Release Day Blitz- BONDING by @MatthewErman, @emilypearsonart With An Excerpt & A #Giveaway! @thevaultcomics

I am so excited that BONDING by Matthew Erman & Emily Pearson is available now and that I get to share the news!

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

This blitz also includes a giveaway for 2 finished copies of BONDING courtesy of Vault Comics Rockstar Book Tours. So if you’d like a chance to win, check out the giveaway info below.

 

 

About The Book:

Title: BONDING: A Love Story About People and Their Parasites

Author: Matthew Erman, Emily Pearson (Illustrations)

Pub. Date: January 31, 2023

Publisher: Vault Comics

Formats: Hardcover, eBook

Pages: 208

Find it: Goodreads, https://books2read.com/BONDING

“Wear your heart on your sleeve.”  That’s the saying. But in BONDING, people wear their anxiety on their chests – in the form of a  parasite that shows everyone just what you’re feeling on the inside …

WEAR YOUR LOVE ON YOUR CHEST

A man, a woman—and their parasites. Marcus has been alone since the loss of his closest friend and has just recently entered into the dating scene, while Laura has drifted in and out of relationships since high school. They meet, they have a great first date, and Marcus almost dies—because the slug-like parasite that everybody carries in this world nearly rejects him, its host. BONDING is a funny, quirky, and honest look at love, in a world where everyone wears their anxiety, not on their sleeves, but on their chest like big ol' leeches.

Fans of Matthew Erman's work on Vault Comics' WITCHBLOOD and Archaia's JIM HENSON'S THE DARK CRYSTAL: AGE OF RESISTANCE will find lots to love in BONDING. Fans of Image Comics' ICE CREAM MAN VOL. 1, DC Comics' COLLAPSER and even books like THE HOST by Stephenie Meyer and THE PARASITOLOGY TRILOGY by Mira Grant will enjoy this foray into all the stressors of dating...where a parasite is the least of your worries (unless it kills you, that is.)

Review:

“Erman and Pearson skewer genre norms in this sweet and casually unsettling comics romance-dramedy…”- Publishers Weekly

 

Excerpt:

 

About Matthew Erman:

Matthew Erman is a comics writer from Columbus, Ohio. Alongside Lisa Sterle, he co-created the critically acclaimed comic horror series, Long Lost, which was optioned for Film/TV by Producer Jenny Klein (The Witcher, Daisy Jones and The Six). Erman has since worked on the comic book series Jim Henson’s The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance and graphic novel Power Rangers: Sins of the Future with BOOM! Studios, series Care Bears: Unlock the Magic with IDW, the upcoming  science fiction/ horror / humorous romance original graphic novel BONDING, with artist and co-creator Emily Pearson for Vault Comics, and the smash supernatural action adventure comics series (with artist/co-creator Lisa Sterle) from Vault Comics, WITCHBLOOD. His short work can be found in anthologies such  as Corpus (2018), Dead Beats (2019) and Everything is Going Wrong (2019).

Website | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads | Amazon

 

About Emily Pearson:

Emily Pearson is a freelance comic book artist from Davis, California.
She has previously worked for Black Mask Studios; “The Wilds”(2018) and “Snap Flash Hustle”(2018-19), Oni Press’s “The Vain”(2020), and the upcoming “Bonding” coming to Vault Comics in 2022.

In addition to comics series, she drew a short story for the Ringo Award Winning “Mine!” an anthology for Planned Parenthood, Vault Comic’s “Cult Classic Zero Short”, “CORPUS” curated by Nadia Shammas, and “Everything is Going Wrong: Comics on Punk & Mental Illness”.
She has illustrated various covers for comic books including: “Stranger Things: SIX” from Dark Horse Comics, “Calexit: Emmie X”, “The Devil Within”, “Sweet/Vicious”, “The Wilds”, “Snap Flash Hustle” from Black Mask Studios, “Going to the Chapel” from Action Lab, “Atlantis Wasn’t Built For Tourists” from Scout Comics and many more.

