Books Set in Pennsylvania #LongandShortReviews #BlogChallenge

Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews.

This week's topic: Books set in my city or state

I live in what is considered northeastern Pennsylvania. The home of Yuengling beer, Anthracite coal and Pottsville conglomerate. This is the birthplace of the infamous Molly Maguires, Jack Palance and The Dorsey Brothers. Muhammad Ali's training camp was just down the road from where I live as well as the site of numerous Indian massacres and historic battles. Philadelphia is only a 2 hour drive away, Hershey Park is practically in my backyard, and the Poconos are nice place for a day trip. 

There is a lot of history in this area of Pennsylvania and as such, there are plenty of books set here, too.

Probably one of the most famous books (at least in this area) is Gibbsville, Pa by John O'Hara. The author of Appointment in Samarra and BUtterfield 8 was born in Pottsville, Pennsylvania in 1905. I learned during my days of working at Waldenbooks (also in Pottsville) that John O'Hara's fictional town Gibbsville in his books was based off of the real-life Pottsville where he grew up. He included many of Pottsville's residents as fictional characters in his books. In fact, I was told about his stories by customers coming in to purchase his books. Apparently, many of our local residents would buy and read his books, just to see if they could identify the real-life inspirations for his characters!

Appointment in Samarra

One of the great novels of small-town American life, Appointment in Samarra is John O'Hara's crowning achievement. In December 1930, just before Christmas, the Gibbsville, Pennsylvania, social circuit is electrified with parties and dances. At the center of the social elite stand Julian and Caroline English. But in one rash moment born inside a highball glass, Julian breaks with polite society and begins a rapid descent toward self-destruction. 

Brimming with wealth and privilege, jealousy and infidelity, O'Hara's iconic first novel is an unflinching look at the dark side of the American dream - and a lasting testament to the keen social intelligence if a major American writer.

Another famous author born only fifteen minutes from my house was Conrad Richter. He grew up in the mining towns of this area listening to his family and neighbors relate tales of life and family history. These inspired him to write stories about the early American frontiers such as The Light in the Forest.

The Light in the Forest

When John Cameron Butler was a child, he was captured in a raid on the Pennyslvania frontier and adopted by the great warrior Cuyloga. Renamed True Son, he came to think of himself as fully Indian. But eleven years later his tribe, the Lenni Lenape, has signed a treaty with the white men and agreed to return their captives, including fifteen-year-old True Son. Now he must go back to the family he has forgotten, whose language is no longer his, and whose ways of dress and behavior are as strange to him as the ways of the forest are to them. A beautifully written, sensitively told story of a white boy brought up by Indians, The Light in the Forest is a beloved American classic.

There is a local legend about Regina Hartman, a young girl taken captive by Indians. While her mother and brother were away at a grist mill one day, the Indians attacked their home, killing her father and brother, and kidnapping Regina and her sister, Barbara. Barbara escaped three and a half years later, but Regina spent several years longer living as an Indian, eventually forgetting her native German language. Years later, when the Indians were forced to return their white captives, Regina's mother went to Carlisle, Pennsylvania, hoping to identify her daughter. But after so many years apart, she couldn't recognize any of the captives as her child. After a suggestion, Regina's mother began to sing a song she often sang to her children when they were small. After a moment, a young woman in the crowd gave a cry of recognition. She stepped out of the crowd of captives, shouting, "Mutter! Mutter!" and ran into her mother's open arms. Mother and daughter were finally reunited.

This story always brought tears to my eyes. It's been written about in several books, but I read I am Regina when I was a teenager. Regina Leininger, who is believed to be the real-life Regina Hartman of legend, is buried in Berks County, not far from where I live. 

I am Regina

The cabin door crashes open and in a few minutes Regina's life changes forever. Allegheny Indians murder her father and brother, burn their Pennsylvania home to the ground and take Regina captive. Only her mother, who is away from home, is safe. Torn from her family, Regina longs for the pasat, but she must begin a new life. She becomes Tskinnak, who learns to catch fish, dance the Indian dance, and speak the Indian tongue. As the years go by, her new people become her family... but she never stops wondering about her mother. Will they ever meet again?

Here are some other Indian captive books set in Pennsylvania...

