Wednesday Wing – Self-Publishing Part 2 by @AlisonW_Editor #wwwblogs #amwriting

Here on Wednesday Wing we try to pass on useful information for readers and writers.

Today Alison Williams continues with more advice on Self-Publishing.

Self-publishing – essential information

Contrary to popular opinion, self-publishing isn’t just a case of uploading your manuscript and spending the royalties. There are some technical and legal issues that you need to be aware of – issues that can have a real impact on royalties, marketing and sales.

ISBN

An ISBN is the International Standard Book Number. It’s a ten (pre-2007) or thirteen (post-2007) digit number that identifies a particular book. The ISBN is used by publishers, booksellers, libraries, internet retailers and others in the supply chain for ordering, listing, sales records and stock control. You do not need an ISBN to publish an eBook through Amazon’s KDP. When you upload your book, it will be assigned a unique ASIN (Amazon Standard Identification Number). If you publish a paperback version of your book through CreateSpace, you can buy an ISBN that you can use for any distributor, or you can use a free ISBN.

If you publish through Smashwords, they will assign a free ISBN as long as your manuscript meets the standards required to be included in its Premium Catalogue – details here. Although you can technically publish without one, an ISBN means Smashwords can distribute to more retailers.

Front and back matter

When you’ve finally finished your book, it’s natural to want to thank everyone who’s been involved, to dedicate the work to someone special and to tell the readers something about yourself. However, to be brutally honest, most readers won’t really care about this – they will want to get on and read the story. So if you’ve included information about your website, details of where to buy other books etc. in the front matter, the chances are the reader won’t look at these details. It’s far better to include your social media links, website details, information about other books etc. at the back. This means that if someone has read and liked your book and wants to know more about you and your publications, they will then have the opportunity to straight away find out more information. If you’re publishing an eBook, add links to everywhere a reader can find you and connect with you.

Add a note at the back asking readers to leave a review on Amazon etc. if they have enjoyed the book. If you decide to also publish through Smashwords, then don’t ask readers to review on Amazon in the back pages of what you upload to their site, or mention that any future books are available through anywhere other than Smashwords, as this will prevent you being included in their premium catalogue.

DRM

When you publish an eBook, you can choose to have the content protected by DRM (Digital Rights Management). It’s simply a case of checking a box when you publish. The purpose is to inhibit unauthorised copying or access to your book – pirating. Once you choose to have DRM for a publication, you are stuck with it, you can’t ‘un-choose’ it. While you are protected from potential pirating, selecting DRM means a reader who buys the eBook can’t then share it with other readers and they can’t transfer it to another device. It also means that the reader, the owner of your book, can only access it on the device they bought it for. This puts some people off buying books that have DRM.

It is a contentious issue and the decision is yours. My personal feeling is that I borrow paperbacks from other people all the time and pass on books I love to other people to enjoy. I would be flattered if a reader liked my book so much that they wanted to share it with someone else. That someone might buy my next book.

Tax (for non US authors)

If you publish with KDP, CreateSpace   or Smashwords, there are tax issues to bear in mind as you will be technically earning money from an overseas country. This used to cause a bit of a headache but it’s much simpler now. All the information you need is here.

 

You can find lots and lots more information about all these issues on both the KDP and Smashwords sites.

Here are links to all our Wednesday Wing Posts http://wp.me/P2Eu3u-7Lw

Breath Of The Titans: the False Titanbringer by Riley Amos Westbrook

Breath of the Titans: The False Titanbringer: Complete Trilogy by Riley Westbrook

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Breath Of The Titans: The False Titanbringer is a full three book, high end fantasy trilogy. I shall split my review into the three books.

Book 1: Little Black Storm Cloud.

We are first introduced to the Elves who live in the woods of Elvenham. They are alerted to an army approaching and they confer with the Titans, metal figures and protectors who ask to be taken to Wise of the Elvenham for a meeting.

Next we are introduced to the hero of this series Lovonian a sixteen year old half elf, half dragon. He’s about to set out on a birthday hunting trip with his father and uncle. His father is Amon, Wise of the Elvenham and at the last minute he must meet with the Titans and so misses the trip. Lov and his uncle Nord go alone, but their trip is cut short.

