10.31.2012

Happy Halloween + An Email Giveaway





Have a great Halloween!


Remember to share your candy with me.

Muahahaha!



Reply to this email with HALLOWEEN as the subject line. You will be entered to win a $5 Amazon Card. If you are viewing this on my blog send the email to chrysrawr@yahoo.com. Only email subscribers are eligible. Contest ends at midnight EST.

ENTRIES SO FAR: 37
Photobucket
This giveaway is now closed. The winner has been announced. 
Thanks for your interest. 

10.29.2012

Book Review Style (Well, My Book Review Style)

I'm writing this post from my iPhone which is something I don't enjoy doing. Why would I punish myself to type using Blogger's incompetent app? Well, I just had an epiphany. I was feeling down because I have realized how pitifully sparse my "Book Reviews" page is. I have been blogging for little over two months, and I only published three reviews. Then I felt even worse because I have realized that other book bloggers have a new review like every other day, some even each day. Talk about blog esteem.

I began to wonder. How do some book bloggers read and review so quickly? Does it occur with being a book blog veteran or is it just that some are blessed with microprocessors as neurons?

For some, that is most definitely the case. In fact, there are many book bloggers that I wholly admire for their stunning presentation and quality of their reviews. Their review frequency is a blessing to the book blogosphere and literary world. I would call them out but linking via the Blogger app is like counting sand - tedious and long.

10.26.2012

Book Tour (Feature + Excerpt + Giveaway): A Life Interrupted by Kristi Loucks

Title: A Life Interrupted
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Author: Kristi Loucks
Release date: July 12, 2012
Publisher: Booktango


Do you want to purchase A Life Interrupted? Purchase it at this site:
Jared BelaForte spent his life protecting the people he loves and the place he calls home working for a government appointed task force called The Greater Wilmington First Response Team or GWRT. A group comprised of his friend and half brother, Dylan Spencer. His father’s old partner with the Wilmington PD, Alex Kelley and his cousin Jules Devereaux. Rounding out the team was Shay McElroy, a profiler who also happened to be the love of his life.
Everything seemed perfect in his life, he had love, friends and family surrounding him and his team was on the verge of putting an end to the reign of a known trafficker who dealt in drugs and women. But in one moment, the man Jared had spent years trying to put away interrupted that life.

Sergei Dolenov is that man. He deals in drugs and dolls, a family business you might say. He had been able to stay under the radar in the sleepy port of North Carolina that he called home these days. But when the Governor put together a task force to disrupt his business, he took on a new target. Jared BelaForte.After two years of torture and pain, Jared believed he would die in Dolenov’s “care”. But just when all hope is lost, an opportunity to escape presents itself. Two years to the day, Dylan got the phone call. Jared was in the local ER, and he was alive. Jared also learns that there was one other person that was left behind when he went missing, his little girl Sera, now just 17 months old. She was the glue that held Shay together when all seemed lost to her.

Can he pick up the pieces before the man responsible returns to finish the job he started?
Two Years Ago
Jared walked into his house on cloud nine. He and Shay were finally going to tell everyone that we had been seeing each other and that she was going to move in with him.
It was a house that had felt so empty since Jared had returned four years ago to bury his dad, but it was finally going to feel like a home because of Shay. He walked into the bathroom and started the shower. He would be late for work, and for sure that would get everyone talking. But, their news would surely make everyone forget.
As soon as Jared stood up straight, he felt it. The back of his head exploded with pain and he felt a cool sensation on his neck. He reached back and felt blood as it ran from the wound at the base of his skull. Quickly, Jared turned towards the doorway and spotted his assailant.
The big man held a bat in one hand and a taser in the other. Before Jared could react, the taser connected with his neck sending him to the ground. His whole world went black and all he could think was ‘did I tell her that I loved her?’
Jared started to come around as he felt the truck bounce down a dirt road. There was no way of knowing where they were or how long he had been out. It could have been hours, minutes. He tried to put his hand on the wound at the back of his head, but it was no surprise that Jared’s hands were bound together behind his back. His eyes watered as the pain seeped in to cloud his thoughts once again.
The next time Jared came around, he was in front of a two-way mirror, bound to a chair. He tried to take in the surroundings, but every time he turned his
head pain sliced through his body and he’d lose the battle to stay awake and aware. He needed to stay alert.
After what seemed like hours, a stocky man walked into the room and flicked on the fluorescent light overhead. Jared’s eyes burned as they worked to adapt to the change.
“So, Lieutenant Commander BelaForte it seems my boss is quite enamored with the idea of torturing you. In fact, he is right behind that mirror watching as we speak. So what do you say we give him a show?” The man asked.
“Screw you.”
“If you say so.” Said the lackey as he landed a hard hit to Jared’s left kidney sending the chair side ways and rattling his already scrambled brain.
He quickly lifted the chair and Jared’s dead weight and delivered another blow to the chin bracing the chair with his foot so Jared would stay upright this time.
“Now, we can continue this little game until you lose consciousness or we can talk about why we brought you here. I think he’s hoping you’ll play hard to get.” The man said as he pointed towards the mirror again.
“Why don’t you tell him to come out here?” Jared asked. “Ah, ah, ah. He doesn’t get his hands dirty for just anyone.”
“Then, the hard way it is.” Jared said as he grit his teeth and waited for the next blow to land.


