Rave Reviews Book Club Bethany Turner Pay It Forward Week Author Traci Saunders

A big welcome to Traci Saunders, today's Rave Reviews Book Club Bethany Turner Pay It Forward Week Author.

Let's find out a bit about Traci - in her own words:

Author and mother of three, Traci Sanders has been composing poetry, songs, and children’s stories since the young age of ten. In 2003, she opened her home to young children in her community offering “beyond the basics” teachings. In 2008, she was recognized by the Child Care Resource and Referral Agency as Family Childcare Provider of the Year and was featured in two local newspapers.
In 2010, she furthered her education by earning her Child Development Associates degree and was a recipient of the FIRST (First Incentive for Raising Standards among Teachers) Award presented by the Child Care Commissioner of her state. She continues to shape the young minds of the future through her home-based childcare program. Her daily interactions with these children provide constant inspiration for her writing and she plans to continue on this path until her story has reached “The End.”
Her first book was published in January 2013 titled ‘Welcome to “Poop Camp”: The Truth, The Whole Truth, and Nothing but the Truth about Potty Training’. She released her first children’s book about family child care in May 2013.
To date, Traci has published five books, including her latest foray into adult fiction titled, ‘When Darkness Breaks’. She is an avid reader and writer, and finds inspiration all around her.
Currently Traci is writing her second adult novel, a light paranormal romance, titled ‘UNSEVERED’.

Let's check out Traci's work, shall we?

Little Sponges

Whether you are a stay-home parent striving to prepare your child for preschool, or an early childhood professional who needs a boost in creativity; you will find a multitude of ideas and resources in this book to ensure your child receives the right start before entering the school environment.
In this book, Sanders provides a host of ideas for hands-on activities to enjoy with your child in teaching them all of the basic concepts – shapes, colors, letters, and numbers.
Your child will master these concepts very quickly through the songs/fingerplays, art/craft ideas, and the step-by-step instructions that Sanders offers.
Children’s brains are like little sponges. There is no limit to how much knowledge they can soak in, but it is the job of caring adults around them to ensure that no important information falls through the holes.


Right At Home

Every parent, at some point, is faced with the need for some type of child care. Whether it’s hiring a nanny, leaving your child in the care of a family member or friend, or enrolling them in a child care setting.
With more than twenty years of experience in various arenas of child care, Traci Sanders shares her knowledge of the advantages and disadvantages of each type of environment to allow parents to make an informed decision about where to place their child for care.
In this book she reveals:
*All the options for child care explaining the benefits and drawbacks of each one.
*The three most important S’s in choosing a child care setting.
*What type of daily schedule a parent should expect their child to have from birth to twelve years and includes suggestions for age-appropriate toys, materials, and activities.
*The top twenty questions a parent should ask ANY caregiver when interviewing.
*The top twenty things child care providers wish parents knew.
*Strategies to make the right decision for the location and price of your child care setting.
*Ways to build a relationship with your child care provider to ensure your child’s needs are met and your concerns are addressed.
*How to ease the transition for you and your child into a new care setting.
Making the decision to leave your child in someone else’s care is never an easy one but with the strategies and tips found in this book, you can at least make an informed decision.
Take back your power as a parent and make the RIGHT choice for your child.

When Darkness Breaks

Local news anchor, Amber Woods, seemed to have it all – a thriving career, two beautiful children, and a doting husband named Drake. Life was perfect…until her world was turned upside down in one fateful night. While the incident causes Amber to renew her priorities; unable to deal with what happened, Drake begins sinking into a deep depression laced with infidelity and alcohol.
Hoping a change of scenery will salvage her quickly deteriorating marriage, Amber agrees that a move to New York may be just what they need. Unfortunately, she quickly discovers that you can’t outrun your problems and the past is not always left in the past.
Can Amber save her marriage without losing herself along the way? What will she do when darkness breaks her will to keep trying?


