pesky ghost but she must first brave a haunted riverboat and recover a family heirloom. What she finds might be more than she can handle.

Jeff Chapman offers The Water Wight. When a drowned girl changes her mind about suicide, Merliss and associates face a fearsome, preternatural creature.

M. Pax presents The Wallows. Evernee Weems wants to escape this world in the worst way. Her daughter needs everything, the rent is being raised, Evernee’s job barely pays minimum wage, and she has little hope for better. Inside a puddle is a different reality. She jumps in, happy to trade her problems for a life in which worries don’t exist. Or do they?

Angela Brown gives us Extraordinary. Puberty hits Angelique like a gut punch and brings about a change, forcing an unexpected revelation about her past. All seems well until a vicious storm tears through her Texas community, and Angelique learns there are worse things than a little change.

River Fairchild presents You Can’t Go Home Again. A young woman, filled with regret about the past, goes on a journey and discovers more than she bargained for.

Simon Kewin offers The Waters, Dividing the Land. Hyrn the horned god of the woodlands is learning the meaning of fear. Death magic blights the land, threatening everyone and everything. To save what he can from spreading corruption, he turns to the ancient river serpents, but they’ve grown old and distant and may not hear his call.

Christine Rains gives us Frozen. A necromancer is on the frozen moon of Saturn where the dead do scream.

Meradeth Houston presents The Flood. Sometimes a flooded kitchen isn’t the unluckiest thing to happen to you.

Catherine Stine offers Maizy of Bellagio. April still searches for her mother who vanished nineteen years ago from the fountain at Hotel Bellagio in Vegas. Can Maizy, a water sprite who works the fountain’s pink colors, help the three generations of eccentric women tortured by this tragedy?

M. Gerrick gives us The One Who Would Wield the Sword. Nikka is supposed to be dragon bait so a real dragon hunter can do his job, but the Lady in the Lake has other plans for her.

Cherie Reich presents The Folding Point. Aimee’s fight against those who banned paper magics has begun.

The Spirits in the Water tour with Silver Dagger Tours has started! Check the stops here. Enter the Rafflecopter with amazing prizes below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Two great book events and WIN FREE TICKETS!

Hi dear readers, bloggers and authors! Geez, it's been a while since I've posted. But the awesome bookish community is never far from my mind. Life just had me spinning in its tornado-like grip. Even so, I am cooking up new stories - another witch book, this one set in Philadelphia in 1854, and a romantic suspense set in contemporary LA. I am also participating in some really fun literary events that I want to invite you all to. Anyone live near or in NYC? How about the UK?

WINE & SIGN, NYC, SEPT 9, 3 to 5 pm
Wine & Sign on the rooftop lounge of the Delancey Hotel is part happy hour, part meet-n-greet & part book signing. Come party with me and some very intriguing, bestselling novelists like Skye Warren, Shannon Mayer, Denise Grover Swank, Katie M John and more.
Better yet, you could win a FREE ticket (or two)!!! 
Tickets are $15 but I have FOUR FREE tickets to hand out! To win one or more, just preorder one of my books and fill out this form to let me know which one you ordered. Easy Peasy, right? Winners will be notified by email, and their names will be added to the special guest list.
For author bios and event details click here.

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CHAPTER CON, AUG 25 & 26, UK
This conference is only 20 minutes on train or bus west of London in Twickenham, set in a university that looks like a castle! Join us in the beautiful surroundings of St. Mary’s University and Strawberry Hill house for an intimate two-day reader, author and blogger conference, including a public Saturday signing event.

Whether you are a best-selling established author, an aspiring author, a blogger, a reader, a publisher or a book seller, we would like to invite you to ChapterCon, one of the U.K’s very first conventions of its kind designed to connect, educate and inspire. Book fair tickets are only 5 British pounds. Check out all event options here. Overall conference deets here.
To reserve one of my signed books preorder here.

I’m on a panel on Friday, Aug 25 and I have a book table on Saturday, Aug 26. My panel:

HOW TO KEEP THOSE STORIES FLOWING Friday, Aug 25, 11:15 – 12 noon

Patti Larsen. Catherine Stine. Carrie Elks. Justine Winter. Mia Hodell. 

Dealing with writers block. 

Tools to help you structure stories 

Finding inspiration. 

Workspaces. 

Feeding your readership. 

Happy August! It would be wonderful to see you at one of these amazing events.
Catherine

Witchy Storybundle limited time Deal plus RT Booklovers convention deets

Do you like witchy paranormal tales? You're in luck! This witchy storybundle features lots of spooky great novels. Plus part of every sale goes to cool writerly causes like Girls Write Now and Mighty Writers, which help aspiring authors to reach their dreams. Here are the books, including my Witch of the Cards. Below I'll tell you how to order and start reading!

