Gifts for #Book Lovers! A List of Award-Winning Reads for #Holiday Shopping! #amreading

Need gift ideas?  If you have readers on your list, shop these titles from authors who write for my publisher…all RONE Award Winners and Finalists!  The RONE Award stands for Reward of Novel Excellence, and it’s a very prestigious annual contest at InD’Tale Magazine with three rigorous rounds of judging to get to the winners.  Check out the gift buying guide below, and don’t forget to treat yourself to some new reads as well—the holidays can be a chaotic time, and reading is a proven stress-reducer!

These titles are all available as paperbacks or as e-books…sending an e-book is often less than the price of a card, with no shipping costs or packaging to deal with and instantaneous (or scheduled) delivery.  All that’s needed is a click of the “Buy for Others” button on the right side of Amazon’s page and an email address (There are “Buy as Gift” options on other retailer sites as well!).  Each book title contains retailer links for easy clicking!

On to the list of InD’Tale Magazine’s 2019 RONE AWARD Winners and Finalists ~ Happy Reading!

WINNER: Paranormal – Short

The Haunting of Hillwood Farm by Kathryn Knight

For readers who enjoy heart-pounding Romantic Suspense mixed with Spooky Ghost Mysteries…A dangerous ghost brings them together…but will they survive long enough to find happiness?

After tragedy strikes, Callie Sinclair is left with a gift she never wanted—the ability to communicate with ghosts. But when a desperate widow begs for her help, she reluctantly agrees to investigate the strange occurrences at Hillwood Farm. She quickly realizes she’s dealing with a dangerous presence beyond anything she’s ever experienced, and something else becomes equally clear—the only other living person in the house, Mrs. Turner’s handsome grandson, thinks she’s a scam artist. While she’d prefer to just ignore him, her heart beats a little faster every time he’s nearby.

Luke Turner doesn’t believe in spirits. He’s moved back to restore the family farm, but living on the property serves a dual purpose—he can watch out for his grandmother. He’s not happy about the sudden appearance of a self-described psychic, or his inexplicable attraction to her. His initial suspicions crumble as evidence points to an actual haunting, but he’s still determined not to fall for Callie—the past has taught him it’s best to avoid relationships.

As Callie is drawn deeper into the mystery, she becomes the target of a vengeful spirit, and Luke can no longer fight his feelings for her. Unable to resist their desire, passion ignites…even as the paranormal activity escalates to a final deadly confrontation.

Also named BEST ROMANTIC SUSPENSE OF 2018 at N.N. Light's Book Heaven Reviews, a Top 40 Paranormal Romance of all time at Reedsy Discovery, and a Top 3 Best Books of 2019 and Best Paranormal 2019 at Read Free.ly

WINNER:  Paranormal — Long

Debriefing the Dead by Kerry Blaisdell

For fans of television shows like Supernatural or Constantine…Hyacinth has got one foot in the grave, the other kicking ass...

The only thing Hyacinth wants is her life back. Literally. She and her sister were murdered by Demons, leaving her young nephew, Geordi, to his father’s family in the brutal Sicilian Mob. Then Archangel Michael offers her a deal: recapture a powerful rock the Demons stole, and she can live long enough to find Geordi a safe home. Refuse, and she’ll continue up (or down) to the Afterlife.

So, slightly more alive than dead, she heads for Turkey and the Demons, taking Geordi, her mysterious neighbor Jason, and a sexy dead guy only she can see with her. But the hardest part won’t be battling Demons, meeting Satan, or dodging Middle Eastern customs—it will be later, when Geordi is settled, and Michael rips her away again. How can she abandon her nephew? Or can she outwit the Angel of Death himself, and stay with Geordi forever?

FINALIST:  Contemporary Romance — Sweet

Six Months by Mona Sedrak

For readers ready to share an emotional and heartwarming journey…When you've lost everything, it takes courage to forgive, rebuild, and learn to love again…

For twenty years, Mikala Jacobson had it all: loyal friends, a precious little girl, and a man who adores her. Then double tragedy strikes and her perfect world shatters.

Good friends, Rena and Jake are instantly by her side, protecting her from her husband David's sordid secret life and his final drunken confession.

With their help, Mikala finds strength to rebuild and redefine her life. As her spirit and heart heal, she not only finds closure, but the beauty of a new love built upon an old friendship.

FINALIST:  Contemporary Romance — Steamy

Sworn to Forget by Maria Imbalzano

For readers who enjoy steamy romance with a strong heroine who has an eclectic group of girlfriends and a hero who just won't give up...

By all appearances, Nicki Reading is a star. PR director at a major music label, Nicki is sharp, successful, independent, and confidently calls the shots. She dates whom she wants, when she wants, with no strings attached. But beneath that shine, loneliness flickers. Events from her past prove love leads only to pain. Commitment is not an option.

Until Dex Hanover, a classy, principled, and prosperous CPA, enters the picture. Undeterred by his unhappy childhood, he has an amazing capacity to be both caring and generous, giving his free time as a mentor for a child from the projects. Dex wears his paternal yearnings on his sleeve, and he is at a point in his life where commitment is the only option.

Despite their opposing views, Nicki and Dex ignite each other. But will events from their pasts ruin their challenging relationship and prevent them from experiencing everlasting love?