Welcome to Poop Camp

Okay, there are hundreds of books on potty training available on Amazon and you feel as though you have read them all. So why should you spend your valuable time and money on one more? Here are a few reasons:

*Most potty training guides on the market are either written by a child psychologist, a stay-home parent, or a pediatrician who has physically had a hand in potty training their own children and maybe a couple more at best.
This book is written by a seasoned family child care professional who has successfully potty trained MORE THAN THIRTY children in her career, encountering practically every scenario that can arise during the process – training boys, girls, and even twins; training older and resistant children, and even dealing with issues such as a child with-holding urine or BM.
*The author has excellent parental testimonials to back up her stated results and offers a direct email address to allow readers to contact her with specific questions or concerns about the process.
*The author offers one particular potty training secret that will most likely not be found in any other potty training manual on the market. This one simple trick makes the process less messy and produces rapid results.

Potty training really can feel like boot camp, but if you follow the steps laid out in this book, you will begin to see results almost immediately. Some of these answers can be found practically anywhere you search on the internet, but why waste all that time and energy when you have a proven method to follow here in this short, easy-to-read guide?
“Here’s wishing you much success and many less diapers!”

Just Like Home

Whether she is baking cupcakes with her child care provider, Ms. Christy, or playing in the dirt with her best friend; three year old Abby is always having fun and learning something new at her family child care home. What adventure will she have today?


Traci also writes poetry. Take a peek here.

To find out more about this talented author, please visit Traci's website, A Word With Traci.

Follow her on twitter @tmsanders2014 and @tlckids4915

If you like what you're seeing, please consider joining us at Rave Reviews Book Club. Authors supporting authors.

Rave Reviews Book Club Bethany Turner Pay It Forward Week Author Robin Chambers

Please welcome Rave Reviews Book Club Bethany Turner Pay It Forward Week Special Author Robin Chambers.

My guest is a bit shy, but I did manage to find this picture of him!

Let's get to know Robin a bit better. In his own words:

I was born a long time ago, in the middle of the Second World War, a few hundred yards from Gladstone Dock - then the biggest dry dock in the world, and a prime target for the German bombers. The Liverpool Overhead Railway started from there, and ran all the way to the Pier Head.

My mum and I lived at 126 Knowsley Rd. For two years we must have had each other for close company most of the time. My dad lived there too, but not until he came home from the war. My brother lived there as well, of course, but he didn't come along until 1945...

I mention these facts because they have had a major bearing on my life.

My final year at Bootle Grammar School for Boys provided me with another formative memory. There was some joint occasion held at the Girls' Grammar School one evening that required me to stride around importantly in my little gown keeping my troop of prefects and (knowing me) everyone else in order. A girl I'd never seen before walked up to me and asked me my name. I probably arched my eyebrows as I told her and watched a look of profound disappointment cross her face. "Oh," she said. "You're not a bit like I imagined."

I hadn't known before that that I had been "imagined" by anyone.

I plodded on through University as well - as far as I know the first person in my family ever to do so: getting a good Honours degree in English at London University (plodding into the top 20 of 400 or so English graduates in 1964) and then spending another three years on a Ph.D. ploddingly entitled "Chaucer's Poetic Uses of his Native Vocabulary".

The grant ran out in 1967, and my Ph.D. was so massive I needed another year to finish it. What to do?

In those days you could walk straight into secondary school teaching without having a teaching qualification. Comprehensive schools had just come about, and Dunraven School in Streatham needed a suitably (i.e. academically) qualified "teacher" to take their new 'A' level English class (and of course a whole heap of other classes as well. I needed a part-time job, and they needed a .9 teacher (i.e. 4½ days out of the 5 day week). "I can do that," I thought, with the blissful naivety of total ignorance. "I'll have the evenings, and the weekends..." It's embarrassing to think of that summer in 1967 and wonder how I could have had the gall. Even more than that, how could they have let me do it?!

For a brief period in the early seventies, while I was Head of English at Hackney Downs School, I had tried my hand at writing stories. I won't say too much here about how that came about; but if you'd like to know, click on My Blogs at the top of the Homepage and read the one entitled "Was that True?" I had been successful enough at it to make me think that I should give it a serious go sometime, once I had retired from my all-consuming profession.

