Excerpt: The Calling: The Calling Chronicles Book 1 by E.M. Aguilar

The Calling: The Calling Chronicles Book 1
by E.M. Aguilar
January 5, 2017
Genre: Post Apocalyptic Fantasy
We live in a world without magic. However, what if magic is real and as natural as the air we breathe and tangible as the trees swaying in the wind? And we bottle and encase this magic in large underground chambers. Until, the arcane powers explode in a cataclysmic, world-shattering chain reaction.

Lazarus saw his life change before him on a normal workday. A hundred-foot wave destroys everything around him. A group of survivors rises up from this rubble, trying to survive the next day. People morph and change into fantastical creatures and magic has become commonplace.

Caught between miles of hostile territory filled with deadly monsters called Grogs, Lazarus and his group of friends needs to find the ancient temples to stop the next phase of the changing of the earth.

Don't miss The Calling, the first in The Calling Chronicles series by E.M. Aguilar. If you like Stephen King's, The Stand, and Justin Cronin's, The Passage and Robert McCammon's, Swan Song, then this story will have you thrilled, horrified and excited. Come check it out!

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Excerpts:

"The world ended within the slightest, smallest vibration as if the world was held by a silk web and a powerful force broke the glue which held everything together." Lazarus didn't realize he was speaking aloud these words. It came and string forth out of him in a rush. Luckily, he was in his car eating his sandwich. The voice was coming from inside his head making him see and say things. 

Hello, dear reader, come with me into a world which is like ours but is different. A place that if you would come here, you would proclaim that it is exactly how you remember your dreams - the half-forgotten truths and ideas floating in our brains. The moon and the sun would float above us while our life blood spills into the heaven and we would stare into the darkness and proclaim we are alive and we fight the nothingness. Listen. 

About the Author

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Eric Aguilar (1970 to present) was born in Los Angeles, California. He started writing when he was in high school. He received a Fine Arts Degree in painting and drawing from CSULB and attended Otis Art Institute. Eric is a writer of Fantasy, Horror and Sci-fi. He lives in Southern California. 

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Book Review: Year One (Chronicles of The One #1) by Nora Roberts

Year One (Chronicles of The One #1)

by Nora Roberts
December 5th, 2017
Hardcover, 432 pages
St. Martin's Press
It began on New Year’s Eve.

The sickness came on suddenly, and spread quickly. The fear spread even faster. Within weeks, everything people counted on began to fail them. The electrical grid sputtered; law and government collapsed—and more than half of the world’s population was decimated.

Where there had been order, there was now chaos. And as the power of science and technology receded, magic rose up in its place. Some of it is good, like the witchcraft worked by Lana Bingham, practicing in the loft apartment she shares with her lover, Max. Some of it is unimaginably evil, and it can lurk anywhere, around a corner, in fetid tunnels beneath the river—or in the ones you know and love the most.

As word spreads that neither the immune nor the gifted are safe from the authorities who patrol the ravaged streets, and with nothing left to count on but each other, Lana and Max make their way out of a wrecked New York City. At the same time, other travelers are heading west too, into a new frontier. Chuck, a tech genius trying to hack his way through a world gone offline. Arlys, a journalist who has lost her audience but uses pen and paper to record the truth. Fred, her young colleague, possessed of burgeoning abilities and an optimism that seems out of place in this bleak landscape. And Rachel and Jonah, a resourceful doctor and a paramedic who fend off despair with their determination to keep a young mother and three infants in their care alive.

In a world of survivors where every stranger encountered could be either a savage or a savior, none of them knows exactly where they are heading, or why. But a purpose awaits them that will shape their lives and the lives of all those who remain.

The end has come. The beginning comes next.

Wow! I am amazed at how easy Nora Roberts crosses genres. I have read a fair amount of her books but this one embodies many storylines...Horror, fantasy, paranormal, suspense, romance...and does so with seamless effort. I was invested from page one, then addicted by the second chapter. I felt tinges of "The Stand", "Wayward Pines", "Blackout" and many great paranormal stories.

A devastating plague, caused by contamination of consecrated ground, affects the world's population and opens the gateway for paranormal powers to grow. We follow those that survived (both normal and magical ) and share in their fears, heartaches, and triumphs with bated breath and pounding hearts. They pick up the pieces of their lives and try to reestablish some semblance of society. Can they survive together? Given a chance to essentially start over. will the earth's population learn from the mistakes of the previous society? There will be a "One" to save humanity but how will people survive until that time comes?

