Wednesday, November 30, 2022

Cowboys and Chaos: Magical Mystery Book Club by Elizabeth Pantley ~ Paranormal Cozy Mystery #EnterforaChance

 

Cowboys and Chaos: Magical Mystery Book Club by Elizabeth Pantley

About Cowboys and Chaos:

 

Cowboys and Chaos: Magical Mystery Book Club

Paranormal Cozy Mystery

3rd in Series

Setting - Current Day AND the Wild West in the 1880s

Better Beginnings, Inc. (November 20, 2022)

Number of Pages: 250

Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0BB1HS7XL

This is no ordinary book club! When the group chooses a book, they are whisked away from reality to find themselves totally immersed in the story. The characters, the setting, and the murder all come to life. In order to exit the book, they’ll need to solve the mystery and reach The End. 

This time, the club chooses a mystery that takes place in a quaint western town – in the old Wild West. That sounds like great fun, until they arrive in the dusty old town in the Arizona desert, among cowboys and saloons. They discover that the outhouse isn’t the worse thing about this trip. 

The good news is that Paige, Glo, Zell, Frank, and the other members of the club discover plenty of surprises here, and they have a great time visiting a piece of history. They’ll get to live through many exciting moments as they unravel this cozy mystery story.

About Elizabeth Pantley:

Elizabeth Pantley says that writing her two Mystery and Magic book series is the most fun she's ever had at work. Fans of her work say her joy is evident through the engaging stories she tells. Elizabeth is also the internationally bestselling author of The No-Cry Sleep Solution and twelve other books for parents. Her books have been published in over twenty languages. She lives in the Pacific Northwest, a beautiful inspiration for her enchanted worlds.

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TOUR PARTICIPANTS:

November 30 – Celticlady's Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
November 30 – Sapphyria's Book Reviews - SPOTLIGHT
December 1 – Christy's Cozy Corners - REVIEW, CHARACTER GUEST POST
December 1 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
December 2 – Maureen's Musings – SPOTLIGHT
December 2 – Guatemala Paula Loves to Read – REVIEW
December 3 – Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
December 4 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
December 4 – Cozy Up WIth Kathy – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
December 5 – Elza Reads - REVIEW, CHARACTER GUEST POST
December 6 – #BRVL Book Review Virginia Lee Blog – SPOTLIGHT
December 7 – Angel's Guilty Pleasures – SPOTLIGHT
December 7 – Hearts & Scribbles – SPOTLIGHT
December 8 – Ruff Drafts - AUTHOR GUEST POST
December 9 – ebook addicts – REVIEW
December 10 – Lady Hawkeye – SPOTLIGHT
December 10 – Socrates Book Reviews – REVIEW
December 11 – I'm Into Books – SPOTLIGHT
December 12 – The Mystery of Writing – AUTHOR GUEST POST
December 13 – Ascroft, eh? – AUTHOR GUEST POST

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The Daredevil by Nadia Han (WaterFyre Rising, #2) ~ Contemporary Romance ~ @XpressoTours #EnterForAChance

The Daredevil
Nadia Han
(WaterFyre Rising, #2)
Publication date: November 30th 2022
Genres: Adult, Contemporary Romance

About the Book:

Loving her is his biggest risk . . . and also his biggest reward.

Daring, clever, and gorgeous, Royce Viktorsson is a volcanologist who lives life on the edge between the thrill and the pulsing calm before the storm. His unsteady lifestyle masks the man who is seeking to heal the hole in his heart. Nothing has offered him resolve . . . until her.

The lightning that illuminates his soul.
The thunder that stirs his heart.
The lava that ignites his blood.

Thoughtful, alluring, and guarded, travel blogger Michelle Yates is emotionally unavailable thanks to the monster in her closet. Traveling allows her to see the beauty in the world, making her forget the ugliness in her life. One man yanks on that closet door and helps her claim back her self-worth.

The friend who becomes her lover.
The hero who defeats her monster.
The savior who defines her destiny.

As their romance churns, danger erupts, whipping out secrets that demand the truth, but the daredevil is willing to risk everything to defend those important to him.

The Daredevil is a friends-to-lovers, fake-dating, forced proximity, destined moments, billionaire hero, and a suspenseful contemporary romance. It is Book Two in the WaterFyre Rising series but can be read as a standalone.

Add tp Goodreads / Purchase from Amazon

Read an Excerpt:

In a blink, he pounced on me, pushing me back onto the couch with his body covering mine. He gripped my wrists and lifted them above my head. Heat spread all over my body as I sensed the bulge pressing into me.

“You cheated, and that calls for a punishment.” His eyes pinned me, while a mischievous smirk slid onto his face.

“I didn’t cheat,” I breathed as my nipples pebbled under my thin bra. “There weren’t any rules about fake injuries. I just maneuvered around you.”

“You manipulated my concern for you. We’re going to set hard rules for next time.” He shifted his body, pushing one of my thighs up with one hand while still gripping my wrists with the other. I was at his mercy, and there was something sexy about that.

