Book Review and Giveaway: Big Numbers by Jack Getze

Big Numbers

(Austin Carr Mystery)

by Jack Getze

Root for divorced dad Austin Carr, a funny, oversexed scamp who'll use anything and everything to get his kids back. Think Bugs Bunny with guns and a penis.
                           
Divorced dad Austin Carr wakes up every day in a beat-up camper, parked on someone else’s private property. Why? Because his alimony and child support payments were established by New Jersey’s family court system when his income was double, and for the last two years he has failed to earn the legally mandated monthly nut. He’s had his savings drained, his Maxima repossessed, his salary attached, and his visiting rights suspended. He bought the twelve-year-old Chevy pick-up with the rusty camper for $800 last month because another landlord tossed his butt in the street. Will stretching the rules, his own morals, and the boundaries of common sense raise the cash needed to get his kids back? Or will his bad behavior set him up for a nasty double-cross? Find out if Austin can redeem himself and win back his children.

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My thoughts:  This book is marketed as a cozy mystery, and while those books have their fair share of humor, this one tops them all.  You know the saying "If it wasn't for Bad Luck, I'd have no Luck at all?"  Well that sums up Austin Carr.  His income has tanked, he has lost most of his material possessions because of it.  He lives in a rusty camper and can't see his kids - which is what he wants more than anything.  When the story starts out you think this is just a deadbeat dad, sort of homeless, alcoholic.  But, in spite of all that he has a heart that makes you love him - you just can't help it!

This is a very quick moving book, with lots of twists as a mystery should have - but it will definitely keep you laughing!  I found it very entertaining, quick to read, and though it is a mystery - it also has a light hearted feel to it.  It is a fun book to the beginning of a new series.  Can't wait to see what other troubles Austin will get in to!

~I received a complimentary ecopy of Big Numbers from Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours in exchange for my unbiased review.~

About the author: Former Los Angeles Times reporter Jack Getze is Fiction Editor for Anthony nominated Spinetingler Magazine, one of the internet's oldest websites for noir, crime, and horror short stories. Through the Los Angeles Times/Washington Post News Syndicate, his news and feature stories were published in over five-hundred newspapers and periodicals worldwide. His two screwball mysteries, BIG NUMBERS and BIG MONEY, are being reissued by DOWN & OUT BOOKS, with the new BIG MOJO to follow. His short stories have appeared in A Twist of Noir and Beat to a Pulp. Getze is an Active Member of Mystery Writers of America’s New York Chapter.

Author Links:

Austin Carr Blog / Author Blog / Goodreads

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Book Blast and Giveaway: Brood X by Michael Phillip Cash

Brood X

by Michael Phillip Cash

Seth is laid off from work. His wife Lara just found out they are expecting a baby this summer. Seth plans on documenting the entire pregnancy with his brand new digital camcorder. 

During an evening home watching television, the news reports that a swarm of cicada (Brood Ten) are expected to overwhelm the entire Northeast. Brood Ten is vicious and ready to invade. 

During a sweltering summer night, Brood Ten emerges and wreaks havoc with the electric grid, phone and cell service, wi-fi, food and water supply. Civilization as they know it is gone. Seth and Lara are thrown back to the stone age in their own home with trillions of cicada trying to deposit their eggs and breed. Fast paced and filled with tension, Brood Ten is the perfect summer read when you’re sitting outside listening to the cicadas sing.

Purchase Links:

About the author: Born and raised on Long Island, Michael Phillip Cash has always had a fascination with horror writing and found footage films. He wanted to incorporate both with his debut novel, Brood X. Earning a degree in English and an MBA, he has worked various jobs before settling into being a full-time author. He currently resides on Long Island with his wife and children. Stillwell: A Haunting On Long Island is his second novel.

Author Links:
Website / Blog / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads

Pump Up Your Book and Michael Phillip Cash are teaming up to give you a chance to win a $25 Amazon Gift Card or a Halloween Party Pack for 18!

Terms & Conditions:

• By entering the giveaway, you are confirming you are at least 18 years old.
• Two winners will be chosen via Rafflecopter to receive one $25 Amazon Gift Certificate or the Halloween Party Pack.
• This giveaway begins September 23 and ends October 25, 2013.
• Winners will be contacted via email on Monday, November 4, 2013.
• Winner has 48 hours to reply.

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Book Promo: Black Dog by Stephen Booth

Black Dog

by Stephen Booth

on Tour October 8 - November 8, 2013

Book Details:

Genre: Fiction/Crime
Published by: Witness / HarperCollins
Publication Date: 10/8/2013
ISBN: 9780062301963
Series: 1st in the Ben Cooper & Diane Fry Series
Purchase Links:

Synopsis:

The helicopters are halted. The search for fifteen-year-old Laura Vernon ends when her body is found, murdered, in the forest.