All About The WITCHY BUNDLE

Spring has always been a time for witches, magic and the influence of the Other World in pagan folklore. The Celtic festival of Beltane is traditionally observed on May 1st, and April 30th is also known as Walpurgis Night – or in Germanic folklore Hexennacht, literally "Witches' Night." What better time, then, to partake in the Witchy Bundle, your chance to grab a collection of ten truly magical books that involve witches of one sort or another.

This collection takes us across our own world and into others. There are American witches and witches battling the Nazis in war-torn Europe. There are dark twists on fairy tales and witches in the wild west. There are witches who don't know they have the power or the sight until dire need comes upon them. Thrillers, fantasy, romance, horror, mystery –These ten books feature bestselling authors as well as rising stars. The list includes Simon Kewin's urban fantasy Hedge Witch, first in the Cloven Land Trilogy. We also have my Witch of the Cards, David Neth's The Full Moon, the first in his Under the Moon series. Christine Pope gives us Darknight, a Witches of Cleopatra Hill tale, and Alesha Escobar has her thrilling Gray Tower trilogy. Matthew S. Cox contributes his Nine Candles of Deepest Black and Sara O. Thompson her Muddy Waters, the first in the Otherwhere series. Milo James Fowler's Coyote Cal omnibus takes us to the gunslinging weird west and Steve Vernon gives us his spine-chilling Tatterdemon omnibus. NY Times bestselling author K. N. Lee's book in the bundle is Academia of the Beast, a dark retelling of Beauty and the Beast.

At StoryBundle name your price — whatever you feel the books are worth — and a portion of the proceeds goes to Mighty Writers and Girls Write Now. For $5, get the basic bundle of five books in any ebook format—WORLDWIDE. If you pay $15 (or more, if you feel generous), you'll get the five bonus books as well. The Witchy Bundle runs for three weeks only.
The five initial titles in the Witchy Bundle (minimum $5 to purchase) are: The Tatterdemon Omnibus by Steve Vernon •    Hedge Witch by Simon Kewin •    Coyote Cal by Milo James Fowler •    Academia of the Beast by K.N. Lee •    Muddy Waters by Sara O. Thompson
If you pay more than the bonus price of just $15, you get the regular titles, plus these five more:   The Full Moon by David Neth •    Nine Candles of Deepest Black by Matthew S. Cox •    Darkknight - The Witches of Cleopatra Hill Book 2 by Christine Pope •    Witch of the Cards by Catherine Stine •    The Gray Tower Trilogy by Alesha Escobar.

This bundle is ONLY available until May 18 via this link. So if it sounds good nab it before the time flies away.

Storybundle allows easy reading on computers, smartphones, and tablets as well as other ereaders via file transfer, email, and more. Also, give the gift of reading with StoryBundle, thanks to gift cards – which allow you to send someone a code to redeem any future StoryBundle bundle – and timed delivery. Get quality indie reads for only about 67 pennies per book while you donate to great writing programs! What a cool source of curated quality titles for thirsty readers.

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On another note...

I am an attending author May 3 to 7 at RT Booklovers Convention in Atlanta, Georgia! Come visit my Catherine Stine/Kitsy Clare booth at the RT Roundup on Sunday, May 7 from 10 am to 1 pm! Reader Roundup tickets here.  To see all of the attending authors click here. Or head over to my events page for details. I will also participate in the Teen Day Match Game on Saturday, May 6, which you can read about there too. So, if you're in or near Atlanta, stop on by! Want to reserve copies of my signed books? Click here.

NYC Teen Author Fest kicks off March 18-26 & info on my panel for March 24

 The NYC Teen Author Fest kicks off this week. All events are free, and there's a stellar lineup of signings, forums and themed symposiums with everyone from debut authors to veterans like Laurie Halse Anderson.
I will be on a panel on Friday, March 24th at 3:55 pm at the New York Public Library, at 42nd Street (and corner of Fifth Ave), South Court Auditorium. So, if you are in or near the city I would love to see you! Here are details of my panel:

3:55-4:40:  Difficult Characters
moderated by Melissa Walker

Explanation: Many of the best YA characters take readers outside their comfort zones – they may not be instantly likable or understandable, but over the course of a novel, they come to have an effect by coming to life (in all its messiness) on the page.  This is a conversation about writing “difficult characters” – where they come from, what they’re like to deal with as an author, and what response do they get from readers (and does that response matter?).

