Ellen Read's Blog, page 7
October 3, 2019
The Book of the Day this week is Heart of a Warrior by Denna Holm
The Book of the Day this week is
Heart of a Warrior by Denna Holm.
You can buy this fabulous eBook here: http://mybook.to/HeartWarrior
Elena Murphy is devastated when Gabriel walks out of her life. When her granddaughter is abducted by aliens and left to die on a hostile world, Gabriel is part of the rescue party sent out by his Council to find her. From the start, they both know there is a strong connection between them, but Elena fears that Gabriel is embarrassed that she is only half vampire while he is a powerful Hunter who has lived for over three thousand years. But when two children under her care are abducted, Elena will do everything in her power to get them back, including swallowing her pride to beg Gabriel to take her with him to track them down.
Gabriel has spent thousands of years searching for his destined mate, his eillelé. When he finally finds her in Elena, it is to learn she is half human. He knows this makes their options as a couple limited. If he takes her back to his world, Laizahlia, his Council will force him to convert her fully to vampire, and he knows she might not survive with her mind intact. And it is forbidden for their kind to live on Earth. Rather than risk her life, he chooses to turn and walk away . . . until two children under her care are taken by Slavers, and it’s him who led them directly to her.
About Denna Holm: An expert horsewoman from Oregon, now retired from training and showing horses, Denna has now devoted her whole attention to her second passion, writing novels.
https://www.facebook.com/denna.holm.author
https://www.bookbub.com/profile/denna-holm
September 22, 2019
The Haunting Of Smith Orchard by Jimmie R. Pennington
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The Haunting Of Smith Orchard
by Jimmie R. Pennington
Review: 4 Stars
A great adventure for young readers.
Strange things happen when Ellis, Wanda and young Timmy move with their parents into an old farmhouse and orchard. Noises come from the upstairs bedroom, and a picture is moved from an old trunk in the attic.
The kids hear a story from Joe, the foreman at the orchard, about Amanda and Eli Smith, past owners of Smith Orchard. Amanda was home alone when she fell from a stool while cleaning a chandelier and hit her head, and although she crawled out to the deck, Amanda died before help could reach her. Eli was left devastated, especially when he couldn’t find the special locket his wife had always worn.
Ellis, Wanda and Timmy are determined to find the locket that has remained lost since Amanda Smith’s death and, Timmy in particular, is convinced Eli’s ghost is trying to help them by leaving clues to solve the mystery.
They’re aided by Joe, who comes to believe the kids are correct. Joe builds them a clubhouse so the kids can use it as their headquarters. They hide their discoveries in it and plan their next strategic steps.
The days pass quickly and they become desperate to find the locket. It will soon be time for the three intrepid investigators to head back to school.
Do they find the locket and solve the mystery?
I can only say, you had better buy the book and read it.
I’d recommend this book to children who like to solve mysteries and who love an adventure.
September 19, 2019
BOOK OF THE DAY – THE DARK WEB MURDERS
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BOOK OF THE DAY
Crimson Cloak Publishing is holding a promotion for BOOK OF THE DAY this Friday 20th September 2019.
If you look a great crime, check out this fabulous book, The Dark Web Murders by Brian O’Hare.
Go to the Amazon link to buy.
Blurb:
I am Nemein I am not a murderer. I am emotionally detached from my killings. I am, therefore, an instrument of Nemesis, a punisher. This is a theme running through a number of blogs on the Dark Web, written by a serial killer. He is highly intelligent and employs philosophical argument to justify a series of gruesome murders. However, he describes the killings in lurid detail, and with such gloating relish, that he utterly negates his delusion of detachment and reveals himself to be a cold-blooded, narcissistic psychopath.
Sheehan and his team rush headlong down a series of blind alleys in the pursuit of the psychopath, who continues to murder his victims with impunity. He is fiendishly clever, utterly ruthless, and tests Sheehan’s famed intuition to the limit. Indeed, Sheehan only learns the truth during a horrific climax when some members of his team experience a most harrowing ‘laceration of the soul’ that they will never be able to forget. It is unlikely that the reader will either.
You can read some fantastic reviews on Goodreads.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44109461-the-dark-web-murders
September 16, 2019
ARCs available – THE DRAGON SLEEPS by Ellen Read
**NEW ARC AVAILABLE**
THE DRAGON SLEEPS by Ellen Read
If you’re interested in reading an ARC (Advanced Reader/Review Copy) of my story in exchange for an honest review, please contact me at [email protected] and let me know what format you prefer: mobi, epub or pdf.
