Twisted Tales of Mayhem Anthology

Title: Twisted Tales of Mayhem - 

A Motorcycles, Mobsters and Mayhem 2019

Special Edition Anthology

Authors: Various

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Release Date: March 18, 2019

About the Anthology

Net proceeds raised by the MMM19 anthology will be donated to the
Patriot Guard Riders.

They're a diverse group of riders from across the nation. They have an
unwavering respect for America's heroes including fallen military members, first
responders, and honorably discharged Veterans. Their mission is to
attend funeral services to show respect to the hero, as well as
shield the mourning family from interruptions.

Please join us in supporting this selfless nonprofit organization of
volunteers who do so much for our real life American heroes.

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Organized by Sapphire Knight

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Contributing Authors

VIKING

Sapphire Knight

When it comes to his club and his woman, he's a savage.
Always has been, always will be.

HATCH

Piper Davenport

When the beloved Sargent at Arms for the Dogs of Fire MC
finds himself falsely incarcerated, his woman must move heaven and earth to
release him, while holding back a pack of ravenous bikers whose bite is worse
than their bark.

ABOUND WEDDING

Ryan Michele

Cooper and Bristyl are tying the knot. With the Ravage MC in
attendance, what could go wrong?

“GUST” LOST VALKYRIES MC

Esther E. Schmidt

Have you ever disassembled a ticking bomb? I have. Steady as
fuck hand, the longest last breath, and the will to live. There’s nothing I
can’t do and I have to admit, with all my brothers claiming an Old Lady, I’ve
been craving to claim one. Circumstances aside, I never in a million years
thought it would be Paisley.

SERVICE AND SACRIFICE

MariaLisa deMora

Amanda lost her husband to war. Alex lost part of himself.
Together, they’ll discover hope and peace can be found in the most unexpected
of places.

ONE WEEK

Colbie Kay

I've never been a man to follow rules, but one night I went
too far, crossing lines that should have never been touched. I'm about to break
the rules again, but this time I'm ready to make her mine. Only one problem
stands in my way, she's getting married in one week.

OUR
NOTORIOUS NIGHT

K E Osborn

Doing deals in a hotel room seemed like the safe option. No
outside eyes, no mess, no damn fuss. What I didn't count on was being
blindsided by a feisty maid who ended up seeing far too much. Now she's a
problem - my problem. But maybe that problem will surprise me in a way I never
saw coming.

DUKE

Jack Davenport

Home from a war my country hated me for, I’m looking for my
place in the world, managing to find myself in jail instead. But when a vision
of perfection walks up the jailhouse steps, I’m lost. Now I just have to
convince her to get lost with me.

VIPER

Lilly Atlas

With his shiny new patch and legacy blood, Viper’s life is
dedicated to one day becoming president of the Devil’s Tribe MC. One look at
the beautiful and terrified Cassandra has him questioning everything his club
stands for. Never had loyalty to his club taken a back seat, but how could he
ignore the pleading in those green eyes?

WRAITH

Kathleen Kelly

The Harbingers of Death MC have wronged me. They don’t know
it yet, but I’m coming for them. They will all pay. For she will be avenged.

SPADE

Harley Stone

When a near-death experience brings a sexy Latino biker into
her life, Jessica will be tempted to throw her cautious nature to the wind.
Will Spade's charm and panty-melting smile be enough to make this good girl go
wild?

WHISKEY RIDER

Vera Quinn

Two people on different paths when their world's collide.
One by chance and the other by plan. No promises made but even the best of
plans can unravel over time.

BIRTHRIGHT

Shelly Morgan

Gemma DelBene is the daughter of the most infamous mafia
Crime Lord and sister to the next in line. But what happens when her mother and
brother are brutally murdered and her family is left without an heir?

DEMETRI

Sandy Alvarez & Crystal Daniels

Demetri- Ruthless ruler of the Volkov empire. If you're not
with me your against me. I give no second chances. Glory Keller- she's feisty,
independent, sexy and I'm going to make her mine. Thirsty for power, someone
crosses the line, threatening to take her and my empire away from me. Now, I'm
out for blood. No use in hiding from the devil himself- I will find you.

THE BIKER’S PROTECTION

Daphne Loveling

When a mysterious biker starts hanging out in the bar where
Samantha works nights, she thinks he's just interested in a one night stand.
What she doesn't know is that she's been placed under Crow's protection... and
he's about to risk his own life to keep her safe.

