Judith Graves Blog Tour

For her new release, author Judith Graves is going on tour. Join the celebration of the official launch of the second book in the SKINNED series, SECOND SKIN.


During the month of March Judith will be doing interviews and guest posts on some fabulous blogs, as well as features on her own site. It will be a month of giveaways, SWAG, and great conversations.

In honor of Second Skin’s major theme, FACING YOUR DARKEST FEAR, she’ll look at what scares us – from horror films, fiction, phobias, folklore and the beasties that haunt our dreams. Thankfully, she'll only talk about others' sheer terror – Eryn and her monster-hunting crew are the ones who get thrown to the wolves.

Here’s the line up of blog stops and author thus far:

3/1 – Tour kick off (my blog)
3/7 - Jennifer R. Hubbard – guest post exchange and feature on my blog
3/8 – Electrifying Reviews – guest post
3/9 – Fragments of Life – author interview / character interview
3/10 – Just Deb – guest post
3/12 – Ellz Readz - guest post
3/13 – Book Swarm - character interview and review
3/14 – Late Bloomer – guest post
3/15 – Heather McCorkle - author interview exchange and feature on my blog
3/16 – Dawn Dalton- author interview exchange and feature on my blog
3/17 – Dawn Ius – author interview
3/19 – Denise Jaden - author interview exchange and feature on my blog
3/20 – Joy Preble – author interview exchange and feature on my blog
3/22 – Janet Fox - author interview exchange and feature on my blog
3/25 – Lauren’s Crammed Bookshelf - author interview
3/28 – Bewitched Bookworms – review

Judith's books in the Skinned Series:
Available Now Books 1 and 2

COMING IN 2013...

 COMING IN 2014...

A steampunk e-serial starring Amelia Strangeways. Ghosthunter. Necromancer.

A Sweet Romance for Your Sweetheart

Want to give your sweetheart something more than candy this month? Try this humorous paranormal romance by Patrice Lyle:

ISBN 13 978-1-61603-013-1
ISBN 10 1-61603-013-5

Morgan Skully is the world's only blonde demon girl, and she's got a brand new, very unusual afterschool job. Spying for the Devil. She'd much rather use her cloak-and-dagger skills to spy on hottie-licious Derek with her friends, but the Devil won't take no for an answer. Luckily for Morgan, her new boss is kinda hot. Her assignment is simple: find out who at Pitchfork Prep is funneling secrets to the Siberian Werewolf Council. If she succeeds, pedicures and platinum highlights are just the beginning.

But if she fails…there's more on the line than killer shoes.

And take a sneak peek at the trailer that'll be showing up in some theaters. Watch for it in a theater near you!

Author Patrice Lyle

Leap Books Launches

Leap Books is thrilled to announce three new titles:

FEBRUARY 12
 The second book in Judith Graves' Skinned series:

 

ISBN-13 978-1-61603-006-3
ISBN-10 1-61603-006-2

With Fiends Like Eryn…

Monsters. Bloodsuckers. The evil. The damned. Eryn McCain knows they exist—she's been hunting them since she was a child. At sixteen, she's ready to take on all comers. Being a shapeshifter gives her an advantage when it comes to her unusual part-time job. The hours suck and the pay is, well, non-existent, but bonuses like inhuman strength and night vision make tracking scary beasties a dream come true. Especially in a town like Redgrave.

When an ancient demon targets Redgrave High, Eryn and her crew of hunters must face their innermost fears to prevent the Harvest Moon Dance from becoming one serious Monster Mash. Loyalties are tested and temptations abound. With questions ever brewing, can Eryn share a future with the brooding, noble, human Alec—the hunter after her heart? Or will she succumb to her enemy's son, Wade, a seductive predator as bloodthirsty as she is?

What happens when you’re both the beauty and the beast?


FEBRUARY 14

Patrice Lyle's humorous paranormal...

