Songs of Fate by K.W.Hall @Bookgal @therealbookgal Book Tour and Giveaway! !

 

For the past three years, Charlie has fought against the power growing inside her—the strange sparks of light are painful but brutally intoxicating. Just like her dreams of a gray-eyed warrior.

After fighting an unknown creature while hiking, Charlie is aided by a friendly stranger, Logan. But Logan is not who he pretends to be…

When Charlie discovers her dark dreams are not just fantasies but linked to missing men in San Diego, she delves into a world beyond her own—a world of darkness, love, and war… The War of Fate.

The Songs of Fate by K.W. Hall

Excerpt 

The frigid waters cooled my fevered skin and soothed the aching burn deep in my mind. Gentle currents tugged me deeper into the darkness, blanketing me in its icy depths. 

My body stilled as I waited. My raven locks ebbed freely through the water, blending with the current until they were one and the same. 

I recognized him before I saw him. 

He lurked behind the cobalt blue veil of ocean. His perilous warmth reached my body before he extended his hand to me. His palm was embedded with an onyx black symbol. It pulsed with power—a strength that called to me. I paused and looked into his eyes.

His eyes were not just gray. They illuminated the darkness, glowing like liquid silver, twisting and raging in a deadly storm.

I could almost taste the intoxicating notes of citrus and nectar that lingered on his tongue. My hand twitched with the anticipation of touching him again, but with his kiss came so much more. 

I swallowed quickly. My throat constricted at the memory. 

The water tugged at my clothes. My shirt clung to my shoulders and swayed around my abdomen. The water weighed me down. 

Every time we met he seemed closer, more familiar, more dangerous.

I reached for him, craving the sight of his eyes as much as his treacherous kiss. 

His bronzed arms were streaked with white scars up to his neck. He came closer, not yet within reach, but I could view a thick brand cut into his bare chest. His torso was lean. His arms appeared to have been sculpted from black obsidian. 

I licked my lips. Fear coated my tongue. I couldn’t be here again… I had to escape. I struggled, my hands slicing through the water, kicking away from him. 

I knew what he would do.

Gray Eyes continued to grasp for me as the water pulsed around him. 

I couldn’t look away from the strange marking on his palm. The lines were sharp and intricate, melding and swirling together. They looked ancient and threatening, like the man that was before me.

I thrashed in the ocean.

He was now only a whisper away from gripping my arm. His opposite hand held a dagger, slightly eclipsed in the murky waters. The knife was long and wicked, forged with a golden-tipped handle and strange markings etched down the blade.

I couldn’t control my movements. My body was not mine anymore. 

His hand wrapped around my forearm, and I felt like I was being ripped apart. White lightning struck behind my eyes. My body went still. The pain was ecstasy. I was drawn to him without my consent by a force I couldn’t fight. 

He dropped his chin, and his lips brushed mine. A slight kiss. Barely a caress.

Oh yes… this was what I wanted.

His temptingly warm lips whispered foreign words before returning to mine. The sweet taste of his mouth fought for supremacy against the burning in my mind. 

I could feel myself lean into his kiss. My hands went to touch him, to sweep the black hair away from his face. I wanted to see the face of the man who had haunted me for years. I had tried so many times, but the darkness always veiled his face. 

His arm snaked around my back. His blazing palm pressed me closer to his bare chest, and I kept reaching for him. I needed more. I wanted more.

The cold edge of the blade glided up my arm. The dagger’s edge brushed over my delicate skin. He stroked the tip over my shoulder, teasing me with the blade. 

His lips hovered over mine as the silver edge continued its path up my body. My tongue swept out to his lips on its own volition. He withdrew his mouth from mine and firmly held the tip of the blade over my heart…

 

K.W. Hall made the leap into romance writing at the beginning of 2021. She hasn’t looked back after leaving her career as a registered nurse to pursue her dream of writing steamy romance novels. In her previous life, she completed a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Belmont, a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from the University of Alabama, and a Master of Science in Exercise Physiology from Auburn University. After years of searching, she realized creating new worlds of romance and adventure was her calling. 

