Category: Indie Author

Cover Reveal | “Murder in the Generative Kitchen” by Meg Pontecorvo, a novella published by #IndiePub World Weaver Press!

Posted Friday, 8 July, 2016 by jorielov , , 0 Comments

Stories Sailing into View Banner created by Jorie in Canva.

I have been on a bit of a hiatus from reviewing for World Weaver Press, as with everything that transpired at the close of 2015 & throughout the first six months of 2016, finding a way to re-enter my reading life was an uphill climb. For whichever reason, it wasn’t until now as July begins to gather into sight, I felt I could re-attach my mind to Science Fiction, Fantasy & Cosy Horror.

Imagine my surprise then, as I was making plans for my #FuellYourSciFi showcases, to receive an email from World Weaver Press in regards to hosting a *Cover Reveal!* for them this Friday! I had vaguely remembered joining the Reveal Team half an age ago – yet curiously, never heard from them!?

I read the premise of this upcoming September release (which blessedly includes a print edition!) finding myself rather intrigued by it’s premise! I had a lot of things going through my mind as I contemplated it’s topic, but the best part for me was finding a segue back to World Weaver Press! This Cover Reveal broke the ice, wherein I found there was a ‘changing of the guard’ where there is a new Editor in Chief at the helm (who worked as editor on this story!) of the publishing house whose a true delight to interact with as she has a wonderful passion for the stories she’s publishing whilst continuing the legacy of the publisher’s founders.

Sarena Ulibarri was not only understanding about absences but truly understood how you can fall out of love of reading when life interferes with your reading life! Therefore, I am wicked happy to say, the story I will be reading after my current queue is cleared will be *THIS!* novella: Murder in the Generative Kitchen! And, boy! Am I thrilled to bits to have this on the horizon to read!

Take a wicked sweet gander at this design, too! Isn’t it beyond lovely!?

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Posted Friday, 8 July, 2016 by jorielov in #JorieLovesIndies, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Book Cover Reveal, Book Spotlight, Cookery, Crime Fiction, Futuristic Fantasy, Hard Science Fiction, Human & Computer Interfaces, Indie Author, Indie Book Trade, Legal Drama | Courtroom Drama, Science Fiction, Short Stories or Essays, Speculative Fiction, World Weaver Press

Cover Reveal | There is a #newbook publishing in a #printbook release by Christina Courtenay this October! (The Velvet Cloak of Moonlight) Isn’t that wicked grand!?

Posted Tuesday, 5 July, 2016 by jorielov , , , 0 Comments

Stories Sailing into View Banner created by Jorie in Canva.

If your a regular reader or frequent visitor of Jorie Loves A Story, you know I’ve been smitten with the novelists who publish their relationship-based Romances with ChocLitUK for a good two years now! I love being on the cusp of learning about a ‘new release’ whilst I remain patient to see if the Digital First new ChocLit novel will make it to a print release further down the road of it’s lifetime. I don’t mind the gaps between the ebooks and the print editions – as it’s always given me the pleasure of balancing my ‘next ChocLit reads’ to include both Front List and Back List offerings. Thus, I am enjoying being a member of the Reveal Team at ChocLit whilst it gives me a chance to introduce my readers to a variety of sub-genres within Romance I appreciate picking up to read!

On my new position as a ChocLit Star member: Whilst I am part of the ChocLit Reviewers having brought reviews & guest author features to Jorie Loves A Story for the past two years, I have recently become a part of the Cover Reveal Team, as disclosed when I hosted the first Reveal on behalf of Sheryl Browne’s ‘Learning to Love’. This new team works with ChocLit providing honest feedback on ‘projects’ such as title & book cover design choices as well projects in development on behalf of the publisher. I accepted being a ChocLit Star as I felt my love of the stories would be a good fit to give in-depth responses to the projects pitched to the Stars. Therefore, when I blogged about the cover for “Revenge is Sweet” it was the first reveal where my input as a ChocLit Star helped the reveal become possible!

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Celebrating the Paranormal Romances of Christina Courtenay
& her “Shadows of the Past” series

Read the author’s thoughts on writing Time Slips via her Guest Post
(which focuses on this series)

The Silent Touch of Shadows began the series

The Soft Whisper of Dreams is the sequel to The Secret Kiss of Darkness

& today’s cover reveal is about the fourth story next in sequence!

