Character Guest Post: WILDFLOWERS Tour

I used to (attempt) keep a diary. I always admired those who did and were able to keep up with writing in them. Now I guess I sort of use the blog as a diary sometimes. I post about events I want to remember, thoughts on books, or the occasional movie or tv show. Nothing super personal but still deeper thoughts than I usually share in everyday conversation with random people. 

The point is I'm excited to welcome a guest post from Susan, Schledia Benefield's female protagonist in Benefield's novel WILDFLOWERS. If you are anything like me, you'll be wanting to read WILDFLOWERS right away after learning more about Susan. 

Dear Diary,

Well, we made it to the town of Bayville, Mississippi yesterday. The scenery was beautiful on the way down. I can’t wait to have the opportunity to visit a beach and watch the waves. There are no beaches in Birmingham. I was hoping Dad would stop in Gulfport and let me walk through the sand in my bare feet, but he was ready to get to the house. He wanted to visit the hospital and set up his office.

We got all of our clothes and personal items in the house. The movers brought the furniture two days earlier, that’s why Mom came down a few days ahead of us. She wanted to make sure everything went exactly where she envisioned. I was kind of glad to be able to make the trip down to the coast with Dad. It gave us time to talk. He understands me a little better than she does.

I miss my friends so bad. I spent the entire night before we left crying. Change is so hard, but I have to believe that God has a plan. He’s always able to bring good things out of bad things, and moving away from my friends is definitely bad.

Today was my first day at Bayville High. Their school mascot is the Bayville Bears, so I’m going from a Tiger to a Bear, not that any of that stuff really matters to me. I’m not a cheerleader, and I can’t envision myself ever dating a jock. Most of those guys are only after one thing, and I’m not willing to give that up. Call me silly, but I want to be worthy of wearing white when I get married.

Today had its good points and its bad points. I got stuck in a regular English class, despite the fact that my transcript showed clearly that I belong in advanced English, but I think there may be a reason. God has a way of guiding us even when we don’t initially understand. There was this guy in my English class. His name is Aster. He refused to read aloud in class. He seems like he’s a pretty rough guy. He really got into it with the teacher over her insisting he read. Something in my heart told me he can’t read.

They finally called me to the counselor’s office to fix my schedule right around the time he was arguing with Ms. Howard. She sent him to the principal’s office at the same time. She was furious with him! I dropped my books, so she made him pick them up. He obviously resented that. It was the strangest feeling being close to him. His eyes reminded me of my special place. He’s very attractive, but he was very mean to me. Despite that, I feel bad for him.

The principal called the counselor about getting him in a tutoring class while I was in her office, but they didn’t have a place for him, so I offered to do it. I’m a little nervous about it, but there has to be a reason for it all.

                                                                  Yours truly,

                                                                  Susan

Summary:

Have you ever feared what may be hiding deep within you?

Darkness often skulks in the blood of unsuspecting victims, but Aster McGrath is acutely aware of the violence coursing through his veins. After all, he is the son of a murderer, and everyone in the town of Bayville, Mississippi says he will end up just like his father.

When Susan Blackman moves into town, Aster has already embraced his brutal nature, but her gentle spirit draws him in and slowly melts the icy exterior of his heart. Taming his savagery, she professes her love, but will the good within him be able to overcome the evil lurking deep inside? Or will the fiend break free of its fetters and seek blood?

 

About the Author:

Schledia Benefield is the author of Plain Jane, Pretty Boy, and her soon to be released novel, Wildflowers. She attended Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College but chose to be a stay-at-home mom for many years. She devoted eight years of her life to working with youth as a youth minister and has been invited to speak in a rehab to hurting and wounded women, giving them hope for a better future. She was the Keynote Speaker for Division 14 of the Key Club International’s divisional rally.

Born and raised on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, Schledia holds a sense of pride in her southern heritage. She presently lives in Big Point, Mississippi with her husband and four of her five children. On top of writing novels, she writes youth and children’s church curriculum, and she works as a substitute teacher at East Central Middle School. In her spare time, she reads, sews, and spends time with her family.

 

Social Media Links:

http://schlediabenefield.blogspot.com/

https://twitter.com/Schledia
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17312737-wildflowers?ac=1

Buy Link:

Amazon (ebook & paperback) http://amzn.to/WPszMD
ebook 99 cents March 25 - 31 *regularly $4.99

Tour Schedule:

March 25
[YA] Between the Lines http://yabetweenthelines.blogspot.com/ Author Guest Post
Ohana Day Academy http://ohana-school.blogspot.com.au/ Review
The avid Reader www.tarmyblospot.blogspot.com  Book Promo
Brooke Blogs http://www.brookeblogs.com Character Guest Post

March 26
Rayborn Rambles http://Raybornrambles.blogspot.com Review & Book Promo

March 27
Now is Gone http://katysozaeva.blogspot.com/ Author Guest Post
Lubs Book Chatter lubsbookchatter.blogspot.com Author Guest Post

March 28
Library Girl Reads & Reviews http://librarygirlreads.blogspot.com
Sab The Book Eater http://sabthebookeater.blogspot.com/ Top Ten Favorite Books EVER

March 29
Pieces of Whimsy http://piecesofwhimsy.blogspot.com.au/ Author Interviw
Curling Up With A Good Book http://curling-up-with-a-good-book.blogspot.com/ Top Ten list
Alli's World http://mrscaptkirk51.blogspot.com/ Character Guest Post

Day 25 – A character who you can relate to the most

30 Day Book Meme for December 2012

First, I'd like to wish those of you who celebrate...A Very Merry Christmas! Mine was wonderful! I got almost everything I asked for and then some! I hope you all had a great day with family, friends, food, etc.!

