Forgiven Are the Starry-Eyed 
Christine Doré Miller 
Published by: Evernight Teen
Publication date: April 26th, 2019
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult

Naïve sixteen-year-old Andrea Cavanaugh is elated when Josh, a charismatic, bright-eyed piano prodigy, becomes her first boyfriend. But the closer she gets to him, the more she realizes that he is not the boy she first fell for. In its poignancy and emotional darkness, Forgiven Are the Starry-Eyed takes you deep into the delicate and devastating web of shame that spirals from the depths of dating violence when dreamy teenage love turns dark. Andrea must find not only an escape, but a belief that she is even worthy of freedom.

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EXCERPT:

My eyelids closed as if they were being drawn down by sluggish, unhurried weights. When I forced them open after several seemingly endless moments, nothing had changed. I could still make out a blurry image of Josh standing nearby, Mr. Thompson’s hands clenched firmly on Josh’s shoulders from behind. There was a crowd, I think, and muffled voices. The steel school locker felt cold against my back and I recognized the familiar feeling that lately seemed to just dwell and ache in my bones. Fear, I think it was, mixed with just enough madness to keep the blood racing through my veins … fast. Too fast.
“Why did you do that, Andrea?” Josh shouted in my direction.
My eyes fell closed again. I don’t remember what else he said. I just remember the feeling of each overly pronounced syllable piercing the air while he said it. I stared through the darkness that danced behind my heavy eyelids. What had I done?
I tried to pry open my hazy eyes to examine the faces of the expanding crowd as they stood, mouths agape. I only recognized a few. There were hardcover music books sprawled open on the tile floor at my feet. Confused, I looked to Josh, but the heavy silence of the room deafened any words he may have been saying. I gripped the ends of my soft, thin hair between my slender fingers and waited. Each thought sunk deeper than the last.
There was a poster taped sloppily against the locker behind me. I turned my head to face it and focused. The ends were curled up and there were ripples in the masking tape adorned to the edges. “Oakwood High School Invitational—TONIGHT” it read in handwritten purple block letters. There was a pixelated saxophone image pasted underneath the words, “Brought to you by Mr. Thompson and the Oakwood High Jazz Band.” I brought my hand up to trace the edges. The poster board felt crisp and thick under my fingertips. I could smell the aftermath of the permanent marker. The loud reverberating voice behind me got softer until it resembled a deep echo I could easily ignore. I started to pick at the tape from the bottom left corner of the poster until I felt the sticky residue ball up underneath my fingernail.
Suddenly the life reentered my body in one abrupt breath when I felt a strong tug on my arm. I turned and saw Ethan Marks. Everyone else was gone. Had it been minutes this time? Hours?
“Andrea! Come on,” he barked at me, interlacing my arm, tucking it quickly under his. He jerked me to a standing position and pulled me down the hall, speeding up his gate as I stumbled to catch up.
“Where’s Josh?” I asked worriedly, but he didn’t answer. We were silent as we walked through the empty hallway. I lifted my gaze, trying to catch Ethan’s eye, trying to read his thoughts. His light blue eyes, usually sparkling with laughter, were steely and somber as he charged forward, dragging me with him, away from the wreckage I’d caused.
He stopped short and took a deep breath. His eyes were unyielding and dismal as they studied me, and slowly his frustration melted into a deep sadness.
“What happened, Andrea? What was that back there?”
“I don’t know…” My voice began breaking. My thoughts were muddled beyond recognition and I couldn’t form the right words, or any words, to explain.
Ethan wrapped himself around me in a gentle, firm embrace. It felt kind. And warm. And wonderfully different. My muscles unclenched for the first time in months, and I didn’t know I was crying until I tasted the salt as it stained my face. I buried my head into Ethan’s chest as he tightened his hold on me. I wanted him to say something, to tell me everything would be all right, but we both knew better. So we just stood there, Ethan supporting me as I clasped the back of his cotton t-shirt between my fingers.
After a few minutes, I fully returned to my body as my breathing calmed. I steadied my stance and took a step backward, shakily holding Ethan’s forearms as I regained my balance. Wiping smudged mascara from my pale face, I met Ethan’s eyes and quickly looked down, fixating on a crack in the tile below me.
“Hey,” he started, “Andrea … it’s…”
“I’m okay. Ethan, I’m sorry. I’m sorry you had to … I’m sorry I … ugh your shirt.” I motioned to the tear stains on his light green tee that crept from his chest to his shoulder.
“Oh God, don’t worry about that. Andie, I just…”
“It’s fine.” I wiped my face and took a deep breath. “Thanks,” I said, squeezing Ethan’s hand and looking in his eyes sincerely, so he knew I meant it. “I should go. But thanks.” I shook my head and turned around to walk back into the havoc and face what I had done. I felt Ethan staring at me as I left. He was just another person whose life would’ve been better if he hadn’t met me. I swallowed, took a breath, and kept walking.
It was over for now, that latest incident, and there was no way to tell when there would be another one … but there would definitely be another one. I was too broken for it to be any other way.

