Monthly Archives: March 2025

BOOK BLITZ & GIVEAWAY: Poseidon’s Daughters – Reckoning by Reign Reeves Pearson

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Poseidon’s Daughters: Reckoning
Reign Reeves Pearson
(Poseidon’s Daughters, #1)
Publication date: March 21st 2025
Genres: Adult, Science Fiction, Thriller

They trained her to be a weapon. Now, she’s turning the blade on them.Eirianwen was Poseidon’s crowning achievement—until she walked away from everything. She’s evaded them for years, carving out a life in the shadows, leaving behind the bloodstained world they forced her into. Now, the past she’s been running from has finally caught up. A storm-wracked night. A breach in her sanctuary. Someone is watching. Someone is waiting. And this time, they don’t just want her dead—they want her to doubt herself. They want the world to believe she’s lost her mind.

They’ve been watching her. Manipulating her. Preparing for her downfall.

Now, the elite organization that built her is coming to collect. Not to kill—to control. They don’t need to break her. They just need to make sure no one believes her when she starts screaming.They want her to understand that her escape, her freedom, was all an illusion.

Erased. Discredited. Untouchable.

But Eirianwen has spent her whole life surviving. And when the walls start closing in, she doesn’t run. She hunts.

Poseidon wants her desperate. Unraveling. Helpless.

They’re about to learn just how dangerous she can be.

Goodreads / Amazon

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EXCERPT:

Eirianwen ripped out the earpiece and slammed it onto the desk. Panic swirled at the edges of her mind, but she forced it down. Now wasn’t the time. She grabbed a larger bag from under the desk, slung it over her shoulder, and stormed out. In the closet, she set the bag aside, pressing a hidden panel on the side of her bed. A drawer slid open, revealing her arsenal. Her hands shook as she armed herself, snapping a knife into its sheath and loading a handgun with quick, practiced movements. Now, to find them. Moving swiftly, she ran through the house, slipping out the back door and straight into the storm-charged air. Sullivan’s workshop. If she was going to do this right, she’d need a shovel. She yanked open the heavy wooden door, eyes darting over the mess inside.Where the fuck is it? Why is this place always such a goddamn disaster?

A glint of metal under the workbench caught her eye. She crouched, snatched up a spade, and bolted back outside. The rain had started in earnest, cold drops slicing through the thick humidity. She sprinted to where the trackers last pinged, her boots sinking slightly into the softening earth, almost tripping thanks to a low spot. Looking back at the spot, it was all wrong. She knew something was buried there.

Gripping the shovel tightly, she drove it into the ground. The soil gave easily…far too easily. The clay should have been a nightmare to dig through. Someone had already done the work for her. Within moments, her blade hit something solid, and dread curled in her stomach. She dropped to her knees, clawing at the loose earth with bare hands until the objects were free. Her breath hitched. Six trackers. All of them. Cold, useless, and buried like a mockery of her own paranoia. Eirianwen sat back on her heels, mud caking her fingers as she stared at the pile in her hands. Someone knew.

Her cheeks burned hot, but the rest of her body felt frozen. Tears welled, spilling silently down her face as the questions flooded in. Why? Why would Sullivan do this? Had he done this? He wouldn’t put the kids in danger—would he? Where were they? How long had he planned this? Her stomach twisted. Then, her phone buzzed—a single notification. Hands trembling, she wiped her palms on her pants and yanked it from her pocket. Wi-Fi restored—a new alert. Someone had just crossed the perimeter.

“It better be Sullivan and the kids.”

Eirianwen exhaled sharply, swiping at the sweat and tears streaking her face. Standing, she brushed the dirt from her clothes as best she could, shoving the useless trackers deep into her pocket. She locked her phone and steadied herself. If the kids were with Sullivan, she needed to stay calm. Normal. They couldn’t see the weapons strapped under her clothing. At least the incoming storm gave her an excuse to rush them inside. She’d get them safe first—then she’d deal with Sullivan. She turned toward the tree line, heart pounding in her throat. The property was massive, and she had built the house at its farthest edge. Finally, headlights cut through the gloom. A vehicle emerged. Not Sullivan’s truck. A cold, electric jolt shot down her spine. Every instinct screamed at her.

No one came out here. No one. She had made sure of it. For years, she had meticulously crafted the illusion of a perfectly ordinary life. She knew everyone in town—just enough to avoid suspicion, but never enough to invite curiosity. A delicate balance of friendly but distant. She never gave anyone a reason to visit. She didn’t even use their real address! She picked up all of their mail and deliveries in town. So who the hell thought they had the right to pull up to her house? The SUV slowed to a stop, tires crunching against the gravel. The doors swung open in near unison, and two men stepped out. Sheriff Ford. Deputy Pines. Ford adjusted his jacket, his gaze steady, unreadable. Pines lingered a step behind, eyes sharp, scanning. Ford closed the gap between them and gave Eirianwen a curt nod.

Author Bio:

Reign Reeves Pearson is a writer, storyteller, and chaos enthusiast based in Houston, where she lives with her husband, four kids, and three cats who may or may not be plotting world domination. She thrives on Kopiko, rainy days, and an endless love for Final Fantasy VII and Dungeons & Dragons.

She’s been writing for as long as she can remember. But in 2019, a health scare forced her to take a hard look at her life, and the answer was clear: writing wasn’t just something she did. It was what she was meant to do.

Her debut novel and series, Poseidon’s Daughters: Reckoning, is her first and only planned adventure into sci-fi. Going forward, expect Southern Gothic chills, cosmic nightmares, and nostalgic ‘90s horror—all infused with her signature mix of heart, humor, and a touch of the macabre.

When she’s not writing, she’s probably dreaming up elaborate D&D campaigns, getting emotionally wrecked by Final Fantasy VII (again), or staring dramatically out a window while it rains.

Website / Goodreads / Twitter / Instagram


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BOOK BLITZ & GIVEAWAY: Touch of the Elegrian by Cheryl A. Arko

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Touch of the Elegrian
Cheryl A. Arko
Publication date: March 25th 2025
Genres: Adult, Science Fiction

Prejudice. Legacy. Redemption.

