In Leah's Wake Blog Tour, Introducing Author Terri Giuliano Long

Announcing the In Leah’s Wake Social Media Whirlwind Tour!

As part of this special promotional extravaganza sponsored by Novel Publicity, the price of the In Leah’s Wake eBook edition has dropped to just 99 cents this week.


What’s more, by purchasing this fantastic book at an incredibly low price, you can enter to win many awesome prizes, including Amazon gift cards of up to $500 in amount and 5 autographed copies of the book. Be sure to enter before the end of the day on Friday, December 16th, so you don’t miss out.


 To Win the Prizes

1. Purchase your copy of In Leah’s Wake for just 99 cents on Amazon or Barnes & Noble
2. Fill-out the form on Novel Publicity to enter for the prizes
3. Visit today’s featured event; you may win an autographed copy of the book or a $50 gift card!
4. BONUS: If you leave a comment on this blog post, you have another chance at $100!

 ...And I can win too!


Over 100 bloggers are participating in this gigantic event, and there are plenty of prizes for us too. The blogger who receives the most votes in the traffic-breaker poll will win a $100 gift card as well. So when you visit Novel Publicity’s site to fill-out the contest entry form, don’t forget to say that I referred you, so I can get a point in the poll.


 The Featured Events include:


Monday, Radio Interview with Novel Publicity! We’re kicking-off on the Novel Publicity Free Advice blog. We interviewed Terri on our radio show Sunday night and have embedded the full podcast and blogged about its highlights. Give it a listen and then leave a comment on the blog post. This is a great chance to get to know more about this inspiring and friendly author. One commenter will win an autographed copy of In Leah’s Wake. Don’t forget to enter for the other contest prizes while you’re over there!


Tuesday, Twitter sharing contest! A tweet is tiny, only 140 characters. But on Tuesday, it could win you $50. Send the following tweet across the twittersphere, and you just may win a $50 Amazon gift card. An autographed copy of In Leah’s Wake is also up for grabs. The winner will be announced Wednesday morning. Here’s the tweet: In Leah's Wake has taken the publishing world by storm. Get the book for just 99 cents http://ow.ly/7ywpZ #whirlwind


Wednesday, Google+ sharing contest! Yup, there’s yet another awesome opportunity to win a $50 Amazon gift card, and this time it just takes a single click! Visit Google+ and share Emlyn Chand’s most recent post (you’ll see the In Leah’s Wake book cover included with it). On Thursday morning, one lucky sharer will be $50 richer. An autographed copy of In Leah’s Wake is also up for grabs. Three chances to win! How about that?


Thursday, Facebook sharing contest! Stop by Novel Publicity’s Facebook page and share their latest post (you’ll see the In Leah’s Wake book cover included with it). It’s ridiculously easy to win! On Friday morning, one lucky sharer will be $50 richer. An autographed copy of In Leah’s Wake is also up for grabs.


Friday, special contest on the author’s site! Win a $500 Amazon gift card, simply by leaving a comment on Terri’s most recent blog post. Yup, you read that correctly—$500! How easy is that? An autographed copy of In Leah’s Wake is also up for grabs.

Remember, it’s all about the books!

About In Leah’ Wake: The Tyler family had the perfect life – until sixteen-year-old Leah decided she didn’t want to be perfect anymore. While her parents fight to save their daughter from destroying her brilliant future, Leah’s younger sister, Justine, must cope with the damage her out-of-control sibling leaves in her wake. What happens when love just isn’t enough? Get it on Amazon or Barnes & Noble.

About the Author: Terri Giuliano Long grew up in the company of stories both of her own making and as written by others. Books offer her a zest for life’s highs and comfort in its lows. She’s all-too-happy to share this love with others as a novelist and a writing teacher at Boston College. She was grateful and thrilled beyond words when her award-winning debut literary novel, In Leah’s Wake, hit the Barnes and Noble and Amazon bestseller lists in August. She owes a lot of wonderful people – big time! – for any success she’s enjoyed! Visit her on her website, Twitter, Facebook, or GoodReads.

