Excerpt, Giveaway and something more First Kiss (Confessions of a 16-Year-Old Virgin Lips #1)

Description:

VL. Virgin Lips. You may not have heard of it, but where I live, it's a thing with a card, even if it is a figurative card. I was Brooklyn Hamlin, certified virgin lips, and I planned on clinging to that figurative card with all I had--while dating as many of the hottest guys at school as I could.

Maybe that's a bit strange. I mean, what teenage girl isn't interested in kissing? Locking lips definitely interested me, but the drama that came with it didn't. No kissing, no drama. Simple.

But on my sixteenth birthday, on my first real date even, the drama found me. His name was Luke Graham--cute, funny, and bad news for the whole female race.

EXCERPT

We all laughed and ran outside and stormed the hot tub. 

After the obligatory splashing and dunking settled down, Parker jutted his chin at me and teased. “You’re sixteen now, Brooklyn, the question is, are you still in the VL club?” 

A strange silence fell over the group. I guess they really wanted to hear my response. I paused just long enough to give the answer away. I looked up, noticing a few stars speckled the skyline. 

“Oooh,” Mike said. “’nough said. Well, my dear, your pain will now be over.” He moved toward me, lips puckered, eye brows waggling. I turned my head before he could make contact. My whole body was on fire. 

Ali and Katherine, my two red-headed friends, pushed him back. “Down boy. Unlike you, she wants her first kiss to be special, meaningful, and with someone she wants to kiss. So, back off.” Ali could be forceful when she wanted to be. I loved and hated that about her. 

He whimpered like a wounded dog as he sat back in his spot. 

“Buurrrn!” Mike yelled. 

“Burn, baby, burn,” Parker sang.

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About the author:

Cindy M. Hogan graduated with a secondary education teaching degree and enjoys spending time with unpredictable teenagers. More than anything she loves the time she has with her own teenage daughters and wishes she could freeze them at this fun age. If she's not reading or writing, you'll find her snuggled up with the love of her life watching a great movie or planning their next party. She loves to bake, garden and be outdoors doing a myriad of activities. 

I love reading, of course, but I also love stuff you do outside like gardening, swimming, walking, hiking and biking.Most of all, I love to plan parties. Halloween is my favorite holiday and I wish I could dress up as someone new every day.

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How do you plan out your books?

When I come up with a new story idea, I usually know the beginning and the end- that's it. I don't outline my stories, I just write what comes to me during a short brainstorming session each day. 

How do you make your scenes so real? 

I always go and visit the places that my books are set. Last year I went to Belgium and took copious notes and a million pictures before writing Created. I also visited Washington, DC, Helena, Montana, and Niceville, Florida before writing Watched and Protected. This year I traveled to New York and France for the two books I'm working on right now.

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Cover Reveal Embracing Death (Death Trilogy #2) by D.T. Dyllin

Expected publication: December 12, 2013 

Description:

All of Samantha Bevan’s memories have been returned to her. But instead of bringing her peace, they’ve only brought her more turmoil. She now recalls the dark addiction to feeling other people’s deaths and every day is a struggle to control her urges. At least she has Austin to help her… or does she? Samantha will discover that even with her memories, she doesn’t know the truth of her past, and those secrets may prove detrimental to her and everyone she loves. Will she be able to unravel the mystery of who’s been pulling her strings before it’s too late? Or will Austin be the one to suffer from her mistakes?

Book #1

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Samantha Bevans is having the best sex of her life—but it's not with her husband. Fortunately for her marriage, the affair is all in her mind. Isn't it? As an empath, she senses other people's emotions. But her connection to the man with the the chiseled face and haunting eyes seems so real.

There's no time for fantasies with a serial killer loose in Pittsburgh. The killer is targeting dancers at a strip club where Samantha used to bartend, back when drugs were the only cure for the torment of her abilities. As a member of a special task force, Samantha uses her talents to sense the victims’ final thoughts. Just when she thought the case was complex enough, she discovers one of the victims was thinking about her fantasy man when she died.