I’ve been wanting to soak back inside this series for the past two years – time & tide kept keeping me away from the story’s heart, I must admit! It’s partially why I was inspired to spend 2016 focusing on the serial fiction by ChocLit authors, as I knew I had two series by Ms Courtenay I wanted to be reading next in queue in-between my next review choices – her Kinross series & Shadows from the Past are far too tempting to let time continue to slip through my fingers!

The interesting bit to note is that it was ‘The Silent Touch of Shadows’ which first introduced me to the collective works of Ms Courtenay, and what a blessing it was to disappear inside this world she created for us to wander around – as it was both alluring as it was cautionary! I was on the pins of my nerves for most of the novel as you simply had no way of knowing how it would pan out in the end & if the ending was one you could live with finding as the resolution!

I knew from that moment forward I would want to travel through her bibliography – seeing how she would tempt me into the historical past but also, how your Young Adult novels might be ones I could appreciate as much as her PNR stories. I look forward to spending more hours inside her novels, but today, it’s simply a wicked sweet joy of mine to be helping to ring in the next novel in sequence for a series that simply charmed me at first meeting!

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On my Connection to Ms. Courtenay:

Two years ago, on the 26th of April, 2014, I created #ChocLitSaturday a weekly Rom chat to celebrate the novelists of ChocLitUK but also, to expand to include book bloggers, readers and writers of Romance who have a penchant for the genre as a whole. Ms. Courtenay started to become a regular fixture, and her encouraging conversations & ability to inspire others to converse freely throughout the chats put me at ease in my new role as a ‘Hostess’. She always seemed to know how to either start a topic or how to best suggest something to break the ice! I was always so very grateful to her and I am thinking I might have forgotten to tell her directly how much gratitude I had for her in those earlier chats! Over the weeks that have followed, I have found myself attached to each of my ‘regular’ chatters during the hour, and I consider Ms. Courtenay a bookish like-minded soul, as we tend to appreciate the same types of stories!

I am disclosing this, to assure you that I can formulate an honest opinion, even though I have interacted with Courtenay through our respective love & passion of reading inside the twitterverse whilst I host #ChocLitSaturday the chat and having previously read her time slip novels. I treat each book as a ‘new experience’, whether I personally know the author OR whether I am reading a book by them for the first time or continuing to read their releases as they are available.

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Posted Tuesday, 5 July, 2016 by jorielov in Blog Tour Host, Book Cover Reveal, Book Spotlight, British Literature, Castles & Estates, ChocLitUK, Gothic Literature, Gothic Romance, Indie Author, Modern British Literature, Paranormal Romance, Parapsychological Suspense, Romance Fiction, Romantic Suspense, Supernatural Fiction

Blog Book Tour | “Commanding the Red Lotus” (a novel in a triptych of novellas) by R.J. Sullivan

Posted Sunday, 3 July, 2016 by jorielov , , , , , , 5 Comments

Ruminations & Impressions Book Review Banner created by Jorie in Canva.

Acquired Book By:

I was selected to be a stop on the “Commanding the Red Lotus” blog tour from Seventh Star Press. The tour is hosted by Tomorrow Comes Media who does the publicity and blog tours for Seventh Star Press and other Indie and/or Self Published authors. I received a complimentary copy of “Commanding the Red Lotus” direct from the author R.J. Sullivan in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

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Why I love reading R.J. Sullivan stories:

Even whilst I was becoming first introduced to Sullivan’s style of writing within the pages of Virtual Blue and finding it was quite a bit too intense for me overall to appreciate in a fuller capacity than the one I expressed on my review; there as an inkling of a style I wanted to read more of, to see what else this author could create that might allow me the grace to soak inside his other stories with a happier heart. It wasn’t that Virtual Blue was too far outside of an Urban Fantasy I’d love, but it was the Horror undertones that nudged it a bit past the envelope of what I can pleasantly say agrees with me. No, instead, it simply gave me a glimpse into the craft of how a story is assembled and granted me a reason to keep my eyes peeled for further releases by the author.

