Friday, October 16, 2015

Celebrate: Stephen Tremp ~ Salem's Daughters & Giveaways

ANCIENT TIME TRAVELING CURSES

Thank you Lexa for hosting me on my Salem’s Daughters Blog Tour. You live in Egypt and I thought what better place to post on ancient curses than L.X. Cain's blog. 

Curse of the Pharaohs: In Egypt, the Curse of the Pharaohs refers to an alleged curse to be cast upon any person who disturbs the mummy of an Ancient Egyptian person, especially a pharaoh. Time is not a hindrance or obstacle. This curse, which does not differentiate between thieves (past) and archaeologists (future), allegedly can cause bad luck, illness or death. 

In Salem's Daughters I needed a similar idea when time would not interfere or restrict something evil that just won’t go away. The year is 1705 and the setting is the countryside between Boston and Salem, Massachusetts. 

Thirty-nine young witches are flushed from their coven and chased by a drunken riotous mob. All but thirteen are cut down. In order to escape the blood-thirsty mob, the survivors perform an extremely difficult magical maneuver that would be deadly if they got it wrong. They closed their eyes, exhaled the air in their lungs, and left their bodies through their mouths, the only place a soul can escape. They entered six-month-old cats in the first of their nine lives while kicking out the souls of the felines. 

Fast forward to today. When Bob and Debbie Stevens open their bed and breakfast called Murcat Manor they find thirteen baby kittens who they adopt, thinking they can befriend the guests. 

Now in the sixth of nine lives, the malevolent felines have had five previous lives spanning four centuries of deviltry and murdering practice to draw on. With their vast experience, now enhanced with the use of modern technology, the witches devise cagey ways to keep killing, including leaving evidence at the scene for detectives to believe Bob and Debbie are the perpetrators. 


Bad kitties! 

Curses: An evil or misfortune to befall someone or something have been around since mankind has been able to speak words. Words have the power to bless and to curse, depending on the level of authority of the person speaking them and how receptive or vulnerable the recipient is. 

There are no shortage of books using curses. They can be spoken (Hermione Granger). They can be thought (Professor Snape). They can lie dormant for eons then come to life (Pharaoh's Curse). Fiction writers across multiple genres use curses in their books, and much of their inspiration comes from everyday life and history. 

Question: Do you believe in curses like the Pharaoh’s curse? 




Short Blurb: A four hundred year old evil is unleashed when the daughters of those killed during the Salem Witch Trials find a new generation of people to murder at a popular modern-day bed and breakfast. 

Stephen Tremp writes Speculative Fiction and embraces science and the supernatural to help explain the universe, our place in it, and write one of a kind thrillers. You can read a full synopsis and download Salem’s Daughters by Clicking Here
I Hope my Detroit Lions Aren't Cursed

Stephen Tremp posts weekly blogs at his website Breakthrough Blogs

Next Stop: Monday October 19th L. Diane Wolfe for Marketing and Promoting Outside the U.S.




Thanks, Stephen!  I had the pleasure of reading Salem's Daughters, and I think Stephen has a real future in horror writing! ~ Lexa

My kind and wonderful co-hosts of Celebrate the Small Things are:
L.G. Keltner @ Writing Off The Edge
Tonja Drecker @ Kidbits Blog

Celebrate The Small Things Linky:



Grab the Linky html-code here:


** To see who’s posted for the hop look at my Celebrate The Small Things Blog Roll, left sidebar bottom **


 Celebrate the Small ThingsTo be part of this blog hop, all you have to do is visit the Celebrate page on Lexa's Blog for the rules, and then post every Friday about something you're grateful  for that week.  It can be about writing or family or school or general life.  This is the funnest and easiest blog hop ever! (Originated by VikLit)



Foxy's Friday Freebies!

Foxy has been nosing around the net
When she finds great FREE STUFF, she'll feature it on Friday Freebies posts -
  • Free short stories, novellas, and novels
  • Giveaways for books and swag
  • Free services for authors


Here are Foxy's suggestions for Oct 16, 2015:

Free Short Stories  – David Emanuel (one of my awesome CPs!) has two stories available online to read for free “Baby Men” and “Out From the Shadows.” Follow this link to the stories: David Emanuel blog.

