A Christmas Recipe from Brinda Berry & the Cutlass Cover Reveal

Kind of a busy day here today as I am hosting Brinda Berry and also participating in Ashley Nixon's cover reveal for her upcoming release Cutlass.

The latest book in Brinda's Whispering Woods series, Watcher of Worlds, will be released this Friday, December 20. Ashley's Cutlass will be released in April, 2014. Congratulations to both ladies!

First, Ashley's awesome cover!

Publication Date: April 23, 2014
Category: Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy

Blurb:

Notorious pirate Barren Reed has one thing on his mind: Revenge against the man who killed his father. So kidnapping his enemy's fiancé seems a perfect plan…until he actually does it. 



Larkin Lee is more than a pretty face and fiancé to a powerful man. Her fierce personality is enough to make any pirate want to push her overboard. 



But when the King of the Orient comes to Barren with a task—to find the Bloodstone, a powerful gem thought only to exist in legend, Barren sees another opportunity to destroy his enemy. Together, Barren, Larkin and a crew of pirates set off to find the stone, only to discover it caused the death of Barren’s own mother and Larkin’s, too. As his strongest allies turn into his greatest enemies, and the life of the girl he kidnapped becomes more important than he ever dreamed, Barren’s quest for revenge becomes a fight to save the Orient.

Links:

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Ashley is holding a giveaway for a $25 Amazon gift card at her blog to celebrate the reveal so be sure to visit her and enter!

Source: Wikimedia Commons

Next up, Brinda Berry and I are switching blogs today and sharing Christmas recipes that relate to our books. I know my family will find it funny that I am sharing recipes since I am truly the world's worst cook, but Brinda swears that her recipe can be made by anyone. So I have hope that even I could make it!

Please visit me at Brinda's for a recipe that I probably couldn't make but I think my character Stella from The Ghosts of Aquinnah could. Take it away, Brinda. :)

I'm swapping blogs today with the Julie. She's at my place and is sharing a yummy recipe related to The Ghosts of Aquinnah. When Julie and I decided to share recipes related to our books, I had a difficult time narrowing down the choice.  The story in my upcoming release, Watcher of Worlds (Whispering Woods #3), takes place during the holiday season. My characters enjoy lots of delicious food since they're celebrating Christmas. My main character, Mia Taylor, has a best friend named Em. Em made macaroons that weren't so delicious. Actually, the cookies were inedible. Poor Em. 

So, I think I'll share a recipe that even the worst cook can make. I'm actually a pretty good cook (according to me and not my husband), but I like to know I can fall back on something simple in the worst case scenario. Like making an inedible batch of macaroons.  I don't know where I first found this recipe, but I make it anytime I'm in a hurry for a dessert. I keep the ingredients on hand and prep time is nonexistent.

You Can't Mess This Up Cobbler:

2 cans of cherry, blackberry, peach, apple, or any fruit pie filling
1 stick butter
1 box of Jiffy cake mix
1 cup of chopped pecans
Spoon pie filling into the a casserole dish. Layer with Jiffy cake mix. Sprinkle chopped pecans in another layer. Cut butter into thin slices and place on top as last layer.  Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

Watcher of Worlds (releasing December 20, 2013), EXCERPT:
 

Jingle Bells

I detested planned surprises.

I could read the expectation in the air from the shimmery orange vibe that glowed like a Cheetos binge gone bad.

A few months ago, my friends had discovered my secret. The secret I’d hidden so teachers and doctors wouldn’t treat me like an amped up sensory perception freak. So friends wouldn’t ask.

Synesthesia. The condition sounded like the name of an electronic punk band. I’d made the full round of emotions about my sensory perception and being able to find portals. First, I’d hid it like you hide an ugly rash. Later, I’d learned to trust my friends with my secret. I’d even embraced it.

Now, I was back to wishing for normal.

Working with Regulus and Arizona was like playing Pop Goes the Weasel—a surprise around every corner. And did I mention I hate surprises?

Give me predictable any day. Then I could be ready. It’s why I made sure I knew the contents of every box under the Christmas tree.

