Release Week Blitz + Giveaway: Gilded Ruins by Chantal Gadboury

I am so excited that GILDED RUINS by Chantal Gadoury is available now and that I get to share the news!

If you haven’t yet heard about this wonderful book by Author Chantal Gadoury, be sure to check out all the details below.

This blitz also includes a giveaway for a $10 Amazon GC courtesy of Rockstar Book Tours & Chantal. So if you’d like a chance to win, check out the giveaway info below.

GILDED RUINS (Blinding Night #2)

Author: Chantal Gadoury

Release Date: May 12, 2021

Publisher: The Parliament House

Formats: Paperback, eBook

Pages: 295

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, B&N, Kobo, iBooks

Description:

The Story Continues...

Summer and Darce are summoned by the order of Zeus himself to travel to the home of the Gods: Mount Olympus, where they're to face even more ancient Gods and Goddesses.

Summer braces to confront her mother again, illuminating secrets about the truth of her tragic pasts, while also persuading Zeus to allow her to stay with the God of the Underworld, her true love - Darce.

Aboard Poseidon's luxury yacht, Summer meets her mythological family, while also uncovering what exactly happened to her past lives - and the true roles her mother and Darce played.

When Darce and Summer suddenly find themselves separated, Summer must find her inner power and unite them together, before her mortal time runs out.

About Book 1:

BLINDING NIGHT (Blinding Night #1)

Author: Chantal Gadoury

Release Date: October 2, 2018

Publisher: The Parliament House 

Formats: Paperback, eBook, audiobook

Pages: 289

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, Audible, B&N, Kobo, iBooks, TBD, Bookshop.org

What if you were the missing piece in one of the world’s most epic legends? 

Despite being an art history student, Summer isn’t thrilled to be stuck with her archeologist family all summer in Greece. While the rest of her college friends are posting a million selfies by the pool together, Summer is stuck alone, trying to entertain herself alone in a place where she doesn’t even speak the language. 

Upon her arrival to Greece, strange dreams and even stranger shadows seem to haunt Summer, leaving her to ponder the meaning of pomegranate seeds and twisted, darkened faces. 

Suddenly, her stay abroad leads to tragic twists, leaving Summer in the arms of a dark stranger, who claims to be the god, Hades, whom she feels like she knows from another life. In a whirlwind through the busy streets of Athens, Summer is seduced to the lowest point of Greece where Hades’ lair awaits…the Underworld. Determined to find out who she is and where she belongs in an age-old myth, Summer joins Hades to discover that the secrets about her past life are beyond anything she could have ever imagined.

“Have you heard the news?” Hermes asked as he came to pause in front of Darce. “There’s been a slight change of plans.”

“Change?” Darce asked, brow arched. He crossed his arms against his chest and shook his head. “What do you mean?”

“Do we get to go home?” I asked, doing what I could to keep the hope from my tone. Hermes chuckled and shook his head as he leaned lazily against the doorframe.

“We’ve been invited to the Mediterranean Sea.”

I didn’t miss the dark look Darce gave Hermes.

“The Mediterranean Sea?” I asked, wrinkling my nose. “What about—”

“Zeus thought it would be better for everyone to meet on more neutral ground.”

“So he chose the sea?” Darce snorted, shaking his head. “Sounds more like he couldn’t resist an invitation to Poseidon’s superyacht.”

“Wait a second,” I asked, looking skeptically between the two of them. “Poseidon has a superyacht?”

The irony hadn’t been lost on me.

“Yes,” Hermes said, flashing me a smile. “It’s a beautiful ship. There are several amenities I’m sure you’ll enjoy your time aboard. The hot tub is one of my personal favorite places there.”

“I don’t think so,” Darce said, the muscles in his jaw tightening. “We’re not going.”

Darce pushed himself from the wall and grabbed my hand.

“But—” I started, feeling unsure. Was it so easy to just turn around and leave? Could we really go home? Just as Darce turned on his heel, and started towards the door, Hermes cleared his throat.”

“You know you have very little choice in this, my Lord. You know if you snub your brother, he’ll not resist punishing you, and her too.”

