blog tour, books, reviews

Blog Tour: The Call – Kerry Wilkinson

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Your fiancé calls. ‘A little girl needs help.’ Then they both disappear…

Melody gazes across the rippling lake to the trees on the shore, waiting for her fiancé Evan to arrive so their family holiday can begin. Here in this cabin in a small Canadian island town, there’s so much space for their son to play. It’s going to be perfect – just like the first time Melody visited as a child. But then a call from Evan shatters her world.

‘There’s someone in the road. I think it’s a little girl. She’s covered in mud. Or… is it blood?’ His voice becomes distant. ‘Are you OK? What’s your name?’ Then there’s a thud.

Evan never arrives to the holiday cabin. Melody, and her son, are terrified and desperate for answers. But with miles of endless, empty forest, and no reports of a missing girl, what hope is there of finding Evan?

The more questions Melody asks of the locals, the more she fears a terrible secret hides just out of sight. And the closer she gets to the truth, the more danger she is in…

A totally gripping thriller that will have you racing through the pages until the final shocking twist. Perfect for fans of T.M. Logan and Rachel Abbott.

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Kerry Wilkinson is from the English county of Somerset but has spent far too long living in the north. It’s there that he’s picked up possibly made-up regional words like ‘barm’ and ‘ginnel’. He pretends to know what they mean.

He’s also been busy since turning thirty: his Jessica Daniel crime series has sold more than a million copies in the UK; he has written a fantasy-adventure trilogy for young adults; a second crime series featuring private investigator Andrew Hunter and the standalone thriller, Down Among The Dead Men.

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My thoughts: another cracking thriller from Kerry Wilkinson, I knew there would be twists and there were, ones I just could not see coming.

Returning to the area of Vancouver Island she spent a happy childhood summer in, Melody and her family are set to see the sights and relax. She’s booked her son into a summer camp like the one she went to, and rented a cabin on the lake.

Then her fiancè fails to arrive. She finds his hire car, his phone, but he and his luggage are gone. The police are a bit hopeless, and Melody seems to be the only one really worried. She starts to carry out her own investigation and finds some strange people in the small community. 

Then some huge twists and turns that come as Melody keeps digging, and answers she needs to find. Perhaps that long ago summer wasn’t as idyllic as she remembers and it had repercussions still being felt today…

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.

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Blog Tour: Sin and Betrayal – Sienna Snow

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SinandBetrayal copy

We’re celebrating the release of Sin and Betrayal this week, and we think you’re going to want to read this one. Especially if you like enemies to lovers, mafia and dark romance, and anti-heroes!

SinandBetrayal

Sin and Betrayal (Sin and Lies Book 1)

Expected Publication Date: April 11

Genre: Mafia Romance/ Dark Romance/ MMF

  • Mafia
  • Dark Romance
  • MMF
  • Bodyguard
  • Antiheroes
  • Second chance
  • Hurt you to save you
  • Enemies to Lovers
  • Touch her, and you 💀
  • Boss’s wife
  • Forced Proximity
  • Hate to love you
  • Suspense
  • Forbidden Love
  • Super spicy
  • Voyeurism
  • Bondage

Princess in a Tower
Captive in a Cage.
There is no Power.
Only Rage.

They promised me love and devotion,
And left me with shattered dreams.

They’re back expecting forgiveness.
But my price is very steep.
Betrayal is a risky business,
Now that I’m the Queen, they wish to keep.

NOW AVAILABLE ON AMAZON

About the Author

Inspired by her years working in corporate America, Sienna loves to serve up stories woven around confident and successful women who know what they want and how to get it, both in – and out – of the bedroom.

Her heroines are fresh, well-educated, and often find love and romance through atypical circumstances. Sienna treats her readers to enticing slices of hot romance infused with empowerment and indulgent satisfaction.

Sienna loves the life of travel and adventure. She plans to visit even the farthest corners of the world and delight in experiencing the variety of cultures along the way. When she isn’t writing or traveling, Sienna is working on her “happily ever after” with her husband and children.

