Book Spotlight – “Daisy Song (Life After Us Book 3) ” by Rebekah Dodson

Book Spotlight - Daisy Song - Rebekah Dodson

Book Blurb

It wasn’t supposed to be like this. Seven months ago, Vicki Morel was supposed to be happy, not in the midst of the apocalypse. She and her fiancé, Will, should have been married and about to celebrate the birth of their child. Instead, she is on the run in fear for her life and the life of her baby. Her only hope is Ambrose—the man she truly loves.

Vicki entered Ambrose’s life like a bomb and blew everything apart. Just when he thought they could get out of this hell hole alive, she walked away. Or did she? After a cryptic message on a satellite phone, Ambrose is willing to risk it all to find her. Through a plane crash, escaping crazy doomsday preppers, and invading a military base, Ambrose and his band of survivors is determined to rescue Vicki. He wasn’t born a leader, yet the people follow him, determined to carve their own path in this world.

When everything ends, the daisy’s song promises a new beginning, a different life, and a fresh path in this altered world.

Buy Your Copy Now! E-Book

At These eBook Retailers: Amazon

Check Out The Rest Of The Series

The Life After Us Series Promo
Click The Image To See The Complete Series

From the Author

Rebekah Dodson - Author Image

Rebekah Dodson is a prolific word weaver of romance, fantasy, and science fiction novels. Her works include the series Postcards from Paris, The Surrogate, The Curse of Lanval series, several stand alone novels, and her upcoming YA novel, Clock City. She has been writing her whole life, with her first published work of historical fiction with 4H Clubs of America at the age of 12, and poetry at the age of 16 with the National

Poetry Society. With an extensive academic background including education, history, psychology and English, she currently works as a college professor by day and a writer by night.

Where To Find Rebekah Dodson

Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Website (Rebekah Dodson), Newsletter (Rebekah Dodson)

Author Spotlight – Rebekah Dodson

Author Spotlight - Rebekah Dodson

Introducing Rebekah Dodson

Rebekah Dodson is a prolific word weaver of romance, fantasy, and science fiction novels. Her works include the series Postcards from Paris, The Surrogate, The Curse of Lanval series, several stand alone novels, and her upcoming YA novel, Clock City. She has been writing her whole life, with her first published work of historical fiction with 4H Clubs of America at the age of 12, and poetry at the

age of 16 with the National Poetry Society. With an extensive academic background including education, history, psychology and English, she currently works as a college professor by day and a writer by night.

Why don’t you begin by sharing a little about yourself.

Hello! I am a world traveler and history buff who started writing about 20 years ago, and publishing just 5 years ago. I dabble in a little of everything: romance, fantasy, science fiction, and time travel. I enjoy playing piano and have a band with my two teenage kids, and we are huge video game enthusiasts!

Could you tell us a bit about your latest book?

Beyond the Mask is an anthology put together by Fiction-Atlas Publishing, and I’m excited to work with an excellent team of writers! This anthology benefits Alex’s Lemonade Stand, which donates money to aid families who have children with cancer. It’s an important cause I’m passionate about, and I’m excited to donate my story, Super Sam, to this project.

Super Sam is about a lonely housewife who, after a car accident, discovers her husband’s “lab work” has given her super powers. Among super sense and strength, she also developed kinetic energy weapons. When a drug dealer moves on to her street and tempts her teenage son, Sam realizes she must jump into action before someone else’s baby is harmed.

Who is your intended readership?

My readers are anyone that enjoys action, suspense, and rich, detailed dialogue. I love to share worlds with readers as well.

When did you realize you wanted to be a writer?

I started writing when I was about 12. I was home schooled, and my mother often let me choose between language arts or math. I picked language arts every time! I was an avid reader and enjoyed writing my very own “fan fic” about characters from Lord of the Rings, Anne of Green Gables, and Chronicles of Narnia.

By the time I was 16 I had already written a novel (though it is now lost to the ages on some abandoned 3.5″ disk!), and after graduate school at the age of 30, I published five books which eventually become the Postcards from Paris series. In the last five years, I have written and published 25 novels and seven short stories.

