RELEASE BLITZ: Moonlight & the Mirror by Evelynn Carver

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Title: Moonlight and the Mirror

Series: The Moonlight Curse, Book Three

Author: Evelynn Carver

Publisher: NineStar Press

Release Date: 11/03/2026

Heat Level: 3 – Some Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 472

Genre: Fantasy, fantasy, gay/M/M, action/adventure, bonded, demons, established couple, magic/magic users, monsters/ demons, gore, spells, royalty, shifters, spies, family drama, violence

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Description

Exiled prince Brand Lykanos and his partner Valentino Vicari are living quietly in the tropics until fate drags them back to the kingdom they once fled. With a demonic curse looming over them, they agree to a perilous ruse: fake their execution to buy their freedom. But death, even staged, has consequences—and the deeper they dig into the curse’s origins, the clearer it becomes that it began long ago with another story of forbidden love.

A hundred years past, Felideran mage and assassin Valencia Vicari enters the enemy king’s castle in disguise expecting to meet a tyrant. Instead, she finds Castor Lykanos, a soft-spoken ruler haunted by his brother’s legacy and driven by desperation. As Valencia uncovers a dangerous secret, she realizes she may be the savior her people need and the only one who can stop a curse from consuming the realm. It’s too bad her heart has other ideas.

As Brand and Valentino infiltrate an ancient cult, hoping to uncover a way to reverse the curse, they unknowingly follow in Valencia’s footsteps as she escapes from Castor’s castle with blood on her hands. When their paths converge on a haunted battlefield, past and present collide, binding them in blood, fire, and a final choice that could break the curse or destroy them all.

Moonlight and the Mirror is a romantic epic fantasy full of sharp-tongued banter, twisted legacies, and found family. Perfect for fans of Freya Marske and C.L. Polk, this is a tale of how love, in all its forms, can twist a soul or save it.

Moonlight and the Mirror is the third book in the series and will be best enjoyed if read in order.

Excerpt

Moonlight and the Mirror
Evelynn Carver © 2026
All Rights Reserved

Brand’s palms began to sweat as he stared at the faded scrap of paper in his hands. He’d studied his mother’s drawing a thousand times, traced every line, memorized every curve. Now, standing at the foot of the hill with the sun hot on his back and salt in the air, he beheld the real thing at last. Though not entirely accurate, the rendering was close enough to be undeniable, depicting the shape of the archways, the number of pillars, the elegant curves of the capped roofs, shining in the balmy sunlight—all of it as she had sketched out many years ago. Though not a palace, not quite, it seemed near enough. It stood like something out of a storybook, a beautiful, shining star overlooking the bustling marketplace below, all hidden in the center of a tropical paradise surrounded by the ruins of war.

Brand stood staring at the house on the hill for a long time from under the shade of a mango tree, his stomach heavy as if filled with stones.

He likely had relatives in that house. Extremely likely. But how could he face them? He couldn’t exactly waltz up to the front door and knock. He didn’t belong here. He didn’t belong anywhere.

Blending into the marketplace came easily enough. Unlike the streets back home, the markets teemed with all sorts, flush with colors and smells and shouting between shopkeepers and haggling customers. Food was all around him: spices and sweets, fresh fruit and vegetables overflowing from stalls and baskets, pans of oil frying this or that in the muggy afternoon heat. Teahouses lined every other block, full of old men arguing over cards and dice, children laughing, and musicians playing instruments he had never seen, much less heard before. Magic drifted through it all, the small, everyday kind of boiling kettles, mending socks, and growing things. Nothing about it resembled the tidy farming villages in Felidereaux or the stinking, labyrinthine alleys back in Kaenys.

Dengaluru thrived—a loud and lively, beautifully bustling society built on the ruins of an ancient way of life that had nearly been erased, but instead burst forth, vibrant and stubborn, from between the cracks.

Brand should feel at home here. No one gave him a second glance as he fetched letters and delivered discreet packages or went about any of the various chores and tasks to earn his keep. Brand, unlike Valentino, blended in easily, his warm brown skin and dark hair much like most of the populace on the island. This land belonged to his mother, after all.

He could only speak a few sentences of the language fluently though, the rest a broken garbled mess of Dengalese and the Queen’s Common they spoke on the mainland where he’d been born and raised. His father had forbidden his mother to speak her native tongue to her children. Though Brand knew a few of her songs, he didn’t know their full meaning. He couldn’t carry on a proper conversation with the people here without giving himself away as an outsider, and if someone got a bit too close, caught his eyes in the right light, terror clawed up his spine that they might see a tyrant staring back at them. Sometimes as he passed a mirror, he caught his reflection and found his father scowling from the glass instead. Would the people here know what the king across the ocean looked like? Brand didn’t want to find out. He didn’t want to catch too much attention, not after everything he had done.

What would his grandparents think of him? His mother had rarely ever spoken of them, terrified of inciting her husband’s wrath. Could they still be alive? And if so, would they want to meet the son of the monster who had taken their precious daughter away, the power-hungry king who had tried to drain this beautiful island dry? With every moonrise, Brand grew more and more afraid of becoming more like him.

After his bond with Valentino last winter, the curse had…changed. Something inside him had shifted, the mixing of magic altering the contract written in his blood, but unfortunately not curing. Not breaking.

He needed to get back to the inn, back to Valentino’s side, and he needed to do it soon. Being apart had taken a toll. Even now in the warm tropical afternoon, the cold magic of the curse swam right under his skin, slinking about and waiting to be set free, gnawing at him. The comforting warmth of Valentino’s magic lay half an island away, and without it, the demon grew ravenous.

