I’m happy to welcome award-winning author Jane Loeb Rubin. Today, Jane shares the novels in The Gilded City Trilogy: In the Hands of Women, Threadbare, and Over There.

Blurb

In the Hands of Women, (June 2023) takes the reader on an electrifying ride through the dawn of the 20th century, delving into the restrictive state of women’s rights, backroom abortions, the plight of immigrants to the Lower East Side of NYC and the prison system at Blackwell’s Island, all through the voice of a young OB/Gyn, Tillie’s younger sister, Hannah.

Threadbare, (June 2024) is a historical novel written as a tribute to Jane Rubin’s great-grandmother, Mathilda (Tillie), who died from a ‘woman’s disease’ in the early years of the twentieth century. It explores the ultra-conservative late Victorian era through a Jewish female character living among the poor, struggling to build a garment company and pushing back against antisemitic and misogynistic values dominating the time. She acquired wealth, only to have life upended by a cruel, unexpected challenge.

Over There (June 2025) brings four family members of Threadbare and In the Hands of Women, all doctors and nurses, into The Great War, each facing down authentic challenges of the period. Meticulously researched and crafted on four stages, the reader experiences the jarring reality of trench warfare, magnificent rise of the American Hospital in Paris, unimagined medical innovations owed to the dedication of healthcare workers, and the universal, frightening impact war has on children.

Excerpt – Threadbare

His eyes burst with astonishment. “What do your husbands think about you ladies starting a business venture? It’s unheard of. Don’t you have children at home to tend?”

Abe’s advice came to mind as my blood heated to a boil. Keep discussing the sale. Don’t let the customer bait you. I filled my chest with air, hoping my irritation didn’t show. “Mr. Kraft, our husbands are in the button and fabric businesses. Our products are interconnected, and in the end, it helps grow their businesses, too. Just as our kits will grow Butterfield’s pattern sales.”

Mr. Kraft nodded cautiously. “Hmm. I’ll run the idea by Mr. Peters, my boss, and let you know what he decides. But he’ll want to meet your husbands.” He fell silent, then added, “I expect the idea may pan out in some way.”

Excitement rose within me, but I kept my expression still. I was learning the art of poker, too. “Please let him know our factory is ready to fill orders immediately.”

He stood. “Could you kindly leave one of your kits, as you call them, with me? Let’s arrange a meeting next week. Please project costs and pricing for one thousand units, and then we can talk business.” Before leaving the room, he faced us and added, “But next time, bring your husbands.”

Author Bio and Links

Author, Jane Loeb Rubin has won numerous awards including the Historical Novel Society’s First Chapters short list for Over There, released May, 2025 by Level Best Books. She will be speaking at numerous Florida events as listed on her website.

With an extensive healthcare background Ms. Rubin began writing in 2009 after a serious cancer diagnosis. She now has a four-book deal with Level Best Books (Threadbare-2024, In the Hands of Women-2023, Over There-2025, The Hat Trick-2026), following the fictional life of her great-grandmother’s family.

In the Hands of Women, (June 2023) takes the reader on an electrifying ride through the dawn of the 20th century, delving into the restrictive state of women’s rights, backroom abortions, the plight of immigrants to the Lower East Side of NYC and the prison system at Blackwell’s Island, all through the voice of a young OB/Gyn, Tillie’s younger sister, Hannah.

Threadbare, (June 2024) is a historical novel written as a tribute to Jane Rubin’s great-grandmother, Mathilda (Tillie), who died from a ‘woman’s disease’ in the early years of the twentieth century. It explores the ultra-conservative late Victorian era through a Jewish female character living among the poor, struggling to build a garment company and pushing back against antisemitic and misogynistic values dominating the time. She acquired wealth, only to have life upended by a cruel, unexpected challenge.

Over There (June 2025) brings four family members of Threadbare and In the Hands of Women, all doctors and nurses, into The Great War, each facing down authentic challenges of the period. Meticulously researched and crafted on four stages, the reader experiences the jarring reality of trench warfare, magnificent rise of the American Hospital in Paris, unimagined medical innovations owed to the dedication of healthcare workers, and the universal, frightening impact war has on children.