His words caused Darce to pause. Darce turned to look to Hermes over his shoulder.

“He gave me no indication that we’d be meeting out at sea. It was agreed that I would go to Mount Olympus. He demanded that she go there. . .” Darce tried to argue.

“Certainly you do not oppose a more neutral place-”

“It’s hardly neutral, Hermes. You know that,” Darce hissed. “It’s a show. All of this is a show.” I could hear the growl in his voice as he slid his hands to his waist.

“He obviously intends to make this meeting into nothing but a grand, dramatic performance.”

Hermes seemed unbothered by Darce’s outrage. “I’m just the messenger.”

Chantal Gadoury is an Amazon Best Selling Author who is originally from the countryside of Muncy, PA. Chantal likes anything Disney, plays a mean game of Disney trivia, enjoys painting and has a interest in British History. Chantal first started writing stories at the age of seven and continues that love of writing today. As a recent college graduate from Susquehanna University, with a degree in Creative Writing, writing novels is a dream come true.

Website |  Twitter | Facebook | Intstagram | Pinterest | Goodreads | Amazon Page

1 winner will receive a $10 Amazon GC - International.

Ends May 19, 2020. Midnight EST.

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Book Blitz + Giveaway: The Shrike & the Shadows by A.M. Wright & Chantal Gadoury

 

The Shrike & the Shadows
Author: A.M. Wright & Chantal Gadoury
Genre: New Adult Dark Fantasy/Horror/Romance
Publication Date: March 3, 2020
Publisher: Parliament House


Description:

Men have gone missing before.

The village of Krume is plagued by a haunted wood and a hungry witch. It’s been that way for as long as Hans and Greta can remember, though they have never seen the witch themselves; no one has.

When men start to disappear once again in the cover of night – their bloody hearts turning up on doorsteps – the village falls into frenzied madness.

Hans and Greta, two outcast orphans, find themselves facing accusations of witchcraft and are met with an ultimatum: burn at the stake, or leave the village forever.

With nowhere else to go, they abandon their only home.

As they venture into the strange forest, their path is fraught with horrific creatures, wild and vivid hallucinations, and a mysterious man tied to the witch’s past.

The Shrike is watching, just beyond the deep darkness of the woods.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo / Google Play

“See these lines here, my maus?” She tapped the top of Greta’s palms.

“They are your heart lines. The way it curves, you have a caring soul.”

“You must have that, too, Mama.”

“Aha!” her mother exclaimed, and Greta jumped. “These love lines! How auspicious, little maus.”

“What, Mama? What do they mean?” Greta looked up into her mother’s face eagerly. She smiled.

“It will surprise you, this love of yours.” Her mother paused, frowning for just a moment before taking up her smile again. “But not for many more years. You will be ready then…”

Greta’s mother stilled, her words falling from her mouth quietly. She barely heard anything after that.

“Mama?”

“Yes?”

“Will I be okay?”

“Oh, of course! But to be sure, we must find your fate,” she said, though somewhat distant. “Here they are. And look! They meet here, at your life lines… goodness, so young for such a burden.”

Greta frowned at her mother. “Mama, you’re not making any sense.”

“I know, my maus, I know. I did not expect to see so many… things.”

“Are they sad things? Because you sound sad, Mama.”

Her mother grasped at her hands and held them for a moment. She gave a gentle squeeze and said, “Not all, but some, yes. Some will be sad, and others will be happy.”

“Oh.”

Then, Greta’s mother fell into her with an embrace. She locked little Greta into her arms and rocked her slowly. She had felt so warm in her hold, and so content, she had almost missed her mother’s final words:

“It will be a fearsome trial, my love. Your fate is bound to a great and daunting endeavor.”

A.M. Wright is an Ohio native, perched on the shores of Lake Erie for as long as she can remember. She is a graduate of Walsh University and holds a Bachelor's Degree in Corporate Communications, with two minors in Marketing and Writing. She has a passion for reading, writing, and drawing; and has a particularly strong love for shojo-manga and all genres of anime. When A.M. Wright isn't focused on her day job, she is sorting through submissions, writing too many stories to keep track of, and playing video games with her fiance in a townhouse that's just a fifteen minute drive from "The Roller Coaster Capital of the World."

