Posted in Giveaway, Interview, Spotlight, suspense on October 31, 2017

Book Title: The Fabergé Entanglement by Lesley Meryn & Elle Brookes
Category: Adult Fiction: 306 pages
Genre: Suspense/Action/Romance
Publisher: Lisa Kolber
Release date: July 2015
Content Rating: PG + M (There is some, not much, bad language, sensuality, one alluded sex scene but not described, possible triggers for sexual abuse/non-consensual sex as a plot point, action-style violence)

Synopsis

Sabinne ‘Saber’ Darrieux’s father, the billionaire CEO of Frontenac Global Security has been kidnapped. His ransom is not cash in a numbered offshore account, or a briefcase of Bearer Bonds but something utterly unique, incredibly valuable, and until recently, hidden away from the world.

The kidnapper seems to know Saber very well and knows that the next day, through her work as an elite translator she will be in the same location as the Object. She must steal the Object and deliver it to the kidnapper to ransom her father.

Adrian Steele, a British Intelligence agent has just come off of two harrowing missions. Upon returning to London for a well-earned rest, he learns that his friend and fellow agent has been murdered in Moscow, but not before he made use of a unique Object as a mobile ‘drop site’ for the valuable intelligence he was carrying.

The drop site is traveling from Moscow to England. Steele insists on completing the mission to honor the death of his friend, Gerry Cornell.

At an ultra-chic quasi-diplomatic gathering in a mansion in Windsor, England, Saber and Steele meet and find themselves faced with a powerful, undeniable attraction. But at the moment, this compelling attraction is very inconvenient.

In reality, they are at the mansion to check out the security arrangements — for their own reasons — to steal the Object, a Fabergé egg worth thirty million dollars. But who will get to the egg first?

Fabergé eggs are very famous for their unique surprises. Saber and Steele are about to be very surprised, indeed.

And when Saber clashes with Steele; more than sparks will explode!

Interview with Elle Brookes

In your book you make a reference to the SonicStar, how did you come up with this idea?
Part of my research process! The SonicStar does exist, it’s just not ready to be rolled out yet. Suborbital flight has been a goal for many years. I wish the Concorde was still flying They’re not quite the same, but I love the idea of supersonic flight.

What is your next project?
I’m drawing together the pieces of a new story about Saber and Steele. I really love these two characters, and the dynamic between them. There is more to their stories as people, how relationships are like mine-fields for both of them. Their desire to be with each other, but the issues they have trusting other people, and each other.

What genre do you write and why?
I love reading action-y romantic adventures, with a bit of humor. I thought it would be great fun to write one. So I did! I’m also a great reader of espionage novels. Adam Hall is one of my favorites. His Quiller series is amazing. I wanted to recreate the breathless intensity of his books but my main characters are very different than Mr. Hall’s. However, I did name my hedgehog “Quiller.”

What is your favorite dessert?
Creme Brûlée. That is a bold statement coming from a fierce chocoholic. I love making them. It might have something to do with the mini-blowtorch I get to use to caramelize the sugar on the top.

What is your writing schedule?
I do not have a set schedule, I write as the mood takes me. A better question might be what is a writing schedule?  I’m in Japan right now, having fun and doing research as well as writing. I’ve been spending a lot of time in trains, do manage to get some notes and scenes down.

How do you do research for your books?
I travel a lot, and try to get to know as much as I can about the places I’ve written about. Even Las Vegas!  That is the fun part. I also do extensive online research and talk to the people who work in the areas I write about.

About the Authors

LESLEY MERYN
Enjoyed an exotic, adventure-filled childhood, following her anthropologist father and travel writer mother to the farthest corners of the world. She later took inspiration from her Aunt Sophia Francesca and became the author of romantic adventure novels. She alternates her time between Los Angeles, and a family property located in Yorkshire England.

ELLE BROOKES
She is the author of the first two books of the Time Frame Series, LUST. MECHANICS. MINI COOPER. and SEX. COFFEE. TIME TRAVEL. Loves travel, discovering new foods to try, reading and writing. She currently lives in the central highlands of Costa Rica with her dog Pixie and her hedgehog Quiller.

Website ~ Facebook ~ Twitter

Giveaway

Prizes: ​

Win a gifted Kindle copy of The Fabergé Entanglement.

Two winners will also get a $15 Amazon gift card

(5 winners total, open internationally)
ends Nov 18

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Posted in Cozy, Giveaway, Guest Post, mystery on October 30, 2017

16 Millimeters: A Maizie Albright Humorous Mystery
Cozy Mystery/Romance
2nd in Series
Past Perfect Press (October 17, 2017)
Print Length: 320 pages

Synopsis

#StillAWannabeDetective In continuing her career-makeover quest as a for-real detective, ex-teen and reality star Maizie Albright has a big learning curve to overcome. A sleuthing background starring in a TV show— Julia Pinkerton, Teen Detective—does not cut the real life mustard. It doesn’t even buy her lunch, let alone extra condiments. Her chosen mentor, Wyatt Nash of Nash Security Solutions, is not a willing teacher. He’d rather stick Maizie with a safe desk job and handle the security solution-ing himself. But Maizie’s got other plans to help Nash. First, win Nash’s trust. Second, his heart.

Wait, not his heart. His respect. His hearty respect.

