Speculative Fiction Worth Reading - 3 reviews for fantastic reads from the Untethered Realms authors

 What better way to start off the year with my reviews of three books by my fellow Untethered Realms authors!

Wayland LeBlanc can only think of avenging the deaths of his family, new mate, and unborn child. Revenge consumes him as he travels back to the Canadian Wilderness to kill the Tundra pack that had destroyed his. There is also the weight of needing to find a mate and have a child before a year is done or else he'll lose his royal status. Returning to the wilds where he grew up brings back a lot of memories, but meeting his childhood crush now a full grown beauty named Stormy, revenge starts to take a backseat to his feelings for her. With the help of some coyote shifters and local witches, Wayland hopes to bring justice to his lost pack but yet can he win over Stormy when she's the sister of the Tundra pack's Alpha?

What an incredibly fun and thrilling paranormal romance read! Wayland starts in New Orleans with thoughts of his family's deaths already haunting him, and then the Royal Alpha Wolves Club gives him the added stress of having to find a mate within a year or else he'll no longer be a royal. I was immediately sympathetic. This shifter has a huge heart, and I love that he has a soft spot for witches. Stormy is a strong and smart wolf herself. The perfect complement for Wayland. Yet my favorite characters are the coyote shifters and the mysterious witch locked in a metal box. The coyotes are wild and hilarious. The plot is fast-paced and the tension between Wayland and Stormy sizzles. If you love paranormal romances, you don't want to miss Alpha's Revenge.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Selene Ada dies several times after her home world is destroyed by the evil rule of Concordance. When she finally regains herself, she is half herself while the other half is remade by a strange scientist, Ondo Lagan. Following tiny bits of ruined history, they try to figure out where Concordance came from and what life was like before them. Except Concordance doesn't want anyone to discover the truth.

An excellently written first book in the science fiction series, The Triple Stars. The reader is immediately pulled into the story with the destruction of Selene's home planet, and also the ruins of Selene herself and how she is remade. The characterization is fantastic not just for her but for the whole cast. I was thoroughly wrapped up in the mystery of the paradise planet, Coronade, and the once great peaceful galaxy. Of course Concordance was in every way despicable, but they're so big and powerful, it's hard to see anything from within their seemingly endless shadow. We're taken on twists and turns, shown wonders and horrors, and never knowing what's around the next star. This is science fiction at its best.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Indigo Eady is desperate for a job. Finding a ghost thief can't be that difficult, right? A spirit is lurking around the Sabrina Shores Theatre, and things are getting dangerous. Her friends are there to help, but all her secretive investigating are putting the handsome inspector's suspicions on her. Can Indigo solve the mystery before she ends up as a ghost in the theatre too?

A wonderfully written cozy mystery that I ate up with a grin. I've read the Afterlife series, and so I'm familiar with Indigo and her friends, but this book can stand alone. I admire Indigo's heart and determination. I loved seeing how she's grown and eager for what's to come. I'm a huge fan of Franny, her ghost friend, especially with her trying to pick up on the modern slang and her methods of investigating! There are some clever twists to the plot and I was on the edge of my seat at the end.

No (Real) Spooks Allowed

In this month’s Insecure Writer’s Support Group post over on my blog, the question of the month is, Do you ever include traditions or customs from your real life family into your writing?

My short answer was no. But I gave my main character my grandmother’s maiden name and physical characteristics. This got me to thinking about my character’s ability to see and speak to ghosts. In her world, it’s a normal occurrence. As easy as breathing. 

But the ghosts Indigo Eady encounter are not any scarier than they would have been in life. They carry on with their afterlives how they lived their mortal lives. The problems come when they carry on in the space which is now occupied by the living. 

In my cozy mystery books, the stories come with a sense of humor and fun. My sleuth, Indigo Eady, along with her ghostly sidekick, Franny Bishop, a former Victorian madam of some repute, solve mysteries that no one else can.

What makes cozy mysteries so enjoyable to read are not the plots, though it’s fun to help the sleuths figure out whodunit. It's the characters and their interactions that keep you reading. 

Franny is always trying to find Indigo a man (because she knows men, which she doesn’t hesitate to remind Indigo of at every turn) before her shelf life is up. Indigo thinks Franny is an interfering old ghost. But make no mistake, these two are besties.

Cozy paranormal mysteries are fun. We laugh at the character's antics. We want to join in the investigation. Perhaps sit down and have a chat with a ghost about what’s in the ether, and what they do for fun. 

But in real life?

