Cover Reveal: Carnival by K.B. Nelson

unnamedCarnival
By: K.B. Nelson
Publisher: Neon Lights Publishing
Release Date: June 2014
Genre: New Adult Romance

Goodreads

Blue’s a carny and he’s got molly. Charlie’s a local and she’s got ninety-nine problems but Blue ain’t one. Enter the world of neon lights….

Charlie never intended to sleep with a perfect stranger at the county fair. Finding out he was a carny was like winning the bonus round of the worlds worst game. Blue grew up in the carnival, never staying anywhere long enough to call home. He didn’t mean to seduce Charlie that night, but he’s use to living life on the edge.

Charlie’s supposed to be packing her bags for college. Blue’s supposed to get in his jeep and drive to the next town. She’s ready to leave for a life she’s not certain she wants and he’s searching for a place to call home.

Unable to resist him, Charlie makes the choice to stay. She follows Blue down the rabbit hole; into a world with no regard for rules and consequences. But when tragedy strikes, will it send her and Blue down a more destructive path? Or will it bring them closer together? Either way, they both come to realize that life is just like a carnival ride.

 
 
author

I grew up on a farm in Ohio, but that’s not very interesting, is it? When I’m not writing you can find me doing one of two things; getting lost on highways or getting lost in the lives of fictional characters. If my heart had two feet, one foot would be in romance and the other solidly in geekdom. I hope you’ll all follow me on my journey through this carnival they call life.I promise there will be a happy ending.

Website | Twitter | Facebook

 
 

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Sunday Wrap-Up #32

Sunday Wrap-Up is all about sharing the books and book related items that I’ve picked up recently. I also recap what went on last week and let you in on what’s coming up. I link up my post to Sunday Post, Bought, Borrowed & Bagged, Showcase Sunday, and Stacking the Shelves.

 

Last week on BSA:
Psi Another Day by D.R. Rosensteel (Guest Post)
Four Seconds to Lose by K.A. Tucker (Review)
Gluten-Free Breakfast, Brunch & Beyond by Linda J. Amendt (Review)
The Darkest Whisper by Gena Showlater (Review)

 

This week on BSA:
Carnival by K.B. Nelson (Cover Reveal & Giveaway)
The Bellum Prophecy by L. Marie Horton (Interview & Giveaway)
A Little Bit of Fur by Celia Kyle (Review)
Thoughtless by S.C. Stephens (Review)
Uncovering You by Scarlett Edwards (Review)

 

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A Dark and Stormy Knight
By: Suzie Quint
Genre: Romance
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Georgia McKnight would do anything for her daughter Eden, but the one thing she’s failed to do is to provide her daughter with a model of a good marriage. To remedy that, she’s set her sights on converting her friendship with Daniel, the divorced father of Eden’s best friend, into a romance. Unfortunately, she has to leave Dallas for the summer to help her parents in Hero Creek, where her ex-husband waits, scheming to win her back.

Sol McKnight has three passions in his life: riding bulls, his daughter, and the woman he married right out of high school. He’s pulled some underhanded tricks over the years in order to keep his ex-wife single. He doesn’t regret a single one of them because, well, they worked. But now, she’s come home and he has a chance to win her back for good. If he’s smart about it, maybe he can make her see that she belongs with him.

 
 

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Ghouls Rush In
By: H.P. Mallory
Genre: Paranormal Romance
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Looking for a fresh start, Peyton Clark becomes the proud owner of a piece of New Orleans history: an Antebellum-era two-story house in the Garden District. It’s going to take time and a fat wallet to restore the fixer-upper to its former glory, but after her recent divorce, Peyton could use the distraction.

It’s not long before Peyton discovers she’s moved into the haunted home of a flirtatious paranormal prankster. She’s receiving kisses from unseen lips and caresses from a ghostly hand, and soon she begins to have vivid dreams, bringing her face-to-face with the incomparably handsome ghost of Drake Montague.

