Spotlight Tour and Giveaway of Jane Ashford FIRST SEASON / BRIDE TO BE

We are excited to spotlight the latest offering by Sourcebooks Casablanca and author Jane Ashford.  Enjoy this excerpt from the first book in the historical romance duology, First Season/ Bride to Be.  Also make sure to check out the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win a copy!!

Title: First Season/Bride to Be
Author: Jane Ashford
ISBN: 978-1492630944
Release Date: October 6, 2015
Imprint: Sourcebooks Casablanca

Two classic Regency romances by beloved bestselling author Jane Ashford celebrate the adventures of a London Season

FIRST SEASON

Widowed Lady Anabel Wyndham was married right out of the schoolroom and has never before experienced the delights of a London Season. She’s dazzled by the attention of the fascinating Sir Charles Norbury, a man whose touch seems to melt her very soul, but a notorious rake. She’s drawn to handsome friend-of-the-family Christopher Hanford and the comfort and serenity he offers. But how does one choose between two such charming suitors? Anabel is finding that love is so much more dangerous the second time around.

BRIDE TO BE

Emily Crane is the toast of the ton—and she couldn’t find it more tedious. Until she encounters the darkly sensual stranger whose life she once saved and the London Season becomes infinitely more exciting. Recently returned from the wilds of South America, Lord Richard Sheldon has only contempt for tiresome London chits, but he finds himself stunningly intrigued by the dauntless Emily Crane. When the two become embroiled in a budding scandal and are forced into an engagement, they discover a passion more dangerous than any killer…

 First Season Excerpt

“There you are,” said someone from the hall below. “They said you had gone upstairs.”

Anabel looked down to find Sir Charles Norbury gazing up at her. A tingling shock ran through her body, and the candle trembled a little, dripping wax.

“You have missed the first waltz,” he added, meeting her at the bottom of the staircase and taking the candlestick from her hand. He snuffed the flame between forefinger and thumb and set it aside. “And I came early especially to engage you for it.”

“I wanted to look in on the children.” As always, his presence overwhelmed her. He seemed to tower over her, yet his pale green eyes felt close and compelling. She found it hard to breathe.

“It is a country dance now, unfortunately. Mayn’t we wait outside here for the next and hope?” He smiled and reached for her hand to lead her across to a small empty anteroom.

Anabel knew she should say no, but her voice seemed to have died, and she went with him silently and allowed him to escort her to a sofa and sit beside her, his arm thrown along its back.

“You look exquisite tonight,” he said softly. “The loveliest woman at the ball.”

This outrageous compliment revived her. “What a plumper. There are dozens of prettier ones.”

“No.”

“Flatterer.” She smiled, but when she met his eyes, they were very serious.

“No,” he said again. “To me you are the most beautiful.” He held her gaze for a moment, then slowly bent forward and took possession of her lips, his arm tightening around her shoulders.

Anabel’s slight trembling increased, and her mind dissolved in confusion. She should pull away, part of it cried; this was terribly fast, and someone might come in at any moment. But another part urged her on, fascinated by Sir Charles’ attractions and filled with curiosity.

His kiss was very expert, and nothing at all like her deceased husband’s, Anabel’s only standard of comparison. His lips seemed to draw all strength out of her, leaving her limp and pliant, yet she felt disconnected from the expected sensual pleasure. He knew how to draw response from her body, clearly, but her heart and mind remained in turmoil.

Norbury, on the contrary, was in the grip of feelings stronger than any he had ever experienced, and for him the kiss confirmed a decision. This was the woman he wanted. Never had his passions been suffused with such emotion. Beyond thinking, he moved his free hand to Anabel’s knee and slid it upward caressingly, savoring the curve of her waist under the thin satin dress and cupping his fingers around her breast. She drew her breath in sharply.

A scuff of footsteps in the hall, followed by a scrap of conversation and a laugh, jerked Anabel upright. She pulled away from him only just in time to avoid being caught by two couples coming into the room. But it was obvious in the way that the newcomers stopped, smiled, and apologized that their appearance gave them away. Anabel rose and hurried from the room, Norbury behind her. Her cheeks were flaming, and she felt that she could not possibly face the crowd in the ballroom.

