Book Blitz: #Selfie (Hashtag #4)

#Selfie (Hashtag #4) by Cambria Hebert

Publisher: Cambria Hebert

Release Date: May 18th 2015

Genre: New Adult, College, Romace

Links: Goodreads | Amazon US | B&N

Synopsis:

It’s all about the #Selfie.

She was the one girl I never wanted.

Until I had her.

One night.

One mistake.

Something we both wanted to forget.

I got rid of the proof. The one piece of evidence that could remind us both.

At least, I thought I did.

When it shows up on the school Buzzfeed, rumors fly. Friendships are tested and the feels get real.

I don’t do relationships. I don’t open my heart.

Especially for a girl everyone knows I hate.

What happens during spring break, stays in spring break.

Until it follows you home.

Excerpt:

I didn't think. I just reacted.
I leapt over the railing with ease. The distance down and the uneven sand I would be
landing on didn’t even cross my mind.
It didn’t matter.
I landed like a cat, no trouble at all, and the second my feet hit the sand, I moved forward.
Ivy was almost beneath the deck, but not quite. Her back was to me and she was sitting up,
hunched forward over part of herself.
She was muttering some pretty damn colorful curse words beneath her breath, and my
face split into a smile. “Another angry crab attack you?”
She stiffened and looked over her shoulder. Long blond hair cascaded down her back and
partially over her shoulder, creating a waterfall around her.
God, she was beautiful.
Wait. No. No, she wasn’t.
I cleared my throat. 

“Braeden?” She glanced up, surprised. “Did you jump down here?”
“Well, you screamed like you might be dying,” I quipped.
“Hardly.” She tried to roll her eyes, but it turned into a grimace. “I need a Band-Aid,” she
said pathetically.
I bit back a smile and crouched down beside her. “Let me see.”
She leaned back a little so her body wasn’t blocking my view. The movement brought her
closer against me, and the scent of cinnamon wrapped around me. My stomach muscles
tightened and I jerked slightly. There was no way she could have noticed, but her head tilted
back and her eyes found mine.
We stared at each other for the span of a few heartbeats, neither of us moving or saying a
word until someone called down from above, wanting to know if we were okay.
I blinked, bringing myself back from the edge—the edge I always seemed perched on
around her—and motioned for her to show me what was wrong.
She lifted her foot into her lap, and I looked down.
I heard myself mutter something, but I was back to not thinking again.
She had the cap of a beer bottle sticking out of the bottom of her foot. Blood oozed out
around it and dripped into the sand.
I cradled her foot in my hand and gently stroked my thumb along her heel. A shudder
moved through her, and I glanced up.
“Hurts, huh?” I murmured.
She blinked. “Uh…” She blinked again. “Yeah.”
Using one hand, I reached around to the base of my neck and pulled my T-shirt up over
my head. I didn’t say anything when I reached for her again, and without any warning, I yanked
the cap free.
Her breath hissed between her teeth and she smacked my arm.
“Hey!” I snapped.
“That hurt!” she yelled, but it came out more like a whimper.
I tossed the cap over my shoulder and glanced back down. Fresh blood welled. “It’s over
now,” I said gently and used my shirt to wrap around her foot.
Once the shirt was in place, I pressed her foot between my hands, applying a little
pressure.
Really, I just wasn’t ready to let go.
“Braeden?” Her voice caressed me. Being down here mostly concealed by the deck in the
cool sand and low lighting brought back last night. It reminded me of the undeniable electricity
between us.
I thought for sure it would be gone.
It was still there.

Author Bio:

Cambria Hebert is a bestselling novelist of more than twenty books. She went to college for a bachelor’s degree, couldn’t pick a major and ended up with a degree in cosmetology. So rest assured her characters will always have good hair. She currently resides in North Carolina with her children (human and furry) and her husband, who is a United States Marine.

Beside’s writing Cambria loves a caramel latte, staying up late, sleeping in and watching movies. She considers math human torture and has an irrational fear of chickens (yes, chickens). You can often find her running on the treadmill (she’d rather be eating a donut), painting her toenails (because she bites her fingernails), or walking her chorkie (because her dog runs her house).

