{Giveaway + Interview + Blog Stop} THE GHOST FILES by Apryl Baker

The Ghost Files, Volume I by Apryl Baker

Cherry blossom lipstick:  check

Smokey eyes:  check

Skinny jeans:  check

Dead kid in the mirror:  check

For sixteen year old Mattie Hathaway, this is her normal everyday routine. She’s been able to see ghosts since her mother tried to murder her when she was five years old. No way does she want anyone to know she can talk to spooks. Being a foster kid is hard enough without being labeled a freak too. Normally, she just ignores the ghosts and they go away. That is until she see’s the ghost of her foster sister… Sally. Everyone thinks Sally’s just another runaway, but Mattie knows the truth—she’s dead. Murdered. Mattie feels like she has to help Sally, but she can’t do it alone. Against her better judgment, she teams up with a young policeman, Officer Dan, and together they set out to discover the real truth behind Sally’s disappearance. Only to find out she’s dealing with a much bigger problem, a serial killer, and she may be the next victim… Will Mattie be able to find out the truth before the killer finds her?

Q:  So tell us a little bit about Apryl Baker.

A:  Well, in a nutshell, I’m the crazy girl with an imagination that never shuts up.  Seriously, sometimes I can be mid-sentence and I’ll get an idea and stop talking so I can write it down.  Terribly rude, I know, but my friends and family are used to it!  

Q:  Mattie is a very, well, let's call her unique.  What inspired you when you created that little bundle of attitude?

A:  LOL!  She is that, isn't she?  Well, honestly, I had some foster kids living down the block from me and I had the opportunity to get to know them.  It took me the better part of a year to get them to trust me enough to open up.  I have to say they were the bravest, most courageous kids I've ever met. They are tough as nails, loyal only to each other, and they will break your heart.  Some of the stories they told me made me want to just cry.  Don't get me wrong, there are tons of great foster homes out there, the one they were in at the time I got to know them was one of those, but there are just as many bad ones as well.  I got to hear up close and personal just how bad some of them were.

Those experiences shaped those kids into the people they were.  They all had serious trust issues and sometimes the haunted look in their eyes made me hurt.  When I got the idea for this story, Mattie in my mind was a foster kid.  I wanted to show people that those kids are more than just the tough facade they show to the world, that they are vulnerable and sweet underneath their layers of shields.  I rolled all their attitude into Mattie and there's a little bit of each of them in her. 

Mattie Louise Hathaway is that tough as nails foster kid who looks after her own and will deck you as soon as look at you, but underneath all that attitude, there's still a sixteen year old girl who's scared, alone, vulnerable, and well 16!  She still notices the cute guy while being that sassy, snotty brat!

Q:  I know that most writers have to have music when they are writing.  Let's face it, music has inspired so many different stories over the years.  What was on your playlist when you wrote The Ghost Files?  

A:  Wow, well, I did listen to a ton of different music, but these were my favs:

Fall Out Boy: My Song Knows What You Did In the Dark (this song alone is responsible for the last five chapters of the book!)

Evanescence:  Bring Me Back To Life

Bruno Mars:  Just the Way You Are

Demi Lavato:  Heart Attack

Taylor Swift:  I Knew You Were Trouble

Taking Back Sunday:  Make Damn Sure

My Chemical Romance:  I Don't Love You

My Chemical Romance:  The Ghost of You

Korn:  Freak On A Leash

Dashboard Confessional:  Slow Decay

Valora: I Waited For You

Q:  What advice would you give struggling authors in today's market?

A:  My best advice is to never give up.  I still have stack upon stack of rejection letters sitting on my desk.  It sucks!  That will never change.  You write this amazing story, polish it up a hundred times, then send out the query letter you slaved over for weeks, only to get rejection upon rejection upon rejection.  Huge blow to anyone's confidence.  Here's the thing though, you have all these rejection letters, but it only takes that one yes to make it all better.  I almost gave up on writing, but I'm so glad I didn't.  I have an amazing writing group, an agent that believes in me, and a publisher that is downright awesome.  Just believe in yourself.  You can't see your dreams come true if you don't keep trying.  Give yourself a minute to wallow in pity, then get up, dust yourself off and try, try again!

Q:  So why should we all rush out to buy The Ghost Files?

A:  That's simple!  It's awesome!  No, really, it's a fun, but scary read.  I have been advised by all the Wattpad crew who read it before it was published that you cannot read it in the dark. Scared them senseless.  There's a hint of romance, but the book itself is centered around the mystery of who killed Mattie's foster sister and the fact that Mattie now has to face her own weirdness.  She can see ghosts?  Um, not something she advertises.  Then there's Officer Dan...yum, all I'm saying. 

So who am I? Well, I'm the crazy girl with an imagination that never shuts up. I LOVE scary movies. My friend Chazz laughs at me when I scare myself watching them and tells me to stop watching them, but who doesn't love to get scared? I grew up in a small town nestled in the southern mountains of West Virginia where I spent days roaming around in the woods, climbing trees, and causing general mayhem. Nights I would stay up reading Nancy Drew by flashlight under the covers until my parents yelled at me to go to sleep. Growing up in a small town, I learned a lot of values and morals, I also learned parents have spies everywhere and there's always someone to tell your mama on you. So when you get grounded, what is there left to do? Read! My Aunt Jo gave me my first real romance novel. It was a romance titled "Lord Margrave's Deception." I remember it fondly. But I also learned I had a deep and abiding love of mysteries and anything paranormal. As I grew up, I started to write just that and would entertain my friends with stories featuring them as main characters. Now, I live Huntersville, NC where I entertain my family and watch the cats get teased by the birds and laugh myself silly when they swoop down and then dive back up just out of reach. The cats start yelling something fierce...lol. I love books, I love writing books, and I love entertaining people with my silly stories.

