So let's get this out of the way, ODIUM ORIGINS A DEAD SAGA NOVELLA. PART ONE is out NOW!
Yep, the book that you asked me for after reading Odium and falling in hate/love with the characters. So, should I tell you who is inside it or make you wait? Naa, I'll tell you.
So, we have: The Street Rat, The Coward, The Lovers & The Hero. What? You didn't think that I was really going to tell you did you? And ruin the surprise, hee hee. I can't wait to hear what you all think of it, after all, this was spawned because of your love for Odium.
So, go pick it up. It's a long one considering it is a novella at 50'000 words, so it should keep you goin for the next couple of days haha.
Here's the purchase links:

 USA Amazon link

http://goo.gl/V0rkqY

UK Amazon link.

 http://goo.gl/WTFhX2

I'm still formatting the paperback, or rather I've actually got a formatter to format it for me, since I totally suck at it! I'd like to introduce Karen Perkins author and publishing services extraordinair to my team. or mine to hers, or something like that. She's hopefully going to be formatting my books for me from now on. She writes some super cool books herself, pirate adventures and ghost stories and is lovely, so go check her out. http://www.lionheartgalleries.co.uk/

I also want to introduce my gorgeous and hilarious editor to you. **drum roll please** Welcome, Amy Jackson of Amy Jackson Editing https://www.facebook.com/#!/amyjacksonediting?fref=ts Any authors looking for a good editor should look her up.

So 2013 brought you Limerence - Odium - Odium Origins - not to forget my short stories - The Owl and The Witch (my submission in One Hellacious Halloween anthology by horror NOvel reviews, Life Ever After (Part one of Nina's story submitted intot he Fusion anthology) Jack (Flash fiction on Books of the Dead Press site), Dancing Bear (submission to the Pen&Muse showcase) and Honey-Bee (horror and thriller month).

So what about 2014? What am I working on ready to bring you?
Well there's Limerence. And you're finally going to meet the new Mia and see what's been happening to her.
I have Odium II coming to you (tentative release date March/April)
There will be another Odium Origins novella after the release of Odium II.
I've been working on a romantic horror/crime book called Chance Encounters which I'm hoping to get out by the end of the year, and there's also a lot of short stories coming out too.
And that's just scratching the surface.


I'll also be bringing you plenty of new authors to get to know, interviews, giveaways, sales, cover reveals and much more, so make sure to sign up to my newsletter and keep up to date with everything.
As followers of my blog/page etc know, I like to keep in touch with you all, so pleases feel free top stop by and send me pictures, messages and book reccomendations at any point.

Which brings me nicely on to my next point. What were my favourite books of 2013?
Honestly? I'm not sure. As you know I read a very wide variety of books, from horror, zombie, dystopian, post-apocalyptic, romance, erotica, and one of my favourites--it's a new genre I like to call 'fucked up romances.' You know the ones that don't neatly fit into the normal romance, or contemporary romancce, or the sexy romance. The ones that like to take it above and beyond 'just being a story' and bring it slap bang into reality. Those ones. I like those. for me a good book has characters that you can connect with in some way or where the author shows no fear in their writing, they aren't afraid of their characters. So, I'm going to pick a handful of authors - with a brief category listing- on who I think you should keep an eye on in 2014.
For what it's worth anyway.

'Fucked up romance' - I have to name my girl Amy Queau. She wrote a fantastic series called  The Progress Series. It's NOT your usual book. The characters are real, the storyline is gritty. You should just read this.I seriously can't wait to see what she comes up with in 2014.

Fantasy/science fiction - Eli Constant. Man, this gorgeous lady keeps knocking good books out like there's no tomorrow and I predict great things for her. she's written several books, Dead trees (a personal post-apocaalyptic favourite) Drag.n, and the wonderful Mastic. All brilliant books.

Horror/zombie - I've always been a massive fan of Mark Tufo and his brilliant Zombie Fallout series, Todd brown and his 'Dead' series and Armand Rosamilia and his Dying Days series, but this year I got speaking to another great zombie writer. Not only is he a super cool guy, but I've read two of his books now and am absolutely loving the journey he's taking me on. His name is Jack Wallen. Author of I Zombie I and other such in the series, and you should seriously look him up.