The Hat Trick, Ms. Rubin’s work in process (May 2026) transports her family characters into the mid-1920’s in the years before the Borscht Belt in Sullivan County, NY.

Ms. Rubin, a graduate of the University of Michigan (BS, MS) and Washington University (MBA), retired from a 30-year career as a healthcare executive to begin writing full-time. She lives with her husband, David, an attorney, in Northern New Jersey. Between them, they have five adult children and seven grandchildren. Ms. Rubin’s work is available at all on-line retailers, Indigo Books, select Barnes and Noble Book stores and upon request from Level Best Books.

Readers Favorite Review | Website | Facebook | Instagram

Giveaway

Jane Loeb Rubin will be awarding a $25 Amazon/Barnes & Noble gift card to a randomly drawn winner. Find out more here.

Follow Jane on the rest of her Goddess Fish tour here.

I’m happy to welcome author Helen Gillespie. Today, Helen shares her creative journey and debut novel, The Goodbyes.

Interview

What was your inspiration for this book?

The short answer is, the town of Marshfield, Missouri inspired me. I lived there for a very time. I must have picked up a ghost while there because almost immediately I wanted to write something about the town. It took a personal traumatic event and a job where I was underutilized while having access to a computer to begin writing the story. When I was activated to go to Iraq as part of the U.S. Army Reserves, the story lay barren during my deployment and many years afterward. It took another personal trauma to get myself back to a computer and listen to the ghost that had been with me all those years. The ghost was quick to reveal everything but the ending. After some struggle, the ending was revealed.

Describe your writing space.

I have a cluttered desk. Or it could be described as a “desk with plenty of inspiration.” I’m very fortunate to have a secluded office with a sliding door leading to a beautifully treed backyard with a spinner and a birdhouse that has never been occupied. I do wish three things would change about my writing environment: trees are overgrown, and the dogs keep wanting to go in and out my door.

What is your favorite quote?

A seventh-grade science teacher constantly said, “Things aren’t as they seem to be.” I use that as a guide in my writing. I loved that class!

Besides writing and reading, what are some of your hobbies?

I love wind band and old time (1930s/1940s) music. For many years I loved playing tuba and upright bass. Now I just let my fingers make music on my computer keyboard. I don’t listen to music while I write because I’m too analytical and it sends me off into a daydream. In this way I’m very much like my character, Dianne.

Any advice for aspiring writers?

Yes. Write. Read. Do both because you enjoy doing each, not because you plan on becoming the next great writer. There’s too much pressure in that.

What are you working on next?

I’m working on a sequel, of course! I previously mentioned “Things are as they seem to be.” The sequel will reveal this very thing. Oh, something else the science teacher often said, “Pay attention.”

Blurb

Struggling with becoming an adult in a small mid-western town, Dianne has to confront family secrets, deception, and discovery during her last year of college. As she cares for her ailing mother, her world begins to unravel and she is challenged to navigate through lies, friendships, love…and murder. Meeting the wrong person makes it possible for her to recognize the right ones and to find the strength she needs to survive. Suddenly realizing that she is responsible for her own destiny, she learns that to say hello to a new life, she must first say goodbye.

This is a family drama that follows a woman’s struggles with her mother’s death, a murder and how she deals with all of this and learns how to say goodbye to all that she has known in her life.

Excerpt

All living creatures hold secrets for basic survival. Humans keep secrets to preserve their image, hide their misjudgments, or protect those they care about. Only in the safest conditions, absolute trust or vulnerability, can humans feel safe divulging their secrets, laying bare their hidden selves.

Katrina England and her husband did not keep secrets from Dianne or indulge in the usual childhood fantasies of princesses or fairy godmothers with her daughter. Even Santa Claus was introduced from a historical perspective rather than as a magical elf. The Englands were doting parents who disciplined their daughter when necessary and answered her questions honestly, only withholding information that surpassed Dianne’s maturity. Yet, despite this philosophy, Katrina did hold a few secrets, one very close.

