Blog Tour: Destiny of the Queen (The Brajj #3) by Jacqueline Patricks #scifi #romance #giveaway

This is my stop during the blog tour for Destiny of the Queen by Jacqueline Patricks. This blog tour is organized by Lola's Blog Tours. The blog tour runs from 29 May till 11 June. See the tour schedule here.


Story Inspiration
Story inspiration has always come easily to me. I’ve always had vivid dreams, and I used to make up stories in my head and sometimes acted them out. Eventually, I decided to write down my ideas.
I’ve been an avid reader, and I make sure to read across genres. I read anything that catches my attention and all types of nonfiction for research and enjoyment. It’s important to put a lot of data in your head so you can draw from the information. I’ve studied creative writing for decades and
I’m a firm believer in the power of the human subconscious, which is why I’m a panster writer. I don’t outline. My research is done as needed as I write, and I keep running notes throughout the chapters all to help keep my subconscious engaged. My mind is constantly aware of new ideas and connections around me, things to incorporate in existing stories or ways to spin old ideas.
Currently, I have twelve different stories in various stages of completion. They’re always in my mind, buzzing and prodding me to be written. I have to write the stories that roll around in my mind all the time, so for me, inspiration is more of a compulsion.

***

Destiny of the Queen (The Brajj #3)
By Jacqueline Patricks
Genre: Science Fiction Romance
Age category: Adult
Release Date: 6 May, 2017

Blurb:
Can a goddess find redemption? Can a soldier find purpose?

When you think all is lost,
When you believe life is meaningless,
Sometimes your destiny is revealed.

If you’re willing to see the signs,
And brave enough to fight,
Sometimes you can change worlds.

Rejoin Cass, Jeamon, Lewis, and Ta'mat as they deal with the ramifications of Ta'mat's insanity and General Neville's betrayal. The few Brajj remaining with Cass and Jeamon are now under Dr. Saniya's control.

Meanwhile, a world away, Captain Lewis and Ta'mat struggle with their strange bond inside his mind as they unravel the mystery of their new circumstances. Where did Ta'mat's wormhole transport them? Why? Is there some greater destiny unfolding? Where does freewill end and destiny begin?

The stunning conclusion to the Brajj trilogy!

You can find Destiny of the Queen on Goodreads

You can buy Destiny of the Queen here:
- Amazon
- Barnes & Noble
- Kobo
- Smashwords
- Google Play
- iTunes

Short excerpt:

“You lost him?” Cass jumped from her chair and accidentally hit the round melamine table, tipping her paper cup of coffee on its edge.

“Lewis!” Jeamon smacked the table as he stood, finishing off the cup’s precarious balance. A river of brown liquid spilled over the edge of the table, splashing onto the floor.

Lars threw his full cup across the room. Coffee exploded against the vending machines and the ubiquitous white wall behind it.

Mathews sulked in her chair, arms crossed, and chin to her chest. “Figures.”

Dr. Saniya sighed and bowed her head. “I understand how distressing this must be for all of you.”

Lars and Mathews exchanged pissed off looks while Cass sputtered and Jeamon growled.

Lunging at Dr. Saniya, Lars said, “No, doc, I really don’t think you do. We’ve been stuck in here for hours, then you come tell us you lost our captain?”

###

Earlier books in this series!

Dreams of the Queen (The Brajj #1) by Jacqueline Patricks

Dr. Cass Baros is haunted by dreams of an alien world...
...and will do anything to find it.

Links:
- Goodreads
- Amazon
- B&N
- Kobo
- Smashwords
- Google Play
- iTunes

Nightmares of the Queen (The Brajj #2) by Jacqueline Patricks

Their love will be tested by betrayal and deceit.

