Book Feature: THE WOMAN BEHIND THE WATERFALL by Leonora Meriel

About the Book:

Heartbreak and transformation in the beauty of a Ukrainian village.

For seven-year old Angela, happiness is exploring the lush countryside around her home in western Ukraine. Her wild imagination takes her into birds and flowers, and into the waters of the river.

All that changes when, one morning, she sees her mother crying. As she tries to find out why, she is drawn on an extraordinary journey into the secrets of her family, and her mother's fateful choices.

Can Angela lead her mother back to happiness before her innocence is destroyed by the shadows of a dark past?

Beautiful, poetic and richly sensory, this is a tale that will haunt and lift its readers.

Book Links:

Goodreads * Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Meet the Characters:

The Setting

Ukraine, a village deep in the countryside. A picturesque, verdant landscape. The houses are beautiful but have few amenities: water is gathered from the well, clothes are washed by hand, and the “outhouse” toilet is in the garden. Life is hard work here, and close to nature.

The Language

There are many Ukrainian words in the novel, especially emphasizing the names of endearment Ukrainian people give to each other. Lastivka is “little swallow”; zaika is ‘little rabbit”; harnenka is “my beautiful one.”

Meet Lyudmilla

Lyuda is a beautiful woman in her early twenties who has suffered some hard knocks early on. Pregnant at just sixteen, she left school and the child’s father moved into their house in the village. Her father died, and her mother soon after, and Lyuda found herself a teenager loaded down with the pressures of a baby, looking after a house, and a man who expected her to cook for him and be the light-hearted girl he fell in love with. Eventually, the situation grows intolerable for him and he abandons her. At seventeen, she is entirely alone with a small baby. She falls into a deep cycle of depression and self-blame, feeling that her life is over and that she is at fault. She doesn’t let anyone close to her.

It is only when her daughter Angela is a little older – aged seven – that she starts to notice how sad her mother is.  She decides to do something about it.

Meet Angela

Seven-year-old girl Angela has been left alone to do as she likes for most of her life. Her mother makes sure her dresses are clean and her hair is untangled, but she is free to play as she wishes. She has a wild imagination and she sees no boundaries between her thoughts and the world around her: she flies in the body of a bird, she becomes the wind, she enters a storm – she is pure spirit and possibility.

When she starts to notice her mother crying every time she is alone, Angela is determined to find out why, and to help her mother regain the happiness she herself feels. At the heart of her investigation are questions that now begin to haunt her: Where is her father? Why does no one come to the house? Why does her mother cry when she thinks no one can see her?

When Angela meets the spirit of her grandmother, they come up with a plan to help Lyuda.

Meet Zoryana

The name Zoryana, which comes from the Ukrainian root zorya, means star, dawn, youth, day or spring. Zoryana has returned to the Earth in spirit form after seeing the unhappiness of her daughter and her failure to move past her teenage mistakes.

Zoryana feels that she did not prepare her daughter enough for the real world before she died, and she sees her struggling and unhappy. She wants to show her that life has highs and lows and that she must choose a new path for herself. She connects with her granddaughter Angela, who is not daunted by meeting the spirit of a relative, and together they help Lyuda to understand and see the joy in her life.

Meet Kolya

Nicolai, or Kolya, lives next door to Lyuda and brews home-made vodka in his shed. He sells it to her and catches rabbits for her to eat. He was a childhood friend of her mother, Zoryana, and he hates to see her so unhappy. He’d love to help her, but she pushes him away. When he finally makes a terrible mistake, there is a high price to pay.

Reviews for The Woman Behind the Waterfall

“Readers looking for a classic tale of love and loss will be rewarded with an intoxicating world” ~~ Kirkus Reviews

“The language is lyrical and poetic and, in places, begs to be read repeatedly for the sheer joy of it… A literary work of art.” ~~ Fiona Adams, The Richmond Magazine

“Rich and poetic in detail, it is an often dreamy, oneiric narrative rooted in an exaltation of nature… A lovely novel.” ~~ IndieReader

About the Author:

Leonora Meriel grew up in London and studied literature at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland and Queen’s University in Canada. She worked at the United Nations in New York, and then for a multinational law firm.