I’m pretty sure I’d head for the hills if I ever ran into a real ghost. I believe they exist.

I do believe in spooks. I do believe in spooks. I do! I do! I do! 

The Cowardly Lion, The Wizard of Oz 

I kind of want to see a ghost. In broad daylight. Surrounded by a crowd of people. Holding my husband's hand. 

I don't consider myself a coward...

...but if I saw one in the middle of the night hovering at the foot of my bed, staring at me? Or touching me? You’d hear me screaming from here to the moon.

Have you ever seen a real "live" a ghost?

Would you want to see one? 

Book Review - Louisiana Longshot (A Miss Fortune Mystery Book1) #Cozymysteries

Louisiana Longshot

I love to read mysteries, whether it's procedural, crime drama, or cozy. However, I get bored easily. But I don't like anything that stresses me out, so there can't be too much violence. On the other hand, I need something to read that has a fast pace. Yeah, I have a lot of reading codicils. Most importantly, if it doesn't grab me in the first page or two, I don't buy it.

I 'don't buy' a lot of books.

If I can get a fast-paced cozy I'll read it. Louisiana Longshot by self-publisher Jana DeLeon fits the bill perfectly. I came across it as a free-read (still free on Amazon), checked it out, then devoured it.

GWEN'S REVIEW

Fortune is a CIA operative that royally messes up and a price is put on her head by a middle eastern arms dealer. The CIA quickly becomes a former lifestyle. If you're looking for a hardcore thriller, this isn't it.

She ends up hiding out in a podunk town called Sinful, which operates on its own set of rules. She is supposed to be keeping her head down until it's safe to go back in the field. As with any mystery, she quickly stumbles over a bone in her own backyard and an investigation ensues (with the  hunky sheriff being the potential love interest).

The CIA agent-in-hiding walks on the edge at keeping her head down though. As she picks her way through the ins and outs of small (small, small, small) town Louisiana, she becomes friends with a couple of older women. Although they are from different generations, they have something surprising in common.

All three have secrets. All three are bad-ass. Trouble and hilarity is around every corner when the three of them team up to solve the murder.

This is a 'southern cozy mystery', which is sort of a sub-sub-sub-genre of mysteries.

I give Louisiana Longshot a 5* rating.



BLURB

It was a hell of a long shot....

CIA assassin Fortune Redding is about to undertake her most difficult mission ever—in Sinful, Louisiana. With a leak at the CIA and a price placed on her head by one of the world's largest arms dealers, Fortune has to go off-grid, but she never expected to be this far out of her element. Posing as a former beauty queen turned librarian in a small bayou town seems worse than death to Fortune, but she's determined to fly below the radar until her boss finds the leak and puts the arms dealer out of play. Unfortunately, she hasn't even unpacked a suitcase before her newly inherited dog digs up a human bone in her backyard.

Thrust into the middle of a bayou murder mystery, Fortune teams up with a couple of seemingly sweet old ladies whose looks completely belie their hold on the little town. To top things off, the handsome local deputy is asking her too many questions. If she's not careful, this investigation might blow her cover and get her killed. Armed with her considerable skills and a group of elderly ladies the locals dub The Geritol Mafia, Fortune has no choice but to solve the murder before it's too late.

Book Review: Murder at the Marina

Murder at the Marina

Book Review

What would you do if your hubby gave you the worst anniversary gift ever?

A dilapidated sailboat for your anniversary—not very romantic. A dead body on board—even worse.

Mollie McGhie is hoping for diamonds for her tenth wedding anniversary. Instead, her clueless hubby presents her with a rundown boat. She's not impressed.

When she discovers someone murdered on board, things get even worse. Mollie hopes it will convince her husband to rethink his hare-brained scheme of sailing off into the sunset. Instead, he's more determined than ever to fix the boat up and set off to sea.

Poking her nose in where it doesn't belong, Mollie finds herself drawn into the tight-knit community living at Palm Tree Marina in Coconut Cove, a small town on the Florida coast. She uncovers a crime ring dealing in stolen marine equipment, eats way too many chocolate bars, adopts a cat, and learns far more about sailing than she ever wanted to.

Will Mollie be able to discover who the murderer is before her nosiness gets her killed?

Murder at the Marina is the first book in the light, humorous, and original Mollie McGhie cozy sailing mystery series. If you like kooky characters, adorable cats, and plenty of chocolate, you'll love this cozy mystery. Buy Murder at the Marina today and laugh out loud from the first page to the last.

