An Alisa Release Day Review: Unfamiliar Waters by Andrew Grey

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

With the pressures of the job bearing down on him, police officer Garrett Wreckley needs a vacation—in fact, he isn’t given a choice in the matter. Since the water has always soothed Garrett’s soul, he heads to the Caribbean, hoping some time alone sailing on the open water will help him pull himself together.

But even though he’s taking a break from law enforcement, Garrett can’t get rid of his cop’s instinct so easily.

He meets Nigel, a young man as innocent as he is beautiful, who grew up sheltered from the world, exploring the beaches and tropical forests with only the company of his aunt, his brother, and the wildlife and sea creatures he befriended.

As sweet, passionate love blooms, their time in paradise feels too good to be true… and Garrett’s gut and training tell him that might be the case. As he investigates, he quickly realizes everything is not as it seems. Will his snooping destroy not only their romance, but everything Nigel believes about his life?

This story was nice. Garrett has been working himself ragged and gets put on vacation when he starts to make mistakes on the job. Nigel is very innocent and sweet which is like sunshine to Garrett’s world.

Nigel’s story sets off all of Garrett’s warning bells and it gets worse when he finds out what is really happening. Underneath though Nigel is much stronger than Garrett first gave him credit for.

I loved Garrett’s determination to help Nigel and his brother no matter what, even if in the end Nigel doesn’t choose him. The story is told from Garrett’s point of view so we just see Nigel from the outside but it’s easy to see how he fell for him so fast. There was quite a bit of Nigel doubting how Garrett was feeling but much of that I think came from inexperience.

The cover art by Kanaxa is nice and I like the visuals.

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press | Amazon | B&N

Book Details:

ebook, 200 pages

Published: January 8, 2019 by Dreamspinner Press

ISBN-13: 978-1-64080-964-2

Edition Language: English

Robert P. Rowe On Book Covers, Concept , and his new release Gabriel and the Devil (author guest post and excerpt)

Gabriel and the Devil by Robert P. Rowe

Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: Tiferet Design

Buy Links: Dreamspinner Press | Amazon | Apple Books

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to host Robert P. Rowe here today talking about his new story Gabriel and the Devil and how it’s cover developed. Welcome, Robert!

How do you choose your cover?

Dreamspinner Press has a whole art department dedicated to cover design and interior layout. When I first started with DSP they solicited a lot of feedback from writers about their books. In my case that was easy. I’m an art director. I knew exactly what my covers needed to look like. But most writers aren’t art directors too. Most don’t have a great idea of what they want their cover to look like.

Recently, DSP has changed their cover design process. They say, “You can’t judge a book by its cover.” But everyone does. So the DSP marketing department has stepped in to play a stronger role in cover design. At the 2018 DSP Writer’s Workshop the new process was introduced along with a large sampling of covers.

The audience was thrilled. They saw covers so inspiring that they wanted to write books to go along with the covers.

In the case of Gabriel and the Devil I had a very clear picture of what my main characters should look like. But the art and marketing department had different ideas—two to be exact. I was shown two covers created by Anna Sikorska. The cover that DSP marketing liked the best was bright and colorful, but the cover model looked sad. In fact the whole cover seemed a bit of a downer to me.

The alternative cover was very close to the cover that I chose. This cover tells so many stories. Main character, Gabriel, is very uncertain about his life and ultimately about his beliefs. The cover model wears and expression that perfectly fits this character. But the first version of the devil, Marcello, looked sad too. When I pointed out that this character is fun loving and should be smiling he came back with an evil looking grin. But finally we were able to get just the right look. There needed to be a wink to the readers letting them know that this story is fun. Perhaps it’s a bit of devilish fun, but it’s fun.

Best of all the cover is bold and striking. The devil is contrasted on a white background while the angel is on a black background. The image not only contrasts good and evil, it also is very reminiscent of the yin and yang symbol. In fact that is an underlying message in the story: “Evil brings out the best in people.”

Gabriel and the Devil blurb:

Flirting with the devil can lead to a helluva good time.

Gabriel is a regular angel. The former altar boy plans to graduate from college, become an accountant, get a good job, find a wife, and live a faithful Catholic life.

But one Halloween night, the devil pops in out of nowhere, challenges everything he believes, and heats up Gabriel’s lonely life.

Marcello is full of the devil. He’s lusted after Gabriel forever, but what he really wants is Gabriel’s eternal soul. Still, his mischievous sense of humor, along with his tricks and jokes, leads to a misunderstanding that could condemn him to hell on Earth. Only the truth will let these souls find true love and happiness.

A Very Short Except:

“You don’t know God at all, Gabriel.”

“Really?”

“Really. God is love—eternal, unconditional love. There are no exceptions, and that includes his love for Satan.”

“God hates sin.”

“Your God. Let me tell you a little story about the real God. This is a story that they won’t teach you in catechism. I can’t say it happened a long time ago because there was no such thing as time when it happened. There was only God and his angels. And all eternity was light and good.

“God knew everything there was to know. And he was bored. He wanted to learn more. So he went to his angels, whom he loved unconditionally, with a proposal. He needed one of his angels to rule over darkness. Now his angels all loved him so much that they would have done anything he asked. Of course, his angels had no idea what darkness was, but if God needed an angel to take charge over it, he wasn’t exactly short on volunteers.

“But before Lucifer got the job, God explained what the position entailed. You see, Gabriel, all light and goodness isn’t enough. There has to be contrast or you have nothing. You, my dear soul, can’t only be good because you’ll never get a chance to learn. God needed the darkness so he could learn more. And trust me, darkness, evil, and bad things only bring out the best in people.”

Author Bio:

Robert P. Rowe has spent his entire career as a storyteller making an incredible leap from Disneyland ride operator to show-designer and art director at Walt Disney Imagineering. Immersive storytelling presents a distinctive challenge unlike that of live theater, film, radio, or print media. He is currently on staff as an art director for Universal Orlando. His many other works can be found around the world, primarily in Disney and Universal Studios parks.

His “real” job takes up much of his time, but his active imagination can’t stop dreaming up new stories. Whenever time permits, he’s writing about new characters off on their own incredible journeys.

Additionally, his outside interests include all aspects of architecture, with a specific fascination for the theatrical design of homes from midcentury movies and television. He has a keen enthusiasm for midcentury science fiction.

