Friday, January 25, 2019

Book Feature: Helping Hands by Ken Saik






Title: Helping Hands
Author: Ken Saik
Publisher: iUniverse
Genre: Fiction/Romance
Format: Ebook

Jill Kreshky is recently divorced. She is doing her best to reclaim her life. After an accident causes her to spend six weeks alone in a hospital, she is haunted by the awareness that she must find a way to once again become part of her children’s lives. Unfortunately, Jill doesn’t have a car, her job is temporarily on hold, her bank account is empty. There is no question that Jill needs encouragement from someone she can trust. After she learns that a church friend, Bill Wynchuk, has been more loyal to her than she ever realized, Jill decides to invite him for supper. As he relies on his faith and skills as a psychologist to lovingly lead Jill to appreciate her inner strength and need for the Lord, she gains insights that propel her down a path of reconciliation that helps her mend relations with her son and return to Ontario to face her greatest fears about her family and unveil a deeply buried secret. In this inspirational story, a woman attempting to reclaim her life is led on an emotional journey, with help from a devoted friend, that ultimately reveals the truth and prompts her to seek forgiveness.

PURCHASE HERE


Ken Saik is a committed Christian who retired after thirty-one years of teaching social studies to pursue writing fiction and poetry. To date, he has published three novellas and a novel, Baggage Burdens. Saik currently resides in Spruce Grove, Alberta, Canada.


Ken Saik is a committed Christian who retired after thirty-one years of teaching social studies to pursue writing fiction and poetry. To date, he has published three novellas and a novel, Baggage Burdens. Saik currently resides in Spruce Grove, Alberta, Canada.

Wednesday, January 23, 2019

Book Blast: The Employee Millionaire by H.J. Chammas






Title: The Employee Millionaire
Author: H.J. Chammas
Publisher: PartridgeSingapore
Genre: Business/Economics
Format: Ebook

When the financial crisis erupted in 2008, thousands of people lost jobs they thought theyd always have to sustain their standard of living. For H. J. Chammas, it was a wakeup call to escape struggling to make ends meet. It was time to take charge of his life and stop acting like a lab rat following a set program. In this detailed guidebook to buying, owning, and managing rental properties, he gives readers a plan that you wont find in other books. Instead of promoting foolish risks, he helps you leverage your position as an employee to achieve financial freedom. Learn how to: evaluate the current state of your finances; overcome limiting beliefs about money and investing; set personal objectives to achieve financial freedom; and think and operate like a seasoned real estate investor. Chammas shares real-life examples that will help you build a personalized investment blueprint to build your rental property portfolio and become wealthy. From identifying and closing deals, getting approved for loans, renting out properties, dealing with tenants, and capitalizing on opportunities, this book will challenge how youve always looked at life, finances, investments, and real estate.

PURCHASE HERE


H.J. Chammas is a self-made "Employee Millionaire" who has achieved financial freedom by investing in rental properties throughout Asia, Dubai and Europe. With over 10 years of real estate industry and investing experience, as well as property management, he brings forward a blueprint for real estate investing in a simple and clear manner.

He is the founder and CEO of the Employee Millionaire, a company that empowers employees to achieve financial freedom and become millionaires with real estate investing.

To emulate Chammas' success in single family real estate investment, sign up for his program on www.employeemillionaire.com to learn the sound investing principles and avail of free templates and worksheets that makes rental properties investing almost on autopilot.




Tuesday, January 22, 2019

Interview with Josh Hickman, Author of The Kinfolk: Cult of Sex and Cheese


Equally fascinated with horror movies, comedians, and true crime since early childhood, Josh Hickman spent equal time wading in the heady waters of Famous Monsters of Filmland magazine, the Three Stooges comedy shorts, and Helter Skelter while growing up in various parts of Texas. When he became a writer, Hickman incorporated his comedic sensibility and lifelong love of the horror and true crime genres into his satiric writings. His past comic novels also include the fictional comedy bio THROUGH TICK & TINN: THE TRUE STORY OF THE GREATEST UNKNOWN COMEDY TEAM EVER KNOWN and the illustrated surreal, cautionary high-seas treasure-hunt saga AMBERGRIS. Hickman lives and works in Hollywood.
His latest book is the satirical fantasy, The Kinfolk: Cult of Sex and Cheese.
Visit his website at http://www.joshhickmanbooks.com.

