“Hot time, summer in the city. Back of my neck getting burnt and pretty.“
Any body else remember that old Lovin’ Spoonful song?? Hee hee. I’m showing my age, I know.
When I was younger and a sun worshiper, I lived for the summer days I could take a few hours at my local beach, soak up some rays, and read without any interruptions or worries. Back then, my beach reads were mostly comprised of the newest Jackie Collins, Kathleen Woodiwiss, or Nora Roberts book that happened to release in the summer season.
The hours of escapism while sitting in the sun were marvelous and made me truly know the definition of BEACH READ; fabulous heroines meeting hunky heroes and engaging in adult behavior ( read :SEX) while escaping from danger, or trying to solve the world’s problems.
Hey, it’s not called escapist fiction for nothing.😉
Nowadays I shun the sun like Lestat because…wrinkles.
But I still enjoy a great book that can be classified as a beach read. And hey – I even write them now. LOL.
One of my favorites that I’ve penned has just gone on sale for only 99cents.
IT’S A TRUST THING tells the tale of Nell Newbury, one time Park Avenue darling, whose father – a Madoff devotee – bilked people out of billions. The notoriety almost killed Nell’s mother and made the young girl grow up fast. Nell runs her own company now, keeps out of the public eye, and isn’t looking for love.
And then she meets a handsome economics professor who knows nothing about her and who makes her toes go numb with just a glance.
Do you like to read at the beach? Or on a boat? Or sitting in the park on a lovely summer day?
Take IT’S A TRUST THING with you the next time you go. You’ll have a fun time reading it. One of my reviewers called it a “RomCom with angst, a klutzy heroine you can’t help rooting for, and redemption.”
A PRIDE OF BROTHERS: RICK is on sale this month for just 99cents in anticipation of A PRIDE OF BROTHERS: AIDEN releasing on 9.8.2021.
If you haven’t read the first in this series, now is the perfect time to catch up, hee hee.
Elite bodyguard and P.I. Rick Bannerman’s job is to protect. He doesn’t get emotional with his clients, but when a woman from his past is threatened, his next job becomes personal.
Family lawyer Abigail Laine is the target of a client’s vengeful husband, but refuses Rick’s offer of protection. He walked away from her four years ago, and she swore to forget him.
Now her reluctance to accept his help could cost Abby her life.
And don’t forget to preorder your copy of book 2, AIDEN
As if I didn’t have enough on my professional plate, I recently took on another project: I signed up as a Kindle Vella author.
I know….
But…in this ever changing and growing world of book publishing, authors need to try different venues to get their work seen by readers and Kindle Vella is the newest way to do that.
In the Victorian age in England, episodic series stories would appear weekly in the newspapers. Charles Dickens was a big proponent of his stories being seen by the masses this way, people who couldn’t afford a real book, but would read the chapters of the book weekly for a penny.
Since newspapers seem to be a dying breed these days with digital reading the easiest way to get your daily info, podcasts and ebooks and reading on your phones is becoming more and more popular each day. Kindle Vella was made for people who like to read this way.
Here’s a very thorough description of how Vella works for readers: Kindle Vella Reader experience. Just clink on the individual links to see how to load the app, read stories, etc.
The coo thing to me as a reader is that if you don’t like the story, you don’t have to worry you’ve paid for a book you don’t want, because you pay as you go, separately fo reach episode. Cool beans, that!
So, a little backstory. 175 years ago, when I was a fledgling writer, I was obsessed with serial killers. I wrote several books that are stuffed in a drawer and will never see the light of day, but the one I submitted to Vella – VINDICATION – was one I lovedlovedloved writing. And I hope you like reading it.
The first 3 chapters you can read for free. I plan on putting up three chapters/episodes per week until it’s done and then start a new one.
Someone is murdering teenage girls in Washington, DC.
The FBI’s special division, the SPCD – the Sexual Predators of Children – has been working the case for the past 6 months. When a Senator’s daughter goes missing, the team, lead by Tucker Petrie, has to call on retired profiler – and Tucker’s past partner – Kella O’Brian. Reluctantly, she rejoins the team as they search for a link to the girls who have been abducted, then killed. When the killer strikes close to Kella’s home, the case turns to a decidedly different path.
If you haven’t read my DotComGirls series yet, you can do so now with a little price gift! IT’S A TRUST THINGis now just #99cents across all digital media – however you read your ebooks!
Blurb:
Nell Newbery has trust issues.
It’s hard to trust when you’re the daughter of a fallen financial scion who bilked people out of billions. Nell’s done everything in her power to keep away from men who see her as their ticket to fortune and fame. All she wants to do is run her ultra-successful business, HELPFUL HUNKS, in peace.
But it wouldn’t hurt to find a guy who doesn’t know a thing about her father’s felonious past; one she can give her heart to and trust it won’t come back to her battered, bruised, and broken.
Is Charlie Churchill that guy? On the surface he seems perfect, all polished manners and quiet mirth. Nell’s convinced he knows nothing about her, other than she likes superhero movies and views junk food as a food group.
Can she trust him to be what he appears to be? Or is he just pretending?
For Nell, trust is everything in life…and in love.
We made our way into the assigned theater, found our seats and settled in. The theater was full to capacity but we had a great view, dead center and luckily the two people in front of us weren’t tall, so I’d be able to see the screen without shifting left or right.
I sighed when I realized my good fortune. Charlie turned toward me and asked, “Everything okay?”
“Yeah.” I lowered my voice. “I was offering up a silent thank you to the God of the vertically challenged because I’m not behind a giant. The last time I was at a movie the guy in front me had to be an NBA player. His torso was as long as my entire body and his shoulders obliterated the screen.”
He stared at me a moment, his forehead creased, his head tilted. “I wasn’t aware there was a God of the vertically challenged.”
I nodded. “Saint Shortstack.”
The lighting in the theater had dimmed, but his quick smile lit up my little area like a fourth of July fireworks explosion.
Concentrating on the movie should have been easy since I’d been looking forward to it for months. The man seated next to me, though, proved to be a huge distraction. Despite the spacious stadium designed chairs, our bodies came in frequent contact. His thigh brushed mine and our knees bumped several times when Charlie leaned over to scoop some popcorn from the tub in my lap. Our elbows met when we placed them on the armrests. The subtle, tempting scent of his cologne wafted toward me every time he moved closer to grab the candy box out of my hand and pour himself a few pieces. His fingers grazed mine as he handed the box back and a frisson of desire shuddered down my spine from the innocent touch.
My fantasy superhero actors filled the screen and my attention should have been focused on them. At any other time it would have. Instead, my concentration was centered totally on the man sitting next to me.
When Iron Man took Pepper into his arms and kissed her silly, I remembered the incredible sensation of Charlie’s lips on mine. When Black Widow cupped the Hulk’s cheek to reassure him, the memory of Charlie’s fingers skimming my jaw had me squirming in my seat. Even when the team was saving the world and I should have paid attention to who was getting knocked out or wounded, the fascinating man next to me stole my every thought.
At one point my leg started bobbing, an old tick from my teen years that reared itself whenever my nerves popped up. I nearly came out of the chair when Charlie placed a hand on my knee, leaned in close and whispered, “What’s wrong, Nell?”
My knee instantly stopped bouncing.
“Sorry. Thinking about something work related.” I had to lie. I couldn’t admit the reason I was so keyed up was because of him. Sitting next to him, his touch – however innocent – heck, eventhe smell ofhim, was such a turn-on that my body wouldn’t quiet down. It was like I’d drunk six cups of caffeinated coffee and then been forced to stay immobile while all my adrenaline fought to be set free.
He squeezed my knee then patted my thigh. Both gestures sent my nerve endings into hyperdrive.
“Work will always be there,” he said softly, his lips delightfully close to my ear. “Relax.”
“Impossible,” I muttered.
Intrigued? Hee hee. You can get your copy here: IATT
Don’t you love a book sale? My girl, D.V. Stone, a fellow WRP sistah, is having one righ now on her One Scoop or Two book RAINBOW SPRINKLES
Here’s D.V. with a little about the book and the sale:
Retired and widowed Gloriana Jones is forging on with the plans she and her late husband dreamed of—bringing joy and happiness, one ice cream cone at a time, to Lake Unami. But bad weather is drowning her dream. A trip to Upstate NY is bittersweet for Nathan James. He is excited to see his first granddaughter but without his wife he’s lonely. When his car breaks down, he heads to the only light he can see, an ice cream shop. With aid from a heavenly source, electricity sparks, but will the two weather the summer storms and find love a second time? Or will their hopes and dreams melt away?
Excerpt
“Do you mind if I wait until the tow truck gets here?” He plucked the wet shirt away from his chest with the long fingers of one tanned hand. “It must be electrical, even the radio stopped working.”
“No, you’re welcome to hang around as long as you need.” Gloriana riffled through a cardboard box under the counter, pulled out an extra-large t-shirt, and tossed it to him. “Here you go. The restroom is through there.”
Mr. Gorgeous beamed a perfect toothy smile. “Thanks. I’ll be right back.”
When he disappeared into the hallway and the door clicked shut, Gloriana fanned her face. What the hot fudge was wrong with her? “Coffee. Make coffee.”
Bio
Born in Brooklyn, D.V. Stone has moved around a bit and even lived for a time on a dairy farm in Minnesota before moving back east. Throughout her wandering, she always considered herself a Jersey Girl. She met and married the love of her life, Pete—a lifelong Jersey Man, and moved this time to Sussex County. They live with Hali, a mixed breed from the local shelter, and their cat, Baby. Certain threads appear in her books, like Heavenly Brew the coffee shop, Taylor Egg and Cheese, and in Rainbow Sprinkles, her time as an ice cream shop owner is evident. Even the basset hounds are part of her past.
I’m tickled silly this morning because I’ve got 2 great pieces of news to share and they both involve books!. My books, hee hee
First, the second book in my A PRIDE OFBROTHER’s series, AIDEN, is officially up for preorder, with a release date of 9.8.2021. You can reserve your copy here: AIDEN
My second piece of good news is that, in anticipation of AIDEN’S release, A PRIDE OF BROTHERS: RICK is ON SALE for just 99cents!!! So if you haven’t read the first brother’s story, now’s the best time to. And just FYI – you don’t need to read book 1 to know what’s going on in book 2 because they are stand alone books.
And hey, if you look really really close at Aiden’s cover, you’ll see the heroine, Lexi, holding a copy of… you guessed it! Rick’s book. Hee hee. I love that sosos much.
I love when my WIld Rose Press sistahs come to call! Today, I’ve got paranormal and award winning sistah, TENA STETLER with me. She’s got a new book out – the 6th in her Demon’s Witch Series and she’s sharing with me – and you – the top 10 reasons this book should be on your TBR list!
Hey there Peggy! I’m thrilled to be on your fantastic blog today. Thank you for allowing me to share a few teasers why your readers should read my upcoming new release, A WITCH’S QUANDARY, sixth book in the award winning A Demon’s Witch Series. All books in the series can be read as standalones.
Top 10 Reasons You Should Read A WITCH’S QUANDARY.
1. A Broken Engagement leads to the discovery of stolen magic and malice.
2. You love stories set in Ireland and Scotland.
3. Find out why Dillon is summoned back to Scotland and why did Gale refused to leave Ireland.
4. Someone is being blackmailed.
5. A hidden secret in Gale’s family is brought into the light that puts them in danger.
6. There is the cutest puppy introduced into the story. Yes, she almost steals the story and quite a few scenes.
7. Find out what rare magical talent Gale possesses.
8. Secrets abound in this story, what are Dillon’s father and brother are hiding?
9. You get to revisit characters from the other books in the series.
10. You need a break from your ordinary world to be swept into a romantic, fantasy adventure tinged with mystery that you may never want to leave.
