Power Struggle

Mystery Detective, Police Procedural, Crime, Suspense

Date Published: Between 2011-2019

Publisher: Hibbert & Stiles Publishing Inc.

Murder. Investigation. The pursuit of justice. Do you love trying to figure out whodunit? How about investigating alongside police detectives from the crime scene to the forensics lab and everywhere in between? Do you love a strong female lead? Then I invite you to meet Detective Madison Knight as she solves murders with her male partner, utilizing good old-fashioned investigative work aided by modern technology.

This is the perfect book series for fans of James Patterson, Michael Connelly, and JD Robb to name a few. This series is also bound to entertain those who enjoy Law & Order, CSI, Blue Bloods, Rizzoli & Isles, Women’s Murder Club, and Hawaii Five-O.

Read in any order or follow the series from the beginning: Ties That Bind, Justified, Sacrifice, Found Innocent, Just Cause, Deadly Impulse, In the Line of Duty, Power Struggle, Shades of Justice, Life Sentence (Bonus Prequel).

My Review

I do love this Detective Madison (Maddie) Knight character that Carolyn Arnold has created. I’ve said before she is tough and mouthy and as stubborn as can be. And there can be no question I enjoy Carolyn Arnold’s books. I like the sort of nitty-gritty crime fiction feel of them.

Arnold’s books read well, they have a flow to them that makes them easy to read and you are often wishing the last page didn’t come so quickly. I do have to say that the theme of Maddie being honest with Troy and can Maddie make a commitment gets sort of old with me. Still, while I might gripe a little, Arnold has created characters that I know I’d like in person as well as scary bad guys I’d just as soon not meet.

A good book well worth my time to read. 

Watch a Trailer:  CLICK HERE

About the Author

CAROLYN ARNOLD is an international bestselling and award-winning author, as well as a speaker, teacher, and inspirational mentor. She has four continuing fiction series—Detective Madison Knight, Brandon Fisher FBI, McKinley Mysteries, and Matthew Connor Adventures—and has written nearly thirty books. Her genre diversity offers her readers everything from cozy to hard-boiled mysteries, and thrillers to action adventures.

Both her female detective and FBI profiler series have been praised by those in law enforcement as being accurate and entertaining, leading her to adopt the trademark: POLICE PROCEDURALS RESPECTED BY LAW ENFORCEMENT™.

Carolyn was born in a small town and enjoys spending time outdoors, but she also loves the lights of a big city. Grounded by her roots and lifted by her dreams, her overactive imagination insists that she tell her stories. Her intention is to touch the hearts of millions with her books, to entertain, inspire, and empower.

She currently lives in London, Ontario, with her husband and beagle and is a member of Crime Writers of Canada and Sisters in Crime.

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On Loving

Romance

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Lili Naghdi will be awarding a $50 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. 

See below to sign up for the GIVEAWAY 

In 1972, Dr. Rose Hemmings has just finished her general surgery residency when a haunted stranger is shot in front of her in a New York City bar, and their lives become forever intertwined. And when, having been given the blessing of her adoptive father on his deathbed, Rose travels to prerevolutionary Iran to discover the past her American family kept secret from her, she finds a true Pandora's box. It is a world both foreign and familiar, in which her primary place is as the heiress to a great tribe. In Iran, Rose will find family she never dreamed of, her own people, and a man who loves her as passionately as he does the rare black roses of his garden. She will return to the United States carrying a new secret and torn between two men: the one she loves helplessly, and the one who loves her unconditionally.

Woven throughout with Persian poetry ancient and modern, On Loving is the story of one woman's lifetime of love and loss, of societal change in a nomadic people, and of overcoming personal challenges, including mental and physical health, to find true contentment. Above all, it is a story of love: its physiology, psychology and philosophy; the many forms it takes; its myths and truths; its challenges, its joys and its gifts.

Read an excerpt...

“It was almost nine when I got back. Kim had fed Layla and put her to sleep. I sent Kim home for the night, kissed Layla’s face good night and went to my room to change for bed.