 

Raised as an Army brat, K.W. lived all over the southern United States during her childhood. She currently resides in Honolulu, Hawaii with her own warrior husband. When not reading or writing, she can be found running the sandy beaches of Oahu. Okay, that wasn’t completely truthful. More likely, she is staring at the waves with a drink in her hand. 

Website: https://kwhallnovels.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/k.w.hall/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KWHallwriter

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Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60717539-the-songs-of-fate

Guest Post: The Songs of Fate

Defining Love

The Songs of Fate follows Charlie, a widowed doctoral student on her journey into a world of love, darkness, and war… The War of Fate. Charlie finds herself torn between two men—Logan, a man with his own secrets, and a gray-eyed warrior from her dreams. Charlie is split between two very different men with histories that could not be more opposite. However, she craves both. In The Songs of Fate, a darkness is seeping over worlds, destroying them, and Charlie finds herself in the middle of the war. She is destined for a life beyond what she ever imagined. A life she never asked for. In the middle of the chaos, she cannot explain or define what her heart feels, and if it is allowed.

In our society, some are taught love must be a certain way or come from a certain person. For Charlie, she has only known the love of her husband and lost it when he died. Now, she struggles with the question: what do you do when you heart doesn’t fit into the rules of love anymore? She realizes perhaps love doesn’t have rules. But then Charlie is faced with the dilemma—if there isn’t a rulebook for love, how do you know what is fair? 

As an anthropology major myself, I have researched the different customs of various cultures regarding marriage, doweries, and kinship, but it seems love is not so clearly defined.

In ancient cultures around the world, polyandry or polygamy were the norm. In other cultures, and in much of today’s society, monogamy and marriage is the standard. Is this because it was the only idea or framework of love taught to us? What if we weren’t shown examples of couples, groups, or ways of love? If we had to figure out what love meant without a background on the subject, I am not so sure anyone would be able to define the word ‘love.’

This concept of love is explored throughout The Songs of Fate with many different characters. Some are born into world where the term ‘love’ does not exist, while others are born into worlds where there are hundreds of words for ‘love.’ As a romantic at heart, I tend to lean toward the cultures that have many different meanings and terms for love. Not just romantic love, but friendship, marriage, child love, parent love, sibling love, passionate love, enduring love, and my favorite—the beginning of love.

I hope you enjoy reading The Songs of Fate—exploring new worlds of romance through the eyes of Charlie as she experiences all the facets of love. I’m always interested to hear your definition of love. 

Please Contact Me:

kwhallnovels.com

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Bride and Tested by @brenda.stjohnbrown Book Blitz and Giveaway! #XpressoTours @XpressoTours #brendastjohnbrown

 

Bride and Tested
Brenda St. John Brown

Publication date: April 27th 2022
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Exes working together in a wedding business? What could go wrong?

EVIE
Having inappropriate dreams about my ex-husband is problematic. The fact that he’s applied to be the business partner in my wedding business – and is an infuriatingly savvy businessman – is even more so.

Our marriage ended because we were both more married to our jobs than each other, but now I can barely look at Lincoln without imagining him naked. How the hell am I supposed to work with him?

LINCOLN
My ex-wife, Evie – aka Evil (thank you, random autocorrect) – runs the most successful bridal shop in the whole of the Finger Lakes region and she needs a business partner. Happy coincidence because I need a steady income. ASAP.

I also need to stop noticing Evie’s curves. And her smile. And everything about her that makes me want a second chance.

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—

EXCERPT:

“I propose a toast.” Mika raises her lipstick-rimmed glass. “To finding an outstanding partner and crushing this year’s wedding season.”

“I’ll always drink to the success of my business.” I raise my glass too and clink it gently against hers.

“The right person is going to come through. I can tell.”

“Is this like the time you could tell Lincoln was going to propose? Because, although you were right, I’m hoping for a better outcome this time.” Preferably one which doesn’t involve getting my heart broken.

