Rosie’s Book Review Team (RBRT) – Booklist

Night Service: A tale of travel and terror from the Scaeth Mythos by John F. Leonard (91 pages) 

It’s been a great night, but it’s getting late. You need to make tracks and cash isn’t king.
No worries …all aboard the Night Service. It could be the last bus you ever catch.

Every journey is a journey into the unknown, but this trip is an eye-opener, unlike anything that Luke and Jessica have ever experienced. They’re going to learn a few important lessons. Being young and in love doesn’t grant immunity from the everyday awful …or the less ordinary evil that lurks in the shadows.
There’s no inoculation from the horror of the world – it’s real and it’s waiting to touch you.

Genre: Horror

Format: Mobi

Sayville Tales by Lawrence Jay Switzer (480-500+ pages depending on format)

Twelve strangers, two ghosts, and the Devil–while sharing a long railroad journey–concoct a storybook of tales and trifles as hours of blank pages unfurl ahead of them. Not since Chaucer’s pilgrims hit the road with tongues wagging have travelers had this much to babble and gabble about with their fellow wayfarers. Meanwhile, the expansive, crumbling mural that is commonly referred to as America flashes past the windows, and the lies, the truths, and the grandiose exaggerations keep coming on both sides of the glass.

Talk is cheap and tickets are cheaper, but what are the rules? First of all–as your mother surely told you–be sure you are wearing clean underwear because anything can happen. Second, recognize that there aren’t any rules. It’s every passenger for himself.

Sayville Tales is a tragicomic hotchpotch of hot air on wheels. It’s also a glimpse of happenstance’s possibilities, resembling a roll of vividly imagined wallpaper imprinted with a design that never repeats itself unless it’s for a greater effect. The real question is, how could you possibly know what the ride is like if you don’t get on the train?

Genre: Tales in the style of Canterbury tales (recommend checking the ‘look inside’ option on Amazon)

Format: Mobi, e-pub, paperback (US only)

Singularity Syndrome: Finder Series: Book Two by Susan Kuchinskas (229 pages) ARC now for Feb 26th publication

All humans have a complex colony of microorganisms living in our guts. This microbiome influences our health, our thinking and our moods. If you can change someone’s microbiome, can you control their thoughts?

That’s the plan of Thom Elliott, a power-mad tech titan who wants to create a new world order where humanity is ruled by Sekai, the most powerful artificial intelligence ever created.

Finder is a brilliant detective who hates people. He might agree with Elliott that an AI could do a better job of running the world. But when Finder’s own microbiome is contaminated with Elliott’s brew, he wages a guerilla war against Elliott and Sekai, aided by the Parrot, a dog/bird chimera, and Altima, a human/baboon chimera.

Genre: Scifi

Format: Mobi

Stories With A Scowl by Levar Reval (398 pages)

Explore the sinister side of life in this collection of psychological suspense tales for older readers—four short novels and a short story.

Join characters both heroic and horrible as they face all sorts of deadly doings—unsolved knifings, dangerous gangs, dire domestic secrets, government conspiracies, and more—with thought-provoking drama to go with it.

Handle with care. These stories have a mind of their own, and they like to roam the most desolate forests and darkest corners of the world. Read this book and you’ll be biting your nails in suspense—if the book doesn’t bite you first…

Genre: Suspense story collection

Format: Mobi

The Winter Companion by Mimi Matthews (Parish Orphans of Devon #4) (ARC now for Feb 11th publication)

She Wanted to be Seen…
As a lady’s companion, Clara Hartwright has never received very much attention from anyone. But when her new employer is invited to a month-long Christmas celebration at a remote abbey in coastal Devon, Clara discovers that she may not be as invisible as she’s always believed. At least, not as far as one gentleman is concerned.
He Needed to be Heard…
Neville Cross has always been more comfortable with animals than people. An accident in his youth has left him with a brain injury that affects his speech. Forming the words to speak to his childhood friends is difficult enough. Finding the right things to say to a lovely young lady seems downright impossible.
During a tinsel-covered Christmas at Greyfriar’s Abbey, Victorian carols will ring, trees will be trimmed, and the four Parish Orphans will at last be reunited. But for shy and sensitive Neville to risk his heart, it’s going to require more than a little help from his friends. It may just take a Christmas miracle.

Genre: Victorian Romance

Format: Mobi

The Earthling’s Brother by Earik Beann ARC now for Feb 1st publication (312 pages)

Sam never knew his parents. In fact, he’s never met another human—or seen a sunrise, smelled a flower, or eaten a regular meal. All of that is about to change.

It’s night in the desert, but he doesn’t feel the cold. The sky is clear, and the stars twinkle at him. He has never seen the sky from Earth before. Everything looks so strange. So . . . alien. He shakes his head in wonderment and laughs. He can’t stop smiling. This is Earth!

