Great Summer Countdown: Day Three: Academy of Secrets by Michael Carney

Michael Carney has been writing professionally since he was 17, which was a long time ago in a galaxy not so far away. He began his writing career straight from high school, writing radio advertisements for a bright and shiny new radio station in the glorious South Island of New Zealand (only a few hours drive from that wonderful scenery made famous by Sir Peter Jackson in 'Lord of the Rings' and, latterly, 'The Hobbit').

In the decades since, Michael has carved out a career in advertising and marketing, as a copywriter, Media Director, Strategic Planning Director and Online Marketing specialist. These days he writes and administers online training courses covering a range of Social Media Marketing and eCommerce topics at http://NetmarketingCourses.com.

In addition to writing a towering inferno of newsletters, reports and presentations Michael is the author of "Trade Me Success Secrets" (first and second editions), the top-selling book about NZ's online auction site Trade Me. In his spare time, Michael has also written (and mostly directed) a number of well-received stage plays over the years, some aimed at children and young adults, others produced for Christian audiences. Michael has been planning out the exploits of the OUTCAST ANGELS for many years.

Q&A with the Author:

3.  What is the thing you struggle with the most while writing? And how do you defeat it?

About halfway through each project, I think “why am I doing this?” Definitely hit the pain barrier. But since (with my courses) I’ve experienced the same roadbumps but usually have paying customers taking the courses, I have little option but to grit my teeth and keep on going. So now I know that’s what I have to do with my fiction writing as well.

4.   What kind of music do you listen to while you write?

I prefer silence – I can think better. I only put music on to drown out background noise (and then it’s usually Christian music).

Connect with the Author here: 

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Do You Love Epic Fantasy Tales of Angels and Demons, Laced With A Hint of Alchemy? Then Check Out ACADEMY OF SECRETS!

It’s the year 1610. The world is in grave danger if a long-missing artifact falls into the hands of the Academy of Secrets, a group whose members have gained unnatural powers through alchemy. And Chrymos, a young woman with a mysterious past, may hold the key. 

For Chrymos, scrabbling out a wretched living on the streets of Renaissance Naples, the Academy represents a chance to gain special powers and make a difference in the world. But can she leave behind all the people that she cares about? 

And what about the OUTCAST ANGELS, a ragtag group of former angels exiled from Heaven at the time of the Great Rebellion, who are desperately trying to stop the Academy? They face an uphill battle against alchemy-enhanced humans who can become invisible, cast illusions and create storms and tornadoes. 

Will the Academy recover the missing artifact? What part will Chrymos play? And will the prophecies of the demon Nekhbet -- that the artifact's recovery will trigger the Lost War -- come true? Find out in this fast-paced historical fantasy thriller set in Late Renaissance Italy. 

ACADEMY OF SECRETS is the first novel in the LOST WAR Chronicles, part of the OUTCAST ANGELS book series by MICHAEL CARNEY. 

For those who love Christian fantasy, historical fantasy adventure, epic fantasy, sword & sorcery, tales of great battles and continuing warfare between angels and demons. 

~ Amazon ~ 

Snippet:

Hades, April 27 1605

i

“Tāwʾālep kāphē mēmhē tāwḥēt hērēšhē”

As it slammed its pickaxe into a thick vein of frost-crystal deep within the Ice Pits of Hades, the Outcast Angel known only as Prisoner Eleven silently chanted the phrase that could mean either freedom or eternal torment.

Eleven had overheard a demon recite the spell five hundred years earlier. Fearful of forgetting, it repeated the words to itself many times each and every day. The same agonized thought followed every repetition. What if these words are wrong?

There was only one way to find out. Get to the portal and try to use the spell to escape.

But that prospect seemed as impossible as ever.

# # #

Eleven—no Outcast Angel captives were permitted names, by order of the Darke Warriors’ leader, Lord Hurakan—was the only living prisoner on Hades. Every other prisoner had died at least once and been resurrected to suffer the eternal damnation of the netherworld.