On his hunt for the killer, detective Ben Cooper begins to suspect the people of Derbyshire are guarding some dark secrets-secrets that Laura might have known. Further complicating his investigation, Cooper is paired with an unfamiliar partner: Diane Fry, a woman as tenacious as she is alluring. Together they learn that in order to understand the town’s present, they must unearth its past.

Black Dog is like Twin Peaks by way of Tana French, and the first novel in the multiple award-winning Cooper and Fry series.

Read an excerpt:

The spot where Ben Cooper stood was remote and isolated. A passing walker wouldn't have been able to see him up here among the bracken, even if he'd bothered to look up.

Cooper turned round, wafting his hand across his face against the flies. He was looking through the trees and thick brambles as if towards the end of a dark tunnel, where the figure of Harry Dickinson was framed in a network of branches. Cooper had to squint against a patch of dazzling light that soaked the hillside in strong colours. The old man stood in the glare of the low sun, with hot rocks shimmering around him like a furnace. The haze of heat made his outline blur and writhe, as if he were dancing a slow shimmy. His shadow, flung across the rocks, seemed to wriggle and jerk as its shape fragmented among the bracken and brambles.

The expression in Harry's eyes was unreadable, his face lying partly in the shade from the peak of his cap. Cooper couldn't even tell which way he was looking, whether he'd turned away or was staring directly towards him in the trees. He wanted to grab the old man by the shoulders and shake him. He wanted to tell him that somebody had disturbed this spot, and recently. The evidence was right there for anyone to see, and to smell.

There had been two people here, and at least one of them had been looking for more than just rabbits. The smell that lingered under the trees was of stale blood. And the flies had found something even more attractive than Cooper's sweat to feed on.

Author Bio:

Stephen Booth is an award winning British crime writer, the creator of two young Derbyshire police detectives, DC Ben Cooper and DS Diane Fry, who have appeared in twelve novels set in England’s beautiful and atmospheric Peak District.

Stephen has been a Gold Dagger finalist, an Anthony Award nominee, twice winner of a Barry Award for Best British Crime Novel, and twice shortlisted for the Theakston’s Crime Novel of the Year. Ben Cooper was a finalist for the Sherlock Award for the best detective created by a British author, and in 2003 the Crime Writers’ Association presented Stephen with the Dagger in the Library Award for “the author whose books have given readers the most pleasure”.

The Cooper & Fry series is published all around the world, and has been translated into 15 languages. The latest title is DEAD AND BURIED, with a new book, ALREADY DEAD, published in June 2013.

Catch Up With the Author:

Tour Participants:

Book Blitz, Guest Post and Giveaway: Escape in You by Rachel Schurig

Escape in You

by Rachel Schurig

Publication Date: Oct 15, 2013

Contemporary, NA

Jet Taylor is the quintessential bad boy. A womanizer. A fighter. Dangerous. The type of guy most girls do their best to avoid. But Zoe Janes is no saint herself. In fact, she sees in Jet the perfect opportunity to distract herself from her responsibilities at home and the mistakes that keep her trapped there. He’s gorgeous, likes to party, and is clearly only interested in having fun—just like Zoe. But the more time they spend together the harder it is to stick to her “fun only” mantra. Jet is getting under her skin, making her believe things could actually be different. She knows they’re both trapped by the sins of their past but Jet is starting to make her think freedom might actually be possible. And that makes him the most dangerous boy of all.

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Character Flaws

by Rachel Schurig

If I think about my favorite characters, whether from books, television shows, or movies, I find that they usually have something in common: I have a soft spot for flawed characters.

Now, that doesn’t mean that I have a thing for jerky guys or bratty girls. But I also find myself pretty much automatically turned off if a character is too perfect. For me, there needs to be a balance. Too many flaws and a character comes across as nasty or hopeless. But no flaws? Chances are I’ll tune right out, assuming the character is a bland goodie-two-shoes. A good balance, on the other hand, makes a character relatable. More interesting. The kind of person I want to root for.

The Notebook is one of my favorite movies of all time. Duh, right? Ryan Gosling is totally swoon-worthy as Noah Calhoun. Noah’s relationship with Allie (played by Rachel McAdams) is pretty much perfect—even though neither character is perfect. Allie is spoiled and really hot-headed. Noah is arrogant and has a temper to match Allie’s. The two fight like crazy (but isn’t it the best when they make up?). I think those flaws make the characters more interesting, more relatable. And I absolutely love how they make each other better. Isn’t that the hallmark of a great love story?

