Book Blitz ~ The Control by M.W. Layne #Giveaway

The Control
M.W. Layne
Publication date: June 5th 2023
Genres: Adult, Psychological Thriller

I didn’t kill my professor. But someone did…
It’s the dead of night when I regain consciousness in my psychology professor’s office. I don’t know what I’m doing here or why my favorite teacher is slumped over, dead at his computer with his head caved in.

When I stumble over to him on shaking legs, I bury my face in my sleeve to mute the smell of death. But as I lean in to see what he was working on when he was killed, the psych profile on his screen is what makes me wretch. The assessment is about one of his students–someone he describes as mentally ill, losing control, and capable of extreme violence. I scroll to the top of the document, and when I get there my stomach freezes because the name I see is my own.

Jim Straub.

I stagger away from my professor’s cold body, eyes filled with tears. He was my teacher and trying to help me. There’s no way I was the one who murdered him. But if it wasn’t me, who was it? And more importantly, why did the killer let me live?

The Control is a psychological thriller–a dark story of nightmares, deception, and love that will keep you guessing until its unforgettable, twisted ending.

Goodreads / Amazon

Get it FREE on Kindle Unlimited!

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EXCERPT:

With two fingers, I lift Mooken’s icy hand from the keyboard, treating it like a disgusting bug I have to touch. I’ve watched enough television shows and read enough mysteries to know better than to disturb a dead body. But I need the letters on his screen to stop.

They remind me too much of how Mooken used to make his awkward hmmm sounds in the middle of his lectures when pondering a point his students weren’t getting.

Being this close to a dead person, my body revolts at the heavy cocktail of copper, feces, and urine in the room—a combination I’ve never encountered before.

Well, once before. But that was so long ago I sometimes wonder if it wasn’t another one of my nightmares.

But my stomach tells me the scene in front of me is real. My guts convulse and threaten to spew everything from inside of me, and I swallow hard, choking back my sickness…barely.

I bury my nose in my sleeve, breathing through my mouth. Other than the shallow in-and-out of my air, the room is quiet.

Inside my head, however, things are very loud.

Along with the loud buzzing, my father is telling me to run.

Leave now and save yourself, boy. Before they blame you for all of this.

I ignore him and stare down at Mooken.

After five minutes, his screen starts to fade to black, but I move the mouse, and the screen returns to full brightness.

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

I lean over my professor’s body like I’m showing a dead man something he might find interesting. I hold the mouse lightly in my hand and scroll up. There are so many pages of mmmms that the document appears to stand still as I scroll. I climb through a hundred pages of that single, lonely letter before I make it to the substance of the file and slow down to skim its contents. I scan blocks of Mooken’s text, reading snippets from the bottom up.

classic signs…

early schizophrenia…

chronic sleep deprivation…

acute depression…

disruptions in personal affairs…

My head throbs as I continue further up the document.

delusions…

romantic interest…

auditory and visual hallucinations…

sleep paralysis…

irrational anger and suspicion toward therapist…

potential for extreme violence…

formal evaluation recommended…

I speed to the very top of the document to see who Mooken was evaluating, and my stomach freezes when I read my name.

Jim Straub.

But this can’t be. I didn’t kill the professor. I know this for certain.

Professor Mooken was my teacher and trying to help me. That must be why I came here tonight—to get his help.

Not to kill him.

The delete key stares at me, cooing, tempting me to erase my name—to fix this.

But I can’t do that—not yet, at least.

I disable Mooken’s screen saver, stagger to the other side of his desk, and sink back into the leather chair.

When I check the clock on the wall, fifteen minutes have passed.

My phone vibrates in my pocket, and on reflex, I check it. As happens so often lately, it’s a missed call from my father, who suffers from dementia and calls and texts daily.

I love and miss my dad, but I can’t deal with him and his altered, severe personality right now.

My present situation is too dire, although there are still a few hours before other professors and students begin entering the building to start their days.

I squeeze my eyes shut to help me remember the events that led me here, but when I do, I hear my father giving me advice again, yelling at me, ordering me.