In 2003 she moved from New York to Kyiv, where she founded and managed Ukraine’s largest Internet company. She studied at Kyiv Mohyla Business School and earned an MBA, which included a study trip around China and Taiwan, and climbing to the top of Hoverla, Ukraine’s highest peak and part of the Carpathian Mountains. She also served as President of the International Women’s Club of Kyiv, a major local charity.

During her years in Ukraine, she learned to speak Ukrainian and Russian, witnessed two revolutions and got to know an extraordinary country at a key period of its development.

In 2008, she decided to return to her dream of being a writer, and to dedicate her career to literature. In 2011, she completed The Woman Behind the Waterfall, set in a village in western Ukraine. While her first novel was with a London agent, Leonora completed her second novel The Unity Game, set in New York City and on a distant planet.

Leonora currently lives in Barcelona and London and has two children. She is working on her third novel.

Contact the Author:

Website * Facebook * Twitter

Book Feature: THE VENOM PROTOCOLS by John Murray McKay

Synopsis
Charlotte Corday, a junkie, trying to survive on the streets of 1980s New York has a chance encounter with a group of five thugs beating a man to death behind a deli in Brooklyn. Through ways unknown to her yet, she manages to subdue the gang members using unheralded skills in combat and weaponry, killing three in the process. The man whose life she saved turns out to be a enforcer for the New York Mafia. Impressed with her skills, Vince takes care of the injured Charlotte and slowly starts dragging her into a life of crime. He recognizes her potential as an assassin for the mob, digging his claws ever deeper into her. To keep her safe, Vince sends her to live with her two uncles in The Village (who also happens to run a clandestine operation above their salon.) She tries to live a normal life but her demons would not let her go, the blood on her hands a constant reminder of what she really is: a weapon.

Charlotte eventually goes looking into her past and discovers that she was part of a secret enhanced soldier program called Venom. She is imbued with the powers of legendary female warriors of history, giving her enhanced strength, recovery time and the fighting prowess of generations of deadly women. Unfortunately, this warps her mind and sends her life out of control in her quest for vengeance.

Determined to find the creators of Venom, Charlotte goes on a journey to find her origins, tearing New York City apart in the process. With the FBI and NYPD closing in on her after fuelled massacre of thirty innocents, Vince offers Charlotte a proposition: A meeting between the creator of Venom and the head of the New York Mafia. With her finger on the sniper trigger, Charlotte has to make a decision: end the life of the man that ruined her entire existence or put a bullet through the most powerful Mafioso on the East Coast. She makes her choice but accidentally kills the mafia boss as he runs in front of her bullet.

With Vince swearing a blood oath of vengeance on her, Charlotte goes on the run. Book one ends where he smuggles Charlotte out of the country in a shipping container. Destination: Northern Ireland in the middle of the sectarian wars. With the knowledge that she can never go home, Charlotte Corday must forge a new path, one that runs straight through the streets of Belfast.

Excerpt:
They kept coming after us, whistling and shouting as they went. It was like time stopped and everything around me grew quiet. I could sense the brick as it left the man’s hand, feel the texture of the rough red grain as it flew through the air. In slow motion I pushed Peter to the side, feeling him fall away as I turned and felt the brick strike my chest. Chest thumping, blood dripping down my breasts, dress torn as I lay on the dirty pavement sucking in deep swathes of breath. I could not hear Richard’s terrified screams or the laughter of the men, just the torrent of blood in my veins racing faster and faster.
And then it stopped.