Free Horror Zombie Novel – The lovely Yolanda Renee is having a great Halloween sale on her novel When Zombies Attack. The book will be FREE on Amazon from Oct 19-21! For details and the link, go to Defending the Pen blog. (From Oct 19-21 ONLY)


Free Dark Fantasy eBook - Necromancer by Graeme Ing is free if you sign up for his newsletter. This book a GREAT! I read it and gave it 5-stars.  Signing up for his newsletter is a well worth it to get such an awesome book.  For your free copy, go to Graeme Ing blog.  


The Spooktacular Blog Hop has over 180 participants -- that's 180 different blogs giving away books, cash, and gift cards between now and October 31.  Go to the hop's sponsor for the list of participating sites: I Am A Reader Blog.

Here are 2 of the Spooktacular blog hop's giveaways:

Free $20 Amazon Gift Card - Win a $20 Amazon card on the Spooktacular Blog hop via rafflecopter on the I Am A Reader blog. (ends Oct 31)

Free $20 Amazon Gift Card - Win a $20 Amazon card on the Spooktacular Blog hop via rafflecopter on My Bookish Life blog. (ends Oct 31)


For Foxy's other Freebies, go to the Freebie page.

If anyone has a FREE short story (for download or online at a free ezine), novella, novel, special giveaway, or author service, please let Foxy know so she can plug you here!  Write to: laura.6eg(at)gmail.com

44 comments:

Stephen Tremp said...

Thank you Lexa for hosting me on my Salem's Daughters Blog Tour! We're on opposite ends of the world and I'm about to go to bed. But when I wake up I'll check in and say hello and such.

And thanks to your followers topping by today and saying hello! Time traveling generational curses. We have so much in common.

Anonymous said...

I don't believe in curses, but I love reading about them. Yay for Stephen, his new book, and his blog tour.

cheerfuloptimistic said...

I don't believe in curses either, but it sounds like an interesting story.

Bad kitties indeed.

Laura Clipson said...

I love the sound of this story, not least because I love anything to do with cats :) Have a great weekend.

Shah Wharton said...

Congrats to Stephen. This book sounds creeptastic. Do I believe in curses? Yes and no. Something in me believes more happens in this world than we can understand. So who knows? :)

Some great freebies too! I'm off to get me some. X

shahwharton.com

JeffO said...

Congrats, Stephen, sounds like an interesting read!

Tonja Drecker said...

Wow - 180 participants in the hop is amazing! Congrats, Stephen, this sounds like a really interesting read. And nope, I'm not a believer in curses...although a part of me would like to be.

H. R. Sinclair said...

I only believe in curse while I'm reading! LOL

The very first link in the post (to Salem’s Daughters Blog Tour) led me to a Your current account does not have access to view this page. :(

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Don't hold your breath - they are the Detroit Lions after all!
The only curses I believe in are those that God cast in the Old Testament. Unless you count cussing as cursing.

Linda Kay said...

Lexa, I just am not interested in horror writing. There are a couple of films out right now that look pretty scary. I'd be hiding my eyes in most of the scenes.

Natalie Aguirre said...

I don't believe in curses but they are great for spooky stories. Congrats on your book, Stephen.

Stephen Tremp said...

I'm not here to debate our universe and our place in it. But I have to say I'm amazed at how many people don't believe there are things that exist and are more real than what we can perceive with our five senses. And I'll leave it at that.

I'll be back today for individual comments. Thanks everyone for stopping by!

Cathrina Constantine said...

I have to get Stephen's book. It sounds amazing!!! I read Graeme Ing's book the Necromancer and loved it.

L.G. Keltner said...

Salem's Daughters sounds like a great read! Congratulations Stephen!

Bevimus said...

Congrats on your story, Stephen! I don't call a lot of things must-reads but that story is so up my alley I'm going to have to check it out!!

Karla Gomez said...

Yes, definitely Congrats! Tis the month for all things scary and fun >:)

Kate Larkindale said...

Sounds like the perfect spooky read for the season!

