Thursday, June 28, 2012

Daniel Armand - Adam Orser: Chronicles of Evolution - Excerpt



About the Book

Adam Orser: The Chronicles of Evolution


Book One in the Adam Orser Trilogy

A visitor in the celestial realm of interdimensional communication

Adam Orser seems to be a regular guy, leading a fairly successful life in Toronto as a psychologist with a loving girlfriend, Jazmin.

But there is nothing ordinary about Adam.

Fate interrupts his planned marriage proposal, and a serious car accident thrusts him into a metaphysical reality behind a deep coma that holds his physical body in check. Through an advanced system of training and evolution created by the celestial realm, Adam is called to a dangerous mission with profound implications for the world he knows, and life and death consequences for one missing nine-year old girl, who is no ordinary kidnapped child. Fantastical forces are at work on both sides of the veil between the world we recognize and those yet to be discovered.

Destiny compels Adam to freely choose the part he will play in a no-limits competition between good and evil. Questions of existence, causality, and truth converge as Adam struggles to find his way back to Jazmin and a life that will never be the same.

Paperback
Price: $17.95
Release: April 2, 2012
Buy Links: Amazon, Barnes & Noble

Excerpt

Chapter 2
The Proposition


"It’s gonna rain,” I said, looking out and up from my fourth-story office window in the Clemensdale Professional building. I was beginning to get a little “steamy” under the collar, primarily because I was not in the best of moods; but also, I had the morbid sensation that my life was very quickly heading nowhere. Apart from that, the erratic weather was going to ruin the outing Jazmin and I had planned. To be more precise, the Ontario Place visit, which Carly anxiously anticipated.

“Beatrice, do we have any more appointments scheduled for today?”

“No, Doctor, Mrs . Palmiero called and canceled her son’s four-thirty appointment.”

Naturally I thought. Why waste time and effort on a useless remedy? If Albert wasn’t ready to put away his childhood and begin accepting the challenges of adulthood, his world would still revolve around Power Rangers and Loony Tunes at sixteen or sixty-one. It’s not like I hadn’t tried reaching him. Lord knows, I’d practically exhausted my means. It’s just that every time I managed to get closer to him, he took a quick step back and built another wall defending the spot where he left behind.

“Beatrice, is Mr Towanna still scheduled for tomorrow?”

“Towanka. Yes, Doctor, he’s still scheduled for his nine o’clock.”

“Thank you, Beatrice.”

Marcel Towanka, twenty-one years old, and a construction worker by trade, was half French-Canadian, half Native Indian. He came to me one day with a very interesting proposition. According to this self-proclaimed “Dragon Chaser,” once, under the influence of drugs that helped him to “psychically travel,” he encountered a tribal ancestor known as a shaman. The grim elder warned Marcel of the dangerous path he had chosen. The shaman severely pointed out how their race was on the verge of extinction, and the young man’s negative conduct was helping to speed up the burn of their long-rooted heritage and proud millennial traditions.

That’s when this young native came to see me. He literally begged me to help him get reacquainted with his lost traits. It’s been nearly four months now since our first meeting, and I am proud—no, that’s not the right word—I am thrilled that Marcel Towanka has not consumed anything more stimulating than aspirin, or drunk anything more relaxing than herbal tea, for over two months now. As for his heritage, Marcel attends religious ceremonial rituals held biweekly on sacred conservation grounds, as well as taking part in Native Indian arts and crafts.

It is said that when a man’s future looks shaded with gloom, he should attempt turning over a new leaf. The way I see it, this young man, armed only with native courage and fueled entirely with compassion, had managed to turn over an entire season. Regarding my role in his quest for spiritual freedom, all I can say is that he is the artist, the master who, day by day, piece by piece, painstakingly chipped away at his monumental totem pole, in honor of the great warriors of the past and the ones yet to come. I, his humble assistant, merely swept away all the flying dirt and debris, clearing the path for all those who wish to come and see the work of a genius.

My time with Marcel is quickly coming to an end; although this man wishes to continue therapy, and I equally wish to continue to help him. I must honor him and let him go, for he no longer needs my help. Ironic though as it may seem, he never really did.


About the Author

Daniel Armand lives in Toronto, Ontario. His inspiration behind Adam Orser: Chronicles of Evolution originated during the summer of 1983, after a near death encounter offered an incredible insight into the obscured aspects of life, love, and the progression of the human spirit.

Daniel is currently working on the next novel of the Adam Orser saga. "I truly hope this novel will help inspire readers all over the globe, to embrace their spirituality. It is through clarity of mind and understanding that we may one day 'bloom' into harmony and unlock our limitless potential."