I did the sums and discovered that I could retire on a full pension in the summer of 1993 at the age of 51. I had been in the profession just 25 years, but with that ten year enhancement I had 40 years and 19 days of pensionable service to my credit. It was an offer I couldn't refuse.

So why didn't I start writing for children again, when I got my life back in the 1990s? Because, as so often happens, other events intervened. I won't go into detail here and now; but if you'd like to know a little more about what happened between 1993 and 2011, click on My Blogs at the top of the Homepage and read the one entitled "Finally Getting Round to it."

I finally got round to writing again for children 17½ years after retiring from teaching in order to be able to do so. Between January 2011 and October 2012, I wrote pretty much eight hours a day, seven days a week. The first four books in the Myrddin's Heir series emerged...

Okay, let's take a look at some of Robin's wonderful books, shall we?

Myrddin's Heir

Blurb for Myrddin's Heir

“Gordon Bennett was born on 7th August 1999 with extraordinary powers. Where have those powers come from? Who – or what - is “Zack”...? His mother begins to notice that Gordon is different when he speaks his first words at just 5 months old and that's before the really strange things begin to happen!
Fun, refreshing and certainly different, A Wizard Of Dreams is Book 1 in The Myrddin’s Heir series by author Robin Chambers. Written at a quick, entertaining pace it’s a potent blend of magical intrigue and adventure and whilst the theme is familiar, Chambers has a unique style of writing that sets his work apart. Much more than a trite fantasy plotline his young protagonist is defined in a realistic and empathetic way that pulls the reader through the story with him, and when Gordon interacts with Zack there is always much to be taken from these well observed exchanges. With well-defined characters, Chambers demonstrates a meticulous eye for detail that makes them instantly identifiable and whilst some are more endearing than others they are all very memorable. Each captured with a distinctive tenor that adds greatly to the thematic undertones of his tale. A tale that not only entertains, but encourages thought and timely reflection.
Original and highly engrossing, A Wizard Of Dreams is a wonderful read throughout and sets the tone for a series that undoubtedly deserves your attention. It is highly recommended.”


Amazing Grace

“Amazing Grace” chronicles the way in which a girl born on 25th December 1998 plays an increasingly important part in Gordon’s life (and he in hers). Grace can read minds, and she has healing hands...

Could her father really have been a God? How can she have two mums? And what has the most powerful wizard our world has ever known to do with all this?

The answer lies in the Land of the Forever Young (and of the Dead); but they can only get there by leaving their bodies behind...

How will Gordon’s parents react when he tells them the whole truth? How important in the scheme of things are their best friends Nick and Miranda? And quite importantly: how can the four of them help YOU to write really good stories...?

Can the clock be turned both backwards and forwards? And can their guardian angels help Gordon’s dad catch a serial killer...?

Book 2 ends on 27th March 2011 (so they are still in year 7) in a “magical” dell in Wales: where Gordon and Grace aren’t - though their bodies are. And what has Nick just found at the end of a rainbow...?

I hope that this story will make you laugh quite a lot, but I must be honest and tell you that in places it makes me cry...

You will know from reading Book 1 that the Myrddin’s Heir series sets out to challenge you. One of my most important questions therefore remains: “Are YOU still up for the challenge?”

Quality of Mercy

“The Quality of Mercy” picks the story up precisely where Book 2 left off. Where were Gordon and Grace, while their bodies were in that dell in Wales...?

How do fairies cope with growing old...? And what has that to do with the wedding of William Wales and Catherine Myddleton...?

Can Gordon and Grace take on the combined might of wicked wizardry and witchcraft in Chester? And what very interesting discovery about Miranda and Nick does Gordon make along the way...?

Why is someone trying to kill them all? And what do Nick’s father and Miranda’s mother have in common...?

How do The Fantastic Four sidestep The Famous Five to become The Super Six? And who do Gordon and Grace find themselves rescuing...?