When Peyton grows closer to her general contractor, Ryan Kelly—who is as charming as he is alive—the chill in the air could only suggest Drake’s jealousy from beyond the grave. But even though she’s definitely attracted to and interested in Ryan, Peyton also can’t get Drake out of her dreams, or her heart, as she begins to uncover the frightening truth behind his death a century ago…

 
 

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The Arrow
By: Monica McCarty
Genre: Historical Romance
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The talents of legendary marksman Gregor “Arrow” MacGregor are crucial now, as Bruce moves to reclaim his Scottish holdings. Gregor is considered the most handsome man in Scotland, and his fame as an archer is rivaled only by his reputation with the lasses as a heartbreaker. But when his infamous face is exposed during a covert mission, Gregor is forced to lay low. He returns home only to find a new battle waiting: a daring game of seduction involving his now very grown up and very desirable ward, Cate of Lochmaben.

A born fighter, Cate was clinging to life when Gregor rescued her after a vicious English raid on her village left her mother dead. But five years later, the once scrappy orphan Gregor took under his protection has become a woman. Brave, strong, and skilled in warfare, Cate is determined to lay claim to the warrior who refuses to be trapped. The heat in his eyes tells her she has his attention . . . and his desire. But will Gregor allow his heart to surrender before danger finds them, and the truth of Cate’s identity is revealed?

 
 

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Vegan Beans From Around the World
By: Kelsey Kinser
Genre: Cookbook
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Hearty, protein-rich and delicious, beans are the perfect base for countless delectable dishes. Bringing them all together in a single volume, Vegan Beans from Around the World covers every taste sensation, including:
•Boston Baked Beans
•Southwestern Chili
•Mexican Refried Beans
•Cuban Black Beans
•Colombian Red Beans
•African Curried Black-Eyed Pea & Coconut Soup
•Greek Lentil Salad
•Tuscan White Bean Soup
•Dutch Split Pea Soup
•South Indian Dal Tadka
•Korean Mung Bean Salad
•Japanese Red Bean Ice Cream

 
 

 
 

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The Vampire Stalker
By: Allison van Diepen
Genre: Paranormal Romance
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What if the characters in a vampire novel left their world–and came into yours?

Amy is in love with someone who doesn’t exist: Alexander Banks, the dashing hero in a popular series of vampire novels. Then one night, Amy meets a boy who bears an eerie resemblance to Alexander. In fact, he IS Alexander, who has escaped from the pages of the book and is in hot pursuit of a wicked vampire named Vigo. Together, Amy and Alexander set out to track Vigo and learn how and why Alexander crossed over. But when she and Alexander begin to fall for each other, Amy wonders if she even wants him to ever return to the realm of fiction.

 
 

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Stay
By: Allie Larkin
Genre: Chick-Lit
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Savannah “Van” Leone has been in love with Peter Clarke ever since she literally fell head over heels in front of him on the first day of college. Now, six years later, instead of standing across from him at the altar, Van’s standing behind her best friend Janie as maid of honor, trying to mask her heartache and guilt as Janie marries the only man Van’s ever loved. Before, Van’s mother died, she told Van never to let Peter go, but as the couple exchanges vows, Van wonders if her fairy tale ending will ever come true.

After the wedding, Van drowns her sorrows in Kool-Aid-vodka cocktails and reruns of Rin Tin Tin, and does what any heartbroken woman in her situation would do: She impulsively buys a German Shepherd over the Internet. The pocket-size puppy Van is expecting turns out to be a clumsy, hundred-pound beast who only responds to commands in Slovak, and Van is at the end of her rope… until she realizes that this quirky giant may be the only living being who will always be loyal to her, no matter what.

Van affectionately names her dog Joe, and together, they work to mend the pieces of Van’s shattered heart. And it certainly doesn’t hurt that Joe’s vet is a rugged sweetheart with floppy blond hair and a winning smile. But when the newlyweds return from their honeymoon, Van is forced to decide just how much she’s willing to sacrifice in order to have everything she ever wanted, proving that sometimes life needs to get more complicated before it can get better.

 
 

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How Dogs Love Us
By: Gregory Berns
Genre: Non-Fiction
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The powerful bond between humans and dogs is one that’s uniquely cherished. Loyal, obedient, and affectionate, they are truly “man’s best friend.” But do dogs love us the way we love them? Emory University neuroscientist Gregory Berns had spent decades using MRI imaging technology to study how the human brain works, but a different question still nagged at him: What is my dog thinking?

