The Highway Cafe's 5 day CHRISTMAS TOUR and GIVEAWAY 2017

Go to end of blog for tour schedule!  

 

   Did you know the first known written account of reindeer in association with Santa Claus occurred in 1821? That year, William Gilley published a sixteen page booklet introducing the reindeer into the Santa Claus narrative: 

   In 1823, The Night Before Christmas poem not only featured eight flying reindeer pulling Santa's sleigh, but for the first time, they were given names:

   Originally, Donner and Blitzen were called 'Dunder and Blixem, Dutch words for thunder and lightning. Over the years, through various publishing houses, the names changed. 

      Of course, the magic of how reindeer fly is another story, and I'm not allowed to tell that secret to humans!   

Greetings, I'm Moon Shadow, one of Santa's smallest elves. I help in the kitchen making cookies and candies. I'll see you at the party. I hope they play my favorite song, White Christmas. May your holidays be merry and bright. 
   
Thank you for stopping by!

For a chance to win an e-copy of A Cowboy's Fate, winner of the Maple Leaf Award, just leave a comment below.

    

  Winner drawn at random, 

        and announced Dec. 11. 

                                                      
        This winter, warm up 

with a Hot Time in the Old West. 

        Available here SPECIAL DELIVERY only $2.99

Clover City, Colorado—1888

A mysterious letter and the drop-dead handsome town marshal, are the last things Mariah expects to find making rounds as a midwife.

Mariah McAllister plans to be married before her next birthday. Too bad Marshal Virgil Kincaid barely knows she’s alive. Not one to give up easily, she’s determined to show him she has an abiding passion for more than her work.

Virgil Kincaid loved a woman once—after she broke his heart, he spent three years in prison. Women can’t be trusted, no matter how good they look. He’s sworn off relationships in favor of Saturday night poker games. Life is simple—the way he wants it…until a stranger turns up dead in the road.

Forced to work side by side with Mariah, Virgil begins to wonder if she might be his second chance at love. As they trade kisses and oh so much more, he’s willing to take the gamble. But when a killer threatens their once peaceful town, all bets are off. 

Join the Five days of fun and prizes  

December 4

Holland Rae - https://hollandrae.com/

Susanne Matthews - https://mhsusannematthews.wordpress.com/

Sorchia DuBois - www.sorchiadubois.com

Mariah Lynne -

December 5

Tena Stetler - http://www.tenastetler.com/category/my-say-what-blog/

Maureen Bonatch - http://www.maureenbonatch.com/blog/

Peggy Jaeger - https://peggyjaeger.com/

Barbara Burke - https://barbaraburkeauthor.wordpress.com/

December 6

Kelly Kalmanson – http://kkweil.blogspot.com

M.S. Spencer - http://msspencertalespinner.blogspot.com

Hywela Lyn - www.hywelalyn.blogspot.com

Reggi Allder – https://reggiallder.blogspot.com/

December 7

Denyse Bridger - http://www.fantasypages.ca

Clair de Lune - https://clairdelunebooks.co.uk/

Karen Blake-Hall - https://kaydenclaremont.wordpress.com/ 

Casi McLean - http://casimclean.com/a-christmas-to-remember/

December 8

Darlene Fredette - http://findingthewritewords.blogspot.com

Daryl Devore - http://daryldevore.blogspot.ca

Gini Rifkin - http://ginirifkin.blogspot.com

Linda Carroll-Bradd - http://blog.lindacarroll-bradd.com

                          MERRY CHRISTMAS 

How about a lovely box of Vampires for Christmas!

