Archive for the ‘YA’ Category

Teaser Tuesday #225 ~ Passing Strange: The Well

Posted: November 14, 2017 in Mystery, Teaser Tuesdays, thriller, YA
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Welcome to Teaser Tuesday hosted by Ambrosia  @ The Purple Booker.

Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
• Grab your current read.
• Open to a random page.
•Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

 

My Teaser for this week is from

Passing Strange: The Well

by P.W. Creighton

36186960

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Genre: YA Mystery / Thriller

 My teaser from page 43 in the paperback.

 “There’s this place a little north of town that sunk under the water after an earthquake in like the 1800s. You can still see the remains of the houses when the tide is low and some say you can still see the people under the water.”

~~~~~

Read on if you want to know more.

Synopsis

For Fourteen-year-old Aidan Reynolds, the archaeological dig at the Parrish Cove historical society is the only thing making the summer interesting.

That is until he meets Maddie, an unusual girl who has just moved to town and is convinced that there is more to the local legends surrounding the historical society than even he knows. While Aidan may not believe her, the strange artifacts that are recovered from the dig force them into exploring the dark, twisted history of Parrish Cove and its strange doctor…a man who vanished over a century ago.

Together, they uncover a town secret that has been forgotten for centuries, and discover that there are some things that should stay buried.

Amazon

~~~~~

How about you? Got a tease? Tell me!

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew!

For a list of my reviews go HERE.

For a list of free eBooks updated daily go HERE

To see all of my giveaways go HERE

Thread Of A Spider by D.L. Gardner ~ Book Tour and Giveaway

Posted: November 11, 2017 in Fantasy, giveaways, Historical, YA
Tags: , , ,
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 .
Thread of a Spider
by D.L. Gardner
Genre: YA Historical Fantasy
 
TEENS ENLIST THE FAE TO WIN A WAR IN IRELAND
When all attempts to save her fiance fail, Ailis must rely on the magic
of the forest folk. 
Following an ambush at the Upton Rail Station in 1921 Ireland, British troops
burn Ailis’ home to the ground and arrest her fiancé, Liam, for
murder. She and her younger brother Paddy flee to an enchanted glen.
Lured by a haunting song, Paddy is abducted by forest folk. Perilous
obstacles, and a questionable stranger, hinder Ailis’ attempts to
find her brother or free her fiance, until her only hope for survival
rests on the magic of the Fae.
˃˃˃ A bitter uprising in Ireland is taking place and two siblings are
tossed in the battle, facing death, believing in love, and hoping in
magic. 

1920 found Ireland at the peak of tensions that had been building for
centuries. Famine, tyranny and strife robbed the Irish of their
homes, their lives and their country. Four years after the Easter
Rising, pressure became so great, that the southern Irish took up
arms against the British and fought for a free nation. Thread of a
Spider, a historical fantasy, weaves history and Irish myth together
to tell a story about two teenage siblings caught in the war and
swathed in the legends of Erie.˃˃˃ A fantasy based on history
woven with rich Irish lore.
 
 
 
With a passion for a good wholesome story, Gardner dives into the adult
and young adult fantasy genres. She is both a best selling author and
an award winning illustrator who lives in the Pacific Northwest, USA.
Dabbling in screenwriting, she’s won screenings and a trophy for some
of her film projects. 
She loves a tale that ignites imaginations, strengthens friendships,
spurs courage and applauds honor. Though she targets her stories for
young adults, her books are enjoyed by all ages.
D.L. Gardner is a columnist for the science fiction and fantasy
publication Amazing Stories Magazine
Follow the tour HERE
for exclusive excerpts, guest posts and a giveaway!
 

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~~~~~

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

For a list of my reviews go HERE.

For a list of free eBooks updated daily go HERE

To see all of my giveaways go HERE

Blitz and Giveaway ~ Pen & Xander

Posted: November 2, 2017 in Contemporary Romance, giveaways, YA
Tags: , ,
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Pen & Xander
Laekan Zea Kemp

Publication date: October 31st 2017
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult

Synopsis

Pen Prado has a passion for cooking. Specifically, cooking her father’s food in her father’s restaurant. It’s the heart of their immigrant neighborhood, a place where everyone belongs, and second chances are always on the menu. Except for Pen. Despite the fact that there’s something almost magic about her food, her father can’t imagine anything worse than her following in his footsteps. And when Pen confesses to keeping a secret from her family, he fires her, ensuring she never will.

