At Death’s Door: a Cover Reveal With Author @Astrid_writes

There’s something about the “Pay It Forward” philosophy that speaks to me. We’ve all been in a place where we’ve needed extra support or a helping hand, both personally and professionally. It was other bloggers and writers who encouraged me, cheered me on, and supported me in various ways that gave me the courage to chase my dreams of becoming published.

So, when I have the opportunity to help a fellow writer/author/blogger, I jump. All anyone has to do is say the word, and I’m there. Excited at the opportunity to help. Just like you guys have done for me.

Today I have the pleasure of sharing the cover reveal for At Death’s Door, the freshman effort by fantasy author, Astrid Tallaksen. Although our genres may be different, her excerpt and beautiful cover certainly caught my eye. I’d love to hear what you guys think…. Check it out!

Blurb:

At Death’s Door

Freefall Series book #1

The world is a pretty straightforward place. Even for medium Sara Stone things seem pretty simple, aside from the whole talking to spirits bit. But when the spirits get too hard to handle and Sara ends up admitted to a mental hospital, the world starts to seem a lot less straightforward. First her family disappears, including her four year old son. Then she gets the sneaking suspicion that not only are the staff at the mental hospital somehow connected, but they also have no intention of ever letting her leave the hospital.

Everything changes when Sara has her first visitor in three months. Daniel is handsome, friendly, and a complete stranger. When he promises to spring her from the hospital and swears that everything she’s experienced is completely real, Sara has no choice but to believe him. But once she reaches a run-down Victorian house in the tiny Alabama town her rescuer calls home, the last thing she expects to discover is that every memory she has is a lie.

Daniel reveals a world filled with angels, demons, and an impending war humans know nothing about. Sara wants to ignore her role in the whole mess – all that matters is solving the mystery of where her son has gone. But the forces of Heaven, Hell, and the Heart have other plans for her. Can she find her child before the world comes crashing down?

Author Bio:

Debut author Astrid V. Tallaksen grew up with a heart for stories of creatures and places outside of this world. Her love of reading quickly became a love of writing. She spent several years creating content and helping writers to improve their craft on the online world of Althanas, a creative writing workshop in the guise of a roleplaying forum. A self-avowed nerd, Astrid loves science fiction, comic books, and eighties fantasy movies in the vein of The Princess Bride and Labyrinth. Her geekiness extends to annual volunteer work at the massive sci-fi convention known as Dragon*con every year in Atlanta, Georgia. In the odd times that she’s not immersed in geekdom or writing, Astrid loves to sing karaoke, crochet, and spend time with her family and pets.

Ways to follow Astrid:

Facebook – authorastridvtallaksen
Twitter – @astrid_writes
Blog – authorastridvtallaksen.wordpress.com/

When Ireland Meets #BeneathManhattanSkies

My friend, the beautiful and sweet Emma Meade, has stopped by for a quick chat and to share with us her newest release, Beneath Manhattan Skies.

For those of you who don’t know Emma, she was one of the first friends to welcome me on my blog. Despite our different time zones (Emma’s in Ireland), we’ve forged a wonderful friendship based on our mutual love of hunky heroes from some of our favorite Supernatural tv shows, including Supernatural, and great music.

When I found out that Emma had released a new book I jumped at the opportunity to share her (and her new book) with you. Hope you guys enjoy!

Me:Thanks for stopping by today, Emma! So, as folks probably figured out by my intro above, your love of the supernatural started with TV shows. What was the first show to get you hooked?

Emma:The X-Files. I think I was ten years old when I came across a trailer for a new alien show, and I ran to my dad, all excited to tell him about it. Myself and my big sis, Lucy, would huddle on an armchair together each week for Mulder and Scully’s latest adventure. The X-Files was my first major TV obsession and I fancied Krycek like mad, especially when he went bad. 🙂

Me: Out of curiosity, What made you choose New York/Manhattan as the backdrop for this book?

Emma: In Under the Desert Moon, the protagonist, Erin Harris, always dreamed of going to art college in New York. I never really planned on writing a follow-up novel, but when I decided to go ahead about a year ago and see what Erin was up to after high school. I wanted to make sure her dream of studying in The Big Apple came true. And New York is such a contrast to Erin’s small hometown, a sleepy place in Arizona called Copperfield.

Me: As a follower of your blog, I know you have a passion for music. Were there any specific songs that helped to inspire specific scenes in this book?

Emma: “Use Somebody” by Kings of Leon is one of Erin’s favourite songs. She’s a young woman, it’s her first time living away from home, and she’s looking for romance and passion, and this song makes her think of being with the vampire James, the first guy she fell in love with. The scene on the roof of Erin’s apartment when she and James can’t keep their hands off each other, is a result of this song being on repeat in her mind.

