Thursday 20 February 2014

Welcome Author - Luciana Cavallaro


Luciana Cavallaro grew up in a small country town in Western Australia. She moved to Perth to study secondary teaching at university and taught in government and private schools.

Luciana is the first in her family to attain a university degree. She began writing as a cathartic exercise after a traumatic car accident. Since then she has attended writers’ workshops and is a member of various associations.

Luciana has always been interested in Mythology and Ancient History but her passion wasn’t realised until seeing the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. From then on, her inspiration to write Historical Fantasy was borne.
~ ~ ~


Blurb

Five stories, five women, five legends.

Phaedra, a Minoan princess, marries out of duty and to safeguard her precious home. She falls in love with Hippolytos, her husband’s son and asks the Goddess Aphrodite for help. He spurns her affections.

The Trojan War, one of history’s greatest stories ever told. What if the legend as told is wrong? History is told by the victors, and facts changed to twist the truth. Is it possible Helen of Sparta never went to Troy?

Hera, Queen of the Gods, is the most powerful goddess on Mount Olympos. For the first time ever in a candid interview, Hera shares what it’s like to be a goddess and wife to Zeus, the King of the Gods.

Created by the gods as a gift to humanity, Pandora is the first woman on Earth. Did she know what Zeus intended when he presented an urn as a wedding dowry to her husband? Neither she nor Epimetheus knew what it contained, but they were told never to open it.

All Medousa wanted was a life of love and acceptance but one fateful night it changed. While she’s alone in the Temple of Athene tending to the sacred fire, Poseidon pays a visit. No human can stop an immortal from taking what they want.


Excerpt – Cursed by Treachery

Perseus ran on light feet, clambered the multitude of stairs and stopped dead in his tracks on the landing. His breathing quickened and he broke into a cold sweat. His heart beat so fast, it felt as if it may burst through his chest. He stared at the overcrowded courtyard, his mind screaming at him to turn and leave. He lifted a hand to his mouth and clamped his teeth on it. When the wave of hysteria passed, he released his hand. He glanced at it. The teeth marks etched into the skin were white, the surrounding area red. He took a deep breath and threaded his way through the stone statues. Men and women forever frozen in time, their faces were contorted in pain and horror, bodies stuck in perpetual flight. He stole into the darkened chamber and came to a halt. The sound of his breathing was ragged and loud.
When his eyes adjusted to the dimness, he scanned the room. The hilt of the sword became slick and as Perseus tightened his grip, it almost slipped from his hand. He leant the sword against the wall beside him and wiped both hands on his khiton. He then pulled the shield over his head, strapped it to his arm and grabbed the sword. About to step further into the chamber, he hesitated. These women were formidable. The evidence of their powers stood outside in the courtyard. He frowned. There must be a way to outsmart them and avoid becoming another victim, he thought. He bit his lip. It was then that he saw her. Her hands rested on her swollen belly, fingers splayed, adding a protective layer. Perseus eyes narrowed, his lips drawn into a thin line.
He reached up to make sure the helmet given to him by nymphs was still on his head and checked the winged shoes to make sure they weren’t damaged during his journey to seek out the Gorgones. They were crucial to his escape. His mind was blank, no ideas forthcoming as he stood there with the sleeping Gorgones only some feet away. At that moment, he became aware of another sound in the room. It made his blood turn cold and the hair on his body stand on end. It was like dry leaves rustling against each other and the occasional hiss. He then realised where it was coming from. He was told what they looked like but didn’t really believe the stories. Dark writhing masses cocooned the heads of the women. Right there and then, Perseus knew what to do.


Accursed Women available in paperback and as an eBook via website: Eternal Atlantis http://www.luccav.com
and on Createspace, Amazon, Kobo, Smashwords and leading online book stores.

Thursday 13 February 2014

Valentine's Day

To celebrate Valentine’s Day I am sharing two lovely poems written by the talented Mary Aris.  
The artwork has also been created by Mary.

For more of her poems check out her book of poetry below.




Love’s Eternal Holiday
         
It is the morning of love’s eternal holiday.
Let us celebrate romance
In grand, sophisticated style;
In February, birds do mate,
Likewise, let us congregate.

