#Book Blast - The Final Ultimatum

Please join author Unoma Nwankwor as she tours the blogosphere with Write Now Literary Book Tours and her new release The Final Ultimatum, October 21, 2016.

Book Title: The Final Ultimatum

ASIN: B01LQO2F60

Author: Unoma Nwankwor

Publication Date:  Oct 21, 2016

Genre: Christian Romance

About The Book

For the second time in Olanma Obinze-Rice’s life love hasn’t been good to her. Five years ago, a repossessed car and the looming threat of eviction, left Olanma Obinze-Rice in dire need of cash. Then out of the blue, she landed an interview of a lifetime that would solve all her problems. But she had to go through former bad boy and heir of Rice Holdings, Abayomi Rice. One ultimatum, a whirlwind romance and a life scare later, Olanma and Abayomi were married.

Now all Olanma wants is to be free. Free from her rocky marriage, manipulative husband and overbearing father. If everything goes according to plan, she’ll be divorced and free from her father’s clutches by her thirtieth birthday. All she has to do is wrap up one last business deal. Once he gets divorce papers, Abayomi Rice knows his wife has called his bluff. He didn’t mean to manipulate her but her broken promises and inability to stand up to her father tore them apart.

Despite their present state, the finality of a divorce is not an option. He wants his wife back. With his sister’s wedding coming up, he sets his plan in motion and issues one final ultimatum- pretend to be a happy couple one last time. Their farce leads to unexpected healing of their hearts, but then life throws another wrench in the plan. An ultimatum brought them together will this final one tear them apart?

About The Author

Born in Akron, Ohio to Nigerian parents, Unoma Nwankwor is a multi-published author and 2015 winner of the Nigerian Writers’ Award for Best Faith Based Fiction. Her readers are in love with her unique story telling that fuses faith, romance and African spice, capturing the essence of her present home base; Atlanta and her Nigerian culture. She is also the COO ofKevStel Group LLC and resides in Atlanta with her husband and two kids.

Excerpt

“Nma, so where’s this husband you keep saying you have?” Abayomi heard the man say as he approached.

Olanma giggled and then abruptly stopped. Abayomi knew that in that moment she sensed his presence. She turned sideways, but the man she was with was so busy checking her out that he didn’t see Abayomi walk up.

“If he’s not taking care of…”

“I hear you’re looking for me and I take care of my wife just fine.” Abayomi came to a halt between Olanma and the man.

The look of shock on both their faces was satisfying. Nma? He couldn’t believe she allowed another man to call her that. Not even her father called her “beauty.” Only two people had that privilege – he and her grandmother. Or so he thought.

Abayomi snaked his arm around his wife’s waist and kissed her hair. He then stretched out his other hand to the man. “Abayomi Rice, said husband.”

The expression on the man’s face switched from shock to embarrassment. At least he had some shame.

After a few moments, he heard his wife say, “Yomi, this is Emeka Maduka, an old friend.”

Old friend? That’s what she thought. The man wanted her. Abayomi wasn’t fooled. He wrote the book on old friends. It was time to cut this little reunion short. “It was nice meeting you. I’ll take my wife now.”

Abayomi didn’t wait for a response before he ushered Olanma out of the ballroom. He found a secluded area where they could talk. He stared at her and began to pace. He had never been good at hiding his possessive nature.

“Yomi, that was rude and what are you doing here?” Olanma asked in a hushed whisper.

“Apparently, reminding you that you’re still my wife.”

She stared at him in disbelief. “No, I’m not doing this with you.”

“Really? Nma,” Abayomi said, his tone laced with irritation and sarcasm.

“You’ve got some nerve. You pop into Lagos two days ago, and then you don’t come home…” Her voice was shaky with rage. “I’m not doing this with you. Not here.” She began to walk away.

Abayomi exhaled. He was messing this up. “Olanma, wait.”

She stopped, but didn’t turn around.

“I’m sorry. I saw him touch you and then you laughed with him. I haven’t heard that sound in ages and I saw red.”

He hadn’t meant to reveal all that, but masked feelings were what had brought them to this point. If there was going to be a chance for them, they would have to lay down the masks. And since he was the one that was served with divorce papers, he had to take the first step. His prayer was that his vulnerability would lead them back to the intimacy they once shared. Where their souls were tied as one and hopefully rebuild their trust. He hoped she would see that.

