Teaser Tuesday - Anniversary Style

Fan-made graphic - Thank you, Rebecca!

Today is my birthday! It's also the 3 year anniversary since publishing my very first book, Promise (the 1.0 edition). At that time, it was a let's-give-it-our-all-and-see-what-happens kind of thing. We really had no idea where things would go from there. I had my dreams, but I was also realistic. If I only wrote for myself and friends and family, I was okay with that.


I surely didn't know we'd be re-releasing Promise and Purpose a year later and that they would take off on the bestsellers lists. I also didn't know that I'd have five more titles out (with another on its way) plus four audiobooks by this time. Or that I'd have so many readers in the UK that I'd do a signing tour there! Or that I'd have over a half-million downloads of my books and over a quarter-million copies sold! That just BLOWS. MY. MIND. And it's all because of YOU - readers, writers, bloggers, friends and family!

THANK YOU A HALF-MILLION TIMES OVER!!!!

(and then some)

So today I not only celebrate my birthday, but I also celebrate the anniversary of making my dreams come true. I can't wait to see what this next year holds! Oh, and it's come to my attention that I've announced the release date of Wrath everywhere except here on the blog. OOOPS! How did that happen???

Wrath releases AUGUST 16TH!!!!

Another awesome fan-made graphic by
the lovely Julie!

And if you use iBooks, you can even pre-order it:

iBooks US: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/wrath/id674202317

iBooks UK: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/book/wrath/id674202317

Besides my birthday and publishing anniversary, today is also the wedding anniversary of Alexis and Tristan! Yes, it was all kind of planned out that way. *grin*

Thank you, Jessie, for this beautiful image!

So here's a little teaser from Wrath that seems appropriate for the day:

“It’s a full moon and you brought me to the woods?” I asked Tristan. “Do you think this is a good idea?”

He gave me a wicked smirk as he swaggered toward me. His hands grasped my waist and pulled me toward him to close the remaining distance between us.

He leaned over and nibbled on my ear lobe before whispering, “A little danger could add to the fun.”

And I must have needed him badly—worse than I realized—because my body immediately began throbbing with an ache for him.

He pulled back and began undressing himself, his beautiful hazel eyes never leaving my face. He pulled off his boots and then his pants and stood in front of me in all of his glorious nakedness. Oh, my. How was I so lucky? After giving me a nice eyeful, he turned and strode toward the stream, the muscles of his round, too-perfect-to-be-real butt moving in a way that made my throat dry. I couldn’t help but imagine biting it.

“Are you coming?” he asked me as he stepped into the water.

Sheesh. One touch from him and I would be.

Cover Reveal - THE SINGING RIVER by R.K. Ryals

Author friend R.K. Ryals has a new release coming soon and today we get to see the beautiful cover! Another gorgeous one by Regina Wamba at Mae I Design and Photography (who did the cover for The Space Between). Without further ado...

NA Contemporary

By R.K. Ryals

Synopsis:

In Mississippi, there's a legend about a Singing River, a tragic love story that ended with an entire Indian tribe singing a death chant as they marched stoically into the Pascagoula River to die ...

At eighteen, Haven Ambrose isn't just a high school graduate. In her head, she's an aspiring writer, a traveler, a chef, a slayer of injustice, an astronomer, an archaeologist, and the love child of a famous, rich musician. But reality is harsher. Reality is overdue bills, a crumbling trailer, an absent father, an old addiction, and a hot, crushing summer that may end in disappointment.

For twenty year-old River Brayden, life seems good, but appearances can be deceiving. The oldest son of a wealthy family, he has finished his first year at Harvard to return home for the summer only to discover his younger brother headed down an unforgiving road.

They will be drawn together by a song. For during the late summer, they say the Pascagoula death chant can still be heard near the Singing River. Its call is haunting, its chant a testament of love and sacrifice. It calls to some ... beckoning.

