Echo 8 by Sharon Lynn Fisher Blog Tour

Echo 8 by Sharon Lynn Fisher

A thrilling new SF romance from the author of Ghost Planet and The Ophelia Prophecy.

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Three lives.

Two worlds.

One chance to save it all.

Tess is a parapsychologist, devoting her life to studying paranormal and psychic phenomenon. But when doppelgangers begin appearing from a parallel world, all her training couldn’t prepare her for what is to come.

Jake appeared from another Earth, shocked and angry, and is restrained by government investigators for study. But when he unwittingly steals energy from Tess, it causes a ripple effect across two worlds.

Ross is an FBI agent, ordered to protect Tess as she conducts her research into this dangerous phenomenon. His assignment was not random—he and Tess have a history. And when those feelings resurface, Ross will have to choose between his love for Tess and his duty to protect his world.

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See My Review Here:  http://mixedbookbag.blogspot.com/2015/02/echo-8-by-sharon-lynn-fisher.html

Three-time RWA Golden Heart finalist SHARON LYNN FISHER lives in the Pacific Northwest, where she writes SF/fantasy and battles writerly angst with baked goods, Irish tea, and champagne. A Romance Writers of America RITA Award finalist and a three-time Romance Writers of America Golden Heart Award finalist, Sharon Lynn Fisher writes stories for the geeky at heart—meaty mash-ups of sci-fi, suspense, and romance, with no apology for the latter. She lives where it rains nine months of the year. And she has a strange obsession with gingers (down to her freaky orange cat). Her works include Ghost Planet (2012), The Ophelia Prophecy (2014), and Echo 8 (2015). Aboutme/SharonLynnFisher. @SharonFisher. Facebook. Goodreads.

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Praise for the works of Sharon Lynn Fisher:

“An absorbing and exciting story full of science, sex, and intriguing plot twists.”

—Publishers Weekly on Ghost Planet

“I have a winner! This is a really fun Sci-Fi romance.... Very cool setup and characters that I couldn't put down...I loved it!”

—Felicia Day, actress, blogger, and geek, on Ghost Planet

“Futuristic romance author Fisher…wraps this venture’s tangled plot around red-hot erotic enounters…[she] makes a solid case for responsible bioengineering research and creates colorful settings from boggyy Ireland to Manti-and-Moorish Granada.”

— Publishers Weekly on The Ophelia Porphecy

“Fisher…returns with a sexy, irresistible take on the enemies-to-lovers trope… [her] light touch guarantees that the development of this slow-burn romance feels authentic, organic and totally satisfying.”

— RT Book Reviews on The Ophelia Prophecy

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Echo 8

Sharon Lynn Fisher

A Tor Trade Paperback

978-0-7653-7637-4 / 0-7653-7637-7

$15.99 | 288 pages

Ebook: 978-1-4668-5120-7 / 1-4668-5120-1 | $9.99

On Sale February 3, 2015

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Also Available from Sharon Lynn Fisher

Ghost Planet

A Tor Mass Market

978-0-7653-6897-3 / 0-7653-6897-8 | $7.99

Ebook: 978-1-4299-6075-5 / 1-4299-6075-2 | $7.99

The Ophelia Prophecy

A Tor Trade Paperback

978-0-7653-7418-9 / 0-7653-7418-8

$15.99 | 320 pages

Ebook: 978-1-4299-6055-7 / 1-4299-6055-8 | $9.99

Echo 8 by Sharon Lynn Fisher

Review:

Sharon Lynn Fisher has not taken the easy way with any of her first three books. In each she has written stand-alone books that require new world building, back-story and character development.  In Echo 8 there are not one but two complex worlds.  Both are a version of Earth but both are very different.  One has been almost destroyed by an asteroid strike and one is still OK.  I could not decide if one was our Earth or not.

What brings them together are the Echo’s.  These are people pulled into Tess and Ross’s earth when the asteroid strikes an alternate Earth.  That brings me to the character development required to pull this off.  Each character is an echo on the other Earth and to survive on the alternate Earth they have to pull energy from someone.  A process that often kills the donor.  Enter FBI Agent Ross McGinnis and Parapsychologist Tess Caufield and Jake who is Echo 8.

McGinnis wants to protect Tess.  Tess wants to keep Jake alive.  Jake does not want to kill anyone when he feed to stay alive.  Thus starts an adventure that spans both Earths.  Ross, Tess, their doubles and Jake travel between both Earth’s as they try to help on one and keep the Echo’s safe on the other.