Erys carries a secret that could shatter his world. The telepathic Elegrian has spent his life atoning for his dead father’s role in humanity’s disastrous first contact. Now, as a tech specialist for the Earth-led alliance, he serves in silence—until sabotage threatens the lives of dozens of human children. And the traitor is one of his own.

Forced to work with a brilliant but hostile human engineer, Erys must dismantle not only the deadly conspiracy but also the deep-seated mistrust between their peoples. With time running out, he faces an impossible choice: break the fragile Elegrian-Human treaty and invite the death penalty to forge a forbidden mind link with a human… or let innocent lives be lost.

Two worlds on the brink. A single act of defiance. Can compassion rewrite a doomed future?

The Elegrian Legacy begins here—a gripping sci-fi adventure rich in high-stakes dilemmas, deep character bonds, and first-contact intrigue.

Goodreads / Amazon

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EXCERPT

Far, far away to the east, in New York City, where magic and power and rumor swirled in their own urban galaxy, a very ancient and powerful creature lived in the highest tower money could buy. While many of his kind lived and worked in the greater New York area, coiled around the rise and fall of stocks and bonds in an endless dance of power and wealth, he was by far the oldest in that den of snakes. He was old enough that his thick fingers still dreamed of worn gold coins and his body of piles of treasure beneath his scales. Now, of course, he slept only on damask of the finest quality, spread over a memory foam mattress—nowhere near as comfortable as cold hard cash.

That night, he was window shopping, his hungry eye roving over page after page of the most exotic goods Sotheby’s online could offer.

If one lived long enough, even the most exquisite meals tasted like ashes on the tongue; breathe often enough, and even bottled air from Everest smelled stale and flat. He could hardly be bothered to hide his own nature when he was alone—the secret theater of the Council and its Compact had been a bit of a thrill for a while, but Mr. Drake—just Drake to his friends—was getting bored.

He yawned, and his long, forked tongue spilled out, unfurling and flicking against his human nose. No one was around to see it, so he wasn’t breaking the Law, and besides, he missed all the parts of his true shape quite badly. Missed a herd of sheep’s eyes rolling in terror. Probably lamb again tonight, from that place on the other side of Broadway.

Mr. Drake’s lair took up the entire upper floor of his tall tower in the center of the city, wide rooms filled with the carcasses of kingdoms burned to the ground beneath his fearsome will. Company logos on banners from decades past, those battle standards of board members who had crumbled and fallen to their knees in merger upon acquisition upon merger. Darwin had certainly been on the money about the adaptation of species. In the face of adversity, Drake and the rest of his kind had thrived, but—

But he wanted to spread his wings high above his head, soar over the crescent moon, sweep down on farmland and gout flame from his throat; the glorious crescendo of a sun going supernova. Instead, he stoked another cigar, the smoke curling from his nose a pacifying reminder of who he had to be now.

His cellphone lit up, vibrating on the long cocobolo desk. Drake looked down at it with a grimace and tapped the screen with one stubby finger.

“Drake,” he said. “How do you have this number?”

“I have my ways, Old One.”

He was in the middle of pouring himself another whiskey, ready to tear this joker a new set of holes, when he recognized the voice and sighed.

“Old One, is it? When was your sweet sixteen, Morgan?”

“Oh well, you know me,” The Hollow Woman sounded far too cheery for his tastes. “Evergreen.”

Drake snorted.

“Isn’t it still daylight on your side of the world? Why don’t you go out and catch some rays, you old hag? Go get a tan. Would be good for the both of us.”

“Have it your way,” Morgan said sweetly. “Don’t trouble yourself with little old me, then.”

“I won’t,” he snarled, and hung up. Smoke was starting to waft down from the high ceilings, having pooled there in those short minutes on the phone. The AC here was top notch, of course, the best AC in the city, but nothing manmade could keep up with his kind’s distemper. He flipped through a few more pages on Sotheby’s, but quickly, rapidly stabbing his finger on the mouse. He tried to hum something to himself, and his phone buzzed again.

“All right. This is getting old pretty fast,” he said. “Spit it out already and go away. What do you want?”

“Want? Oh, darling Drake, not a thing. Not a single thing.”

He laughed, a deep rumble like an earthquake, the magma pushing up beneath the surface.

“Wanting is what you’re for, Morgan. Maybe you forgot?”

“Well, now. Maybe you’re not interested.” She was almost purring. Purring! “I’m sure one of your brothers will be.” And she hung up on him.

Dammit. Dammit. Dammit, he thought. The haze of smoke had curled down just above the surface of his cocobolo desk. If he wasn’t careful, he would trigger the alarms on the floor below again. He took a breath. He took another. I am a calm blue ocean, he thought to himself. I can be one with my feelings.

Author Bio:

CHERYL ARKO is a science fiction author and an accomplished senior data scientist with a long career in IT and medical data analysis. She has loved reading science fiction ever since she could connect letters into words, devouring everything from Andre Norton to E.E. “Doc” Smith to more and more authors through the years who have shared their thought-provoking ideas of imagined places and alternate realities.

TOUCH OF THE ELEGRIAN is Cheryl’s debut novel and was a Killer Nashville Claymore Award Finalist for best Science Fiction/Fantasy. She writes stories that take her to the stars, imagining who we might find out there, inviting readers to come along for the ride to visit new worlds and their people. To explore what makes us different—and what makes us the same. And to discover the inherent good that exists in the universe to balance against darkness, no matter how far we travel.

A seasoned dog trainer, Cheryl lives with her beloved Airedales in a tiny house nestled within thirty acres of serene Minnesota pine trees.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter


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BOOK TOUR & GIVEAWAY: Vengeful CONspiricies by Nicole Leiren

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Sadie encounters a nemesis from her past.

Is it coincidence
or is it something more sinister?

Book 2 reveals the truth!

Vengeful CONspiracies

A Sadie Sabatini Mystery Book 2

by Nicole Leiren

Genre: Cozy Mystery

Sadie is settling into her new life
in Wilson, Texas. She’s making friends and her business, Tesoro, is starting to
thrive. But the past is never far behind. When two former team members come for
a visit, they bring trouble in the form of a mutual enemy set on revenge
threatening to disrupt Sadie’s fresh start.