Siyavash’s letter was still on the floor. I bent down and picked it up.

Inhaling the scent of the dried black rose, I wandered to the window and stared at the thin, even white carpet of snow on the street. Where do I want to be? I asked myself. Somewhere beautiful, calming. Somewhere full of life, with a boundless, vaulted sky above my head, perhaps!

I then closed my eyes and let myself being taken to Siyavash’s majestic rose garden in Isfahan. I could feel the breeze in my hair, could feel the warmth of the sun on my face. I remembered how Siyavash had looked at me with love and admiration there. I was blind not to see it then. I couldn’t recall Dean looking at me like that …

I opened my eyes and read Siyavash’s letter again, raking my fingers through my hair. Then, nervously rubbing my neck, I went to the phone next to my bed.

“Good evening,” I said when the other end of the line picked up.

“Rose! Is that … Is that you?” It was Siyavash.

“Yes, it’s me!” I paused and swallowed the lump that had risen in my throat. “Come back home! Just come back to me!”

I quickly hung up and rushed to the window, as if for air. Snowflakes were still dancing their way down to the ground.

My chest felt so constricted that I could hardly breathe.

Am I questioning Dean’s love for me? I wondered. Am I comparing it to Siyavash’s? But that was impossible! I shook my head. I’m just giving Siyavash a chance to redeem himself, a proper second chance. But the reminder to myself was pointless: the truth was something else, and I knew it!

I was at fault here. I was the guilty — guilty of blocking not only my ears but also my soul from hearing Siyavash’s voice, so ignorant indeed that my heart was finally reproaching me for my bigotry and cruelty.

I folded the letter and tucked it away in the drawer next to my bed.

I’ll know soon how I need to deal with him, I told myself. Or I’ll just have to find a way around it!”

READ AN INTERVIEW WITH LILI NAGHDI  HERE

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Lili Naghdi is an Iranian Canadian physician who was born and raised in Tehran. She continued her education and research after moving to Canada with her husband and daughter in 1996. Today she practices family medicine in Vaughan, Ontario, with particular interests in women’s and mental health. Being a family physician gives her the privilege of connecting with patients and participating in their care with a deeper understanding of the physical, emotional and social adversities they face. Interacting with people of many different backgrounds has also provided Dr. Naghdi with the opportunity to grow as a person, a physician and an author.

Growing up in pre- and post-revolutionary Iran, Lili became fascinated by the magical realm of literature, poetry and history. She began collecting prized quotations at the young age of eight. Dr. Naghdi has written poetry and short stories in both Farsi and English, but she eventually followed William Wordsworth’s advice to “Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart,” and turned to fiction.

On Loving is her first novel. Inspired by both the ordinary people she has the honor to support and by the great literature of Persia and the world — from Hafez to Forugh Farrokhzad and from John Steinbeck to Margaret Mitchell — Dr. Naghdi passionately agrees with Boris Pasternak, whose Yuri Zhivago is a physician and patriotic poet, when he writes: “Literature is the art of discovering something extraordinary about ordinary people and saying with ordinary words something extraordinary.”

Website:            www.lilinaghdi.com

Goodreads:       https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44310723-on-loving?from_search=true

Facebook:          https://www.facebook.com/pg/lilinaghdiauthor/posts/?ref=page_internal

Instagram:           https://www.instagram.com/naghdil/

Amazon author page URL:    

https://authorcentral.amazon.com/gp/profile

Barnes and Noble Author URL:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/reviews/books/1130591456?ean=9781999497002

Videos of her book launch: 

https://youtu.be/iqMoLoKBRPI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYtdrHiWffk

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/on-loving-lili-naghdi/1130591456

https://www.amazon.com/Loving-Lili-Naghdi-ebook/dp/B07NSJLJLZ

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Marijuana Murders

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Mark S. Bacon will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. 

