A.R. Draeger's Blog

Where have I been, since, oh, freaking November of last year?
How can I put it in a concise paragraph that will not inflict boredom or sound as though I'm aiming for pity? 
I was minding my own business, meandering skipping down a brick road, smelling some flowers, when it so happened that I tripped unknowingly and fell into a sinkhole of life. Life in its beautiful, wonderful ways = Logan, life in its crazy/hectic ways, and as of a few weeks ago, life in its darkest ways. 
As Dad would say, "It is what it is."
All I can say at this point is I went from having some sane perspective to having none to having to rebuild it all over again. Loss has a way of shaking me more than I like to ever admit. I'm getting back on my feet, a day at a time.
Hopefully I'll be on WordPress soon as well. ;)  That would help. ********In the Meantime..........   Author S.K. Gregory is having an event on Facebook celebrating her Daemons Series! She's giving out prizes and it's going on for *two days* (July 2nd - July 3rd). Go check it out, maybe score a prize or two (if you're super lucky) just in time to rub it in at the BBQ on the 4th! ;) **Click HERE to go to the Facebook event ----> Inner Daemons - Daemon Series Book Event **   Click for Sam's Blog ---*Right over here*--> Storyteller - S.K. Gregory Check out Sam's Author Page on Facebook here ----->  S.K. Gregory Author  

 Amazon: Daemon Persuasion by S.K. Gregory Synopsis:
When Mackenzie Murphy goes looking for her father she finds herself caught in the middle of a demon war between three rival families. Still trying to master her own demon abilities, who can she trust to help her? The mysterious Lucien? Or Taryn, the son of the enemy? With all three families hunting for a talisman that could shift the balance of power, Mackenzie must get to it first and finish what her father started, or die trying.  Amazon: Daemon Madness by S.K. Gregory
 Synopsis: Mackenzie Murphy thought her demon troubles were behind her, but with Taryn as her new roommate and his father still out to kill him, it seems there's no getting away from them. When Taryn begins to act erratically, Mackenzie discovers that he has to face the consequences for saving her life. Deadly consequences. So it's up to Mackenzie to save him, while avoiding the attention of a local cop and her homicidal boss. Maybe demons are the least of her worries.   Daemon Battle by S.K. Gregory COMING FALL 2016  ************
Go grab some good reads! I'll be back - much, much sooner than last time, I promise, and hopefully with an awesome cover reveal of my own. *grins* ************
Thank you for hanging in there with me. ****
And for all of you who are grieving, who are depressed, who are stressed, who feel like they bathed in concrete and every step is a weary one....it may not seem like it now, but it will pass. It will lift. Sometimes you have to choose to let it, but if you find yourself contemplating ending your own life for the sake of relief from it, please reconsider.  Please know you are loved.  Please know you are not trapped, and this life really can be what you choose to make it. Peel a layer off each day that weighs you down. Find someway to shed it. Seek help and get it. No matter how horrible your heart aches, no matter how much your soul trembles, there is a lot of peace to be found just by reaching out to someone - anyone.
As jaded as I may be at times, I still believe there is far more good in this world than evil, and there are far more beautiful moments yet to be lived. Sometimes all you need is a little dusting. There's no shame picking yourself up off the ground because, by God, you are still alive to do it. 
Choose to live for those who couldn't.
And by all means, find yourself. Stop living in the shadow of what this 80 hour workweek world has created and ask yourself who you are at heart, and what it is you need to do to be happy. Work your way to it.   Have a blessed, happy life. 
I know mine's certainly a work-in-progress. ;) <3
I'll be back soon!   

 
Holy cow. Long time = no bloggie, eh? I'm not going to lie, I went from my head buried under deadlines to THE PLAGUE (*ahem* a really nasty upper respiratory infection/bronchitis) that I am still battling.  On to the good stuff:
While I slobbered on myself in feverish states, I managed to push through the end of corrections on final line edits of Daughters of Men. It's been formatted, re-released, and LORD WILLING the typos and whatnot are gone. 
To celebrate, Contagious Reads gratefully put up with my screwball-self and is hosting me on a Book Tour! Check it out! 
Contagious ReadsKatie HayozJoyful PeacockMelanie KarsakThe Bibilophile's Apprentice (11/5)Alexia Purdy (11/6)
***Special thanks to all those participating!***

Daughters of Men by A.R. Draeger Goodreads | Amazon

Devastated by the loss of her son, Rebecca is struggling to salvage her marriage to Jacob, a cold and detached pastor. When he goes on a men's hunting retreat and does not return on time, Rebecca fears the worst.

