xpresso book tours reviews

Brindi Quinn

is creating romantic fantasy for young and new adults

Book Tour Company Review

The purpose of this post is to help other indie authors save time and money when choosing a book tour company to help promote their books. I will extensively cover every book tour group I’ve utilized, the packages I chose, the prices I paid, and whether or not I would recommend that company. I encourage others to share in the comments their experiences with any of these companies (or any others I haven’t used) in the hopes that this might become an evolving resource for our community. Please note that prices/package options for these companies may have changed since I used them, so please check their websites for the most up-to-date information.

Package I chose: Bookstagram tour w/ duplicate host add on (takes tour from 10 hosts to 20 hosts)

Number of hosts: 20 hosts, plus several posts from tour account

What I paid: $190 tour cost + $202.49 cost of sending paperback books

Would I recommend them? Absolutely, yes! This tour was gorgeous.

The most aesthetically beautiful tour.

My thoughts: I love, love, loved this tour! The organizers were professional, helpful, and provided a detailed tour recap boasting an audience reach of 285,960 followers. Each tour they oversee is given a unique aesthetic theme that runs through all their posts, resulting in some truly beautiful content. They shared daily quotes and reviewer highlights on their stories and reposted all the tour stops from their account. They also created unique graphics for the hosts to use, such as a gif jar and quote/reviews template. Every host posted high-quality images and reviews/spotlights that made this tour a joy to follow. This tour went above and beyond and was well, well worth the money spent.

Things to consider: This tour has an emphasis on international inclusion, so be prepared to send some international paperbacks. They are fully transparent within their package options as to how many international paperbacks are required upfront and also provide tips on the cheapest options for sending them.

R&R Book Tours

Package I chose: Package “C” (25+ stops across blogs and Instagram)

Number of hosts: 30+ stops (I don’t know the exact number because there were several bonus tour stops that didn’t require copies of the book)

What I paid: $190 tour cost + $177.54 cost of sending paperback books

Would I recommend them? Absolutely, yes! This tour was so much fun!

A super fun tour.

My thoughts: This was another favorite! The organizer of this company has a reputation for being engaged and excited about the tours she organizes, and mine was no exception. From my first interaction with her, I felt that she was invested in my tour, and I loved how quickly she pulled everything together, giving the paperbacks plenty of time to reach the hosts. And being able to send ebooks to international hosts was huge for my budget. This tour was the most diverse of all the tours I’ve done, with a mix of blogs, Instagram, and TikTok accounts, spotlights, reviews, and excerpt posts. My book was featured on multiple sites run by the tour, and there were several bonus tour stops from accounts that didn’t require a copy of the book. The energy behind this tour truly made it feel like an event. It was a great deal, and I had a blast seeing everything the hosts came up with.

Things to consider: I had two hosts who received books and didn’t post; however, the tour company did follow up with these accounts, and they were hardly missed with such a great turnout.

Bound By Mischief

Package I chose: Bookstagram cover reveal and release blast tours

Number of hosts: 25+ for cover reveal; 25+ for release blast

What I paid: NA* I received free or discounted services for this company. Please check website for prices.

Would I recommend them? Heck yes! This is a great one-stop shop for authors, offering an array of services, with a wonderful management team!

A great and affordable tour for indies .

My thoughts: I love a tour company where you can just hand off your information and feel like it’s in good hands, and that is definitely true of Bound By Mischief Author Services. This is a new venture started in December 2022 by a well-known bookstagrammer with a passion for hyping indie authors. They offer an array of services, including review tours, cover reveals, PA services, and even alpha/beta/sensitivity reading—really a one-stop shop for indies looking for an affordable option that doesn’t skimp on quality. I used them for both a cover reveal and a release day blast and was impressed with both. The organizer is personable and engaged, the hosts excited, and everything ran smoothly from beginning to end. I appreciated how far in advance sign-ups were posted, and I loved that pictures were put into an Instagram collection following the tours. This company is priced very competitively and one indies won’t want to miss. I will also be using them for a review tour in April.

Things to consider: I was offered free or discounted services for this tour company, so please refer to their website for current prices.

3/27/2023 update: added review to original post

Storygram Tours

Package I chose: General YA/Adult tour (Instagram) + email spotlight add-on

Number of hosts: 7 hosts w/ 1 post on tour account

What I paid: $200 tour cost + $50 email spotlight cost + $62.09 cost of sending paperback books

Would I recommend them? I would not. There are other tours that provide better value for the cost.

The most basic tour.

My thoughts: There’s nothing inherently wrong with this tour company. They were professional, the hosts are large accounts that posted beautiful pictures, and the company sent a recap boasting an audience reach of 327,000 followers. They have several packages to choose from.

Things to consider: Paperbacks are required for the hosts, but reviews are not required. None of the tour stops included a review, and as a general observation, I have seen greater impact on sales from smaller accounts that review than larger accounts that do not. The posts with this package are basic, only requiring an original picture that clearly features the book. For double the price, there is an option for a ‘custom’ tour, which would include things like excerpts, giveaways, short interviews, etc., which many other companies include in their base package. Despite the wide reach, I feel that there are other tours that provide better value for a similar price point.

Literary Bound Tours

Package I chose: Creative Content (Instagram) tour w/ giveaway add-on (different from Creative Review tour)

Number of hosts: 10 hosts

What I paid: $87.35 tour (CAD converted to USD) + $47.93 cost of sending paperback books

Would I recommend them? I would not. Price is decent, but I didn’t get everything I paid for.

A hit or miss tour.

My thoughts: For an additional $51 (using current CAD to USD conversion rates), this tour can be upgraded to a Creative Review tour, making it a relatively competitive option. Although I chose the cheaper package where reviews are not required, I had a number of hosts include reviews, which was a nice surprise, and several hosts produced beautiful, engaging content. This company offers a number of tour packages to choose from, and I appreciated that I was given the option to send ebook copies to international hosts. I also liked that I was able to approve the list of hosts before the tour company committed to them.

Things to consider: While the Creative Content package states that hosts are required to display the book in a creative way, I did not find much of the content to be any more creative than a standard spotlight tour, and there were some who opted to use a stock image despite receiving a paperback copy of the book. I also had one host who posted weeks after the tour ended. This was following a prompt from the tour company, which I appreciated, but the tour organizer also never posted despite receiving an internationally-shipped paperback copy and stating they would. Additionally, I and another author at my publisher each paid for giveaway add-ons with our tours and were told that a banner with the giveaway would be posted to the tour’s Instagram account. These were never honored.

Book Tour Gals

Package I chose: Complete Reels Marketing Package (Instagram/TikTok)

Number of hosts: 8 hosts

What I paid: $1,280.00 tour + $74.84 cost of sending paperback books

Would I recommend them? I would not. Reach and content were disappointing for such a high price tag.

The most disappointing tour.

My thoughts: This book tour company consists of 8 bookstagram influencers boasting a combined audience of over 250,000 followers. They have several tour packages to choose from, and you can select any number of hosts to promote your book. I chose all 8 of them for the Complete Reels Marketing Package, which includes a video promotion posted to both Instagram and TikTok and an honest review. There were two hosts that did an excellent job. I was impressed by both the quality of the reel (including an adorable cosplay) and the depth of the review. There were two hosts that did an okay job but were not, in my opinion, worth the high price tag. There were four that were extremely disappointing.

Things to consider: While this group has a large following, the Instagram reach of my tour was underwhelming (a combined 41k views as of the time of this review). The package I purchased included TikTok posts, but not all the hosts posted to TikTok. It also included reading updates, and not all the hosts posted reading updates. It is worth noting that this group rated my book lower than every other tour group I utilized. Their reception of my book doesn’t influence my review of their services; however, I believe it may have influenced the quality of the content they produced for my tour, as I have seen them create great content for other paid collaborations they rated higher. Examples include featuring another author’s book (whom they were also promoting at the time) at eye-level and in frame for longer than my book, my book being shown briefly and dimly lit, or my book out of focus for the entirety of the video. While this was a miss for me, other authors have seen success with this tour, so if you’re thinking of using them, I would suggest researching the other books they have championed to see if you’re a better match.