I couldn't put this down and am devastated that the next installment in this trilogy is not available. No matter what genre of Nora Roberts' writings are your favorite, you must try this on for size. I guarantee you will not be disappointed and you will join me in the support group of "junkies waiting for the 'Year One' sequel".

Getting 5 "Doomed" sheep!

Jeanie G

About the Author:
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Nora Roberts was born in Silver Spring, Maryland, the youngest of five children. After a school career that included some time in Catholic school and the discipline of nuns, she married young and settled in Keedysville, Maryland.
She worked briefly as a legal secretary. “I could type fast but couldn’t spell, I was the worst legal secretary ever,” she says now. After her sons were born she stayed home and tried every craft that came along. A blizzard in February 1979 forced her hand to try another creative outlet. She was snowed in with a three and six year old with no kindergarten respite in sight and a dwindling supply of chocolate.
Born into a family of readers, Nora had never known a time that she wasn’t reading or making up stories. During the now-famous blizzard, she pulled out a pencil and notebook and began to write down one of those stories. It was there that a career was born. Several manuscripts and rejections later, her first book, Irish Thoroughbred, was published by Silhouette in 1981.

Nora met her second husband, Bruce Wilder, when she hired him to build bookshelves. They were married in July 1985. Since that time, they’ve expanded their home, traveled the world and opened a bookstore together.

Through the years, Nora has always been surrounded by men. Not only was she the youngest in her family, but she was also the only girl. She has raised two sons. Having spent her life surrounded by men, Ms. Roberts has a fairly good view of the workings of the male mind, which is a constant delight to her readers. It was, she’s been quoted as saying, a choice between figuring men out or running away screaming.
Nora is a member of several writers groups and has won countless awards from her colleagues and the publishing industry. Recently The New Yorker called her “America’s favorite novelist.”

Book Review: The Magic (Wilds Book 4) by Donna Augustine + giveaway

The Magic: (Wilds Book 4)

by Donna Augustine
Pages: 252
For as long as I’ve lived, Dark Walkers have been hunting Plaguers, seeking them for their magic. But there’s one Plaguer they want most of all. Me.

Since the fall of civilization, the human race has been barely surviving. Another outbreak of the Bloody Death could be our final straw and there’s only one way to ensure that doesn't happen. I need to kill the leader of the Dark Walkers.

I’m stronger than ever but with more to lose than I ever thought possible. For the first time, I feel like I’ve got a family, a home…Dax.

So here I am; ready to fight. Winner take all.

Dal has lost so much yet gained a new family. One that she would do anything to protect even if it could cost her everything. In the final installment of The Wilds series, Dal is still wild and unpredictable but finds herself in a way she never could before. Many different groups come together for the last battle.

The unique relationship between Dax and Dal is one of my favorites. Usually when I read a book it’s the man that can’t figure out the woman but in Augustine’s books it’s the other way around, the woman can’t figure out the man and I like the change of direction. Full of many surprises I think that Augustine did a fantastic job bringing the story to an end. Even though I’m sad that it’s ending I look forward to her next new series Shadow Magic.

Review: The Wilds (book #1)
Review: The Hunt (book #2)
Review: The Dead (book #3)
Getting 5 sheep

Denise B

About the Author:
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Donna Augustine was an odd child, had a brief moment of conformity in early adulthood and then decided to embrace her craziness as the years rolled by. It's her inner crazy that she credits with coming up with the ideas for her books. One part hypochondriac, a few dashes of paranoia, topped with a sliver of uptight and delivered with a relaxed flair, she kicked the proverbial box down the yellow brick road a couple years ago to embrace her true self.

She can be reached by a carrier pigeon, set free in a south by north direction, where she resides in Neverland with her two Siberian cats. Cats who, by the way, aren't as hypoallergenic as she believed they'd be.

For the conventional minded, and those of you without a pigeon on hand, she can be reached at donna@donnaaugustine.com. She responds to most emails within three dusk periods.

P.S. For those of you looking for the discarded box, it was sitting beside the road for a while but has since disappeared completely.

Dawn Cavenne donated the prizes! Thank you Dawn!