Kristi Loucks is a Pastry Chef and Cake Designer with a degree from Le Cordon Bleu Chicago.  Her writing and storytelling has always been a way to manage the day to day stresses of working in the world of restaurants and food service.  Kristi started writing in High School and has continued to share her work with friends over the years.  While she never planned to pursue writing professionally, a supportive friend armed with a copy of her debut novel, A Life Interrupted happened to share it with the right person.  Since her debut was released in September of 2012, she has also released a novella, Delivery of Fate and is currently working on a new full length novel called The Rose Red Reaper, the first in a new series based in her home town of Chicago, IL.
Ms. Loucks currently resides in a suburb of Chicago and runs a bakery in a North Shore Suburb. 
info@kristiloucks.com

Connect with Loucks on these networks:



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thanks to the Virtual Book Tour Cafe for organizing this book tour!



Click the button above to redirected to the schedule for this tour. 

Promo Blitz: The Legends of Regia: Forbidden Forest by Tenaya Jayne

I am proud to be a part of the Promotional Blitz for The Legends of Regia: Forbidden Forest by Tenaya Jayne. This amazing event is organized by YA Novel Reader! This book seems very interesting, especially for those who like YA Fantasy. Check it out!

Title: The Legends of Regia: Forbidden Forest
Author: Tenaya Jayne
Pages: 236
Genre: YA Fantasy Romance

Do you want a copy of The Legends of Regia: Forbidden Forest? Get it on Amazon.

Look at its beautiful trailer below!



Born in shame. Cast from society. Shape Shifter/Elf hybrid, Forest must fight for any respect she can get. Targeted in her youth by a vampire noble who placed an illegal slave mark on her, she is forced to obey him, no matter what.
Slipping the grip of her master and abandoning the prejudice of Regia, her native world, Forest takes a job on Earth, guarding the portal, using her skills as a warrior to enforce Regia's laws. Now, called home for a black ops mission, Forest must put aside her own prejudice to transport the vampire prince, Syrus, through enemy territory in a time of war.
Prince Syrus, mage and master of the Blood Kata, wants Forest more than he's ever wanted anything. In spite of their mutual mistrust, their attraction cannot be denied. Through the danger of their mission, and the secrets they both keep, it doesn't matter what they feel. Forest is forbidden.

Forest pressed her back against the cool concrete wall, wanting to remain aloof from the entity of the crowd. She chose her position in the shadows, out of the paths of the roving, multi-colored spotlights. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling of the undulating human pheromones flying around on the air. At the beginning of every shift, she allowed herself a few minutes of this alien/human experience, though she didn't fully comprehend the combination of dancing, drinking, and ear-breaking sound waves. They loved it, however, and never seemed to deviate from the recipe.

These were the people she was sworn to protect. She had developed a light affection for the human race and considered them a benign, if not slightly silly, bunch of creatures. Her religious passion for her job was rooted in hatred of that which harmed the humans, not a superhero tendency to protect the weak.