There is a building ahead. Other people will be inside. His heart skips a beat as he takes a step forward, the rocks crunching under his bare feet. He has dreamed of this moment for as long as he can remember.

But that which can be found can just as easily be lost again. It would have been better had Sam’s arrival gone unnoticed. But the artificial life form known only as the Authority is not one to miss such things. Nearly as old as time, and almost as powerful, the Authority was built by an ancient civilization as both an enforcer and a war machine, the destroyer of worlds. It has been watching Sam his entire life. Watching, and waiting, and judging. And now, it has decided that it’s time to act.

Genre: Scifi

Format: Mobi / e-pub

Still You Sleep by Kate Vane (ARC now for Feb release)

Why wasn’t she safe at home?
Vikki Smith was a young woman with a learning disability, living independently for the first time, when she died of a drug overdose.
The police think it could have been an accident, but messages on social media suggest someone was exploiting her death for their own ends – before it was even announced. Her mother is convinced it was murder.
Redundant crime reporter Freddie Stone is a family friend. He wants to help them – and his failing career – but he’s a people person. He asks online journalist Tilda Green to work with him.
Tilda is curious, passionate and runs her own campaigning news site. She’s open to everything except compromise. But she’s intrigued by what Freddie tells her and agrees to work with him – for now.
Tilda thinks the trolls are organised and have links to hate groups. A charismatic local politician is determined to take them on. Some question his motives but Tilda trusts him, maybe too much.
Freddie believes the answer to Vikki’s death lies on the estate where she lived, if he could only get someone to speak out. He wants to know who was bringing drugs into Vikki’s home. He chases old contacts while struggling with his new life.
Beyond the virtual hate and her neighbours’ silence, someone knows who killed Vikki. Tilda and Freddie are determined to find the truth and tell her story.

Genre: Crime Fiction

Format: Mobi / e-pub

My Life in Horses: Part One: Disappearing Dreamscapes by Jan Ruth (78 pages)

This is the memoir of an ordinary horse-girl. Fifty years of riding schools, borrowed horses and long lost dreamscapes. Fifty years of a passion which has seen considerable changes from the gradual demise of the public riding school, to the loss of access to safe bridleways. But My Life in Horses is not filled with sad nostalgia, it’s also a kaleidoscope of hope and inspiration. From the dappled sunlit lanes of Cheshire to the rugged mountains of North Wales, and beyond.

Genre: Memoir

Format: Mobi

Hybrids, Volume One: Trouble by Jennie Dorny (443 pages)

She sought refuge on an ocean-covered planet. She didn’t learn its codes until too late. Now she must leave to survive.

Theo’s dreams of exploring distant lands are cut short when her father betrays her.

On the run, she flees to Eridan, where Washone, the spiritual leader, is expecting her. As she is about to reach this ocean-covered planet inhabited by telepaths, she is kidnapped by a bounty-hunter. Ashta, an Eridani Savalwoman, befriends Theo, rescues her, and they land together on Eridan.

While Theo trains to become a Savalwoman – a warrior – bleak memories of past hurts relentlessly disrupt her attempts to trust herself and others.

She is unaware of her own mental powers, so when she believes that she has been betrayed once again – this time by Ashta – she nearly destroys her friend’s mind in a fit of wounded rage that blazes across the planet.

To protect Theo from those who, like ambitious Keith of Rain Forest, would like to use her powerful mind for their benefit, Washone decides that she must leave Eridan.

Can Theo convince Washone to let her stay? Or will she have to leave her new friends and go on the run again, with no place to go?

Genre: Scifi

Format: Mobi / e-pub

The Midnight Before Me by Elizabeth Lo (354 pages)

The girl, Midnight Thunder is the town crazy person; the Demon Eyes girl. The girl whose existence rests on a curse that saves her from death yet sets her on a path to an inevitable end.

In a world of spells, curses, enchantments, and everything in between, it should be a whimsical place. But instead, little by little, Midnight’s country has begun to fall apart beneath its own mistakes. The queen’s gone a little bit more than mad, the military has collapsed, and of course, the only way for her to break the deadly curse at the root of it all is to sacrifice… herself.

Genre: Ya dark fantasy

Format: Mobi

Dark Magic by Tom Williams (96 pages)

Two magic shows: the Maestros of Magic touring the country, playing provincial theatres; the Carnival of Conjurors successful in the West End. When the Maestros learn that the Conjurors are using real magic – Black Magic – to do their tricks they decide that they must use their own, distinctly unmagical, stage skills to stop them. Soon people are dying on stage – but can the Maestros really beat a team that has the devil on their side?