                        

NEW,                                  FOREVER LOVE                             A VAMPIRE BOXED SET                                    Available now!                                     Buy at Amazon         Holidays have you on the edge?  Need something to  get your mind off of shopping, cooking, and  everything else? Why not check out the "Forever  Love" digital boxed set from the Wild Rose Press?   Featuring vampires who will make you forget about  working your fingers to the bones.    Indulge yourself in the lure of the night, and see  what happens when my vamp, Zacke in "Kensington's Soul" takes a bite!                                                                                  Faith V. Smith Kensington's Soul  by Faith V. Smith Four centuries ago, a spurned lover damned Lord Zachary Kensington to eternity as a vampire. Convinced no woman could love the beast within, he concentrates his attention on the quest for redemption. He now stalks evil in the 21st century as a police detective.  After being car-jacked, Miranda James falls hard and fast for the seductive Detective Zacke Kensington, but the closer she gets to him the more elusive he becomes.  Now Zacke’s ex-lover and vampire plans Miranda as her next meal. He must stop her vindictive murder spree before she turns Savannah into a city of carnage. Then he’ll claim Miranda as his.   Buy at Amazon

                         

Bumble Bee Bats

The smallest mammal in the world.

         I like bats. They're fascinating in appearance and ability. Watching them while camping is always a great show, and while I've yet to have bats in my belfry, I have had one in the woodstove. 
   

 This tiny bat weighs less than 2 grams. Its body is about the size of a large bumblebee, hence the common name “bumblebee bat”. 

  Prior to 1974, Kitti's hog-nosed bat was unknown to the world at large. This name refers to it's discoverer, Thai zoologist Kitti Thonglongya. After Thonglongya died suddenly in February 1974, his British partner, John Hill described the species, giving it the name in honor of his colleague

    Since that time this tiny mammal has been hunted and harassed by collectors and tourists wanting to see the world’s smallest mammal. Today the main threats are from burning of the forested areas near the limestone caves in which it lives. 

  Its relatively wide wings are darker in color, and have long tips which enable the bat to hover like a hummingbird.It is thought to have last shared a common ancestor with other species around 43 million years ago. 

Bumble Bee bats roost at the back of caves or remote caverns. Group size varies from as few as 10 individuals to as many as 500, although most caves contain around 100 bats. The bats spread out across the ceiling of the caves so that they do not

come into contact with one another. At dawn and dusk they leave their caves for around 20-30 minutes to forage for food. The bats primarily use echolocation to hunt small insects on the wing, although they may also glean small spiders and beetles from plant leaves.
 
 They do not make good pets, so don't even go there. And, the species is protected under the Wild Animals Reservation and Protection Act (WARPA) in Thailand. 

PORTENCE 4 STARS "Great ending to a spectacular trilogy!"

         Thank you Kam at  Superkambrook.com
                        

November 3, 2017SuperKam

Format: Paperback

(review request submitted by the author for an honest critique)

In the third and final installment in the Fae Warriors trilogy, I expected loads of action and Gini delivered…. starting in chapter one. There was green blood and Reps’ brain matter flying here, there…. every-freaking-where. It was a disgusting, fantastic scene — much like a few others. I will shall a few places in the book that stood out for me the most.

1.) Hoover Rats. Ok, I don’t like regular rats but Gini has rats flying around and their packing weapons… aka egg bombs. Just no. Please no. I hope rats never fly, let alone come ready for battle with ANYTHING!

2.) Portence and Malachi’s love scene: It has fun, sex, creative….. magical. Most importantly, it was memorable and that says a lot because, as an avid reader, I have read A LOT of love scenes.

3.) I have no desire to ever step one toe onto Dermis III. To survive there, you have to literally shed your skin once every 24 hours due to superficial bugs and viruses. Nope. If I have to live on another planet I want to stay on one resembling Hawaii. Bikinis 24-7, 365 days a year!

As with the above sections of Portence, I enjoyed the final battle scene. After a fiery start, Gini had both sides using whatever tools were at their disposal. You’ll see magic utilized, the elements, man-made weaponry, and even hand-to-hand combat. In the end, you know who wins but maybe you won’t guess so easily what happens to the Fae sisters and their counterparts aka their one true loves. I was happy with the ending and I think you’ll be satisfied as well.