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Blog Tour: The Heart of Winter – Shona Kinsella

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Brigit is a young woman living in a Scotland still ruled by tribes and largely Pagan.
As Christianity is beginning to find a foothold, Brigit pays lip service to the church, but truly venerates the old gods. She does not support the changing position of women through the teachings of the
church.
A cool, damp summer and an early winter threaten the harvest. A harsh winter means starvation, so the elders of Brigit’s village panic. They petition Aengus, the god of summer, to protect them. He agrees on the condition that they provide him with a bride. He chooses Brigit and the deal is made without her knowledge or consent.
When Brigit learns of this arrangement, she flees into the Highlands to seek out the Cailleach, the goddess of winter. The Cailleach is uninterested in Brigit’s plight; humans have hated and feared her for generations, and she is tired of their complaining.
Brigit is not discouraged. She sets up camp outside the Cailleach’s cave and makes offerings to the Winter Queen every day. Aengus comes looking for his bride but cannot approach the cave because he and the Cailleach are opposites.
Caught between two gods and finding an unlikely ally in the Fae witch, Nicnevin, Brigit will be tested to her limits and beyond.


Scottish fantasy author Shona Kinsella is the author of The Heart of Winter, The Vessel of KalaDene series, dark Scottish fantasy novella Petra MacDonald and the Queen of the Fae, British Fantasy Award shortlisted industrial novella The Flame and the Flood, and non-fiction Outlander and the Real Jacobites: Scotland’s Fight for the Stuarts. Her short fiction can be found
in various magazines and anthologies. She served as editor of the British Fantasy Society’s fiction publication, BFS Horizons for four years and is now the Chair of the British Fantasy Society.
Shona lives near the picturesque banks of Loch Lomond with her husband and three children.
She enjoys reading, nature walks, and spending time with her family. When she is not writing, doing laundry, or wrangling children, she can usually be found with her nose in a book.
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My thoughts: inspired by Celtic folklore, this is the story of a young woman who is determined to choose her own path, and flees the Summer god Aengus for the winter, Cailleach, hoping the opposite god can help her.

Brigit just wants to be free of the agreement her village elders made binding her to Aengus in return for a good harvest. But the Cailleach isn’t really interested in helping a human. Until she has no choice unless she’s willing to let Brigit die.

This sets in motion a change that will affect Brigit, Cailleach and Aengus, and change the way they govern the seasons.

A beautiful and enchanting tale of gods, different kinds of love and finding your own path.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.

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Blog Tour: First Comes Death – Avrah C Baren

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FirstComeDeath copy

It’s release week and we’re thrilled to share First Comes Death with you all! Read on for more details!

Ebook

First Comes Death

Publication Date: April 15, 2024

Genre: Sci-Fi/Superhero Fantasy/LGBTQ+

A power for every death…

When a black hole anomaly rewrites the rules of life and death, Dina resurrects from a fatal crash into the Chesapeake with an uncontrollable tie to water. Trapped in a cycle of vanishing and reappearing across the world at the water’s whim, all Dina wants is to rid herself of this connection and have control of her life again. But with every new resurfacing, it becomes clear she has a worse crisis on her hands: she’s being followed by a monster.

Drowning may not be a natural cause of death, but neither is murder. And when Ivy resurrects with the ability to produce bone daggers from her own body, she’s hungry for revenge. But between her distrust of her new, supposed allies, puzzling encounters with a woman with powers of her own, and the soul devouring creature on their tail, attaining vengeance is looking a lot more difficult than dying in the first place.

As Dina and Ivy’s inexplicable bond pulls them together time and again, they find something neither expected in their afterlife: someone worth living for. But they’ll have to find a way to annihilate the monster at their heels before time runs out on their second lives. Because without another anomaly to bring them back, this time death will have its due.

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Blog Tour: Of Blood and Aether – Harper Hawthorne

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We’re celebrating the release of stunning new dark fantasy novel, Of Blood and Aether by Harper Hawthorne! Read on for more details!

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Of Blood and Aether (Harbingers #1)

Publication Date: April 17, 2024

Genre: Dark Fantasy Romance

  • Shadow Daddy MMC
  • Dual POV
  • Dark Prophecy/Dangerous Secrets
  • Tension/Angst/So Much Yearning
  • Slow Burn/ Scorching Spice
  • Addictive Banter
  • Arcane University
  • Increasingly Questionable Interpretations of the Word “Platonic”

A rare conduit of Light, drawn to the Shadows. A spymaster who can’t seem to stay away.

For as long as she can remember, Arken Asher has been searching for answers—driven by an insatiable hunger, a need to understand the meaning behind her dangerous arcane secrets. She’s finally taken that leap into the unknown, leaving her simple life behind to attend the Arcane Studium: a prestigious college of magickal arts & sciences nestled in the heart of Sophrosyne: the City of the Gods.