The damn thing had plagued Brand his entire life, but just a season ago, he’d been barely aware of the creature’s presence in flashes and fever dreams, the bulk of it only surging forth completely once every full moon. Now, it dogged him relentlessly, always lurking, waiting, biding its time, itching at the back of his skull every day and night. Valentino, with his supernova surplus of power, certainly helped to soothe the itch, but that presented another problem entirely. Brand worried more and more about becoming a drain on their partnership, and the guilt and fear weighed heavily on his heart. Did hungry shadows torment his father the same way, consuming him from the inside out? Had he eaten all his wife’s magic away through their bond, until she slowly lost her mind as well?

The sound of a carriage approaching up the road startled Brand out of his reverie, and he stepped back to let it pass.

But instead of a single carriage, a caravan of them came around the bend, the ones in front and back carrying a group of men in striking black uniforms, sashed in red. The center carriage, large and splendid, had a tasseled canopy shading its solitary rider from the sun. When they passed, Brand caught a glimpse of the occupant’s profile—an elegant, elderly woman draped in finery, gold chains and bangles dripping from her ears, nose, and neck. Something about her struck him as startlingly familiar, and for a moment he could only gape.

Brand stared after her as the final carriage passed, nerves jangling, and then he stepped out and followed them, calling out.

“Pardon me, my lady!” He prayed he used passible Dengalese. “May I have a word?”

One guard shouted at him, turning on his horse and pointing a spear in Brand’s direction.

Brand held up his hands. “I just want to talk with the lady for a moment, please. I mean no harm.”

Another guard joined the first one, and they converged on him.

Sweating, Brand turned to run, but another shout stopped him as the lady herself spoke loudly and sternly to her driver, and the carriage stopped.

Brand took the chance. “My lady! My lady, I apologize for interrupting your travels, but—”

The guards yelled at him again, so Brand yelled louder.

“Lady Al’Uldahl. It’s about your daughter—your daughter, Deepika. I’m her—”

One of the guards hit Brand in the stomach with the butt of his spear, and he fell to the ground with a grunt, the air knocked out of him.

Another sharp word from the lady made the guards pause as she stepped down from her carriage and approached, pushing between them.

Gasping, Brand squinted up at her.

The lady frowned down at him with a dark, unreadable gaze, staring for nearly a full minute, taking in every feature, finally settling on his eyes. Her expression did not change, no light of recognition or a raised eyebrow, but when she spoke again, she did so precisely, as if for his benefit.

“Bring him with us. Now.”

Instead of to a dungeon, the guards ushered Brand into the estate’s courtyard. There, they indicated a plush cushion and told him to wait.

Brand blinked in the sunlight, squinting at his surroundings. The house, more awe-inducing up close, had pale white stone walls, gleaming with elaborate designs cut into them, and ceiling and floor tiles inlaid with chips of colorful glass. He sat, enchanted, in this beautiful stained-glass confection, flanked with tropical trees and gently gurgling fountains. All of it, so jarringly different from his father’s dusty old castle, made him wonder how his mother had ever been convinced to leave this place, royal marriage or not. He pondered this in silence, the guards watching him dutifully from the nearby doorway.

Not more than a quarter hour later, the grand lady joined him, her jewelry and finery gone except for a single shining stud in her nose and a pleated fall of gold-embroidered cloth draped over her shoulder, stark against the rich green of her dress. She wore her long hair parted at the center and gathered severely in a thick gray coil at her nape. Brand found the style rather unnervingly reminiscent of a cobra preparing to strike.

She did not speak as a maid served them tea from a steaming pot and then hurried away, leaving them alone except for another pair of guards standing several yards away near the fountain.

Lady Al’Uldahl took a sip of her tea and regarded him coolly through the fragrant steam.

“You are my grandson, I take it?” She spoke with a crisp and elegant accent, a combination of the lyrical bounce of her native tongue and his own unaffected Common from the continent.

Brand’s heart beat wildly in his chest. “Yes, I think so, my lady. My name is Brand. Brandahl Lykanos. I’m the son of Queen Deepika Al’Uldahl a Lykanos. Your daughter?”

She nodded and took a drink. “You’re the one that killed him, then? My son-in-law, the scoundrel who called himself a king.”

Brand swallowed. News traveled fast. This pretty courtyard, filled with plush pillows, fountains, and guards with spears, made a strange space for a murder confession. But when he gazed into her eyes, Brand knew he could not lie to her. He’d grown so sick of lying.

“Yes, that’s right.”

She took another sip of her tea. “How did you do it?”

Brand had expected at least a gasp or a frown, but her expression remained placid, as if discussing the weather.

“How, my lady?”

“You heard me, boy. Do not spare the details.”

A year ago, his father had transformed into a demon in broad daylight in the middle of the castle chapel. He’d flown into a wild rage, and Brand and Valentino had put him down. The image of the creature’s lifeless form, bloody and smoking in the middle of the chapel aisle, remained etched into the back of Brand’s eyelids. He flexed his hands, recalling the way the sword had vibrated as it scraped against his father’s spine. Brand did not regret it for one moment, not after he learned what his father had done to his mother, what he had hoped to do to Brand himself, what he tried to do to Valentino there between the rows of pews. Still, the image haunted him, mocking him from an ocean away.

His grandmother waited for an answer. Her eyes remained hard and emotionless, but as Brand stared at her, he noticed a barely perceptible sharpness that hadn’t been there before. He suddenly understood and did not hesitate any longer.

“I used a sword. Ran him through the back, my lady. We opened his throat, too, and burned him.”

Valentino had done that last bit, of course, but it brought Brand instant relief, confessing to the bare, honest truth.

Lady Al’Uldahl set her teacup on the small table between them and dabbed her lips with a napkin. When she finally smiled, her even, white teeth gleamed like a crescent moon on a dark, clear night. “Very good. Now, what can I do for you, dear boy?”

