Showing posts with label Sacrifice. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sacrifice. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Sacrifice Release Celebration: Scavenger Hunt
Hello fellow readers and Condu-nuts! Today we are one of the final stops in the week long celebration in honor of the release of the third book in the Gryphon Series-Sacrifice! I really cannot wait to read this series (Lana has devoured them all already) I mean, glee clubs, a kick-ass heroine, a gnome with a temper, hunky guys-who could ask for more??
Here is how it works. Each day, you go to the other stops and find one of the missing words. Missing words will be in RED somewhere in the body of the post on the blog stop for that day. Collect the words every day and try to fit them in the blanks in the excerpt. On the 16th, when you have collected all the missing words, you can email the completed excerpt to girlsheartbookstours@gmail.com. First 10 people with the correct completed excerpt will win some excellent Gryphon Series Swag!!
Now, here is the excerpt!
Bernard banged his cane against the floor in six rapid-fire successions. His round face flushed red, then . “Training time isn’t over!”
Caleb glanced over his shoulder at the glowering . “What’s with the hostile envir’ment?”
“Oh you know, same old, same old. I don’t respect my duty of pummeling inanimate objects, blah, blah, blah. Maybe Gabe will train with me to appease Mr. Sunshine.” I looked to my brother with a hopeful expectation.
Bernard folded his arms over his chest and scowled.
“Sorry, Cee,” Gabe raked a hand through his recently grown-out hair. He usually kept it buzzed, but Alaina insisted he grow it out for the wedding. He fiddled with the whole inch of it almost as much as Kendall did with hers. The two of them had daily scuffles over ‘mirror time’ in the bathroom. My low maintenance ponytail and I were very by this.
“I don’t need to train,” he said with a cocky smirk. “I’m a lion. It doesn’t get any more than that.”
Gabe ignored my eye-roll and circled his hands around Alaina’s slender wrists to pull her into his waiting arms. She giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck.
“Couples suck,” Kendall grumbled and tossed the bridal magazine aside.
Against the far wall of the garage—flanked by Gram’s flamingo lawn ornaments—Bernard’s pinched up face warned of an impending gnome-sized embolism.
Just as he opened his mouth to unleash what was sure to be a nasty verbal bashing, Caleb intervened, “I’ll spar with her.”
Bernard’s beady eyes narrowed. “I don’t know ... ”
“I think it’s a heck of a lot more effective than me fighting a bag.” I matched Bernard’s arm fold and raised him a sneer.
Bernard took a deep breath in through his nose, and let it out through pursed lips. “Fine. Do not hold back,” he barked at Caleb, then pointedly turned his glare to me, “at all.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Caleb shot me a wink.
Gabe unchained the punching bag and leaned it against Grandpa’s dusty old work bench, then took a seat on the floor with Alaina and Kendall. Caleb and I faced off in the center of the garage. He yanked off his hooded sweatshirt and tossed it to his sister (That would be Alaina, by the way. Long story. He was abducted by a demonic army as a child and she joined the good guys as a Spirit Guide. Huh, look at that. I made a long story surprisingly short.)
He brought his hands up and struck a defensive pose. The thin material of his t-shirt tightened across the muscles of his torso. That visual stimuli caused a wandering gaze that couldn’t be helped. With his knees slightly bent, his jeans hugged his thighs in a way that proved very distracting.
“Ahem ... I’m up here, . Not that I don’t appreciate a good oglin’.”
I hurriedly assumed a fighting stance, my cheeks and ears bright red. “Sorry. I’m good. Let’s do it. This! Let’s do this!” Gabe, Alaina, and Kendall all snickered from the sidelines. “Crap. Let’s just get this over with.”
Caleb’s face folded in mock hurt. “Ya say it like that and I’m inclined tah think ya won’t enjoy it at all.”
“I think we both know that’s not true.” I grinned.
“Well then...” He jerked his head to the side to crack his neck and blinked hard. When his eyes opened the was gone. In its place blazed red irises. Visible red flames danced beneath the surface of his skin. “Give us a kiss.”
And here is the list of the other stops!
April 10th- Girls *Heart* Books
April 11th- Candy Coated Book Blog
April 12th- As You Wish Reviews
April 13th- Me, Myself and I
April 14th- The Library at the End of the Universe
April 15th- Sassy Book Lovers
April 16th- Girls *Heart* Books
And don't forget to pick up your copy of Sacrifice!!
Sacrifice
Gryphon Series Book #3
By Stacey Rourke
Celeste Garrett has finally found a happy balance in her life as the Chosen One, thanks in large part to a certain hunky Irishman. But if there’s any lesson she should heed since receiving her calling it’s that everything can change in the blink of an eye. Soon a terrible new threat, unlike anything she’s ever encountered, causes her to make a gut-wrenching choice that will strip her of someone she holds dear.
