Category Archives: For Authors

Odin’s Shadow by Erin S. Riley

Beautifully captures the era while providing a gritty Nordic romance!, June 27, 2015 This book beautifully captures the era while providing a gritty Nordic romance…exactly the kind of romance I like to see! I loved this book! I was drawn to this story that boasted historical Nordic accuracy—my forte—and Riley did not disappoint! The era, […]

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Marc Estes

Brain to Books Blog Tour

Fast Facts:

Author: Marc Estes

Genre: Mystery, Suspense, Thriller

Book: Four Pieces For Power /Rekindle the Flame of The Vendicatori Series

Official Site

Bio

Accomplished writer, Marc Estes, is proud to present his award winning debut novel, Four Pieces For Power, Book One of the Vendicatori. Four Pieces For Power marks the first in a series of Vendicatori novels developed by Mr. Estes. He is a two-time winner of the Vermont Playwright’s Award for his plays, What Would Dickens Do?and Glass Closets. What Would Dickens Do? also won the 2012 Robert J. Pickering Award for Playwriting Excellence. His play, Gumbo (adapted from the short story by Charles Huckelbury) was a finalist in the 2011 Safe Streets Arts Foundation Short Play Competition and was presented at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. His play The Practice of Killing (co-written with Robert Johnson, and adapted from the short story by Mr. Johnson) has been published in the Spring 2013 edition of Tacenda Literary Magazine. In 2013 he was also awarded the Robert Chesley Award from the Chesley/Bumbalow Foundation in Los Angeles and selected to receive the Artist in Residence Grant from the Helene Wurlitzer Foundation in Taos, New Mexico. His play Going Home was presented  at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in the Fall of 2014. His second novel, Rekindle the Flame, Book Two of the Vendicatori is scheduled to be released in Spring 2015. Estes is a native of New England and graduate of the University of New Hampshire.

Author Accomplishments

I currently run quarterly promotions where I donate 50% of my royalties to a specific charity. Through June 30th I am working with ASPCA and from July –September I am planning to help the Trevor Project.

Blurb

Four Pieces For PowerWhen mysterious strangers arrive at the home of Andrew Correo, they provide him with life changing news. He learns of the Vedicatori, a secret organization established by his ancestors, an organization he now has the chance to inherit control over. In order to gain this control, he needs to compete with Robert Stavero in a global scavenger hunt. They must search for four illusive crystals that, when brought together, will tell them their final destination. Also in Edson, Monica Correo is planning a wedding to her love, John Weaver. With the wedding so close to Halloween, the pair decide to have a masquerade ball for the wedding reception. It will be an event no one in Edson will ever forget. With just a clue and limited guidance, both Andrew and Robert set out on their secretive journey. For both, the path leads to mystery, suspense, and self-discovery. As Andrew looks forward to his future, while putting parts of his past behind him, Robert grows greedy and develops a love for deception and hate. The hunt brings them through the ruins of Teotihuacan to the Eternal City and its history, but who will have the cunning to come out on top?

Review

Written by Anita Lock, US Review of Books

“Both shared in the amazement of how two complete strangers could become such bitter enemies without even a single exchange of words.”

Andrew Correo learns the truth about his deceased grandfather and the involvement he had with the Vendicatori, a powerful organization developed to protect the Correo family’s fortune. But in order for Andrew to claim his inheritance as the next Correo heir, he must compete in a challenge against Robert Stavero, an unknown contender and master of disguises. The object of the challenge is for the winner to procure all four pieces of the puzzle that will reveal the “final destination, and the largest prize in the world.” Questions remain whether or not Andrew can keep this perilous competition a secret from his sister and mother, as well as outwit his maleficent opponent.

Awarding winning writer Marc Estes has produced a suspenseful story that has a James Bond feel to it. The first in a series of Vendicatori novels, Estes’ third person narrative is a rapidly paced page-turner filled with un-hackneyed character scenes between his sister’s upcoming wedding; the contest and Andrew’s nerve-racking encounters with Robert, his maniacal antagonist; a bit of romance; and other supporting characters—a few that may seem harmless now but could easily turn into future villains in subsequent sequels. Aside of the constant influx of juxtaposed scenes, Estes not only draws readers into the plot’s action, but also into the lives of a well-developed cast that goes beyond Andrew, Estes’ principal character. Good examples are Brad whose mother and sister were brutally murdered and Jenna who has a thing for Andrew. Estes’ thriller closes with a mind-boggling cliffhanger. Earmarked to be a best-seller, there is no doubt that Four Pieces For Power will keep readers on edge till the very end.

RECOMMENDED by the USR

 

Excerpt

The rain fell hard on the roof as Andrew Correo sat in his study re-reading his favorite classic novel, The Phantom of the Opera. The weather outside set the mood for the story. Andrew planned to sit by himself all morning and afternoon reading the book from cover to cover. The book and its characters filled him with great emotion every time he opened to chapter one. Bayberry Road was a quiet road on the outskirts of Edson. The surrounding serenity motivated Andrew’s family to choose this land and build their home. Seldom would cars explore the old country road, and when one did, it provided just enough noise as it passed to alert Andrew. He heard one such vehicle approaching as it sloshed along the wet road toward his property. He glanced out the window, and looked through the trees surrounding the yard. A long black limousine approached on the road. Its lights reflected on the wet pavement. Andrew never expected to see a limousine on Bayberry Road. The last one had escorted his family to his father’s funeral. Often, a Sunday driver explored and admired the beauty of the road, or the occasional teenagers would venture out on the road at night, seeking the privacy that Bayberry Road could provide. Andrew never thought twice about the juveniles. He remembered doing the same thing as a young man and just let the matter go at that. Edson was a small town. It seldom had troubles and crime. The population of the town topped out at 4,800. Everyone knew everyone else. The Correo Family were no exception to this. They were upstanding citizens of Edson and well respected. From the time the Correo family settled in Edson, they helped the city with donations of their family wealth to whatever causes needed it most. At one point, Andrew’s father was named philanthropist of the year for his contributions to the community. Andrew watched the limousine signal, and then enter his semicircular driveway. Seen from the third story, the driveway mimicked a moat encircling the front yard. He got up and left his study for the front door. His curiosity and excitement stirred him to take two stairs at a time, something he had not done since he was a teenager in school running late for History. As he reached the foyer, he checked himself in the mirror above a small table used to store his car keys. Running his fingers through his thick blond hair, he examined his round face and then stared for a moment into his own blue eyes. He looked fine, not a hair out of place, and ready to greet his guests. He reached the front door as the limousine came to a stop in front of it. Peering out the diamond window in the door, he watched the driver get out. The stranger opened an umbrella as he stood. The rain continued all around him as he hurried along the side of the car to the back, passenger side door. Andrew could not see the rider, or riders, through the car’s black tinted glass. Holding the umbrella both over himself and the car door, the driver pulled up on the door latch. This gave Andrew his first glimpse inside. An older, rather portly man, about fifty by appearance, was the first person to step out. The man’s salt and pepper hair was slicked back, revealing a strong forehead. His thick eyebrows seemed to shadow his large dark eyes as he peered up to the house, making eye contact with Andrew. Andrew continued to study the old man’s features, noticing a strong, broad chin and small firm lips. Two other gentlemen, Andrew’s age of twenty-nine, were next to follow. One had short, dark hair. His eyes were covered by sunglasses, odd on such a cloudy, dreary day.

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