Rainy Days and Pajamas: July 2013

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Book Blast & Giveaway: King of Bad by Kai Strand

King of Bad Jeff Mean would rather set fires than follow rules or observe curfew. He wears his bad boy image like a favorite old hoodie; that is until he learns he has superpowers and is recruited by Super Villain Academy – where you learn to be good at being bad. In a school where one kid can evaporate all the water from your body and the girl you hang around with can perform psychic sex in your head, bad takes on a whole new meaning. Jeff wonders if he’s bad enough for SVA. He may never find out. Classmates vilify him when he develops good manners. Then he’s kidnapped by those closest to him and left to wonder who is good and who is bad. His rescue is the climactic episode that balances good and evil in the super world. The catalyst – the girl he’s crushing on. A girlfriend and balancing the Supers is good, right? Or is it…bad?

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads | Whiskey Creek Press

About The Author

When the electricity winked out, Kai Strand gathered her family around the fire and they told stories, one sentence at a time. Her boys were rather fond of the ending, “And then everybody died, the end.” Now an award winning children’s author, Kai crafts fiction for kids and teens to provide an escape hatch from their reality. With a selection of novels for young adult and middle grade readers and short stories for younger children Kai entertains children of all ages, and their adults.

Website * Twitter * Facebook * Blog

The Giveaway

$100 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash Ends 8/15/13 Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Guest Post: Author Annie Seaton

I'm very happy today to welcome author Annie Seaton! She's going to be telling us a little bit about her where she gets all of writing done! So happy to have her guest posting! I'll let her take over while I get back to eating my Oreos...

Over my working life in a variety of administrative careers, I have always had a desk to work on. I started work as a junior in an academic library straight from school in pre computer days, and by the time I retired (young!) not only did I have my own desk and computer, but I also had my very own office with my name on the door!

Then I became an author... oh, the freedom to work and write anywhere...and the many different places I have found to write my books.

Mostly I sit in my have a writing chair in the corner of my living room which faces the Pacific Ocean. A vase of roses sits next to me as well as a pile of well read books...and endless cups of coffee. In the winter, the sun pours through the winter and my writing corner is warm and sunny. Sometimes when my husband takes our fishing boat out, my trusty laptop and I go with him.

I don’t use any props or charts, or timelines or Pinterest for my writing. It is all in my head! So I can write anywhere.

As I write this blog, I am sitting in our 4WD utility as we travel through Outback Australia. While we have been away, I have finished Hot Rock and sent it to my editor, done the first edits for Worth the Wait, and the copy edits for Dangerous Desire. Sometimes in the car, sometimes on a beach and sometimes perched up on the high bed in our trailer.

So I can’t send you a photo of my desk but I can show you photos of the many places that I do write my books! I hope you enjoy them.

About Annie

Annie lives with her husband, and ‘Bob’ the dog and two white cats in a house next to the beach on the east coast of Australia. She sits in her writing chair, gazing at the ocean and writing stories. Their two children are grown and married and she loves spending time gardening, walking on the beach and spoiling her two grandchildren. She has always been fascinated by all things romantic and has found her niche in life writing romance novels, ranging from contemporary to paranormal with a foray into steampunk!

Her debut full length novel, Holiday Affair, a contemporary romance set in the South Pacific was released as part of Entangled Publishing’s Indulgence line in March 2012 and has been a best seller on both Amazon and Barnes and Noble. The sequel Italian Affair will be released in June 2013, followed shortly after by Outback Affair. Annie has more books being released in 2013 with Entangled Publishing in the Bliss, Entangled Suspense and Covet imprints.

Annie has also ventured into independent publishing with her de Vargas family steampunk series: Winter of the Passion Flower and Summer of the Moon Flower. Blind Lust (Musa Publishing) a paranormal novella is a sweet romance and one of Annie’s favourites.

In appreciation of the supportive author community, Annie has written a book on promotion to share the secrets of her success: Promotional Tips and Tricks for Aspiring Authors in the Digital Landscape.

Annie loves to hear from readers at: annieseaton26@gmail.com

Website | Blog | Facebook | Facebook2 | Twitter

Free-spirited sex therapist Brianna Ballantine has four days to find a fiancé so she can inherit her birth mother’s Italian villa. Commitment is not on the agenda. Writing her sex therapy book and signing legal papers are. And once all is said and done, she’ll return home to Scotland.

For finance guru Tomas Richards, relationships have been a bad investment—give him stocks and shares any day. When Tomas offers a marriage of convenience to help Brianna secure her inheritance, the sizzle between the sheets promises an affair to remember, despite family complications at every turn.

