Chris Redding's Blog, page 31

THE HARDEST PART ABOUT WRITING IS….

The hardest part about writing is chasing realism. I find that to be one of the most difficult things to do. Realism is so challenging because it is so easy to fall into a pattern of what we’ve seen on television and movies, or read in books. Even how we feel about a subject can cause us to fall into a pattern that follows a boring theme than reality. Everybody doesn’t fall in love no matter the obstacle, everybody doesn’t find the missing item, good does not always triumph over evil, bad people are not always punished, family members are not always united and the list goes on.

What inspires me in my search for reality is a bible quote taken from Ecclesiastes 9:11, “I returned to see under the sun that the swift do not have the race, nor the mighty ones the battle, nor do the wise also have the food, nor do the understanding ones also have the riches, nor do even those having knowledge have the favor, because time and unforeseen occurrence befall them all.”

The meaning is the same. You can fall in love with a character, and love them dearly because you developed them and brought out all of their secrets and fears, but can you then kill them off? You can have the FBI hunt down the kidnapped young girl, but can you have them find her in a shallow grave at the end? You can have the innocent man go to trial for the crime, but can you have him lose and get the chair? Can you do what is NOT part of a pattern and give your reader a strong dose of realism? Or do you follow the escapism that is currently given to people who want a digestible ending. The ending that makes them feel good at the end. Not even good, like a satisfying ending, but a very good, sweet, sickly candy type of ending. Sometimes steak satisfies. It might be closer to reality than donuts, but reality sometimes is an eye opener, sometimes it sobers the reader, sometimes it makes the reader think. Sometimes a dose of reality is more desired than the common ending.

I’m not saying reality is always an undesirable ending, or less digestible. I’m saying that reality almost always comes as a surprise, sometimes shocking, sometimes expected, but seldom copied.

COVER OF DARKNESS
By
Gregory Delaurentis
BLURB:

A high profile murder of a Wall Street executive in Westchester pits three people against the criminal underbelly of Manhattan nightlife. The key players are two ex-cops turned private investigators—Kevin Whitehouse, whose sharpest tool is his keen analytical mind, and David Allerton, a former Special Forces operative—and Margaret Alexander, Kevin’s lover. In their search for a killer, they are forced to travel to the edge of sanity and morality, while stumbling onto their own confusing secrets as well. The Cover of Darkness is a gritty noir saga that untangles a web of deceit in the course of tracking down a brutal murderer.

EXCERPT:

David stopped pacing, and then started working on a rock embedded in the dirt with the toe of his shoe. “I wonder why MacDonald didn’t say anything in the interview about the cops being present. He should have told us that there were cops in the Midnight for protection—making sure the dealers were selling and not using.”

“Maybe,” Kevin ventured, “he didn’t want to drop a dime on his cop friends. Maybe he was frightened.”

“Maybe. That would have helped us a lot,” David said, his eye caught by a shapely girl on a bike riding nearby.

Margaret sat up. “That would also explain how the killer got past the gate and simply walked into the house. He could have been flashing a badge.”

“That makes some sense,” Kevin said. “And certainly cops can kill.”

“They make the best assassins, don’t they?” David quipped.

“So now this is a cop hunt?” Kevin asked.

“I would rather it end here, guys,” Margaret said.

David approached the two and stood over them. “The question is now how to hunt the most dangerous thing in New York. Crossing the thin blue line is not going to be fun or easy.”

“Fun?” Margaret said. “It’s downright dangerous.”

“We can’t go to Ferryman and Reynolds,” Kevin said, nervously running his fingers through his hair, and retrieving his arm from around Margaret as he sat up. “They’ll only go on the defensive. And if the case starts turning in that direction, they’ll only deflect it.”

AUTHOR INFORMATION:

Gregory Delaurentis spent his adult life roaming from job to job, working for Lockheed in California, various law firms in New York, and financial firms on Wall Street. Throughout this period of time, he was writing—unceasingly—finally producing a large body of work, albeit unrecognized and unpublished . . . until now. Cover of Darkness is the first in a series of upcoming books that include Edge of Darkness, Pale of Darkness and Cries of Darkness. These novels follow the lives of three individuals who do battle bringing criminals to justice, while they struggle to understand the complex relationships that exist among themselves. This intriguing trio has absorbed the attention of Mr. Delaurentis for the past year and a half, so much so he decided to self-publish their stories to bring them to a wider audience.

[AUTHOR’S DISCLAIMER: These are works of fiction. Name, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.]

