Anime Overview: Ballroom e Youkoso

 

Synopsis

A professional dancer named Sengoku rescues Tatara, an introverted third-year middle school student who is being harassed by delinquents. Tatara ends up at Sengoku's dance studio where he meets Shizuku Hanaoka, a schoolmate he comes to secretly idolize. From this defining moment when Tatara enters the world of dance. Sengoku is a free-spirited, dynamic international dancer who recognizes Tatara's potential and begins to coach him. Through dance, Tatara meets another schoolmate, a dance prodigy named Kiyoharu. Through these new friendships, Tatara develops a passionate desire to improve as a dancer and be accepted by his peers and rivals, which nurtures his own native talent. And through interaction with Tatara, other dance members are encouraged to take steps to overcome their own challenges and issues.

Anime Overview: Isekai Shokudou

 

Synopsis

At the bottom floor of the building with a dog signboard, in the shopping district near the office street, there lies a cafeteria called "Youshoku no Nekoya," that has an illustration of a cat on the door. It's been open for fifty years and has satisfied various salarymen from nearby offices. Despite it being called a Western cuisine cafeteria, it also provides other varieties of menus. For the people of this certain world, it's their one-and-only special cafeteria.

There is, however, one secret to "Nekoya." The cafeteria is closed to the public every Saturday in order to make way for special guests. When a bell rings, customers from different places of birth and races appear who ask for mysterious and delicious dishes. They are actually the same dishes served to the salarymen, but these special guests find them to be more exotic than to what they are used to. As the cafeteria aims to serve masterpieces, it is usually referred as "Isekai Shokudou."

And so, the bell rings again this week.

Anime Overview: Shoukoku no Altair

 

Synopsis

Tughril Mahmut is a young pasha serving on the Divan of the Türkiye Stratocracy. The clouds of war are gathering over his country due to the threat of an aggressive Empire. With the Divan split between warmongers and the pacifists, Mahmut begins his quest to keep the peace at any cost. As he finds himself deeper and deeper in the politics of the ancient world, new enemies and allies surface. Who will prevail? What will Mahmut do if war proves to be inevitable?

Wednesday Wish List

 

Please list the books/manga/manhwa/yaoi manga from your wishlist that you are hoping to add to your shelves in a comment, thanks. 

 

The witches, they are real

A series of bizarre assaults is mystifying Boston police — an unknown attacker is viciously beating random strangers and leaving a note quoting an old warning about witchcraft. History professor Alex Maple was one of the victims, and now he's gone missing. Vickie Preston is certain that someone has taken her friend for malicious purposes. She's having blood-drenched visions that seem to be staining her waking life, and the escalating attacks suggest that a dangerous cult is at work behind the scenes — a cult so powerful that its members would rather die than be apprehended.

Vickie is grateful to have Special Agent Griffin Pryce and the FBI's elite Krewe of Hunters on her side. She and Griffin are finding their way in an increasingly passionate relationship, and Griffin is desperately trying to keep her safe and the two of them sane amid the disturbing investigation. The search for Alex will take them deep into the wilderness of Massachusetts on the trail of a serial killer, and it will take everything they have to survive the ancient evil that awakens and threatens not just the man they're striving to save but their very souls.

Anime Overview: Gamers

 

Synopsis

This is a story that revolves around certain students and one hobby. Amano Keita is our lonely protagonist who has a passion for gaming and is friends with Uehara Tasuku, who is secretly a fellow gamer and is someone who believes his life is perfect. We also have Karen Tendou, the club president of the video games club and Chiaki Hoshinomori, who constantly bickers with Keita. This is a story filled with a non-stop sequence of comedy scenes and misunderstandings. Our chaotic romantic comedy now begins!

New Release 2017 (July 18)

  New Release

#1 New York Times bestselling author Iris Johansen and Edgar Award-winning author Roy Johansen are back with Look Behind You, a novel featuring Kendra Michaels ― hired gun for both the CIA and FBI.

A serial killer is on the loose in San Diego with a most unusual M.O. With each kill, the perpetrator leaves behind mystifying random objects. In this confusing array of unrelated evidence, the one thing that is clear is that the murders all have one characteristic in common: they all require the specific skills of Kendra Michaels, hired gun for both the CIA and FBI. Kendra, who was blind for the first twenty years of her life, gained her sight through a revolutionary surgical procedure and now uses her acute powers of observation to assist in cases all over the United States.