Purchase

NineStar Press | Books2Read

Meet the Author

Evelynn recently moved to southern Japan with her partner, child, and various cats. In her free time, she reads genre fiction, plays video games, watches cartoons, and engages in other related unseemly behavior. She’s been writing and drawing stories since she was in grade school and would one day love to grow up to be a Real Author.

Website | Instagram | Bluesky

 

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BOOK TOUR: Jesse’s Girl by Gary Morgenstein

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╰┈➤Book Details

● Title: Jesse’s Girl

● Author: Gary Morgenstein

● Genre: Thriller

● Sub-genre: Crime Action/Adventure

● Language:English

● Pages: 318

● Paperback ISBN: 978-1441492241

● Publisher: Amazon

● Price: Paperback $17, Kindle $3.99, FREE on Kindle Unlimited

● Amazon: https://a.co/d/03JVVL7e

● Barnes&Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/jesses-girl-gary-morgenstein/1018257163

BLURB

Teddy Mentor finally thought his troubled teenage son was safe. No more drugs. No more police. No more fear. Only guilt. Then came the midnight call from the wilderness program.  Jesse had run away.

But what can Teddy do? Risk his shaky job and head to Montana to search for Jesse?  Let the authorities handle this. They know what they’re doing. That’s why Teddy sent Jesse away. Because he already failed. No. Teddy can’t jeopardize what little he has left for the adopted son who said Teddy wasn’t his real father. But Teddy is a parent. A single parent. And Jesse is all he has left.

The novel asks the question how much should a parent sacrifice for their child? In Jesse’s Girl, the answer is: Everything.

BOOK EXCERPT

Ever since he’d received the call in the middle of the night that Molly had died, Teddy Mentor had moved the phone away from the end table by the bed. Here in this bedroom, once theirs, then hers, now his, it sat on a pea- green marble table just beneath the window. Even across the room, six feet away, the phone still jolted him. On the second ring, he stiffened like some zombie coming to life.

It was about Jesse. It was one of his dealers calling about money. It was a desk sergeant. It was the morgue. On the third ring, he remembered: Jesse was safe. Let it ring. He had no one else to lose.

He stumbled toward the phone and stubbed his toe on the end table. Down he went to one knee. At fifty-four, stubbing your toe was like being shot. He scowled at the digital clock that he’d also moved so he wouldn’t count the sleep lost, the hours ticking off into the ozone, never to be retrieved.  

Slamming down the clock because, of course, that was to blame, Teddy grimaced and answered the phone on the fifth ring. One-eighteen and he had to pee for the second time that night.

“Yeah,” he said hoarsely.

A faint crackle like a connection from space hummed, followed by a cheerful voice with a Western tinge.

“Hello Mr. Mentor, this is Paul Jennings at the Mountain Wilderness Center.”

Teddy flinched. Oh no.

“I’m so sorry to bother you so late.”

“What happened?”

“Well sir – ” Paul hesitated. “We had a little

incident with Jesse last night.”

He closed his eyes, as if that’d help. “Is he okay?”

“Nothing like that. He wasn’t hurt or anything.” Pause. “He left the premises during the night.”

Teddy rubbed his eyes hard, trying to wake up because this wasn’t supposed to happen. This was supposed to be when the nightmare started ending. But from the window came the smell of bagged garbage drifting up the courtyard two floors below, carried on a warm late July breeze, so he knew it wasn’t a dream;  it was real and it sucked. “Great. Why?”

“We don’t know for sure.”

“Did you try asking him?” Teddy couldn’t remember if Paul was the fat one with glasses or the thin one with a red beard. He had only seen their pictures from the staff page on the website.

“Well that’s the rub, sir.” Paul cleared his throat.

“Jesse hasn’t returned yet.”

Teddy sat cross-legged on the floor and wished he hadn’t quit smoking. “How long has he been gone?”

“We’re not really sure, sir.”

“What the hell do you mean? I just paid you ten grand and you lose my son after two weeks?”

“I understand you’re upset.”

“That’s one word for it.” How late was the mini-mart on Seventh Street open? He could get cigarettes there. “He disappears in the middle of the night, and you just discovered that now?”

“Oh no, sir,” Paul chuckled, eager to deliver reassuring news. “We saw he was no longer in the cabin around seven this morning when the residents gathered for breakfast. He’d tucked a pillow under his blanket, darn old-fashioned trick but seemed to work…”

“He’s a clever boy,” Teddy said.  Here we go again. Here we go again.

“That’s one word for it,” Paul answered slowly. Right. Paul was the fat one — Teddy remembered now. “One of his roommates contacted the tech on duty and

we then set out looking for him. The group just returned a few minutes ago, and that’s when I called you.”

“So where do you guess he is?” His armpits

were drenched. 

“That’s the good news. Nearest town is Morton, that’s more than twenty-two miles away. Twenty-two point three, actually, sir. So it’s unlikely he would’ve made it that far.”

“He could’ve hitched a ride.”

“Folks around here know better than to pick up one of our kids. We’ve got the sheriff on this; he’s sent out an alert. Not many places for Jesse to hide, doubt he had any food. He’ll come back hungry and thirsty. They usually do.”

“Or he won’t because he’s hurt.”

Paul chuckled again. “I don’t think so, sir. Like I said, this happens sometimes. Kids get anxious, frightened, and think running away is an option.”

“But you don’t know for sure he’s okay. You don’t know for sure where he is.” Teddy’s lower back ached. He wanted to lie down and close his eyes and make it all go away.

Paul’s voice hardened slightly. “We know these kids, sir. Just wanted to give you a shout and let you know not to worry.”

“You don’t think I’m going to worry that my sixteen-year-old son is missing somewhere in the middle of Montana?” Teddy shouted.

“Sir, it sounds far worse than it is.”

