Featuring Mark K. McClain and his new novel The Ruinous Curse: The Hunt for Alesta

 

I'm so excited to introduce a great new author and good friend, Mark K. McClain! I've had the priviledge to read this book before it was born and hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Mark K. McClain grew up in southern Pennsylvania and as a teenager wrote short stories for pleasure and relaxation. During this time his personal style began to grow, thanks in large part to authors such as Tolkien, Eddings, Asimov, Christie, King, and others too numerous to mention. He reads nearly every genre, though Fantasy and Sci-Fi hold a special place in his heart.

At the tender age of 18, Mark joined the United States Air Force, and after blinking a few times, 21 years had passed. After a lifestyle of traveling the globe, he retired to pursue a lifelong dream.

That is when his attention turned to writing, editing, helping others find a love of the written word, and to chase their own dreams. As a former columnist/staff writer for the Idaho Statesman, Mark has penned more than forty outdoor-related articles. He has also published several full-length pieces for magazines, including local history articles and parenting columns.

Mark’s world-building skills comes from extensive travels. He has had the pleasure of visiting Japan, Okinawa, Korea, Germany, Greece, Turkey, and many others. He also participated in Desert Shield / Desert Storm. He has hiked, backpacked, camped, kayaked, and visited many beautiful states, including South Dakota, Idaho, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, and more. His firsthand knowledge of other cultures and states provides fuel for burgeoning ideas of world building.

Mark rarely goes anywhere in nature without a dog by his side. There’s simply something special about spending time together with a pawed buddy.

Presently, he lives in the beautiful state of Idaho with his family and a few furry companions who without doubt, rule the kingdom.

Links:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-krepps-9b6325224/

NJB: https://www.nextjourneybooks.com

How many hours a day do you write?

I generally write 2 hours a day, first thing in the morning. I’m an early riser and find when the house is quiet and still my creativity flows best.

What is your favorite childhood book?

Without any doubt, The Hobbit.

What inspired you to write this book?

I take my inspiration from many authors who are no longer with us. Tolkien, Eddings, etc.

Five years from now, where do you see yourself as a writer?

I see several craft related / informational short books and several more novels, both YA and Adult fantasy genres.

How many unpublished and half-finished books do you have?

(Laughing) More than I care to admit. In the vicinity of 15-20.

Was there a person who encouraged you to write?

Living person: My partner, Rochelle, is very encouraging and supportive. I couldn’t ask for a better cheerleader.

Deceased: Tolkien has been my influence for over 50 years.

Barrett of Westmore may be a prince, but he's just like any other teenager. He spends time with his friends exploring their city, a haven for fairies, cyclops, talking doors, and other magical beings. He hopes to get closer to the lovely Zanora, whose fighting spirit has captured his heart. Unfortunately, foretold war may put those ambitions on hold.

The coming battle is no ordinary fight. Even if Barrett's countrymen defeat the forces of the ancient sorceress Alesta, her Ruinous Curse will condemn them to an endless cycle of violence, forcing humanity to wipe itself out. As invasion forces march on Westmore, the kingdom's only hope is the Helserian, prophesied ages ago to defeat Alesta. As for the rumors the prince is the chosen one—Barrett thinks they're impossible. He's a fighter, not a magic user.

Until the day assassins attack, awakening a power the prince didn't know he possessed. Aided by Zanora and his friends, he must now face ancient dragons and cave-dwelling Trowkens to acquire the tools needed to master his magic and confront the sorceress. Then he'll face an impossible task: force Alesta to lift the curse, or destroy her if she refuses. For if he fails, he'll watch helplessly as his world tears itself apart.

Buy Links: Amazon: https://amzn.to/3AgK3OT

B&N : https://bit.ly/3bF1DBV

Introducing Christ at the Coffee Shop written by Nathan Ingram

 

Christ at the Coffee Shop 

Master Storytellers Will Rodgers and Andy Griffith Come to Mind

in the Audio Book, Christ at the Coffee Shop

 Written by Nathan Ingram this nostalgic collection of short stories demonstrates how anyone can find God in common places!!!

 Published by Tranquility Ranch Publishing and available in all formats

            

 Speaking directly to the hearts of ordinary people. Nathans's direction points to God's presence in our everyday lives and magnifies a God of the common places. It focuses on an omnipotent Deity who chooses to make Himself known within each day’s events. 