LINKS
Vendor links
1) AMAZON http://www.amazon.com/Cover-Darkness-1-Gregory-Delaurentis/dp/0989185702/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1365639244&sr=1-1&keywords=cover+of+darkness+gregory+delaurentis
2) KOBO http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Cover-of-Darkness/book-SydhWnuMdEGT2jO97s6rDA/page1.html?s=znZMkhZzw0yjFAMp-WIkpQ&r=1
3) BARNES & NOBLE http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/cover-of-darkness-gregory-delaurentis/1115107265?ean=9780989185707
4) SONY READER STORE https://ebookstore.sony.com/search?keyword=Gregory+Delaurentis
5) SMASHWORDS https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/304457
General links
1) http://www.darknessnovels.com/
2) https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cover-of-Darkness/435819953132527
3) https://twitter.com/cupgrease
4) http://gregorydelaurentis.blogspot.com/


One randomly chosen commenter will win a $50 Amazon/BN gift card. a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Gatekeeper's Sons

Excerpt

Whether McAdams injured himself in one of her traps or in some other way, he was nevertheless injured, and this added to Therese’s overall optimism as she scrambled beneath the cliff edge with her arms full of rocks the size of softballs. The noise of the falls thundered as she neared them and the spray hit her bare skin and chilled her, a relief after the sweat she had worked up from building her traps in Demeter’s woods.

“How long till nightfall?” she asked Than in her mind. It seemed like hours had passed, and yet the sun still bore down on them high in the sky. “Wait a minute. We never left Olympus, did we? The sun always shines, right?”

If Than answered her, she could no longer hear him this close to the crashing falls. She hadn’t thought of that! How would she make it without him?

Unlike Than and the other gods, she had no powers of telepathy and could not be sure if voices in her head were inspirations or delusions. She almost turned back. In fact, she changed her mind five or six times and nearly wore herself out beneath the cliff edge with indecision. At last she decided it was her best chance of survival to go on with her plan. “I can’t hear you anymore,” she prayed. “But I’ve decided to go on anyway.”

She reached the falls and found a hidden grotto behind the roaring water, but if McAdams came this way to her decoy camp, she would have no advantage for attack. Although there were many little nooks and crevices back here that she could climb onto, she would be open, visible, and vulnerable to his retaliation. She dropped her rocks in a heap, set down her fruit, and looked around.

At the furthest lip of the grotto on the outer edge of the falls, she found a nook way up high that just might work. If McAdams came through the grotto, she would see him, and she would be above him, with gravity on her side. She would also be hidden until he reached the point where she stood now. It also seemed, from down here, anyway, that she might have a view of the deeper canyon in case he came that route. The trick would be hauling the rocks and fruit up the steep wall nearly twenty feet to the nook. First she would try it empty-handed to see if it was possible.

Book BLURB:

Fifteen-year-old Therese watches her parents die. While in a coma, she meets the twin sons of Hades—Hypnos, the god of sleep, and Thanatos, the god of death. She thinks she's manipulating a dream, not kissing the god of death and totally rocking his world.

Than makes a deal with Hades and goes as a mortal to the Upperworld to try and win Therese's heart, but not all the gods are happy. Some give her gifts. Others try to kill her. /

The deal requires Therese to avenge the death of her parents. With the help of Than’s fierce and exotic sisters, the Furies, she finds herself in an arena face to face with the murderer, and only one will survive.

BIO:

Eva Pohler writes fiction for teens and adults and teaches writing and literature at The University of Texas at San Antonio, where she lives with her husband, three kids, two dogs, and two rats. She’s also an avid lover of books and animals.

ONLINE LINKS:
• Website http://www.evapohler.com/
• Blog http://www.teenbookpix.blogspot.com/
• Facebook https://www.facebook.com/EvaPohler?ref=hl
• Twitter https://twitter.com/EvaPohler
• Goodreads http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4888434.Eva_Pohler
• Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Eva-Pohler/e/B009D0TAZ4/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1372795492&sr=8-1

BUY NOW LINK:
• Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Gatekeepers-Sons-Saga-ebook/dp/B008YNLXW4/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=1-1&qid=1373076517• Barnes & Noble http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-gatekeepers-sons-eva-pohler/1112676640?ean=2940044789807
• Smashwords http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/214128
• Audible http://www.audible.com/pd/ref=sr_1_1?asin=B00CZD1MHU&qid=1373076673&sr=1-1 ,br>
Giveaway:
a

Imajin Summer Sizzles

On Writing Two Series a Year

Let me tell you, it ain’t easy.