The Magic: The Wilds giveaway

Book Review: The Raven's Child by Thomas E. Sniegoski, Tom Brown

The Raven's Child
by Thomas E. Sniegoski, Tom Brown
Paperback, 208 pages
Published August 4th 2015 by InkLit
Thomas E. Sniegoski has entranced audiences with his exploration of the Batman universe, thrilled fans with his Buffy the Vampire Slayer comics, and uncovered the paranormal with his Hellboy spin-off series, B.R.P.D. Now, he introduces readers to a mesmerizing dark world filled with monsters, where humanity’s only hope lies in the bravery of one woman…

When the Throng came, the human race never stood a chance. The monsters were simply too strong, too numerous. It only took a few months for them to take over and leave the few poor souls who survived cowering in terror for years to come.

But even the monsters fear something: the dark goddess known as the Raven’s Child. Legend says that she alone is destined to destroy the Throng and free those under their cruel power.

And whoever wields her name and image could become the bane of the Throng and an inspiration to humankind—even if she were only a young woman, like Carissa Devin, who has vowed to reclaim the world for the human race, no matter what the cost.

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This is a good old fashion hero story. A young orphan girl must start and lead a rebellion to save the human race, and those of the Throng that want to live in peace with them, from the tyranny of an alien race that wants to eat humans. In the beginning she fights alone under the guidance of Claudus. He is one of the peaceful Throng race, and plays Obi-Wan Kenobi to her Skywalker. She must impersonate a mythical Throng deity, The Raven’s Child, to strike fear (kind like Batman) in them. Along the way she makes friends, struggles with purpose, and of course sacrifice. All around a good story.

The material is perfect for a graphic novel, and the artwork’s tone captures the mood: dark, desperate and Tim Burton-esque. But at times it was hard to follow the storyline, especially the mythology of The Raven’s Child. I had to keep going back and forth trying to figure out what was going on, which was hard because some of the text is white on black, combined with the poor font choice used for the Throng leader and the black and white artwork…ack! If the graphic novel had been made in a larger format rather than the trade size it would have made reading it easier. The cover is gorgeous and having the pages colored the same way would have put this story into the visually stunning category.

The story is perfect for middle graders and could be used to teach about a hero story, with all the archetypes elements, using a female heroine.

3.5 “balanced” Sheep

Sharon Stogner

About the Author:

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THOMAS E. SNIEGOSKI is the author of more than two dozen novels for adults, teens, and children. His teen fantasy YA series Fallen was adapted into a trilogy of monstrously successful TV movies by ABC Family Channel. His other books for teens include Sleeper Code, Sleeper Agenda, Legacy, and Force Majeure, as well as the series The Brimstone Network. The author's first adult novel, A Kiss Before the Apocalypse, developed into a series of novels about the character Remy Chandler.

Sniegoski's work for younger readers includes the Billy Hooten: Owlboy series and the fantasy quartet Magic Zero, which he co-authored with Christopher Golden.Magic Zero is in development as a film at Universal. Sniegoski and Golden have also collaborated on the adult dark fantasy series The Menagerie, and multiple creator-owned comic book series, including The Sisterhood, which is being prepped for a feature film by InterMedia, and Talent, currently in development at Universal after a major bidding war.

As a comic book writer, Sniegoski's work includes Stupid, Stupid Rat Tails, a prequel miniseries to international hit Bone. Sniegoski has also written the Bone: Quest for the Spark novels. Sniegoski collaborated with Bone creator Jeff Smith on the prequel, making him the only writer Smith has ever asked to work on those characters. Sniegoski and Golden also wrote the graphic novel BPRD: Hollow Earth, a spinoff from Hellboy.

Sniegoski was born and raised in Massachusetts, where he still lives with his wife LeeAnne and their dog, Kirby.

Book Review: Wisteria (Wisteria #1) by Bisi Leyton

Wisteria (Wisteria #1)
by Bisi Leyton

278 pages
August 15th 2012
Sixteen year old Wisteria Kuti has two options—track the infected around the Isle of Smythe or leave the only known safe haven and face a world infested with flesh eating biters. But even with well-armed trackers, things go wrong and Wisteria ends up alone facing certain death, until she is rescued by the mysterious Bach. Uninfected, Bach is able to survive among the hordes of living dead.

Eighteen year old Bach, from a race known as The Family, has no interest in human affairs. He was sent here to complete his Great Walk and return home as a man—as a Sen Son. The Family regard humans as Dirt People, but Bach is drawn to this Terran girl, whom he has never seen before, but somehow knows.

Hunted by flesh eaters, cannibals, and the mysterious blood thirsty group called Red Phoenix, Wisteria and Bach make their way back to the Isle of Smythe, a community built on secrets and lies.