Gale’s engagement is off because she refuses to leave her thriving business in Ireland to follow Dillon to Scotland. Her family and friends are on the emerald isle. Yet, when Dillon returns with the whole story and asks for her help, she must follow her heart.
Becoming a Solicitor, then partner in the family law firm was never Dillon’s dream. Now it’s his nightmare. Called to Scotland, his father demands he take his rightful place in the firm or be disowned and disinherited. Something is terribly amiss in the firm and family.
During Gale and Dillon’s investigation, they discover the enforcer for the Demon Overlord is also delving into rumors the firm is acting illegally. Magic has been stolen, someone is being blackmailed, and a member of the Witch’s council is corrupt. If Gale and Dillon want a life together in Ireland, they have to unearth secrets threatening to destroy the firm and family in Scotland.
A sneak peek between the pages of A Witch’s Quandary:
“This is an outrage. It’s my firm.” Bram bellowed slamming his fist down on the table. Sparks flew in all directions creating a red-hot spider web of power crackling across the tabletop. Everyone at the table scrambled back or stood. Dillon caught the malevolent spark in his father’s eye a split-second after Gale. She had already brought her hands together, the room sizzled as she conjured a ball of fire and with a few words sent the witch fire and spell at him.
“What have you done?” Bram screeched as the fire and spell hit him center mass. “Witchfire too? Bitch.” He slid to the floor.
Iris ran to his side, tears spilling her cheeks, she wiped his sweat-soaked brow with a napkin. “You just couldn’t stop, could you? What did you do? Make a deal with the devil? We should have put a stop to it. To you. But…” She helped him into a chair. “I’m afraid you’ve messed with the wrong witch, this time. Brought this on yourself. You did. But I won’t let you take this family—the firm—down with you.” Giving his shoulders a little shake, she gazed into his shocked eyes. “What have you done?”
Bram slowly shook his head and murmured, “It’s my firm.” He raised his gaze and glared at Gale pointing a bony finger at her. “You’ll pay for this.” Then turned his attention to Dillon. “I told you nothing good would come from aligning yourself with this witch. Her blood is not pure. Diluted by the Fae power of her…” He broke off.
Dillon stood at Gale’s back his hands steady and supportive on her shoulders as she said nothing for several beats. Eventually, she turned her emerald green eyes to him and held his gaze. “I couldn’t let him divide the family with that dark magic. I tempered my deadly witch fire with the spell.” She tore her gaze from Dillon’s, touching her fingertips to the scorched marks radiating across the table stopping an inch from the edge all around. “If he’d succeeded, there’d been no turning back. If the tendrils of that spell had left the table and reached one of you…” She shook her head.
Appearing to gather his wits about him faster than the rest of his family, Sturgen surveyed the scene, wiped his brow with a monogrammed handkerchief, and sucked in a breath. “The firm is no longer yours.” He squeezed Olivia to him, starting for the door. “We’ve had enough for one night. Let’s adjourn until a full audit of the cases and firm can be conducted.”
About the Author:
Tena Stetler is a best-selling author of award winning paranormal romance with an over-active imagination. She wrote her first vampire romance as a tween, to the chagrin of her mother and the delight of her friends. Colorado is home; shared with her husband, a brilliant Chow Chow, a spoiled parrot and a forty-five-year-old box turtle. When she’s not writing, her time is spent kayaking, camping, hiking, biking or just relaxing in the great Colorado outdoors.
Her books tell tales of magical kick-ass women and mystical alpha males that dare to love them. Travel, adventure, and a bit of mystery flourish in her books along with a few companion animals to round out the tales.
I’m excited to tell you that DIRTY DAMSELS is another Beach Reads Bookish choice from N.N. Light’s Bookheaven Beach Reads Bookish Event today!
Looking for something fun, flirty and sexy to take to the beach, on vacation, or to read in the car? DIRTY DAMSELS is a modern day Cinderella story where Cindy is the master of her own fate. No glass slipper for this girl. She’s a CEO with thriving business and a backbone of steel.
DOn’t forget to check out the blog post here: BEACH READ and please enter the rafflecopter for a chance at winning and Amazon Gift card! Good luck and happy reading.
I’m so excited WOKE is featured today as a perfect beach read over on N.N. Light’s BEACH READS BOOKISH EVENT. This Sleeping Beauty redux story is near and dear to my heart in so many ways. It’s a light and breezy read, perfect for vacation, sitting by the pool, or lounging on the lanai.
Check out today’s post, here: BEACH READ. And don’t forget to enter the rafflecopter for a chance at an Amazon Gift Card!
On her 21st birthday, someone slipped a potent drug combination into socialite Aurora Brightwell’s champagne putting her in a coma for the next ten years. It’s been a long road back, and it’s time to reclaim the life she lost and find out exactly what happened on that fateful night.
Financier Kincade Enright has his own reason for helping Aurora discover who poisoned her, but for the time being he’s keeping that – and his true identity – to himself. What he can’t keep hidden though, are his growing feelings for the one-time paparazzi darling and party-girl.
When this prince of finance joins forces with the former sleeping beauty, nothing can stop them from finding the answers they seek…or prevent the powerful emotions developing between them as they search for the truth.
I’m so excited that IT’S A TRUST THING is an N.N. Lights Bookish Beach Read choice for Summer 2021! Check out the blog post here – BEACHREAD and don’t forget to enter the rafflecopter for a chance at an Amazon Gift card.
Whether you’re looking for a new author or book to take to the beach, on vacation, or even while you travel, this mini event has your name all over it. Dozens of authors, whose books make perfect summer reading.
Nell Newbery has trust issues. It’s hard to trust when you’re the daughter of a fallen financial scion who bilked people out of billions. Nell’s done everything in her power to keep away from men who see her as their ticket to fortune and fame. All she wants to do is run her ultra-successful business, HELPFUL HUNKS, in peace.
But it wouldn’t hurt to find a guy who doesn’t know a thing about her father’s felonious past; one she can give her heart to and trust it won’t come back to her battered, bruised, and broken.
Is Charlie Churchill that guy? On the surface he seems perfect, all polished manners and quiet mirth. Nell’s convinced he knows nothing about her, other than she likes superhero movies and views junk food as a food group.
Can she trust him to be what he appears to be? Or is he just pretending?
For Nell, trust is everything in life…and in love.
Happy reading, peeps, and see you at the beach ~ Peg
One of my favorite people and writers, fellow Wild Rose Sistah JEAN M. GRANT has recently put together a boxed set of her Scottish-themed novels titled THE HUNDRED TRILOGY. All ebooks are now priced at just $2.99 each or the trilogy is the amazeballs price of $5.99.
Jean recently let me in a little of the research she did for the books. Read all about it, below, then click on the buy links and get the entire trilogy! You won’t be disappointed.
Top 10 Things to See in Scotland
What to see if you visit Scotland? Here is my list of must-sees, which might be biased because of my love for nature and history. I visited most of these places while on a trip to Scotland in a rainy September…
The abbeys
The isles
Lochs
Crags & Glens
Standing Stones
Scottish Folk & Pubs
The Lowlands
The Highlands
Highland Games
Castles
Now some details…
Abbeys are poetic, serene. We walked among ancient gray and rose ruins at Dryburgh and Melrose. It’s hard to not visit an isle while in Scotland. There are many: Lewis and Harris, Shetlands, or my beloved Uist. We visited Isle of Skye on a dreary day and could not even see the Black Cuillin in the torrential rain. Like isles, lochs, many glacial, are a must-see and hard to miss whether it is the deep blue Loch Ness, expansive Loch Lomond, or the inspiring Loch Awe. High and low crags abound…the Trossachs, Cairngorms, or the five sisters of Kintail are impressive mountains. With crags, come glens (valleys). Glencoe is not one to skip.
Standing stones are one of the few places we couldn’t visit on our trip as most are on the isles. Note to self for next time! Scots are pleasant people and we had a great time chatting with the locals. And yup, there are plenty of the other kind of locals: sheep! The lowlands often get overlooked, but they are green and lush with undulating hills. The Highlands are rich in clan history and natural beauty and oh so many hikes. Up for putting the stone, caber tossing, tug-o-war, music, and dancing…oh yes, and lots of kilts? Get thee to a Highland Game. We visited one in Pitlochry. Castles, last but not least! I visited over a dozen on my trip. My favorites: Eilean Donan (seat to Clan MacCoinneach in my books), Kilchurn (we kayaked to it), Threave (we took a rowboat across a river to it), and Borthwick (we stayed overnight in this 14th century tower house that is haunted). Scotland—be prepared for rain, be prepared for beauty of nature and people.
Tying a Trilogy Together
What seemed ages ago, but in the grand scheme of life, only about 6 or 7 years ago, I sat down to write another manuscript. With three “practice” novels written but shelved, I dug into a new story. I changed my time period from 12th to 13th century during the Scottish Wars of Independence, wove a mystical element into the story line, and on some invaluable advice of an agent, worked the heck out of that story to give it twists and turns to excite me reader. In 2017, A Hundred Kisses was born with the publishing house The Wild Rose Press.
The backstory of the heroine’s parents nagged at me. And guess what? When I looked at the history thirty years prior to the first book (which was 1296, and I looked back to 1263), lo and behold, it was a time rife with Norse-Scottish turmoil. The end of the Viking reign to boot. That story came forth in a flurry, and I found myself contemplating the third book in what was now becoming a trilogy. A Hundred Breaths (the prequel, and book one) released in 2019. Fast-forward to 1322, a time after the Scottish Wars of Independence, and A Hundred Lies was born, wrapping up my trilogy.
Each story is a standalone, but they can be read in or out of order. Each story tells a tale of a MacCoinneach family member “gifted but afflicted” with a mystical ability that comes at a cost: to heal but lose your own breaths in return, to feel auras/lifebloods but to feel others’ pain, and to see the future but to be unable to prevent the visions unless refraining from touch. Conquering Norse, Scottish lore, Ancient mystics, and invading English…the trilogy has a bit of everything. Can our mystical family hone their gifts for good, escape curses, discover mercy, find home, and find love?
A Thread of Elements
Water, fire, air, and earth…these elements have symbolic roots and importance in many cultures and communities from the ancient Greeks to current-day scientists. According to the Ancients in my trilogy, these elements are the essence of life. Each of my main characters in the trilogy has a supernatural ability linked to an element:
Water and healing.
Fire and feeling.
Air and seeing.
All are grounded in earth and woven together. In the words of one character, “Wind feeds fire. Water douses fire. Water nourishes earth. Wind churns water. Fire scorches earth. All are connected.”
Water symbolizes healing, purity, life, strength, and unconditional love, and is associated with autumn. Fire symbolizes vibrance, passion, and energy, and is associated with summertime. Air symbolizes perception, knowledge, and travel and is associated with spring. Earth ties them all together with the symbolism of order, security, nourishment, and grounding and is associated with winter. I admittedly, loved how the creative muse guided me in this thread throughout the “hundred” trilogy.
My Ancients are a mythical culture born of the western isles of Scotland, and they utilize the mysterious standing stones as part of their traditions. They pass on their history through written books and spoken word. But as their population diminishes because of wars and exploitation, will their stories and powers die with them? (You’ll need to read to find out). The origin of the Ancients is unknown…where did these people come from? At one point, they became mingled with the Norse people and their gods because of Viking expansion. They are a spiritual, mystical people open to the unknown…and I had such fun writing their journeys in the trilogy.