Cambria has written within the young adult and new adult genres, penning many paranormal and contemporary titles. Her favorite genre to read and write is romantic suspense. A few of her most recognized titles are: Text, Torch, Tryst, Masquerade and Recalled.

Author Links: Website | Email | Facebook Fanpage | Twitter | Pinterest | Goodreads

Giveaway:

Blitz-wide giveaway (US ONLY) ENDS MAY 21st 2015

1. 1x Hashtag bag full of swag

2. 1x Wolfpack T-Shirt (like Braeden wears in the book)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Blitz: Kinda Maybe

Kinda Maybe by Elise Daniels

Publisher: Not available
Release Date: May 2015

Genre: New Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Links: Goodreads | Amazon US

Synopsis:

Determined to live out a lifelong dream, Kat Hilliard moves cross country after college to New York City to chase her destiny. Knocking out 140 character tweets for a financial firm by day and engaging in all the sexy options New York has to offer by night, Kat is not prepared when New York’s most eligible bachelor, Reese Tremaine, bumps into her on a downtown train. Her simple life will never be the same.

Swept into the hideaways and haunts of the extremely rich and decadent, burdened by an unwanted celebrity, Kat fights to remain true to herself as great sex, a heated political campaign and the dark secrets of a soldier returned home push her toward the one mistake that could keep her from living out her New York fairytale.

Excerpt:

Slowly fading into the shadows I step lightly away and down the street
making my way to the white sports car with the dimly glowing dashboard
lights within. I cross over to the passenger side door and knock quietly on the
glass.
The door clicks unlocked. I hesitate before opening the door and getting
down into the car. I stare at Reese’s tender eyes as I pull the door closed. The
dome light turns off. His eyes continue sparkling with the reds and greens of
the dashboard.
“I waited,” he says.

We stare at each other a long time. Eventually, I reach out and take his
powerful hand and hold it. “What do you want?” I say. “A cookie?”
Reese grins. An electric tingle shoots through my belly. The car pulls
away from the curb and begins moving quickly. The engine is so silent I didn’t
even know it was on.
I keep his hand, gripping it tightly as I let both our hands rest on my left
thigh. We don’t say another word while he drives quickly through the
abandoned residential streets of the Brooklyn night.
The excitement of us fills up the small, contained space inside his
expensive, low to the ground sports car. My defenses are down. I bathe in the
drowning magic of our undeniable connection. I accept all the manipulation,
the inconvenience, the likelihood of being used.
Right now it feels right. I am tired of thinking. I needed to get out of my
mind and inside the moment. My eyelids drop. All is black. The only things I
feel are his warm fingers laced with mine.
It’s three a.m. and we race alone across the Brooklyn Bridge into
Manhattan. I lift my hand to touch his beautiful face. When he exhales his lips
form a relaxed smile. The air we breathe becomes rich with the buzzing need
of our beating hearts.

Author Bio:

(NO PHOTO AVAILABLE)
Elise Daniels spends a lot of time on long walks through nature imagining all kinds of thrilling scenarios. Her novels are a necessary therapy, an attempt to write it all down. For Elise, as for all voracious readers, one life is just not enough.

Having traveled and dreamed of living in so many cities, Elise enjoys a scintillating location as much as she does sexy grins and hard bodies. Her BIG CITY NIGHTS series is an ongoing attempt to experience everything that can quicken the heartbeat, overwhelm the senses and get a good girl to chase after her darkest desires.

Elise loves hearing from readers, so drop her a line whenever and wherever.

Author Links: Website | Twitter | Facebook

Giveaway:

Individual giveaway (OPEN INTERNATIONALLY) ENDS JUNE 9th 2015

1. eBook copy of Kinda Maybe

Leave your name, email, Blog (if you have one) and number starting from 1 in the comment section below.

