Out now – Earthbound by Melora Johnson (@MeloraJohnson) #paranormalromance #urbanfantasy #TirgearrPublishing

Do you love action, romance, and fantasy all rolled into one? Love strong heroines? Then check out Earthbound!

Earthbound is a paranormal romance filled with angels and demons struggling to find their way here on Earth.

Blurb:

Her healing touch could start a fire.

Ally Reynolds is a veterinarian specializing in raptor rehabilitation in New Hampshire. Other than one horrific incident in her childhood and a little extra “spark” for healing in her hands, both of which she has kept secret from even her best friend, her life has been singularly boring. It has also been extremely lonely. Ally longs for someone to share her life with, but how can she trust anyone with her secret?

Matthew Blake, an ornithologist at Cornell University, calls Ally, asking for her help with an injured raptor. Matthew grew up in New Zealand and has lived around the world. He has read about Ally’s high success rates in raptor rehabilitation and suspects there is more to it than is generally known.

Matthew has some secrets of his own; he is a demon hunter. He suspects Ally’s healing powers could benefit him. He wants her to join him and thinks they’d make a great team.

Can Ally trust him or is he just using her? Matthew definitely has more secrets, and some of them are about Ally.

Buy now on any ebook platform: http://www.tirgearrpublishing.com/authors/Johnson_Melora/earthbound.htm

Add to your Goodreads shelves: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18209725.Melora_Johnson?from_search=true

Excerpt:

“Doctor Reynolds,” a male voice called out from across the room, pulling me back to the present. It sounded somewhat familiar.

I looked up, shielding my eyes from the afternoon sun shining in the front window as a male figure strode toward me, blond hair haloed by the light. He stopped in front of me.

Startled, I rose to my feet and looked into a chiseled face, his eyes the indeterminate blue green of sea glass like I’d collected along the shoreline once as a teenager. His dark golden blond hair was short and spiky, his lopsided grin pure perfection. He was gorgeous.

In my experience, gorgeous men were not to be trusted. Well, no men really were. Oh, all right, no one was, period.
“Doctor Allyson Reynolds? I’m Doctor Matthew Scott Blake. I’m honored to have you join us. I’ve read your articles in the Raptor Rehab Newsletter.”

He held out a hand, but when I put out mine to shake it, he simply captured mine in his and placed his other hand over it. His eyes flashed green with golden flecks in the sunlight.

“I’m glad to be here,” I said, not at all sure I was anymore, as my pulse sped up. “Please, call me Ally.”

“All right, Ally it is.”

I want to climb him like a tree. I swallowed, aghast at my own thoughts. I’d only known him a few minutes.

His hands were so warm. My mother’s voice played in my head, Gorgeous men are dangerous, arrogant, and being involved with them will lead to no good. I frowned.

“It’s so good to see you…” he said. At my expression, he faltered and cleared his throat. The wattage of his smile dimmed significantly. “I mean, to meet you. I’ve been following your work since I arrived in the States, in the newsletter.”

He turned, drawing my hand through his arm. “Please, let me show you around the facilities here.”

“Uh, thank you,” I murmured, wondering how to tactfully withdraw my arm. My attraction to him was overwhelming. At the same time, his overly familiar attitude seemed a little odd.

A tall woman, her long, brown hair in a ponytail, appeared at the doorway through which Matt had arrived. She positively glowered at my arm through Matthew’s. She wore work boots, khaki shorts, and a sand colored polo shirt with the university logo, so I assumed she worked there as well. She approached us and stopped several feet away, then turned a bright smile on Matthew. “Hi, Matt. What brings you down from the Ornithology Lab?”

“This is Doctor Allyson Reynolds, the veterinarian and raptor rehabilitation specialist I suggested to Rick we bring in to help with the injured eagle from Sapsucker Woods.”

Shelly took one more look at my arm entwined with Matthew’s then smiled again at him. “Would you like me to show her around?”

He paused a moment before replying. “That’s okay, Shelly. I can handle it, I know my way. No need to take time out of your busy schedule. I’ll just show Doctor Reynolds around, then bring her to meet Rick. He’s the one overseeing the care of the eagle. Oh…” He turned to me. “This is Doctor Shelly Madison, she’s a clinical associate professor in zoo medicine.”