Because it would be no fun for readers if each gift resulted in an easy ride in life, each gift comes with a burden: to lose life with each healing, to feel too deeply that it debilitates you, or to see dark, bloody visions every time you touch a person. Not only does this trilogy explore the mystical realm, but it also highlights the deep-rooted beliefs of Christian/Norse/Ancient, the superstitions of the middle ages, the hunger to control and conquer, and the wars of independence from 1263-1322 A.D. Nothing like stirring a pot of history with mystic, aye? Oh yeah, each book has love and happy ever afters.
Scotland
The MacCoinneach family is gifted but afflicted. Deeply rooted powers of healing, feeling, and prophecy run in their bloodline. Descended from the Norse and mystical Ancients of the Isles, they must each face the curses associated with their ability…they must each find the path to love.
A Hundred Breaths
1263
Gwyn of Uist is a merciful Healer but loses breaths of her life with every healing charm. She barters an alliance with a Scot bent on revenge against her Norse kin, in the hopes to save her brother from their abusive father. But can she and Simon MacCoinneach outwit her betrothed and bring an end to the Norse-Scottish bloodshed when it will take all her breaths to save Simon on the battlefield?
A Hundred Kisses
1296
Deirdre MacCoinneach feels the lifebloods of everyone around her…but vows to discover if her gift killed the men she married. Under the facade of a trader, Alasdair Montgomerie travels to Uist with pivotal information for a claimant seeking the Scottish throne. A cruel baron hunts him, leaving little room for alliances with the lass he meets along the way. Amidst ghosts of the past, Alasdair and Deirdre find themselves falling together in a web of secrets and the curse of a hundred kisses…
A Hundred Lies
1322
Rosalie Threston’s fortune-telling lies have caught up with her and she’s on the run from a ruthless English noblewoman. Rosalie finds refuge in the halls of Eilean Donan castle deep in the Highlands, and in the arms of the laird’s mysterious son, Domhnall Montgomerie. Terrible visions plague Domhnall and he avoids physical contact to temper them. When an accidental touch reveals only delight, he wonders if Rose is the key to silencing the Sight. Mystical awakening unravels with each kiss. But can Domhnall embrace his gift in time to save her life, even if it means exposing her lies?
Norse invasions, Scottish fights for independence, and the plights of the mystical isles’ people come together in The Hundred Trilogy.
Jean’s background is in science and she draws from her interests in history, nature, and her family for inspiration. She writes historical and contemporary romances and women’s fiction. She also writes articles for family-oriented travel magazines. When she’s not writing or chasing after children, she enjoys tending to her flower gardens, hiking, and doing just about anything in the outdoors.
One of my favorite One-click authors has a new addition to the LAST CHANCE BEACH collection. Come and visit with Nancy Fraser, author of RETURN OF THE RUNAWAY BRIDE
Five years earlier, Emily Bennett ran out on Chase Michaels on the eve of their wedding. At twenty-two, she wanted more than the island of Last Chance Beach could offer. Intent on making a name for herself as a world-class journalist, she left to take a job with a big city newspaper.
Heartbroken, Chase left Last Chance Beach and joined the Coast Guard in an effort to rebuild his life. Returning four years later for a family emergency, he decided to stay and go into business with his best friend.
Emily’s returning as well. Not as the journalist she’d hoped to be but as a bestselling romance author. One of her books is about to be made into a movie, and filming will take place on Last Chance Beach and in the nearby town of Summerville.
Will Emily’s return give them a second chance at the love they once shared? Or, will her ‘other’ reason for leaving put a wedge between three best friends that can’t be healed by time or intention?
Tagline: Will coming home be a mistake or a new beginning for them both?
Excerpt
Last Chance Beach Wedding Chapel
Five Years Earlier
Chase Michaels stood at the front of the non-denominational chapel, in muted conversation with the justice of the peace. He turned slowly, surveying the half-dozen guests who’d been invited to the wedding rehearsal.
The only persons missing were his best friend Jared, Mr. and Mrs. Bennett and Emily, his bride-to-be.
Carly and Becca, Emily’s bridesmaids, hovered nearby.
“I’ve heard of a bride being late for the wedding before,” Carly whispered, “but the rehearsal?”
“You know Emily,” Becca responded, shaking her head in teasing resignation. “She does like to make an entrance.”
When the back door of the chapel opened, everyone raised their gazes in anticipation. Rather than the blushing bride, it was Jared Wilson, Chase’s best man, who entered the sanctuary and made his way down the narrow aisle.
Stopping just short of the flower-covered altar, he pulled Chase aside.
“She’s gone,” Jared said, his words falling like a lead brick on Chase ’s ears.
“What do you mean ‘gone’? Gone where?”
“Mrs. Bennett said Emily packed her suitcase, gassed up her car, and left. She’s on her way to Boston for a job interview.” Jared stuck his hand in the pocket of his jeans and withdrew a velvet pouch. “She left this for you.”
Chase didn’t need to look to know what was in the bag. After all, he’d been the one to give the modest ring to Emily in the first place. Drawing a deep breath, he spun around and faced his friends and family.
“Thank you all for being here for the wedding rehearsal.” Blinking back the threat of tears, he met his mother’s worried gaze. “However, there will be no need to practice. The wedding’s been called off.”
“Called off?” Carly asked. She and Becca exchanged glances and then closed the distance between themselves and where he stood. “If Emily’s got cold feet, we’ll straighten her out.”
Chase gave a quick shake of his head and bit back the string of curses welling up from within. “Emily’s gone. She sent back the ring and, as we speak, she’s on her way to Boston, eager it seems to put both me and Last Chance Beach in her rearview mirror.”
One-by-one, the guests slowly filtered out of the chapel, Carly and Becca giving Chase a hug of support. His mom wrapped her arms around his middle and squeezed, nearly drawing the tears he was fighting so hard to contain. Within minutes, he was left standing at the altar alone, but for the best friend he’d known since kindergarten.
—Jumping Across Romance Genres with Gleeful Abandon—is an Amazon Top 100 and Award-Winning author who can’t seem to decide which romance genre suits her best. So, she writes them all.
Nancy has published over forty books in full-length, novella, and short format. When not writing (which is almost never), Nancy dotes on her five wonderful grandchildren and looks forward to traveling and reading when time permits. Nancy lives in Atlantic Canada where she enjoys the relaxed pace and colorful people.
With three books left to be released before 12.21.2021, I thought I should tell you about the next one up in the publishing queue, hee hee.
BALANCE will release on 9.1.2021 and tells the story of an uptown socialite and a working class guy. If anyone read last summer’s WOKE, my Sleeping Beauty Redux romance, then you will recognize Aurora Brightwell’s bestie Phillipa Doubletree in Balance.
She’s a wealthy socialite who survived an abusive marriage.
He’s a hardworking guy raising his son and caring for his widowed father.
They come from different worlds, but it’s said…opposites attract.
Can they find the balance between their two lifestyles to make their love work?
Or will their differences tear them apart?
Life and love are a balancing act.
Divorced socialite Phillipa Doubletree is forging a life of her own for the first time at the age of 37. With her abusive marriage behind her, she’s learning how to trust again, is managing her own life and finances, and reconnecting with her oldest friend. Phil’s not ready to jump into the dating world yet, and the thought of being in a relationship gives her hives. Her marriage left too many emotional scars and she’s liking this free and easy single girl life.
But it would be nice to know she’s still desirable to a man.
Physician’s Assistant and widower Decker Madina is single-parenting his son and caring for his aged and sick father. With a mountain of work and family obligations, skyrocketing medical bills, and a job that’s taking an emotional toll, Decker wishes he could carve out a little time for himself, enjoy the company of a woman, and maybe even get married again.
These two come from different worlds and want different things. But it’s said opposites attract. Can they find the balance between their lifestyles to make a relationship work? Or are their differences too much for an everlasting love?
*** Peggy here – I’m really excited for you to meet these two. Their road to an HEA is fraught with problems – most of them of their own doing, but once they figure it all out, it’s an ending I still cry over – and I wrote it!!! hee hee
If you haven’t met Phillipa yet in Woke, now’s your chance to get acquainted before BALANCE releases!!!
Calling all holiday-themed readers! It’s more than evergreens and twinkly lights at N. N. Light’s Book Heaven’s fifth annual Christmas in July Fête. 44 Christmas, Hanukkah and holiday-themed books featured plus a chance to win a $75 Amazon (US) gift card.
I’m thrilled to be a part of this event. My book,SANTA BABYis featured today!! Here’s the link: SB
Wait until you read what I love most about the holidays. You won’t want to miss it.
Christmas RekindledCool off with a little mistletoe magic! Christmas Rekindled (ebook) is just 99¢ throughout July 2021
Tagline: When two Scrooges unite to save a bar in trouble, a kiss under the mistletoe sparks the sexiest Christmas miracle ever.
Blurb:
Bartender River Lundqvist has a damn good reason for hating Christmas. Bangers Tavern is the perfect place to lay low over the holidays—until Charlie walks in. His first encounter with the saucy server nine years ago was utter humiliation. Her reappearance stirs up powerful desires and hopes for a new start. But the timing is all wrong.
Back in Tacoma to care for her estranged dad over the holidays, freelance web designer Charlie Khoury braces herself for the suckiest Christmas ever. A temporary job at Bangers Tavern gives her a chance to escape Dad’s criticism and blow off some steam. But why does the hunky bartender seem to hate her?
A pretend girlfriend is just what River needs to keep his family off his back—until a kiss under the mistletoe flares hot enough to melt the North Pole. When greedy developers threaten Bangers Tavern, River and Charlie must team up to save it. Their sizzling chemistry feels like the real thing—but everyone knows rebound relationships don’t last.
Come to Bangers Tavern for an enemies-to-lovers tale of reconciliation, found family, holiday cocktails, and the steamiest Christmas miracle ever.
Excerpt
Her low, throaty chuckle made him want to kiss her again. Though he pretty much wanted to kiss her anytime she was within range.
She laid her hand palm-up on the center console. “The thing is, I’m not looking for a relationship.”
Remembering a bit of Dawn’s wisdom, he nestled his hand into hers. “You never find a relationship when you’re looking for one.”
Her gaze softened, open and vulnerable. “Are you looking?”
Warning sirens blared inside his head. This was a question to answer very carefully. “If you’d asked me a month ago, I’d say, ‘No way.’ But then, I kissed this girl under the mistletoe, and…”
She closed her eyes, lifted his hand, and pressed it to her sternum. Beneath his palm, her heart thudded fast. His pulse sped to match hers. He held his breath.
“I like you, River.” Her whisper matched the brush of snowflakes against the windows.
“I like you too.”
She inhaled deeply, then met his gaze. “Enough to be my friend?”
He nodded, mesmerized.
“Because my life is a mess right now, and I have no idea what the fuck I’m doing.”
Her coarse language stirred up a heady swirl of laughter, sympathy, and arousal. He scooted as near as the center console allowed and placed his lips close to her ear. “I’ll tell you a secret. Me neither.”
Fire flickered in her eyes’ inky depths. Her lips parted. A golden thread wound around his heart and tugged him toward her. His thumb stroked the delicate line of her jaw as he closed the distance.
Ever since her first kiss, Sadira’s been spinning steamy tales in her head. After leaving her teaching career in Germany, she finally tried her hand at writing one. Now she’s a happy citizen of Romancelandia, penning contemporary romance from her new home in Washington State, U.S.A. When not writing, which is seldom, she explores the Pacific Northwest with her charming husband, enjoys the local music scene, plays darts (pretty well), plays guitar (badly), and gobbles all the books. Visit Sadira at http://www.sadirastone.com.