The characters in my new novel, Escape in You, are definitely flawed. Both Jet Taylor and Zoe Janes are hiding things about their pasts. They both deal with a lot of pain in their home lives. And, over the years, both have escaped their pain through alcohol, fighting, partying, and meaningless sex. They’ve hurt people who care about them and hurt themselves even more. But, as their relationship grows, they make each other better. Both become calmer. Less volatile. Stronger. Falling in love makes them realize how much they’ve been missing by hiding from life. My hope is that readers will enjoy watching them change and grow and fall in love—and will appreciate their imperfections just as much as I do.

About the author: Rachel Schurig lives in the metro Detroit area with her dog, Lucy. She loves to watch reality TV and she reads as many books as she can get her hands on. In her spare time, Rachel decorates cakes. Her THREE GIRLS series is available now from Amazon!

Author Links:

Website / Twitter / Facebook

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Cover Reveal: North Pole Reform School by

North Pole Reform School

by Jaimie Admans

Cover designed by Paper and Sage Designs

Publication Date: Nov 6, 2013

Comedy, Romance, YA

Mistletoe Bell hates Christmas. So would you if you had a name like hers. Her Christmas-mad parents make the festive season last all year, and with another Christmas looming, Mis doesn’t think she can take any more. After her carelessness causes an accident at school, it seems like things can’t get any worse.

Then she wakes up to find The Ghost of Christmases Ruined in her bedroom.

She is taken to the North Pole, to a reform school run by elves determined to make her love Christmas. Stuck in a misfit group of fellow Christmas-haters with a motley crew of the weird and even weirder, watched over by elves day and night, she doesn’t expect to meet cute and funny Luke, who is hiding a vulnerable side beneath his sarcastic exterior. She doesn’t expect to fall in love with him.

But all is not as it should be at the North Pole. A certain Mr Claus is making the elves’ lives a misery, and pretty soon Mistletoe and Luke are doing more than just learning to like Christmas.

A YA romantic comedy in which Santa is the bad guy, teaching reindeer to fly is on the curriculum, and zombies have a fondness for Christmas music.

About the author: Jaimie is a 27-year-old English-sounding Welsh girl with an awkward-to-spell name. She lives in South Wales and enjoys writing, gardening, drinking tea and watching horror movies. She hates spiders and cheese & onion crisps.

She has been writing for years, but has never before plucked up the courage to tell people. She writes mostly chick-lit and young adult. Kismetology is her first novel and there are plenty more on the way!

Author Links:

Jaimie's Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

Cover Reveal: Something Wicked by Angela Campbell

Something Wicked

(The Psychic Detectives Series #2)

 by Angela Campbell 
Publisher: Harper Impulse
Publication date: October 31st 2013
Adult, Paranormal, Romantic Suspense

Psychic medium Alexandra King is sick of being pestered by her boss’s dead mother demanding help to reunite her two estranged sons. Determined to get some peace and quiet again, Alexandra follows a lead in finding the younger Collins brother to Charleston, South Carolina, where she immediately meets the hottest man she’s ever laid eyes on and finds herself a willing participant in seduction. Of course, her one-night-stand turns out to be none other than Dylan Collins — her boss’s younger brother and a homicide detective who believes psychics are a complete waste of time.

All Dylan wants is a few hours of pleasure to take his mind off of the case haunting him. A serial killer is stalking the streets of The Holy City — a killer who calls himself The Grim Reaper. When the woman he’d just spent the night with turns up and offers her services as a psychic consultant on the case, his ardor quickly cools. Last thing he needs is to get tangled up with a con artist.

It doesn’t take long for Dylan to realize Alexandra is the real deal – and the killer’s next target. Dylan’s protective instincts battle his reluctance to get too involved with a woman he isn’t sure he can trust. As they get closer to finding the killer, they also grow closer to one another, but will Alexandra’s secret agenda destroy their chance at happiness — if the killer doesn’t strike first?

About the author: Angela Campbell is an overachiever with a soft spot for men who dress funny. Superman, Charlie Chaplin, Dracula, Doctor Who, Elvis - those are her kind of heroes. An eclectic reader who loves almost every genre, Angela read her first romance novel at 16 and immediately endeavored to write one, too. Many offbeat attempts (and a couple of decades) later, she published her first novel through Carina Press. Her new romantic suspense series is being published by Harper Impulse. With every story she pens, Angela aims to build in a paranormal element to a contemporary and recognizable world with characters who find love in oftentimes humorous and extraordinary situations.