AUTHOR BIO:

Brinda Berry is the author of The Waiting Booth (Whispering Woods #1), Whisper of Memory (Whispering Woods #2), and the upcoming Watcher of Worlds (Whispering Woods #3). She also contributed a short story to the anthology, Wild at Heart, Vol II.

Currently working in higher education administration, she spends her days thinking of ways to improve education for college students. Brinda spends her nights devising exciting tales that involve teens who might be saving the world.

WEB     BLOG     FACEBOOK    TWITTER   GOODREADS    YOUTUBE

Congratulations again and best wishes to both Ashley and Brinda! Hope to see you over at Brinda's place.

Talking Ghosts with Gwen Gardner, 'Tis More Blessed Winner, and Susan Oloier's Latest

I'm hanging out with fellow Untethered Realms member Gwen Gardner, author of Givin' Up the Ghost and Guilty Ghost Surprised, to chat about something we obviously both love - ghost stories. I share some of my favorite ghost books and movies, and Gwen's titles definitely belong on that list. Please come visit Gwen and me here.

I'm also happy to announce that Sherry Ellis won the ebook copy of The Ghosts of Aquinnah that I gave away as part of the 'Tis More Blessed giveaway. Congratulations to Sherry! And thanks to everyone who entered the giveaway. I'm on board for another round with Milo this Friday and am looking forward to it.

Finally, it's release day for Susan Oloier's latest novel Haunted.  I'm reading Haunted right now and it is a beautifully written and deeply moving story. Susan has a real gift with words. Congratulations and best of luck on the release, Susan!

A Visit to S.K. Anthony & 'Tis More Blessed

Baker's Island Light (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

I'm visiting Kinetic author S.K. Anthony to share one final ghost story for The Ghosts of Aquinnah blog tour. Visit me there to learn about the ghosts (and beast!) of Baker's Island, Massachusetts. Thank you to S.K. for hosting me!

Also, thanks to everyone who has stopped by and entered my 'Tis More Blessed drawing for an ebook copy of The Ghosts of Aquinnah. If you'd still like to enter, just leave a comment here before midnight tonight and I'll have a winner tomorrow. Thank you again to Milo for hosting the event!

I'm keeping this short today because I'm barely awake as I stayed up late last night to watch the Bengals remind us all that they are the Bengals. As they have proven more times than I can count, no one can choke quite like our pathetic Cincinnati Bengals. Way to make a statement, boys.

Hope to see you over at S.K.'s! :)

Aquinnah Tour, 'Tis More Blessed and Friday Celebrations

I'm super excited to be participating in 'Tis More Blessed today, hosted by Milo James Fowler. I'm giving away an ebook copy (mobi or epub) of The Ghosts of Aquinnah to a random commenter on this post. I'm suffering from Rafflecopter fatigue so I want to make this simple! Just leave a comment between now and Monday 12/15 at midnight and you will be entered to win. If I don't already know you please leave your email in the comment so that I can contact you if you win.

I'm sharing the 'Tis More Blessed stage today with these great writers:

Milo James Fowler     

Christine Rains    

Alex J. Cavanaugh    

Stephen V. Ramey    

Yolanda Renee

M.K. Theodoratus 
L. Diane Wolfe   
Simon Kewin    
Sherry Ellis    
Helena Soister

Martin Willoughby   
Mary Rajotte   
E. Catherine Tobler    
Tyrean Martinson   
Cat Rambo 
Peter Coleborn    
T. B. Markinson    
Chrysoula Tzavelas   
Stevie Carroll 
Kristy Gillespie     
Roland Yeomans

Please stop by and visit everyone who is taking part. Thanks to Milo for hosting this fun giveaway every week in December.

I'm also continuing my blog tour for The Ghosts of Aquinnah today with a visit to Yolanda Renee at Defending the Pen. Yolanda is sharing an interview with Hannah Forrester, the main character in the present-day storyline of the novel. In addition, she is giving away an ebook copy (mobi or epub) of Polar Night as part of the post. Please come visit Hannah and me here and enter to win.

I mentioned yesterday that I owe E.J. Wesley for giving me the idea for these character interviews. Stella Winslow, one of the main characters in the 1884 section of the novel, was interviewed at EJ's site yesterday and you can find that interview here if you haven't read it and would like to. I also interviewed fellow 1884 resident Christopher Casey at Annalisa Crawford's site on Tuesday and that interview is here.

