Razer 8 series by P.T.Macias @pt_macias

Chapter One

Marsha Diane Bryant looks over at the shiny red sport car. Oh yes, I’m going to get that cute car for my birthday. I’m so lucky that my Daddy spoils me, she thinks. She smiles at her Daddy and at her Mama. She watches him sign the paperwork.

“Marci, dear, you know that this is also a gift for your hard work in school. You’re going to graduate next year. I know that you’ve worked hard to maintain your GPA. Nothing gives me more pleasure than to see that you’re going to be able to qualify to be an intern at the Capitol,” states Rex Bryant.

Chief Commissioner Rex Bryant has always dreamed of seeing one of his girls enter the realm of politics.

Marsha chews her lower lip. Oh, yeah, I did forget about that. I don’t want to enter the world of politics. I don’t want to disappoint Daddy. I know that he’s counting on me since Margaret decided to get married. I don’t know when I’m going to tell Daddy that I want to go into law. It’s almost the same. I can be a judge, she thinks.

“Marci, I’m real proud of you,” says Daddy Rex.

“Thank you, Daddy,” replies Marsha.

“Sir, here are the keys to the car,” says the salesman. He looks over at Marsha with longing. “Ms. Bryant, you’re going to enjoy driving down the coast in your new car.”

“Yes sir, I’m sure I will. Daddy, can I drive Cherry Bomb home?” asks Marsha.

Her lovely blue eyes sparkle with pleasure. Her face is softly flushed with a soft glow of excitement.

Chief Bryant turns to gaze at his lovely daughter. He smiles with pleasure upon seeing her excitement. He raises an eyebrow with amusement. 

“Yes, Marci. You can drive your new car home. Cherry Bomb?” replies Daddy Rex.

He chuckles with amusement. He turns to the sales man and takes the keys from him. “Marci, dear, you drive carefully.”

Marsha jumps up from the chair and excitedly hugs her Daddy. She gives him a huge kiss on his cheek. She then takes the keys from his hands.

“Thank you, Daddy! Thank you, Mama. I love you both! I’ll see you at home. I want to stop for a few minutes at Sarah’s to show her my new car!” Marsha turns to give her Mama a quick hug.

“Marsha Diane, you best drive carefully. We’ll see you at home shortly,” says Mama Irene.

“Absolutely, Mama,” replies Marsha, nodding. She walks out of the sales office and out into the dealership showroom.

The salesman is opening the huge glass doors. Marsha walks up to the red sports car. She opens the door and slides in. She smiles and turns on the car.

Marsha turns to look over at her parents with an enormous smile. She waves at them and pulls out of the showroom.

Hell yeah, I’m going to love driving this cute car. I’m such a lucky girl, she thinks. Nodding she turns on the stereo and starts to sing along to her favorite song.

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Genre – Romantic Suspense

Rating – PG 13

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The Angel & The Brown-Eyed Boy – Sandy Nathan @sandyonathan

1

When the girl appeared on the sidewalk, the edges of her body and clothing were fuzzy, as though all of her hadn’t arrived. She looked up and down the street, the way a person would if she’d forgotten an address or lost her way.

Her hair was frizzed and matted, sticking out akimbo. She was thin, had a dirty face, and wore a scratchy coat that was far too big. Its sleeves were rounded little capes; her arms stuck out of them like chopsticks protruding from a napkin. The coat slipped off her shoulders, first to one side, then the other. She hitched it up and kept walking. When she walked, the coat opened to reveal her feet and lower legs.

Her thin socks, trimmed with grayed lace, were pulled up to make a ruffle below her knees. Pink satin laces held up the socks, their Xs snaking up her shins from her shoes. She looked pretty much like everyone she saw, except for her shoes. Long pink ballet slippers stuck out from beneath her coat, as improbable as roses sprouting from the cement.

Eliana made her way along the sidewalk, knowing that she was dirty, feeling the grit in her hair and on her skin. When she had reached the planet’s atmosphere, clothes and all sorts of things had rushed at her with great force, tossing her over and over. Dirt had come, too. She’d found the clothes she needed and put them on the way her teachers had shown her. Then her people had put her where she was.

Humans passed, but no one stopped or said anything to her. A paper blew against her leg. More dirty papers blew and piled up everywhere. Streaked and grimy buildings rose near her. Writing in different colors covered their walls. She looked carefully, but couldn’t make out the words. She’d learned to read and write English, but those words mystified her.