Anonymous said...

Congrats to Stephen Tremp on his new release! It sounds very creepy and Halloween-esque. Do I believe in curses? Mostly no, but then I wouldn't go out of my way to unearth any pharaohs' tombs, either. Happy Friday!

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Heather R. Holden said...

Bad kitties, indeed! They're probably a lot more fun to read about than good ones, though... ;)

Cathy Kennedy said...

Lexa, I enjoyed reading about Stephen's new book. It sounds like he has a winner. Thanks for sharing this with us today.

Curious as a Cathy

PS: I am celebrating the small things! ;)

stephen Hayes said...

I think curses work if the person receiving the curse believes in it. Stephen's novel sounds intriguing.

Unknown said...

Curses are a complicated affair. I know another name for them: self-fulfilling prophecies. But that's no fun. Reading about curses though in good fiction is so much more fun. Good luck with your book Stephen and thanks for sharing Lexa. :D

Unknown said...

def don't believe in curses but like Medeia said they're fun to read about!

Beverly Stowe McClure said...

The more I read about this book, the more it fascinates me. As a cat lover, it's a must read for me. Congratulations, Stephen.

alexia said...

I'm seeing Steven a lot today! Cats and witches are awesome!

Hi, Lexa!

Cherdo said...

Yay for Stephen!

I may have said this already (I'm senile) but I'm a direct descendent of Salem "witch" Rebecca Nurse through her daugher, Elizabeth...I may have been a cat at one time. Details are sketchy.

SK Anthony said...

I think Salem's Daughters sounds really interesting. Love the premise for sure!

And hey, cats and witches? Cant' go wrong! ;)

Best of luck, Stephen!

Yolanda Renée said...

Stephen is really doing well with his tour, love reading his guest posts. I've never considered the life of a curse or whether they're real or imagined, but the book idea is fantastic!

Thanks, Lexa, for giving When Zombies Attack a shout out. So appreciated! And thanks again, for the books I won. I wish I could say I read them on vacation, but I was too busy, can you believe it, to read or write, I got nothing done but fun, fun, fun in the sun! :)

TBM said...

Not sure I completely believe, but I've seen a lot of weird things in this world so I won't discount others beliefs.

kimlajevardi.com said...

Bad kitties! Congrats on a great idea, Stephen!

Lots of freebies. Happy October, Lex!

Nas said...

Congratulations, Stephen, Salems Daughter sounds like an interesting read!

All the best with the tour and the book!

T.F. Walsh said...

Great to meet you Stephen... love reading about Egyptian curses...:) Your book sounds great.

Annie Neugebauer said...

I don't believe in curses, but it sounds like a great book! Congrats!

cleemckenzie said...

Blast those curses! They mess up everything. Except a story, of course. Those they make absolutely a must read.

Congrats, Stephen.

Denise Covey said...

How cool Lexa, that you live in Egypt and Stephen's story is set there. So many great mysteries to uncover. Great story fodder!

H.R. Bennett said...

Sounds like an interesting concept. I'd be curious in seeing how it really plays out. Although I think if I "found" thirteen cats I would not try to keep all of them.

Unknown said...

Congrats on your release, Stephen! Sounds spooky!

Crystal Collier said...

Yay, Stephen! I love me a good ancient curse. =)

Loni Townsend said...

Ha! The "Curses! Foiled Again." makes me think of the Xanth series by Piers Anthony. I read like 15 of those books over the span of a summer. :D Those do sound like some bad kitties.

Thanks for the tip about the Necromancer. I think I'll check that out!

Nas said...

Congratulations. Salem's Daughter sounds great story. Thanks for the links.

David Emanuel said...

You do so much for the writing community.

As always, you inspire me.

Thanks,

Dave Emanuel
(dadswithoutballs - yep that's the name of my blog.)

Suzanne Furness said...

Congrats to Stephen, sounds like a spooky read!

DMS said...

Stephen's book sounds more riveting the more I learn about it! I find curses intriguing and do think that bad energy can be directed in certain directions (good energy too). I basically would rather stay away from things I thought were cursed. :)
~Jess

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