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Tuesday, May 26, 2020

Book Blitz- TENTH STEM by @tootiehead With An Excerpt & #Giveaway! @RockstarBkTours




I am so excited that TENTH STEM by Mary Cook is available now and that I get to share the news!

If you haven’t yet heard about this wonderful book by Author Mary Cook, be sure to check out all the details below.

This blitz also includes a giveaway for a $10 Amazon GC courtesy of Rockstar Book Tours & Mary. So if you’d like a chance to win, check out the giveaway info below.

About The Book:
Title: TENTH STEM
Author: Mary Cook
Pub. Date: February 12, 2020
Publisher: Mary Cook
Formats: Paperback, eBook
Pages: 263
Find it: GoodreadsAmazon, Kindle

No longer is there a waiting list. Not when women can be created in a lab for the express purpose of supplying readily available organs that can be harvested within hours.

An international research corporation does the unthinkable. Taking stem cell research to new levels, they push the boundaries.

An innocent young life hangs in the balance. Because of the simple fact of one child too many, Tansy faces certain death. A baby thrust into her arms, then a kind guard whisks her away from all she has ever known. Lost and alone on the streets, Tansy finally finds sanctuary in an unlikely ally. Together the three work to stay one step ahead of the individuals who seek to cause them harm.

Her only desire is to find hope, love, and acceptance. She is faced with desperation, terror, and death. Now she must turn the tables and work to bring down those who would seek to destroy her new found happiness.

*warning: Graphic violence. LGBTQ.



Excerpt:
She looked down at the bundle in her arms, “If I sit here holding number 1, that means that the numbers are coming faster, and pretty soon mine will be up? Is that it, Mark? Is that the everything you wanted to talk to me about?”

Shoulders hunched, his head bowed in shame, he couldn’t meet her eyes. He sat, silent, as he drew circles in the cold hard dirt with his fingers. 

10 heard him sniffle and knew how hard it was for him.

Guilt for the way she had talked to him consumed her, as she put her hand on his arm in comfort. He was too kind. Sympathy rose for the man who had always tried to be more than what was required. She knew what this job could do to one such as him, she had seen it before. The caring souls who became cold and callous, so she decided to do what she could to give him a boost in the right direction.

“Mark, why are you doing this? Why are you here?” She lowered her voice to a whisper as she looked around, “Get out while you can.”

His head jerked up, the startled expression on his face; the tears he had been trying to hide, unsettled her like nothing before. She had never seen Mark like that. He was afraid. She had always known fear, that was what her world was all about. Never would she have considered one of the guards would also know the same fear she lived with every single day.

“Granny, I’m as stuck here as you are. Sure, I get to go home every day, but if I were to miss one shift—”

When he mentioned going home, she couldn’t help thinking back on the question 31 had posed earlier that day. She scooted a little closer, then looked over at the closed door before she asked the question that all of them wanted answered.

She trusted him, and so she leaned in, the question blurted out before she could stop it, “Is this it, Mark? Is there anything else out there? Is this what it’s like… I mean, for everyone?”

About Mary:


Mary Cook is a retired police detective that lives in a small town right outside a ring of fire, just on the other side of…no wait, that’s a different character.

Actually retired, with hours and hours to write the next great novel, oh wait…nope that’s me. Yes, totally retired. Worlds come alive in my head, characters stand over my shoulder, and sometimes they wake me up at night. All of them want to come alive, to have their stories written. No matter how I think the story should go, it goes according to how the character decides it should. An evil character finds redemption. A beloved character is massacred for no good reason. They all write their own stories.

The ideas come to me, the character develops a personality, and the result is a book. I sincerely hope that everyone will love my books, but what I write isn’t for everyone, and that’s okay. (Is it Mary? You sure you don’t want me to take care of it?) (Get back in the book, Ann!) I love to write stories that make you think, maybe make you a little uncomfortable. I am actually a pretty boring person. Retired, live in a dungeon (my office), two birds and a dog. Every now and then my husband expects me to come out and interact with the world, and I do (begrudgingly). Writing is my hobby, I used to do other things with my hands, crochet, knit…but then I got old(er), and they just don’t work as good as they used to.

