Want something to read besides COVID-19 news? Then, try one of these limited-time Kindle deals for a change of mental scenery. Hope you find something to enjoy.
Bruce
(Prices change constantly. Be sure to verify all prices before purchase.)
Start Date: NOW End Date: April 27
Briette: Young Adult Princess Medieval Fantasy (The Nine Princesses Book 4)
By Anita Valle
Teen and Young Adult
Usual Price: $3.99 Sale: $0.99
Briette never asked for any of this. She wasn’t meant to be a princess. She refuses to wear a crown, doesn’t care for fancy dresses, and going to balls is a punishment. If she hadn’t been adopted by the king, none of this would have happened.
Then she discovers that the Duke of Merridell is in need of a chambermaid. And though it seems crazy, Briette decides to disguise herself as a servant and take the position. It will give her a chance to try life as a commoner, a life where she can be invisible. She doesn’t tell a single soul, not even her eight sisters.
But as Briette adjusts to heavy chores, rude remarks, and prickly straw beds, she is shocked to learn that someone else is working undercover. And his plans are much more sinister. Furthermore, she is troubled by a haunting dream that seems to come from her childhood. All Briette wanted was a vacation from being a princess. But if she doesn’t act soon, she may never be a princess again.
https://amzn.to/2S0XyuQ
Start Date: NOW End Date: April 29
The Key of Apollo (The Gates of Artemis Book 1)
By R.D. Brady
Children's Fantasy
Usual Price: $3.99 Sale: $0.99
Mythological Creatures Are Real. They Live In The World Of Iphigenesis. A World Lucy Cole Just Discovered She's Destined To Protect.
Before fourteen-year old Lucy Cole can process that insanity, her soon-to-be adopted mother Elodie is kidnapped. The only way to save her is to track down the Key of Apollo, a key that hasn't been seen in thousands of years
To succeed, Lucy must embrace her destiny and overcome the Primordial Trials, tests set up by the gods themselves.
So armed with little to no knowledge of the world of Iphigenesis, one best friend who trips over his own feet, and another who could get blown over by a strong breeze, Lucy is about to take on the challenges of the gods.
What could possibly go wrong?
https://amzn.to/2VROh9L
Start Date: NOW End Date: April 27
A Cat in the Attic Mystery: The Curse of Hollister House
By Kathi Daley
Cozy Animal Mystery
Usual Price: $4.99 Sale: $0.99
How is one to start again after losing the one thing that speaks to your heart and fuels your passion?
After a serious accident leaves Calliope Rose Collins unable to continue with the career that has owned her soul for most of her life, she returns to Foxtail Lake, Hollister House, and Great Aunt Gracie, only to find, childhood friend, Officer Cass Wylander, knee deep in a murder mystery involving a twelve year old girl who died in the exact same manner as Callie's best friend Stacy had died twenty years prior. Callie is certain the two deaths must be linked, but Cass has a suspect in custody and the Chief of Police wants the case closed in order to get the mayor off his back, so in spite of the fact that Callie is certain that they have the wrong man, it looks like the case will be closed. Callie knows that she owes it to both victims to find the truth, so she decides to look into things on her own, giving her not only a way to fill her days, but a means of renewing her passion.
Join Cass and Callie, along with Alastair the cat, as they seek out the hidden truths that will allow them to see what no one else seems to be willing too.
https://amzn.to/352F4j5
Start Date: NOW End Date: April 27
THE UNDOING: A Young Adult Dystopian Scifi Novel (Book 1 of The Undoing Trilogy)
By Desserae Shepston
Teen and Young Adult
Usual Price: $3.99 Sale: $0.99
The Reckoning destroyed the United States of America. Survivors of the assault, led by the newly elected president, are now subject to his rules. The Vision controls nearly every aspect of life in the country now known as Anecor.