Links:
- Goodreads
- Amazon
- B&N
- Kobo
- Smashwords
- Google Play
- iTunes

About the Author:
Nominated by The Author Show as Top Female Author 2017, PAN member of the Romance Writers Association, a volunteer with Houston’s Writespace, and a winner of the Seal of Good Writing from the IndiePENdents for her first published novel, Dreams of the Queen, Jacqueline Patricks’ passion for writing began early in life. Before she published, however, Jacqueline traveled a winding path through the U.S. Army, college, over twenty years in 911 as a paramedic, professional teaching, and all the exciting adventures in between. She currently resides with her husband and four parrots and hopes to meet Mark Twain someday since he understands parrot people.

“She was not quite what you would call refined. She was not quite what you would call unrefined. She was the kind of person that keeps a parrot.” – Mark Twain

You can find and contact Jacqueline Patricks here:
- Website
- Facebook
- Twitter
- Goodreads
- Amazon
- Newsletter

Giveaway
There is a tour wide giveaway for the blog tour of Destiny of the Queen. One winner will win their choice of an e-copy from one of Jacqueline Patricks's books (INT)

For a chance to win, enter the giveaway below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour: The Departed by Kristy Cooper #YA #dystopia #giveaway via @kristycooperYA

Where I got the idea for The Departed.

A lot of people have asked me where I got the idea for a book about a fake rapture. I have always been fascinated by the idea of the rapture, and I've met a lot of people over the years, who seemed to not only believe it was going to happen soon, but also wanted it to happen as soon as possible. I even had a friend in high school tell me there was no point in recycling, because she was expecting to be brought up to heaven very soon so there was no need to preserve or reuse our natural resources. That was twenty years ago . . .

I began to imagine what it would be like for someone to fake the rapture and how they could convince so many others to go along with them. I always saw this story with teenagers being the main characters, because I still read a lot of YA and I feel like this type of narrative made the most sense for me as a young adult novel. I've always considered it a dystopia, but I know it's not necessarily one in the traditional sense.

This story germinated for years until I finally sat down and made myself write it. When I began figuring out how the entire conspiracy worked, I realized there were actually several layers to unveil for the reader about who was behind it and what their motivations were. At that point, I knew this story was a series and there were a lot of crazy things that Gwen, Isaiah, Mindy, and the rest of my characters could discover on their journeys for the truth.

The Departed

by Kristy Cooper

Genre: YA Dystopian

Release Date: July 6th 2016

Summary from Goodreads: 

What if someone tried to fake the rapture?

When hundreds of thousands of people disappear in the middle of the night, including sixteen-year-old Gwen's best friend Lana, no one knows why. Some believe they were taken in the rapture, while others are convinced that it can't be true. Doomsday prophecies abound that involve horrifying tales of plague, famine, earthquakes, and more.

At first, Gwen doesn't know what to think. While she is busy mourning Lana, many people around her are getting taken in by the cultish True Believers Temple, including Gwen's dad and her friend Mindy. It is clear that more and more people are going to be pressured to join this church, as it starts taking over the media and the government, gaining zealous followers all over the world.

Then Gwen starts receiving emails from Lana. She claims to have been forced into hiding with thousands of others in an underground compound. Gwen is convinced the emails are real and the only other person who also believes her is Isaiah, her moody crush. Together they resolve to find out where everyone is hiding and help set Lana free.

Add to Goodreads

Buy Links:

Amazon

About the Author

Kristy Cooper found herself often contemplating unusual what-if scenarios and knew it was time to start writing them down. She worked as a librarian for years and is now busy raising small children and writing YA novels. Stay up to date with her books at kristycooper.com.

Author Links:

Website│Goodreads│Twitter│Facebook

GIVEAWAY:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour Organized by:

YA Bound Book Tours

The Big Reveal: Pets In Space #scifi #romance #charity #anthology

I’m very excited to be a guest of the amazing Pippa Jay today to make this special announcement along with three big reveals—cover, blurbs and trailer video!—of an exciting new science fiction romance anthology.

When I was originally asked if I wanted to be a part of this amazing project, how could I say no? It combines two of my very favorite things—pets and space--and in addition will help support a very worthwhile cause.

Ready for the big unveiling?

