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Release Blitz + Giveaway: Finding Finlay (MC Securities #2) by Ruby Moone
Celebrate the release of Finding Finlay (MC Securities #2) with author Ruby Moone and Signal Boost Promotions! Learn more and enter in the Trusting Jack (MC Securities #1) eBook giveaway!
Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK | Universal Link - Exclusive to Amazon and Availalbe to Borrow with Kindle Unlimited
Length: 72,800 words approx.
Cover Design: Meredith Russell
MC Securities Series
Book #1 - Trusting Jack - Amazon US | Amazon UK | Universal Link
Aaron Baker has a problem. His online clothing company is under attack. Whilst MC Securities tackle the breaches in security, he asks for an agent to pose as his fake boyfriend. He doesn't bargain for getting a snarky, ex-marine with sad, blue eyes and submissive tendencies.
Dumped by his boyfriend, Finlay Masters concludes that the best, and safest, place for him is to return to the closet. Kicked out by his parents as a kid for being gay, closeted in the army for fifteen years, body wrecked by an explosion that cost him his job, he isn't the best bet for any kind of relationship. Even a fake one.
As the investigation mounts, Aaron wants more, but Finn has no faith in love, never dared need anyone. Aaron talks of how lucky he is to find him, but Finn knows if he is to have a chance at a relationship at all, he needs to find himself.
Each book in the MC Securities Series can be read as standalone.
Finn cleared his throat. "Just thinking that if you fancy me, and I fancy you, we could take advantage of the situation we find ourselves in. So to speak."
Aaron couldn't believe what he was hearing. Finn was suggesting they had sex? "You put forward a strong argument."
Finn stared straight forward. "You just need to know that my body is a mess. My left leg, left shoulder, chest…" he waved a hand over the area and pulled a face. "Not pretty. I can leave a T-shirt on and sweats if it's too much for you."
The matter of fact way Finn said it robbed Aaron of speech. The car pulled up at the venue, and the moment was lost, but Aaron knew he needed to address it, he just didn't know how.
He walked into the hotel with Finn by his side. He looked absolutely magnificent. His military bearing was clearly apparent in the way he held himself, he looked every inch the protective boyfriend as he stood aside to let Aaron pass. They walked, shoulder to shoulder in the direction of the event. Aaron glanced sideways at him.
"Hey." His voice was low.
Finn looked at him. His dark rimmed blue eyes unreadable.
"No T-shirts, no sweats."
Something shone in those dark eyes. The side of his mouth twitched in the tiniest of smiles as he looked away.
My name is Ruby Moone and I love books. All kinds of books. My weakness is for romance, and that can be any kind, but I am particularly fond of historical and paranormal. I decided to write gay romance after reading some fantastic books and falling in love with the genre, so am really thrilled to have my work published here. The day job takes up a lot of my time, but every other spare moment finds me writing or reading. I live in the north west of England with my husband who thinks that I live in two worlds. The real world and in the world in my head...he probably has a point!
Facebook Page - https://www.facebook.com/RubyMoone/?ref=bookmarks
Twitter - @RubyMooneWriter
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/rubymoone/
Posted by Boy Meets Boy Reviews on Saturday, April 13, 2019 No comments:
Labels: Contemporary, Excerpt, Fake to Real Relationship, Giveaway, Release Blitz, Ruby Moone, Second in a Series, Signal Boost Promotions, Suspense
Blog Tour + Giveaway: Laws of Attraction (Manx Cat Guardians #6) by J.P. Sayle
Welcome author J.P. Sayle and Vibrant Promotions blog tour visit for new release Laws of Attraction (Manx Cat Guardians #6)! Learn more today and enter in the giveaway to win a $5 Amazon gift card and eBook of Laws of Attraction!
Laws of Attraction
The Manx Cat Guardians Book 6
J.P. Sayle
Gay Fiction Romance
Release Date: 03.28.19
Nick Riley, on the surface has it all. He's grown up in a loving family, owns his own home, and has a job he loves. Yet under that façade of a happy life, Nick hides a multitude of secrets and lies. Those same secrets and lies have forced him to build walls to protect himself and kept others away.
Nick's life is unraveling, and his walls are tumbling when his brother invites him for a visit to the Isle of Man. Nick is left floundering, unsure which way to turn and who to trust when his past decides to come knocking. Things go from bad to worse when Nick finds the fates haven't finished with him, and his brother's best friend, Brody Quilliam, comes to stay.
Brody Quilliam needs a break from his life and the weight of responsibility of his job. So when his best friend, Aaden Riley, moves to the Isle of Man and asks him to visit, Brody decides to take him up on the offer. Only things don't go as planned when he finds Aaden's younger brother, Nick, visiting at the same time.
Their love-hate relationship is only the beginning of Brody's concerns. Events he can't explain make him think he's stuck in the twilight zone.
Witches, spells, and misconceptions are only the tip of the iceberg as Brody struggles to come to terms with the unbelievable.
Warning: Some of the content of this book is sexually graphic, with the use of explicit language and adult situations involving two males. It is only intended for mature adults.
This is the sixth book in the series and should be read in order to give the reader the back story of the other characters. The main characters in this book do get a HEA, but there is a storyline threading through the main story that is a cliffhanger and relates to a future series.
AMAZON US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07Q7GX7BF/
AMAZON UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07Q7GX7BF/
Brody forced himself to lightly shut the bedroom door, even when his hands itched to slam it. The temper bubbled through his body. He looked at the large wardrobe mirror to see if there was steam coming out of his ears. He was surprised to see nothing.
Aaden, that cock-blocking fucker.
Brody was starting to think Aaden had a built-in radar. Any time he seemed to be making any progress with Nick, then bam, up would pop Aaden.
He dropped the towel and took hold of his erection with trembling fingers. The same erection he was mortified to acknowledge had sprung up when Nick was hurling down the loo. Nick's tight arse waving at him, encased in a scrap of black silk, and that glorious naked skin on show was too much for his body to handle.
Brody chewed his lip, disconcerted by his own behaviour.
A blush heated his cheeks when he thought about why he left the bathroom door unlocked. He knew damn well Aaden and Greg used their en-suite shower and only used the bathroom in the evening if they wanted a joint bath. Had he secretly hoped Nick would catch him, naked and wet?
Let me introduce myself, my name is Jayne, I'm a lady of a certain age (50, bites fingernails). I am an identical twin, the younger one of course by 7 minutes. I am married to a wonderfully complicated man, or as he puts it, off his rocker Rob. We celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary recently. I have one daughter and two grandbabies one boy and one girl.
I was born in the Isle of Man; this makes me Manx (not British or English). I moved to the UK for several years, and as a child, I lived in Italy for a while. But, the island calls to me so I returned home in 1998. I love the sea and now it's only a stone's throw from my home.
I have worked in the caring profession for 34 years and have been a hospital nurse manager, out of hours, for the past couple of years. I made the decision to work part time nights in 2016 so that I could pursue my lifelong dream of becoming a writer.
I have always believed that I could and would write a book, but life just seemed to get in the way. Until someone asked me the question, "What do I want?" The answer was easy, the hard part was making it happen. Well, it did and it has and it was life-changing for me.
So over two years later, my career path has changed and so has my life. I found my happiness again in something that just brightens my day. Now I won't say it's been a breeze because those who write know it's not a total blast all the time, but it has been fun and exciting.
I am asked a lot why did I choose to write a gay romance. I went to a creative writing group (couldn't recommend this enough for new writers); anyway, the course leader gave me these words of advice. "Put your inner critic aside, put pen to paper and just write, don't worry about what comes out, just write." I was a bit, really that works, but I decided to give it a go with it. Ignored all the research I did, which said to write about what you know because that just wasn't working for me for many reasons. The answer it seemed was to try something different and I found it flowed out and 6 weeks later I had the bones of my first book (113,000 words). Writing something so different to what I was doing in my life, freed me.
My island is steeped in folklore and I have used some of this in my writing, particularly Where it all Began: Manx Cat Guardians Origins. The book, I have to say I love the most, if I had to choose right now, but that might change ☺
Writing has unleashed a beast in my mind and now I can't switch it off. I follow a lot of authors and I listen to them talking about their characters talking to them. I so get this now, I find myself muttering and talking at odd times. I wake up at 3 am in the morning, with bits of story wanting a voice.
I have six books written currently with two more in the pipeline and a couple of ideas for future series, so you never know what will come next. I have lots of places you can stalker me if you're interested in finding out more.
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/39039955-jayne-p-sayle Goodreads
https://jaysayle.tumblr.com/ Tumblr
https://www.bookbub.com/profile/j-p-sayle Bookbub
https://www.instagram.com/jaynepaton/ Instagram
https://twitter.com/JPSayle69 Twitter
https://www.facebook.com/JaynePSayle?ref=bookmarks Facebook
http://jpsayle.com/ Website address
https://www.facebook.com/JPSayle69/ Facebook Author page
Labels: Blog Tour, Cat Shifters, Contemporary, Enemies to Lovers, Giveaway, J.P. Sayle, Paranormal, Series, Vibrant Promotions
Review: Earth Fathers Are Weird by Lyn Gala
Captain Maxwell Davis and his entire unit scrambled to engage alien ships over Iowa. The aliens snatched him out of his destroyed jet before they continued on their interplanetary hot pursuit. Then they informed Max that Earth was too far outside regular shipping lanes to return him to his planet.
So Max ends up in an alien spaceport looking for work. To afford a ticket home he can either spend three hundred years working with linguists to improve the computer's questionable ability to translate English or he can take a job as a nanny for an unpopular alien. That way he can afford the ticket in four years. The problem is that the computer may have mistranslated the word "nanny" and there might be a reason an alien is willing to pay such a high fee.
Admittedly, Gala's Claimings series is a top favorite. It's smart, unique, definitely unlike anything I had read before, and the romance to it - while unconventional - was really really swoony. I cannot not compare this to it, and Claimings still takes top billing.
Full disclosure. This has many things that might not catch your fancy or maybe it will.
First and foremost are the tentacles - sooooo many tentacles.
There's also mpreg - graphic details about implantation and delivery.
Throw in quasi dubious consent in regards to the aforementioned impregnating.
Don't forget an alien MC that is not even humanoid - that book cover pretty much says it all.
This story is about Max and Rick and how they deal with a massive inability to mutually understand one another and the obvious snafu that results because of it. Slowly though, they learn more and more, they develop some pretty tight bonds, and ultimately, they make a family - and what an adorable family it is!! It was also about the evolution of Max's situation and thus, his own personal expectations in finding love and acceptance and camaraderie and intimacy in the unlikeliest places, in the unlikeliest "person".
Though this started out a bit rough, though this made me squirm due to all the tentacles and the stark physical differences between the two MC's, it was still a rewarding story. For tentacle enthusiasts, this still had the smexy. This surprisingly had a great deal of suspense and action and thrill to it as well. At its center though, is all heart.
Overall, this delivered a story that was also smart, thought provoking, and introspective - mainly about us humans and our complex nature and where we fit in the universe. That's where this shines and impresses, just like it did with Claimings and thus, I wouldn't say no should Gala choose to give us more.
A copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Posted by Boy Meets Boy Reviews on Friday, April 12, 2019 No comments:
Labels: Action, Aliens, Dubious Consent, Lyn Gala, Mpreg, R *A Reader Obsessed*, Reviews, Sci-Fi, Suspense, Tentacles
Release Blitz + Giveaway: Tales of Bryant by V.L. Locey
Celebrate the release of Tales of Bryant with author V.L. Locey and Signal Boost Promotions! Learn more today and enter in the back list eBook giveaway!
Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK | Universal Link
Cover Design: Sloan J Designs
Four Seasons. Two Men. One Love.
For struggling film student Isamu Taylor, life's refrain is about to change from boring documentary about a passionless delivery boy to a blazing and wildly erotic love story.
After spending weeks admiring handsome but older Manhattan executive Brian Gilles while delivering brioche to him in Bryant Park, the man of his lusty dreams has just expressed a desire to get to know Isamu better. A night on the town is just the beginning of a whirlwind romance that will span not only four seasons but countless years.
Amid the beauty and charm of Bryant Park, New York City, two men are about to discover that love knows no age or economic boundaries. This is a collection of four short stories starring these two amazing men, their one sublime love, and the park where it all started.
USA Today Bestselling Author V.L. Locey – Penning LGBT hockey romance that skates into sinful pleasures.
V.L. Locey loves worn jeans, yoga, belly laughs, walking, reading and writing lusty tales, Greek mythology, Torchwood and Dr. Who, the New York Rangers, comic books, and coffee. (Not necessarily in that order.) She shares her life with her husband, her daughter, one dog, two cats, a pair of geese, far too many chickens, and two steers.
When not writing spicy romances, she enjoys spending her day with her menagerie in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania with a cup of fresh java in one hand and a steamy romance novel in the other.
Facebook | Facebook Group | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest
Labels: Collection, Contemporary, Giveaway, Novella, Release Blitz, Signal Boost Promotions, V.L. Locey
Audiobook Review: Wanted - Bad Boyfriend (Island Classifieds #1) by T.A. Moore
His mother. His best friend. The barmaid at the local pub. Everyone is determined to find Nathan Moffatt a boyfriend. It's the last thing Nathan wants. After spending every day making sure his clients experience nothing but romantic magic, the Granshire Hotel's wedding organizer just wants to go home, binge-watch crime dramas, and eat pizza in his underwear.
Unfortunately, no one believes him, and he's stuck with lectures about dying alone. Then inspiration strikes. He needs the people in his life to want him to stay single as much as he does. He needs a bad boyfriend.
There's only one man for the job.
Flynn Delaney is used to people on the island of Ceremony thinking the worst of him. But he isn't sure he wants the dubious honor of worst boyfriend on the entire island. On the other hand, if he plays along, he gets to hang out with the gorgeous Nathan and piss off the owners of the Granshire Hotel. It's a win-win.
There's only one problem—Flynn's actually quite a good boyfriend, and now Nathan's wondering if getting off the sofa occasionally is really the worst thing in the world.
Narrator: Michael Mola
Listening Length: 6 hours 34 minutes
Reviewer: Shee Reader
So, the story isn't bad (although I did feel a little mis-sold as Flynn is a great boyfriend from the outset) and the characters are likeable enough, just.
This was my second only ever Did Not Finish for an audio book, and my main problem was the narrator. Now, don't get me wrong, Michael Mola has a gorgeous voice and I've enjoyed other things by him, but it was just the accents. They were so offensive to my British ears that I couldn't listen all the way through. I was speeding a lot of time shouting at the sound, or ripping my AirPods out of my ears just to make it stop. I did try the book out on an American friend who felt the British accents in the audiobook were fine, so maybe I'm just being over sensitive.
I did buy the ebook to finish the story and it was ok. There was a pretty nice HEA and Nathan does get over himself in the end which I was glad about.
It has to be said again though: British set books by British authors with British characters need better narration. Get a British voice actor, or someone who can really do the accents. Gosh, for a few quid, I'll read it aloud for you!
I was given a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Posted by Boy Meets Boy Reviews on Thursday, April 11, 2019 No comments:
Labels: Audiobook, British, Contemporary, First in a Series, Guest Review, Michael Mola, Shee Reader, T.A. Moore, Wedding Planner
Giveaway + Blog Tour: The Doctor Takes a Detour by Bren Christopher
Join author Bren Christopher & Riptide Publishing in celebrating the release of The Doctor Takes a Detour. Learn more about this contemporary romance & leave a comment to be entered in the giveaway of a $25 gift card from the publisher!
Hello everyone. I'm Bren Christopher and I'm excited to be here today to talk about my new release, The Doctor Takes a Detour. Thank you so much for joining me. During this blog tour, we'll be chatting about the origin of the book, the research needed when writing a medical, and of course, all about the setting: my crazy home state of Florida. Please follow along as I go on this tour and comment for a chance to win the grand prize, a $25 Riptide gift card! The winner will be chosen randomly from comments across all tour stops.
About The Doctor Takes a Detour
An unexpected detour sets two men on the path to love and healing.
After being attacked by a drug addict, Dr. Josh Parker fled New York, his career as an ER doctor, and a failed relationship. Determined to start fresh, he takes a job as a concierge doctor to the wealthy older population of sunny Naples, Florida. Nothing to fear there. No trauma. No stress.
It's a good idea that doesn't last long. Traveling to his new home, he discovers a car accident and is forced to make a detour to render aid. There he meets sexy paramedic Ian Manolas.
Since Ian returned from the Army, every day has been a struggle to atone for past mistakes. The Glades Free Clinic is his chosen path to redemption. The people Ian helps are a world away from Josh's wealthy clients though. Addicts, prostitutes, gang members: they all come to Ian's clinic for help, not judgment. He'll do almost anything to keep the clinic going, including roping in one reluctant—and hot—ex-ER doctor.
The attraction is immediate, but Josh wants nothing to do with Ian's clinic. For them to have a future, both men must work together to find a path to love, while helping those who need them most.
Now available from Riptide Publishing!
About Bren Christopher
Bren Christopher is a multipublished romance author who currently resides in Florida. Although Bren has always been an avid reader in every genre, it wasn't until she discovered gay romance that the characters who had been content to reside in her imagination started insisting they needed a wider audience. She has a lot of fun helping her folks come to life, and hopes the reader has just as much fun getting to know them.
Bren loves to hear from readers, so stop by her web page at brenchristopher.com or keep in touch via Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/bren.christopher.1.
To celebrate the release of The Doctor Takes a Detour one lucky person will win a $25 Riptide Publishing gift card! Leave a comment with your contact info to enter the contest. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on April 13, 2019. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries. Thanks for following along, and don't forget to leave a way to reach you!
