Monday, June 9, 2014

Cover Reveal ~ Grils on Fire boxed set

Girls on FIRE!!!
10 amazing YA novels for one LOW price!!! 



About the GIRLS ON FIRE boxed set:
WITCH FALL – Amber Argyle
High Fantasy
Supreme in their dominion over seasons, storms, and sea, the witches have forgotten the unmatched destructiveness of mankind. And among the weapons men seek are the magical songs of the witches. Born of witches but raised among their enemies, Lilette searches for a way to heal the rift between mankind and the witches. But it may be too late to save either. For if there is one thing Lilette has come to know for certain, it’s that all things fall.

ETERNAL STARLING – Angela Corbett
Paranormal Romance
For centuries, Alex Night and Emil Stone have yearned for Evie Starling. When both men claim to be her soul mate and tell her about an unbelievable past, Evie learns that she’s not the person she thought she was, and her soul is about to become the rope in an eternal tug-of-war.

AWAKENING – Christy Dorrity
Fantasy
When an ancient curse threatens McKayla McCleery's family, she must decide what in her life is real and what is fantasy. Based in Celtic mythology, Awakening is a gripping young adult fantasy that is rife with magic, romance, and mystery.

INEVITABLE – Tamara Hart Heiner
Suspense
Visions of death plague Jayne, who thinks watching her sister die is the worst that could happen to her. But when she witnesses a murder, Jayne realizes that the next death she sees might be her own.

WATCHED – Cindy M. Hogan
Romantic Suspense
Change. She longed for it.
A murder. She will never be the same.

THE FORGOTTEN ONES – Laura Howard
Fantasy

ELEMENTAL HUNGER – Elana Johnson
Futuristic Fantasy
Sixteen-year-old Gabriella Kilpatrick can shoot fire from her hands, which would be great if she didn’t get blamed for a blazing inferno that kills 17 schoolmates. Gabby will have to learn who she can trust, how to control her own power, and most of all, how to lead a Council of Elementals, most of whom have more control over their power than she does. If she can’t, she’ll find herself just like those 17 schoolmates: burned and six feet under.

THE FAERIE GUARDIAN – Rachel Morgan
Fantasy
Kickbutt faerie Violet is about to graduate as the top guardian trainee of her class, but when an assignment goes wrong and the human boy she’s meant to be protecting follows her back into the fae realm, a dangerous plot is set in motion.

PERCEPTION – Lee Strauss
Dystopian/Romance
Eternal Life is to Die For.
A spoiled genetically altered girl needs the help of a jaded “natural” boy to find her missing brother.

INTRINSICAL – Lani Woodland
Paranormal
The gene that allows the women in Yara’s family to see and communicate with spirits seems to have passed her over. Until the night she rescues a local hottie from an attacking ghost. Her act of heroism attracts the attention of the evil spirit, and she finds herself entrenched in the middle of a sixty-year-old curse that haunts the school, threatening her own life as well as that of her friends.



Publication date: June 16, 2014
Price: 99 cents for 10 amazing YA novels!




Buy links coming soon!

About the Authors:
Follow each author’s link to learn more about them and their books.

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Friday, June 6, 2014

Cover reveal for A Beauty So Beastly by RaShelle Workman



Genre: Fractured Fairy Tale
Book 1 in the Beastly Series
Release date: July 3, 2014

About A BEAUTY SO BEASTLY: “For your vanity, your cruelty, and your cold unfeeling heart, a curse I leave upon you . . .”

What happens if the beauty is also the beast?

The stunning Beatrice Cavanaugh is considered American royalty. She has everything except the ability to love. Cursed on her eighteenth birthday, she becomes more beastly than ever, having a newfound craving for raw meat, and an undeniable yearning for the night. Bitterness is her only companion.

After accusing a maid of stealing, a disgustingly kind and exquisitely handsome guy named Adam shows up asking Beatrice to drop the charges against his mother.

Infuriated by his goodness, Beatrice vows to break him. Destroy him. Make him hurt the way she hurts. So she agrees. On one condition: Adam must take his mother’s place as a servant in the mansion.

