Saturday, October 21, 2017

Monster Mash Blitz: Chasing Shadows by Bernadette Marie






Bestselling Author Bernadette Marie is known for building families readers want to be part of. Her series The Keller Family has graced bestseller charts since its release in 2011. Since then she has authored and published over thirty books. The married mother of five sons promises romances with a Happily Ever After always…and says she can write it because she lives it.



Connect with the Author here: 
~ Facebook ~ Website ~
 ~ Twitter ~
~ YouTube ~ Pinterest ~






Someone has decided to become the moral compass for the women in town, and now they're turning up dead. It will be up to Detective Lacy Pratt to find their killer before her relationship with Declan Matthews, brother to one of the victims, marks her as a target.



~ B&N ~ Kobo ~ Gum ~




Q&A With the Author:

1.     When did you start writing, and was there a specific event or person who influenced you to become an author? 
I started writing when I was about 12/13. I had become a reader in 7th grade, and I was reading Sidney Sheldon. His style was easy for me to read. My English teacher had me submit a writing sample to the county because they requested one since I'd scored so high on the first one, and that gave me my first writing joy. After that I was hooked. I took Mr. Sheldon's short and choppy method of writing and began to write my own stories with my friends. Soon it became an obsession.
2.     Are you currently working on a project, and if so, can you tell us anything about it? 
I am actually working on 4 projects. My 7th Walker book should be out by the time of this event :) I'm working on a I'm working on a Romance with Paranormal Elements (I might have just made that up.) Tentatively titled The Tea Shop, it should release in late November. I've set the story where I live near Golden, Colorado, and the woman has premonitions which she tries to hide from people because it does start to make her sound crazy...or guilty.
3.     What is your favorite writing snack? 
I don't know that I snack as much as I drink. And I only drink water and coffee when I write.
4.     If you could have dinner with any of your characters, which ones would you choose? Why? What food would you serve? 
I would have dinner with Carlos and Madeline (from a Second Chance.) They are family people, and I think we would have a lot to talk about with growing kids. I suppose we would barbeque on the grill. Maybe I'd have steak, which I love.
5.     Did you learn anything from writing your book and what was it? 
I learn something from every book I write. With Chasing Shadows I learned how to put a lot of observation into a book. It's a Romantic Suspense, so there need to be hidden details in everything, so that when it all pulls together, the reader can say, "Oh, I remember that."
6.     How do you relax, or what do you enjoy doing when you are not writing? 
Writing is relaxing to me, so this is always so hard to answer. I'm learning to close up shop at a reasonable time and sit on the couch and veg with my family. (Can you believe I have to actually think about it and plan it?)
7.     What is your largest unfulfilled dream, and what are you doing to reach it?
NYT's bestseller. I'm a dream chaser, so I've fulfilled so many of my dreams...but that one so far. I keep writing good books and hope that someday, one of them will get on that chart. Then I'll find a new dream.
8.     What do you fear most? 
Losing one of my kids. Just thinking about it makes me cry. But it is my biggest fear and it forces me to make sure that the last words they hear from me before they leave me each day is how much I love them.

9.     What advice would you give someone who wants to write a book some day? 
Get to writing! That book won't write itself. Don't stop once you start. Spit that story out and write until your done without editing. As authors we ruin more good stories by editing while we write.



To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page 



Friday, October 20, 2017

Monster Mash Blitz: Kate Empowered by Cindy M Hogan





"Cindy M. Hogan is a bestselling author of young adult suspense and action and adventure novels that always have a dash of clean romance. After her first series, The Watched Series, skyrocketed her to number one, she hasn’t let up and now has over 20 novels to her name.

She’s always on the move and never sits down to write, instead she walks and talks into a recorder and lets her computer transcribe her words. If she isn’t writing or editing, she’s teaching, gardening or doing crafts. You’ll always find her listening to an audiobook while working in her park-like yard, cooking or baking something delicious. She dreams to someday have a German style bakery with a cute to-go window for Gelato.

Cindy loves to create and her most prized creation is her two amazing daughters, and she secretly wishes they were teenagers again. She loves to be home, but her husband is a die-hard traveler and takes her family around the world. During her travels, she finds an endless supply of story ideas, characters and settings, walking away with either a suntan or jetlag.

Her contagious laughter is the cure to almost anything. To read a novel of hers is to see a piece of Cindy, as she puts her all into every novel she writes.

