A Strange Fire Promo

Hello!


In promotion of my YA Paranormal Romance novel A Strange Fire it is free for the next 3 days on Amazon. The story is a spooky one with romance, supernatural teenagers, drama, mystery and horror. 


Here's a short synopsis if you're interested...


Flo has always had problems. Her stammer prevents her speech and her dad’s abuse makes her life a living hell. Not to mention she sees colours other people don’t. 

When her dad decides to ship her off to live with her grandma in the sleepy town of Chesterport, Flo thinks that this is her chance for a better life. But on her very first day at her new school she is ridiculed and laughed at for having a stammer. One student sticks up for her and his name is Frank.

Frank’s body is surrounded by an aura of fire, but Flo is the only one who can see it. He lives in a foster home for troubled teenagers. Flo is drawn to him because he’s different and so is she. 

Things are about to get scary, because Chesterport is not your ordinary suburban town. It’s infested by a coven of dark witches who prey on the young and the elderly. Soon Flo discovers that she’s next on their list of victims, and finds herself fighting a battle she never would have imagined possible.

***

The next book in the series is as yet untitled, and it will be out some time next year, perhaps in March or April. When I write about my characters I always have to have a clear picture in my head of what they look like. I decided I would share the closest thing I can find of real life people who look like Flo and Frank. For Flo, I picture her looking sort of like Emily Browning, who has those rare green eyes you don't come across very often. Here are some pics..

Emily Browning stars in one of my favourite movies, Suckerpunch. If you haven't seen it then you should watch it. It kind of got slated by the critics, but my favourite films mostly seem to be generally disliked in some way. Don't know why. So, on to Frank. I definitely found it way harder to find someone to represent him, probably because the vast majority of young famous males out there do not appeal to me. The closest I can come up with is a young Wes Bentley, he has the exact light blue eyes of Frank, although you will have to imagine the hair as a shade lighter. I LOVED him ever since American Beauty, he has that perfect intriguing creep factor that I'm drawn to. Ha ha. I also love him in Ghost Rider. Anyway here are some pics...

He definitely has the right hair cut for Frank in the first picture. In the second one he is probably too old to be Frank, but I find it pleasant to look at so I included it. I must think of who the other characters in the novel look like and put those into another blog. 

So basically, the point of this post is to let you know that A Strange Fire is free for the next three days, if it sounds like the kind of story you're into then I'd love for you to read it and let me know what you think on Twitter or Goodreads, or even here on my blog. 

Goodbye for now. And thanks a million for downloading the book if you do..

Tegan's Return Release and Tegan's Blood Giveaway!!

Hello all!


Book Two in the Ultimate Power Series, Tegan's Return, is now available. Have a look at the cover and synopsis below...

Tegan always knew that she couldn’t remain hidden forever, she left Tribane to escape the danger posed to her by the supernatural creatures who dwell there, but every day she has mourned the friends and family she had to leave behind. It’s been two years, but Tegan struggles on with the new lonely life she has built for herself. She might crave human companionship, but at least she’s still alive.

Unfortunately, all of her hard work in running away comes crashing down around her when a familiar face comes strolling into her new place of work one night. She considers leaving and starting over again, but this old acquaintance has a proposition for her, one that will see her returning to Tribane and fighting to rescue a little girl who has been kidnapped. 

Tegan feels for the child, but her heart is also swelling at the idea of going home to see the people she has missed the most. Can she kill two birds with one stone? Finally she decides that she will return, but what she finds on her arrival is that her father has gone missing, not to mention there has been an almighty war between the two opposing sides of the city.

Throw into this her mixed emotions at seeing beautiful Ethan again, and there is a whole lot of confusion going on. Tegan finds herself playing the role of a spy, as she tries to find information as to the whereabouts of her father and the girl. Even though she is supposed to be pretending, she can’t help that she is falling for Ethan all over again, and if he discovers her true intentions for coming back then he might just hate her forever.

                                                                                                        

So, to celebrate the release I'm doing a three day giveaway of Tegan's Blood on Amazon to promote the sequel. If you haven't read it yet and are interested in stories about vampires, slayers and witches with a good dose of romance then you might really enjoy it. All you have to do is click on the link and download it completely free. 

