Reveal Blast Guinevere: At the Dawn of Legend

Guinevere: At the Dawn of Legend, Book 2

“Think before acting,” her father always warned. But Princess Guinevere is ruled by her heart. Her betrothal to King Arthur has not changed this. When Guinevere and Cedwyn’s latest adventure takes a dangerous turn, they find themselves embroiled in a life-or-death struggle as foretold by Merlyn’s Goddess of the Stones. Renegades—foiled in their attempt to kidnap the princess—steal the children of Cadbury Castle to sell as slaves. Guinevere and Cedwyn vow to rescue the children, but a miscalculation puts them all in more danger. The plan quickly unravels, and Guinevere’s impassioned decisions come crashing down as Cedwyn chooses to turn his dream of becoming a knight into reality. Will their courage be strong enough to survive, or will one make the ultimate sacrifice?

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Guinevere: At the Dawn of Legend snippets

1. The Goddess Speaks:

Many trials await the two of you. Perhaps the hardest are the ones you will have to endure alone.

“You, Guinevere, will find yourself lost. You—who are destined to be a great queen—will have to traverse a journey of immense pain and self-doubt. You must let your inner feelings guide you. The journey will be hard and painful. You must summon the courage of your soul to sustain you.

“You, Cedwyn, faithful friend of the princess and the queen. Your journey may be the hardest of all. You will be sent far from those you serve and love. Your duty will demand that you see this most difficult journey to its end. Whether it be death or life for you will depend upon many things. Your courage must also come from deep within your soul for one so young. Your love of family and friends must be great. But greater still must be your loyalty to the knight’s duty. For your knight’s vow comes soon. You must embrace it. You must defeat the temptations to turn aside for your own safety.

2. Great Sadness and Danger:

With saddened and heavy hearts, they left the gruesome glen behind and rode for the castle.

Samuel followed Guinevere, having chosen to ride beside Aaron. His tears dried, but the anguish not buried with his family. The grief was clearly evident in his hunched body, the anger in his clenched fists on the pony’s reins. Cedwyn worried about the boy’s state of mind.

Guinevere now led the trio, concern for the safety of the castle and the people there were marked by the hard set of her chin. Worry etched lines in her wrinkled brow and deepened her hollowed eyes.

Cedwyn brought up the rear. His eyes noted every movement. Ears tuned to the echoes of the forest, head swiveling at each movement and sound. Fear had taken permanent hold over his body—a feeling he was certain should have been as foreign to him as it would have been to Arthur’s knights. Cold fear tightened its grip on his heart and throat. Those who would kill the gentle monks would stop at nothing. Now the little group rode in the dark, a time when all earthly creatures took on the pallor of ghosts, and hidden danger lurked all around them.

3. Fathers and Daughters:

His finger on her lips stopped her rebuttal.

“Not now. Other issues demand the attention of the knights and kings.”…

“But Father…I promised.”

“So you did, daughter mine, but kings must rule with their heads not their hearts. This discussion is over. You are dismissed to go to your room. I have a knight there who will make sure your rest tonight isn’t disturbed.”

Her legs refused to move. She opened her mouth, but no words came.

“Go. Now Guinevere. Before I forget you’re my own flesh and have you flogged for the dangers you’ve brought upon us. Go!”

Guinevere ran from the room, fists clenched, tears streaming down her face.

Book Sound Track for Guinevere: At the Dawn of Legend, book 2 and The King’s Ransom, book 1 of Young Knights of the Round Table.

Stand By Me by Ben E. King

Fight Song by Rachel Platten

I’ll Be There For You by The Rembrands

B.B.B.F.F. (My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic)

Float On by Modest Mouse

Learning to Fly (Brave) by Tom Petty

Learn Me Right (Brave) by Mumford & Sons, Feat Birdy

Touch The Sky (Brave) by Julie Fowlis

AUTHOR BIO

I am a retired high school English teacher. A devourer of books growing up, my profession introduced me to writings and authors from times long past. Through my studies and teaching, I fell in love with the Ancient and Medieval Worlds. Now, I hope to inspire young readers and those Young-at-Heart to read more through my Tales & Legends for Reluctant Readers set in these worlds.

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Book Blast Tutankhamen Speaks

BOOK INFORMATION

TITLE – Tutankhamen Speaks

SERIES – The Quest Books Companion to Sons of the Sphinx

AUTHOR – Cheryl Carpinello

GENRE – Historical Fiction Ancient Civilizations

PUBLICATION DATE –Jan. 2014

LENGTH (Pages/# Words) – 80 pages

PUBLISHER – Beyond Today Educator

COVER ARTIST – Rita Toews - http://www.yourebookcover.com

NOTE - If this book is part of a series please advise if the book(s) must be read in order or if the book(s) can be read as a standalone.

