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Tuesday, April 7, 2015

Blog Tour: Twin Powers By David Pereda @DavidPeredaAVL @GHBTours






Twin Powers
By- David Pereda
Genre- Mystery/Suspense/
Romance
Expected Publication Date- Feb 28th, 2015
Published By- Second Wind Publishing


While vacationing with her mother in Havana, a 10-year old American girl is taken by members of a child sex ring intent on selling her into forced prostitution. The abductors, believed to be Arabs, leave a note for the baffled mother stating that Stephanie's kidnapping is an act of revenge. When the human traffickers avoid capture and manage to flee the island, the father of the girl, surgeon Raymond Peters, decides to take matters into his own hands and initiates a worldwide investigation. To support his efforts, the Cuban government, angered by their inability to apprehend the kidnappers, assigns Marcela, a lethal professional assassin, to help Raymond track down the culprits. The search for Stephanie takes the unlikely pair - a man who has sworn an oath to save lives and a woman who kills for a living -- to the Middle East in the hunt for the mysterious mastermind, Mohamed. As Raymond and Marcela overcome one life-threatening obstacle after another in their quest to find and rescue Stephanie, they uncover an incredible worldwide conspiracy undermining the highest political levels of the government of the United States. Working against the clock, Raymond and Marcela must pull out all stops to save Stephanie, flee Dubai, and expose the complot before Mohamed and his gang of thugs kill them.



Author Spotlight-

What genres do you enjoy reading? Writing?

I enjoy reading and writing thrillers, romantic suspense, and mainstream novels.

Where can my readers find you?

I’m easy to find. Tell them to Google my name, and I’ll show up. They can also visit my website: www.davidpereda.com  or my publisher’s website: www.eternalpress.biz or look for me on Amazon: www.amazon.com

Where can my readers find your books?

I don’t know exactly where all my books are offered but definitely on Amazon, the Eternal Press website, my website, the Fictionwise website, the  Goodreads website, and a few other online retailers including Ingram and Baker & Taylor. They are also available at several bookstores in North Carolina and Florida.

  Who is your favorite character from any of your books? (Can you include an excerpt involving this character?)

My favorite character is definitely Marcela, a beautiful, but lethal, lesbian assassin who won’t take any crap from anyone. She has amber eyes and looks like Halle Berry on steroids. In Twin Powers, Marcela, for the first time in her life, falls in love with a man, Raymond Peters.



Here’s a little passage from Killing Castro:

Marcela saw the silver Mercedes parked on her driveway when she returned from swimming, the bright noon sun reflecting off the car’s hood like a star burst. She knew the car. A neckless black man with corn-rows down to his shoulders and marbled biceps sat behind the wheel with the windows rolled down and the radio cranked at full blast, listening to the music of Compay Segundo. She knew the man too: Horacio, El Jefe’s driver.

Buenos dias,” Marcela said as she strode naked past him toward the front door.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Horacio’s mouth fall open, his chin nearly hitting his chest.

Enjoy the view, Marcela thought.

            An here is a longer passage from Twin Powers:

The full moon reflected on the beach waters, multiplying itself like enormous gold coins with each gentle wave.

“Let’s go for a swim naked,” Marcela said, tugging at Raymond’s hand. “It’s a beautiful night out.”

“You’re kidding, right?”

They were sitting on the porch of Marcela’s house on a secluded beach in Havana. Raul Castro had been true to his word. Her old house had been intact and spotless. There were a lot of recollections in that house for her. Every room evoked a special memory for her. She had made love, and she had killed, in that house. She had been attacked and beaten, but she had survived.
The altar to Chango in the main room of the house had taken her fifteen years to build. Every object on it was special to her. The two-foot-tall statue of Chango in the middle she had commissioned from Cuba’s finest sculptor and paid for with contraband dollars. She had spent three years carving the huge figures of Oshe and Shere, Chango’s bodyguards, from the hardest and darkest mahogany. The antelope horns, symbolizing Oya, Chango’s wife, she brought from Africa. The jade miniature of twin little girls at Chango’s feet, she bought in Mexico at the Teotihuacan pyramids.

The secluded beach where she swam naked every day held countless reminiscences too; the feel of the sand itself; the salty waters where she once had an encounter with a shark; the training area behind the trees where she practiced four hours every day.