Because Beatrice won’t stop until he’s more beastly than she is.



Buy Links:

Special Note: A BEAUTY SO BEASLTY will be available for 99 cents until its release date on July 3rd! Then it'll go up to $2.99. So pre-order now!


About RaShelle Workman: RaShelle Workman is an international bestselling author. She writes fractured fairytales with bite and young adult science fiction that's out of this world. RaShelle likes cherry pie, movies, family adventures, and chocolate. If you want to get on her good side, send chocolate. RaShelle's sold more than 500,000 copies of her books worldwide. Sleeping Roses, Exiled, Beguiled, and Dovetailed have foreign rights contracts with a Turkish publisher. 

Her books include:
Sleeping Roses

Exiled
Beguiled
Dovetailed
Blood and Snow (1-12)

The Cindy Chronicles

Vampire Lies (Blood and Snow Season 2)

Short stories:
Rose, Undercover

Cindy Witch

The Hunter's Tale

Gabriel
After the Kiss
Zaren's Travels


Social Media Links:




GIVEAWAY!
RaShelle is giving away $25 Paypal cash during the cover reveal!



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Wednesday, June 4, 2014

Sage Hannigan: Time Warper series by Peggy Martinez



I first stumbled upon Peggy Martinez on Facebook and read her zombie novella series called State of Decay. After I read part one I knew I was hooked on this author. Her female lead characters are strong and independent, but they don't discount the fact that even strong women can benefit from some love in their life. 


Take Melody Carter from State of Decay. She survived two years on her own, IN THE WOODS!, after the zombie apocalypse. Her weapon of choice is a 12" double edged recon blade. She's pretty bad ass, but when she meets the man of her dreams, she realizes that love in the messed up world she lives in isn't something that happens every day.

That's just one example of the sweet, strong and totally headstrong characters that Peggy writes. I've read almost everything that she's written. Her zombie novella series State of Decay, Her ghost series Unnatural Occurrence, and the Time Warper Series. I have not read her sweet romance called Sweet Contradiction, but I will get to it! I suggest you all check her out. I seriously can't understand why she isn't on a bestseller list yet!! More people need to read her books and find out how awesome they are.

But this post is to tell you about the Time warper series that I just finished. This is the story of Sage Hannigan. (Isn't that a great name?). She finds out she's a time warper when she wakes one day in 1904. She then finds out she gets some amazing warper powers and she has to find and fix some tragedy that happened in 1904. But, no pressure, right? well she becomes a kick ass fighter and learns to harness her warper abilities. Here's a little about each book.

Contingency

Eighteen-year-old Sage Hannigan wants to get back to her own time, preferably one that hasn’t been destroyed by an underworld plot brewing in Edwardian-era South Carolina. How hard can it be?
All she has to do is:
1. Learn to use newly acquired warping skills to bend time to her will.
2. Take out a few rogue vampires.
3. Join an ancient secret society.
4. Figure out who is putting the time stream in jeopardy.
5. Find and maim whoever invented the corset.
Sage never asked to be chosen by the Druid Priestess, Amerach, to become a Warper and she never asked to have the future hanging on her shoulders or to warp a hundred years into the past. She certainly never asked to meet Dr. Aldwin Blake, who would make her question her desire to get back to her own time. But if she fails her mission, people will die, history will change, and the present she wishes to return to will be no more.