Tell us about what you write (short stories, novellas, novels, non-fiction)?
I write steamy contemporary romance set in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. My Book Nirvana series centers around a quirky bookshop in Eugene, Oregon. Gelato Surprise is a steamy older woman/younger man beach romance novella. The Bangers Tavern Romance series is set in a neighborhood tavern in Tacoma, Washington, where I live—the town, not the tavern! Each story features a holiday celebration in Bangers Tavern: Christmas, St. Patrick’s Day, Cinco de Mayo, 4th of July, Halloween, etc. During this sad time when so many bars, restaurants, and other businesses are shut down, Bangers Tavern gives me the chance to virtually share the fun, camaraderie, and bar food I miss so much. And each volume includes tasty cocktail recipes I’ve personally tested and tweaked—a tough job, but I do it for my readers (wink).
Under my own name, I write cozy mysteries and creepy short stories—think The Twilight Zone—but so far only one creepy short has been published. I’ll get to the rest of them eventually, but right now I’m having too much fun writing romance!
There is nothing I like better than when myWild Rose Press sistahs come for a visit and tell me about their new books. Today is no exception as I host one of my favorite writers ( and human beings!)) Mary Morgan.
Hello, Peggy! I’m delighted to be on your lovely blog today. Thank you for allowing me to share a few teasers why your readers should read my upcoming new release, RORIK, The Wolves of Clan Sutherland, Book 2.
8 Reasons You Should Read RORIK
1. The Vikings had their ancient laws, but you will also learn the Wolves of Clan Sutherland had their own called the Nine Noble Virtues of Wolf Lore.
2. You’ll get to meet a powerful Seer and wise woman from the Orkneyjar Isles who does not get along with a certain wolf in the elite guard.
3. You learn several ways how Rorik can shift magically into a wolf—from swiftly and quietly, to uttering a chant and transforming into the animal.
4. You’ll have a chance to revisit characters from the first book, Magnar.
5. Find out the other magical gift Rorik possesses.
6. Experience a Viking sporting game over a raging river.
7. Learn what happens when Rorik surrenders control to his inner wolf.
8. Norse Mythology comes alive within the pages of this story, and when you’re done, you’ll feel transported into Rorik and Ragna’s world.
Blurb:
The Dark Seducer is known throughout Scotland as a man who charms many women into his bed. Pleasure is his motto as he obtains information for his king. Yet Rorik MacNeil harbors one secret buried beneath his heart of steel. An unfulfilled conquest plagues both man and his inner wolf, and Rorik would rather suffer death’s sharp blade than confront his greatest fear.
As the Seer for the Orkneyjar Isles, Ragna Maddadsson confronts an unknown destiny when she travels across the North Sea to Scotland. In her quest to deliver a message from a powerful vision, she fears the warrior will not listen. If Rorik ignores her warning, Ragna must find a way to forestall his impending death. If unsuccessful, she risks having her heart cleaved in two.
To unravel their true fates, Rorik and Ragna must trust in the power of the wolf.
Sneak preview from Rorik ~
“Have you been eating the fresh berries in the meadow, Ragna?” asked the male voice behind her. The man rolled her name off his tongue, sending shivers down her back. She knew him well, often staring at him while she traveled into the nearby village of Kirkjuvágr.
Doing her best to compose herself, she wiped the palms of her hands down the front of her gown and turned around. “I have yet to find any. Why do you ask?”
Rorik stepped forth from the shadow of a tree. His smile came slowly as he approached her.
She tried to control the fierce beating of her heart as the man loomed over her with a dark and hungry gaze.
“Your lips are as red as the berries that grow in abundance in the meadow,” he stated softly.
“’Tis only an apple I have been eating.” Unable to move away, Ragna studied the man’s features—from his deep green eyes to the dimple hidden within the dark facial hair covering his chin. To suppress the urge of twining her fingers into his long ebony hair, she dug her fingers into her gown. She thought the warrior had to be chiseled from the Gods.
Rorik lifted his hand and gently pressed his thumb against her bottom lip. “Beauty.”
An ache grew within Ragna. His nearness made her weak and without breath. When his hand slipped around her waist, she collapsed into his embrace, placing her palms against his broad chest. “What are you doing?”
“I want to taste your lips, Ragna. I have thought of nothing else these long summer days.”
She tried to breathe, finding it difficult within his strong embrace. “Why me?” she blurted out on a gasp.
Award-winning Celtic paranormal and fantasy romance author, Mary Morgan resides in Northern California with her own knight in shining armor. However, during her travels to Scotland, England, and Ireland, she left a part of her soul in one of these countries and vows to return.
Mary’s passion for books started at an early age along with an overactive imagination. Inspired by her love for history and ancient Celtic mythology, her tales are filled with powerful warriors, brave women, magic, and romance. It wasn’t until the closure of Borders Books where Mary worked that she found her true calling by writing romance. Now, the worlds she created in her mind are coming to life within her stories.
If you enjoy history, tortured heroes, and a wee bit of magic, then time-travel within the pages of her books.
What a great way to start off a week! Just found out my book WOKE is a semifinalist in the UNCAGED REVIEWS Raven awards for 2020-2021. I became a finalist because my book was rated 5 stars by the Uncaged Reviewers.
To move on to the finalist category, the public votes on their favorite covers for each month, so this blog is actually a a BEG BLOG today ( LOL). I need your vote.
Here is the link to vote and the instructions:
My book WOKE is featured in the NOVEMBER CATEGORY, third from the bottom of the list. You need to click on the circle next to it then scroll down and click VOTE. Once you do, you’re done. Voting goes until July 2 so get your vote in early. Then scroll up and down the finalist list to see if any other of your favorites books/authors made the cut and vote for them.
It’s my turn over on Romancing the genres and this month’s prompt is Relationships and partnerships. I’ve got a non-book twist on my faves.
“I love this topic/theme this month because I am a HUGE fan of movie partnerships – be they male/female, male/male, or female/female. The dictionary defines a partnership as a relationship of two or more people. For my purposes today, it’s a duo.”
SO if you’ve been following my blog posts for the past week, you know I’ve been on a book blast tour for my new holiday novella SANTA BABY. And you know I’ve been on tour with one of my favorite people on the planet, not to mention one of my one-click authors. I’m delighted to not only call Nancy Frasera writing friend, but a friend-friend, too, and today I’m spotlighting her Dickens Holiday Romance Prequel – MAKING CHRISTMAS. I was lucky enough to read this book when it was in the ARC stage and it’s a lovely, charming prequel to the full length story she’ll be releasing later this year in the Dickens world.
For now, here’s a sneak peek at MAKING CHRISTMAS from this uber-talented and prolific writer.
It’s been five years since William Barrett returned to Dickens to take over as CEO of Wil-Bar Toys. He’s spent these past years helping build Wil-Bar into a leader in creative, handmade toys. His work ethic and drive has left him little time for a personal life. Or, perhaps he’s still pining for the one who got away.
Catherine Gates moved away from Dickens six years earlier. Now a staff reporter for a woman’s magazine, she’s returning to Dickens to do a story on Wil-Bar Toys new production methods and get the scoop on their upcoming holiday line.
When Will and Cat meet up again for the first time in years, it’s as if they’ve never been apart. Rekindling their friendship, and attraction, becomes more important than Cat’s article, or even the secrecy of the new toy lines.
Can these two childhood friends make up for lost time and pursue the romance they missed out on years earlier? Or, will Cat’s story expose too much and put them at odds with one another?
Tagline: Will their first meeting in six years be all business? Or, can they make up for lost time?
Excerpt
Catherine made her way through the front doors of Wil-Bar Toys and toward the reception desk. “I’m here to see Mr. Barrett. I have a ten o’clock appointment.”
“I’ll buzz Margaret and she’ll come to get you,” the young woman said.
Catherine waited for Margaret, obviously a new edition to the staff since she didn’t recognize the name.
Moments later, a woman who looked to be in her late twenties entered the lobby. “Hello, I’m Margaret Weatherby. If you’ll follow me, please.”
She fell in step behind the woman, going through the heavy oak double doors she remembered from her childhood. They continued down the hallway leading to the main offices, coming to a stop in front of the desk outside the large corner suite.
“How long have you worked at Wil-Bar?” Catherine asked.
“Two years now. I was originally hired to work for Mr. Wilfred Barrett but when the younger Mr. Barrett’s secretary left to get married, I took over for her as well.”
“That must keep you very busy.”
The woman nodded. “It does, especially this time of year. However, it’s such a wonderful place to work, I couldn’t see myself going anywhere else.” She paused, then added, “I’ll let Mr. Barrett know you’re here.”
“I’d appreciate—”
Her words of appreciation were interrupted by a man’s booming voice. “Margaret, do you have the report I left for photocopying earlier?” The voice was followed by the man’s appearance outside the office door, his footsteps coming to a halt when he saw her standing there.
She lifted her head, meeting Will Barrett’s intense gaze head-on.
“Cat? Cat Gates. I’ll be dam…darned.”
“Hello, Will.”
“You two know each other?” Margaret asked. When they both nodded at the same time, Margaret added, “Well, that certainly saves time on introductions.”
Will motioned for her to follow him into the office. “You’re the journalist they’ve sent to write a story on Wil-Bar?”
“Yes,” she said, taking the seat he offered. “I assume they thought I’d have an inside track on the place since I’m from Dickens.”
His chuckle sent a flurry of butterflies rushing her stomach.
“Inside track. I’d say so. You know every nook and cranny of this place—or at least you did before we remodeled.”
“Some I knew all too well, given I spent more time hiding than you and Tommy did seeking.”
“Sorry about that,” he said with a broad grin. “We were pretty mean to you back then.”
—Jumping Across Romance Genres with Gleeful Abandon—is an Amazon Top 100 and Award-Winning author who can’t seem to decide which romance genre suits her best. So, she writes them all.
When not writing (which is almost never), Nancy dotes on her five wonderful grandchildren and looks forward to traveling and reading when time permits. Nancy lives in Atlantic Canada where she enjoys the relaxed pace and colorful people.
My good friend, and amazeballs writer, KATHRYN HILLS, is re-releasing her 2020 LAST CHANCE BEACH book, SECONDHANDS HEARTS today as a standalone read.
And it’s a goodie, too!! I know – I read it last year.
Life takes you down many winding paths. Will theirs lead to love on Last Chance Beach?
Tasked with convincing her beloved grandmother to move back to the mainland, Kat Worthington returns to Last Chance Beach. This vacation island paradise is filled with cherished memories, and the thought of relocating her loved one weighs heavy on Kat’s heart. Is the alternative to uproot her life, stay on the island, and help run Gran’s charming B&B and antique shop?
Handsome neighbor, Ben Hadley, sure hopes it is. He and his playful pup are doing their best to upend Kat’s plans. Will their efforts convince her to stay?
Or will it require some of Gran’s special island magic?
Excerpt
“Look at that… Didn’t even break the pot.” Gran gave her a sassy little wink. “You’ve always been one for divine timing, Kitty.”
“Pot?”
“Yup, I knew I had a matching teapot to the set that came in yesterday.” Gran stood a little straighter and squared her chin. “Besides, I’m not alone. Ben is here.”
“Who the heck is Ben?”
“That’d be me.” A deep, male voice came from behind, startling Kat. Spinning with a gasp, her eyes widened when connecting with six feet plus of drop-dead gorgeous, dark-haired man. He met her stare full-on without so much as a hint of humility, and he nodded a curt greeting.