Olanma walked back to him and stared at him intently. “It’s been a year. What did you expect? That I’d curl up and die?” She turned and walked away.

Her heated eyes showed him her soul. She was hurt, but so was he. This wasn’t what he imagined for them. Past the pain and anger he saw in her eyes, he also saw longing and love. It was clearer to him that restoring his marriage would be an uphill battle. Losing, however, wasn’t an option.

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Tour hosted by Write Now Literary Book Tours

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Susan Corbett - In the Belly of the Elephant - Virtual Book Tour

Non Fiction / Memoir

Date Published: December 18, 2013

Everybody needs to run away from home at least once. Susan Corbett told people she was out to save the world, but really she was running — running from her home as much as to anywhere. Like many women, she was searching for meaning to her life or for a good man to share it with. In Africa, she hoped to find both.

 Compelling and compassionate, In the Belly of the Elephant is Susan's transformative story of what happens when you decide to try to achieve world peace while searching for a good man. More than a fish-out-of-water story, it's a surprising and heart-rending account of her time in Africa trying to change the world as she battles heat, sandstorms, drought, riots, intestinal bugs, burnout, love affairs and more than one meeting with death. Against a backdrop of vivid beauty and culture, in a narrative interwoven with a rich tapestry of African myths and fables, Susan learns the true simplicity of life, and discovers people full of kindness, wisdom and resilience, and shares with us lessons we, too, can learn from her experiences.



Excerpt
The first time I met Death was in a tiny bush-town called Foequellie. It was said that the bush devil who sometimes came to town, dancing to a chorus of drummers, was Death. But he was just a local man dressed in rags and a wooden mask.

On a blue morning of sailing clouds, I crossed the clearing that separated my house from the two-room clinic—the only health facility within a 20-mile radius of thick bush and rain forest. A breeze carried the voices of chatting mothers and crying babies. It was Under Five’s Day, the weekly clinic for babies and children up to five years old. Well into my second year as a Peace Corps volunteer, I worked there, giving nutrition demonstrations and vaccinating children.

Awake from my morning cup of Nescafé and ready for the day, I passed through the dappled shade of a cottonwood tree. This was the town’s Ancestor Tree where the ghosts of great-great-grandfathers, great-aunts, uncles, and cousins hid in the hollows of the trunk with the snakes and spiders, and high up in the branches among the leaves and the ricebirds. The Ancestor Tree loomed next to a red dirt road that twisted its way around the clinic, past my house at the end of town, and on through hillside plots of rice, potato greens, and cassava.

Women with babies tied to their backs in cloth slings gathered at the clinic door. They entered and stacked their yellow “Road to Health” cards in a pile that reserved their place, and then sat on benches to wait their turn and catch up on local gossip.

James, the clinic janitor and local translator, joined me in the waiting room, a 20-by-10-foot space with a dirt floor and mud-plastered walls that smelled of baby pee and sweat.

We said our good mornings; then James explained the causes and treatment of diarrhea. I stood in the center, squeezing oranges into a bowl. As I demonstrated the pinch of salt and teaspoon of sugar needed to make rehydration fluid, a woman came in with a round-faced little girl in tattered shorts and cornrow braids. The two of them sat at the end of the bench, and the little girl laid her head on her mother’s shoulder and closed her eyes.

Over the next few hours, James and I worked with Francis, the local physician’s assistant and clinic “doctor.” We weighed babies, treated skin and stomach ailments, gave out malaria medication, and vaccinated against smallpox, whooping cough, and tetanus. Morning cool gave way to the heat of day, and the rooms grew stuffy. Sometime before noon, I walked back into the waiting room to call the next in line.

The woman with the little girl took her daughter’s hand to lead her in. The girl, about five years old, tried to stand but collapsed. Her mother caught her, and I ran to grasp the girl’s arm. Her skin burned, and her lips were chapped and dry. She breathed out a rattled sigh, and her head lolled to one side.

“Frances! James!” I called, and they came in an instant. 