A mild-mannered reporter with almost 15 years experience as a general assignment reporter, features editor and graphic designer, Angela has also worked as a production assistant in TV and film. Learn more about her books at www.angelacampbellonline.com.

Author links:
Website / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads  

Blog Tour, Review and Giveaway: The Pitcher by William Hazelgrove

Title: The Pitcher
Author: William Hazelgrove

About the book: A boy with a golden arm but no money for lessons. A mother who wants to give her son his dream before she dies. A broken down World Series pitcher who cannot go on after the death of his wife. These are the elements of The Pitcher. A story of a man at the end of his dream and a boy whose dream is to make his high school baseball team. In the tradition of The Natural and The Field of Dreams, this is a mythic story about how a man and a boy meet in the crossroads of their life and find a way to go on. You will laugh and you will cry as The Pitcher and Ricky prepare for the ultimate try out of life.

Purchase Links:

 

My Thoughts: This is one of the best books that I have read in quite awhile.  Touching in its simplicity, yet full of emotion.  A boy's love for baseball; a mother's love for her son; a man's love for his deceased wife.  These all fill the story with meaning and bring about the choices each makes.  Choices that intertwine their lives with unbreakable bonds. 

I love the way the author drew me into the lives of Ricky and his mother Maria.  You feel Maria's struggle of trying to raise her boy as a single mom with an ex who shows up to steal from them and abuse them.  To add to her struggles, she has lupus and has lost her health insurance so refuses to go back to the doctor until she can pay the thousands in bills that she has racked up.  Ricky has struggles of his own.  Dyslexia has dogged him in school as has his Mexican heritage.  "Beano" and "Wetback" are names he hears often on and off the baseball field. 

Together they convince, entice, coerce their next door neighbor into coaching Ricky with his pitching.  This neighbor just happens to be an old MLB pitcher who won a World Series in the 1970's.  He has been living in his garage for years, drinking Good Times beer, chewing Skoal and watching baseball on TV.  His life basically ended when his wife died.  He has been unable to move forward and has accepted his existence as a washed-up, drunk ex-MLB Pitcher. 

Apart, their lives are stagnant, but together, they combine into a sometimes chaotic, sometimes heartbreaking, but altogether joyful life. 

~I received a complimentary ecopy of The Pitcher from Kathy at Book Blasts and Blog Tours in exchange for my unbiased review.~

About the author: William Hazelgrove is the best selling author of five novels, Ripples, Tobacco Sticks Mica Highways and Rocket Man and The Pitcher His books have received starred reviews in Publisher Weekly, Book of the Month Selections, Junior Library Guild Selections, ALA Editors Choice Awards and optioned for the movies. He was the Ernest Hemingway Writer in Residence where he wrote in the attic of Ernest Hemingway’s birthplace. He has written articles and reviews for USA Today and other publications. His latest novel Rocket Man due out May 1, 2013 was chosen Book of the Year by Books and Authors.net. He runs a political cultural blog, The View From Hemingway’s Attic. A forthcoming novel, The Pitcher will be out Sept 1, 2013. He lives in Chicago.

Author Links: 

Website / Blog / Facebook / Twitter

Blog Tour Giveaway

$25 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash

Ends 10/27/11

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.


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 Tour Schedule

Spooktacular Giveaway Hop (Oct 15 - 31) Open Internationally!

Welcome to the Spooktacular Giveaway Hop hosted by I am a Reader Not a Writer.

I will be giving away a $10 Amazon Gift Card and my giveaway

is open Internationally!

Please be sure to check out all the other blogs on this giveaway hop below as well!

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Novella Review: Wish Upon a Star by Michelle McLean

Wish Upon a Star

by Michelle McLean

Ceri McKinley never stopped wishing that her ex-fiancé Jason Crickett would come back into her life. But when he finally does, he comes with a request that puts them both—and all of humanity—into jeopardy.

Jason only wants two things: to bury his brother properly and to convince Ceri to trust him again after he jilted her. But when Ceri agrees to help him get his brother back, they end up fighting for their lives as the second zombie uprising threatens them all.

Purchase Links: 

 

My thoughts: This was a somewhat normal scenario that quickly spiraled out of control.... Oh who am I kidding - this was not a normal scenario.  Ex-wife, Ceri, going to see ex-husband, Russell,  about his visitation with their daughter Skye.  Runs into ex-fiance, Jason, and his father, Max, who also wants to see her ex-husband - to try to get the body of his brother Peter back. Peter was hurt on the night of Jason's bachelor party - only Jason had opted to spend the evening with Ceri.  He feels that Peter's accident would not have happened if he hadn't stayed with Ceri.  