Also, I'm going to be giving a limited number of copies of Tegan's Return away to those who send an email telling me why they want to read the book to lhcosway@gmail.com. Any reason will do:)

I started writing this book around Christmas time last year, which explains why the story is set in December. Still, the fact that I finished it at all in the space of a few months surprises me. I'm a terrible procrastinator, and a lot of the time I'll do anything other than what I'm supposed to be doing. In other words, writing. I think the decision to publish Tegan's Blood is what gave me the willpower to keep going and get this one finished. The fact that people expressed an interest in wanting to read another book about Tegan and Co. made me ever more determined to create one. 

There's certainly something to be said for writing a book all in one go without any big gaps between writing periods. I found it easier to keep all of the details in my head and the continuity flowed better. At least it did for me:-) Each chapter of Tegan's Return is named after a song title or lyric. I started doing this unconsciously with certain chapters when I wrote the first book, and so I decided it might be a good idea to use for the second. 

The synopsis should give you a fair idea of what the book is about. There are a couple of new characters in the mix as well as most of those first encountered in Tegan's Blood. Anyway, I'll leave you with the song I named the first chapter after, "This Town Ain't Big Enough for the Both of Us" by Sparks. 


The excitement and sound of this song is definitely a great way to kick off any story. Also, the keyboard player fascinates me. And just look at the rig out on the lead singer, Karen Carpenter would have been proud. Needless to say, my obsession with the keyboard player, who is in fact the brother of the lead singer, led me to speculate as to why he acts so strangely onstage. Here are my theories: One, he hates his brother because he's so hyperactive and in your face and has a secret desire to brutally murder him. Two, he's incredibly socially phobic and is actually in agony when he performs. There's a moment around 01.39 where he pulls a face that makes me think he's uncomfortable. Three, he gets a perverse satisfaction from creeping people out. I have a very active imagination. In fact, I'd be pleased if it were a combination of all three. Anyway, enough of that tangent. 

Enjoy the song. And the book. Until next time.

The Complex by C.E Zaragoza

I recently had the pleasure of reading a YA dystopic future novel, The Complex by C.E Zaragoza, below is the cover and the synopsis..

The Complex - a young adult dystopia

Helena Linx is dying. Isolated and quarantined for over a decade, sixteen-year-old Helena lives in a virtual utopia run by a council of doctors bent on saving the world from a fatal and almost incurable disease. The pandemic has been contained, but she and hundreds of others are still waiting to be cured. Helena dreams of returning to the outside world and leaving behind the heavily regulated world of the Eyam Complex, a place where everything runs according to plan…until one fateful morning. 

Things begin to change in the complex. And after everything dear to Helena—her father, her brother, and her boyfriend—is taken away, she finally gets what she wants.

But life on the outside isn’t what Helena expected. Never in her wildest dreams did Helena think that she’d leave Eyam only to become so desperate to get back in.

I have to say I always love reading novels in this genre, because you never know what you're going to get. With stories that are set in the future the author has the freedom to create their own unique and intriguing world, and C.E Zaragoza pulled this off and then some. After a brief prologue, the novel kicks off in Eyam, a strange closed off community in a large complex building. We meet Helena who is young but intelligent, and we discover that she and every other person in Eyam is suffering from an illness known as Cavall. This illness is what caused the breakdown of society and the reason why Helena and her family and many others have spent more than a decade living in quarantine. 

I loved the sinister undertones to this novel, my suspicions were initially piqued when it was mentioned how despite Helena having had Cavall since she was a child she has never really felt sick. It quickly becomes apparent that those living in Eyam are being kept in the dark about many things. The problem is, most of them accept their immediate reality without asking any questions. Several things happen to cause Helena to start wondering if all is truly as it seems. I thought it was great how the author was subtle in showing that for some reason whenever anyone began showing any signs of rebellion or individuality they would soon find that they were cured and could go and start their new lives in the outside world. 