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I don't read much YA because I fear running across a female protag who I want to go all little bunny foo-foo on (you know, bop them on the head). Wisteria is one of the emotionally strongest female YA characters I've read. Dealing with bullying and betrayal she still manages to do the right thing when others would look for revenge. She is a good person thrown into a horrible situation and manages to hold onto her humanity when those around her don't.

There are so many layers to this story. The blurb doesn't even begin to cover it. There are two separate story lines: Wisteria's post apocalyptic world and Bach's, we'll call it alien, world. Bach has only experienced the worst of the human race and was raised with no tolerance for the lesser Terrans. The author keeps Bach and Wisteria true to their characters as both try to understand each other. The story stays away from the Romeo and Juliet troupe and delivers something more real. It flirts with some teenage angst, but I like the way Wisteria handles things.

And then...plot twists! The two protags start uncovering a conspiracy that shakes both their foundations.

The story is well written and moves at a quick pace with a creative plot.

4 "Terran" Sheep

SharonS

About the Author:
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Bisi Leyton was born and lives in London.She has worked around Europe including France, Germany, Ireland, Belgium and the Czech Republic. She has a fondness for reading graphic novels, and cracked.com.She grew up in the UK, Nigeria and the States, listening to the stories life and love from aunts, cousins and big sisters. As a fan of the Sweet Valley High Series, she started writing fan-fiction at eleven, will never reveal under pain of death.

Book Review: Black Dog Blues (Kai Gracen #1) by Rhys Ford

Black Dog Blues (Kai Gracen #1)
by Rhys Ford

246 pages
February 3rd 2015

Ever since he’d been part of the pot in a high-stakes poker game, elfin outcast Kai Gracen figured he’d used up any good karma he had when Dempsey, a human Stalker, won the hand and took him in. Following the violent merge of Earth and Underhill, the human and elfin races were left with a messy, monster-ridden world and Stalkers were often the only cavalry willing to ride to someone’s rescue when something shadowy and dark moved into the neighbourhood.
There certainly were no shortage of monsters or people stupidly willing to become lunch for one.

It was a hard life but one Kai liked. And he was good at it. Killing monsters was easy. Especially since he was one himself.

After an accident retired Dempsey out, Kai set up permanent shop in San Diego, contracting out to the local SoCalGov depot. It was a decent life, filled with bounty, a few friends and most importantly, no other elfin around to remind him he wasn’t really human.

That was until a sidhe lord named Ryder arrives in San Diego and Kai is conscripted to do a job for Ryder’s fledgling Dawn Court. It was supposed to a simple run; head up the coast during dragon-mating season to retrieve a pregnant human woman seeking sanctuary with the new Court then back to San Diego. Easy, quick and best of all, profitable. But Ryder’s “simple” run leads to massive trouble and Kai ends up being caught in the middle of a deadly bloodline feud he has no hope of escaping.

No one ever got rich by being a Stalker. But then hardly any of them got old either. The way things were looking, it didn’t look like Kai was going to be the exception.

Commentary

First books in an urban fantasy series are exciting and frustrating. You get to experience a new world with (hopefully) characters you love or love to hate. It's a great feeling. But authors need to set up complicated worlds and introduce characters that they aren't quite comfortable with yet. What you tend to get is info dumps and clunky writing. I give first books a lot of leeway if I find elements that rock my world one way or another. You know, a sexy hero, a kick ass heroine or a unique world that makes me stop and go "Whoa...that's cool". Black Dog Blues has rocked enough of my world that I want to keep it on my radar.

Review

I love the Fae, and in Black Dog Blues the Fae's world, Underhill, has literally Merged with the human world. There was a massive and deadly war between the humans and Fae which left the world in ruins and a strained truce between the races as well as a lot of prejudice. The main character, Kai, was born fae, but you slowly learn was brutalized as a child in unimaginable ways by his family. Kai escaped that fate and ended up being raised by a human, and as a result knows nothing about being Fae, not even their language. Kai is a survior, but his emotional scars run deep. I loved him as soon as I met him. Yeah, he has the tortured soul, but even he has no ideas of just how bad because he has buried that part of him. 

The story is full of action, violence and dark intentions. What else would you expect from the Fae? The author created a post-apocalyptic world combining Fae and human elements. This is a dark urban fantasy so the emphasis is on how Kai tries to avoid his past while being dragged kicking and screaming into a future he's not sure he wants. 