__________________________________

A writer, community organizer, and consultant in program management, micro-enterprise development, family planning, and HIV/AIDS education, Susan Corbett began her community development career in 1976 as a Peace Corps Volunteer, working in a health clinic in Liberia, West Africa. In 1979, she joined Save the Children Federation as a program coordinator for cooperative and small business projects in Burkina Faso.  In 1982, Susan returned to the States where she has worked with local non-profits in drug and alcohol prevention for runaway youth, family planning, homelessness prevention, and immigrant issues.

Susan has traveled to over 40 countries in Europe, Africa, Asia, the Pacific and Caribbean, and Central and North America and has lived and worked in ten African countries over the past thirty years (Uganda, Tanzania, Mali, The Gambia, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, Mauritius, Tunisia, Nigeria, and Liberia). She lives in Colorado with her husband, Steve, her sons, Mitch & Sam, and her dog, Molly.

Contact Information
Website: http://www.susancorbettbooks.com/


Purchase Links
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/In-Belly-Elephant-Susan-Corbett-ebook/dp/B00HEXVXNE
Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/noresults/in-the-belly-of-the-elephant-susan-corbett/1117760316
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/545653

Final #SampleSunday from After the Pain

Here's the final sample from After the Pain before its release this Tuesday, Jan. 12. 

Enjoy!!

It was a peaceful walk, and I did feel myself relax as I wandered among the towering trees and listened to the rustling of leaves as small squirrels scurried about and birds fluttered from tree to tree. I became lost in thoughts of my life back home, my childhood, and my marriage. Thoughts of the handsome, copper-skinned Wade Ingram inundated my mind, and so lost was I in those thoughts that I lost awareness of my surroundings. So when I heard his voice, I was startled into paralysis. 

“Hi, there,” he said. 

I stood still, my heart pounding fiercely as if attempting to escape my chest. I turned and saw him sitting on the ground, his back against a tree as he twirled a stick around in his hand. Somehow, with sweat shimmering on his brow, he looked even more handsome. 

“Nice day for a walk,” he continued. 

I nodded, still glued to that spot on the path. “Yes, it is,” I managed to say. 

He sat there with a smile on his face, his eyes fixed on mine. In return, I stared at him, letting my eyes follow him as he got to his feet and slowly walked toward me. My breath caught in my throat when he stopped right in front of me...

Be sure to grab your copy on January 12!!!

#SampleSunday - After the Pain

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and if you didn't celebrate, I still hope you had a wonderful week! Here's a sample from my forthcoming book, After the Pain, which is Book I of my new Latter Rain Series-coming January 12, 2016. 

Enjoy!!

It smelled like rain the day I lost my mind.

As a matter of fact, the scent of rain clung to the air like an unfulfilled promise until the sun set. I spent that day, the entire day, sitting on my front porch, staring at nothing in particular. I can’t say I was deep in thought because I wasn’t. As a matter of fact, all that seemed to fill my head was static—white noise. It was as if someone had flipped the switch in my head from on to off. 

I just sat there and rubbed my hand over my freshly-cut hair, the hair I’d had cut because I just didn’t have the desire to keep it up, to go the beauty shop every week like I had in the past. I didn’t eat or drink anything. I didn’t use the toilet. I didn’t answer the phone when it rang. I didn’t smile or return the mailman’s hello. I didn’t wave when my neighbor greeted me. I didn’t utter a word or move a muscle until the sun began its daily descent. And once the moon took its place in the sky, I stood from my seat, walked out into my yard and fell to the ground. Pressing my face into the grass, I cried for the rain, begged for it to stop playing around and go ahead and pour down on me. In my mind, the rain would make things better, maybe water down some of the pain. I writhed on the ground, pulling up handfuls of grass until my tears dried and transformed into soft wails.

“LaVonda? You all right?” my neighbor, Bunny, shrieked when she stepped outside her house and saw me. What a dumb question that was. I was rolling around on the ground begging for rain, wasn’t I? Of course I wasn’t okay. And then I saw the worried expression on her face and the ugly dress on her body and all I could do was laugh. I laughed so hard that I started to cry again...

