Introducing Sworn to War by Terah Edun!

Meet Terah Edun

Terah Edun is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of epic and urban fantasy. Her favorite writers include Mercedes Lackey, Tamora Pierce, Kristin Cashore, Robin Hobb and Maria Snyder.

Connect and Socialize with Terah!

Website * Facebook * Twitter * Instagram * Blog * Newsletter

Sworn to Sovereignty by Terah Edun (2016)

Length: 258 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Sworn to Sovereignty Blurb: 

Ciardis Weathervane has one simple rule - win the first fight, then move on to the next. But she’s finding out that the citizens of Sandrin have other plans in mind.

When she returns to the imperial capital city, she finds that nothing is as she left it. Only a week has passed and yet chaos reins. Vana Cloudbreaker has been attacked and surprisingly, she did not come out on top.

The woman Ciardis thought was invincible stands a broken shell of what she once was and Ciardis isn’t entirely sure what or who was the cause of the fabled assassin’s derailment.

To top it off, the revolutionary party is determined to make itself known, starting with a call for an impostor emperor to vacate his throne. They couldn’t have chosen a worse time to start their revolution. Right when the noble societies at court are ready to throw their support to the prince heir and princess heir-in-waiting against the blutgott itself.

Now revolutionaries and courtiers are at odds, but even stranger - the duchess of Carne stands among the revolutionary guard. Ciardis is faced with the predicament of saving an empire and sacrificing a revolution, all while facing down a clock that has run out of the time.

The gods are here and there’s nothing that she nor anyone else can do to stop them.

May you read well and often

Introducing the Novellas of the Kindle Worlds Lei Crime Series, Based on the Novels of Toby Neal!

Hello Everyone! I hope that you're all having a wonderful day today. I'm delighted to introduce you all to the novellas of the Kindle Worlds Lei Crime Series. Released on December 21, 2015, each novella is set inside The Lei Crime Series of novels written by popular mystery author Toby Neal. Each author who participated in the creation of this line of novellas is a popular author in their own right - from every genre imaginable. I would advise you to grab your own copies of these novellas as soon as possible!

Hawaii is palm trees, black sand and blue water - but for policewoman Lei Texeira, there’s a dark side to paradise. Lei has overcome a scarred past to make a life for herself as a cop, but often the cases she works activate wounds and complications from her tangled family history. Lei is affected deeply by her cases even as she solves them with persistence, obsession, and intuition. She falls in love with Michael Stevens, the charismatic detective she works with, and they make a life solving crime in contemporary Hawaii with all its beauty and deadliness.

Revenge Makes it Sweeter by Julie C. Gilbert (2015)

Length: 100 pages 

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Revenge Makes it Sweeter Blurb:

Revenge is a lot of work.

When the original plan for his ex-wife goes awry, Martin Cantrell turns his mind toward a sweeter revenge: stealing their daughter’s affections. But he’s not the only one plotting, and his enemies are better at keeping to the shadows.

Meanwhile, Special Agent Marcella Scott gets a late night summons to the hospital to speak with a gunshot victim. She knows to expect almost anything, yet he still surprises her.

“Agent, if I die, save the girl."

The girl turns out to be Katelyn Cantrell. Marcella’s not the only one protecting her, and the other person has no problem killing to obtain their goals.

Can Marcella prevent an assassination and catch a killer?

Find out in Revenge Makes it Sweeter. This story comes several months before Black Jasmine of Toby Neal's original Lei Crime Series.

Hoaka Moonshine by Laurie Hanan (2015)

Length: 77 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Hoaka Moonshine Blurb:

When Dee Maltin bought the little beach cottage on Maui, all she wanted was 
to leave her memories behind. Now, fifteen years later, things are starting to go awry. Why does everyone else deny hearing the feral cats that keep Dee awake all night? What’s the smell that permeates her house no matter how much she scrubs?

Why does her strange neighbor, who hasn’t spoken to her in all these years, choose this moment to strike up a conversation? A woman shows up at Dee’s door looking for her birth mother. Is she a con artist, or just deluded? Dee searches for answers and is soon over her head in one big Hawaiian-kine mystery.

Rocky Bluff by Kim Hornsby (2015)

Length: 151 pages 

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Rocky Bluff Blurb:

Toby Neal calls Rocky Bluff "A Twisty, Fun Mystery!"

Detective Lei Texeira has just moved to Maui from Kauai with boyfriend Michael Stevens when they witness a tragic accident during a performance of The Rocky Horror Show at the local theater. A closer look suggests murder. Stevens is assigned the case but Lei can't keep her nose and her theories out of his investigation especially when she realizes that her new running partner and friend, Kali, might have been the ultimate target. Lei goes undercover in the bizarre theatrical rendition of a narcissistic transsexual and his band of weirdos, but soon finds herself a target as well.

Kali's past catches up with her and Lei and Stevens struggle to apprehend a clever killer who stays several steps ahead of the police in this game of terror. It isn't until the Iao Theater ghost intervenes and Lei finds herself conspiring with a dead woman that final clues fit together to form a bizarre mosaic of treachery.