Rushing back to Elvenham they find the streets empty, Amon killed, Lov’s mother taken and the elves taken away as slaves at the hands of an ambush by the Titans. Lov and Nord set out on a quest to rescue Tyrosh, Lov’s mother, and seek an end to the evil Titanbringer in the city of Heart.

Nord and Lov must find Nord’s old friend Jaxton. Lov’s mysterious Grandfather also sends help in the form of Missy the fairy. Nord begins to train Lov in fighting skills with ancient weapons found in Jaxton’s cellars, but Lov’s Grandfather Tryton wants Lov to work on releasing his dragon magic, so takes him to an island to test his skills.

Lov is also watched over by his Grandmother an ancient Wyrm whose magic gifts have an evil about them. Lov, Nord, Jaxton and Missy are sent to find the Anuunaki a race of ants who can help them on their quest. Lov needs to create a new tribe strong enough to take down the Titans.

Book 2: A Mother’s Lov

In the city of the Heart, Martell has taken over as Titanbringer. He holds Lov’s mother Tyrosh captive, placing a necklace on her to inhibit her magical dragon skills. He punishes the Ogier people who have shown her kindness and they leave the city. Without them the plants die and food becomes short.

Lov is heading to meet the Orc, under guidance by shaman The’oak he intends meeting with the Greatmothers, leaders of the thirteen tribes of Orc and previous enemies of the Elves. A menacing black ooze follows Lov and his army seeking out Sanche in an attempt to weaken Lov’s team. Love must fight brothers from the Orc tribes to earn the right to lead them.

Meanwhile Tyrosh finds a way to escape Heart with the help of Hakim. She hopes to help her son by creating a revolution.

Love must next go in search of Rainbow island to meet a unicorn who can return Sanche from the dead. Lov needs this warrior to lead his army. But when he gets to the Red City he is taken prisoner by the seal men. Farraj helps his escape and he meets Primara who agrees to return Sanche.

Jaxton and Nord are left to train the Orc into a strong fighting force. Jaxton works with Fiksu to create a flying glider. Tyrosh has come to the Orc to help convince them to follow her son and arranges a marriage for Lov with Annika, daughter of one of the Greatmothers.

Book 3: The War of Chiefs

Book 3 opens with us seeing a little more of Martell the Titanbringer. He is controlled by a dark magic and this is the reason for his actions. A new stronger, larger Titan construct is being created.

Back with the Orcs, Annika is rebelling about her marriage of convenience, Lov is concerned that his dragon magic will use him as much as he uses it and it will try to take over. He argues with his mother and struggles to show leadership powers as his inexperience and adolescence confuse him. He is approached by Charlot who represents women who wish to join the army, they want to be Lov’s armed guard.

Tryton, Tyrosh’s father removes the controlling necklace from her and she regains her full dragon magic. She flies off trying to connect to other dragons but fears they no longer exist.

Nord leads Lov’s army towards Heart, yet Lov would prefer to win without mass slaughter. He asks Koan of the Ogier to help grow gigantic plants to stop anyone escaping Heart. The army must also negotiate crossing many farmer’s fields on their journey but they meet much resistance.

The final battle draws near with an evil coming from the skies. The truth shows the true players who pull the puppet strings and this is just one battle in a much larger game.

I read all three books one after another and it really plunges you into the world of Lov. This book has a reading age guide of 12-18, but I would like to see this increased to somewhere nearer 16+. The main protagonist is 16 added to this there is a lot of drinking and smoking of dragonweed, plus much of the slang language used is more suitable for older readers.

There has been a lot of thought into the fantasy characters, I particularly liked the Ogier who sang to plants and made them grow, and the Anuunaki , a race of ant people. There are many, many more fantasy characters and at some points I felt there were too many, some adding very little to the storyline. In book 1 there is a giant rabbit which explodes, in book 3 I wasn’t sure of the point of the crickets.

