Posted in Book Release, Cozy, Giveaway, Monday, mystery, Spotlight on April 4, 2016

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braking for bodies

Braking for Bodies: A Cycle Path Mystery
Cozy Mystery
2nd in Series
Publisher: Berkley (April 5, 2016)
Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages

Synopsis

Evie Bloomfield puts the pedal to the metal—in the latest Cycle Path mystery from the national bestselling author of Geared for the Grave.

Moving from Los Angeles to small, picturesque Mackinac Island to work in a bike shop might seem crazy, but Evie knows it’s the best decision she’s ever made. That’s not to say she’s gotten rid of all her stress; after all, the upcoming Lilac Festival has everyone in town riding in circles.

But things really go downhill when a ferry full of tourists—including Evie’s friend Fiona’s former boss, the editor of a sleazy rag in LA—arrives on the island. No one knows why Peephole Perry came all the way to Mackinac, but things aren’t looking good for Fiona when Peep is found dead. Now Evie has to gear up and get a grip on the truth if she wants to clear her friend’s name.

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About the Author

duffy brownWhile others girls dreamed of dating Brad Pitt, Duffy Brown longed to take Sherlock Holmes to the prom. Today she conjures up who-done-it stories for Berkley Prime Crime and has two series, the national bestselling Consignment Shop Mysteries set in Savannah and the Cycle Path Mysteries on Mackinac Island.

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Posted in Book Release, excerpt, Giveaway on April 4, 2016

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Getting It Back Cover

 

Synopsis

He needs a comeback, but is it in his career, or love?

In this second-chance romance, a former top men’s figure skating champion is willing to risk everything for a comeback – except a new start with his long lost love…

An unexpected phone call from the man who broke her heart offers Amy Shepherd an opportunity to return to the work she loves, training elite figure skaters. Except it’s just one figure skater: Him. Can she finally forgive and forget?

Figure skater Mikhail “Misha” Zaikov once had it all: medals, money and the adoration of millions. But a devastating injury put an end to his career and his romance, leaving him with nothing but regret over what could have been. His last chance to re-join the world’s top skaters is now. And there’s only one person who can help him: Her.

On Russia’s unyielding ice, Misha must reclaim what he’s lost while facing off against a talented young rival and risking further injury. But Amy soon discovers Misha’s much bigger challenges lurk off the ice. And she’s determined to keep Misha whole and healthy, even if doing so ends his shot at the gold.

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Excerpt

The day Misha arrived at the University of Delaware’s training center for the first time, the pretty red-haired student caught his eye.

She’d worn a fitted blue t-shirt and khaki shorts that displayed shapely legs, still with a trace of a summer tan. Her hair was in a single braid, worn off to the side. Pert breasts. Nice ass. Everything a guy could want, but it wasn’t just her looks that grabbed his attention. It was also the way she carried herself, moving through the room with calm assurance that seemed to fill more space than she actually did. Watching her efficiently coach a surly wrestler through his floor stretches left him with no doubt in her ability. At the end of his first day, he’d asked the professional trainer in charge of his rehabilitation to assign her to work with him, and when she’d greeted him in Russian at their first session, he’d been beyond impressed. Her stilted grammar and atrocious accent made it obvious she wasn’t a native speaker, but to hear someone speak his language, even badly, had meant the world to him.

“Why did you decide to learn Russian? I thought most Americans learned Spanish or French,” he’d asked, as he lay face down on the training table, turning his head so he could look at her.

Her face brightened with a pretty smile. “I took French in high school. But since I want to specialize in athletic training for figure skaters, studying Russian in college seemed more practical.”

“An excellent idea,” he said, liking Amy Shepherd’s common sense almost as much as he liked her looks. Not only did he want her working on his case, he wanted to know her on a deeper level. Everything in his life felt so unsure, he hoped a bit of her unflappable, steady confidence would rub off on him.

He wanted it then, he wanted it now.

That had been behind his crazy, pain-addled decision to text her two nights ago. He hadn’t known what he expected. Medical advice, punctuated by emoticons? Any response kinder than ‘fuck off,’ was welcome, though that had never been Amy’s style. All he knew was that he was hurting in pretty much every way it was possible to hurt, and it compelled him to reach out to the only woman who’d ever made him feel whole.

The fact she’d responded by coming to be at his side, especially from so many miles away, only served as further proof of what a fool he’d been to leave her.

About the Author

elizabeth harmonElizabeth Harmon loves to read and write romances with a dash of different.

A graduate of the University of Illinois, she has worked in advertising, community journalism and as a freelance magazine writer. She feels incredibly blessed to have a career that allows her to spend her days imagining “what if?” and a loving family that keeps her grounded in the real world.  Her debut novel, Pairing Off is a 2016 RITA Award Finalist.