I saw my chance and pulled my arm out of his, ostensibly to shake Shelly’s hand. I murmured hello. She responded stiffly. Her behavior made more sense to me than his. Why treat me like an honored guest? I was just a vet who specialized in raptor rehab. I had been so anxious to get out of town I’d jumped at the chance, but now there was one question paramount in my mind—why had he called me? They were the experts here.

“Now, let’s show you around the animal hospital here.” His hands clenched, his bicep bulging under his short sleeve as he tugged the inner door to the offices open for me.

I fought the urge to retreat a step. Here stood a warrior from medieval legend. It would have been more appropriate for him to be dressed in leather armor than a button-down, short-sleeved khaki shirt, but he grabbed my hand and drew me around Shelly. “We’ll start in the library.”

As we walked, I had a stern conversation with my subconscious. Go to Ithaca, you said. You’ll get away from anyone Jen wants to set you up with, you said.

Matthew squeezed my hand. I looked up to see him beaming at me. My stomach lurched. I was out of the nest and free falling.

Author Bio:

Melora Johnson is a poet and novelist living in Upstate New York with her husband, daughter, a black cat, and quite a few chickens. Her most recent published work includes A Sanctuary Built of Words: Poems of Peace, Grief, and Passion, and publication in The Sexuality Poems from Foothills Publishing. She also runs a large and thriving writer's group for adults. Of course, into every life a little rain must fall as well as the occasional tornado, but you'll find that amply covered in her writing. Find out more about Melora and her writing on her website www.melorajohnson.com  and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/MeloraJohnson.Writer or follow her on Instagram or Twitter @MeloraJohnson

Release blitz organised by Writer Marketing Services.

Out Now—New Urban Fantasy Novel, Blindsided, by K D Grace @kd_grace Read a #teaser

Blurb:

Book two in the Medusa’s Consortium series.

In New York City, away from those she loves, living with the enigmatic vampire, Desiree Fielding, Susan Innes struggles to come to terms with life as a vampire whose body serves as the prison for a deadly demon.

When Reese Chambers arrives unexpectedly from England, desperate for her help, she discovers that Alonso Darlington, his lover and her maker, has been taken captive and Reese has been warned to tell no one but her. Before the two can make a plan, Susan receives her own message from a man calling himself just Cyrus. He not only holds her maker prisoner, but also her lover, the angel Michael. If she wishes to see either of them alive, she’ll come to him and not tell Magda Gardener, the woman they all work for and fear.

With no help coming from Magda or her Consortium, Susan and Reese must turn to the Guardian – the terrifying demon now imprisoned in her body. He alone can help them, but how can she possibly trust him after all he’s done?

Available from:

Amazon (universal link): http://mybook.to/blindsidedmc

Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/2x7nAUk
iBooks: http://apple.co/2xstDT8
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2wpvd8O
Smashwords: http://bit.ly/2y8RB2I

Add to Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36233244-blindsided

Excerpt:

It was a dark place where she found him, with walls so high only a small patch of starlight was visible above, but she was a vampire now. She didn’t need the light, and he, well he had never needed the light, had he? He stood naked with his back to her. He was broad of shoulder. There were white scars like latticework across muscles stretched taut over his shoulder blades. At first she thought they were from a whip, but as she drew nearer, she saw that they were more geometric in form, as though perhaps they were some sort of ancient ceremonial writing. She traced the shapes of them with the tips of her fingers, and his muscles rippled with the sensation. With a start she realized she’d never seen his body before.

“That is because I have none,” came his reply. “Only in dreams can I wear the flesh of my choosing.”

“You’ve worn flesh often enough. I would have thought it was always of your choosing,” she said, making no effort to hide her bitterness.

“It was not my own, though. That pleasure, I have never known.”

“Only in dreams, you say. Then this is a dream.”

“You know that it is.” He didn’t turn to face her but leaned toward her, and she slipped her arms around him and rested her head on the flat of his back. His belly tensed at the touch of her hands, and he caught his breath in a soft moan. “Touch is what I longed for most,” he said. “I thought the lack of it would drive me insane while I languished in my previous prison. But here, with you, I’m closer to touch than I would have thought possible. I do not mind it, you know. It is no hardship to be nestled inside you, close to your heart.”

She released him and took in their surroundings once more. “This is the place I’ve created for you?”

