10.31.2017

Halloween Mystery With The Untethered Realms Authors


When black cats prowl,
and pumpkins gleam,
May luck be yours
on Halloween.

The UR authors are dressed up, and it's up to you to guess who they are!
If you are the first to guess correctly, you will win a copy of our newest thrilling anthology, Spirits in the Water.

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Teen Titans GO!
Who is behind this mask? If you say Carrie Kelley, you'd get some geek points, but it wouldn't be right.

* * * * *


Who is under this mask? I'm the ghoulish one, some may say the goulash one. Some other published authors in the photo: Marie Harte, the prisoner; behind her in orange is Paty Jaeger; next to her at the top is Karen Duvall; the purple witch is Ruth Colter; and the other witch is Diana McCollum.

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Guess who's under the mask! We love a good renaissance faire and it's a perfect way to spend Halloween, all dressed up in comfy clothes, eating turkey legs, and imbibing the bread of life, aka beer (Just to keep it authentic, of course!).

* * * *

Who is this Purple Queen? Or maybe she's a countess or even a commoner. But one thing's for sure... she LOVES all things purple.

10.24.2017

Spirits in the Water Tour & giveaway


The Spirits in the Water tour with Silver Dagger Tours has started! It runs from OCT 23 through NOV 6 Here is the lineup. Links go live on the day that they post, so stop by often to keep up with the posts! We are also offering an amazing array of giveaway items to help celebrate! (Scroll down all the way to enter the rafflecopter). Spirits in the Water is the final of the Untethered Realms Elements series. Get them all!
OCT 23
Silver Dagger kickoff with guest post by Catherine Stine & excerpt by Christine Rains
Mythical Books with guest post by M Pax "What's in the Water?"
Jazzy Book Reviews with guest post by Christine Rains "Frozen Fears"
OCT 24
Blog of Jacey Holbrand
Fundinmental
Books a Plenty Book Reviews
OCT 25
Breaking Genre
A Mama's Corner of the World
Land of Oyr
Lisa Book Blog @ LEL
YA Book Divas
OCT 26
Books, Authors, Blogs
Momma Says: To Read or Not to Read - excerpts
OCT 27
Jamie Marchant, Fantasy Author
3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, &, Sissy, Too!
Girl with Pen
Yearwood La Novela
OCT 28
Book Crazy Scrapbook Mama – GUEST POST  by Catherine Stine
Laurie's Paranormal Thoughts
Books Dreams Life
Bound 2 Escape
OCT 29
Susan Heim on Writing
Mello & June
Book Bangers Blog
OCT 30
Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer
OCT 31
Must Read Faster
Spunky N Sassy
The Bookworm Chronicles
NOV 1
T's Stuff
Alex J. Cavanaugh
Cloe Michael's Reads
Circle of Stalkers
The Blackwood Blog
The Book Town
NOV 2
Rabid Readers Book Blog
Stormy Nights Reviewing & Bloggin'
Sylv.net
NOV 3
Tales of A Wanna-Be SuperHero Mom
Teatime and Books
NOV 4
FUONLYKNEW
The Pen and Muse Book Reviews
NOV 5
Triple A - guest posts!
Indie Wish List
YA & NA Bookshelf
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Check out all of the amazing prizes in the rafflecopter! Enter below:

10.17.2017

What Makes a Great Ghost Story? #Paranormal

It's October! Time to get your scare on...



There's something about a good ghost story that suckers me in. You're probably tired of hearing my account with an actual ghost... A black thing ran over my foot once and out the door. It was like a shadow, but not a shadow. My husband was there at the time and saw the same thing.

We believed it the spirit of Mr. Sox, who was killed by a car. After he died, I used to hear him scratching at the back screen. The sound was so distinct, I would often get up and go out on the patio looking for him, even though I knew it was impossible he was there.

That black shadow ran over my foot while I was serving dinner and raced out the sliding door into the backyard. I never heard the scratching at the back screen again.

It wasn't a frightening experience. It perplexed me. The shadow had form and was thicker than a shadow, more solid. Yet I could see through it. It was the size of a cat.

My husband and I have gone ghost hunting before, and I'd love to say I've had other encounters, but I haven't. I don't want to jump to conclusions that a sound is a spirit or an experience is a spirit. I want a real, solid encounter... like the one I had.

Recently, we went on a 'haunted' tour of our town. To me, it was a win-win... history and ghost stories. I love history and I love ghost stories. There were some good ones...


George at the Reid School, a builder who had died on the site, shows up quite frequently. It's now the local history museum.


A boy on a bicycle at the high school, which is now county offices. He likes to turn lights on during the night.

Mr. and Mrs. Thompson of the Tower Theater are sometimes seen sitting in the audience.


Mrs. Smith can still be heard banging on the ceiling with a broom to call Mr. Smith to dinner.


There's a malevolent presence in the old hotel, who has attacked several people.

No one wants to own anything that was in the old nunnery. The buildings and contents were sold and transported far away. I wonder if the new owners have had anything odd happen.

Whether true or not, my favorite ghost stories are accounts related by family, friends, neighbors, and acquaintances. I don't want to run away, I want to investigate. I love talking over the mysteries that touch our lives and our world.