Leave.

“Not yet,” I say through clenched teeth. “I need to remember what happened first.”

Author Bio:

When Mike writes twisted psychological thrillers, urban fantasy, or stories with a darker bent, he publishes it under the pen name “M.W. Layne" to differentiate it from his other books written as Michael W. Layne. Both Michael and M.W. apologize for any confusion this may cause readers, but this makes it easier to decide which set of books you can let your kids read. Michael W. Layne, yes! Great for any age. M.W. Layne, maybe not until they're in their teens…

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Instagram

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Book Blitz ~ Yoga One For Me by Eden Bloom #Giveaway

Yoga One For Me
Eden Bloom
(Misty Falls, #1)
Publication date: October 30th 2022
Genres: Adult, Comedy, Contemporary, Romance

They say you can’t outrun your problems, but that won’t stop me from trying…

Josie

It takes my boyfriend proposing for me to realize I need a new life plan, and fast! So I grab my yoga mat and hit the road. I talk my best friend into swapping places while I sort things out. Her small town of Misty Falls is incredible, and exactly what I need to rethink my life choices.

Everything is going great until I run into her brother Rake — literally — and my dinner ends up all over his clothes. Even covered in mashed potatoes, he’s gorgeous. Not that I care. The last thing I need is a relationship after just fleeing one…

Rake

The moment Josie dumps food on me, I know I’m done for. Between the tornado of a person she is and the unexpected surprise that she’s my sudden roommate, I’m in for a ride. But I’ve got too much at stake to let her become a distraction. My lifelong dream depends on staying away from her.

Even if it’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done.

Yoga One For Me is a sweet and funny romcom that will warm your heart. It’s a full-length standalone novel that takes place in a charming small town overlooking the beach. Once you step foot in Misty Falls, you won’t want to leave.

Goodreads / Amazon

Get it FREE on Kindle Unlimited!

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EXCERPT:

I put down the yoga mat and check the fridge. It’s fully stocked with enough food to feed a football team. Raine went all out, and I only left her some bags to dump in the Crockpot. I owe her big time.

My mouth waters as I rifle through the contents of the fridge. I’m going to double my weight if I try to eat all of this before it goes bad. Most of it will end up in the freezer.

As my stomach roars, I make myself a plate of food and fill a glass with iced tea. Then I head for the dining room, my mouth watering.

I round the corner and crash into something. No, someone. A very tall and very muscular someone.

His eyes widen as my food smashes against his white button-down shirt and my black iced tea runs down his khaki pants, making it look like he wet himself. Maybe he did — I can be scary.

I scream. Smack his side with my plate. He’s surprisingly solid. “Get out!”

He backs up, holding out his hands. “Me? I live here. You get out!”

My pulse thrums in my ears. “No, I do. This is my house for the summer.”

“Says who?” He pulls mashed potatoes from his shirt and flops them onto my plate. His wavy, dirty-blonde hair blocks his face, and he brushes it aside getting food in it.

I get lost in his eyes for a moment. Until I remember that he’s an intruder, and my life is in danger. “Leave! Before I call the police.”

“Did you catch the part about me living here?”

I throw the potatoes back at him. “I don’t know who you are, but Raine said I’d have this house to myself.”

He’s really hot. Maybe he’s one of the guys she’s seeing, and he doesn’t realize she’s in Nevada. That makes sense. But why would he think he lives here?

“Where’s she?”

“If you live here, you should know.” I fold my arms.

He tilts his head, and while he looks menacing he also takes my breath away. “I don’t keep track of where my sister is.”

His sister? He’s Raine’s brother.

Crap. He really does have every right to be here.

Though we’ve never met, now I recognize him from the pictures I’ve seen over the years. He’s even taller and more gorgeous in person.

It takes me a moment to find my voice. “You’re Rake.”

“In the flesh.”

“You still have to leave. This isn’t part of my contract with Raine.” There is no contract. At least not on paper. But she did promise me the house to myself. That’s like a contract. In a way. Fine, it’s a stretch. But I’m going with it.