Pets in Space

Out October 11th, 2016

Even an alien needs a pet...

Join the adventure as nine pet loving sci-fi romance authors take you out of this world and pull you into their action-packed stories filled with suspense, laughter, and romance. The alien pets have an agenda that will capture the hearts of those they touch. Follow along as they work side by side to help stop a genetically-engineered creature from destroying the Earth to finding a lost dragon; life is never the same after their pets decide to get involved. Can the animals win the day or will the stars shine just a little less brightly? New York Times, USA TODAY, Award Winning, and Bestselling authors have nine original, never-released stories that will capture your imagination and help a worthy charity. Come join us as we take you on nine amazing adventures that will change the way you look at your pet!

10% of profits from the first month go to Hero-Dogs.org. Hero Dogs raises and trains service dogs and places them free of charge with US Veterans to improve quality of life and restore independence.

A MATE FOR MATRIX: CYBORG PROTECTION UNIT

By S.E. Smith (New York Times/USA TODAY Bestselling Author) Matrix Roma is a member of the elite Zion military Cyborg Protection Unit. Matrix gets more than he bargains for when his cyborg partner, a hybrid Wolfhound named K-Nine, goes missing and ends up finding a mate for Matrix in the middle of a deadly mission on an unknown planet called Earth.

STRAY

By Susan Grant (New York Times/USA Today Bestselling, and RITA Award Winning Author) Interplanetary Marine Lt. Lukas Frank has a lot in common with a street dog named Bang-Bang; they both started off as scrappy orphans fighting to survive—and beat the odds. Things change when Bang-Bang leads Lukas to starpilot Capt. Carlynn Riga. The tough war hero learns what it means to surrender — his heart. Lukas’s struggles with PTSD threaten to tear the three of them apart, but nothing threatens them more than when Carlynn goes missing on a mission. Can a scarred marine and his unlikely canine partner find Carlynn and bring her home, or will he lose everything he’s finally found worth fighting for?

SPARK OF ATTRACTION

By Cara Bristol (USA TODAY Bestselling Author) Memory: intact. Cognitive function: enhanced. Emotion: erased. After becoming a cyborg, Captain Dante Stone didn’t think he’d ever feel again, until a traumatized young woman and a ball of synthetic fur named Sparky helped him to love.

STAR CRUISE: STOWAWAY

By Veronica Scott Cargo Master Owen Embersson is shocked when the Nebula Zephyr’s ship’s cat and her alien sidekick, Midorri, alert him to the presence of a stowaway. He has no idea of the dangerous complications to come – nor does he anticipate falling hard for the woman whose life he now holds in his hands. Life aboard the Nebula Zephyr has just become more interesting – and deadly.

THE REAL DRAGON

By Pauline Baird Jones Emma Standish didn’t think her day could get any worse. Her dad is marrying his boss, her dragon suddenly came back talking and typing, and it’s her fault the Earth, or at least ten square miles of Texas, is going to be destroyed. That’s what happens when you forget something very, very important. Luckily for her, she’s got the love of her life that she can’t remember and her dragon by her side. Who needs to worry when you’re having a day like this?

STARDOG

By Laurie A. Green Navigator Taro Shall has a mission no one wants – find a way to eradicate snakes on a starship. He never expects to find the answer to his problem in a charming street vendor named Adini. His already unusual mission becomes more complicated when he suddenly acquires an adorable StarDog that soon sweeps him and Adini into the maw of a brewing insurrection.

SPIKE

By Alexis Glynn Latner Young Roboticist Ten Jaxdown has to deploy, and possibly sacrifice, the swarm of investigative robots that he has invented and cares about more than anything else in the star system. It may be the only hope for those depending on him and his robots to save them. Yet, even as frantic preparations for the unprecedented deep-space rescue mission are set in motion, it could all be threatened by sabotage. Anastasia Steed is an intrepid young mission designer. She steps forward with an idea that can improve the odds of the mission. Neither she nor Ten expect the assistance they receive from a very unusual pet. A pet that will bring together two alienated human beings who didn’t realize they needed each other. Can Ten and Anastasia discover who is behind the sabotage, save the mission, and discover what is evolving between them? With a little bit of unusual help, anything is possible.

