Book Launch

New release! Colt 45 by Chris Redfern

I had the honor of beta reading this new release almost a year ago! Check it out on Amazon!

Learn about my beta reading services in my Author Services page.

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New Release: Tahlia Newland’s Worlds Within Worlds

Prunella Smith: Worlds Within Worlds

By Tahlia Newland

New Release

Author/reviewer bullying – a hot topic for an unusual novel.

Have you heard about reviewers who have endured attacks by disgruntled authors upset with their review, or about authors being hounded by other authors determined to destroy their credibility? Do you wonder how you might handle such a situation yourself?

Anyone interested in these topics and the issues they raise will find much to enjoy in AIA Publishing’s latest release Prunella Smith: Worlds Within Worlds, a metaphysical thriller. The book has an unusual structure in that it weaves together several strands of experience, tangible and intangible, that together create the rich tapestry of the central character’s life.

Description:

‘The barrier between the worlds shatters like the window. The beast is loose. My nightmare has become real. The guy has totally lost it. If he finds us here, we could die. No, I don’t doubt it; we will die.’

Author and editor Prunella Smith inhabits a multilayered reality. Physically, she lives in the Australian bush with her crazy cat Merlin. In her work world, she edits the love story of Kelee, a Magan Lord’s daughter, and in the cyber-world of social media, she’s subjected to slanderous attacks by a disgruntled author. To complicate matters further she sees things through the eyes of a Tibetan Yogi, has strange dreams and relives forgotten memories.

Separate worlds, interconnected and complementary, but can they help when Prunella becomes victim to a real life stalker and her sanity is threatened?

Worlds Within Worlds has a unique perspective on the nature of creativity. Its touch is light, its humour distinctive but it reaches deep into the nature of human experience.

Comments from readers:

 “This is riveting stuff, part magical realism dreamscape, part taut psychological thriller, and I was literally on the edge of my seat when the final twist—and what a twist it is—came around. Phew, what a ride! I can honestly say it is the best book I have read this year.” Frank Kusy, author of Rupee Millionaires.

“This book will make you think. Considering the deluge of new works streaming from authors these days, that may be the highest praise a novel can receive.” Amy Spahn, literary critic.

“A fascinating insight into the mind of someone using meditative techniques to deal with stress.” Kevin Berry, Awesome Indies reviews.

About the Author

Tahlia Newland, author of six books, including the award-winning Diamond Peak Series (AIA Seal of Excellence in Fiction and BRAG Medallion for Outstanding Fiction), writes heart-warming and inspiring magical realism and contemporary fantasy. She is also an editor and the coordinator of Awesome Indies Books, a website that accredits and showcases quality independent fiction.

Tahlia began writing full time in 2008 after twenty years in the performing arts and a five-year stint as a creative and performing arts teacher in a High School. She has had extensive training in meditation and Buddhist philosophy and lives in an Australian rainforest south of Sydney with her husband and a cheeky Burmese cat, who features in most of her novels.

Purchase outlets

Ebook

Kindle Stores

Kobo

Barnes and Noble

Apple stores

Smashwords

The paperback will be available from all outlets in early December.

 

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Thank You!

Thank you for celebrating my book release with me! You have all helped make this book a success and your support is priceless!

My posts are at an end for the party. I’ll reveal the contest results in the morning!

Please be sure to visit my feature tomorrow at  http://speculativesalon.blogspot.com/

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Last Call!

All aboard! The giveaways will end at midnight, so if you wanted to catch one, don’t forget!

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Virtual Release Party Giveaways: Don’t Judge a Book By Its Magic

Giveaways

So, Kate, how can I win stuff? Why, I’m glad you asked! It’s pretty easy to get in on some of these sweet giveaways.

