Penelope Douglas

BULLY:

My name is Tate.

He doesn't call me that, though. He would never refer to me by a friendly nickname. No, he'll barely even speak to me. But he still won't leave me alone.

We were best friends once. Then he turned on me and made it his mission to ruin my life. I've been humiliated, shut out, and gossiped about all through high school. His pranks and rumors got worse as time wore on, and I made myself sick trying to stay out of his way. I even went to France for a year, just to avoid him.

But I'm done hiding from him now, and there's no way in hell I'll allow him to ruin another year. He might not have changed, but I have. It's time to fight back.

UNTIL YOU:

Have you ever been so angry that hitting things felt good? Or so numb that you actually felt high? The past few years have been like that for me. Traveling between fury and indifference with no stops in between. Some people hate me for it, while others are scared of me. But none of them can hurt me, because I don't care about anything or anyone.

Except Tatum. I love her so much that I hate her. I hate that I can't let her go. We used to be friends, but I found out that I couldn't trust her or anyone else. So I hurt her. I pushed her away. But I still need her. She centers me, and I can pool all of my anger into her. Engaging, challenging, bullying her--call it what you will--but it's my food, my air, and the last part of me that feels anything human. But then she went and screwed everything up. She left. She went to France for a year and came back a different girl. Now, when I push, she pushes back.

RIVAL:

Madoc and Fallon. Two estranged teenagers playing games that push the boundaries between love and war…

She’s back.
For the two years she’s been away at boarding school, there was no word from her. Back when we lived in the same house, she used to cut me down during the day and then leave her door open for me at night.
I was stupid then, but now I’m ready to beat her at her own game…

I’m back.
Two years and I can tell he still wants me, even if he acts like he’s better than me.
But I won’t be scared away. Or pushed down. I’ll call his bluff and fight back. That’s what he wants, right? As long as I keep my guard up, he’ll never know how much he affects me….

Penelope Douglas Books on Amazon

Penelope Douglas is a writer living in Las Vegas. Born in Dubuque, Iowa, she is the oldest of five children. Penelope attended the University of Northern Iowa, earning a Bachelor's degree in Public Administration, because her father told her to "just get the damn degree!" She then earned a Masters of Science in Education at Loyola University in New Orleans, because she HATED public administration. One night, she got tipsy and told the bouncer at the bar where she worked that his son was hot, and three years later she was married. To the son, not the bouncer. They have spawn, but just one. A daughter named Aydan. Penelope loves sweets, The Originals, and she shops at Target almost daily.

Website - Facebook - Twitter

Review: All of the current books in the Fall Away series (with more coming soon) are based on the complex love lives of teenagers struggling to find their places in the world. Despite this, they are definitely aimed at a much more adult audience (being pinned at 18+) and Penelope Douglas does a great job of making the plots of her stories appeal to an older audience, even if they can't always relate. It's a difficult thing to write a romantic story between a bully and his victim, but by the end of the books a better understanding of these characters means that the reader eventually falls in love with all of them. I have read Bully, Until You and Rival and I cannot wait for K.C's story in Falling Away...I am already excited to learn where her journey will take her. 

I would recommend these books to anyone who loves romantic books, but is looking for something a little edgier with twists and turns that you won't expect.

Unleash the Undead Author Interviews: Lachelle Redd

1. Can you please tell me a little about yourself and your work?

I am an indie author with works in the horror, suspense, erotica genre. I mostly write short stories and novellas. I also have short stories in various anthologies.

 

2. Can you please describe your story in Unleash the Undead?

My short story in Unleash the Undead is about a doctor who, on the surface, seems to be meek and trusting and running a successful practice. But underneath, he is hiding a dangerous secret. During the zombie plague he lost his wife and unborn child to the deadly contagion, but unknown to everyone is that he is keeping her alive with experimental drugs and questionable eating habits. The rest is for you to explore.

 

3. How do you think you would fare in the zombie apocalypse?

I would have to be living in a Sams during a zombie apocalypse and have a large tank, I would be ok.

 

4. What are you currently working on?

I just released two books, so right now I am in a lull. I do have some ideas rolling around in my head so stay tuned.

 

5. Where can people find out more about you?

To find my work, check out Amazon, Smashwords Nook Books, to find out about me, check out me out on Facebook under Lachelle Redd.

Hard Time by Cara McKenna

'Gritty and compelling. McKenna is a master at capturing realistic situations and characters' - Maya Banks

'Sweet, smoking hot, stand out' - Beth Kery

By the bestselling author of After Hours and Unbound, this is romance like you've never seen it before. Utterly intense, unforgettable and not for the faint-hearted, Hard Time will turn your world upside down ....

Blurb: My pounding heart went still, eerie as birds fallen silent in the wake of a gunshot.

He was big. Tall frame, wide shoulders-but not burly. His near-black hair was due for a cut, curling under his ears. Dark brows, dark stubble, dark lashes and eyes.