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram

Amazon Best Selling Author, Chantal Gadoury, is a 2011 graduate from Susquehanna University with a Bachelor's Degree in Creative Writing. Since graduation, she has published "The Songs in Our Hearts" with 48Fourteen Publishing, and "Allerleirauh" with Parliament House Press, with future titles to follow. Chantal first started writing stories at the age of seven and continues with that love of writing today. Writing novels for Chantal has become a life-long dream come true! When she's not writing, she enjoys painting, drinking lots of DD Iced Coffee, and watching Disney classics. Chantal lives in Muncy, Pennsylvania with her Mom, Sister and furry-'brother' (aka, puppy) Taran.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram

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Release Day Blitz + Giveaway: WINTERDREAM by Chantal Gadoury

I am so excited that WINTERDREAM by Chantal Gadoury is available now and that I get to share the news!

If you haven’t yet heard about this wonderful book by Author Chantal Gadoury, be sure to check out all the details below.

This blitz also includes a giveaway for a signed copy of the book, US Only, courtesy of Chantal, Parliament House Publishing, and Rockstar Book Tours. So if you’d like a chance to win, enter in the Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post.

WINTERDREAM

Author: Chantal Gadoury

Pub. Date: November 27, 2018

Publisher: Parliament House Publishing

Formats: Paperback, eBook

Pages: 290

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, B&N

Description:

This Christmas Eve… no creature was stirring…
Except, maybe, a mouse.
 
At long last, can true love break the Nutcracker’s curse?
 
For Clara Stahlbaum, this Christmas means the end of her youth. A daughter of the aristocracy, Clara is expected to give up her dreams of adventures and the extraordinary for more normal days as the wife of a cruel Viscount.
 
But when magical Uncle Drosselmeyer returns with his wondrous, dancing contraptions, and one...special gift for Clara, she is beckoned to the land of Winter Dream, where she is thrust into the greatest adventure of her wildest dreams. But will she be able to break the Nutcracker's curse?
 
Uncle Drosselmeyer’s apprentice, Anton, is handsome as he is mysterious. But what is it about him Clara finds so alluring?
 
Winter Dream is a phenomenal retelling of The Nutcracker from the eyes of Clara Stahlbaum with all the magic of the Holiday season. If you loved S. Jae-Jones’ Wintersong, you’ll fall in love with this stunning tale of love, war, redemption, and Christmas magic.

PROLOGUE

Large, white puffs floated all around me. Sinking into my flesh with their cold, yet light kisses. Every snowflake was different, specially crafted before it fell from the sky. They were beautiful, even as they melted. I tipped my head back to catch the snow as it fell. I felt as though I was floating through air, caught in a haze of ice flakes as sugary and sweet as the icing on the gingerbread house my governess and I had made together.

I stretched my arms out to my sides, spinning in place.

The green forest turned with me, a wood full of large spruces perfect for Christmas trees. They were decorated as such, lighted with white candles and draped in silver tinsel. On some, icicles hung on the tips of the limbs. It was a world in which the snow was like sugar and the air smelled delicious, like freshly baked cookies. It was perfect—a world of my own making, if I was capable of crafting something so… wonderful.

“Clara…”

The sound of my name trilled from a distance, carried on the cool, winter wind.

Turning slowly, I peered over my shoulder, catching a glimpse of a young boy my age. He was dressed in a bright red suit, adorned with golden epaulettes. His blond hair was brushed away from his face, revealing two bright blue eyes. His lips, pink as his cheeks, curved into a smile.

“Clara…”

“Yes?” I asked curiously, turning to face him. As I slid my hands over my cream and ivory lace nightgown, I suddenly felt quite foolish. My mama had always insisted I never wear my bedclothes in front of guests or visitors. And yet, here, in this strange and beautiful world, such things hardly seemed to matter. He took my hand and flashed another warm smile as he led me to a large, white carriage.

“Where are we going?” I asked softly, pausing before the door. The panels were solid ivory, adorned with a golden handle and step.