Website | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads

 

Giveaway Details:

2 winners will receive a finished copy of BONDING, US Only.

Ends February 18^th, midnight EST.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour- THE SACRED MEANING OF EVERYDAY WORK by #RobertTribken With A Guest Post @PRbytheBook, @CFE_Update, @RockstarBkTours

I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the THE SACRED MEANING OF EVERYDAY WORK by Robert H Tribken Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!

 

About The Book:

Title: THE SACRED MEANING OF EVERYDAY WORK

Author: Robert H Tribken

Pub. Date: January 31, 2023

Publisher: Faith and Enterprise Press

Formats: Paperback

Pages: 272

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon 

(An earlier version was published in 2021as Sacred Rhythm: A Christian Spirituality for Our 21st Century Work Lives by Robert Tribken.)

It’s time to engage problems and opportunities with a new sense of purpose.

Work can sometimes feel like a pressure cooker, with painful levels of stress, interpersonal conflict, and the risk of burnout. We can lose track of our goals and maybe even feel as though our work is pointless and going nowhere.

Developing a deeper sense of purpose will help us overcome these problems and perhaps even flourish in our work lives.

Many of us have a deep, intuitive desire to connect with something deeper than ourselves; for many, this means a deeper awareness of God and the divine mystery as we go through the week. And we have a closely related desire to contribute to the greater good and the well-being of other people through our work.

These powerful desires can profoundly affect our work lives if we let them guide us to our deeper purpose.

The Sacred Meaning of Everyday Work will help you find this new sense of purpose and deal with your challenges and opportunities with wisdom, strength, and courage.

The author offers practical insights from multiple sources, including the Bible, contemporary research, and experience in business. He invites you to consider these in light of your own faith or spirituality and your own work experience.

This book will help you:

• Find deeper purpose and meaning in your work and see its spiritual connection.
• Cultivate the character strengths like courage, integrity, and compassion you need to lead in a time of uncertainty.
• Overcome work-related problems like stress, burnout, and interpersonal conflict.
• Adopt short spiritual practices that help you relax, turn your attention toward God, and focus on the work at hand with new energy.
• Understand how your work contributes to the greater good and the well-being of other people.
• See how the values you bring to your work can encourage the teamwork essential for success.
• Learn what the Bible actually says about your work’s positive value and its contribution to human flourishing.

Your work is important for yourself, your family, your coworkers, and society as a whole. Finding its sacred meaning will help you work with a new sense of purpose.

 

The Desire for the Sacred

Throughout human history, people have had a desire for the sacred. We have had sacred times, sacred places, sacred objects, and sacred sounds. For as long as there have been human beings, the search for the sacred has been a natural and important part of what it means to be human.

This desire has at times been corrupted by other influences—tribal and cultural identity, attempts to use magic to influence spiritual forces, and the desire to justify religious or social authority.

But despite these corrupting influences, at the core of our desire for the sacred is a deep thirst for an experience of, or connection with, transcendent reality—with God—and the opportunity to carry this experience into the world and find meaning and inspiration for our daily lives.

For most of us, the sacred refers to God and the divine mystery, perhaps transcendent or ultimate reality. But, as Bowling Green Psychologist Kenneth Pargament pointed out, it also extends beyond this core to things and aspects of our lives that seem to express the sacred or that we associate with it in some way.

This can include things traditionally identified as sacred, such as religious buildings and texts, practices such as prayer and worship, and special places set aside for prayer and spiritual reflection. But the sacred can also include things in our lives that would ordinarily be considered secular but in which we invest sacred or deeper meaning or that involve our spirituality in some way.

We might find sacred meaning in our work when, for example, it contributes to the greater good in ways consistent with our deeper purpose. We might also experience it as we build relationships, integrate spiritual practices into our work lives, overcome sin and other obstacles, respond to a calling, or develop character and wisdom. Each of these can have a spiritual dimension and carry sacred meaning.

 

 

Adapted from The Sacred Meaning of Everyday Work, copyright 2023 by Robert H. Tribken, faithandenterprise.org.