“Haddie Marshall, are you up to your old tricks again?” Ben brushed past Kat. “I told you to wait and I’d look with you.”
“Well, I didn’t want you fussing. I know you’re busy.”
“Excuse me,” Kat interrupted, not bothering to disguise the irritation in her voice. “Who are you, and why would you allow my seventy-seven-year-old grandmother to climb to the scorching top of a barn and up a ladder for a teapot?”
The man stared at her in silence. One dark brow cocked in obvious annoyance.
“Ben Hadley…meet my first grandbaby, Kitty Worthington,” Gran announced with a proud smile.
“It’s Kat, Gran. Or Katrina,” she grumbled. “No one has called me Kitty since the fifth grade.”
“Oh, shush, child. You’ll always be Kitty to me and Grandpa Mike.” The elderly woman’s smile fell away. She took a wobbly step forward to hand Ben the box. “Be a love and take this down for me. I think I’d better hang on extra tight to the railing after all this excitement.”
“I’ll take the box,” Kat snapped. “You help my grandmother back to the house, where we can turn on some air conditioning.”
The rich history and many mysteries of New England are the perfect backdrop for many of KATHRYN’s books. Winding roads lined by old stone walls, forgotten cemeteries, grand homes with shadowy pasts…all sparks for her imagination. Whether it’s a quaint seaside town or the vibrant city of Boston, it’s easy for this “hauntingly romantic” author to envision the past mingling with the present. No surprise, some of Kathryn’s favorite stories involve time travel. And ghosts! Sprinkle in some magic, and you’re off on a great adventure.
When not writing, this best-selling author is researching, gardening, or cooking up something special in her chaotic kitchen. She shares her colonial home in the north woods with those she loves most – her wonderful husband and daughter, and three crazy dogs.
The running joke that Kyle never sticks with anything—not a career or a woman—will continue to plague him. Unless he brings a knockout of a date to the weekend-long event. Cassandra Corwin fits the bill perfectly. Kyle’s had his eye on his brilliant, beautiful coworker since day one. But Cassie is an enigma, a loner. There’s no room in her life for anyone except Odin, her goofball of a Great Dane.
Day 4 and here are our stops for the next 24 hours. Please take a moment to stop by, leave us some love and support the bloggers who are featuring us by sharing/liking the post.
Here are today’s blog blast stops. Please support these bloggers in their efforts to support our book sby stopping by and commenting. Thanks, oodles! Peg
Many of you may know that I cook meals for my parents every week so that they don’t have to bother fiddling with food prep and their ancient stove. I’ve been doing this since Covid started because I realized they don’t eat well. Vegetables don’t exist in their minds, so I’ve devised ways to sneak them into casseroles and other dishes. This makes me feel better about their overall nutritional health. They don’t care because they don’t have to cook! lol.
What you may not know is that I also cook for my 10 month old Labrador, Maple. Since she was seven months old she hasn’t had commercial dog food, but home cooked meals I make in bulk, freeze, and then feed her daily.
Let me ‘esplain.
Maple has many allergies and sensitivities to things ( hey, she’s my dog. It figures, since I do too!). For the first six months of her life she was at the vet’s frequently with gastric issues, allergic responses to things, and generally not doing very well. We tried her on a about 10 different commercial dog food formulas and none of them really helped. She’d be good for a day or two, and then things would start up again.
After exhaustive google searches, I discovered a website for allergic dogs ( yes, it’s a thing) and they suggested making your puppy’s meals yourself and eliminating the food made commercially. I figured at this point, why the heck not try it.
Here’s the recipe they suggested:
3 lbs boneless, skinless chicken
2 cups brown rice or barley
6 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
6 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 24 oz package peas or lima beans
56 fl. oz diced tomatoes with juice from a can
3 Tablespoons fresh parsley or oregano
1/2 cup fish, safflower or olive oil
Place all ingredients ( raw and uncooked) into a stock pot and add enough water to cover well. Bring to a rolling boil uncovered, then cover and simmer for 2.5 hours. If needed, add small amts of water to keep mixture from going dry.
This recipe makes enough to feed a medium sized dog 2 cups a day for 16 days.
I’ve been making this once every two weeks for 3 months and Maple no longer has any gastric issues, and never – ever scratches from allergies any more.
SOmetimes I will add some stew meat to the mix along with the chicken for an added bonus. And since I grow my own oregano and parsley, I always have fresh herbs to go in the pot.
This was yesterday’s cook:
She gets one of these every morning and devours it!!!! And she hasn’t been sick once. Just look at this face!
I am uber-excited to be partnered with amazeballs writer, and very good friend NANCY FRASER for the next week as we travel around in cyberworld on a Goddess Fish Book Blast tour for our Dickens Holiday Romance Prequels.
InSANTA BABY, the lives of one couple are changed forever when an abandoned baby is found on Christmas Eve…
It’s Christmas Eve morning in the tiny New England town of Dickens.
Santa’s arrival is imminent, and a hint of snow is in the air.
Amy Dorrit is just about to open her popular diner for the breakfast rush when she discovers an abandoned baby on her back doorstep.
Amy knows she should call the authorities and turn the infant over to them, but she just can’t. Thoughts of her own abandonment as a baby flood through her and she wants to keep the little one out of the hands of the authorities until the mother – hopefully –returns.
But will the mom come back? And if she doesn’t, what is Amy prepared to do about the baby who has, already, claimed her heart?
It’s been five years since William Barrett returned to Dickens to take over as CEO of Wil-Bar Toys. He’s spent these past years helping build Wil-Bar into a leader in creative, handmade toys. His work ethic and drive has left him little time for a personal life. Or, perhaps he’s still pining for the one who got away.
Catherine Gates moved away from Dickens six years earlier. Now a staff reporter for a woman’s magazine, she’s returning to Dickens to do a story on Wil-Bar Toys new production methods and get the scoop on their upcoming holiday line.
When Will and Cat meet up again for the first time in years, it’s as if they’ve never been apart. Rekindling their friendship, and attraction, becomes more important than Cat’s article, or even the secrecy of the new toy lines.
Can these two childhood friends make up for lost time and pursue the romance they missed out on years earlier? Or, will Cat’s story expose too much and put them at odds with one another?
BAKED WITH LOVE tells the story of a Innkeeper, Maureen O’Dowd and Police Chief Lucas Alexander. Friends forever, these two are reluctant to share their feelings for one another. One has a secret, the other is unsure of the reaction to a love declaration.
Innkeeper Maureen O’Dowd lives to cook and bake, spoils her family and friends, and is an expert at keeping secrets, especially about the man who’s held her heart for years.
Police Chief Lucas Alexander is dealing with an aging father and a moody teenage son, and he’s in love with a woman who only wants to be friends.
How can these two fiercely private people reveal their feelings for one another without destroying the friendship they already have? And if they’re successful, will another secret, if revealed, drive a wedge between Maureen and Lucas that can never be repaired?
I’m so excited to announce BAKED WITH LOVE is also a FINALIST in the 2021 RONE AWARDS from InD’Tale magazine in the STEAMY/Contemporary category!
I’ve been so thrilled to have all three books in this series featured in this event and I want to give a big shoutout to NN Light for the wonderful promotional opportunities they give authors.
If you’ve read the books, I hope you’ve enjoyed them. If you haven’t, now is the perfect time of year to do so because…June Wedding season! Heehee.
Lawyer Cathleen O’Dowd wants to break free from her boring image. Widowed young, she’s toed the good-girl line but now wants a little fun and laughter in her days…and nights. Living in a small town, though, she can’t do anything that would tarnish her professional reputation.
Mac Frayne’s tragic past has turned him into a sullen loner. In town to write a book on the city’s founder, his plan is to get it done, then head home to his solitary existence.
When circumstances force them to work together, their opposing personalities clash, but the sexual attraction between them is palpable.
Can a simple affair with an end date be just the thing to brighten up their lives?
Welcome to Women’s Fiction Day! It’s our day to celebrate the authors, the stories, the craft, and the community that make Women’s Fiction vibrant, essential, and, one of the best genres on the literary scene.
First established by WFWA (Women’s Fiction Writers Association) in 2019, this day celebrates the authors, readers, bookstores, and fans of the women’s fiction genre.
WFWA describes women’s fiction as “layered stories in which the plot is driven by the main character’s emotional journey. The driving force of women’s fiction is the protagonist’s journey toward a more fulfilled self.”
As a gift for stopping by the giveaway tour, I’m offering 2 kindle copies of my just-yesterday published Holiday Novella SANTA BABY to two readers/authors who comment below and tell me their favorite Women’s Fiction author!
I love a good wedding, a book about weddings, and a promotion about weddings.
I’ve got all three today over at N.N. Lights Celebrate Weddings Bookish Event! Hop on over to the website to see my post about DEARLY BELOVED. Then enter the rafflecopter for a chance to win an Amazon GC.
And if you haven’t read DEARLY BELOVED yet ( tsk tsk!! LOL) here’s what it’s all about:
Colleen O’Dowd manages a thriving bridal business with her sisters in Heaven, New Hampshire. After fleeing Manhattan and her cheating ex-fiancé, Colleen still believes in happily ever afters. But with a demanding business to run, her sisters to look after, and their 93-year-old grandmother to keep out of trouble, she’s worried she’ll never find Mr. Right.
Playboy Slade Harrington doesn’t believe in marriage. His father’s six weddings have taught him life is better as an unencumbered single guy. But Slade loves his little sister. He’ll do anything for her, including footing the bill for her dream wedding. He doesn’t plan on losing his heart to a smart-mouthed, gorgeous wedding planner, though.
When her ex-fiancé comes back into the picture, Colleen must choose between Mr. Right and Mr. Right Now.
Amazon reviewer: “The dialogue is fast and fresh, the situational humor keeps the pages turning, and the characters are endearing. Family and forgiveness are huge themes here, and the author draws in the reader with humor and heart.”
N.N. Light’s reveiw: “What makes this a must read? Peggy Jaeger’s immense talent for dialogue and emotional depth. I found myself reading Colleen’s inner dialogue, laughing hysterically and thinking to myself how Colleen sounds like me.”
You all know I just love when one of my WIld Rose Sistah’s comes to visit. Today, it’s Maria Imbalzano, who’s been here before!!! She’s got a new book out and I just think it looks divine. She sent me a little bit about it and I thought I’d share it with all of you…
The series is about four friends from high school who are now in their early thirties. Each of the girlfriends has their own story and this book is Alyssa’s story. I had a lot of fun researching and writing this book.
I’m not much of a woodsy, camping, hiking sort of gal, but Alyssa needed to get away from her job and her life. So she headed to Glenn Pines, a resort in the Pocono Mountains for a week where she learned she had erroneously signed up for the Adventure Package. There would be no relaxing massages and soothing pedicures for her.
While there, she learned a lot about herself, allowing her to realize her adventure-less life had its drawbacks. Having lived through Alyssa’s daily experiences, I think it would be fun to change it up for my next vacation—which generally involves a beach, book, and lounge chair—and live in a bare bones cabin while participating in group activities that would challenge me. Is anyone up for a mountain adventure?
A little about SWORN TO FLY –
Risk-averse ER nurse, Alyssa Beckman, is about to lose her job because of yet another bad decision. In order to put her life back on track, she books a week at a rustic mountain resort to ponder her next steps and rejuvenate. But when she arrives, she learns she’s enrolled in boot camp, an adventure program far out of her comfort zone.
While there, she meets Gabriel Sutton, a world-travelling high fashion photographer who is in danger of losing his clients as well as his status if he doesn’t start following the rules. While hiking, kayak racing, and participating in team challenges, sparks fly between Alyssa and Gabe as they encourage each other to take different life paths. But will those paths lead them farther apart or bring them closer together?
