I don’t usually do recap blogs because I’m always moving forward and looking in my rearview, but July 2022 was a BIG Month for me, so I decided to take a quick look back just so I could bask again in everything wonderful that happened to me, career-wise.
Indulge me, please, lol.
ROMANTICON 2022 was held on July 15th and I had the best time. It’s been a Covid-minute since I was able to attend a book signing and this one was fabulous, so fab, I’m already signed up for next year’s event!
July saw the publication of my first KISS romance book. A PRIDE OF BROTHERS: RICK & AIDEN became KISSapp-worthy, opening my work up to a whole new subculture of romance readers.
Another wonderful honor for A PRIDE OF BROTHERS: RICK was to have it be turned into an interactive romance game under the Chapters App – and again, I now have an entire new fan/reading audience who are romance gamers. Who cool is that??? They changed the title to UNDER HIS PROTECTION and I’ve had a ball playing the game so far. New chapters are uploaded every Sunday morning.
I had a Cover reveal for my upcoming Dickens Holiday romance, SASHA’S SECRET SANTA with NN Light’s Bookheaven this month. It was so exciting introducing this cover because I lovelovelove it so much! Preorder links will go up soon!
And finally, I’ve got a Goodreads Giveaway for THE HAUNTING OF WILTON JUNE that will end tonight at midnight, so if you haven’t entered yet to win one of 5 print copies, here’s your last chance: Goodreads Givaway
Goodness! I can’t even imagine what August will bring. LOL
So, I’ve been a busy little romance writer this year! LOL
I’m excited to be included in this 15-author series with some of today’s hottest-selling authors. We’re having a series-wide cover reveal party on June 3 and you’re invited. It’ll be an evening of cover reveals, questions, and games – oh, and prizes!!! The party is being held on Annie’s Angels Reading group. Here’s the link to join and attend: LMSCR
THE LAST MAN STANDING SERIES is a sweet romance line about that guy we all know – the one who’s a confirmed bachelor; the commitment-phobe; the playa. In this series, these 15 guys get their comeuppance when they find that one woman who breaks all their single-man-and-staying-that-way-rules.
My book, CHANCE, is # 13, and here’s a little sumthin’ sumthin’ about it:
Chance Miller, divorce lawyer extraordinaire, knows the whole happily ever after dream is an urban myth. He deals with miserable and wedded warring couples every day and swears staying single keeps him sane and happy. His friends and family consider him the last single man standing and fear he’ll never find someone and settle down. But Chance relishes his carefree status and unencumbered lifestyle and has no plans to change anything.
If only his relatives would stop trying to set him up with their version of the perfect woman.
Fredrika Poole already experienced her one great love, and the widow can’t read any future romance in her tea leaves. She’s content to bake, run her business, and care for her daughter.
When Chance meets Freddie and discovers her marriage thoughts run on the same road his do, he realizes she’s the answer to his prayer for keeping the relatives at bay. But the pixie barista has a way of making Chance question everything he’s always thought about love, marriage, and wedded bliss.
Will his last man standing status go unchallenged? Or will Freddie be the one woman he wants…but can never have?
Intrigued? I do l love a fake-romance romance story!
Join us on June 3 to see all these gorgeous covers in one place! A good time is guaranteed.
I’m so stoked today to help one of my favorite authors, LOUISE STEVENS, reveal the cover to her upcoming Port Sunset mystery DIAMONDS, DUNES, & DEATH.
Ready?
Ta daaaaaaahhh
Corgis and champagne? Yes, please!!!
Here’s a little about the story….
I’m Millie Wentworth and I never thought I’d be involved in another murder, but here I am smack dab in the middle of a crime wave at the swanky resort where I’m Assistant General Manager. It started with a major diamond heist and ended with a dead body on the beach.
When one of my grandmother Lulu’s group of fun-loving septuagenarian friends is a prime suspect it’s time for Lulu’s Crew, Spud the corgi, and me to get sleuthing and uncover the real criminals.
And because dodging mobsters, international jewel thieves, and solving crimes isn’t stressful enough, my hypercritical parents are in town too. My mother doesn’t approve of Lulu and me in the best of times, and these are decidedly not the best of times. Plus she’s already planning my imaginary wedding to my kinda-sorta boyfriend Scott.
All I need to do is catch a murderer plus a jewel thief and survive my parents’ visit. No problem, right?
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.
Yup, it’s a Cover Reveal for one of my Wild Rose Press sistahs, Shirley Goldberg!
I’m so thrilled to show off her new cover for Eat Your Heart Out, the second book in the series Starting Over.