Telepathy Book Tours

Package I chose: Bookstagram review

Number of hosts: 16 hosts

What I paid: $267.74 tour (euro converted to USD) + $209.28 cost of sending paperback books

Would I recommend them? Yes, but talk through options/expectations ahead of time.

A budding international tour.

My thoughts: This tour wasn’t without its hiccups, but I was very happy with the end results. The organizers were personable, committed to the success of the tour, and built a custom package that fit my needs and budget. Every host posted on time with high-quality images accompanied by a review, and I met some very sweet bookstagrammers through this tour.

Things to consider: As a newer group, this tour company works through Instagram and doesn’t have their policies and packages listed. The list of tour hosts I received from them had more international addresses than domestic, which came as a surprise to me, as the other tours I’ve worked with establish international shipping preferences when the tour is booked, and the timing was going to be tight for books to reach some of the locations before the scheduled tour date. When I realized that Amazon charges $50 per book shipping to some of the countries on the list, and that this company charged a per book fee for ebook copies, I was going to forfeit the tour; however, the company worked to salvage it, swapping out some of the hosts for domestic ones, pushing out the tour date to allow time for the international copies to arrive, and allowing me to ship one package with several host copies directly to them, which they hand-delivered to hosts in their country, drastically cutting my shipping costs. The organizers clearly care about the success of their tours, and I was very pleased with the overall quality and reach. This is a solid option, just be sure to mention any host preferences upfront.

Xpresso Book Tours

Package I chose: Cover reveal (unlimited tour stops across blogs and Instagram – boasts an average of 50-70 participants)

Number of hosts: 58 stops

What I paid: $40

Would I recommend them? Yes! I can’t speak for their other book tour services, but the cover reveal was a great deal.

A great value tour.

My thoughts: This was a super affordable cover reveal option with diverse reach across blogs, websites, and Instagram. The tour organizer was prompt and easy to work with. They have several other tour types and packages to choose from, including a $90 unlimited blog and bookstagrammer book blitz that boasts an average of 70-90 participants.

Things to consider: I have only used their cover reveal services, so I can’t speak on the quality of their other tours, but my experience with them was great!

Katie and Brey PA

Package I chose: I used them for both an ARC blast (80+ Instagram readers option) and a cover reveal (60-100 Instagram accounts option )

Number of hosts: Provided 85+ readers for review blast (though not all posted); nearly 100 of the accounts that posted for my cover reveal came from them

What I paid: $100 (blast); $68 (cover reveal) – note: I booked them during their introductory phase, and their prices have increased since

Would I recommend them? Yes! They connected me with a huge network of readers.

The best networking tour.

My thoughts: This is a unique PR company with a wide network of readers that offers various author services, including cover reveal blasts and reader/reviewer teams. For their reader/reviewer teams, they offer both a self-service option and a full-service option. With both options, they will build a team of readers to read and review an ARC or a previously published book, but with the full-service option, they will also help manage that team by following up on review deadlines, etc. Note that they do welcome ebooks. I used them for both a self-service reader/reviewer team and a cover reveal blast, and both had great results! Their reader/review service connected me with an amazing network of readers that were crucial to the successful launch of my book, while a subsequent cover reveal pulled nearly 100 accounts to share my cover on reveal day. With a huge network of engaged readers that are excited to help promote indies and small publishers, this is a great option for early reviews, release blasts, or to reinvigorate old titles.

Things to consider: I got in at introductory pricing, so expect to pay more than what you see here. Additionally, I went with a self-service package, and there were a number of hosts who received ebook copies of the book and did not leave a review; however, the majority of hosts did, and even with those who didn’t, this was still well worth the price.

NBB (Nerdy Book Box) Tours

Package I chose: FREE Instagram spotlight tour w/ giveaway; FREE Instagram review tour

Number of hosts: 11 spotlight stops; 5 review stops

What I paid: $0

Would I recommend them? Absolutely yes! What a great free service for indie authors!

A great free tour.

My thoughts: This is a totally free service exclusive to indie authors that offers spotlight tours, review tours, cover reveals, and more. I booked them for a spotlight tour and a review tour, and I was impressed with the quality of both! Though free, this is comparable to a paid tour. All hosts posted impressive graphics on time, the organizers were professional and engaged, and they even accept ebook copies for review. I highly recommend getting in on this one if you can!

Things to consider: As a free service, they fill up fast, so book early.

Update: As of 1/25/23, this tour is now charging a flat fee for tours. Check website for details.

TBR and Beyond Tours

Package I chose: FREE blog and bookstagram tour

Number of hosts: 23 blog stops; 27 Instagram stops

What I paid: $0 tour + (NA) cost of sending paperback books – omitted because this tour was for a different book than all other tours on this list

Would I recommend them? Absolutely yes! This is a great free service if you fit the criteria.

An incredible free tour for the right book.

My thoughts: This is another free service that offers cover reveals and blog/bookstagam tours. Unlike all the other tours on this list, I used them for a different book a few years ago and was greatly impressed by the number of stops included. This is also a mixed-bag tour, featuring creative content like mood boards, interviews, excerpts, and reviews across both Instagram and a spread of international blogs. They also share within their highly engaged, private Facebook book club, which boasts over 8,000 members.

Things to consider: There are some genres they don’t accept, including erotica, and while they do work with indie and self-published authors, they are selective about the books and age brackets they’ll take on. They do accept ebooks, but physical are required for bookstagram tour stops, and I had one host receive a physical copy of the book and fail to post. However, this tour still has incredible reach and quality for being free, so I would definitely apply if you feel you fit their criteria. As a free service that also works directly with publishers, they fill up extremely fast, so apply early.

Midnight Tours

Package I chose: Bookstagram cover reveal and bookstagram release review tour

Number of hosts: 25+ for cover reveal; TBD for release review tour

What I paid: NA* I am part of a pilot for this company, and official prices will be announced in 2023

Would I recommend them? Definitely! Though I am admittedly biased on this one, this is a thoughtful new venture run by authors that promises to be competitively priced.

A promising new tour run by authors.

My thoughts: This is a brand new tour venture started by authors, for authors to help combat issues that can arise during book tours, such as hosts failing to post or hosts being paired with books outside their preferred genre/content/spice level. There are some cool incentives for hosts, such as monthly book swag giveaways, exclusive ARC opportunities, and automatic entry to win a free book with every Instagram tag using the company’s handle. For authors, hosts are heavily vetted to ensure they are a good match for your work and that they have a consistent track record. I used this company for a recent cover reveal and had a great turnout. I will also be using them for an exclusive release review tour in December.

Things to consider: This tour company is an affiliate of my publisher, meaning that unlike all the other tours on this list, I have a personal connection to it. 2022 tours are limited to books published through Midnight Tide Publishing, but this tour company will be opening wide in 2023 following the pilot phase. Despite my personal ties, I genuinely believe in the vision of this company, am impressed by the engaged, reputable group of hosts they have already amassed, and am excited to see how it pans out over the coming months.

Other tour companies to try

I haven’t personally used any of these companies and can’t speak on the quality, but here are some other options I know of. List items link directly to the tour sites, and I’ll update this list with any recommendations left in the comments.

• Love Book Tours
• Turn the Pages Tours
• The Smuthood
• Lit Uncorked
• Peachy Keen Author Services
• Book of Matches Media
• Elixer Book Tours
• Hygge Book Tours
• Book Tours with Emstar
• Rockstar Book Tours
• Bewitching Book Tours
• Equality Book Tours

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Charmed Book Haven Reviews

"the world is a story waiting to be reviewed", tag: xpresso book tours, arc review: prince of midnight by ana calin.