So much happens in Book 3 that it has taken 13,000 more words than Book 1 and 4,000 words more than Book 2 to tell you about.

This book will challenge you, perhaps even more than Books 1 & 2. It’s not an easy thing – to make the world a better place. With human rights go human responsibilities...

But if you’re anything like me, it will still make you smile a lot, laugh out loud here and there, and just once or twice feel the tug of tears.

It’s called catharsis.

Gifts From the Gods

“Gifts from the Gods” will give you some idea of what can happen when “gods” decide to show themselves...

How on earth can Gordon help hominids on a planet many light years away...?

When is a pony not a pony? And what is Groc the Knocker up to now...?

They need to team up; but how can they when the girls are in the grounds of a haunted stately home in Scotland and the boys are in the dungeons of a mediaeval Castle in Ireland? The answer has a lot to do with Lucifer’s rod...

What has the evil Goddess Morrigan LaFaye kept screaming for centuries at the top of a tall tower, where the walls ooze oil and look eerily like skin? And why does the God of the Sea feel the need to get involved?

And if that wasn’t enough, this is the part of the story where The Super Six become The Eight Team. What are Gordon’s sixteen greats grandmother and a lost soul from the sixth century doing getting in on the act?

What “gifts” might the gods be disposed to give: to help in the fight to make the world a better place...?

The aliens are inching their way out of the closet...
There is an explosion of happenings in Book 4. Gordon, Grace, Nick and Miranda are only 41 days older by the end of it. Of course, I can’t be that sure about time, where Zack, Zoë, Kate and Sweeney are concerned...
Just HOW many more books is this story going to take to tell? I did ask Zoë, but she just smiled, and wasn’t telling.
Remember to keep an eye on www.myrddinsheir.com. Other clues can turn up there, and there are quite a few things you can do to help...

When The Cat's Away

Book 5 begins on the same evening that Book 3 ends. It tells you a lot more about the Council of Thirteen and how its members react to Octavius Mortlake’s death.
What plans does Adolfo Aragon have to inherit Mortlake’s crown? And how much help might he get from the Capo dei Capi in London – the infamous Enzo Potenza? Just how evil ARE some of the other members of the ruling clique?
Carmen, Goddess of The Damned, does not take the loss of her daughter lying down. How will she be revenged? And how next will she seek to destroy the children who were born to heal the world?
Gordon and Grace return from holiday and find out their houses have been bugged while they were away. Soon after that they find out what happens when you don’t fight back.
They are left with no choice. They have to go to war…


You can find out more about Robin Chambers and his books by visiting him at his webpage Myrddin's Heir, on Twitter @myrddinsheir, and on Facebook.

Don't wait, get every book in this amazing series. Join the journey!

Rave Reviews Bethany Turner Pay It Forward Week Featuring Harmony Kent

Welcome to Rave Reviews Book Club Bethany Turner Pay It Forward Week special author Harmony Kent!

Let's get to know this talented author a bit better. In her own words:

Harmony Kent is famous for her laughter, and has made quite the name for herself … she’s also, um, a writer … and fairly well known for that too. She lives in rural Cornwall with her ever present sense of humour and quirky neighbours. She is single and not admitting to her age.

Here are ten things she thinks you ought to know about her …

Born in 2013 (at least the author was …)

Really boring

Has absolutely no sense of humour

Biographer is a compulsive liar

Reads … a lot

Writes … even more

Completely sane(in)

Neighbours are nuts

If you’re feeling extra brave she’s around

Online …

And now...for the Official Biography - again in Harmony's own words:

Indie Author Harmony Kent has written a number of books. The Battle for Brisingamen, her first novel, is a work of fantasy fiction and was approved by Awesome Indies within weeks of its release. Her second book, The Glade shows her equally at home in the realms of mystery, suspense and thriller – with a dash of magical realism. This book has also been approved for the Awesome Indies List. The Glade was awarded the IndieBRAG Medallion in July 2014. Harmony’s third book (Elemental Earth) is Young Adult Fantasy Fiction, and was published 31st July 2014. With more books already in progress, she is well on her way to being a firmly established multi genre author. As well as being an avid reader and writer, Harmony also offers editing, proof reading, manuscript appraisal and beta reading services. As well as reviewing and supporting her fellow indie authors, Harmony works hard to promote and protect high standards within the indie publishing arena. She is always on the look out for talent and excellence, and will freely promote any authors or books who she feels have these attributes.

