J.D.R. Hawkins

One bullet can make a man a hero… or a casualty.

Archive for the tag “young adult”

12 Nov 2018

Release Day Blitz – The Hidden Children

~ Release Day Blitz ~

The Hidden Children (The Lost Grimoire #1)

by Reshma K.Barshikar

13th November 2018

About the Book:

Front Cover copy

‘What price would you pay to be extraordinary? What would you do to speak to a butterfly? 

Shayamukthy cruises through life: shooting hoops, daydreaming and listening to her favourite books. Even moving from the US to India, to a new school, a new culture, hasn’t really rattled her. But something isn’t right anymore and it begins when ‘New Girl’ joins the school.

She pulls Shui into a world of magic and wonderment, a world she has been hidden from all her life. What starts as a quest to look for a lost book, hurtles Shui into a world where people live in trees, talk to the dead and speak to butterflies.

But like all power, magic comes at a steep price, and under all things wondrous lie demons waiting to crawl out. The more Shui learns, the more she doubts everything and everyone around her. 

Will she be able to master her powers, or will they devour her and everyone she loves?

 

Order Your Copy from AMAZON now!

 

Read an Excerpt:

I think I am ordinary. I lack purpose. Boohoo you think, typical teenager angst. But if I died tomorrow, it wouldn’t impact anyone’s life except my parents’. My friends, on the other hand, they have a life. See them there, yes there, to the right, next to the banyan tree behind the basketball court. You see a slightly pudgy boy and a beautiful girl? The boy’s name is Jai. The girl’s name is Nallini. Both have purpose. Jai wants to write comic books. He wants to be like Neil Gaiman or something, some famous comic-book guy. Nallini wants to be an actress, the next Deepika Padukone – that, and to win next year’s gold medal in Jujitsu.

She has absolutely no problems reconciling the inherent contradictions in both her desires.

I want nothing, need nothing, except something to need. I can’t see past today even to tomorrow; I have a hard enough time figuring out what I am now. I am not from a broken home, unless you count the fact that parts of the building I live in are falling apart. I am not poor, not like Anuki Chabria who got called out of her exam because her parents couldn’t pay her fees. I do not have acne bursting on my face, making me look like a human cheese grater. I am just, well, ordinary. So could you really blame me? Blame me for wanting to be special? Blame me for wanting to be fierce? To be like Storm from the X-Men, or like Beyoncé? When I look back now, at everything that has happened in the last few months, I realise I’m just as much to blame as her. The big question – well, it’s not a big question at all, really, because it’s all rubbish now, because you can’t go back. Even I can’t go back. So the absurd question everyone around me seems to asking is – would I have acted differently, would I rather NOT be the person I am now?

No.

And neither would you. What price wouldn’t you pay to be extraordinary, to ride the wind, to float with unicorns, to be the one chosen…? Because, you see, I’ve gotten into some serious trouble and want to explain myself. I didn’t mean for things to happen. I didn’t mean for someone to die. So I ask you – wouldn’t you have said yes if someone said – ‘Do you want to learn how to speak to a butterfly?’ 

About the Author:

Reshma copy

Travel writer and novelist Reshma K Barshikar is an erstwhile Investment Banker who, as she tells it, ‘fell down a rabbit hole and discovered a world outside a fluorescent cubicle.’ As a travel and features writer, she contributes to National Geographic Traveller, Harper’s Bazaar, Grazia, The Sunday Guardian, SilverKris, The Mint Lounge and The Hindu. Fade Into Red, published by Random House India was her debut novel and featured in Amazon Top 10 Bestsellers. She also holds well renowned workshops for young adults at both BDL Museum and Kala Ghoda and is keen to build a strong Young Adult reading and writing community to fill the desperate lack of young adult fiction in the Indian Market. Her new Young Adult novel, The Hidden Children, will be launching at the Vizag Junior Literary Festival. Reshma is from the ISB Class of 2003. She calls both Mumbai and the Nilgiris home. 