Do you have a favorite author, or writing inspiration?

One of my favorite authors right now is Cassandra Clare. Her ability to craft another world in her urban fantasy, and especially her historical fantasy, is just amazing. I aspire to write like her. I am also a huge fan of Charlaine Harris (of True Blood fame) and her first-person story telling!

What advice would you give beginning writers?

My advice would be before you finish your novel, connect with as many people in your genre as you can. Social media is a great tool for this! As soon as you finish your novel, however, make sure you give it to professionals. Hire a good editor and a professional cover designer. Don’t ever try to edit yourself!

Do you have any amusing writing stories or anecdotes to share?

My most recent releases, the science fiction/dystopian series Life After Us, all started because I heard the song “Leaving on the Jet Plane” about four years ago. I had the image in my head of boyfriend leaving his girlfriend behind in the Portland, Oregon (my home state) airport. Then I thought: what if the airport is attacked? Blown up? And the boyfriend is to blame? It snowballed from there…until I mentioned it to my best friend at the time, who made it even worse by giving me idea after idea after idea. Over the next 9 months the entire series was written, all becuase of a little song and a golden idea.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing? Any hobbies?

I play piano and also like to play dungeons and dragons. I’m a huge fan of video games such as Tomb Raider, Skyrim, and Fallout, and I’m really looking forward to the new Kingdom of Hearts release! In my other off time, when I’m not teaching, I love to study history. I will watch any documentary and often get lost in TEDtalks about different historical issues, specifically British or medieval.

What’s your next project? Any upcoming book secrets you care to reveal?

My next release is the final book in the Life After Us series, Daisy Song, which is out on February 12nd with Happy Ever After Publishing. I’ll be putting out some romance thrillers and contemporary romance after that, but I also plan in completing my time travel series, The Curse of Lanval, in 2019. Stay tuned on my website for more release dates!

Beyond the Mask: A Fiction-Atlas Superhero Anthology

Beyond The Mask - Cover

There’s so much more to each hero beyond the mask…

Fighting crime is not always a walk in the park.

The power to protect citizens comes at a price… your identity.

How do you live an ordinary life when you can do such extraordinary things?

All proceeds from the print and digital sales of this book will be donated to Alex’s Lemonade Stand, an organization that is a superhero to the many children diagnosed with childhood cancers. ALS’s mission is to change the lives of children with cancer through funding impactful research, raising awareness, supporting families, and empowering everyone to help cure childhood cancer.

Buy Now: E-Book

Author Pages:

Amazon

Where to find Rebekah Dodson:

Website (Rebekah Dodson), Twitter, Instagram, Newsletter, Facebook

Book Spotlight “Beyond The Mask”

Beyond The Mask - Cover

There’s so much more to each hero beyond the mask…

Fighting crime is not always a walk in the park.

The power to protect citizens comes at a price… your identity. 

How do you live an ordinary life when you can do such extraordinary things?

All proceeds from the print and digital sales of this book will be donated to Alex’s Lemonade Stand, an organization that is a superhero to the many children diagnosed with childhood cancers. ALS’s mission is to change the lives of children with cancer through funding impactful research, raising awareness, supporting families, and empowering everyone to help cure childhood cancer.

Buy Your Copy Now! E-Book

At These eBook Retailers: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Google Play

From The Publisher (Fiction-Atlas Press)


Hello! Every year Fiction-Atlas Press publishes a charity anthology to benefit charity. This year we’ve chosen Alex’s Lemonade Stand as the recipient of all proceeds from our superhero anthology titled, Beyond the Mask. 100% of the proceeds from the ebook and print editions of this book will be donated to ALS. We also wanted to put together this fundraiser for those who wanted to make a greater contribution to this amazing organization!  Whether it be $5 or $50 every single contribution goes to help fund childhood cancer research!  https://www.facebook.com/donate/1450428665088151/

Fiction Atlas Pres

About Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation


US 501(c)(3) Nonprofit Organization We share the vision of our founder and creator, Alexandra “Alex” Scott – a cure for all children with cancer. Our Mission: To raise money and awareness of childhood cancer causes, primarily research into new treatments and cures. To encourage and empower others, especially children, to raise money for childhood cancer by holding their own Alex’s Lemonade Stands.

Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation

About The Authors

C.L. Cannon

C.L. Cannon is a publisher, publicist, editor, author, designer, and lots of other occupations with the -er sound at the end!

She is a woman of many talents who never gives up or stops improving. She enjoys writing about love and friendship. She loves it even more when she can add fantasy and science fiction aspects to those themes!

She’s a self-proclaimed Harry Potter freak (Slytherin Pride people), lover of anything Joss Whedon (Spuffy forever), Tolkien fiend (who enjoys second breakfast), an addict of classic literature (Social class struggles turn me on… literally  yah see what I did there?)

She spends her days trying to #bookstagram (and probably failing), helping other authors grow and succeed (I love my job), and loving on her two babes (velociraptors), Seth and Petey.

She’s also sort of a social media enthusiast! You can find her basically everywhere on the net (man I just aged myself).

Or, you can visit her website for more content!

Sarah Buhrman

Sarah is an AuthorGoddess, one who embraces the divine honor of creating worlds with words in the hope of inspiring others. Sarah has been writing for more than 25 years, starting with poetry before moving on to non-fiction and fiction. She lives in the Midwest with two monsters (the kids), an ogre (the hubby), and whatever drama-llama is coming to visit this week. Sarah is the author of the Runespells series: Too Wyrd, Fluffy Bunny, and The Chains That Bind. She has short stories in several anthologies, including Counterclockwise: A Time Travel Anthology, A Twist of Fate: A Collection of 11 Twisted Fairy Tales, and Whispers of Hope: A Lexis Infinitum Charity Anthology. Sarah also has a blog via Patreon and makes funny videos about writing on her vlog, Practically Writing.

Matthew Stevens

Matthew Stevens spent years dreaming about being a writer before he found time late at night to create characters and worlds and the stories for them to inhabit. His current projects find him dabbling in a wide range of genres from his drafted novel, a paranormal thriller, to numerous fantasy and sci-fi shorts, along with an occasional blog post examining his perspective on his own writing journey and any intriguing geeky topic that catches his attention. He can be found online at:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/matthewstevensauthor

Twitter: @matt_the_writer

Blog: theedgeofeverything.wordpress.com


K.Matt

K.Matt is an author and illustrator. Her main body of work is the Hell Bent series of graphic novel/prose novella hybrids. She can be found in Upstate New York, in pretty much the middle of nowhere. She’s a fan of comics (and especially the movies based on them) and is an unrepentant workaholic. Her story “Travesty” is a culmination of her love of superhero media (and her love of making her characters suffer).

R.M. Demeester

R.M. Demeester lives in Saskatchewan, Canada. She is the mother of three young children, and owner of a rescue dog, a chocolate lab, Gainer. R.M. Demeester has been writing for as long as she could hold a pencil. She writes women’s fiction, new adult, and sweet romance primarily. She has two women’s fiction novels set to be released in 2019, along with several short stories.

Devorah Fox

“What if?” Those two words all too easily send Devorah Fox spinning into flights of fancy. Best-selling author of award-winning books including The Bewildering Adventures of King Bewilliam literary historical fantasy series and several thrillers, she also penned Fantasy/Science Fiction and Mystery Mini Short Reads and contributed short stories to popular fantasy anthologies. Born in Brooklyn, New York, she now lives on the Texas Gulf Coast with rescued tabby cats … and a dragon named Inky. 

Visit the “Dee-Scoveries” blog at http://devorahfox.com and subscribe to receive the free email newsletter at http://eepurl.com/LrZGX.