Well, that’s the official biography … Harmony also has violent tendencies and forced me to add a not quite so official version

I might mention this author has a wicked sense of humour.

Harmony Kent is the author of a number of wonderful books. I am currently reading Finding Katie which is extremely well written and deals splendidly with a very difficult subject. I won't spoil it for you, but I strongly recommend you consider it for your next read.

Blurb for Finding Katie

I killed someone, you see. I killed the girl, who used to be me.

I’m Kate … Kate Charlesworth. I’m seventeen, and self-harming. This time I cut too deep, and I’m in hospital. I hadn’t meant for it to be so bad—it just sort of happened. I needed a lot of distraction that day.

You’ve had bad days, right? Days it hurts too much to think. Days you just wanna stay in bed. Days when the world needs to go away for a while. Right?

What do you do when you’ve hit rock bottom? When there’s nowhere left to turn?

This one little mistake lands me back on a psych unit—the last place I wanna be. Only this time, the nurse I end up with isn’t content to stick on a band-aid and send me home. She wants me to face my demons. But to do that, I’ll have to face who I am … who I used to be … I’ll have to find Katie.

See the fantastic trailer for Finding Katie here

Other books by Harmony include:

Slices of Soul- Poetry by Harmony Kent

Slices of Soul is a collection of contemporary poetry from author Harmony Kent that will both delight and call for deeper reflection. ‘Phantoms’ gives a gritty account of pain that you can never catch. ‘Enough’ expresses the contentment of Zen. ‘Diamonds’ shows the beauty to be found on a drab and rainy day. While ‘The Alchemist’ shows you how a guitar can turn lead into gold. This wonderful arrangement of fifty poems takes you from the abstract of Zen to the melody of music, and will reach into your mind, your heart, and your soul.

Polish Your Prose - a help book for writers

Essential Editing Tips for Authors

Polish Your Prose is a powerful new guide that gives essential editing tips for authors. Lots of books have been written on the art of writing, and here—at last—is a guide that will teach you the essential techniques of editing your own book. This will help you turn a promising manuscript into a published novel. And, it does this without the jargon. You don’t need to know all the grammatical terms in order to make use of this book. You don’t need to know the definition of a split infinitive, a comma splice, or a ‘to be’ verb, as this manual explains these in detail in easy to understand terms, and a lively and engaging style.

Chapters on Passive Writing, Tense, Point of View, Dialogue, and other techniques take you through the same processes an editor would go through to polish and perfect your manuscript. Good writing is nothing without good editing. Learn the secrets of good editing and writing with this essential author reference, which offers so much more for so much less.
Harmony Kent is an award winning author, and accomplished editor and proofreader. Her passion is helping Indie Authors to successfully achieve their goals and dreams.



The Glade - thriller/murder mystery

You are being arrested for the murder of your husband…You have a secret you can’t tell…The evil is gathering…

The Wenstrops have it all: health, wealth and happiness. But then it all begins to fall apart. Helen is arrested for murder, yet is either unable or unwilling to give a defence. During her detention, vital evidence goes mysteriously missing and tensions are running high. Helen finds herself surrounded and yet alone: not knowing who she can trust or how she can tell her enemies from her friends. Helen has to work through her self-doubts and fears, in order to know whether her suspicions and misgivings are valid or simply products of an overwrought mind. There are those who would like to encourage her confusion, and those who would help her – but how to know one from the other? And then there are those who actively mean her harm. Meanwhile, malignant forces in the forest are gathering power, ready for a final assault. Helen finds herself in a battle of life and death, and faces having to lose everything in her attempts to thwart the evil that has insinuated itself into her very existence – but is she ready to make the ultimate sacrifice?
This sensational second novel by acclaimed author Harmony Kent will have you alternately laughing, crying and gripping the edge of your seat as this roller coaster ride of a plot unfolds. It will keep you guessing through its many twists and turns, and hijack your attention right up until you turn the final page. This book has it all: murder, intrigue, the supernatural, a broken marriage, a love affair, courage against impossible odds, suspense, and high drama.