OUTLAW JUSTICE

Jaime Russell

Justice needs to be served. But whose way; his or hers?

TAKEN TO THE CLEANER

Ginger Ring

You know you're having a bad day when the man hired to keep
an eye on you is one that makes people disappear. Permanently.

HEX

Morgan Jane Mitchell

When Onyx O’Connor’s father dumps her in their old home
town, a tattooed, bad boy takes an interest. Discovering he's not who he seems,
she finds out, neither is she

DIRTY LITTLE SECRET

Kailee Reese Samuels

Keep your secrets simple and your lies dirty.

PELIGRO

Angie M Brashears

In a world where love is a ghost story, no one is safe. Not
even familia. Peligro.

LEATHER AND LACE

K.A. Ware

Biker bitch royalty, strippers, a club whore, and a
bachelorette party...what could go wrong?

ROAR

Xavier Neal

What happens when Lion accidentally finds his Lioness?

RECKLESS ANGELS MC

Amy Davies

Reckless Angels MC are my life. I work hard and play hard
and can have any woman I want, but there’s only one woman for me. Why do I push
her away when all I want to do is to pull her close to me and never let go?
It’s time I work hard to get my own angel.

STYX AND STONES

Kristine Allen

I'm the Enforcer for the Demented Sons MC, I don't do beach
hook-ups with a prim-ass school teacher. And I sure as hell don't obsess over
the chick afterward. But that's exactly what I did.

RYDER

Crimson Syn

Hate simmers between the Hellbound Lovers and the Devil's
Syndicate. But when love and jealousy collide, decisions will be made, and
there's no saying who might get burned.

BADGER

Teagan Brooks

When the girl who broke his heart years ago shows up at the
Blackwings MC clubhouse for the president’s daughter’s wedding, Badger, the VP,
is not only shocked, he is pissed. But a few words from his best friend’s wife
leaves him with more questions than answers. And Badger never lets anything go
unanswered.

TORQUE

Linny Lawless

Torque, the owner of Hardcore Cycles is only focused on one
thing, the V-twin engines that come into his shop. There's no time for women or
love, that is until Ronnie, a raven-haired beauty comes into his sights. When
the biker beauty needs help, Torque's primal instincts kick in, and there's no
stopping him when it comes to protecting the woman he loves.

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A Risky Prospect by Elizabeth Barone

Title: A Risky Prospect

Series: River Reapers MC #2

Author: Elizabeth Barone

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Release Date: March 18, 2019

Blurb

Brash social worker
Olivia has been through her own personal hell and come out the other side,
tattered but determined to make things better in her corrupt town—no matter the
cost. Her roommate's current situation is the perfect place to start.

When ex-con Cliff's
wild ol' lady Olivia comes to him and the River Reapers for help, he's on
board. His vigilante motorcycle club can get the job done, and it'll help
convince Olivia to take the next step in their relationship.

But when Olivia's
traumatic past walks through the club's doors, there's no stopping her from
doing whatever it takes to settle her own score. Even if it means crossing a
line that Cliff might not be able to pull her back from.

If you like dark romances with vengeance, heat, and a
hero who makes you swoon, you'll love A Risky Prospect, Book 2 in
the River Reapers MC series.

Buy A Risky Prospect now!

AUTHOR'S NOTE: You
must read Book 1, A Disturbing Prospect, before reading A
Risky Prospect.

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Excerpt

Pressing
the doorbell for Olivia's place, I step back. Only the porch light is on. No
light shines from inside. I can't imagine she and her roommate are already in
bed. I raise my fist and knock, a soft three-tap, just in case.

From the
other side, I hear a soft meow: Dio.

"Hey
buddy." He meows again. I picture him rubbing his cheek against the door.
"I guess no one else is home. I'll see you later."

Turning, I chuckle.
Olivia's got me talking to her cat now.

She's got
me doing all kinds of things—like picking up her father. I wanted to see her
before I left, even if only to wish her luck for her first day at DCF. Maybe
see if there's anything I should know before meeting him, or if there's
anything she wants me to scope out before she meets him.

She isn't
home, though, so there's not much I can do, other than go back to the club
house and try to get some sleep.

