River of Tears by Michele L. Montgomery

Title: River of Tears
Author: Michele L. Montgomery
Publisher: Silver Stream Press
Pages: 357
Characters: Abby and Caiden
POV: 1st
Sub-Genre: Contemporary, non-erotic romance
Kisses: 5

Blurb

Abby marries Caiden, her soul mate, and they begin a family. Suddenly, Abby is alone with her children and the bloody clothes Caiden last wore. Abby sets out to prove Caiden is alive in a twisted game of keep-away.

Abby meets Caiden at sixteen and knows she has met her soul mate. At nineteen Abby marries the love of her life begins their family and after seven years of marriage it ends.

Abby is left alone with her children and the bloody clothes that Caiden was last seen in and she sets out to prove her husband is alive and taken against his will in a twisted game of keep-away.

Abby begins an eight-year search. She learns the secrets of her husband’s childhood and the hell he endured. More determined than ever to locate Caiden before his family kills him, Abby opens the doors to Caiden’s private world of hell and exposes his family for what they are.

CONTENT ADVISORY: This is a re-edited, re-release title.

Reviewed by DH Starr

River of Tears by Michele Montgomery is a heart wrenching story about the suffering of our two main characters, Abby and Caiden. Caiden comes from a hateful family, one where abuse of all sorts take place. From the moment he was born, Caiden was unloved and abused. But somehow, he managed to find Abby, the love of his life. For a while, their lives seem to go along smoothly with the normal stresses of having kids, adjusting to the responsibility of growing up, and dealing with in-laws who are unpleasant. But Caiden’s family was anything but normal.

Once the context for the story is established, Caiden is kidnapped by his family. That’s right, kidnapped. And for eight long years Abby frets as she searches for her husband, nearly finding him on several occasions, but then losing the trail as the family dodges the authorities over and over. In the end, the story is wrapped up with the happy ending we all expect in a romance, but it’s hard to be really happy when you know the pain the characters have experienced. This was a dark journey, one that exposes the underbelly of very real experiences. But at its heart, this story is about the power of love to heal any wound. It reveals, through its raw brashness, that no one is ever too far gone to be saved.

What I enjoyed about the story was how well Ms. Montgomery captured the emotions of the characters. This book was filled with ups and downs and each emotion was played out on the pages so the reader could really get inside the character’s head. A lot of research must have gone into the writing of this story as the topic of abduction and long term emotional damage were handled extremely well. As I read, I found myself reflecting on the pain a family would experience if a loved one went missing. When a person is missing, typically I would expect the only focus to be on finding that person, but for Abby, there are times when her anger and depression force her to confront thoughts which I never would have considered before reading this book.

There are a few things to be aware of when picking up this book. First, it’s long. That’s not to say Ms. Mongomery dragged on. Each moment and scene are important and she has a tight plot and writing style, but it’s well over 300 pages. Also, the story doesn’t pull punches. It addressed child sexual abuse, rape, abduction, violence, and family hatred. It does so without apology and the language is raw and visceral. These topics, particularly the abuse and rape, are not explicitly drawn out in the prose, but they are not simply alluded to either. They are discussed and the emotional fallout from those things is definitely made plain.

Those considerations aside, Ms. Montgomery has once again done what I’ve come to expect from her. In a very pure way, she’s presented raw human emotions and experiences and allows the reader a glimpse inside the head of some ugly and scary experiences. The whole time, she sends messages about family, love, commitment, forgiveness, and healing in a very down-to-earth way that all can relate to.

Readers should be aware this is a long story portraying horrifying experiences, but if you enjoy being carried on a journey, experiencing emotions in a detailed and fleshed out manner, this story will not disappoint. And in the end, you’ll read about simple truths which we can all connect to. Truths such as family is where your heart is. Love can conquer any evil. And no matter how difficult the challenge, human beings have the ability to persevere and heal.