Jacob arrives three days late, citing bad weather and poor cell service as the reasons none of the men called home. Jacob appears healthy, but Rebecca is concerned with the deep gashes on his arms and is even more alarmed when he tells her that he stitched them himself. As the weeks pass, Rebecca begins to wonder what happened in the mountains. Jacob is not the same man he was before.

While she is relieved he is no longer detached, she cannot comprehend why he’s become so flirtatious, so sexually aggressive. So obsessive.

Jacob's odd behavior mounts, and the actions of the men who joined Jacob on the retreat grow more and more strange, convincing Rebecca that the men who came home are not the men who left.

Who are these pretenders… and what have they done with her husband?

 ABOUT THE AUTHORA.R. (Amber) Draeger resides in rural Texas with her husband, Josh, and son, Logan. When not writing or reading, she is watching reality TV shows or tromping through the nearby woods.
 Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads        *****KindleFire HD*****Daughters of Men by A.R. Draeger (ebook + paperback)Of Ocean and Ash by A.R. Draeger (ebook + paperback)Immersed by Katie Hayoz (ebook)Untethered by Katie Hayoz (ebook)Sanguinary by Margo Bond Collins (ebook)Waking up Dead by Margo Bond Collins (ebook)CLICK HERE ---->>>>  a Rafflecopter giveaway

********** Paranormal Wednesday Blog Hop!
It's been a while since I've done this, so I thought I'd throw up a piece of flash fiction that I posted for a Halloween competition. It didn't win anything, but I'm proud of it, damn it! Of course, I've been feverish, so my opinion may be horribly skewed. ;)
 Flash is a reach for me. Condensing down a story to just a few hundred words is challenging, but the more you put it in to practice, the stronger of a writer you'll become (so I've been told). ;)
After your done, check out the other blogs on the hop here: Paranormal Love Wednesday Blog Hop
Death, Interrupted by  A.R. Draeger
The rain rose up to meet the clouds when her taxi stopped in front of the house. I followed the crystalline drips up their tracks along the windowpane with my translucent fingertips. The others in this godforsaken place tucked themselves away into rotten recesses, but I waited for her. The fibre of her had called me long before the soles of her feet touched the sidewalk.
We would have an arrangement, she and I.
Sarah came weathered, no shoes, ripped clothes, and her face swollen from chemotherapy. She was young, a teenager by the feel of her, and it took no tendril to reach in and feel the rage that coursed through her. She held a leather-bound book, so crushed against her breasts that one could imagine her heartbeat ricocheting against it.
She reached my room before I realized she held my freedom in her arms.
She spoke as she stepped across my threshold. The warmth of her breath permeated the cold. Lowering herself to the ground, she pulled a small candle from her pocket and lit it, looking up with each action for my response. After a pause, she reached into the opposite pocket, revealing a tube of fire-engine red lipstick and a pocket knife.
Opening the book, her eyes squinted to see the script in the dying daylight. She swayed as she read, and her archaic words chipped at the silence. The words were melodic to me. I felt the corners of my mouth lift into a smile as her spell drew me to her, tethering me to the candle and the seal she was making on the hardwood floor next to her with the lipstick. 
As I manifested before her, her eyes rolled into the back of her head until they were balls of perfect white. Mucus drained from her nostrils and poured over her frantic lips.
“Ask,” I said, my voice a whisper. 
“Revenge,” Sarah replied, her voice shrinking back to that of a fragile youth.
“Exchange?”  
She hesitated, and then turned a few pages in the book, revealing a picture hidden among them. It was of a leggy blonde in a cheerleading uniform.  She held the photo up to me with an unwavering hand. 
“Agreed. Life for a death.”  
With a quick slash, the vein of her left arm opened, bathing me in luxurious warmth. Wrapping myself around her arm, I crawled in, pushing myself into her until I could look upon her hands as though they were my own. 
The wound sealed, we rose as one mind and one body, her thoughts directing our footsteps until we’d reached a large two-story home at the end of a secluded drive. Vehicles lined the street, and silhouettes moved in the windows. 
We moved through the partying crowd without notice, and then crept up the staircase.  The last door on the right was where we found her, writhing against an equally vigorous male. The creaking of the bed and the booming music below covered any sound of our entrance. 
“It must be by your hand,” I reminded Sarah. 
Knife readied, Sarah leapt onto the edge of the bed. Grabbing a handful of blonde hair, she jerked the back of the girl’s head down to reveal the throat. Before either drunken youth could respond, Sarah buried the blade into the girl’s skin, severing the tissues deep as she whispered words to pull me from her body. 
I slithered out of Sarah as smoky tendrils, grasping for my new host. Sensing the life of my vessel fast fading, I dove into her.
The blonde and I trembled for a moment as I gained control of her limbs and she shrieked in the recess of my mind. I licked the blood from my new lips, and then turned to Sarah.
“Thank you,” I said.
Sarah nodded to the young man frozen in fear beneath me. I smiled, envisioning the havoc I would wreak and the life I would taste as a young, blonde, female serial killer. The door clicked behind me, and I knew Sarah was readying to flee.
“I will see you at the ripe age of 78, Sarah,” I said. “Enjoy.”
“And I will see you in the news,” she said. “Until they catch you.”
“Indeed,” I replied, eyeing my first victim as I lowered my mouth to tear at his flesh.
***The end.** Hope you liked it. ;)

