The Magic Warble by Victoria Simcox Guest Post and Giveaway

Welcome! Today I have a special guest on my blog today, the author of The Magic Warble, Victoria Simcox. I am spotlighting her first book in her independent reader series and the author has generously offered to giveaway 3 e-book copies of the book. I hope you all get excited about this book, I look forward to reading it when I have time. I have won this book and the next one in giveaways and was very excited.  I have heard great things about this book, especially from Michele's daughter, Katertot from A Belle's Tales. With her permission I'm going to also share her review with you all in this post. I hope you enjoy the spotlight and Q&A with the author. Here is a huge welcome to Victoria! Thank you for being on my blog today.

The Magic Warble by Victoria Simcox

Twelve-year-old Kristina Kingsly feels like the most unpopular girl in her school. The kids all tease her, and she never seems to fit in. But when Kristina receives an unusual Christmas gift, she suddenly finds herself magically transported to the land of Bernovem, home of dwarfs, gnomes, fairies, talking animals and the evil Queen Sentiz. In Bernovem, Kristina not only fits in, she's honored as "the chosen one," the only one who can release the land from Queen Sentiz's control. But it's not as simple as it seems. To save Bernovem, she must place the gift she was given, the famous "Magic Warble," in its final resting place. She must travel through the deep forest, climb a treacherous mountain, and risk capture by the queen's "zelbocks" before she reaches her destination. Guided by her new fairy friends, Clover and Looper and by Prince Werrien, a teenage boy, and an assortment of other characters, Kristina sets off on a perilous journey that not only tests her strength but her heart. (Goodreads)

Kristina Kingsly, a twelve-year-old girl who receives a mysterious gift from her teacher before Christmas break, is awoken one night by a buzzing noise coming from somewhere in her bedroom. The gift she was given by her teacher, Miss Hensley, came in some sort of hatbox, and she had carelessly tossed it under her bed the day before when she couldn’t open it. But now, as the buzzing seems to be growing louder… and seems to be coming from underneath her bed… Kristina pulls out the box and opens it, only to find a tiny, silvery, tarnished ball. What kind of gift is that? Just as she is about to go back to sleep, she suddenly finds herself in a different place! Not like one of those times when you close your eyes and feel like you’re somewhere else… she literally appeared in a beautiful garden in a pile of leaves. Afterwards, she learns she is the “Chosen One,” brought to this land, Bernovem, to place the little tarnished ball… or the Magic Warble… in its resting place. 

Currently, Bernovem is ruled by the tyrant Queen Sentiz. She knows Kristina is attempting to place the Magic Warble in its resting place and is bound and determined to kill Kristina and Werrien (the boy who is helping Kristina on her mission), take the Magic Warble, and destroy it, also destroying the only chance Bernovem has of being saved. 

While this book was very exciting and kept me on the edge of my seat, it also really touched my heart, especially when dealing with certain matters near the end; however, I can’t say any more without giving away too much. I’ll be honest, I cried near the end, and I agree with my mom - she says, “You know you’ve read a great book when it brings out that kind of emotion in you.”

This book is absolutely wonderful - 5 stars! Victoria Simcox is incredibly talented. I enjoyed her writing thoroughly and adored all the characters! Fairies, gnomes, dwarfs, AND talking animals? I’m hooked! The cover also intrigued me… what a beautiful book! A spectacular read by a spectacular author, The Magic Warble is a new favorite of mine! I will most definitely be reading the sequel, The Black Shard, as soon as possible! 

Thank you Katertot for allowing me to use your review in my post!

Guest Post/ Q&A:

Q: What gave you the idea for a fantasy book like The Magic Warble and The Black Shard?

A: I remember I was sitting in the movie theater watching the first Harry Potter movie when I envisioned my main character, Kristina, walking down a snowy sidewalk. At the time that was all of story I had. I went home that night and wrote my first page not knowing where the story would go.

Q: If/When you have writers block what do you do?

A: I used to get writer's block, but then I realized it came to me when I got too stressed out and felt like I was pressured to write. I had to remind myself why I started writing to begin with—because I enjoyed it, not because I had to; then I relaxed. If you are an aspiring author and going through writer's block and feeling like there's nothing you can come up with to write about, or your imagination has run dry, then take a day off—go see a flick, or do something you enjoy to relax. You'll be surprised how ideas come to you when you're in a happy relaxed state of mind.

Q: Are some characters harder to write than others?

A: No, I have a vivid picture of my characters in my head which makes it not to difficult for me to form their personalities. I think I draw a lot from people in my life. But I create a character from different character traits of more than 1 person.

Q: If you could meet any person dead or alive...who would it be?

A: C.S Lewis: His Chronicles of Narnia have been such an inspiration to me. It would be so cool, say for instance, to have lunch with him and pick his brain on how he came up with his beloved stories.

Q: What do you prefer coffee, tea, soda, water...

A: I prefer coffee to tea and I admit I'm pretty religious about having my coffee each morning and afternoon. I try not to drink soda other than when I go out to eat or to a movie, then I always have a diet coke. Eight glasses of water is my daily goal though I rarely meet that goal it's more like 4 if that.

Check out Victoria's personal blog @ www.victoriasimcox.blogspot.com

About Victoria:

Victoria was born in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada, to an Austrian immigrant mother, and a Dutch immigrant father. She now lives in Western Washington with her husband, Russ and their three children, Toby, Kristina, and William. Her other family members are a Chihuahua, named Pipsy and two cats, named Frodo and Fritz. Besides being an author, Victoria is a home-schooling mother of twelve years and an elementary school art teacher of eleven years. In her spare time, Victoria enjoys managing her two older children's Celtic band. She also loves writing, reading, painting watercolors, hiking, good movies, and just simply hanging out with her family and friends. 