A little note from Shirley:
Two foodies, Dana and Alex, banter, sauté, and tiptoe around each other. Except for the occasional smooch. What’s with that?
I’m sharing more of Eat Your Heart Out’s details on my blog. Read the blurb and click this link https://midagedating.com/ to read an excerpt. Too soon for links, but I’m looking for ARC readers, so please keep in touch. Publication date coming soon!
Thanks to Debbie Taylor for her cover and the team at The Wild Rose Press for all their hard work!
Blurb for Eat Your Heart Out
When a tyrant in stilettos replaces her beloved boss, and her ex snags her coveted job, teacher Dana Narvana discovers there are worse things than getting dumped on Facebook. Time for the BFF advice squad, starting with Dana’s staunchest ally, Alex—hunky colleague, quipster, and cooking pal extraordinaire. But when the after-hours smooching goes nowhere, she wonders why this grown man won’t make up his mind.
Alex Bethany’s new lifestyle gives him the confidence to try online dating. What he craves is a family of his own until a life-altering surprise rocks his world. He knows he’s sending Dana mixed messages. Alex panics when he thinks he’s blown his chance with his special person. From appetizers to the main course will these two cooking buddies make it to dessert?
Funny and bittersweet, Dana and Alex’s story will have you rooting for them.
Peggy here: this sounds fun, doesn’t it? And I love the cover!
WIld Rose Press sistah, AMBER DAULTON, has a new addition to the Deerbourne Inn series and today’s the release day!!! Check this out: Isn’t the cover gorgeous?? ( And hot, LOL!)
Harmony’s Embrace
Blurb
Reuniting with the man who broke her heart has never felt so right.
Divorced dad Birley Haynes is too busy raising his children and running his family’s music academy to start a relationship. Then Harmony Holdich, his high school sweetheart, returns home to Willow Springs, Vermont for Christmas and falls into his bed. She brings light and fun back into his life, but he can’t brush aside the threatening incidents around his workplace.
Harmony hadn’t expected a complication like Birley, especially so soon after the death of her unfaithful husband. With her life a mess, she plans to move across the country and start over. All she can offer him is a fling, but her heart yearns for more.
When the threats rise, how will Birley keep his children safe and convince Harmony to give love another chance?
Excerpt:
He sighed heavily. Snapping at her wouldn’t convince her to stick around. “Have you thought about me over the years?”
Her bottom lip trembled, then she sucked it between her teeth. “Of course I have. High school was a long time ago, and our dreams clashed. You wanted a laidback life, even though you cut loose with Susannah in college. I wanted big-city living, and I got it. I like it.”
“So a rich-ass condo means that much to you? You want a new job slaving away five or six days a week for some major corporation until you’re exhausted?” He silently cursed. Not only did he slave away at his job, he was growing more tired of it by the day.
Good job, man. Way to control your temper.
In the back of his mind, he’d always believed he and Harmony would find one another again. Susannah and Claude didn’t compute. How crazy was that? Did he marry someone so different from himself because, subconsciously, he didn’t want the relationship to work?
A frown creased her brow. “I don’t need or want expensive things, but I like to work, to feel useful. My dream home is a little yellow bungalow with a big yard in a suburb.” She rocked in the chair as though she longed to jump up and run out the door. “I don’t want to argue. Let’s finish eating and hit the slopes.” She polished off her chips in a handful of loud crunches.
“What did you expect?” His throat constricted. “We’ve never hashed this stuff out since Susannah and Claude were always stuck up our asses. It’s time we deal with it.”
She scowled, then finished her grinder.
Birley gritted his teeth. Why had he been so stupid all those years ago? He’d wanted her to attend the University of Vermont with him, but she balked at another lengthy stint in school. He never should’ve walked off, leaving her crying on the porch of her parents’ house. She wanted time to think about her future—they’d only graduated from high school that morning—but her refusal didn’t mean she’d stopped loving him.
Too bad he hadn’t realized the truth at the time. She’d hurt his pride and broken his heart. Nothing mattered but hurting her in return. They avoided each other for the rest of the summer, then he headed off to the university.
God, how he’d missed her. She’d continued to work for her uncle while earning her accounting degree at a local community college and later moved to New Jersey for her job. Any chance of repairing their relationship had left with her, but by then, he was with Susannah.
Birley ate the rest of his sandwich, which slid down his gullet like cardboard. “No matter what you decide, I’m happy you’re home now.” The hope in his chest deflated. He stood and tugged on his gloves. “Let’s hit one of the blue squares. You okay with that?”
She nodded and followed him up. After they threw away their trash, they left the lodge.