This area is also well-known for the Molly Maguires. There are several books, movies and documentaries made about them. If you've never heard of the Molly Maguires, they were a secret group of Irish-American miners who were known for their violent conflicts. In the 1870s, twenty suspected Molly Maguire men were executed for the murder of sixteen men. The trial and execution took place in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania. Legend has it, the Old Jail is haunted by spirits of the accused men and you can still see the handprint of one of them who claimed to be innocent up to his death. 

I would be a very bad friend if I did not include author Ash Krafton's books in this list. I worked in the same mall as Ms. Krafton back in our days of retail in Pottsville. Her urban fantasy series is set in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The Demimonde

Sophie Galen is an advice columnist whose work leaves her neck-deep in other people's problems. Thanks to her compassion, her gut instinct, and her magnetic charm, Sophie really knows how to attract little black clouds.

Marek Thurzo is no little black cloud; he's a maelstrom. Marek is Demivampire, a race with the potential to evolve into vampire. A warrior who's taken his share of spiritual damage, he hovers dangerously close to destruction.

He seeks salvation. She's driven to save him. But what if he can't be saved?

And because this is my blog, I might as well throw in my book, Loving Boone, to this list, too. Boone and Beth-Ann's story begins in Tennessee, but their journey takes them to Pennsylvania.

Loving Boone

Beth-Ann Miller returns to her Tennessee mountain home to find chaos erupting between her survivalist family and their shape-shifting neighbors. Her father is convinced the were-cougar clan is responsible for the murders occurring in their area. He interrogates one of the shifters, Boone Evans, Beth-Ann's childhood sweetheart. When Boone declares several members of his shifter family have gone missing including his little brother, Beth-Ann suspects someone else is behind both the murders and abductions.

Boone never expected to see Beth-Ann again. When she frees him from her father's cabin and promises to help find his brother, Boone doesn't plan on rekindling their passionate love affair or facing the pain of past mistakes. Nor does he plan on coming face to face with the man responsible for altering his family's life forever.

With men hunting the were-cougars, can Beth-Ann and Boone risk all to have a future together? Or is loving Boone too high a price to pay?

That's a long list this week, but I hope you find something that entertains you!

Be sure to check out the other blogger's suggestions at ...

I write sensual paranormal and historical romances. Interested in learning more about my stories? Sign-up for my newsletter where you'll learn about my new book releases, updates on my works-in-progress, writing tips, book reviews, contests, and other fun book-related info!

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Happy Reading!

~Tricia

The Books of the Demimonde by @AshKrafton #vampires #werewolves

She's saving the world...one damned person at a time. Sophie Galen is an advice columnist-turned-oracle who must save her Demivampire lover from the fate that threatens each of his race: evolution and the destruction of his soul.

This boxed set contains the books Bleeding Hearts, Blood Rush, and Wolf's Bane - three full-sized novels of over 300,000 words!

The award-winning series debut Bleeding Hearts is a six-time Romance Writers of America Chapter Competition finalist and was part of the limited-edition USA Today bestselling urban fantasy and paranormal romance collection Spellbound.

AMAZON

  

New Release! Classic Galactic: Classical Lit with a Galactic Twist by @AshKrafton

A new collection of speculative poetry from Ash Krafton! CLASSIC GALACTIC is a collection of science fiction and fantasy poetry inspired by classical literature. Ever wonder what Robert Frost or William Shakespeare would have written about if they'd been sci fi geeks? Ash Krafton wonders about that all the time...and finally did something about it. Enjoy these and other poetic explorations of the words that dwell in the vast dark emptiness of both out and inner space.

Amazon 

About the Author

USA Today and international best-selling author Ash Krafton is a writer of all things spec fic. She believes spectacular endings make the best beginnings... Why not? One billion black holes can't be wrong.

The second bravest thing she's ever done was volunteering to go first when her Girl Scout troop visited a High Ropes challenge course somewhere back in the eighties. (Thankfully, few photos exist.) The third bravest thing was wearing her purple Colin Stuart boots with the extreme stiletto heel to her kids' school open house one year. (Three floors, all steps, no brakes.) The top of the Brave Things list, however, remains to be written.

http://www.ashkrafton.com/

http://www.facebook.com/ashkraftonauthor

http://www.twitter.com/ashkrafton

Other Books by Ash Krafton

The Demimonde series

  

The Demon Whisperer series

  

And More...