The Glade is an IndieB.R.A.G.Medallion honoree!

Elemental Earth - Book One in the Mysteries Series

“You turned the god of gnomes into a garden ornament?”
Sarah looked closely, but couldn’t tell if her dad was annoyed or amused—perhaps he was both …
Whilst 15 year old Sarah may be struggling to regain her feet, after being ripped from her everyday mundane life and ending up in a whole new dimension, she still knows how to have a bit of fun along the way. The Earth Elemental isn’t the only one whose feathers she manages to ruffle, and it’s only been four days. Meanwhile, her best friend is missing, and big trouble is brewing. She soon has a lot more to worry about than what happened to her phone or iPod, or even how much of an idiot Caleb obviously thinks she is.
Elemental Earth is the first book in The Mysteries series, and is aimed at Young Adults. Even if you’ve already reached an age where the young ones might call you ‘old enough’, if you’re still young at heart then you’re bound to enjoy these books just as much as the next—err—younger adult.
Age aside, perhaps we should be more worried about what further havoc Sarah’s antics might be about to wreak on the universe as we know it? We’d probably all be sleeping a lot more soundly if she’d only stuck to applied maths and the odd pillow fight. But no, sadly the lure of the proverbial rabbit hole proved just a tad too much. And now she’s taken the plunge, there’s no turning back.

You’ll have to wait until you’re 16 to read Harmony’s other two books: The Battle for Brisingamen and The Glade. In the meantime, you can occupy yourself with the second book in this series: Air-Born (The Mysteries: Book 2). Coming soon.


The Battle for Brisingamon

There is a World not too Far Away …

Beneath the north sea a land of magic lies undetected. The lives of many are drawn inexorably closer together in a race against time, as both energy companies and evil beings attempt to destroy the magic which is protecting not just this land but all worlds. The unwitting protagonists have no idea of how suddenly and irrevocably their lives are about to change.

It is a race against time to try and recover the lost necklace, Brisingamen, which holds the ancient power of the Goddess Freya, and to prevent the undersea drilling from taking place. Are Aart, Matthias, Gemma and Dirck up to the challenges they now must face?

Here there be Dragons, and all manner of Creatures …



To learn more about Harmony and her books please visit her on the web.

Website: www.harmonykent.co.uk

Twitter: @harmony_kent

Facebook: www.facebook.com/HarmonyKentOnline

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/HarmonyK

Amazon US Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Harmony-Kent/e/B00CO0AR7U/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1

Amazon UK Author Page: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Harmony-Kent/e/B00CO0AR7U/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1

4Wills Publishing Author Page: http://4willspublishing.wordpress.com/our-authors/author-harmony-kent/

Thanks for stopping by and visiting with me and this talented author. Run and get your Harmony Kent books now!

Welcome Rave Reviews Book Club SPOTLIGHT AUTHOR Tim Hemlin!

A huge welcome to Tim Hemlin, this week's Rave Reviews Book Club SPOTLIGHT AUTHOR!

Shall we delve a bit deeper and find out what Tim has been up to? Yes, let's.

Tim Hemlin is a marathoner, teacher, and has his master's degree in counseling, but his passion for the environment sparked him to write The Wastelanders, a dystopian-clifi published in both e-book and paperback by Reputation Books. He is represented by Kimberley Cameron of Kimberley Cameron & Associates Literary Agency.

He has also published a Wastelanders short story called Black Silence as a bridge between the first book and its sequel. He is currently in the notes and brainstorming stage for the Wastelanders sequel.

Recently the Muse has kindly allowed him to tap into that creative magic and pen a young adult urban fantasy. If all goes well with the edits and revision, the final draft should be completed by early summer.