FINALIST:  Fantasy Romance

Trial of a Warrior by Mary Morgan

For fans of forbidden love among warring races, treachery, and deceit...

A warrior sentenced to die.

On trial for breaking a supreme Fae law, Fenian Warrior, Liam MacGregor has no regrets. He is prepared to accept his sentence—even if it means his death. However, freedom comes in an unexpected manner, and brings with it certain dangers as he travels through the Veil of Ages.

A princess honor-bound to remain hidden.

Princess Abela might be a priestess and the daughter of royalty, but that doesn't prevent her from doing the unimaginable. She sacrifices duty and honor to set free the man who captured her heart so many years ago. No matter the severity of his crimes, she cannot let Liam die.

A rescue that will bring about a war and divide a kingdom!

In their quest to secure a treaty to forestall Liam's death sentence, they must fight their desires for one another, as well as the Fenian Warriors sent to capture them.

FINALIST:  Young Adult

The Stone Awakened by Judith Sterling

For readers who love Ireland and the paranormal, with a Christmastime setting perfect for the season…

Since moving to Ireland, Ashling Donoghue has tackled one challenge after another. Now the mystery of her parents' disappearance seems unsolvable. Are they dead or only missing? No one—not even the godlike Breasals—has a clue. Hope and fear war inside her, but she's determined to find answers and stay strong for her siblings. Even as she hones newfound powers, her banshee-in-training sister Deirdre needs her support.

Ashling could use a little help herself. She's struggling to navigate her first romance, and while Aengus Breasal stirs her body, mind, and soul, his nemesis Lorcan does too. Both men harbor secrets about her past life as Caer. One has ties to Aoife, the scheming wind demon whose influence is on the rise.

As the Stone of Destiny awakens, so does the conflict within.

FINALIST:  Historical: Victorian – 20^th Centry

Out of Splinters and Ashes by Colleen L. Donnelly

For readers who love "did she or didn't she" plots…

Cate is a runner. She prefers to help her fiancé run his New York senate race, but she finds herself running instead to fix what’s broken between her grandparents before he finds out—her grandmother has moved out of the family home, and her grandfather is accused of a pre-WWII relationship with a woman in Germany.

Dietrich is a German journalist with a spotless reputation. He prefers facts, but he finds himself lost in a world of fiction instead to prove his novelist grandmother couldn’t possibly have been the lover of a US runner in Berlin’s 1936 Olympics—especially when that runner’s granddaughter is Cate, a stubborn obstacle he should but can’t ignore.

Cate runs hard to cover up what Dietrich uncovers, until he shows her how it could have been—and how it could be again—that one can indeed love an enemy.

FINALIST:  Thriller/Suspense

Thirty-Three Days by Stephen B. King

For readers who like romance set against a race against time to save the future of the world…

Jenny is a lonely university lecturer who's consciousness has traveled back in time to her younger body to try to save the future of the world. A young microbiologist is going to release a genetically modified wheat that will mutate and ultimately destroy all plant life, leaving nothing but barren windswept dust bowls.

In the past, Jenny finds a love that has been missing from her life; the kind that comes just once in a lifetime. But Jenny can only stay in that time period for thirty-three days.

Meanwhile, in the future, fearful Jenny will fail, plans are made to send another back in time--an assassin. How can she choose between saving the man she loves or saving the future?

FINALIST:  Paranormal — Short

Eye of the Eagle by Sharon Buchbinder

For fans of Supernatural and Children of A Lesser God…

Anomaly Defense and shapeshifter Bert Blackfeather doesn't need a boss with no experience. So what if she's beautiful or gives him a jolt when she shakes his hand? He never plans to get seriously involved with another woman—not in this lifetime.

Phoebe Wagner, an empath with psychometric abilities and an advocate for the deaf, gets more than she bargained for with Bert. One touch and she relives his IED injuries. So what if he's handsome and hot? She doesn't need to add his secrets to her own. Phoebe's are bad enough.

When his niece goes missing, from Hotel LaBelle, Bert goes to Montana to help, and Phoebe decides to go with him. Can these two hard-headed people share their darkest secrets in order to work together? It may be the only way to save an endangered child—and their own hearts when Bert's past rears its ugly head.

FINALIST: Audiobook: Paranormal/Mystery

Magic of the Loch by Karen Michelle Nutt

For readers who enjoy stories filled with curses, mystery, and romance with a dash of nostalgic hope for a future—this twist on the Loch Ness Monster legend is the perfect tale to spark the imagination…

Michaela Grant travels to Scotland for a holiday, knowing this vacation is her last. A medical condition threatens her life and any chance of a future--until she meets Alan MacLachlin, a man forced to exist between two worlds.

Alan is the legendary Loch Ness Monster. Once every fifty years he returns to human form in search of his soul mate, the one woman who can break his curse. He believes he has found forever with Michaela, but to claim it he must figure out how to save her life.

Michaela and Alan vow to take what time has to offer, but another threat looms. A sinister shape shifter with a vendetta against Alan is making Loch Ness his personal hunting ground. Now he's threatening Michaela. Alan must discover who the shifter is and stop him before it's too late.

The purchase links are in each book's title...thanks for stopping by and Happy Holidays!

Ahh...Bliss!