Saturday Spotlight

 

Tooth and Blade
by Julian Barr

Parts 1-3 of the legendary TOOTH AND BLADE series together for the first time!

Two worlds. One destiny.
​
Dóta has dwelled sixteen years among the trolls. She knows nothing but the darkness of her family’s cave. Her mother says humans are beasts who would slay them all. Yet the gods of Asgard whisper in the night: Dóta is a child of men, a monster unto monsters.

To discover her human side, Dóta must take up her bone knife and step into the light above. Secrets await her in the human realm—beauty, terror, the love of a princess.

Soon Dóta must choose between her clan and humankind, or both worlds will be devoured in fire and war.

A monster sheds no tears.

Norse mythology meets historical fantasy in Tooth And Blade. Step into a realm of haunted meres, iron and magic.

Amazon • Books2Read

 

My Review:

I enjoyed this book, made up of the 3 novellas; Foundling, Between Worlds and Well of Fate. They flowed seamlessly from one to the next.

Dota has been brought up alongside her troll brother, Grethor, by Modor, also a troll, and has been taught that humans are beasts. However, as a human herself she wants to know more about her kind.

When things go wrong during a hunting lesson with Grethor, Dota finds herself living in the human world, and discovers she’s the only one with the magic to stop Grethor.

The writing immersed me in the two very different ‘worlds’ that Dota inhabits and I liked being with Dota as she explored the human world, met some wonderful characters, and came to terms with her new identity.

( I received a complimentary copy of the book for reviewing purposes. All opinions are my own.)

 

The Author:

Julian Barr first fell in love with all things ancient and magical in childhood, when he staged his own version of I, Claudius using sock puppets. After his PhD in Classics, he did a brief stint as a schoolteacher, hated being called ‘sir,’ and dived into storytelling. Although he remains open to the possibilities of sock puppet theatre, historical fantasy is his passion. He has published scholarly research on Roman medicine and the gastronomic habits of Centaurs, but prefers to think of himself as an itinerant bard. He is also the author of the Ashes of Olympus trilogy.

Website • Facebook • Twitter

 

Five on Friday

 

Five Giveaways

The following five giveaways are free to enter. I’m sending extra good luck your way to combat the fact that it’s Friday 13th!!!

 

Michelle A Bailey’s BookBub Builder Bash

Win a $300 Amazon Gift Card!

Follow some amazing authors on Bookbub for a chance to win a $300 Amazon gift card! The more you follow the more chances you have to win! You can also come back every day for special tasks that will earn you daily entry points!

 

C.L. Cannon’s Urban Fantasy Giveaway!

Subscribe to today’s bestselling Urban Fantasy authors for a chance to win one paperback of Side Jobs by Jim Butcher, Ghosts of Gotham by Craig Schaefer, Dead Things by Stephen Blackmoore, Supernatural Pop Quiz Cards, one Lucifer Morningstar cup, one Supernatural Castiel plushie, and two Good Omens bookmarks.

 

Lucky Readers Author 2020 St Pats Giveaway

Over 30 prizes & chances to win with a GP of $42 Paypal Cash, Gift Cards, Books, Mystery Prizes, Jewelry & More

 

Authors’ Billboard’s March Contest!

2 chances for you to win a prize this month…
Win one $25.00 Amazon Gift Card or win an e-copy of any of the collections showing on the Authors’ Billboard Book page.

 

Share Your book Luv

Win a £25 Amazon gift card. All you have to do is RT and Follow @iBookLuver and they will choose the lucky draw winner from there.

The Dark Valley by Claire Plaisted

 

Fantasy YA portraying a strong woman and a start to romance.

A dark fairy tale with some not very likeable creatures called Trolls who run mines to source precious gems.

The Crones are witch-like characters who want what every older woman wants – to be young and pretty.

The Crones have magical powers, and they take the soul of the young people to help them achieve this. That is until along came Clarissa who finally breaks the curse on their valley.

Amazon

 

 

Excerpt:

      “Father,” he grinned. “What’s with the next valley over? It’s like winter over there, all cold and dark.”
      “Evil is there, don’t say you…”
      “No, I stayed in the forest father. I didn’t like the look of it.”
      “Good, remember to stay away, too,” he scolded.
      “Evil? What type of evil lives close to us?”
      “Why so interested Caspian?”
      “I – I heard a girl singing with such a pure voice, it was beautiful.”
      “Pure evil,” he frowned. “Stay away, the witches don’t like strangers, most never come back.”
      “Don’t worry father, I was only wondering.”
      “Remember, curiosity killed the cat.”
      They entered the house, grabbing a drink of ale each as they sat waiting for their dinner.

 

Meet The Author:

You want to know who I am? Well, let’s see!

