eARC Review: Scorched Souls by Jeff Altabef and Erynn Altabef {Book 3 in Chosen Series}

Title: Scorched Souls
Author(s): Jeff Altabef; Erynn Altabef
Series: Chosen, book 3
Publisher: Evolved Publishing
Genre: Scifi, YA thriller, paranormal, action
Source: received from authors, Novel Publicity, ebook, 13+



Synopsis:

Fate and destiny clash in the explosive, heart-pounding conclusion to the award-winning Chosen series.~~~~~Survival is not enough.Alliances will be formed.Loyalties tested.A choice made.My name is Juliet Wildfire Stone and I’m not just a Chosen, I’m the Alpha… and the fate of Earth rests in my hands.When I finally met the Prime Elector, he wasn’t anything like I expected. He was supposed to be our mortal enemy, a monster I needed to destroy to fulfill my destiny, yet he was nothing like that—he’s young, brilliant, and looks like an angel.Caught in the middle of a conflict between two ancient foes, which threatens to rip Earth apart, I must do what is right at all costs. To choose my fate, and Earth’s future, I will need to navigate a new path, form unlikely alliances, and solve ancient mysteries forgotten for centuries.Yet I cannot do it alone. Will the other Chosen follow me? Do I have the strength to make the right choice, or will the people of Earth be enslaved for all time?

My Thoughts:

It's finally here! The last book in the series, Chosen, by Jeff and Erynn Altabeff, a father daughter author team!! Scorched Souls is such a perfect title to this story.  It is literally the embodiment of how the characters feel; how I feel after reading this! 

I want to thank the authors for sending me the e-book, and also a huge shout out to Novel Publicity for thinking of me too. You guys rock!!

Now, I need you to remember that this is the last book in the series.  I try my best not to reveal spoilers, but sometimes when you are discussing the last book, that is impossible to do.  So if you haven't read the other two books then please run and grab those books before you even read this.  

Scorched Souls picks up around about where Brink of Dawn leaves off.  All of the Chosen are together, having survived a battle and losing their mentor, Stuart.  They are all a little shaken, but Juliet, our main protagonist, seems to be feeling the effects of her choices.  She still feels guilty for killing and she worries more and more about the other Chosen.  

There is also  a budding relationship between Juliet and Connor that seems to give her strength when she needs it most.  

I am grateful the authors did not make this into a love triangle with Troy.  I love Troy and I believe what he and Juliet shares transcends any physical love.  Troy is her best friend, her brother, maybe even her Jimny Cricket, or her conscience.  Their relationship is magical and I appreciate the fact that it wasn't lessened by turning it into a love triangle.  Thank you!

I believe this book is a literary masterpiece because of the utmost care that is put into creating characters that are believable, realistic, and lovable.  Yes, our main characters have powers and abilities that most of us don't, but that doesn't take away from us being able to relate to them.  It just shows us more of how human they become when they are forced to bear such responsibility.  

These people are wracked by fear, anxiety, guilt, and self-doubt; yet they overcome all of this to protect each other every day.  They also show us love, respect, honor, intelligence and bravery in every choice they make.  I honestly believe lots of teens today could learn from Juliet and her friends.

I know I have, even being a lot older than these characters.  

There is a quote that Juliet's grandfather tells her and I absolutely love it:

"The Wind Spirit isn't always good, and Coyote isn't always bad." 

Honestly, I believe that  sums up life perfectly.  Every person has both inside them.  You have to look at their actions and try to find their soul to see the "goodness" that you need to find.  Wonderful quote!

There are lots of concepts discussed through the book, including the American Indian culture, as well as the essence of souls, and forgiveness.  I think an important concept that gets addressed is death.  There are different aspects and beliefs out there and I like that the book caters to other beliefs as well.  And of course, I love how there are many common similarities to the Spirit World in different beliefs.  Great job!

There  is non-stop action in Scorched Souls, and we are traveling to England this time, Connor's hometown.  So we get to explore a little more about our resident good bad boy's past. 

I have always wanted to visit England and through the beautiful and detailed descriptions, I feel like I was right there with everyone.  

I feel like a great way to sum up Juliet and her progression is a quote from our friendly neighborhood hero, Spiderman:

"With great power, comes great responsbility."

Juliet continues to get stronger and stronger and struggles with controlling the power as it flows through her body.  She is faced with a difficult decision that could destroy everything she holds dear.  Even throughout all of this, though, she doesn't lose sight of her humanity.  She continues to grasp what it means to be human, to contain a soul.  

And of course as well as being introduced to some new characters, we are allowed a reunion with some returning characters from the other two books.   

I will warn you that the ending is a hard one.  We do lose people and you will shed some tears.  But I also understand the need for this ending and I think you will too.  