Rebekah Dodson

Rebekah Dodson is a prolific word weaver of romance, fantasy, and science fiction novels. Her works include the series Postcards from Paris, The Surrogate, The Curse of Lanval series, several stand-alone novels, and her upcoming YA novel, Clock City. She has been writing her whole life, with her first published work of historical fiction with 4H Clubs of America at the age of 12, and poetry at the age of 16 with the National Poetry Society. With an extensive academic background including education, history, psychology, and English, she currently works as a college professor by day and a writer by night.

Bob James

Bob James is a native of the Chicago area, growing up in Oak Park, Ill. He currently lives in Corpus Christi, TX. He retired after 25 years in the education business – one year as a sign language interpreter followed by 24 years as a teacher in the fields of Special Education and Technology. All of his unpublished work can be accessed through his new site, Bob James – The Author. He writes daily devotionals, Science Fiction, and Thrillers, and is also working on a book about the journey that he and his wife went through during her battle with breast cancer. Bob has been married to his wife Lucy since 1979. They have two sons, one daughter, one granddaughter, and one grandson.

Melissa E. Beckwith

Melissa has been writing books since before she had learned to read, in the form of picture books, and planned to be an author at age 4.  She spent her youth penning short stories, poems and writing in her diary.  At nineteen she married her high school sweetheart and started her family.  She has spent her adult life raising her three children and teaching herself the business and craft of writing.  Born and raised in beautiful Southern California she and her husband now live along the Ohio River in Indiana to be near their beloved grandson, Bryar.

Melissa enjoys the outdoors and nature, especially camping.  She has an interest in the natural world, particularly the wonder of birds and bugs.  She can’t grow plants to save her life, though she likes to try. She loves art and paints a little herself.  She has a great interest in history and plans on trying her hand at historical fiction in the future.  Someday she hopes to travel the world starting with Scotland, Ireland, Africa, and Australia.

Melissa loves to listen to heavy metal, Irish rock, and Celtic music…well, anything Celtic really.  She loves dangly earrings, big rings, bright clothes, the color red, yellow roses, orange cats, and little dogs, like her fuzzy Shih Tzu, Abby.

Most days you will find her tapping away at her keyboard, researching her next great novel, or catch her with her nose stuck in an epic fantasy or historical fiction story.

C.M. Lander

M. Lander is an emerging voice in the fantasy and science fiction genre. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing from Hofstra University where she focused on her first love–poetry. She has been featured as Tumblr’s Poet of the Day, placed 2nd in the Bartleby Snopes’ Dialog-Only Contest, and has been published by Newsday and ProtestPoems.org, among other publications.

Ms. Lander is currently a student of law and is devoted to marrying her love of writing with philanthropic causes.

Keep an eye out for her next novel, The Witch of Ildra Lac, due out in March 2019.

Character Spotlight – Alexandra St. James (from “Tattoos” by Stacy Overby)

character spotlight - alexandra st. james

I have to say, I love Alexandra St. James. She stars opposite Eli Thorson in Tattoos. Alexandra, but she goes by Alex, is a stubborn and strong-willed woman—just the kind of woman to stand up to Eli and not brook any of his nonsense. She’s calm under pressure, intelligent, and good-hearted.

Alex was born to mid-level United Earth Government officials. They had just enough clout to mean something, but not enough to be scrutinized at all times. This turned out to be a

good thing, despite their efforts to advance their careers, because from a child on, it was clear Alex was an empath. Her mother had the genetics for it, but her empathic abilities were so minor as to be ignored by the UEG. Alex, on the other hand, not so much. She showed exceptional sensitivity even as a child. By the time she was twelve years old, her parents could not hide her abilities anymore, particularly with all the testing and empathophobia gripping the citizens and UEG. They did manage to find a corrupt empath regulation official who agreed to place the empath tattoo on her hip instead of on her arm. He also allowed Alex’s parents to have the tattoo worked into an image where it wasn’t quite so obvious.