Buy Link

A small note from Top 2 Bottom

First off, thank you for stopping in to see what’s going on at Top 2 Bottom today. Your support means a lot to the publisher’s and author’s of the books we review. I can tell you, since Top 2 Bottom, previously known as Michele and Jeff’s Reviews, began reviewing three years ago this March, the amount of authors and books has grown so much that we often find we are behind on reviews. Not only that, but T2B has been doing things a bit different, which is why you’re seeing so many reviews on the weekends.

We decided to give each publishing company a chance at having their authors highlighted by us for a solid month. I’m sure you have noticed and your support to them is incredible. It keeps them going, puts smiles on their faces and a warmth in their hearts full of pride and love for their readers. Being behind the scenes as we are as reviewers, and watching you and the author’s connect in a positive way makes us happy and keeps us going. It’s a hell of a lot of work to run a review site, almost as time consuming as writing is. Believe me I know. Over the past three years I’ve had three partners to help me keep this site open and running smoothly, and many a times I felt as if I were drowning in a vast sea of unread books needing attention, the whole while ignoring my own desires to write, so I could properly give each story I read a review and with each story, my need to write grew and grew and finally I had hit my limit. Thankfully Gabbi stepped up and is now my co-owner. She’s been a blessing to me and the site.

Doing author interviews and setting those up to be posted live, is even more work. In that we have to be sure the reviews are done and ready to post, we have to be sure the interview flows well so it’s not like we aren’t talking with the author and of course adding “Charles” and all the treats does take time as well. With all we do, out of the kindness of our hearts, we still receive nasty emails from impatient authors wanting to know where their reviews are.

Well, let me say this. We are working as hard as we can, as fast as we can as a team to get those done. If you’re an author/publisher and your work(s) haven’t been reviewed, we are asking for your patience and give us a moment to catch up. We are taking a break from our “Publisher’s Spotlight,” event so we can take a breath. Things on T2B will resume as they always have.

If you are an author or publisher and would like your story reviewed by our awesome team, please let us know by sending us an email with the blurb. Please do not send your books until we respond to you. I hate to know there are unread books sitting in our inbox. Our email address: top2bottomreviews@gmail.com.

Thank you!!

Michele L. Montgomery

My cover to River of Tears

Great Big Release Day Giveaway! River of Tears going on now @ https://www.facebook.com/silverpublishing?ref=ts&fref=ts

River of Tears cover

When a writer sits down with their computer or pen and paper and puts into words what they see in their heads it’s an amazing experience. One that can’t be explained with words alone. Isn’t that odd? After all, a writer uses words to get their stories out, to bring their characters to life but I honestly don’t think there are enough fabulous words to describe the feeling a writer gets when they start to see their story, their idea, their message from their imagination go from head to paper to become a story with a full plot, well rounded three-d characters, etc. No… mere words cannot describe the feeling a writer gets when they are deep into their characters lives, when they are so caught up in what’s going on with them, that the writer can’t for a second tell you what’s happening, during that time, in their real lives. You want to know how it feels? Well, I can’t tell you. I simply can’t. But I can tell you this. When you look into that writers eyes, that’s when you can tell, when you can feel it vibrating off them, that’s when you can see the pure elation and satisfaction. It’s almost a description of a child waiting to open what they think will be the best Christmas or birthday present… ever! The eyes tell it all. When you ask a writer about their story, or their characters, look into their eyes and watch them light up. There are no words for it. That glee spreads from them and onto you, into you. If you don’t get caught up in that aftermath, in the thrill of seeing or hearing what that writer is saying to you, perhaps you never will. It’s very catching. I’ve done it several times at the conferences we attend. Reading about it can’t compare to seeing it live.

Now, let me go a step further with this. When a writer submits their story to a publisher and it’s accepted, another round of pure bliss follows, then the work begins with the editing department. We’ll skip over that because most of you know, by reading statuses on various media sites and blogs you get what a writer goes through when their story is under edits. So, lets jump to the exciting part here.