She can’t turn her
back on her team, though. They’ve been through too much together. The more
Sadie tries to help, the more she suspects she might be the target of the con
this time. With forces conspiring against her, the outcome of her
decisions, both past and present, weigh heavily and make her question the
choices she made leading to this point.

When their mutual
enemy is found dead, alliances are tested, and wits are matched as the race to
the truth reveals who can be trusted and who is running their final con.

Amazon * Apple * B&N * Smashwords * Books2Read * Bookbub * Goodreads

Murderous
CONsequences

A Sadie Sabatini Mystery Book 1

Sadie Sabatini thinks of herself
as a modern-day Robin Hood who uses her gift as a skilled con artist to help
those who have nowhere else to turn. Leading this life is rewarding, but the
number of enemies are piling up. Sadie decides to lay low and start over with a
new (and legitimate business) in the small town of Wilson, Texas, situated on a
small peninsula in beautiful Lake Amore.

Trouble is never far behind
though and her past catches up to her in a big way when a friend of a former
mark threatens blackmail for his silence. When he turns up dead and Sadie is
the prime suspect, she realizes this time she must protect herself. Her skills
prove helpful as she digs deeper into the web of revenge, blackmail, and
secrets to discover she’s not the only one with a past to hide.

As the threats mount, Sadie
knows she’s closing in on the truth. She now worries that the few new friends
she’s made in town are in danger because of her. With time running out, can she
protect those around her and find the real killer before this new chapter in
her life is conned out of a happy ending?

Amazon * Apple * Google * Smashwords
* Books2Read
* Bookbub * Goodreads

Have you written any other books that aren’t published?

The very first book I wrote is still unpublished. I’ve been writing stories for as long as I can remember. At first, it was stories for my little sister, then some fanfic, and finally I wanted to try my hand at my own story. It took a number of years with lots of stops and starts and more name changes than I can remember before I finally typed “The End” Of course, once I’d done that, I had no idea what I should do next. So, I did what anyone would do, Googled it 😊 I learned that you had to submit a pitch, hook, and query. I had no idea how to do that so I found an online class, offered by Savvy Authors that taught you how to do those things. The class was being taught by an agent, Dawn Dowdle. We learned how to write the hook and pitch and after submitting mine, she typed in my chat that she would be open to my querying her with this story.   Of course, I replied that as soon as she taught me how to do that, I would love to!  LOL

She did just that and I used what she taught me to submit my query to her. A week or so later, she offered representation.  We went through several edits and finally sent it out to query publishers. Rejection after rejection followed and, I confess, to being a bit disheartened. Ironically, the reason for the rejections weren’t really bad. The mystery publishers said it didn’t have enough mystery, suspense publishers said not enough suspense and romance pubs said not enough romance.  I took that to mean it was a well-balanced story. 😊

Thankfully, my story didn’t end there.  While that story still hasn’t seen the light of day…yet, I went on to write my first contemporary sweet military romance which was picked up by Gemma Halliday Publishing.  From there, I published six full-length novels with Gemma before taking a break for a couple years.

My next book, Murderous CONsequences, was picked up by Harbor Lane Publishing as a 3 book series. I’m excited that Sadie’s story is continuing and you can join her next adventure (along with the gang in Wilson, TX) with Vengeful CONspiracies. Murder and betrayal are the theme of book 2 (along with second guessing decisions we made in the past and making things right in the future!)

Thank you for visiting today!

Described by those who know her
best as perky, quirky and effervescent, USA Today Best-Selling author Nicole
Leiren likes to have fun — in life, with her characters and, of course, her
readers. She admits to being sassy (just ask her mother!) and inspiration for
her characters are drawn from the real-world heroes and heroines she meets
while traversing the country.

Nicole enjoys sharing the love,
laughter, mystery, and occasionally a touch of the mayhem she forces her
characters to endure—all for the reader’s pleasure! Her real-world heroes and
heroines will keep you turning the pages until you reach the whodunit or
happily ever after (usually both!)

 

Website
* Facebook * X
* Instagram * Bookbub
* Amazon * Goodreads

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BOOK BLITZ: Two Minutes for Holding by S.L. Sterling

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Title: Two Minutes for Holding

Series: Vancouver Dominators Book #3
Author: S.L. Sterling
Genre: Sports Romance; Contemporary Romance
Tropes: Hockey Romance; Teammates Younger Sister; Surprise Pregnancy; Cinnamon Roll Hero; One Night Stand Revenge
Release Date: March 25, 2025
Cover Design: Thunderstruck Cover Design

Knox stood across from me, anger in his eyes, his right hand in a fist ready to hit me. In that moment, as I stared at him trying to figure out what to say before he hit me, I wished I’d never walked into that little dive bar.
Actually, that wasn’t true because that was the night that changed my life forever.
That was the night I saved Knox’s little sister, Peyton, from making what I was certain was a huge mistake I’d figure she’d regret for the rest of her life.
We all had a code among the players on the team. We all looked after one another, and that included family members. So, when I saw some guy hitting on Peyton, I stepped in. I pretended to be her boyfriend to get rid of the guy who’d been hitting on her and when she turned those big hazel eyes on me things didn’t stop there. I bought her drinks, let her vent out her frustrations about the fight she’d just had with her brother and then one thing led to another, and she ended up wrapped up in my sheets.
A few months later, the memory of her and that night remains fresh in my mind and soon she is all I can think about. Thankfully, I get to see her again at the season’s end barbeque. Armed with good intentions, that is when I find out everything is about to change in not only my life but hers, including my friendship with her brother.
The guys on the team had always told me love would hit me when I least expected it, either that or I’d get a girl in trouble. I just never believed they would both happen at the same time.


 


S.L. Sterling was born and raised in southern Ontario. She now lives in Northern Ontario Canada and is married to her best friend and soul mate and their two dogs. 
An avid reader all her life, S.L. Sterling dreamt of becoming an author. She decided to give writing a try after one of her favorite authors launched a course on how to write your novel. This course gave her the push she needed to put pen to paper and her debut novel “It Was Always You” was born. 

When S.L. Sterling isn’t writing or plotting her next novel she can be found curled up with a cup of coffee, blanket and the newest romance novel from one of her favorite authors on her e-reader. Her favorite authors include Kendall Ryan, Vi Keeland, Penelope Ward, Lauren Blakely, Alessandra Torre and Willow Winters. 