Posted by Boy Meets Boy Reviews on Thursday, April 11, 2019 3 comments:
Labels: Blog Tour, Bren Christopher, Doctor, Giveaway, Hurt/Comfort, Mental Health, Paramedic, PTSD, Riptide Publishing
Release Blitz + Giveaway: Royal Rescue by A. Alex Logan
Author A. Alex Logan and IndiGo Marketing visit today with the Royal Rescue release blitz! Learn more about the high fantasy tale today and enter in the $10 NineStar Press credit giveaway!
Title: Royal Rescue
Author: A. Alex Logan
Heat Level: 1 - No Sex
Pairing: No Romance, Male/Male
Length: 111500
Genre: New Adult Fantasy, LGBT, asexual, high fantasy, dragons, royalty, magic, young adult, gay, family drama, hurt/comfort
At age eighteen, when they become marriageable, all royal children in the Thousand Kingdoms must either go questing to rescue another royal or be hidden away to await rescue themselves. Some go the traditional route of princes rescuing princesses, but not all princes want to be rescuers…and some would rather rescue other princes.
Then there's Prince Gerald, who has no interest in getting married at all. When he refuses to choose a role as either rescuer or rescuee, his royal parents choose for him and have him magicked away to a distant tower to await a spouse.
Gerald, however, is having none of it. He recruits his guardian dragon and a would-be rescuer and soon the trio is dashing to all corners of the united kingdoms on a quest to overturn the entire system.
Gerald followed the steward to the study wearing an expression that would have been more appropriate if he were being led to the dungeon. The steward rapped on the door twice before opening it and stepping aside for Gerald. She gave the young man an encouraging wink, but he was too intent on bracing himself for the upcoming confrontation to notice.
He took a deep breath, visibly set his shoulders and stepped through the doorway. The steward closed the door behind him, and Gerald fought back the feeling of being trapped.
"Don't lurk in the doorway," an imposing voice scolded. "Come in where I can see you."
Gerald did as he was told, stopping and giving a shallow bow when the woman came into view. She nodded, acknowledging the courtesy, which caused the sunlight streaming in through the window to catch and reflect off her golden crown.
Gerald resisted the urge to reach up and touch his own circlet—silver—which he too late realized was probably once again askew.
"Well?" the Queen asked. "Have you made your decision?"
Another deep breath, another forceful straightening of his shoulders, and Gerald said, a hint of defiance in his tone, "I have."
The Queen's harsh expression broke into a smile. "Oh, Gerald, thank goodness. Your mum and I were about at our wits' end! There's barely enough time left to make all the arrangements. So, what will it be? Rescuer or rescuee?"
"Neither."
The smile melted off the Queen's face. "Neither! Don't be ridiculous, Gerald. You said you had made your decision."
"I have," he said, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "I've decided not to participate."
"That is not an option," she said coldly, the warmth in her voice gone the same way as the smile. "As you are well aware."
"I don't wish to marry," Gerald replied, trying to match her tone but not quite managing it. "As you are well aware."
The Queen waved her hand dismissively. "This is merely the first step. It may take a year or even two for you to rescue—or be rescued by—someone who appeals. Then there's the courtship, the inter-kingdom negotiations, planning the festivities…why, unless it's True Love and you two want to rush things, I doubt the wedding will happen before you turn twenty-one."
"I didn't say 'I don't wish to marry in the next three years'," Gerald said, forcing himself to keep his voice level even as he balled his hands into fists. "I said, 'I don't wish to marry.' As in, ever."
But the Queen was no longer listening.
"I really don't know where we went wrong with you," she said. "We never had this sort of problem with your older siblings or even your twinling…"
"Don't call her that," Gerald snapped. "You know how much I hate that—we're not twins, we're not even sort-of twins. We're half-siblings at best and maybe not even related at all."
The Queen looked up at the ceiling as if imploring it to give her strength. "Now you're being deliberately obtuse," she snapped back. "You know very well that the term 'twinling' has been in use for at least a century throughout every single one of the Thousand Kingdoms, and it's a perfectly apt word. You're acting like your mum and I made it up to irritate you. You're acting like a child, Gerald."
"Isn't the point of all this that I am a child?" he responded. "Isn't the entire purpose of this whole charade of rescue and marriage to make me into an adult?"
"It's hardly a charade. It's—"
"—a well-respected, long-established tradition to encourage young royals to broaden their horizons, explore more of the Thousand Kingdoms, find love, and forge stronger connections among the Kingdoms, yes, yes, I know," Gerald interrupted. "I still say it's a charade. It's perfectly possible to accomplish all of those goals without forcing every royal into a ridiculous marriage quest the moment they turn eighteen."
"You seem to be forgetting something very important here, Gerald," the Queen said calmly.
"This isn't optional."
"You can't force me to choose," Gerald said. "Why can't you leave me be and let Lila broaden her horizons, explore the Kingdoms, forge alliances, and all that rot? She wants to."
"You have ten days," the Queen continued, as if Gerald hadn't spoken. She turned away without even bothering to dismiss him.
NineStar Press | Amazon | Smashwords | Barnes & Noble | Kobo
Alex Logan is an asexual, agender librarian from New York state. Always an avid reader, Alex has branched out from reading books to writing them. Alex's other main interest is soccer, which they enjoy watching, playing, and (of course) reading about.
Posted by Boy Meets Boy Reviews on Wednesday, April 10, 2019 No comments:
Labels: A. Alex Logan, Asexual, Dragons, Excerpt, family drama, Giveaway, High Fantasy, Hurt/Comfort, IndiGo Promotions, New Adult, NineStar Press, No Romance, Release Blitz, Royalty, YA
Review: Shadowmancer (Paladin Charm #1) by Devin Harnois
Marius Everhart is something even mages fear — a shadowmancer. His power marks him as cursed, a creature belonging to the Queen of Shadows. Marius escaped her realm with his memories corrupted and his sanity in tatters, managing to live a fragile, lonely existence at the edges of society.
Some might call Ayodele Sauveterre delusional. He prefers the term "optimistic". With his homeland in danger from invasion, Ayodele will do anything to protect it, even recruit a shadowmancer. Marius's incredible power and gentle nature make him a perfect addition to Paladin Charm, a new mage guild dedicated to helping rather than exploiting the non-magical populace. The fact that handsome Marius also warms Ayodele's bed is a wonderful bonus.
With support from Ayodele and his new friends in the guild, Marius begins to heal. He's also quickly falling for the alluring mage, but Ayodele struggles with what's forming between them. Past experience left Ayodele flippant but guarded, and Marius's open honesty unnerves him.
As they grow closer, Paladin Charm prepares for a battle with impossible odds. And in the darkness, the Queen of Shadows waits to reclaim Marius and drag him back into a nightmare.
Shadowmancer's Marius had me hooked from the first chapter. The author built this character that grabs you by your empathy and doesn't let go and I didn't want him to. Marius is a shadowmancer, he's a human who was kidnapped by the Queen of Shadows and given magic that is powerful and frightening and the life he leads in the shadows is slowly destroying his mind. When we meet him at the beginning of Shadowmancer he's managed to escape back to the human world, all kinds of mentally damaged, and while there's a sense of relief, Marius is surrounded by humans who fear and loathe who he's become. I wanted to hug him and fix all the thing because he's one of those compelling characters you root for, respect and want to protect all at the same time.
The author did a really good job of building the world around Marius and his his whole persona organically. As I said, I was on board the Marius train from page one and when Ayodele found him putting the shadow beatdown on a group of thieves Ayodele was hooked too. Ayodele is spoiled but he knows the benefits he was born with. He wants to protect his homeland from invading city states led by Ayodele's former guild, Serpent Fang.
So, we have Ayodele's home, which is uncomfortable with mage's in general, with a guild established by Ayodele and his family's cash, filled with magical misfits and here comes Ayodele with a Shadowmancer, Marius, in his ranks, preparing to defend his home against invading forces. This was probably my favorite part of the book. The dynamics in Paladin's Charm (Ayodele's guild) is a great read. The secondary characters and their relationships with one another is a treat. I would have been happy if the first book in this series focused on that alone to be honest. The group is overall uncomfortable with Marius, but they are also empathetic and Marius is just so damn likable and honest, he naturally works his way into their ranks.
I'm really bad at building up the background when it comes to fantasy stories, I'm the first to admit it. I don't know why I don't just tell you to stick to the blurb, but I don't, and I'm sure it's just because I want to talk about it with reading pals because there is always so much to unpack with fantastical tales. In this case, it's the story in general and Marius and Ayodele in particular.
There's a lot of nuggets in their relationship that I want to pick apart and mull over repeatedly. They both grow and learn to trust in their own ways throughout the story and I loved how they came together. It wasn't without a level of angst that was necessary considering where they both came from and while I love/hated it, I needed it to make me believe in an HEA for them.
Marius has a mantra that he goes through to keep himself centered and every time I read him going through his ritual, my heart broke a little. I loved that Ayodele committed it to memory and personalized it for the evolution of Marius. You have to read it to appreciate the subtle loveliness of it all, but I ate it up.
I do want to take a little paragraph to talk about my cover love for this book. The artist nailed it hard with the characters and the mood of the story. It's unfortunately rare that the characters are truly represented on the cover of their book. Ayodele and his beautiful eyes had me swooning and I pictured the MC's exactly how they were portrayed on the cover.
I did have a niggle though. The wrap up of conflict was entirely too fast. Well, one was and one wasn't. I would have been totally fine with one of them left hanging and moved into book two. There's a lot to cover in a story of this length and the ending felt rushed considering the build up. Annnnd, I wouldn't change the build up and considering this is the beginning of a series, a thread that continues would have been totally fine by me. There's plenty of meat for this series to continue with the setup that was dealt out here, but the big arc should continue to give it the seriousness it was built up to have in book one. That actually makes sense believe it or not.
Overall, this was a total treat and I can't wait to read the next installment. I miss Marius already and I hope there's some more background on the rest of the guild. They're a fascinating group and will make for a great series.
**a copy of this story was provided for an honest review**
Posted by Ann on Wednesday, April 10, 2019 No comments:
Labels: Alternate Universe, Ann, Cocky, Cover Love, Damaged Hero, Devin Harnois, Family, Fantasy, First in a Series, Magic, Paranormal, Reviews
Guest Review: Soft Place to Fall by B.A. Tortuga
Stetson Major and Curtis Traynor are about as opposite as two cowboys can get. Stetson is a rancher, tied to the land he loves in Taos, New Mexico, while Curtis is a rodeo cowboy whose wanderlust never could be tamed.
But now Stetson's momma is dying of Alzheimer's, and she can't remember that Curtis hasn't been Stetson's boyfriend for a long time. Curtis's absence makes her cry, so Stetson swallows his pride and calls his ex-lover.
To Curtis, Stetson is the one who got away, the love of his life. And Momma is his friend, so he's happy to help out. Yet returning to the ranch stirs up all sorts of feelings that, while buried, never really went away. Still, the rodeo nationals are coming up, and Curtis can't stay… even if he's starting to want to, especially to support Stetson when he needs it most.
Stetson and Curtis want to find a place where they both fit, to be there to catch each other when they fall. But family, money problems, and the call of the rodeo circuit might end their second-chance romance before it even gets started.
This is such a gorgeous bitter-sweet premise for a story, and I fell in love with it from the start. Watching a loved one suffer with dementia is the most cruel thing, but a second chance at love is the most delightful.
My heart was hurting for Stetson and that call to Curtis made me cry like a baby. That Curtis came was such a relief, and that the guys managed to find a way to each other eventually, was so very sweet and lovely.
I've never been to a rodeo (it's on my bucket list) but having enjoyed BA's books, I feel like I have!
This book was a gorgeous gently roller coaster of emotion, hope, despair and joy all mingled in. If you've got a soft spot for stubborn cowboys who fall back in love (or realise that they never fell out of love) and cope with whatever comes their way, this might be the perfect book for you.
Posted by Boy Meets Boy Reviews on Tuesday, April 09, 2019 No comments:
Labels: BA Tortuga, Contemporary, Cowboys, Guest Review, Opposites Attract, Release Day!, Rodeo, Second Chances, Shee Reader
Release Blitz + Giveaway: Unbroken (Port Lewis Witches) by Brooklyn Ray
Author Brooklyn Ray and IndiGo Marketing celebrate the release of Unbroken (Port Lewis Witches)! Learn more about the novella today and enter in the $10 NineStar Press credit giveaway!
Title: Unbroken
Series: Port Lewis Witches
Author: Brooklyn Ray
Heat Level: 3 - Some Sex
Length: 58500
Genre: Paranormal, LGBT, Contemporary, paranormal, demons, witches, blood bound, roommate, drugs
Despite the rumors about Port Lewis, Michael Gates doesn't expect the house he rents with his sister on Foxglove Lane to be haunted. An eerie meeting with Victor Lewellyn, the resident witch-turned-demon who is bound to the property by dark magic, changes his mind.
Michael isn't looking to start a relationship with anyone, let alone someone like Victor, but the intense attraction between them can't be ignored. As he dives into the world of magical drug rings, demons, witches, and necromancers, Michael also grapples with the complicated past he left behind in Arizona.
A relationship might not be what he wants, but it sparks something in him he didn't realize he needs—the chance to heal.
Brooklyn Ray © 2019
Part One: Haunted Places
Michael Gates curled his hand over the old fence surrounding his new home. Splinters nipped at his palm. Bitter wind snapped restlessly at his cheeks. He wasn't used to cold like this, the kind that stuck to his skin and seeped through his clothes. This was coastal cold. Northern Cold. Port Lewis cold.
"I bet you're missin' Arizona right about now, huh?" Janice tossed a grin over her shoulder as she wobbled inside, carrying one end of a mustard yellow couch. She was a broad girl, tall like their father, with candy-apple red hair that came from a box. "Mom probably hasn't converted your room into a yoga studio yet. There's still time!"
Michael snorted. Denying the truth would only lead to more teasing, and he wasn't in the mood to bicker with his sister. Not after a long-ass drive. Not when he still wasn't sure about any of this—college, this town, this house.
It was almost charming, he thought. Windows jutted from sharp-edged sills and the attic skewered the sky like a steeple, stretched tall over the porch above a round window on the second floor. The paint had been yellow once, but the sun turned the walls white and the shingles gray. Vines crawled over the empty garden boxes attached to the porch, a burst of green in a colorless place. It was Victorian and strange, and as Michael looked from the creaky steps to the unkempt lawn, he remembered the word their landlord had used during an awkward Skype interview two weeks ago.
History, she'd said, like it was a curse.
"Hey, asshole." Janice stood in the doorway with her hands perched on her hips, cheeks flushed and chest heaving. "Movers are heading out. You gonna help me drag these mattresses upstairs before Corey gets here or not?"
There wasn't anything wrong with the house. The windows weren't broken, the kitchen was stocked with upgraded appliances, and the fire alarms had recently been replaced. But wrongness still lingered, somehow.
His fingers slipped off the fence and dove into his coat pocket, thumbing the corner of a cigarette pack. "I didn't even get a chance to smoke."
"Too bad. Those'll kill you anyway, c'mon."
Michael rolled his eyes but reluctantly walked inside. The word kept repeating, whispered like a secret—history history history—and he couldn't stop wondering about what a place had to go through to earn it. The floorboards flexed and whined under his boots. Above him, cobwebs dripped from a metal chandelier, and light beamed through the window onto a steep, carpeted staircase. He might've imagined it, must have imagined it, but he swore the air shifted, as if the house had sensed his aching lungs and insisted he take a breath.
"This place is weird," Michael blurted because he had no other way to explain it. "Creepy weird, like I bet someone was murdered here weird."
"You're being dramatic," Janice said. She tilted a mattress off the wall and pushed it toward the staircase. Her jaw clenched as they ambled up the stairs, freckled cheeks hollowed and shoulders rounded. They shared many things, like most siblings did. Dark eyes and wide mouths, long fingers and small chins. But where Janice's fine lines and prominent bones made her look strong, Michael's only made him look delicate. He was littered with scars because of it, badges to prove he wasn't breakable.
After three trips up and down the stairs, they flopped the final mattress on the ground in the second-to-last bedroom, and Janice heaved a relieved sigh.
"Michael, c'mon." She nudged him with her elbow, pulling his attention from the boxes scattered on the floor. "This place is just old, you know? Look, you've got a balcony"—she pointed to the French doors, then set her hands on his shoulders and steered him toward the hall—"and your own bathroom, and I mean, this is a fresh start for us. Port Lewis is small, but we start classes next week, and there's a movie theater downtown and some really good breweries…"
Michael's lips quirked into a half-smile. "The Pacific Northwest is known for its beer."
"Exactly!" Janice gave his shoulders a reassuring squeeze. "Speaking of libations, how about you start unpacking and I'll run out for Thai and a case of IPA, sound good?"
"Fine, sure, whatever," he said, biting back a laugh. "Green curry for me. You should probably text Corey and ask if he wants anything."
Janice swatted the bedroom door on her way out. Her keys jingled, sneakers thudded the stairs, and before Michael could shout—don't forget the chili paste—the door slammed and she was gone.
Silence snaked through the house, disrupted by wind pressing on the windows, and the unmistakable inkling that he was being watched. Michael pushed his fingers through his hair, short auburn locks smoothed by product he'd found in his sister's makeup bag, and heaved a sigh.
Janice was right, he told himself. The house was old. It creaked and howled and carried secrets from past owners. But it was just a house, and Michael had seen too many horror movies to let a little unease get the best of him. He rummaged through two boxes until he found a portable speaker.
"There we go," he said, pulse quickening when his own voice echoed through the empty house. He set his phone on the dock and turned on a Pop Punk playlist. Music boomed through his new room, loud and fast, a sore reminder of the home down south and all the memories left behind there. His mother had allowed him to take a gap year after high school, where he spent twelve months abroad, bouncing from Ireland to London, Amsterdam to Italy, but when another year went by and Michael skipped registration at the junior college he'd promised to attend, his family's patience thinned.
There's no time left to squander, his mother had said. Go with your sister, take botany for all I care, but do something.
