Birthday Bonanza Giveaway

My birthday is this week--Friday the 28th. I'm kind of in a funk, so not feeling terribly celebratory (nothing terrible, just life and stuff). It's my 57th (eek!) so not really a big deal. Other than a traditional lunch with a couple of friends, one of whom has a birthday on May 2nd so we always do a group thing, I'm not really observing it at all.

Which seemed kind of sad, so I decided to celebrate with all of you the same way I did last year: by giving away a gift to someone else!

Some people have asked me what I'd like as a gift. Pretty much what any author would like for his or her birthday, probably. Buy a book, or put up a nice review, or spread the word about a book you read that you liked. I admit, I'd love to see a spike in my book sales on my birthday :-) [Plus Berkley is about to make a decision on whether or not to contract for the 3rd Rider book, and it may not be going well, so a jump in book sales would be helpful.]

But it doesn't have to be my books. Buy any book by an author you like, even if it is just a .99 cent Kindle eBook. All book sales are a good thing. Review anyone's book; it doesn't have to be mine. Positive reviews help authors sell books, and as I might have mentioned, book sales are a good thing. (What can I say--I have a lot of friends who are authors too!) Or just tell someone about a book you read recently that you loved. Be pro-book, mine or anyone else's. Heck, go support your local library. That's what I want for my birthday. (Although cute cats and dragons are always on my list too...)

In the meanwhile, here's what I'm giving YOU for my birthday. A chance at one of three prize packs--winner's choice. With the help of Magic the Cat, I give you:

The Tarot Package

 A signed tarot deck with a limited edition tin, plus a broom pen.

The Signed Book Package

 A set of all three Baba Yaga books and the first Broken Riders book, all signed by me.

The Dragon Package

A cute stuffed dragon, a broom pen, and the signed book of your choice, fiction or nonfiction.

And really, you don't have to buy one of my books to help me celebrate, although you know I'd love that. Just fill out the Rafflecopter form below. As always, no purchase is necessary to enter, and you can get credit for things you have already done, like following the blog or following me on Twitter. Spread the word, since it's a party! I'm looking forward to spending the next year with all of you.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

VEILED MENACE Release Day is Here!!!

VEILED MENACE IS OUT TODAY!!!! Have you gotten your copy yet?

Be sure to enter the contest HERE at the blog. I'm giving away a Kindle Fire HD Tablet and a $10 Amazon gift card!

And check out the exclusive excerpt of the first chapter and a fun giveaway at Literary Escapism, plus a guest blog and giveaway at Fang-Tastic Books.

Here are the goodies in those giveaways:

Haven't picked up a copy yet? What are you waiting for?

Buy Links

Barnes & Noble |Amazon |Penguin

Happy release day to me!

 

Fire HD Tablet Giveaway to Celebrate Book Release!

THIS IS IT, PEOPLE! This is not a drill. I repeat, this is not a drill! VEILED MENACE is out this week on Tuesday, April 18th. Whoo hooo! The second in the Veiled Magic series, the book is filled with magic and romance and well, menace. I really hope you like it.

I'll be showing up at a few different other blogs this week, usually with fun giveaways there too, plus extras like exclusive excerpts, in case you'd like to get a peek at the book before laying out your hard earned $4.99

Check out the first chapter and a contest at Literary Escapism to get you started.

But the big giveaway is right here. I know that some people are disappointed that VEILED MENACE is only available as an eBook, so I am giving away a FIRE HD TABLET plus a $10 Amazon gift card so one lucky winner can run right out and get the book (or, you know, any book, really).

As always, cat not included.

The giveaway at Literary Escapism!

I hope you'll join me this week in celebrating the release of my seventh novel (not counting novellas).

Can I get a WOOT!!!?

Here's the Rafflecopter contest form. Just fill it out (and yes, you get credit for things like joining the blog or following me on Twitter if you've already done them). *No purchase necessary, ever.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

One Week 'Til Veiled Menace Giveaway!

