SECRETS KEPT Grand Finale & Giveaway

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On Tour with Prism Book Tours

The Secrets Kept Tour Grand Finale!

This tour explored the World of Nälu: 

Where a story with adventure, action, love, betrayal, and a quest takes place.

We visited sites, learned more about the cuisine, and were introduced to some fantastical characters.

12/9: Launch

12/10: Kelly P’s Blog - Guest Post

The five must see places of Western Nälu

The Nations of Nälu welcomes you to the western region of Nälu. Home to the elves, two of the dwarf clans, and the humans. Most likely you came by ship, so we will start with the beautiful land of Zurial...

12/11: My Love for Reading Keeps Growing - Guest Post

What is a visit to a new land without exploring some of the cuisine? I don’t know about you, but I LOVE food and discovering new favorites. If you’ve been by my Facebook page, you probably have guessed that. Ha! Well, here in Nälu we have quite a variety. Today we’ll just look at a few favorites...

12/12: fundinmental - Guest Post

In the course of edits, Secrets Kept lost the opening chapter where we catch a glimpse of the Sacred Pearl. Hopefully, I’ll be able to share that scene with you all one of these days. But later in the story, we learn that the Sacred Pearl was kidnapped during the attack on Dagmar, the headquarters of the Guardians.

But what is so special about the Pearl?

12/13: Next Page Reviews - Review

This book is amazing! It's a gorgeous fantasy with lots of action-packed scenes and spellbinding paranormal and fantasy elements. It's a quick read (I need more!!) and is a definite page turner. It's unique, original, and gorgeously written, perfectly for any lover of good, descriptive fantasy.

12/13: Giveaway Breaking News - Guest Post

The defeat of Lord Stygian released the people, breaking the hold of the Tainted One, but she vowed to return. Who would stop her then? Who should rule the nations? What will become of the giants? Can they be trusted? The questions gave way to chaos, but Karasi, one of the lost rulers of Zohar, long imprisoned by the Tainted One and Stygian, brought peace again and established the first Guardian Circle. They were charged with guiding and teaching of the nations, so that history would never repeat itself, and the nations would never have to endure another oppressive rule such as Lord Stygian’s again...

12/15: Colorimetry - Review of Desert Rose

"This is an intro to how JL Mbewe's stories aren't all peachy happy endings, necessarily, how she delivers an entire world, finished and beautiful, with minimal words. With one short story, she gained a fan-for-life with me. (I'm stubborn, too... you're stuck with me now, JL!!) I love this book!!"

12/16: Katie’s Clean Book Collection - Guest Post

On the northern edge of the Prathae Plains lies an ancient forest. Wisps of a grey mist ooze between bent and wrinkled trees. Silvery cobwebs sway loosely among their twisting limbs like tattered curtains of the dead. A force lingers at the edge of the forest like the foul stench of a beast.

It breathes of dark magic and death...

12/17: Deal Sharing Aunt - Guest Post

Mystery surrounds the corrupted dagger of Raemoja, of course, those who created it, wouldn’t call it that.

Only the dwarves know how to “corrupt” a blade, strengthening it against things not of this world, but the dwarves did not make this dagger.

The dagger is a tool, and we cannot talk about the tool without learning about the one who crafted it...

12/19: I Am A Reader, Not A Writer - Guest Post

When Nälu was known as Talesri, there were only two dwarf clans. Klovan and Igazin, and they both spoke Tarôc...

During Stygian’s reign, the Klovan maintained a strong defense against the dwäza raids, but much of Stygian’s focus was on the Igazin...

[The Stozic's] capital city, Ta’vazi, is built right into the side of the mountain much like the ancient city of Petra in Jordan...

12/20: Tressa’s Wishful Endings - Review

"I definitely found the title a perfect fit for the story. The MC, Ayianna, has had some secrets kept from her and then in turn must keep her own...

Overall, this was a good story. I really wanted to understand more about the prophecy and dagger and the role that Ayianna and her fellow companions will play, but I'll have to wait until the next book to learn more."

12/22: Mortal Moments - Guest Post

There are three distinct ethnic groups of elves in Nälu. The Esusamor, Saryhemor, and Wofsemor. They speak the common tongue of Nälu, their dialect of Zjótharyn, and most of the older generations are familiar with the ancient language of Táchil. Aside from the merfolk, they are the longest living beings in Nälu...