Website

Website: www.robertprowe.com

A Barb the Zany Old Lady Audio Review: The Soldati Prince (Soldati Hearts #1) by Charlie Cochet and Manuel Pombo (Narrator)

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

This was a fairly short audiobook but it was long on enjoyment. A different take on shifters, Charlie Cochet brings us tiger shifters (of course—big cats are her favorites!), but they are from a different world—a world of magical creatures and warriors who defend humanity from the darkness.

Riley Murrough is just a regular guy and as he’s going about his work one day he’s suddenly in a life or death struggle with demons. Who knew? When the battle is over and he realizes he’s been helped by a group of tigers who shift to human form, he’s sure he’s dreaming. But the tattoo that has appeared on his arm matches that of the king of these creatures—the Soldati King, and Riley is his Prince, his lifemate.

No insta-love here, however, as Khalon, the king, denies his connection to Riley. He has his reasons and though Riley finally faces facts and realizes he needs to accept the rejection, the magical realm has different plans for them.

This was a lively adventure, a bit too short to get into a lot of detail, but certainly enough detail to whet my appetite for more. I’ve already moved the next book in this series to my TBR.

The narration was good, though it could have been better. Manuel Pombo had a very pleasing voice but his narration was quite fast—almost as if he was rushing to finish by a short deadline. And the differentiation between the two MCs was sometimes noticeable, and other times not. I think over time, I will come to like this narrator, especially if the narrative is slowed down a bit.

The story itself was interesting and the characters engaging, including the secondary characters, two of whom will be featured in book two. They were both very positive, upbeat and often humorous throughout this story so theirs is one I must read. Overall, this was a nice treat and I recommend it to lovers of paranormal and fantasy romance.

Cover art: L.C. Chase.

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press | Amazon | Audible | iTunes

Audiobook Details:

Audible Audio, 2nd Edition
Published January 10th 2018 by Dreamspinner Press LLC (first published August 25th 2015)
Original Title The Soldati Prince
ASINB078TLPLJ1
Edition Language English
Series Soldati Hearts #1

E.J. Russell on the second in their Enchanted Occasions series, Devouring Flame (guest post and giveaway)

Devouring Flame by E.J. Russell

Dreamspinner Press

Cover Artist: Aaron Anderson

Buy links:

Amazon: http://ejr.pub/devouring-flame-amz

Other: http://ejr.pub/devouring-flame-b2r

Publisher: http://ejr.pub/fb-devouring-flame

Thank you so much for helping me celebrate the release of Devouring Flame! At the end of the tour, I’ll be giving away a prize—a $25 Dreamspinner gift card plus one of my backlist titles—to one commenter (chosen at random across all the tour posts), so please be sure to join the conversation!

Devouring Flame is the second book in my series centered around the employees of Enchanted Occasions Event Planning, where the word “enchanted” is quite literally, er, literal. The EO staff are all outcast from their supernatural home realms, most of them because they’re aitchers (short for half-and-half), part human and part other, and discriminated against by Pures of all races. But they’ve found a community with their EO co-workers, and job satisfaction staging magical events for their clients.

Of course, sometimes those events get… complicated. 🙂

The Vampire Conundrum

Until last year, even though I’d written a dozen books—three quarters of them paranormal—I’d never written one involving vampires. Then, by an odd coincidence, I ended up writing two at the same time.

Each was from a different paranormal romantic comedy series: my November release, Vampire with Benefits, is book two in my Supernatural Selection trilogy, and my current release, Devouring Flame, is the second Enchanted Occasions story. And the way I ended up treating the vampire mythos in each book was vastly different.

For one thing, in Vampire With Benefits, one of the main characters is a vampire, involved in a fake marriage scheme with an inactive beaver shifter. In Devouring Flame, however, vampires are side characters—treated as a group rather than individually—and are more of an annoyance and impediment to our co-heroes than participants in a love story of their own.

Consequently, I got to develop the rules for two different vampire worlds, which was great fun. The Supernatural Selection books belong in what I call my paranormal romantic comedy genre, but Enchanted Occasions veers more toward the screwball than just rom-com. Consequently, the Vampire With Benefits world is a little more serious than the one in Devouring Flame.

In VWB, all the vampires, with the exception of two who were Turned in America, are from Eastern Europe, and their society is still more or less feudal.

In Devouring Flame, the vampires behave more like a global corporation, with an annual conference (which Enchanted Occasions Event Planning has been hired to present), including sensitivity training sessions, officer elections, and bylaws review.

One of the things I felt pretty strongly about was that I didn’t want there to be any danger of a vampire population explosion. I wanted both series to have a limitation on creating new vampires, a moratorium, so that the population remained fixed. However, the reasons for the moratorium vary between the series.

In SS, the moratorium was imposed by the fae and druids, in exchange for evacuating the vampires from Europe after World War I.

In EO, the moratorium was instigated in 2007 with the publication of Twilight, because, to quote Smith, one of the heroes in Devouring Flame:

“Too many moony teenagers with unrealistically romantic notions about what it means to be undead. All the vamps started freaking out. They might be bloodsucking, egomaniacal sociopaths, but they’re not pedophiles. At least that’s what their PR team claims.”

For amusement, the SS vampires conduct themselves like the aristocracy they once were, attending sophisticated cocktail parties dressed in impeccable evening wear. The EO vampires, on the other hand, like vast, noisy costume balls, in which they cosplay as themselves—that is, as any version of “vampire” portrayed in human film or literature.

Another difference: the SS vampires can only smell and taste viable food sources (in other words, people whose blood will be appetizing and nourishing for them). They can’t taste or smell anything else, which means there’s little point for them to try. I sort of sidestep the issue of whether or not they actually could if they wanted to.

The EO vampires on the other hand… For one day out of every century, because of a spell in certain Interstitial sites, they can consume human food again. It’s their Centennial Feast, and Enchanted Occasions is staging that as well.

Since they have only twenty-four hours to eat—before waiting another hundred years—the vampires have a really, really, really long list of menu requirements. Because, as Mikos, Enchanted Occasions’ owner, says in response to Smith’s question about what vampires eat:

“When they’re only able to eat once every hundred years? Everything they possibly can.”

So what about you? If you had to pick a once-in-a-century menu, what would be on it?

Devouring Flame

An Enchanted Occasions story

Reunited and reignited.