Rebecca and Jonathan grew up under the strict rules and watchful "eye" of SMALS, an AI system that monitors citizens' every move through phones and internal trackers. Those who don't follow the rules are disappeared. Never to be seen again.
When a strange virus strikes the city of Montrose, the residents panic as more of their friends, family, and acquaintances are stricken. No one knows how the virus spreads and scientists have found no cure. There have been no survivors. When the virus strikes Jonathan, Rebecca's world turns upside down.
Jonathan reveals to Rebecca his suspicions about the virus and the discovery of a mysterious glow of purple light behind a nearby mountain. It is up to Rebecca to continue the work he started. It is up to her to unravel the mystery of the virus and the purple light. It is up to her to save her city.
Rebecca will have to risk everything, including her life, to keep her promise to Jonathan.
https://amzn.to/2KqMCma
Start Date: NOW End Date: April 27
Spies and Spells : A Cozy Paranormal Mystery (Spies and Spells Series Book One)
By Tonya Kappes
Cozy Animal Mystery
Usual Price: $3.99 Sale: $0.99
SPIES AND SPELLS, the first in this highly anticipated new series from USA TODAY Bestseller Author Tonya Kappes is here!
While Maggie waits for her Witchy Hour, she works at the family diner with her mom, aunt Meme and Lilith, her sister - all witches. Soon Maggie gets entangled with a mysterious handsome stranger, Mick Jasper, and his secret U.S. organization, SKUL.
Has she found her calling?
https://amzn.to/2yDxuPS
Start Date: NOW End Date: April 27
Scene of the Grind: A Cozy Mystery (A Killer Coffee Mystery Series Book One)
By Tonya Kappes
Cozy Mystery
Usual Price: $4.99 Sale: $0.99
Roxanne Bloom (her friends, though few call her Roxie) quit her job as a lawyer, divorced her cheating husband, and moved to the quaint town of Honey Springs, Kentucky where she'd spent many of her teenage summers visiting her eccentric and fun-loving Aunt Maxi.
Roxy follows her dream and opens The Bean Hive, Honey Springs first coffee house on the town's newly revitalized boardwalk. One problem, Aunt Maxi and Alexis Roarke, owner of Crooked Cat, aren't on the best of terms. Alexis leases the book store's building from Aunt Maxi and the rent is going up.
Roxy takes Alexis a fresh cup of coffee from The Bean Hive and a tasty pastry as a peace offering between the two women, but discovers the beloved book store owner murdered and Aunt Maxi is the number one suspect.
Gossip in Honey Springs is as hot at the coffee served at the Bean Hive and Roxy has to uncover who is behind the murder not only to save her shop, her aunt, but her life.
https://amzn.to/2xMozvs
Start Date: NOW End Date: April 29
A.L.I.V.E.: A Genetic Engineering Thriller (The A.L.I.V.E.Series Book 1)
By R.D. Brady
Technothriller
Usual Price: $3.99 Sale: $0.99
Reports of unknown objects in the sky date back hundreds of years. But since the early twentieth century, the frequency of those reports has increased dramatically. In response, the United States government has been looking for a way to combat the alien threat they see looming on the horizon. Their most promising prospect is the A.L.I.V.E. (Alien Life In Vitro Experiment) Project.
Working from Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Dr. Maeve Leander has been in charge of Alvie, the first subject from the A.L.I.V.E. Project, for the last three years. As a new agency takes over, though, Maeve learns that Alvie wasn't the only subject created. Caught in the middle of a giant war game, Maeve ends up in a race for her life. It's not just humans, though, she's on the run from. And it's not just herself she's trying to save.
But as the violence increases and the chances for survival decrease, she realizes one terrifying truth: despite its name, the real goal of the A.L.I.V.E. project is to make sure no one gets out alive.
https://amzn.to/3ePn1kL
Start Date: NOW End Date: April 28
Deadly Search: Sheriff Lexie Wolfe Novel (Sheriff Lexie Wolfe Novels Book 2)
By Donna Welch Jones
Women Sleuths
Usual Price: $3.99 Sale: $0.99
Will Sheriff Lexie destroy her own life to avenge her father's murder?
