Spotlight: The Artisan Heart by Dean Mayes

Wednesday, August 29, 2018




Hello, my friends today I am doing a spotlight on The Artisan Heart by Dean Mayes I hope you enjoy the spotlight!







Title: The Artisan Heart 

By Dean Mayes

Genre: Contemporary Fiction/Romance
Publication Date: September 1st, 2018 by Central Avenue Publishing Add-On Goodreads
Hayden Luschcombe is a brilliant paediatrician living in Adelaide with his wife Bernadette, an ambitious event planner. His life consists of soul-wrenching days at the hospital and tedious evenings attending the lavish parties organized by Bernadette. When an act of betrayal coincides with a traumatic confrontation, Hayden flees Adelaide, his life in ruins. His destination is Walhalla, nestled in Australia’s southern mountains, where he finds his childhood home falling apart. With nothing to return to, he stays, and begins to pick up the pieces of his life by fixing up the house his parents left behind. A chance encounter with a precocious and deaf young girl introduces Hayden to Isabelle Sampi, a struggling artisan baker. While single-handedly raising her daughter, and trying to resurrect a bakery, Isabelle has no time for matters of the heart. Yet the presence of the handsome doctor challenges her resolve. Likewise, Hayden, protective of his own fractured heart, finds something in Isabelle that awakens dormant feelings of his own. As their attraction grows, and the past threatens their chance at happiness, both Hayden and Isabelle will have to confront long-buried truths if they are ever to embrace a future.


When he emerged in 2010, Adelaide based Intensive Care Nurse and author Dean Mayes, had almost given up on the prospect of ever being published. by then in his 30's with several abortive writing attempts under his belt, Dean believed he had missed his opportunity. But Dean had an idea for one last story he wanted to tell and, rather than allow it to wither and die in his imagination, he decided to blog it instead.

Quite unexpectedly, Dean's blog took off and after a chance encounter with Canadian based publisher Central Avenue in mid 2009, Dean's dream like tale about a young man who discovers he has taken on the memories and dreams of a complete stranger, became his first novel. Dean was signed to an initial two year contract and in 2010 "The Hambledown Dream" was published. The novel has since gone on to receive global attention and critical acclaim.

Dean set about penning a follow up novel that was not merely a repeat performance and in 2012 "Gifts of the Peramangk" a powerful Australian family saga. Chronicling a dysfunctional Aboriginal family in the struggle streets of Adelaide's suburban fringe, "Gifts of the Peramangk" has been described as significant literary achievement. In October 2013, it was nominated as a finalist in the prestigious EPIC Awards for contemporary fiction.

Dean's third feature length novel, a psychological thriller set in Melbourne called "The Recipient", showcased his ability to cross genres and deliver a taut and gripping tome about a heart transplant patient who discovers her organ donor was a murder victim - and that the murder remains unsolved.

Dean is currently editing his fourth novel, a return to his romantic roots, called "The Artisan Heart", which is scheduled for a September, 2018 release.

He lives in Adelaide, Australia with his partner Emily, their two children Xavier and Lucy. An Intensive Care Nurse with over 15 years of clinical experience in adult, paediatric and neonatal medicine, he can often be found lying on a hospital gurney at 3 in the morning with a notebook in hand, madly scribbling ideas while on his break.

Dean is represented by Michelle Halket and is published by Central Avenue Publishing of Vancouver, Canada.
Thank you very much!







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Blog Tour, Giveaway & Review: Mirage (Mirage, #1) by Somaiya Daud

Tuesday, August 28, 2018



Title: Mirage

Series: Mirage, #1

Author: Somaiya Daud

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy & Sci-Fi

Publication Date: August 28th, 2018 by Flatiron Books 

Format: e-Arc

Source:  I received this book on The Fantastic Flying Book Club blog tour in exchange for an honest review.


Rating:







In a star system dominated by the brutal Vathek empire, eighteen-year-old Amani is a dreamer. She dreams of what life was like before the occupation; she dreams of writing poetry like the old-world poems she adores; she dreams of receiving a sign from Dihya that one day, she, too, will have adventure, and travel beyond her isolated moon.

But when adventure comes for Amani, it is not what she expects: she is kidnapped by the regime and taken in secret to the royal palace, where she discovers that she is nearly identical to the cruel half-Vathek Princess Maram. The princess is so hated by her conquered people that she requires a body double, someone to appear in public as Maram, ready to die in her place.

As Amani is forced into her new role, she can’t help but enjoy the palace’s beauty—and her time with the princess’ fiancé, Idris. But the glitter of the royal court belies a world of violence and fear. If Amani ever wishes to see her family again, she must play the princess to perfection...because one wrong move could lead to her death.