There is a slow simmering romance with a Fae lord named Ryder. Ryder is sexy, with noble ideas of bringing peace between the Fae and humans. His courtly manners run up against Kai's uncultured ways with humorous results. Technically there will be a gay romance...eventually. There is no sex in this book. Just two kissing scenes with Kai and Ryder and one with Kai and Ryder's female guard. There was even a hint of Ryder and his guard sharing Kai... Kia likes women and men but refuses to have committed relationships. It seems like fate might have other plans. Whenever Kai is near Ryder there is a connection he doesn't understand, but Ryder seems to. It will be a slow tension filled romance between the two that could take many books (hopefully not too many!) to become anything more. If you've stayed away from stories with gay romance because of all the sex, then this is one you can try, without that.

I was hooked by the world building and the characters, and as the author becomes more comfortable with both, tighter writing will also follow. 

Buy Links: Amazon-DSP Publications

3 1/2 Sheep

SharonS

About the Author:
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Rhys Ford is a firm believer in love and let love, short walks to a coffee shop and having a spare cat or two. Most days she can be found swearing at her laptop and trying to come up with new ways to kill off perfectly good random characters.

Rhys Ford was born and raised in Hawaii then wandered off to see the world. After chewing through a pile of books, a lot of odd food, and a stray boyfriend or two, Rhys eventually landed in San Diego, which is a very nice place but seriously needs more rain.

Rhys admits to sharing the house with three cats of varying degrees of black fur, a black Pomeranian puffball and a ginger cairn terrorist. Rhys is also enslaved to the upkeep a 1979 Pontiac Firebird, a Toshiba laptop, and a purple Bella coffee maker.

Book Review: Ship of the Dead (Omega Days #2) by John L. Campbell

Ship of the Dead (Omega Days #2)
by John L. Campbell

Published October 7th 2014

by Berkley
In the weeks following the Omega Virus outbreak, survivors form desperate clusters, uniting to defend against hordes of the walking dead. But they can only hide for so long…

Father Xavier Church never wanted to be a leader. Nonetheless, he’s grown attached to his fellow survivors, and he won’t let anyone cause them harm—though he may be the one who inadvertently leads them to destruction…

Ex-con Bill Carnes may crave freedom, but he still prefers sticking with the group rather than fleeing to Mexico with his former cellmate TC. Maybe he’s changing. Or maybe the look in TC’s eyes is more dangerous than the undead…

EMT Rosa Escobedo gave up on hope after she watched the man she loved rise from the dead. But when a patient seems to start getting better, she can’t help but hope for a cure, even if it means risking her life…

As the numbers of the dead swell, the living are running out of safe havens—especially when the biggest threats lie within their own ranks.

John L. Campbell has done it again! In the second book of the Omega Days series he takes zombies to a whole new level. Right away you pick up with the lovable characters (and some not so lovable) and you’re thrown into action. As the dead start to overwhelm the land the survivors take to sea.

An ‘abandoned’ military ship is stocked with years’ worth of food, ammo, guns and medicine. The only problem is getting rid of the 6,000 some ‘former residents’ in order to make the ship their new home. Certain characters rise to the occasion, making heroes in a world that seems to be void of all good. Hidden motives hide under fake smiles in other ‘heroes’ and they’re about to come to light. Monsters come in two forms in the thrilling sequel; zombies and humans. In fact the survivors soon find out maybe they are better off falling prey to the hungry hands of the dead than face the monsters with beating hearts.

Campbell’s writing style keeps you on edge. Chapters end making you think that one of your favorite characters has just become another victim of the dead only to jump back to the scene several chapters later and have them fight off their seeming sealed fate. All 360 pages are packed with drama, horror and even chapters from the point of view of the dead.

I cannot wait to read the third book in the series, just the few pages included at the end of the book as a teaser had me sold on it.

p.s did you know that zombies can sense earthquakes?!
sheep review: Omega Days (book 1)

5 sheep

 

Ren

About the Author:

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John L. Campbell is the author of the zombie apocalypse series, OMEGA DAYS from Penguin Random House. Book One, "Omega Days," was an overnight Amazon Horror bestseller, and remained on the list for 17 weeks. In addition, he is the author of two collections of short horror stories, RED CIRCUS and IN THE FALLING LIGHT, and a novella based upon actual events, THE MANGROVES, which chronicles the most horrific crocodile massacre in recorded history. His short fiction has appeared in numerous anthologies, literary magazines and ezines.