The Takeaway:

Scorched Souls is a fantastic ending to a wonderful series that combines aliens, faith, American Indian culture, and secret societies to give us a story that is wholly satisfying and soul embracing. 

Don't forget to check out the sponsored giveaway posted here. And remember to grab your own copy at:

Purchase:

Amazon

Connect with our Authors:

Jeff Altabef:

Twitter|Website| Facebook | Newsletter

Erynn Altabef:

Facebook|

Spotlight Post for Scorched Souls by Jeff Altabef and Erynn Altabef: The final book

Scorched Souls in the Spotlight

Welcome to The Scorched Souls Tour!

Welcome to another exciting Spotlight Tour with Novel Publicity. Today, I’m sharing the spotlight for Scorched Souls, the final story in the Chosen Trilogy by Jeff Altabef and Erynn Altabef. Don't forget to enter for your chance to win some great prizes including an Amazon Gift Card, a Paperback of Scorched Souls and a dream catcher!

GIVEAWAY

Here is an Exclusive Excerpt

I lean back in my chair; he’s dumped a bucket of ice water on my head, and the chill settles into my bones. “So the Chosen were set up to fail. You’ve planted a bomb on the planet to explode when the Deltites take over.”

He nods, a smug self-congratulatory grin on his face. “A Heart Stone to be precise. It was the only logical action to take.”

Bile burns my throat. “But billions of humans live on the planet.... They will all die. They have souls.”

Still, my father’s logic is undeniable.

 “Another complication has developed.” Two different human faces materialize above us and hover in front of the image of Earth. “The woman’s name is Summer Stone. She’s what humans call Native American, and is the mother to the Alpha among the Chosen. The man is not from her tribe. He’s what they call Irish.”

“So?” Why does he care?

“The calculations behind the Chosen were extremely advanced and fragile.” A third face

joins that of the others. “The Alpha’s name is Juliet Wildfire Stone. She was supposed to be born from a union between two members of the same Native American tribe. That genetic combination was the only way humans could produce a Chosen strong enough to be an Alpha and draw power from the other three. The secret order had specific rules regarding this, yet they failed to heed them. Fools! I can’t predict what the outcome will be of this particular pairing.”

I study the faces and notice that Juliet has inherited much of her physical appearance from her mother: the long straight black hair, the caramel colored eyes, brown skin and high cheekbones—all but her sharp nose, which resembles her father’s.

Her eyes seem to sparkle, but I shake my head. These are only holographic images. I can’t read too much into them or let my imagination cloud my reason. “I don’t understand the problem. Either she is powerful enough to be the Alpha, or she isn’t. Since you want them to fail, why do you care?”

My father bores his gaze into me, and an icy blade carves into my chest and twists. “There is a third possibility.”

My body turns weak. I’m lucky I’m already sitting. It’s unthinkable, but it’s the only thing that might frighten my father. “You’re afraid she’s an... abomination.”

“I can’t rule it out. Even if she is, she won’t be strong enough defeat an Elite, but we can’t take any chances. I want you to go to Earth. Make sure the Chosen fail and never find out about our plans. They can’t tell the Deltites about the Heart Stone I’ve planted on the planet. If they retrieve that crystal, all would be lost, and they could use its power against us.”

“Me.” I point to my chest. “Why me? Why not send someone else, someone who has already proven—”

“I trust no one else with this! You will succeed and return to Alpha, and when you return you will take the final test. This way we have an excuse for your... reluctance to finish the final exam.”

Two small discs fly into his hand, and he hands one to me. “This one is programmed with my brainwaves. You will use it when you have succeeded. I will keep the second here, so I can contact you... if need be.”

I sense the implied threat in his words and bow my head. “Yes, father. As you command.”

If pure evil exists in this universe, it’s sitting next to me, and I am this monster’s son. What does that make me?

I glance at the hologram of Earth above me. It’s a beautiful planet.

He’s sentenced billions of humans to die, but can I carry out the punishment?

