♡abookandalattee♡: September 2017

Saturday, September 30, 2017

Cover Reveal: Crazy Sexy Notion by Sarah Darlington

Title: Crazy Sexy Notion

Author: Sarah Darlington

Release Date: January 2, 2018

Standalone. Full-length. HEA.

COVER DESIGNED BY: LETITIA HASSER, RBA DESIGNS

My former best friend...is now a hooker...

MICK

After a terrible breakup, the crazy notion hit me to look up my childhood friend. With half a country between us, I haven't seen Raven since the day my dad rushed in and saved me from the Sandy Hill Trailer Park. But I loved Raven as a boy, and now I need to find out if I could love her as a man. Only problem: her profession.

Come to find out—she's a prostitute.

RAVEN

Mickey Lawson

Yeah, I hate that guy.

Really, he's only a faint memory now, but at one point in time he meant everything to me.

My protector. My savior. My best friend.

I was ten.

Then he left.

Now he's back.

Fifteen years too late.

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**No Amazon ebook Preorder. Will go live on Amazon on release day.

About the Author:

Sarah Darlington, a New Adult and contemporary romance author, lives in Virginia with her husband and two children. Best known for her Kill Devil Hills Series, she's also a former flight attendant, with a degree in school counseling, who harbors a huge passion for traveling.

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Friday, September 29, 2017

Cover Reveal: The Flight of Hope by HJ Bellus

We are super excited to reveal today the stunning cover of

THE FLIGHT OF HOPE by USA Today Bestselling Author HJ Bellus!

A Standalone Contemporary Romance set to release October 26th.

PRE-ORDER AVAILABLE NOW

getBook.at/TheFlightOfHope

Cover Designer: Cassy Roop of Pink Ink Designs

Cover Model: Shailey Collier

A tragic accident. A mother in mourning. Can a second chance rise from the wreckage?

Marlee Foster’s life was just getting started. She couldn’t wait for the return of her husband from deployment. After all, he’d be there just in time for the birth of their daughter. The welcome home party is full of joy, but on the way home, tragedy strikes…

When Marlee loses her husband and daughter, her friends and family do their best to heal her broken heart. But painful reminders of a future she’ll never see haunt her every day in the small town. Her only hope at a second chance is to leave it all behind…

As she sets out on a soul-searching adventure, the mourning widow wonders if the wilderness will give her hope for a brighter future or if she’ll forever be chained to a devastating past. During her journey, Marlee is about to learn that love has a funny way of coming back to those who need it the most…

The Flight of Hope is a heart-wrenching contemporary romance in the vein of Nicholas Sparks. If you like emotional journeys, strong-willed heroines, and second chance romances, then you’ll love HJ Bellus’ touching tale.

Buy The Flight of Hope to settle in with a tear-jerker today!

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HJ Bellus is a small town girl who loves the art of storytelling. When not making readers laugh or cry, she's a part-time livestock wrangler that can be found in the middle of Idaho, shot gunning a beer while listening to some Miranda Lambert on her Beats and rocking out in her boots.

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Release Blitz: 2:05 a.m. by C.M. Moore

2:05 a.m. (An Ice Era Chronicle, Book 2)

Author: C.M. Moore

Genre: Dystopian Military Romance #2.05RDB

Synopsis

After spending all her life trying to be normal, Nova has given up. She knows she isn’t like everyone else and after her break-up, she decides to dive into her work. Even though she’s settled in her private world and has no wish to change, she finds herself sucked into a trip that takes her away from her safe and secluded world.

Arrow has been trapped in a cage for, well, he can’t recall, but he is ready to be free. As fear that the crumbling water base around him is going to crush him before he can escape, an angel appears. She is what he’s been searching for and his soul knows her. The only problem is, she doesn’t know who he is and is begrudging when it comes to helping him.

As these two broken people meet and start a friendship, a train ride will change them forever. Before long they will uncover the dark past that hunts Arrow and the even darker future that awaits them both. Life for Arrow is about to become real, but for someone as crazy as Nova, this one man turns out to be the balance she’s always needed.

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US Amazon Link: https

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Author Bio

C.M. Moore is a retired solider, and a romantic at heart. After being blown up in Afghanistan and receiving a purple heart; he began writing. Connor’s first book 1:05 am is a mixture of love, sex, and action. Today if you are looking for Connor, you can find him volunteering with veteran organizations, and harassing his military buddies. You can also find him attempting to “hunt” in the woods and ponds of Minnesota. In the event you find him in the woods, don’t be scared, he can’t hit anything.