Do you enjoy character interviews? I think they are so fun to do. I love them.

 

It's also time to Celebrate the Small Things with Vikki at Scribblings of an Aspiring Author. I was surprised to read on Vikki's blog last week that we are coming up on the one year anniversary of the start of this hop. I can't believe it's already been a whole year! I've really enjoyed it and am glad Vikki decided to continue it for 2014. Thanks, Vikki!

As for my celebrations, I'm celebrating that I had such a great time with my blog tour this week for The Ghosts of Aquinnah. It's been a crazy week but also very fun. Thanks again to everyone who hosted me and visited me at the various blogs.

I'm also celebrating that I only have one week of work left before I am on vacation for Christmas. I'm really looking forward to Christmas this year and after next Friday I will be off until January 2, so I am totally thrilled about that. You can't beat holidays and vacation time. :)

Finally, I'm celebrating that my Bengals are in first place in their division! It's fun to be so close to playoff season and actually feel like the team has a chance. That doesn't happen very often around here. I hope the Bengals don't revert to typical Bengaldom and choke against the Steelers on Sunday night.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Visits to E.J. Wesley and Laurie's Thoughts & Reviews

Just a quick post to say The Ghosts of Aquinnah tour is continuing with two more stops today.

First up, I'm excited to visit E.J. Wesley at The Open Vein for an interview with my character Stella Winslow. Back when Polar Night came out, E.J. asked if I would be interested in doing character interviews at his site. I had such fun doing those that I was anxious to do them again for this book, so I'm grateful to E.J. for giving me the idea in the first place. Please visit us here for the interview!

Also, I was interviewed myself by Laurie at Laurie's Thoughts and Reviews. I met Laurie during my Polar Night Book Blast and she is wonderful about promoting authors and books at both of her sites. Please stop by and visit me here!

Thanks to everyone who has visited me at my stops, and huge thanks to all the hosts who have allowed me to take over their sites. It's been a fun week and I'm looking forward to more tomorrow and next week.

See you at E.J.'s and Laurie's!

Aquinnah Excerpt and Becky Povich's Memoir

I'm at Cathrina Constantine's site today sharing an excerpt from The Ghosts of Aquinnah. Cathrina is the author of Wickedly They Come, and if you haven't read that yet I highly recommend picking up a copy. If you'd like to read a short excerpt involving my character Stella Winslow please visit me at Cathrina's place! Thanks, Cathrina for hosting me.

It's also my pleasure to be able to share the new release from Becky Povich, From Pigtails to Chin Hairs: A Memoir and More.

Becky was one of the first people I met after I started blogging back at the start of 2011 and I honestly can't even remember now how I met her. But I've certainly enjoyed her friendship ever since and I couldn't be happier for her that her memoir is now out in the world. Becky went through some twists and turns on the road to publication but it's here now and I've no doubt it is wonderful. Kudos and huge congratulations to you, Becky!

About the book:

In From Pigtails to Chin Hairs: A Memoir & More, Becky Lewellen Povich takes us from her young Midwest childhood in the 1950s to present day near St. Louis, Missouri. Each chapter is a scene from everyday life and/or unexpected events written in the way only Povich can, with humor and poignancy woven into them. She relates tales of Christmases, summertime fun, selling homemade potholders, and putting on parades. Also, the kids next door, classmates, her fear of the dentist and her parents' scheme to help, plus long car rides visiting her grandparents in small town Iowa.

She willingly shares the bittersweet times, too, which include her parents' divorce, major disappointments, preteen and teenage angst, a whack on her head from a falling crowbar, and her ill-fated first marriage, spent mostly in Germany. She also comically writes about her happy second marriage, cell phones, dishwashers, and how she was born with a klutz gene.

"Becky Povich has a light and whimsical way with words, and a knack for making the everyday seem a bit more special." - Philip Gulley, bestselling author of Porch Talk Series, Harmony Series, Hometown Tales, I Love You Miss Huddleston, and more.

"This beautifully written memoir is funny, poignant, and life-affirming. Becky Povich is an American treasure." - Michael Lee West, bestselling author of Crazy Ladies, Mad Girls in Love, Gone With a Handsomer Man, and more.