There are numerous twist and turns to this story.  While all of those develop Tess and Ross first clash and then don’t as they work together.  There is adventure, romance, danger and more romance as the story comes to a very satisfying conclusion.

You are in for a treat whether this is your first or third Sharon Lynn Fisher book.  If this is your first you will want to try Ghost Planet and The Ophelia Prophecy while you wait for her next book.

Teaser Tuesday - January 27, 2015

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:"
• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book. 

The Teaser:


"The idea psi abilities cause a loss of control- it's actually the opposite.  If you sense you're about to trip down the stairs and break your ankle, you can take the elevator instead, right?"

From Echo 8 by Sharon Lynn Fisher.  This is a new Science Fiction Romance that will be released on February 2, 2015.  Fisher writes very good Science Fiction with the romance element added.  If you are a fan you should pre-order this one.

Raven Takes a Pearl by Sharon Lynn Fisher Tour and Giveaway

Tour giveaway 

5 ebook copies (winner’s choice epub or mobi) Use Rafflecopter below.

Raven Takes a Pearl

Fantasies in Color

Book Two

Sharon Lynn Fisher

Genre: Steampunk Erotica (BDSM)

Publisher: West 26th Street Press

Date of Publication: Oct. 29, 2014

ISBN:

ASIN: B00P1INX9G

Number of pages: 45

Word Count: 12,000

Cover Artist: Rafido

Book Description:

Second novelette in the Fantasies in Color series by RWA RITA-nominated author Sharon Lynn Fisher ...

Pearl knows it was Raven who stole her mama's heart -- a beautiful quartz stone given to her by Pearl's father right before he died. She sets off alone to the crow-man's keep determined to bring back the stone, but she's caught by a servant and taken to the tower.

The dark-winged ruler of the keep isn't at all what she imagined, and he isn't about to let Pearl go before unlocking all her mysteries -- mysteries she never dreamed her body possessed.

Available for $2.99 at Amazon

Available for $1.99 at AerBook

 My Thoughts On Raven Takes a Pearl:

Sharon Lynn Fisher does a great job tell a complete story in a very short time.  This is perfect for this time of year when we are all busy getting ready for the holidays and don't have time to sit down and do a lot of reading.  You can pick this up and finish in-between decorating, baking and shopping.

Excerpt:THE PUZZLE BOX

We pass through a corridor lit by more of the strange lamps, most notably an octopus with an arm span of a dozen feet and a large green light bulb for a head. A clock is mounted just under the bulb, and as it strikes the hour, the arms begin to adjust their position along the wall, accompanied by the unmistakable sound of grinding gears.

Wilkes catches me eyeing it and says, “Master makes them all himself.”

“Who is ‘Master’?” I reply, fear sharpening the edges of my voice. “Where does he come from? Who made him like that?”

“Same as makes us all, Pearl. The Maker.”

“You mean to say he was born like that?” 

“Are any of us as we were when we first separated from our mothers’ bodies?”

This sounds like something my pa would say, and is not at all the sort of chat I want to have right now.

“What makes him do it?” I demand. “Why does he steal things?”

“Master Raven acquires objects for his inventions. Cast-off things, or things the owner will not long miss.”

“Ha,” I grunt, “and what would a silly old crow-man who has no use for other living souls know about that?”

 Wilkes follows me down the corridor, so he can’t see it’s not only anger that’s choking me up. But also I can’t see what he thinks of my answer.

At the end of the corridor we climb a dizzying number of steps that wind upward like a corkscrew. We rise up through a hole in the floor into the “workshop.”

Workbenches line the walls, and every surface is covered with what look like machines in various states of repair or assembly. There are heaps of “acquired” objects up here as well, and I steal a quick look around the room for Ma’s stone.

The tower has but one large window fitted with amber-tinted panes, so it’s only moderately brighter than the rooms below. More lamps range around the perimeter, but these mostly use clear light bulbs so it feels less like being in a submersible — or at least what I’d imagine a submersible to feel like. Near the window is a tall easel holding a stack of parchment. Symbols and numbers and diagrams have been scratched over almost every inch of the first sheet. I notice now that many sheets, similarly scrawled upon, have been hung along the walls. Some of the diagrams seem to be carefully labeled drawings of Raven himself.

“Here, Wilkes,” he calls, and Wilkes takes me by the arm and leads me over to the easel. Next to it is a sort of stand, shaped like an X, with a system of straps and buckles.

I jump as the manservant pushes me toward the stand, and the moment my back touches it I begin to fight him in earnest.