Blitz-wide giveaway (OPEN INTERNATIONALLY)

1. $25 Amazon gift card

2. $10 Amazon gift card

3. $5 Amazon gift card

4. 2x eBooks of Awake

5. Signed paperback of Kinda May
6. $3.99 eBook of choice
7. 2x eBooks of Beautiful Ruin by Alison Foster
8. $2.99 eBook of choice
9. 2x eBooks of Kinda Maybe

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Book Blitz: Sky High (The Attraction #3)

The Sky High (The Attraction #3) by C.J. Lake

Publisher: Not available

Release Date: May 2015

Genre: New Adult, Romance

Links: Goodreads | Amazon US

Synopsis:

**All books in C.J. Lake’s Attraction Series are standalone novels with NO cliffhangers.**

First she stole my parking spot. Then we became friends. Then I fell completely, mind-torturingly in love with her. Oh, wait—I think that happened first.

Excerpt:
“Hmm, is there a deep-seated reason for your pessimism about guys?”
“No comment.”
“Ah, so there is a reason,” Jamie said.
“It’s a long story,” Sky said with finality, effectively shutting down the topic.
“I see,” Jamie commented, nodding.
“You couldn’t possibly,” she challenged.
“Okay, I don’t see everything,” he admitted casually, “but I get the general picture. You’re the girl your friends are always trying to set up—but you hate every guy, right?”
“No, not at all,” Sky insisted. How did he know? “Though my friends do claim that I’m too picky. But really, I’m not!”
“Ah, so you’re one of those too-picky girls.”
“I’m not!” she yelped, a grin fighting to break through. “The thing is, I know what I want and I don’t want to settle.”
“So, what do you want then?” he asked her pointedly.
“I’d just like someone normal and appealing and fun,” Sky said. “But, you know, smart and interesting and actually honest. He has to be employed,” she continued, thinking about it, “and preferably not a felon.”
“So is that it?” Jamie said, as he chomped on a steak fry. “Is that the whole list? Or is there more?”
“Um…yes, I’m sure there’s more.”
“Of course there is!”
Giggling, Sky said, “Hey, I like to be thorough. Did I mention employed?”
“Yes.”
“Intelligent?”
“Yes, you said that one, too.”
“Oh! I know. Insightful. Considerate. Funny without being a clown, and ambitious without being a showoff. I’d also like him not to be a total horndog.”
At that, Jamie froze. “Excuse me?”
Sky’s eyes roamed around Jamie’s kitchen in a way that was deliberately casual, as she explained, “I just don’t want someone who is totally obsessed with sex, that’s all.”
He set down his steak fry, assessing her. “Just to clarify here…you are looking for a guy, right?”
“Yes. Why?”
He shrugged. “Just checking. Wasn’t sure there for a second.”
“See, but that’s the whole problem,” Sky blurted, thinking about the past—even though she really, truly, deeply did not want to, “guys can fool you.”
“How?” Jamie asked curiously.
“They…they can have a dark side,” was all she said. “Of course they don’t show it until it’s too late. You know, sometimes I just don’t feel like putting in the effort to meet a new guy, because how can I know he’s not really a total A-hole?”
“You can’t,” Jamie admitted. “At first. But I could help you with that.”
Sky’s brows pinched as she studied him. “Help me how?”
“All right, Sky,” Jamie said, sounding confident, and pushed aside his plate. “I’m going to do you a personal favor. You can thank me later. Or now—your call.”
Squinting at him, Sky said, “What are you talking about?”
“I’ll help you filter out the losers right away.”
“How?”
“Simple. I’m a guy myself. I know what other guys are about. Just the way you girls all understand each other—but guys don’t understand girls very well at all. Am I right?”
“Yes,” she agreed. “But…how would this work?”
“How about this? If I run into you while you’re out on one of your blind dates, I’ll let you know my read on the guy. Right then and there. We’ll need some sort of signal, of course.”
“Hmm…I’m tempted to go along with this,” Sky said thoughtfully. “But I’m skeptical.”
“Of course you are,” Jamie said, nonplussed. “You’re a cynic. Let me help you.”
She gave a laugh and rolled her eyes. “Fine, so is this a pass/fail type of thing?”
“Pass/fail, yes, that’s a good idea,” Jamie agreed.
“And what kind of signal should we use? It would have to be really subtle, of course.”
“Let’s keep it simple,” Jamie suggested. “Thumbs down means dump him. Thumbs up means hump him.”
“That’s disgusting.”
Jamie laughed out loud. “I’m kidding.”
Shaking her head, Sky laughed, too. Then said: “Why would you even want to help me with my dating life anyway?”
“Why not?” Jamie replied. “You’re helping me, right?” he said, motioning to the plant on the windowsill. “We’ll call it even.”