Amber Daulton is the author of the romantic-suspense series Arresting Onyx and several standalone novellas. Her books are published through The Wild Rose Press, Books to Go Now, and Daulton Publishing, and are available in ebook, print on demand, audio, and foreign language formats.
She lives in North Carolina with her husband and demanding cats.
Well, I’ve been teasing about it for about 2 weeks now!!!
I’m so excited to show you the youngest O’Dowd sister Maureen’s cover for BAKED WITH LOVE...ta da!!!!
OMG isn’t it gorgeous!!!
Graphic designer and artist Diana Carlile has done it again. She’s designed all 3 of the covers for this series and each one is more beautiful than the last!
Here’s a little about BAKED WITH LOVE, which gets released on 12.9.2020, just in time for your Holiday shopping!
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 truly can not wait to see what readers think about these two and the twisted way they get to their HEA.
If you haven’t read the other two books in the series yet, let me make this easy….
I have many Writer friends who are helping me reveal the cover today so I’m off to thank them and help them promote their blog posts about BAKED WITH LOVE.
*** Be sure to check tomorrow’s blog post ( 11.12.2020) because I’ve got something very special planned for this holiday season for you! You won’t want to miss it because it’s going to make your holiday gift giving sosososo much easier this year!
And check out this amazeballs Book trailer Nancy Fraser produced for the book:
It’s the prefect depiction of my heroine and hero, Madonna and Tony.
The ebook is up for preorder now, here: MMM and the print copy will be available soon.
I’m doing an exclusive Kindle offer for the book.
Finding a body in the freezer of the family deli isn’t the way Madonna San Valentino planned to start her day.
Adding insult to injury, the investigating detective is the one guy she’s never been able to forget. After seven minutes of heaven in the back seat of his car when they were teenagers, Tony Roma skipped town without so much as a thanks for the memory.
Just when Madonna thinks the present situation can’t get any worse, Tony is ordered to go undercover at the deli to ferret out a killer. Forced to work together, she vows to keep their relationship cool and professional. But with the sexy, longing looks he tosses her at every turn, Madonna’s resolve is weakening.
With Christmas drawing closer and Tony’s investigation taking an unexpected turn, Madonna is at her wit’s end. Can she really be falling for him again? And will he wind up leaving her broken hearted and alone like the last time?
My talented WRP sistah, Tamela Miles’ addition to the series is the MARASCHINO MARRIAGE PACT and this cover, peeps, is hot hot hot!
Get a gander at it:
I’m thinking this book is going on the TBR pile immediately!!!
Here’s a little about it…
Blurb:
Mikayla DiAngelis has spent the past two years traveling the world and avoiding the demands of her overbearing warlock father. A confusing kiss from her former bodyguard is yet another reason for her to stay two steps ahead on the run.
Warlock bodyguard Austin Luca will stop at nothing to bring Mikayla home. His loyalty belongs to her family, but his heart belongs to her, even though he has ties that bind him to his own family responsibilities.
Their encounter was inevitable, and Mikayla is soon caught up in Austin’s passion and the world she vowed to leave behind. Will surrendering to her former protector cost her the freedom she needs?
Excerpt:
“You know better than to use your magick in public, Mikayla. What if I was some ordinary human passerby?”
Mikayla froze midmotion. That deep, amused drawl had been with her since she was a child. She slowly turned around, scowling. “I knew I shouldn’t have come back here for the summer. Am I that obvious, Austin?”
The tall, leanly muscled man with straight dark hair and piercing chocolate-brown eyes shrugged, a small smile playing on his lips. “I lost track of you last year in Rome. Kudos for managing to give me the slip, considering I taught you every trick you know. I bet on your sentimentality about this place bringing you back.” He gestured at the skimpy black sundress she wore. “You’re looking well.”
She nodded. “Thank you. You haven’t changed. You never do. Why can’t every warlock age as gracefully as you do?” Sighing heavily, she placed her hands on her hips. “If you tell me again to come home, I’m hopping off this pier.”
His face shuttered. “I have news about your family, Mikayla. This time, it’s serious.”
Tamela Miles is a school psychologist with Ed.S and PPS credential and a graduate of California State University San Bernardino and California State University Dominguez Hills. She is also a former flight attendant. She grew up in Altadena, California in that tumultuous time known as the 1980s. She now resides with her family in the Inland Empire, CA. She’s a horror/paranormal romance writer mainly because it feels so good having her characters do bad things and, later, pondering what makes them so bad and why they can never seem to change their wicked ways.