On a more personal note, I do have children. I have three grown children, and lots and lots of grandchildren, with a few great-grandchildren. It’s like they’re in a competition on who can produce the most. If any of you read the back of the book, you’ll know that there’s more. But, outside of that, nothing. Boring. So, I bring life and color into the world through the pages of my books. Every time someone buys a book, or gives a review, I’m delightfully surprised. My eternal gratitude to all of you, for reading what I have written, and allowing me to become a small part of your life.




Giveaway Details:
1 winner will receive a $10 Amazon GC, International.

Ends May 26, 2020. Midnight EST.





Monday, May 25, 2020

Blog Tour- LIFE'S A WITCH by Skyler Andra With Teasers & A #Giveaway! @RockstarBkTours




I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the LIFE'S A WITCH by Skyler Andra Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!

About The Book:
Title: LIFE'S A WITCH Reverse Harem Supernatural Prison Paranormal Romance (Guild of Guardians Book 1)
Author: Skyler Andra
Pub. Date: May 25, 2020
Publisher: Skylar Andra
Formats: eBook
Pages: 266
Find it: GoodreadsAmazon
READ FOR FREE ON KINDLE UNLIMITED!

What is it that they say? Life’s a witch and then you die.

Change and I have never been best friends, something that’s only gotten clearer from my transfer to the Guild of Guardians. Aka punishment for stealing a magical object. Now I’ve got to hunt down criminal supernaturals to pay off my sentence.

The men in my new team don’t want me around. Neither do the other inmates. They just want to push me to my limits, test me, thinking that I’ll fail. But they have another thing coming. I’ll pass everything they throw my way, and I’ll prove I’m worthy.

Life’s A Witch is book 1 in the Guild of Guardians series, a supernatural prison academy reverse harem with plenty of action, swoon-worthy men, and a heroine determined to end up on top.

Teasers:



About Skyler:



Never say never. That's Skyler's attitude, and she fills her heroines and heroes with that same philosophy. Skyler is an Aussie who loves traveling and her goal is to one day visit every country in the world. When she's not writing, she's snuggling with a good book and her furbabies. At heart she's a gaming nerd, Pilates and martial arts enthusiast.









Giveaway Details:
1 lucky winner will receive a $10 Amazon GC, International.


Tour Schedule:
Week One:
5/25/2020
Excerpt
5/25/2020
Instagram Stop
5/26/2020
Excerpt
5/26/2020
Instagram Stop
5/27/2020
Excerpt
5/27/2020
Excerpt
5/28/2020
Review
5/28/2020
Excerpt
5/29/2020
Excerpt
5/29/2020
Excerpt


Week Two:
6/1/2020
Review
6/1/2020
Excerpt
6/2/2020
Review
6/2/2020
Excerpt
6/3/2020
Review
6/3/2020
Excerpt
6/4/2020
Review
6/4/2020
Review
6/5/2020
Review
6/5/2020
Excerpt

Release Week Blitz- STAR SPARK by @Day_Leitao With An Excerpt & #Giveaway! @RockstarBkTours



I am so excited that STAR SPARK by Day Leitao is available now and that I get to share the news!
If you haven’t yet heard about this wonderful book by Author Day Leitao, be sure to check out all the details below.
This blitz also includes a giveaway for a $20 Amazon GC courtesy of Day & Rockstar Book Tours. So if you’d like a chance to win, enter the giveaway at the bottom of this post.

Mandatory post info:
About the Book:
Title: STAR SPARK
Author: Day Leitao
Pub. Date: May 26, 2020
Publisher: Sparkly Wave
Formats: Paperback, eBook
Pages: 438

Everyone Saytera knows can conjure fire, but all she can do is create darkness.
In search for answers about her destiny and who she is, she leaves her island for the first time—and almost gets killed. On the run and with no way to return home, she finds refuge in a military academy. Problem is, she can't even fire a gun--they just don't work with her. No kidding, right? She's got an issue with fire. And nobody can know where she's from and what she can do. How can she find her place and her worth in this reality where none of her talents matter?
Dess lost everything when his entire family was killed many years ago. Hiding his identity and seen as a worthless orphan, he beat the odds and became the best cadet in his program. But that wasn't enough. Forced on a dangerous job, he'll go down to the planet and risk his life in the hopes of bringing peace to his moon.
But he can feel the starfire running through him. He knows there's more, there's magic, and there are Terens, legendary beings who can manipulate fire. And destiny might just make him meet one. Problem is, she's his enemy.