WEBSITE & SOCIAL LINKS:

WEBSITE | TWITTER | FACEBOOK



About the Book:

Hollywood Author Josh Hickman will release his latest brand of satirical, humorous books in mid-November. In the author’s new book, THE KINFOLK: CULT OF SEX AND CHEESE  he explores the maddening world of cults.  Mr. Hickman’s new novel follows his last satirical fantasy book, FIVE
SLICES OF FEAR, that has received much critical praise from book reviewers.
Hollywood writer Mr. Hickman releases his new book as the fourth in a fantasy book series he has created and published.  In THE KINFOLK: CULT OF SEX AND CHEESE he chronicles the rise and fall of a “seductive, fanatical cult” led by the enigmatic Dillman “Papa Dilly” Bradford.
With THE KINFOLK: CULT OF SEX AND CHEESE once again fact meets fiction in the funny fantasy worlds author Josh Hickman creates. This time his fascination with cults has produced a fresh, yet familiar cast of charlatans, rubes, losers, and lucky fools, finding laughs in the cult impulse, religious fervor, and the common pathos of the average person who will do anything to find solace and belonging. Once more, author Hickman focuses his gaze on tragic comedy that is human existence--with all its fears, pitfalls, trials, and triumphs--and again he speaks hilarious truth to power in his latest entry THE KINFOLK: CULT OF SEX AND CHEESE.
“For as long as I’ve read books I’ve always been a huge fan of comedic novels,” Hickman asserted. “It was time I decided to start expressing my own comedic side of creative writing.”

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It’s a pleasure to have you here today, Josh. Can you tell us what your new book is about?


The Kinfolk: Cult of Sex & Cheese is a comedy about a cult. I’ve been fascinated with cults and the religious cult impulse for many years, and I wanted to explore the pathos, hypocrisy, and absurdity which can arise in the cult milieu. What is it in us that makes us give up so much, to do such crazy things, to make such leaps of faith for a tenuous chance at belonging, deeper meaning, and perhaps some sort of “salvation.”


Can you tell us a little about your main and supporting characters?


The leader of the Kinfolk cult is Dillman “Papa Dilly” Bradford who started out as a sickly child, but quickly took to faith-healing and monkey training. His fiercely loyal wife Mama Milly props him up during fits of delusion and protects him from any detractors. They, their eventual three children, and the odd, estranged Cousin Rear make up the core of the cult. Runaways, burnouts, hippies, and the spiritually lost are slowly picked up by the Kinfolk in their travels across the country.


Your book is set in Los Angeles and its environs.  Can you tell us why you chose this city in particular?



L.A. has a long history of oddball cults, some tiny, some huge. At one time or another, groups such as the Source Family, the Manson Family, Synanon, Scientology, the Sybionese Liberation Army, and the Center for Feeling Therapy were all based here. If you had to pick a cult capitol, Los Angeles might be it. I later move the cult north near Fresno where they attempt a takeover of the tiny town of Lemon Curd, California, with hilarious results, of course.


Open the book to page 69.  What is happening?


Great choice, 69 is a wonderful page. We are learning of Cousin Rear’s background in Texas working at the Shootin’ Fish In A Barrel! kiddie amusement park. Then we go into his failed career as a reverend in the Itching For Zion Church. Kicked out of the congregation for not obtaining a permit to solemnize marriages, he takes his business on the road as “Marryin’” Rev. Rear, specializing 3rd and 4th marriages.


What has been the most pivotal point of your writing life?


I think writing The Kinfolk: Cult of Sex & Cheese was the most pivotal so far. It took longer to write than my other books, requiring more research. I think its also the most thoughtful and philosophical of my books, perhaps. I tried to make it fully fleshed-out and realized, not concentrating so much on the laugh-a-line writing I had been shooting for in past books. It’s probably the most realistic of my books, though there is still a good deal of my trademark absurdity and surreality.


What kind of advice would you give other fiction authors?


Do your homework, do your research, and write what you know. If you ever catch yourself typing away and suddenly think “I’m not really sure about what I’m writing here,” stop. Do as much editing as you can beforehand, so that by the time you get to the page you know what you’re doing, and you know what you’re saying. Endless rewrites aren’t good for anybody, I don’t think.


