Saturday Sample and Weekend Writing Warrio

 Welcome to Saturday Sample and Weekend Writing Warriors. Today I'm sharing  excerpts from Return Engagement, my first book about the Lovinggood family. I've already shared some of the first part so I'll be doing a little jumping around. First a blurb, then that excerpt. Oh, and on Sunday when you finish here go to www.wewriwa.blogspot.com for more excerpts from a talented group of authors.

Blurb:

Elizabeth Lane is one lucky woman. She has it all-money, fame, a satisfying career and a devoted fiancé. Her humble beginnings are all but obscured, but she isn't the kind of woman Senator Henry Lovinggood wants for his son, Richard. Senator Lovinggood plans to make Richard the President of the United States; he'll need a woman from a wealthy, powerful family by his side. Ten years ago the senator broke Richard and Elizabeth up, but this time it won't be so easy, for Elizabeth wants to know what might have been. This time she'll fight back, a struggle which ultimately leads to kidnapping and attempted murder and alienates her from the man of her dreams.

Last Weeks Excerpt:

Elizabeth had no doubt who had sent the gift. She didn’t know if she wanted to open it or not, for the other gifts had upset her something awful. Her nerves had finally calmed down, but if she opened that box she’d undoubtedly get all wound up again.

Curiosity won out, so she sat down and opened Richard’s latest offering. “Oh, look, Mother. How sweet.” She removed two fluffy, white, stuffed cats from the box and showed them to her mother. Both cats wore big red bows tied around their necks. The card inside the box read, I didn’t win these cats; I just bought them, but maybe they can be company for the carnival kitty. Love, Richard.

“This is the most romantic thing I’ve seen in a long time,” Mrs. Lane enthused. “Darling, don’t you want to call him?”

“No... yes...oh, I don’t know.” Elizabeth took her cats and wandered into her bedroom where the carnival cat still sat on the chair beside her bed. She picked up the carnival cat and cradled it in her arms, but she didn’t pick up the phone.

The clock had just struck twelve when a battered old Volkswagen stopped in front of Elizabeth’s house. A lanky teenager carrying a white paper bag rang the doorbell. Elizabeth went to the door this time.

“Hey,” the kid said. “I’ve got some hot dogs here for somebody called Elizabeth Lovinggood. Are you her?” 

Elizabeth’s eyes widened fractionally when the boy addressed her as Elizabeth Lovinggood. Nobody except the bodyguards had called her that before. “Yes, I’m Elizabeth Lovinggood. Where do the hot dogs come from?”

“Place called Pops. It’s on the beach. The guy who bought them told me to tell you to be sure to read what he wrote on the bag. Say, has anybody ever told you that you look like that movie star, Elizabeth Lane?”

Elizabeth smiled. “Yes, once or twice.” She turned the bag to the side and read, I had a hot dog for lunch too, but it didn’t taste as good without you to share it with me. Can we make a date for lunch sometime soon? I hope it’ s okay if I call you. Love, Richard.

“What is it this time?” called her mother.

“Hot dogs. Let’s have lunch.” As she had expected, the hot dogs were smothered with mustard and onions.

This week's excerpt:

She waited expectantly for one o’clock, sure that he’d send something else. When her gift came she had to laugh. Richard had sent her a large, foil wrapped Hershey’s kiss and a card which read, Does this kiss give you any ideas? Love, Richard.

At two o’clock a messenger dropped off a CD with a recording of Bryan Adams singing “Everything I Do”. The card read, Bryan Adams may say it better than I can, but I mean it just as much. Love, Richard

Elizabeth took the CD to her room and played it. Mrs. Lane looked in on her a few minutes later and caught Elizabeth wiping her eyes and cuddling Richard’s pillow. “I’m sorry,” Elizabeth choked, “but I’ve never heard a more beautiful song. Who wouldn’t want a man to love her so much he’d die for her?”

Mrs. Lane scooted the cats over and sat down in the chair beside Elizabeth’s bed. “Do you really think Richard loves you that much?”

Elizabeth nodded as a big lump in her throat threatened to choke her. “Yeah, I think he does.”

Available at http://amzn.to/1SMhEEk

Iridescent

 

Iridescent

by S. H. Everly

 

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GENRE: YA Fantasy, Christian themes

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

BLURB:

 

For 17-year-old Katrina Peterson, life is never the same after she finds out she’s moving back to California. Upon arrival, Katrina learns that the town has secrets, and at the heart of them is the mysterious and popular Jared, who’s been dreaming about her long before she came to Santa Cruz. Only one thing seems to have all the answers: a map given to her by her mother. But Katrina wonders how long she can keep her own secret from Jared. Will he ever accept her for who she truly is? But, more importantly, can she? A story filled with friendship, family, love, and even faith, Iridescent will take you away to the beaches and ocean waters of Central California, and on a magical journey in this coming of age book.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

EXCERPT:

 

I stared at the water in front of me as I inched my way toward it, the sand damp under my toes. A sunray shone against my skin as I looked out at the rose gold sunset. The light hit the waves at just the right angles, sending the entire ocean into streams of gold, orange, and rose-colored confetti and ribbon. 