My Review:

Mollie McGhie’s husband buys her a dilapidated sailboat for their 10^th anniversary—even though she doesn’t sail. Fearful that he’s having a bidlife crisis, she goes along with her husband’s dream in the hopes that he loses interest once he realizes what bad condition the sailboat is in.

No such luck. Her hubs sees nothing but potential, even after the body shows up. And guess where it turns up? Sorry, no spoilers here!

As any good sleuth worth her salt, Mollie can’t help herself. Instead of talking her husband out of buying the boat, she gets sidetracked investigating the murder. Plenty of people had reasons to want him dead and Mollie is in a perfect position to find out whodunnit.

Mollie fits quickly into the marina scene, which is much like an RV park for sailboats. She meets all the residents aka suspects who live on their sailboats and together they make a cozy little community.

Just add murder and stir!

Franny's Mashup of Victorian and Modern Vernacular

One of the fun things about writing my characters is that they say the darndest things. I almost wrote that I can make them say anything I want, but that’s not strictly true. The story-line must fit their character, or they’d never let me get away with putting words in their mouths. They really do have minds of their own, especially my secondary character Franny!

First, a little about Franny. The sleuthing sidekick of reluctant ghost-whisperer, Indigo Eady, Franny Bishop also happens to be the ghost of a former Victorian madam of some repute. Walking with a foot in both worlds, she’s still “living” the high life in modern day Sabrina Shores. The old English market town is a haven for the dearly departed, and Franny leads quite the active afterlife. Indigo is not far off when she says that Franny exists in the modern world better than she does.

Existing as she does, Franny has become quite the unintentional logophile—a lover of words. And except for a few instances which you’ll see further down, she’s quite the colorful speaker.

And she has reason!

Sleuthing is tough work. Everyone needs an outlet when frustration strikes, right? Here are some of Franny’s favorite Victorian expletives (the corresponding definitions are mine):

Balderdash = B.S.

Blast a Spaniard = Dang it!

Doolally = Crazy

Numbskull = Dumb@ss

Cockamamie = Ridiculous

Pshaw = Surely you jest

And then there’s the telly. How many ghosties do you know who watch television? Franny does. She is addicted to late-night black and white crime shows, featuring tough-guy private dicks such as Mike Hammer, Sam Spade—and even Charlie Chan.

Franny loves to use the slang she picks up...

Clocked = Assaulted

Rozzer = Policeman

Gam = Sexy leg


“Oh dear,” Franny said. “You’ve done it now. Gone and clocked a rozzer.” 

Rob stood—if you counted stooping at the waist as standing, and I did. Franny lifted her skirts and floated around him tsking at his rumpled condition. 

Rob raised his pant leg to assess the damage and Franny stopped and bent to check out his knee. “A bit of a lump, but all in all, a nice gam, don’t you think, Indigo? Placed higher and you’d have made a clean getaway. You’re out of practice, dear.” She shook her head.

Franny doesn’t always get it right. Sometimes she's a bit confused, like in this scene where she tries a bit of matchmaking... 

“Life is too short, don’t waste it on boredom. You need to follow your dreams. And speaking of dreams, that Badger is a real dream ship. Have you spoken to him yet?” 

“You mean dream boat and Badger is ancient history, Franny. We were kids. Besides, we’ve both moved on. He has a girlfriend.” 

“Pshaw,” she snorted, in a most unladylike manner. 

Or in this scene, where she mixes up the term, "coming out"...

“If an event or anniversary woke him from the ether, he might only now be coming out,” Franny said. 

I snorted. Franny’s interpretation of modern slang tickled my funny bone. We’d recently discussed gay people ‘coming out’ after my break-up with Francois. I never expected to hear the term used in connection to a haunting.  

Franny continued, “You may laugh, but he could be a newborn.”

I laughed again. “You mean newbie.” As in newly departed. 

And what self-respecting ghost isn't concerned with how she looks?...

“...Do I look warm?” She patted her ebony hair. Her teal skirts flared from a waist so tiny that Barbie would be green with envy, and her bright white gossamer blouse hugged her ample bosom in flawless perfection.

As if she ever looked anything less than perfect. “You mean hot. And yes, you’ll do.” 

But seriously, can a ghost be faulted for using "cobblestones" instead of "road"?...

“Good thinking, Indigo,” Franny said, as if she were my conscience sitting on my left shoulder giving her approval. “Plenty of time down the cobblestones to spill the beans.”

“You mean down the road…” I corrected Franny automatically. 