  

  
WHAT IF EVERYTHING YOU KNEW ABOUT YOURSELF WAS A LIE?
Melusine Doré is as practiced at guarding a secret as she is at wielding a weapon. Yet her past refuses to stay buried. Her worst fears are realized when Melusine and her companion, Levi, get called to hunt a beast in her birthplace of Malheur. The second she sets foot on her native soil, nothing proceeds as she planned: a beautiful tinker sets her sights on Levi, a gentle monster kills for sport, and an admission of love becomes a betrayal. Melusine comes face to face with the lies of her family’s past—and a truth that could destroy her.
Adventure number two in the Clockwork Siren series, Submerged takes us from the muddy trenches of steampunk Chicago to the sticky swamps of Louisiana to the slippery side of love.

GRAB IT NOW FOR ONLY $.99!AMAZON * AMAZON UK
AMAZON * AMAZON UK Katie grew up in Racine, Wisconsin where she acquired an irreversible nasal twang and an addiction for books with a slightly dark edge. She now lives in Geneva, Switzerland with her husband, two daughters, and two fuzzy cats. She has been an avid reader of YA fiction for years. While she has a penchant for the paranormal, she devours a range of books -- along with popcorn and black licorice. She consumes all three in large quantities. Luckily, the books don't stay on her hips.
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Hosted By: ******Happy Release Day, Katie!!!! <3 <3 <3 <3

Title: Never Say NeverAuthor: Emily GoodwinGenre: Full length, stand-alone contemporary romanceRelease Date: September 28, 2015
 
**Available NOW on Amazon!!**Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1R9wOzUAmazon UK: http://amzn.to/1PHHjt7

Blurb
My life was full of nevers.
It was never supposed to go this way. I was never supposed to lose Mom so soon. I was never supposed to worry about making ends meet, to worry about losing the farm. I never thought I’d be working a job I hate, with a boss who was more interested in what was under my shirt than in my head. Saving neglected and abused horses had been my whole life. It was my reprieve, my sanity, my last saving grace in a cruel world. I never thought I’d grow to resent it, but I guess there is a first for everything. 
Then I met him. 
The Hollywood playboy. The entitled, cocky asshole that I can’t get out of my head. I never thought there could be more to him than sex appeal and an infamous reputation of loving and leaving. I never thought I’d fall for him, put my heart on the line, and risk letting him completely destroy me. But you know what they tell you…never say never.
Excerpt
A tear rolls down her cheek and she bites her lip, trying not to cry. Then her face breaks and her shoulders slump forward. I stand there, shaking, terrified of the raw emotion. My heart breaks for her and I rush forward, wrapping her in my arms as she sobs. It’s beautiful and it’s tragic, and in that moment, I’ve never felt anything more real.

The pain. The sorrow. Her loss. The darkness I try to hard to keep out, that I fight tooth and nail but can never fully avoid. I hold her and feel it all. It swarms around me, filling me, hurting me, opening my eyes. I realize everything I’ve done to desperately hold it together slowly chipped away at me until there was nothing left, nothing but a shell of a man with an empty heart that I never though was capable of feeling anything but hurt. A heart I thought was never worthy of a second chance, was never capable of redemption.

It’s then that I realize I never, ever want to let her go.

And it’s crazy, because I don’t know her—really know her—but there is something so intimate about holding someone as they cry. It exposes so much, and you can’t hold back as the tears fall and the sadness comes out in waves. I feel my own eyes mist over. I close them and cradle Haley close to me.

“There’s nothing wrong with you,” I tell her. “I promise you that.”

“Look at me,” she repeats. “Have you ever had a date end this way?”

“Our date didn’t even start,” I say. “And hey, you didn’t go crazy and shave your head, so I say you’re doing all right.”