“Hey, Lincoln wasn’t all bad. You ended up in Enita Springs, you met me and you got his last name out of the deal for Bennett’s Bridal. The power of good alliteration cannot be underestimated.”

“True enough.” I laugh.

“Are we talking about him yet?” Mika asks, her voice softening. “Specifically, are we talking about what happened this morning because I think we should.”

I give a sharp shake of my head. “Definitely not.”

Mika studies me for a long minute then nods, too. “Okay. I figured, but you know I’m here when you want to process things.”

“I’m probably never going to want to process this.” I’d rather talk about a silent investor than what happened this morning with Lincoln. My face feels ten degrees hotter just thinking about it.

“Okay, fine.” Mika nods again and then says, “I’m just going to point out you’re bound to run into him again. Enita Springs isn’t big. Do you have a plan for when you do?”

Besides turn and run the other way? No.

To Mika I say, “I don’t need a plan. I’m sure it will be fine.”

“Because you’ve dealt with all the feelings seeing him brought up or because you’re still avoiding said feelings?”

“What’s there to deal with? I was embarrassed, which is understandable.” And the time before I was so nervous I thought my chest was going to explode, but being nervous is perfectly normal. “Besides, it’s stupid. We’ve been divorced longer than we were married.”

“Just because time has passed doesn’t mean you’ve dealt with your feelings about the end of your marriage.”

“Feelings, schmeelings. I’m avoiding them, and it’s working for me so far.” I take a sip of my wine. “Just like I plan to avoid Lincoln.”

“You two were the happiest couple I knew,” Mika says softly.

My heart feels like someone’s squeezing it and I’d wonder if I was having a sudden heart attack if I didn’t recognize it for what it is – nostalgia. “We were really happy, as much as it pains me to admit it.”

“Why does it pain you to admit it? Being happy is a good thing.”

“Not when you squander it like we did.” I take a deep breath, hoping it will help my chest expand again.

“You never saw him after you guys filed for divorce. It might be good for you to actually, you know, have a conversation with him about what happened.” Mika raises her glass to her lips and looks at me over the rim. “For closure.”

“I have the signed divorce papers, which is enough closure for me. Besides, I’m avoiding him, remember?”

“Hmmm.” Mika takes a sip of her wine but doesn’t say anything else.

She doesn’t need to. I know what she’s thinking, just like I know she’s wrong. I have zero intention of seeing Lincoln again if I can help it. If I do, I can always go with my unofficial plan to turn and run the other way and pray he doesn’t see me.

Because if he does, it’s not going to take him long to realize I still have feelings for him. Deep and complicated feelings I have no business having. Especially for my ex-husband. Add in the real reason I didn’t fight for us and, well…avoiding him is my only choice.

Brenda is a USA Today bestselling author living in the English countryside. Originally from New York, she's lived in the UK long enough to gain dual citizenship, but still doesn’t understand Celsius. However, she has learned the appropriate use of the word “pants”. And how to order a proper bacon bap/barm/buttie. Because, well, bacon.

Brenda writes contemporary romance to make you giggle and swoon. When she’s not writing, she enjoys hiking, running and reading. In theory, she also enjoys cooking, but it’s more that she enjoys eating and, try as she might, she can’t live on Doritos alone.

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Unworthy by @authormjameson Book Blitz and Giveaway! #mjameson #unworthy #XpressoTours @XpressoTours

 

Unworthy
M. Jameson

(St. Jude Rules, #2)
Publication date: April 29th 2022
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Dark Romance, Romance

My blood runs crimson,
a contrast to my obsidian soul.
Darkness swims through my veins.
Carnage wreaks havoc within me.
I was raised by monsters, so I became one.
My pleasure comes from inflicting pain.
My only aphrodisiac is tears.
Until the woman with honey eyes, and fire in her soul,
Becomes my obsession.
I kept my distance as long as I could.
She’s the daughter of my enemies after all.
But she’s the gambit I never saw coming.
Fueled by lust, hatred, and dishonor,
the plan was to manipulate her until she broke,
in all the ways good things should.
But plans seldom go as they should.
How the hell did I get tricked,
in my own wicked game?