“Not my intention—”

His hand ran over my thigh and squeezed my buttock. “Oh, it was your intention, just like this is my intention.” His free hand slipped under my ass, pushing my core into his hard cock.

I let out a moan as his cock throbbed against me, trying to punish me with need. God, I wanted him so badly. Grinding my hips against him, I studied his face.

He growled with satisfaction. Did he realize we were starting a new game?

“I should’ve known you’re a she-devil. All this wild hair and the wicked glint in your eyes should have given me a clue.” He pressed his face into my hair and inhaled. “I love the way you smell.”

The need to touch and feel him surged in me. With my legs, I squeezed his ass, making my claim. “A she-devil is the perfect match for a daredevil, don’t you think?”

“You’re driving me crazy, Michelle. What game are we playing now? How to seduce Royce?”

How had he known? A wild guess? It didn’t matter.

His eyes had darkened to a gorgeous mossy color. “Seduce away, angel. You know how to turn me on.”

Royce swallowed, and the movement of his Adam’s apple increased the need in me. I’d always considered a man’s shoulders to be the feature I couldn’t resist, but right now, his Adam’s apple became the switch that lit me up.

I pressed my lips to the masculine bump on his throat and kissed it.

He crooned. “I’ll accept this defeat.”

“Willingly? You had no choice. You lost.” My voice vibrated against his throat.

He veered back, creating a slight distance between my lips. “I love that you wanted to win so badly.”

I needed to win because I wanted to know what he feared. That desire trumped everything else. “I like to win.”

“So do I.” His eyes flashed with heat. “Since l lost, I have to either answer a tough question or do something that frightens me.” His body shifted, opening my thighs wider, not acting like someone who had been defeated.


Meet the Author:

Nadia Han is a dreamer, a visionary, and a believer in karma and kindness. She lives in New England with her family and spends most of her time crafting stories. When she’s not writing, she practices yoga, reads, explores nature, and eats all kinds of foods.

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Humbug Day by Gitte Tamar @BrigitteTamar ~ @RABTBookTours #RABTBookTours #HumbugDay #GitteTamar #ChildrensBoo

 
Humbug Day by Gitte Tamar

Children's Fiction, Picture Books, Christmas, Children's Picture Books

Date Published: Nov. 6, 2022 

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 About the Book:

Join a child through a series of whimsical illustrations as their views on Santa shift upon realizing their best friend, Jimmy, does not receive equal treatment at Christmas.

About the Author:

Brigitte, "Gitte," Tamar was born in a small rural Oregon town. Growing up, she was enthralled by scary tales featuring poetic tones and consistently gravitated towards writing darkened narratives. In the different storylines, Brigitte explores the harsh realities of social issues faced by today's generations. This includes the dark outcomes brought on by peer pressure, addiction, homelessness, mental illness, childhood trauma, and abuse. She feels it is essential to share narratives that refrain from sugarcoating the topics society tends to shy away from.


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Release Blitz ~ The Ridders by Lisa Towles @writertowles ~ @RABTBookTours #RABTBookTours #TheRidders #LisaTowles #Thriller

The Ridders by Lisa Towles

Political Thriller

Date Published: November 30, 2022

 

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About the Book:

Young PI, BJ Janoff is randomly approached by a stranger with a proposition he can’t refuse – a million dollars to deliver an envelope to a hotel lobby. The pusher forces him to accept the money upfront with the threat of his demise should he fail to deliver it on time. BJ’s growing obsession with the envelope’s contents leads him down a treacherous path toward the game orchestrators, where he discovers a large-scale political scandal, a treasure hunt for a priceless sword, and a global crime ring linked to a WWII-era secret society. When an act of brilliance changes the balance of power, the safety of everyone he loves is in jeopardy. And the more he digs, the closer he comes to truths he can’t bear to face – about his missing father and the elusive Bilderberg Group.


WINNER of the 2022 American Fiction Award in the category of Crime Thriller

FINALIST in the category of Political Thriller

Literary Titan Gold Medal for Fiction


 About the Author:

 Lisa Towles is an award-winning crime novelist and a passionate speaker, who brings her experience with creativity, business strategy, and self-care to groups of writers and entrepreneurs. Towles writes edgy stories of corruption, secrets, and escape through the eyes of snarky, clever protagonists hell-bent on uncovering truths and finding justice - no matter the cost. Her June 2022 thriller, Hot House, was a #1 Amazon Bestseller (Kindle) and won First Place in The Book Fest 2022 literary awards in the category of Mystery & Crime. The Ridders, forthcoming in November, 2022, was the American Fiction Award Winner in the category of Crime Thrillers. Towles has an MBA in IT Management and works full-time in the tech industry from her home in the San Francisco Bay Area. Read more about her books at indiesunited.net/lisa-towles.