John has lived all over the U.S., and has worked as everything from a limo driver to professional investigator and executive. He currently resides with his family in New York, where he is hard at work on the next novel in his Omega Days series.Campbell is an Active Member of the HWA; Horror Writer's Association, and is represented by the Jennifer DeChiara Literary Agency in New York.

Coming soon, Drifters (Omega Days 3) pre order now for Jan 6, 2015

The North by Sean Cummings - Not Your Mother’s YA Zombie Novel +giveaway

Not Your Mother’s YA Zombie Novel

Post-apocalyptic fiction is nothing new; it’s been around for decades.

Back in the day when I had hair and Iron Maiden was my musical everything, Stephen King's THE STAND scared the hell out of me – it still does. It is and will always remain the GOLD standard when it comes to post apocalyptic fiction as far as I’m concerned. I've read it numerous times since 1982 and it's the one book more than any other that inspired me to write THE NORTH.

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve read a ton of other post-apocalypse books. Titles like WAR DAY by Whitley Streiber and James Kunetka (which I'm sure is the template for Max Brooks' brilliant World War Z though I can't prove it) Nature's End by the aforementioned pair of authors and finally Swan Song by Robert R, McCammon were fantastic, amazing reads.

And of course I love zombies. Like, a lot.

In THE NORTH, I wanted to see what would happen if it was just teenagers alone against the world. Of note is the fact that in my book, it’s six months after the end of the world and the reasons for the zombie outbreak are moot. Survival is the rule of the day and hand-to-hand combat has become the new normal.

So what sets THE NORTH apart is there really aren’t any adults at all – until much later in the book. It’s also a very military book – my characters are all in the army reserves, what we call the “militia” here in Canada. It’s a simple premise – break out of the city, fight to stay alive and recognize that your average run of the mill walking cadaver isn’t the only enemy. Most of the book takes place inside the bellies of Arks One and Two – a pair of infantry fighting vehicles.

This is a dark book. It goes to some very difficult places because the old world is dead and the new one is a far more dangerous place than anyone could have possibly imagined. The central figure is David Simmons – he has skin in the game in that he is motivated to protect his eight-year-old kid sister, Jo. He has sworn to himself that he will save her life and keep her innocence intact – whatever the cost. As the story progresses, Jo becomes transformed despite all of David’s best efforts and the cost comes in the way of choices that David makes – all of which are stark, brutal and often arbitrary.

I’d like to think this book contrasts a lot of other YA zombie books that are on the shelves because of the military nature and the fact that my protagonist David must keep the team together and fighting all the while keeping himself from falling apart.

There are strong secondary characters. There is internal conflict. There are tactical blunders that cost people’s lives and a shock ending that you simply won’t see coming.

Oh ... and it's in Canada. Because as nice as Canada is, we aren't immune to the zombie apocalypse! ;)

I hope you enjoy the book. It’s the first in a planned trilogy. Expect book two – INSURGENCY next fall.

The North

by Sean Cummings 

Kindle Edition, 320 pages
September 29, 2014

 by Bloor Street Books

Breakout from the armoury. Escape the city. Live. 

Sixteen-year-old David Simmons is on a mission to save his eight-year-old sister. In a smoldering world infested with walking cadavers, the survivors of Simmons infantry reserve unit are going hatches down in a pair of armoured personnel carriers and everyone knows that it’s only a matter of time until their fuel runs dry.

There’s a weak short wave radio signal from a place called Sanctuary Base and it’s supposed to be zombie-free. But there’s more than a thousand miles to cover, a biting, unforgiving cold, armed survivalists, legions of the living dead and someone called SUNRAY.

They’re outgunned, outnumbered and out of time.

This tense thriller for teens offers a terrifying and brutal vision of survival in a post-apocalyptic world where the bonds of friendship and family are the only things left that are worth fighting for.

About the Author:
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Sean Cummings is a fantasy author with a penchant for writing quirky, humorous and dark novels featuring characters that are larger than life. His debut was the gritty urban fantasy SHADE FRIGHT published in 2010. He followed up later in the year with the sequel FUNERAL PALLOR. His urban fantasy/superhero thriller UNSEEN WORLD was published in 2011.

2012 saw the publication of Sean’s first urban fantasy for young adults. POLTERGEEKS is a rollicking story about teen witch Julie Richards, her dorky boyfriend and race against time to save her mother’s life. The first sequel, STUDENT BODIES hit bookstores in September 2013.