Rake’s brows furrow. “Leave? I need to shower, thanks to you.”

“After that, you can go.” I storm to my room, taking my useless plate of squished food with me. I’ve lost my appetite anyway.

Author Bio:

Eden has always lived in the Pacific Northwest, and it's her favorite place to write about. She loves hiking in the great outdoors, sitting by lakes, watching waterfalls, and of course reading romantic comedies. There's nothing like love and laughter to to lift a person's spirits, and that's a gift she hopes to share with all of her readers every time they open one of her books.

Goodreads / TikTok / Instagram

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Cover & Excerpt Reveal ~ Bosshole by Ann Grech #Giveaway

BOSSHOLE

Billionaire Girl Boss Trilogy #2

by Ann Grech

Cover & Excerpt Reveal

Release Date: August 24, 2023

Model & Alternate Cover Design: CT Cover Creations

Photographer: Wander Aguiar Photography

Model: Brandon M.

Genre: MMMF New Adult Billionaire Romantic Suspense

Trope: Age-gap, friends to lovers, teacher/student, enemies to lovers, boss/employee, why choose/polyamorous, virgin alpharoll, grumpy/sunshine, forbidden love, slow burn/high heat, morally grey characters

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Synopsis

He’s my boss. I’m his biggest challenge.

I’m a hacker. He’s a police detective. Controlling me was never an option—I’m not the good girl he thinks I am. But working for the police has its advantages. It distracts them while I reap the rewards from my skills and live the billionaire lifestyle—yachts, planes, shoes, and men.

Until my bosshole arrests me.

But gathering evidence to exonerate my late mother was worth the risk.

My bosshole has a lot to answer for, especially the kiss that rocked my world.

Now, I can’t get them out of my head—my bosshole, my professorhole, and my best friend. I crave them, desperate to be consumed by the fire they ignite in me. I yearn to watch them together.

They’re all my fantasies come to life.

It will happen too.

If I can prove my innocence.

If I can stop my best friends from being jailed.

I am Queen. I will prevail.


Billionaire Boss Girl is a contemporary why choose/polyamorous series. There is no need for the leading lady (or her men) to choose in order to find their HEA.

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Add to your TBR List!

GOODREADS LINK

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Excerpt

His eyes fluttered closed, and his kiss was slower, deeper. I rocked my hips, my juices coating his sac.

“That’s it, my little jailbird, coat my cock so I can fuck you.”

I snorted out a laugh, but it died on a moan when lips—Flynn’s—connected with my lower back. Tristan pressed his hand between my shoulder blades while with his other hand he encouraged Ezra to lie down and me to go with him.

Flynn kissed a line down my spine, spreading my cheeks and running his tongue around my pucker. Like a man starving, he feasted, dipping lower into my cunt. I clenched tight, desperate to be filled.

He brushed his hand over me, but he was touching Ezra, shifting his cock from between us and jacking him. He licked us both, his tongue skittering over my skin before disappearing. Ezra moaned, the tendons in his throat tightening as he tensed.

“Fuck, Flynn, your mouth is magic.”

He hummed a response, the sound muffled by the mouthful of cock until there was a pop and he added, “Lift up, Zee.”

I did, moaning as Flynn notched Ezra’s cock against my opening. With Ezra’s hands on my waist, Flynn’s at my cunt, and Tristan’s twisting my nipples, I arched my back and sank down. He filled me, stretching my cunt around his cock. He was longer than both Flynn and Tristan, and as he hit my G-spot, fireworks exploded behind my closed eyelids.

With my face tilted up to the skies, I ground my hips down, choking out a moan when he bottomed out inside me.

“You’re beautiful together,” Flynn murmured, wonder in his voice, and Tristan agreed with a hum. Flynn brushed his fingertips over my arse, trailing them down to Ezra, who grunted when he started moving his hips, fucking up into me.

