Remnants Of Blood by H. F. Cunningham BLOG TOUR + GIVEAWAY!

 

Title: Remnants Of Blood

Author: H. F. Cunningham

Publisher: H. F. Cunningham

The Fair Folk are the stuff of myth. Stories of monsters and old magicks. But all myths carry a

grain of truth. That truth is that remnants of this ancient power live on in the blood of their
descendants.

When Tannin’s grandfather dies, he leaves her with a mountain of trouble. Between cryptic
journals that warn of unknown foes lying in wait and a crippling debt owed to a cruel and
formidable local Laird, Tannin is thrown into a cut-throat world where she is perilously out of
her depth.

But her problems have only just begun. Secrets lurk in Tannin’s bloodstream – secrets not even
she is aware of. And they want out.

A scheming princess with the offer of an alliance. A secret society with murderous intentions. A
dark past that refuses to stay buried. Tannin’s life will never be the same.

Reviews:

"If you are a fan of fantasy, court intrigues, queer characters and a good old enemy to lovers
trope, I can only urge you to put this on your TBR pile and read this book ASAP!” —Goodreads
review

"Remnants of Blood is a must-read for any fan of the fantasy genre, and those interested in
creative spins on folklore and legends. Cunningham’s writing style is sure to enrapture any
reader and leave them wanting more." — Goodreads review

"I would recommend this book to any lover of the fantasy genre, queer characters, action-
packed fight scenes, and an overall amazing story! If you don’t already, then I would
recommend adding Remnants of Blood to your TBR list immediately!" — Goodreads review

Book Links: Goodreads * Amazon * Kindle * B&N * kobo * TBD * Bookshop.org 

About H. F. Cunningham:

Hello! I'm HF Cunningham; a queer YA/NA fantasy author who likes puns!

My debut novel Remnants of Blood is launching 14th September 2021 and is perfect for lovers
of fantasy, intruiging characters, enemies to lovers, monsters, scottish accents and witty
banter!

Author Links: Website * Facebook * Twitter * Instagram * Goodreads * Amazon

                                           Excerpt

“Well,” Ava said a while later, brushing crumbs from her lap, “now that we’ve broken bread
together, we can get started properly.”

Ava had eaten enough to be polite whereas Attilo and Tannin had dug in enthusiastically. He
had to suppress a groan of contentment. It had been a long time since he had simple rustic food
and the sweet nostalgia was threatening to engulf him. He rationalised that even if the bread
was poisoned and Tannin somehow had immunity to it then it was better that he ate most of it
and Ava only had a little. Then she would be safer. Plus, it was damn good bread.

“Okay, where do we start?” Tannin asked eagerly. Her focus drawn to the assortment of jars,
gadgets and weaponry that lined the wooden cabinet shelves. They had built up quite the
collection over the years.

“Here.” Ava dropped a tome onto the sarcophagus-table causing dust to puff up from either

side.

“Yay, more books,” Tannin said sarcastically.

“Knowledge is the most important thing for what we’re doing.”

“I get that, but can’t we do somethin’ a bit more… I dunno. Just a bit less… dusty?”

“Books are where we start,” Ava said with a tone of finality.

Tannin rolled her eyes behind Ava’s back and wandered over to the cabinet regardless. Attilo

subtly followed her. If she was going to make a move, then it was smart to check out the whole

environment for weapons or hidden advantages.

“Ooh. What’s this?” Tannin asked, picking up a soft velvety pouch with silver stitching. It rattled

when she shook it. She tipped the contents out into her hand and inspected the strange

symbols carved into smooth black stones. It had taken them weeks of research and months of

waiting to get a hold of those runestones. “What are these for?”

“Put that down.” Ava said sharply.

Attilo suppressed a smile as he saw the twitch in Ava’s jaw. She was meticulous about her

artifacts, and he knew that Tannin messing with them was going to drive her crazy.
“Aye okay, I’m just lookin’,” Tannin said, dumping it back on the shelf in a completely different

place to where she’d picked it up. Ava’s fingers tightened around the quill she was holding.
“Hey, when do I get a sword?” she asked crouching to examine the rack of dulled weaponry.
“Never. Those are for training.” Ava snapped.