This book really sucks you in, I found myself sitting down to read for a half an hour but there was just so much mystery that I couldn't stop. By the end of each chapter something new happens that makes you want to continue reading into the wee hours of the morning. Eyam was like a pleasant sort of prison, you know that those living there have no freedom, yet their lives aren't particularly difficult and they have everything they could ever ask for. Cuisines of all variety are served on demand in the dining area. Helena doesn't have to cook or do any other house work as it is all done for her. It will probably show my lazy side, but I really liked this futuristic aspect. All of the young people get to study for their chosen career, Helena studies art while her brother studies law.

My favourite character, aside from Helena, was Isaac Akhos, a sort of wild rogue living in the outside world who ends up kidnapping Helena to get the attention of the Medcouncil. I liked how he enlightened her as to the true nature of what happened to the world while she was living in Eyam, and how he affectionately nicknamed her Linx. Anyway, I'm hoping to see more of him in the next book in the series. I was amazed by how well written the novel was as a whole, as there is a large cast of characters, who are all given a good amount of exploration within the narrative. The best thing about the story was that it just kept you guessing all the time, and I found myself trying to figure out whether people could be trusted or not and if they had hidden agendas. Overall, this was a highly original story from a young and talented author who I have no doubt has many great books in her to come. I highly recommend this book if you are looking for a story that contains mystery, action and intrigue.

Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L James and Hold on Tight by Maria E. Monteiro

Last week I decided to bite the bullet and read Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L James. This book had been haunting me for a while, I kept seeing people either going on about how much they loved or hated it. So what can I say, I was curious. Here's the cover, which is very much symbolic for those who have read the book as it features Christian Grey's notorious silver tie...

So, before I discuss the book, for those who have no idea what it is about, this song by the wonderful Mr Tom Lehrer might give you an idea..

His songs never fail to cheer me up. Anyway, I read the first couple of chapters of the book and was struck by the similarities to Twilight. I had noticed on Goodreads some references to fan fiction but didn't pay them too much attention. The stories are entirely different, but the characters are almost identical personality-wise, so once I noticed the similarities between Bella and Ana, and Christian and Edward I had to do some digging. Lo and behold I discovered that this book actually started out as Twilight fan fiction and was originally titled Master of the Universe. How apt. 


I assume that once the author received a publishing deal that she changed the character's names from Bella and Edward to Christian and Ana. In my opinion, this book is the ultimate fantasy for Twilight fans of a certain age, for whom the less explicit love scenes just aren't enough. Well with Fifty Shades you can experience the romance of Twilight in the guise of a very adult BDSM relationship. Think of the movie The Secretary and mix it with Twilight and you just about get Fifty Shades. I am quite torn about this book in general and I still don't know if I loved or hated it. I think it might have been a bit of both. I don't think any girl would be able to resist the temptation to devour this book, no matter how much she wants to be a feminist. Oh well.


My favourite thing about the story was the email banter between Christian and Ana, these were definitely what made reading the whole thing worth while for me. Also, I was kind of fascinated to read the contract for the "relationship", rules and such, that were all fully included in the book. My problem was that there was just too much sex in it that I started to become jaded with the repetition. Sometimes I think that not touching at all can be far more intriguing than ten pages of pure sex. Of course the characters can get there in the end, but for God's sake, draw it out a little.


I could probably write a thesis on the subject of what makes women become OBSESSED with the male heroes in books. In fact, I think I am obsessed with the reasons why women become obsessed. I want to know exactly what it is that makes them worship these characters. Is it because they are powerful and attractive and only have eyes for that one girl? Probably. There is definitely something in the female psyche that can't resist it. Don't get me wrong, I am every bit as guilty of creating these fantasy males. But Fifty Shades is like the ultimate in female-created-fantasy-male-who-would-never-exist-in-real-life. Needless to say, this book left me in turmoil, it was like watching a car crash, you are fascinated yet disgusted yet can't stop looking/reading. This also means that I find myself unable to give it a rating out of 5, perhaps 5/5 for certain aspects and 1/5 for others.


Also, this book is one of three, and I'm sure my morbid fascination will lead me to read the others sooner or later. 


Now, perhaps to cleanse my palate of Fifty Shades I read a YA book called Hold on Tight by Maria E. Monteiro, an author I met on Twitter. Here is the cover and synopsis..

