Lady and the Tribe by Brenda Billings Ridgley

 

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

Awakening

Today, a dichotomy exists between our concurrent hyper connectedness—the immediate and ongoing ability to check up on faraway friends via social media—and our elevated sense of emotional alienation. Add to that, we as a culture are so focused on career success, financial accomplishments, and family milestones that we often lack the time and energy to connect with others beyond those arenas. Despite being surrounded by people, places and things, somehow we are left feeling alone. We are not alone because we lack relationships. We are alone because these relationships lack depth, knowledge, and certainty. In his column, “Loneliness is Killing Us,” George Monbiot suggests that, much as we labeled the Stone Age, Iron Age, Space Age, and Information Age, this era will be called “The Age of Loneliness.”

Almost without noticing, we have distanced ourselves from the people who choose to love us without obligation. These closest personal friendships are ever present—yet do not demand our time. They are an advocate in our corner, mirroring back to us who we really are. This neglect is not without a price. We must actively seek, grow, and maintain these relationships. If we fail, we won’t just lose a friend—we’ll lose a piece of ourselves.

The wonderful thing is that no matter where you are right now with your relationships, you can exponentially improve your connections by deciding to give them a little more attention and intention.

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
Podcast: https://www.podserve.fm/series/website/the-connection-connoisseur,3341/
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Divorce Bucket List by Jennifer Harris

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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She’s the One Who Doesn’t Say Much (Book Four of the War Stories of the Seven Troublesome Sisters) by S.R. Cronin

 

She’s the One Who Doesn’t Say Much

(Book Four of the War Stories of the Seven Troublesome Sisters)

by S.R. Cronin

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GENRE: Historical Fantasy

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BLURB:

Do you know what your problem is?

Olivine knows hers. This quiet thirteenth-century artist has been hiding a secret as she travels to K'ba to meet her friends. Others assume she's fallen in love with another artist, but it's much worse than that. For on the way to K'ba is the dirt poor nichna of Scrud, a place scorned by other Ilarians. And in Scrud is the one man who understands her.

However, Bohdan recognizes the dangers posed by an impending Mongol invasion. When he learns of Olivine's unusual visual powers, he convinces her to pick up her bow and start practicing.

She does, though she's more concerned with moving to K'ba where she can paint all day and see Bohdan whenever she wants. If only her sister hadn't decided Olivine and her fellow long eyes held one key to defending the realm.

Then, as if life wasn't complicated enough, Olivine learns the artist community she yearns to be part of has developed a different take on the invasion. They're sure the only way to survive is to capitulate completely to the Mongols’ demands. Artists who feel otherwise are no longer welcome.

Where does her future lie? The invasion is coming soon and Olivine doesn't have much time to decide.

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EXCERPT:

Later in the day, I found Magomet. Despite his problematic infatuation with me, Magomet was a friend. His parents were both well-known artists who owned the spacious studio in which we all often worked, and they treated us with generosity, sharing not only their place but also their supplies. I got the impression they enjoyed encouraging the next generation of artists.

As soon as I started my conversation with Magomet, his eyes widened and he pointed towards the supply closet. I looked inside. His mother Jasia sorted through jars of paint in there. He walked out of the room and I followed him outside.

“Please be more careful,” he said as we began walking down the street. “My parents have strong beliefs about this invasion.”

“Beliefs? How can you have beliefs about an invasion?”

“We K’basta pride ourselves on being better informed than most. My parents have listened to many stories and have decided they don’t want any of us to fight. At all.”

“But how do you defend yourself if you don’t fight?” I said. “What else do they think we should do?”

“Nothing. They believe the only way Ilari survives is if we all agree to whatever demands the Mongols make of us. Resistance will bring our demise. I believe this too, Olivine. You should know that before you say anything more to me.”

“But … but what if all the invaders want is for us to die?”

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Sherrie Cronin is the author of a collection of six speculative fiction novels known as 46. Ascending and is now in the process of publishing a historical fantasy series called The War Stories of the Seven Troublesome Sisters. A quick look at the synopses of her books makes it obvious she is fascinated by people achieving the astonishing by developing abilities they barely knew they had.