My latest Rocky Bluff P.D. crime novel is Dangerous Impulses. It came out at the beginning of this year and I spent a lot of time promoting it on the Internet and in person. Some have called this series a cozy police procedural and in some ways I suppose it is. In others, though it is quite different. It has an ensemble cast of characters who appear in each book, though different ones get starring roles. (Sounds like a TV series, doesn’t it? That’s sort of how I see it in my mind when I’m writing.)

In Dangerous Impulses Officer Stacey Milligan and new hire, Lizette Gibbs, are called out to a party where teenagers were sickened by a strange drug. In the meantime, Stacey’s husband, Detective Milligan, and his partner, Frank Marshall, investigate the grisly murder of a mother and her son. Officer Ryan Strickland receives some surprising news from his wife. Officer Felix Zachary’s wife isn’t adjusting well to being a new mother. And of course, Gordon Butler is attracted to Lizette Gibbs.

Over the years, Gordon has gathered many fans despite his bad luck with women and on the job. When I write a new, Rocky Bluff P.D. book I must be sure to include Gordon to let everyone know what’s going on with his life.

That’s what I’m doing right now, writing the next book in the series. I’m actually about ¾ of the way through having reached the most exciting part. I’ve had a lot of interruptions while writing this one: two grandson’s wedding, a week’s vacation, visits from relatives, and a writing conference where I was the program planner.

This fall the next in my Deputy Tempe Crabtree series will be appearing, Spirit Shapes. This series is different from the Rocky Bluff P.D. series in that the stories are primarily told through Tempe’s viewpoint. She is a Native American (she prefers Indian) resident deputy for the community of Bear Creek and its surroundings in the Southern Sierra.

In Spirit Shapes, ghost hunters discover a murder victim in a haunted house. While investigating, Tempe discovers the house harbors many ghosts and evil spirits. Tempe’s husband and her friend, Nick Two John, offer support as Tempe investigates the murder and attempts to find out the secrets harbored in the abandoned structure.

Since this book is already with the publisher, I must get busy planning the promotion for it.

And the cycle continues—finish the Rocky Bluff crime novel, and promote the Tempe mystery, begin plotting the next one and on and on.

Sounds like too much work, doesn’t it? At times it does to me too. But the only way I’m going to find out what happens to these characters that I’ve invested so much of my life in is to continue writing about them.

I love what J. Michael Orenduff said about Dangerous Impulses and the Rocky Bluff P.D.series:

“F. M. Meredith’s has done it again, produced another immensely satisfying episode in her Rocky Bluff Police Department murder mystery series. Think Ed McBain’s 87th precinct series mellowed out in a California beach town…” J. Michael Orenduff.

And Carol Crigger’s comments on the Deputy Tempe Crabtree series: “Meredith has created in this series, an intelligent investigator in Tempe Crabtree. But the protagonist isn’t the only great character here. Tempe is blessed with friends and supporters, not only her pastor husband Hutch, but Nick Two John, owner of the local inn and a Native American who is teaching Tempe about her own heritage.”

Bio: Marilyn Meredith is the author of over thirty published novels, including the award winning Deputy Tempe Crabtree mystery series, the latest Raging Water from Mundania Press. Writing as F. M. Meredith, her latest Rocky Bluff P.D. crime novel is Dangerous Impulses from Oak Tree Press. Marilyn is a member of EPIC, Four chapters of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, and serves on the board of the Public Safety Writers of America. She lived in a beach town much like Rocky Bluff for over 20 years and now resides in a town much like Bear Creek.

Webpage: http://fictionforyou.com
Blog http://marilymeredith.blogspot.com/
Facebook and Twitter as Marilyn Meredith

by Jacqui Morrison

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:

It isn’t safe for men who work in the porn business in the city of Toronto.

When porn producer Sal Turbit is found dead in his apartment, no one seems to care. No one, that is, except Detective Lynette Wilton. Lynette has been a homicide detective for only three months, and has yet to earn her stripes.

Murder is murder no matter who the victim is—and Lynette is out to catch a killer.

Could the killer be Wanda Chambers, a mentally ill woman who hates the “scumbags” who prey on the vulnerable? Wanda’s beloved sister, Cathy, was one such woman. Cathy became a porn actress and then took her own life when her sleazy manager/boyfriend, Gil Lee, wouldn’t let her go.

