A GRIPPING YOUNG ADULT ADVENTURE!

This great story is now available as an audiobook!

Or Read for FREE! (Details below)

About the Story:

Bensin, a teenage slave and martial artist, is desperate to see his little sister freed. But only victory in the Krillonian Empire’s most prestigious tournament will allow him to secretly arrange for Ellie’s escape. Dangerous people are closing in on her, however, and Bensin is running out of time. With his one hope fading quickly away, how can Bensin save Ellie from a life of slavery and abuse?

What is the Collar for, and What is a Cavvarach?

The story is set in a world very much like our own, with just a few major differences. One is that slavery is legal there. Slaves must wear metal collars that lock around their neck, making their enslaved status obvious to everyone. Any slave attempting to escape faces the dilemma of how and where to illegally get their collar removed (a crime punishable by enslavement for the remover).

Another difference is the popularity of a martial art called cavvara shil. It is fought with a cavvarach (rhymes with “have a rack”), an unsharpened weapon similar to a sword but with a steel hook protruding from partway down its top edge. Competitors can strike at each other with their feet as well as with the blades. You win in one of two ways: disarming your opponent (hooking or knocking their cavvarach out of their hands) or pinning their shoulders to the mat for five seconds.

More About the Story

Set in a world alarmingly like our own, The Collar and the Cavvarach is the story of fourteen-year-old Bensin, a slave, whose status is made obvious to everyone by the steel collar locked around his neck. A martial artist who competes to win money for his owner, Bensin fights in tournaments with a cavvarach. But his greatest battle is the struggle to protect his little sister from the horrors of legalized slavery in a world where slaves have few rights. Desperate to keep her safe, Bensin struggles to find a means – legal or otherwise – to arrange for her freedom.

(For a fun introduction to the story’s setting and its culture, including an explanation of how cavvara shil works, click here.)

Sound Like a Book you Might Enjoy? 

Click the play button below to listen to the first 15 minutes of the story as narrated by Joseph Baltz.

Click here to go to the audiobook on Audible.

Click here to go to the audiobook on Amazon.

(Either way, try listening to the free sample to see what you think!)

Like to Read Along While You Listen? 

The Collar and the Cavvarach ebook is available for FREE from July 14-18. Grab your copy now!

Enter the Giveaway to Win a Bundle of Action and Adventure eBooks!

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About the Author

Annie Douglass Lima considers herself fortunate to have traveled in twenty different countries and lived in four of them. A fifth-grade teacher in her “other” life, she loves reading to her students and sparking their imaginations. Her books include science fiction, fantasy, YA action and adventure novels, a puppet script, anthologies of her students’ poetry, Bible verse coloring and activity books, and a fantasy-themed cookbook. When she isn’t teaching or writing, Annie can often be found sipping spiced chai or pomegranate green tea in exotic locations, some of which exist in this world.

Email: AnnieDouglassLima@gmail.com

Blog: http://anniedouglasslima.blogspot.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnnieDouglassLimaAuthor

Twitter: https://twitter.com/princeofalasia

Goodreads: http://bit.ly/ADLimaOnGoodreads

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/anniedouglasslima

LinkedIn: http://bit.ly/ADLimaOnLinkedIn

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It’s Easier Than You Think to Do Two Things At Once!

If you’re anything like me, there aren’t enough hours in the day. Things either take longer than expected or something pops up and devours the hours. Parallel processing helps somewhat. For example, if my computer is taking forever to download or update, I get up and do something else, rather than sit there and call it unsavory names. I’ve foolishly spent an amazing amount of time waiting for my computer when I could have been doing something else. Like cleaning out the cat’s litter box, for example.

The same goes for cooking. It doesn’t take long to figure out you can cut down your preparation time by not doing everything in a serial, one thing at a time, manner. Rather, you brown the meat for spaghetti while you’re waiting for the water to boil, and so forth. It’s not rocket science.

With such busy days, it’s easy to see how learning to parallel process, or better yet, multiplex, is essential, not only to get everything done, but to find time for yourself. It’s pretty pathetic when you have to schedule time for fun or to enjoy something, but that’s often the case. Another way to slip in something you enjoy while doing something you don’t, such as your daily commute amidst the worst drivers on the planet, getting in those steps to keep your FitBit happy, or weeding the garden, is via audio books!  Recordings of motivational talks, college courses, and even novels, have been around for a while. But now they’re as easy to access as your smart phone, which is most likely within reach.

