We’re thrilled to present the cover for A Fate Drawn to Flame by Skylark Melody. Pre-order a copy today!
A Fate Drawn to Flame (Realm of The Halo Book 1)
Expected Pub Date: April 8, 2025
Genre: Romantasy
• A dark, slow burn epic fantasy romance and a bit of spice.
• A unique premise and delicious angst with a genre-blending, multi-layered plot.
• A soft but confident FMC and a strong but conflicted MMC.
MORE TO LOVE:
Found family
Fated mates
She falls first/he falls harder
A Fate Drawn to Flame is the first book of the Realm of The Halo series and ends with a satisfying cliffhanger.
Is their love fated in forever, or will it be the beginning of the end?
Marked by a life of tragedy and sorrow, Araxia Arevin’s search for a new start begins with a harrowing accident in a place filled with old memories and ancient mysteries.
While she recovers, Arax meets the mercurial Konstantine. Cold and harsh, he wants nothing to do with her, but she is drawn to him.
Who is this man? What is this place? And why, of all things, does she feel most at peace by his touch?
An alpha meant to rule since birth, Konstantine has had a life filled with political turmoil, betrayal, and loss. To deny himself almost everything for the sake of duty means survival, including keeping the one destined for him from being dragged into the uncertainty of his world
When a teenage couple go missing, the police aren’t too concerned. Young lovers often make bad choices.
Then a body is found near a Suffolk lighthouse, and shortly after, two girls seem to vanish into thin air.
Freshly promoted DI Ashley Knight knows she has a battle on her hands to keep the public safe, and she’s going to need expert help. Ashley turns to her old protégé, Hector Fade, seconded from The Met to analyse an avalanche of data. But neither Hector nor Ashley are prepared for the chilling connection his work uncovers to the body by the lighthouse.
Ashley, Hector and the team must break down a fiendishly complicated network of people smugglers, but another victim is found at Horsey Mere and their worst suspicions are realised. A member of the gang has gone rogue and is taking lives for fun. When Hector uncovers a pattern in the choice of victim, time is against the detectives to stop the murderer killing again.
Ross Greenwood is back with a brand new, heart-pounding case for DI Ashley Knight, perfect for fans of Mark Billingham, Ian Rankin and Peter James.
I was born in 1973 in Peterborough and lived there until I was 20, attending The King’s School in the city. I then began a rather nomadic existence, living and working all over the country and various parts of the world.
I found myself returning to Peterborough many times over the years, usually when things had gone wrong. It was on one of these occasions that I met my partner about 100 metres from my back door whilst walking a dog. Two children swiftly followed. I’m still a little stunned by the pace of it now.
My first book Chancer was written after I decided to do something challenging while my knees permitted. No skydiving for me. I became a prison officer for four years. Ironically it was the four a.m. feed which gave me the opportunity to finish the book as unable to get back to sleep I completed it in the early morning hours.
It’s surprising for me to realise I’ve written sixteen books now. There are three strands, one where the books concern lives affected by prison, and then my detective series starring DI John Barton.
The first Barton book, The Snow Killer hit the coveted number one spot on KOBO and AUDIBLE, with the rest of the series not far behind. I’ve also written four detective books in a Norfolk series now, starting with Death on Cromer Beach. There are two more planned.
My publishers kindly told me I had reached over half a million sales with them in five years in July 2024. I hope you enjoy reading what I’ve written. Please feel free to get in touch on Facebook, Insta or Twitter
My thoughts: I really like Ashley, and this series puts her front and centre, leading the team as they investigate serious crimes in Norfolk, full of sleepy little villages but also dark deeds.
When a fisherman finds a body floating in Horsey Mere, it shows the police they’re dealing with something much bigger and more serious than they thought. The missing couple and the kidnapped teenagers are part of a larger, horrific criminal network, people traffickers who have been kidnapping women and forcing them into the sex trade. But now one of the gang’s members has started killing.
Determined to put a stop to it and bring the victims home, Ashley and her team work closely with the team from the NCA that includes former colleague Hector. Liaising with Dutch team working that end of the case gives them the knowledge that East Anglia is where the gang has fled, having lost several of their number in mainland Europe.