So, he'd followed Janice to Port Lewis, a town built on rumors, whispers about magic and witches, and ended up here, sliding the mattress into a black bed frame, listening to songs he'd fallen in love with during senior year, and watching a shadow cross the floor in the reflection on his balcony window.
Michael froze, mouth set and shoulders pulled tight. He held the edge of the mattress, gaze pinned to the reflection in the window, afraid the image would disappear if he moved, and more afraid to turn around. Because there, looking back at him, was a pair of eyes and a curious smile attached to a distorted shape standing in the doorway. His throat cinched and his mouth dried, and all the bravery, all the fight, all the resolve, fell out from under him. He blinked once, twice, a third time, and then it was gone.
Impossible. He turned on his heels, expecting an ah-hah! An I got you! A moment when he'd catch something—someone—hiding in the hallway. But the doorway was empty, and when he peeked into the hall, it was empty too.
"Janice?" He pushed open each bedroom door and looked inside. Nothing. He did the same with the two bathrooms, the linen closet, the cabinets. Nothing. "Corey?"
A sound he faintly recognized came from behind him, far enough away to seem distant, close enough to make his breath quake. Metal on metal. The drag and click of a lock being unfastened.
It was right then he noticed the stagnant air, the heavy quiet. His music was no longer playing.
Michael felt it like he thought all people usually did—a wrongness that settled deep inside him—coupled with the urge to leave, the need to run. But he didn't. He turned slowly this time, reining in his runaway heart, and trailed his gaze up the narrow steps at the end of the hall to the attic door, unlocked, and ajar.
One moment the shadow was there, and a second later it simply wasn't.
"Who are you?" Michael called. He clung to the only bravery he had left. Defiance. The reckless confidence responsible for many of his scars.
The attic door swung open on rusty hinges.
Adrenaline cautioned, but curiosity encouraged, and Michael found each step easier to take as he climbed the stairs. The banister was smooth under his palm, the air alight with danger and magic and something unknown.
Something dark, he thought. Something tarnished.
Don't, his heart said. Run. Go. Now. Now. Now.
Michael swallowed hard and stepped into the room. Sunlight illuminated moth-eaten curtains in front of the window. A bed was pushed against the wall, sheets tucked, white comforter smoothed. There was a lamp on a black nightstand, unlit candles on a six-drawered dresser, and a bookshelf against the far wall. He crossed the room, trailing his fingers along the edge of the bed, the windowsill, then the shelves, tracing letters on thick leather spines. Magic & Purpose. Ceremonial Preparation. Incantations. He plucked a paperback from the middle shelf—Demonology—and opened it. The pages were sallow, stained in some places and ripped in others. Sprawling notes in black ink filled the margins. He turned the book over in his hands and found a name written on the inside of the back cover.
"Victor Lewellyn," Michael whispered.
The floorboards whined. Breath hit the back of his neck. A low, smooth voice said, "Michael Gates."
Dread filled the pit of his stomach. He snapped the book shut by the spine, attempted to summon any semblance of the bravery he'd found before, and came away with none. His breath fluttered from him in trembling gusts, and when a warm palm cradled his elbow, a sob caught in his throat.
"Don't be scared," the stranger purred. His hand slid along the underside of Michael's forearm and curled over his wrist. "You say my name like a prayer."
Michael shut his mouth with an audible click and watched Victor Llewellyn's fingers, tipped with black claws, slide over his knuckles and grasp the book. Reality tilted, shifting from a nightmare into something worse. History suddenly seemed like a hollow explanation for what this house had seen.
Victor's lips grazed his pulse, breath steady, touch confident. His voice was strained between his teeth, deep and inhuman and obscurely intimate, pressed to Michael's throat like the clasp on a collar. "Fuck, you smell like honey."
"What…" Michael's lips parted. He rehearsed what he was about to say, repeating it again and again, but the question never materialized. What are you? He wanted to ask, he wanted to know, but his voice malfunctioned with Victor's teeth so close to his skin.
Ghosts were real, he believed in that much. Spirits and poltergeists and an in-between that gave the lost a home. But Victor Lewellyn was not a ghost.
Michael's heart drummed, blood coursing fast through his veins. His knees wobbled, his eyes wide and hungry, desperate for a glance. For a memory. For proof. He inhaled deeply and turned until they were chest to chest.
Victor's mouth formed an easy grin, face sculpted by shadows where the light didn't touch and smoothed like polished copper where it did. He looked like a painting, rich and haunted, a canvas that turned beauty into a monstrous thing.
Humans did not have cheekbones as carved as his. They did not have eyes like lit candles, or black horns curling from their temples. They did not have claws that came to rest on the hinge of Michael's jaw, or breath tinged with ash and blood. Humans were familiar. They were simple and safe. Victor was not.
"What are you?" Michael asked, breathless.
Victor tilted his head. A strand of dark hair fell over his brow. His smile softened as he slid the book back where it belonged, tipping Michael's chin toward him with one hand, and effortlessly caging him against the shelf with the other. They stayed like that, watching each other, until the sound of the front door opening broke the silence, and Janice's voice rang through the house.
"Look who I found in the driveway," she hollered. Keys jingled, plastic bags rustled.
Michael glanced at the door, and when he looked back, Victor was gone.
Brooklyn Ray is a tea connoisseur and an occult junkie. She writes queer speculative fiction layered with magic, rituals and found families.
Website | Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr
Labels: Brooklyn Ray, Demons, erotic, Excerpt, Giveaway, IndiGo Promotions, NineStar Press, Novella, Release Blitz, roommates, Series
Release Blitz + Giveaway: Hunter (Roam #2) by Dez Schwartz
Celebrate the release of Hunter (Roam #2)with author Dez Schwartz and IndiGo Marketing! Learn more about the paranormal tale and enter in the $10 NineStar Press credit giveaway!
Title: Hunter
Series: Roam, Book Two
Author: Dez Schwartz
Heat Level: 2 - Fade to Black Sex
Genre: Paranormal, LGBT, Vampires, other paranormal beings, sandman, Dream World, magic
Dr. Grady Hunter has a vampire infestation on his hands in the town of Shady Pines, but he's been deserted by those best suited to help. After enlisting Chris Reed, a techno-mage, they find the vampires might only be the tip of a deadly iceberg.
Returning home from his dream travels, Ethan Roam is eager to experiment with his newly discovered powers. But Ethan isn't the only familiar arrival in Grady's life. As more reminders of his dark past crop up, Grady and Ethan are swept up in a mystery of cosmic proportions.
Grady must fight to keep an ever-evolving Ethan on his side while being challenged by the ghosts of his past.
The old park in Shady Pines was the stuff of nightmares. Or so it would seem to anyone who happened upon the derelict area after the sun set. In actuality, it was simply a park. Located across from the oldest district in the small Texas city of Shady Pines and near the edge of a small forest encompassing the town, the park was extremely rundown and typically abandoned during the daytime. A snapshot of times past, the neglected playground had standard metal slides and jungle gyms, before modern worries of bruises, broken bones, and burns on hot afternoons. Like most cities, Shady Pines had since created newer and safer places for families to gather. And so, the old park had fallen to ruin but still remained hopeful its ghosts would return to play again.
As it happened, quite a few creatures loved to play there, but they were rarely of the human set. Part of what made the place so eerie was park's location. Once sunset arrived, a thick fog would roll in from the marshes in the woods and overtake the area. If one were to stand there, as Dr. Grady Hunter was doing now, the murky haze would only rise to roughly one's waist depending on their height. The moon would hang bright and looming overhead, as it also was now, to cast shadows all around. And a breeze would cause swings to sway, and the paint chipped merry-go-round to spin ever so slightly, as was also happening now. At least, one would hope the movement was due to the breeze. Unless, of course, the person was Dr. Grady Hunter and was hoping for something else.
"Any signs of movement? Blast this fog!" Grady, a semi-former monster hunter and more recently self-appointed alternative healer of supernaturals, whispered into the small microphone on the headset he was wearing. His British accent was always strongest when he was frustrated. The park wasn't his first choice of venue to lure vampires, but any abandoned buildings or dark alleys would provide them too much of an advantage and surely seem like a setup. They would definitely be suspicious. He supposed they should be suspicious of a man in his late thirties strolling through the old park at night alone but, as the case happened, they appeared to find that behavior completely normal.
"Nada. And don't worry about the fog. The visuals I'm pulling from my cameras penetrate right through it." A casually confident, and extremely American in contrast, male voice replied back from the other side of the communication device between sounds of chewing.
"Are you eating right now? We're working!" Grady admonished, still in a whisper as he slowly strolled through the park with his hand hovering by his waist. He had a number of weapons at the ready beneath his long brown coat in case he was successful in finding what he was looking for.
"Please, I'm the king of multitasking. Besides, it's past my dinnertime and I can't refuse a sushi place if I pass one," the voice responded. Grady could tell the man on the other side, Chris Reed, was smiling. Then, he became urgent. "Ahab, you've got a white whale at ten o'clock."
"That's not my code name. We don't have code names. Don't make things up on the spot. It's distracting," Grady griped but whipped around to face whatever was heading his way.
"If we did, though, I think I'd want to be Zaphod," Chris replied, obviously slurping a drink. "Your target is hovering by the slide. Not the loopy one. The tall straight one. I fell off a slide once when I was a kid. I was pretending to be Indiana Jones. Broke my wrist. Great summer."
"Your lifelong aspiration to be fictional characters is both charming and annoying. Going silent now," Grady replied as he stalked slowly in the direction of the slide. He reached inside his jacket for a stake. He saw a figure's shadow wavering across the top of the fog. It definitely appeared human, which most likely meant it was a vampire. He tried to keep his weapon concealed beneath the haze and pretended he was simply walking in the same direction, unaware of the creature's presence.
"Whip out the big boy! It's an ambush from behind!" Chris shouted in his ear. Unable to keep from chuckling, he added, "That didn't come out how I meant. But seriously, you're under attack. "
Grady immediately switched to a revolving handheld crossbow, which was loaded with a round of stakes, should a situation such as this ever arise. He spun on his heel in time to see four vampires running full speed in his direction. He shot one down but then had to momentarily turn his attention back to the first vampire, who had taken the opportunity to pounce on him.
Grady wrestled free of his grip and knocked him onto the slide where he toppled over the edge and onto the ground.
"Yeah, pretty much how I broke my wrist," Chris commented.
"Oh, do shut up!" Grady shouted back in the mic. The outburst caused some mild confusion for the vampires as none of them had been speaking, but it didn't deter them from continuing their attack.
Two of the vampires lifted Grady and slammed him into the ground on his back, knocking the wind out of him. He felt a cracking pain he didn't have time to assess, as one of the vampires straddled his chest and went fangs-first for his neck. He managed to pull the revolver up to the creature's chest and let loose a stake right before he was torn into. He rolled free, still with three vampires to face and precisely three stakes left in his crossbow.
"This is exciting. You're doing a great job, boss!" Chris complimented.
"Not! Helpful!" Grady panted as he attempted to catch his breath. He didn't get much of a break as another vampire grabbed him by the shoulder and jerked his arm backward, trying to rip the crossbow from his grasp. Grady shouted in response to the wrenching pain.
"Keep him there!" Chris commanded. "I can get a shot in. He's right in the line of fire."
"I'm not the one in control at the moment, thank you!" Grady grieved between gritted teeth as he tried to maintain control of the weapon against the thrashing pull of the vampire. Thankfully, the vampire on the other side of the slide was only now running over to try to help his cohort, and the third had opted to watch the scene rather than participate.
A wild shot seemed to fly in out of nowhere. Grady knew the attack came from one of the cameras they had placed around the park for their mission. Attached to the bottom of each supernatural night vision camera was a small loaded device that would shoot a stake with bullet-like precision when activated. It was one of the many weapons they'd had to develop and utilize in the past few months as the vampire infestation in Shady Pines had progressively gotten worse and Grady found himself without much help in dealing with the problem.
Ethan Roam, his new partner in both work and life—who happened to be a sandman, was still away dream traveling. Benny, weredog and roommate, was living the high life as a spoiled Chihuahua fifty percent of the time, rendering him practically ineffective. Vivian Edwards, a highly skilled witch and his former secretary, refused to speak to him or respond to any of his messages. Ethan's mother, Karen Roam, and their mutual friend, Dr. Arthur Ellis, were eager to help. However, while they were fine comrades in research, they were useless in the field. Grady had no choice but to call upon an old acquaintance to help with the crisis. Chris Reed, a rogue hunter and techno-mage. Thankfully, Chris was more than capable and equally enthusiastic at the prospect. He enjoyed inventing new ways to destroy and capture supernatural creatures, and he'd decided working with Grady was a fantastic way to demo his creations. Unfortunately, even with Chris's handiwork and help, they hadn't made much of a dent in the vampire population, which was rapidly growing and terrorizing the citizens (and other paranormals) who generally enjoyed a night out from time to time.
The shot hit the vampire perfectly, and Grady fell forward onto his knees, free of the monster's grasp. This, however, caused the crossbow to fly free from the ended struggle and fall into the fog. Grady couldn't see where the weapon landed and began swearing. Knowing he had only moments, he reached back into his jacket and produced two khukuri knives. He stood quickly, ready to face the vampire who had been standing by watching, but was surprised to find he'd disappeared.
"Bugger! One escaped. Did you see where he went?" Grady asked into the mic as he rounded on the last vampire, already furiously leaping toward him.
"Dammit! No. I'm sorry," Chris replied. "I had my eye on my shot."
Grady pulled up the khukuri knives on either side of the vampire's throat as the creature attempted to attack him. The vampire's eyes grew wide in surprise, realizing he was about to be beheaded. He met Grady's gaze in a pleading manner. Grady hated when they did that. It made him think of Dacey Sinnett, the only vampire he'd ever call a friend, and he suddenly felt sick to his stomach. Grady did his best to keep his resolve.
"Tell me who is leading you, or I will end you right now!" Grady demanded, his expression ferociously serious.
"You'll do it anyway," the vampire spat back.
Grady shoved his weight forward and slammed him up against the slide, blades tightly gripped around the vampire's neck.
"Your cooperation may convince me otherwise. Now answer the question!" he commanded again.
"You're great at playing bad cop, Grady," Chris interjected in his ear. Once again, he practically heard him grinning. Grady wished he could rip his headset off but right now his hands were full.
"I don't know his name," the vampire played along. "He showed up out of nowhere a few months ago. Started making promises and threats; demanding that we help him."
"Help him with what?" Grady seized the opportunity to gather much-needed information. "And is he a vampire? A human? Something else?"
"He wants us to tear this pathetic town to pieces until we find—" The vampire's answer was forever halted as he was hit expertly with a stake.
"Dammit! Chris, was that you?" Grady yelled angrily.
"No!" Chris was defensive. Grady stood, with no vampire left to interrogate, and looked around. He saw the source at the same time Chris must have on the cameras.
"Guess he found your crossbow," Chris sighed limply as the last vampire, the one who had gone missing, ran off into the night after killing their only chance at finding some answers.
Grady kicked the slide in frustration which caused a metallic gong to echo around the now empty park. They weren't any closer to dealing with the problem or having any real answers.
"Sorry tonight was a bust, man," Chris consoled.
"Same story, different night," Grady sighed. He brushed off as much dirt and grass from his jacket and pants as possible and attempted to calm his frustrations.
"Don't worry, tiger. We'll get them one of these days." Chris was already back to his upbeat self. "If it's any consolation, you looked like a total badass. I have to admit, watching you fight has to be my second favorite thing about this gig."
"Oh, really? And what's the first?" Grady smirked. Chris didn't let anyone feel down for too long.
"The inevitable moments where I get to save your ass, of course," Chris chimed.
"Prat." Grady rolled his eyes but smiled anyway as he headed back through the park toward his old Jaguar.
"Twat," Chris responded without missing a beat. Grady chuckled. If nothing else, at least having Chris around kept up morale.
"Go ahead and take the rest of the night off," Grady said, getting into his vehicle. He glanced back at the park once more, in case he missed something, but the area remained quiet and empty. "I suppose Benny already went home?"
"Yeah, he left a while back. He said watching would make him nervous. And to be honest, I'm not much of a fan of small yapping dogs," Chris replied. Grady heard him shutting off various equipment in the background.
"All right. See you tomorrow, then." Grady turned off the headset and tossed the device into the passenger seat. He leaned back into the headrest and closed his eyes, inhaling deeply and slowly letting his breath back out.
"Find. What could they possibly want to find so badly in Shady Pines?" Grady asked himself aloud as he recalled what the vampire tried to tell him. The pit of his stomach tightened and his heart grew heavy because he had a pretty good idea of what, or whom, that might be.
He brought the car to life and drove straight home, feeling the need to be at Ethan's sleeping side.
Vampire apologist and lifelong enthusiast of classic gothic horror, cryptids, and the occult; Dez Schwartz writes Dreampunk & Paranormal LGBTQ Fiction with a spellbinding balance of darkness and humor. When she's not busy writing, she can most likely be found with a latte in hand, perusing antique shops for oddities and peculiar vintage books or wrangling her demonic (but adorable) cats.
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest
Posted by Boy Meets Boy Reviews on Monday, April 08, 2019 No comments:
Labels: Dez Schwartz, Doctor, Excerpt, Fade to Black, Giveaway, IndiGo Promotions, Magic, NineStar Press, Paranormal, Release Blitz, Vampires
▼ Apr 7 - Apr 14 (12)
Release Blitz + Giveaway: Finding Finlay (MC Secur...
Blog Tour + Giveaway: Laws of Attraction (Manx Cat...
Release Blitz + Giveaway: Tales of Bryant by V.L. ...
Audiobook Review: Wanted - Bad Boyfriend (Island C...
Giveaway + Blog Tour: The Doctor Takes a Detour by...
Release Blitz + Giveaway: Royal Rescue by A. Alex ...
Review: Shadowmancer (Paladin Charm #1) by Devin H...
Release Blitz + Giveaway: Unbroken (Port Lewis Wit...
Release Blitz + Giveaway: Hunter (Roam #2) by Dez ...
Blog Tour + Giveaway: Snow Storm (Haven Hart #5) b...