I was born in Trenton, NJ , in the heart of Chambersburg, the Italian section of town. My father was a barber and my mother, a State employee, who also taught me to jitterbug at the tender age of four. We loved to dance in the living room while watching American Bandstand. Hardly star material, but I was driven nonetheless. The product of a Catholic School education, I learned the basics, and took for granted I would be successful doing something, even if it entailed cutting hair. I attended Rutgers University as a psychology major, but after three years decided I liked political science better. My first job led me to Manhattan where I worked as a paralegal for four years before attending Fordham University School of Law. There I learned to think like a lawyer, write like a lawyer, and speak like a lawyer, all while living like a pauper in the city of my dreams. Living in New York City, albeit on a tight budget, allowed me to indulge my love of ballet, art museums, and theater. Did you know you could walk into a theater after intermission and no one checks your ticket? I enjoyed the second half of many plays as well as ballets.
My love of reading dates back to my childhood when I would borrow at least four books from the library every week. During the summer, I would sit in the house and read, until my mother, totally frustrated, would send me outside to play and lock me out. I always found my way back in. However, I must confess, I hated to write. In every English and writing class throughout college, I dreaded trying to be creative. As a friend from law school so aptly put it, “The reason why we’re here is because we don’t have a creative bone in our bodies.” I agreed.
Despite my dislike of creative writing back then, I embraced legal writing, and was first published in Volume 5 of the Fordham International Law Journal. My article was entitled “In re Mackin: Is the Application of the Political Offense Exception an Extradition Issue for the Judicial or Executive Branch?” I would advise you against reading it, for you will surely fall asleep.
Following law school, I returned to central New Jersey and took a job at a local law firm where I have been a partner for many years. My area of practice is divorce, and while emotions run high and clients are living through the worst time of their lives, I find the practice very satisfying. In addition to litigation, I have added mediation and collaborative divorce to my repertoire, which are much more civil ways of dealing with issues in family law cases.
In addition to practicing law and raising two daughters, I’ve been working towards my second career. Memoranda of Law and Legal Briefs, although fascinating, pale in comparison to writing romance/women’s fiction. So how does one transition from divorce lawyer by day to romance writer by night? That’s the beauty of having two distinct passions.
Santa Baby releases into the novella-reading world today via all digital markets.
This little story was a joy to write and it sets up the full length FIXING CHRISTMAS that comes out on 11.9.2021.
As part of the Dickens Holiday world, SANTA BABY is set 38 years in the past on a snowy Christmas Eve in the tiny town of Dickens – somewhere in New England. Amy Dorrit, owner of Dorrit’s Diner, discovers an abandoned baby -literally – on her doorstep before opening her eatery for the day. What happens next sets up the rest of Amy’s life – and the future Dorrit’s Diner books.
It’s Christmas Eve morning in the tiny New England town of Dickens.
Santa’s arrival is imminent, and a hint of snow is in the air.
Amy Dorrit is just about to open her popular diner for the breakfast rush when she discovers an abandoned baby on her back doorstep.
Amy knows she should call the authorities and turn the infant over to them, but she just can’t. Thoughts of her own abandonment as a baby flood through her and she wants to keep the little one out of the hands of the authorities until the mother – hopefully –returns.
But will the mom come back? And if she doesn’t, what is Amy prepared to do about the baby who has, already, claimed her heart?
Here’s a little peek inside the covers….
“What in the name of all that’s holy are you holding, Amy Dorrit?”
Willie Jackson stood at her office door, a lit cigarette dangling from a corner of his mouth, his leather jacket hanging open and his eyes as big and round as his county-famous blueberry pancakes.
“What does it look like?” Amy dug around in the carrier searching for a bottle, pacifier, something, to soothe the baby’s cries. “Lose the cigarette. It’s a baby and I’m pretty sure it’s hungry.”
He lifted those shocked eyes to Amy’s face. “Girl, you been keeping secrets from ol’ Willie?”
“Oh for Pete’s sake. Are you nuts, William Jefferson Jackson? It’s not my baby. I found it at the back door when I came downstairs.”
“Whose is it?”
“No idea.”
“What is it?” Holding the small bundle like a football in one arm, she shoved the piece of paper she’d found at him. “Same answer. I haven’t looked yet. Here, read this. I found it tucked inside the blanket.” Once he had it, Amy placed her pinky finger over the baby’s lips. It immediately rooted, then latched on to suck.
“I knew it. It’s starving.”
“ ‘I’m sorry,” he read aloud, ‘but I can’t take care of her—’ well, we know it’s a girl –‘I have no job and no way to hold on to one with a baby. Please forgive me for leaving her like this, but I saw how kind you were yesterday and I know you’ll take care of her like I can’t.’” Willie scratched his head. “Well, shit. We got us a real abandoned baby, here, Ames ol’ girl.”
“Don’t curse in front of her.” She shot him an annoyed glare, her left eyebrow inching up her forehead to her hairline.
“It ain’t like she can understand me. She’s a baby, fer Chri-” Her other eyebrow followed its twin. “Er, pity’s sake.”
“I need something to feed her with.” She glanced around her office. “Can you get me one of the cake decorating bottles? The ones with the plastic tip? I think that’ll work.”
“What’a’ya gonna feed her? Frosting? You ain’t got no mother’s milk and you can’t feed her coffee creamer.”
“Dam-I mean, drat. You’re right. I can give her a little water to hold her over until I can run out and get her some formula.”
“Shouldn’t you call the police? I mean, she’s been abandoned, ain’t she? You can’t just keep her.”
Fellow Sistah-Dickens author Nancy Fraser has a Dickens prequel releasing, too, on June 14th – Making Christmas, that’s available for preorder now.
Summertime is here and before you head out to the pool or beach to catch some sunshine, check out this a-m-a-z-i-n-g giveaway hosted by N. N. Light’s Book Heaven. Win bestselling and award-winning books in digital, print and audiobook formats plus a few Amazon gift cards. One winner per prize. It’s the coolest giveaway online. You don’t want to miss out. The list is long and personally. If there’s a particular book or prize you’d like to win, be sure to say which prize you want when you enter via Rafflecopter. Enter below and good luck!
My book DIRTY DAMSELS is one of the books in the giveaway so if you haven’t read it yet, here’s your chance to win it!!
What if Cynderella had a one-night stand with a man named Prince?
When I first saw Cynderella all covered in soot in that sexy maid uniform, I knew I wanted to be her Prince.She’s a smart and savvy businesswoman who’s built her cleaning company from the ground up. But now that Dirty Damsels was booming, I’ve been hired to arrange a hostile takeover. But the temptation of having her was too much to ignore… We ended up spending one night together–a night neither of us will forget.
Now, I want more. I need more. I want to spend every night, skin-on-skin, with my beautiful Ella. Problem is, when she finds out who I really am, she’ll never forgive me.
****Readers who like the following topics will enjoy DIRTY DAMSELS: Sexy romance, Modern Fairytale, NYC, female CEO, Corporate Romance, Single woman, female business owner, HEA
I found out yesterday, that 2 of my books are now RONE AWARDS FINALISTS in this years’ InD’Tale Magazine Rone awards.
Can you spell E-U-P-H-O-R-I-A???
BAKED WITH LOVE is a finalist in the Steamy Contemporary Category, and…
A PRIDE OF BROTHERS: RICK is a finalist in the SUSPENSE/THRILLER category ( They spelled my name wrong, but…still a finalist, hee hee!)
Now, its up to the judges to determine the winners.
I’ll keep you posted ( while I’m saying nightly prayers for a win! LOL!)
Thank you to my wonderful publisher, THE WILD ROSE PRESS, for taking a chance on an unknown and untested writer 6 years ago, and my amazeballs editor Eilidh Mackenzie who makes every word I write -better!!!!
This is the very first time my new ROMANCE GEMS sistah, prolific author M.J. Schiller, has visited me and WOW! am I thrilled. She’s just had a brand new book release yesterday, book 3 in her LOVE AND CHAOS series ROCK IT TO THE MOON and man-oh-man does this book ( and the series ) look fabulous! The cover alone is enough to get me all hot and bothered!
Check it out:
She’s given her life up for others. Maybe Dex’s form of chaos is just what she needs.
Blurb ~
While love had come to some of the other members of Just Short Of Chaos, Dex Rogan had no interest in getting tangled up in that mess. That is, until he stumbled upon Tatum backstage.
Before Tatum, I would have told you love was for chumps. But I would have been wrong. The moment I saw her, it was like BAM! This driving urge to be with her was more jarring than someone smacking me in the face with my drumsticks would be. And every moment since has just solidified her place in my heart. By the time I found out she was off limits, it was too late. I was all in.
Tatum Salvetti doesn’t have time for love. If it can’t be color-coded or found on the periodic table, she doesn’t need it. But when an ugly incident drives her into Dex’s arms, she’s shaken enough to step out of character for once.
I wasn’t looking for love that night, I was looking to escape, and Dex was the perfect distraction from my train wreck of a life. …He was perfect, period.
But I’m in astrophysics. I’m not stupid. I knew it wasn’t going anywhere. Even if he wasn’t just interested in a one night stand, we wouldn’t be able to hide a relationship from Zane. My brother seemed to still think of me as the ten-year-old he met when our parents wed. Well, it wasn’t any ten-year-old girl in Dex Rogan’s bed that night, and if Zane found out about it, he would go apeshit. I was trying to get away from chaos, not create it.
Tatum has sacrificed her whole life for others. But maybe this time she could think of her own desires. Could Dex’s brand of chaos be just what she needs?
Excerpt~
She had one hand on the cinderblock wall and with the other she was messing with her shoe strap. The shoes themselves were sexy as hell, but as my gaze rose up her legs to the black dress she wore, farther along a shapely body all the way to her golden hair twisted neatly behind her, glowing in the fluorescent lights…she simply stole my breath away. Like I couldn’t breathe. She looked like she was dressed more for a municipal orchestra pit somewhere, not like someone attending one of our concerts, and that alone made her stand out. Then the way she rocked that prim little dress of hers…. It wasn’t low-cut or revealing in any way, but the soft sway of the fabric against her curves was magical. Then she laid those big baby blues on me, and I was a goner.
It dawned on me suddenly that she was standing outside of Zane’s dressing room, waiting for him. My heart dropped.
Damn it.
The lead singer always scored the hottest women. It didn’t even seem to matter that Zane was getting married soon. He’d never cheat on Grace, but this angel was waiting for him, not for me. Normally this would have me cursing under my breath, slinking off like a dog with its tail between its legs. But I was just so struck. I couldn’t walk away. I had to have her.
Admittedly, I was pretty floored by that fact. I’d never felt anything close to that for a woman before. It was like this instant, driving urge to make her mine. The kind of thing they wrote about in those romance novels Grace read.
Our gaze connected and she froze for an instant. “Oh, hi. I…umm…don’t have a pass but I’m—” She hopped around, still trying to adjust her shoe strap and losing her balance, a little purse that dangled from a gold chain falling off her shoulder.
Her obvious nervousness and bumbling made me feel like she was more attainable, more on my level, and my confidence surged. I took her arms to stabilize her. “I’m not here to bust you. Relax.” I flashed her a smile.
M.J. Schiller is a lunch lady/romance-romantic suspense writer. She enjoys writing novels whose characters include rock stars, desert princes, teachers, futuristic Knights, construction workers, cops, and a wide variety of others. In her mind everybody has a romance. She is the mother of a twenty-two-year-old and three twenty-year-olds. That’s right, triplets! So having recently taught four children to drive, she likes to escape from life on occasion by pretending to be a rock star at karaoke. However…you won’t be seeing her name on any record labels soon.