In her spare time, she enjoys camping, hiking, sunny destinations, spending quality time with family and friends and of course reading.

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TEASER: Love Before COVID by Greg Scorzo

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Dark / Drama / Thriller

Date Published: July 28, 2023

Publisher: Troubadour Books

 

 

“Love before Covid – A raw, philosophical dive into love’s messy reality—unflinching, dark, and unapologetically human. Unlike typical romance novels, LOVE BEFORE COVID is a dialogue-driven exploration of human flaws and ideologies, blending fiction with metaphysical inquiry. It’s not about comfort; it’s about confrontation and insight.”

 

Laced with dark humour, it is best described as traumatic (sur)realism.
Love Before Covid takes the reader on a journey through the mind of Joe
Pastorius – jazz fan, poet, and victim of horrendous sexual and emotional
abuse at the hands of his mother.

The real-time dialogues between the characters that emerge from Joe’s
unconscious come via arguably corrupted memories and dystopian dreams. They
tell us more about Joe than he could ever know, and perhaps more about our
world than you could ever imagine.

Dialogues entail an exploration of clashing perspectives and opinions, that
cause reflection. Today though, our world has been infiltrated by online
dialogues that tend to feel like wild unfiltered streams of human thought,
raw, chaotic and often polarising and devoid of much reflection. Arguably
that attitude, and lack of reflection is mirrored by the characters you will
encounter. The reflection comes from the reader as the situations unfold.
Your moral boundaries will without doubt be pushed to the limit.

You will meet an altruist who can’t stand up for himself, a charming
but violent public intellectual, a beautiful dancer who hates fat people, a
flirty and gregarious bartender who will do anything to get pregnant, a
traumatised art historian who never wants to be a mother, a successful
intellectual Mexican writer who is secretly disapproving of her childhood
friend’s career as a pornstar, the teenage genius son of that pornstar
who has sexual fantasises about his mother, a woman who is pressured into
cutting off her penis and a successful therapist who has a habit of ruining
people’s lives.

And yes, before you ask, some of the characters in this book eventually
catch Covid 19. However, there is always hope. For Joe Pastorious, that
comes in the form of the psychopath named Janet Waverley.

  

Excerpt

 

INTRODUCTION

 

Dear Reader,

This book is both a novel and a collection of dialogues.

The dialogues in this book are moving thought experiments. They portray
elaborate, unfolding situations which, at every turn, force the reader to
examine his or her philosophical intuitions about a range of topics,
situations and people.

These dialogues are not merely fiction told in dialogue form. Fiction is
drama that may (incidentally) comment upon or examine philosophical issues.
Drama normally involves scenes in which dialogue is used to set up and
advance a plot. In this book, plots are used to set up and advance the
dialogues of the characters.

The dialogues in this book are something like philosophy, because the
dramatic elements are merely a pretext to examine the philosophical issues
raised by the situations in which the characters talk to each other. The
dialogues happen in real time and are often deeply frustrating, as dialogues
are in real life. Reading this book, you may feel as though you are
listening in on a series of intensely private conversations.

If you heard any of these conversations in real life, you might feel as
though you were being privy to a rather juicy bit of gossip. Or you might
call the police. You might shed a tear. You might even masturbate (and then
read some more traditional philosophy).

Like any piece of philosophy, the writing in this book is sometimes
laborious. However, unlike traditional philosophy, the aim of this book is
to explore, rather than resolve, a set of philosophical concerns. There are
even issues raised in this book that many well-regarded philosophers find
quite silly – too silly to take seriously as philosophy.

Love Before Covid is thus an attempt to invoke the gadfly spirit of
Socrates in the 21st century, largely by abandoning the academic tradition
he inspired. This book is expected to irritate both lovers of philosophy, as
well as lovers of fiction. It may even irritate people from both sides of
the 21st century’s culture wars.

The plot concerns the love life of a man called Joe Pastorious. However,
this book does not tell you what to think of Joe, nor does it sing his
praises by showing how much he conforms to the most cherished values of our
time. Like many non-fictional people, Joe Pastorious is a complex human
being. You may love him or hate him. To call him imperfect would be an
understatement, but the degree to which he is likeable or loathsome is
thoroughly up to you.

There are other fictional people in this book who also dialogue, but they
only make appearances because of our protagonist. In some ways, they explain
Joe, much more than Joe explains himself.

Joe Pastorious met his wife Janet Waverley in the autumn of 1999. Joe and
Janet fell in love in a place called Leicester, which is a small city in the
middle of England. Many things have been said of Leicester, but one thing
that is not said enough is it is a fantastic place to fall in love. It was
the perfect place for Joe and Janet to fall in love. This is true, despite
the fact that Joe and Janet’s love is anything but perfect.

To truly understand the imperfect nature of this love, we must go back, not
to the beginning, but to an imaginary autumn of 2002. It’s not enough
to merely remember this autumn, from the vantage point of an imaginary
present. We instead must adopt this moment’s perspective, seeing its
events as though they were happening now.

When in the present, one can’t predict the future. Hence, the present
is the best place to understand imperfect people. When people are dead and
we know absolutely everything they have ever done, this creates an illusion
of certainty the present thankfully wipes away. You can’t trust a
corpse, because there is nothing about a corpse’s decisions that may
hurt or disappoint you.

A living, breathing person is not like this. They are only capable of being
truly understood, when they can be trusted. They can only be fully trusted
when their future is uncertain.

Love’s power resides in the romance of this uncertainty.

About the Author

During the pandemic Dr Greg Scorzo completed his first novel ‘LOVE BEFORE COVID’ as well as producing an innovative radio play based on 6
chapters from that book, also called – LOVE BEFORE COVID. available on our YouTube Channel.  and via Audioboom with links to all major podcast platforms.

Greg says, “I was interested in the challenge of writing a novel that was formally experimental, while still being easy for a mass audience to
read and understand. I love the idea of a piece of philosophy that is simultaneously a work of fiction, and a philosophical thought experiment which can function like a great, twisty roller coaster of a story that asks
the reader many questions. Unlike traditional philosophy and many fashionable works of literature, this book purposefully asks questions without giving answers, encouraging readers to think (and emote) for themselves.”