If you love to read, but can’t find the time, this is a great solution. Make those mindless tasks more pleasant by listening to something you enjoy. If you don’t like to read, it’s even better, because someone is reading to you! Just like those tender memories of being read to as a kid!

Such an indulgence used to be expensive in the old days when you had to purchase tapes or CDs. Now you can get a subscription for Audible for just under $15 a month, which includes one book. You can even get a free trial for a month when you sign up! Do it through Amazon and they’ll give you two books free, that you get to keep, even if you decide not to subscribe. Buy the ebook and you get a huge discount on the audio book!

If you like science fiction, may I suggest you check out my story “The Terra Debacle: Prisoners at Area 51?” It’s gotten some great reviews and the narration by Hollywood actor, T.W. Ashworth is awesome!

Listen to a sample!

Happy listening!

 

Meet Actor T.W. Ashworth, Narrator Extraordinaire of “The Terra Debacle: Prisoners at Area 51” Audiobook.

Getting my first audio book produced was a thoroughly enjoyable experience, thanks to the talents of my narrator, Hollywood actor, T.W. Ashworth. You can learn more about him and his credentials on  IMDB. Meanwhile, he was willing to participate in a short interview so I could show you the face behind the many voices you get to enjoy in the audio version of “The Terra Debacle: Prisoner’s at Area 51.”

MF: How long have you been acting? How did you get your start?

TW: I’ve been performing since 1970 in a pretty varied career. Ballet dancer, Classical regional Theatre as an actor and director, national tours in musicals, movie musicals, commercials, music videos, and television. I got my start when a friend in high school dared me to audition for Eugene Ionesco’s RHINOCEROS…I got cast and fell in love with the stage.

MF: What’s your favorite part about narrating a book?

TW: Like Bottom in Shakespeare’s Midsummer Night’s Dream, I get to play all the roles. I enjoy finding different voices in my story telling.

MF: What was your favorite role so far as an actor?

TW: Let me give you an answer as varied as my career: Classical Stage – Face in Ben Jonson’s THE ALCHEMIST, Musical Theatre – Harold Hill in THE MUSIC MAN, Stage – Pastor Brian in Christine Ashworth’s two person play CASSANDRA CRIES, TV – Mr. Fisher in HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER, sketch comedy – Pat Bristow’s HOW TO SURVIVE A ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE.

MF: What are you working on now (either acting role or narrating, or both)?

In narration I’m working on A Fairy Night’s Dream: or The Horn of the Oberon by Katharine Elise Chapman, Samantha V. Hutton and Symbols: Book Two of The Allegoricon Parables by Jason P Doherty. It’s the off season for TV and a slow time for film, so I’m primarily working on narration.

MF: Who was your favorite character in “The Terra Debacle”?

TW: Gabe, a gentle telepathic  intellectual botanist, who is more than a bit bothered by his psychic  gift.

MF: Did any part of “The Terra Debacle” surprise you?

TW: The bittersweet ending.

MF: Who do you think would enjoy this story the most?

TW: A person with an intelligent heart.

So now you know what the man behind the voices you’ll hear in “The Terra Debacle: Prisoners at Area 51” looks like and a little bit about him. You can get your copy of the audiobook on Amazon (where you can listen to an excerpt), Audible, and iTunes. If you’re not already a member, you can get it for free if you sign up for a 30-day trial. If you’re already a member and would be willing to give the story a review, contact me at marcha@kallioperisingpress.com and I’ll make arrangements for you to get a complimentary copy.

Audio Book Release!!!

I’m excited to announce that the audio version of “The Terra Debacle: Prisoners at Area 51” has just been released! You can find it on Amazon/Audible here. It will be available via iTunes in a few days. If you’d like to give Audible a try, you can get the audio book for FREE! If you’re already a member, it’s out there now and I’d love to start getting some feedback via reviews! So far people have loved it as you can see from the reviews for the printed version on Amazon as well as the Star Trails Website.

Hollywood actor, T.W. Ashworth, did a fabulous job narrating! You can find out more about him here. T.W. has been busy auditioning for a variety of roles during this time while still doing a fabulous job of bringing the story to life. Check it out! There’s no time like the present to give audio books a try. They’re a multiplexer’s dream and the ideal way to make that long commute more enjoyable!