Q & A With Author:

What makes Jamie and Sky such a great couple?
When the story begins, Sky is in a tough transition, finally coming to terms with the fact that her ski career is over after it had only just begun—and that she has to figure out what’s next. She has become somewhat negative and cynical, but when Jamie comes along with his easygoing, funny personality, he inevitably brings a positive energy to Sky’s life.

If you had to choose, what is your favorite scene?
Sky and Jamie have a confrontation about their whole “friendship” and what’s really been happening below the surface. It’s a pretty intense, sexy scene and I love that whole moment between them!

Do you have a music playlist for this book?
Yes! My #1 Jamie-Sky inspiration song is “Afterlife” by Ingrid Michaelson—but there are so many fun, romantic songs that remind me of their love! Like: “Want to Want Me” (Jason Derulo), “Sugar” (Maroon 5), “Boom Clap” (Charli XCX), “Riptide” (Vance Joy), “Classic” (MKTO), “Love Me Like You Do” (Ellie Goulding), and “Unconditional” (Katy Perry).

What are your must-haves while writing?
I’d like to say good lighting and espresso—but truthfully, I’ll write even when I’m out of espresso. Still…good lighting is a must and I will pretty happily settle for regular coffee.

What else should readers know?
Sky High is the third book in The Attraction Series. Like the other books in the series, Sky High is a standalone novel—although characters from Constructing Us (Book 1) and A Hot Winter (Book 2) also appear, so readers can see how they’re doing! I had a lot of fun with this book, because Jamie is one-of-a-kind and I hope I captured that.

What’s next?
Coming up are Parts 2 & 3 of The Allnighter (My New Stepbrother). I recently released Part 1, which you can check out here: http://amzn.to/1cuDWZc Mick and Cady would be perfect together…if only the timing and circumstances weren’t so imperfect! The rest of their sexy and at times funny love story is coming soon…

Also, Let it Burn (Book 4 in the Attraction Series), is coming in 2016!

Author Bio:

C.J. Lake is a storyteller who is passionate about art, surfing, and skiing/snowboarding. Residing near the coast of Massachusetts, C.J. is currently working on a new book.

Author Links: Email | @brightbluesurf (Twitter)

Giveaway:

Blitz-wide giveaway (OPEN INTERNATIONALLY) ENDS JUNE 2ND 2015
1. $15 Amazon gift card
2. Signed copy of Constructing Us by C.J. Lake

a Rafflecopter giveaway

ARC: Simmering (Simmering #1)

Simmering (Simmering #1)  by S.E. Rise

Publisher: Ginsu Publishing, 2014

306 pages, kindle edition

Source: Publisher (I think)

Release Date: June 2nd 2015 (What Goodreads says)

Genre: Adult, Romance

Links: Goodreads | Amamz US | Amazon UK

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

Who would you rather find in your bedroom, a steamy hose-wielding fireman or a dangerously obsessed ex-boyfriend? What if you found both? Romance writer Allison Fairchild is growing frustrated with her first attempt at Erotica until she reads a well-timed magazine article. What working man makes the best lover? The article sparks an idea and her eyes are irresistibly drawn to the top-ranked firemen just across the street. It might be coincidence or driven by fate but it is all the motivation she needs.

Ali has herself assigned to a firehouse and is committed to doing her job; getting incredible sex stories from actual firefighters and, in the process, try not to become one. At least that’s her intention until she meets the Captain, a by-the-rules professional with an enticing off-duty wild streak. Ali and the Captain put their wills to the test to resist the chemistry heating up between them. But unbeknownst to Ali, her cheating ex-boyfriend has set his eyes upon her again and if he can’t have her, no one can.