Buy links:
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-venom-protocols
Google Play: https://goo.gl/CWkN9A
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/781944
Amazon: https://goo.gl/atQQ3v

Author bio
I am a Pretoria, South Africa based writer of historical fiction and science fiction. I am currently a teacher a local primary school. My previous publishing credits include “The N Days” through Night Chaser Ink Publishing in Australia. My second series 'The Venom Protocols' is a Summer Indie awards winner in 2016.

Book Feature: THE BROTHERHOOD OF MERLIN by Rory D Nelson

About the Book:

Merlin returns to Lycenea a hero, victorious over the Visi-Gauls in a gruesome and exhaustive campaign that claimed the life of one of his men and saw the annihilation of the Visi-Gauls’ Southern Army.

Merlin’s peaceful reprieve is cut short however, as he must now find and expose the corrupt Senator who initiated the war in the first place and plots to subvert the Empire for himself. He is aided by the powerful sorceress, Morgana and Felinius, a former disgraced and condemned knight who knows the inner workings of the Brotherhood.

Merlin must also protect two of the captives he rescued during the war with the Visi-Gauls, one of whom is a boy named Dante, whose power has been prophesized to defeat Herod Antipaz, the corrupt Senator, and his deadly allies who threaten to destroy Gilleon.

Herod makes plans of his own for eliminating Dante. The boy’s problems continue to mount precipitously- for not only is he being ruthlessly hunted down by Herod’s minions, but he must also face down a brutal training program in Round Table Academy, where he faces elimination on a daily basis. Should he be eliminated, he will no longer be under the protection of Merlin and his Brotherhood and his death almost a foregone conclusion.

His only hope, his only salvation is Merlin- as is the country of Gilleon.

Book Links:

Goodreads * Amazon

Check Out Book One: Gilleon

Five hundred years after the death of King Arthur, a sadistic tyrant of Visi-Galia, attacks unprotected and vulnerable townships in Gilleon, igniting a deadly chain of events. Because he was unfairly denied a proper chance to compete for valuable mine rights and outbid by a Councilman from Gilleon, he reasons that he can invade Gilleon's vulnerable townships and force the Council to negotiate with him.

Merlin, the lead knight in Lycenea, has foreseen just such a predicament. With the gifts of premonition, telepathy and intelligence, he and 9 of his most formidable knights go into battle against Jason and his force of nine thousand.

At stake is everything. The fate of the prisoners who are awaiting to be sold into slavery rests in the hands of the deadly knights. Specifically, two girls who were attacked in Missalia and are now orphaned, are at the mercy of the sadistic King. Will Merlin and his band of knights be able to rescue them in time?

Adele, the older sister, has plans of her own for escape. Will she prove successful or will her plans be foiled? If she is caught, what will become of her and her sister, Sylvia?

Dante, a boy from Coifen, is also now orphaned. He is the sole survivor of a brutal attack on his family. An unlikely heroine has come to his rescue- a mysterious white wolf. Unfortunately, the attack has left him blind. He and his guardian make their refuge in a remote cave. He clings desperately to the hope that God has spared him for a reason. Every night he goes to bed, he says a prayer to his talisman, the Merlin, a game piece that his father gave him before he was forced to abandon him. It was the last gift he received before all hell broke loose. Will he be rescued? Will he find a permanent haven? His fate also lies in the hands of the Merlin.

Merlin and his troupe lead the Visi-Gauls in a high stakes game of cat and mouse. Jason, though capricious, is not stupid. He uses every means at his disposal to eliminate Merlin. Who will prove the victor? Fighting a severe war of attrition, it seems at times that Jason will inevitably win; but don't count the Merlin out. He is beyond slippery. Every time it seems that Jason has the gifted knight, he is thwarted yet again.

Get Your Copy of Book One: Gilleon for FREE!