Excerpt:
Lying on her back, Saytera closed her eyes. There was no cabin, no task, no matterweaving, no upcoming celebration. She took a deep breath and enjoyed the darkness of her closed eyelids, her breath in and out, the soothing comfort of the soft earth on her back. Stars in the Universe, stars within; one body, one soul.
And then she was walking under the stars, heading to the Blue Beach, where there was a fire. Yansin, Kerely, and some other people were performing a passing ritual, celebrating a loved one’s release from the physical body. Kilmara was there. Yansin’s eyes were swollen from crying. Crying? What would make Saytera’s powerful, wise master so sad?
“Death was part of life and shouldn’t be mourned,” she always said. Her eyes and her expression told a different story, though. Kerely held Yansin’s arm and patted her back as if consoling her. This was so strange. Saytera got close to the scene when they were about to burn a cloth with the person’s name on it. Whoever had passed had lost their body, perhaps in the belly of a sea serpent or in the bottom of the sea. The cloth was a replacement.
There was an S in the beginning of the name. Saytera ran the names of masters and apprentices in her mind. A few started with S, but none of them important or close enough to Yansin. Her insides were starting to cool with a dreadful feeling. Then the cloth turned, allowing her to get a better look. Her breath got caught in her throat. The name was Saytera.
She gasped and sat up. What had that been? A vision? Everything was dark and she didn’t know where she was. Hang on. She remembered. And she had screwed up. All the lamps had been put out.

***

The heavy old-fashioned iron gate and fences did little to keep Dess out of the Staralloy mansion’s grounds. He knew that place better than anyone, having run through these trees for so many years, chasing dreams that had been as real to him as the artificial atmosphere he breathed. He also knew its security system, having once imagined that there were monsters chasing him. Good times. Now the monsters rarely left him—they were in his mind.

About Day:

Day Leitao is originally from Brazil and currently lives in Montreal, Canada. She loves the ocean and going to the beach, and hopes she can visit one again soon. A lot of her summer childhood spent by the sea and sometimes even on islands provided inspiration for some of the settings in Star Spark.








Giveaway Details:

1 winner will win a $20 Amazon gift card, International.

Ends June 3rd.





Wednesday, May 20, 2020

Blog Tour- OUR FRIEND HEDGEHOG: The Story of Us by @studiocastillo With An Excerpt & #Giveaway! @RandomHouseKids, @RockstarBkTours 



I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the OUR FRIEND HEDGEHOG by Lauren Castillo Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!

About the Book:
Title: OUR FRIEND HEDGEHOG: The Story of Us
Author: Lauren Castillo
Pub. Date: May 5, 2020
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers
Formats: Hardcover, eBook
Pages: 122

From a Caldecott Honor-winning artist comes a cozy classic-in-the-making about finding your friends and sticking together through thick and thin.

"Our Friend Hedgehog feels like a modern-day Winnie the Pooh . It's so warm and full of joy and love. It's got classic written all over it." --Victoria Jamieson, Newbery Honor-winning author of Roller Girl

Sometimes you make a friend,
and it feels like you have known that friend your entire life. . . .

Hedgehog lives on a teeny-tiny island with only her stuffed dog, Mutty, for company. When a great storm carries Mutty away, she embarks on a quest to find her friend. Following the trail of clues Mutty left behind, brave Hedgehog meets a wiggly Mole, a wordy Owl, a curmudgeonly Beaver, a scatterbrained Hen and Chicks, and a girl who's new to the neighborhood, Annika May. With bravery and teamwork, there's nothing that can stop these seven from finding Mutty, but along the way they discover something even more important: each other.

The first book in a new series from Caldecott Honor winner Lauren Castillo, Our Friend Hedgehog: The Story of Us has the feel of a timeless classic, introducing an unforgettable cast of characters who will star in many more adventures to come.