Lynette’s sergeant doesn’t think it’s possible. Wanda has a debilitating illness. But Lynette believes that Wanda’s hatred and harsh childhood make her a prime suspect, and she proves it by catching Wanda in the act of attempting to shoot Lee.

Renowned defense lawyer Maxine Swayman takes on Wanda’s case; Maxine has a different view of the accused. She wants to help Wanda get the help that she needs, and it’s not going to happen in a prison cell.

As the trial proceeds, will Maxine prevail and save Wanda, or will Lynette be able to tie Wanda to Turbit’s murder as well?

"Morrison knows how to create suspense! She brings readers on a roller-coaster ride that leaves you breathless from start to finish!" —Trey Anthony, star and producer “Da Kink in Da Hair”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT

Chapter 1

“Hey,” Sal said, “come on in. You’re right on time. Good to meet ya.” He left the visitor in the living room of his shabby apartment in a grungy, low-rent building, and slipped into the kitchen. The metallic pop of a beer bottle opening echoed in the other room. Then another.

Six empty beer bottles, a heaping ashtray, and assorted marijuana paraphernalia were already strewn across his table. The grandfather clock struck four times. Sal stumbled back into the room. “I got you a beer.”

Glassy-eyed, Sal said, “I’ve got lots of great products for you to move today.” He showed the visitor the cover of a DVD. “This one is new. It’ll sell out. She’s a real sweet thing. Told me she was eighteen ’n had the ID to prove it. Likely just some little tramp from nowhere-ville. Came to the big, bad city for excitement––”

The metal felt cool as the visitor pulled out a gun.

“What the hell?” Sal screamed, just before the bullet penetrated his skull.

He fell onto the sofa, blood oozing out the back of his head. His face was contorted, almost angry looking. Certainly surprised.

The spent cartridge from the handgun ricocheted against a metal garbage can––reminiscent of the pop of a beer cap––and then landed on the carpet.

The murderer studied the victim’s splayed body, feeling a sense of elation and satisfaction. Out came a Swiss Army knife, and the killer wordlessly hacked off a section of Sal’s hair, stuffed it into a small plastic bag, and then threw it into a knapsack. The killer then picked up the half-spilled beer that Sal had been handing over when the shot was fired. Perfect. Grinning, the murderer chugged the beer, retrieved the spent cartridge, and smugly looked at Sal Turbit’s still body, now surrounded by pooling blood.

Still wearing leather gloves, the murderer put the beer bottle and hot metal bullet charge into a knapsack and fled, smiling, into the dense night.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and Links:

I am Jacqui Morrison. I started writing poems and short stories as a child. I also enjoyed public speaking in elementary school and at University. In High School, a great teacher, Lenore Hawley, inspired me and in 1995 I pursued my life-long passion for writing.

My career is a complicated web and includes: owning an ice cream parlour and fine food shop, teaching life-skills management to adults, teaching computer applications, social service work and marketing.

From 1994 to 2003, I assisted survivors of domestic violence in both criminal and family court as a support worker. I’ve always had a strong interest in law and justice.

I love to write and I am happiest writing or encouraging others to fulfill their writing dreams. I facilitate writing seminars for Canadore College and various agencies.

I live in northern Ontario, Canada with my daughter Alison, my husband Wayne, and a three-legged dog named Willow. Our daughter has convinced us to adopt four cats so Felix, Sasha, Nikke and Angel round out our family. Angel, at four-months-of-age was abandoned by its owner and we rescued her in -15 degree weather.

Alison has a future in politics, animal rescue work or sales … because I’m not really a cat person and she’s persuaded me to adopt four.

Her Website: http://jacquimorrison.ca/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jacqui.morrison

Jacqui will be awarding Loose Tea and Chipnuts to two randomly drawn commenters during this tour and the Virtual Reviews Tour combined.

The rest of the tour dates can be found here: http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2013/06/virtual-super-book-blast-vigilante-by.html

On the blog tomorrow. . .

Just Perfect

by JoMarie DeGioia
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:

William Chesterton, the Earl of Chester, might be the perfect gentleman, but his feelings for Constance Bridgewater are anything but gentlemanly.

Constance Bridgewater, the daughter of the late Earl of Bridgewater, might be the perfect lady, but her feelings for the Earl of Chester are anything but ladylike.

They both know that if they were together, everything would be just perfect.