She laughs, and her arms slowly wrap around me. Something inside me relaxes. I sit and pull her onto my lap and we stay there in silence for a few minutes. Gently, I push her hair out of her face. “Want that drink now?” 

She laughs again and nods. “I need that drink now.” She stands up and wipes her eyes, smearing her makeup across her cheeks. “And really, I won’t hold it against you or call the tabloids on you if you drop me off at home and call it a night.”

Tabloids? The word is jarring. For a few minutes I was the real Aiden again…and I didn’t mind. “It’s up to you, Haley. I’m not mad or upset, so don’t worry. I don’t like seeing you sad, and if you’d like, I want to try and cheer you up.”

“I’d like that.”

I stand and drape my arm around her. “Are you hungry? I can go get the food.”

“I am. And thanks, Aiden. I…I don’t know.”

“What?” I probe.

“I’m surprised by your kindness.”

“Ouch,” I say with a chuckle. “Thanks?”

She smiles and takes a step toward the restaurant. “Hey, you can’t really blame me, can you?”

I can’t, because I’ve fooled the world—and at times, myself—about who I really am. The partying, the women, the excessive spending, and run-ins with the American law…okay, so maybe I had a reputation. “No, I can’t. But I’m glad I surprised you.”  

About the Author
Facebook | Goodreads | Website
Emily Goodwin is the author of the twice banned dark romance, STAY, as well as over a dozen other titles. Emily writes all types of romance, from love stories set in the zombie apocalypse to contemporary romances taking place on a western horse ranch. 
Emily lives in Indiana with her husband, children, and many pets, including a German Shepherd named Vader. When she isn't writing, Emily can be found riding her horses, designing and making costumes, and sitting outside with a good book.
    ********I read some pages from this a while back, and WOW. I can't wait to read it. Ever since I met many of the Falling in Deep ladies, I have been completely overwhelmed with their talent - and their tenacity. It's surreal, breathtaking, and admirable. With amazing authors like Emily, I honestly have so freaking many good books to read on my list, I'm not sure I'll ever catch up. It's a book addict heaven. Everything from paranormal romance to contemporary to horror to sci-fi to you-name-it, they are writing it. I am blessed to be under their wings.  Happy (late-ish) Release Day to the incredibly talented and beautiful Emily Goodwin!<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3  

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Thursday, 9/17
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Friday, 9/18
Leigh Anderson Romance**
Contagious Reads**  And a thank you to all those who participated in the blitz as well!


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A.R. (Amber) Draeger resides in rural Texas with her husband, Josh, and son, Logan. When not writing or reading, she is watching reality TV shows or tromping through the nearby woods.





***~~~~~**GIVEAWAY WINNERS**~~~~~*** 
(If you have won, please allow until Friday 9/25 for the donating author to make contact. If you have not received anything/communication by then, please contact me - A.R. Draeger. :) )
Untethered (ebook) by Katie Hayoz  -  Winner:  Victoria Alexander
Immersed (ebook) by Katie Hayoz  -  Winner:    Sherry Fundin
Cold Water Bridegroom (ebook) by B. Brumley  -  Winner:  Libby Faye
Never Say Never (ARC ebook) by Emily Goodwin - Winner: Raeline Peterson
Stay (ebook) by Emily Goodwin - Winner:  Stacey Grantham
Legally Undead (ebook) by Margo Bond Collins - Winner:  Lindsay Galloway
Sanguinary (ebook) by Margo Bond Collins - Winner:  Mai Tran
Siren's Kiss (paperback) by Margo Bond Collins - Winner: Crystal Cox
The Glass Mermaid (ebook) by Poppy Lawless - Winner:  Kathie Simpson Craig
Ink: A Mermaid Romance (paperback) by Melanie Karsak -  Winner:  Tiana S.
Daughters of Men (ARC paperback) by A.R. Draeger - Winner: Amy Bowens
Daughters of Men (ARC paperback) by A.R. Draeger - Winner: Shelly Hammond  
Daughters of Men (ARC ebook) by A.R. Draeger - Winner:  Laura Thomas
Daughters of Men (ARC ebook) by A.R. Draeger - Winner: Demelza Carlton
Of Ocean and Ash (ebook) by A.R. Draeger - Winner:  Midu Hadi
Of Ocean and Ash (ebook) by A.R. Draeger - Winner: Faye Gates

Of Ocean and Ash (paperback) by A.R. Draeger with Mermaid Journal - Winner:  Karrie Millheim
Of Ocean and Ash (paperback) by A.R. Draeger with Mermaid Rain board game - Winner: Missy Ellis
**Grand Prize Winner**Kindle Fire HD 7 (White) and ebook copies of Of Ocean and Ash and Daughters of Men
**~~Jennifer Long~~**

YAY!!! Thank you to all who participated!