Find Victoria:

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Giveaway:

The author has generously provided 3 e-book copies of the book for an international giveaway! Just use the rafflecopter form below to enter for a chance to win one of the three copies! I hope you all enter and good luck!

Summer Spirit by G. Jay Blog Tour [Spotlight + Giveaway]

Welcome to the Summer Spirit by G. Jay Blog Tour put on by the awesome Tribute Books. On my blog today you get an inside look at G. Jay and his book Summer Spirit with a Guest Post and Q&A.  You even get a chance to win a copy of his book at the end of the post. To find out even more make sure to stop by other stops on the tour. You can find a link to the tour page in this post. Thank you all for visiting my blog and thank you especially to Tribute Books for having me on the tour.

Summer Spirit by G. Jay

Ryan Kinkaid, a successful gay Manhattan antique dealer has had it with life in New York City, especially his random love life. Ryan has what most New Yorkers want — his own successful business, and a mortgage-free brownstone on West 71st Street. However, at age forty-one he discovers he is lacking one very important thing in his life: a meaningful and loving relationship. With summer just around the corner, the approaching heat and his restlessness are reasons for his escape from the city. A four-month rental in historic and picturesque Portsmouth, New Hampshire, with his best friend Lauren was the answer.

Renting a house built in 1810, kindred spirit Nicholas reaches out for contact, and Ryan finds himself wanting to know about the past. However, Nicholas is not the only one wanting Ryan’s attention. Ty, a handsome local man, also has strong desires for Ryan.

The stark contrast of the past collides with the present in this tale of lost and betrayed love, and irrational and undying prejudice.

In the end, all that is left is the affirmation of the value of honesty and commitment in love.  

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Guest Post:

The main character in Summer Spirit is 41-year-old Ryan Kinkaid. A New York City antique dealer who, throughout his adult life, has looked for that certain someone with whom he could have a loving, committed, and monogamous relationship. Some may ask, “So what’s the problem?” The problem is that in the gay world this is not as common as one may think.

As a gay man in my mid-50s, I have observed many gay “couples” who call someone their “partner.” Usually it’s the person whom they live with and share living expenses. However, their sexual lives are not exclusive. I’ve seen advances made at parties by someone in a relationship toward someone not their partner, or hear how when at a conference or the gym they hook up with someone. It is when hearing those individuals say, or do, such things I want to correct them by saying, “Don’t call him, or her, your partner. They are your roommate who you have sex with occasionally, nothing more. You’re shopping, and are only with him, or her, until you find someone better. Besides, it is demeaning to the other person to know they are not good enough.”

I’ve been chastised and criticized for this opinion. However, I certainly know I am not alone in my view, as I have met many couples who are in loving, exclusive relationships. However, if the truth be known, I think we are in the minority.

After 32 years, in 2010, my partner and I married in the state of New Hampshire. For the years prior I did not need to have a piece of paper to prove my commitment to him. I have always loved and wanted him. It is also safe to say that during those 32 years we had been through everything there is. Thereby, if you can stand up in front of family and friends and say vows of commitment to one another you mean them, because you’ve lived them, proven them.

At this time in our nation’s development, with the religious right trying so hard to shove homosexuality back into the closet and take away what few rights we have achieved over the years, gays have to work hard to promote positive relationships and dispel negative stereotypes. That piece of paper I mentioned above means everything to me.

I have written the character of Ryan Kinkaid to hold the same values as myself. He is not perfect or saintly; he has had his share of experiences. He is looking for someone who makes daily living worthwhile, someone to share life with and not be alone.

As a writer, I would like readers to be able to connect with my characters. I try hard to have them be realistic. I welcome any comments from readers on my book, your views on my characters and the relationships I portray. You can contact me through my website, www.gjayb.com.

Q&A:

Q: Please tell us about your current release.

A: Summer Spirit, A Ryan Kinkaid Mystery, is the first in my series of at least four books about a successful gay Manhattan antique dealer. This story starts with Ryan realizing he has had it with life in New York City, especially his random love life. Although he has what most New Yorker’s want – his own successful business, and a mortgage-free brownstone on West 71^st Street, one very important thing is missing in his life . . . a meaningful and loving relationship. With summer just around the corner, the approaching heat and his restlessness are reasons for his escape from the city. He takes a four month rental in historic and picturesque Portsmouth, New Hampshire, with his best friend Lauren in hopes of gaining a new perspective on life.

Renting a house built in 1810, a kindred spirit Nicholas reaches out for contact, and Ryan finds himself wanting to know about the past. However, Nicholas is not the only one wanting Ryan’s attention. Ty, a handsome local man, also has strong desires for Ryan.

The stark contrast of the past collides with the present in this story of lost and betrayed love, and irrational and undying prejudice.

In the end, all that is left is the affirmation of the value of honesty and commitment in love.

Q: Can you tell us about the journey that led you to write your book?

A: On a recent trip to the South of France, my husband and I met a successful romance novelist who, over a dinner at a restaurant in Marseille, suggested that I try my hand at gay erotica. She said her gay friends told her she should write some books for that genre because they felt there weren’t any decent ones out on the market. However, since she’s straight and it wasn’t her genre, she wasn’t interested. That suggestion stayed with me and, after a few months, I acted on it.

In the past few years I have had in the back of my mind the idea of writing a book. Granted whatever story I thought was there was not based on gay erotica. But none the less, it was there.

My professional career for the last 30 years has been in the field of human resources. It afforded me the ability to see the various sides of people. For example, how they handle change and have an unending desire to hold on to the anger of past hurts and disappointments. Two issues I address in my book. I’ve since ended my career in human resources, focusing on writing the next book in the series.