 

I loved the sea—how one disturbance could send a thousand ripples in all directions, how light could change it in an instant, and how it was never one color. I loved that it sounded like it was breathing as it exhaled when it came across the sand and inhaled as it flowed back toward the

water. And what I loved most of all were the animals that I knew lived inside it.

 

As the water rushed toward my feet, it seemed like the water would touch them, but suddenly it retreated, leaving white foam in its place. The sun had finished its descent into the horizon, and I finally let the water hit my toes as I felt the rush of a wave against my feet. The water was no longer rose-colored or gold; it had turned to a deep blue, mirroring the sky above me. The water was warm and smooth. I sighed a moment, feeling the wind in my hair and the water against my feet, but when I looked down, my toes were as blue as the water beneath me.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

 

Sarah is the author of Iridescent. She is a lover of the ocean and the beach which have inspired her writing, and she is also inspired by her Christian faith. In her free time, she loves baking gluten-free recipes and painting. Something on Sarah's bucket list is to write a full first draft on a typewriter. She is excited to continue writing the sequel to Iridescent, Book 1 of the Iridescent Series.

 

Links:

 

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/57230154-iridescent

 

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Iridescent-S-H-Everly/dp/B08X81LLG9/

 

Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/iridescent-s-h-everly/1140035428

 

Website: https://www.sheverlybooks.com/

 

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

 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sheverlybooks

 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/SHEverly7

 

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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION 

 

S. H. Everly will be awarding a $15 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

 

 

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Lady and the Tribe

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This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions.Brenda Billings Ridgley will be awarding a $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Wives, mothers, and career women—we have all fallen victim to the silent epidemic that is, literally . . . letting ourselves go. Not the makeup free, yoga pants, weight gain routine. Little by little, we have allowed our preferences, interests, and individuality to slip away until we no longer recognize ourselves outside of our role as wives, mothers, or professionals. Who we are has become what we do.

In the process, our friendships have become the casualty of a “busy life” and lack consistency and depth. We have a gaping hole inside us that longs to be filled. How do we reclaim who we really are and fill this empty space that seemed to appear from nowhere? The answer lies in our Tribe. Our best friends see us more clearly than we see ourselves and are representations and extensions of our individuality. They are our companions, cheerleaders, and counselors—always in our corner. They are the branches of our tree of life that lift and support us, so we can flourish. Our Tribe is the family with whom we choose to live our life . . . with no strings attached.

Lady and the Tribe is a blueprint for building deep connections. As you read, you’ll be swept away on a journey of friendship as the author shares her own personal stories and those of other women. In the process, you’ll discover how to find, nurture, and deepen friendships and create a Tribe culture that is unique to you.

We can become whole again through the power of connection.

When three or more gather, we are Tribe.

Read an Excerpt

The Tribe

Traditionally, a Tribe is a social division in society consisting of families or communities linked by social, economic, religious, or blood ties. Some Tribes have a common culture and dialect, and typically they have a recognized leader. A customary Tribe is a face-to-face community, relatively bound by kinship relations, reciprocal exchange, and strong ties to place.

The term Tribe should be utilized only with great respect and consideration of its origins. It is with the term’s heritage in mind that I aspire to create that culture with my closest friends. This social division, group, or pack are linked by common social patterns, interests, and sometimes, goals. As the group connects together over time, they establish the Tribe’s personality, lingo, patterns, and rituals.

Your Tribal space feels like home when you arrive. It is safe, encouraging and makes you feel relevant because you are truly seen. Your Tribe cares about your opinions and what you have to say. They are proud of your talents and strengths and are not threatened by your success. Your Tribe will promote rather than ignore or diminish your wins. Although these close friends can be a great influence for you to be better and do better, there is no contest; you do not feel competitive with one another. The experience of finding your Tribe can be life changing. It becomes a mirror reaffirming who you are and where you belong.

About the Author:

BRENDA RIDGLEY is an author, speaker, and girlfriend guru who loves helping women connect, find success, and discover joy through friendship. Her mission is to start a movement: women coming together to build thousands of new Lady Tribes around the globe. Through her workshops, vlogs, blogs, and book clubs, Brenda helps women connect and communicate with respect, love, and trust. She holds an MA in human resources and has spent decades cultivating her own Tribe. A Colorado girl at heart, Brenda lives in the Carbon Valley area with her husband, Parker, two kids, Parker Jr. and Gillian, and pooch, Perry. She enjoys hiking and has conquered Longs Peak and several other 14’ers.

