{"id":3904,"date":"2024-04-27T21:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-04-28T04:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nomadauthors.com\/blog\/?p=3904"},"modified":"2024-04-27T20:11:04","modified_gmt":"2024-04-28T03:11:04","slug":"charity-sunday-united-through-reading","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nomadauthors.com\/blog\/2024\/04\/27\/charity-sunday-united-through-reading\/","title":{"rendered":"Charity Sunday: United Through Reading"},"content":{"rendered":"
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How Charity Sunday works: for every comment made on this blog post, I will donate money to the charity named. The same promise is made for every blog site listed in the group–click the Linky Links link at the bottom of this post to see the list of participants and read\/comment on any of them to see a donation go to that blogger’s charity. We’re all different! Thanks for your help and your participation!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

United Through Reading<\/a><\/strong> is a unique charity that should be near and dear to every author\u2019s heart because it seeks to instill the love of books and reading in children of all ages through reading time with their military parent. Their mission: \u201cUnited Through Reading strengthens military families\u2019 literacy, emotional bonds, and well-being through the power of reading together at every age, no matter the distance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because of parent deployments, over a quarter million children are left at home, meaning lots of story times are missed\u2014for both the child and parent. Story time is typically at the end of the day when quiet and comfort take priority and parent and child have a moment for closeness. With United Through Reading, prerecorded videos can be watched by the child (along with their own copy of the recorded book) whenever they want that special closeness to their deployed parent. \u201cBeing read to by a parent helps military children feel like their parents are closer to home, reducing stress and anxiety levels and making it easier to cope while their parents are away.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Charity Navigator gives United Through Reading a top rating. I think this is a great charity. Please comment!<\/p>\n\n\n

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Blurb:<\/strong>
Bride of the Pryde (Jenna Stewart)<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