I’ve been sitting on the edge of my chair for the past few weeks just waiting for this day to arrive so I could finally – FINALLY – show you the amazeballs cover graphic designer Kristian Norris made for A PRIDE OF BROTHERS: AIDEN. Ready??
Ta-daaaaaaaa
I know you all haven’t read the book yet, but when I tell you this cover is a perfect depiction of the book, believe it!!! And did you notice the Easter Egg the heroine is holding??? Hee hee. It’s a copy of book 1 in the series, A PRIDE OF BROTHERS: RICK. So cool. So ridiculously cool.
I’m doing a professional cover reveal tour with N.N. Lights Bookheaven for this cover, too. Plus, I’m doing a $10.00 Amazon gc giveaway
Open to US residents only.
Runs June 1 – June 10, 2021.
Winner will be drawn on June 11, 2021.
Here’s one of the fabulous graphics she made me: When you read the book, you’ll know why this Chocolate lab is so important – she’s actually one of the main characters!
Here’s the blurb:
Lexi Buckley wants answers about her younger sister’s death. The police have labeled it a suicide, but Lexi doesn’t believe it. Stymied in her investigation, she doesn’t know where to turn next. After a chance encounter with a private investigator, she thinks her prayers have been answered.
Aiden Keane has never been an answer to a prayer before, but he agrees to help Lexi. A quirky combo of brains and beauty, the pixie blonde makes him feel things no professional ever should for a client.
When their investigation puts Lexi’s life in jeopardy, her safety becomes his number one priority. The hard part is not falling for her.
Here’s a little snippet between Lexi and Aiden…
After the best sleep he’d had in weeks, Aiden woke refreshed, recharged, and starving. A quick protein shake and he was out the door, his dog on his heels.
Brontë was in rare form as he ran her in the park on the beautiful June morning. He knew Dylan ran between five and seven miles every day, and it seemed he’d gotten Brontë up to his level. The dog, who typically started to slow down at about mile three of Aiden’s runs, was still going strong at the five-mile marker.
“I should leave you with Dylan more often,” he told the dog when he stopped and found a bench to sit and rest for a bit. “He pushes you a lot more than I do.”
The dog gave him one of her serene smiles, stretched out on the ground next to the bench and yawned before dropping her head over her paws.
When he pulled his beeping phone from his running shorts, an unfamiliar number crossed the screen.
“This is Aiden.”
“Oh, hi…I wasn’t sure if I’d get you or an answering machine. This is Alexis. Um, Lexi. We met. Yesterday. On the plane?”
Aiden smiled at how nervous—and cute—she sounded. How could she possibly think he’d forgotten her?
He stretched his legs out and dropped his free hand to scratch Brontë behind her ear. “You get home okay after we landed?”
“Um, yes. No problems.”
“Well, what can I do for you on this beautiful day, Lexi?”
“Oh, is it? I haven’t been out yet. I, um, had a lot to do when I got home.”
He chuckled to himself, thinking he wouldn’t be surprised if she hit him up with some statistic about how much of a vacation a person who just got home from a vacation needed.
A deep breath came through the phone, and the idea she was trying to gear herself up to ask for help drifted through him. Should he take pity on her and offer his services again, or wait for her to ask?
He had nowhere to be, nothing to do, so he slouched down even more on the bench and waited her out.
“Well,” she said after clearing her throat, “I’m calling because, after everything we talked about yesterday, and because you’re a, you know, private investigator, I, well, I want to ask for your help. Hire you. I want to hire you to help me find out what happened to my sister.”
His grin grew.
“I don’t know how much you charge,” she continued. “But I need help—your kind of help and expertise. I can’t do more than I’ve already done, and I’m at a standstill. So, like I said, I’d like to hire you to look into it. I don’t have much available cash now, but I can give you a retainer to start.”
“Don’t worry about the money. I’ve got a few days free, so how about I take a look at what you’ve got first, no charge.”
“Oh, I can’t not pay you. It seems…wrong, somehow.”
“Like I said, let’s not worry about it right now. Wait to see if I even have anything to offer. You may have already exhausted every avenue.”
“I seriously doubt that.”
He could hear the gears in her mind turning. “When would you like to start?”
“The Reverend John Trusler is credited with saying, ‘There’s no time like the present,’ so how about now?”
The tiny breath he heard her pull in charmed him into another smile. In truth, he’d been hoping she’d say now.
“I’m sorry. That was rude. You’re probably busy after just returning home. Got a thousand things to do. We can make it another time at your convenience.”
“Give me an hour and text me your address,” he said, pushing to a stand. Brontë lifted her head, and when Aiden gave her the signal to rise, she did and positioned herself by his side.
“Really? Oh, thank you. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate this. I’ll text you my address right now. And I’ll see you shortly. Thanks, again.”
“Lexi? One thing before we hang up.”
“Yes?”
Aiden rubbed his dog’s head, rewarded with a lolling tongue and a doggie-grin.
“How do you feel about dogs?”
I don’t have any purchase links or a release date yet, but when I do you can be sure I’ll be posting them EVERYWHERE!! hee hee.
It’s my turn over on ROMANCING THE GENRES blog this month and I’m helping them celebrate their 10th year in the blog-o-sphere! I love a top 10 list, so hop on over and see the one I devised for their anniversary:
It’s my turn over on the ROMANCE GEMS blog and this month’s theme is mom, roses, and romance. Check out this tribute to my mom, a woman I’ve never given enough credit to before for being the ultimate survivor…
My fellow Romance Gems sistah, Jan Scarbrough is giving her readers a real gift for a limited time. Her DAWSONS OF MONTANA series edition BRODY is free from May 19-22. Here’s a little about the book and series….
Brody: Dawsons of Montana
Blurb
When champion bull rider Brody Caldera learns his stepfather has suffered a serious accident, he heads home to the ranch he’d left behind years before. Maybe the clean Montana air of the Six Buckles Ranch, near Yellowstone Park, will help him forget his cheating ex-girlfriend. But returning will also force him to confront another woman, the one he deserted when she needed him most.
Ten years ago, Brody had chosen bucking bulls over booties and bottles, leaving ranch worker Stef Chambers to raise their daughter alone. She’s done her best to cowboy up for the sake of her daughter and build a good life for them. She can’t let Brody’s return change that. Damn the man for breaking her heart once. It won’t happen again. But Stef’s hero-worshipping ten-year-old is enamored by the famous cowboy, and Stef’s best intentions are side-tracked from day one.
Is Brody ready to be the man Stef needs, or is he just taking her for a ride? Brody has troubles of his own, dealing with his injured stepfather and a stepbrother enraged that the family cattle ranch is now a dude ranch. Is he ready to settle down and trade bull riding for a bride?
Excerpt:
Two o’clock a.m.
May 2017
Chicago, Illinois
He was home.
Brody Caldera’s heart quickened as he turned the key to the door of his high-rise apartment on North Sheridan Road. When his girlfriend Lori Ann helped him pick it out soon after they met two years ago, she’d loved the apartment’s million-dollar view of Lake Michigan. The location was trendy and close to downtown and her job at an up-and-coming ad agency. The apartment was to-die-for, and she said she’d be very happy living there alone between Brody’s business trips.
Yeah, Lori Ann was spoiled, all right. He gave her anything and everything she wanted. But why not? He could afford it. What else did he have to spend his money on but the woman he loved? Since the day he met her at a promotional event for his professional bull riders’ organization, he’d been head-over-heels in love with her. And she with him. They were a perfect match for each other. He was athletic, craved excitement, and took chances. She was sweet and calm, a great grounding rock for him. There was just something right about them together. And one day they’d get married and make beautiful blond babies together. Maybe sooner than she thought.
Even after all this time, he adored her. Still bought her clothes and jewelry. Still had hot sex with her. That’s why he’d caught an early plane home. He wanted to surprise her this morning and kiss her awake. And give her the ring he carried in his pocket.
His adrenalin surged just like it did when he was about to climb down on the back of a seventeen-hundred-pound bull. Brody slowly turned the doorknob, so he wouldn’t make noise and wake Lori Ann. She wasn’t expecting him.
Whether it is the Bluegrass of Kentucky, the mountains of Montana, or Medieval England, Jan Scarbrough brings you home with romances from the heart.
Jan is the author of two popular Bluegrass series, writing heartwarming contemporary romances about home and family, single moms and children, and if the plot allows, about another passion–horses. Living in the horse country of Kentucky makes it easy for Jan to add small town, Southern charm to her books and the excitement of a Bluegrass horse race or a competitive horse show.
The Ghost Mountain Ranch series contains a trilogy of three contemporary western books with a good blend of mystery and happily-ever-after romance.
Jan leaves her contemporary voice behind with two paranormal gothic romances, Timeless and Tangled Memories, a Romance Writers of America (RWA) Golden Heart finalist. Her historical romance, My Lord Raven, is a medieval story of honor and betrayal.
A member of Novelist, Inc., Jan self-publishes her books with her husband’s help. She has published 25 romances.
Anna Price is an Enologist, a world-renowned expert in anything having to do with wine. Her work at her family’s Crescent Lake Winery in the Finger Lakes region of New York has her feeling as if she’s treading water. There has to be more to life than just wine. Has she lost her spark? She’s jolted when her father suffers a heart attack, then gets a jolt of a different kind from the man taking care of her father.
Colin Grant is a nurse practitioner, specializing in the care of cardiac patients. He’d met Anna once before, but had just ended a long-distance relationship and wasn’t ready for someone new. But this time it’s different. There’s no denying his attraction to the curvy girl who has no idea how beautiful she is.
When Anna is offered a job in France, they may find their growing relationship crushed. How can she say no to the offer of a lifetime? Colin’s job is caring for other people’s hearts; he’s determined not to have his own broken again. Absence doesn’t always make the heart grow fonder. But is it worth the risk, for a lifetime of love?
And look for the rest of the books in the series, currently available across all digital media:
BLENDS
His mother’s final illness waylaid Sam Price’s college dreams, but he’s content working in his family’s vineyard in the Finger Lakes region of New York. When he finds a woman with a flat tire on a vineyard road, he’s stunned to discover it’s the girl he’d had a crush on in high school. He’d never been confident enough to ask her out back then. He’d been a farm kid. Her daddy was the bank president. Way out of his league.
Sherry Jones is tired of her parent’s ambitious plans for her life. She’ll finish her college accounting degree like they want, but how can she tell them about her real love: working with growing things? Then a flat tire and a neglected garden offer her an unexpected opportunity, with the added bonus of a tall, gorgeous guy with eyes that set her senses tingling.
What does a guy with dirt under his nails and calluses on his hands have to offer a woman like Sherry? It will take courage for her to defy her parents and claim her own dreams. Sam and Sherry’s lives took different paths, but a winding vineyard road has brought them back together. Are they willing to take a chance to create the perfect blend for a lifelong love?
Her family’s successful winery business in the Finger Lakes region of New York should have gone to Tessa Price. She’d always dreamed of running the winery, but when the “prodigal son” returns to take up the reins, she boldly strikes out on her own, purchasing Sand Creek Winery—a cash-strapped competitor—right out from under her family. She can forge her own destiny, using her marketing skills and big plans to bring new life to the winery. But first she has a proposition for the sexy previous owner. And he’s likely to hate it.