Making this a 3 book quest enables the storyline to be drawn out. The book has quick easy to read chapters, but not every chapter added much to the storyline and my attention wandered on these occasions. The characters of Tyrosh and Lov are central to the book but they give out mixed messages. They were fighting for their freedom but wanting to do this without violence, yet both showed great violent behaviour and killed others. Both needed to be strong leaders yet at times their tempers flared like children and Lov went from child to leader to victim allowing his armed guard to treat him like the enemy and semi-torture him. It was quite hard to accept a young adult would have the experience, knowledge and respect needed to get an army of size to follow him.

For this book to really pop in the world of fantasy writing for me I would like much of the spoken conversation to be looked at again, the world created is a fantasy yet the language of the characters is too full of our everyday slang and colloquialisms, too many “hell this and hell that” when rich words to continue the fantasy theme could have really made individual characters stand out. There is also the emotions, everyone is angry and it gets boring, Missy stabs, Tyrosh slaps, others smack, punch in sentences which aren’t in fight scenes. Showing deeper emotions will come with practice as will using better descriptive words “he jumped from his tent” didn’t feel the right words, was he sat on top of his tent? He could have “stepped or rushed” from his tent.

The ending was disappointing for three books an end battle has been drawing, I didn’t get the grand finale battle experience I was expecting with Martell going down after a huge fight. Overall a good plot which would benefit from some streamlining and character definition making sure that all the parts played really do add to the storyline.

Find a copy here from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com or Smashwords

View all my reviews on Goodreads.

Rosie’s Book Review Challenge – Helen reviewed How To Promote and Market Your Book by Madi Preda

Rosie’s book review challenge was really popular, today’s review is from Helen. Find out more about Helen here www.samefacedifferentplace.co.uk

She chose to read “How To Promote and Market Your Book” by Madi Preda.

How to Promote and Market Your Book – Madi Preda

Here is Helen’s review.

My Review of  How To Promote and Market Your Book by Madi Preda

This is a great guide. The introduction is simple: “Have you ever wondered why some authors make a fortune on their writing while so many others who have written wonderful books seem to struggle?”

My advice is: read the entire book; digest it and study it again, chapter by chapter. If this had been around at the time I self-published my first book, my own story as an author might have a happy ending! Yet, I struggled through various strategies, alone, with little or no advice – and at a time when the only tips came from forums. So yes, there are strategies in this book which I have stumbled across anyway (through networking on Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads) for example, some of the suggestions for getting reviews.

But for new authors, maybe not so.

This guide combines excellent PR techniques with strategic marketing: just about everything you need to know from how to write a press release to social media networking, and filled with case studies, which show real examples of the theory being put into practice. The one thing I should warn however, is that following a guide like this requires time, effort and patience. It’s maybe not something you can easily fit around a day job, as I’ve found myself doing, but a concentrated campaign akin to running a new business. So new writers take heed – if you crave success, then this guide is definitely for you!

Find a copy of this book on Smashwords or Barnes and Nobel

Guest Author TJ Therien

Today our guest is TJ Therien author of yesterday’s book The Scrolls of Scion: The Dark Queen Rising. Here is a link to my post. http://wp.me/p2Eu3u-5tO

Let’s find out more about TJ.

First I would like to thank Rosie for having me here and thank her for reading and reviewing my debut novel. I really do appreciate her taking the time out of her busy schedule for an obscure independent author.

 

1) Where is your home town?

I was born in East York and raised in North York, cities which no longer exist, having been absorbed by the Megacity of Metropolitan Toronto when it was created. I have also lived in Calgary, Alberta, Perry Sound, Ontario, Montreal, Quebec and made my home in the Eastern Townships of Quebec for most of the last decade before returning to Toronto at the end of June this year in order to promote my writing in an English Province and large urban market.

2) You’ve climbed a very steep hill to become an author, would you care to share some of your journey with the readers?

I started my journey to become an author as an almost illiterate drop out at age 15. I could fill out a standard job application, but not a long form application, or an application that deviated from the standard set up. I basically knew what boxes to put the few words I did know. I quickly realized my job prospects would be severely limited if I did not learn how to read and write so I began to self-educate myself by picking up a book and a dictionary and referencing every word I did not know and referencing every word in the definition I did not understand. It was a very long and tedious process. I began writing Poetry because at the time I perceived it to be looser in structure than prose. That was when my love for the written word began.