How to win an ebook of Don’t Judge a Book By Its Magic

  • One random New Twitter follower of @KPtwitrnovel will win a free ebook.
  • Those who like Don’t Judge a Book By Its Magic  and/or Kate Policani on Facebook between Oct 26th and Oct 28th will be entered for a chance to win one of 3 free ebooks. 1 entry for each page liked!
  • One random re-post of any of my posts about the Release Party on Facebook will win a free ebook.
  • One person who “likes” Don’t Judge a Book By Its Magic on Amazon will win a free ebook.
  • One person who “tags” Don’t Judge a Book By Its Magic on Amazon will win a free ebook (Yes, you can do that without owning it.)
  • One person who clicks “This was Helpful” on a review of Don’t Judge a Book By Its Magic on Amazon will win a free ebook.
  • One person who “adds” Don’t Judge a Book By Its Magic on Goodreads will win a free ebook.

How to win a paperback copy of Don’t Judge a Book By Its Magic

(I’ll sign it if you like!)

  • At the Awesome Indies blog, win one free ebook and one free print copy.
  • One randomTwitter follower who tweets during the Virtual Release Party will win a free print book with additional entries for each tweet. Tweets must include “@KPtwitrnovel” and the link “https://katepolicani.com/release-party/“. Re-tweets of my tweets about the Release Party are also entries. You can just click this TweetThis link for a pre-made tweet! <Tweet This>
  • One person who completes the “Fabulous Five”, five different ebook-winning activities, will win a paperback.
  • One person will win a paperback via my Goodreads giveaway:

What else can I get for free?

In honor of my new release, The Disenchanted Pet ebook will be free on Kindle all weekend! Use coupon HEMNXLSZ at https://www.createspace.com/3657962 for $5 off the paperback.

In honor of my new release, The Lustre  ebook will be free with coupon WT22J at Smashwords. Use coupon 3U5B5THD at https://www.createspace.com/3811460 for $5 off the paperback.

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Virtual Release Party Guest Book: Lethal Inheritance

Lethal Inheritance

(Book one of the Diamond Peak Series)

Author: Tahlia Newland

Publisher: Catapult Press

Genre: Young adult contemporary fantasy

Read Kate Policani’s review of Lethal Inheritance here: http://katepolicanisreviews.wordpress.com/2012/10/27/lethal-inheritance-by-tahlia-newland/

– Free – Download the prequel to Lethal InheritanceRun 20.9.12

Synopsis

If last night was real, Ariel should be dead. She’s not, but her mother has disappeared, there are bruises on her neck and the hideous beast in the photo looks frighteningly familiar.

 You can’t send police into a tunnel that doesn’t exist after a villain they can’t see, so when shadow demons kidnap her mother, Ariel has to mount the rescue mission herself.  Hot on the trail, she enters a hidden layer of reality only to find that the demons are hunting her, and they feed on fear. Ariel must defeat them before they kill her and enslave her mother. But how do you kill terrifying demons when your fear makes them stronger?

A quirky old guide teaches her how to locate and unleash her inner power, and while battling hallucinogenic mist, treacherous terrain, murderous earth spirits and self-doubt, she falls in love with Nick, a Warrior whose power is more than either of them can handle.

 Ariel’s journey challenges her perception, tests her awareness and takes her deep into her heart and mind to confront, and ultimately transcend, her fear and anger.

What readers are saying:

An avid reader of YA Fantasy said, ‘I have read a lot of fantasy and I consider this outstanding. It is so exciting and surprising that I didn’t want to put it down. I could never guess what would happen next. It’s a great adventure story bursting with wonder and magic and has an excellent ending.’

One 16 year old reader wrote, ‘Lethal Inheritance was engrossing from the earliest pages with original characters, plots and settings. The pace doesn’t slow throughout the novel, which made me continually want more and hungry for the next book. I loved the Gimps, in fact I loved the whole concept of the book and especially the little challenges throughout, such as the Lures, Reeds and Shifting Stones.’

Another teenage reader wrote, ‘I found ‘Lethal Inheritance’ to be adventurous and engaging. The novel took me on a journey through my imagination and into a world of infinite possibilities, yet still I found I could relate to the character perfectly. A beautifully written and highly imaginative story that deals with a spectrum of emotions, ideas, decisions and determination. A perfect read for all teenagers.’

