Craving the Supernatural

Hey, y'all! This is Firethorn's launch month, so I wanted to share a few giveaway opportunities with you!

Edgy Inspirational Author Michelle Sutton is offering a copy on her blog:
http://edgyinspirationalauthor.blogspot.com/2012/01/now-im-giving-away-firethorn-by-ronie.html

Friend and Reviewer Anne Payne is offering a copy on her blog:
http://duhpaynes.com/2012/01/11/firethorn-giveaway/

Reviewer and friend, Katie McCurdy loved Wolfsbane so much, she's hosting Dani and Canyon (the hero/heroine from the story) and doing a giveaway--this one, you can win Wolfsbane, or your choice of the Discarded Heroes books! WOW!!
http://katie-mccurdy.blogspot.com/2012/01/whats-party-without-nightshade-team-day.html

I am so tickled to see Digitalis, Discarded Heroes #2, make the 2011 INSPY Short List in Suspense/Thriller!!! OORAH!! Thank you to all readers who nominated Digitalis, and to the judges who have done an incredible amount of reading to determine the short list. WOOT!!

Here is the full 2011 INSPY Short List straight from INSPYs.com:

The INSPY Advisory Board is pleased to announce the shortlists for the 2011 INSPY Awards. We thank you for your enthusiastic nominations of books and again acknowledge the difficulties in narrowing the field with so many quality nominations.

Creative Nonfiction

Little Princes by Conor Grennan, (William Morrow, Jan 2011)

One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp, (Zondervan, Jan 2011)

Passport Through Darkness by Kimberly L. Smith (David C Cook, Jan 2011)

The Waiting Place by Eileen Button (Thomas Nelson, June 2011)

The World is Bigger Now by Euna Lee & Lisa Dickey (Broadway, Sept 2010)

General

City of Tranquil Light by Bo Caldwell, (Henry Holt & Co, Sept 2010)

The Blackberry Bush by David Housholder (Summerside Press, June 2011)

The Reluctant Prophet by Nancy Rue (David C Cook, Oct 2010)

Wolves Among Us by Ginger Garrett (David C Cook, April 2011)

Words by Ginny Yttrup (B&H Publishing, Feb 2011)

Mystery/Thriller

Back on Murder by J. Mark Bertrand (Bethany House, July 2010)

Darkness Follows by Mark Dellosso (Realms, May 2011)

Digitalis by Ronie Kendig (Barbour, Jan 2011)

Over the Edge by Brandilyn Collins (B&H Publishing, May 2011)

The Bishop by Steven James, (Revell, Aug 2010)

Romance

A Heart Most Worthy by Siri Mitchell (Bethany House, March 2011)

A Hope Undaunted by Julie Lessman (Revell, Sept 2010)

The Preacher’s Bride by Jody Hedlund (Bethany House, Oct 2010)

Within My Heart by Tamera Alexander (Bethany House, Sept 2010)

Yesterday’s Tomorrow by Catherine West (Oak Tara, March 2011)

Speculative Fiction

Heartless by Anne Elisabeth Stengl, (Bethany House, July 2010)

The Charlatan’s Boy by Jonathan Rogers (Waterbrook Press, Oct 2010)

The Falling Away by T. L. Hines (Thomas Nelson, Sept 2010)

The Resurrection by Mike Duran (Realms, Feb 2011)

The Skin Map by Stephen Lawhead, (Thomas Nelson, Aug 2010)

Young Adult

A Girl Named Mister by Nikki Grimes (Zondervan, Aug 2010)

Losing Faith by Denise Jaden (Simon Pulse, Sept 2010)

Saint Training by Elizabeth Fixmer (Zondervan, Aug 2010)

The Fences Between Us by Kirby Larson (Scholastic, Sept 2010)

The Truth of the Matter by Andrew Klavan (Thomas Nelson, Sept 2010)

 

Today at NovelJourney, you can meet "Kazi" from Firethorn. Or literally, the model who posed as Kazi. Recently, I got to meet her in person, and I think you'll love her story. Check it out!

In this post: cover reveal and a GIVEAWAY!!

I am super excited to share this cover with you for FIRETHORN, Discarded Heroes #4! The design team really captured Griffin and even Kazi on this one. They are the closest to the actual characters in the book of all the covers. I will be sending Firethorn in to my editor soon, and it's been one of the hardest stories I've ever written. And I'm a little blown away that this is the fifth book that I've written for a publisher (my twenty-somethingth all together).