Since gaining his PhD in Philosophy in 2011, Greg Scorzo has aimed to find
creative and original ways to take philosophical thinking outside of
academia. By using modern accessible philosophical dialogue inpublic talks,
podcasts and his novel Love Before Covid, Greg explores clashing
perspectives and opinions that cause reflection. Based in Leicester, he was
a founding member of Culture on the Offensive and runs the podcast The
‘Art of Thinking’.

Dialogues entail an exploration of clashing perspectives and opinions that
cause reflection. Statements and declarations can close minds.

The ‘Art of Thinking’ with Greg Scorzo podcast is available on
YouTube where he does friendly philosophical interrogation of ideas
with many interesting thinkers. Also available via Audioboom linking to all
major podcast platforms.

His extended essays on Arts and Culture as well as Cultural Issues are
available on this platform http://www.gregscorzo.com

He has a passion and extensive knowledge of film and music.

From 2017 – 2020 Greg Scorzo was active in running over 60 engaging
voluntary community sessions, centred around ‘The Art of Thinking’  The focussed on  universal philosophical themes, arts and culture and cultural issues. The ethos behind these events was to encourage the use of EMPATHY, CLARITY and COURAGE in ensuing dialogues with the audience. These were organised by COTO.

He also took up invitations to partner and run sessions at other events,
including the Battle of Ideas Festival at the Barbican London, the
Philosophy Now conference, Leicester Comedy Festival and  DeMontfort
University’s Cultural Exchanges festival. He is always interested to
partner up with other like minded people.

 

Contact Links

Website

Facebook

Twitter

Blog

Goodreads

Instagram

 

Purchase Links

https://mybook.to/LoveBeforeCovid

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Kobo

Publisher

 

RABT Book Tours & PR

BOOK BLITZ & GIVEAWAY: Forever We Dream by Mark Workman

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Forever We Dream
Mark Workman
Publication date: March 19th 2025
Genres: Coming of Age, Young Adult

Three voices, one dream, and a chance to uncover the truth.

It’s 1978, and the glittering disco craze is sweeping across America. Identical conjoined triplets Elliana, Bellamona, and Gabriella have one shared dream: finding their mother, who vanished without a trace years ago. Singing is their only solace, and now they have a chance to take that passion to the national stage.

When they’re invited to compete in Your Shooting Star, a famous music competition, the teenage sisters see it as their chance to reunite with the woman they can’t remember but long to know. But stepping into the spotlight means facing their greatest fears. As the underdogs fight to stay in the contest, they must brave ruthless rival Twyla-Violet, a former child model determined to claim the coveted title at any cost.

While the four-round competition heats up, secrets, lies, and conspiracies threaten to tear their world apart. Can the triplets stand strong and use the power of television to reconnect with their past? Or will their dream shatter under the pressure of fame?

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble

—

EXCERPT:

Carla gawked at the triplets, shocked by their wrecked makeup. “What have you done?”

Katherine stepped over to them. “Carla, I’ll take care of the girls.” She took in their disturbed faces. “Did Twyla-Violet do something to you again?”

Mona sniffed back her tears. “It doesn’t matter anymore.”

“Sixty seconds,” Carla announced behind them.

Katherine pulled the girls around her. “Don’t let that bully beat you. There’s no time to fix your makeup. You must turn this crisis into a tactical advantage. I want you to think of the one thing you want more than anything else and imagine how you’d feel if you couldn’t have it.”

Papilio stared up at her, six amber irises adrift in the pain-stained red sclera of their eyes.

“That’s how we feel now,” Mona muttered as another black tear dripped from her chin and soiled more of their white blouse.

“So put those painful emotions into every word you sing and note you play. Understand, Papilio?”

Appearing almost catatonic, the triplets nodded slowly.

Carla pointed at the stage. “Ten seconds!”

Gently, Katherine brushed a black tear from Mona’s soft jawline with the back of her fingers. “And don’t forget to sing the lyrics from a girl’s perspective. Make them personal.” She stepped back and gestured for Papilio to go.

“Thanks for everything,” Mona said as if it would be the last time they ever saw the coach they had come to admire.

An aching feeling in the pit of Mona’s stomach told her something awful was about to happen. She sensed the judges sharpening their axes, anticipating the metallic taste of blood, ready to exact their punishment on Papilio for being naive enough to think three homely zeros were good enough to become America’s Teen Shooting Star. Their wacko mother didn’t even want them—why would anyone else?

As the dimmed lights increased in intensity, Papilio joined hands, put their right feet forward, and marched onstage while being careful not to trip in their tall platform heels. Halfway there, Gabby lost her concentration. Her ankle twisted sideways, and she nearly fell before Mona, anchored by Ellie, pulled Gabby’s arm and helped her recover, preventing an embarrassing human avalanche.

Despite the triplets’ messy state, the crowd behind Twyla-Violet’s cheering section applauded loudly. The Empress fan club, still decked out in violet band T-shirts, filled the front row as if they were permanently cemented to the seats. Their jaws dropped when they saw Papilio’s sloppy makeup and ruined costume. The hecklers were so shocked by their disheveled appearance, they forgot to snicker.

Papilio’s die-hard fan from their school’s math club stood in the middle of the row behind the jeerers. She held a sign that read Go Papilio! Her metal braces glinted as she jumped up and down, black pigtails bouncing, cheering for the band. Two other calculators with her screamed even louder.

Papiliomania was becoming contagious.

Author Bio:

Mark Workman toured the world as a road manager and lighting designer with many famous rock bands for 33 years. After leaving the music business in 2015, he worked at a major drug and alcohol treatment center in Malibu, California, for four years, where he earned his certification as a drug and alcohol counselor. Mark now spends his time reading, writing, and traveling. He grew up in Petersburg, Virginia, has lived in Greater Los Angeles for most of his adult life, and currently resides in the Las Vegas area. His estrangement from his late father since the age of six, along with his love for the music of the Bee Gees and 70s nostalgia, greatly inspired his debut novel, Forever We Dream.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Instagram


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BOOK BLITZ: Astral Seeds by Jhani Mills

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Fantasy/Sci-Fi

Date Published: October 28, 2024


 

Astral Seeds marks the dawn of a new reckoning in Eclipse of the Celestial
War, where fate is no longer a distant prophecy but a force unraveling in
real time. As the Primordial Dragon stirs, its presence sends ripples
through the fabric of the universe, shaking the foundations of power and
trust. The Dragon Council, once the pillar of order, faces an uprising as
the Keepers step from the shadows, weaving their own designs into the
celestial tapestry.