Holy crap--how did it get to be a week before the release day for Veiled Menace already? First winter was lasting forever, then spring finally showed up, and now we're almost to release day, April 18th!

I hope you're as excited as I am. In case you haven't seen the blurb for VEILED MENACE, here's a quick glimpse into the second book in the Veiled Magic series:

Since Witches came out of the broom closet in the early twenty-first century, they have worked alongside humans as police officers, healers, stock traders, and more. But they aren’t the only paranormal entities in our world…

Witch and police officer Donata Santori is no stranger to magical mayhem, but lately her life has been unexpectedly charmed. Her job as a Ghost Yanker now includes the occasional paranormal investigation, and she’s advancing her magical abilities with the help of an ancestor’s treasured spell book. And while both of her former love interests—reclusive half-Dragon art forger Peter Casaventi and disgraced Shapechanger Magnus Torvald—are nowhere to be found, she’s not averse to being wined and dined by wealthy businessman Anton Eastman.

But Eastman isn’t what he seems, and what he wants from Donata is far more than she’s willing to give. When a mysterious relic, the Pentacle Pentimento, resurfaces, along with Peter’s Dragon father and a shocking Santori family secret, Donata must fight to save herself, her friends, and just maybe the fate of the world from a magic as old as it is dangerous…

 I love this cover sooooo much!

If you've been hanging around this blog for any time at all, you know what a book release means--GIVEAWAY!!!! Check out this cool bunch of goodies I've put together for you this time.

Goodies!

There's a notebook, postcards, and a magnet with the cover on them, a cute stuffed dragon (I just love these little guys), a broom pen, chocolate, and a $10 Amazon gift card so you can buy yourself a copy of the book to read. In fact, since it is only $4.99, if you haven't bought VEILED MAGIC yet, you can get them both!

As always, all you have to do is fill out this simple Rafflecopter form. And yes, you get to take credit for things if you've already done them in the past, like following the blog or following me on Twitter. Have fun, and be sure to come back the day before the book comes out for the BIG giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Be sure to spread the word. *smooches*

Updates on Mystic, the Knee, and Other Stuff

So, it's April.

No, not this April. (Yes, I'm one of the people obsessively watching a pregnant giraffe. She lives in a park 45 minutes from me, for one thing. Also, this is my happy place right now. Don't judge.)

April, as in one year from the date when I twisted my knee really badly coming down the stairs and screwed it up beyond belief. (It turned out to be a bad bone contusion, which is a bunch of microfractures, plus I sprained every muscle, ligament, and tendon in the knee.) One year on, it is a lot better. I got to go back to the gym--carefully--in March, and I can actually kneel--carefully and on a soft surface. But I am not even close to "all better," which I expected to be by now. Knees. Argh. I'm still using ice and heat on it twice a day, doing PT exercises at home and going for ultrasound treatments at physical therapy, although that's about done with. Still, better this...

 Than this...

(Okay, I know they look pretty  much the same, but I haven't used the cane in ages, and if you look carefully, you can see that the knee in the second picture is about twice the size of the knee now.)

Many of you know that Mystic, the brother of Magic (and son of Minerva, who I lost March first a year ago) hasn't been doing well. As far as my vet can tell, it is a flare up of his continuing digestive issues (he has the kitty version of irritable bowel syndrome, poor boy). He's lost a lot of weight--although he's still a large cat--and doesn't have much appetite, which is unusual for him, to say the least. He's on prednisone and special food, but he clearly still doesn't feel well, and I'm spending a lot of time trying to get him to eat more. Still, he mostly acts like a healthy cat, and we haven't found anything dire (although it is always possible we're missing something), so I'm trying to stay positive.

Mystic last April

Mystic now. Yes, he's standing next to a box of tarot decks!

So mostly, we're doing the best we can and hanging in there. I'm working on Veiled Magic #3 and getting ready for Veiled Magic #2 (Veiled Menace) to come out in a little over two weeks!

And waiting for that silly giraffe to have her baby.

How are things with all of you?