While cutting through the Interstices—the post-creation gap between realms—Smith, half-demon tech specialist for Enchanted Occasions Event Planning, spies the person he yearns for daily but dreads seeing again: the ifrit, Hashim of the Windrider clan.

On their one literally smoldering night together, Smith, stupidly besotted, revealed his true name—a demon’s greatest vulnerability. When Hashim didn’t return the favor, then split the next morning with no word? Message received, loud and clear: Thanks but no, thanks.

Although Hashim had burned to return Smith’s trust, it was impossible. The wizard who conjured him holds his true name in secret, and unless Hashim discovers it, he’ll never be free.

When their attraction sparks once more, the two unite to search for Hashim’s hidden name—which would be a hell of a lot easier if they didn’t have to contend with a convention full of food-crazed vampires on the one day out of the century they can consume something other than blood.

But if they fail, Hashim will be doomed to eternal slavery, and their reignited love will collapse in the ashes.

Luckily Smith is the guy who gets shit done. And Hashim is never afraid to heat things up.

About the Author

E.J. Russell–grace, mother of three, recovering actor–writes romance in a rainbow of flavors. Count on high snark, low angst and happy endings.

Reality? Eh, not so much.

E.J.’s paranormal romantic comedy, The Druid Next Door, was a 2018 RITA® finalist. She’s married to Curmudgeonly Husband, a man who cares even less about sports than she does. Luckily, C.H. also loves to cook, or all three of their children (Lovely Daughter and Darling Sons A and B) would have survived on nothing but Cheerios, beef jerky, and Satsuma mandarins (the extent of E.J.’s culinary skill set).

E.J. lives in rural Oregon, enjoys visits from her wonderful adult children, and indulges in good books, red wine, and the occasional hyperbole.

Contact info:

Email: ejr@ejrussell.com

Website: http://ejrussell.com

Newsletter: http://ejrussell.com/newsletter

Facebook reader group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/reality.optional

Facebook author page: https://www.facebook.com/E.J.Russell.author

Amazon author page: http://www.amazon.com/author/ej_russell

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/e-j-russell

Twitter: http://twitter.com/ej_russell

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ej_russell_author

Giveaway

The author is offering a giveaway prize—a $25 Dreamspinner gift card plus one of their backlist titles—to one commenter (chosen at random across all the tour posts) at the end of the tour

Marguerite Labbe on the Struggles with Addiction and her new story ‘A Whole Latte Sass (Geek Life #2)’

A Whole Latte Sass (Geek Life #2) by Marguerite Labbe

Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: Kanaxa

Buy Links: Dreamspinner Press | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to host Marguerite Labbe here today to talk about the next story in her Geek LIfe series, A Whole Latte Sass. Welcome, Marguerite!

Hello everyone. It’s great to be back at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words. When I write, I like a mix of the serious and the humorous. I like to touch on topics that have affected me personally. For years I’ve wanted to write a main character who was a recovering addict, but it was always either too close to home or I just didn’t feel as I could do my best by him at the time. Then Trask Briscoe came along and I knew he was the one.

Trask had a rough start in life. His parents were addicts and his home was not a safe environment to be in. He did have his Grandmother though. She’s the one who gave him love and discipline in equal measure. She is the only one from his home that he thinks of with affection and respect. But that didn’t stop him from starting to use too. And when he left home, running as far as he could to the east coast, that demon followed him.

Addiction is a fact of life in my family as it is in so many other families, though people often don’t want to talk about it. I was sixteen years old when my mom went into rehab for drug use. I attended Alateen sessions for years. There’s a condition called “dry drunk” that can persist even after a person stops using. It’s where they continue the same behaviors and attitudes they had while they were using. Living with that is as bad as living with the addict. Though, my mom got clean, she might as well have been using for many more years before her time in therapy, rehab, and AA meetings started to make a profound change within her. She’s so strong and even now with almost thirty years of being clean she still goes to AA meetings and she’s a much more happy and stable person than before.

Trask had his ups and downs too. His road to getting clean was not an easy one and it’s why he clings so hard to his rules and the path he’s on. He’s utterly committed to staying off the drugs and alcohol. He’s very aware of the dangers of having “just one” as that “just one” bit him on the ass after being clean for over a year. I’ve seen people in the AA rooms who had five years sobriety and that one drink sent them on a tailspin. And I’ve also seen them have the amazing courage to stand up and collect that 24 hour chip after using again. I’ve lost people to this disease and so has Trask and I’ve also watched people transform their lives for the better.

My sister drank for years, hiding it from everyone. All the signs were there, but it’s so hard to see it sometimes. I ask myself how I could’ve missed it as do my parents and other siblings. I knew her history as a teenager. I worked at a rehab center for years. I missed it. We all missed it until we couldn’t any longer. So we staged an intervention and she went to AA for two years claiming the entire time she wasn’t an alcoholic until she was ready to face it. Her husband at the time didn’t believe alcoholism was really a disease and that caused other problems. It’s hard to quit when your SO thinks it’s only a matter of control. During the divorce she didn’t start drinking again, but she started using like mom, sleeping pills, antianxiety pills, anything she could get her hands on, until she hit a bottom on that one and crawled her way back out of the pit. She has a new husband who supports her whole-heartedly and her life is going in a new direction.

I have so much respect for the both of them. And there were times when I wrote scenes with Trask that I just cried because I recognized his struggle. I wanted to get it right and even with as much as I know it’s not the same as having gone through it. My sister read his scenes for me and gave me her input and her and my mom’s permission to talk about it. They are two tough beautiful ladies and a constant reminder to me not to let the statistics take your courage away. There are here and today they are clean. They provide leadership within their NA/AA circles and have made lifelong friends who know exactly what they are going through.

So if you, or anyone you love is struggling with addiction, please know that those circles work. I’ve seen them work. I’ve felt the energy and love there as well as the kind of firm, no nonsense accountability that everyone needs from time to time. And if you ever want a non-judgmental ear, I will be blessed to answer any email. Blessings to you all this New Year.

Excerpt

* * *

“I don’t know why you didn’t tell them to fuck off,” Felipe fumed as they made their way to the truck.

Trask had been tempted. He hated being judged, hell, even when he deserved it. It got his hackles up every time. And times like this, when he didn’t deserve it, it dug under his skin even more, making his temper simmer. “What would it have solved other than drive a deeper wedge?” Dammit, he hated uncomfortable family situations, hated them with a holy passion. He slid behind the wheel and rested his head back against the seat. “And damned if I can’t see their point.”