BOOK SYNOPSIS

2014 EVVY Merit Award for Historical Fiction from CIPA (Colorado Independent Publishers Assoc.)

Long ago the old texts of ancient Egypt alluded to scrolls in which King Tut spoke to the people from beyond the tomb. Many archeologists put this down to an incorrect translation of the ancient Egyptian texts. Others swore to the accuracy of the translation. None of that mattered because the scrolls in question could not be found. Scholars labeled it a hoax, something that never existed. It was ludicrous to imagine someone speaking from the grave. They were wrong on both accounts.

BUY & TBR LINKS

AMAZON KINDLE US –http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E18KH46

AMAZON KINDLE CA – http://www.amazon.ca/Tutankhamen-Speaks-Cheryl-Carpinello-ebook/dp/B00E18KH46/

AMAZON KINDLE UK – http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00E18KH46

AMAZON PAPERBACK – http://www.amazon.com/Tutankhamen-Speaks-Quest-Books-Companion/dp/149615536X

BARNES & NOBLES NOOK – http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tutankhamen-speaks-cheryl-carpinello/1118847147

BARNES & NOBLES PAPERBACK – http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tutankhamen-speaks-cheryl-carpinello/1118847147

SMASHWORDS – https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/413815

ITUNES – https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/tutankhamen-speaks/id833570493?mt=11

GOODREADS – https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18220013-tutankhamen-speaks

EXCERPT

#1--from his childhood:

Sailing toy boats

When I was small, palace carpenters made me toy boats. Sometimes these were made to resemble the barges that would carry crops and animals down and up the Nile from one settlement to another. Some were fully outfitted royal barges complete with sails and the poles used when the barge was moving up river. I started playing with these in the palace pools. Later, as I got better at loading them and maneuvering them, I would find a place near the palace where the Nile ran slower. There I would dig out canals for the boats to float in. Sometimes Ankhesenpaaten would help me. One time we had so many canals built that it took all afternoon for our crop barges and the royal barges to enter into the canal system and then sail through and re-enter the Nile. I loved those days with Ankhesenpaaten by the Nile.

#2—from his childhood

My Grandmother

My nursemaid was Maya, but it was my Grandmother Tiye that I remember the most. She doted on me when she visited and showered me with motherly love. She appointed herself and her brother Ay as my protectors, but Grandmother was away a lot. After my father became Pharaoh, she continued to oversee the military as she did for my grandfather Amenhotep III. When I was small, she cut off a lock of her reddish-gold hair and concealed it inside of four small nesting sarcophagus coffins.

“Tutankhaten,” she said. “In the innermost sarcophagus I have placed a lock of my hair which rests underneath a solid gold statue of you. Keep the coffins safe and hidden in your room. They will protect you when I am unable to.”

I thanked her and prized such a gift, not only for protection, but because my grandmother’s gift was wonderfully made. The outer sarcophagus was made of wood; the second of plaster covered with gold leaf; the third of wood which contained the solid gold statue of myself; the fourth again of plaster covered with gold leaf and containing my grandmother’s gift.

AUTHOR BIO

I am a retired high school English teacher. A devourer of books growing up, my profession introduced me to writings and authors from times long past. Through my studies and teaching, I fell in love with the Ancient and Medieval Worlds. Now, I hope to inspire young readers and those young-at-heart to read more through my Quest Books set in these worlds.

Also please visit my other sites: Carpinello’s Writing Pages where I interview Childrens/Tween/MG/YA authors; and The Quest Books where I’ve teamed up with Fiona Ingram from South Africa and Wendy Leighton-Porter of Abu Dhabi to enable readers to find our Ancient and Medieval quest books in one place.

AUTHOR FOLLOW LINKS

AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE – http://www.amazon.com/Cheryl-Carpinello/e/B002GGGZY6

WEBSITE –Main – http://www.beyondtodayeducator.com

WEBSITE –Shared – http://www.adventurequestbooks.com

BLOG – http://carpinelloswritingpages.blogspot.com/

FACEBOOK – https://www.facebook.com/cheryl.carpinello1

TWITTER – https://twitter.com/ccarpinello

GOOGLE+ – https://plus.google.com/110918922081424857545/

PINTEREST – http://www.pinterest.com/ccarpine/

GOODREADS – http://www.goodreads.com/cherylcarpinello

FREADO - http://www.freado.com/users/26878/cheryl-carpinello

Book Blast Tutankhamen Speaks Giveaway

Book Blast for Playing For Keeps

Synopsis for Her Confessional #3: 

Playing for Keeps After months of hiding their engagement to promote a farcical PR relationship tied to Cameron's new movie, Sarah is struggling to remind herself of the benefits of the plan – if only she can make it that long. Having just about reached their breaking point, Cameron proposes a romantic weekend away to re-connect with one another but their boss has a better idea: a two-week trip away from the prying eyes of Hollywood and the PR team’s aggressive gossip machine.