Everything in and around her house brought so many warm recollections to her. And now she was contemplating leaving her home and all her memories to go live permanently in Miami with Ray. She was split in two. Cuba and her home pulled her one way; Ray and her love for him pulled her another way. She had never been so indecisive in her life. One moment she was ready to pack and leave. Five seconds later, she was convinced she would stay. How could she even think of leaving her country, her house, and the only life she had ever known behind? And all because she was in love with one man, an older man at that, one who could be her father. A moment later, she would argue with herself that change was good and necessary when one felt too comfortable in one place. Change builds character, challenges you, and makes you learn new things. Her English wasn’t very good. She could perfect it in the United States, for instance.

All this thinking was giving her a headache. Her decision could wait. Now she needed exercise.

Ray was looking at her with that especial expression of his that always made her want to hug him so hard she could get inside his body.

“Hey, did you fall asleep on me?” he asked. “You’re kidding about going swimming naked, aren’t you?”

“No, I’m not kidding.”

She stood and peeled her clothes off.

“What about your neighbors?”

“What neighbors?” She started undressing him, beginning with his T-shirt. “Have you seen any neighbors? This is a secluded beach, kimosabe. There are no neighbors.”

“Hey, wait a minute,” Raymond protested as she started unzipping his shorts.

“Be quiet and don’t move!”

He did as ordered. When she finished undressing him, she stared appraisingly at his naked body, making a bit production of it. She could tell he was a little nervous.

“Do I pass inspection?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” she said in a serious tone. “You’re old enough to be my father. Gaining a little weight around the middle, losing your hair; your package is a little too small for my taste.”

“Ouch!” Raymond looked down at himself. “You really know how to make a guy feel good.”

“But...”

“But what?”

“But I love you anyway.”

Marcela started running toward the beach, feeling the breeze on her face and smelling the salty scent of the sea. A moment later, she heard Ray’s footfalls coming behind her. A long time ago, she had learned that happiness consisted of relishing the little moments in life. She was happy.



About the Author-
I am an author and college instructor living in Asheville NC. My latest novel, Twin Powers, published by Second Wind Publishing, is the third installment of my popular Havana Series of thrillers featuring the handsome and peripatetic Doctor Raymond Peters and the beautiful and lethal Cuban assassin Marcela. This is what acclaimed author P.M. Terrell had to say about the book: "Pereda expertly weaves a web that becomes more intricate and mesmerizing with each suspenseful step, keeping the reader on the edge of their seat. The twists and turns are enough to keep you guessing and yet everything comes together seamlessly in a series of heart-pounding climaxes."
My last romantic suspense novel, However Long the Night, published in 2012, won three awards. My previous novels include the thrillers, Killing Castro, also a winner of three awards, published in 2010, and Top Secret, published in 2009. Together with my daughter Sophia, I am now hard at work on a Young Adult novel titled Freaking Fast, with estimated publication in 2016.
A member of MENSA, I am the ex-regional director of Florida Writers Association's Western North Carolina division and the founder of AWE (Asheville Writing Enthusiasts). I love sports and have competed for years in track and show-jumping equestrian events. Currently, I teach math and English at the Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College.

Links-


Blog Tour Organized by:
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Release Day Book Blitz: Awakening by Shannon Duffy @shannonduffylit @entangledteen @NereydaG1003 #YABOUNDBOOKTOURS #Giveaway





Awakening
Release Date: 04/07/15
Entangled Teen

Summary from Goodreads:
A thrilling, futuristic sci-fi novel set in a unique and thought-provoking world, from author Shannon Duffy.

Desiree Six (because she was born on a Friday) believes in everything the Protectorate stands for. She likes the safety and security of having her entire life planned out-her career, her mate, even the date of her death. She doesn't even think to question when Darien, her childhood friend and neighbor, is convicted of murdering his parents. They had seemed like such a loving family. But if he was convicted, then he must have done it.

Then Darien shows up in her room late one night. He has escaped from the Terrorscape-a nightmare machine used to punish all Noncompliants-and needs Desiree's help. What he tells her rocks her world to its core and makes her doubt everything she's ever been told. With this new information, will Desiree and Darien be able to escape the Protectorate before it's too late?


Buy Links:
Amazon ~ Barnes & Noble ~ Kobo Books


Why young adults need sci fi and dystopian type books?

Well in my opinion, it’s not just young adults who need these kinds of books, but all people, no matter the age. J Personally, I love sci-fi, fantasy, dystopian, and paranormal books the absolute most. Basically anything in books that can take me outside the realm of the real or current world and way of doing things, I’m probably going to like. Don’t get me wrong, I love me some contemporary too. It’s just that I think it’s such a mental holiday to escape to another world or spice things up with some magic or crazy futuristic technology, or a government that seems to have everything in perfect order, but doesn’t. It just feels so creative and a fun way to explore the impossible or unimaginable. I like to be taken to the future or even the past, or to an alternate existence and way of living. To me, it’s so creative and captivating to imagine all of the what ifs and hows? When an author can make this kind of thing feel authentic, it allows the reader to really immerse themselves into this world or way of life and follow the characters as they struggle to survive or wade through their strange dilemma they’ve found themselves in. Take me on a journey to the unusual, and I’m sold.