When a writer creates, or let me say puts to word on paper what they see in their heads as far as how to explain what their characters look like, its not as easy as one would think. They have to do that part with finesse. They can’t simply take a moment out and say okay, this is how so and so looks as I see him/her. They can’t take a time out and explain personality traits either. There are no take backs either. Describing one’s characters is probably one of the most difficult things for me to do. I can’t speak for other writers, but for me it’s hard. I mean, I can see my characters very clear in my head, but it’s putting his/her looks on paper that I get tangled. I want the reader to “see” what I do in a character, but I’m talking more than just the physical appearance. I’m also talking about the inner spiritual or otherwise soul of the character themselves. I try to grab the correct words and put them down in such a way that the reader isn’t distracted or taken out of the story as I go through and try to explain what these characters of mine look like and do it slyly at that. The one thing I never liked doing was using a mirror to describe how a character looks, and when another character takes time out of what’s happening to tell the reader what the other character looks like, I find that if its not done right, or added some place it shouldn’t be, I get thrown off a bit. So a writer has to take care with how and when to add character description. That’s not always easy, especially when there’s so much story going on. I find, at times I don’t like to slow down long enough to give a full detail description of all of my characters and I like to give basic important physical traits, leaving much to the reader, unless something is so important that it needs to be said.

For instance, many of my characters are of a mixed heritage, most of them Italian and Irish. So, in my head I know exactly how they look, and I’ll give their eye color, their hair color, skin tone and if they have a scar or a tat, or even at times face shape and the body build. Most of the times I have another character mention bits here and there, not all at once. I’ve noticed that I’m big, no… I’m huge on eye and hair color. I seem to make that pop out more so than any other trait the characters have and I can’t tell you why. It’s one of my writing weaknesses and I openly admit that. One of my editors told me once… “Stop mentioning the color of everyone’s eyes!” She had a point because really I was throwing in very minor character eye colors. I guess I’m fascinated with eyes? Who knows.

What I’m getting at is when the reader can see the character as I see him/her due to my usage of words it thrills me. What’s even better is when a cover artist sees the characters without ever reading the story. The artist simply asks a few questions of what the writer sees , the writer, as long as they give to the artist the proper response can hope the artist sees what the writer sees. Then the writer waits with bated breath on how that cover will turn out. What a writer sees in their heads isn’t always what anyone will see. I’m sure you’ve heard the expression: “OMG! I so totally pictured so and so differently.” I’ve done that a few times.

Oh, a bit off subject here, but I’m sure many of you have seen the “trader character cards” that a few authors have had done of their characters. I remember seeing them and saying…. “Wow, that’s not how I pictured him at all but he’s hot!” and a few I did say, “Just how I pictured him.” It’s all in the perception of the way a reader sees the character and the cover artist and the writer. We all are diverse anyway, so to try to explain what’s probably one of the most important parts of writing a story, is and can be so complicated. What I call stormy eyes, I’m seeing dark blue eyes with silver streaks…what another calls stormy eyes can be and probably is very different. Details are important.

All of that comes down to how well the writer/author gives the artist the correct details on what they see. The artist, and this is why they are artists, then takes what we give them and goes on a hunt for the proper model to fulfill the description they were given. Not always an easy thing to do. I mean I have a separate blog for my “Lethal Obsession” guys. They are slow on updates but in that blog, there are pictures of how I see them in my head. And I’ve had help in searching for them. Talk about a time consuming project. It took weeks. Not steady daily work but when I found a moment, or a couple hours I’d go on a search and ask Seth, one of my writing partners and Lisa, if they thought so and so looked like so and so. And we’d go back and forth for hours it seemed. Now, I’m not saying its always a good thing to do, I mean as far as showing the readers the characters the way I did in the “Lethal Obsession” blog, but to be honest, it does help me as a writer to connect better with them. I see them as alive in my head, I hear them as they look, so to have a picture of them really helps me. When I allow myself to get lost in their lives on that blog it also helps with their stories. I can see everything so much clearer. Again, words I can’t describe.

So, back to the cover artist. And here is where I’m absolutely floored. When I was asked a few questions about how I saw the characters in River of Tears, I gave to the artist what I could and let me tell you she left me open mouthed. She sent me two groups of pictures. One group of men in similar poses and one group of women. I was told to select which fit my characters the best. On the first go around I found my Caiden and Abby. I was so excited I actually had tears in my eyes.