With humor, romance, action, and reptilian aliens running amuck, this book is a must buy.

Solace available at...
AMAZON  Barnes & Noble  WILD ROSE PRESS

Bliss available at...
AMAZON  Barnes & Noble  WILD ROSE PRESS

Portence available at...

AMAZON  Barnes & Noble  WILD ROSE PRESS

Romance in a Basket #8---5 FREE BOOKS

                  

             From Still Moments Magazine 
                  another great give away... 
           Win 5 e-books including both of my 
             award winning Western Romances. 
                   It's FREE, take a chance!

                          Drawing 10/30/17
                 Go here to enter free give-away    
       

Publisher's Pick

Clover City, Colorado—1888

A mysterious letter and the drop-dead handsome town marshal, are the last things Mariah expects to find making rounds as a midwife. 

Mariah McAllister plans to be married before her next birthday. Too bad Marshal Virgil Kincaid barely knows she’s alive. Not one to give up easily, she’s determined to show him she has an abiding passion for more than her work.

Virgil Kincaid loved a woman once—after she broke his heart, he spent three years in prison. Women can’t be trusted, no matter how good they look. He’s sworn off relationships in favor of Saturday night poker games. Life is simple—the way he wants it…until a stranger turns up dead in the road. 

Forced to work side by side with Mariah, Virgil begins to wonder if she might be his second chance at love. As they trade kisses and oh so much more, he’s willing to take the gamble. But when a killer threatens their once peaceful town, all bets are off.  

Maple Leaf Award 

Colorado, 1880

When East End London meets the Wild West, sparks fly.

   Kicked out of England for offending the Royal Family, Britania Rule heads for Leadville, in the Colorado backcountry. Passing herself off as a highborn lady, she pursues her dream of opening a parlor of spiritual enlightenment.

 Cody James, her guide, thinks he must be half-crazy to hire-out to a female. But his luck at the gaming tables has run dry, and she’s his meal-ticket out of town. Betrayed by the only woman he ever loved, and shot and left for dead by a man he once called friend, Cody declares himself a loner.

   Traveling side by side, they deny their desire for one another, but the Tarot cards say otherwise—and their hot night of passion confirms the prediction. Will love be waiting at the end of the trail? Or could Cody’s past destroy their future? 

Who wrote Beowulf? One author's Romantic theory.

   Beowulf—the very name steps up my pulse rate and floods my mind with images of a larger than life Storm Geat warrior. A pagan hero of great integrity who faced a changing political environment, an otherworldly enemy, and a lonely existence. 

No other epic poem has elicited such heated debates.

  

How old is the manuscript? Who conceived of this intricately woven tale, a saga written in a language the main character’s ears never heard, with a poetic text flavored with religious inferences from a faith he never practiced?
  

     Pondering these questions, I wrote Iron Heart, 

              where history, myth and romance

                          meet and catch fire.  

Cover Art by Debbie Taylor, 
original Beowulf manuscript 
can be seen in background!

  

                   Follow Beowulf's ancestor, 

                      Tyne Farren Kilbraun,                             

                  and explore one possibility. 

              

England: circa. 879 A.D.
    With the heart of a warrior and the soul of a poet, Faran Kilbraun travels far from home in search of the sword and shield of his ancestors. Protecting the ancient relics was his responsibility. Now, to regain his honor, he must recover the stolen artifacts and battle a life-long enemy.  

   Following the accidental death of her cruel husband, Leanora Wrenn is wrongly accused of his murder. Forced into exile, a small north shore island becomes her lonely refuge—exoneration her only hope. 

    When Faran discovers Leanora's remote sanctuary, both their lives are changed forever. Comrades-in-arms, they fight side by side for their chance at redemption and love.             

AMAZON   Barnes & Noble  WILD ROSE PRESS

                 PRAISE for IRON HEART

 Vicki at Sizzling Hot Books gave it 5 out of 5 hearts and states “Iron Heart gives the classic epic adventures a run for their money. 