Kingdoms stand at the edge of ruin, their rulers caught between survival
and sacrifice. Dragon riders and Starborn witches walk the fine line between
destiny and destruction, their choices shaping the course of a war far older
than any of them realize. As old alliances fracture and new ones emerge from
the ashes, the cosmos itself seems to hold its breath, waiting for the spark
that will either reignite balance or consume everything in its path.

In a world where even the stars are not beyond corruption, the seeds of war
take root in the hearts of those willing to fight for a future still
unwritten.

 

Praise for Astral Seeds Eclipse of the Celestial War:

“Loved it! Astral Seeds soars with cosmic stakes, dragons, and
prophecies, weaving a vibrant tapestry of epic fantasy sure to captivate
dreamers.” Reedsy Discovery

 

“A fascinating fantasy world featuring a great protagonist and cosmic
repercussions. Astral Seeds certainly delivers for those fantasy readers
with an affinity for stars and astrology. Terra Arcana is an immersive world
worth visiting.” Independent Book Review

 

“A Must-Read for Fantasy Enthusiasts” – Readers’
Favorite

 

“Astral Seeds by Jhani Mills was a captivating   
fantasy book, full of action, otherworldly powers, and dragons. ”
— OnlineBookClub.org

About the Author

Jhani Mills is a passionate storyteller who weaves gripping tales of
fantasy, resilience, and cosmic conflict. Her works, including Whispers
Where the Wildflowers Bloom and the Astral Seeds series, explore the depths
of love, loss, and the enduring strength of the human (and inhuman) spirit.
With a talent for crafting intricate worlds and compelling characters, she
invites readers on epic journeys where fate, power, and destiny
collide.

 

Contact Links

Website

Instagram

Threads

TikTok

BookBuzz

 

Purchase Link

Amazon


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BOOK BLITZ & GIVEAWAY: Sword of the Fallen by G.J. Ogden

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Sword of the Fallen
G.J. Ogden
(Hearts of Dragons, #1)
Publication date: March 20th 2025
Genres: Adult, Fantasy

– From Kindle Storyteller Award Winner G J Ogden –
A dragon’s heart has the power to forge kingdoms – or shatter them.

Sir Torin Cadwell, Knight-Captain of the Watch and the tyrant king’s illegitimate son, has spent his life torn between loyalty to his father and the pull of destiny. For generations, his bloodline has been cursed by a bitter feud with Kyhrax, the Flame of Zarag-Gul – the most feared dragon in Westskyr.

The city of Dun Morlaig survives only because of the Breath – a magical barrier fueled by the crystallized heart of Astreya, the Great Mother dragon. Once a benevolent guardian, Astreya was slain by Torin’s ancestor, leaving Kyhrax consumed by grief and burning for revenge.

When Astreya’s Lament – the sword that holds the Great Mother’s heart – is stolen, the Breath falters. Chaos erupts as Koblyn monsters and dragon-worshiping cultists lay siege to the city, and Kyhrax prepares to unleash his long-awaited vengeance.

Defying the king’s command, Torin allies with Ruxandra Elyr, a ranger of the Order of the Green Bow, to recover the stolen sword. But Kyhrax’s wrath will not stop at Dun Morlaig. If the Flame of Zarag-Gul is not stopped, his fury will consume all seven realms and usher in the age of dragons.

Sword of the Fallen is the gripping first book in the Hearts of Dragons epic fantasy trilogy by Kindle Storyteller Award Winner G J Ogden. Dive into this thrilling adventure today!

Goodreads / Amazon

—

Sneak Peek:

“Long has it been since I tasted the reek of mortal flesh in these caves…”

The voice was sensuous, like a troubadour, and eloquent like a scholar, yet Kyhrax’s words shook Selene’s chest with the immensity of a thunderstorm. Opposite, from inside the dark recess of the mountain, a shape

emerged. Talons like swords gripped and splintered the rock, sending shards of grey-black stone tumbling into the magma below. Selene drew back, her burning eyes pressed wide, but she was frozen in fear and awe. Next, a diamond-shaped head emerged, followed by a long, elegant neck. In moments, the dragon’s full form—one hundred and eighty feet from snout to tail—had been hauled from the opening by powerful limbs the breadth of great oaks.

Selene remained on her knees, head bowed, body shaking with terror and reverence, dread and admiration.

She had thought herself ready to face Kyhrax, an audience ordained in magical visions, yet all the force of her will could not compel her to meet the dragon’s incandescent gaze.

“Why disturb my solitude, mortal?” Kyhrax asked as the dragon clawed its way across the cavern walls to within striking distance of the pilgrim who had invaded his lair. “There are easier ways to die.”

The dragon’s wings expanded, blotting out the light from below and casting the cavern into near-darkness. The smell of sulfur was suddenly gone, and instead the air around Kyhrax crackled with a sharp, biting tang. It was like the sky before a storm, heavy with the promise of lightning. Selene felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end, and her entire body prickled as if she had been imbued with a sliver of the dragon’s magical essence.

Then Kyhrax beat his wings, knocking Selene to the ground.

“Speak, woman, lest I burn you to ash!”

The cavern shook violently as Kyhrax roared his demand. His breath, suffocating and thick with outrage, whirled around the vast chamber, forcing Selene to grip the hot stone ledge as if she were suspended from it, clinging to it for life. It was all she could do to avoid being swept up in the vortex and cast into the pit of fire. Then, the dragon’s stifling breath abated, and steadily Selene lifted her chin. The physical exertion needed to move her exhausted body paled compared to the struggle of gazing upon the Flame of Zarag-Gul.

“Great Kyhrax, I pledge myself to your cause,” Selene said, her voice little more than a whimper. She rocked back to sit on her heels, then from inside her robes, she lifted the pendant hung from the steel chain around her neck. “Through this crystal heart, I have dreamed of a world where dragons, not mortal kings and queens, rule the seven realms.”