A special hug and thank you to the lovely authors who donated copies of their books for the giveaway: Melanie Karsak, Poppy Lawless, Margo Bond Collins, Emily Goodwin, B. Brumley, and Katie Hayoz. <3
Be sure and click on their names to visit them and show them some love. :)

Of Ocean and Ash by A.R. Draeger Series: Falling In Deep, #3Genre: (**VERY DARK**)Paranormal Romance
Cover Designer: Quirky-BirdRelease Date: June 9, 2015

Of Ocean…
Cast into the sea at birth, human-born Ia found her adoptive family among the merfolk. While her underwater upbringing was peaceful, Ia’s blood-heritage and the strict societal rules of the merpeople lead her to wonder of the world above the waves.

And Ash…
When a storm lands Ia ashore, she discovers her body has transformed into the human she would have been. Taken in as property by a callous plantation owner, Ia works alongside the slaves until she can make her way back to the water. There is nothing Ia wants more than to go home, that is, until she meets a handsome, troubled man named Matthias, who has a touch that can be as kind as his tongue is harsh.

Torn between two very different lives, Ia must choose – stay in his world and risk her life for a love untested, or return to the familiar arms of the underwater world that raised her and risk losing what may be the greatest love she will ever know.

Will Ia’s choice lead to happiness or her destruction?




I debated deleting this section. Then I thought, nah, I'm going to leave myself a review. 
5 Stars. Brilliant. Literary Genius. 
(bwahahaha. You guys. I am joking. I am far from brilliant. I wouldn't know a literary genius if they threw Kafka at me. I write because I love to write. I read because I love to read. I love this book because it is my own.   Go check out the link below for some of the review tour stops. Check out the reviews on Amazon and Goodreads.
Or. Better yet....buy it for $0.99 and read it for yourself. ;) (Just be sure and leave a review if you like it please. :) <3 <3 <3)

Click here to see all the stops on the Of Ocean and Ash Review Tour!




A.R. (Amber) Draeger resides in rural Texas with her husband, Josh, and son, Logan. When not writing or reading, she is watching reality TV shows or tromping through the nearby woods.





a Rafflecopter giveaway

     
They killed my sister and infected me.
 Now I have to pick up the pieces before I die.
I’ve spent the last five months trying to find the bastard who did this. Yet, even with the help of a hot amnesiac vampire named Jude, I’ve had zero luck.
Until now. And it could change everything. Even though I grew up in a family that hunted the supernatural, there were still things I didn’t believe in.
Now I have to hurry for the slim chance that I could save us all. 
Because when you fight against immortal vampires, you’re the one who’s running out of time.
My vampy sense tingles again, alerting me to the presence of a familiar vampire behind me. I groan on the inside and flick my cigarette into the fire.
 “Really?” I ask, half playfully, half in a bad mood.
 I’m still wired from my fight with the other vampires and seeing Meghan, so I can use the excuse to pummel him a few times.
 I spin on him, throwing punches in a halfhearted warning. My right shoulder aches with the movement.
 As usual, whenever I do this, he matches each of my movements with the same intensity.
 We spar for a bit, Harker against vampire, before he pins me against the wall, pressing his strong body against mine.
"You're chipper tonight, Harker," he tells me, a cheeky grin pulling at his lips. He raises an amused, pierced eyebrow. 
I roll my eyes at him and push him off me, trying to hide the blush from my cheeks. He was so close to me, I feel a bit too intimate with him at the moment. I turn my attention back to the mini-bonfire. Yes, he's a vampire, but I've known him for five months now and I know he won't hurt me.
 "Pissed off doesn't look good on you," he tells me.
 "I'm always kind of pissed off these days, Jude."
 "What, my lead wasn't good?" he asks.
 "That's what remains of them. In there." I nod to the dumpster, then I gesture to the college student still passed out against the wall. "They were having hemoglobin a la carte. And, no, I didn't get any information from either of them. They would rather die or do something stupid before they would ever want to help me."
 Jude curses under his breath. "Next time, Harker. You'll get something next time."
 I let out a shuddering breath. "You've been saying that for the past five months, Jude. It's not going to fucking happen. Anthony is like Bigfoot, except he hides better. I won't ever get to him in time."
 Because I'm dying and my expiration date is coming up. 
 "You'll figure something out, Harker."
 "Not soon enough."
 Jude grabs my shoulder and I look back at him in surprise. "Yes. You. Will," he says, punctuating each word. His blue-eyed gaze keeps me rooted to my spot, even though I try to shrug off his empty promises.
 It's hard though. Jude isn’t someone you can "shrug off," no matter how hard you try. I'm not one to go for bloodsuckers, but Jude is possibly the best specimen of vampire or human to ever walk the Earth. When they warn girls about bad boys, they have someone like Jude in mind. 
 AMAZON * AMAZON UK

