99-cent sale “the Salvation of Mary Lola Barnes”

Until midnight Friday January 31st, the Salvation of Mary Lola Barnes is reduced from $4.99 to $0.99. Download your copy at Amazon. It is available to Kindle Unlimited Members.

Description

Mary Lola Barnes has everything: a loving husband, two wonderful grown children, good friends and a lovely home. She has no business asking for more. It doesn’t matter if she feels something is missing. She’s just being silly. After all, what could she ask for? When new friends enter her world, she’s ill prepared for the harsh light that shines on the imperfections in her life. It reveals the emptiness she refuses to acknowledge.

If you love stories about women redefining themselves after decades of living, you’ll love the Salvation of Mary Lola Barnes.

I classify this story as Women’s Fiction / Inspirational / Mid-life Awakening / Romance.

Amazon Review

“Loved the book. The author knew the feelings of being 50 and stuck. Many of us have lived this story.”

Northern Survival on Sale 99 Cents

Until midnight Friday January 24th, Northern Survival is reduced from $4.99 to $0.99. Download your copy at Amazon. It is available to Kindle Unlimited Members.

Description

Olive Tweed planned her trip for two years. She’d vacation at Summer Beaver, gather the research material needed to write the next book and spend a few days hiking the vast wilderness. When she is called home unexpectedly and boards a chartered plane, she never dreamt it would crash, leaving her alone with a man who knew nothing about survival or the woods. If they don’t put aside their differences and work together, they’ll never escape alive.

“Northern Survival” was inspired by a video created by a pilot who recorded the crash of his small plane in Northern Quebec. The only reason he survived was because the plane had a parachute.

If you love stories of adventure, survival challenges and characters who test each others ability to endure, you’ll love “Northern Survival”.

Book Quote (Olive): “You don’t believe me now but wait. You’ll see. The first night you lay in bed surrounded by four walls with the window closed, you’ll wonder where those sounds are. You’ll start to wonder if everything on the planet is dead. It will be so quiet, so void of life you’ll feel like you’re sleeping in a tomb.”

Book Quote (John’s perspective): He rested his cheek against the top of her head. In their short time together, they had endured more than some married couples. In the real world, they’d have parted after the first disagreement, never to see each other again. But, here, where they existed purely for each other, their time together had created a connection he couldn’t deny. They were friends in spite of their differences or perhaps because of them.

Book Quote (Olive’s perspective): She stared at the bright red apple with streaks of green. Her mouth watered at the thought of the juice that would spring forth when her teeth dug into its flesh. She’d seal her lips around the bite and suck the sweet liquid in slowly to fill her mouth with joy.

Book Quote (John’s perspective): The woman was like books he’d read, ones that were slow to start, ones he often put down to pick up later because something nagged at him to return to the story but didn’t excite him enough to read every day. Books like that didn’t capture his full attention until he was three-quarters of the way through, then he was hooked and devoured the rest like the final bites of a juicy steak.

Book Quote: John: “Incredible. You shouldn’t have seen 50. How do you feel?”

Olive: “Like I’m 23 again except I love life more. I’m here for the fun of it, the adventure. It’s why I don’t watch TV, avoid the news and don’t spend energy on the junk society thinks is important because it’s not. Each day, I’m living.”

He laughed. “Even here? With a city boy lost in the woods?”

“You make it challenging, but I enjoy the hike. I’d prefer more food, better accommodations, cream for my tea but…” She twitched her nose. “It could be worse. I’m alive and well, and that’s all that truly matters.”

Northern Survival – Amazon Review: a book you’ll burn through in a weekend.

May eBook 99 cent Sale

Which of my books is on sale for 99 cents for the month of May?

The Salvation of Mary Lola Barnes.

Description

Mary Lola Barnes has everything: a loving husband, two wonderful grown children, good friends and a lovely home. She has no business asking for more. It doesn’t matter if she feels something is missing. She’s just being silly. After all, what could she ask for? When new friends enter her world, she’s ill prepared for the harsh light that shines on the imperfections in her life. It reveals the emptiness she refuses to acknowledge.