“Silly me for over-reacting.” Teddy’s chest

tightened.

“When will you call me back?”

“When we find him, sir.”

“When do you think that will be?”

“Hard to say.”

“Few hours, few days, few weeks, what’s the

standard time frame when you misplace an adolescent?”

“Is none. Don’t worry. We’ll find him. Just hang tight

And stay in touch.”

Teddy sat there for a moment, his head throbbing. Damn you, Jesse, he muttered. Damn you for doing this. For saying screw you, Dad, once again.

– Excerpted from Jesse’s Girl by Gary Morgenstein. Reprinted with permission.

INTERVIEW – The Inspiration Behind Jesse’s Girl by Gary Morgenstein

My emotional thriller Jesse’s Girl was originally published in 2009. My son, my only child, was battling substance abuse. I wrote Jesse’s Girl by fictionalizing his story, putting the emotions into a creative food processor. That’s always a dilemma for writers when basing stories on real events because there are stanchions all around reminding you well, it didn’t really happen this way. It’s important to step back from that, which gives you more freedom to create a new world. On the other hand – isn’t there always the other hand – you can’t step back too far without losing the power of the emotions. It’s sort of like flying through a storm. Even though I made up the story Jesses Girl inspired by truth, there were many tears.

Anyway, I asked my son to read the book, hoping that by seeing what he was doing to his family and especially to himself, it would motivate him to get clean. It didn’t work. He never read the novel.  A few years later, he passed from substance abuse at 22. I put Jesse’s Girl in an emotional vault until a friend whose opinion I respect read Jesse’s Girl.  She insisted I revisit the novel and do something with it because “these characters are more real than most of the people I know.” I took some deep breaths and did numerous drafts, digging deeper into the characters and plot, polishing and updating to bring out this new edition which I hope will touch and perhaps help people struggling with those they love. At the end we writers must offer a way forward for the reader. As Rabbi Shneur Zalman said, “A little light dispels a lot of darkness”.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

The novels and plays of the award-winning writer Gary Morgenstein have been featured in national media from the New York Times, Entertainment Weekly, New York Post and Sports Illustrated to NPR and Fox News.

Including Jesse’s Girl, Morgenstein’s seven novels include the critically acclaimed trilogy The Dark Depths comprised of A Mound Over Hell, A Fastball for Freedom and A Dugout to Peace, which begins in 2098 after America and the West have lost World War Three to the Islamic Empire and baseball begins its final season at Amazon Stadium. 

Morgenstein’s stage dramas, which have been performed all over the country, include A Black and White Cookie, A Tomato Can’t Grow in the Bronx, Dancing on Glass, Walking Charlie, The Silence of Our Friends and the bi-partisan political satire AOC and the Untold Story of the 2028 Election.

Connect with him on social media at:

╰┈➤ Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/gary.morgenstein/

╰┈➤ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/garymorgenstein

BOOK BLITZ & GIVEAWAY: Safe in Sound by Ania Ray

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Safe in Sound
Ania Ray
(A Blue Spruce Hills Novella)
Publication date: October 29th 2026
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Holiday, Romance

She’s “happy,” but someone might say she’s “settled.” What happens when the life that makes you feel safe is also the one keeping you small?

Thirty-four-year-old piano teacher Riley O’Connor believes her chance to become a world-class musician has sailed. She’s content-ish with her life in Blue Spruce Hills, a quaint mountain town that is safe, quiet, and predictable. Instead of performing on stages, she teaches the neighborhood kids, hangs out with her best friend Clara, reads books surrounded by her houseplants, and rehearses like she’s about to be called to join the London Philharmonic.

Though she’d be too scared to go. Grammy called her ’Fraidy Cat, after all.

When what Riley thinks is a break-in turns out to be a dog who won’t leave, she’s thrust into a series of events that challenge her to confront her anxiety. First, the social kind: the veterinarian is incredibly handsome. And kind. And grieving his wife. And looking for someone to give his son piano lessons.

She agrees.

Suddenly, Riley is on a winter hike with a man where bears, snakes, and fatal injury are possibilities. And when an opportunity arises to accompany renowned violist Albi Drechsler, the dream she’d long ago decided was out of reach is suddenly within it. To get what she wants, she must prove that fear doesn’t have the final word. But could she actually leave the safety of Blue Spruce Hills?

Safe in Sound is a story about overcoming fears, leaning into friendship, and trusting that even when the night feels darkest, love can hold you through. If you miss your loved ones a little extra during the holidays, you’ll love this redemptive story that proves those we miss most can still find a way to make us courageous.

Goodreads / Amazon

—

EXCERPT:

I exhale, the breath in front of me a wisp reminiscent of the steamed milk Clara’s grandmother would mix into the hot chocolate we’d share after school. While I waited for Grammy and Pappy to come home from the Mom and Pop store they owned and ran together, Clara was my safe place.

I stuff my gloved hands in my pockets. This morning I am hanging an angel on a doorknob with someone who risked social status by befriending me. The school playground was too giant a target for a skinny eight-year-old with fiery hair. Grammy always said I’d grow into my hair one day, but I’m pretty sure the “big-tempered redhead” myth fell apart with me. Maybe because Clara has always been my fire. I’m more like old embers buried under kindling.

So way back when… gosh, has it really already been over two decades? Way back when Clara asked if I wanted to skip on the sidewalk with her—and my answer was a genuine yes—we began our friendship.

Basically, I’ll do whatever Clara asks. She knew I was the new kid and approached me anyway. Anyone who does that—when kids seem to feel most powerful when they’re being mean and exclusive—deserves to have their best friend wake up early.