What’s the Story, Morning Glory?

The Importance of Music and how it Inspired In Leah's Wake

Although I find it too distracting to listen to music while I write, inspiration for my stories often arises from music. While I was writing In Leah’s Wake, songs brought me into the emotional state necessary to write difficult scenes. Songs set a mood, which helped me envision places, and songs helped me to identify and shape the book’s themes.


The novel opens with Zoe and Will listening to the Van Morrison song “Tupelo Honey,” a sweet love song that gives their relationship context by suggesting happier, better days. “Showdown at Big Sky,” which Will puts on the stereo next, foreshadows the problems on the horizon, and “Face in the Crowd” speaks to the profound loneliness Will feels as he waits up for Leah that night, imaging all the unthinkable horrors that might have befallen his daughter.


Later in the book, the song “Don’t Cry For Me Argentina,” from Evita, gave me a glimpse into Zoe’s fractured emotional state—remorse compelled by abiding love—as she drives home, wondering what to expect next from her rebellious teenage daughter: “I still need your love after all that I've done . . . I love you and I hope you love me . . .” “Stardog Champion” from Stardog Champion by Mother Love Bone, suggests power, so appropriate to the post-fight euphoria felt by Todd and Lupo after a showdown with Will.


Often, songs transport me to a place. Listening to Miles Davis one evening brought me, in my mind, to the coffeehouse Zoe visits with the policeman, Jerry Johnson. Music also helps me to clarify themes. One night, on our way home from dinner, my husband, Dave, played the Bruce Springsteen album Greetings From Asbury Park. The song “Growin’ Up” struck a nerve and I insisted on listening to it over and over. I saw Leah, a good kid, just trying to grow up and make her way in the world.


I heard “Champagne Super Nova,” from the Oasis CD What’s the Story? Morning Glory, when I stepped out of the shower one morning. Our house was wired for sound and Dave was playing the new CD he’d just bought. As with “Growin’ Up,” I insisted that he replay the song, and then replay it again. The pivotal scene, where Justine asks Leah for a cigarette and Leah allows her little sister to smoke, blossomed as I listened to the music.


As I wrote, music came to play a defining role in the book, and I would often search for the right music after writing a scene. The Liszt piano solo “Hungarian Rhapsodies” mirrors Zoe’s frenzied mind as she drives home from her motivational workshop, the day after Leah shows up drunk at 3:00 a.m., after a wild party. The same happened with “Paranoid Android,” from Okay Computer by Radiohead, “I’m On Fire,” from the Bruce Springsteen album Born in the USA, “Stardog Champion,” from Stardog Champion by Mother Love Bone, “I Loves You Porgy” from Porgy and Bess, and “Misguided Angel,” from The Trinity Session by the Cowboy Junkies.


Without music, In Leah’s Wake would be a very different – and for me, the writer, much less compelling book.


For those of you who, like me, find inspiration in music, here’s the soundtrack. Enjoy!

Soundtrack from In Leah’s Wake

“Growin’ Up,” Greetings From Asbury Park, NJ, Bruce Springsteen, Sony Records, 1972


“Tupelo Honey,” Tupelo Honey, Van Morrison, Polydor/Pgd, 1971


“Showdown At Big Sky,” Robbie Robertson, Robbie Robertson, Universal Int’l, 1987


“A Face In The Crowd,” Full Moon Fever, Tom Petty , MCA, 1989


“John Barleycorn,” John Barleycorn Must Die, Traffic, Island Records, 1970


“Not A Pretty Girl,” Not a Pretty Girl, Ani DiFranco, Righteous Babe, 1995


Hungarian Rhapsodies, Franz Liszt, Leslie Howard solo piano, Hyperion, 1999


“Testify,” The Battle of Los Angeles, Rage Against The Machine, Sony Records, 1999