3) What made you choose to write a fantasy book?

Fantasy was not the genre of my choosing for my first novel, it just kind of happened. I had tried to write a novel on several occasions mostly in the vein to Kerouac’s stream of conscious or in the genre of Romance, but never saw anything through to completion. In 2013 I decided to take part in NaNoWriMo. I didn’t have an outline for a story or even much of an idea so I fell back on a love of mine which is the genre of Fantasy; I figured Fantasy would allow me to fly by the seat of my pants. I prepared myself by making a childish map with the Paint program on my computer and writing down a few names. I then gave myself 30 prompts based on those names and locations and the rest is history. I posted the original draft as I wrote it on one of my old blogs “Fables, Fallacies and Short Form Fiction” The story took on a life of its own and the rest is history. Although the story itself was written in 30 days, it took nearly six-months of edits and rewrites to put the depth into the characters and the world.

4) How did you go about researching information for your book?

Here’s the thing, other than researching the names I would use I actually did no research for the book. It was completely improvised and drew upon my youth playing Dungeons & Dragons and the fantasy I read when I was older. I am a big Tolkien fan, but I did not want to tread on the creation of such a great. The Races I’ve chosen are all staple races in the fantasy genre, although I have tried to give them all a unique twist. I would mention, as I am a History buff, especially where Ancient History is concerned, I did try to incorporate that knowledge in ways that suited the story.

5) Can you tell the readers why the Drow were driven to the Iron Hills?

Elves, as I have laid them out in my world are divided primarily among three classes, The High Elf, The Wood Elf and The Drow. Savage Elves in my book predate Elven culture and since they worshiped the old Gods they were never accepted. Back to the Drow now, they were basically a slave class of Elf forced to mine the earth and work the forges in the time when Elves still did these things, they were also used as a military arm due to their ability to blend in with shadows. The Drow, led by Lolth, the original Queen of the Drow and High Priestess of the Cult of the Spider led the Drow in revolt against their Elven Overlords and sided with the Orc in the Great War that took place five thousand years before my story begins. I should mention that while Lolth is a Goddess according to D & D mythologies, in my novel she is not a Goddess, but a Drow that had acquired unique magical powers. The revolt failed and the Elves basically committed genocide in the destruction of Sion (the capital city of the Drow at the time.) A handful of Drow (a few low level priestesses and their guard) escaped the massacre and found a home in the Iron Hills where they rebuilt their numbers through selective breeding.

6) Tell us about some of the other races of species in your book.

Well I am using staple Races of the Fantasy genre as I said previously; I wanted to give them a unique twist. So I made my Orcs intelligent and there culture is kind of a Shamanic culture that has a code of honor and they are not outright evil, but were driven into the Barrenlands by the Dwarves in what was basically a territorial dispute and this is what the Great War was primarily about. On the topic of Dwarves, Dwarven females do not have beards, but they started wearing false beards in the time of the Great War to protect them from rape and they continued to wear them even after the war had ended. Savage Elves worship the ancient gods as I have said which were animals seen in the constellations. Savage Elves exist primarily in animal form and live extremely long lives, Lord Arthfeal, the Lord of Bears existence predates the Great War.

7) Who are the ancient sages and what is their role?

Ah, now that is an interesting question. I did not want to have typical Wizards in my story, so I created the Sages, who are very old and wise beings that spend most of their lives acquiring knowledge and magic which they are reluctant to use. They are often referred to as the First Ones and they perceive each other as brother and sister, although I have never gone into their origin. Each Sage represents one of the races and one of the Elements. Their primary function is as the Advisors of Kings and the Ruling Classes of the separate Races.

8) What is a Drider?

A Drider is a creature that is half Drow and half spider, they are magically created and it is the ultimate form of punishment for a Drow to be transformed into one. It is a particularly cruel fate and the transformation is very painful. A Drider retains his Drow memories and magical abilities, but this too is part of the curse. When a Drow is transformed into a Drider they are exiled from Drow society. The rite to transform a Drow to Drider had not been performed since the time of Lolth, before the Great War until Rianon performs the rite upon Prince Maelgad in the opening scene of the book.