Who can Samantha trust when she can’t trust her own mind? An empath feels the emotional environment around her…and Samantha is surrounded by death.

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About the author:

Cynical-Optimist. Chocolate-holic. Sarcasm Addict. Paranormal Believer. Self-Imposed Insomniac. Sci-Fi Geek. Animal Lover. Writer…are just a few words to describe D.T. Dyllin. She was born and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and now lives in Nashville, Tennessee with her husband and two very spoiled GSDs. 

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Cover Reveal Brightly (Flicker, #2) by Kaye Thornbrugh

Publication Date- Fall 2013

Description:

After escaping the faeries that held her prisoner in Otherworld, Lee Capren has made a new life for herself. When she’s not slinging spells with her monster-wrangling roommate, Filo, or honing her newfound magical abilities with her boyfriend, Nasser, she’s working in a shop that caters to Bridgestone City’s magical crowd. It’s not exactly a normal life… but it’s hers.

Everything changes when three strangers arrive with a desperate plea for help and a connection to Filo’s cruel former masters. Lee and her friends are soon swept up in the strangers’ quest to break a curse that plagues their island home.

Unraveling the secret of the curse will take them from an island where merfolk swim in the coves to a hidden city beneath the streets of Seattle and beyond. As the danger grows, relationships are tested, new ones are forged, and in the face of impossible choices, Lee learns the hardest lesson of all: Where there is love, there is also heartbreak.

With time running out and lives on the line, it becomes clear that failure could cost their lives—and success could cost them everything else.

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When sixteen-year-old Lee Capren is spirited away to Faerie, she is forced to serve capricious faeries as a prized portrait artist… and live as their prisoner.

A chance encounter with the charming Nasser grants Lee a chance for freedom—but what felt like mere days in Faerie spanned years in the human world, and Lee no longer has a home to return to.

Nasser is a Seer—a human with magical powers—and Lee is quickly plunged into his world: a sprawling city teeming with magic and mystery, where supernatural creatures walk hidden among humans. With the help of a rag-tag group of teenage Seers, Lee must master her newfound magical talent and outwit a cunning faerie determined to destroy her.

About the author

Kaye Thornbrugh is the author of the FLICKER, a young adult urban fantasy and Amazon bestseller. Her second novel, BRIGHTLY, will be published in 2013.

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Cover Reveal Forty Nights (Neima's Ark #2) by Stephanie Parent

Release Date: September 2013

Cover Designed by: Najla Qamber Designs

Description:

Neima, her family, and her grandfather Noah have found themselves trapped aboard an ark as a great flood destroys all life in the world. As their time aboard the ark lengthens, food begins to run out, wild animals grow restless, and family tensions become as much of a threat as the flood outside. In the second and final installment of Neima’s Ark, the stakes are higher, the conflicts are greater, and Neima finds herself facing a choice as impossible as the destruction all around her.

Forty Nights is a continuation of the story begun in Forty Days, and it’s recommended that you read Forty Days first for the best experience. Forty Nights does, however, contain a character guide to refresh readers’ memories. The Neima’s Ark series is a historical, feminist reimagining of the story of Noah’s Ark rather than a religiously oriented one, and the novels are best suited for readers who are comfortable with new interpretations of biblical stories.

Book #1

The entire village knows Neima’s grandfather is a madman. For years the old man has prophesied that a great flood is coming, a flood disastrous enough to blot out the entire earth. He’s even built an enormous ark that he claims will allow his family to survive the deluge. But no one believes the ravings of a lunatic…

…until the rain starts. And doesn’t stop. Soon sixteen-year-old Neima finds her entire world transformed, her life and those of the people she loves in peril. Trapped on the ark with her grandfather Noah, the rest of her family, and a noisy, filthy, and hungry assortment of wild animals, will Neima find a way to survive?

With lions, tigers, and bears oh my, elephants and flamingos too, along with rivalries and betrayals, a mysterious stowaway, and perhaps even an unexpected romance, FORTY DAYS is not your grandfather’s Noah’s Ark story.