She’s made a lot of stops along the way to writing these novels. She’s lived in seven cities, visited forty-six countries, and worked as a waitress, technical writer, and geophysicist. Now she answers a hot-line. Along the way, she’s lost several cats but acquired a husband who still loves her and three kids who’ve grown up just fine, both despite how odd she is.

All her life she has wanted to either tell these kinds of stories or be Chief Science Officer on the Starship Enterprise. She now lives and writes in the mountains of Western North Carolina, where she admits to occasionally checking her phone for a message from Captain Picard, just in case.

Author Social Media Links:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/cinnabar01

Facebook: www.facebook.com/46Ascending

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/s.r.cronin/

Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/5805814.Sherrie_Cronin

Amazon: www.amazon.com/Sherrie-Cronin/e/B007FRMO9Q

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/s-r-cronin

Author Blog: https://sherriecronin.xyz/

Book Series Blog: https://troublesome7sisters.xyz/

Buy Link:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Doesnt-Stories-Seven-Troublesome-Sisters-ebook/dp/B09128H2YJ

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/shes-the-one-who-doesnt-say-much-s-r-cronin/1139107112

S. R. Cronin will be awarding a $20 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

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Black Flag Journals: One Soldier's Experience in America's Longest War by Dennis Woods

 

Black Flag Journals: One Soldier's Experience in America's Longest War

by Dennis Woods

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GENRE: Memoir

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BLURB:

The story of America’s longest war is complicated and difficult to convey, unless you were there. Dennis Woods was there. By following his stories in Iraq and Afghanistan, we can sense the enormity of his combat experiences. Originally written for his daughter, Black Flag Journals is taken from the author’s nine battle book journals. It covers his time from the fall of the Twin Towers through his last combat tour.

Black Flag Journals contains not just stories from the first war of the new century, but a day-by-day record of events that other veterans may use to relate their own experiences. All who enjoy real life stories, and followers of history will connect with this first person account of America’s longest war.

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Excerpt :

The flight we were on this morning was an ordinary, run-of-the-mill resupply operation. Its purpose was to service Afghanistan’s numerous small camps and bases. What it carried, though, was not ordinary or run-of-the-mill. What we were delivering was an unusual allotment of artillery ammunition and GELON mounts. Part of my mission on this trip was about to be completed. However, once in the air, I was given a new defensive challenge to solve.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

CSM Woods combat tours include;

Operation Urgent Fury, Grenada, 82d Airborne Division.

Operation Desert Shield / Desert Storm, Saudi Arabia – Iraq, 82d Airborne Division.

Operation Desert Fox 1998, Qatar, 5th Group Special Forces.

OEF 2 Afghanistan, 82d Airborne Division.

OIF 1 Iraq, First Armored Division.

OIF 6 Iraq, First Armored Division.

OEF X Afghanistan, 173D Airborne Brigade Combat Team.

OEF XIII Afghanistan, 191st Infantry Brigade

CSM Woods civilian education includes a Master of Education, (training & leadership) from North Central University, Prescott AZ, and a Bachelor of Science from Excelsior, Albany, New York.

Military education includes the United States Sergeants Majors Academy class # 58, Army force management course, Jump Master, Drill Sergeant, US Army Recruiter, Infantry Small Arms Master Gunner, Artillery Master Gunner, Amphibious Warfare leaders’ course (USMC), Anti-Armor Leaders course, Machine Gun Leaders course, Artillery Mechanics repair course, Small Arms repair course, Nuclear Biological Chemical defense, and all levels of air load planning and hazmat certification USAF.

CSM Woods awards include; one Distinguished Service medal, one Legion Of Merit,( 5) Bronze Star Medals, 5 Meritorious Service Medals, 4 ARCOM, 4 AAM, 1 Humanitarian service medal, 2 Armed Forces Expeditionary medals, Afghanistan and Iraq service medals. German Jump Master Wings, Qatar Jump wings as part of 5th Group, Netherlands Jumpmaster wings. Other awards include; Department of Defense “Inventor of the year” (2003) with 45 separate inventions. CSM Woods saved the United States Government over one Billion Dollars through cost avoidance. He is also the first recipient of the GRUBER award for an outstanding field artillery professional.

