That's right, it's another giveaway!!!
In the Psychological Thriller, The Door at the Top of the Stairs, undercover narcotics officer, Jesse Shaunessy, is kidnapped and tortured, then thrown away by her department as damaged goods. The mind is a powerful ally, and 26-year-old Jesse has no memory of the abduction or the subsequent torture. Inevitably, as Jesse drifts from one itinerant job to another, the protective walls carefully constructed by her subconscious are beginning to crumble.
Fate lands her on a farm owned by Dr. Ryland Caldwell, a retired psychologist and her partner, Morgan Davis, the master of the Myrena Fox Hunt club. Ryland suspects there is more to Jesse’s foul temper than meets the eye. When Morgan and Ryland accidentally discover vicious scars on Jesse’s back, Ryland knows that without their help, Jesse’s descent into insanity will rapidly overwhelm them all.
In the following excerpt, Ryland and Morgan have accidentally discovered that Jesse’s back is riddled with scars and burn marks. Jesse, who is not present during the following dialogue and had been unconscious during the discovery, knows nothing about what they’ve uncovered.
Ryland was at the house when Morgan finished with the hunt. She sat on the couch, surrounded by books on post-traumatic stress disorder and dissociative amnesia. Morgan walked through the door, pulled off her grey hunting jacket and reached into the hall closet to hang it up. “I saw Jesse after the hunt. She acts as though nothing happened."
Ryland put down the book and took off her glasses. She rubbed the bridge of her nose where the glasses had left an indentation. “As far as she knows, nothing did happen. The last thing she remembers is leaning up against the barn. And she doesn't remember why she was behind the barn, either."
Morgan sat next to Ryland who took a sip of wine then offered her the glass. Morgan took it, turned sideways and rested her arm on the back of the couch. She reached down to pick up the book from Ryland's lap. “Obviously, whatever happened to her back has caused some major emotional issues, right?"
"Morgan, she's not even aware she has scars on her back."
Morgan studied her friend's face, took a sip of wine, and leaned back into the couch. “Wow."
Amusement tinged Ryland's voice. “Wow is right."
"If only we could find someone who knows something about post-traumatic stress disorder."
Ryland playfully hit Morgan on the head with a pillow. Morgan chuckled, then turned serious again. “So what are you going to do?"
"I've been thinking about that while you've been gone, and unfortunately, it's a little more complicated than 'what am I going to do.' I'm afraid because of some complicated bonding issues that have been happening between you two the last several weeks, it has to be more like 'what are we going to do' if we decide to be the ones who help her."
Morgan sat forward to set her glass on the table. “Oh no...I am not getting involved in that. I do animals, not people. You're on your own on this one."
Ryland reached over and rubbed Morgan's back. “Unfortunately, it's not that simple. Do you remember our discussion several weeks ago about how Jesse needed your strength somehow? That she was pushing you to reassure herself that you were still in control? It's obvious to me now what's been going on. If I had understood it earlier, I might have been able to transfer that process to another object, maybe even to me, but I doubt it. It's your strength her subconscious is grabbing, Morg, because I think she's probably pretty close to a psychotic break. Her fainting and memory loss point that way. She needs the control you provide her."
"Ryland, I'm not a psychologist; I'm a farmer."
"I know that. I'll do the psychology. You'll be more of a tool for me to use, a way to ground her when her subconscious begins to lose control." She leaned forward and took Morgan's hands in hers. “Let me explain it to you this way: if we decide to help her, and if she accepts our help, she and I are going to be walking along the edge of a cliff blindfolded, and sometimes we'll be running flat-out. You're going to be the one who keeps her from falling off the edge."
"Why can't you keep her from falling off the edge?"
Ryland sat back. “Because I'll be the one pushing her over."
Alison Holt:
Meet Lt. Alison Holt, a cop for more than twenty years. She has arrested everything from homicide suspects to emus, the latter earning her a spot on America's Funniest Home Videos. She taught police procedures to officers, and now teaches writers how to write realistic police scenes and characters.
Check out the rest of the tour here:
9/6 author guest post @ Keeping Up With the Rheinlanders
9/6 review @ Immortality and Beyond
9/7 author guest post @ Jagged Edge Reviews
9/7 review @ Midnight Book Girl
9/8 author guest post @ Getting Naughty Between The Stacks
9/9 excerpt @ Reader Girls
9/12 giveaway @ Books Glorious Books
9/12 giveaway @ Immortality and Beyond
9/13 giveaway @ Midnight Book Girl
9/14 giveaway @ Jagged Edge Reviews
9/15 review @ Keeping Up With the Rheinlanders
9/17 review & giveaway @ Reviews by Molly
Title: Imperium
Series: Caulborn #1
Author: Nicholas Olivo
Twitter|Website|
Sample Chapter
Buy the book: Amazon|Smashwords
Summary:
Vincent Corinthos leads a triple life. As a secret agent, he handles paranormal threats; as a god, he protects his followers from evil forces; as a stock clerk, he keeps the back room of an antique store tidy.
When one of his fellow agents goes missing, Vincent begins with the usual suspects. His investigation takes him to vampire lairs, golem laboratories, and the realm of the fae. Along the way he squares off against genetically modified gremlins, virus-spawned zombies and a horseman of the Apocalypse.
But it's only when he infiltrates a private medical lab that he realizes just how big of a threat he's facing, and even being a god might not be enough of an edge...
My thoughts:
I have to say I was impressed with this one. It was a new take to Urban Fantasy which I thoroughly enjoyed!
The characters were definitely different. There were plenty of creatures in the book that I've come across before but not often but there were also some completely new ones too. I won't tell to save ruining the story but it was definitely refreshing to read about something other than just werewolves and vampires!
I loved the writing too. It was cleverly crafted to keep me interested and there is no doubt room for a sequel which I'm excited for already!
All in all this was an impressive read that I really enjoyed and I do definitely recommend it!
Make sure to check out the rest of the tour!
9/8 – review @ Fameless Ramblings
9/8 – giveaway @ Books Glorious Books
9/12 – guest post @ Jagged Edge Reviews
9/13 – review @ Owl Tell You About It
9/13 – review @ Jagged Edge Reviews
9/14 – giveaway @ Owl Tell You About It
9/15 – review @ Keeping Up With The Rheinlanders
9/17 – review @ The Phantom Paragrapher
9/18 – guest post @ The Phantom Paragrapher
9/19 – review @ It’s All About Books
9/20 – excerpt @ Keeping Up With The Rheinlanders
9/21 – guest post @ It’s All About Books
9/25 – review @ Aobibliosphere
9/28 – giveaway @ Aobibliosphere
9/28 – review @ Sara Is Reading What?
9/30 – excerpt @ Sara Is Reading What?
Disclosure of Material Connection: i am a member of the Book Lovin' Bitches Ebook Tours and a copy was provided to me by the author. although payment may have been received by Book Lovin' Bitches Ebook Tours, no payment was received by me in exchange for this review nor was there an obligation to write a positive one. all opinions expressed here are entirely mine and may not necessarily agree with those of the author, the book's publisher and publicist or the readers of this review. this disclosure is in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255, Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