SPACE RANGER

By Lea Kirk Graig Roble is the Senior Commander of security for the Guardian Fleet. His expertise as a weapons specialist and combat master is his world, what he was born to do – or so he thought until he finds his resolve and focus inexplicably wavering. Even returning to his position aboard the Atlantis can’t save him; if anything, it has left him questioning his own motives. He never thought that could happen until he met Simone Campbell. Simone's focus is on her home world - Earth. She thought her life was full with her research as a botanist. After all, she always believed that helping the people of her world become self-sufficient should take all of her concentration - except it doesn't. There is one man that keeps pulling her attention, and her heart, away from her job. Graig's gift of a puppy to keep her company does more than that, it keeps him in her dreams. How can such a simple gift bring her comfort and make her long for more? Graig and Simone are about to find out that sometimes love can blossom from the smallest, furriest ties.

ESCAPE RUN

By Carysa Locke Teegan’s job as a hunter is to track down the Talented, those driven insane by their gifts. She and Ember, her psychically gifted fox, have tracked dozens of people for Cole, the man who works to rehabilitate and recover these troubled souls. When one of Cole’s most dangerous patients escapes, Teegan and Ember are on a hunt that could prove fatal if she doesn’t keep her focus on her mission. Unfortunately, Cole is proving one distraction that might make this her last hunt if she can’t do that. Can Teegan keep her heart and mind in the game long enough to save an entire planet’s population, or will her distraction lead to heartache – and possibly death for everyone?

Want to Know More or Chat with Our Authors on Your Blog?
Please feel free to contact each author direct (just click their names above to go to their websites) or contact Narelle Todd at GetMyBookOutThere.com for more information. We would love your help in raising as much as possible for our charity, Hero-Dogs.org, by helping us spread the word about this anthology.

Many, many thanks to Pippa Jay for hosting our big reveal today.

Author Bio

Laurie A. Green is a three-time RWA Golden Heart® finalist, an award-winning author, and a science fiction romance enthusiast who founded the SFR Brigade community of writers, which is now nearly 900 members strong.

She confesses to being an Andromeda Galaxy groupie and would someday love to own a vacation home on Mars or Titan. She's enthused to be a part of this wonderful anthology mash-up of two of her favorite things--pets and space.

Her family includes her husband, David, four dogs, three cats and several horses, all who reside on a ranch in beautiful New Mexico. A former military budget director and reserve state trooper, she now spends her time writing, networking, researching, enjoying the Southwestern lifestyle and, naturally, stargazing and daydreaming about other worlds.

Website  [ http://www.laurieagreen.com/  ]
Facebook  [ https://www.facebook.com/Laurie-A-Green-139849829386292/  ]
Twitter  [ https://twitter.com/SFRLaurie ]
Twitter Handle:  @SFRLaurie

Guest Post - Playlist for The Water Rushes by S.McPherson #YA #fantasy #romance #giveaway via @smcphersonbooks

I’d like to start this post off by saying: I love music; deeply, madly, truly. Music is life. Every chord strums a memory. Every note: a piece of soul. So when embracing my love for writing, it was brilliant being able to connect the two thus leading to a playlist I constantly add to whilst putting together the epic fantasy saga: The Water Rushes.

As the list is quite long, I have narrowed it down to my top ten most listened to tracks whilst writing. You might notice a recurring artist…just maybe…

Ed Sheeran - Thinking Out Loud
Ed Sheeran - All of the Stars
Ed Sheeran - I See Fire
Jorge Mendez - Cold
Lonesome Animals - Sunrise
Ramin Djawadi- Light of the Seven (Game of Thrones)
One Direction - Little Things
Paramore – Ain’t it Fun
Two Steps From Hell – False Kings
Tyrone Wells - Running Around in My Dreams
Birdy- Tee-Shirt
Yep, I know I said top ten but I couldn’t narrow the list down anymore!! They’re a very varied collection of songs that suited different scenes throughout the first two books in the saga. Hope you enjoy.