Eleven’s appearance was indistinguishable from that of the humans around it. All heads were hairless—condemned Ice Pit workers had their heads shaved once a week as a simple identification measure. And each worker wore a tunic fashioned from the hides of helldragons. The toughened skins were a practical solution to the harsh conditions of the Ice Pits, but did little to protect the wearers from the bitterly cold environment that was Hades.

  

The excavation of the Ice Pits continued for hour after hour, as it did every single day. There was a brief pause during Hour 15, when one of the workers was crushed in a rockslide. “Get that body out of the pit,” snarled one of the demon guards, “and add another thousand years to its sentence for clumsiness.” Those whose bodies died on Hades were simply resurrected there—but then their new bodies had to be retrained, reducing their productivity for many weeks.

After twenty hours, Eleven’s shift was over for another day. Four hours of rest before tomorrow’s shift begins.Eleven joined the thousands of human workers swarming from the pits and making their way up the roughly-cut paths to the higher levels. Eleven was halfway to the top when most of the demons began shouting and cheering.

ii

The Darke Warrior Nekhbet, sitting alone in her palace office, allowed herself a brief smile of satisfaction.The pope has been killed. She had already sensed the resulting probability changes, minutes before the confirming mind-message had arrived from Rome. <It’s done. Congratulations, Nekhbet, we’re now one major step closer to the Lost War.>

It was the 27^th of April 1605 on Earth and the new Roman Catholic Pope Leo XI, formerly Alessandro Ottaviano de’ Medici, had just died. He had served as pontiff for less than a month before unexpectedly passing away, ostensibly as the result of a cold. Nekhbet knew better. As a cousin of the Queen of France, Alessandro would have kept the peace between France and the Papal States in the coming war. That future possibility has now been wiped from existence.

Nekhbet was beginning to examine the new probability implications when she heard loud noises outside. Frowning, she strode across to the main window with its panoramic view of the city of Tartaros, home to the millions of demons that inhabited Hades. What’s happening out there?

Row after row of two-thousand-foot-high buildings stretched out as far as the eye could see. They were usually so grim and silent, but now dozens of helldragons circled over the city, their riders crying out. Furious at the disruption, Nekhbet tuned into some of the thousands of mind-messages flooding across the city, and then relaxed. They’re celebrating the killing of the pope, she realized. I suppose it’s about time. There hasn’t been much to party about lately, especially since our failure with the Spanish Armada.

Nekhbet returned to the battered stone table that served as her desk. If you think this little success is worth celebrating, she thought before turning her attention back to her calculations, wait until we win the Lost War.

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Great Summer Countdown: Day Two: The Wizard's Heir by Davri Walls

Devri Walls lives in Meridian ID with her husband, two kids and the cutest must you've ever seen. After suffering from an abundance of creativity with not enough places to put it, she turned to writing. Which in the end, turned out to be exactly where she should have been putting it all along.


Q&A With The Author:

1.    What is the thing you struggle with the most while writing? And how do you defeat it?

Self-confidence. I feel like a fraud most of the time. I don’t think it will ever truly be defeated, I’ve just had to learn to ignore it and work anyway. Messages from readers help a ton, and so do those moments when I read a passage I just edited and it rocks! I walk away going, Devri, you got this! At least for today.

2.    What kind of music do you listen to while you write?

I bounce around a lot depending on my mood. If I am ready to go, creativity flowing, I listen to my “fun” playlist. Ella Henderson, Fall Out Boy, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and many more. If I’m struggling a little more its instrumental, 2 Cellos, Piano Guys and Lindsay Stirling, to name a few. If I’m stressed or anxious that day I will choose more classical pieces, Beethoven, Bach, Handel. Etc.

Connect with the Author here: 

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Tybolt’s a Deviant, a hated race immune to direct magic in a world where Wizards ensure survival. But when he loses his entire family to a spell-made storm he joins an elite group of Wizard hunters, organized beneath the new non-magic wielding king.

Now eighteen, he spends his days capturing Wizards. But the nights are his, reserved to feed the starving villagers of Eriroc under cover of dark. There’s always more people in need than he can help, and one of these days he’s going to hang for theft from the royal kitchens.

