#BookReview: Lakesedge (World at the Lake's Edge, #1) by @lkclipstone

Synopsis: A gothic fantasy about monsters and magic, set on the banks of a cursed lake.

There are monsters in the world.

When Violeta Graceling arrives at haunted Lakesedge estate, she expects to find a monster. She knows the terrifying rumors about Rowan Sylvanan, who drowned his entire family when he was a boy. But neither the estate nor the monster are what they seem.

There are monsters in the woods.

As Leta falls for Rowan, she discovers he is bound to the Lord Under, the sinister death god lurking in the black waters of the lake. A creature to whom Leta is inexplicably drawn…

There’s a monster in the shadows, and now it knows my name.

Now, to save Rowan—and herself—Leta must confront the darkness in her past, including unraveling the mystery of her connection to the Lord Under.

#ReleaseBlitz: Late Bloomer by Meg Benjamin @RABTBookTours @megbenj1 @BookBuzznet

Contemporary Romance, Romantic Comedy, Texas Romance, Small Town Romance

Date Published: May 31, 2022

 

Strong Blooms Take Time.

Gray Temple is an angry man. He’s been suspended from the family law firm over a disputed divorce settlement, and he’s hiding out in Konigsburg, Texas, working at his brother’s BBQ joint and living in his cousin’s old apartment. Even as he nurses his fury at the injustice of it all, Gray suspects he needs to pull himself together. He just doesn’t exactly know how.

Amanda Sunderland is a little angry herself. She’s short two employees at her garden store and trying to deal with the possibility that her son’s wealthy father may want custody for himself and his new fiancée. When Gray offers his services as temporary help, Amanda’s happy to grab him.

As the two get to know each other better, grabbing takes on a whole new meaning. The heat between them makes Gray begin to see Konigsburg’s charms and Amanda begin to rethink the advantages of staying single.

But when Amanda’s son Vic and his best friend Daisy Toleffson disappear, panic hits Konigsburg. Can Gray and Amanda find the kids? Can Gray win back his reputation? And can he stay with Amanda if he goes back to the family firm?

It’s Konigsburg, y’all. Anything can happen.

#BookReview: Sunday Afternoons and Other Times Remembered (A Memoir) by Ben Ewell

Synopsis: On the afternoon of Easter Sunday, 1992, Ben Ewell’s brother, sister-in-law, and niece were all murdered. While trying to make sense of this staggering tragedy, Ben can’t help but think back through his life: the hard work and the many peaceful Sunday afternoons growing up on his family farm in Ohio in a house without a bathroom or running water; his high school antics in the 1950s; his time in Haight-Ashbury while attending law school in 1960s San Francisco; and the highs and lows, both personal and professional, of life after school. Threaded throughout these reminiscences, Ben reveals the details of the investigation of his family members’ murders—and the arrest and trial of the parties involved. 


In this decades-long saga, there is marriage and divorce, love and loss, family and friendship; there are political campaigns and business ventures, some failed and some fruitful. Ultimately, this is a story of perseverance in the face of tragedy, of creating opportunities out of problems, and of appreciating the gift of life and the world around us—with some humor along the way. 

This title will be released on June 14, 2022.

#BookReview: A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire (Blood and Ash, #2) by Jennifer Armentrout

Synopsis: A Betrayal…

Everything Poppy has ever believed in is a lie, including the man she was falling in love with. Thrust among those who see her as a symbol of a monstrous kingdom, she barely knows who she is without the veil of the Maiden. But what she does know is that nothing is as dangerous to her as him. The Dark One. The Prince of Atlantia. He wants her to fight him, and that’s one order she’s more than happy to obey. He may have taken her, but he will never have her.

A Choice...

Casteel Da’Neer is known by many names and many faces. His lies are as seductive as his touch. His truths as sensual as his bite. Poppy knows better than to trust him. He needs her alive, healthy, and whole to achieve his goals. But he’s the only way for her to get what she wants—to find her brother Ian and see for herself if he has become a soulless Ascended. Working with Casteel instead of against him presents its own risks. He still tempts her with every breath, offering up all she’s ever wanted. Casteel has plans for her. Ones that could expose her to unimaginable pleasure and unfathomable pain. Plans that will force her to look beyond everything she thought she knew about herself—about him. Plans that could bind their lives together in unexpected ways that neither kingdom is prepared for. And she’s far too reckless, too hungry, to resist the temptation.

A Secret…

But unrest has grown in Atlantia as they await the return of their Prince. Whispers of war have become stronger, and Poppy is at the very heart of it all. The King wants to use her to send a message. The Descenters want her dead. The wolven are growing more unpredictable. And as her abilities to feel pain and emotion begin to grow and strengthen, the Atlantians start to fear her. Dark secrets are at play, ones steeped in the blood-drenched sins of two kingdoms that would do anything to keep the truth hidden. But when the earth begins to shake, and the skies start to bleed, it may already be too late.

#BookBlitz: Meditation the Ultimate Superpower by Rev Vila @RABTBookTours

 

How to defeat the villain inside you

Nonfiction

Date Published: 04-22-2022

Sometimes the whole world seems to be against us, we feel ourselves surrounded and chased by evil villains that mess with our head, with our minds ... they attack us through advertisements, rules and limitations, social media, telephones, they make us waste our money, our time, our life; they distract us, they make us lose our balance and disconnect from our inner world, from our mind. They start to control us.