And even though I’d love to still be sleeping right now, three blissful hours remaining in my regular schedule, I feel a thrilling anticipation at seeing my best friend. Sure, I see her in passing every weekday, and we catch each other up in text messages all the time, but to sit down and really connect usually only happens when she comes over once a month. And we’ve missed a lot of those lately because she’s doing big baker things.

And I do little piano teacher things.

It’s fine. I’m happy.

Author Bio:

Hi, I’m Ania Ray, an author of women’s fiction that dives into the raw, transformative journeys of complex female characters. My books force each protagonist to confront the worst of herself before she evolves into the hero of her own story.

The Cromwell Rules trilogy features interconnected standalones, so you can enjoy each book individually or follow Lily Cromwell’s entire arc from start to finish. In The Cromwell Rules and Breaking the Rules, I explore how boundaries can feel stifling or nonexistent, and how we each must find our sweet spot of self-respect.

When I’m not writing, I lead Quill & Cup, a writing community that helps authors finish the stories that matter to them. Outside of writing, I’m a wife, a mom to a toddler who’d live outdoors if she could, and a tea lover (Cinnamon Apple Spice is my favorite).

If you love reading novels with relatable, complex characters and emotionally gripping stories, you’re in the right place.

Goodreads / Newsletter / Instagram


GIVEAWAY!
Safe in Sound Blitz

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BOOK TOUR: The Phantom Archer by N.A. Shaw

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Book Title: The Phantom Archer
Series: The Phantom Archer series book 1
Author Name: N.A. Shaw
Publication Date: 19th June 2022
Publisher: N.A.Shaw
Pages: 412
Genre: Historical Fantasy (non romance or spicy fantasy)

“Exciting historical fantasy adventure with twist of fairy tales, mythology, and magical creatures.”

“Fables and fairytales are for silly hearts and children…”

When Gwen witnesses her friends death by a creature she didn’t think existed she finds herself accused of his murder. On the run from the very beast that killed her friend, she finds an ally in the ghostly vigilante The Phantom Archer.

He protects her and together they discover that there is a reason the beast is hunting her and far more monsters are going to be on her trail…

Praise for The Phantom Archer:

“A cleverly plotted mystery / adventure packed full of twists and turns. A FINALIST and highly recommended!“
~ The Wishing Shelf Book Awards

“Absolutely brilliant book. Really enjoyed it, great story and compelling characters.“
~ Amazon 5* Review

“A beautifully written novel, with a strong compelling story and characters. Part historical fiction, part supernatural, part murder mystery, it’s a perfect blend of all three.“
~ Amazon 5* Review

Buy Link:

Universal Buy Link: https://books2read.com/u/3ng9z5

This book is available to read on Kindle+.

About the Author:

N.A Shaw lives in Hampshire where she works full time while fitting her writing around her day.

She loves history, folklore, and the supernatural and enjoys weaving these themes together in her novels.

Author Links:

Instagram: Instagram

TikTok: N.A Shaw Author (@n.a.shaw_author) | TikTok

Amazon Author Page: Amazon.com: Natalie Shaw: books, biography, latest update

Goodreads: N.A. Shaw (Author of The Phantom Archer) | Goodreads

BOOK BLITZ: Seasons of Blooming by Doreen Otaru

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Young Adult Fiction, Coming-of-Age, Contemporary Romance, Magical Realism,
Contemporary Fiction

Date Published: May 30, 2026

What if the second chance you wished for came at the cost of everything
you loved?

At eighteen, Solehn has everything figured out. A thriving social life in New
York, a close-knit circle of friends, and a future she’s carefully imagined.
But when her family unexpectedly falls apart, she’s uprooted from everything
familiar and forced to spend her final semester of high school in Austin,
Texas. Determined not to disappear into a life she never chose, Solehn
reinvents herself. She trades vulnerability for sharp edges, falls into
friendships that demand more than they give, and slowly becomes someone she
barely recognizes. Then there’s Alexander. Quiet, observant, and seemingly
immune to Solehn’s carefully constructed defenses, Alexander is the boy next
door who sees the person beneath her performance. Their unlikely connection
grows through rooftop conversations, shared silences, and an understanding
neither knows how to ask for. But when tragedy strikes, Solehn discovers that
a mysterious yellow umbrella holds an impossible promise: the chance to go
back and change everything. Armed with knowledge of what lies ahead, Solehn
sets out to rewrite the past. Yet the closer she gets to saving the person she
loves, the more she questions whether love means holding on, letting go, or
accepting what cannot be controlled. Because second chances aren’t always
gifts. Sometimes, they come with a price.

Seasons of Blooming is an emotional coming-of-age novel exploring messy
girlhood, complicated families, friendship breakups, first love, grief, and
the desire to undo our greatest regrets. Blending contemporary realism with
magical realism, Doreen Otaru explores what it means to lose yourself, find
your people, and discover that growing up isn’t about becoming perfect. It’s
about learning when and how to bloom. For readers who love complex characters,
slow-burn romance, found family, unexpected twists, and stories that linger
long after the final page.

 

About the Author

 

 Doreen Otaru is a multidisciplinary storyteller and creative strategist whose
work explores human connection, culture, and the evolving relationship between
media and community. Drawing from experiences across storytelling, design, and
collaborative creative spaces, her work is rooted in curiosity, emotional
honesty, and a deep appreciation for the ways stories shape how people see
themselves and each other.

Contact Link

Instagram

Purchase Link

Amazon

RABT Book Tours & PR

BOOK BLITZ & GIVEAWAY: Beneath the Burning Sky by Ruby Valladares

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Beneath the Burning Sky
Ruby Valladares
(The Ashfall Trilogy, #1)
Publication date: October 6th 2026
Genres: Adult, Dystopian, Post-Apocalyptic, Romance

He never wanted a wife. But marrying her is the only way to keep his little sister alive.

Five years after the world ended, David has one job: keep Grace alive.