Contact the Author:

Website I Facebook I Twitter I Goodreads

Banner-2 copy

 

 

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11 Jan 2017

Cover Reveal!

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Chameleon by Zoe Kalo

Genre: YA/Gothic/Ghost/Multicultural

Word Count: 55,000 

Release Date: February 2017

Premise:

Kicked out of school, 17-year old Paloma finds herself in an isolated convent in the tropical forests of 1970s Puerto Rico, where she must overcome her psychosis in order to help a spirit and unveil a killer.

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Blurb:

An isolated convent, a supernatural presence, a dark secret…


17-year-old Paloma only wanted to hold a séance to contact her dead father. She never thought she would be kicked out of school and end up in an isolated convent. Now, all she wants is to be left alone. But slowly, she develops a bond with a group of girls: kind-hearted Maria, insolent Silvy, pathological liar Adelita, and their charismatic leader Rubia. When, yet again, Paloma holds a séance in the hope of contacting her father, she awakens an entity that has been dormant for years. And then, the body count begins. Someone doesn’t want the secret out…


Are the ghost and Paloma’s suspicions real—or only part of her growing paranoia and delusions?

About the Author:

A certified bookworm, Zoe Kalo has always been obsessed with books and reading. Reading led to writing—compulsively. No surprise that at 16, she wrote her first novel, which her classmates read and passed around secretly. The pleasure of writing and sharing her fantasy worlds has stayed with her, so now she wants to pass her stories to you with no secrecy—but with lots of mystery…

A daughter of adventurous expats, she’s had the good fortune of living on 3 continents, learning 4 languages, and experiencing a multicultural life. Currently, she’s working on a Master’s degree in Comparative Literature, which she balances between writing, taking care of her clowder of cats, and searching for the perfect bottle of pinot noir.

Connect with Zoe Kalo on the web: www.ZoeKalo.com / Facebook / Twitter

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03 Mar 2016
2 Comments

Historical Fantasy Book on Blog Tour

bloodtiestourbanner

I’m of Irish descent, and I love all things related to Ireland. Because this is Irish Heritage Month, I’d like to spotlight a new book titled Blood Ties by author Hazel West. Be sure to follow the tour.

http://hazelwest.blogspot.com/2016/02/blood-ties-virtual-book-tour.html.

Synopsis

In an Ireland that mixes high kings, faeries, and modern warriors who drive fast cars, Ciran, a descendant from the famous warrior Fionn Mac Cool, bands together with a company of young warriors from the legendary order of Na Fianna to go on a quest to recover their missing family members who were captured by the Goblins in a shaky peace between the two kingdoms. Ciran and his companions must figure out not only how they are going to rescue the prisoners, but how they are going to complete their mission without killing each other. Through trial and error, running battles, unexpected friendships, and daring escapes, Ciran and his company come face to face with the Goblin King himself in a final battle that will decide the fate of all involved and of Ireland itself.

The first book in a new series, Blood Ties takes the traditional Irish legends and puts a modern spin on them with a heavy helping of friendship and the love of family.

Title: Blood Ties (The Modern Tales of Na Fianna #1)

Genre: YA, Urban Fantasy, Alternate History

Purchase Links:

Createspace Paperback: https://www.createspace.com/5165155

Amazon Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1505596130?keywords=Blood%20Ties%20Hazel%20West&qid=1455604855&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1

Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01BTPAO7S?keywords=Blood%20Ties%20Hazel%20west&qid=1455651450&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1

Smashwords:  https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/615849

About the Author

Hazel West lives in Purgatory, er, Florida, with her books and her hedgehog, Horatio. When she’s not writing, she’s reading other people’s books, studying folklore, or binge-watching something on Netflix—drinking coffee is also a given.

Links

Blog: http://hazelwest.blogspot.com

Writing blog: http://talesfromamodernbard.blogspot.com

Twitter

Goodreads

Youtube Channel

Pinterest

bloodtiescoverfront copy

Excerpt

“How did your training go?” Da asked as he pulled back.

