We’re proud to present the cover for the next witch tale in the Bird Girl Witches series, Winter Murder!
Winter Murder (Bird Girl Witches Book 2)
Expected Publication Date: April 16, 2025
Genre: Genre: YA Fantasy/Mystery
Tropes:
The Supernatural, Gothic Vibes, Witches, Animal Familiars, Mediums, Ghosts, Murder Mystery, The Chosen One, Hereditary Magic, Supernatural Detective, Summoning Evil, Ancient Curses, Magical Systems, Seances, Haunted Mansions, Poltergeists, Creepy Settings, Foreboding Atmosphere, Mysterious Things Are Happening, Backing into Darkness, High Stakes, Coming of Age, Family Secrets, First Kiss, First Crush, Ancient Secrets, Body Switching, Fantastical Creatures, Alternate Dimensions, Good vs Evil
In Winter Murder book two of the Bird Girl Witches series, ghosts have invaded Talus Hall and renowned 15-year-old medium Francesca LeGentil is just the person to exorcise them.
But she’s also been secretly hired to investigate a murder which happened next door at Talus Manor, a place where evil has taken root ever-more deeply.
Delving into the cursed history of the duelling Durr-Iggsby’s, Francesca uncovers a pattern to the persecution, tying it to the roots of the Dorojenja.
But when her sleuthing awakens a more ancient evil, no one in The Korvids is safe.
Happy publication day to author Elsa Jacobs and congratulations on the release of Runaway Hearts!
Runaway Hearts: Seduced by Danger
Publication Date: November 1, 2025
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Bad Boy & Good Girl (Turns Bad-Ass)
Action & Suspense
He Gives Her Control
Slow Burn
Dark Vibes
Marianne, a young woman hungry for a fresh start, can’t wait for her beach house getaway. But her plans take an unexpected turn when she picks up a mysterious hitchhiker on the way.
The irresistible stranger is the sole heir of a Japanese organization, and despite Marianne’s own anxiety struggles, she can’t say no to someone in need. As they travel together, swapping past traumas and dreams, love sparks. To heal her troubled mind, she must embrace her true desires, no matter how twisted they seem.
But as love deepens, an enemy from the man’s past threatens to pull them apart. In the midst of looming danger, Marianne must choose between sticking to her anxious ways or diving into the unknown for true love.
Get ready for a wild ride where each page brings new revelations and perils, leading to a destination unlike any other.
Runaway Hearts is a slow burn, steamy, contemporary romantic suspense with morally questionable characters and dark themes. HEA.
Runaway Heart is a spicy romantic suspense on the unconventional side. This novel contains themes and content that some readers may find disturbing or unsettling. It explores dark and intense subject matter, including but not limited to suicide, domestic violence, abuse, addiction, and mental illness. Reader discretion is advised. No cheating or non-con between MCs. For a list of all TW, please refer to the author’s website at Trigger Warnings.
The Portrait Girl thrusts its bereaved and beleaguered heroine, jewellery designer Freya Wetherby, into an astonishing world of re-enacted Victorian art salons and the devious machinations of modern art theft.
Seeking the identity of a miniature portrait found in her late mother’s belongings, Freya becomes enraptured not only by this mysterious young woman but also by the hypnotic personality of art collector Ralph Merrick and his colourful entourage, including the dangerously attractive ‘Jack.’
Thoroughly researched, the milieu in which The Portrait Girl would have moved is beautifully rendered by Swengley, as are the artworks and jewellery designs imagined in the novel. Freya’s own contemporary world and circumstances form a dramatic backdrop to the seductive ‘time slip’ episodes, a mirage created by Merrick that draws her into his web.
Nicole Swengley is a highly regarded and experienced journalist who has written about art and design for titles such as The Times, Financial Times, the Telegraph, London Evening Standard and many others. A past student of the Faber Academy, Nicole has written non-fiction books for Collins and Adlard Coles, and has had several short stories published in magazines and anthologies. The Portrait Girl is her first full length work of fiction.
My thoughts: This was really fascinating and full of intrigue and secrets. Jewellery designer Freya finds an unusual piece of Victorian jewellery, a necklace hung with a miniature portrait of a young woman among her late mother’s things.
