Friday, November 30, 2012

AUTHOR INTERVIEW/GIVEAWAY: Beg for Mercy by Shannon Dermott



Blurb: 

 Everyone dreams of that first kiss. Of that magic moment when your lips finally meet those of that special person you’ve waited your whole life for. A little awkward, a little scary, a little hot and every bit amazing. We speculate that the whole world will shake and time will just stop. No one, however, ever imagines that kiss would be lethal. 

Sixteen year old Mercy Moore's life got more than just complicated. The kiss that originally could have meant she would finally have a boyfriend, now was the kiss that could have very nearly ended his life. A small detail her mother conveniently never told her will take her life for an abrupt u-turn. Dating, no love, was now completely and utterly impossible. 

But life, however cruel, goes on. Far too soon for her taste, Mercy finds herself at a party with the elite students of her school and her best friend. And of all things, playing a stupid game that could very well mean the death of someone in that small room. If it were not for her best friend, the hottest guys in school, and a small need to fit in, she may have been able to escape the disaster that was to come. Her worst nightmare, her personal curse, her very life, only gets dangerously worse. 

Author Interview:

My inspiration for Beg for Mercy in the Cambion series began when I was shopping anther book around. Even though there was a lot of positive feedback, there were no takers. The reason given to me multiple times was that market at the time was saturated with the paranormal being portrayed in my book even though it was in a new way. So I sat back to think about something not done before. 

And, although a succubus has been written about, it hadn’t been done in young adult (“YA”) at least not as the main character or topic. Mercy was born. I just thought it would be interesting to explore a teenage succubus. The next question was how to do a sex/lust demon it and keep it YA. Thus, Mercy couldn’t be full demon, so I made her a cambion, which is a half succubus/or incubi and half human. 

Now, what problem would a teenage girl full of hormones and an inner lust demon react in her human life? Generally speaking, when I write, I know my beginning and ending. I also know a few bumps in the road along the way. But then I let the characters go from there. 

Figuring a succubus would be beautiful and alluring, wouldn’t be interesting to see how she would react to multiple guys trying to get her attention? So I explored that. Later, I found that there is a double standard in books as well with girls and boys. Where hot boys in books can have girls falling all over them, some find that Mercy having multiple guys interested in her unrealistic. That perplexed me some. If she is a lust demon, it would stand to reason that many guys would want to date her. 

So in Beg for Mercy, we explore Mercy and how she handles being human and having an inner demon that controls her from time to time. And of course, someone is trying to kill her. I’m a hopeless romantic, so this story tends to lean more on romance than action but has the undercurrent of mystery. In the next book, Waiting for Mercy, there is more action and more questions answered. I’m in the middle of writing Angel of Mercy the next in the story, which will continue with action and solving a few open questions and should be out very soon. 

Thanks for having me and giving me the opportunity to share about my inspiration to this story. 

Author Bio: 

Shannon first love was reading, diving into other realities to explore and brave new worlds. To share her writing is the best experience of all. Her first series explores the life and trials of being Mercy Moore, a teenage cambion. When Shannon isn't writing she loves to shop and watch horror movies that make turning out the lights seem like a stupid idea. 

You can explore more about her at her website www.shannondermott.com. She can also be found on Facebook, Tumblr, and Twitter. 

GIVEAWAY: a Rafflecopter giveaway

COVER/EXCERPT REVEAL: Just for Fun by Rosalind James




Contemporary Romance
(Escape to New Zealand #4)
Date Published: 12/8/12

    

What if the person who broke your heart turned out to be the only one who could mend it?
 Nic Wilkinson is a responsible, organized, disciplined rugby player at the top of his game. Emma Martens is a sometimes-scattered, often-emotional, and always-broke would-be designer with a big chip on her shoulder where Nic’s concerned.
 They have no history together, except one perfect week. Nothing in common anymore, except the most important thing of all.
 Getting together again would be messy. Complicated. Scary. And, just maybe, worth every risk.