Sexy/romance/erotica/ - Other authors that I discovered this year and fell in love with their writing would be - Madeline sheehan, CJ Roberts & Paige Mathews, Chloe Hart.

That's it. That's your lot. I'm not going to make this some huge long-winded list, there's enough of those around at the moment. You know where my goodreads shelf is, you can see all the books that I've read and what else I'd recommend by looking there, or hell, just come and ask
me.




So I'll bid you adieu, and I'll see you in 2014!
Don't be shy. And thank you, all of you, for everything. For every shout out on someones blog, every review, every recommendation, every like and comment. I appreciate it all, and I can't wait to bring you more work in the new year.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! 

Claire C Riley ♥

                                                                                        The Street Rat.



“You got it?” Mikey shouts over to me.

I nod a yes, and stab the zombie in the head again, just to be sure. Always best to be sure. I learned the hard way on that
one. If I was ever squeamish about this shit, that ship has long since sailed. If anything, I find it a little fascinating these days—the way the blood has blackened and congealed, yet the brain is still idling. I guess that’s the wannabe doctor in me. Not for the first time in the last six months, I think of my parents—well, I think of my pops, more precisely. My mom can go
rot for all I care. Even though he left me for dead, I hope he’s alive somewhere. I guess in a way I hope Mom is alive too; if she isn’t, then Pops will probably have given up and be rotting away somewhere. That or he’ll be one of these things. 
 
“Crunch, it’s fucking dead—again,” he adds. “What are you staring at?”

I look up at Mikey. “Just wondering what makes them, I don’t know, tick?”

“Who cares?” He shrugs.

“I do, I guess.” I shrug too and stand up. “I mean, is it a disease or what?”

“What does it matter?”

“It matters because…” My words trail off when I see his bored expression. Dude has no time for any of the technical stuff.
Like a true macho man, he sees it, he kills it, he moves on. No discussion, no thought process. Like a fucking caveman.

“Look, we’re alive, they’re dead. We need to kill them before they kill us. It’s simple. Don’t overthink it.” He looks
serious for a change. “I can’t figure you out. One minute you’re tough and the next you’re soft. I can’t figure out who’s protecting who.”

I pause, letting his words sink in. Normally I’d come back with some smart-ass remark, but my heart isn’t in it today. “Let’s
get going.” I walk away with a huff.

“I’m sorry if that offends you,” he calls after me. 

I turn back around and see another zombie coming out from behind some trees. “Move out of the way,” I shout—unnecessarily, since the zombie isn’t close enough to actually hurt him. Mikey steps out of my way regardless and I charge
 at the zombie, remembering all the times Pops had gotten me to train and use these weapons. I’m not just a street rat, I’m
 a motherfucking warrior child. I jump up into the air and bring down both my kukris on either side of the zombie’s neck, landing with a soft thud in a crouching position. The head falls from the zombie’s shoulders and rolls over
 to Mikey’s feet, the eyes still blinking up at him. 
 
“Does that answer your question?” I snap and walk away again.

“Fuck me!” he mumbles.

                                The Hero.





“Johnathon Timothy Daily, you are found guilty of first degree assault with a deadly weapon. You are therefore sentenced to ten years’ imprisonment, with the chance of parole after a serving a minimum of eight years.” The judge
looks down at the papers in his hands before looking back up to me, his cool gray eyes full of disdain.“I can’t tell you how disappointed I am that someone of your caliber could do such a thing. For whatever reason, on July seventh, you decided to take matters into your own hands, not only attacking a man before finding out if he was actually guilty of the crime which you were accusing him of, but using a heavy object to repeatedly beat him into unconsciousness.”

The courtroom erupts into whispers around me. Maybe they think I’m lucky, maybe they think Mr. Fucking Davies is lucky that I didn’t kill him. I don’t know and I don’t care. That’s wrong—I do care, but it doesn’t mean I’d change a damn thing about what I did. My cheap shirt sticks to my muscles, making me even more uncomfortable, my anger making me sweat.

 “Silence!” Judge Corresdone yells and slams his gavel down onto the wood block repeatedly. “You have left me no choice
but to carry out this sentence, since you have shown no remorse whatsoever for your actions. If it were not for Mr. Davies’ neighbor calling the police, I do not think you would have stopped until he was dead. Fortunately for you, the police
arrived in time to stop you from committing an even further barbaric assault on an otherwise innocent man.”