  

Two New Releases from @AshKrafton #pnr #urbanfantasy

There are two new reasons to check out Ash Krafton's books today!

Straitjackets and Holy Water is the newest installment of The Demon Whisperer Series. This one is a prequel and takes place before we are introduced to Simon Alliant in Charm City. It gives readers a glimpse of Simon's backstory and how he became the tragic and haunted man he is today. A must read for any urban fantasy reader who enjoys amazing world building and those special readers who have soft spots in their hearts for tortured heroes.

Teenagers make mistakes, but those mistakes rarely involve magic - and they should never result in murder...

Eighteen-year-old mage wanna-be Simon Alliant thought his problems would be over when he used a spell to rid the world of his long-time bully. He figured one little demonic scare and Ritchie would back off. He didn't think the demon would actually kill him. Or steal an innocent child as payment. But the price keeps climbing. This time, the price is what he treasures most in the world - his mother. 

Her mind shredded by the horror of what she'd witnessed, Norma's been marked by the demon who will soon take her, as well. His faith in God stumbling, Simon finds an unexpected source of support: the mysterious owner of a New Age shop who offers him the magical training he so desperately seeks. 

But time is running out. The evil grip on his mom grows stronger each day. Will Simon learn enough mage craft to stop the demon before it claims his mother's life? Or will she become another victim of Simon's greatest mistake?

AMAZON

*   *   *

Also out is Words That Bind with a brand new cover! This book is a paranormal romance featuring an immortal djinn and a woman who is more than a simple therapist. 

Never fall in love with a client...especially when he is an immortal djinn and you are the talisman to which he is bound. 

Social worker Tam Kerish can't keep her cool professionalism when steamy client Mr. Burns kindles a desire for more than a client-therapist relationship--so she drops him. However, they discover she's the talisman to which Burns, an immortal djinn, has been bound since the days of King Solomon...and that makes it difficult.

Ethical guidelines are unequivocal when it comes to personal relationships with clients. However, the djinn has a thawing effect on the usually non-emotive Tam, who begins to feel true emotion whenever he is near. Tam has to make a difficult choice: to stay on the outside, forever looking in...or to turn her back on her entire world, just for the chance to finally experience what it means to fall in love. 

AMAZON

Coming Soon! Straitjackets & Holy Water by @AshKrafton Featured in Rite to Reign #boxset #urbanfantasy

Ash Krafton’s upcoming release, STRAITJACKETS & HOLY WATER: The Demon Whisperer #0, will be one of 24 books featured in Rite to Reign: A Limited Edition Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy Box Set. www.books2read.com/ritetoreign

Your featured book, STRAITJACKETS & HOLY WATER, is a series prequel. Tell us a little about the series itself.

The Demon Whisperer series is about an exorcist-mage from Boston. For Simon Alliant, magic isn't just a curiosity or a skill. It's the source of a bone-deep addiction.

Fighting demons is dirty work but someone has to do it. Sometimes, you win. Sometimes, the demons fight back...and every once in a while, the demon wins. That's because that particular demon is all your very own…

Simon is a likeable guy who sometimes does unlikeable things. Part of it is his line of work. Part of it is his impulsive and emotional nature. But the biggest part is his addictive personality. Addiction, no matter what kind, often makes our decisions for us. For Simon, it’s a constant struggle.

For me, it’s an opportunity to have a little bit of fun. I like throwing terrible things at him to see how he’d handle it. I don’t know why I do it because I really like the guy. Thank goodness he surprises me a lot.

What is STRAITJACKETS about?

The story explores a key point in Simon’s past. He talks about it in the first book, CHARM CITY.

I wrote this book to feel like Hellblazer’s John Constantine unleashed a demonic possession on a John Green novel. The story is different from the first two books in that it’s told from Simon’s teenage point of view. I’d always wanted to tell Simon’s origin story but I thought it would be best to let him tell it himself.

Because of that, this story is a great deal more personal. The center of Simon’s world is his mom, Norma, who deals with bipolar II disorder. He’s also been the victim of bullying for a long time. These emotional stresses have really shaped his personality and his decision-making process, and I hope that this book gives fans of the series the glimpse they’ve wanted into his past.

