Virtual Book Tour & Giveaway for Big Money by Jack Getze

28 STOPS!!!! 31 DAYS!!

Welcome to my stop on author Jack Getze’s Virtual Book Tour for Big Money, presented by Great Escapes Book Tours.  Please leave a comment or question for Jack to let him know you stopped by.  You can enter his tour wide giveaway for a $100 GC by filling out the Rafflecopter form below.  You can also check out the rest of Jack’s tour here.  Stay tuned for my review later today. 

Tough Not Stupid by Jack Getze

Like my first Austin Carr adventure, the second -- BIG MONEY -- is also based on a varied collection of true stories. In the first, Austin got yanked off a fishing boat by a giant bluefin tuna, lived in a camper, and almost married the new widow of his rich-but-dead client. In this second adventure, his investment firm is audited for co-mingling, an old lady cheats at a church bingo game, and -- most luridly -- the local branch of a New York crime family tries to muscle Austin for a share of his business.

All of those things really happened to people I know. True stories. In fact, I knew the Jersey contractor and his they-took-me-for-a-ride tale quite well before he died. I married his daughter.

Scoffing already? Ok, this is one of those times where the truth is stranger than fiction, so odd it's unacceptable for detailing in a novel and plain hard to believe. Frankly, I wonder if you can. I had a lot of trouble when I lived through the events.

On the day I met him in 1979, there was a story about my father-in-law on the front page of the local Jersey newspaper. He had refused to testify in court against two men the FBI said had taken him for a automobile ride, extorted him for money. The driver had been wearing a wire for the FBI, so there was a tape recording of what happened in the limo ride. Basically, my father in law told the gangsters he wouldn't pay, even when they threatened to kill him and then his family.

In fact, my father in law swore more than the mobsters and sounded tougher. Listening to the tape recordings, one juror asked, "Which one is the bad guy again?"

Having known the ex-boxer and veteran of World War II for twenty years before he died, I had no trouble believing he'd shown those men no fear. If they'd tried to beat him up -- which they didn't by the way -- I think my wife's dad might have delivered serious bruises of his own.

Of course when it came time to identify those gangsters in court, send them and maybe their boss to prison, my father in law said he couldn't be sure it was the same two men. He was tough, not stupid.

Big Money (Austin Carr Mystery)
Publisher: Down & Out Books (January 12, 2014)
E-Book File Size: 884 KB
ASIN: B00HHAOZN4
Paperback: 218 pages
ISBN-13: 978-1937495671

Buy Links:  Amazon  Barnes & Noble

About the book:

In this jaunty follow-up to Big Numbers, a scruffy stockbroker returns to tangle with mobsters, women and his own big mouth. The good news, as the story opens, is that the hero is in the company of a gorgeous naked lady. The bad news is that she’s pointing a shotgun at him. It’s a typical predicament for Austin Carr, a semi-shady New Jersey financial professional temporarily in charge of Shore Securities…He’s being extorted into opening a money-laundering account for local crime boss Bluefish; an auditor who was investigating his company has turned up murdered; a fetching state police captain figures he’s the key to her organized-crime probe; and his boss’s mother has been picked up for fixing her church bingo game.

Carr is continually getting into trouble over his weakness for breasts, his penchant for self-incriminating statements and his vestigial moral sensibility, which, like an appendix, makes itself felt at inconvenient times. — Kirkus Indie

About The Author

Former Los Angeles Times reporter Jack Getze is Fiction Editor for Anthony nominated Spinetingler Magazine, one of the internet’s oldest websites for noir, crime, and horror short stories. Through the Los Angeles Times/Washington Post News Syndicate, his news and feature stories were published in over five-hundred newspapers and periodicals worldwide. His two screwball mysteries, BIG NUMBERS and BIG MONEY, are being reissued by DOWN & OUT BOOKS, with the new BIG MOJO to follow. His short stories have appeared in A Twist of Noir and Beat to a Pulp. Getze is an Active Member of Mystery Writers of America’s New York Chapter.