CSM Woods is credited by the US Army Smart Ideas program as the inventor of;

• The 105mm Howitzer night direct fire sight system M913 GELON.

• The 155mm towed Howitzer night sight system.

• The dual use day/ night direct fire sight reticule.

• The Dual optic MILES Laser trainer.

• The Urban Assault kit (PALADIN) improved crew protection, 155mm system.

On his most recent tour to Afghanistan, CSM Woods pioneered the first use of artillery training rounds in combat as a form of scalable fire support designed to limit civilian death and collateral damage. He is the author of, ‘Black Flag Journals One Soldiers Experience in America’s Longest War’, and numerous magazine, newspaper articles, including training pamphlets concerning Artillery, night vision, and combat operations.

Twitter: @djwoodswrites

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Dennis-John-Woods/e/B01KU91GFI%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/15660793.Dennis_John_Woods

Koehler Book: https://www.koehlerbooks.com/book/black-flag-journals/

Amazon Buy Link: BOOK IS ON SALE FOR $2.99 DURING THE TOUR

https://www.amazon.com/Black-Flag-Journals-Soldiers-Experience-ebook/dp/B01L0LW7US/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0

BN: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/black-flag-journals-dennis-john-woods/1124419537

Audible: https://www.audible.com/pd/Black-Flag-Journals-Audiobook/B08MBHSQQ9

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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE

One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card.

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SONG OF THE KING'S HEART TRILOGY Blood and Chaos – Book 2 by Nicole Sallak Anderson

 

SONG OF THE KING'S HEART TRILOGY

Blood and Chaos – Book 2

by Nicole Sallak Anderson

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GENRE: Historical Fantasy

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BLURB:

The second chapter of Lord Ankhwenefer’s story is one of love, betrayal, and death. The world needs to know this forgotten king’s tale so that the ghosts of the past may finally rest.

Prince Ankhmakis has left his beloved Natasa for war and treacherous obstacles block his path to becoming Egypt’s last native king. He is the warrior that the men revere, and his orders are followed without question. He is strong and powerful with Natasa on his side, and the fear that breeds in those around him is more dangerous to Ankhmakis than the swords of the Greeks.

Natasa has risen higher in the mystic arts than any priestess before her—and she is in more peril because of it. All she desires is to assist her lover, Ankhmakis, in his quest to take back Egypt from the Macedonians once and for all, but his jealous queen, his plotting brother, and the truest evil in the world want nothing more than to be rid of her.

Natasa and Ankhmakis fight not only against the Greeks but also those at court who will do anything to see them both dead. Together, Ankhmakis would become a great general and Natasa the mystic healer who saves him. Apart, they may not survive.

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EXCERPT:

The prince of Behdet gazed across the Nile River at the city of Panopolis, its bonfires flickering like beacons in the dark night. A hot wind caressed his sunburnt face. He turned to see his enemy’s army spread out before him, torchlights zigzagging across an island downriver like ants on honey, protecting their city with their mighty arsenal of archers ships. He wanted control of the island, needed it, if he were ever to return home to his lover’s arms.

“This war is taking too long,” he hissed under his breath.

“My lord,” Min, his personal guard, answered. “It has been a year. It took our greatest ancestor, Pharaoh Amhose I, nineteen years to banish the Hyksos filth from our lands. Prior to his victory, his father and grandfather also battled for independence. Their line of kings fought for over thirty years to take Egypt unto back unto native hands. Our war is young. Be patient.”

Ankhmakis turned to his friend and captain, his lips curled. “I don’t want this to take three generations, Min. I will not leave this task to my heirs. I will march upon Alexandria and kill Ptolemy IV with my own hands. We should at least be to Memphis by now. Instead we’re in Panopolis, held back by their army. For the second time, the Inundation is at our backs. If we don’t hurry, we’ll be trapped here when the river floods. Such a failure can’t happen again.”

