Book Review: Chosen by Denise Grover Swank

by Denise Grover Swank

BOOK SUMMARY:

Everything Emma Thompson owns fits in a suitcase she moves from one roach infested motel to another. She and Jake, her five year old son who can see the future, are running from the men intent on taking him. Emma will do anything to protect him even when it means accepting the help of a stranger named Will. Jake insists she needs Will, but Emma's never needed help before. And even though she's learned to trust her son, it doesn't mean she trusts Will.

Mercenary Will Davenport lives in the moment. Hauling Emma to South Dakota should have been an easy job, but his employer neglected to tell him about Emma's freaky son and the gunmen hot on her trail. Instinct tells him this job is trouble, but nothing can prepare him for Jake's proclamation that Will is The Chosen One, who must protect Emma from the men hunting her power. A power she doesn't know she has.

Will protects Emma and Jake on a cross-country chase from the men pursuing them, while struggling with memories from his past, his apprehension of Jake, and his growing attraction to Emma. Will's overwhelming urge to protect Emma surprises him, especially since it has nothing to do with his paycheck and possibly everything to do with the tattoo Jake branded on his arm. Rich and powerful men are desperate to capture Emma, and Will must discover why before it's too late.

My Review:

I give it 4.5 stars out of 5.

This book was fast-paced, heart-pounding goodness! The only reason why I took away a 1/2 star is because. . .there were no sex scenes.

I know. I know.

But there were just so many opportunities to give me a hot and steamy scene. So if you love your paranormal romance clean, then this is the book for you. 

Okay so let's discuss the characters.

Emma is not your average heroine. She's a courageous mother, desperatly trying to keep her son alive. I'm a mother with four rugrats, so I immediatly loved Emma.

Will is a veteran who battles between a hard choice throughout the book, but most important. . .he's freaking HOT!

Jake is this adoreable kid who was a bit creepy at times, but that's okay. Supernatural kids tend to freak me out!

All and all, this was a great book! Catch the next two in the series:


BOOK 2



BOOK 3



Check Out The BOOK TRAILER






Author Bio:

Denise Grover Swank lives in Lee’s Summit, Missouri. She has six children, three dogs, and an overactive imagination. She can be found dancing in her kitchen with her children, reading or writing her next book. You will rarely find her cleaning.

You can find out more about Denise and her other books at www.denisegroverswank.com or email her at denisegroverswank@gmail.com

Links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deniseswank

Twitter: www.twitter.com/DeniseMSwank

Website: www.denisegroverswank.com

Blood! Vampires! Fangs! Oh My!!

So I'm strolling DeviantArt.com for novel inspiration because I'm weird like that and ART truly inspires me. Anyway, I see this captivating image:

For some people this would gross them out, but for me. . .I'm in love!

I sat there for like five minutes creating a story in my head. A vampire romance. . .of course! And this is how I came up with my new vampire romance trilogy (Escape, Captured, and Freed) coming out in January through Secret Cravings publishing (pitiful promo.....).

Anyway. . .I continued to browse this artist's gallery!

This guy is some sort of Sick Creative Genius!

Blood and Roses

So I did what I always do. . .I contacted the poor guy and harassed him until he gave me an interview!

My Bloody Angel

Let's meet SAM BRIGGS! Vampire Art Connoisseur and one of my new Artist Husbands!

What inspired you to base your art work around Vampires?

 Sam:

I've always been fascinated by vampire lore (movies, books, etc.).  So about a year and a half ago (as of June 2012), I decided to see if I could create my own.

Vampire Lover

 What are some of your favorite Vampire books? TV shows? Movies?

Sam:

I'm not really a favorites type of person.  If I had to choose, then I would say the first three books of Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles (Interview With The Vampire, The Vampire Lestat, The Queen Of The Damned).



Vampire Child Claudia



 When did you begin doing digital art?