Q: Can you tell us about the story behind your book cover?

A: The main graphic on the cover is a male figure. This figure can represent one of two male characters in the book, Ryan Kinkaid or Nicholas Walsh. In each case, the characters are unfulfilled until this certain summer where love and contentment gives life and color, uplifting their spirits.

What approaches have you taken to marketing your book?

Writing and publishing is all new territory for me. Marketing the book is something I am still working on. My publisher helped by setting up my website and I’m telling everyone I know and come in contact with about my book.

Q: What book on the market does yours compare to? How is your book different?

A: I think my book is unique in that if you take away the sexual aspect of it, there would still be a decent story there. Many books on the market that I have read in this genre are based solely on sex acts, which meet the needs of a large percentage of their readership.

Q: What would you say is your most interesting writing quirk?

A: I don’t know if it’s a quick, but I do not outline the book beforehand. I let the story happen as I write it.

Q: Open your book to a random page and tell us what’s happening.

A: Ryan, Lauren and Jason are traveling from Manhattan to Portsmouth for the weekend. On the way they stop at a rest area in Connecticut to use the facilities and Jason takes care of someone else’s business (if you catch my drift) along with his own.

Q: Do you plan any subsequent books?

A: Yes, this is the first in a series of at least four. The next book will be a continuation of the story between Ryan and Ty and is called Autumn Reveal.

Q: Tell us what you’re reading at the moment and what you think of it.

A: I’m not reading anything at the moment. I am focusing on writing Autumn Reveal. However, when I do, I’m sure it will be one of the more popular fiction books on the market. I doubt it will be gay erotica because I don’t want to influence my writing by how another author depicts sex in their story.

About G. Jay: 

A communications graduate of the City Universities of New York, and after twenty-nine years as a human resources administrator, Jay decided to apply his understanding of the complexities and foibles of the human character in a more creative way.

Like the main character, Ryan Kinkaid, Jay is a gay man who believes in love and commitment. He and his husband have been together for over thirty years and live on the West coast of Florida with their two cats. A transplant from New York, Jay continues to travel regularly to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to connect with the New England life which he so loves.

Find G. Jay:

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Giveaway:

Use the rafflecopter form below to enter to win an E-Book copy of Summer Spirit by G. Jay.

Rennefarre by Malve Von Hassell Blog Tour [Spotlight & Giveaway]

Welcome to the Rennefarre by Malve Von Hassell blog tour, which is put on by Tribute Books. I'm hosting todays stop, which is packed full of awesomeness of course. The author wrote up a guest post for my stop along with a Q&A.  After you find out all about the author and her book you can enter for a chance to win an e-book copy of Rennefarre! I hope you all enjoy the post and giveaway!

Here is a big warm welcome to Malve Von Hassell and her book Rennefarre.

Rennefarre by Malve Von Hassell

Imagine riding on the back of a blue heron across time and space. Imagine befriending crows, being kidnapped by magpies, and being given a lift on the back of a kindly stag. Imagine experiencing life as an outcast from human society, encountering spirits and mythical creatures from the world of legends, experiencing the plague in Dresden, and being chased through Berlin by Frederick the Great.

Dott is a twelve-year old girl. She lives in the countryside east of Berlin in an unspecified time between the two world wars. When Dott sneaks out to see the bonfire at the edge of her village on the evening of the midsummer night festival, she has no idea what will happen next. In the dark of night, the magical Rennefarre flower falls into her shoe. It not only makes her invisible, but also allows her to see things no one else could see. No longer able to stay with her parents and her young brother and sister, she begins her search to find a way out of her predicament.

Her quest to return home to her family winds its way through the cities and countryside of 20th century Germany—and beyond. As she befriends the local animals, they help her on her way with gifts of food, shelter, and—through the help of a kind spirit—a magical cup which allows her to become small and ride on the backs of the birds.

Flying across the country on the backs of crows and herons, Dott finds herself seeing the country not only as it is, but also as it used to be. She lives through moments in history others can only read about—meeting historical kings and fanciful spirits along the way. But, even with all of the excitement of her travels, she always has one goal in mind: returning home to her family.

Part coming-of-age story, part fantasy, and part social-cultural portrait of Eastern Germany in the early part of the 20th century, the book covers real ground. That is, one could follow Dott's travels on a map of the area. Seamlessly blending elements of fantasy and history, the book contains a fascinating array of details of day-to-day life in rural and urban areas in eastern Germany. Dott’s adventures are interwoven with folklore and myths as well as vivid accounts of different eras and the diverse cultural and ethnic strains that have formed the basis for a rich and complex history of Germany and Eastern Europe. Written on the eve of World War II, the book offers a sobering perspective on the human potential for causing devastation. At the same time it is filled with hope. In one scene, Dott gets a glimpse of the future — an utterly destroyed cityscape; it inspires her to look to her own responsibilities and actions in life.

Guest Post:

When rereading Rennefarre as an adult, I began to appreciate the amount of research Tamara Ramsay must have engaged in. Alongside an emotionally compelling story of a girl’s attempt to return home to her family, the book offers a wealth of factual detail, vivid descriptions of geography, plant, and animal life, a rich fabric of history and historical figures, and a colorful tapestry of legends and myths, doubly attractive for being rooted in concrete places and events.

For instance, the legendary Frau Harke, protector of nature and animals, appears today in the name of a mountain in Lower Saxony, and she is still celebrated in some local traditions. I searched for information about the plants that Tamara Ramsay mentions and discovered that these plants are not imaginary, but rather real plants that have potent properties and feature in homeopathic and folk remedies. Hence, the Springwurzel, given by the giant spirit Rübezahl to Dott as a remedy for her little sister, is the caper spurge. The caper spurge (euphorbia lathyris) has been used as an anti-inflammatory agent and to treat a variety of medical conditions, including rheumatoid arthritis.

