Monster Mash Countdown: Ann Swann's "Sutter Creek," Suspense-Filled Fiction

As Halloween approaches I'm participating in Loving the Book's Monster Mash Countdown, a collection of intriguing, mysterious, and scary reads. And a raffle! Watch this space!

Stutter Creek (book one) is a romance, brilliantly hidden within a suspense-filled tale of a psychotic serial killer with a chip on his shoulder. It is also a classic tale of young love lost, and a life of regrettable what-ifs.

Purchase Sutter Creek

About the Author

Ann Swann was born in the small West Texas town of
Lamesa. She grew up much like Stevie-girl in The Phantoms series, though she never got up the nerve to enter the haunted house.

Ann has done everything from answering 911 Emergency calls to teaching elementary school. She lives in Texas with her husband, Dude, a rescue cat named Oscar, and a part-time box turtle named Piggy.

When she’s not writing, Ann is reading. Her to-be-read list has grown so large it has taken on a life of its own. She calls it Herman.

Connect with Ann Swann

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Q&A with the Author

When did you start writing, and was there a specific event or person who influenced you to become an author?

I began writing short stories in my teens. I kept them in a spiral notebook under my bed. I couldn't keep my sister out of my diary so I felt I had to hide everything!

Are you currently working on a project, and if so, can you tell us anything about it?

I am currently finishing up a romantic suspense and a YA novel. Both are contemporary and both have elements of suspense and romance.

What is your favorite writing snack?

My favorite writing snack is anything chocolate with diet vanilla Coke. They balance each other out, right? Calorie-wise, I mean...

If you could have dinner with any of your characters, which ones would you choose? Why? What food would you serve?

If I could have dinner with any of my characters I think it would be with Big John in Stutter Creek or Reece in The Remains in the Pond because they are both hunks ... wait, so is Quinn in All For Love. Shoot. Any of those. And we'd have jalapeño poppers and margaritas. Yum!

Do you ever get Writers Block and how do you work through it?

Writer's block? Nah. If I get stuck on a story, I just close it and go to another story. I always have several going at once. Always. And pretty soon the sticky story will work itself out. If it doesn't, it wasn't a good story.

Did you learn anything from writing your book and what was it?

I do learn something with each book. I usually learn something about myself and what I would or would not do in a given situation. Sometimes it's hard to make my characters do things that go against my normal beliefs!

How do you relax, or what do you enjoy doing when you are not writing?

To relax I love to walk our local walking trails around town as well as going to our local drive-in movie and catching up on live music at the auditorium. Going to see Bob Dylan soon. Just saw Melissa Etheridge last week. So good!

What is your largest unfulfilled dream, and what are you doing to reach it?

My largest unfulfilled dream is to see every historical tourist spot in the United States. I'm working on it ... slowly.

What do you fear most?

My greatest fear is becoming incapacitated and becoming a burden to my family.

What was your favorite Halloween Costume?

My favorite Halloween costume? The first year we my hubs and I were married, my mom (a very talented seamstress) helped me create a witch's costume for myself and a sexy vampire costume for my new husband. They were so good, we won a contest at the local dance hall. And may I just add, this was about twenty years before Bella and Edward. LOL

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Monster Mash Countdown: "Before," A Young Adult Romance by Catina Haverlock and Angela Larkin

As Halloween approaches I'm participating in Loving the Book's Monster Mash Countdown, a collection of intriguing, mysterious, and scary reads. And a raffle! Watch this space!

Day Eight belongs to Catina Haverlock and Angela Larkin and their Young Adult romance novel Before.

True love doesn't always mean a happy ending. Presley and Landon finally have a chance at a real relationship when they travel back in time, but their leap backward to two months before his accident has altered reality: Landon has no memory of Presley.

Hurt and lonely, Presley is still determined to save his life, even as Landon's death-date looms. He's alive for now, but nothing is like it was . . . Before.

Purchase Before 

Monster Mash Countdown: Christina Enquist and "The Immundus," Dystopian Young Adult Fiction

As Halloween approaches I'm participating in Loving the Book's Monster Mash Countdown, a collection of intriguing, mysterious, and scary reads. And a raffle! Watch this space!

Day Six belongs to Christina Enquist and The Immundus

Would you sacrifice your humanity to save mankind?

