Beasts of Burden


J. Taylor Publishing is giving away FIVE ARCs of Beasts of Burdin by Alexander Nader!

Check it out!

Demon hunter Ty Burdin hung up his guns, knife, trench coat and fedora a year ago. Bags packed, hands washed of all demon politics, he’s done. Forever.

In fact, to get far far away, he dragged Nora, his rockabilly secretary, from Miami to the Tennessee mountains where he’s lived a life of peace—if peace can be defined as drowning in scotch and taking private eye jobs to keep the lights on. Jobs for real people. Not demons.

No demons.

He’s retired from that. Remember?

Demon hunters aren’t a dime a dozen, though, and when Ty’s brother asks him for a favor—just one—what’s a brother to do? Agreeing to take down one hillbilly demon shouldn’t take that long. In. Decapitate. Out. Favor complete. Back to the office where Nora and his bottle of whiskey are waiting.

Unfortunately for Ty, staying retired doesn’t seem to be in the cards, and an avalanche of bad luck draws him right back to an agency he despises and the career that nearly cost him his sanity.

This time, Ty has no way out and will have to face his own demons just to survive.

BEASTS OF BURDIN is the first installment in an exciting and witty new urban fantasy series, featuring Ty Burdin, a retired demon hunter turned private eye. And J. Taylor Publishing is giving away FIVE ARC copies.

To YOU!

You don’t even have to be a book blogger!

Nope, so long as you are willing to leave an honest review between the dates January 27th – February 10th 2014, you are eligible to enter.

Interested?

Then just fill out the form and keep your fingers crossed.

You have until midnight of January 26th to enter.

Continue reading “Beasts of Burden”

Happy Easter


Copyright (c) 123RF Stock Photos

Happy Easter, everyone!

For those who don’t believe, feel free to take my blessings for you to have a wonderful day.  May you be blessed with good health, and prosperity.  May you surround yourself with friends and family, eat healthy, enjoy the outdoors and save me a chocolate egg or two.

For those of you who are Christian like me, let us not forget our faith and what Easter means to us.  Dear Lord, I pray:

O Lord,

As the world sings triumphant cries to heaven over death that You conquered, help us, Lord, tomorrow as well, when the dresses are put away and the candy is all eaten and on with life we go let us not forget.

The celebration of Your Resurrection over death is a celebration of life that should continue well beyond the sunrise service and the music, rehearsed for days prior; it is beyond the sign of spring, beyond the lily, beyond new lambs grazing in open fields.

Resurrection is a daily celebration over fear; man’s greatest and most powerful enemy. Fear of tomorrow, fear of our yesterdays, fear of what shall become of our young, our old, our unborn. Resurrection is replacing fear with physical action.

This alone, the most touching and profound of Your signs that fear is dead and belief in You brings, not just hope but life.

What better living parable could You have brought? All fear death. All. Even in the garden, You took on our fear if for only moments, it was as real as our fears can be real and You knew then that this single enemy must be destroyed.

And, You sacrificed Your life, leaving those who had been comfort, and follower; You left them behind, to conquer fear.

I shall cling to this now, and the tomorrows given me.

Peace and Thanksgiving lifted unto You.

Amen.
(author unknown)

cross on the hill

The Midas Tree has the Midas Touch


I recently finished the book, The Midas Tree, by Dr. Lesley Phillips, and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it.

Here’s a little bit about the novel:

MidasBookJoshua lives in the Garden Of Color and Light, an idyllic paradise where he is always playing and having fun. Each day is like any other, until he finds a magical golden acorn that enraptures him and propels him on an incredible adventure.  After being guided to chase the acorn as it flies through the garden, Joshua discovers a door at the base of a tree; and once he enters his life changes for ever.
Joshua is transported into a mysterious realm within “The Midas Tree.” Desperate to return home, he sets about exploring this unfamiliar environment. He encounters sticky situations and meets tricky characters along the way. Fortunately he does not have to face them alone. His guides are the mystical creatures that live inside the tree, called Devas. They are keepers of ancient secrets that can help Joshua to cope with the obstacles he encounters and the challenges he meets. Joshua learns from the Devas that if he wishes to return home, he must first transform himself – and “The Midas Tree”. The processes that the Devas expose him to begin a path of self-revelation where he learns the truth about himself. This spellbinding story overflows with challenges, magical creatures and mystical superpowers, which you too will discover along the way. “The Midas Tree” is a spiritual adventure novel aimed at a middle grade to Young Adult audience; although all the adults who have read it like it too.
butterfly

The first thing that struck me about this novel was how beautifully the book captures the essence of spiritual growth without being preachy or religious (not that I have anything against religious books, but since this book is meant for younger children, I liked the idea of teaching spirituality and leaving the teaching of religious beliefs to parents).  I was immediately taken with Joshua, his curiosity and his innocence.  As soon as he enters the secret realm of The Midas Tree, I knew I was in for a very special treat.

I am usually not one for talking animals in books, but in this case, they are necessary and endearing.  Not only do they speak, but they teach us about who they are and their connections to the universe. The Midas Tree is a wonderful exposition on the most purest, spiritual level of how we all are intertwined with one another, and how one single deviation from our natural course can set off a domino effect that has long lasting effects on our lives and our world.