So what is keeping them apart?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT

London, England 1825

William Chesterton, the Earl of Chester, sat in his comfortable parlor swirling an untouched glass of brandy in his hand. Spring had come at last to London, though the April evening was still chilled and damp. His staff had seen to the modest fire burning behind the grate, and the warmth lulled him into a false sense of serenity. It did nothing to dispel the turmoil deep inside, however.

Most of the ton, his closest friends included, believed he was a steady man with a calm demeanor. That was true, for the most part. In the whole of his life, from his privileged childhood through his early ascension to the earldom upon his dear father’s passing, he’d been as steady as the Thames. Stalwart companion, dutiful only son, closest confidant. It was all so bloody boring.

He drank from his glass at last, his eyes on the fire. Tonight had gone just as so many nights before. The season was in its early stages and yet the parties and frivolities had already started. He’d joked with his friends, danced with their wives and sisters, and made certain not to show undue attention to marriage-minded young ladies. Their mothers would love to snare the calm and affable Earl of Chester for their daughters. That was certain.

He’d played his part as was expected, and even managed to ignore the urge to dance with one particular young lady more than the allotted two times. It had nearly killed him. Constance Bridges, the late Earl of Bridgewater’s daughter, was the only woman he wanted for more than two dances.

Her lithe body, her pale golden hair and sparkling gray eyes, were like no other woman’s he’d encountered. Last year, at yet another interminable house party, at one of his happily married cohorts’ estates, he’d attempted to make her see she was more than a pleasant diversion. He wasn’t merely a willing dance partner or riding companion, either. He might have acted a bit wild, however, and no doubt frightened her out of her wits.

He lifted the glass to his lips again and smiled. Ah, but that five seconds he’d spent holding her close, her breath warm on his cheek, her pink lips so close to his . . . he still got hard thinking about the heat she hid beneath that alabaster skin. He’d seen burgeoning knowledge in those gray eyes of hers, too. She’d wanted him. He’d stake the considerable estate his father left him on that fact.

She was a puzzle, to be sure. So serene and bashful on the surface, yet he knew she was more than the perfect picture she presented. He downed his brandy and let out a frustrated breath.

He was tired of playing the nice fellow. If he risked his lauded reputation in the process, so be it. He wanted more in his life than polite dinners and mildly pleasant diversions. He wanted love and passion and everything his friends had been lucky enough to find.

He knew Constance was the one to show him that heat. He drained the glass, letting the smooth liquor burn pleasantly down his throat.

He couldn’t wait to find out just how hot the fire inside her burned.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and Links:

JoMarie DeGioia has been making up stories for as long as she can remember, and has spent years giving voice to the characters in her head. She’s known Mickey Mouse from the “inside,” has been a copyeditor for her town’s newspaper, and a bookseller. She writes Historical and Contemporary Romances, along with Young and New Adult Fantasy stories. She divides her time between Central Florida and New England. You can contact her at JoMarie@JoMarieDeGioia.com

Buy Link:
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Perfect-Dashing-Nobles-Series-ebook/dp/B00DDEH2OM

Shifty Magic

by Judy Teel
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:

...some people will do anything for revenge.

A tough PI struggles to track down a vengeful serial killer only to discover that the murderer holds the key to her secret magical heritage.

Book One in the YA13 paranormal/mystery series Dangerous Magic by Judy Teel. "Expect action, on-the-edge-of-your-seat suspense, and the perfect touch of romance."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT

Lord Bellmonte turned toward the intake officer, dripping charm and debonair sophistication as if the unpleasant internal nastiness had never occurred. The five humans who witnessed the unplanned reveal pretended we hadn’t. A reason to hope for the survival of our kind. Apparently, we occasionally let our instincts trump our curiosity.

A thick, folded bundle of papers with a gold seal on it appeared in the vampire’s hand. “Which officer is responsible for the apprehension of these criminals?” he asked as he handed the right-to-claim papers to the officer.

The young cop’s expression was a little startled as she nodded to Jim and Kyle. Kyle started to step forward more than happy to take credit, but I was faster. My desire to stay under vampire radar was vastly outweighed by my desperate need for cash. No way was I going to be cheated out of my bounty fee.

“That would be me,” I said, pushing my way to the front of the group. “Addison Kittner.”

I kept my gaze steady as Lord Bellmonte’s cold eyes swept over me and his nostrils flared as he got my scent. Always a creepy sensation.

“How charming.” The vampire looked at me a moment longer, obviously amused, and then his gaze slid over Lewis and the lumberjack. “The most notorious Church renegades of the last one hundred years defeated by a human woman, a child.”