I love Franny’s character. She makes me laugh all the time. I hope you enjoyed learning about her as well.

What do you think?

Is Franny a true logophile?

Or one forgetful ghost?

_______________________________________

If you enjoyed reading about Franny, these snippets are from my upcoming cozy paranormal mystery novella, 
A Scandal in Boohemia.

Indigo Eady can’t live on ramen noodles forever…

She jumps on the first job offered. All she has to do is work undercover at Sabrina Shores Theatre, find a ghost thief, and cross him over. Easy peasy, right? Until an actor is murdered and Indigo’s fingerprints are all over the pistol like ink on a Rorschach test.

Forced to dust off her rusty sleuthing skills to clear herself, Indigo enlists the help of her ghost friend Franny and her hunky ex-boyfriend Badger to help solve the crime. Now, how to keep her investigation from the handsome inspector?

***

Indigo Eady is a reluctant ghost whisperer, but she’s grown quite attached to Franny Bishop, a former Victorian ghost madam of some repute. Franny’s afterlife makes Indigo’s life look like she has one foot in the grave. Much to Indigo’s chagrin, Franny is determined to find her a man. After all, there are plenty of handsome men around ripe for the picking, and Franny’s an expert. In the meantime, Indigo and Franny have murders to solve. 

Shake, Rattle and Row, a #CozyMystery #CleanRead from the Spirits in the Water #Anthology

Spirits in the Water, an Untethered Realms short story anthology is coming in October! My contribution to the collection is a #CozyMystery. 

You may have noticed that the world’s gone a little crazy lately. #CozyReads are meant to entertain, but not stress you out. If this sounds good to you, check out my sweet, fun, cozy and quirky short story, Shake, Rattle and Row!

Shake, Rattle and Row is a sequel short story glimpse into my new series coming out in 2019 called, Ask Crystal Ball. 

A Riverboat Casino sounds like a roaring good time, but it can be murder for those who suffer with seasickness...

Harlow Grayson is the journalist who unwillingly inherits Crystal Ball’s agony column after Crystal is found murdered. Unfortunately, the agony column, called Ask Crystal Ball, comes with a nasty side effect: the ghost of Crystal herself. Complete opposites, Harlow and Crystal never did get along, even when Crystal was alive. Nothing has changed. 

In this short story, Crystal needs Harlow’s help to recover an item of sentimental value—but it comes at a hefty price. 

***

I jumped. “Crystal! Where’ve you been?” I looked around to see if anyone was listening.

“Scouting. Did you bring it?”

I held up the pen. “Yes. But I’m not sure about this. It’s not right. We shouldn’t be messing with this stuff.”

“Oh, get over yourself.” She fairly bounced with excitement.

I sighed and knew I’d regret this.

“Try the gold ink this—”

“Shh, I got this.” With my heart pounding, I pushed down the gold nub. A golden glow descended over the room and cast an unearthly light. My skin prickled as latent sparkles of ethereal energy settled over me. I blinked several times, adjusting to the illusion of the veil merging between the mortal and spirit worlds.

Holy mother of— I crossed myself. Although I’d done this before, I’d never get used to it.

I surveyed my new—but somehow same—surroundings. I was still on a riverboat casino, but it was more alive, if that even made sense, given that the room was full of ghosts. A roulette wheel spun, and the clickety-clack of the marble bounced from slot to slot until it found its sweet spot. Joyful shouts erupted. Spectral women in flapper dresses and feathered headbands hovered over gray-suited men in pinstripes playing cards and smoking fat cigars. And above it all, the fog of cigar smoke clung to everything.

I wrinkled my nose. Observing the two worlds together made me dizzy. Between the smoke and the boat rocking, I felt green around the gills. I knew as soon as I had stepped on board in my four-inch stilettos that this was a bad idea. And trust me, a full figured diva on heels was no easy feat to begin with.

“This isn’t natural,” I whispered to Crystal.

“Welcome to my world,” said Crystal, hovering at my side.

Crystal Ball—her real name—used to be my annoying coworker before she got murdered. Now she was an annoying ghost. I unwillingly inherited her agony column—Ask Crystal Ball, if you can believe it—a pseudo- psychic hocus-pocus bunch of baloney. But worst of all was that Crystal’s ghost came as a nasty side effect of the job. My fate was sealed when I’d picked up and used her favorite pen. Somehow the pen allowed me to see the ghostly realms she saw. I’d never seen another era, though, until now. What business could Crystal possibly have with the 1920s, and more importantly, why involve me?

