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Friday 31 October 2014

STALKING THE DEMON by Ciara Ballintyne: New Release and Giveaway


Title: Stalking the Demon
Author: Ciara Ballintyne
Series: The Seven Circles of Hell #2
Six months ago, the disgraced wizard, Alloran, sacrificed his hand to rescue the woman he loves from his traitorous friend, Ladanyon. Despite saving the city from a demon, his reputation remains tarnished, and the council of wizards has penalised him severely for the practise of banned magic.

Now he learns his desperate efforts to stop Ladanyon led more to damnation than salvation. Finding a solution compels him to breach his sanctions and venture into forbidden places at risk of his life and freedom.

Alloran must choose between saving himself and everything he holds dear.


Book #1




Chapter 1
Collapse
Alloran rushed through the citadel halls heedless of the rich carpets crushed beneath his heavy boots. Gisayne hung limply in his arms, and her black hair trailed over his elbow. A few people watched him pass, but none offered assistance. Over the past six months, Gisayne collapsed often enough to blunt the urgency and the panic. The faces turning in his direction bore only mild curiosity, oblivious to the fact that this time was different.
      Her chest barely rose and fell beneath the thin cream silk of her night gown and robe, and blue tinged the edges of her bee-stung lips. Seven hells, was she dying? As he raced onwards, he clutched her against him and her cold skin pressed against his. With no left hand, he had no way to check for a pulse. A choked-back scream of desperate frustration tightened his chest until it squeezed the breath out of his lungs.
      While juggling Gisayne, he fumbled with the latch on the door to the citadel’s hospice. Damn his missing hand to the first hell. When the door finally gave, he shouldered it open and backed into a long room lined with starkly made beds. The few occupied by sick or injured had curtains drawn for privacy. Breidmar, dressed in the red-trimmed white robes of a citadel doctor, bustled over at their entrance.
     Orange brows pinched with concern over her violet eyes. ‘Again?’
     ‘She’s…’ The lump in his throat choked him. He swallowed hard. ‘She’s hardly breathing.’
     ‘This way.’ Pointing to an empty bed, Breidmar called out and strode to a door at the far end. Before she crossed halfway back, an unfamiliar girl in acolyte’s white appeared in the doorway.
       Alloran placed Gisayne on the bed with gentle care. Her slack body slid from his arms, her skin pale. When he let her go, her eyelids fluttered but did not open. Nausea knotted his gut. The last time she’d fainted, the recovery was quick. Now, she looked as if death hovered over her, waiting for the moment to snip the thread of her life.
       As Breidmar began checking Gisayne’s vitals, she waved Alloran off. He hesitated. What would he do except wait, patient, and idle while Breidmar tried again to determine what illness affected her? She would try and fail, most likely.
       ‘Are you sure this is not the falling sickness? It’s supposed to get worse with each successive bout.’
       ‘She’s not got the right symptoms. No seizures,’ Breidmar responded in precise, clipped tones.
       Alloran frowned. He wasn’t an idiot. ‘Then what? These collapses are getting more frequent and more severe! Seven hells take you, tell me. Whatever the illness, it can’t be too complicated for me to understand.’
       With her severe lips curving down, she sniffed. ‘No amount of genius can assist you to comprehend a malady I cannot explain. While you’ve made any number of miraculous discoveries, you have no particular expertise in medical matters. Leave this to me.’
       ‘The title of doctor is reserved only for those who have studied in the citadel, and yet you say you don’t know? After all this time, you must have some notion.’ Wisps of his black hair hung about his face, torn free of their bindings in his haste. He pushed them back with a rough motion. When they slid back into disarray, he tore the leather thong free and began tying his hair back with short, sharp motions.
       The doctor scowled at him. At her nod, the acolyte whipped the curtain around the bed in a rattle of rings. The cloth brushed Alloran’s nose; he jerked his head away.
       A heartfelt sigh escaped his lips before he retreated to a waiting area that comprised a group of chairs. No, sitting still would be intolerable. He changed direction and paced the length of the room, passing the rows of identical empty beds. His boots echoed in the open space. Sterile and odourless air filled his nostrils.
       Apparently, Breidmar shared the sentiments of many people in the citadel. Some blamed him solely for the demons that plagued the city of Ehsan six months earlier, and others accused him of working with the renegade wizard, Ladanyon. Although Alloran wasn’t subjected to a disciplinary hearing, the council’s public announcement that they were banning him from all forms of magic involving the hells only reinforced the blame.
       Seven hells, the councillors banned him because some of them felt the same as the other citizens. Those residents who lost loved ones in the battle against Ladanyon’s first-circle demon were the most damning. Councillor Valgon’s wife died, and he made no bones about believing Alloran to be a public menace. I just can’t prove it, was what he said.

Ciara Ballintyne was born in 1981 in Sydney, Australia, where she lives with her husband, two daughters, one masochistic cat, and one cat with a god complex. She holds degrees in law and accounting, and has been a practising financial services lawyer since 2004. She is both an idealist and a cynic.

She started reading epic fantasy at the age of nine, when she kidnapped Castle of Wizardry by David Eddings from her father. Another two years passed before she began her first attempts at the craft of writing. Confronting the Demon is her debut book.

She enjoys horse-riding, and speculation about taking over the world. If she could choose to be anything it would be a dragon, but instead she shares more in common with Dr. Gregory House of House. M.D. Her alignment is Chaotic Good, and she is a stalwart defender of the Oxford comma. 




