Cover Reveal - Always Remembered

ALWAYS REMEMBERED

(The final Never Forgotten Novel.)

The third and final installment of the Never Forgotten Series by Kelly Risser will release in digital format on May 19, 2015. We have the official cover reveal here for you. Don't forget to flip over to the book page to pre-order your copy today.

ALWAYS REMEMBERED:

One clue… what does it mean?

Ken, the leader of the Blue Men of the Minch, has kidnapped Evan. Before they left, Evan was able to leave a package for Meara—her grandfather’s necklace wrapped in a cloth napkin with one word written in blood. Azuria. Unfortunately, Meara doesn’t understand it and neither does her dad or Kieran.

When Dad and Aunt Brigid attempt to rescue Evan, Meara and Kieran begin to train the clan on how to fight and defend their home. A war is brewing, and Meara is determined their people must prepare for the battle. The training sessions are long and arduous, but the Selkies work hard to learn.

Meanwhile, Evan wakes and finds himself in Belle Tresor, the home of sirens. He’s bound to his blue form, unable to transform to human, and Ken has plans to use Evan’s powers to destroy the Selkies. Thankfully, he’s not alone. He befriends a siren named Deanna and several Blue Men. Can he trust them to help him escape or do they have ulterior motives?

As both sides prepare for an ultimate confrontation, the stakes are high and friendships are tested. Some will rise to be victorious. Some will be destroyed. But love and loyalty will be always remembered in this exciting conclusion to the Never Forgotten series.

Pre-Order Your Copy Today Here.

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If you haven't started reading this series, we recommend you read the first novel today because it's amazing and it's free! Check out Never Forgotten by Kelly Risser.

What do you think? Are you gonna check it out? You should!!

If you recall, Kelly is one of the authors of Fractured Glass. What's better than a free read by an author you already love?

Go get it!

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

Book Review - Off Target

Happy Wednesday, good people of the blogosphere! Wow. I can't believe we're already blazing through October. NaNoWriMo is right around the corner. I do hope you're all prepared. Today, I have another review for you all from my Indie Fever Reading Challenge 2014 list. I've sworn to get through them all before my review request event happens in December. Some of these titles were added after the event, and will be reserved for reviews next year (I already have them scheduled), but they weren't part of my promise list. So, yada-yada. I've marked the additions with a ~.

Here's the list again. Progress is being MADE!

Molly Taggart Off Target REVIEW BELOW
Gloria Piper Finnegan's Quest REVIEW HERE
Skylar Hamilton Burris The Strange Marriage of Anne de Bourgh REVIEW HERE
Tamar Hela Feast Island REVIEW HERE
Rebecca Trogner The Last Keeper's Daughter REVIEW HERE
Scott Marlowe The Five Elements REVIEW HERE
L.K. Evans Keepers of Arden: The Brothers Volume 1 REVIEW HERE
Sarah Mäkelä The Witch Who Cried Wolf REVIEW HERE
Felicia Tatum Masked Encounters REVIEW HERE
David T Griffith The Bestiarum Vocabulum REVIEW HERE
Thaddeus White Sir Edric's Temple REVIEW HERE
Heather Topham Wood The Memory Witch REVIEW HERE
N. L. Greene Illusions Begin REVIEW HERE
J. A. Huss Tragic REVIEW HERE
Pauline Creeden Sanctuary REVIEW HERE
Casey Bond Reap REVIEW HERE 
Casey Bond Devil Creek REVIEW HERE
S. G. Daniels The Druid's Doorway REVIEW HERE
Misty Provencher The Fly House Amazon Kindle $3.99 ~
Peprah Boasiako The Hitman Amazon Kindle $0.99
C. S. Janey Surrender To You Amazon Kindle $2.99
Elle Todd The Elect Amazon Kindle $3.99 
Morgan Wylie Silent Orchids Amazon Kindle **FREE** ~
Laura Howard The Forgotten Ones Amazon Kindle $0.99 ~
Christina Marie Morales Ambience Amazon Kindle $2.99

About the book up for review today:

Title: Off Target
Author: Molly Taggart
Genre: YA Contemporary Coming-of-age
Length (print): 198 Pages
Buy Link: Amazon Kindle $2.99

Synopsis:
Sophie Mitchell may be the top marksman on her high school rifle team, but she has bad aim when it comes to boys. Her best friend Cory tells her that she doesn’t have to date, but how else is she supposed to fit in? Even her own mother thinks she’s eccentric. What almost eighteen-year-old girl isn’t interested in romance? So Sophie resolves to date even while she remains bullet-proofed from love. As Cory observes her amorous adventures from downrange, he worries that, these days, Cupid might be making armor-piercing bullets.

Off Target is a humorous coming-of-age story and a tender romance that can appeal to any adult, young or old, who has ever learned through love.

***Will not appear in review elsewhere! What a cute little cover! I do wish for stronger typography, but the imagery is bang on (no pun intended). It also has good contrast. It just feels somewhat flat.***

On to the good stuff!

Off Target was pitched to me during my 12 Days of Christmas event, where I ask Indie authors to pitch their books for purchase and review. I grab a sample of the ones with great pitches and give them a read. This title was intriguing because of the eccentricities of the main character, Sophie. Let's get going, and I'll tell you about it.

From a Reader's Perspective:
Sophie cracked me up, made me cry, and had me cheering throughout. She's a tough cookie with a penchant for everything guns. I know girls like that, so I could totally see it. I'd be friends with someone like her. That being said, I would've liked to see her with more flaws. She seemed way too perfect. Sure, she had her moments, but her hair, eyes, grades, shooting, and ideals about boys felt just a hair contrived. Either way, I liked her crazy moments, so I'm choosing not to give too much weight to the perfection. Cory was interesting, but I liked his twin brother, O, better. Surprisingly, he was more fleshed out. Pacing of the book was excellent. I didn't find there was a time where it dragged on. In fiction, I prefer none of the comparisons to older times, or things other people said in the past, to be put in parentheses. This novel had a lot of that going on. Feels like an infodump when it comes up, and without all the little quips, it would be an even better story. Plot was awesome, and surprised the heck out of me a couple of times.

From an Editor's Perspective:
There were some inconsistencies in age when things began to happen in the story, misspellings (riffle instead of rifle, a sleep instead of asleep), and one huge snafu where the parents are yelling and tell the MC she's about to be seventeen (she's about to be eighteen). Sadly, this many errors take away the ability to give anything for editing.

Rating:
1 Star for giving me a main character and a supporting cast I'd actually like to meet
1 Star for pacing and plot
1 Star for the happily ever after and tying up all the loose ends
- .25 Star for perfection of the MC
- .75 Star for parenthetical sections that came up way too often
- 1 Star for editing
Overall, 3 out of 5 stars. Recommended for those who enjoy coming-of-age tales with a tough cookie for an MC.

What do you think? Will you pick it up?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

A Young Adult Christmas Anthology

Happy Friday, good people of the blogosphere! Today, I'll be in my writing cave producing a short story for an anthology hosted by the ever affable Allyson Gottlieb. This post will be short. If you don't know who Allyson is, click her name to read my interview with her.

Anywho, I'm gonna give you a little information about my title that'll be included in this awesome collection of works (and there are some amazing authors in this book).

Title: The Frivolity Fairies
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal
Length: 6k-10k words
Short Description: What happens when fairies pay you a visit on Christmas Eve? Shirley Beaux is about to find out what the creatures behind her mother's Christmas bedtime story are really all about.

Releases in November of this year (exact date TBA). We also don't have a working title for the collection yet. I'll be bringing you more information as we get closer.

The price? That'll also be determined later. However, all proceeds will go to charity. That's right, every author is donating their stories!

How exciting is this? Kudos to Allyson for the great concept and her generous heart.

If you're a writer: What anthologies do you have coming out?

If you're a reader: Do you enjoy reading anthologies?

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo

The Abigale Chronicles - Book Blast and Reviews

Happy Thursday, good people of the blogosphere! Today, I'm gonna talk a little bit about my Middle Grade series The Abigale Chronicles, tell you a little about my special offer for the first three books, and share some of the awesome reviews they've gotten. Let's get going!