As much as she’d like to have a pity party for one, there’s no time for that now because wedding bells are ringing in Gainesboro! In between dress fittings and rehearsal dinners Celeste will have to fend off attacking demons and leering pirates. As if the Dark Army wasn’t scary enough our heroine is faced with the horrifying trauma of attending a bachelorette party with her mom and watching Grams do Jello shots. Is a walk down the aisle even possible for a member of the Garrett family when the Dark Army is out to destroy them? More importantly, will the Dark Army Glee Club sing at the reception?
Raise your glass to the happy couple, and get ready for a wedding…Conduit-style.
You can find Sacrifice-
Amazon Paperback-
Barnes & Noble Paperback- http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/sacrifice-st-rourke/1113582628?ean=9780988633445
Barnes & Noble Nook- http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/sacrifice-st-rourke/1113582628?ean=2940016688077
Smashwords- http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/255032
Writing is something I have always done. I can remember in elementary school creating stories that I would stand up and read aloud to my classmates…whether they liked it or not. As I grew older I didn’t flaunt my writing as freely. It became something I did just for me to vent my teenage angst, or chronicle my journey to adulthood. I never thought about becoming a writer because that title prompted the visual of a grey-haired man in a tweed smoking jacket with suede elbow patches, slaving over an old fashion typewriter while puffing away on a pipe. No way was that stuffy kind of life for me. (Plus tweed is itchy.) Instead I wanted to be in the spotlight! I wanted to be–pause for dramatic effect–an actress! I gave it my best shot, too. Got about as far as any aspiring actress can get in Flint, Michigan. Which is exactly no where. But I did get two great things out of my time delving into the theatrical world; I gained the ability to act out the scenes I write to make sure they’re believable (yes, I really do that and no, you can’t watch) and I met my amazing husband.
My theater ambitions behind me, I decided to do the “mature,” “grown up” thing and went back to college. As I worked toward my Bachelor’s degree in marketing I did a lot of writing. Essays, research papers, PowerPoint presentations. All of it mandatory, none of it what I would ever call fun. Even then, becoming a writer never entered my mind. No, then I was going to be a business tycoon…or somethin’. Truth be told, I never picked writing. It picked me. During my time as a stay at home mom I needed an outlet to give me a mental break from diapers, formula and midnight feedings. That’s when my hands found their way back to the keyboard. Story ideas began coming at such an incessant rate that my rapidly clicking fingers couldn’t keep up. Post-It notes and scrapes of paper with story ideas decorated every inch of our house. In mid-conversation with my husband I would dart off to jot down things that would come to me. Sweet guy my hubby is, he would just shake his head at my obvious rudeness and hold my place in the conversation.
My first book was completed for an entire year before I told anyone about it. I outed myself as an author and then sent out my first round of query letters to literary agents. Surely, it would be picked up immediately and become an overnight success! Yeah, not so much. For two years I got rejection, after rejection, after rejection, after rejection…you get the idea. Thankfully with the ever increasing pile of rejections came feedback. I digested all the suggestions and applied the usable ones to my manuscript. Little by little, the rough edges were chipped away and the diamond shone through. The work paid off when I received an email from a publisher offering me a contract on The Conduit.
It’s been a long road, and it ain’t over yet. But now, at thirty-mumble, mumble years old I finally know what I wanna be when I grow up–-a writer.
Follow Stacey Rourke:
Anchor Publishing- http://anchorgrouppublishing.com/Home_Page.html
Thursday, February 7, 2013
Virtual Blog Tour: The Gryphon Series by Stacey Rourke
SacrificeThe Gryphon Series #3By Stacey RourkeExpected Publication: March, 2013, by Anchor Group PublishingCeleste Garrett has finally found a happy balance in her life as the Chosen One, thanks in large part to a certain hunky Irishman. But if there's any lesson she should heed since receiving her calling it's that everything can change in the blink of an eye. Soon a terrible new threat, unlike anything she's ever encountered, causes her to make a gut-wrenching choice that will strip her of someone she holds dear.As much as she'd like to have a pity party for one, there's no time for that now because wedding bells are ringing in Gainesboro! In between dress fittings and rehearsal dinners Celeste will have to fend off attacking demons and leering pirates. As if they Dark Army wasn't scary enough our heroine is faced with the horrifying trauma of attending a bachelorette party with her mom and watching Grams do Jell-O shots. Is a walk down the aisle even possible for a member of the Garrett family when the Dark Army is out to destroy them? More importantly, will the Dark Army Glee Club sing at the reception?Raise your glass to the happy couple, and get ready for a wedding...Conduit-style.