Although it's not necessary to read the Lei Crime Series to enjoy Rocky Bluff, Kim highly recommends the Bestselling Police Procedural books by Award-Winning Toby Neal. Rocky Bluff takes place between Torch Ginger and Black Jasmine and includes a yummy and sugary recipe for Malasadas (Portuguese Donuts)

Coconut Island by J. L. Oakley (2015)
Length: 116 pages
Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Coconut Island Blurb:

Memories are dangerous.

Investigative reporter Wendy Watanabe is no stranger to mysteries, but can she handle one steeped in her own family’s history?

A box of letters from a WWII soldier stationed on the Big Island is found at the Hilo Historical Society and unlocks painful memories for Wendy’s Great Aunt Bee.

Bee’s older sister was swept away in the 1946 tsunami, but now Wendy suspects she was murdered first. As she delves into the mystery, Wendy meets a group of nonagenarians who were at the USO center on Coconut Island during the war. One is a hero. Another is a cold-blooded murderer.

When the threat turns to Bee, Wendy seeks the aid of Detective Leilani Texeira and together, the women race to catch the killer before he claims another life.

Unforeseen Danger by Patricia Logan (2015)

Length: 104 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Unforeseen Danger Blurb:

Kaua'i Detective, Jack Jenkins, has just settled into married life with his new wife Anuhea and he loves his job in the laid back island paradise. When he hears his brother Lane, an undercover LAPD cop, has gone missing while on assignment, he flies to the mainland to help locate him.

Jack immediately rubs Lane’s partner Brennan the wrong way. Brennan has no need of his help, and he fears his intrusion will put Lane in even more jeopardy. Jack is not easily swayed when it comes to protecting family and when Bren finally realizes he’s not going to be able to shake the tenacious detective, the men vow to find a way to work together.

As Jack plunges into the unfamiliar world where Lane’s gone undercover, from the biker bars of the Inland Empire to the gay bars of West Hollywood, he uncovers evidence that perhaps Lane has more secrets than he’s been prepared to face.

With unforeseen danger lurking around every corner, Brennan and Jack form an uncommon brotherhood with one goal, taking down the bad guy...while getting Lane out alive.

(Unforeseen Danger takes place after Rip Tides, Book 9 of the Lei Crime series)

Of Rainbows and Butterfly Wings by Ron Logan (2015)

Length: 67 pages
Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Of Rainbows and Butterfly Wings Blurb:

Fifteen years ago…

Before he was Maui County Medical Examiner, Dr. Phillip Gregory was a recently divorced assistant medical examiner who moved to Hawaii and fell in love with a gorgeous woman named Amy Kawela.

Then, she disappeared without a trace, proving his lousy luck in finding life-long love. 

Present day… 

A woman who looks a lot like Amy winds up on his table. Shaken by the likeness, Phil leaves the lab in the capable hands of his longtime friend, Dr. Leslie Tanaka, and flies to Honolulu to voice questions he should have asked ages ago. Why did Amy leave him? What really happened to her? Is the dead woman Amy?

He’s finally seeking a truth that’s always torn his heart out. The answers could free him of his burdens, or they could kill him.

Can he discover the truth, survive long enough to tell the tale, and finally find the true love his life’s been lacking?

Of Rainbows and Butterfly Wings takes place between Rip Tides and Bone Hook.

Dead Flow by Malcolm Aylward (2015)

Length: 104 pages 

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Dead Flow Blurb:

MURDER IN PARADISE! Gabriella (Gaby) Texeira, Lei’s cousin from California, is assigned the case after a local hula dancer is found murdered in a brutal, ritualistic style killing. As the body count continues to rise, Gaby tries to recruit reluctant Polynesian antiquities expert, Jake Kahanamoku, to help locate and stop the killer before any more lives are taken. Lei and Michael make an appearance in Dead Flow, as well as cameos by Marcella Scott, her partner Matt Rogers, and Lei's faithful dog Keiki.

Dead Flow takes place between the Lei Crime Novels Shattered Palms and Dark Lava.

From Goodreads: "If you love a great story with crime, drama and romance, I highly recommend you read this book.

Tough Choices by Terry Ambrose (2015)
Length: 93 pages
Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Tough Choices Blurb:

Even paradise has a dark underbelly...

Marty Fitch is busted by the cops when he accidentally undermines the arrest of a Honolulu drug lord. Marty resolves to fix the problem he's created - as soon as he gets out of jail. His cousin, Pono Kaihale, is on temporary assignment with HPD and bails Marty out. He also makes Marty promise to keep out of police investigations. 

When Marty sees a way to take down the drug lord, he can't stop himself. Now, he's operating in a world he knows nothing about, where lies are the norm, retribution is swift, and danger lurks around every corner. The only thing keeping Marty out of jail - and the morgue - is his skill at parkour. With the cops, a drug lord, and even his cousin hunting him down, Marty must make the most difficult choices of his life to survive. 

Tough Choices occurs between Books 3 and 6, Black Jasmine and Shattered Palms.

Ti Leaves and Moon Cakes by A. J. Llewellyn (2015)

Length: 83 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Ti Leaves and Moon Cakes Blurb:

Can Abe trust Tony with his life...again?