What made you want to be a part of a boxed set like RITE TO REIGN?

I’m an indie author, which means I don’t have a huge publishing house presenting my work. That means it’s pretty difficult to be noticed in a world so full of great books. I’ve long been a part of author collectives, such as my run writing for a multi-author blog (www.querytracker.blogspot.com) and my place with the Infinite Ink Authors, a group of YA/NA fantasy and romance authors. There is power in groups. We support and learn from each other, and we share audiences and resources with each other. It’s the smartest thing an Indie can do.

Likewise, participating in multi-author projects not only presents a more appealing book project to readers, it means authors create a network for team work and audience-sharing. This is my third time participating in a 20+ book boxed set. I’ve met a lot of great authors and found some really excellent books from working with these folks.

I joined this one in particular because the theme is magic—wanting it, taking it, and using it to get what you want. This book was on my to-do list, so the set’s timing was just the motivation I needed to get it written. The set theme also challenged me to introduce a “royal” character. Simon’s the king of jack-squat, which meant I got to dig deep into someone else’s back story, as well!

It’s also been a lot of fun getting to know these authors and their books and I can’t wait until it releases. So many of them have tremendous interests in magic as well, and it’s inspired me. My house is slowly filling with magical paraphernalia and my family is starting to worry.

What’s your favorite part about working with your co-authors?

Definitely all the extras we’ve put together!

We recently held a charity auction and raised $450 for the WWF…we have a bonus anthology “First to Reign”, free on all major ebook sites…we wrote a cookbook (really! My contribution is my own favorite Halloween party snack, Kitty Litter Cake)…and we have a free-books-with- purchase offer that give readers 15 bonus novels plus an exclusive spellbook, written just for reader of Rite To Reign.

I think the spellbook is my favorite part so far. My page talks about the magical uses of chicory, which Simon uses a lot in the books. I think I’m starting to believe the things I write, too—I picked a lot of chicory this summer and keep bunches on my desk and on the dashboard of my truck. Never know when I’ll need that invisibility spell to work!

It’s been a pleasure and an honor to work with so many creative and talented authors.

How about an excerpt? 

~*~*~*~*~

Time slowed, sounds becoming muffled, like a giant pulse in Norma’s ears. She blinked lethargically, the black void of a fainting spell coming on swift merciful wings. Her son had blood on his hands.

They both did—

Blink

Sirens, growing louder. Red lights. Those eyes—

Blink

A young man’s voice, desperate, as if from a distance. The howl, the laughter—

Blink

Sounds of big hollow doors being bumped open. The sensation of movement down a hall, the clackity-clack of wheels on tiles. A doctor being paged on an overhead system—

Blink

On her back, strapped down over her shoulders and thighs. A gurney, rolling like a car on a crazy train. Two men, with white shirts and impassive faces, shoved her down an endless hall. Wrist restraints held her hands fast. Fluorescent lights streamed overhead, sharp punctuation of the screaming light and the soft, kind darkness.

Doorways fluttered past in her periphery. A psych ward. Closed doors with small high windows filled with glimpses of the insane: the lost, vacant hollow eyes, the catatonic, the jumbled voices of the over-excitable. She was all of them. All of them at once.

Above the chaos came echoes of a man calling out a name.

Alliant.

Flashback images of a demon’s face, an empty playground, a bloodied body. Whose memories? Hers. Not hers. The screams were his. Always his.

The gurney paused long enough for someone to snap a hospital bracelet around her wrist. The purple typed letters read Norma Alliant. Once more, the gurney lurched, hard, around a corner. She rolled her head to look down the hall toward the doors through which she’d come. A nurse twisted a huge latch. They were locked. She was locked in. She was a prisoner—

On the other side, her son banged on the glass, his mouth working, his black shaggy hair falling into his eyes. No sound. He was no more than a two-dimension image. He wasn’t real because she wasn’t real. She didn’t want to be real. If she was real, it would be real.

And, if it was real…

No sound but the cacophony in her head. The howling, the screams, the laughter, and the perpetual repeat of memories that weren’t hers.

Madness.

Madness only a devil could inflict…

~*~*~*~*~

RITE TO REIGN will release on December 11, 2018. Find those freebies-with-purchase and other wonderful offers and events when you check out www.ritetoreign.com!