Author Peter McAra wrote,
‘When I first read Lethal Inheritance, I was hooked. I saw it as a brand new take on vampires and werewolves. Now we have demons – they’re a lot more revolting and unpredictable than mere vampires. The mother/daughter connection in the story is different and interesting too. The more I read, the more involved I got. The style is pretty addictive – new and powerful, but recognisably young-adult-speak – anything but stereotyped. Lethal Inheritance has an intriguing pace of its own. ‘

Laurie Stiller YA author  said…
‘Its a really good yarn . I got quite caught up in it.  It’s inventive and new! The plot is great – always something new and exciting.

Catherine Hammond, the editor and ex publisher.

‘Not only is its imaginary world intriguing but it poses for its teenage protagonist a sinister threat and an overwhelming challenge, as well as a possible new love. One quirky element is the tangible effect of letting fear take over, which poses the question: what feeds on your fear? The mountain demons to conquer, the skills to learn and the barriers to overcome are all intrinsically tied to the inner life. These parallels and other highly original features make this speculative fiction book — the first in a projected series – an absorbing read.’

 

Purchase Links

US Kindle Store

UK Kindle Store

Kobo Store

Smashwords

Apple ibook store

 

Author Links

Blogsite

Facebook

Twitter

Goodreads Author page

Amazon Author page

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Virtual Release Party Guest: Nadia Riell

 

Author Nadia Riell was the winner of the Book Title Contest back in June. She won a slot in this Release Party! So, may I present a beloved friend:

 

INSPIRING CHILDHOOD, INSPIRING LIFE

Perspectives on Love, Encouragement and Reaching Potential

 

A Conversational Book of Inspirations by Nadia Riell

Living life whether you’re growing up, already grown up or also in the role of parenting, is certainly not a perfect science.  There isn’t a “one size fits all” formula to follow in order to achieve success or happiness in life, yet most of us want to achieve it. 

So begins this intentionally compact collection that mirrors the short conversations and simple words that can inspire our lives, from children to adults.  As love, friendship, choices and experiences we face impact our world, they are also thought provoking in how we view the world and see ourselves in it.

Refreshing like a quick hug, smile or a pat on the back, this book offers encouragement and joy for reaching potential through life’s lessons, hopes and dreams.

 

About the Author

Nadia Riell is author of Inspiring Childhood, Inspiring Life, Perspectives on Love, Encouragement and Reaching Potential; as well as an inspirational stories columnist for Examiner.com. Also a film and media stylist, Nadia’s worked for companies such as Disney and DreamWorks.She loves discussing stories from culture, films and books, as well as the ever present questions surrounding Sam eating green eggs and ham. Nadia and her family live in Washington State where they spend time enjoying the beach, the outdoors, and good stories.

 

Visit Nadia’s website: www.nadiariell.com for book and column information.

Contact Information: nadiariell@gmail.com

 

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Virtual Release Party: Win on Amazon

Just a reminder: One person who “likes” Don’t Judge a Book By Its Magic on Amazon will win a free ebook. Also, one person who “tags” Don’t Judge a Book By Its Magic on Amazon will win a free ebook (Yes, you can do that without owning it.) If that wasn’t enough, one person who clicks “This was Helpful” on a review of Don’t Judge a Book By Its Magic on Amazon will win a free ebook.

Here is the the Kindle ebook and the paperback (The links are crazy long so I just embedded them. These separate pages will be combined at some point when Amazon gets to it.)

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Virtual Release Party: Win on Facebook

 

 

Just a reminder: Those who like Don’t Judge a Book By Its Magic  and/or Kate Policani on Facebook between Oct 26th and Oct 28th will be entered for a chance to win one of 3 free ebooks. 1 entry for each page liked!

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Virtual Release Party Guest Artist: Matthew Swegsda

Matthew Swegsda

Book Trailer Music

Matthew Swegsda is the fabulous musician who supplied the music for the book trailer for Don’t Judge a Book By Its Magic. I discovered this 27-year-old Scottish singer/songwriter’s music on soundclick.com and it fit perfectly. I think it has just the right tone and style.

Learn more about Matt:

Matt’s Youtube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/Mattjam3

Matt’s music on Soundcloud: http://soundcloud.com/mattjam3

Matt’s debut track on Youtube:

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Virtual Release Party: Win on Twitter

 

Tweet or follow to win a free ebook!