Kyhrax narrowed his orange eyes and drew his long neck closer, peering at the crystal in the young woman’s hand. He extended a single talon, as long as Selene’s body. Then, with a deftness and delicacy belying his colossal size, the dragon hooked the chain and pulled the pendant toward him.

“These dreams… I have seen them,” the dragon replied, its rumbling voice suddenly softer. “Yes… I remember you now, Selene Morgrave, discharged scholar of the Pillar of Commerce.”

Kyhrax turned his head and peered at Selene through his other eye. Selene did not move a muscle. She dared not.

“You pledge yourself without reservation, stealer of relics and dreams,” Kyhrax added. “But this is not the crystalline heart that I seek.”

Author Bio:

G J Ogden is a proud recipient of the Kindle Storyteller Award and has written over 50 books that have garnered over 15,000 5-star ratings on Amazon and Goodreads.

He is a physics graduate and a former technology journalist with a lifelong love of anything nerdy. From Firefly to Game of Thrones and everything in between, SFF is his bag. Conan! What is best in life?

On the rare occasions he’s not writing, G J Ogden is usually getting whooped in games of Warhammer 40K by his son. Unless he’s playing Adepta Sororitas, then he wins.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Instagram


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BOOK TOUR: Timeless by Kathryn Amurra

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 Timeless

Heart’s True Desire Series: Book Two

By

Kathryn
Amurra

 

About the Book:

Genres: Contemporary Romance with Mystical Elements / Paranormal Romance

Publisher:
Wild Rose Press

Publication Date: March
12, 2025

 

Erin Dovetree cannot forgive her father for cheating on her
mother years ago and has sworn off men altogether. That is until destiny leads her to her grandmother’s incredibly attractive and mysterious landlord.

 

William Abbott has lived for over a hundred years, cursed with a static and unnatural existence as punishment for his past sins. Although drawn to the lovely and intelligent Erin, he refuses to subject her to the fate that is his alone to bear.

 

As Erin pieces together the story of Will’s past and discovers the true cause of his timeless existence, she must reconsider the judgments she has made in her own life. And to have any chance at a life together, she and Will must find answers to the questions that have plagued
them both.

 

Purchase Link:

Amazon

Nook

Apple

 

Excerpt:

 

 

“Erin?”

Erin jumped at the sound of Will’s voice and turned away from the dumpster she had been staring at to look at him. “Will! You scared the crap out of me!”

She tried to surreptitiously wipe the tears that had wet both her cheeks, but she knew it was obvious she’d been crying.

She cleared her throat and straightened her back. “You didn’t have to come out here. And you didn’t have to listen to my grandmother if she was the one who told you to follow me. I’m fine.”

Even to Erin’s own ears the pain and self-pity in her voice was as clear as a bell. How pathetic she was, a grown woman—an attorney at a high-priced law firm— crying next to a dumpster over getting her feelings hurt by her thoughtless father. It was a wonder Will could even bear to look at her.

Almost in response to her thoughts, Will took a few steps closer, until he was standing just inches away. “Nobody told me to follow you. I was worried about you.”

“Well, I’m fine,” she snapped. “I’m not a child. Despite how my father might speak to me. I can handle myself. I don’t need you to feel sorry for me.”

Her voice cracked, betraying her emotions, and she looked up into Will’s eyes to gauge his reaction. All she saw was kindness and genuine compassion.

“I’m sorry.” She sighed, tears welling up once again. “You were being nice, and I’m being a jerk. You should go back and eat. I’ll come inside in a minute. I just needed to calm down. I’m fine now.”

Will reached up with both hands to touch the hair that fell on either side of her face. Erin’s breath caught in her chest as his warm fingers innocently brushed the tips of her ears.

“I like your hair down,” he said in a low voice. Then he touched her lips briefly with the pad of his index finger. “And I like your lipstick. But I have to admit I like it when you wear your hair up, too, and when you’re not wearing any lipstick at all.”

“Maybe you’re just easy to please,” she whispered, feeling on the verge of passing out.

“Maybe you’re just beautiful.”

 

 

Author Interview:

How long have you been writing, and how long did it take before your first book was published?

I’ve always wanted to be an author, since I first learned how to read and write.  I wrote stories through high school, took a break while I was in college for Engineering, then picked it back up again when I got a job as an engineer after college.  I got married and kept writing, then went to law school with my husband and still snuck in some time for writing once classes eased up in my third year. But with all that writing I had never written anything with the serious goal of publishing it. I always thought my writing was a fun hobby (hence Engineering and Law), something to do in my spare time. I stopped writing when I had kids, after law school, and it wasn’t until New Year’s 2015 that I decided I wasn’t going to wait until I retired to publish a book. I made a three-part resolution—I would (1) research how to write a publishable romance novel; (2) start and finish writing the story I had been thinking about for months before; and (3) try to publish the novel when I was done. It was one of the few New Year’s Resolutions in my life that I actually kept, and that first book I wrote was what would eventually become Timeless. So, that book took 10 years to publish. It’s not the first book I’ve published, though, because I put Timeless (originally titled Undeserving) aside and and wrote other books. Soothsayer was the first book I published, in 2020. So, from the time I decided I would publish a book to the time I actually did was around 5 1/2 years.

Do you have a routine you follow when you’re working on a book? A certain time of day when you write, or a snack you keep nearby?

I write at night, after I’ve caught up on my day job stuff and my family is in bed. I take a shower, brush my teeth, and get in bed with my laptop. Depending on what’s going on that day, sometimes I only have a few minutes of writing in me before my eyes start closing of their own volition. On those days, I’m happy if I only write one sentence. That’s why it usually takes me a year to write a new book!

What is the scariest thing you face as a writer? How do you handle it?

For me, the scariest thing is to read a “bad” review. Logically, I know that not everyone is going to relate to my characters or understand my message or enjoy my writing style. I know that, but I still want it not to be true. I want everyone who reads my books to go “Wow! What other books can I read by this author?” So, that moment when I open a review from a blogger or reader and can’t tell if it’s positive or negative yet, that’s terrifying for me. And if it’s negative, I have to tell myself it’s okay. I think of all the bad reviews famous authors have, how books I have read and loved also have had negative reviews, and that makes me feel a little better.

What do you think is the most important thing to remember when following your dreams?

