Sunday, June 30, 2013

*Blog Tour* Wind Warrior By Jon Messenger


Wind Warrior by Jon Messenger
(NA- Paranormal)
Available Today!

Amazon link:

THE EARTH GIVES WAY TO THE SEA,
THE SEA BOWS BEFORE THE WIND,
THE WIND FEEDS THE FLAME,
THE FLAME BURNS THE WORLD OF MAN DOWN TO THE EARTH.

The sleepy town of White Halls harbors a dangerous secret. On a picturesque street, two houses down from a lovely little park, in a quaint little home with a wraparound porch, lives a family that seems rather normal. Sure, their twenty-year-old son, Xander, still lives at home, but he's going to college and dating the leader of the schools top sorority. It's all very... normal.  However, when a man is miraculously saved from being hit by a bus, Xander's life turns in to the living embodiment of the tornadoes he can suddenly create with a flick of his wrist. Whether he wants this gift or not, Xander must learn to use his new 'super power' quickly if he wants to survive.  For his kind is a dying race, and when this sleepy town has a sudden influx of new, blonde, fire wielders, no one is safe, especially Xander. It doesn't help that one of these blondes happens to be the most beautiful girl he has ever seen. Xander can't deny the instant connection he feels to her so, when she tries to kill him, it certainly makes things complicated.