DAT agent Susan McAllister escapes Earth with killers in hot pursuit. She normally runs toward danger not away, and she likes controlling her own fate, not relying on three strange men and an irreverent cyberbot. Skilled and experienced, she doesn\u2019t believe there’s any way the three crewmen of the cargo ship Erik’s Pryde can help her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Captain John Erik thinks the sexy, headstrong passenger is nothing but trouble, but he also knows she needs help. And not being men to shrink from adventure, he’s convinced that he and his crew are the ones to provide it. When they’re infected by an illegal drug that releases inhibitions, the crew of the Pryde shows they are men who not only can fight, but can satisfy a woman\u2019s every fantasy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s no surprise when Susan discovers that being a member of the Pryde’s crew has unexpected, lasting benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buy link:<\/strong>
Amazon https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Bride-Pryde-Siren-Publishing-Menage-ebook\/dp\/B007NIR4HO\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Barnes and Noble https:\/\/www.barnesandnoble.com\/w\/bride-of-the-pryde-dee-s-knight\/1109689352<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Excerpt:
<\/strong>The smell hit Susan McAllister first. The sharp scent of iron, immediately recognizable, stung her nostrils and made her gag. Then she noticed the door, normally locked at all times, hung open a crack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She\u2019d been ready to call out that she\u2019d brought back French pastries from the restaurant where she enjoyed an early lunch but instead dropped the white bakery bag on the back steps. Removing her Renthaur X-89 laser pistol from her oversized shoulder bag, she inched forward and released the safety. She eased open the door and stepped inside and then pushed it nearly closed. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust from sunlight to the dim interior.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The office fronted as a real estate agency but actually served as Centre District\u2019s Domestic Anti-Terrorism headquarters. Susan had arrived that morning from the global headquarters in Mt. Saussat. In fact, if not for the fact that she never ate while flying and wanted an early lunch upon arrival, she would have been here for whatever shit had gone down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hugging the wall, she edged toward the workroom where her close friend and office manager, Lisle Hamilton, had set up the hologram generator, coffeepot, and storage shelving that helped form their cover of handling real estate. Behind an encrypted-lock vault door and out of sight, secure phones and code-deciphering, sub-particle computers were used for the real business of the storefront.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Centre City office took a lot of ribbing in the Agency because of their cover. The joke was, what\u2019s more boring than a DAT agent on desk duty? A realtor. What\u2019s deadly boring? A DAT gent on desk duty posing as a realtor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Deadly <\/em>boring?The overwhelming scent of blood seemed to prove it. Criminy. What in hell happened?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Susan dropped to a crouch at the corner where the back hall entered the workroom. Pistol aimed up and grasped with two hands in classic shooter pose, she slowly leaned forward and peeked into the workroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Blood had begun to congeal where it covered the floor. Mark Nichols, who she\u2019d just met that morning, lay on his back, his right hand inside his jacket pocket as though reaching for his weapon. Anne Barnewell lay face down. The size of the hole in the back of her head indicated a Succher 380, the weapon of choice for big-time drug dealers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also for cops\u2019 personal weapons.<\/em> The thought ran quickly through her mind and left just as fast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The workroom connected to the main office by a swinging door of louvered wood, reminiscent of mid-twentieth-century architecture. From under the door she saw the body of Kyle Angustino, the son of one of Lisle\u2019s friends and an actual real estate intern who had nothing to do with the DAT. Six people worked in the office, including Kyle, five of whom were DAT agents. Susan had no hope any of them were alive unless, like her, they\u2019d been out of the office when hell struck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The place appeared to be empty, but Susan didn\u2019t change her position. Instead, she examined everything in her line of sight and listened with an intensity that had her shoulders tight with tension. Peering along the wall to the left she scrunched her brows in worry. The vault door stood ajar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The only person in the office who had the combination was Lisle. A woman\u2019s foot extended out the door, her burgundy shoe half-off. Lisle!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her friend had bragged about the \u201ckiller burgundy pumps with little gold bows\u201d when Susan had called to make arrangements to use one of the office cubicles for the week she would be in Centre City. They\u2019d gone through Agency training together, and their paths crossed regularly. Later she would grieve for Lisle, but right now she needed to keep her wits about her and her emotions in check.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The bell over the front door tinkled, indicating someone entering from the street. A woman said, \u201cHere\u2019s a box for\u2014Oh, dear God, what is this? What\u2019s going on here?\u201d There was no answer. Then, \u201cNo, please, no! Oh\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Susan heard the unmistakable sound of the Succher firing and then a loud noise as something fell to the floor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat the hell?\u201d A man pushed the vault door farther open. All that showed was a cuff-linked, white-shirted arm and a hand with long fingers. \u201cWhat\u2019s going on out there?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNothing,\u201d came a male voice from the front. \u201cI didn\u2019t have the keys to lock the door. I thought pulling the blinds would be enough to make people think we were closed. Forgot about delivery people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGoddamn it. Go through Hamilton\u2019s purse, for Christ\u2019s sake, and find the keys.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOkay,\u201d the guy in the front grumbled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cJesus, I have to do everything,\u201d Vault Man said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Susan pulled back. The lead guy knew Lisle\u2019s name. Because he knew<\/em> her or because of information gleaned while there? And how did he know about the vault room? Had he come to the office because of it, or had he and his buddy happened into the office and thought the heavy door hid more than it did? She dismissed that idea right away because really, who in the world robbed a realtor\u2019s office? So, assuming they already knew about the vault and Lisle, the conclusion was ominous\u2014the murderers were associated with DAT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Quiet footsteps alerted Susan to the emergence of the man from the vault. He carried her suitcase to the table, holding the hologram generator. Lisle had suggested she leave the suitcase in the vault and out of traffic areas when she arrived earlier. She hadn\u2019t given a second thought to the security of her things when she dashed out to eat. Now, unceremoniously, Vault Man pulled out the contents and dumped them on the floor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAny hints on where McAllister is staying?\u201d the second man asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They\u2019re looking for <\/em>me?How could that be? Only a few people knew she was there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNothing yet. Lisle wouldn\u2019t say. Or maybe she didn\u2019t know. I thought I might find a hint in here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Susan edged forward, trying to identify either man. She could see Vault Man from the back. He\u2019d put on a dark suit jacket, wore black shoes and a fedora over short brown hair. He looked to be about five feet ten or eleven. The second man leaned just inside the doorway separating the two rooms, but Vault Man hid him from view. His shoes were shiny and his pants were light gray. That was all she could see\u2014which was as good as nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She pulled back from the wall\u2019s edge. At most, the men stood ten feet away. If either of them looked her way at the wrong time or decided to check the back parking area, she\u2019d be caught like a virgin between two punks on Pheron.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pheron, the newest designer street drug\u2014and the latest form of domestic terrorism just hitting Earth cities\u2014had brought her to Centre City, where the crime rate soared right along with the supply of the drug that released a person\u2019s deepest desires and washed away their inhibitions. The effects of the drug sickened her. So did her prospects, if the two murderers in the other room found her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rising to her feet, she continued straining to hear everything the men said. Vault Man asked if Succher Guy had checked the hotel where she usually stayed in Centre City. The answer was affirmative but that she hadn\u2019t arrived yet. And she hadn\u2019t because that morning Lisle had invited Susan to stay with her instead. The two had a lot to catch up on, and not all of it business. Lisle had finally met Mr. Right, and they were talking marriage. Susan simply hadn\u2019t called to cancel her hotel reservation yet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vault Man ordered Succher Guy to stake out the hotel and to call when he had Susan in sight. Succher Guy grumbled a reply, sounding not too happy to be relegated to the hotel lobby. The bell chimed again with the opening and closing of the street door, and then silence descended on the office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Susan slowly sidestepped along the wall toward the back door. So intense was her focus that she jumped when her suitcase flew through the air and crashed into the flavored-water dispenser before hitting the floor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGoddamn it, McAllister, where the fuck are you?\u201d Vault Man grumbled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From her right, the back door opened. \u201cHey, Susan,\u201d Buddy Knowlton called out with a smile. He held out the white bag from the steps. \u201cDid you drop something?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two things happened at once. Footsteps pounded from the workroom toward the short hallway where Susan froze momentarily in shock, and she then leapt toward Buddy. Knocking him back out the door, she yelled, \u201cGet out, Buddy! Move, move, move!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They tripped down the steps. Buddy, looking confused and shocked at first, gathered his wits and withdrew his weapon from his suit jacket. She ran, hell-bent, for the street, assuming he was hot on her heels. The back door to the office slammed open. A laser bullet whizzed past her ear, missing her by an ando-width.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ffttt!<\/em> Another laser shot just missed her head. A grunt came from behind. She slowed enough to turn. Continuing with back steps, she saw Buddy on the ground. Had he tripped? Was he hit? Hesitating could kill her, but could she leave a fellow DAT agent behind?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He waved his arms, signaling her to go on. \u201cGo!\u201d he yelled. She didn\u2019t like it, but she spun toward the street and kept on, not looking, not thinking, running on instinct alone. Around the corner of the building, she sprinted for the intersection and the hotel across the street. Cabs lined up in front, particularly at lunchtime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cShe\u2019s headed for The Centre!\u201d Vault Man shouted. \u201cConverge there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reviews:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