I walk
slowly back to the Screamin' Eagle. The last thing I want to do right now is go
to bed, mostly because I don't want to get up at the ass crack of dawn to drive
all the way to Lewisburg. Traveling by train would take longer, and neither my
President or Treasurer were willing to pony up for a plane ticket. Worst of
all, I have to take a cage. It'll be more comfortable than riding all the way
down, but the more I ride, the less I want to be in a car.

I swing
onto the bike and grab my helmet. Securing it in place, my fingers pause.
Olivia might be working tonight. That would explain why she isn't home. There's
also a chance she's at my cousin's, but I'd rather not ride all over town
trying to track her down. If she's already at the club, I might be able to talk
her into staying the night. That way she can crash in my room after work, and I
can see her before I go. Maybe even see her naked.

Two birds,
one stone.

With that
happy thought, I fire up the Screamin' Eagle, wincing a little as I imagine
poor Dio hiding from the noise. Ever since Eli, he's been so skittish. If
Olivia hadn't already killed him, I'd kill the motherfucker myself. Who the
hell tries to kill a tiny, defenseless kitten?

I wish
she'd told me what was going on before it got that bad.

That's
Olivia for you. She can take care of herself, which is one of the things I love
most about her.

I nearly
stomp on the back brake.

I love her.

It's a
whole-body realization. The road tips upward, the bike falls down into the sky.
I float for a moment, fingers and toes tingling. Then I slam back into my seat,
the bike firmly on 63. Somehow I still have my balance.

I have to
tell her. I've never been good at keeping my feelings to myself. My father's
headstone is proof of that. It's either tell her, or walk away, and I already
know I can't do that.

I can't
tell her, either.

She shut me
out when I suggested we move in together. I can only imagine what she'll do if
I tell her I love her.

I love her.

The more I
repeat it, the more woozy my stomach is, like I've had a few drinks and I'm
warmed all the way through. At the same time, it makes me need a
drink.

There's a
good chance I don't really love her.

I have no
idea what it feels like to be in love. I know what it's like to love someone—my
little cousin. I know what it means to be loved—my cousin again. But the odds
that I wholly, truly love the first woman I laid eyes on after getting out—not
to mention fucked in the back of a station wagon—are slim to none.

I've been
lonely for so long, I'm just imprinting on her.

That's got
to be it. Because there's no way someone like me can really love her, not now.
What I think I feel for Olivia can't be real.

Not after
twenty years of crushing in noses with my fists. I don't deserve it.

She doesn't
deserve me.

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Author Bio

Elizabeth Barone writes books starring badass belles who
chose the other path because her life is just as offbeat. Before publishing her
debut novel, she was a chef, web designer, apprentice teacher, and retail
soldier, but writing is her first love. It took a debilitating autoimmune
disease to make her realize it was time to chase her dream.

Elizabeth is the author of over a dozen contemporary romance
and suspense novels. She lives in Connecticut with her real-life book boyfriend
(husband) Mike and their feisty little cat Squirt.

Author Links

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Immerse by Tobie Easton

Immerse
Tobie Easton
(Mer Chronicles, #3)
Published by: Month9Books
Publication date: March 19th 2019
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

Immerse is the spellbinding and breathless final installment of the Mer Chronicles series where descendants of the Little Mermaid must face deadly magic, shifting alliances, and the dangers of forbidden love.

Lia can’t wait for her parents’ coronation. Now living in the sparkling palace beneath the waves, she sneaks off to Malibu whenever possible to see Clay. Tucked away in an abandoned seaside mansion, Lia and Clay devise a plan to ensure they can stay together forever.

But when an old enemy resurfaces and Lia is restricted to the palace for the safety of all Merkind, she and Clay are ripped apart once more.

She fears not only for Clay, but for her best friend Caspian, who seems to be swimming down a dangerous path. He has invited the conniving Melusine to the coronation ball, convinced she’s capable of change. And no matter how hard Lia fights it, showing up on Caspian’s arm is just the start of Melusine’s insidious return to her life.

With threats Below growing more ominous by the day and a powerful ancient ritual looming, soon the two girls can’t escape each other. As their fates grow increasingly intertwined, Melusine might be the only one who can help Lia find the answers she desperately needs to save everyone she loves and to achieve her happily ever after. But can Lia trust her?