In one of my favorite scenes in the book, Dott and her friend Klaus spend an evening in the cemetery of the church St. Anna in a town called Rosenberg.  Today, this town is called Olesno, and it is in Poland. The children, who had been conflicted about their journey, are transported into a moment in deep winter. The children watch pilgrims from all over the county travel to the church for a service. The first wave of pilgrims consists of animals, among others, horses from the mines in Silesia, bent and blind from their labors. Men, women and children dressed in their finest follow. The children watch this procession and decide to go along; and the experience helps them to resolve some of their doubts. When I researched St. Anna, I found that this church had indeed been the site of regular pilgrimages since the 15^th century.

In another scene, Dott encounters the bridge builder Matteo Foccio, thought to have built the first stone bridge in Dresden in the 13^th century. Matteo Foccio shows Dott a sculpture in one of the pillars of the bridge, claiming that it was his self-portrait and that he carved it himself. I was able to track this down and verify that until 1813, one of the original pillars of the Augustus Bridge featured a stone relief sculpture of a man in a sitting position and dressed in the style of the period. According to local lore, it was a portrait of the Italian architect Matteo Foccio. The bridge was dynamited in 1813 and rebuilt; the figure was lost in the process. This is one of many such instances in the book where Dott’s personal story is linked in seemingly effortless fashion with real history as well as the shifting ground in the way in which we experience and rethink history. 

Q&A:

Q: Please tell us about your current release.

A: The first English edition of Rennefarre is the culmination of a dream of mine—a perfect storm of things that I love: a wonderful original text, the challenge of translation, the thrill of research, and the joy of assembling everything into a finished product. I am excited that it is now in print and available to an English reading audience. 

Q: Can you tell us about the journey that led you to write your book?

A: I have loved Rennefarre since I was a child. I read it over and over, fascinated and charmed by the adventures of Dott, the main character—described in such a tangible and immediate fashion. I loved the voices of the animals that Dott encounters. The descriptions and scenes are so real that it is easy to imagine oneself following along in Dott’s footsteps. Dott, impulsive, stubborn, and passionate, was real and believable to me as a child. As an adult returning to this book, I decided that it was a treasure that should be made available to English readers.

Q: Can you tell us about the story behind your book cover?

A: The cover depicts a scene in the book where Dott seeks out a place to sleep for the night. When she stands in front of this building, she feels very much alone and is grateful for the company of Ardea, the young heron next to her. She ends up sleeping in the abbey, sheltered and kept warm by the heron’s wing.  The image conveys many elements of the story, the thrill of discovery, the charm of nature, a multi-layered and complex history, the importance of friendship, and the feeling of being alone.

Q: What approaches have you taken to marketing your book?

A: This is a new and exciting experience for me, and the learning curve is sharp.  It is my first venture into making use of Facebook and other social media for marketing. I look forward to discussing details of the book on blogs. I will attend an authors and illustrators event at a school in my town in March 2013.

Q: What book on the market does yours compare to? How is your book different?

A: This is not an easy question to answer. Two books, also translated, come to mind. One is Michael Ende’s Neverending Story. Like Rennefarre, this book involves the element of a quest and the search for home, but unlike Rennefarre, it is set entirely within the world of fantasy. Selma Lagerlöf’s Nils Holgersson and the Wild Geese involves a similar storyline of a child that travels with animals and seeks to return home; however, it was written for a much younger audience. The Magic Tree House series by Mary Pope Osborne has some interesting parallels. These books feature children who are magically transposed into different periods and places in the world as a result of which they are given brief glimpses into history and myths. Meanwhile, the books are addressed to a younger audience and ultimately consist of many disparate fragments or glimpses of the world of history and legends. Rennefarre, perched on the fluid fault lines between history and legend and interwoven with elements of magic and fantasy, meanwhile presents a single story of a child’s journey with an overarching central theme of human responsibility and choices.

Q: What would you say is your most interesting writing quirk?

A: Regrettably, I would have to admit to an unfortunate tendency to writing long convoluted sentences. Even though I have lived in this country since I was thirteen and have worked as a translator for over two decades, the German language has a way of creeping up in my writing.  There is a lovely word in German, “Schachtelsatz”, which describes a sentence consisting of boxes within boxes within boxes of meaning.  The polar opposite is the standard of short succinct sentences favored by many writers, including those trained in American schools of journalism, among others. I try to steer somewhere in the middle of these sirens of style. 

Q: Open your book to a random page and tell us what’s happening.

A: Page 45: In this scene, Dott tries to fulfill a quest with which she had been entrusted. She wants to free an owl that had been captured by humans in order to serve as a decoy. Dott sits in front of the cage where the owl is being held and waits for daylight. Two other animals, the owl’s mate and a squirrel, are watching and waiting to see how Dott will manage to free the owl. The owl looks sick and apathetic. Dott is appalled by the suffering of this bird in captivity and feels ashamed as a human being.

Q: Do you plan any subsequent books?

A: I have completed a manuscript of historical fiction for young adults entitled Falconello. It is set in the 13^th century and involves the journey of a young man from the north of Germany to Italy.  I am now working on another historical fiction work set in Jerusalem in the 12^th century.

Q:Tell us what you’re reading at the moment and what you think of it. 

A:Aside from rereading Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice whenever I am in the need of balance, I always have a stack of books that I check out of my local library. The latest gem has been a book by Helen Dunmore, The Siege, about the siege of the city of Leningrad in World War II. It is a book hard to forget; the relentless cold and the gnawing hunger seep into your bones as you read it, and at the same time, Dunmore captures something exquisite and beautiful about the human spirit. 