As they tighten the net around the remaining people smugglers and work to identify their killer, big risks are being taken and the team risks losing someone they used to work closely with.
There’s lots of action, even car chases, which in the quiet Norfolk lanes is pretty uncommon, it just isn’t a place that you imagine being a crime hot-spot, at least not the bits I’ve visited. But that’s probably the point.
There’s a brief cameo from DCI Barton too, as some of the case requires operating on his patch in Peterborough, and in the prison there too.
I really enjoyed this book, I’m a fan of the author’s work so this was basically just a delight for me. Ashley is shaping up to be a really impressive detective and her team (even Barry) are great too.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
We’ve got a great book rec for you today and a chance to win a paperback copy! Check out Since We’re Here by Chrissy Hopewell and visit our Instagram to enter the giveaway
Since We’re Here: A Grumpy Sunshine Irish Romance
Genre: Romance/ Interconnected Standalone
Publication Date: September 9
Grumpy sunshine
Irish setting
Close proximity
He falls first
Fish out of water
Main characters in their 30s
Just once to get it out of our system
Pet sheep
Open door/ medium spice
Nine messy breakups, nine jobs lost. When restaurant manager Maddie Hart learns that number ten—a surf instructor based in the Caribbean—is cheating on her, she changes her destination flight (but not the contents of her suitcase) to Ireland. She’ll delay disappointing her family and figure out how to get her life back on track, while also planning her oldest sister’s pre-wedding Irish road trip. Except the groom-to-be’s best friend isn’t replying to her emails.
Ex-pro soccer goalkeeper Patrick McNulty has deep roots in the seaside town of Dingle, Ireland. He’s got clear priorities: be there for his aging parents, support his sister and nieces, and take over the family brewery while also managing his pub. None of that includes dating, because after one disastrous engagement, Patrick is done with relationships.
When the sunshine-y American tourist who asked him to kiss her in the pub turns out to be the same woman emailing for help planning a road trip, Patrick vows to keep it platonic. Especially after his pub manager quits and Maddie jumps in to help. Their sizzling chemistry leads them to sleep together just once, but it’s not nearly enough for either of them.
Maddie knows her future isn’t in Ireland—or with Patrick. And he needs to stay focused before his carefully planned life unravels with the distraction of the American tourist. The Irish road trip is their last chance…Will Patrick be able to convince her (and himself) that fighting for number eleven is worth the journey?
Aggie has reached that “certain age” – in her case, a thousand years or so, give or take a decade. After centuries of bringing kings to their knees, running a small-town cafe isn’t how she imagined her life would pan out. Now, thanks to the machinations of the false vegan from across the road, she risks losing even that.
And just when she thinks things can’t get any worse, along comes her old friend, Babs, in her House-on-chicken-legs, ready to ruffle some feathers with her unique blend of borscht, tough love and alcohol. But everybody has a secret – the grocer who hides his loneliness behind a cheery smile, the neighbour crippled by debt and grief, and the young woman who jumps at her shadow – and before Aggie can help anyone else, she has demons of her own to lay to rest.
Can she confront her past to save her future? What is the ‘Vegan’ really hiding? Will Babs ever let her have the last word?
Raucous, rowdy, and heart-wrenching and heart-warming in equal measures, Babs and Aggie is a magical tale of love, loss and the comfort of a friendship forged through food, laughter and a LOT of slivovica.
Hazel Hitchins is a writer who spends her days having conversations with her imaginary friends, some of which she writes down. She lives in Wales with her normal family, normal(ish) cat, and entirely abnormal laundry pile.
My thoughts: Growing up the one thing I was genuinely terrified of was the Baba Yaga and her house with chicken legs. My mum had read me a story about her and I was terrified that this Eastern European/Russian witch was going to turn up outside my window in the North London suburbs. I don’t know why, but there you go.
However, the Baba Yaga in this story, known as Babs, is a lot less terrifying, although she still has House with its chicken legs, and she is still a powerful witch. She’s come to help her sister in witchery Aggie, aka Black Agnes or Black Annis (from Leicestershire according to English folklore).
Aggie runs a café, dispensing tasty treats in a little shopping arcade, but she’s been struggling with a nasty bully known as The Vegan. His girlfriend owns a health food shop across the way and he likes to menace the other shopkeepers and seems to be focused on Aggie, maybe thinking an older woman would be the weakest.