Me: Oooh! That’s great! So, speaking of Erin, what character traits do you like best/least about her?

Emma: Erin’s probably a little too serious for her own good. Her mother died when she was a young teenager, her father is a drunk, so Erin’s had to make the transition into adulthood largely alone. It’s no wonder she’s not as carefree as other girls her age. She has to put herself through college and has no parental support, financially or otherwise to fall back on. I’d like to see her let loose a bit more. She’s a strong women. That’s her best trait. She’s been through a lot and gets thrown into some vampire chaos in New York, yet she keeps her cool.

Me: She sounds fantastic! Just the sort of character I’ve always loved. A bit of a badass Buffy. 😉 Can I talk you into sharing a bit more?

Beneath Manhattan Skies Blurb-

November in New York is cold but full of possibility for college freshman Erin Harris. When her twin brother, Nick, shows up on her doorstep for a surprise visit, Erin is delighted. Unfortunately, Nick’s arrival coincides with the discovery of a body outside her apartment building, a body drained of blood. Right away, Nick assumes vampires are involved. He’s not exactly their biggest fan since Erin dated one in high school.

Juggling nosy roommates, a first date with a gorgeous guy from college and a brother on a Van Helsing kick is enough to keep any nineteen year old girl busy – And then Erin’s old flame walks back into her life.

Is Erin destined to be caught up in supernatural shenanigans, or will she choose a different path?

Beneath Manhattan Skies follows the character Erin Harris from Under the Desert Moon, but it can be read as a standalone story.

Cover Artist: Najla Qamber 

Teaser: Erin is chatting to Tommy, one of her college buddies in a club.

“My father wouldn’t be so understanding.” Erin frowned, not liking to think about her dad. “Did she have a boy or girl?” Erin shrugged in apology for not remembering.

“A boy. I feel sorry for my sister. She was surrounded by us growing up.”

“I’m sure it wasn’t that bad. She had a cool big brother.” She groaned inwardly. Why did she have to say that?

Tommy looked at her. Erin thought she saw a hint of a smile hovering around his lips. Where the hell was Sadie with the drinks? That girl was in big trouble for setting this up. A blush rose in Erin’s cheeks. She was grateful for the dim lighting in the bar.

“So, I’m cool, am I?” Tommy said after a moment, smiling easily again.

The tension alleviated and Erin breathed normally. “I thought you might have noticed that. You have a motorcycle. That automatically puts you in the cool club.”

“I’d like to take you out on the bike.”

And the hard-to-breathe thing started again.

About the Author:

Emma Meade lives in Ireland where it rains a lot. Reading and writing supernatural fiction, watching marathon re-runs of Buffy and drinking lots and lots of tea are some of her favourite activities. She’s never met a vampire, but thinks it would be kind of cool to meet one. Visit her on her blog, Emma’s Ramblings on Supernatural fiction at emmameade.com or on her website emmameadebooks.com

Website:  emmameadebooks.com

Blog:  emmameade.com

Twitter:  @EmmaMeadeIrl 

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4229395.Emma_Meade

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/emmameadewrites

Amazon Author Page:  http://www.amazon.com/Emma-Meade/e/B0064LKMK2/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

Amazon.com –  http://amzn.to/HZtjxO

Amazon.uk –  http://www.amazon.co.uk/Beneath-Manhattan-Skies-Emma-Meade-ebook/dp/B00GPKHN22/ref=la_B0064LKMK2_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1384966212&sr=1-2

Smashwords –  https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/374189?ref=emmaM83

Barnes & Noble  – http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/beneath-manhattan-skies-emma-meade/1117444078?ean=2940045420013&cm_mmc=AFFILIATES-_-Linkshare-_-TnL5HPStwNw-_-10:1&r=1

Kobo –  http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/beneath-manhattan-skies

iTunes –  https://itunes.apple.com/ie/book/beneath-manhattan-skies/id747022107?mt=11

Angels and Accidents

Those of you who’ve followed me for a while know I lost my brother a long time ago in a motor vehicle accident. On his birthday I shared a bit about my him here.

Maybe it’s a bit whimsical of me, but there’s part of me in the last few years that feels like maybe he’s become my guardian angel…or sent someone to watch over me, particularly when I’m on the road. A little while back I told you guys that I’d taken on a new job. It was a temporary gig, but it was one that had me on the road quite a bit.