About Malve Von Hassell:

Malve von Hassell is a freelance writer, researcher, and translator. She holds a Ph. D. in anthropology from the New School for Social Research. Working as an independent scholar, she published several books and journal articles, in particular, The Struggle for Eden: Community Gardens in New York City (Bergin & Garvey 2002) and Homesteading in New York City 1978-1993: The Divided Heart of Loisaida (Bergin & Garvey 1996). She has also edited her grandfather Ulrich von Hassell's memoirs written in prison in 1944, Der Kreis schließt sich - Aufzeichnungen aus der Haft 1944 (Propylaen Verlag 1994). She has taught at Queens College, Baruch College, Pace University, and Suffolk County Community College, while continuing her work as a translator and writer. She has published a children’s picture book, Letters from the Tooth Fairy (Mill City Press, 2012), and completed a manuscript for a historical fiction book set in the 13th century for young adults, Falconello. She is working on a historical fiction novel set in Jerusalem in the time of the crusades.

Find Malve Von Hassell:

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GIVEAWAY:

Use the rafflecopter form below to enter to win an e-book (PDF) copy of Rennefarre  by Malve Von Hassell.

The Fart That Saved Christmas Blog Tour [Q&A + Giveaway}

Welcome, I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. Today I am part of The Fart That Saved Christmas by Jacob Morningside blog tour. A fun adult book for christmas time. For the post the author provided a Q&A. You can also win an e-book copy of the book thanks to Tribute Books. I hope everyone enjoys the post and don't forget to enter the giveaway at the end of the post!

The Fart That Saved Christmas by  Jacob Morningside

The behind the scenes story of what really happened "The Night Before Christmas."

It's Christmas Eve. The reindeer go on strike with a list of demands for Santa, the elves and Mrs. Claus. Santa gets "loaded" and threatens to cancel Christmas, fire the deer and divorce Mrs. Claus. But, just when all seems lost, Christmas is saved by a timely fart. 

Q&A

Q: Can you tell us about the journey that led you to write your book?

A: The journey that led me write such a story as The Fart That Saved Christmas is as long and "twisted" as my life.

I was raised by a loving grandmother in the far north woods country of Wisconsin.  I lived with two uncles and a younger brother.  We had no electricity or running water during my youth.  On the bright side, our outhouse was a two seater — though it was not designed for lengthy conversations, especially on 20 degree below zero winter days.  My responsibilities included chopping wood, hauling water from our well, hunting and fishing for our food.  Our family, such as it was, was blessed with a wicked sense of humor and a penchant for pulling pranks on each other.  I think that accounts for my offbeat outlook on life and the ability to embrace tranquility during moments of chaos.  This results in my ability to unite improbable themes for my amusement.

After high school, with assistance of family, hard work and an ability to throw a baseball 95 miles per hour, I attended college.  I ran low on funds after two years and got drafted into the Army.  I was fortunate enough to survive a combat zone tour of duty in Korea.  After my discharge, the GI Bill allowed me the funds to finish my undergraduate school and continue until I got my Master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology.  I retired a year ago after 40 years as an ASHA certified Speech-Language Pathologist.

The gestation period of The Fart That Saved Christmas ended and, with the help of my friends at Publish Green and Hillcrest Media, my story will be released to an unsuspecting public.

Q: What book on the market does yours compare to? How is your book different?

A: There are no other Christmas stories on the market, of which I am aware, that compare to this trip into the wormhole of my psyche.  I can only hope that there are some other offbeat characters out there that will enjoy the ride and a laugh or two.

Q: Do you plan any subsequent books?

A: Other books in planning?  Yes, but is anybody "out there" to tolerate my lunacy?

About Jacob Morningside: 

Born into a body inhabited by multiple muse personalities, I create stories by stretching the "normal" beyond the boundaries of the absurd.  The result is a worm-hole ride to the Far Side.  I love a good story — so, I wrote one.  Enjoy it with my wishes for a happy holiday season. 

Giveaway:

Use the rafflecopter form below to enter to win an e-book copy of The Fart That Saved Christmas!

The Devil's Garden by Brady Christianson Blog Tour [Guest post & Q&A]

Welcome fellow readers! Today I am part of the Devil's Garden by Brady Christianson Blog tour put together by the wonderful Tribute Books. For this stop Brady Christianson wrote up a guest post and did a Q&A. After you learn more about him and his book be sure to enter to win a copy of his book, Devil's Garden at the end of this post. Here is a big welcome to Brady Christianson!

The Devil's Garden by Brady Christianson

A Marine’s past is never far behind him, but sometimes it’s a lot closer than he thinks . . .

After years of enjoying the soft, quiet, civilian, family life, former Recon Marine Brandon Colson still has a large price on his head…only his family doesn’t know it. That is, until a heavily armed squad of terrorists breaks into his house and tries to kill him and his family.

After swiftly dispatching the would-be assassins, Colson realizes the ghosts from his past have somehow managed to come back to haunt him. His worst nightmare has come true. His identity—a secret until now—has been mysteriously compromised. Something he did years ago, while on a recon mission during his tour of service, has kept anger burning in the hearts of powerful Arab adversaries. And the men who attacked his house are simply an omen of what is to come.

With his family in hiding, Colson and local detective Sam Collier set out to locate and neutralize the remainder of the terrorist cell. It’s a race against time, and the plot they uncover along the way defies all expectation.

Their fates in the balance until the last second, the two men must fight for their lives as they navigate a trail littered with bloodshed and revenge that leads straight to hell on earth: The Devil’s Garden.