Sheriff Lexie is entangled in a web of deceit as she searches for her father's killer. At the center of the investigation is her mother, Margo, a beautiful temptress, who used the love and attention from town men to feed her ego before rejecting them.
Lexie's mother may be the reason her father was murdered, but which of Margo's pawns did it: the judge, the lawyer, the mayor or someone else? The investigation and Lexie's betrayal of the man she loves propels her life into a dark downward spiral.
https://amzn.to/2Y2AlMO
Start Date: NOW End Date: April 28
Fatally Bound - A Serial Killer Crime Thriller (Mac McRyan Mystery Thriller and Suspense Series Book) (McRyan Mystery Series Book 5)
By Roger Stelljes
Financial Thriller
Usual Price: $3.99 Sale: $0.99
FATALLY BOUND... by one decision with deadly consequences.
Hannah opened the backdoor of her house and walked inside, closing the door behind her and locking it. Out of the dark his massive left arm wrapped around her chest like a vice. She was gasping for air but she couldn't break free.
FATALLY BOUND... by one mystery with deadly results.
A brilliant, methodical and vicious killer is on a mission and leaving a trail of bodies behind with little or no evidence. The hunt for the killer will put Mac McRyan and Dara Wire in harm's way testing their partnership, resolve and endurance like never before.
https://amzn.to/2S36WhT
Start Date: NOW End Date: April 29
Murder, of Course: A Sugarbury Falls Mystery
By Diane Weiner
Cozy Mystery
Usual Price: $2.99 Sale: $0.99
Middle-aged couple Emily and Henry Fox moved to Sugarbury Falls, Vermont to enjoy a quiet life, but when their neighbor pounds on their door at the crack of dawn pleading for help, they can't refuse. A dead woman lies on the floor of their neighbor's rental cabin. Who is she and what brought her to town?
While struggling with the mystery, Emily also struggles with an impossible new boss at the quaint college where she teaches--a boss who may be guilty of her own heinous crime.
https://amzn.to/2VXpiC5
Prices change constantly. Be sure to verify all prices before purchase.
I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
"I planned to keep my distance, thinking a few meters of separation would be sufficient. But when he saw me, he sprinted off the path and into a thicket of brush. I went on, hoping he was OK but knowing he didn’t want me to check."
A few days ago, when I was out walking in my neighborhood, I thought about this section from Killer in the Retroscape (https://books2read.com/u/3npP0P). Not that anyone ran off the sidewalk to avoid me ... though many stepped into the street, as did I when I was the first to notice. It's a different world, where shunning your neighbor is considerate rather than a slight.
Of course, I'm not the only author who's watching what they've written about unfolding. If you're interested in the views of one who's slightly better known than me (LOL), then give a listen to this interview with Stephen King.
https://www.npr.org/2020/04/08/829924453/stephen-king
This month, I have one of my books on sale, the first in the Mind Sleuth series (Of Half a Mind). Or how about a Sci-fi giveaway or a 99-cent, one-week sale on more than 20 titles? Interested? Then keep on reading!
Be safe,
Bruce
1. ON SALE: Of Half a Mind
For one week only (April 13-19), Of Half a Mind is on sale for only 99 cents (usually, $2.99).
When you talk to yourself, there’s only one voice. When you look at something in your mind’s eye, there’s but one image.
Psychologist Sam “Doc” Price and his colleagues had always held those principles to be true … at least under normal circumstances. But as they studied the work of a brilliant but troubled neuroscientist, they discovered a device that created a reality that was anything but normal. And when they had unraveled its mysteries, the only question that remained was, could they survive the brutal truth?
https://bit.ly/2qjVZNS
2. Visions of the Future Sci-Fi Giveaway
Like Sci-Fi?
