Lucky Day 13 winner: Melissa! Congratulations 🙂

Day 13, and I hope everyone is having as much fun as I am.

First up, my friend Jenny Schwartz is giving away her science fiction holiday-themed novella, Jingle Stars, on Amazon for the next five days (get it here. Everyone is a winner, today!

Also, one commenter will go into the draw to win a copy of A Dangerous Madness, my historical romantic thriller about the (real life) assassination of the British Prime Minister in 1812.

Holiday-themed books are always fun. So are holiday themed movies. My kids and I just watched The Holiday with Cameron Diaz, Jude Law, Kate Winslet and Jack Black the other night and so enjoined seeing it again. What’s your favorite holiday themed book or movie?

More about Jingle Stars and A Dangerous Madness.

Day 12 Winner: Congratulations to Colleen C.

We are at the halfway point, and today, my good friend Anna Hackett is generously offering two books to a lucky commenter!

Anna and I spend many hours writing in cafes together. Anna’s Galactic Gladiators series has won awards and has a massive following, because gladiators in space – duh! 🙂 She’s offering Gladiator and Warrior, the first two books in the series, to a lucky commenter today.

Anna’s books are connected, with the characters each getting their own story and time to shine. Do you like series, and can you pick a favourite (I seriously can’t!)?

Learn more about Galactic Gladiators.

Day 11 winners: Congratulations to Ellen, Lynn, Heather and Suze.

Day 11 and more real, thrilling history! I grew up in KwaZulu-Natal, and studied the Anglo-Zulu War at university, as well as often visiting the sites of the battles of the war. As such, my historical novel Daughter of the Sky is one in which I feel a very strong sense of place.

Today, I’m giving away four e-copies of Daughter of the Sky to four commenters. Daughter of the Sky was previously mentioned in a Historical Novelists Society panel because of it’s unusual setting. While it is set during the Victorian era, which is a common time period, very few books of that era are set in Zululand.

My question today is do you like to take a chance on books set in places you’ve either never heard of or don’t know much about, or do you tend to gravitate toward the standard London or India setting of most Victorian-set novels?

Learn more about Daughter of the Sky.

Day 10 winners: Congratulations to Susannah and Jordana!

Day 10 and it’s time to dip our toes in the historical waters of the Thames 🙂

My historical romantic suspense, A Dangerous Madness, is my bestselling book (although DARK HORSE is close behind) and it follows the exciting events of the investigation that takes place over the week between the time the prime minister is shot and the trial of his assassin. The story dips into the conspiracies surrounding his murder, and while I choose one possible conspiracy, I can honestly say there are PLENTY of other candidates for the job.

In A Dangerous Madness, I took a real event, used the real people involved in the crime, and only my heroine and hero and their friends are fictional, but I’ve stuck to the facts of the matter as much as possible. Do you like learning about or digging deeper into non-fiction through a fictional account, or do you prefer your fiction to not touch on actual events? (I have to also say, I include a detailed Author’s Note at the end of the book which gives readers the facts, and the few incidents I took fictional license.)

Two randomly-drawn commenters will each win an e-copy of A Dangerous Madness.

Day 9 Winner: Congratulations to Charl!

Everyone is a winner on Day 9! My friend, author Cynthia Eden, has provided a download link to a free copy of her Christmas novella: A Vampire’s Christmas Carol.

You can get your copy of A Vampire’s Christmas Carol here.

I am also going to put an e-copy of Breakeven up for grabs (or a copy of Interference & Insurgency box set or Breakaway, if you’d prefer – winner’s choice) to a lucky commenter.

Cynthia’s novella is a Christmas themed story, and I’ve written a Halloween themed novella before (Breaking Out Part 1). Do you like themed stories, and do you only read them around the time of year they are set, or are you up for them any time, like a bit of Christmas in July?

Learn more about A Vampire’s Christmas Carol and Breakeven.

Day 8 Winner: C.C. – Congratulations!

We are into week two. Onward and upward, my friends! 🙂

And speaking of friends, my good friend Claire Boston has kindly offered an ecopy of her romantic suspense novel NOTHING TO FEAR as today’s prize. Like most of Claire’s books, it’s set in Australia, hence the Aussie banner I found for today’s graphic.

I genuinely LOVE romantic suspense novels and mysteries, and have so many favorites. I always add a suspense or mystery element to my own books, whether they’re science fiction, historical or fantasy. Claire’s NOTHING TO FEAR is part of a four part series, the Blackbridge series, and we had a LOT of fun one weekend going down to the town one of the stories is set, renting a cottage by the sea, and writing (and eating! There was a lot of eating :)).

Are you a suspense or mystery lover, and what’s your favorite, or, if you can’t pick one favorite (I never can) then what’s the one that springs to mind today?

Learn more about NOTHING TO FEAR

Day 7 Winners: Congratulations to Lynda and Kareni

Day 7 and we’re a week in! The prize for today for two commenters is an ebook copy of SKY RAIDERS, the first book in my Sky Raiders series, and the winner of this year’s RT Reviewers’ Choice Award for Best Futuristic Novel.

The image at the top of the graphic above is of the beach near where I live (and where I walk often). I’d love you to share a picture of a place you love near where you live, or if you just want to comment and say where your favorite place is near you, that works, too!

Day 6 Winners: Esther and Penny

Day 6! Welcome back, and congratulations to all our winners so far.

The prize today is two e-copies of Mistress of the Wind.

Mistress of the Wind is a book inspired by my love of fairy tales, and their historical and psychological roots. If you’re interested, I highly recommend the Jungian psychologist Marie-Louise Von Franz’s amazing work in analysing fairy tales. Mistress of the Wind is based on the Scandinavian fairy tale East of the Sun, West of the Moon, and while I stuck very closely to the original, I also included some Norse mythology and tales of the wind hag that I stumbled across many years ago. East of the Sun, West of the Moon is part of the Psyche and Eros group of fairy tales, along with Beauty and the Beast.

I know most people love fairy tales, and their themes and threads run through so much literature. Which fairy tale is your favorite, and do you have a favorite retelling or incorporation?

Learn more about Mistress of the Wind.

Day 5 Winner: J.Lee – congratulations!

It’s Day 5 and my friend Shona Husk is generously contributing today’s giveaway prize. She and I have shared rooms at writing conferences, sat on writing panels together, not to mention the coffee catch-ups.

Shona is generously giving away the first book in her paranormal romance series Coven of the Raven, CURSED, to a lucky commenter to this post. The one thing I love about Shona’s books is that she always writes fresh and innovative storylines, and the Coven of the Raven series, about a coven of sexy male witches, is no different.

I love reading and writing about turning genre tropes on their heads. One author I think did this brilliantly was Terry Pratchett. What trope would you like to see turned on its head, or if you’ve read a clever take on an established trope, what was it, and did you like it?

Learn more about CURSED

Day 4 Winners: Kamron, Colleen, Karin, Kareni & Julie

For Day 4, I’ve got 5 copies of BREAKAWAY to give away 🙂

I am happy to say that I’ve just put BREAKAWAY on special offer for a few weeks, so it’s down to 99c (it’s usually $4.99) and so I’m going to give away 5 copies of BREAKAWAY today. Breakaway is the first full length book in my Verdant String series.

BREAKAWAY was a very fun book to write, and I am thrilled to share it with you!

One of the main features of the breakaway planet of Garmen, which is where all the action happens in Breakaway, is that it has a tethered way station. Science fiction writers have been writing about tethered way stations (or space elevators) at least since the 1920s, but now they look to be a serious consideration for the future of space exploration. I love it when fiction inspires reality 🙂

What is one thing you’ve read about in a book you wish could become a reality?