Guest Post:

The fog of war is a place where confusion rules, innocence dies and demons are born. Sometimes these demons come back to haunt a man and other times they simply come back to kill him. Few men would welcome the fight, which is to say, a proud and terrible few. The Devil’s Garden twists a Recon Marine’s worst nightmare into a deadly reality.

There is a saying in Recon: There is no life after Force. The lack of adrenaline and ensuing boredom will kill a warrior’s spirit. However, former Recon Marine Brandon Colson has a different kind of death to fear. After years spent in remote deserts and jungles on the other side of the planet dreaming of a quiet, civilian, family life, he finally has it. The problem is he has a large price on his head that even his family doesn’t know about: He is wanted by terrorists he worked to bring down.  With revenge in their hearts and murder on their minds, Colson’s enemies plan to revisit his sins upon him, his wife and his children. When a heavily armed squad of assassins arrives at his home in the middle of the night, he quickly dispatches the men, but knows the identity he buried deep in his past is no longer a secret. With his family in hiding, he makes it his personal mission to eliminate the threat to his family and reclaim the life he’s made.

The Devil’s Garden captures the irreconcilable thoughts and trepidation of a military man turned family man who must now fight to protect his family. As Colson’s crucial mission leads him to the Devil’s Garden of Florida, a forgotten wasteland of swamps, collapsed shacks, and lost souls, he finds that the midnight attack on his home was simply an omen of what is to come. With his fate in the balance until the last second, Colson must navigate a trail littered with bloodshed and revenge.

Q&A

Q: Please tell us about your current release.

A: My book is titled The Devil’s Garden. It will be available on Veteran’s Day, November 11, which is appropriate because the book is dedicated to the veterans of The War on Terror. The story is centered on two main characters who are military veterans, both of whom participated in such military campaigns.

The first is Brandon Colson, who is from the wilds of Kentucky and served as a Recon Marine. The other is Sam Collier who is from Atlanta, served in the Army’s Military Police in Iraq, and then later became a detective. The two men’s paths cross unexpectedly when heavily armed Muslim terrorists from Colson’s past come back to pay him a visit in the dead of the night. Following the aftermath at his residence, and subsequently at the local airport, Colson finds himself being interrogated by Collier while the authorities are trying to sort out and understand the night’s events. The problem is Colson isn’t talking because the event is directly connected to his past service.

Due to the circumstances, the two men are diametrically opposed at first. In fact, they don’t even like each other. Colson soon decides Detective Collier takes too much pleasure with interrogating prisoners and Collier quickly decides he doesn’t like Colson’s cocky, uncooperative attitude. Of course, Collier comes to the realization that if a man is going to swim with sharks, run with lions, or fight with those special forces Recon types, then they are going to have to possess a certain kind of confident swagger about them. On the other hand, it is only after Colson discovers the detective is an Iraqi War veteran that he begins to appreciate Collier’s potential as an ally. With the stage set, the two combat veterans quickly find themselves joined at the hip and fighting for their lives.

Q: Can you tell us about the journey that led you to write your book?

A: I suppose the journey started when I was 17 years old and looking to join the military. I knew I wanted to serve in a specialized warfare unit like the Army Special Forces or the Navy Seals. So I did some research and talked to the recruiters. That was when I discovered the Marine Corps had this unit called “Reconnaissance.” To make a long story short, the Navy and the Army guaranteed me a spot in whatever specialized unit I wanted and offered me a hefty enlistment bonus. The Marines, on the other hand, guaranteed me nothing and I guess they decided to keep the bonus money. They only guaranteed that I would first have to prove myself against all the other Marines before I could even have a chance to try to become a Recon Marine. These words did little more than wave a red flag at a bull and dare it to charge. The Marines have a unique way of taking a young man’s pride and turning it into a work of art. Of course, I must admit not all art is pretty or pleasing.

So I went, I made it into Recon, I served and got out. After that it was the typical college, career, family scenario. Then a few years ago, a Department of Veterans Affairs laptop was stolen. It contained the names, addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth and social security numbers of every veteran who served this country since the Vietnam conflict. The “missing” laptop was not recovered until about a month later, which was an eternity for someone to copy the information and sell it. There is a market for such information. In fact, according to the news it is not uncommon for some military personnel to sell their identification cards to people off base in order to get some extra cash. Of course, most do so not knowing to what end their identification cards will be used. Although common sense would dictate that nothing good could come of it, there are still those who do it anyway even though the military has harsh penalties for such conduct.

Considering these events and weighing them against the fact that there are those in the military services whose identities are protected — and they are protected for good reasons — the potential for disaster becomes painfully apparent. Combine all of this with one slightly paranoid, socially gruff, former Recon Marine and the story almost wrote itself.

Q: Can you tell us about the story behind your book cover?

A: The Devil’s Garden is not just the title of the book. It is also an actual place in the wilderness of south-central Florida. It is a large geographic area with an old name that no longer appears on any modern maps. For the book’s cover I tried to visualize what kind of garden the Devil would keep. Instead of the Devil tending a field of crops, I see him fanning a field of flames and watching in delight as they grow toward the sky. Hence, the book’s cover is a field of flames reaching upward for its title.

Q: What approaches have you taken to marketing your book?

A: The book’s website is at www.thedevilsgarden.us . There you can read excerpts and order it directly from me. The book will also be available through online retailers and bookstores. We are sending out press releases and setting up book signing events. We are also using social networking as well as my own personal network of friends who are either still in the military or are veterans of the military services.

Q: What book on the market does yours compare to? How is your book different?