As Dianne approached adulthood, Katrina began to share these secrets. By then, Dianne’s father had died, leaving the two women to navigate life together as a family with no other relatives living close by. Katrina often grappled with the lifelong weight of a childhood secret and her secret of late, a terminal cancer diagnosis. Both became weightier as her cancer took hold. When Dianne began dating the MegaMart store manager, Katrina’s concern of her daughter’s future turned to worry.

Dianne, nearing graduation while dealing with her mother’s illness, found herself facing unexpected challenges. When Michael D. Glossen entered her life, her challenges became problems. Oddly, she met “Michael D” when a cream rinse emergency arose.

Author Bio and Links

Throughout grammar school and college, Helen Gillespie loved developing story sketches or full stories but kept them hidden within herself. That creative spark proved valuable in unexpected places, first on assignment as a musician in the US Army, and after leaving the Army, when she earned a degree in elementary education. After reentering the Army in 1981, she put pen to paper, or rather, “fingers to an Olivetti.” She officially learned the art of journalism to serve the Army, but it quickly became a personal passion. Interviewing fellow soldiers, exploring their jobs and personalities, and publishing useful information for the military community formed the basis of her skill and enjoyment. Those years of thought, training, education, and experience laid the foundation for crafting her first novel, The Goodbyes.

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Giveaway

Helen Gillespie will be awarding a $25 Amazon/Barnes & Noble gift card to a randomly drawn winner. Find out more here.

Follow Helen on the rest of her Goddess Fish tour here.

I’m happy to welcome author Colleen L. Donnelly. Today, Colleen shares her new release I Have a Story.

Blurb

Jim Turner writes crime but doesn’t live it. He respects his grandfather’s tales of heroes but doesn’t believe them. When his failing grandfather sends him to a remote peninsula to write the end of his own heroic love story, Jim includes a war criminal interview to maintain his edge.

Chastity is an anomaly, a misfit in pre-WWII culture as well as in Jim’s life. Her spritely charm and endearing features turn Jim’s world upside down, especially when she reveals his grandfather’s peninsula as the site of her upcoming wedding.

Do good journalists flee when their interviewee is murdered? Do heroes write fiancés out of another’s story and themselves in? “The End” become the hardest words for Jim to write.

Excerpt

Author’s Note: Boy meets Girl. A commitment that lasts forever.

“I want you there with me.” She gazed down.

“I would love to stand up there with you,” I said with far too much honesty in my voice. “If I can’t be the groom, I can at least be a brides-man instead of a bridesmaid.”

Warmth shone in her eyes when she looked up. “You will always be my brides-man, Jim. Always and forever.” She squeezed my hands.

We both stared at our clasped hands, her naked ring finger amidst her other heavily ringed ones almost shouting, “I am waiting for Dwayne, for his promise—I am keeping myself for him only.”

I touched the empty place where a diamond should be. If Chastity was my girl, she would be sporting a rock so big guys like me would stay away from her.

“No wedding or engagement rings,” Chastity said. “I assume that is what you are wondering. Dwane suggested we get tattoos. I will have a D on my ring finger, and he is having a C tattooed onto his.”

“You’re what?” I practically bellowed, fascinated and horrified at the same time. “You can’t do that. I mean, are you sure?” What would her parents think?

Her cheeks tinged pink as she stared at her stark finger.

Surely, I could come up with a word less discourteous than “outrageous.” Some writer I was. “It’s just that a tattoo is pretty bold.” Unless you were a sailor. “If something happens to Dwayne, you will have to wear gloves the rest of your life.” My dark and slimy side didn’t have to suggest that I buy her a pair as a wedding gift. White gloves with a tiny pearl button at the wrist. It was purely my idea, and even if I carried the wrapped gloves with me the rest of my life, I would buy them.

Buy Links

Amazon | Goodreads | BookBub

Author Bio and Links

Colleen L Donnelly put her science education to use for years and then put it behind her to pursue other passions. Her first love is writing and her second is hunting—hunting for that next good story, hunting for relics and antiques, hunting for the next good author to read. An avid believer in work hard/play hard, Colleen splits her time between indoors and out, always busy at something.