I’m British born and bred, although I have lived most of my life in New Zealand. Sweet as? (Kiwi Saying) I love New Zealand, best little country in the world today, though I’m sure others will have different opinions.

First and foremost, I am a wife and mother of four children, though we lost our youngest 17 years ago. My husband and I have been married for 28 years this year. Our two eldest daughters are in the UK having their OE (Overseas Experience as they call them in Kiwiland). My son is about to start university to study architecture.

This will be the first time my husband and I will have true freedom to do as we wish, when we wish, without the phrase “Get a room” from the kids with our reply of “Don’t need one. Got a house.” And that was just about kissing…lol. Kids these days!

I am a Family History Researcher and have been for the past twenty years. I fell into writing in 2012 and became a multi-genre author because the muses…yeah more than one…wouldn’t shut the up. I have published over thirty books and have over a hundred drafts on my computer. My main genres are Children’s Adventure Stories, Young Fantasy, Young Adult Fantasy, New Adult Murder Mystery Romance under my own name. Under my pen name of Beth Bayley, I write Contemporary Billionaire Romance (reverse aka the woman is the billionaire) as well as a set of Mythical Welsh stories. I also have one wayward muse who I call Chloe King who is an Erotic Author. Pain in the … and a nympho. Meanwhile, I’ll stay prudish, thanks.

In 2014 I set up my own Publishing Company called Plaisted Publishing House Ltd, which now runs an Author Assist program for Formatting, Editing and Book Covers. We’ve helped over 32 clients in various different ways. We also do Family History Books.

I join EE last year, though I have only recently found the time to get my first book sorted. It is called ‘The Dark Valley’ by Claire Plaisted and is about a young woman who is strong in nature.

Website • Facebook • Twitter • EE
Beth Bayley
Chloe King Website – Adults Only
Plaisted Publishing House

 

 

See all Electric Eclectic books on our website

Electric Eclectic

Wordless Wednesday

 

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by The Purple Booker.

Welcome to Teaser Tuesday, the weekly Meme that wants you to add books to your TBR! You can also just share what you are currently reading. It’s very easy to play along, as easy as 1, 2, 3!

1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a random page
3. 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!

 

Twyla assured me tending the goats and fetching water were part of my training, like stargazing and talking of the Norns and the fates, but I suspected she just needed the help. She should have asked, no need for tricks.

~Tooth and Blade by Julian Barr

Monday Makes

 
An easy make for this week… cushion covers.

 

I made two from a small fleece throw and the other from some material I scrounged from my mum.

When cutting fleece be aware, it makes a heck of a mess!

Cut each piece slightly wider than the cushion, allowing for the seam, and approximately two and a half times longer than than the cushion. Hem the short edges, then fold them in, overlapping each other to fit the cushion and sew.

     

Saturday Spotlight

 

One Green Bottle by Curtis Bausse

 

When Magali Rousseau sets out as a private detective, she expects to take pictures of dodgy salesmen and adulterers. Wrong. Her very first case, and it’s murder. Then comes another. And another. Until she finds herself trapped with a killer whose only aim is to make her his tenth – and final – victim.

Set in Provence, One Green Bottle is not just about Magali’s hunt for a serial killer. It’s also the story of a woman recently divorced, in search of a new life. But in a man’s world, she can only succeed by defeating her own doubts.

Amazon • B&N • Kobo

 

 
 

My Review:

A well-written page-turner, with action and suspense.

Recently divorced, Magali, needs a new direction in life. As a joke, her daughter-in-law suggests a private investigator and a therapist, and makes her a sign for each.

Magali suddenly has two clients, one for each business – a man seeking therapy and a woman who wants her to investigate her son’s murder.

As more murders come to light, Magali has her own ideas about the crimes, but isn’t taken seriously by the police.

Magali is a strong character who, although she spends some time “in the doldrums”, is intelligent and adapts well to her new circumstances, as well as her career change.

One Green Bottle is a well-crafted and intriguing story, with plenty of twists and surprises.

 

The Author:

I grew up in Wales, was educated in England and have spent most of my life in France.

I’ve been writing since the age of 10, when my first poem was sent to a competition by my English teacher. After moving to France, I ran a café-theatre till it got demolished, whereupon I scratched my head, wondering what to do next. Eventually I became a university lecturer, specialising in Second Language Acquisition, even though (apart, obviously, from French) I’ve spectacularly failed to learn any languages (I’m currently trying Dutch and can already say ‘The turtle eats the sandwich’, which is very encouraging).

I spent two years in Mayotte, a tiny, unknown island in the Indian Ocean, which France bought for 1000 piastres in 1842.

Magali Rousseau (my heroine) got into a lot of trouble there, but now, like me, she’s back in Provence, where she jogs, paints, and catches murderers.

Website • Facebook • Twitter

Five on Friday

Five reads for March

These five books are on my to-read list this month.
I have four books to read for blog tours coming up on Just Books, and an ARC from by one of my favourite authors.