So, there's a giveaway...but ya gotta read all the "fine print" first--that is, read the full post! :-D

It is my extreme pleasure to announce that my agent Steve Laube has negotiated and I have signed a 3-book contract with my publisher, BARBOUR PUBLISHING, for a series about retired military war dogs and their handlers entitled A Breed Apart. I have been very pleased working with the Barbour Fiction team, and I'm so grateful to my editor, Rebecca Germany, for believing in me and these stories enough to let them see the ink of publication!

Without further ado, here is a bit more about the stories:


Trinity: Military War Dog (June 2012)- After Green Beret Heath Daniels survives an IED attack—thanks to his military war dog, Trinity, a Belgian Malinois—he battles blackouts from traumatic brain injury (TBI) and is discharged. Feeling weak and lost, he finds hope through A Breed Apart, an organization training dogs like Trinity to aid independent contractors. Military Intelligence officer Darci Kintz is secretly embedded with a geological survey team in Afghanistan. A deadly discovery leaves her team dead and her a captive. Heath and Trinity join the search for the military intelligence officer.

Talon: Combat Tracking Team (November 2012)– Former Marine Aspen Courtland adopts Talon, a Combat Tracking Team German Shepherd declared “excess.” But Talon is afraid of his own shadow after an attack that left his second handler—and Aspen’s brother—missing. Former Marine Special Operations commander Dane Markoski is tasked with tracking down a rogue Marine selling military secrets in Africa—and he needs Talon to do it because the rogue was Talon’s first handler. But Talon won’t cooperate without Aspen, who has rehabilitated the canine. In Africa, the team quickly realizes they’ve been set up. But can they untangle the maze of lies? Can Talon overcome his fear, or will he shut down and put everyone in danger?

Beowulf: Specialized Search Dog (June 2013)– Handler Timbrel Hogan and her highly trained specialized search dog, Beowulf, a Mastiff mix who is as ugly as he is smart, must enter a roiling war zone to retrieve a high-value target from a prison. But once on their own with the spy who provided the Intel, Timbrel is no longer certain the story is legit. In fact, she suspects they’ve been set up. Nikol Tselekova has more to hide that his nationality but he can’t let Timbrel Hogan, whose bite is worse than her dog’s, interfere with his mission to save his own sister from a deadly alliance.


So, there you have it. Celebrate with me!! I am really excited to begin the A Breed Apart series with Barbour!! I hope you'll enjoy these books when they hit the shelves next year.

(images found/property of DVIDS)

I am so excited to announce that I signed a contract with Barbour Publishing to write one of four novellas in a collection entitled CENTRAL PARK RENDEZVOUS and will be set in (as if you couldn't figure this out already) Central Park, NY. I will be writing with some very amazing ladies: Dineen Miller, MaryLu Tyndall, and Kim Vogel Sawyer! The collection is set to release April 2012.

Here is the blurb for the collection:

Through the timelessness of the love never fails verses from I Corinthians 13, characters from four generations of one family endure hard and cruel circumstances in life, yet bring love full circle to its completion. In Ronie Kendig’s Dream A Little Dream the characters learn “love always perseveres,” even when combat-related repercussions block the path to dreams and love. Dineen Miller explores “love always hopes” in her story, A Love Meant to Be, in which a lingering hope leads to a love fulfilled after Vietnam. In To Sing Another Day, Kim Vogel Sawyer reveals that “love is kind. . .not self-seeking” against a backdrop of poverty in a era of severe economic depression and World War II. With an expert touch MaryLu Tyndall shows how “Love Never Fails,” despite unimaginable odds and disfiguring pride connected with the Civil War.

Celebrate with us, please!! YAYAYAYAY!!!

A hundred-thousand thank yous to Misty Taggart at Trailer to the Stars Productions for once again capturing the heart of the Discarded Heroes series, and in particularly this time, DIGITALIS, with her fantastic trailers. Check it out! What do you think?



What do you think? Pretty awesome, isn't it?

Here's the official blurb for Colton "Cowboy" Neeley's story:

Step into the boots of a former Marine in this heart-pounding adventure in life and love. Colton “Cowboy” Neeley is a Marine trying to find his footing as he battles flashbacks now that he’s back home. Piper Blum is a woman in hiding—from life and the assassins bent on destroying her family. When their hearts collide, more than their lives are at stake. Will Colton find a way to forgive Piper’s lies? Can Piper find a way to rescue her father, trapped in Israel? Is there any way their love, founded on her lies, can survive?