Website | Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram | Amazon | Twitter | BookBub

Giveaway

Colleen L Donnelly will be awarding a $15 Amazon/BN gift card to a randomly drawn winner. Find out more here.

Follow Colleen on the rest of her Goddess Fish tour here.

I’m happy to welcome award-winning author Helene Matheson. Today, Helene shares her new release, The Rebellious Countess.

Blurb

Society may be run by the men of the ton, but six scandalous sisters are determined to take it by storm one gentleman at a time.

Máira Blair married for love, her honeymoon trip with the Earl of Dorset is a dream come true—until reality turns it into a nightmare. Máira wakes up to discover her husband isn’t an earl, but the captain of a pirate ship and what was supposed to be her honeymoon, is a voyage bound for war-torn France. If that isn’t enough to disparage her husband’s character, he abandons her in the middle of a French port where she must find a way to survive as she defends her virtue and her life. Just when she’s convinced of what kind of rogue she married, the pirate transforms into a hero on a quest to save her and the missing Earl of Astley.

Sir Elias Drake married for convenience, he needed a Scottish bride to complete his mission. He can resist his desire for his beautiful wife, especially after she discovers his true identity. Except Máira Blair was more than he bargained for. He needs her skills, cherishes her compassion, and is tormented by her passion, which only makes him want her and the life their marriage represents more.

It will require both of their talents to rescue the Earl of Astley, and it will take more than a war to defeat their hard-won love—if they can escape.

Excerpt

Her Scottish blood began to simmer. The mettle of her ancestors wronged by backstabbing, licentious English bastards was rising to a call so deeply ingrained in her soul, she wanted to fight. It didn’t matter her mother was English, she was a Scottish bastard through and through as far as the ton was concerned. One of the scandalous sisters. Even Iseabail’s marriage to a duke hadn’t been able to stop the label from spreading. Máira’s good-for-nothing husband had just added to her family’s ruination by making her a walking, talking scandal of the worst kind.

It was Ellison. There was no doubt. It didn’t matter that he wore clothes she didn’t recognize, or that a hat sat low over his brow hiding most of his features. It didn’t matter that the sun was going down and the only light in town was coming from the windows of The Happy Hag. It didn’t matter that she’d somehow slept the night and day away probably due to the bump on her head.

She knew it was Ellison by the tune he whistled and poetical way he performed it. He’d whistled that same tune the night of their wedding. How she remembered that she wasn’t certain, but it was him, of that there was no doubt. He could whistle like no one she’d ever heard in her life. Melodic, and sorrowful, his song spoke of love found and lost. It spoke to her soul, and she wanted to punch those sinful lips for making her feel anything but hatred.

Buy Links

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books a Million

Author Bio and Links

Helene Matheson writes steamy Regency historical romance novels with intelligent, unstoppable heroines who don’t require an alpha male to save them—having one in their bed is another story.

Helene moved south for fun in the sun after she retired from public service and began pursuing her life-long dream of writing. She wrote the Amazon best-selling mystery series The Book Barn Mysteries for Lyrical Press and has written multiple award-winning romantic suspense novels under Kym Roberts.

In her spare time she can be found woodcarving by the pool or blogging for The Cozy Corner on Fresh Fiction. To contact her on social media, you can find her under KymRoberts911 on FaceBook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest. Her books can also be found on her websites: HeleneMatheson.com or KymRoberts.com

Giveaway

Helene Matheson will be awarding a $10 Amazon/Barnes & Noble gift card to a randomly drawn winner. Find out more here.

Follow Helene on the rest of her Goddess Fish tour here.

I’m happy to welcome award-winning author Joie Lesin. Today, Joie shares her new release, The Passenger.

Blurb

She’s a 1940s ghost whisperer.

Burdened with her empathic gift, Elizabeth Reilly wants to be free of it and fit in with normal people. Nevertheless, when the spirit of an old man asks for her help, she travels across the country to help him return home.

He’s the son of a ghost.

Gio Clemente is still angry with his father who abandoned him as a child. To help the father pass on, Elizabeth must persuade Gio to let go of his anger. Though he resents her intrusion, they are both stunned to find themselves fighting a profound attraction.