“Winter Dream,” the boy said with a relieved expression. “Home. Home to Winter Dream.”

“Winter Dream?”

“I’ve come to take you back, Clara. To where I am—to where all the people who love you live.”

“But I don’t know where this Winter Dream is. I’ve never been there…”

“Come with me,” he beckoned, squeezing my hand gently. “Come. . .”

The snow fell all around us; small flakes clung to the tips of our hair and eyelashes. As much as I longed to go . . . there was something holding me back. Something. . .

As I peered behind me, a small, dark shadow began to form. It started out small, like the size of a mouse, and it grew—or was I shrinking? The boy beside me held my hand, and his eyes grew wide with fear.

“No!” I screamed, tucking myself into his shoulder. Whatever it was, I didn’t want to see. I didn’t want to know.

“Clara, wait!” I heard him beg, his urgent tone tugging at my heartstrings. “Come with me, please.”

“No! I want to go home!”

As soon as the words poured from my lips, I woke with a start.

Here, there was only me and the four walls of my bedroom. A sheer sliver of light crept through the space of an open curtain, sparkling with the bright white of the snow outside. It was quiet, as if the world had not yet woken. As if I was the only one no longer dreaming sweet things. Instead, while everyone else slept, I contained the chill of my own strange dream.

I buried myself beneath the duvet and hugged my knees to my chest. I was alone, completely and utterly alone.

I closed my eyes tight, not wishing to face that Christmas morning. I wished only for the chance to slip back into my dream. To return back to that magical world, where a boy with bright blue eyes was waiting for me. Back to the place where an enchanting land called ‘Winter Dream’ existed.

Amazon Best Selling Author, Chantal Gadoury, is a 2011 graduate from Susquehanna University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Writing.

Since graduation, she has published "The Songs in Our Hearts" with 48Fourteen Publishing, and “Allerleirauh” with Parliament House Press, with future titles to follow. Chantal first started writing stories at the age of seven and continues with that love of writing today.

Writing novels for Chantal has become a life-long dream come true! When she’s not writing, she enjoys painting, drinking lots of DD Iced Coffee, and watching Disney classics. Chantal lives in Muncy, Pennsylvania with her Mom, Sister and furry-‘brother’ (aka, puppy) Taran.

Subscribe to Chantal’s Newsletter! https://www.chantalgadoury.com/newsletter

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(1) winner will win a signed finished copy of WINTERDREAM - US Only.

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Release Day Blitz + Giveaway: Between the Sea and Stars

I am so excited that BETWEEN THE SEA AND STARS by Chantal Gadoury is available now and that I get to share the news!

If you haven’t yet heard about this wonderful book by Author Chantal Gadoury, be sure to check out all the details below.

This blitz also includes a pre-order giveaway courtesy of Chantal. So if you’d like a chance to win, check out the giveaway info below.

BETWEEN THE SEA AND STARS

Author: Chantal Gadoury

Release Date: June 19, 2018

Publisher: The Parliament House

Formats: Paperback, eBook

Description:

A Legend, 

A Magical Shell 

A Girl Who Dreamed Of Something More... 

Lena, a Merrow girl, lives in the Skagerrak sea with her father, Carrick and her brother, Javelin who tells her of the legend of the Merrow Queen murdered by her human lover when greed takes over. But what’s worth spilling the queen’s blood? Gifted from Poseidon, himself, a magic shell gives any human the ability to control both land and sea. 

When Javelin is called to join a clan of Merrow soldiers bent on protecting their waters from human invasion, Lena resists Merrow law and ventures to the shore with no choice but to swim to land. 

With newfound legs, Lena is whisked away on a new adventure with new friends and new trouble. Everyone seems to want something from her as intrigue lurks around every corner. 

Trying her best to hide who she is and remain safe from the dangers of the human world, will Lena finally find where she belongs, or will she be swept into a strong and stormy current by lust, greed, and jealousy?

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, B&N, iBooks

“Tell me the legend of the Skagerrak queen.”