GIVEAWAY!

Josh Hickman is giving away a $25 Amazon Gift Card!

Terms & Conditions:
  • By entering the giveaway, you are confirming you are at least 18 years old.
  • One winner will be chosen via Rafflecopter.
  • This giveaway ends midnight January 31.
  • Winner will be contacted via email on February 1.
  • Winner has 48 hours to reply.
Good luck everyone!

ENTER TO WIN!




a Rafflecopter giveaway

Monday, January 21, 2019

A Morning Chat with Psychological Thriller Author Rob Kaufman


As a child, Rob Kaufman was always fascinated by the stories recited by those around him and the words used to tell them. As he got older, his need to tell his own stories grew, as did his ability to share them in exciting and captivating ways.

However, he wanted to share more than just stories. His primary desire was to create characters with whom people could relate, while at the same time bringing them through a journey from which most would crumble.

His degree in Psychology was the first step toward getting beneath the surface of the people in his life. What followed was a lifelong search for what makes people tick – what forces them to become evil when deep down in their heart of hearts, they are yearning for love. Rob’s characters walk this search with him, deep into the human psyche, creating psychological thrillers from every day events.

Rob’s second book “One Last Lie" continues to receive great praise and is selling well in both electronic and paperback formats. His current book, “A Broken Reality” is much darker than his first, with characters who hold bits and pieces of strangers he’s known, friends he’s had and personal tragedy he’s lived through.

“This book hits home for me,” says Rob. “There were a few pages that made me laugh out loud as I wrote them... and many that made me cry. And the great thing is, I’m finding that many readers of this book are experiencing the same emotions.”

Through social and other media, Rob hopes to get “A Broken Reality” into the hands of millions, so that they, too, can experience the ups, downs, twists, turns and final tragedy that has helped make this book a Five-Star contender.
Website Address: www.AuthorRobKaufman.com
Twitter Address: @RobKaufmanCT
                                                   

About the Book:

Title: A BROKEN REALITY
Author: Rob Kaufman
Publisher: Independent
Pages: 320
Genre: Thriller/Suspense/Psychological Thriller

BOOK BLURB:
On a fateful night in the dead of winter, an unimaginable tragedy changes the lives of two families forever. How will they manage to deal with reality while stopping the sociopath who is pushing them toward the edge of sanity?

Ten-year-old, Danny Madsen, has been missing for four days when Jesse Carlton begins his own search for his godson on a frigid, snowy night. Driving along a deserted rural road, Jesse hits a stretch of black ice at the same time Danny appears from the thicket. Unable to control the car, Jesse slams into the boy and watches helplessly as Danny's body flies back into the dark brush.

When Jesse regains consciousness, he has no recollection of how he and his car wound up in a ditch. However, there's a witness: Charles Hastings, the sociopathic kidnapper who chased Danny through the brush and into the path of Jesse's car.

Hastings takes this chance to set up Jesse so he'll take the fall for both Danny's disappearance and death. And so the mind games begin--an onslaught of psychological manipulation that devastates Jesse, his wife, Danny's parents and the cops' investigation. Inexplicably, the torment continues even after the primary suspect is killed and the rollercoaster of emotions and confusion seems never-ending until the final and devastating truth is revealed.

If you like gripping, suspenseful page-turners that keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end, this is a must read!

It’s a pleasure to have you here today, Rob. Can you tell us what your new book is about? 

A Broken Reality is about a kidnapping that goes awry and what happens to a man, his family and his friends when he suffers an event so tragic, his mind refuses to accept reality. Add to that, a lurking sociopath who is intent on making sure that this man accepts and suffers reality, and you’re in for the ride of a lifetime. 

