@JTaylorPub @EmiJGayle #Giveaway #ARC DARKEST DAY by Emi Gayle, win one of five ARCs! (book)

J. Taylor Publishing are giving away FIVE ARCs of Darkest Day by Emi Gayle!

Check it out!

Mac Thorne’s time as a Changeling is coming to an end.

It may have taken eighteen years, but Mac did finally manage to do what the Council wanted: she chose a teacher and renounced the in-between.

There’s just one last step. She must say goodbye to her human. Forever.

After being challenged in every way possible, Mac leaves what she thought would be the easiest task for the last possible moment. As midnight on July fourth draws near, though, she hasn’t found a way to give up Winn Thomas.

Nor does she want to.

With time running out, Mac stands at a literal crossroads. Choose Winn, and she’ll be stripped of the only family she’s ever known — vampires, dragons, and her favorite demon. Even her own mother. Accept her position on the Council and rule as an equal to her twelve peers, and she’ll forget Winn ever existed.

Independence and freedom have never before been so limiting.

In this final chapter of the 19th Year Trilogy, it’s time for Mac to decide.

Responsibility? Or Love?

DARKEST DAY is the third installment in the 19^th Year Trilogy, featuring Changeling Mac Thorne and her hot-geeky boyfriend Winn Thomas. And J. Taylor Publishing is giving away FIVE ARC copies.

To YOU!

You don’t even have to be a book blogger!

Nope, so long as you are willing to leave an honest review between the dates December 23^rd 2013 – January 6^th 2014, you are eligible to enter.

Interested?

Then just fill out the form and keep your fingers crossed.