So when a major movie producer needs a babysitter for his hot mess starlet, Maizie eagerly takes the job. But when her starlet appears dead, and then not dead, Maizie’s got more than an actress to watch and a missing corpse to find. Body doubles, dead bodies, and hot bodies abound when the big screen, small screen, and silent screams collide. Maizie’s on the job, on the skids, and on thin ice, hunting a killer who may be a celebrity stalker. And Maizie just might be the next celebrity who gets snuffed.

Guest Post

“Georgiawood” Georgia: the new Hollywood

This is a story of how Hollywood can sneak up on you and the little world you live in. And how you can take the following events and about twenty years later use them in a book series.

About four miles from my house is Senoia, Georgia. When I first moved to the area from Atlanta back in 1999, Senoia — an old whistlestop town — had a few antique shops, a mom and pop hardware, a mom and pop furniture store, and a coffee shop on the main boulevard. At the time, Senoia was famous for a handful of movies — Fried Green Tomatoes and Driving Miss Daisy, namely. There was a small film studio there, Raleigh Studios, but you wouldn’t live in Senoia to break into the movie business. Most couldn’t tell you what Raleigh Studios did. You lived there because you were born there, homes were affordable, and/or you wanted to live in a quaint small town that had kept its Southern roots.

More movie people came. They made Sweet Home Alabama and a few other films. More businesses came to Senoia. We were thrilled to have a few restaurants and more shops. Other folks might have known AMC had scouted the location. I had no idea.

My family moved to Japan for two years in 2009, and when we returned, Senoia had a new line of buildings on the main street, built to look old in keeping with the town’s flavor. I had my professional author pics taken there because I loved Senoia and hoped to get some of that Southern flavor in the background (we mainly used an old brick wall while I’d hoped for a veranda).

Around that time, I heard this show Drop Dead Diva was filmed in my town, Peachtree City. I had never heard of the show, but I saw their fake courthouse every time I ate at one of my favorite restaurants, Mimi’s. Mimi said TV folks came in to eat. Wasn’t that interesting? We nodded and agreed. Although we never did see the TV people. We didn’t think. But at a local Starbucks, we did meet two young actresses who wanted to pet our puppy, Biscuit. My husband asked them if they had future career goals other than acting (because why would you be in our little neck of the world if you were an actress?) They smiled, said no, and moved on.

About 2011, the zombie people had moved to Senoia. They’d been filming around Georgia the year before —mainly Atlanta  — but the filming around Senoia was still relatively unknown. The next year, Zac Brown of Zac Brown Band opened a bar with live music to bring in income for his Camp Southern Ground Foundation charity. Senoia had two Southern Living Homes in two years. We vied for tickets to take tours of the homes. One, a brick townhouse with an elevator (!), was rumored to have been used by a director. Or a producer. Or someone in some kind of film business. We didn’t know. But it was pretty cool.

The Walking Dead took off in a big way. Little Senoia was suddenly cool.

We would go to Senoia to eat or shop and see the signs asking people not to mow their grass, because you know, no time for mowing during a zombie apocalypse. The main street was used in the town of Woodbury for the show. There was an actual fake building between real buildings. New houses were built on the other side of the tracks. And about three years later, a wall of corrugated metal was built around those homes. For the show. The set had changed. And suddenly there were tourists. Not the regular tourists who like to visit old towns in Georgia. These were fans of the show. They descended on Senoia like…hoards of zombies.

It was just so bizarre.

The local paper said that Pinewood Studios (we all had to look up Pinewood Studios —except my husband who remembers such trivia and recognized the name from Star Wars filming) was building a few miles away in the other direction. Near Fayetteville. And they were going to make movies there. Big movies. Like Spiderman, the Avengers, maybe an Angelina Jolie movie (I’m a little unclear if that was postulating by a friend or real). They bought a HUGE tract of land and a school. The school was new but not needed because of a shift in population. So we were happy the school went to good use and went on with our lives.

I learned the renters across the street were movie people after they moved out. My friend who works for Porsche USA said they were using the new Porsche headquarters for an Avengers set. And he saw all the Avengers. From far away. But he still saw them. However, Porsche USA is in Atlanta. And Atlanta has all kinds of stars. We were still removed. But then there was talk that maybe Sony Pictures was going to move in down here, too.

What was going on here? It was a little unreal. Andrew Lincoln (Rick Grimes) and Chad Coleman (Tyreese) from TWD waved at my daughter’s bus as she passed by a temporary location set on her way to school. She didn’t know them, but other kids did. They’d built a temporary wall in front of our old subdivision. To keep out zombies.

About that time, I began to write 15 MINUTES. The first in my Maizie Albright Star Detective series, where the ex-celebrity returns to her hometown in rural Georgia. And learns she can’t escape Hollywood because Hollywood had moved to rural Georgia.

My family moved to Japan again for two years (something of a habit for us) and we returned this past May. Senoia has more new/old buildings and more shops and restaurants, including one owned by six of The Walking Dead folks. My BFF saw Thor (the actor who plays Thor) working out in her gym. When I shop in my Kroger, I spot hipsters and the organic section has grown four-fold. We heard AMC was buying little Raleigh Studio.