The cover as you see it IS of Abby as I see her and IS of Caiden as I see him. See how she’s in the background curled up as she is? She really does that in the book, she really looks JUST like the model. See the sadness and worry in her eyes? That’s really her! And Caiden…. Wow. Caiden IS that model and he IS that model in that pose. He really hidden does have a scene in the story where he’s as he is on the cover. I’m not kidding you. Read the book and tell me what you think. That cover has so much to say without saying a word.

I have to say I’m giving my cover artist a standing ovation. She deserves it. So, this blog goes to Silver’s cover artist Lee Tiffin. She did an amazing job and saying thank you to her can’t touch what I feel about her work. I have fallen back in love with my characters all due to that cover.

Lee, if you’re reading this…Thank you!!!

Michele

P.S. There’s a word in this blog that does NOT belong. If you find it, send an email to me @Michele_lm@rocketmail.com and you just may end up with a free copy of River of Tears.

River of Tears by Michele L. Montgomery on sale NOW!

 

Warning: River of Tears contains violence.

River of Tears is about a woman’s struggle as she searches for her missing husband, which leads to shocking revelations about him, his family, and the crime of adult kidnapping.

Abby meets Caiden when she is sixteen years old at nineteen they marry and after seven years of marriage it ends. She is left alone with her children and the bloody clothes Caiden was last seen in.

Knowing her husband isn’t dead, Abby begins a search that takes her from Arizona to Arkansas and lasts for a span of eight years.

More determined than ever to locate her husband, before he’s killed, Abby hires a private investigator who opens the doors to Caiden’s private world of hell.

Purchase Link

Michele L. Montgomery Stepping Outside of the Box and into the Spotlight

It’s not often that I’ll take over Top2Bottom to promote my own books but since I’m a writer and reviewer and co-own this place, I figured why not? No one else cares about my work as much as I do, and since I spend a lot of time helping others with their promo, I’m going to learn how to help myself too. So, in saying that, today is my day on T2B.

Please take your seats. I know it’s a rare occasion to have me under the heat of these lamps but, one has to do what one has to do. Today I’m going to talk about my book River of Tears.” I know it’s not new, but it is new, if that makes sense? What I mean by that is this. Silver Stream Press has picked it up, re-edited and re-released it. So, basically my first novel which was first published in 2009 found a home! River is my first of what I hope to be many more mainstream titles.

Now I know, I know… You’re wondering why I’m hogging space up on a MM review site right? I mean River of Tears is anything but MM, however there is a gay character in it, his name is Austin. He’s Abby’s big brother and Abby is the main character. Though it’s not stated in the story he is gay, once you read the story, you’ll know. I didn’t write the story thinking about sex at all. There is no sex in it either. The story itself is close to my heart, it’s fact blended with fiction and no, I won’t tell you what is fact or fiction. It’s a very plot/character driven story and really? Sex isn’t needed in it.

Since River of Tears isn’t MM, I know that a large part of our followers here and even my own readers won’t stop a second to read the blurb to see what it’s about. However, I wish you would read it, and give it a shot. It’s okay to read outside of our beloved MM Genre, and it’s okay to write outside of it as well. I am one of those writers who has to give into the voices in my head and tell their story be it MM or not. I’ve stepped outside of my comfy zone when I wrote Tony & Ryan, my first MM short. That was an adventure for me and one that has stuck with me. I love to write so you can be sure I’m not turning away from my MM, but I am going to spread my wings a little further out there. And I’m not using any pen names either. So if I write a YA or a full out MM erotic story, you can bet my name will be on the covers and on my website. The same goes for any mainstream I do. If people can’t handle what I write, I’m sure there are other writer’s they will enjoy. I’m proud of what I write and I want to entertain others with it.

So, am I changing Genre’s? No… I’m actually getting out of the cage I put myself in. That’s why I took a look at River last year and said, that story needs a publisher and a place to call home because Caiden and Abby must have their story told and read. Am I marketing it in the right place? Probably not, but word of mouth is one of the best promotion tools an author/writer has. So, if you will, please pass on this information to someone who likes to read something different.