ISBN 13 978-1-61603-013-1
ISBN 10 1-61603-013-5

Morgan Skully is the world's only blonde demon girl, and she's got a brand new, very unusual afterschool job. Spying for the Devil. She'd much rather use her cloak-and-dagger skills to spy on hottie-licious Derek with her friends, but the Devil won't take no for an answer. Luckily for Morgan, her new boss is kinda hot. Her assignment is simple: find out who at Pitchfork Prep is funneling secrets to the Siberian Werewolf Council. If she succeeds, pedicures and platinum highlights are just the beginning.

But if she fails…there's more on the line than killer shoes.

MARCH 28

An anthology of ghostly tales by Maria V. Snyder, Candace Havens, Shannon Delany, Jill Williamson, Linda Joy Singleton, Heather Kenealy, Judith Graves, Kitty Keswick, Dawn Dalton, Carmen Tudor, John W. Otte, Halli Dee Lilburn, and Mark Finnemore 

ISBN-13--978-1-61603-020-9

Edited by Kat O'Shea

Haunted houses. Haunted hearts. And a past that refuses to die. . .

Leap Books summoned best-selling paranormal and dreadfully talented debut authors to conjure up Spirited, a haunting collection of 13 tales guaranteed to keep you up all night.

Get entombed in stories of Egyptian treasures, shudder at tales of malevolent spirits, and become enthralled with the adventures of witch-hunters, ghost seekers, and lost souls. From steampunk to cyberpunk, our collection spans past, present, and future hauntings. One story actually leaps off the page with 3D augmented reality.

Go ahead. Turn the page if you dare. We won't tell if you sleep with the light on. Because after all, there's no rest for the wicked.

All proceeds from the sale of SPIRITED will be donated to 826 National.

Print book available exclusively from the Leap Books store.

Finnish Christmas Eve Recipe #3

Patrice Lyle, author

Here's the third recipe that our spies dug up from author Patrice Lyle's secret collection of tasty Finnish recipes for Christmas Eve. And although this is the last of the recipes, if you stop back on Christmas eve, we'll have one more special Finnish treat.

Here's the third secret recipe:

Rutabaga Casserole (Lanttu Laatikko)

Ingredients:

3 fresh rutabagas

4 eggs, beaten

1 TBSP butter

nutmeg

sea salt

pepper

Peel the 3 rutabagas and cut into chunks. Boil in salted water for about 45 minutes or until soft. Drain and then mash. Add the butter, and then salt and pepper to taste. Beat eggs well in a separate bowl and add to rutabagas. Mix well and pour into greased oven dish. Sprinkle with nutmeg and bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for about 35 to 40 minutes. This casserole is really like a soufflé and could be made more like a soufflé using only the egg whites and adding a bit of milk (or Thai Kitchen Lite Coconut Milk for those who don’t do dairy like me J). It can also be mixed ahead of time, refrigerated and then baked on Christmas Eve. This is one of my favorites!

And be sure to watch for Lethally Blonde starring Morgan Skully, the blonde demon who spies for the devil. It releases February 14, but you can preorder a copy at the Leap Books store.

And don't forget to stop back for your special Christmas eve treat...

Finnish Christmas Soup for Good Luck

Patrice Lyle, author

Here's the second recipe that our skullduggery snagged from author Patrice Lyle's secret collection of luscious Finnish recipes for Christmas Eve. As we promised, we're going to post one every other day leading up to Christmas Eve.

So stop back for some more wonderful Christmas treats.

Here's the second secret recipe:

Fruit Soup over Creamed Rice w/ the “Good Luck Almond”

Ingredients for the fruit soup (note: fruit soup is delish served over ham):

1 lb mixed dried fruits
2 ½ quarts water
1 cinnamon stick (note: can sub powdered cinnamon if you don’t have a stick)
1 cup sugar
1 TBSP cornstarch
2 TBSP cold water

Simmer dried fruits in water with sugar and cinnamon stick until tender (about one hour). Dissolve cornstarch in the cold water. Bring soup to boil and stir in cornstarch mixture. Cook covered on low to medium heat until soup has thickened and is clear. Cool with cover on to prevent skin from forming on top. This is an easy recipe to make on Christmas Eve day and just keep warm on the stove. The rice (below) can be made the day before and refrigerated.