And in Senoia, there are more hoards. And tours. And the wall is still there, but now there are guards, keeping all these zombie tourists from getting into the walled area. Also, prices and traffic have increased. Everything looks a little more polished. There are moms at my children’s schools who look a little more flashy (but maybe that’s the old mom in me talking and that’s just how young moms look now).

And I find it all ripe for the picking in my Maizie Albright series. In my mind, money, power, and fame bring bigger crimes, although thankfully that hasn’t happened and hopefully it won’t, except in Maizie Albright’s Black Pine.

Thanks so much for having me on Storeybook Reviews. Has anything similar happened in your community?

SBR – Larissa so great to have you here today!  I’m in Texas and they do a lot of filming all across the state. Usually not too much of a problem, except when they block off streets in downtown Dallas or Fort Worth during a business day.  Makes it hard to get out and go home.  Thankfully that did not happen often.  And I loved that show, Drop Dead Diva!  I didn’t realize it had been filmed in Peachtree City.

larissa

About the Author

After seeing Paper Moon as a child, Larissa Reinhart fell in love with stories about confidence capers. QUICK SKETCH is the Cherry Tucker prequel to PORTRAIT in the mystery anthology THE HEARTACHE MOTEL. HIJACK IN ABSTRACT is the third in the Cherry Tucker Mystery Series from Henery Press, following STILL LIFE IN BRUNSWICK STEW (#2) and PORTRAIT OF A DEAD GUY (#1), a 2012 Daphne du Maurier finalist. She lives near Atlanta with her minions and Cairn Terrier, Biscuit.

 Website * Twitter * Facebook * Goodreads * Pinterest * Facebook Street team * Amazon

 

 

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Check out the other blogs on this tour

October 17 – Girl with Book Lungs – REVIEW

October 18 – Cassidy’s Bookshelves – REVIEW

October 18 – Celebrating Authors – SPOTLIGHT

October 19 – My Reading Journey – REVIEW

October 20 – Valerie’s Musings – GUEST POST

October 21 – 3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, &, Sissy, Too! – SPOTLIGHT

October 22 – Lori’s Reading Corner – GUEST POST

October 23 – A Holland Reads – CHARACTER GUEST POST

October 24 – Teresa Trent Author Blog – SPOTLIGHT

October 25 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – COZY WEDNESDAY – INTERVIEW

October 26 – Maureen’s Musings – SPOTLIGHT

October 26 – Laura’s Interests – REVIEW

October 27 – Books a Plenty Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

October 27 – Community Bookstop – REVIEW

October 28 – Jane Reads – REVIEW, GUEST POST

October 29 – Socrates’ Book Reviews – REVIEW

October 30 – Pulp and Mystery Shelf – INTERVIEW

October 30 – StoreyBook Reviews – GUEST POST

Posted in fiction, Spotlight on October 29, 2017

Synopsis

A Day In The Life is Theodore Ficklestein’s debut novel about Nickolas Cripp, a college student finding his way in the world. Although Nick won’t admit it, he is the main focus to a young adult book that follows him from his home to college to the city, where he wants to attend an open mic.

Along his path, he encounters a teacher who asks about the apocalypse, a drunk on the train and two friends who feel writing isn’t Nick’s strong point, among others. Nick soon finds out that the funniest things in life aren’t that funny at all, and the greatest comedians never go up on stage.

As he goes through his day, one oddball character at a time, Nick starts to question if the comedy club he dreams of being in, is really for him. Should he be who he wants to be? Or who the world thinks he should be? Neither of which, he is entirely sure about.

A personal journey of self-discovery through the eyes of a youth yearning for meaning in a meaningless world; Nick learns that in life, the joke is on you.

About the Author

Theodore Ficklestein is an author, blogger and poet. His books include This Book Needs A Title Volumes 1 and 2 and I Killed the Man Who Wrote This Book. His first novel Day In The Life will be published by Gen Z Publishing in 2017. His multiple blogs include This Blog Needs Sports, This Blog Needs Poetry and This Blog Needs Movies.

Twitter * Website

 | 
Comments Off on Spotlight – A Day in the Life by Theodore Ficklestein @theodorefickle #fiction #debutnovel
Posted in 5 paws, Anthology, Cozy, Giveaway, Review on October 28, 2017

Sleuthing Women II: 10 Mystery Novellas
Cozy Mysteries
Self Published
Publication Date: September 5, 2017
Print Length: 675 pages
ASIN: B074TVL3HG

Synopsis

Sleuthing Women II: 10 Mystery Novellas is a collection of ten mysteries featuring murder and assorted mayhem by ten critically acclaimed, award-winning, and bestselling authors. Each novella is a tie-in to an established multi-book series—a total of over 800 pages of reading pleasure for lovers of amateur sleuth, caper, cozy, and female P.I. mysteries.

Frosted, A Moreno & Hart Novella by Allison Brennan & Laura Griffin—Three years ago LAPD Detective Scarlet Moreno and rookie cop Krista Hart were nearly killed during a botched sting operation. Now, they’re best friends and partners in the Orange County private investigation firm of Moreno & Hart. But their routine assignments are anything but safe.

Crewel Intentions, An Anastasia Pollack Crafting Novella by Lois Winston—Craft editor Anastasia Pollack receives a desperate call for help from former fashion editor Erica Milano, now in Witness Protection. Erica is being stalked and is afraid to notify the authorities. She once saved Anastasia’s life. Will Anastasia be able to return the favor before the stalker strikes?