Book Links:

Goodreads * Amazon


Character Study - Renault

     Deadly. Volatile. Vengeful. Sadistic. Cruel. Compassionate. Courageous. Heroic. He is a dedicated and loyal brother to the Merlin and a champion to the innocent and defenseless, but he also enjoys killing and watching his targets suffer as he inflicts agony on them before he finishes them off.  He is a walking contradiction and the right hand of the Merlin. When faced with an impossible mission, Merlin knows that he count on Renault to achieve his goals.
  Like Merlin, he is cunning, calculating, manipulative, resourceful and a master at strategy and logistics. He is also a telepath and can glean information from his targets. He should be a Godsend to Merlin but nothing is so simple.
     Living in the relatively peaceful town of Helganon with his family, Renault clings to his peaceful reprieve in between his deadly missions for the Merlin. But with his volatile temper and his urge to protect the innocent at all costs, his demons push him closer to the brink, alienating himself in the process.
     When Renault’s temper pushes him past the threshold of composure, he lashes out and makes enemies not only among his own trusted brethren but also on both sides of a dangerous feud between the Ostra-Gauls and the Sene-Gauls. And so he finds himself in a desperate circumstance with the walls beginning to close around him.
     Will Renault’s demons push him too far, making him a liability among his brethren? Will his dire circumstances invade his own peaceful refuge at home with his beloved family? When Merlin’s own dire circumstances necessitate the need for Renault and his skill set, will he be ready?

About the Author:

Author Rory D Nelson is an accomplished actor and has been seen in several high school productions of “Oedipus Rex,” “My Fair Lady,” and “Little Shop of Horrors.” He owns a window cleaning business in the Sacramento area, enjoys wine tasting, snowboarding, traveling and working out. Rory D Nelson is an eclectic and prolific writer, having written numerous comedy skits, commercial parodies, and ghost-written many humorous t-shirts. He has the most unusual imagination of any fantasy author, since he also brings his deranged sense of humor into play in his books.


Contact the Author:

Website * The Brotherhood of Merlin * Facebook * Twitter 

Book Feature: FORSAKEN NORSE WIND by Ciara Lake

About the Book:

A troll, a mortal, and a love hot enough to melt ice.
Trapped in a vicious life, Breanna Devion survives only by the strength of her heart. Determined to have more than what her abusive stepfather has planned for her, she's willing to risk everything to be free.
Axel Venrick is a troll who has spent centuries alone, isolated in his castle in Iceland. At the insistence of others, Axel crafts the ultimate tool to find his soul mate. He creates a beautiful ring which is bespelled, blessed by a god, and sent forth to locate Axel's other half.
The ring finds Breanna just in time to prevent her stepfather's disastrous plan from taking place. But angry gods, vengeful parents, and an evil lurking in the immortal world all conspire to destroy the love of the jaded troll and his innocent mortal. Can their love free them or will the evil spreading from the bowels of the earth destroy them first?

Book Links:

Goodreads * Amazon

Read an Excerpt:

“It’s going to be ugly if they get here. I may have to kill some of them. I’d prefer not to, at least this day. But they may leave me no choice.” He shrugged. “So, let’s go to avoid this problem. I didn’t come here to make war on these humans. I came to fetch my mate.” He stepped closer to the porch. “Trust me, Breanna. Let your heart guide you. If you listen to it, you will know what to do.”

“My mother’s in her room sleeping. I need help with her. She’s ill, and she can be difficult.”

“Let me inside, I’ll talk to her.”

“Okay.” She stood aside. “I’m your mate?”

“Yes, you’re my mate.” In a few quick steps, he stood inside the house. He had to duck as he entered, and once inside he hunched not to hit the ceiling. “Gather what you would like to take with us. Get the coat I gave you.”

Breanna picked up the coat to put it on. She took him to her mother.

“Mother, this is Axel. We need to leave with him. Hugh’s upset with us. He’s coming back to… hurt us. We have to go.” Breanna tapped her mother’s arm. “Mother, please wake up.”

Fiona rolled over to look at Breanna. Her eyes were crazed. “What is it, child?” Her voice sounded weak. “I was dreaming of Hema taking me to his realm.”