An adventurous cook, vintage home enthusiast, occasional actress, and entry-level figure skater, Elizabeth makes her home in the Midwest, where life is good, but the sports teams aren’t. She loves to hang out on her front porch, or at her favorite local establishments, enjoy good food and wine, and talk writing with anyone who will listen.

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Posted in excerpt, Giveaway, Historical, romance, Spotlight on April 1, 2016

luck is no lady

Title: Luck Is No Lady
Author: Amy Sandas
Series: Fallen Ladies, #1
Pubdate: April 5th, 2016
ISBN: 9781492618720

Synopsis

“You should not have kissed me,” she replied breathlessly.

“I do a lot of things I shouldn’t. It does not mean I won’t do them again.”

Gently bred Emma Chadwick always assumed she’d live and die the daughter of a gentleman. But when her father’s death reveals a world of staggering debt and dangerous moneylenders, she must risk her good name and put her talent for mathematics to use, taking a position as bookkeeper at London’s most notorious gambling hell. Surrounded by vice and corruption on all sides, it is imperative no one discovers Emma’s shameful secret or her reputation—and her life—will be ruined.

But Roderick Bentley, the hell’s sinfully wealthy owner, awakens a hunger Emma cannot deny. Drawn deep into an underworld of high stakes gambling and reckless overindulgence, she soon discovers that in order to win the love of a ruthless scoundrel, she will have to play the game…and give in to the pleasure of falling from grace.

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Question Roulette Q&A:

Do you ever wish you could live during the periods your books are set?

Always! Regency England would be a fabulous time and place to live. And I have had a fascination with the American Wild West since I was a teenager.

This excerpt is from Emma and Roderick’s first meeting, an anonymous encounter behind the fall of a curtain. In return for promising not to discover her identity, he asks her to assist with his disheveled neckcloth.

Taking another step closer in order to comfortably reach up to his throat, she began to twist and fold the neckcloth into a style she had recreated many times before. Warmth emanated from the stranger and cool night air drifted around her. There was a solid strength to his body as he stood still and accommodating beneath her hands. The sound of his breath began to match the rhythm of her own and the light-headedness she had experienced earlier returned in a rush.

Her fingers fumbled through the familiar movements as what should have been a simple task became weighted with acute expectancy.

By the time she smoothed the edges of the cravat beneath his coat, Emma’s breath was tight and her pulse beat in a frantic rhythm. Craving distance and a safe return of her faculties, she shifted her weight to step back, but her retreat was brought to a halt when he lifted his hands to cup her face.

“One more thing,” he murmured. Then his mouth covered hers.

She had not yet lowered her hands, and they flattened against his chest as she tensed in shock. Her stomach went into a tizzy of uncontrollable flutters, and what remaining sensible thoughts she may have had were sent spiraling from her head.

He pressed his fingertips into the hollow at the base of her skull and propped his thumbs beneath her chin, holding her in place to accept the exquisite pressure of his lips. He took a step closer and his feet stirred the fall of her skirts as his body bumped gently against hers. Then he tilted his head and his mouth softened in unspoken entreaty, as if he were asking for something more.

Emma had never been kissed before, and as his mouth moved over hers, she found herself utterly unprepared for the sensations it invoked. She never could have anticipated the delicious heaviness invading her limbs or the tingling that rushed through her blood. When he pulled on her lips, as if trying to draw something from her, her body tightened deep inside with a yearning that came on so swiftly it startled her.

It finally recalled her to her senses—the inexplicable need that overtook all rational thought. Emma was not accustomed to such a complete destruction of mental acuity, and it frightened her.

She tensed the curve of her lower back. The resistance was small, but it was enough, and he lifted his head. Emma fought the urge to run her tongue over her lips. Though he had ended the kiss, he did not step back or release his hands from her face.

“Are you certain you wish to remain unknown to each other?” he whispered darkly. His voice felt like a caress. “We could continue this encounter in a more comfortable location. Somewhere just as private, lit by candlelight.”

“You should not have kissed me,” she replied breathlessly as her thoughts began to reorganize themselves and a raw panic seeped into her bones.

“I do a lot of things I shouldn’t. It does not mean I won’t do them again.”

Her alarm intensified at the thought of him kissing her again. She could not let that happen, not when his first kiss had been so unsettling. A second might be devastating.

About the Author

Amy Sandas’s love of romance began one summer when she stumbled across one of her mother’s Barbara Cartland books. Her affinity for writing began with sappy pre-teen poems and led to a Bachelor’s degree with an emphasis on Creative Writing from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. She lives with her husband and children near Milwaukee.

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