Is the woman in the painting a relative? And why is the art collector Ralph Merrick so very keen to acquire it for his collection?
Freya delves into the complicated relationships and lives of a group of Victorian artists, discovering the sad story behind the precious painting. It puts her in danger, as Merrick recreates the drawing room salons of the past, peopled with actors and other collectors, blurring the lines between reality and his version of the past.
I was absolutely hooked, the story weaves such an unusual and interesting narrative – women artists (and writers) so often lost their work and became lost themselves in the lives and work of the men around them – fathers, brothers, husbands. Emily is one of these lost women, her life a footnote in the Arts & Crafts movement she was part of.
*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’re touring Alisha Tanner’s new release Bad Blood, which is the first in a new romantic suspense series!
Bad Blood (What Doesn’t Kill Us Book 1)
Publication Date: August 20, 2024
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Romantic Suspense
Murder & Mayhem
Slow Burn
Revenge
Blackmail
Doctor/ Model
Dual POV
Forbidden Romance
There’s a fine line between malpractice and murder.
One lawsuit. That’s all it takes for a nationally renowned medical career to come crashing down. Except Dr. Brighton Fields’s reputation is on the line for a mistake she didn’t make. For now, playing by the rules is the only option. An option the blue-eyed, tattooed distraction in the waiting room won’t accept…
Dax Blakely is not about to let his brother die. But first, he has to convince Dr. Fields — the leading Orthopedic Oncologist in New York City— to ignore the hospital’s referral protocol and treat Liam herself. Dax will do just about anything to get his way, even if that means accepting Dr. Fields’s wishes and keeping things platonic. Without her, Liam doesn’t stand a chance. And without Liam, Dax has no one.
When a female doctor is found brutally murdered at the hospital, panic infiltrates the staff. With detectives stumped and an old mistake on her conscience, Brighton takes matters into her own hands…and finds unlikely allies in the Blakely brothers. But in their pursuit of the truth, they uncover more than one secret —leaving multiple lives hanging in the balance.
Leonard Burton wakes up to find his life in ruins. His wife is dead, and no one believes his story about what killed her – he’s not even sure he believes it himself. Now, in jail for the crime and with no friends, his prospects are bleak. That is, until he is rescued by Dr. Cecil Gainor, an enigmatic investigator and perhaps the only other man who knows what unnatural horrors are really at work.
Unfortunately, more questions arise when Cecil’s partner disappears while chasing the same dark forces responsible for the death of Lenny’s wife. The two men realize they must follow the trail themselves, or many other lives may be at risk.
What follows is a race against time to clear Lenny’s name and find the real killers before the full moon. The death and destruction that has already been suffered is nothing compared to what will occur beneath Luna’s Veil.
My thoughts: This is a mix of crime thriller, investigating kidnappings, murder, secret societies, and eldritch horror – with terrifying creatures woken up and brought into the world.
After Lenny wakes up next to his wife’s body and is arrested for her murder, a strange man comes to break him out of jail and asks him about the changes in Rita’s behaviour before her death.
The pair go looking for another member of Cecil’s organisation, and Lenny hopes for answers. What they uncover is a terrifying conspiracy and monstrous crimes beyond the imagining.
The plot twists and turns, as the two men hunt for Cecil’s missing friend and then for a new acquaintance’s sister – a young girl with unusual abilities. They hook up with a family of bootleggers who give them the weapons they need when they reach the end game – at Lenny’s father-in-law’s island mansion, where the mysterious Taurus Society are summoning their first leviathan.
Creepy and suspenseful, with elements of the Jersey Devil folklore, and references to the infamous Aleistair Crowley (that idiot), it’s a nightmarish world where demonic creatures slumber in the rivers of New Jersey.
Review opportunity provided by R&R Book Tours
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, all opinions remain my own.
Utterly gripping timeslip historical fiction, perfect for fans of The Witch’s Tree, The Essex Serpent and Weyward.