One random New Twitter follower of @KPtwitrnovel will win a free ebook. Also, one randomTwitter follower who tweets during the Virtual Release Party will win a free print book with additional entries for each tweet. Tweets must include “@KPtwitrnovel” and the link “https://katepolicani.com/release-party/“. Re-tweets of my tweets about the Release Party are also entries. You can just click this TweetThis link for a pre-made tweet! <Tweet This>

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Virtual Release Party: AM Day’s Review

 

AM Day has posted her review of Don’t Judge a Book By Its Magic. Thank you, AM Day, for the power-packed review!

Please visit the review here: http://anovelperspective.wordpress.com/2012/10/27/new-release-review-dont-judge-a-book-by-its-magic/

AM Day is a burgeoning new author And OWNS IT! She has accomplishments under her belt that make her a bona fide pro in other areas of my life. She’s a single mother who has raised a fully grown man-child, a daughter old enough to vote, and her youngest daughter, who will be old enough to vote next year. She’ tackled many odd jobs and the field of freelance journalism. Ever try to raise a family on a freelance salary? It’s like living on commission, but she’s grateful for the opportunity given.

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Virtual Release Party: A Sneak-peek

Sorcery Loves Company

As a special treat for my guests I’m going to give you a peek into the next book of The Convergence series, Sorcery Loves Company. This is a super-raw first chunk of the next book, literally the first complete section I’ve written. I’ve edited it to prevent it from ruining any surprises from the first book!

The day was chilly but the coffee was warm. We hunched over our laptops in the cozy coffee shop, but we pressed together the right side of my body and the left side of his body. When we could spare our near-side hands from typing, those hands went right to PDA mode; messing with hair, rubbing a shoulder. We stole kisses between paragraphs.

Excerpt:

The day was chilly but the coffee was warm. We hunched over our laptops in the cozy coffee shop, but we pressed together the right side of my body and the left side of his body. When we could spare our near-side hands from typing, those hands went right to PDA mode; messing with hair, rubbing a shoulder. We stole kisses between paragraphs.

I was with my gorgeous new fiancée, previously my gorgeous new boyfriend. I was completely baffled why such a hot, angelic guy was interested in someone like me, but I certainly wasn’t going to pick it apart.

His phone made a “pew-pew” sound that meant he got a text. He snatched the phone, scowled at it in an adorable manner, and put it down. A few minutes later it pew-pew-ed again and he poked in an irritated reply. Pew-pew! When he looked again I noticed the sender of that message and the previous two: ######. What was that all about? Why was ###### texting him? He hadn’t mentioned that they were in any classes together. They weren’t following the same major either.

After two more texts, I had to ask. “Sweetie, why is he texting you so much?”

For a fraction of a second, his adorable scowl turned into an expression of panic. Even his panic was hot! But something was really wrong.

“It’s just…###### wants something. He wants to take…something from me. I won’t let him.”

The intensity of his eyes scared me a little. He looked ferocious. But that was also incredibly hot and my poor brain was confused between fear and attraction.

“You can tell me,” I said, my pulse pounding.

He replied by looking into my eyes as if he could read my thoughts. My pulse pounded in…certain areas and my heart did a half-gainer. My legs liquefied and I’m sure I was beet-red.

“You shouldn’t worry. I’ll take care of it. There’s nothing for you to bother about.” He said those words but his expression was the same as if he was telling me words of love. Whatever his problem with ###### was, he was protecting me from it. So hot! I decided to let him. Also I was now stupid with adoration, so I couldn’t argue much.

I turned again to my laptop to help stress away the stupor.

“Is this the right way to say this?” I asked, pointing to a tricky sentence in my paper. I was changing the subject and telling him without saying it that I trusted him.  He smiled his angelic smile and read the sentence, brushing his cheek on my shoulder as he bent closer to read. He smelled so good! I restrained myself from moaning indecently at his utter deliciousness.

