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.”
Check out the rest of the post here: RTG
Filed under Uncategorized
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 Fraser a 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.
A 1980s Vintage Romance …
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.”
Buy Link:
Universal: https://books2read.com/u/3ye0ae
Add MAKING CHRISTMAS to your “MUST READ” list, here:
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/making-christmas-a-dickens-holiday-romance-prequel-by-nancy-fraser
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/57984424-making-christmas
A little about NANCY FRASER
—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.
You can connect with Nancy, here:
Website ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Bookbub
Amazon Author Page ~ Goodreads ~ YouTube ~ Newsletter
Trailer for MAKING CHRISTMAS: https://youtu.be/PzzY7komw-I
Jigsaw Puzzle Link: https://www.jigsawplanet.com/?rc=play&pid=04ed82a4367f
Peggy here: I know you’ll love this charming, heartwarming story, and I can’t recommend it enough!
Filed under Writing
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.”
Get your copy here:
https://books2read.com/u/4jAjZZ
About Kathryn Hills
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.
Find Kathryn Hills Online
Twitter * Amazon Author Page * BookBub
Coming September 2021…
Sand, Salt, and Spirits – Last Chance Beach Romance
by Kathryn Hills
Kyle Worthington hasn’t returned to Last Chance Beach in years. He’s worked hard to prove himself to his overbearing father and the rest of the world. Now it’s October, and the vacation island paradise is celebrating the season with an island-wide Fall Festival. Family obligation demands he participate. Everyone will be there, including the ghost that haunts his grandparents’ B&B.
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.
Or will the island’s magic prove too powerful for them to resist?
Pre-order Link
Nancy and I are wrapping up a wonderful 5 day tour with Goddess Fish today for out Dickens Holiday Romance Prequels MAKING CHRISTMAS and SANTA BABY.
I hope you’ve been touring around with us and that you’ve entered the rafflecopter.
Here are the stops for today and I hope to see you. Please support these wonderful bloggers by visiting, commenting and entering our contest.
Thanks, oodles, ~ Peg and Nancy
1: Long and Short Reviews
2: Stormy Nights Reviewing & Bloggin’
3: Girl with Pen
4: Hope. Dreams. Life… Love
5: Literary Gold review
6: The Avid Reader
7: The Key Of Love
8: All Things Romance
Filed under Uncategorized
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.
Thanks, oodles!
June 17
1: Words of Wisdom from The Scarf Princess
2: Aubrey Wynne: Timeless Love
3: Fabulous and Brunette review
4: Harlie’s Books review
5: It’s Raining Books
6: Our Town Book Reviews review
Filed under Writing
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
June 16:
1: Welcome to My World of Dreams
2: Iron Canuck Reviews & More
3: So Many Books
4: underneath the covers
5: Westveil Publishing
6: The Salty Nomad
7: Sea’s Nod
8: underneath the covers
Filed under Goddess Fish Tours and Promotion, Uncategorized
Day 2 of Nancy Fraser and my book blast tour is bring us to to following tour stops. Check them. Enter the rafflecopter. But the books. ( LOL)
June 15:
1: Andi’s Book Reviews review
2: Candrel’s Crafts, Cooks, and Characters
3: Straight From the Library
4: The Pen and Muse Book Reviews
5: Natural Bri
6: The Faerie Review
7: Travel the Ages
Filed under Writing
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!
The look of a happy, healthy almost-11month pup!
Hee hee.
Filed under Writing
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.
In SANTA 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?
MAKING CHRISTMAS – A 1980s Vintage Romance …
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?
June 14:
1: Lisa’s Reading
2: The Book Connection
3: Lynn’s Romance Enthusiasm
4: Sandra’s Book Club
5: Splashes of Joy
6: Christine Young
June 15:
1: Andi’s Book Reviews review
2: Candrel’s Crafts, Cooks, and Characters
3: Straight From the Library
4: The Pen and Muse Book Reviews
5: Natural Bri
6: The Faerie Review
7: Travel the Ages
June 16:
1: Welcome to My World of Dreams
2: Iron Canuck Reviews & More
3: So Many Books
4: underneath the covers
5: Westveil Publishing
6: The Salty Nomad
7: Sea’s Nod
8: underneath the covers
June 17
1: Words of Wisdom from The Scarf Princess
2: Aubrey Wynne: Timeless Love
3: Fabulous and Brunette review
4: Harlie’s Books review
5: It’s Raining Books
6: Our Town Book Reviews review
June 18:
1: Long and Short Reviews
2: Stormy Nights Reviewing & Bloggin’
3: Girl with Pen
4: Hope. Dreams. Life… Love
5: Literary Gold review
6: The Avid Reader
7: The Key Of Love
8: All Things Romance
A big shout out to GODDESS FISH for arranging this tour.
Happy reading, peeps. And remember : the way to an author’s heart is to read their book and then leave a review!
Filed under Writing
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.
Happy reading, peeps. ~Peg
Filed under A Match Made in Heaven
Peggy Jaeger, Author 