A FATAL AFFAIR LEADS TO THE UNRAVELING OF DARK AND DANGEROUS SECRETS. SECRETS THAT COULD SHAKE A FAMILY TO THE CORE. THE DARKNESS IS ALL LARKEN KNEW, UNTIL HER. THE ONE WOMAN HE WANTED MORE THAN ANYTHING, BUT COULD NEVER HAVE. SHE’S ALL HE DESIRES, AND ALL HE’LL NEVER BE WORTHY OF.

Goodreads / Amazon

—

EXCERPT:

“This isn’t your world Roxanne, and you have one chance to leave. When we’re in there, you’re mine to use.”

“Then use me,” I say bravely. The room is lit in black light, and the further I walk into the space, the smaller it seems.

“No-one can hear you scream. No-one can help you. It’s just you, me and my demons.

“I want to play with your demons,” I say breathlessly, the closer he gets to me.

He pushes me against the glass holding my hands painfully behind my back. “Just outside the window are men and women craving to watch what I’m about to do to you.”

“Then let them.”

M Jameson enjoys writing steamy, taboo, and forbidden stories. Sometimes dark, sometimes angsty, but sexiness and HEA (albeit not conventional) guaranteed. Jameson loves to delve into the hard topics and pushing the limits, so if you're looking for escapism and like your boundaries crushed, she's your go-to.

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Ice Floe by @melissabirling Book Blitz and Giveaway! #XpressoTours @XpressoTours

 

Ice Floe
Melissa Birling

Publication date: April 28th 2022
Genres: Fantasy, New Adult, Paranormal, Romance, Young Adult

SECRECY IS SAFETY. SISTERHOOD IS EVERYTHING.

Seventeen-year-old Glacia didn’t plan to track a kidnapper, stick a middle finger to the government, and fall into a forbidden summer fling. This is simply what happens when you’re the resident odd girl out, in a shoal of all-female mermaids whose values are a little cracked. Or a lot cracked, if you consider government-endorsed murder and the seizure of male infants to be an issue.

When society rules, family, and romance collide, Glacia fights back the best way she knows how: by taking the matter into her own combat-trained hands and kicking some tail. The problem is, no amount of training can prepare Glacia for the crime circle she discovers, secrets she unveils, and human guy she can’t get out of her head. Glacia finds herself at a crossroads where she must decide whose rules to follow. Who she can trust. And ultimately…who lives and who dies.

Goodreads / Amazon

—

EXCERPT:

We’ve been sitting on the ledge a while now, mostly staring at the view. I steal occasional glances at Tucker. I can’t shake the feeling that there’s a force between us. Energy. A pulse. A magnet. Something. Every time I focus my thoughts elsewhere, he pulls me back in. It’s distracting.

“You ready to head down?” he asks.
“You might as well get started. I can’t climb down with all your equipment in the way.” “I have an extra harness. You should come down with me.” He reaches for his pack and stands up.

I jump up to join him. “No way. I’m not hooking myself into that death trap.” “Glacia, come on. This cliff is super challenging, and it’s way more difficult to climb down than up,” he says, his voice growing louder. Here we go again.
“I’ll be fine once you get your stuff out of the way.” I raise my volume to match his. “It’s not safe. I would feel horrible if I let you climb down and you got hurt.”
“Let me?”
“Not let you. It’s your choice.”
“I choose NO.”
He clenches his jaw tightly and grinds his teeth. I take a few steps back in preparation.

There’s enough room up here to land a solid kick to the face. That should knock him out, then I’ll have to figure out a way to climb down his cat’s cradle setup. Tucker crosses one arm over his chest and raises a hand to cover his mouth. We glare at each other – at an impasse.

“Let’s make a deal,” he offers. “You climb down with me using a harness and rope, and I’ll take you on a boat ride.”

This catches my attention.

“That’s right, I saw you light up when I mentioned my dad’s boat shop,” he continues with a cocky air.

He’s more perceptive than I gave him credit for. Volatile and perceptive. A hefty combination.