“Don’t you fucking dare take their side.” Felipe twisted to face him. “All I asked was for them to give you a chance, not jump all over you. I don’t care about the twenty years between us. And dammit, your past has made you the man you are today. So yeah, it fucking sucked, and you put yourself in some shitty places, but you got yourself out of them too.”

Trask shook his head and started the truck. Felipe had his points, but if Trask was a dad, he was pretty sure he’d have serious reservations about a forty-year-old man hooking up with his son or daughter.

Felipe huffed out a breath and let out a few more choice oaths. His phone rang, and he ignored it. “So you said you inherited the money for the store. Who from? I thought you and your family didn’t get along.”

Trask sensed that Felipe was asking more out of a need to distract himself than curiosity, but he had to stop dodging the questions or giving only partial answers. Might as well tell all tonight. There was no reason to hold back anymore.

“My grandmother, but I had to be clean to collect on it. And man, I wanted that chance. I wanted her to see that I could build on what she left me. That I wouldn’t be like my parents. I wanted her to be proud of me. So I found myself a program, got clean, showed up back in Texas a year later with my paperwork, test results. Pissed my old man off to no end. He was hoping to contest her will and take the money for himself.” Trask sighed and scrubbed a hand through his hair.

“How long did you stay clean after that?” Felipe asked softly.

“Almost another seven months.” Trask shook his head, his hands tightening on the wheel. “Once I’d bought the place, got everything settled, inventory in stock and the initial flurry of activity was over, I convinced myself that one drink to celebrate wouldn’t hurt anybody. I could handle one damn drink. Goddamn, I was wrong.”

Trask had zero recollection of the next few nights. “All I know is that I finally came out of it several days later, naked in some damn flophouse, with a shit taste in my mouth, fresh track marks, and too many bruises.”

He glanced over to find Felipe watching him with wide, solemn eyes. “And a whole shit pile of shame and guilt?”

Trask nodded. “You nailed it, and I couldn’t face it, so I went right back to using. I couldn’t face her memory, knowing how upset it would make her if she saw me.”

Felipe caught Trask’s hand and lifted it, studying his knuckles before laying a kiss on them. “Maybe for a while, but you found the strength to fight it back again and again until you were able to say you have almost sixteen years clean. You ever think that your grandmother looked at you and didn’t see a man who kept failing but instead saw the man who kept picking himself up to wage that war again?”

Trask’s throat tightened to an unbearable ache. He’d never looked at it quite that way, but knowing his grandmother the way he had, yeah, he could see that. Felipe opened up such a wellspring in him sometimes, emotions that had been shunted aside so he could deal with the day-to-day, that the intensity of allowing himself those feelings almost physically hurt. He tugged Felipe to him. “You’re incredible, you know that?” he asked as Felipe wound his arm around Trask’s shoulder. “She would’ve loved the hell out of you.”

Blurb:

It’s no secret cosplayer Felipe Suero is looking for his happily ever after—in his love life as well as his career. He’s getting his degree so he can quit his miserable job and start his own costume business. Now he just needs to land the sexiest silver fox to ever attend a con.

Trask Briscoe’s life revolves around staying clean and sober, running the Magick Den, and attending local cons. His rules haven’t left much room for romance. But he can’t deny Felipe has caught his complete attention. He’s just not sure what he can offer a man so full of joy and sass.

When Trask finally accepts Felipe’s offer for a cup of coffee, he soon finds himself on a second date and a third. Between cosplay projects and roleplaying games, they discover a deeper connection than either of them expected. And Trask realizes that sometimes rules are made to be broken.

Now Felipe just has to convince his family—and Trask—that Trask has more love to offer than he ever dreamed.

About the Author

Marguerite Labbe loves writing stories about the beauty of love and the strength of family, whether it’s the family you’re born into or the one you create. She married her next-door neighbor and best friend, and they have one son, one dog, and two cats who rule them all. She has finally converted her Alabama born husband into being a Red Sox fan and now only needs to convince her son. She runs Apocrypha Comics Studio with her husband and they often trek off to comic book conventions on the weekend where they celebrate all manner of geek culture.

Social Media:

Author website: http://margueritelabbe.blogspot.com/

Twitter handle: @MargueriteLabbe

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marguerite.labbe.3

Final Lists of 2018 and This Week at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

Happy 2019! Here Are Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

Final Best of 2018 Lists!

Here are the last of our lists for 2018, in many categories and divided out as each reviewer saw fit. So many books read and listened too. It’s been an amazing year. It was tough to narrow down lists as always. Gone from mine was the cozies. I love my cozy mysteries and that category will probably come back next year.

Many of the books that came out went to other reviewers here, speeding past me and they have now landed on my huge TBR list. I see many on our reviewers Best of 2018 that I also haven’t gotten to yet, having my own huge set of stories to read this year.

Isn’t it lovely to have these stories to look forward to?

And new one to come in 2019!

So one last look all the book that rose above the many we read and loved this year to end up on our Best of 2018 this year, along with the covers, Best of Audiobooks as well. Check them all out below:

From Stella:

Here are my Best of 2018

The Fortune Hunter by Bonnie Dee

Contour (Shape of You #1) by Meg Harding

When It’s Time (Go Your Own Way #3) by Zane Riley

Alaska (Sawyer’s Ferry #1) by Cate Ashwood

Bishop Ridge (Sawyer’s Ferry #2) by Cate Ashwood

Detour (Transportation #1) by Reesa Herberth and Michelle Moore

Jericho Candelario’s Gay Debut by R Cooper

Spark (North Star #1) by Posy Roberts

Alpha Unit One, New York by Chris T. Kat

The Thousand Smiles of Nicholas Goring (Butterfly Hunter #3) by Julie Bozza

Tomte by Jamie Fessenden

BEST SERIES

Go On Your Own Way by Zane Riley

Sawyer’s Ferry by Cate Ashwood

North Star Trilogy by Posy Roberts

Butterfly Hunter by Julie Bozza

From Lucy

I am the first to admit I am so stingy with my five star reviews. I like many books, I love quite a few but for me the five stars are the ones that I want to read over and over, that stick with me long after I’ve finished them and the ones that make me sad I’m finished because I don’t want to leave them. For 2018, some of the ones I loved weren’t released in 2018 (or just the audio was released this year) but I read them this year. So in random order, my five star reads for this year…

From the Ashes by CM Valencourt – While my list is in no particular order, this is the exception. This was my absolute favorite book of 2018 and may end up being one of my favorite books of all times. I gave it five stars, rare enough for me, but I would have given it more if possible. Justin is the most amazing character and I cried, laughed, cried more and just had so much respect and love for that selfless man.