After his family adopted Callie, a shy, skinny terrier mix, Berns decided that there was only one way to answer that question—use an MRI machine to scan the dog’s brain. His colleagues dismissed the idea. Everyone knew that dogs needed to be restrained or sedated for MRI scans. But if the military could train dogs to operate calmly in some of the most challenging environments, surely there must be a way to train dogs to sit in an MRI scanner.

With this radical conviction, Berns and his dog would embark on a remarkable journey and be the first to glimpse the inner workings of the canine brain. Painstakingly, the two worked together to overcome the many technical, legal, and behavioral hurdles. Berns’s research offers surprising results on how dogs empathize with human emotions, how they love us, and why dogs and humans share one of the most remarkable friendships in the animal kingdom.

kRISTIN

Review: The Darkest Whisper by Gena Showlater

5509920The Darkest Whisper
(Lords of the Underworld, #4)
By: Gena Showalter
Publisher: HQN Books
Published: Sept. 1, 2009
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Rating:
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He is the keeper of Doubt and his entire world’s about to be rocked.

Bound by the demon of Doubt, Sabin unintentionally destroys even the most confident of lovers. So the immortal warrior spends his time on the battlefield instead of the bedroom, victory his only concern…until he meets Gwendolyn the Timid. One taste of the beautiful redhead, and he craves more.

Gwen, an immortal herself, always thought she’d fall for a kind human who wouldn’t rouse her darker side. But when Sabin frees her from prison, battling their enemies for the claim to Pandora’s box turns out to be nothing compared to the battle Sabin and Gwen will wage against love…

1thoughts
Sabin, the keeper of the demon Doubt comes across an underground hunter lair that contains a bunch of otherworldly females. Sabin is immediately drawn to one female in particular. She helps them release the females but when he’s about to release her one of the hunters that was kept alive for interrogation purposes pleads that they leave her locked up because of how dangerous she is. Of course Sabin doesn’t listen to the hunter and releases Gwen. She doesn’t harm Sabin and the Lords however, the same cannot be said for the hunter. Sabin decides to take her back with him and the Lords to their fortress.

Gwen is a Harpy. Her name is actually Gwen the Timid for a reason. Unlike her sisters who can kill someone without second thought, Gwen has a more gentled nature. Now that doesn’t mean that if you back her into a corner that her Harpy won’t come out and play, but she tries really hard to keep the Harpy locked down. She has comes to find that Sabin is the only person who has ever been able to calm her Harpy and talk her down from blood lust.

This is another great addition to the LOTU series. We get farther into the storyline of finding the artifacts. There is a run in with the villain Galen, keeper of the demon Hope. And much more progress to be made under the Lords reach their goal.

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“Maybe Sabin’s a portal to heaven like Danika. Maybe the Harpy saw a few angels while receiving mouth-to-mouth.”

kRISTIN

Review: Gluten-Free Breakfast, Brunch & Beyond by Linda J. Amendt

17572498Gluten-Free Breakfast, Brunch & Beyond
By: Linda J. Amendt
Publisher: Taunton Press
Published: Sept. 3, 2013
Genre: Cookbook
Rating:
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Breakfast is the favorite meal of the day for millions of Americans, but those with a gluten intolerance are out of luck, since many breakfast foods and baked items have been banned from their diet. They must find gluten-free alternatives or go without. For the rising number of Americans who are choosing to follow a gluten-free diet as a healthy lifestyle and for parents experimenting with gluten-free recipes for their families, they, too, are having to do without.

That disappointment will no longer be the case. In Gluten-Free Breakfast, Brunch & Beyond, home cooks will discover a variety of gluten-free recipes for their family’s favorite breakfast foods. From light quick breads, muffins, biscuits and scones to tasty pancakes, waffles, coffee cakes and sweet rolls, this collection of 100 recipes will bring breakfast back to the gluten-free table. A tantalizing array of frittatas, quiches, and breakfast casseroles are perfect for any meal of the day. The recipes in Gluten-Free Breakfast, Brunch & Beyond are quick and easy to make and yield delicious, satisfying results.
Recipes for homemade all-purpose flour, crepe batter, pancake batter, sweet roll dough, and biscuit dough will give every gluten-free cook the basics for creating delicious dishes of their own.