But Tom must convince Brianna to stay, and make this Italian affair a lifelong commitment.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | GoodReads

Monday, July 29, 2013

Trailer Reveal, Excerpt & Giveaway: Soul Taken by Katlyn Duncan

I am super excited to be able to participate in the trailer reveal for Katlyn Duncan’s SOUL TAKEN which released on June 4th!

This book sounds absolutely amazing and I can't wait to share the TRAILER and the EXCERPT the author provided, both of which are below.

There is also an awesome GIVEAWAY for an eBook Kindle copy of the book to one winner. So be sure to check that out, too!

With its gorgeous cover, it's intriguing description, its totally captivating excerpt and awesome trailer, I am thrilled to be able share SOUL TAKEN with you. So without further ado....

The Trailer

About the Book

Title: SOUL TAKEN (The Life After #1)
Author: Katlyn Duncan
Publisher: Carina UK
Release date: June 4th
Formats: eBook

After-life just got a lot more complicated

Maggie is a Soul Collector. It’s her job to transport souls from the Living Realm to the After – but during a mission to find a stolen soul, she ends up stuck in a teen mean girl’s body.

Trapped, Maggie’s soul is catapulted into Ally’s life – and the human world she hasn’t experienced for one hundred years. But, as a descendant of the most powerful beings in the After, Maggie must rescue Ally before the girl’s soul dies…

To survive, Maggie must uncover devastating secrets – because with one soul taken by a terrifying enemy, Maggie’s could be next!

About the Author

Katlyn Duncan was born and raised in a small town in western Massachusetts. Her overactive imagination involved invisible friends, wanting to be a Disney Princess and making up her own stories. Her bibliophile mom always encouraged her love of reading and that stayed with her since. Even though she works full time in the medical field Katlyn has always made time for books, whether she is reading or writing them.

Katlyn now lives in southern Connecticut with her husband and adorable Wheaten Terrier and she is thrilled to finally share her stories with the world.

Excerpt

A suffocating heat pressed all points of my soul. Even though I hadn’t breathed in a hundred years, I felt the need to inhale, yet I couldn’t. A fire burned in my chest.

I attempted to open my eyes, to move one finger, a toe maybe, but the pressure immobilized my body. The burning sensation tore through me over and over until I had just about given up the fight.

But, just as quickly as the pressure came, it lifted, bringing a seemingly endless barrage of images. I was experiencing someone else’s memories, as if I took a back seat in her mind and watched her life flash before our eyes. I caught her image in a mirror, a small golden-haired girl.

Ally?

I tried to slow the images or possibly make sense of them but, just as I grabbed a hold on one of them, it slipped through my fingers and moved onto the next. I followed this girl through all the moments of her life as her memories flashed before my eyes.

Darker emotions overlapped the girl’s happy memories. I saw a young red-haired girl in an old-fashioned dress; her demure eyes looked back at me. Jealousy flared through me. My heart squeezed, watching this girl who was not part of Ally’s memories. A rush of energy pumped through my body; the power touched every fiber of my soul. Then the vision dissolved and I was forced back to experiencing Ally.

Was I dreaming?

Souls didn’t dream. I told myself firmly.

The visions started to slow and I was able to focus on one.

I had to tell them, even though Dad said I couldn’t. But in a week I wouldn’t be the same girl. Or would I? I still wasn’t clear on everything. Becoming a Guard: it was my life’s mission, he had said. A life that was no longer my own. Would it be easier to let this life slip away? I would regret each day if I didn’t. Maybe I would start with Seth. Sweet Seth. He’d be crushed, but someone would take my place. Dad had said something about people—humans— was I not human? Humans were drawn to those like me. Maybe Seth only liked me because I was different, unexplainably different.

I ripped the paper off the coffee sleeve. It was now or never.

Giveaway

An eBook Kindle copy of SOUL TAKEN to ONE (1) winner.

Must be 13 or older to enter
Must be able to accept Amazon Kindle eBook gifts from the U.S.

Enter in the Rafflecopter below...
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sunday, July 28, 2013

Isabella Faythe: 1 Month Update

Just a warning beforehand; these posts will be long and picture heavy. I can't help it. I love showing her off!

Age: 1 Month Old.

Birthweight: 6lbs, 9 oz.

Current Weight: 7lbs, 10oz.

Height: 19in. (As of last doctor's visit).

Clothing Size: Newborn (and most are a little big on her).

Diaper Size: Newborn.