Enter Here!

~~~~~

Other books in the series:



About Emi Gayle:

Emi Gayle just wants to be young again. She lives vicariously through her youthful characters, while simultaneously acting as chief-Mom to her teenaged son and searching for a way to keep her two daughters from ever reaching the dreaded teen years.

Ironically, those years were some of Emi's favorite times. She met the man of her dreams at 14, was engaged to him at 19, married him at 20 and she's still in love with him to this day. She'll never forget what it was like to fall in love at such a young age — emotions she wants everyone to feel.

#Cover Reveal and #Giveaway @ValerieDouglasA: "Magic Bound" by V.J. Devereaux: Presented by the Finishing Fairies

Magic Bound - Book 2

Homicide Detectives Rafaela Stratford and Sasha Gutierrez (Blood Bound) find themselves investigating a series of murders that seem to have been committed by paranormals. As a werewolf himself, Sasha knows that neither his people nor vampires were the killers, despite the evidence. Desperate for clues they turn to Rhian Lewis, the proprietor of an occult bookstore...and a witch. What she finds turns them all into targets..

Magic Bound is the second in THE BOUND SERIES, an erotic m/f/m paranormal read. In honor of the cover reveal the author is offering Blood Bound for 99¢ for the weekend!

She is also offering up a $25 Amazon Gift Card for one lucky winner! Who knows, you could win and get even more of Valerie's amazing reads!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Valerie Douglas is the multi-published author of novels of fantasy, mystery, suspense and romance, among them, The Coming Storm series, Heart of the Gods, Song of the Fairy Queen, The Last Resort, Two Up and Dirty Politics. Under her pen name of V. J. Devereaux she's also the author of several well-reviewed erotic romances - Cherry's Jubilee, Special Delivery and Demon's Kiss. Valerie lives in the beautiful heartland of Ohio with her beloved husband, two dogs, three cats, and an African clawed frog named Hopper.

WEBSITE | BLOG | FACEBOOK | TWITTER | GOODREADS | ME | AMAZON

V.J. Devereaux on Goodreads  Magic Bound on Goodreads

Giveaway: Karen Amanda Hooper "Grasping at Eternity" book 1 in the Kindrily series

I have a real treat for the giveaway today, folks!  Those who know me, know that I don't like paranormal romance, generally speaking, and especially young-adult paranormal romance.  The exception to this rule is Karen Amanda Hooper.   I first ran across one of her stories a couple years ago when I read and reviewed her book Tangled Tides, dealing with merfolk.  Since I loved it so much, she was kind enough to send me a copy of Grasping at Eternity to read.  I read and reviewed that one last week.  And wow!  (Just click on the links to read my reviews for details)  It's some really powerful stuff, well-written and most importantly, I loved it!  So you know it has to be something special.

The second book in the Kindrily series has just been released, Taking Back Forever (which I'll be reading and reviewing soon), so to celebrate that release, Karen Amanda Hooper has let me host a giveaway for Grasping at Eternity here at Now is Gone!  That's right - five e-book copies will be given away, in the format of the winner's choosing, so please in addition to your e-mail address, be sure to provide what format you prefer: .epub, .mobi, or PDF.

Without further ado, here is the giveaway.  It will end in one week.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Patti Roberts Start Pack giveaway

Hopefully most of you who follow my blog know Patti Roberts; she is an awesome author, and general all-around super person.  She has two series going right now, the Paradox series and the Witchwood Estates serial novels, as well as being involved in the First Five Chapters project and other short story collections.  For those who haven't heard of her, what we're doing today will be an especially great way to start finding your way through her worlds, as we're giving away the first book in each of her series to two people.  Two winners will each receive a copy of Paradox: The Angels are Here and Witchwood Estate: Going Home.  Because it seems there is never enough time for me to do everything, I have only reviewed the first book in the Paradox series; you can read that review here.  Because I have followers all over the place, and because Amazon makes it difficult sometimes to gift books from them to disparate geographic regions (and Patti is in Australia), I'm giving the winner the option of receiving the e-book from Amazon or from Smashwords.  If you're unsure if you can receive a gift from Amazon, it'd probably better to go with Smashwords, as they don't have those sorts of restrictions and problems.