I hope I managed to do that with Awakening and that readers enjoy the futuristic world I’ve created. No matter how old I get, I know I’ll always love books that take me away and allow me to experience something unique.



About the Author
Author of MG and YA books full of adventure. I grew up on the east coast of Canada in the province of Newfoundland and now live in Ontario. I love writing, reading, fashion, fitness, and traveling.

Author Links:
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Book Blitz: The Extraction List (The Extraction List Series Book 1) by Renee N. Meland




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The Extraction List
The Extraction List Series, Book 1
Renee N. Meland
Published:  April 7th, 2015
Publisher:  Limitless Publishing
Genre:  Sci-Fi Dystopian

Content Warning:  Minor violence and adult language
Recommended Age:  13+

Synopsis:

When fifteen-year-old Riley Crane finds out her best friend Olivia is being abused at home, she knows just who to turn to: her mother Claire, writer and spokesperson for President Gray's Parental Morality Law. Under this law, Task Force Officers remove children from their homes if their parents do not meet certain guidelines, taking them to government-run boarding schools. Once they arrive, supervisors rehabilitate them, turning them into productive members of society. Or at least that was how it was supposed to work…

Now, after a government official threatens to make Riley the law's latest victim, Riley and Claire must rely on Cain Foley, a gifted killer with a tongue as sharp as the knives he carries, to get them out of America alive. Though he slices through men's necks as if they are warm butter, Riley can't seem to keep her cheeks from flushing every time he speaks. But when they stumble upon a deserted boarding school, Riley sees that escaping the country is only part of their problem. Together, Riley and Cain figure out that a killer can save a life, and a mother can damn a nation.

Amazon | GoodReads


Excerpt from The Extraction List by Renee N. Meland:

Blackness covered the bar from top to bottom: black walls, black furniture. The only color came from the faces of the sweaty, shiny patrons who looked like they had seen better days. They didn't seem to mind being surrounded by darkness. Most of them just stared at their beer mugs anyway, so I guessed the décor didn't make much difference. The paint on the walls dangled off in flakes like fingernail polish, and I fought off the urge to go pick at it.

I kept my eyes straight ahead as we made our way toward the bartender. His head had a big gap in the middle where hair should be, and the hair that remained on the sides overlapped the top of his ears. His shirt had once been white, but streaks of yellow lined the armpits and stretched downward, much like his skin: overused and under-cared-for.

Bo set his bag on an empty barstool and waited for the bartender to turn around. His back was to us, but I could see that he was drying a glass over and over again. Mom waved at him. "Excuse me, where can we find a man named Cain?"

I was facing away from the bar's customers, but I could swear I felt them staring at us after Mom spoke, and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. The bartender set his glass down hard. He turned his greasy face toward us. And laughed.
"Haha, lady…you're in waaay over your head. If Cain wants to find you, he'll find you. Lookin' like he already did." His eyes moved toward the barstool where the bag of money had been. The stool sat empty.
"Oh my God! Where'd it go? Bo!" Mom's head swirled around. Bo glared at the bartender.
"Don't look at me, man, I didn't take it. SHE did." He pointed toward a doorway at the back of the bar. The beautiful, dark haired woman from the picture stood there, letting the bag dangle gracefully from her long fingers. She smiled.

"Misplace something?" She let the bag fall from her grasp, and Bo jetted over to grab it. When he was bending over to get it, Jordyn shoved it away with her foot and made him chase it a couple times before she gave in. The bartender found himself laughing at us once again. "Follow me."

The doorway Jordyn had been standing in front of lead to a staircase. We formed a line behind her and followed her down into the darkness. Though there were no lights, Jordyn hit every step. I tried hard not to stumble but managed to snag my toe more than once.

Jordyn lectured us: "Did you see how easy that was? The three of you are going to have to be more careful if you're gonna make this trip. I can give you clothes, shoes, and a route, but I can't give you plain old common sense. Even Cain can't give that to you."

I almost tumbled headfirst down the stairs, but Jordyn caught me and stood me back up.

"I've never seen anything like it…just coming into a bar with a bag of money dressed like THIS?" 