About the Book

Fate and destiny clash in the explosive, heart-pounding conclusion to the award-winning Chosen series.

~~~~~

Survival is not enough.

Alliances will be formed.

Loyalties tested.

A choice made.

My name is Juliet Wildfire Stone and I’m not just a Chosen, I’m the Alpha… and the fate of Earth rests in my hands.

When I finally met the Prime Elector, he wasn’t anything like I expected. He was supposed to be our mortal enemy, a monster I needed to destroy to fulfill my destiny, yet he was nothing like that—he’s young, brilliant, and looks like an angel.

Caught in the middle of a conflict between two ancient foes, which threatens to rip Earth apart, I must do what is right at all costs. To choose my fate, and Earth’s future, I will need to navigate a new path, form unlikely alliances, and solve ancient mysteries forgotten for centuries.

Yet I cannot do it alone. Will the other Chosen follow me? Do I have the strength to make the right choice, or will the people of Earth be enslaved for all time?

About the Authors

Jeff Altabef is an award-winning author who lives in New York with his wife, two daughters, and Charlie the dog. He spends time volunteering at the writing center in the local community college. After years of being accused of “telling stories,” he thought he would make it official. He writes in both the thriller and young adult genres.

Jeff is very happy and proud that his co-author for the Chosen Series is his teenaged daughter, Erynn Altabef. Wind Catcher, the first in the Chosen Series, has won the 2015 Readers’ Favorite Gold Medal for Coming of Age Novels, the 2015 Beverly Hills Book Award for Best YA Fiction and a Mom’s Choice Award.

As an avid Knicks fan, Jeff is prone to long periods of melancholy during hoops season. Jeff has a column on The Examiner focused on writing and a blog designed to encourage writing by those who like telling stories.

Connect with Jeff on his http://www.jeffaltabef.com">website,

https://www.facebook.com/Jeff-Altabef-Author-479282732198216/?fref=ts">Facebook, https://twitter.com/JeffAltabef">Twitter, http://www.jeffaltabef.com/newsletter/.

Erynn Altabef is an avid reader, dancer, and community activist. Some of her favorite authors are Veronica Roth, Joelle Charbonneau, and her dad! (That would be Jeff Altabef.) She just started her freshman year at Connecticut College is proud to be a camel!!!

Connect with Erynn on https://www.facebook.com/erynnaltabefauthor/">Facebook.

Brink of Dawn Blog Tour: Excerpt & Giveaway hosted by Novel Publicity and Jeff Altabef, Erynn Altabef

Welcome to the Brink of Dawn Tour
hosted by Novel Publicity

Authors Jeff Altabef and Erynn Altabef

Follow-up to the multiple award-winning Wind Catcher:

They walk among us as if they are gods.

Only the Chosen know what they are.

Only the Chosen know to fear them.

And only the Chosen can defeat them.

Juliet Wildfire Stone and her best friend, Troy Buckhorn, barely escaped their sleepy Arizona town alive. Now they’re speeding to New York City to find the three other Chosen. The Chosen must band together to face an ancient foe that threatens all humanity.

Yet Juliet doesn’t know whom to trust, and strange things are happening in the City.

The Chosen will be tested, their resolve questioned, and their flaws exposed. Each must decide whether he or she will fulfill their destiny—or run. To defeat the enemy, they must stop battling among themselves and overcome their own struggles.

Only one can lead them. Will Juliet embrace her powers in time?

Brink of Dawn picks up where the multiple-award-winning first book in the Chosen series, Wind Catcher, left off, but it can also be read as a stand-alone novel. Continue the adventure! And be sure to watch for the third and final installment in this exciting series, Scorched Souls, to launch in late 2016.

About the Authors

Jeff Altabef is an award winning author who lives in New York with his wife, two daughters, and Charlie the dog. He spends time volunteering at the writing center in the local community college. After years of being accused of "telling stories," he thought he would make it official. He writes in both the thriller and young adult genres. Fourteenth Colony, a political thriller, was his debut novel. Evolved Publishing has published Jeff’s second thriller, Shatter Point, which won the Pinnacle Book Achievement Award for Fall 2014 in the category of Best Thriller.




Jeff's first young adult novel, Wind Catcher: A Chosen Novel was published in March by Evolved Publishing. He's extremely excited that his daughter, Erynn Altabef, is his co-author on the Chosen Series. As an avid Knicks fan, Jeff is prone to long periods of melancholy during hoops season. Jeff has a column on The Examiner focused on writing and a blog designed to encourage writing by those that like telling stories.




As an avid Knicks fan, Jeff is prone to long periods of melancholy during hoops season. Jeff has a column on The Examiner focused on writing and a blog designed to encourage writing by those who like telling stories.

~Excerpt ~

Please enjoy this wonderful excerpt from the novel Brink of Dawn and be sure to enter the giveaway afterwards.  And when you get the chance, run out there and grab this book as well as the first one.  YOU will not be disappointed!

Amazon |

~Excerpt~

“You don’t have to do this, Jules.” Troy cocks his head to the side a little, the way he does when he’s worried about me.





The warm expression in his eyes melts my heart. What would I do without him?