Caught in the Ripples (The Water Rushes #2)

by S. McPherson

Genre: YA Fantasy

Release Date: July 31st 2016

Summary:

When the Exlathars escaped the battle that night, their silhouetted figures merged with the sky, their wings swatted at stars and the Coltis people were too busy celebrating their victory to realise that there wasn’t one.

Now the Exlathars are back. And they bring with them remnants of everybody’s past.

Back in England, Dezaray discovers just how deep Coldivor’s connection to Earth really goes. But she cannot change their past and she cannot see how to alter their future. So it seems the ripples that shake the surface are only a glimpse of what’s brewing beneath.

'Caught in the Ripples' delves deeper into the Water Rushes saga, answers questions the first book raised and plunges you into an ocean of intrigue and magic. 

They thought the Elenfar was the end…turns out it was only the beginning.

Add to Goodreads

At Water’s Edge (The Water Rushes #1) on Goodreads

At Water’s Edge Buy Links:

Amazon

About the Author

S. McPherson is a young British expat living in Dubai and working as a kindergarten teacher. When she is not at work immersed in a world of imagination and fantasy created by the children, she is immersed in her own worlds of imagination and fantasy at home, dreaming up tales and writing them down. 'At Water’s Edge' is S. McPherson’s debut novel and the first in the romantic, fantasy series, 'The Water Rushes'.

Author Links:

Website│Goodreads│Twitter

GIVEAWAY:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour Organized by:

YA Bound Book Tours

Guest Post by Bryony Pearce #YA #scifi via @bryonypearce

Why I love science fiction and why I write it

By Bryony Pearce

When I was growing up there were two bookcases in the spare room full of my dad’s books. He had the full PERN series by Anne McCaffrey, Harry Harrison’s Stainless Steel Rat, Frank Herbert’s Dune, Asimov’s Foundation and books by Ursula Le Guin, Peter Hamilton, Robert Silverberg, Roger Zelazny, Arthur C Clarke, Philip K Dick, Robert A Heinlein, Orson Scott Card, Larry Niven and many more. It was a treasure trove.

The ideas that these authors used set my imagination on fire. This wasn’t writing in a familiar setting, somehow these writers had created entire worlds, with their own civilisations, governments, natural laws, science and nature. They had invented technology that didn’t exist yet – and it made sense. They had explored what it would be like to meet aliens, to deal with life on another planet, or in space. This wasn’t just writing stories; this was universe-building. I was awestruck by their genius.

It wasn’t just the world-building that gripped me, it was the issues that these writers were dealing with. First contact with aliens: an analogy for how Western civilisations deal with other cultures. A robot revolution: man’s relationship with technology and ‘just because we can, doesn’t mean we should’. These books dealt with politics, gender issues, religion, racism. They worked through the possible ethics of new inventions, the things that could go wrong in the case of an outbreak, what we could do to prevent war, the list goes on. These books made me think in a way that I’d never been made to think before. I was in love.

When I came to write my own novels, I started in the world I knew, but added supernatural elements (Angel’s Fury). I was still learning, I wasn’t yet brave enough to try and do what my writing heroes had done – create a whole world from nothing. Once I had learned how to write, I began to teach myself how to put a world together.

My second book, The Weight of Souls was set in London, but with elements of Ancient Egypt. Phoenix Rising was set on a post-apocalyptic earth.

Then my imagination was caught by multi-universe theory and so I wrote a book, Wavefunction,  about a boy who can jump between worlds. In that book I was able to come up with a different, earth-related, world for every jump he made. I was able to consider what the earth would be like if we had completely destroyed the ozone layer. Ask myself what if the polar ice caps had completely melted? What if Christianity had never emerged? What if world war II had never happened? What if the Cuban Missile crisis had resulted in nuclear war?

