Now available from Branch Publishing is the epic fantasy Mark of Destiny by Azrael James.




When did you become interested in storytelling?

Most likely, it happened when I was young and sitting around with my siblings and friends. They were pretty much all scary stories.

What was your first book/story published?

My first work is Mark of Destiny, in the epic fantasy genre.

What inspired you to write Mark of Destiny?

That is actually kind of a hard question to answer. There were so many contributing factors, but I knew that I really wanted to write a fantasy series and that was primarily my driving motivation.

What character in Mark of Destiny is the most/least like you, and in what ways?

I would definitely have to say that Eco is the least like me, although I believe almost everyone is a little crazy. Echo thirsts for power and control and I truly believe that these only bind and hamper one’s own freedom. Also, I don’t just randomly slay people who irritate me, otherwise the roads would be full of examples of my irritations.

What is your favorite part in Mark of Destiny?

Now available from Crimson Romance is Legacy Lost, book two in the Hell's Valley series, by author Jillian David.

Thank you for having me on your blog! I’m happy to be hanging out at Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer today.

When did you become interested in storytelling?

Forever. I’ve written since I was a little kid, won contests in middle school and high school, and even majored in English writing. However, life took me in a very different direction (medicine) for many years. Until I could return to the writing again…which is why I’m here today!

What was your first book/story published?

I believe it was a short story in The Stokeley Review, an anthology of young writers in east Tennessee. Might have published something before then, but I can’t recall.

What inspired you to write the Hell’s Valley series?

Hell’s Valley is my current paranormal western series. I don’t think there really is a paranormal western genre, so it’s possible that I made this genre up. The series has the rough-and-ready wild sense of ranchers and cowboys, but also the otherworldly forces and psychic powers integrated into the plot.

What inspired me to write this series was a brief mention in book #3 of my prior paranormal Hell to Pay series where characters wonder if the subtle powers seen in that book could be passed along to other generations. Then I started thinking of a family of siblings with odd powers and where they might live. And then I linked in the … well, you’ll have to read the series. If I explain the connections too much, it’ll spoil the story!

Revell; 351 pages; $13.99; Amazon

Now available from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group, is the murder-mystery novel Murder Is No Accident, book three in the Hidden Springs Mysteries, by author A.H. Gabhart.

Probably like many book lovers, I have always enjoyed reading a good mystery, especially when there is a cat on the cover. (Note: I'm also a cat lover.) If you happened to notice, there is a cat on the cover of Murder Is No Accident, which kinda explains why the novel appealed to me to begin with. Though, actually, I have read a few of the Shaker novels by the author, so I was already familiar with her writings.

This novel centers on a teenager named Maggie Greene (no she's not the same character from The Walking Dead) who happens to be at the right place at the wrong time. She had gotten permission to stay at the old Chandler mansion from Miss Fonda, an elderly woman who is now in a senior living facility. Maggie happened to be in the mansion the same day that real estate agent Geraldine Harper is murdered there. Yes, she could go to the police and tell them what she knows, but she thinks everyone would believe she was trespassing.

On the case to solve the mystery is Sheriff Michael Keane, who at first thinks the murder was a tragic accident, but he quickly believes otherwise after another body is discovered.

Mill Creek Ent; PG/R; 201 minutes: $9.98

Now available on DVD from Mill Creek Entertainment is the Gene Wilder Double Feature, featuring the 1982 comedy Hanky Panky and the 1991 comedy Another You. There are no special features or extras on the disc.

Directed by Sidney Poitier, Hanky Panky starred the late Gene Wilder and Gilda Radner (TV's Saturday Night Live), who were married from 1984 until Radner's death in 1989.

Hanky Panky centers on Michael Jordon (played by Wilder), an architect who ends up in the wrong place at the wrong time when he witnesses a murder at a hotel.. He eventually teams up with a woman named Kate (played by Radner), who happens to be searching for her brother's killer. Together, they race across the country in the attempt to unravel the mystery.

Another You paired Gene Wilder with Richard Pryor one final time and it also marked Wilder's final appearance in a feature film. The plot centers on pathological liar named George (played by Wilder) being released from a mental hospital and is accidentally mistaken as millionaire brewery heir Abe Fielding. Pryor plays Eddie Dash, a con man who befriends George. The film suffered from bad review upon it's original release and was a flop at the box-office.

Conclude Deborah Raney's Chicory Inn novels with the final book, Home at Last, a story of acceptance, trying to overcome differences, and love. Everything changes for bachelor Link Whitman one icy morning when a child runs into the street and he nearly hits her with his pickup-and then the girl's aunt Shayla enters Link's life. Can Shayla and Link overcome society's view of their differences and find true love? Is there hope of changing the sometimes-ugly world around them into something better for them all?

Join Deborah on Thursday, March 23, for a live author chat party in her Facebook group with fun prizes to be won! Click the graphic below for more details and to RSVP. Hope to see you there-bring a friend or two who loves to read!

Abingdon Press; 272 pages; $14.99; Buy Link; Blog Tour

Now available from Abingdon Press is the romantic novel Home At Last, book 5 in the Chicory Inn series, by author Deborah Raney.

While I prefer to read romances set during the 1800s, I have from time to time stepped out of my comfort zone and read a few contemporary titles. If you follow this blog, then might have remember me reviewing one or two of the titles from the Chicory Inn series. I had completely forgotten about the series until I received an email about the Home At Last book tour, so naturally I signed up to review it.

This time around the series centers on a bachelor named Link Whitman, who's life isn't exactly where he thought it should be as he approaches thirty-years-old. He's stuck in a dead-end job. And he's being pressured by his sisters' to get settle down and get married.

This is where Shayla Michaels comes into the plot. She's struggling to raise her young niece, while at the same time she's also trying to run her father's business. Of course this is a romance, so you can pretty much guess that Shayla and Link crosses paths and a romance eventually blooms.