 Sci-fi junkie, video game nerd, and wannabe manga artist Erin Hayes writes a lot of things. Sometimes she writes books, like the fantasy mystery novel Death is but a Dream, the sci-fi middle grade book Jacob Smith is Incredibly Average, and the Her Wolf paranormal series.She works as an advertising copywriter during the day, and she moonlights as an author. She has lived in New Zealand, Texas, and now in Birmingham, Alabama with her husband, cat, and a growing collection of geek paraphernalia.
You can reach her at erinhayesbooks@gmail.com and she'll be happy to chat. Especially if you want to debate Star Wars.
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Hosted By: ***********What can I possibly say? This book sounds like a TON of fun. And it's dark. And I love dark.I've been sitting the in throes of it on my latest work-in-progress. Remember that sci-fi? The one that I was stretching and straining to fit into a romance? HA. It's got a nasty little thread of horror.It has to. It is what it is. (Very writer-ly, I know.) So that is where I have been. Selecting my POV, revising what I have, and reworking my outline as I work on the draft.Goal is to have it completed   (and ready for consideration by some peoples) by the end of the year.Other goal is to make it brutal. Visceral. Stinging. Not shocking - not for the sake of it - but thrilling, terrifying, and a whirlwind of metal, pain, bullets, lasers, teeth, darkness of human nature, battle, and blood.That is my goal.It's lofty. I shall either write a pretty cool book, or I shall fail miserably.Wish me the best of luck. I shall need it.  In the meantime...it's the 14th!!! Which means my Book Review Tour for Of Ocean and Ash is well under way. I'm ***BEYOND** nervous, and so thankful to those who took the time out to not only read it, but review it. I'll have a secondary post today with a list of the participating blogs for easier finding. <3  And...on top of it... I'll be doing a review tour for Daughters of Men as well in late October.  If you like dark, if you like horror/thriller/sci-fi stuff, and you'd like to participate, please contact me. :) I would greatly appreciate it. :)<3 <3 <3 <3 <3Happy Reading and Writing, dear friends. :)  