 

About Robert H Tribken:

Rob Tribken has been in business for over four decades and is the founder of several businesses. Along the way, he has had to deal with many of the most difficult issues people face in their work lives. 

Over the years, Tribken became interested in the connection between faith, spirituality, and work. Several decades spent working in business combined with several years studying theology and becoming acquainted with organized Christianity convinced him that there is a great need to find better ways for churches to minister to people in the vocational aspects of their lives. He launched the Center for Faith and Enterprise to meet this need and help people experience a new sense of purpose, fulfillment, and effectiveness in their work lives. 

Tribken’s educational background helps him explore the connections between faith, spirituality, and work. He earned an MBA from The Harvard Business School and an MA in Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary. Tribken is pursuing a Doctor of Ministry in Faith, Work, Economics, and Vocation at Fuller. He has also spent considerable time researching positive organizational psychology and has incorporated findings in his writings. 

Tribken has led retreats, taught classes, led groups engaged in contemplative practices, and spoken on the subjects of spiritual practices, connecting faith and work, business as a calling, and the role of business in ending poverty. In addition to his work with the CFE, he has been involved with several other non-profit organizations dealing with the connection between faith and work. In past years, he has served as a volunteer Chairman of the Board of Partners Worldwide, a board member of the Max DePree Center for Leadership, and an advisor to entrepreneurs. 

Website | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon

 

Giveaway Details:

1 winner will receive a finished copy of THE SACRED MEANING OF EVERYDAY WORK, US Only.

Ends February 18th, midnight EST.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule:

Week One:

1/30/2023	Mythical Books	Guest Post/IG Post
1/31/2023	Two Chicks on Books	Guest Post/IG Post
2/1/2023	The Momma Spot	Guest Post
2/2/2023	A Dream Within A Dream	Guest Post
2/3/2023	#BRVL Book Review Virginia Lee Blog	Spotlight/IG Post
2/4/2023	Writer of Wrongs	Excerpt

Week Two:

2/5/2023	Lady Hawkeye	Excerpt/IG Post
2/6/2023	Two Points of Interest	Review
2/7/2023	Review Thick And Thin	Review/IG Post
2/8/2023	@carlysunshinebooks	IG Review/LFL Drop Pic
2/9/2023	Rajiv's Reviews	Review/IG Post
2/10/2023	Fire and Ice	Review/IG Post
2/11/2023	@allyluvsbooksalatte	IG Review/TikTok Post

Week Three:

2/12/2023	the book near me	Review/IG Post
2/13/2023	OneMoreExclamation	Review/IG Post

Cover Reveal- THESE DEADLY WORDS by @TheWriteWords16 & @PoisonedInkLLC With An Excerpt & #Giveaway!

Today Nichole Heydenburg and Rockstar Book Tours are revealing the cover for THESE DEADLY WORDS, her new YA Supernatural Thriller which releases April 25, 2023! Check out the awesome cover and enter the giveaway!

 

On to the reveal! 

About The Book:

Title: THESE DEADLY WORDS

Author: Nichole Heydenburg

Pub. Date: April 25, 2023

Publisher: Poisoned Ink Press LLC

Formats:  Paperback, eBook

Pages: 300

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon 

What happens when the line between fiction and reality blurs?

All Camille Monroe wants is a quiet place to work on her novel. Hoping for inspiration, she retreats to a cabin in Asheville, with only her dog Brody as company.

Leah Strauss thought the summer after high school graduation would be amazing, but when her boyfriend Vincent suffers an untimely loss, her dream of the perfect summer is destroyed. Attempting to cheer up Vincent, Leah’s twin sister Ava and her boyfriend Noah join them on a road trip.

When a snowstorm strikes the mountains while Leah and her friends are hiking, they struggle to find their campsite. After becoming lost in the woods, they stumble across a cabin and seek shelter from the storm.