Want to check out a new author, or two, or sixteen for free?
Then, pick up any or all of these free Sci-Fi books, samples, or short stories including my short story, Amie and Alex: A Love Story. And if you’re thinking a love story shouldn't be in a Sci-Fi giveaway, then you haven’t read it!
https://storyoriginapp.com/to/dpvdcBP
3. One Week 99 Cents Mega-Sale
More than 20 books, Romance to Horror, all on sale for 99 cents.
Get these books fast - this promotion ends April 19th!
https://storyoriginapp.com/to/xxHX1cj
I'm fortunate that one of my favorite pastimes is hiking. And since Missouri State Parks are still welcoming visitors to the outdoors, I have a few hours of my social distancing already covered each week.
It's still a little early for our blooming trees, as you can see from the shot above. But we have all the tiny streams that only run in the Spring to enjoy.
I get a few more hours of social distancing from getting lost in some great reads. Hope you find something in my March reviews that will do the same for you.
- A crime mystery (She Wore Mourning);
- A cozy mystery (Name Your Poison); and
- Occult horror (The Everett Exorcism).
Happy reading,
Bruce
She Wore Mourning (Zachary Goldman Mysteries Book 1) by P.D. Workman
PI Investigates His Own Demons as Well as the Crime’s
In She Wore Mourning, Private Investigator Zachary Goldman takes on a gut-wrenching case when he investigates the drowning death of a five-year-old boy. Ruled an accident by the police, the boy’s grandmother wants closure and hires Goldman for a second opinion. Goldman has his suspicions, but he has nothing sufficient for law enforcement to re-open the investigation. Things seem at an impasse, then someone tries to kill him. But is the attempt on his life because of this case or some other that he’s working? He can’t be sure. And if it is this case, who’s responsible for the boy’s death? A pedophile who abducted the boy from his unlocked, backyard and then killed him? One or both of the parents? A forensic scientist in training who seems a bit too interested in Goldman’s case? Even the grandmother doesn’t escape Goldman’s scrutiny. Kudos to the author for keeping the suspense high, dangling several viable suspects in front of our eyes.
For the complete review, see: https://amzn.to/2TgPt6s
Name Your Poison (Top Shelf Mysteries Book 3) by Lolli Powell
You Can’t Beat this Heroine for an Imaginative and Humorous Murder Investigation
Author Lolli Powell continues her winning formula for bar owner and amateur sleuth, Erica (Ricki) Fontaine, mixing a hyperactive imagination with a cynical sense of humor in this third installment of the Top Shelf Mysteries, Name Your Poison. Above all, our heroine has near-boundless imagination. Before the police have the forensics report on the cause of death, Ricki has already decided it was a murder. Not only that, but she’s sure the victim wasn’t the intended target and her newspaper reporter friend, Logan, was nearly killed only as collateral damage. And while that’s quite the deductive leap without a net, she becomes really creative on motives. Before a tense (and unexpected) finale, Ricki suggests the murder was motivated by everything from retaliation by a sexually harassed Hollywood starlet to an attempt to derail a movie that was to be shot in her hometown. All the better to keep the reader guessing … which I did.
For the complete review, see: https://amzn.to/2J6e7B0
The Everett Exorcism (World of Shadows Book 1) by Lincoln Cole
Bad Things Happen When Your Exorcist Doesn’t Believe in Demons
When ‘occult’ and ‘paranormal’ are the sub-genres of a horror novel, I don’t necessarily expect to be scared. Often after loosening the constraints of reality, the authors become embroiled in creating ever more hideous creatures or discovering increasingly horrendous ways for people to die. The result is that the stories can end up being as humorous as they are scary. The Everett Exorcism, however, is NOT one of those books. It is quite creepy … in all the right ways.
For the complete review, see: https://amzn.to/2Jc2eJx
(I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.)