She picked at Bo's suit with two fingers, like he was infested with some contagious disease. Her eyes then turned to Mom. Jordyn looked her up and down, from her stilettos to the bobby pins that held her hair back. "Were you TRYING to stick out like a skinny kid at fat camp? If I hadn't been there, those guys woulda stolen your money and had you thinkin' they did you a favor. Then we'd all be screwed."

When we reached the bottom of the stairs, I glanced backward. The staircase stood almost vertical, and it reminded me of an old fairy tale where a bear cub disobeyed the rules and wandered deeper and deeper into a cave. I remembered it didn't turn out too well for the bear.

The room only had one light, and it hovered above a gray metal desk at the far end of the room. Though the desk was free of any office supplies that would help someone put it to some use, I saw a man sitting at it with his back toward us. He slouched in his chair.

Five cots lined the room, and each had only one thin blanket. The blankets barely covered the tops of the cots, and the fabric was stained brown with age. A black backpack sat at the edge of each of our beds. The cement floor clinked with each footstep, and I doubted we would be able to stay warm that night. The heat outside couldn't seem to find its way in, and there was a chill in the basement that went straight to my bones.

Or maybe it was him.

"Cain, they're here."

The man turned in his chair.

I recognized him from the photo Bo showed us, but the photo had not done him any justice. His eyes were the blue of blue M&Ms. I didn't think they made people with eyes that blue. The way he moved his hands was like they floated through the air, in one endless, graceful motion. His hair was the brown like the brown of Mom's favorite dresser, the one where all the pictures of Aidan rested. I stifled a smile.

I noticed a long tattoo on his forearm, stretching the length of it in a deep brown, nearly matching his hair. I never wanted a tattoo myself, but I was always curious about what people loved enough to paint on their bodies with ink and needles. His tattoo was a long rectangle, stopping a couple inches below the top of his wrist to stretch out into two sections that wrapped around to the other side of his forearm. The long rectangle started again after the two offshoots jetted off, and the whole shape was covered in complicated patterns. I stared at it for a long time, squinting so that I could make out every detail. After he moved his arm slightly, I could see the other side of the tattoo. I realized the shape was a cross.

"Money?" Cain didn't move from his slouching position. His fingers rested intertwined in front of his chest. Jordyn snatched the bag away from Bo and set it on the desk. It landed with a thud. Finally, 

Cain shot out of his chair and ripped the bag open while keeping his eyes on Bo. "Not nearly enough for your lot." Cain pushed the bag over the side of the desk and let the money spill onto the floor in a storm of green snowflakes.

Bo's voice quivered. "What do you mean? This is your asking price. So this is what I brought."

Bo's voice wasn't supposed to quiver.

Cain smiled widely, in that way that people do when they think the person they're speaking to is a complete idiot. "Look, we've got one government rat, that would be you, and a woman who's the face of all this mess. With more risk comes more reward." He smiled and gestured around the room. "That is supposed to be the American dream you people work for after all, right?" He stepped in a wad of green money and gently rubbed it into the floor with his foot. After he was done, he sat back at his desk, looking rather pleased with himself.

Mom stepped toward him. "Please, we swear we'll get you your money. It's not my daughter's fault. We're all she's got!" Mom tried to stand strong and still, but I could see her hands were shaking.

I marched past her.

When I reached Cain's desk, I hopped right on top of it and sat down. He may have been good-looking (really…really good-looking), but I wasn't thrilled about the way he was talking to us. 

"You're kind of a jerk, aren't you? My mom's been through enough tonight. If you aren't gonna help us, just say so."

He looked at me square in the eyes.

I stared right back.

He grinned. "I'd have to agree. Not much fear in you, huh, Riley?"

I shook my head. Right then another piece of information about him crept out of my memory, another clue that would help me rediscover him. Crossing my legs in a sitting yoga pose, I asked, "Did you really kill a man in a room with nothing but an orange, a glass of water, and a toothpick?"

Cain's eyes met mine. He laughed. His laugh sounded like a children's choir singing, short little notes one right after the other.

He leaned toward me like he was going to tell me a secret. I could smell fresh mint as his breath brushed my face. "Ah, you must have seen that TV report about me." Of course. I had seen a documentary on him a few months earlier. And if I remembered correctly, the reporter didn't exactly praise him with flying colors. "Mostly garbage, some truth." He paused, running his hand gently across his desk. "I like you, so I'll tell you…it was a grapefruit…and three men." He winked. Looking around my shoulder, he declared, "Alright, I'll do it."

Mom thanked Cain for his understanding, but as the words fell from her lips, she gestured for me to back away from him and stand beside her. I could see Jordyn roll her eyes from across the room. She must not have gotten the message about leaving my mom alone. "Why don't you want to help us? What did we do to you?"