Food is rationed. The water is contaminated. Marauders roam beyond the fences. And the Drange is turning ordinary people into violent, purple-veined monsters.

When a deadly infection breaches their refugee camp, the rumored Sanctuary may be her only chance of survival.

There’s just one problem: Passage is reserved for families.

So David makes an impossible choice: he marries his nemesis.

She doesn’t trust him. He doesn’t trust her. Their marriage is supposed to be nothing more than a means of survival.

But once they leave the fences of Camp Orange, surviving each other becomes the least of their problems.

Because the wasteland is hungry.

Beneath the Burning Sky is a post-apocalyptic dystopian novel blending survival horror, a deadly outbreak, infected humans, forced marriage, reluctant allies, and a slow-burn enemies-to-lovers romance.

Goodreads / Amazon

—

EXCERPT:

So this is what the end of the world looks like.

The thought ran through David’s mind as he trudged along next to his father and sister, bumping shoulders with hundreds of other desperate survivors who had escaped the wrath of Yellowstone.

Just fourteen days ago.

His dad had driven them hundreds of miles before the gas stations ran out of fuel.

It hadn’t been far enough.

They’d been walking ever since.

They’d crossed into Kentucky two days ago, but it didn’t look any different than Wyoming. Any different than Missouri four days before that.

The fingers of devastation reached here as well. The volcanic eruption had come out of nowhere, shattering the land and blanketing everything in gray.

Ash rained down from the sky, a silent, relentless shroud that smothered everything in its suffocating grip. The smell of sulfur and smoke lingered in the air, a constant reminder of the chaos and destruction that had been unleashed upon the world.

David opened his bag and pulled out a granola bar. Three days ago the group had run into a military unit handing out bags of food, urging them to keep going.

“We’re setting up camps in the south,” they’d said. “We’ll have shelter, food, everything you need until we can get back on our feet.”

David counted the bars he had left. Five. That was it.

He dropped the bar back into his bag.

His feet dragged through the ash like freshly fallen snow, leaving deep imprints behind. The horizon was filled with ruins of buildings and broken trees, the sky a gloomy mix of gray and red as the sun attempted to peek through.

East. Go east. And then south. Get to Georgia, Alabama, Florida.

That’s what everyone around him said. Like somewhere magical and untouched by the eruption existed if they just went far enough.

His home, his entire life, had been taken from him in an instant.

His mom.

Don’t think about what you’ve lost.

Fabric stained with soot and sweat covered his mouth. He trudged on, his mind numb and his body achingly tired.

Thirteen days of walking.

Author Bio:

Ruby Valladares writes adult speculative fiction filled with catastrophic disasters, impossible choices, complicated relationships, and ordinary people discovering just how far they’ll go to survive.

Her worlds are dark. Her characters are messier. And hope—when it comes—has to be fought for.

Website / Instagram / TikTok


GIVEAWAY!

Beneath the Burning Sky Blitz

—

NOW LIVE — Best Laid Plans by Candice Wright

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NOW LIVE! Best Laid Plans by Candice Wright is available now + read in Kindle Unlimited!

“Be prepared for one wild, unpredictable story with spice and all the feels” – Goodreads reviewer

US: https://a.co/d/0eZrW4US
UK: https://amzn.eu/d/0cBIvBaE
CA: https://a.co/d/0biywCja
AU: https://amzn.asia/d/07AaQZty
Universal: https://t.ly/wYg_J
Goodreads: https://t.ly/myCNQ

I thought I’d found my happily ever after until I realized it was all a lie.

But to escape the man I’d loved, I had to kill the woman I once was.

Knowing he’d hunt me to the ends of the earth, I assumed someone else’s identity, reshaping all my good, bad, and ugly parts to fit her mold.

My history, my experiences, even my name, all belong to her.

I thought it was enough, but after years in hiding, I’m still not safe.

See, hunters don’t forget about their prey; they lie in wait, setting traps, patiently waiting for you to fall. Only this time it’s not me that falls. It’s the MC.

My secrets kept me safe, but they made the club a target, and though I didn’t pull the trigger, a brother’s blood still coats my hands.

If the club casts me out for what I’ve done, I’ll be at the mercy of the man who won’t think twice about killing everyone I care about, including the man I’m falling for.

All because he wants to love me…to death.

And if he can’t have me, no one can.

Start the Raven Souls MC series today! https://amzn.to/4qXevo0

BOOK BLITZ & GIVEAWAY: After the Fall by Wendy Roberts

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After the Fall
Wendy Roberts
Publication date: October 9th 2026
Genres: Adult, Thriller

“This is an excellent read for those who want true psychological crime built around family secrets. Very highly recommended.”
Asher Syed for Readers’ Favorite

__

Amber clings to the wreckage of a shattered life; a hermit drowning in the ghosts of what used to be.

When someone dumps a mutilated body on her wilderness property, a cryptic clue makes her the prime suspect. To clear her name, she must confront the dark secrets of her tragic past while a shadowy executioner is closing in.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo

—

EXCERPT:

When the blade of death whittled my family of three down to only me, I ran. Grief had scraped me empty, so fourteen months ago I fled to a shack in the northeastern Washington wilderness. I was seeking sanctuary and hoping the pines would mend my shattered soul. Maybe that was too much to expect of the trees. At least they didn’t judge the monument to my failure; a recycling bin overflowing with wine bottles.

The morning light struggled through my grimy windows and poked at my hangover. I took my coffee mug outside and stood on the splintered porch of the small cabin. The air was deceptively still and heavy, carrying the sharp scent of sunbaked pine needles and the silent, shimmering threat of an approaching scorcher of a day. My cabin sat at the dusty elbow of two dirt roads. Between my door and the ditch was half an acre of thigh-high, dewless grass that stood stiff and dry alongside leggy wildflowers and a single tree.