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A Dragon statue. An ancient sword. A body in the orchard.
What secret has remained hidden at Thornton Park for the last eighty years?
It’s 1927 in Victoria, Australia. A time after the Great War when women have more options opened to them.
At a weekend house party at Thornton Park, Alexandra Thornton decides to break the news to her father that she wants to be an antiques dealer, like her father, grandfather and great-grandfather before her.
Then a body is found in the orchard, and before the weekend is over, a priceless artefact is stolen.
Alexandra is determined to discover how these things are connected to the Ming dragon and the antiques her great-grandfather brought with him from Hong Kong so many years ago.
What treasure is worth killing to possess
August 29, 2019
BOOK REVIEW: HEART OF A WARRIOR
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Heart of a Warrior by Denna Holm
Heart of a Warrior is the fourth book by Denna Holm in her Immortal Warriors series.
Each book is definitely a standalone. I haven’t read the first three books and I followed this story without any difficulty.
The story, along with the engaging and well-drawn characters, drew me into its pages from the very first start.
In the beginning, we meet Elena Murphy as she prepares her ranch for an approaching storm, but not all of her chills are because of the thunder on the horizon. She thinks of Gabriel, the dark-haired, ancient vampire who often visits Earth from his home planet of Laizahlia. Elena can sense he’s close. Would he show himself to her? He watches over her and protects her, but from a distance.
Elena is expecting visitors – Cami Benton is sixteen and her brother Ryan, who is eight. They’re going to spend the weekend with her. She has a strong connection to the children, partly because their own home life is stressful, with their parents’ divorce. Only when their father Martin, who has driven them to Elena’s home, makes unwanted advances to Elena, does Gabriel appear, a tall, daunting figure, in his black leather of a Laizhalian Hunter.
Once Martin has run away, Gabriel helps Elena get her horses in before the storm hits. Once it hits, the storm brings more than thunder and lightning.
I don’t want to write any spoilers, so let me say from here on is a desperate and urgent journey across the universes, to strange planets with wonderful live forms, some more weird and dangerous than others. We also meet werewolves and shape-shifters.
Denna Holm has imagined these worlds and their inhabitants so fully that I slipped into them as if I were really there.
I also loved the romance and UST (unresolved sexual tension) between Elena and Gabriel.
I highly recommend this book to young adult (the older side of young adult as there are some detailed sexual scenes) and adult readers who love sci-fi, fantasy, vampires and a great love story. There’s plenty of action and excitement to please everyone.
I’ll certainly be going back to read the first three books.
A 5-star read.
Review: Broken by Ellen Read
Thank you to KattitudeReads for this wonderful review of BROKEN
A breathtaking cover. 
July 1, 2019
BROKEN – My new short story
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Broken
After the tragic death of her parents, Rachael Watson runs away, leaving her sister to manage the family lavender farm and shop. Three years later, crushed by her unrelenting grief, workplace bullying, and guilt and shame for letting her sister down, Rachael decides to return home.
There, Rachael meets Ebony, a black mare who has been mistreated and beaten.
Rachael realises she is not the only one who has been broken.
I wanted to write a short story about a horse. A lavender farm immediately came to mind, although there’s no obvious link. In fact, horses and lavender seems poles apart, but my idea for the story was one of healing, which explains why lavender came in to my mind. The fragrance of lavender, the soft tones of lavender fields – what could be more relaxing? I saw the farm as a place of restoration and recovery of the soul.
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This story is free on my website as a epub or PDF.
I hope you enjoy reading Broken.
March 3, 2019
Book Releases – Jenny Woolsey
I’m very pleased to have Jenny Woolsey, children’s author & speaker, and tutor, as a guest on my blog. Jenny is also an advocate for facial differences, mental illness and inclusive education.
[image error]M Ed(Hons), Cert IV Youth Work, Cert IV TAE
Children’s Author & Speaker I Tutor I Advocate for facial differences, mental illness and inclusive education
Jenny Woolsey
In 2018 I published two children’s novels, Daniel Barker: By Power or Blight, and, Amy and Phoenix. These are two very different novels but exemplify my theme of difference, diversity and disability.
Daniel Barker could be classed as a fun horror, and Amy and Phoenix, a heart-warming fantasy.
The books are about…
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Thirteen-year-old Daniel Barker has a magical book from Egypt which gives him 99 wishes. The wishes must be used to make the world a better place. If not, the Mummy’s Blight will be awakened.