Excerpt from Wind Warrior (From Chapter 15, Secondary Characters- Sean and Jessica):
            Sean pulled back the curtain and glanced outside the window for the hundredth time that day.  Nothing obscured his view of the parking lot and the road beyond.  Despite the densely parked cars in the parking lot, he saw no sign of the blonde haired fire wielders who had attacked him and Jessica.  The strangers seemed to have gone as they came.
            He let go of the curtain and let it fall back into place.  Though it seemed as though the Fire Warriors hadn’t followed him to his apartment, Sean refused to let go of the nervous breath he was holding.
            After all the time that had passed since the fire in the park near Xander’s house, no one had heard from his best friend.  On the few rare occasions in which Sean ventured out from his apartment, he had asked some of Xander’s former classmates if they had seen him, which none had.  He hadn’t been to the school nor returned to his parent’s home.  His friend had, for all intents and purposed, vanished.
            Pushing himself off the couch, Sean walked toward the kitchen.  His refrigerator was running dangerously low of food but there was always food to make into a decent snack.  He knew the jokes Xander would make about eating as a nervous habit but Sean felt justified in being nervous.
            As he opened the refrigerator and started pulling out lunchmeat, he heard a gentle knock on the door.  He froze, his hand unmoving around the plastic turkey container. 
            “Go away,” he whispered into the room.
            He didn’t know who was at the door but he honestly didn’t care.  He doubted Xander would knock so gingerly and no one else would be bringing him good news. 
            Sean slid the turkey package out of the refrigerator as quietly as possible and softly closed the door.  Logically, he knew that the person on the other side of the door couldn’t hear his refrigerator closing.  Normal people couldn’t hear that, he had to remind himself.  His best friend could control the wind.  The people that were hunting him could throw fire from their hands.  There was no telling if super hearing was another of their hidden super powers.
            As he reached toward the stack of bread, the same person knocked again at the door.  Glancing around nervously, his eyes fell on the bottle opener magnet hanging from the fridge.  Sean pulled it off the fridge and held it in front of him defensively.  He left the kitchen and walked toward the door.
            When the person knocked for the third time, it seemed far more insistent.
            “Who’s there?” Sean asked, trying to force some mock confidence into his voice.
            “It’s Jessica.”
            Sean visibly sagged with disappointment.  He almost wished it were one of the Fire Warriors.
            “What do you want?”
            “Can you open the door?” she said pleadingly.  “Please?”
            Sean sighed as he reached out and unlocked the door.  As he pulled the door open, he was surprised to see a fairly disheveled Jessica standing before him.  Loose tendrils from her shoddy ponytail hung over her face.  She didn’t seem to be wearing any makeup, aside from the obvious lip gloss that caused the unnatural shine on her lips.  She wore a loose-fitting blouse that was heavily wrinkled.  Sean couldn’t remember ever seeing her looking anything less than fully composed. Despite her obviously harried expression, she still found the reserve to frown at her nemesis.
            “Sean,” she said.
            “Wicked Witch of the West.”
            She opened her mouth to offer a sharp retort but quickly thought better.
            “What are you doing here?” he asked.
            “I didn’t know where else to go,” she admitted sheepishly.
            “You didn’t have GPS on your broom?”
            Jessica smiled humorlessly.  “Are you done?”
            “Not by a long shot,” he replied.
            “Go ahead.  Get them all out of your system.”
            “You figured the inside of my apartment would keep you out of the life-ending rain?  Your flying monkeys ran out of likely candidates to kidnap?  You do realize I don’t even have a dog named Toto, right?”
            “Can I please come in now?”  Something in her voice caught Sean off guard and the humor seemed to bleed out of the situation.  He nodded and stepped out of the way.
            As she entered the apartment, he closed and locked the door behind her.
            She walked a few steps inside before turning toward him.  Glancing down, she noticed the bottle opener in his hand.
            “What’s that for?”
            Sean looked down and seemed equally surprised to see it still clutched in his hand.  “I don’t know.  I figured I could stab someone with it if I had to.”
            “You got that from the kitchen?” she asked.  “Why didn’t you just get a knife?”
            Sean was genuinely dumbfounded by the question, especially since he didn’t have a logical answer.  He tossed the bottle opener onto the couch angrily.
            “Shut up.  You still haven’t even told me why you’re here.”
            “I told you, I didn’t know where else to go.  I’ve been totally freaked out ever since the other night.  I’ve barely slept.  I’ve barely eaten.”  Her voice lowered to a soft whisper.  “I think one of those blonde guys has been following me.”
            “And you came here?” Sean yelled before throwing a hand over his mouth to silence himself.
            “You came here?” he said again in a harsh whisper.
            “I told you.  I didn’t know where else to go.  No one else would believe me if I told them some guy set my car on fire using only his hands.  You have no idea how hard it was to explain what happened to my car to my dad.  I had to give him some totally crazy story about a drunk homeless guy.”
            Sean stormed past her before pausing in the doorway to the kitchen.  “Did you even stop to consider what would happen if you really were being followed?  You could have led them right to me!”
            “Oh, yeah Sean.  You’re practically 007.  Everyone’s trying to hunt…”
            The words faded from her lips as someone knocked on the door.  The stern knock was the complete antithesis to Jessica’s soft knocking from earlier.
            Jessica started to whimper but Sean stepped forward and clamped his hand down over her mouth.
            “Stay quiet,” he whispered.
            Sean slipped past her and eased his way to the door.  Leaning forward, he glanced out the peephole.  The man on the other side of the door was unmistakable.  His close-cropped blonde hair and dark leather tunic looked identical to the man that tried to kill Sean at Xander’s house.
            “Is it?” Jessica asked, leaving the end of question hanging.
            Sean nodded as he inched his way back to her.  The Fire Warrior banged loudly again on the door.
            “Let’s just not answer,” she offered.  “He’ll go away eventually, right?”
            “He followed you here, remember?  If he wants in, he’ll just burn the door down.”
            “Then what to do we do?”
            Sean stroked his hairless chin.  “You’re going to open the door.”
            “Oh no, I’m not!” she replied sternly.  Jessica placed her hands on her hips and flipped the few hanging tendrils of her blonde hair out of her face.  “If you want the door open, you’ll have to be a big boy and do it yourself.”
            Sean frowned.  “You’re going to open the door so that I can attack him.  Unless you want to attack him, that is.”
            Jessica quickly shook her head.  “No, that’s fine.  I’ll get the door.”
            Sean disappeared into the kitchen as Jessica moved to the door.
            “Ready?” she asked.
            Sean leaned around the corner and nodded.  She held up three fingers and silently counted down.  When she dropped the last finger, she unlocked the door and threw it open.
            The Fire Warrior on the other side seemed temporarily startled.  He quickly overcame his surprise and stepped into the room, chasing after the retreating Jessica.
            She stumbled backward and fell into the middle of the room.  The tears already threatened to fall down her face as she stared at the frightening warrior entering the room.
            The Fire Warrior smiled wickedly and extended his hand.  The tips of his fingers ignited as flames danced over his hand.
            “Sean?” Jessica sobbed.
            “Here I am,” he replied, stepping through the kitchen door.  He held up the large red cylinder in his hands and pointed the nozzle at the confused Fire Warrior. 
            “Suck on this, dude.”
            Sean squeezed the handle to the fire extinguisher and the far end of the room was consumed in white powder.  The cloud sprayed over the Fire Warrior, extinguishing the flames on his hand, as he was covered head to toe in white foam.  Sean held down the handle until the small extinguisher ran dry and sputtered in his hand.  As the cloud settled, the entire room was coated in white foam, to include an undignified Jessica who sat sputtering on the floor.
            The Fire Warrior coughed loudly as he seemed frozen in confusion.  Sean paused, realizing that he hadn’t thought through his plan beyond spraying the man with the extinguisher.  Despite him being coated in inflammable foam, Sean was still facing a vastly physically superior man.
            “I really didn’t think this through,” he muttered as the Fire Warrior reclaimed his wits and stormed toward Sean.
            Sean gulped and dropped the extinguisher, as though releasing the weapon would alleviate him of the blame.
            The warrior reached Sean in a few large strides and grabbed him by his shirt.  Despite Sean’s weight, the Fire Warrior lifted him from his feet and pinned him against the wall.
            “Can’t we talk about this?” Sean said meekly.
            The blonde warrior merely growled at him.  The Fire Warrior leaned in, his nose mere inches away from Sean’s face.  Sean could practically see the fire burning behind his dark eyes.
            A hollow thud suddenly echoed through the room.  The smoldering glare in the warrior’s eyes disappeared as his eyes rolled up into his head.  The Fire Warrior pitched to the side, his arms going limp and releasing Sean in the process.
            Jessica stood behind the warrior, clinging to the extinguisher like a club.  She looked nervously at the unconscious Fire Warrior.
            “You think he’s going to be okay?” she asked.
            “Who cares,” Sean replied, laughing nervously. 
            Jessica dropped the extinguisher and smiled weakly.  Sean returned the smile before spreading his arms and motioning her forward.
            “You did great,” he said as they hugged one another in relief.
            For a long moment, they stood straddling the unconscious blonde man, embraced in each other’s arms.  Suddenly, as though remembering her surroundings, Jessica stiffened.
            “You know that we’re only hugging because I’m so relieved to still be alive, right?  Nothing more?”
            Sean nodded quickly.  “Of course.  Sure.”
            “I mean,” she continued, “if it weren’t for the fact that someone just tried to kill us, we wouldn’t even be caught dead in the same room, right?”
            “Sure,” he said softly as he took in the smell of her hair cascading past his face.
            She paused and turned her face toward him.  “Did you just smell my hair?”
            Sean arched an eyebrow as his face flushed in embarrassment.  “No, no, of course not,” he laughed nervously.  “That would have been weird!”
            “This moment’s over,” she said sternly, pushing him back.
            As they separated, Sean inadvertently kicked the unconscious Fire Warrior.  The man groaned softly.  The pair looked at each other again, suddenly remembering what brought them together in the first place.
            “What are we going to do about him?” she asked.
            Sean shrugged.  “I guess we tie him up?”
            “He makes fire out of the air, Sean.  What’s to stop him from just burning through his ropes?”
            “Then we put him in the shower?” he offered.  Her withering stare ended that train of thought.  “No, you’re right.  That was a stupid idea.”
            Jessica shrugged.  “Yeah, but I don’t really have a better one.”