Anyway, below you'll find a Rafflecopter form (and a trailer and a nifty picture!), so just fill it out, watch the trailer, take a look through my links (I've linked Patti's blog here), and next week two lucky folks will be introduced into Patti's worlds.  Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book review: "Shattered Souls" by Delilah Devlin

Shattered Souls review
Author: Delilah Devlin
3 out of 5 stars

Book Info: Genre: Urban Fantasy/Romantic Paranormal Thriller
Reading Level: Adult (lots of explicit sex and sexual language)
Recommended for: Fans of Paranormal Romance, paranormal romantic thrillers, urban fantasy
Trigger Warnings: alcohol abuse, murder, sex between 17-year-old girl and adult man

My Thoughts: I hadn't realized when I selected this book that it would be considered romance, since it was under thrillers, but reading the synopsis made me realize my assumptions were incomplete; so I was, needless to say, a bit uncertain when I started reading it.

Truth to tell, I enjoyed the story, but had to skip huge swathes of nothing but sex. I'm not a prude, but it felt really gratuitous to me. I would have enjoyed the mystery and thriller aspects of the story more if the sex parts had been more fade-to-black in nature, rather than explicit. I was also annoyed by Cait's constant thoughts of sex: “oh, he's bruising my arm, that gets me hot; oh, he's growling at me and looking angry, that gets me hot; oh, he's being gentlemanly, that gets me hot.” Yuck.  So that's why it's rated the way it is. If you like sexy paranormal thrillers, urban fantasy with lots of sex, romantic paranormal thrillers, then you'll really like this book, which is the first in a proposed series. Me? Nah, I won't be continuing.

Disclosure: I received an ARC copy of this book from the Amazon Vine program in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Synopsis: When her mentor is brutally murdered by a supernatural force, an alcoholic former cop turns to her past lovers—her ex-partner and a powerful sorcerer—to help her hunt down a demon terrorizing Memphis.

Caitlyn O’Connell had it all: a career with the Memphis PD, a passionate marriage, and the satisfaction that her work made a difference in the world. But she also had a secret, a supernatural “gift” that cost her everything. Now she scrapes by as a private investigator, taking cases the cops won’t touch and counting down the minutes until happy hour. But when Sam Pierce, her former partner and estranged ex-husband, comes to her for help with a bizarre murder case, Cait can’t say no. And not just because Sam is still as irresistibly sexy as he was on the day they met. Something sinister—and demonic—is terrorizing Memphis, leaving a bloody trail of bodies and clues only Cait can read. Together she and Sam will venture into a dark world of magic and unholy terror, hunting a killer who will lead them to the brink of reality as they know it—and back into the thrall of their stormy past.

TIED
Fire Born #1
by Laney McMann
Release Date: September 9, 2013
Target Reader: Young Adult
Keywords: Fiction, Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy

Back of the Book

Normal people don't believe their nightmares stalk them. They don’t fall in love with boys who don’t exist, either.

Seventeen-year-old Layla Labelle, though, is far from normal. Her delusions walk the earth. Her hallucinations hunt her, and her skin heats to a burn every time her anger flares.

Or is that all in her head?

Layla doesn't know what to believe any more because if none of that’s true, Max MacLarnon must be an illusion, and her heart must still be broken.

No matter how much she wants to believe Max is real, doing so would mean everything else is, too. How, then, is that possible?

The answers lie in an age-old legend the supernatural aren’t prepared to reveal, and with a curse that could tear Layla and Max apart forever—if it doesn’t kill them both first.

In TIED, book one in the Fire Born trilogy, learning the truth will mean fighting an arsenal of demons, and being with Max will put Layla on a path toward her own destruction.

Just how far will Layla go to protect the one she loves?

The answer may never be far enough ... away.

URL: http://www.jtaylorpublishing.com/books/31

J. Taylor Publishing Presents: "Caged": A Holloway Pack Story by J.A. Belfield Cover Reveal

Caged

A Holloway Pack Story (#3)

by J.A. Belfield

Release Date: August 5, 2013

Target Reader: Adult

Keywords: Romantic, Urban Fantasy, Werewolf

Back of the Book

If the meek can become deadly, the strongest can be weak. 

For Ethan Holloway, his mission to find a missing werewolf should be simple. Crack a few heads, bust a few chops and the solution always reveals itself.Always.

Not this time.

Ethan’s reputation precedes him, and because it does, someone is ready. Waiting. Unbeknownst to Ethan, he’s about to go down. Hard. Against a foe he never suspected and in a world he never imagined could be real.

What awaits Ethan is a fight not only for his reputation, but also his pack, his female, and his life. If he survives, damage control will become priority number one. 