“\u2026desires are fulfilled and emotions are awakened. BRIDE OF THE PRYDE<\/strong>is an imaginative futuristic adventure overflowing with limitless fiery heat.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Author Dee S. Knight:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A few years ago, Dee S. Knight began writing, making getting up in the morning fun. During the day, her characters killed people, fell in love, became drunk with power, or sober with responsibility. And they had sex, lots of sex.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After a while, Dee split her personality into thirds. She writes as Anne Krist for sweeter romances, and Jenna Stewart for m\u00e9nage and shifter stories. All three of her personas are found on the Nomad Authors website (www.nomadauthors.com). Fortunately, Dee\u2019s high school sweetheart is the love of her life and husband to all three ladies! On the last Sunday of the month, look for Dee\u2019s Charity Sunday blog posts, where your comment can support a selected charity. Sign up for her newsletter for exclusive access to free novellas, poetry, and stuff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Author links:<\/a>
<\/a><\/strong>Website: https:\/\/nomadauthors.com<\/a>
Blog: http:\/\/nomadauthors.com\/blog<\/a>
Twitter: http:\/\/twitter.com\/DeeSKnight<\/a>
Facebook: https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/DeeSKnight2018<\/a>
Goodreads: https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/author\/show\/265222.Dee_S_Knight<\/a>
Amazon Author Page: <\/a>http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/-\/e\/B079BGZNDN<\/a>
Newsletter: <\/a>https:\/\/landing.mailerlite.com\/webforms\/landing\/h8t2y6<\/a>
LinkedIn: http:\/\/linkedin.com\/in\/dee-s-knight-0500749<\/a>
Sweet \u2018n Sassy Divas http:\/\/bit.ly\/1ChWN3K<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

How Charity Sunday works: for every comment made on this blog post, I will donate money to the charity named. The same promise is made for every blog site listed in the group–click the Linky Links link at the bottom of this post to see the list of participants and read\/comment on any of them … Continue reading “Charity Sunday: United Through Reading”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[5,4,747,1],"tags":[1044,2093,2053,1086,353,12,1544,1511,2094],"class_list":["post-3904","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-author-information","category-book-topics","category-charity-sunday","category-uncategorized","tag-menage-2","tag-sexy-2","tag-steamy-2","tag-adventure","tag-dee-s-knight-2","tag-erotic-romance","tag-mmmf","tag-robot","tag-spaceopera-2"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9wA33-10Y","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nomadauthors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3904","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nomadauthors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nomadauthors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nomadauthors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nomadauthors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3904"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.nomadauthors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3904\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3915,"href":"https:\/\/www.nomadauthors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3904\/revisions\/3915"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nomadauthors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3904"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nomadauthors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3904"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nomadauthors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3904"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}