FORTY DAYS is approximately 45000 words, the length of a shorter novel, and is the first installment in a two-part epic story. It does contain a cliffhanger ending.

Readers looking for a traditional, religiously oriented version of the Noah’s Ark story should be warned that FORTY DAYS may not appeal to them. The novel will, however, appeal to lovers of apocalyptic fiction, historical fiction, and romance, as well as anyone who’s ever dreamed of having a baby elephant as a pet.

Forty Days is currently FREE! Get your copy!

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About the author

Stephanie Parent is a graduate of the Master of Professional Writing program at USC and attended the Baltimore School for the Arts as a piano major. She moved to Los Angeles because of Francesca Lia Block's WEETZIE BAT books, which might give you some idea of how much books mean to her. She also loves dogs, books about dogs, and sugary coffee drinks both hot and cold.

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Cover Reveal and Giveaway Liar, Liar (BFFs #1) by Dawn Pendleton

Release day: September 17th, 2013

Description:

Hazel is a freshman at Coastal Carolina and looking forward to making new friends. When she meets Roman, she’s head over heels for him. There’s one problem, though: he’s still hung up on Hazel’s roommate, Cheyanne. But Cheyanne has a secret, one that has the potential to ruin her life in college. When Hazel learns the secret, she’s determined to use it against Cheyanne to win over Roman. She never imagines her plan could backfire, leaving her as a pariah among her new circle of friends.

The BFF series follows the lives of new adults, Hazel, Miranda, Cheyanne, Destiny, Audric, Nolan, Andre, and Roman. Follow their stories as the first season of novellas are released once a week from September to March.

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Excerpt and Giveaway Fable (An Unfortunate Fairy Tale #3) by Chanda Hahn

Published August 27th, 2013

Description:

All that glitters is not gold.

When something precious is stolen from sixteen-year-old Mina Grime, she will do anything in her power to get it back, even if it means traveling to the dangerous Fae plane and battling one of the strongest fairy-tale villains yet.

However, nothing can prepare Mina for the dangerous obstacles she will face in the Fae world, or the choices she must make when love and life are on the line.

"Riveting! Fable is a wild adventure that sucks you in and doesn’t let go until the very last word. Mina Grimm is a pleasure. Buckle up—this isn’t your average fairy tale." - Addison Moore New York Times Bestseller 

"An exciting continuation of The Unfortunate Fairytale series, FABLE catapults us further into mystical lands of action, adventure and the fantastical. Mina is a spunky, courageous heroine you'll be rooting for until the dramatic ending." -Elle Strauss, author of the bestselling Clockwise Series

EXCERPT

  

Mina stopped and parted the long weeping willow’s branches, and could see the rose resting against Jared’s black boot. Wait…not Jared—Teague.

Teague reached down to pick up the rose and brought it to his nose to breathe in its scent. His hair was a lighter shade of brown than Jared’s, and his eyes were a deep blue, while Jared’s were a haunting gray. They both had similar angular jaws and drop-deadgorgeous looks. Teague once again was dressed in black, and Mina had a mind to joke about whether he was going to a funeral, but he was, so the words died on her lips before she even spoke them.

Instead, she glared at him and held out her hand, demanding the rose without saying a word.

Teague’s eyes widened and looked her over, never once dropping his Cheshire Cat smile. “I only came to pay my respects.”

“What respect? You don’t respect me or my family.

Otherwise, your kind never would have cursed us.”

“You’re wrong—it’s always wise to respect your enemies.”

“Well, I don’t respect you.”

“You should, Mina. Do you see what happens when you ignore your duty—when you ignore me?” He pointed to Charlie’s grave, and his voice became threatening. “I don’t like to be

ignored, and now you have one less distraction in your life, so you can focus more of your time on me.”

Teague’s words confirmed her worst fears. Her actions had led Teague to strike out against her family and kill her brother. Her stomach dropped, bile rose in her throat, and every inch of her was sick with the guilt his words layered on her. It was her fault, and she knew it. But she couldn’t show him how weak she was, and how much his words had affected her. She had one more person to protect: her mother, and she would not be negligent again.