If he survives.

Because even Ethan’s not sure he’s strong enough to take on an entire race all by himself.

Especially one hell bent on exposing who and what he is in the name of sport.

URL: http://www.jtaylorpublishing.com/books/29

Other Novels in this series include:
Darkness & Light (#1)
Blue Moon (#2)

In-between release novellas include:
Instinct (#0)
Eternal (#.5)
Resonance (#2.5)

"The Silver Cross" giveaway winners

The giveaway for two copies of Debra Martin's The Silver Cross is now over. The two winners will receive an e-book gifted from Amazon.com. And the winners are...

a Rafflecopter giveaway


I'm very pleased to note they are two new visitors, so hopefully this will keep them coming by. My apologies to those not chosen, but be sure to check back often. In fact, I'm about to put up a new giveaway, so just keep scrolling through the new posts!

Cover Reveal: "Wolf Sirens: Fever" by Tina Smith

Fever (that link is to Amazon.  You can also buy the book on Smashwords here) is the 2nd book in the Wolf Siren's series and was released October 2012.  This post is a sort of early post in the blog tour, that will begin officially on the 28th, and is scheduled to allow you a sort of "sneak peek" at the cover and to gain some information about the upcoming tour.  A gorgeous cover, isn't it? 

A synopsis follows.

Eternally Cursed to Love & Not Purely Desire… 

Temperatures rise as the flames of longing still burn. The thrilling sequel to Tina Smith’s masterpiece of romance fantasy, Wolf Sirens Forbidden, continues. A shadow has fallen over the heart lands of myth and reality. Prophecy says Apollo, god of deadly plague, conspires to undo his sister’s legacy.

Increasingly, each successive slayer becomes more alluring to the enemy and the predestined struggle, to both resist and contain their fierce rival. The wolves and hunters are cursed to a mutual attraction, powerful enough to tear two worlds apart.

 The chosen is reborn broken-hearted, in the scorching embers of grief. Devastated Lila trains tirelessly as the chaste assassin never conquered by love. Forsaken, she must submit to deliver justice and protect the innocent of Shade.

But is it love or revenge which motivates her?

Will the huntress or her heart prevail? Breaking away from the call of destiny and fearing betrayal, Lila makes a desperate escape in search of her lost beloved. The history of the wolf pack is revealed and the intensity between two ancient enemies ignites. Devotion and desire in the underworld reaches fever pitch.

If The Bite Doesn't Get You, Then the Fever Will

You can also see a nifty trailer here:

Tina Smith is an herbalist, piscean and mother with a fondness for strong female protagonists and a love of fantasy. She wrote Wolf Sirens, her debut novel, after desiring greater depth from the paranormal genre.  Fever further unfolds the tale of the heroine femme fatale, on her journey in the underworld between the lands of myth and reality.

“Rich, complex, and deeply fascinating. Smith’s creation stands apart from other books in the genre. Wolf Sirens has raised the bar for paranormal romance.”- Kevis Hendrickson, author of Rogue Hunter

"Smith weaves a thrilling and beautifully crafted tale that sinks its fangs in and refuses to let go."- Michael Alexander, author of The Vessel

“Fever does not disappoint! Tina Smith captures her readers on the first page and leads them on a fast-paced journey full of suspense and adventure as heroine, Lila, struggles towards the truth.” - Beverley Eikli, author of A Little Deception

You can contact the author at Facebook and Goodreads.  

GIVEAWAY!! "The Silver Cross" by Debra Martin & David W. Small

It's giveaway time again! This week, I'm giving away a copy of Debra Martin and David W. Small's latest, The Silver Cross. It is a paranormal romance with vampires, and I edited it. A brief synopsis:
There are two things Boston detective Lacey Gardner knows about killing vampires. Slicing off a head or a hit directly to the heart are the only surefire ways to kill one. Silver is their Achilles heel. A vampire never wears silver.

When she meets bartender extraordinaire, Damon Harte, her heart does a quickstep for the dark hunky guy. She's learned the hard way that having a love interest in her line of work can be heart-wrenching. She's kept to herself for years, but something about Damon captivates her and draws her to him. When she learns Damon's devastating secret, she knows what she has to do: kill the man who has stolen her heart.

Debra Martin will provide two e-book copies of this book, gifted to you from Amazon, so you must be able to accept an e-book gift from Amazon. My apologies if you are unable to do so - next week I'll have another giveaway for e-books with no restrictions at all, so watch for that. Meanwhile, if you can accept an e-book from Amazon, sign up below in the Rafflecopter form and I'll draw the winner in a week! Best of luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