He’s always looking out for me. I used to get into fights, but even when they were my fault, he’d always stand up for me. Now I need him more then ever. The fate of the world is at stake, and he’s still here beside me, standing up for me. He’ll die to protect me if he has to, but I don’t need him to protect me anymore. I need him close, to wrap his friendship around me like a blanket, to connect, to feel human.





Lately I’ve had a hard time feeling human without him.





“When was the last time I did something I didn’t want?” I smirk, but my words ring hollow, untrue—at least for me. I’m always stuck doing chores for other people, and now there’s an entire destiny to fulfill that’s been thrust upon me. I’d rather be normal and have nothing to do with this future, but we don’t get a chance to pick our destiny. At least I didn’t.





“What’s your mom going to say when she finds out?”





“Since when are you worried about my mom? You’ve been getting me in trouble since we were in kindergarten. Your name has been etched at the top of her Undesirable List since we were six. I’ve seen it. She keeps it posted on the refrigerator.”





Troy arches his eyebrows. “Hey, your mom loves me! I’m the other child she’s never had.”





“Are you serious?” I shoot him a half smile so he knows I’m joking.





Everybody loves Troy. Still, he’s not on the college track, and Mom wants me to go to one of the best colleges so I can make tons of money and become a big shot lawyer, like her or some other Master of the Universe that has no fun and works way too hard.





“Mom’s back home and we’re here. She doesn’t get a vote.”





He frowns. “It’s just that... once you do this, you can’t undo it. It’s forever.”





“Really. That’s the point.” I shove him lightly in the chest. I’m old enough to make up my own mind, but he’s just trying to protect me, so I can’t get too angry with him.





“What are your classmates at that fancy private school going to think when they find out?”





I pause for a second and look at him. I mean, really look at him, and peer past the handsome exterior: the almond-colored eyes, the chiseled chin, and the long raven hair that falls past his broad shoulders in a tight braid.





Beyond his confident shell, deep in his soul, he harbors doubts that trouble him—doubts he’ll never share with me. He’s making believe life will go back to normal once I fulfill this destiny—if I fulfill this destiny—but that’s not possible. Normal has become a bad joke, but I won’t shatter the illusion for him. He needs to sort events into a pattern he understands and imagine a time when life returns to what it was for us. It’s how he’s coping with the situation. I need to be strong for him. I can’t weaken his defenses, even if fears riddle my mind at every turn.





I straighten my back. “You know I don’t care about what they think at Bartens. I want to do this. I need to do it.” The wind kicks up, and the cool night air sweeps against my skin, leaving an army of goose bumps in its wake.





The almost full moon lights the cloudless sky. We inch toward the store and hesitate at the door. A red neon sign reads Lost Souls Tattoos in the front window. I take a deep breath and shove the door open, and a bell jingles above us.





No one’s in sight. Pictures of various tattoos line the walls of the small rectangular shop.





Toward the front left is a glass case with a cash register on top, and farther in the back are a massage table, some bright lights, and a chair with wheels on the legs.





A woman strolls from a back room. She’s in her twenties, gaunt with sharp features, smoky gray eyes, short hair, one nose ring, and small hoops that circle the edges of her ears. She holds a half-eaten wrap as she ambles toward us. “What do you guys want?”





She wears a loose gray T-shirt and tight jeans. Brightly colored tats cover her left arm, mostly eagles and hawks, and on the left side of her neck is a teardrop the size of my palm.





“I want a tattoo,” I say casually, as if ordering a cheeseburger at McDonalds.





She points to a sign taped on the cash register. “You’ve got to be eighteen for me to give you a tattoo, and there’s no way you’re eighteen.”





I’m almost sixteen. In the right light I could pass for eighteen, but she probably has a lot of experience with underage teenagers asking for tattoos. Still, I feel a lot older than eighteen and that should count for something.





“No one else is here. It’s late and this tattoo is really important to me.” My voice whines slightly at the end. I wish it hadn’t.





“Why?” She crosses her arms against her chest and arches her eyebrows upward. Two gold rings, one in each eyebrow, bob up and down.





An invisible door creaks open. I’ll only get one chance to persuade her to give me the ink. Her teardrop tattoo stands out and must be important. Grief dulls the sparkle in her eyes and shows in the muscles that tighten her jaw. She’ll relate to my story, if it’s truthful.





“I need to remember someone who died recently. He was really important to me.”





“Who?”





“My grandfather. I called him Sicheii, and he raised me like a father. He died to protect me.” Tears moisten my eyes. The tears are real, as Sicheii’s death is a fresh wound. People tell me the pain will get better with time, but they don’t know what they’re talking about. They mean well, but this hurt will always be fresh. He’ll always be gone, and it’s my fault. The woman’s face softens. “Just for the sake of discussion, what’re you looking for?”





Troy drops the satchel looped over his shoulder, smiles, lifts his T-shirt, and reveals his well-muscled chest and copper skin. Across his heart is a blue tat of two twisted arrows in a circle. Each arrow features different feathers and arrowheads.