Xander Amaro is undocumented but that doesn’t stop Ignacio Prado from offering him a job at his restaurant. For Xander, it’s a chance to make amends and to sever his toxic relationship with the druglord, El Cantil–a man whose been like a father to him since his own disappeared. Soon after, his mother abandoned him too, leaving behind a void that not even his abuelo can fill. Until he meets Pen.

Both seeking a place where they feel like they truly belong, they end up finding each other, and in the face of tremendous fear and self-doubt, they end up finding themselves.

Goodreads / Amazon

Are you a book reviewer?
Request a copy of Pen & Xander here!

~~~~~

Check out the excerpt.

The parking lot hasn’t changed; the science building looks the same as that first day of school five months ago. But as I sit in my car, watching girls I met during orientation skip up the steps, hugging their bags, excited to play nurse, I try to convince myself that something inside me has. That today I’ll actually be able to go inside. That today I will stop lying and be the person they want me to be.

Class starts in approximately seven minutes—the class I should have taken and passed last semester, moving me one step closer to a degree in nursing.

Six minutes.

I sit in the parking lot, watching the clock tick down. The car is in park but I can’t bring myself to turn off the engine.

Walk inside.

I turn off the car, reminding myself how much I’ve already wasted on tuition and books.

You can do this. You can.

I reach for my bag.

Get. Out. Of. The. Car.

And then I can’t breathe.

My mother’s shoes.

All I can think about are my mother’s shoes.

How they’ve sat in the same spot by the door for almost twenty years. Scuffed and cracked, the shadow of her foot pressed to the leather even when the laces are loose. I imagine every hallway they’ve ever walked down, every door they’ve propped open, every mess they’ve ever stepped in, every second they’ve held her up when all she wanted was to collapse. Because one of her patients couldn’t remember her face or their daughter’s name or how to speak.

When she lost one I’d wake to the knock of the rolling pin and the smell of dough warming on the hot plate. Sometimes I’d try to take the pin from her but there was something about the force, about the rhythm that reminded her how to breathe. We’d work in silence and three-dozen tortillas later she’d wrap them in foil and drive them to the family. The family that only visited once a month. That would accept my mother’s food without acknowledging that she was more family to the deceased than they were.

And then the next day she would go back to work.

For almost twenty years. She went back.

And if I step out of this car, if I walk up those steps, if I sit at that desk and pretend…how long will I be sitting there before I realize I’m trapped?

I take a deep breath, the scent of a thousand shifts at the restaurant tucked into the fabric of the front seat. Mango and cilantro and epazote, tomatillos and roasted pepitas and tortillas. I can’t sleep without those smells tangled in my hair, without those flavors still on my tongue.

So I have to decide what’s scarier: living a life that doesn’t belong to me or losing the one I love. If the truth breaks my father’s heart, I know he’ll take it from me. But if it doesn’t, if he understands, if I can make him understand, I can be free.

I weigh each option, simmering in the anxiety they provoke, in the hope. Because I have to do what scares me. It’s the only way to ward off the helplessness. To stay in control. I always have to be in control.

Which means that today is not the day I go inside.

My stomach drops, my hand reaching to put the car in drive again.

Today is the day I tell them the truth.

 

Author Laekan Zea Kemp

Laekan is a writer and explorer extraordinaire who grew up in the flatlands of West Texas. She graduated from Texas Tech with a BA in Creative Writing and is the author of the multi-cultural New Adult novels The Things They Didn’t Bury, Orphans of Paradise, Breathing Ghosts, and the Young Adult Paranormal series The Girl In Between. Her upcoming contemporary romance is slated for release during the summer of 2017!

Website / Goodreads / Twitter

 

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~~~~~

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

For a list of my reviews go HERE.

For a list of free eBooks updated daily go HERE

To see all of my giveaways go HERE

Winter’s Siren by Krystal Jane Ruin ~ Blitz and Giveaway

Posted: November 1, 2017 in giveaways, Paranormal or fantasy, YA
Tags: , ,
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Winter’s Siren
Krystal Jane Ruin

Publication date: November 1st 2017
Genres: Paranormal, Young Adult

Synopsis

For the last five years, Fawn has been the star soprano of a secluded opera house, forced to sing for her kidnapper.

His daughter, Devi, waits patiently in the shadows, hiding a face so horrible that no one who’s seen it will look at it again.

As Fawn plots her escape, whispers spread through the shaded corridors of dark sorcery, warning her that she must flee by the next opening night.

But when Fawn draws close to the exit, it’s Devi who’s standing in her way, leading Fawn to suspect that Devi has something to gain if she fails.

(a dark reimagining of Swan Lake)

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo

~~~~~

Enjoy this peek inside.

Frosty air nips at my nose. I stand almost knee deep in fresh fallen snow, letting the diffused sunlight hit my face. There is no sound. Peace settles over me. In this moment, I truly feel like I’m in the middle of nowhere.

Something cold and wet explodes on the back of my neck. For a moment, I fear the worst. A boil. Pus. My father’s description of my mother’s face plays out in my mind.

But then I hear Andrew laughing behind me. I touch the rough skin on my neck and bring a shaky and damp glove to my face. Snow. It’s just snow.

It’s the middle of the day, and my face is uncovered. To make everything worse, it’s bright outside. Freezing and overcast, but bright.

My hands fly to my face automatically.

“Are you going to let me get away with that?” Andrew laughs again.

I twist around and peek at him through my fingers.

He stands before me, his arms spread wide. A thick coat covers his arms, and in his gloved hands, he holds another snowball. “You have two seconds to stop me!”

I flip my hood over my head and drop down to gather snow in my hands.

Another snowball bursts against my head. The wetness plasters my hair to my face. I hurl my deformed ball in his direction. It misses him completely.

Another wad of snow lands on my neck while I gather a larger, rounder ball of snow. “Cheating!” I throw my handful at him. It lands weakly by his knees.

“Here, let me help you.” He climbs towards me and gathers a nice, solid ball in his fist. He hands this to me, and then stands back and spreads his arms wide again. “Try again.”

I throw it square at his nose.

“Ow!” He covers his face and cries out dramatically. “It’s in my eyes!”

“Stop it! Are you serious?” I navigate closer to him, and he falls back into the snow. I run to his side and hear laughter bubbling out from behind his hands. “Jerk!” I shovel snow over his body, and he laughs all the while.

Then he goes still. I stop.

“Andrew?” I lean in close. “Andrew?”

He lunges out of his shallow grave and tackles me to the ground.

A panicked scream leaves my body as he lands on top of me, heavy and warm. Then a strange sound comes out of my mouth. Something that’s never come out of it before. Laughter.

His braid hangs down, inches from my sunken cheek. Suddenly aware of how close his head is to mine, the laughter dies in my throat, and I slap my gloves to my cheeks.

“You have such beautiful eyes,” he says.

My breath is trapped in my chest. It hurts. I don’t know how much he can see of my face—my hood is pulled low and my hair and hands cover everything else—but I fear it’s too much.

“Andrew . . .”

 

Author Krystal Jane Ruin

Krystal is the author of supernatural and paranormal fiction, living in the Tennessee Valley with a collection of swords and daggers. When she’s not hoarding stuffed pandas, hourglasses, and Hello Kitty replicas, she can be found in YouTube hole or blogging about books, writing, and random things at KrystalSquared.net.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

 

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~~~~~

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

For a list of my reviews go HERE.

For a list of free eBooks updated daily go HERE

To see all of my giveaways go HERE

Running Out of Space by S.J. Higbee ~ Book Sale and Review

Posted: October 25, 2017 in New Release, reviews, Science Fiction, YA
Tags: , , , ,
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Running Out of Space banner
This is my stop during the blog tour for Running Out of Space by S.J. Higbee. This blog tour is organized by Lola’s Blog Tours. The blog tour runs from 11 till 31 October. You can check see the tour schedule here.

For a limited time Running Out of Space will be only $0.99 on Amazon.