If you want to contact him message him at c.m.moore.author@gmail.com ...OR...

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Audiobook Review: Ballad of The Beanstalk by Amy McNulty

Author: Amy McNulty

Narrator: Kaitlin Descutner

Length: 5 hours 50 minutes

Publisher: Patchwork Press

Released: Jul. 18, 2017

Genre: Fantasy

As her fingers move across the strings of her family's heirloom harp, 16-year-old Clarion can forget. She doesn't dwell on the recent passing of her beloved father or the fact that her mother has just sold everything they owned, including that very same instrument that gives Clarion life. She doesn't think about how her friends treat her like a feeble, brittle thing to be protected. She doesn't worry about how to tell the elegant Elena, her best friend and first love, that she doesn't want to be her sweetheart anymore. She becomes the melody and loses herself in the song. When Mack, a lord's dashing young son, rides into town so his father and Elena's can arrange a marriage between the two youth, Clarion finds herself falling in love with a boy for the first time. Drawn to Clarion's music, Mack puts Clarion and Elena's relationship to the test, but he soon vanishes by climbing up a giant beanstalk that only Clarion has seen. When even the town witch won't help, Clarion is determined to rescue Mack herself and prove once and for all that she doesn't need protecting. But while she fancied herself a savior, she couldn't have imagined the enormous world of danger that awaits her in the kingdom of the clouds. A prequel to the fairytale Jack and the Beanstalk that reveals the true story behind the magical singing harp.

Amy McNulty is a freelance writer and editor from Wisconsin with an honors degree in English. She was first published in a national scholarly journal (The Concord Review) while in high school and currently writes professionally about everything from business marketing to anime. In her down time, you can find her crafting stories with dastardly villains and antiheroes set in fantastical medieval settings.

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In 2010, I graduated from California University....of Pennsylvania (yes, you read that correctly) with a BA in Theatre and Dance. I have been a professional actress for 7 years in Columbus, OH working in both Musical Theatre shows and Dramatic plays ranging from Classic, Rock & Roll, Modern, British, American Southern, etc. I work as a Children's Theatre teacher as well as a Commercial Actress where I specialize in voice acting, photo, commercial and tutorial video work. I am interested in new projects and pursuing new opportunities. I am a big, avid reader, and listen to audio books more than the radio in my car. My favorite genres are historical fiction, fiction, nonfiction and biographies/ memoirs. This is a new endeavor for me, and I am thrilled to explore different characters through storytelling. Reading is a big passion of mine. Bring on the books!

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I absolutely loved what Amy McNulty did with Ballad of The Beanstalk. At first I wasn't quite sure what to expect but WOW did she do an excellent job. Amy was able to take a children's story and turn it into an adult book, the way it twist and turned throughout the story. It made it so much better! I also really liked how there were two separate worlds but yet they were both connected to each other.

The narrator, Kaitlin Descutner did a wonderful job. The flow of the story was smooth with no mistakes. No background noises that I could hear at least. Also, the singing was phenomenal and I especially loved the harp.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I highly recommend it.

I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Amy McNulty. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.

Q&A with Author Amy McNulty

Tell us about the process of turning your book into an audiobook.
I work with a platform called ACX, which matches book rights holders with narrators/producers. I posted my book and Kaitlin Descutner was one of the narrators who auditioned. She’s a professional actress and she brought such life to the story! I loved working with her. She even sings! I sent her the book, we touched base on a few notes, and she produced the whole audiobook from start to finish. I checked it, we tweaked it together, and then it was ready to go!
Do you believe certain types of writing translate better into audiobook format?
Sometimes. Descriptive writing really helps bring a story to life. At the same time, though, I know some people who prefer listening to audiobooks to reading, and it would be a shame if they couldn’t read all sorts of books because some books lend themselves better to audiobooks than others.
Was a possible audiobook recording something you were conscious of while writing?
I wasn’t thinking about it when writing (which I discovered was an issue during the recording/editing phase, as I didn’t make who was speaking in a scene or two clear to the narrator), but I always try to get my books made into audiobooks once they’re finished just to get them in front of another audience that might have otherwise passed by them.
How closely did you work with your narrator before and during the recording process?
Kaitlin did most of it on her own. After she finished the first recording, I got back to her with notes and we tweaked it together. But as far as recording and editing goes, it was all her.
Were there any real life inspirations behind your writing?
I’ve always wanted to write a fairy tale YA book, but I couldn’t figure out how to do it in a way that’s never been done before. Strangely, when I was watching the Rifftrax Live performance of Santa Claus and the Ice Cream Bunny (it had a Jack and the Beanstalk segment in there—don’t ask, ha), I was struck with the idea of doing a prequel explaining where the magic harp came from. (Since it seems to have a human figure/face in some versions.) Jack and the Beanstalk has never even been one of my favorite fairy tales, but I ran with my idea.
How do you manage to avoid burn-out? What do you do to maintain your enthusiasm for writing?
I’m actually increasing my writing pace starting this year, so it’s odd that I’m getting less burnt out the more I work. It helped that I transition to editing more than business writing this year as a freelancer, so my creative energy doesn’t get zapped by my work before I can turn around and write. I discovered the joys of writing on a word processor this year, too. I get more words done by working on a non-glowing screen without internet access, so I’m not distracted. Still, it’s important to take breaks and not force myself to write too much every day.