No Quarter, A Cleopatra Jones Novella by Maggie Toussaint—Amnesia, the doctor says when accountant Cleopatra Jones wakes in a distant hospital. Hours later most of her memory returns. Detective Jack Martinez visits Cleo’s nearby wealthy client, only she’s dead and broke. To Cleo’s horror, she’s a murder suspect. Will she totally recover her memory before the killer returns?

What the Widow Knew, A Kali-O’Brien Novella by Jonnie Jacobs—Attorney Kali O’Brien takes on the case of a young woman accused of murdering her much older, very rich husband. As evidence mounts and other possible suspects are eliminated, Kali’s doubts about her client’s innocence grow. Meanwhile, Kali is also grappling with her feelings for longtime boyfriend Detective Bryce Keating.

The Magnesium Murder, A Periodic Table Mystery by Camille Minichino—While freelance embalmer Anastasia Brent prepares the body of a young bride-to-be, she learns the girl’s mother suspects foul play. Once again Anastasia is pressed into service as a sleuth, following a trail of clues in search of a murderer and justice.

Honeymoons Can Be Murder, A Lee Alvarez Novella by Heather Haven— When PI Lee Alvarez goes on her honeymoon with bridegroom, Gurn Hanson, they find a dead woman practically on their doorstep. Kauai breezes may be soft, but there are gale force winds of accusation against Gurn. Will Lee find the real killer before her new hubby gets sent to a Hawaiian hoosegow?

Smoked Meat, A Carol Sabala Novella by Vinnie Hansen—Baker and wannabe sleuth Carol Sabala visits her mother for a family Christmas get-together. It’s murder, in more ways than one.

A Deadly Fundraiser, A Talk Radio Novella by Mary Kennedy—When radio talk show host Dr. Maggie Walsh and her pals start digging up clues in a scavenger hunt at a glitzy fundraiser, the game suddenly turns deadly. Will Maggie and her team be able to crack the case and solve the crime?

The Color of Fear. A Kelly O’Connell Novella by Judy Alter—Kelly receives a written kidnap threat targeting her infant daughter, Gracie. Kelly’s assistant Keisha narrates as Kelly and her family plot their precautions, but as time passes and the threat still looms, fear takes a toll on the family…and on Keisha.

Papa’s Ghost, A Gladdy Gold Mystery Novella by Rita Lakin—Gladdy and her girls accept an assignment iat a famous resort in Key West, thinking it will combine business with pleasure. Once they arrive, Gladdy suspects something is strange. Not only is their client an unexpected shock, but so is the case of murder they are expected to solve. Can they succeed when a whole city is against them?

Some explicit language in a few of the stories.

Review

I decided to read a few of the stories by authors that were new to me.  I think one of them I had read one of their short stories in the other Sleuthing Women, but not the full series.  I read Frosted, Honeymoons Can Be Murder, What the Widow Knew and Smoked Meat.

All were great shorter stories (some shorter than others!) and I was led around all the characters until the killer was revealed and it was usually someone I didn’t suspect!  All authors are ones that I plan to check out whenever I can whittle down my TBR pile.  I think they all have something great to offer and I can’t wait to read the other stories.

We give this 5 paws up.

 

About Lois Winston

USA Today bestselling and award-winning author Lois Winston writes mystery, romance, romantic suspense, chick lit, women’s fiction, children’s chapter books, and nonfiction under her own name and her Emma Carlyle pen name. Kirkus Reviews dubbed her critically acclaimed Anastasia Pollack Crafting Mystery series, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.” In addition, Lois is an award-winning craft and needlework designer who often draws much of her source material for both her characters and plots from her experiences in the crafts industry.

Website * Killer Crafts & Crafty Killers blog * Twitter * Pinterest * Newsletter signup

 

 

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Posted in 4 paws, Giveaway, Review, Romantic Comedy, women on October 27, 2017

THE SECRET LIFE OF SARAH HOLLENBECK

by

BETHANY TURNER

  Genre: Contemporary Romantic Comedy

Publisher: Revell a division of Baker Publishing Group

Date of Publication: October 3, 2017

Number of Pages: 304

Scroll down for giveaway!

Becoming a Christian is the best and worst thing that has ever happened to Sarah Hollenbeck. Best because, well, that’s obvious. Worst because, up to this point, she’s made her very comfortable living as a well-known, bestselling author of steamy romance novels that would leave the members of her new church blushing. Now Sarah is trying to reconcile her past with the future she’s chosen. She’s still under contract with her publisher and on the hook with her enormous fan base for the kind of book she’s not sure she can write anymore. She’s beginning to think that the church might frown on her tithing on royalties from a “scandalous” book. And the fact that she’s falling in love with her pastor doesn’t make things any easier.

With a powerful voice, penetrating insight, and plenty of wit, Bethany Turner explodes onto the scene with a debut that isn’t afraid to deal with the thorny realities of living the Christian life.