Here's what people are saying about Digitalis:



In Digitalis, Ronie Kendig again displays her superb ability to reach from the page and pull the reader into the world of heart thumping espionage and richly flawed characters. Her heroes are some of the best I've ever read, and they are so unforgettable!
--Dineen Miller, author of Winning Him Without Words: 10 Keys to Thriving in Your Spiritually Mismatched Marriage

Digitalis is a story of skill and purpose woven with love and spine-tingling danger...that will live long past the last page. None of us fully realize the dedication of those who keep our world safe.

Reading a Ronie Kendig novel is like watching a movie—a nail-biting, intense action movie. The words [in Digitalis] seem to jump off the page and leave you breathless as Colton takes you from one heart-pounding scene to another. Novel Journey and I give it our highest recommendation.
--Ane Mulligan Novel Journey


ORDER Digitalis, Discarded Heroes #2 NOW!! Books will hit stores very soon! :-D
CHRISTIANBOOK.COM
Barnes & Noble
Borders

And get this...if you don't have NIGHTSHADE, Discarded Heroes #1, you can purchase it along with DIGITALIS for a two-in-one price through Christianbook.com!!

Leave a Comment for a chance to win an autographed copy of DIGITALIS!!

Wow! I'm so excited. Today is June 1st--that means two very awesome things are happening in my life. First...
My TWENTIETH anniversary! No kidding. On June 1, 1990 I married the man of my dreams. I knew I had to snag him fast before he figured out the truth (hehe). Brian is a real hero. God has closed many doors to Brian's dreams (army, architecture, FBI) but he has pressed on. Now, he's able to speak/read/understand Arabic (not fluently yet). We aren't sure what God has on the horizon for us, but I am really honored and excited to journey with my amazing man.

And...now...second...today means there's ONE MONTH left until Nightshade releases. YAY! In honor of that, I'd like to share some of the early reviews that are coming in.

While I do not normally read novels featuring war stories, I read this one because I have a son-in-law who not only has deployed and served, but who is preparing to return to the war zone. It is books like this that will be able to reach those who are holding in the pain and who can identify with Max. ~~"kansaspastor" at http://kansaspastor.blogspot.com/

Nightshade is brilliant! Gripping characters, incredible pacing, and the most compelling plot I've read in a LONG time made this a book I could NOT put down. The author had me so entrenched, I felt like I was in the midst of the most amazing military-action-suspense-romance movie on the big screen. I'm hooked, and cannot wait for the rest of the series. Ronie Kendig is my new favorite author. ~~Kimberley Woodhouse, author of Welcome Home Woodhouse Family: Our Family's Journey to Extreme Joy and No Safe Haven (B&H, January 2011).

This intense story full of action, is also full of emotion and life. Men dealing with issues they hadn’t planned on. Surprise after surprise and bomb after bomb set this adventurous trail with the reader racing to the end. I found myself crying and smiling and hated it when it ended. But I have it on good authority that there are more Discarded Heroes stories coming. Ronie, I can’t wait! ~~Jan Crow, Katy Budget Books, Buyer

PRE-ORDER NIGHTSHADE for $8.76 at Amazon:

YOU READY FOR THIS? *GRINS* In one month, Nightshade will release to the unsuspecting public. Until then...you have this to help you prepare.

I just received the trailer for NIGHTSHADE. Misty Taggart and her team at TRAILER TO THE STARS did a fabulous job with it, don't you think?



A review:

This intense story full of action, is also full of emotion and life. Men dealing with issues they hadn’t planned on. Surprise after surprise and bomb after bomb set this adventurous trail with the reader racing to the end. I found myself crying and smiling and hated it when it ended. ~~Jan Crow, Katy Budget Books, Book Buyer


Have you pre-ordered your copy yet?

Just had to share with everyone that Amazon now has the "Look Inside!" feature for Nightshade, Book #1 of the Discarded Heroes releasing July 1st from Barbour Publishing. I was thrilled to find this available today--because along with it came a huge surprise--my back cover! I hadn't seen it till it was posted there. It's GORGEOUS!! Barbour has done such an amazing job, and they have constantly impressed me time and again. Also, I was absolutely tickled to find the endorsements on the front and back, as well as the Nightshade symbol so big and crisp.