text:
Apple linked with Path buy - Mobile World Live
Apple linked with Path buy
Apple is reportedly on the verge of agreeing a deal to acquire social network company Path as it looks to bolster its capability in the sector.
A source told Pando Daily, a publication covering the Silicon Valley start-up scene, that the agreement was "essentially a done deal".
The main Path app offers users the ability to share moments in time with their contacts, while the Talk messaging product was recently launched.
The social network is more known for its design and user interface innovations than for driving uptake, with around 25 million users at the beginning of the year.
Ping, Apple's main foray into social networking previously, failed to take off.
The source said Path would continue to exist after the acquisition to be incorporated into Apple's Messages app.
However, the deal won't be priced anything like as high as the $19 billion Facebook is paying to acquire WhatsApp.
When Path secured a round of funding in January, it was reportedly valued at less than $400 million, significantly below the hoped-for $500 million.
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Tim Ferguson
Tim joined Mobile World Live in August 2011 and works across all channels, with a particular focus on apps. He came to the GSMA with five years of tech journalism experience, having started his career as a reporter... More
Netherlands consults on App Store concessions
App Store to accept third-party payments in Korea
Apple allows Android users to track AirTags
ApplePathPingsocial networking

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Welcome to International School Carinthia!
Willkommen in der internationalen Schule Kärnten!
Dobrodošli na Mednarodni šoli Koroškem!
It gives me great pleasure to be the founding director of International School Carinthia!
Working together with a committed board, a passionate faculty comprised of dedicated teachers and staff, and a supportive network of families, my goal is to develop an international school of excellence for local and international students in Carinthia, the only school of its kind in the region.
The decade ahead will be exciting for the ISC community. We will reach many milestones as we develop and receive accreditation for our world-class academic programs. Our first cohorts of students will be working alongside their teachers to create a learning community founded on respect, open-mindedness, tolerance, and curiosity about the world. They will not only be learning in self-contained classrooms; Velden, Carinthia and the world beyond will also provide them powerful learning experiences where they will discover their vocations and develop the necessary skills to pursue their professional dreams. At the same time, students will also spend significant time developing their characters, so that when they land their dream jobs, they will carry them out with honor and integrity.
On our website, you will find detailed explanations of our programs, news about all the amazing learning outcomes our students are experiencing daily, and how you can play a meaningful role in our community as a student, parent, volunteer, donor, or future ISC teacher. If you are in the area, come visit our Velden campus. I look forward to welcoming you to see the dynamic learning community I know we will become.