My Review
Sage Hannigan’s (a name which I love by the way) day started like any other. She went to the used book store, but inside she was strangely drawn to a pendant. It called to her like nothing had before and she found herself buying it. Then as she left the store a strange old woman grabbed her arm and rambled about things that made no sense. Sage shook it off, but when she woke the next morning she found herself not just out of her apartment, but out of her own time. How had she traveled to 1904? What is a warper? And will she ever get home? I already knew that Peggy Martinez wrote some deliciously scary zombie novellas, sweet love stories, and weirdly fascinating supernatural mysteries. I know that she is a fantastic writer and I was not disappointed with the Time Warper series.  Sage started off as any book loving girl and was forced to become a warrior. She adapted quickly though and even enjoyed her time in the past. I enjoyed the characters in this story and I was so surprised at a few of them. This book is yet another one by Peggy Martinez that I highly recommend. I give it 4.5 stars and I can’t wait to dig in to the rest of this series!
 Buy Contingency

Relativity
Three months after Sage Hannigan time warps a hundred years into the past and saves the future as we know it, she is still trying to come to grips with all the has gained…and all that she has lost.
All of her searching hasn’t turned up Cerberus Society or any creatures of the night and she’s beginning to wonder if she’s gone crazy after all. The only things keeping her grounded are her sparring sessions with Matt and her weekly ritual of scouring the city for low lives to kick the crap out of, and even that can’t keep her dreams free of the heartache and bitter sweet memories she has come to loathe and…to cherish.
When blasts from the past; good, bad, and evil, come knocking on her door, will she be able to do what she has to even if it means having her barely-healing heart ripped to shreds?

My Review:

Sage is back in her own time and her heart is broken. Her love is back in 1904 and she has to go on with her life without him. She finds a new job as a bouncer at a club and puts her bad ass warper skills to use. But what happens when she meets the club owner and suddenly the past catches up to her?
I love this continuation of Sage’s story. She’s hurting and her heartbreak is so present you can’t help but feel her pain. She’s got a new mission and she’s having to deal with having her heart torn in two. This is such a great series. I love the action and drama. This series reminds me of the Embrace series by Jessica Shirvington. I love it and I wonder why it isn’t more popular. Sage is my hero!
5 stars for Relativity book 2 in the Time Warper series!!
 
Buy Relativity  
Amazon | Barnes and Noble

Brevity

***** This is a SHORT Novelette at 10,000 words (about 35 pages) and should be read AFTER Book #2 (Relativity) in the Sage Hannigan Time Warper series. *****
Brevity is written in Aldwin's point of view and meant to give readers an inside look into Aldwin's life and past.


My Review Brevity is a time warper novelette in the time warper series.  It gives a little back story for Aldwin. We find out more about how he came to be a part of Sage’s story and why he had to break her heart. I told Peggy after I finished Relativity that I was team Soren. She then said that I may change my mind after I read Aldwin’s story. Now I feel like team Switzerland. I can’t decide. They both love Sage and she loves them both too. ugh I just want to read Eventualtiy and find out what she decides!!! I did love this short story about Aldwin. Though it didn’t help me become totally team Aldwin, I did enjoy reading about his complicated situation with Milena. Brevity gets 5 stars from Paranormal Tendencies! 

Buy Brevity


Coming soon!! 

Eventuality book 3 of the Sage Hannigan Time Warper Series

Peggy has agreed to let me share an exclusive excerpt from Eventuality! I'm very excited to share this with you!!!
Excerpt:
Rest wasn’t a word in my vocabulary any longer, it hadn’t been for a very long time now. So when I found myself waking up from a deep sleep, in a sinfully comfortable bed and covered in silky sheets, I did what every time warper did when they found themselves in unfamiliar surroundings and with no sense of how much time had passed… I panicked. I flipped the hell out. My warping had evolved so much the last few weeks that even I didn’t know the boundaries of my own power.  One second I was sitting up with my heart hammering in my chest and the next I was across the room, trying to fling open the French doors to a small balcony before I even realized that I’d moved. Pure instinct had taken over and I moved like my life depended on it. Most of the time it did.

“It won’t open.”

I let out a mortifyingly girly yelp as I swung around, grabbing blindly behind me for something to use as a weapon. I raised a book above my head and prepared myself to beat someone senseless with the heavy tome. The vampire from the party, the one I’d been looking for, slid into my view. He must have been sitting in the shadows near the windows on the other side of the room.

“Perhaps you’d like to rethink braining me to death with the collective works of Tolstoy since it would be an awfully nonsensical way to die after you save me so heroically from a stake to the heart.”