The woman glides toward him and examines the ink on his chest. It’s beautiful in its simplicity and symmetry. She clearly admires it and perhaps wouldn’t mind trying to copy it.





Her eyes widen as she lingers over the details. “What does it mean?”





I hesitate. What am I going to tell her, the truth? That the symbol represents the ancient Order of the Twisted Arrows? Or that my grandfather unwittingly injected me at birth with alien DNA, which has changed me forever? Or that I’m one of four Chosen thrust into a battle for our world against a powerful enemy called from a different planet?





None of those explanations will get me a tattoo. She’d probably chase us from the store. I settle for something bland. “It represents an old society he belonged to. It meant everything to him. It was kind of a... club.”





At least it’s not a lie. She’s probably used to people lying to her and would catch a whiff of one right away.





She traces the circle with her finger. “Is it some weird Native American thing?”





“You could say that.” Native Americans use tattoos generally to identify with certain tribes or to honor their animal spirit guide. I’m half Native American on my mom’s side, and Sicheii was her father. I have long black hair, an oval face, coffee-colored eyes that are round but not quite round enough to be beautiful, and a long, pointy nose I inherited from my Irish father. I look Native American except for the ghastly nose.





The tattoo artist leaves Troy and slides in front of me. She stands close, no more than a foot away, and traces of vegetable wrap linger on her breath. I’m taller than the average person and stand at least three inches higher than she does.





She studies my face for a long moment; perhaps she’s trying to see if I’m serious. “What’s your name?”





“Juliet Wildfire Stone.” I never used to tell people my middle name. It embarrassed me. Now I realize it’s who I am, part of my identity.





“Wildfire, huh? I can see that. Where do you want the tattoo?”





I roll up the right sleeve of my T-shirt. “My shoulder would be great.”





She nods. “It’ll cost you two hundred cash, and you can’t tell anyone you got it here.”





“Done.” I hand her four fifty-dollar bills.

She locks the door to the shop, guides me to the table in the back, and places a pillow on one end. “You want it the same color?”





I jump on the table. “Yep.”





She gestures for Troy to come close. “Keep your shirt up. I want to get it just right.”





Two hours later, she wipes my arm with a towel. “That’s so weird.”





“What’s wrong?” My heart jumps. Did she just totally mess up my arm and leave me with some ugly circle thing?





Troy’s smiling, so how bad of a job could she have done?





“Usually it takes a couple weeks for the tat to heal. It always bleeds a little or gets puffy, but your arm already looks perfect, as if the ink had been on it forever.”





She hands me a mirror, and I smile. My tattoo is exactly the same as Troy’s. Exactly the same as Sicheii’s had been.





I shrug and hop from the table. “I’ve always been a fast healer.”





My DNA’s been changed, so my body can regenerate itself almost instantly. I didn’t know that before. It’s just another one of my abilities, as Sicheii would say. I’ve started to think of them as aberrations.





I have five so far: I can hear other people’s thoughts and read their emotions; I can possess animals for a short period of time; I have increased strength and speed; can move things with my mind; and heal instantly. There will probably be more, but they scare me. With each new one, I become less human.





“We’d better head out.”





I step toward the door, and she grabs my wrist. “Wait. I want to take a picture of the ink for the wall.”





“You can’t.” I yank my arm away from her.





“I won’t take your face. Just the ink.”





“Tough.” She scowls at me, but I ignore her and march outside.





When we leave the store a sharp pain stabs through my head, as though someone has taken an axe to my skull and cleaved it in two. A wild rage burns through me, and all of a sudden I’m inside a villa next to a piano.






Breath catches in my throat, all the strength saps from my body, and I plummet to the ground.

About the Prizes

We've got great prizes for this tour including signed paperbacks AND a 6 month subscription to Kindle Unlimited! You can enter multiple times & every day if you want!

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It's a REVEAL and a Giveaway!!! Sin Eater Episode 1.1 by Pavarti K. Tyler & Jessica West

You've heard rumblings about it, now it's finally here. SIN EATER by Pavarti K. Tyler and Jessica West is available now on Amazon.com. Check out the giveaway at the end of this post!

Episode 1.1 is FREE 9/25 & 9/26 so grab your copy NOW. After that it will be $0.99 or free on Kindle Unlimited: Amazon.com

Episode 1.2 is available now for $0.99: Amazon.com

---

From Award-Winning Author Pavarti K. Tyler and Speculative Fiction Author Jessica West, comes a Dark Urban Fantasy serial about evil, and the next step in its evolution.

**This is Episode ONE in a seven part urban fantasy/horror serial**

A Sin Eater who battles demons for souls
A Priest who must protect what he most desires, even from himself,
A rogue Romani mortician with an attitude, a secret, and a powerful weapon,
And a Secret Order of the Church who knows more than they’re saying…
Nikolai Grekh is the last Sin Eater.