In this follow-up to Coffee and Kukui Nuts, Maui explosives expert Abe Torufu wants his sister Meleny’s wedding to go off without a bang on the beach at Waikiki. But before the kahuna can bless the big day with a traditional ‘awa and ti leaf ceremony, a suspicious buoy washes ashore, threatening to wreck the celebration. Not only that, but a shocking photo snapped by Abe’s date for the wedding, his Lieutenant, Cherry Joy Omura, reveals a surprising face in the crowd.

When somebody starts taking potshots at Abe, he once again joins forces with U.S. Marshal Tony McCracken to track down a master criminal. Can Abe keep his shirt and his underpants on this time? Can he figure out why he offered Cherry Joy a date involving moon cakes? And most of all, can he get to the er, bottom of why he hates Tony’s new boyfriend?

May you read well and often

Introducing the Novellas of the Kindle Worlds Lei Crime Series, Based on the Novels of Toby Neal!

Hello Everyone! I hope that you're all having a wonderful day today. I'm delighted to introduce you all to the novellas of the Kindle Worlds Lei Crime Series. Released on December 21, 2015, each novella is set inside The Lei Crime Series of novels written by popular mystery author Toby Neal. Each author who participated in the creation of this line of novellas is a popular author in their own right - from every genre imaginable. I would advise you to grab your own copies of these novellas as soon as possible!

Hawaii is palm trees, black sand and blue water - but for policewoman Lei Texeira, there’s a dark side to paradise. Lei has overcome a scarred past to make a life for herself as a cop, but often the cases she works activate wounds and complications from her tangled family history. Lei is affected deeply by her cases even as she solves them with persistence, obsession, and intuition. She falls in love with Michael Stevens, the charismatic detective she works with, and they make a life solving crime in contemporary Hawaii with all its beauty and deadliness.

Revenge Makes it Sweeter by Julie C. Gilbert (2015)

Length: 100 pages 

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Revenge Makes it Sweeter Blurb:

Revenge is a lot of work.

When the original plan for his ex-wife goes awry, Martin Cantrell turns his mind toward a sweeter revenge: stealing their daughter’s affections. But he’s not the only one plotting, and his enemies are better at keeping to the shadows.

Meanwhile, Special Agent Marcella Scott gets a late night summons to the hospital to speak with a gunshot victim. She knows to expect almost anything, yet he still surprises her.

“Agent, if I die, save the girl."

The girl turns out to be Katelyn Cantrell. Marcella’s not the only one protecting her, and the other person has no problem killing to obtain their goals.

Can Marcella prevent an assassination and catch a killer?

Find out in Revenge Makes it Sweeter. This story comes several months before Black Jasmine of Toby Neal's original Lei Crime Series.

Hoaka Moonshine by Laurie Hanan (2015)

Length: 77 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Hoaka Moonshine Blurb:

When Dee Maltin bought the little beach cottage on Maui, all she wanted was to leave her memories behind. Now, fifteen years later, things are starting to go awry. Why does everyone else deny hearing the feral cats that keep Dee awake all night? What’s the smell that permeates her house no matter how much she scrubs?

Why does her strange neighbor, who hasn’t spoken to her in all these years, choose this moment to strike up a conversation? A woman shows up at Dee’s door looking for her birth mother. Is she a con artist, or just deluded? Dee searches for answers and is soon over her head in one big Hawaiian-kine mystery.

Rocky Bluff by Kim Hornsby (2015)

Length: 151 pages 

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Rocky Bluff Blurb:

Toby Neal calls Rocky Bluff "A Twisty, Fun Mystery!"

Detective Lei Texeira has just moved to Maui from Kauai with boyfriend Michael Stevens when they witness a tragic accident during a performance of The Rocky Horror Show at the local theater. A closer look suggests murder. Stevens is assigned the case but Lei can't keep her nose and her theories out of his investigation especially when she realizes that her new running partner and friend, Kali, might have been the ultimate target. Lei goes undercover in the bizarre theatrical rendition of a narcissistic transsexual and his band of weirdos, but soon finds herself a target as well.

Kali's past catches up with her and Lei and Stevens struggle to apprehend a clever killer who stays several steps ahead of the police in this game of terror. It isn't until the Iao Theater ghost intervenes and Lei finds herself conspiring with a dead woman that final clues fit together to form a bizarre mosaic of treachery.

Although it's not necessary to read the Lei Crime Series to enjoy Rocky Bluff, Kim highly recommends the Bestselling Police Procedural books by Award-Winning Toby Neal. Rocky Bluff takes place between Torch Ginger and Black Jasmine and includes a yummy and sugary recipe for Malasadas (Portuguese Donuts)

Coconut Island by J. L. Oakley (2015)
Length: 116 pages
Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Coconut Island Blurb:

Memories are dangerous.
Investigative reporter Wendy Watanabe is no stranger to mysteries, but can she handle one steeped in her own family’s history?

A box of letters from a WWII soldier stationed on the Big Island is found at the Hilo Historical Society and unlocks painful memories for Wendy’s Great Aunt Bee.

Bee’s older sister was swept away in the 1946 tsunami, but now Wendy suspects she was murdered first. As she delves into the mystery, Wendy meets a group of nonagenarians who were at the USO center on Coconut Island during the war. One is a hero. Another is a cold-blooded murderer.