Interview:
Hey Lauren!! First I want to say welcome to Two Chicks on Books I’m glad you could stop by for a chat! OUR FRIEND HEDGEHOG sounds AWESOME and I can’t wait for everyone to read it!

Thank you so much!

For the readers: can you tell us a little bit about the OUR FRIEND HEDGEHOG and the characters? The story begins with Hedgehog who lives on a tiny island with only her BFF Mutty for companionship. A storm whisks Mutty away and sad Hedgehog is forced out of her comfort zone and on a journey to find her lost best friend. Along the way she encounters many new adventures and many new characters who end up finding a very special place in her heart. Our Friend Hedgehog is about friendship, bravery, making our way in the world, and finding our people.

What are you working on now? I am working on the next book in the OFH series. I love being back in Hedge Hollow with Hedgehog and friends :)

Were any of the characters in the book inspired by people from your real life? Not people, but animals and stuffies! My dogs inspired the characters of Mole and Beaver. And Mutty is a version of my childhood stuffed animal.

Who was your favorite character to write? What about your least favorite? Well, Mutty was the easiest because he doesn't talk :) I don't really have a favorite or least favorite. I will say though that Beaver was fun to write because he’s grumpy.

What is your favorite passages/scenes in OUR FRIEND HEDGEHOG? I love when Hedgehog first meets Mole, and how kind Mole is to her. I also had a blast designing Mole’s home!

What kind of research did you have to do for the story? I had to research the animals I would be drawing and writing about. Their different animal traits, habitats, etc.. Our Friend Hedgehog is fantasy, but I wanted the characters to feel true to their species.

Who is your favorite children’s book author? That is a very hard question! I love so many. Katherine Applegate and Kate DiCamillo are two favorites.

What inspired you to write Kidlit? I have always loved picture books, creative writing and illustration, so it just seemed like a natural fit. I took a book illustration class at Maryland Institute College of Art, where I was studying illustration, and fell in love with the format. I knew then that I not only did I want to illustrate books for children, I wanted to write them, too.

Lightning Round Questions

What are you reading right now? Or what do you have on your TBR that you’re dying to read?
I am currently reading A WISH IN THE DARK by Christina Soontornvat. It is SO good!

And the next book on my TBR stack is THE LIST OF THINGS THAT WILL NOT CHANGE by Rebecca Stead.

What Hogwarts House would the Sorting Hat place you in? Ravenclaw

Instagram, Twitter or Facebook? Instagram

Favorite Superhero? Wonder Woman

Favorite TV show? Schitt’s Creek at the moment!

Sweet or Salty? BOTH :)

Any Phobias? driving

Song you can’t get enough of right now? Ohana by the Indian Summer Jars

2020 Movie you’re most looking forward to? The One and Only Ivan!



Thanks so much Lauren for answering my questions! I can’t wait for everyone to read OUR FRIEND HEDGEHOG!
About Lauren:

Lauren studied illustration at the Maryland Institute College of Art and received her MFA from the School of Visual Arts in New York City. She is the author and illustrator of the 2015 Caldecott Honor winning book, Nana in the City, as well as The Troublemaker and Melvin and the Boy. Lauren has also illustrated several critically acclaimed picture books, including Kirkus Prize finalist Imagine by Juan Felipe Herrera, Twenty Yawns by Jane Smiley, and Yard Sale by Eve Bunting. She currently draws and dreams in Harrisburg, PA.



Giveaway Details:

3 winners will win a finished copy of OUR FRIEND HEDGEHOG, US Only.

Rafflecopter Embed Code:




Tour Schedule:
Week One:
5/1/2020
Excerpt

Week Two:
5/4/2020
Spotlight
5/5/2020
Review
5/6/2020
Review
5/7/2020
Review
5/8/2020
Excerpt

Week Three:
5/11/2020
Review
5/12/2020
Review
5/13/2020
Review
5/14/2020
Excerpt
5/15/2020
Review

Week Four:
5/18/2020
Review
5/19/2020
Review
5/20/2020
Interview
5/21/2020
Review
5/22/2020
Review

Week Five:
5/25/2020
Excerpt
5/26/2020
Review
5/27/2020
Review
5/28/2020
Review
5/29/2020
Excerpt

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