What's out there?

10.06.2017

Book Review: Serpent's Sacrifice by Trish Heinrich #superhero


Blurb:
Ever since Alice was saved from her abusive father, she’s wanted to be a hero. But in 1960’s Jet City, women are supposed to want marriage and babies, not cowls and secret identities.

When her beloved aunt is murdered by a new crime syndicate, Alice takes up the mantle of the Serpent, a heroine who has been protecting Jet City for decades.

But one mistake will unleash a dreadful villain. One who will stop at nothing to take control of the city and kill anyone who stands in the way.

Can Alice survive the battle and become the hero she was always meant to be? Or will the price be too much to bear?

My review:
Alice is swept away from her abusive father and her best friends to live with her rich aunt in Jet City. While well-to-do women in the 1960s are expected to marry well and have children, Alice longs for something much more. She trains to be a powerful fighter and takes up the mantle of the city's infamous superhero, Serpent. A vicious villain is making people cower in fear, experiencing waking nightmares. Alice and her friends must stop the madness before their enemy takes over the city, but are they willing to pay the price to do so?

This is an amazing debut novel from Trish Heinrich with rich world building, twists and turns, and fabulous characterization. I thoroughly enjoy the superhero genre, but most books give us extended comics without the illustrations. Not this one. The plot is thick and well written. I love the history of the Serpent. (Pick up the prequel novella, Serpent for even more!) I especially love the strong women that have put on the cowl. The story takes place in the past, and it makes their strength even more admirable.

What thoroughly won me over was the excellent cast of characters. Alice is a smart and resourceful young woman who doesn't exactly fit in to her world, but she strives to make it a better place. While she is the Serpent, she has no super powers. It's all her. I also liked the fact that punching things wasn't the only way she had to resolve things. There was social maneuvering, battle tactics, and investigating. I loved her relationship with her two best friends, Lionel and Marco. Each man so different and endearing in their own way. Alice's aunt and uncle, Mrs. Frost, and Rose. So many great characters. Plus the villain. I won't give any spoilers, but yes, so demented.

I can't wait for more in this awesome series!


10.03.2017

New Release - Spirits in the Water #shortstories #sciencefiction #fantasy


The fourth anthology in our Elements of Untethered Realms series, Spirits in the Water is now available.

A haunted journey on a riverboat, water sprites borne of pennies, preternatural creatures, ancient serpents, and the Lady of the Lake lurk in dark waters. Raging storms and magical rainbow fountains. Water is spectacularly beautiful but also treacherous.

Gwen Gardner gives us Shake, Rattle and Row. Harlow Grayson has the chance to rid herself of a pesky ghost but she must first brave a haunted riverboat and recover a family heirloom. What she finds might be more than she can handle.

Jeff Chapman offers The Water Wight. When a drowned girl changes her mind about suicide, Merliss and her associates face a fearsome, preternatural creature.

M. Pax presents The Wallows. Evernee Weems wants to escape this world in the worst way. Her daughter needs everything, the rent is being raised, Evernee’s job barely pays minimum wage, and she has little hope for better. Inside a puddle is a different reality. She jumps in, happy to trade her problems for a life in which worries don’t exist. Or do they?

Angela Brown gives us Extraordinary. Puberty hits Angelique like a gut punch and brings about a change, forcing an unexpected revelation about her past. All seems well until a vicious storm tears through her Texas community, and Angelique learns there are worse things than a little change.

River Fairchild presents You Can’t Go Home Again. A young woman, filled with regret about the past, goes on a journey and discovers more than she bargained for.

Simon Kewin offers us The Waters, Dividing the Land. Hyrn the horned god of the woodlands is learning the meaning of fear. Death magic blights the land, threatening everyone and everything. To save what he can from spreading corruption, he turns to the ancient river serpents, but they’ve grown old and distant and may not hear his call at all.

Christine Rains gives us Frozen. A necromancer is on the frozen moon of Saturn where the dead do scream.

Meradeth Houston presents The Flood. Sometimes a flooded kitchen isn’t the unluckiest thing to happen to you.

Catherine Stine offers Maizy of Bellagio. April still searches for her mother who vanished nineteen years ago from the fountain at Hotel Bellagio in Vegas. Can Maizy, a water sprite who works the fountain’s pink colors, begin to help the three generations of eccentric women tortured by this tragedy?

M. Gerrick gives us The One Who Would Wield the Sword. Nikka is supposed to be nothing more than dragon bait so a real dragon hunter can do his job, but the Lady in the Lake has other plans for her.

Cherie Reich presents The Folding Point. Aimee’s fight against those who banned paper magics has begun.

From USA Today, Amazon bestselling, and popular science fiction and fantasy authors comes Spirits in the Water, a supernatural anthology of eleven thrilling tales. Spirits in the Water is the fourth, long-awaited Elements story collection from the dynamic and inventive Untethered Realms group.
 



To celebrate the release for Spirits in the Water, the first Elements of Untethered Realms anthology Twisted Earths is free on all major retailers. Pick up your copy today!