In addition to great recipes, Gluten-Free Breakfast, Brunch & Beyond will provide cooks with the information they need about gluten-free ingredients, including ingredients to include—and avoid–in their diet and preparing and measuring ingredients. Each recipe chapter will begin with tips to help home cooks create great-tasting gluten-free breakfast specialties to serve from morning to night.

 

1thoughts I’ve heard this craze over a gluten-free diet sweeping the nation. Not because of dietary needs but just because. So I decided to give this book a shot. I’m a huge gluten eater. Sorry, but I am. I love egg sandwiches in the morning, pb & j for lunch and rolls with my spaghetti dinner. So for me, this was the ultimate test.

I tried the ranch rolls (rolls made with ranch packet seasoning) and although they lacked the ranch flavor (the Mr. and I put ranch dressing ON the rolls themselves) the texture was that of a normal roll. Just wish that it had more of that ranch flavor to it.

Next up, I tried a banana nut muffin recipe when my mom came to visit. Now, my family is always skeptical when I come home and say I’m going to cook them a meal. They claim I always cook some “funky shit”. Granted I did once make tofu fried rice, green eggs and ham (pesto scrambled eggs), and macaroni & cheese with winter squash mashed into the cheese. So I guess I could see their hesitation considering I grew up on meat and potatoes, never casseroles, rarely soup, just meat and potatoes on a plate.  So with that being said, I figured she’d be even more judgmental than I am. That was not the case at all. We loved them. They were good fresh out of the over, I think we ate 3 each that night, they are also great the next day as well. We were eating them all day long. I even gave one to my friend before we went hiking in Joshua Tree National Park, and she couldn’t believe it was gluten-free. I guess I’m not the only one who associated gluten-free with grainy and funky textured.

And lastly I tried the basic waffle recipe. Don’t ask me why, but while I was at work I smelled maple syrup and instantly started craving waffles. Now mind you, I work at the national park visitor center. Not overly sure where the maple syrup smell came from but I’m not questioning it because man were the waffles awesome. I was a little skeptical when I mixed the batter because it was very runny. However, what came out of the waffle iron was light and airy. They had a sweet vanilla flavor to them that I could see myself just putting some butter on them and calling it a day.

This is a great recipe book containing recipes for muffins, breads, waffles and coffee cakes. I like that right in the beginning it gives you a basic recipe for gluten-free AP flour which is basically used in all of the recipes. I wish it had pictures to go with every recipe but the recipes themselves are easy to follow. I still plan on trying out a few more because what I’ve tried have all turned out well, with the exception of the non-ranch tasting ranch rolls. I thought gluten-free was supposed to be gritty and tasteless but this was spot on with the normal stuff, and in some cases, like the waffles, even better. Who knows, I may just convert over to gluten-free with this book.

 

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Since the banana bread was tested by three separate people and passed with flying colors, I’m gonna have to go with the banana bread recipe. It was easy to make, came out great and is a great recipe to have in your back pocket for both a breakfasts at home or to make for events.

 

 

 

 

kRISTIN

Review: Four Seconds to Lose by K.A. Tucker

17571140Four Seconds to Lose
(Ten Tiny Breaths, #3)
By: K.A. Tucker
Publisher: Atria Books
Published: Nov. 4, 2013
Genre: New Adult Romance
Rating:
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Owning a strip club isn’t the fantasy most guys expect it to be. With long hours, a staff with enough issues to keep a psych ward in business, and the police regularly on his case, twenty-nine-year-old Cain is starting to second guess his unspoken mission to save the women he employs. And then blond, brown-eyed Charlie Rourke walks through his door, and things get really complicated. Cain abides by a strict “no sleeping with the staff” rule. But being around Charlie challenges Cain’s self-control…and it’s been a long time since any woman has done that.

Twenty-two-year-old Charlie Rourke needs a lot of money, really fast, in order to vanish before it’s too late. Taking her clothes off for men makes her stomach curl but Charlie tells herself that at least she’s putting her acting and dancing skills to good use. And though her fellow dancers seem eager to nab their sexy, sophisticated, and genuinely caring boss, she’s not interested. After all, Charlie Rourke doesn’t really exist—and the girl pretending to be her can’t get distracted by romance.