“Don’t Cry for Me Argentina,” Evita (Music From The Motion Picture), Madonna, Warner Bros./WEA, 1996


“The Ride of the Valkyries,” Wagner Without Words, Conducted by George Szell, Performed by the Cleveland Orchestra, Sony Records, 1991


“Chase The Blues Away,” Morning Glory: The Tim Buckley Anthology, Tim Buckley, Elektra/ WEZ, 1966


“Champagne Supernova,” (What’s the Story) Morning Glory?, Oasis, Sony, 1995


“The Candy Shop,” The Massacre, Fifty Cent, Aftermath, 2005


“Vital Transformation,” Inner Mounting Flame, The Mahavishnu Orchestra Jazz, Sony 1971


“Strawberry Fields Forever,” Magical Mystery Tour, The Beatles, Capitol Records, 1967


“Mozart Violin Concerto No. 5,” Mozart: The Five Violin Concertos by Itzhak Perlman violin, Weiner Philharmoniker and James Levine, Deutsche Grammophon, 1995


“Surrey With The Fringe on Top,” Steamin, Mile Davis, Prestige, 1956


“Come As You Are,” Nevermind, Nirvana, Geffen Records, 1991


“Paranoid Android,” Okay Computer, Radiohead, Capitol Records, 1997


“I’m On Fire,” Born in The USA, Bruce Springsteen, Sony, 1984


“Stardog Champion,” Stardog Champion, Mother Love Bone, Mercury/Universal, 1992


“I Loves You, Porgy,” The Melody At Night With You, Keith Jarrett, EMC Records, 1900


“Hasta Siempre, Witchi-Tai-To, Jan Garbarek and Bobo Stenson Quartet, EMC, 1973 Records


“As The Years Go Passing By,” Born Under a Bad Sign, Albert King, Stax, 1967


“Misguided Angel,” The Trinity Session, Cowboy Junkies, RCA Records, 1988


“Davidian,” Burn My Eyes, Machine Head, Roadrunner Records, 1994


“Here I Am, Lord,” Wonder, Love, and Praise, Daniel Schutte, New Dawn Music, 1981

Introducing Dicey Grenor; The Author of Sleepy Willow's Bonded Soul

In preparation to The Day The Sun Stopped Shining Blog Tour, I will be introducing some of the authors on board.


If you are interested, and write in the Paranormal, Dystopian, Horror and Sci-fi genres, and would like to hop on board, please click HERE. We would love to hear from you.


If you are a reader and a fan of the above genres, or just curious about the genres, and would like to get to know and interact with the authors, the Blog Tour commences on 26th December and ends on 31st December. We would love to meet you. I will post the links for the participating blogs closer to the time. 


Today I have the pleasure of spotlighting the wonderfully talented author of 'Sleepy Willow's Bonded Soul' Dicey Grenor, along with a chapter excerpt from her book. 

Book: Sleepy Willow's Bonded Soul: The Narcoleptic Vampire Series Book #1

Author: Dicey Grenor

Blurb: Ever since vampirism became illegal, the undead have been hunted to near-extinction. So Willow has to watch her back to make sure no one finds out what she is. And that’s not easy considering she’s a vampire with narcolepsy.

Author Bio:

Wife to my best friend and biggest supporter. Mother of two
handfuls. Attorney in Houston, Texas. Author of sexy, daring, wild and risky books.

Chapter 1 of SLEEPY WILLOW’S BONDED SOUL: The Narcoleptic Vampire Series Book #1

WARNING! Graphic content follows! Do NOT read if bad language and gore offends you!

You’ve been warned…
Chapter 1

The club became completely quiet as I laid in my coffin, tightly wrapped like a mummy from my crown to my toenails. I knew it was packed though because I heard pitter-pattering of at least seventy-five racing hearts. Some sat at tables, some stood along walls, and VIPs watched anxiously from the balcony.

