AUTHOR NEWS: Joyland by Stephen King

Stephen King has a new book coming out: Joyland. Situated at an amusement park in North Carolina in 1973, this story has a creepy carnival feel to it.  NPR has a nice brief interview with the author regarding his new book.

AUTHOR Q&A: Bailey J. Thompson, author of Yellow Socks and Blood Spots

Author Bailey J. Thompson has stopped by today to promote her new book Yellow Socks and Blood Spots, just released May 15th. See the bottom of this post for more information on the book, but first a few words from Bailey:





Why was Yellow Socks and Blood Spots written?

It’s a constant battle; heated political abortion debates, religious questions, controversial opinions. The young people faced with the situation and decision every day are seen as victimizers, and are often unable to accurately express themselves for fear that they will be judged, or will cross a line.  Yellow Socks and Blood Spots was written to give such a taboo topic some perspective, and a reason for discussion. I don’t think that we will ever come to a concrete agreement when it comes to the abortion debate, but I do think that we owe it to ourselves to start a conversation.


What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced with this novel?

Telling people what it’s about. I find that when it comes to pro-life and pro-choice, most people already have their minds made up as to which side they’re on... So when you tell them you’ve written such a book, the reactions can be really varied; and sometimes quite extreme.


Originally, Yellow Socks and Blood Spots was to be published under a penname... What made you decide to publish it under your own name afterall?

There is something about publishing controversial novels under pennames first – just to see the reaction. Not only was I nervous about how people; friends and family especially would react to my writing such a novel, I’m also the owner of a children’s book publishing company, Gerbil Meets Mouse Publishing. I don’t have to tell you that this book and kids books don’t exactly go hand-in-hand! But at the end of the day (and a year’s worth of a publishing journey) I decided to just go with it. If I was writing a novel with the  hope that abortion would become less taboo and easier to talk about it, it would be hypocritical to hide behind someone else’s name... right?


If someone approaches you for support on a similar situation as Isabelle, what do you tell them?

Usually, I tell them to go with their heart. I’m not judgemental - in the end, the decision  up to them and I will support them with whichever route they take. I tell them to educate themselves with every option and do not make a decision blindly - this can only hurt you. In the end, you have to disregard what your friends, family, baby’s father says and do what feels right.


You’re a writer, what does that mean to you?

It took me a long time to accept that I was, indeed, a writer. There’s a lot of honour to that title... For the longest time, I would admit that I wrote... but not that I was a writer. So eventually, I had to decide what it meant to be a writer, and ask myself if I was enough of that to let that word define me. So what does it mean to be a writer? I think it’s someone who is obsessed with metaphors, discovers some element of plot or foreshadowing in just about every moment of life... Being a writer means you have to enjoy your own company and look forward to spending an entire day with just yourself and your keyboard. It’s not getting enough sleep because an idea came to you in the middle of the night, and starting to notice the little things; the way your footsteps sound, the way certain things smell, or taste and being able to pinpoint certain emotions and the elements that surround them. All that said, I think the defining moment for me, aside from seeing my first novel in print, was finally admitting just how essential coffee was. 


You’re a young author, what advice do you have for other young authors?

Run with it! Being a writer isn’t all rewards and there are a ton of roadblocks and letdowns. But DREAM BIG and don’t let anything stop you from reaching your goals. A lot of people quit just as they are about to succeed... so if you feel like giving up, sometimes putting in that extra mile will get you to where you’re dreaming of. For the most part, follow your heart, trust your instincts and be passionate about what you do. 


What are your next steps?

I’ve been working on another novel for the past five years. It’s taken a long time for me to understand the story myself, but I think once the excitement from Yellow Socks and Blood Spots has passed, that will be my next big project.

That, and my publishing company, Gerbil Meets Mouse Publishing. I currently have one kid’s book out and two on the way!  2013 promises to be an exciting year



Thanks to Bailey for stopping by today! Be sure to check out her new book, a wonderful accomplishment for anyone of any age, but especially so for someone so young!

Synopsis

Two lines means pregnant, and pregnant is the very last thing seventeen-year-old Isabelle wanted to be. She’s just beginning her senior year, she’s rekindling the respectable relationship she once had with her family and she has finally fallen in love.

Her boyfriend, Jason wants an abortion, while Isabelle wants to give her baby a chance at life, whether that means adoption or raising her baby herself. Her situation raises a question of values, beliefs, rights, societal expectations and personal opinions, and as Isabelle’s friends and family discover the news, they seem to think they know what’s best for her and her baby. Within two weeks of finding out about their beautiful disaster, Isabelle and Jason have to come to a mutual agreement and make a life and death decision.