She enjoys emails from people who like her work. In fact, she loves emails. She can be contacted at tamelamiles@yahoo.com or her Facebook page, Tamela Miles Books. She also welcomes reader reviews and enjoys the feedback from people who love to read as much as she does.
A new town, a fresh start, and magical secrets that could destroy them.
Blue eyes, dimples, and silky brown hair; Grant Luther has all of Alison’s weaknesses.
When he asks for one last chance to save their marriage, she agrees to relocate their family to isolated Strawberry, Kentucky in pursuit of his career dreams. Grant views Alison’s sensory issues as limitations and protects her from outside threats. When he finds his new job includes changing him into a shifter in a war against the soul-sucking Sluagh he vows to keep the changes a secret. What he doesn’t know is Alison has been hiding a magical secret of her own. One that makes her a target of the Sluagh.
Will Alison emerge from Grant’s shadow to protect her family? And can Grant learn that being different can be a strength not a weakness?
Excerpt:
“You look perfect. I mean perfectly healthy. I mean mostly uninjured,” she stammers. She places her tiny hand over her eyes.
Feeling braver than ever, I walk right up to her. I gently remove the hand from her face and hold it to my own. “See, I’m fine,” I whisper as I gently rub my thumb over her tiny knuckles.
Her eyes lift to mine and lock our gazes. I have always found the golden color of her eyes fascinating but never studied them up close. They are light brown with a golden star in the middle. I am literally star gazing as she takes in the injuries to my face. We stand there for about a minute, lost in time.
I wonder if she is thinking about when we first started dating, the hard times that followed, the present, or the future. I search her face for clues but don’t want to break the spell by opening my mouth. I decide to put said mouth to better use by lowering my head toward hers.
Tell us about what you write (short stories, novellas, novels, non-fiction)? I am an over writer who uses many more words than necessary. An outlined short story will sprout into a novella, an outlined novella blooms into a novel and an outlined novel flowers into an opus. Bear with Me was a 25,000-word short story that bloomed into the 67,000-word novel when I added Alison’s point of view.
What drew you to writing? In 2002, started my writing career in a laboratory. I researched and wrote scientific articles on the probability and possible connections between recovering from influenza and contracting a strep-based otitis media (middle ear infection). With degrees in molecular biology and chemical engineering (read as big nerd), I was interested in the genetic interaction between the influenza infection and ear epithelial cells. Later in my career, I became fascinated with the genetic variations between all epithelial cells of the respiratory tract and how they interact with different sized droplets of infectious material. After earning my master’s degree in particle physics (read as uber-nerd), I published many articles on droplet deposition in the body.
My job as a scientist was very demanding and I gave up technical writing to pursue teaching. I loved teaching ninth-grade science and twelve grade physics. However, my son was deemed too sick for school in 2013 by his medical team and school authorities. While I could have a tutor teach him under the umbrella of “home instruction”, I decided to try to teach himself. Six years later, I wouldn’t have it any other way.
What was your inspiration for BEAR WITH ME? On a road trip between Louisville and Lexington Kentucky, we drove through a multitude of small towns named after fruits and vegetables. When I couldn’t find Strawberry on the map, I knew it would be the name of my fictional small town which became the name of the book series. Each book in the series has a pun for a title. Bear with Me is an Ursa shifter novel. Main character Grant is an exaggerated portrayal of my spouse who uses the phrase “bear with me” often. Very often. The title is a pun of his catchphrase. Good thing he enjoys my sense of humor.
What did your route to publishing look like? I was very naïve in the query process. I wanted to query agents who represented authors with books on my shelves. I made a list of five agents and queried the first one. I had read not to query more than one agent at a time, so I waited for eight months. In the meantime, I wrote two more novels, built the #Strawberryshifters hashtag, read my books in a library book club, and had a #Strawberryshifters tee-shirt printed with my desire for an agent. I was wearing this tee-shirt when I met my favorite author, Lora Leigh.
We talked about my love of her books, my new series, and how she got started by writing for a small press. She told me to find a small press where I wished to have my books sit on their shelves and enjoy being a published author. She told me to stop chasing agents who will find me when or if I need one. With her advice in my ear, I went home to look at my bookshelves. I am a big fan of J.C. McKenzie, so I picked The Wild Rose Press. The experience has been amazing, and I love working with them. I feel like part of a team with so many professionals to show me the way.
Any new projects on the horizon? The Strawberry shifters series currently contains sixteen novels with spin-off novellas along the way. The second book, “Round of Applause”, is a Yule-tide book so I am hoping to have it out around Christmas of 2020. For sneak peeks, including candle scents, check out my website. I have trouble keeping secrets so that is where I will leak them.
Peggy Jaeger, Author 