Once I heard the smoke machine fogging the stage and felt the spotlight center on my coffin, I slowly raised the lid and held it there to give their human eyes a moment to adjust to the fog. To focus on me in the darkness.

Couldn’t see Remi through the white wraps across my eyes, but I smelled him. Sensed his essence, his soul. He was alone at his usual table on the far left near the stage, wearing his usual intoxicating cologne. I smelled his cigarette in the ashtray and liquor in his glass. Knew I’d taste a hint of both in his blood later, but it would still be hot, thick and delicious.

I waited until the deejay started the music then slowly lifted my upper torso to Marilyn Manson’s “You and Me and the Devil Makes 3”. Planting my palm on the coffin’s edge, I brought one stiffly wrapped leg up and then the other, draping them across the side facing the audience.

Spilling out of the coffin like running water, I left a trail of cloth behind and landed on the floor gracefully. Then I rolled and rolled in time to the music, gradually unraveling layers of cloth until various parts of my nudeness peeked through. The white cloth looked like puddles with overflowing water glowing against the black coffin and black floor.

My almond-shaped hazel eyes remained closed while I danced to the music and writhed on the floor, allowing my hands to explore first my plump breasts, then flat tummy, and lastly, my trimmed bush. I rolled again, allowing more cloth to fall away revealing more caramel brown skin.

After slowly spreading my knees apart, I teasingly undulated in front of patrons closest to the stage while lust oozed from their pores. They were entranced by the gyration of my hips, the rhythm of the music, the fantasy of sex and death.

My necrophilia clientele comprised of those aroused by corpses, death, near-death experiences, mutilation and…sometimes murder. Sometimes in self-inflicted circumstances. Knowing mummy wraps titillated them more than Victoria’s Secret lingerie, I rolled around in the cloth, letting some drape around me loosely. It fed their frenzy, their passion. Gave them the illusion of death coming to life. Of living deadness.

Ironically, what they perceived as illusory was in fact, reality. The hallmark of my existence.

As the song ended, I lay across the coffin lid intimately, as if it were my lover, and licked long strokes across the surface. Then I moved seductively until I straddled the coffin.

In one swift motion, I pulled the wrap from around my head that released long black tresses unto my lower back and across my breasts. Leaning forward, I stretched until I got the dagger from my coffin bed and raised it skyward with both hands. I ground my hips across the lid as if I were fucking it and moaned loudly. When the music stopped, my moans took over, becoming the music, setting the tempo.

Remi’s heart almost leaped through his chest with palpitations so loud, it must have been strapped to a microphone and amplifier. Since my finales were his biggest turn-ons, he’d make his way to a private room in back, if one was available, and jack off afterwards. He had enough social grace to do it in private, but at Pit of Hades Fetish Club, he really didn’t have to. Here, there was no shame, no taboos.

Considering how often I’d performed sex and death scenes with guns, nooses, and swords, you’d think the audience would be ready for anything. But they gasped and screamed, and in some cases vomited, when I plunged the dagger’s stainless steel blade into my chest. They’d known it was coming, yet they were still horrified and awed. And ready to fuck.

But it wasn’t an act.

I grunted on impact. It hurt like a son-of-a-bitch, but I’d heal. Realism was most important in pulling off a death scene, after all.
Once I withdrew the dagger, I plunged it again, and then again, grunting from pain each time the blade went into my chest. The sound of the hilt slamming into my skin repeatedly seemed to echo throughout the club.

Slumping forward, I let my blood run down the sides of the coffin onto the floor, taking comfort in knowing Remi would replenish it later. I kept falling until I slid to the floor in a heap.