Sean's newest book is THE NORTH. A post-apocalyptic zombie thriller for teens.

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Scavenger Hunt: The Grigori Legacy by Linda Poitevin + giveaway

Warning: This scavenger hunt ends Sunday at 12:00am EST tonight so if you want to play and win, get to hunting!

Clue #3

Book 1: SINS OF THE ANGELS
A detective with a secret lineage. An undercover Hunter with a bullet-proof soul. And a world made to pay for the sins of an angel... 

Homicide detective Alexandra Jarvis answers to no one. Especially not to the new partner assigned to her in the middle of a gruesome serial killer case-a partner who is obstructive, irritatingly magnetic, and arrogant as hell. Aramael is a Power--a hunter of the Fallen Angels. A millennium ago, he sentenced his own brother to eternal exile for crimes against humanity. Now his brother is back and wreaking murderous havoc in the mortal realm. To find him, Aramael must play second to a human police officer who wants nothing to do with him and whose very bloodline threatens both his mission and his soul.

Now, faced with a fallen angel hell-bent on triggering the apocalypse, Alex and Aramael have no choice but to join forces, because only together can they stop the end of days.Sins of the Angels book links: Goodreads / Amazon / B&N

Book 2: SINS OF THE SON

5 Sheep review

When homicide detective Alexandra Jarvis sees a photo of Seth Benjamin on a police bulletin, she knows that Heaven's plan to halt Armageddon has gone terribly wrong. As the only mortal who knows of Seth's true nature, only she can save him. Aramael was a hunter of Fallen Angels until a traitor forced him into earthly exile. Now, with no powers and only a faint memory of Alex, his mortal soulmate, he will stop at nothing to redeem himself-even if it means destroying Seth in the name of the Creator...Sins of the Son book links: Goodreads / Amazon / B&N

Book 3: SINS OF THE LOST

5 Sheep review

Heaven and Hell are on the brink of war as Lucifer builds his Nephilim army and waits for his new agenda to become a reality — that of having a Nephilimchild of his own bloodline to lead his forces to cataclysmic victory.

With rumors of the pending war rampant on Earth, Alex fights to save humanity from its own panic –­ leaving little time for her fledgling

relationship with Seth, the man with heavenly origins who has captured her heart. But when Nephilim children begin to disappear, along with Alex’s own vulnerable niece, the inevitable war between Heaven and Hell becomes as personal as sin.
Warrior
Heaven has its own plans to fight the coming apocalypse, but first it needs Seth back. Asked to betray the man she loves, Alex must turn for help to the soulmate she thought she’d given up — the Archangel Aramael, who may be her last chance to save her family and humanity from the ashes of Lucifer’s Armageddon.
Sins of the Lost book links: Goodreads / Amazon / B&N

About the author:

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Linda Poitevin is the author of the dark urban fantasy series, The Grigori Legacy, from Ace/Roc Books. Linda lives near Ottawa, Canada’s capital, and in her other life is wife, mother, friend, gardener, coffee snob, freelance writer, and zookeeper of too many pets. When she isn’t writing, Linda can usually be found in her garden or walking her dog along the river or through the woods.

Here’s the list of bloggers…remember to start at the top and follow the links as provided by each blogger so that your word order is correct in the final phrase to earn 10 extra points!

Clue #1: Pearls Cast Before A McPig (http://mcpigpearls.blogspot.com) 
Clue #2: Romancing the Dark Side (http://romancingthedarkside.com)
Clue #3: I Smell Sheep (http://www.ismellsheep.com) 
Clue #4: Kelsey's Cluttered Bookshelf (http://kelseysclutteredbookshelf.wordpress.com/)
Clue #5: Book Mood Reviews (http://www.bookmoodreviews.com) 
Clue #6: Bea's Book Nook (http://beasbooknook.blogspot.com) 
Clue #7: The Demon Librarian (http://www.thedemonlibrarian.com)

GIVEAWAY: 

Winner's choice of (1) Grigori Legacy book + swag

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Guest Post: Magical Apocalypse Survival Kit by Janni Lee Simner + Giveaway!

Magical Apocalypse Survival Kit 

By: Janni Lee Simner 

It's the end of the world as we know it ... and no way am I leaving that world behind empty-handed. 