A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo by Jill Twiss – A sweet children’s book about embracing your differences and not being a stink bug. I have this one on audio as well and John Lithgow and Jim Parsons make it absolutely perfect. I thought it was funny that I bought the book and then had four different people give me copies as gifts!

My Crunchy Life Mia Kerick I am a fan of Mia Kerick’s young adult books and this one was amazing. The ending of this was so perfect, sweet and YA and lovely. This coming of age story isn’t incredibly angsty, despite some very serious themes, but it’s a story of growth and I thought it was just right. It was so spot on with the confusion and angst that can be the teen years.

Exorcising the Exes Jill Wexler Loved it. I can’t even do justice to how amazing Tanner is, and once he meets Dan things just get so much better. It makes me smile every time I read it. The insane goose posse, the taco binge, the hashtags, the everything!

Bump Matthew Metzger I read a couple by Matthew Metzger this year and I was hard pressed to decide if I liked Bump or Erik the Pink more, but ultimately went with Bump. As a trans man who just want to be seen as a man, this was such a struggle for David and it was perfectly encapsulated in this book. David’s gender dysphoria was handled realistically and the emotions are so strong. Even more interesting for me was that David didn’t give birth and immediately become super parent. I loved that because it is a fact that not everyone has that Hallelujah, bonding and perfection moment immediately.

Promises by Ruby Moone Ruby Moone is a favorite of mine for historicals. I loved this one even more than usual because our characters, Sebastian and Charles, are realistic and likeable but also because the secret that Sebastian is hiding from everyone is not only being attracted to men, shameful and dangerous in that time period, but something else that isn’t understood. I ust loved it.

Suicide Watch Kelley York So bittersweet, it was sad and hopeful. Best of all, it was true to the feelings of Vincent, Casper and Adam. This definitely wasn’t a sweet and fluffy read (my usual) but these characters were so real and made me smile and cry.

Phoenix Goes to School: A Story to Support Transgender and Gender Diverse Children – Michelle Finch and Phoenix Finch The book was written by Michelle and Phoenix Finch, a real life seven year old transgender girl who was assigned male at birth. At the end of the book there are comprehension questions and some open-ended critical thinking questions that as a teacher I appreciated. Possibly even better, there is an informational section at the end for grownups.
I loved the story of Phoenix going to school but more importantly, I hope that transgendered and gender diverse children will read this and know they are not alone, they are perfect just the way they are.

AUDIO FAVORITES

Tell Me It’s Real and Until You by TJ Klune – These are my go-to re-reads when I’m having a lousy week. I know I’m late to the party, as I just read them this year when I bought the audio. I can’t believe it took me so long. If I were to get to be any character I’ve read, I’d be Paul Auster!

Audio: A Family for Christmas Another one that was introduced to me via audio. The car ride to work is so much improved with these books. I loved Rudy and my heart went out to Zac. This is a sweet story of a man afraid to let anyone in and a family who refuses to keep anyone out.

Favorite cover because it perfectly captured the feel of the book:

From Lila:

As of today, I have read 234 books of my goal of 144. Just like last year, I don’t have one favorite book for the year. Some have been great, others not so much, but I can’t say one was the best of them all. Therefore, I’m using the same format as last year to tell you more about the books I enjoyed. I’m really looking forward to that perfect book though. I hope to share it with you all next year.

Looking back on my shelves,

The Best of 2018 (according to me) are:

· Best Cover – Art House (Buchanan House #6) by Charley Descoteaux. Cover by L.C. Chase

· January – Felix and the Prince (Forever Wilde #2) by Lucy Lennox

· February – Off the Beaten Path by Cari Z. [Audiobook]

· March – Fake Out (Fake Boyfriend #1) by Eden Finley

· April – Beneath This Mask (Enhanced #3) by Victoria Sue [Audiobook]

· May – Object of Desire by Dal Maclean

· June – Logan’s Need (The Escort #3) by Sloane Kennedy

· July – Unexpected (The Protectors #10) by Sloane Kennedy

· August – Creature (Bureau #3) by Kim Fielding [Audiobook]: John is now my favorite MM character of all time.

· September – A Gentleman’s Position (Society of Gentlemen #3) by K.J. Charles [Audiobook]

· October – Dirty Desire (Dread and Terrible #1) by Avril Ashton

· November – Bond (Forbidden Desires #2) by Piper Scott & Virginia Kelly

· December – Home in Austin (Lone Star Brothers #4) by Susi Hawke

Free Dreamer’s Best of 2018

2018 was a great reading year. I read 80 books, just like planned, which is 14 books and about 2000 pages more than in 2017. I have finally decided that normal literature just isn’t for me, especially if it’s supposed to be Meaningful and make you Think. Maybe I’m just too immature. But I’ve also discovered that there are some very interesting non-fiction books out there. None of them quite made it to my list, but it’s definitely a genre I’ll keep pursuing.

While I only review LGBT+ fiction for Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words, my reading habits are far more varied and my “Best of” list just wouldn’t be complete without them. Those books mostly contain little to no romance, since I’m not much of a romance reader anyway.

An honorable mention should go to the “Taking Shield” series by Anna Butler. I read the first three books in quick succession and really enjoyed them. But they just didn’t quite make it to “Best of”.

I hope 2019 will be another good reading year, for me and all the other readers out there. Happy New Year!