As the days pass, the guests feel increasingly unsafe in the stranger’s cabin. Camille seems to know all their secrets, and she doesn’t want them to leave. Who is this dangerous writer and what does she want from them? Their biggest problem quickly becomes escaping the cabin alive.

Tropes: Snowstorm, locked room mystery, cabin in the woods, 80s book, magical/supernatural powers.

Content warnings: alcoholism, suicide, swearing, murder.

 

Excerpt:

Despite their quickened pace compared to earlier, the snow continued to fall, and the sky darkened as the storm rolled in, making it difficult to see. Even while using his flashlight, Vincent couldn’t read the map to determine where they were. When they stopped momentarily to discuss it, they all agreed it was likely that they had strayed from their original path. They wandered down the mountain, hoping they wouldn’t be stranded out in the open. All they cared about was finding a safe place to seek shelter until the snow stopped. They needed a place to set up camp until the morning.

Leah shivered and tried not to think about what would happen if they couldn’t find somewhere safe to stay for the night. The air became increasingly colder, and they had nothing with them that could keep them warm enough until the morning. They each wore regular hiking clothes, leggings and long-sleeve shirts, with light fleece jackets over their shirts, and hiking boots. Their tent, sleeping bags, and warmer layers of clothes were back at the campsite.

As they carefully traipsed down the mountainside, Vincent called out to them. “Look! Do you see that? A cabin!”

Leah’s gaze drifted to the spot where Vincent pointed. She wore glasses and had terrible vision for things that were far away, so she struggled to see what Vincent had spotted. “Where?”

Vincent pointed again, and as they ventured closer, Leah saw a log cabin several hundred feet off the trail. Smoke rose from the chimney, signifying a fire going, and more importantly, that there was most likely someone inside.

“We’ll knock on the door and ask if we can come inside until the storm passes. I’m sure they’ll understand,” Vincent said.

Leah and Ava exchanged concerned glances.

“We’re just going to knock on a stranger’s door and ask if we can stay with them? Are you for real?” Leah slowed down her pace as she considered the idea. She rubbed her arms in a futile attempt to warm herself.

“Don’t worry, we’ll protect you.” Noah grinned, gesturing to himself and Vincent. Noah stepped up to the door of the cabin and knocked.

They all waited for someone to answer, hoping someone would let them inside, fearing their fate if they did, and also what would happen if they didn’t. The snow swirled around them, the storm intensifying as they waited.

 

About Nichole Heydenburg:

Nichole Heydenburg is the author of The Quiet Girl and The Long Shadow thriller trilogy. She also owns Poisoned Ink Press, where she provides editing services to authors. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in English with an emphasis in writing from Adrian College in 2014. When she isn’t writing, Nichole enjoys exploring new cities with her husband, reading, and drinking iced mochas. She currently resides near Asheville, NC with her husband, Zed, and their crazy dog, Mr. B.

Be the first to learn about Nichole Heydenburg’s new releases and other thrilling news! Subscribe to her monthly newsletter on www.nicholeheydenburg.com.

You can also follow her on social media

Sign up for Nichole’s newsletter!

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest | Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub

 

Giveaway Details:

1 winner will receive a $10 Amazon GC courtesy of Rockstar Book Tours, International.

Ends February 1st, midnight EST.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Tour- SOUTHERN FRIED WOOLF by @dremadrudge With An Excerpt & #Giveaway! @RockstarBkTours

I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the SOUTHERN FRIED WOOLF by Drēma Drudge Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!

 

About The Book:

Title: SOUTHERN FRIED WOOLF

Author: Drēma Drudge

Pub. Date: January 23, 2023

Publisher: Wit & Whimsy

Formats: Paperback, eBook

Pages: 288

Find it: Goodreads, https://books2read.com/SOUTHERN-FRIED-WOOLF

Briscoe Chambers is not only the manager of her country music star husband, but a graduate student trying to complete her Virginia Woolf thesis by fall - the same time her cheating husband, Michael, has an album due to avoid being in breach of contract. No problem, right?