Author Bio:
Christine lives in the Los Angeles area with her husband and their two children. She works full-time as a senior marketing manager for a large media company and holds a Bachelor's of Business Administration degree from Western Michigan University where she studied marketing. Growing up in the chilly midwest, she developed a deep passion for dramatic writing and alternative music at an early age, which still peaks through in her adult-corporate-mom life today. Forgiven Are the Starry-Eyed is Christine's debut novel.

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THE SCREAM BEHIND HER SMILE BOOK BLITZ & GIVEAWAY !!!

The Scream Behind Her Smile 
Athena Daniels 
Publication date: April 12th, 2019
Genres: Adult, Psychological Thriller

It’s one thing to discover your husband is not who you believe him to be.

It’s another thing entirely to prove it.

The only question now, is how far he will go to protect his secrets.

From the #1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING AUTHOR of the award-winning Beyond the Grave paranormal romance series.

“Athena Daniels has spun a spell-binding story that is sure to seduce fans of suspense… Her compelling writing style coupled with elements of high drama and disturbing characters makes for an emotionally intense read. Athena Daniels has a new fan in me!” Readers Favorite, 5 Stars

“…a contemporary psychological thriller with a solid plot line which had me reading late into the night. I thoroughly enjoyed every word.” 5 Stars, Readers Favorite

***
One lie is enough to question all truths.
As I lie here in my front hallway, in the place where it all began, I wonder what would have happened if I’d never opened the door that afternoon?
Would she have gone somewhere else? Would she have swept off in another direction, an alternative reality where our lives would never have crossed paths?
And now I’m lying here, blood pooling beneath my body, deep crimson smears on cold white tiles, remembering every sordid moment in vivid detail.
There’s a shadow standing over me.
“I want you to die here, slowly and alone.” Her voice is cold, emotionless. “And I want you to use the time to think about what you did. And when you take your last breath, I want you to realize it’s all your fault. All of it!”
I drift in and out of consciousness and wonder if I had my chance to do it over again, if I had the choice, would I choose not to open the door that day?
Even after everything, I know that I would.
I’d go through it all again, and then some, if it meant the chance to be with Zach just one more time…

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—

EXCERPT:

I drag my gaze from across the room and look at my husband. Really look at him. He has his eyes squeezed shut. Has he always done that?
Was there ever a time we’d looked at each other as we made love?
“Derek?” I whisper. “Derek,” I repeat a little louder when it is clear he hadn’t heard me.
Derek opens his eyes, a slight frown between his brows. “Do you want me to stop?” Is that impatience in his tone?
“No,” I say. “I… I love you.”
“Love you, too.” But he closes his eyes as he says the words. He doesn’t see the tear that escapes between lids I’ve squeezed shut.
He changes the angle of his thrust. It’s only slight, but I recognize it, and I know he is getting close. I can almost tell, to the exact thrust, when he’ll climax.
Then he’ll roll off me and onto his back. I’ll lay my head on his chest and listen to the beat of his heart as it slows. For one minute. Never longer. He’ll then roll over, and I’ll spoon his back.
His eyes are shut, so he doesn’t see the other tear that rolls down my cheek to dampen the hair at the base of my neck. But I’m not even sad.
I don’t feel anything at all.
How can I cry when I feel this empty?
How can I feel empty with my husband inside me in the most intimate way possible?
With the final thrust of his hips, like an orchestra conductor’s last wave of his staff, Derek finishes.
Without a single glance in my direction, he rolls onto his back.
I didn’t even bother to fake an orgasm.
He doesn’t seem to care.
This time I roll over, my back toward him.
He doesn’t move to hold me as his heart slows. Instead, I listen as his breathing turns to a light snore.
I’m not where I belong. But that can’t be right. I’m married. I’m living with my husband. Surely this is where I belong.
Then why do I feel so lost?
And so terribly alone.