Add The Singing River To Your TBR List on Goodreads - http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18132842-the-singing-river

Excerpt:

I stepped toward her. “You have a way of making people relate to you.”

She snorted. “I doubt that.”

I was in front of her now, my face peering down into hers. “Really, you do. A few hours of knowing you feels like days.”

“Sounds tiresome,” she teased.

“It’s a gift,” I countered.

There were sudden lines in her forehead, a troubled look in her eye. “Some might call it a curse,” she murmured. “By the end of this trip, you’ll want me gone.”

It was my turn to frown, my gaze studying her face. She had green eyes so dark they could be mistaken for brown and lashes so long they almost touched her brows. True, she was more willowy than curvy, but she was beautiful in an understated, elegant kind of way. The faint freckles on the bridge of her nose drove me crazy.

“Why do you think that?” I asked.

There was something stark and open about her eyes when she answered, “Because I am better at being abandoned than I am at keeping people.”

About The Author:

R. K. Ryals is a scatterbrained mother of three whose passion is reading whatever she can get her hands on. She makes her home in Mississippi with her husband, three daughters, a Shitzsu named Tinkerbell, and a coffeepot she couldn't live without.

Stalker Links:

Website - http://rkryals.com/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/RKRyals

Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/R.K.-Ryals

Twitter - https://twitter.com/RKRyals

Goodreads - http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5265741.R_K_Ryals

99c Sale, Top 100 & Paying It Forward

The Space Between is on sale for less than a buck! We've been running a special promo this week to finally get this book on the bestsellers lists. And it's working! So far, The Space Between has already broken the B&N Top 100 list, something none of my books have been able to do until now. So yay! Thank you so much to all of you, my readers, for helping to make this happen! You guys really are the BEST!

To show you my appreciation, I'm paying it forward with a donation and a giveaway:

1. I'll be donating $200 to The National Domestic Violence Hotline, a cause near and dear to my heart.

2. I'll be giving away a $25 gift card to B&N.

I'd really love to see this book break the Amazon Top 100, as well. Promise did this in October 2011, but it's become harder and harder to get there again. With your help, though, I know we can do it. If The Space Between hits both the B&N Top 100 AND the Amazon Top 100, this is how I'll pay it forward:

1. Donate $500 to The Hotline.

2. Give away an iPad Mini! (Because you can get ALL the ereader apps on an iPad.)

What do you do to enter? Simply share the word about The Space Between sale and fill out the Rafflecopter below. There is initially one prize of a $25 gift card to B&N, but if The Space Between meets our goal of the Amazon Top 100, there will be BOTH prizes.

The Space Between

New Adult Paranormal Romance by bestselling author Kristie Cook ** Mature Content ** Recommended for ages 16+ due to sexual situations and language

First installment of the Book of Phoenix series. Consistently rated in the top 25 New Adult & College Romance books on Amazon.com!

When Life Falls to Pieces, Answers Lie in the Space Between

Leni Drago can't make a smart decision on her own, according to her mother anyway--the few times she's tried resulted in disaster. When her uncle sends her on a dance tour in Italy to find her real self, she returns to an empty home and any evidence of his existence wiped out. Then things get even stranger, like the mysterious appearances of Jeric Winters--inked, pierced and a hit-'em-and-quit-'em type. He's one decision that should be easy for Leni. Or is he?

Jeric doesn't do girlfriends. Unless they're someone else's. He left the fighting cage and modeling for a reason, and girls who want more than a night of fun are distractions he doesn't need. Especially when they come with as much baggage as Leni carries. But he can't shake the gut feeling that he needs to know her. All of her.

To discover the truth behind their connection and their ties to a journal from 1989, they must face painful secrets from their pasts. And they must do so quickly because their own existences are falling to pieces.

This first part of The Book of Phoenix takes you on a heart-wrenching ride as you discover the answers that lie in The Space Between.