IT’S THE YEAR 2828, and Domus is the last remaining country. Divided into twelve walled cities known as genuses, Domus spans what’s known as the purist lands — lands unaffected by the genetic modifications that killed all other species of mammals. But outside the walls of each genus the Immundus threaten the welfare of those within. From a young age, all citizens of Domus are trained for combat against these intruders.

At sixteen, Nia Luna knows little of the Immundus, except for the citywide alarms that ring any time an Immundus nears the genus walls. What she does know is that her own species is dying—their numbers dwindling as a mysterious disease called allagine kills many before their eleventh birthday. The same disease that ravaged her family when it took her sister.

When Nia is recruited into Genesis, a research company pioneering the path to a cure, she knows that her dream to find a cure for allagine is finally within her grasp. But within weeks of starting at Genesis, Nia witnesses something she shouldn’t have — something that changes everything. As she sets down a dangerous path that uncovers national secrets, Nia will have to decide not only what kind of person she wants to be but also how far she’s willing to go to save humanity.

Purchase The Immundus

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About the Author

I grew up in Salinas, California, the same hometown of John Steinbeck, one of America’s greatest writers. I loved to read (and still do) and frequented the John Steinbeck Library as a child. I discovered at an early age that I also enjoyed writing. In sixth grade, my teacher, Mr. Graham gave the class an assignment to write a story for a contest. The contest required that we create our book binding as well, which we did with cardboard, glue, and wallpaper. My book was called “Mully Mully” about a creature who lived in an underwater lake city. I was sad when I didn’t win, but I cherished my book so I kept it all these years. It wasn’t until a few years ago that I decided to put other stories, roaming around in my mind, down on paper again, or actually, in my case, into a computer.

I took a non-traditional route to writing, considering I have a doctorate in Educational Leadership. Aside from writing, I work full-time as a Training & Development Coordinator at Kaweah Delta, a teaching hospital, and some semesters I also teach at College of the Sequoias in Visalia, California, where I currently live. When I’m not at my full-time and part-time job, I enjoy writing, reading, watching TV, and spending time with my husband and pets (cat-Smokey, dog-Princess).

The Immundus is my debut novel.

Connect with Christina Enquist

Facebook * Twitter  * Instagram

Q&A with Christina Enquist

When did you start writing, and was there a specific event or person who influenced you to become an author?

I started writing in elementary school. The first book I wrote was in 6th for an assignment/contest. It was a story about Mully Mully who lived at the bottom of a lake in an underwater city. There wasn't a specific person that influenced me, but there were several stories that captured my heart, such as The Veldt, Mrs. Frisby and the the rats of Nimh, Watership Down, and others.

Are you currently working on a project, and if so, can you tell us anything about it?

I am working on two books right now. One of the books is The Liberatus, which is book 2 of The Immundus where Nia experiences the world outside of the world she is accustomed to and introduced to more of the culture of the other species in the story. The Liberatus is YA Science Fiction. I am also working on Macie and the Magi, a middle grade fantasy about Macie, an amputee who lives with her grandfather since the accident that took her leg killed her father and put her mom in a coma. When she learns that she is The Restorer who is destined to return magic, she goes on a journey to bring magic back, hoping she can use it to save her mom.

What is your favorite writing snack? 

Chocolate :)

If you could have dinner with any of your characters, which ones would you choose? 

Sage Why? Because he is a unicorn who is disguised as a horse, but he can also transform into a human. What food would you serve? I'm vegetarian, as is Sage, so I would serve vegetable dishes. My favorite dish is Zoodle Bake, so I think I would serve that.

Did you learn anything from writing your book and what was it?

I learned to improve my writing through the beta reader and editing process.

How do you relax, or what do you enjoy doing when you are not writing? 

Well, I do have many other projects I'm juggling. Aside from my various writing projects, I have a short film in post production. I plan on adding an additional scene or two. I am currently serving as an assistant to two directors on a play, and performing in the play Escanaba in da Moonlight.

What is your largest unfulfilled dream, and what are you doing to reach it?

I would like to open an independent bookstore in the city I currently live. I am conducting research right now to determine its viability.

What do you fear most? 

Failure

What was your favorite Halloween Costume? 

My Pocahontas costume. I had it hand made when I was in my 20's. I don't have it any longer, but it was awesome.