Toward the end of my first week, I was driving southward on I-75. We’d just passed a bunch of construction and had gotten back to driving at our usual speeds of 70-80 MPH. As I sat, tooling along, singing to the radio, I saw a silver ladder flying through the air. The burgundy Toyota two cars ahead of me tried to swerve and miss it, to no avail. It smacked the rear quarter of his car, sending it careening into the lane next to me, spinning out into a 360 back across traffic to bounce off the guardrail and back into our lane. Thankfully, the black Audi in front of him managed to hit his breaks and skid to a stop mere inches from the car on the side of the road with me close behind.

“Please let me stop in time. Please let me stop in time. Please let me stop in time.” I chanted over and over again in my head as my foot slammed on my brakes.

I missed that Audi by less than a foot. Turning my head to the right, I saw all three lanes of traffic had come to a dead halt and waited to make sure everyone was okay before moving on. My hands were shaking and my stomach was doing cartwheels as I sucked in a deep, calming breath and pulled back onto the road and drove away.

“Thank You.” Those words were said with heartfelt conviction, though there was no one physically there to hear them. There’s no doubt in my mind that there were higher powers at work that day, watching over us.

But there’s more…

My biggest fear is hitting a pedestrian, whether by foot or on bicycle, because I never want anyone to have to go through what my family did. So it stands to reason that the last thing I’d want to see is that kind of incident playing out before my eyes.

Last week, waiting for a red light to change, I noticed a bicyclist heading toward his workplace. He’d crossed the street to our left, and had charged his bike out directly in front of us without watching the lights to see if they’d change. The light had turned green. The older gentleman in the Volvo to my left had been fixated on the light and started to accelerate.

“Oh, God. Please stop!” silently ran through my head, praying I wouldn’t witness what I was afraid I’d see.

As if he’d heard me, he hit his brakes and his horn simultaneously. The old man looked a little shaken up, but okay and began to accelerate. Me? I said another prayer of thanks. The guy on the bike… well, he seemed completely oblivious to the chaos he nearly created.

That was just in the last two weeks. Don’t get me wrong, I know what people say about Florida drivers…and sometimes it’s even true. But this hasn’t only happened to me in Florida!

Our first night at Authors After Dark in Savannah, we decided to go out to dinner. We took my sister’s rental car and went to the Bohemian Hotel and ate at their amazing restaurant called Rocks on the River. We had a great time! In fact, we tried their appetizer variation on Chicken and Waffles and found it to be utterly fabulous! I’d never eaten anything like it before.

Fancy Chicken and Waffles

Anyway, it had been raining pretty heavily that evening, so the streets were slick. Fortunately it had stopped. On our way back to the hotel I looked out my window from the back passenger seat to see a guy on a motorcycle driving beside us. Hot, right? Well, not when we were taking a tight turn and we saw him wipe out, spinning within inches of our wheels. Fortunately, there was a short turn lane toward the hotel, so my sister pulled into it. We wanted to make sure the guy was alright! He wasn’t wearing any of the usual protective gear. No heavy jacket. No helmet. A t-shirt and jeans. My sister reminded us that she was a qualified medical professional and that we should stay in the vehicle and dial 911. As she started to get out of the car, the guy stood up, brushed the gravel off himself (I’m sure he had a ton of road rash he’d have to take care of later), got back on his bike and drove away!

We hope he was okay. I said a little prayer of thanks that he didn’t find himself under our wheels…. But it all still makes me wonder sometimes. Was it a coincidence that my brother died in a car accident, but every time one that could potentially be dangerous or traumatic has come my way, something has protected me? Call me whimsical. Call me naïve. Call me silly or a hopeless romantic….but I believe he’s keeping an eye out for his big sister.

Yes, today I’m thankful for Guardian Angels and the power of belief.

What about you guys? Any near misses? Anything that’s made you believe in ghosts or guardian angels? I’d love if you’d share your thoughts and stories.

Playing With Fate

What were you like in your early 20’s? If you were anything like me you may have moved out of your parents’ home, maybe you were in college and working full time. Between life, tuition and bills you were probably just coming to understand the responsibility that comes with adulthood. If you were lucky you had a little time and money left over for dating and partying with friends.

In LJ Kentowski’s first effort, Guardian Of Fate, her heroine Cassandra Cosgrove made my early 20’s (and my teen years for that matter) look like chump change. Not only was she responsible for everything I mentioned above, but she had been charged with an unusual birthright that made dating practically impossible.

What kind of birthright could do that, you wonder? The kind where life and death are involved, of course. Yup! As a “Guardian” she has dreams about people dying before their time and it’s her job to prevent it from happening. Not easy, right? Did I mention that there’s a huge family secret that’s been kept from her? Or that suddenly she’s seeing these visions of people dying while wide awake? Or that she’s had dreams/nightmares of a sexy man who excites her body even as she senses she’s walking to her death?