Release Date: May 15, 2013
Author: Bailey J. Thompson
Publisher: Yellow Iris Press
Website: www.yellowsocksandbloodspots.com
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/YellowSocksAndBloodSpots


About Bailey

Bailey J Thompson is a teenage author that resides in Barrie, Ontario, Canada. She has been storytelling since the moment she could talk, and has since developed passions for creative writing, photography, nature and the environment. Yellow Socks and Blood Spots is her debut novel.

Website: www.baileyjthompson.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BaileyJThompson

INTRODUCING: Dead End Deal by Allen Wyler

Pulse Pounding Medical Thriller Based on

Plausible Cure for Alzheimer’s Disease

 

"A wild Journey…cutting edge science, greed, corruption and political intrigue, you won't be able to put it down."’

--D.P. Lyle, award-winning author of, Hot Lights, Cold Steel.

“Dead End Deal is a medical thriller of the highest order, reviving the genre with a splendid mixture of innovation and cutting edge timeliness.  Neurosurgeon Allen Wyler knows of what he speaks, and writes, and the result is a thriller that equals and updates the best of Robin Cook and Michael Crichton.  His latest is terrifyingly on mark, riveting in all ways and a masterpiece of science and suspense.”

--Jon Land, bestselling author of Strong at the Break

“The suspense builds and builds in this riveting page-turner.  It’s a skillful merging of the medical thriller and political thriller…Tom Clancy meets Tess Gerritsen!”

--Kevin O’Brien, NYTimes Bestselling Author of The Last Victim and Killing Spree

World renowned neurosurgeon Jon Ritter is on the verge of a medical breakthrough that will change the world.  His groundbreaking surgical treatment, using transplanted non-human stem cells, is set to eradicate the scourge of Alzheimer’s disease and give hope to millions.  But when the procedure is slated for testing, it all comes to an abrupt and terrifying halt. Ritter’s colleague is gunned down and Ritter himself is threatened by a radical anti-abortion group that not only claims responsibility, but promises more of the same.

Faced with a dangerous reality but determined to succeed, Ritter turns to his long-time colleague, corporate biotech CEO Richard Stillman, for help.  Together, they conspire to conduct a clandestine clinical trial in Seoul, Korea.  But the danger is more determined, and more lethal, than Ritter could have imagined.

After successful surgical trials, Ritter and his allies are thrown into a horrifying nightmare scenario:  The trial patients have been murdered and Ritter is the number one suspect. Aided by his beautiful lab assistant, Yeonhee, Ritter flees the country, now the target of an international manhunt involving Interpol, the FBI, zealous fanatics and a coldly efficient assassin named Fiest.

Dead End Deal is a fast paced, heart-pounding, and sophisticated thriller. Penned by master neurosurgeon, Allen Wyler—who often draws from experience, actual events and hotbutton issues when writing—Dead End Deal is unmatched as a technical procedural. Its medical and scientific details can impress even the most seasoned medical practitioners. And yet, the technical expertise is seamlessly woven into a riveting plot, with enough action and surprises to engross even the most well-read thriller enthusiast.

A smart, unique, page-turner, Dead End Deal delivers.

ebook, 323 pages

Published March 13th 2012 by Astor + Blue Editions, LLC

ISBN13   9781993823103

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Allen Wyler is a renowned neurosurgeon who earned an international reputation for pioneering surgical techniques to record brain activity.  He has served on the faculties of both the University of Washington and the University of Tennessee, and in 1992 was recruited by the prestigious Swedish Medical Center to develop a neuroscience institute.

In 2002, he left active practice to become Medical Director for a startup med-tech company (that went public in 2006) and he now chairs the Institutional Review Board of a major medical center in the Pacific Northwest.

Leveraging a love for thrillers since the early 70’s, Wyler devoted himself to fiction writing in earnest, eventually serving as Vice President of the International Thriller Writers organization for several years. After publishing his first two medical thrillers Deadly Errors (2005) and Dead Head (2007), he officially retired from medicine to devote himself to writing full time.

He and his wife, Lily, divide their time between Seattle and the San Juan Islands.

www.allenwyler.com

Advance Praise for Dead End Deal

"A wild Journey…cutting edge science, greed, corruption and political intrigue, you won't be able to put it down."’

--D.P. Lyle, award-winning author of, Hot Lights, Cold Steel.