“Have you ever been on a boat?” he asks.

I shake my head. I would love to go on a boat. Tucker knows how to fix them and can teach me everything a trainer could, plus more. What am I thinking? This is crazy. I can’t go on a boat with a human. What excuse would I give if I got caught? I can’t pretend I’m seducing. Everyone knows that’s not high on my priority list, and you’re not supposed to seduce alone. Maybe I could say that I’m collecting information to share with the girls I teach… Hmm. That’s almost believable, given my dedication to the studio.

Tucker can tell I’m on the fence about it and ups the ante. “I’ll teach you to drive the boat.”

Unfair. Of course, I want to learn how to drive a boat. That’s a beyond useful skill in my back pocket. I peek down the cliff face to assess the reliability of Tucker’s wedge-rope system. Stupid. Like I know what I’m looking for.

“Fine,” I agree. “We need to be hooked together, so if I die, you die.”
“Seems reasonable.”
“AND I get to drive the boat.”
“Deal. Let’s see, today is Monday, and I already have plans tomorrow. Wednesday?” “What time?”
“Eleven a.m. on the Ula pier.”
“I’ll meet you there.”
Tucker flips his pack around, unclips a belt, and offers it to me. “Do you know how to wear a harness?”
I snatch it from him, compare it to his gear, and step into the leg holes. When I have it all clipped in, I throw my hands on my hips. “Now what?” I ask.

Tucker leans in toward me, rope in hand, then pulls back and reconsiders. “That’s not quite right,” he says haltingly. “Can I fix your harness?”

“I already agreed to this mess, didn’t I?”

He rolls his eyes. “I think that’s a yes. Pull the harness up – it has to sit higher on your hips.”

I follow his instructions, and he flops the rope over one arm. He moves in closer and bends down to reposition the harness. His fingers wrap around the loop against my leg as he pulls it up below my hip. My heart beats faster and my insides twists. I evaluate the top of Tucker’s head in an effort to distinguish these sensations from other emotions. He secures the loop and raises his gaze to meet mine.

“Is that too tight?” he asks. His hazel eyes penetrate mine. The edges are a deep brown that blend into a murky green with an amber starburst around the pupil.

I shake my head and look away. I hope he can’t tell how disoriented this is making me. “Pull the tabs on your waist tighter,” he instructs.
I cinch the waist while he rearranges the other loop on my leg. Why is this making me so agitated? He’s only fixing my gear so I don’t fall to my death. Tucker gathers the rope into his hand and reaches out to tie it to the front belt loop. As he does, his fingers brush my skin just below my belly button. A jolt of electricity shoots through my body. I take in a small gasp of air and hold my breath. He freezes, his fingers lingering on my stomach. Did he feel that too?

Melissa Birling strives to experience life from a “both and” rather than “either or” perspective. She enjoys living in metropolitan cities and on a small farm. She appreciates burn-your-tongue Mexican cuisine and delicious London pub food. Lately, Melissa spends her time engaging with cyber security professionals and mermaids. Not actual mermaids, although if you know any, she’d love to meet them.

The revelation that one can be both a successful corporate consultant and a fantasy author who writes about mermaids, encouraged Melissa to finish her debut novel, Ice Floe. The emotional high of typing “The End” at the completion of her first draft, triggered a writing spree that hasn’t stopped since. On any given Saturday or Sunday, you will find Melissa writing. She won’t respond to any attempts at human engagement, because she’s “at a good part,” but you’ll find her typing away, nevertheless.

Melissa lives with a ceaselessly supportive husband and their dog who enjoys hunting neighborhood skunks.

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Rationality Zero by J.M. Guillen Book Blitz! #XpressoTours @XpressoTours #RationalityZero #JMGuillen

 

Rationality Zero
J.M. Guillen

(The Dossiers of Asset 108, #1)
Publication date: April 28th 2022
Genres: Adult, Science Fiction

A living weapon. An attack on the laws of reality. One chance to save the world.

Michael Bishop is a man who never dreams, who never gets ill. He lives his entire life oblivious to the truths hidden from him.