Forest opened her eyes and focused all her senses to sniff out the illegal suckers that tried to sneak through the portal. She was in the zone tonight, and not for the first time did she feel that hers was the best job in existence. It was a shame she couldn’t legally kill suckers in her native world.

Over the next two hours, Forest didn’t move from the wall. She monitored the light traffic through the portal: two shifters and one elf, each of which nodded to her respectfully as they passed. Yawn. The shifters left the club to enjoy the delights of Austin’s nightlife elsewhere.

The elf would have been breaking Regia’s law had he left the club, but he dutifully seated himself at the bar and ordered a fuzzy navel. He wore a plaid, porkpie hat, pulled down over the tops of his pointed ears. Forest didn’t know him personally, but she had seen him in here before. The bartender surveyed him with narrowed eyes as the elf nervously tugged his hat down further and ordered a few more girly cocktails.

Intent on making sure that not one sucker was able to sneak past her, Forest was blindsided by the drunk bubba who had been trying to catch her eye for the last twenty minutes. He had finally decided to stagger over to hit on her.

“Hey babe, you’re too beautiful to look so lonely. How’s ‘bout I buy you a drink?”

“How’s ‘bout I call you a cab instead?” Forest mimicked his drawl.

“Only if you share it with me, Darlin.” He leaned in closer, and Forest’s throat began to sting from the noxious fume of booze mixed with his natural musk.

“While I appreciate the offer, Jethro, It seems only right to inform you that I’m not actually attractive at all. If you leaned in a little closer, you’d see that you’ve fallen victim to the effect of beer goggles. A hag like me can’t take advantage of a stud like you.”

As he leaned in, Forest instantly enlarged her nose, pockmarked her skin, evaporated her front teeth, and added a large black mole with a long hair sprouting from it for good measure.

“You’re no hag, baby! You’re the sexiest little thing in…I…uh… ” He stumbled backward. “Good grief! Sorry, sorry…” he stammered, retreating. “I’ve gotta quit drinking,” he mumbled as he turned away.

Forest chuckled to herself once he absorbed back into the crowd. Being a shape shifter sometimes had unusual perks.

Photo from Author Website

Hello. My name's Tenaya and I'm an addict. I mean author. When I was growing up, writing was just something I played at from time to time. I knew I wanted to be a writer, but I was one of those people who could never finish anything. When my eldest son was diagnosed with Autism, I began to write seriously. Writing became a necessity for me in the midst of my heartbreak. It was either that or take up drinking. I 'm thankful I chose writing as my escape because I discovered it truly is my thing. I want to be swept away when I read. That's what I want my books to do for you.The main goal of my writing is to entertain you. I want to help you escape everyday life for a little while. I hope you enjoy my stories as much as I enjoy sharing them with you!

I have a wonderful husband and two beautiful sons. I'm an advocate for Autism awareness, and women trapped in abusive relationships. I try to always look on the bright side and help others do so too. I've lived many places but I currently reside in Missouri. I love reading, indie and foreign films, gardening, and moody music.

Connect with Tenaya here:
Brought to you by:

10.25.2012

Release Promo: Corktown by Ty Hutchinson


Script Fonts
Title: Corktown (Abby Kane Novel)
Genre and Age Group: Mystery/Thriller/Adult
Author: Ty Hutchinson
Release date: October 20, 2012
Event date: October 25, 2012


Do want to purchase Corktown? Purchase it at this site:

Connect with the author, Ty Hutchinson on these social networks:

Script Fonts
The Doctor Is Back. 
In the quiet Corktown neighborhood of Detroit, a mutilated body has the residents nervous and for good reason. Detroit Metro Police recognize the handiwork of the serial killer known as the Doctor. But there’s a problem with that. They locked him up seven years ago.
Because of her expertise with serial killers, former hotshot detective and now FBI agent, Abby Kane, is tasked with figuring out how this madman is able to kill again. When she visits The Doctor behind bars, he swears he’s innocent and not the psychopath everyone thinks he is. Oddly enough, Abby believes him.
Corktown dives headfirst into the grit of Detroit, exposing the government corruption and deadly violence that has haunted the city for decades.