Finally, in the late 90s Ballantine published the Neil Marshall series of culinary mysteries set in Houston, Texas. These include If Wishes Were Horses, A Whisper of Rage (nominated for a Shamus Award), People in Glass Houses, A Catered Christmas (the one I most enjoyed writing), and Dead Man's Broth. He has recently gotten the reversion rights and is planning on reissuing them under an elite publishing house out of New Orleans.

Hemingway liked running with the bulls. Tim enjoys running with dragons (that's what he calls his grandkids.)



When asked what he considered important about the stories we create, Tim had this to say:

Stories are what make life new. Each generation defines itself by the layer of tales it leaves for future generations to excavate. We read stories in fragments of cuneiform, in ancient pottery and on the walls of caves. Stories hold time captive, releasing it only when future readers choose to set it free.

I see stories in everything—a fleur-de-lis bottle opener, a scruffy old pair of cowboy boots, two wooden beach chairs facing each other on an abandoned shoreline. Stories are rooted in objects the imagination then takes to new heights. Stories can be simply told and yet so complex . . .

Have you heard the one about the guy who at the last minute decided to wear his cowboy boots when meeting a bunch of friends? Well, crowded around a table at the bar a certain young lady said, “I write westerns and I don’t even know how to two-step. Can anyone teach me how to two-step?” The guy in the scruffy old pair of cowboy boots jumped up and said, “Yes, ma’am, I can.”

And they’ve been dancing together ever since.

Stories are life.

Tims' novel The Wastelanders is a great read. Be sure to add it to your summer reading list.

America is controlled by a corporate oligarchy known as the Water Cartel and warrior-priest Joey Hawke finds himself trapped between a mysterious geneticist amassing a clone army and a group of political fanatics convinced that a dead president will rise from his tomb to lead them to salvation. Caught outside his spiritual haven when the Cartel moves against the Wastelanders, Joey is aided by Bear, an enigmatic weapons runner, Moon, a lovesick Scrapwoman, and Bernie Hawke, his estranged father. But against the Cartel's military strength, led by the power hungry Rex Fielder, Joey's only hope may be Si-Ting, a young woman with prescient abilities--a woman who not only holds the key to his heart but also to an American conspiracy to crown its future with the withered laurels of the past.

To find out more about this wonderful author you can click on the links below:


Twitter
Facebook
TimHemlin.com
Goodreads
Google+
Amazon Author Page



The Wastelanders

Amazon

iTunes

Barnes & Noble

Reputation Books

Wishing Tim tremendous success and many sales.

Bethany Turner Pay It Forward Week Featuring Jan Hawke! by Nancy M Bell

Welcome again to Bethany Turner Pay It Forward Week. Hard to believe today is the last day for this month. Today the spotlight is on talented Rave Reviews Book Club member Jan Hawke. I am happy and privileged to host her.

About the Author

I live near Launceston in Cornwall UK with husband Peter and Toby and Benji the Springer Spaniels - it's a tie between the boys as to who's maddest, but as I outrank all of them in being weird anyway it's not open to debate really.

I'm physically lazy with things that don't hold much interest for me (so that's mostly housework and, increasingly, cooking...), but I love where we live, mainly because I chose it for being so quiet and off the beaten track, very close to the moors and quite near to the sea.

I also love books, both to write and to read, the latter of which can be very eclectic (I enjoy Julian Barnes, Kate Atkinson, Jeanette Winterson and will happily admit to Jilly Cooper too) but in the main I'm heavily into SF&F, particularly Tolkien, Terry Pratchett and Julian May, although I can pass on Zombie Apocalypses fairly easily......how I've chosen to write about Africa for my first novel may be something of a surprise to my friends, but if you read it you may find that all of the above information manifests in there somehow!

You'll want to check out Jan's book Milele Safari

A bit about Milele Safari:

Milele Safari - An Eternal Journey ...twines around a single day, in an unremarkable border village that snuffs out the lives of four people and shatters many others, only to draw the survivors back to a different time and, perhaps, a hope of atonement and peace. Step out on the journey and discover an Africa that could have been, is and might one day come to be.