Author Links:

http://austincarrscrimediary.blogspot.com

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18050373-big-numbers

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Virtual Book Tour & Giveaway for The Collector of Dying Breaths by M.J. Rose

Welcome to my stop on author M.J. Rose’s Virtual Book Tour for The Collector of Dying Breaths, presented by France Book Tours.  Please leave a comment or question for M.J. to let her know you stopped by.  To enter the giveaway for M.J.’s tour wide giveaway (one of two $25 Amazon GC’s), please fill out the Rafflecopter form below.  You can follow the rest of M.J.’s tour here.

The Collector Of Dying Breaths

By M.J. Rose

Reincarnationist, Book 6

Publisher: Atria Books

Release date: April 8, 2014
Genre: Historical Suspense

Length: 384 Pages

ISBN: 9781451621532
ASIN: B00DPM9088

Buy Links:  Amazon │Barnes & Noble

About the book:

From one of America’s most imaginative storytellers comes a passionate tale of love and treachery, spanning the days of Catherine de Medici’s court to the twenty-first century and starring a woman drawn back, time and again, to the past.

In 1533, an Italian orphan with an uncanny knack for creating fragrance is plucked from poverty to become Catherine de Medici’s perfumer. To repay his debt, over the years René le Florentine is occasionally called upon to put his vast knowledge to a darker purpose: the creation of deadly poisons used to dispatch the Queen’s rivals.

But it’s René’s other passion—a desire to reanimate a human breath, to bring back the lives of the two people whose deaths have devastated him—that incites a dangerous treasure hunt five centuries later. That’s when Jac L’Etoile—suffering from a heartache of her own—becomes obsessed with the possibility of unlocking Rene’s secret to immortality.  Soon Jac’s search reconnects her with Griffin North, a man she’s loved her entire life. Together they confront an eccentric heiress whose art collection rivals many museums and who is determined to keep her treasures close at hand, not just in this life but in her next.

Set in the forest of Fontainebleau, crisscrossing the lines between the past and the present, M.J. Rose has written a mesmerizing tale of passion and obsession. This is a gothic tale perfect for fans of Anne Rice, Deborah Harkness, and Diana Galbadon. 

About the author:

M.J. Rose, is the international bestselling author of 13 novels;Lip Service, In Fidelity, Flesh Tones, Sheet Music, Lying in Bed, The Halo Effect, The Delilah Complex, The Venus Fix,The Reincarnationist, The Memorist, The Hypnotist, The Book of Lost Fragrances, and Seduction.
Rose is also the co-author with Angela Adair Hoy of How to Publish and Promote Online and with Randy Susan Meyers of What to Do Before Your Book Lauch.

She is a founding member and board member of International Thriller Writers and the founder of the first marketing company for authors: AuthorBuzz.com. She runs the popular blog; Buzz, Balls & Hype.

Getting published has been an adventure for Rose who self-published Lip Service late in 1998 after several traditional publishers turned it down. Editors had loved it, but didn’t know how to position it or market it since it didn’t fit into any one genre.

Frustrated, but curious and convinced that there was a readership for her work, she set up a web site where readers could download her book for $9.95 and began to seriously market the novel on the Internet.

After selling over 2500 copies (in both electronic and trade paper format) Lip Service became the first e-book and the first self-published novel chosen by the LiteraryGuild/Doubleday Book Club as well as being the first e-book to go on to be published by a mainstream New York publishing house.

Rose has been profiled in Time magazine, Forbes, The New York Times, Business 2.0, Working Woman, Newsweek and New York Magazine.

Rose has appeared on The Today Show, Fox News, The Jim Lehrer NewsHour, and features on her have appeared in dozens of magazines and newspapers in the U.S. and abroad, including USAToday, Stern, L’Official, Poets and Writers and Publishers Weekly.

Rose graduated from Syracuse University and spent the ’80s in advertising. She was the Creative Director of Rosenfeld Sirowitz and Lawson and she has a commercial in the Museum of Modern Art in NYC.  She lives in Connecticut with Doug Scofield, a composer, and their very spoiled dog, Winka. 

Fascinated with Catherine de Medici since grade school, I jumped at the chance to read and review The Collector of Dying Breaths by M.J. Rose.  While the sixth book in the Reincarnationist series, this book can be read and enjoyed on its own as Ms. Rose provides more than enough of the characters background for the reader to get a full grasp of their story so far.  Weaving a tale full of action, passion, and obsession, Ms. Rose takes the reader on a dark ride as her characters work to discover the secret recipe to immortality.