Dan is like a superhero, until he wishes for a fire at school to impress Charmaine, the cutest cheerleader. Things then start getting crazy and out-of-control.
Is it the Mummy’s Blight and how will Dan stop his favourite teacher from becoming a zombie?
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Eleven-year-old Amy Pringle lives on a farm. She knows all the animals by name and can talk to them like Doctor Doolittle. Amy is looking forward to her favourite ewe, Edna, giving birth. When she sees her dad with his gun, she knows something is wrong.
Amy must think of a way to save Phoenix, the three-legged lamb’s life.
After her sister Hannah, posts a video of Phoenix on YouTube and it goes viral, Amy thinks all her problems are solved. Little does she know what is about to happen.
Will Amy be able to save Phoenix after all?
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Both of these books sound wonderful, Jenny. Thank you so much for chatting about them.
If you’d like to know more about Jenny Woolsey and her books, or would like to connect with Jenny, please visit her website and go to the social media places, below.
Facebook – @JennyWoolseyAuthor
Instagram – jennywoolseyauthor
Twitter – @Jenny_Woolsey
February 12, 2019
REVIEW: A Secret Muse by Mandy Jackson-Beverly
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A Secret Muse by Mandy Jackson-Beverly
Blurb
UCLA art professor Coco Rhodes knows little about her family’s association with the ancient clandestine organization The Allegiance and wants to keep it that way. She dislikes secrets—they’re a painful reminder of her childhood experiences that were erased as a result of her parents’ tragic deaths when she was four years old.
After a brutal attempt on her life, and the arrival of a birthday letter from her dead mother, Coco demands explanations from her brother, Christopher, a high-powered D.C. lawyer and member of the Allegiance.
Christopher guides Coco to her birthplace, Italy, insisting she’ll find her answers there. Enter the enigmatic Gabriel, a powerful warlock with a vampire father, and the ethereal Prudence, keeper of the Allegiance.
When a close friend is murdered, Coco’s life takes a dark turn. With only a faded portrait torn from a lost sketchbook, and one of her mother’s unfinished paintings, Coco unravels clues from her past, in the hope of saving those she loves.
My Review
This book surprised and delighted me.
A Secret Muse is a vampire tale with a difference. It is so much more than I expected. The author’s love of art, old masterpieces, music, old buildings and Rome runs in a magical thread through the story, as Coco searches for her lost past. She searches for who she is. Her journey takes her to Italy, with its beautiful Tuscan countryside.
All the characters are amazingly written and are seamlessly woven into the fabric of this story of great love and beauty, and incredibly dark secrets and hatred.
I love history, art and music, so for me this book was amazing.
A real page turner! I highly recommend it.
December 17, 2018
The Thornton Mysteries Book 4
[image error]Kingston, Norfolk Island. The houses in Quality Row and the ruins of the Penal Settlement in the distance. Photo by Ellen Read
While my third book in the Thornton Mysteries series is resting, I’m researching my fourth book in the series.
It’s set on Norfolk Island, which is a small island off the coast of Australia.
Norfolk Island and Pitcairn Island formed at same time when the peaks of two massive volcanoes thrust up from the ocean floor 6,000 kilometres apart. Both stood virtually uninhabited for 3 million years.
Then, in the late eighteenth century, Norfolk became the site of a Penal Settlement and Pitcairn became the hiding place for Fletcher Christian’s mutineers.
The British Penal Settlement on Norfolk was the most depraved and cruel of all penal settlements, even worse than Tasmania’s. The beautiful island became known as a hell on earth.
The similarities between the islands, doesn’t stop there. In 1855, when Pitcairn could know longer support its population, Queen Victoria offered them Norfolk. On 8th July 1856, the entire population of Pitcairn sailed to Norfolk Island.
The descendants of the Bounty’s mutineers found Norfolk a paradise, with its deep blue seas and mild climate. Even though at times, those seas became treacherous. The Sirius, the flag ship of the First Fleet, met its end on the rocks of Norfolk Island.
I visited Norfolk Island this year and saw their paradise. Visitor numbers are restricted, the top speed limit is 40 km per hour, all animals have right-of-way, and you may not get good wifi. I didn’t miss it at all during the week there.
The Thorntons in my book visit Norfolk in early 1929. They find a paradise, too, although Alexandra is sure she can hear the ghosts of the convicts in the ruins at Kingston, and murder is just around the corner.
[image error]Norfolk Island Pines. Nepean and Phillip Island off-shore. Photo by Ellen Read.
