Y is for Years & an Ocean by Jo Noelle

~ About the Book ~ 

Going to a séance was supposed to be a harmless diversion in Victorian England, but for Delia Spencer, it was life altering. Since that day, she has been plagued by fainting spells, while her consciousness visits Elle Thomas more than a century in the future. In modern-day New York, Elle has kept secret the dream-like memories of Delia’s life. As the visits have become more frequent, Elle is confused about what is her life and what is not. Back in England, Delia’s father is determined to marry her off to any marginally suitable man before her illness becomes known to society. But will Delia consent, now that she’s had a taste of Elle’s independence?

Part contemporary, part Victorian; part romance, part tragedy; part young adult, part new adult. This time travel novel is set in London, England and New York City. It is a clean romance packed with suspense and humor and just enough kissing. Science fiction meets sweet romance in Years & and Ocean.

Clean Romance

Intended Audience 14-18 years old +

*Amazon * Goodreads *

~ About the Author ~ 

Jo Noelle grew up in Colorado and Utah but also spent time in Idaho and California. She has two adult children and three small kids. She teaches teachers and students about reading and writing, grows freakishly large tomatoes, enjoys cooking especially for desserts, builds furniture, sews beautiful dresses, and likes to go hiking in the nearby mountains. 

Oh, and by the way, she's two people--Canda Mortensen and Deanna Henderson, a mother/daughter writing team. We write sweet romance stories with contemporary, paranormal, fantasy or time-travel twists.

* Website * Canda's Blog * Deanna's Blog * Facebook * 

W is for We Were Us by Heather Diemer + A GIVEAWAY!

~ About the Book ~ 

When Jenna returns to the small town she was forced to leave over a year ago after her drug dealing mother was found in bed with the mayor, she wasn’t sure what to expect. She is perfectly content waiting out the summer alone until she can return to college in the fall. 

What she doesn’t expect was to rekindle her relationship with Josh. 

Josh doesn’t judge her like everyone else does and never did. He gets her. When he shows up at her door every night just to see her, Jenna opens up to him like she’d never been able to before. And the more time she spends with him, the more she realizes she is falling for him. 

When someone in town spots the two of them together, rumors fly and her already uncomfortable existence in the town takes a turn for the worse. Jenna realizes she’ll never belong here and decides to leave and never look back. Josh convinces her to stay because there is something that she doesn’t know--something that could change everything. 

* Amazon * Goodreads * 

~ About the Author ~ 

Heather Diemer is a Midwest girl who lives in the in the picturesque Flint Hills of Kansas with her husband and two children. If she's not reading or writing, or thinking about reading or writing, you can find her outside with her camera capturing the beauty of everything around her.

You can find Heather on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/HDAuthor or on twitter at @heatherforreal

* Amazon * Facebook * Goodreads *









~ Giveaway ~

The Prize: An e-copy (Amazon) of We Were Us by Heather Diemer
To enter to win: LIKE Heather's Facebook page. Then *COMMENT on this post letting us know you've done so!

*Bonus Entries*

1. Follow Heather some other way (website, blogs, Amazon ...etc).
2. Share this giveaway with all of your friends!
3. Add We Were Us to your Amazon Wish List!

Giveaway ends April 30th at midnight!

*Be sure to leave your e-mail address so we can contact you if you win!

Q is for (A) Question of Faith by Nicole Zoltack

~ About the Book ~ 

It's not everyday you learn you're the incarnation of magic. 

After learning her birth mother sought the help of witches to conceive her, fifteen-year-old Crystal's previously unwavering faith is shaken. God hasn’t been answering her prayers like she thought--she was. 

Crystal’s limitless magical potential is put to the test when her boyfriend’s mother is in a life-threatening accident. Surely God won’t mind her using magic to help people, but the miraculous outcome leaves Crystal wondering what she is capable of and worrying that her magic will damn her to Hell or, worse, prove she has no soul to condemn. 

After her aunt is threatened, Crystal sets out to master her power, but flying and conjuring fireballs attracts dangerous attention. A witch hunter kidnaps her boyfriend, and shamans and witches hunt Crystal, desperate to use her to end a centuries-old war between the supernatural races. Her magic is an uncontrollable time bomb. If Crystal can't figure out what she's capable of, she won't just fail to protect those she loves and end the war--she might start the apocalypse.

