RELEASE DAY: Ashley Stambaugh "Torn"

Blurb:

Three months have passed and Melina thought she was safe. Safe from the effects of the angel powers and safe from the Noxin demons. But she thought too soon.

Just as she’s starting to enjoy her new powers and her new relationship with Lee, the slight pain she still experiences after using the powers starts to grow worse. As the pain becomes more and more unbearable, she finds herself lashing out at innocent people with unex-plained anger and hatred. Then to make matters worse, she sees a Noxin demon again.

No one, not even the elders, seems to know what’s happening to Melina, or how a Noxin demon found her. And when she’s introduced to Dean, another unique human like herself, she learns that his pain is completely gone, which only makes her situation even more con-fusing.

Grasping for any type of answer, Melina throws out one possible explanation after another. But as her angry feelings intensify, and her angel powers grow weaker, she begins to think there might be something malevolent inside her that’s trying to take over. It’s not long be-fore her internal struggle spirals out of control, and her body is turned into a battlefield that’s torn between good and evil.

Melina fears that if no solution is found, then she might lose all the people she loves, especially Lee. But what scares her even more is that she might lose herself to evil.

 

 

Author:

Ashley Stambaugh grew up in a small town in Illinois where she and her two siblings creat-ed some of the best memories playing on their family’s farm. She stayed in the southern re-gion of the state to attend college where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree and also met her husband.

Now, she and her husband live in central Illinois and spend their time creating new memo-ries with their two rambunctious boys and their comical black Pug. She also enjoys reading, taking long walks, and finding great bargains. When her sons are a little bit older, she has a great desire to travel with her family. Oh, and she also has a slight obsession with chocolate.

When she’s not busy chasing after her two young children or losing herself in a good book, you can find her curled up on her couch with her laptop, writing.

 

 

 

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Excerpt:

Chapter One

 

Melina took a sip of her coffee and gazed out at the lightly falling snow. Mesmerized by its delicate beauty, she didn't even notice when someone took a seat in the chair across the table from her.

"How’d I know you'd be sitting at a window seat?" the voice mused.

Her eyes widened in excitement as she turned and smiled at the newcomer. There sat Lee, bundled up in his black wool coat, a gray and black plaid scarf wrapped loosely around his neck, his tawny hair messed about from the wind. She leaned over and gave him a soft kiss, a slight blush reddening her cheeks. They had been together for almost three months now, but she still got flushed and giddy around him.

She turned back to look out the window again. "It's breathtaking, isn't it?"

Lee chuckled. "Yeah, snow's pretty to watch. But if you know you have to drive in it later, it loses some of its luster."

"That's why I walked here," Melina said as she pointed down at her tall, black snow boots.

He smiled at her. "I'm happy to see your Christmas gift is being put to good use."

"These put my old pair to shame. They're much warmer. I can go for a lot more walks now." Melina grinned then returned her gaze to the snow. "I'm trying to catch sight of my first snowflake. It's snowed six times this month already, and I still haven't seen one."

"I'm sure you'll have plenty of opportunities, seeing how it's only the third week of January and how much you love to watch snow." He let out another chuckle just as Nina, the owner of the café, showed up with his coffee.

She was a plump, older woman with short, spiky white hair and always had a smile on her face. "Good morning, Lee." She beamed at him as she set the steaming coffee mug down on the table. "I brought you your usual."

 "Thanks, Nina," he said and then took a sip of his drink.

"You're welcome, sweetheart. You two let me know if you need anything else." She gave them both a quick wave then made her way back to the front.

Lee looked back over at Melina. "I'm sorry I'm a bit late. I know you said you wanted to get out of here before the morning crowd arrived."

"It's all right," she said, shaking her head. "We still have about twenty minutes or so before the usual rush shows up."

He held her gaze, his light brown eyes full of concern.

Melina averted her eyes down to her coffee mug. She didn't want him to pick up on her anxiety, but she must've been doing a lousy job of hiding it, because she could still feel him staring at her.

"I'm okay," she said as she lifted her eyes back up to meet his. "I'm just—" Melina's voice cut off as she suddenly let out a short cry. Her hand shot up to her head as her face contorted in pain.

"What is it? What's wrong?" He jumped up from his chair and knelt down beside her.

She rubbed at her aching forehead as she struggled to speak. "Too many… people. Too many… thoughts. My head… it feels like it's… going to explode."

Lee furrowed his brows as he stood up from his knees and glanced around the room. "There aren't even ten other people in here."

A low groan escaped her. "It feels like a hundred." She continued to massage her temple when suddenly the pain intensified. "Ahh!” she screamed as she raised her other hand up to her temple. “My head feels like it's on fire now."