 




About the Blog Tour

Adam Orser: Chronicles of Evolution blog tour site
and
Tribute Books Blog Tours

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Freedom to Read Giveaway Hop

Congratulations to our winner!
luvs2read4fun [at] gmail [dot] com


Enter to win Until Next Time: The Angel Chronicles, Book 1 by Amy Lignor, a young adult ebook release from Tribute Books.


1) Click here to add Tribute Books' upcoming YA release, Owlet to your Goodreads to-read list.

2) Leave a comment with your email address.


***


Until Next Time: 
The Angel Chronicles, Book 1
by Amy Lignor


How does a girl choose between the one who steals her heart and the one who owns her soul?

Matt and Emily were created for a specific job. Raised and trained as the ultimate angel/warrior team, they are sent down to save, defend, judge and forgive, depending on the 'life' they've been assigned. What they don't realize is that the power of human emotions, such as love, anger, passion and fear can take over even the best of souls, causing them to make mistakes and follow paths that lead to confusion and heartache.

When the reason for their training is finally revealed, the angel/warrior team find themselves thrust into a world they know nothing about. Matt takes over the life of Daniel, a young man with a great deal of baggage. Emily becomes Liz, a girl living in a remote village who relies on nothing more than her own strength to survive. A violent storm erupts one night, and framed in the window of Liz's establishment is a frightening face. Let in by the soul of a Good Samaritan, the two visitors bring with them a past full of secrets that could literally change an angel's path and a warrior's plans.

From murder to redemption, this angel/warrior team must find a way to keep the faith they have in each other in a world that's ripping them apart.

http://www.the-angel-chronicles.com


Thursday, June 21, 2012

Booking Through Thursday

Booking Through Thursday

Q: Do you have a favorite quote from a book?

My quote is from The Lord Of The Rings

Gandalf: Always remember, Frodo, The Ring is trying to get back to its master. It wants to be found.

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Midsummer's Eve Giveaway Hop

Congratulations to our winner!
markella.whetzel [at] gmail [dot] com


Enter to win Until Next Time: The Angel Chronicles, Book 1 by Amy Lignor, a young adult ebook release from Tribute Books.


1) Click here to add Tribute Books' upcoming YA release, Back to Bataan to your Goodreads to-read list.

2) Leave a comment with your email address.


***


Until Next Time: 
The Angel Chronicles, Book 1
by Amy Lignor


How does a girl choose between the one who steals her heart and the one who owns her soul?

Matt and Emily were created for a specific job. Raised and trained as the ultimate angel/warrior team, they are sent down to save, defend, judge and forgive, depending on the 'life' they've been assigned. What they don't realize is that the power of human emotions, such as love, anger, passion and fear can take over even the best of souls, causing them to make mistakes and follow paths that lead to confusion and heartache.

When the reason for their training is finally revealed, the angel/warrior team find themselves thrust into a world they know nothing about. Matt takes over the life of Daniel, a young man with a great deal of baggage. Emily becomes Liz, a girl living in a remote village who relies on nothing more than her own strength to survive. A violent storm erupts one night, and framed in the window of Liz's establishment is a frightening face. Let in by the soul of a Good Samaritan, the two visitors bring with them a past full of secrets that could literally change an angel's path and a warrior's plans.

From murder to redemption, this angel/warrior team must find a way to keep the faith they have in each other in a world that's ripping them apart.

http://www.the-angel-chronicles.com


Friday, June 15, 2012

Feature& Follow

Feature & Follow

Q:   Happy Father's Day! Who is your favorite character in a book and Why?

My favorite book dad would have to be Charlie from the Twilight series, he had to put up with a lot going on.

Vanessa Morgan - Drowned Sorrow - Author Interview


Author Interview

1. Why did you choose this setting?
The imaginary village of Moonlight Creek - with its eerie lake and worn-out, musty buildings - is literally one of the characters in Drowned Sorrow; it's alive and breathing and it had to represent a real threat to the characters. I needed a village that was remote, creepy and damp... and there had to be a lake. Even though Moonlight Creek doesn't actually exist, I did base some of its descriptions on Old Saybrook and Chester in Connecticut, two places I first discovered through the seventies horror film Let's Scare Jessica To Death.

2. How is it a fundamental part of your overall theme?
The overall theme of Drowned Sorrow is water and its symbolic meaning (cleansing, rebirth). Everything in Moonlight Creek reminds us of that theme - the leaking walls, the lake, the damp atmosphere, the shops that sell nothing but water, the rain...