Unfortunately for him, ancient sorceresses do not like being bullied. And Babs is here to help Aggie remind him of that. And when they discover the extent of his bullying ways, well, he’s done for. These ladies do not take kindly to his sort at all, calling on some old friends to give them some help to get him gone.
It’s a funny, empowering read, a reminder of the power of women, especially older women, of community, and of how we can stand up to bullies (including the one in the White House, my American chums) and get rid of them. I think I would be ok if this Baba Yaga dropped round with some pierogis and slivovica.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
Sale alert! Nellie Steele’s digital boxed set is only $0.99 starting today until March 3rd! That’s 8 books in total!
Hearts and Holdings (Billionaire Romance Complete Series Boxed Set)
Publication Date: September 2024
Genre: Billionaire Romance
Tropes:
Billionaire Romance, Second chance romance, Slow burn, Cinnamon roll hero, Fake Marriage, Love Triangle, Marriage of Convenience, High-stakes drama.
Eight books. One unforgettable love story.
Grant Harrington has everything–money, power, and a reputation as one of the most formidable billionaires in the world. The only thing missing? A true connection with anyone.
When his playboy image threatens his empire, Grant turns to an unexpected solution: a marriage of convenience with Julia Stanton, a struggling author whose wholesome reputation is the perfect counterbalance to his scandalous past.
But what begins as a business deal quickly spirals into something far more complicated. Julia challenges Grant in ways no one else ever has, awakening emotions he never thought possible.
As betrayals, shocking family secrets, and deadly threats close in, the connection between Grant and Julia may be their only chance of survival. But will it be enough to conquer all?
Follow Grant and Julia through eight drama-filled books with high-stakes boardroom battles, heart-pounding moments of suspense, and a love that defies all odds. This clean billionaire romance saga delivers twists, turns, and a happily-ever-after worth fighting for.
Perfect for fans of soap-opera-style drama, closed-door romance, and an unforgettable couple.
Binge this complete series today and discover a love worth fighting for!
A brilliant, beautiful story from the bestselling author of A Single Act of Kindness
How far would you go for a perfect life?
Back in her troubled school days, kind-hearted Violet always dreamed of a life where she was happy. Now it feels like she’s just about getting there. She has her dream job working with books, and she’s living with her handsome boyfriend, Lenny.
But when her relationship with Lenny falls to pieces and he moves out, Violet, hurt and alone, decides it’s time to really take her happiness in hand. With help from her new flatmate, Bella, she changes her image and takes control at work, ready to show the world that she doesn’t need Lenny in her life. And when she meets magnetic author Casey, she begins to wonder if all she needed all along was a makeover.
But – with Bella – all is not as it seems. And Violet too has a secret, one that dates right back to her childhood, which could change everything…
IF YOU COULD SEE ME NOW is a powerful story about friendship, trust, and taking control of your life while not being afraid to stand out. Perfect for fans of Shari Low, Milly Johnson and Colleen Hoover.
Samantha Tonge lives in Manchester UK with her husband and children. She studied German and French at university and has worked abroad, including a stint at Disneyland Paris. She has travelled widely. Samantha has sold many dozens of short stories to women’s magazines. She is represented by Darley Anderson Agency & Associates. In 2015 her summer novel, Game of Scones, hit #5 in the UK Kindle chart and won the Love Stories Awards Best Romantic Ebook category. In 2020 one of her novels won the RNA’s Jackie Collins Romantic Thriller Award. Currently, Samantha writes uplifting, emotional women’s fiction for Boldwood Books.
My thoughts: This is not the easiest book to read, it is really good but it does deal with some things that might be hard for certain readers like mental illness, eating disorders and anxiety/panic attacks. So just be prepared if any of those are issues you can’t read about comfortably.
I really empathised with Violet, having a relationship end quite suddenly is very hard and when things go wrong at work on top of that it is easy to fall into less than healthy habits and behaviours to cope. Violet is on anti-anxiety meds and has panic attacks (both things I have dealt with) and that doesn’t help either.