About Jon Messenger:


Jon Messenger (Born 1979 in London, England) serves as an United States Army Captain in the Medical Service Corps. Since graduating from the University of Southern California in 2002, writing Science Fiction has remained his passion, a passion that has continued through two deployments to Iraq, a humanitarian relief mission to Haiti, and an upcoming deployment to Afghanistan. Jon wrote the "Brink of Distinction" trilogy, of which "Burden of Sisyphus" is the first book, while serving a 16-month deployment in Baghdad, Iraq.

Wind Warrior is Jon Messenger's break through novel published through Clean Teen Publishing.

Twitter: @JonMessenger

YouTube: Watch the trailer today! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PbsBD3XeT4


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This Concludes Le'BookSquirrels Week Long Tour With Clean Teen Publishing!Everyone Be sure to check them out they have some amazing books and authors just waiting to be read!

Saturday, June 29, 2013

*BLOG TOUR* Wonderstruck Anthology Authors include Maren Dille,Jon Messenger,Kati Ellis and Jennifer Bull





Wonderstruck Anthology is now available! Get Wonderstruck TODAY from Amazon!


Add Wonderstruck to your Goodreads to be read list

When you look at a picture, what do you see? We gave authors around the world the challenge to write a story based on a set of five images. More than thirty authors rose to that challenge and created an amazing young adult anthology of drabbles, short stories, novelettes and novellas for you to enjoy. Flip the pages and prepare to be Wonderstruck!

Dive into a world where wind is a power that feeds the flames and love makes everything more complicated. A life where a scorned bride can cause a great deal of trouble and a place where silence as you will find out has a lot to say. Find yourself in a future where a powerful enemy can only be stopped by the most dangerous weapon of all: the truth. All of this and more lies within these very pages... Are you ready?

Wonderstruck is Clean Teen Publishing's first break through Young Adult anthology. All stories within this book have fallen within our YA rating scale, however, not all stories have young adult characters. You will find a great deal of entertainment within Wonderstruck that is appropriate for readers of all ages. To view more information on our official content rating system please visit: www.cleanteenpublishing.com

Winning Novella-
Wind Warrior by Jon Messenger (Clean Teen Publishing Author of Wind Warrior)
The sleepy town of White Halls harbors a dangerous secret. On a picturesque street, two houses down from a lovely little park, in a quaint little home with a wraparound porch, lives a family that seems rather normal. Sure, their twenty year old son, Xander, still lives at home, but he's going to college and dating the leader of the schools top sorority. It's all very... normal.  However, when a man is miraculously saved from being hit by a bus, Xander's life turns in to the living embodiment of the tornadoes he can suddenly create with a flick of his wrist. Whether he wants this gift or not, Xander must learn to use his new 'super power' quickly if he wants to survive.  For his kind is a dying race, and when this sleepy town has a sudden influx of new, blonde, fire wielders, no one is safe, especially Xander. It doesn't help that one of these blondes happens to be the most beautiful girl he has ever seen. Xander can't deny the instant connection he feels to her so, when she tries to kill him, it certainly makes things complicated.