And he was handsome. So handsome it broke your heart.

A deck of cards was split between his hands, paused midshuffle. Some of the men wore navy scrub tops and bottoms, some navy tee shirts, a few white undershirts. This man wore a tee, with COUSINS stenciled on the front, above the number 802267. Those digits imprinted on my brain, burned black as a brand.

He watched me. But not the way the others did. If he was trying to picture me naked, his poker face was strong, though his attention anything but subtle. His entire head moved as I passed through his domain, but his eyes were languorous. Lazy and half-lidded, yet intense. A hundred looks in one. I didn't like it. Couldn't read it. At least with the horny jerk-offs, I knew where I stood.

I wondered what the worst thing you could do and still only get sent to a medium-security prison was. I hoped not to ever learn the answer.

And I hoped to heaven inmate 802267 hadn't signed up for any of the day's programs.

Amazon US - Amazon UK

About the Author: Cara McKenna writes smart erotica—sexy stories with depth. A little dark, a little funny, always emotional. She also writes red-hot romance under the name Meg Maguire. Her wonderful publishers are Harlequin Blaze, Penguin / InterMix, Samhain, and Signet Eclipse. She loves writing sexy, character-driven stories about strong-willed men and women who keep each other on their toes, and bring one another to their knees.

Before becoming a purveyor of red-hot romance and smart erotica, Cara was a record store bitch, a lousy barista, a decent designer, and an over-enthusiastic penguin handler.

Cara now writes full-time and lives in the Pacific Northwest with her bearded husband. When she's not trapped in her own head she can usually be found in the kitchen, the coffee shop, or jogging around the nearest duck-filled pond. She is a very proud member of the Romance Writers of America® and its New England Chapter. She was a 2010 Golden Heart® finalist, a 2012 Golden Leaf finalist, and a 2011 and 2013Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice Award nominee.

Website - Goodreads- Twitter

Review: Hard Time is a 'forbidden love story' with a difference! Although Annie and Eric are very unlikely to fall in love - seeing their relationship develop through letters is extremely interesting. This becomes even more complex when their paths finally cross and they have to transfer their passion into real life. Annie's struggle to come to terms with Eric's past is very relatable and well written. I can't wait to read more from this author!

Unleash the Undead Author Interview: Noel Osualdini

1) Can you please tell me a little bit about yourself and your work?

I've held a number of careers in a range of industries. Among other positions, I’ve been a television newsroom technician, customer service officer and petrol station attendant, but from the age of 7 or 8, when I was writing fan fiction based around TV science fiction characters, I wanted to work as a writer. During my teens, I modified my ambitions and horrified my parents when I told them I'd decided to become a journalist – Australian journalists had recently died in the Vietnam war and in East Timor, and a reporter investigating the deaths of a camera crew was executed by Indonesian military on my fifteenth birthday.

I never made it into fulltime journalism, though I’ve written copious amounts of non-fiction for staff magazines and newsletters, and contributed a few reviews and editorials whilst working as a consultant typesetter for a monthly college newspaper. A couple of years ago, a writer I'd met at the newspaper invited me to join the Dark Fiction Writers’ Circle, a horror/science fiction workshop he'd formed. For the first time, I tried writing horror. I joined the Australian Horror Writers' Association, and received honorable mentions for my entries into their 2013 competition for flash fiction and short stories. Since then, I've had work published in anthologies 100 Doors to Madness (USA), Fear's Accomplice (UK), Unleash the Undead (UK), and Fear's Accomplice: Halloween, as well as in online magazines.

2) Can you please describe your story in Unleash the Undead?

Most Australians live within an hour or two of the ocean, as the interior of our continent is mainly desert, and in summer even those who aren’t great swimmers often spend time on the shore. Dead Men Can’t Climb (a rather obvious play on the title of the American movie White Men Can’t Jump) is based around a man who gets caught up in the zombie apocalypse when he comes to collect his partner from her job at a makeshift hospital. I set the story at a beach in bayside suburb Frankston. I haven’t named the town, but anyone who knows the area might recognise the carnival, the vast car park, the long refreshments stand, boardwalk, pier and the life savers’ pavillion. Frankston even has its own regional hospital; I envisaged a group of doctors and nurses being taken down to the beach to tend a group of inexplicably ill people but finding themselves under attack from those they’ve come to help.

3) How do you think you think you would fare in the zombie apocalypse?

As someone who doesn’t run or fight particularly well, I’d probably fare rather poorly in a zombie apocalypse. It would be nice to imagine that I’d become a hero, leading a band of survivors, but I’m not sure I could drive a stake through somebody, even knowing they are already dead and likely to kill me. I’m sure I’d be more like the character in my story: lost, totally unequipped for such a challenge, but hopefully able to find some sort of courage to rescue those close to me.

