Carrie Green

A must read for horror and poker fans alike! The star of Edward Owen's The Game is a maniacal blue-eyed CEO who, in Richard Branson fashion, is not just pursuing the thrill of death defying stunts, but setting up an elaborate game of winner-take-all Texas Hold Em against Las Vegas' reigning poker pros. He wants to pit himself against the pros in order to gain the prestige of proving himself to be the best player.

To this goal, a technological wonder of a secret lair, 500 feet underground, has been created. In a grand entrance, equal to any James Bond criminal mastermind, our evil tycoon, Darius Wellington, appears "…the panel across from the table slid open and a man in a gray Armani suit entered the room."

The pros soon discover that they are not playing for money. It was not enough to drug and kidnap his unwilling competitors; Darius has provided them with life or death motivation. The poker tournament room is surrounded by nine glass cells that fill, or drain, with water, depending upon a player's stack of chips. Trapped in each cell is a poker pro's loved one—a spouse, a child, a parent, or a sibling.

Not only must they play against Darius and each other, but they must win, or their loved ones will drown in front of them. A dedicated security force follows Darius' every order. There is no escape or rescue, every player is wearing a bracelet that delivers a debilitating electric shock if they don't do as commanded—play the game!

No spoilers provided here—read this non-stop thriller to discover what happens, but know that you'll never look at a televised poker game or view the slow shuffle of a deck of cards, in quite the same way…

The Game can be purchased at Amazon.

Stopping by today is Beth Elisa Harris, author of VISION (a stunning debut novel that introduces Layla, a seventeen year old with the ability to read minds and predict events, who leaves Portland for college in Cambridge, England to discover that she has a greater purpose in life than pursuing a four year education) and its recently released sequel, SOUL HERDER.  Her third book, still in the works, will be WRITTEN IN TIME.  She was kind enough to share her experiences in writing a trilogy and, specifically, how to make sure that your sequel isn't second best.

We're all familiar with the concept of sequels from years of watching movies.  Sadly, many sequels are emotionally bankrupt enterprises that seem to lose steam, but there have always been the happy exceptions—James Cameron's Terminator series, for example.  The reinvention of the Terminator character and the growth of John Connor into his role as a leader and hero over time was genius and it brings to mind the character development that Beth has implemented for her clairvoyance trilogy.

It was important to Beth that her main character, Layla, should mature and evolve throughout the three books.  She has given careful consideration on how to present her character's story to new readers as well as those who have read the first book (and don't want to be bogged down with back-story).  Reader engagement, whether new or returning, will come from her characters' emotional transformation. 

"I believe love and forgiveness transforms people, and this is what really changes Layla, even with all the other crazy stuff going on. It is her connection with people, and forgiving, that sets her free and opens her eyes," shared Beth.

"Without giving the story away, it’s a game-changer," Beth continued, "Layla goes from isolated bookworm to a significant global citizen almost overnight.  My hope is when readers finish SOUL HERDER they will recognize that this is a story about transformation, connection, power, and fulfilling destiny."

WRITTEN IN TIME will conclude the trilogy.  When pressed, Beth revealed that it will go further back into history to unveil how Layla’s prophesy came to be, along with the origins of the Bane's quest for revenge.  Beth is aiming for a release towards the end of the year.

I can't wait!

To purchase VISION and SOUL HERDER visit Beth's Amazon Author Page.