Elizabeth can accept his headstrong brand of love, but can Gio accept her gift—and believe in her?

The Passenger, a 1940s ghost story set in the California wine country, tells a tale of family connections, life-changing choices, and love—lost and found.

Excerpt

Elizabeth’s stomach churned in nervous knots. She squirmed on the cloth seat, and her foot twitched. If he heard her erratic heartbeat, he’d realize how frantic she was—and hot. Perspiration built up on her forehead. Grabbing the metal handle, she rolled down the squeaking window, and inhaled the pure air. The fragrances of the forest filled her senses—the resinous scent of pine, the earthiness of soil, and damp detritus of fallen branches and decaying leaves. The surrounding land was alive, vibrant, and something more she couldn’t quite identify. Somehow, the vehicle they drove in and the path it traveled seemed out of place.

Gravel on the uneven road crunched and ground under the truck’s tires. Elizabeth sat straight in her seat and stole stiff, awkward glimpses at Giovanni. A frown marked his lips. His lean, well-defined face held soulful eyes bringing to her mind images of the sad little boy he must have been.

A thin red scar stretched down his right cheek and she itched to run a finger along the faded edges. She’d caress his stubble-shadowed chin and tell him how terribly his father missed him.

Instead, she stared out the truck window.

Buy Links

The Wild Rose Press Book Page | Amazon | Apple Books | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

Author Bio and Links

Award-winning, Minnesota-based author, Joie Lesin is a life-long fiction writer and poet. She is most recently the author of The Passenger (The Wild Rose Press, 2024) and her work is also featured in Scribeworth Magazine. She has long been fascinated by anything otherworldly including mermaids and ghosts. Joie writes character-driven, emotional, atmospheric tales about heartache and hope.

Website | Bluesky | Instagram | Facebook | TikTok | Goodreads Book Page

Giveaway

Joie Lesin will be awarding a $25 Amazon/Barnes & Noble gift card to a randomly drawn winner. Find out more here.

Follow Joie on the rest of her Goddess Fish tour here.

I’m happy to welcome Wild Rose Press author Lori Matsourani. Today, Lori shares her new release, Ghosted.

Blurb

When her fiancé’s infidelity prompts Bethany Hendren to map out a new path forward, her plans are disrupted by an unexpected encounter with Nick Dorsey, who convinces her to help search for the remains of a troubled eighteenth-century ghost. Nick is the handsome summer boyfriend who ghosted her years ago, and now he wants to rekindle their relationship.

Despite her reluctance to trust him, Bethany discovers he’s still the funny, caring person who captured her heart as a teen, but giving him a second chance is risky—it could lead to love and happiness or result in another devastating heartache.

Although Bethany wants a happily ever after with Nick, does she have the courage to trust him with her future?

Excerpt

The fountain that night was magical. Spotlights positioned at the edges of the narrow brick patio lit the cast-iron maiden as she filled her goblet from an urn with a never-ending flow of water.

Nick stopped and retrieved his dime. Bethany fished a penny out of her pocket, and they counted to three before flinging their coins into the pool.

After settling on a nearby bench, he drew her into his arms. Was this it? The moment she’d wondered about, waited for? She looked up into his eyes and inhaled, filling her lungs with the scent of sunscreen and salty air. His scent. Then he leaned down, touched her cheek with his index finger, and brushed his mouth against hers. His lips, spiced with traces of red pepper flakes, were softer than she had imagined. Without thinking, she lifted her face to his, hungrily snatching more kisses until she’d spent her last breath.

“My wish came true,” he’d murmured, tightening his arms around her as his mouth rested on hers.

She’d whispered back, “So did mine.”

The memory dredged up the old ache, now muted by time. Nick thought they were still friends, although he’d been the one who ended their relationship. Was it possible he still thought about her, and his heart still pounded with the chemistry that had pulled them together so long ago?