Javelin lifted a brow. “It’s hardly a legend, Lena,” he said. “It’s barely been a decade.” His voice was easy, unbothered by the possibility of being overheard. They were alone in this place. There was no need to whisper or scold or shush. Still, he groaned. “I’ve told that one a thousand times. You should know it by heart. Aren’t you tired of it yet?”

“Come on,” Lena urged him. “It’s my favorite. Tell me again.”

He rolled his eyes, but his mouth curved into a grin. “Fine.” His scooped a clam shell out of the sand and began sliding the sharp side of a rock against its grain. “The queen fell in love with a human man,” he began, his strong fingers holding the clam firmly in place. “Every full moon, she used her magic to travel ashore to see him.”

Lena settled onto her elbows, relishing the smooth sound of her brother’s voice as he recited the tale. 

A dreamy smile spread over her lips.

“I wonder how she met him,” she murmured softly, tilting her chin up and letting her lashes flutter shut.

“Likely the same way any merrow meets a human,” Javelin teased. “Shipwrecked during one of Poseidon’s storms. She should have drowned him immediately.”

“But she couldn’t!” Lena’s eyes pinged open. “For he was devilishly handsome, even soaking wet. The most handsome man she’d ever seen.”

“Devilish is right,” Javelin allowed. “Whether he was handsome or not, I’ll let your imagination decide.”

“Oh, he was.” Lena was smiling widely now. “He was, perhaps, the most beautiful human man in existence, and desperately enraptured by the queen. Each full moon, he waited for her, pacing the beach like a madman. And when she would emerge from the sea, he’d run hip-deep to meet her, unable to spend one more moment apart. He’d wrap his muscular arms around her—”

“For Poseidon’s sake, Lena.”

“And they’d dance together,” she pressed on, giggling, “as only humans can do. They’d dance and dance the hours away, bathed in starlight, humming songs into one another’s ears.”

“Until one night. . .” Javelin prompted smugly, and Lena rolled her eyes.

“Until one night,” she sighed, “something overcame the queen’s lover. Greed.”

“Human greed,” Javelin corrected. “Human nature. It was only a matter of time.”

She glared at him, but didn’t interrupt as he continued. This was the best and the worst part of the tale, and Javelin—damn him, was good at telling it. And he knew.

“That night, the queen swam toward the surface, impatient as ever she was. Ready to be rid of her tail. Ready to be human again. Her magic was a gift from Poseidon himself, contained in a delicate shell which she wore around her neck on a gold chain. It gave her the ability to explore the shore, and to control the storms and seas.”

Lena leaned in.

“As she swam, the queen began to change. Faint sobs faltered over her blue-scaled lips—cries of pain, lost to the rushing lull of the waves and the urgent beating of her fins. Swiftly, her tail separated into two perfectly shaped legs, and she rose out of the sea.”

“Don’t leave out the good parts,” Lena whispered. She knew her brother would skim over the romance just to annoy her.

Javelin gave her a pointed look. Then he grinned. “The moon was high that night,” he said, lowering his voice to a hush for effect. “The land was illuminated by an eerie, silver glow. Beneath its light, the queen’s new flesh was creamy and soft. Her hair became one with the wind, and her body shivered against a violent, uproarious breeze. Perhaps it was a warning from the gods, but the queen didn’t see it as such. The human lands were cold, suffering a new, frigid season, but her heart remained warm. She smiled, though her transition had been agony, when she heard the sound of water splashing and saw her beloved moving toward her through the shallows.

“She sang his name as he brushed chaste kisses against her neck, and relaxed fully against him, trusting him completely. She was blind to the wicked yearning which had wrapped around his heart. Which made his body tense, which crushed his lungs till he could hardly breathe. He wanted her shell, for he’d discovered what powers were locked inside that delicate charm. Powers gifted to whomsoever possessed it. His fingers dipped to her throat, caressing the shell which had allowed her to return to him, again and again. The queen eyed him strangely, and he dropped his hands to her waist, tugging her against him, kissing her deeply.”

Lena sighed, and Javelin smirked.

“She was a fool,” he said.

“She was in love,” Lena amended.