Winning Novelette-
Pastiche by Maren Dille  
A punishment far worse than death awaits Alim Hamal. Sylin Incorporated has a particular sentence for their rogue assassins: uncovering the darkest moments in their subconscious, then watching as they relive them through virtual simulation. Only one assassin has ever escaped. Alim plans to be the second.

The simulation demands the truth, something Alim has kept from his employers at all costs. But as his final moments emerge, Sylin will discover that the truth is Alim’s most dangerous weapon.

Winning Short Story-
The Silent Man by Kati Ellis
I thought my time with Silence would be peaceful. Heaven knows I deserve it after all those years of raising babies. Silence, however, had a different plan. If it weren't for Marigold, I don't think I would've seen it. She introduced me to the Silent Man, and Silence, as it turns out, has quite a bit to say.    

Winning Drabble-
A Lady's Revenge by Jennifer Bull
A scorned bride can cause a great deal of trouble...

Wonderstruck Authors (By Last Name)
Radeyah H. Ali       
Drabble~ Magically Fitted

Gabrielle Arrowsmith (Clean Teen Publishing Author of Concealed in the Shadows)
Drabble~ Joah and the Beacon of Light

Beau Barnett          
Short Story~ Into Eternity
Eric, a widowed paralytic, knows he is dreaming when he sees a younger version of his deceased wife, Jessica, by a lake with his old dog. But the joy of seeing them again is replaced by the pain of knowing they won't be there when he wakes up.

Jennifer Bull            
Short Story~ A Wizard's World
When Jack stumbled upon a strange jar in the middle of the forest he found the one thing he had always wanted—a friend, and now he’ll do everything he can to protect her. Born into a world unlike any other, a world within a jar, Lottie longs to explore beyond her glass home. Little does she know that even the smallest adventures can have dangerous consequences…
Drabble~ Life in a Jar
Drabble~ Round and Round I Go
Drabble~ Once In a Blue Moon

Liana Chau  
Drabble~ Ahead and Beyond

MeMe Collier          
Short Story~ The Fairy Jar
Gracie doesn't believe in magic. Disillusioned by their mother's abandonment, she dismisses her younger brother, Brennan's, claim that he's caught a fairy. But as the invisible Ileana works in her family's lives, memories of their mother's fairytales tug at Gracie's mind. They call into question everything she's come to place her faith in, making her wonder if magic really does exist and if love still lives on after loss.

Leah D.W.    
Short Story~ Watery Grave
There is something in the water...something dark...something hungry...
When Ashlynn escapes from a life of abuse she is thrown into the swamplands rumored to harbor a nightmare. She should have listened to the rumors because there is something in the water...and it loves the taste of human flesh

Julie Gilbert 
Drabble~ Keio and the Farsight Fire

Lisa Goldman          
Short Story~ Oafish Me
In Oafish Me, teenager, Misty, considers herself a social outcast—an oaf—as her classmates remind her every opportunity they get. When Drake, a charismatic and gorgeous new student, stays by her side through their constant ridicule, she discovers she not only longs for a friendship with him but for the first time, a relationship. With her raw emotions on the line, she accepts his invitation to go out but when he takes her to a secluded wooded area, she starts to question if he is her knight in shining armor or her worst enemy.

Dominique Goodall           
Drabble~ Fairy Capture
Brenna Harden      
Short Story~ A Warriors Journey

Sandra Havriluk    
Drabble~ Jedidiah

Sacha Hope
Novelette~ Glass Heart
Wolt is a brilliant scientist trying desperately to cure his wife's condition. Doctors suspected she had a type of cancer and their medicines offered little help to the ailing woman. Wolt finds a way to buy time for his wife, but his experiment turns her into something else altogether...

Erin Liles      
Novelette ~ Outside the Walls
Outspoken, seventeen-year-old Jenna hates the settlement she lives in where disagreement is frowned upon. Fed up, she leaves one day, and meets a group of outsiders, only to discover that her home and family are in danger. It is up to Jenna to save them and in doing so, discover what is really important.

B.T. Lyons
Novella~ Heartkeeper Short Story
It only took fifty years for humankind to plummet from the turmoil of a population of ten billion people to a struggling group of two billion trying to figure out how to survive in harmony with the Earth. Under a new, peaceful societal structure, people have relearned their connection with the Land and the spirits of nature that live there. Young Adain has just reached thirteen years of age, and must undertake the dangerous Heart Chase to secure the spirit of an animal that will act as his conscience and companion for the rest of his life. It will be a year of trials and challenges, but the risks to the People may be even higher as someone else binds with an animal spirit that may not have their best interests in mind...