The western hemlock tried for the heavens at nearly two hundred feet, and it was the area under the tree that drew my critical gaze. A woman sat in the tall grass, back against the tree. What was someone doing way the hell out here?

With an eye roll I left the house and stormed toward her.

“Hey!” I shouted.

The strap of her checkered sundress had fallen from one shoulder and as I reached her, I lifted a hand to tap her arm. As my finger got close, a cloud of flies lifted and re-settled into gaping, torn flesh. The wind shifted direction and a thick miasma of putrid decay stung my nostrils. I stumbled backward as my stomach lurched.

Dead!

I couldn’t stop the tremor in my jaw; my teeth clattered together as I whispered broken words, “I-I should check to be sure . . .”

But my voice trailed off because nothing that smelled like that could be anything but gone.

Author Bio:

Wendy Roberts is an armchair sleuth, fan of all things mysterious but a huge chicken at heart. Her mind is often in the secretive, cloak and dagger world of intrigue while her physical presence is usually at home or on the road in her camper van. Wendy resides in Vancouver, Canada where she happily writes about murder and is always at work on her next novel.

Website / Goodreads / Instagram / Facebook / TikTok


GIVEAWAY!

After the Fall Blitz

—

RELEASE BLITZ & GIVEAWAY: The Building by Kevin G. Chapman

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Mystery / Thriller

Date Published: 10-10-2026

Publisher: First Legacy Publishing

 

The community comes first – no matter what.

 

For ten years, the Utopia Tower experiment has been a resounding success.
Conceived by a tech billionaire, the state-of-the-art apartment complex offers
a life-changing opportunity: rent-free living for residents who adhere to the
“Five Pillars of Harmony” and maintain the building’s pristine reputation. It
is a tight-knit community where neighbors look out for one another, ensuring
that nothing endangers their sanctuary and their right to continue living
there.

Antonio, a young lawyer, moves into the tower to care for his grandmother,
eager to join this idyllic social experiment. But the veneer of perfection
cracks when two young men—both considered bad apples and threats to the
community’s serenity—die in unusual circumstances within a single month.
Despite warnings to leave well enough alone, Antonio suspects a connection and
digs deeper. He discovers that, in a building designed for total harmony,
asking the wrong questions can make you the next problem to be handled. Is
there a killer hiding among the residents? Is the billionaire founder
protecting his investment? Or is the truth far more terrifying?

In an environment where preservation of the collective is the prime directive,
how far will the community go to protect itself?

 


Perfect for fans of Black Mirror, Blake Crouch, and high-concept tech
mysteries.

 

About the Author

 

 Kevin G. Chapman is an attorney specializing in labor and employment law and
an independent author. His seven -book (so far) Mike Stoneman Thriller series,
includes Lethal Voyage, Winner of the 2012 Kindle Book Award, and Fatal
Infraction, the #1 Police Procedural of the year (CLUE Blue Ribbon Award).
Kevin’s stand-alone mystery/suspense/romance, Dead Winner was the winner of
the CLUE Blue Ribbon for best suspense/thriller, and Kevin’s most recent
stand-alone mystery, The Other Murder, was the Grand Prize Winner of the 2024
CLUE Award (best over-all mystery/suspense/thriller). Kevin has also written a
serious political drama, A Legacy of One (2016). Kevin is a resident of
Central New Jersey and is a graduate of Columbia College and Boston University
School of Law. Readers can contact Kevin via his website at
http://www.KevinGChapman.com.

Contact Links

Website

Facebook

Twitter: @KGChapman

Goodreads

Instagram: @KGChapman

Purchase Link

Amazon


RABT Book Tours & PR

RELEASE BLITZ: The Heart’s Retreat by Shannon Blair

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Title: The Heart’s Retreat

Series: Hearts’ Domain, Book One

Author: Shannon Blair

Publisher: NineStar Press

Release Date: 10/06/2026

Heat Level: 3 – Some Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 395

Genre: Fantasy, voyeurism, fantasy, elves, gods, werewolves, wolves, menage, polyamory, reconciliation, trans, pansexual, demisexual, neurodivergent, romantasy, magic

Add to Goodreads

Description

Centuries ago, Aspen, the woodlands’ divine Heart Tree, disappeared, twisting His lands into a corrupted shadow of their former glory and sending rage-filled werewolves to hunt His elven children. Now His punishment has passed beyond the woodlands’ borders. If its spread cannot be stopped, all the world will suffer.

Gar has served his native swamplands as a soldier for almost half his life. Chosen to lead one last attempt to locate Aspen, he fears the dangers lurking in the woodlands’ corrupted depths will claim his life—and those of the soldiers under his command. But abandoning the mission means watching an entire forest burn. Bolstered by his faith in the swamplands’ divine Heart, Cypress, his conscience demands he carry on.

Sage, a magically gifted healer charged with holding Aspen’s corruption at bay from his village, is no stranger to the horrors of his Heart. Neither is his estranged husband, Thorn. A seasoned hunter with the uncanny ability to sense werewolves before they attack, Thorn puts his skills to the test and his life on the line to support the search for Aspen. Sage, choosing love over loyalty to his village, lends his strength as a latecomer to the expedition, lighting the way when hope seems lost. Reunited after a separation stemming from the loss of their stillborn daughter, their shared journey to save their homeland just might lead to reconciliation—if death doesn’t part them first.

As they traverse the corrupted forest’s treacherous terrain, Sage and Thorn forge a bond with Gar that transcends simple friendship. Seeking solace from their troubled pasts and uncertain futures, their boundaries break down and the dividing lines between them blur. But with bloodthirsty werewolves watching every move, their budding romance threatens to become a fatal distraction.