4) What are you currently working on?
After Dead Men Can’t Climb was accepted for publication, I decided I was done with zombies for a while. My story Wrecking Crew, about a group of train hoodlums, was published in Fear’s Accomplice: Halloween, and an older story, No More Fly Eyes, had been accepted by US magazine Bloodbond. I had a few other projects in mind, but it turned out that it was another zombie story –– or, rather, a particular character ­­–– that leapt out at me. I’m currently writing a story about a jaded Vietnam veteran who sees the beginning of the zombie apocalypse in his own town. Before anyone asks: no, it’s not Rambo versus the Zombies. He’s a complex character who’s had personal tragedy in his life, and he’s leading a disappointing, pedestrian life until the world suddenly changes.

5) Where can people find out more about you?

I don’t have a website of my own, though I’m on Facebook and can also be found pretty easily via a Google search (one of the advantages of having a fairly unique name). I have a story to be published in the November issue of US magazine Bloodbond, and there’s a novella scheduled to come out as part of a collection later this year or early in 2015. Anthologies with my stories are available via Amazon.com, and Bloodbond will be available from the store at www.albanlake.com.

On The Trail by Jamie Dickerman

Political campaigns may seem shiny from the outside, but there's always scandal lurking just below the surface. When Kailey Ryan is thrust into the world of scandal, drama, and high-energy campaigning, her life is turned upside down. As she works alongside seasoned politico, Chris Duncan, to help elect the beautiful and poised Adrienne Jackson to the U.S. House of Representatives, they must navigate the murky waters of saving face in a world where appearances are everything—and where everyone has a secret.

Amazon - Facebook - Twitter

Review: Jamie Dickerman has an amazing way with words that had me gripped from the very first page. Even with no knowledge of the political world, I found On The Trail thrilling and exciting to read. The characters are deep, exciting and as the plot spiralled, I couldn't wait to find out what they were all hiding. 5/5 stars - I can't wait for more from this author! 

Unleash the Undead Author Interviews: Jonny Graham

1. A little about me and my work? There really isn't that much to tell as this is all very new to me, but my name is Jonny and I am from Leeds, England. I currently find full time employment in the Print industry, but this is merely a means to and end, as writing is my true love and becoming a well established author is the ultimate dream. My favourite passtimes include gaming, listening to and playing music, cosplay and of course, the pub!

2.  My work in this wonderful anthology is called Ghost. It follows the story of a young man and is set in a fantasy world. Many years ago the world was forever changed when chemical explosives detonated in the centre of major cities, causing an outbreak of undead. The main character, Ghost, was born in the aftermath of this outbreak. Most cities have been divided and walled off into military-controlled zones, leaving the ruined central areas to the remaining undead. Ghost is a runner, a scavenger who ventures out into the dangerous middle ground in search of useful loot, and it is on one of these vital missions that he meets his destiny. I tried to write a story that is both tense and hard hitting, and for the readers to feel the emotions of Ghost as their own. 

3. Well now, how would I fair in a zombie apocalypse? Very well thank you! I truly have no idea, I like to think I could rise as a confident and inspirational leader, a hero to look up to and provide aid and guidance to whoever needed it. In reality though I think Id knock out the stairs and hide in the loft, eating beans and throwing roof tiles at passing dead!     

4. I am currently working on a longer story of my own, and also helping out a friend in a kind of joint tale-telling venture. Who knows when these will be finished, but should time allow they will be coming along sometime in the new year. 

5. Well should anyone want to find me, I am of course on Twitter @JonnyoftheVale and my email is jonny.graham27@googlemail.com. I will always be available so feel free to contact me! I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Samie Sands for including me in this anthology, and also all the fantastic people who have taken the time to read and provide feedback on not only my work, but all the mind blowing stuff within! 

The Last Hero by Nathaniel Danes

Blurb: Contact with a race of pacifists convinces mankind to lay down its weapons and keep the peace. The last Medal of Honor recipient, Trent Maxwell, trades glory for the comforts of a family after the U.S. Army disbands. All that ends when an alien menace attacks the New Earth colony, which forces a crash mobilization. Trent finds himself reactivated and traveling through space to distant worlds, in order to stop this new enemy. During the century long journey of death, love, and loss, he also deals with the law of relativity that wreaks havoc with his daughter.

Amazon US - Amazon UK

About the Author: Nathaniel Danes is a self-diagnosed sci-fi junkie and, according to his wife, has an over active imagination. Mostly blind, he writes to create universes where he has no limitations. He lives with his wife and daughter in the Washington, DC area.

Website - Facebook - Twitter

Review: The Last Hero is an action packed tale filled with twists and turns, but the factor that makes it stand out from the crowd is the heartfelt emotion that lies at the heart of it all. If you love sci fi, but are looking for something a little different - I highly recommend this book. Nathaniel Danes has a brilliant way with words and the plot flows perfectly because of it.