I slowly lowered the book in my hand and pushed the crazy bed hair out of my face to see the vampire better. He looked so gravely serious when he spoke. Cold. He looked cold and distant. I glanced at the book in my hand and then down at myself. I was wearing a silk dressing robe. Not my silk dressing robe, mind you. I dropped the book on the desk and grabbed the edges of my gaping robe and drew it together, tightening the belt around my waist a little more securely.

“Where am I?” I asked roughly. My throat felt like brittle parchment paper. The vampire glided closer to the bed and picked up a pitcher and glass from the night stand.

“My apartments in Charleston,” he murmured as he poured a drink. He moved slowly toward me and held out the glass. It looked like water. I reluctantly moved closer and took the glass from him. I gulped down the contents gratefully.

“How long have I been here?” I asked softly after I’d emptied glass. I held the glass back out to the vampire. He stepped closer still and grasped the glass, his fingers intertwining with mine purposely. I only barely refrained from jerking back hastily. His eyes caught mine and I stood immobile and ensnared in his silent inquiry. I had no idea what he was looking for and I had no idea if I could protect any of my secrets from his penetrating glare, but I did know that this vampire was something I had never come across before. Something I had never fought before. Dangerous. After a seemingly never ending moment, the vampire stepped back.

“You have been here for two days.”

“It’s been two days since the party?” I asked.

“It has,” he answered brusquely.
Crap. I was so freaking fired. The night of the party came back to me in bits and pieces as I stood there. When I remembered the baby vampire going after my new vampire friend, what I had done finally hit me. The stake that had been meant for scary ancient vampire dude had stabbed me. The room spun very slightly and I put a hand out. Before I could blink, the vampire had me in his arms and laid back down gently on the bed. If I hadn’t been sure I had just been standing, I would have questioned if I’d even ever left the bed to begin with. No vampire I’d ever met had moved so quickly and effortlessly. He came close to rivaling my warping abilities.

Oh schnikies! I’d warped with the blood sucker in the room.
I groaned.



About Peggy Martinez

When not writing, Peggy can be found spending time at home with her husband, her teen son, and four little girls. She loves reading, writing, soap making, aromatherapy, gangster movies, prepping for the zombie apocalypse, and downing insane amounts of Twizzlers and Kazoozles.
As if being a wife and homeschooling mom of five doesn't keep her busy enough, Peggy Martinez is a full time Author who has six published books, including The Time Warper Series, State of Decay, and Unnatural Occurrence. Peggy's dream is to own a small homestead where she can raise some chickens along with her five kids, tend to a large garden, and one day take her dream vacation's to Ireland, Greece and Scotland.








Author links:
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Tuesday, June 3, 2014

Shades of Chaos boxed set Cover Reveal!