See below to sign up for the GIVEAWAY 

Nostalgia City executive Kate Sorensen finds the body of a mechanic crushed under an automobile hoist in the theme park’s garage. Accident or murder? Will it impact Kate’s decision to become an advisor for one of two competing campaigns to legalize marijuana in Arizona?

When the death is ruled a homicide and the DEA stages a surprise raid, park cab driver Lyle Deming is recruited to help solve the murder and find out if the park’s garage is being used to smuggle drugs. The anxiety-ridden ex-cop is soon poking around a Mexican border town looking for a park contractor who might be a drug mule. Or he might be dead.

Meanwhile, Kate, a 6-2 former college basketball star, is in the middle of a heated clash between potential corporate control of pot marketing and a laid-back, grow-your-own approach. As Kate wonders whether she should mediate or advocate, she’s forced to dash for her life. Amid setbacks and threats, she and Lyle must sort through interwoven crimes, a tangle of evidence, and dark suspects.

Then there’s another murder.

The Marijuana Murders is the third novel in this mystery series set in Nostalgia City, a theme park that re-creates—in every detail—a small town from the 1970s.

My Review...

While the setting for this novel is a “theme park” type of place called Nostalgia City, it is nostalgic mostly for those of us who are of the baby boomer era. My first thought as I began to read was whether the subject would limit or narrow the field of readers for the author. While I really enjoyed some of the things I could identify with, I think there might be many things to interest all readers. The cars will be of interest to any reader and are timeless. I smiled many times reading about them. The legalization of marijuana is an ongoing argument in many states today. And of course, there are many twists and turns and murders just as any mystery should contain.  

This story started out slow for me. I think a part of this was getting to know the characters. After I had a better idea of who was “what” so to speak, it seemed to pick up and read easily. I wondered if this could have been because I have not read the previous books in the series and this is not really a stand-alone.

An interesting read and a new subject. Worth my time to read.

Read an excerpt...

From Chapter 26

When they started up the walkway to the neighbor’s house, a double-wide trailer home, they heard a dog growl somewhere within. A large dog. When they stepped up on the home’s wooden deck, a middle-aged woman in jeans and a western blouse cracked the front door open. “What do ya want?”

The growling got louder.

Rey pulled out his badge and identified himself. “I wanted to ask you a few questions about your neighbors.”

“Okay, come on in.” She pulled the door open wide.

A rottweiler slightly smaller than a Bengal tiger sat on the floor near the door. His growl rumbled like a low-rider car stereo.

“Oh, don’t worry about him,” the woman said. She motioned to the dog. “Benji, quiet. Stay.”

Lyle and Rey stepped into the living room. “We’re following up on the car theft next door. Do you know your neighbors to the west very well?”

“Them? Hell no. They come and go. Sometimes late at night. Vanessa, I think that’s the woman what owns it. She says she has a big family that mooches off her. I ain’t stupid. Somethin’s going on over there. Cops were here this morning asking about that car theft.”

Lyle stole a glance at the massive K-9. “Did Benji bark last night?” Benji?

“He did, about two, three o’clock. That’s what I told the other cops. I heard some noises, but I mind my own business.”

“How long has Vanessa lived there?” Rey asked.

“Maybe six months. The Carlsons moved out.”

“You know where she came from?”

“Said Tucson.”

“You ever talk to any of Vanessa’s family,” Lyle asked, “visitors?”

“No, sir. They don’t come ’round wantin’ to talk. ’Course I usually leave Benji out on the porch.”

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Mark S. Bacon began his career as a Southern California newspaper police reporter, one of his crime stories becoming key evidence in a murder case that spanned decades.

After working for two newspapers, he moved to advertising and marketing when he became a copywriter for Knott’s Berry Farm, the large theme park down the road from Disneyland.  Experience working at Knott’s formed part of the inspiration for his creation of Nostalgia City theme park. 