Now: When Adrianna arrives at the small, run-down cottage, near the sea in rural Norfolk, she can’t help but breathe a sigh of relief. Here she can forget her life in the city, and the problems she’s left behind there, at least for a while. But – like Adrianna herself – the cottage holds secrets. And when Adrianna finds a mysterious bundle of notes hidden under a floorboard, she can’t shake the idea that they’ve been waiting for her. Especially when – in the rambling, overgrown garden – she then finds a strangely-carved stone, drawing her into a centuries-old mystery…
1646: Between her work as the village midwife and the medicines she sells from her cottage, Ursula has no need for a man. But this ideal leaves her unprotected in a world where just one accusation of witchcraft can mean certain death. So when she catches the eye of a powerful new local doctor, she must use every part of her cunning, or risk becoming his prisoner…
Can the two women – their paths bound by place and history – each find the keys to their own destiny?
Clare Marchant is the author of dual timeline historical fiction. Her books have been translated into seven languages, and she is a USA Today bestseller. Clare spends her time writing and exploring local castles, or visiting the nearby coast.
My thoughts: Having a break from her stressful career, Adrianna rents a quiet Norfolk cottage for six months, leaving her boyfriend (who I disliked immediately) in her Canary Wharf flat, with promises to see each other every weekend.
The cottage has been unoccupied for a while and the current owner lives abroad, so she has free run of the place and starts with a deep clean. In doing so she discovers some of its secrets, secrets relating to the first occupant some four hundred years ago.
Ursula Bain lives quietly in the shadow of the village church, she sells herbal remedies and helps tend the sick, delivers babies and nurses the dying. She’s lived in the village all her life and is known in her community as a kind and gentle person. But when a new doctor arrives and makes unpleasant demands of her (while dressed as a Puritan – creep and hypocrite) things turn sour.
As Adrianna deciphers the handwriting in the book she’s found, and makes a macabre discovery in the garden, we are drawn into the lives of these two women, centuries apart.
This isn’t a light hearted book, it explores themes of domestic abuse modern and ancient, coercive control, accusations of witchcraft during the dark period of the Witchfinder General, and handles these well, with a deftness of touch that mean it’s not too upsetting to the reader. I enjoyed this book, with the two very different women’s lives reflecting across time, things haven’t changed for us enough yet, that the treatment of a woman in the 1600s feels relevant in 2024. It’s a clever thing to do and the unravelling mystery across the centuries has more twists than you might expect.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
The Light Between Us is a Southeast Asian historical romance that defies time and space as an archivist explores Singapore’s tumultuous past through a supernatural connection.
At work one night, photography archivist Charlie Sze-Toh receives a misdirected letter from Wang Tian Wei, a 1920s colonial era Chinese photographer.
Through a mysterious digital folder and photographic plates, a conversation is sparked, leading to a romance that spans lifetimes.
In his time, Tian Wei scours a turbulent Singapore for his missing friend, Aiko, leading him to the perfumed chambers of a Japanese brothel. Meanwhile, in the modern day, Charlie struggles against a family dynamic dominated by her stepmother, a manipulative matriarch who uses family secrets as bargaining chips.
Communication starts to become difficult and Tian Wei’s letters are tinged by the increasing threat of Japanese Occupation. Will one last fate-defying letter from Charlie allow Tian Wei to keep their love alive?
Inspired by her research into Singaporean historical archives, Elaine Chiew weaves Chinese mythology and early 20th century colonial Singapore into this speculative epic.
Elaine Chiew is a writer, editor, creative writing teacher/mentor, and visual arts researcher. Her debut novel The Light Between Us (Neem Tree Press), long listed for the inaugural Cheshire Novel Prize, will be out May 16, 2024.
Her short story collection The Heartsick Diaspora (Penguin SEA 2019 & Myriad Editions UK 2020) explores the Malaysian and Singaporean Chinese diaspora living primarily in London, New York, and Singapore; it has been mentioned as a recommended read in The Guardian, The Straits Times Singapore, BookRiot and Esquire SG, been featured in literary festivals in Singapore, Malaysia and Kerala, received a Special Mention in the UK Saboteur Awards, and reviewed favourably in Malaysia, Singapore, UK and US.
She is also the compiler/editor of Cooked Up: Food Fiction From Around the World (New Internationalist, 2015).
Twice winner of the Bridport Short Story Competition in the UK, she has had numerous stories published in Singapore, US and UK anthologies, most recently with BBC Radio Four.