promo banner 1


RELEASE DATE: June 13, 2014
Cover Artists: Alexia Purdy, Willsin Rowe

Shades of Chaos

 SYNOPSIS: Dare yourself to enter into a post-apocalyptic future with this gritty collection of first-in-a-series books by six bestselling authors! Discover unique worlds packed with non-stop action, adventure, and suspense set against a gritty, futuristic backdrop. NOTE: Together, these books have over 320 5-star reviews on Amazon! Over 1400 pages of stories, with *exclusive* content from Alexia Purdy, Katie Salidas, and Chrystalla Thoma! Best for ages 16 and up~ I AM Alive (Cameron Jace): I am not my heart rate. I am not my skills. I am not how I look like. My name is Decca Tenderstone. I live in a future America where teenagers are ranked on a scale from 1 to 10 on graduation day. There has never been a 10. Those below the rank of 5 are considered Monsters, a liability to society. The system says I am a Monster. I will not let them kill me. I will survive. Initiation (Katie Salidas): Being a Vampire is a crime punishable by eternal servitude in the arena as a Gladiator of the Iron Gate. Mira, a newly turned vampire, must prove she has what it takes to survive in the human's world. It's kill or be killed. Immortality is not guaranteed. Dissension (Katie Salidas): In the aftermath of the great cataclysm, vampires are enslaved by humans and used for blood sport as gladiators in the arena. Mira is undefeated, uncompromising, and unbreakable, but when an escape attempt leads her into the path of the city’s Regent, her destiny is changed forever. Finding Hope (Chrystalla Thoma): After the death of the one person he called mother, Elei leaves the Trashlands of Ost for the city – looking for other people and for answers. But he soon finds out that people are complicated and answers hard to come by... Rex Rising (Chrystalla Thoma): In a world where parasites create new human races, Elei leads a peaceful life as aircar driver — until a mysterious attack on his boss sends him fleeing with a bullet in his side and the fleet at his heels. Resonant (Alexia Purdy): As the first days of the end of humanity tumble across the City of Las Vegas, turning everyone into vampire-like creatures, April Tate will find out what it really means to survive. Reign of Blood (Alexia Purdy): April Tate is a seventeen-year-old ferocious vampire killer who lives in the remains of Las Vegas one year after a viral epidemic has left the world decimated. After her family is abducted, her world tilts when she discovers they're not truly alone. Released (Megan Duncan): After a demon apocalypse kills everyone they know, 17-year old Abby Phillips, her brother and her friend Max flee their home to travel through the wastelands of America, chasing a radio transmission of a resistance offering shelter. But soon enough Abby and her companions discover what awaits them is much worse they could have ever imagined. Burning Bridges (Nadège K. Richards): In a world divided between Hunters and Warriors, where prisoners are forced to fight in the arena until death, young Princess Echo must fight to find out who she really is and to put a world that has been swallowed by lies back together again


Cover_Poster4

COMING ON JUNE 13, 2014!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
   
Giveaway!
The authors have let me give away an ebook copy of the shades of Chaos 6 book set!! What an awesome prize. One lucky reader will win a copy. All you have to do is leave a comment on this blog post and I will choose a winner with random.org on June 10th. So comment and share this post. I will choose from original comments only and not replies. Commenting more than once will not increase your chances of winning. Good luck!!

Follow the authors!!
  Cameron Jace Blog Facebook   Katie Salidas Facebook Blog   Chrystalla Thoma Blog Facebook   Alexia Purdy Facebook Blog   Megan Duncan Facebook Amazon   Nadège K. Richards Facebook Amazon      
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Monday, June 2, 2014

Crane by Stacey Rourke





The Horseman is unending,
his presence shan’t lessen.
If you break the curse,
you become the legend.

Washington Irving and Rip Van Winkle had no choice but to cover up the deadly truth behind Ichabod Crane’s disappearance. Centuries later, a Crane returns to Sleepy Hollow awakening macabre secrets once believed to be buried deep.

What if the monster that spawned the legend lived within you?

Now, Ireland Crane, reeling from a break-up and seeking a fresh start, must rely on the newly awakened Rip Van Winkle to discover the key to channeling the darkness swirling within her. Bodies are piling high and Ireland is the only one that can save Sleepy Hollow by embracing her own damning curse.

But is anyone truly safe when the Horseman rides?

~ Amazon ~ Goodreads ~ B&N ~ 

If his wife hadn’t let her ass grow to the size of a sofa, Vic wouldn’t have to cheat. Shrugging his navy blue sport coat over his shoulders, he stepped forward, allowing the hotel room door to shut behind him with a soft thump. A smug smile curled across his face, his chest puffing with pride at his own prowess—thanks in part to those spiffy little blue pills his doctor prescribed. The heels of his wing-tipped loafers clicked against the cement stairs, one impeccably manicured hand running along the handrail as he descended. The rusted metal rail squeaked its protest under the faint touch. Taking its suggestion, he retracted his hand. 


Why he humored Karma by letting her drag him to this dive every week, he had no idea.


Her firm little apple bottom isn’t that great, he mused to himself, snorting a quick, dry laugh. 