As the Scouting & Reconnaissance Captain of the Elder Guard, Kieran Vistarii deals in Shadows, blood and subterfuge. Scarred by his past but dedicated to safeguarding Sophrosyne’s future, Kieran’s self-imposed isolation is easily masked by charm and cocksure energy. Strange disappearances have kept his cadre busy as of late, and yet the captain finds himself sidetracked, distracted by the inexplicable allure of a certain golden-eyed Conduit and her curious mind.

They both know better than to get involved, but the Fates have other plans. The dark threads of prophecy were woven long ago, and the ties that bind just might be what it takes to mend these broken, star-crossed souls… or what forges a deadly bond that could damn them all.

Of Blood & Aether is the first book in the Harbingers series, a captivating and character-driven dark romantasy saga. Rife with sizzling tension, gut-wrenching angst, addictive banter and ever-growing stakes, the Harbingers series is perfect for fans of A Court of Thorns & Roses, Fourth Wing and From Blood & Ash.

CW: This book is intended for adults only, and contains subject matter that may be difficult or disturbing for some readers. Sensitive material includes, but is not limited to: frequent profanity, violence, torture, murder, child abduction, the tattooing of a child without consent (on-page), emotional abuse, explorations of implied mental illness (depression, anxiety) & neurodivergency (adhd, autism), socio-economic power imbalances, frequent mentions of blood, references to cults and sex work.

Of Blood & Aether also contains explicit, open-door sexual content, as well as explorations of kink and BDSM themes that will escalate over the course of the series.

Reader discretion is advised.

Available on Amazon

About the Author

Harper Hawthorne is an adult fantasy, romance & speculative fiction author in love with telling dark, emotionally evocative, and character-driven tales. Her stories feature neurodivergent experiences, honest explorations of mental health, and queer-normative worlds in her favored realms of fantasy.

Though she was born and raised on the beaches of Los Angeles, CA, she currently resides in the forests of the East Coast with her husband, her collie, and a demonic entity disguised in the form of a very large tuxedo cat.

When not lost in the throes of drafting one to three novels simultaneously, she can be found wandering the woods, hunting for mushrooms, befriending local frogs, practicing witchcraft and screaming into the void.

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Blog Tour: Unless It’s You – Chrissy Hopewell

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Happy release day Chrissy Hopewell! Unless it’s You is now available, and we can’t recommend it enough!

 

Unless It’s You: An Enemies-to-Lovers London Romance (The Hart Sisters Book 2)

Genre: Sports Romance/ Enemies-to-Lovers/ Interconnected Standalone

Publication Date: April 15, 2024

Enemies to Lovers
Second Chance
Bucket List
English Ex-Pro Rugby Player
American FMC in Her 30s
Hot Man w/ a Kitten
Light Sports Romance
Open door/ Medium Spice

ONE MONTH. TWO ENEMIES. SOMEONE ELSE’S BUCKET LIST.

Stella Hart, an American advertising executive living in London, is reeling from the death of her beloved aunt. But Stella learns her aunt included a stipulation in the will: a bucket list Stella must complete within a month, or the estate—meant for her and her sisters—goes to charity. The entire list is unreasonable, especially the final item, where she needs to Find the One that Got Away. The last thing she wants to do is face her ex.

Ethan Fraser is not Stella’s ex-boyfriend—that title belongs to his best friend, who got him through a traumatizing childhood. Ethan’s a grumpy, bearded, ex-professional rugby player who can’t bring himself to enter the flat of his late troubled mother.
When they’re forced to collaborate on a work project, both find themselves remembering the night they kissed, days before she started dating his best friend. Ethan wants to hate her for choosing someone else, just like his mother always did, but he can’t fight his attraction to Stella. So when she needs an advisor for the list, he offers to help, and the time spent together re-ignites their chemistry. But Ethan’s fierce loyalty to his best friend stands between them.

With a looming deadline for their project and the bucket list, soon everything bringing Stella and Ethan together will disappear… unless Stella figures out what that final item—and the whole list—really means.

Unless It’s You is an interconnected standalone romance novel for fans of Meghan Quinn, Tessa Bailey, and Christina Lauren. It’s the second book in the Hart Sisters trilogy, which can be read in any order.

Available on Amazon

 

About the Author

Chrissy Hopewell started sneaking her mom’s spicy romance novels in middle school. She has spent varying amounts of time overseas, including working at a pub in Dublin, waitressing at a hotel in the Scottish Borders, and studying and living in London for five years. Because of these experiences, international flair and accents often show up in her stories. Chrissy now lives in the suburbs of Cincinnati, Ohio with her family, where she quite openly reads delightful contemporary romances.