When the threat turns to Bee, Wendy seeks the aid of Detective Leilani Texeira and together, the women race to catch the killer before he claims another life.

Unforeseen Danger by Patricia Logan (2015)
Length: 104 pages
Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Unforeseen Danger Blurb:

Kaua'i Detective, Jack Jenkins, has just settled into married life with his new wife Anuhea and he loves his job in the laid back island paradise. When he hears his brother Lane, an undercover LAPD cop, has gone missing while on assignment, he flies to the mainland to help locate him.

Jack immediately rubs Lane’s partner Brennan the wrong way. Brennan has no need of his help, and he fears his intrusion will put Lane in even more jeopardy. Jack is not easily swayed when it comes to protecting family and when Bren finally realizes he’s not going to be able to shake the tenacious detective, the men vow to find a way to work together.

As Jack plunges into the unfamiliar world where Lane’s gone undercover, from the biker bars of the Inland Empire to the gay bars of West Hollywood, he uncovers evidence that perhaps Lane has more secrets than he’s been prepared to face.

With unforeseen danger lurking around every corner, Brennan and Jack form an uncommon brotherhood with one goal, taking down the bad guy...while getting Lane out alive.

(Unforeseen Danger takes place after Rip Tides, Book 9 of the Lei Crime series)

Of Rainbows and Butterfly Wings by Ron Logan (2015)

Length: 67 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Of Rainbows and Butterfly Wings Blurb:

Fifteen years ago…

Before he was Maui County Medical Examiner, Dr. Phillip Gregory was a recently divorced assistant medical examiner who moved to Hawaii and fell in love with a gorgeous woman named Amy Kawela.

Then, she disappeared without a trace, proving his lousy luck in finding life-long love. 

Present day… 

A woman who looks a lot like Amy winds up on his table. Shaken by the likeness, Phil leaves the lab in the capable hands of his longtime friend, Dr. Leslie Tanaka, and flies to Honolulu to voice questions he should have asked ages ago. Why did Amy leave him? What really happened to her? Is the dead woman Amy?

He’s finally seeking a truth that’s always torn his heart out. The answers could free him of his burdens, or they could kill him.

Can he discover the truth, survive long enough to tell the tale, and finally find the true love his life’s been lacking?

Of Rainbows and Butterfly Wings takes place between Rip Tides and Bone Hook.

Dead Flow by Malcolm Aylward (2015)

Length: 104 pages 

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Dead Flow Blurb:

MURDER IN PARADISE! Gabriella (Gaby) Texeira, Lei’s cousin from California, is assigned the case after a local hula dancer is found murdered in a brutal, ritualistic style killing. As the body count continues to rise, Gaby tries to recruit reluctant Polynesian antiquities expert, Jake Kahanamoku, to help locate and stop the killer before any more lives are taken. Lei and Michael make an appearance in Dead Flow, as well as cameos by Marcella Scott, her partner Matt Rogers, and Lei's faithful dog Keiki. 

Dead Flow takes place between the Lei Crime Novels Shattered Palms and Dark Lava.

From Goodreads: "If you love a great story with crime, drama and romance, I highly recommend you read this book.

Tough Choices by Terry Ambrose (2015)

Length: 93 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Tough Choices Blurb:

Even paradise has a dark underbelly…

Marty Fitch is busted by the cops when he accidentally undermines the arrest of a Honolulu drug lord. Marty resolves to fix the problem he's created - as soon as he gets out of jail. His cousin, Pono Kaihale, is on temporary assignment with HPD and bails Marty out. He also makes Marty promise to keep out of police investigations. 

When Marty sees a way to take down the drug lord, he can't stop himself. Now, he's operating in a world he knows nothing about, where lies are the norm, retribution is swift, and danger lurks around every corner. The only thing keeping Marty out of jail - and the morgue - is his skill at parkour. With the cops, a drug lord, and even his cousin hunting him down, Marty must make the most difficult choices of his life to survive. 

Tough Choices occurs between Books 3 and 6, Black Jasmine and Shattered Palms.

May you read well and often

Introducing the Cover For Frozen by Christine Amsden!

Meet Christine Amsden

Christine Amsden has been writing fantasy and science fiction for as long as she can remember. She loves to write and it is her dream that others will be inspired by this love and by her stories. Speculative fiction is fun, magical, and imaginative but great speculative fiction is about real people defining themselves through extraordinary situations. Christine writes primarily about people and relationships, and it is in this way that she strives to make science fiction and fantasy meaningful for everyone.

At the age of 16, Christine was diagnosed with Stargardt’s Disease, a condition that effects the retina and causes a loss of central vision. She is now legally blind, but has not let this slow her down or get in the way of her dreams. (You can learn more here.)

In addition to writing, Christine teaches workshops on writing at Savvy Authors. She also does some freelance editing work.

Christine currently lives in the Kansas City area with her husband, Austin, who has been her biggest fan and the key to her success. They have two beautiful children.

Frozen by Christine Amsden (2018)

Length: 216 pages

Purchase Your Copy From Amazon and Barnes and Noble!

Frozen Blurb:

Apparently, life doesn’t end when you get married.