A: The book could be compared on many levels to any popular action-packed mystery thriller that involves a highly-trained military operative or agent who is pitted against a powerful enemy. However, I wanted to introduce a hero unlike any other, who is much more simple and yet, much more complex at the same time. I wanted him to be exceedingly more colorful, realistic and human. As such, Colson is a man of many faults, with a unique flair that is only amplified by his intelligence and the confidence that is required to obtain the title of United States Marine. He is impulsive, compulsive, and confrontational and yet has the capacity to be loyal, loving, gentle and kind. Moreover, I believe the most significant defining difference is Colson’s pure, unadulterated killer instinct which is only balanced by his unwavering faith.

Q: What would you say is your most interesting writing quirk?

A: I cure writer’s block by target practicing with my knives. I can spend hours throwing them. Focusing on the target helps focus my thoughts. Not to mention the fact that it is both fun and effective.

Q: Open your book to a random page and tell us what’s happening.

A: Page 151. Colson and Collier are patrolling through a forested area to the location where two fugitive Palestinian terrorists are hiding out. Colson is advising his new “hunting buddy” as to the dangers of the Floridian woods and wetlands such as the native predatory animals, poisonous snakes and spiders, as well as the dangers associated with booby traps when infiltrating a bomb maker’s lair. Needless to say, this is a matter of great concern to Collier who quickly decides he would have been better off not knowing.

Q: Do you plan any subsequent books?

A: Yes. I do have a sequel in the works. In rough draft form, it is about a third of the way done.

Q: Tell us what you’re reading at the moment and what you think of it.

A: I am nearly finished reading Biblica, which is a social and historical treatise on the many lands and cultures of the Bible. It is a wonderful and detailed work which only fuels my desire to take my family on a tour of the ancient world from Rome to Constantinople to Jerusalem to Cairo. I’d like my family to experience the lands of the exodus, the lands of promise, and the Kingdom of David, the paths of the Apostles John, Peter and Paul, but most importantly, to see where Jesus journeyed, preached, suffered, died and arose again into glory.

About Brady Christianson: 

Brady Christianson is a former United States Marine Corps Recon Marine whose military service and Christian faith has shaped his writing.

| Website | Blog Tour Site |

Giveaway:

Use the rafflecopter form below to enter to win an E-Book (PDF) copy of Devil's Garden! Thank you Tribute Books for this giveaway!

The Banker Spy by William G. Byrnes Blog Tour [Guest Post + Q&A]

Welcome! Today I'm at stop on the Banker Spy by William G. Byrnes blog tour which is put together by Tribute Books. I have a special guest post from the author today along with a Q&A with the author so you can find out more about him and his book. If you like Spy novels be sure to add this book on your list. Give a big welcome to William and his book The Banker Spy!

The Banker Spy Book by William G. Byrnes

The Banker Spy weaves history into a contemporary thriller about ex-lovers who become entangled in a web of international intrigue. Investment banker Peter Armstrong believes he’s left his past in the States. He has an exciting new job in London and is managing the largest equity offering in European history. Behind him are an incident at his old employer and a broken engagement. He thinks his only problem is his client—an automobile company desperate for cash. Then he receives a phone call from his ex-fiancée, Dayna Caymus, a beautiful and unpredictable CIA agent. When Peter discovers that his client is secretly working for the German government the two ex-lovers enter into an uneasy alliance which their past sometimes helps and sometimes hurts, all the while sorting through their feelings for each other. Dayna puts her mission first, leading Peter into a labyrinth of deception and conspiracy. Peter loses his client, his job, and almost his life as they race to learn Germany’s secrets—secrets that could start a nuclear war.

Buy Now: | Amazon |

Guest Post:

The real-life inspiration for my Dayna character once said to me that a good book both entertains and imparts knowledge. I had no desire to write a literary novel. I wanted to write a page turner! And, I took to heart the adage “write what you know.” I know something about investment banking, having been one for seventeen years. The obvious skill is transaction management, such as the equity offering in the book. The more subtle skill is client management, which my banker character puts to the test with an egotistical CEO and deceptive CFO. I wrote about my passions—European travel, history, wines, and automobiles. I hope I brought these alive and The Banker Spy provides escape and entertainment for you.

I wanted The Banker Spy to be both vivid and factually accurate. In the course of writing the book my wife and I made two trips to Germany. We visited every locale described in the book, except one. (For that, I enlisted the aid of Google Earth.) So when I say, for example, the characters turn left, head down the Ebertstrasse past the American embassy and the Holocaust Memorial, the reader could retrace the characters steps in Berlin. I took some liberties with the World War II manufacturing sites. In one case I was blocked from getting close by a chain link fence topped with concertina wire, so I had to use my imagination. In another, I combined two sites into one. I saw pictures of the L-shaped protrusions along route 2 outside of Augsburg described in my book, but I don’t know if they still exist or what purpose they serve. It’s on my bucket list to go back and find out.

The more ambitious part of writing The Banker Spy was following the real Dayna’s dictum to impart knowledge. When I began I was under the, perhaps naïve, assumption that the physical reminders, such as buildings, of Nazi Germany has been obliterated. That is not the case. Trappings such as Nazi eagles and swastikas have been removed but the buildings remain. In Munich, Hitler’s apartment, the beer garden where he narrowly escaped assassination, and the plaza where he gave many speeches are essentially unchanged. Goering’s Luftwaffe headquarters in Berlin is now the Ministry of Finance. Many of the underground manufacturing facilities, where slave labor produced V1 and V2 rockets, remain. Some are open for tours.

Although I had some knowledge of post-war Europe, I had no idea about the shifting of German, Polish and Russians borders, the mass deportations that followed or the brutal winters that added to the suffering and death. At times, The Banker Spy seemed to write itself. Russia occupying Silesia, giving it to Poland, and deporting all ethnic Germans became the basis for politically powerful expellee groups in Germany and Germany’s desire to reclaim its lost territory. All figure prominently in my story. A writer learns from writing. 