Determined to get over a personal tragedy, mythologist Jac L’Etoile learns of René le Florentin, an alchemist trained in a monastery, who as Catherine de Medici’s perfumer and private poison creator, went from a life of poverty to a life as the greatest perfume creator in the French court.  Throwing herself into her work, Jac uncovers René’s secret obsession with creating a formula for reincarnation.  Becoming obsessed with her research, Jac’s path leads her back to Griffin North, her former lover and a linguist, who has already begun translating René’s work.  Using Jac’s rare talent to see the past lives of others, Jac and Griffin find themselves on a journey back through time that could prove dangerous to their loved ones and themselves.

Taking us back to the early 1500’s, Ms. Rose provides us with a picture of life in Catherine de Medici’s court in Paris.  Filled with beauty, wealth and treachery, Ms. Rose paints a vivid picture of what life was like for René as he collected the “dying breaths” of people he believed he would be able to use on someone else.  As Jac shadows René’s movements in the court, and uncovers everything he did for Catherine de Medici (creating special poisons), she realizes how difficult and dangerous her task has become.  Ms. Rose does a really good job developing all of the background characters and bringing everything to life in a way the reader will understand.

Will Jac uncover the recipe she’s looking for? Will her travels give her the chance to fix her relationship with Griffin and have the life she’s always dreamed of? You’ll have to read The Collector of Dying Breaths to find out.  I enjoyed it and look forward to reading more of Ms. Rose’s work.

My Rating: 4 out of 5 Crowns   

Please read the following rules carefully. This giveaway is courtesy of the tour organizer and author and runs on various of the other blogs in this tour. Visit the tour page here to hop the other blogs and get more chances to win.

You can win ONE ENTRY in a giveaway of an Amazon gift card with the value of $25.

• You can enter by sharing this review on Twitter and/or Facebook.
• The winner of the giveaway on this site will win ONE entry in the main giveaway for the giftcard.
• The winner will have to send his/her email address which will be send to the tour organizer and M.J. Rose who will choose 2 winners.
• The giveaway is running from March 30th 12 AM EST till April 6th 12 AM EST

Questions? Leave them in the comments and I will get back at you.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. 

Release Day Book Blast & Giveaway for Nothing to Lose (A Grey Justice Novel) by Christy Reece

Welcome to my stop on author Christy Reece’s Release Day Book Blast for Nothing to Lose (A Grey Justice Novel), presented by Tasty Book Tours.  Please leave a comment or question for Christy to let her know you stopped by.  You can enter her tour wide giveaway by filling out the Rafflecopter form below.  You can also follow the rest of Christy’s tour here, the more stops you visit, the better your odds of winning.

Nothing to Lose

By Christy Reece

A Grey Justice Novel, Book 1

Publisher: Christy Reece

Release Date: March 31, 2014

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Buy Links:  Amazon │Barnes & Noble

About the book:

Choices Are Easy When You Have Nothing Left To Lose

Kennedy O’Connell had all the happiness she’d ever dreamed—until someone stole it away. Now on the run for her life, she has a choice to make—disappear forever or make those responsible pay. Her choice is easy.  Two men want to help her, each with their own agenda.

Detective Nick Gallagher is accustomed to pursuing killers within the law. Targeted for death, his life turned inside out, Nick vows to bring down those responsible, no matter the cost. But the beautiful and innocent Kennedy O’Connell brings out every protective instinct. Putting aside his own need for vengeance, he’ll do whatever is necessary to keep her safe and help her achieve her goals.

Billionaire philanthropist Grey Justice has a mission, too. Dubbed the ‘White Knight’ of those in need of a champion, few people are aware of his dark side. Having seen and experienced injustice—Grey knows its bitter taste. Gaining justice for those who have been wronged is a small price to pay for a man’s humanity.

With the help of a surprising accomplice, the three embark on a dangerous game of cat and mouse. The stage is set, the players are ready…the game is on. But someone is playing with another set of rules and survivors are not an option.

~Excerpt~

Nick opened his apartment door and headed straight to his bedroom to change into a pair of shorts and an old sweatshirt. About the only way he had to battle the hopelessness inside him was to beat the hell out of his boxing bag and work himself into exhaustion. He was halfway to the kitchen for a bottle of water when he realized he wasn’t alone. The dark figure of a man sitting in a chair in the corner caught his eye.