Alex, with the help of her parents and their efforts to shield her, managed to hide her abilities until adulthood. She finished her compulsory education and went to the local university where she studied medicine. Alex figured she’d have a good chance of hiding her empathic abilities some with a career in medicine. She did well in medical school and got a job at New Washington Hospital. Alex did well hiding her empathic abilities there until an accident happened. A patient assaulted several nurses and aids. Alex stepped in trying to calm the patient down, but to no avail. However, security staff noticed Alex’s efforts and started asking a few too many pointed questions.

alex st. james

With her secret out, the UEG required she consent to the second tattoo marking her strength as an empath. Thankfully the same corrupt UEG official provided the second tattoo. He couldn’t keep it off her arm but moved it high on her shoulder instead. Again, he also allowed them to have the mark worked into a larger tattoo.

Alexandra is one of the stronger empaths the systems under UEG control has ever seen. She has to regularly work to block out the emotional auras of those around her or she’s overwhelmed with their emotions. This is why she finds Eli so comforting—she can’t sense his emotions. The prevailing theory is that evolution has maintained a genetic balance by creating a small subset of beings who can stymie some empaths, though the exact mechanism is still unknown. Another down side to her strength as an empath is the level of fear and hatred for empaths in UEG controlled space. She would regularly be a target for these hate groups if her secret were known.

Overall, Alex is an interesting mix of strength and fragility. She sees the inherent good in people but isn’t afraid to be hard when needed. Yet, each time she has to be hard, it crashes back down on her emotionally afterward. Her ultimate goal is to see empaths guaranteed the same rights as all other sentient beings within the UEG. Not just on paper, but in practice as well. To that end, she supports what her foster parents, Jeremiah and Ruby, do to promote civil unrest and dissidence in support of this.

So, there you have her. Alex St. James. Now, check out her role in Tattoos and let me know what you think of her!

“Tattoos” By Stacy Overby

Tattoos-EBookCover

One hushed cry in the middle of the night and Eli Thorson’s life unravels. A highly trained Black Ops specialist, he is used to danger, but Eli’s path forces him to confront the illusions he’s been taught his whole life — ones that make him question all the good he thought he was doing.
Unable to work for a command that defiles the oaths he swore, he works to untangle the web of lies and deceit he finds woven throughout his worlds. The tattooed marks of his profession run more than skin deep. As a Specialist, it is his duty to protect the people, the laws, and all the United Earth Government stands for, even if it means taking down the entire Black Ops division to do it.

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Book Spotlight – “Unconfined Delusions, Beyond the Threshold” by Angela L. Lindseth

31 Days Of Halloween - Unconfined Delusions - Book Spotlight

Book Blurb

Unconfined Delusions, Beyond the Threshold, contains snippets of fast-paced, twisted fiction mingled with short stories that will keep you on the edge of your seat. “Broken Heart” questions the morality of organ transplantation. “The Basement” corners you in a dank basement with the tools of torture openly displayed. “My Last Sixteen Hours” counts down the last

minutes before execution. “Seeing Things” warns of a malignant aura wrapping its inky hands around your throat. “The Clutching” will send fingernails searching for a vein.
The words slither across the page, feed on insecurities, and corrupt dreams. Savor the weird deliciousness but read with the lights on. The land of Happily Ever After doesn’t exist behind this cover. Don’t let your guard down because the next page might bite.
Angela L. Lindseth’s first collection of flash fiction, Sanity’s Threshold, Slivers of a Twisted Mind, is available on Amazon.

Buy Your Copy Now! E-Book, Paperback, Hardback
At These eBook Retailers: Smashwords, Amazon, Kobo, Barnes & Noble, iBooks

From the Author

Angela L Lindseth

Angela L. Lindseth was raised on the plains of South Dakota, and though she spent most of her life away, the draw of the Black Hills brought her back. She has a marvelous sense of humor, loves to sing, and has a great fondness for good beer. When not scrapbooking or making jewelry, she works on her dystopian novel, The Contraption, and writes flash fiction, some of which make her question her sanity.

Where To Find Angela L. Lindseth

Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Website (Angela L. Lindseth)

Book Reviews – June to August

Book Reviews-June-August-2018New Feature

For a while now, I’ve been considering adding book reviews to my line up of regular features. The problem has been that I have a huge back-catalog of reviews, and I really didn’t know where to start. I read both fiction and non-fiction books, and time allowing I can read three or four books a month.