My heart, like the precious rose, opens petal by petal
Unto you, my heart unfolds.
Dearest Valentine, you are a god to me.
Today I venerate your shrine
With kisses and tender sighs of delight.
Your eyes, like two of the finest stars in heaven shine,
And goes about its orbits!

Let’s appease our appetites with love’s ferocious kiss.
Like Adam’s fatal fruit of passion,
Let’s devour each other’s soul.

Let me touch your velvety flesh, my sweet Amor,
And brush my hand against your chestnut hair.
Let me see your flawless-dimpled smile,
Which takes my breath away!


© Mary Aris. All rights reserved




Eternally

As countless as the sand;
As the stars burn eternally
Together, hand in hand
We stride throughout life’s journey.

I with you and you with me;
Sharing a burning passion
That fuels our love eternally..
Propelling our ship through love’s ocean.

Through gales, storms; come rain or shine...
We can ride above life’s many storms
Together with a burning love divine
Which will keep us safe and warm.

We took a solemn oath together
pledging our love through eternity
Our souls merged that day forever
As love fused our hearts eternally.


© Mary Aris. All rights reserved






Sunday 2 February 2014

Books by Jay Deb


Max Doerr lives in New York with his wife and son, working as an editor for a newspaper. 
But He has a secret in his past life that he never told his wife. Then suddenly his son is killed brutally. 
Grief stricken, he tries to find his son’s killer but to no avail. 
During his investigation, his CIA past comes back to him and he gets involved in a vortex of murder and international crime and finds out that his son’s death was the beginning of a much bigger conspiracy. 

Available here:

Jay is willing to giveaway 5 copies of this e-book to interested readers. 
Comment below or email if interested.





When Tyler, a Wall Street fund manager, comes to Dallas to attend his father's birthday party he finds his father murdered and a family member is the prime suspect, a series of murders and an intriguing story follows as Tyler goes on a crusade to find the killer as he loses his job, girlfriend and comes close to kissing his own death.

 Available here:



Reading and writing is Jay Deb's passion.  He likes thriller and suspense books,
specifically espionage books.  He has written two novels.  The Assassin, an espionage novel, and Contrived, a hard-boiled mystery novel.
He is a software developer at a big bank and holds an under graduate degree in Physics and a graduate degree in Computer Science.
When he is not writing his next book, he likes to play golf or go fishing.  He lives in New Jersey with his son and wife. 


Connect with Jay



Jeanette's 4-stars-plus book montage

An Offer He Can't Refuse
Emily's Affair
Taste
Rough Harbor
The Chosen One
Runaway Heart
Bared to You
Melodies of the Heart
Fifty Shades Freed
Fifty Shades Darker
Fifty Shades of Grey
Anon
Somewhere in Time
House Guest
A Cop, His Wife and Her Best Friend
Hero Of Her Heart
All In Time
Asking for Andre
Almost a Bride
The Fence My Father Built


Jeanette Hornby's favorite books »

Jeanette's bookshelf: diversity

In Love With Death
3 of 5 stars true
I liked the authors take on the Angel of Death and enjoyed learning about the individual characters. The story was interesting and I liked the way the author simplified the subject matter. With a little more editing and polishing, this ...
tagged: from-dec-2011-to-now and diversity
An Offer He Can't Refuse
4 of 5 stars true
A thoroughly enjoyable tale. I liked the characters and the situation they were in. A good read for romance lovers.
tagged: from-dec-2011-to-now, 4-stars, diversity, and favourites
All In Time
4 of 5 stars true
An interesting and enjoyable story. I would have liked the unique events to unravel slower and continue longer, but overall, the tale was quite engrossing. A good read.
tagged: from-dec-2011-to-now, 4-stars, and diversity
Bloodtrail
4 of 5 stars true
An intricately woven vampire tale that keeps you wanting more. The historical and scientific content was unique and engrossing. I particularly liked the way the author separated each character's story in the beginning and then tied the...
tagged: diversity, 4-stars, and from-dec-2011-to-now
House Guest
4 of 5 stars true
A short, creepy and enthralling story. The development of the main character and situation was strangely enjoyable. A good read.
tagged: from-dec-2011-to-now, 4-stars, and diversity

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