9) Are you working on the next book in the series?

I will be beginning the penning of the sequel to “Scrolls of Sion: Rise of the Dark Queen” “The Scrolls of Sion: Broken Bloodlines” November 1st 2014 and will use the same NaNoWriMo process. All future books in the “Scrolls” series will also be done in this fashion, although I don’t know how many books it will be in the end, my intention is to produce one book each year (to be released on May 25^th  the following year) as long as I can keep the books interesting and relevant. I have other projects I am working on other than “Scrolls” that are not in the Fantasy genre including a Romance (“Forever: The First Epoch”) set in the Stone Age which I am hoping to finish writing and editing by the time NaNoWriMo starts. I also am working on a book of experimental Poetry entitled “Crossing Main.”

10) Where can readers find out more about you and where can they get your book? Is it still free on these sites?

Readers can find me at my new Primary blog “Inside the Poet’s Mind” and also on my blog devoted to “The Scrolls of Sion” which goes by the same name as the series. My books can be found on Smashwords, Barnes and Noble and the i-Store, although I can’t find me on the i-Store, books are being downloaded there. Like the Drow, “Scrolls” exists in shadow and secret in the world of “Apple.” I also have an anthology of Poetry (“Liars, Hypocrites & the Development of Human Emotion) available through the same retailers. I have decided to keep all my books free until I debut them on Amazon. I have not yet set a date for my Amazon launch, but it will be before November 1st and maybe as early as August 1^st so those who haven’t taken advantage of this free offer, better hurry.

Thank you again Rosie for having me here on your Blog. I have enjoyed the experience and truly appreciate the exposure.

Links to Blogs

http://insidethepoetsmind.wordpress.com/

http://thescrollsofsion.wordpress.com/

Links to Book

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/434284

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-scrolls-of-sion-t-j-therien/1119459677

Thank you TJ and good luck with the next book.

The Scrolls Of Scion:The Dark Queen Rising by TJ Therien

 Scrolls Of Scion by T.J. Therien

The Scrolls of Scion; Rise of the Dark Queen is set in the fantasy world of Brynmor. The Drow are a race of dark elves who have lived in the Iron Hills for the last five thousand years. Now Queen Rianon wants to fight back against those who banished them from their rightful home in Sion.

Humans, Dwarves and other Elves innocently disbelieve that the Drow could be any reasonable threat to their way of life and refuse to head the warnings from the ancient Sages.

Dwarf and Human join to march on the Iron Hills and  rid them of the Drow pest. However they soon find themselves facing a bigger threat than they could have imagined.

Through skilful planning Rianon has the support of The Orc, Kobold, Savage Elves, and Wolf races. An abduction of an Elf Princess and the death of the Human King all throw chaos at the ruling realms. Meanwhile Rianon’s ultimate aim is to find a way back to Sion and the magic it holds.

There are a lot of characters to get your head around in this book and I struggled with their names and my ability to place them all in the right camps at the start. However as the book went on they grew on me and I could picture them all more clearly. The ending can only mean another book to continue the storyline and tie-up unanswered questions. A well written book with some great characters.

Available as a free download from Smashwords https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/434284 Or Free from Barnes and Noble (Nook)

Author TJ Therien will be our guest on the blog tomorrow, do come back and find out more about him and his work.

Book Review Challenge – Book Review by TJ Therien

Today we have a book review from TJ Therien

He reviewed “My GRL” my John W Howell

“My GRL” by John W. Howell: A Review for Rosie’s Book Review Challenge

For me, there are books that beg to be dissected and there are books that beg the reader to strap in, sit back and enjoy the ride. “My GRL” by John W. Howell is one of those second books. The problems I had with the book were with my own pet peeves and do not reflect the author, story, or the writing itself, so they do not bare mentioning other than to say I would have found the same faults in almost any book that is written in the first person. I should mention I am also not a particular fan of mysteries to begin with. My pet peeves and personal preferences aside, I believe the author did a masterful job weaving his story. The story flowed easily and the characters were well rounded. I did not have to go back to reference certain parts to clarify, as is often the case when I read books. This is a credit to the author. If I were to give this book a star rating then I would pluck four of the biggest, brightest stars from the heavens. The author allowed me to overcome my pet peeves to thoroughly enjoy his story. If you enjoy mysteries and intrigue (even if you don’t) then I recommend you pick up “My GRL” by John Howell, strap yourself in and enjoy the ride. Who knows, if the author continues to pump out books of this quality I may yet become a fan of the genre. I will be anxiously waiting to see what is in store for John Cannon in the future.