To connect with Brenda, visit her website at http://www.BrendaRidgley.com
Invite Brenda to speak at your next event: mailto:brenda@brendaridgley.com
Order: Lady and the Tribe - https://www.amazon.com/Lady-Tribe-Empowering-Friendship-Circles/dp/1737289709

Subscribe:

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/BrendaRidgley
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Beyond the Book: Civil War Weddings

I’ve shared a couple of posts about the Civil War because I taught history for 35 years, and I still like to learn more about the past. This particular post is about Civil War Weddings. I hope you enjoy it.

In the nineteenth century women had little influence in politics, economics, or education.  A woman’s wedding day was her day to shine even if she didn’t come from a wealthy family.  At no other time in her life would a bride be as important as she was on her wedding day.  

A wedding was also an important social event for communities, especially in the South.  Relatives who lived both near and far away gathered for the joyous event.

Most girls began courting and married somewhere between the ages of 18 to 21 and men by age 23 although some girls married in their early teens.  If a girl remained unmarried much past the age of 23 she was considered to be an old maid.

Just a note here; courting and dating are not the same thing.  The express purpose of courtship was marriage while dating is-at least in the beginning-for fun and amusement.  To court a young woman a man was expected to ask the permission of her father.  It was also expected that his intentions were honorable; that is, marriage minded.  Courtship usually took place in the woman’s home under close supervision.  A couple was rarely left alone.  While gathering information for this article I read one story about a man who was so desperate for a kiss from his beloved that he gave her chaperone a drugged peach to put her to sleep.  

Of course, most people have heard of bundling which sometimes took place in the North.  This was a Dutch custom that involved putting a man and woman into the same bed either fully or partly dressed.  

Our modern system of dating emerged from this tightly structured system of courtship.

I found it interesting that if you lived in the South once a man actually proposed to a girl, it was expected that she turn him down at least twice before she said yes.  I guess she didn’t want to seem too eager-or maybe desperate-but given the nature of courtship it seems like a lot of silliness to me.  

Once an engagement was finalized the couple would sometimes visit family members to extend personal invitations to the wedding.  Engagements were usually short with many less than six months.  During this time the preparations for the wedding were made.  This included the bride’s trousseau. 

The wedding dress itself probably would have surprised you.  Prior to 1840 when Queen Victoria wore a white dress to get married in most wedding dresses were chosen so they could be used as the bride’s best dress after the wedding.  White was expensive and hard to clean, so it was far more practical to marry in a colored dress.  The dress at the top of the page is a purple silk worn by a bride in the year 1863.

Queen Victoria’s dress was made of white satin trimmed with orange flower blossoms and over this a veil of Honiton lace.  The lace was created especially for her, and after the wedding the design was destroyed.  The lace which formed the flounce of the dress was four yards long and three quarters of a yard in depth.  

Naturally, not everyone could afford expensive lace and satin even if Queen Victoria did wear it to “the wedding of the century.”  Here’s a description of the wedding dress worn by a Missouri bride in 1859:   …tight bodice, a necklace neckline and dropped shoulders with flowing sleeves… material used was linsey-woolsey… produced only on American farms and plantations…blocks of dark and light gray… formed stripes around her 5 yard skirt.  The gray was broken by a band of wine colored wool and natural linen stripes alternating.

Some brides wore purple in honor of those who had fallen in battle.

Although brides didn’t often wear white their attendants did.  When Cornelia Jones Pond married in 1853 in Liberty County, Georgia, her attendants wore white silk dresses covered with white tulle, white sashes, gloves and slippers.

The wedding ceremony itself sometimes took place in a church, but people often chose to be married at home.  After the ceremony people partied sometimes for a period of days.  It’s interesting to note that people often married in late spring or in winter to avoid heavy work in the fields.  

After the ceremony it was traditional to have a wedding supper much as we do today.  A typical menu would consist of turkey, ham, bread, biscuits, jellies, cakes, ice cream, gelatin, candy, and fruit.  Again, the poor would not have served such an assortment of dishes.  It’s also worth noting that during the antebellum period wedding cakes weren’t white as they are today.  They were dark fruit cakes.  

Did they have a honeymoon?  Yes, the upper classes did, but the poor usually didn’t.   The trip usually consisted of sightseeing and visiting far off relatives and could last up to several months.  What about gifts?  Some people gave them, but some didn’t.  The war made gift giving in the South extremely difficult. 

