Giveaway & Book Spotlight: Communion by B. Patterson

Communion
by B. Patterson

Genre: YA Paranormal/Urban Fantasy


About the Book:
Lester Fuller knows isolation well.  It has been his only friend since Jadarius Singleton humiliated him last year. But one night after Jadarius's taunts go too far, Lester stumbles upon Gwynn's body.  He's sure she's dead.  Until she bites him.
Vampires are extinct.  There are only the dhampir.
Now something more than human, Lester struggles to determine where he fits in this new society.  Just what secrets about the dhampir are his friends keeping from him?  And what will he do when a notorious figure from dhampir history sets her eyes on him?



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Prize: $30 book store of choice gift card


About the Author:
I’m a 25 year old writer.  I’m a graduate of North Carolina State University where I majored in Psychology and minored in Japanese.  I currently live in Maryland.I wrote a lot as a kid.  I began a new story (or 3 or 4) every school year, but rarely finished them. I finally finished one when I was 16.  It was about ninjas.  It was really bad.
Communion, my first completed novel worth publishing, will be released October 1st. I have that and many other works coming down the pipeline.  I plan to be writing for many years to come.
My values as a writer include: Writing high-quality books, Diversity, Integrity, Entertainment

Author Contacts:
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Book Review: The Garnet Dagger by Andrea R. Cooper

The Garnet Dagger

by Andrea R. Cooper

Genre: Paranormal Fantasy

Publisher: Crimson Romance

Our Review:

Twists and turns overlap and multiply in this very fast-paced story. The writing is good, the characters likable, however the pace left me a bit too breathless at times. With a touching and tender opening scene that quickly turns to horror, the reader is launched, along with the elfin hero, into a mysterious quest to save his people. He is given a magical, garnet-embedded dagger that will help him find his quarry, but it comes with only a vague explanation of what he must do once the quarry is found. His route to understanding and fulfillment of his quest is fraught with roadblocks, uncertainty and every sort of evil being.

Had Ms. Cooper slowed down and taken the time to develop a real sense of evil from the bad guys, and a more compelling sense of the growing attraction/love between the hero and heroine, I would have given more “fangs”. Nevertheless, The Garnet Dagger is very imaginative and worth the read.

-Cary Morgan Frates

Amazon 

About the Author:

Growing up in Houston, Texas, Andrea has always enjoyed creating characters and stories. But it wasn't until she was in her late twenties that she started writing novels.

What happened that ignited the writing flame in her fingers? Divorced, and disillusioned by love songs and stories. They exaggerate. She thought. Love and Romance are not like that in the real world. Then she met her husband and realized, yes love and romance are exactly like the songs and stories say. She is now a happy wife, and a mom to three kids (two boys and a girl).
Once she heard about a writer who never let her characters deviate from the script. If they did, she just killed them. How sad, she thought. For her one of the best parts of being a writer is letting the characters have a mind of their own and seeing where the story takes them.

She loves this quote from Robert Frost, which sums up her opinion on allowing the characters their freedom: "No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader."
― Robert Frost
Andrea writes fantasy, paranormal and historical romance. When not writing or reading, one may find Andrea dancing in Zumba.

She is excited to work with Crimson Romance on her forthcoming debut paranormal romance, The Garnet Dagger. She hopes you will enjoy the story as much as she did writing it. Viking Fire, her historical romance, is forthcoming late July 2013.
She believes in the power of change and counting each moment as a blessing. But most importantly, she believes in love.

Author Contacts:

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Book Review: Silent Oath by Paul Anthony Shortt

Silent Oath
Locked Within Trilogy, Book Two
by Paul Anthony Shortt

Genre: Urban Fantasy
Publisher: WiDo Publishing
Date of Publication: October 8^th, 2013
ISBN: 978-1937178369
 
Number of pages: 300
Word Count: 80,000
Cover Artist: Steven Novak



Book Description:
 
Hope has returned to New York City. Nathan Shepherd leads a small band of dedicated fighters against the Council of Chains and the city's supernatural masters. But it's not enough. Because from the shadows of Nathan's former lives comes an old enemy, one who knows terrible secrets that Nathan has not yet remembered, secrets that could undo everything he has fought for.
Nathan's only chance to uncover the memories of his previous existence, and to conquer these new forces of evil, lies in Elena DeSantis. A woman he has fought beside in past lifetimes. A woman he has loved.
Together, Nathan and Elena are the only future the city has.


Our Review:

Certainly not a traditional Romance, Silent Oath reads like an MMO (i.e. Final Fantasy, Call of Duty, Halo, etc) in prose form, with all the action, fighting, mayhem, and monsters you could ever imagine or hope to meet. My best guess is that it will appeal more to a male audience.

Reborn hero, Nathan Shepherd is doing his best to keep supernatural evil at bay in New York. Elena, his soulmate over many centuries and lives, has shown up for the first time in this life, but Nathan is not sure she can be trusted. Add to this Athamar, their mutual arch-enemy over an equal amount of lives, and you have only the beginning of the problems that beset this fast-paced story of death, rebirth, and possible world-as-we-know-it-ending annihilation.

Mostly a dark Urban Fantasy, it holds a fascinating touch of time travel and a skosh of true-love romance. While it is well written, the reader may want to fasten their seat belt and take notes, because the sheer number of names thrown out in the opening pages (and thereafter) is enough to make an inattentive mind spin right off its axis, however this may be less problematic if the reader has read book one in the trilogy, Locked Within.  With a certain amount of breathlessness I say - well done.

-Cary Morgan Frates

Amazon

About the Author:A child at heart who turned to writing and role playing games when there simply weren't enough action figures to play out the stories he wanted, Paul Anthony Shortt has been writing all his life. Growing up surrounded by music, film and theatre gave him a deep love of all forms of storytelling, each teaching him something new he could use. When not playing with the people in his head, he enjoys cooking and regular meet-ups with his gaming group.
 
Paul lives in Ireland with his wife Jen and their dogs, Pepper and Jasper. Their first child, Conor William Henry Shortt, was born on July 11th, 2011. He passed away three days later, but brought love and joy into their lives and those of their friends. The following year, Jen gave birth to twins, Amy and Erica.
 
Paul's first novel, Locked Within, was released on November 6th, 2012, by WiDo Publishing. Silent Oath is the second book in this urban fantasy trilogy.

Author Contacts:
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