Can't Wait to Read Books #BookBlogExpo #Giveaway

Day 3 - Most Anticipated Books and Giveaway Day

One of the things that I really, really, really LOVED about working at a bookstore was that I was privvy to all the New Releases coming out. I knew the dates for all the Pre-Orders and Street Dates for the titles getting released. And I even had the chance to take a peek at the books before any customers saw it!

Well, with the exception of the Harry Potter books. For those books, we weren't even allowed to open the shipment boxes before Release Day! That was Top Secret stuff!

Nowadays, with the vast expanse of the internet, I find I have a difficult time keeping track of all the new books getting released. There are so many new authors and new books out every single day that if I think about it too long my brain implodes.

That's why I think it's soooo important for readers to talk about the books they're reading. Tell people about them, otherwise that special book might not get seen by other readers!

That being said, there are a select few of my most favorite authors that I'll pre-order on Amazon when I discover they have a new book coming out. These are my must-have books! The books and authors that I just can't live without!

And check out the Giveaway below!

The Other Miss Bridgerton by Julia Quinn

Release Date - Tuesday, November 20, 2018

If you know me at all, at some point in our relationship you've heard me talk about Julia Quinn. She is one of those authors who continues to impress me with each book she writes. She's an amazing author who writes some of the most humorous and emotionally touching books I've ever read. Seriously, if you enjoy reading Regency-era romance, you must read her Bridgerton series. I got a sample of Romancing Mr. Bridgerton and I was so hooked that I bought her whole backlist of books and read them like a fiend!

The Cajun Persuasion by Sandra Hill

Release Date - Tuesday, June 26, 2018

Here's another romance author with laugh-out-loud moments. Sandra Hill writes romantic comedy like no one else. She has a Cajun series, a Viking/Time Travel/Navy Seals series and a Viking/Vampire/Angel series. And now, I see she has a Christmas romance which strikes me as a Christmas Beach Read scheduled for release, too! The woman is clearly a mad genius.

The Forever Christmas Tree by Sandra Hill

Release Date - Tuesday, September 25, 2018

Look Alive Twenty-Five by Janet Evanovich

Release Date - Tuesday, November 13, 2018

I'm a little behind on the Stephanie Plum series, but I still buy all of her books on release day because I know I'll be in the mood to read about Stephanie's insanely quacky family and the on again/off again relationships she has with the two special men in her life.

The Demon Whisperer #3 by Ash Krafton

Release Date - To Be Announced

I really enjoy reading Ash Krafton's Demon Whisperer books about exorcist mage, Simon Alliant. These books are dark, gritty and emotional. Not for the faint of heart. I have no idea when the next book in this series will be announced, but as soon as it is, you can be sure that I'll pre-order that baby!

In the meantime, if anyone is interested, Ash Krafton is releasing Takin' It Back on Tuesday, August 21, 2018. This was originally part of a box set released last year which I read and loved! Definitely, check it out!

Which leads me to the last two books on my most anticipated reads list. I was fortunate to have two of my stories selected in anthologies that were recently released this year.

Pirates: A Boys Behaving Badly Anthology 

A Wink and a Smile: A Read on the Run Anthology

The digital versions of both of these books are already available for purchase, but the paperback versions are scheduled for release this summer! I'm really looking forward to these paperback versions! Not just because my stories are in there, but because I'm looking forward to reading the other amazing stories by the authors selected for these anthologies. I prefer reading in paperback, so I'm waiting to get my hands on these!

In the meantime, for those who can't wait and would like to have a chance to read the digital versions now, I'm offering to giveaway these titles to one lucky winner!

Be sure to check out Girl Who Reads for more Book Blog Expo posts!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

New Release: Heroines & Hellions #UrbanFantasy #Fantasy

Here's a New Release you're not going to want to miss! And its only $0.99 for a limited time so hurry and grab your copy! 

Heroines & Hellions:

An Urban Fantasy and Fantasy Collection

NO DAMSELS ALLOWED!

22 Kickass Heroines.

22 Exclusive Urban Fantasy and Fantasy Novels.

0 Damsels in Distress.

Do you like your leading ladies to save the day...or raze it?