Q&A:

Please tell us about your current release.

The Banker Spy weaves history into a contemporary thriller about ex-lovers who become entangled in a web of international intrigue. Investment banker Peter Armstrong believes he’s left his past in the States. He has an exciting new job in London and is managing the largest equity offering in European history. Behind him are an incident at his old employer and a broken engagement. He thinks his only problem is his client—an automobile company desperate for cash. Then he receives a phone call from his ex-fiancée, Dayna Caymus, a beautiful and unpredictable CIA agent.

When Peter discovers that his client is secretly working for the German government the two ex-lovers enter into an uneasy alliance, which their past sometimes helps and sometimes hurts, all the while sorting through their feelings for each other. Dayna puts her mission first, leading Peter into a labyrinth of deception and conspiracy. Peter loses his client, his job, and almost his life as they race to learn Germany’s secrets—secrets that could start a nuclear war.

Set against the backdrop of a national election, action takes place in and around Munich, and in Berlin, Washington and London.

Can you tell us about the journey that led you to write your book?

I always wanted to write and for years would sketch out ideas, but they lacked the critical mass to develop into a book. My wife and I were flying to Germany for a vacation a few years ago. Whenever we’d go to Europe I’d buy a book that had something to do with the country we were visiting. I’d read a lot about the World War II area, an interest of mine, and wanted something different. So I picked up a book on post-War Germany and read it on the flight over. The story of The Banker Spy literally came to me by the time I’d finished reading the book. Over dinner the next night, I outlined the plot to my wife. With some modifications and embellishments, it’s the story you’ll read in The Banker Spy.

Can you tell us about the story behind your book cover?

It’s pretty straightforward. I wanted a cover, and a title, that conveyed a sense of the book to the reader. On the cover is a man in a suit, carrying a briefcase, and a woman holding binoculars, standing next to each other. This suggests (I hope!) the two principal characters are a man and a woman, and they have a relationship. The suit and briefcase conveys the banker and the binoculars, the spy. They’re looking at landmark buildings, which gives the reader the idea where the book takes place.

What approaches have you taken to marketing your book?

I’m just beginning marketing and I’m very excited about my blog tour. I’m also asking friends and professional reviewers to post reviews about The Banker Spy. I believe that creating a buzz through word-of-mouth and posted reviews is the most effective way for an indie author, particularly one who’s published an eBook, to generate interest. 

What book on the market does yours compare to? How is your book different?

I really like Daniel Silva’s work. I’m not comparing myself to him or his books. Silva’s obviously an extremely successful author. I like that his books are set in Europe and he conveys a feel for the locale, particularly Italy. His principal characters are in a relationship and both are spies, although neither want to be. In The Banker Spy, the banker is dragged into espionage, just like Silva’s characters get called back into service. My principal characters have a more complicated, at times adversarial, relationship than Silva’s and it’s not resolved at the end of The Banker Spy.

What would you say is your most interesting writing quirk?

I’m not sure if this is a quirk but I like delving into history as part of the story, perhaps in greater detail then most thriller writers. The Banker Spy draws on historical events and places. The past is carried forward and guides the plot. Even my characters are deeply influenced by their pasts. Oftentimes, I got lost in my research because I found the information so interesting. This isn’t a historical novel, it takes place today and is very contemporary, but it has a strong historical basis and my characters experience the influences of history. 

Open your book to a random page and tell us what’s happening.

Since you can’t flip open an eBook, I swept my stylus quickly along the bottom of my iPad’s screen and wound up at the last page in chapter 21. Dayna, Peter’s ex-fiancée and CIA agent, is talking to the CIA station chief in Berlin about the chancellor of Germany. Germany is in the midst of a national election and the chancellor is running for his second, and final, term. The race is close. Unknown to the German voters, the chancellor has a secret program to make Germany a nuclear power and reclaim the territory it lost after World War II. Dayna is tasked with stopping the chancellor. If she can come up with something bad from his past, he will lose the election and the German threat will end.

Do you plan any subsequent books?

I put a lot of thought into developing my principal characters, Peter and Dayna. I think there’s good tension and a complicated chemistry between them (of course, I’m biased!) and I’d like to see how their relationship plays out. I planted the seeds for their next adventure in The Banker Spy when Peter, an investment banker, gets the assignment to sell the German automobile company that figures prominently in the story. I’m thinking about sending them to Mexico or South America, but we’ll have to wait and see.

Tell us what you’re reading at the moment and what you think of it.

I like reading a mixture of non-fiction (principally history and business) and fiction. I just finished Killing Lincoln, by O’Reilly and Dugard. The book conveyed a real sense of time and place. The authors communicated a great deal of information about Lincoln, the civil war and Washington, D.C. As O’Reilly said, it reads like a thriller. In fiction, my latest read was Daniel Silva’s Fallen Angel. Just like his principal character, Silva paints wonderful pictures of his characters and locations. Just before that I read David Baldacci’s (another favorite author of mine) The Innocent. Like Silva, Baldacci creates unique characters. Baldacci’s books are fast moving and I like that much of the action takes place around Washington, DC, where I’ve lived most of my life.

About William G. Byrnes's: 

Bill Byrnes was an investment banker with Alex. Brown & Sons for 17 years. After that he was a Distinguished Teaching Professor of Finance and, subsequently, member of the Board of Regents at Georgetown University. He's founded three companies and has served on the boards of six public companies. He holds degrees from Georgetown University and the University of Michigan. His interests include European and Mesoamerican history, wine collecting, and automobiles. He's happiest around the water and on the tennis court. Bill, his wife, and their two poodles divide their time between Washington, DC and West Palm Beach, FL.