LGBT+:

“Showers, Flowers and Fangs” by Aiden Wayne (adorable YA fantasy)
“Salt Magic, Skin Magic” by Lee Welch (fascinating historical fantasy)
“Bones and Bourbon” by Dorian Graves (what a wild ride; brilliant fantasy)
“Amberlough” and “Armistice” by Lara Elena Donnelly (very surprising espionage thrillers set in an AU 1940s)
“The Seeds of Dissolution” by William C. Tracey (very unique magic system)
“Another Day” by David Levithan (loved part one and finally read the great sequel)

Non-LGBT:

“Arcanum Unbounded” by Brandon Sanderson (collection of novellas and short stories set in the Cosmere, Sanderson’s main universe; great for hardcore fans like me)
“Empire of Sand” by Tasha Suri (Fantasy set in a desert world, inspired by the Indian/Arabian culture)
“Snapshot” by Brandon Sanderson (Novella; Mind fuck like woah)
“Verwunschen” by Mara Lang (New Adult Fantasy set in a modern fairy tale world, dark as hell; Sadly only available in German)
“Not Quite Narwhal” by Jessie Sima (super adorable picture book)“The Doldrums and the Helmsley Curse” by Nicholas Gannon (children’s fiction with gorgeous illustrations, reminded me of classical adventure stories)

MelanieM Best of 2018

Best Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Paranormal/Supernatural for 2018

The Calling by MD Neu

Bones and Bourbon by Dorian Graves

Stone the Crows (Wolf Winter #2)by T.A. Moore

Green Death by Madeleine Ribbon

Sweet Clematis (Being(s) in Love #9) by R. Cooper

The Rising Tide (Liminal Skies #2) by J.Scott Coatsworth

And God Belched by Rob Rosen

Apocalypse Alley (Blue Unicorn #2)by Don Allmon

Lander (The Oberon Cycle, #2 by J. Scott Coatsworth

Best Historical Novels of 2018

I will admit this category is owned almost entirely this year by Marshall Thornton

and two series of his: Pinx Video Mystery and Boystown (all of the novels were reviewed this years and were 5 stars)

Hidden Treasures (A Pinx Video Mystery #2) by Marshall Thornton

Late Fees by Marshall Thornton

The Stars May Rise and Fall by Estella Mirai (recent historical retelling of the Phantom of the Opera)

Best of 2018 ~ Contemporary Novel

Forged in Flood by Dahlia Donovan

Stand By Your Manny (The Mannies #3) by Amy Lane

The Eye of Ra (Repeating History #1) by Dakota Chase

Mammoth! (Repeating History #3) by Dakota Chas

The Evolution of Jeremy Warsh by Jess Moore (coming out, coming of age)

Wait For Me by Kris Jacen

Learn with Me (With Me #3) by Kris Jacen

Loving A Warrior by Melanie Hansen

Homebird by Amy Lane

One Thousand Cranes (The Yakuza Path #3) by Amy Tasukada

The Deafening Silence (The Yakuza Path #4) by Amy Tasukada

Best Series of 2018

Blue Unicorn Trilogy by Don Allmon

Offbeat Crimes Series by Angel Martinez

The Yakuza Path by Amy Tasukada

Liminal Sky Series by J. Scott Coatsworth

Boystown series by Marshall Thornton

This Time Forever Series by Kelly Jensen

Faith, Love & Devotion by Tere Michaels (series finale 2018)

Best Audiobook of 2018

Crocus (Bonfires #2) by Amy Lane and Nick J. Russo (Narrator)

When Everything is Blue by Laura Lascarso and Michael Mola (Narrator)

Spun! by JL Merrow and Mark Steadman (Narrator)

The Lion and the Crow by Eli Easton and Scott Richard Ehredt (Narrator)

Best Covers of 2018

The Yakuza Path series by Amy Tasukada, artist Natasha Snow

Blue Unicorn #2 and #3 by Don Allmon, artist Simone’

Mary, Queen of Scotch by Rob Rosen, Cover art: Written Ink Design

Homebird by Amy Lane, Artist: Reese Dante

The Rising Tide by J. Scott Coatsworth

Wish Upon The Stars by T.J. Klune, Artist Paul Richmond

Special Mention for 2018

It would have to go to Ethan Day who left us all too soon and his wonderful series, Summit City, who had a new release in 2018 that gave his beloved characters the wedding and his readers a ending we had long wanted. That would be the third and now last story Life In Union.

This Week at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

Sunday, January 6:

Final Lists of 2018 and This Week at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

Monday, January 7:

BLITZ Tea by Matthew J. Metzger
PROMO Marguerite Labbe
E.J. Russell on Devouring Flame
A Lucy Review The Replacement Husband by Eliot Grayson
A Barb the Zany Old Lady Audio Review:The Soldati Prince (Soldati Hearts #1) by Charlie Cochet and Manuel Pombo (Narrator)

Tuesday, January 8:

PROMO Robert P. Rowe
BLITZ My Fake Canadian Wife by M. Hollis
An Alisa Release Day Review: Unfamiliar Waters by Andrew Grey
A Caryn Release Day Review: Devouring Flame by EJ Russell
A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review:Something Like Forever (Something Like #10) by Jay Bell

Wednesday, January 9:

Release Blitz – The Choice (The Faction, book 2) by Addison Albright
Release Blitz Is It Over Yet – LA Witt
BLITZ There’s Something about Flying by Schuyler L’Roux
A MelanieM Review: Valhalla by L.A. Ashton
Review: The Choice (The Faction, book 2) by Addison Albright

Thursday, January 10:

PROMO Elizabeth Noble
Tour for Out in the Offense by Lane Hayes
An Alisa Review: Ta Weezo’s Blues by Layla Dorine
A MelanieM Review: You Forever Always by KA Merikan

Friday, January 11:

PROMO Heidi Cullinan and Marie Sexton
An Ashez Review: Elias by Erin E Keller
A Melanie Release Day Review: Don’t Fear the (Not Really) Grim Reaper by Carole Cummings
A LIla Review: Not on My Bucket List by Tom Munroe
A Barb the Zany Old Lady Audio Review:The Alpha Heir (Kingdom of Askara #2) by Victoria Sue and Joel Leslie (Narrator)

Saturday, January 12:

A MelanieM Review: Prince of Air and Darkness by M.A. Grant

Julia Talbot on Bad Boys, Weird Shifters and her new release ‘Fox and Wolf (Apex Investigations #1)’ (author guest post)

Fox and Wolf (Apex Investigations #1) by Julia Talbot

Dreamspinner Press
Cover Art: Kanaxa

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press | Amazon

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to host Julia Talbot here in the new year. Welcome, Julia.

Hey y’all!

I’m Julia Talbot, and I’m here to talk about my new novella Fox and Wolf, which is book one in the Apex Investigations series.

Raise your hand if you love weird shifters.

Now, while the weirdest shifter in the PI unit at APEX Investigations is a Brazilian jaguar, the bad guys in this one are weird.