During the war itself some things changed.  For one thing it was hard to meet men because everybody was in the army.  Fear of being an old maid caused many girls both North and South to marry men who would have been socially unacceptable in previous days.  Esther Alden who lived in the South said, “One looks at a man so differently when you think he may be killed tomorrow.  Men whom up to this time I had thought dull and commonplace seemed charming.”  

Marriage between Yankees and Southern girls also took place.  Women who refused to walk past an American flag or listen to Northern music could also be seen “arm in arm with dashing lieutenants and captains.”  Their elders mourned this “marrying craze”, but it didn’t stop anyone.  Recuperating soldiers-even amputees-were acceptable as mates.

I bet it was easier for girls to meet possible mates in the South than it was in the North because the war was fought in the South.  The armies were closer.

So, what do you think?  Are modern weddings all that much different?  

I used the following links to collect information for this article if you’d care to read in more detail.

http://mgagnon.myweb.uga.edu/students/Cooper.htm

http://www.vintageconnection.net/Bridal_Gowns.htm

http://www.memorialhall.mass.edu/collection/itempage.jsp?itemid=15807

http://civilwartalk.com/forums/ladies-tea/19648-civil-war-weddings.html

https://civilwartalk.com/threads/when-wedding-dresses-were-in-color-and-some-werent.114539/

Divorce Bucket List

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This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Jennifer Harris will be awarding a $15 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Divorce Bucket List is a practical and heartfelt guide that effortlessly blends meaningful exercises and reflections with author Jennifer’s personal experiences through the trials and challenges of divorce. Written as a way to empower others to rebuild their lives as they work through the trauma of a divorce, this illuminating guide explores Jennifer’s harrowing journey through divorce, revealing her creation of her Divorce Bucket List – and how it helped her emerge into a happier, healthier, and more emotionally fulfilling chapter of her life.

Perfect for anyone who feels lost, alone, or broken as they struggle through divorce, Divorce Bucket List will help you rediscover yourself and your values, overcome your fear of the future, and learn to love again. With a blend of real-life anecdotes, reflections, and exercises to encourage you to apply a Divorce Bucket List to your unique situation, Jennifer’s story will inspire you to move past your divorce and make the most of this exciting new time in your life.

Read an Excerpt

Don't forget to take some time to appreciate the journey as you go through your divorce or separation. If you're having one of the most challenging days or are experiencing conflict that you think you can't get through, then take a step back and look at it and say, “I am so grateful for this part of my journey, because I'm going to learn something from it.” I want you to look at your entire journey, be grateful for all of it, and know that you can learn something from every single thing you experience through this journey. You are going to come through stronger, and you are going to be even better. You're going to rebuild. You're going to flourish. You're going to thrive.

Don't forget to appreciate the moments. Look at things outside of the moment as you go through it, so that when you are at the point where you feel on top of the world when everything has finally recovered, you've rebuilt again, and you're happy, you will have those memories to know how you got to where you are. You will put your own crown back on as you fall in love with yourself and life again, and maybe, just maybe, you can even help one other person do the same by showing them it can be done.

I want to leave you, the reader—and now my friend—with what I said at the end of that speech in London in hopes that it touches you. No matter where you are in your divorce or separation journey, I want you to know that you are not alone, there is hope, and you can truly thrive in your wildest dreams on the other side. You might be only considering a divorce, you might be in the middle of a messy one, your divorce might be finalized—and you’re ready to move on, or anywhere in between. Wherever your journey currently is, the rest of your book is up to you. It’s up to you to take action, and when you use the tools that I’ve given you and implement your own Divorce Bucket List, I know you will be able to find joy and peace as I, and many others, have.



About the Author:

Jennifer Harris is an author, speaker, divorce coach, and the creator of the Divorce Bucket List. After experiencing her own traumatic marriage and divorce, she went on to become a highly trained and certified Confidence & Transformation Divorce Coach. With over ten years of coaching experience, she’s passionate about sharing her story of the grief and trauma she experienced and how she developed the Divorce Bucket List to help her move forward. Jennifer is dedicated to inspiring others to achieve their desired outcomes through divorce and rebuild their lives to emerge from their separations into happier, healthier chapters of their lives. She currently resides in Pennsylvania with her two wonderful boys.

http://www.DivorceBucketList.com
For More Resources or To Work with Jenn: http://www.Divideguide.com
http://www.Facebook.com/DivideGuideJenn
http://www.instagram.com/DivideGuideJenn
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCC5hAyDVsWpT91lMzDPq69w
https://www.tiktok.com/divideguidejenn

The book is on sale for only $0.99.

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Divorce-Bucket-List-Powerful-Self-Discovery-ebook/dp/B09HW7H2M1/
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Saturday Sample and Weekend Writing Warriors

 Welcome to Saturday Sample and Weekend Writing Warriors. Today I'm sharing  excerpts from Return Engagement, my first book about the Lovinggood family. I've already shared some of the first part so I'll be doing a little jumping around. First a blurb, then that excerpt. Oh, and on Sunday when you finish here go to www.wewriwa.blogspot.com for more excerpts from a talented group of authors.