With a keen eye for comforting uncomfortable people and a passion for magnifying God, Nathan’s stories flow with life and reverberate with a single, compelling message—God came near and dwelt among us. Nathan has a passion for magnifying God with his stories and messages in Christ at the Coffee Shop.

 

Ingram points out that although many of us would like to see God we are unable to find Him, believing He only expresses Himself through blinding insights or peak experiences of some sort. However, the book’s message is that if we must travel to the mountaintops to see God, most of us will miss Him. This book reaches out with clarity that He is near.

ABOUT NATHAN:

 

Growing up on a small, Tennessee hillside farm was all the inspiration author, Nathan Ingram, needed to write this nostalgic collection of short stories demonstrating how anyone can find God in common places. Today, Ingram resides on a ranch in Magnolia, Texas, with his wife and an assortment of horses and other animals. He and his wife also own and operate Lone Star Behavioral Health, a psychiatric facility specializing in the treatment of persons with severe and persistent mental illness. The Ingrams seek each day to live the principles in this book. 

 

To request additional review copies or an interview with Nathan, please contact Mickey Mikkelson at Creative Edge Publicity: mickey.creativeedge@gmail.com | 403.464.6925.   

 

We look forward to the coverage!

BARBARIANS OF THE BEYOND, a Classic Space Opera by Matthew Hughes

 

BARBARIANS OF THE BEYOND

 Classic Space Opera in the Jack Vance mode told by critically acclaimed science fiction novelist, Matthew Hughes 

Released by Spatterlight

The book is available worldwide in all formats 

“I really enjoyed Barbarians of the Beyond. Matthew Hughes does Jack Vance better than anyone except Jack himself.”  — George R. R. Martin

Twenty years ago, five master criminals known as the Demon Princes raided Mount Pleasant to enslave thousands of inhabitants in the lawless Beyond. Now Morwen Sabine, a daughter of captives, has escaped her cruel master and returns to Mount Pleasant to recover the hidden treasure she hopes will buy her parents’ freedom.

But Mount Pleasant has changed. Morwen must cope with mystic cultists, murderous drug-smugglers, undercover “weasels” of the Interplanetary Police Coordinating Company, and the henchmen of the vicious pirate lord who owns her parents and wants Morwen returned. So he can kill her slowly… 

Amazon.com:  Barbarians of the Beyond: Hughes, Matthew: 9781619474055: Amazon.com: Books

Amazon.ca:  Barbarians of the Beyond eBook : Hughes, Matthew: Amazon.ca: Kindle Store

 

“Lock the door, turn off the phone, get into a comfy chair, and deep-dive into a marvelous continuation of Jack Vance's Demon Princes series. Matthew Hughes is a treasure and Barbarians of the Beyond is a terrific adventure.”  — David Gerrold

“Matthew Hughes follows nimbly in Jack Vance's footprints, then breaks some fresh trail. First-class space opera.”— Robert J. Sawyer, Hugo Award-winning author of Hominids

“Engaging and enchanting…a fine companion adventure to Jack Vance’s The Demon Princes series, told with Matthew Hughes’s excellent sense of charm, ethical complexity and exotic worldbuilding. Let’s hope this is just the beginning!” — Kurt Busiek

“Barbarians of the Beyond is just plain old-fashioned space opera fun with a relatable heroine who is sometimes fallible, rather than some Shaolin Temple kung fu megamaster. I enjoyed it a lot.” — Glen Cook

“…a tale that captures that special ‘golden age’ feel in which mankind has travelled far into the stars yet still behaves as though it’s the Wild West.” — David White, RNR Magazine

 

More from Matthew Hughes:

 

Winner of the international Endeavour Award

In the mid-1500s shipwrecked African slaves melded with the indigenous peoples of coastal Ecuador and together they fought the Spanish colonial power to a standstill, to remain independent for centuries. The story of the people of Esmeraldas is told through the eyes of three characters: Alonso, an escaped slave; Expectation, an a-gender shaman; and Alejandro, a priest on the run from the Inquisition. With its slipstream elements this novel carries a flavour of South American magical realism tradition into a grand historical epic. Both sweeping and intimate, it is a delight to read from beginning to end.