FBI investigators soon make a startling discovery: the left-behind objects are actually souvenirs of other unsolved serial murder cases from around the country. And the new crimes feature “holdback” characteristics never disclosed to the general public ― meaning that one single killer was behind the nation’s most notorious serial murder cases and has now come to challenge and taunt Kendra.

The investigators ― a “dream team” of profilers ― join Kendra in the pursuit, but as the body count rises and the detectives themselves become the newest targets, Kendra must risk everything to defeat a psychopath whose terrifying plan is years in the making.

Connie di Marco's All Signs Point to Murder Blog Tour with a Spotlight, Excerpt and Giveaway

 

I am so excited to have Connie di Marco here at Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews with a Spotlight, Excerpt and Giveaway.

Thanks Connie and Goddess Fish Promotions for allowing me to join your All Signs Point to Murder Blog Tour!

Please take it away, Connie!

All Signs Point to Murder
by Connie di Marco
GENRE: Mystery

BLURB

The stars predict a wedding-day disaster, but San Francisco astrologer Julia Bonatti never expected murder.

Julia Bonatti is alarmed by the astrological signs looming over Geneva Leary’s wedding day, but nobody asked Julia’s opinion and being a bridesmaid means supporting the bride no matter what. Even with the foreboding Moon-Mars-Pluto lineup in the heavens, no one’s prepared for the catastrophes that strike: a no-show sister, a passed-out wedding planner, and a lethal shooting in the dead of night.

With anger and grief threatening to tear the Leary family part, Julia is determined to understand how such a terrible tragedy could occur. As she digs deeper into the family’s secrets, her astrological insights will lead her to the truth about a criminal enterprise that stretches far beyond the California coast.

EXCERPT

Celia’s house was set back from the wide boulevard on a street that never seemed to be busy with traffic. I pulled up in front and climbed the stairs. After her husband died, Celia was fortunate. She could still afford to live in her home. The front lawn was perfect, a postage stamp of lush brilliant green bordered with hydrangeas. No leaf would dare be out of place in Celia’s garden.

I lugged the shopping bag up the stairs, forcing myself not to think about the remnants of Michael’s life that I had packed away. After all, the very least she could do would be to open the door and say thank you. When I reached the top of the stairway, I rang the bell and waited. I waited a few minutes more and then rang the doorbell again. She was home. I was sure of it. She simply refused to have anything to do with me. That old familiar ache rose in my chest. The orphan with her nose pressed against the window looking in on a life she couldn’t hope to have. Angry at my automatic reaction, I rang the bell a third time. Finally, I gave up. Okay, Celia, you win. I placed the bag at the front door and returned down the steps. As I was opening my car door, someone called my name. I turned back. It was Maggie, Michael’s sister.

“Julia. Wait.” She rushed down the stairs, out of breath when she reached me. “I’m sorry, I didn’t hear the bell. I was upstairs.” She gave me a warm hug.

“Hi Maggie.” I smiled. “It’s great to see you.” I had always liked Michael’s younger sister. I had never known their father, but they both must have taken after him. There certainly was no spiritual resemblance between them and their mother.

“How are you?” I responded.

“I’m fine. I was just visiting at Mom’s.” Her smiled faded. “Julia, I’m sorry she’s treating you this way. She’s home. She just won’t answer the door.”

“Maggie, I gave up a year ago, wondering what she held against me.”

“It’s not just you I’m afraid. She won’t talk to anybody in the family. Doesn’t see her old friends. She rattles around that big old house day and night. She’s made a shrine of my brother’s room. I think she spends most of her time there.” Maggie shrugged. “I’m really worried about her but I just don’t know what to do. That’s why I try to stop by whenever I can.”

“I wish I could help, but I’m likely the last person she wants to see. You don’t have to apologize for her.”

“I know that. I just don’t think you need to be treated like that. We all hurt. It doesn’t help to be cruel to you. Michael really loved you. I just hope you always remember that. Don’t let my mother’s behavior color your feelings about him and what you had together.”

Tears sprang to my eyes. I hadn’t expected this greeting and hadn’t thought it would strike such a chord. “Thanks, Maggie. I do appreciate that.” Her eyes were Michael’s eyes, the same green flecks in the brown that gave them a hazel tinge.

“You can call me anytime.”