Buy links:

http://www.amazon.com/Space-Between-Book-Phoenix-ebook/dp/B00C3OQO2O/

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-space-between-kristie-cook/1114959553

http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/The-Space-Between/book-DvZWUyXtBk2zKiiaU6X4ag/page1.html

https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-space-between/id628066630?mt=11


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal (& Giveaway!) - Creatura by Nely Cab

My author friend Nely Cab is re-releasing Creatura and it has a gorgeous new cover! Are you ready to see it? Be sure to enter the giveaway below, too!

COMING AUGUST 6, 2013

• Title: Creatura
• Author: Nely Cab
• Paperback: 346 pages
• Publisher: Nely Cab
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1489589554
• ISBN-13: 978-1489589552
• This Title is Available for Pre-order on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Creatura-Nely-Cab/dp/1489589554/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1373941055&sr=8-3&keywords=CREATURA+NELY+CAB

Isis can control her dreams. Or she could—until recently. The creature in her nightmares has been haunting her for months. As if being dumped wasn’t bad enough, now she dreads going to sleep. She decides to confront the creature and win back some of her peace; only, she finds that he’s not a monster and he’s not a dream.

A sacrifice for love, a shocking discovery and a jealous ex-boyfriend blur the lines between reality and dreams, making it hard to tell who the real monsters are.

Who would’ve known…that sometimes love is lethal?

AUTHOR BIO:

Nely Cab was born on December 9, 1974, in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico. She has lived and resided in South Texas most of her life. In 2001, the author relocated to Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico, where she dedicated time to the study of culinary arts and the art of oil painting.

After her return to the U.S., she resumed her employment in banking and in the following year transitioned to the field of Social Work. Later, Nely took up writing as a hobby and produced her first novel entitled "Creatura".

Last year, the rights to "Creatura" were sold to a leading Young Adult publisher in a foreign country, where it has just recently been released.

Today, Nely Cab writes from the comfort of her home in South Texas, where she lives with her husband and son. Currently, Nely is working on the second installment in her debut series "Creatura".

LINKS

Website:                     www.nelycab.com

FB Book Page:            www.facebook.com/Creatura.by.NelyCab

FB Author Page:        www.facebook.com/NelyCab

Twitter:                      www.twitter.com/nelycab

Goodreads:                 www.goodreads.com/nelycab

Blog:                            www.nelycab.blogspot.com

Google+:                     https://plus.google.com/115804598442656662617/posts

Amazon Page:           

http://www.amazon.com/Nely-Cab/e/B0056QMZKQ/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1369523349&sr=8-1

Enter to win a signed ARC and more!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Teaser Tuesday - WRATH

Wrath, Soul Savers Book 5, is getting closer and closer to being ready for your eyeballs! I seriously can't wait for you to read it ... and I can't wait to be done with it. It's the hardest book I've had to write yet, and I want it to be as epic as everyone is hoping for. *grin* I think I'll be able to give a release date - along with some other news - soon.

For now, how about a tease?

*****SPOILER ALERT!!!!*****

If you haven't finished Power, DO NOT READ THIS. You've been warned.

“Do I need to remind you of your priorities?” Mom asked, her voice curt.

I closed my eyes. “We’re putting our team together and getting the colony settled. We’ll be taking off by tonight, I hope.”

“And where do you plan on going?” Mom asked.

“Um . . . north?” Maybe if she gave her blessing, Charlotte wouldn’t insist on going south.

“Why would you do that?” she asked, although I could tell she already knew the answer. She’d obviously been keeping her sense of truth focused on my actions. But how could she be so cold-hearted? “Alexis, there are people who need you—”

“Dorian needs me.”

“Honey, there are thousands of people’s lives on the line. Their souls are at risk if you don’t do what you’re meant to do.”

“How could I forget? Nobody will let me. But I won’t abandon Dorian. I won’t let this go.”

“I understand. I lived with that fear throughout your childhood. But you have a duty.”

“Why can’t someone else do it? What did you do before me?”