Before turning to fiction, Bacon wrote business books including Do-It-Yourself Direct Marketing, printed in four languages and three editions, named best business book of the year by the Library Journal, and selected by the Book of the Month Club and two other book clubs.  His articles have appeared in the Washington Post, Cleveland Plain Dealer, San Antonio Express News, Orange County (Calif.) Register, and many other publications.  Most recently he was a correspondent for the San Francisco Chronicle.

The Marijuana Murders is the third book in the Nostalgia City mystery series that began with Death in Nostalgia City.  The first book introduced ex-cop turned cab driver Lyle Deming and PR executive Kate Sorensen, a former college basketball star.  Death in Nostalgia City was recommended in February for book clubs by the American Library Association.

Bacon is the author of flash fiction mystery books including, Cops, Crooks and Other Stories in 100 Words.  He taught journalism as a member of the adjunct faculty at Cal Poly University – Pomona, the University of Nevada – Reno, and the University of Redlands.  He earned an MA in mass media from UNLV and a BA in journalism from Fresno State.   He gets many of his ideas while walking his golden retriever, Willow.

Website: https://baconsmysteries.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/baconauthor

FB: https://www.facebook.com/markbaconmysteries/

Buy Links:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Marijuana-Murders-Nostalgia-City-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B07PBHX347/

Barnes and Noble: (e-book) https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1130777355

Barnes and Noble: (Print) https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1130780072

Apple: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-marujuana-murders/id1455142996?mt=11

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/926811

Kindle:  https://www.amazon.com/Marijuana-Murders-Nostalgia-Mystery-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B07T94PKPM/ref=tmm_kin_title_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1562215345&sr=1-3

Print:   https://www.amazon.com/Marijuana-Murders-Nostalgia-Mystery-Mysteries/dp/0966000048/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

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The Best Laid Plans

21 Stories of Mystery & Suspense

Mystery/Suspense Anthology

Publisher: Superior Shores Press

Date Published: June 18, 2019

Whether it’s at a subway station in Norway, a ski resort in Vermont, a McMansion in the suburbs, or a trendy art gallery in Toronto, the twenty-one authors represented in this superb collection of mystery and suspense interpret the overarching theme of “the best laid plans” in their own inimitable style. And like many best laid plans, they come with no guarantees.

Stories by Tom Barlow, Susan Daly, Lisa de Nikolits, P.A. De Voe, Peter DiChellis, Lesley A. Diehl, Mary Dutta, C.C. Guthrie, William Kamowski, V.S. Kemanis, Lisa Lieberman, Edward Lodi, Rosemary McCracken, LD Masterson, Edith Maxwell, Judy Penz Sheluk, KM Rockwood, Peggy Rothschild, Johanna Beate Stumpf, Vicki Weisfeld, and Chris Wheatley.

Heirloom by Tom Barlow

Me and my dimwitted brother, a cash withdrawn at gunpoint, make a midnight escape on ATVs through gnarly mountain trails chased by a blizzard. Lucky I’m too smart to fail.

Spirit River Dam by Susan Daly

Imogen doesn’t anticipate surprises at her trendy art gallery, until the day her ex walks in with an intriguing old painting. Is it a Fake? Or a Fortune?

Fire Drill by Lisa de Nikolits

You’ll never know my name, I’m not that important. But I’ll fight for what’s mine. So beware, world, because you’ve got no idea what I’m capable of.

Gambling Against Fate: From Judge Lu’s Ming Dynasty Case Files by P.A. De Voe

As the emperor’s representative in maintaining peace and order, I am challenged daily to ferret out criminals hiding among the innocent.

Callingdon Mountain by Peter DiChellis

I’m a private eye who spends his days investigating a baffling murder case the news media calls an “impossible” crime. The cops sure can’t solve the mystery. Can I?

Lunchbreak by Lesley A. Diehl

Spurred on by his buddy, Ben decides this is the day to shut up his nagging wife for good, but she thwarts his plans with some creative culinary intervention.

Festival Finale by Mary Dutta

My name is Charles Attlee, but of course you know my work. You don’t want to miss my killer book festival appearance.