Unfortunately, Charlie soon discovers that developing feelings for Cain is inevitable, and that those feelings may not be unrequited—but losing him when he finds out what she’s involved with will be more painful than any other sentence awaiting her.

 

1thoughtsI’m not going to lie, when I saw that K.A. wrote her hero as a strip club owner, I just about fell out of my chair with excitement. I’ve never read a book where the main character is a strip club owner, while still managing not to give me the creeps. I’m sorry but, you own an establishment that exploits women. However, Caine didn’t give me the heebie jeebies. I wouldn’t say that I was totally head of heels in love with him but he wasn’t a total sleazeball.

I liked that the author tied a great background story to Caine that gave him some noble qualities to his job. The fact that his sister was a stripper and was doing extra on the side to earn money was what fueled him to open his own place. He wanted a club that women in that profession could find a safe place to do their business, while he offered as much help to get them on their feet. For instance, there was a scene with a stripper and her abusive/drug dealing ex-boyfriend. Caine takes it upon himself to protect the girls who work for him, and that means keeping them clean, helping them get the education they need or helping them break free from bad relationships. The fact that Caine is a stand-up guy who is only interested in being a safe haven for those who must go into the business to support themselves was quite noble of him. However, the fact remains that he owns a strip club.

“I want to help out every woman who feels she needs to take her clothes off to survive but I’m only on man, and not every woman is strong enough to avoid the pitfalls of this industry.”

What would a good romance be without a little conflict. Charlie is everything that Caine stands against. Her stepfather forced her into a life of crime. She’s a heroine peddler, Caine lost his whole family to a drug related crime. Charlie doesn’t enjoy her job at all but anytime someone has crossed her stepfather or attempted to get out, they wound up dead. So she bides her time while in Miami with a “job” stripping in Caine’s club in the hopes of earning enough money on the side to run away and disappear. Some of the things that happen to her while at these drops definitely had me on the edge of my seat. This was definitely a gritty romance all the way around.

I liked that even though this was a romance, the author always made sure to keep the stepfather in the picture. Whether it was interactions via phone between Charlie and him, memories of her life before he had her working for him, or the drops that Charlie was doing, the suspense was always there. Sometimes the romance overrides that suspense but the author always kept the danger lurking the background the entire time.

Even though I couldn’t really get over the fact that Caine was the owner of a strip club, no matter how noble his reasons were, I still liked that he was a strip club owner. He was different from your average hero. Owning that club set him apart from every other male lead I’ve read. He wasn’t your typical alpha male with a bigwig job. No, he was an alpha male who took it upon himself to watch over women who would otherwise be prostituting to make a living.

This was a great story that was both gritty and steamy at the same time. I wasn’t able to put the book down. There were so many things going on that I just had to know what would happen next. I was slightly disappointed with the ending. I felt like it was all a little too coincidental. Maybe it’s just me but that did earn a slight eye-roll from me. However, the entire story was pretty awesome. I cannot wait to read the next story in Ten Tiny Breaths.

 

1favequote“I don’t know how the monks survive. Probably not by watching  live strip shows daily.” -Caine

kRISTIN

Character Profile from Psi Another Day by D.R. Rosensteel

psi

psiADPsi Another Day
By: D.R. Rosensteel
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Release Date: May 6, 2014
Genre: YA

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When spunky teen Rinnie is forced to bust out her secret Psi Fighter moves in school in order to bring downs its drug ring, she encounters a deeper plot…and a more sinister danger.
My name is Rinnie Noelle.

By day I’m just another girl in high school who likes lip gloss. But by night I’m a Psi Fighter—a secret guardian with a decade of training in the Mental Arts. Kinda like Batman, but without the cape.
Bad guys beware.
After screwing up my first mission, I’m now supposed to fix the problems at my school. Major, fly-catching yawn. Sure, drugs are bad, but what crime fighter wants to put bullies in detention when she can save the world from nefarious villains?
’Cause I will take you out.
But things heat up fast. Now I have two guys into me—yummy new kid, Egon, and my old nemesis-turned-nice-guy, Mason. Plus, word on the street is that a Walpurgis Knight, the Psi Fighter’s worst enemy, has infiltrated the school. And everyone is a potential suspect, even Mason and Egon. Darn. Fingers crossed I find the Knight before he finds me…

ExcerptOkay so this isn’t really an excerpt. More like a character profile from the book.

picName: Kathryn Hollisburg

Age: 16

Classification: Best Friend

Special Skills: Crowd control by means of extreme coolness. Sometimes a total goof. She really ought to be a Psi Fighter.