Running Out of Space (The Sunblinded Trilogy#1)
By S.J. Higbee
Genre: Science Fiction
Age category: New adult
Release Date: 11 October, 2017

36198608

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My Review

I used to avoid science fiction books. Figured they’d be full of techie jargon I couldn’t get my mind around. Then I gave it a go and found some fun books, including this one by S.J. Higbee. She does a great job of making me feel comfortable and before I know it, I’m not thinking about genre. I’m thinking about the characters. The trouble they get themselves into. What’s waiting for me on the next page. And almost forgetting that this takes place in space.

So, yeah, four young ladies, Lizzy, Sonja, Jessica and Alisha, decide to prove their more than baby ovens and head into the forbidden and dangerous Basement Level on Space Station Hawking to prove they’re every bit as tough as the guys. This is where the action starts and keeps going all the way til the end.

With four main character’s, all of them girls, you’d think their voices would run together, but they don’t. They each have their own signature and you easily know who’s talking when. All are quite different in personality, have different strengths and weaknesses, and this actually makes them a strong team.

When they get into some serious trouble, a stranger steps in and helps them out. Yep, a male character, Wynn of the muscles and sky blue eyes, joins the team. Not so much by choice as by circumstance. This doesn’t mean the girls go all wimpy. They actually step up and become double tough when the danger gets really intense. His character made for some fun to lighten things up here and there. And while there’s a quick attraction between one of the girls and Wynn, it’s not the main focus of the story. And from the author’s description of Wynn, I wouldn’t blame any of the young ladies for swooning over him.

Reading this story was like getting a tour of the station. From bottom to top, each level is different. Some are nice and some are nasty, and I could easily picture much of it. Probably because of all the sci fi movies I watch. Good visual writing added to my enjoyment.

The author gave me plenty of action and intrigue and some genuine characters that are easy to tell apart. Solid science fiction fun. I see this is the first in a series and I’ll be waiting for more.

4 Stars

~~~~~

Synopsis

Elizabeth Wright has yearned to serve on the space merchant ship Shooting Star for as long as she can remember – until one rash act changes everything…

I can’t recall whose idea it was. Just that me and my shipmates were sick of wading through yet another unjust punishment detail. So we decide to take ourselves off on a short jaunt to the lower reaches of Space Station Hawking to prove that fertile English girls can also deal with danger.

The consequences of that single expedition change the lives of all four of us, as well as that of the stranger who steps in to save us down in lawless Basement Level. Now I have more excitement and danger than I can handle, while confronting lethal shipboard politics, kidnapping, betrayal. And murder.

You can find Running Out of Space on Goodreads

Buy Running Out of Space for only $0.99!
You can buy Running Out of Space for only $0.99 on Amazon!

~~~~~

SJ HigbeeAbout the Author:
Born the same year as the Russians launched Sputnik, I confidently expected that by the time I reached adulthood, the human race would have a pioneer colony on the Moon and be heading off towards Mars. So I was at a loss to know what to do once I realised the Final Frontier wasn’t an option and rather lost my head – I tried a lot of jobs I didn’t like and married a totally unsuitable man.

Now I’ve finally come to terms with the fact that I’ll never leave Earth, I have a lovely time writing science fiction and fantasy novels while teaching Creative Writing at Northbrook College in Worthing. I’ve had a number of short stories, articles and poems published – the most recent being my story ‘Miranda’s Tempest’ which appeared last year in Fox Spirit’s anthology Eve of War. I recently signed a publishing contract with Grimbold Publishing for my science fiction novel Netted, which is due to be released in 2019.

I live in Littlehampton on the English south coast with a wonderful husband and a ridiculous number of books. I can be found online chatting about books at my book review blog https://sjhigbee.wordpress.com/ and you’re very welcome to pop onto my website www.sjhigbee.com and my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/sjhigbeeauthor/.

You can find and contact S.J. Higbee here:
– Website
– Blog
– Facebook
– Twitter
– Goodreads


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Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew!

For a list of my reviews go HERE.

For a list of free eBooks updated daily go HERE

To see all of my giveaways go HERE

31 Days Of Thrills And Chills ~ Day #24 ~ Teaser Tuesday #223 ~ Monsterland by Michael Okon

Posted: October 24, 2017 in horror, Teaser Tuesdays, Vampires, werewolves, YA, Zombies
Tags: , , , ,
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Welcome to My 31 Days Of Thrills And Chills!

day of the dead photo: Dancing Skeleton dancing_skeleton.gif

I’ll be sharing all kinds of books, movies, and other spooky stuff for every day in October. Gots to

get those scares on for the 31st!