He pulled her arms back around him and sighed with contentment as she laid her head against him once more. “This is how I have decorated. The place you created for me was only the shape of myself, both boundless and infinitesimal. Oh, it did not matter. I could see through your eyes, feel through your flesh, even though it no longer lived as it once did, even though you never spoke to me. I hoped that someday you would.”

“And when I refuse, you come uninvited into my dreams?”

“All dreams are uninvited, Susan, and perhaps this time it is you who have come uninvited into my dream.”

She thought about that for a moment. Was it even possible to visit the dreams of a demon? Did demons even have dreams?

“Susan?”

“Yes?”

“If I had come to you more gently, if I had courted you and companioned you and been patient with you in the ways of your world, would you have loved me?”

“You never gave me that chance.”

*****

About K D Grace/Grace Marshall

Voted ETO Best Erotic Author of 2014, K D Grace believes Freud was right. It really IS all about sex—sex and love—and that is an absolute writer’s playground.

When she’s not writing, K D is veg gardening or walking. Her creativity is directly proportional to how quickly she wears out a pair of walking boots. She loves mythology, which inspires many of her stories. She enjoys time in the gym, where she’s having a mad affair with a pair of kettle bells. Her first love is writing, but she loves reading and watching birds. She adores anything that gets her outdoors.

K D’s novels and other works are published by Totally Bound, SourceBooks, Accent Press, Harper Collins Mischief Books, Mammoth, Cleis Press, Black Lace, and others. She also writes romance under the name Grace Marshall.

Find K D Here:                    

Websites: http://kdgrace.co.uk/

http://www.thebritbabes.co.uk            

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KD_Grace           

Newsletter: http://www.subscribepage.com/kdnewsletter

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/kdgraceauthor/

Release blitz organized by Writer Marketing Services.

Fab new #urbanfantasy from @naomi_jay and @evernightpub Read a #teaser

Thanks for having me today! I’m so excited to be sharing my new release, LICH QUEEN, book three in the Blood Canticles series. Anyone who had to deal with me while I was writing this book (friends, family, co-workers) will know I was completely obsessed with it. I love writing Dawn, and her story has so many elements I just love writing in general – ghosts, private eyes, and creepy shenanigans! And anyone who had to deal with me while I was waiting to hear if the book had been accepted, knows I was a total bundle of nerves the whole time (my fiancé is a patient man). For some reason I was convinced I’d get a “no” on this one. Don’t ask me why. It just seemed like maybe Dawn’s story, which gets bleak, might not be a good fit.

But it’s not just bleak! Like the other Blood Canticles books, there’s friendship, mystery, action, and a lot of coffee. If you like your urban fantasy filled with those things (and a side order of zombies, vampires, and demons), you’re going to love LICH QUEEN just as much as I do ;)

You can find the complete Blood Canticles series, in reading order, at my blog here - http://naomiclarkwrites.blogspot.co.uk/p/blood-canticles.html

Blurb

Magic has ruined Detective Dawn Hardy's life.

Her partner is dead, her career is on the rocks, and Dawn fears she herself may no longer be human.

While she struggles with the aftermath of a vampire attack, dead bodies are going missing around Fort Rosser. A demonic plot is brewing, and Dawn and her friends may be the only ones who can stop it. If they can stop fighting each other. And if Dawn can conquer the growing darkness inside herself.

Vampires and demons were just the beginning.

Excerpt

They had to press themselves to the wall to get around the zombie. Dawn kept her gun trained on it the whole time, just in case, but it didn't so much as twitch. It felt like stopping it had been too easy. Her nerves were singing by the time they reached the landing. Another dark hallway stretched out before them, dented metal doors on either side. Dawn noticed with a chill that a lot of the doors looked like the damage had come from the inside.

"There's an open unit up ahead," she told Rhys, watching Eddie drift along, leaving a trail of caramel-tobacco in his wake. "They let some of the less dangerous patients mix freely during the day."

They'd been in there, on that long-ago murder investigation. It was a big enough room, still lined with basic tables and chairs where patients could sit and read, or play card games, or just ... sit. It was a favorite spot for urban explorers to visit, because the masonry was still pretty sound, but the room itself was a wreck, offering the right balance of damage and security for would-be YouTube stars.

"Bet you ten dollars that's where she is, then," Rhys said. "I can feel it. You?"

