Monday, May 17, 2021

Fostered Identity by Maggie Thom - Book Blast and Giveaway



This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Maggie Thom will be awarding a $20 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Her teenage sister has run away. It's her fault. And on her watch.

Shyla thought she was doing the right thing by helping her teenage sister get a little freedom. She never expected she'd bolt on her. Desperate to keep their mom from discovering she has a missing daughter, Shyla sets out to find her wayward sister.

A fluke encounter gives Shyla a clue. Only she gets a lot more than she bargained for. She finds her sister, but she gets pulled into doing a heist. An impossible heist. And not just any heist but that of stealing her mom's million-dollar jewelry. Ones that recently arrived, with no explanation.

Damien is a good guy running from an awful past. When his brother ends up in the hospital, Damien is determined to stop the one man who has and is destroying their lives—their father. Damien will break all of his promises, even steal, if it will end their father's control.

Shyla and Damien find themselves thrown together, not trusting each other but not having any choice. They will have to work together if Damien is going to stop his father once and for all. And if Shyla is going to protect her family. An impossible crime that will bring them surprises they didn't see coming.

Can they catch a thief by being a thief?

Book 1
The Twisted Deception Series

Emerald grew up in a foster family. It wasn't an ordinary foster family. She was the first of eight girls to move in. The jewels that she was given to play with as a teenager, that she was told were baubles, are now resurfacing thirty-five years later. They are worth millions. And it appears worth stealing. Who is sending them out? And who wants them back at all costs?

“…fast-paced and kept me guessing. I like a mystery enveloped with family secrets and jewel thieves. I want more, and I want to know the secrets. I will be excited to read the second novel…” Author Christine H-Jackson


Read an Excerpt

"You're sick. You destroyed Jordie. Or tried to, but he turned you down. Isn't that why you hurt him, 'cause he didn't want any more to do with you? He was getting out. But you couldn't lose your number one thief. He's been clean for a whole year."

The man chuckled. "He's mine. One day, he's gonna slip out of this world."

"What do you want?"

"There's something I need you to get. Jordie couldn't do it. You saw what happened to him. If you do like him and ignore me, you will end up in the same place. Or worse."

Damien felt sick, but he didn't know what he was going to do. This man had destroyed his life. As much as he wanted to turn tail and run, it was his turn to step up and protect his brother. Their father would stop at nothing, even kill Jordie. It appeared he almost had.

"Fine. What do you want to steal?"

The door to the apartment opened. Damien's eyes widened as he met Shyla's whose eyebrows couldn't have shot any higher. Thankfully, her hands were full of bags of groceries and trying to balance her purse and keys. He rushed over to her, grabbing the door, and stepping between her and it.

"Smart boy," His father was at happy with his question. Shyla was going to be another matter.

Shyla hustled past him, almost throwing the bags of groceries onto the counter. She whirled around, staring him down. He leaned against the door. He at least needed a chance to explain.

"No. I just know you. You haven't changed at all. All you've ever done your entire life is steal, steal, steal, and steal. So, what is it?" He waved at Shyla with his hand while making pleading facial expressions that she give him a minute and then he'd explain.

"Something a little bit different. It's a beautiful set of jewelry."

About the Author:
Take the adventure beyond your fingertips.

Multi-Award-Winning Author, Maggie Thom has written all types of stories but finally settled on her love of puzzles, mysteries, and rollercoaster rides and now writes suspense/thrillers/mysteries that keep you guessing and take you on one heck of an adventure.

She is the author of 8 suspense/thriller/mysteries. The award-winning Caspian Wine Series – Captured Lies, Deceitful Truths, and Split Seconds – and her other individual novels Tainted Waters, Deadly Ties, and Fractured Lines. And now a new series – The Twisted Deception Series - Fostered Identity, Book 1. On her website, you can find her free novel – Blurred Lines.

Her motto: Read to escape … Escape to read …

"Maggie Thom… proves her strength as a master of words, plots and finely chiseled characters… she weaves a brilliant cloth of the many colors of deceit.” Dii – TomeTender


Buy Links: THE BOOK IS ON SALE FOR $0.99 DURING THE TOUR.