What do I mean by different? Well, if you’ve read any of my stories, you’ll know I focus more on the Alpha males, a bit into the D/s lifestyle, angst, drama, action and violence. All my favorite things to read about. River of Tears is all of that without the Alpha men and D/s aspects. To say its an easy read? Uh, no. It’s not easy to read and what I mean by that is the fact that abuse and harsh reality, that will touch you and remain in your mind for weeks after you put the story down, is in that book. I do warn on my website that it is violent but not in a bloodshed type of way. No heads being chopped off or people being stabbed. It’s violent in the sense that it’s so damn full of pain at times you’ll find yourself crying, you’ll find yourself angry, you’ll find yourself cheering the characters on and that I can promise you. I’m not tooting my own horn, I’m merely telling you what others have already said of the story.

And for those of you who are anxiously awaiting the next Lethal Obsession book, you’ll be VERY happy to know it is under edits with an amazing editor and it should be out early to mid-summer. I already have the cover. I also have a short coming out sometime this year that’s part of an anthology I put together and working on a series of stories with another author. It doesn’t stop there. I have a story I’m working on for a friend and hopefully that’ll be done soon. OH! And fyi: working on the fourth Lethal Obsession story with a close friend of mine as well. So, I’m busy yes, between the review site, my writing, working a real evil job, family and all that, there are days I’m lost and I can’t even find myself. So, if you do see me… Please put me on a plane to Italy.

Any and all comments to this post will be put into a drawing to win a copy of River of Tears.

River of Tears official blurb:

River of Tears is about a woman’s struggle as she searches for her missing husband, which leads to shocking revelations about him, his family, and the crime of adult kidnapping.

Abby meets Caiden when she is sixteen years old at nineteen they marry and after seven years of marriage it ends. She is left alone with her children and the bloody clothes Caiden was last seen in.

Knowing her husband isn’t dead, Abby begins a search that takes her from Arizona to Arkansas and lasts for a span of eight years.

More determined than ever to locate her husband, before he’s killed, Abby hires a private investigator who opens the doors to Caiden’s private world of hell.

Buy here

I was featured by Silver Stream Press as well. Instead of me asking the questions, the table is turned. Read here:

And for more fun! I’m over at Facebook today!! I, along with three other authors will be there having fun and giving away free gift certificates and books. You have to go for a chance to win. Go here for your chance to win gift certificates and free ebooks.

For fun here’s the video of River of Tears I did in ’09.

Silver Stream Press Author Blog Hop

Four wonderful stories, four amazing authors and give-a-ways galore!

 

Join us for some fun on Sunday, February the 10th AND Saturday, February 16th to celebrate the grand opening of Silver Stream Press by playing a game with us! By playing and sending in your answer, you will quality to win one of several different prizes by Silver Stream Press and the following authors:

Allison Cassatta

Caitlin Ricci

Michele L. Montgomery

Pelaam

 

Visit each of their sites and read the posts. In each post there is ONE word that doesn’t belong. Once you have found the word, copy it down and then move onto the next author’s site. Find the word in their post that doesn’t belong and continue on until you have visited all four sites and found all four words.

Example: Henry took a walk along the worn path staring down at his rugged worn cowboy boots, and not at the beauty of the mountains bedroom that surrounded him, almost like massive arms ready to take him in their embrace to offer what comfort they could.

“Bedroom” is the out of place word. Copy that word down and then move on to the next author’s site to find the next word that doesn’t belong. Once you have all four words, arrange them to create a sentence and send the sentence to authorcaitlinricci@gmail.com . She will take all the correct entries and use Random.org to find the Blog Hop winner. The winner will receive a Silver Publishing gift certificate that can be used at either Silver Publishing or Silver Stream Press.

 

Have fun! And good luck!!

 

 

Silver Stream Press

Announcing the grand opening of Silver Stream Press, the YA and Mainstream imprint of Silver Publishing.

Our official launch date is scheduled for Saturday, February 16, 2013, and we’re offering four fantastic books that day to start the line off with a bang. The launch books range from contemporary crime romance and fantasy adventure romance to contemporary gay romance and even a steampunk adventure gay romance.