A Sure Thing by C.C. Guthrie

The hit on an eighty year-old rancher seemed like a sure thing. I left the Buffalo snow behind for sixty-degree days in Oklahoma figuring, what could go wrong?

Last Thoughts by William Kamowski

Timothy, an empathetic techie, takes care of people online—for better or for worse—especially sad young women who need to script their final moments.

Sucker Punch by V.S. Kemanis

I’m Freddy, behind the butcher counter at Food Super. I’ll never look at the meat and bone saw in the same way after my “best friend” Zach roped me into his latest moneymaking scheme.

Better Dead Than Redhead by Lisa Lieberman

I’m Ashley Early. The best thing about being a primatologist? Chimps don’t find themselves accused of murdering their hair model. Unlike Alex, my twin sister.

Oubliette by Edward Lodi

Choose as your target a frail, elderly woman who lives alone, and what could possibly go wrong?

The Sweetheart Scamster by Rosemary McCracken

I’m Pat Tierney, a financial planner. The day my seventy four year-old client Trudy Sullivan said she had a new man in her life, I had questions to ask her.

Deadly Dinner by LD Masterson

I didn’t take this nursing home job to kill someone, I’m just looking for a way to score. But if it means helping some rich old biddy to her just reward…well, that’s okay, too.

The Stonecutter by Edith Maxwell

I’m Eleanor, a middle-aged librarian. A Portuguese stonecutter and I are in love, but it’s bittersweet and attempting to fix things could prove dangerous. I think I’ll try.

Plan D by Judy Penz Sheluk

My name’s Jenny and most of my days center around trying to think of inventive ways I can kill my lazy, job-losing husband, Ted—without getting caught.

Frozen Daiquiris by KM Rockwood  Penelope’s new McMansion doesn’t provide automatic entrée to the upper crust. Maybe if she hosts a society fundraiser in the new house, and everything goes according to plan…

The Cookie Crumbles by Peggy Rothschild

Angry with my mom and jealous of my talented older sister, I’m planning the perfect prank and hoping revenge is sweet.

Thank You For Your Cooperation by Johanna Beate Stumpf

Marsha watches people. As surveillance operator for the subway, this is her job. Lately, a new commuter has appeared on Marsha’s screens. And he’s going to change her life.

Who They Are Now by Vicki Weisfeld

Yolanda and Bill are Delray Beach, Florida, cops investigating the murder of a beloved sportscaster during the chaos of a Category 5 hurricane.

The True Cost of Liberty by Chris Wheatley

I am Gerald Worthington. Life consists of dealing antiques, dining at second-class restaurants, enduring tedious social engagements and wishing my wife’s new husband would drop dead.

About the Author

Editor Judy Penz Sheluk is the author of the Glass Dolphin Mystery and Marketville Mystery series. Her short stories can be found in several collections. Judy is also a member of Sisters in Crime, International Thriller Writers, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and Crime Writers of Canada, where she serves as Vice Chair on the Board of Directors. Find her at www.judypenzsheluk.com.

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Chapters.Indigo

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Groundwork for Murder

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. The authors will be awarding a 16X20 Signed Matted Print "Flora Blanca" by author, Florida artist Sharon Goldman, to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Landscape artist Alexandra Newborn dreams of a one-woman show at the Diamond Gallery. But the gallery owner dismisses her paintings as "old, tired, and dull. Lacking excitement." Those words also describe Alex's unhappy marriage.



Alex's shocking reunion with her college art professor, Dominick "Nick" Anselmo—once a world-celebrated Italian artist, now a homeless lawn man—reignites their passion and fuels a creative spark for both, helping Nick recover from his wife's death.



With Nick's provocative sketches, art imitates life, but Alex doesn't realize they reveal a dangerous liaison between her husband and the gallery owner. Without Nick's knowledge, Alex arranges an art opening that includes his drawings.



When the torrid affair between Alex's husband and his mistress is exposed, the seeds are sown for murder, mystery, and romance.