Excerpt

The Heart’s Retreat
Shannon Blair © 2026
All Rights Reserved

Commander Gar stood on the barge’s deck, leaning against the railing as they sailed into the river port of Taproot, capital city of Cypress’s Domain. If he had to guess, he’d put the hour well past midnight, but the docks and their neighboring fish market bustled with activity. Weathered lantern posts standing along the dock’s edge illuminated the port and its workers. Dockhands—mostly his fellow swamp elves, with thick, water-repellent hair in shades of bright teal to dark green and skin tones ranging from light bronze to burnt umber—rushed back and forth, overseeing the departures and arrivals of fishing boats, trading vessels, and now one very delayed passenger barge.

The barge had gotten stuck on a sandbar somewhere upstream and only fallen further behind schedule with each passing stop. The early morning embarkation Gar and his unit had planned had been pushed back to late afternoon—frustrating for everyone involved, but at least they hadn’t been stuck aboard as long as some of the other passengers. Under normal circumstances, the delay would’ve been a minor inconvenience, but a soldier under Gar’s command had gotten their leg crushed in the jaws of a magically mutated alligator and needed specialized healing soon, or they risked losing the limb.

Gar leaned farther over the railing as the barge pulled into its berth, dockhands and crew working in tandem to make the landing as gentle as possible. Despite the late hour, a small crowd had begun to gather on the dock—friends and family waiting to greet their loved ones. He scanned the faces and clothes of those gathered, searching for someone with medical or military training among the civilians. Normally, no one waited for Gar, but he’d sent a messenger bird ahead at the first sign of delay—technically an unauthorized use of military funds, but he’d foot the bill himself if his superiors objected—so someone should be there to meet him.

Beside him, his second-in-command, Bluegill, sighed. “We better not have beaten the fucking bird here.” Nearly a head shorter than Gar, she stood at her full height to survey the crowd, turquoise eyes narrowed in an appraising squint. “Mallow’s waited long enough. If we’re expected to carry them all the way through the city—”

“Give it time, Blue. Gangway’s not even down yet.” Gar straightened and stretched, fighting back a yawn. Just because it wasn’t obvious at a glance didn’t mean no one was there for them. And worst-case scenario, he and his unit could carry Mallow. It would simply be awkward and uncomfortable.

Bluegill let out a discontented hum, impatiently running her umber fingers through her chin-length teal hair. But she didn’t argue. Under the complaints and sharp remarks, she cared for the rest of Gar’s unit as deeply as he did. Even non-lethal casualties hit her hard. He could let her have this one.

As the gangway dropped into place, a masculine elf wearing the crisp, white linens of a temple acolyte—not a priest, his eyes and hands were elven—pushed his way to the front of the crowd. Before the barge’s passengers could begin to disembark, he crossed onto the deck, offering a polite but disinterested nod to those he passed. His distracted gaze sharpened when it landed on Gar and Bluegill. Gar wondered why they’d caught his attention. They stood out among the other passengers in their long-sleeved field uniforms and boiled leather armor, but that couldn’t be the only reason.

“Commander Gar?” The acolyte called out, eyes flickering between Gar and Bluegill.

Gar raised a hand. “Over here.” He understood the acolyte’s confusion. Cypress’s Domain was a matriarchy; outside the military, it was rare to see a man in a position of authority. In any other career, Gar would be Bluegill’s subordinate.

The acolyte responded with a grateful nod and continued weaving through the crowd toward Gar.

While he waited, Gar exchanged a confused glance with Bluegill, trying to figure out why a temple acolyte, of all people, had come here looking for him. The messenger bird must have arrived ahead of the barge, or no one would’ve known to expect him, but he didn’t understand how military correspondence could’ve ended up at a temple. Maybe someone had misread his message and thought he needed funeral services instead of a healer?

The acolyte came to an abrupt stop a few paces away from Gar, the corners of his mouth slowly turning downward as he looked Gar over. “Hardly presentable, but it’ll have to do,” he muttered.

“I’m sorry, but what will I ‘have to do’ for?” Gar and his unit were fresh from a monster-hunting expedition, and he hadn’t bathed in days. He wasn’t going to impress anyone in this condition, but he didn’t know why he’d need to.

“High Priest Azalea has need of you. You are to meet her in her sanctum beneath Mother Cypress.”

Gar blinked at him, certain he’d heard wrong. “The high priest…needs me?”

“Yes.” The acolyte’s expression softened. “I realize how strange this must seem, but there are…extenuating circumstances.”

“When’s the meeting?”

“Hours ago, ideally. But now will have to suffice. She’s been waiting for you.”

Gar tried not to gape. High priests didn’t wait for anyone, especially a field commander like him. If she’d planned to meet with Gar without even knowing when to expect him, something earth-shaking must have happened, but no one on the docks seemed any the wiser. He guessed he’d find out more when he got there.

“Then I’ll go now,” Gar replied. “But I have an injured soldier belowdecks. Their leg’s hurt bad, and they need—”

Bluegill cut him off with a bump of her elbow. “I’ll take it from here, Commander. Just get to the Heart.”

The acolyte nodded and turned his attention to Bluegill. “Whatever you require, I’m happy to assist.”

Gar left them to it, heart racing as he jostled through the crowd of passengers making their way off the barge.

Purchase

NineStar Press | Books2Read

Meet the Author

Shannon Blair (they/he) is a fantasy author with a fondness for elves, goblins, and general otherworldly goodness. Their love of fiction and storytelling inspired them to pursue an MFA in Creative Writing, which they are now putting to very productive use, writing romance novels. When they aren’t writing books about queer elves or engaged in workday shenanigans at their day job, Shannon can be found baking, crocheting, and persisting, despite the horrors. They live on the outskirts of the Denver metroplex with their partner and two spoiled-rotten cats.

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