"It's nothing personal, just worried about how we are going to get THESE two across the border," she pointed to Bo and Mom, "without getting ourselves killed in the process." After looking them over once more, she sighed. "I have my work cut out for me. I hope nobody here has an aversion to dressing down."

Cain smiled. "That's why you're the best, Jordyn. Get them dressed and ready…we're leaving at first light. I need them ready to run out the door the minute I say so. Oh and you…" He pointed at Bo, then at the money on the floor. "Pick that up."



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About the Author:
Renee N. Meland lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and two dogs. She is currently working on the third book in The Extraction List Series (the second is available now). Her favorite obsessions are Rome, learning new recipes, and exploring the world around her. She is an avid reader of speculative fiction, and believes that telling stories is the best job in the world.





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New Cover Reveal Blast: First Frost (The Frost Series Book # 1) By Liz DeJesus @Liz_DeJesus23 @GHBTours






First Frost
The Frost Series Book # 1
By Liz DeJesus
Publication Date: June 22nd, 2015
Published By - Indie Gypsy


Blurb-

Fairytales aren’t real…yeah…that’s exactly what Bianca thought. She was wrong.

For generations, the Frost family has run the Museum of Magical and Rare Artifacts, handing down guardianship from mother to daughter, always keeping their secrets to “family only.”

Gathered within museum’s walls is a collection dedicated to the Grimm fairy tales and to the rare items the family has acquired: Cinderella’s glass slipper, Snow White’s poisoned apple, the evil queen’s magic mirror, Sleeping Beauty’s enchanted spinning wheel…

Seventeen-year-old Bianca Frost wants none of it, dreaming instead of a career in art or photography or…well, anything except working in the family’s museum. She knows the items in the glass display cases are fakes because, of course, magic doesn’t really exist.

She’s about to find out how wrong she is.





About the Author-

Liz DeJesus was born on the tiny island of Puerto Rico.  She is a novelist and a poet. She has been writing for as long as she was capable of holding a pen. She is the author of the novel Nina (Blu Phi'er Publishing, October 2007), The Jackets (Arte Publico Press, March 2011) First Frost (Re-realeased through Indie Gypsy Summer 2015), Glass Frost (Re-released through Indie Gypsy Summer 2015), Shattered Frost (Indie Gypsy, Summer 2015) and Morgan (Indie Gypsy, July 2014). Her work has also appeared in Night Gypsy: Journey Into Darkness (Indie Gypsy, October 2012), Twice Upon a Time (Bearded Scribe Press, Winter 2015) and Someone Wicked (Smart Rhino Publications, Winter 2013).
Liz is currently working on a new novel and a comic book series titled Zombie Ever After (Emerald Star Comics, Fall 2014).





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Cover Reveal: Days Like This by Danielle Ellison @DanielleEWrites @NereydaG1003 #YABOUNDBOOKTOURS




Days Like This
Release Date: 06/02/15
Bookish Group Press
New Adult

Summary from Goodreads:
Sometimes the only thing standing between fear and hope is yourself.

Almost a year ago, nineteen-year-old Cassie Harlen had a lot to deal with. A stack of college acceptance letters waiting for answers, a proposal from the boy next door, and a mother whose most recent bipolar episode left Cassie hurt and confused. Tired of cleaning up the messes caused by her mother's disorder, of resenting her mother for not being there, and scared of being trapped by an inevitable future-which included marrying Graham Tucker-Cassie did the only thing she could think of to keep from ending up like her mother: she left.

Graham never knew why Cassie walked away. He woke up one morning and she was gone-along with the life that he'd created around her. After eleven months, Graham has a new plan for his future. One that doesn't involve Cassie Harlen.

When Cassie's mom nearly burns down her house, Cassie's forced to return home. Back to a mother she's tried to ignore and the guy she's been unable to forget. Graham doesn't know how he's going to spend the whole summer living next door to the person who broke his heart without letting those old feelings push through to the surface.

Neither does Cassie.


Pre-Order Links:
Amazon ~ Barnes & Noble ~ Kobo Books ~ iBooks ~ One More Page (Signed Copies)

About the Author
Danielle Ellison spent most of her childhood reading instead of learning math. It's probably the reason she can't divide without a calculator and has spent her life seeking the next adventure. It's also probably the reason she's had so many different zip codes and jobs. 

When she's not writing, Danielle is probably  eating cookies, fighting her nomadic urges, watching too much TV, or dreaming of the day when she can be British. She has settled in Northern Virginia, for now, but you can always find her on twitter @DanielleEWrites.

Author Links:
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