J.Taylor Publications Presents: Cover Reveal "Day After" by Emi Gayle

Day After
Book 2 in The 19th Year Trilogy
by Emi Gayle
Release Date: May 6, 2013
Target Reader: Young Adult
Keywords: Paranormal Romance, Romance

Back of the Book

Demon crypts. Vampire lairs. Glowing angels. Sexy sirens. The stuff of fiction.

Or so Winn Thomas always thought.

Since being accepted into the fold of the supernatural, he knows better. None of what he imagined is true, but everything he feared is, and binding himself to his changeling girlfriend until her nineteenth birthday will give him an education far beyond what he’d get at his human high school.

Luckily, Winn’s not giving up, he won’t back down, and he definitely isn’t going to run away with his tail between his legs. After all, only werewolves have tails. Right?

In this, the second of the 19th Year trilogy, Winn’s facing the challenge of one lifetime. If he doesn’t learn the truth about mythological creatures, his girlfriend Mac Thorne won’t either. That means, in six months, when she chooses her final form, she won’t know what to pick.

Winn, though, has his own ideas about Mac’s final selection—plans she knows nothing of.

He intends to have her pick human.

Whether she can or not.


URL: http://www.jtaylorpublishing.com/books/20

Other Books in this series include:
After Dark (Book 1)

J. Taylor Publishing Presents: Cover reveal: "Silent Echoes" by Aimee Laine

Silent Echoes
Games of Zeus #2
by Aimee Laine
Release Date: March 11, 2013
Target Reader: Adult
Keywords: Paranormal Romance, Romance, Thriller/Suspense

Back of the Book

For years, Ian Sands has enjoyed his life as a bachelor, taking advantage of singlehood and exploring his own definition of passion—whoever she may be. Blonde. Brunette. Tall. Short. Hot. Not. Five months ago, all that changed.

Ian’s been celibate, frustrated and desperately seeking answers to why one woman, who doesn’t play by girls’ rules, haunts his every waking moment.

As a renovations specialist, Taylor Marsh lives, works and breathes construction—a profession her southern belle of a mother would rather Taylor not touch. The same goes for Ian; Mama Marsh would never approve of him.

Like Ian, though, each time he and Taylor draw near, something compels her to get closer.

Something else tells her to run away.

Fast.

As much as their histories suggest they shouldn’t be together, neither Taylor nor Ian can deny the pull, and the two succumb, indulging in a relationship that brings pleasure to body, mind and soul.

Doing so, though, also ushers in a series of events both should have foreseen as well as one final outcome neither expected.


URL: http://www.jtaylorpublishing.com/books/26

Other Books in this series include:
Hide & Seek

Book Review: "The Taken" by Vicki Pettersson

The Taken review
Author: Vicki Pettersson
5 out of 5 stars

Book Info: Genre: Urban Fantasy Noir/Mystery Thriller Reading Level: Adult

Disclosure: I received a free paperback galley (uncorrected proof) from the Amazon Vine program in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis: Griffin Shaw used to be a PI, but that was back when gumshoes hoofed the streets... and he was still alive. Fifty years later, he's an angel, but that doesn't make him a saint. One small mistake has altered fate, and now he's been dumped back onto the mortal mudflat to collect another soul – Katherine "Kit" Craig, a journalist whose latest investigation is about to get her clipped.

Bucking heavenly orders, Grif refuses to let the sable-haired siren come to harm. Besides, protecting her offers a chance to solve the mystery of his own unsolved murder – and dole out some overdue payback for the death of his beloved wife, Evie.

Joining forces, Kit and Grif's search for answers leads beyond the blinding lights of the Strip into the dark heart of an evil conspiracy. But a ruthless killer determined to destroy them isn't Grif's biggest threat. His growing attraction to Kit could cost them both their lives, along with the answer to the haunting question of his long afterlife...

My Thoughts: This is the first book in a new series called Celestial Blues. The second book, The Lost, is scheduled for publication in March, 2013. I will be watching for it. Pettersson has a way with characterization and description that is highly engaging and entertaining, and I greatly enjoyed reading this combination urban fantasy/noir crime thriller.

There was a lot of humor in this, which I always love. There is also plenty of suspense and mystery, and a wonderful romance for those who enjoy that sort of thing – I even enjoyed it, since it wasn’t overwhelming to the plot. There were times I wanted to shake Kit, though; her attitude toward “bad boys” made me shake my head in dismay. They aren’t all like Grif, after all.