Author Bio:
Athena Daniels is the #1 international bestselling author of the award-winning Beyond the Grave paranormal romance series and the romantic thrillers Desperate and The Scream Behind Her Smile. In 2016, Athena was nominated for Author of the Year and Best New Author in AusRom Today's Reader's Choice Awards.

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Review of ONE SECOND AFTER by William FORSTCHEN

One Second After

(After #1)

by William R. Forstchen

Published March 17th, 2009 by Forge Books

Hardcover, 352 pages

New York Times best-selling author William R. Forstchen now brings us a story which can be all too terrifyingly real ... a story in which one man struggles to save his family and his small North Carolina town after America loses a war, in one second, a war that will send America back to the Dark Ages ... A war based upon a weapon, an Electro Magnetic Pulse (EMP). A weapon that may already be in the hands of our enemies.

Months before publication, One Second After has already been cited on the floor of Congress as a book all Americans should read, a book already being discussed in the corridors of the Pentagon as a truly realistic look at a weapon and its awesome power to destroy the entire United States, literally within one second. It is a weapon that the Wall Street Journal warns could shatter America. In the tradition of On the Beach, Fail Safe, and Testament, this book, set in a typical American town, is a dire warning of what might be our future ... and our end. 

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If you are looking for a love story or an upbeat self-help book you're not going to find it here. However, what you will find is a good fictional story that educates individuals on the danger of EMP warfare. Currently, an EMP attack is a real threat to our lives, therefore, William R. Forstchen provides readers with a tame version of the end of today's society. Furthermore, learning what an EMP is and the science of it, I found damn interesting. 

The story is told from the viewpoint of John, the protagonist. Through his eyes, the reader experiences the dreadful turn mankind takes. With this in mind, a great deal of the horror that takes place is mentioned, though the author does not go into gruesome specifics that make your skin crawl, just the realistic details. Furthermore, the book makes the reader think about how you would survive if such an event occurred. Water? Medication? Personal Safety? In every man for himself situation, what would you do? (feel free to answer below in the comments) 

Finally, I did find the many grammar hiccups annoying. For Example, “John realized he must have been behind the wall for long minutes.” (p148). I don’t think my time was wasted reading this book, but I will be passing on reading the other two books in the series. The author did a nice job wrapping up the books ending making it able to be read as a stand-alone novel. 

William R. Forstchen (born 1950) is an American author who began publishing in 1983 with the novel Ice Prophet. He is a Professor of History and Faculty Fellow at Montreat College, in Montreat, North Carolina. He received his doctorate from Purdue University with specializations in Military History, the American Civil War and the History of Technology.

Forstchen is the author of more than forty books, including the award-winning We Look Like Men of War, a young adult novel about an African-American regiment that fought at the Battle of the Crater, which is based upon his doctoral dissertation, The 28th USCTs: Indiana’s African-Americans go to War, 1863-1865 and the "Lost Regiment" series which has been optioned by both Tom Cruise and M. Night Shyamalan.

Forstchen’s writing efforts have, in recent years, shifted towards historical fiction and non-fiction. In 2002 he started the “Gettysburg” trilogy with Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich; the trilogy consists of Gettysburg: A Novel of the Civil War, Grant Comes East, and Never Call Retreat: Lee and Grant - The Final Victory. More recently, they have published two works on the events leading up to Pearl Harbor and immediately after that attack Pearl Harbor, and Days of Infamy.

Forstchen Website

VENOMOUS HEART BOOK BLITZ & AMAZON KINDLE GIVEAWAY

Venomous Heart 
Mary Auclair 
(Eok Warrior, #3)
Publication date: April 4th, 2019
Genres: Adult, Fantasy, Science Fiction

After drowning his soul in blood, can this alien warrior be saved?

As the only doctor on Aveyn, Ava works day and night for the people she considers hers. Only… she’s not really one of them, is she? She’s a hybrid, a highly illegal creature created by Trade Minister Knut for his personal enjoyment. And she risks a fate worse than death if her existence is ever discovered by Prime Councilor Aav, the most powerful Matriarch in the Ring.
When a tall, arrogant, sapphire blue alien comes to Aveyn, it’s not long before headstrong Ava gets in trouble with him – the new Eok warrior in charge.