When a couple freezes to death on a fifty degree day, Cassie is called in to investigate. The couple ran a daycare out of their home, making preschoolers the key witnesses and even the prime suspects.

Two of those preschoolers are Cassie’s youngest siblings, suggesting conditions at home are worse than she feared. As Cassie struggles to care for her family, she must face the truth about her mother’s slide into depression, which seems to be taking the entire town with it.

Then Cassie, too, is attacked by the supernatural cold. She has to think fast to survive, and her actions cause a rift between her and her husband.

No, life doesn’t end after marriage. All hell can break loose at any time.

Frozen Cover Reveal:

"From the ashes a fire shall be woken" - J. R. R. Tolkien

Book Spotlight For There be Demons by M. K. Theodoratus

Hello Everyone! I hope that you're all having a wonderful day today. I'm so glad to welcome young adult paranormal fantasy author M. K. Theodoratus - author of There be Demons to Emeraldfire's Bookmark. This is also my thirty-third Book Spotlight post ever, but I still hope that I do There be Demons by M. K. Theodoratus justice.

About There be Demons:

After her father remarries, Britt Kelly’s life becomes a cesspit. She lives in her sister’s two-bedroom tenement apartment with her mother, two brothers, and two young nephews. She starts a new high school where she knows no one. And, even when Britt thinks she’s making friends, the church where she studies in is torn down.

Then, the field commanders of The Demon Wars draft her and her friends to aid the four Gargoyle Guardians who fight the demons invading the city of Trebridge. The fate of the city hangs on Britt’s ability to lead and learn enough self-control to manipulate the natural magic of Grace. Meanwhile, she also needs to decide what to do about Cahal, her chemistry lab partner who is as strong as her and may have interests more than just protecting Trebridge.

There Be Demons is a continuation of M. K. Theodoratus’ urban fantasy, Night For the Gargoyles. It tells the tale of Gillen and his team of Gargoyle Guardians as they defend Trebridge while teaching Britt and her friends - the untrained “reinforcements“. Along the way, Gillen and Britt learn things about each other to make them stronger both together and alone.

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Meet M. K. Theodoratus

Fantasy has always been part of M. K. Theodoratus’ life, starting when she starting playing with an imaginary friend when she was three. Comics, books, TV, and movies followed throughout her life. A northern California girl, many of her Andor alternative-world stories are firmly rooted there. Today, she lives in Northern Colorado with her husband and two lap-cats, and writes when she’s not wasting time on social media.

Connect and Socialize with M. K.!

Website * Facebook * Twitter * Goodreads * Blog

"From the ashes a fire shall be woken" - J. R. R. Tolkien

Book Spotlight For Murder on Set by Duncan Whitehead

Hello Everyone! I hope that you're all having a wonderful day today. As this is his long-awaited Release Day, I'm delighted to welcome award-winning Contemporary Mystery author Duncan Whitehead author of Murder on Set - Book 3 of The Forest Pines Mysteries Series - to Emeraldfire's Bookmark. This is also my thirty-second Book Spotlight post ever, but I still hope that I do Murder on Set by Duncan Whitehead justice.

About Murder on Set:

Two years after the events in Miami and a heart-wrenching funeral newly married and pregnant Jenny once again finds herself embroiled in a murder mystery. When Hollywood comes to Forest Pines to film a movie based on the killings of infamous serial killer 'The Slaughter Man' the production is thrown into chaos after a cast member dies on set.

Was it an accident or was it murder? With a host of suspects and motives to chose from a revitalized Jenny leaves no stone unturned as she digs into the bizarre case.

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Meet Duncan Whitehead

Winner of the 2013 and 2014 Reader’s Favorite International Book Award and Gold Medalist. Award Winning Writer, Duncan Whitehead, was born in England and is the author of the best-selling and award-winning The Gordonston Ladies Dog Walking Club Trilogy. The series, inspired by the quirky characters and eeriness in the real life Savannah neighborhood in which he once lived is a humorous mystery, which boasts an assortment of characters and plot twists. He has also written over 2,000 spoof and comedy news articles, under various aliases, for a variety of websites both in the US and the UK.

He has written further novels; a dark comedy set in Manhattan, The Reluctant Jesus, published in April 2014 and republished in July 2015 and three short stories. Duncan is well known for his charity work, kindness to animals, children and old people; and, of course, his short-lived bullfighting career and his hideous hunchback. In February 2045, he invented time travel and now spends much of his time in either the future (where he has won the lottery an astonishing 117 times) and the present day.

Connect and Socialize with Duncan!

Website * Twitter * Facebook

May you read well and often

Calling All Book Reviewers!

Hello everyone! :) I hope that you are all having a wonderful day today. I know that I am! ;) Anyway, I recently saw on Facebook that author Kathryn Meyer Griffith is looking for more reviews for some of her books, and because I think she is such a remarkable writer, I thought that I would make a request of all the readers of Emeraldfire's Bookmark.