To stay up to date on all things Cindy M. Hogan, join her book group HERE.



Connect with the Author here: 
 ~ Website ~ Amazon ~ Blog





The Mafia has a stranglehold on everything Kate loves, and Kate is determined to end it. First they claimed her father, then destroyed her mother. The guy Kate cares for most is as much a prisoner as the family who raised her. And now, after all she’s lost, the Mafia wants to recruit her. But Kate has had enough. As long as the Mafia exists, she and her loved ones will live and die in fear, cowering under a dark, all-encompassing power. That leaves Kate with little choice. With the help of her Mafia-boss grandmother and a desperate wish for freedom, Kate must risk everyone she loves—and everything she is—to become the weapon that will take the Mafia down once and for all. If you like thought provoking, action-filled novels, you will love the latest action/adventure hit Kate Empowered by Cindy M. Hogan. Buy Kate Empowered to continue the addicting Code of Silence Series and enter the chilling and gripping world of the Mafia


~ Amazon CA




Q&A With the Author:

1.       When did you start writing, and was there a specific event or person who influenced you to become an author? 
Oh, my heck! I was minding my own business teaching when I had the most AWESOME dream! It was so vivid and clear and there was something about it that shifted my world. I knew the dream was important, but I didn't know exactly why. At first, I thought it was supposed to be a movie, but when no one could direct me to a movie producer, I decided just to write the dream down so that when I ran into a movie producer, I could give the idea to him. I started writing and bam! I couldn't stop. That was it, I was an author.

2.       Are you currently working on a project, and if so, can you tell us anything about it? 
Three actually. I just handed in the next Christy spy novel to my editor. I'm so excited about it. I'm still looking for a title...any ideas. It comes out in November. While that's with my editor, I'm working on Kate Empowered (Code of Silence Series #4) the exciting, fourth and final book staring Kate Hamilton and the mafia. I hope to have that out in January. Send me all the good vibes to make it happen. And finally, I'm working on my urban fantasy series. I'm so in love with this idea you guys. I've written 2 prequels and the first book (which I'm editing as soon as I get Kate Unleashed finished) So many ideas and so little time. I need to split myself into four.

3.       What is your favorite writing snack? 
pellet ice. But let's face it, there's nothing like a good piece of chocolate or bacon- lots of bacon

4.       If you could have dinner with any of your characters, which ones would you choose? Why? What food would you serve? 
Jeremy- he's hot and we would eat steak and potatoes, Belgian waffles with chocolate sticks cutting through them for dessert, or maybe a crepe from France-nutella and banana or strawberries and cream.

5.       Did you learn anything from writing your book and what was it?
 I learned all the things. Hahaha. No, seriously, each book teaches me something else about myself. My first book, however, taught me that I could be tough- that I could face criticism with what it was meant to be-encouragement and thoughtful help. That those who gave the criticism were giving it to help me become the best author I could be.

6.       How do you relax, or what do you enjoy doing when you are not writing? 
I don't think I relax like normal people. I love to work. Hahahaha. My idea of fun is doing stuff like gardening, hiking, woodworking, cooking, baking--lots of baking.

7.       What is your largest unfulfilled dream, and what are you doing to reach it? 
Hmmm. Like, I'd love to own a German bakery, but I'm not doing anything to work toward it.  So, I'd say becoming a New York Times bestseller. I just made USA Today Bestseller List, so I'm one step closer. I'm writing like crazy and my agent is going to help me get there.

8.       What do you fear most?  
Not being good enough- Seriously, that would suck.

9. What advice would you give someone who wants to write a book some day? 
Oh, my goodness- there is so much to know. Go learn it all at writers' conferences. They will rock your world and you will make some of the best friends of your life.




To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page 



Thursday, October 19, 2017

Monster Mash Blitz: Sons of the Sphinx by Cheryl Carpinello





I’m a retired high school English teacher. A devourer of books growing up, my profession introduced me to writings and authors from times long past. 

Through my studies and teaching, I fell in love with the Ancient and Medieval Worlds. Now, I hope to inspire young readers and those Young-at-Heart to read more through my Tales and Legends for Reluctant Readers set in these worlds.





Connect with the Author here: 


When 15-year-old Rosa agrees to help the ghost of King Tut find his lost queen Hesena, she doesn't count on falling for him.

