Pamela S. Thibodeaux's Blog, page 55
March 15, 2018
#ThursdayThoughts Guest post with Emily Conrad!
Good Morning!
I can't even explain how happy I am to share today's guest! New to me and our blog, Emily Conrad is also new to Pelican Book Group and Justice is her debut novel. So please give her a huge welcome!
Take it away Emily....
My sister lived and worked in China for a few years, and toward the end of her time there, I made it over for a visit, not realizing the impact the trip would have on me.
The night I arrived in Beijing, rain washed the smog from the air, resulting in blue skies for the rest of my visit—a rarity according to my sister. Still, air quality was an issue as evidenced by the people who went about their business in face masks.
The writer in me was intrigued. What would it be like to develop a friendship with someone, never having seen half of their face because every time they left the house, they wore a mask? How special would it be when you finally got to see their smile?
At the time I was writing Justice. Set in a small city in Wisconsin, the novel wasn’t conducive to including a face mask. I could, however, have a character hide something about herself in the name of protecting herself.
Brooklyn, the heroine in Justice, is a rape survivor. Jake, the hero, has long admired her long, blonde hair. So, what if she wore it up every single day in an attempt to protect what she’s come to see as a vulnerability? What would get her to let her hair down again? And how special would it be to Jake when she did?
This element became an important part of Brooklyn’s journey.
I have the trip to China to thank for it. I also have that trip to thank for contributing to my and my husband’s decision to host a high-school-aged Chinese exchange student long-term. Travel really does impact our lives!
Have you been on a trip that impacted your life in a lasting way? Where did you go, and how did the journey change you or how you see the world?
Wow, Emily what a wonderful thing! Thanks for sharing. Isn't it amazing how parts of our life end up in our novels? I can attest to that in most of mine.
Emily Conrad lives in Wisconsin with her husband and two rescue dogs. She loves Jesus and enjoys road trips to the mountains, crafting stories, and drinking coffee. (It’s no coincidence her debut novel is set mostly in a coffee shop!)
She offers free short stories on her website www.emilyconradauthor.com and loves to connect with readers on social media.facebook.com/emilyconradauthorInstagram.com/emilyrconrad
Twitter.com/emilyrconrad
Her debut novel, Justice can be found at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
Jake thought he was meant to marry Brooklyn, but now she's pregnant, and he had nothing to do with it. Brooklyn can’t bring herself to name the father as she wrestles with questions about what her pregnancy means and how it will affect her relationship with Jake. If Harold Keen, the man who owns the bookstore across from Jake's coffee shop, has anything to do with it, the baby will ruin them both.
(I absolutely LOVE this cover!)
Hope you enjoyed today's post and that you'll drop by each week for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time, take care and God bless.
PamT
I can't even explain how happy I am to share today's guest! New to me and our blog, Emily Conrad is also new to Pelican Book Group and Justice is her debut novel. So please give her a huge welcome!
Take it away Emily....
My sister lived and worked in China for a few years, and toward the end of her time there, I made it over for a visit, not realizing the impact the trip would have on me.The night I arrived in Beijing, rain washed the smog from the air, resulting in blue skies for the rest of my visit—a rarity according to my sister. Still, air quality was an issue as evidenced by the people who went about their business in face masks.
The writer in me was intrigued. What would it be like to develop a friendship with someone, never having seen half of their face because every time they left the house, they wore a mask? How special would it be when you finally got to see their smile?
At the time I was writing Justice. Set in a small city in Wisconsin, the novel wasn’t conducive to including a face mask. I could, however, have a character hide something about herself in the name of protecting herself.
Brooklyn, the heroine in Justice, is a rape survivor. Jake, the hero, has long admired her long, blonde hair. So, what if she wore it up every single day in an attempt to protect what she’s come to see as a vulnerability? What would get her to let her hair down again? And how special would it be to Jake when she did?
This element became an important part of Brooklyn’s journey.
I have the trip to China to thank for it. I also have that trip to thank for contributing to my and my husband’s decision to host a high-school-aged Chinese exchange student long-term. Travel really does impact our lives!
Have you been on a trip that impacted your life in a lasting way? Where did you go, and how did the journey change you or how you see the world?
Wow, Emily what a wonderful thing! Thanks for sharing. Isn't it amazing how parts of our life end up in our novels? I can attest to that in most of mine.
