Friday, August 25, 2017

The Druid Next Door by E.J. Russell - Blog Tour with Author Guest Post and Giveaway




About The Druid Next Door

Professor Bryce MacLeod has devoted his entire life to environmentalism. But how effective can he be in saving the planet when he can’t even get his surly neighbor to separate his recycling?

Former Queen’s Enforcer Mal Kendrick doesn’t think his life could get any worse: he’s been exiled from Faerie with a cursed and useless right hand. When he’s not dodging random fae assassins in the Outer World, he’s going toe-to-toe with his tree-hugging neighbor. And when he discovers that the tree hugger is really a druid, he’s certain the gods have it in for him—after all, there’s always a catch with druids. Then he’s magically shackled to the man and expected to instruct him in Supernatural 101.

All right, now things couldn’t possibly get worse.

Until a mysterious stranger offers a drunken Mal the chance to gain back all he’s lost—for a price. After Mal accepts, he discovers the real catch: an ancient secret that will change his and Bryce’s life forever.

Ah, what the hells. Odds are they won’t survive the week anyway.

Available now from Riptide Publishing. http://www.riptidepublishing.com/titles/the-druid-next-door

About the Fae Out of Water Series


Once upon a time, there were three brothers, nobles of the Seelie Court of Faerie, who set out to seek their fortunes. The eldest—

Scratch that. Rrrrrewind.

Nowadays, when tales are told in 140 character bursts on tiny LED screens, rather than spun out by the glow of a midnight campfire, even Faerie’s elite have to get with the program.

The Kendrick brothers have traded longbow for briefcase, battle steed for Harley, and enchanted harp for electric guitar.  But while they’re finding their feet in the modern world, instead of finding their fortunes, they stumble straight into love.

#faeoutofwater



Tactical Pants

My Curmudgeonly Husband is a home inspector—it’s his job to poke around in houses for the benefit of homebuyers, documenting any issues with the structure or its included fixtures (such as its appliances) that might cause the buyers’ dream home to morph into a money pit. He walks on roofs (not something I care to think about), peers under sinks, investigates dusty attics, and creeps on his hands and knees (or sometimes his belly) through crawlspaces.

Along the way, he takes pictures, tests wooden supports for rot, and searches for evidence of wood-destroying insects (ewww)—so not only does he need to carry various tools along with him, he needs to protect his knees as much as possible.

At one point several years ago, he purchased a photographer’s vest, which came equipped with a lot of convenient pockets to stow all his accouterment. Then—eureka! While shopping at the local uniform supply (frequented by police officers, among others) he discovered tactical wear!

The tactical vest had just as many pockets as the photographer’s vest, plus it fastened more securely so his moisture meter or voltage detector wouldn’t fall out while he was balancing on attic joists or fending off rats in the crawlspace.



Even better, though, were the tactical pants. Not only did they have a boatload of pockets, but they had removable neoprene kneepads.

When I was outfitting Bryce, my environmentalist in The Druid Next Door, I decided that the tactical vest and pants would be perfect for him as he slogged around in his wetlands—not exactly high fashion, but imminently practical.

When CH showed me his first set of tactical wear, I asked—rather snarkily—if they made tactical underwear. He said yes, but he didn’t need them. I borrowed that interchange and gave it to Bryce and Mal in their first meeting.

CH later sent me an email with a link to a tactical pen—which seemed to be the ballpoint equivalent of sword cane, as designed by Q in the James Bond movies. I won’t include that link here—I made the mistake of following it and got inadvertently added to a survivalist email list.

Not exactly my best tactical decision.

About E.J. Russell

E.J. Russell holds a BA and an MFA in theater, so naturally she’s spent the last three decades as a financial manager, database designer, and business-intelligence consultant. After her twin sons left for college and she no longer spent half her waking hours ferrying them to dance class, she returned to her childhood love of writing fiction. Now she wonders why she ever thought an empty nest meant leisure.

E.J. lives in rural Oregon with her curmudgeonly husband, the only man on the planet who cares less about sports than she does. She enjoys visits from her wonderful adult children, and indulges in good books, red wine, and the occasional hyperbole.

Connect with E.J.:
Website: ejrussell.com

Giveaway

To celebrate the release of all three books in the Fae Out of Water series, one lucky winner across all three tours will receive a GRAND PRIZE of a $50 Riptide credit! Leave a comment with your contact info to enter the contest. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on September 23, 2017. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries. Thanks for following the Druid Next Door tour, and don’t forget to leave your contact info!


18 comments:

  1. Congrats, E.J., and thanks for the tactical advice. There are so many jokes there, beyond just tactical underwear. lol. This sounds like a great series and I wish you luck. - Purple Reader,
    TheWrote [at] aol [dot] com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! Yes, somehow it seems there's a tactical everything out there--and I get spam about all of them!

      Delete
  2. Isn't *all* underwear tactical, when you really think about it?

    vitajex(At)Aol(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you for the interesting post and the diagram/tag =)
    humhumbum AT yahoo DOT com

    ReplyDelete
  4. I'm just loving this series and the chance to learn a little "behind the scenes" info. jaycee(at)jayceejarvis(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hey, Jaycee! Thank you! (In this case, the "behind" is Bryce's behind. ;-) )

      Delete
  5. Reading this post and think back to the scenes on the book made me chuckle. Thanks for the laugh! :)
    puspitorinid AT yahoo DOT com

    ReplyDelete
  6. I'm trying to think up uses for "tactical" underwear & they're not really fit for mixed company. I may have to consult with my brother & SiL though because I'm sure between the 3 of us we can come up with some pretty juvenile answers!
    legacylandlisa at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  7. I hope you had a great release week!
    serena91291@gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thanks so much for hosting me today, and thanks to everyone who stopped by to get "tactical" with me!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You're welcome!! I had to grab this entire series on Riptide's website after reading the blurb for this one. :)

      Delete
  9. This sounds like it will be such a great read.
    sstrode at scrtc dot com

    ReplyDelete