Born into a world rampant with demon possession, Nik Grekh struggles to keep Hell’s hordes from consuming the world, but he grows weary of the constant battle against sin. Evil grows stronger as more souls are lost. With each new possession growing increasingly violent, Nik fears he may be losing the war.

When Nik confronts a demon he can barely defeat, he reaches out to the only man who can save him. The only man he trusts. The one man he can never have…
Evil has resided alongside humanity since the beginning of time, feeding on our weaknesses, our vices. Our sins. It hungers for our souls, its demonic offspring possessing humans, corrupting, manipulating, using us as unwitting pawns in a supernatural chess match for the ultimate price: life.

The Crucifixion of Christ saved humanity once. What will it take to save us this time?

*contains mature content, offensive themes, and general deviance*

Sin Eater 1.1 is approximately 10,000 words or 45 pages, and is the first of seven episodes in the first season of the Sin Eater serial. If you don’t enjoy serials, you can pre-order the full Box Set on Amazon.

---

A Note About Serials: These are not stand alone books, however, if that drives you crazy, you can PREORDER the full box set now:

For those reading alone as each episode is released, here is the full schedule:

Sin Schedule

Episode

Publication Date

Episode 1

9/25/2015

Episode 2

9/25/2015

Episode 3

10/9/2015

Episode 4

10/23/2015

Episode 5

11/6/2015

Episode 6

11/20/2015

Episode 7

12/4/2015

Box Set

12/15/2015

---

Read an Excerpt

Nik's hand dripped blood and his forehead throbbed.

"You can't kill this man and that's the only way you'll get rid of me. You can't take an innocent life without opening yourself up to my kind. So go ahead, kill him, and then I'll wrap myself in your shell and consume your soul." The monster licked its lips.

“Bullshit.”

The leaky, red eyes of the demon’s host displayed the first real signs of fear. It was all but beat. He was almost finished.

"Behold and obey. By the power of Christ, invested in me by the Kingdom of Heaven and its mighty King, I command you to yield. For this vessel is a child of God, sacred unto him."

Beads of sweat popped out on the brow of the man before him, now crouching and glaring up at Nik. One side of his face had melted away, leaving only sinew and bone. He curled his arms and fists, making his biceps bulge with effort.

His voice, empowered by his birthright and emboldened by experience, rang clear in the night. "I exorcise thee, every unclean spirit, in the name of God," Nik pressed his bloody palm against the demon's forehead, "and in the name of Jesus, and in the name of the Holy Spirit!"

Nik drew the sign of the cross on the demon's flesh with his own blood.

"Tell me your name! The blood of Christ compels you!"

The man's bulging muscles shook. He ground his teeth, trying his best to stop from revealing his name and giving Nik the only thing he needed to destroy him. He screamed, a long and low furious yell that revealed the only thing that might have kept him safe: "Naamah."

Nik slapped his wet palm onto the man's sweaty forehead. "I exorcise thee, Naamah, in the name of God, and in the name of Jesus," Nik's hand burned the man's flesh, but he couldn't stop, "and in the name of the Holy Spirit." He pulled his face close until the two were eye-to-eye.

The black from the demon's eyes receded into its head, traveling the surface of the man's skin and turning it gray. He opened his mouth and a black cloud rushed out, choking its former host as it was expelled.

The monster let out a shriek as the last of its hold on the man was ripped out, sliding out of his human host's mouth and into a black glob on the street.

The man came to his senses. Confusion showed in his eyes as his mind was once again able to access his body. As the evil left the man's body, he slumped to the ground and Nik lowered with him. Nik stayed just long enough to make sure the man's pulse was stable. His job was to get the evil out, not to worry about what happened after.

Nik’s head spun, he was too exhausted, sick, and confused to reason it out. He’d exorcised the demon. That’s all that mattered. He’d figure out the particulars later.

The blood on Nik's hand glowed a deep red in the darkness as he reached out and grabbed the evil before him. With a silent prayer, he picked it up, black sin wrapping around his fingers like tentacles. Bile rose in his mouth at the thought of what he needed to do next. Twice in one night.

The throb in his head began again and Nik stuffed the evil into his mouth, swallowing its slick putrid essence in one gulp.

Nik stood, but he swayed and leaned heavily on the wall to his left, unable to see through the dark haze that descended over his eyes. He felt like someone had snuffed him out. Cold gripped his body, seeping into his bones, pulling him down, crushing him in its icy fist.

He instantly regretted treating this one as he had every other. He should have known better. There was nothing about this possession that had been like the others. After everything he went through to beat this thing, he came right back around to the same thought as before. This would be the one that killed him.

---

And now the fun part!

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Blog Tour Book Review: Logos by John Neeleman

Title:  Logos
Author: John Neeleman
Publisher: Homebound Publications
Date of Publication: March 2015
Source: from author; Novel Publicity blog tour

Book Synopsis:

 While novels and cinema have repeatedly sought after the historical Jesus, until now none have explored what may be a more tantalizing mystery—the Christian story’s anonymous creator. Logos is a literary bildungsroman about the man who will become the anonymous author of the original Gospel, set amid the kaleidoscopic mingling of ancient cultures. Logos is a gripping tale of adventure, a moving love story, and a novel of ideas. None of this should be regarded as out of place or incompatible in a novel about Christianity’s origin. Dissent, anarchism, and revolution—and incipient Christianity was no less these things than the Bolshevik, the French or the American revolutions—inevitably have involved ideas, adventure, and romance.
In A.D. 66, Jacob is an educated and privileged Greco-Roman Jew, a Temple priest in Jerusalem, and a leader of Israel’s rebellion against Rome. When Roman soldiers murder his parents and his beloved sister disappears in a pogrom led by the Roman procurator, personal tragedy impels Jacob to seek blood and vengeance. The rebellion he helps to foment leads to more tragedy, personal and ultimately cosmic: his wife and son perish in the Romans’ siege of Jerusalem, and the Roman army destroys Jerusalem and the Temple, and finally extinguishes Israel at Masada. Jacob is expelled from his homeland, and he wanders by land and sea, bereft of all, until he arrives in Rome. He is still rebellious, and in Rome he joins other dissidents, but now plotting ironic vengeance, not by arms, but by the power of an idea.
Paul of Tarsus, Josephus, the keepers of the Dead Sea Scrolls, and even Yeshua, the historical Jesus himself, play a role in Jacob’s tumultuous and mysterious fortunes. But it is the women who have loved him who help him to appreciate violence’s dire cycle

.My Thoughts:


I am so happy to be a part of this blog tour for the book Logos.  Don't forget there is a lots of prizes available as well; so make sure to check out the rules and deadlines for those prizes at the end of this post.  Huge thanks goes to Novel Publicity and John Neeleman for providing this opportunity!

I was pretty stoked when I seen the description for this book on the Novel Publicity's website for upcoming blog tours.  That description blew me away and I knew; just knew I had to take part in this tour.  Logos is really one of kind and I don't think there will ever be a book that can come to close to the it in this magnitude.
First off, we need to make sure you know this is a fiction story.  It is a theory on who could have been the creator of the Bible and therefore, the Christianity movement.  So, when you come in to the story, you definitely need to have  an open mind.  I think the story appealed to me because I consider myself more spiritual than religious, per say.  I love historical fictions and this creative mystery was one of the best!
I love that the author, Mr. Neeleman, gave us an inside view into the religious concepts we learned from the Bible, but with a twist to it.  This twist is what really makes Logos become an epic journey for one man and in many ways, for ourselves as well.    Logos makes us expand our mind as we give in to the "what if" situation that has presented itself.
I was just amazed at the amount of research and hard work that went into making Logos.  As you read through the story, you see this huge amount of diversity of the different peoples known to inhabit that area in that time period. The descriptions are so well laid out it turns Logos into a 3 D artistic design instead of just a book.

Logos also introduces us to some well known and beloved characters but changes them up to make them seem new to us all over again.  Many familiar names pop up in Logos, including Paul, Josephus,and Yeshua (Jesus) too; but we are also introduced to some new characters as well.

Our main protagonist, Jacob, is a complex character that goes through some serious hardships to become a very important person.  I love that we see Jacob as a human with flaws and misgivings, and he learns through his mistakes as he goes through many battles, to become wise in his years.

As much as I did love the creativity put in the pages of the book; Logos was also terribly long.  It seemed to pay attention to detail a little too much, insofar as describing every little thing intensely.  I love detailed world building, but at the same time you have to know when to pull back.

All in all, Logos was a spectacular journey into the fictional beginnings of Christianity through the eyes of a man that goes through many spiritual and physical changes to find himself.  Logos has massive twists and turns that surprised me over and over.  It has a mixture of emotions running through it, including love as well as heartbreak.  I found myself crying at the horrors Jacob witnessed and experienced in his life.    Mr. Neeleman created a interesting story that combines politics, historical accounts, religion, mystery, and even romance to make a well rounded novel for someone with an open mind to enjoy.

About the author: John Neeleman spends his days working as a trial lawyer in tall buildings in downtown Seattle. He lives in Seattle with his wife and children. He also represents death row inmates pro bono in Louisiana and Texas. As a novelist, his editorial model is historical fiction in a largely realistic mode, though there are hallucinatory passages that reflect Neeleman’s concern with philosophical and spiritual matters, in part a residue of his religious upbringing. He was raised as a seventh generation Mormon, and rebelled, but never outgrew his interest in metaphysical concerns.

Connect with John on his publisher’s website | Facebook | Twitter | or GoodReads..