He quickly threw some money onto the table then slid his arm around Melina. "Come on. Let's get you out of here." He hoisted her up from her chair, and let his arm slip up underneath hers.

"It burns! It burns!" she cried as she squinted her eyes shut. "What is going on?"

"We're almost out of here. Hang on." There was a side exit a few steps away from them, and Lee led her out through the door as discreetly as he could. Melina hated not saying good-bye to Nina, but if she saw her in this state, she would become overly concerned and cause unnecessary stress.

They stepped outside and the windswept snow caused her to turn her face into Lee's shoulder. When they were several feet away from the café, she finally lifted her head and said, "I need to stop for a minute." She released her arm from around his neck but continued to lean on him.

"Okay," he said, keeping his arm wrapped snugly around her. "I'm parked just up at the end of the block. Do you think you can make it there?"

She nodded and slid her arm up around his neck again. When they had finally reached his SUV, he helped to ease her down into the passenger seat. He shut the door for her then ran around and climbed into the driver's seat.

"What happened in there?" he asked as he started the engine and turned on the heat.

 

RELEASE DAY: Sara Burr "Underground Rose"

Blurb:

After her surprise discovery of a mystical gift, fourteen-year-old Rose Wilson thinks her life is ruined. It turns out she comes from a long line of gifted women, and despite her protests, Rose’s mom ships her off to her grandmother’s house to spend the summer learning about her family’s well-hidden secrets. To make matters worse, Rose is expected to carry out this tradition alongside her mousy, bookworm cousin, Megan. What a waste of a summer.

With some effort, Rose and Megan manage to find common ground and by the time they get home, they’re working together to adjust to their new life. But everything is turned upside down again when their families are exposed by witch hunters who call themselves The Witches’ Hammer. With killers on the loose, their tiny town isn’t safe anymore. Rose’s entire family is fragmented and forced to flee through a network of hiding places, dubbed The Witches’ Underground Railroad.

As she journeys to the sea, Rose learns more and more about who she really is. The closer she gets to her destination, the more danger she encounters, until she is forced to make the ultimate decision: follow her family’s edict of non-violence and become an orphan, or save her mom’s life.

 

 

Author:

Sara has been entranced by the written word for as long as she can remember. The daughter of a school teacher, she fell in love with books as soon as she could read them. She wrote her very first story, about a girl who ran away and hid in her cousin’s lilac bush, when she was just eleven. Although her stories have grown more complicated and less petulant since then, Sara still loves to entertain kids with her words.

When she isn’t writing, Sara has a big family to keep her busy: a husband who is her other half, and four children who are wonderfully individual. They live next to a beautiful lake in a tiny town with no street lights. Sara spends lots of time taking care of little superheroes. She likes to camp with her family, enjoys traveling, and hopes to see the Northern Lights someday.

 

 

Now available on
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Excerpt:

Prologue

Staring into the shadowy woods through the wooden bars of her cage, the girl vaguely wondered if they would burn her at the stake, or if they would sink her into the lake with stones in her pockets. That’s how they had killed her cousin, Catherine.

The girl had been declared a witch and there was nothing she could do about it now. They were going to kill her. She had panicked and wept for days when the realization of this had sunk in, but now she was empty, all emotion gone from her.

The awful priest came back and poked his stick through the bars to make her move back. He got her right between two ribs, and the pain of it made her cry out.

“Shut up, evil girl!” he screamed at her, spittle flying from the corners of his cracked lips. “Your horrible spells and incantations must not be uttered again.”

Putting her head down to avoid eye contact, she peeked at him through her dirty strands of red hair, studying his bulbous nose and thick dark eyebrows. She didn't understand how anyone could think he was honestly a man of God. Nothing about him was good or kind, and the man wasn’t charming or even nice. How had he convinced them all?

When they first captured her, she had cried endlessly and tried to convince them she had not made a pact with the devil. She didn’t understand how this had all happened. It was just a talent of hers, it wasn’t evil – it was more useful than anything she could do. Hurting the boy had been an accident. The fire had just gotten out of control.

She didn’t feel afraid anymore – she didn’t feel anything. It was like she was watching all of this happen to someone else. The sooner they killed her, the sooner she would be out of this miserable, caged existence. Truthfully, she could have burned the cage long ago and escaped, but it would be pointless. They would only hunt her down like an animal. And there was nowhere to run in these woods. There were plenty of stories about people disappearing into them, never to return.

The irony of the whole situation made her laugh, a hollow, emotionless sound, even to her own ears, and the priest poked her with his stick again. Feeling a burst of anger, she looked him in the eyes – a dangerous thing that may earn her another beating – and his stick burst into flame, burning his hand. He cried out and dropped it.