Find Chrissy on TikTok (@chrissyhopewellbooks), Instagram (@chrissyhopewell), or Facebook (facebook.com/chrissyhopewellauthor). Sign up for her newsletter for a free novella at www.ChrissyHopewell.com.

 My thoughts: this was a really fun rom com that made my home town of London sound a lot more glam than it is! How did they have such nice weather?

Joking aside, I really liked Stella and Ethan, as they work together on a project for the charity they both volunteer with and on Stella’s great-aunt Evelyn’s bucket list left in her will. Stella has to complete the 5 items (as do her sisters on their own lists) or forfeit their inheritance. And they’re intentionally not super easy tasks.

With Ethan as her advisor/sidekick, Stella has to stop trying to do the bare minimum and actually think about the things her aunt has challenged her with. Evelyn saw herself in Stella and wanted to make sure her beloved great-niece was truly happy.

It doesn’t hurt that Ethan, a hunky former rugby player, and Stella are falling hard for each other, and a cute little kitten called Nessie.

I’m going to download the bonus epilogue from the author’s website and check out Stella’s sisters’ stories too, that’s how much I enjoyed this one. 😀

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#rrbooktours #rrbtunlessitsyou #unlessitsyou #enemiestolovers #sportsromance #romancebooks

 

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.

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Blog Tour: Iris – O. Bogosian

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Iris copy

Welcome to the book tour for Iris: Birth of the Immortals by O. Bogosian. Read on for more details!

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Iris: Fall of the Immortals

Publication Date: November 2023

Genre: Fantasy/ Romance/ Fallen Angels

Through the rip in the ethereal world, more celestial beings tumbled to Earth, tempted by the daughters of Adam, and took sides in the battle for good and evil. One of the dark prince’s acolytes, Samayaza, wishes to bring otherworldly retribution to the one who exiled him from the celestial realm. Mortal sisters Iris and Boria are coveted by the glorious fallen spirits, trapped in a dark tapestry of promises and agreements made by their mother’s father, Turian, ages ago. The time has come for debts to be collected.

Kidnapped and brought to the temple built by Turian, surrounded by the glorious and transcendent Gregori, Boria succumbs to their unearthly seduction immediately. Iris is suspicious, remembering her paternal grandfather Enok’s warnings and lessons about the motives of the fallen spirits. The Gregori can manipulate mortal thoughts and feelings and have unparalleled, vast power that’s no match for any mortal.

The Gregori charm and magnetism are beguiling, yet something malevolent looms over Samayaza’s temple. Iris senses it in every fiber of her earthly body, but the sun has yet to ascend on the horizon and illuminate the serpentine truth behind Samayaza’s unholy vision.

A gorgeously written, mythical epic about fantastical beings brought down by earthly lust to live and die among us in an era of epic chaos.

Available on Amazon

About the Author

As the first-born Armenian American in her family, the Author was raised with English being her second language. She grew up on the west coast of the United States of America, where culture and diversity helped establish her love for all people.

Most of her time is spent with her ever-growing family and supportive friends. Apart from writing, she enjoys learning history, biblical history, and traveling. Though she majored in and graduated from college with a multi-media and production degree in sciences, she chose to follow her passion for writing. She is working on Book 2 of the fallen angel series and hopes to have a release date sometime in 2024.

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Cover Reveal: The Day Burns Bright – Amber Palmer

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We’re thrilled to present the cover for the second book in Amber Palmer’s Wicked Dark duology, The Day Burns Bright. Preorder today!

TDBB - Cover - EBOOK CROP

The Day Burns Bright

Expected Publication Date: May 3, 2024

Genre: Vampire Romance/ PNR

🩸 Romeo and Juliet, but make it Paranormal
🫦 Touch her and die vibes
🩸 Vampire/Fae romance
🫦 Found family
🩸 Ancient curses and haunted destinies
🫦 “I can’t make you love me”
🩸 Tortured “hero”
🫦 Redemption
🩸Enemies-to-Lovers

In the aftermath of a devastating tragedy, Rion D’arcy is left with nothing but the shattered pieces of a broken heart and a haunting array of unanswered questions. Despite the unwavering support at his side, the ache for solace consumes him.

With the help of friends, both new and old, Rion vows to enact his revenge. He is forced to confront the haunting decisions of his past so that those he loves may have a chance for a better future.

However, all is not what it seems.

Can Rion stop the looming darkness before it is too late? Or will the day burn bright with truths he never wanted to face?