Special Note: I can’t show you my real face. You know, secret identity and all that. Psi Fighters are usually masked.

Kathryn Hollisburg is my best friend in the entire universe. We know everything about each other.

Kathryn knows I like Elvis Presley. I know she likes 1D. I know her secret shopping hot spots. She knows my secret identity. Kathryn is the coolest, most popular girl in Greensburg High, but she doesn’t know it. She is completely genuine, totally unaware of her popularity. She’s as unsnobbish as it’s possible to be.

On the other hand, she has little patience with lower lifeforms like Mason Draudimon and his minions, Art Rubric and Chuckie Cuff.

Oh, and she’s a Whisperer in training. The Whisperers sort of manage the outside world for the Psi Fighters. They protect our identities.

Review: Unfixable by Tessa Bailey

21527270Unfixable
By: Tessa Bailey
Publisher: Entangled
Published: April 14, 2014
Genre: New Adult Romance
Rating:

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He’s the last thing she wants…but the only thing she needs.

Willa Peet isn’t interested in love. She’s been there, done that, and has the shattered heart to prove it. Ready to shake the breakup, she heads to Dublin, Ireland. But there’s a problem. A dark-haired, blue-eyed problem with a bad attitude that rivals her own. And he’s not doling out friendly Irish welcomes.

Shane Claymore just wants to race. The death of his father forced him off the Formula One circuit, but he’s only staying in Dublin long enough to sell the Claymore Inn and get things in order for his mother and younger sister. He never expected the sarcastic American girl staying at the inn to make him question everything.

But even as Willa and Shane’s fiery natures draw them together, their pasts threaten to rip them apart. Can Shane give up racing to be with the woman he loves, or will Willa’s quest to resurrect the tough-talking, no-shit-taking girl she used to be destroy any hope of a future together?

Read More →

Excerpt: Thimble Down by Pete Prown

TDThimble Down
By: Pete Prown
Publisher: Self-Published
Published: Aug. 1, 2013
Genre: YA Mystery

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THIMBLE DOWN is a country village where death and malice lurk the quiet lanes. When the vile, drunken Bing Rumple acquires a gem-laden treasure, violence begins to follow him everywhere. Where did Bing find such a precious jewel, and worse, is someone willing to kill to possess it? In this fast-paced adventure, the village bookmaster, Mr. Dorro, and his young companions Wyll Underfoot and Cheeryup Tunbridge are in a desperate race to find the answer—before death comes to Thimble Down.

 

 

 

Excerpt

 
The next morning, Bing Rumple was in full stride. He’d been walking in and out of shops, a chop house, pony stables, and many of the other burrows and houses that composed the center of Thimble Down, bragging about his exploits in the east. With his brother Farroot and Bill Thistle following him like a pair of leering weasels, Bing was enjoying his moment in the sun.

“How do you kill a ferocious goblin?” A youngling had just asked him this very question, and now he was preparing a grandly entertaining response. “Why, you can do it many ways, my boy-o,” he said in a tough voice, but trying to stifle a grin. “You can stick him in the throat with an arrow at fifty paces, or sneak up from behind and garrote the bugger with a sturdy piece of rope. Me, I generally just cut ‘em to pieces with this elvish saber. Look!” he said, drawing the glimmering blade out of his scabbard, “you can even see bits of dried, black goblin blood, and burnt flesh in the crevices.” At this, the Halfling children screamed with a mix of fright and glee and ran off to tell their horrified mothers. Bing and his pals roared with laughter.

As he expected, most people in Thimble Down had never even seen a goblin or troll up close. “What do they look like? Do they have bloody fangs?” asked young Tom Talbo, quivering with delight. Bing seemed to think for a moment before replying, “Oh course they do, young sir. And they have large bulbous eyes, thick grey-green or black skin covered with festering sores, long muscled arms, and meaty hands with claws on the end. They are fearsome to be sure, and if you get too close, they can shred yer intestines in a mere flash.” Bing embellished his tale each time someone asked. He’d never been a celebrity before, and he rather liked it.