Arlen wants nothing to do with his new assignment on Aveyn. All he wants is to return to the violence at the Frontier and drown his broken heart in bloodshed. But he made a deal with his brother, the Commander-in Chief-of the Eok armies: a year of peace for a year of combat. So, Arlen comes to Aveyn fully intent on ruling all those who live there with an iron fist…

… all except a troublesome, gorgeous female whose purple eyes haunt his dreams. When the Mating Venom pushes him to the edge of madness, can Arlen learn to trust in his heart again, or is his soul lost to the bloodlust?

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—

EXCERPT:

She closed her eyes.
The scents became clearer as she kept her eyes closed. The water, pure and cold; the grass under her naked soles; and the flowers. The flowers, with their stubborn, extravagant love for life. How many times had she wished she was like one of those flowers? Blooming, happy, beautiful. Hundreds of times, thousands, she’d wished it. Every time Knut made her cry, every time Knut made her feel like she wasn’t truly a person.
“You shouldn’t come out here alone, especially at night.”
A male voice startled her and Ava turned quickly, holding the scalpel she had brought with her in front of her body defensively. A tall, broad figure stepped out of the deep shadows created by a series of bushes, a figure she recognized instantly.
“I could tell you the same thing.” Ava lowered her arm but didn’t withdraw it completely.
“If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were following me.”
“I am following you.” There it was again, that humorless voice, all business and military.
It made her body tingle in all the wrong places, even though alarms bells rang in her head.
Ava watched warily as Arlen approached, completely undeterred by her weapon.
“How very stalkerish of you.”
He didn’t answer, just prowled closer to her with an uncanny, almost feline grace. The silver moonlight reflected off his head, making the markings on his skin even more apparent. A tiny thrill skittered across her skin at the sight of him and she pulled the sides of her cotton sweater more tightly around her body.
He was close enough now that she could see his features clearly, the harsh shadows from the cloudless moon playing on the angles of his face, giving him the appearance of an ancient,
long-forgotten deity. His pale eyes reflected the light, seeming almost entirely white as he stared down at her.
There was nothing soft about him. Not even the plump hardness of his lips as his mouth stretched into a humorless grin.
“Are you always this insolent?”
Arlen hovered above her, barely two feet away, and he was so tall she had to tilt her head back to meet his gaze. His arms were bare in his sleeveless vest, rippling with muscles and covered with markings. He was a monument to strength and control, to this cold military authority she sensed in everything he did.
The tingling in her belly grew as she stared at those strong arms, that skin covered with markings that seemed as rough as it was soft. What would it feel to run her fingers along it? Her tongue?
Get a grip! What is going on with you?
“Maybe it’s just your Eok charm.” Ava forced herself to relax her posture but her arms refused to let go, and she still hugged herself. “Are you always this creepy?”
He shook his head at her sassy answer then his eyes went down to her scalpel. The corner of his mouth curved up slightly, and there was something in his gaze that wasn’t there before as he looked back up at her. It looked an awful lot like amusement.
“Do you plan on stabbing me? If so, I hope your arms are stronger than they look. It’ll take you all night to kill me with that.”
“Of course not.” Ava brought her arm down, suddenly feeling very foolish. What was she expecting, anyway? It wasn’t like she could fight off an Eok warrior with her scalpel. “I brought it with me for protection, that’s all.” She turned to the river, but she could feel Arlen’s gaze on her. “Nobody comes here, anyway.”
“Nobody but you.” He planted himself at her side and they stayed like that in silence for a while. When he finally spoke again, his voice wasn’t all business and efficiency, but a bit dreamy. “Did you come here often? Before?”
Ava’s arms tightened around her body and a sudden surge of emotions welled up in her throat. Aside from Uril, nobody asked her questions. Nobody cared what she felt. Why did he?
Or maybe she was just a fool to think he did.

Author Bio:
Mary grew up in the quiet peace of a small rural village in the heart of Quebec, Canada. She spent her childhood chasing butterflies and catching frogs, playing in the mud and generally being as unladylike as she could.

​She now write as much as her busy schedule allows to bring to life her inner world, filled with exotic planets, mysterious creatures and off course, hot, alpha heroes and the women who melt their hearts.

When she's not writing, she can be found in the garden, walking her dogs or playing with fire in her kitchen as a part time hit-or-miss chef.

​She loves to hear from her readers, so don't be shy and drop her a line! Sign up for the newsletter on her website to receive sneak peeks, exclusive bonus stories and special discounts!

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