Amazon.com:  What the Wind Brings: Hughes, Matthew: 9781988865157: Amazon.com: Books

Amazon.ca:  What the Wind Brings: Hughes, Matthew, Hughes, Matthew: 9781988865164: Books - Amazon.ca

 

About Matthew:

Matthew Hughes is a Canadian author of science fiction and fantasy.

His speculative fiction novels are: Fools Errant, Fool Me Twice, Black Brillion, Majestrum, The Commons, The Spiral Labyrinth, Template, Hespira, The Other, The  Damned Busters, Costume Not Included, Hell to Pay, Song of the Serpent and Wolverine:Lifeblood (both as Hugh Matthews), A Wizard’s Henchman, A God in Chains, Baldemar, and Passengers & Perils. 

His magnum opus is What the Wind Brings, a historical novel with magical realism elements.  It was the first Canadian work to win the international Endeavour Award.  He waited more than forty years to write the novel, and spent a year composing several drafts, made possible by a $25,000 grant from the Canada Council for the Arts.

His major influence as a writer of speculative fiction is the Grandmaster Jack Vance.  Booklist has called Hughes Vance’s “heir apparent.”

In 2021, Vance’s estate (Spatterlight Press), published Hughes’s Barbarians of the Beyond, an authorized companion novel to Vance’s iconic revenge series, The Demon Princes.  The book prompted George R.R. Martin to say, “Hughes does Jack Vance better than anyone except Jack himself.”

His short fiction has appeared in Asimov’s, Fantasy & Science Fiction, Lightspeed, Pulp Literature, Postscripts, Storyteller, Interzone, Amazing, Unfit, and several anthologies edited by Gardner Dozois and George R.R. Martin, including the bestseller, Rogues.   

His works have been short-listed for the Aurora, Locus, Nebula, Philip K Dick, A.E. Van Vogt, Neffy, Alberta Book Publishing, and Endeavour Awards. 

In 2020, he was inducted into the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Association’s Hall of Fame.

Before turning to writing fiction, he spent three decades as the top-ranked speechwriter in British Columbia, writing for leaders of all three provincial political parties and CEOs of the province’s largest corporations.

Since 2007, he has traveled the world as a housesitter, living in twelve countries.

His web page is at https://www.matthewhughes.org

To request additional review copies or an interview with Matthew Hughes, please contact Mickey Mikkelson at Creative Edge Publicity: mickey.creativeedge@gmail.com / 403.464.6925.    We look forward to the coverage!

WHEN GRACE FOUND ME, Real Life Stories of Women of Faith Volume One, Coordinated by Kim Lengling

 

WHEN GRACE FOUND ME

Volume One

Real Life Stories of Women of Faith 

An anthology series of faith, perseverance, and personal connection told by twenty women. Coordinated by author Kim Lengling

 

The book is published by Listening to Your Voice Publishing and is available worldwide in digital and print format

With Volume One of the When Grace Found Me series, you will find with each turn of the page, words of encouragement, hope and God’s grace living in the women who share their personal testimonies within this series. Through faith, perseverance, overcoming fear, anxiety and loss, the women come to realize that God has been with them every step of the way. When Grace Found Me is a series for anyone who may be seeking a reminder of God’s unending love for us. 

Amazon.com:  When Grace Found Me: Real Life Stories of Women of Faith - Kindle edition by Lengling, Kim, Pearson, Ruth, Publishing, LTYV. Religion & Spirituality Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

Amazon.ca: When Grace Found Me: Real Life Stories of Women of Faith eBook : Lengling, Kim, Pearson, Ruth, Publishing, LTYV: Amazon.ca: Books

Other books in the series:

    

  

About Kim:

Kim is a multi-published author, writer, podcast host of Let Fear Bounce, and TV show host of The Write Stuff, The Authors Voice with the Believe In Your Dreams TV Network.

In addition, she is an active speaker sharing her story of being a female veteran living with PTSD and spreading a message of Hope. She regularly speaks for local veteran and women's organizations in her hometown area and across numerous global organizations.

She has been writing and speaking with empathy and emotion since 2004 showcasing her faith, nature, love of rescue animals, and advocacy for veterans living with PTSD. She showcases her writing through her books, business, and website; www.kimlenglingauthor.com.

She is the lead author and coordinator of the collaborative 3-book anthology series titled When Grace Found Me. In addition, she is a published co-author in seven anthologies and numerous print and online global newspapers and magazines.