First, a little, personal story:
I wrote these books with a ton of input from my little girl. She has a wild imagination and thought how great it would be if she could be sucked into her books' world. Not into the story, but into the world behind the story. And what if she became the main character in that land. Perhaps someone who'd gone missing. So, I sat down and went crazy. Then it came time to design the book cover. What you see is the handwriting of a thirteen-year-old girl who lived next door to us. I couldn't have expected more authenticity and was thrilled. Each cover tells a little about the story to be found on the inside. I hope you all enjoy getting to know these books.

The Abigale Chronicles

by Jo Michaels

Book One Synopsis:
Abigale Fontenot is a twelve-year-old girl living in West Bluff, Louisiana, who believes she is perfectly ordinary. When she is threatened by a bully on her way to school one day, what happens causes Abigale to begin a new journey. She has to ask herself, "Is it real or is it all just a dream?" As Abigale learns in Book One, things are rarely exactly as they seem. Friendships are formed with unlikely people: a wizened old woman and Abigale's arch nemesis, Emmett, and with their help Abigale learns she is far from ordinary. Book One of The Abigale Chronicles will leave readers itching for more to find out for themselves just what in the World is happening to Abigale.

What reviewers are saying:
"I found this book very interesting. It puts the imagination into action. There is something for everyone no matter the age." ~ sweet pea

Book Two Synopsis:
Twelve-year-old Abigale Fontenot is struggling to figure out whether her adventures are real or imagined. After an adventure with Amazonian women in book one, Abigale and Emmett have formed a bond through mutual trust and secrets, but Kristy has turned against Abigale because of it. Now, Abigale again finds herself in a precarious situation with a city full of talking cats. Emmett is once more by her side as she faces down a vicious cat queen in an attempt to avoid certain death and restore the leadership of the city to its rightful owner. Will they succeed, or will they be roasted alive? What will happen when Kristy overhears the discussions about the adventures with Ada?

What reviewers are saying:
 "I enjoyed the 2nd book in the series better than the first, there was more action, and even though I don't usually like books with talking animals, I found this one fascinating." ~ Crystal Lee

Book Three Synopsis:
Abigale Fontenot is turning thirteen. Just when she thinks her birthday couldn't possibly get any worse, a new adventure takes hold. Abigale and Emmett are whisked away to a world of fantasy where knights, dragons, and princesses are the order of the day. Abigale is kidnapped by an evil prince in a nearby kingdom, and it's up to Emmett to rescue her. But Abigale finds that escape is not the most important thing; restoring the evil prince's kindness that has been locked away in a magical book by a wicked sorceress must come first. While Emmett is trying to rescue Abigale, she is trying to free the prince from his curse. Will she succeed in her quest before the evil prince kills Emmett, or will she fail and lose her new best friend? Will death matter if the whole thing is a dream, or are the adventures real and truly dangerous?

What reviewers are saying:
"Nice quick read. Written for somebody a little different from me, althought I still enjoyed it My niece just starting to read chapter books would probably love it." ~ Ray

Where can you get these books?
Amazon, Smashwords, B&N, iBooks, anywhere fine books are sold. They're just $0.99 each. You can find the links here: My Published Works

But wait! Last year, I released a special edition box set that has all three books and priced it at $2.99. For a limited time, this set will be just $1.95 on Amazon. The reduction was made recently, so be sure and check the price before you buy.

Here's the link for the 3 in 1: Gimmie the books!

If you prefer paperbacks, they're $5.99 each over at CreateSpace. They make great stocking stuffers for kids. Here are the links for those:
Book One
Book Two
Book Three

Remember, these books are geared toward those who are on a third grade reading level or higher. I wrote these books for my daughter and she simply loves them (she's eight). However, I also had a review on Smashwords from a young man who was fifteen and he loved them, too. So, I'd say the age range between those two is pretty bang on.

I hope you get a chance to grab a sample.

Well, that's all for today, folks! Until next time, WRITE ON!

Jo