“You’re not welcome here. So please leave.” Mina snatched the rose out of Teague’s hand and felt a sting in her palm. She winced in pain but refused to acknowledge it.

Teague reached for her hand, and Mina let him open up her palm to inspect her wound from the thorn. She was still reeling, and her whole body shook with anger. Teague leaned forward and blew on the small cut in her palm, and it healed itself. She ripped her hand from his grasp and took two steps away from him, almost falling on the ground. She needed to keep better control of herself.

She needed Jared.

“How is my dear brother?” he asked, as if reading her mind.

“Why don’t you ask him yourself?”

His eyes darkened. “We are not exactly on speaking terms.”

“It wouldn’t have anything to do with the fact that you keep trying to kill me, would it?”

“Now, sweet Mina, our fight goes back long before you were born. But you can’t hold it against me that I’m only doing my job.

I’m supposed to throw quests your way, and you are supposed to try to stop me. It’s as simple as that. I can’t help it if we have a casualty or so in the process. That’s what makes the stories so

good.” He smirked. “That’s what makes them popular. That’s what makes me powerful.” He was so close to her now that he ran the back of his finger across her cheek, and she flinched and

smacked it away.

“I see that you are as disgusting as ever.”

“I see that you’re getting your fight back. You know, Mina, out of all the Grimms over the years who died at the hands of my fables, you are by far my favorite to toy with. I wonder why that is?” he asked, appearing to ponder the question.

“Maybe because you picked the wrong girl to mess with.”

“I don’t think so. I’ve finally found the perfect Grimm. I think you will be the most challenging. Which means your ending, the tale that finishes you off, will make us both famous.”

Mina’s lip trembled, and she steeled herself to not show fear.

She stood her ground and looked Teague right in the eye. “A thousand sweet words can never disguise the rattle of a viper about to strike. I will not drop my guard ever again. And I will end this curse…by doing whatever…or killing whoever…I have to.” Teague’s face turned furious, and his lips pressed into an angry thin line.

“Then be prepared, my dear Mina, for you won’t be able to ignore this next tale. I’ve made sure of that.” He stepped away from her. A crack of thunder rattled the earth and she jumped, turning in surprise. A second later, pouring rain followed, soaking everyone within minutes. Mina turned back toward Teague, but he was gone.

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About the author:

Pronunciation: Sh-and-uh H-ah-n

Chanda is the author of the popular YA Unfortunate Fairy Tale Series which includes UnEnchanted and Fairest. Both books have topped the ebook charts in 5 countries. She also pens YA epic Fantasy.

She was born in Seattle, Washington, raised in Nebraska, has lived in MN, IL and currently lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband and twin children. She's a former children's librarian and children's pastor. Currently she spends her free time penning new novels and a daytime taxi driver for her kids.

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What made you want to write about the Brothers Grimm?

I liked the idea of them being collectors of stories. What made them travel and gather all of the different tales? What was their motivation for doing that? So I decided to create my own spin on it.

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Guest Post and Giveaway Once Upon A Wallflower by Wendy Lyn Watson

Published August 12th, 2013

Description:

A Perennial Wallflower…

When Mira Fitzhenry’s guardian arranges her engagement to one of the most scandalous, yet devastatingly handsome lords to ever grace the peerage, all of society is abuzz. After all, the man has left a trio of dead young women in his wake, including his first fiancée. 

A Gothic Villain…

Expecting to scare the chit away within five minutes of meeting him, scarred and brooding Nicholas, the Viscount Ashfield, is intrigued by the unfashionably lovely Mira, but his family’s dark secret means he must fight his attractions. No matter what his heart wants.

As the wedding approaches, Nicholas and Mira grow ever closer, yet so does the very real danger. Will the truth bring Nicholas and Mira together or tear their love apart?

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History’s Mysteries

(MB's topic)

My writing repertoire includes a fair number of contemporary stories (cozy mysteries and chick lit mysteries), but historical romantic mysteries will always hold a special place in my heart. Specifically, I like to set my romances—with their elements of mystery—during the Regency or late Georgian period.