Title: Prince of Midnight Series: Dracula’s Bloodline #1 Author: Ana Calin Release Date: December 18th, 2018 Available: Amazon Add to Goodreads

*I received an ARC copy via Xpresso Book Tours in exchange for an honest review. This does not effect my review in any way.*

Let me tell you a secret – Dracula had a brother. This is true. They called him Radu the Handsome, but his beauty was deceiving, and it hid a deadly secret… With high ambitions as a journalist, Juliet Jochs travels to the Carpathians to investigate a mysterious and unnaturally beautiful prince. She suspects that he’s a dangerous man, and that this mission may cost her life. But, as the prince’s masks begin to peel off, she fears she may lose her sanity. Prince Radek’s dark powers suck Juliet into a whirl of hypnotic desire–no woman has ever resisted his lures. But something is different about her, special, and he’s growing dangerously addicted to her. She must keep her head above the water if she is to save herself, run away and not look back before he consumes her completely. But can she resist opening the last door to his most terrible secret?

We all know the story of Vlad the Impaler aka Dracula. The various adaptions from book to screen aside from the historical facts versus the legend – some of us readers and viewers cannot get enough of this character nor his offspring. Although, books do not mention any facts about his brother, Radu cel Frumos or Radu the Handsome. The legend of Radu or rumor, if you will, is quite interesting to say the least. While Vlad received the craving of blood and curse of immortality, Radu is cursed with physical beauty until the cover of night where he must wear a mask to disclose his true facial form. If any mortal looks upon his true face, they are cursed with the black plague and die a slow, painful death. Author Ana Calin builds upon the rarely spoken of brother of the Prince of Darkness and creates a character with his own immortal dark tale of romance and horror. Radu, or Radek Basarab is known as one of the most eligible millionaire bachelors in all of the world. With his background and business practices shrouded in mystery, journalist Juliet Jochs is aimed at solving it and practically sold to him by her company in order to discover then exploit her findings. However, Juliet quickly discovers she gets more than what she bargained for the moment she is transferred to Transylvania and takes up residence within the walls of Dracula’s castle. The more time she spends at the castle, she notices disappearing hallways, strange noises, and the Prince acting very strange. Now, Juliet started off at being built up to be an independent woman with a mind of her own and sharp wit, but the more time she spends around the Prince, she notices time seems to slip away as well as her energy. Her relationship with him began flirtatious then transforms into something more addicting, and obsessively sexual pretty quickly. Very soon, they become overly attached to one another and the Prince’s dark secret is reveals, but something else is revealed. He is like an Incubus, in a way, but he isn’t. He sucks out the life-force of the women he’s been with in order to sustain his immortality and beauty. Much like his brother only without the blood and he has to wear a mask at night. His attraction to Juliet is something he is not used too. Not because she is the only woman who has made him feel anything remote to “love”, but Juliet somehow has the ability to make him whole and reduces the impact of his dark power. The story moves rather quickly with these two, a little too quickly for my personal taste. The legend of Radu is intriguing and I wanted to learn more about it before the romance kicked in. It was as if the legend was put on the back burner most of the time and the romance over-powered it. These two did not have enough conversations or even spent much time together before getting physical and falling for one another. Some readers may like that in their paranormal romance novels, but I like the gradual build up approach. And when it came to the turning point of the novel where the antagonists began to came out of the woodwork, it was close to the end of the novel. Do I want to see what will happen between Juliet and Radek? Yes, but I’d like for the sequel to cut back on the rush of romance and give me more exposition between the characters and more action. If you are a fan of  Dracula,  try his brother for a night!

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Book tour, arc review, & giveaway: to catch a rogue by bec mcmaster.

Title: To Catch a Rogue Author: Bec McMaster Series: London Steampunk: The Blue Blood Conspiracy #4 Release Date: October 30th, 2018 Available: Amazon / B&N / Kobo / iBooks Add to Goodreads

The Company of Rogues finally knows the identity of the mastermind behind a plot against the queen—but their enemy is still one step ahead of them. When he kidnaps one of theirs, the Rogues plan a daring rescue mission that will lead them into the heart of the bloodthirsty Crimson Court. It’s a job for a master thief, and there’s nothing Charlie Todd likes more than a challenge. To pull off the impossible, Charlie needs a crew, including the only thief who’s ever been able to outfox him. He broke her heart. But now she must risk it all to save his life… Lark’s spent years trying to forget her past, but the one thing she can’t ignore is the way a single smile from Charlie still sets her heart on fire. When he proposes they work together again, it feels just like old times, but she has one rule: this is strictly business. It’s Charlie’s last chance to prove he can be trusted with her heart. But Lark’s keeping a deadly secret. And as passions are stirred and the stakes mount, it might be the kind of secret that could destroy them all…

BEC MCMASTER grew up on a steady diet of 80’s fantasy movies like Ladyhawke, Labyrinth and The Princess Bride, and loves creating epic, fantasy-based worlds with heroes and heroines who must defeat all the odds to have their HEA. If you like sexy, dark, paranormal romance, try her Dark Arts series; for some kick-bustle ladies-saving-the-day steampunk romance then check out London Steampunk; and for rocket-fuelled post-apocalyptic romance with a twist on the werewolf theme, then see her Burned Lands series. Bec has been nominated for RT Reviews Best Steampunk Romance for Heart of Iron (2013), won RT Reviews Best Steampunk Romance with Of Silk And Steam (2015), and Forged By Desire was nominated for an RWA RITA award in 2015. The series has received starred reviews from Booklist, Publishers Weekly, and Library Journal, with Heart of Iron named one of their Best Romances of 2013. Join Bec’s newsletter for all the latest news on releases, exclusive excerpts and cover reveals, and get your copy of ‘Tarnished Knight’, a novella in her award-winning London Steampunk series. Copy and paste this link into your browser: http://eepurl.com/F_LkD Contact Website / Twitter / Goodreads

I came in late to The Steampunk Conspiracy game. Don’t judge me, but I did. The plus side, though, the author fills you in on all of the action you missed in the previous novels through a quick synopsis at the beginning of the book and throughout the novel. This, obviously, a huge relief for me trying to catch up on it and the original series: The London Steampunk . Here is an excerpt to fill you in on who the rogues are: “The Duke of Malloryn puts together a highly-skilled team of individuals (human, mechs, and rogue blue bloods) to combat a mysterious threat against the queen, and the Company of Rogues is born.” Each of these books are set in a world where vampires are considered “blue bloods” and there are different courts where they dwell. The Crimson Court is a common threat to the blue bloods who fight for justice and peace. In this book, The Duke of Malloryn, is kidnapped and held captive within the dark Crimson Court. The Rogues are notified and decide to send one of their best to rescue the Duke and also recruit an old flame of his to tackle the task. Charlie and Lark have a complicated past. Charlie broke her heart by choosing another woman over her and disappearing. Lark, in turn, went on her own path, acquiring a long list of secrets in her wake. Oh my gosh the secrets! The plot is solid, adored the characters and the chemistry surrounding them. I felt for Lark, I truly did. I can understand her coldness toward Charlie and being resistant to him even though her hidden feelings fought against her. The events unfolded organically, no stone unturned. Usually characters were as many secrets as Lark would tend to get taxing, but this was completely the opposite. Everything came around full circle and I’m definitely going to be looking into the previous books! Love steampunk and vampires with a dash of sexy rogues? Take this series and go!

Want to win a $10 Amazon gift card? Enter Giveaway Here !

Happy Reading!

Blog Tour: ARC Review & Giveaway: Death by the River By Alexandrea Weis and Lucas Astor

Title: death by the river, author(s): alexandrea weis & lucas astor, release date: october 2nd, 2018, genre: horror, young adult, available: amazon / b&n / ibooks / kobo, add to goodreads.