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Release Blitz ~ The Canadian Beaver Lodge Assassins Association by Jerry Cripe ~ @RABTBookTours #RABTBookTours #TheCanadianBeaverLodgeAssassinsAssociation #JerryCripe #ActionAdventure

 

The Canadian Beaver Lodge Assassins Association by Jerry Cripe

Action/Adventure

Date Published: November 30, 2022

Publisher: Acorn Publishing


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About the Book:

On a routine delivery, courier Jaxy Thrie must ferry a priceless item—a Fabergé guardian angel once worn by the Empress Maria Feodorovna—to a Russian heiress in British Columbia. Things get out of hand when Jaxy loses the valuable medallion. He finds himself in fast trouble with the Romanov Guild, who accuses him of theft. It falls on Jaxy to restore the national treasure to the Royal Museum while dodging bullets from a greedy band of robbers, the Mounties, and the Canadian Beaver Lodge Assassins Association.

About the Author:

A lifetime resident of California, Jerry moved to Santa Barbara after graduating from USC to work in the aerospace industry. Today, he designs night-vision cameras for everyday use. In his free time, Jerry likes to write and use his musical talent to compose original scores for piano and guitar. After his first loves—song and storytelling—Jerry enjoys hiking, spending time in the garden, and baking sourdough bread.


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Tuesday, November 29, 2022

A Valentine for Christmas by Reese Ryan @ReeseRyanWrites ~ Valentine Vineyards, Book #1 ~ @XpressoTours ~ Contemporary Romance, Holiday Romance ~ #EnterforaChance

A Valentine for Christmas
Reese Ryan
(Valentine Vineyards, #1)
Published by: Harlequin Desire
Publication date: November 29th 2022
Genres: Adult, Contemporary Romance, Holiday Romance

About the Book:

Opposites do more than attract when an older woman falls for a younger man in Reese Ryan’s brand-new Harlequin Desire series, Valentine Vineyards!

A red-hot romance between a career-focused woman and a determined younger man?

Doctor’s orders!

Dr. Julian Brandon is too charming, too sexy and too young for Chandra Valentine. But after the successful bachelor rescues her—twice—she owes him. Still reeling from life-changing family revelations, Chandra somehow agrees to pose as Julian’s girlfriend. And now the irresistible Julian has plans that start with seduction under the mistletoe and end with their fake relationship erupting into a scorching affair. Now Chandra’s questioning everything she believed about love…

From Harlequin Desire: A luxurious world of bold encounters and sizzling chemistry.

You’ll be swept away by this bold, sizzling romance, part of the Valentine Vineyards series:

Book 1: A Valentine for Christmas

Add to Goodreads 

Purchase from Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo

Read an Excerpt:

One

Chandra Valentine gripped the handle of her rolling carry-on luggage as she watched the tiny regional plane taxi toward her gate at the Charlotte Douglas International Airport. She honestly wished she hadn’t seen it. Then she could pretend it was a larger plane. A stable plane. The kind she’d become accustomed to flying in over her past thirty-nine years of life. Not one of those little puddle jumpers she’d always taken great pains to avoid.

She loosened her grip when she realized her nails were stabbing her palms. She opened her hand, studying the row of angry semicircles that trailed across her skin. Chandra took a deep breath, her eyes drifting closed momentarily. When she opened them, she was greeted by a penetrating dark gaze.

The incredibly handsome man tipped his chin in greeting as he rubbed his full beard. Typically, she’d considered a full-grown beard a turnoff. Who knew exactly what might be lurking in that thing? But for this brother, she’d make an exception.

He was dressed in an unbuttoned, green and black plaid shirt over a black Henley shirt, distressed jeans and brown Timberland boots. His lop-sided smile made her belly flip in ways it hadn’t in longer than she cared to admit.

Chandra gave him a quick nod and an awkward wave before sauntering away.

The man was fine. In ways she could wax poetically about for days. But this wasn’t a girls’ trip to Vegas. She was about to board a tuna can with wings so she could meet her dad in some small mountain town in Tennessee.

If she didn’t feel a sense of urgency to get to the little town of Magnolia Lake, where her dad had summoned her and her five younger siblings, she would’ve flown to the closest major airport then driven the remainder of the way through the mountains. But she was worried about her dad.

Abbott Raymond Valentine had turned sixty-nine on his last birthday—which she’d missed because she was at a company retreat in Utah. Her father had been in sort of a funk since his mother had died a few years ago. It didn’t feel quite like mourning, but something deeper. She hadn’t been able to figure out what it was, and her dad wouldn’t open up about what he was feeling. He’d been grumpy and evasive whenever she tried to broach the topic, which ruined the mood of their weekly calls. So she’d stopped asking, hoping he’d eventually be ready to confide in her.

But two weeks ago, her father had called a big family meeting via teleconference to inform them he needed to see all of them in person. Despite their pleading and threatening, her father wouldn’t offer the slightest hint of what this was about. Chandra was terrified about what might prompt her father to gather them together like this for the first time since her grandmother’s funeral.

It’d taken three days and an online calendar for the six siblings to figure out when their schedules would permit all of them to take time off their jobs and get together for at least a week, preferably two—as her father had requested. But here she was on her way to some tiny town in the Smoky Mountains where she only hoped they had internet, cell phone service and indoor plumbing because hiking in the woods was the limit of her outdoorsyness.