Panel authors:
Kayla Cagan, Lisa Selin Davis, Pete Hoffmeister, AR Kahler
Amanda Panitch, Alyssa Sheinmel, Catherine Stine

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To see the full March 24 NYPL free Symposium lineup click here. 
To see the entire Teen Author Fest event lineup click here

Soon, on Idea City will be sneak peeks of the forthcoming Spirits in the Water anthology (Elements #4), out this fall with Untethered Realms, including an excerpt of my story. In the meantime, I leave you with all the pretty Element covers. Start reading them now. 

Cheers, Catherine

Happy Holidays and Best for the New Year!

I'm wishing everyone a fun holiday season and inspiration for 2017!
via GIPHY

Back from a Hiatus! The Lowdown & Plans

Hi dear blogging, reading, author community!

I've missed you all. I kind of fell off the face of the earth toward the end of June. Well, maybe a bit before that. The highs and lows:
A high * I got super-busy trying to get ready for a bunch of amazing book conventions.
A high * I splurged for my first professional author photo (this one).
A low * I got bedbugs at one of the conventions!!! So did the unlucky photographer. Luckily, my exterminator had me well trained and I took care of business the second I hit home. NO bugs survived my war to the death. But my bites and resulting scars lingered for months. Yuck!
A high * I hit the USA Today bestseller list with a boxed set I'm in!!!
A high * I went to a writing retreat in Cape Cod and wrote every day, all day. Except for our sailboat ride and long dinners. Oh, and watching the Olympic Women's Volleyball teams kick some serious you-know-what!
A high * Attended a different book con in Saint Louis, sold lots, made new friends and had a blast! Penned Con to be exact, which gives all of their profits to Action for Autism. Mad respect to founders, Amy and Rick Miles.

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I've had a long time to think about the blog. About how often I want to post, and more importantly, WHAT I want to post. I will post a bit less, but I will post. And yes, I will post about amazing books, and my own books... because I do love books and I do write. Just not 24/7.

The new Fireseed series covers

Ghosts of Fire anthology,
Untethered Realms Elements book 3

Shades of Prey, book 2

 So, happy fall, and wow, the Halloween season! And, I do have book stuff. A re-release with new covers and sales/freebies for my future shocker Fireseed series, including a new sequel novella called Blue House Magic. Untethered Realms has new story anthology out, Ghosts of Fire, book 3 of the Elements series. My story in this is Rollerskate Boys. Put the anthology on your Goodreads TBR list if you like. And I'll be doing a bunch of Facebook parties like Haunted Halloween Spooktacular on OCT 20 from 4 to 5 (EST) and A Magickal Samhain on Sunday, OCT 30 from 12 to 1:30 pm (EST) - all to help spread word of Ghosts of Fire and other spooktastic boxed sets I'm in, like Shades of Prey, Mystical Magic. Join the parties to chat with lots of authors and play games for giveaways if you like!!!

I'm happy to be back, and blogging. I will be checking into my fave old blogging haunts, and new ones, too.   xo Catherine

Nicky Peacock interview plus a fun cover reveal from C Lee McKenzie

Today Idea City has an interview with UK fantasy author Nicky Peacock. We also have a fun cover reveal for C. Lee's forthcoming middle grade novel so make sure to scroll through the whole post!

Hi, Nicky, what are some of your newest books?

Bad Timing is the second in the Battle of the Undead series and hot on its heels was the free read prequel, Traitors' Gate, which takes the reader back to where it all began. This spring saw the release of my new series with Evernight Teen, The Twisted and the Brave. The first book, Lost in Wonderland is a dark, supernatural thriller. 

Tell us about your main characters

Britannia is the heroine in the Battle of the Undead series, she's an old vampire with a dry sense of humor and the kind of violent tendencies that makes her the perfect weapon against a zombie apocalypse. She has an unspoken obsession with perfection, especially when it comes to how she looks and she's spent too much time on her own and needs to learn to rely on others. 

Tell us about a main theme. What fired you up to write on this theme?

The main theme is co-operation throughout the books. That only by working with others can you get through impending disaster. I've always believed this in life. I also though it fit really well with vampires as a species. Zombies naturally run in groups, but vampires can be quite solitary in nature. So pitting them against one another with these very different social habits makes for an interesting fight. 

Give us your favorite line from your protagonist: 

Britannia: "He gave me a sly smile, as if he was trying to get away with something. Like he’d farted and was waiting for me to smell it."

From an antagonist: 

Nicholas: "Britannia. I am acutely aware that you hate me. I am equally aware that our survival”—he motioned around us—“is dependent on you not being such a bitch.”