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Author Bio

Jane Ashford discovered Georgette Heyer in junior high school and was captivated by the glittering world and witty language of Regency England. That delight led her to study English literature and travel widely in Britain and Europe. Her historical and contemporary romances have been published in Sweden, Italy, England, Denmark, France, Russia, Latvia, Slovenia, and Spain, as well as the U.S. Twenty-six of her new and backlist Regency romances are being published by Sourcebooks. Jane has been nominated for a Career Achievement Award by RT Book Reviews. She is currently rather nomadic.

Social Media

Website: http://www.janeashford.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Jane-Ashford-154028944714495

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/842700.Jane_Ashford

Buy Links

Amazon: http://amzn.to/1LApJrY

Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/1OwQYoY

iBooks: http://apple.co/1jf7ixV

Girl Underwater by Claire Kells

by:  Claire Kells
published by:  Dutton
publish date:  March 21, 2015

Nineteen-year-old Avery Delacorte loves the water.  Now a sophomore on her university’s nationally ranked team, she struggles under the weight of new expectations but life is otherwise pretty good. Perfect, really.

That all changes when Avery’s red-eye home for Thanksgiving makes a ditch landing in a mountain lake in the Colorado Rockies. She is one of only five survivors, which includes three little boys and Colin Shea, who happens to be her teammate. Colin is also the only person in Avery’s college life who challenged her to swim her own events, to be her own person. Instead she’s avoided him since the first day of freshman year. But now, faced with sub-zero temperatures, minimal supplies, and the dangers of a forbidding nowhere, Avery and Colin must rely on each other in ways they never could’ve imagined.

I'm a sucker for survivor stories.  Shipwreck, plane crash, whatever, I love them.  This one was really good.  Girl Underwater might be the best book I've read this year.   Way to knock it out the park on your first book Claire Kells!

Avery and Colin both come from the Boston area but they do not come from the same side of the tracks.  Avery comes from the affluent area and Colin comes from a working class neighborhood.  They both end up in California on the same swim team.  They're flying home for Thanksgiving when their plane crashes into a lake in the Rockies.  They both survive along with three little boys.   The story tells of their 5 days on the mountain and how they survive afterwards once they have to go back to their real lives.  It's told going back and forth between before, during and after the crash and how Avery and Colin's relationship develops.  

Would I recommend this book?  Yes!  Definitely!  To anyone!  I was so sad when this book was over.  I want to read another one just like it.  Anyone have any recommendations?

The Ripper Gene by Michael Ransom

Author: Michael Ransom
Publisher: Forge Books
Date of publication: August 2015

Dr. Lucas Madden is a neuroscientist-turned-FBI profiler who first gained global recognition for cloning the ripper gene and showing its dysfunction in the brains of psychopaths. Later, as an FBI profiler, Madden achieved further notoriety by sequencing the DNA of the world’s most notorious serial killers and proposing a controversial “damnation algorithm” that could predict serial killer behavior using DNA alone.

Now, a new murderer—the Snow White Killer—is terrorizing women in the Mississippi Delta. When Mara Bliss, Madden’s former fiancée, is kidnapped, he must track down a killer who is always two steps ahead of him. Only by entering the killer’s mind will Madden ultimately understand the twisted and terrifying rationale behind the murders—and have a chance at ending the psychopath’s reign of terror.

I know I've said it a million times, but you never know what you are going to get with a debut book.  I am happy to say that I was very pleased with The Ripper Gene.  I thoroughly enjoyed Lucas Madden's story.  He is a doctor turned  FBI profiler.  During his research years,  he identified a gene dubbed "The Ripper Gene" that tends to be found in serial killers.  His theory is that you could potentially predict who might become a serial killer and who would not.   But this story isn't solely about that alone.  There is a potential serial killer on the loose and Lucas ends up on the case.  

That is about all of the plot I am going to share.  I really don't want to spoil anything.  Let's just say that I loved how it all came together and tied into Lucas's past.  What I also liked what the way the author explained the scientific stuff without dumbing it down too much or making it too complicated to understand.  He was able to find the right balance so that I think any reader would have no problem "getting it".  I loved Lucas.  He is a character I would love to read more about in the future.  

This is a great debut that sucked me right in and made me stay up late into the night reading!  I see a bright future for this author and can't wait to see what he writes next!

Blog Tour: Murder and Other Unnatural Disasters by Lida Sideris

Author: Lida Sideris
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press, Inc 

Date of publication: September 30, 2015

Watch out Southern California! There’s a new entertainment attorney in town and she’s got game. Only problem is, it’s not the one she should be playing. Corrie Locke belongs behind a desk, not behind a Glock. She should be taking VIP calls, not nosing around a questionable suicide. Instead, she’s hot on the trail of a murderer.