Tooth and Blade
by Julian Barr

Parts 1-3 of the legendary TOOTH AND BLADE series together for the first time!

Two worlds. One destiny.

Dóta has dwelled sixteen years among the trolls. She knows nothing but the darkness of her family’s cave. Her mother says humans are beasts who would slay them all. Yet the gods of Asgard whisper in the night: Dóta is a child of men, a monster unto monsters.

To discover her human side, Dóta must take up her bone knife and step into the light above. Secrets await her in the human realm–beauty, terror, the love of a princess.

Soon Dóta must choose between her clan and humankind, or both worlds will be devoured in fire and war.

A monster sheds no tears.

Norse mythology meets historical fantasy in TOOTH AND BLADE. Step into a realm of haunted meres, iron and magic.

Add to Goodreads

 

 

Helene
by Karl Drinkwater

Dr Helene Vermalle is shaping the conscience of a goddess-level AI.

As a leading civilian expert in Emergent AI Socialisation, she has been invited to assist in a secret military project.

Her role? Helping ViraUHX, the most advanced AI in the universe, to pass through four theoretical development stages. But it’s not easy training a mind that surpasses her in raw intellect. And the developing AI is capable of killing her with a single tantrum.

On top of this, she must prove her loyalty to the oppressive government hovering over her shoulder. They want a weapon. She wants to instil an overriding sense of morality.

Can she teach the AI right and wrong without being categorised as disloyal?

Lost Tales of Solace are short side-stories set in the Lost Solace universe.

Add to Goodreads

 

 

Five Minutes, Alfie
by Lily Mae Walters

Alfie snuggles down in bed,
dreams still in his little head.

He dreams he’s a king going out for a ride.
“A dragon sleeps in front of the gate,” they cried.

How will they succeed in waking him up?
By helping each other and lots of luck.

Add to Goodreads

 

 

 

On a Falling Tide
by Georgia Hill

Two women. Connected by heartbreak, separated in time. Can Charity save the man she loves, or will Lydia’s vengeful spirit prove too strong?

Two haunting love stories and a hundred and fifty-year-old curse…

When the beloved grandfather who brought her up dies, Charity is left struggling to cope. Alone and rootless, she’s drawn to the sleepy fishing village of Beaumouth near Lyme Regis and begins to research her family tree.

A chance encounter with attractive boat-builder Matt sparks a chain of mysterious and unsettling events and leads Charity to uncover the story of a young girl who lived in the village over a hundred years before.

In 1863 all Lydia Pavey wants to do is follow in Mary Anning’s footsteps and become a ‘fossilist.’ Instead, she is being forced into marriage to a man she barely knows.

Charity’s obsession with Lydia becomes all-consuming and she risks losing everything. With a longed-for family tantalisingly in reach, will Charity find the happy ever after she’s yearned for and, most importantly, can she save the man she loves?

Add to Goodreads

 

The Breaking (ARC)
by K.S. Marsden

Mark thought being a witch would be easy, but it has ruined everything.

Now, he has to fight for his friends and the guy that he loves.

Which would be challenging enough, without school being a living nightmare; more demons than he can handle; and witches that have strayed from the light.

Add to Goodreads

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A STATEMENT FROM REED EXHIBITIONS – ORGANISERS OF THE LONDON BOOK FAIR

Stacy Alesi's BookBitch.com™

Reed Exhibitions has today announced that The London Book Fair 2020, scheduled to take place at Olympia, London, from 10 to 12 March will be cancelled following the escalation of COVID-19 Coronavirus in Europe.

The effects, actual and projected, of Coronavirus are becoming evident across all aspects of our lives here in the UK and across the world, with many of our participants facing travel restrictions. We have been following UK government guidelines and working with the rolling advice from the public health authorities and other organisations, and so it is with reluctance that we have taken the decision not to go ahead with this year’s event.

We recognise that business has to continue. With this in mind, we will of course support and collaborate with exhibitors and visitors to keep our world moving during this difficult period. We thank all those from the UK and a multitude of other…

View original post 40 more words

Wednesday Word

Scanning one of my bookcases for a word to use for today’s book covers, Covenant jumped out at me. The book in on my shelf was Child of the Covenant by Kim Gravel. A quick Goodreads search came up with 5809 books with ‘covenant’ in the title.

Weeding out the books with plurals, Covenants, and titles with other words, like The Everlasting Covenant, and The Covenant of the Flame narrowed it down to 47.

Of those 47 books, 13 had only blank Bookreads covers, 1 was duplicated, 1 didn’t have the word Covenant on the cover, 2 had only words on the cover and 1 was a film.

I’ve chosen 10 covers from the remaining 30, six of which may make it on to my to-read list.