Buy Links

Books2Read | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Apple | WildRosePress

Author Bio and Links

Author Lori Matsourani is a romance addict. Give her stories with a touch of heartbreak and a spark of joy, and she’s happy. Throw in characters with a huge helping of heart and soul, and she’s up reading all night in romance heaven! While currently a Texas resident, Lori grew up near Baltimore and often draws on the historical flavor of Annapolis and Maryland’s Eastern Shore to inspire her story settings. She authored her first fiction story at twelve and has been hooked on writing ever since. Early on, her writing career focused on articles for magazines and newspapers before shifting to her first writing love—fiction. For Lori, connecting words to tell a story is like assembling a jigsaw puzzle, and she loves the challenge of creating every piece.

Website | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads | Bluesky | Threads | X | TikTok

*Win a copy of the book at this Goodreads Giveaway. *

Giveaway

Lori Matsourani will be awarding a $20 Amazon/Barnes & Noble gift card to a randomly drawn winner. Find out more here.

Follow Lori on the rest of her Goddess Fish tour here.

I’m happy to welcome award-winning author Chrstine Amsden. Today, Christine shares her creative journey and new release, Knot of Souls.

Here’s Christine!

What was your inspiration for this book?

The idea for Knot of Souls came at the end of 2020, after a year of working social media for two state senate campaigns. Politics is always fraught, but in the midst of a global pandemic, trolls were out in force, leaving me wondering how two opposite sides could ever come together on anything. In November, I sat down at my computer, stared at a blank cursor for a minute, and typed out three words:

Write something happy.

Joy got a name before she got a plot!

Now, it’s hard to write something you don’t feel, and I didn’t feel happy at the time, but I did manage hopeful. The key hope I wanted to ignite? That two very different beings at cross-purposes can find a way to work together, and even become close.

What is the best part of being an author? The worst?

My favorite part of being an author are the times when someone sends me an email and tells me they loved my book(s). I recently got one from someone I’ve known for seven years who only just got around to reading me, and she said, “Why did I wait so long???” Those kinds of things put a smile on my face every time.

The worst part of being an author has been grappling with how big a role luck plays in success.

Describe your writing space.

I write in a basement office where the only light comes through a small, high window covered with stained glass sunflowers. Due to a visual impairment, I write almost exclusively on a desktop, using a very large monitor mounted on an arm that I bring so close to my face that my (hot pink) keyboard is under and behind it. The keyboard clicks. Click click click. I love the tactile and auditory feedback. On a table nearby, I place a jar candle that I light when I’m working on a novel. The scents vary; I like to keep things interesting. Right now it’s vanilla, but I’m probably going to move to something more woodsy soon.

If you had a superpower, what would it be?

Self-confidence. (Is that a superpower? It feels like a superpower!)

Besides writing and reading, what are some of your hobbies?b>

Games! I’ve been learning chess for a year or two, and I play some video games … they aren’t all accessible enough, but I’ve gotten into cozy ones like Stardew Valley. I read a lot, both fiction and nonfiction, and as I primarily read on audio I knit to have something to do with my hands. I also enjoy walking, yoga, and a good cup of tea.

Any advice for aspiring writers?

Never forget to play, and to take joy in your work.

Book Blurb

Two souls, one body …

When Joy wakes up in an alley, she knows three things: she was brutally murdered, she has somehow come back to life … and she is not alone. She’s been possessed by an inhuman presence, a being that has taken over her dying body. That being is powerful, in pain, and on the run from entities more dangerous than he is.

Shade, a Fae prince on the run, didn’t mean to share the body he jumped into. Desperate and afraid, accused of a murder he didn’t commit, he only sought a place to hide—but if he leaves Joy now, he faces discovery and a fate worse than death.

Forced to work together to solve multiple murders, including her own, Joy and Shade discover hidden strengths and an unlikely friendship. Yet as their souls become increasingly intertwined, they realize their true danger might come from each other … and if they don’t find a way to untangle the knot their souls have become, then even the truth won’t set them free.

Knot of Souls is a stand-alone buddy love fantasy that forces two very different beings to work together … and come out stronger on the other side.

Knot of Souls is available at Amazon.

Book Excerpt

Joy

The first thing I realized, after I died, was that my body could walk and talk and no longer needed my help for any of it. I was in there, able to look through my eyes and hear through my ears, but even the simple task of aiming my gaze had slipped outside my control. I was a passenger inside my own mind, an observer along for the ride.