I've been flattered by several recent messages and emails concerning one of my books. For example, one of them read "BTW, everything that’s going on with the coronavirus reminds me of the background of the world of Killer in the Retroscape."
While I am glad that my depiction of a world-wide pandemic reads true--something I strive for to build suspense--I'm also happy that my story is fiction. The coronavirus is life. Please listen to health officials and stay safe.
The notes I received also reminded me of an article I read recently about how government and business were tapping into Sci-Fi literature to plan for the future. Realism can serve more than suspense! I thought you might be interested.
https://www.wired.com/story/sci-fi-writers-prepare-us-for-an-uncertain-future/
Happy (almost) Spring,
Bruce
Now to the free reads.
1. The Book Review Club
Take a look at more than 55 free books in a variety of genre, including my dark, techno-thriller, Of Half a Mind. Find your next favorite read and consider thanking the author with a book review.
https://storyoriginapp.com/to/TpeJHLr
2. The Whodunit Mystery Giveaway
Pick up free stories from more than 20 mystery/thriller/suspense writers at the Whodunit Mystery Giveaway.
A word of clarification about this one - although the download site calls all of the free offers "books", there are also samples from novels and short stories, including my short story. And if you think my entry, Amie and Alex: A Love Story isn't a mystery, then I'd guess you haven’t read it yet!
https://storyoriginapp.com/to/vVq1lB8
Some entertaining (and inexpensive) reads while we wait for Spring. Hope you find something to enjoy.
Bruce
(Prices change constantly. Be sure to verify all prices before purchase.)
Start Date: NOW End Date: March 8
Name Your Poison (Top Shelf Mysteries Book 3)
By Lolli Powell
Cozy Mystery, Women Sleuths
Usual Price: $3.99 Sale: $0.99
New York and Hollywood come to the Top Shelf!
Ricki and the Top Shelf crew have worked for weeks preparing for the launch party for Logan Parker’s book. Waterton is abuzz, not just about their very own newspaper editor writing what promises to be a bestseller, but also about the movie based on the book that might be filmed on location in Waterton. But when the location scout drinks from the wrong energy drink—well, nothing ruins a party like a dead body!
Ricki’s not so sure the location scout was the intended victim, and Gabe’s not so sure it’s a murder. One thing he is sure of—he doesn’t want Ricki investigating. You’d think he’d know by now that she never listens.
https://amzn.to/2PLob67
Start Date: NOW End Date: March 10
Damaged: a heart-stopping psychological thriller
By Dan Scottow
Psychological Thriller
Usual Price: $2.99 Sale: $0.99
Journalist Emily Blake is sent back to her hometown to investigate the disappearance of a young girl called Becky Clarke. Emily takes the assignment willingly as the case echoes the disappearance of her childhood friend, Alice Abbott, twenty-five years earlier.
Returning to the village, Emily renews old acquaintances and rivalries. She reconnects with her estranged brother Adam, who has never quite recovered from tragic events from their past.
While she looks into the disappearance of Becky Clarke, Emily revisits Alice’s case but not everyone welcomes her investigation. As lies that have been told for twenty-five years surrounding Alice’s disappearance begin to unravel, Emily is drawn deeper into the mystery.
What happened to Alice?
Will Becky ever be found?
And do the answers lie closer to home than anyone ever imagined?
https://amzn.to/2x6n0aL
Start Date: NOW End Date: March 11
Augmented
By James D. Prescott
Techno-thriller
Usual Price: $4.99 Sale: $0.99
While investigating hydrothermal vents in the Pacific Ocean, scientist Nicholay Panov and his crew mysteriously vanish. Weeks later, when their vessel is finally found, the hull has been crushed nearly beyond recognition.
Searching for answers, glaciologist Sienna Panov reaches out to Ben Fisher, the rich and enigmatic CEO who commissioned the expedition. Ben is the inventor of a revolutionary neural enhancement device. Once implanted in the brain, it has the power to boost both mental and physical abilities to dizzying new heights.