PS: DO NOT GET IN MY WAY IF THERE IS A SALE ON AT TARGET - my home away from home!

Amazon: Ghost Files 
Amazon: The Promise 
Amazon: The Awakening 
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Don't forget to check out Apryl's other books, The Promise and The Awakening!

Enter to win a signed print edition of The Ghost Files just by Liking Apryl's Author page on Facebook!

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{Review + Blog Stop} HUNTERS & PREY by Katie Salidas

Title:  Hunter’s & Prey

Author:  Katie Salidas

Series:  Immortalis (Book #2)

Genre: Paranormal Romance/Urban Fantasy

Publisher: Rising Sign Books

Release Date: Nov 2010

Rule number one: humans and vampires don't co-exist. One is the hunter and one is the prey. Simple, right? Not for newly-turned vampire Alyssa. A surprise confrontation with Santino Vitale, the Acta Sanctorum's most fearsome hunter, sends her fleeing back to the world she once knew, and Fallon, the human friend she's missed more than anything. Now she has some explaining to do. However, that will have to wait. With the Acta Sanctorum hot on their heels, staying alive is more important than educating a human on the finer points of bloodlust.

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Katie Salidas is a Super Woman! Endowed with special powers and abilities, beyond those of mortal women, She can get the munchkins off to gymnastics, cheerleading, Girl Scouts, and swim lessons.  She can put hot food on the table for dinner while assisting with homework, baths, and bedtime… And, she still finds the time to keep the hubby happy (nudge nudge wink wink). She can do all of this and still have time to write.

 And if you can believe all of those lies, there is some beautiful swamp land in Florida for sale…

Katie Salidas resides in Las Vegas, Nevada. Mother, wife, and author, she does try to do it all, often causing sleep deprivation and many nights passed out at the computer. Writing books is her passion, and she hopes that her passion will bring you hours of entertainment.

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I stormed into the master bedroom, slamming the door behind me. I needed some alone time, and a hot shower to help wash away the stress of the day.

The shower had always been a place where I could relax and be at peace with my thoughts—something I desperately needed at that moment. Between the near-death experience with Quentin and Lysander’s stubborn anger about Fallon, my nerves were on edge.

Why does he have to hate my best friend?

I walked into the bathroom and found my reflection in the vanity mirror. Mimicking

Lysander’s monotone voice I repeated, “Then accept that your friendship is over. Our two worlds cannot co-exist.”

I rolled my eyes and turned away to start the shower. A high-pressure cascade of water shot out of the showerhead as I twisted the brushed nickel knob.

“Just because it hasn’t happened, doesn’t mean that it can’t. Who’s to say we can’t remain good friends? I mean, she already knows about us.” I shrugged off my coat and unbuttoned my jeans.

“Thank goodness for Rozaline. At least she seems to be on my side.”

I slid the jeans down around my ankles and stepped out, and then made quick work of my top and bra.

“How do I get him to understand? We’re not that different, Fallon and I. We can remain friends when this mess is all over.”

Standing in front of the bathroom mirror, naked, I studied myself.

“Okay, maybe we are a little different.”

No sign of the previous fights marked my perfect, smooth skin. Amazed, I fingered the spots where I remembered the bullets tearing though me. I noticed how closely my skin matched the vanilla ice cream-colored walls. I almost blended in like camouflage. Only the pink of my nipples, the blue of my eyes, and the red of my hair made me stand out. It still surprised me, even after months of life as a vampire, how different I was. As a human, I should have been dead, or at the very least, scarred and mutilated from all of the action I had seen. But my immortal body always returned to its original state of perfection, healing with no trace of injuries.

“Well.” I turned away from my reflection. “Even if we are a little different, I’m not losing my best friend again.”

Steam flowed from the shower, telling me the water had reached the perfect scalding temperature. I loved the heat. My poor circulation and slow beating heart left me in a constant state of chill—especially in places like my toes and fingertips. I loved to be around any form of warmth.

I stepped into the shower, enjoying the momentary shock, the initial hot sting from the temperature change. It quickly turned into a sensual, full, heat that warmed my entire body. I felt some of my stress melt and slide away, disappearing down the drain. Facing the water, I let it hit my face and run down my neck and breasts, washing away whatever grime might be left from the day.

Hunter's Prey is the second book in the Immortalis series. This story really caught my attention. So much so that I stopped reading all my other books because I had to finish this one. 

The relationship between Alyssa and Lysander grow so much in this book. There are a lot of changes, but it's okay! They seem to come into their personalities in this book. I like that Alyssa is a little more comfortable being a vampire. I was a little afraid that her whinnyness was going to annoy me and beat this series to death. But, I was pleasantly surprised that she seemed more like a normal vampire...there is a normal vampire right?

My favorite bad guy makes a grand appearance in this book, Santino. I love that I get to find out more about him! I don't always love the bad guy, but I love this bad guy!! 

There is a lot more action in this book and I like action when it comes to vampires. I don't always want a whole bunch of romance and no gumption behind it. Not that there is anything wrong with a fantastic vampire love story, but sometimes I really want them to beat the crap out of each other!!

I can't wait to start the next book. I really felt connected to the characters, the story is really starting to come together, and Katie created a very exciting alternate reality for me :)