Can you tell us a little about your main and supporting characters?
The two main characters are Jesse Carlton and Charles Hastings. Jesse is the godfather of Danny, a ten-year-old boy who has been missing for four days. He goes in search of Danny and while doing so suffers the tragic event of hitting Danny with his car and dissociative amnesia takes over… he can’t remember a thing. Charles Hastings is the sociopath who kidnapped Danny and witnessed the event. He comes from a terrible childhood and has, his entire life, made other people suffer for it. Now it’s Jesse’s turn.
The supporting characters are: Melissa Carlton, Jesse’s wife, who is by his side every step of the way and forces him to see the psychiatrist who can possibly help him break through his amnesia. Antonio Rivera is the FBI Agent in charge of Danny’s kidnapping and spends so much time working and trying to find the boy that he puts his own family-life in jeopardy. Becky and Don Madsen are Danny’s parents who are trying to stay sane, and keep it together, through the series of events that began with their son’s kidnapping and ends with… well, I don’t want to give away the ending!


Your book is set in Rockland, Massachusetts.  Can you tell us why you chose this city in particular?

Most of my books take place in New England. Not only do I live there (Connecticut), but Boston is one of my favorite cities, as are the surrounding areas. I needed a location where snowstorms are a normal occurrence. I also needed a location that I knew well so that readers could “feel” the surroundings as I spoke about them.


Open the book to page 69.  What is happening?

Becky, whose son, Danny has been kidnapped, is deeply depressed and at her wit’s end. She is sitting on her bed, holding her nephew, Dylan, and rocking back and forth – talking to him as though the boy she is holding is Danny and Dylan is the boy who is missing. She’s in the midst of a breakdown and her husband and brother are about to bring it to an end. 


What has been the most pivotal point of your writing life?

I had started my second book, “One Last Lie” and could not, for some reason, get past Chapter 4. I let eight months go by until one of my Facebook friends (someone I grew up with), said, “Since your first book, I’ve been waiting for your second book. I’m not going to live forever. DO IT ALREADY!” I can’t say why, but it pushed me to do what I had to do and the creativity started to flow. I finished the book in two months and it’s been extremely successful. I owe my friend a lot!


What kind of advice would you give other fiction authors?

No matter how crazy you think your idea might be or how impossible you think it will be to pull everything together for the story to make sense: stick with it. A Broken Reality created a lot of sleepless nights and frustration. I had to precisely figure out timing, scenes, action, etc. so that there wouldn’t be one flaw… so that an editor couldn’t come back to me and say the plot was broken or the timeline didn’t work. In the end, it all came together and again, it was worth it. A Broken Reality is getting great reviews from readers all over the world.


Wednesday, January 16, 2019

On the Spotlight: One Taste To Many, by Debra H. Goldstein



Genre: MYSTERY (COZY MYSTERY)
Author:  Debra H. Goldstein
Websitewww.debrahgoldstein.com
Publisher:  Kensington
Find out more on Amazon

A culinary cozy unlike any other, One Taste Too Many introduces Sarah Blair, a culinary-challenged, recently-divorced woman adjusting to her new status as “single,” her new studio apartment—which she shares with her Siamese cat, RahRah—and her new job as a law firm receptionist. When her ex-husband gets murdered and her twin sister becomes the top suspect, Sarah will have to add “solving crimes” to the list of challenges she’s taking on in her newly single life.

About One Taste Too Many:  When Sarah Blair’s sister, a trained chef, is suspected of murdering Sarah’s ex-husband with one of her award winning dishes, Sarah mourns the rat’s death but leaves the sleuthing to the professionals until she realizes that she and her sister are their only suspects. Sarah’s  efforts to find whodunit are complicated by her twin’s refusal to help—and a glitch in the rat’s will that forces Sarah to relinquish her beloved cat, the only thing she got in her divorce, to the woman who broke up her marriage.

Compelled to discover the true killer, Sarah soon finds that for a woman whose good china is floral paper plates, getting too close to the heat in the kitchen may be scorching. As a cook of convenience, Sarah will have to come up with just the right recipe to save her sister and avoid her own worse than death fate—being in the kitchen.

A fun, fresh twist on the culinary cozy mystery, One Taste Too Many stands out with its charming heroine:  Sarah Blair, a cook of convenience.  Moreover, One Taste Too Many is informed by Goldstein’s career as a former litigator and US Administrative Judge and her unique perspective on the inner workings of the perfect crime. A to-die-for tale with an irresistible plot and wholly relatable cast of characters, One Taste Too Many heralds the advent of a delicious new series.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR 

Debra H. Goldstein is the author of the Sarah Blair Mysteries as well as Should Have Played Poker, a Carrie Martin and the Mah Jongg Players Mystery and the 2012 IPPY Award-winning Maze in Blue, a mystery set on the University of Michigan’s campus. Her short stories, including Anthony and Agatha nominated “The Night They Burned Ms. Dixie’s Place,” have appeared in numerous periodicals and anthologies including Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Black Cat Mystery Magazine, and Mystery WeeklyA Judge, author, litigator, wife, step-mom and mother of twins, Debra is an involved community volunteer, MWA member, and serves as a national board member of Sisters in Crime, as well as being the SinC Guppy Chapter’s President. 