Luckily, she’s the daughter of a late, great private eye and she’s inherited his love of sleuthing…and illegal weaponry. It doesn’t help matters that her gene for caution is a recessive one. Corrie finds herself in the center of a murder case, unearthing suspects in shocking places. With a cold-blooded killer on the loose, Corrie will have to up her game, or die trying.

I had high hopes for Murder and Other Unnatural Disasters. From the synopsis, it looked to be an amusing mystery with a sassy heroine.  The basic premise is that Corrie is a lawyer who used to work with her father in his PI business.  Something happened and now she is starting a new job with a small movie production company as an internal lawyer.  The first day on the job, she finds out two employees have died withing weeks of each other. One of the friends of the first guy wants her to prove he didn't commit suicide.

For me, this ended up being a DNF.  I stopped at about 30% of the way in. While I think the story had a lot of potential, it just didn't do it for me.  I know it was supposed to be a humorous mystery with crazy characters, but it was almost too crazy. It seemed like every character was weird and trying for laughs.  I kept feeling like I was missing things in certain scenes.  For instance, the scene where Corrie goes to the bar with her coworkers for a drink.  The scene just felt unfinished and kind of made no sense to me.  I like humor in my books, but I don't like to be confused.

The book has received great reviews from others on the tour, so check out what they are saying in the list below. It just wasn't for me.

About Lida Sideris

Like her heroine, Corrie Locke, Lida Sideris hails from Southern California and worked as an entertainment attorney for a film studio. She has written numerous magazine and newspaper articles, a poem or two and a teleplay. She shares her home with her family and an assortment of dogs and chickens. She was the recipient of the 2014 Helen McCloy/Mystery Writers of America scholarship for mystery writing. Murder and Other Unnatural Disasters is her first novel.

Find out more about Lida at her website and connect with her on Facebook.

Purchase Links

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Lida’s Tour Stops

Thursday, October 15th: Bibliotica

Monday, October 19th: Joyfully Retired

Tuesday, October 20th: Bibliophilia, Please

Tuesday, October 20th: Open Book Society

Thursday, October 22nd: From the TBR Pile

Monday, October 26th: The Reading Cove Book Club

Tuesday, October 27th: A Chick Who Reads 

Wednesday, October 28th: Buried Under Books

Friday, October 30th: Queen of All She Reads

Tuesday, November 3rd: Worth Getting in Bed For

TBD: Ageless Pages Reviews

Throwback Thursday: Legend in Green Velvet by Elizabeth Peters

Author: Elizabeth Peters
first published in 1976 by Dodd Mead

Susan had been infatuated with everything Scottish for as long as she could remember. When she arrived in Scotland to work on an archaeological dig, she thought it was a dream come true. But now the dream was rapidly becoming a nightmare.

She had no idea why a sinister soap box orator slipped her a cryptic message. Or why he was chasing her through the streets of Edinburgh. So when Jamie Erskine, a young Scottish laird came to her rescue, she was very grateful.

Before they could say Mary Queen of Scots, Susan and Jamie were being pursued by the police who wanted them for murder. And by someone who was intent on murdering them...

I think Elizabeth Peters is one of those authors where I end up liking her more when she writes under one of her other pen names.  I think I mentioned before that I am a fan of Barbara Michaels's books.  I am pretty sure I read all of them back in the 90s.  But, other than her Amelia Peabody series that she writes under as Elizabeth Peters, I have had a hard time warming up to her other books.  Legend in Green Velvet is just such a case.

The story ended up being just OK.  It was definitely confusing at times.  I'm not sure if I really get what they were looking for or why  Jamie and Susan were being chased.  The beginning was very slow and full of history that I think I tuned out at some key points and the story was lost on me.  Neither character was very interesting and the romance was lackluster.  I'm not sure I would recommend this one.

Wrong Number, Right Guy by Elle Casey

Author: Elle Casey
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Date of publication: September 2015

When a mysterious text message summons May Wexler to a biker bar in downtown New Orleans, she knows something is very wrong. Her sister has sent out an SOS, but when May gets there, she’s nowhere to be found and May is the one in trouble—she’s wearing pink espadrilles, she’s got a Chihuahua in her purse, and she’s in the middle of a shootout.