“We need to leave. This is Axel.” Breanna pointed at him. “Umm, he’s a friend of mine. We need to go with him, now.”

“No.” Her mother sat up in the bed, shaking her head. Her hair looked wild all over her head. “I must wait for Hema to return. If I’m gone he may not find me.”

“Mother, we have to go. Hugh’s not happy, and he’s bringing others to start trouble.” 

“You leave, I’m staying here. I’m not worried about Hugh.” She lay back down, rolling to the other side. “I cannot leave. Hema may come to get me.”

Axel patted Breanna on her shoulder. “They’re almost here. Stand back with me. Lay the coat down then give me your hand. We’ll watch to make sure your mother’s safe.”

He reached for her hand, and Breanna allowed him to hold it.

“No one can see us now. It takes less power if you hold my hand to make you invisible with me. We’ll wait and watch. They cannot hear us either.”

Breanna followed Axel out into the front room of the house. They stood to the right of the fireplace out of the way. The front door burst open, and Breanna jumped.

“It’s okay. They don’t see or hear us. You’ll be safe.” He gently squeezed her hand. “Relax.”

Hugh, along with two other men, entered the house. The door banged against the wall, and they pushed the chairs to the floor as they stomped inside. Others were outside the house calling loudly for her.

“Where’s the bastard? The damn girl’s in league with him."

About the Author:

Welcome to Ciara Lake's World. Meet Gorgeous Werewolves, Vampires, Dragons, Mermaids, Wizards, Witches, Mythological Gods and Goddesses, Mere Mortals And More! Fiction has always been a passion of mine. Creating worlds and developing characters is a great way for me to relieve the stress and strain of my everyday world. In fantasy (paranormal) and sci-fi stories, the author has the unique ability to invent wonderfully exotic places and people. I do that in my books. These fantastic genres provide a limitless ability to be creative and inventive. My stories provide an escape into a special world filled with unique and otherworldly things. And there is always a happy ending.

Contact the Author:

Website * Twitter * Goodreads

Follow Me: Mar sin leat na h-Alba (Goodbye Scotland)...we will miss you!

Friday, 13 April 😀

Johannesburg here we go! There is nothing like the sounds, smells, and sights of home, but we will always remember Scotland with fondness.

Fare thee well!

Find the two of us for a wave goodbye @ Instagram

There will be one last post with a selection of our photographs from our whole trip. Look out for that coming soon!

Until our next venture across the borders of South Africa (in whichever direction that may be), thank you for traveling with us!

PS: Remember to subscribe, the competition is only open to my mailing list!

💜 Linzé

Follow Me: Scotland - Balloch (2)