Although Tybolt and his fierce partner, Auriela, have imprisoned many Wizards, the one partially responsible for the storm that killed Tybolt’s family is still out there: Alistair. When an old informant claims to have information regarding their elusive prey, everything changes.

In a cruel twist, Tybolt realizes he isn't who he thought he was at all. How can he save himself, the people, and those he loves while keeping his secrets safe? Can he hide his true nature and allow the corrupt king to remain on the throne?

Or will he have to unveil himself and risk possible execution to save them all?

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Snippet:

Tybolt stepped out of the castle’s main gates and into the square. It was packed with people wearing the finest clothes they owned. For many that meant their rags had been cleaned.

Tybolt stopped at his favorite sweet bread cart. “Two, Darcia.”

Darcia’s collar bones jutted out from beneath her dress, and the hollows of her cheeks were pronounced. Although her children were some of the best fed in the village, raised on unsold sweet rolls, their mother looked like the rest of the villagers.

 “Skipping breakfast at the palace again, Lord Tybolt?” Darcia pulled two steaming rolls from a large brown basket.

“The palace?” Tybolt scoffed and handed over his coin, plus a little extra. “If the castle cooks could make a sweet roll half as good as yours, they would never get me out of the kitchen.”

Darcia blushed and suppressed a nervous giggle, tucking the coin away.

Tybolt glanced through the crowd to see a little boy ducking behind Pete’s cart, the only fat man in the entire village, and begin digging through his garbage. Tybolt inwardly cringed. “I’m going to need another one of those rolls,” he told Darcia, fishing another coin from his pocket as he kept an eye on the boy. He took the sweet roll from her and darted through the crowd. He slipped behind the cart and grabbed the little boy’s wrist.

The boy looked up, startled. All eyes in his gaunt face.

Tybolt put his mouth next to the boy’s ear.  “Pete doesn’t take kindly to thieves, even from his trash.”

The little boy panicked and jerked back, knocking over a crate of turnips in his haste.

Pete turned to find them both crouched between bins of vegetables. His portly cheeks and neck grew red at the sight.

Tybolt stood and pulled the boy up by his bone-thin wrist. “Pete!” He grinned and casually took a bite from his sweet roll. “I was just trying to pick a few of your finest vegetables with the help of my young friend here. It appears we’ve made a mess.”

Pete’s face began to return to its normal color, but his eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Lord Tybolt, you know I only keep my most expensive produce behind the stall.”

“I do, I do.” Tybolt handed the second roll over to the boy, who snatched it as if it might disappear at any moment. He ravenously shoved it in his mouth. “Surely you noticed Lady Auriella and I with our catch yesterday.”

Pete broke into a grin and leaned back to tuck in his shirt—and part of his oversized belly—into his pants. “I heard the commotion but didn’t realize who the lucky Hunters were. What can I get for you?”

“Surprise me,” Tybolt said, flipping him a gold coin. “A bag full of your best.”

Pete took a burlap sack and began shoving in fruits and vegetables. “Taking some food out to your family, then?”

“Of course,” Tybolt said, shouldering his sack. “One can’t be too generous with family. Happy festival.”

“Happy festival to you.” Pete pocketed the gold with a satisfied gleam in his eye.

Tybolt steered the boy out of the main square and into one of the tiny alleys between the tightly packed homes. He knelt and looked him over. The child was in worse condition than he’d originally thought—skin and bones. His eyes were too big for his face, and his shirt hung on him like it would on a scarecrow.

“Blue-eyed Hunter,” the boy whispered. His eyes grew even wider.

“Listen, if you’re going to rummage through garbage, you must steer clear of Pete. He’s sent men to prison for less, and he’ll have no mercy on boys. Do you understand?”

The boy nodded.

“Who do you belong to, anyway?”

The boy looked away and shrugged. “Ma died last week. I haven’t seen Pa in two days.”

“What’s your Pa’s name?”

“Dain.”

Anger flared inside Tybolt. “Here.” He held out the sack of food. “Take this straight home. Don’t show it to anyone. Shove it in a cupboard or under the bed, and make it last as long as you can.” He paused. “Your Pa will be home tonight, I promise.” 