My Review:

This was a good book I liked many things about it, the way it was set out to the way stories intertwined. The secondary characters were awesome is well, also appreciated the accuracy of details the fire station were.

I rather enjoyed the sarcasticness (If that is a word) and was surprisingly please how well this author could write a female, super sexual lady perfect with a capital P.

But for the downside wasn’t really a fan of voices, my family would interrupt me and I was pulled away from the book and out of the story. But do not let the interruptions stop you from reading this book.

Author Bio:

S.E.Rise is a multi genre writer with Booktrope Publishing. He writes Erotica, Horror and Scifi /dark fantasy. He is a member of International Thriller Writers Inc.

Author Link: Website | Amazon

Book Blitz: The Violet Hour

The Violet Hour (The Violet Stories #1) by Andrea L Wells

Publisher: Not available

Release Date: May 2015

Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal

Links: Goodreads | Amazon US | B&N

Synopsis:

Still shocked over her mother’s mysterious death, California socialite Logan Keller is handed a one-way ticket to her long lost roots in Wyoming where love, deceit and danger await. Though she could forget everything staring into Luke Callahan’s eyes, Logan is quickly thrust into a fight for survival. Taking fate into her own hands, she begins unraveling the dangerous deceptions that abound at every turn. Her father is keeping secrets and Luke is keeping more. But Logan is keeping the biggest secret of them all.

The Violet Hour is a page-turning captivating twist of young romance and the supernatural.

Excerpt:

I sat up and pulled my knees in close to my chest. Electricity flared in the air as Luke inhaled.
“You know, Logan, you’re not who I expected you to be,” he said, taking a long thought-filled pause. “I thought the next twelve months were going to be hell living with a California socialite, but you’re pretty amazing. I guess I owe you an apology.”
“So, it’s a good thing that I’m nothing like you expected?” I asked.
“It’s a really, really good thing.”
As I started to smile back he craned his neck to look away from me. His eyes focused. Something black flashed across the road but I was more scared by Luke’s reaction. The warmth had vanished from Luke in a heartbeat. The object stopped moving toward us when it got to an opening between the trees. Even though I could feel Luke’s concern, I leaned forward toward the window, curious. It was a wolf – a really big wolf, staring directly at us with bright green eyes. It was close enough I could see quick breaths escape into the crisp rain-drenched air. I was startled when the engine roared to life. Luke threw the car into reverse, and I nearly slammed into the dash as the sound of gravel scattered everywhere. He quickly jockeyed around and pulled back onto the road heading home. I kept my eyes on the wolf until he was no longer in sight.
“Was that a wolf?” I asked. Everything happened so quickly, I had to be sure.
“Yes,” he spit.
“I’ve never seen a wolf before – that thing was huge.”
Luke immediately turned to look at me with an expression that I couldn’t begin to read.
“What’s going on?” I pressed, puzzled.
When he looked toward the road and didn’t answer, I knew my question needed to be more specific to get results.
“Why are you freaking out? It was just a wolf.” I was worried. He had gone from warm and comforting to moody and distant over such a small thing and I second-guessed how quickly I had fallen for him.
“Because I need to get you home, it’s getting late,” he muttered, failing to control his tone.
“That doesn’t make any sense, Luke. I have no curfew and you flaked as soon as you saw the wolf.”
“Wolves are dangerous.”
“We were in the car,” I countered.
“Doesn’t matter.” 

Author Bio:

The Violet Hour Series has been begging to escape Andrea’s subconscious for more than five years. Focusing on a wonderful career, handsome husband and two beautiful children by day, she began feverishly penning the series by night. Now a full-time writer, Andrea debuts The Violet Hour.

Author Links: Website | Twitter | Facebook 

Giveaway:

Individual giveaway (OPEN INTERNATIONALLY) ENDS JUNE 7TH 2015
1. eBook copy of The Violet Hour

Leave your name, email, blog (if you have one) and a number starting from 1 in the comment section below.