Today's topic is character who you can relate to the most which again is a super hard topic! Then I remembered hubs said I reminded him of a character a while back. So I had to go look in our library but my memory finally kicked in and I remember!!

The character I relate to the most is...

Katy from Jennifer L. Armentrout's Lux Series!

Here are some of the reasons why:

1. She is a book blogger and loves to read. (Uh, hello? What are we doing here in Alli's World?)

2. She is kinda of a smart mouth and doesn't let Daemon get away with much.

3. She likes Daemon Black. And so do I. :-)

Jack Templar Tour with Guest Character Post

Image from Goodreads

Orphan Jack Templar has no memory of his parents and only the smallest details from his Aunt Sophie about how they died. The day before Jack's fourteenth birthday, things start to change for him. At first it's great: A sudden new strength helps him defend his nose-picking friend "T-Rex" from the school bully, and even his crush, Cindy Adams, takes notice. But then a mysterious girl named Eva arrives and tells him two facts that will change his life forever. First, that he's the descendant of a long line of monster hunters and he's destined to be in the family business. Second, that there's a truce between man and monster that children are off-limits...until their fourteenth birthday! Jack has only one day before hundreds of monsters will descend on his little town of Sunnyvale and try to kill him.

As if that weren't enough, things get even more complicated when Jack discovers that the Lord of the Creach (as the monsters are collectively known) holds a personal grudge against him and will do anything to see that Jack has a slow and painful death. To stay alive and save his friends, Jack will have to battle werewolves, vampires, harpies, trolls, zombies and more. But perhaps the most dangerous thing he must face is the truth about his past. Why do the other hunters call him the last Templar? Why do they whisper that he may be the "One?" Why do the monsters want him dead so badly? Even as these questions plague him, he quickly discovers survival is his new full-time job and that in the world of monster hunters, nothing is really what it seems.

You can pick up a copy at any of these place:

Amazon

IndieBound

Barnes&Noble

Now for a super special treat...
a character guest post from 
Jack Templar's Best Friend...
Will Akers!

Hi everyone. This is Will Akers, Jack Templar’s right hand man. You probably heard about me in our book Jack Templar Monster Hunter. I say “our” book since it really could have been called Jack And Will: Monster Hunters. But I guess since Jack wrote the entire thing, he felt like going with the title he had.

I know Jack and Eva were pretty mad when the book got out to regular people. You know…non-hunters. Or, as some people at the Academy call them, Creach-bait.

But I was happy the book got out. I know, I know, everyone’s worried about how reading the book attracts monsters to the reader and inevitably drags the reader into our world of man versus monsters. You know what I say? About time.

I mean, come on. Who in their right mind wouldn’t want to become a monster
hunter? It’s by far the coolest thing that’s happened to me, I’ll tell you that much.

Even when we’re being chased by a flock of mad harpies, or facing down an entire field of zombies, or being pursued by Ren Lucre, the Dark Lord of the Creach himself, I was still having the time of my life.

The way I look at it, what’s not to love? You’re doing something really important, you’re helping others, you get to use cool weapons and fight against heinous monsters. Oh, and you don’t have to go to school. As far as I’m concerned, that’s like
winning the lottery.

I guess there’s the fact that there aren’t many hunters who live past thirty. The luck runs out for even the best hunters eventually. Turns out no matter how good you are, if you try to face down a pack of werewolves or a coven of vampires on your own, it’s not going to turn out well. But I’m only fourteen. Thirty is forever away so I’m not too worried about it.

One thing I do worry about is all this talk of Jack being “the One.” Other hunters who meet him always have a weird reaction when they find out who he is. They either keep their distance like they are scared of him or they act like he’s some kind of celebrity. I mean, he’s super cool and all, but he’s just Jack. I just hope that he doesn’t start taking too many chances trying to live up to his own hype. Either way, I’ll be right next to him. As we say, Do your duty, come what may. I look at keeping Jack alive as my duty and I intend to see it through, no matter what happens.

I hope you join the fight. It’s quite a ride.
Will Akers.

Author Bio:

Jeff Gunhus grew up in Cyprus, Greece, and Saudi Arabia where there was a distinct lack of television. He quickly found books were the gateway to incredible adventures, fascinating characters and unbelievable discoveries. Now, with five children of his own (all who watch too much television, in his opinion), he has enjoyed revisiting his old books and reliving those adventures all over again.

You can find Jeff Gunhus online:

Website

Twitter

Facebook

Tour hashtag: #jacktemplar

Twitter Party: Friday, Dec. 21 6 pm - 8 pm EST

Big Prize Pack can be found on Girl Who Reads.

Special Swag Prize Pack for Alli's World readers:
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