Continue reading “May eBook 99 cent Sale”

2nd Annual Author Read & BookShop

The 2nd Annual Author Read & BookShop takes place Saturday May 4th and Sunday May 5th at the Milford Rec Centre, Milford Station, East Hants, Nova Scotia, Canada. I’ll be there with a dozen other local authors peddling my books, perhaps even doing a reading. The event runs from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm each day. If you’re in the area, please, pop in.

I’ll have paperback copies of most of my books, including Dragons in the Dungeon, Shadows in the Stone, Natural Selection and Northern Survival.

On Saturday evening from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm, poets, both unpublished and published, take the stage. If you have a poem to read, whether you wrote it or it’s one you enjoy, you’re welcome to participate.

Learn more about this event, including the other authors who will be attending, by visiting the 2nd Annual Author Read & BookShop page.

If you haven’t subscribed to my newsletter yet, do so here: Blue Dragon Chronicle.

Catastrophe

Almost 30 years before the story in Natural Selection takes place, the power grid went down. What could have caused this?

Surprisingly, many things can destroy the world-wide power grid, but I’ll focus on two: EMP and GMD

An EMP is an electromagnetic pulse. This could be intentionally created by the detonation of a nuclear bomb or another high-energy explosive device. The detonation occurs in the sky, high above our heads.

A GMD is a geomagnetic disturbance event. It’s also known as a magnetic storm. These storms affect Earth’s magnetic field, sending a shockwave around the planet and creating amazing aurora borealis. The more intense the storm, the farther south the northern lights are seen. The main source of these storms is the sun.

Our sun releases solar flares from its sunspots all the time, but they are minor and rarely affect our grid. However, now and again, a strong one strikes Earth and causes blackouts or takes out a satellite or two.

In 1859, a major magnetic storm struck and took out the electrical wires from telegraph stations, and in some instances, telegraph offices caught fire. It became known as the Carrington Event. The damage was minor because those folks didn’t live in the age of electricity. If that same storm hit today, every electrical wire on the planet would fry. Not only would we lose power permanently, many buildings would catch fire.

In Natural Selection, I used a combination of EMPs and a major GMD to take down the grid. The aftermath is what the characters live in.

Get your copy of Natural Selection at Amazon.

This article appeared in the first Blue Dragon Chronicle. To get more articles like this, subscribe to my newsletter here: Blue Dragon Chronicle.

Sleeping in a Tomb

In Northern Survival, there’s a scene where John is complaining about how noisy nature is at night. Whether it’s owls hooting or peepers peeping, the night air is a chorus of musical creatures, and they keep him awake.

Olive says this to him: “You don’t believe me now but wait. You’ll see. The first night you lay in bed surrounded by four walls with the window closed, you’ll wonder where those sounds are. You’ll start to wonder if everything on the planet is dead. It will be so quiet, so void of life you’ll feel like you’re sleeping in a tomb.”

I wrote this from experience. Several years ago, when the kids were small, we owned a pop-up trailer. From mid-May until mid-October, we slept in it every night. It was only in the backyard, but the kids and I thought of it as an adventure. We were all together, and we talked in the dark until we nodded off to sleep.

The canvas of the camper kept out the weather, but not the sounds. We heard our rooster go off at 5:00 am, the ducks quacking spells throughout the night and the train whistle blow. And then there were the peepers. They were loud at first, but eventually, they blended into the background.

Continue reading “Sleeping in a Tomb”

Magical March 99 Cent Sale

For the month of Magical March, Northern Survival will be on sale for 99 cents (a savings of $4.00). I classify this story as Survival / Adventure / Romance / Action in that order.

Reviews

Northern Survival has 159 5-star reviews and 53 4-star reviews. Here’s what Amazon readers are saying about Northern Survival:

Great Survival Story: Realistic characters, just two flawed people struggling to survive together in the harsh wilderness. I will definitely look for more books from this author!