 

Here is where you can find “My GRL”

Amazon US

Amazon Canada

Amazon UK

Smashwords for Mobi and most e-formats

Barnes and Noble

TJ also blogs at Blog http://thescrollsofsion.wordpress.com/

Or find him on Facebook

 

 

Letter Y on The A to Z April Challenge 2014

Today is letter Y on the April A to Z blog Tour. My book today comes from Tony Carnival and is the first book in his Over Odyssey Series called Yellow. Genre – Fantasy Fiction

As if being a teenager wasn’t tough enough, Exodus Magaba (Ex) must come to terms with the loss of his beloved older sister, the sudden disappearance of his father, and a move to another town in another state.  On the night of his thirteenth birthday, Ex has an unexpected meeting with a mysterious man.  This encounter reveals Ex’s supernatural destiny as an “Era Key,” the only one of his generation, who can move freely and mysteriously through time. Now, with help from his mother’s chronodelias—mystical flowers that let you watch memories as though watching tv—and his new group of zany but street-tough friends, Ex must piece together the truth of the mysterious man, the forgotten magical world of Odyssia wherein lie his roots, and the connection with a new and lavish videogame…and his future.

Amazon Links

Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Over-Odyssey-Yellow-Tony-Carnival/dp/1622126181/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1393880085&sr=1-1

Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Over-Odyssey-Yellow-Tony-Carnival-ebook/dp/B00II7ZXVS/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=1-1&qid=1393880085

Barnes& Noble Links

Paperback/Nook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/over-odyssey-tony-carnival/1117711709?ean=9781622126187

Smashwords 

Electronic Download: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/411971

Tony Carnival is that rare author who comes along once in a generation.  Born with a penchant for storytelling and an uncanny ability to weave innovative ideas into cogent prose, he has developed from the nine-year-old short-story writer to the current epic fiction talent.  Over Odyssey: Yellow is the first novel in a sextet of epic fantasy, which has already been heralded as “lavish and captivating,” and as “an amazing roller coaster ride of excitement and thrills.”  A New Jersey native, he now lives in New York with his beloved family and is busy writing the second book in the sextet, Over Odyssey: Blue – a sequel that is already greatly anticipated by his fans.

Other Links

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/Overodysseyyy

Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=324065237&goback=%2Enmp_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1&trk=spm_pic

Strategic Website: http://sbprabooks.com/TonyCarnival/

Twitter Handle: @Over_Odyssey

Here are some randomly selected links to other bloggers who are taking up the challenge, please find time to visit them too.

http://www.clairegillian.com/

http://welshbloggers.wordpress.com/

http://indiewritersmonthly.blogspot.co.uk/

http://elsieelmore.com/

During the challenge we are asking people to leave comments on as many blogs as possible, all supportive comments are very much appreciated, thank you.

Letter V on The A to Z April Challenge 2014

Today we bring you letter V on the A to Z challenge. My book today is called “Victoria” and is written by Stephanie Hurt. Genre: Romance

Victoria – 1^st book in the Women Of Magnolia Hill Saga

Victoria Slaughter was a strong willed young woman. She knew what she wanted in a husband and it wasn’t going to be a prearranged marriage as her parents had. When the Civil War looms near, her father has to take matters into his own hands. In comes Zane Camden, a hard-working, handsome shipping magnate from Boston. Victoria immediately turned her back on him. Could he win her over? Would her father force her hand? Would the Civil War change things forever at Magnolia Hill Plantation?

Places to find me:

www.stephanie-hurt.com

Twitter:  @StephanieHurt4

https://www.facebook.com/StephaniePayneHurt

All of my books are available on Amazon, Smashwords, Allromanceebooks.com, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Diesel, Oyster Ebooks, Apple iTunes, and CreateSpace.