Read an Excerpt:



The subject matter was unexpected and provocative. She’d thought that, in his new life as a lawn man, Nick might just draw a tree, or a garden, not a couple caught in a passionate embrace—her face against his cheek, his face buried in her neck to hide their identities and keep the world at bay.



He had captured them in a clinch that seemed to portray more lust than love. The sketch spoke of forbidden moments. The lines revealed movement, as if the couple had had to love and leave. All that sexual desire was combustible. And yet there was love there. Maybe not love between this couple, but Nick had obviously transferred his own feelings of lost love and longing onto the paper.



“Always leave something of yourself in your work.” That’s what Professore Anselmo had taught his students in college. And he had managed to do that brilliantly in this drawing. The passion was raw, and it exposed everything that was missing in her relationship with Mark. And everything that was missing in her art. Something vaguely familiar about this couple tugged at her memory, but she quickly dismissed it.



Alex knew great art could have that effect on your soul. It was similar to a writer who paints word pictures that draw you into the story and elevate the everyday into the sublime—word pictures that are often too close to home, too real to examine too closely.


About the Author: Marilyn Baron and Sharon Goldman are sisters. Groundwork for Murder won first place in the Suspense Romance category of the Ignite the Flame Contest, sponsored by the Central Ohio Fiction Writers Chapter of RWA.

Marilyn Baron



Marilyn Baron writes in a variety of genres, from women’s fiction to historical romantic thrillers and romantic suspense to paranormal/fantasy. She and her sister even wrote a musical called Memory Lane.



She’s received writing awards in Single Title, Suspense Romance, Novel with Strong Romantic Elements, and Paranormal/Fantasy Romance. She was also The Finalist in the 2017 Georgia Author of the Year Awards (GAYA) in the Romance Category for her novel Stumble Stones, and The Finalist for the 2018 GAYA Awards in the Romance category for her novel The Alibi. Her novel The Siege was nominated for the 2019 GAYA Awards in the Romance Category.



Groundwork for Murder is her 24th work of fiction. A public relations consultant in Atlanta, she is chair of the Roswell Reads Steering Committee.



A native of Miami, Florida, Marilyn graduated from the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, with a B.S. in Journalism—a major in Public Relations and a minor in English (Creative Writing). She met her husband at UF and both of her daughters graduated from UF. Marilyn now lives in Roswell, Georgia, with her husband.



Find out more about Marilyn on her website: http://www.marilynbaron.com/

Visit her on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Marilyn-Baron/286807714666748

Follow her on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/MarilynBaron

Sharon Goldman



Sharon Goldman is an award-winning artist whose paintings are in private collections and who has exhibited in numerous galleries throughout northeast Florida, including the Haskell Gallery in the Jacksonville International Airport.



As a native Floridian, Sharon strives to create work that captures the spirit of Florida. Her colorful palette, unique cropping, and background as a designer and art director help her envision her novel compositions, which she describes as painterly realism.



Sharon has taught art school in her home studio to more than 200 students in her community. Sharon has also written and illustrated a children’s book.



Sharon is on the Dean’s Leadership Council at the University of North Florida’s Thomas G. Carpenter Library, where she gives monthly tours of one of the largest permanent art collections of regional artists in the state.



A graduate of the University of Florida in Fine Arts, Sharon had a long career in the advertising business. After having three children (now college graduates), she has more time to bring her ideas to light.



Website: http://www.sharongoldmanart.com



https://www.amazon.com/Groundwork-Murder-Marilyn-Baron-ebook/dp/B07SS5LMLN/ref=sr_1_1



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Extinction of all Children

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. L.J. Epps will be awarding a $20 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

The futuristic world of Craigluy has been divided into three territories and three economic classes. A large wall separates the territories, so the poor cannot mingle with the rich.



Since President Esther, the ruler over all of Craigluy, believes the poor do not have adequate means to take care of children, they are no longer allowed to procreate. Pregnant mothers are imprisoned until their babies are born, then the infants are taken away.