“Well, but that isn’t what I came to tell you.” I quickly detailed the events of our patrol first to get that out of the way. Maybe I was stalling, but I felt I should tell him this before anything else.

He listened quietly, but I could tell that it bothered him that we had been attacked and so close to home. It wasn’t like we had been days up in the mountains, it was only an hour’s drive north. Well, an hour my driving, but still.

“There’s something else I need to tell you,” I said after I had finished and assured him Tierney was all right—he and Tierney’s father had been sword brothers as all men of our families were. “I know I should have told you before, but it was so uncertain, I didn’t want to let anyone know. But now that I do have something to show you for it, I felt I must let you know what I have been doing in my spare time.”

“Ciran,” he said warningly, but I shook my head, pleading with him to let me continue.

“Before Tierney and I left for Dublin, Eamon asked us to look into a few…things. Just some tracking—off the books. And at first we didn’t find anything, but this morning, on our way back, we had a new lead, and we checked it out.”

He had turned back to his bench and was gripping the edge tightly, his knuckles white, shaking his head, but I pushed on, unable to stop now that the damage had already been done.

“We went to the stone circle in Westmeath. They made their last stand there.”

“Ciran.” His voice was strangled with rage and grief.

“I found this.” I yanked the medallion out from under my breastplate and put it on the table in front of him, more and more anxious to finish and win him over to my side on this matter for once.

He stood there for a minute, shaking with emotion; of what exactly, I couldn’t be sure, but then he took the medallion that he had crafted himself and after a moment’s hesitation, threw it across the room, overturning the bench with a violent shove and a thundering crash. “It’s not my son, is it?!” he shouted.

I stepped back, more grieved than frightened. He swung around on me. “Why did you disobey me? This is exactly what I was afraid of. Finding something that would give us all false hope and for what? To find his corpse rotting on a spike someday in the north, or worse? You will not go back, Ciran, do you hear me? You will just forget this whole thing.”

“I can hardly disobey the High King, Athair,” I said, trying to keep my own emotions under wraps, fluctuating from indignant anger to fear and grief. “And what if he is still alive? What if we have left him and the others to die alone in pain, waiting for help that will never come? It’s not just Aeden, it is Eamon’s brother, our own crown prince, and as loyal country-men, subjects, and Fianna, we cannot give up so easily! It is our duty to push on!”

His good hand wrapped around one shoulder as the leather-bound stump crashed into the other, jerking me forward. “You will forget him, Ciran, and by Lugh, I swear, if you bring this up in front of your brothers…”

“Daegal already knows, and how can he not? His dreams were what guided me to the standing stones in the first place. Would he dream so often of these things if there was not some need to find them?” I asked.

“Ciran,” he shouted, then softened and hung his head, his jaw tight. “Ciran, mo fuaime, please forget him. There is nothing you can do for your brother now. He is gone, and you had best start believing that. We had all best start believing that.”

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11 Jan 2016

New Book Out on Blog Tour

Today I’m featuring a new YA novel that is doing a blog tour, titled Tweenache in the Time of #ashtags, by Judy Balan. It looks like a fun read, so check it out! Here’s some more information about it. Don’t forget to enter the giveaway contest! (The link is at the bottom of this post.)

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Book Blurb:

#Tweenache101: First, there’s PMS (it’s real and it’s painful and can someone please make it stop?). Second, there’s #The Boy. Yes, that’s right. The BOY. And third, there’s a #New Dad in the picture. Actually, he’s an old dad, but if Nina’s never met him before, he totally counts as new, right? And worst of all, there’s the #Nerd Wars. There’s a new nerd in the classroom – and she might be even nerdier than Nina.

THIS. CAN’T. BE. GOOD.

From the author of How To Stop Your Grownup From Making Bad Decisions, here’s another hilarious season in the life of #NinaThePhilosopher.