The next chance I took was on behalf of Darkness with a Chance of Whimsy – an anthology collection of short stories written over an expanse of a decade – wherein I found the style I had snuck a glimpse at previously & happily found more than a few shorts that I truly enjoyed reading! It was such a happy discovery for me, and it was a great second-step into Sullivan’s collective works before I turnt my eye towards his Classically told Space Opera threading through the Red Lotus series!

I was quite surprised finding Sullivan has a softer and more intuitive side to his writings, as I came into his collective works through the Dark Fantasy and Horror side of the ledger! Immediately as I was settling into what became my favourite short (‘The Assurance Salesman’) I recognised he has a lot of heart and depth of purpose towards how he paints a story with emotional conviction and centering on the intricate complexity of exploring the depth of the human soul. He enriches his audience with thought-provoking stories which stir a knowing sense the writer has fully embraced the moment of his inspiration to tell them and given a wicked read to his readers (who like me) might not have found their ‘niche’ within his writings until now! -quoted from my Darkness with a Chance of Whimsy review

I also like how there is a lot of optimism running in the background of his stories – even in Virtual Blue, there were moments where all hope was never quite lost even if everything felt rather impossibly difficult to return to any sort of normalcy afterwards. I like to see the light flickering back through any level of darkness a character has to encounter, but I also, love a certain nod of cheeky humour, humbling arcs of a character’s journey and a story owning its genre by how it’s crafted to shine in its chosen world.

As I read part of the opening bits of Fate of the Red Lotus prior to composing my questions for the interview I showcased ahead of this review, you could say I felt I had become treated to a Classic Space Opera written from the prospective of a writer who knew how to fuse everything together that he personally loved himself inside his genre of choice! The more you learn about what drives Mr Sullivan’s own passion for Science Fiction, the more elements of inspiration you discover inside his stories. To me, this is a true blessing of reading an author you slowly start to become familiar with through their collective writings, their blog and/or the conversations or guest essays which feature another dimension of what makes their writing personally unique to their own imaginative eye!

Please note: I have a special anthology I’m reviewing for the Christmas 2016 Season (Gifts of the Magi) in which Mr Sullivan has a short story featured. I look forward to sharing my thoughts & impressions on behalf of that collection come December, however, the book shoppe it’s contributing towards is Indy Reads Books, a local establishment in Indianapolis, I first came to know through Sullivan & Ms Chris respectively and further still, through my readings of Indy Writes Books (an anthology for booklovers), a review that is forthcoming this week! I also have a special surprise for Mr Sullivan lateron this month on my blog, so due stay tuned if you love Science Fiction as I #FuellYourSciFi throughout JULY!Fun Stuff for Your Blog via pureimaginationblog.com

Notation on Cover Art: The only flicker of a question I had when I first saw this artwork was if that is Sayuri on the cover, why do I question if she’s Japanese!? She’s turnt away from the camera so to speak, so this might be what is throwing me off a bit about her cultural heritage, but for me – everything else on this cover bespoke of what I wanted to find inside the story! I love ramshackle ships, curiously fierce characters & a motley crew of opposites who find they have a bit more in common with each other than what first appearances might lend to understand! It even speaks of the aesthetic of what I personally feel ‘Space travelling’ might feel like to be a part of and that was a brilliant method of using art to capture a reader’s imagination at ‘hallo’!

Blog Book Tour | “Commanding the Red Lotus” (a novel in a triptych of novellas) by R.J. SullivanCommanding the Red Lotus
by R.J. Sullivan
Illustrator/Cover Designer: Enggar Adirasa
Source: Author via Seventh Star Press

Money Can’t Buy Respect

Sayuri Arai, privileged daughter of a corporate mogul, abandons a promising career to find her own path. She invests in a broken-down asteroid mining ship and steps in as the commander of its crew. Every day presents a new challenge just to keep her ship from falling apart and the bitter crew from killing each other. Can Sayuri unite the feuding factions, or will her rivals turn the entire complement against her?

Commanding the Red Lotus offers a classic sense of wonder for today’s science fiction readers.