I’m also sharing for my Teaser Tuesday post.

Welcome to Teaser Tuesday hosted by Ambrosia  @ The Purple Booker.

Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
• Grab your current read.
• Open to a random page.
•Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

 

My Teaser for this week is from

Monsterland

by Michael Okon

35995948

c8df8-add2bto2bgoodreads2bblack

Genre: Horror / YA

 My teaser from page 69 in the Paperback.

“In theory, it sounded like a very good idea. You know, seeing vampires, zombies and werewolves in their natural habitat.”

Riiight. I can imagine so many reasons why this is NOT a good idea! LOL

~~~~~

Read on if you want to know more.

~~~~~

Synopsis

Welcome to Monsterland, the scariest place on earth.

When world markets are decimated by a crippling plague, philanthropist, and billionaire businessman, Vincent Konrad decides to place monsters in a theme park setting to promote education and tolerance. Copper Valley is chosen as the primary site for the park in the United States.

Wyatt Baldwin, a high school senior is dying to go to the opening and when he lands special passes to the park, he and his friends are expecting the experience of a lifetime.
After all, in a theme park where real zombies, werewolves, and vampires are the main attractions, what could possibly go wrong?

Amazon

~~~~~

How about you? Got a tease? Tell me!

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew!

For a list of my reviews go HERE.

For a list of free eBooks updated daily go HERE

To see all of my giveaways go HERE

Flesh by Laura Bickle ~ Review and Giveaway

Posted: October 19, 2017 in giveaways, horror, reviews, YA
Tags: , , , ,
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Flesh

by Laura Bickle

Genre: YA Horror

Date of Publication: September 19, 2017

ISBN: 9781537857992 / ASIN: B074XBJ697

Number of pages: 307 / Word Count: 76,573

Cover Artist: Danielle Fine

My Review

Charlie isn’t afraid of the dead. It’s her tenth grade classmates that can send her screaming. Halloween is rolling around again and she isn’t expecting much excitement. Especially after the fiasco from last year. Her parents didn’t appreciate her throwing a party at their funeral home.

This year Charlie is keeping a low profile. She’s not looking for trouble but trouble finds her when a deceased classmate, Amanda, who’s body should be resting in a morgue drawer, gets up and starts munching on corpses. That’s just the beginning of many bizarre events that start happening. Faster than you can say Ghoul Girl, she’s scrambling to hide Amanda and find out why the dead aren’t staying dead.

This book is tagged as YA Horror and there were some gruesome scenes. Like the one where Amanda starts chowing down on live worms like they’re gummies. And when she chews on a corpses arm like it’s a drum stick. Those scenes made me squirm. But Laura also made them funny. The family dog, Lothar, loves Amanda because she shares her kibble. Yep he’s a man eater, kind of.  He even liked the worms.

Flesh doesn’t have tons of action, but there’s enough to keep the story moving fast. The character’s act genuine. And there’s a legend about Bob the Catfish that adds an interesting twist.

I was torn over how to rate this book. Keeping in mind this was aimed at the younger audience, I went with 4 stars. It didn’t wow me but I had fun and I think it hit the mark for the young adult readers.

4 Stars

~~~~~

Synopsis

The dead are easy to talk to. Live people, not so much.

Charlie Sulliven thinks she knows all the secrets of the dead. Raised in a funeral home, she’s the reluctant “Ghoul Girl,” her reputation tied to a disastrous Halloween party. But navigating her life as a high school sophomore is an anxiety-inducing puzzle to her. She haunts the funeral home with her parents, emo older brother, Garth, their pistol-packing Gramma, and the glass-eyeball-devouring dachshund, Lothar.

Chewed human bodies are appearing in her parents’ morgue…and disappearing in the middle of the night. The bodies seem tied to a local legend, Catfish Bob, who has resurfaced in the muddy Milburn river near Charlie’s small town. When one of Charlie’s classmates, Amanda, awakens in the cooler as a flesh-eating ghoul, Charlie must protect her newfound friend and step up to unravel the mystery…and try to avoid becoming lunch meat for the dead.