Blitz-wide giveaway (OPEN INTERNATIONALLY)
1. Kindle Fire HD

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ARC: Saving London

Saving London by Taylor Dawn

Publisher: Booktrope, 2015
272 pages, kindle edtion

Source: Publisher (Book Marketing Manager)

Release Date: June 9th 2015

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance

Links: Goodreads | Amazon US | Amazon AU | Amazon UK

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

The List. That Signified Finality.
The Journey. That Would Span The Globe.
The Sacrifice. That Would Decide The Outcome.
The Choice. That Could Unleash Evil On Earth.
The End Is Only The Beginning...


“You have terminal cancer.”

London Patterson, a seemingly healthy young woman, had her entire life ahead of her. That was until four little words brought everything to a screeching halt. As the shock and grief begin to fade, London decides to map out her last year and embark on an epic journey to complete a bucket list. She wants to do the things she’s been afraid to do in her life, step out of her self-contained box, and see the world. What she didn’t expect was for a mysterious stranger named Adam to breeze into her life like a breath of fresh air.

Adam offers to help London complete her list on one condition…that she sees it through to the end. Agreeing on those terms, the two set out on an adventure of a lifetime. But London soon realizes that Adam isn’t quite…human. Along their journey odd occurrences happen that cause London to question who or what Adam is and why he’s helping her.

Follow London as she checks off her bucket list in this inspiring new Urban Fantasy novel from Taylor Dawn.

My Review:

London is on the road of starting her very own bucket list, which leads London to run into a man named Adam who also offers to help her with her list. But only if she agrees to follow through with everything she has on list and competes it all. Adam then sort of takes over her list but seems to have connections everywhere and pretty much unlimited money, a few times she questions his stability where he talks about angels and its very cryptic about who he really is. But then with him around she feels very calm and safe so then she tries to forget about that.

London is also very spunk and snarky for a young lady who has been dealt a shit hand in her life, so not only has she just learned that she is dying caused by cancer but she has had it very rough her entire life growing up, in the foster care system, she has this sarcastic attitude which she uses as a coping mechanism so people do not get close to her.

Adam was courteous and very patient for a male, he sort of needed to be with London and all her personality. He showed up in London’s life at exactly the right moment he needed to be there, I like Adam’s character I found that he was easy to like with the secrets he held back about his life.

Author Bio:

C.D. Taylor/Taylor Dawn began writing as an item to check off her bucket list. She resides in the southernmost part of Illinois, right on the mighty Mississippi river. She enjoys the quiet country life with her husband, son and the many farm animals that make up the rest of the family. She. decided that farm life was just a little too mundane, so she started writing erotica and fantasy to liventhings up, so far so good. C.D./Taylor entered cosmetology school right out of High School and practiced the art of hair styling for 12 years. When she isn’t writing, she can usually be found sitting around a table making people laugh. She has always wanted to be a standup comic. She loves pulling practical jokes, dresses up in a costume every Halloween and believes that dancing is the key to a happy life (even if you aren’t a good dancer). She believes that life shouldn’t be taken too seriously, we will never get out alive anyway. More than anything, she is a kid at heart, she doesn’t believe in bedtimes, eating everything on her plate, or having ice cream only for dessert. Her favorite quote is by Dr. Seuss…”Why fit in, when you were born to stand out.”


Author Links:  Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter

Book Blitz: Out Of Control

Out Of Control by Sarah Alderson

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Release Date: May 12th 2015

Genre: Young Adult, Thiller

Links: Goodreads | Amazon US | B&N

Synopsis:

A girl looking to escape her past in New York City ends up on the run from a dangerous conspiracy in this sizzling, high-stakes novel.

When seventeen-year-old Liva came to New York City, all she wanted was to escape the painful memories of her past and finally find a fresh start. Her hopes for a new future were dashed the moment she became the sole witness to a brutal murder. When she’s taken into police custody—supposedly for her own protection—she realizes something isn’t right, but it’s too late. Soon, bullets start flying, and Liva realizes that she is not just a witness, but the target—and she needs to escape before it’s too late.

With the help of a sexy car thief that she met at the station, Liva manages to get away from the massacre unharmed, but now the two of them are alone in New York, trying to outrun and outwit the two killers who will stop at nothing to find them. Liva and Jay are living on the edge, but when you’re on the edge, there’s a long way to fall.