EXCERPT

“Mum!” Zack burst in through the front door. “It was brilliant!” He kicked his shoes off impatiently, dropped his rugby boots next to them before struggling out of his jacket. Nic followed him in, grabbed the jacket and hung it on the brightly painted rack next to the door when Zack would have dropped it on the floor. 
Emma reached out for a hug that, Nic saw, the boy was still willing to give his mother, at least here at home. Her eyes met Nic’s as she looked over her son’s head. How did she always look so soft? So . . . pettable? She was wearing another sweater, that was all, he told his troublesome libido. Another light, lacy one, prettily trimmed once again. A pale pink cardigan with pearly shell buttons, edged in cream, over a long stretchy top and leggings. She looked like an invitation to cuddle. Like the best blankie ever.
“Can Nic stay for dinner, Mum?” Zack asked excitedly, offering a welcome distraction from his wayward train of thought. “He could help me tell you all the things we did. We’re having spaghetti!” he told Nic. “It’s really good.”
“Can’t, mate. Sorry,” Nic put in hastily at Emma’s instinctive shake of the head. “But I’ll have a glass of water, if one’s on offer.”
“Sit down,” Emma told him. “Please.” 
Nic slipped off his own shoes before heading to the couch with Zack. “Cheers,” he said as she came back from the kitchen to hand each of them a glass, then took her own seat in a small armchair next to the couch, the only other option the little room offered.
“You look tired,” she said abruptly. “And bruised. Are you OK?”
“Just a bit confused on the sleep schedule, still,” Nic admitted. “I took a wee pill on the flight home, but it never works that well.”
“It’s a long way, Mum,” Zack put in. “South Africa’s really far.”
Nic took a long drink of the cold water, looked around for something to set the glass on. “Coaster?”
“Just put it down,” Emma told him. 
“Don’t want to spoil this,” he said, looking more closely at the coffee table. The simple rectangle had been transformed into a forest of ferns, with native birds peeping out from underneath fronds, perched in trees. The parson-throated tui making a meal of red fruit, the colorful, stumpy takahe on the forest floor, tiny fantails darting overhead. 
“You can’t,” Emma assured him. “It’s all enamels. Everything in this house is pretty indestructible.”
“Did you find the ruru yet?” Zack asked him, leaning forward.
“Don’t tell me,” Nic said. “Let me look.” Zack watched him eagerly as he searched and finally pointed triumphantly to a notch in a tree where the owl blended into the bark. “There.”
“You did this too, eh,” he asked Emma. “Nice.”
“I did everything. That’s my decorating theme. Things I made.”
“I like it,” he assured her. The warm colors of the lounge seemed to cocoon them. Two walls were a rich caramel, the others a warm yellow. She didn’t even paint every wall in a room the same color, he realized. Well, at least in the kitchen it was all the same. Purple. He wondered what color her bedroom was. How it looked. And found himself wishing, against every better impulse, that he could see it.




Rosalind James is the author of the Kindle bestseller Just This Once and the three subsequent books in the Escape to New Zealand series. She is a former marketing executive who has lived all over the United States and in a number of other countries, traveling with her civil engineer husband. Most recently, she spent several years in Australia and New Zealand, where she fell in love with the people, the landscape, and the culture of both countries.
Visit www.rosalindjames.com to listen to the songs from the books, follow the characters on their travels, watch funny and fascinating New Zealand and rugby videos, and learn about what's new!


Contact Links





Monday, November 26, 2012

BLOG TOUR: The Three Lost Kids & The Christmas Curse by Kimberly Kinrade








BLURB:


Christmas everyday sounds like the best thing ever to Bella and her sisters. But when a special Wishing Stone grants her heart's desire, The Three Lost Kids discover the curse hidden in the wish.

Now they have to stop Christmas no matter what--even if that means ending up on Santa's Naughty List.

Will the girls learn the true meaning of Christmas and find a way to break the curse? Or will they be stuck in their self-created Jingle Bells Nightmare forever?

REVIEW BY Arianna, age 9 years, 11 months

SPOILER ALERT:

In this book the three sisters, Bella, Lexie and Maddie are having a horrible Christmas. They are not getting to do what they want. They go caroling, eat turkey, and do other boring things. Then it is present time and Bella gets a wishing stone that she does not think is magical. Bella wishes for Christmas everyday, but she does not think that her wish will affect or do anything. The next day she wakes up and finds her wish came true! Everyone gets what they want! The next day the same thing happens. The girls play, go caroling, eat turkey and open presents. This cycle keeps on repeating every day. One day the girls decide that enough is enough, and they break the curse by being helpful and giving to others.

My favorite part of the book was when the girls broke the curse because they can be happy again. I give this book 5 out of 5 stars and I think that ages 7 and up should read this book. It is a great Christmas story and shows the powerful effect that a giving heart can have.   

BIO:

Kimberly Kinrade was born with ink in her veins and magic in her heart. She writes fantasy and paranormal stories for children, YA and adults and still believes in magic worlds. Check out her YA paranormal novels Forbidden Mind and Forbidden Fire and her illustrated children's fantasy chapter books Lexie World, and Bella World, all on Amazon.


She lives with her three little girls who think they're ninja princesses with super powers, her two dogs who think they're humans and her husband, also known as the sexy Russian Prince, who is the love of her life and writing partner.




For a list of her books, check out: http://Amazon.com/author/kimberlykinrade
For kids and parents of young kids, join the Lost Kids at http://ThreeLostKids.com

BUY NOW LINK:


The Three Lost Kids & The Christmas Curse


                Amazon: http://amzn.to/Qv59Pj

                B&N: http://bit.ly/WyhfZu                            
                Kobo: http://bit.ly/UfmGdq
                Smashwords: http://bit.ly/10urr4r
                BookieJar: http://bit.ly/Tcci2Z


ONLINE LINKS:


  Website  http://KimberlyKinrade.com 
 Twitter: @KimberlyKinrade

  Facebook: /KimberlyKinrade

 Three Lost Kids website: http://ThreeLostKids.com
AUTHOR PAGES:


·         Amazon: http://amzn.to/10usgtP
·         B&N: http://bit.ly/10dRI7E
·         iTunes: http://bit.ly/RUbK2G
·         Kobo: http://bit.ly/T4ILrK
·         Smashwords: http://bit.ly/TcddR9
·         BookieJar: http://bit.ly/TccXl6


   GIVEAWAY:

    

All Prizes are being given away during the Release day event on Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/events/472846019405495


Look for the original Three Lost Kids Trilogy--Lexie World, Bella World and Maddie World--if you like enchanted Dragons, Fairies, and more adventures through magical worlds with great life lessons for kids!


launching November 26th through Evolved Publishing