Kim sees each day as an opportunity to spread hope and encouragement.

"The world can be a dark place. I choose to toss nuggets of hope out into the world like confetti; little sparks of light in the darkness."

To request additional review copies or an interview with Kim Lengling, please contact Mickey Mikkelson at Creative Edge Publicity: mickey.creativeedge@gmail.com / 403.464.6925.   

We look forward to the coverage!

Ice Islands coming August 2, 2022 from author Humphrey Hawksley

 

Ice Islands

Humphrey Hawksley

Publication date: August 2nd 2022

Format: Hardback/Severn House / CanonGate

 

Major Rake Ozenna’s mission is simple: gain access to the Kato family - Japan’s most dangerous crime empire - and stop the threat to America. But when the secret son of the Russian leader is executed and Rake’s target, Sara Kato, is implicated in the murder, a political crisis between Russia, Japan and the US is set in motion. 

It's a race to protect Sara and earn her trust whilst escaping the inhospitable terrain of the icy Aland Islands. Meanwhile, Russia wants revenge for the murder, a catastrophic move when it is revealed that Japan is not the trusted ally America thought it was.

As Rake learns the true extent of their deadly plans, he must draw on every ounce of skill and grit to succeed. Because if he fails, it won’t just be his life at stake …the consequences will be global!

Reviews for Humphrey Hawksley’s thrillers 

‘Hawksley’s excellent idea is to move the battleground from Eastern Europe to the Arctic north. When a maverick Russian commander decides to occupy a tiny American island in the Bering Strait, there’s only one man who can prevent the situation from escalating into a nuclear war: Rake Ozenna of the elite Eskimo Scouts’
Mail on Sunday, Thriller of the Week on MAN ON ICE

‘Knuckle-whitening suspense, bloody violence, dirty tricks, and plenty of surprising twists make this a gripping, can't-put-it-down read’
Booklist on MAN ON ICE 

‘Die Hard meets 1984, fast moving, sophisticated’

Washington Post on SECURITY BREACH 

 ‘Humphrey Hawksley is one of only a handful of writers taking the thriller in important new directions’
Craig Thomas, author of the MITCHELL GANT series

 

Humphrey Hawksley work a as a BBC foreign correspondent has taken him all over the world. He is a regular panelist and speaker and his writing has appeared in most mainstream publication such as the Guardian, The Times, Financial Times, and Yale Global.  His latest non-fiction book is Asian Waters: The Struggle Over the Asia-Pacific and the Strategy of Chinese Expansion.  Hawksley’s television documentaries include The Curse of Gold, Bitter Sweet and Aid Under Scrutiny. @hwhawksley | humphreyhawksley.com 

To request additional review copies or an interview with Humphrey, please contact Mickey Mikkelson at Creative Edge Publicity: mickey.creativeedge@gmail.com / 403.464.6925.  

We look forward to the coverage!

  

Embracing The Tempest A stunning second collection by poet D.A. Andrews

 

Embracing The Tempest

A stunning second collection by poet D.A. Andrews

The book is published by Squirrel House Publishing and is available worldwide in print format

 

In the second collection from D.A. Andrews, author of To Fight Fire With Sun, the poet shares the lessons life has taught her with an audience sure to be spellbound by the strength of her poetry. Exploring themes of familial grief, the heavy weight of expectations, and what it means to come into oneself, Andrews weathers the storms of life with grace and strength, inviting the reader to explore what Embracing the Tempest might look like in their own lives.

Amazon.com:   Embracing the Tempest: Andrews, D a: 9781951882129: Amazon.com: Books 

Amazon.com:  Embracing the Tempest: Andrews, D a: 9781951882129: Books - Amazon.ca

More From D.A. Andrews

To Fight Fire with Sun is a chapbook of poetry that dives into the experiences of love and loss. From conception, we have known love (or the lack thereof) and have grown to understand how this experience makes us the humans we are today. Loss comes in all forms. Whether through a friend, lover, or ourselves, we seek to find some method with which we can understand this pain and heal from it. To Fight Fire With Sun is just that- a queer girl's exploration into how one can love, lose, and heal through the power of words.