“Hey, you!” a person said loudly.

“Yes?” She spoke to a human for the first time, politely bowing. The human was dirty like Eliana, with torn clothes and matted hair. She couldn’t tell if it was a he or a she.

“Get out of here!” the ragged person shouted. “You don’t belong here.” Eliana cowered, but the stranger rushed past her, clawing at something Eliana couldn’t see. “Stay away,” the human said, and then stood with feet braced, shouting, “Get out of here, all of you. Stay away!” The creature hadn’t seen Eliana at all.

The girl realized that her people were right; they had put her where no one would notice her. Now she needed to tell them that she had arrived. She raised one foot, turning it gracefully and resting it easily on the other knee. She flicked the shoe with her finger, listening. A trill of clear notes deep within her brought the hint of a smile. She held the coat closed and stood still. She was where she was supposed to be. It had begun.

She fingered the piece of paper in her pocket. Her map. Beneath it, in the pocket’s depths, was the notebook. What was written on it would get her where she needed to go. She had all she needed.

She walked a long way along the hard path. More humans passed her. To her left, gray, inert structures rose high in the sky, blocking the sun. She touched the see-through parts of their lower levels, looking at the humans inside. They looked at each other with darting eyes, speaking rapidly. Everyone outside rushed frantically, noticing nothing. They didn’t see her, just as her people had said.

Eliana choked when a very large carrier passed, spewing a foul odor. The carrier floated above the hard surface where the vehicles moved. Her teachers had told her about the floating. Though she couldn’t see it, a force lived under the machines that made them go. It would kill her if it touched her. She didn’t know what kill meant; kill did not exist in her world. Her mother had explained that she would be like a dead pet. She had seen dead pets before they whisked them away. Motionless husks. She moved away quickly. Better get on with her purpose. She didn’t have much time.

A man with a round stomach and a gray hat walked out of an opening in the ground with many others. He walked like he had a mission. His coat was the same scratchy stuff as hers, but it was buttoned up and looked new. He looked new; his face was ruddy and clean. His shoes reflected the pale sunlight. The trill of notes resounded in her mind once again.

He was the one! She stood in front of him to make him stop. She hoped he could comprehend her speech.

“Will you help me?” she said, working to form the strange words.

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Genre – Metaphysical Science Fiction

Rating – R

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#AmReading - The Lake by AnnaLisa Grant @annalisagrant

The Lake by AnnaLisa Grant

Amazon

At 17, Layla Weston is already starting over. Having lost both her parents and grandparents, and with nowhere else to go, Layla is moving from Florida to a small town in North Carolina to live with the only family she has left: her estranged uncle and aunt.
The last five years of Layla’s life were spent appeasing her lessthan-loving grandmother, followed by being her grandfather’s caretaker. Growing old before her time, Layla lost her identity. Now she must learn how to allow herself to be the one cared for and loved.
Life takes an unexpected turn when Layla meets Will Meyer. His breathtaking good looks are enough to catch her eye, but his sincerity and passion are everything she needs to find the strength and confidence she lost — and lead her into love.
When tragedy once again strikes Layla’s life, her hope is all but completely crushed. Through it all, Layla learns what it means to truly love and be loved.

Once Humans by Massimo Marino @Massim0Marin0

Memories

From Dan Amenta’s Journal

We had the perfect life in the French-Swiss countryside until that mysterious windstorm in February. No one realized anything unusual has happened, but the next morning, while driving Annah, my daughter, to school, I discovered that vehicles littered the highway, with their dead occupants still inside.

Returning home, no one answered the phone at any of the emergency departments nor could I or my wife, Mary, reach our relatives and friends. Checking on the neighbors, I found them dead.

We soon realized we might be the only survivors of a global catastrophe. We stock up on emergency supplies, turn the house into a stronghold, and collected food and medicines. The Internet still worked so I launched a large, online campaign to find other survivors with the hope of learning more about what we were facing. While waiting for any response at all, I managed to befriend some neighborhood dogs and we armed ourselves with survival gear.

At first, it felt weird and disturbing to go into stores and take things without paying but, of course, there was no one to pay. The whole world had become a ghost town.