A high school “American Psycho.” SOME TRUTHS ARE BETTER KEPT SECRET. SOME SECRETS ARE BETTER OFF DEAD. Along the banks of the Bogue Falaya River, sits the abandoned St. Francis Seminary. Beneath a canopy of oaks, blocked from prying eyes, the teens of St. Benedict High gather here on Fridays. The rest of the week belongs to school and family—but weekends belong to the river. And the river belongs to Beau Devereaux. The only child of a powerful family, Beau can do no wrong. Handsome. Charming. Intelligent. The star quarterback of the football team. The “prince” of St. Benedict is the ultimate catch. He is also a psychopath. A dirty family secret buried for years, Beau’s evil grows unchecked. In the shadows of the ruined St. Francis Abbey, he commits unspeakable acts on his victims and ensures their silence with threats and intimidation. Senior year, Beau sets his sights on his girlfriend’s headstrong twin sister, Leslie, who hates him. Everything he wants but cannot have, she will be his ultimate prize. As the victim toll mounts, it becomes crystal clear that someone has to stop Beau Devereaux. And that someone will pay with their life.

Alexandrea Weis is an advanced practice registered nurse who was born and raised in New Orleans. Having been brought up in the motion picture industry, she learned to tell stories from a different perspective and began writing at the age of eight. Infusing the rich tapestry of her hometown into her award-winning novels, she believes that creating vivid characters makes a story memorable. A permitted/certified wildlife rehabber with the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries, Weis rescues orphaned and injured wildlife. She lives with her husband and pets in New Orleans.

Lucas Astor is from New York, has resided in Central America and the Middle East, and traveled through Europe. He lives a very private, virtually reclusive lifestyle, preferring to spend time with a close-knit group of friends than be in the spotlight. He is an author and poet with a penchant for telling stories that delve into the dark side of the human psyche. He likes to explore the evil that exists, not just in the world, but right next door behind a smiling face. Photography, making wine, and helping endangered species are just some of his interests. Lucas is an expert archer and enjoys jazz, blues, and classical music. One of his favorite quotes is: “ It’s better to be silent than be a fool. ” ~Harper Lee (To Kill a Mockingbird)

This book is nothing short of intense. I cannot stress the fact that if you choose to read this, you need to know there are scenes involving rape and violence. At first, I wondered if this was truly a YA novel due to the scenes, language, slut/kink shaming, and the content. I am used to reading content like this in adult novels, but not YA. I understand times are changing in YA but not to this extent. I am not knocking the book for this, merely stating my opinion. If these aspects were not in this novel, it would not be as intense and driving as it was for me. Leslie and her sister Dawn are polar opposites. Leslie is dating a non-popular guy, living in a healthy relationship, and has her priorities straight and standards high. Her sister, on the other hand, is basically trapped in a toxic relationship with Beau, the high school quarterback who comes from the Devereaux family that owns the majority of the town. Beau is constantly antagonizing Leslie behind her sister’s back, taunting her and making aggressive moves toward her that are nothing short of assault. Since his family practically runs the town, the principal and various students turn a blind eye to rumors surrounding him. He smiles like an angel on the outside when his inner core is dark and on the verge of exploding, destroying everything and everyone around him. Watching Beaus dissension into rage, madness, and ruthless behavior sent shivers down my spine. He is an extremely frightening character. He has a history of abusing his mother, terrorizing animals, and takes unsuspecting girls into his “sanctuary” in the Abbey where his actions know no bounds. That is, until his secrets begin to rise from their graves and oh, what tales do they have to tell. Then the destruction of Beau Deveraux takes hold and his ghosts are ready to reek their revenge. I need to give props for the authors with delving deep into the town’s history and the background of the character’s families. It gave me an even deeper understanding as to where Beau’s inner demons derived from. From generation to generation, the mental illness and past abuse running in the veins of the family finally came to a head and the seed is planted within him. It is not an excuse, but at least you know the source of the issues. I felt for Leslie and her worry for her sister. I grew angry with Dawn over her insistence of believing there was good in Beau despite the signs of the opposite. I cried over Beau’s victims and crimes. This whole story, quite frankly, there were various times where I needed to set the book down and brew a heavy batch of chamomile and peppermint tea to bring me down from the edge. This book is not for the faint of heart, that is for sure. If you are easily triggered, do not read this book. If you are looking for a Halloween read that will have you looking over your shoulder then try it out.

Want a chance to win a $25 Amazon Gift card? Enter Giveaway Here !

Happy “Spooky” Reading!

Book Blitz & Excerpts: Dark Falls By Lori Ryan & Savannah Kade

Titles: Dark Falls; Dark Secrets Author(s): Lori Ryan and Savannah Kade Series: Dark Falls series Release Date: October 9th, 2018

Available: dark falls amazon / b&n / ibooks / kobo add to goodreads, dark secrets amazon / b&n / ibooks / kobo add to goodreads.

Dark Falls A cop hunting a violent thrill seeker. A woman from his past. Will their history and heated attraction put his case on ice? Detective John Sevier never wanted to be anything but a cop. When a string of jewelry store heists threatens the woman he let get away years before, he’ll stop at nothing to bring the adrenaline junkie gang leader to justice. Ava McNair never looked at her life as a sacrifice. She loves taking care of her dad and running her family’s jewelry store with her special needs sister. So what if that meant dropping out of college and leaving behind a man who just might have been the one? When fate gives her and the detective who got away a second shot at love, will she step up and take it or will life tear them apart again? With Ava in the path of a killer, will John be able to move fast enough to take down a violent man set on wreaking as much damage as he can before he goes down? Dark Secrets When Grace Lee storms into the Dark Falls Police Department, heads turn. But she only has eyes for Detective Nate Ryder—the officer who closed her brother Jimmy’s case too quickly, declaring his death a suicide rather than a murder. As a forensic scientist, Grace thinks the signs are obvious, the trick is convincing Nate. Nate has to admit Grace’s argument makes a lot of sense, and he feels obligated to revisit the case. The problem is, while he’s following the old evidence, she’s collecting new samples—and putting herself in danger from the same organization that killed her brother. Jimmy was definitely onto something before he was murdered. Now, Nate has another worry: some of the new evidence Grace has found points back to members of the Dark Falls PD.  As strange coincidences turn deadly, Nate has to become Grace’s protector. They don’t know who they can trust and who they can’t. Will Grace and Nate be the next victims in a massive cover-up? Or can they figure out which cops are dirty fast enough to stay alive? 

Savannah Kade grew up in East Tennessee and started writing when she was only 8 years old. It was a romance for the ages, but it will never see the light of day. She’s been writing ever since and fighting for heroines who are quirky but not dumb, heroes who are real men, and for love stories that are more than just a cute trope. She now lives outside of Nashville with her amazing husband and 2 kids. She can usually be found working on her next novel. Contact Website / Facebook / Twitter Lori Ryan is a NY Times and USA Today bestselling author who writes romantic suspense and contemporary romance with steamy love scenes and characters you won’t want to leave in the pages when the story is over. Lori published her first novel in April of 2013 and ​has fallen in love with writing. ​She is the author of the Sutton Capital Series; the Heroes of Evers, Texas; and the Triple Play Curse Novellas, a set of novellas with sexy baseball players at their core as part of Bella Andre’s Game For Love Kindle World. She has also published in Melanie Shawn’s Hope Falls Kindle World and in Robyn Peterman’s Magic and Mayhem Kindle World. She lives with an extremely understanding husband, three wonderful children, and two mostly well-behaved dogs in Austin, Texas. It’s a bit of a zoo, but she wouldn’t change a thing. She loves to connect with her readers. Follow her on Facebook or Twitter or subscribe to her blog. Contact Website / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads

Dark Falls Ava McNair smiled as she watched the couple leave her store. She loved seeing couples find the perfect engagement ring to start their lives together. These two were young, but she could see the devotion in the way they looked at each other. He’ d come in ahead of time to choose a ring, then told his girlfriend he needed to swing by and pick up a watch his mom left to be repaired. The look on her face was priceless when he dropped to one knee after Ava passed him the ring box. “Nice,” Kirsten James said, winking at Ava from her spot by the door. The woman might look harsh in her guard uniform, but she was as much of a softy when it came to that kind of thing as Ava was. Ava grinned and turned to go to the back to check on her sister, but the door chimed again. What she saw when she looked back was anything but expected. The man entering her family ’ s jewelry store had filled out. His face was different, worn in a way, but in a good way. At least, she thought it looked good on him. His eyes were the same, though. John Sevier ’ s eyes trapped and held her, his light brown gaze doing things to her just like they had years before when she ’ d been stupid enough to walk away from him. To say he was the one who got away was an understatement. She ’ d been so na ï ve and focused on all the wrong things at that time in her life. She never realized what she was losing until it was far too late for her to do anything about it. Not that she would have been able to hold on to him anyway. Halfway through college, her life had changed drastically, and she’d had to drop out to help her dad and sister. She would have lost John then, anyway. Still, an eighties rock ballad was playing in the back of her head somewhere as she thought about not knowing what you had ’til it was gone. Kirsten stiffened and looked ready to move into action if Ava didn’t say anything. It was no wonder. A six-foot-one man who looked like he could eat glass for breakfast if he got the craving, was standing frozen in their showroom. And Ava probably looked like a deer in headlights. “John.” Ava breathed the word out, then shook herself to clear the fog. She waved a hand at Kirsten. “ It ’ s all right. John ’ s an old friend. ” She thought she saw something flicker in his eyes at the words, but if it had been anything more than her imagination, it was gone. “ Um …” Ava looked around the showroom. One of her salespeople was on the other side of the store helping an older gentleman pick out a bracelet for his granddaughter. Kirsten was still staring at her and John. Ava swung a hand in the direction of the workshop and offices at the back of the store. “ We could, um …” Thankfully, John nodded, seemingly unconcerned at the fact she couldn’t seem to get a sentence out that didn’t include “ um. ” Scratch that, she hadn’t actually gotten a complete sentence out, period. She went to the back, hoping to pass right through the workshop where her sister, Janna, designed most of the jewelry they carried. They had other artisans who worked for them, repairing jewelry and watches and such, but Janna was their only bench jeweler. Anything in their cases that her sister didn’t make was ordered from jewelry wholesalers or outside artisans. Janna stood at her bench, the spotlights that surrounded her all aimed at a four-inch square space in front of her as her hands worked with small samplings of metals and gems. Janna had a habit of getting lost in her work, but today when Ava hoped she might do just that, her sister looked up. Janna’ s eyes went from Ava to John and back to Ava in a comic demonstration of her surprise at seeing a man with Ava. Yeah, it was somewhat of a shock to Ava, too. “ John, this is my sister, Janna. Janna, John and I were friends in college. ” Ava watched as Janna ’ s eyes went wide. John smiled and nodded. Whether he remembered Ava mentioning Janna ’ s issues with anxiety when they dated, or he just read people really well, she didn’t know. But for whatever reason, he didn’t offer his hand to Janna to shake. That was good. It was what Janna was more comfortable with. Janna looked to Ava. “ Big John? ” Oh Lord . Ava’ s cheeks flamed hot, and she knew they must be red. She and Janna shared everything, which meant Janna knew all about the John Ava had dated in college. She just hadn’t expected Janna to put the man standing before her together with their conversations about John in college. And yes, Janna had truly nicknamed him Big John in college, but it wasn’t for the reasons one might think. Not that he couldn’t have earned the nickname that way. Back in the day, one of Ava’s friends had described John’s body as “call him if you need your house moved over a few inches” kind of big. She wasn’t wrong. Ava put her hands to her cheeks, and a small semblance of a laugh slipped from her lips. She dodged John ’ s smiling eyes and Janna ’ s impish grin without answering and led the way back to her office. She could try to explain to John that Janna had given him the nickname because that was how he ’ d seemed to her at the time. Ava had talked about John so much when they were dating that Janna had labeled him “ big ” in Ava’ s world. She didn’t know how to say all that without making the whole situation worse, though, so she clamped down on her lips, imprisoning them between her teeth as she shut the door behind them. The look he gave her told her he was enjoying this far too much. “ For your information, ” she said, crossing her arms, “ Big John is another John. Not you. It ’s…” she didn’t have any ideas … “ someone else. ” “ Uh – huh.” He matched her crossed arms and let a smile cross his face.   Dark Secrets Grace didn’t usually spray luminol and pull out her black light when she entered a motel room. But today she held the light up and frowned at the blood revealed by the generously applied chemiluminescent. Old blood was everywhere. Small spots peeked out from under the edge of the bed where the old polyester blanket touched the carpeting. It looked to Grace as though something had happened in that spot and the bed had simply been moved. In one corner, another streak of luminol glowed cautiously, the remnant of a merely passable scrubbing. Some of the luminescent spots revealed that her suspicions had been correct about the old carpeting, about this motel room, and about the stains. Crap . This was the last thing she needed. She’d requested this room specifically. She didn’t always spray Luminol and pull out her black light when she rented a room. Then again, she couldn’t recall ever renting a room this awful in her life. She could imagine Jimmy here, though. If he was on one of his serious benders this would be nothing. Unfortunately, that meant there was nothing obvious here that supported her theory about her brother. She’d have to wait for lab results. “Oh, Jimmy,” she lamented out loud to the dark room. “What did you get yourself into?” The way her heart clenched couldn’t be stopped. No matter what the room looked like, no matter what she might be able to prove, none of it would change the facts. Jimmy was dead. Gone, after a life that had been a struggle from the beginning and continued to be one well into adulthood. Grace blinked back the tears that threatened. Many people didn’t know what it was like having an addict in their lives. They were lucky. Addicts stole, they lied, they betrayed. And they often left you with only one option—completely cutting yourself off. She hadn’t been able to do it. Neither had her parents. So they’d all suffered alongside her little brother. But , dammit , she’d really thought these last five years had seen a turnaround. He’d been clean and four months shy of his five-year chip. But the Dark Falls Police Department had written of Jimmy’s death as just another junkie overdose. Case closed. Grace wasn’t buying it. Jimmy wasn’t using again. She knew it. She’d spoken to him just a few days before he died. No one would believe her. No one did. Even her parents were skeptical, but she believed. She’d lived with Jimmy, and watched him turn to alcohol at age ten, then cocaine at thirteen, she’d gotten good at spotting the signs. Lots of siblings did. Sometimes parents tried to deny it. They turned their kids away, or they made up excuses and always believed the best. But siblings of addicts had a radar for it. Their investment was entirely different from a parental bond. Grace knew . She’d talked about it in Al-Anon meetings. She’d gone steadily for almost two years, then off and on for another handful. The siblings of addicts all had similar stories. They knew . They could tell when their brothers or sisters were using again. Grace couldn’t count the number of times someone had showed up at a meeting with a suspicion, then even several months later said, “I was right.” She’d had that feeling about Jimmy before. It happened the first time he’d gotten clean. He’d stayed clean for six months before relapsing. The second time—after their parents had paid to put him through an expensive rehab program—he’d stayed clean a year and a half. But Grace knew that his eighteen-month chip was an excuse to celebrate, to think he’d been cured only to have him slide back. But she didn’t have that feeling. Not this time. The third time seemed to have stuck. Jimmy had moved to Dark Falls, something their mother had protested with every fiber of her being. He should be close to home. Part Vietnamese, part Chinese, and gay as the day was long, Jimmy wanted to get out of the South. Grace understood. She’d supported him. They texted daily, and she talked to him just a few days before he died. She did not believe he was using again. She’d even demanded a full autopsy. She checked off her mental list as she looked around the room at the various splotches her quick test had revealed. She’d want samples of them all. Jimmy’s death was listed as an overdose. Had there been fresh blood, the police wouldn’t have been able to write it off so easily. Grace had only pulled out the Luminol on a whim when she’d seen the dark patches in the carpeting. It could have been wine or cheap beer, but her senses told her to test it. Shit . She looked around behind her, holding the light up. A lot of it was faint, old, but she needed to know what it was. She had her work cut out for her. After gathering samples from at least five spots around the room—samples that she highly suspected would be all different—she turned off her black light and clicked the regular light back on. Surveying the horrible room she didn’t want to be in, she pulled out her phone and called her oftentimes partner, Brad, back home. “Brad, I was right.”