Emma Whisperer is the last child to survive. She is the last child born in lower-class Territory L before the law was instituted in the year 2080. She is the last eighteen-year-old.



Emma struggles to understand why she was spared while others weren’t. She doesn’t like the laws and believes they should be repealed. Her family doesn’t agree with her; they discourage her rebellious streak. Yet, she helps them to cover up their own family rebellion. She helps them to hide a big secret, a secret that could be both disastrous and deadly for members of their family.



As she meets new people along the way, Emma learns who she can and cannot trust. And, in the end, she makes a gut-wrenching decision that may be disastrous for everyone.



She finds herself in danger for doing what she feels is right.

Read an Excerpt



“I see your side is still bothering you.” He looks me up and down. “That’s why I came by in regular clothes. I knew you wouldn’t feel much like training. You should rest your side for a few days, like the doctor said.”



“How do you know what the doctor said?”



“Samuel told me. He said we should put off training, for a while.”



“Until I recuperate.” I groan again, pushing the pack more into my skin. “I don’t want to lose my newfound skills. Pretty soon, I will be good enough to beat you.”



“Now wait a minute.” He holds up his hands. “Slow it down, a little. You’re doing well, but don’t get ahead of yourself. I think the nickname Whisper has caused you to lose all sense of reality.”



“No, I’m still in my right mind,” I say. I grin like baby Abigail when you tickle her stomach.


“Seriously, though.” His eyes find mine. “Is your side all right?”



“It’s fine, or it will be.” My fingers sting, holding the pack.



“What about your hand?”



“They gave me some ointment to use.”



“Why did you let Samuel take you?” His chest rises and falls like the words were hard to say. “I mean, I asked to take you to the hospital and you refused. Why would you let Samuel take you, instead of me?”


About the Author: L.J. Epps is a lover of all things related to books: fiction and nonfiction novels, as well as biographies and autobiographies. She has also been known to sit and read comic books from cover to cover, several times over.



Over the last few years, L.J. has written several manuscripts; her mission is to publish all of them. She enjoys writing fiction in several genres, including contemporary romance and women’s fiction, as well as young adult dystopian, science fiction and fantasy. She loves to write because it immerses her into another world that is not her own.



Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ljta6b1c

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ljeppsauthor

Website: http://www.ljeppsauthor.com

Blog: http://www.ljeppsauthor.com/blog.html

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ljeppsauthor/



Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GM2YTHE

Barnes and Noble: http://www.bit.ly/2GwM9ei




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The American Crusade

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Mark Spivak will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. 

Read More to sign up for the GIVEAWAY 

BLURB:

A power-hungry vice president, a bad batch of shady intelligence, and a sinister plot to destroy Western civilization.

Just another day in America.

On May 1, 2001, a group of radical Islamic terrorists crash a Boeing 737 jet airliner into the Mall of America—and Vice President Robert Hornsby knows his moment is coming. 

The attack kills three thousand American citizens and throws an entire nation into a panic, but all Hornsby sees is an opportunity, a chance to imprint his fanatical values on the soul of the country he loves and become the most powerful vice president in American history. 

With the aid of his affable but ineffectual president; the reluctant, conscience-stricken secretary of defense; and a preening, foppish faith leader with more than a few skeletons in his closet; Hornsby declares war on terror—and anyone who stands in his way. But as media scrutiny of the administration’s actions overseas intensifies, Hornby’s one-man campaign against evil begins to unravel—with striking parallels to the thirteenth century’s doomed Fourth Crusade—and sends the nation spiraling toward another deadly tragedy. 

The American Crusade paints a grim and often cynical picture of America’s recent past, reflecting the attitudes, politics, and fears that shaped our nation in the new millennium. By sampling the contemporaneous French text on the Fourth Crusade, On the Conquest of Constantinople, author Mark Spivak reminds us of that ever-vital adage: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” 

Fans of The Castle by Jack Pinter, The President Is Missing by Bill Clinton and James Patterson, House of Cards by Michael Dobbs, The Whistler by John Grisham, and the Aaron Sorkin–penned TV drama The West Wing will love this book.