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Genre – Science Fiction

Rating – PG-13

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Website http://massimomarinoauthor.com

#Author Interview with Brian Bloom @BrianB_Aust #Thriller

What do you admire?
Personal dignity and integrity

What is your least favourite quality about yourself?
I find my mind wandering when I’m listening to something that is of less interest to me than it is to the speaker. It sometimes makes me feel shame.

How has your upbringing influenced your writing?
Immeasurably. My parents were both wonderful people. My father was the most humble person I knew personally and my mother was one of the most adventurous people I knew. She had a lust for life. Together they cocooned me and my sister in love and we both had happy childhoods. People underestimate the importance of the nuclear family. With more than half of all marriages now ending in divorce, the world has become a very sad and insecure place. My parents taught me to value qualities like respect for others, self-respect, integrity, honesty, humour, dignity, charity, empathy, kindness to strangers, truth, the body is a temple, a sound mind in a healthy body, variety is the spice of life, finish what you start, good manners, and a host of other lesser qualities that have become anachronisms in today’s dog-eat-dog world.

I sometimes despair for my children’s and grandchildren’s futures. It was a respect for these qualities and a recognition that they are largely absent in today’s world that ultimately motivated me to write my novels. My teenage years were, to say the least, unique. My parents owned and ran a Finishing School for Young Ladies, and that facilitated my exposure to the lifestyles of the rich and powerful (some of the young ladies’ fathers) at a time when I couldn’t have cared less how many houses a man owned. Frankly, I still couldn’t care less. What those years gave me was an understanding that material wealth is not necessarily a measure of a man’s (or woman’s) quality as a person and is not necessarily indicative of a happy and fulfilled life. If anything, there seemed to me then to be an inverse relationship and, frankly, it pisses me off when men and women in positions of power behave as if they are important. As one of my psychology professors once put it: When you’re standing at the urinal, all men are the same.

One of the most important gifts that my parents gave me was a moral sense of what is right and what is wrong. And there’s a lot wrong in a world where people of charisma and charm but devoid of ethics are voted into political power. Whose fault is that? In all honesty? It’s your and my fault. We voted for these bastards. And we voted for them because they made empty promises on which it was impossible to deliver. And we chose to believe the lies.

Nevertheless, to end the thought on a positive note, I have been hugely impressed to see that Bill Gates and Warren Buffet seem to have a low level of interest in hedonism and a high level of interest in giving back to society. Perhaps they can have a positive influence in bringing humanity back to its senses in terms of what is really valuable – which is precisely what I am attempting to achieve with my writing.

What are you most proud of accomplishing so far in your life?
Our children, although they are battling to cope in the world as it is, all have backbones of steel and a value set that reflects the same values that my parents passed on to me and my sister; and that Denise’s parents passed on to her. I have a lot to thank Denise for the high quality people that our children have become.

On a material level, over 30 years ago, I created and produced “The Africa Collection” of statuettes which sought to (and I believe do help to) preserve African Tribal Heritage for posterity. Of course, I didn’t sculpt them myself, but I did initiate and manage the project. My rationale was that, in seeking to “westernise” Africa, I believed humanity had been done a grave disservice. The tribal way of life respected Mother Earth for reasons that Western Society has not yet begun to understand. You can see what The Africa Collection was all about by visiting this page on my website: http://www.beyondneanderthal.com/the-author/
 

I am also particularly proud of my two factional novels. If they survive to be read by future generations, those generations will gain a contextual understanding of what life was like in the early years of the 21^st Century, in much the same way (but certainly not as well executed by me) as, say, Charles Dickens captured the essence of life in England in the 19^th Century. I imagine people in 100 years time reading my books and saying: “It’s hard to believe that the people who lived at the beginning of the 21^st Century were so ethically and morally challenged. What were they thinking? How did civilisation survive?”

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Genre - Conspiracy Thriller

Rating – MA (15+)

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Author Interview – John Ling

Tell us about your new book. What’s it about and why did you write it?

Fallen Angel is the story of a counterterrorism operative named Kendra Shaw. After serving a decade abroad in the War of Terror, she returns home to New Zealand, struggling to recover from post-traumatic stress disorder.

One afternoon, things take an dramatic turn when Kendra glimpses a familiar face on a busy street corner. His name is Ryan Hosseini, and he’s the man she left behind years ago when she decided to serve her country. Haunted by old regrets and wanting to make amends, Kendra decides to approach him. But any hope of a positive reunion is shattered when a bomb explodes and rips through the lunchtime crowd. And amidst the violence, Ryan disappears.