Bright flashes went off left and right as people snapped pictures. Security was everywhere frantically grabbing cameras, admonishing patrons. This was a no-photo-taking establishment unless you paid the club’s photographer to take authorized still shots of or with entertainers in the designated booth. Performances were never recorded or photographed due to graphic content and patrons were never filmed unless they consented. The owner’s respect for privacy gave patrons freedom to let their hair down and enjoy whatever deviant sex they were in to. Everyone knew the rules. You didn’t get in without an invitation, signed contract and approved membership…and definitely no cameras. Violators had their memberships revoked immediately.

I liked the rule. It prevented patrons from having incriminating evidence of my supernatural powers. So far, everyone assumed I used fake blood and props. Didn’t want anyone to start thinking otherwise and having proof to boot. They’d wonder how I recovered from fatal wounds night after night. I could be practicing witchcraft or be some other legal supernatural being. But if anyone happened to suspect I was a vampire, I would be clawing myself from a pile of shit as deep as the Grand Canyon with nothing but a fingernail file as my tool.

Suddenly, I felt strange. My fingertips numbed, my tongue dried. I began trembling and feeling light-headed, but I wasn’t alarmed. It wasn’t a reaction to me stabbing myself. It was my illness, my body’s inability to regulate its sleep cycle. My narcolepsy with a side of cataplexy was about to carry me away to a deep, short sleep.

Considering I was at the end of my set, it was good timing.

Hades was silent again as the audience held its breath.

I inhaled deeply. Exhaled completely. Exaggerated several more deep breaths then spasmed wildly for the sake of dramatizing my finale, my death.

Then, as if on cue, darkness engulfed me and my narcolepsy put me to sleep.

When I awoke a short time later, the first thing I noticed was standing applause, cheering, whistling. Next, I noticed a commotion at the corner of the stage. Punch, Hades’s head of security, was dragging Remi back to his table, threatening to put him out. Remi’s jeans were undone and blood was smeared all over his arms and face. My blood.

Remi had been a regular Saturday night patron for over a year and knew it was against the rules to touch performers while we were onstage. I just hoped he didn’t make Punch put him out of the club. Or make Punch beat him so badly I wouldn’t be able to take blood from him later.

Punch was a huge Godzilla-size dude, nearly seven feet tall with biceps as wide as fucking watermelons. His smooth dark chocolate skin emanated a wild animal don’t-fuck-with-me warning scent. And though I didn’t know what he was exactly, I knew what that meant. It meant Punch was not someone Remi wanted to fuck with.

I felt famished and Remi was supposed to be my dinner tonight.

Shit!


What an awesome excerpt, right? 

Be sure to check out this wild and daring author on the following links:

Website: http://diceygrenorbooks.com/

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/DiceyGrenor

Blog: http://diceyblog.wordpress.com/

Twitter:  @diceygrenor

Vampirically Yours,

CeCe

Knight of Runes Book Review

 

Title: Knight Of Runes
Author:  Ruth A. Casie
Publisher: Carina Press
Source: Netgalley
Pub. Date: November 14, 2011







Description:

England, 1605

When Lord Arik, a druid knight, finds Rebeka Tyler wandering his lands without protection, he swears to keep her safe. But Rebeka can take care of herself. When Arik sees her clash with a group of attackers using a strange fighting style, he's intrigued.

Rebeka is no ordinary seventeenth-century woman-she's travelled back from the year 2011, and she desperately wants to return to her own time. She poses as a scholar sent by the king to find out what's killing Arik's land. But as she works to decode the ancient runes that are the key to solving this mystery and sending her home, she finds herself drawn to the charismatic and powerful Arik.

As Arik and Rebeka fall in love, someone in Arik's household schemes to keep them apart, and a dark druid with a grudge prepares his revenge. Soon Rebeka will have to decide whether to return to the future or trust Arik with the secret of her time travel and her heart.

Courtesy of Netgalley

My Review:

When I began reading this story, I truly I wanted to give up. The beginning was quite slow, past and present at the beginning a bit confusing. But I am happy I did not give up because as I read on, the story picked pace and became interesting.