Usually my fiction reading covers Science-Fiction, Fantasy, and Urban Fantasy/Paranormal genres, but I sometimes read outside those areas, if a book catches my interest, or it’s by an author I’ve come to trust.

My non-fiction reading ranges from author advice, to marketing, and topics related to stories I’m writing, or planning. I also pick up the occasional books on science, animals, and even biographies, or other subjects that catch my attention.

As a blogger, I often feature book spotlights as part of my regular posts, so don’t be surprised to see some familiar titles in my review posts. I’ve yet to decide how often I’ll be posting these review spots, so feel free to drop suggestions in the comments. Would you prefer to see each book review posted as soon as it’s live on the book sites, or does a round-up like this work best for you?

Reviews For Readers

FoolsOfParodyTitle: Fools Of Parody

Author: Scott Moses

Genre: Science Fiction, Satire

Rating: 4 Stars

Sci-Fi Political Parodys are a rarity

“Fools of Parody” was a fun read, but there were times when I felt a little confused by the motivations of some of the characters. Thankfully a lot of those confusions were resolved by the end of the story, as more information was revealed.
I would have liked to see certain characters fleshed out a little more, or at least more time on the page, especially given how instrumental they were expected to be in the outcome of events. However, it was a fun read, and I thankfully didn’t have to wade through a lot of hard science to feel that this was well placed in its genre selection.

Buy Now: E-Book, Paperback


TheHiddenCourtTitle: The Hidden Court (The Paranormal University Files: Skylar Book 1)

Author: Vivienne Savage

Genre: Urban Fantasy, Paranormal, Suspense

Rating: 4 Stars

A suspense-filled school year for the paranormal students, with a splash of romance

This book is a great read, and the romance element just adds to what would be an otherwise great story.
Starting a new school can be difficult enough, but when you’re going to a school for supernatural students things are always going to be a little different. I loved how each of the races had a unique perspective on not only each other, but the history of the magical world, and the events that are going on around them.
Of course, it wouldn’t be a suspense story without something going on to raise the tensions between the various races, or the individuals, and the author delivers on this in a wonderfully entertaining way.
What really surprised me though, is how much I came to care for the supporting cast of characters, just as much as I did for the protagonist and the love-interest. There is a great variety in the characters, and each of them has qualities that set them apart, as well as compliment each other.
I received a copy of this book as an Advanced Reader Copy, in return for an honest review, but I’ll definitely be adding more of this author’s work to my collection.

Buy Now: E-Book, Paperback


Reviews For Writers

LayerYourNovelTitle: Layer Your Novel: The Innovative Method for Plotting Your Scenes (The Writer’s Toolbox Series)

Author: C.S. Lakin

Rating: 4 Stars

This book made me rethink my book writing process

Lakin has produced a book that made me rethink my entire book writing process. Thanks to this book, I now have a way to help resolve problems I’ve been having with the plot of my current novel project.
I’ve been struggling with the plot for my first novel for years now, and this book came to my attention at just the right time. I was literally pulling my hair out at time as I wrestled with my subplots, and making sure they entered the story at the right time. But after reading through this book, not once, but three times, I’ve come away with new ways of looking at story structure, outside the basic three-act structure.
Lakin breaks stories into layers, and layers into key scenes according to how the layers fit in the story. The best part is that the entire process takes you from story premise to basic outline, and into layers of action-reaction and subplots that add depth to your story, and flesh out your characters in the process.
I’m glad that I picked this book up, even if it took multiple readings to wrap my head around the potential changes I can make to my writing process. I’ve actually made great progress breaking down the mess that is my current draft, and look forward to reshaping the subplots so that they actually make sense.

Buy Now: E-Book, Paperback


 

Ray Bradbury on “Science Fiction” (#SomeoneElsesWords)

The eagle-eyed among you might have noticed a change in design for my quote images. I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments. Do you prefer the current format, or the old one?

SEW - Ray Bradbury - Science Fiction