Sam:

Adobe didn't release Photoshop for Windows until 1992 (yep, I was waiting for it).  That is when I began to learn Photoshop and create various types of art.

Corpse Bride

Do you do digital art of other fantasy creatures?

Sam: 

I can also create zombies, witches, dark angels, demons, elves, turn people into Na'vi (from Avatar), among others.

 Is this a hobby for you or are you trying to make this into a business?



Madam Web



Sam:

It's strictly a hobby.  For a long while I was doing normal retouching (people's wedding photos, restoration, etc.) where I would get paid.

Now I'm more into the creation of digital art, rather than fixing people's photos.

 Favorite Vampire ever and why?

 Sam:

No favorite.  But, if I had to choose, I would say Akasha.  Why?  Because she's the queen, baby.  ;-)

Our Lady Lilith

 What is your favorite Vampire art piece that you've done and tell me why?

Sam:

I would have to say Vampire's Final Death II.

Vampire's Final Death II

This was one of those times when the final product matched the vision I had in my mind before I began (doesn't happen very often).  Everything worked together perfectly, the model stock, texture, blood, and smoke.

SAM! Thanks so much for letting me harass you!! I love your work and will be checking your art gallery weekly!

If you are an Art Hobbyist, Sam actually created a Vampire Tutorial. Here's the link: http://vimeo.com/40687728

To check out more of Sam's amazing work. Go on his DeviantArt site: http://sambriggs.deviantart.com/

Book Cover Model Interview: Jason Baca

Jason Baca is a talented book cover model.

If you're a big reader like me, then you've probably seen his face a few times.

I reached out to Jason to learn more about his experiences as a book cover model. Here's the interview:

1-You've modeled a lot of book covers so many I can't name them all without creating a ridiculously long list. What were some of your favorite book covers and why?

 Jason:

There are so many out now that I can't even keep track myself. And the covers seem to keep getting better and better...The one that really seems to stand out in my mind is a book titled Legacy Found by N.J.Walters. Something about this cover really is flattering. I mean I wished I looked that good in true life :)

  

2- What is the craziest thing you experienced or did during a photo shoot?

 Jason:

I haven't done too many "crazy" things during a photo shoot. You'd be surprised at how slow paced and professional they are in these studios. There is not a whole lot of moving around or being expressive. It’s all expressionless most of the time so if you are getting crazy, things won't turn out right. The crazy stories you'll hear about come from stock models that do ads.

3- You wrote two books on your modeling experience, Journey of a Male Model and Overexposed. Why did you decide to write the books and are you planning to write more?

Jason:

I wrote the books because I had not seen ANY books of its kind. You'd be in a book store and see all kinds of books on how to act or do theatre but not a single book on how to model. This is what brought me to writing these. Even though they didn't turn out AMAZING or entirely understandable, I was still happy to write them for others.

4- Are you a big reader? What genre do you like to read?

 Jason:

I am slowly becoming one more and more now. Yes. I used to read nothing more than the Sports page of a newspaper. Then later in life I realized there was more to life than just baseball & football. I read a lot of genres including some of the self improvement books.

5- Where do you see your career in ten years?

  

Jason:

That is too far in advance for me to look right now. When things are going as good as they are and I am in that "bubble" currently, I try not to think about that stuff. I'm more caught up in what amazing things are happening in my life today. I can't express how much the romance novel industry has embraced me with all of this.

Jason! Thanks so much for coming on our blog!

Jason Aaron Baca was born and raised in Los Gatos California, were he played baseball for Los Gatos High. While playing ball at the university level, Jason changed careers and began modeling after being discovered by a lab photographer developing wedding pictures.

With a goal of becoming a versatile and sought after model, Jason began doing fashion, glamour, fine art, and even Playgirl modeling shoots. He has also acted, appearing in such movies as "The Demon Within," but he has consistently placed his modeling career first. Now living in San Jose, Jason is currently working on a second book, which details his latest exploits in the modeling business.