Volume One of the Red Lotus Stories, now in softcover for the first time. Commanding the Red Lotus includes the previously released ebook novelettes:

Fate of the Red Lotus
Red Lotus: Innocence Lost
Plus the brand-new novella Mutiny on the Red Lotus

Genres: Anthology Collection of Short Stories and/or Essays, Short Story or Novella, Space Opera



Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 9781941706701

Also by this author: Virtual Blue, Darkness with a Chance of Whimsy, Gifts of the Magi

Published by Seventh Star Press

on 18th April, 2016

Format: Paperback Edition

Pages: 236

Published By: Seventh Star Press (@7thStarPress)
Available Formats: Softcover, E-book

Special Note on Sullivan’s blog about reading Fate of the Red Lotus FREE!

Converse via: #RedLotusNovel, #ShortStories & #7thStar

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Author Biography:

R.J. Sullivan

Best known for his ghost story thrillers, Commanding the Red Lotus is R.J.Sullivan’s fifth book and his first release in the genre he most adores. R.J.’s critically acclaimed, loosely connected ghost story trilogy and his short story collection are all available in paperback and ebook though Seventh Star Press. R.J. resides with his family in Heartland Crossing, Indiana. He drinks regularly from a Little Mermaid coffee mug and is man enough to admit it.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | GoodReads | Instagram

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Posted Sunday, 3 July, 2016 by jorielov in #FuellYourSciFi, #JorieLovesIndies, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Book | Novel Extract, Book Cover | Notation on Design, Bookish Discussions, Coming-Of Age, Compassion & Acceptance of Differences, Equality In Literature, Fathers and Daughters, Indie Author, LGBTTQPlus Fiction | Non-Fiction, Life Shift, Multi-cultural Characters and/or Honest Representations of Ethnicity, Science Fiction, Space Opera, Space Science, Speculative Fiction, Tomorrow Comes Media, Vulgarity in Literature

Book Review | “A Sinner in Paradise” (a duology) by Deborah Hining Women’s Fiction with an uplifting centre focus of a character in search of herself.

Posted Saturday, 2 July, 2016 by jorielov , , 0 Comments

Ruminations & Impressions Book Review Banner created by Jorie in Canva.

Acquired Book By: Whilst participating in #LitChat last Summer [2015] about Indie Publishers and the stories they publish, I happily discovered Light Messages Publishing! If your curious about the Small Press Showcase #LitChat I attended you can replay the conversation in whole by visiting the Nurph Channel for LitChat where it’s archived. Since my first introduction to their publishing house, I’ve had the pleasure of becoming a reviewer for them! I have felt blessed to read stories of such uplifting candor on everyday life, pursuing faith in ordinary hours and finding a spirit of humanity interwoven into the stories themselves!

This marks my third review for Light Messages Publishing as I received a complimentary copy of “A Sinner in Paradise” direct from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

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On how I picked what to read next after

The Particular Appeal of Gillian Pugsley (review) and Tea & Crumples (review):

Currently Reading A Sinner in Paradise banner created by Jorie in Canva. Book Photography Credit: Jorie of jorielovesastory.com.

One of the blessings of Light Messages, is the fact they publish a multi-genre collective of stories – crafted by writers who are etching into the background of their stories an uplifting turn of inspiration & cross-section of faith. If your a reader who likes to seek out stories that have true-blue characters who are living lives whilst arriving at cross-sections of their personal journey, your going to find a blessed home in the offerings of Light Messages; as this has been my perception and happenstance observation on behalf of their authors’ selections!

I wasn’t truly thinking of any particular genre or style of story – moreso, I was thinking of staying within the framework of a theme parlaying towards another ‘character’ (female or male) who was either overcoming something or transitioning through something; a story with a bit of a bite to it, but also, plenty of introspection as I have the tendency to appreciate those sorts the best! When I wandered over to the publisher’s site, I picked up on the offerings of Ms Hining as being the ones that might appeal to my readerly heart at this present time. I had no idea I’d be blessed with a duology – knitted so close together – as those are the joys of reading in our modern age, the finding of two stories anchoured together, either through a character, a setting or place or even a timescape! Duologies are a heap of fun to read, as they are each individually one half of the whole story.