Pronoun          Amazon          iBooks

BN          Google Play      Kobo

~~~~~

Enjoy this glimpse inside.

“Amanda, I…Oh.”

            I don’t know what else to say. My brain just shuts down.

            She is wearing the sheet, wound around her like a toga. It trails behind her bare feet, sort of like a painting about Greek goddesses I’ve seen in art books. She’s leaning over another body stored in the cooler unit on a cart. Her back is to me, and I can only see her pale skin and her burgundy-black hair shuddering.

            “Amanda.”

            She turns at the sound of my voice, seeming only to hear me for the first time. Her face is covered in dark blood. In her hand, she’s holding a big chunk of purple flesh. Her eyes are half-closed. The autopsy incision on the elderly body below her has been ripped open, and I’m pretty sure that what she’s holding is a lung.

            “So hungry…” she murmurs.

            I retreat until my back presses against the cold door. A whimper escapes my lips, and I drop the laundry basket with a sharp crack of plastic on the tile floor. This has to be a dream. A screwed-up anxiety dream that I’ll wake up from any moment now…

            Amanda’s black eyes snap open. She stares at the chunk of flesh in her hand. “I…Agh…What’s going on?”

            Lothar waddles over to her and begins to beg. Bile rises in my throat. “That’s Mrs. Canner,” I manage to answer. “She’s seventy-two and died of surgery complications for varicose veins. Deep vein thrombosis, I think. I don’t remember.” I’m babbling, trying to keep the bile down.

            Amanda drops the lung with a wet splat. The dog scrambles to it and begins scarfing it down. Her hands are trembling. She presses them to her temples. “I don’t understand. I don’t understand.”

            I nudge the laundry basket closer to her with my foot. “I brought you some clothes. And, um. Food. You should get dressed.”

            I think I should be afraid. I think I really ought to be. But Amanda seems genuinely confused. She reaches for the clothes I’ve brought her. To be polite, I know that I should really look away. But I can’t move. I am not turning my back on her. My heart pounds, and I struggle to take deep, uneven breaths.

            Amanda unwinds the sheet and slips into my clothes. Though I avert my eyes, I see that her shoulder and side are still torn open. But my mother hasn’t begun the autopsy yet, so there is no Y-incision across her chest and abdomen.

            “Do you remember what happened to you?” I manage to ask. I congratulate myself for having a rational thought. Woot.

            Her voice is halting, and her brow wrinkles as she struggles to button my jeans. “I remember…something was chasing me. Jesus, it hurt…” Her hand comes up to her neck, and she seems to remember, fingering the edges of the wound. “Am I in a hospital?” she asks again.

            I suck in a breath. “No. You’re at my house.” It’s not a lie. Not really.

            She scans the room, as if registering the sight of the cadavers. “You’re the girl whose parents run the funeral home. The Ghoul Girl.”

            “It’s gonna be okay,” I tell her.

            “Why am I here?” Her breath makes ghosts in the cold air.

            “The Sheriff found you, alongside the road.” That’s true also, even if not the whole truth. “I think we should get you upstairs, so you can talk to my parents…”

            She shakes her head, and her dark hair slaps across her face. “No. I…Oh my god. I’m here because…somebody thought I was dead?”

            I swallow hard. “Yeah.”

~~~~~

Glittery Ghoul Donuts

By
Laura Bickle

When I saw vampire donuts come
across a friend’s Facebook feed, I knew that I had to give them a try. I’ve had
my own share of Pinterest disasters, to be certain, but I think this is
something I can handle. The worst thing that could possibly happen would be
that I’d have a dozen mangled donuts, right? I could eat all the evidence
before anyone was the wiser.

 

I  gathered my materials. I picked up a dozen glazed donuts,
a bag of plastic vampire fangs, and a package of candy eyes. For fun, I got
some edible glitter. I originally thought I might make sparkly vampire donuts
with silver glitter, but decided to get green so that the completed creatures
would remind me more of ghouls.

 

 I squished some vampire fangs into the donut holes to make
mouths.

Then I added the candy eyes. They stick very well into the
donut glaze.