I also enjoyed the idea of Vegas and how it has changed; it has made me curious about the old Vegas. The whole rockabilly thing was interesting – I never thought of someone completely living a nostalgic, anachronistic life, like Kit does. It made me wonder if there aren’t people who are so heavily into the Society for Creative Anachronisms that they would live their entire life like that.

At any rate, I can and do highly recommend this book for those who enjoy paranormal fantasies with a romance involved, or those who enjoy urban fantasies. I think this book will please a lot of different people, actually, so definitely do not hesitate to check it out.

Book review: "Wicked Embers" by Candace Bowen Early

Wicked Embers review
Author: Candace Bowen Early
4 out of 5 stars

Book Info: Genre: Paranormal Romantic Suspense Reading Level: Adult Book Available: Rhemalda Publishing is releasing this book in both eBook and paperback format on 9/1/2012.

Disclosure: I received a free electronic ARC from Rhemalda Publishing (the author’s publisher) in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis: It’s been one year since Bronwyn Chase left the modern world behind, and an ancient evil is stirring in Cornwall ….

Bree Peltier is a skeptic. She doesn’t believe in mystics or witches. Between keeping up with her university studies and falling in love with her archaeology professor, her life is complicated enough. When a vengeful spirit possesses her childhood friend and goes on a killing spree, she is forced to re-examine her beliefs. The spirit is out to destroy the descendants of Bronwyn, and Bree is the only one who can stop it. If she believes.

Bree is a mystic. If she doesn’t embrace her birthright, she could lose everyone she has ever loved. If she does embrace it, she could lose her soul mate

My Thoughts: As those who know me already know, I am generally not a fan of romance. However, I read the previous book featuring this character, Spur of the Moment, and really enjoyed it. (Sites that accept formatting should show a link on the title above so you can go see that review.) Be warned: this review will contain some spoilers; I will try to keep them vague, but they are necessary to tell you what I thought about the story.

Like the first book, this one was very good – engaging, entertaining, and not your everyday romance. I think it is technically considered a time-travel romance, since the first one was, but to me it seemed more along the lines of romantic suspense, so that is how I have classified it. It was a very fast read – I went through it in a bit over five hours. It didn’t completely blow my socks off like the first one, but I really did enjoy it. The scene in the nether with Bronwyn and Euric was especially touching – it literally brought tears to my eyes.

There were a few things that bothered me, including the fact that Bree did not warn her friends when they showed up. While I understood that she didn’t want them to think she was insane, to me it seemed really irresponsible for her to not at least come up with a story so that they knew how much danger they were in. I was also bothered by the situation with Finn toward the end – he should have been much more incapacitated by what happened to him, and not able to get around and help as he was doing. The literal deux ex machina at the ending might bother some, but to me it was a relief; otherwise there wouldn’t have been the HEA that romance readers crave.

That said, romance readers should really enjoy this book, and those who enjoyed Ms. Bowen Early’s earlier book will definitely want to read this. Most fans of paranormal suspense should enjoy this as well. While I didn’t love it as much as the first book (thus the rating), I did enjoy it quite a lot. Check it out.

Giveaway #9: "To Tame a Wild Hawk" by Lenore Wolfe

Greetings my friends and followers! This week I have a little different book to give away - a Western Romance! gasp Yes, a romance! This is a little gem my dear friend Lenore Wolfe put together last year called To Tame a Wild Hawk. I edited it for her last fall, and she re-released it, and then it was picked up by Ruby Lioness, who have also edited it - so this book has been edited a LOT! Anyway, the new edition, put out by Ruby Lioness Press, is now available where ever fine eBooks are sold.

Now, before you go looking, you won't find a review from me, because I just don't like romance novels; but it is a very well-written book, the first book in her Dark Cloth series of paranormal, Western romance novels, and has received a number of great reviews. If I liked romance novels, I probably would have liked it, too!

What we're doing this week is providing a Smashwords coupon to three lucky winners, who can then download a copy in whatever format they desire; so get your comments in, PLEASE remember to leave me your e-dress so I can get back in touch with you if you're one of the lucky winners, and next Monday I'll use Random.org to pick my three lucky winners!