Ingredients for the creamed rice:

1 cup uncooked white rice
6 cups of milk (or nondairy substitute of Thai Kitchen Lite Coconut Milk)
½ tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
1 cup cream, whipped (or nondairy substitute Thai Kitchen Coconut Milk, not the Lite)
Cinnamon sugar mixture
1 almond to put in the bowl (very important b/c tradition has it that whoever gets the almond will have good luck in the upcoming year … but no digging through the bowl to find it allowed!)

Combine rice, milk, salt and sugar in top of a double boiler. Cook over boiling water for about 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until rice is creamy and milk is absorbed. Cool for about 30 minutes and fold in whipping cream. Then add the ‘good luck almond” and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.

This recipe makes a lot! And people love the Good Luck Almond part!

And be sure to watch for Lethally Blonde starring Morgan Skully, the blonde demon who spies for the devil. It releases February 14, but you can preorder a copy at the Leap Books store.

Finnish Christmas Recipes

Patrice Lyle, author

Those of you who read author Patrice Lyle's blog on Julia Karr's Live Journal blog know she mentioned some delicious-sounding Finnish recipes for Christmas Eve. Luckily, for you we have undercover agents to rival Morgan Skully, the heroine of Lethally Blonde, who spies for the devil. We managed to get our hands on 3 (yep, 3 yummy recipes) and we're going to post one every other day leading up to Christmas Eve. So pop back for some more wonderful Christmas treats.

Here's the first secret recipe:

Finska Pinnars (my favorite cookie EVER!!)

Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

½ cup sugar

1 tsp almond extract

1 and 2/3 cups sifted all-purpose flour

½ cup finely chopped blanched almonds

3 TBSP sugar

1 egg yolk

1 TBSP water

2 squares semisweet chocolate

2 teaspoons vegetable shortening

Royal Icing

Milk (or nondairy Original Rice Milk)

Beat the butter with ½ cup sugar and almond extract in a large bowl with electric mixer until light and fluffy. Stir in flour until soft dough forms. Refrigerate at least 1 hour.

Combine chopped almonds and 3 TBSPs sugar on wax paper. Beat egg yolk and water in a bowl until blended. Set both aside.

Remove dough from refrigerator. Take about 2 level teaspoons of dough for each cookie and roll (with floured hands on a floured surface) into 3-inch length “finger shaped” pieces.

Brush each cookie with egg & water mixture, then coat each cookie with chopped almonds & sugar mixture. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 degrees fro about 12 minutes or until golden. Note: cookies will flatten into ovals during baking. Cool on wire racks.

To decorate: melt chocolate with shortening; cool slightly and drizzle over cookies. Thin a small amount of Royal Icing (recipe follows) with milk (or nondairy Original Rice Milk) and drizzle over chocolate. Let set until chocolate and icing hardens. Makes about 3 dozen.

Royal Icing

Ingredients:

1 egg white

dash of salt

¼ tsp cream of tartar

¼ tsp vanilla extract

1 cup (or so) of confectioners sugar

Mix all ingredients together and drizzle over Finska Pinnars. Cover any unused portion in a bowl for later use.

And be sure to watch for Lethally Blonde, which releases February 14, but you can preorder a copy at the Leap Books store.

$.99 Books During December

Looking for a spooky read for December?

Check out Under My Skin, Book 1 in the Skinned series by Judith Graves.

From now until January 1, 2012, you can snag the ebook for only $.99!

To order, click here or here.

If you love Under My Skin as much as we think you will, watch for the release of Second Skin, Book 2 in February 2012...

You can reserve your copy, by clicking here and adding it to your shopping cart.

Want a Free Book?

 One of the authors who is contributing to Leap Books forthcoming Spirited anthology, Linda Joy Singleton, has a FREE YA paranormal romance available for the month of May only. You can check out the book trailer HERE. Better yet, just pick up your FREE copy of Dead Girl Walking for the Nook and Kindle at Amazon.


And watch for Spirited this October.