Except Ben has recently suffered a tragedy of his own, after a savage attack robbed him of his memory and left him framed for murder. Working together, Ben and Sienna soon discover a shadowy conspiracy connecting both events.
https://amzn.to/32RxjeM
Start Date: NOW End Date: March 10
Murder on the SS Mystique (An SS Mystique Cozy Mystery Book 1)
By Shelly West
Cozy Mystery
Usual Price: $2.99 Sale: $0.99
After Audrey Hughes’s long contract working security aboard a booze cruise ends, she’s craving something different. And what would be a greater change in scenery than a renovated 1940s ocean liner called the SS Mystique?
Audrey eagerly signs up, thinking all she’ll have to do is tend to wealthy passengers and their pets on a quaint old liner. Instead, she boards a ship shrouded in odd superstitions and deadly mysteries.
It wouldn’t be so bad—if not for the two dead bodies appearing right after the ship sets sail. Spitfire Audrey has a few ideas about who might be to blame, but a handsome Officer Gerald is determined to keep her off the trail.
https://amzn.to/2vyvreQ
Start Date: NOW End Date: March 10
The Thanksgiving Trip: A Cozy Mystery (A Tess and Tilly Cozy Mystery Book 5)
By Kathi Daley
Cozy Mystery
Usual Price: $3.99 Sale: $0.99
The entire Thomas family takes a Thanksgiving trip to a mountain cabin after Tess learns that her father visited the area every autumn to hunt and fish before his supposed death in a fiery truck accident. After arriving at the cabin, Tess and Tony, along with Mike and Bree, team up to investigate a suspicious death, while Tess and Tony secretly talk to people who live in the area and once knew her father. Hoping to finally find answers for her unanswered questions regarding her father's current whereabouts, Tess widens her search which lead her to a startling realization.
Meanwhile, a stray dog seems intent on adopting Mike in spite of Mike's insistence that there is no way he has room in his life for an energetic and mischievous puppy.
https://amzn.to/2THRbN9
Start Date: NOW End Date: March 9
SUB-ZERO
By Matt James
Sci-Fi Adventure
Usual Price: $4.99 Sale: $0.99
The only thing colder than the Antarctic air is the icy chill of death…
Off the coast of McMurdo Station, in the frigid waters of the Southern Ocean, a new species of Antarctic octopus is unintentionally discovered. Specialists aboard a state-of-the-art DARPA research vessel aim to apply the animal’s “sub-zero venom” to one of their projects: An experimental painkiller designed for soldiers on the front lines.
All is going according to plan until the ship is caught in an intense storm. The retrofitted tanker is rocked, and the onboard laboratory is destroyed. Amid the chaos, the lead scientist is infected by a strange virus while conducting the specimen’s dissection.
The scientist didn’t die in the accident. He changed.
https://amzn.to/3cBGKUb
Start Date: NOW End Date: March 10
Asylum (Touched by the Fae Book 1)
By Jessica Lynch
Young Adult Fantasy
Usual Price: $2.99 Sale: $0.99
Black Pine Facility for Wayward Juveniles. The asylum. It's a place where they stick troubled cases like me until we age out or they think they've fixed us.
Newsflash: you can't fix what's not broken. And I may have been thrown into Black Pine when I was barely fifteen, but I'm not crazy. I'm cursed.
Because of the fae? They're real. Gorgeous, ethereal, mythical creatures who can't lie but are experts at twisting the truth. Just one touch, that's all it takes. Just one touch and the fae have power over you. Just one touch and your whole world can go up in flames.
https://amzn.to/39vbww2
Start Date: NOW End Date: March 10
Damned From Birth
By Jon Athan
Horror Suspense
Usual Price: $3.99 Sale: $0.99
While attempting to abduct a teenager from her home, notorious serial killer Victor Brooks meets his match: ten 9mm bullets. In a puddle of his own blood, sprawled across a stranger’s kitchen floor, Victor’s life begins to flash before his very eyes. He sees the living and the dead, peace and carnage, friends and foes, success and disappointment, love and hatred. He sees a life defined by anger, pain, and sorrow.