Script Fonts
     To be honest, I never had many girlfriends growing up. They seemed to come and go. As a teen, I was a bit of a tomboy. I preferred hunting trips with my father to hair braiding sleepovers with girls from school. I liked boys, but second dates were hard to come by after my suitors met my father; the tall, broad-shouldered Irishman that hovered behind me. In lieu of dating, my father taught me to bare-knuckle fight, a favorite pastime in Ireland, he would say. When I graduated from Hong Kong’s Police College at age nineteen, unheard of for a woman, he told me, “I’m proud of you, son.”
     I like to think he was joking.
     From that point on, my career in law enforcement became my focus; it took over my life. It left little time for what few friends I had and completely ruined any chance of a romance with someone other than myself. My relationships were pathetic at best and upsetting for my mother. All she had ever wanted were grandchildren. What about me, the child you birthed?
     “Why Abby?” She would start over Sunday dinner. “Why are you not married? What is wrong? Are you a lazi?”
     “What?”
     “I knew it; you’re a lazi.”
     “I’m not a lazi!”
     I finally proved my mother wrong eight years later when I married a man.
     Peng Choi was my first true love. He also showed me there was more to life than the job. We enjoyed six months of marital bliss. I say six months because that’s how long we had been married before my old partner, a good friend, sat me down and told me my husband had just been found brutally murdered.
     We had no motive and no knowledge of enemies Peng might have had. I wasn’t prepared for that—life shoving its hand into my chest and ripping out all that mattered.
     He left me with two young children, Ryan and Lucy, and a mother-in-law, Po Po. Peng was a widower when we fell in love; now I was a widow, and a stepmother to boot.
     I dealt with his death by throwing myself into my work. I had all but abandoned the family during that time. My stepchildren were strangers to me and Po Po was fast becoming their mother, a job I slowly started to realize I wanted. So I did what I thought was best. I quit the force and moved the family to San Francisco for a new start on life. Mine, mostly.

Script Fonts
The author is giving away a $50 Amazon Gift Card and (5) eBook copies of CORKTOWN open International. Open to US is (3) signed paperback copies of CORKTOWN. 

International Rafflecopter

US Rafflecopter


Thanks to AToMR Tours for organizing this event!

10.24.2012

Giveaway Wednesday #4: $15 to Spend at Amazon/B&N/Book Depo from Get Lost In Fiction



Hey, fellow readers!

Welcome to Giveaway Wednesday. The point of these posts is to direct my followers to awesome book-related giveaways around the web. I am always hunting for giveaways, and I would love for you all to join in on the opportunities

So this week's featured giveaway is $15 credit to your bookstore of choice - Amazon, Barnes & Noble or The Book Depository.  It is being hosted by Crystal at Get Lost in Fiction!  It ends little over FOURTEEN DAYS! So you have enough time to get your entries in.



ENTER HERE!



10.23.2012

Spooktacular Giveaway Hop


Yes, it is that scary time of the year, and I am pleased to announce my participation in this year's Spooktacular Giveaway Hop. This annual hop is hosted by  I Am A Reader, Not A Writer & The Diary Of A Bookworm. There is a crap load of blogs participating, so make sure you hop on!




10.22.2012

Pretty Little Liars: Got a Secret, Can You Keep it? Giveaway

Script Fonts
We've got a secret, can you keep it? The ABC Family series, Pretty Little Liars is supposed to be a teen show, but the truth is, it’s a huge hit among us grown-up girls too! Mommy and 4 Peas in a Pod, A Spectacled Owl, The Dirty Floor Diaries, and Life According to Amanda are all HUGE fans of the "teen" show and are giving away Season 1 & 2 of Pretty Little Liars in celebration of the Pretty Little Liars Halloween Special (October 23rd- 8/7CST).
Winners in the US can choose the DVD sets or $50 paypal cash, and winners outside of the US will get $50 paypal cash!

Now if you're into popular YA reads, you should know that this sensational television series is based on the novels by Sara Shepard. So if you are a fan of the books, why not enter to win this DVD set? I am so excited to participate in this tour, and so should you! Enjoy!