Short Story~ Peace
London in the late 1800's is a dirty, chaotic, and above all, loud place embroiled in a scientific war with neighboring France as each strives to outdo each other with technological wonders. A young married pair of university professionals finds themselves at odds over the benefits of this war: Nigel only wants to see England prevail – preferably through his own inventions – whereas his wife, Christine, dreams of quiet and a natural world that she has only seen in storybooks. Enter a street-side vendor offering “Peace In A Bottle”; this might be the answer to Christine's greatest desires, but it could be the beginning of Nigel's worst nightmare.

Julie Marcinik         
Short Story~ The Executioner
Vivian Fletcher has a gift that’s given her a special place in the kingdom—the King’s personal executioner. Everything and everyone she touches dies. When she finds out that the world she’s living in is full of lies and turmoil, she’ll have to accept her gift and use it to right the wrongs.


Mia Marin    
Drabble~ A Note To My Traveler
Drabble~ A Dear Dalliance

Miranda Maurin    
Short Story~ The Dance of Time
Tabitha and Carter are a little too daring when they run through a tunnel to investigate the mysterious music they heard while running through the woods. The cave is well lit, and the dance looks fun, but they can't seem to stop.

Veronica Morfi       
Drabble~ Shine

Ifeoma Ofuani         
Drabble~ He Would Be Great

Paula Phillips         
Short Story~ Skye in High School Wonderland
It started out just like any normal day for high school Plain Jane Skye Salisbury until tragedy strikes her school and out of nowhere, a glimmering hole appeared. The question on everyone's minds is—what lies at the bottom? Will it be another world or a different dimension?

Jocelyn Sanchez     
Novella~ A World Unlike Mine
What would you do if you could see magical creatures from the early age of five? Well, for seventeen-year-old Tasha it gets pretty difficult when a fairy prince named Thomas appears with news that will change her life forever. But with the help of her best friend and pixie, Seamus, Tasha will find her place in a world so unlike hers. Will she rise to the occasion and become who she was destined to be?
Drabble~ Night
Drabble~ Darkness and Light

Cindy Saunders (Clean Teen Publishing Author of Double Star)
Short Story~ Nirvana
She looked at the picture she’d painted many years ago. It was a magical place—a place inspired by her dreams. Though, tonight it almost seemed... alive, as if it were calling to her.

Clemy W. Thompson         
Drabble~ The Truth

Dana Wright
Drabble~ Fairy Lights








*REVIEW* Resisting Fate(Predetermined:Book One) By Heather Van Fleet

June 26, 2013

Seventeen-year-old Emmy O’Connell is the epitome of a hot mess.

Her boyfriend’s been shipped out of town to some boarding school four states away. Her step-douche is constantly drunk and badgering her. And then there’s her good-ole-mom… The lady is nothing more than a miserable shell of a woman. She’s turned off all of her feelings and her ability to be a good mother as well, leaving poor Emmy and her four year old brother Jamie to suffer. Life couldn’t get much worse, right?

Enter the elusive, cocky, and oh-so-broody Jack Hartman…

The jerk cousin of her boyfriend becomes Emmy’s worst nightmare…times ten. He’s cruel. He’s insensitive. But he also has this strange little ability over her – he makes her weak in the knees with the single touch. No matter how miserable or amazing Jack makes her feel, Emmy can’t seem to deny him, especially when he takes on the role of her protector –her pseudo-knight in a black leather coat.

A knight who also happens to ride in on his black Harley, instead of a white horse…

And to make a bad situation worse…

Werewolves and teens shouldn’t mix! But what can Emmy do when she finds herself thrown head first into the center of it all. Can she handle the supernatural mess her life rapidly becomes or will she fight against the inevitable fate her heart desires?


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REVIEW
5 STARS
 I received an ARC for an Honest Review.

    Whew what an amazing start to a series!Resisting Fate is a story about Emmy whose boyfriend leaves her suddenly and His cousin Jack comes into the picture.Things aren't what they appear in Emmy's life and she tried to hide it.She has a hard home life dealing with her "Step Douche" Love that term and her mom who is horrible.Jack may be a jerk around her but he has his reasons which you will totally find out once you read this Awesomeness! I cannot bear to put spoilers in my review.I will not.Can Not.Will Not.
    First off Heather totally Rocks this Werewolf book.I mean seriously Rocks it.Jack is hot.Don't even think about other werewolves.Think about Jack. Motorcycle  Riding Jack. Vroom Vroom. I literally was glued to my kindle reading it.It is the First Book in the series,So do not be worried when issues are not fully resolved.We get MORE!Heather has an amazing ability to transport you with her words.I was enthralled with this story.My only major issue is that it ended.I wanted to continue reading it forever!Remember there is a BOOK TWO Coming out..and I stress that you REMEMBER THAT!Amazing Work Heather and I look forward to reading so much more by you. Your amazing and Resisting Fate is an amazing story! I want a werewolf.With that I am signing out.Until the Next book in the series.That is.