Book Blitz & Giveaway: First Full Moon By Michelle Alstead

Title: First Full Moon Author: Michelle Alstead Release Date: August 28th, 2018 Available: Amazon Add to Goodreads

More secrets. More lies. I’m going to die. She wanted a car for her sixteenth birthday, not magical powers… Candy McGregor is a teenager living in Sequim Falls, a small East Coast town, where the McGregors own just about everything. While her grandmother grooms her to run the family business—a pharmaceutical empire—Candy dreams of a life where she’s known as more than just a last name. When the monthly family dinner turns into a horror show, Candy discovers the McGregors aren’t so much blessed as they are cursed. At midnight on her sixteenth birthday, Candy inherits both the ability to do magic and the destiny to become a wolf on the next full moon. There is hope of a life that doesn’t require being chained up once a month. If Candy can undo the original spell that created the curse, she can rid the world of werewolves and remain a witch. But there’s one really big problem. Not everyone hates being a wolf. With the next full moon looming, Candy must take on forces that will do anything to stop her. Will she break the curse or surrender to life as a monster?

Michelle Alstead is a single, divorced mom of a child with Autism Spectrum Disorder, who tries to promote autism awareness and advocate for gender equality while raising Sheldon Cooper and searching for some semblance of a love life. All of Michelle’s adult novels take place in the same universe. Characters cross over between novels, which makes for a more interesting world. Her novels are frequently available for free on Amazon Kindle. Sign up for her email list to receive notifications here . The Full Moon Series (four young adult supernatural stories) will be published in time for Halloween 2018 . Contact Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads

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Book Blitz, Excerpt, & Giveaway: Scorchin’ By Olivia Rush

Title: Scorchin’ Author: Olivia Rush Series: The Hot Boys Series Bk. 2 Release Date: September 20th, 2018 Available: Amazon Add to Goodreads

New York’s hottest fireman just got hotter. As a top journalist, I’ll do anything for a story. The hotter the story, the better. And hot’s just what I get when Stone Black from the Fire Station 128 came into my life. Love wasn’t part of the plan, but those gorgeous green eyes and a hose big enough to put out my fire won me over. I try to keep it physical, my career allowing no time for romance, but I soon learn there’s more than meets the eye with Stone. He’s not just one of New City’s finest fireman, he’s a loving single father. Now, he’s ready to tear down my professional boundaries, to take what he wants. Soon I’m dangerously close to my story, and only Stone can protect me. And when I find out I’m carrying his baby, it’s clear that if I’m not careful I just might get burned. Maybe…that’s just what I want.

Olivia writes romantic suspense with a healthy dose of steam. She loves writing about beautiful characters in adventurous tales. Olivia lives with a sometimes nice teen, her awesome hubby, and the world’s coolest cat. Netflix is watched daily in the Rush household and coffee is run through an IV drip. Want to try her work for free? Paste this link into your browser: BookHip.com/BHNGWP Contact Website/Facebook/Goodreads

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Book Blitz & Giveaway: The Devil to Pay By Jackie May

Title: The Devil to Pay Author: Jackie May Series: Shayne Davies Bk. 1 Release Date: September 18th, 2018 Available: Amazon Add to Goodreads

When it comes to talented new recruits at the Federal Underworld Agency, Nora Jacobs is only half the story… The Devil to Pay is the first book in Jackie May’s companion series to Nora Jacobs, set in the same urban fantasy Detroit, sharing several supporting characters (hello, Nick Gorgeous), but with a new main character, Shayne Davies. This series can be enjoyed on its own, but readers of the Nora Jacobs books will be more familiar with the world and its characters. As a fox shifter, Shayne Davies gets no respect in an underworld run by the fearsome and powerful—werewolves and vampires, sorcerers, demons, and mythical faerie creatures. Even at home, Shayne is still treated like the brat of the pack. Her mom constantly nags; her intended (but unwanted) mate ensures plenty of awkward silences, and Shayne is even expected to act submissive to the pack’s future alpha…a six year old. Yeah. Time for Plan B. All Shayne wants is to prove that she’s got what it takes to run with the big dogs, which is why she is constantly hounding Nick Gorgeous to make her an agent at the “Double D”, the Detroit Division of the FUA. That’s an easy “No” for Gorgeous, who keeps a strict “No Shayne Davies” policy. Well, never say never. When mysterious underworld criminals steal a load of bomb materials, the FUA picks up a messy case nobody wants to touch. It’s bad enough that a demon horde is involved, but now the annoying FBI has sent out an agent to babysit the investigation. To make matters worse, the notoriously uncooperative master vampire Henry Stadther has control over what may be the only key to breaking the case: a handsome human detective. The whole thing’s a hopeless disaster. So guess what, Shayne? You’re hired!

Jackie May is a pseudonym for a husband and wife writing team. Josh and Kelly live in Phoenix, Arizona with their four children and their cat, Mr. Darcy. Jackie May is their only daughter. (And she keeps asking for her cut of the profits since we’re using her name.) Contact Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads

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Book Blitz, Excerpt, & Giveaway: Truth in Lies By Jennifer Digiovanni

Title: Truth in Lies Author: Jennifer Digiovanni Series: The Generators Bk. 2 Publisher: Evernight Teen Release Date: September 7th, 2018 Available: Amazon / B&N / Kobo / Smashwords Add to Goodreads

Cara Scotto is living a secret life. She hates holding back the truth about her supernatural powers from her family and friends, but tells herself it’s the only way to protect them. When she struggles to control her surging energy levels, she fears someone will uncover pieces of the truth in her lies. Intent on learning how to best use her new abilities, Cara trains with her boyfriend Alex, hoping to increase her speed and strength. Though Alex and Cara vow not to let fear rule their lives, they can’t forget Ian, the supernatural scientist intent on uncovering Cara’s true potential, and wonder what his next step will be. They won’t need to wait long before he strikes again. Soon, the answer becomes clear—someone needs to step up, eliminate Ian, and replace him. Until now, Alex has avoided the underground supernatural networks, but he realizes that agreeing to take over Ian’s position may be the only way to secure the future he and Cara dream of having.

Jennifer Digiovanni the author of contemporary and light fantasy books for teens. Aside from writing fiction, she is also a freelance writer and a small business owner. After graduating from college with a dual major in Business and English, she started out in the business world and eventually returned to school for my MBA. But, she always seemed to choose jobs that involved a lot of writing. Today, she spend my days managing a small business and writing. Some days she writes more than others, but she tries to spend her mornings working on fiction. She also likes to hike and run. Often, she’ll challenge herself to learn something new, from archery to video games to guitar, and call it future book research. Her most recent work-in-progress was named a finalist in the Serendipity Literary Agency YA Discovery Contest. It’s about a girl who was cured by a medical miracle and a boy who never received the miracle he so desperately wanted. Contact Website / Goodreads / Twitter / Facebook