That's the danger of writing post-apocalyptic fiction. You begin thinking about what you'd want to take with you if the world really did fall apart. Or at least I did, during the years I spent working on the Bones of Faerie trilogy, which is set after a war between the faerie and human realms has destroyed the world. I don't really expect the planet to fall prey to a magical war, but the deeper I got into the writing process, the more I wondered what I'd want to have with me, if it did.

So here's a grab bag of things I'd pack if I was fleeing a magical apocalypse. (I'm assuming it would work for other sorts of apocalypses, too, but it's always dangerous to stake your life on advice found over the Internet.)

- Coffee, tea, and powdered cocoa: Sad post-apocalyptic fact--if you live in the United States, nearly all your caffeine sources come from plants that don't grow here. Once the caffeine is gone, it's gone for good.  I assume I'll have time while running for my life to ponder whether to hoard this stuff or trade it for other valuable post-apocalyptic survival supplies.

- Ibuprofin, antibiotic ointment, actual antibiotics, and multivitamins: Okay, I'm trading the caffeine. This is the stuff I'm hoarding for the real emergencies. (No hand sanitizer after the apocalypse, though. If my immune system can't handle garden-variety dirt, I'm toast anyway.)

-  One of those thin silver emergency blankets we always pack on camping trips but never use: It's finally an emergency. Clearly, this is what we were saving it for all along.

- A hand-cranked or solar-powered flashlight: The post-apocalyptic nights are long and dark, and plug-in outlets will soon be just fancy wall decorations.

- The Joy of Cooking: The post-apocalyptic days are long, too, especially when you're contemplating scavenged food you haven't a clue how to prepare. The Joy of Cookingknows how to cook anything. It even tells you how to skin your own rabbits and squirrels. Not every cookbook would have your back there.

- A good knife and an even better knife sharpener: In Bones of Faerie, Liza carries her knife everywhere. Not just as a weapon, but also because those squirrels don't skin themselves.

- A flint striker: To spark tinder for cooking fires after the matches and lighters have run out. Squirrels don't cook themselves, either.

- The largest bag of rice I can find on short notice: What, you didn't think I was eating that squirrel by itself, did you? It's going to take me a while to get in a crop of wheat or corn. Not to mention to find plucky survivor friends to plant and harvest it with.

- A sewing kit: It'll take me even longer to find goats and sheep, raise them, and learn how to weave my own clothing. I need to repair what I have. (Unless … anyone have a sweater they want to trade me for a café mocha?)

- My camping backpack: In some fantasy novels characters manage to carry everything they need in an (apparently) light day pack or, I don't know, their hands. I'm guessing that's not going to work after the end of the world.

- Extra socks: Wool, preferably. If there's one thing camping has taught me, it's that no one ever regrets packing extra socks.

- Any 19th-century ricepaper-thin volumes of poetry and prose I can dig up: I spent all my heavy-book space on The Joy of Cooking. Also on socks. Oops.

- Notebook and writing implements: Now that a real apocalypse is upon us, I can finally see what I got wrong. Clearly, it's time to start revising.

Faerie After (Bones of Faerie #3)
by Janni Lee Simner

After a devastating war between humanity and Faerie, Liza’s world was forever changed. Plants and trees became aggressive, seeking to root in living flesh and bone, and newborn children were discovered to have magic powers. Liza was one of these children, and with her abilities she brought her mother back from the ruined Faerie realm and restored the seasons to her own.

Now there are signs of a new sickness in the forest. Piles of ash are found where living creatures once stood. Liza investigates and discovers the Faerie realm has continued to deteriorate, slowly turning to dust, and that its fate is inexorably linked to that of the human realm. To find a solution, Liza must risk crossing over, putting herself and all she cares about at risk. Will Liza be forced to sacrifice her life and the lives of her friends in order to save both worlds?

Here is the exciting conclusion to the Bones of Faerie trilogy, for fans of dark fantasy and dystopian adventure entranced by Janni Lee Simner’s unique vision of a magic-infused postapocalyptic world.

Author Bio

Janni Lee Simner's publications include the post-apocalyptic young adult Bones of Faerie trilogy, the Iceland-based contemporary fantasy Thief Eyes, four books for younger readers, and more than 30 short stories. The final book of the trilogy, Faerie After, was released this summer. Visit her online at simner.com

Bone of Faerie book trailer 

***GIVEAWAY***

Janni is offering up a paperback copy of Faerie After, bookmarks and book plate to one lucky commenter. This contest is INTERNATIONAL! Fill out Raffledude. 

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