* Amazon * Goodreads * 

~ About the Author ~ 

Nicole Zoltack loves to write in many genres, especially romance, whether fantasy, paranormal, or regency. She's also an editor for MuseItUp Publishing and works as a freelance editor.

When she's not writing about gentlemen and their ladies, knights, superheroes, or witches, she loves to spend time with her loving husband, three energetic young boys, and precious baby girl. She enjoys riding horses (pretending they're unicorns, of course!) and going to the PA Renaissance Faire, dressed in garb. She'll also read anything she can get her hands on. Her current favorite TV shows are The Walking Dead and Arrow.

To learn more about Nicole and her work, visit her blog at http://NicoleZoltack.blogspot.com. She can be found on most any social media site under Nicole Zoltack. Stalk away!

 * Website * Facebook * Amazon * Twitter * Goodreads * 

H is for Heart of Orion by Laura Bastian + A GIVEAWAY!

~ About the Book ~ 

Holly discovers she can teleport anywhere with only a thought. When Jai is injured, she is forced to take him back to Rommader for neither of them will survive the breaking of their soul bond. Upon arrival, they learn Queen Amira has been kidnapped. 

On a ship traveling across the universe, Amira is forced to develop a formula for an amulet with unlimited traveling power--or her captors will murder her husband. Unwilling to let her enemies have that much power, Amira must devise a plan to escape while pretending to cooperate, but in order to do so, she realizes she must make an amulet. 

Can Holly find a way to save her, or will Amira figure out the formula and make it home on her own without being lost in the cold, dark heart of the universe? 

* Amazon * Barnes and Noble * 

~ About the Author ~ 

Laura grew up in a small town in central Utah and now lives in another small town in northern Utah. She always loved stargazing and imagining life outside her own little world. Though they grew up only thirty miles apart, she didn't meet her husband until they went to college. A graduate of Utah State University with a degree in Elementary and Special Education, Laura has been using that training as she raises her children and writes make believe worlds. You can usually find her on her laptop either typing away, or on social media interacting with friends.

* Amazon * Blog * Facebook * 

~ Giveaway ~

The Prize: An e-copy of Heart of Orion by Laura Bastian
To enter to win: LIKE Laura's Facebook page. Then *COMMENT on this post letting us know you've done so! 

*Bonus Entries* 

1. Follow Laura some other way (website, blogs, Amazon ...etc). 
2. Share this giveaway with all of your friends!
3. Add the book to your Amazon Wish List! 

Giveaway ends April 30th at midnight! 


*Be sure to leave your e-mail address so we can contact you if you win!

A-to-Z April Blogging Challenge 2013 Sign Up List!

The time is here, people!  The Sign-ups for the 2013 A-to-Z April Blogging Challenge is open!!! 

What are you waiting for? Sign up!!!

Oh wait, you have a reason?

Still not sure if you want to participate?  Not sure what I am talking about?  No problem! 

Go HERE to check out the official A to Z blog.  

Go HERE to check out the official A to Z Facebook page.

Go HERE to check out the A to Z page on my blog.  

Don't have the time to Sign up right now?  

No problem! 

There will be a page on my blog so you can sign up any time between now and April first! 

Or

You can sign up on the  Official A to Z blog HERE! 

Or 

You can sign up on any of the team member's blogs! 

(Not sure who they are? Go HERE to meet the team!) 

And now. . .Go Sign up! 

A. . . B. . . C. . . Go! 

Please read instructions before signing up! Once your info is entered, we cannot change it. 

. . . One more thing.  If you have a problem with signing up, or you need to change something,  e-mail us and we will get it fixed for you.  

WAIT! I lied. I'm not done yet. *smiles* I forgot to tell you, this year we have categories!! But don't worry, they are optional.  Here is how it works.  After your blog name, put  one of the abbreviations in parentheses.