 

“There is a lyricism to these poems that echoes through the pages, words of how to face experiences, adjust, and heal, DA Andrews is a spirit to follow.” _  Grady Harp, Top 100 Amazon Reviewer

 

“Poetry is subjective. It's symbolism can take new meaning with each read, which makes it such a fascinating art form. D.A. Andrews does a nice job of modernizing it while giving it an everyday style of language.”, J.M Northup, Editor Norns Triad Publications

 About D.A. Andrews:

D. A. Andrews was born and raised in Kingston, Jamaica. Throughout the years, she has developed wide interests in various aspects of life, such as coffee, weddings, books, and psychology. She is a graduate of the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus with a BSc. in Marine Biology and Psychology (Honors) and is currently pursuing her MBA. She considers herself a nomad at heart and has changed cities and apartments quite as often as she changes her clothes. She is currently resting her head in Brunswick, Georgia, with her black cat (and familiar), Luna.

To request additional review copies or an interview with D.A. Andrews, please contact Mickey Mikkelson at Creative Edge Publicity: mickey.creativeedge@gmail.com / 403.464.6925.    

We look forward to the coverage!

HOT MOON, Apollo Rising Book One, by author, Alan Smale

 

HOT MOON

Apollo Rising Book One 

A WAR IN SPACE AS TOLD BY CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED AUTHOR, ALAN SMALE 

Set for release this July and published by CAEZIK SF & Fantasy, an imprint of Arc Manor Books!

The novel will be available in eBook and print form across all platforms!

 

 

"A nail-biting thriller."−Publishers Weekly

From the Sidewise Award-winning author of the acclaimed Clash of Eagles trilogy comes an alternate 1979 where the US and the Soviets have permanent Moon bases, orbiting space stations, and crewed spy satellites supported by frequent rocket launches.

Apollo 32, commanded by career astronaut Vivian Carter, docks at NASA's Columbia space station en route to its main mission: exploring the volcanic Marius Hills region of the Moon. Vivian is caught in the crossfire as four Soviet Soyuz craft appear without warning to assault the orbiting station. In an unplanned and desperate move, Vivian spacewalks through hard vacuum back to her Lunar Module and crew and escapes right before thestation falls into Soviet hands.

Their original mission scrubbed, Vivian and her crew are redirected to land at Hadley Base, a NASA scientific outpost with a crew of eighteen. But soon Hadley, too, will come under Soviet attack, forcing its unarmed astronauts to daring acts of ingenuity and improvisation.

With multiple viewpoints, shifting from American to Soviet perspective, from occupied space station to American Moon base under siege, to a covert and blistering US Air Force military response, Hot Moon tells the gripping story of a war in space that very nearly might have been.

Amazon.com: Amazon.com: Hot Moon (Apollo Rising Book 1) eBook : Smale, Alan: Kindle Store

Amazon.ca:  Hot Moon (Apollo Rising Book 1) eBook : Smale, Alan: Amazon.ca: Kindle Store

 

PRAISE FOR HOT MOON: 

"I loved it. Great 'hard' science fiction with convincing space battles." −Larry Niven, Nebula and Hugo Award-winning author of Ringworld

“Alan Smale is one of the brightest stars in the hard-SF firmament, and Hot Moon is his best novel yet. Enjoy!” −Robert J. Sawyer, Nebular and Hugo Award-winning author of The Oppenheimer Alternative

"Will delight and enthrall." −Library Journal

"A provocative science fiction novel" −Foreword Reviews

 

ABOUT ALAN:

Alan Smale writes alternate and twisted history, and hard SF. His novella of a Roman invasion of ancient America, "A Clash of Eagles", won the Sidewise Award. Alan has also sold over forty short stories to Asimov's, Abyss & Apex, Writers of the Future, and other magazines and anthologies. 

Alan grew up in Yorkshire, England, and earned degrees in Physics and Astrophysics from Oxford University. By day he performs astronomical research into black holes and neutron stars at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, with over a hundred published academic papers; by night he sings bass with high-energy vocal band The Chromatics, and is co-creator of their educational AstroCappella project, spreading astronomy through a cappella in schools nationwide.

Find him online at https://www.alansmale.com, Facebook/AlanSmale, and Twitter/@AlanSmale. 

To request additional review copies or an interview with Alan Smale, please contact Mickey Mikkelson at Creative Edge Publicity by email: mickey.creativeedge@gmail.com or by phone at 403.464.6925. 

We look forward to the coverage.