“Dead End Deal is a medical thriller of the highest order, reviving the genre with a splendid mixture of innovation and cutting edge timeliness.  Neurosurgeon Allen Wyler knows of what he speaks, and writes, and the result is a thriller that equals and updates the best of Robin Cook and Michael Crichton.  His latest is terrifyingly on mark, riveting in all ways and a masterpiece of science and suspense.”

--Jon Land, bestselling author of Strong at the Break

“The suspense builds and builds in this riveting page-turner.  It’s a skillful merging of the medical thriller and political thriller…Tom Clancy meets Tess Gerritsen!”

--Kevin O’Brien, NYTimes Bestselling Author of The Last Victim and Killing Spree

“With its lightning-paced excitement and fascinating science, [Wyler’s novels] have everything you could hope for in a medical thriller!”

--Tess Gerritsen, Author of The Mephisto Club

“You’ll be asking the nurse to swab your forehead when you’re admitted into this tense medical thriller… Wyler does for hospitals what Benchley did for the ocean.”

--Joe Moore, Co-author of the International Bestseller, The Grail Conspiracy

“Wyler writes a fast-paced thriller which reawakens your scariest misgivings about the Medical-Industrial Complex and the profit motive corrupting the art of healing.”

--Darryl Ponicsan, Author of The Last Detail

“…a fascinating and frightening premise that gives it the potential to be a best-seller in the Robin Cook mold.”

--William Deitrich, Author of Hadrian’s Wall

“This is an ‘up all night’ pass into troubled places that only hard-working doctors know about, a turbulent world of trusting patients and imperfect humans struggling with the required image of perfection.  Only a gifted surgeon like Allen Wyler could craft such a wild and wonderful best-of-breed medical thriller!”

--John J. Nance, Author of Pandora’s Clock and Fire Flight

“…An engrossing thriller and a cautionary tale of the all-too-frequent intersection of high-technology and higher greed.  It’s a message all of us better pay attention to, or face the consequences.”

--Mark Olshaker, Author of Einstein’s Brain, Unnatural Causes, and The Edge; Co-author of Mindhunter, Journey into Darkness and The Cases that Haunt Us.

BOOK REVEAL: Taste by Kate Evangelista

Synopsis

At Barinkoff Academy, there's only one rule: no students on campus after curfew. Phoenix McKay soon finds out why when she is left behind at sunset. A group calling themselves night students threaten to taste her flesh until she is saved by a mysterious, alluring boy. With his pale skin, dark eyes, and  mesmerizing voice, Demitri is both irresistible and impenetrable. He warns her to stay away from his dangerous world of flesh eaters. Unfortunately, the gorgeous and playful Luka has other plans.

When Phoenix is caught between her physical and her emotional attraction, she becomes the keeper of a deadly secret that will rock the foundations of an ancient civilization living beneath Barinkoff Academy. Phoenix doesn’t realize until it is too late that the closer she gets to both Demitri and Luka the more she is plunging them all into a centuries old feud.

About the Author

When Kate Evangelista was told she had a knack for writing stories, she did the next best thing: entered medical school. After realizing she wasn't going to be the next Doogie Howser, M.D. , Kate wandered into the Literature department of her university and never looked back. Today, she is in possession of a piece of paper that says to the world she owns a Literature degree. To make matters worse, she took Master's courses in creative writing. In the end, she realized to be a writer, none of what she had  mattered.

What really mattered? Writing. Plain and simple, honest to God, sitting in front of her computer, writing. Today, she has four completed Young Adult novels.

Author Website: www.kateevangelista.com
Twitter: @KateEvangelista
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kate-Evangelista/165693410143202
Find Taste on Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13484226-taste
Crescent Moon Press page for Taste: http://crescentmoonpress.com/books/Taste.html

Check out the book trailer:


Song Credits: "Hunger" © Noelle Pico.
Full Download available at http://sheisnoelle.bandcamp.com

Read an excerpt: 

I mentally stomped on the intimidation their perfection brought into my mind and said, “Excuse me.”

The group froze, startled by my words. The girls had their brows raised and the boys stopped mid-speech, mouths agape. They stared at me with eyes the shade of onyx stones.

I smiled and gave them a little wave.

The boy a step ahead of the rest recovered first. His stunning features went from shocked surprise to intense interest. He reminded me of a hawk eyeing its prey. I gulped.

“A Day Student,” he said, his eyes insolent and excited.

Something about the way he said “Day Student” made my stomach flip. “Excuse me?”