Blurb:

Elizabeth Lane is one lucky woman. She has it all-money, fame, a satisfying career and a devoted fiancé. Her humble beginnings are all but obscured, but she isn't the kind of woman Senator Henry Lovinggood wants for his son, Richard. Senator Lovinggood plans to make Richard the President of the United States; he'll need a woman from a wealthy, powerful family by his side. Ten years ago the senator broke Richard and Elizabeth up, but this time it won't be so easy, for Elizabeth wants to know what might have been. This time she'll fight back, a struggle which ultimately leads to kidnapping and attempted murder and alienates her from the man of her dreams.

Last Weeks Excerpt:

Elizabeth had no doubt who had sent the gift. She didn’t know if she wanted to open it or not, for the other gifts had upset her something awful. Her nerves had finally calmed down, but if she opened that box she’d undoubtedly get all wound up again.

Curiosity won out, so she sat down and opened Richard’s latest offering. “Oh, look, Mother. How sweet.” She removed two fluffy, white, stuffed cats from the box and showed them to her mother. Both cats wore big red bows tied around their necks. The card inside the box read, I didn’t win these cats; I just bought them, but maybe they can be company for the carnival kitty. Love, Richard.

“This is the most romantic thing I’ve seen in a long time,” Mrs. Lane enthused. “Darling, don’t you want to call him?”

“No... yes...oh, I don’t know.” Elizabeth took her cats and wandered into her bedroom where the carnival cat still sat on the chair beside her bed. She picked up the carnival cat and cradled it in her arms, but she didn’t pick up the phone.

This week's excerpt:

The clock had just struck twelve when a battered old Volkswagen stopped in front of Elizabeth’s house. A lanky teenager carrying a white paper bag rang the doorbell. Eliza- beth went to the door this time.

“Hey,” the kid said. “I’ve got some hot dogs here for somebody called Elizabeth Lovinggood. Are you her?” 

Elizabeth’s eyes widened fractionally when the boy ad- dressed her as Elizabeth Lovinggood. Nobody except the bodyguards had called her that before. “Yes, I’m Elizabeth Lovinggood. Where do the hot dogs come from?”

“Place called Pops. It’s on the beach. The guy who bought them told me to tell you to be sure to read what he wrote on the bag. Say, has anybody ever told you that you look like that movie star, Elizabeth Lane?”

Elizabeth smiled. “Yes, once or twice.” She turned the bag to the side and read, I had a hot dog for lunch too, but it didn’t taste as good without you to share it with me. Can we make a date for lunch sometime soon? I hope it’ s okay if I call you. Love, Richard.

“What is it this time?” called her mother.

“Hot dogs. Let’s have lunch.” As she had expected, the hot dogs were smothered with mustard and onions.

Available at http://amzn.to/1SMhEEk

The Cairns of Sainctuarie

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This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Hawk MacKinney will be awarding a $20 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

The Cairns of Sainctuarie
Volume I - The Bleikovat Event
Volume II – The Missing Planets
Volume III – Inanna Phantom

From a rocky outcrop a battle-widowed Etkaa, gazed down at the death and upheaval. Rancid green Murian blood stanched the dusklit breezes from the haze-dimmed river marshlands. Nothing has been spared by the Green Dragon forces of Bleikovia. In skirmishes along the Feldon River, Etkaaâ's mate is fatally wounded with deadly selvon poison. Through a gruesome mountain trek of icy blizzards, they elude the Green Dragon. The battered starving Feldovats reach the coast at Eedov City only to be confronted by their implacable enemy determined to destroy the remaining Klarvkon rabble. Taking passage on crowded Maalon freighters, the refugees escape toward a new life among their Maalon hosts. Enraged Bleikovats move against the Klarvkons, bringing indiscriminate bloodshed. War once again surfaces, as it did in the muddy filth along the Feldon River of Malfesov, and becomes a different kind of war.

Generations after the great Murian upheaval of the Malfesian War against the Bleikovats, the Accords between planets Terato and Myr are signed.

Provisional Outpost Terato is under construction near a farm where Teratoan orphan Eklam a'Qoc lives with his uncle and cousin. Inquisitive strong-minded Eklam, Ek to everyone in the village, is captivated by the off-worlders technology, and becomes an apprentice to the Outpost Terato's Murian commander, Grand Duke Korvo. Uncle a'Qoc disapproves; wants nothing to do with these outlanders, wants their shimmering doorway portals-of-travel banned from Terato. As Outpost Terato becomes operational it seems to become a harbinger stirring ageless secrets of The Old Ones and their frightful weapons, of ancient Teratoan ruins, mysterious glowing lights, unexplained killings, a sacred book in a language no Teratoan can read, a moon that doesn't behave like a moon in its wobbly orbit.