An emblematic, teaser paragraph from Bad Blood:

  Nicholas looked thoughtful then nodded. He, of course didn’t want to actually say aloud that I’d had a good idea. “So, how do we get past them?”

  I assumed it was a rhetorical question, so I started down to the car park entrance, where most of the zombies were mobbing. I opened the outer door as quietly as possible.

  “Ladies first,” Nicholas whispered in my ear.

  “I thought we’d agreed I wasn’t a lady.” With that, I shoved him as hard as I could into the throbbing throng of zombies.

What keeps you going when inspiration flags?

Inspiration is my one thing that never flags. I have far too many ideas for stories to write. It's more my time and energy to actually do the writing that I can struggle with. When that happens, I try to change my surroundings. I go somewhere different to write, somewhere I can focus on what I'm doing and not be a slave to the demons of procrastination.

What truly inspires you and fires up your vision?

The vision of my future as a professional full time writer. That's the dream. Like most modern authors I need to maintain a full time job to ensure I have those luxuries in life such as food and shelter. I'd love to not have that worry. To just wake up every day and know that I can do the one thing I love and get enough money from it to live a comfortable life.

Best words of advice you ever received?

You can't please everyone (great advice, especially for writers) 

Worst?

What's meant for you won't pass you by (can make you lazy and fool you into thinking that life owes you something)

Some writing advice to aspiring and new authors?

Join a writers' group. Writing can be a very lonely pursuit, having like-minded people around you can help to motivate you to keep going and inspire you. I run an adult and a YA group in my home town. 

Which do you enjoy writing most: action, romance, setting, dialog?

I love writing it all. I'd hate to think that I was weak on one aspect. I am guilty of including more action that most books in my genre, but I think that if the story warrants it, you shouldn't shy away from action scenes.

A hint of what you’re working on next?

I'm currently working on two books. The next book in the Battle of the Undead series, Bad Karma and also the 2nd book in my new series, The Twisted and the Brave, called The Assassin of Oz.

Buy Lost in Wonderland (The Twisted & the Brave Book 1) from Amazon, Amazon UK

Buy Bad Blood, Bad Timing & other great Nicky Peacock books at Amazon, Amazon UK

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Where to find Nicky on the web:

Blog, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, Tumblr, Authorgraph

Nicky's Bio:

I’ve always been a storyteller, not in a ‘liar liar pants on fire’ kind of way, although I do work in advertising! When I was little, kids would crowd around me in the playground and I’d tell them tales of blood soaked horror filled with vampires, werewolves, ghosts and more. Yes, most would consider me a disturbed child, but my playmates couldn’t help themselves, they’d huddle around me every break time like an ancient tribe feeding off the fear; and that’s how I learned that horror stories hold a certain power, no matter what some might say, everyone is addicted to a good scare, especially if it is somewhat rooted safely in unrealistic beings… or are they unrealistic?

Writing was really a natural progression for me. So far I’ve had 35 short stories included in anthologies produced by publishers all over the world; my latest was included in Little Brown Book Group’s Mammoth Book of Jack the Ripper Stories. I have two YA series with the publishers, Evernight Teen:Battle of the Undead and The Twisted and The Brave. I run a local adult writers’ group called Creative Minds Writing and have been asked by my local library (Corby, Northants, UK) to run a group for budding authors aged 13-25.

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And now... drumroll... here's C. Lee's spectacular cover for her upcoming middle grade fantasy Sign of the Green Dragon! It launches on August 3rd, but put it on your Goodreads TBR list right now!

The novel summary:

This hasn’t been the best year for Sam, and it just got worse. Right when he thought he’d found a permanent home, his finicky guardian tells him he’s shipping Sam off to private school. This means Sam won’t bat for his team, and if he doesn’t, Haggarty Elementary won’t win the baseball championship again this year. His two teammates, Joey and Roger, are determined to stash him in their secret cave—at least until he brings in the winning run.

While the boys explore the hideout, an earthquake crumbles a wall, revealing a hidden room—and it’s not empty. A dragon-carved chest opens to reveal a human skeleton, its hand-bones clutching a note with a crudely drawn map. At the top of the map is scribbled, 1859.

Sam, Joey and Roger learn about a treasure lying in wait, if only they can locate something called the Dragon Twin, reveal the truth about an old murder, and return a person named Mei Ling to her ancestors in China.

The boys are up for the challenge. But how? They only have the map showing the way to an old mining town, and some strange symbols they can’t understand. None of them can make sense of the note. Who’s Mei Ling? And what the heck is a Dragon Twin?