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Nicole Sallak Anderson is Computer Science graduate from Purdue University, and former CTO for a small Silicon Valley startup, turned novelist, speaker, and blogger, focusing on the intersection of technology and consciousness. Her essays range from AI and Zen to direct democracy to the loneliness of modern parenting (https://medium.com/@NSallakAnderson/pretty-birds-in-pretty-cages-could-the-nuclear-family-be-the-reason-were-all-miserable-46126d573263) — featured as a top twenty story on Medium. In addition, her work on Universal Basic Income has been included on 2020 presidential candidate, Andrew Yang’s, website: https://www.yang2020.com/policies/the-freedom-dividend/.

Her latest project, The Song of the King’s Heart Trilogy, is a series about the last native Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt and his quest to take back his ancestral kingdom from the Ptolemaic Empire. The first two installments, Origins and Blood and Chaos, are available on Amazon. The last novel in the series, Civilization’s End, will be released October 2021. You can keep up with all her latest writing on her website nicolesallakanderson.com or by following @NSallakAnderson on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/NSallakAnderson/) , Twitter (https://twitter.com/NSallakAnderson), Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/nsallakanderson/) and Medium (https://nsallakanderson.medium.com/). Feel free to contact her, she almost always answers to any query or comment!

The books will be on sale for $0.99

Amazon Buy Links: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Nicole+Sallak+Anderson&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION 

A randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour will receive a $50 Amazon/BN GC.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If The Light Escapes by Brenda Marie Smith

 

If The Light Escapes

by Brenda Marie Smith

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GENRE: Sci-fi (post-apocalyptic)

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BLURB:

A standalone sequel to IF DARKNESS TAKES US

A solar electromagnetic pulse fried the U.S. grid fourteen months ago. Everything’s gone: power, cars, running water, communications, all governing control and help—gone. Now northern lights have started in Texas—3,000 miles farther south than where they belong. The universe won’t stop screwing with eighteen-year-old Keno Simms.

All that’s left for Keno, his family and neighbors is farming their Austin subdivision, trying to eke out a living on poor soil in the scorching heat. Keno’s still reeling from the the death of his pregnant sister. His beloved Nana is ill, Grandpa’s always brandishing weapons, and water is far too scarce. Desperate thieves are hemming them in, yet he can’t convince his uncle and other adults to take action against the threat.

Keno’s one solace is his love for Alma, who has her own secret sorrows. When he gets her pregnant, he vows to keep her alive no matter what. Yet armed marauders and nature itself collude against him at every turn, forcing him to make choices that rip at his conscience. If he can’t protect Alma and their unborn child, it will be the end of Keno’s world.

IF THE LIGHT ESCAPES is post-apocalyptic science fiction set in a near-future reality, a coming-of-age story told in the voice of a heroic teen who’s forced into manhood too soon.

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Excerpt:

OPENING LINES:

Bright green lights stream and pulse across the northern sky all night now, growing from thin and wispy to bold and fat, expanding, contracting, sending out bands of yellow streamers like they’re partying on ecstasy at some cosmic rave. The lights are pretty, and they’re hypnotic, and they creep me out to the core.

Northern lights every night for two solid weeks in Texas. Halfway to the equator from where they belong. They’re supposed to be a phenomenon tied to the magnetic poles—it’s a scientific fact.

Nothing is right about this. The only explanation I can think of is that the north and south poles are shifting. I don’t know what that means for the planet and the future of its creatures. We don’t have TVs or talking-head scientists to tell us...

The universe just won’t stop f**king with us.

Today, I’m hoeing corn in our front yard, sweat stinging my eyes. It’s blistering hot out here—early December in what used to be high-tech Austin, until the … sun zapped us with an electromagnetic pulse and took our power, our cars, the damned running water. It stopped pretty much everything—everything modern, that is.

