Misadventures in Auckland

Mummy Dearest – A Pharaonic Adventure
Misadventures in Auckland Book 1
by Barbara Russell
Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy
During a school trip to the museum, thirteen-year-old Tess wakes up an Egyptian mummy.
Cursed by a necromancer, Prince Seth has been inside a sarcophagus for two thousand years. Now, he has no intention of going back into his tomb. He wants a normal life, friends, and fresh food. So, he follows Tess home, bandages and all.
Ancient Egyptian mummies bring bad luck. Since Seth’s arrival, a car has almost run Tess over, and a lamppost nearly squashed her. With Tess’s soccer team, the Wolverines, qualified for the New Zealand Junior Soccer Championship, this curse could destroy its chances of winning. Even worse, evil Egyptian spirits chase her and Seth to take their souls into the world of the dead.
Unless they find the two-thousand-year old necromancer, who controls the spirits and who gained eternal youth by cursing Seth, Tess and Seth will be doomed forever.
The Boy Who Killed Santa Claus
Misadventures in Auckland Book 2
While other thirteen-year-old kids think about playing and riding their bikes, Hau has to deal with fairies. He sees them everywhere—small, green, tiny wings, with pointed ears like Legolas. And they talk to him as well. In fact, they don’t want to shut up.
No one believes him, not even his mother or his best friend. Kids at school call him names, and he’s just as popular as a visit to the dentist.
On top of that, he’s the only one who knows the truth about Santa Claus. Santa isn’t the nice, fatherly elf everyone believes. He’s a bloodthirsty villain. Yep. Newt witnessed it with his own eyes when Santa killed his father in cold blood right under the Christmas tree. But again, no one believes him.
The Doom & Despair Entertainment Agency
Misadventures in Auckland Book 3
Welcome to the Doom & Despair Entertainment Agency where fear is always guaranteed. Do you want a bunch of zombies for your next birthday party? Vampires and ghosts at your wedding, frightening your guests? No problem. The Doom & Despair Entertainment Agency organises the scariest events in all New Zilla.
Except that, since the ghost of MacBatt Castle disappeared, business is slowing down at the agency. A new, young ghost, Gwen, haunts the castle, and she’s too nice to scare the customers. So, it’s up to Orlando, a thirteen-year-old orphan who works for the agency, to help Gwen in becoming scarier before his employer decides to send him back to the orphanage.
The Girl with the Dragon-Raccoon
Misadventures in Auckland Book 4
While other fifteen-year-old girls dream about having a blood-sucking boyfriend like in Twilight, Tyro has nightmares about vampires.
She has her share of vampires, zombies, and werewolves because her mum is a dentist who attends to these monsters’ teeth.
So, when her mother and a vampire client disappear from the dental clinic, leaving only a trail of blood, trashed furniture, and ripped clothes behind, Tyro suspects one of the monsters kidnapped them or worse that the vampire attacked her mum.
Either way, she’s in deep crap.
The police don’t believe her, and Jack, the vanished vampire’s son, wants to take Tyro to Underworld City where hags, zombies, and all kind of were-beings live. He plans to talk with the underworld police that control supernatural creatures.
That’s his chance to show her that not every monster is a thug, and perhaps, she’ll accept his invitation for the Disemboweller Ball. If only he could keep his true nature secret. No girl would be attracted by a guy who can turn himself into a half-dragon, half-racoon beast, with no fire to speak of, no super-strength, and very tiny wings. How lame is that?
Tyro would rather go to school wearing only her underwear than be alone with Jack. What if going to Underworld City is a trap? What if he wants to eat her?
But unless she teams up with him, she’ll never know what happened to her mum. Armed with her courage and a bottle of garlic spray, she accepts to travel to Underworld City with Jack.
After a monster killed her dad, her mum is all that is left of her family, and she won’t leave her in the hands of brain-eating, blood-sucking creatures.
I’m an entomologist and a soil biologist, which is a fancy way to say that I dig in the dirt, looking for bugs. Nature and books have always been my passion. I was a kid when I read The Lord Of The Ring and fell in love with fantasy novels.
When I discovered cosy mystery and crime novel, I fell in love with Hercules Poirot and Sherlock Holmes. Then I grew up and . . . Nah, I’m joking. Don’t grow up, folks! It’s a trap.
Follow the tour HERE for exclusive excerpts, guest posts and a giveaway!

New Camelot

A Knight to Celebrate
New Camelot Prequel
by Barbara Russell
Genre: YA Arthurian Steampunk Fantasy Romance
Nathair and two other fellow cadets of the Sir Lancelot’s Academy for Knights are pulling a prank on the ladies of Lady Guinevere’s Academy for Damsels. After the ladies filled the cadets’ quivers with honey, it’s only fair that the cadets return the favour.
**Only .99 cents!!**
A Knight in Distress
New Camelot #1
Knights are supposed to rescue damsels. That’s the natural order. So when Nathair, a knight in training, finds himself rescued by the princess he’s supposed to save, he’s annoyed. And when the princess proves she can fight like a knight? Well, that’s enough for a boy to think about a career change.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekLdcHex-xg?feature=player_embedded]
A Damsel in Shiny Armor
New Camelot #2
After fighting dragons, wild Vikings, and clockwork monsters, Nathair is facing the biggest challenge of his life: proposing to Bryhannon. Apparently, flowers and a three-month salary worth ring aren’t enough because she doesn’t seem thrilled by the proposal. She has a devastating power to control, Reapers to face, and more importantly she has to find the courage to tell Nathair that she’s a Morrigan.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFklDOBskBE?feature=player_embedded]
I’m an entomologist and a soil biologist, which is a fancy way to say that I dig in the dirt, looking for bugs. Nature and books have always been my passion. I was a kid when I read The Lord Of The Ring and fell in love with fantasy novels.
When I discovered cozy mystery and crime novels, I fell in love with Hercules Poirot and Sherlock Holmes. Then I grew up and . . . Nah, I’m joking. I didn’t grow up. Don’t grow up, folks! It’s a trap.
PS I hate gardening. There, I said it. Sorry fellow Kiwis.
Follow the tour HERE for exclusive excerpts, guest posts and a giveaway!

The Good Inside Me

The Good Inside Me
by Barbara Russell
Genre: YA Paranormal Romance
Dragons, short-tempered archdemons, and hysterical damned souls—Shax is used to dealing with all that. He’s a young fire demon and lives in Hell, after all. What he’s not used to is being possessed by a human. A very good human and a pretty girl at that: sixteen-year-old Tolis. Despite still having control of his body most of the time, Shax can hear Tolis’s voice inside his head and feels what she feels constantly.
Shax’s mentor claims that Tolis hides an ancient, powerful grimoire, a book of spells, and proposes a deal: if Shax finds it, he’ll help Shax get work as a dragon keeper—Shax’s dream job. Tolis swears she doesn’t have the grimoire and asks Shax to help her father, whose soul is turning evil by the minute. Unless Tolis does something, her dad’s soul will end in Hell. Hoping to convince her to give him the grimoire, and not because Shax cares about the man’s soul, he agrees to help.
Goodness is overrated. Since Shax decided to help Tolis, his life has turned into a hurdle race. Thugs chase him, the scientists in Hell want to prod and examine the first possessed demon in history, and he can’t find the darn grimoire.
And the worst part? Due to the unavoidable presence of Tolis, who keeps intruding into his evil thoughts, Shax discovers an almost decent side of himself. In no time at all, he catches himself doing actual good deeds. Is he becoming—yuck—good?
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qC7wTElHHlc?feature=player_embedded]
I’m an entomologist and a soil biologist, which is a fancy way to say that I dig in the dirt, looking for bugs. Nature and books have always been my passion. I was a kid when I read The Lord Of The Ring and fell in love with fantasy novels.
When I discovered cozy mystery and crime novels, I fell in love with Hercules Poirot and Sherlock Holmes. Then I grew up and . . . Nah, I’m joking. I didn’t grow up. Don’t grow up, folks! It’s a trap.
PS I hate gardening. There, I said it. Sorry fellow Kiwis.
Follow the tour HERE for exclusive excerpts, guest posts and a giveaway!

The Heart Collector

The Heart Collector
Auckland Steampunk Book 1
by Barbara Russell
Genre: Steampunk, Romantic Suspense
Auckland, 1884
The Supernaturals are frightened. Despite being able to do extraordinary things like teleporting or lighting a fire with a stare, a serial killer, the Heart Collector, is slaughtering them. He rips their chests open and removes their hearts.
While other aristocratic, nineteen-year-old girls spend time dancing, Isabel trains hard to become an MI7 agent—Military Intelligence Seventh Division, a crime squad run by Supernaturals. The Heart Collector murdered her best friend, and enrolling at MI7 is the best way to help catch the killer.
Isabel senses other people’s feelings as if they were her owns. But MI7’s leader is too worried about Isabel’s safety to let her join the team.
Eager to prove that her power is valuable, Isabel volunteers to meet Murk, a dangerous Supernatural man who can turn himself invisible. MI7 desperately tried to recruit him and failed.
She believes that her power is enough to convince Murk to become an MI7’s agent and help apprehend the Heart Collector. If he wants to attack her, his feelings will broadcast his intention, and she’ll be ready.
What Isabel isn’t ready for is to fall in love with the man who will collect her heart.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=loY3neS-Iko?feature=player_embedded]
I’m an entomologist and a soil biologist, which is a fancy way to say that I dig in the dirt, looking for bugs. Nature and books have always been my passion. I was a kid when I read The Lord Of The Ring and fell in love with fantasy novels.
When I discovered cosy mystery and crime novel, I fell in love with Hercules Poirot and Sherlock Holmes. Then I grew up and . . . Nah, I’m joking. I didn’t grow up. Don’t grow up, folks! It’s a trap.
PS I hate gardening. There, I said it. Sorry fellow Kiwis.
Follow the tour HERE for exclusive excerpts, guest posts and a giveaway!