Of course it was. She made good money with it at the Sugar Shack down by the airport. Grinding to R&B’s raunchiest hits, while clad only in a sequin thong. She was a sweet, albeit naïve, girl that believed if she stroked Vic’s … ahem, ego just the way he liked, she would someday find a fat rock on her finger and the title of Van Tassel behind her name. Hence her insistence on the flea bag hotel. She had flipped her bleached blonde waves, batted those ridiculous fake eyelashes, and pouted that she couldn’t be seen as the “other woman” by the same crowd she would soon be rubbing elbows with. As if he would ever let that happen. Karma’s airbrushed nails and hooker heels would never fit into his world. After all, in Tarrytown the Van Tassel name meant something, and not because of the stupid legend the residents of the small glen of Sleepy Hollow mercilessly clung to. No, as one of the founding families they helped build this town. Meaning, here, he might as well be a Rockefeller. A fact he reveled in and would never tarnish with outward displays of his cheap conquests … no matter how well she could wiggle. 


Vic crossed the parking lot, lit only by one humming street lamp, with a wide, jovial stride. As he shook his keys from the pocket of his slacks, thumbing the button to unlock the doors, his phone buzzed from the breast pocket of his Armani shirt. 


Snatching it from its resting place, he tapped to answer. “Yello?”


“Don’t you sound chipper for someone working late?” Yvonne slurred, the only hint he needed that she’d already cracked open tonight’s bottle of wine. 


“Why shouldn’t I be chipper?” he playfully asked, turning to glance back up toward the room Karma had rented. A flash of her blonde locks appeared from behind the stained drapes. He raised his hand in a casual wave, but couldn’t tell from this distance if she returned the gesture. “I just finished showing a multi-million dollar estate that the buyers are very interested in, and now I get to head home to my loving wife.” 


“Yeah, right,” Yvonne openly scoffed, her voice muffled by her glass as she took another sip. “We’re the friggin’ Cleavers. Hey, Cassidy is at the mall. I need you pick her up on your—“


Vic jerked his head to the right, in the direction of the neighboring gas station. Between the normal ebb and flow of rushing traffic, he heard the distinct snap of hoof beats pounding over pavement. “What kind of idiot would bring a horse out this close to the highway?” 


“The highway? Where the hell are you, Victor?” 


A moment ago the drum of the approaching rider had been coming from the south of him, Vic was sure of it. Yet somehow, without so much as a faltered step, it shifted to the north. “Stopped for gas, that’s all.” Vic paid little attention to the lie rolling off his tongue as he rose up on tiptoe and craned his neck to peer into the darkness. 


“Oh!” Her momentary flash of accusation was all but forgotten at the exciting prospect of fresh booze. “Are you near Gordon Bleau’s? I need a bottle of Amaretto.” 


Vic stifled a cringe at the thought of his wife’s mixed drink induced wandering hands. If he wanted to fend off an overly Botoxed hag that reeked of booze, he’d go visit Nana at the home. Her old biddy friends loved him, and putting in his time there helped secure his spot in her will. “I’d love to, pet, but I’d hate to keep Cass waiting.” 


A hot, snorted breath heated the exposed skin of Vic’s neck, tickling down the collar of his shirt. He spun, his heart pounding painfully in his chest, and pressed his back to the car door. Chills raced up and down his spine, electrifying his entire body. Nothing. There was nothing before him but that lone buzzing light and the seedy motel. “Damn it! Punk kids!”


“And they have a horse?” Yvonne’s giggle morphed into a hiccup. “You better watch out, Vic. It could be one of those lesser known equestrian gangs.” 


The lightning that flashed on the otherwise calm night was the only omen Vic needed to spur him into action. Throwing himself off the car, his trembling fingers fumbled with the door handle. Behind him, metal hissed free from leather. Slowly—with a cold, hard fist of dread clenching his gut—his head swiveled.


“Oh,” he said with a nervous lilt of laughter to the ominous symphony of black before him. “That’s … good. You got me. I really believed for a sec—” 


Vic’s anxious, cracking plea morphed into a scream as the figure pulled back. The blade of their arched sword gleaming gold under the yellow-hued light. 