Like so many authors out there, Ms. Griffith is always on the look out for more reviewers for her books - most specifically her horror novels The Calling, Evil Stalks the Night and Blood Forged. All that is required from these potential reviewers, is a willingness to read the book, and also to write a fair and honest review of what you read. As I've said before, this is just a request of all the readers of my blog - but if you do decide to review these books I would appreciate it very much! And I know that Ms. Griffith would as well. ;)

Meet Kathryn Meyer Griffith

Since childhood I’ve been an artist and worked as a graphic designer in the corporate world and for newspapers for twenty-three years before I quit to write full time. But I’d already begun writing novels at 21, over forty-two years ago now, and have had twenty (ten romantic horror, two horror novels, two romantic SF horror, one romantic suspense, one romantic time travel, one historical romance and three murder mysteries) previous novels, two novellas and twelve short stories published from Zebra Books, Leisure Books, Avalon Books, The Wild Rose Press, Damnation Books/Eternal Press; and I’ve self-published my last five novels with Amazon Kindle Direct and my dinosaur novels are my best-sellers.

I’ve been married to Russell for thirty-six years; have a son, James, and two grandchildren, Joshua and Caitlyn, and I live in a small quaint town in Illinois, which is right across the JB Bridge from St. Louis, Mo. We have three quirky cats, ghost cat Sasha and Cleo, and live cat Sasha (Too), and the five of us live happily in an old house in the heart of town. Though I’ve been an artist, and a folk singer in my youth with my brother Jim, writing has always been my greatest passion, my butterfly stage, and I’ll probably write stories until the day I die…or until my memory goes.

2012 EPIC EBOOK AWARDS *FINALIST* for my horror novel The Last Vampire - Revised Author’s Edition ~ 2014 EPIC EBOOK AWARDS *FINALIST* for my thriller novel Dinosaur Lake.

Connect and Socialize with Kathryn!

Website * Facebook * Goodreads * Amazon Author Page

The Calling by Kathryn Meyer Griffith (2015)

Length: 339 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

The Calling Blurb:

Faye Summer has been haunted by a three-thousand-year-old-murdered Egyptian princess, one of the five daughters of Nefertiti and the doomed pharaoh Akhenaton, since she was a young girl...and has glimpsed her desperate ghostly face in darkened mirrors and heard her whispers in her dreams. Whispers begging for Faye’s help in uncovering the true story of her and her family’s long ago disappearances and deaths, their terrible fate, so the ghost would no longer be damned to her eternal wandering. On that grave quest, Faye and her husband, Nick, reluctantly travel to Egypt and among the ancient pyramids, sparkling hot sands and the ghosts of the past they discover a truth far worse than they could have imagined and end up fighting for their own survival.

Evil Stalks the Night by Kathryn Meyer Griffith (2015)

Length: 402 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Evil Stalks the Night Blurb:

Twenty years ago psychic Sarah Summers fled from the evil that lurked in the woods behind her childhood home after it killed most of her family, but a nasty divorce and financial hardships forced her back when nothing else could have. With her son, Jeremy, she returns to her inheritance, her grandmother’s dilapidated house, and tries to begin a new life. She meets a police detective, Ben, who falls for her, and she prays her fresh visions of bloodshed and death deep among the dark trees aren’t true.

Then the murders begin again and Sarah is hurtled back into the familiar nightmare that has haunted her her whole life. The evil in the woods is awake again and this time it wants her last remaining brother, Jim; her son...and her. With Ben and Jim’s help can she defeat it this time...and live?

Blood Forged by Kathryn Meyer Griffith (2015)

Length: 453 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Blood Forged Blurb:

An ancient snake-demon lies trapped behind the stone walls of an Incan prison; for centuries demanding blood sacrifices and scheming to escape. Then it discovers a pathway into the world of men, forging itself into a malevolent and cursed 357 Colt Python gun, and making itself capable of giving misery and bringing death to all who touch it. Through decades it torments, decimates, the lives of the unfortunate people it comes into contact with until a married couple, Emily and Sam Walters, have enough love and faith - and the help of a mysterious priest who’s much more than he appears to be - to fight against and destroy it forever...and to finally send it back to hell where it belongs.

May you read well and often

Introducing The Forest Pines Mysteries Series by Duncan Whitehead!

So, back in April of 2017, I had the pleasure of reading The Gordonston Ladies Dog Walking Club by Duncan Whitehead and here is my review. I'm also delighted to mention that the second book in Mr. Whitehead's Forest Pines Mysteries Series - Murder in Miami - will be free to download from Amazon for two days starting in the month of August. Yes, from Wednesday, August 30th, to Friday, September 1st, 2017, you will be able to grab a copy of Murder in Miami by Duncan Whitehead for yourself. I'm really looking forward to reading this book sometime soon, myself.

Meet Duncan Whitehead

Winner of the 2013 and 2014 Reader’s Favorite International Book Award and Gold Medalist. Award Winning Writer, Duncan Whitehead, was born in England and is the author of the best-selling and award-winning The Gordonston Ladies Dog Walking Club Trilogy. The series, inspired by the quirky characters and eeriness in the real life Savannah neighborhood in which he once lived is a humorous mystery, which boasts an assortment of characters and plot twists. He has also written over 2,000 spoof and comedy news articles, under various aliases, for a variety of websites both in the US and the UK.

He has written further novels; a dark comedy set in Manhattan, The Reluctant Jesus, published in April 2014 and republished in July 2015 and three short stories. Duncan is well known for his charity work, kindness to animals, children and old people; and, of course, his short-lived bullfighting career and his hideous hunchback. In February 2045, he invented time travel and now spends much of his time in either the future (where he has won the lottery an astonishing 117 times) and the present day.