With time running out before he’s sent packing, Sam and his friends set out on an adventure that has much higher stakes than any baseball championship—one that gets them into trouble with a modern crime, pits them against ancient Chinese dragons, and reveals the true meaning of treasure for each of them.

In case you haven't read C. Lee's other rollicking Pete Riley books, check them out here!

Buy Alligators Overhead at Amazon & Nook/B&N

Buy The Great Timelock Disaster at Amazon & Nook/B&N

Check out everything C Lee McKenzie at her website, on Facebook, Twitter & on Instagram

Cover Reveal & Pre-orders Live for Liz Long's Heroes of Arcania Trilogy

Today on Idea City we have a spectacular cover reveal for Liz Long's Heroes of Arcania trilogy! You can not only check out all of the covers here, but you can pre-order ALL three books!
The titles in order:

SuperNova (HoA #1), Fortune’s Favor (HoA #2), Unbreakable (HoA #3)

The streets of Arcania are overrun with crime, deteriorating as a madman named Fortune makes himself at home. He shows no mercy, striking down anyone in his path – including Nova Benson’s little sister. Devastated, Nova vows to seek justice for her family, but aside from her freak strength and impenetrable skin, how is she supposed to stop a monster like Fortune?  

Cole Warner wants to help people. Entrusted to keep his family’s secret, he’s also frustrated at having to hide his gift. He knows he could do more to help in the fight against Fortune. If he could convince his sister Penelope to join him, they might even have a chance at beating him. When Cole meets Nova, he realizes his whole world is about to change. And he’s going to welcome it with open arms.

Falling for each other wasn’t part of the plan.

Then again, neither was becoming a superhero.

PREORDER ON AMAZON

Nova will learn it takes more than sheer strength to be a superhero. Her world implodes when Fortune strikes back for all the trouble she’s caused. His dangerous games put everyone around her at risk, especially when he decides to turn Arcania against its precious Heroes. Nova wants to protect Arcania, but how does she save a city that doesn’t want her help?

Cole has no idea how to deal with his sister Penelope, especially now that she’s learned the truth about their family secret. Thanks to Fortune, she’s headed down a dark path, one with no return. Torn between helping Nova and protecting his sister, Cole will be forced to make a choice. Tensions rise as Cole and Nova discover war will come to Arcania if they don’t get Fortune off the streets…or preferably six feet under.

Nova and Cole might have each other, but will they lose everything else in their mission to save Arcania?

PREORDER ON AMAZON

Nova started the fight against Fortune for simple revenge, but now it’s turned into something much bigger. Arcania’s criminals are at each other’s throats, putting the city right in the middle of a warzone. She’ll have to work with a few unlikely allies to end Fortune’s games once and for all. Nova thought she understood what it meant to be a superhero, but will she have to lose herself to truly defeat Fortune?

Fortune has given Cole a choice, one with unbearable consequences. When Cole takes matters into his own hands to save his sister Penelope, he realizes too late he’s another pawn in Fortune’s games. Fortune will use Cole’s gift against his enemies…including Nova. Cole will have to become the hero he always wanted to be if he’s going to protect the love of his life.

Nova and Cole could finally save Arcania from Fortune’s deadly games, but are they willing to sacrifice each other?

PREORDER ON AMAZON

About the Author:

Liz Long is a proud graduate of Longwood University. Her inspiration comes from action and thriller genres and she spends entirely too much time watching superhero movies. Her day job includes writing for a magazine publisher in Roanoke, VA.

The Donovan Circus series has best been described as "X-Men meets the circus." Adult horror story Witch Hearts tells the tale of a serial killer hunting witches for their powers. New Adult PNR A Reaper Made is about a teen Reaper who gets caught between falling in love or saving her sister's soul. All titles are available for paperback or ebook on Amazon.

To learn more about Liz, including info on her books, plus writing, marketing & social media tips, visit her website.

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Have a great Memorial Day weekend, all.
Happy almost June!
Catherine

New May Reads!

Idea City has fresh new books to load onto your eReaders.

From Inkspell's Bridie Hall comes On the Slopes, a sweet sports romance.
A summary:
Snowboarding means everything to Charlise, but she hasn’t met Sam Miller yet.
Charlise is a snowboarder with a promising career ahead of her. Despite the fact that her father hates her risking her life on the slopes that had taken the life of Charlise’s mother she is determined not to give up her career the way her mother did when she fell pregnant. Charlise wants to win medals, lots of them.
The last distraction Charlise needs is the American freestyle champion, Sam Miller, who utterly enthrals her with his wit and friendliness. Refusing to risk her career for a relationship, Charlise returns home for Christmas, determined to sort things out with her father. But the holidays culminate in an epic fight, and with a repeat of the painful breakup with Sam. However, new discoveries from her family’s past might change Charlise’s mind about Sam.