12/23: alwaysjoart - Guest Post

The feline shape-shifting race of Nälu: The Haruzo are split into two ethnic groups: The Plarzo in Bonzapur and the Rugazo in the mountainous region of Arashel...

Go to alwaysjoart to also listen to two songs representative of the music from Secrets Kept.

12/24: Mel’s Shelves - Review

If you enjoy fantasy, this is the beginning of a great series and I'm personally looking forward to reading the next book!

My Rating=5 Stars

12/26: Zerina Blossom - Guest Post

Across many watery miles and treacherous seas, is a land of mystery, great beauty, and wonder. Ragged mountains emerge from the depths and loom over lush, colorful gardens. Home to the glowing moonflower, healing waters, and dragons.

Here, you will find the Kaleki. The Sea-people. Otherwise known as the merfolk...

12/27: The Wonderings of One Person - Review

"Secrets Kept by J.L. Mbewe is a refreshingly brilliant and utterly sizzling beginning to an astounding epic adventure that emphasizes the innate desire in all of us to do what we fear the most – to truly live life to the fullest. I absolutely loved this story!"

12/29: Fictionally - Review

"I really liked the story, over all. I found it engaging enough that there were not many slow spots in it , which is good cause I read most of it in one weekend so I could have the review up by today.There's also fantastical creatures galore!"

12/30: Dalene’s Book Reviews - Review

"I really had fun reading this book. The characters were well developed and the world building was pretty good."

12/31: Grand Finale

FREE right now on 
Amazon and Barnes & Noble!
Desert Rose
(A Tale of Nälu #1)

Secrets Kept  

by JL Mbewe
YA Fantasy

October 30th 2013 by AltWit Press

With a curse, she will build an army.
With the dagger, she will undo the last sacrifice.
But first the sorceress must find the secret keeper.

Torn from her homeland and thrust into a betrothal against her wishes, Ayianna learns her family has a deadly secret that now has her on the run. She joins forces with Kael, an embittered half-elf, and Saeed, an elderly High Guardian, to seek answers to her father’s death, the destruction of Dagmar, and the plains people’s bizarre behavior.

Ayianna discovers there is more at stake here than just her mother’s disappearance and her familial duty to her betrothed. The sorceress has cursed the plains people, and it is a race against time to release them before the sorceress resurrects an ancient evil.

Goodreads * Amazon * iTunes * Barnes and Noble

Tales of Nalu

Desert Rose
A Tale of Nälu #1

First short story published March 2013

Set thirty some years before the opening scene of book one.

Can a desert princess find love with a foreign king?

Johari lives in the shadow of her beautiful sister until a foreign king notices her, but in her haste to prove herself worthy of affection she finds herself compromised and on a difficult journey to make things right.

Goodreads * Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Dragon Thief
A Tale of Nälu #2

What if all you knew had been a lie?

The teaching of the Guardians has guided Semine’s footsteps since her infancy. When her mentor shows up with information contrary to what she’s been taught, she doubts her decision to follow in their footsteps. She must decide if there is life beyond what she has always known or embrace a new, mysterious path and reject the Guardians’ legacy.

Available at Amazon. Coming soon to Barnes and Noble.

Indestructable
A Tale of Nälu #3

To what lengths would you go to the save the world?

Elothryn keeps the darkest secret of Nälu: The cursed dagger of Raemoja. A weapon powerful enough to release the greatest evil from the underworld. For generations, his family has lived without incident until now. The hunters have his scent and will stop at nothing to reclaim the dagger. Elothryn and his son flee, seeking help, but will they find it?

Available at Amazon. Coming soon to Barnes and Noble. 

NOW AVAILABLE: Tales of  Nälu (all three short stories in paperback) on Amazon!

Living life balanced between reality and dreams.

Writing as J. L. Mbewe, Jennette is an author, artist, mother, wife, but not always in that order. Born and raised in Minnesota, she now braves the heat of Texas, but pines for the Northern Lights and the lakes of home every autumn. She loves trying to capture the abstract and make it concrete. She has two short stories published in The Clockwork Dragon anthology, and is busily creating worlds inhabited by all sorts of fantasy creatures and characters, all questing about and discovering true love amid lots of peril. Her debut novel Secrets Kept and her short stories set in the world of Nälu: Desert Rose, Dragon Thief, and Indestructible are now available. She is currently living her second childhood with a wonderful husband and two precious children who don’t seem to mind her eclectic collections of rocks, shells, and books, among other things.