Then I dusted the donuts with edible green glitter. I was
pretty pleased with my green choice…they seem particularly monstrous.

And ta-da! A horde of flesh-eating ghoul donuts!

I’m counting this as a Halloween
craft win. Do you have any Halloween crafts you’re going to make this season?
Any raven wreaths, bat cookies, or carved pumpkins on your agenda?

~~~~~

About Author Laura Bickle

Laura Bickle grew up in rural Ohio, reading entirely too many comic books out loud to her favorite Wonder Woman doll. After graduating with an MA in Sociology – Criminology from Ohio State University and an MLIS in Library Science from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, she patrolled the stacks at the public library and worked with data systems in criminal justice. She now dreams up stories about the monsters under the stairs, also writing contemporary fantasy novels under the name Alayna Williams.

The latest details on her work are available at:

Website / Blog

Follow on Social Media:

Twitter / Facebook / Pinterest

And Sign Up for the Newsletter HERE

~~~~~

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~~~~~

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

For a list of my reviews go HERE.

For a list of free eBooks updated daily go HERE

To see all of my giveaways go HERE

The Friday 56 #168 ~ Flesh by Laura Bickle

Posted: October 13, 2017 in horror, The Friday 56, YA
Tags: , , ,
28

Welcome to The Friday 56 hosted by Freda’s Voice.

 

This is a really fun meme!

The only rules are to grab a book (any book), turn to page 56 or 56% in your eReader and find a sentence or a few (no spoilers) that grabs you and post it.

Then go over to Freda’s Voice and leave your link so we can visit your 56!

My 56 for this week is from:

Flesh

  by Laura Bickle

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Genre: YA Horror

My 56 from the eBook

My voice quavers. But I’ve got to get some power, some leverage in this situation. Nothing else is stopping her from eating me.

This is from a crazy scene. I’ve enjoyed a bunch of Laura’s books and this is another winner.

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Read on if you want to know more.

Synopsis

The dead are easy to talk to. Live people, not so much.

Charlie Sulliven thinks she knows all the secrets of the dead. Raised in a funeral home, she’s the reluctant “Ghoul Girl,” her reputation tied to a disastrous Halloween party. But navigating her life as a high school sophomore is an anxiety-inducing puzzle to her. She haunts the funeral home with her parents, emo older brother, Garth, their pistol-packing Gramma, and the glass-eyeball-devouring dachshund, Lothar.

Chewed human bodies are appearing in her parents’ morgue…and disappearing in the middle of the night. The bodies seem tied to a local legend, Catfish Bob, who has resurfaced in the muddy Milburn river near Charlie’s small town. When one of Charlie’s classmates, Amanda, awakens in the cooler as a flesh-eating ghoul, Charlie must protect her newfound friend and step up to unravel the mystery…and try to avoid becoming lunch meat for the dead.

Amazon

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Ultimate Sacrifice by S.E. Green ~ Review and Giveaway

Posted: October 12, 2017 in giveaways, horror, reviews, YA
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24

Ultimate Sacrifice
S.E. Green
Publication date: October 3rd 2017
Genres: Horror, Young Adult

My Review

Well, this wasn’t what I was expecting, in a good way.

Told from Vickie’s, seventeen years old, point of view, the story begins when her brother finds a little girl’s body in the woods by their house. It appears to be a ritualistic sacrifice. The family is under suspicion because of the close proximity of the murder and their connection to the girl. Hounded by and condemned in the press, Vickie digs deep, looking for something, anything, to clear her and her family.

This story goes quickly. As Vickie gets desperate and does some stupid things to solve the murder, the more reckless she becomes. Her actions are believable. You know how you watch a movie and scoff when the character goes in the basement after hearing a strange noise. We are so sure nothing bad will happen to us that we often do go see. I could feel her frustration when people look at her strange. And her family has some deep, dark secrets. She thinks she knows them, but she doesn’t.

Reminds me so much of a movie I watched a long time ago. Two couples are racing to get away from demon worshipers after coming across their sacrifice. Just like in that movie, I kept getting nigglings of something supernatural. Not just because of how the little girl was killed either.