A darkly humorous thriller by a writer who knows the world of magicians and stage magic.

Genre: A humorous paranormal story

Format: Mobi

Days of Future Found by M.K. Wark (330 pages)

Ella should be grateful for everything she has in the year 2039.
She lives in a climate-protected colony that shelters her from a bruised world, and her superior bio genome shows she is aging at half speed. Nevertheless, all around her, evidence points to the unsettling fact that older citizens like her are disappearing.
When the Longevity Institute approaches Ella to contribute to their research, she knows it is a risk. A trusted friend warns her she could be the next to vanish, sold as pirated test tubes of longevity boosters to the highest bidder. In spite of this, she is restless to break out of her narrow life.
While she travels down the reconstructed east coast to the Institute’s advanced study, she must make her own decision as to what is true. Does she need to escape the Institute’s tracking and take her chances in distressed surroundings? Is there a secret society that helps elders cut the thread of life?
Days of Future Found is about finding courage when the waves of change never stop.
The novel is set in a speculative future where the subtleties of a high tech society combine to embody the hopes of a unique array of characters. It offers a future forward blend of dystopian, climate and literary fiction to answer the timely question of what comes next.

Genre: Dystopian, hope lit and cli-fi

Format: Mobi

 

Dead Meat: Day 1 by Nick Clausen (153 pages)

The dead have awakened.
Driven by insatiable hunger.
In eternal search of fresh meat.
The infection spreads like the plague.
Nothing stands between the undead and humanity.
Is it too late to save the world from disaster?

Genre: Post apocalypse zombies (book 1 of a 3 book novella series, all 3 books available to review)

Format: Mobi / epub

Akea – His Mother’s Son by Elizabeth Jade (93 pages)

The heart-wrenching sequel to Akea – The Power of Destiny

Akea is no ordinary husky, and taking her place as Wolf Queen was just the first step in the journey set out for her by the Great Wolf. Akea’s world turns upside down when humans raid their home, scattering the pack and capturing her hybrid son. Salvador struggles to adjust to a life in captivity, quickly realising not everyone approves of his husky mother’s rise to Wolf Queen. And when the Great Wolf sends him warning dreams, Salvador discovers his true purpose for being there.

‘Step inside the minds of the huskies and wolves; feel both sides of the experience of loss and change; take the next step in the journey laid out by the Great Wolf.’

Genre: Children’s Fiction

Format: Mobi / e-pub

NEANDER: A Time Travel Adventure by Harald Johnson (291 pages)

“My God. These people really are Neanderthals!”
At an archeological dig in Gibraltar, a boat explosion shatters the hopes of science journalist Tom Cook. His pregnant fiancée was on the boat and is missing. During the search, things go from bad to worse when Tom plunges through a time portal and into the strange and dangerous era of the Neanderthals. Can he get back, or is he stuck in the past forever?
On top of figuring out how to return to the present, Tom must use his modern-day wits to fight for survival in the world of 40,000 years ago. And contend with a group of archaic humans that are not at all like what he expects. Finally, Tom faces a crucial decision that could alter the course of human history. A history he knows he has the power to change. Will he make the right choice?
If you’re a fan of the time travel fantasy novels of Jack Finney (Time and Again), Stephen King (11/22/63), or Michael Crichton (Timeline), you’ll savor this science-fiction, time-travel adventure from historical-fiction author Harald Johnson.
“It’s 40,000 years ago and I’m stuck here. Now what?”

Genre: Time travel historical fantasy

Format: Mobi / e-pub

Head on Backwards, Chest Full of Sand by Sandy Day (ARC now, due out Feb 14th 2020)

A tender story of love-obsession, the second novel from Sandy Day, Head on Backwards, Chest Full of Sand chronicles a young woman’s coming of age during the height of the 1970s women’s liberation movement.

Teetering on the edge of womanhood, clinging to the first love of her life as if her survival depends on it, 17 year-old Livvy is torn between subjugating herself for love and claiming her identity and independence.

When Livvy, lovesick and artistic, spends the summer with the aunt she adores, she crosses paths with a cast of memorable characters in the coastal community of Margaree, Cape Breton Island.

While Livvy’s cousins torment her, house renovations disturb her, an annoying young islander tries to befriend and teach Livvy to disco dance, Livvy prepares for the much anticipated arrival of her boyfriend, Kane.

With poetic fluidity and breathtaking revelations Sandy Day draws you into Livvy’s obsession. Such a deep dive into the dire and agonizing crannies of a love-obsessed young woman establishes Head on Backwards, Chest Full of Sand as a memorable coming of age story.

Genre: Coming Of Age

Format: Mobi / e-pub

At Arm’s Length by D. E. Haggerty (Book #2 Love In The Suburbs) 185 pages.