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Great Summer Countdown: Day One: Winning or Losing by Robert Lamoreaux JD

Robert Lamoreaux JD is a successful attorney who has specialized in estate and financial planning throughout his career. He holds degrees from Brigham Young University and University of Utah College of law as well as certificates from many other institutes of higher education around the country. He has lectured extensively from coast to coast and has traveled the world managing assets, which have been gifted, to an international charitable organization. Robert has given legal counsel to numerous corporations, colleges and universities, prominent individuals and the IRS. He has vast knowledge, which has come from planning numerous estates of all types and sizes. Robert currently has a successful private practice and continues to be in demand for his work on estate law and financial planning.

Q&A With the Author:

 1.        What is the thing you struggle with the most while writing? And how do you defeat it?

a.       Putting the information into a common language that can be understood by everyone, b, Rewrite, rewrite,  rewrite……..

2.        What is the most important thing if your life, and why?

My wife and family.  You can be the richest person in the world, financially, but without family you have nothing

Connect with the Author here: 

~ Amazon ~

This is not a ""get rich quick"" book. This book is for readers who are concerned bout their financial state. Robert Lamoreaux JD uses his extensive knowledge and experience to create a straight-forward, easy-to-read, behind-the-scenes look at the factors influencing all aspects of personal finances and future retirement.

~ Amazon ~ Goodreads ~ 

Snippet:

Nothing in this world is more important than family relations. Family includes parents, siblings, spouse, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. When it comes to the race of life, this group of individuals will define your success in everything you do. Failure in any of these relationships cannot be compensated for by your success in business, sports, or other pursuits.

I know children do not always agree with their parents. as individuals, we each have the ability and responsibility to make our own choices and decisions, which are never the same for any two of us. however, just because i do not cut the lawn the same way, decorate my house the same, like the same make of car or like or dislike the Dallas Cowboys, there is no reason i cannot honor and respect my parents. Sometimes we let little things become huge barriers in our relationship with our parents. I had a client who had not communicated with his parents for over twenty years because of an argument over a shotgun. How lame is that? ...

But some people don't even visit their parents, or say thank you, or call them on the phone. As I have said before, what goes around comes around, and some day you will mature and be one of the older generation. I hope you receive the same type of honor from your children that you have given to your parents.

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Blog Tour: A Fire That Heals by D Vansen

"A Lost Faith Is Never Too Far Gone"

Serena is devastated when her lifelong friend, Aminadab, is banned from Zarahemla for abandoning his faith and persecuting the saints. To add to her despair, she loses the rare ruby her father entrusted to her and she feels all is lost.

Unbeknownst to her, Aminadab finds the ruby, and takes it as his only reminder of Serena. As an outcast, Aminadab and his company of dissenters seek refuge among the Lamanites, who happen to be the very people who killed his parents. Not only is his anxiety high for being surrounded by these bloodthirsty people, but he quickly discovers he’s in the middle of a Gadianton plot to start a war between the Nephites and Lamanites.

Selling the ruby soon becomes the only option Aminadab has at escaping the volatile life he finds himself in. However, this act might forever banish him from ever being in Serena’s graces again. 

In D Vansen’s Book of Mormon adventure, Aminadab must choose which side he’s on in a reflective journey of self-discovery, while Serena must stay faithful and hold onto the hope that a lost faith is never too far gone.

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D Vansen lives in Northern Utah with her family. After serving a LDS mission, she developed a love for the Book

of Mormon and its eternal truths. She claims that if you ever want the scriptures and its characters to come to life, 

plot a novel from them. She loves all things artistic, unless it involves combining food ingredients. Thank heavens

she has children that will help with that specific talent.

Connect with the Author here: 

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Snippet:

 

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Book Blitz: Huge $2000 Giveaway! (paranormal romance and urban fantasy)

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Welcome, fans of the Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy genres! This one is just for you! 

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By entering this giveaway, you will be subscribed to the newsletters of sponsoring authors for opportunities to snag more great deals, giveaways, and freebies, though you can unsubscribe at any time. Find the link to the giveaway at the bottom of the page.

Join the facebook event here:

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