I had a lot of fun. Science fiction had gripped me, just as it had when I was growing up.

My most recent novel, Windrunner’s Daughter, is finally set wholly on a different planet: Mars. I had as much fun doing the research as I did writing the story.

I researched the planet of Mars, its terrain, gravity, light levels, orbit, moons and so on, I researched terraforming – the possibilities and ethics and I used this to create challenges for my characters.

Story remains key. Character and plot still drive my novels, but now I am writing in the way I always hoped that I would when I was a teenager and in awe of my dad’s bookshelves. I am world building.

***

Windrunner's Daughter

by Bryony Pearce

Genre: YA Sci-fi

Release Date: February 4th 2016

Xist Publishing

Summary from Goodreads:

A sabotaged colonization attempt leaves the last humans in the universe stranded on Mars. Braving a half-terraformed atmosphere, terrifying indigenous species, and a colony government that is openly hostile, a young girl named Wren must defy tradition to save her mother and perhaps, every human left.

It is forbidden for women to steal the wings that allow a select group of runners to carry messages and goods between colonies. It is forbidden to cross the wastes with a sand storm on the horizon and it is certainly forbidden to share the secrets of the windrunners with those who spend their entire lives in the biospheres.

But what choice does she have?

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Buy Links:

Amazon│Barnes & Noble│iTunes│Google Play

About the Author

I am an author of YA thrillers and science fiction.

Angel's Fury (winner of the Leeds Book Award and the Cheshire Schools Book Award),The Weight of Souls, published in 2013, Phoenix Rising, published 2015 (shortlisted for Cheshire Schools Book Award and Wirral Paperback of the Year), Phoenix Burning, March 2016, Windrunner's Daughter, February 2016 and Wavefunction, April 2016.

Read the first chapters here.

Author Links:

Website│Goodreads│Twitter│Facebook

Book Tour Organized by:

YA Bound Book Tours

Guest Post - Inspiration for Rising Tides by @katyhaye #YA #postapoc #giveaway @YABoundToursPR

Let’s eat a 100-year-old parsnip: Inspiration for the world of Rising Tides

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2004/dec/02/1

The original idea for Rising Tides was triggered a piece about Scott’s Hut in the Antarctic, which has been left  for a century as he and his fellow explorers last used it. The link above tells you about Alan Gibbs who visited the hut and spotted a dried parsnip which had fallen out of a rusted tin, reconstituted itself in a puddle of chilly water and transpired to be perfectly edible – nearly 100 years after it had first been grown. There was another piece (I’ve lost the reference, unfortunately) about another explorer who brought back a tin of rhubarb left in Scott’s Hut and baked a perfectly edible pie from it.

The idea that food grown and prepared now could still be edible a century or more into the future set my imaginative cogs whirring – how would humans manage after a total collapse of the eco-system when this food was the only thing left: how might they agree to share (or not?).

I freely admit I’ve taken liberties – a large part of the durability of these foods must be due to the sub-zero temperatures they were also kept in. In the flooded world of City, however, nautilus men need to dive in order to salvage these tinned foods, which frigid water would make difficult to impossible. So I’ve used artistic licence to allow the tinned food to remain in tact, whether or not that would actually be the scientific case. Some foods would undoubtedly last better than others (acidic food such as tomatoes probably wouldn’t be a good choice after 100 years since they’d have reacted with the metal tins), so I have allowed that to be reflected in the choices my characters make – when they have a choice of what to eat.

Here’s a scene from the book where Cosimo dives in order to find food for himself and Libby:

The lurch of the boat was my only warning before Cosimo clambered back on board. There was a clatter as he tipped his finds onto the deck. Half a dozen tins covered in grey slime. “Breakfast, your Highness.” My hunger vanished. He leaned back over the side of the boat, washing the tins in the sea.

My stomach rumbled and I ventured to the cabin to see what delicacies he’d found.