Chandra settled into a seat as far away as she could get from the handsome man with the gorgeous dark eyes who was making her rethink her stance on beards. Because as much as she’d like to get to know him up close and personal, she didn’t have time for extracurricular activities on this trip.

She was a problem solver. Had been since she was eight years old and returned from school to discover the Dear Abbott letter her mother had left on the kitchen counter.

Her father had been gutted. She, Nolan, Sebastian and Alonzo had been devastated. Just like that, she’d become the adult in the house as her father struggled to deal with her mother’s abandonment. In some ways, she’d felt like the only adult in the room with her family ever since.

Chandra rubbed her arms against the chill in the airport, still devastated by the painful memory.

Mr. Handsome stared at her from across the wide expanse.

Chandra pulled the book on teambuilding she’d been reading from her purse and opened it. She couldn’t afford to be distracted by the man. She needed to get to the bottom of whatever was going on with her father, solve whatever problem needed to be solved then return to San Diego.


Meet the Author:

Reese Ryan writes sexy, deeply emotional romances with family drama, surprising secrets, and unexpected twists.

Past president of her local Romance Writers of America chapter and a panelist at the 2017 Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, Reese is an advocate for the romance genre and diversity in fiction.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Youtube / Bookbub


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Poopie Suits & Cowboy Boots by Frank Hood ~ @RABTBookTours #RABTBookTours #PoopieSuitsandCowboyBoots #FrankandCharlesHood #Nonfiction

Poopie Suits & Cowboy Boots 

by Frank Hood

Cold War Biography - Non Fiction

Date Published: 01-17-2018 

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About the Book:

Poopie Suits and Cowboy Boots is a story of a young man volunteering to serve aboard a US Submarine, and the life changing journey he had to take to even get on a submarine.  Then, once aboard, you go through the day-to-day life while on the front lines of the Cold War at sea.  The scary incidents, the wild times in ports of call, the ongoing testing the men were subjected to by the crew.  Historical touch points anchor the story in the mid to late 60's, a time of the nascent space program and the Vietnam War.   Frank's story serves as a frame work to explain how submarine systems operate, in simple easy to understand terms.  There is a lot packed into this true story, and we hope that those who read it will come away with an enhanced understanding of what these men went through, the sacrifices that had to made, the unrelenting pressure of zero mistakes in an always potential deadly environment. An deep insight into the Silent Service.

About the Author:

Frank Hood received a NROTC Scholarship to Purdue and started his formation to being commissioned as a Naval Officer.  For his Senior Cruise, he was assigned to a WWII era submarine and he saw, first hand, the loose rules coupled with the cool and professional execution of duties, along with the great fun they crew had when the pressure was off. He greatly appreciated the tight camaraderie they had, and he knew that is what he wanted when he graduated.

This is the genesis of this book.  For over 1 year of Nuclear Power and Submarine Officer training, to 3 years of keeping the Soviet Submarine Force at bay, this experience was one of the most impacting of his life.  Post Navy, he worked as an Engineer, Sales Person, and Business Owner.  Retired to New Hampshire and enjoying life. Active in the submarine veteran community, the deep bond formed 50 years before is even stronger and more appreciated.

Charles Hood is a physician practicing in South Carolina. For years he was intrigued by his older brother Frank’s service on a hot running, fast attack submarine, but could not get Frank to ever talk about it. Finally, he convinced Frank by saying, “Even without the secret mission details, your day-to-day life is a unique story, and if you don’t tell it so others can appreciate what you went through, who will?”  With that Frank dictated his story and Charles word smithed it and add additional research.  Vetting by many other sub vets helped reduce the errors caused by 50 year old memories.  The resulting story has been acclaimed by submarine veterans and civilians alike.  It is in its 5th Edition, have had other details and stories added to the original content.


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Book Blitz ~ The Wrong Kind of Magic by Hilary Hauck @HilaryHauck #EnterForAChance ~ @RABTBookTours #RABTBookTours #TheWrongKindofMagic #HilaryHauck #MiddleGradeFantasy

 

The Wrong Kind of Magic 

by Hilary Hauck 

Book one of Trevor Made Christmas Stories

Middle-Grade Fantasy

Date Published: 09-27-2022

 

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 About the Book:

The house is shaking, colors are sparkling, things are starting to break... and did that toy start moving?

Thirteen-year-old Marley is convinced that Christmas is just for little kids and that magic doesn’t exist, but when she and her siblings tiptoe downstairs in the middle of the night to take a sneak peek at their stockings, she’s about to discover that magic is more real than she ever imagined...

When the children’s toys start coming to life, Marley will need to think fast if she’s to protect her siblings from rampaging dinosaurs and wild monkeys. The fate of them all depends on whether she can find the right kind of magic.

This thrilling and heartwarming adventure is a beautiful tale of a big sister who has forgotten the joys of Christmas. 