Something about my expression told him what I was thinking, and that it wasn’t about grammar or punctuation. His eyes sparkled and his gorgeous mouth quirked up in a half-grin. Then he kissed me, of course, because I couldn’t have begged for it more if I had whined like a hungry dog. This was no way to get a paper done. But it was a great way to warm me up all the way to my toes. Mmmmm!

I was putty in his hands, but I knew that I could trust him not to be inappropriate, at least not in public. I had two brothers and I knew that you didn’t tempt a guy no matter how polite he was. So our together time was always in public. As much as I wanted to give in to all these steamy feelings for him, I also wanted to stick to my morals. I was going to wait until I was legally married to “go all the way”, and he said he agreed. Sure, it was a strange choice for an American girl to make these days, but it wasn’t so unusual in The Convergence. Being engaged meant something different here, though I wasn’t solid on exactly what. I wasn’t going to sabotage a relationship that was so new and in such a different culture from what I was used to.

Somebody cleared their throat loudly at us. I dragged my lips from his to view the scowl of a barista who wasn’t amused. After she had thoroughly sliced me with her sharp gaze, she morphed into flirt mode to mac on my man. Rude!

“Did you order the half-caf mochachino with three pumps of hazelnut?” she asked in a tone that clearly invited him to sample all her womanly pleasures. Eew! She was definitely hotter than me and probably felt she deserved to switch places with me. I seemed to get variations on this kind of attack frequently, especially off-campus. Skupdyn girls just couldn’t stand to see a shlub like me with a heavenly hottie like him. They felt the need to intervene on his behalf and save him from a death by boredom. I couldn’t really blame them.

He slipped his hand to the back of my neck and kneaded it in a gesture that left no doubt that we were together by his choice.

He looked at the barista without a hint of attraction and said, “I’m terribly sorry, but I have my coffee right here. It must belong to someone else.” Just as her coffee-related sexual invitation meant something other than the words spoken, so did his reply. I was his coffee and the coffee she was offering wasn’t to his tastes. The barista blushed so hard I was afraid something would burst. Then she slunk away in defeat. I rewarded him with a smile and a caress.

How did such a regular chick like me land such a delectable dude and his enormous diamond engagement ring? Magic!

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Virtual Release Party Guest Artist: Heidi Barnett

Artist: Heidi Barnett

Heidi is an active and prolific artist. Her gorgeous work on the cover of Don’t Judge a Book By Its Magic really wowed everybody! She works as an independent artist on many types of projects such as book cover design and portfolio pieces. She’s also been working through a studio in Mukilteo teaching after-school art classes for children, teaching them techniques like painting, printmaking to clay. She’s taught art in the Senior communities for the past 12 years. Her other current projects include painting a playground map with the kids of Cascade Elementary and a Mural of their school mascot, a cougar. She also recently completed a four-floor mural in Rainier Valley.

For Heidi, art not isn’t just a job or an outlet but a way of life. Color is very important to her and how colors help the viewer feel moods and emotions. The colors often relay a story behind each piece of art.

Heidi is a re-issuance artist, having the ability to work in a variety of mediums from oil paints to jewelry designing. Her passion is for painting and she loves to paint murals. She lives in Everett, Washington and loves opening her students’ eyes to new and exciting ways of thinking creatively as well as artistically.She is an expert at breaking art down into a level in which all can be satisfied with the creation they have made.

Heidi on “How I came to find myself as an artist”:
“I grew up in Southern California surrounded by art, my Mother being an artist herself. Art has always been a way of life for me and what we do. Christmas time was always exciting because it meant new art supplies. Around the age of fourteen I started getting serious about painting, learning the techniques and how to use color, shapes, and perspective. I have study art in collage as well as Art History. I found that I truly learned the most studying under artist I admire watching their techniques and making them my own.  I also enjoy working with my husband who is an artist himself. I find we benefit each other well in the areas of art I am weak he seem to make up and vise versa. So we are able to encourage and teach each one another.  We have worked on pieces together and apart. We over all help develop and encourage each other to grow in our own unique styles.”

See her page with more of her artwork here: http://heidibarnett.artweb.com/

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What power would you choose?

Colleen suddenly gains several fantastic powers at the start of the book. Which one would you like best?

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