My Review...

Neither politics nor thrillers are necessarily my favorite genre and when I began to read my first thought was “oh no, not another 9/11”. But I didn’t have the same thoughts by the time I’d finished the book. Being extremely cynical myself, I loved the spoofs, the obvious fun-making of politicians in this book. I spent time trying to figure out who was “whom” because while all of the names are fictitious, most mimic a prominent figure in our past or previous government. The same is true of events. While somewhat masked, most could be likened to some well-known trauma in our past. While I have said I was cynical there were also hidden plots that I so hoped were not based on anything true. I don’t want to be fooled too much and Spivak’s book did leave you wondering what might be fiction and what might not. An enjoyable read.

Read an excerpt...

Sitting in the White House Situation Room that day, Vice President Hornsby thought he was witnessing the perfect storm. All those years we thought it would end with a nuclear launch from the Soviets, he thought bitterly. Now I have to watch a bunch of jokers in turbans destroy                                                                                                                                            

the world.

FBI Director Edward Gambelli entered the room and approached the head of the table.

“Most of the planes are out of the sky, sir. The airspace is almost secure.”

“What do you mean, almost? For shit’s sake.” The Vice President gesture toward the electronic map on the wall, where aircraft were represented by red dots. “That’s a lot of dots, Eddie.”

“They’re mostly private planes, sir. Joyriders out for a spin. We’re contacting the ones that have radar. The fighters will intercept the others and escort them down.”

“What about the other plane?”

“It’s still heading for Washington, sir. Just passed Wilmington.”

“How long before it gets into rural airspace?”

“Five minutes, sir. Ten at the most.”

“What’s happening on board?”                                                                                                                                         

“We’ve received radio and cell phone communications. The passengers are still fighting. They’ve overcome two of the hijackers, and they’re trying to get into the cockpit.”

Hornsby glanced to his right, to the chair occupied by his protégé, CIA Director Admiral Mike McCardle. McCardle nodded.

“When it gets over unoccupied land, I want you to shoot it down.”

“Sir?”

“Eddie, we have the tapes, correct?”

“Yes, but—”

“These people are dead already. None of them can fly the plane. It’s the least we can do to bring comfort to their loved ones. The public will eat it up. The passengers will be heroes.”

“But”

“Eddie, that’s an order. Shoot it down once it gets over unoccupied land. I’ve got your back.”

“Yes, sir.”

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

In the realm of non-fiction, award-winning author Mark Spivak focuses on wine, spirits,

food, restaurants and culinary travel. His first book, Iconic Spirits: An Intoxicating History, was published by Lyons Press in 2012. He followed this with Moonshine Nation (Lyons Press, 2014), hailed as the definitive book on illegal corn whiskey in America. From 1994-1999 he was the wine writer for the Palm Beach Post, and was honored for excellence in wine criticism “in a graceful and approachable style.” Since 2001 he has been the Wine & Spirits Editor for the Palm Beach Media Group, and contributes to a number of national magazines. He is also the holder of the Certificate and Advanced Diplomas from the Court of Master Sommeliers.


Mark’s first novel, Friend of the Devil, was published by Black Opal Books in May 2016. Set in Palm Beach in 1990, it tells the story of America’s most famous chef, who has sold his soul to the Devil for fame and fortune. 


Mark also has an endless fascination with the American political system and is an avid follower of Washington politics. His second novel, The American Crusade (a gripping political thriller set during the invasion of Iraq, which dips into the shadowy world of government conspiracy and political sabotage), will be released by TCK Publishing on April 4. He is currently at work on Impeachment, the sequel to The American Crusade.

Pre-order The American Crusade on Amazon:

https://geni.us/americancrusade

Visit Mark's website at www.markspivakbooks.com, and sign up for his free newsletter and political blog www.markspivakbooks.com/free

Amazon buy link: https://www.amazon.com/American-Crusade-Political-Thriller/dp/1631610708/

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