Friday, June 28, 2013

The Night Marchers Series by Rebecca Gober and Courtney Nuckels



The Night Marchers Series by Rebecca Gober and Courtney Nuckels
(YA Paranormal Romance)

Available now through Amazon, B&N, iBookStore, Smashwords and Sony Kobo.

Watch the trailers today! Night Marchers and Redemption

NEVER, EVER lock eyes with a Night Marcher! Everyone in Hawaii has heard this warning, except for seventeen-year-old Emma Townsend, that is. For most Hawaiians know that looking into the eyes of Night Marcher can strike a curse that will end in death or eternal servitude.

Even though her father, who is a paranormal investigator, solely raised Emma, she has little experience in the realm of the supernatural. When she is forced to move with her father to Hawaii, only months before her graduation, Emma finds that her world as she knows it, is shaken when she starts seeing the unexplainable: fire balls in the distance, beating drums in the middle of nowhere and strangers who vanish into thin air. Then one day when she has a run in with a procession of Night Marchers, ancient Hawaiian spirits wandering from their burial grounds to their locations of battles past, Emma has no choice but to believe that the unbelievable does exist.

Now Emma must go on the run with the help of a mysterious stranger, as they seek out how to free Emma from the curse of a Night Marcher, who will stop at nothing to get her soul.

Night Marchers has had more than 100,000 downloads since February 2012.
The Legend of the Night Marchers Guest Post

Hawaii – Home of the Night Marchers

The Hawaiian Islands are notably one of the most spiritual vacation destinations. With a rich history of mythology and folklore and numerous sacred sites still standing, Hawaii’s link to the past is ever present.

The retelling of spooky ghost tales has been a favorite form of entertainment and an important cultural link in Hawaii since ancient times. Ghostly images or haunting acts have been reported in old buildings, deep valleys, sacred burial sites, ancient temples called heiaus, forested areas, beaches and lava fields. A good majority of Hawaii residents have either had a spooky encounter at some point during their lives, or know of someone with an eerie story to tell. One of the most popular subjects of ghost stories in the islands is the Night Marchers, or Hukai-po.

Who are they?

Night Marchers are ghostly apparitions of a band of beings who move with purpose to the beat of primitive pounding drums. Some say they are armed spirit warriors en route to or from battle, toting archaic weaponry and clothed in decorated helmets and cloaks. Other accounts tell of high-ranking alii (ruler) spirits being guided to places of high importance or to welcome new warriors to join in battle. Perhaps these restless souls are looking to reclaim rightful territory, replay a battle gone awry, or avenge their own deaths. Some say the Night Marchers are searching methodically for an entrance into the next world.
Night Marchers are said to roam through very specific locations on the islands, between seashore and mountains and are often recognized by their raised torches and repeated olis, or chants. Although there have been a few scattered reports of daytime marches, these apparitions appear to be most active at night and are said to march on certain nights designated by the moon. And although the Night Marchers allegedly float a few inches off the ground, some local accounts tell of seeing mysterious footprints in their path after they’ve passed.

Areas like the Nuuanu Pali Lookout, Kaaawa Valley and Kalihi Valley on Oahu are rumored homes of Night Marcher trails, and nighttime visitors are encouraged to be wary.

What to do when happening upon a night march in progress? The ghostly procession must never be interrupted. Legend has it that resting your eyes upon the Night Marchers could signal a grim fate for the perpetrator, a friend or relative, so witnesses are urged to crouch low to the ground, “play dead” and avert the eyes. Any sound or movement could invite a Night Marcher’s deadly glance. These Night Marchers are set diligently upon their destination and are not considered spirits that will deviate from their path to haunt humans nearby.
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Some characteristics of the mysterious night marches include:
  Heavy wind
  Rows of spirits carrying torches
  Alternating male and female rows
  Accompanying lightening and thunder
  Accompanying heavy rain or high surf
  Chanting and drumbeating
  Unusually bright torches
  Game playing and revelry
  Accompanying mist or fog


About Rebecca Gober and Courtney Nuckels:
Rebecca and Courtney are downhome country girls powered by chocolate and other random late night cravings. Coined in southern twang they bring new meaning to the word y'all. BFI's since the 6th grade, with a knack for getting into sticky situations, has resulted in countless ideas to write about for years to come.