Stock Photo site: http://jasonaaronbaca.deviantart.com/

Indulging Your Inner Romantic. Guest Post by W. Lynn Chantale

Hey Fantasy Floozies and Floozers!!

We have erotic romance author W. Lynn Chantale here to give us some tips on bringing out our inner romantic! 

I Can’t See

by W. Lynn Chantale

Someone needs to wear a blindfold and try something new. Been there done that? Never tried it? Well go for it. Here’s what you can do, grab some of your favorite foods, the more aromatic the better.

Wear the blindfold.

Now sniff each of those foods or beverages. Take a bite. Did it taste any different? How about feel?

When one sense leaves, the others are heightened. Trisha learns this when Zach blindfolds her.

Don’t believe me? Try it for yourself.

Thanks for having me here today, it’s been a lot of fun. Until next time, Indulge Your Inner Romantic.

W. Lynn Chantale resides in southeastern Michigan. Married to her high school sweetheart, they've been together for the last twenty years. They have three children. She writes African-American and Interracial sensual erotic and erotic romance. She has a mad affinity for milk chocolate, preferably Dove chocolate truffles or the caramel-filled squares (Godiva and Ghiradelli are acceptable), and plays the bass guitar when the Muse begs for a bit of distraction.

Check Out W. LynnChantale!

Website: http://wlynnchantale.com

Blog: http://wlynnchantale-decadentdecisions.blogspot.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/wlynnchantale

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/W.LynnChantaleAuthor

Creating a Successful Blog! Guest Post by Law Reigns

Fantasy Floozie-Kenya:
I'm a big reader of Law Reigns blog. I probably check out a post three times a week. Why? 
She tends to have the coolest topics--"10 reasons why your mother should never write your love scenes" or "How to land author interviews and increase sales."

So I took a chance and asked her to give me some advice on creating a successful blog. This is what Law had to say!


Creating a successful blog comes with finding something you enjoy writing about.

I recommend having three things before you start a blog:

1.       A mission or objective for your blog.

2.       A willingness to connect with others online.

3.       A desire to open up and share. 

 

A mission or objective for your blog.

I started Lawreigns.com with the mission of educating and inspiring self-published authors who desired to pursue a successful writing career, not just promoting my new adult fantasy romance Superheroes Wear Faded Denim. With that mission in hand, I choose only articles and speakers who would advance that mission.

Having an objective makes it so much easier to come up with content.

 A willingness to connect with others online.

 

A successful blog is able to grow a following. Being able to fearlessly dive out there and connect with others online can really help. Sometimes interviews and guest blog postings fall right into your lap.  People will also request you do blog postings for them. Not only must you build connections with people who share similar interests with you, it helps if you blog about something you are already involved in. A soccer mom can blog about the soccer mom experience so much better than someone who is only familiar with the issue through research.

 A desire to open up and share. 



Blogs filled with only facts, statistics, and  news tend to fall short of the point. Do not get me wrong, I like to be kept up on must know industry news. But what makes blogs so much more fun than the daily CNN and New York Times articles is the personal touch.
Do not be afraid to share a little about your goals, your dreams, and your personal life. Talk about how the information you share relates to you. People who are going through the same life experiences will find the stories endearing and inspiring.  

Now that you have the information, you are ready to jump on Wordpress, Blogger, or Joomla and add your voice to the Blogosphere.

ABOUT THIS AUTHOR:
Law Reigns has an odd obsession with romance. At the advice of her friends, she gave up the plight of playing cupid in their lives. Developing her own characters to manipulate proved to be more rewarding. After having studied creative writing at the University of Florida, she decided to write Superheroes Wear Faded Denim.

A proud Gator alumni, she based her novel where blood runs orange and blue. She personally invites all adventure druggies and love fanatics to dive into the pages of Faded Denim, a story that transforms a swampy, southern town into a battlefield for life and love.
Connect with Law Reigns at www.facebook.com/lawreignsupreme or at www.lawreigns.com