 Siren's Kiss by Margo Bond Collins Buy Now for $0.99 on Amazon!!! ---> http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0107FLODY  Blurb:   Her kiss might save the world . . .
Unless his kiss kills her first.
It's been almost two thousand years since the mer-shifter Skyla walked the streets of Athens—not since her heart was broken by a human man and she exchanged the land and sky for the ocean depths. Ever since, she has lived in the underwater ruins of Atlantis, studying with the priestesses of the goddess Amphitrite, refining her mermaid powers and ignoring her human half.
But her studies are interrupted when she is called upon by Poseidon himself to investigate rumors that the world above is being polluted by the magic of creatures from another realm—and worse, that the ocean kingdom of the mer-people might be next.
When her inquiries in modern-day Greece lead her to an American detective asking similar questions, Skyla realizes that the magical problem she's been sent to research is bigger than she anticipated—and that one human's kisses might be more dangerous to her, and her world, than she ever could have imagined.    Excerpt:   This is not a love story.It's been over two thousand years since I walked these shores, and even then, the man who broke my heart was centuries gone, sailed away into death—the last journey into yet another land where I will not follow.Truth be told, though, he left me long before he died, gone away to rejoin a wife he hadn't seen in twenty years, to reclaim a rocky, wind-swept island for a son he barely knew.Gone home, to spin stories about his absence like his wife spun his death-shroud—picking out the stitches at night and reweaving them anew to postpone the inevitable moment when the stories wear thin and you find the monsters have been in your home all along, posing as suitors who would win your heart.The poets lie, you know. They say our songs seduce the sailors, draw them into the ocean to drown.But if the ocean sings to them, it is not our doing—no more than the earth's call to us is theirs.And Odysseus never tried to resist.On the cliff above the Theatre of Dionysus, the Parthenon loomed, its marble columns partially obscured in scaffolding. The last time Skyla had been here, when the marble seats of the open-air amphitheater were new, she watched the Oresteia trilogy—tragedies to the Athenians surrounding her, but too far from reality to be anything but comic to Skyla. Agamemnon had been a monster, a tyrant of a man who murdered his daughter for the joy of killing, a sacrifice to the gods of power and control. When his wife Clytemnestra killed him in return, other women did not blame her. Their house fell, but it was not of her doing. But the memories of men are short, and the stories they share shift and change, like the ocean's surface.     About the Author:     Margo Bond Collins is the author of urban fantasy, contemporary romance, and paranormal mysteries. She lives in Texas with her daughter and several spoiled pets. Although writing fiction is her first love, she also teaches college-level English courses online. She enjoys reading romance and paranormal fiction of any genre and spends most of her free time daydreaming about heroes, monsters, cowboys, and villains, and the strong women who love them—and sometimes fight them. Connect with Margo:  Newsletter: https://confirmsubscription.com/h/d/03A21E5E161401F0 Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/author/margobondcollins Email: MargoBondCollins@gmail.comWebsite: http://www.MargoBondCollins.net Blog: http://www.MargoBondCollins.comTwitter: https://twitter.com/MargoBondCollin  @MargoBondCollinGoogle+: https://plus.google.com/116484555448104519902Goodreads Author Page: http://www.goodreads.com/vampirarchyFacebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/MargoBondCollinsPinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/mbondcollins/Tsu: http://www.tsu.co/MargoBondCollins  ********************* Hope all of you are having a wonderful Labor Day weekend! I was enjoying mine until something of a stomach bug nature hit me, but that aside, I at least got some much needed reading time in. One of the most important elements of being a writer is reading, and we sometimes forget that. Not that we forget about it entirely, but that we become so overwhelmed with writing (or trying to be a *successful* writer) that we forget to read for fun. Not for critique, not to help a friend edit, not to beta. Just to sit back and enjoy the ride. I did that very thing. Left a good, well-deserved five-star review too. It was K.R. Griffiths' Adrift, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Maybe enjoyed it a little too much. It was horror as I like to read it. Unforgiving to the characters, unapologetic.  If you look up, find yourself with some time, give Margo Bond Collins a read. She is an amazing author, one that I have the privilege of knowing *in person* (*shock!* *gasp* we actually leave our houses every now and then!!*), and has some fabulous reads on her backlist that I enjoyed and loved. I can't wait to read Siren's Kiss! Very, very excited. :) :) In the meantime, if you are a BLOGGER, I have a **BOOK REVIEW TOUR** coming up - 9/14 thru 9/18 for Of Ocean and Ash with a Giveaway that includes a Kindle Fire HD 7. If you are interested, sign up here: http://www.bookpartnersincrimepromotions.com/2015/08/914-918-review-tour-of-ocean-and-ash-by.html
Please keep in mind that my mermaid is extremely dark , pretty much dances around the line of being a romance/horror (yeah, I may have inadvertently invented a genre) for doing so, and may turn out to be the most polarizing book in our Falling in Deep collection for that reason - so if you don't like dark, brutal/realistic reads... I don't recommend my book. :)
Other than that....I hope you read it and enjoy it. :)  

 To Each His Own by Anna Albergucci, Author of the Phoenix Decree Series
*Buy on Amazon Today for $0.99! ---> http://www.amazon.com/dp/B014PY5G7I

Blurb:
 
Douglass McGrail is a Scottish water horse—his clan the deadliest in the British Isle. When the shifter chooses to save—rather than eat—a young lassie, he never expects her innocent face to mark his memory so strongly.Months later, he stumbles onto a perceived attack in progress and plays the hero once more. He’s shocked to find the victim is the same lass who haunts his dreams. Jinny Fairchild is an English miss who’s come to the Highlands to live with her last remaining family. She is pursued by her handsome older cousin, Lachlan Brockhouse, but he has a dark side that lands her in the path of the mighty Douglass McGrail.Douglass wants Jinny for himself, yet discovers she is connected to the attacker she denies knowing. He’s determined to find the truth.Jinny loves Lachlan, even with his dark side. And she loves Douglass, even with his dark secret. Her heart is torn, but one thing is certain—no matter which of these men she chooses, she will be choosing a monster.


Trailer:
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLON7p7r2ts&feature=youtu.be
Buy Link:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B014PY5G7I

About the Author:



Anna Albergucci lived the first part of her life in Tennessee, and then moved to Oklahoma where she met and married her high school sweetheart. They’ve since made a life together in West Texas, and that romance shaped a happy home that has grown from a family of two to a family of eleven, plus three dogs.