After tall, muscular Ozzie comes to her rescue, May has no choice but to follow him to safety. At the headquarters of his private security firm, the Bourbon Street Boys, she finds a refuge for the night—and the offer of a job. But it’s not long before a gun-toting stalker isn’t the only complication in May’s life: the more time she spends with Ozzie, the less she can deny that they’ve got some serious chemistry. A wrong number got her into this mess…Will it also get her the right guy?

Wrong Number, Right Guy involves May, who ends up going to a dive bar looking for her sister after getting a strange text that she thought came from said sister.  She stumbles into an undercover sting run by a private security firm and ends up being rescued by Ozzie.  He takes her back to his company warehouse and ends up hiring her for her photography background.  There is just the issue of the bad guy who is looking for her to take his revenge.

I'm kind of torn when it comes to this book.  On one hand, I thought it was really funny and laughed a lot. I knew when I started reading the book that it was going to be funny.  Just the opening scene with the texts and auto-correct had me laughing.  The story had the same humor as the early Stephanie Plum books that I have always loved. I also loved May and her defense against Dev's sneak attacks.  The two dogs were too cute and made me laugh as well.

But on the other hand, I was kind of bored with the romance part.  It was just kind of so-so, as well as really fast.  Six days to "I love you" is too fast for me.  They barely knew each other. For me, Ozzie was kind of hard to read.  I wasn't really sure he was THAT into May.  The ending was also kind of abrupt for me as well.  It looks like there may be more in this series so hopefully, we will see more of May and Ozzie together.

Cover Reveal and Sneak Peek of Don't Get Caught by Kurt Dinan

We are happy to present debut author Kurt Dinan, who reveals the cover of Don’t Get Caught, and gives readers a first-time sneak peek into the book.  It comes out in April 2016  Make sure to check out the giveaway below to win a copy!

Author:  Kurt Dinan

Release Date: April 1, 2016

Publishers Sourcebooks Fire\

17-year-old Max Cobb is sick of being “Just Max”—the kind of guy whose resume boasts a measly 2.5 GPA and a deep love of heist films. So when an invitation appears in his locker to join the anonymous, untraceable, epic prank-pulling Chaos Club, Max jumps at the opportunity to leave “Just Max” in the dust.

    

Except that the invite is really a set-up, and Max—plus the 4 other kids who received similar invitations—are apprehended by school security for defacing the water tower.  This time, Max has had enough. Time for Heist Rule #6:

Always Get Payback.

Let the prank war begin...

  

Describe your book in 140 characters or less?

A high school nobody recruits a crew of misfits for heists and pranks to get revenge on the mysterious Chaos Club. #DontGetCaught

How did you come up with the idea for Don’t Get Caught?

Look, who hasn’t wanted to rob a bank?  Or at least hasn’t thought about it?  I can’t be the only one, right?  Right? So, I suppose Don’t Get Caught is my way of robbing a bank without risking actual jail time because, let me make this clear, I would not do well in prison.  I love capers, heists, and schemes, and while the crew in this novel aren’t robbing banks, they are satisfying my criminal thoughts by doing the teenage equivalent of bank robbery--wrecking havoc in their high school.

Tell us about the main character.

Max is a high school nobody, a kid who’s smart enough and nice enough to get by, but who doesn’t really fit in anywhere.  So basically, he’s me at sixteen.  But what Max has that I certainly didn’t have is a genius-level ability to scheme and a newly discovered gift for leading misfits.  He’s underestimated by everyone, a fact that works to his advantage when he decides it’s time to write his name in the wet cement of the universe by destroying a forty-year-old secret society.

Did your class in high school pull any memorable pranks? Or is there one you wish you had pulled?

My prank life didn’t begin until college when I helped mastermind a promotion for a fake campus concert that almost led to my arrest.  But in my final year of high school, the six-hundred members of my senior class were crowded onto bleachers for an all-class picture.  I look at that picture now and see an opportunity for chaos.  I mean, how much would it have cost to hire an airplane to drop a hundred gallons of water at the precise moment the picture was taken?  Or to organize a group of kids to all wear neon shirts and arrange themselves into something profane within the crowd?  It’s missed opportunities like this that keep me up at night.

What books formed your thinking or reflected who you were as a child and teen reader?

I read a lot of early Stephen King probably before I was old enough, and then through high school it was mostly comic books and classics.  I do specifically remember reading Helter Skelter during my junior year, dragging that non-fiction monster around with me for a month or so.  Looking back on it now, that’s probably all of the evidence needed to explain why I didn’t have a girlfriend in high school.