All in all, as a time-travel fan, Lord Arik and Rebeka’s story was a fun read.  It was good to see the how the story was unfolding, who Rebeka was, and the reason she went back in time. I love the author’s idea of how she used the runes on this particular story.  

Overall, it was a good read.

3/5 Stars

Liebster Award

My friend and author, Victoria Watson, presented me with this wonderful award a while back. It took me a while to put it up. I am so sorry Vic. Please don't think I didn't want the award. On the contrary, I wanted to hold on to it for a while, savour the feel of having the 'dearest' award as we say here in Vienna. And finally I am ready to let go. *smile* 

If you’re lucky enough to be given one of these awards:

1. Thank the blogger who was kind enough to bestow this kind honour on you and link back to     their blog

2. Choose your five top picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog

3. Copy and paste the award onto your blog.

Hope that the bloggers you’ve passed the award onto do the same thing.

Thank you Victoria Watson for loving me 'Liebster' much

So here goes the bloggers am sharing this love with.

1) http://smmirza.blogspot.com/

2) http://writersparty.com/

3)http://martinabookaholic.wordpress.com

4) http://linnadrehmel.blogspot.com

Thanks Victoria Watson.

Six Sentence Sunday (#1) 11th Dec

Welcome to the my blog. This is the first time I am taking part in Six Sentence Sunday, and I am looking forward to have fun and read the other wonderful entries as well. So, without further ado, here are my six sentences from my WIP, the Shadow Keeper. (Working Title) ,an introduction of the heroine, Selicia sent by her employer as a representative to collect some debts from the Den, a place feared far and wide, because of the Firebreathers who habitate 

Her fists clenched and senses alert, Selicia mirrored the steps of the man pacing a circle around her. Inwardly she cursed her employer for sending her to the Den. The worst thing about it was, with just a breath from those luscious lips, she'd be ashes in the wind. Oh, the things she did for love!

In his golden eyes, she saw insatiable hunger that had nothing to do with him lusting after her, and everything to do with her being a mid-lunch snack. Deadly didn't even begin to describe him. She fought hard to hide a smile; he probably didn't realise that she was just as deadly.

Thank you for stopping by. To check out other awesome entries from other participants, please go to  Six Sunday.

Can We Guess Your Character's Age? Blogfest Contest.

This is a Blog contest hosted by Brenda Drake. If you'd like to go back to the Linky list on Brenda's blog, please click HERE

On December 8th post the first 250 words of your finished, or not quite finished, manuscript (any genre) to your blogs. This contest is about voice--whether or not your character's voice matches his or her's age. So if you mention the age or school grade in the first 250 words, please edit it out or block it out for this contest. Don't list the genre or title on your posts. 

Here are the 250 words of my story:

As I watch the door waiting for Theodor to walk in, Duster, the boy who makes a point of giving me a daily dose of torture, and my number one enemy keeps darting looks at me. Today, he looks sort of…kind? Suddenly, he jumps up from his chair. I watch him suspiciously as he weaves his way around the group, heading my way. He halts before me, and shoves a rose on my face.

“You like the rose? It goes well with your complexion,” He says. My mouth opens and closes on its own accord. Is this the boy I punched his face yesterday?

Ania, my bestfriend sitting next to me guffaws. A few heads turn our way.

Great! Now we have an audience.

“Is she going to wear it on her skin?” Ania says before I can open my mouth. He glares at her, drops the rose on my lap, whirls around and walks back to his chair. He slumps down on it, right before Theodor walks in. He saunters towards me smiling, and my heart flutters. I wipe my hands on my skirt and realise I don’t have enough courage to tell him the truth.

"Goodmorning, Katya." His voice is low, just for my ears. He lowers his eyes to my lap, the glance up at me. His eyes darken, and both eyebrows shoot up. He glances over his shoulder at Duster, and then back at me. How did he know?

Beside me, Ania chortles gleefully, thirsty for action.

Any Feedback will be much appreciated. Thank you for stopping by.