Coming through the emotional tidal-waves of my first two choices, I wasn’t sure if these stories by Hining would be a bit light-hearted with dashes of cheeky humour or seriously on the same level of tone as the prior two I have loved to read. I can sway either way – on the emotional depth of stories – I admit, I like to break-up the heavier novels with lighter subject matters as it gives my heart a refreshing bit of joy before easing back into another one. Contemporary Fiction & Rom are selections I am trying to focus on a bit more, as I have the tenacious knack for rooting out a Historical at the drop of a hat! Laughs. I used to read a better balance of Contemporaries & Historicals; but in recent years, I’ve lopsided myself worse than a lop-eared rabbit!

I’ve even spied a few thematics at Light Messages that made me curious about how they might read with the threading of INSPY – as they have Suspense and Science Fiction choices hidden amongst the Women’s Fiction & happily a lovely Historical that fetched my eye as well by Lindsey Barlow! I am happily enjoying the journey I am taking with this publisher, as I am finding the stories are wicked sweet finds for a reader who loves convicting fiction fused with fiercely strong characters!

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Book Review | “A Sinner in Paradise” (a duology) by Deborah Hining Women’s Fiction with an uplifting centre focus of a character in search of herself.A Sinner in Paradise
by Deborah Hining
Source: Direct from Publisher

Set in 1977 West Virginia, this is a heartwarming, uproarious affair with love in all its forms.

Jilted by her fiancee, Geneva watches her seemingly idyllic life suddenly fall apart. Bereft and desolate, she packs up her nine cats and leaves her home in Washington, DC to return to her native hills of West Virginia where she plans rest and heal from her heartbreak.

When Geneva's ambition, and machinations run up against rugged mountain ways, she finds herself flung from one perilous adventure, romance, crazy circumstance, and heartbreak to another.

After facing illness, disaster in the wilderness and an encounter with an old mountain man who teaches her that her soul needs more than men, courtship, and adventure, Geneva finally finds what she's been missing. Ultimately, Geneva realizes she must face herself before she is free to truly love and be loved.

Genres: Contemporary (Modern) Fiction (post 1945), Inspirational Fiction & Non-Fiction, INSPY Realistic Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Women's Fiction



Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 978-1-­61153-­057-­5

Published by Light Messages Publishing

on August 2013

Format: Trade Paperback

Pages: 423

Published By: Light Messages Publishing (@LMpublishing)

Author Page @ Light Messages Publishing
Available Formats: Paperback, Ebook

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A duology by Deborah Hining

A Sinner in Paradise by Deborah HiningA Saint in Graceland by Deborah Hening

A Sinner in Paradise | Book 1

A Saint in Graceland | Book 2 | Book Synopsis

The long-awaited sequel to Deborah Hining’s award-winning debut
novel, A Sinner in Paradise.  is novel stands strong on its own while
offering a deep satisfaction to her existing readers.

Converse via: #ASinnerInParadise & #duology

About Deborah Hining

Deborah Hining

Deborah Hining believes that life is pretty much perfect as long as it holds a sense of destiny. Her destiny has led her to be many things: wife, mother, and grandmother, and also actress, award-winning playwright, theatrical director, college instructor, and Certified Financial Planner (or as she calls it, “Financial Fairy Godmother”).

Now she is a farmer and best-selling author. Her debut novel A Sinner in Paradise won the Foreword Reviews INDIEFAB Bronze Medal for Romance and a Benjamin Franklin
Awards Silver Medal. Deborah and her husband Mike live at Corinne’s Orchard, a farm in Durham County, North Carolina.

You can ¬find her most days working in one of the gardens, writing, and generally giving thanks for her abundant life.

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Posted Saturday, 2 July, 2016 by jorielov in #JorieLovesIndies, #LitChat, 21st Century, Balance of Faith whilst Living, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Book Review (non-blog tour), Christianity, Death, Sorrow, and Loss, Debut Author, Debut Novel, Fly in the Ointment, Indie Author, Inspirational Fiction & Non-Fiction, INSPY Realistic Fiction | Non-Fiction, Life Shift, Light Messages Publishing, Modern Day, Spirituality & Metaphysics, Vulgarity in Literature, Women's Fiction, World Religions