Tuesday, December 30, 2014

No Harm Will Come— Shinobi 7 Series Fiction #1

Author's Note: 

Heyo everyone! This is the first exclusive Shinobi 7 fiction for this blog. There will be many more to come. This blog is where readers and fans of the S7 Series can read more in-depth stories and behind-the-scenes fictions that happen in the universe of my books. You'll get to know the characters more and find out certain events that happen in the book series that wasn't told or gone into detail. These fictions are like the missing puzzle pieces, like a cherry on top. 

For this first fiction, I wrote about the two strong leaders of the Kitsune Clan. The grandmaster himself, Master Kitsune, and his right-hand-woman and second-in-command, Akira Miyamoto. Both characters are in Trials of a Warrior, Clash of the Clans, and Poisoned Battleground

Master Kitsune is one of the oldest and most powerful shinobi warriors. It was his call to open the school doors to accept new students, which is how Sector 7 came together. Akira Miyamoto is one of the teachers of the school and a very hardened woman. She did not agree with the decision to allow new students to train, no matter how outnumbered the Kitsune Clan is in the time of war. 

Just like the members of Sector 7, Akira had her start in the shinobi clan as a student, nothing more than a fresh meat member. How did she make her climb from a student to a full-fledged shinobi? How did she first meet the great grandmaster? The answer is uncovered below...


She lay there in a crumpled heap, with her limbs strewn across the dying grass field. An unsteady flow of crimson blood guzzled out of her side, for there was a sharp tanto blade buried inside of her flesh. Her unfocused eyes stared out into a nothing that only those on the brink of death would see. Her lips were slightly parted, with her chest heaving up and down in forced breaths. She had survived the attack on her village, but the life inside of her body was dissipating.
 
A tall man closed in on her. He moved silently through the long uncut grass. He approached her languidly, as if she were an old friend that he was visiting on a whim. There was no urgency in his actions, that is, until he saw the darkened grass that was stained with her blood.
 
He stopped in his tracks and looked down at the fallen girl before him. The tanto that was heartlessly left inside of her was no lighthearted matter. He squatted down and examined the intricate design of the deadly instrument. “Bandits,” he uttered in gruff tone of voice.
 
It was when the man spoke that the girl's jade-colored eyes found his own golden pair. The young girl stared at the man for only moment, but the connection that passed between them seemed three times as long.
 
Augh!”

A pained shriek tore from her lips when he pulled the steel right out of her side. He did so without warning, and with precision she was too disoriented to comprehend.
 
The man threw the weapon away. He reached into a hidden compartment of his gi top sleeve and took out a small bottle, uncapped the lid, and poured it on her raw wound. She screamed once more with what strength was left in her body.
 
"It's alright," he assured. "No harm will come." He put the cap back on the bottle and stood up, never breaking his gaze on her. The sun rays reflected tear stains on her cheeks. Whether she cried from loss or pain, it was a mystery. It was probably both. "It'd go against my conscious to leave you here to die, young lady," he stated, to more himself than her.
 
With that said, he scooped the girl up so her head was rested against his chest, and he held her like a baby while her arms and legs dangled.
 
She was delirious, slipping out of her last grip of consciousness. But before her world went completely black, she managed to murmur in the softest whisper, "Thank you."
 
So concluded the first meeting between the shinobi clan master Kitsune Golden Tail, and his future second-in-command, Akira Miyamoto.



Thank you for reading! For the full line up of the Shinobi 7 Series books, please check out my Amazon page HERE. Trials of a Warrior (Book #1) and Poisoned Battleground (Book #2) are available on Kindle for only $2.99.  

P.S. I hope you like the drawing I did! Not my best, but I like the red color splash :)

Monday, December 22, 2014

Merry Christmas, yo!

Hello! Merry Christmas, everybody! 

Wow, I love the month of December. It's the month of my birthday, my grandma's birthday, Christmas, and the month I can wear all of my awful/amazing sweaters. Fun fact, I love wearing sweaters. The more ridiculous they are, the more I love them. I'm wearing one now as I type up this blog post. 

This has also been the month of releases! Shinobi 7's official sequel Poisoned Battleground is now available and I'm very pleased to see it set on my bookshelf. All three of my books are now available on Kindle and I plan to have some Kindle Countdown and promotional deals reaaaaaally soon! 

Poisoned Battleground's Kindle 
Shinobi 7's Kindle

I'd like to take the time to tell you, dear reader, that I am very blessed to be where I'm at today. I'm a writer, a daughter, a sister, and a friend and I'm happy if I'm a friend to you. I'm very grateful to anyone who has picked up my book or skimmed the free preview online. The support that I've been given is wonderful. And I'm only going to get better! I always strive to work harder and improve. There has been definite improvement already, in my writing and in the way I carry myself. 

The plan for this author ninja (me, I'm referring to myself) is to spend Christmas with the family and friends, try not to trip on things, and still find time for myself. I've got a holiday themed story for Shinobi 7 that I'll have posted (hopefully!) soon. Procrastination. It's all year round, baby. >:D

As an update on my month so far, I've had two book signings and one Christmas party. I was at the Main Street Books Author Extravaganza signing on December 1st. I met some new authors and caught up with some friend I had met before. These writers include Janet Taylor-Perry, the author of the Raiford Chronicles, Marie Castle, the author of the Dark Mirror Series, Wynne Huddleston, author of From the Depths of Red Bluff, and Amber Mills, author of Of Lonely Hearts. Here's a few pictures of me and these awesomesauce ladies! :D




The links to these writers' pages will be listed at the bottom. Also as an update, here's my current reading/reviewing list for those requesting reviews. I'm currently on the book The Mayonnaise Murders Part One by Keith A. Owens. I'm sorry for the wait, all I can say is that I will get to these books when I can and I will let you know before as well! :) 


The Mayonnaise Murders Part One by Keith A. Owens
Looking Over Your Shoulder By P. Workman
Song of the Sea by Jade Varden
Water Like Crimson Sorrow by Amanda M. Lyons
The Mayonnaise Murders Part Two by Keith A. Owens.

In other words.... asdfghjkl; I have a lot to read. But hey, I'm an author! It's the business. It's my business to be in the business. Know what I'm saying? Ya gotta be in the know to know, ya know? No? Well that's why you don't know. 

Haha :D

As my final part to this blog post, let me tell you a funny story about my Christmas party. It was the Xmas party for my karate class and there was a total of twenty-one of us playing Dirty Santa. I was #4 and the first gift I got was a remote controlled helicopter. Which is cool, I suppose, if you're into remote controlled things. I'm not, personally. Luckily, a little six-year-old boy took my gift. I was like, "YESSSS. THANK YOU." 

So, now I was without a gift, and I walked up to the table to take another one. I could have stolen a gift from the others but I was interested in opening a new gift. I pick up a small present wrapped in puppy dog wrapping paper. I tear it open quickly. Low and behold... my gift... was.... A SWAG BELT.

"Eat your heart out, Audrey!" I say to my classmate, a thirteen-year-old girl who constantly says swag. I happily put on the belt and latch the swag in place. I was overjoyed and amused. I, Lily Benitez, just opened up the swag. 

"I'm stealing that," my friend Tyler tells me. By all means, he's free to take the belt because this is Dirty Santa and anything goes. 

"You're gonna have to take it from me!" I yell back at him.

"In other words, he'll have to take your pants off?" another classmate of mine asked in amusement. 

I remembered that I had put the swag belt on and it was looped through my jeans. "Er, that's not what I meant," I answer with embarrassment. 

As the night went on, several of my classmates threatened to take my swag because they knew how much I loved my belt. However, at the end of the night, when all was said and done.......

MY SWAG MAINTAINED!!!

 And that was something to be happy about :D Because if someone really did want to try and take my swag, I really would have fought them for it. Heh heh heh. 

Anyway, that concludes this rambling blog post! Thank you, reader, for doing what you do best. Which is reading. Hence why you're the reader. That's how this works ;) 

Some links I encourage you to follow! Some great writers to check out!

Janet Taylor-Perry: Amazon

Marie Castle: Amazon (Also check out her website where she's got a 10% holiday discount on her books, promo code HHOLIDAY14 click HERE)
Wynne Huddleston: Amazon 
Amber Mills: Amazon

My Shinobi 7: Holiday Story will be posted later this week. Hopefully the day before/after/on/around/near Christmas. There. 

~Lily



Friday, December 12, 2014

Midday: 'Shinobi 7: Poisoned Battleground' - WDAM - TV 7 - News, Weather and Sports

WDAM - TV 7 - News, Weather and Sports



Well, that happened! I was on the WDAM Midday
news to talk about my new book release "Poisoned Battleground". The
official Shinobi 7 sequel is now available on Kindle and paperback on Amazon.com

Saturday, December 6, 2014

Poisoned Battleground is HERE!

Hello hello! I can't tell you how excited I am to share all of my feels with you today! December 6th is not only my dear grandma's birthday (she's 78 and just as mean as ever, lol) but today is also the release of my second novel Poisoned Battleground! 

Shinobi 7's official sequel is here. The characters you got to know and love are back for more adventures. Follow Sector 7 as they face new challenges in the epic ninja saga! 

Synopsis:

Shaaku Den's six unlikely heroes have just survived their first battle and defended Swan Bara from the evil Blackthorn Clan. Although a battle has been won, the war is still upon them, and Black Rose has other tricks up her kimono sleeve. The fate of Shaaku Den must still be fought for, and the Kitsune Clan will give it everything they've got!

Led by the shinobi woman Akira Miyamoto, Sector 7 accompanies their sensei to Viper Country, where they encounter a long surviving shinobi clan known as Tiger Rage. It doesn't take long for the night in the Viper Mountains to turn dangerous, and once again the fight is on for the Kitsune Clan. Friendships will be tested, good intentions will turn bad, and nothing is what it seems. All a part of the trials Sector 7 must face to become true warriors.

Will Sector 7 be able to remain a team, even with fate trying to split them apart? They may have unknowingly stepped into the Tiger's Den...



The book is available now on Amazon.com. Click here to get your copy! The first installment of the series Trials of a Warrior has a 4.13 rating on Goodreads and 4.4 rating on Amazon. 

 The advanced reader copy reviewers are loving it so far. Check back for Kindle deals that will go on all this month and thank you very much for your support!!!
a Rafflecopter giveaway


Swag links (cause I'm so swag lololol)

Amazon 
Goodreads 
Facebook 

 

Tuesday, December 2, 2014

Review: Eyes Like Blue Fire by Amanda M. Lyons

Heyo! It's December 2nd and my blog's one month anniversary was yesterday. I completely forgot. So happy belated birthday to, well, me! Today I'm reviewing the gothic vampire novel Eyes Like Blue Fire by the author Amanda M. Lyons.

Synopsis:

Katja has long spent her life buried in the pain and sorrow of her past, a vampire abandoned to her fate for over 300 years, she never expects to meet another who could help her reclaim her existence. Raven, a poet and fellow lost soul, could be the one to spur her on, but in order to have the future she has only begun to grasp, she must uncover the truth about her origins and the awful event which left her alone centuries before. If she cannot face her past and reclaim her strength, she will lose everything.



 
That's a great looking front cover, just saying. 

This book was a fantastic read. I'll give it 5 stars easily. Gothic vampire is definitely not a genre I read a lot in, perhaps ever at all. But Amanda's synopsis sounded interesting and I thought I'd give the genre a try. I must say, I'm a fan now. So kudos to Lyons because I'll be reading in this genre much more. I'm gonna read her sequel soon, in fact! 

What I liked best about this book was the main character, Katja. I've read other reviews of this book and most readers liked the character Zero. Well, he was my second favorite character. I found myself pulling for the protagonist, the auburn-haired vampiress Katja. The first half of the book was understanding her past and how she came to be a vampire in the modern day. I thought her back story was handled very well. It felt like I was on Katja's team, everything that happened to her was page-turning. 

The book had many flashbacks throughout it. While sometimes this can be confusing, the author did a great job of keeping the timeline simple and understandable.

The big finale was definitely great to read as well! All in all, this book has my 5-star rating and I'm very happy to have read it. 

To follow Amanda and find out more about her books, follow these swag links and get to know her! :D




Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Amanda-M-Lyons-Author-and-Editor

Sunday, November 23, 2014

Bleeding Heart by Elizabeth Rawls and Rachel Rawls

Alright everyone! Here's my first book review. I'm not promising anything fancy here. All I can say is that all my reviews are 100% honest and I read purely for entertainment. I'm just a reader, a fan in the stand, and a  cheerleader. Although I've never held pom-poms before... 

The point is, these reviews may not be extensive and majorly in depth but they're Lily-Style! I'm thankful for those who read my work and for those who request that I read theirs. I'm a big indie supporter! With little introduction, here's my review of the first book on my reading list. 

Bleeding Heart, by Elizabeth and Rachel Rawls:

 Synopsis: 
A collection of heartfelt and intriguing poems, short stories and riddles broadening your view on life and dealing in a wide range of topics: faith and hope, the realm of fantasy and imagination, dreams, silliness, and the hardships of life. If you feel like reading something short with a strong message behind it to get you through the day, browse a wide variety of poem titles. If you want funny, the "hump day" poems will make you laugh! If you want to delve into something more, a story that touches your heart and makes you think, there are short stories to peruse. If you want to challenge your mind, the riddles are like a fun puzzle for all ages to enjoy! Everything you need can be found here in this inspiring and thought-provoking collection!

Let me start by saying that I give this book 5/5 stars. I loved it. It was a very endearing and satisfying read. There was nothing about this book that I didn't like. I'm not even sure where to begin, my mind is swarming around like a bunch of buzzing bees!

The book has a lot of personality. It's very outside the box and quirky and just fantastic. What do I mean by outside of the box? For each poem and short story in this book, there is a different font, size, and layout. The poem "A Fairy's Longing" looks much different than the poem "A Dragon's Treasure" and so on. My impression was that each story in this book had its own unique design and that's something I'm very pleased with. 

As for the actual stories inside of the book, they did not disappoint. Both authors, Elizabeth and Rachel, have great story telling talent.They know their way with words and I look forward to future works of Rawls.

Some of my favorite poems were Mirror World, Night Forest of Lights, and the very powerful Mankind's Downfall. It was hard choosing my favorite, though. Asking me to pick my favorite poem is like asking me to pick a favorite My Little Pony character. One doesn't simply just pick a favorite when the book (er, pony?) is so good! I swear, I'm better at analogies than that. 

This book would also make a great gift for anyone who reads/writes poetry. I would definitely recommend it for a Christmas gift.

A solid 5/5 stars for this book!

For all the information on Bleeding Heart and Elizabeth Rawls, follow these swag links and connect with her online! Go on, get creepin'!

Elizabeth Rawls:

Goodreads
Wordpress
Amazon


With one review down, I'll have more to come in the future! Stay tuned! :D

Friday, November 14, 2014

Book Reviews, Updates On My Life, Art Flops

 Hello lovelies. You all look great. I'm really liking that face thing you've got going on. Ya know, if I could peer through the computer screen and see you, of course. 

((Whoa Lily, you just got super creepy...))

I know, I know... 

butyoukindalikeitright? 

HAHAHAHA! 

Alright, alright. I'm sorry, I don't know what that was. That was me playing around with an intro and I'm just like, "Whatever, I'll go the creepy route." Heh heh. This blog post has a purpose, don't be alarmed. 

First things first, here's a little update on my life. I'm sick. As in sneezing, coughing, and breathing from my mouth sick. It stinks. I had to miss karate class on Tuesday and I can't go out on my usual runs or walks. 

((We didn't come to this blog to hear you whine about your life, Lily))

I know, I know. 

There is a silver lining in my sickness! Because I've been stuck at home, I've also been able to catch up on my reading. I've even got more to add to my book review list. So far, I haven't posted my first review yet but I plan to post my first book review on Sunday. Then I'll get a routine going and post all of my reviews on Sunday. If you would like me to review one of your books, please visit the Contact Me page of this blog. Here's my current reading so far:
1. BakaKaiser: Book of Heroes by Rowan Lake Jr.
2. Eyes Like Blue Fire by Amanda M. Lyons
3.Water Like Crimson Sorrow by Amanda M. Lyons 
4. Mayonnaise Murders Part 1 & 2 by Keith A. Owens 

The review to BakaKaiser: Book of Heroes will be posted this Sunday. 

Other than the books I have yet to review, in other author news, I'll be hosting my own book signing on December 13th of this year. I'm very excited for it because it will be the signing I sell my second book for the very first time. Poisoned Battleground, Shinobi 7's official sequel, will be released on Amazon on December 6th, 2014!

Now for the part of the blog that I was most excited about... the artwork! Since I've been home sick, I've had some time to get artwork done of my characters. Below are two pictures, the first one of Black Rose and Rengoku, the two main antagonists that make up the evil shinobi clan Blackthorn. The second picture is Akira Miyamoto, the second-in-command of the Kitsune Clan, as well as Blackthorn's most hated enemy. 





Soon (very soon....) I'll be posting some Shinobi 7 prompts and fictions for you readers as well. As always, thank you for reading this blog post! Post in the comments and if you have an author page, blog, or Goodreads page, let me know and I'll follow you back! :D

Thursday, November 6, 2014

Poisoned Battleground: Cover Reveal!

The time has come...

Shinobi 7's official sequel Poisoned Battleground will be released Saturday, December 6th, on Amazon.com... ONLY ONE MONTH FROM TODAY! To get you lovely folks pumped for the event, here's the cover reveal to look forward to.






The cover features the only shinobi woman of the Kitsune Clan, Akira Miyamoto! She, along with Sector 7, find themselves locked in another battle and a lot more trouble than they can handle. Here's the summary of the book that can be read on the back cover:


Ready for round two, Sector 7?



Shaaku Den's six unlikely heroes have just survived their first battle and defended Swan Bara from the evil Blackthorn Clan. Although a battle has been won, the war is still upon them, and Black Rose has other tricks up her kimono sleeve. The fate of Shaaku Den must still be fought for, and the Kitsune Clan will give it everything they've got!



Led by the shinobi woman Akira Miyamoto, Sector 7 accompanies their sensei to Viper Country, where they encounter a long surviving shinobi clan known as Tiger Rage. It doesn't take long for the night in the Viper Mountains to turn dangerous, and once again the fight is on for the Kitsune Clan. Friendships will be tested, good intentions will turn bad, and nothing is what it seems. All a part of the trials Sector 7 must face to become true warriors.



Will Sector 7 be able to remain a team, even with fate trying to split them apart? They may have unknowingly stepped into the Tiger's Den...

To get ready for the Shinobi 7 release, enter to win the goodreads giveaway for the first book Trials of a Warrior (Shinobi 7 #1). Giveaway ends November 29th, so feel free to join!


Goodreads Book Giveaway

Shinobi 7 by L.  Benitez

Shinobi 7

by L. Benitez

Giveaway ends November 29, 2014.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.
Enter to win

Saturday, November 1, 2014

The First Post!

O-heyo! Alright, so this is my first ever blog post. So begins my adventure of a blogger. Welcome! 




For my first post, I'll talk about the intention and direction of this blog. This is a place where readers can get to know me, my Shinobi 7 Series universe, and other fellow writers. I'm in the indie author community. I publish all my books through CreateSpace and I'm always learning and growing as an author. I've met a lot of great people in my career so far as a writer and I'm excited to meet many more. So please, don't be shy, leave a comment and link me to your blog, I'll follow you back.

Alas, the launch of this post is on November 1st, the start of the NanoWrimo month. I'm participating this year and I'm going to try to meet 50k words. Thing is, the book I'm writing will probably end up being between 100-125k, so I'm using the month of November to put a dent into the story considerably. I participated in NanoWrimo last year and made 50k on the 3rd Shinobi 7 book I was writing at the time. 

For this go around, however, I'll be focusing on a standalone novel that's titled Cold Scales. Unless I change the title, that is. I can be fickle about the most peculiar things. It's one of my goals to be more involved in NanoWrimo this year. Last year was quite pathetic. I made one friend and only logged in to update my word count. That's all. I was about as social as a rock and didn't bother to search the site or get familiar with it. 

But this year will be different! I'm gonna make friends, derp around the site, and hopefully come out in the end with 50k words! With that said, if you would like to be my friend, here's my profile link. At least, I think it's my profile link. That site hates me, I'm tellin' ya. My page! 

Are there any of you participating in NanoWrimo? It's great if you are, I'm always encouraging others to write. The site sends me emails all the time about writing tips.

On this very first blog post, to make it slightly more special than all the others I plan to write, I will list my eBook giveaway! Enter the giveaway below (free to enter) and you could win an eBook of Clash of the Clans, the Shinobi 7 Companion Book. Clash of the Clans is a great book for those of you who have never read anything by me before. It's a short story (around 24,000 words) and it will give you a great example of my writing style, give you a glimpse into the characters of Shinobi 7, and hopefully you'll want to read more! :) 


 


Please leave a comment, like, share, keep the swag going! Hahaha! I think this will conclude my very first blog post. The Clash of the Clans raffle is going on for one week, so there's plenty of time to share. Also note, if you're an author who's hosting a giveaway (or planning to) please see my "contact me" page and email me if you'd like me to help you promote your book! I'd be happy to do so!