The Pretty Little Liars: Got a Secret, Can You Keep It? Giveaway will run from October 22nd-October 31st. Must be 18+ to enter. Just fill out the rafflecopter form below. Good luck!



Disclosure: I did not receive any monetary compensation for this post Oh, Chrys!  is not responsible for shipment of prize.

10.21.2012

Cosmic Blast: Book Feature + Giveaway for Bradbury Inn by K.J. Dahlen

Bradbury Inn

I am so excited to be announcing my participation in my first book event hosted by Charisma Media!

Charisma Media Network
Please enjoy this Cosmic Blast! It features Bradbury Inn by K.J. Dahlen. Don't forget to enter the giveaway for a $10 Gift Card and ebook!

Script Fonts

The town is filled with rumors claiming that Bradbury Inn is haunted by the spirits of Claire and Matilda Bradbury along with a man named George Walker after a fire destroyed it eighty years ago.
Jillian Levy came to Bradbury Inn to discover the truth. Shortly after she arrives the other person who was at the Inn all those years ago returns.
Matthew Nixen has returned to find his true love, Matilda. He believes the only way to break the curse the inn is under is to find her. He knows that George used voodoo to protect the woman he loved and now they must use voodoo to protect Jillian. They must get Jillian out of the inn before Death comes to take the souls he was denied so long ago. Can they save her in time?

Buy on Smashwords

Script Fonts
Meet K.J. Dahlen

Follow K.J. Dahlen Website / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads

I live in a small town (population 495) in Wisconsin. From my deck I can see the Mississippi River on one side and the bluffs, where eagles live and nest on the other side. I live with my husband Dave and dog Sammy. My two children are grown and I have two grandchildren. I love to watch people and that has helped me with my writing. I often use people I watch as characters in my books and I always try to give my characters some of my own values and habits.

I love to create characters and put them in a troubling situation then sit back and let them do all the work. My characters surprise even me at times. At some point in the book they take on a life of their own and the twists and turns they create becomes the story. Of all the stories I could write I found I like mystery/thrillers the best. I like to keep my readers guessing until the very end of the book.

My book titles are: Bones, The Darkness Within, Meghan’s Legacy, Shadow Chaser, Witness, Secrets and Lies, Legacy of Murder, The Unknown Son, The Prophet, No One to Hear You Scream, Bradbury Inn, Murderous Intent, Wrong Number, Fall from Grace, The House on Berkley Street.

Script Fonts
Open to World Wide Residents 18+. Ends November 5th.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

10.18.2012

Site Update: Abandoning Feedburner for Mailchimp

Yes, I finally did it. I have stopped using Feedburner for my RSS-to-Email services. I did this because there are widely-circulating rumors that Feedburner is shutting down - or something like that.  To be specific, the API for Feedburner will be shut down this coming Saturday, October 20. You can read this from Google.

They even abandoned their Twitter account as seen below.


Who knows? Maybe Google will be introducing a revved up Feedburner soon - like Feedburner 2.0 or Feedburner Bananarama. Or maybe they are just going to give even less attention to Feedburner. Or maybe they will just shut the whole thing down.

Whatever the result, I am glad MailChimp has saved the day. It is has an amazing GUI and is too user-friendly. I hope you guys don't mind.

If you are not subscribed to my mailing list, please do take the time to do so.

Thanks!

10.17.2012

Giveaway Wednesday #3: Cute Teddy Bear + $10 Amazon GC + e-book + A Small Swag Pack



Hey, fellow readers!

Welcome to Giveaway Wednesday. The point of these posts is to direct my followers to awesome book-related giveaways around the web. I am always hunting for giveaways, and I would love for you all to join in on the opportunities

So this week's featured giveaway is bigger than usual. It is being hosted by Flipping Pages for All Ages, a new Facebook page that I found and immediately fell in bookish love with!  There are a variety of prizes up for grabs! It ends in  FIVE DAYS! Look at the picture provided below:


Prizes are the teddy bear above that is too cute, a $10 Amazon gift card, an e-book version of  Cry Sanctuary by Sadie Hart and a small swag pack! 
Remember you must be a Facebook user to enter this  giveaway!

ENTER HERE!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...