NEWS 8 Super SECRET book cover reveal! 😉

(First published OCTOBER 1, 2019) Super-secret The Alien Skill Series 4 book cover reveal! Dear friends, I've been wanting to do this for some time. The book cover for Ben Archer and the World Beyond (The Alien Skill Series, Book 4) - or TAS4 for short - has been lying around in my computer like a restless lion for months, waiting to come out. You see, I hope to finish TAS4 very soon and I thought you'd want to share in the excitement! So, without further ado, here is the super-secret book cover reveal of Ben Archer and the World Beyond (The Alien Skill Series, Book 4): In other news: We are 2000 subscribers strong! Welcome! TAS1 has been in the Amazon top 100 since the beginning of September, in varying categories: Science Fiction, Teen & Young Adult Alien Science Fiction, Children's Science Fiction, First Contact Science Fiction. Amazon has invited me to enroll TAS1 in its Prime Reading Program until the end of October 2019, meaning Amazon promotes TAS1 to its most engaged customers for me. TAS1 has been downloaded for free 6600 times since its release (mostly in 2018), whereas The Alien Skill Series has sold 2500 copies in general, with sales climbing every month. That's over 9000 copies! You can still discover and vote for a 2019 Author Academy Awards book. The finalist will be named at the end of the month (just don't forget I opted out). What's up in the neighbourhood? We enjoyed my parents' and my aunt's company this August. British Columbia is an awesome place to spend the summer. We visited the Fort Langley National Historic Site (a former fur trade post of the Hudson's Bay Company), a ferry crossing to Vancouver Island, the beautiful botanical Butchart Gardens, the suspended bridge across Lynn Valley and several places that feature in TAS1, such as Lighthouse Park, Deep Cove and Granville Island. We also had to deal with some bear problems, after a particularly insistent black bear broke through our neighbour's fence, toppled the garbage bins and tore down our apple tree. Let's hope salmon season begins soon because these 400-pound teddies are hungry! What did you do this summer? I'd love to hear your stories!   October 2019 reading list I'll be posting several links to scifi/fantasy book giveaways on my social media this October, so keep your eyes peeled, but here are some great reads you can check out (click on image for more info): Arcadia Deception by T.A. Leinemann In the year 2065, helicopter parents have succeeded in bubble-wrapping the world. With fear keeping everyone indoors, people in the cities have never been safer. Online gaming provides the main source of income for everyone, trading points for basic needs, and one company, Arcadia, controls the distribution of everything. Cadence Shields has known no other life. When a glitch in the food delivery system limits access to food in the cities, Cadence must learn to navigate an unfamiliar world in order to save her family and humanity. Windwalker by H.G. Chambers   Winged raptors, deadly sand-warriors, and a rebellious girl who will stop at nothing. Sixteen-year-old Kiva Fariq has always dreamed of soaring on the four-winged raptors that scour the desert skies. But women are strictly forbidden from joining the Windwalker Sect. What's more, the aggressive predators are said to kill any woman attempting to bond them. Undeterred, Kiva attempts the perilous trials in secret. Should she survive, she will face an even greater challenge: bonding a raptor of her own. When she discovers signs of an ancient enemy upon the plains, Kiva tries to warn her people. But the threat is closer than anyone realizes, and will soon bury them all in a tomb of sand and stone—unless she can stop it. Emergence by Dayne Edmondson   Aliens have invaded the Milky Way.  Captain Martin and his fleet at the opposite end of our galaxy is all that stands between the emerging ancient aliens and certain destruction of humanity. Even with the help of powerful magic, the alien menace may be too much to overcome. Elsewhere, Agent Hague chases down rumors of a secret cult after an assassination attempt on the president of the Federation's life. With the emergence of the long-foretold aliens, the Federation stands on the brink of destruction. Can Captain Martin and his allies hold the line? Can Agent Hague uncover a plot within the Federation? A tribute to Star Wars books of old, and the first book in a new trilogy in the existing Seven Stars Universe, "Emergence" is set nearly two thousand years after "Shadows Fall" and features cameos from many of the longer-lived heroes of ages past. Combat Origin by Misty Zaugg   In her world, single combat decides everything. It's her sixteenth birthday and Kiriai has a big decision to make. Will she fight for her dream to battle in the arena? Or buckle under her grandfather’s pressure to become a healer? Her best friend Eigo is an outcast from his scrounger family. On a recent expedition into the wastelands, he found a peculiar birthday gift for Kiriai—an AI trainer from a centuries-old, martial arts game. Could it give her the advantage she needs? Will Kiriai win the fight that decides her future? An impossible deadline, a persuasive mentor, and her own family all stand in Kiriai’s way. If she loses, she’ll be consigned to a mundane life, but more importantly, banned from the arena forever. Kiriai can't let that happen. Dragon (If You Couldn't Tell) by Brynne Nelson   “I never meant to run away from home. I swear. I intended to stay in my cave and eat rocks and wait around, bored, to finish growing up.  “Then this mysterious human, Dibbins, popped up in my cave with an intriguing offer. I just couldn’t refuse, you know? “The world away from home was exciting! Soon we were facing down evil dwarves and taking in the world’s smartest rabbit. Oh, and lifting curses and meeting with a king, a queen, and a whole encampment of soldiers. “What can I say? Mine’s a pretty amazing story.” -Izznae the dragoness Birth of a Star by Wayne Meyers   Aldrea, the feisty daughter of a Quenterian scientist, agrees to accompany her parents on a routine mission with mixed emotions. It was better than another resort vacation, but lacks the adventure and excitement she craves. So when her father is taken prisoner by a deranged Radical agent on a deserted planet, Aldrea doesn't think twice--she goes after them. But time is running out. With the greatest discovery in Quenterian history in the balance, Aldrea must rescue herself first before the prize they seek kills them all. Happy reading, Rae