Anyway, take a peek and enjoy the prologue and first chapter: AMAZON Look Inside! Then come back and tell me what you think. With only two months before the release, you know I'm working on some great launch ideas.

Here is the cover for Digitalis, Discarded Heroes #2, which releases January 2011 from Barbour Publishing! I am sooo excited about this one. What do you think?

I am so excited. Within the next couple of days, I hope to be able to reveal the cover of Discarded Heroes book #2, Digitalis. I got to see it last week and nearly exploded (*kersplat*). Barbour has done a fabulous job, and it's sooooo amazing to see the series unfold and come to life.

For now...my awesome friend Rel Mollet has a small feature on Nightshade (releases July 1st!) for your viewing pleasure on her blog, RelzReviewz. I'll hope you'll peak at it and leave a comment, just a small way of showing appreciation to Rel for featuring them--and she's the first, so how kewl is that!?!?

Blessings, y'all!!

Did you get a chance to read about my beautiful friend, Robin Caroll? Be sure to read the post and leave a comment for a chance to win a copy of her book!

Yesterday, a new friend, Sherry Kuhn, pointed out that NIGHTSHADE had shown up on CBD.com I was thrilled to see it up there. Take a moment for a peek at the cover, then let me know what you think! And hey--if you're one of the rare few who've read this book already, I'd appreciate it if you left a review. :-)

Hey, have you been wanting to read Dead Reckoning, and waiting for its release (a mere three weeks away!!) is agony? Well, guess what? You've got the chance to read two more chapters!! That's right--my amazing friend, Bonnie Calhoun, emailed and told me that Abingdon had made a widget for Dead Reckoning with its cover and first three chapters!

I am so excited! Today, NIGHTSHADE, Book#1 in the Discarded Heroes series I'm writing for Barbour Publishing, showed up on CBD.com. I've had a peek at the cover already, but I can't share it yet (doncha hate it when people do things like that? LOL). Hopefully soon!!

But take a look--and if you can, pre-order it now before it's sold out (hey, ya never know...)!!!!

here's the full link: http://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/product?item_no=607774&item_code=WW&netp_id=762158&event=ESRCN&view=details

And here's the Nightshade Blurb:

They’ve championed freedom, survived the cruelties of war

, and now these same heroes return home

. . .wounded and discarded.

Former Navy SEAL Max Jacobs is fighting a new war—a war for his family. Suffering from PTSD, Max is unable to control his anger and alienates himself from his wife, who files a protective order against him. Their lives are about to collide when Sydney Jacobs hunts down the source of a human interest story at her local newspaper. Will she uncover Nightshade, the elite team Max is covertly working with, and place their lives in danger?

I am beyond delighted to announce that my fabulous agent, Steve Laube, has negotiated a 4-book contract for the Discarded Heroes series with Becky Germany at Barbour Publishing!! I am so honored that Barbour is allowing this series to come to life. It's a departure from what they've been publishing, and I'm thrilled to join the ranks as one of their authors!

They've championed freedom,

survived the cruelties of war,

Each of the Discarded Heroes books is a full-length (100k), action-packed story. The first book NIGHTSHADE will release July 2010, with subsequent titles DIGITALIS, WOLFSBANE, and FIRETHORN releasing every six months thereafter.

(and yes...this is the book that big brother John Olson promoted at Mt Hermon and the ACFW Conference last year--I owe him a huge debt of gratitude for so many things, including brainstorming and advocating for me. THANK YOU, JOHN!!):

For anyone still here and reading, here is the blurb for the first book, NIGHTSHADE

After a tour of duty in a war-torn country, embattled former Navy Seal Max Jacobs finds himself discarded and alienated from those he loves when he’s not able to cope with civilian life. His wife, Sydney, files a restraining order and a petition for divorce. Max is devastated.

Then a mysterious message arrives. A deep-six group known as Nightshade offers to help him find purpose in life once again by returning to the one thing he excelled at—war. Unable to resist the call of duty, Max signs on.

Their first mission is riddled with problems—and a set up. Max and the team must ferret a missionary family to safety before a deadly enemy can stop them. During the trek through the jungle something about the missionaries speaks to Max—and awakens the love for his wife he had long-thought dead.

Celebrate with me! This is a dream come true, and I pray that God can use these stories to minister to the heroes who protect our lives and freedom!!