Get it at Amazon, iBook, Kobo, B&N, All Romance eBooks

About the author:
Bridie Hall writes YA and NA contemporary stories. She sold her first story at fourteen. Since then, she's written dozens more, translated books, studied writing, and started writing novels. Her days revolve around stories and words, her sleepless nights involve plotting and inventing fascinating new characters. Visit her: Website & Facebook

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Next up is Christine Rain's steamy romance series Sasquatch Susies from Ellora's Cave. Zowie!

Pictures tell a thousand words, do they not? To learn more and nab your copies, head to Christine's special erotica page.

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Next we'll switch gears to present a sci-fi anthology with a story from fellow Untethered Realms author, Cherie Reich and other talented speculative fiction folks. The collection is called Parallels and here's a summary:
Enter the realm of parallel universes!

What if the government tried to create the perfect utopia? Could a society linked to a supercomputer survive on its own? Do our reflections control secret lives on the other side of the mirror? Can one moment split a person’s world forever?

Exploring the fantastic, ten authors offer incredible visions and captivating tales of diverse reality. Featuring the talents of L. G. Keltner, Crystal Collier, Hart Johnson, Cherie Reich, Sandra Cox, Yolanda Renee, Melanie Schulz, Sylvia Ney, Michael Abayomi, and Tamara Narayan.

Hand-picked by a panel of agents and authors, these ten tales will expand your imagination and twist the tropes of science fiction. Step through the portal and enter another dimension!
Get your copy at: Amazon, iBooks, Kobo. See it at Goodreads

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And finally, a spectacular boxed set of space fiction called Galactic Empires, with a novel from an Untethered Realms author, M. Pax.
Summary:
The Backworlds by M. Pax - A man struggles to survive in the harsh world of humanity’s outer settlements and prove his father wrong.
Ambassador 1: Seeing Red by Patty Jansen - To look an alien superior in the eye is a deadly offense. To accuse him of a political murder…
Alien Hunters by Daniel Arenson - A scruffy alien pest controller faces an alien threat the likes of which the universe has never seen.
Hard Duty by Mark E. Cooper - Hostile aliens nearly eradicated humanity. Will the next encounter finish the job?
Bypass Gemini by Joseph Lallo - A disgraced racer pilot gets mixed up with a mega-corporation. Now he has to stop them.
Sky Hunter by Chris Reher - Sent to a human outpost to investigate sabotage, a pilot finds more trouble than she bargained for.
The Galapagos Incident by Felix Savage - A genocidal AI attacks the solar system, and a Space Corps agent has one chance of saving a bunch of asteroid squatters she was sent to evict.
First Conquest by David VanDyke - To find a home and keep humanity safe from hostile aliens, Task Force Conquest must fight to seize a new star system.

For more details and ALL buy links, head here.

Wow! Lots of great reading for spring. Happy May.

Interview with Libby Doyle for her Debut Novel, The Passion Season

Today on Idea City I'm pleased to present Libby Doyle's debut novel The Passion Season, Book 1 of her Covalent series. In her interview, readers can learn details of her book and projected series. But first, a summary:

In loving Ranier, Zan overcomes her pain, but to discover his true identity would shred the reality she thought she knew.

He is Barakiel. Warrior. Exile. Hopeless romantic. Barakiel is Covalent, a race of ancient beings who use their great power to keep the elemental forces of Creation and Destruction in Balance. The Covalent Council exiled Barakiel to the Earthly Realm as the price of the treachery of his father, Lucifer, who wages perpetual war against it. Lucifer also relentlessly pursues his son. The Council thinks Lucifer views his son’s power as a threat, but Barakiel knows his father seeks to destroy even the memory of love. 

She is Alexandra “Zan” O'Gara. FBI Agent. Army veteran. Recovering drunk. Zan’s troubled past left her with little interest in men, but she had never encountered anyone like the stunning Rainer Barakiel. Zan believes Rainer is a wealthy businessman with expertise in edged weapons who can help her with a case. From the moment she meets him she wants him more than she’s ever wanted anything, but her intense attraction is as frightening as it is thrilling.

This is their love story. As Zan’s deepening feelings for Rainer lead her to confront her emotional damage, he struggles to meet the demands of his home world so he will be free to love her, and to reveal his true nature. Through the gruesome crime that first brought Zan to his door, Barakiel learns that his presence in the Earthly Realm has placed some of its most vulnerable citizens in danger. Compelled to protect them, he undertakes a series of duties he may not survive, even as Zan rescues him from centuries of a deadened heart.