The Midas Tree is not only inhabited by these wonderful creatures, but also by Devas:  fairy-like creatures who have separate but equally important  roles to play in teaching Joshua about the spiritual connectivity of all life.  They are probably my favorite characters in the story.

Throughout Joshua’s journey, I also encountered the spirituality in myself, and I learned a few things about tuning in and connecting with my spiritual self.  For someone who is fascinated with chakras, astral traveling, meditation and the laws of attraction, this novel gripped my spirit and led me down paths of understanding without realizing it.

Children and adults alike will enjoy this book for its wonderful lessons and unique and very special characters.  If The Chronicles of Narnia and Alice Through the Looking Glass are some of your favorite books, you will adore The Midas Tree.  It is definitely a book to add to your permanent collection for a lifetime of reading.

I give this book 5 stars out of 5.

The Midas Tree is available at Amazon on Kindle and in paperback.

Dr. Lesley Phillips is an author, Meditation Teacher, Spiritual Counselor, Clairvoyant and Energy Healer.  To learn more about her and The Midas Tree, please visit her website here.

You can also connect with her on Twitter, Goodreads, and Facebook.

In the Arms of an Angel – 100 Word Challenge


Today, I’m participating in Julia’s Place 100 Word Challenge for Grown Ups.  The prompt today is:

“…I’m exhausted. Shut the door behind you…”

Here’s my attempt.  Hope you enjoy.

In the Arms of an Angel

A young man appeared in the threshold of my hospital room.  I knew him right away, though I’d never seen his face.  Angels, even ones of death, have wonderful auras about them.  I clasped my frail hands to my chest and shed a tear of joy.

“You came,” I said.  “You heard my prayers.”

“Yes, Molly.”  His voice was light as air, sweet as honeysuckle on a vine.  There was such tenderness in his eyes.

“Good,” I said. “I’m exhausted.  Shut the door behind you, please.”

He held me as the door breathed closed.  The light faded.  Death is beautiful in the arms of an angel.

M is for Magic


This is a continuation of the A-Z blog challenge. Click here to see the list of all 1935 participants!

I love magic.  I wish it was real…well, at least the good types.  I wouldn’t want black magic, like that derived from necromancy, but in books, all sorts of magic are way cool.  I mean, think about it.  How awesome would it be to cast a charm to make an object do something it normally wouldn’t (like Chip, the singing tea cup in Beauty and the Beast)?  Maybe conjure something out of thin air?  Or, transfigure an object into something else?

I read and write lots of fantasy so I started collecting ‘facts’ about magic a long time ago.  The most common sorts you’ll find (think Merlin, Harry Potter) are the following:

Charms:  these are enchantments that cause an object to react in a way abnormal for its normal behavior.  Memory charms are a prime example.  Think “obliterate’ in Harry Potter.

Protection spells:  as implied, these spells protect the target from outside forces, primarily Dark Magic.  These also include your invisibility spells.  They are used to protect, shield or perform a barrier.

Conjuration:  This is in the transfiguration branch of magic as it creates objects out of thin air.  I love this!  Do you know how many times I wished I could just summon a perfectly cooked dinner to the table!  Conjuring is an advanced and complex magic and should not be attempted by novice magicians.

Transfiguration:  this type of magic changes the form and appearance of something.  It also includes conjuration and vanishing of objects, along with spells that change the inherent nature of the object.  Imagine wanting to have a cup of hot coffee but all you have is a thimble.  How cool would that be to change that thimble into a mug so you could have your coffee…that you would conjure out of thin air!  Love, love it.

Of course, you can’t have positive, good magic (White) without the bad, negative magic (Black).  Black magic causes harm, death or destruction either by draining power, transferring power, or simply attacking the object.  Black magic isn’t always evil and good magicians can use black magic in defense.  Black magic includes jinxes, hexes, and curses.

Jinx:  this is a spell used for the amusement of the caster with minimum discomfort to the victim.  They have negative effects and are used as defensive magic.  Most jinxes can be removed with a counter-jinx and can be prevented with an anti-jinx.

Hex:  These spells are more powerful than a Jinx, but not as powerful as a curse. They usually cause pain.  They are classified as minor Dark Magic though they can be used as protection.

Curses:  These are very, very strong magical spells used with the intention of causing great harm, control, terror, or even death over the target. Curses are stronger than Jinxes and Hexes, and are by magical beings in duels.

Divination:  this is the ability to be able to predict things while under divine influence and intervention.  I also use this in my fantasy novels.

Voodooism:  use of voodoo dolls, witchcraft and animistic deities for inflicting effects on selected targets.

Tantra:  this type of magic involves using mantras and mudras(spells) from Vedas (sacred texts) recited for getting things done magically.

Alchemy:  this type of magic is more like a science.  Alchemists have the ability to turn ordinary metals into gold.  They also have a unique understanding of chemicals and the creation of potions.

Necromancy:  a type of very bad, bad Black magic.  It involves conjuring the dead for prophesying.  You’ll usually find necromancy performed along with the use of evil spirits to produce supernatural effects in the world.

If you could do magic, what type would you like to do?