She laughed again. Burning the priest had been an accident, too. She hadn’t even meant to burn his stick. The unpredictable nature of this gift was what had gotten her into trouble to begin with, however this time, it was a happy accident.

Before he could retaliate, the whip cracked in the air and the horse began pulling. The wheels beneath her cage creaked and groaned as if they were dying of the plague, and then they lurched into motion, moving more slowly than a walking pace.

She was being taken to a monastery where the monks could determine her innocence or guilt, but she already knew the outcome. Once a woman was accused of witchcraft, she was always condemned to death. Besides, there was too much evidence against her, especially now that she had burned the priest.

“Do not despair, child,” the priest said, walking in pace with her cage. The horrible smirk on his pockmarked face combined with his yellow teeth made her cringe. “We will make sure you pay for your sins. Each and every one of them. You will do your penance, and may the Lord have mercy on your soul.” He made the sign of the cross from his forehead to his chest and shoulders.

As he moved to walk away, the girl heard a strange noise, like a combination of rattling trees and a pot boiling over into the fire. It was hard to tell from which direction it came.

The priest cocked his head and peered into the trees. “What do you suppose that noise is?” he said to the driver.

The driver just shrugged his skinny shoulders and urged the horse forward.

As the noise grew progressively louder, the priest studied the girl with suspicion. “This better not have something to do with you, witch,” he said, as he stalked towards the trees to investigate.

Just as he reached the tree line, he was swept off his feet by a rushing wave of water as high as his knees. He cried out and reached for the nearest branches, but he was swept away.

Understanding dawned on the girl. The stream they had been traveling alongside had somehow overflowed its banks. It made no sense – there was no rain. She gazed into the beautiful blue sky. There was not a cloud in sight, yet the growing mass of water was angrily searching for a new place to run to.

She thought she was ready to die, but she certainly had not expected it to be like this. Feeling lightheaded from panic, she stared hard at the wooden bar that held the lock to her cage. Concentrating as hard as she could, she hoped to produce a burst of flame, but she only saw a small wisp of smoke. Then, as she thought of the priest and his horrible sharp stick, a lick of flame immediately bloomed, releasing her from her prison.

By now, the noise of the raging water was deafening, and as she jumped from the burning cage, the water came all the way to the middle of her thighs. There was no dry ground in sight. Grabbing a nearby tree to remain upright, she surveyed the scene.

The priest was nowhere to be seen, and the horse was barely holding its footing. It was agitated and ready to bolt. Having lost control of the reigns, the driver balanced precariously on his seat.

The girl felt a hand on hers, and bracing herself for a battle, she tensed.

“Anna!” she heard a familiar voice cry.

Looking more closely, she saw that the person at her side was her sister. “Mary!” she cried, hugging her tightly. “You did this?”

RELEASE DAY: J.L. Salter "The Ghostess & Mister Muir"

Blurb:

Though he doesn’t even believe in spirits, it takes only one haunting for Levi Muir to become entranced with the beautiful ghostess.

            A young veteran recovering from a wrecked relationship, Muir moves to Magnolia for his first year teaching high school English and resides in the renovated old hotel, which everyone knows is haunted.

            Despite his skepticism, Muir senses a presence, then smells a unique perfume. Later, he locates an old portrait of beautiful Danielle Gregg, who lived in that suite a century ago, but experienced a tragic death.

            His lovely new colleague, Lucy (science teacher and dedicated Spirit-Chaser), tries to convince Muir that the supernatural is real… and not to be taken lightly. Though Muir has been attracted to Lucy since the first day he spotted her, something begins to jam his thoughts whenever she enters his mind.

            Intrigued by the beauty and sensuality of the mysterious woman in the portrait, Muir tries to learn more about the ghostess and her untimely demise. Though still skeptical of ghosts and hauntings, Muir can’t shake the feeling there could be more to Danielle’s mysterious 1914 death than the locals believe.

            The more Muir encounters the lovely ghostess, the stronger his desire for even more contact! But Lucy’s willing to fight for Levi’s heart, because no self-respecting Southern girl takes second place to a spook.

 

 

Author:

My newest novel is “Hid Wounded Reb,” released by Astraea Press in August 2014. My other published novels (with Astraea) are: “Called to Arms Again” (May 2013), “Rescued By That New Guy in Town” (Oct. 2012), and “The Overnighter’s Secrets” (May 2012).  Also released through AP are the short novellas, “Echo Taps” (June, 2013) and “Don’t Bet On It” (April, 2014). Also, “Curing the Uncommon Man-Cold,” a screwball comedy released by Dingbat Publishing in December 2013… and its prequel, “Scratching the Seven-Month Itch,” which is due for release by September 2014.