About the Author:

Christmas has always been Hilary Hauck’s favorite time of year. Growing up in the United Kingdom, Christmas meant family gatherings, turkey and stuffing, crackers, mince pies, charades, and the Queen’s speech in the afternoon.

According to Hilary, every child should have magic in their life, and stories enlighten us with the endless ways magic is all around. Why did she write this story about the wrong kind of magic? Well, because sometimes we need to feel the wrong kind of something before we know what the right kind looks and feels like.

Hilary is also the author of From Ashes to Song, inspired the true story of three Italians who immigrated to Pennsylvania ninety years before she did. She has written short stories for Like Sunshine After Rain and anthologies in the Mindful Writers Retreat Series.

She grew up in the UK and has also lived in Italy. She lives on a small patch of woods in rural Pennsylvania with her husband and a cat with a penchant for laundry. Visit her at www.hilaryhauck.com.


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Monday, November 28, 2022

Hero Haters by Ken MacQueen @kmqyvr ~ Adult Thriller ~ @partnersincr1me #EnterforaChance

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Hero Haters

by Ken MacQueen

November 7 - December 2, 2022 Virtual Book Tour

About the Book:

Hero Haters by Ken MacQueen

He seeks redemption, others want revenge

Jake Ockham had a dream job, vetting nominees for the Sedgewick Medallion-the nation's highest civilian award for heroism. His own scarred hands are an indelible reminder of the single mother he failed to pull from a raging house fire; her face haunts him still. Obligations drag him back to his hometown to edit the family newspaper but attempts to embrace small-town life, and the hot new doctor, are thwarted by unknown forces. The heroes Jake vetted go missing and he becomes the prime suspect in the disappearances. Aided by resourceful friends, Jake follows a twisted trail to the Dark Web, where a shadowy group is forcing the kidnapped medalists to perform deadly acts of valor to amuse twisted subscribers to its website. To save his heroes, Jake must swallow his fears and become one himself...or die in the attempt.

Praise for Hero Haters:

"An edge of your seat thriller. MacQueen, a journalist, ratchets up the suspense and tightens the grip to the explosive end."

Robert Dugoni New York Times Bestselling Author of The Tracy Crosswhite series

"Gripping from the first page. A thrill ride with all the right moves."

Rick Mofina USA Today Bestselling Author

Book Details:

Genre: Adult Thriller
Published by: The Wild Rose Press, Inc
Publication Date: October 2022
Number of Pages: 366
ISBN: 9781509243853 (ISBN10: 1509243852)
Book Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Read an Excerpt:

Prologue

Spokane, Washington, August 2019

Local hero Anderson Wise can’t remember the last time he paid for a drink at Sharkey’s.

Nor can he remember an embarrassing assortment of the women who selflessly shared their affection, post-Sharkey’s.

As for that last blurry night at the gin mill, he wished to hell he’d stayed home.

The bar’s owner, Sharon Key, hence Sharkey’s, took joy in chumming the waters on Wise’s behalf for a regular catch of what she called “Hero Worshippers.”

She saw getting him laid as partial repayment for saving her eleven-year-old grandson Toby’s life some eighteen months back.

A disaffected dad, high on crystal meth, stormed into Toby’s classroom to take issue with his kid’s latest report card. He showed his displeasure by shot-gunning the teacher, then reloaded and asked all A-students to identify themselves. Being A-students, they dutifully raised their hands, Toby among them.

As the high-as-a-kite shooter herded the high achievers to the front of the class, Wise, the school custodian, charged into the room armed with a multipurpose dry-chemical fire extinguisher. He blasted the shooter with a white cloud of monoammonium phosphate, to minimal effect, then slammed the gun out of his hands. It discharged into the floor sending several pellets into Wise’s left foot. Thoroughly pissed, Wise ended the drama by pile-driving the extinguisher into the shooter’s face.

Sharon Key, a widow in her early sixties, subsequently replaced the beer signs and dart board with blow-ups of the laudatory press Wise earned during the tragic aftermath. The front of the next day’s local paper held pride of place. It carried a photo of Wise, extinguisher in hand, under the headline: Greater Tragedy Averted as Hero Janitor Extinguishes Threat. The story contained a pull quote in large font which Wise came to regret: “ ‘It’s a versatile extinguisher,’ the modest 30-year-old explained, ‘good for class A, B and C fires—and meth-heads’.”

Said famous extinguisher now guards the top-shelf booze behind Sharkey’s oak-and-brass bar.

New stories were added to Sharkey’s wall five months back after Wise was awarded, with much publicity, the Sedgewick Trust Sacrifice Medallion— one of the most prestigious recognitions of heroism that American civilians can receive.

Wise’s liver and a lower part of his anatomy took a renewed pounding in the weeks thereafter. So much so he declared a moratorium on visits to Sharkey’s for reasons of self-preservation.

He was back in the saddle a month now, but his attendance was spotty. “This hero stuff,” he confided to Key one night, while slumped in his chair. “Maybe it’s too much of a good thing?”

“Ya think?” Key muttered as she took inventory of that night’s limited offerings.