We went to a friend's place for lunch today, and knowing of my interest in Belgian beer, Marie-Claire served us an ale produced in the part of the country where she is from. The beers of the Abbaye d'Aulne (ADA) are made by the Brasserie du Val de Sambre in the village of Gozée near the town of Thuin, south of Charleroi.
I've asked around for these abbey beers here in Brussels at a couple of places with no luck. So I was very glad Marie-Claire's mother brought some from Wallonia last time she visited her daughter, who coincidentally enough lives in Rue d'Aulne in Brussels.
The Abbaye d'Aulne Triple brune 8° is a dark beer, about the colour of maple syrup. the aroma is light malt with charcoal and ash. The taste is a combination of coffee, chocolate and liquorice -- slightly sweet at first, but then the bitter hops kick in and balance it out nicely. It is not one of the super-thick darks, but it is richer than, say, Ciney brune. To me, it's most like a Moinette Brune, so a superior dark beer in other words.
Once again, then, I've found a very good Belgian beer that is relatively unknown even within this country, let alone abroad. Having said that, however, I notice now that in the book 52 brasseries coups de cœur en Belgique, it says that ten per cent of Brasserie du Val de Sambre's production is exported.
Just received word from Premium Beverage Imports Ltd, who inform me that they have decided bring this beer to American audiences. They are now the exclusive importer of ADA and will be marketing and promoting it throughout the US.