But, are those villains really out there? Well… No, the villains are only inside your head, that's right, these villains live in your mind and control your behavior and your reactions to those external temptations, they want you to have unhealthy and destructive thoughts, they talk to you and control you, they weaken you, make you feel less, make you feel insecure, or make you feel that your life is meaningless and maybe, make you think that you do not deserve to be happy; comparing you with others, crushing your dreams, your desires, your real happiness. Have you heard them? Of course you hear them, they all speak to us, they are always there. These villains are our wild, out-of-control thoughts, that sometimes are just there and we can't make them disappear or silence them!

ENOUGH! It is time for you to take control, for you to decide either to ignore them or to send them away, to weaken their power in you, you are stronger and you have the super power to get rid of them. You have the superpower to control your thoughts, to control and decide your reactions, to choose how to live your life by being aware, being present and being true to yourself… how? Through meditation.

This is not just a book, is the beginning of your journey. I wrote it for you to find a way to understand your power, to understand how important your mental health is, this is a priority now. I'm showing you different ways of meditation for you to choose and to like it, I want you to find your own way of meditation that you can feel engaged, that you can feel motivated. Meditation is not boring, is not a waste of time, and no, is not a religion or part of any religion itself , and is not a trending fashion, meditation is a mind superpower. And you have it. Why you are wasting it!?

I have a mission: I want you to learn meditation, practice meditation , I want you to like it, to enjoy it, to make it part of your daily life to make it part of your priority healthy habits. I want you to have a healthy mind and to always THINK HEALTHY. One single person can't fix the world, but we can start with each one of us, with our children, to learn to think healthy, a healthy mind culture is the beginning of a better world.

If you are reading this, means you need this, means you want more in your life. Are you ready to be the master of your own life? You are in the right place. Welcome. Let's built a community of healthy thinkers, follow me, join me, let's learn together how to do it and how to apply and use it in our daily lives to keep our mind healthy, to reach our goals and to have the life we have always wanted.

#ReleaseBlitz: Asbury High and the Captivating Cruise by Kelly Brady Channick @RABTBookTours

Asbury High Series, book 6

YA Cozy Mystery

Date Published: 05/29/2022

Publisher: Purple Milk Publishing

Carly, Maddie, Pilot and Cornelious have been waiting forever for their Seniors Only Cruise. After three years of solving crime in their small town, this trip is the relaxing break from Asbury they need. Dreaming of all the fun and drama-free adventures in store for them, the gang settles in for a calm summer cruise.

Soon after departing, things don’t go quite as planned. With strange, new additions to their itinerary, Asbury’s favorite sleuths detect something is amiss. When violence breaks out, Cornelious turns to the captain who quickly reassures everyone aboard. After all, what reason would the crew have to mess with a group of teenagers? Adding to their troubles is Cornelious’ cousin Dane, whose feelings for Maddie have only grown stronger.

Excited to be away from his father and finally dating Maddie, Cornelious tries to ignore his cousin as his insecurities fester. After a stirring revelation from Dane, Cornelious retreats from his friends and finds solace in the ship’s jolly Captain Dex. At the same time, Carly, Maddie and Pilot begin to suspect the crew, believing there’s more than meets the eye with this cruise. Frustrated by Cornelious’ withdrawal, the gang doubles down on their efforts to discover the crew’s motives. Pulled into a dangerous game of who to trust, the gang is determined to find the truth—and mend their friendship.

With relationships called into question and stunning secrets exposed, the gang faces their biggest obstacle yet—trust. Can Cornelious trust the captain more than his friends? With their peers placing blind trust in the crew, can the gang convince them otherwise, before it’s too late? Or are Pilot, Carly and Maddie just overreacting? With constantly changing itineraries, a scheming crew lurking behind every door, a happy-go-lucky captain refusing to dig deeper, and lifelong relationships put to the test, can the gang rekindle their relationship with each other and figure out what’s really going on?

#BookBlitz: Policing Bodies by I. India Thusi @RABTBookTours @mkwebsiteandseo

 

Law, Sex Work, and Desire in Johannesburg

 

Nonfiction / Law

Date Published: December 21, 2021

Publisher: ‎Stanford University Press

 

 

Sex work occupies a legally gray space in Johannesburg, South Africa, and police attitudes towards it are inconsistent and largely unregulated. As I. India Thusi argues in Policing Bodies, this results in both room for negotiation that can benefit sex workers and also extreme precarity in which the security police officers provide can be offered and taken away at a moment's notice. Sex work straddles the line between formal and informal. Attitudes about beauty and subjective value are manifest in formal tasks, including police activities, which are often conducted in a seemingly ad hoc manner. However, high-level organizational directives intended to regulate police obligations and duties toward sex workers also influence police action and tilt the exercise of discretion to the formal. In this liminal space, this book considers how sex work is policed and how it should be policed. Challenging discourses about sexuality and gender that inform its regulation, Thusi exposes the limitations of dominant feminist arguments regarding the legal treatment of sex work. This in-depth, historically informed ethnography illustrates the tension between enforcing a country's laws and protecting citizens' human rights.