It wasn’t just the women. Men often bought him drinks too, happy to bask in the reflected glory of a proven manly man.

Two weeks ago, some weedy academic from back east interviewed him at Sharkey’s and staked him to an alcohol-fueled dinner at the city’s best chop house. The brainy one expected Wise to opine on such things as “neo-Darwinian rules for altruism.”

Asked him if he’d been motivated by “a kinship bond” with anyone in the room?

Er, no.

Wondered if Wise knew that a disproportionate number of risk takers are working-class males?

Nope, sorry.

And had he calculated in the moment that a heroic display of “good genes” would make him a desirable mating partner?

Cripes. Really?

“Don’t know what I was thinking,” Wise said, swirling a glass of something called Amarone, a wine so amazing angels must have crushed the grapes with their tiny, perfect feet. “Heard a gun blast, grabbed the fire extinguisher off the wall. Saw the dead teacher, all those kids, and a nut with a shotgun. Did what anybody would do. I spent three years in the army after high school, mostly in the motor pool. Much as I hated basic training, maybe some of it stuck. Who knows?”

The academic gave a condescending smile and called for the bill, his hypothesis apparently confirmed.

Wise fled to the restaurant toilet and took notes on the back of his pay slip. Back home, he Googled the hell out of studies on “extreme altruist stimuli,” on “empirical perspectives on the duty to rescue,” and after many false starts, on theories of “Byronic and Lilithian Heroes.”

He kinda got the concept of “desirable mating partner”, but he was pretty sure his dick didn’t lead him into that classroom. Did it?

While not a reflective guy, Wise had to admit it was creepy to reap the fleshy benefits of his few seconds of glory while his dreams were haunted by visions of teacher Adah Summerhill slumped over her desk, blood pooled beneath her. So much blood. With the shooter sprawled unconscious, Wise gently lifted Adah’s head.

She had no pulse and her eyes, once so vibrant and expressive, were as empty as an open grave. She’d always been nice, and totally out of his league.

So, here he was, back at Sharkey’s, mind made up.

Key arrived at his “courting table” and set down his Jack and ginger ale.

“Gave my notice at the school,” he told her. “Getting outta here for a while. Got that Sedgewick money to spend. Someplace they don’t know me. Mexico, maybe.

Or Costa Rica.”

Key patted his hand. “Knew this was coming, Andy.

You banged every eligible female in town, pretty much.

And some who shoulda been out of bounds. I’m amazed the Tourist Bureau doesn’t list you as a top-ten attraction, up there with the botanical gardens.”

“All I want, Shar, is to be liked for me, not for something I did because I happened to be in the wrong place at the right time. Or is that the other way ’round?”

“Hey, you’re a good-looking guy. Still got that shaggy blond baseball player thing going for ya.

Might’ve taken a run at you myself if my hips weren’t shot.” She patted his cheek. “Made you blush. Now don’t turn into a beach bum down there. Always thought you aimed too low, mopping floors and washing windows for the school board. Time to stretch—”

She craned her neck toward the door after it opened with a bang. “My, my, here’s one for the road. She was in earlier, asking after you.” Key aimed a nod at the door and whispered, “Don’t strain anything.” And headed to the bar.

Wise looked up and…sweet Jesus.

Early twenties, he guessed. His eyes roamed from strappy sandals, up a long expanse of tanned bare legs to a glittering silver dress that started perilously high-thigh and ended well below exposed shoulders. The ripe promise of youth was on full display, like she’d dipped her bounteous curves in liquid lamé.

She drew every eye in the place as she undulated to his table. Full red lips, high cheekbones, chestnut hair piled high. Up close now, her gimlet eyes were at once innocent and knowing, like a debauched choirgirl.

“Hi, hero.” Her voice was low and sultry, as he knew it would be. She remained on her feet, hands on the table, leaning low to full effect. “When you finish that drink, I really want to see your medal.”

**** He remembered her mixing drinks back at his apartment while he retrieved his medallion from the sock drawer in his bedroom. He remembered her running a sensuous thumb over the bas-relief portrait of Philip Sedgewick as she read aloud the inscription: “The most sublime act is to set another before you.”

That wondrous voice lingering over “sublime act,”

like it was lifted from the Kama Sutra.

And like too many times, post-Sharkey’s, damned if he could remember her name—that evil bitch. He awoke, bouncing in the back of a van, hands and legs cuffed to rings set in the floor. A broken-glass headache served notice of every bump in the road.

Another lost night at Sharkey’s.

Wise had a dreadful feeling he’d never be back.

Chapter One Aberdeen, Washington, July, one month earlier Jake Ockham was one kilometer in, one kilometer to go and already in a world of pain. Lungs, legs and palms, always the damned palms, screaming enough already.

He’d whaled away on his Concept II rowing machine for thirty minutes, building up to this. Stripped off the sweatshirt after ten minutes, the t-shirt after twenty-five. Down now to running shoes and gym shorts, his torso gleaming with sweat despite the morning chill.