I slam my fists against the small desk in front of me, my chains rattling, and grind my teeth, my anger bubbling to the
surface. No, I wouldn’t have stopped. That asshole deserved everything he got. I look across at him, his smug face leering back at me. 

“Mr. Daily?” Judge Corresdone shouts my name and I look up at him through hate-filled eyes. “If it wasn’t for your
background serving your country, you would be receiving a much longer sentence, so be grateful for that.” He eyes me
with disappointment and a shake of his head. “Guards, escort Mr. Daily away.”

I turn to look at Amy, tears pouring silently down her cheeks. Ben, our son, is nowhere to be seen—probably with Amy’s mother. I would have liked to see him one more time before I’m sent away; who knows when I’ll be able to see him again.
I shake my head, all the anger deflating, and self-pity filling the emptiness left behind. I don’t regret doing what I did,
but I do regret that I won’t get to watch my son grow up. He’ll be eleven when I get out, and he won’t know me. Tears fill my own eyes as the guards approach. I blow a kiss to Amy, and mouth that it’ll be all right. But we both know that’s a
lie. I won’t allow her to wait for me. Eight years is too long. She’s a beautiful, young, intelligent woman, and I’m not going to let her waste her life waiting for me.

The guards lead me away, out the back of the courtroom, down some steps, and to the waiting van outside. I step up and inside it, and as the doors shut behind me I say goodbye to my life.

I'm happy to introduce to you all today, the lovely Shayna Varadeaux. She's here to tell us all about her latest book and unveil her gorgeous new cover. She's also given us two sneaky peak excerpts of the story, so have a read, go give her a like and add this to yout tbr shelf. I know I have.
(Seriously, I really have!)



Author Bio:

Shayna is a happily married mom of three teenagers and a native Texan. She is a highly addicted reader and an avid reviewer with a love for generating buzz for other authors.

“Life is chaos and reading is my relaxation. Writing comes second only to my family and my music. I love playing the bass and singing backup vocals for my husband. A tattoo artist turned author, following my dream and loving it!"

"I am currently writing True Fate, my first YA Paranormal Fiction! I hope to publish by the end of the year or the beginning of next year. Luckily I have my best friend who is also my supportive husband to cheer me on. I'm definitely looking forward to the painful journey of becoming a self-published author!”

Follow me:
 
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 ADD My Upcoming Book True Fate To Your TBR

As always...

Happy reading!

Claire ♥

Ho, Ho, Ho, Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year! oh wait, I'm a little early to the christmas celebrations aren't I?

Hmmm, how about an epic Fridaay the 13th giveaway? One to 'end all giveaways' instead? (said, in a creepy voice) Well, maybe not to end all giveaways, but it's pretty effing cool if I do say so myself, and is going to cost me a small fotune to post out to you, but of course you're all worth it.

So, head on over to my Facebook page and enter. Tag, share and spread the Christmas love to all your fellow zombie lovers!
https://www.facebook.com/ClaireCRileyAuthor


While I've got your attention with all this epic-ness, a couple of reminders. Number one, if you have read and of my books, Limerence, Odium or any of my short stories, i would really appreciate any reviews you can find the time to write. Don't worry, I don't expect a huge article, just a quick yes or no as to if you enjoyed it or not. Believe it or not, reviews make a huge amount of difference on Amazons algorithms, effectively making books more visible to other readers.

Secondly, make a date in your calender, because ODIUM ORIGINS. A DEAD SAGA NOVELLA, comes out on the 27th December! Only two weeks to go! You asked me for more information on some of your favourite characters from odium, and I worked my butt off getting it to you, but it's here, or will be very soon.
I'm hoping to get Odium II to you around March time if everything goes to plan, and the long awaited sequel to Limerence should be April/May I hope.
After that??? don't worry, I have tons more up my sleeve for next year. Enough to keep thrilling and chilling you well into 2014-2015. So watch this space.

Thanks again to everyone who has purchased, reviewed, contactced me, shared, tweeted, and help spread my books about. I truly appreciate it more than you know, and I'll keep on striving to bring you great stories.

Big love,

happy reading

Claire xxx