Flynn licked us, his tongue rimming me before shifting down and licking Ezra. He snaked a hand around my hip and pinched my clit between his fingers, working me as he devoured both of us.

My cunt clamped tight, and I rocked my hips harder, bracing myself against his perfectly sculpted pecs as I fucked him. My tits bounced, shocks of sensation going to my nipples with each thrust.

I wanted one of them in my arse and another in my mouth. I wanted dicks everywhere, men touching me, worshipping me. I wanted to be used and filled with cum. I wanted to come until I couldn’t stand, until I couldn’t even remember my name. I wanted to be an object they fucked, then fucked again, each taking their turn with me until I was wrecked. Stretched and open, leaking cum.

I wanted their mouths, their hands, their cocks.

My cunt spasmed, and Ezra cried out.

“You like that, don’t you? You’re our pretty little slut, aren’t you?” Tristan rasped in that sexy growl of his. “Can’t get enough of us. You want me in your arse? Hmm?”

“Yes, fuck yes,” I gasped.

Tristan licked my throat and I whimpered.

I bit down on my lip, wanting to watch them come. Wanting them to paint my skin with it.

“Tris,” Ezra moaned. “Need you.”

I looked down at Ezra and watched as he reached out to wrap his arm around Tristan’s leg and tug him until he was on his knees. Tristan pointed his cock at Ezra’s mouth and painted his lips with precum. But Ezra was ravenous, sucking him down until his nose was buried in Tristan’s trimmed pubes.

Tristan gasped, running his fingers through Ezra’s hair and holding him in place for a moment before pulling back and fucking deep into his throat.

Moans surrounded me, each of us climbing higher.

Flynn shifted back, his mouth disappearing from the point where Ezra’s dick was sinking into my cunt. I shuddered, my channel fluttering as Ezra yanked me down, fucking hard into me.

“Zee, you want Tris inside you too?” Flynn asked, kissing a line up my shoulder until he was sucking a mark into the sensitive spot below my ear.

I nodded and moaned, a shiver wracking me.

“Good, ’cause I want Ez and Tris to feel each other again. I want them to share you, and I want my arse.” A crack sounded, and Tristan’s smooth movements as he was fucking into Ezra’s mouth stuttered.

“Your arse wants you,” Tristan ground out, his eyes squeezed tightly shut and the pulse point on his throat fluttering fast. He pulled free of Ezra’s mouth and leaned down, pressing a soft kiss to his lips. “I want your hole wrapped around my dick too, yeah? Want to be buried balls deep in you. Which one of you is gonna milk my cum out?”

The snick of a cap sounded, and I braced myself for the cold.

“Fuck,” Ezra hissed, the tendons in his throat tightening as his body went rigid and his feet scrambled for purchase on the timber flooring of the deck.

Tristan leaned over me, and within moments, Flynn’s fingers found my hole. I loved the stretch, the burn as he pumped me full of his fingers. I keened, and Flynn pressed harder, stretched me more, pushing me toward the orgasm I’d been desperate for.

“Come for me, Zee,” he encouraged. “Let me feel you strangle me. Imagine it’s my dick inside you, fucking you.”

That did it. His filthy words—ones that he never spoke outside of when we were together like this—were like striking a match. They lit an inferno in me. My cunt clenched tight, the rhythmic contractions beginning as a wave of ecstasy washed over me. My nipples pebbled, every inch of my body hypersensitive. The cool breeze licked my skin, a thousand tongues and cocks brushing gently against me.

My back arched, and I cried out, presenting my tits to my other men. They took the hint, each latching onto a nipple and biting down. My cry turned into a scream as Flynn stuffed another finger in my needy arse, and I drowned as my orgasm hit me like a tsunami.

My vision went hazy at the edges, my lungs burning as every atom focussed itself on chasing more. More bliss. More cock. More cum.

I sobbed when Flynn pulled his fingers free, the emptiness opening up like a chasm in me. But Tristan was there, pushing into me and fucking deep into my arse in one long thrust. He shouted out, then moaned long and low as his hips danced back and forth.