Cara Power burns through my body, thrusting me like a rocket along the sleepy streets in town. I turn into a back alley, where brick walls on either side darken and blur as I fly by, the force of my movement rattling the window panes. Behind me, footsteps close in. I cross an intersection and dart behind City Hall, leaping over a parked car, disappearing in the murky fog. In the past few months, my strength has steadily increased. I jump higher, lift more weight, and control my superhuman abilities with increasing precision. I’ve learned how to slip in and out of a human’s vision, turning invisible when I need to escape. Even my oversensitive ears easily pick up on someone’s heavy breaths and the lightning-fast footsteps closing in from behind. A hand wraps around my bicep. I slow to a walk and retract my energy. “How did I do?” I pause, resting my shoulder against a street lamp while I catch my breath. “You’re much faster now.” Alex stops next to me. He’s barely sweating. “You almost destroyed the stop sign back there.” A smile breaks out on my face. “I only twisted it a little. It was in my way.” “No worries. I swung it back into position.” He tilts his head slightly when he senses the slightest dip in my power. “How’s your energy level?” “Still high.” Bracing a hand on his shoulder, I balance on one leg while I stretch my quad. The light touch ignites a familiar buzz circulating through my bloodstream. I’m about to suggest another race around town when the alarm on top of City Hall blares. Alex’s blue eyes widen a fraction. “What’s this about? I thought Amber Lea was boring.” “So boring that one out-of-place person creeping around City Hall at night can set off the riot alarm.” I drop out of the quad stretch. “We should check it out.” Alex tips his head back and laughs. “Now we’re the good guys?” My pulse quickens. “We have the power to help. We should at least find out what’s going on.” With a shake of his head, he ignores the alarm and slides his hands around my waist. “Not now. Crestview’s gates lock at midnight .” He drops a kiss on my lips, fanning the flames sizzling right beneath my skin. “I need an hour alone with you.” My body trembles from a mixture of power and heat. Before my knees completely give out, Alex boosts me off the ground and spins me around, pressing my back against the brick wall of a nearby shop, keeping my lips locked on his. We’re on the edge of taking things too far when a dark form zips by, generating a gust of wind that blows my hair in three different directions. Too fast to be a normal human. Too big to be even the largest of overgrown bats. A police car zooms by, lights flashing, and turns in the opposite direction of whoever just raced by us. Alex pulls back with a groan. “We’re doing this, aren’t we?” Annoyance ticks in his voice. I fight a smile. “I think we are.”

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Xpresso Blog Tour & ARC Review: Evading the Dark By E.M. Rinaldi

Title: Evading the Dark Author: E.M. Rinaldi Series: The Cross Chronicles #1 Genre: YA Fantasy Release Date: April 24th, 2018 Available: Amazon / Goodreads

Synopsis High school sucks. It doesn’t matter who you ask; jock, cheerleader, computer nerd, or band geek, they will all say the same thing: It’s a nightmare. But Casey is still wondering how she got the short end of the stick. Just a Sophomore at the prestigious Luthos Academy for Magical Beings, Casey already knows more about heartache and fear than any almost-sixteen-year-old should. Orphaned and left to be raised by the Academy, she spends her days training to become a Guardian, but that dream is looking dimmer with every day that passes.Unlike the wand-waving heroines in all her favorite books, Witches in her world don’t cast spells, they are born wielding the power of nature: water, fire, earth, or air; powers Casey never developed. She’ll be lucky if they even allow her to take her final exams. She is top of her training class, but that doesn’t keep her from being looked down upon by every other being at her school. All Casey wants is to be given a chance, instead she finds the only life she’s ever known targeted by an unfathomable evil. Thrust into the center of an age-old prophecy, a war is coming with Casey at the reins. Will relying on her hard earned training be enough for her to make it out alive?

My Review Evading the Dark  takes us to a world where witches, vampires, fae, and shifters remain in secret. Their progeny are sent to hidden schools for the talented beings throughout the world. Casey, an orphaned child of notorious witch Carina, is taken into the Luthos Academy under the guise of her Guardian Eli in order to grow in her powers. The downside – Casey does not have any powers. The witches at Luthos are held at an extremely high standard. Each one is drawn to one of the four elements (fire, water, air, & earth). Since Casey does not wield any of these powers, her fellow students (except her friends Cedric and Falon) go out of their way to torment her day after day for something she cannot control. I spent a good part of the book angry at her horrible treatment and the instructors turning a blind eye to it. How can you allow students harm an innocent one who cannot even fully defend herself? But, I digress. The turning point of the novel could not come at a better time when it did. There are not many characters like Casey, period. Despite the torment, she still fights for herself even when others turn a blind eye and carries her addicting personality in tow. Even with a prophecy over her head, she doesn’t give up trying to discover her place and how she may succeed. Wonderful story, well-thought out characters and enticing plot – one to keep an eye for sure!

Book Blitz: Splash By M.E. Rhines

Title: Splash Author: M.E. Rhines Series: Mermaid Royalty #3 Release Date: June 12th, 2018 Available: Amazon / B&N / iBooks / Kobo Add to Goodreads

*sink, book 1, is currently free – get your copy here .

Synopsis Fawna is happy with the new life she has made for herself on land. She has her child and her youngest sister Pauline by her side—plus an amazing new human boyfriend named Randy. So when an old friend from Atargatis shows up, she immediately feels the weight of everything she stands to lose. But the news can’t be ignored – there’s been an attack on their kingdom; her aunt Myrtle is dead and her mother is missing. Angelique, their middle sister, is now ruling a kingdom to the north, leaving Fawna as the only royal left to help save Atargatis. Torn between responsibilities in two different worlds, the decision is made for her when the powerful sea witch who attacked the kingdom also takes Fawna’s son. Now she has no choice—to save her life on dry land, she’ll have to dive back into the ocean… The final installment in the beloved Mermaid Royalty series, Splash is a heart-pounding fantasy romance that will have you feeling like you need to come up for air!

About the Author M.E. Rhines a southwest Florida native currently living in North Port with her two beautiful children and a third, much larger child whom she affectionately calls husband. She writes young adult paranormal romance to feed her belief that fairy tales are real and nonsense is necessary. Contact Facebook / Twitter

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I've seen several tours for Xpresso Tours, but not so many for Goddess Fish these days although they used to be very popular in the paranormal romance area. Xpresso Tours seem to do real well in the New Adult category, but I've seen a few horror novels pop up now and then too. Xpresso seems to be more active on social media, but it could just be with the blogs that I follow. I would suggest checking out books they currently have on tour and see their sales rank and number of reviews. If you're not impressed, search for another host. One way I've been using to research blog tour companies is by pulling up the bestsellers in my category and the doing a google search. (i.e. "Book Title"+"Blog Tour").  I usually search the image tab for tour banners because the tour companies name is usually listed.  

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The average self published author will spend countless hours to simply hunt down and email review requests to bloggers, one by one. This service gives you access to my vast blogger reach to facilitate this review query process and save you these hours of hunting down interested bloggers yourself.

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• This service gives you access to a large network of bloggers to facilitate the review request process, Xpresso Book Tours does not guarantee a minimum number of reviews. My role is similar to that of Netgalley – I connect your book with bloggers/reviewers; once the review copy is sent, it is the blogger’s responsibility to post a review.

Please fill out the following form to request the service, or you may request this service as an Add On to any Mayhem Cover Creations Cover Package

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Kelly Lacey & Love Books Tours

Organising successful book promotion for authors. visit the author services tab for more information. for book reviews from kelly lacey, click the book blog tab., category: xpresso book tours.

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27 Places to Get a Book Tour (and the Top Ten)

First off, we’re talking virtual book tours, not a bookstore tour. The value is of course you can do it from your desk – but it does take a lot of work. What separates a book tour from just old-fashioned marketing? Timing, mostly. What makes a tour a tour is a blast all at once of reviews, interviews, guest posts and other content. This is hard to organize if you’re talking dozens of different sites. Getting people to post is one thing – getting them to post on time is another thing entirely.

Check out this helpful Virtual Book Tour Email Template (PDF) for contacting bloggers – you’ll need to be diligent about contacting sites, and then following up, without being too pushy. Check out also Five Questions to Ask Yourself Before Writing a Blog Tour Post . If you’re interested in putting up unique content different places, you’ll have to be ready with interesting content for guest posts and interview answers where you’re not just saying the same thing over and over again.

BookBaby dispenses some advice about How to Set Up a Virtual Book Tour , with this note:

Important note : get ready for silence and rejection.

In other words, organizing a book tour isn’t any different than asking for reviews normally. You might not get a lot of takers. Same goes with guest posts, interviews and the like. So…it makes good sense to hire a service to do it for you. The expense is not extraordinarily high and you are guaranteed coverage from bloggers and reviewers.