Cosimo had chosen sweetcorn. The other open tins held pineapple, mashed peas and minced meat. I wished, as I did most times I set to cook a meal, that it was possible to know what was within the tins before we opened them. I guessed the Old Ones hadn’t imagined their labels might need to be waterproof.

The pineapple would taste of nothing more than the tin it had been encased in, so I took the minced meat from the ledge inside the cabin, found a fork and returned to the deck. I sat at the back of the boat, close enough to him to watch what he did with the boat’s controls without being so close he might get presumptuous ideas.

 ***

Want to read more? You can get a copy of Rising Tides as a paperback, buy for your Kindle or download with Kindle Unlimited by using this (universal) link: http://authl.it/B01FHXD8HG?d

Rising Tides

by Katy Haye

Genre: YA Post-Apocalyptic

Release Date: June 20th 2016

Summary from Goodreads:

The truth won’t stay submerged forever.

City is the last civilised place left on a drowned Earth, a floating town built from metal and plastic from the Time Before. It’s the only home doctor's daughter Libby Marchmont has ever known or wanted – until her father helps the wrong patient and she's forced to flee.

Cosimo came to City for one reason. Then he should have vanished back to his people on the Wastes. But what about his promise to Libby’s father?

Stranded in the middle of the sea, can the two enemies learn to trust each other? And can they survive long enough to uncover the truth: City isn’t the safe haven Libby always believed it to be … 

Add to Goodreads

You can get a copy of Rising Tides in paperback or for your Kindle (to buy, or with Kindle Unlimited) using this link: http://authl.it/B01FHXD8HG?d

About the Author

Katy Haye spends most of her time in imaginary worlds - her own or someone else's. She has a fearsome green tea habit, a partiality for dark chocolate brazils and a fascination with the science of storytelling.

Author Links:

Website│Twitter│Facebook│Goodreads

GIVEAWAY

Win a book-lover's survival kit.

Your survival kit is as follows:

1. An Amazon voucher for £10/$15US/$20CAN, AUS, NZ. Load up your Kindle with books to read, while shops remain.

2. A solar charger so when the national grid fails you can still read your books.

3. A mirror. When you are stranded in the open sea you can signal for help by reflecting the sun's light. Alternatively, if you have no wish to be rescued because you still have reading to do, flip the mirror over to depict the slogan, "Go away I'm reading."

4. Ribbon bookmark. If all your books have been washed away by the rising seas, this can be rolled up and packed into the neck of a cut-open bottle and will double-up as a water filter. Note: this will not desalinate salt water, sorry.

5. A bag to put the last of your belongings into. DO NOT LEAVE THIS BEHIND.

Check out the ways to win with Rafflecopter.

Blog Tour Organized by:

YA Bound Book Tours

Forever and One Week: Guest Post by Caroline Cairn #paranormal #romance #giveaway #free

This is my stop during the blog tour for Forever and One Week by Caroline Cairn. This blog tour is organized by Lola's Blog Tours. The blog tour runs from 25 till 29 May, view the tour schedule here.

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When I began thinking of writing a paranormal romance story, I wanted to avoid the common elements I found in the genre. So my supernatural being would not be a warrior fighting a war against evil. There wouldn’t be any vampires or shifters. There wouldn’t be a destined mate, or a love triangle between special people. And the non-human traits of my characters wouldn’t take over their humanity.

I decided first to involve genies because those hadn’t been portrayed too often, but I also wanted a twist on the myth. So I mixed them with a more common supernatural being: a ghost, with a human past. I called the resulting entity Spirit.

Then the idea of this Spirit earning their salvation came to me when I realized that a lot of the books I had been reading at the time involved the woman being saved by the man, even when said woman seemed strong and witty enough not to need to be rescued.

I wanted my heroine to be the saviour, and I wanted her to do it without weapons or powers, but through sheer kindness. Sheer humanity.

Afterwards, since I live in the Highlands of Scotland, I looked into the Scottish Celtic history, and tried to find interesting facts, which, without revealing too much of the book, bear an influence on two of the recurring characters and are at the forefront of the origin of the Spirits of Saoradh. Hence why the word “Saoradh” is a Scottish Gaelic word, meaning “redemption”.