Here are some randomly selected links to other bloggers who are blogging through April, please find time to visit their blogs too.

http://bish-randomthoughts.blogspot.co.uk/

http://caronessauthor.wordpress.com/

http://www.beccajcampbell.com/

http://thechildlikeauthor.wordpress.com/

 

During the challenge we are asking people to leave as many comments as possible on blogs, all supportive comments are very much appreciated thank you.

Letter R on The A to Z April Challenge 2014

Today’s letter on the April A to Z Challenge is R. My Book is Red Clay and Roses by S. K. Nicholls. Genre: Historical, Life & Relationships.

Red Clay and Roses by S.K. Nicholls

Book description-

A fictionalized true story of life in the Deep South during the time of Jim Crow Law, and before Roe vs. Wade. Women were supposed to keep quiet and serve, abortion was illegal, adoption difficult, and racism rampant. The discovery of an old ledger opens a window into the dynamics of the 1950s-60s. Unspoken secrets are shared between Beatrice, The Good Doctor’s wife, and Moses Grier, their black handyman. The Grier’s daughter, Althea, suffers a tragedy that leaves her family silent and mournful. Her brother, Nathan, a medical student, looks for answers from a community that is deaf, blind, and dumb. A summer romance between Nathan and Sybil, an independent, high-spirited, white woman, leaves more unresolved. Nathan is thrust into the centre of the Civil Rights Movement. Sybil is torn between living the mundane life of her peers, or a life that involves fastening herself to a taboo relationship. Witness social progress through the eyes of those who lived it!

You can read my review of the book here http://wp.me/p2Eu3u-4Ge and find out more about the author from her guest post. http://wp.me/p2Eu3u-4Hp

Find a copy of this book here;

Amazon US:

Amazon UK:

Amazon CA:

Smashwords:

Barnes and Noble:

Apple:

Kobo:

Find out more about S.K. Nicholls here;

Blog: http://redclayandroses1.wordpress.com/

Facebook author site:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/SK-Nicholls/352131918230990

Here are some links to other bloggers who are taking up the A to Z Challenge, please find the time to visit them too.

http://authorsusankoenig.wordpress.com/

http://alex-hurst.com/

http://www.claredavidson.com/blog/

During the challenge we are asking people to leave as many comments as possible on blogs, and supportive comments are much appreciated, thank you.

Letter O on The A to Z April Challenge 2014

Our letter on the April A to Z Challenge is O today. My book is The Orphan and the Thief by Melissa LeGette. Genre: Fantasy

Book Title: The Orphan and the Thief

Author: M.L. LeGette

Description: Toad thought it’d be easy to steal from Mr. Edward P. Owl. Unfortunately for Toad, he isn’t the best of thieves. Caught in the act, he’s in more trouble than ever before. Now to save his hide, Toad must track down five rare potion ingredients for Mr. Owl. Or else.

All Melena Snead wants is her family back, but after the Miggens Street Fire, that isn’t very likely. Orphaned and miserable, forced to work in an apothecary, she’s determined to find Milo, her missing brother. No matter what.

When Melena finds Toad ransacking her apothecary, Toad gets a nasty shock: apothecaries don’t carry Mr. Owl’s ingredients. Luckily, Melena’s willing to help, for a price.

With Melena’s pet Spit-Fire dragon and Toad’s enchanted talking beer mug, they embark on a fantastical journey, traveling the country in search of the potion ingredients. But can they gather all of them in time, what with monsters, pirates, and axe-wielding thieves? And if they do, is there an even greater danger waiting for them at the end?

You can read my review of this book here; http://wp.me/p2Eu3u-4KH

Where to purchase:

Amazon US:

Amazon UK:

Smashwords:

Barnes and Noble US:

Barnes and Noble UK:

Author Links:

blog: http://mllegette.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/M-L-LeGette/119655051430835

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MelissaLeGette

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1499928.M_L_LeGette

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http://lindaghill.wordpress.com/

http://scribblinginthestorageroom.wordpress.com/

http://rosebfischer.wordpress.com/

http://lisavooght.blogspot.co.uk/

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