He is a tool in the hand of the most powerful organization on Earth.

Michael’s world transforms when They bring him online- when They activate the mysterious technology buried within his skull.

Then, the lies fall away. He becomes Asset 108. Using intricate technology, he defends humanity from the gibbering, tentacled horrors that haunt our world.

When mysterious renegades fracture the very laws of nature, Asset 108 is put into position. As the world begins to unravel, a cabal of madmen with physics shattering powers hunt 108 and his cadre, driving them into an alternate reality— a realm filled with inhuman horror.

Between otherworldly arachnids, muscled brutes infected with psionic parasites, and depraved cultists, grisly deaths lurk behind Michael’s every choice.

Yet all too soon, things become far, far, worse.

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—

EXCERPT:

Regular people, folks with normal lives, never dream of how strange their world could quickly become. When things get weird…

That’s where I come in.

Most of the time, things were simple. I lived the perfect life, my days drawn from most men’s fantasies. I didn’t work; I didn’t have to. I got a wire into my account every two weeks. It varied, but the amount surpassed what some people made in six months. Yet I didn’t know where it came from. The sources had vague names like VRS Solutions or Apex Enterprises, throwaway companies that disappeared the next week.

Some might call me spoiled. Yet it got better.

I drove a new sports car. A candy-red thing that got me all kinds of attention. My wardrobe was perfectly tailored to me and quite expansive. My apartment in San Francisco should have run over ten grand a month, yet I never paid a dime of rent. It had a movie room, three separate bedrooms, and a small library, not to mention the personal white room for my Facility gear.

Oh, and… company.

I almost never spent an evening alone. I could have a different enchanting companion every night if I wanted. Or two. Not due to being a sleazy pickup artist, it was simply the way my evenings unfolded. I went to the right clubs, wore the right clothes. Before I knew it, I was dancing with someone like Caprice or her nameless friend. And the night’s enticements had just begun.

As I said, I lived most men’s fantasies.

There were other things though, odd things.

I never got ill. Never.

I never remembered my dreams.

I never worked out, ate whatever I pleased, and remained incredibly fit.

I’ve never done taxes—in any country. A notation on all deposits read: tax paid.

I had no account with any public utility or phone company, yet I owned a phone and used electricity.

I never bought my clothes or books or other diversions. A metallic white board hung on my fridge. Just now, it had “Men in Black” scrawled across it, indicating I wanted the VHS. As soon as I left, I felt certain it’d appear, yet I’d never seen anyone come into my place.

When in torpor, I had no curiosity about any of this. They took care of everything. It was simple. I lived the perfect life.

Until activated.

Once active, I was a tool in the hand of the most powerful organization on Earth. I had access to devices and technology that literally shaped reality as we know it. We accomplished this through the alteration of laws we termed axioms. In actuality, axioms were an analogy for the various laws of physics, some yet to be discovered by mankind.

To Assets such as myself, the axioms of physics were weaponry. They might be bent or altogether broken while on assignment. The awesome technology responsible for that was an absolute requirement for what we did, the bare minimum of what we needed in order to come back alive.

Because dark, inhuman things lurked in the shadows of our world—things most people couldn’t even imagine. Our very reality was under siege by beings older than humanity itself.

JM Guillen was your average, everyday awesome writer just trying to make it in this modern, awful corporate dystopia. He knew he wanted to make wonderful, bizarre things, but how could he afford to make that happen? Every day, he sat about crying and drinking, trying to figure out what he could do.

THEN A RADIOACTIVE METEOR CRASHED INTO HIS BACKYARD! FROM OUTER SPACE!

While examining the fuming interstellar rock, unknowable emanations radiated into the very center of his being. These unearthly energies changed the very depths of him, granting him powers that no man can name, and no god could ever master.

Reeling from the influx of spectral energies, he stumbled back into his home, his eyes open. Now, an entire universe unfolded before him. Now, he saw the way.

HE STARTED HIS OWN EVIL PUBLISHING COMPANY!