*** I received this book on The Fantastic Flying Book Club blog tour in exchange for an honest review, thank you so much to Flatiron Books for giving me the opportunity to read and review Mirage! ***

I really love and enjoy Mirage I know the body double switch troupe in this book was used many times in other book series, but this was my first time reading the body double switch troupe in Mirage and I couldn't get enough of the story within Mirage. I really love the great plotline and world-building in the book I thought it was done really well, I just love how the star system and the kingdom was described and I could so vividly image it in my mind. The writing style to me was flawless and very engaging I just couldn't put this book down I needed to know and learn more about everything that was happening to the characters. My favorite part in reading Mirage was reading the characters I totally love each and every one of them except the cruel and foul Vathek people especially the crowned Vathek King. The King is a very cold-hearted King that completely ignores his daughter the Vathek Princess Maram. And the other reason I absolutely love Mirage was for the diversity in the book, now back to the characters, I have three favorite characters in Mirage. Who are the three characters you say are my favorites well my favorites were the main characters Amani and Idris who are both prisoners of the Vathek empire. Both Amani and Idris connect with each other right away and on a very deep level, they connected toward each other. Amani was very conflicted with her emotions towards Idris that she knows that if she fell in love with him that it would put herself and Idris and both their family in complete danger with the Vathek empire. So by the end of Mirage, I know Amani had to do the right thing as of right now but she is determined and fight to make things right with everything. Now I won't say what she is determined to do because that would be a spoiler you have to read the book to understand what I am talking about. Amani also has conflicted feeling towards the cruel Vathek Princess Maram and I will tell you I absolutely loved Maram. Yes, Maram was very cruel to Amani at the beginning and at first but things start to change when Maram and Amani started to spend more time together that a great bond and friendship was made. Now I won't go into details on how Amani and Maram become great friends because that it is another spoiler, but just know that Amani had to make a great sacrifice at the end of the book that she was determined to make everything work out for herself and Maram in the near future and she was determined to fight for Maram at the end of the book as well. Now all and all I absolutely and utterly loved and enjoyed Mirage which I was highly anticipating this book and to me, this book did not disappoint me at all. Now I can't wait for the next book to come out to see what happens next too Maram, Amani, and Idris in the next book!
 












GIVEAWAY 
Prize:  One  finished  copy 
of
  Mirage 
by
Somaiya Daud (USA only)
Starts:  8/22/18 
Ends:    8/30/18 
GIVEAWAY   
Prize: One  finished  copy of Mirage by Somaiya  Daud  (USA  only)   
Starts: 8/22/18
   Ends: 8/30/18 







 Somaiya Daud



Somaiya  Daud  was  born  in  a  Midwestern  city,  and  spent  a 
large  part  of  her  childhood  and 
adolescence  moving  around.  Like  most  writers,  she  starte
d  when  she  was  young  and  never 
really  stopped.  Her  love  of  all  things  books  propelled  h
er  to  get  a  degree  in  English  literature 
(specializing  in  the  medieval  and  early  modern),  and  wh
ile  she  worked  on  her  Master
s  d
e-
gree  she  doubled  as  a  bookseller  at  Politics  and  Prose  in
  their  children
s  department.  D
e-
termined  to  remain  in  school  for  as  long  as  possible,  sh
e  packed  her  bags  in  2014  and 
moved  the  west  coast  to  pursue  a  doctoral  degree  in  Eng
lish  literature.  Now  she
s  preparing 
to  write  a  dissertation  on  Victorians,  rocks,  race,  and 
the  environment.  Mirage  is  her  debut, 
and  is  due  from  Flatiron  Books  in  8/28/2018.
Somaiya Daud  was born in a Midwestern  city, and spent a large  part  of  her childhood  and   adolescence  moving  around.  Like  most  writers,  she  started  when  she  was  young  and  never   really  stopped.  Her love  of  all  things  books  propelled  her  to  get  a  degree  in  English  literature   (specializing  in  the  medieval  and  early  modern),  and  while  she  worked  on  her  Master’s  de-gree  she  doubled  as  a  bookseller  at  Politics  and  Prose  in   their  children’s  department. De-termined  to remain  in  school  for  as  long  as  possible,  she  packed  her  bags  in  2014  and  moved  the  west  coast  to  pursue  a  doctoral  degree in English  literature.  Now she’s  preparing to write a dissertation  on  Victorians,  rocks,  race,  and   the  environment. Mirage  is  her  debut, and is due  from  Flatiron  Books  in  8/28/2018.







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