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Previous books in the series:

—

EXCERPT:

The library doors are my favorite in the castle. Unlike all the other doors, made of sculpted sea glass in colors ranging from pastels to deep jewel tones, the doors to the varellska (Mermese for library) are made of the coated wood of a sunken Victorian ship. Mounted to the frame between the double doors is a handcrafted mermaid from the ship’s prow, her wooden hair blowing around her in carved curls, her face proud. She puts a smile on my own face as I open one of the doors and swim into the room that may hold the answer I need among its secrets.

Shelves stretch up the walls high above my head, each lined with shells of every conceivable size and pattern, from short volumes of poetry in tiny sundial shells to hours-long research tomes in giant diadema shells. Between the shells stand various treasures for decoration: an antique spyglass, a bronze-rimmed compass, an old brass lantern. I inhale the scent of shell polish and whalebone styluses.

I’ve come on the librarian’s day off and have the whole place to myself. I swim up to the highest shelves, where there rests a large, gilded starfish, the symbol of balanced justice. What’s happened to Clay at the hands and fins of Merkind has been anything but just. I’m hoping that means justice is on our side throughout our quest to make him a Merman. I rub the starfish for luck. “Help me find a way,” I murmur into the varellska’s quiet stillness.

Author Bio:

Award-winning author Tobie Easton was born and raised in Los Angeles, California, where she's grown from a little girl who dreamed about magic to a twenty-something who writes about it. Her debut novel, Emerge, is a Gold Medal Winner (Young Adult - Sci-Fi/Fantasy) of the Moonbeam Children's Book Awards and is Book 1 in the acclaimed Mer Chronicles series. The trilogy follows the descendants of the Little Mermaid and offers fans a peek into a world where Mermaids aren't just real, but live secretly among us on land.

She and her very kissable husband enjoy traveling the globe and fostering packs of rescue puppies. Tobie loves chocolate chip cookies and Oxford commas. A summa cum laude graduate of the University of Southern California, Tobie splits her time between Los Angeles and Boston. Learn more about Tobie and her upcoming books on www.TobieEaston.com.

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Being A Witch and Other Things I Didn’t Ask For by Sara Pascoe

Author: Sara Pascoe

Narrators: Fiona Hardingham

Length: 7 hours 40 minutes

Publisher: Sara Pascoe

Released: January 28, 2019

Genre: Young Adult, Historical Fantasy

After a life of hurt and disappointment, Raya, the spiky-haired, Doc Marten-wearing 14-year-old decides it's time to strike out on her own. She leaves the boring English village and what she's determined will be her last foster placement for the excitement of London. But it turns out she's a witch, with the annoying habit of time-traveling - by accident. And a sarcastic witch's cat Oscar tags along for the ride. Why would she fling herself into the midst of the Essex Witch Trials in 1645 England?

After being arrested by one of history's most notorious witch hunters, her social worker and witch mentor Bryony goes back to try to save them from the gallows. But returning to present day London remains out of reach when they find themselves in Istanbul in the year 1645. There, life is more amazing than she ever dreamed.

Sara Pascoe comes to writing after a career in psychology, where she had many wonderful experiences, from the chimp house to the halls of Congress, with neuroscience research in between. Originally from the United States, she moved to Great Britain in 2004. She lives in Bournemouth, on the southern coast of England where they run a B&B for English language students.

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Fiona Hardingham is an award-winning audiobook narrator who has voiced over 175 audiobooks specializing in YA, Children & Contemporary Fiction titles. She is the recipient of several AudioFile magazine Earphones Awards and this year was nominated for an Audie in the 'Middle Grade' category. She is a professionally trained actress and recently played a role in the eagerly anticipated 'Pokemon Detective Pikachu' as well as a role in 'Godzilla: King of the Monsters' both out this coming spring.