Now, JM Guillen begins to meet AWESOME people who supported his INSANE plans. Fiendishly, he scrawls story after story, writing steampunk, dark fantasy and eldritch horror...

Reality will never be the same.

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Modern Day Cowboy by Nathaniel Sheft Book Blitz and Giveaway! #XpressoTours @XpressoTours #ModernDayCowboy

Modern Day Cowboy
Nathaniel Sheft

(The Modern Gunfighter Chronicles, #1)
Publication date: May 8th 2020
Genres: Young Adult

The Organization or O.W.A, ( Organization of Wealthy Advocates) controls everything. Hundreds of millions of dollars are bet daily via the internet on the ultimate form of gambling. Today’s fighter pay will start at $300,000, and all fights are listed as high-noon types. Only .45 caliber old Western handguns are allowed. Each fighter will take their perspective corner and the countdown will begin. The first fight on today’s schedule will be in the woods, somewhere in Minnesota. Two top fighters will be featured: The Housewife, who is in pink hair rollers and wearing a floral bathrobe; against The SoCal Bunny, a former Southern California Playboy bunny. The second fight will come live from Park City, Utah. It will feature local favorite, Reese, the ex-actress whom most know as Sundance.— Against Amy, known as Aim, a former company exec with a long list of kills. The third fight…

Mattie Pilson had just graduated from high school with no direction in her life. She preoccupied her time with baby sitting Maurice, a mentally challenged kid. Then one terrible day it happened, Maurice was gunned down while under her care. Come to find out, it was a declaration of war from some unseen enemy. Someone set up a row of domino’s and then pushed the first one. At first, all she could do was watch; then one day her boss at the gun shop, Rusty, asked an unorthodox question.—Would she like to be trained as a gunfighter?

Seems she had a lifelong enemy before she was even born. Why? Because enemies are often born at the same time as the other part of one’s soul.—A personal taunt by the universe. Her enemy has wealth, nobility, and power; she holds dreams in her hand. Mattie is simplistic, just a nuts and berries type of girl. Despite her enemy having an entire continent at her whim, she desired the one thing Mattie had yet to appreciate, David.—So she went after Mattie’s prize, with a white wedding dress.

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—

EXCERPT:

She hears her voice talking, “I feel dark, gloomy, like the other creatures of the night are waiting for me to arrive. Think I’m over-dosing on death. My sickle is a .45 caliber metal sheath. One swoosh, and it’s all over. I am dressed in a dark hooded robe, reminiscent of an ancient Celtic priest cultivating a fire. My rod of spinning magic consists of gunpowder to cast small metal spells in the chest of victims. Slow motion sonic waves of jet propulsion that are aerodynamically sound through mathematical equations of why people die upon contact. I squeezed the damn trigger. Click, pow!” Mattie sits right up, eyes wide, was it a dream?

Sweating, panting as she tries to catch her heartbeat, talk it down from its hyper thought patterns. Her eyes are watered, carrying a certain sleep wetness like babies with bad dreams. Now she’s rambling, trying to make sense of this moment.

“I killed a cancer patient, I let Maurice die, and if it were night I would have an afterglow of guilt,” blurts out in panic mode. “Where in the hell am I? How did I get in the woods? And why are there leaves in my hair?” rattles off as she reaches up as if turning on the bedroom light. “Wait… I was in a hotel room last night, what happened?” She looks down, “There’s blood on the leaves… oh shit, there’s blood on my shirt.” Her phone rings almost in sync, she spins alarmed by the sudden sound, searches for the phone.

“What did you do?” David says with a heightened sense of alarm.

“I don’t know,” darts out as she stands while brushing herself off.

Leaves are torn from trees, broken bark is ruthlessly misplaced and painted blood is part of the scenic landscape. Scuffle marks, torched branches, staring woodland creatures. A squirrel is reading from a prayer book as birds sing dirges. A section was cleared violently. In the distance the sound of a motor is running as faint fumes dangle nearby. Delilah is still warm and in her holster. She’s armed, why is she armed? It isn’t her blood as she feels around reluctantly.