.Get LOGOS at  Amazon |  Barnes & Noble.

About the prizes: Who doesn't love prizes? You could win one of two $50 Amazon gift cards or an autographed copy of LOGOS! Here's what you need to do...

    

Enter the Rafflecopter contest

    

Leave a comment on my blog

That's it! One random commenter during this tour will win the first gift card. Visit more blogs for more chances to win--the full list of participating bloggers can be found  http://www.novelpublicity.com/

. The other two prizes will be given out via Rafflecopter. You can find the contest entry form linked below or on  http://www.novelpublicity.com/logos/

 Good luck!

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can be found at

 http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/share-code/YzE3YzI0YTkzYTJkODQ0ODQxZDUwNTUwMTQ3OTkxOjE1Mw==/?

The Melissa Foster Street Team's Giveaway

Hi everybody!  There is an awesome giveaway hosted by Novel Publicity, Melissa Foster, and her amazing Street Team that helps celebrate Foster's new release, Seaside Sunsets!  I cannot wait to get my hands on this juicy romance and I couldn't wait to share this giveaway with all of you!  So go through and make sure to check out the books, as well as entering the giveaway; and go ahead and get to know more about Melissa Foster's Street Team by clicking the image above.   Good luck to everyone and a huge thank you to all of the people who made this possible!

Huge Giveaway from NYT & USA TODAY Bestselling Author, Melissa Foster

To help celebrate the release of her newest Romance, bestselling author, Melissa Foster, has created a fun Street Team for readers of her books and lovers of the Romance genre. As part of this launch, she will be giving away lots of prizes—and I mean lots. From chocolate gift baskets to autographed books to super swag, she will be giving away more than 20 prizes, and as many as 520!

If the Street Team reaches 500 members by Monday, December 22, every single member will score an Advance Review Copy of her upcoming novel, Seaside Secrets. That means that you can enjoy the newly released Seaside Sunsets and then immediately read the next installment in the series. Pretty cool, huh?

Not in the mood to join the team? Not a problem! You can still enter the Rafflecopter contest for your chance to win a $100 Amazon gift card and autographed book.

Now that I know you’re excited, read on to learn more about Melissa’s Street Team and her newest release, Seaside Sunsets.

About Melissa’s Street Team

Do you LOVE Melissa Foster’s hunky heroes and smart, sexy heroines? Want to tell others about her books and help spread the word while gaining exclusive peeks at upcoming releases? Join Melissa’s Street Team, and become one of her most trusted fans!

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Join today:  www.facebook.com/groups/melissafosterfans

About Melissa’s Newest Release
*SEASIDE SUNSETS WAS CHOSEN AS ONE OF AMAZON EDITORS’ BEST ROMANCE BOOKS OF DECEMBER 2014For the first time since developing the second largest search engine in the world, billionaire Jamie Reed is taking the summer off. He plans to work from the Cape and spend time with his elderly grandmother--and falling in love is not in his plans.From the moment Jamie and Jessica meet, the attraction is white-hot. Once-overly-focused Jamie can think of little else than sensual, smart, and alluring Jessica, and Jessica discovers a side of herself she never knew existed. But when Jamie's business encounters trouble and his attorney and best friend intervenes, he proves that the blond beauty is too distracting for Jamie. To make matters worse, it appears that Jessica might not be who she says she is, turning Jamie's life--and his heart--upside down. In a world where personal information is always one click away, Jamie must decide if he should trust his heart or watch the woman he loves walk away

Recommended for readers aged 18+

Get Seaside Sunsets on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, iTunes, Kobo, or Google Play!

Get to know Melissa Foster:

New York Times & USA Today Bestselling Author
"What sets Melissa Foster apart are her compelling characters who you care about... desperately...I dare you to read the first chapter and not be hooked." International bestseller, M.J. Rose
"Melissa Foster is a wonderful connector of readers and books, a friend of authors, and a tireless advocate for women. She is the real deal"--Author Jennie Shortridge
Melissa Foster is a New York Times & USA Today bestselling and award-winning author. She writes contemporary romance, new adult, contemporary women's fiction, suspense, and historical fiction with emotionally compelling characters that stay with you long after you turn the last page. Her books have been recommended by USA Today's book blog, Hagerstown Magazine, The Patriot, and several other print venues. She is the founder of the Women’s Nest, a social and support community for women, and the World Literary Café. When she's not writing, Melissa helps authors navigate the publishing industry through her author training programs on Fostering Success. Melissa has been published in Calgary’s Child Magazine, the Huffington Post, and Women Business Owners magazine.

Melissa hosts an annual Aspiring Authors contest for children, and has painted and donated several murals to The Hospital for Sick Children in Washington, DC. Melissa's interests include her family, reading, writing, painting, friends, helping others see the positive side of life, and visiting Cape Cod.

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