Romantic comedy and romantic suspense are among nine completed novel manuscripts.

I’m co-author of two non-fiction monographs (about librarianship) with a royalty publisher, plus a signed chapter in another book and a signed article in a specialty encyclopedia. I’ve also published articles, book reviews, and over 120 poems; my writing has won nearly 40 awards, including several in national contests. As a newspaper photo-journalist, I published about 150 bylined newspaper articles, and some 100 bylined photos.

I worked nearly 30 years in the field of librarianship.  I’m a decorated veteran of U.S. Air Force (including a remote tour of duty in the Arctic, at Thule AB in N.W. Greenland).

I’m the married parent of two and grandparent of six.

 

 

 

Now available on
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Excerpt:

 

Chapter One

 

Friday, August 15

“Aren’t you the new teacher who lives in the spooky old downtown hotel?” asked the female voice behind Levi Muir. Lurching into the flimsy cart against the faculty lounge wall almost caused him to spill his freshly poured coffee.

Turning, Muir realized the speaker was his attractive young colleague with lovely tanned legs. “I’ll be at the Whitecliff Apartments. Don’t know anything about a hotel.”

She moved closer and extended her sun-bronzed hand. “I’m Lucy Tierney, science department. Starting my sixth year.”

Nice to know there were some five year survivors at Magnolia High. “Levi Muir, English department. Rookie.”

“I know, Levi. We can all spot a newbie, but you look older than most.” Intently peering into his eyes, she smiled faintly. “Were you held back in college?”

Muir shrugged but didn’t explain.

“Have you been assigned a mentor yet?”

“Uh, don’t think so. Don’t recall it coming up.” His eyebrows lifted. “Are you…?”

“Oh, heavens no. Not me. I won’t serve as a mentor until my seventh year, at the earliest.” Then she lowered her voice. “The School Board even requires our principal to mentor someone each term and I’m betting she’ll take you on herself.” Lucy winked. “Mrs. Gull isn’t very inspiring and doesn’t make the time for effective mentoring, but she likes bossing the young single guys.” She pointed to his left hand.

Is she fishing for my status? Muir couldn’t arrive at an appropriate reply.

“So what do you think of your apartment in the legendary old Majestic Hotel?”

He winced with his bum ankle as he stepped to one side to let others access the dinged thirty-cup percolator. It was the final day of orientation and professional development training; Monday would be D-Day… when the students began classes. “Haven’t really stayed there yet, Miss Tierney. Tonight’s my first night.”

“Lucy. You’ve been here every day this whole week. Where have you been staying?” She pointed vaguely south, toward town.

“An aunt lives in Magnolia. My apartment wasn’t ready yet. Didn’t realize school started so early here. In fact, all I got was a nickel tour from a shrimpy manager who kept looking over his shoulder.”

Lucy nodded like she knew the man. “Where’s all your stuff?” She looked behind him as though it would be near. “Piled in the driveway at your aunt’s?”

Muir shook his head. “Left some things at my aunt’s, but I don’t really have too much besides what’s in my pickup. That’s why I was so intent on finding a furnished apartment.”

Her nicely-toned arm tensed as she reached for an empty cup, but she frowned and put it back down. “The coffee’s awful here.”

Already noted.

“Have you seen those old hotel furnishings?”

“Didn’t really notice, except to be sure I had a bed and a chair.”

“What about table and stove for cooking your meals? Plus couch and extra chair… for all your visitors?” Her warm smile suggested she’d be willing to be among them.

And attractive company she’d be. But Muir wasn’t ready to engage any new females right away… not after that awful split with Eva. “Don’t really cook, at least not worth mentioning. And not expecting many visitors, since I really don’t know anybody here except Aunt Martha.”

 

RELEASE DAY: Andy Lewter "Gifted - A Valens Series"

  

Blurb:
The last thing Abigail Everett thought would happen over spring break was having her world shift into an entirely new perspective.

Unfortunately for her, that’s exactly what happened.

Between struggling to master her newly-formed abilities, coming face-to-face with dark, deceiving mind tricks by those that seek her leadership, and learning of a mythical world that she never deemed possible, Abigail risks everything with the future of mankind and the safety of its’ people in her hands.

About the Author:

Andy is a stay-home mom with two beautiful children. Between homework, playing, cooking and cleaning, she writes on the side. Most of her inspiration comes from life experiences that have brought her both pain and happiness - both of which have helped her grow. She also gets inspiration from the wonderful people that have touched her life, accompanied with crazy dreams she has nightly.