Once back in Ancient Egypt, Rosa discovers that finding Hesena if not all she must do and is not as easy as she thought it would be, even though she carries part of the lost queen in her soul. She must also keep out of the reach of the living Horemheb—who crosses mortal boundaries using Seth's evil magic—if she is to stay alive to make it back
 home.







~ B&N ~ iTunes ~




Q&A With The Author:

1. When did you start writing and was there a specific event or person who influenced you to become as author?

I’ve been writing for a long time; I wrote my first poem in eighth grade. My college years and my teaching career solidified my love of the ancient world and the times of King Arthur. It wasn’t until I retired from teaching literature and writing that I had the time to devote to my own tales which had roamed around in my head for years.

2. Are you currently working on a project, and if so, can you tell us about it?

Yes and yes! I have started a new five book series Feathers of the Phoenix, and the first book The Atlantean Horse. Rose from Sons of the Sphinx will share the spotlight in this series with her cousin Jerome. Both of them have special abilities that they are struggling to live with and still be teenagers. The adventure revolves around an old prophecy that says one day when the five feathers of the Phoenix bird are reunited with a white stallion and one-who-survived—both of which were saved from destruction by Poseidon when he destroyed Atlantis—the lost island will rise again long enough for all three to return to their home. It will then disappear forever. Naturally there are those who want to be at the rising in order to steal the treasures rumored to be in that lost city.

3. What is your favorite writing snack?

Red licorice.

4. If you could have dinner with any of your characters, which ones would you choose and why? What food would you serve?

By default, I would have to say Rosa from Sons of the Sphinx. I would love to sit with young Guinevere from my Guinevere trilogy, but I’m a picky eater. There’s very little food from Medieval times that I would eat. With Rosa, we could have hamburgers, hotdogs, and even KFC!
5. Please share what you learned from writing your book.

The wonders of Egypt are many, and I enjoyed delving deeper into that mysterious land. The injustices aimed at Tutankhamen’s family nearly wiped them from the pages of history. The title of the book came from my research. A stele—a stone tablet carrying messages from Pharoahs—sits between the paws of the Sphinx. It tells the story of the day the Sphinx spoke to Tut’s great-grandfather Tuthmosis IV and called him his son. Since that time, all of the men in that line have been known as Sons of the Sphinx.

6. How do you relax, or what do you enjoy doing when you are not writing?

I love spending time with our grandkids. We two boys, ages 9 & 4, and two girls, ages 2 & 1. They are a lively bunch and keep us running.

7. What’s your largest unfulfilled dream, and what are you doing to reach it?

Traveling. I want to visit those places in the ancient and medieval worlds—whose literature I taught--that I’ve read and written about. We’ve done Egypt, Wales, England, Iceland, but have a lot more to explore. Every other year we pick a destination and plan a 3-week trip. Due for the next one in 2018. Wonder where we’ll go?

8. What do you fear most?

Losing those I care for most. We’ve had a lot of loses in our family in the past, and just in the last nine months, we have said goodbye to three.

9. What advice would you give someone who wants to write a book some day?

Ask yourself these questions:

What type of story do you want to write?
Who are you writing for?
How will your characters/plot appeal to readers?

Why do you want to write?




To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page 



Wednesday, October 18, 2017

Blitz: The Unmistakable Scent of Gardenias by Denise Moncrief





Denise is a Southern girl who has lived in Louisiana all her life, and yes, she has a drawl. She has a wonderful husband and two incredible children, who not only endure her writing moods, but also encourage her to indulge her writing passion. Besides writing romantic suspense, she enjoys traveling, reading, and cooking.

Accounting is a skill she has learned to earn a little money to support her writing habit. She wrote her first story when she was a teen, seventeen handwritten pages on school-ruled paper and an obvious rip-off of the last romance novel she had read. She's been writing off and on ever since, and with more than a few full-length manuscripts already completed, she has no desire to slow down.





Connect with the Author here: 

Content with the direction her life takes…



The temptation to earn a sweet payday and collect enough money to start her own interior design business is too much opportunity for Sophia Cannon to ignore, but working for her new client, Les Wakefield, is like working for a creepy stalker. He seems to be everywhere she goes.