“Everyone else who can convert is already out there. Except you. And now Char.”

I sighed as guilt poked me in the side. “I just need a little time, Mom. Let me go after Dorian, get him back, and then I’ll do whatever the Amadis want me to do.”

“I really wish I could, honey. Believe me. But these are your people. They look up to you. They need to see that you can lead. That you will do what needs to be done for them and all we stand for. A waver like this from our primary creed will create a lot of distrust that you may never be able to rebuild.”

“And abandoning my own son won’t? How can they trust me to stay true to them if I can’t do so for my own child?”

“You know how they feel about Dorian. About any Amadis son. And choosing one soul over all others—especially one that we know has no hope in the end—”

My temper flared. “There is always hope! And I won’t give up on him, Mom. I can’t believe you and Rina gave up on Noah so easily. He was her son. Your twin. How could you?”

Teaser Tuesday - WRATH

Are you ready for a tease from Wrath, Book 5 in the Soul Savers Series? Yeah, I thought so. *snicker* Before you ask, though, I think we have an "official" release date, but I can't share it yet. Stay tuned. It won't be too long from now, I promise.

So, that's your tease.

Haha! Just kidding! Here's a bit from Wrath

(****SPOILER ALERT!!!**** If you haven't finished Power, DO NOT READ THIS.)

He was gone. Really gone.

My little boy, my baby, the light of my life. Gone.

No matter how hard I tried, how far I pushed the boundaries of my mind to feel across the sea of mind signatures, I couldn’t find his. Of course I couldn’t. But I knew where I could.

My fingers curled into Sasha’s white and gray striped fur, trying to soothe her though I had no soothing vibes within me. I sat on my knees in the bedroom part of the safe house suite where I had left Dorian, where I thought he’d be safe when I couldn’t be there to protect him myself. The lykora’s head lay in my lap, her silver blood staining the blue-and-cream Oriental rug around her and coagulating on her back where one of her wings had been severed. Who could be so cruel? Stupid question. I knew that answer, too. Heavy arms hung over my shoulders, arms that usually gave me comfort but now trembled with sobs.

“Can you heal her?” I asked, my voice sounding rough and distant. When I received no answer, I asked again, each word discrete and deliberate. “Tristan, can you heal her?”

He lifted his head from my shoulder, but Blossom answered first.

“She’s an Angelic being, Alexis,” she said from behind me. “She’ll heal on her own.”

“Good,” I said. I picked up my dagger, wiped her blood off of it and onto my leather pants, put it back where it belonged on my hip and flashed.

Tampa. Gainesville. Tallahassee. Rural Alabama and Mississippi. From here, I followed the path Vanessa and I had taken only two days before, barely seeing the landscape of each place before flashing to the next one. Tristan finally caught up to me outside of Kansas City.

He wrapped his arms around me and held me tight against his chest, preventing me from flashing again.

“Where are you going?” he asked, his lovely voice distorted with the two primary emotions roiling within me—anger and grief. Mostly anger. The kind that didn’t dissipate but built with each passing moment.

“To Hades,” I answered flatly.

“Alone?”

“Unless you’re coming with me, yes.”

“Alexis, we can’t just waltz into Hades—”

“Not waltz. Storm.” The raging storm that was building inside me.

“Still. We can’t—”

“I guess that’s your answer then.” I pushed a spark of electricity into him and used the moment of surprise to flip my way out of his hold. Then I flashed.

Again and again.

But my power was waning. After flashing my way halfway across the world already once in the last two days, fighting my way out of Hades and escaping Lucas the sperm donor, I hadn’t been able to truly regenerate. I had to pause longer between each flash, but each time I did, I envisioned what I would do when I got to Hades. The throats I would slash. The Demons I would fry to a crisp. Lucas’s life I would take, but only after slicing the smirk off his face and carving his eyeballs out with my silver dagger and stuffing them into his lipless mouth.

The thoughts should have terrified me, but they only pushed me on.