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Q&A with Author Sara Pascoe

• Tell us about the process of turning your book into an audiobook. 
  • It was quite a process for me because at first, I tried doing it myself. I set up a home studio, which is no easy feat because there are all sorts of normal house noises you don’t think of, like the furnace kicking in, and even the hum of the fridge in the floor below had to be dealt with. I was able to manage all of that, but then I realised my acting and voice are not up to it, especially with all of the various accents and characters. And I wanted to do the book justice. So, I started looking around for a narrator, and got really lucky with Fiona Hardingham!
• Was a possible audiobook recording something you were conscious of while writing?
  • No, I hadn’t thought about the possibility of an audiobook at all when researching and writing the book. In fact, if I had, maybe I would have reduced the number of characters! I felt bad for making Fiona do all these different characters across country, accent and time. But in the final analysis, to me all the characters are necessary to the story. In fact, I had gotten rid of some characters from the earlier drafts. So it could have been worse!
• How did you select your narrator?
  • I found her, and then I asked her if she’d be willing to narrate Being a Witch. I started out by looking on the internet at a lot of different book narrators. And listed Being a Witch on the ACX site so narrators could bid for the job. (ACX is the Amazon company where audiobooks are produced, where narrators and writers can find each other to work together.) Some lovely narrators came forward and auditioned, but none of them matched Fiona Hardingham. I had found her profile on ACX and watched and listened to her work. I was smitten. I thought she was perfect for the book, by far. But I knew it was unlikely she’d agree to do the job, as people are busy, and it’s very subjective what work you want to do, especially when you’re a sought-after book narrator like Fiona. But, she agreed!
• How closely did you work with your narrator before and during the recording process? Did you give them any pronunciation tips or special insight into the characters? 
  • Fiona, the consummate professional asked for detailed information about the book before she started. She asked for brief character biographies, and had me record all words that were unusual, or that I wanted pronounced in a certain way. Half the book happens in 1645 Istanbul, with Turkish names and terms. Luckily, I have Turkish friends who helped me get these (hopefully) right. Then, I recorded all of the words in question. And Fiona is brilliant at not only British versus American English, at also doing regional accents from both countries. She had me roaring with laughter – as though someone else had written the book!
• Were there any real-life inspiration behind your writing?
  • Yes. I used to work as a psychologist including with foster kids. Their lives always moved me. What it’s like to not have anywhere that couldn’t just throw you back if you were a pain. Not to have anywhere to call home the minute you turn 18. And to have all these grownups nosing around your life like you’re a bug under a magnifying glass. The two foster kids in this book, the main character Rachel (Raya) and the younger boy, Jake are tributes to the kids I’ve known, but not based on any specific individuals. None of the details or names are from any real people or real lives that I’ve known about.
    The cat, Oscar is a tribute to a wonderful, huge, black and white stray who came to live with us, in the very real cottage and village where the story starts. The first place I lived when I moved to England was this story-book cottage at the edge of a village called South Nutfield (really). There was a farm behind us, and an old stone cottage across the field, just like in the book. Oscar had been living on his own for a while and was skinny and scraggly. It was a friendly village full of pets, and although everyone knew him, no one knew where he’d come from. My husband thought maybe he’d fallen off the back of a witch’s broom as they were flying over the field. Hence, Oscar, the witch’s cat character was born!
• Are you an audiobook listener? What about the audiobook format appeals to you?
  • Oh yes, I love audiobooks. And I think they speak to a very deep, human trait reaching back to our origins.
    Human language developed about 100,000 years ago. But the first mass-printed books weren’t made until the 1400s. So, we had a lot of time on our hands, over 98,000 years, when we talked to each other before most people had anything to read, let alone the ability to do so. In addition to simple transfer of knowledge, “there are good berries over there,” “watch out for the new caveman, he’s a jerk,” we also developed or found in ourselves the appetite and need for stories. Since ancient times, across all cultures, we told each other epic poems, myths and stories through song, passing these down across generations. Recent neuroscience shows that the listeners’ brains synchronise to the storytellers’ – we really to get onto each other’s wavelengths it turns out!
    I love hearing someone tell me a gripping story, or new information I’d been keen to learn through audiobooks. I find there is something special about having this person’s voice bringing the narrative to life. The science showing how we sync our brains to the story teller’s makes a lot of sense to me, because I get drawn in like you can with a movie, but with your own imagination filling in the visuals. And I often feel refreshed afterwards, like after watching a good movie, as though you’ve been on a mini-vacation. It can be a magical experience.
• Is there a particular part of this story that you feel is more resonating in the audiobook performance than in the book format?
  • More than a particular part of the book, I think it’s the fact of all these characters and accents, being brought to life by someone as adroit as Fiona that is especially wonderful in this audiobook. It was only once I started working to get the audiobook made that I realised what a challenge I had created for a narrator. When you ask for auditions you pick out parts of your book for people to narrate. I chose a selection covering the voices and accents, including Oscar, the cat who thinks he sounds like a movie star, so I could have an idea of the narrator’s abilities to do them all. Fiona really nailed it, you always knew who was talking, whether it was a human for the 21st or 17th century, in England or the Ottoman Empire, an animal, or a spirit being!
• If you had the power to time travel, would you use it? If yes, when and where would you go?
  • After I read so much about the Ottoman empire in the middle 1600’s, I think I’d like to go back there. Istanbul was one of the most advanced cities of its time, and it was definitely the most diverse and very tolerant. Women from Venice and other European kingdoms ran away to Istanbul for better lives. And I would definitely want to go to the Turkish baths, the hammams. They still exist today, but nothing like what they were. Three different rooms where you went through a series of baths, showers under hot and cold fountains, massages and beauty treatments, all followed by coffee and pastries! I’m not a big beauty treatment person in this century, but these sounded so amazing, and they were also places where women would chat, make connections and get things done.
• What do you say to those who view listening to audiobooks as “cheating” or as inferior to “real reading”?
  • I’d say, please have another think and give them a try. If you don’t listen to audiobooks, you are missing out on a deeply essential human experience, a wonderful experience that can be uplifting, mood-changing, and mind-expanding. Listening to audiobooks is different than reading and reading cannot be replaced for many uses. No one is saying that. It would be hard to use a recipe from simply listening to it, because you couldn’t look back easily to check amounts and ingredients for example. And hard-core academic learning requires reading and re-reading information you want to learn. Although I find listening to a book I’m also reading a very good way to reinforce the information. And audio is essential to some types of learning including languages and music.
    But putting aside the learning of new information aside, sharing a story, being brought into someone else’s world, is terrific, and shouldn’t be missed. As we now know from neuroscience, our brains synchronise when we listen to a story teller we find compelling. And how magical is that? Why not let yourself synch up to new thoughts and feelings and worlds. What could be more amazing?
• What’s next for you?
  • I am currently researching and working on the sequel to Being a Witch. I don’t want to give away too much about this first book, but at the end Raya finds herself with a huge responsibility to undo something she accidentally did back in 1640’s Istanbul that has unravelled history. In this second book, she learns in Witching Academy that this unravelling can be stopped, but only if she does certain things. While she is living her life with this heavy responsibility, she stumbles into current-day horrors that run under the surface of all our lives. Through the lady who owns the dog she walks for pocket money, she learns of a powerful evil over 1000 years old that has gotten larger while remaining invisible. Although she had no intention of fighting evil this school year, she can’t unknow what she now knows. Now, what to do about it?