It’s a bit tough to recommend one service heavily over another. It makes sense to check and see if the promoter has worked with books in your genre before because then he or she (mostly she) will have relationships with appropriate bloggers. So here’s a checklist of what to look for in a book tour promoter:

• Cost (naturally – but not entirely helpful because most are in the $25-$150 range).
• Number of Book Tour Hosts.
• Testimonials from past clients.
• Social media reach – most promise to share a tour on their own site/social media, so this is a pretty good measure of the effectiveness of the service overall. Also the reach of Blog Tour Hosts is important.
• How the list is distributed. Some blog tours will have a hard number of destinations, others will promise a hard number + access to the tour by everyone on their email list. So, for example, a tour service might have 500 Book Tour Hosts signed up. Obviously you won’t get 500 posts written, but you will potentially get exposure to all those bloggers who are interested in your genre.

I’d include an “About” section for each tour service, but they more or less offer the same thing. They will contact bloggers for coverage of your book normally ranging from 1 week to 1 month to organize:

• Guest posts
• Character interviews
• Book excerpts
• Book cover & synopsis/Author info (i.e. not a review, just the bare bones info)
• Giveaways (via Rafflecopter )
• Cover Reveal ( more info , from Random House but still applies).
• Podcasts (less common)

Giveaways are a good way to attract bloggers from an email list – often a gift card of $25 or more (rather than the book), so factor this into your budget.

The Top Ten

The top ten book tour services fulfill the criteria listed above – a sizable number of Book Tour Hosts, economical, professional design, currently active tours and past successes.

Very impressive testimonials .

Cost: $40-$280 (the $120 tour gets my vote)

Site could be a little less 90’s-looking, but good testimonials .

Cost $45-$140

No testimonials page but over 1000 Blog Tour Hosts . Professional site with a good reputation. I could do without the comments on pages though (a pet peeve!)

Cost: Free! But that means it’s tough to get a slot.

Specializes in paranormal/paranormal romance.

Good testimonials .

Cost: $35-$175

As the name suggests, Young Adult centered.

Nice testimonials .

Cost: Free (Cover Reveals)-$200

Testimonials listed on the site (spelled “Testminonials” unfortunately) plus all prior tours so you can see how effective they’ve been.

Cost: $19-$249

Cost: $75-$647 (way too expensive tbh, but I like her variety of offerings).

Cost: $25-$250

Romance-centered

Cost: $40-$140

“We specialize in Contemporary Romance, Women’s Fiction, Erotic Romance, Romance Suspense, YA/New Adult Romance, Historical Romance, & SOME Paranormal Romance.”

Cost: $10-$120

Big List of Honorable Mentions

• Fire and Ice Book Tours
• Promotional Book Tours
• Book Monster Productions
• Orangeberry Book Tours
• Prism Book Tours
• North Star Book Tours
• Kismet Book Touring
• Juniper Grove Book Solutions
• Lola’s Blog Tours
• Book R3vi3w Tours
• Sparkle Book Tours
• Masquerade Tours
• CM Book Tours
• Hedges Virtual Book Tours
• Dark Scream Virtual Book Tours
• Fiction Addiction Book Tours
• BookTour.tips

For a different perspective see: Paid Blog Tours are a Waste of Time & Money . Her main concern seems to be that the tour hosts weren’t particularly interested in her book, but just wanted to get new content to put on their sites (and asked generic interview questions). This doesn’t strike me as terribly surprising, but it’s worth noting: Blog tour hosts probably won’t be proselytizing about your book. That’s not really what the blog tour is about, it’s about increasing visibility for your work. Every press junket at any level involves having to answer the same questions again and again. The trick is to make it interesting: for you and the audience.

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17 comments.

I would use Orangeberry at your own risk! They faked online book blogger accounts to make it seem like the author was getting a lot of promotion. 🙁

Thanks for the warning! It looks like they’re out of commission now, at least temporarily.

Honored to be mentioned! Thank you so much!

No problem! 🙂

I know there are tons of these sites but some pretty great ones weren’t listed. Try: http://www.pumpupyourbook.com/ http://www.chapter-by-chapter.com/ http://www.jeanbooknerd.com/ http://www.clpblogtours.com/ http://tlcbooktours.com/ and for mystery lovers (like me): http://www.partnersincrimetours.net/

Thanks a lot! I thought about adding TLC Tours, but they’ve got this footnote: “Please note that we do not coordinate tours for self-published books.”

I’m not sure if CLP has changed their policy, but they did a blog tour for me a while back as a self-published author. They were pretty great to work with at that time.

Wow so honored to be on this list! Thanks for the shout-out! 🙂

I sent you an email – hope to hear from you soon!

Thank you so much for including Book Enthusiast Promotions on this awesome list!! <3

Thanks for mentioning Lola’s Blog Tours! I am honored to be on this list! And you give some great advice for authors who are looking to book a tour.

Thank you for mentioning b00k r3vi3w Tours

Sorry so late to the party! Just saw our mention here, thank you! FYI — we updated our website about six months ago, so hopefully are a little more modern 😀

Thanks for the awesome mention of Fire and Ice Book Tours! You rock!

BookTour.Tips is sadly just Orangeberry with a slap of paint. Their practices are exactly the same. Steer clear.

Hi! I’m Maia with Silver Dagger Book Tours ( http://silver-dagger-scriptorium.weebly.com/ ) I also run book tours with usually two kicking off every weekday and have gotten pretty big lately! I have a unique approach as I don not have set prices, instead I let everybody “Tip” me what they feel is fair depending on how much they can comfortably afford! There’s no risk involved as I prefer for everybody to pay AFTER the tour is over to ensure that you’re happy with the results! Stop by and see me!

[…] Here are our recommendations for book tour services. […]

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Xpresso Book Tours’ Netgalley Packages

NetGalley is an excellent resource for authors and publisher, however it can be an overwhelming cost for a new or self-published author to take on by themselves. As such, Xpresso Book Tours offers affordable terms where we can get your book listed through our NetGalley PR/Publisher profile. Plus, it comes with extra perks and less administrative work for you (more info below)!

What is NetGalley?

NetGalley.com is a service that helps promote and publicize books; a connection point for book publishers, reviewers, media, librarians, booksellers, bloggers and educators. Professional readers–reviewers, media, journalists, bloggers, librarians, booksellers and educators–can join and use NetGalley at no cost. NetGalley delivers digital galleys to professional readers and helps promote new and upcoming titles. We can list both published books as well as advance reader copies (ARCs).

The number of members on NetGalley is HUGE with currently over 600,000 reviewers, media, booksellers, bloggers and librarians!

Membership Info & Cost

Want your title listed on NetGalley?

Important to note: ➤ Spots are limited and we may have a wait list. Current wait time for a term listed below. ➤ A 1-month term allows you to list one title. A 3 month term allows you to list up to 3 books (1 per month).

•    1 month term: $65 •    3 month term: $180

What happens once your title is on Netgalley?

Xpresso Book Tours will take care of all of the technical administrative tasks, including weeding through review requests for you. After you have committed to the term of your choice and paid the fee, instructions are provided with details on how to submit your book. If you have a 3 month term, once a month you have the option to switch your listed title for another.

How review requests are handled: Requests are handled by Xpresso Book Tours for each title. We go through all requests and check the reviewer’s profile/stats to make sure they’re an active reviewer. What we look at for approval includes: requests to reviews ratio (shown by Netgalley), how active they are on review sites (personal blog, Goodreads, Amazon, etc.), and follower count in some cases. We try our best to weed out those who are simply looking for free books.

In general, a reviewer with good stats and/or active reviewers (have posted a review recently) are approved. There will also be readers who are pre-approved based on their positive reputation with our previous titles (mostly well-known -to us- bloggers/readers who we have come to know, trust, and adore).

Terms and conditions

•    Payment is required in full prior to listing your book on Netgalley. •    Non refundable. You may sell your spot to another author if you wish to opt out. •    Netgalley does not restrict to positive only reviews, and Xpresso Book Tours is not responsible for negative reviews it may generate. •    Xpresso Book Tours can not offer a guaranteed number of reviews with the purchase of this service.

Get your book listed!

If you would like to get your book listed on Netgalley, please email ( [email protected] ) with the following:

▪ Book title & description ▪ Book Cover ▪ Genre and age group ▪ The term you are interested in

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