WEIRD.

A tiger is the leader, but his henchmen. Dire croc shifters. Dire meaning they’re caught kinda halfway between man and croc. They stink. They’re not real bright. They like water. They can destroy a building in short order.

Very bad guys.

I do love matching the shifter to their animal counterparts. I think of crocs as basically dinosaurs with little care for human law. It was really interesting writing them and seeing how they would deal with a bunch of other predators.

It was even more interesting taking a bunch of APEX predators and lowering them on the food chain.

I hope y’all will check it out!

XXOO

Julia

Blurb:

Apex Investigations: Book One

Werewolf PI Dylan Weems is a hired to solve the murder of a client’s customer. As an ex-cop, Dylan is the perfect man for the job, but he doesn’t expect the complication of alluring fox shifter Rey.

Ever since finding the dead body of one of his clients, Rey Mercier’s life is a mess, and he needs help desperately. He has no idea why he’s the target of some ruthless people or what he did to anger them. Hopefully Dylan and his motley crew of shifters at Apex Investigations can help him find out, but first Dylan and Rey have to deal with literal corporate tigers and dire crocodiles shifters… all while deciding what to do about the mate bond that’s becoming undeniable. And is that even possible between fox and wolf?

Buy link (preorder) at Dreamspinner Press.

About the Author

Stories that leave a mark. Julia Talbot loves romance across all the genders and genres, and loves to write about people working to see past the skin they’re in to love what lies beneath. Julia Talbot lives in the great mountain and high desert Southwest, where there is hot and cold running rodeo, cowboys, and everything from meat and potatoes to the best Tex-Mex. A full time author, Julia has been published by Dreamspinner, All Romance Ebooks, and Changeling Press. She believes that everyone deserves a happy ending, so she writes about love without limits, where boys love boys, girls love girls, and boys and girls get together to get wild, especially when her crazy paranormal characters are involved. She also writes BDSM and erotic romance as Minerva Howe. Find Julia at @juliatalbot on Twitter, or at www.juliatalbot.com

Links

Website: http://www.juliatalbot.com

FB : https://www.facebook.com/juliatalbotauthor

FB page: https://www.facebook.com/juliatalbotwriterpage/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/juliatalbot

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/juliatalbotwrites

A MelanieM Review: Forever & Ever: A Collection of Stories (Faith, Love & Devotion #7) by Tere Michaels

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

A Faith, Love, & Devotion Anthology

What happens after the story ends?

Join Matt, Evan, Jim, Griffin, and their friends and families for a glimpse of what happens after happily ever after. Between growing up and growing pains, weddings and retirement, changing careers and changing diapers, life is never boring. Changes, decisions, tears, and joy await as the years march on.

For most readers, we have favorites series we can name at the drop of a hat. Characters so beloved, so familiar that they have become a part of us over time, our affection and love growing with each story that rolled out, our connection deepening as we fell into their lives, riding out their romance rollercoasters and some very heavy drama. And also for all the highs and rewarding moments that kept carrying all of us forward through the series and their relationship(s).

And with all series, there must come an end. Not that we want to admit it. But reasonably for every start, a finale must follow.

And for many reasons, that’s the one bit I always approach with apprehension and trepidation. Series can get off on shaky steps but soon they are off and running, having found their foundation. And they just get better and better in every way. Faith, Love, and Devotion was great from the start. Tere Michaels had characters that were messy, stubborn, closeted, hounded by demons, one had a deceased wife, kids that came with their own issues, police departments and cases that followed them with ghastly consequences, and so much more. Complex doesn’t even begin to describe these men and their dynamics.

Nor how deeply I and so many others fell in love with them and their painful, often labyrinthine road to a relationship and HEA. I’m surprised it was only seven books to be honest.

The author wrote skillfully of how mired down any current decision making is in the past histories, how choices for the future are often decided by others and elements flying under the radar. In other words, these novels were real, believable, sometimes painful and frustrating to read when the characters behaved all too authentically. We could all shake our heads as Evan overthought something yet again, and we wondered how Matt was going to handle it. Don’t get me started on Jim and Griffin’s rocky path. That had me glued to my Kindle through many a night. Oh, Jim and Griffin, who teetered precariously on becoming my favorites here. We lived with these people…over and over again We watched the children grow up, the relationships change and mature as they do…and I started to wonder about the end of the series.

Luckily, Michaels decided to give all her readers a love letter. Forever & Ever: A Collection of Stories (Faith, Love & Devotion #7) by Tere Michaels is exactly that. A collection of short stories that flow one to the other a year of several after that last book. It shows the natural progression in the lives of these characters. Mostly hilarious, some warmhearted and loving, it continues to tighten the bonds between all the people you’ve grown to over over all six novels and pulls it together in one last story to gladden your heart.

It’s a series finale you will be happy with. Not something I have said every time. No I can go back and read this one again and again as I do many of the books here and be delighted. I think all lovers of this series and these couples will be too.

So yes I’m highly recommended this collection and this series. New to Faith, Love, and Devotion? I’ve listed the entire series for you below. Read them in the order they were written, What a wonderful journey awaits you! It’s one I intend on taking again and again.

Cover Artist: Aaron Anderson

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press | Amazon

Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 271 pages
Published December 25th 2018 by Dreamspinner Press
ASINB07L7HLQWY
Edition Language English
Series Faith, Love & Devotion (add to your Goodreads here) :

Faith & Fidelity

Love & Loyalty (the start of Jim Shea and Griffin Drake)

Forever & Ever: A Collection of Stories

A Barb the Zany Old Lady Audio Review : Ravensong (Green Creek #2) by T.J. Klune and Kirt Graves (Narrator)

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

TJ Klune has the most incredible imagination of any author I know. I’m at a loss for words to describe just how phenomenal this story was. No wait… Let’s call this a saga, not a story, because that’s truly what it is and we are only midway through this unique experience. The author recently announced that he has plans for two more books in the series and the epilogue gives us a clue as to what the next one will be. OMG! I can’t wait!

Gordo Livingstone is a witch. In fact, he’s the witch for the Bennett Clan and he’s the soulmate of Mark Bennett, uncle of Joe, the current alpha. We met these two star-crossed lovers in book one, Wolfsong. This is their story.