   

Tuesday 21 October 2014

Blood Line Blog Tour Spotlight

Blood Line1

Enjoy Happy Geek Media's Virtual Book Tour of John Davis' debut novel, Blood Line
 
*****

BLOOD LINE - ABOUT THE BOOK
BLOOD LINE Hardcover Stack

Blood Line , A Granger Spy Novel (Book 1)
by John J. Davis
Publisher: Simon & Winter, Inc.
Genres: Action, thriller
254 Pages
Release date: October 14, 2014

~~~~~

“Sharply written, with characters that readers will be happy to see again.” —Kirkus Reviews  

Blood Line is a high-voltage spy thriller that redefines rogue—the Granger Spy Novel series introduces a loving family with lethal issues caught in the crosshairs of global arms dealers. When a simple home invasion turns out to be not so simple, Ron Granger must put aside his quiet rural life and return to the Central Intelligence Agency. Aided by his brilliant wife, Valerie, and resourceful teen daughter, Leecy, Ron must quickly decide who to believe among the calculating opportunists, shrewd criminals, and power-hungry rival agencies racing to possess the technology that will change modern warfare forever. But when Leecy is kidnapped, Ron and Val must choose between the mission and a rescue. With time quickly running out, Ron only knows one thing: When you can’t trust anyone else, trust your family.

*****

Purchase Links for Blood Line

Amazon/Goodreads/B&N/Indie Bound/iBooks

 *****

BLOOD LINE - FOLLOW THE TOUR

Author John J. Davis will be making personal appearances at bookstores while the virtual book tour is in progress. If you live in the areas he'll be visiting and would like to meet him, here are the locations he will be at throughout October and November:

Thu Oct 23 – Charlotte NC 7:00pm – 8:30pm  

Charlotte NC Park Road Books - 4139 Park Road Charlotte, NC C 28209  

Wed Oct 29 – NYC 6:30pm – 8:30pm NYC Mysterious Bookshop - 58 Warren St, New York, NY 10007  

Fri Nov 7 – Chicago 12:00pm – 1:00pm Chicago - Barbara's Books Willis Tower - Willis Tower Chicago - Lower Level 233 S. Wacker Drive Chicago  

Nov 8 – Burr Ridge, IL 1:00pm – 2:00pm Chicago - Barbara's Books Burr Ridge - 810 Village Center Dr, Illinois and Michigan Canal, Burr Ridge, IL 60527

Follow the Virtual Tour Here

Oct 13 Like a Bump on a Blog Special spotlight post to kick-off the tour

Oct 13 Author J. Scott Sharp Spotlight

Oct 14 B.C Brown's Books...Weird is Good Spotlight & guest post

Oct 15 Book Bunny PR Review and more

Oct 16 Book Bunny PR Review and more

Oct 16 Monica Pulliam Spotlight & Excerpt

Oct 17 Write as Raine Spotlight & Playlist

Oct 20 Getta Got to Have Its Review & Exerpt

Oct 21 Ciara Ballintyne Spotlight

Oct 22 Terri's Little Haven Review

Oct 23 Rebecca Campbell Books

Oct 24 Megan's Blog Spotlight

Oct 27 Let Books Bee Review and guest post

Oct 28 Becca Hamilton Books Spotlight/Exerpt

Oct 29 Rainy of the Dark Spotlight


Oct 31 Contest Patti Spotlight

Nov 3rd McClellan Books Spotlight & Excerpt

Nov 3 Skye Skye Review

Nov 4 Like a Bump on a Blog Review & Special spy feature

Nov 4 Desafio in the City Spotlight/Excerpt

Nov 5 Cia Says Excerpt & guest post


*****

BLOOD LINE - ABOUT THE AUTHOR
JohnJDavis-Photo copy (2)

 John J. Davis is the author of the Granger Spy Novel series, including Blood Line and the soon to be published sequel, Bloody Truth, available Spring 2015. Davis grew up in the Southeastern US and after university traveled extensively in North America during his career as a regional sales rep and independent broker for leaders in the transportation, shipping and pharma industries. His years sitting in lobbies and airports honed his skill for human observation and fed his talent for writing fast-paced, character-driven stories. His inspiration for the Granger family-of-spies comes from the people he has known and his family roots in the Carolinas–the extraordinarily strong and gentle women and men, whose lives are defined by the love, trust and respect for family. Currently at work on the third Granger Spy Novel and a screenplay, Davis lives near Atlanta with his wife, daughter and two dogs.

BLOOD LINE - SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS

Website/Twitter/Facebook/Goodreads

 

BLOOD LINE - GIVEAWAY
 
Good luck and happy winning!
Tour hosted by
HGM

Friday 17 October 2014

Giveaway - WIN 2 Epic Fantasy Books and $20 Amazon Gift Card

The release date for Stalking the Demon is coming up fast, and I need your help to spread the word!

To reward those of you who can help me out, I'm running a giveaway to give you the opportunity to win a $20 Amazon gift card, as well as free ebook versions of both books in The Seven Circles of Hell series.*

All you have to do is:

  • Sign-up to my Thunderclap campaign to spread the word on Stalking the Demon's release date (by Facebook or Twitter); or
  • Sign up to read Stalking the Demon and provide a review (everyone who does this will get a free copy of Stalking the Demon to review as well as the chance to win Confronting the Demon and the gift card).
Or, do both and get two entries!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

* In the interests of full disclosure, it is possible to obtain free copies of both Confronting the Demon and Stalking the Demon by other means - however I have included them in the giveaway as not all entrants may wish to use those means.

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