For more information about her journey as a writer mama and all things creative please visit her at:

Website * Blog * Twitter * Facebook * Google+ * Pinterest * Flickr

Tour-Wide Giveaway

Kindle Fire Prize Pack (US/CAN ONLY), which includes:

- Kindle Fire

- Chocolate truffles

- Paper backs of Secrets Kept and Tales of Nälu

- Awesome swag (key chain, bookmark, and poster)

Ends January 7, 2014

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Review: WRITTEN IN RED

Written In Red by Anne Bishop
Read by Alexandra Harris
Book 1 of the The Others series
Genre: urban fantasy
Format: hardback & audiobook

About Written In Red:

No one creates realms like New York Times bestselling author Anne Bishop. Now in a thrilling new fantasy series, enter a world inhabited by the Others, unearthly entities — vampires and shape-shifters among them — who rule the Earth and whose prey are humans.

As a cassandra sangue, or blood prophet, Meg Corbyn can see the future when her skin is cut — a gift that feels more like a curse. Meg’s Controller keeps her enslaved so he can have full access to her visions. But when she escapes, the only safe place Meg can hide is at the Lakeside Courtyard — a business district operated by the Others.

Shape-shifter Simon Wolfgard is reluctant to hire the stranger who inquires about the Human Liaison job. First, he senses she’s keeping a secret, and second, she doesn’t smell like human prey. Yet a stronger instinct propels him to give Meg the job. And when he learns the truth about Meg and that she’s wanted by the government, he’ll have to decide if she’s worth the fight between humans and the Others that will surely follow.

Source: Info in the About Written In Red was taken from GoodReads at http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15711341-written-in-red on 08/04/2013.

Review:

This is how I imagined Sam, the wolf pup, looked like when he was howling like his little puppy heart is breaking when Meg left him with Grandfather Erebus.

I'm not sure if it is Alexandra Harris' reading style which made me like this book a little less than I think I ought to. Or Anne Bishop's writing style in this particular book which did not translate well into an audiobook. Or a lack in the audiobook director's part in the skills and talent department. Or maybe it's me as a reader, or a combination of factors... Either way, I find Alexandra Harris' narration hard to follow that I bought a printed copy to read-along with the audiobook format. Don't get me wrong, the words are clear and distinct. The quality of her voice is pleasing to the ears. But Alexandra Harris does not give any indication when the scene changes. No pauses. No change in tone nor diction. Nothing. And that confuses me like hell. It is only after a sentence or two when the story lines no longer make sense that I realised that the people talking has changed. That the scene has changed. And I rewind to see if I missed anything. This made the pace slow that eventually I gave up on the audiobook about halfway through and proceeded reading the hardback without the audio. So I would not count the narration into rating this book because I did not really finish listening to the audio format. And I don't think I would be listening to Alexandra Harris again.

I've always been Anne Bishop's fan since I read her book, Sebastian. I like this author's voice! The main reason why this book got bought in the first place. Secondly, I like the cover art. I don't know what Anne Bishop did to please the Cover Art Goddess, but she sure was blessed with this book! Another thing I like about this book is the beautiful world building. But then again, this is Anne Bishop we're talking about here. So of course the world building is masterful! This book was slow going for me at the start mainly due to the audiobook but once I decided to abandon the audio this book just whizzed through and the next thing I knew, I was on the last page... And craving Murder Of Crows (Book 2)!! March come around already!!

Empirical Evaluation:
Story telling quality = 5
Character development = 4.5
Story itself = 5
Ending = 4.5
World building = 5
Cover art = 5
Pace = 4.5(18hours & 33minutes listening time)
Plot = 4.5
(Narration = 2)

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5 cherries


Books In The Others Series:

Kindle Fire HD, Club Nexus, Runes, & Swag

It seems that this holiday season is lucky for me! For some reason Santa thinks I've been nice this year!

Thank you to Melissa Wright for hosting a contest which made it possible for me to win a Kindle Fire HD!