Through intermittent flashbacks, the author cleverly lets us see how Gordo’s life was shaped—his evil father who killed his mother when she killed his father’s tether, a woman with whom he was having an affair. His mother always taught him that wolves can’t be trusted. They need you and use you but don’t really love you. Though he might scoff at that lesson intellectually, she managed to ingrain the lesson emotionally.

Gordo thought he was done with the pack when they all moved away and left him behind. Their departure cemented his mother’s lessons deep in his heart. Now they are back and Gordo tries to ignore Mark Bennett with every breath he takes. It’s not easy. In fact, the song between his raven and Mark’s wolf is crying to be heard. When outside forces intervene in the quiet town of Green Creek and hope is at its lowest, the Bennett pack, assisted by their witch and the humans who support them, gather their reserve strength to fight a battle that must be won.

I am not going to include any spoilers for this book in my review. I will say that the plot is complex, with multiple layers of deceit, intrigue, and evil that goes back many years. There are characters here I love to hate and those I hate to love. Mark and Gordo seem to be ill-fated and much of the book left me feeling as if my stomach were in knots. But I kept moving forward. Avidly. There’s no way I could turn off this audiobook, even to eat, never mind sleep. And the ending was worth the wait.

Kirt Graves is as outstanding in his performance of this audio as he was in Wolfsong. The cast of hundreds each has a distinctive voice. I totally forgot that a man narrated the book when a woman spoke, and I loved the pitch, tone, and accent he assigned to Gordo. As much as I highly recommend the story itself, I recommend listening to this audio. It’s beyond description. A must buy, for sure.

The cover by Reese Dante is similar to Wolfsong’s cover and features red lettering against a dark gray background with a paw print on the lower corner—a paw print that seems to be clawing the ground as it leaves a trail of gouges in the dirt.

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press | Amazon | Audible | iTunes

Audio Details:

Audible Audio, 21 pages
Published December 6th 2018 by Dreamspinner Press (first published July 31st 2018)
Original Title Ravensong
ASINB07L4T61RZ
Edition Language English
Series Green Creek #2

A MelanieM Release Day Review: Tigers on the Way (Tigers and Devils #4) by Sean Kennedy

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Documentary producer Simon and ex-footballer Declan are taking some big steps toward a lasting life together. They’ve bought a house, and they’ll need it for the family they plan to start. Their friend, Nyssa, has made the generous offer to be their surrogate, and Declan couldn’t be more excited about the idea of a baby.

Simon knows fatherhood is a huge commitment, and though it’s daunting, he sees how much Dec wants it, and he’s sure that together, they can succeed in anything—despite the worries nagging at him.

But just as their new life is taking shape, a health scare disrupts their plans at the worst possible moment. With time running short, Simon and Dec will have to bare their fears and doubts to each other so they can face them before their world changes forever.

It might mean a literal leap of faith.

Tigers and Devils won a place in my heart from the first novel where I met this couple, Simon and Dec, and from there the extended family of friends and enemies who traversed over into frenemies themselves. It’s a wild ride that’s careened emotionally all over the place. We’ve gone to the heights and depths with these men, in and out and in and back out of the closet with them, Through injuries and finally to a deep relationship and commitment.

Tigers on the Way (Tigers and Devils #4) by Sean Kennedy find them in no less tumultuous circumstances. All will lead up to a decision they made in the previous story to have children via surrogate. As with everything else these men have done, nothing is easy, not even decisions previously made.

I forget between books, how complex in nature these men are, how imperfectly perfect the dynamics of their relationship that flows off the page, through actions and dialog. And I remember again how much I love them so with each snark, each argument, and bout of love why they feel so real, their pain so believable, and their fears so authentic.

Kennedy writes human beings, all the elements that make us both flawed and worthwhile. And then he built that into these characters. All of them. Each and every one is a pleasure to spend time with, hashing out issues with, pouring out or rather refusing to talk about their fears. They are recognizable and for that, we can relate and do.

There’s a side bit with a ghost that I wish had been developed more, perhaps that’s coming in the next story. It’s hard for me to believe that there’s not a bigger role to be played here.

Simon and Declan have so much more to their story to tell. I hope that Sean Kennedy intends to take us there. I’ll be waiting eagerly for the next stage in their lives to unfold.

None of these books are standalone. Instead they are to be read in the order they are written. It’s a grand series and if you haven’t found them, pick them up and start reading them now. I highly recommend them all and the associated series as well.

Cover Artist: Catt Ford. Even with the title smashed across the faces of the models, the cover just doesn’t work. The models are too young, they don’t match the characters, especially the massive Declan, God of Footy. Nice emoting but really, just no.

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press | Amazon

Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 248 pages
Expected publication: January 1st 2019 by Dreamspinner Press
ASINB07LF7SRTT
Edition Language English
Series Tigers and Devils – on Goodreads

Tigers and Devils

When You Run, You Eventually Have to Stop (1.1)

The First Supper (1.2)

Just Like Florence Nightingale (1.3)

Tigerland (2)

Countdown Until the End of the World (2.5)

Tigers on the Run (3)

Tigers on the Way (4)

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Gabriel and the Devil by Robert P. Rowe

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Devouring Flame by E.J. Russell

Dreamspinner Press

Cover Artist: Aaron Anderson

Devouring Flame

An Enchanted Occasions story

About the Author

Giveaway

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A Whole Latte Sass (Geek Life #2) by Marguerite Labbe

Excerpt

Blurb:

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Happy 2019! Here Are Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

Final Best of 2018 Lists!

From Stella:

Here are my Best of 2018

Sawyer’s Ferry by Cate Ashwood

From Lucy

From Lila:

Free Dreamer’s Best of 2018

LGBT+:

Non-LGBT:

MelanieM Best of 2018

Best Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Paranormal/Supernatural for 2018

Best Historical Novels of 2018

Best of 2018 ~ Contemporary Novel

Best Series of 2018

Offbeat Crimes Series by Angel Martinez

Best Covers of 2018

Special Mention for 2018

This Week at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

Sunday, January 6:

Monday, January 7:

Tuesday, January 8:

Wednesday, January 9:

Thursday, January 10:

Friday, January 11:

Saturday, January 12:

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Fox and Wolf (Apex Investigations #1) by Julia Talbot

Dreamspinner Press Cover Art: Kanaxa

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to host Julia Talbot here in the new year. Welcome, Julia.

Blurb:

About the Author

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Dreamspinner Press
Cover Art: Kanaxa