Now Kendra is forced to revert to her old instincts as a hunter, and she’s plunged headlong into one final mission—to uncover the truth about Ryan’s motives and lay her demons to rest.

I wrote Fallen Angel as a tribute to our returning veterans. While the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan are no longer occupying the headlines, their legacy of trauma and anguish will last a lifetime. We should never forget the sacrifices of our veterans, many of whom are still struggling with physical and psychological injuries. Where possible, we should do all we can to lobby for increased care and support for them.

What writing are you most proud of?

I am most proud of my first book, The Blasphemer. It’s the story of a progressive Muslim author named Abraham Khan who releases a satirical novel questioning Islam. This enrages a terror group named Al-Shukur, and they issue a fatwa—a religious edict calling for his death.

It’s up to an operative named Maya Raines to protect Abraham Khan’s life. But as the attacks on him grow increasingly bloody and innocent lives are lost, Maya finds herself asking the most difficult question of all—how far would you go to protect one man’s right to speak?

The Blasphemer encapsulates everything I ever wanted to say about the collision between religion doctrine and secular rights. It also offers insight into an aspect of Islam that is seldom discussed in the media—the practice of Sufism, which is gentler and more progressive philosophy that offers an alternative to the aggressive Wahhabism embraced by groups like Al-Qaeda.

Who was your favourite author while growing up?

Growing up, I loved reading Charles Dickens. His stories were not just sweeping dramas, but they also offered vital social commentary. David Copperfield is, by and far, the best example of this.

It’s a rough-and-tumble story that charts its hero’s ascent from childhood, and it has

everything you would ever want in a great story—appalling tragedy, grand villains, starcrossed lovers, heart-stopping twists and turns, gritty meditations on life and death, and finally, a well-deserved triumph.

Perhaps more so than any author before him, Charles Dickens successfully blurred the lines between popular fiction and literary fiction. In his skilled hands, there was often no distinction between the two philosophies. He proved it was possible to blend crowd-pleasing entertainment with serious dramatic intent. And it’s that Dickensian sensibility that’s always stayed with me.

Why do you write?

Thriller author David Morrell once said that writing fiction is a form of psychoanalysis. It’s something we do in order to come to terms with our traumas. And hopefully, in the process, we learn to purge our fears.

I couldn’t agree more. I was born into a very conservative society, and I spent years at a time being unable to express myself fully. Writing fiction therefore became the best possible outlet for me. It still is.

Have you developed a specific writing style?

My choice of diction is sparse and succinct, and it’s probably closest to that of Ernest Hemingway and Graham Greene. Where possible, I try to avoid flowery or ornate descriptions. And I’m attracted to a journalistic approach—telling things as they are without resorting to embellishment.

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Genre - Romantic Suspense

Rating – PG13

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Website http://johnlingblog.wordpress.com/

 

Quality Reads UK Book Club Disclosure: Author interview / guest post has been submitted by the author and previously used on other sites.

Author Interview – Michelle Rabe @michrabe

What other jobs have you had in your life?

I’ve worked at a lot of customer service jobs, as a clerk for my local elections department and as an extra in Hollywood movies and television.

How do you write – lap top, pen, paper, in bed, at a desk?

I write in a lot of different ways. Lately I’ve been writing long hand and then using a keyboard to input that draft into my tablet. From there the draft moves to the computer and then oddly enough back to a printed copy. I write most often at my desk in my living room though I have been known to sneak out to coffee shops (we have plenty of them around here) to work and my writing group meets at a restaurant to offer support and writing time every week.

Every writer has their own idea of what a successful career in writing is, what does success in writing look like to you?

I’d like to make a living with my writing so that I don’t have to worry about the ‘day job’.

Tell us about your new book? What’s it about and why did you write it?

Cast in Blood is my first novel and is about Morgan Blackstone a modern vampire who becomes the unwilling subject of blood experiments at the hands of a not so ethical doctor. I’d love to say there was some big reason behind my writing it but, in reality I started it out of boredom. I was working on a film set and finished the book that I was reading so I found some paper and started writing.

When you are not writing, how do you like to relax?