text:
No Zika In Wynwood For 26 Days, Warning Could Be Lifted This Month
September 1, 2016 ·6 Comments
No new cases of locally transmitted have been reported in Wynwood for 25 days, the Wynwood Business Improvement District announced yesterday.
If the streak continues, the CDC has informed the Wynwood BID that the advisory will be lifted on September 19.
Zika was only every being actively transmitted by mosquitoes in a single, 500 square foot business in Wynwood. Officials nevertheless deemed it necessary to create a one square mile warning zone.
Despite the lack of new cases, Zika could always return in the same way that it was first brought in. CDC and state officials also declared an active transmission zone in Miami Beach (with mosquitoes trapped there confirmed to be carrying the disease), and are also investigating other cases throughout the state.
500 square foot area? This has to be a small section of Wynwood Yard, right? I read that two of their employees were infected. Perhaps the remainder were patrons?
Anonynous
Yup, indeed. The word Zika is Swahiliy too. The virus was first isolated in April 1947 from a rhesus macaque monkey that had been placed in a cage in the Zika Forest of Uganda. All bad things come from there.
WYnwood is a ghost town compared to what it was.
DD advocate
It was made up, this was a clever way to get Wynwood on a global map of places to visit when you're down in Miami. Now the entire world knows where Wynwood is, not just people that live in Miami or NYC, you couldn't buy that kind of PR if you invested $100M.
and you would think ZIKA would impact canals and lakes much quicker than areas withous bodies of water….i think this is al bs…
suomynona
You think there weren't actual cases of Zika transmitted in Wynwood? You think it was all just made up? You are dumb.