Cursing his inattentiveness, he grabbed the closest weapon—a bust of Sherlock Holmes—and turned toward the intruder.

“Before you allow Mr. Holmes to bash my head in, wouldn’t you like to know why I’m here?”

The crisp British voice sounded familiar, but he couldn’t place it. Nick replied coolly, “I’m more of an attack-first-and-ask-questions-later kind of guy.”

“Pity. You don’t seem the type to go off half-cocked.”

“Depends on the situation. Having some asshole break into my house is the type of thing that pisses me off.”

“Understandable, but you can often learn more things if you wait awhile.”

“Or you can get yourself killed. Now, tell me who the hell you are and why you’re here.”

“Let’s talk first. Then we’ll decide if we want to exchange personal information.”

If the man was going to shoot him, he would’ve done so by now. Nick lowered the statue to his side but held on to it just in case. He reached for the light switch on the wall.

“No lights.”

“So I’m not allowed to know your name or what you look like?”

“Not yet. Have a seat.”

Despite the aggravation of having a stranger break into his house and the man’s numerous rules, Nick was intrigued. He pulled his hand back from the light switch. “I’ll stand. Now tell me what the hell you want.”

“I want what you want—to bring Mathias Slater and his goons to justice.”

If he hadn’t captured Nick’s attention before, he sure as hell had it now. “What do you know about Slater?”

“That he’s into more shit than anyone could ever imagine.”

“And why do you care?”

“Let’s just say that seeing bad guys get what’s coming to them is a hobby of mine.”

“And how can you assist me in seeing that Slater gets what’s coming to him?”

“By giving you access to information you can’t get through your channels.”

“You mean illegal channels.”

“Semantics. What you see as illegal, I see as creative license.”

Still wary but more interested than ever, Nick returned the statue to the end table and dropped down onto the sofa. “Okay, you have my undivided attention.”

“Excellent. However, we need to come to an agreement before we go further.”

“Such as?”

“If you decline my proposal, this discussion never happened.”

“Agreed.”

“Excellent.”

“You’re just going to take my word for it?”

“I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t already know you can be trusted, Mr. Gallagher.”

Where and how he’d gotten information on Nick could wait till another time. 

“Okay, I’m listening.”

“Mathias Slater and his antics hit my radar several years ago. I’ve tried penetrating his tight-knit circle. Unfortunately, I’ve gotten only so far before someone ratted out my informant.”

“And how can I help? If you know that much about me, then you already know that I’ve run into a road block in every avenue I’ve taken against Slater.”

“That’s true. However, you have an avenue you don’t even know you can take.”

“And what’s that?”

“There’s a folder on the table in front of you. Take a look inside.”

Nick didn’t move…considered what could be inside.

“I’m glad to see that my informants were correct. You have a short fuse, but it’s tempered with a deliberative cautiousness.”

“I’m assuming that I’ll be allowed to turn on the lights to look at the folder.”

“That’s correct. Another reason why your deliberation is important. You turn on those lights, you will have information that could destroy not only me, but negatively impact the lives of thousands.”

Nick reached up and flipped on the lamp beside him. Light illuminated the man sitting in the corner and he knew why the voice had sounded so familiar. This was a man known to millions. And he was right—if anyone discovered the truth, thousands of lives would be affected.

Deciding to mull over the man’s identity later, Nick grabbed the folder and opened it. The instant he saw the first photograph, everything within him froze. He looked up at the man who sat so calmly across from him and whispered hoarsely, “What do I need to do?”

 

 

Author Info

Christy Reece is the award winning and New York Times Bestselling author of dark and sexy romantic suspense. She lives in Alabama with her husband, four precocious canines, an incredibly curious cat, a very shy turtle, and a super cute flying squirrel named Elliott.

Christy also writes steamy, southern suspense under the pen name Ella Grace.

Author Links

http://www.christyreece.com/

https://www.facebook.com/AuthorChristyReece?ref=search&v=wall

https://twitter.com/ChristyReece

http://www.ellagracebooks.com/

https://www.facebook.com/EllaGraceAuthor

https://twitter.com/EllaGraceBooks

a Rafflecopter giveaway