Emily Conrad lives in Wisconsin with her husband and two rescue dogs. She loves Jesus and enjoys road trips to the mountains, crafting stories, and drinking coffee. (It’s no coincidence her debut novel is set mostly in a coffee shop!) She offers free short stories on her website www.emilyconradauthor.com and loves to connect with readers on social media.facebook.com/emilyconradauthorInstagram.com/emilyrconrad
Twitter.com/emilyrconradHer debut novel, Justice can be found at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
Jake thought he was meant to marry Brooklyn, but now she's pregnant, and he had nothing to do with it. Brooklyn can’t bring herself to name the father as she wrestles with questions about what her pregnancy means and how it will affect her relationship with Jake. If Harold Keen, the man who owns the bookstore across from Jake's coffee shop, has anything to do with it, the baby will ruin them both.
(I absolutely LOVE this cover!)
Hope you enjoyed today's post and that you'll drop by each week for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time, take care and God bless.
PamT
March 13, 2018
#TuesdayTreasures Guest Post by Katie Clark
Good Morning!
March is marching right along (yeah, pun intended LOL!) anyway... St. Patrick's day is this Saturday. If you're wondering about the St. Patrick's Romance Giveaway - click on the graphic in my sidebar and get all the details...70 authors, 70 books, 70 gift cards, Kindle Paperwhite, Kindle Fire and much more! Check it out....
Today's guest has visited before, on 4 different Saturday's to spotlight her YA Distopian Enslaved series.
Katie returns to tell us about something she treasures.
Take it away Katie.....
Hi Pam! Thank you so much for having me. When I think about Treasures, there are so many things that come to mind. My family, my Bible, my church. It can be hard to narrow down and focus on a single treasure! However, often times it’s especially easy to focus on treasuring my children, so that’s where I’ve decided to go today.
We can get caught up in the hustle and bustle of life, and this causes us to take certain relationships for granted. It might be children or parents, your spouse, or your siblings. It could be any relationship at all! Sadly, it often isn’t until one of those people leaves us for Heaven, we realize how our hearts ache for more time to treasure them.
Frequently, I have to make an effort to show my children how I treasure them—because one never knows when we won’t have that relationship to nurture anymore. For me that means putting down the computer; turning off the internet; setting aside the cleaning for a little while. More reading storybooks, playing patty cake with the baby, and going outside for a game of catch.
There are so many things I treasure, but today I am happy for the treasures of my children.
Wow...what a lovely post, Katie and cute kiddos! Thanks for sharing.
KATIE CLARK started reading fantastical stories in grade school and her love for books never died. Today she reads in all genres; her only requirement is an awesome story! She writes inspirational romance for adults as well as young adult speculative fiction, including her YA supernatural novel, Shadowed Eden, and The Enslaved Series. You can connect with her at her website, on Facebook, or on Twitter. Her latest book, The Rejected Princess is available now at Amazon in Print and for Kindle and directly from Pelican Book Group!
Well Friends, I hope you enjoyed today's post and take a few extra moments today to treasure your loved ones...especially your children. And, I hope you join me each week for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time, take care and God bless. PamT
March is marching right along (yeah, pun intended LOL!) anyway... St. Patrick's day is this Saturday. If you're wondering about the St. Patrick's Romance Giveaway - click on the graphic in my sidebar and get all the details...70 authors, 70 books, 70 gift cards, Kindle Paperwhite, Kindle Fire and much more! Check it out....
Today's guest has visited before, on 4 different Saturday's to spotlight her YA Distopian Enslaved series.
Katie returns to tell us about something she treasures.
Take it away Katie.....
Hi Pam! Thank you so much for having me. When I think about Treasures, there are so many things that come to mind. My family, my Bible, my church. It can be hard to narrow down and focus on a single treasure! However, often times it’s especially easy to focus on treasuring my children, so that’s where I’ve decided to go today.
We can get caught up in the hustle and bustle of life, and this causes us to take certain relationships for granted. It might be children or parents, your spouse, or your siblings. It could be any relationship at all! Sadly, it often isn’t until one of those people leaves us for Heaven, we realize how our hearts ache for more time to treasure them.Frequently, I have to make an effort to show my children how I treasure them—because one never knows when we won’t have that relationship to nurture anymore. For me that means putting down the computer; turning off the internet; setting aside the cleaning for a little while. More reading storybooks, playing patty cake with the baby, and going outside for a game of catch.