Kevin “Max” Maxwell would never have willingly sold his winery to anyone named “Price.” Family always comes first, and if paying for his sister’s cancer treatment cost him his business, it was worth it. But when the new owner offers him a one year contract to stay on as general manager, with a possible bonus, he really can’t afford to turn it down. He can ignore the effect her deep brown eyes and heart-shaped face have on his senses for a year, can’t he?
Relationships, like slowly ripening vineyards, take time. But Max has been keeping a secret from Tessa, one that could destroy her hopes for their future. Will a terrible accident force Tessa and Max to face how much they have to lose, or tear apart their budding relationship forever? Sometimes a romance is like a fine wine. To be its best, it just needs time to breathe.
Award-winning and best-selling author Lucinda Race is a lifelong fan of romantic fiction. As a young girl, she spent hours reading romance novels and getting lost in the hope they represent. While her friends dreamed of becoming doctors and engineers, her dreams were to become a writer—a romance novelist.
As life twisted and turned, she found herself writing nonfiction but longed to turn to her true passion. After developing the storyline for The Loudon Series, it was time to start living her dream. Her fingers practically fly over computer keys as she weaves stories about strong women and the men who love them.
Lucinda lives with her husband and their two little dogs, a miniature long hair dachshund and a shitzu mix rescue, in the rolling hills of western Massachusetts. When she’s not at her day job, she’s immersed in her fictional worlds. And if she’s not writing romance novels, she’s reading everything she can get her hands on. It’s too bad her husband doesn’t cook, but a very good thing he loves takeout.
That’s some post title, isn’t it? Anyone else channeling Dorothy Gayle right about now? LOL
So, let me ‘esplain the title.
I love Pinterest. I truly think whoever came up with the idea had me in mind. I usually construct boards for every book I pen while I am plotting. I am such a visual person. I really should be working in film, but…maybe in my next life. Seeing how I want my characters to look, getting a feel for what the setting will look like, and any other little visual item that I can construct in my mind, helps me write better, faster, and with more accuracy.
For my upcoming June 7 release of SANTA BABY ( A Dickens Holiday Romance prequel – Dorrit’s Diner) I went old school in my characterizations. Here’s the page devoted to the book: Pinterest/Santa Baby board. As you can see, if you click onto the board, I chose two of my all time favorite actors to portray the main peeps, Amy Dorrit and Andy Charles. Katherine Hepburn is absolutely the embodiment of free spirit and independent Amy, while Cary Grant is the perfect Andy. Luckily, these two worked together many times during their careers, so I had no difficulty finding pictures of them together to pin.
You may notice a craggy Kris Kristopherson in there, too. He’s the perfect embodiment of cook, WIllie Jackson.
Small town New England is, IMHO, a perfect place to live, evidenced by the scenery pictures on the board. And every small town has a local diner, considered to the beating heart of gossip in the community. In SANTA BABY, that diner belongs to Amy and is called, obviously, DORRIT’S DINER ( I bet you guessed that from the title of the book, Hee Hee)
Pinterest is a gold mine for authors, it truly is. And I have to think it’s made me a better writer, too, because I can flesh out every aspect of the book and use descriptions to enable the reader to actually “see” the words on the page as I envision them.
Pretty cool.
So, SANTA BABY is up for preorder right now across all digital media, here: UNIVERSAL LINK.
If you’re on Booksprouts, you can also read and review a copy before publication here: BOOKSPROUT
If you read the novella ( it’s short, only 57 pages) I hope you enjoy it and you’ll want to come back and read the full length sequel, FIXING CHRISTMAS, on 11.9.2021. But don’t worry – SANTA BABY is a standalone book – no cliffhangers, no unanswered questions at the end, and a total HEA.
And remember I said maybe I should be working in film because I’m such a visual person? My good friend, Nancy Fraser, produced the book trailer ( kinda like a movie trailer) for SANTA BABY and I think it’s just perfect. Check it out:
Since I’ve got a new holiday novella releasing next month, I figured today would be a good time to put up a little tease from it.
SANTA BABY( A Dickens Holiday Prequel – Dorrit’s Diner) was a joy to write – took me a week plus a few hours to get the first draft down. Amy Dorrit, owner of Dorrit’s Diner, was one of my favorite drive-by characters in Angels Kisses and Holiday Wishes from the first Christmas Comes to Dickens anthology and I sosososos wanted to give her a great backstory and HEA. SANTA BABY is the prequel to this years full length romance from Dickens from me, FIXING CHRISTMAS, but more on that in months to come.
SANTA BABY is a short – only 57 pages – sweet romance novella set 38 years ago. In the world of book publishing that makes it an historical read!! HEEHEE. No cellphones, iPads, or laptops in this story, kids. Just two people who love each other and an abandoned baby.
I hope you enjoy this little teaser…
Here’s the blurb and then a little tease from the pages….
It’s Christmas Eve morning in the tiny New England town of Dickens.
Santa’s arrival is imminent, and a hint of snow is in the air.
Amy Dorrit is just about to open her popular diner for the breakfast rush when she discovers an abandoned baby on her back doorstep.
Amy knows she should call the authorities and turn the infant over to them, but she just can’t. Thoughts of her own abandonment as a baby flood through her and she wants to keep the little one out of the hands of the authorities until the mother – hopefully –returns.
But will the mom come back? And if she doesn’t, what is Amy prepared to do about the baby who has, already, claimed her heart?
…..
“I know that look like the back of my hand,” Andy said. He shook his head as he closed the door behind him. “It usually means there’s a come to Jesus lecture about to be spoken and I should bow my head and fold my hands.”
When a corner of his kissable mouth lifted, her annoyance fled. Andy took two steps forward, his arms outstretched and she went into them willingly and without hesitation.
As she breathed in the scent of leather from his uniform jacket, Amy closed her eyes.
“Sweetheart, why didn’t you call me right away? You know I would have been here in a blink, sirens blaring if I had to.”
She pulled back, quirked an eyebrow and asked, “And this would be because you carry formula and diapers in your patrol car, would it?”
He had the grace to look sheepish. “Well, no. But I could have run out and gotten them for you.”
It took her a millisecond to realize he wasn’t so much angry as hurt he hadn’t been her first call. She cuddled into him again.
“The only reason I called Corrine and Matilda is because I wanted to talk to my mom. Unfortunately, I couldn’t.” His arms tightened around her waist. “Since those two are like mothers to me, I called them.” She shifted so she could look into his eyes. “I figured they’d know what to do, what I’d need. And they did. That’s all it was.” She cupped his cheeks and placed a sweet kiss on his mouth.
He sighed against her lips. “It’s a good thing your door is closed because if anyone saw me kissing you while I’m on duty, I’d never hear the end of it from the Chief.”
She kissed the tip of his nose and then pulled out of his embrace.
Intrigued? I hope so. You can preorder the novella now and have it delivered right to your device on June 7!
Easy Peasy.
And because I’m such a visual person, I love a good book trailer, and Nancy Fraser produced the perfect one for me. Check it out:
For all the Mom’s out there…the ones with 10 kids, or 1; the moms-to-be, and the new moms.
Here’s a reprinting of my addition to the CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE MOM’S SOUL book from a few years back:
Once upon a time I was a nurse, a writer, and a wife. Then, one day, I had a child. I became a mother.
Added to the list of things I previously was and did, I became: a chauffeur, cook, dresser, wiper of dirty faces, a cleaner of soiled bottoms, a retriever of thrown socks, a finder of lost shoes, a helper of homework, an insomniac. I was referee in toy wars, a slayer of nighttime dragons, a soother of nervous school jitters. I was a room mother, a den mother, a leader of scouts, and one day, mother of the bride. I calmed tantrums and bolstered fragile egos.
Once upon a time my name was Peggy. Then I became a mother and had as many aliases as a con men. I became – at various times – mm, ma-ma, Ma, Mommie, Mom, Mother, MOTHER!!, and for a very brief period of mental vexation, Peg.
My house, once orderly, became a disordered jumble of toys, stuffed animals, dried peas, and empty strew formula bottles; a carpet of clutter and chaos; a dwelling in disarray.
I was a Mother. I was an icon. I’d done something no man had ever done, accomplished a feat so death defying and magical that many wouldn’t attempt it. I became a mother. And in so doing, I became all that I was, all that I ever wished to be.”
There’s more to the piece, so if you’d like to read it in its entirety – and all the other wonderful pieces in the book, here’s the link: CHICKEN SOUP FOR EVERY MOM’S SOUL
So, I’m super excited to tell you that SANTA BABY ( A Dickens Holiday prequel – Dorrit’s Diner) is releasing on June 7, 2021. Get the title of this blog now?
Hee hee.
This is a prequel/novella for my upcoming Dickens Holiday Romance, FIXING CHRISTMAS, which will release on November 9. But SANTA BABY is a stand alone novella with an HEA and NO cliffhangers!
I had such a ball writing Angel Kisses and Holiday Wishes for last year’s Christmas Comes to Dickens Holiday Romance Anthology, that I jumped on board immediately when asked if I wanted to continue the trend. SANTA BABY is an origin story in many ways, but most of all it’s a love story about 2 people and a baby, abandoned on Christmas Eve.
Here’s the blurb:
It’s Christmas Eve morning in the tiny New England town of Dickens.
Santa’s arrival is imminent, and a hint of snow is in the air.
Amy Dorrit is just about to open her popular diner for the breakfast rush when she discovers an abandoned baby on her back doorstep.
Amy knows she should call the authorities and turn the infant over to them, but she just can’t. Thoughts of her own abandonment as a baby flood through her and she wants to keep the little one out of the hands of the authorities until the mother – hopefully –returns.
But will the mom come back? And if she doesn’t, what is Amy prepared to do about the baby who has, already, claimed her heart?
The book is up for preorder now, across all digital media, here: SANTA BABY and, if you’re a Booksprout Subscriber, you can request an ARC and read it for free as long as you review it before May 30, here: BOOKSPROUT. Last time I checked there were still some copies left to grab!
I know some of you are thinking DON’T RUSH TO THE HOLIDAYS!!! LET’S GET THROUGH SUMMER AND FALL FIRST. I hear ya. But…..it’s never too early for a Holiday Romance book! heehee
And Don’t forget to add SANTA BABY to your GOODREADS TBR list and BOOKBUB
And and and….check out the fabulous book trailer Nancy Fraser produced for me:
I’m so excited to be a part of @NNP_W_Light’s Celebrate Mothers Bookish Event. Check out all books just in time for Mother’s Day and enter the giveaway to win a $30 Amazon gift card: https://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/92db7750109
My book, THE VOICES OF ANGELS is one of the featured romance books, just perfect for a gift for Mom.
Love is the last thing Carly Lennox is looking for when she sets out on her new book tour. The independent, widowed author is content with a life spent writing and in raising her daughter. When newscaster Mike Woodard suggests they work on a television magazine profile based on her book, Carly’s thrilled, but guarded. His obvious desire to turn their relationship into something other than just a working one is more than she bargained for.
Mike Woodard is ambitious, and not only in his chosen profession. He wants Carly, maybe more than he’s ever wanted anything or anyone else. As he tells her, he’s a patient man. But the more they’re together, Mike realizes it isn’t simply desire beating within him. Carly Lennox is the missing piece in his life. Getting her to accept it-and him-may just be the toughest assignment he’s ever taken on.
Enter to win a copy Of the VOICES OF ANGELS and all the participating books featured in this wonderful event.
SO my Good News this week is that my daughter rec’d her second covid vaccine shot so she is all protected now!!! You can’t know how wonderful this news is to me!!!!
So, what’s something good that happened to you this week?
Happy Tuesday, peeps ~ Peg
And remember, if you’re looking for me, I’m always here:
