Runes Blog Tour: Review & Giveaway!!

Thank you NetGalley and Firetrail Publishing for giving me a chance to read and review Runes. Also, thanks to Xpresso Tours and Ednah Walters for the opportunity to be a part of the Runes Tour.
Readers: please make sure to check out the Giveaway!

Runes
(Runes, #1)
by Ednah Walters
Published: May 20, 2013
Published by Firetrail Publishing
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance
Formats: eBook, Paperback ~245 pages

Book Blurb:
Seventeen-year-old Raine Cooper has enough on her plate dealing with her father’s disappearance, her mother’s erratic behavior and the possibility of her boyfriend relocating. The last thing she needs is Torin St. James—a mysterious new neighbor with a wicked smile and uncanny way of reading her.

Raine is drawn to Torin’s dark sexiness against her better judgment, until he saves her life with weird marks and she realizes he is different. But by healing her, Torin changes something inside Raine. Now she can’t stop thinking about him. Half the time, she’s not sure whether to fall into his arms or run.

Scared, she sets out to find out what Torin is. But the closer she gets to the truth the more she uncovers something sinister about Torin. What Torin is goes back to an ancient mythology and Raine is somehow part of it. Not only are she and her friends in danger, she must choose a side, but the wrong choice will cost Raine her life.

Amazon Paperback  -  Kindle (US)   -  Kindle (UK)  -  Kindle (CA)

Barnes&Noble  -  Smashwords

Raine (Rain with a silent 'E') Cooper's life has been difficult lately. Her father has been missing for three months after a plane crash that left many dead and some alive. The problem is, is that her father's body is among neither of the two categories. He is missing. Raine's mother believes he is fine and will be home any day, but Raine is starting to lose hope. He is supposed to be there when she turns 17, make her breakfast, and watch her wear her "Never Been Kissed" shirt that Raine and her best friend Eirik made a pact about years ago. Now everything seems to be falling apart.

Ahh, Eirik. Raine's best friend since they were practically toddlers together. She has the biggest crush on him, but he never has made any move so they are in the friend zone. For now, that is...
Enter Torin, the new next door neighbor with the sapphire eyes and chiseled body. The first time Torin and Raine meet he instantaneously makes her irritated and a lust bunny at the same time. But she loves Eirik and tries to stay away from the boy/man who makes her insides quiver. But things are never that simple and there is something about him that is off. He can make things happen - or unhappen - without anyone knowing. And after he heals her after she is attacked, she must know what he is and why he is there.

I was intrigued by the book's title. I love books that deal with runes and runic mythology and Runes is nothing I could have imagined it to be. Once I started the book, there was nothing that was going to get in my way from finishing it and finding out the secrets for myself. Ms. Walters did a great job of bringing each character to life. Cora, Raine's other BFF is hilarious and yet has a very serious and protective side. All the characters are very relatable and I never felt that they were not well rounded and genuine.

I also love her use of Nordic mythology, it is the pantheon I know the most about and I still could not figure out what Torin was. I was frustrated that it took 80% of the book to find out the big secret, but the buildup was done in a way that I was not bored along the way. And the bad guys, well they are bad, but there are also things unseen that I can't discuss without giving things away. But, there is so much going on and no one is ever who they seem. There is a love triangle, but it wasn't as infuriating as most are in YA fiction. And I know who I hope Raine ends up with, but I will keep my mouth shut until I read the second book.

The ending...I just don't even know what to say about it. It ripped my heart out and made me want to crumple to the ground and cry. However, the second book, Immortals, will be coming out soon and I must have it ASAP! There was nothing about this book that I did not love. NOTHING. At first I was irritated by the spelling of Eirik's name, but then when it was explained why, I was placated. There is romance, friendship, love, death, and real emotion throughout. Ms. Walters has written a book that I thought was going to be good, but I was pleasantly surprised that it is great! Anyone who likes mythology, romance, and a story that will suck you in and never leave, then Runes is the book for you! 

FTC Advisory: I was given a copy of this book from NetGalley for an honest review and I used the book to be a part of a blog tour as well. No backroom deals or whispered promises were made.

EDNAH WALTERS grew up reading Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys and dreaming of one day writing her own stories. She is a stay-at-home mother of five humans and two American short-hair cats (one of which has ADHD) and a husband. When she is not writing, she’s at the gym doing Zumba or doing things with her family, reading, traveling or online chatting with fans.

Ednah is the author of The Guardian Legacy series, a YA fantasy series about children of the fallen angels, who fight demons and protect mankind. AWAKENED, the prequel was released by Pill Hill Press in September 2010 with rave reviews. BETRAYED, book one in the series was released by her new publisher Spencer Hill Press in June 2012 and HUNTED, the third installment, will be released April 2013. She’s working on the next book in the series, FORGOTTEN.

Ednah also writes New Adult paranormal romance. RUNES is the first book in her new series. She is presently working on book 2, IMMORTALS.

Under the pseudonym E. B. Walters, Ednah writes contemporary romance. SLOW BURN, the first contemporary romance with suspense, was released in April 2011. It is the first book in the Fitzgerald family series. Since then she has published four more books in this series. She's presently working on book six. You can visit her online at www.ednahwalters.com or www.ebwalters.com.

Website  -  Goodreads  -  Facebook  -  Twitter

********************************************************

Tour Grand Prize (INTL)

1st prize: A choice of signed copy or e-book of Runes and $25 gift card from Amazon

2 prize: A choice of signed copy or e-book of Runes and $10 gift card from amazon.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal: Winter Fire by Lizzy Ford

Winter Fire

(The Witchling Series, #3)

by Lizzy Ford

Genre: YA Paranormal Romance

Release Date: June 21, 2013

Tour Organizer: B³ Tours

With a Dark witching seeking revenge against him, Beck, the eighteen-year-old Master of Light, must find a way to protect those he loves, the witchlings - and his heart. His duty is further complicated by Morgan, a beautiful Fire witching with a secret that threatens to destroy the progress he's made protecting the Light.

This is the third book in the bestselling Witchling Series. "Dark Summer," the first book in the series, is currently rated as the #1 Top Rated Teen Romance on Amazon. http://www.amazon.com/gp/top-rated/digital-text/6064565011

Lizzy Ford is the author of over seventeen novels written for young adult and adult paranormal romance readers, to include the internationally bestselling Rhyn Trilogy, Witchling Trilogy and the War of Gods series. Considered a freak of nature by her peers for the ability to write and release a commercial quality novel in under a month, Lizzy has focused on keeping her readers happy by producing brilliant, gritty romances that remind people why true love is a trial worth enduring.
In late March 2012, “Damian’s Oracle” (Book I, War of Gods) was featured in USA Today, an indication that Lizzy’s career is just starting to take off!
In November 2012, Lizzy signed with Margery Walshaw of Evatopia, a literary management and production firm representing writers and their books to TV/movie studios in Hollywood.

Facebook  -  Twitter  -  Google+  -  Pinterest  -  Wattpad  -  Goodreads  -  LinkedIn

Series by Lizzy Ford

Witchling Trilogy

Dark Summer

Autumn Storm (Book 2)

Winter Fire

Rhyn Trilogy

Katie’s Hellion (Book 1)

Katies Hope (Book 2)

Rhyn’s Redemption (Book 3)

Rhyn Eternal

Gabriel’s Hope (Book 1)

War of Gods

Damian's Oracle (War of Gods 1)

Damian’s Assassin (War of Gods 2)

Damian’s Immortal (War of Gods 3)

The Grey God (War of Gods 4)

Damian’s Eternal

Xander’s Chance

Foretold Trilogy

Elle’s Journey (Book 1)

Incubatti Series

Zoey Rogue (Book 1) 

Single Titles by Lizzy Ford

Rebel Heart

Kiera’s Moon

A Demon’s Desire

Maddy’s Oasis

The Warlord’s Secret

Cover Reveal & Giveaway!!: The Seventh Layer by Rachel A Olson

The Seventh Layer

by Rachel A Olson

(Already Released – August 17, 2012)

Amazon - B&N - Kobo - Smashwords

As if growing up Amish wasn't hard enough, Sarah Miller receives information just before her eighteenth birthday about a childhood she can't remember. Accompanied by long lost friends and a few unlikely relatives, Sarah learns of her supernatural destiny and the race to piece together the jigsaw of her life begins. Amidst the whirlwind of unanswered questions, one stands prominent: will the world meet the foreshadowing doom that lingers in the near future, or will Sarah complete the puzzle in time to save her people and ensure the continuance of mankind?

Prologue

 It crept down the window like an epileptic spider, jittering from side to side, pausing ever so slightly before continuing its descent.The rain.It always fascinated me. I often sat on my bed at night watching it shatter against my window, then travel slowly out of sight, dancing a sorrowful waltz with the low light coming from the oil lamp on my bedside table. It mattered little if I had to be up at dawn to start my daily chores with Sister. Nothing truly mattered when it rained.“Sarah, is everything alright?” Mother stood in my bedroom doorway. She was a plain woman, light brown hair lacking radiance, dull gray eyes, and thin pale lips that almost matched the color of her near-white skin. Her cheekbones curved high beneath her eyes, the lines sharp. Almost too sharp, almost masculine. But she was a kind, gentle woman. No one could deny her that. “Sarah,” she said again when I didn’t reply right away. I looked over my shoulder at her then, grinning briefly.“Everything is fine, Mother. I was simply admiring the rain.” She smiled, but there was a flash of sadness in her eyes. I knew that sadness, but we never spoke of such things. Sadness in our community was often seen as a weakness of faith. Mother sat next to me on the edge of my bed. She smoothed down her skirt until it lay perfectly across her thin frame. Folding her hands in her lap, she let out a soft sigh.“It is a beautiful sight to behold,” she said quietly, gazing out the window. When she turned to me again, her eyes were brimmed with tears. I hugged her quickly, letting her cry silently into my hair. Three days left. That’s all we had. When she finally pulled away, she dabbed lightly at her eyes and nose with the cotton handkerchief she always carried tucked in her sleeve.“I will always remember you,” I said just above a whisper before laying a chaste kiss atop her hand. “Though I know you’ll all forget me, in time.” She started to shake her head, but she knew it was true. No one remembered, the human mind was too simple to comprehend it. I had begun to notice just over the last week that people in the community were already beginning to forget. Mainly just the ones I wasn’t in contact with everyday, but they were forgetting just the same. It seemed strange to a point. They were all I had known for the last ten years. How could anyone be in your life for so long and so quickly forget who you were entirely? Yet, somehow I knew and understood it. No one ever had to explain it to me, I just knew.
Mother tucked a strand of hair that had fallen out of my braid behind my ear. Her hand cupped my cheek, warm against my skin. I watched her study my face, trying to memorize it before kissing my forehead and leaving my room. I stared at the empty doorway, my heart heavy. Three more days.Just three more days.

READ ON WATTPAD  -  READ ON SCRIBD

Somewhere amidst her forty-hour job and playtime with her three-year-old, Rachel finds time to walk the streets of worlds only existing on manmade paper. She resides in small college town Northwestern Nebraska with her young son, just across town from her parents. She enjoys socializing with adults, sipping strawberry wine, and head banging to music that doesn't carry a beat worth the effort of rock star hair slinging.

Website  -  Blog  -  Facebook  -  Twitter  - Goodreads -  Amazon

********************************************************

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Comes the Night Blog Tour: Review & Giveaway!!

Comes the Night (Caster Series, #1) by Norah Wilson & Heather Doherty Release date: November 27, 2012
Published by: Something Shiny Press
Age Group: Young Adult/New Adult
Genre: Paranormal
Formats Available: Paperback, eBook ~330 pages
Tour Hosted by: AToMR

Book Blurb:
How far would you go to escape your own personal teenage hell? Would you run away, break away from everything you know—even your own body?

Alex Robbins, Brooke Saunders and Maryanne Hemlock could not be more different, yet they all have something in common — deep and soul-searing pain. They are also all students at Streep Academy, a boarding school just one step away from juvie, where they've come to complete high school. The three have been relegated to Harvell House, the residence reserved for the hardest cases, the so-called Rejects from Reject Row. In the forbidden attic of the old Victorian house-turned-residence, the girls discover the diary of Connie Harvell, a young woman who was confined and abused there some 50 years ago. In the end, Connie’s attic prison couldn't hold her—not completely. She found a way out. At least a dark part of her did. And after reading her diary, the girls discover they can escape at will too. A terrifying, thrilling flight from their bodies and their troubles.

But God help them, their pain isn't all they leave behind when they join with the night. And God help anyone who’s wronged them...

Amazon Print/Amazon eBook - Barnes & Noble - Smashwords

First I want to say just how stunning the cover of this book is. I am in cover love with the girl in the corset, sitting - almost in a prayer position - in the woods. I makes the book look dark and complex and witchy. However, despite the book being part of the Caster series, it is sadly not a book about witches. The casting is a whole different type of cast, one in which they "cast" their souls or essences outside of their bodies. Casting, in short, is just another term for astral projection.

The basics of the plot is that there are three high school girls who are all at boarding school and end up in the same house/dorm. This dorm is used to hold the rejects or those who have been deemed trouble in one  way or another. We first meet Alex after she has awoken to the realization that she had been raped, but has no recollection of who did it. I felt for Alex and her pain, but that was about the extent of how involved I got into the characters. The other two are Brooke and Maryanne. Brooke is a grade A bitch and she relishes in it. Maryanne is an escapist. After her brother passed and her parent's marriage was in trouble she found a way out and came to boarding school.  It was hard for me to get passed the lack of relatability the girls had. Aside from Alex, the girls were wholly unlikeable.

Alex finds a diary of Connie, a girl who lived in the house before it was turning into school housing and her story was the most relatable and harrowing of all the characters. She was abused and beaten, but found a way out by casting herself outside her body. Each of the girls learn to do this and use their astral bodies to wreck havoc on those who harmed them. This wasn't what casting was supposed to be used for, it was a way to get away, but the girls - namely Brooke - used it to punish those who jilted her. And this is where I found myself having a hard time with the story. They knew from the diary that in their astral states they could harm animals, but Brooke didn't care and used it against a guy by harming his horses. It was at this point that I just was sick. They do some good by helping the lost astral body of Connie find some peace and punish the person who raped Alex - the one person who actually deserved punishment.

Overall, I found the book Comes the Night somewhat of a mixed bag. I was expecting so much from it and it turned out to just not be my cup of tea. However, there will be a lot of people who will enjoy the book because it is a quick read and it did keep my interest all the way through. The writing was done well and it was edited nicely - a big plus. It also was an interesting concept using astral projection as a way to escape from the pains of regular life. You will have to decide for yourselves what your take on the actions of the girls were (my main beef with the book), but it is a book that will keep you guessing and trying to figure out the mystery that lies within. I will be reading on in the series to see where the author takes the plot, I have to see what, if anything, the girls learn about themselves and what more there is to casting.

FTC Advisory: I was given a copy of this book from the author for an honest review as part of a blog tour. No backroom deals or whispered promises were made.

NORAH WILSON is a Kindle best-selling author of romantic suspense and paranormal romance. She lives in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, with her husband, two adult children, dog Chloe, and kitty, Ruckus.

HEATHER DOHERTY fell in love with writing while taking creative writing courses with Athabasca University. Motivated by her university success, and a life-long dream of becoming a novelist, she later enrolled in the Humber School for Writers under the mentorship of David Adams Richards. Her first literary novel was published in 2006. While still writing dark literary (as well as not-so-dark children's lit), she is beyond thrilled to be writing paranormal/horror with Norah. Heather lives in Fredericton, New Brunswick with her family. (No pets, but I swear Norah's dog, Chloe, calls me Aunt Heather).

Together, Heather and Norah write dark, edgy, frightening young adult paranormal/horror.

Twitter - Website - Facebook Norah - Facebook Heather

********************************************************

#1: Five (5) unsigned print copies of Comes the Night sent from CreateSpace - open internationally; #2: Five (5) eBook copies of Comes the Night (Smashword coupon code) - open internationally; #3: Three (3) $10 gift cards - choice of Amazon, B&N, or Book Depository

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Otherborn by Anna Silver: Review, Interview & Giveaway!!

Otherborn
(Otherborn, #1)
by Anna Silver
Published: April 4, 2013
Published by: Sapphire Star Publishing
Formats: Paperback, eBook ~ 300 pages

Book Blurb:
London and her teenage friends live in a reprocessed world.
Confined within Capital City’s concrete walls, London has done the impossible and the illegal. She’s created something New- a song. But her mentor, club owner Pauly, is not impressed. Since the historic Energy Crisis forced everyone behind walls generations ago, the Tycoons have ensured there is truly nothing new allowed under the sun. Pauly warns London to keep her song to herself, if she knows what’s good for her.
What he doesn’t know is that London is keeping an even bigger secret: she dreams. And she’s not alone. London’s band-mates and friends have begun dreaming as well, seeing themselves in “night pictures” as beings from another world. As Otherborn, they must piece together the story of their astral avatars, the Others, in order to save their world from a dreamless, hopeless future.
When Pauly is murdered and an Otherborn goes missing, London realizes someone is hunting them down. Escaping along the Outroads, they brave the deserted Houselands with only their dreams to guide them. Can they find their friend before the assassin finds them? Will being Otherborn save their lives, or destroy them?

Amazon  -  Barnes & Noble

When a song is dangerous and ideas are forbidden, what do you live for? London has the ability to create something new and is told by her friend Pauly, to never let anyone else know. The world lives in the past. No new aspirations for the future. But why? And why doesn't anyone dream anymore? I had to know the answers to these questions. Then when London reveals that she is able to dream and that her band mates also started to dream I knew there was something big happening. From the first few pages I was hooked. I had to know what happened to this world and what the Energy Crisis had to do with everything. There were just so many questions in my head that I could not put this book down.

London is a great protagonist. She is not one to whine or sigh at the circumstances in front of her. She is a rule breaker and a character that is enigmatic and real. Her reactions were true to the plot and she is well rounded; she cared for her friends and is compassionate, but she never let anyone push her around. However, just like a real person, she is flawed and rushes into action without thinking things out first. Not to mention she is supremely stubborn. But London has a purpose and she is going to fulfill it no matter what. The other characters are well crafted too. I found myself immersed into their band of rebels and dreamers and I cared about each of them as well, which is a great feat for an author: to create characters that are likeable and genuine and are not just names on paper. And when one of them ended up dead, I was just stunned.

There are so many things that Otherborn bring to the table. The novel is dystopian so there is the whole semi-apocalypse that put them in the situation they are in, but there was more to it, almost a Sci-Fi theme that ran through the plot as well. The world in which they live is completely controlled by the Tycoons and the landscape is harsh. People are starving and living in squalor and gangs are running rampant (there is even a gang that rides around in old Ice Cream Trucks!) And Ms. Silver is brilliant at describing everything from the stink in the polluted air to the giddy feelings from the first twinges of love. I was able to see the world vividly and feel the oppressed nature of their lives.

The Otherborn, the dreamers, the ones that believe they are from another world. Why else would they have the ability to dream when others can't? The Otherborn band (literally they are a band) together and use the astral planes. I can't really go on about the whole astral realm as it is too much to explain in a review, but Ms. Silver does a great job walking you through the whole idea. What I didn't like was the lack of planning - like I said before - from London. They threw themselves into some pretty dicey situations that could have been avoided, but that is what makes the whole story exciting and infuriating at the same time!

