New Release & Giveaway: The Rules of You and Me by Shana Norris

The Rules of You and Me by Shana Norris 

Release Date: June 17, 2013
Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Hannah Cohen has always lived her life by a set of carefully constructed rules to maintain the image of perfection. But now, the rules aren't helping control the chaos that is quickly taking over.

Opting out of spending the summer in Paris with her mom, Hannah instead heads to the mountains of North Carolina to stay with her aunt. The Blue Ridge Mountains provide a barrier between Hannah and the rest of the world, a safe haven where her secrets can be forgotten.

When Hannah crosses paths with Jude Westmore, a guy who hangs a different shirt from the tree in his front yard every day, she finds herself breaking out of the comfort of her rules and doing things she had never dared before. As the summer passes, Hannah and Jude grow closer and make up their own rules for dealing with life.

But when the secret Hannah has tried to forget is finally revealed, even the new rules can't save her from possibly losing everything--including Jude.

This young adult romance is a standalone companion novel to Shana Norris's The Boyfriend Thief.

Book Excerpt

I caught sight of a shirt hanging from the same tree on the corner again and I slowed to a stop on the empty street to study it. It could have been just a shirt that was hung there and forgotten, maybe leftover from a yard sale. But I could have sworn that the shirt I’d seen before was red plaid. Today, a blue button up shirt hung from the tree branch, the sleeves flapping back and forth in the wind.

My gaze focused just beyond the tree and I saw a familiar dusty gray truck parked in the driveway of the house. The hood was up and as I watched, a figure emerged from the other side of the truck, wiping his hands on a dirty rag.

Jude Westmore. Shirtless.

He obviously didn’t spend his spare time laying around on the couch watching TV. Lightly muscled arms led up to a pair of broad shoulders that met a chiseled chest and abs. He had the kind of tan you got from working outside in the sun. The tattoo on his arm was a band, some kind of tribal design that wrapped around a nicely shaped bicep.

I leaned forward, my hands gripping the steering wheel until my fingers started to tingle.

BEEP!

I jumped back, slamming the back of my head against my seat and held my hands up away from the steering wheel. My gaze darted back toward the gray truck, hoping by some miracle he hadn’t heard me accidentally blare my car horn at him.

But no such luck. Jude straightened, shielding his eyes with one hand as he looked directly at me. Would I look too much like a stalker if I sped away? Did he remember that this was my car?

I lifted one hand and gave a small wave. I didn’t know what else to do.

About the Author

Most days, Shana Norris still feels like she's stuck at sixteen, which is probably why she enjoys writing about teens. She lives in a small town in eastern North Carolina with her husband and small zoo of pets, which currently includes two dogs, five cats, and five chickens.

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Be sure to fill out the rafflecopter for a chance to win (1) eBook copy of The Rules of You and Me. Books will be available in mobi and epub formats. Open international.  Giveaway rules and details are listed in the Terms & Conditions section of Rafflcopter.

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New Release: Haven (Apocalypse Chronicles, Part I) by Laury Falter

Haven (Apocalypse Chronicles, Part I) by Laury Falter 

Release date: June 22, 2013
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Haven, the first book in the Apocalypse Chronicles...

On an ordinary day in early September, Kennedy Shaw leaves for school unaware that within a few minutes the world she knows will be gone - succumbed to an outbreak of epidemic proportions. After finding a safe haven inside the security of her enclosed high school, she learns that four others have survived, one being a bold, mysterious transfer student from Texas whose unruffled demeanor harbors more than a cool interest in her. As they struggle to survive the dead fighting their way inside, will Kennedy discover there is more to life than survival? And will she and the others find a way to live in this terrifying new world?

Book Excerpt

"I'm different, Kennedy." Those words seemed to sting as they left his beautiful lips.

"We're all different, Harrison. I have steel throwing stars in my pocket, and I know how to use them. Do you know any other eighteen-year-olds who do that?  You asked that same question this morning, remember? Not one. Not a single one." I paused to meet his stare directly, ensuring my last point was heard. "I don't think you're any more different than the rest of us."

He laughed under his breath. "You don't now, but you will eventually."

In a way that made me think he was trying to prove his point, he opened the refrigerator door wide, so that I could clearly see inside. It was stocked, but not with fruit, vegetables, and Yoo-Hoo drinks. Bags of raw meat were crammed into every shelf and drawer available. That was it, just bags of raw meat. He began shoving as many of them as he could fit into his duffel bag, stuffing it so tightly it couldn't zip closed. When he straightened up and turned, he discovered that I hadn't moved.

"You underestimate me," I said.

He seemed surprised that I wasn't bowled over by his brazen display of how odd he was. "Why are you so determined to like me?" he countered.

"Why are you so determined to push me away?"

"Like you do with others?" he retorted, striking at the one thing he knew I couldn't deny.

My only response was to press my lips together as the uncomfortable silence stretched between us.