Flynn’s moan was loud, the slap of skin an illicit soundtrack to a show I wanted to watch.

But I couldn’t hold myself up anymore, never mind turn to watch them. I fell forward onto Ezra’s chest, and his strong arms surrounded me, cradling me as Tristan pulled out to his crown and slammed back into me like a man possessed. Ezra moaned, his deep rumble a symphony in my ears.

God, I loved this. Loved the way they fucked me. Loved the feel of Tristan’s thick cock in my arse with Ezra’s right there alongside it in my cunt. Widening my legs, I opened myself more, inviting them deeper inside me.

Tristan obliged, gripping my hips and pushing his cock into me as far as he could go before withdrawing all the way. It left me empty and desperate. But he didn’t wait before slamming in again. It was fucking delicious, the stretch and burn as my hole was punished exactly what I needed.

I wanted to share Tristan and Flynn with Ezra.

But I was greedy.

I wanted to come first.

Then I wanted Tristan to mark us, to own us.

And I wanted Flynn to fuck him until he collapsed, pinning us all together in a mass of sated limbs and cocks that would eventually find their way back inside me.

I needed Tristan to stake his claim on Ezra, to imprint on him so that he never left, because I was never giving this up. Never giving him up. I wanted to come on his dick and Tristan to paint him with his cum. I wanted Ezra ruined for everyone but us. This, right here, right now was what I wanted. Every day. Every night. My men with me, inside me.

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Pre-order Link

Amazon Universal ~ https://geni.us/YBICa9

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Giveaway

One of Five eARC's for Professorhole & Bosshole

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ENTER HERE

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Other Titles Within this Series

PROFESSORHOLE

Billionaire Girl Boss Trilogy #1

Available Now

PURCHASE

About the Author

By day Ann Grech used to live in the corporate world and could be found sitting behind a desk typing away at reports and papers or lecturing to a room full of students. She graduated with a PhD in 2016 and is now an over-qualified nerd. But the grind got old, and the voices got louder. She still has the librarian look nailed, but she’s a little freer to be herself now.

She’s never entirely fit in and loves escaping into a book—whether it’s reading or writing one. But she’s found her tribe and loves her book world family. She dislikes cooking, but loves eating, can’t figure out technology, but is addicted to it, and her guilty pleasure is Byron Bay Cookies. Oh and shoes. And lingerie. And maybe handbags too. Well, if we’re being honest, we’d probably have to add her library too given the state of her credit card every month (what can she say, she’s a bookworm at heart)!

In 2019 she was an Award-Winning Finalist in the Fiction: LGBTQ category of the 2019 Best Book Awards sponsored by American Book Fest for her story In Safe Arms.

She also publishes her raunchier short stories under her pen name, Olive Hiscock.

ALPHAHOLE

Billionaire Girl Boss Trilogy #3

Coming Soon

PRE-ORDER

Connect with Ann

Website: https://anngrech.com

Newsletter: https://bit.ly/2KtM7LC

Facebook Author Page: https://bit.ly/2wG6izn

Facebook Reader Group: https://bit.ly/2xHoqZu

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Twitter: https://bit.ly/39ucUOt

Instagram: https://bit.ly/2JxgI6U

TikTok: https://bit.ly/3AKtD1l

Amazon Author Page: https://amzn.to/2UxKXB3

Bookbub Page: https://bit.ly/2Uw6c6e

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Book Blitz ~ Feeling Ballsy by Beck Erixson #Giveaway

Feeling Ballsy
Beck Erixson
(Love is Awkward)
Publication date: August 1st 2023
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Elin Axelsson is unmistakably the worst goalie in her women’s indoor soccer league. Yet each week, she laces up her cleats, pumps up her teammates, and gives it her all. At least playing soccer means being able to spend more time with her all-star goalie boyfriend, Nate. And her best friend of fifteen years—who’s a total ladies’ man—Hawk.