What readers are saying about Milele Safari: There are many 5 Star Reviews on Amazon

MILELE SAFARI - the African word means eternal - follows Sophie Taylor from England. She revisits the Zambezi River and Victoria Falls in today's calm setting. Memories of learning that her aid-worker fiancé Tom had been killed when he was in the wrong place during 1994's abrupt brutality return to haunt her. Sophie had been pregnant and the shock combined with malaria caused her to miscarry before she returned to England to open a therapy clinic. Today she still cannot come to terms with her trauma.

An Eternal Journey is obviously a heart-felt undertaking by the author about a topic that has touched her deeply. If she writes on other topics equally as well, she will become a force in the literary world. I for one hope she continues to exercise her insightful understanding through her keen writing skills.

* * * *

This was an powerful book, very lyrical and intense, which affected me long after I finished it. Themes of courage, forgiveness, loss, love and healing play out through the story

To find out more about Jan visit her webpage and follow her on Twitter @JanHawke

Thanks for sticking with me through RRBC Pay It Forward Week. I hope you've discovered some new and wonderful authors.

Til next time

Spotlight on Adam Boustead for Rave Reviews Book Club Bethany Turner Pay It Forward Week by Nancy M Bell

Welcome to Day Four of Rave Reviews Book Club Pay It Forward Week. Today the spotlight is on Adam Boustead. He is the author of Mist Palace Hall One, a lovely book of poetry, as well as Dragon Fireside Tales and Amber Dragon.

A bit about Adam Boustead:
Adam Boustead is a blind author who lives in Hanley, Staffordshire. Mist Palace Hall One is his first collection of poems that he has published on his own.

Lovely ethereal Cover for Mist Palace Hall One

What readers are saying about Mist Palace Hall One:

This book is one of poetry. Adam does a very good job with his writings. Once you begin reading it you will not put it down. All of the poems are very good. It was hard for me to choose my favorites because I liked them all. The three that really stood out for me were: Biscuit & Honey, Autumn's Harbinger and World War II. This is a book worth more than 5 stars and I wish I could give it more. I highly recommend it to all. I look forward to many more books by Adam Boustead.

Fabulous Cover Art for Dragon Fireside Tales

What readers are saying about Dragon Fireside Tales:

Adam Boustead has done a great job in writing this book. It is not in my usual genre but I accepted it and read it. I found that I really enjoyed reading it. It is original and thought provoking. There are short stories in it and some poetry. I love the poetry a lot. The stories will make you think. I enjoyed this book and I wish I could give more that 5 stars to it. It is an excellent read and I highly recommend it to all. I look forward to more from Adam Boustead in the future.

Amazing Cover Art for Amber Dragon

What readers are saying about Amber Dragon:

Amber Dragon by Adam Boustead is another you HAVE to read. This is the second book in The Dragon Chronicles and it doesn't disappoint at all. Once you open the book,it''ll grab you and you won't put it down until you finish reading it. Some of the readings you may find disturbing some you will find intriguing but all of it you will find amazing! I have been fortunate in the past to read other books by Adam Boustead and I have never been disappointed in any of his writings. They only get better and better. This book has both short story readings and poems. I always try to choose my favorite but never can do it, because they are all so good. But I do have two poems I like a lot. They are: Wanderer and Sea Song. There are also two short stories I like a lot. They are: Gifts and Caught. I know you will love all of them. When you read them don't try to interpret them, just read them. They will interpret themselves for you. I gave this book 5 stars but it really needs to have many, many more. This book would make a great gift. It would look good on your bookshelf or any library's bookshelf. I have my copy sitting in a special place on my bookshelf. I highly recommend this book to everyone especially if you enjoy sci-fi, fantasy, poetry and beautiful writings. I look for much more from Adam Boustead.

You can find Adam on Twitter @Apboustead

Please support this talented author by reading and reviewing his work.

Until tomorrow... Keep smiling!