After suffering a great loss, Emma is ready to get her life back to normal. She is spending her summer, before her junior year, with her new boyfriend Court. They are both working at Fairland Park alongside her best friend Britney. Emma is spending all her time with Court and is really falling for him. But things change when she meets Nash. She begins to question her feelings for Court. Is Court the right choice? Or is Nash the right choice? Emma will fall in love this summer. But will it lead her to happiness or a broken heart? It will be a summer full of romance, music, and moments Emma will never forget.


This is one of those books that you can while away a lazy afternoon reading, it was a complete delight. I loved Emma, the main character and narrator, from the moment she said she would have preferred to be Ally Sheedy before the makeover in The Breakfast Club rather than Molly Ringwald. In my head, I was like, me too! The story centres around Emma who six months ago lost her boyfriend to a terrible accident. Emma finds herself working at a theme park for the summer, (this aspect reminded me of the movie Adventureland, which I loved) with her new boyfriend Court. Soon enough Emma finds herself in the middle of a love triangle with the popular and rich golden boy Court, and the tattooed bad boy Nash. 


In the beginning I much preferred Nash to Court, but then there's a big twist which leaves you not quite sure who Emma should pick. The author did a great job of making the characters seem like authentic teenagers, as I followed the story it really felt like I was reading a real girl's diary of her summer romances and dramas. I also really liked how music was integrated into the book and how the original setting for Woodstock features a lot. Overall, this was a wonderful debut novel from an author who I'm sure has many great books to come. Even though it is YA it could be read by teenagers, and those of us who are slightly older (ahem) alike. 

What I Have Been Reading...

I always find that when I should be spending the majority of my free time writing, more often than not I will procrastinate, and most of this procrastination comes in the form of reading other books. I have been reading lots of books lately, when really I should be trying to finish Tegan's Return. The situation isn't so bad though, and the book is almost finished so a bit of reading indulgence won't do too much harm. I hope.


So I'll begin with the most recent, which is a book called Gabriel's Inferno by Sylvain Reynard. Have a look at the cover below. I think I came across this on Goodreads, which is always a source of great suggestions. I have to say that I read the first few chapters and just automatically assumed it was written by a woman, only to discover that the author is in fact a man. I have not read a really good romance written by a man in a long time, in fact, I think most of the my favourite male written romances come from the classics. Two of my favourites being La Dame aux Camelias by Alexander Dumas Fils and The Monk by Matthew Lewis. Actually, there was something about Julia that reminded me of Antonia from The Monk, perhaps her innocence and her almost saint-like actions. 


It's been a long time since I've come across such a delicate female protagonist. I certainly find it difficult to write characters who aren't sarcastic and world-weary, and who think about bad things from time to time. But Julia was so forgiving and understanding in this book that it made her almost hard to believe, however, then you realise how the author has based her on Beatrice from Dante's Inferno, and you understand why he draws Julia's character in such a way. Overall, this novel is a brilliant mix of comtemporary romance and classical romance. Judging from the cover I thought there would be a paranormal aspect, but even though there wasn't I still really enjoyed it. 


You can see themes in the story that reflect older novels, the young and innocent girl and the experienced, tortured older man. Most of the time when I'm reading a book I have to imagine the characters as actors or famous people, it's an odd habit of mine. Just in case you are curious, this is how I imagined Gabriel and this is how I imagined Julia. Anyway, I hear there's a sequel on the cards so I will definitely be picking that one up to see what else is in store for Gabriel and Julia.

Another book I read recently, which also made me cry profusely, was Heart on a Chain by Cindy C. Bennett.The story centres around a young girl named Kate who comes from a poor family. Her father is a drunk and her mother an abusive prescription drug addict. Kate has to deal with being bullied at school and then must come home to physical assaults from her mother. This book was very, very similar to Reason to Breathe by Rebecca Donovan, I'm still not sure which story I preferred. Anyway, when a boy who Kate had been friends with as a child returns after having lived away for several years, Kate finds herself with someone who will finally stick up for her and show her that she needs to stand up for herself and not allow herself to be victimised anymore. This is a YA  book, but with some very adult themes and some shocking scenes. The realism is what made me love it so much, as well as how the author portrays the mind set of Kate. 