Personality

She doesn't have much of a personality yet. I wish I could say she's a calm, happy baby, but here recently she's been extremely gassy and fusses a lot. We've been giving her some gas drops and they seem to be helping a little.

Feeding

She eats about every 2-3 hours, except during the night when she'll go 3-4 hours between each bottle. We had a lot of problems with getting multiples opinions on what she should be eating. At the hospital and the pediatrician's, we were told to stop her at 40mL. We didn't think this was right since she seemed to want more, but every time we asked, that's what we were told. When we met with her cleft nurse in New Orleans, which handles the feeding area, she told us not to stop her. The plastic surgeon we met with told us the same things since apparently cleft babies can sometimes have problems putting on weight. So now we use 4oz bottles and she normally drinks around 2 1/2 to 3 ounces. We were using the Pigeon nipple which is designed specifically for babies with cleft lips/palates but the nurse, again, gave us a different, longer lasting and cheaper alternative. So now we are feeding her with preemie nipples and just cutting a large X into the tip. She's doing great with it, except she takes in a lot of air so we have to burp her after every ounce. I'm currently having some supply problems so we've been supplementing with formula. We were giving her regular newborn formula but she's been having a rough time with gas so we've switched to the gentle kind.

Likes/Dislikes

Photo Source: Amazon

She seems to really like lights. While you're feeding her (if she's not staring right at you), you'll catch her gazing at the ceiling fan/light or during the day she'll stare at the light coming through the window shades.

She has a Nuby Classic Oval pacifier that she really likes. It fits her mouth shape really well and is easy for her to keep inside of her mouth. I've tried giving her others, even another Nuby, and she still prefers this one.

She absolutely hates having her diaper changed. She will scream bloody murder until you have her clothes back on right and you've picked her up. Only then will she calm down.

She likes and dislikes bath time. Sometimes she calm and seems to be enjoying herself and then sometimes she acts like she's getting her diaper changed, all the way up until she's completely dressed.

Sleeping PatternsShe falls asleep around 10 o'clock at night and wakes up every two or three hours. If she's awake more during the day, she'll sleep longer. Oh, and she smiles in her sleep. And I can't get enough of it.

Check Ups/Doctor VisitsShe's been to the pediatrician's twice so far. Each time she's been perfectly fine. When she was first born she was pretty jaundice and was dancing on the line of having to be treated for it. Thankfully it went away within about a week. She hasn't had any more shots since we left the hospital, but I believe she's getting them at her next visit. I could be wrong. We also met with the plastic surgeon that will possibly be doing her repairs. As of now, her lip will be fixed around 3 months of age and her palate around 10 months. We met with our nurse as well (each cleft baby is assigned one for their team) and she showed us a little more about feeding and the bottles/nipples as mentioned above. She also calls every Wednesday to check Bella's weight so they can keep track of how much she's gaining/losing.

We'll be going back to New Orleans on August 19th to meet with the entire team that will be working with her.

Milestones

She can hold her head up for a pretty long time. Longer than I thought she would be able to. She'll hold it up for a long time, look around, then rest it for a second, then do it again. She's also able to put a lot of weight on her legs when you stand her up on your lap.

Now some treats for you guys. :)

That's all for now. :) I was going to add my postpartum updates to these posts but they're long enough already so I'll just do them separately.

Until next month...

Friday, July 26, 2013

Cover Reveal: Suit & Fangs by Marian Tee

Title: Suit & Fangs

Author: Marian Tee

Publication date: July 28th 2013
Genre: New Adult Paranormal Romance

Synopsis:

Caros are what vampires used to be.
We are slaves to pleasure, power turns us on, and each and every one of us has a weakness to hide.
All things sparkly and beautiful are 18-year-old Caylie Sonora’s greatest source of pleasure, and no one is more irresistibly gorgeous and seductive in her eyes than the quiet and old-fashioned Luka. All the girls in school want to belong to him, craving both his body and authority. They say that behind closed doors his coldly charming manners disappear, leaving behind a guy who’d take you so hard you’d be breathless and panting for more. But if Caylie has her way, all she’d take from him is revenge, using her body to break his heart.
The most carnal of passions is the only chink in 19-year-old Luka Georgiades’ armor, but his obsession has only always ever to do with Caylie, whose body he desires to possess, in every imaginable position. The half-human Luka may be his race’s most cunning defender, with murderously precise skills and an even deadlier mind, but even Luka is powerless against fate, which forces him to hurt the girl who’s his everything…again and again.
They are each other’s weakness, and the game of love has never been so destructive.

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