Originally from Ipoh, Malaysia, she has a J.D. from Stanford Law School and was a corporate securities lawyer working in New York, Hong Kong and London. In 2017, she received an MA in Asian Art History from Goldsmiths, University of London. She is based in London. You can find her on X @ChiewElaine and IG @epchiew.
My thoughts: In the archives of a Singapore gallery, Charlie catalogues photographs, finding on her screen one day a strange letter, she can’t work out what it’s doing there, but intrigued she saves it for later. After another appears, she decides, despite the fact it seems to come from another age, to write back. And so begins a rather unusual love story.
Charlie and her new pen pal, a 1920s photographer called Tian Wei, share the details of their lives – Tian Wei is searching for a young Japanese woman he considers his sister, she’s vanished and no one seems bothered. In modern Singapore Charlie is struggling with her family relationships, her stepmother is something of a nightmare, her half brothers not kind and she’s closest to her adopted brother Sebastian.
Sebastian’s business and romantic relationship are on the outs, and he vanishes for a time. But Charlie and Tian Wei sustain each other through their crises via their letters.
It’s a beautiful quantum entanglement, their letters, and later photos, reaching back and forth in time. But when Charlie crosses a line, things change in her time, and political changes in Tian Wei’s put him in danger.
It’s hard to define this book, part romance, part science fiction, part mystery, and it took me a while to like Charlie – she keeps all of her emotions very tightly bound, letting no one in. Tian Wei is much more open, there’s a joy and lightness to him for much of the book, despite his worries about Aiko, despite the political turmoil.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
An atmospheric gothic mystery that beautifully brings the ancient Cornish countryside to life, Armstrong introduces heroine Ruby Vaughn in her Minotaur Books & Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Award-winning debut, The Curse of Penryth Hall.
After the Great War, American heiress Ruby Vaughn made a life for herself running a rare bookstore alongside her octogenarian employer and house mate in Exeter. She’s always avoided dwelling on the past, even before the war, but it always has a way of finding her. When Ruby is forced to deliver a box of books to a folk healer living deep in the Cornish countryside, she is brought back to the one place she swore she’d never return. A more sensible soul would have delivered the package and left without rehashing old wounds. But no one has ever accused Ruby of being sensible. Thus begins her visit to Penryth Hall.
A foreboding fortress, Penryth Hall is home to Ruby’s once dearest friend, Tamsyn, and her husband, Sir Edward Chenowyth. It’s an unsettling place, and after a more unsettling evening, Ruby is eager to depart. But her plans change when Penryth’s bells ring for the first time in thirty years. Edward is dead; he met a gruesome end in the orchard, and with his death brings whispers of a returned curse. It also brings Ruan Kivell, the person whose books brought her to Cornwall, the one the locals call a Pellar, the man they believe can break the curse. Ruby doesn’t believe in curses—or Pellars—but this is Cornwall and to these villagers the curse is anything but lore, and they believe it will soon claim its next victim: Tamsyn.
To protect her friend, Ruby must work alongside the Pellar to find out what really happened in the orchard that night.
JESS ARMSTRONG is the USA Today best selling author of the Ruby Vaughn Mysteries. Her debut novel, The Curse of Penryth Hall, won the Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Competition. She has a masters degree in American History but prefers writing about imaginary people to the real thing. Jess lives in New Orleans with her historian husband, two sons, yellow cat, speckled dog, and the world’s most pampered school-fair goldfish. And when she’s not working on her next project, she’s probably thinking about cheese, baking, on social media or some combination of the above.
My thoughts: Cornwall is a place steeped in magic and mystery – long thought the land of Arthur and his knights, there’s many stories about piskies and spells in England’s southernmost county.
Ruby Vaughn is tasked to deliver a chest of books, despite not wanting to go anywhere near the home of her former close friend Tamsyn Chenowyth. But of course she visits Tamsyn and something terrible happens – Edward Chenowyth is murdered.
The Pellar, a sort of wise man, is called to inspect the body – as well as the constable, as there’s a curse on the family, or so they and the village believe. Ruby, being a modern scientific minded woman, doesn’t believe in curses or magic, she believes a human hand is behind all of it, and she will prove it. Even as she and Ruan Kivell (the Pellar) are drawn together.