Praise

The Secret Life of Sarah Hollenbeck is a rare treat packed with humor, hope, and heart. Sarah’s struggles are real and nearly tangible, and she feels like a friend we’ve all had. I laughed with her and fell in love alongside her and couldn’t wait to hear her whole story. What a charming, delightful book!”  Liz Johnson, bestselling author of The Red Door Inn

 

══════════║║║══════════

Baker Book House   Amazon   Barnes & Noble

Christianbook.com   iBooks   Kobo

Lifeway   Books-A-Million

Every now and then you just want to read a book that is light-hearted and fun. This book fills the bill. But don’t think that there is not a message in the book, there is if you look deep enough – that you can change your life and become a better person. Ok, so that sounds like many books, but in this case, Sarah goes from being a kept wife (for lack of a better description) to divorced to author of steamy books to a born again Christian and Christian Romance novel writer.

I liked this book but felt like Sarah was very self absorbed. It seemed like it was all me-me-me. She has a best friend Piper that she met through a book club (and how was actually quite comical), but we don’t really know anything about Piper other than she is a Christian and loves to read. She is always there for Sarah but don’t recall a time when Sarah is there for Piper. Perhaps there will be a book from Piper’s viewpoint and her life?

As self absorbed as I thought Sarah was, she was a character that was in continual development. She had to figure out how to restart her life after divorce. Then she becomes a famous author over night of some steamy romances (think 50 Shades) and then attends a church with Piper and decides to become a Christian (I think she always was but maybe more aware and dedicated?) overnight. Then she meets Ben, the new pastor of her church, and it is like fate has stepped in to push them together despite many roadblocks that arise.

Overall an enjoyable read and I had many LOL moments. It was the perfect book to read at the time, escapism but a little reality too.

We give this 4 paws up.

Bethany Turner is the director of administration for Rock Springs Church in Southwest Colorado. A former VP/operations manager of a commercial bank and a three-time cancer survivor (all before she turned 35), Bethany knows that when God has plans for your life, it doesn’t matter what anyone else has to say. Because of that, she’s chosen to follow his call to write. She lives with her husband and their two sons in Colorado, where she writes for a new generation of readers who crave fiction that tackles the thorny issues of life with humor and insight.

Website * Facebook * Twitter * InstagramGoodreads

—————————————–

GIVEAWAY!  GIVEAWAY!  GIVEAWAY!

Grand Prize: Copy of The Secret Life of Sarah Hollenbeck + a typewriter tote bag + a typewriter notebook + Columbia Jo’s coffee + Novel Teas teabags

2nd Prize: Copy of The Secret Life of Sarah Hollenbeck + a typewriter hardcover journal + typewriter enamel lapel pin

3rd Prize: Copy of The Secret Life of Sarah Hollenbeck + $10 Barnes & Noble Gift Card

October 19-October 28, 2017

(U.S. Only)


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Check out the other blogs on this tour

19-Oct Author Interview Forgotten Winds
20-Oct Guest Post #1 Margie’s Must Reads
21-Oct Review Texan Girl Reads
22-Oct Deleted Scene Reading by Moonlight
23-Oct Review A Page Before Bedtime
24-Oct Guest Post #2 Texas Book Lover
25-Oct Review Tangled in Text
26-Oct Playlist Books in the Garden
27-Oct Review StoreyBook Reviews
28-Oct Character Interview Books and Broomsticks

blog tour services provided by

 | 
Comments Off on Review & #Giveaway – The Secret Life of Sarah Hollenbeck by Bethany Turner @SeeBethanyWrite #RomanticComedy #LSBBT
Posted in excerpt, Giveaway, Historical, romance on October 27, 2017

Synopsis

Ewan Mostyn thinks a job as a duke’s daughter’s bodyguard will be easy—but Lady Lorraine has a few tricks up her sleeve that spark an undeniable passion

Fiercely loyal to his friends and comrades, Ewan Mostyn is the toughest in a group of younger sons of nobility who met as soldiers and are now trying desperately to settle back into peaceful Society. Ewan trusts his brawn more than his brains, but when he’s offered a job watching the Duke of Ridlington’s stubbornly independent daughter, he finds both are challenged.

Lady Lorraine wants none of her father’s high-handed ways, and she’ll do everything in her power to avoid her distressingly attractive bodyguard—until she lands herself in real trouble. Lorraine begins to see Ewan’s protectiveness in a new light, and she can only hope that her stoic guardian will do for her what he’s always done—fight for what he loves.

Excerpt

Lady Lorraine manages to sneak off to meet Francis, her would-be-lover in the garden. Ewan Mostyn tracks them down and interrupts Lady Lorraine trying to convince Francis to kiss her.

_______________________________________________________________

“Kiss me,” she said, looking up at Francis with adoring eyes the bastard did not deserve in the least. “I could wait forever if you would but kiss me.”

It was perhaps the silliest speech Ewan had ever heard. It was the sort of thing he expected one of Beaumont’s women to say, and yet despite the melodrama of the sentiment, at that moment Ewan hated Francis more than he ever had when his cousin had been his daily tormentor.

His loathing was so strong and so incomprehensible that Ewan regained control of his body and stepped out from behind the topiary.

Francis saw him first, and he stiffened and stepped back, putting a respectable distance between himself and Lady Lorraine. His expression was wary and, to Ewan’s satisfaction, frightened. The lady spun around as well, but her face showed no fear, only annoyance. She gave a long sigh. “Mr. Mostyn, I believe you know your cousin, Mr. Mostyn.”

“Ewan.” Francis looked him up and down. “We seem to keep meeting. Run along now. Lady Lorraine and I were having a private word.”