I glanced up at the front door. Maggie had left it wide open. I spotted Harry, Michael’s dog. When Michael and I first started seeing each other, we went bicycling in the park whenever we could. One day, I spotted something moving under a bush and halted. We investigated and found a beautiful white poodle, half starved, smelling very badly, and suffering from infections. He had obviously been abandoned and someone had beaten him severely. Michael left me to watch over him, and hurried back to retrieve his car. We loaded the bikes on the back and I held Harry on my lap all the way to the emergency vet. Michael paid for all his treatments and then adopted him. His budget as a student was tight, but he didn’t hesitate to help a wounded creature. I think that was when I fell in love with him.

“Harry’s with you?”

Maggie followed my gaze. “Harry! What are you doing?” Harry had knocked over the shopping bag and was sniffing it. When he heard his name called, he raised his head, one of Michael’s gloves in his mouth. He whimpered and looked at us.

“Oh, God.” Maggie said. “He knows that’s Michael’s glove. Poor guy. Come here, Harry,” she called. Harry dropped the glove and bounded down the stairs. He came straight at me and leaped towards my face. “He remembers you.” Maggie said.

“Of course, he does.” I bent down and hugged him as Harry left slippery kisses on my face. I looked up at Maggie. “I’m so glad you’ve kept him.”

“Of course, I’d never let him go. I just love Harry to death. It’s like having a part of my brother to hold on to.”

Seeing Harry had brought a rush of memories. I had to get out of there before I turned into a blubbering idiot. I hugged Maggie and thanked her. As I started the engine, Maggie leaned in the window. “Just remember, Julia – it’s not you. It’s nothing you’ve done.”

AUTHOR Bio and Links

Connie di Marco is the author of the Zodiac Mysteries from Midnight Ink, featuring San Francisco astrologer, Julia Bonatti, who never thought murder would be part of her practice. Book 2 in the Zodiac Mysteries is All Signs Point to Murder, to be released on August 8, 2017.

Writing as Connie Archer, she is also the national bestselling author of the Soup Lover’s Mysteries from Penguin Random House (Berkley Prime Crime), set in the village of Snowflake, Vermont. Her recently released A Clue in the Stew is the fifth in this series. Some of her favorite recipes can also be found in The Cozy Cookbook and The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook.

Connie is a member of International Thriller Writers, Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime.

Website: www.conniedimarco.com

Facebook: www.Facebook.com/ConniediMarco(author)

Twitter: @askzodia

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/search?q=Connie+di+Marco

Book 2: All Signs Point to Murder: http://amzn.to/2oiVbTs

Book 1: The Madness of Mercury: http://amzn.to/2oo0P5X

Website: www.conniearchermysteries.com

Facebook: www.Facebook.com/ConnieArcherMysteries

Twitter: @SnowflakeVT

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5341898.Connie_Archer

GIVEAWAY 

Connie di Marco will be awarding a $20 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.



a Rafflecopter giveaway



Please follow the rest of the tour here, thanks:

https://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.ca/2017/05/blurb-blitz-all-signs-point-to-murder.html

Anime Overview: Kakegurui

 

Synopsis

Hyakkaou Private Academy. An institution for the privileged with a very peculiar curriculum. You see, when you're the sons and daughters of the wealthiest of the wealthy, it's not athletic prowess or book smarts that keep you ahead. It's reading your opponent, the art of the deal. What better way to hone those skills than with a rigorous curriculum of gambling? At Hyakkaou Private Academy, the winners live like kings, and the losers are put through the wringer. But when Yumeko Jabami enrolls, she's gonna teach these kids what a high roller really looks like!

Weekly Book Reads (July 17)

Weekly Book Reads

Weekly Book Reads is a weekly Monday Meme that is hosted by Paranormal and Romantic Suspense Reviews:

Post the books read last week and books you plan on finishing this week.

Read Last Week:

1.  Deadmen Walking - Sherrilyn Kenyon
2.  The Hang Man - Mary Burton

Weekly Book Reading:

1.  You Will Pay - Lisa Jackson
2.  No Easy Target - Iris Johansen

Anime Overview: 18if

 

Synopsis

After going to sleep like normal, Tsukishiro Haruto wakes up to discover something unbelievable — he's stuck in dream world! Here, witches plague the dreamscape and are more than dreamy figments — they're the trapped souls of young women who've rejected reality and are afflicted by the "Sleeping Beauty Syndrome."

As he searches for a way out, Haruto will face the witches and their terrifying powers.