He’d rested after a thirty-minute warm-up to gulp water and to consider the need to reinforce the pilings under the creaky wooden deck before it dumped him and the ergometer into the Wishkah River below. Might leave it in the river mud if it came to that.

Full race mode now, one kilometer in, another to go.

The erg’s computer showed the need to pick up the pace to break the six-minute barrier, something he’d regularly shattered a decade ago during his university rowing days.

Thrust with the legs, throw back the shoulders, arms ripping back the handle. Return to the catch and repeat.

Five hundred meters to go. Eyes fixed on a duck touching down on the river, looking anywhere but the screen.

Two hundred and fifty meters. Faster. Harder. Don’t lose the technique.

Fifty meters. You can do this.

A final piston thrust of legs, shoulders, arms and…six minutes, thirteen seconds.

“Fuck!” His roar startled the duck into flight.

He slumped over the machine, gasping for air, ripping at the Velcro tabs of his gloves, throwing them on the deck in disgust. Hated those damned gloves, so essential these days.

Head bowed, he heard the cabin’s door rasp open.

“Such language.” Clara Nufeld, his aunt, and technically his boss as publisher of the Grays Harbor Independent, leaned against the doorframe.

He didn’t look up. “Don’t bother knocking. Make yourself at home.”

“I did, and I am. Got a couple of things to show you.

Right up your alley. Might be pieces for next week’s issue.”

She was lean and tall, in tight jeans and a faded Nirvana sweatshirt, her spiked white hair cut short. At sixty-four, she still turned heads. Jake knew her age to the day, Clara being his mother’s identical twin. Connie, his late mother, fell to breast cancer at age forty-five.

So much of his mother in Clara. So much that when Jake finished high school and rode his rowing scholarship east to Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Mellon University, his father, Roger Ockham, moved his accounting business to Bend, Oregon. Said it was for the golfing, but Jake suspected the sight of his late wife’s twin was a constant reminder of his loss.

Connie and Clara, fresh out of university, worked for their father at the Independent, Clara on the advertising side, Connie as a reporter.

They took the helm of the paper after Derwin Nufeld—their dad, Jake’s grandfather—collapsed and died mid-way through crafting a fiery editorial on a mule-headed decision to pull The Catcher in the Rye from the high school library.

After Connie’s death, Clara did double duty as editor and publisher until she succeeded six months ago in luring Jake home to Washington State from Pittsburgh to take over as editor-in-chief.

This five-room stilt home, Clara’s former cottage on the tidal Wishkah, was his signing bonus.

One of the dwindling numbers of real estate ads in the Independent would describe the cabin something like: “A cozy oasis on the Wishkah, surrounded by nature and just minutes from the city. Fish from your deck while contemplating the possibilities for this prime riverfront property. A bit of TLC gets you a rustic getaway while you make plans for your dream home.”

After years in urban Pittsburgh, he awoke now to bird chatter and the sights and scents of the moody, muddy Wishkah—its current pulled, as he was pulled, to the infinite Pacific.

Jake gathered his shirts and gloves and cringed at a sniff-test of his underarms. “I’ll keep my distance.” He waved Clara inside. “What’s up my alley?”

She waved two dummy pages, the ads already laid out, plenty of blank space for him and his skeleton staff to fill with stories and photos.

Jake was still adjusting to small-town journalism, covering at least one earnest service club luncheon every week, puffy profiles of local businesses, check presentations, city council and school board meetings.

And jamming in as many names as possible. He’d done some summer reporting for the weekly during his high school years, but rowing had occupied most of his time.

Clara handed off a page proof with a boxed advert already laid out. “A new doctor is taking over old Doc Wilson’s practice, thank God. I swear the last medical journal that old man read was on the efficacy of leeches and bloodletting.”

Jake nodded. Worth a story for sure. A few words from Wilson about passing the scalpel to a new generation, then focus on Dr. Christina Doctorow. No hardship there.

The ad for her family practice included her photo.

Rather than the cliché white coat and stethoscope she wore hiking shorts and a flannel shirt with rolled sleeves, thick dark hair in a ponytail, a daypack hanging off a shoulder. A husky at her side gazed up adoringly.

Smart dog.

Jake put her at early thirties, his age more or less. He nodded approval. “Sporty. A fine addition to the Grays Harbor gene pool.”

“The woman’s a firecracker. Spent ten minutes haggling down the price. I finally caved. Said I’ll bump this up to a half-page, but you owe me a free checkup.”

“Seriously?”

“What she said, too. Also asked ‘Is that ethical?’ I said, ‘darling, I’m in advertising. You want ethics, deal with my nephew on the editorial side.’ “

Jake laughed. “Pretty good at bloodletting herself.

What else you got?”

“This is so up your alley.” She handed him a classified ad page-proof. “You being an expert.”

Jake slumped onto a kitchen chair. “On what?”

She tapped a one-column boxed ad in the lower left, “Heroes.”

“Not hardly.”

He looked closer and reared back. The heading read: “For Sale. Rare Sedgewick Sacrifice Medallion. $100 OBO.”