Jackson Schmidt is the biggest jerkity jerk ever. They should totally erect a statue to commemorate his jerkityness, jerkdom— Uggh! There are literally not enough words for ‘jerk’ to depict the man.

Unfortunately, Jackson is also the most gorgeous specimen of manhood I’ve ever laid eyes on. One look at him and I want to jump and climb him like a tree. But whenever he opens his mouth, his status as the biggest bastard on the planet is immediately reinstated. It’s impossible for the man to say anything remotely nice – at least not to me. To my best friend, though? To her, he’s Mr. Perfect Gentleman. Did I mention he’s carrying a torch for my engaged best friend?

My libido does not give one flying hoot Jackson is a dick who has a crush on my bestie. Nope. Not at all. No matter how much of a schmuck the man is – and trust me he takes schmuck to the next level – I continue to pant after him like a nerdy freshman crushing on the prom king. If I want to keep my sanity, I’m going to have to keep Jackson at arm’s length.

Sanity is totally overrated.

Genre: Romcom

Format: Mobi / e-pub

Number Eight Crispy Chicken by Sarah Neofield (232 pages)

The immigration minister has been detained.

Minister for Asylum Deterrence and Foreign Investment, Peter Ruddick, is en route to the remote Pulcherrima Island, the site of his latest privately-run, fast food chain-inspired detention centre. But chaos ensues when Peter misses his connecting flight and finds himself confined to the visa-free zone of the Turgrael airport, without a business lounge in sight.

Stranded in a foreign territory with nothing but McKing’s Crispy Chicken burgers to eat and nobody but a bleeding heart liberal, his seat-mate Jeremy Bernard for company, Peter’s misunderstandings of Turgistani language and culture result in his arrest on suspicion of terrorism, perversion, and espionage.

Peter has always had the power to get away with just about anything, but how will he sweet talk his way out of this one? What if he winds up – like those in his centres – indefinitely detained?

Genre: Satire

Format: Mobi

My Beautiful Detour by Amy Oestreicher (548 pages)

What happens when an ordinary teenager has to turn into a warrior just to survive? And can the journey through Post Traumatic Stress Disorder really become an “adventure?”
Amy had ambitious plans for college and a Broadway career, until her stomach exploded the week before her senior prom. Months later, she awoke from a coma to learn that she might never be able to eat or drink again.
In this coming of age story, Amy shares her struggles and discoveries living with both visible and invisible illness, the tremendous gifts to be reaped from trauma, its lessons which have illuminated her path, and how these gifts can be discovered as a unique, yet universal way to navigate any kind of uncertainty.

Genre: Memoir

Format: mobi

1932: Pride and Prejudice Revisited (A re-release) by Karen M. Cox

During the upheaval of the Great Depression, Elizabeth Bennet’s life is torn asunder. Her family’s relocation from the bustle of the big city to a quiet family farm has changed her future, and now, she must build a new life in rural Meryton, Kentucky.
William Darcy suffered family turmoil of his own, but he has settled into a peaceful life at Pemberley, the largest farm in the county. Single, rich, and seemingly content, he remains aloof—immune to any woman’s charms.
Until Elizabeth Bennet moves to town.
As Darcy begins to yearn for something he knows is missing, Elizabeth’s circumstances become more dire. Can the two put aside their pride and prejudices long enough to find their way to each other?
1932, Karen M Cox’s award-winning debut novel, is a matchless variation on Jane Austen’s classic tale.

Genre: Austen-inspired 20th Century Romance

Format: Mobi / epub

Loud Pipes Save Lives by Jennifer Giacalone (257 pages)

New York City detective Lily Sparr is stunned when she is inexplicably moved to the very same precinct that once upon a time handled her own father’s murder. There, she is assigned to the case of a women’s motorcycle club which has been committing acts of violence all over the city.
Despite missing her former partner, Miri, and fighting the ghosts of her past, Lily dedicates herself to the case, unaware that her own sister is mixed up in the swirl of violence and chaos.
After secretly reopening the file on her father’s death, Lily slowly unravels the threads of history, discovering that both cases lead to corruption and betrayal at the highest levels.
Featuring a cast of characters as diverse and inclusive as its New York City setting, Loud Pipes Save Lives is a crime thriller about strong women, complex family dynamics, and secrets that could destroy an empire.

Genre: Thriller

Format: Mobi / e-pub

The City Below the Cloud by Thomas Galindo (71 pages)

A city is covered in a cloud of smog so thick that no one has seen the sun in generations. Mushrooms that thrive on the acid rains cover the walls of the buildings and must be scrubbed from vents and doorways. One of these ‘scrubbers’ discovers some of the secrets of the city. What will happen when the secrets come for them?