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Monster Mash Countdown: Ann Swann's Ghost Story "Stevie-Girl and the Phantom Student"

As Halloween approaches I'm participating in Loving the Book's Monster Mash Countdown, a collection of intriguing, mysterious, and scary reads. And a raffle! Watch this space!

Day Five introduces Ann Swann and her ghost story Stevie-Girl and the Phantom Student.

Stevie asks Jase to help her find out why the ghost of a girl keeps appearing in her mirror. They think it has something to do with the new student at their school, a boy who has Tourette syndrome. Both the boy and the phantom seem to need some kind of help. All is revealed when the new kid falls prey to the school bullies.

Will Stevie and Jase be too late, or will a tragic moment in their school's history be repeated on Halloween night?

Purchase Stevie-Girl and the Phantom Student

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Monster Mash Countdown: Contemporary Women's Fiction with Elsa Winckler and "Where the River Bends"

As Halloween approaches I'm participating in Loving the Book's Monster Mash Countdown, a collection of intriguing, mysterious, and scary reads. And a raffle! Watch this space!

Day Three Belongs to South African author Elsa Winckler and Where the River Bends.

Kalinda Evans works for the Anglo-Boer war foundation in Canada. She's sent to South Africa to make sure everyone who lost their lives in the war will be remembered. On her drive to the guest farm in Kimberley, South Africa, Kalinda picks up a female hitchhiker and is startled when just moments later, the woman vanishes. Kalinda would be convinced she was dreaming…except there’s still a white lace handkerchief on the passenger seat.

Extreme sports enthusiast and computer game designer Zack Carter is always after the next big challenge. He’s far too busy for romance and adheres to a three-date rule, until he meets his parents’ latest guest. When she relays the story of her mysterious experience, Zack’s family shares the local ghost story. Kalinda and Zack work together to solve the puzzle of the ghost and how it all ties in with the war and the work Kalinda is doing.

As their attraction grows, Zack realizes he no longer feels the need to prove anything to himself. He only needs to prove to Kalinda that he’s more than a good time."

Purchase Where the River Bends

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Monster Mash Countdown: "Mrs.Murray's Ghost," Fantasy Sci-Fi for Young Readers by Emily-Jane Hills Orford

As Halloween approaches I'm participating in Loving the Book's Monster Mash Countdown, a collection of intriguing, mysterious, and scary reads. And a raffle! Watch this space!

Day Two is Mrs. Murray's Ghost by Emily-Jane Hills Orford.

Mary’s family has moved into a huge Victorian mansion. She loves her gigantic new house, especially her room. But then she begins to meet the house’s other residents. 

Mrs. Murray was murdered in Mary’s new house. At first she tries to scare the new residents away, but there seems to be a force connecting the ghost to Mary. 

Even the stranded Brownies, the little people who live between the walls, feel that connection. When Mary becomes deathly ill, the Brownies and the ghost team up to try to rescue her, only to encounter a witch and her evil minions. Time is running out. They must rescue Mary from a fever-induced dream world before she is trapped there forever.

Purchase Mrs. Murray's Ghost

Monster Mash Countdown Blitz Day One: "Emma's Dilemma," Paranormal Fiction from Donna Hatch

As Halloween approaches I'm participating in Loving the Book's Monster Mash Countdown, a collection of intriguing, mysterious, and scary reads. And a raffle! Watch this space!

First up is Emma's Dilemma by Donna Hatch.

Horrors! Emma's favorite Gothic novel seems to have come true...but reality is not as fun as fiction. The only man she's ever loved is home from war, but he has changed in a terrifying way. Unless Emma's wild imagination is wrong, the love of her life is a vampire! Now she must decide if she can love a creature of darkness, or reveal his secret and lose him forever.

This tongue-in-check novella plays with themes of paranormal fiction, but stays in the realm of clean and wholesome historical romance while exploring the power of trust and love.

Dance with a duke, outwit pirates, save a kingdom, and fall in love. Believe in happily ever after.

Praise for Donna Hatch:

“Donna Hatch is one of the masters of clean romance with electric tension and smokin’ hot kisses.” ~ Reading is My Super Power Reviews

“Written with heart and depth, Donna Hatch’s books are absolute must-reads for any fan of swoon-worthy historical romance.” ~ Sarah M. Eden, USA Today best-selling historical romance author

Purchase Emma's Dilemma