A Guest Post by The Gaia Wars author, Kenneth G. Bennett

As part of this special promotional extravaganza sponsored by Novel Publicity, the price of The Gaia Wars eBook edition has dropped to just 99 cents this week.

What’s more, by purchasing this fantastic book at an incredibly low price, you can enter to win many awesome prizes, including a Kindle Fire, Amazon gift cards up to $100 in amount, 5 autographed copies of the book, and 5 autographed copies of its recently released sequel, Battle for Cascadia. Be sure to enter before the end of the day on Friday, December 9th, so you don’t miss out.

To Win the Prizes:

1. Purchase your copy of The Gaia Wars for just 99 cents on Amazon or Barnes & Noble
2. Fill-out the form on Novel Publicity to enter for the prizes
3. Visit today’s featured event; you may win an autographed copy of the book or a $50 gift card!
4. BONUS: If you leave a comment on this blog post, you have another chance at $100!

 ...And I can win too!


Over 100 bloggers are participating in this gigantic event, and there are plenty of prizes for us too. The blogger who receives the most votes in the traffic-breaker poll will win a $100 gift card as well. So when you visit Novel Publicity’s site to fill-out the contest entry form, don’t forget to say that I referred you, so I can get a point in the poll.

 The Featured Events include:


Monday, Blogaganza on Novel Publicity! We’re kicking-off on the Novel Publicity Free Advice blog. We’ll ask the writer 5 fun and random questions to get everyone talking. Leave a comment or question in response to the post, and you may win an autographed copy of The Gaia Wars or its recently released sequel, Battle for Cascadia. Don’t forget to enter for the other contest prizes while you’re over there!

Tuesday, Twitter sharing contest! A tweet is tiny, only 140 characters. But on Tuesday, it could win you $50. Send the following tweet across the twittersphere, and you just may win a $50 Amazon gift card. Autographed copies of The Gaia Wars and its recently released sequel, Battle for Cascadia, are also up for grabs. The winner will be announced Wednesday morning. Here’s the tweet: Looking for a YA read that's full of adventure & intrigue? Check out The Gaia Wars. Reduced to just 99 cents http://ow.ly/7ywpZ #whirlwind

Wednesday, Google+ sharing contest! Yup, there’s yet another awesome opportunity to win a $50 Amazon gift card, and this time it just takes a single click! Visit Google+ and share Emlyn Chand’s most recent post (you’ll see The Gaia Wars book cover included with it). On Thursday morning, one lucky sharer will be $50 richer. Autographed copies of The Gaia Wars and its recently released sequel, Battle for Cascadia, are also up for grabs. Three chances to win! How about that?

Thursday, Facebook sharing contest! Stop by Novel Publicity’s Facebook page and share their latest post (you’ll see The Gaia Wars book cover included with it). It’s ridiculously easy to win! On Friday morning, one lucky sharer will be $50 richer. Autographed copies of The Gaia Wars and its recently released sequel, Battle for Cascadia, are also up for grabs.

Friday, special contest on the author’s site! Win a Kindle Fire or a $100 Amazon gift card, simply by leaving a comment on Kenneth’s most recent blog post. How easy is that? Autographed copies of The Gaia Wars and its recently released sequel, Battle for Cascadia, are also up for grabs.

Remember, it’s all about the books!

About The Gaia Wars: DEADLY SECRETS have been buried in the Cascade mountain wilderness for centuries. Hidden. Out of sight and out of mind. Until today… Warren Wilkes, age 13, doesn’t like what a greedy housing developer has done to his peaceful mountain community, so he vandalizes the developer’s property, flees into the wild, and stumbles upon an ancient human skeleton revealed by torrential rain. More than old bones have been exposed, however, and the curious artifact Warren finds makes him question his own identity, and his connection to an ancient terror. A terror destined to rise again and annihilate all that Warren loves. He must fight or see his whole world destroyed. Get it on Amazon or Barnes & Noble.