Genre: Dystopia novella

Format: Mobi or e-pub

The Man In The Cellar by Palle Rosenkrantz (240 pages – Translated from the original which was published in 1907)

From the pen of the Danish Agatha Christie . . .
Murder Will Out.
Holger Nielsen just wanted a quiet London vacation when he rented 48 Cranbourne Grove. But the rental agent forgot to mention he’d be sharing his new home with a very hungry cat and . . . the man in the cellar.
When Holger Nielsen stumbles on a murder, the obvious thing to do is report it to the authorities and get on with his life. But as the crime unravels, it isn’t clear whether it’s worse to be an accessory to murder or an accessory to justice. The Man in the Cellar is more than just a great mystery. It’s an insider’s tour of turn-of-the-century London and Denmark. But beware. Scandinavia hasn’t always been IKEA and Legos.

Genre: Golden age mystery

Format: Mobi / epub

Roller Coaster Romance by Kate Moseman (164 pages)

After the amusement park Vanessa works for goes belly-up, she moves to Florida for a dream job as a manager at Destiny Park, the most elaborate theme park in the world.
In this glittering playground where nothing is as it seems and no one can be trusted, she meets Thomas—a charismatic union organizer who has just 30 days to convince his fellow employees to unionize.
When upper management decides to bust the union at any cost, Vanessa and Thomas must appear to be on opposite sides even as their magnetic attraction brings them closer and closer.
Will their smoldering feelings finally ignite and burn away the overwhelming obstacles to their happily-ever-after, or will it all explode like one of the nightly fireworks?
If you love sweet contemporary office romance, high-stakes intrigue, and theme parks, then lower your safety bar and keep your hands inside the vehicle—because Roller Coaster Romance is a fast-paced and flirtatious must-read!

Genre: Sweet romance

Format: Mobi or e-pub via a download code.

The Lake Crimes 1 by Chris Raven (99 pages)

In the summer of 2001, the bodies of three children were recovered from the waters of Lake Champlain, Vermont. Among them was Anne Austen, the love of the then twelve-year-old Eric.

Now twenty-seven, Eric finds a book that was supposedly written by the same Anne Austen, in which she details the crimes which occurred that summer. But who really wrote that book? A witness? The killer himself? Or has Anne’s spirit gained enough power to communicate with him?

Unforgivable crimes, sessions of Ouija, a lost love, a town cursed by a story which no one remembers…

Genre: Mystery novella

Format: Voucher from AmazonUS only

How To Sell The Stars by Richard J. Dowling

In the future, everything you want is free. But there’s still a price to be paid.
1955. Ambitious young copywriter Leap Hamilton dreams of one day leaving the pleasant but bland Knuckleville for a top New York advertising agency. His dreams turn into a nightmare, however, when he is plucked through time by Machiavellian AI, Isaac, to the year 2120.
It is a future where every wish is granted. A world where Isaac knows everyone’s likes and preferences. Unfortunately, this paradise has spoiled Humanity, robbing people of their drive and intelligence.
Galaxy-spanning trade organisation, the Unity, are considering Earth as a candidate for entry. They are deeply suspicious, however, of dumb Humans and the AI that leads them. Trials are devised to test Humanity’s worthiness. Only Leap Hamilton, a man from the past, has the skills to save Earth’s future. All he has to do is sell products made by Humans—the worst-made goods in the universe.
Will he succeed and lead Humanity to a glittering future among the stars? Or will our entire solar system be obliterated by a Unity EMG bomb?

Genre: Science Fiction, light-hearted adventure, satire

Format: Mobi / e-pub or free download from here

My Girl- Gambling Hearts book 3 by Jacquie Biggar (142 pages)

Sometimes, the right decision isn’t the easiest one to make

Trish Sylvester knows her family and when they accept a week long stay at a rustic dude ranch, she is concerned- especially since it’s at her ex’s home.

Aaron is overjoyed at the opening of his family’s guest ranch, until he learns their first guest is his ex-girlfriend, her parents–and a fiancé.

And that isn’t the only surprise.

Genre: Romance (sweet)

Format: Mobi or AmazonUS gifted copy to those with a .com account

Calculated Deception by K.T Lee (259 pages)

A criminal hiding in plain sight on campus. A professor caught in the middle. Can Dr. Ree Ryland help the FBI stop a killer before it’s too late?

Dr. Ree Ryland is an engineering professor who loves her job and plays by the rules. Her life is reassuringly predictable – until an enemy hiding in plain sight decides her squeaky-clean reputation is the perfect cover to commit a crime.