I felt the lumberjack tense beside me, but with the collar on him and two powerful vamp leaders just waiting for an excuse to throw him around, there wasn’t much he could do about the verbal abuse. Lewis was too preoccupied with staring morosely at the floor to care.

“My lady,” Lord Bellmonte said to me. “The Church is in your debt.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Judy Teel lives in North Carolina with her boisterous family (husband, three kids, a dog and a geriatric bunny). When she’s not writing, she’s doing the family thing, horseback riding when she can, hiking occasionally, camping as much as possible, reading, playing video games, and generally pursuing her ambition to someday be impressively lazy.

Judy knew she wanted to be a novelist since she was fifteen. She’d always written stories, but it was in 10th grade literature class during a boring lecture on Billy Budd (sorry Mr. Melville) that it hit her—the world needed more magic in it. What would be sweeter than writing fun, exciting stories for a living?

There have been a lot of ups and downs since then and a lot of delays, but she’ll be the first to tell you that you can make your dreams come true. It takes determination and hard work, but it’s never impossible.

Webpage: http://judyteel.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JudyTeelBooks?ref=hl
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/judyteelbooks
Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B008K8WHHI
Shifty Magic for Nook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/shifty-magic-judy-teel/1115409891?ean=2940016703961
Shifty Magic for Kindle: http://amzn.com/B00CXQ7EOE
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Burn on the Western Slope

by Angela Smith
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB

On the ski slopes of Montana, deception turns deadly and seduction becomes more hypnotic than jewels.

Reagan McKinney is on a mission to discover more about a deceased uncle who mysteriously left her a sizable inheritance, a condo in the mountains, and a stash of stolen jewels. With both her graphic design career and her love life in shambles, the opportunity to begin a new life couldn’t have come at a better time. When she becomes involved with the sexy FBI agent next door, she finds her struggle is not only to keep her heart intact, but her life.

Grief stricken after an undercover investigation ends in the tragic death of his partner, FBI Agent Garret Chambers goes home to find solace in the arms of his mountain home. That is, until his boss assigns him to investigate the spirited brunette staying in the condo next door. He is assigned to investigate Reagan’s involvement with a large jewel fencing organization, but his investigation becomes comprised when his attraction to her heats up. Will his discovery destroy everything he has come to love, including Reagan?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT

“I’m not sure I’m ready for that,” Reagan said, running her tongue over her lips as she rested her glass on the counter. “Skiing, that is,” she quickly added. He would never know she’d been thinking of kissing him, but she had to force herself to look away from his mouth. Nudging Naomi, she stood. “It’s time for me to go. I need to settle in. I haven’t even unpacked yet.” And she had no intention of doing so now, but it was a good excuse to leave. She wiped her hands on her jeans before extending her hand to his, praying hers weren’t clammy. “It was great to meet you.”

Garret grasped her proffered hand and nested his other on top, engulfing her hand. She burned. Everywhere. “Meet me on the slopes tomorrow?”

Reagan bit her lip and glanced at the floor. “Tomorrow? I don’t know. I might need a little more time to get used to this place.”

“We’ll start with sledding. You can’t not like sledding.”

She didn’t know, seeing as how she’d never done it, but cozying up to him at a hundred miles an hour would probably be amazing.

“I’m safe,” Garret said as he dropped his hand.

“You’re what?” she asked, meeting his eyes. Maybe he was a good guy in most people’s standards, but he made her heart beat too fast to be anything but dangerous.

“I’m harmless. Several people in town will vouch for me.”

“But I don’t know them either.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~ AUTHOR Bio and Links:

During my senior year in high school, I was dubbed most likely to write a novel because I always had my nose stuck in a book. I would hide my romance novels under my history book until my teacher called me out on it. Writing has been my dream ever since my mother read Brer Rabbit to my sister and me so often that we were able to recite it back to each other before actually learning to read. I love reading about the adventure of love, and getting involved in the legal field developed my love of suspense. I believe love is a mystery that most people have trouble resolving. While I don’t expect we’ll ever solve that mystery, I love to read and write about characters who work to solve their love’s mystery. See more about me at my website www.loveisamystery.com or tweet me @angelaswriter

. Publisher Website: www.crimsonromance.com

Angela will be awarding one of three prizes: a car mirror hanger or key chain (a seashell as a tie-in to her book), an mp3 album by Pretty Little Blisters, a $10 Amazon gift card, to three randomly drawn commenters during the tour, and an mp3 album by Pretty Little Blisters to a randomly drawn host.

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