I like to read, watch movies, take walks (there are a ton of state parks in my area) and go people watching. I’ve gotten some ideas for fun character traits while sitting and sipping a cup of hot chocolate or a soda.

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Genre - Paranormal Urban Fantasy

Rating – PG-13

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Website http://paperbackvamp.tumblr.com/

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An Infinitesimal Abundance of Color by Mark David Major, Layce Boswell @markdmajor

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Genre – Juvenile Fiction/Bedtime and Dreams

Rating – G

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#AmReading - Marked by J.M. Sevilla @authorjmsevilla

Marked by J.M. Sevilla

Amazon

Part one of a two part series.
There are three things Lily Evans immediately notices about her new neighbor, Jay Lincoln. The first is his monstrous size, the second is the malicious way he glares at her, and thirdly, but most importantly, the three scars that mark his right eye. She knows the smart thing to do is stay away, but she has never met or seen anyone like him. The more time she spends with this frightening yet captivating man, the harder it becomes. He can make her hairs stand on end but he also has a sweetness to him that tugs at her heart. Soon she finds herself merged into his world full of murder, revenge, and deceit.

#AmReading - Picture Perfect by Alessandra Thomas @AuthorAless

Picture Perfect by Alessandra Thomas

Amazon

Fashion design major Cat Mitchell has a closet full of gorgeous clothes - and not a single thing fits. After two years of runway modeling for easy cash, an accident shattered her lower leg bone and her self-esteem in just one swift fall. Ten months of no exercise, prescription steroids, comfort eating and yoga pants meant returning to campus as a size twelve instead of her former size two.
When her gorgeous long-time friend with benefits sees her for the first time after her accident and snubs her in front of all her friends, Cat’s self-image hits rock bottom. Her sorority sisters all insist that she looks gorgeous, but all Cat sees is the roll of her stomach when she sits down, or the dimpling at the back of her thighs that wasn't there last year. Cat’s therapist prescribes something radical to stop the downward spiral - nude modeling for a nearby college's human form drawing classes.
When Cat faces her fears and bares it all for the class, she realizes that she's posing naked in front the most gorgeous, buffest guy she's ever seen in her life. He asks her out after the class, and after one steamy night and six weeks of perfect dates together, Cat's absolutely smitten.
But when Cat goes home with Nate for Thanksgiving, she discovers something shocking from his recent past that proves that he hasn’t always been so encouraging of women of all shapes and sizes. Cat has no idea what to think, but she does know one thing - this might destroy their relationship before it's even had a chance to get off the ground.
Before Cat can figure out whether the real Nate is the sensitive, adoring guy she fell in love with, or an undercover asshole, she'll have to finally feel comfortable in her own skin - even if it means leaving him forever.

#Free - Hannah’s Dream by Lenore Butler @ALJambor

Hannah’s Dream by Lenore Butler

Amazon Kindle US

Genre – Historical Romance

Rating – PG

5 (6 reviews)

Free until 30 December 2013

A sweet historical set in 1895
Hannah Dawes is an enchanting strawberry blond who is betrothed to the boy next door.  When his father sends him a hundred miles away to become a doctor, Hannah vows to wait for him.  When he marries another, she's hurt, but she's not down for long.  Hannah has a dream, and the gumption to see it through.  Drawn to the colors in the church's stained glass windows, she abandons the sandcastle sculptures she shared with her former beau and embraces painting with color.  She draws inspiration from the wild Atlantic ocean and when the family fortune is lost and she is forced to move to Colorado, Hannah is heartbroken - until she sees the Rocky Mountains and a cowboy named Adam.
Adam is a shy man who loves horses and thinks he'll spend his life on the range.  But when he
sets eyes on the saucy, red-haired Hannah, he's smitten.  He hasn't known many women, and that Hannah is a strange one.  At first, he retreats when she gets riled up, which seems to be all the time, and she doesn't think he likes her, and when he tries to talk to her, his lack of sophistication frustrates her.  But there is something about the sweet cowboy that stays with her, and even when she meets a handsome and rich doctor, she can't get Adam out of her mind.
While they try to find common ground, Hannah and Adam grow to love one another, but someone from Hannah's past has come to Colorado to steal her away and won't let anyone stand in his way.  Will he keep Hannah and Adam apart?
Settle into an sweet, old-fashioned romance and get lost in Hannah's Dream.