#BookBlast - BEJEWELED: A BEAUTIFUL BLEND by Chelle Ramsey

ABOUT CHELLE RAMSEY:

An original Georgia Peach, Chelle Ramsey is a fiction author, writing stories to encourage, empower, entertain and strengthen readers. Many of her stories are based in her birthplace of Atlanta or her husband’s hometown of Cincinnati, where readers can relate to local hot spots and events. She wants her readers (women and men) to become empowered to rise above adversity, with faith in God, and belief in themselves.

Chelle holds an MBA in Human Resource Management, which she puts to use in her property management role by day, while she writes her fiction novels by night. Her most important roles are those of a wife and mother of three. During her “me time,” she loves listening to music, and becomes enraptured with the enthralling stories of Terry McMillan, and Nora Roberts. She especially relishes trying to solve the engaging mysteries of James Patterson and Stuart Woods, while eating a bowl of her favorite butter pecan ice cream. Chelle resides in a rural community of Atlanta, GA and enjoys writing, family time, and watching NBA games with her husband.

CONTACT INFO:

BLOG:  www.chelleramsey.com/beautifully-inspired-blog

WEBSITE: www.chelleramsey.com

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorChelleRamsey?ref=hl

FACEBOOK_NOVEL: https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-House-of-BeJeweled-Novels/385049478363422?ref=hl

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/ChellesBooks

EMAIL: chelleramseywrites@gmail.com

INSTAGRAM: https://instagram.com/chelleramseybooks/

GOODREADS: https://www.goodreads.com/goodreadscom_Chelle

PURCHASE BOOKS:

AMAZON: C. Michelle Ramsey Amazon or Chelle Ramsey Amazon

PAPERBACKS: (HOBJ1) https://www.createspace.com/4706061; (HOBJII) https://www.createspace.com/5546573; and (HOBJ111)

BOOK BLURB:

BEJEWELED: A BEAUTIFUL BLEND

Olivia believes she can have it all.  A successful business and a loving husband. But his ex-wife is not ready to walk away, and continues to threaten any chance he and Olivia might have at happiness. When Olivia discovers she’s being stalked, secrets her mother took to the grave come creeping out.

The baby Nikki and Carlos have been planning is finally on the way. One problem…the paternity is at question, and Carlos is in the dark. To protect her secrets, Nikki’s ready to sever ties to both men that hold the key to her heart. But one half of her heart won’t let go, and the other half is willing to fight until the end. The birth of her child may lead to the death of her marriage.

One test has the power to determine the truth. One test will change their lives forever.

Deception will bring separation, and destiny will mend two broken hearts. And in the end, everyone must work together to create a beautiful blend.

EXCERPT:

Nikki woke with a throbbing pain in her head and neck. Looking around she noticed she was hooked up to an IV and oxygen. Her eyes grew wide as she noticed the monitors beeping overhead. Where was she? Then it all came back. She had told Carlos the truth and he didn’t handle it too well.

She recalled pulling on him, and him pulling away. She remembered falling backwards. Nothing more. She looked around and didn’t see anyone at first. Trying to sit up, she felt a pain so intense in her head that she had to lie back down.

“Nikki, don’t try sitting up, Chula,” her mother affectionately called out. She smiled as she always did when her mother called her ‘pretty girl.’ “Here, let me help you,” her mother stated, pushing a button to lift Nikki’s bed up.

“Mami, the bebé?” she inquired. She noticed her stomach was still large, but she didn’t feel any kicking or anything and worried she may have caused damage to her unborn fetus.

“El bebé is just fine, Chula. Un momento. The doctors will be here,” she said, patting her hand.

“Yamile?” she asked about her sister. She wanted to talk to her in private to find out what had happened with Carlos. She didn’t dare bring his name up to her mother, because she never had anything positive to say about her husband.

“She—” her mother began, just as Yamile walked into the room with a tired, but encouraging smile on her face.

“Nikki!” she called out. “I’m so glad you came around, your hard headed butt had me worried. Mami, can you please go ahead and get your coffee, and get me some juice and some chips while you’re at it?” Yamile said, handing her mother a ten dollar bill.

“But—”

“Pullleeezz, Mami,” Yamile begged. “Don’t worry about Nikki. I’ll stay here with her until you get back. I promise nothing will happen to her. I’m here,” Yamile bragged, flexing her arms to show off her muscles.