Book Links:

| Goodreads | Amazon | Website |

JudyBalan

About the Author:

Judy Balan is the overthinking parent of an overthinking child. Reality overwhelms her at times, which is why she enjoys making stuff up. She loves reading, watching and writing comedy. How to Stop Your Grownup from Making Bad Decisions was her first attempt at writing for non-grownups. She enjoyed it so much she decided to make it a series and call it Nina the Philosopher because over-thinking tweens deserve their own series. For more on Judy and her writing, hop over to judybalan.com or check out Nina’s blog ninathephilosopher.com.

10 Random Facts About The Author:

  1. Judy Balan is the over-thinking parent of an over-thinking child.
  1. Reality overwhelms her at times, which is why she enjoys making stuff up.
  2. When she’s not writing novels, she’s fighting and making up with her daughter, heading the creative team at Raising iBrows (formerly), an audience engagement agency, and eating too much Nutella.
  1. One of Judy’s favourite pastimes is reading too many articles on alternative parenting styles and confusing her even more.
  1. Another favourite pastime is observing and analysing everything and everyone, including herself.
  1. This is her second book for children, but she hopes to write many more (hopefully, stories with orcs, dragons and such. This book can be read as a Stand-Alone, but reading the first one in the series is highly recommended!
  1. Her previous books were the bestselling Two Fates: The Story of My Divorce and Sophie Says: Memories of a Breakup Coach and How to Stop Your Grownup from Making Bad Decisions. Both these books were for grownups.
  1. This book is NOT about her life although she’s a single parent too and Nina was inspired by her daughter, Kiara.
  1. As a child, Judy was in a big hurry to grow up, but now she wants to tell all children to slow down because adulthood isn’t going anywhere. Apparently.
  1. Judy loves hearing from her readers, so you can email her at balan.judy@gmail.com. If you’re over eighteen, you can check out her website too at http://www.judybalan.com .

Stalk Links:

| Facebook  | Twitter  | Website | Goodreads |

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24 Nov 2015

New Book on Blog Tour

Shanti BT Cover

The book I am featuring today is titled Shanti and the Magic Mandala, by F.T. Camargo. This book looks like a lot of fun, so pick up a copy right away!

About the Book:

Shanti and the Magic Mandala is an adventure in which fantasy and reality are mingled. The book tells the story of six teenagers, from different religious and cultural origins and different parts of the world, who are mystically recruited to form two groups – one in the Northern Hemisphere, and one in the Southern. They eventually gather in Peru, and through a single alliance, begin a frantic chase for the sacred object that can stop the black magician’s final plan.

Buy Links:

Read an Excerpt:

Shanti was the first to smell the smoke. She paused in her frantic packing. “Do you smell something burning?”

“Yes, I do,” Lelê said, worried.

It was getting noticeably hotter in the room. “Look, there’s smoke coming in under the door!” Antônio cried. Black smoke was slowly seeping beneath the door and into the room. Lelê ran to the window.

“The door won’t open,” Shanti said, struggling with the lock.

“Neither will the window.” Lelê was close to tears.

“Let me try, Shanti.” Antônio grasped the doorknob, applying his strength to it. Even as he fought with the lock, the smoke and the heat were rising.”

“They did it. We’re stuck in here,” Helena said, coughing.

Antônio hammered on the wall. “Nasir! Itai! Tadao! Help us!”

“They want to kill us,” Lelê cried, shaking with fear.

Looking intently at Helena, her voice ringing with determination, Shanti declared, “But we’re not going to let them succeed!”

“Get away from the door,” Antônio said, kicking at it.

Hearing Antônio’s call for help, Nasir and Itai had rushed to the door, only to find it locked. Tadao tried the window. “It won’t open,” he said, fearful. “The window’s locked.”

“We can’t get out. What’s happening?” Nasir said, with an edge of panic.

“It’s black magic,” Itai said, trying to help Nasir break down the door.

Just then, an image of the book came into his mind. He ran over to his backpack, still on top of his bed and upended it shaking everything out.

Suddenly there was a loud noise, like an explosion — the door swung open. Flames and gouts of heavy, black smoke poured into the room. The whole hallway was on fire.