“You killed three chicks last night,” said with the intonation of shock and awe.

“What?” to a state panic.

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Love Reunited
Tara Taffera

Publication date: April 29th 2022
Genres: Christian, Romance

Elizabeth Carlson turns heads wherever she goes but has never moved on from Tyler Williams, with whom she shared a whirlwind relationship her senior year of high school. After only a month together, Elizabeth ran away from her past and her broken family. Ten years later, Tyler comes crashing back in her life, eager for a second chance. But she can’t forgive him for the order he issued all those years ago. Slowly, a high school romance turns into so much more, but her secrets, and his anger, threaten to ruin their happily ever after. Will God’s grace and love lead them back to each other?

Goodreads / Amazon

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EXCERPT:

The past finally caught up to me. I remember the month after Tyler and I met. We were inseparable. He offered an escape from my father’s lies and my mother’s grief. He listened, was sensitive to my feelings, and made me laugh. And when he ran his hand through his dark brown hair, messing it up just so. When he stared at me with those eyes that showed me the attention I craved, I fell a little harder each day.

My thoughts travel back to high school, and I consider how much to reveal to Gina. There was a party that night. It was the day before his birthday. After begging for days, my mom agreed to a 12:30 curfew so I could wish him a happy eighteenth birthday at midnight. We walked in together, and everyone who greeted me complimented my hair and clothes. I stood taller. They no longer called me ‘Jesus freak’ behind my back.

While I talked to two girls in my Spanish class, Tyler started the birthday celebration and quickly consumed too many pours from the keg. Then he turned into all the other guys—the ones who made me avoid these scenes all through school. He flirted with every pretty girl who passed by, then glanced my way as if he wanted to witness my hurt. Yesterday, he found every reason to graze my skin. Today, if our hands brushed, he recoiled as if I scorched him.

The friends I made over the past month kept their distance now, taking their lead from Tyler, the cool kid in class. Standing alone at the party, I felt like Cinderella—pre-Prince Charming and glass slipper. The best month of my life was over with no Fairy Godmother in sight. I watched him laugh at one of our classmate’s jokes and eye her tight V-neck top. If I walked out of the house in that thing, my mom would ground me for life. So would dad, but I no longer cared what he thought. He taught me one thing, though—how to mask my feelings. I perfected it so well, it may as well be an Olympic sport.

I sauntered out of the party like I had somewhere better to be, and somehow, I held back the dam—until I reached my house and spotted the wrapped present I’d left for Tyler on the swing. He was supposed to walk me home, open the framed photo of us, then kiss me goodnight, signaling the start of something beyond friendship.

I stood outside the door, hoping my mother was sleeping so I didn’t have to explain why I came home so early after begging all week for a late curfew. The sound of raised voices stopped me before I turned the knob.

My mom’s pained voice shocked me. “You said you would stop!”

“I couldn’t,” was all my dad uttered. It was almost a whisper through the door.

“You didn’t want to!”

“I did, but I’m not strong enough. You have to forgive me.”

“Forgive you? And that’s an excuse. You’re the strongest person I know.” The rest of the words remained muffled by her sobs.

“Sandy.” One word, but I hear the pleading in his voice.

Her voice raises several octaves this time. “Get out!”

I ran away, back toward the party, not wanting to see him leave or witness my mother’s cries if he stayed. Either way, I needed to forget.

Tara Taffera is an avid reader and the author of A Divine Love Series. She writes contemporary Christian romance enveloped in God’s grace and love. Book two in her series, Love Unfailing, won the silver medal in the 2022 Illumination Book Awards in the romance category. The program shines a light on Exemplary Christian Books. Love Unfailing was also a semi-finalist in the Indies Today Awards.

She lives in Virginia with her husband of almost 25 years, a non-reader himself who provides valuable advice on her books—all those baseball scenes! He is one of her biggest cheerleaders, along with her three daughters.

You can find Tara on all the major social media platforms, and her books are available on Amazon. Learn more about her at tarataffera.com.

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