Saturday, March 28, 2015

DEATH GRIP by Tracy Sherwood

War hero Kat Hartley is home from the Middle East, struggling to return to her life as a wife and mother. But Kat is locked in a battle with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder that threatens to destroy her and her family. Imprisoned by shame after helplessly watching her fellow soldier die in a fiery Humvee explosion, Kat can’t escape his terrified eyes. They haunt her daylight hours and torment her sleep at night. However, Kat is held in the clutches of a darker secret. The doomed soldier was also her lover…and the husband of her now-widowed sister.

Kat will never truly be free until she confronts the guilt over her past. But can she conquer the enemy within that holds her in its death grip? It’s a fight she must win at any cost. Or lose what matters the most.

 
 
 

Tracy Sherwood had two great aspirations--to be a screenwriter and to become an author. When Tracy was five, she worked at creating her first book, "Ragmop the Mischeivous Dog" (based on the misadventures of her sheepdog, Gulliver). Even then, she considered writing a serious business. Her heroes at the time were characters who pushed the boundaries to discover what was on the other side.

But her real inspirations have been her mother, a college lecturer in English, and her father, a former Marine and internationally reknowned cartoonist. They both instilled a passion for the arts and the fighting spirit to pursue a writing career.

Tracy's debut novel, DEATH GRIP, is influenced by the plight of returning military women expected to resume their demanding roles as wives and mothers while struggling with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. However, DEATH GRIP, is for the survivors of any tragic event and their loved ones who suffer along with them.

Tracy is a Pushcart Award nominated writer whose work has appeared in literary magazines and book anthologies. She is also a prize-winning screenwriter.

 
 
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Friday, March 27, 2015

Quest for More...: Shake off the definitions... (Book Review - MCV Eg...

Quest for More...: Shake off the definitions... (Book Review - MCV Eg...: Defined by Others Author: MCV Egan MCV Egan's 'Defined by Others' is the story of Anne, a 47 year o...



MAGIC of BOOKS PROMOTIONS PRESENTS Jamie Brumfield


♥ Romantic Road ♥ a Romantic Suspense Novel by Blair McDowell

Romantic Road Blog Tour


Romantic Road
Author: Blair McDowell
Title: Romantic Road
Release Date: January 28th, 2015
Genre: Romantic Suspense


When Lacy Telchev buries her husband she finds herself in treacherous waters. Igor, much older than Lacy, had secrets. Suddenly Lacy is being chased across Europe by men who believe she can lead them to those secrets. Evading her pursuers with the aid of a chance acquaintance, the handsome and mysterious Max Petersen, Lacy travels across Germany, Austria and Hungary, to a shattering discovery in Budapest.

Along the way, she meets three women from Igor’s past. As Igor’s story unfolds through them, Lacy is less and less certain who her husband really was. Who can Lacy trust? Will she survive to find out?

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EXCERPT

“Where is it? Just tell us where it is and you won’t get hurt.” The taller man loomed over her, his face expressionless, a mask.

“Where is what? What are you talking about? Who are you?” Lacy began to be annoyed. That was better than being scared. “Can I see your badges again?”

The second man stared hard at her though dead-looking flat grey eyes. “Mrs. Telchev,” he said, his voice low and menacing, “we mean you no harm. But you must tell us where he hid his manuscript.”

They knew her name? Icy tentacles of fear slipping down Lacy’s back. She shook her head. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

At that moment the red and white lights of a state police vehicle rounded the curve coming toward them. Seeing the blocked road it stopped. Two uniformed officers got out and approached the two parked cars.

“You’re blocking the road. What’s the trouble here?”

The taller man spoke.  “No trouble, Officer. Sorry about the way we’re parked. I’ll move the car immediately. The lady was pulled over here and we just stopped to see if she needed help.”

He flipped open his wallet and showed the officers the same ID he’d shown Lacy.

It seemed to mean something to the policemen.

Lacy opened her mouth to say something and then thought better of it. What could she tell the police? These men wanted a manuscript from her but she didn’t know where it was? Or what it was about? Or even if it existed. That it involved her dead husband? No. She wouldn’t say anything. Not until she knew more.

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AUTHOR BIO

Blair McDowell wrote her first short story when she was eleven and has never ceased writing since, although only recently has she been able to return to her first love, writing fiction.  During her early years, she taught in universities in the United States, Canada and Australia, and wrote several highly successful books in her field.

Her research has taken her to many interesting places.  She has lived in Europe, Australia, the United States and the Caribbean and Canada, and spent considerable time in still other places, Iceland, the Far East, and the Torres Strait Islands off the coast of New Guinea. Now she travels for pleasure. Portugal, Greece and Italy are favorite haunts.