Is there a particular part of this story that you feel is more resonating in the audiobook performance than in the book format?
The songs! Music is essential to the story and Kaitlin made up a tune for the lyrics I wrote for a song.
If you had the power to time travel, would you use it? If yes, when and where would you go?
I love period dramas and classic romance books, and I’m a huge fan of fantasy and the medieval and Elizabethan eras. It’d be hard for me to choose, although I know actually living in those eras would be difficult. More likely than not, I’d be a servant or peasant, not the aristocracy that have such compelling romances in these stories!
If this title were being made into a TV series or movie, who would you cast to play the primary roles?
Hmm, I’m not sure! My favorite actors and actresses are probably too old to take on the roles. I think I pictured Ezra Miller for Mack, though.
What do you say to those who view listening to audiobooks as “cheating” or as inferior to “real reading”?
It’s absolutely not! Any way people can enjoy stories is legit. Audiobooks make books more accessible to both people with reading disabilities and busy people.
How did you celebrate after finishing this novel?
I usually post a GIF of Kermit the frog waving his arms on social media. That’s how I feel when I finish a book.
In your opinion, what are the pros and cons of writing a stand-alone novel vs. writing a series?
Standalones allow you to move on to the next project, but with series, you’ve already done some work establishing characters and the world. Series tend to sell more books because you may have hooked people with the first book, but on the other hand, if that first book didn’t hook many people, there’s almost no point in writing more books. Most of my books have sequel/series potential. Writing standalone is actually hard for me! Ballad of the Beanstalk is probably my first standalone where I really have no intention at all of writing a sequel to or series for.
What’s next for you?

I’m working on my romance series (written under Joy Penny) and then I have a paranormal YA series I want to publish next year.

Amy McNulty's Top 10 Books Read in 2016

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas
The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis
Spinning Thorns by Anna Sheehan
Winter by Marissa Meyer
The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater
Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling and Jack Thorne
Life and Death by Stephenie Meyer
This Monstrous Thing by Mackenzi Lee

Sep. 27th: Adventures Thru Wonderland Lomeraniel Sep. 28th: Dab of Darkness Audiobook Reviews Bookwormerz Sep. 29th: Jazzy Book Review abookandalattee Sep. 30th: Hall Ways Blog Notes from 'Round the Bend Turning Another Page Oct. 1st: Up 'Til Dawn Book Blog Oct. 2nd: History from a Woman's Perspective The Book Junkie Reads . . . Oct. 3rd: The Book Addict's Reviews It's Novel to Me

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Thursday, September 28, 2017

Audiobook Review: Lost in the Clouds by R.K. Gold

Author: R.K. Gold

Narrator: Kyle Tait

Length: 4 hours 3 minutes

Publisher: Earl of Plaid

Released: Aug. 3, 2017

Genre: Paranormal

Neville Canton was about as average as any man can be. He had a mediocre job, a pleasant wife, an on-going feud with his sister, and an average case of cancer that took his life. But death wasn’t the end of his problems and even average people have to learn to overcome. Now trapped in a cloud between the living and the dead, he must find his way to the afterlife. With the help of a spiritual guide he navigates through seven challenges; seven tasks to sever his final connections to the mortal world. If he fails, he forfeits his eternity and the consequences may be worse than death.

R.K. Gold graduated from the University of Maryland in 2014 with a B.A. in English and is now pursuing a M.S. in Economics from the University at Buffalo. He is a non-genre specific author who enjoys reading and writing about characters searching for their purpose in life.