When Agent Parker Landon and his FBI team discover that someone at the university has been procuring military-grade hardware by disguising it as test equipment, all evidence points to Ree. After the FBI intercepts a shipment that puts Ree in the clear, Parker is forced to tell her that she’s being used as a pawn by an unseen enemy. And now she’s in that enemy’s crosshairs. Ree turns down the protective detail offered by the FBI and insists on using her inside knowledge to help with the investigation. Parker is leery of bringing a civilian on to the team, but he’s surprised at how much fun he has working with Ree, even as he tries to keep her out of harm’s way.

Parker, Ree and the FBI team find increasingly worrying evidence that someone is quietly acquiring everything they need to cause destruction on a massive scale. Now, they must uncover the motive and identity of the killer hiding among Ree’s friends and colleagues before it’s too late.

Genre: Light / cosy thriller

Format: Mobi / e-pub

Frozen Secrets by Myles Christensen (ARC now for Jan Publication) 298 pages

Thirteen-year-old Max Parker is a grounded Earthling with the soul of a space explorer. So when he learns his family is relocating to Jupiter’s moon, Europa, he readily agrees to stay out of trouble. But his promise is soon forgotten, and his snooping lands him on a shuttle doomed for a fiery disintegration.

Convinced someone sabotaged the craft to cover up the theft he witnessed, he digs into the incident. Why was this robbery worth attempted murder? Dodging a series of deadly accidents, he follows the clues to an abandoned outpost and discovers a secret that could blow the lid off a moon-wide conspiracy… Can Max solve the mystery before his interplanetary escapade gets him killed?

Frozen Secrets kicks off the thrilling, teen science fiction series, Europa Academy. It’s filled with fearless friends, high-orbit mysteries, and immersive worlds.

Genre: Ya/MG Scifi

Format: Mobi / e-pub

White Elephant by V.E. Ulett (243 pages)

To keep her place aboard the airship Nonesuch, Miriam Blackwell must carry out another mission for Lord Q — bring the first white rajah of Sarawak back in line with the British Crown.

When Nonesuch crash lands on the coast of Borneo, the mission changes to one of pure survival. In order to rescue her beloved Captain Maximus Thorpe and the crew of Nonesuch, Miriam must trek through the jungle guided by a team of traveling elephants to the would-be empire-builder’s capital. But the jungle has its own laws and lessons, and Miriam may not emerge with her loyalties unchanged.

Genre: Hist Fantasy / Ya Steampunk

Format: Mobi / e-pub

The Lost Planet by Henry Vogel (ARC now, book releases Nov 1st)

The Progenitors—ancient, powerful rulers of an empire spanning a thousand suns—vanished before mankind discovered the Americas, leaving the Elders to rule as Regents of the empire. Three thousand years later, the Regency set their sights on the Terran Republic.

When the vast Regency fleet attacks, the fate of humanity falls on a pair of young shoulders. Elise, a scholar’s daughter who has never been on her own. Glen, the slave of an alien master, who doesn’t know how to be human.

Against the vast empire, Glen and Elise have nothing to oppose the aliens but their wits, a spaceship, and a handful of allies—an ethereally beautiful alien artist, her equally handsome brother, and a quadruped mob boss protecting her teenage daughter.

Together, they must steal a sacred text out from under the Regency’s very noses, rescue Elise’s father, and hope he can solve the mystery of the Progenitors’ whereabouts. If he can, they must pray humanity’s salvation can be found on…The Lost Planet.

Genre: SciFi

Format: Mobi or e-pub

Upon Us by Blakeley Chorpenning (192 pages)

What if the apocalypse was manufactured to save mankind?

Threatened by an ailing planet and insatiable human advancement, world governments agreed to ban the modern way of life, cutting off electricity, technology, and medical services, dismantling the global economy for one hundred years.

Twenty-five years have passed in this self-imposed darkness known as the New Beginning. Crops are dying and the sickness -a zombie-like plague of rotting flesh and fractured minds- is ravishing the East Coast of the United States.

One woman has been entrusted by the clans to remedy their food shortage. Breaking the rules is nothing new, but She -a nameless nomad- must abduct a privileged villager named Ren, bringing her too close for comfort with his entitled world. Together, they discover the root of the plague as their desire for one another grows, even as the differences in their two worlds collide.

Through deception, conspiracy, and the horrors of an expanding pandemic, love thrives where a world chose to die.

Genre: Post Apocalyptic romance

Format: Mobi

Love, Look Away by Lisette Brodey (337 pages)

Twenty-nine-year-old Sage Gordon has had it with love. When she’s not busy running her metaphysical gift shop in the old-money town of Swansea, New York, she’s content with the company of her dog and two cats.

Years ago, the boy she thought she’d marry some day disappeared in the middle of the night and was never heard from again. Haunted by the loss of Jimmy, she remains wary about love, until she is set up with a gorgeous NYC marketing executive. Love moves quickly, and she finds herself engaged — but if only he had betrayed her before she sent out the save-the-date cards.