Why write historical romance? There are a number of reasons. First and foremost, I love the romantic patina the Regency period has developed over the years. When I write contemporary novels, I feel an obligation to present the world my characters inhabit the way it really is . . . hard edges, frank language, and gritty details included. Historical settings, especially Regency England, provide an author with more idealized surroundings in which to let romance bloom. 

From my research, I know that the Regency period was every bit as hard and gritty as our time. Drinking to dissipation was common, many people lived in extreme poverty, the London was filthy, and sex was fraught with all the contemporary pitfalls (unexpected pregnancies, STDs, broken hearts). Like most authors, when I write historical romance I tend to gloss over all those hard realities. I can live in the roses and romance world of Jane Austen, and my readers can escape with me to a world made gentler by the passage of time.

For me, the historical setting provides an added benefit. I include elements of mystery in everything I write. Mysteries set in the Regency period are solved through interrogation and reasoning. There were no cell phone records, money trails, fingerprint and fiber analysis, or typing of blood. Indeed, in most communities there wasn’t any formal law enforcement institution at all. It’s freeing to write a mystery that is solved solely through logical deduction and intuition. In fact, in Once Upon a Wallflower, one source of internal conflict for the heroine is that logic points in one direction and intuition points in another, and she must choose between the two.

I love the blend of mystery and romance, and I strongly believe that the two together can create the most emotionally engaging and intellectually provocative stories. Historical settings (especially Regency England) make the romance more romantic and the mystery more mysterious. I enjoy writing contemporary romantic mysteries, too, but historical settings will always be my favorite.

Thank you, Mrs Wendy Lyn Watson

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About the author:

Wendy Lyn Watson writes mysteries of all types: contemporary, historical, and cozy. Whatever the time or the tone, her mysteries always feature a dose of humor and a dollop of romance. Her first cozy series, the Mysteries a la Mode, feature the owner of an ice cream parlor in a small Texas town.

Once Upon a Wallflower, due to be released in August of 2013, is a Regency-set romantic mystery. While Wendy does not commit (or solve) mysteries in real life, she can kill a pint of ice cream in nothing flat. She also enjoys 80s music, Asian horror films, quilting, and vegetarian cooking.

While she was born in Ohio and has called half a dozen states home, she currently lives in a college town in North Texas along with her husband and their three cats (Iphy, Squeak-a-Doodle, and Todd Baryshnikov).

She loves to hear from readers, so find her on:

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Excerpt and Giveaway Wail of the Banshees (Ghost Wars Saga #1) by Robert Poulin

Published June 18th, 2013

Description:

My name is Veronika Kane and dying, dying was just the beginning.

How was I supposed to know that getting smashed on my 21st birthday would lead me to becoming the 9th victim of a serial killer that's been stalking Philadelphia's streets for months? Now I'm a ghost and unlife is pretty scary. Reapers, wraiths, ghouls, gargoyles: all of the monsters that I thought were storybook characters are real! On top of it all, the powers that be in the ghost world want to enslave me and use me in their own diabolical plot to manipulate the people of the living world. Too bad I didn't turn out to be the kind of ghost they wanted me to be, and I'm not about to let them turn me into one of their puppets. These ghosts are responsible for my murder and the murders of eight other women. 

A rebellion is coming, and the ghosts that run this place are about to find out just how big a mistake they made when they had me killed. 

My name is Veronika Kane and being murdered isn't the end of my story. 

Wail of the Banshees is an Urban Fantasy Novel and the first book in the exciting Ghost Wars saga which features paranormal horror and action set in living Philadelphia and the ghostly world of Limbo.

EXCERPT

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A half hour passed before I saw the flashing lights of a slowly moving patrol car. An officer was moving along the sidewalk peering into the dark alleyways of the street while his partner trailed in their squad car. After a few more minutes of search- ing, a beam of light swept over my still body. The young cop let out a cry of discovery and ran forward drawing his pistol while calling out to his partner. Philadelphia’s finest had found me; unfortunately they were too late.

