If you’ve been kicking at this indie thing for a while, you might be familiar with Kirkus Indie, an arm of Kirkus Reviews that offers a paid review service for indie authors. The prices can be steep, which has been a point of contention in the indie community. I had the opportunity to meet Karen Schechner, senior indie editor at Kirkus Reviews, at a self-publishing conference in New York. After an interesting and rather aerobic discussion with Karen and another author in an elevator after lunch break, I invited her to come by IU and give her side of the issue.
Category: Interviews
Book Brief: My Ex from Hell
My Ex From Hell (The Blooming Goddess Trilogy Book One)
by Tellulah Darling
Genre: YA romantic comedy/Greek mythology
Word count: 63,000
My Ex From Hell is a YA romantic comedy/Greek mythology smackdown. Love meets comedy with a whole lot of sass in book one of this teen fantasy romance series. Compared to Kai and Sophie, Romeo and Juliet had it easy.
Prior to the Halloween dance, Sophie figures her worst problems involve adolescent theatrics, bitchy teen yoga girls, and being on probation at her boarding school for mouthy behaviour. Then a kiss from bad boy Kai awakens Sophie’s true identity: Persephone, Goddess of Spring.
She’s key to saving humanity in the war between the Underworld and Olympus, target numero uno of Hades and Zeus, and totally screwed. Sophie’s last memory as Persephone was just before someone tried to murder her.
Big picture: master her powers, get her memories back, defeat Persephone’s would be assassin, and save the world. Also, sneak into the Underworld to retrieve stolen property, battle the minions of Hades and Zeus, outwit psycho nymphs, slay a dragon, rescue a classmate, keep from getting her butt expelled from the one place designed to keep her safe …
… and stop kissing Kai, Prince of the Underworld.
This book is available from Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Continue reading “Book Brief: My Ex from Hell”
Book Brief: Life First
Life First
by RJ Crayton
Genre: Dystopian thriller
Word count: ~90,000
Strong-willed Kelsey Reed must escape tonight or tomorrow her government will take her kidney and give it to someone else.
In this future forged by survivors of pandemics that wiped out 80 percent of the world’s population, life is valued above all else. The mentally ill are sterilized, abortions are illegal and those who refuse to donate an organ when told are sentenced to death.
Determined not to give up her kidney or die, Kelsey enlists the help of her boyfriend Luke and a dodgy doctor to escape. The trio must disable the tracking chip in her arm for her to flee undetected. If they fail, Kelsey will be stripped of everything.
This book is available from Amazon, B&N, and Smashwords. Continue reading “Book Brief: Life First”
Book Brief: Wendy and the Lost Boys
Wendy and the Lost Boys
by Barbara Silkstone
Genre: Comedy Mystery
Word count: 52K
Who knew Tomb Raiding could be addictive? Real estate agent for Miami Beach millionaires, Wendy Darlin, clashes with world famous archaeologist Roger Jolley. He follows her out to sea on a mega-yacht owned by Charlie Hook, a Ponzi swindler on the run from federal agents and angry investors. Despite her fear of water, she finds herself a tomb raider on the Caribbean one step ahead of modern day pirates. Will she find the Lost Boys? Will she escape Hook’s clutches? And whom will she find on Nevis Island? Oh… and is Roger a good kisser?
This book is available from Amazon and Audible.com. Continue reading “Book Brief: Wendy and the Lost Boys”