Excerpt from Don’t Get Caught:

I may not be a fan of heights, but I especially hate ladders. I always think the rung I’m on is going to break away and send me plummeting. So climbing the water tower ladder in the dark, the rungs sticky for some reason, only worries me more. But despite that, I’d be lying if I didn’t say how awesome this was. The higher I climb, the harder my heart pounds from the adrenaline. I feel like a jewel thief scaling a skyscraper at midnight on his way to stealing the Hope Diamond.

Up ahead in the darkness, Wheeler goes into a mock newscaster’s voice announcing, “Five Asheville High School students fell to their deaths last evening when—”

“Shut up,” Malone says.

The climb takes only two minutes but feels like an hour when the ladder ends at the base of a metal grating no more than four feet wide. If a strong wind blows, a waist-high railing is all that’s there to keep me from hurtling to my death.

“Wow, this is higher than I thought,” Ellie says, looking out over the lights of the town.

Malone, recording everything with her phone, says, “I wish I had my climbing gear. I’d love to repel off this.”

“What was it Jesus said, Ellie?” Wheeler says. “‘I think I can see my house from up here’?”

And me, I want down. And not just down, but to roll in the grass and kiss the earth. Then, as I’m about to wuss out, Ellie’s hand is in mine and she’s leading me along the platform.

“Come on,” she says. “Let’s look for the next clue.”

Her hand is soft and warm, and if the platform gives away right now, I can die a happy man.

“You get to open the next envelope if there is one,” Ellie says. “Or maybe it’ll be like in the movies, and there’ll be a cell phone that rings and—”

My foot kicks something metal sending it clanking and skittering across the platform before dropping into the night.

From the other side of the tower Malone says, “What was that?”

I look down at my feet and see four more of what I’ve just booted—spray paint cans.

And in one horrifying moment, I realize why the rungs were sticky when we climbed.

Red paint covers my hands.

Oh shit.

I lean back for a better view of the water tower to see what’s been spray-painted there. The wet paint trails down from certain letters like red teardrops.

Double shit.

Heist Rule #5: When in doubt, run.

But we don’t get that chance.

Suddenly, the water tower lights blaze to life illuminating the newly painted message for the entire town to see.

Assville High School, Home of the Golden Showers.

Both Malone and Wheeler say, “Shit.”

Ellie says, “Wow.”

Adleta says nothing.

And then a voice booms from a bullhorn below where red-and-blue lights flash in the parking lot.

“This is the police. Come down immediately.”

So much for Don’t get caught.

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About Kurt Dinan:

Kurt Dinan is a high school English teacher. He’s had several short stories published, including one in 2010’s The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy and Horror. He lives in Cincinnati, Ohio, with his wife, three young sons, and baby girl. Don’t Get Caught is his first novel.

Pre-order Don't Get Caught  

Excerpt of The Ripper Gene by Michael Ransom

We are excited to have an excerpt from author Michael Ransom's debut novel, The Ripper Gene.  Make sure to come back on Friday for some thoughts on the book.

Publisher:  Forge Books
Date of publication: August 2015

A neuroscientist-turned-FBI-profiler discovers a genetic signature that produces psychopaths in The Ripper Gene, a thrilling debut novel from Michael Ransom.

Dr. Lucas Madden is a neuroscientist-turned-FBI profiler who first gained global recognition for cloning the ripper gene and showing its dysfunction in the brains of psychopaths. Later, as an FBI profiler, Madden achieved further notoriety by sequencing the DNA of the world's most notorious serial killers and proposing a controversial "damnation algorithm" that could predict serial killer behavior using DNA alone.

Now, a new murderer-the Snow White Killer-is terrorizing women in the Mississippi Delta. When Mara Bliss, Madden's former fiancée, is kidnapped, he must track down a killer who is always two steps ahead of him. Only by entering the killer's mind will Madden ultimately understand the twisted and terrifying rationale behind the murders-and have a chance at ending the psychopath's reign of terror.

He who himself begins to loathe,

grows sick in flesh and spirit both.

-- Theodore Roethke

PROLOGUE

Halloween, 1983.

Crossroads, Mississippi.

Every Halloween the ladies from Crossroads Baptist took us to different church members’ houses for trick-or-treating, so no razor blades, rat poison, or liquid Drano would end up in our candy.  My mother was always one of the chaperones, and that night she rode in the front seat of Mrs. Callahan's station wagon with us.

