Giveaway for "Cursed" Ending Soon

Curious about Cursed but not sure about purchasing it? Enter the giveaway on Goodreads to receive your free copy! The contest ends on April 13th. Click here to enter. 
For you Tumblr users out there, enter here for a second chance to win.

World Castle Publishing announced the immediate release of Cursed by Red Harvey. This is Red Harvey’s debut novel. Cursed is a paranormal romance about an anthropology student with the power of prescience. Imogen Ameore has learned the hard way knowing the future doesn’t mean she can change it. Another curse of her gift is her vulnerability to spirits that desire reincarnation. After her sister’s death, Imogen returns to her hometown of Graydon, Florida. Despite the fact that she always “sees” when a relationship will end and why, she re-kindles a romance with the secretive but charming Rafe Ahote. Rafe isn’t enough to distract Imogen from ancient spirits haunting her, seeking re-entry into the human world. Imogen’s pregnancy and marriage to Rafe force her to find answers. With the help of Rafe’s methods and a quirky shaman, Imogen discovers a Native American Uzita legend coinciding with Hernando de Soto, and the evil doppelgangers of Adam and Eve, Lamashtu and Samael. The hauntings culminate in Imogen’s death, Rafe’s possession, and the re-birth of Samael and Lamashtu. Once she’s dead, the spirit of Imogen’s sister helps her retain a new body, new abilities, and a new mission to stop the demonic offspring from destroying mankind. Red Harvey brings this horror story together with surprises, humor, and old clichés turned on their head. Readers hunting for a paranormal read with a Buffy-esque twist are sure to enjoy Cursed.

Red Harvey lives in Georgia with her husband and young son. She is currently working on her fourth novel, a speculative science fiction project exploring gender roles. She enjoys writing, reading, studying (yes, studying), and generally nerding it up with family and friends.

Cursed by Red Harvey is now available at your favorite bookstore.

Orlando: The Man, The Woman

Original cover
User: El-luismi
Source: Wikimedia Commons

Orlando is a novel by Virginia Woolf that takes the idea of being a man and woman in one lifetime (or several lifetimes) and puts it to good use. The title character, Orlando, is a nobleman living in England during the Elizabethan period. He is content with his life except for the loneliness, having been engaged, married, or assumed to be engaged to four women in his lifetime. When he meets a Russian princess, he thinks that life has finally rewarded him with his one true love. Unfortunately, the princess does not reciprocate and leaves Orlando. Distraught, Orlando turns to his other passion: writing. He takes writing seriously, writing plays, poems, and stories, all odiously long. Away in his country manor he writes and writes, until he is visited by a famous writer Nicolas Green. Green reads Orlando's work and writes up a poem to satire it, thus making Orlando hate humans and turn even more inward while at his country estate.

Later on, Orlando visits other European countries, encountering gypsies as he does so. One night, he has a strange dream, and as a by-product, becomes a woman. There is no shocking reveal or loathing from Orlando at having turned into a woman, only acceptance. With his/her new worldview, Orlando comes to see how different her life will be as a woman. Her return to London is a lesson in women's rights, because she realizes that she can no longer own her land, manage her finances, or vote. Small things come to Orlando's attention now that she is a woman, like the fact that men cannot cry in front of an audience. A man falls in love with her, and when she refuses him, the man begins to cry, and though Orlando knows from experience that men cry just as women do, that they are not supposed to openly weep, and so she is shocked at the emotion display of her thwarted lover.

"Orlando as a boy"
paiting by Cornelious Nuie
(1650)User: El-luismi
Source: Wikimedia Commons

Orlando life spans many generations. He/she goes into deeps slumbers every few years, almost like a bear hibernating, and this (or some other type of magic) prolongs Orlando's life from the 1500's, taking the story all the way to the 1920's.

As a man, Orlando never questioned his privilege or sexuality (believing himself to be inherently heterosexual and powerful). Yet, as a woman, Orlando's eyes open up to see that the world is often one-sided in its treatment of women. Orlando the man fought in wars and dueled men to the death, but he/she is aghast when a gentleman treats her like a dainty flower, as she feels much more capable than she is given credit for, not just as a woman, but as an equal division of humanity.

Woolf, Virginia. Orlando: A Biography. New York: Harcourt Brace & Company, 1956. Print. 

Promising new author: Elizabeth Baxter

    

British author Elizabeth Baxter of the new short story collection Circle Spinner is worth taking note of. She has been writing since she was six years old, and Circle Spinner is her debut novel. She has two more novels coming out this summer: Summer Storm and Everwinter.

Synopsis for Circle Spinner: 
Circle Spinner and Other Tales by Elizabeth Baxter 
Five fantasy and science fiction stories that will sweep you to other worlds.


Circle Spinner
Edith longs for a quiet retirement. She longs for her cottage by the sea and the company of her dogs. But the world, it seems, hasn’t done with her yet. For Edith is a Circle Spinner, the only one who can save the city of Shine from the terrifying Pantheon. 6000 words


The Following Star
Angus walks the corridors of a starship with only his dog for company. He guards a precious cargo: a population of colonists searching for a new home. But when a sudden course change threatens the ship, Angus discovers that all is not as it seems. 6000 words


One of those Days 
Simon is a high-flyer. Good job. Nice apartment. It’s not his fault if his company is involved in shady dealings with the fairy realm is it? No, if he keeps his head down and mouth shut, Simon is sure everything will be okay. But the Prince of Fae and his motley band of followers have other ideas. They have Simon in mind for a very special mission. 7000 words

The Blessing of Silence
The game has been played for years uncounted. Sakara has watched players come and go and been powerless to save them. She is a slave. What difference could she possibly make? But when a new player suddenly enters the game, Sakara begins to realize that she holds within her the power to end the game forever. 6000 words

Fallen Angel
Matthew’s faith is unshakable. A soldier in the United Church, he has dedicated his life to hunting demons. But when his latest mission goes wrong he discovers a secret that will cast everything he believes into doubt. 6000 words

Reviews for Circle Spinner from Amazon: 
"This was the first book I got on my new kindle. I didn't want to go straight into a novel because I wasn't sure if I'd like reading off a screen so I went for something shorter first. It was a good move because I really enjoyed the collection and the kindle didn't hurt my eyes after all. My main problem with short stories is that you don't have enough time to get to know the characters but this wasn't an issue here. You get to know all the characters really well and I found myself rooting for them. I liked some stories better than others, and my favorite was probably The Following Star as I loved Dog. I think there's probably something for everyone in this"

"I enjoyed each of the stories as each provided me with a different emotion and sub-genre: danger, sadness, happiness, comedy and action. The titular story was a great start to the collection: great characters from tired Edith to the evil demon Tenoquitil. I loved the relationship between Angus and dog in the Following Star and really enjoyed the humour in One of Those Days. As I intimated before, the collection provides something for different readers. Summer Storm, although of the fantasy genre (as apposed to sci-fi) proved to be an interesting introduction to what promises to be an exciting story. Overall, an easy to read and well written collection."


Baxter has a web blog that she uses to promote her writing, but the added wonder of her blog is that she also uses it to review and promote indie authors. Check out her blog here: http://elizabethbaxter.blogspot.com/

You can purchase Circle Spinner from this Amazon link, or find it via Baxter's webpage. Look for her on Goodreads as well!