Interview:

Tell us a little about your main characters.

My male hero is Barakiel (ba-rack-ee-el), also known as Rainer (ry-ner). He is Covalent, a race of ancient beings who keep the elemental forces of Creation and Destruction in Balance. The Covalent bond the elemental forces to prevent them from transforming into each other in an endless cycle. Without these aliens, the elemental forces would crushing everything into oblivion. The Covalent sit at the still center of everything that exists. Barakiel is a warrior Covalent. He constantly gathers energy from his surroundings and turns it into unassailable strength and speed. He is a born weapon, and sees violence as the solution to most problems, but he has another side. The Covalent cultivate Balance, the equilibrium of attraction and repulsion, order and entropy, love and hate. Balance is the source of their power. This means Barakiel loves as mightily as he fights. He is ardent and sensitive and open with his feelings. He is a hopeless romantic.

When the story begins, Barakiel has been banished to Earth. He is mistrusted and feared because he is the son of Lucifer, who rebelled against the Covalent Council and was driven from the Covalent Realm. Far from being in league with his father, Barakiel is the focus of Lucifer’s murderous obsession. Lucifer sends his demon minions against his son at every change of seasons – the solstices and the equinoxes – when the Earth’s axis shifts position relative to the Sun and creates a rift between dimensions.

Fighting demons gives Barakiel a sense of purpose, but he isolated from his kind. He is saved from complete loneliness by Pellus, who was a close friend of his mother’s. Pellus is like a father to Barakiel. They clash, as fathers and sons often do, but Pellus is much more than a stand-in parent and mentor. He is a traveler adept, a type of Covalent who can manipulate the properties of matter and energy. Pellus can travel between dimensions using rifts in the fabric of existence that only a traveler can see. As an adept, he has achieved such mastery that he can bend light and create solid barriers out of the air. He can break through even the most sophisticated computer encryption as easily as walking through an unlocked door. He is calm, rational, and deadly. 

Pellus is also cautious. He discourages Barakiel from pursuing serious relationships with humans because they are against Covalent Law. When Barakiel meets Zan O’Gara, it doesn’t take Pellus long to realize the warrior will not listen to him. Barakiel is drawn to her. He tells Pellus that she carries herself like a warrior, and he waxes poetic over her flawless skin. He “burns with Creation, all for her,” as Pellus puts it.

Barakiel needs and wants love, but he never found a woman who could match him until he met Zan. Despite his need, Pellus’ warnings do have some effect on him. He hides his true identity. He passes as human.

Zan, my female hero, is an FBI agent and a decorated army veteran. She is from the mountains of Idaho and has the toughness and self-sufficiency often found in people who hale from a rugged landscape. She is dedicated to her job. Too dedicated, according to Melissa Romani, Zan’s FBI partner. Mel is also Zan’s best friend and is always trying to set her up with men.

Although Zan tried dating, it was always tepid or horrible. She filled her life with other things. She is an excellent guitar player and fronts a rock-n-roll band. Between her job and her music, she doesn’t have time for men. She thinks it’s just as well because she is a recovering alcoholic, and like many women who abused a substance, she has an ugly history with sex. Zan thought her scars meant romance was not for her. When she meets Rainer, she lusts after him and she likes it, but he also makes her feel things she doesn’t understand. It terrifies her.

What is their biggest challenge or quest?

Barakiel’s quest is to discover if there is a connection between his presence in the Earthly Realm and a grisly murder. Zan’s quest is to solve the same murder. A man was gutted at the winter solstice, his internal organs removed. His body was left on display near Barakiel’s home. Three months later, at the vernal equinox, a similar ritual takes place in the national historical park in Philadelphia. The park rangers find a human spleen in the bushes. They call the FBI.

Zan begins an investigation, where she meets Barakiel. They begin to explore each other with a fiery passion. At the same time, Barakiel struggles to meet the demands of his homeworld and deal with his father’s efforts to kill him. His time with Zan gives him strength, but as her investigation brings her closer to the truth about the murder, Barakiel is afraid he will lose her. 

Give us your favorite line from your protagonist:

“Zan, it’s a beautiful, sunny day. Let us go to the ocean. We can consign our pain to the waves, and listen to them whisper their comfort.” – Barakiel to Zan, after they’ve had an intense, emotional discussion.

But when I look in his eyes, I feel like nature. – Zan to herself, musing about she forgets all her fears and misgiving in Barakiel’s presence.  