From cosmic reaches beyond space and time the ominous secrets of Terato's ancient ruins become more threatening. Ek and Korvo realize both their worlds face extinction with any hope buried somewhere in unknown galaxies far beyond a pastoral Terato or the sophisticated star-empire of the Murians; of missing planets in a star system with its single star in a galaxy far-removed unknown to Terato or Myr. They travel across the universe to a place long forgotten to fight this unknown foe with weapons only dreamed of. Together they face the beast that wishes to consume the entire universe.

The threat of rift invasions seems long passed. Plentiful harvests abound. The Murian first-contact Terato Outpost has grown into the sprawling Terato-Murian Terminus Terato with a hub of relay portals reaching across the vast uncharted galactic expanses and connecting with its eon-extinct Lantaraan prehistory. An exploratory Terato-Murian Jupiterr outpost is established on the gas giant seventh planet, and its quantum and gravitational energies are used to power outpost portals for an archeological survey of the fourth planet, Eorthe. The Lantaraan database aboard Terato’s ancient Downday moon shows that one or more planets of the Solaris planets have apparently been lost. Expanded archeological records on other Lantaraan orbital bodies in the Solaris system show the fourth planet from the star—Eorthe—to be a sterile wasteland. Except it is not. Eorthe’s civilization is not to the level of the Murian Empire, but it is far advanced to those of a pastoral Terato. Terato and Eorthe form the confederated United Terran League under the nominal figurehead leader of League High Judikarr Eklam a’Qoc. Jupiterr outpost expands into a major League stronghold, Jupiterr Base, when civil unrest erupts in the League, the unexpected return of rift intrusions threatens, and the Murian Emperor Klarvko Celo is assassinated. As they prepare for confrontations with an unknown ancient enemy, the internal tensions on Myr and Eorthe push Murians and Teratoans to dangerous discords.

Read an Excerpt from BOOK TWO: The Missing Planets

Korvo’s assigned portal coordinates designating outlink Myraa City with inlink Terminus Terato were already active by the time Ek arrived at the portal terminal. A background sibilance of hisses spewed with a number of active portals, the thrums somewhere between hearing and feeling them at the same time. Brilliant pinpoints condensed in the portal fields. Between their portal frames the fields, smaller than the tip of Klara’s sewing needles, more intense than Terato’s two suns, expanded into shapeless undulating masses, growing more solid and taking shape.

In adjacent cargo portals enormous crates and objects took form on antigrav platforms. Immense power supplies to several portals snapped off. Heavy-duty servmos moved bulk industrial-size crates, equipment, provisions and materiel toward the service radials and sublevel storage bays. The active portals reminded him of the slow-roll boil of the sweet, dark, ground-bark syrup in the shallow pot his mother used to make candy. Recalled other kitchen smells; oven-warm bread smeared with churned cream.



About the Author:

With postgraduate degrees and faculty positions in several medical universities, Hawk MacKinney has taught graduate courses in both the United States and Jerusalem. His professional writing includes articles on chordate neuroembryology, and aerospace research on muscle metabolic behavior in multi-orbital environments.

In addition, Hawk has authored several works of fiction including a historical romance Moccasin Trace which was nominated for both the prestigious Michael Shaara Award for Excellence in Civil War Fiction and the Writers Notes Book Award. His Cairns of Sainctuarie Science Fiction Series and his Moccasin Hollow Mystery Series have received national and international attention.

http://www.hawkmackinneyauthor.com
http://www.sagewordspublishing.com

https://www.amazon.com/Cairns-Sainctuarie-Bleikovat-Event-Book-ebook/dp/B00A6BR6YG/ref=sr_1_3
https://www.amazon.com/Missing-Planets-Cairns-Sainctuarie-Book-ebook/dp/B01402PJM2/ref=sr_1_1
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Something Discovered

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This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Bernadette Marie will be awarding a $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Sometimes coming home opens the door to discovering something new.

After Coach Diaz’s funeral, Alex Burke realized there was nothing left for him in Boston, especially after he found out his girlfriend had moved on. Moving back to Colorado, and bonding with his college friends, is what Alex needed to get his life back in order.

Catherine Anderson grew up in the shadow of Coach Diaz’s daughter. The best friend that was always overlooked, Catherine had reservations about the men who had been Coach’s Fabulous Five, especially Alex Burke who always had eyes for Rachel, and didn’t even know Catherine existed.