The atmosphere does start to get to Ruby, but she’s determined to help Tamsyn, who is terrified her young son will be next. The answers lie in secrets from the past, things kept hidden, in grief and rumour.
I was gripped by this clever, sinister and compelling story, I really liked Ruby, her bookseller employer/surrogate father, the pompous house cat who keeps turning up everywhere, the housekeeper who over feeds everyone, they’re a delightful crew and there’s a hint at the end that there will be more to come….
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
Happy publication day to author Julia Douglas! This one is perfect for summer reading friends!
Securing Aubrey (Hawthorne Security Book 1)
Publication Date: June 11, 2024
Genre: Romantic Suspense
🕶️ Celebrity/Bodyguard Romance
💞 Forced Proximity
🤫 Family Secrets
🎲 High Stakes
💕 Found Family
✨ HEA
Loyalty. Obsession. Betrayal.
World-renowned singer Aubrey Gray is finally free after spending the last seven years earning money to pay for her sister’s hospital bills. When she announces her early retirement and leaves Los Angeles in the rearview, she expects some fans will be disappointed. She can handle that. What she isn’t sure how to handle is the unexpected onslaught of hateful comments, death threats, and the decapitated teddy bear sitting innocuously on her dining room table.
As her dream of freedom devolves into a nightmare, Aubrey reluctantly acknowledges she may need help. Unfortunately, her best chance for survival rests with stubborn, overprotective celebrity bodyguard Noah Hawthorne who is one big-name client away from securing a prosperous future for his company–and his team.
As their strictly business relationship blooms into a full-fledged romance, Aubrey and Noah are tested when a series of horrific events begins to unfold. Will Noah be able to protect Aubrey or will the stalker waiting in the wings outsmart them both?
Fans of Gilmore Girls and Susan Stoker’s Protecting Caroline will enjoy this small-town, celebrity-bodyguard romantic suspense.
Securing Aubrey is the first book in an interconnected series. It is a stand-alone novel with a guaranteed HEA.
Julia Douglas is a captivating author of clean romantic suspense novels.
Julia Douglas writes sweet romantic suspense novels that pull readers into worlds filled with tension and romance. Julia’s novels are enjoyed for their intriguing plots, heartfelt romance, and wholesome themes, making them a perfect escape for readers of all ages. When she isn’t weaving tales of love and suspense, Julia enjoys a cozy life in the suburbs with her amazing husband and their two phenomenal children.
Welcome to the book tour for The Last Rays of Ra by Karina McRoberts! Read on for more details!
The Last Rays of Ra: A Journey Into Thrilling Adventure, Horror, And Suspense
Publication Date: March 20, 2024
Genre: Mystery/Thriller/Adventure
SISTERHOOD’S ANSWER TO AGENT PENDERGAST
Empathic Scotland Yard Detective Jackson Randolph is over-burdened by a series of bizarre murders. He enlists the aid of rogue Egyptologist Vahlona Selket Faralay, pleading with her to retrieve an ancient item linked to the crimes.
Vahlona leaves her mysterious home in the Yorkshire Moors and travels to Egypt, where she braves misogynistic policemen, vicious wildlife, and manic terrorists in her quest to procure the artefact. The shadowy but alluring antiquities dealer Usire Ra Arakti provides the answer, but can Vahlona smuggle the prize out of Egypt and back to London before the madman resumes his killing spree?
Thrilling suspense, horror, romance, and adventure await you in The Last Rays of Ra.
Karina is an American-Australian author, illustrator, musician, scientist and theatre producer. She considers herself to be a true Renaissance woman and strives to help other achieve the same. ( “After all, ladies, we didn’t get a chance last time!!!!”).
Previously working as a conservation scientist, she was struck down by a mosquito-borne virus. No longer able to work, Karina now spends her time writing fiction to inspire, encourage, enlighten and entertain; especially those readers active in social justice, humanitarian work, and protection of the Earth.
She also writes self-instruction books and gives workshops in illustration and creative writing.
In these dark days of crazy violence, betrayal, and plague, Karina hopes readers find solace and joy in her creations.
Hope is light to the heart! As her character JT Gordon says in her time-travel adventure/romance novel, The Palace of the Stars, ‘Don’t measure your time in minutes, treasure your time in moments.’ Indeed.
ramblingmads 