Obviously, he'd seen me sitting alone in the library during lunch and he knew that I was short on friends. I was also pretty sure he'd heard my story through one of the many strings of gossip that seemed to surround me. He laughed under his breath again, this time with thick sarcasm. "We are similar, Kennedy. We keep to ourselves, preserving that preciously safe space around us, denying others entry. We make it painful for others so they won't think about invading it. We make ourselves invisible or unreceptive so they won't consider trying. I've watched you do it for a year. But we do this for different reasons. You do it so that others can't hurt you. I do it so that I can't hurt others." He slung the duffel bag over his shoulder effortlessly despite the weight it held.

"So that's it?" I said, causing him to halt. He kept his back to me as I asked, "That's why you never asked me out, why you're being…reticent now? You think you can hurt me."

His shoulders lifted as he drew in a deep breath. "Kennedy," he exhaled wearily, "it's the only reason that could keep me from you."

About the Author

Laury Falter is the author of the bestselling Guardian Trilogy. She writes young adult paranormal romances and urban fantasy when she's not taking her stray dogs for a walk or enjoying a date night with her husband.

Laury has released two series, the Guardian Trilogy and the Residue Series (a spinoff of the Guardian Trilogy books), and is currently releasing her third series, the Apocalypse Chronicles.

To learn more about Laury and her novels, visit her at:

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Promotional Release Event & Giveaway: 15 Minutes by Jill Copper.

Today, WinterHaven Books is joining ATOMR in spreading the word about Jill Cooper's newest novel, 15 Minutes!

15 Minutes by Jill Cooper

Release Date: June 15, 2013
Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

I have 15 minutes to save my mother’s life….

15 minutes is all the Rewind Agency gives you in the past, but for Lara Crane it’s enough time to race through the city, find her mother, and stop her from being killed in a mugging that happened over ten years ago.

But that’s not how it happened. The story she’s been told all her life is a lie and when Lara takes a bullet meant for her mother, her future changes forever.

The love of her life acts like a stranger. Her simple life is replaced with a giant house, glamorous clothes and a new boyfriend.


Except someone knows her secret. And he will try to stop her at every turn as she races against the clock to unravel a dangerous conspiracy.

15 Minutes is an edgy high octane YA thriller that can be described as Back to the Future meets Inception where the people Lara trusts change in an instant. She is in a timeline she doesn't understand, and is about to make one fatal mistake as she faces an enemy so familiar, he’s family.

Book Trailer

Book Excerpt

Locker 63.

My eyes sweep aisle after aisle until I find the one I’m looking for. It’s blue and unassuming, but it could unlock the secret to everything. I lick my lips as I insert the key, close my eyes, and with a prayer, twist.

Click.

The door opens, and inside I find more than documents. There’s also a pink hoodie, a duffle bag, and a fresh change of clothes.

What was I preparing for? What was I doing? I open the manila envelope on the bottom and flip through the documents—a lot of reports, surveillance photos, old newspaper clippings. I don’t have time to go through all of it now, so I stash them in my duffle bag and throw on some new clothes.

A tight-fitting t-shirt, pink hoodie, and comfortable blue jeans are my new outfit. It’s a weird choice for trendy, sophisticated Lara, but she was up to something big. Real big.

I lift the hidden duffle bag out of the locker, surprised at how hefty it is. I unzip it and find money inside. A lot of money. I touch it. Must be thousands of dollars bound together in neat little stacks.

My heart quickens as I wonder where it came from and what I was planning to do with it. If ever there was a moment for a flashback, it's now. A shining blue cell phone at the bottom of the duffle bag catches my attention. I pull it out and see a note stuck to it. In my handwriting.

Hide in the shower. Move fast.
Wide eyed and with a pounding heart, I slam the locker, grab everything, and run down the hall. I turn into the showers and duck into a stall, the vinyl shower curtain flapping against me. I still it with trembling fingers as I hear heavy steps enter the locker room.

About the Author 

Jill Cooper loves tea more than coffee and is obsessed over finding that perfect recipe. She was born in 1977 and shared a room with her sister for 18 years. Early on she had dreams of writing romances and mysteries. It was something she did when most kids were trying out for softball or out riding bikes.

She's always loved dark mysteries, but also enjoys a great comedy so she tries to include both these things in everything she writes, one way or another.

She lives in Danvers, MA with two cats, a toddler, a husband, and a 1964 yellow taxi. Her life is chaotic, but fun. She can be contacted at http://www.jillacooper.com

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The author is offering an event giveaway. If you would like to offer the event giveaway, please use the Rafflecopter code below. WinterHaven Books posting this giveaway on behalf of the author, so please review rafflecopter or contact the author for giveaway details.

(1) $15 Amazon Gift Card

(1) Pair of Glamorous Sunglasses

(1) Fabulous Flower Purse

(7) Different eBook titles by 7 Different Authors

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