1. WRITING : WR
2. BOOKS: BO
3. FILM : FM
4. PHOTOGRAPHY: PH
5. GARDENING: GR
6. CRAFT: CR
7. ART: AR
8. MUSIC: MU
9. CULINARY: CU
10. LIFESTYLE: LI
11. FASHION: FA
12. PERSONAL: PR
13. SOCIAL MEDIA: SO
14. GAMING: GA
15. EDUCATION : ED
16. POLITICS: PO
17. HISTORY: HI
18. SCIENCE: SC
19. HUMOR: HU
20. TRAVEL: TR
21. MISCELLANEOUS: MI
22. ADULT CONTENT: AC

EXAMPLE: Nothought2small (WR)

Again, totally optional. I'm not categorizing my blog because I talk about too many things.  So if you don't want to, you don't have to. (If you have Adult Content on your blog, PLEASE mark it as such. We have a wide  variety of people participating and do not want anyone getting a shock when they visit. Any blogs with adult content that do not mark it as such will be removed. ) 

Only put ONE category.  (Or none) 

You may sign up with just your blog name, and none of the following codes. But please note that once you have decided on a code, you won't have the option to change it. Multiple entries of the same blog will be deleted.

Okay, last time I promise.  NOW go sign up! 

Today's blog post brought to you by the A-to-Z April Blogging Challenge

Well folks, it is that time of year again  . . . ready for it? Ready for it? *Throws Alphabet Confetti* It is time to begin prepping for the A to Z April Blogging Challenge!!

Steal this badge! 

Please stop by and say "Hi" to each of this years wonderful Co-Hosts! 

Arlee Bird ~ Tossing It Out  ~  @ArleeBird

Damyanti Biswas ~  Amlokiblogs  ~ @damyantig

Alex J. Cavanaugh ~  Alex J. Cavanaugh ~ @alexjcavanaugh

Tina Downey ~  Life is Good  ~ (No twitter)

DL Hammons ~  Cruising Altitude 2.0  ~ @DL_H

Jeremy Hawkins ~  Retro-Zombie  ~ @iZombieJMH

Shannon Lawrence  ~ The Warrior Muse  ~ @thewarriormuse

Matthew MacNish ~  The QQQE  ~ @MatthewMacNish

Stephen Tremp ~ Breakthrough Blogs  ~ @StephenTremp

Livia Peterson ~ Leave it to Livia ~ @LiviaGPeterson

L. Diane Wolfe ~  Spunk on a Stick ~ @SpunkOnAStick

Nicole Ayers  ~ The Madlab Post ~ @MadlabPost
and of course, me! 
Konstanz Silverbow ~ No Thought 2 Small  ~ @KonstanzS

Now if you didn't know, last year I got to be a co-host and it was my first year doing the challenge.  I will tell you, it is quite the experience!  And working with so many awesome people was the best part!  Quite a few of 2012's co-hosts returned this year.  I am glad I was welcomed back this year to co-host the challenge again.  

Now for those who don't know what the challenge is, I will give you the quick rundown.  

For more information CLICK HERE! 

April has 30 days.  Take away Sundays, guess how many days that leaves? 

If you guess 26 days, you guessed correctly.  

Starting April 1st you will blog about something that starts with the letter A. 

On April 2nd you will bog about something that starts with the letter B. 

Wanna know what you will be blogging about on April 3rd? Something that starts with the letter C.  

Get the picture?  So you blog everyday minus Sundays using the alphabet as a guide to get you through.  

So how do you prepare for this challenge? 

1. Follow THIS blog.  (It is also a good idea to follow the co-hosts blog as well.) 
2. Follow A-to-Z on Twitter (@AprilA2Z) (It is also a good idea to follow the co-host's on Twitter)
3. "LIKE" The A-to-Z Facebook Page
4. Plan your posts ahead of time. . . or don't. 
5. Mark January 30th on your Calendars.  That is when we will open up the Linky List for you to sign up for the challenge.  

A lot of bloggers like to go with whatever and just blog on a whim during the challenge.  Others like to have a theme.  And some do a mix of both.  Me? I have a theme.  Last year my theme was Mythological Creatures.  A different creature every day for 26 days.  It was a ton of fun!  This year? I have a theme. . . however I am keeping it a surprise!

Alright, who is ready?  Who is excited? Are you going to join the challenge?

Androsphinx

Androsphinx is the most common of the three Sphinxes.  The Androsphinx  has the body of a lion and a human head.  While it is most commonly a Male, there are female Sphinxes. The  most famous representation of the Androsphinx lies in the shadows of the Great Pyramid and has the head of a man wearing a Pharaonic headdress.  This particular sphinx is said to have a female lion body.  However I have not truly confirmed this fact.

The other two Sphinxes are the Criosphinx which has the head of a horned ram (and of course the body of a lion), and the Hieracosphinx which has the head of a falcon and the body of a lion OR Griffin.