3. How challenging was it to write about?
The idea of a remote, damp village that somehow seemed to be alive, was the main reason why I wanted to write Drowned Sorrow. I have always known what the village and its inhabitants looked like, so it wasn't very challenging to imagine the place. The fact that Moonlight Creek reminded me of Let's Scare Jessica To Death's filming locations Old Saybrook and Chester also helped; I just had to describe the streets and houses as accurately and as creepy as possible.

4. How did you develop your setting as you wrote your book?
Apart from the images that were already in my imagination, I based the descriptions of Moonlight Creek, its lake and its inhabitants on the setting from the movie Let's Scare Jessica To Death. I used the same sort of town, the same bizarre inhabitants, the same lake, ... The other aspects of the village developed through the village's interactions with the characters.

5. How do you transport them there through your writing?
In order to have a constant feeling of impending doom, it was important that readers instinctively knew that Moonlight Creek was alive and breathing. The organic feel of the village had to be present on almost every page without being repetitive. The best way to do this was to make the village part of the action.

6. How do you introduce them to an area they may not be familiar with?
Discovering a new place in a book is like going on holiday or visiting a new city. First, you get an overall feeling of the place. Then, you start to discover the village one street and one secret at a time and the vague sense of something wrong slowly turns into something more concrete and sinister. Because the main characters in Drowned Sorrow, Megan and Jenna, visit Moonlight Creek as part of their holiday, you get to experience the village for the first time the way they do.

7. How do you go about making the setting come alive for the reader?
Descriptions are important, but not so much that they block the flow of the story. I believe that the best descriptions sneak into the story in very small snippets as if they are part of the action. Because the village in Drowned Sorrow was literally alive, it was easier to do, because there was a direct action-reaction relationship between the characters and the village.



About the Book

A story of suspense, mystery, and water... Lots of water...

Megan Blackwood has just lost her son in a terrible accident. Now she has come to Moonlight Creek with her teenage daughter Jenna, hoping that a change of scenery might help to put her life back together. But something odd is going on in Moonlight Creek. When rain falls over the village, the inhabitants commit grisly murders, leaving the village deserted with the first rays of sunshine. Beneath the lake's surface, an eerie presence watches... and waits... Waits to reveal a tragic past drowned in mystery and fear. One that doesn't bode well for visitors. By the time Megan realizes that her daughter is in danger, it might already be too late.

Format: eBook
Price: $8.95
Pages: 191
Genre: Supernatural suspense
Publisher: Llumina Press
Release Date: June 2010
Buy Links: Amazon US,  Amazon UK



About the Author

Screenwriter and novelist Vanessa Morgan is known as the 'female version of Stephen King.' You can find out more about Vanessa Morgan and her work by going to her personal blog. If you like cats, you might also like the web comic about her cat Avalon.


Links to connect with Vanessa:
Blog
Twitter
Facebook
Avalon the cat blog



Tribute Books is a proud sponsor of the Emma Michaels Cover Art Extravaganza and Giveaway


To kick off the 17 day

With the help of these sponsors
We have put together an amazing selection of prize packages for one lucky winner to choose from. 
One blogger or author will win their choice of...

Customized Pre-made Cover 
To see the other pre-made covers click here
(Pre-made covers sold during this event will no longer be eligible as prizes)  



 Commission Cover Art 


Full Wrap Around HD Paperback Cover Art 

Blogger Graphics 
includes bannersevent imagessignatures and more! 
If you can imagine and describe it, I can make it happen.

To enter use the Rafflecopter form at this link.

Friday, June 8, 2012

Feature & Follow

Feature & Follow

This is the 100th week for FF and there are give-a-ways on Parajunkee and Allison can read to enter.
There is no question.

One of my favorite book series is The Hunger Games.
Happy 100th FF!

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Kaitlyn Davis - Simmer: Midnight Fire Series: Book Two - Guest Post



Guest Post

Eudora Welty once said, “Every story would be another story, and unrecognizable if it took up its characters and plot and happened somewhere else… Fiction depends for its life in place.” And I couldn’t agree more! The setting of a story is absolutely crucial. Not only is it the place – the sights, sounds, and colors – all around the characters, but it is also an important tool for revealing character personalities. What situations amuse your character? How about frustrate? Is it a new place or is your character returning to a land seeped in personal history?

The decision of the setting for a novel is huge and boils down to three basic categories: a real world setting the author knows extremely well, a make-believe place the author creates or a real-life place the author is barely familiar with. Each different setting comes with its own process and complications, and the first three novels in my Midnight Fire Series display this perfectly!