Kristen had been right, I thought numbly as I struggled to make sense of my new reality. Had it only been lunchtime today when she’d told me I’d never get ahead if I didn’t learn to assert myself? “Take control of your life,” she’d said, “or others will take it for you.” She couldn’t have been thinking of anything quite so literal. Whatever was happening to me, it wasn’t because I’d failed to advocate for a promotion at work or refused to ask out a coworker.

Right?

My body reached my car and slid behind the wheel. A rattled thought—not my own—cursed as it tried to understand how the contraption worked. How much can cars have changed in only a century? Visions accompanied the thoughts, memories—again not my own—of a classic car, gleaming black and elegant, its top down, my bobbed hair whipping around my face as I laughed with glee, a white-faced young man at my side gripping the door, begging me to slow down. I did not.

Which brings me to the second thing I realized, after I died: I was no longer alone inside my own mind.

Whoever was in there didn’t seem to have noticed me yet. Fine. I slid into the smallest corner of my brain I could find, ignoring the intruder as they struggled to figure out how to work an automatic transmission. Maybe they’d get frustrated and give up and go find someone else’s body to possess.

Holy shit! I’ve been possessed by the ghost of someone who died in like 1930.

But why?

I tried to remember what had happened, but the images danced just out of reach. I recalled that the night had been unseasonably cold for October, the chill biting through my inadequate jacket as I hurried to my car, parked in a garage two blocks away from the shelter where I’d been volunteering. Hugging my arms around my torso for warmth, I took a shortcut through an alley and …

There was a noise. I’d startled, my heart pounding in my throat, already on edge because of the argument.

Wait. Back up. There’d been an argument. That seemed significant, but my scattered thoughts couldn’t piece it together as yet, not when a bodily intruder fumbled at the gearshift of my two-month-old Hyundai Accent with only fifty-eight “low monthly payments” left to go.

Low is such a relative word.

– Excerpted from Knot of Souls by Christine Amsden, Christine Amsden, 2025. Reprinted with permission.

About the Author

Christine Amsden is the author of nine award-winning fantasy and science fiction novels, including the Cassie Scot Series.

Speculative fiction is fun, magical, and imaginative but Christine believes great speculative fiction is about real people defining themselves through extraordinary situations. She writes primarily about people, and it is in this way that she strives to make science fiction and fantasy meaningful for everyone.

In addition to writing, Christine is a freelance editor and political activist. Disability advocacy is of particular interest to her; she has a rare genetic eye condition called Stargardt Macular Degeneration and has been legally blind since the age of eighteen. In her free time, she enjoys role playing, board games, and a good cup of tea. She lives in the Kansas City area with her husband and two kids.

Website | X | Facebook | Amazon Buy Link

Giveaway

Christine Amsden is giving away 2 epub sets of the 4-book Cassie Scot series (gifted through BookFunnel! This includes Cassie Scot: ParaNormal Detective, Secrets and Lies, Mind Games and Stolen Dreams. Enter here.

Terms & Conditions:

• By entering the giveaway, you are confirming you are at least 18 years old.

• Two winners will be chosen via Rafflecopter to receive one set of the 4-book Cassie Scot series (four books total).

• This giveaway starts July 1 and ends September 26.

• Winner will be contacted via email on September 26.

• Winner has 48 hours to reply.

I’m happy to welcome back multi-published author Petie McCarty. Today, Petie shares her new release, Christmas Watch.

Blurb

The Watchers Series

Fallen angels seeking parole for their betrayal . . .

Someone is watching Rachel . . . but who? And why?

Child psychologist Rachel Kelly has her Christmas stocking full of troubles this holiday season, both personal and professional. Recently separated from her boyfriend, Rachel still loves him but has no idea how to win him back. If that’s not enough to cause her sleepless nights, she’s uncertain how to handle her newest therapy client—a six-year-old boy who claims he talks to Watchers. And a Watcher is coming to help Rachel.