But when Elin catches Nate cheating, she dumps his ass, and finds herself thrust back into the weird world of online dating. At least she has Hawk to lean on. He has a new woman every week, and is a dating expert. But after a few awkward first dates with other people, Elin starts noticing Hawk in a different light. Except, that can’t happen. She can’t risk losing him, or their fifteen-year friendship if things go sour.

That is, until they manage to fall tongue-first into each other’s mouths. The two form a pact to prevent diving hormones-first into more bad relationships. They’ll hook up with each other, and compartmentalize their friendship. But there are rules: Elin sets the pace, no sex with others while the pact is in effect, and if either develop romantic feelings for the other, they must bail out to protect the friendship. It’s the perfect arrangement!

Until it isn’t.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Kobo

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EXCERPT:

Our gazes split as I pretend to stretch my neck, crinkling the melting bag of ice, and severing a replay of the moment at the fire pit we both refuse to acknowledge.

He leans in, and a tiny giggle flutters up my chest and out through my lips.

“What?” He asks, pulling his torso back, his voice squeaking high. “Does my breath smell?” Furrowing his brow, he huffs into his palm. With a deep sniff, he shakes his head.

I swallow down a larger chuckle. He looks over my shoulder as he bites his lower lip. Do what happened the other night. It’s simple.

I cough to cover another laugh and clear my throat. “Let’s try again.”

Hawk crosses his arms and tilts his head like a confused puppy. “Are you going to laugh at me again?”

I shake my head. “No?” Maybe.

“Well, that’s so convincing.” His voice hits a puberty high crack. “It’s only me.”

I nod and take in a deep breath. It’s only me? Does he realize what that even means? There is no one I trust more than him. Despite that, this is still new territory. There’s this tiny nag in me throwing up blocks, worried about being tossed aside when he’s bored of me.

My lips part and hover close enough to feel the gentle exhale of air from his mouth. I peek open an eye to find he’s staring back at me. Another obnoxiously loud laugh erupts from my mouth, and a pang of worry seizes my heart.

I suck in my lips and bite down as I open my eyes. Well, crap. He looks so … confused?

“You’re not okay with this, are you?” He scratches at his cheek and glances down.

The bag of ice drips on my shirt and ceases the trembling tickle in my chest. “It’s not that. It’s every time I see your face I laugh.”

“I’m that horrible looking to you?” His tone suggests a joke, but one drenched in a heavy ouch.

“Shut up. You know you aren’t ugly.” I shake my head.

“True. I’m in the realm of hideous.” He flashes a wide grin and runs his tongue over his lips. “Would a bag over my head with lip holes help?”

“You. Are. Ridiculous.”

He covers his face with wide fingers. “Better?”

“Stop making fun.”

All I want to do is see if the fire pit was a fluke, and forget all the other nonsense. Instead, I can’t stop giggling like I’ve never been with someone before. I lean in, kiss the back of his hand, and lean back.

“Oh, baby.” He rolls his eyes back, pulls his hands down his cheeks, and lets out a groan.

“This. This is why it’s weird.” A full belly laugh pulls through, filling the air. “You’re, you.” Knowing it’s him kissing me is different from seeing him kiss me. When the structured lines of his face get close, my nerves flare a warning and a protective shyness takes over.

“Wildflower, I only want to kiss you. I need to kiss you.” His hands land at his sides with an exaggerated smack and his tone shifts to serious. “Do you actually want to do this?”

The way he says “Wildflower” melts me. I nod repeatedly and pout my bottom lip. My chest holds the tingles, the desire, the pull to him. “I don’t know what’s happening. It’s like each time we get near, one of our magnets flips over, shooting us far apart.”

“Oh. Talk dirty to me with science. Two poles of a magnet repelling.” He leans back and gives an approving nod.

The issue isn’t the repelling, it’s the pull. The thing I’m stuck on from the night we kissed is, he kissed me. He scrambled the natural balance of our friendship, messing with the normally clear division line. We crossed into the unknown and he was burned. Literally. I don’t want to get burned or set our friendship ablaze in a grand bonfire. And yet, I want to be kissed—by him. None of this is logical.