Connect with Debra on the web: 

Book Feature: Lavender Shores Series by Rosalind Abel


LAVENDER SHORES SERIES by Rosalind Abel,
M/M Romance

Lavender Shores is a charming little California town enclosed by the Point Reyes National Seashore. It has forests, wildlife, cliffs, beaches, and ocean views. At the center of it all is a fancy downtown of picture perfect restaurants and shops, surrounded by Victorian mansions and craftsman cottages.

The town was designed to be a safe-haven in the 1940’s by five families. The series follows the descents of those five founding families as they discover romance, redemption, passion, adventure, and love. Like all small towns, everyone always knows everyone else’s business. And when you’re ‘founding family royalty’ all eyes are on you, and that can make things… interesting.

While each novel is guaranteed to have you laughing, crying, sighing, and fanning yourself as you reach every happy ending, there will always be twists and turns along the way. Lavender Shores is pure storybook quality (of the grown-up variety) and the ultimate place to fall in love.


Title: The Palisade
Author: Rosalind Abel
Publisher: Wings of Ink, LLC
Pages: 230
Genre: Gay Romance, MM Romance, Gay Fiction

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Title: The Garden
Author: Rosalind Abel
Publisher: Wings of Ink, LLC
Pages: 264
Genre: Gay Romance, MM Romance, Gay Fiction

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Title: The Veranda
Author: Rosalind Abel
Publisher: Wings of Ink, LLC
Pages: 258
Genre: Gay Romance, MM Romance, Gay Fiction

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Title: The Shipwreck
Author: Rosalind Abel
Publisher: Wings of Ink, LLC
Pages: 292
Genre: Gay Romance, MM Romance, Gay Fiction

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Title: The Hideaway
Author: Rosalind Abel
Publisher: Wings of Ink, LLC
Pages: 258
Genre: Gay Romance, MM Romance, Gay Fiction

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Title: The Glasshouse
Author: Rosalind Abel
Publisher: Wings of Ink, LLC
Pages: 304
Genre: Gay Romance, MM Romance, Gay Fiction

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Title: The Alcove
Author: Rosalind Abel
Publisher: Wings of Ink, LLC
Pages: 312
Genre: Gay Romance, MM Romance, Gay Fiction

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Title: The Wilderness
Author: Rosalind Abel
Publisher: Wings of Ink, LLC
Pages: 298
Genre: Gay Romance, MM Romance, Gay Fiction

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Title: The Victorian
Author: Rosalind Abel
Publisher: Wings of Ink, LLC
Pages: 336
Genre: Gay Romance, MM Romance, Gay Fiction

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Rosalind Abel grew up tending chickens alongside her sweet and faithful Chow, Lord Elgin. While her fantasy of writing novels was born during her teen years, she never would have dreamed she’d one day publish steamy romances about gorgeous men. However, sometimes life turns out better than planned.

In between crafting scorching sex scenes and helping her men find their soul mates, Rosalind enjoys cooking, collecting toys, and making the best damn scrapbooks in the world (this claim hasn’t been proven, but she’s willing to put good money on it).

She adores MM Romance, the power it has to sweep the reader away into worlds filled with passion, steam, and love. Rosalind also enjoys her collection of plot bunnies and welcomes new fuzzy ones into her home all the time, so feel free to send any adorable ones her way.

Amazon author page: http://amzn.to/2qoiuLC
BookBub Page: http://bit.ly/2E5fgUe
(Read by Kirt Graves)
Facebook Author page: http://bit.ly/2rH8C4o
Rosalind Abel Website:  http://www.rosalindabel.com
Rosalind Abel Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2v6iuXI
Lavender Shores Website:  http://www.lavendershores.com
Twitter: @rosalind_abel



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