The car rolled steadily beneath the swaying fingers of Spanish moss as we left the swamps. Glowing faces floated in the back seat around me as we bounced over the rutted, gravel road.  A ghost, a cowboy, a ballerina, a ghoul. One kid even wore a devil mask beside me.

I wore a knight’s costume, replete with a wooden sword and a breastplate of armor made from an aluminum trashcan.  The lid served as my shield.

Mara, my twelve year-old girlfriend, sat beside me.  She was dressed like a princess, a silver tiara glinting atop her raven black hair in the moonlight.  We’d stolen a kiss in the bathroom of the church basement earlier, during the apple-bobbing contest.  There, in the darkness of the back seat, I could still taste the cinnamon from her glossed lips.  The memory of kissing her, somehow finding her mouth with my own in that dark and forbidden bathroom, had sent pulsating waves of excitement through my young torso for the entire night.

We continued along the gravel roads not speaking, just stealing glances in the moonlight.  No man-made lights or lampposts punctuated the pine-choked countryside surrounding us.  Out the windows a million stars spread away from the Milky Way like a white paint explosion across a midnight-blue canvas.

Just as Mara leaned towards me to finally speak, the car slammed to a halt, screeching in the gravel and sliding a good twenty feet on the road.  All the kids toppled to the floorboard and after a moment’s silence, Mrs. Callahan’s voice whispered in the dark.  “Oh, my God.  What’s that?”

I poked my head above the back seat just as my mother replied, the thick curls of her black hair spilling over the seat and filling my view.  “Oh, just some young boys horsing around up there.  Wait.  Is that blood, Marjorie?  Drive on up.”

Mrs. Callahan shifted into drive, but didn’t take her foot off the brake.  “Probably just a Halloween prank, Mrs. Madden.  We best go on around.”  Mrs. Callahan’s eyes were so intensely focused ahead that I craned my neck away from my mother’s hair to follow her gaze.

Two teen-age boys, both in white T-shirts and jeans, stood illuminated on the road ahead.  One of them turned toward us, shielding a hand in front of his eyes, the front of his T-shirt stained a deep red.  A moment later the other boy staggered and fell sideways into the shallow ditch along the far side of the road.

“Margie, I think they’re really hurt,” my mother said.  “Maybe they were in a car wreck.”

 Mrs. Callahan's eyes narrowed and her voice fell to a growl. “Ain’t no cars around here, Mrs. Madden. Why don’t we just go to the next house and call an ambulance?”

I inhaled the air behind my mother’s hair.  She used Prell, and her hair smelled just like the green liquid in the bottle.  She faced Mrs. Callahan, but caught sight of me out of the corner of her eye and cupped my chin in her hand as she spoke.  “It wouldn’t be Christian, Margie.  Drive on up, and I’ll roll down the window and ask them what happened.  Go on.”

Mrs. Callahan eyed my mother as if to speak, but instead released the brake and we rolled forward in the night slowly, approaching the boys.  The one boy still lied face down in the ditch, unmoving.  The other one stumbled at the edge of the road, moving in circles back and forth as though tracing the symbol for infinity. 

My mother rolled down her window.

The boy who was still standing was crying.  His blond hair hung in front of his face, and he whined.  “Help us, please.  There’s another boy on the other side of the hill.  He ain’t moving, either.  We had an accident.  We were riding motorcycles.”

My mother unlocked and opened her door.  “Margie.  You stay with the children--” she began, but Mrs. Callahan’s hand shot across the seat and clutched my mother by the sleeve of her white sweater. 

“Mrs. Madden.  Really.  I don’t know.”

My mother leaned back inside and smiled.  But it wasn’t the genuine kind, rather the kind she always used whenever she was about to end a conversation.  I knew it, and Mrs. Callahan knew it, too. 

“Margie, these boys are hurt,” she said, “and I’m a nurse.  It’s the only thing I can do.  Ya’ll go on up to Nellie’s.  Call 911 and the ambulance.  Then call Jonathan and let him know I’m all right.  Leave the children at Nellie’s for the time being.  When the police get there, bring them here.  We’ll be waiting right here on the side of the road.  Hopefully that poor boy in the woods isn’t hurt too bad.”

“Mama,” I said.

“Hush.  Go on up with Mrs. Callahan and I’ll help these boys, then I’ll see you and daddy up at the house.  I love you, Lucas.”

