Wednesday, June 10, 2015

Book Giveaway: Long Black Curl


As most of you probably already know (unless you're really new to the blog), I read A LOT. I also have a lot of friends who are authors. As you can imagine, this works out pretty well. Except for my budget and my overflowing shelves...

Like most folks, I have some authors who are "must buys." Any time they put out a book, I get it automatically. Sometimes even in (gasp) hardcover, if I can't wait the extra time for it to come out in paperback. Not all of these authors are friends, of course, although many of them are people I have stalked followed online long enough that they at least know who I am. (Snort.)

Here is a pile of what I've read in the last couple of months (not counting the books I read on the Kindle at night before bed, when my eyes are tired). Luna clearly had her favorite. When I got the book I put it down on the couch next to me and when I turned around, this is what I saw. Isn't that adorable?

Long Black Curl with a short tortie cat

Large pile of books with a curious yellow cat
You can see from the pile of books that I read a fairly eclectic selection. The bottom two are British contemporary romances, then there is one by an American author (I'm very picky about which contemporaries I read, but I do have a few favorite authors). Then there are a couple of my "must buy" folks who write fantasy/urban fantasy/paranormal romance: Maria V. Snyder, Devon Monk, and Lisa Shearin. Plus a new-to-me author I discovered at Rober-Con last year, Laura Anne Gilman. I'm currently binge reading her Paranormal investigations series.

If a book is in this pile, you can safely assume I am recommending it wildly.

And then there is Alex Bledsoe, whose book, LONG BLACK CURL, Luna is so enamored with. Alex and I go way back--we both had stories in The Pagan Anthology of Short Fiction--and although we haven't yet gotten to meet in person due to distance (he lives in Wisconsin, I live in upstate NY), we truly are friends. In fact, if you have a copy of WICKEDLY DANGEROUS, his name will probably look familiar to you. That's because he wrote one of blurbs on the back. (He called it "Paranormal romance at it's best"!)

Alex has a couple of fabulous series out. LONG BLACK CURL is the third in his "Tufa" novels. Here's the summary:
Long Black Curl: a brand-new tale in Alex Bledsoe's acclaimed urban fantasy series, where magic is hidden in plain sight and age-old rivalries simmer just beneath the surface

In all the time the Tufa have existed, only two have ever been exiled: Bo-Kate Wisby and her lover, Jefferson Powell. They were cast out, stripped of their ability to make music, and cursed to never be able to find their way back to Needsville. Their crime? A love that crossed the boundary of the two Tufa tribes, resulting in the death of several people.
Somehow, Bo-Kate has found her way back. She intends to take over both tribes, which means eliminating both Rockhouse Hicks and Mandalay Harris. Bo-Kate has a secret weapon: Byron Harley, a rockabilly singer known as the "Hillbilly Hercules" for his immense size and strength, and who has passed the last sixty years trapped in a bubble of faery time. He's ready to take revenge on any Tufa he finds.
The only one who can stop Bo-Kate is Jefferson Powell. Released from the curse and summoned back to Cloud County, even he isn't sure what will happen when they finally meet. Will he fall in love with her again? Will he join her in her quest to unite the Tufa under her rule? Or will he have to sacrifice himself to save the people who once banished him?
As always, Alex is going to send me my very own signed copy. (Woot!) But I couldn't wait to read it, so I bought one for myself...which I am now going to give away to one lucky reader! [Because it is a hardcover, and therefore heavy, I'm afraid I'm going to have to restrict this giveaway to USA only. Sorry foreign peeps.] I loved this book beyond measure. Alex is one of the best writers I know, which is really saying something. The Tufa are a fascinating mixture of fairy lore and Southern rural life, all wrapped up in magic and music. You WANT to read this series.

To enter, you can follow Alex on Twitter and/or leave a comment here. Tell me if you have a favorite author or authors, or if you have read any of Alex's books. This is a short one, so don't wait to enter.

a Rafflecopter giveaway


32 comments:

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    1. I like her too, although I am a couple of books behind.

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  2. Love good urban fantasy. Thanks for the recommendation.

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    1. I love to spread the word about good books. Hopefully people will do that for mine...

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  3. I love the Tufa books, and can't wait to read this one!

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    1. Believe me, it lives up to all your expectations.

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  4. Our cats would just lay on the book, even if you are reading it at the time. They never cuddle up to a good book.

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  5. I love the Tufa series and am very choked that my library system is only offering the e-book version of Long Black Curl...some consistency would be nice for some of us readers.

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    1. Bummer. My library has the others in print--I'll have to check on this one. At least if you win this copy, you will get to have it in print!

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  6. I'm old school in that my fave is still Marion Zimmer Bradley. Darkover was my fantasy home away from home. However, I need to get this book, if only to read it while listening to Tuatha Dea's music for it.

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    1. Isn't it amazing the way the Tuatha Dea's music has become part of Alex's writing and vice versa? I love it. (And I love MZB too.)

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  7. I recently started reading books by Phil Rickman, a British author and I'm really enjoying his Merrily Watkins series.

    Diane P

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  8. I am quite partial to Dolores Stewart Riccio.

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  9. Glad you have discovered Laura Ann Gilman! Her Cosa is not to be missed and her epic fantasy of wine magic...well it must be read. My library has Bledsoe ' Eddie La Crosse series, but not the Tufa, which I dearly want to read. Maybe this will solve that craving!

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    1. I actually read the first of the wine magic series before I met her last year, and loved it. Then I picked up the first in the other series when she was at Rober-Con but hadn't gotten to it until recently. Now that you've reminded me, I'll have to go get the next one in the wine series too.

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  10. I am enjoying the Tufa Tales and your Baba Yaga "Wickedly," books. I also enjoy Douglas Adams and Mike Resnick.

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  11. Kristen Hannah. She isn't really popular though.

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    1. I got a signed book from her at a conference a few years ago :-)

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  12. So excited about the Long Black Curl. I very much enjoy Alex's stories, and discovered Tuatha Dear through other fans of the Tufa books. Sooooo hoping to make it to his reading next weekend!

    My latest favorite author is KL Kreig, author of the Regent Vampire Lord series. She's just released her third in that series, and is releasing some contemporary fiction shortly. Great writing style, and her stories pull you in and hang on til the very end.

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  13. I have never read Alex Bledsoe but have seen his name. I will check him out. More to add to my reading list.

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    1. The first book in this series is The Hum and the Shiver. The first book in his amazing Eddie LaCrosse series (think sword and sorcery crossed with noir detective novels) is The Sword-Edged Blonde.

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  14. My favorite is Stephen King. I haven't read any of her books yet, but I plan to.

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  15. Hey Deborah --- You are , of course,one of my favorite authors , along with Patricia Briggs , Seanan McGuire, Anne Bishop and Alex Bledsoe. And I love the Tufa series. Thanks for the opportunity

    Bonnie S.
    windsongbreeze2001@yahoo.com

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    1. Aw, thanks, Bonnie! *Blush* I love Patricia Briggs too!

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  16. I have not read any of Alex's books (yet) but when I saw the Long Black Curl on your FB page I checked him out at Amazon & ordered The Hum & the Shiver.. So this would be cool!

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    1. Yay! And don't forget to click on the contest entry above to get credit for your comment, in case you haven't already!

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  17. I adore Kim Harrison, Robin McKinley, Kresley Cole, J.K. Rowling and.... Deborah Blake of course :) I haven't read Alex's work but plan to :)

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