No matter which you prefer, this set is brimming with 20 magical stories (many BRAND NEW) told by some of the leading voices of urban fantasy and fantasy in the industry, including several New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors!

If you want strong female leads who strike back against the captivating worlds of vampires, elementals, fiends, and paranormal monsters, then you're ready to charge into the adventures of HEROINES & HELLIONS, a pure Urban Fantasy/Fantasy collection!

Grab your stake, silver bullets, and your limited edition copy of HEROINES & HELLIONS today!

The Authors:

Margo Bond Collins & Erin Hayes, Monica Corwin, Melanie Karsak, Bec McMaster, Heather Marie Adkins, Jade Kerrion, SJ Davis, Rene Folsom, Michelle Hercules, LJ Andrews, Louisa Klein, Mell Amade, Ashley C. Harris, Kim Cleary, Maria Monroe, Christina Walker, Alex Owens, D.D. Miers, Gina A. Watson, Ash Krafton, Elise Marion, Carly Fall

Here's a taste of what you'll find in this collection of books: 

Takin' It Back by Ash Krafton

Twenty-year-old Aerie works for her father's magical supply shop, but it's a job she hates: she's the repo man. She'd much rather be the store's new Aquisitioner but Dad says it’s a job for someone who finds things, not loses them. Totally unfair, since the only thing she ever really lost was some crummy old book when she was a kid. Even more unfair is that he's considering her worst enemy for the job. When she finds a file on a mysterious amulet, she sees the perfect opportunity to prove her worth to her dad and takes off after it.

Collateral recovery is a nasty business. What makes repossession even nastier is when the collateral possesses you. Sure, demonic possession comes in handy when getting out of speeding tickets or facing off with one's nemesis, but no one flirts with damnation without being tainted. And if that doesn't suck enough, it turns out the spirit in the amulet belongs to your mother. Your nagging, dissatisfied, know-it-all, thank-God-she's-gone mother. 

#BookReview: Murder the Light by Ash Krafton #urbanfantasy

MURDER THE LIGHT by Ash Krafton

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned—especially the woman scorned by the King of Hell himself.

Chiara has been abducted by her own mother: an Enochian defector who has taken up arms against the Light. Luminea will use Chiara to ensure the future of her empire—and to burn away her painful past with the man who had stolen everything from her, so long ago.

Unknowingly, that’s exactly the guy to whom Simon Alliant turns for help. The exorcist mage makes the ultimate deal with Chiara’s father to get her back...but he’ll have the Devil to pay.

My Review:
This is the second book in The Demon Whisperer series. Because it was a continuation of the first, I highly recommend you read the first book, Charm City, before you read this one. Charm City introduces the reader to the main characters and the plot that arises in Murder the Light.

So, we left Charm City with Chiara abducted. We discover in Murder the Light that she's been abducted by her mother, Luminea. It takes Simon a little longer than the reader to discover this, however. After searching for a while, he becomes desperate and summons her father. Simon thinks her father is a demon, but discovers his error when he meets Lucifer himself. After making a deal with the Devil, Simon goes to Chiara's rescue where he has to battle her fierce Enochian mother and the fallen Angel who has become Luminea's protector.

In this novel, we learn about Luminea and Chiara's childhood. It was interesting to see the development of Chiara's mother and their strained relationship with each other. This greatly explained the motivation behind Luminea's actions. By the end, we are given the whole story with a clear understanding of why these things have happened.

Simon's struggle in this story is, dare I say, even more intense than the last novel. The physical demands he endured because of his deal with Lucifer made me cringe. Seriously. Simon suffered severely in his quest to find and free Chiara. It was distressing to read what he had to go through. At times, I wasn't sure how much more he could take or if he would make it to the end.

This is a fantastic series! I'm in love with Simon. He's a well-rounded character with flaws that make him real and believable. He tries to do good things, but makes mistakes along the way. The action is fast paced making this another terrific page-turner, the dialogue is snappy and like the first filled with sarcasm and wit. Ash Krafton's writing style is a joy to read! Also, like the first, the ending is a cliffhanger that will undoubtedly lead us into the next book of this series. I'm excited and eager to read more!

View all my reviews

 Learn more about Ash Krafton

author of The Demon Whisperer Series

Read my Review for Charm City