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Kyle is a professionally trained voice actor and narrator based in Atlanta, GA. He got his start working in sports radio, spending six seasons as a broadcaster in the Atlanta Braves' organization. He started doing audiobooks on a part-time basis in 2013, and he enjoyed telling stories so much that he transitioned into voice acting full-time three years later. He’s performed more than 20 titles on Audible across a variety of fiction and non-fiction genres. He also once had a video go viral after he took the pitch at a baseball-themed gender reveal party.

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Lost in the clouds was amazing. Gold did a wonderful job at describing the journey of Neville's afterlife experience. This is the first story I've read by this author and I will be reading more by Gold.

The narrator, Kyle Tait did a wonderful job with no errors. The reading was done perfectly and the flow was done nicely.

I do highly recommend this book.

I received this audiobook as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Kyle Tait. The gifting of this audiobook did not affect my opinion of it.

Q&A with Narrator Kyle Tait

When did you know you wanted to be an audiobook narrator? You know, it’s funny, my Dad told me for years that it would be a great line of work to look into, but I was never really interested until I was 25 years old or so. I worked in baseball full time as a radio broadcaster, so I had a lot of down time in the 6-month offseason. I started doing audiobooks as a hobby/part-time job, and quickly fell in love with it, so I went full time in 2016.
Did you find it difficult to “break into” audiobook narration? What skill/tool helped you the most when getting started? Actually, I found it quite easy. As a baseball broadcaster, I was used to “telling stories” on the air every night, so the transition was a natural one. There are a lot of similarities in the cadence and delivery. I also already had the equipment and technical knowledge, since a lot of the editing and mastering skills overlap between radio and voiceover.
A lot of narrators seem to have a background in theatre. Is that something you think is essential to a successful narration career? Not at all. While I love going to the theatre, especially musicals, I have no background in acting whatsoever. My first audiobook was the very first acting I ever did.
How do you manage to avoid burn-out? What do you do to maintain your enthusiasm for narrating? I like to perform a mix of genres. I love performing all kinds of books--sci-fi, mystery, history, thrillers, fiction, non-fiction--you name it! But I find after I’ve done, say, a sci-fi book, I don’t want to pile another sci-fi right after it. I like to switch genres so it feels new and fresh.
Are you an audiobook listener? What about the audiobook format appeals to you? Very much so. I traveled a lot in the sports world, mostly long bus and car rides, so I loved to flip on an audiobook and get lost in a great narration. I love to listen to other narrators and get ideas for how they approach certain characters or situations, and see how their styles change between a descriptive passage and an action passage.
What about this title compelled you to audition as narrator? I’ve always had a curious fascination with the afterlife, and the idea of an average guy like Neville having to pass a series of tests really grabbed my attention. As I read the audition script, I realized pretty quickly that RK has a special way with words, and I wanted to be a part of bringing that to life--or, death, as it were.
How closely do you prefer to work with authors? I like to work very closely with authors, typically texting back and forth throughout the book’s production. My end goal is to make the book sound like it sounded in the author’s head as they wrote it. I want the characters to jump off the page and into my narration, and that only works if I have a good relationship with the author. RK and I had an open line of communication and joked around a lot throughout production. I think that was the biggest key in making this a great audiobook.
How did you decide how each character should sound in this title? I think the hardest character to come up with was the “old man”, Neville’s guide to the after life. It’s hard to imagine yourself in Neville’s situation--trying to come to grips with your own death, and now being tethered to this crazy old man, with the threat of possibly having to spend eternity with him. But as I read through the manuscript, I imagined this old man as sort of a creepy, eccentric version of Yoda from Star Wars.
Do you read reviews for your audiobooks? I’ll admit it… Yes, I do. Negative reviews can sometimes be hard to swallow, but the truly objective or constructive reviews help me develop and improve! I can’t do much with “I didn’t like his voice…” but if they give a constructive reason, like “His characters all sounded the same,” that’s something I can work on for my next performance.
What bits of advice would you give to aspiring audiobook narrators? Research research research! Listen to a lot of other narrators, both good and bad, to get ideas of how they perform. Read a LOT, even books that you aren’t going to narrate, and imagine how you would perform those characters. And as you prepare to narrate a new book, read it thoroughly before you ever press Record. Take notes on characters, and then talk to the author over the phone about who he had in mind when he created that character.
What’s next for you? I’m working on a brand new sci-fi work, “Skypunch” by Logan Castle. It’s got a little bit of everything--action, adventure, time travel, even some steamy scenes. Coming to Audible in late August!
Bonus question: Any funny anecdotes from inside the recording studio? My wife says she can’t listen to my audiobooks. If she’s home while I record in my studio, she always puts on headphones so she can’t hear me. She says she doesn’t like all the voices in my head.