Rachel Hollingsworth, “Raya” is a fourteen-year-old foster girl when we meet her in Being a Witch and Other Things I Didn’t Ask For. She’s a “turtle” hard on the outside from what she’s been through, but soft on the inside.

She grew up in East London, which is known as a hard-scrabble, working class area, until she was five. Her biological mother had problems with schizophrenia and couldn’t care for Raya by the time she was about three. She never knew her father was as her mother either didn’t know, or wouldn’t tell her. She’s an only child. Her maternal grandparents took care of her after he mother no longer could, but they had both died by the time she was five. She’s in in her fifth foster home when the story starts.

Raya is about 5’ 7” tall, and slender. She has blue-green eyes which she always thought looked like dirty dishwater. She finds her medium blonde hair boring, so dyes it jet black and has it shaved on the sides, with the top gelled in spikes when she’s allowed (most of the schools she’s gone to don’t allow it). She has a couple of facial piercings she got by lying about her age. She has almond shaped eyes and high cheekbones. She likes running although she has never joined a sports team at school, not being much of a joiner. And her experience as a foster kid has been to mostly be on the outside of most friendship groups in any of the schools she’s attended. She’s always liked reading, but her interests weren’t really formed for her at the start of the story, but this changes as she goes through a number of mind-bending and time-shifting adventures.

She secretly likes Sudoko and is pretty good at it. Before the story, her favourite food was Italian, especially anything with a white sauce, but she adores Turkish food after her adventures, now too. She prefers bold colours and funky, offbeat clothing. She secretly watches rom-coms, because she hadn’t wanted people to know she’s soft inside.

She can be spikey emotionally speaking, saying sharp things sometimes before she even knows what she’s said. She’s also kind and empathic inside, funny, impatient and has a decent brain.