She is so excited to have finally touched the edges of her dream as an author. She grew a fond passion for writing when she was young, and this story has given her determination that she can indeed fulfill her childhood dream.

 

Now available on

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 Excerpt:

Chapter 1

I walked through a familiar door — the same door I had walked through every day for as long as I could remember. It was a door I recalled with a painful longing, yet I had no desire to relive the monstrous memories that were once behind it. I stepped past a stairway and turned towards the living room, ignoring the laundry basket strewn on its side and the scattered articles of clothing that lay across the floor — all looking as if they had been tripped over. I squinted through the beaming sunlight coming from the window, swiftly walked past the neglected, dust-covered piano, and finally entered the doorway to the kitchen.

I turned, and as expected, there he stood — just as he always did.

Beads of sweat dripped off his chin and onto his shirt. The familiar smell of aged whiskey mixed with sweat made my nose scrunch. It would always take him a minute to realize I was standing there.

He slowly turned his face up, his lazy blood-red eyes following — and finally he looked at me.

"Hi, dad," I choked out and forced a smile, because that's all I ever seemed to manage.

"Abby, you came home," he said, bewildered and confused.

 

I opened my eyes and pressed my face into my pillow as hard as I could. I'm not sure where this dream came from or how it started, but it's been recurring every night for the past year and a half.

My father passed away three summers ago, and I'd be lying if I said it was a surprise. I don't think my sister or I ever knew him sober, but he had enormous potential had it not been for the alcohol. He adored his wife and children, had a wonderful sense of humor and always found ways to pull a prank and catch someone off guard. We all knew what kind of person he could have been.

But his addiction took over and robbed us all.

My mother has always been a hard worker and tries to set the best example she can for my twin sister Olivia and me. After my father's passing, we moved away from Palmdale, California to the small town of Newton, Kansas. I got over the devastation of the population size about six months after living here and now find it predictable and boring. My sister on the other hand, has yet to be satisfied.

Olivia has always been the pretty, popular girl at our high school with too many friends to count. She's constantly talking about the small selection of boys at our school, then raves on and on about having to drive twenty miles south to Wichita just to buy a decent pair of jeans. Cheerleading and her social life always seem to be more important than her academic requirements. Frequently, she needs me to tutor her.

My twin sister and I are exact opposites of each other.

 From what my mom says, I supposedly inherited my father's intelligence. I have a straight-'A' average and it doesn't seem too difficult for me to keep up. Well, except for trigonometry.

I have hazel eyes, thick, long, dark brown hair, and quite often seem to be the one with a smart remark in a crowd. While I have plenty of acquaintances at school, I'm pretty sure these people only like me because I'm Olivia's sister. But I don't care. The only person I truly connect with at school is my best friend, Miles Kavin.

This was our third year living in Newton and our senior year was going by very quickly.

I drew in a deep breath and peeked over at the clock, hoping it was later than I thought it was.

"Ugh, five o'clock in the morning," I said groggily as I rubbed my eyes.

I rose out of my warm bed and threw on a light robe over my pajamas. Whatever happened to wanting to sleep in like a normal teenager? Instead, I am the one that always wakes up before dawn and gets ready for school like it's something I look forward to.

I glanced over to my window, predicting it had snowed or rained overnight. Even though it was the beginning of March, we were in Kansas and anything could happen when it came to the weather.

 

 

New Releases (week of Nov. 19th) JAXSON'S ANGEL

Only 99 cents

 

Jaxson Sterling loves his life. He has a booming charter boat business that he runs with his twin brother, who also happens to be a very popular romance writer. Add to that a spacious home right on the beach, and it just didn’t seem like things could get much better.

 When his brother invites his agent down to stay in their rental house, Jaxson is hopeful that this will snap his brother out of his current writing funk, but imagine his surprise when the agent ends up being a very attractive woman. And not just any woman, but his destined mate.
Angel is ready to relax and work on a plan for her future since she has just left her job at the literary agency. A beach vacation sounds perfect, and she is excited to visit with one of her favorite clients in the process, but instead of the serious writer she is used to, Angel encounters a much more playful and flirtatious man.

 Much to her surprise, Jaxson is his twin, and a very sweet distraction from her current worries. They spend a lot of time together, seeing the sites, dining, walking the sugar-white beaches . . . but Jaxson has a secret that could bring their budding relationship to a dead halt.

 He’s a werewolf.

 Jaxson claims that his brother’s writings are true, and that he can offer her the type of everlasting love that has been described in the bestsellers she represents
.
It all sounds wonderful, but can she accept his furry tendencies and bind her soul to him for all time?

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