They snickered. The boys looked at each other while the girls continued to stare, muffling their laughter by delicate hands. I seemed to be the butt of some joke.

“You broke the rule.” The boy’s grin turned predatory.

The students formed a loose semi-circle in front of me. My gaze darted from face to face. Hunger filled their eyes. The image of lions about to chase down a gazelle came to mind. I mentally shook my head. I was in the mountains not the Serengeti for crying out loud.

I took a small step back and cleared my throat. “Can any of you give me a ride back to the dorms?”

The boy wagged his forefinger like a metronome. “Ah, that’s unfortunate for you.”

One of the girls pinched the bridge of her nose. “Eli, you can’t possibly—”

“It’s forbidden, Eli,” another boy interrupted, pronouncing the word “forbidden” like a curse.

The nervous murmur at the pit of my stomach grew louder. Six against one. Not good odds. Instinct told me to cut my losses and run. Bad enough I faced expulsion, now it seemed like weird, beautiful people who’d suddenly appeared on campus wanted to beat me up. No, scratch that. Judging from the way they studied me, beating me up wouldn’t satisfy them. Something more primal prowled behind their looks.

I definitely wasn’t going down without a fight. Years of self-defense and hand-to- hand combat classes had me prepared. While other children from rich and important families got bodyguards, I got defense training. But I think my father meant for my skills to go up against potential kidnappers, not against other students who may or may not be crazy. Oh God! Maybe I stepped into a parallel universe or something when I reentered Barinkoff.

“None of the students are supposed to be on campus,” I said. Then, realizing my mistake, I added, “Okay, I know I’m not supposed to be here either. If one of you gives me a ride back to the dorms, I won’t say anything about all this. Let’s pretend this never happened. I didn’t see you, you didn’t see me.”

“We’re not ordinary students,” Eli answered. “We’re the Night Students.”

He’d said “Night Students” like the words were capitalized. I didn’t know Barinkoff held classes at night. What was going on here?

Eli smiled with just one side of his mouth and said to the group, “She’s right, no one will have to know. We’re the only ones here. And it’s been so long, don’t you agree?”

The rest of them nodded reluctantly.

“What’s been so long?” I challenged. I fisted my hands, ready to put them up if any of them so much as twitched my way.

“Since the taste of real flesh passed through my lips,” Eli said. He came forward and took a whiff of me then laughed when I cringed.

“Flesh.” Yep, parallel universe.

“Yes,” he said. “And yours smells so fresh.”

Someone grabbed my shoulders from behind and yanked me back before I could wrap my mind around the meaning behind Eli’s words. In a blink, I found myself behind someone tall. Someone really tall. And quite broad. And very male.

I realized he wore the same clothes Eli and the other boys did. Not good. He was one of them. Although… I cocked my head, raking my gaze over him. He seemed born to wear the uniform, like he was the pattern everyone else was cut from. My eyes wandered to long, layered, blue-black hair tied at the nape by a silk ribbon. Even in dim light, his hair possessed a sheen akin to mercury.

I looked down. The boy’s long fingers were wrapped around my wrist like a cuff.

His fevered touch felt hotter than human standards, hot enough to make me sweat like I was standing beside a radiator but not hot enough to burn.

“I must be mistaken, Eli,” the boy who held my arm said in a monotone. “Correct me. Did I hear you say you wanted to taste the flesh of this girl?”

A hush descended on us. It had the hairs at the back of my neck rising. How was it possible for the atmosphere to switch from threatening to dangerous? Unable to help myself, I peeked around the new guy’s bulk. Eli and his friends bowed. They all had their right hands on their chests.

“Demitri, I’m sure you misheard me,” Eli said.

So the guy standing between me and the person who said he’d wanted to taste me was named Demitri. I like the sound of his name. Demitri. So strong, yet rolls off the tongue. Definite yum factor.

“So, you imply I made a mistake?” Demitri demanded.

“No!” Eli lifted his gaze. “I did no such thing. I simply wanted to show the girl the consequences of breaking curfew.”

“Hey!” I yelled. “Don’t talk about me like I’m not here!”

Demitri ignored my protest and continued to address Eli. “So, you threatened to taste her flesh.” His fingers tightened their grip around my wrist. “In the interest of investigating this matter further, I invoke the Silence.”

All six students gasped, passing surprised glances at one another.

Before I could ask about what was going on, Demitri yanked me down the hall toward the library. But why there? Oh, maybe we were getting my things. No, wait, he couldn’t have known about that. Everything was too confusing now.