Ewan held out his hand to Lady Lorraine. “Come.”

“I see your vocabulary remains much the same,” Francis remarked. “As I’m certain you will use your simple grunts and growls to inform His Grace about this meeting, be sure to mention that I did nothing improper.”

“More’s the pity,” Lady Lorraine muttered. “At least the lecture and scolding would have been worth it.”

Ewan had the urge to laugh. Instead, he beckoned her with his outstretched hand. She did not take it. “I am not a dog, Mr. Mostyn. You needn’t crook your finger at me.”

Francis bowed. “I see I am no longer needed. My lady, sleep well tonight. I will see you…soon.” With what Ewan perceived was to be a meaningful look, Francis marched in the direction of Carlton House.

Since the lady seemed to have such an objection to them, Ewan folded his arms across his chest. He waited for her to speak. He felt he should say something, but he was not certain what that something should be. He had supposed Francis to be taking advantage of the lady, while it appeared she was the one intent on ruination. Francis was no paragon of honor and virtue, and Ewan would have liked little more than to beat the man to a pulp. But he could not fault his cousin for the scene he’d witnessed tonight.

“You won’t tell my father, will you?” Lady Lorraine finally broke the silence.

Ewan let out a breath of surprised air—half laugh, half incredulity.

The lady grasped his forearm. “If you do, it will not only doom me, but it will reflect badly on you as well.”

Ewan inclined his head, acknowledging the point. He’d made mistakes before, and he always took his punishment like a man. He was not much of a gentleman, but he had retained enough of his upbringing to know that one did not lie or cheat to avoid trouble. One faced the consequences of his mistakes with head held high. “Then so be it.”

She gaped at him. “You do not even care? You will be dismissed.”

Ewan blew out a breath. He did care. He cared very much, much more than he wanted to admit to.

Her hand on his forearm tightened, and he looked down at her. The damned chit was shivering with cold. Ewan was impervious to all but the coldest temperatures, but she looked almost blue. “Very well. Tell him. Nothing happened anyway.”

“Not for your lack of trying. I should tell your father you don’t need a bodyguard. You need to be locked in a convent.”

Now her eyes narrowed, and she released his arm as though it were filth she could not bear to touch any longer. “So now I am to be censured by you?”

He frowned at her. “Why not me?”

“Are you married?”

The question took him off guard. Conversation with women generally had the effect of unsettling him. He could never predict where their maze-like minds might wander. Conversation with men began at point A and ended at point B. Women often meandered to C then R and back to L before coming to the point.

“It is a simple question, Mr. Mostyn. Are you married?”

He shook his head.

“I didn’t think so. Are you a virgin?”

Ewan gaped at her. The question was so wildly inappropriate that, in his opinion, she had abandoned the points of the alphabet all together.

She waved a hand. “Yes, I know I am not supposed to ask you that, but humor me. I am making a point. Just answer yes or no.”

He shook his head as he did not trust his voice at the moment.

“Of course you are not. And yet no one thinks anything of the fact that you have bedded a woman who is not your wife. If I had to guess, with those eyes and those shoulders and chest”—she looked him up and down, and he actually felt himself heat at her frank perusal—“I imagine you have bedded more than your share of women.”

Ewan’s head was spinning at the rapidity of her speech, but what he did understand was that she had just complimented him. She admired his body, and the thought of her eyes on him caused him to have to take a breath. His chest felt tight and he lifted his hand to loosen the goddamn cravat before he remembered where he was.

“Of course,” she went on, “it is seen as perfectly natural for a man to want to kiss a woman, touch her, undress her, take her to bed, and—”

Ewan cleared his throat, not only because the already inappropriate conversation had descended beyond the pale, but because her description of the intimacies between men and women made him think of doing those things with her. And now the woman had not only fired his blood but stirred his rod. If she continued in this vein, his state of growing arousal would be evident to both of them.

“My point,” she said—and thank God she was finally reaching it—“is that it is considered natural for men to want these things, but when a woman wants them, then we should be locked away.” She gestured wildly with her hand, losing hold of her wrap so it slid to the ground and trailed after her as she paced. “What is so wrong with wanting a man to kiss me?” She gave Ewan a direct look, challenging him to give her an answer.

About the Author

Shana Galen is the national bestselling author of fast-paced adventurous Regency historicals, including the RT Reviewers’ Choice The Making of a Gentleman. Her books have been sold in Brazil, Russia, and the Netherlands and featured in the Rhapsody and Doubleday Book Clubs. A former English teacher in Houston’s inner city, Shana now writes full time. She is a happily married wife and mother of a daughter and a spoiled cat and lives in Houston, Texas.

Website * Facebook * Twitter

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 | 
Comments Off on Excerpt & #Giveaway – Third Son’s a Charm by Shana Galen @shanagalen @SourcebooksCasa #historicalromance
Posted in excerpt, romance, Spotlight, women on October 26, 2017

The highly anticipated and epic conclusion to the Chasing Red duology

THE RIVETING CONCLUSION TO RED AND CALEB’S EPIC STORY
Veronica “Red” Strafford’s painful past has made trusting Caleb Lockhart difficult. But Red might have pushed Caleb away one too many times…

I want you to fight for me. Just as I fought for you. But you wouldn’t.
I stood there, staring after him, tears pouring down my face.