Once out of the Hollywood spotlight, Cameron reverts back to the loving, attentive man Sarah first fell in love with and idyllic days spent hiking, biking, and surfing lead to sensual nights wrapped in each other’s arms. But when a gossip columnist viciously pegs Sarah as “the other woman,” they’re forced to acknowledge the reality of their situation. Vowing to beat the studio at its own game, Sarah and Cameron openly flaunt their relationship, knowing their actions may mean giving up the careers they both love.

 With help from some new friends along the way, Cameron and Sarah re-discover what matters most as they work to find their happily ever after. 

Author Bio for Rebecca Norinne

Caudill Rebecca read her first novel when she was just four years old and has been hooked on books ever since. When she wasn't writing her own stories, she was sneaking copies of her mom's paperbacks to read late into the night. Fast forward a few years later, and she graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a degree in Journalism. After a stint working in radio, she embarked on a career in technology public relations in Silicon Valley, representing some of the country's hottest start-ups and publicly traded companies. After more than a decade in the business, she began writing full time. In addition to the Her Confessional contemporary romance serial, Rebecca is also the author of a paranormal romance that begins with A Time Apart: Book One of the Macauley Vampire Series about a woman whose destiny is with a centuries old vampire. The sequel, Blood of My Blood, will be released this fall. When not creating fictional worlds inhabited by strong women and dashing heroes, she is reading about them, planning her next vacation, trying out new recipes, or drinking a dram of Islay whisky. Rebecca lives with her husband in Oakland, California, but is currently planning a move to Dublin, Ireland.

Her Confessional #3 Excerpt

I wanted to be happy again. I wanted him to be happy again. Not for the first time I feared we’d never find that happiness together. Not true happiness, at least.

I couldn’t say how long we stared at one another, and who knew what was going through Cameron’s mind since he’d been using that blank mask more and more in my presence – the one that allowed him to go through life with no one knowing what he was feeling – but I knew what I was feeling and I was tired as hell of keeping it locked up inside, where I feared my love for him would wither and die if something didn’t change, and soon.

I reached up and laid my hand on his forearm, bared to my touch, long sleeves haphazardly pushed up to his elbows. “I’ve missed you.”

There, I’d said it. No more polite utterances in in the morning, no more cordial but cold hellos and goodbyes as we passed one another in the hallway en route to our next meeting – or increasingly often, off to spend time with Jillian. I was willing to lay all of my cards on the table, make him talk about the distance that had grown between us, make him confront his feelings. If it turned out the aloofness that had cropped up between us had made him question his love for me, his commitment to us – if it meant that I was going to lose him – then I’d have to face that truth sooner or later.

With these thoughts rattling through my brain I came to the realization I’d been fearing the worst for awhile, that I had lost faith in our love for one another. It broke my heart, a physical pain taking root in my chest. I dragged my hand from Cameron’s arm to rub at the sore spot in the middle of my sternum where that tight hard knot had made itself known more and more frequently. I recognized that the pain was only the physical manifestation of my stress, but I couldn’t help but think that lately I’d only had them when I looked too closely at our relationship.

“I’ve missed you too baby,” he uttered as he suddenly smiled down at me. When he dropped that mask of indifference he’d taken to wearing and showed me this small bit of emotion, it was like the sun had parted the clouds after several days of rain and gloom and I felt the grip on my chest lessen just a little bit. “So, I was thinking I’ve got a few days off coming up and if you can swing it, we should get away. We don’t see nearly enough of each other since production got under way and it feels wrong.”

His words were a soothing balm. The chance to spend some uninterrupted time together was exactly what we needed.

“I can definitely swing it,” I replied without stopping to consider my schedule or the ramifications of taking time off even if it turned out not to be a convenient time.

I stood up from my chair and wrapped my arms around him, something I hadn’t been able to do in many days. I felt his arms flex against my body and soon he had wrapped his arms around me as well. I leaned my head against his chest and just savored the feel of being in his arms again after what had felt like such a long absence.

“I was thinking we could drive up the coast next weekend, get a room somewhere, and just spend a few days reading, relaxing … doing other things.” I heard the smile in his voice when he spoke that last part and I had to smile right along with him.

“Having you all to myself for more than a couple of hours at a time is going to be such a luxury that I have no intention of spending that time reading or relaxing. I was thinking of a much more physical sort of getaway, one with lots of … hmm … riding,” I said into the center of his chest, a secret naughty smile shaping my lips. When he took in my meaning I felt his laugh rumble underneath my cheek and he squeezed me just a little bit tighter.