My name is Veronika Kane and I guess I’m a ghost now. Today, or I should say yesterday, was my twenty first birthday.

I’d gone out with some of my friends from the University of Pennsylvania to celebrate my now legal drinking age. We’d par- tied late into the night, getting smashed and having fun doing it. As the night wore on, friends left and new ones arrived, but in the end I was the last to say goodnight to my favorite club: The Electric Factory in Center City. I rode the bus back to West City where my apartment was located, but rather than transfer to a second bus I decided to walk the remaining seven or eight blocks to my home. The fall evening was comfortably cool and I wanted to sober up a little before bed. This was only my second time getting drunk, and I wasn’t used to the dizzying feeling that came with it. My ears were buzzing like the crackling speakers before Motley Crew took the stage, and the earth wouldn’t stop moving even when I paused to catch my breath.

The attack came suddenly, without warning. I was grabbed from behind by powerful arms. One quickly wrapped around my neck while the other pinned my arms to my sides. The man was tall. I’m five-nine but he towered at least six to eight inches over me. He picked me up off the ground and whispered in my ear.

“Shhhh … be a good girl and be still,” his voice was gruff and he stank of onions and rotten meat.

Fear washed over me like a bucket of cold water being dumped over my head. My stomach lurched and sudden nausea threatened to make me puke. I tried to struggle, but the intense

fear that wracked my gut and the sickening vertigo that was overwhelming my senses conspired to make the attempt at resistance futile. I fought against the rising panic that threat- ened to engulf me and tried to calm myself through meditation exercises. It was the most difficult thing I’d ever done, but the years of grueling training in my dad’s dojo kicked in and I was able to calm myself enough to think past the terror that made it near impossible for me to breath without hyperventilating.

The man slung me over his shoulder and I promptly barfed all over his back. He growled in anger and disgust but didn’t flinch or put me down to clean himself off. He just started walking. He carried me several blocks until he turned into the dank alley that I now found myself in. Throwing up had made me feel a little better. The world wasn’t spinning anymore, but I still felt weak and sick. Once we reached the back of the narrow alley, he swung me back around to his front but didn’t put me down. Instead he maintained a tight hold on me with one powerful arm. I heard him fumbling around for something in his coat, and I instinctively knew that I had to get away now. This was probably the only chance I’d get; I slumped against him as if I’d fainted. Fear and hope warred over me and threatened to make me puke again as the man loosened his grip on me and began lowering me to the ground. As soon as my feet hit the dirt and garbage strewn pavement I shot my right elbow back and connected with his ribs. He let go of me in surprise, and I launched myself forward, running for the street. But I was still intoxicated, and he was quicker than me. He cried out in rage and caught me from behind before I could escape. I whirled around and tried to push him back with a front kick but he sidestepped my clumsy move, and I stumbled past him and fell into a pile of garbage. Desperation overwhelmed the hope that had filled me just a few moments ago. I scrambled ungracefully back to my feet and started run- ning. Laughter chased me and all hope died when I realized I was going the wrong way. The back of the alley was blocked off.

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About the author:

Robert Poulin was born and raised in the New England state of Connecticut. After spending his late teenage years in Boca Raton Florida, Robert moved to upstate New York where he lived with his uncle Wilbrod Poulin and attended the State University of New York at Plattsburgh. 

After earning a Bachelor's in Political Science and a Master's in Teaching, Robert went back to Florida where he taught Social Studies for a few years. After returning to Northern New York, Robert took a job with the North Country Center for Independence: a disability rights and advocacy organizations. 

Robert has worked for NCCI for thirteen years and is now the Executive Director. 

Wail of the Banshees is Robert's first novel; he has been a huge fan of fantasy and science fiction since second grade when he discovered The Hobbit. Urban fantasy in particular has become Robert's favored genre in the past decade. Robert has been legally blind since infancy, but thanks to a mom that encouraged independence, hard work, and a healthy dose of dreaming, the disability has mostly just been an inconvenience. Robert is currently in the editorial process with his second novel, Death Toll, and is writing Echoes of Madness the third novel in the Veronika Kane saga.

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