 

Chasing Red Duology:

Chasing Red (Book 1)

Always Red (Book 2)

Buy the Book

Excerpt

We were back at the beach. It was past midnight, and the place was deserted, as if it had been waiting for us all day.

As if it had been waiting for this moment.

We lay on the sand, on the same blanket he’d brought when he took us here the very first time. It seemed like a long time ago. Before, he would have reached for my hand, threading his fingers through mine.

Not this time.

I turned onto my side so I could look at Caleb. His eyes were closed. The breeze blew a lock of his bronze hair against his forehead, and I wanted to brush it back so badly.

“I miss you, Caleb.”

He didn’t respond. His eyes remained closed, but I knew he heard me because I saw his breath catch in his chest.

I had hurt him badly, and he was probably still angry at me. He must hate me, but I would rather have that than a cold shoulder.

I needed to explain. I needed to tell him what I really felt.

I took a deep breath, gathering courage. “All my life I had to work hard to get the things I wanted. To reach the places I needed to be. I had to be strong—stronger than most people. Because I had to be. I shut out everyone. And why not?”

I rolled onto my back and looked up to the dark velvet sky, at the bright half-moon and the stars glittering like diamonds. It was so beautiful, so peaceful with the sound of the lapping waves. But a storm was brewing inside me.

“People are selfish,” I continued. “They always want something from you, and when they get it, they leave. So I never let anyone in. But then…I met you. You made me feel. You made me want things that I never allowed myself to want before. And it scared me. It scared me so much. So I didn’t trust you. I didn’t allow myself to. Every time I felt myself getting close to you, I pulled away.”

“Why?” he asked, his voice low and quiet. “Because…because it hurts to hope for the impossible. How can someone like you want to know someone like me? All I have is a suitcase of sad stories and a broken heart. My walls are high and impossible to break down, and I won’t let anyone in. But I felt your warmth…seeping through the cracks. How did you know where to find me?” My voice broke. “No one else ever worked to find me, Caleb. No one else stayed long enough to even try”—I felt a tear slide down my cheek— “until you.”

I sat up, pulling my legs close to my chest and burying my face in my arms. I felt him sit up and move closer to me.

“I didn’t trust what you felt for me,” I admitted. “I was scared. I kept waiting for you to disappoint me. Everyone else did. And I think that…that…somehow there’s something wrong with me. Something missing. That I’m not enough to make you stay, that somehow, someday you’re going to get bored with me and leave.” I sobbed. “All my life, my dad told me it was my fault. That I was the reason for all the bad things…” I swallowed. I didn’t want to talk about him. I didn’t even know why I’d mentioned him.

“I wish he was in front of me so I could hurt him,” Caleb said. “More than he hurt you.”

I heard the anger in his voice. He paused for a moment, and I could hear him breathing slowly, trying to calm himself. When he spoke again, his voice had softened.

“Red,” he whispered. “Do you know how I felt when you left me?”

I lifted my head and looked into his eyes. The emotion I saw in them—the intensity and the tenderness—filled my throat.

“I felt ruined. You ruined me. There is anger, but every time I see you, my anger fades away. And there is pain, but what is love without pain? Because, Red, every time you break me apart, you put me back together. And I always come out better than before. So.” He cupped my face, stroking my cheek with his thumb. “Ruin me.”

 

 | 
Comments Off on Excerpt – Always Red by Isabelle Ronin @IsabelleRonin #NewAdult @SourcebooksCasa
Posted in Cozy, mystery, Spotlight on October 25, 2017

Best-Laid Plants: A Potting Shed Mystery
Cozy Mystery
6th in Series
Alibi (October 17, 2017)
Print Length: 294 pages

A trip to the English countryside turns into a brush with death for Pru Parke, the only gardener whose holiday wouldn’t be complete without a murder to solve.

Pru and her husband, former Detective Chief Inspector Christopher Pearse, are long overdue for a getaway. So when Pru is invited to redesign an Arts and Crafts garden in the picturesque Cotswolds, she and Christopher jump at the chance. Unfortunately, their B&B is more ramshackle than charming, and the once thriving garden, with its lovely Thyme Walk, has fallen into heartbreaking neglect. With the garden’s owner and designer, Batsford Bede, under the weather, Pru tackles the renovation alone. But just as she’s starting to make headway, she stumbles upon Batsford’s body in the garden—dead and pinned beneath one of his limestone statues.

With such a small police force in the area, Christopher is called upon to lead the investigation. Pru can’t imagine anyone murdering Batsford Bede, a gentle man who preferred to spend his time in quiet contemplation, surrounded by nature. But as her work on the garden turns up one ominous clue after another, Pru discovers that the scenery is more dangerous than she or Christopher could have anticipated.

Marty Wingate’s captivating mysteries can be enjoyed together or separately, in any order.

 

About the Author

marty wingateMarty Wingate is the author of two previous Potting Shed mysteries, The Garden Plot and The Red Book of Primrose House. Her new Birds of a Feather Mystery series debuted with The Rhyme of the Magpie. Wingate is a regular contributor to Country Gardens and other magazines. She also leads gardening tours throughout England, Scotland, Ireland, France, and North America. More Potting Shed and Birds of a Feather mysteries are planned.

