The Man of Her Dreams

Way back in 2013, I released a novel under a pseudonym. Today, that novel is being released under my real name. So if you’re interested, hop on over and check it out here. I hear good things about it.

Trapped in a loveless and often abusive marriage, Heather Miller longs for a new life, a life in which she can finally be happy. She yearns to find the strength to leave her husband, for the courage to start anew, but with her confidence and self-esteem shattered, she doesn’t feel capable of leaving…That is, until a car accident lands her in the hospital.

Heather befriends her nurse, a handsome and charming man named Brad who shows her that not only does she deserve to be happy, but also that she’s much stronger than she gives herself credit for being. As Heather’s marriage ends, her love for Brad begins and she finally finds the happiness she’s fantasized about for so long. But is her new love all he appears to be?

Halloween Memories

With Halloween (my favorite holiday) right around the corner, I’m asking you to share with me your favorite memory of the deliciously frightening night. Maybe you were scared out of your mind. Maybe you had the best time of your life. Maybe you ate yourself into a diabetic coma. Whatever it was, I’d like you to share it with me (and the rest of us). I’ll give you a few of my favorite Halloween memories to kick things off.

My favorite Halloween was 2004. It was just a couple weeks before my car wreck. My husband and I, along with my parents, two of my husband’s sisters and their husbands and kids, and other friends and family members, put on a haunted house. it was something we did every year since 1998, but that year was our best ever. We had everything. Jason Voorhees. Freddy Krueger. Leatherface busting out of cellar doors with a live chainsaw. The girl from The Ring climbing out of a real television. A terrifying scarecrow. A mad doctor. Michael Meyers. We had it all. It was the best year ever for our talk-of-the-town haunted house. I’ll never forget it. Townsfolk didn’t forget either, as they talked about it for years.

Another favorite was the year my sister and I trick-or-treated in the snow as children. What I remember the most about it (other than the snow) is that there was a ditch in front of this one house (I still remember the exact location of this incident). It was filled with fallen leaves and covered in snow, matching the ground around it. My sister, who was maybe five at the time, stepped on it thinking it was solid ground, and she fell in, sinking down pretty far into this ditch. It was hilarious watching her get swallowed up by leaves. To me, anyway. Probably not so much to her.

Another favorite Halloween memory was in 1993. As young teens, my best friend and I took turns hiding and scaring the trick-or-treaters while the other handed out candy. We had so much fun.

So what about you? What are some of your favorite memories of Halloween?

Freebie

Seeing as we’re all stuck at home right now, I thought I’d give you something to do. I’m currently giving away The Faceless, a book I will always have a deep fondness for. Not only because it was the first book I co-wrote with another author, but also because I really love the story line.

If you haven’t read it, give it a try. Please take a moment to leave a review when you’re done. It doesn’t have to be long or fancy, just honest.

So enjoy this book. Hopefully it’ll take your mind off the madness that is our world right now.

When Carrie Rose was six years old, she fought off her mother’s attacker. Now, twenty years later, she’s an internet sensation with millions of adoring fans and an offer to take her cooking show to television. Her culinary talents have brought her everything she’s ever wanted. Money. Success. A loyal fan base. But it also brought her something she didn’t want.

A stalker.

Carrie’s boyfriend has vowed to keep her safe from the man harassing her online. But it seems that he is hiding something from her and may not be the person she believes him to be.

Allan Grayson is an Atlanta detective who’s been working the same case for far too long. A serial killer known as The Camper has claimed over four dozen victims and shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, he’s growing more brazen by the day. Now, in a race to stop him before he can kill again, Detective Grayson finds himself at Carrie Rose’s house on a dark Georgia night. But will he make it there in time or will The Camper’s body count rise?

Blood will be shed, and not everyone will live to see the dawn.

The Faceless. Get it here.

And the Winner is…

I recently offered up a little contest on my Facebook Author Page. The deal was I would pick the name of one of the page’s likers to be in my current book once the page received 600 likes. It didn’t take long at all to reach that goal, but then–long story short–a bunch of stuff happened, making me late in announcing the winner. But the wait is over. The person whose name will be used in the book I’m currently writing is…

Dot Fawcett

Congratulations, Dot!

Now, at 650 likes, I’ll pick someone to receive a signed paperback copy of my recently published novel The Hunt. So get liking, and happy holidays!

The Hunt

I recently held a benefit for my mother in-law, Anita. She’s battling lung cancer for the second time. It’s her third time fighting cancer, and each time has drained her physically and financially.

Hence, the benefit.

One of the things I did for the benefit was sell the opportunity to be a main character in a book. I planned to auction it during the live auction portion of the benefit, but then I remembered that I had a huge fan in Luke Davis. I went to his wife Susan, and we struck a deal behind his back. She donated money to the cause, and I wrote a book for Luke. Huge surprise to him, I’m sure. (Hi, Luke. Hope you enjoy the story.)

I tell you that to tell you this.

Anita is still fighting. We almost lost her shortly after the benefit, but she’s not one to go quietly into that good night. However, the war is taking its toll. If you would like to donate money to her for the expenses she’s incurring (doctor bills, trips to chemo, etc.), please send them to me via Paypal (kimberlyabettes@yahoo.com) or Facebook, and I will see that she gets them. For other forms of payment, you can email me or contact me through any of my social media accounts. Every little bit helps, as I’m sure you know. Thank you so much.

Kim

UPDATE:
On October 8, 2019, Anita passed away. All donations will go toward her funeral expenses.

 

Three men. One night. No hope.

Damaged property.

Mauled animals.

Mutilated bodies.

There’s something on the loose, prowling the dense forests of the Ozarks, leaving a trail of horror and devastation in its wake and striking fear deep in the hearts of all who live there.

A monster, they say. A behemoth creature with long teeth and sharp claws.

On a cold November night, three men head out into the dark wilderness, searching for the beast, hoping to take it down before it kills again. But as the men are pushed to their limits, they’re left wondering if they’ll survive the hunt…

…or will they have to sacrifice themselves in order to save the lives of others?

Available now at:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Kobo

Scribd

And coming soon to other retailers.

Audiobooks

Last night, I finished Ania Ahlborn’s Within These Walls and started Blake Crouch’s Dark Matter. I tried listening to the Dark Matter audiobook when it first came out, but I just couldn’t get into it. That is saying nothing about the book. I’ve never been able to focus on audiobooks. My mind wanders. Sometimes it doesn’t come back. I need to see the words. Process the information in my mind. However, if you’re one of those people who love audiobooks, send me an email at kimberlyabettes at yahoo dot com and I’ll send you a code for my audiobook The Faceless on Audible. I’m trying to get reviews so I can advertise that thing properly. Honest reviews. Not the butt kissing kind.

When Carrie Rose was six years old, she fought off her mother’s attacker. Now, twenty years later, she’s an internet sensation with millions of adoring fans and an offer to take her cooking show to television. Her culinary talents have brought her everything she’s ever wanted. Money. Success. A loyal fan base. But it also brought her something she didn’t want.

A stalker.

Carrie’s boyfriend has vowed to keep her safe from the man harassing her online. But it seems that he’s hiding something from her and may not be the person she believes him to be.

Blood will be shed…

Allan Grayson is an Atlanta detective who’s been working the same case for far too long. A serial killer known as The Camper has claimed over four dozen victims and shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, he’s growing more brazen by the day. Now, in a race to stop him before he can kill again, Detective Grayson finds himself at Carrie Rose’s house on a dark Georgia night. But will he make it there in time or will The Camper’s body count rise?

Not everyone will live to see the dawn.

The Shorts

Different generations prefer different things. For example, the 65+ folks don’t really care for technology. They write things down in cursive and they talk on the phone instead of texting. The young folks, 30 and under, are all tech. Instead of writing things down, they just keep notes on their phone. They don’t even know how to write in cursive, and they choose texting over talking on the phone every time. And then there are the people in the middle, people like me. We still write things down, in cursive, but we also keep notes on our phones. We talk on the phone and text.

Some people prefer reading physical books. Books they can hold and smell. Some prefer digital books. And both are okay. Nothing wrong with either of those. I say as long as you’re reading, it doesn’t matter how you do it.

Now, as you probably know, I have a handful of short stories and novellas that are only available in digital format. For the people who prefer to read that way, that’s never been a problem. But for those who prefer physical books, they’ve never read those stories. And frankly, I think they’re missing out on some of my best work. So, to remedy this situation, I’ve compiled those short stories and novellas into one book and made it available in both digital and physical form. It’s a hell of a deal money-wise in digital format, and it gives those physical book lovers a chance to read the stories they’ve been missing out on for so long.

Check it out:

This is a 99,000+ word collection of 10 unsettling short stories and novellas, previously released in digital format, gathered together here for the first time.

Contains the following stories:

In Her Skin

Transference

His Ashes

Shiners

Dead Man’s Chair

The Cabin on Calhoun Ridge

Nights Falls

The Hunger

The Kindness of Strangers

The Home

Available in digital form now here.

Available in paperback form now here.

Audiobook Reviewers Wanted

I’m looking for book reviewers to review my latest horror novel THE FACELESS on their websites, social media pages, podcasts, etc. If interested, please send an email to kimberlyabettes@yahoo.com and I will send you a promo code. Thank you in advance.

When Carrie Rose was six years old, she fought off her mother’s attacker. Now, twenty years later, she’s an internet sensation with millions of adoring fans and an offer to take her cooking show to television. Her culinary talents have brought her everything she’s ever wanted. Money. Success. A loyal fanbase. But it also brought her something she didn’t want.

A stalker.

Carrie’s boyfriend has vowed to keep her safe from the man harassing her online. But it seems that he is hiding something from her and may not be the person she believes him to be.

Blood will be shed…

Allan Grayson is an Atlanta detective who’s been working the same case for far too long. A serial killer known as The Camper has claimed over four dozen victims and shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, he’s growing more brazen by the day. Now, in a race to stop him before he can kill again, Detective Grayson finds himself at Carrie Rose’s house on a dark Georgia night. But will he make it there in time or will The Camper’s body count rise?

Not everyone will live to see the dawn.

It’s Time

I’ve been having a terrible time sleeping the past few nights. Last night, while lying there waiting on sleep to find me, I had an epiphany hit me HARD. I am one of VERY few people on this planet who was once a quadriplegic. I mean, normally this is a club that’s, like, once you’re in, you’re in for life. Ya know? Like the mob. But a very small–and I mean a teeny tiny number of people can say that they were in but got out. Don’t get me wrong. This is definitely NOT a club you ever want to join. For any reason. But I did. I was a quadriplegic for three weeks.

 

And now I’m not.

 

By all rights, I was supposed to be a lifer. I was never supposed to walk again, never supposed to have anything more than maybe–MAAAAYBE–a little bit of movement and feeling in my arms. Maybe. If I was lucky. But 79 days after the car wreck in which I broke my neck, I walked out of the hospital, to the amazement of every doctor and nurse who knew about my situation.

 

So then I thought, okay. What can I do with this? Surely, there’s something. So, out of curiosity, I did a search to see what the other former quads were doing with their lives. One of them has dedicated his life to helping other quads adjust to their new life. Bless him hard, you guys.

 

Another guy who broke his neck in a motocross accident is racing cars for a living. Guess he’s just crazy.

 

But then I realized that I have something those other guys don’t have. I have the ability to write books. I can help other quadriplegics and their families by writing about my experience.

 

Now, if you’ve been following me for any length of time, you’ll know that I’ve tried many times to write that story. It’s just so damn painful to even think about, every time I try to write it, I just end up with a wet keyboard and puffy eyes. But I feel now that it’s something I have to do. I HAVE to write that story to be helpful to others who need it. Those folks lying in the hospital bed feeling like their life is over, sad that they’re a burden to their loved ones, and depressed as hell because they can’t even kill themselves to alleviate that load on their families. I’ve been there. I know every thought and every feeling they’re having because I had them too. And now, I feel like a ten pound asshole in a two pound bag because I’ve been sitting on this for almost 15 years now. Sure, I wrote a blog post about it which has helped a LOT of people. But I could’ve and should’ve done more.

 

So this time, no condensed internet version. No stopping because I’m crying like a baby. No excuses. I have to do this.

 

It’s time.

Furlough Freebie

Our country is a hot mess right now. It has been for a couple years, but these past five weeks have been particularly nightmarish. The government shutdown affects us all, though it’s quite clear that some folks don’t see it that way. It’s like throwing a pebble in a pond. There’s the impact zone (in this case, the workers not being paid because of the shutdown), and then there are the countless ripples that extend outward, endlessly (which in this case is the rest of us). That’s the way this shutdown works. For those of you who don’t understand this concept and think that the workers not being paid should just “deal with it” or “get other jobs for now,” let me explain it to you.

First of all, no one wants to work for free. Yes, they MIGHT get back-pay, though not all of them will, but that doesn’t help them NOW. And for those who don’t get back-pay, they’ve just given away all these weeks of work, weeks of their lives, for nothing. Is that something you would want to do? Go to work day after day, week after week and receive no money for it? Would you just shrug and “deal with it?” I highly doubt it. Besides that, it costs money to get to work. Whether it’s fuel for your vehicle, bus or train fare, you have to pay to get to the job that you’re now working for free. So you’re actually going in the hole to provide free labor for your government. Sound fair to you?

Now that I’ve got that out of the way, let’s move on.

When you get paid, you spend money on necessities like rent, groceries, electric, cable, phone, water, trash, and gas. Then, you spend money on luxuries like eating out, buying new clothes, going to the movies, and taking vacations. When you don’t get paid, you don’t have the option of paying your bills, buying your groceries, seeing a movie, eating out, etc. Not only does this suck for you, but it sucks for everyone else.

Pay attention, folks. This is where that ripple effect comes into play.

If you can’t pay your rent, your landlord is short on money and now can’t pay his or her mortgage on the building. Now you’re both screwed. When you can’t go out to eat, the single mother working for tips makes less money than usual–which wasn’t quite enough to begin with–so now her children don’t get all the school supplies they need or a new pair of shoes because they’ve outgrown the old pair. Now there’s a bunch of people who are screwed. The restaurants that depend on the income from those workers eating out have lost the income they depend on and now have to lay off their own workers to try to balance things out. They also have to close the restaurants early because their bills are out-weighing their income. The people working for free have children that go to daycare. Those daycare centers aren’t being paid, so now THEY have bills that are going past due. That’s right. Now the daycare providers are working for free. Are you starting to get it? Are you starting to see how this shutdown affects us all?

I’ve seen some folks post online that the workers should’ve had enough money saved up to live on. To that I say ARE YOU FREAKIN’ KIDDING ME?! Do YOU have a few months’ worth of income saved up? No. No you do not. The majority of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. We’re pretty much all one major illness away from bankruptcy. But we’ll remember that if something ever happens to YOUR job. We’ll remind you that you can just live off your savings.

There are almost a million workers not being paid by the government during this shutdown. But there are so many more people hurting because of it.

That’s why I’m offering any furloughed worker affected by the shutdown a free ebook. Just send me an email at kimberlyabettes at yahoo dot com and I’ll send you an ebook. If there’s one you prefer, let me know. Otherwise, I’ll send you one at random. It’s the least I can do. I can’t open the government. I can’t get your paycheck for you. But I can help take your mind off your troubles for a bit.