“What’s the point of trainin’ to then not have a sword?” She picked one up out of its stand and
hefted it in both hands. Attilo studied her stance while gripping the handle of his own blade. If she made one move towards Ava – even with a blunted sword – he would take action. It was
clear the girl didn’t know what she was doing with the blade as she held it up, but she had her
feet planted and her weight balanced. The first thing anyone learning about weapons would
learn. His suspicions pricked.
It could be instinct but still…

“Put that down.” Ava’s voice carried the warning tone that he was well familiar with, but Tannin
was seemingly oblivious.
“In a minute,” she grinned and swung the sword around loosely making exaggerated swishing,
whooshing sounds with her mouth. She wasn’t arming herself. She was … playing with it. Attilo
cocked his head amusedly. He knew Tannin and Ava were roughly the same age, but he often
forgot just how young that was. Ava had never seemed like a child to him what with that
calculating brain always ticking away.
“Attilo, I think we need to get some of the materials from my brother’s nursery so Tannin can
start learning at an appropriate level for her maturity,” Ava snapped irritably. Her patience was
at its end. Attilo felt a little sorry for Tannin for the telling off she was probably about to get.
He popped the last scrap of bread in his mouth as Ava barked, “I said put it down!”
“Oh, good idea,” Tannin replied mockingly, returning the sword to its place. “Hey, Attilo, do you
think we could get some more candles down here too so the princess can lighten the fuck up?”
The snort and subsequent choked splutter that escaped him was undignified to say the least.
Ava’s face was a picture. He doubted anyone had ever spoken to her like that in her life and her
eyes had widened to saucers and her nostrils flared in indignation. She glared at him as he
struggled to not laugh. He shrugged an apology, eyes watering.
“Or maybe we can just put all the shiny things up on the higher shelves out of reach,” Ava
retorted, pointedly looking Tannin up and down.
“Oh, ha ha. Very funny, princess.” Tannin rolled her eyes. Attilo guessed she had heard just
about every short joke there was. “Way to take the moral high ground.”
Ava took a deep breath and closed her eyes.
That’s it Ava, calm down and gain the control back.
“Will you please just pay attention for a few minutes?” She said resignedly.
“Well, since you said please.”

                                                **GIVEAWAY**

    2 winners will win a signed finished copy of REMNANTS OF BLOOD & swag, US Only.

Tour Schedule

Week One:
9/20/2021  Living in a Bookworld - Excerpt
9/20/2021  Writer of Wrongs - Guest Post
9/21/2021  Two Chicks on Books - Guest Post
9/21/2021  @karendeeandabc - IG Post
9/22/2021  Never Hollowed By The Stare - Excerpt
9/22/2021  YA Books Central - Guest Post
9/23/2021  The Book Review Crew - Review
9/23/2021  @bookstagramofmine - Review
9/24/2021  GivernyReads - Review
9/24/2021 Rajiv's Reviews - Review

Week Two

9/27/2021  @coffeebooksandmascara - Review
9/27/2021  @Pagesofyellow - Review
9/28/2021  Lexijava_Bookish - Review
9/28/2021 BookHounds YA - Review
9/29/2021  The Momma Spot - Excerpt
9/29/2021  Dorky Girl and Skeletor - Excerpt  <<<< YOU ARE HERE :)
9/30/2021  Books and Kats - Excerpt
9/30/2021  Lily Luchesi's Blog - Review
10/1/2021 @bookisheclectic - Review

10/1/2021  Devouring Books - Excerpt

                                   ~     ~     ~

On The Way To Birdland by Frank Morelli BLOG TOUR + GIVEAWAY!!!

 

Title: ON THE WAY TO BIRDLAND

Author: Frank Morelli

Publisher: Fish Out of Water Books

Formats: Paperback, eBook

Book Links: Goodreads , Amazon , B&N , TBD , Bookshop.org

Self-proclaimed teenage philosopher Cordell Wheaton lives in a sleepy, southern town where
nothing ever happens; not since his hero, jazz musician John Coltrane, left some seventy years
earlier to “follow the sound.” Cordy’s life has been unraveling since the night his father and his
brother, Travis, exploded on each other. The night Travis’s addiction transformed him from
budding musician into something entirely different. The night Travis took his saxophone and
disappeared. When Cordy’s father falls ill, the sixteen-year-old vows to reunite the Wheaton
family. He embarks on a modern-day odyssey with forty bucks in his pocket and a dream to find
his brother and convince him to be Travis again—by taking him to a show at Birdland Jazz Club
in New York City, and reminding him of the common bonds they share with their legendary
hero. Cordy’s journey is soon haunted by ghostly visions, traumatic dreams, and disembodied
voices that echo through his mind. He starts to wonder if the voices are those of the fates,
guiding him toward his destiny—or if he’s losing his grip on reality.