Eli and the others didn’t try to stop us when we passed them. Demitri’s cold command must have carried power. Handsome and powerful, never a bad combination on a guy.

We reached the heavy double doors in seconds. He jerked one open effortlessly.

I’d needed all my strength just to squeeze through that same door earlier. To him, the thick wood might as well have been cardboard. I raised an eyebrow and mentally listed the benefits of going to gym class.

“Why are we here?” I asked after my curiosity overpowered my worry. I’d almost forgotten how frightened I’d been right before Demitri showed up. I wasn’t above accepting help from strangers. Especially from gorgeous dark-haired strangers with hot hands and wide shoulders.

Demitri kept going, tugging me along, snaking his way deeper into the library. I had to take two steps for every stride his legs made. I tried to stay directly behind him, praying we didn’t slam into anything.

He stopped suddenly and I collided with him. It felt like slamming into a wall.

“Hey,” I said, momentarily stunned. “A little warning would be nice!”

He faced me, and I gasped. His eyes resembled a starless night, deep and endless.

Their intensity drilled through me without pity, seeming to expose all my secrets. I felt naked and flustered beneath his gaze.

“You could have died back there,” he warned.

A lump of panic rebuilt itself in my throat.


Congratulations to author Kate Evangelista on her new book Taste, due to be released May 2012. And in honor of her announcement, somewhere in this post is hidden a link to a super special excerpt! Can you find it?

BOOK PREVIEW: What Do You Want to Do Before You Die? by The Buried LIfe

The trailer for a new book that just made it onto my Wish List...


Published by Artisan, it goes on sale March 27th.

Barnes and Noble Sale-- Today Only!

Barnes and Noble has some special deals going on TODAY ONLY! 50% off New & Bestselling Fiction, Kids' & Teens award winners, NookBooks for under $5, 50% off Blu-ray hits, and sales on toys, games, decorative items and electronics! Check it out! Time is limited!

11/22/63 Dust Jacket Revealed on StephenKing.com...

The dust jacket for Stephen King's upcoming 11/22/63, due out November 8, 2011, has been revealed. Click here to launch the artwork page. (The image file is protected, and I don't think they want it shared out on the blogs.)

Interesting! It definitely gives you a glimpse into what the book is about. From the official launch page:

Jake Epping is a thirty-five-year-old high school English teacher in Lisbon Falls, Maine, who makes extra money teaching adults in the GED program. He receives an essay from one of the students—a gruesome, harrowing first person story about the night 50 years ago when Harry Dunning’s father came home and killed his mother, his sister, and his brother with a hammer. Harry escaped with a smashed leg, as evidenced by his crooked walk. 

Not much later, Jake’s friend Al, who runs the local diner, divulges a secret: his storeroom is a portal to 1958. He enlists Jake on an insane—and insanely possible—mission to try to prevent the Kennedy assassination. So begins Jake’s new life as George Amberson and his new world of Elvis and JFK, of big American cars and sock hops, of a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald and a beautiful high school librarian named Sadie Dunhill, who becomes the love of Jake’s life—a life that transgresses all the normal rules of time

For more info, see the promotional page of Simon & Schuster.

New Stephen King book announced!

Simon & Schuster is announcing the latest book by author Stephen King, expected to be released 11/8/11. The title of the book is 11/23/63, and they give the book's synopsis as:

On November 22, 1963, three shots rang out in Dallas, President Kennedy died, and the world changed.

If you had the chance to change history, would you?

Would the consequences be worth it?

Jake Epping is a thirty-five-year-old high school English teacher in Lisbon Falls, Maine, who makes extra money teaching adults in the GED program. He receives an essay from one of the students—a gruesome, harrowing first person story about the night 50 years ago when Harry Dunning’s father came home and killed his mother, his sister, and his brother with a hammer. Harry escaped with a smashed leg, as evidenced by his crooked walk.

Not much later, Jake’s friend Al, who runs the local diner, divulges a secret: his storeroom is a portal to 1958. He enlists Jake on an insane—and insanely possible—mission to try to prevent the Kennedy assassination. So begins Jake’s new life as George Amberson and his new world of Elvis and JFK, of big American cars and sock hops, of a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald and a beautiful high school librarian named Sadie Dunhill, who becomes the love of Jake’s life—a life that transgresses all the normal rules of time. 

And as we've come to expect from King, this book is expected to be in the 1000 page range.

For more information, see the promotional pages by Simon & Schuster and Hodder (UK).