EF. EM. EL.
Rourke, I am glaring daggers at you right now. Why must you torture me like this? Why? What have I ever done to you? NOTHING. Exactly. Nothing but fangirl. And you make me cry. All night. All NIGHT. I will not sleep for a week because I WILL BE DROWNING IN TEARS!
Okay.. Okay, I'm better now. Mini rant over. Back to the blog tour.
Sacrifice is the third book in The Gryphon Series by Stacey Rourke (and I believe it could be considered EVIL from a CLIFFHANGER and many, many tears it causes..), a series I have grown very fond of over this past year. When I heard about this blog tour, I jumped at the chance to read Sacrifice an entire month early and calm myself from the cliffhanger at the end of Embrace.
Now, here's the bad part- I can't tell you ANYTHING about this AMAZING novel. Because I have been told I tend to let things slip, and there are a lot of LITTLE things I could say that could ruin the whole series, and since this is an ARC, I especially can't let that happen.. *sigh* What can I say?
Well, I can tell you that when you pick this series up and get to this book, have pints of ice cream on hand, and boxes upon boxes of tissues, and a few days off work for the aftershocks of this.. I am still crying, and I'm not kidding you.
HOWEVER, even with all my freaking out and screaming seen above, I still love Stacey Rourke. Because anybody that can make me this screwed up in 222 pages of fiction is amazing.
A final note: Sacrifice is a fast paced, roller coaster ride of emotion and suspense that will leave you breathless. Fantastic read!
My Rating:
And now, an interview with Caleb, Celeste and Rowan (oh, boy...)
*Hello all. First I’d like to say thank you for coming
together to do this interview with us. For the readers who have been living
under a rock and have not gotten to The Conduit and its sequel, Embrace yet,
would you all tell us a bit about yourselves?
(Caleb and Celeste open their mouths to talk, but Rowan
pipes up first.)
Rowan-Well these two goodie-goodies are out to save the
world. As for me? (wiggles eyebrows suggestively) I’m here to make things interesting
… and vastly more attractive.
Celeste (peering at him through narrowed eyes.) -No one will
ever love you as much as you do.
*Rowan and Caleb, what one word would you use to describe
Celeste?
(in unison)
Rowan-Infuriating
Caleb-Amazin’
Rowan-(raises one finger) Actually, I’d like to borrow his
adjective. She’s amazingly infuriating.
*Celeste, how has your life changed since these boys joined the picture?
Celeste-Well, I never really got much attention from guys
before. Now I find as long as they have a little demon in them I’m like cat-nip
to them. This has both a “woohoo” and “aw, crap” for my self-esteem.
*In the books, Celeste mentions Puck from the show ‘Glee’ is
hot—Has she made either of you watch it? What did you think?
Caleb-Aye, she’s made me watch. I’m still mystified how all
those kids know the choreography for those random song an’ dance outbreaks. As
fer that mowhawked lad, he’s not the only one that can play a guitar and sing.
(He takes Celeste’s hand and gives her a wink.) I’ve got no problem givin’ the
lady a serenade when she desires one.
Rowan (rolls his eyes)- I’ve suddenly found myself in the
midst of a Taylor Swift song and fear the second coming of my breakfast.
*Mel and I both have a weakness for really good cheesecake.
For all of you, what is your favorite dessert?
Rowan (leans in with a seductive leer)-I’ve found most
desserts are better eaten off someone. You ladies have plans later?
Celeste-And are you stocked up on Penicillin?
*Where do you all see yourselves a year from now?
Caleb- For centuries I was trapped in a world of hell. I
found my bliss with the lil lass beside me and I’ll follow her lead tah the end
of the world and back.
Rowan- (his ocean blue eyes suddenly darken with dangerous
intent) I will get my father’s pirate
ship back. A year’s time should find me reunited with the freedom of my first
lady, the sea.
Celeste- (fidgets uncomfortably) Hopefully I’ll still be
alive. With an army of demons constantly hunting me, that dream can get a
little shaky from time to time. If I could paint my perfect picture I would
have a normal life again, where I could head back to college and not end everyday with blood on my
clothes. I know, I’m a dreamer.
Young Adult and Teen Reader voted Author of the Year 2012.
Stacey Rourke is the author of the Gryphon Series. She lives in Michigan with her husband, two beautiful daughters, and two giant, drooly dogs. Stacey loves to travel, has an unhealthy shoe addiction and considers herself blessed to make a career out of talking to imaginary people that live in her head. She is currently hard at work on the continuations of The Gryphon Series as well as other literary projects.
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