Facebook * Twitter * Goodreads * Website * Pinterest * Amazon

 

 

Check out the other blogs on this tour

October 16 – Carole’s Book Corner – REVIEW

October 16 –  Mystery Thrillers and Romantic Suspense Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

October 17 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – SPOTLIGHT

October 18 – A Holland Reads – GUEST POST

October 19 – Reading Reality – REVIEW

October 20 – Christ Reads and Writes – REVIEW

October 21 – The Power of Words – REVIEW

October 22 – Laura’s Interests – REVIEW

October 23 – Back Porchervations – REVIEW

October 24 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

October 25 – StoreyBook Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

October 26 – Jane Reads – GUEST POST

October 27 – Brooke Blogs – SPOTLIGHT

October 28 – Island Confidential – INTERVIEW

October 29 – A Chick Who Reads – REVIEW

 | 
Comments Off on Spotlight – Best Laid Plants by Marty Wingate #cozy @martywingate #mystery
Posted in Cozy, Giveaway, mystery, Spotlight on October 25, 2017

Cold As Ice (The Country Club Murders)
Cozy Mystery
6th in Series
Henery Press (October 17, 2017)

Synopsis

Ellison Russell’s life resembles a rollercoaster ride. And rollercoasters make her ill. Her daughter Grace has a crush on a boy Ellison doesn’t trust and she’s taken to hosting wild parties when Ellison goes out for the evening. Worse, the bank which represents Grace’s inheritance from her father may be in trouble.

When a meeting with the chef at the country club leads to the discovery of a body, Ellison can’t afford cold feet. She must save the bank, find the killer, and convince Grace (and herself) that powerful women don’t need men to rescue them.

Related subjects include: cozy mysteries, women sleuths, murder mystery series, whodunit mysteries (whodunnit), amateur sleuth books, book club recommendations, humorous murder mysteries, historical mysteries.

Books in the Country Club Murders Humorous Mystery Series:

Deep End (#1)
GUARANTEED TO BLEED  (#2)
CLOUDS IN MY COFFEE (#3)
SEND IN THE CLOWNS (#4)
WATCHING THE DETECTIVES (#5)
COLD AS ICE (#6)

About the Author

Julie Mulhern is the USA Today bestselling author of The Country Club Murders. She is a Kansas City native who grew up on a steady diet of Agatha Christie. She spends her spare time whipping up gourmet meals for her family, working out at the gym and finding new ways to keep her house spotlessly clean–and she’s got an active imagination. Truth is–she’s an expert at calling for take-out, she grumbles about walking the dog and the dust bunnies under the bed have grown into dust lions.

 

Website * Goodreads * Facebook * Twitter

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Check out the other blogs on this tour

October 16 –  Books,Dreams,Life – SPOTLIGHT

October 16 – Jane Reads – GUEST POST

October 17 – My Reading Journeys – REVIEW, INTERVIEW

October 17 – Blogger Nicole Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

October 18 – Back Porchervations – REVIEW

October 18 – Books Direct – GUEST POST

October 18 – Queen of All She Reads – REVIEW

October 19 – Socrates’ Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

October 19 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

October 19 – Maureen’s Musings – GUEST POST

October 20 – Girl with Book Lungs – REVIEW

October 20 – Teresa Trent Author Blog – SPOTLIGHT

October 21 – A Holland Reads – SPOTLIGHT

October 22 – Island Confidential – INTERVIEW

October 23 – Dee-Scoveries – INTERVIEW

October 23 – Community Bookstop – REVIEW

October 24 – A Cozy Experience – REVIEW

October 25 – Bibliophile Reviews –  REVIEW, INTERVIEW

October 25 – StoreyBook Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

October 26 – Laura’s Interests  – REVIEW

October 26 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – REVIEW

October 27 – Varietats – REVIEW

October 28 – My Funny View of Life – REVIEW

October 29 – Brooke Blogs – GUEST POST

Posted in Book Blast, Giveaway, romance on October 25, 2017

BOOK BLITZ & GIVEAWAY – LOVE UNCOVERED

Have you read Love Uncovered by Laura Barnard yet?  This sweet and sexy romantic comedy is the second standalone in the Babes of Brighton series.  It follows Brooke and Nicholas and their whirlwind of a romance.  myBook.to/LoveUncovered

Synopsis

Independent woman to her core, Brooke Archer has always been happy to hit it and quit it with the men in her life. But when her beloved Nan suffers from poor health, Brooke realises just how precious life is and decides it’s time to face her daddy issues and seek out her estranged father. Without so much as a name or photo, and a cagey Mum withholding vital information, it’s going to be no easy task.

Nicholas Parker is a relationship guy and always has been. Abandoned by his mum when he was seven he craves love and security. But finding a woman who can conquer his trust issues is no easy feat. Brooke is exactly the kind of woman he doesn’t need.

Pulled together by some invisible force, can Brooke and Nicholas overcome their differences to uncover true love?

With reviews like this what are you waiting for?

‘What a fast, fun flirty little book!’

‘Read in a day, couldn’t put it down!’

‘A fantastic pick you up book of love and life.’

Head on over to her facebook page to enter her $10/£10 Amazon Gift Card giveaway.  Good Luck!

 | 
Comments Off on Book Blitz & #Giveaway – Love Uncovered by Laura Barnard @BarnardLaura #romance