It’s been fourteen months, and all the front yards in our subdivision are mini-cornfields now. We grow beans and veggies in the backyards. It’s a desperate attempt to keep us alive when our food stockpiles run out. Don’t know if it will work, but I’m doing my damnedest to make sure it does.

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Brenda Marie Smith lived off the grid for many years in a farming collective where her sons were delivered by midwives. She’s been a community activist, managed student housing co-ops, produced concerts to raise money for causes, done massive quantities of bookkeeping, and raised a small herd of teenage boys.

Brenda is attracted to stories where everyday characters transcend their own limitations to find their inner heroism. She and her husband reside in a grid-connected, solar-powered home in South Austin, Texas. They have more grown kids and grandkids than they can count.

Her first novel, Something Radiates, is a paranormal romantic thriller; If Darkness Takes Us and its sequel, If the Light Escapes, are post-apocalyptic science fiction.

Social Media:

Website: https://brendamariesmith.com/

Twitter: @bsmithnovelist

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

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

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJlLSnORIyoaygvZ1j49ZKw

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52206957-if-darkness-takes-us

Buy links:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/If-Light-Escapes-Braving-Novel-ebook/dp/B09CMZZRKZ/

Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/if-the-light-escapes-brenda-marie-smith/1140037562

BookPeople Austin: https://www.bookpeople.com/book/9781970137835

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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION

One randomly chosen winner via rafflecopter will win a $50 Amazon/BN.com gift card.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Author Interview! 

Can you describe your dream home?

I almost live in my dream home, except that it’s two-story with no downstairs bedrooms or showers. I am partly disabled, and the stairs are hard on me, even with the stairlift we have. If I could add a bedroom off the back of the house with a shower in it, I’d be set for life. Our house has room for my husband and I to each have our own offices. We have a nice master-bedroom, two guest bedrooms, and two sets of grid-connected solar panels to keep our power bills down. We’ve upgraded almost everything in the house and made it more energy efficient. The walls are so colorful, they keep us cheered up. We have a big backyard and a lovely covered patio with lots of room for our growing number of offspring to visit. And it’s a great house for parties. Now, if I could only find the money to build that extra room and pay off the mortgage.

If we were to come to your house for a meal, what would you give us to eat?

First, I would find out what you like to eat. If you like meat, I would feed you Texas barbecue, or enchiladas or tamales with queso and guacamole. If you like fish, I’d feed you something great from the local catfish restaurant. If you’re a vegan, I’d send my vegan son to buy an array of vegan salads and spreads. Since I’m disabled, I can’t cook for you, but I used to be a vegetarian caterer, and I could teach you how to make a few dozen different delicious dishes with tofu. If my husband had time, he could make you some killer-good Cajun-style gumbo. And we make great Thanksgiving feasts for vegans and meat-eaters alike.

Tell us about the absolute BEST fan letter you have received.

You know, I don’t think I’ve ever received an actual fan letter. But I have received a lot of lovely messages and emails saying things like, “I couldn’t put this book down.” Or, “Best book I’ve read in years.” And then there was this:

“The scenario, the complete shutting down of the entire electrical matrix, was written with chilling conviction. It has become a part of my own perceptions of daily reality, kind of a "what if" parallel life to my own. The news that PG&E decided today to shut down for an unpredictable amount of time gives this premise kind of a grim prescience…

Smith's characters are deeply three-dimensional, each with an agenda and a set of issues that are stories in themselves. They enable and carom off each other so effectively as the days pass and the plots thicken that when I had to close the book at the end, I felt like I had to be careful not to squish them. I miss them. They live in my head like the others I miss.”

Say your publisher has offered to fly you anywhere in the world to do research on an upcoming book, where would you most likely want to go?

Paris and Amsterdam, not that I have any story ideas for those places, but I’ve always wanted to go. If the publisher is a stickler and I have to do book research, I’d go to New Orleans and Baton Rouge, then to Guadalajara, Mexico to travel the route from there to the Texas-Mexico border, then to the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas.

Who designed the book cover for the book you are touring?