The light at the end of Victor's tunnel is red—red with blood.
WARNING: This novel contains graphic content. Reader discretion is advised.
https://amzn.to/2TKrgEH
Start Date: NOW End Date: March 11
Edge of Eons: A Cultivation Novel (The Adept Archives: Book 1)
By Darren Hultberg Jr
Young Adult Dark Fantasy
Usual Price: $3.99 Sale: $0.99
In the realm of Eon, strength is the rule of law.
In daylight, the realm is ruled by the adepts, a group of mighty cultivators that use their spirits to wield world-bending, mystic power. These adepts live in constant strife, fighting for control of relics that hold the divine powers of ancient gods.
In twilight, the realm belongs to the darkbeasts, nightmarish creatures born of a mysterious fog known as the veil. These creatures are drawn to power, hoarding relics in their dungeons and slaying any adepts that dare venture too close.
Together, these opposing forces create a grim balance of power, one only survived by those with strength, cunning and a bit of wit. But balance is not easily maintained...
https://amzn.to/3aAvlBV
Start Date: NOW End Date: March 9
Shadow of Oblivion (Avenger Book 1)
By Richard Tongue
Cyberpunk Sci-Fi
Usual Price: $2.99 Sale: $0.99
For decades, tensions have risen between the resurgent Terran Republic, formed from the ashes of a century-long conflict, and the Belters, colonists who left Earth at the height of the fighting to build new worlds among the stars. When war erupts, the heart of their battle fleet is Goliath, the largest battleship ever built, the result of years of work in hidden shipyards lost in the depths of space. Earth has no answer to her, no ship in her fleet a match for the overwhelming power of the warship. Defeat seems inevitable.
Until a renegade Admiral concocts a final, desperate plan.
Only one ship, an experimental warship, the Avenger, might possibly stand a chance against the might of Goliath. One ship, with a crew with nothing to lose and everything to gain, gathered from the dregs of Earth’s space forces. The last hope for the Terran Republic. The last, desperate hope for victory.
https://amzn.to/2VPhgg8
Prices change constantly. Be sure to verify all prices before purchase.
I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by Amazon: linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
For your consideration:
- Some historical fiction (Living in a Star's Light);
- A paranormal romance, of a sort (Franny’s Fable); and
- A British satire (Curmudgeon Avenue #1).
Hope you find something for your library,
Bruce
Living in a Star's Light: A novel based on the life of Miss Lotta Crabtree by Steve Lindahl
1870-80s Celebrities Had Their Posses Too
From the complete book title, you know that Living in a Star’s Light is based on the life of American actress, dancer, musician, and philanthropist Lotta Crabtree. She made her name primarily in the 1870-80s, starting her career at the age of six dancing in the gold-mining camps in California and ending in quiet retirement and philanthropic work at Lake Hopatcong, New Jersey, some 70 years later. But as is often the case with historical fiction, Ms. Crabtree is not the center of this book. Rather, she is a notable, historical figure around whom the fictional characters circulate. In this case, it’s Walter Cain, his wife, and their friends. They are her number-one fans; they provide her feedback on her performances; they reassure her when things go wrong; they worry about her. In short, they are her crew, her entourage, her posse.