Betrayed by an emperor she’s been loyal to all her life, Emmaline suddenly finds herself cast out of the only place she’s ever known and sent to live in a land she’s barely ever heard of. In a world full of new magic and where the simple color of her eyes makes her someone to be feared, it’ll take more than just her sanity if she’s going to survive.

Accepting their company’s assignment as medic and nurse on Glacialis, Shae and Bless find their welcome as frigid as the planet itself. Neither Adair, the mine’s foreman nor Merag, his head of security make the men feel welcome or wanted.

When one of the miners seeks medical attention for an injury he doesn’t want Adair to know about, Shae and Bless quickly find themselves investigating illegal activity at the mine, and embroiled in danger.

Shae finds himself falling in love with an undercover Ranger sent to investigate the mine, and he and Bless choose to help him.
Peril takes three forms, each different, but as deadly as the other

There’s nothing in the world Steven won’t do for his best friend Becca, including ditching his schoolwork–something he would never do–just to escort her to some club so she can chase down her dream boy who happens to be the drummer in some kind of band. He didn’t expect to set eyes on the most Godly creation under the stars, and sure didn’t expect that gorgeous hunk of man with the voice of an angel.

While Becca and Mr. Dreamboat drummer boy get to know each other better in the diner parking lot after the big show, Steven and Thorne discover a mutual love for pancakes and hot maple syrup–not that flavored crap–that opens doors to a relationship Steven never expected to find when he agreed to go out with Becca that night. But will Thorne ever be able to stand-up to his homophobic bandmates and come out so he can finally find love?

CONTENT ADVISORY:This title contains both MM and MF romantic situations.

River of Tears is about a woman’s struggle as she searches for her missing husband, which leads to shocking revelations about him, his family, and the crime of adult kidnapping.

Abby meets Caiden when she is sixteen years old at nineteen they marry and after seven years of marriage it ends. She is left alone with her children and the bloody clothes Caiden was last seen in.

Knowing her husband isn’t dead, Abby begins a search that takes her from Arizona to Arkansas and lasts for a span of eight years.

More determined than ever to locate her husband, before he’s killed, Abby hires a private investigator who opens the doors to Caiden’s private world of hell.

CONTENT ADVISORY: This is a re-edited, re-release title.

Silver Stream publishes general audience stories which offer content commonly found in traditional bookstores–romance, action, thriller, suspense, mainstream, and so much more, while excluding explicit sexual or graphic content found at Silver Publishing. Both M/F and LGBTQ stories will be available in all subgenres.

Additionally, this division of our publishing umbrella offers young adult fiction. Although these stories are enjoyed by all age ranges, their content is tailored with teenage readers in mind.

For authors… We are currently seeking all genres of mainstream, YA, and sweet or traditional romance in both homosexual and heterosexual varieties. Silver Stream does not allow sensual or erotic content in the books. Books with such content should be submitted to the Silver Publishing side of the company.

DAMMIT! Now available in print!!

Psst! Remember this book?

It is now available in print at Barnes & Noble. Well as of the 3rd it will be but you can pre-order it now.

Blurb:

Escaping the past isn’t easy, especially when the scars left behind are a constant reminder that trust and love can hurt.

Michael McKnight knows what it means to be on the run from memories. Years ago, after fleeing an abusive relationship, he was brutally stabbed and left for dead. His only savior had been a compassionate stranger he’d only gotten a glimpse of before slipping into the blackness that claimed him.

For Michael, recovery was an arduous and hard fought return to some semblance of normalcy. He rebuilds his life, spending his waking hours buried in work and fighting to forget the past. And his life seems to be going well until he finds out that his cousin Wayne is being held captive in a mental asylum for being gay. So he buys a plane ticket and flies out to rescue his cousin.

But the weather is against Michael, keeping him grounded and talking to a man who claims that he’d once saved his life and is willing to help him rescue his cousin. Can this man be for real or is something more sinister in the works?