About Battle for Cascadia: When Warren Wilkes, age 13, stumbles upon a mysterious relic deep in the Cascade Mountains, wonder reigns. Brimming with secrets and sentient energy, the relic leads Warren to a fantastic chamber, and to shocking revelations about his identity. Now wonder has turned to dread. A forgotten terror—a demon that knows Warren better than he knows himself—has risen again and is assembling an army; gathering power with a singularly evil goal in mind: to capture and enslave the wild spirit of the Earth itself. As war erupts and the planet slips into chaos, Warren embraces his destiny and finds help where he least expects it. Get it on Amazon or Barnes & Noble.

About the Author: Kenneth G. Bennett is the author of the Young Adult novels The Gaia Wars and Battle for Cascadia (the second book of The Gaia Wars), as well as the forthcoming Exodus 2018, a paranormal thriller set in the Puget Sound region of Washington State. A wilderness enthusiast who loves backpacking, skiing and kayaking, Ken enjoys novels that explore the relationship between humans and the wild. He lives on an island in the Pacific Northwest with his wife and son. Visit him on his website, Twitter, Facebook, or GoodReads.


Now please enjoy this guest post from the author...

HOW A NASA SCIENTIST’S THEORY INSPIRED A PARANORMAL THRILLER


THE GAIA WARS is fiction, but it was inspired—at least in part—by The Gaia Hypothesis. This hypothesis, proposed by NASA scientist James Lovelock, states that the Earth—the entire Earth—is a living thing. A vast, “super-organism.”

I read an article about Lovelock’s theory a few years back and thought it was the coolest thing I’d ever heard.

The Earth is alive. Think about it. If Lovelock’s correct, the Earth isn’t simply a chunk of interstellar rock hosting a collection of random ecosystems; it’s a cohesive entity. An organism. A being. I daydreamed about this idea, mulled it over; wondered how it might be incorporated into a novel. And in my imagination, I took the theory to the next level: What if the Earth is not simply alive, I asked, but also sentient?

I did some reading, and discovered that a lot of so-called primitive cultures believed this very thing. Understood it in their bones. Our ancestors were in tune with the planet in ways that we’ve forgotten. They could feel her heartbeat. Interpret her rhythms. They created Earth Goddesses to worship and celebrate.

Gaia (pron. guy-uh) is one of the principal deities of the Greek Pantheon. Other cultures used other names: the Tibetan people called the deity Chomolungma—Goddess Mother of the World. The Sumerians knew her as Ninhursaga. To Mesoamerican peoples she was Tlazolteotl.

A fictitious Pacific Northwest culture called the Denelai is at the center of THE GAIA WARS. As readers learn, the ancient Denelai people believed in the Earth goddess so profoundly that she would sometimes appear to them in human form.

At the start of the novel, troubled 13-year-old Warren Wilkes unearths a treasure deep in the Cascade Mountains while fleeing the law, learns about the Denelai and Gaia’s periodic visits, and finds that on one such occasion in 1550 AD, the tribe was attacked and the Earth Goddess wounded. The Indians were slaughtered and Gaia lost her memory and vanished into the wild.

As Warren soon discovers, Gaia is still alive and still trapped in human form. What’s more, the beast that attacked the Indian village 500 years earlier is on it’s way back with an army bred specifically to capture Gaia, unlock her secrets, and seize control of the planet. Warren must fight or see his whole world destroyed.

Readers seem to like the idea of a paranormal thriller with a thinking, feeling Earth at its heart. The feedback has been tremendous. Humbling. Yesterday (November 24, Thanksgiving Day) THE GAIA WARS rose to #17 on Amazon’s list of Top 100 Best Sellers in Children’s Action & Adventure. The Second Book of The Gaia Wars, BATTLE FOR CASCADIA, (just released) is also doing well. A huge thank you to all the wonderful readers giving these books a try!