The first book, Ignite, is set in Charleston, South Carolina – a place I know very well! For the first novel, I wanted to concentrate on creating wonderful characters and an intricate plot, I didn’t want to have to worry too much about researching a setting. So, I thought of a few different places where I have lived and in the end Charleston was the perfect choice. I love the city and its personality, but more importantly my characters could each form their own bonds with the place. For Kira, it is new, exciting and somewhat scary – just like her life now that she has discovered the truth about her past. For Tristan, the nostalgic city perfectly mirrors his own preoccupation with his former life – the city, like Tristan, is somewhat stuck in its history. And for Luke, the relaxed yet chivalrous vibe of the city goes perfectly with his own happy-go-lucky, protective demeanor.

In Simmer, the second book in the series, things change a bit: the setting is Sonnyville, a town I made up. Sonnyville represents Luke’s home, Kira’s new life and Tristan’s foreignness – and the setting allowed me to explore many complications and themes I introduced in the first book. Though it took a lot of brainstorming and prior planning, I truly enjoyed creating my own civilization. The greatest challenge to creating a make-believe town is ensuring that there are no loopholes. Sonnyville had to fit into the real world despite being separated from it and I needed to make it come alive for readers – a feat I hope I accomplished.

Finally, in Blaze, the third book, we’re headed to Europe – a place I don’t know very well but want my characters to visit. What does this mean to me, the writer? Research! Unlike the first two locations, I am heavily researching the towns I want Kira to visit and the history I want her to learn.

So there you have it: three books, three different settings and three different processes! I hope you check out my books -- let me know if you like the different settings I chose and places I created!

Some food for thought: what is your favorite fictional setting? Some of mine are the worlds of Graceling and The Mortal Instruments!

About the Books

Simmer: Midnight Fire Series: Book Two


Slowly, like a whisper almost blown away in the wind, two words streaked across her mind: "Kiss me."

Kira may have survived the eclipse, but her troubles are far from over. She's headed to Sonnyville with one goal in mind: to learn more about her parents. But with Luke and Tristan competing for her heart and Diana gunning for her head, time is running out on the search for her mother. And the closer Kira gets to answers, the more terrified she becomes. The conduits fear her, the vampires fear her, and Kira is starting to wonder if maybe they're right...

Simmer eBook
Price: $0.99
Release: April 4, 2012
Buy Links: Kindle, Nook, Smashwords
Other Links: Goodreads

Ignite: Midnight Fire Series: Book One

With one last look, one final search of the lines of his face for some sign, Kira turned and ran away from the sound of the man she loved laughing in the face of her death.

When Kira Dawson moves to South Carolina, she meets Luke, a blond goofball who quickly becomes her best friend, and Tristan, a mysterious bad boy who sends shivers down her spine. Kira knows they're keeping secrets, but when she discovers Tristan's lust for blood and her own dormant mystical powers, Kira is forced to fight for her life and make the heartbreaking decision between the familiar comfort of friendship and the fiery passion of love.

Ignite eBook
Price: $0.99
Release: October 9, 2011
Buy Links: Kindle, Nook, Smashwords
Other Links: Goodreads

About the Author

Kaitlyn Davis graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Johns Hopkins University with a B.A. in Writing Seminars. She's been writing ever since she picked up her first crayon and is overjoyed to finally share her work with the world. She currently lives in New York City and dreams of having a cockapoo puppy of her own.

Connect with Kaitlyn:
Blog
Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
Goodreads

 





About the Blog Tour

Simmer blog tour site
and
Tribute Books Blog Tours

2012 Debut Author Giveaway Hop

Congratulations to our winner!
chikojubilee [at] gmail [dot] com


Enter to win the young adult ebook release, Spectral from Tribute Books.


1) Click here to add Tribute Books' upcoming YA release, Back to Bataan to your Goodreads to-read list.

2) Leave a comment with your email address.


***


Spectral
by Shannon Duffy


Convinced she’s a part of the witness protection program, sixteen-year-old Jewel Rose is shuffled around the globe with her family like a pack of traveling gypsies. After arriving at lucky home twenty-seven, she stumbles upon a mysterious boy with magical powers claiming to be her guardian . . . and warning of imminent danger. Despite the obvious sparks between them, Jewel discovers a relationship is forbidden, and the more she learns about dark, brooding Roman, she begins to question who she can even believe — the family who raised her, or the supposed sworn protector who claims they’ve been lying to her all along.

As she struggles to uncover who her family has really been running from, she is forced to hide her birthmark that reveals who she is. With new realities surfacing, unexplained powers appearing, and two tempting boys vying for her heart, Jewel battles to learn who she can trust in an ever growing sea of lies, hoping she’ll make it through her seventeenth birthday alive.


http://www.spectralwitch.com