Connect and Socialize with Duncan!

Website * Twitter * Facebook

Murder at the Fourth by Duncan Whitehead (2016)

Length: 147 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Murder at the Fourth Blurb:

Retired Miami Detective, Jenny Pickett, is loving life in the small Montana town of Forest Pines. That is until local businessman, Donald Sands, is found murdered on the local golf course.

Young and inexperienced Sheriff, Steve Calder, needs help and turns to Jenny to assist him in his investigation. Suddenly Jenny is plunged into a mystery unlike any other she has encountered and faces a multitude of suspects who all have a reason to rejoice the victim's death. It isn’t going to be as easy as Jenny thought, as she tries to find out who killed the most unpopular man in town.

A string of mistresses, a jealous husband, a shady realtor as well as a down on his luck store owner, who couldn't repay a debt, are just some of the suspects as the plot thickens, and twists abound.

Meanwhile, skeletons from Jenny's past are rattling their unwelcome bones.

The truth contorts to a climax that will leave readers breathless.

Murder in Miami by Duncan Whitehead (2017)

Length: 153 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Murder in Miami Blurb:

An escaped serial killer forces retired detective Jenny Pickett to leave the idyllic town of Forest Pines and return to Miami. The FBI claim they need her expertise; but is she just the bait? Meanwhile, as the killings continue, Jenny finds herself embroiled in a mystery involving the board members of a run down condo building in Fort Lauderdale.

Murder on Set by Duncan Whitehead (2017)

Length: 115 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Murder on Set Blurb:

Two years after the events in Miami and a heart-wrenching funeral newly married and pregnant Jenny once again finds herself embroiled in a murder mystery. When Hollywood comes to Forest Pines to film a movie based on the killings of infamous serial killer 'The Slaughter Man' the production is thrown into chaos after a cast member dies on set. 

Was it an accident or was it murder? With a host of suspects and motives to chose from a revitalized Jenny leaves no stone unturned as she digs into the bizarre case.

May you read well and often

Introducing The Hellfire and Damnation Series by Connie Corcoran Wilson!

The Hellfire and Damnation Series by Connie Corcoran Wilson is a tour of the 9 Circles of Hell described in Dante's Inferno. It uses the framing device of the sins punished at each of the 9 Circles of Hell. If you enjoy scary short stories that will linger long after you've finished reading them, these are the books for you.

I was also delighted to learn that the second book of the series will be free to download from Amazon for one day only - Friday, August 25th! Grab yourself a copy as soon as possible.

Meet Connie Corcoran Wilson

Connie (Corcoran) Wilson taught composition at 6 IA/IL colleges and wrote for 5 newspapers. She currently writes for 6 blogs, was named 2008 Content Producer of the Year by Associated Content (2009), Midwestern Writing Center Writer of the Year (March 30, 2010), received the Illinois Women's Press Association Silver Feather Award on June 6, 2012, and has received numerous E-Lit Gold Medal awards for her works, including the first book in The Color of Evil series. She currently is a Featured Contributor for Yahoo, reviewing movies, television, entertainment and politics.

A graduate of the University of Iowa, Berkeley, Western Illinois University, Northern Illinois University and the University of Chicago, she was film and book critic for the Quad City Times during the 70’s and 80’s. Her (Jan., 2011) nonfiction release It Came from the ‘70s: From The Godfather to Apocalypse Now consists of 50 reviews written during the seventies, with 76 photos, major cast and interactive trivia.

Connie’s continuing short story collection, Hellfire and Damnation, stories focused on the 9 Circles of Hell described in Dante's Inferno will soon have a third installment. Her screenplay based on her novel Out of Time was a winner in the 2007 Writer’s Digest competition.

In addition to interviewing Kurt Vonnegut, William F. Nolan, David Morrell, Joe Hill, Frederik Pohl, Jon Land, John Irving and Anne Perry for print and online publications, Connie taught for 33 years, founded and was CEO of 2 businesses (Sylvan Learning Center #3301 and Prometric Testing Center #3301), has a son (Scott) and a daughter (Stacey) born 19 years apart, is married 45 years to husband, Craig. Her twin granddaughters, Ava and Elise, who appear on the cover of her humorous book of essays, Laughing Through Life, turned four on January 11, 2013.

Hellfire and Damnation by Connie Corcoran Wilson (2011)

Length: 124 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Hellfire and Damnation Blurb:

Hellfire and Damnation is a series of short stories (some based on true stories) organized around Dante's Inferno and the 9 circles of Hell. As William F. Nolan (Logan's Run, Nightworlds) put it, "Her frame for this collection is unique: stories built around Dante's 9 circles of hell, a unifying concept that is classically fresh. Many of these hellish tales are based on truth, amplified into fiction. Her 4 stories set along Route 66 from Missouri through California are all true ghost stories. The final statements of convicted prisoners on Death Row, as they await execution in Georgia, provide the dialogue for the story that takes us through the Gates of Hell, "Hotter than Hell."