Victor’s hands raised in the only defense he could offer. “No! Noooo!” 


He sucked in one last gasp as metal winged through the air. 


“Vic? Victor!” Yvonne screamed, panic clearing her alcohol induced haze. “What’s happening?” 


The only response she received came in the form of a ghostly whinny … followed by a soft thump. Her shrieks were muted as the phone tumbled to the ground—right next to Vic’s still rolling head.




 http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/0a59993/

a Rafflecopter giveaway



 

RONE Award Winner for Best YA Paranormal Work of 2012 for Embrace, a Gryphon Series Novel
Young Adult and Teen Reader voted Author of the Year 2012
Turning Pages Magazine Winner for Best YA book of 2013 & Best Teen Book of 2013
Stacey Rourke lives in Michigan with her husband, two beautiful daughters, and two giant, dogs. She loves to travel, has an unhealthy shoe addiction and considers herself blessed to make a career out of talking to the imaginary people that live in her head. Mark your calendars! Her latest literary adventure, Crane, will release May 26, 2014. She is currently hard at work on the continuations of this thrilling Legends Saga, as well as other literary projects.

~ Facebook ~ Amazon ~ Website ~ Goodreads ~ Blog ~ 


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Monday, May 26, 2014

Crane by Stacey Rourke ~ Release day!!

I have been so excited about this book and I'm sure you'll want to go out and get it too! Take a look!!

Synopsis


The Horseman is unending,
his presence shan’t lessen.
If you break the curse,
you become the legend.

Washington Irving and Rip Van Winkle had no choice but to cover up the deadly truth behind Ichabod Crane’s disappearance. Centuries later, a Crane returns to Sleepy Hollow awakening macabre secrets once believed to be buried deep.

What if the monster that spawned the legend lived within you?

Now, Ireland Crane, reeling from a break-up and seeking a fresh start, must rely on the newly awakened Rip Van Winkle to discover the key to channeling the darkness swirling within her. Bodies are piling high and Ireland is the only one that can save Sleepy Hollow by embracing her own damning curse.

But is anyone truly safe when the Horseman rides?


Buy Now


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Excerpt
Chapter One:

If his wife hadn’t let her ass grow to the size of a sofa, Vic wouldn’t have to cheat. Shrugging his navy blue sport coat over his shoulders, he stepped forward, allowing the hotel room door to shut behind him with a soft thump. A smug smile curled across his face, his chest puffing with pride at his own prowess—thanks in part to those spiffy little blue pills his doctor prescribed. The heels of his wing-tipped loafers clicked against the cement stairs, one impeccably manicured hand running along the handrail as he descended. The rusted metal rail squeaked its protest under the faint touch. Taking its suggestion, he retracted his hand. 

Why he humored Karma by letting her drag him to this dive every week, he had no idea.

Her firm little apple bottom isn’t that great, he mused to himself, snorting a quick, dry laugh. 

Of course it was. She made good money with it at the Sugar Shack down by the airport. Grinding to R&B’s raunchiest hits, while clad only in a sequin thong. She was a sweet, albeit naïve, girl that believed if she stroked Vic’s … ahem, ego just the way he liked, she would someday find a fat rock on her finger and the title of Van Tassel behind her name. Hence her insistence on the flea bag hotel. She had

flipped her bleached blonde waves, batted those ridiculous fake eyelashes, and pouted that she couldn’t be seen as the “other woman” by the same crowd she would soon be rubbing elbows with. As if he would ever let that happen. Karma’s airbrushed nails and hooker heels would never fit into his world. After all, in Tarrytown the Van Tassel name meant something, and not because of the stupid legend the residents of the small glen of Sleepy Hollow mercilessly clung to. No, as one of the founding families they helped build this town. Meaning, here, he might as well be a Rockefeller. A fact he reveled in and would never tarnish with outward displays of his cheap conquests … no matter how well she could wiggle. 