                                     Praise for ON THE WAY TO BIRDLAND

“Engrossing story and sympathetic characters. Morelli…makes it worth the trip.”—Booklist

“With a haunting secret, a brave journey and fascinating characters, On the Way to Birdland will
remind readers that when you take a giant step into the unfamiliar, you might just find
yourself.” —Joelle Charbonneau, New York Times Best Selling author of VERIFY and DISCLOSE

“On the Way to Birdland is a work of tremendous heart. It sings with the joys and pains of
family, hope, and impossible dreams. A must read for everyone trying to find their way back to
what matters most.”—Adrienne Kisner, Author of DEAR RACHEL MADDOW, THE CONFUSION
OF LAUREL GRAHAM, and SIX ANGRY GIRLS

“Listening to and believing in our fears keeps away from a life we wish for. On the Way to
Birdland shows us what’s possible when we listen to something else.”—Angelo Surmelis,
author of THE DANGEROUS ART OF BLENDING IN

“With balance, beats, and rhythm, this heartfelt coming-of-age story is bridged together like a
Coltrane riff under Frank Morelli’s skillful hand. ON THE WAY TO BIRDLAND and its cast of
diverse, fully fleshed-out characters are now included among My Favorite Things.” –Brenda
Rufener, Author of SINCE WE LAST SPOKE and WHERE I LIVE

“A classic tale of choice and chance, with more twists than a Virginia mountain road, On the
Way to Birdland is a guide to finding your true self by accepting that you are ‘completely
destructible…desperate not to get destroyed.” —Valerie Nieman, author of TO THE
BONES and BACKWATER (Fitzroy, 2022)

                                          About Frank Morelli

Frank Morelli is the author of the young adult novel, No Sad Songs (2018), a YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers nominee and winner of an American Fiction Award for best coming of age story. The first book in his debut middle grade series, Please Return To: Norbert M. Finkelstein (2019) is a Book Excellence Award finalist and provides young readers with a roadmap to end bullying. His fiction and essays have been featured in various publications including The Saturday Evening Post, Cobalt Review, Philadelphia Stories, and Highlights Magazine.

A Philadelphia native, Morelli now resides in High Point, NC with a brilliant illustrator and his fur babies. Connect with him on Twitter @frankmoewriter and on Instagram @frankmorelliauthor.

Author Links: Website , Twitter , Facebook , Instagram , Goodreads , Amazon

Excerpt:

  I stand on the solid, white line like a flesh-covered statue. The roar of the road
builds in my chest. The semi approaches but does not slow down. The headlights
blind me and my ears approach explosion levels as the WAAAAAaaaarrrUUMMM!
erupts from the horn and the truck
barrels past. My legs buckle. I dive headlong for the safety of the road’s shoulder.
  The truck lurches and slides to a stop about fifty yards down the road. The
driver pulls the truck into the emergency lane and the door of the cab swings open.
He hops straight down to the road from his seat in one heroic swoop. I’m shocked halfway to hell 

with my chin on the pavement and a jagged collection of pebbles pressed into the side of my face.

  Before I can catch my breath, the driver is already hovering over me as I lie

there, stunned and motionless, having just had an eighteen-wheeler barrel past with
only the width of a Kraft single between me and certain death.
    “Hey! You alright?” he shouts.
  He drops to one knee and clamps his hands down on both of my shoulders.
There’s a sense of desperation in his voice. His eyes bulge from their sockets and the
whites glow against the dark curtain of night. For a split second, with the moon
glowing off the angles of his cheekbones and a slight quiver trembling his thin lips, I almost think 

it’s Travis staring down at me.