Preorder Here

About the Author

Amber Palmer is an American fantasy romance author. She was born in Arizona, but raised in Texas. She is the proud parent of three (evil) cats and one puppy dog, and when she isn’t nose deep in a spicy fantasy novel, she’s listening to her bookish Spotify playlists and making notes for her next project! A passionate advocate for mental health, Amber features characters processing various traumas in her work. She is an unapologetic lover of anything spicy, while also making time to game with her husband.

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Blog Tour: Bloodshed on the Boards – Judy Leigh

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There is excitement in the air as the travelling theatre arrives in Seal Bay.
When The Spriggan Travelling Theatre Company arrives in Seal Bay to perform a Cornish version of King Arthur the locals flock to be entertained. But for Morwenna Mutton, sexagenarian librarian, wild swimming enthusiast and amateur sleuth, the theatre brings intrigue too.

Actor and director Daniel Kitto is not the most popular member of the cast and unbeknownst to him, his role of Uther
Pendragon on the opening night is to be his swansong.
In front of a horrified audience, he collapses during the dying moments of the performance in a pool of fake blood, and although the police are content that the causes of his death are natural, Morwenna isn’t so sure. And once it becomes clear that there are a number of people who stand to gain from Daniel’s death, Morwenna’s investigation takes a dangerous turn.

If you love Miss Marple and The Thursday Murder Club, then you’ll love The Morwenna Mutton mysteries.

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Judy Leigh is the USA Today bestselling author of The Old Girls’ Network and Five French Hens and the doyenne of the ‘it’s never too late’ genre of women’s fiction. She has lived all over the UK from Liverpool to Cornwall, but currently resides in Somerset.

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My thoughts: Morwenna is back with more murder in a Cornish village. When the owner and director of a small theatre company drops dead on the stage during a version of the story of King Arthur, the police initially believe it to be a heart attack, he was 82.

But Morwenna suspects there’s more to it than that, he wasn’t a popular man, although her mother Lamorna knew him years before. His own actors all have reasons to dislike the man, but did they kill him? And who benefits? An important question as it appears that Daniel Kitto had quite a few secrets.

But someone doesn’t want Morwenna investigating and is willing to go to some lengths to get her to back off. But they didn’t count on how determined she can be, and nothing deters her from finding the truth.

Another great fun read set in my beloved Cornwall, with Morwenna’s quirky family and friends on hand to help and sometimes hinder her investigations.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.

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Blog Tour: The Edge – Jim McGhee

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DI Barney Mains blames himself for the grotesque murder of a top banker in France.
He’s obsessed with the belief that he allowed a near-mythical assassin to escape certain death to kill again.
And when a duplicate murder is reported 1000 miles away in Barney’s home town in Scotland, the guilt drives him ever closer to the edge.
How many more must pay the ultimate price for his failure?
But then death comes closer to home. He is left with no choice but to face his demons, before a shocking confrontation which will change everything…

Trailer

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Jim McGhee is a former award-winning environmental journalist.
Formerly based in East Lothian, near Edinburgh, Scotland, he now resides in the South of France, the main setting for his DI Barney Mains series.

After a full-on career as a campaigning newspaper reporter, he and wife Jean launched their own recruitment company in central Edinburgh and for twelve fun-packed years worked closely together
alongside their brilliant team – without spilling a single drop of blood.

The Alpes-Maritimes and Var departments, on the other hand, have provided a host of dramatic locations just perfect as inspiration for the odd spot of fictional gore.
Locals, blessed with scenery ranging from unspoilt mountain villages to the classic palms-and-marinas coast, claim that they can be swimming one moment and ski-ing a little over an hour later.
It’s a claim not yet put to the test!

Besides, when not writing or travelling, Jim’s more likely to be off on a hike in the hills with his ever-ready buddy, Jack the Irish Terrier.

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My thoughts: Barney, a Scottish DI on loan to the French police is furious with himself for letting a killer, the Ghost, potentially escape, but another murder in Nice bears his signature, as does a murder in Edinburgh, being covered by his niece, crime reporter Abbey.

But when the Ghost himself gets in touch with Barney, the case takes a turn. Determined to stop the killer for good this time, despite being on administrative leave, Barney goes rogue, investigating on his own, despite his French counterpart warning him off.

This is fast paced, gripping crime drama, the investigation moves quickly and both Barney and Abbey have to keep up with all the twists and turns as both the French and Scottish cases race towards a shocking confrontation on the high seas for Barney and a potential change of direction for his life and career.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.