“The worst of it was when me ‘n’ the lads were trapped with an elfin hunting party, pinned down by about a hundred and fifty goblins that outnumbered us mightily,” he rambled on. “We were on the top of a small bluff with goblins and trolls all around us. The elves fought valiantly, but we saved the day. Let me tell you the whole story.”

“Ya see, goblins hate fire, and by a stroke of fortune, the top of the bluff was covered with dry, dead brambles and bushes. So I braved a rain of goblin arrows and ran over to the elf chieftain. I said, ‘Toldir’—that was his name—‘go ask yer men to gather all the brush and big rocks possible, and arrange them on rim,’ I says. Of course, Toldir got pretty steamed at me for calling his warriors Men, because of course, elves ain’t Men and Men ain’t elves, if you reckon my meaning. But in the heat o’ battle, these things happen. Anyway, the elves did as I asked, and soon the entire edge of our bluff was ringed with brush and big boulders. I’ll hand it to them elves—they are strong and can move quick-like, especially in a pinch.”

“As a further stroke of luck, the elfin hunters had leatherskin bags filled with deer and musk oil from their recent kills, which we used to drench the brush. At Toldir’s command, the oil was lit afire, creating a massive inferno around the perimeter. I gave a shout of ‘Heave-ho!’ and we used sticks and logs to push the big rocks and flaming brush over the lip and down onto the enemy, who were stricken with terror. Those goblins that weren’t killed outright by the boulders and stones were hit with the flaming brambles and verily burst into flames. And any demons that escaped this hell were soundly stuck with deadly elvish arrows or, might I modestly say, by the edge of my sword as we charged down the hill to destroy the enemy. With the goblins either dead or in complete disarray, our troop was able to escape and rejoin the larger elf forces to fight another day.”

“Huzzah! Hurrah for Bing!” applauded his audience. Bing, Farroot, and Bill tossed handfuls of pennies into the crowd to curry their favor even more, driving the children mad with joy. Still, some of the older Halflings at the edge of the crowd couldn’t put the image of the sniveling Bing Rumple of yester-year out of their minds. “How could that miserable excuse for a Halfling be such a hero?” they thought. But in general, the village folk were greatly entertained, and this was a great boon to local merchants who hadn’t seen crowds this big since the harvest festival of the previous year. Up and down the hard-packed dirt lanes in Thimble Down, sellers were bringing their wares into the open air, especially pies, cakes, and any variety of dried, candied meats on a stick, which only cost a penny or two and were gobbled down rapturously.

Many in the crowd were also ogling the gem-encrusted brooch pinned on Bing’s left breast. Indeed, more than a few secretly began to covet it. Among them was one Halfling who decided—at that very moment—to steal it.

Even if it meant someone had to die.
 


 

authorpete

Pete Prown is a noted American writer of Young Adult fantasy books, as well as a magazine and book editor, and journalist. He’s written both fiction and non-fiction books, including Thimble Down, the soon-to-be-published Devils & Demons, and a series of instructional titles about guitars. Also a talented musician and recording artist, his Guitar Garden music is available on CDBaby.com and iTunes.

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Review: Grimm Fairy Tales: Oz by Joe Brusha

18767261Grimm Fairy Tales: Oz
(Grimm Fairy Tales Oz, #1-6)
By: Joe Brusha
Publisher: Zenescope Entertainment
Genre: Graphic Novel
Rating:
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The world faces a gathering storm that threatens to drown it in darkness. The only hope to stop the coming evil rests on an unlikely hero: a Kansas farm girl named Dorothy Gale.

Unbeknownst to Dorothy, highborn blood flows through her veins and with it, the power to save Earth and the realms of power that surround it. But Dorothy must first learn to use her unharnessed abilities before the witches of Oz destroy her and everyone else that stands in their way.

Zenescope Entertainment presents another incredible tale of adventure and fantasy with this mesmerizing and epic re-imagining of a classic!