But then I blink and the image is gone. He’s just some guy with a shock of pitch-
black hair stretching out from under a beanie cap like a million tiny tentacles. But
that doesn’t stop him from taking hold of the sleeves of my t-shirt and hoisting me to
my feet like he’s known me all my life.

    “Dude! You okay?! Tell me you’re still alive!” he pleads, giving me a
rough shake. “Come on! Say something!” The scent of pine on the roadside hits my
nostrils and snaps me back to reality.
    “Yeah, I’m...I’m fine!” I push out through terrified lips.
  We stare at each other, dumbstruck—me, the scrawny slice of white toast with
a mask of freckles and the driver, a tall and ghostly-looking specter with dark, bushy
eyebrows, a network of metal hoops and gauges punched through both earlobes, and
a sinister-looking tattoo on his forearm.

    “Man, you almost gave me a heart attack,” the driver groans. He doubles over
and fights for air. “What the hell are you doing out here in the middle of nowhere at
this hour of the morning?”
    “Running,” I tell him. I feel my freckles turn into a single, red blotch
on my face when I say it. Like, I’m about to face the shame I deserve for
my reckless decision. But the shame never comes.
    “Everybody’s running,” he says.

                                                               Giveaway Details:
                 3 winners will receive a finished copy of ON THE WAY TO BIRDLAND, US Only.

                                                           

                                               >>>   GIVEAWAY   <<<

TOUR SCHEDULE

Week One:

5/24/2021  Rockstar Book Tours - Kickoff Post

5/25/2021  Two Chicks on Books - Excerpt
5/26/2021  Jaime's World - Excerpt
5/27/2021  Jaimerockstarbooktours -  Instagram Post
5/28/2021 YA Books Central  - Guest Post

Week Two:

5/31/2021  Fire and Ice - Review
6/1/2021  Living in a Bookworld - Guest Post
6/2/2021  Rajiv's Reviews -  Review
6/3/2021  @pagesofyellow - Review
6/4/2021  @barbs_bookland - Review

Week Three:

6/7/2021  Sj_bookshelf - Review
6/8/2021  The Keysmash Blog - Review
6/9/2021   Dorky Girl and Skeletor - Excerpt <  You are here :)
6/10/2021  The Obsessed Reader - Excerpt
6/11/2021  Lady Hawkeye - Excerpt

Week Four:

6/14/2021  I'm Shelfish - Excerpt
6/15/2021  A Dream Within A Dream - Excerpt
6/16/2021  Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers - Guest Post
6/17/2021  For the Love of KidLit - Excerpt
6/18/2021  The Momma Spot - Excerpt

                                 ~     ~     ~

All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr BOOK REVIEW!

 

Title: All The Light We Cannot See    

Author: Anthony Doerr

Published: Scribner

This is a coming of age story about a girl and boy in the coming years of, during, and after WWII. 

Most of the story focuses on Marie-Loure who is a girl that lives in Paris, France with her Father and Warner who is a young boy that lives in a orphanage with his little sister in a small mining town in Germany. 

Both of their lives become uprooted when the Nazis become a thing and war begins. Marie-Loure and her father must flee from Paris due to the Nazis occupation of Paris sending them far from the familiar place that Marie-Loure knew to live with an uncle that she doesn't even know. 

Warner who is smarter than most boys his age is exceptionally good at fixing things and ends up catching the eye of some Nazi's which leads to him getting into a school for young boys that essentially trains them to become soldiers. With the knowledge he learns for the brutal school he becomes a member of the Nazi party and is tasked with tracking down members of the resistance. Even with orders to follow and brutal training things don't always stick and sometimes you just know what is right and what is wrong. 

Rating: 

Thoughts: I will say this, the cover art for this book is stunning. Ok now, I wasn't a huge fan of this book. It took me so long to get through it because I found it to be extremely slow paced and I almost got to the point where I stopped reading it but I kept going. I kind of wish I didn't finish it because I wasn't happy with the way the book ended. The story is beautiful yes but I just felt it dragged on a bit longer than it should have but that is just my opinion. World War II stories are also a huge hit and miss with me because I feel like the subject is written about to much. Hey I gave it a chance and I had hoped for great things. 

                                 ~     ~     ~