The memory always goes fuzzy then.  The next thing I remember is my mother’s face receding into the dark woods as Mrs. Callahan drives away.  I press my face against the glass of the window, a tear trickling for some reason over my cheek as the one bloodied boy holds my mother’s wrist and leads her into the overgrown grass and small trees.  My mother looks back at me one last time, smiling the way only women can, the one that’s sad and frightened and turned in the wrong direction but is supposed to reassure you that everything will be fine.

It’s the last time I’ll ever see my mother’s face.

They disappear into the woods.

And just before our station wagon crests the hill, I see the other mortally wounded boy suddenly stand up in the ditch, not looking at all as sick and hurt as he’d appeared before.  He looks furtively about to make sure no one is watching, then runs into the woods, sneaking behind my mother and her bloodied companion.

I wrestle and thrash in the car, begging Mrs. Callahan to stop, until she finally screams at the top of her voice, swearing at me with a stream of profanities that stun us all into silence, screaming at me to be quiet because I’m scaring the other children.  She drives faster and I can still hear the sounds of children crying all around me as the dark forest envelopes the empty gravel road behind us, separating me farther and farther from my mother, forever.

About the Author:

MICHAEL RANSOM is a molecular pharmacologist and a recognized expert in the fields of toxicogenomics and pharmacogenetics. He is widely published in scientific journals and has edited multiple textbooks in biomedical research. He is currently a pharmaceutical executive and an adjunct professor in the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Raised in rural Mississippi, he now makes his home in northern New Jersey. The Ripper Gene is his first novel.

The Ripper Gene [Forge Books / Macmillan] is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million and in brick-and-mortar bookstores across North America.

Follow Michael Ransom on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads and at http://www.michaelransombooks.com/

Shattered Secrets by Karen Harper

Author: Karen Harper
Publisher: Harlequin (Mira)
Date of publication: August 2014

Returning to Cold Creek, Ohio, is an act of courage for Tess Lockwood. Abducted and held captive as a young girl, she is unable to remember anything about the crime that destroyed her childhood and tore her family apart. Now a grown woman with a bright future, she is certain she has put the past behind her. But when she inherits the family home, Tess must confront the demons that still haunt her and the town of Cold Creek. 

Gabe McCord has always blamed himself for what happened to Tess. He had been a teenager when she was snatched from the group of children he was responsible for watching. Now Gabe has taken on the role of sheriff and hopes to shed new light on the cold case, especially given his growing feelings for Tess. 
Tess isn't ready to recall what happened to her, and she has no intention of digging up any details that might remind her of the truth. But when another child in the town goes missing, she's certain it's related to her return to Cold Creek. Together,Tess and Gabe will have to work to unlock their painful memories in order to save another child and heal their damaged souls, for good…

Shattered Secrets is the first in a trilogy about the town of Cold Creek, Ohio.  It's a small town with a lot of secrets.  Tess has returned after years away to sell her mother's house.  When she was a child, she was the first of several abductions that span many years.  Tess is the only one that managed to escape captivity.  The problem is, she remembers nothing about her time away.  Now a new girl has been taken and Tess will do anything to remember in an attempt to find the missing child. 

It's been a while since I have read a book by this author.  I'm not sure what has made me stay away so long.  Shattered Secrets was a really god mystery with a very surprise ending.  I was totally taken aback when all was revealed.  There are many twists and red herrings in the story, so you have to pay good attention to figure it out.  I definitely didn't!

While I loved the mystery, I was just  OK on the romance part.  For me it was way too fast.  6 days and Tess is telling Gabe she loves him.  I know they new each other before, but Tess was like 7 the last time they saw each other.  So it just didn't ring true for me.  Regardless, if you are looking for a good mystery, check this one out.  I'm looking forward to reading the next book, Forbidden Ground.

99 Days by Katie Cotugno

by:  Katie Cotugno
published by:  Balzer + Bray
publish date:  April 21, 2015

Day 1: Julia Donnelly eggs my house my first night back in Star Lake, and that’s how I know everyone still remembers everything—how I destroyed my relationship with Patrick the night everything happened with his brother, Gabe. How I wrecked their whole family. Now I’m serving out my summer like a jail sentence: Just ninety-nine days till I can leave for college, and be done.

This is the second book by Katie Cotugno that I've read.  I've liked both.  It took me awhile to get through 99 Days though.  I started it and got bored with it and put it away.  It was almost a DNF, but I got the audiobook and got all the way through and ended up enjoying it.