Was she supposed to? Seeing ghosts was bad enough, Eddie excluded. She didn't want to start 'feeling' zombies. She shook her head, focusing on Eddie again.

Sure enough, he stopped by the door to the open unit. Those demonic symbols were gouged into the door, deeply scarring the metal. Her pulse raced as adrenaline flooded her. She could hear something on the other side of the door – a muffled mix of footsteps and low, strained voices. She adjusted her grip on her gun, palms sweaty. She carried a standard-issue Glock, six rounds. It had always felt like enough before tonight. Now she was down to three.

"Any last minute advice on dealing with the undead?" she whispered to Rhys.

"Don't," he said.

She wished he didn't think he was so funny. Eddie beckoned her to the door, giving her a look she knew well. Caution, mixed with determination. She didn't need to hear him speak to know what he was thinking. Go time, Dawn.

She nodded at him.

Isaiah's mocking laughter filled her head.

The way into my parlor is up a winding stair...

"So cliché," she said, earning a strange look from Rhys. She answered him with a smile that felt unpleasant. "Go time," she said, and eased the door open.

Buy Links

Evernight - https://tinyurl.com/y7l47fjm

Amazon US - https://tinyurl.com/y8e23v5x

Amazon UK - https://tinyurl.com/yboy3zu8

About the Author

Naomi likes writing, perfume, fancy tea, and unfathomable monsters from the dark spaces between the stars, not necessarily in that order. She has been writing stories ever since she learned how to write, but is still trying to master the art of biography writing. When she's not dealing with werewolves, demons, or sea monsters, she's hanging out with her cat and probably watching a documentary about Bigfoot. If the cat isn't available, she's with her fiancé watching cookery shows and silently plotting her next book.

Find me online:

Blog - http://naomiclarkwrites.blogspot.co.uk/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/naomijclark/

Twitter - @naomi_jay

“Murder and Mayhem” #urbanfantasy #romance #humor and a #recipe from guest author Jennifer Macaire and @EvernightPub

“Murder and Mayhem” An urban fantasy with a dose of romance and a zest of humor. If you liked Buffy the Vampire slayer, you'll enjoy May, the vampire killer! 

Meet May, the vampire killer. She's quick, clever, and deadly, and she takes life very seriously having been killed once before by a mob of rogue vamps. Her father, a powerful necromancer, brought her back to life. She's M.U.C.I.'s (Mutant and Undead Criminal Investigation) best man, er, woman, well, zombie actually, for catching and killing rogue vampires, so when two kids show up with all the signs of having been killed by a rogue, May gets the case.

Clues lead straight to a certain Bartholomew Aelfrith, a vampire, whose sense of humor and tall blond good looks are enough to convince May he needs killing, even if he's not the killer. If he makes one more joke about her chop-sticks, she's going to stab him through the heart with one. The problem is, Bartholomew is probably the only person who can catch the real killer, so May has to put up with his insouciance and his wise-cracks, and his penchant for picking up strays of all kinds.

But if he says, "I've got a plan" one more time, she's going to scream.

Teaser

May stepped outside and opened her umbrella. The burst of hail had changed to sporadic, slushy rain. It was a glowering, bitterly cold evening. Clouds moved sullenly across the dark sky.

From her street on the hill, she could see the river curving in its gentle S, the two bridges, Christmas Junction where the sky scrapers glittered, and downtown, where she could hopefully find a taxi. The clouds were so low that they hid the top half of the skyscrapers in Christmas Junction. A train, far in the distance, looked like a brightly lit caterpillar crossing the busy downtown area below.

The street she lived on was in a quiet residential neighborhood with old trees and a large park behind a tall, wrought-iron fence. The buildings, trees, and fence all leaned together, conspiring to keep the riffraff out. The sidewalk was clean and the cars lining the road gleamed. No riffraff here tonight … unless that shadow was up to no good.

May tilted her head to get a better look. In between two cars, on the opposite side of the street, huddled a shadow. The hair on the back of her neck prickled. Something was not quite right. The shadow was too small to be a human, but too large for a dog. It slid around to the far side of the car to hide as May drew even.

What was it hiding from? And what was it? May was curious. She closed her umbrella and hooked it over the fence on her left, and then she darted across the street and peered behind the car. Crouching near the rear bumper was a small, skinny boy.

“Hi there. Are you all right?” May started toward him.

He bared his fangs and hissed as she drew near.