I also knew that the more Vickie stuck her nose into the investigation, the darker things would become. It was subtle to begin with. Then I started to get an idea where the author was taking me, and couldn’t wait to see if I was right. I knew what I wanted to happen. It’s horror, right. And I got it. A surreal ending.

4 Stars

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Synopsis

Vickie has always lived a quiet, ordinary life in an equally quiet and ordinary small town. Yet one fateful night a child turns up dead in the woods behind her house in a ritualistic slaughter. Vickie and her family are suddenly thrown into a national spotlight. But as the investigation unfolds, she begins to realize her family isn’t so ordinary after all. Evil is inching closer to those she holds dear and Vickie isn’t sure who she can ultimately trust.

Goodreads / Amazon



Author S.E. Green

S. E. Green (aka Shannon Greenland) is the award winning author of the thriller, KILLER INSTINCT, the spy series, THE SPECIALISTS, and the romances, THE SUMMER MY LIFE BEGAN and SHADOW OF A GIRL. She lives off the coast of Florida with her very grouchy dog. ULTIMATE SACRIFICE is her debut YA horror, due out October 2017.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

 

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Blitz and Giveaway ~ Red Dagger by H.G. Lynch

Posted: September 29, 2017 in giveaways, Paranormal or fantasy, YA
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14

Red Dagger
H.G. Lynch
(Reaper Born, #1)
Publication date: August 24th 2015
Genres: Paranormal, Young Adult

Synopsis

Ruairidh is a Demon Hunter, like his father. But when his father is murdered by a demon he was hunting, Ruairidh must move back to Scotland to live with his mother and brother.
He vows to kill the demon who murdered his father, but he struggles to balance Hunting with college, and his hostile brother makes it clear he wishes Ruairidh had never come back.
Doesn’t help that Ru is falling for the girl his brother is crushing on.
Life is going to get very tricky for Ruairidh, but as long as he has his sword and his wits, he’s ready to take on whatever comes at him.

Goodreads / Amazon

On sale for $1.99 for a limited time only!

The tie-in novella releases the same day – Poison Arrow (A Reaper Born Novella)

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Enjoy the excerpt:

The Catchi loomed up in front of me and grinned, its fangs dripping venom. Then it brought one clawed foot down on my reaching hand, its curved toenails sinking into my wrist, and I cried out in pain. I glared up at it and yanked the hunting knife from the sheath on my thigh, slicing it cleanly through the demon’s calf. It howled and hobbled back as the lower half of its leg hung on by a few threads of muscle. I’d cut through the bone.

Pulling the dismembered foot free of my hand, I tossed it aside and rolled to my feet, blood leaking down my fingers and dripping onto the floor. I knew I had to move fast because Catchi could regenerate limbs – I hadn’t crippled it for long; all I’d done was really piss it off. The neon green blood gushing from its severed leg was already slowing, the stump already knitting flesh to bone and stretching out.

Without waiting for it to heal any more, I lunged while it was still off-balance. I crashed into it at the waist, tackling it to the ground. We skidded along the wreckage-strewn floor and slammed into the wall. The demon scrambled to shove me off, its claws raking my arm, but I ignored the flare of agony and brought my blade down in a vicious arc, ramming it hilt-deep in the demon’s throat. Green blood sprayed over me as I yanked the knife to the side, ripping open the Catchi’s neck.

The monster’s eyes widened, its mouth opening to display brown fangs the length of my pinkie finger, but the only sound that came out was a faint gurgling. Breathing hard, dripping blood – both its and mine – I started to get up, but the demon grabbed my arm, and with one last surge of energy, head-butted me in the stomach. I gasped as I felt the poisonous spikes drive into my gut and stumbled backward, clutching a hand over the wound.

The Catchi went limp, finally dead, but I couldn’t enjoy the success because it had just condemned me to death along with it. “Fuck,” I wheezed, already feeling the venom going to work, the acid eating at my insides.

 

Author H.G. Lynch

H.G. Lynch is a Paranormal Romance author from Scotland. She is an avid reader, and cat-lover. She spends most of her days writing, while wrestling her cat off her laptop. She loves horse-riding, Star Trek, and snow.
Her books are dark paranormal romances.

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Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

For a list of my reviews go HERE.

For a list of free eBooks updated daily go HERE

To see all of my giveaways go HERE

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