Sage reverts to her former mindset: love, look away. Forever. Despite her best efforts, though, two completely different yet wonderful men enter her life. Still haunted by the past, can she let romance back into her life?

Genre: RomCom

Format: Mobi

Lucy Mathers Goes Back to Work by Julie Butterfield (319 pages)

Lucy Mathers was once the golden girl of Simcock & Bright. Four years later, she’s a stay at home mum with two adorable children, has swapped her Louboutins for rabbit slippers and spends her day making crustless sandwiches and colour co-ordinated lunches instead of signing up high profile clients.
When her husband is suddenly made redundant, there is panic in the Mathers’ household. With a mortgage the size of the national debt and a credit card balance that’s in danger of toppling, Lucy reluctantly decides she must return to work. So she digs out her old power suits from the back of the wardrobe and leaves Will to become a house husband. But sitting in Lucy’s old office is Grant Cassidy, suave, handsome and ruthless and with no intention of letting Lucy walk back into the number one job.
At home, despite his breezy declaration that swapping boardroom battles for toddler groups would be a doddle, Will’s belief that parental issues could be solved with forward planning and a spread sheet soon falls by the wayside.
With both Will and Lucy struggling to adapt, could their previously happy marriage be developing some cracks?

Genre: Romcom

Format: Mobi / e-pub

Katherine – Tudor Duchess by Tony Riches (328 pages)

Attractive, wealthy and influential, Katherine Willoughby is one of the most unusual ladies of the Tudor court. A favourite of King Henry VIII, Katherine knows all his six wives, his daughters Mary and Elizabeth and his son Edward.

When her father dies, Katherine becomes the ward of Tudor knight, Sir Charles Brandon. Her Spanish mother, Maria de Salinas, is Queen Catherine of Aragon’s lady in waiting, so it is a challenging time for them all when King Henry marries the enigmatic Anne Boleyn.

Genre: Tudor HistFic

Format: Mobi

Natural Phenomena by Simon R Chadwick (352 pages)

It’s Earth. Just not our Earth. And it’s not just the wildlife that you need to be careful of. Alex and Dev go searching for Alex’s nan but find a parallel Earth full of extinct creatures and animals that never were. Given refuge within the walls of Farrier’s Rock they’re protected from the beasts of the forest, but that doesn’t mean they’re safe.

Natural Phenomena: The Forest Of Endless Forms is a tale of adventure, mystery and murder set amongst a world of life forms both ferocious and weird. Alex and Dev, together with their new friends Amma, Susu and Sabah, must confront natural wonders and unnatural terror in order to survive.

A young adult novel by author Simon R Chadwick, this is a book that will appeal to fans of wildlife, monsters, dinosaurs and the strange possibilities of life itself.

Genre: Ya fantasy

Format: Mobi / epub

Transforming Mrs To Ms: A Woman’s Guide To Divorce by Prenita Reddi

DIVORCE IS ONE OF THE MOST STRESSFUL JOURNEY … We’re forced to search into the deepest corners of our hearts to rediscover ourselves.

At 24, the author was a single mother struggling to survive while she went through her own divorce. Her ordeal left her bruised but it did not break her. Today, at 39, she is happily remarried and has three beautiful children. The intention of the book is straightforward: to be a supportive reference for people experiencing the tribulations of the break-up of their marriage, and to let them know that although it is a lonely experience it is not one they need to take alone. The book creates awareness and offers sensible guidance through the perplexing phases that constitute the divorce process. The result is a simply written and practical book, which is enriched by her knowledge of the terrain. An added bonus is details of her coping mechanisms which she shares in an effort to assist others, particularly women, embroiled in the remnants of failed marriages.

Genre: Non-Fiction

Format: Gifted copy from Amazon.com

Shamus Dust: Hard Winter. Cold War. Cool Murder by Janet Roger (376 pages)

Two candles flaring at a Christmas crib. A nurse who steps inside a church to light them. A gunshot emptied in a man’s head in the creaking stillness before dawn, that the nurse says she didn’t hear. It’s 1947 in the snowbound, war-scarred City of London, where Pandora’s Box just got opened in the ruins, City Police has a vice killing on its hands, and a spooked councilor hires a shamus to help spare his blushes. Like the Buddha says, everything is connected. So it all can be explained. But that’s a little cryptic when you happen to be the shamus, and you’re standing over a corpse.

Genre: Mystery

Format: Download now from netgalley.com or netgalleyuk

 

Death Of A Lie by Peter Harper (253 pages)

Death of a Lie

1944, and a Lend-Lease B-25 with its Soviet aircrew falls from the sky above Timişoara, Romania. Andrei Bălcescu, while camping out that night on his father’s smallholding, finds a battered folder amidst the plane’s wreckage.