Thursday, 12 April, 21h43, UK time

Today has been another day with loads of stories happening. And as is the case with life, you cannot plan these things to happen, but you have to be open to spotting them and make the most of the experience. Well, tonight's post is about a dog, a tree, a coffee shop, and a camera.
Our first stop this morning was the Balloch castle with its beautiful woodland gardens. We didn't expect the woodlands and had a lovely walk through all those trees. After the requisite pictures of the castle, we set off on the walkways picking a tree here and a lake view there to capture with our respective cameras.
At one point Francois meandered closer to the water while I remained walking on the path, just enjoying the peaceful albeit cool morning. There were many dogs about, taking their owners for a stroll and a few ball games to exercise their legs.
One dog however, make me laugh. His owner, a lady, would throw his ball down the path and he would set off after it. Unlike other dogs who returned the ball to be thrown again, this black labrador ran after the ball, collected it, and then promptly put it down on the path. The woman would then walk to the ball, it was exactly on her way, collect it and throw it again, while the dog patiently waited for his human companion to catch up. Not your normal way of doing things, but it clearly works for them.
When Francois and I caught up again, we were both at the kiosk where a jetty is also constructed to launch a boat from. Two swans swan up to him, an adult, and a younger bird. The adult had no hesitation to come out of the water prancing around to show off his gorgeous wings. Had to be a male bird, if you ask me. When he returned to the water, he kept his wings posed high. I am no swan expert, but I looked at Francois with an arched eyebrow: "with a come-on like that, you would expect at least a dinner and a movie." He just shook his head at me.
After a visit to Dumbarton castle, we went shopping for glue tape. Weird, but I use them with my journal and travel journal, and yesterday the one I brought from home ran out. We found a craft store that stocked them, to my greatest delight since these things are scarce and expensive at home. I bought one, and two refills. Despite the exchange rate, it was well worth the expense.
After a light lunch at a nursery coffee shop (we sniff them out) we made a quick stop back at the Inn to try and figure out where the tree is everyone was egging us on to find. I mean, a tree? Seriously? We're in Scotland for crying out loud, there is hardly a mile where you don't fall over a whole forrest. But we found the tree, and got into the car.
And half an hour later, we found the culprit on the shore of Loch Lomond. And not in the water as people said it would be. Well, the lake was clearly not as full as the last time someone else took that 'tree' picture.
I cannot tell you which kind of tree it is, but I can tell you it was well and seemingly healthy. Judguing by the buds on the branches, it is preparing for spring that's for sure.
While Francois set up and took his next award winning photographs, I walked around trying to look useful. I found a pinhole camera stuck in another tree looking directly at 'the tree'. The question I asked myself is why would someone be recording the goings on of a tree, or are they rather observing the things that people do with and around 'the tree'. There was a note attached to the camera with an email address to get hold of the owner, if required for some reason. My first thought when I saw that: well, I hope you don't have to fly halfway around the world to fix the camera, because it will be a long trip. Here is to you, Simon Robertson, your camera recorded me taking a picture of it, and here I am putting your story on my blog. High five!

My story of my tour of Scotland is about to end, so if you haven't subscribed to my newsletter yet, you should hurry. The competition will run next week, and you are only eligible if you are a subscriber.

Find more pictures of our story @ Instagram

💜 Linzé 

Follow Me: Scotland - Balloch (1)

11 April 2018, 16h58 (UK time)

My post today is early, since the WiFi connection seemed to be constrained to certain websites, like Facebook. I am writing this in the hope that I will be able to post, otherwise our last three days will have to wait until we get home, or until we get back to Heathrow airport. I will however, try from the pub connected to this Inn. Maybe the connection there will be more forgiving.
We are in Loch Lomond - if you look at a map, Balloch is right at the southern tip of the famous Scottish lake.
After a few more pictures in Ballachulish, we made our way here past some incredible (although freezing) sceneries. At one point we shared the lookout point with three bikers and a couple (and their dog) traveling with a motorhome. The bikers were trying to make a selfie that included their bikes, so they put one phone a distance away, and activated the timer on the camera. Unfortunately, the phone kept being pushed over by the cold wind. It was quite funny. In the end the man (and his dog) popped over to take their picture for them. So they got their picture and we all shared a laugh, despite the nasty weather.
After a stop for coffee, and some shopping, we decided to skip booking-in and shot straight through to Glasgow. It wasn't a willy nilly visit, since I had a destination in mind: the Hard Rock cafe. The usual t-shirts and teddybear acquired, we stopped for a few pictures (and selfies) at this very atmospheric place. The rock music that characterises this establishment playing over the speakers, made us both smile and tap along for a moment or two. Something we didn't experience in Edinburgh. Francois was the first to mention this, and I had to agree with him that the Glasgow Hard Rock was more of what we expected at a Hard Rock.
Glasgow itself reminded us of Johannesburg - it has an industrial feel to it, although there are some really beautiful buildings. Of course, we saw but a small part of this big city, so please forgive us if we got it wrong.

We will be spending tomorrow doing things in Balloch and surrounds, so there is more to come then.

Find the two of us @ Instagram

💜 Linzé