“She was both,” he conceded. “And that foolish love consumed her. Deceived her. Seduced her. Clouded her eyes, so love was all she could see. But that fateful eve, her beloved’s affection was not what it seemed. He’d seduced himself too, with all the prospects of what might be. His own love had been replaced by a lust for riches unknown. For control of the land and sea.”

Lena winced, for she knew what came next.

“He pressed his mouth against the queen’s skin, whispering sweet words, distracting her. She was smiling as he sent a knife into her back. Smiling, even as her eyes went wide with shock.”

Lena shuddered, picturing it. A joyful mouth, frozen in place. Bulging, horrified eyes going dim.

“The queen’s lover twisted his blade, releasing her cold merrow blood to the sand. He reached for the shell, yanking on its golden chain. But in the last throes of breath, the queen resisted him and threw the shell into the crashing waves, bidding Poseidon to wash it away.

“With a promised curse on his lips, her lover trailed back into the night, determined to one day possess the world between the sea and stars, and all who dwell beneath the earth, in the ocean’s depths. Our people.” He glanced sidelong at Lena, his meaning clear. “The merrows.”

“And the queen. . .” Lena murmured, though she already knew how the tale would end.

“He left her to dissolve into sea foam. She was washed away forever by the waves.”

Lena released a long breath and gazed at her hands, trying to imagine what it would be like to watch herself slowly disappear; what heartache and betrayal the queen must have felt in her last moments. She knew this was a gruesome tale, but a part of her thought the better parts, the magic and romance, were worth the gruesome bits.

“What do you think it would be like, to walk?” she wondered aloud. “Would it be like having two tails?”

“I don’t know,” Javelin chuckled. “I suppose it might be.”

“Where do you think the shell is now?”

Javelin shrugged. From a stony shelf above his head, he retrieved a slim, wooden railing he’d found in a ship a few days before and carefully tied his sharpened clamshell to its jagged end.

Lena smiled, realizing he’d made her a hunting spear.

“Poseidon is said to have hidden the shell before the human lover, or any human, could steal it. It could be anywhere.”

“If you could go to the surface, would you?”

Javelin pinched his lips together and didn’t speak. It was a silent reprimand. He knew how Lena longed to break through the waves, to see the human world with her own eyes, to know the uses of all the odd objects they’d collected over the years. But the laws of the sea were strict, and the king’s leniency had all but vanished in recent years.

Any merrow caught peeking at the shore was punished. Some were even struck down by Poseidon and reduced to sea foam, just like the queen.

“This is where we belong, Lena,” Javelin said softly, firmly.

“But how do you know?” She swirled upright and swam along the edge of the grotto, brushing her fingertips over cups and spoons and heaps of sodden fabric. Over small chests and tarnished, palm-sized figurines and other mysterious, unnamed things. “Haven’t you ever wondered what it would be like, to live on the land? To live among them? To be one of them?”

“Not as much as you have, I can see.”

She groaned, and sank to her brother’s side, resting her head on his shoulder. “It can’t be as bad as everyone believes. Humans can’t all be the same. We’re not all the same,” she reasoned quietly.

Amazon Best Selling Author, Chantal Gadoury, is a 2011 graduate from Susquehanna University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Writing. Since graduation, she has published "The Songs in Our Hearts" with 48Fourteen Publishing, and “Allerleirauh” with Parliament House Press, with future titles to follow. Chantal first started writing stories at the age of seven and continues with that love of writing today. Writing novels for Chantal has become a life-long dream come true! When she’s not writing, she enjoys painting, drinking lots of DD Iced Coffee, and watching Disney classics. Chantal lives in Muncy, Pennsylvania with her Mom, Sister and furry-‘brother’ (aka, puppy) Taran.

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Enter your Receipt for the chance to win a "Mermaid" Giveaway!

A Mermaid-Themed Tumbler, Notebook, Nail Filer, Face Mask, Hand Sanitizer, Handcream, Makeup Bag, Popsocket and an autographed  Paperback of "Between the Sea and Stars."

Submit Your BETWEEN THE SEA AND STARS Book Receipts HERE!

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It can be purchased at any retailer; Amazon, Kobo, B&N, Parliament House - etc.

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