My poetry book, Ink, is free to read here

Ink is free to read here: 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wXPU0XSt50DB8K1R4q_GOlEYc25-mWvU/view?usp=drive_link

A collection of 74 poems. All of these poems, except for Judder, were written between April 2, 2022 and May 14, 2023.

WILD HORSES

She sees horses in the streets,
tearing down the tarmac,
silvery manes of flowing water
twisting in the wind’s hands.

Pale white streaks of ghosts
leaving translucent trails of light,
black eyes glistening, nostrils flared, silent in their insistency...

New poetry book, Alice Walks the Night, is free to read here

My new poetry book, Alice Walks the Night, is available for free here -

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1V28Ot7fb25-ttcpgMZDOzjMt9W00oE7H/view?usp=drive_link

It's a collection of 119 poems. 

I own all the rights to my books, but they stopped selling in 2015, so I thought why not make it free.

I started planning it last year and put it on the backburner while being homeless, but I was sitting in a pub yesterday afternoon with my usual cup of coffee and decided to finish it off.

So here it is. Enjoy. 

Smashwords' Authors Giving Back Sale: I have some books for free

Hi!

Hope everyone is bearing up well in these weird times and keeping safe. And I hope everyone's loved ones and friends are also okay.

Smashwords.com has a sale on at the moment called Authors Giving Back, so if you'd like something new to read, there are many books at discount prices or free.

You can find mine here: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/vixie

The books I have for free are:

The Sea Inside

3 Heads & a Tail

Kiwi in Cat City

Kiwi's Christmas Tail

Day of the Living Pizza

Day of the Pesky Shadow

Kaleidoscope (poetry)

Travelling Light (poetry)

Mind-spinning Rainbows (poetry)

Life's Rhythms (haiku)

Enjoy!

Some of my books are free in the Smashwords sale

First of all, I hope you've had a very merry Christmas and are now totally chilling on Boxing Day.

With 2019, just around the corner, here's wishing you a forthcoming year full of health, happiness, fun, frolics, friends, love and all the good stuff. And a lot of grooviness.

Smashwords.com currently has a sale on, so I have a few kindle books for free on it if u fancy one.

These are:

Kiwi's Christmas Tail (book 6 in my magical cat series, but it can be read as a standalone book);

3 Heads & a Tail (comedy romance with dog - not for kids);

The Sea Inside (teen fantasy with magical creatures);

Day of the Living Pizza (comedy zombie book);

Life's Rhythms (poetry);

Mind-spinning Rainbows (poetry); and

Travelling Light (poetry).

This is the link for Kiwi's Christmas Tail (scroll down to the other covers and click on them) -

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/263475

Only Travelling Light is free on Amazon.

I can't make all of these books free on Amazon, but they're about 99c/99p on there (just search for Vickie Johnstone).

Also available in other places such as WH Smith, Kobo, Barnes & Noble, Waterstones.

Cheers! And happy reading!

Happy #ValentinesDay - free books & a poem

It's that day again. Get out the roses, the poetry and stuff your face with chocolate!! Or run like the wind. I've done my back in and I'm spending the day in with my cat, horrah!

Here's a love poem I wrote for a friend's wedding (and was too embarrassed to give!)

Two

In love with the beloved

Love will know no end

There is no end to love

If beloved is the one

In love is the beloved

She is loved as he is loved

One to be forever more

Two in love entwined

copyright Vickie Johnstone

To celebrate V-Day, I'm giving away 2 ebooks with a touch of romance in them. If you'd like a copy, just grab them off Smashwords.com. Alas, Amazon doesn't let me make them free for a day.

The Sea Inside

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/316914

A fantasy adventure full of enchantment and unexpected twists. Following an accident, Jayne wakes up in hospital paralysed. As she battles to regain her strength, a visitor gives her a crystal with a shimmering blue mist at its heart. Jayne finds herself in an alternate world beneath the waves in which she is whole again. But when her world shatters, it seems the crystal could be a bringer of chaos. Appropriate for readers aged 13+.

3 Heads & a Tail

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/254310

When nature lover Josie moves into a house share with two pals, dreamer Ben and model man David, she sees it as a short stop and doesn't bank on an attraction developing with one of them. Meanwhile, Ben's dog, Glen, has the hots for Miss Posh, the beautiful golden Lab in the park. When dog meets dog it's puppy love, but a complication leads to Glen taking matters into his own paws. In this comedy of errors, romance and walkies, it's anyone's guess who is going to win the girl/dog and live happily ever after. Appropriate for readers aged 16+.

"Laugh out loud funny" - Donna Brown.

Enjoy!

Spooktacular Giveaway Hop - Oct 15-31 - win books!

Hi, I'm excited to be involved in the SPOOKTACULAR Giveaway Hop, hosted by I am a Reader, Not a Writer (www.iamareader.com). The hop is running from October 15-21, and there are so many blogs involved that you could gather an awesome armful of books!

I'm giving away paperback copies of my fantasy novel The Sea Inside to 2 winners, and an ebook copy of Kiwi and the Living Nightmare to 10 runners-up :) Good luck!

The Sea Inside

Book 1 in the Cerulean Songs series

"A young woman is struggling to adjust to life after a spinal cord injury when she is given a gift by a mysterious older woman. Rather than merely help Jayne adjust to her new reality, this gifts offers the potential of a completely alternate existence. Jayne finds her true love only to be dealt another cruel blow by fate. In her journey to get back her new life she must face the biggest hurdles any of us can – our own fears and doubts. The Sea Inside is a young adult fantasy adventure that, like the Kiwi series, takes the reader on a visit to a fantastic realm." (Review, Amazon)

Kiwi and the Living Nightmare

Book 3 in the Kiwi Series

Amy, James and Kiwi embark on their spookiest adventure yet – on Halloween. What begins with an eerie dream about a three-legged cat will take the budding detectives on a quest to find an old house in the middle of the woods, meeting some perky squirrels along the way. Little do they know that there awaits an angry, restless ghost that will do anything to stop them leaving. Meanwhile, Inspector Furrball and Siam discover the human world, and that Ames and Jimster are not what they seem. 

"Living Nightmare has just the right amount of scary bits along with humour to make it a very enjoyable read for kids of all ages." (Review, Amazon)

For a chance to win, just do the Rafflecopter. Good luck! 

Click on the links at the end to hop to the other blogs offering fantastic prizes :)

 

#99c / 75p #kindle sale!

Hi, four of my books are going cheap at the moment and two are forever free. Here are the links. :) Cheers.

Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Vickie-Johnstone/e/B004SZ9TGE
Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/Vickie-Johnstone/e/B004SZ9TGE

5 of my books are free or half-price this week! #free #99c

Hi, Smashwords.com has a sale on this week, so I put in some of my books. Here are the ones that are either free or half price. Over on Amazon, I Dream of Zombies, my horror novel, is on sale at 99c/75p. Below you can see all of my books and further down are the ones on sale. Enjoy! Thanks. :)

Promotions on Smashwords.com until March 8

Free! Kiwi in Cat City – 36 4-5 star reviews on Amazon - the first in a 6-book series about a magical investigative cat from Cat City. Use code RW100 at the checkout - https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/55227

50% off! 3 Heads & a Tail – a quirky romcom starring a talking dog who swears a little, and it isn't for kids. Use code REW50 at the checkout - https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/254310

Free! Life’s Rhythms – poetry - 316 haiku. Use code RW100 at checkout - https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/289224

50% off! The Sea Inside - a YA clean fantasy adventure starring a heroine who is paralysed after an accident. Use code REW50 at checkout - https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/316914

Promotion on Amazon

99c/75p! I Dream of Zombies – it started with a dream and then London went to hell! Starring a strong female heroine.

US - http://www.amazon.com/I-Dream-Zombies-Vickie-Johnstone-ebook/dp/B00FVA9YRO
UK - http://www.amazon.co.uk/I-Dream-Zombies-Vickie-Johnstone-ebook/dp/B00FVA9YRO

Always free on Smashwords & Amazon US

Free! Day of the Living Pizza - zombie comedy for teens & Travelling Light - poetry – always free on both sites – no coupon needed.

Cheers! Happy reading! :) 

FREE book today! The Sea Inside

Hi everyone! I have a free gift for you today!

My ebook, The Sea Inside, is free on Amazon - all countries.

It is a fantasy adventure set in various worlds and times, starring a strong heroine called Jayne, who must endure many trials and tribulations to find herself and her heart's desire.

Amazon links:
US: http://amzn.to/15vFmXA
UK: http://amzn.to/17k0V03

Book 1 in the Cerulean Songs series. 

Time is all we have; it flows – it cannot stop.

Jayne wakes up in hospital following a terrible accident, which changes her life as she knew it. While struggling to recover, she is visited by a mysterious woman who offers her a gift. To the girl’s astonishment, she finds herself on a journey, on both the physical and mental plane. It brings her to the mystical realm of Entyre, where life is very different and power lies with the creatures of the deep. While the threads of time keep flowing, Jayne must decide what is real, who to trust, and regain her inner strength in order to find herself and her true destiny.

Excerpt...
Jayne concentrated on getting better. The dark mood that she had found herself in grew steadily lighter and she pushed her memories of the blue city to the back of her mind, dismissing them as dreams, which would gradually fade with time. That was her hope, for while she slept her mind wove images of the sea, accompanied by the echo of the whales and a tall man whose hair was the colour of the darkest waves. He was always there, not far away it seemed, thus was the lucidity of her sleeping life.

Some reviews...
Nickie Storey, author of the Grimsley Hollow series: “A delicious brew of invention, enchantment and refreshing characters, Vickie Johnstone has a firm grasp on the fantasy genre. I can’t wait to read more of her work!”

Greta Burroughs, author of the Wee People series: “Strange worlds, interesting characters, suspense and a surprise ending – what more can you ask for? This book has it all and more.”

Jennifer Thomas: “A gripping and fascinating mythical adventure that is beautifully described. There is suspense, fear and emotion throughout the entire novel that makes you want to keep turning the page.”

DW Davis: "Your heart will break, soar, break and soar again as Jayne faces trials and tribulations, experiences love and loss, and learns what really matters to her above all things in both worlds." 

KJ Dahlen: "I couldn't put it down until I reached the end." 

A big thank you to Maja Dražić for the beautiful cover photograph.

Hope you enjoy the book if you pick it up :)

Smashwords Sale!

I have some books (what else?!!) for free or cut-price in this week's Smashwords sale... enjoy :) hopefully!

https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/vixie

Leap into Books Giveaway Hop

Hi, this week I'm thrilled to be involved in the

Leap into Books Giveaway Hop... griiivet

February 28 - March 7

Co-hosted by Jinky is Reading

I'm giving away a collection of my books, suitable for readers aged 10-100 -

Kiwi in Cat City

Kiwi and the Missing Magic

Day of the Living Pizza

Day of the Pesky Shadow

There are 4 collections up for grabs in ebook format. 

To win one, just fill in the bits and bobs on the Rafflecopter!

Have a cool week and don't forget to hop to the other cool blogs on the linky!

Thanks for entering and good luck!

Purrs, Vickie

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Welcome to the New Year's Hop!

http://nyhop.blogspot.co.uk

I'm excited to be involved in Indie Authors Unite's New Year's Hop, which starts on Friday 11 January.

Welcome to my stop on the hop. What can you win here?

I'm giving away 1 paperback and 3 ebook copies of my comedy romance, 3 Heads & a Tail. If you're not into romance, don't turn away yet. It's not your regular romance. It's more of a comedy fantasy or a comedy of errors. I wrote this book for NaNoWriMo 2011, so it's a bit off the wall. There are four main characters, one of which is a Golden Retriever, and he plays a big part in this book. He's the hero really, and you'll get to see inside his head and find out his doggie thoughts. 

http://tinyurl.com/agdj4ba

What's the story about?

When nature lover Josie moves into a house share with two pals, dreamer Ben and model man David, she sees it as a short stop and doesn't bank on an attraction developing with one of them. Meanwhile, Ben's dog, Glen, has the hots for Miss Posh, the beautiful golden Lab in the park. When dog meets dog it's puppy love, but a complication leads to Glen taking matters into his own paws and walking a very dangerous path. In this comedy of errors, romance and walkies, it's anyone's guess who is going to win the girl/dog and live happily ever after.

What say the reviewers? Here are some snippets...

Ey Wade - "Oh my gosh this is a funny book. I hate to harp on the topic of how the dog made the story, but I think he did. I know for sure I will forever look at my own dog and wonder what she is thinking."

Annarita Guarnieri - "A humorous love story of a different kind, mostly seen through the eyes of Glen, the tail owner, and written with unusual wittiness and ability."

Donna Brown - "Laugh out loud funny."

PDX author - "Until reading this humorous tale about relationships between characters that tend towards being shy, my favorite animal character was "Buck", featured in Jack London's "Call of the Wild." 

How can you win a copy? 

Just leave me a comment - tell me one of the silliest things you've ever done! Or one of the silliest you'd like to do...

Click on the link below to get back to the main New Year's Blog Hop website where you can win these cool prizes -

A Kindle Fire ($299 value)

$100 Amazon voucher

15 signed paperbacks

30 ebooks

Here's the link - http://nyhop.blogspot.co.uk/

Good luck! :)

Don't forget to hop off to the other blogs on the hop to check out the books and giveaways of the other writers in the Indie Authors Unite hop. There are some cracking reads to be found. 

Thanks for reading and a big Happy New Year to you ! :)

Spooktacular Giveaway Hop: 24-31 October

Welcome to my stop on the Spooktacular giveaway hop,
hosted by I Am A Reader, Not a Writer & The Diary of a Bookworm!

So, to get into the mood of pumpkins, witches, ghosties and things that go bump in the night, I'm giving away 3 ebook copies of each of my books that has a spooky element or is set on Halloween.

To enter, simply do your stuff on the Rafflecopter!

Afterwards, click on the linky to hop to over 400 blogs offering fantastic giveaways!

Have fun and happy spookiness! :) woo-hoo!

The trio of ebooks you can win are:

Kiwi and the Living Nightmare

Book 3 in the Kiwi Series, but can be read as a standalone book

Amy, James and Kiwi embark on their spookiest adventure yet - on Halloween. What begins with an eerie dream about a three-legged cat will take the budding detectives on a quest to find an old house in the middle of the woods, meeting some familiar characters and some perky squirrels along the way. Little do they know that there awaits an angry, restless ghost that will do anything to stop them leaving.  

Day of the Living Pizza

Detective Smarts of Crazy Name Town has a problem. Doctor Boring and his receptionist have been bumped off, and the only clues at the scene are some olives, tomatoes, mushrooms and sprinkles of oregano. With the town folk dropping like flies and strange figures stumbling down the streets, Officer Dewdrop has an idea.

Day of the Pesky Shadow

After his previous oregano-sprinkled adventure, Detective Smarts is still finding it hard to look at a pizza, never mind eat one. But there is a new mindboggler to solve - who is the mysterious, dark figure causing the townsfolk's legs to go wibbly wobbly? Smarts and sidekick Dewdrop are hot on the trail.

To enter, click on the Rafflecopter and be sure to answer the mandatory question as a comment on my blog...

Spooky!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Free today: Life's Rhythms

My new haiku collection, Life's Rhythms, is free today on Amazon US/UK. I love haiku because I think of them as little pictures or moments in life. The book contains 316 of them.

Have a cool day :)
I'm watching the Paralympics Parade on TV! Loving it!

Rain fallen like stars

Sprinkles silver-like touches,

Dancing beside me

Some distant day she’ll

Return when she sees beauty

In a rainbow sing

Under sparkling stars

She laughs like water cascades

Rippling endlessly

Raspberries blood red

Ripe, soft and so succulent

Chilled ice-cream slithers

The sheltering moon,

Beneath her glimmer they roam -

Free, the wild wolves howl

In the dry still heat

The lizard basks, eyes aloft

Watching out for lunch

Eyes turn to the sun,

River of blue-black shimmers

On peacock feathers

Leaves hurtle, twisting,

Dropping without an echo –

Curved, their hands open

Review on Amazon US from Ed Drury:

"I spent the morning with these poems, reading, clipping and reflecting. I find them wonderful little treasures and am happy to have them in my library, there for when I need to summon an image for comfort or inspiration" (excerpt from 5 star review).

Links:

UK Amazon 

US Amazon