“Alright. I’ll be right back!” her mother scolded in her heavily accented voice.

Yamile hesitated a moment, placed her finger to her lip to stall any questions Nikki might have, and then ran to the hospital room door. She peeked out before closing it back again.

“Look, we got a few minutes before old nosey comes back,” Yamile said, lovingly referring to her mother. “I just got off the phone with Wesley and he said he’d be here within 20 minutes.”

“What? Why’d you call him, Milli?” Nikki choked out. Her head was still throbbing and she couldn’t allow herself to get too upset.

“Look, the nurses will be back in a minute, too. He’s on the way here and ain’t nothing we can do to stop that now. He knows what’s going on,” Yamile explained.

“I don’t even know what’s going on,” Nikki whimpered. “Where’s Carlos? My husband should be here.”

“Carlos is in jail,” Yamile muttered.

“For what?” Nikki shouted.

“Because he jumped on you again. He’s where he deserves to be. He’s the reason you’re here!” Yamile hissed.

“No, he’s not!” Nikki bawled.

“What are you talking about, Nikki? Your neighbors called the cops because they said they could hear him up there jumping on you again. They saw you when he brought you over to the house and the next thing they knew things were being broken. They could hear you crying and him ranting and they called the cops. A few of them wanted to come in and jump on him for jumping on a pregnant woman. Just when the cops came knocking at the door, they could hear a loud commotion inside and they broke the door down. When they got in, they found you on the floor passed out and Carlos standing over you. They told Mama the apartment had been ransacked. You can’t keep taking up for him, Nikki. You need to get help and so does he. I don’t give a damn what he does at the end of the day, but I will not be attending your funeral before God calls you home and I damn sure won’t sit back and watch him abuse this innocent bebé!” Yamile wept.

“You’ve got it all wrong,” Nikki blubbered, grabbing a tissue on the stand next to her to wipe her nose. “It didn’t happen that way.”

Purchase Link:

Amazon: http://amzn.com/B019L7TO86

#SampleSunday - Sedução (Seduction)

Please enjoy this excerpt from Sedução (Seduction), coming November 30, 2015

(CLICK HERE to Pre-Order!!!!)

When the knock finally came at the door, she glanced at the clock and thought, right on time. She stood from the sofa and slowly sauntered to the door, opening it to find the young man still in his kitchen uniform, his eyes full of curiosity. Myra Jennings smiled and stepped out of the doorway to allow him entry into her room.

Victor walked inside and stood by the door as she closed and locked it behind them. “At your service,” he said, just as the general manager had advised him to.

Myra walked over to the sofa and reclaimed her seat. “Good to hear.” She patted the vacant cushion next to her. “Come. Sit.”

Victor hesitantly sat beside her. “Um, thank you. I am a waiter, now.”

She flashed him a smile as she rested her hand on his knee. “You are more than welcome.”

Victor flinched a little, surprised by her touch. “Um… how can I serve you, Mrs. Jennings?”

“First, you can call me, Myra.”

“Yes, Mrs.—Myra. What can I do for you… Myra?”

She lifted her hand from his knee, stood from the sofa, and shrugged out of her thin, silk robe, allowing the fabric to pool at her feet. She stood before him, naked as the day she was born, wearing a mischievous smile on her face.

#Book Tour - Tempted to Touch

Please welcome my blog guest for today, Nigeria Lockley!!!

Thank you, Adrienne for letting me stop by and share my upcoming release, Tempted to Touch, which drops October 27, 2015 with your readers.  Tempted to Touch is very special to me for three reasons: 

1. I wrote Tempted to Touch while my own marriage was experiencing some difficulties.
2. Tempted to Touch is the very first book published by Inheritance Books, my independent publishing company. I still can’t believe I’m a business owner!!!
3. For the first time ever I used a first person narrator. It was a struggle, but I challenged myself and now I have a book.