Author Bio:

Beck Erixson writes about the beautifully awkward world of navigating the journey to true happiness through friendships, love, and family—be it blood, found, or chosen. Her stories enhance the importance of positive interconnection, even when we feel lonely. She lives on the Jersey Shore, and can often be found either writing by the river, or in it in some way. Her short stories have appeared in Many Nice Donkeys, and Full Mood Mag.

Website / Goodreads / Twitter / Instagram

GIVEAWAY!

Enter to win one of three paperback copies of Feeling Ballsy!
To enter, people need to follow @beckerixsonauthor, RT, and comment using the hashtags #feelingballsy AND #loveisawkward between 7/28/2023 and 8/8/2023!

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Book Blitz ~ The Ring Academy: The Trials of Imogene Sol by C.L. Walters #Giveaway

The Ring Academy: The Trials of Imogene Sol
C.L. Walters
Publication date: August 1st 2023
Genres: New Adult, Science Fiction, Young Adult

Imogene Sol has had to work twice as hard for everything she has earned as a cadet at The Ring Academy on Serta. An orphan of notorious parents who killed hundreds of thousands of people in a bombing against the Federation, most people hate her by name alone, others have gone out of their way to make her life difficult. Though she’s managed to acquire a handful of trusted friends over her years at the academy, most of her peers loathe her. But she’s made her mark in the top ten of her cadet class and she’s ready to compete for what’s next.

As the Year Seven Final Trials begin—a series of tests to determine placement within the Federation—Imogene knows all her hopes are riding on her performance. But when she’s framed for an offense that could not only get her expelled from the academy but also incarcerated, Imogene must discover who’s behind the threat against her. When her greatest competition, Timaeus Kade, offers to help her solve the mystery to clear her name, Imogene must decide if she’s willing to trust him. The stakes are high. Only the mysterious saboteur strikes again, justifying she needs his help, proving the stakes aren’t just her future anymore but her life.

Goodreads / Amazon

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EXCERPT:

Imogene raced across the room to grab the bo staff leaning against the wall, her opponent just steps behind her. The zip of his staff buzzed the air near her head as she ducked, rolled across the mat, and grabbed the weapon she needed from the holder. She turned and crouched with her back to the wall, wielding her staff to block her attacker. The clack of his weapon against hers vibrated up her arm through her elbow, jarring her teeth, but she ignored the discomfort—she was used to it—and shot forward.

“That’s all you’ve got?” She smirked at her opponent.

Vempur growled, showing his sharp incisors. His stark, black hair curled against his umber-toned temple slick with sweat as he followed it up by stabbing the end of the staff toward her face. His eyes, usually green flecked with sparkles of gold, turned completely black as he swung.

She blocked and went for a jab.

Vempur parried, then swung the staff at her head, once more with a loud grunt and frustrated huff. “You’re too quick,” he snapped.

Imogene smiled at her best friend but subdued the laugh. She knew he wouldn’t take it well in the middle of a fight. Not with everyone watching. Their silent, judgmental gazes were enough of a deterrent to keep Vempur’s temper in check. Besides, she wouldn’t have appreciated his humor at the moment either. There was too much on the line.

“You’re stronger. Taller,” she grunted out as she ducked once more. It wasn’t to feed his ego. “Find my weakness.”

“What weakness?” he snapped, frustrated more with himself than her, it would seem. “You haven’t lost yet today.”

“Exactly. I’m tired.”

Vempur growled, surging forward.

But she couldn’t afford to lose and that was the difference.

She rocked back, arching as the staff narrowly missed her gut, then swung her stick out to catch Vempur’s feet. He jumped and brought his bow down to the mat barely missing her back as she rolled out from under his strike.

“Stars!” Halo Mins—their instructor—yelled across the sparring room. “It shouldn’t look like a dance. It should look like a fight!”

Several of the other Year Sevens in the room snickered, and she knew it was at their expense.

“Shit,” Imogene swore, resetting as she hopped away. “He’s going to knock me down.”