But I had bigger problems.

“You could have warned me.” I spoke into my digital voice recorder so it didn’t look as if I were talking to myself. That and the press pass around my neck should cover any awkwardness that might arise while speaking to my spectral sidekick.

“I told you it was formal, didn’t I?” She eyed my gown and then perused the room as if looking for someone. “Besides, what do you have to complain about? I’m the one stuck throughout eternity in skin tight pants.” She squirmed and tried to pull out a wedgie to no avail.

***

Huzzizzle of the Realms - February 2017 UR News

Jeff Chapman

Supernatural mayhem in the Weird West

An enchanted blade. An evil old man. An ancient spirit behind a mask. The Weird West just gets weirder.

Orville and Jimmy are a pair of hucksters, struggling to scrape together enough coin for a square meal. While Orville angles for the big score, Jimmy hopes to make an honest buck for a day's work. When an old man calling himself Marzby asks for help with a supernatural pest, Orville smells opportunity. Jimmy smells danger.

In two shakes of a lamb's tail, Marzby imprisons Orville and only Jimmy can save him from a gruesome death. The price for Orville's life? Jimmy must retrieve an enchanted knife from inside Skull Hill and put it in Marzby's hands in three days time. With the blade in reach, Jimmy runs head on into more trouble: a shapeshifting opossum, a larger than average coyote and an ancient spirit determined to keep the blade where it is. Maybe the evil Marzby shouldn't have the blade, but without it, how is Jimmy going to rescue Orville?

The Black Blade is a weird western novel in Jeff Chapman's Huckster Tales series, mixing horror, fantasy, and comedy in an Old West setting. Climb up in the wagon and follow Orville and Jimmy as they once again plunge over their heads into supernatural trouble.

Store Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon AU | Amazon CA

* * * * *

Christine Rains

Weaving Inuit myths with the modern day world.

Always read the fine print when making a bargain with a sea hag.

Lost to the clutches of her grief of losing her mentor, Saskia Dorn welcomes the opportunity to take down a warehouse of drug dealers. When their leader makes a break for it, Saskia and her ex-boyfriend, Sedge, chase the criminal shifter into the sea off the coast of northwestern Alaska. Not only do they lose their quarry, but a vicious sea hag snatches Sedge.

Saskia can’t take another loss and attempts to bargain for Sedge’s life and the salmon totem the witch has trapped in her cave. The sea hag wants only one thing: her long lost love. Who is dead. And living under the freaking ocean with the Salmon People. Find the Salmon People and return with the witch’s love before Sedge’s life is forfeit. Simple, right? Yet she can’t leave the Salmon People’s land without finding herself first.

Buy it on Amazon.

Add it to read on Goodreads.

* * * * *

Catherine Stine 

(writing this suspense novel as Kitsy Clare)

For these last weeks of February my publisher, Inkspell is offering the first ever sale of my romantic suspense, Private Internship. It's not strictly spec fiction, BUT… Sienna and Caz do a spooky Tarot reading on Halloween in an abandoned factory during New York’s Hurricane Sandy blackout… so it counts as psychological horror! Also, Sienna discovers a dreadful secret in her boss’s locked storeroom.

“What could be the worst secret you’d never want exposed? Find out what Caz is hiding that Sienna's trying to find. I was like WOW!!!” 

-Undercover Reviews

“On a dark, stormy Halloween night sculptor, Caz and his intern, artist Sienna are trapped in the old sugar factory where he resides and works. Candles are lit. To keep occupied Sienna pulls out the Tarot cards and what do they reveal? Who is Casper Mason? What secrets is he concealing? Has he found the person who will emotionally break him?” -Reader review

Marked down to $0.99 from $2.99 it’s on sale only thru March 2:

Amazon USA, UK, CA, B&N, Apple, Kobo

M. Pax

Two great giveaways for you!

Over 10 fantasy books, your for the taking. DOWNLOAD FREE BOOKS

Over 45 Urban Fantasy books in this giveaway plus a Kindle Fire! ENTER

Gwen Gardner

A new blog header depicting my fictional town of Sabrina Shores, England, is motivating me to move forward on the next Indigo Eady Cozy Mystery, A Scandal in Boohemia.

Here's a sneak peek:

It's all about adulting when Indigo Eady purchases a new flat then has to figure out how to pay for it. Luckily she lands a temporary job at the local theatre as assistant stage manager. There's only one catch: she has to stop the gangster ghost from haunting her boss. No problem—except for the murderer running loose.