“What are you doing?” I demand, shoving at his chest.

Wilkes doesn’t reply, but he uses his body to seal me against the stand. His eyes bore into mine, transmitting something hot and alive, as he raises my arms over my head.

Raven joins us, and I cry out as he fits leather cuffs over my wrists and ankles.

“Leave us,” orders Raven.

As Wilkes withdraws, Raven steps back, cradles his elbow in one hand, and props his head on the other, watching me.

“What do you want from me?” I shout, straining against the cuffs.

His brow furrows as his eyes move over me. I’m not sure he’s heard me.

“Master Raven!” I insist.

He drops his arms and moves to stand directly in front of me. We regard each other, my heart vibrating my chest, and I become aware that the fear that grips me is changing — in a way I don’t understand well enough to explain to anyone, including myself.

My heart still hammers. My breaths come faster. I am afraid. But something warm and velvet is awake and moving low in my belly.

Raven reaches for a lever and tugs it gently. The X-stand tilts backward, angling my body.

He draws nearer, reaching a gloved hand to the top fastening of my corset. I gasp as he runs a finger from the hook, along the ridge of the corset, tip grazing the soft, rounded flesh above. His finger passes back and forth, my breath increasing with his momentum, until finally his fingertip stops just above my nipple. He presses into the soft flesh and then suddenly tugs upward.

My nipple pops free of the corset. Heat builds between my legs and my mouth waters. He meets my gaze, and my lips part, short puffs of breath moving in and out. His fingertip slides down, and with the soft leather of his glove he begins to slowly rub.

“I … Master … ”

He ducks his head closer, positioning the magnifying device over his eye and focusing it over my nipple. I feel the cold metal of its tip pressing against me, surrounding the small red flower.

“Hold very still,” he says, and I try to stop breathing. But it’s not possible.

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Guest Post by Sharon Lynn Fisher - Author of Ghost Planet and The Ophelia Prophecy

World Building for Ghost Planet and The Ophelia Prophecy

I love both Ghost Planet and The Ophelia Prophecy (click on titles to see my reviews).  One of the things that really caught me was the unique and complex world building in both.  When I asked Sharon to share how she goes about creating these wonderful worlds she agreed to do a guest post on the subject.  I want to thank Sharon and I hope you enjoy the post as much as I do.  But first just a little bit about Sharon.

A Romance Writers of America RITA Award finalist and a three-time RWA Golden Heart Award finalist, SHARON LYNN FISHER lives in the Pacific Northwest. She writes books for the geeky at heart—sci-fi flavored stories full of adventure and romance—and battles writerly angst with baked goods, Irish tea, and champagne. Her works include Ghost Planet (2012), The Ophelia Prophecy (2014), and Echo 8 (2014). You can visit her online at SharonLynnFisher.com.

Building Sci-Fi Romance Worlds by Sharon Lynn Fisher

I used to hate world building. It’s a ridiculous thing for a speculative fiction author to say. But when I first started writing, I found it intimidating. Generating a whole new reality out of your gray matter. Making it believable and vivid for the reader. And really, wasn’t it just the “in between” part? The part that happened when there was no actual story going on — no action or dialogue or romance?

It’s hard to say when my attitude shifted, because I didn’t actually realize it until I started getting reviews that mentioned world building. I remember thinking, “How is it I’m good at this when I don’t even like it?” It landed on my head like a cargo hold full of tribbles. I do like it! In fact I love it. Creating setting and atmosphere and tone … it’s often a catalyst for the rest of the plot. It adds another layer to character development. It’s key to motivation. 

But yeah, it’s the hard part. For my stories, there are multiple branches of world building — the physical setting itself, the culture and political situation, and the science behind the speculative element.

For settings I often draw on geographical areas I know. My debut novel, GHOST PLANET, is set on an Earth-like planet in areas that closely resemble different parts of the Pacific Northwest, where I live. In my new book, THE OPHELIA PROPHECY, the last human city is located near Moab, Utah, where I’ve hiked and mountain-biked. The rock formations have a captivating, otherworldly quality. The main action of the story takes place in Connemara, in the west of Ireland, and in the Moorish city of Granada, Spain, both of which I’ve visited. The Gaudi-inspired architecture in OPHELIA comes from time I spent in Barcelona.

The science, culture, and politics are all pretty knotted up together, and make up what I think of as my special sauce (and really they’re the special sauce of any sci-fi novel). I tend to write speculative elements inspired by science. In GHOST PLANET, the heroine is actually an alien reincarnation of a human woman, joined in a symbiotic relationship with her psychologist supervisor. I researched Gaia theory and symbiogenesis for that story. For THE OPHELIA PROPHECY I researched recombinant DNA to create a species of human/praying mantis transgenic organisms. I also did research on biomimicry and biohacking. The book I have coming out next year, ECHO 8, required research into parallel universes, quantum physics, and parapsychology.

How all of the research and personal experiences blend together and churn out a whole world with its own unique history and personality is something of a mystery. It’s sort of like dumping a bunch of ingredients into a crockpot and opening it up to find lamb stew the next day. Because I’m mostly a pantser and don’t plot out stories in advance, my characters and story often spring from this world development rather than the other way around. 

Counterintuitive though it may seem, reading science books can really get the creative juices flowing. I think it’s because I try not to read with a specific goal in mind, but for the sheer joy of learning about something new.

World building takes time, and it takes faith. During the research phase it can feel like procrastination. Like I’m accomplishing nothing. But I’ve learned that as soon as those ingredients begin to coalesce — as soon as I feel that world coming into focus — the rest of my story is not far behind.

Ghost Planet by Sharon Lynn Fisher

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Science Fiction/Science Fiction Romance

Goodreads Summary:

"Psychologist Elizabeth Cole prepared for the worst when she accepted a job on a newly discovered world—a world where every colonist is tethered to an alien who manifests in the form of a dead loved one. But she never expected she'd struggle with the requirement to shun these "ghosts." She never expected to be so attracted to the charming Irishman assigned as her supervisor. And she certainly never expected to discover she died in a transport crash en route to the planet.

As a ghost, Elizabeth is symbiotically linked to her supervisor, Murphy—creator of the Ghost Protocol, which forbids him to acknowledge or interact with her. Confused and alone—oppressed by her ghost status and tormented by forbidden love—Elizabeth works to unlock the secrets of her own existence. 

But her quest for answers lands her in a tug-of-war between powerful interests, and she soon finds herself a pawn in the struggle for control of the planet…a struggle that could separate her forever from the man that she loves"

Oh my goodness.  All I can say is Ghost Planet is great, great, great.  I loved the concept, the story, the characters and the writing.  This is Science Fiction Romance at its best.

The twist at the beginning of the book sets the tone for the rest of the story.  Elizabeth does not realize she is a ghost.  She feels the same, looks the same and reacts the same as before.  Here are the two beginning sentences:

"The tarmac was deserted.  Foggy and disoriented, I wondered how long I’d been standing there, listening to the evergreens groan in the wind and dreading my first encounter on this new world."

When you read this after reading the book you can see the foreshadowing of Elizabeth’s real status.  Then you meet Grayson Murphy and see the interaction between the two before he realizes that Elizabeth is a ghost.  It is a great set up for the rest of the story.

The world building is unusual and very realistic.  You can see the connection between the Ghost Planet and Earth.  You can also see how everything is changing because of the interaction or lack thereof between the colonists and the ghosts.  All of this matches the plot and helps keep the story moving.

Science Fiction Romance fans buy this book.  I checked Sharon Lynn Fisher’s web page to see what she had in store for us next.  This seems to be her first published book.  It could be a stand-alone or it could lead to more stories about the Ghost Planet and Elizabeth and Murphy.  I for one would love to see both of them again. She is working on another book but it seems to be in an entirely new universe.

Tor Science Fiction published Ghost Planet by Sharon Fisher in 2012.

I received an ARC of Ghost Planet from Netgalley.

Waiting on Wednesday August 8, 2012

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

I am waiting on Ghost Planet by Sharon Lynn Fisher.  It is due out in October of 2012.  

Here is a summary from Amazon:  

Psychologist Elizabeth Cole prepared for the worst when she accepted a job on a newly discovered world—a world where every colonist is tethered to an alien who manifests in the form of a dead loved one. But she never expected she'd struggle with the requirement to shun these "ghosts." She never expected to be so attracted to the charming Irishman assigned as her supervisor. And she certainly never expected to discover she died in a transport crash en route to the planet. 
As a ghost, Elizabeth is symbiotically linked to her supervisor, Murphy—creator of the Ghost Protocol, which forbids him to acknowledge or interact with her. Confused and alone—oppressed by her ghost status and tormented by forbidden love—Elizabeth works to unlock the secrets of her own existence. 
But her quest for answers lands her in a tug-of-war between powerful interests, and she soon finds herself a pawn in the struggle for control of the planet…a struggle that could separate her forever from the man that she loves.