May’s step faltered. A vampire child. An abomination! Who the hell had made him? The prickle of fear turned into a full blown shiver. Poor creature. Too young to fend for itself, but dangerous nonetheless. As soon as it realized its powers it would go on a killing spree, and nothing living could resist it. Slowly, she eased her hand into her purse to get her cellphone to call for backup.

“Don’t hurt me,” he whimpered, cowering against the car. His eyes were huge with panic. Blood on his neck and a wet, brown stain on his T-shirt showed he hadn’t changed his clothes since it had happened, and that it had been recent. That was a blessing, at least. The more recently he had been killed, the weaker he would be. She might be able to handle this on her own.

Staying well back, she examined him. He wore no jacket and one of his shoes, May noted, was missing. “I won’t hurt you. Where’s your other shoe?” It was best to stick to unimportant things. Or at least, things that seemed unimportant. At times like this, anything could be crucial. Anything could set him off. She had to be careful. A rogue vampire had made this creature, and its saliva was deadly for anything other than a full-blooded vampire.

“My shoe?” He glanced down at his foot and flinched. “I don’t know.” He looked back up at her, his eyes pleading now. “I don’t know. I woke up nearby, I think, in a park. I woke up when the hail hit my face. I don’t know where I am. I don’t know who I am. Can you help me? I should be cold …” His voice trailed off. “I’m dreaming. Is that it? Is this a dream?”

May nodded, forcing her lips into a smile. “Yes. It’s a dream.”

Poor creature. He’d been badly made, hastily made, and made against all the laws and rules that governed the vampire clan. Not that they had many rules, and not that they really cared. They followed the rules only because they feared the consequences of breaking them and not from any moral obligation. May moved very slowly, so as not to startle him into attacking her.

“I can help you,” she said, crouching in front of him. “It’s a strange dream, isn’t it? I can help you.”

“I just want to wake up.” His voice was hoarse and his fangs, sharp as needles, glittered with bloody saliva.

“All right.” May eased her hand into her purse. “I want you to stand up straight. That’s right. Now, close your eyes and say, ‘There’s no place like home.’ Say it three times, and you’ll wake up.”

“All right.” He nodded, pathetically glad to obey. He screwed his eyes shut. “There’s no place like home. There’s no place like home.”

May took careful aim and drove the stake through his heart.

“There’s no place like … home.” The creature opened its eyes, but they were empty and saw nothing now. He was so slight he fell like a ribbon to the sidewalk, landing without a sound. His bare foot pointed at the sky. It started to rain again, harder.

About the Author

Jennifer Macaire lives in France with her husband, three children, & various dogs & horses. She loves cooking, eating French chocolate, growing herbs and flowering plants on her balcony, and playing golf. She grew up in upstate New York, Samoa, and the Virgin Islands. She graduated from St. Peter and Paul high school in St. Thomas and moved to NYC where she modeled for five years for Elite. She went to France and met her husband at the polo club. All that is true. But she mostly likes to make up stories.

Find Jennifer on the Web

blog  – Website – email

Buy the book at Evernight Publishing (available June 11!)

http://www.evernightpublishing.com/murder-and-mayem-by-jennifer-macaire/

May's traditional zombie stir fry recipe:

Honey Lemon Chicken and Asparagus

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 tablespoon oil

1 pound chicken, cut into bite sized pieces

1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces

2 tablespoons honey

3 tablespoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon lemon zest

2 tablespoons soy sauce (reduced sodium)

1/4 cup chicken both – (May uses chicken bullion cubes)

1 teaspoon chilli sauce or a pinch of cayennne pepper

1 clove garlic, grated

1 teaspoon ginger, grated

1 tablespoon water

2 teaspoons cornstarch

Directions

- Mix honey, lemon juice, soy sauce, broth, chill sauce, lemon zest, garlic, ginger and set aside in a bowl.

- Heat the oil in a pan over medium-high heat, add the chicken and stir fry until cooked through and browned a bit.

- Add the asparagus and stir fry until it turns a brighter green, about 2 minutes.

- Add the honey, lemon juice mixture, stir

- Whisk the water with the corn starch, stir in to coat and cook until the sauce thickens, about a minute.

Serve over rice. (May likes to drink ginger beer with this, and finish up with lychees and her father's smoky moon-shadow tea.)