“He won’t. He can’t.” Vempur punched out, and Imogene blocked the weapon. They pushed against one another and locked, resting for a beat. “You’ve dominated everyone today.”

“Not everyone.” She pushed, using her momentum to twist and swing, the pole wide, catching Vempur’s ankles. His giant frame slammed against the mat, and she went in for the kill, feigning a stab into his throat.

Vempur opened his hands against his bow staff in supplication and frowned. “Everyone knows you belong on the leaderboard, Imogene.”

Author Bio:

As a kid, CL Walters, world revolved around two things: stories and make believe. She's built a real life around those two things: a teacher of stories and a writer of make believe.

With four books now published, she's looking forward to her fifth release October 13, 2020, a YA Contemporary Romance called The Stories Stars Tell.

Sign up for her newsletter for news, goodies, and fun (www.clwalters.net)

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Apple a Day Giveaway Hop 🍏 🍎 August 1st – 15th

 

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Book Blitz ~ A Vampire’s Fate by Marie-Claude Bourque #Giveaway

A Vampire’s Fate
Marie-Claude Bourque
(The Order of the Black Oak – Vampires, #4)
Publication date: June 27th 2023
Genres: Adult, Paranormal, Romance

When wolf shifter and dedicated nurse Rosalie Gauthier returns to her town to take on the leadership of her pack after her father’s illness, her birthright is challenged a tyrannic rival, and marriage to a powerful vampire is her only option to save her family’s legacy.

Bound by honor to his lifetime oath to protect the alpha of the Domaine-Lassalle pack, Mount-Royal Immortal Renaud St-Amand’s duty turns out a whole lot more complicated when he is hit with love at first sight for the future female leader on the day of their arranged marriage.

If you love loyal tough guys with hearts, satisfying slow-burn paranormal romance and safe Happily Ever Afters, the Black Oak World is for you.

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EXCERPT:

So, you’ll let her fight?” His brother Griff asked.

“Calvaire! No.” Ren jolted with dread at the idea of Rosalie facing that brute Bouchard in combat. “I’m the one who should fight this trial. I’m the Gauthiers’ protector, not just her husband.”

“Shit, man,” Cass suddenly lifted a concerned brow as he set his drink aside. “This is your wedding night. Shouldn’t you be with her right now?”

“I’m sleeping on the couch.”

“Dude.” Cass shot him a pained expression.

“Yeah,” he rasped as longing took hold of him.

His breathing deepened and he imagined how he could slide between his sheets next to her enticing body and explore every curve he should be calling his. Take her as she cried his name in the depth of passion.

“So, you haven’t…” Griff started. “Never?”

“No.” He cleared his throat and dug his nails into his palm, not wanting to discuss the matter further.

“Don’t you want to, though,” Griff said. “She’s quite attractive.”

“Dude, she’s his wife.”

“Well, apparently not,” Griff retorted.

“Not in that sense, no,” Ren huffed.

“Why the hell not?” Griff picked the crushed can from the deck and passed it to Cass who had started to pick up the empty drinks.

“Well,” Ren started, “first I barely know her. And second, she has a boyfriend.”

“Ex,” Cass corrected, dropping the dead beer cans into the brown paper bag marked with the logo of the Fortins’ grocery store.

“Whatever,” Ren said.

“So, you two will just like, live together. But…nothing?” Griff asked.

“That’s the plan,” Ren acknowledged. “This is a fake marriage. We’ll just divorce in a couple of years.”

“Fucking messed-up plan,” Griff smirked.

“Yeah.” Ren shrugged hopelessly. “Some honeymoon.”

Author Bio:

I have always been - and likely always will be - a writer.
I have led a very long life in a less-than-imagined amount of years.
From childhood abuse to earning my blackbelt; from living in my car to living at the Four Seasons; from having 4 jobs at once to being unemployed with two college degrees; to losing my loved ones and winning my life.
​
One of Life's greatest joys for me is my dog (or any dog really). My beast's name is Asher and he's a gorgeous 100lb lap dog.

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