Overall, I would recommend this book to both dystopian and science fiction lovers. There is a tiny bit of romance so those who are looking for a full blown love story this isn't it. I love that it isn't though, sometimes a book needs to be about friendship and how actions have consequences both in the present and the future and that not everyone is who they seem. I can not say enough how much I loved this book and even though there were some points that I was confused about, I found my way again. Now, there is a cliffhanger and the last exchanges with the characters have left me not only longing for the next book, but intrigued about where Ms. Silver is going to be taking us. A must read!!

FTC Advisory: I was given a copy of this book from the publisher for an honest review. No backroom deals or whispered promises were made.

1. First, a quickie: give us the genre of your book/series and tagline in 30 words or less.
OTHERBORN is YA dystopian/sci-fi In a reprocessed world, London and her friends must dream their way to a New hope.

2. What gave you the idea to write a Young Adult series?
We didn’t have YA when I was growing up per say. But I always imagined writing characters who were “coming of age”. Then, as an adult, I began reading YA with my daughters. And I still pictured all my characters in that age range. YA is great because there are things you can write for that audience that it’s much harder to write for adults. Kids and teens are much more open-minded and imaginative. They’ll accept things in the work that an adult might struggle with. Plausibility means something totally different when you write YA. So, any book idea I’ve had, I’ve always fitted to YA characters and the YA audience.

3. What inspired you to write the book/series, specifically?
Two things blended together to inspire OTHERBORN. First, my research on the Otherkin subculture, people who relate more closely to being nonhuman than human. These people believe they were or are actually nonhuman beings, i.e. fae, vampires, elves, shapeshifters, etc. Some express having vivid memories of past lives as these different beings. It’s really fascinating. The second was my research on dreaming. Our culture doesn’t give dreaming the powerful, transformational position it deserves, but many other cultures, past and present, view dreaming as an integral, extremely important part of their lives. There’s a wonderful author on the subject, Robert Moss, who talked about shamans meeting in the astral realm to help one another regardless of what place or time they lived in.

4. How did you come up with the title of your first book in the series?
Originally, my title was a little different. It was OTHERKIN, which I pulled from my research on the Otherkin subculture. But after I’d made my deal and was working with my publisher on production, I discovered quite serendipitously that another YA book by the same title would be coming out before mine. I decided then to switch titles and I came up with three alternatives and ran a survey online to see which one was most liked. OTHERBORN won out and I truly feel it is a better fit than my original title. As a side note, I befriended the author of that other book, OTHERKIN, the fabulous Nina Berry, and I highly recommend her series. It’s quite good and very different from mine.


5. Are experiences in the books based on people you know, or events in your own life or are they completely organic?
Nothing in OTHERBORN is based entirely on anything or anyone in my life. That said, I do pull from some things. For example, Kim is sort of my comic relief throughout the book. He’s a little less serious and little more goofy than the other characters. And that aspect of him reminds me of my husband, who is a complete goof and the comic relief around our house. So, probably I pulled from that experience to flesh Kim out, without even realizing it. Also, Capital City is actually Houston after it’s been walled. I’m from Houston and still live in the area and certain things in Capital City are loosely based on real Houston landmarks. The Ten is Interstate 10. The tunnels are a dystopian version of downtown’s actual tunnel system which many people don’t know about. Things like that. Of course, oil and gas is BIG business here, so that fits in with the Tycoons too.

6. What is the hardest part of writing?
Starting. Once that flow kicks in, it’s easy. But forcing yourself to sit down and start can be a daily challenge. Also, in OTHERBORN and its sequel, I encountered difficulty mid-plot. I’m a pantser, which means I don’t plot everything out ahead of time, I write it as I go along. So, I encountered that middle of the novel quagmire where you suddenly aren’t certain how you’re going to get from where you are to where you need to be at the end.