Perseverance is the key to achieving any dream. The people who succeed, at anything, are the people who don’t give up, who keep moving forward. They talk to others who have succeeded and learn from them and keep working at it. This doesn’t mean you have to ignore practical things like having a paying job so you can have food to eat and a roof over your head. You have to do both. I firmly believe there is a time for everything, and success will come when it is meant to, if you keep at it.

What is the most challenging part of writing a book?

Writing romance means, by definition, things must work out in the end. There has to be a “happily ever after” or “happily for now.” Getting to that ending in a way that is genuine and believable, though, can be very challenging. I want the reader at the end of my book to have a moment of “oh, of course—it had to be like that, but I never saw it coming.” I don’t want them to think, “well, isn’t it convenient that the hero had an aunt we never knew about who died and left him all her money and now he can marry the heroine.” It’s hard to come up with a good ending, but it’s totally worth it.

 

When you’re writing, what comes first for you – the plot or the characters?

I typically start with the characters and a theme, like forgiveness or self-confidence, but I have key scenes in mind. I’ll know how I want to start and generally how I want to end, then I start writing. About two-thirds of the way through, I’ll know exactly how I want the rest of the book to unfold, and that’s when I’ll plot—just the last third of the book. It’s weird.

 

What part of the book is the most fun to write?

I love writing the last third of the book, when I have it all mapped out and I’ve figured out how everything is going to come together. All I have to do is keep following the light at the end of the tunnel, and then I get there, and it’s a very gratifying feeling.

 

What inspired the idea for your book?

Timeless is the first book I wrote after my mother passed away. I had been thinking about how we see things differently as children than we do as adults, and I was thinking about how debilitating it is to hold a grudge. It’s almost like it keeps you stagnant, the same, and you’re unable to grow or change or really live. And, because it is a romance, I was thinking about how two people can face those types of challenges together, and what they couldn’t figure out on their own, they could possibly discover in each other.

If you were to write a spin-off about a side character, who would you pick and why?

One of my favorite characters in Timeless is Blake Donovan, Erin’s good friend from law school who has a romantic crush on her for five minutes in the book. He’s a happy-go-lucky Casanova-type, but he finds his happily-ever-after, too. We just don’t see a lot of it in Timeless because it’s not his story. But maybe, if he’s a good boy, he’ll get his own book someday.

What’s the trickiest thing about writing characters of the opposite gender?

It’s hard for me, as a woman, to write a man. I don’t want my hero to sound like the heroine (you never want any of your characters to sound like any other character, same or opposite gender). So I often have to make myself see the scene through the eyes of a man I know (most often my husband). I’m lucky in that my husband is very unfiltered when he talks to me. I think I know pretty much everything he thinks about. I draw from that a lot when writing men in my books.

About the Author:

Kathryn Amurra is the author of sweet and sensual love stories. Her debut series, Soothsayer’s Path, is a historical romance series of standalone books set in Ancient Rome around 115 CE. Her new series, Heart’s
True Desire, is a paranormal romance series of standalone books published through The Wild Rose Press. Kathryn has been making up stories for as long as she can remember and writing since grade school. Against the advice of her 12th grade English teacher, she studied Mechanical Engineering in college, then worked as an Engineer for a few years. After finding and marrying her own hero, she and her hubby went to law school together. They currently live in North Carolina with their three girls.

 

Contact Links:

Email
– kathrynamurra@gmail.com

Website:
https://www.kathrynamurra.com

Facebook
– https://www.facebook.com/kathrynamurra/

X
– https://x.com/AmurraKathryn

Goodreads
– https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20280375.Kathryn_Amurra

BookBub
– https://www.bookbub.com/authors/kathryn-amurra

 

Giveaways:

First Giveaway

 

Three eBook Copies of Timeless to Three Lucky Winners

Open Internationally

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/30806ff58/?

 

Second Giveaway

 

One eBook Copy of Timeless and One eBook Copy of Amulet to One Lucky Winner

Open Internationally

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/30806ff59/?

 

Hosted By:

 

Quill and Ink Book Tours

https://quillandinkbooktours.com/

 

RELEASE BLITZ: Shattered Sight by Liz Milliron

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THE JACKSON DAVIS MYSTERIES

 

Police Procedural Mystery

Date Published: 03/18/2025

Publisher: Harbor Lane Books, LLC


 

NIAGARA FALLS POLICE DETECTIVE JACKSON DAVIS IS LIVING A LIE.

He has the perfect life: married, two children, a home, a promising
career.

Underneath, however, he battles self-doubt and guilt over the explosion
during the pursuit of a suspect that cost his partner her sight and her
career. He denies having PTSD or any trauma related to the event, but those
around him know better.

When Jackson returns to active duty and is tapped to lead the investigation
into the death of a prominent local business woman, all of this comes to the
forefront. He must learn to work with a new partner and deal with his
personal demons if he is to catch the killer-or he risks losing it
all.

Shattered Sight by Liz Milliron is perfect for fans of Hid From Our Eyes by
Julia Spencer-Fleming, Don’t Look Down by Hilary Davidson, and The Walt
Longmire books by Craig Johnson.

About the Author

Liz Milliron has been making up stories, and creating her own endings for
other people’s stories, for as long as she can remember. She’s
worked for twenty years in the corporate world, but finds making things up
is far more satisfying than writing software manuals. A lifelong mystery
fan, she is the author of The Laurel Highlands Mysteries and The Home Front
Mysteries, both from Level Best Books. Her short fiction has appeared at
Uppagus and Mysterical-e. and been in Lucky Charms: 12 Crime Tales, the
Anthony award-winning Blood on the Bayou (the 2016 Bouchercon anthology),
Fish Out of Water, Malice Domestic 12 – Mystery Most Historical and
The Killer Wore Cranberry: A Fifth Course of Chaos.

Liz lives near Pittsburgh with her son and a very spoiled retired-racer
greyhound named Koda. She is a past-president of the Pittsburgh chapter of
Sisters in Crime, and the current vice-president, and she is the National
Sisters in Crime Education Liaison. Liz is also a member of Pennwriters,
International Thriller Writers, and the Historical Novel Society.

Contact Links

Website

Facebook

Instagram

 

Purchase Link

Amazon


RABT Book Tours & PR