Yeah, that’s a lot for anyone to deal with, much less a 20 something year old young woman. But Cassie’s gotten pretty good at dealing with the unusual. On the day when her visions change she meets two hotties…one of them belongs to the voice in her dreams and they’re both claiming to have her best interests at heart. She doesn’t know who to trust, where to turn…and she’s not sure what’s going on, but she knows one thing. She’d better figure this out fast before she or someone she loves dies.

This book is action packed! Filled with changing destinies, souls, angels and demons – nothing’s as it seems. This story comes with more bends and turns than a roller coaster with a passionate heroine who’s willing to face her destiny; to stand and fight when most normal people would run as fast as they could in the opposite direction.

If you enjoy action packed supernatural stories, this book does not disappoint. If you’ve already read this book, I’d love to hear what you thought of Cassie’s story so far… Did I mention her sequel, Seeker Of Fate, is already out, too?

Where Does Your True Superpower Lie?

Like many of my fellow bloggers/writers, I am drawn to the supernatural both in book and tv/movies. From these books, shows or movies, all sorts of questions come up…and we find ourselves drawing lines and making comparisons. A couple months ago Emma talked about super couples…literally speaking. Karen, at the beginning of the month, discussed how to be both evil and likeable…These ladies got me thinking about some of my favorite fictional characters and where their true strengths lie.

Take J.K. Rowling‘s Harry Potter, for example. Most people think of Harry and felt that his power was in the fact that he was a wizard. But look deeper… Think back towards the long walk he made when he surrendered himself to Voldemort. His true power was actually the same as his mother’s…and his saving grace, both times. It was his ability to love and his unselfish, unwavering sacrifice. He cared more about who he could help and save rather than himself. His mother sacrificed herself out of love for him…and in doing so, saved his life. He loved the people at Hogwarts enough, even the unloveable ones, that he was willing to walk into the lions den and sacrifice himself to save them. By doing so, he destroyed the one who would destroy him. It was not in his power that he had strength, but in his humanity and willingness to open his heart.

On to the ever popular Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. What was the true strength of the Cullen family? Was it the super powers they received because they were vampires? I don’t think so. You began to see their strength when they realized that someone who was important to a member in their family was being threatened. It didn’t matter whether they were all in agreement with whether or not she should be included in their family secret. Once she was threatened, the only thing that mattered to the entire family was protecting someone they considered one of their own. Their strength was in family. They believed in each other, supported each other (even when they didn’t necessarily agree), and they protected each other. As the last movie in the series prepares to launch, I’m stoked. This is when you see them truly use those family ties to protect those that they love. It should be their best movie yet!

One of my favorite series is The Sword Of Truth by Terry Goodkind. In this series you meet a young man named Richard Cypher, a woodsman/guide and a young lady in white named Kahlen Amnell. In the first book you learn that Richard is actually “The Seeker Of Truth” and gifted with a magic sword, then later discovers he is actually a very powerful wizard. Kahlen is a magically talented person called “The Mother Confessor”. Although they both have these incredible powers, their strengths come from their belief in good, their love of the truth, then eventually, in their love of each other and their willingness to sacrifice themselves and each other for the greater good of the world. If you haven’t read this series, I encourage you to do so. It is amazing. (I’m being deliberately vague as I don’t want to give away any details to those of you who haven’t read it. I will tell you, though, that I read through the entire 11 book series in no time at all, and so did my husband.)

If you’ve ever read the Riley Jensen by Keri Arthur, you’ll find another case of a character with super powers (Riley is half vamp/half werewolf) where her strength is in her bond to her twin and her willingness to look behind the surface.

The same can be found in pretty much any show… Roswell was not all about the fact that 3 alien kids landed on earth. It was about the relationships they built and their ability to love…and eventually, to trust.

In Supernatural, Sam and Dean are demon hunters…but their strength is in each other and their ability to still see the good in things even after everything has been taken away. Yes, sometimes they fall off that path, but that’s the beauty of these brothers…eventually, they are able to pull each other back when one of them loses their way.

I’m sure you guys could probably list many more examples…or have some feedback about the ones I’ve listed. I’d love to hear your thoughts and opinions. Don’t be shy…Share with me!

And you know what? This subject doesn’t just apply to books, etc. It can apply to us as well. Think about what the outside world sees as your strength….then look deeper. Pull back those layers…what really drives you? Do you know? What would your best friend say if I were to ask them?

For me, most people see my outgoing personality and my confidence and they assume that they’re seeing my strength. The truth is, it’s my ability to pick myself up and dust myself off after I’ve gotten knocked down and that is my superpower. I recognize that life’s challenges are just that…challenges. And in the words of the Mother Abbess from The Sound Of Music…”When one door closes, another window opens.” One failure just leads you closer to success.

Okay, I went first. Now it’s your turn!