Where can readers check us out?
Blog: http://nightmarchersseries.blogspot.com/
Facebook fan page: http://www.facebook.com/nightmarchers
Facebook fan page: http://www.facebook.com/eleseries
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5308881.Rebecca_Gober
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5308882.Courtney_Nuckels
Twitter: MidniteBeckie and NuckelsC
http://www.eleseries.com
http://www.nightmarchersbook.com


*Happy Release Day Heather!!!!!! *Resisting Fate By Heather Van Fleet




Title: Resisting Fate
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Sunshine Press
Release Date: June 28th
Blurb:
Seventeen-year-old Emmy O’Connell is the epitome of a hot mess.
Her boyfriend’s been shipped out of town to some boarding school four states away. Her step-douche is constantly drunk and badgering her. And then there’s her good-ole-mom… The lady is nothing more than a miserable shell of a woman. She’s turned off all of her feelings and her ability to be a good mother as well, leaving poor Emmy and her four year old brother Jamie to suffer. Life couldn’t get much worse, right?
Enter the elusive, cocky, and oh-so-broody Jack Hartman…
The jerk cousin of her boyfriend becomes Emmy’s worst nightmare…times ten. He’s cruel. He’s insensitive. But he also has this strange little ability over her – he makes her weak in the knees with thea single touch. No matter how miserable or amazing Jack makes her feel, Emmy can’t seem to deny him, especially when he takes on the role of her protector –her pseudo-knight in a black leather coat.
A knight who also happens to ride in on his black Harley, instead of a white horse…
And to make a bad situation worse…
Werewolves and teens shouldn’t mix! But what can Emmy do when she finds herself thrown head first into the center of it all. Can she handle the supernatural mess her life rapidly becomes or will she fight against the inevitable fate her heart desires?

Excerpt:
“That smart mouth doesn’t sit well with me,” he licked his lips. His eyes never wavered from mine.
 I nibbled on my lower lip, just as a small smile graced the edges of my mouth. Oh yeah, my bravado was about ready to kick some ass. I think I kind of liked being a smart ass.
“What are you going to do about it Jack?” I inhaled a breath, taking in his warm, delicious scent. My throat went even drier than before. I practically stared holes into his face as I studied every tiny mark, every single scar on his perfectly flawed skin. He was gorgeous, with a little scar here, a little white patch there. His hotness could have left me breathless for days if I kept up my perusal any longer.
And then I blinked, Christ. I knew exactly what had to be done. I had to kiss him. I had to get this itch scratched and then I had to move on. His eyes darkened, his breath was warm and heavy over my face, and he licked his lips. I blinked. Holy-balls… He wanted to kiss me too.
That ever-present electricity running between us wouldn’t stop. If anything, it only increased our pull. I moved in; his lips touching my lips was all I wanted. I needed to feel again, feel it all with a boy who hated me, but apparently wanted to kiss me as badly.
 Dryness on dryness soon changed to warmth on warmth, and when I pressed my mouth fully to his, his hands left my neck, and went to my waist. His fingernails dug into my sides and the son of a bitch pushed me away from him.
So there I was, my head tilted to the side, ready, willing, and able to do whatever the hell this moment led us too, and all he could do was chuckle. Yes. Chuckle. He was the biggest rat bastard.
Ever.

Author Bio:
Heather Van Fleet currently resides in northern Illinois, with her three little ladies, Kelsey, Emma, and Isabella, and her fabulous hubby (and high school sweetheart) Chris, with whom she’s been blissfully married to now for ten years. She’s a stay at home mom by day, and an avid and completely obsessive writer and reader by night.
Heather always had a soft spot in her heart for books, and she’s been creating her own little stories since she was a seven year old. But she never really had the confidence or the time to actually sit down and really do something about it, until her youngest daughter was born just two years ago.
Resisting Fate, book one in her Predetermined series, is her young adult, paranormal baby! It’s packed full of wolves…witches…and one sassy little red-headed teenage girl! She had an absolute blast writing it, and can’t wait to share it with the world!

Website  / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads


http://www.amazon.com/Resisting-Fate-Predetermined-ebook/dp/B00DNTHLA2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1372335970&sr=8-1&keywords=Resisting+Fate
 
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/resisting-fate-heather-van-fleet/1115861990?ean=2940016481982


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Thursday, June 27, 2013

*Blog Tour* Double Star by Cindy Saunders

Double Star by Cindy Saunders
(YA- Paranormal Fantasy- Available Now)

She fell into his world, unaware of the key she carried and the doors it opened; a world where darkness waited to be set free ... The wait is over
 Do You Believe?

Amazon Link:

When Cepheus, a dark god, forces seventeen-year-old Ally Ashworth off an isolated overlook, she has no idea she's falling into his world, or that the necklace she’s wearing is actually a key -one with the power to ignite the next world war. But she’s carried beyond his reach and into the one place where he’s powerless ... the forest of Gilgamesh.

Ally’s never been Miss Popularity, but her outsider status takes on new meaning when she’s rescued by Liam Cheveyo and his peculiar friends. After seeing them shape-shift into their freaky humanimal counterparts, Ally smacks hard into a few truths: magic really does exist and, although getting here took no effort, finding her way back might be impossible.

Feelings between her and Liam begin to grow along with the realization that, in this world, she’s stronger, better ... until she’s caught in a trap set by the creepy spider-boy Cepheus sends to retrieve her.  But Ally’s not going down without a fight, not after learning the horrible truth about the passageways.  

The survival of both worlds depends on it.