Coming together to mutually help Rachel through hard times, Catherine and Alex realize they’d had eyes for one another back when. Perhaps now that Alex was home, it would be a good time to explore an adult relationship. But when news out of Boston rocks his world, it just might be more than Catherine can handle.

Read an Excerpt

“I do like you,” she said and Alex lifted a brow, as if he’d forgotten the last thing he said. “I’ve never been very nice to you though.”

Alex picked up his napkin and wiped his mouth. “That’s a lot to take in.”

Now her hands shook, so she capped the water and sat it on the ground. “I was never nice to any of you. You buzzed around Rachel and her family like a swarm of bees. I get it,” she said holding her hand up to ward off any comments. “Mr. Diaz set it up that way. Having you all around kept you mostly out of trouble. But it distracted her, and that took her mind off of being my friend. It’s petty, stupid, and small of me. But, hey, I was a teenage girl.”

Alex pulled his sunglasses from his face and hooked them on the front of his shirt. “And now? All these years later, we’re swarming again?”

“Yes,” she said breathlessly. “But I’m not sixteen anymore.”

Resting his hand on the ground, he eased toward her. “So you don’t hate me?”

Catherine swallowed hard. “I don’t think I do.”

“You’re not mad about what happened the other night?”

“Mad, no. Conflicted, yes.”

He smiled again as he inched closer to her. “You’re more comfortable hating me.”

“I never actually hated you.”

“You didn’t?”

“You didn’t see me, that’s all.”

Humor flashed in his eyes. “Oh, hell, you have no idea, do you?”

Catherine eased back. “What does that mean?”

“It means let’s discuss that over dinner. No backing out, okay?”

About the Author:

Bestselling Author Bernadette Marie is known for building families readers want to be part of. Her series The Keller Family has graced bestseller charts since its release in 2011. Since then she has authored and published over forty-five books. The married mother of five sons promises romances with a Happily Ever After always…and says she can write it because she lives it.

Obsessed with the art of writing and the business of publishing, chronic entrepreneur Bernadette Marie established her own publishing house, 5 Prince Publishing, in 2011 to bring her own work to market as well as offer an opportunity for fresh voices in fiction to find a home as well.

When not immersed in the writing/publishing world, Bernadette Marie can be found spending time with her family, traveling, and running multiple businesses. An avid martial artist, Bernadette Marie is a second degree black belt in Tang Soo Do, and loves Tai Chi. She is a retired hockey mom, a lover of a good stout craft beer, and might have an unhealthy addiction to chocolate.

Author: Website: http://Bernadettemarie.com
Publishing House Website: http://5princebooks.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorBernadetteMarie/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/writesromance
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorbernadettemarie/

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B098S8ZZM2
Google Play: https://www.google.com/books/edition/Something_Discovered/pSREEAAAQBAJ
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/something-discovered-bernadette-marie/1139808987

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Far Beyond Woman Suffrage

Far Beyond Woman Suffrage

by David McCracken

 

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GENRE:   alt-history/coming of age

 

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BLURB:

 

Far Beyond Woman Suffrage: The Prices of the Vote

It isn’t just about women in long skirts finally voting. The racists and the rich know that, and the politicians worry.

Mercy Martin has an inside view as the battle for woman suffrage nears a climax, but she encounters many puzzles:

• So many women and Southern states oppose votes for women; 
• So many people are afraid it would bring on free love, abandonment of family, economic catastrophe, or communism.

• So many suffragists are willing to abandon black women voters.
  
  

From an innocent teen to a young adult, Mercy has a central role in the campaign. She advances from confinement in a suffragist jail cell to the national campaign for the suffrage amendment. She campaigns around Tennessee, ending at the capitol for the explosive climax in the last state that might ratify the amendment and grant the vote to women.

Why should something so clearly right be so hard, and why were some bitter compromises made? Mercy is right in the middle, relied on by key players. Along the way, she acquires a husband, a baby, and better parents than she was born with.

This is an intimate view via alternative historical fiction, as accurate as it can be and as thoughtful and moving as it must be. In this first novella of a series, Mercy jumps into the campaign for woman suffrage and prepares for a vital role in the coming decades. She’ll continue on into the wider civil rights struggle growing out of woman suffrage.

 

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EXCERPT

 

Progress? 1/12/1918  

I excitedly wait before my shift on the line to discuss with Miss Sue news I heard about, that the House approved the woman suffrage amendment 274 to 136 two days ago! “So, we’re almost there?” I ask her when she’s passing by, checking how we pickets she’d assigned for the day are doing.

 

Her mouth tightens: “Sweety, we’ve just begun. That’s just over the required 2/3, and I understand the Senate will refuse even to debate it until October. “ 

 

“How can that be? Don’t they know it’s right … and important?”