Until trouble walks around the corner and into her life again…

Dylan Hunter almost turns down the Wakefield Manor restoration job until Les Wakefield tells him Sophia is the interior designer hired to oversee furnishing the old plantation house. Sophia has been the ghost in his life since the day she left him, haunting his heart with her memory every day and every night.

Stirring up more than just the spirits of the dead…

Sophia and Dylan fight with each other until a much bigger threat puts both their lives in danger. Discovering that generations of Wakefields have restored the plantation only to disappear months after moving in to the manor house stirs up spirits that would rather remain undisturbed.


Can love survive the long nights at Wakefield Manor with the unmistakable scent of gardenias hanging so heavily in the air?






Q&A With the Author:


1.   When did you start writing, and was there a specific event or person who influenced you to become an author?

My desire to write began in high school. I wrote my first “story” when I was a teen. It was seventeen pages on school-ruled paper and an obvious rip-off of the last Harlequin I’d read. I think I’ve always had the urge to write, but when I was younger, I never had the time or the motivation to follow through and finish anything. Many years after I wrote my first romance, I was telling my husband about a story idea I had. He was so encouraging about the idea and so supportive of me trying to get it published, that I followed through and wrote the book. Purgatory wasn’t the first book that I published, but it was my first concept for a book that made it all the way to publication.

2.   Are you currently working on a project, and if so, can you tell us anything about it?

I’m currently working on three projects. One of them is the final and fifth installment of the River Road set of the Haunted Hearts Series, The Sweet Madness of Honeysuckle. Today’s highlighted book, The Unmistakable Scent of Gardenias is the first book in the set.
In Honeysuckle, Tricia is a woman who has had a run in with one of the crime families in New Orleans. She escaped from them once but is afraid they will find her again. She’s hiding out in a small town, working in a bar on the edge of the swamp. The new bouncer at the bar is a has-been ex-cop with a sketchy past and a bum leg. Together they become entangled in the ghost story that has been the story arc for the whole River Road set.

3.   What is your favorite writing snack?

Coffee. All I need is coffee.

4.   If you could have dinner with any of your characters, which ones would you choose? Why? What food would you serve?

The River Road series is set in south Louisiana, a part of the world that I am somewhat familiar with. I’ve always been fond of the culture and flavor of the area. I would want to get the ensemble of characters from the River Road set together and have a crawfish boil. That is very Louisiana.

5.   Did you learn anything from writing your book and what was it?

My husband and I took a few trips to south Louisiana while I was writing this series. I’ve always loved the culture and flavor of the area. I took a lot of pictures and took some time to absorb the feel of the area. Hopefully, I’ve been able to describe some of what I absorbed. I think any little bit of authenticity that can be added to a setting or a plot point makes a story richer. The time a time for an author to use her imagination, and there are other times when the scene being described should be realistic.

6.   How do you relax, or what do you enjoy doing when you are not writing?

More than anything, I enjoy being with my family. That’s become especially important to me since I’ve become an empty nester. I confess I have a terrible Netflix and Hulu bingeing habit. My husband did a good thing for me for my last birthday and bought me a new guitar. So lately, I’ve shifted some of spare time to getting back into playing the guitar again.

7.   What is your largest unfulfilled dream, and what are you doing to reach it?

I had to think about this question for a long time. There have been a few dreams of mine that have come and gone. Sometimes, you have to let a dream go so a bigger or better dream can take its place. I always wanted to sing for an audience. That didn’t happen the way I wanted it to. So I set that dream aside and concentrated on something else. Writing took its place with a different set of goals. I’m living the dream. I feel like my writing career is already successful. So I don’t think I hold any dreams that haven’t been fulfilled.

8.   What do you fear most?

Nothing gets to me more than being forgotten, unheard, or overlooked. So all of my fears center around being abandoned.

9. What advice would you give someone who wants to write a book some day?

Two pieces of advice that I read over and over are only good advice if you go beyond the surface of their basic meaning.

Write what you know – This means that you should be familiar with your subject. If you want to write about something you don’t know much about, expand what you know on the subject. Don’t let a lack of knowledge stop you from exploring new interests in your writing.


Write every day – This means that you should practice writing every day. Like anything done well, you have to keep doing it or you’ll lose your edge. But this doesn’t just mean accumulating words in a manuscript. Let everything you experience in your life become part of your writing process. Write even when you aren’t writing words. 



To view our blog schedule and follow along with this tour visit our Official Event page