​Even as a child, Anna had a strong imagination, forcing her poor mother, and anyone who would listen, to sit through the telling of her intricate dreams from the night before. Lucky for them she now puts that inspiration to paper, weaving her stories into deeply passionate characters that live lives the rest of us only dream about.

​Anna loves mornings, coffee, and sitting on the porch appreciating her life. She’s a sucker for hosting parties, especially historical costume parties. And in her spare time, you can find her touring old mansions – preferably not haunted ones – shopping for antiques, or curled up reading her favorite romances, paranormals, and thrillers, whether historical or contemporary.
http://www.annaalbergucci.com/
https://www.facebook.com/annaalbergucci.author


And there's a giveaway.... a HUGE one...with a Brahmin purse and everything!!!! How do you get to that you ask? Check out Anna's Facebook page on the link above or try going directly to her Facebook page timeline here ----> https://www.facebook.com/annaalbergucci.author/photos/a.620064184772113.1073741830.504747906303742/786470788131451/?type=1
But seriously - giveaways aside - I read this book in its infancy, before editing and critique, and LOVED it. I can not wait to read though the final product. <3 <3 <3  Give it a try today. It's only $0.99...and if you went to Starbucks this morning, I guarantee you spent more on your coffee. ;) 
<3 <3 <3

 Immersed by Katie Hayoz  Buy it today on Amazon for $0.99! ---> https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ZDVK02OAnother of our mermaids from Falling in Deep has released, and rumor has it that it's really, REALLY good!! (PS. It's climbing the ranks in a few categories -  including Steampunk - on Amazon!!) About Immersed:  What if love turned you into a monster?
Forget petticoats and demure female behavior. Melusine Doré prefers armored corsets and knives and slays evil creatures for a living. The grim and gruesome don’t frighten her; she’ll take on a cyclops or a dragon and not even break a sweat.  But when her rival, the charismatic Levi Cannon, comes to town, all her buried fears begin to surface.  Melusine realizes she is in danger of something much more horrifying than facing blood-thirsty beasts – she’s in danger of falling in love.   
Because love alone has the power to reveal a secret terrible enough to completely shatter her world.   Set in the muddy streets of 1850s steampunk Chicago, Immersed by Katie Hayoz is a dark yet romantic fantastical romp.  It is a stand-alone novella, but the first in a series of adventures that follow Melusine on her quest to rid the world of monsters…and her struggle to come to terms with every monstrous facet of herself. Excerpt:  
Chapter One
LEVI CANNON BACK IN CHICAGO. NO NEED TO FEAR THE BOGEYMAN shouted the headline of the newspaper spread out on Melusine’s dresser.  A skilled drawing of Mr. Levi Cannon stepping on a monster with one giant eye was directly underneath the headline.  Below that was a quote that made Melusine fume:  “Miss Melusine Doré is now free to learn flower arrangement and make social calls.  There is a man in town to do a man’s job.  I promise you all that the beast found hunting here will be gone in a matter of days.  Unlike Miss Doré, I do not take precious time to see if a monster has a heart of gold or not.  It’s a monster, after all, and if its heart happens to be gold, well then, I shall rip it out and sell it for a fortune.” 
Grabbing her fountain pen, Melusine inked warts onto Levi’s nose and cheeks, and filled in the area between his eyebrows.  She gazed down at his lifeless face and grunted.  Warts and all, Levi Cannon still looked good.  Too good.
Once a year or so Levi would come into town, challenging Melusine, leaving a trail of dead monsters and smitten women in his wake.  But she never rose to his dares and instead stayed out of sight until he left.  He was too dangerous, for so many reasons.

About Katie:  Katie Hayoz was born in Racine, WI, the youngest of six kids. Originally, she wanted to become pope (for the awesome hat and fancy robes), but quickly realized reading – then writing­­­­ -- was her true religion. She devours speculative fiction like she does popcorn and black licorice: quickly and in large quantities.    Follow Katie:  Get VIP access to Katie’s releases, giveaways and news: http://www.katiehayoz.com/p/mcembedsignupbackgroundfff-clearleft.html
Connect with Katie on her website: www.katiehayoz.com On Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7032949.Katie_Hayoz On Twitter: www.twitter.com/katiehayozOn Facebook: www.facebook.com/katiehayoz.authorOn Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/katiehayoz/ **********Hey all! I'm sorry for the crunch. I went up into the mountains (with faulty wi-fi) for what was supposed to be an extended weekend. It turned into a week - mostly for good reasons and one bad. I healed, hiked (some), shopped, and got within three feet of a very curious owl (kinda scary).  I have a post forthcoming on our little adventure. ;) <3 <3 <3 <3  Love,