Russell had used some experimental procedures on Peter and had saved his life but made him a cyborg in the process.  His cyborg half-life had been snuffed out during an attempted robbery in which he was shot and killed.  Or so everyone thought. As Ceri, Jason and Max soon learn, Russell has reanimated Peter and turned him into a zombie - one with a chip in his head to do Russell's bidding. 

The situation goes from bad to worse.  Peter infects the secretary, who starts a zombie outbreak. Russell is killed by none other than Peter, and Ceri and Jason find themselves locked into Russell's safe room. At least from there they can get out the word about the outbreak and get them some help. That help turns out to be the military planning to bomb the establishment in two hours.  This would be okay except that Ceri has seen her mother and daughter huddled under a desk in Russell's office on the top floor.  The true story starts here as Jason and Ceri set off to rescue them through a zombie infested building.

This one had a lot of suspense and was an interesting take on the outbreak of zombies.  Enjoyed reading it and turns out according to my spreadsheet, it is the 100th book I have read this year!

~I received a complimentary ecopy of Wish Upon a Star from Entangled Publishing in exchange for my unbiased review. ~

Novella Review: Haunted Chemistry by Lindsey R. Loucks

Haunted Chemistry

by Lindsey R. Loucks

When bookish college co-ed Alexis heads to the laundry room in her new apartment, she runs into Ian Reese, the chem lab partner she crushed on all last semester. And the guy who stood her up on their first date. But she’s down for an awkward reunion, and no better place than her creepy laundry room.

Ian has every intention of making amends, but just when Alexis begins to trust him again, a new threat calls more than their future together into question. A ghost from the apartment’s past is hellbent on revenge, and if he wants to get his girl, he’ll have to get the ghost first.

Purchase Links: 

 

My thoughts: This was probably the least favorite of the novellas that I read this week.  It had sort of a campy feel to me.  I couldn't help picturing the girl from The Ring crawling out of the T.V. when she was describing the ghost girl crawling out of the cupboard. 

I did like the romantic aspect of the story, Alexis and Ian running into each other just as the ghost makes her first appearance. Alexis having to overcome the awkwardness of being stood up at the end of spring semester and Ian trying to come up with the way to tell her why he had missed the date. Meanwhile, the ghost kidnaps Tri, her cat and takes her through the walls down to the laundry room.  Ian has read somewhere that salt works against ghosts so taking a handful they head off for the laundry room.  But of course, a handful of salt isn't much against a vengeful ghost!

This was another quick read, and while it didn't hold the same suspense as the other novella's have had for me, it did keep me entertained.

~I received a complimentary copy of Haunted Chemistry from Entangled Publishing in exchange for my unbiased review.~

Novella Review: Mercy by Jan Coffey

Mercy

by Jan Coffey

Julia Klein’s life has begun to unravel—her daughter Amy has been suspended from school, Julia is about to lose her job, and her boyfriend Garrett is being transferred thousands of miles away. Overwhelmed, she and Amy leave for a weekend at a rambling old colonial inn. Julia never suspects that Garrett, desperate to find a way to keep Julia in his life, has decided to surprise her by joining them. Nor does she expect her daughter to befriend a mischievous ghost...or that she herself would be possessed by the malevolent spirit of a long-dead mother.

As a dark secret emerges, Julia, Amy, and Garrett find themselves pitted in a fight for survival against a savage presence that intends to resurrect/repeat/relive a horrible crime committed two centuries ago.  And this time, Amy and Julia will be the victims.

Purchase Links: 

 

My thoughts: Now this was an interesting ghost story.  Julia and Amy (mother and daughter) go away for a weekend after Amy is suspended from school for aggression.  Julia doesn't believe her daughter is guilty, but Amy hasn't spoken since she was in a car accident with her father in which he was killed.  

At the hotel, Amy is befriended by Mercy, a young ghost who shows her a secret cupboard in the room of the inn at which they are staying. Meanwhile, Julia begins to have horrific dreams involving rape and hangings. But are they dreams or a ghost's memories?

When Garrett surprises them at the inn, the ghost's rage escalates. Personally witnessing the ghost's wrath, he starts delving into the inn's past and discovers that there have been multiple deaths involving a mother and daughter hanging themselves in the very room in which they are staying. Will he be able to fix the misdeeds and miscommunications of the past before they claim two more victims?

It has been awhile since I have read a ghost story, and this novella was a good start to get me interested in them again.  Care to recommend any good ghost stories for this month?

~I received a complimentary ecopy of Mercy from Entangled Publishing in exchange for my unbiased review.~