Shifting Fate by Melissa Wright
Book 2 of the Descendants series
Genre: urban fantasy

About Shifting Fate:

According to prophecy, Brianna Drake was born to save the world. The trouble is, she doesn't have the slightest idea how. Her visions should have given her the answer, but they’re beginning to shift, making the danger too unpredictable, even for a prophet.

If she can just help her sister restore their hidden powers, she might be able to stop what’s coming. But an old enemy returns, and he’s got plans for Brianna and her visions.

What neither of them knows is that fate has given a stranger one chance to find her. He was trained to protect the chosen—but if he fails, the future will crumble.

Source: Info in the About Shifting Fate was taken from GoodReads at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19166199-shifting-fate on 20/12/2013.

Thank you to E.J. Stevens for hosting a contest which made it possible for me to win a $15 Amazon GC and a copy of Club Nexus by E.J. Stevens!

Club Nexus by E.J. Stevens
Book 2.5 of the Ivy Granger series
Genre: urban fantasy

About Club Nexus:

A demon, an Unseelie faerie, and a vampire walk into a bar...

ICED

A bargain gone wrong leads a highborn Unseelie faerie to life as an enslaved bartender with a taste for revenge.

DUSTED

Being a highly skilled predator doesn't necessarily put you at the top of the food chain at Club Nexus. A southern vampire with a hankering for blood and wanton violence may have bit off more than he can chew.

DEMONIZED

The demon attorney we love to hate has his eye on a certain rockabilly human. Too bad she's brought a crossbow loaded with holy water dipped bolts for this night on the town.

JINXED

Just when Jinx needs a carefree girl's night out with Ivy, a smoking hot demon tries to buy her a drink. She really is the unluckiest human on the planet.

This Ivy Granger ebook special contains short stories set in Club Nexus, the hidden haunt of Harborsmouth's paranormal underworld.

Source: Info in the About Club Nexus was taken from the author's website at http://www.fromtheshadows.info/2013/12/club-nexus-release-day-party-giveaway.html on 20/12/2013.

Thank you to Ednah Walters, Jen and Len for hosting a contest which made it possible for me to win an audiobook copy of Runes by Ednah Walters!

Runes by Ednah Walters
Book 1 of the Runes series
Genre: urban fantasy

About Runes:

Seventeen-year-old Raine Cooper has enough on her plate dealing with her father’s disappearance, her mother’s erratic behavior and the possibility of her boyfriend relocating. The last thing she needs is Torin St. James—a mysterious new neighbor with a wicked smile and uncanny way of reading her.

Raine is drawn to Torin’s dark sexiness against her better judgment, until he saves her life with weird marks and she realizes he is different. But by healing her, Torin changes something inside Raine. Now she can’t stop thinking about him. Half the time, she’s not sure whether to fall into his arms or run.

Scared, she sets out to find out what Torin is. But the closer she gets to the truth the more she uncovers something sinister about Torin. What Torin is goes back to an ancient mythology and Raine is somehow part of it. Not only are she and her friends in danger, she must choose a side, but the wrong choice will cost Raine her life.

Source: Info in the About Runes was taken from GoodReads at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18046743-runes on 20/12/2013.

Thank you to Audra North for hosting a Falling For The CEO contest which made it possible for me to win $10 Amazon GC!

Falling For The CEO by Audra North
Genre: romance

About Falling For The CEO:

Finance genius Meredith Klaus prefers numbers to people, especially around the holidays. At least the large sum of money that’s mysteriously vanished from the company accounts will distract her from the ghosts of Christmases past. Until her sexy boss asks her to be his last-minute date to a fundraiser gala, that is, and the promise of a special evening calls to something long-buried in her.

Andrew Stanton, Manhattan’s best-known philanthropist, has worked hard building his reputation in the industry. He offers to work closely with Meredith to fix his company’s financial crisis, but the more time they spend together, the harder it becomes to look at her as just a colleague.

A beautiful dress. A handsome man on her arm. A challenge she can’t refuse. Can they find the missing money and fulfill their holiday wishes, or will Meredith be unable to overcome the demons of her past and lose her chance at happiness?

Source: Info in the About Falling For The CEO was taken from GoodReads at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18761270-falling-for-the-ceo on 20/12/2013.

Thank you to Clean Teen Publishing for hosting a contest which made it possible for me to win $15 Amazon GC, a Clean Teen Publishing ebook, bookmarks & swag!