Becky Lewellen Povich has numerous publications, including stories in Chicken Soup for the Soul books and other anthologies. Becky is currently working on her sequel due out in 2015, which contains more memories and anecdotes.

Aquinnah Tour, Diamonds and Dust, and Hop Winners

The Ghosts of Aquinnah tour continues today with visits to Christine Rains and Annalisa Crawford. Thanks to both ladies for hosting me! I'm sharing my top ten favorite things about Martha's Vineyard at Christine's place and an interview with my character Christopher Casey at Annalisa's, so please stop by and see me.

Lexa Cain and I are also excited to announce the winners of our blog hop! We are in the process of contacting everyone but wanted to share a full list too. So without further ado, the winners!

An ebook copy of The Ghosts of Aquinnah ~  Sheri Larsen

An ebook copy of Soul Cutter ~ Crystal Hicken Collier

A 5 page critique from Lexa's agent Michelle Johnson of Inklings Literary Agency ~ Christine Rains

A query critique from Michelle Johnson ~ Magaly Guerrero

An ebook bundle from Julie's publisher Ink Smith Publishing ~ C. Lee McKenzie

An ebook copy of Champion in the Darkness by Tyrean Martinson ~ Susan Swiderski

A digital copy of The 13th Floor Complete Collection by Christine Rains ~ Kim Graff

An ebook copy of Drowned Sorrow by Vanessa Morgan ~ Beverly Fox

An ebook from M. Pax ~ Cathy Keaton

A Kindle copy of BESTEST. RAMADAN. EVER. by Medeia Sharif  ~ Suzi

An ebook from Nicki Elson - winner's choice of Three Daves, Divine Temptation or Hans & Greta ~ Tania Miclau

A Kindle copy of The People We Used to Be by Madeline Mora-Summonte ~ Beverly Stowe McClure

A 5 page critique from C. Lee McKenzie ~ Michael Di Gesu

An ebook set of Murder, Madness & Love and Memories of Murder by Yolanda Renee ~ Shah Wharton

An ebook set of Murder, Madness & Love and Memories of Murder by Yolanda Renee ~ Alex J. Cavanaugh

A Kindle copy of Marionette by TB Markinson ~ Samantha Geary Jones

A Kindle Copy of Dangled Carat by Hilary Grossman ~ Diane Burton

An ebook copy of  AlmaMia Cienfuegos and Other Stories by Magaly Guerrero ~ Hilary Rick Grossman

Also, we had a nearly impossible time picking a winner for our special best picture prize, so we have two! Nutschell Windsor won first place and Magaly Guerrero was the runner-up. Both of these ladies will be receiving ebook copies of Soul Cutter and The Ghosts of Aquinnah.

Congratulations to all the winners!

Also, River Fairchild's Diamonds and Dust was released yesterday and it is my pleasure to be able to share some information about it. Congratulations to River!!

Diamonds and Dust

by River Fairchild

Book 1 of the Jewels of Chandra series

Magic is real. So is betrayal.

Two heirs. A Kingdom of dust on a troubled world. One might resurrect it. One might destroy it all.

Archaeologist David Alexander investigates the cave where his father disappeared and hurtles into another world, one filled with magic and bizarre creatures. The mad ravings in his father's journals of icemen and dragons may not be fantasies after all.

Convinced his father may still be alive, David begins a treacherous journey to find him and discover a way home. Along the way, he encounters a few unlikely friends. A Dreean warrior, a beautiful thief and a satyr join him as he searches.

David's arrival into this new world sets off an explosive chain reaction of events. Faced with powerful adversaries and few clues, he may not get the chance to rescue his father before disaster strikes, condemning both of them to death. Or worse.

Buy it here:

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Apple

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Paperback

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About the author:

River Fairchild is somewhat odd, brandishes a dry sense of humor, owned by several cats. Lives in a fantasy world. A fabricator of magic. Makes stuff up and spins tales about it. Believes in Faerie crossings and never staying in one place for very long. Speculative Fiction wordsmith. The secret to her stories? Spread lies, blend in truths, add a pinch of snark and a dash of tears. Escape into her world. She left the porch light on so you can find your way down the rabbit hole.

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