Vic crossed the parking lot, lit only by one humming street lamp, with a wide, jovial stride. As he shook his keys from the pocket of his slacks, thumbing the button to unlock the doors, his phone buzzed from the breast pocket of his Armani shirt. 

Snatching it from its resting place, he tapped to answer. “Yello?”

“Don’t you sound chipper for someone working late?” Yvonne slurred, the only hint he needed that she’d already cracked open tonight’s bottle of wine. 

“Why shouldn’t I be chipper?” he playfully asked, turning to glance back up toward the room Karma had rented. A flash of her blonde locks appeared from behind the stained drapes. He raised his hand in a casual wave, but couldn’t tell from this distance if she returned the gesture. “I just finished showing a multi-million dollar estate that the buyers are very interested in, and now I get to head home to my loving wife.” 

“Yeah, right,” Yvonne openly scoffed, her voice muffled by her glass as she took another sip. “We’re the friggin’ Cleavers. Hey, Cassidy is at the mall. I need you pick her up on your—“

Vic jerked his head to the right, in the direction of the neighboring gas station. Between the normal ebb and flow of rushing traffic, he heard the distinct snap of hoof beats pounding over pavement. “What kind of idiot would bring a horse out this close to the highway?” 

“The highway? Where the hell are you, Victor?” 

A moment ago the drum of the approaching rider had been coming from the south of him, Vic was sure of it. Yet somehow, without so much as a faltered step, it shifted to the north. “Stopped for gas, that’s all.” Vic paid little attention to the lie rolling off his tongue as he rose up on tiptoe and craned his neck to peer into the darkness. 

“Oh!” Her momentary flash of accusation was all but forgotten at the exciting prospect of fresh booze. “Are you near Gordon Bleau’s? I need a bottle of Amaretto.” 

Vic stifled a cringe at the thought of his wife’s mixed drink induced wandering hands. If he wanted to fend off an overly Botoxed hag that reeked of booze, he’d go visit Nana at the home. Her old biddy friends loved him, and putting in his time there helped secure his spot in her will. “I’d love to, pet, but I’d hate to keep Cass waiting.” 

A hot, snorted breath heated the exposed skin of Vic’s neck, tickling down the collar of his shirt. He spun, his heart pounding painfully in his chest, and pressed his back to the car door. Chills raced up and down his spine, electrifying his entire body. Nothing. There was nothing before him but that lone buzzing light and the seedy motel. “Damn it! Punk kids!”

“And they have a horse?” Yvonne’s giggle morphed into a hiccup. “You better watch out, Vic. It could be one of those lesser known equestrian gangs.” 

The lightning that flashed on the otherwise calm night was the only omen Vic needed to spur him into action. Throwing himself off the car, his trembling fingers fumbled with the door handle. Behind him, metal hissed free from leather. Slowly—with a cold, hard fist of dread clenching his gut—his head swiveled.

“Oh,” he said with a nervous lilt of laughter to the ominous symphony of black before him. “That’s … good. You got me. I really believed for a sec—” 

Vic’s anxious, cracking plea morphed into a scream as the figure pulled back. The blade of their arched sword gleaming gold under the yellow-hued light. 

Victor’s hands raised in the only defense he could offer. “No! Noooo!” 

He sucked in one last gasp as metal winged through the air. 

“Vic? Victor!” Yvonne screamed, panic clearing her alcohol induced haze. “What’s happening?” 

The only response she received came in the form of a ghostly whinny … followed by a soft thump. Her shrieks were muted as the phone tumbled to the ground—right next to Vic’s still rolling head.




RONE Award Winner for Best YA Paranormal Work of 2012 for Embrace, a Gryphon Series Novel

Young Adult and Teen Reader voted Author of the Year 2012

Turning Pages Magazine Winner for Best YA book of 2013 & Best Teen Book of 2013

Stacey Rourke lives in Michigan with her husband, two beautiful daughters, and two giant, dogs. She loves to travel, has an unhealthy shoe addiction and considers herself blessed to make a career out of talking to the imaginary people that live in her head.









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