Excerpt from Double Star

“What I am going to tell you needs to stay here, for now. Once I explain, you will understand why. The world in which we live,” Thea said and looked at him and Meg, “is not the only one that exists. There is another, similar but not the same, that travels in parallel to our own. An unseen but strong force holds them together. Many centuries ago, our world was linked to the heavens but, over time, those passageways were sealed and others created in their place—doorways to another world through which travel is uncommon but not unheard of.”
She turned her eyes to Ally. “That world belongs to you.”
Ally stared, mouth agape, at Thea, and then dropped her head against the back of the couch. “A parallel dimension,” she said softly.
Thea nodded. “Those secret corridors allow the spirit gods to travel between the two worlds. But, an indiscretion has led to their use by other beings, causing the fabric that holds them together to become compromised. It has developed tears within the seams where the energy wavers. I do not understand why you made the journey, Ally, but it is not the first time a human has traveled between them.”
Thea gave an uncharacteristic sigh. “I am telling you this so you can understand what I am about to say. There are some who believe the ability to cross between our two worlds, despite the consequences, will give them great power. However, their greed will only serve to destroy us all.”
Liam got to his feet. “How long have you known, Thea?” He could understand the subject not coming up in day-to-day conversation, but why had he never heard so much as a rumor?
Thea shook her head. “Liam, are you so vain as to assume yours is the only world that breathes life?”
He began to pace. “I have never given it a thought—” His feet stopped. “If what you say is true, what makes you think Ally is from this other world?”
“I sensed it the moment I saw her. That was the reason for my trip to Podegar’s.” Thea pulled a washcloth from her apron pocket. “This is stained with the blood I wiped from Ally’s forehead.” She unfolded the rust-colored rag. In its center was an area where the blood was not visible. “Podegar poured tama juice on this. When the blood disappeared, it confirmed my suspicion. It is slightly different from our own.”
“That would explain it,” Ally said.
Liam looked at Ally. “How can you simply accept this?”
“You haven’t been listening,” she answered. “I told you I wasn’t from around here. You thought I was crazy. Trust me—I questioned my own sanity when I saw what happened today. People don’t change into animals where I’m from. Not literally anyway.”
“Ah, you know about the Shanyo.” Ally nodded at Thea’s statement.
“If what you say is true, Thea,” Liam said, “could the location where Corm and I found her be one of those passageways?”
Ally’s body tensed. “Yeah, why can’t I just go back the way I came?”
Thea’s expression washed over with sympathy. “The portals allow movement in a single direction. The one you traveled through leads into the forest, not out of it. In order to return home, you must find the correct one. It is true that certain spirits can travel at will between the worlds. The gods before us could do it quite easily. Yet, even then, the journey changed their powers, either diminishing them or making them more powerful. Certain objects are able to travel to and from as well. Some change. Some simply do not make it through at all.”
“So how do I find the right passageway home?” Ally asked.
Thea shook her head. “You traveled through unintentionally. Great care must be taken if you journey through again. I learned a great deal during my time away. The opening of certain doors can result in dire consequence. Almost seventy years ago, in your sense of time, a spirit traveled from this world and allowed Chaos to enter yours. It had also happened twenty-seven years before, with a similar result. Prior to your arrival, the last time someone from your world traveled here was three years ago.” Thea looked at him and Meg. “The time of the sickness that took your mother.”
Liam asked, incredulous, “Who would do such a thing?”
Thea looked at him but did not speak. Ally began to count on her fingers.
“What are you doing?” he asked her.
“The math. Seventy years ago was 1941. Twenty-seven years before that was 1914. Huh. I know those dates. We talked about them in Hist—” Her mouth dropped open. “Are you kidding me? World War I and World War II? Are you saying something from over here caused those wars?”
“I cannot say if the passageway was traveled before or after the trouble began. I do know that evil takes root when people have given up hope. I suspect the timing of such things is not chance but seen as an opportunity. I am sad to say, within the past year, the door into your world has opened again. Forces here tried to prevent that, to no avail. Tell me, is your world experiencing anything unusual… anything of consequence at the current time?”
Ally nodded. “Yeah. Wars and terrorism are spreading—there are tsunamis, earthquakes, and natural disasters. And oh, the world economy is about to collapse… to name a few ‘unusual’ things. Everything’s falling apart.”
“If your world falls, ours does as well,” Thea said.


About Cindy Saunders:

CINDY SAUNDERS was born in Lowell, MA. She moved to RI almost twenty-five years ago and now considers the Ocean State her home. She graduated from Bryant College with a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance. When she’s not reading, writing, spending time with her two teenage children (how did that happen?) or working, Cindy tracks down one of her favorite local bands and enjoys a glass of wine. She completed her first novel, Double Star, a YA fantasy, in October 2012 and is currently working on the second book in the series.

Double Star is her first novel.

Website: http://www.cleanteenpublishing.com/cindy-saunders