7. Which character is your favorite? Will you miss them the most when the series ends?
Si’dah is actually my favorite character and I will miss her the most when the series is over. I loved writing in her voice, which had a rhythm entirely different from the rest of the novel. It inspired the voice of my next project considerably. So, even though I’ll miss Si’dah when she’s gone, I’ll still have the character from my other series inspired by her to write in.

8. Tell us a little bit about your cover art. Who designed it? Why did you go with that particular image/artwork?
An artist named Roser designed the cover. She was someone my publishing company had worked with before and I really liked the covers she did most. Her work is typically more fantasy oriented, but I believed she could bring our vision to life beautifully. And she did. We batted some ideas around, but the one that gave us all goosebumps was this mirror image idea. Where you see London on one side, but her reflection is revealing Si’dah. It’s a little creepy, but I think it should be. It’s a dark story in a lot of ways, and I always felt these kids, as well as my readers, should find their Otherborn a little unsettling.

9. What books have most influenced your life most?
There are so many! Okay, I’m just going to run some titles off in no particular order. These are books that changed the way I looked at writing or even at the world: The Last Unicorn, A Wrinkle In Time, The Handmaid’s Tale, Mists of Avalon, Lord of the Rings, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Youth In Revolt, Wuthering Heights, The Alchemist…to name a few.

10. If you could be a supernatural, what kind would you be and why?
Well, I’m Wiccan. So, I would be a witch of some kind. Preferably one who lives in a dark, secluded forest and has psychic oracular powers. The “Witch of the Wood” archetype has been a powerful and influential one for me since I was a very little girl.


11. Do you have any unique talents or hobbies?
I’m also an artist! I do oil paintings and I craft Fairy Houses. I love art, it’s as important to me as writing. But my art is very personal, so it plays a different role in my life than my writing career.

12. How can readers contact you or find out more about your books?
First and foremost, visit my fabulous website! www.annasilverauthor.com You’ll find my contact info there, email, as well as a newsletter you can sign up for, and my blog. Also, all my announcements and info on my work is there too. Next to that, you can find me on Twitter (@saysannasilver) and on my author page on facebook (www.facebook.com/authorannasilver ). I have a goodreads author page too (http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6862122.Anna_Silver ), and a pinterest account (http://pinterest.com/AnnaSilver/ ). Links to all of these and more are on my site!

13. What can readers who enjoy your book do to help make it successful?
This is a wonderful question! I wished more people asked it. The absolute best thing you can do for an author is leave a review. Goodreads and Amazon are the two main places for this, but some authors might also like one on another site and you can check with them if you’re not sure. Aside from that, blog about the work. Host a giveaway. Tweet it, facebook it, anything to help spread the word. Smell press authors like myself absolutely depend on social media and the love of our readers to grow our careers. Truly, big press authors do too. Never, never think that an author doesn’t need your review or help!

14. Do you have any tips for readers or advice for other writers trying to get published?
I always tell aspiring authors to cultivate persistence. It is the single most important thing they can do to further their own success. After that, get out and mingle. Which is hard. We writers are often introverts, but conferences and signings and other events are great ways to get discovered and learn more about your craft. And finally, keep writing. When you finish one thing and are submitting it, don’t wait around for that glorious acceptance letter you just know is coming. Start writing the next thing.

Anna Silver is an author and artist living in the greater Houston area with her family, pets, and overactive imagination. Her art has been featured in the Houston gallery Las Manos Magicas. She studied English Writing & Rhetoric at St. Edward’s University. She's freelanced for private clients and small publications like the Hill Country Current. OTHERBORN is her first published novel. She is represented by Rebecca Podos and Nicole LaBombard of Rees Literary Agency.

Website  -  Facebook  -  Twitter  -  Goodreads  -  Pinterest

********************************************************

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal: Touching Fire by Airicka Phoenix

Touching Fire

(Touch Series, #2)

by Airicka Phoenix

Release date: June, 2013

Genre: Young Adult Paranormal Romance.