Scott Edelman (Sci Fi Weekly) put it this way "Connie (Corcoran) Wilson puts her characters through Hell in Hellfire and Damnation, and with her horrific stories, takes me along to places I did not want to go." Gary Braunbeck (Coffin County, Far Dark Fields) said, Hellfire and Damnation marks her not so much as a writer to watch, but one to watch out for. Exploring the 9 levels of Dante's Inferno via contemporary settings and sensibilities, and the sins punished therein, this collection veers from sinister noir (Going Through Hell) to the bizarrely whimsical (Amazing Andy, the Wonder Chicken) to the outright, no-holds-barred horrific. Never have the 9 Circles of Hell been so much fun. I had a blast following Wilson on her tour of the Inferno, and you will, as well." 

M. J. Turner of Dark Scribe Magazine said, "A unique concept binds the tales in Connie Corcoran Wilson's short story collection Hellfire and Damnation. Unified by the theme of Dante's Inferno and its 9 Circles of Hell, each story corresponds to the sin represented by the circle in which it appears and each takes readers deeper into the bowels of Hell...Subjects of many of the tales in the collection seem ripped straight from the headlines, and Wilson's cool and matter-of-fact style serves only to make the stories more disturbing."

Hellfire and Damnation II by Connie Corcoran Wilson (2012)

Length: 170 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Hellfire and Damnation II Blurb:

Hellfire and Damnation II by Connie (Corcoran) Wilson is another tour of the 9 Circles of Hell described in Dante's Inferno. It picks up where the first collection of short stories (2011, www.HellfireandDamnationTheBook.com) left off, using the framing device of the sins punished at each of the 9 Circles of Hell in Dante's Inferno.

Winner of the (IWPA) Silver Feather award, sequel to the E-Lit Gold Medal award winner Hellfire  and Damnation, Hellfire and Damnation II as a tour of Dante's Inferno doesn't require that you have read the first collection of short stories, which also illustrated the sins punished at each of the 9 Circles of Hell. There are no recurring characters, but there are 11 short stories, accompanying illustrations and a "From the Author" section explaining the inspiration or each story.

As 5-time Stoker winner Gary Braunbeck said: "I really don't know how she managed to do it, but Wilson surpasses her previous Hellfire and Damnation collection with its sequel. Her writing is stronger, streamlined, and often lyrical, despite the nastiness her words describe. This is another impressive collection of tales from a writer I could very well learn to hate if she gets much better. Seriously, Connie, can't you write just one stinker so the rest of us will feel a little bit better?"

New York Times best-selling author Jon Land, the author of the Caitlin Strong series says: "Connie (Corcoran) Wilson's Hellfire and Damnation II is a remarkable collection of somber, noirish, flat-out scary and altogether satisfying stories that seek to find hope in a dark world that defies it. Her subtle irony and penchant for finding terror in the least expected places will generate comparisons to Stephen King and Ray Bradbury, with just a hint of Philip K. Dick thrown in. But don't be fooled: Wilson has a wondrous voice in her own right and her tight, twisty tales establish her as a force to be reckoned with."

Nate Kenyon, award-winning author of Diablo: The Order and Day One said: "Take a twisted ride through Hell and back with Connie (Corcoran) Wilson's Hellfire and Damnation II.....Frozen corpses, homicidal authors and sociopathic presidential candidates just scratch the surface of this inspired collection. Don't miss it!"

Terrie Leigh Relf, author of The Waters of Nyr and co-author, with Henry Lewis Sanders, of Blood Journey and The Ancient One said, "Whether Connie (Corcoran) Wilson has been visited by Dante's spirit or eavesdropping by Hell's confessionals, Hellfire and Damnation II definitely delivers on its title. There is a fine line between good and evil within these pages. A very fine line. Be careful that you don't teeter into the abyss. From a Norwegian army deserter trapped in Limbo within the Colorado ice to parents pondering the sale of their organs to fund their college-bound son, these stories abound with life's - and death's - ironies."

Brian Pinkerton, author of Rough Cut: "Connie Wilson's new short story collection Hellfire and Damnation II sends the reader spiraling down Dante's 9 Circles of Hell with devilish twists and turns of time and place, across eleven superb short stories."

If you enjoy scary short stories that will linger long after you've finished reading them, this is the book for you.

Hellfire and Damnation III by Connie Corcoran Wilson (2015)

Length: 120 pages

Purchase your copy from Amazon!

Hellfire and Damnation III Blurb:

Hellfire and Damnation III is a third tour of the 9 Circles of Hell described in Dante’s Inferno. Each of the 9 stories illustrate one of the crimes or seven deadly sins punished at that level of Hell.

This third installment in the award-winning series has a large number of stories substantially based on true life events - 7 out of 9. This adds a sense of authenticity to their engrossing plots. Whether the tale centers on a new species of spider or a crazed Satanist urging a mentally challenged young man to commit murder, readers will experience stories of Limbo, lust, gluttony, avarice and prodigality, wrath and sullenness, heresy, the violent, the fraudulent and treachery.

Settings range from New Zealand to Washington state to the Midwest. Each story contains an illustration that helps anchor the setting in the reader’s mind. Cover art for this freaky horror collection is by World Famous Artist Vincent Chong.

May you read well and often