Molly and Patrick have been dating forever.  When she gets an offer to run track for a private school, Patrick gets possessive and jealous, and they break up.  During that short break up, she sleeps with his brother Gabe, but she and Patrick get back together and she never tells him what happens when they were broken up.  However, she did tell her mother, who is a famous author and uses the story in her next novel.  Now, everybody knows and Molly is the town slut.  She just needs to last through the 99 days of summer until she can leave town.

This book was very good about exploring the double standards for boys and girls.  It took until the end that Molly started understanding that, but she did eventually get there that the sister Julia shouldn't have been mad at just Molly but both of her brothers shared the blame as well too.  It had a good message about girls sticking by each other as well, one that more girls should hear.  For those two reasons, I would recommend this book to the YA readers.

Blog Tour: The Great Christmas Knit-Off by Alexandra Brown

Author: Alexandra Brown

Publisher: William Morrow Paperback

Date of publication: October 2015

Sybil has always taken comfort in her passion for knitting, creating beautiful garments stitch by stitch. But her world suddenly unravels when her fiancé ditches her for her identical twin sister at her Star Wars–themed wedding, leaving Sybil at the altar sporting a Princess Leia do. And things go from bad to worse when an incident at work jeopardizes her job.

To escape her woes and forget that she’ll be alone for Christmas this year, Sybil sets off to visit her friend Cher in Tindledale—a winter wonderland of quaint shops and snowy rooftops. When she arrives in the idyllic town, she can’t help feeling like she’s in a Hallmark greeting card. She’s embraced by welcoming—if eccentric—locals wearing handmade sweaters that remind Sybil of her own creations and her unrealized ambitions of selling them. So when the owner of a vintage-clothing boutique asks her to make an assortment of knits for their display window, she’s thrilled. And hoping to heal her broken heart, the hot town doctor has even taken an interest in Sybil.

But just when Sybil thinks she’s going to have her fairy-tale Christmas after all, an unexpected turn of events threatens to unspool her happily ever after.

I can't begin to tell you how cute this story ending up being.  The Great Christmas Knit-Off is a wonderful, feel good holiday story that will definitely put you in the mood for the upcoming season. The Christmas season is about giving and spending time with family and friends. That is defiintely what Sybil finds on her adventure to a small village. When Sybil feels like her life it getting to be too much, she escapes for a weekend to the tiny village of Tindledale to visit her best friend.  Arriving in a snow storm with a broken heart and sleep deprivation over worries at work, the townsfolk instantly embrace her. 

As I said I really enjoyed this book.  There were times when it reminded me of Bridget Jones's Diary.  There were some great laugh out loud moments, the promise of a sweet romance, and wonderful quirky characters.  I loved Sybil.  Being a lover of needlearts myself, I could totally get behind her love of knitting and embroidery.  It can definitely have a calming effect!  Her relationship with Hettie was very endearing and special.  And of course who can forget the adoable Basil!

I highly recommend this book to anyone. It looks like it is the first book in a series, so I can't wait to visit the town of Tindledale again soon!

About Alexandra Brown

Alexandra Brown began her writing career as the City Girl columnist for the London Paper. She wrote the weekly column—a satirical diary account of her time working in the corporate world of London—for two years before giving it up to concentrate on writing novels and is now the author of the Cupcakes at Carrington’s books. Set in a department store in the pretty seaside town of Mulberry-On-Sea, the series follows the life, loves and laughs of sales assistant Georgie Hart. The Great Christmas Knit-Off is Alexandra’s fourth book and the first in a new series set in the fictional village of Tindledale, following the lives of all the characters there. Alexandra lives in a real village near the south coast of England with her husband, daughter and a very shiny black Labrador retriever.

Find out more about Alexandra at her website, and connect with her on Facebook,Twitter, and Instagram.

Purchase Links

Amazon | IndieBound | Barnes & Noble

Alexandra’s Tour Stops

Tuesday, October 13th: Lavish Bookshelf

Wednesday, October 14th: A Bookish Way of Life

Friday, October 16th: From the TBR Pile

Friday, October 16th: Sharon’s Garden of Book Reviews

Monday, October 19th: Laura’s Reviews

Tuesday, October 20th: Book Loving Hippo

Wednesday, October 21st: A Bookworm’s World

Thursday, October 22nd: I’m Shelf-ish

Friday, October 23rd: Book Journey

Monday, October 26th: Broken Teepee

Wednesday, October 28th: Ms. Nose in a Book

Thursday, October 29th: Books and Bindings

Friday, October 30th: Staircase Wit