Lt. Jake Dillon has his heart broken when his fiancée Rachel, without warning, suddenly calls it quits. Yet when a stalker crashes Rachel’s Christmas party and takes her young clients hostage, Jake is the first person Rachel calls. Now he has a choice to make—stand back and wait for the cavalry to save her, or step in and try to save her himself. Time is running out, and Jake may be their only chance for rescue.

Unless Rachel’s young Watcher spy is telling the truth . . .

This romantic suspense tale with paranormal elements is Book 2 in The Watchers series . . . A captivating tale of small-town Christmas romance that will leave you looking over your shoulder and wondering, Is someone watching

Excerpt

Jake whipped his BMW into the Azalea Center parking lot and switched off his headlights in one smooth motion. Guided by the light from the few streetlamps, he coasted to a silent stop next to Wally’s Jeep, though his emotions had urged him to come screeching around the corner like the cavalry. Common sense and the need for stealth won out. He couldn’t risk driving the trespasser underground only to have him surface later after Jake had gone.

Clicking off his interior lights, he unlocked his glove compartment and drew out his Sig Sauer, then climbed out and quietly pushed the car door in until the latch held. He waited several seconds to let his eyes and ears take in the entire scene. Damn. All the landscaping crowded around the Center provided a multitude of places for a trespasser to hide.

He put a hand on the hood of Wally’s Jeep. Still warm, even in the cold night air. A brief stab of guilt hit him for dumping his team so abruptly in the Beef n’ Barrel. Couldn’t be helped.

He scanned the closest landscape beds for some sign of Wally. A stiff north breeze whipped across the parking area, stirring up leaves and debris. Barely visible through the treetops, the almost-full moon blazed bright.

He made his way past the large perimeter oaks to the interior sidewalk and began a slow circle of the building, checking sections of the garden as he paced. All the offices on the west side of the building were unoccupied, and all the windows were dark, with a few showing vestiges of their interiors due to adjacent emergency lighting.

Rachel’s office, just around the corner, faced the back of the property. At this time of night, her office interior would be entirely visible with her lights on. Jake knew this because he’d snuck over here enough times in the last few months to observe her office from the garden. He was pathetic and, every few weeks, needed a glimpse of her to get by. A wry smile twitched the edges of his mouth. He could’ve been called in as a trespasser on any one of those nights should someone have spotted him and cared enough to make the call.

Careful to remain off the sidewalk, he silently paced toward the back garden. If the trespasser was a stalker, then the perp probably knew the Center had no security guard and no security system. A fact that had always bothered Jake.

At the back corner of the property, he crossed the sidewalk to inspect the landscape areas adjacent to the building. With quick steps, he shifted from one landscape bed to another. Crouching as he left the larger camellias, he moved through the shorter azaleas and Indian hawthorn.

Clearing the corner, his position even with the back of the building, he paused to reconnoiter and stared at the faint pool of light cast by an overhead office. Rachel’s office.

As his gaze rose to the second-floor office, his eyes searched for the all-too-familiar figure. Without thinking, he straightened to his full height, clearly visible to anyone glancing out the window. Yet no one searched for a figure in the garden. All eyes in the office were busy.

Rachel stood with Olivia and her children on one side of the conference room. On the other side of the room, a man in a worn red jacket and baseball cap faced them. Pointing a gun.

This was Jake’s horrible nightmare.

Author Bio and Links

Petie spent a large part of her career working at Walt Disney World—”The Most Magical Place on Earth”—where she enjoyed working in the land of fairy tales by day and creating her own romantic fairy tales by night, including her new series, The Cinderella Romances. She eventually said good-bye to her “day” job to write her stories full-time.

These days Petie spends her time writing new Cinderella series tales, her new The Watchers series, sequels to her regency time-travel series, Lords in Time, and more contemporary romance standalones to go along with her two previous releases—Any Fin For Love and Ambush in the Everglades.

Petie shares her home on the Cumberland Plateau in Tennessee with her horticulturist husband and an opinionated Nanday conure named Sassy who made a cameo appearance in Book 2 of The Watchers, Christmas Watch.

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Giveaway

Petie McCarty will be awarding a $10 Amazon/Barnes & Noble gift card to a randomly drawn winner. Find out more here.

Follow Petie on the rest of her Goddess Fish tour here.