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Monday, May 10, 2021

The Gospel According to Prissy by Barbara Casey - Book Blast and Giveaway



This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Barbara Casey will be awarding a $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Three Army veteran misfits, a college dropout, an unmotivated high school graduate accused of murder, a controversial warden of a women's prison, and a little girl with the gift of prophesy – these are the people 31-year-old Lara Kruger invites into her life after suffering a miscarriage, a divorce from an abusive husband, and unemployment.


Read an Excerpt

Laramie Larkins Kruger drove up to the hospital emergency door. It was the second time in twice as many weeks. The hand that had been holding a bloody towel against the left side of her face somehow managed to push the car door open. Her other hand rested in her lap, limp and useless. A hospital orderly standing outside by the front entrance saw her. He crushed his half-smoked cigarette into the concrete container of sand provided and quickly located a wheelchair for her.

“Jesus, Ms. Kruger, what have you gone done to yourself now? You been working on that old house again, haven’t ya?”

Lara closed her eyes and let the strong hands of the orderly gently position her into the wheelchair. “Thanks, Ben.”

“I told you to call me next time you needed something done and Mr. Kruger wasn’t around to take care of it. Didn’t I? Didn’t I say that?” He pushed her through the emergency entrance and over to the sign-in window where an elderly woman smiled and handed her a form.

“Back so soon, Mrs. Kruger?”

Lara stared at the piece of paper that had been secured to a clipboard, but her eyes wouldn’t read the print. She couldn’t pick up the pen anyway. Ben took the clipboard from her and began filling in the information next to her name: Age, 31; Time, 1:15 p.m.; Insurance, on file; Nature of Visit, cuts and bruises caused by accident. It was always the same.

Lara and Jake had been remodeling the old Victorian home they bought when they moved to Rocky Mount six months earlier. Everyone knew they were doing it. In a town the size of Rocky Mount, nothing went by unnoticed. Since they were doing a lot of the work themselves, it was easy just to say she slipped off a ladder, a rotten floorboard gave way, something had fallen on her – whatever. No one questioned her answers.

“My, my. Looks like you got scraped up pretty good, Mrs. Kruger.” The elderly volunteer worker smiled sympathetically and took the form Ben had just filled out. “What happened this time?”

Lara tried not to grimace from the pain. It felt like one of her ribs was broken. “I yanked too hard on the door of that old shed in back we’re trying to convert into a garage and it gave way.” The lie came easily.

About the Author:
Originally from Carrollton, Illinois, author/agent/publisher Barbara Casey attended the University of North Carolina, N.C. State University, and N.C. Wesleyan College where she received a BA degree, summa cum laude, with a double major in English and history. In 1978 she left her position as Director of Public Relations and Vice President of Development at North Carolina Wesleyan College to write full time and develop her own manuscript evaluation and editorial service. In 1995 she established the Barbara Casey Agency and since that time has represented authors from the United States, Great Britain, Canada, and Japan. In 2014, she became a partner with Strategic Media Books, an independent nonfiction publisher of true crime, where she oversees acquisitions, day-to-day operations, and book production.

Ms. Casey has written over a dozen award-winning books of fiction and nonfiction for both young adults and adults. The awards include the National Association of University Women Literary Award, the Sir Walter Raleigh Literary Award, the Independent Publisher Book Award, the Dana Award for Outstanding Novel, the IP Best Book for Regional Fiction, among others. Two of her nonfiction books have been optioned for major films, one of which is under contract.

Her award-winning articles, short stories, and poetry for adults have appeared in both national and international publications including the North Carolina Christian Advocate Magazine, The New East Magazine, the Raleigh (N.C.) News and Observer, the Rocky Mount (N.C.) Sunday Telegram, Dog Fancy, ByLine, The Christian Record, Skirt! Magazine, and True Story. A thirty-minute television special which Ms. Casey wrote and coordinated was broadcast on WRAL, Channel 5, in Raleigh, North Carolina. She also received special recognition for her editorial work on the English translations of Albanian children’s stories. Her award-winning science fiction short stories for adults are featured in The Cosmic Unicorn and CrossTime science fiction anthologies. Ms. Casey's essays and other works appear in The Chrysalis Reader, the international literary journal of the Swedenborg Foundation, 221 One-Minute Monologues from Literature (Smith and Kraus Publishers), and A Cup of Comfort (Adams Media Corporation).