Synopsis

Kira Seagram is frustrated by her husband Mason’s zeal for the Lord, so she pours all of her attention into her work and reserves her soprano singing skills for the shower. Kira would rather not use them if she get can’t the adoration and recognition she feels she deserves and doubts she’ll find singing lead for Mason’s choir. When a routine drop off at her son, Nate’s private school turns into a ten-year reunion with her ex-boyfriend, Quincy McAdams, Kira isn’t interested in Mason's half-hearted affection or willing to keep her voice to herself. With a firm offer from Quincy to help Kira cut a demo and possibly revive the love they let die, Kira has some choices to make.

When Kira finds herself tempted to touch will she remain faithful to her husband or yield to the desires of her flesh?


Excerpt

Preparation for my day officially began when I entered Harvey’s House of Java, which was just a few feet away from Nate’s school. After securing a thirty-two ounce cup of coffee I pushed Nate towards the exit. We moved in such a flurry there was no time for me to brace myself for a collision with another parent during the morning Manhattan shuffle. The Manhattan shuffle was what I had dubbed the mad dash from the subway into the school and out the door followed by a nod and wave at the principal, then you hurtle back through the door desperately trying to avoid the president of the PTA who was trying to corner you for your signature, a donation, or cupcakes.

I shook my head and refocused my eyes on the hand that once safely cradled my cup of Joe, which was now dripping from my fingertips and rolling up the sleeve of my trench coat.

“Are you okay, Ma?” Nate inquired, looking up at me.

“I’m sorry, Kira,” a familiar voice said with his head bent in my direction and his hand full of tissues extended towards me.

“Ma, are you okay?” Nate asked again tugging on the strap of my suede tan hobo. No, I’m stuck on stupid. Thankfully that didn’t come out of my mouth. I replied with a strong and soothing, “Yes. Hun, I’m fine,” before snatching the napkins from the palm of Quincy McAdams.

“Thank you, Quincy.” I dabbed at my arm and Nate pulled on my purse string again.

“Uh…who is this?” Nate asked doing his best imitation of his father’s gruff voice.

“Nathan, this is Mr. McAdams, an old friend of mine,” I said doing my best to appear pleasant and mask the nature of our relationship.

Quincy hiked up the legs of his tailored slate grey trousers and crouched down to Nate’s height. “Nice to meet you, Nathan.” He extended a balled up fist for Nate to tap. “You know,” he drew back the sleeve of his blazer and glanced at his watch, “in about two minutes you will officially be marked late and I would hate for that to happen.”

Nate winced. “Me too.” He looked back at me. “If you’re good, Mom I’m going inside,” Nate declared, releasing my purse string and trotting towards the doors of Emblem Academy.

“Nate,” I called to him following him out the coffee shop.

Nate turned back, smiled at me, and waved. “Bye, Ma.”

Please don’t leave me alone with six feet of fineness who was, by the looks of it, a lil’ bit too delighted to have spilled my coffee. I waved back trying to see past the face in front of me. Emblem Academy was a few feet away from Joe’s House of Java, but I wasn’t worried about Nate’s safety, I was concerned about my own. I wanted to look away from his monsoon-deep eyes, but I was too dazzled to turn away. Quincy didn’t waste a moment seizing upon my apparent weakness; he inched closer as I backed away. 

“Kira, if you keep backing up you’re going to crash into another person. Stop playing.” He grabbed the underside of the sleeve on my coat pulling me in closer. “I’m not going to bite you. I just wanted to wipe the coffee off your arm before I hug you.”

Pre-order Tempted to Touch

Paperback: Pre-order for the Inheritance Books website at 20% off and receive an autographed copy

Ebook: Amazon, Smashwords

Bio

Nigeria Lockley possesses two master's degrees, one in English secondary education, which she utilizes as an educator with the New York City Department of Education. Her second master's degree is in creative writing. Nigeria's debut novel, Born at Dawn received the 2015 Phillis Wheatley Award for First Fiction. Nigeria serves as the Vice President of Bridges Family Services, a not-for-profit organization that assists student parents interested in pursuing a degree in higher education. She is also the deaconess and clerk for her spiritual home, King of Kings and Lord of Lords Church of God. Nigeria is a New York native who resides in Harlem with her husband and two daughters.

Keep up with Nigeria
Website: www.nigerialockley.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/authorNigeriaLockley
Instagram: www.instagram.com/NewNigeria
Twitter: www.twitter.com/NewNigeria
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