She has a really great group of friends and colleagues but pushes them away because she thinks they’re trying to sabotage her, which is a symptom of how unwell she’s becoming but she can’t see it. Besides, new flatmate Bella says she’s doing great, dropping dress sizes and changing up her look is a good thing. Until it isn’t.
Like I said at the beginning, this is a challenging book to read at points but it also is full of hope. Violet’s real friends rally around her, support her, love her even when she’s being quite unpleasant and want to help her get better and move forward. It’s all very hopeful and once they open her eyes to the damage she’s done to herself, she needs them more than ever, to be there for her when she struggles. It’s a wonderful gift, friendship and the book is decidedly hopeful.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
Welcome to the tour for A Witch’s Penance by J.K. Divia. Read on for more details!
A Witch’s Penance
Publication Date: January 31, 2024
Genre: Paranormal Historical Fiction/ Witches
Tropes:
Family/generational curses, forgiveness, self discovery, paranormal vs psychological
Nina has grown up haunted by her family’s tragic past. Generations of misfortune and untimely deaths have woven a tapestry of grief and guilt around the women in her family, leading Nina to believe that her family is cursed.
Everything changes when Nina discovers her ancestor, Elspet Bruce, was an accused witch during the Forfar witch trials in the 1700s. As Nina’s imagination takes her deep into Elspet’s life, she experiences things that feel too real to be imagined, and the line between story and truth begins to blur.
Driven by a newfound determination, Nina embarks on a journey into her own spiritual and magical awakening to lift the curse that has plagued her family for centuries. Her quest leads her deep into the history of the Forfar witch trials, while a growing psychic connection with Elspet helps uncover the truth of what really happened.
As Nina unravels the mysteries of the past, she comes to understand that the curse afflicting her family is rooted in unresolved pain, injustice and guilt. And only she can break the curse.
“A Witch’s Penance” is a gripping tale of heritage and healing, blending historical intrigue with paranormal thrills. It explores themes of resilience, forgiveness, and the enduring power of family bonds across time.
James Alistair Henry’s debut Pagans is a set in an alternative 21st century Britain where Christianity, The Norman Conquest and The Industrial Revolution never happened, but where crimes still need to be solved.
The small, mostly unimportant, island of Britain is inhabited by an uneasy alliance of Pagan tribes – the dominant Saxon East, the beleaguered Celtic West, and an independent Nordic Scotland – with tensions increasing by the second. Supermarket warpaint sales are at an all-time high, mead abuse shortens the lives of thousands, and social media is abuzz with conspiracy theories suggesting the High Table is putting GPS trackers in the honeycakes.
Amid this febrile atmosphere, a serial killer is on the loose, and the brutal murder of a diplomat from the Celtic West, has drawn the attention of two mismatched police detectives: Detective-Captain Aedith, Saxon daughter of the powerful Earl Lod of Mercia and Inspector Drustan, a heavily tattooed police officer from the Celtic West.
For fans of Game of Thrones, The Last Kingdom, Terry Pratchett, Pagans is currently optioned for a major Apple TV series by Media Res (The Morning Show, Pachinko, Extrapolations, Scenes from a Marriage) with a cast announcement due in early 2025.
James Alistair Henry is the writer behind smash hit comedies including Green Wing, Smack the Pony, Bob The Builder, Hey Duggie, Sean the Sheep, cult comedy TV hits Delivery Man (ITV 1), Piglets (ITV 1) andCampus (C4), and who regularly writes for BBC Radio 4.
My thoughts: I thought this was great. Really well written (no surprise considering the author’s other work), clever, funny and entertaining.
Wondering, what if the Normans never bothered conquering Britain and the Saxons carried on ruling, keeping things pretty much as they were. Scotland still a separate country, Wales too. They have technology, but worship the old gods as well as the Christian one (He predates 1066 so still arrived), carrying seaxes (basically a big knife for fighting and also cutting up your dinner) and tribal life.
Once you get to grips with the idea of modern Saxons (I had quite a lot of fun imagining them) and that Britain never did any of the things it has (no Empire here, but plenty of African Brits still as instead empires have risen in Africa and the Middle East that weren’t conquered and oppressed and people still move around).
Then it’s also a crime novel – pairing Saxon detective Aedith with Celtic Inspector Drustan, as the victims are visiting Celts in town for a summit. Lovely political chaos on top of the killing kind.