Except his co-writer will be Velvet Wickens, his idol who has been opening shows for him. And who happens to be the one he's cheating with. Now Briscoe has been asked by their record label to ensure the album gets finished on time. To accomplish this, they must all live together for the duration of the writing of the album.

And by the way, Briscoe knows.

Fans of the writing of both Taylor Jenkins Reid and Virginia Woolf will enjoy this novel that has plenty of sweet tea, country music, Virginia Woolf, and heartache.

Reviews:

"Southern-Fried Woolf is an uproariously funny, deeply insightful, and engagingly complex novel on many levels." - Rick Neumayer, author of Journeyman and Hotwalker

"A celebration of how books and music can help one transcend life's daily trials, Southern-Fried Woolf is a quick-witted and erudite novel, drenched in a love of literature and music." Self-Publishing Review

"Drema Drudge has taken a typical novel outline and made it into an even more exciting and unique story. From Briscoe's thesis being woven into each chapter to being a part of every thought and emotion she has, the story captivates the audience from start to finish."- Literary Titans

"Drudge pitches us into Nashville's vivid world, full of fascinating characters and expertly depicted settings. You can almost taste the sweet barbecue beans and hunks of honeyed cornbread."- Maggie Humm, author of prize-winning novels Talland House and Radical Woman: Gwen John & Rodin

"A cleverly plotted, character-led novel combining country music and Virginia Woolf. Now there´s a mix!"- A 'Wishing Shelf' Book Review

 

Excerpt:

 

About Drēma Drudge:

Drēma Drudge is the award-winning author of the novels Victorine (March 2020) and Southern-Fried Woolf (January 2023). A graduate of the Naslund-Mann Graduate School of Writing, she and her husband, musician and writer Barry Drudge, have two grown children, a new granddog, and live in a picturesque town in Indiana. They also host the podcast MFA Payday. Learn more about Drēma and get a free literary fiction short story at: www.dremadrudge.com.

Check out Drēma’s blog and get recipes from SOUTHERN FRIED WOOLF! https://dremadrudge.com/blog/

Website | Twitter | Instagram | TikTok | Goodreads | Amazon

 

Giveaway Details:

1 winner will win a $25 Gift Card from Bookshop.org, US Only.

2 winners will receive an eBook of SOUTHERN FRIED WOOLF, International.

Ends February 21st, midnight EST.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule:

Week One:

1/23/2023	Mythical Books	Excerpt/IG Post
1/24/2023	Two Chicks on Books	Excerpt/IG Post
1/25/2023	#BRVL Book Review Virginia Lee Blog	Excerpt/IG Post
1/26/2023	A Dream Within A Dream	Excerpt/IG Post
1/27/2023	Sadie's Spotlight	Excerpt/IG Post
1/28/2023	Books and Kats	Excerpt

Week Two:

1/29/2023	Writer of Wrongs	Excerpt
1/30/2023	Rajiv's Reviews	Review/IG Post
1/31/2023	A Blue Box Full of Books	IG Review
2/1/2023	@more.books.yes.please	IG Review/TikTok Post
2/2/2023	the book near me	Review/IG Post
2/3/2023	Books With a Chance	Review/IG Post
2/4/2023	The Momma Spot	Review

Week Three:

2/5/2023	Review Thick And Thin	Review/IG Post
2/6/2023	@carlysunshinebooks	IG Review
2/7/2023	@allyluvsbooksalatte	IG Review
2/8/2023	Emily Ashlyn	IG Review/Facebook Post
2/9/2023	Fire and Ice	Review
2/10/2023	OneMoreExclamation	Review/IG Post
2/11/2023	Brandi Danielle Davis	IG Review/TikTok Post

Week Four:

2/12/2023	Ogitchida Kwe’s Book Blog	Review/IG Post
2/13/2023	pick a good book	Review
2/14/2023	@jypsylynn	IG Review
2/15/2023	hodophile_z	IG Review
2/16/2023	@froggyreadteach	IG Review
2/17/2023	@enjoyingbooksagain	IG Review