Q&A with Protagonist Rachel Hollingsworth, “Raya”

• QUESTION 1: So, Raya, what was the worse part of working with your author, Sara Pascoe?
  • RAYA: ‘What? Oh, right. Yeah, well she was OK mainly. But she could also be a whiny pain in the ass. Can I say that here? Ass? Sometimes she’d moan about not being able to, or not having enough time to write. And I’d have to just sit there waiting for her. She didn’t seem to think about that. About how we all had to just hang around in suspended animation waiting for her.
• QUESTION 2: What’s suspended animation like? Is it relaxing? Do they have a nice sound track?
  • RAYA: I wish. It’s just boring, nothingness. Sometimes us characters would get together and play cards or something. But we’d have to use imaginary cards, and Oscar, the cat – I’m sure he cheated.
• QUESTION 3: Getting back to you and your life, I hope this isn’t too personal, but what would you like to say to other kids out there in foster care?
  • RAYA: ‘Stop it. You’re making me cry. Just a second…OK, well, I’d like other kids in care to know, no, I’d like them to feel and believe in their hearts that there’s nothing “wrong with them”. That they weren’t put into care because they’re rejects or unlovable. Believe me, I know it feels like that’s why you’re there, in care. And it’s really hard to shake that feeling. But grownups are just human and a lot of them are screwed up or have problems bigger than they can handle. So just hold on and get through childhood as best you can. And do let the good parts in. There is always some good stuff. Sometimes even really good people around. And it doesn’t have to be someone you even know all that well. It could be the lady who runs the corner store. Or a custodian at school. Let yourself recognise these good, kind people and let yourself soak up your interactions with them.
• QUESTION 4: Do you think it was the time travel that helped you see what you already had in life in general?
  • Raya: Well, it did in a way. Living through history is much more interesting than reading about it, if you ever get a chance. England in 1645 was shocking. It stank, people hardly ever bathed. The toilets were outside, the food was boring and gross. People had really weird ideas, like the idea that you can kill someone, or their pig just by being mad at them. But it also made me appreciate how knowledge and stuff accumulates over time, over the centuries. I mean they didn’t know about viruses or bacteria back then, so they tried to figure out why people got sick. And I had to zip and unzip my jeans really quietly. Zippers weren’t invented for like another 100 years, and I already stood out as weird. And back then and there was no good weird. There was only lock you up weird.
  • Istanbul, in the same time in history was so amazing. They were much more advanced in comparison. But I think the whole experience made me see that whenever and wherever we live is just luck. And that you’ve got to look at your own culture and society with clear eyes. You’ve got to think to yourself, “what stuff do we believe, take for granted, that they’ll laugh at 300 hundred years from now.”
• QUESTION 5: Do you think everyone should get the chance to time travel?
  • RAYA: Absolutely not! I mean it is really interesting, but I think they should be careful who they let time travel. For example, I’ve totally messed everything up, and not on purpose. And now history was changed, which of course you’re never supposed to do. So, the instructors at the witching academy, they tell me it’s like an avalanche rolling toward us in the present. And that we need to make it right. As soon as Sara starts writing the sequel, this is going to be my biggest challenge is going back and doing certain things to fix what I messed up. And if I made this big problem, and I wasn’t even trying to do wrong, you can imagine what some time terrorist might try to do. So no, not everyone should time travel. Plus it’s a pretty weird thing to go through. It would probably mess with some people’s heads. I think people should be carefully selected, like astronauts or something.
• QUESTION 6: Were you a cat person before you went through all this?
  • RAYA: Oh, no, not at all. In fact, I used to think people who get so mushy over their pets were a bit sad, to be honest. But after time traveling with Oscar, I completely changed my mind. At first, he got on my nerves with his snarky comments. But then I realized I must sound the same to a lot of people, which really made me laugh – learning to be a better person from a cat. And he saved my butt a number of times. And they are good company.
• QUESTION 7: Are you looking forward to working with this author, Sara Pascoe, again?
  • RAYA: Yeah, I am now. Sara kind of grew on me, the way the cat did. Actually I wish she’d get off her butt and write the sequel. She keeps talking about it. Hmm, actually I guess it’s get on her butt in order to write, right?
• QUESTION 8: What are you hopes for your future?
  • RAYA: Boy, if that isn’t the classic grown-up question. OK, so first I need to finish senior school. I think you call it High School in the U.S. And I also want to go to witching academy and get my certificate. It’s a lot of work to do alongside school, but I don’t want to wait two years, and keep accidentally time-traveling, popping across history. I need to get these skills under control. After all that, I think I’d like to go into law. Maybe human rights, or environmental law. This cracks me up. I never thought I’d hear myself talk about any kind of serious job. But what I went through changed all that – changed what I think is important. And changed what I think I can do.
• QUESTION 9: Is there anything else you’d like to tell readers?
  • RAYA: Oh, right, “the interviewer can’t think of any more questions, question.” OK, I’ll give it a go. Don’t wait for your life to be perfect, or even for some particular thing to happen, like graduating from school, or getting the right job, or getting the right boyfriend or girlfriend in order to be happy. Don’t hang your happiness on some specific thing happening. ‘Cause, you know what? You’ll get there and you’ll still be you. Look around and really experience the cool stuff that’s happening now. ‘Cause there’s always some good stuff. Promise.