It’s available in e-book here: Seventh Window

Available in Print here: Barnes & Noble

The Scarlet Letter: Issue 2 Now Available

The second issue of The Scarlet Letter is now available!! (Party in the pants!!)

We have interviews from authors such as:

Kiernan Kelly

SJD Peterson

Peelam

Rae Gee

We have guest blogs about:

The Boy Next Door by Zathyn Priest

Where Do The Stories Come From? by GL Roberts

What is Steampunk? By Rae Gee

Being a writer has its ups and downs, doesn’t it? By Michele L. Montgomery

There’s even a Podcast!!

I interviewed Zathyn Priest! You can hear that sexy Aussie accent and practically see him blushing. (Audio Interview)

Meet our roving reporter/interviewer Digi Me-

This issue he sat down with Tyler Curtis (The Curtis Reincarnation)and we have pictures of that meeting.

If you’re a reader and would like to see something added to the magazine, or perhaps have us interview your favorite author, please let us know.

If you’re an author, The Scarlet Letter would love to have you do guest posts, hear about your new releases, even share original free GLBTQ fiction with us.

You can find all the information on how to submit something to us in the magazine. Our email address is: thescarletlettermagazine@yahoo.com if you have any questions.

Click the banner to head over to The Scarlet Letter.

Top 2 Bottom Merges with The Scarlet Letter!!

I would like to take a moment of your time to make a special announcement. It’s one that has been in the works for some time now and it’s finally come to see the light. As you are aware, I’ve been hard at work with Zathyn Priest and The Scarlet Letter magazine. In saying that, I’m proud to announce the merging of the two!

The Scarlet Letter and Top2Bottom reviews have merged to offer authors and publishers a wider audience to reach readers. The Scarlet Letter featured reviews from Top2Bottom in the first issue and this will become a regular feature. As it’s been mentioned previously, the magazine is not geared toward emulating a review site, which is why the partnership was agreed upon. Zathyn does not write reviews and he doesn’t intend to start. This is Top 2 Bottom’s area of expertise. If you’re interested in having a book reviewed, please visit Top2Bottom and follow the instructions on the ‘submissions and contact information’ link.

http://top2bottomreviews.wordpress.com/submissions-and-contact-information/

Please do not send review requests/inquiries to Zathyn or via The Scarlet Letter. There is a very good chance they won’t reach their intended target if you do.

With each issue of The Scarlet Letter we will feature one title as the editor’s pick. This book will be chosen by myself from our list of recently reviewed books. The author chosen will be contacted by Top2Bottom and informed their title has been selected.

We look forward to working with many publishers and authors in this adventure, and are always open to suggestions.

A note about The Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet Letter is an online magazine aimed toward offering writers of GLBT fiction an avenue for promotion while offering readers the opportunity to get to know they’re favourite authors better. Through the free e-card feature, we are also opening the doors to artists who would like to promote their work. The magazine is one part of the Scarlet community, which will include publishing, a forum, and a chatroom.

All authors, whether self-published or traditionally published, are invited to submit content for use in the magazine – please see submission guidelines. Guidelines are also available for artists/photographers.

The Scarlet Letter focuses on positivity and creating a safe, encouraging atmosphere for all writers and readers. We do not publish negative reviews, we do not publish gossip, and we will not publish guest blogs/articles that focus on another author or book in a negative light. Such submissions will be discarded immediately. Continued submissions of this nature will result in the sender being blacklisted.

Magazine staff

Zathyn Priest: Editor & Site Manager – zathynpriest@yahoo.com.au
Michele L. Montgomery: Promotions – michele_lm@rocketmail.com

Inquiries should be emailed to either Zathyn or Michele. There is also a FaceBook group where updates are regularly made. If you would like to utilise the magazine for promotion, please join the group to keep you in the loop. The group is also open to readers of GLBT fiction.

Click HERE to join our FaceBook Group

We sincerely thank all authors who have contributed to the magazine and extend a welcome to continue sending us promotional material, guest blogs, and articles. We also sincerely thank readers of the magazine and of GLBT fiction – without you, we have nothing.

Enjoy the magazine and be sure to bookmark us for future issues!

Regards,
Zathyn Priest