Continue reading “Magical March 99 Cent Sale”

Castle Keepers Series – 99 Cents Sale

To celebrate Fantasy February, I’ve put all four books in my Castle Keepers series on sale. They’re regular $4.99 each, but until February 29th, they’re on sale for 99 cents each.

Download your copies today at Amazon.

All my books are available to Kindle Unlimited Members.

Book 1: Shadows in the Stone

When bandits seize his child, one man sacrifices everything to save her.

The most important thing in Corporal Bronwyn Darrow’s life is rising in the ranks at Aruam Castle. His goal is to be captain of the guard one day. The last thing he needs is distractions. When a woman and a child are forced into his life, tensions escalate, and he’s caught between his drive for promotion and what his heart desires. If you love stories of adventure mixed with magic and romance set in archaic landscapes, you’ll love McGyver’s “Shadows in the Stone”. Unlike many fantasy novels, family plays a central part in this story, so be prepared for the hero to receive unwanted motherly advice.

“Shadows in the Stone” is the first book in the Castle Keepers epic fantasy series. It will introduce readers to a unique cast of characters who want to control their own destiny. Brace yourself for the ride to another time and place.

Dragons in the Dungeon on Sale

To celebrate Fantasy February, I’ve put the eBook Dragons in the Dungeon on sale until the end of the month. Download your copy today at Amazon:

Description

Ryan McCormac is addicted to playing Mediaeval Dungeon Adventures with friends every Friday night. He’s so consumed with the role-playing game that he wishes he could find a spell to transport him into that world where he could create his own campaign. One day, his wish comes true. But his friends aren’t there, and the world is nothing like he thought it would be. Every day he fears for his life. The people are soulless, the landscape is colourless and the magic is nowhere to be found. The only way home is to find another like him and sacrifice them.

After five years, he’s finally found someone from his world. Now he just has to get her to the wizard who can perform the spell. Simple right? Except she’s a gatherer and before he reaches the wizard, she’s gathered several friends who plan to save her.

If you played Dungeons and Dragons in the 1980s, you’ve got this. You know the feeling of joining friends on a quest, choosing your race, be it dwarf or elf, your profession, possibly fighter or thief, gathering your gear and exploring endless dungeons. This story is a tribute to those days when life was good, music was better and days were endless.

A Novel with a Slow-burn Romance: “Seeds of Life”

I’ve read many reviews where readers express their dislike for books where it takes forever for the couple to come together. They call this a slow-burn romance. However, I’ve read just as many that express the same dislike for insta-love stories where the couple meet and are instantly in love within the first chapter.

This insta-love sort of happens in A December Knight, though it is not as quick as the first chapter. Two weeks into the relationship, the couple, Jan and Delanie, are madly in love. This is quick as far as I’m concerned.

I believe in love at first sight, but I know this doesn’t happen with most relationships.

Personally, I like writing a mixture of books. Some have insta-love and others have slow burns. I also write some where the speed of love falls somewhere in the middle.

For Seeds of Life, I wanted the romance to take its time. I wanted to nurture it through shared experiences. The couple in this novel are new to romance, so in one minute, they like each other and in another, they like their freedom more.

For those who love insta-love, this book may not satisfy them. For those who love slow burns, well, I think you will love this.

Actually, I’m not certain they’ll stay together. Is that a spoiler alert? There are many forces pulling them apart and at 70,000 words, they have decided they’re better off single. Let’s see where the next 30,000 words finds them.

I’ll finish writing Seeds of Life by December 31st. It will go into the cellar to ripen for at least four months. I’ll haul it out in the spring, give it a read and see where it stands. I hope to publish it in October 2021.

The first raw, unedited chapter is on its book page here: Seeds of Life. The word count appears daily in the right-hand margin.

eBook Sale

The eBook for the Salvation of Mary Lola Barnes is on sale for 99 cents until Sunday December 6th. That’s a $4.00 savings. This sale is only in Canada. You’ll find it at Amazon.ca.

Have a great weekend, and remember, Be kind to your future self.