Warnings: Strong language and mild sexual content

Formats: ebook & paperback

Fallon’s on the run again, but this time, she’s not alone and she has a direction — she’s going to meet the man whose blood runs through her veins, the only man who can finally tell her who… what she is and why Garrison wants her so badly. But the truth may be more than she can handle when she falls from one world into another, one that shouldn’t exist and learns truths about herself that she may wish she never knew.
Faced with a reality so beyond comprehension, Fallon must accept the destiny she’s given because Garrison will stop at nothing to insure the success of The Amalie Project, even if he must do the unthinkable and become just like Fallon.
Touch Vengeance. Touch Malice. Touch Fire.

He was still waiting when I joined him again, composed. He stood with his back against the wall, his hands lost deep into the folds of his pockets. He was studying his shoes, his hair falling in thick fringes over his eyes. Those blue eyes rose, crystalline pools of electricity, and met mine, and my world stopped. My breath stopped. My heart would have stopped if it wasn’t drumming a tempo of pure elation at the sight of him. It ached, so desperate for the need to be closer. God, it was never close enough. I could crawl into him, burrow into his soul and it wouldn’t be enough.

I took a step closer, as unsteady as a new born calf. He caught my hand, reeled me to him without ever pushing away from the wall. I was pulled into the space between his feet, held there as he bent my arm and twisted it around my own waist. I was pressed into him, his thighs hard against mine. I felt his heartbeat through the fingertips he traced over the curve of my cheek.

“Stop touching me,” I gasped, cotton-mouthed, half-crazed by the possibility that he might take me seriously.

“Why?” His breath fanned over my dry and already parted lips.

I opened my eyes, surprised to find them closed. “Because I won’t want you to stop.”

The band of steel around my waist tightened until I was supported only by him, by his arm, his chest, his heat, his scent… God, I was home! My fingers curled into the soft material of his fresh, clean shirt. He must have changed, but it was yet another black t-shirt.

“I can’t.” His lips wrote each word against mine in the caress of butterfly wings.

My bones liquefied. I nearly fainted.

“Why?” The single word was a mere movement of my lips.

His free hand shackled my chin, guided my face up, held me prisoner to eyes much too animal to be human. “Because I don’t want to stop.”

If there was ever any possibility of remembering to breathe, it was gone. I was barely conscious, barely even sane as I sunk into blissful madness cured only by his lips… his touch.

“Touch me!” My desperate plea was met with a fierce growl.

His eyes, dark, feral, bore into mine. “Not here!”

I opened my mouth to protest, to beg, but his finger against my lips became a barricade, trapping the words on my tongue.

“Don’t!” he hissed. His finger drew back, traced the curve of my bottom lip. His eyes followed the slow caress the way a cat watches a canary. “I can’t promise I’m completely in control right now.”

Airicka Phoenix is the best-selling author of the Touch Series with short stories in Whispered Beginnings: A Clever Fiction Anthology and Midnight Surrender Anthology. When she's not hammering away at the keyboard, she can be found banishing pirates or crawling through the attic looking for lost treasure with her kids. She loves baking, gardening and reading. She also likes to travel and take pictures of everything she comes across. When asked, Airicka describes herself as a sarcastic basket case that has an unhealthy addiction to chocolate, old movies and really bad jokes. She loves to laugh, make friends and write. If she could have one wish granted, it would be to spend one day as a fly-on-the-wall inside Stephen King's mind. If she could have two wishes granted, she would ask for a castle dedicated entirely to her overwhelming collection of books.For more about Airicka, also on how to win giveaways, read author interviews and reviews, visit her on all her sites.

Website - Twitter - Facebook - FB Airicka's Mystical Creations - Goodreads - Pinterest

Other books by Airicka:

Touching Smoke - Touching Eternity - Games of Fire  

Midnight Surrender Anthology  -  Whispered Beginnings: A Clever Fiction Anthology