For the complete review, see: https://amzn.to/31sdrOu
Curmudgeon Avenue #1: The Terraced House Diaries by Samantha Henthorn
A British Farce about “nincompoops and intertwined lives” Told by a House
The author of Curmudgeon Avenue #1, Samantha Henthorn describes her work as a comedy-drama. Drama, for example, comes in the form of the death of the parents of our two protagonists, the elderly sisters Edna and Edith at the start of the book. Comedy comes in the form of the parents dying by being crushed by an elephant thrown from a lorry driven by one of Edna’s exes. The elephant broke free of her constraints because the driver smelled so bad. Even so, he later becomes Edith’s romantic interest when he rents a room in the sisters’ home after a long, roof-sitting protest over being evicted from his own. Yes, it’s pretty difficult to find much drama in this book that’s not wrapped in total absurdity. It is truly the story of a group of nincompoops whose worlds never generate enough momentum of their own to escape each other’s orbits. And if that silliness isn’t enough, the story is told by the house, a Victorian terrace. The book even has some house humor. Speaking of the “tiresome” process of evicting someone, the house notes that it’s “… enough to make one's front bedroom windows glaze over.” Drama? Maybe. A farce? Without a doubt.
For the complete review, see: https://amzn.to/2VfLdFA
Franny’s Fable by Heather Harrison
Kill Your Husband, Rinse, Repeat
As we join Franny in the book, Franny’s Fable, she’s writing the story of her life with husband Jamie. He’s lying in bed in the next room, dead, stabbed through the heart. She killed him. There are authors who could turn the hate, the rage, the desperation that must have gone into such a violent act into a book. But Franny isn’t documenting her struggle for survival. She’s writing about the routine of her life, about something she’s done “more times than she can count” to quote the author’s synopsis. And what she’s documenting is … her love.
For the complete review, see: https://amzn.to/2H5HMt1
(I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.)
In this newsletter, I have a couple of very different types of giveaways for you. The first is offering a prize package valued at $200 for Sci-Fi lovers. The second provides previews and short stories that span various genres because, as the giveaway says, who doesn't love a sample platter!
Much of my reading is scientific research - I never know where I might get the inspiration for my next techno-thriller. But you can't be in the field without picking up some literary tidbits from time to time. I've included one you might find interesting.
Happy reading,
Bruce
C.L. Cannon’s Best of Sci-fi Giveaway!
$200 VALUE
1 WINNER
Subscribe to some of today’s bestselling Sci-fi and Fantasy authors for a chance to win one hardback of Star Wars: The Secrets of the Jedi by Marc Sumerak, a paperback of Artemis by Andy Weir, hardback of Aurora Rising (The Aurora Cycle) by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff, a paperback of Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson, The Expanse board game, a Star Trek Poster, and a Fallout magnet.
Get full details and signup here: http://bit.ly/clbestofsf
Sneak Peeks and Previews Giveaway
Have a few minutes to try a new genre or a new author in an old favorite? Then, check out these book previews and short stories: https://storyoriginapp.com/to/PDS5T8S
Your next new favorite book could be waiting.
And In the Writing World
Lee Child is turning the Jack Reacher series over to his brother, Andrew. If you're a fan, check out this podcast from Suspense Magazine on the transition.
http://suspensemagazine.com/blog2/2020/02/14/beyond-the-cover-on-where-is-jack-reacher-with-andrew-child/
Briette: Young Adult Princess Medieval Fantasy (The Nine Princesses Book 4)
The Key of Apollo (The Gates of Artemis Book 1)
A Cat in the Attic Mystery: The Curse of Hollister House
THE UNDOING: A Young Adult Dystopian Scifi Novel (Book 1 of The Undoing Trilogy)
Spies and Spells : A Cozy Paranormal Mystery (Spies and Spells Series Book One)
Scene of the Grind: A Cozy Mystery (A Killer Coffee Mystery Series Book One)
A.L.I.V.E.: A Genetic Engineering Thriller (The A.L.I.V.E.Series Book 1)
Deadly Search: Sheriff Lexie Wolfe Novel (Sheriff Lexie Wolfe Novels Book 2)
Fatally Bound - A Serial Killer Crime Thriller (Mac McRyan Mystery Thriller and Suspense Series Book) (McRyan Mystery Series Book 5)
Murder, of Course: A Sugarbury Falls Mystery