"The roof top tour was fantastic. We had an enthusiastic English speaking guided tour who pointed out some very interesting things like the place where the bell ringer and his family lived on the roof up to 1962 a facade the clergy built in front of some homes to make it more attractive to look at and lots of information about the cathedral and surrounding buildings. The roof is actually easy to negotiate and built for walking on as it had been originally planned as a fortress to defend the cathedral and its relics.


Eskom has issued steps consumers can take to save electricity as the colder weather grips South Africa.
A thermostat-controlled oil heater no bigger than 2 000W (watt) is the best choice to heat a room of 3 x 3 x 2.5 metres for three hours.
"During the colder months, space heating can be responsible for up to 8% of an average household's electricity usage. The current constrained electricity network calls for smart electricity usage to help keep the warmth inside and the cold outside," said the power utility last Wednesday.
Last week the power utility started implementing its 'Use electricity smartly' campaign, which aims to reduce electricity the shortage so as to minimise the risk of load shedding.
1. Use foam tape to seal windows and doors if they do not close properly - in winter, draughts can account for up to 25% of heat loss.
2. Hang curtains to reduce heat transfer.
3. Lay 'door snakes' to stop cold air from entering - aluminium skirts with rubber seals on the outside of doors are also highly effective.
4. Seal cavities in and between bricks with a polyurethane sealant.
5. Seal the chimney if you have one – the best way is to have a damper installed when the chimney is not in use; if not utilised at all, seal it at the top and bottom.
6. Install fire-retardant ceiling insulation – with approximately 40% of heat lost through the roof, ceiling insulation makes your home up to 5% warmer in winter.
7. Only heat the room you are occupying, and use the correct type of heater when you feel the need for extra warmth.
8. A thermostat-controlled fan heater is ideal to quickly heat a room of 3 x 3 x 2.5 metres for one hour.
9. A thermostat-controlled oil heater no bigger than 2 000W (watt) is the best choice to heat the same room for three hours.
10. A thermostat-controlled heater no bigger than 1 000W (watt) is the most energy efficient option to heat it for eight hours.
11. Most gas heaters generate a great amount of heat and do not require electricity at all.
Use 'door snakes' to stop cold air from entering.


text:
Pig Eat Ball, May Update
We're getting ready for E3!
Yes, I'll be taking Pig Eat Ball to E3 to show the game off to publishers and platform holders.
Since we'll be demoing the game soon at E3, recent work has been about "first impressions".
Andrew Curry, our level builder has been working to perfect the first levels of the game, as those first few minutes are the most important with any new players.
Talk to the Clam... to see some action!
In the game, the player completes sets of action levels. If they complete a set of action levels, they get a Pearl, and this Pearl is used to unlock new areas and eventually complete the story in Adventure mode (think the Stars in Super Mario Galaxy).
A set of levels is controlled by a Royal Clam. So the first Clam in the game, has three levels. Those three levels have been tricky to perfect! And actually it started out as five levels and then four levels.. but I think now that three levels in a row is the perfect amount of playing time to introduce players.
Matthew Barnes, one of our programmers, has been working on some new gameplay elements, including a working shower.
Barfies come in ,but leave sparkling clean!
What does the shower do? It cleans off the barf of course! :)
John Meister, head of Super Soul Studios, in nearby Lexington Kentucky, has been working on integrating the new controller remapping system. John was previously using the system called "InControl", but has settled on another controller solution called "Rewired" from the Unity Asset store.
So many collisions to deal with...
And I've been working on optimizations. Without giving away too much, let's just say that thousands of chunks of barf can be spewing in the game. And that's interactive barf--not just simple particle effects! Add to that tons of balls and dozens of pillbug enemies with complicated AI which could be running around as well--with that all happening, on some of our laptops, we noticed the game was starting to get slow. So I've spent the last few weeks, trying to eliminate unnecessary collision calls, and figuring out tricks to avoid comparing so many objects together, or other ways to save processor time. The good news is--things are speeding up!
Alright, E3 is June 14-16th, wish me luck!
Labels: game development, Pig Eat Ball


text:
Тимчасова першість або Тимчасове чемпіонство () — поширена практика визначення першості в спорті, прецедент. Застосовується як вимушений захід у тому разі, коли чинний чемпіон не може провести захист свого титулу з об'єктивних причин (перешкоди медичного або юридичного характеру, форс-мажорні обставини тощо).

Якщо змагання між головним претендентом на титул чемпіона і діючим чемпіоном тимчасово неможливе, проводиться змагання між двома основними претендентами (або за рейтингом) за звання тимчасового чемпіона. Ситуація розділеного чемпіонства, утворена внаслідок цього, може бути змінена таким чином:
 Проводиться змагання між тимчасовим і діючим чемпіоном. Переможець отримує звання виключного або беззаперечного () чемпіона.
 Діючий чемпіон оголошує про припинення кар'єри. Тимчасовий чемпіон отримує звання виключного або беззаперечного чемпіона.
 Діючий чемпіон відмовляється від титулу. Тимчасовий чемпіон отримує звання виключного або беззаперечного чемпіона.
 Діючий чемпіон змінює вагову категорію. Тимчасовий чемпіон отримує звання виключного або беззаперечного чемпіона.
 Інший варіант (в залежності від виду спорту і наявних традицій)

Така практика застосовується в боксі (визнана організаціями WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO), кікбоксингу (визнана організацією K-1) змішаних бойових мистецтвах (визнана організаціями UFC і PRIDE).

Приклади

Бокс
 У листопаді 2005 року Хасім Рахман був підвищений із титулу тимчасового чемпіона світу до виключного чемпіона світу за версією WBC, після того, як діючий чемпіон світу Віталій Кличко оголосив про завершення кар'єри через травму.
 У вересні 2006 року діючий чемпіон світу Джонні Нельсон відмовився від титулу. Тимчасовий чемпіон світу Енцо Макарінеллі був підвищений до титулу виключного чемпіона світу за версією WBO.

Змішані бойові мистецтва
 У квітні 2008 року тимчасовий чемпіон світу Жорж Сен-П'єр виграв бій проти діючого чемпіона світу Метта Серри і був проголошений виключним чемпіоном світу за версією UFC.
 У липні 2009 року тимчасовий чемпіон світу Френк Мір втратив титул у бою з діючим чемпіоном світу Броком Леснаром. Леснар був проголошений виключним чемпіоном світу за версією UFC.
 11 липня 2015 року Конор МакГрегор, на UFC 189, став тимчасовим чемпіоном в напів легкій ваговій категорії здолавши Чеда Мендеза, який вийшов на заміну травмованому Жозе Альдо

Примітки

Спортивні терміни

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
require 'pivotal_card_checker'
require 'spec_helper'

describe PivotalCardChecker::ViolationsOrganizer do
  describe '#append_hipchat_mention' do
    # subject { PivotalCardChecker::ViolationsOrganizer.new }
    [
      ['Scott Smith', 'ssmith'],
      ['Diego Scataglini', 'dscataglini'],
      ['Andrew Berisha', 'aberisha'],
      ['Brett Novak', 'bnovak'],
      ['Forrest Chang', 'fchang'],
      ['Don Humphreys', 'dhumphreys'],
      ['Alex Handler', 'ahandler'],
      ['Alexis Santos', 'asantos']
    ].each { |full_name, hipchat_mention|
      it "extracts #{hipchat_mention} from #{full_name}" do
        expect(subject.append_hipchat_mention(full_name)).to eq "#{full_name} (@#{hipchat_mention})"
      end
    }

  end

end

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


When people think of bamboo they often think of the Asian varieties, but there actually are a few varieties that are native to the US. Whether you are going to make use of an imported or native variety, bamboo is a versatile material to add to your landscaping design. Use it as a Plant The simplest use of bamboo in landscaping is as a planting. When using it for this, it is important to research what kind of bamboo you are planting, because there are two main varieties.
Is the do-it-yourself enthusiast in your life hard to buy for? Do they have every tool under the sun already? Buying gifts for fans of DIY work/home improvement can be difficult due to the fact that they'll usually buy what they need immediately and make what they can't buy. Luckily, fun, do-it-yourself gift ideas or gift ideas that are a little more unique are always a good idea. Fun and unique gift ideas are also, well, more fun!
When you own a restaurant, keeping track of all of the food that needs to be ordered from week to week can be difficult. You will have staff working at different shifts and the lines of communication can often be lost during all of the hustle and bustle of daily activities. If you want to be sure that your chefs always have the supplies they need to prepare delicious meals for your customers, consider creating a centralised location where all information can be written where everyone can easily see it.
No matter what type of neighborhood you live in, it's always important to make sure that your home is safe at all times. And sometimes just having a regular lock and key just won't do the job anymore. Luckily, technology has improved so much that it makes sense to look into a more advanced type of lock system for your home, so that you have peace of mind when it comes to keeping you and your loved ones safe.


Our solar system has at least 170 moons orbiting the main planets. Before these moons were visited by spacecraft, astronomers expected them to be boring, dead objects devoid of any geologic features. We now know they are fantastic worlds - with features unlike anything seen on Earth: giant sulfur-spewing volcanoes, globally cracked ice-covered surfaces, liquid lakes of hydrocarbons, and colossal watery plumes. Yet many of these worlds are also earthlike and familiar. Titan, the giant moon of Saturn, has often been called an Earth in deep freeze, with cloud systems, lakes, shorelines, drainage fields and even perhaps rain. Scientists believe that the most likely places for life to evolve outside the Earth may be in the water-interiors of the moons Europa, Enceladus, and possibly Titan.


This museum is exploring images and stories of separation, hate and violence.
The contract for the auto race expires next year. Will state officials continue it?
Wayne State University celebrates 45 years with African American studies.
Coates discusses incarceration, crime and reparations for the black community.