Tadao pushed at the window again, but it defied his efforts to open it.

Itai reached for his book. It was illuminated once again. He stood up and held the book with both hands, opening it. A bright light shone forth from the page it had opened on and he saw another name, formed with three Hebrew letters. Seitel, another of the 72 names of God. Itai knew that the Angel Seitel was able to create a protective shield. He closed his eyes, forming an urgent prayer, reaching out to connect with the angel, shutting out the mayhem around him for a few moments. Opening his eyes he gazed at the three letters from right to left for a few more precious seconds. Then he closed the book, replaced everything else in the backpack and hoisted it on his back. He picked up the book, holding it in his right hand. “Grab your backpacks and follow me.”

Nasir stared at him with an expression that clearly showed concern for his sanity “Itai?”

“Follow me,” Itai repeated with certainty.

“What? What do you mean?” Tadao almost shouted.

Nasir took his backpack and positioned himself behind Itai. “May Allah protect us!”

Watching Nasir, Tadao did the same. Itai took the closed book in both hands, pointing it towards the fire, as they approached the door. The book emitted an increasingly intense light. Gradually, a large shield began to form, surrounding the three boys.

“Wow! It’s a light vehicle, a merkaba!” Nasir said, reverently, his gaze locked on the intense white light of the forming shield.

“Incredible!” Tadao said, forming his own silent prayer, Thank you, Lord Buddha.

Steadfastly Itai moved towards the door now engulfed by large flames. He advanced out of the room, into the hallway, the light shield in front of him, and as he moved, he created a clear path, the shield pushing away the flames, heat and smoke. He stopped in front of Shanti’s bedroom door. The wood was charred and blackened and the ancient lock had popped free, leaving the door swinging brokenly. Their friends had crowded at the back of the room, near the window, trying to get away from the thick, choking smoke. “Grab your backpacks! Get behind Nasir and Tadao!” Itai shouted.

“We’re coming!” Antônio said, grabbing his backpack and walking swiftly towards the door.

Lord Ganesha, please open those paths, Shanti prayed, putting all of her faith into the prayer.

Within moments, the three were in place. The light shield began to grow sideways, eventually forming a large cube of light, protecting all of them. They crossed the hall, safe from the flames. As they went down the stairs, they heard the roof collapsing behind them. The reception area had been completely destroyed by fire, but again they passed through the devastation completely shielded from the heat and flames. They reached the door leading to the outside. Itai wasted no time in pulling it open and they poured out of the burning building.

As soon as the last one of them stepped onto the street, the old pension began to collapse, turning into a huge bonfire.

About the Author:

F. T. Camargo is an Italian Brazilian living in Sao Paulo, Brazil. An award winning architect and author, he also studied Arts and Media and has a post degree in Economics and MBA in e-commerce. He is a vegetarian because of his love for all animals and has been deeply involved in causes for their protection and freedom. He is a world traveler adventurer, outdoor sports lover, speaks 4 languages and has published a travel book “Rio, Maravilha!”

For many years he has been practicing yoga and meditation and studying the Kabbalah. His exploration of spiritual teachings motivated a commitment to self-development which in turn created a new path and goal in life. Shanti and the Magic Mandala was born from his inner journey.

Contact the Author:

 

Awards & Recognition for the Book:

Winner of 2014 London Book Festival in the category “Young Adult”.

2014 Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards: Bronze Medal at “Young Adult Fiction – Spirituality”

2014 New England Book Festival in Boston: &nbsp;Honorable Mention in the category “Young Adult”

Winner of 2015 Paris Book Festival in the category “Young Adult”

Winner of 2015 International Book Awards in the category “Fiction / Young Adult”

Winner of 2015 New York Book Festival in the category “Young Adult”.

2015 Los Angeles Book Festival – Runner-up in the category “Young Adult”

>2015 San Francisco Book Festival – Runner-up in the category “Young Adult”

2015 DIY Book Festival in Los Angeles: Honorable Mention in the category “Young Adult”

Check out the Cover Reveal Event

 

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