Aedith has a lot to deal with, her dad’s the Earl of Mercia, which means a lot of people are hoping she messes up, and there’s pressure from him to do well, as he’s got his own schemes and ambitions. She’s also got to deal with the anti-Celtic sentiment, her new partner isn’t exactly subtle with his tattoos and accent.
I was fascinated by all the differences between history as we know it and a potential other version of events, and I love a good crime read, so this was a really good blend of fantasy and police procedural. Can’t wait to see how this develops and how the partnership between Aedith and Drustan continues.
Out now from all the usual places.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for reading and reviewing it, but all opinions remain my own.
One detective driven by instinct, the other by logic. It will take both to find a killer who knows the true meaning of fear . . .
When the body of a man is found crucified at the top of Mount Judd, DCS Kat Frank and AIDE Lock – the world’s first AI detective – are thrust into the spotlight with their first live case.
But when they discover another man dead – also crucified – it appears that the killer is only just getting started. When the Future Policing Unit issues an extraordinary warning to local men to avoid drinking in pubs, being out alone late at night and going home with strangers, they face a hostile media frenzy. Whilst they desperately search for connections between the victims, time is running out for them to join the dots and prevent another death.
And if Kat and Lock know anything, it’s that killers rarely stop – until they are made to.
My thoughts: Another absolutely brilliant case for Kat, Lock and the team. Now more established after the successful conclusion of their last big case, and their unit is able to command more resources supposedly, but it still comes down to the key group of Kat, Lock, the professor and Kat’s two detectives, Debbie and Hassan.
The team are searching for a killer who’s leaving men in open, but remote spaces, crucified. They’re sending a message, but to who?
It’s the first live case the team has been given, and the press are very intrigued, cue an awkward press conference. One reporter in particular seems to be ahead of the team, knowing facts about the case almost too quickly.
Lock is definitely developing a personality, even using sarcasm and humour, so the learning part of his programming is working, but curiously he seems to be wrestling with something.
Kat is also learning, learning how to be alone, now that her son Cam is at uni. She keeps buying food no one eats, and is struggling with the empty house and the quiet.
But the case gives her something to focus on for now, as the body count increases. And her new friendship with the pathologist, means she has at least one person to talk to apart from Lock.
It’s winter, and the killer is utilising the cold to help them finish off their victims, as snow sets in and one of the team falls into the killer’s clutches, can the others save them before they too succumb?
More gripping, clever and deeply interesting stuff. Lock grapples with the concept of humanity, the team are locked in a desperate race against time, the ideas that this series has, the thoughts I keep having while reading it, so, so good. Hooked.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
We are thrilled to share the second epic installment in the Heroes of the Empire series, The General by Israh Azizi!
The General (Heroes of the Empire Book 2)
Publication Date: November 2023
Genre: YA Fantasy/ Epic Fantasy
THE EMPIRE IS CRUMBLING, AND THE FATE OF A KINGDOM RESTS IN THEIR HANDS.
Tropes:
Morally Grey Characters, Mistaken Identity, Royal Intrigue, Multiple POV, Chosen One, Slow Burn Romance, Found Family, Warring Kingdoms, Forbidden Love, Hidden Powers, Character Driven
Mordon dedicated his life to his father; his only dream was to prove himself worthy of Verin’s general. But with the ruthless Tariqin attack comes a brutal awakening. Captured by enemy forces and dragged into a war camp full of the people he was trained to kill, his hopes of proving himself worthy are dashed to pieces. When the enemy offers him a chance for a grand future, he’s faced with a test that stretches him beyond his limits.
Coralie’s burden has never been heavier. After the Dark Lord Prolus’s recent assault and her uncle’s declining health, it is up to her to keep her kingdom together. The inevitable return of the Tariqin army lurks at their doorstep and her time is running short. Coralie turns to the newest residents of Verintown for assistance. Branded traitors and hated by many in the castle, they may very well be her downfall. Using their pledge for change in her favor, she tasks them with a mission most would consider a death sentence.
Two determined warriors separated by a river of blood. Mordon must risk everything to become the man he yearns to be, and Coralie must fight to become the queen she was born to be.
ramblingmads 