     Rifkin weaves a tale of romance and adventure that could easily be shared around a blazing campfire. Fans of mythology and epic adventures will enjoy Ms Rifkin's book...Veronica Marie Beaumont at The Romance Reviews 

 The Medieval Chronicle. “A wonderfully captivating blend of medieval history and fantasy.”

Excerpt:
                     Faran, the Iron Heart.
   It was a name that set one’s mind to wondering.
Did he pride himself on disallowing any woman to
touch his cold hard heart? Did he woo ladies into
love trysts with promises of treasure and pleasure
only to tragically desert them?
    For certes he was unlike anyone Leanora had
ever known. He approached life fearlessly, as if he
dared anyone to cross his path, his mood, or the
territory he called his own. And his generous mouth
was an unbidden fascination. It could accommodate
a childlike smile, tempering all the fierceness he
worked so hard to portray. Or it could accommodate
a reassuring smile, making her believe everything in
her troubled world would be all right.
     He was handsome to be sure—with a rock hard
body, images of which occupied her thoughts much
too often. And his mind was also intriguing, and as strikingly developed as his form. It was a quality
Leanora truly admired. Knowledge could be a
powerful weapon, and Faran appeared well armed.
   To her benefit, he seemed preoccupied with the
present and not with prying into her past. Nor did
he threaten to rule her future. He treated her
differently, he treated her like...a friend. 
   The idea stunned her. Life had never afforded her the opportunity to know or cherish another person in
such a manner. Another new experience.
   Then a spark of yearning for more than mere
friendship flickered inside of her. You can never trust
a man, she chastised, you can only believe in
yourself. Unyielding logic cooled the fiery ember of
need, but not before it claimed the barren part of her never before touched by warmth or light

If the Fae Warrior Trilogy became a graphic novel

   Don't we all dream of our stories becoming movies? We even know which actor and actress we would cast as the hero and heroine. We'd be thrilled to see our characters jump off the page into another medium.

  Or how about a graphic novel,

 or a Marvel comic? 

      For my Fae Warriors books, 

       the cast of characters, might look like this.

                      The Fae Warrior sisters: 
          



Solace, holds sway over Air,
spirit of the East
               







Bliss, an empath, 
with the ability 
to compel.                

           









Portence, controls fire, 
spirit of the South.
                                     

                                          

The Heroes...  

Tanner Jackson, Ex-Army Ranger, Solace's partner, 
fearless in the face of 
the enemy---human or Reptile.

   
Nate Calhoun, cowboy/scientist. Bliss' partner and the inventor of the laser shotgun.  

                
            




 Malachi, Fae/sorcerer and Port's partner. 
  Defender of "white" magic, he has a score to settle with Thurax.

                 

 Noodge, a Rapran (short for Rapacious Ranivorous) the Fae's faithful companion. He faces down gnarly Reptiles without hesitation.
  

                     
  Mother Nature, a tough love parent, overseeing all as she fights to save her favorite planet, Earth. 

                                 The Villains...
                 

The Reptiles, alien creatures, primitive yet cleaver, with opposing thumbs, a penchant for weaponry, and a love for fighting. 



                         

   Thurax, an otherworldly mercenary warrior, bred for fighting, and out for revenge as he seeks to lead  the Reptiles to victory.

    

  Xandora, obsessed with taking over planet Earth. 
She's as insane as she is beautiful.



                     


  Hephaestus, god of fire and crafts, son of Zeus and henchman  to Xandora. 

   Gorlock, would-be wizard, turned to the dark arts, resentful, and at odds with Malachi.






         

 I'm still waiting for Marvel comics to calls 😻, but you can read the Fae Warriors Trilogy in its original form, paperback or e-book. Join the adventure.

Solace Available here...
Bliss Available here...
Portence Available here...

        
                         Until then Dream On....