There was a thumbnail photo of the medal’s obverse, showing the craggy face of Philip Sedgewick, a leading member of the long-dead school of industrialist robber barons. He’d amassed a fortune in textile mills, newspapers, and exploitive labor practices. Awash in cash he came to philanthropy late in life. Like others in this elite group—Carnegie, Mellon, Rockefeller, Vanderbilt, et al—their names and reputation-burnishing generosity live beyond the grave.

Sedgewick, at his wife’s urging, chose to celebrate extraordinary acts of heroism. He used eight of his many millions—an enormous sum in 1901—to endow a family trust to award exceptional heroism with the Sacrifice Medallion and needs-based financial assistance. Over the past one hundred twenty years, the trust awarded some eleven thousand medallions, an inspiring legacy of courage, and yes, sacrifice.

The grainy photo in the classified ad was too small to read the inscription under Sedgewick’s stern visage, but Jake knew it well. It was a quotation by the English poet William Blake: “The most sublime act is to set another before you.”

Below the photo was a post office box address, and “mail inquiries only.”

Jake shook his head. “This is nuts. The price is insanely low, insulting really. The medallions are kinda priceless.”

“I wondered about that,” Clara said. “The ad cost fifty dollars so not much of a profit.”

“The rare few that get to auction can fetch in the thousands. We try to buy them back, prefer that to having them land up in the hands of the undeserving.”

Clara cocked an eyebrow. “We?”

Jake shrugged. “I still do the occasional freelance investigations for Sedgewick. The thing is, there’s never a good reason to sell these. Either the recipient is dead broke, or dead without relatives to inherit it. Or it’s stolen.”

“Or,” Clara said, resting a hand on Jake’s shoulder, “the hero feels undeserving.”

He flinched. “Was there a photo of the medal’s back? It’d have the recipient’s name and the reason it was awarded.”

“Don’t even know who placed the ad. Arrived in the mail: a photo, the ad copy, and a fifty-dollar bill. No return address but the post office box.”

“Pull the ad, Clara. I’ll buy it and return the money.

There’s a story here, something’s not right.”

Clara toyed with her car keys. “I feel bad sometimes, guilting you back. Do you miss it, your old life back in Pittsburgh?”

His pause was barely discernable. “Great to be back in the old hometown.”

“Great to earn half the salary you did in the big city?

Great to prop up the family business? Great to be stuck with your old aunt?”

“Aunt doesn’t cover it. I was twelve when Mom passed. You stepped up for Dad and me.”

She looked like she was about to say something, then shook her head and flashed an enigmatic smile. “A topic for another day. Gotta run.”

She leaned across the table, took his hands in hers, running her thumbs lightly over his scarred palms. She raised his hands to her lips for a kiss, then turned for the door.

***

Excerpt from Hero Haters by Ken MacQueen. Copyright 2022 by Ken MacQueen. Reproduced with permission from Ken MacQueen. All rights reserved.

 

 

Meet the Author:

Ken MacQueen

Before turning to fiction, Ken MacQueen spent 15 years as Vancouver bureau chief for Maclean’s, Canada’s newsmagazine, winning multiple National Magazine Awards and nominations. He traveled the world writing features and breaking news for the magazine, and previously for two national news agencies. Naturally, he had to make Jake Ockham, his hero, a reporter, albeit a reluctant one. MacQueen also covered nine Olympic Games and drew Jake’s athletic prowess from tracking elite rowers in training and on podiums in Athens, Beijing and London. He and his wife divide their time between Vancouver, and British Columbia's Sunshine Coast.

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Martyr: The Immanence Series, Book Three by Linda Robertson Reinhardt ~ Dark Fantasy #EnterForAChance


Martyr     
The Immanence Series
Book Three
Linda Robertson Reinhardt

Genre: Dark Fantasy
Publisher: Igni House Publishing
Date of Publication: Nov 28, 2022   
ISBN:   9781685440091
Number of pages:  635
Word Count: 148,000 
Cover Artist: Linda Robertson Reinhardt

Series Tagline: A renegade angel once changed human society forever… now a new angel will change it again.   

About the Book: 

Jovienne’s quest to understand her power and claim her freedom leads to a shocking discovery--one that will shake the foundations of modern society and sends her straight to Hell.

Listen to the Immanence Soundtrack



Meet the Author:

Linda Robertson Reinhardt is an internationally published novelist and her short stories have appeared in several anthologies. In 2022, she released The Immanence Series, a dark fantasy trilogy for which she created the covers and all the interior artwork. A life-long musician, she’s also an award-winning composer, so it’s no surprise she also wrote and produced a 72-minute original orchestral score to accompany the new books. She has even scored a few short, independent films. Her music is available on most streaming channels. She is also a graphic artist and a painter, and her artwork is available through Redbubble. If that’s not enough, she makes jewelry and hand-blends/hand-bottles fragrances that she sells on her Etsy store. A mother of four boys, Linda is married and lives in Ohio.
 







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