Ms. Casey is a former director of BookFest of the Palm Beaches, Florida, where she served as guest author and panelist. She has served as judge for the Pathfinder Literary Awards in Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Florida, and was the Florida Regional Advisor for the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators from 1991 through 2003. In 2018 Ms. Casey received the prestigious Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award and Top Professional Award for her extensive experience and notable accomplishments in the field of publishing and other areas. She makes her home on the top of a mountain in northwest Georgia with three cats who adopted her, Homer, Reese and Earl Gray - Reese’s best friend.


The book will be on sale for $0.99 during the tour.


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Monday, May 3, 2021

Imperfect Timing by Bobbie Candas - Book Blitz and Giveaway

 


This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Bobbie Candas will be awarding a $30 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner and one signed print copy of the book to another winner via rafflecopter during the tour (print book restricted to continental US only)


Time is ticking on this second chance at romance…

With a recent promotion and loads of confidence, Chloe Stevens has landed in sunny LA as a sales director for a leasing company. Quickly picking up on successful business strategies, Chloe also zeros in on a challenging romance option, Zane Shepard, an LA city planner. Chloe and Zane quickly discover an intriguing lust/love attraction, eventually transforming it into the perfect relationship.  

After a year, Chloe is ready to take the next step, cohabitation, but instead, Zane blindsides her with the unexpected news of a breakup.

After months of sleepless nights doubting herself, Chloe decides their breakup stemmed from the issue of bad timing; she was ready to commit and he wasn’t. Armed with her theory of choosing future relationships based on matching timelines, Chloe packs up her damaged heart and moves home to Dallas.  She quickly lassos a new love interest, Trey Morgan; a boyfriend with good timing who’s ready to take the plunge.

Twenty years later, Chloe’s world unravels when she discovers her marriage to Trey is riddled with infidelity and lies. Taking on a new job, she’s forced to confront her past and rebuild the confidence she had in spades when she was younger. Unexpectedly, she has a chance to take a second stab at romance, but finds her good timing mantra severely tested.

Read an Excerpt

I tried to resurrect our happiest moments. It was probably right after I turned twenty-eight. Trey and I were surprised at how quickly I got pregnant.  My labor had been intense, almost twenty-four hours of surging pain, coming, going and then relentlessly returning in a more ferocious onslaught. Trey was my champion through the struggle, holding my hand, joking with the nurses, encouraging me, bringing ice chips, making me laugh, playing my favorite songs to distract me.  He stuck by me at my worst and was there for the big reveal.


I still remembered his excited words. “Sweet baby Jesus, Chloe, she’s coming in for a landing. It’s her head.  Just a little more. It’s happening, it’s happening. You’re awesome, doing fantastic! She’s so beautiful, so tiny.”  

Then he was crying.  Tall, burly Trey was crying like a baby, and our soft, sweet smelling pink bundle of a daughter was wailing, as a newborn should. I cried out of relief and my OB nurse and doctor wept from relief.  It was one noisy, joyful, wet room. Happy oozed from every pore of my being and I knew Trey was in the same state of mind as we held our daughter, gazing down on the miniature oval wrinkled face, surrounded by wisps of light hair. She cemented us and our marriage in that moment. There’d been uncertainties before, but we now knew we were in it together; a strong binding force brought about by a tiny, fragile person.

About the Author

I'm a Texas girl: grew up in San Antonio, went to school at UT in Austin, and settled in Dallas where I raised a husband, two kids and a few cats. My husband and cats will probably disagree on who raised who, but I'm a sucker for a robust discussion. 

For years I've been involved in retail management, but have also really enjoyed writing, taking deep dives into the lives of my characters. When you can pry my fingers off the keyboard, I've been known to imbibe in a few glasses of wine and have been spotted forking into some decadent desserts while gathering with friends and family. I enjoy shopping, usually on the hunt for apparel with a weakness for shoes, and will frequently jump at the opportunity taking an unexpected trip to a far-away place.

In addition, there’s always time for reading. I keep a stack of novels ready and waiting on my night stand, with a few tapping their toe in my Kindle as well. I bounce around genres, snoop around the best-seller lists, and on the ready for a good recommendation.



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