Excerpt:

The boy snatches the key from my outstretched hand and jams it into the tiny hole. The cuff springs apart, freeing him.
Instantly, he throws himself on top of me. ‘Get down!’
A bullet smacks itself into a filing cabinet just behind us as we tumble to the ground. His chest presses down on mine, my face is buried in his shoulder. Quickly he rolls off me and pushes me towards a desk. I scoot underneath it, banging the side of my head on the sharp metal corner of a drawer unit. I let out a cry.
‘Shhh.’ His hand clamps over my mouth.
I tug his arm away. ‘What’s going on? What’s happening?’ I whisper.
Before he can answer me, the shooting stops and a silence falls that is even more terrifying than the gunfire. The boy and I both freeze, staring at each other unblinking, just a few millimetres between us. Together, enclosed in the tight space beneath the desk, we strain to listen, and over the radio static and the whir of the air conditioner overhead, I pick out faint cries coming from somewhere in the distance; the unnatural keening howl of a wounded animal.
The boy shifts his weight. His back is pressed to one cabinet, his feet to the drawer unit. Carefully, he peers around the edge of the desk then ducks quickly back, breathing fast. A bead of sweat trickles down the side of his face.
‘Shit,’ he murmurs, resting his head back against the cabinet and closing his eyes.
‘Wh— ’ I begin, but stop when I hear the sly creak of the door being pushed open. A boot crunches on glass. The boy’s eyes flash open and lock on mine, holding me in place, silencing the scream that has risen up my throat and is threatening to tear free. My legs begin to shake from holding still in a crouching position. The boy’s right hand squeezes my knee hard – another warning, his eyes wide and burning fiercely into mine, telling me: Do not move.
Something topples off a desk on the far side of the room and, over the boy’s shoulder, through a gap between two filing cabinets, I glimpse the back of a man’s leg. Whose? Is it a cop? Where is everyone else? What happened to the cops who ran out into the corridor?
No. I shut off the thought, not wanting to go there.
The man in the room is standing stock-still with his back to us. What is he doing? I can’t see. He’s facing the wall – the chalkboard with all the homicide cases listed on it. The seconds seem to extend into whole hours, days, centuries, and I’m holding my breath and the boy’s hand is still squeezing my knee and my heart is bursting, literally bursting, as though too much blood is pumping through it. My leg muscles are on fire and, without warning, my foot slips. Not far. But it bumps the edge of the desk. The man spins instantly in our direction. The air rushes from my lungs and the boy shifts beside me, a single word that I don’t catch, falling from his lips like a dying man’s prayer.
The man starts to head in our direction, is almost on us, when someone somewhere else in the building shouts something that’s instantly swallowed in a storm of gunfire and the man rushes out into the corridor.
The boy darts his head out and then he’s out from under the desk and reaching for me.

‘Move!’ he says, pulling me to my feet.

Author Bio:

Having spent most of her life in London, Sarah quit her job in the non profit sector in 2009 and took off on a round the world trip with her husband and princess-obsessed daughter on a mission to find a new place to call home. After several months in India, Singapore, Australia and the US, they settled in Bali where Sarah now spends her days writing by the pool and trying to machete open coconuts without severing a limb.

She finished her first novel, Hunting Lila (winner of the Kingston Book Award), just before they left the UK, wrote the sequel on the beach in India and had signed a two book deal with Simon & Schuster by the time they had reached Bali.

A third book, Fated, about a teenage demon slayer, was published in January 2012.

The Sound, a thriller romance set in Nantucket, was published in August 2013 and this was followed by the critically acclaimed Out of Control in May 2014.

She also writes New Adult romance for Pan Macmillan (UK) / Simon & Schuster (US) under the pen name Mila Gray.

Author Links: Website 1 | Website 2 | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Giveaway:

Blitz-wide giveaway (OPEN INTERNATIONALLY) ENDS MAY 21st
1. 3 signed copies Out Of Control + The Sound
2. $25 Amazon gift card

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