Other books that I'm planning on reading next come from two Twitter friends, the first is The Complex by Cathy E. Zaragoza, which looks like it's going to be a good Dystopic Future novel, one of my favourite genres. I'm doing a swap with this author, and she is going to be reading one of my novels also. The second is Hold on Tight by Maria E. Monteiro, I read an excerpt of this online and was instantly hooked, it's a YA romance and I've read some very positive reviews so I'm sure it's going to be great. Also, I keep seeing Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L James everywhere, I'm hesitant to read this one, but I'm sort of curious to know what all of the hype is about so I might have to give it a look too.

Revealing: Tegan's Return Cover and Synopsis

Hello!


Today I have uploaded the cover and synopsis for Tegan's Return to Goodreads. As with my other two covers, I also designed this one myself, something I'm quite proud of as I'm not particularly design-savvy or anything. The actual book itself probably won't be available to buy for another 4-6 weeks, but if you are interested in reading it then do mark it down on your to-be-read list:-) 

Tegan always knew that she couldn’t remain hidden forever, she left Tribane to escape the danger posed to her by the supernatural creatures who dwell there, but every day she has mourned the friends and family she had to leave behind. It’s been two years, but Tegan struggles on with the new lonely life she has built for herself. She might crave human companionship, but at least she’s still alive. 


Unfortunately, all of her hard work in running away comes crashing down around her when a familiar face comes strolling into her new place of work one night. She considers leaving and starting over again, but this old acquaintance has a proposition for her, one that will see her returning to Tribane and fighting to rescue a little girl who has been kidnapped. 


Tegan feels for the child, but her heart is also swelling at the idea of going home to see the people she has missed the most. Can she kill two birds with one stone? Finally she decides that she will return, but what she finds on her arrival is that her father has gone missing, not to mention there has been an almighty war between the two opposing sides of the city. 


Throw into this her mixed emotions at seeing beautiful Ethan again, and there is a whole lot of confusion going on. Tegan finds herself playing the role of a spy, as she tries to find information as to the whereabouts of her father and the girl. Even though she is supposed to be pretending, she can’t help that she is falling for Ethan all over again, and if he discovers her true intentions for coming back then he might just hate her forever. 

Download A Strange Fire for Free! And Some Musical Inspiration

Hello again, 


Just a quick blog to say that my YA Paranormal novel A Strange Fire is free all day today and tomorrow on Amazon. Just click on the hyperlink and it will bring you straight there. I'm hoping to get lots of people reading the book through this promotion, so if you are on Goodreads please do post a review if you have the time, there is also the option to post a review on Amazon. 


I'd also like to thank everyone who sent in emails for my previous promotion, and the five winners have now been emailed a copy of the book. Obviously, this is another chance for you to get it absolutely free. It still amazes me every time I find that people actually want to read the things that I make up. 


I might have mentioned this before...but I listen to a lot of music when I'm writing my stories. Certain sounds give me ideas and help me to envision settings and atmospheres. If you do happen to read A Strange Fire you will notice that it is a very emotional novel, and not only because of the fact that Flo is an Empath, she's got a lot of issues to work through and has had a fairly difficult upbringing. There were lots of songs I listened to that helped me create Flo's mind scape. I might also have mentioned already that I'm a little bit obsessed with Amanda Palmer's music as well as that of her band The Dresden Dolls, there are some of her songs that have made me cry on occasion. Perhaps even more than an occasion...Boston from the album No Virginia is one of those songs, the lyrics don't necessarily apply to Flo, but the feeling of melancholy defines her frame of mind at the beginning of the story, her sense of rejection from her father's abandonment, even though she is sort of elated to finally be free of him. You can listen to the song in this video...

Okay, I'm not trying to depress anyone but I'm really addicted to sad songs, they affect me so much more than the happy ones. At the very end when her voice breaks and she sounds like she's almost about to cry, gets me every time. I'll post two more songs, one is Underground by Kimya Dawson from the album Remember That I Love You, I love Kimya's songs because they tell such vivid stories. This is another sad one but hopeful and humourous at the same time. The other is Prisoners by Regina Spektor, the idea of being a prisoner and setting yourself free is sort of a theme in A Strange Fire...