Fifty years later, Andrei’s adopted son, Lucian, rediscovers the folder and its eight pages of encrypted material in a garden shed. He visits a childhood friend, who makes a start on cracking the code. Barely a week later, Lucian suspects he is being followed by persons unknown.

Present day, and Lucian’s daughter, Shani Bălcescu, a promising Oxford academic, continues to search for information on her family. When she receives a text from an individual claiming to have known her parents, curiosity takes her to Timişoara, where she soon regrets her impulsive nature. Witness to the aftermath of a vicious murder, and hearing that both Oxford and her home city of Prague have been ‘visited’, Shani knows that to leave Romania would prove fatal without first piecing together her father’s movements days before she was born.

Genre: Thriller

Format: Mobi

You, Me And Other Stuff by Lorraine Barrett (ARC now for Sept 28th Release)

A witty, coming-of-age, romantic comedy about friendship, unrequited love and betrayal.

Declan’s a tad annoyed; not only has the love of his life run off with ‘Superman’ but she’s also unwittingly caused his current hostage status.

‘You, Me and Other Stuff,’ is about Sarah Quinn and Declan Murphy and the other stuff that gets in the way of their relationship. Mostly the fact that Sarah is engaged to another man and Declan is being held as a prisoner. Both of which would be huge obstacles in any normal relationship.

Find out what Sarah did to cause this unusual situation.

Can Declan overcome his hatred for Sarah and can Sarah overcome her doubts to end up with the right man?

Genre: RomCom

Format: Mobi

Pirates Of Mars by Christopher Gerrib (272 pages) Book #2 of a series but can be read as a stand-alone

Pirates of Mars, the new Mars adventure story by Chris Gerrib. Lieutenant Peter Grant of the Volunteer Space Rescue Service is taken hostage by pirates, who are holding him for ransom. The Rescue Service can’t afford to pay a ransom and is not equipped for an armed rescue. Fellow Rescueman, Jack Williams, unwilling to violate Rescue tradition and leave a person behind, decides to improvise a rescue. . .

Genre: Scifi

Format: Mobi

Moms Of The Missing: Living The Nightmare by Steffen Hou (262 pages) (ARC now for October publication)

In ‘Moms of the Missing’ I investigate ten abduction cases. Through personal and heartbreaking interviews with the victims the book describes how parents maintain their hopes of one day finding their children—some of whom were taken by a stranger, a family member, or human traffickers. And two survivors tell what it is like to be held captive.

Moms of the Missing also describes the principal types of abductions, who the perpetrators are, and—not of least importance—who’s most likely to become a victim of the epidemic of missing children. All across America parents are searching for their missing children or—if the worst case scenario has come to pass—the person who killed them.

Genre: True Crime

Format: Mobi

Hate The Game by Holly Hall (260 pages)

My official title: Relationship Consultant. A modern-day, one-sided matchmaker. When I approach relationships like a formula, it’s simple really. If only I had the same success in my personal life.

My gorgeous neighbor turns me into a fumbling mess, and I don’t exactly match the leggy, model-types I’ve seen him with. Despite the fact that we’re total opposites, our chemistry is almost hot enough to convince me to give the dating game another try. (Not to mention, it’s totally off-brand to be a relationship skeptic.)

What could it hurt to practice what I preach? After all, Theo Hartley would be a fun specimen to practice with. And if things go south—which is my luck—I just have to remember what I tell my clients:
don’t hate the player…

Genre: Romcom

Format: Mobi

The Western Passage: Exodus by Gina DiCarlo (335 pages)

A thousand miles of wilderness. Innumerable dangers. Uneasy alliances. A bond forged in blood. The odds are great, and survival has never been more uncertain.

Vampires and humans have always been bitter enemies, destined to push each other to extinction. But when a group of scientists develops a genetic enhancement meant to boost the effectiveness of human hunters, tragic results threaten to bring about the destruction of vampires and humans alike.

After the fallout of Year Zero and rise of mutated hybrids known as morphs, the remaining humans retreat into five fortresses.

All seems well until Easthaven is attacked in an assault that leaves only thirty survivors. Enter Marcus Warren, one of the most powerful hunters in existence. Reluctantly, Marcus assumes leadership and decides that the group’s only chance of survival is to cross a thousand miles of wilderness to Ashland.

Forced to trust a hybrid named Clio and a vampire called Aya, Marcus and the others set out. Dangers lurk everywhere, and enemies seem destined to destroy them…if they don’t destroy each other first.

Genre: Post-Apocalyptic Sci-fi, Paranormal Thriller

Format: Mobi