Come join us on GoodReads.com!

As an author & avid reader, I was delighted to receive an invitation to join GoodReads.com. For authors, it's a great place to showcase books, and as a reader you can post your own reviews, add books to your TBR pile, let people know what you are currently reading & interact with all kinds of authors & readers from around the world. I have posted all the book reviews I had previously written & will be adding to it as I go. Down the road, I hope to add reviews of books I read years ago that hold a special place in my heart. I've even added some of my all time favorite reads from childhood - Nancy Drew books - what a wonderful walk down memory lane that was! You can create lists of your favorite books, rate books, interact with groups who share your interests, as well as give and receive recommendations for worthy reads. It's a very active site with tons of cool members, and the best part is: it's a lot of fun!

Here's the link to my profile there:

Rai Aren's GoodReads.com profile

I hope to see you there and add you as a friend :)

Rai Aren, co-author of Secret of the Sands
www.secretofthesands.com

Secret of the Sands joins TeensReadToo network!

We are delighted to have been invited to join the TeensReadToo network! Come check out our brand new profile there:

Secret of the Sands profile on TeensReadToo.com

This is definitely a site we are pleased to be a part of for a couple of very good reasons, first our book was written for readers ages 12 & up. It's got the fun, silly, light-hearted aspects of movies like The Mummy and Indiana Jones series, paired with our own deep, underlying meaning & messages...Our intent in writing the story was to make it accessible to a wide audience, in the same way our favorite stories & movies are :)

Secondly, TeensReadToo.com also gave our book a great 5-star review:

Courtesy of Teens Read Too, July 26, 2008

Alex and Mitch are the outcasts of the archaeological dig site they are working at in Egypt. Their supervisor/Professor, Dustimaine, is out to thwart their every attempt at success. If he misses anything, his underling, Fessel C. Blothers, is there to catch them.

One day, Alex and Mitch literally stumble upon a secret; a secret thousands and thousands of years old, unknown to anyone but them. With the help of their lab tech friends, Jack and Bob, Alex and Mitch soon get snared in uncovering a mysterious power somehow connected to the great Sphinx.

Could this be the biggest discovery in archaeological history -- or just someone's plan to hurt and destroy another society?

Rai Aren & Tavius E. write a spellbinding mix of mystery,history, fantasy, and adventure in this tale of two histories - one told in the present, the other told from the past - telling a story of misused power, learning how to trust, and the fate of civilization. The dialogue is believable and the plot is a page-turner.

Reviewed by: Erikka Adams, aka "The Bookbinder"

*******

We hope you will check Secret of the Sands out! Happy reading always friends!

Rai

We always love hearing from fans of the book!!

We are always honored to receive messages from people who have read & enjoyed our book, Secret of the Sands. As authors, we write because we love it, and in the hopes that it will mean something to someone, somewhere, that it will provide an enjoyable escape & an entertaining adventure. Knowing that we have achieved that goal, that our readers loved the book & took the time out of their own busy schedules to send us a note about it and ask about the sequel really does mean the world to us!! We are deeply grateful every time we hear from a happy reader. We just wanted you to know that... :)

Rai & Tavius

Come visit us on MySpace & Facebook!

Hi dear friends!

We have a presence on both very cool social networking sites. Are you also on one or both? Add us as a friend, add yourself as a fan & network with us, we would love to hear from you! Our links to both are included below. Both sites are maintained by Rai, our MySpace page has been up for several months, but we are really new to Facebook & just learning the ropes. Both are a ton of fun & very interesting to be a part of :)

Rai

MySpace page for Secret of the Sands:

Secret of the Sands on MySpace

Facebook page for Secret of the Sands:

Secret of the Sands on Facebook

Facebook profile for Secret of the Sands:

Rai's page on Facebook for Secret of the Sands

Secret of the Sands donates books through Shadow Forest Authors to help promote literacy!

Secret of the Sands is a participating member of Shadow Forest Authors, the Fellowship of Authors and Supporters for charity. Their mission at SFA is to get books where they are needed. Copies of Secret of the Sands are already on their way to help support this great initiative. Books can help in many ways, from promoting literacy to opening up worlds of imagination & creativity. Here's how it works (from SFA website):

"SFA authors donate copies of their titles to our beneficiaries, who places books in much needed hands.

Everyone can help
SFA supporters can Adopt an author or authors, purchasing their titles to be donated to our beneficiary.
Encourage Authors by leaving comments"

The Anthony Robbins foundation, Got Books, Book Aid International, The Australian Literacy and Numeracy Foundation, and World Public Library have agreed to be SFA beneficiaries and support SFA's venture to get books where they are needed.

Here is Rai's endorsement of SFA's work:

"As an author, one of the main reasons I write is to entertain people, to make them happy, and give them a world they love being in and escaping to.
Beyond this dream, that a book can help a fellow human being along the path to literacy is an incredibly beautiful, meaningful and deeply rewarding gift. I am very, very proud and truly honored to be a member of Shadow Forest Authors."

Visit the Shadow Forest Authors website for more information & find out how you can participate, too:

http://www.shadowforestauthors.com/

Together we can help make a positive difference in this world through the use of books. We would be delighted if you would choose to participate, too :)

Rai Aren, co-author of Secret of the Sands
www.secretofthesands.com

Upcoming author appearances!

We are pleased to announce that Rai & Tavius will be doing some upcoming author signings! Our very good friends at Chapters Macleod Tr.S. here in Calgary have invited us back for book signings this fall & into Christmas! We will have dates for you hopefully in the next couple of weeks, so do stay tuned. Did we mention what a great gift Secret of the Sands makes?!

We hope to see you soon!

Rai & Tavius
www.secretofthesands.com

"Rai Aren and Tavius E. have crafted a fast-paced, exciting novel overflowing with mystery and intrigue. The tension is constant. The characters fully developed. And the plot gripping. Ancient history and present day relevance are so expertly intertwined, that you might forget you are reading a work of fiction." -- Thomas Phillips, author of The Molech Prophecy



Secret of the Sands book trailer:

Amazon kindle edition of Secret of the Sands is now available!

We are delighted to announce that Secret of the Sands is now available as an Amazon.com kindle edition, courtesy of Bristlecone Pine Press!

Here's the link:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001EQ60WQ/

We know there is a large group of kindle readers out there, so we are happy to be able to offer this option for Secret of the Sands, a mystery/speculative sci-fi/alternate historical fiction novel about Ancient Egypt.

Happy reading always!

Rai Aren, co-author of Secret of the Sands
www.secretofthesands.com

For 12,000 years a dark and deadly secret has been hidden deep below the Great Sphinx of Giza. In present day Egypt, a frightening, yet awe-inspiring story unravels as archaeologists race against time to decipher an ancient truth...

"A deep probing mystery riddled with prophecy and danger, Secret of the Sands uses Egypt and her mythology as a backdrop to delve into the meanings of life and religion." -McNally Robinson