From an antagonist:

“I can feel your hatred, hard and sharp as a blade. I live inside you. Return to me and we will subjugate the realms. Return to me or die.” – Lucifer to Barakiel, invading his mind, seeking to make Barakiel his slave. 

An emblematic paragraph-long excerpt:

Here's an excerpt from the day Zan and Rainer first meet. She expresses an interest in blades, so he invites her to see his collection. He gives her a sword to examine. Unbeknownst to her, it is his Covalent sword, an alien weapon. To see her handle it gives him a thrill.

***

Zan took the gargantuan blade with both hands and did a simple block stance, then a thrust. Rainer raised both his eyebrows.

“I’m surprised you can lift that to shoulder level.”

“I’m a strong woman.”

“I can see that,” he replied in a low voice. The way he looked at her made Zan almost drop the sword. She adjusted her grip.

“This sword is unbelievably well-balanced.”

“Exactly.”

Did I just impress him? God, I hope so.

“Ah, see now,” Zan said. “My arms are getting tired, so you weren’t far from right. I could never actually use this sword.” She pivoted and held it out to him with a slight bow. “Your sword, sir.”

Rainer smiled as he took it. Zan realized he hadn’t been smiling before, not a real smile. This time it was like strong sunlight falling on a person who’d been trapped in the bitter cold.

“You’re trained?” he asked.

“A little. I used to study kendo in college, Japanese sword fighting, but I don’t have the time now. For the job, we’re mostly trained in firearms, but we get a decent amount of training in hand-to-hand, some other weapons. How about you? Is your interest more than aesthetic?”

“Yes. I’ve studied the fighting arts since I was a child.”

“Somehow that doesn’t surprise me.”

Rainer tilted his head and regarded her, his lips pressed together.

He doesn’t know what to make of me. I don’t know what to make of him either, but oh, those lips. I better get away from this man. I’m on duty.

What keeps you going when your inspiration flags?

Discipline. I’m a former journalist, trained to write on demand. Writer’s block is not acceptable when there’s newspaper to get out. I’ve also found that the act of writing itself creates inspiration. It touches some mysterious part of my brain.

What truly inspires you and fires up your vision?

Natural beauty. I love mountains. They make me feel insignificant, which is good if you need perspective. Their beauty soothes and renews me. Also, music. A great song gives me a tremendous feeling of wellbeing. In addition, when I’m frustrated or angry, punk rock has a great cathartic effect.  

Best words of advice you ever received?

Once, on a trolley, an old woman said to me, “You’re going to have a wonderful life some day because you’re not afraid to be your own person.” She was a stranger, but her words have stayed with me. They’re not really advice, but I’ve tried to live by them. 

Worst?

To take a job as a corporate attorney because it was a “good opportunity.” I knew I would hate it, I didn’t last long. I’ve never been a climb-the-ladder kind of gal.

Where’s your favorite place to write?

My office. I have big bay windows that let in a lot of light, and my cats come to visit me. 

Which do you enjoy writing most: action, romance, setting, dialogue?

I love to write dialogue. I love imaging conversations and people’s reactions to each other. I have to take care that my writing doesn’t have too much. I often get carried away. Of course, I enjoy all the others as well. Depends on the day and the circumstance of the story.

More on the series:

 The Passion Season is Book I of the Covalent Series. Writing a series is great because I get to tell an epic love story, set in two different worlds, with subplots featuring crime, political intrigue, war, betrayal, stealthy rescues and inter-dimensional travel. Plus, sweet words, tenderness and lots of hot sex. I’ve rarely had so much fun, and I’m a woman who’s had a lot of fun.

I have five books in my head, one finished, one halfway there, and one outlined. The drawbacks? You get impatient. You want to get it all out. Also, I’ve heard that readers hold off buying books in series until the whole series is available because they like to binge. That’s a long time to wait for people to read your stuff. That’s a lot of money to lay out for no return until some distant date. 

A hint of what you’re working on next?

The Pain Season: Book II of the Covalent Series! Zan and Barakiel’s epic love story continues. I’ll give you an impressionistic synopsis of the beginning from Zan’s point of view: Terror, determination, anger, grief. The Pain Season will be released on the autumnal equinox, September 22, 2016. The writing is going swimmingly thus far. 

Get The book: Amazon, iTunes, B&N, CS paperback, Kobo, 24Symbols, Scribd, Inktera

About the Author:

Libby Doyle is an attorney and former journalist who took a walk around the corporate world and didn’t like it. She escapes the mundane by writing extravagant yarns, filled with sex and violence. She loves absurd humor, travel, punk rock, and her husband.

Follow her on Social Media: Website, Facebook, Blog, Twitter, Goodreads, Instagram, Pinterest