Olivia Hammerman (nee Croom), who also did the cover for the first book in this series, If Darkness Takes Us. She is mega-talented and has won awards for her book covers. I’m very fortunate to have her for mine.

Thank you for being on my blog, and best wishes for your book tour!!

Relatively Normal Secrets by C.W. Allen

 

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. C. W. Allen 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.

Like most siblings, Tuesday and Zed don't always get along. Unlike most siblings, their arguments are over things like whether their parents are hiding a life of crime, or are simply the weirdest adults on the planet. When they decide to go on the hunt for some solid evidence, things get weirder than ever: two thugs with shape-shifting swords show up, their dog shows off some tricks she definitely didn't learn in obedience school, and even their treehouse turns out to be more than meets the eye.

Their escape leaves Zed and Tuesday stranded in a land where robots and holograms live alongside quaint medieval villagers and soldiers on horseback. Soldiers who insist their father is a disgraced fugitive, and their dog a legendary monster.

If they ever want to see their parents again, they'll have to learn to work together. After all, they've got a mysterious code to break, secrets to unlock, bandits and soldiers to outwit, and a rowdy dog whose antics are getting more outrageous by the minute. Even if they manage to evade the eerie secret police and uncover enough clues to figure out what's really going on, they're not sure they're going to like the truth.

Zed and Tuesday will have to decide who to trust and what really matters, or they'll never get back to normal (whatever that is.) Because when it comes to normal, everything is relative.

Read an Excerpt

At lunch, her father was the headlining topic of conversation. Perhaps, everyone joked, he was some kind of secret agent—if anyone found out what he really did all day, he'd have to erase their memories or have them deported to Jupiter. Tuesday made a hasty decision: better to ride the wave of laughter, than drown in it. This was ridiculous, of course!

Of course it was.

Tuesday heaved her backpack onto the lunch table and made a production of searching for a missing paper until the cafeteria’s collective attention bounded on to a new distraction. She retrieved last week’s History assignment and tried to look intensely interested in reviewing it, staring through the page with unfocused eyes while zoning out to the satisfying snapping sound her carrot sticks made, the pitch falling rhythmically as her teeth chopped each one shorter and shorter.

The newly-hatched suspicions about her parents’ routines burrowed in with the rest of the doubts nesting in her brain. It wasn’t just the way they sidestepped any mention of their lives before they had children. It wasn’t just their odd taste in names. It was just—oh, everything.

Her last name should have been different, for one thing; Tuesday was sure of it. Her father wouldn’t say what it might have been, but anything else would have been fine with her, really. Anything that wouldn’t make her a walking punchline. If her parents hadn’t been so weird, her mother would have taken her father’s last name when they got married, like normal people. Then Tuesday could have inherited his name, instead of just his face.

About the Author:

C.W. Allen is a Nebraskan by birth, a Texan by experience, a Hoosier by marriage, and a Utahn by geography. She knew she wanted to be a writer the moment she read The Westing Game at age twelve, but took a few detours along the way as a veterinary nurse, an appliance repair secretary, and a homeschool parent.

She recently settled in the high desert of rural Utah with her husband, their three children, and a noisy flock of orphaned ideas. Someday she will create literary homes for all of them. (The ideas, not her family.)

Relatively Normal Secrets (Cinnabar Moth Publishing, Fall 2021) is her debut novel. She writes fantasy novels for tweens, picture books for children, and short stories and poems for former children. Her work will appear in numerous anthologies in 2021. She is also a frequent guest presenter at writing conferences and club meetings, which helps her procrastinate knuckling down to any actual writing.

https://www.cwallenbooks.com/
https://twitter.com/cwallenbooks
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2983485.C_W_Allen

Buy Links:

https://www.amazon.com/Relatively-Normal-Secrets-C-W-Allen-ebook/dp/B098DMNM1N
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/relatively-normal-secrets-cw-allen/1139805820
https://www.google.com/books/edition/Relatively_Normal_Secrets/R_uAzgEACAAJ

C. W. Allen will be awarding a $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. 
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