Her books are set in places she knows and loves and are peopled with characters drawn from her experiences of those places.   The Memory of Roses takes readers to the Greek Island of Corfu, where a young woman finds her future while searching for her father's past.  In Delighting in Your Company, the reader is transported to a small island in the Caribbean, with a heroine who finds herself in the unenviable position of falling in love with a ghost.  The setting for Sonata is the city of Vancouver, with its vibrant multicultural population and its rich musical life, and the heroine is a musician who finds herself in unexpected danger.

In her most recent release, Romantic Road, Lacy Telchev, is pursued along Germany’s famous Romantische Strausse as she follows clues left by her late husband in order to solve a mystery that she doesn’t understand, while being chased by dangerous and cunning adversaries.

She hopes her readers will enjoy reading these books as much as she enjoyed writing them.

Blair is a member of the Romance Writers of America, Romance Writers of America (Greater Vancouver Chapter),  the Romance Writers of America (Women's Fiction), and The Writers’ Union of Canada.

AUTHOR LINKS: WWebsite | Blog | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter | Google+


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GIVEAWAY


Romantic Road Blog Tour

Blair is offering e-copies of Romantic Road to 2 winners of the Rafflecopter.

  a Rafflecopter giveaway


Romantic Road

Mystery, Romance, Suspense ~TEARDROPS KNOW MY NAME by DALIA FLOREA


Someone is stalking, fashion photographer, Linda McNair and turning her world upside down. She has no idea who it could be. Is it an old boyfriend? Someone in the industry? A complete stranger? The only thing Linda knows for sure is her stalker has to be stopped. Her life may depend on it.

When Linda meets Detective Sean Gregory, one of New York’s finest in more ways than one, stories unravel, revealing secrets, lies and betrayal that nearly destroy her, breaking her heart into a million tiny pieces.

Linda tries to resist Sean’s affection, but she can’t help wondering if he’s the right man who can put the shattered pieces of her heart back to together.

 
Author Bio 
   
Dalia grew up in Queens, New York and now makes her home in Northern Virginia outside of Washington, D.C. Her debut Mirrored reached the Top 100 Bestseller’s list in Women’s Detective Fiction. She is a voracious reader who enjoys writing fiction stories with a mixture of mystery, suspense, and romance. When she isn’t crafting suspense romance, she enjoys reading, attending live music concerts, and visiting wineries.
 
 
 
        

 

Thursday, March 26, 2015

INTERVIEW with Kellie Larsen Murphy, author of A Guilty Mind and Stay of Execution

·         Describe your writing in three words. Straight-forward, suspenseful, descriptive (at least, that’s what I’m shooting for!)
 
·         Do you have specific techniques you use to develop the plot and stay on track? After I’ve written the first draft, I will go back through the book, chapter by chapter, and create a timeline and outline. In this way, I can fine-tune any inconsistencies and weed out action/characters unnecessary to the plot. I don’t formally outline when I start a book although I always know how the book will begin and how it will end (who the bad guy(s) is/are!).
 
 
·         Was there any research involved in your work? I’ve had to do some research in both of the Cancini books. In the latest, Stay of Execution, I studied up on DNA and loosely used real-life actions in Virginia (re-examining old evidence with new technology) as a backdrop for the plot.
 
·         Favorite snack when writing. I love to munch on a homemade trail mix with almonds, granola, raisins, dried cranberries, wasabi peas, pretzels, and peanuts. Yum!
 
 
·         Is the Thesaurus one of your best writing friends? Yes, primarily because I have some favorite words. I tend to overuse them in early drafts and it’s only when I read over my work (especially out loud) that I hear them.
 
·         Who gets to read your drafts before they're published? I am so lucky to have a team of six beta readers. We meet for structural and plot issues. I also have family to read very early and very rough drafts. While my mother may still love everything I do, my sister and daughter will not only edit, but leave detailed comments. The best critics are those who can tell it like it is (in a loving way). After I get through all those readers, then I will submit to an editor. And then I revise and run it through one more reader. I’ll repeat until I’m satisfied.
·         What project(s) are you working on now? Right now I’m working on the third book in the Cancini series. My favorite detective is back in DC, investigating the violent murder of a young priest.
 
·         Where can readers find you and your book(s) online?  Both of my books are available online through the major book retailers Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and Apple.
 
Kellie Larsen Murphy is the author of A GUILTY MIND and STAY OF EXECUTION, the first two books in the Detective Cancini Mystery series. She has written for several mid-Atlantic magazines and resides in Richmond, Virginia, with her husband, four children, and two very large, very hairy dogs. She would be happy to hear from readers through her website,