 

“They’re afraid of the heat they’ll get from both sides and probably can’t line up the votes to pass it. In Southern states, a vote for woman suffrage is political suicide because negro women there would be able to combine their votes with Northern liberals.”

 

I look down: “Then it’s hopeless?”

 

“No, an election is coming. If they postpone a vote until after the election, we might win the few more seats we need.”

 

“Oh.”

 

“Don’t worry. We’re not letting any of them off the hook, especially not Woodrow Wilson. It’s his Democratic party, his responsibility. No excuses. He’s got to produce the votes.”

A Word With The Author

1.Did you always want to be an author?

No, but I have since high school, and I’m 81.

2.Tell us about the publication of your first book.

As an alt-history multimedia interactive sci-fi autobiography there wasn’t much place for it but Amazon, since I didn’t want any editor say “You can’t do that!”. I did it just the way I wanted to, when I wanted to.

3.Besides yourself, who is your favorite author in the genre you write in?

Orson Scott Card, George Orwell, Stephen King

4.What's the best part of being an author? The worst?

For best or worst, I’m on my own.

5.What are you working on now?

The vote at last is won for women, so what’s next for our suffragist? In the Far Beyond Woman Suffrage series, this second novelette follows Mercy Martin Hamblin testing what women can do now and where she should throw her efforts. 

She’s started at the University of Tennessee to prepare for teaching social studies. Still, she’s plagued by the women and men of color left behind in the push, letting bigots decide what “local conditions” will permit via  Jim Crow. She is also determined that the peace her husband died for in France will last. With three loving grandparents to watch her wonderful toddler as she studies, Mercy is blossoming. She is coming to see suffrage is about more than putting ballots in a box, so she’s preparing to do the work of expanding suffrage’s choices to allow people to govern their own lives. 

Mercy’s Grandma finally says, “Start dating, Sweetheart. You have so much to offer a man. It’s time.” Her body and heart have been telling her the same thing. There’s that cute congressman who clinched the woman suffrage amendment’s passage and a fellow teacher who tells about wartime adventures that could have been her Joe’s.

She’s not impressed with what her fellow Republicans are doing. They seem governed by greed, but the Southern Democrats are openly racist. Meanwhile, the countries that fought a world war for democracy are busy carving out colonies.

There are many exciting developments in transportation, science, and entertainment, and Mercy loves them, especially the Stutz Bearcat her father-in-law bought her for commuting. However, there’s still appalling ignorance, poverty, and injustice. And indifference, but not in Mercy!

As the United States plunges into the Great Depression, people are suffering. Mercy is uneasy about the response of the Republican president and impressed with what she hears from the Democratic candidate. Maybe she should get involved. 

In this alternative history, the ground is being laid for Mercy to join in, though it may hurt her staunchly Republican family. 

Anything can happen … 

 

 

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

 

David McCracken became a political activist when the Supreme Court ruled against school segregation. Fellow students joined him in urging the school board in Winchester, KY, to integrate immediately. He campaigned for a Democratic governor and joined the ACLU before he graduated from the University of Kentucky. After debating at U.K., he got a degree in economics and a job with the U.S.  Department of Commerce. 

 

When his daughters approached school age, he became increasingly concerned with how he wanted them schooled. Researching that, he decided teaching was what he really wanted to do. He got a master's degree in elementary education at Murray State University. He taught for several years, until the fact that his girls qualified for reduced-price lunches based on his salary got to him. Ronald Reagan's anti-government policies prevented him from returning to government work, so he took programming courses and shifted careers again. Programming was like being paid to solve puzzles all day, but teaching eventually drew him back until retirement. 

 

For many years of this time, he was working intermittently at a novel that became Fly Twice Backward: Fresh Starts in Times of Troubles. This concerned his waking on his twelfth birthday, trying to figure out what had happened, following his new opportunities, and ultimately outliving an evil president resembling Donald Trump. After thirty-six years, David finally published it as an interactive alt-history Kindle novel. He soon started, Far Beyond Woman Suffrage: The Prices of the Vote, an alt-history novelette dealing with the campaign for woman suffrage. He finished this piece in just ten months. At 81, he is bold(?) enough to plan this as the first of a six-volume set dealing with the far-reaching results and implications of woman suffrage. His completed novels and another in the works are presented for discussion on a new website, DoFancifulFlights.com

 

David now lives with his third wife, stepdaughter, and step-grandson near Winchester, VA. He has a son from his second marriage, six grandchildren, and two stepchildren. And a wonderful black dog with four white feet.

 

Website: http:// DoFancifulFlights.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/702749.David_McCracken

 

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Far-Beyond-Woman-Suffrage-Prices-ebook/dp/B09DPSTN35/

 

The book will be on sale for $0.99 during the tour

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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION:

 

David McCracken will be awarding a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. 

 

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