Mar. 12th:

Lone Tree Reviews

The Book Junkie Reads . . .

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Dab of Darkness Book Reviews

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Jorie Loves A Story

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Jazzy Book Reviews

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Turning Another Page

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Jules by Giulia Lagomarsino

Jules
Giulia Lagomarsino
(Reed Security, #12)
Publication date: March 18th 2019
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Julian swore he would always love her. He said he would never leave her. He’s about to break that promise. If only she would listen. If only she would trust him. But how much crap can one man take? It’s time to move on.

Ivy wants Julian more than anything, but she’s won’t trust anyone with her secrets. Now it’s too late. He doesn’t want her, but she needs him more than ever. If only she could make him understand. If only she had told him sooner how she felt, but that train has left the station and her life is going to hell. She should have told him she loved him when she had the chance.

Goodreads / Amazon

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EXCERPT:

“You really are f@&king stupid,” Ice sneered. “Why don’t you just kick her puppy while you’re at it.”

“She doesn’t have a puppy.”

“That was sarcasm, a$$hole. Getting your brain scrambled has made you a real dumb f@&ker.”

“What was wrong with what I said?”

“You just reminded her that you still don’t remember her after you kissed her.”

“Yeah, it’s true. That’s why I said it.”

“Well, f@&k. There’s your first problem,” Ice grumbled. “You never tell the truth.”

“I thought honesty was always best.”

“Nooo. No, no, no.” Chris agreed with him, which I found a little odd, which meant it was probably the right answer. “How’s dinner?”

“Fantastic,” Ice said. “Never had a better steak.”

“Honey, did you put that bill in the mail?”

“Of course, honey. I know that bill was important,” Ice smirked.

“Was it good for you?”

“Best head of my life.”

“That’s an important one,” Chris said urgently. “Never forget that one. She wants to know that she’s the absolute best and you’re never thinking about any other woman going down on you.”

“You lie to her about sex?” I asked incredulously.

“They do it too,” Ice shrugged. “You’re the best I’ve ever had. You made me come so hard. Your dick doesn’t fit. All of those are lies they tell us to make us feel ten feet tall. You know for a fact that they still think of past f@&ks because we do it too. And then there’s that lie about coming so hard when you know they were faking it. And come on, we all know that a dick can only be so big and it’s definitely going to fit because they can squeeze a baby out of their vaginas.”

“Lies are a healthy part of any good relationship,” Chris agreed. “They’re for your benefit and hers, so use them, but use them wisely.”

“Well, I’m glad that you gave me this advice now, after I already f@&ked things up. What the hell do I do now?”

Author Bio:

I'm a stay at home mom that loves to read. Some of my favorite titles are Pride and Prejudice, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and Horatio Hornblower. I started writing when I was trying to come up with suggestions on ways I could help bring in some extra money. I came up with the idea that I could donate plasma because you could earn an extra $500/month. My husband responded with, "No. Find something else. Write a blog. Write a book." I didn't think I had anything to share on blog that a thousand other mothers hadn't already thought of. I decided to take his challenge seriously and sat down to write my first book, Jack. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed writing. From there, the stories continued to flow and I haven't been able to stop. I hope my readers enjoy my books as much as I enjoy writing them. Between reading, writing, and taking care of three small kids, my days are quite full.

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