 

1thoughtsThis one just didn’t work for me. The cover art is beautiful but unfortunately that doesn’t carry into the story itself. Dorthy and the witches look like drag queens with horse teeth. The colors were bright and vibrant but the illustrations left little to be desired in some parts of the story. It seemed like it got worse when it came to the action scenes. I’m not sure if that was the look the illustrator was going for but it distracted me from the story.

The story itself was interesting. The author took Oz as we know it and turned it into this dark world that’s in a blood bath war. However, with that being said, the story jumped all over the place making it hard to keep track on what was happening. It would be carrying on just fine one minute and then the next we would go back in time for a page, then jump ahead while still remaining in the past, and then we’d be thrown into the present. I’m not sure if it was flashbacks or just little bursts of back story coming through but it left me a little disoriented.

I’ve read the Jungle Book from Grimm Fairy Tales and really enjoyed it. So I will definitely be looking out for more of their series but if another Oz pops up, I will be skipping it.

 

1favepartI don’t know if you could call it a favorite part but I really did like the authors take on the characters. Aside from their appearances, they were not the same characters from the story that we are all familiar with. For instance, the lion was this Alpha were-beast as opposed to being cowardly. I like that not only did the author take the story and make it their own, but he also altered the characters as well.

kRISTIN

Review: Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson

7514925Tiger Lily
By: Jodi Lynn Anderson
Publisher: Harper Collins
Published: July 3, 2012
Genre: YA Fantasy
Rating:
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Before Peter Pan belonged to Wendy, he belonged to the girl with the crow feather in her hair. . . .

Fifteen-year-old Tiger Lily doesn’t believe in love stories or happy endings. Then she meets the alluring teenage Peter Pan in the forbidden woods of Neverland and immediately falls under his spell.

Peter is unlike anyone she’s ever known. Impetuous and brave, he both scares and enthralls her. As the leader of the Lost Boys, the most fearsome of Neverland’s inhabitants, Peter is an unthinkable match for Tiger Lily. Soon, she is risking everything—her family, her future—to be with him. When she is faced with marriage to a terrible man in her own tribe, she must choose between the life she’s always known and running away to an uncertain future with Peter.

With enemies threatening to tear them apart, the lovers seem doomed. But it’s the arrival of Wendy Darling, an English girl who’s everything Tiger Lily is not, that leads Tiger Lily to discover that the most dangerous enemies can live inside even the most loyal and loving heart.

 

1thoughtsThis is a great retelling of Peter Pan. Well, actually it’s not really Peter’s story. Tiger Lily is the main focus in the story. Tinker Bell is a faerie who has taken an interest in Tiger Lily’s life. Tiger Lily is unlike any of the other females from her tribe. It’s also known that Tiger Lily has cursed people who have crossed her. Leaving everyone wearing around Tiger Lily. The story is told in Tinker Bell’s point of view as she recounts her observations.

I will be honest that it took a little bit for me to get used to the narration. It’s in first person (Tink) but she focuses so much on the other characters that it’s almost like third person as well. It was very interesting and I have to give the author major props for pulling it off. After I got used to I could just imagine everything playing out.

I liked that the author showed a different side to Peter and even Wendy (who makes an appearance in the book). The only thing I have to go off of is Disney’s version of Peter Pan. So this was a very interesting retelling of a classic. The author added in so much that the only things that seemed the same in the story were the names. She really did a great job in taking a classic story and making it her own.

One thing I have to take a step back and applaud is how gritty the story was. For a YA the author touched on some interesting things. I don’t want to go into too much detail but there’s arranged marriages, village rapes, jealousy that causes malicious acts, and suicide. She doesn’t go into detail over the situations but she definitely eludes to these things happening. There were times that I was reading and my heart just felt like it stopped beating because things were so intense. I stayed up way later than I should have for a work night just so that I could finish it. And there is where my major complaint is… the end. It literally ends and goes into the acknowledgements. I seriously checked the pages to see if my library copy was missing one but nope. Maybe I need to watch Peter Pan again and the missing link will be there and everyone who’s a Pan fan will be like, “Oooooh, she’s so clever to incorporate that in her story.”, but I’m just thoroughly lost.

 

1favequote“Sometimes I think that maybe we are just stories. Like we may as well just be words on a page, because we’re only what we’ve done and what we are going to do.”

kRISTIN