I introduced elements of guilt, of sentence and punishment, of good versus bad, and of reawakening. The Void was created to symbolize that realm between death and life, between guilt and salvation, between good and bad. A place of nothing and nowhere, similar in a way to Purgatory.

Last but not least, I wanted my villains to be multi-dimensional instead of pure evil, again because no one is all black or white, except in fairy tales and movies.

And so the world of the Spirits of Saoradh was born.

###

Start reading this series now for free!

Grab your free copy of Forever Hers on Amazon

Forever and One Week (Spirits of Saoradh #2)
by Caroline Cairn
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Age category: Adult
Release Date: 24 April, 2016

Blurb:
The Spirits of Saoradh, who carry the guilt of a crime they committed when they were alive, now spend their ghostly days in the Void, dark nothingness where time and space are distorted. Until they get bound to a human. As often as needed, that human can call them to the real world, ask them to grant a wish, then send them back to the Void. The Spirits also have to follow strict rules or be punished, unaware that they can earn their redemption through a selfless sacrifice.

Spirit Logan despises the obedience he has to show to his humans, and prefers the enjoyable solitude of the Void. For three years, he has managed to threaten them into severing their bond, thus having his memory wiped of their existence. Except his latest human, an emotionless woman with a secret past, isn’t scared of him. Worse, she doesn’t care about his ability to make wishes come true.

Tessa, a twenty-six-year-old nursery teacher in Fort William, Scotland, doesn’t expect a sullen ghost only she can see and touch to burst through her solid defences. Both dismayed and intrigued, she offers Logan a deal he can’t refuse: to live with her in the human world for one week, at the end of which she will agree to release him.

Slowly, Tessa braves through the safety of her detachment towards people to show Logan some kindness. But the more her feelings deepen, the more Logan increases his distance…

You can find Forever and One Week on Goodreads

You can buy Forever and One Week here:
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First book in the series:
Forever Hers (Spirits of Saoradh #1)
by Caroline Cairn
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Age category: Adult
Release Date: November 27, 2015

Blurb:
Feisty twenty-four-year old Holly, or Miss Greedy as her friends call her, receives a wooden cube as a gift from an enigmatic elderly lady who happens to be her mother’s new neighbour in Lossiemouth, a small Scottish fishing town. What she doesn’t expect, is for the cube to contain Blayne, a Spirit of Saoradh only she can see and touch.

Blayne is a playful, headstrong ghost with no recollection of his human past and an ability to grant Holly’s wishes whenever she calls for him — as long as said wishes don’t raise any questions from the public that is. So a shiny new car might be out of the question, but the possibility of a flat stomach, a consistently spotless house or a perfect daily hairstyle more than make up for it. Through their incessant banter, Holly and Blayne grow closer while fighting against their mutual attraction since they have no possible future together.

But when the painful reality of Blayne’s existence is revealed, Holly will realize that it’s not always the girl who needs to be saved.

You can find Forever Hers on Goodreads

You can grab your free copy of Forever Hers here:
- Amazon

About the Author:
Born and raised in France, Caroline Cairn studied hotel management before spending a couple of years in England, Ireland and Belgium. In 2001, she and her husband settled close to the Loch Ness monster in the Highlands of Scotland, and soon, two children and about thirteen fish joined them.
Dramatic scenes are still her favourite to work on, which is perhaps a reminiscence of her teenage years when every single ones of her stories had to end in epic tragedy (Shakespeare had nothing on her).
Thankfully, these days, she veers towards the happy-ever-after finale in a glorious orange and red sunset.

You can find and contact Caroline here:
- Website
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- Goodreads

Giveaway
There is a tour wide giveaway for the blog tour of Forever and One Week. One winner will win a print copy of both Forever Her and Forever and One Week by Caroline Cairn and some Scottish goodies.

For a chance to win, enter the rafflecopter below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway