Blog Tour & Giveaway: Geared For The Grave by Duffy Brown

Guest Post

by Duffy Brown

Pets are the best! They are our constant companions. They love us when we’re bitchy and in our sloppy PJs with no hair combed and when we have the flu. And they train us really well. Here I thought we were supposed to train them! Ha!

Pet joke: What side of the door does the cat like to be on? The other side. That’s why I jump up and down the whole blasted night while trying to watch TV to let my cat in and out of the porch. Am I a well trained owner or what!

Then there’s the food issue. Every three days I bake my cat chicken thighs. Not breasts or legs or wings…but thighs. Then cut into small pieces and served room temp. Not cold and not hot.

And then we have the water glass issue. Know that snotty white cat on TV who eats his kibble out of a crystal glass…that’s my cat’s water bowl. Good grief.

I have two cats, Spooky and Dr. Watson. Dr. Watson was supposed to be for my son, a gift from my daughter. Yeah, right. We all know how the pet for the sibling thing works…parents get the pet! And I got Spooky out of the grocery store parking lot. He was living in the cart area. I herd this pitiful meow and suddenly had a new cat in my life.

If I didn’t have cats I’d have a dog. I know they are more work but they are always happy. Something about a wagging tail will cure any depression, a gift from the pet gods. I have a dog…the other Bruce Willis…in my Consignment Shop mystery series.

In Geared for the Grave there are two cats, Bambino and Cleveland. Here’s a little about Bambino:

I dropped my duffle and snagged a cue, aimed for the far pocket and sailed the yellow-striped ball across the felt till Rudy plucked it right off the table. “Hey, why’d you do that? I nailed that shot.”
Rudy scooped his hand into the pocket, dragging out a sleepy black and white kitten. “Bambino hangs out there, left pocket’s off limits.” Rudy balanced on one crutch–he was a one-crutch kind of guy. “So, Chicago, what brings a pool shark to my doorstep this time of night?”

Tell me about your pet. Where does he hang out? How does he have you trained? I’ll give away two Geared for the Grave totes from the answers.

Have a meowing-good day.
Duffy

About the Author:

I love anything with a mystery. While other girls dreamed of dating Brad Pitt, I longed to take Sherlock Holmes to the prom. I live in Cincinnati, have two cats, Spooky and Dr. Watson, my license plate is Sherlok and I now conjure up who-done-it stories of my very own for Berkley Prime Crime. I am a national bestselling author and my Consignment Shop Mystery series is set in Savannah and the CyclePath Mysteries are set on Mackinac Island.

Website/Facebook

Mackinac Island is a peaceful summer resort town where everyone coasts through the streets on bicycles. But after someone sends a prominent local on her final ride, it’s up to one resourceful visitor to get things running again…

Hoping to shift her chances of a promotion in her favor, Evie Bloomfield heads to Mackinac Island to assist her boss’s father. Rudy Randolph has broken his leg and operating his bike shop, Rudy’s Rides, is too much to handle by himself. But Evie’s good turn only leads to more trouble…

After Evie’s arrival, wealthy resident Bunny Harrington dies in what looks like a freak bike accident. Upon closer inspection, Bunny’s brakes were tampered with, and now the prime suspect in her murder is also Bunny’s number one enemy: Rudy. So if Evie hopes to stay on her boss’s good side, she’ll need to steer Rudy clear of jail. Now she must quickly solve this mystery so she can put the brakes on the real killer’s plan…

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Jennifer’s Review of Geared For The Grave

Review (3.75 Stars): I love Ms. Brown’s Consignment Shop Mysteries so I was very excited to hear that she was starting a brand new series. Evie Bloomfield has had her run of bad luck and is hoping that will all change when she arrives at Mackinac Island. Hoping for a promotion, she agrees to visit her boss’s father, Rudy, who just happens to be recuperating from a broken leg and currently runs a bike shop on the island. Shortly after Evie’s arrival, Rudy becomes the prime suspect in the murder of a wealthy resident and it is up to Evie to help find the real murderer or run the risk of losing her job back home. The only problem is that Evie is having a hard time finding someone on Mackinac Island that didn’t want the victim dead and the true killer will do anything to keep the truth from coming out.

Evie was a fun character that always seemed to find herself in the middle of trouble. She was a bit of a klutz but her heart was in the right place and she was trying to prevent Rudy from being arrested for a crime that he didn’t commit. Mackinac Island was full of interesting and crazy characters that made this mystery entertaining and I’m looking forward to seeing how Evie acclimates to her new small-town surroundings after being in Chicago for so long. The only thing was that the mystery was a little on the slow side for me but I’m sure things will definitely pick up in the next installment of this mystery series.

Giveaway

I’m excited to give away a copy of Geared For The Grave. This giveaway is for US Residents only. To be entered in the drawing by December 10th, answer Ms. Brown’s question from above in the comments:

November 30, 2014November 29, 2014

Blog Tour & Giveaway: Sugar’s Twice As Sweet by Marina Adair

He’s trouble she doesn’t need . . . Thanks to a cheating fiancé, Josephina Harrington’s perfect life just crashed and burned. Moving in with her overbearing parents is definitely not an option. No, she needs to prove she can make it on her own. And she will-by turning her great-aunt’s old plantation house into a destination getaway. She’s just not expecting her contractor to be so hands-on-and so totally irresistible.

. . . but everything she wants Bad-boy golf champion Brett McGraw figured his hometown of Sugar, Georgia was the perfect place to lay low and get his life back up to par. The leggy blonde with a pint-sized pup is the kind of sweet ‘n sassy trouble he never saw coming. She doesn’t know a nut from a bolt and before long, he’s renovating her house . . . as she steals his heart. Can he convince Josephina that his womanizing ways are in the past and he’s ready for forever?

Amazon/B&N

*EXCERPT*

For three weeks, she’d stared at the door, thinking this had to be some kind of mistake and that at any minute Wilson would walk in and everything would go back to the way it was supposed to be. Then, last night, while watching Under the Tuscan Sun and inhaling a red velvet cake, she realized that she didn’t want to go back to the way things were.
Even scarier, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t pinpoint the exact moment she’d lost balance in her life and in turn lost herself. Which was why she was moving out. It was clear that Wilson wasn’t coming back. And every moment she stayed there, in the place she thought she’d grow old and raise babies, the regret ratcheted tighter around her chest, until breathing hurt.
No, she needed to leave—and pronto. Problem was, the only place she had to go was her parents’ house, where the couture décor and upstate judgment would be equally suffocating, just in a different way. Even thinking about it gave her hives.
“Your mother pays me.” Rosalie narrowed her eyes. “She says to come here and help you. You say you need to move. So I fill boxes. What about this?” Rosalie held up an old shoebox covered in stickers and glitter and enough memories to make her heart jerk painfully. Then jerk again until it somehow landed in her throat, creating a whole new set of problems. Because there, in Rosalie’s pudgy hand, was a part of Josephina’s past that she hadn’t thought about in years.
“Where did you find that?” Josephina gently took the box and walked over to the couch.
She’d cried so much over the past few weeks, she assumed more tears would be impossible. Yet as she slipped open the lid and saw the photo resting atop a pile of letters and keepsakes, her eyes went blurry. This pain was different, as though it originated from someplace old and forgotten, and it packed the kind of power that made breathing almost impossible.
Josephina didn’t know how her life had spiraled so far from center, but she did know that she hadn’t felt as free as the girl smiling back at her in years. She picked up the photo and traced a finger over the rolled edge. It had been taken the summer she’d turned ten and her parents had gone on one of their trips to Europe, leaving her, once again, with her aunt.
It was one of the best summers of her life, spent making mud pies and learning from Letty how to
make real ones. Which was why she was standing on a wooden chair in pigtails, pearls, and a too-big apron, with flour down her front, a whisk in her hand, and a smile of sheer pleasure on her face.
If she closed her eyes she could almost smell the bite of lemons and hear Aunt Letty’s voice: “Careful, child. If you have to beat it that hard then you’re missing an ingredient. Might look perfect today but come morning that meringue will be a big pile of trouble, stinking up the fridge for days to come.”
Josephina placed the photo on the coffee table and carefully thumbed through the box. She dug past drawings and sketches—mostly in crayon and big swirly letters with hearts over the i’s—through magazine clippings and all of the ideas and dreams she and her aunt had cooked up for the old boardinghouse that Letty had called home, stopping when she found what she was looking for. At the bottom, postmarked six weeks before Letty had passed, sat a yellow envelope.
With a shaky breath Josephina opened the flap and pulled out the letter. The paper smelled like lilac and mothballs, and Josephina wanted to press it to her face and breathe in. A faded photo of Letty, standing on the front steps of Fairchild House in mud boots and a rain slicker, holding a jug of her finest moonshine, fell to the couch.
She remembered that last summer, sitting curled up in Letty’s arms while looking out the windows of the salon as a summer storm blew past and listening to Letty recount the story about how her great-great-aunt, Pearl Fairchild, came to call the magical boardinghouse home.
According to legend, Letty had said, the two-story Plantation-style house was built in the mid-1800s by the first mayor of Sugar, Jeremiah Sugar. It was a masterpiece designed to win the heart of the beautiful socialite Pearl Fairchild, who, moved by his romantic overture and promises of a life filled with adventure, left her family and New York behind to become Mrs. Jeremiah Sugar.
Even the name sounded perfect. But after two months of travel, first in a train and later in a horse-drawn wagon, finally walking the remaining eight miles to the house, Pearl realized there was nothing sugary about her husband-to-be.
The man whom she had defied her parents for, had given her heart to, stood in the foyer. His slacks hung around his ankles, his face blotched red, while his pale backside engaged in rapid undulation under the housekeeper’s smock, so engaged that he failed to notice her enter the residence or even pick up his beloved mayoral gavel.
Pearl never took his last name, the mayor’s body was never found, and the housekeeper—prone to gossip—never had to work another day in her life, instead spending the rest of her days as Pearl’s handsomely paid companion.
Thus, the Fairchild House, boarding for the adventurous, was born.
Josephina turned the photo over and on the back, Letty had simply written: Come home, Fairy Bug. Your adventure is waiting for you.
Fairy, she remembered, clutching the photo to her heart to keep it from breaking, was because Letty swore Josephina was born to fly. The bug part was to remind her that sometimes she had to get dirty to really live.
And more than anything Josephina wanted to live again—really live. She tucked the photo into her pocket and looked at Rosalie. “I need a car.”

About the Author:

Marina Adair is a lifelong fan of romance novels. Along with the Sugar series, she is also the author of the St. Helena Vineyard series. She currently lives in a hundred-year-old log cabin, nestled in the majestic redwoods of the Santa Cruz Mountains, with her husband and daughter. As a writer, Marina is devoted to giving her readers contemporary romance where the towns are small, the personalities large, and the romance explosive. She also loves to interact with readers and you can catch her on Twitter at @MarinaEAdair or visit her at www.MarinaAdair.com.

Website/Twitter/Facebook

Jennifer’s Review of Sugar’s Twice As Sweet

Review (4.25 Stars): Josephina was such a sweet character and just wanted to go somewhere where she felt safe and was full of endless possibilities such as her great-aunt’s old home in Sugar, Georgia. Her fiance just broke up with her and everyone treated her as though she was a failure when I saw her as a free spirit who just needed a place where she could feel loved and accepted. Meeting the handsome and smooth-talking Brett McGraw wasn’t what she wanted but absolutely what she needed because he accepted her for who she was, not what he wanted her to be.

For Brett, he found Josephina aggravating and lovely all at the same time. She was the one person who made him think about leaving his womanizing ways and try for a real relationship. And once the McGraw men fall in love, it is for the end of time and their love stories are legend in the little town of Sugar. I wanted so desperately for Josephina to get her happy ending because after everything she went through she deserved a love worthy of the greatest of “fairy” tales.

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November 29, 2014November 28, 2014

Blog Tour & Giveaway: Never Judge A Lady by Her Cover by Sarah MacLean

By day, she is Lady Georgiana, sister to a duke, ruined before her first season in the worst kind of scandal. But the truth is far more shocking-in London’s darkest corners, she is Chase, the mysterious, unknown founder of the city’s most legendary gaming hell. For years, her double identity has gone undiscovered…until now.

Brilliant, driven, handsome-as-sin Duncan West is intrigued by the beautiful, ruined woman who is somehow connected to a world of darkness and sin. He knows she is more than she seems and he vows to uncover all of Georgiana’s secrets, laying bare her past, threatening her present, and risking all she holds dear…including her heart.

Amazon/B&N

He chuckled. “If wishing made it so.” He spun her across the floor, the candles lit around the room leaving trails of light across her field of vision.

“Langley has arrived.”

The viscount had entered not five minutes earlier. She’d noticed immediately. “I saw.”

“You don’t expect a real marriage from him,” Temple said.

“I don’t.”

“Then why not do what you do best?”

Her gaze flickered to the handsome man on the other side of the room. Her choice for husband. “You think blackmail is the best way to go about securing a husband?”

He smiled. “I was blackmailed in advance of finding a wife.”

“Yes, well, I am told that most men are not such masochists, Temple. You’ve been saying I should marry for more than a year. You and Bourne and Cross,” she added, ticking off her partners in The Fallen Angel. “Not to mention my brother.”

“Ah, yes, I’ve heard that the Duke of Leighton has placed a heavy dowry on your head. It’s remarkable you are able to stand upright. But what of love?”

“Love?” It was difficult to voice the word without the disdain.

“You’ve heard of it, no doubt. Sonnets and poems and happy-ever-after?”

“I’ve heard of it,” she said. “As we are discussing marriage at best for convenience and at worst for debt relief, I hardly think a lack of love is of issue,” she said. “And besides, it is a fool’s errand.”

He watched her for a long moment. “And you are surrounded by fools.”

She cut him a look. “Every one of you. Besotted beyond reason. And look at what has happened because of it.”

He raised his dark brows. “What? Marriage? Children? Happiness?”

She sighed. They’d had the conversation a hundred times. A thousand. Her partners were so idyllically matched that they could not help but foist it on everyone around them. What they did not know was that idyll was not for Georgiana. She pushed the thought away. “I am happy,” she lied.

“No. You are rich. And you are powerful. But you are not happy.”

“Happiness is too highly prized,” she said with a shrug, as he turned her across the room. “It’s worth nothing.”

“It’s worth everything.” They danced in silence for a long moment. “Which you see, as you wouldn’t be doing this if not for happiness.”

“Not mine. Caroline’s.”

About the Author:

Sarah MacLean grew up in Rhode Island, obsessed with historical romance and bemoaning the fact that she was born far too late for her own season. Her love of all things historical helped to earn her degrees from Smith College and Harvard University before she finally set pen to paper and wrote her first book.

Sarah now lives in New York City with her husband, baby daughter, their dog, and a ridiculously large collection of romance novels. She loves to hear from readers. Please visit her at www.macleanspace.com

Website/Twitter/Facebook

Jennifer’s Review of Never Judge A Lady by Her Cover

Review (5 Stars): This is the final book in the Rules of Scoundrels and is the perfect ending to a deliciously romantic series. Lady Georgiana has spent the last ten years as a ruined woman, unwed mother and an outcast of London society. To protect her daughter from the same fate, Georgiana is on the hunt to marry a man with a title to give her daughter a fighting chance at a happy life. Duncan West, newspaper owner, has always been attracted to Lady Georgiana and sympathetic to what has happened in the past to this beautiful young woman. What Duncan soon learns is that Georgiana has been harboring dark secrets for years and these secrets may destroy everything that she has been planning for her new life. Duncan is now on a mission to bring these secrets to light but finds that by doing so may break what is left of her precious heart.

Lady Georgiana was an amazing character since she protected her secret identity for so long and no one had any clue what she was capable of doing to London society. She used the secrets that she discovered while working at The Fallen Angel club to help her one day gain access back into society to help her daughter achieve what she could not. She was smart, brave and fiercely protective of her young daughter, making her one of my favorite female characters to date. She once believed in love but those dreams were shattered when a man took her reputation and her heart in one brief moment that she could never take back. I was hoping that she would give love one final chance to make things right and I’m glad that she gave her heart to the one man who wouldn’t break it.

Never Judge A Lady by Her Cover was a story that had me captivated from the very first page and I was hoping that Lady Georgiana would finally receive her happy ending after so much heart break. Ms. MacLean has written such amazing books over the years and Never Judge A Lady by Her Cover is a perfect addition to her long list of historical romances. Can’t wait to read what she publishes next and I’m looking forward to revisiting this series again in the future.

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November 28, 2014November 27, 2014

Blog Tour & Giveaway: Share The Moon by Sharon Struth

Sometimes trust is the toughest lesson to learn.

Sophie Shaw is days away from signing a contract that will fulfill her dream of owning a vineyard. For her, it’s a chance to restart her life and put past tragedies to rest. But Duncan Jamieson’s counter offer blows hers out to sea.

Duncan still finds Sophie as appealing as he had during boyhood vacations to the lake. Older and wiser now, he has his own reasons for wanting the land. His offer, however, hinges on a zoning change approval.

Bribery rumors threaten the deal and make Sophie wary of Duncan, yet she cannot deny his appeal. When her journalistic research uncovers a Jamieson family secret, trust becomes the hardest lesson for them both.

Amazon/B&N

Thud!

Air whooshed from Sophie’s lungs. Pain coursed through her shoulder blades, neck, and spine. The ground’s chilly dampness seeped into her cotton khaki pants, raising goose bumps on her skin. Seconds passed without breath before she managed to swallow a gulp.

Lying flat on her back, she stared at the cornflower blue sky and spotted a chalky slice of the moon. The night Henry died, a similar crescent had hung from the heavens, barely visible nestled among the glittering stars. She prepared for the scrape that threatened to tear the gouge of her scarred heart. Seven years. Seven painful years. She closed her eyes and after a few seconds, the weight of sadness lifted off her chest.

Tears gathered along her lower lashes. She pushed a strand of unruly long hair from her face. Footsteps crunched on the ice pellets and headed her way.

“Matthew Shaw…” Fury pooled in her jaw as she resisted the urge to yell at her son. “You’d better have a good excuse for taking so long.”

A man with cinnamon hair, short on the sides with gentle waves on top, knelt at her side. She studied the strong outline of his cheeks and the slight bump on the bridge of his angular nose that gave him a rugged touch, but he wasn’t familiar.

“Are you okay?” He searched her face.

The stranger hovered above. Tall treetops, clinging to the last of their earth-toned foliage, served as a backdrop to her view. A vertical crease separated his sandy brows.

She couldn’t pry herself from his vivid blue eyes, in part stunned from the fall, but also by her first responder.

About the Author:

Sharon Struth is an award-winning author who believes it’s never too late for a second chance in love or life. When she’s not writing, she and her husband happily sip their way through the scenic towns of the Connecticut Wine Trail. Sharon writes from the small town of Bethel, Connecticut, the friendliest place she’s ever lived. For more information, including where to find her other novels and published essays, please visit her website.

Website/Twitter/Facebook

Jennifer’s Review of Share The Moon

Review (3.75 Stars): Sophie Shaw has discovered that a big developer has come in and taken away the opportunity for her family to build a vineyard by purchasing the prospective property days before they were going to sign the contract. For Sophie, this is a devastating blow because the property has a deeper significance than just being a vineyard and she will do whatever it takes to try to get it back. Duncan Jamieson has decided to make a fresh start after spending most of his life dedicated to the corporate rat race and can’t imagine a better place than buying the lake property where he spent his summers as a youth. He never expected to run into his teenage crush, Sophie, and find out that his own company has beaten out her family for the lake property. To make amends, Duncan and Sophie start spending time with another and find that their sexual chemistry is hard to deny. Sophie soon learns that his family has secrets to hide and these secrets may help win back the property but ultimately destroy any chance that they have to build a future together.

This was a darker romance for me because there was a lot of heartbreak and sadness for Sophie and Duncan. Sophie had experienced a devastating loss in her family and she was still struggling to recover emotionally from it. Duncan had suffered a loss as well and he understood what Sophie was going through even though she never wanted to admit it. I liked them together as a couple because they had that instant attraction and chemistry from the moment that they met, even though they had a rough patch after learning the reason why Duncan was there. I was glad to see that with the right person Sophie was able to make peace with what happened in the past and bring light and love back into her life. Share The Moon is a promising debut in the Blue Moon Lake series and I’m looking forward to seeing these characters again in the second installment.

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November 27, 2014November 25, 2014

Spotlight feature of Forever Mine by Monica Burns

Forever Mine
By Monica Burns

Her future lies in the past

When a bomb explosion thrusts Victoria Ashton backward in time to 1897, she’s forced to

impersonate the Countess of Guildford. Despite Victoria’s attempts to convince the earl she’s not his wife, her counterpart’s infidelity, lies, and ill-tempered personality makes the task almost impossible. Worse, Victoria finds herself falling in love with a man who loathes her. Only when the earl learns to trust her does she realize her future lies in the past. But love always comes at a price, and she must make a painful sacrifice in order for them to be together.

Her love is what will save him

Nicholas Thornhill, Earl of Guildford has been searching for his missing wife for three weeks. Rumors of him being guilty of murder make him unwilling to believe his wife’s latest in a multitude of lies. But the changes in Victoria continuously surprise him. Despite his best intentions, he finds the contempt he once felt for his wife turning into something deeper and stronger. But when danger threatens to separate them forever, he must forge a bond with her that crosses the boundaries of time.

A passion to last forever

Available for pre-order at

Excerpt

Despite the way he unnerved her, it was impossible to avoid noting how wonderful he
smelled. It was a spicy, potently male scent. Deep inside her, a voice cried out for her to press
her fingers against his beautiful mouth. The thought made Victoria suck in a quick, sharp breath
of air. Nicholas’ eyes darkened with an emotion she didn’t even want to consider defining.

Slowly, he lowered his head until his mouth lightly touched hers. Fire streaked across her
skin, its warmth sinking into her pores until it heated her blood like molten lava. She sighed then
parted her mouth to lace his lips with the tip of her tongue. A dark sound rumbled in his chest as
his tongue swept its way into her mouth and imitated an act her body suddenly craved as if she
were starving.

Pleasure swept its way through her. The fiery sensation of it settled into every inch of her
body. He said she’d bewitched him, but she was the one under his spell. His lips teased and
seduced hers until her body screamed for more.

She wanted him to touch her. Needed him. She arched her hips upward in a silent plea for
his touch, and a dark growl vibrated on her lips as he tugged the covers off her. His tongue
swirled around hers, teasing and taunting her with each tantalizing stoke. The hot taste of him
made her nipples grow hard until they ached with a pleasurable, tantalizing sensitivity. Eager to
assuage the need for his touch, she caught his hand and pressed it to her breasts. A growl
rumbled out of him as he rubbed his thumb over the rigid peak. The sensation of soft linen
between her skin and his hand made her moan softly as his mouth worked its way across her
cheek to her neck where he gently nipped at her skin.

Need spun through her, and as he lifted his head to stare down at her, she saw desire
darkening his green eyes. A knot of anticipation tightened in her lower body as his hand left her
breast and slid downward to her stomach where the heel of his hand pressed into the sensitive
spot at the apex of her thighs. The simple pressure made her suck in a sharp breath, and a small
smile curved his lips.

“I want to watch you as I make you shatter from my touch, Victoria.” His words
whispered across her senses as his hand pulled the hem of her nightgown upward to expose her
completely.

About the Author

A bestselling author of spicy historical and paranormal romance, Monica Burns penned her first short romance story at the age of nine when she selected the pseudonym she uses today. Her historical book awards include the 2011 RT BookReviews Reviewers Choice Award and the 2012 Gayle Wilson Heart of Excellence Award for Pleasure Me. She is also the recipient of the prestigious paranormal romance award, the 2011 PRISM Best of the Best award for Assassin’s Heart. From the days when she hid her stories from her sisters to her first completed full-length manuscript, she always believed in her dream despite rejections and setbacks. A workaholic wife and mother, Monica believes it’s possible for the good guy to win if they work hard enough.

You can find Monica here:

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November 26, 2014November 10, 2014

Spotlight & Except of Carrie Ann Ryan’s Forever Ink + a tour wide giveaway

Amazon|iBooks | Kobo | ARe | B&N Coming Soon

Forever Ink by NYT Bestselling Author Carrie Ann Ryan

A Montgomery Ink Novella

The idea of a May-December romance has never looked so hot when it comes to broody lawyer, Morgan and sizzling tattoo artist, Callie. Between conniving family members, blondes with too much time on their hands, and their own misgivings, trust in the bedroom and out of it won’t come easy.

Website | Goodreads

Also included in this anthology:

Takedown by USA Today Bestselling Author Cari Quinn

A Tapped Out Bonus Novella

After honorably discharged Navy SEAL Liam Walsh discovers his estranged brother, Slater, is living platonically with Abby, the only woman Liam ever loved, he vows to remind her of their scorching history. But Abby has changed since Liam left, and he only has one long weekend to stake his claim…

Bound Memories by Sidney Bristol

A Bayou Bound Novella

Kit Carson is back in his home town to do more than promote his latest reality TV win on Tattoo King. He’s returned to win over the woman who kinked up his world, but Renee LeBlanc isn’t the girl he remembers. Ten years can go in a blink of an eye and he won’t let her walk away from him again.

Excerpt from Carrie Ann’s Forever Ink:

“Honestly, I’m good. Just being an airhead. So…you want to get started?” She ran her hands over his broad shoulders and down his arms. So. Freaking. Sexy. “I can’t wait to get my hands on you.”

“You just want to get me naked,” he whispered.

She blushed harder and licked her lips.

He growled low and leaned down to bite her bottom lip. Her toes curled and she cleared her throat. While it would be fan-freaking-tastic to make out with him and taste every inch of him, she was fully aware they were in the middle of the shop.

She could practically feel Sloane’s and Austin’s gazes bore into her back. Yeah, probably not the best place to show so much affection when she was supposed to be working on Morgan’s ink, not his kink.

“Get a room!” Maya called from her side and Callie snorted. Trust Maya to break the moment.

Callie turned on her heel and put her hands on her hips. “Excuse me. I have my own little cubby right here.” She used her fingers to make a box around her. “That’s a room.”

Sloane huffed a laugh. “Maybe get one with walls next time if you’re going to heat up the shop with just a hello.” He smiled as he said it and Callie relaxed. She’d been worried that her friends—family—would be worried or at least a little judgmental about her and Morgan, but she shouldn’t have been. At least from what she saw, they were okay with it, if albeit a little overprotective, but they were like that with any man she brought by.

Morgan’s arm came around her waist and settled over her hip, his fingers playing with the peek of skin between her top and short skirt. Her knees trembled and she bit her lip. Damn the man’s touch alone made her want to come.

A little about Carrie Ann Ryan:

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Carrie Ann Ryan never thought she’d be a writer. Not really. No, she loved math and science and even went on to graduate school in chemistry. Yes, she read as a kid and devoured teen fiction and Harry Potter, but it wasn’t until someone handed her a romance book in her late teens that she realized that there was something out there just for her. When another author suggested she use the voices in her head for good and not evil, The Redwood Pack and all her other stories were born.

Carrie Ann is a bestselling author of over twenty novels and novellas and has so much more on her mind (and on her spreadsheets *grins*) that she isn’t planning on giving up her dream anytime soon.

Get in touch with Carrie Ann Ryan!

*****

This giveaway will be a Carrie Ann Ryan signed paperback and a $15 Amazon gift card

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November 26, 2014November 25, 2014

Blog Tour & Giveaway: Flirting With Love by Melissa Foster

Elisabeth Nash has spent years dreaming of returning to the small town of Trusty, Colorado, where she spent summers with her favorite aunt. When she inherits her aunt’s farmette, she closes her Los Angeles pet bakery and pampering business, sure that life in Trusty will be as peaceful and as welcoming as she remembers. But being an outsider in the close-knit town proves to be very different from the happy summers she remembers from her childhood—and falling for Trusty’s hot, wealthy, and sinfully irresistible veterinarian, Ross Braden, sends the rumor mill into a frenzy.

Ross Braden learned long ago that gossip spreads faster than weeds in his small hometown, and Ross loves nothing more than his privacy. For that reason, he doesn’t date women who live in Trusty. But that was before blond, beautiful, and refreshingly honest Elisabeth Nash flew into his vet clinic seeking help for her panicked piglet and turned his comfortable life—and his heart—inside out.

Despite rumors about Elisabeth’s motives toward her aunt’s property, passion brews between Elisabeth and Ross. Every steamy kiss and every sensual touch brings the pair closer together, and when Ross helps Elisabeth try to fit into the town he adores, it makes their bond even stronger. But even Elisabeth’s efforts toward reaching the community, and the love she and Ross so desperately believe in, might not be enough for the protective small town to offer them a future.

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About the Author:

Melissa Foster is an award-winning, International bestselling author. Her books have been recommended by USA Today’s book blog, Hagerstown Magazine, The Patriot, and several other print venues. She is the founder of the Women’s Nest, a social and support community for women, the World Literary Café. When she’s not writing, Melissa helps authors navigate the publishing industry through her author training programs on Fostering Success. Melissa is also a community builder for the Alliance for Independent Authors. She has been published in Calgary’s Child Magazine, the Huffington Post, and Women Business Owners magazine.

Website/Twitter/Facebook

Jennifer’s Review of Flirting With Love

Review (4.5 Stars): I loved Ross and Elisabeth together and they just seemed perfect for one another. Elisabeth moved to Trusty after she inherited her beloved aunt’s property and pie business and wanted to get away from the crazy life that she was living in Los Angeles. She had always loved the time that she spent with her aunt growing up and couldn’t imagine a better place to start a new life than her aunt’s farm. Ross was looking for that special someone but couldn’t imagine finding that person in Trusty, where everyone knew everyone else and there was no such thing as privacy. Having Elisabeth walk into his clinic wasn’t what he expected but exactly what he needed.

Elisabeth was such a sweet character because she was so caring and gentle when you would think that she would be a stuck up California girl since she had spent most of her life in Los Angeles. She wanted the simple things in life and loved being around animals, just like Ross. He knew the town would have trouble accepting a stranger but he couldn’t fight the feelings that he developed for Elisabeth and you could just tell that they belonged together. This was such a great sexy small-town romance and I think that this is my favorite one of the series so far.

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November 26, 2014November 25, 2014

Blog Tour & Giveaway: Tempting Mr. Weatherstone by Vivienne Lorret

Penelope Rutledge longs for passion, but only with the man of her dreams: the brilliant, dashing Ethan Weatherstone. If only her longtime neighbor would open his eyes and realize how much she loves him. If only they weren’t best friends with so much at stake. Penelope knows her future – and their friendship – is in her hands, but is she willing to take the biggest risk of all on the man she loves?

If it were up to Ethan, life and love would be as predictable as the figures in his ledgers – certainly nothing like the adventures Penelope longs for. Yet his childhood friend has grown into a beautiful, feisty woman blissfully unaware of the danger she causes when near. Ethan knows he must save Penelope-and her reputation…but can he save himself from the temptation of her lips?

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Ethan Weatherstone was due for a piece of her mind. It was about time he understood that he had no right to interfere with her life.

Mind made up, she took one last look at the mail coach and shook her head. She reached down for her satchel and stormed over to Ethan’s carriage.

Penelope threw open the door and climbed inside, seething as she sat across from him. He didn’t even have the courtesy to look at her. Instead, he sat back against the squabs, his head turned to the window. The only reason she knew he was aware of her presence was from the way he clenched his jaw, a muscle twitching just beneath the surface of his skin.

“Were you waiting to humiliate me? Waiting until I was already seated before you dragged me away from the mail coach? Or perhaps you planned to follow me all the way to Portsmouth?”

He refused to respond or even so much as look at her. If she hadn’t been angry before she entered the carriage, then she certainly was fuming now.

“Truly, Ethan, for someone who cannot live outside the lines of your carefully crafted order, your sameness that covers you like a shroud, this is quite surprising behavior,” she hissed, baiting him. “I only wish your concern for my happiness were as great as your concern for my reputation.”

At that, he glared at her sharply. Ah, so she’d struck a chord.

Good. Yet still, he did not say anything.

There he sat, perfectly groomed, his cravat perfectly pleated, his temper perfectly managed. She wished just once he’d lose some of that control. Because here she sat, with her eyes, most likely puffy and red from having cried most of the night instead of sleeping. She was certainly not perfectly groomed, since she could feel a soggy tendril of hair plastered to her cheek. Her cloak was damp from rain. Her nose was cold and likely red as well.

“How can you be so . . . so unaffected all the time?” Her voice rose with her accusation. “Haven’t you ever dreamed for something outside the realm of possibility? Or are you content with each day so long as your cravat is perfectly pleated?”

She glared at the offending garment, struck by a ridiculous notion to crumple it. No sooner had the idea formed that she gave in to the impulse and moved forward on her seat, her arm reaching forward.

Ethan stopped her, taking hold of her wrist. His eyes flared. Before she could react, he yanked, propelling her forward to land clumsily on his lap.

“How dare—”

His mouth covered hers, silencing her outrage. Her head spun, reeling from the sudden scorching heat of his kiss.

This was a kiss, wasn’t it? Yet, it was nothing like her dreams, where his rehearsed request was followed by carefully controlled actions. No, this was no gentle dream. This was hard and demanding. His tongue didn’t request entrance but swept in and plundered.

His arms were not gentle either. In fact, he held her so tightly she couldn’t move, and grasped her wrist so she couldn’t touch him or push him away.

But she’d never push him away.

Instead, she wanted to cling to him. Her anger evaporated in a rush of steam. Her mind cried out for more of this glorious punishment. She wanted his kiss to burn her, through and through. This was the first time she’d been warm in months.

About the Author:

I fell in love with fairy tales and the romance behind happily ever after at a very young age. Like a lot of you, I tweaked the fables bit by bit in my imagination until they suited me perfectly. By the time I was eleven, a teacher encouraged me to start writing. Throughout the years that followed, my teachers remained my most fervent supporters, giving me the tools I needed to continue my journey as a writer.

My husband and I have two teenage boys, who are heroes in their own right. For now, we live in a small Midwestern town near Lake Michigan…until a time in the future when a new adventure calls us to other shores. I am currently working on my next novel, but I always enjoy hearing from my readers. Feel free to email me at vivienne@vivlorret.net.

Website/Twitter/Facebook

Jennifer’s Review of Tempting Mr. Weatherstone

Review (3.75 Stars): Penelope has always loved Ethan Weatherstone but he has always acted as though she was a kid sister to him. Tired of living this way and wanting something more, Penelope decides that she is ready to set off on an exciting new adventure. Ethan has slowly noticed that his best friend, Penelope, has turned into a beautiful young woman and is caught off guard with announcement of Pen’s plan. He has organized his life by routines, numbers and books and isn’t sure what to make of Penelope’s new plan for her life. Ethan must make a choice to change with Penelope or possibly lose his best friend forever by standing by and doing nothing.

Penelope was a great character for me because she spent most of her life being best friend to Ethan when she always wanted something more but was afraid to act on it. Ethan and Penelope had this great friendship that slowly developed into something more before either of them knew what was happening. I was glad that Penelope finally acted on her feelings and she got the happy ending that she was hoping for. This novella is very short but the story moves quickly and has a sweet ending.

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November 25, 2014November 18, 2014

Kelly’s interview with Paige Tyler + a tour wide giveaway

Books-n-Kisses is pleased to welcome one of our favorites to the blog today. Paige Tyler is stoping by to chate about life and her newest release Her Lone Wolf. So what do you say we get started.

Paige, can you please share with us a little about yourself

I was born and raised in New Jersey, then moved all over after marrying my hubby (South Korea, Louisiana, Atlanta, Washington State), and currently call the beautiful Florida coast home. I’m a USA Today Bestselling Author of sexy, romantic fiction and I’ve written over fifty books in practically every genre of romance, although I have to admit that my favorite genre is definitely the paranormal/romantic-suspense combo. Hubby, my very own military hero, and I live with our adorable fur baby (also known as our dog) and spend a good portion of our time writing. While I graduated with a degree in education and was well on my way to being an elementary school teacher, I decided to pursue passion of writing instead. These days I’m fully committed to writing books about hunky alpha males and the kickbutt heroines who fall in love with them.

Have you always wanted to be an author?

I always loved writing from the time I was a little kid. I wrote stories about my cats, and made up romance stories about my Susie Homemaker doll falling in love and getting married to my Green Giant doll. They had so much in common, you know?

I credit my high school creative writing teacher with encouraging me to write for a living, but I have to admit, once I became an adult, I sort of put all that stuff in an old box and stuck it in the closest. I needed a “real job,” or thought I did.

In between dabbling in writing, I spent time going to college for Art, English, Computer Programming, and Education, looking for a career that would speak to me. I worked for a while on a military base, but other than the fact that I met my wonderful hubby there, I found it wasn’t really for me. It wasn’t until I started working as an elementary school teacher that I really got it. While I loved teaching kids, I realized that I resented the time the job took away from my writing.

That wasn’t fair to the kids or me, so I took the plunge and decided to write full time. The money hasn’t always been the greatest, but as any writer will tell you, it’s never about the money.

What is your most interesting writing quirk?

Not sure if you’d call it a “quirk” per se, but most people find it interesting that I write with my hubby as a team. We outline the stories together, then he handles the first rough draft (focusing mostly on plot development and action sequences), while I come in right behind him and layer in the character-building, dialogue, and romance. Then we both sit down side by side on the couch and read the entire book start to finish before I send it to my editor. It might seem like a crazy way to write, but it works for us.

Can you please tell us about your latest book?

My latest book is HER LONE WOLF, the second book in the X-OPS Series. For those who aren’t familiar with the series, it revolves around the Department of Covert Operations, a top secret organization that’s buried deep within the Department of Homeland Security. The DCO pairs the very best soldiers, law enforcement people, and spies together with shifters—humans that have special animal attributes in their DNA. They take on impossible missions that few people in the world will ever know about.

In Book One, HER PERFECT MATE, the reader gets a taste of how these DCO teams operate, especially how my particular kind of shifter works. These shifters have naturally occurring animal DNA that has blended with their human DNA to allow them to possess certain animal-like capabilities, such as speed, strength, aggression, and keen senses. While these abilities make them the perfect asset for the DCO, they’re also labeled by some as “freaks” and “monsters.” In HER PERFECT MATE readers get to see how much the shifters distrust the very people they work for. In HER LONE WOLF, the distrust continues to grow until the shifters—and the people who love them—aren’t sure whom they can trust.

All of this shadowy intrigue takes place against the backdrop of the DCO sending the hero Clayne Buchanan, the wolf shifter with the “bad attitude” readers met in Book One, out to California to deal with a possible rogue shifter that just might have turned into a serial killer. Clayne prefers to work alone, only this time it’s not going to happen that way. To get the job done, he’ll be forced to work with the one person on the planet he’d rather claw his own eyes out than see again. Here’s a quick blurb for HER LONE WOLF for you:

Leaving him was Impossible…

It took everything she had for FBI Special Agent Danica Beckett to walk away from the man she loved. But if she wants to save his life, she has to keep her distance. Now, with a killer on the loose and the stakes higher than ever before, the Department of Covert Ops is forcing these former lovers into an uneasy alliance…whether they like it or not.

Seeing her again is even worse…

The last thing Clayne Buchanan wants is to be shackled to the woman who broke his heart. She gets under his skin in a way no one ever has and makes him want things he has no right to anymore. All he has to do is suffer through this case and he can be free of her for good. But when Clayne finds out why Danica left in the first place, everything he’s tried to bury comes roaring back-and there’s no way this wolf shifter is going to let her get away this time.

How did you come with the idea for this story?

I love to tell this story. Hubby and I were at the Lori Foster Get Together in 2011 and were having dinner at PF Chang’s with our friend Monette Michaels and her friend Linnea Sinclair. We were talking about writing, especially about jumping from e-books to New York. I doubt Linnea even remembers me, but she said some really insightful things about finding a niche and a voice that is undeniably mine, then she pointed at hubby and suggested that I should be using his military experiences to lend an edge to my books that other writers might not have.

That suggestion led to the X-OPS series. Since the very building block of the series is these human-shifter teams, I spent a lot of time developing them. After I developed the Special Forces hero (Landon) and feline shifter heroine (Ivy) in HER PERFECT MATE, the very first secondary character I created was the wolf shifter Clayne Buchanan, who was specifically written to be the complete opposite of the Landon. Those two butt heads constantly in book one, but by the end of the book, the reader starts to see that there might be something more to Clayne than he appears. Fans were screaming for his story the moment they finished book one!

Can you share with us your current work(s) in progress?

Beyond all the promo I’m doing for HER LONE WOLF, I’m also getting ready to do the promo for a special FREE X-OPS novella from Sourcebooks called HER SECRET AGENT. It gives the readers a peak behind the scenes of the very beginnings of the DCO. You get to see a younger John Loughlin, the Director of the DCO, getting to know a certain foxy shifter extremely well. It will be available on the 2^nd of December from Sourcebooks (digital format only).

I’m also putting the finishing touches on Book Two of my Special Wolf Alpha Team Series (SWAT…as in a pack of werewolves working on the Dallas SWAT team. Cool, right?). At the same time, I’m working the first draft for Book Three in that series so I can send it to my editor in January. Plus, I’m starting to rough in the details on Book Four of X-OPS. It’s freaky jumping back and forth between the two series, but it keeps me on my toes!

Oh yeah, BTW, I’m also putting out a military ménage boxed set for Veteran’s Day, with a tribute to each of the uniformed services. It’s your basic, old-fashioned girl meets two guys, and decides that anything two people can do, three can do better!

Who is the one author that you would love to meet someday and why?

Well, I have to admit that I’ve already had the privilege of meeting one of my very favorite authors, Suzanne Brockman, at RT last year. I was getting ready to help out with an off-site event with my publisher (Sourcebooks), and my editor turned and said, ”Have you met Suzanne Brockman before?”

I completely lost my ever-loving fan-girl mind! You know how sometimes you worry that you might have built an unrealistic image of a person in your head, one that’s impossible for a mere human to ever compare to? Well, I met Suzanne, and she’s so much better than the impossible image I had of her! She is absolutely the coolest person ever! Hubby and I had drinks with Suzanne and her hubby, talking about books and her cutie of a fur baby, Little Joe. As busy as she was, she found time to sit and chat with me. That meant a lot to me.

As far as other authors I’d like to meet in the future (sorry, I can’t limit it to just one), it would be Johanna Lindsey. Her alpha-male heroes and feisty heroines are the essential role-models for the characters I love to write. I also want to meet Lisi Harrison, author of the first set of Monster High books. As you’ll read below, I’m crazy about Monster High!

What is the best piece of advice you would give to someone that wants to get into writing?

I sort of mentioned it early, but for me, the best advice is simple—write because you love to write and there’s a story in your head screaming to get out.

Because you can trust me on this, at some point, every writer faces disappointment. There are the times when you can’t get your thoughts on the page the right way, the weeks and months spent waiting for someone to decide if your book is “what they’re looking for,” or even the reviews that make you want to cry.

That love of writing will get you through these rough patches because you’re writing for yourself, not for someone else.

Can you share with us something off your bucket list?

Nope! I don’t really have one of those. Strange, I know, but I just don’t like the whole connotation of a “bucket” list. If there’s something you really, really want to do, then don’t put it on a list. Figure out a way to do it now, not later.

What is in your To Read Pile that you are dying to start or upcoming release you can’t wait for?

Ghoulfriends Just Want to Have Fun, by Gitty Daneshvari, author of the second set of Monster High books. As I’ve already mentioned, I’m an absolute Monster High fanatic! I have a whole room set aside for my Monster High dolls!

Is there anything else you would like to add?

Just want to say thanks for taking the time to stop by and ready my ramblings. I really appreciate it. If you get a chance, stop by and check out my website and social media pages at the links below and see if anything grabs your attention. If you read any of my stuff, drop me an e-mail—I’d love to hear from you. Hope you’ll check out my X-OPS Series!

Want to learn more about Paige and her books?

Let’s take a look at Her Lone Wolf

*****

Her Lone Wolf

Series: X-Ops Book 2

Author: Paige Tyler

Pubdate: November 4^th, 2014

ISBN: 9781402292125

Leaving him was Impossible…

Seeing her again is even worse

The last thing Clayne Buchanan wants is to be shackled to the woman who broke his heart. She gets under his skin in a way no one ever has and makes him want things he has no right to anymore. All he has to do is suffer through this case and he can be free of her for good. But when Clayne finds out why Danica left in the first place, everything he’s tried to bury comes roaring back—and there’s no way this wolf shifter is going to let her get away this time.

Paige Tyler is the USA Today bestselling author of sexy, romantic fiction. She and her very own military hero (also known as her husband) live on the beautiful Florida coast with their adorable fur baby (also known as their dog). Paige graduated with a degree in education, but decided to pursue her passion and write books about hunky alpha males and the kickbutt heroines who fall in love with them. Visit www.paigetylertheauthor.com.

Check out Kelly & Kimberly’s reviews of Her Lone Wolf HERE

Giveaway Time!!!!

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November 25, 2014November 12, 2014

Spotlight & Excerpt from Julie Ann Walker’s Full Throttle + a giveaway

Full Throttle

Release Date: December 2, 2014

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Abby Thompson didn’t sign up to be the daughter of the President of the United States. The position was forced on her by the small matter of her birth. Preferring a quiet life of study, she’s content to leave the politics and the international intrigue to her father. Unfortunately, the most powerful man on the planet is sure to make enemies. When a group of armed thugs takes her hostage half a world away, demanding the U.S. government release prisoners in exchange for her safe return, she fears her father’s policy of “not negotiating with terrorists” means she’ll never see the shores of the Potomac again. Luckily, there’s one glimmer of hope. His name is Carlos Soto. And though she abruptly ended things with him years ago, she knows now he’s the only man who can save her…

Carlos “Steady” Soto has taken part in his fair share of dangerous missions working at the covert government defense firm of Black Knights Inc. But nothing prepared him for the emotional rollercoaster he faces when he’s tasked with rescuing the only woman he ever loved-who also broke his heart. Racing against time and outmaneuvering a group of trained terrorists will take everything he’s got. Plus there’s the heat simmering between them which is threatening to ignite into an inferno. While ruthless enemies stalk them, they must learn to trust each other again. Even if they do make it out alive, will Abby turn her back on him… for the second time?

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Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Exclusive Excerpt:

I shouldn’t be doing this!

It was the second time the thought screamed through Abby’s brain. But once again, she chose to ignore it.

Yes, she shouldn’t be doing this. She shouldn’t be kissing Carlos like her life depended on it. She shouldn’t be sucking his tongue into her mouth as if the world would end if she didn’t. But she’d wanted this for so long. Wanted him for so long. And she’d never dreamed he might want her, too. Not in her wildest fantasies could she have imagined smart, sexy Carlos Soto would be interested in her.

Yet here he was…his thick fingers speared into her hair, his hard palms framing her face and showing her just what to do, how to kiss him. And every dart of his tongue, each hot glide between her lips might as well have been a wicked lick to the center of her sex. She burned and would have sworn on a stack of bibles she was seconds away from going up in flames. Just poof! A human torch…

“Abby,” he whispered again before leaving a trail of hungry, hasty kisses across her cheek and back to her ear. “Dios, Abby, you taste so good.” He sucked her sensitive lobe into his sinfully knowledgeable mouth.

She tasted good? She did? No, no. He was the one who should be on the menu of the finest restaurant. Because his breath was fresh and warm, and the sweat on his skin when she turned her head to gently sink her teeth into his wrist was sweet and delightful. He was the appetizer, entrée, and dessert all rolled into one wonderfully decadent male feast.

He moaned against her neck when she darted out her tongue, flicking at the pulse beating heavily in his wrist. The sound went all through her, making her nipples tighten, her toes curl, and her womb contract and ache anew. It was a wanton sound. A shameless sound. The sound a man makes when he’s mindless and in need of a woman.

She couldn’t believe it. Carlos…in need of her. Carlos…wanting her. She was surrounded by him, overpowered by him. His height. His breadth. His sheer masculinity. She reveled in the feel of the muscles in his shoulders, so large her hands couldn’t grip the entirety of them when she dug in her fingers to pull him closer, closer… He could never be too close.

A little about Julie Ann Walker:

Julie Ann Walker is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of award-winning romantic suspense. She has won the Book Buyers Best Award, been nominated for the National Readers Choice Award, the Australian Romance Reader Awards, and the Romance Writers of America’s prestigious RITA award. Her latest release was named a Top Ten Romance of 2014 by Booklist. Her books have been described as “alpha, edgy, and downright hot.” Most days you can find her on her bicycle along the lake shore in Chicago or blasting away at her keyboard, trying to wrangle her capricious imagination into submission.

Lear more about Julie Ann Walker here: Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter

GIVEAWAY TIME!!!

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November 21, 2014November 20, 2014

Blog Tour & Giveaway: The Viscount Who Lived Down The Lane by Elizabeth Boyle

In New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Boyle’s fourth novel in the Rhymes With Love series, a resolute young woman goes toe-to-toe with the Beast of Mayfair…

She has no desire for love…

As she arrives in Mayfair, Louisa Tempest is horrified when her incorrigible cat bolts from the carriage and dashes into a neighbor’s house, where she comes face-to-face with the reclusive Viscount Wakefield. But even more dismaying than his foul temper is the disarray in which she finds his home. Convinced his demeanor would improve if his household were in order, Louisa resolves to put everything to rights.

…until she meets the viscount who lives down the lane.
Much to his chagrin, Wakefield finds it impossible to keep the meddling Louisa out of his home, invading his daily life with her “improvements,” and his nights with the tempting desires she sparks inside him. Wounded in the war, he’s scorned society ever since his return . . . until Louisa opens the door to his heart and convinces him to give love a second chance.

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London, Hanover Square

November 1810

“What is it, Haley?” Lord Charleton asked, sparing a glance at the door of the breakfast room where his secretary stood, hovering about like a nervous sparrow. “Is it Rowland? Tell me he hasn’t landed in the suds yet again.”

“No, my lord.”

The man’s brow furrowed a bit. “Couldn’t be Wakefield.”

“Certainly not, my lord.”

The baron glanced up. “Wouldn’t mind if it was. Demmed waste having him mope about, locked up in that house of his.”

“Indeed,” the secretary replied, and if Charleton wasn’t mistaken, there was a note of irony to the man’s declaration—one he chose to ignore, instead pinning a glance on the impudent fellow.

Under the scrutiny, Haley’s jaw worked back and forth as if the words were stuck there in his craw.

“Well?” Lord Charleton prodded. “Out with it. Before my kippers grow cold.” As it was, the baron shoved his plate forward and set down the paper he’d been reading.

Mr. Haley cleared his throat and held out a letter. “I’ve come across a small debt your wife owed—”

There it was. That cold stillness that came every time someone had the nerve to mention Isobel’s name. How Lord Charleton wished he could forget her passing so this wrenching pain would fade from his heart. Yet, still, even a year after her loss, it was a sharp ache he woke up with, one that haunted him even after he closed his eyes at night.

Now here was his secretary bringing her up when he’d quite forbidden the matter.

“Pay it,” he ordered in a tone that said he wanted nothing further to do with any reminders of her.

“But, my lord—” Haley shuffled about.

Lord Charleton removed his glasses and slowly cleaned them. Then once they were perched back up on his nose he stared coldly at the fellow. He was a good man, Haley. An excellent secretary, but why the man continued to bring up Lady Charleton, the baron could not understand. Speaking slowly and deliberately, so there was no mistaking the matter, he said, “You know what to do. Take care of the matter and leave me be.”

“If you insist, my lord . . .” Haley’s voice trailed off tentatively. It wasn’t so much a reply as one last prod.

Truly? He was going to ask yet again? If he wasn’t the most thorough and honest fellow the baron had ever hired—well, actually Lady Charleton had found him and insisted he be hired, but that wasn’t the point. Haley had become rather cheeky of late and Charleton wanted nothing more than to fire him on the spot.

But Isobel wouldn’t have approved, and so Charlton inclined his head, reined back his ire and said with a final note, “Just see to it as Her Lady- ship would have wanted.” Then he went back to his paper and ignored Haley, who stood for a few more moments in the doorway.

And if the baron had looked up, he might have seen the wry, wily smile that had led Lady Charleton to hire Mr. Haley in the first place.

CHAPTER 1

London
Six months later

Areowwwwww! The unholy complaint filled the carriage.

“You should have left that foul creature back in Kempton, Miss Tempest,” Mrs. Bagley-Butterton complained for about the hundredth time.
Which equaled the number of times Hannibal had let out that ear-piercing yowl from the basket in which he was trapped.

“He doesn’t like being penned up so,” Miss Louisa Tempest said in defense of her cat. “And I couldn’t leave him behind.”

There was a sigh of resignation from beside Louisa. Miss Lavinia Tempest, Louisa’s twin, made a very deliberate show of looking out the window. She wasn’t about to rise to Hannibal’s defense.

Never would.

Louisa suspected her sister shared Mrs. Bagley- Butterton’s exasperation and wished poor Hannibal back in Kempton as well.

“I only hope your godmother is an understanding sort,” the matron continued, shifting in her seat in the carriage and eyeing the large basket on Louisa’s lap with an air of disdain and suspicion. She had protested vehemently against the cat being brought along, but she could hardly prevent the matter when the carriage conveying them to London belonged to the girls’ father, Sir Ambrose Tempest. “I know I wouldn’t have that cat in my house.” She sniffed loudly.

About the Author:

Elizabeth Boyle was an antipiracy paralegal for Microsoft before settling down to write full-time. Her first novel, Brazen Angel, which won Dell’s Diamond Debut Award in 1996, also won the Romance Writers of America’s RITA Award for Best First Book, and was a finalist for Best Long Historical Romance. She lives with her husband in Seattle, Washington. She is also the author of Brazen Heiress.

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Jennifer’s Review of The Viscount Who Lived Down The Lane

Review (4.5 Stars): What a lovely story! Louisa Tempest and her twin sister, Lavinia, have come to London to stay with their godmother and to help Lavinia find herself a husband. Louisa wants no part of any matchmaking herself and tries to find other ways to occupy her time while her sister prepares for the Season. When her disagreeable cat, Hannibal, runs into the house next door uninvited, Louisa comes face to face with Viscount Wakefield, who doesn’t take kindly to visitors in his home. Wakefield has been secluded in his home after being injured in the war and wants nothing more than to wallow in his own self-pity and hide from the rest of the world. Louisa takes it upon herself to help her neighbor by doing little things to make his life better and in turn, shows Wakefield that life is worth living and love is waiting for him, if he just gives it a chance.

Louisa was such a sweet character, who just wanted to help the people in her life achieve their hopes and dreams. She had no desire to get married because of “the curse” but wanted to make sure her sister had a chance at finding love. When she met Viscount Wakefield, he was mean, rude and just hated the world around him. He didn’t want help from anyone, especially not the beautiful woman that lived next door, who seemed to be meddling in his affairs. She was the light in his world of darkness and by doing the things she did, she brought hope back into his life. She also brought a chance of love and happiness for him, he just had to accept it and show Louisa how he felt about her. They were a great couple even though they were exact opposites but sometimes those make the best couples.

This is the fourth book in the Rhymes with Love series and each story in the series is wonderful. I love Ms. Boyle’s writing style and each story can stand on its own without having to read the rest of the books in the series. I loved Louisa and Wakefield’s story and I hope that there are many more books to come in the Rhymes with Love series.

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November 19, 2014November 18, 2014

Blog Tour & Giveaway: Sleigh Bells in Valentine Valley by Emma Cane

Return to Valentine Valley, where Christmas lights are twinkling and first love burns brighter the second time around…

When Tony De Luca’s ex, Kate Fenelli, waltzes through the door of his tavern and pulls up a bar stool, she turns his balanced world on end. Once they’d been each other’s first love, first everything. But then life happened, and they walked away with broken hearts. Now Kate is back in Valentine, and they can’t seem to stay out of each other’s way. When Tony begins wondering what would happen if they rekindled the sparks, he knows he’s in big trouble.

Kate can’t believe she’s sitting at Tony’s bar spilling her life-changing problems to him. He’s as gorgeous as ever, and she can’t seem to forget how incredible he always made her feel. Still, the door on that chapter of their lives closed long ago. Yet with Christmas buzzing in the air, Kate can’t help wondering if anything is possible—even a second chance with the only man she’s ever loved.

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Kate was just about to start putting the chairs upside down on the tables when someone knocked on the front door. She looked up and saw Tony.
Smiling, she unlocked and let him in. “So how did it go?”

And then she saw the small bandage oozing blood on his right cheek.

She gasped. “Tony!”

He shrugged and dropped his hockey bag near the door. “It looks worse than it is.”

“But it’s bleeding through the bandage! Weren’t you wearing a helmet, a face mask?”

“Of course I was—I don’t want to lose my teeth. But we were warming up, and someone on the other team was hitting too hard, and I’d taken off my helmet to adjust…never mind the details.”

She followed him into his office. “You could have lost an eye!”

“I know, I know.”

“And you need a new bandage.”

“This was a new bandage after the game, and I ripped off the scab that had formed.” He rummaged through his shelves until he found the medicine kit.

“Maybe you need stitches?”

“Naw, I’m fine. I have antiseptic things in here somewhere.”

She pushed his big hands out of the way, found the little packet, and opened it. “Sit down on the desk so I can reach you.”

“Kate—”

“Shh!”

With a sigh he complied, sitting on the edge of the desk. That put his face a little above hers, and she had to stand between his knees. She bit her lip as she tried to be gentle peeling off the bandage.

“Just rip it away,” he said with amusement.

So she did, and she was the only one who winced. The cut wasn’t too long, nor was it an open gash or oozing blood too badly. Using the damp antiseptic wipe, she gently cleansed it, then looked for a bigger, square bandage. After applying it, she stood still, admiring her work.

“There,” she murmured with satisfaction.

Tony wasn’t smiling anymore. Those chocolate brown eyes were staring at her as if out of the past, back when he’d desired her, needed her.

And she realized she was standing between his thighs. The shock of awareness and heat that moved through her body was swift and overwhelming.

He put his hands on her waist, as if he knew she was suddenly weak with longing.

“What are we doing?” she whispered.

But she didn’t move away.

“I think I’m kissing you,” he said, leaning closer.

Their breaths merged, the heat of him seared her.

“Stop me now,” he warned in a hoarse voice.

Their lips almost, almost touched.

And she couldn’t speak, didn’t want to deny him, found herself deep in the past, where Tony had been the only boy, then the only man, who’d drawn her, who’d made her desperate for his touch, who’d made her lose herself.

He kissed her, openmouthed and hungrily, no gentle exploration but inspiring a renewal of a desperation that she’d buried within her for over nine years. He pulled her against him, her hips into the openness of his, her aching breasts flattening against his broad chest, her head turning until it practically rested on his shoulder. She felt greedy with the need of him, desperate for the taste of his tongue. And then his hands slid to cup her backside, pressing her even harder against the erection outlined by his jeans. She let her hands roam him, remembering his biceps and shoulders, the broad planes supporting his collarbones, the lean pillar of his neck. His hair was thick and warm, and so good to touch.

Their mouths explored as if in homecoming, as memories swamped her of laughing kisses, tender kisses, urgent kisses. Tony was still all of that for her, and no one had ever made her feel like this but him.

That made her break off the kiss and stare at him, wide-eyed. His eyes smoldered as they watched her mouth. He didn’t look like he could stop, and for a moment, she wondered if she could, if Tony once again could create a passion that made her forget everything but him.

About the Author:

Emma Cane grew up reading and soon discovered that she liked to write passionate stories of teenagers in space. Her love of “passionate stories” has never gone away, although today she concentrates on the heartwarming characters of Valentine, her fictional small town in the Colorado Rockies.

Now that her three children are grown, Emma loves spending time crocheting and singing (although not necessarily at the same time), and hiking and snowshoeing alongside her husband Jim and two rambunctious dogs Apollo and Uma.

Website/Twitter/Facebook

Jennifer’s Review of Sleigh Bells in Valentine Valley

Review (4.5 Stars): Sleigh Bells in Valentine Valley was such a sweet romance and I love books about couples having a second chance at love, especially around the holidays. Kate Fenelli returns home when she is put on leave from her job as an attorney and isn’t sure what her life holds for her since she will be in the same town as her ex-husband. Tony De Luca has always loved Kate and having her close by during the holidays has rekindled something that he thought was long gone. Can these two give love a second chance or has that moment passed them by forever?

I enjoyed Tony and Kate’s story together. Kate was a career-focused character, who in the beginning wanted to achieve success by becoming the best attorney that she could be, even if it meant putting her personal life on hold. Tony was such a nice guy, who wanted the simple things in life by raising a family and creating a life in Valentine Valley. The two of them were on different pages in their lives when they were younger but as we all know, things change as you grow and mature as a person. Their journey back to one another wasn’t an easy one but sometimes a great love takes time and for these two, it was definitely worth the wait.

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