Today while walking with friends near Tobermory on the Isle of Mull, I took this picture of the Tobermory Lighthouse. It was interesting as sunset was approaching and the light would only strike the lighthouse directly in the morning. Behind me there were steep hills that ensured the lighthouse had no exciting light. This was made even more difficult as the light was hitting the distant Ardnamurchan peninsula and emphasising the contrast between the foreground and the background. I still liked the angle on the lighthouse and the background was nice so I fell back on the last refuge of a photographic scoundrel – HDR!
From a Mull tourism site: The lighthouse, Rubha nan Gall (the gaelic for Stranger's Point), was built in 1857 by the grandfather of Robert Louis Stevenson and became automated in 1960. It flashes every three seconds, can be seen for 15 miles and marks the end of the Sound of Mull.
ISO 400, 135mm, f6.3, 1/15th sec handheld.


text:
<?php

namespace Masterkey\Repository\Criteria;

use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Builder;
use Illuminate\Support\Arr;
use Masterkey\Repository\AbstractCriteria;
use Masterkey\Repository\Contracts\RepositoryInterface as Repository;

/**
 * With
 *
 * @author  Matheus Lopes Santos <fale_com_lopez@hotmail.com>
 * @version 3.0.0
 * @package Masterkey\Repository\Criteria
 */
class With extends AbstractCriteria
{
    protected array $with;

    public function __construct(...$with)
    {
        $this->with = Arr::collapse($with);
    }

    /**
     * @param Builder $model
     * @param Repository    $repository
     * @return Builder
     */
    public function apply($model, Repository $repository): Builder
    {
        return $model->with($this->with);
    }
}


Visit Metal Depot for great metal roofing options in Winnipeg. We have combined expertise in sales, estimates, fabrication, service and installation. We are your first choice for metal roofing and custom metal fabrication.
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Almighty Doors is the no.1 furniture manufacturer in Tamilnadu. They are directly importing various varieties of woods from different countries. They are importing woods as logs as well as required sizes. They are also dealing with local timbers like neem and teak woods.we are importing and exporting the woods to different places in the world.
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Coronal Heating Problem is one of the Sun's unsolved mysteries where the corona is heated to over a million degrees and scientists have not figured out where the energy is coming from. Dr Jaime de la Cruz Rodriguez is tackling this 70 year old puzzle by first understanding the layer of the Sun below the corona – the chromosphere. He is awarded the prestigious starting grant by the European Research Council for his project SUNMAG: Understanding magnetic-field regulated heating and explosive events in the solar chromosphere.
Congratulations on your ERC fellowship! Tell us about the man behind the grant?
Thanks! I am a solar physicist from Spain now established at Stockholm University. I moved to Sweden from the Canary Islands in 2006 as a PhD student, that was quite a life change! I chose solar physics as a PhD topic because our proximity to the Sun allows us to apply very advanced techniques that are usually not possible with more distant astrophysical objects. I got the chance to move to Sweden in a moment when they had the largest solar telescope in the world, and it was a very attractive option. At a more personal level, I wanted to leave from Tenerife for some time, and Sweden looked like an exotic adventure at the time. But it turned out to be a new life for me: there I met my wife and we have two kids. After my PhD studies I had postdoc positions at University of Oslo and Uppsala University, where I worked with brilliant colleagues. Since 2014 I have worked in Stockholm University and nowadays I supervise 3 PhD students and 4 postdocs (including those from the ERC project).
Who/what do you give biggest credit for your success with the ERC grant and why?
ERC grants are awarded to scientists that have a very good idea to attempt making progress in a research field. Finding that idea and motivating why it is unique is not always an easy task. In summer 2016 our Institute installed a new instrument (CHROMIS) at the Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope, which allows observing the upper layers of the solar chromosphere with unprecedented spatial resolution (~75 km on the surface of the Sun). Back then, I realized how much potential these new data had. I wrote the proposal around this new instrument and the development of new analysis tools that will allow us to carry out very exciting science in the chromosphere.
Can you briefly describe the SUNMAG project for which you are awarded the prestigious ERC grant in 2017?
The heating of the solar chromosphere remains one of the foremost question in solar and stellar physics: how is energy transported and deposited in this thin layer of the Sun located about the visible surface (the photosphere) and the million-degree corona?
The main obstacle to study this elusive layer of the Sun is that it requires very complex physics to model the observed intensities (spectral lines): it is very challenging to convert the intensities to the underlying physical state of the plasma.
The SUNMAG project will study how the chromosphere is heated in regions with strong concentrations of magnetic field. To do so I have developed a technique that allows to reconstruct a 3D model from our observations. These models contain the stratification of gas temperature, density, velocities and the magnetic field vector with height. I will use these models to study and characterize how the chromosphere is heated in active regions and explosive events like flares. In this region, the magnetic field is expected to play a fundamental role in the structuring and energy transport of the chromosphere.
• A new analysis tool that allows reconstructing models from spectroscopic observations (described above) of the chromosphere. While these techniques already existed, for the first time our code allows for the inclusion of spectral lines that are sensitive to the middle and upper chromosphere.
• New instrumentation that allows to spatially resolve the scales at which energy is expected to be released in the solar chromosphere. The CHROMIS instrument at the Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope basically doubles the spatial resolution of previous instrumentation, while also providing rich spectral information.
I believe that with this project I can help to take steps towards solving the chromospheric heating problem.
Just to provide some context, the image illustrates a co-temporal observation of the solar photosphere and chromosphere (top panels), acquired at the Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope. The photosphere (left panel) is dominated by convective cells (granules) and strong concentrations of magnetic field (sunspots). In the chromosphere this convective panel is lost and we start to observe elongated structures that are usually aligned with the magnetic field. We know that in magnetically active regions the magnetic field intensity (generally) decreases as we move upwards. We also know that the magnetic field is highly confined in the photosphere whereas it expands forming magnetic canopies in the chromosphere. These differences are illustrated in the lower panels of the image, where the left panel shows many sharp red structures in comparison with the right panel. In the right panel however, we can discern a green halo in the central part of the image that traces the presence of these magnetic canopies. In the image the red color indicates regions where the magnetic field is aligned with the line of sight of the observer (vertical fields), whereas the green color indicates regions where the magnetic field is contained in the plane of the surface (horizontal fields).
What aspects of the project are you most excited about and what aspects are least exciting?
I am most excited about flare studies. It is a real challenge to understand the observations, but I think we can help a lot as our techniques have not been applied in many studies to this kind of data. This part also has an interdisciplinary component. For example, our code provides estimates of the magnetic field in the chromosphere and that information could be used in other fields like space weather. I am less excited about some programing parts of the project that I will need to undertake. That part is usually less regarding and very time consuming.
In 2017 Stockholm University has bagged 7 ERC grants, including yourself. What does the University do to achieve such success?
Stockholm University is an excellent place to work and perhaps having successful applicants starts by having competitive research groups where those young researchers can develop their ideas and settle with their own groups. Research is very competitive at the moment, but competition used in a constructive way can be a very powerful tool. More pragmatically, I got excellent support during the application process and for the interview in Brussels.
What was the most difficult part of the application process and how did you overcome it?
I personally found the interview part is particularly difficult. I never have had issues with managing my nerves, but that day I didn't have a steady hand when I entered the room. The panel did a very good job digging out the weaknesses of the project. I managed to overcome this difficult part by not trying to fiercely defend every criticism that I got during the interview. There are always limitations and it is better to be aware of them and to have them somewhat under control.
Apart from your accomplished research, what other duties do you perform? Do you think any of these duties gave you an edge over other applicants during the ERC decision?
Teaching and supervision. The latter is an important asset, especially if the project involves PhD students. I suspect that having zero supervision experience can be problematic in that case.
What are your other interests? How have they been affected since your award?
Professionally I am working in my prime scientific interest, which is great! The award has affected other aspects of my life, including my employment at Stockholm University which is now permanent. Outside science, sports have always been an important part of my life, but that part remains unaffected.
Lots of tips from Jaime for aspiring ERC applicants. Wishing him the very best for this project.


Signage prohibiting the use of trucks on some residential roads in town will not be installed as planned after the city commission heard more objections last week.
Renee Bauer again approached the Washburn City Commission during its meeting July 24. Bauer continued to express her concern over the impact of placing "No trucks" signage on 14th and 15th Street in town.
A woman who rents on property Bauer owns drives trucks for work, and Bauer said at the July 10 meeting that the signs would be detrimental to her way of life. Bauer said she understood the commission wanted to protect roads and that she would do whatever it took to find a mutually beneficial solution.
"We are willing to do whatever it takes to make everyone happy," Bauer said.
Commissioner Reese Boehm questioned the motivation for putting signs on those specific roads.


As explained in the FAQ "What are fragment databases?", Progenesis MetaScope requires you to use a separate fragment database (MSP file) to store the fragmentation data, in addition to the CSV or SDF database file containing compound properties like neutral mass and retention time.
Suppose you download an SDF file from an external source (e.g. MassBank) which contains no fragmentation data, and then proceed to augment it with fragmentation patterns you have observed in your experiments.
Now suppose that MassBank release a new version of the SDF file. Updating to this SDF would require somehow transplanting the fragmentation data from the old SDF into the new one (either manually or using a script - either way a time consuming task).
By storing your fragmentation data in a separate MSP file, which links to the SDF via compound IDs, you can update the SDF by simply downloading the new version and replacing the old one. Neither the MSP or updated SDF need to be edited, since they can still be linked up using compound IDs.
Different adducted forms of a compound may produce different fragmentation patterns.
However, SDF files just give information about the neutral compound, so storing fragmentation patterns for different adducts would be problematic.
By using a separate MSP file, it is a lot easier to store fragmentation data for multiple adducts of the same compound (a record is added in the MSP file for each adduct form).
Progenesis QI can then easily choose the fragmentation data for the correct adducted form when doing a compound search.