There are so many things I treasure, but today I am happy for the treasures of my children.
Wow...what a lovely post, Katie and cute kiddos! Thanks for sharing.
KATIE CLARK started reading fantastical stories in grade school and her love for books never died. Today she reads in all genres; her only requirement is an awesome story! She writes inspirational romance for adults as well as young adult speculative fiction, including her YA supernatural novel, Shadowed Eden, and The Enslaved Series. You can connect with her at her website, on Facebook, or on Twitter. Her latest book, The Rejected Princess is available now at Amazon in Print and for Kindle and directly from Pelican Book Group!
Well Friends, I hope you enjoyed today's post and take a few extra moments today to treasure your loved ones...especially your children. And, I hope you join me each week for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time, take care and God bless. PamT
March 10, 2018
#SaturdaySpotlight is on Anne Garboczi Evans!
Good Morning!
If you've followed my blog for long you know how much I LOVE sharing a brand new-to-me author!
Anne Garboczi Evans is a fellow PBG author but she has never visited my blog until today so please give her a great, big, SW LA welcome!
Tell us a little about your Love & Warfare series, Anne!
For Life Until ....Book 1
Everyone in the Celtic Catuvellauni village assumed Ness would marry the man she had loved since age fifteen. Their eventual matrimony seemed preordained. His inscrutable rejection of Ness sends shock through the entire community. Heartbroken but resilient, Ness accepts a marriage proposal from a most unlikely eligible bachelor. Battle scarred and weary of solitude, Roman Tribune Aquilus trained to do just one thing all his life—stoically serve the empire. The beautiful tribeswoman perfectly answers a long ignored call from deep within his soul. Though he adores his new bride, when Ness harms a political connection, Aquilus lays down the law. But Celtic women aren't inclined to submit to inconvenient rules, and the only obstacle standing between Ness and a Celtic divorce is Aquilus's garrison of legionaries. Will Roman might, Celtic stubbornness, or something else entirely prevail?
When Gambling ....Book 2
She rolls the dice, but only God controls the cost of her wager.Cara of Camulodunum dreams of traveling the world, but as the daughter of a blacksmith, the height of her exploration is the plebian carpenter’s shop of her intended. Then she meets the patrician’s son, Eric Paterculi, who regales Cara with tales of Greece and Hercules.
The sons of Roman noblemen are meant to become soldiers and politicians, and Eric’s father, the Legate of Britannia has illustrious plans for Eric. However, Eric fails rhetoric class and seems more interested in training for the Olympic Games than for statesmanship.
At the training grounds, Victor Ocelli, a member of the Viri piracy ring, befriends Eric in order to use him against his father.
The more Cara learns about Eric, the more she desires to break free from the restrictive rules of her intended. But breaking the rules lands Cara in a bondage worse than she could have imagined. Only Eric can save her, but will a patrician defy his familia to rescue a plebeian?
To Deceive an Empire
....Book 3Loving her could get him crucified.
Daughter of an elite patrician father and a Celtic woman, Gwen Paterculi chafes against the restrictions of Roman society. Her family thinks Caius Marcellus is a smuggler with the ruthless empire-wide smuggling ring, the Viri, as well as a violent lecher. But Gwen's been kissing Marcellus behind secluded hedges for two years now.
Caius Marcellus isn't even his real name, and the part he plays contradicts everything he believes in. Now that she's turned eighteen, Gwen has decided it's past time for Marcellus to marry her and she's used to getting what she wants.
Marcellus has much too dark a secret to ever marry. Then both sides of his double life conjoin, threatening Gwen's life. He could marry Gwen and thus save her life, but if she discovers his secret, she'll not only despise him, he'll hang on a cross.
What choice will he make? Either way, can Gwen ever forgive him?
Without Love...Book 4No man marries a prostitute.
Born a slave, forced into ill-repute, Libya's one meaning in life is her young son, the child of a nobleman, Victor Ocelli. Then, one night, her master moves to sell the boy.
A stranger rescues the boy by buying her and her child.
Moved by her tears, Roman patrician Felix "Wryn" Paterculi purchases Libya and her son that night. Wryn is working to gain a higher military post to bring the force of the law against the criminal who tried to kill him and his familia seven years ago—Victor Ocelli. To gain such a post, Wryn must follow custom and marry an elite patrician girl, but he can't get the prostitute under his roof out of his head.
Then Victor Ocelli re-enters Libya's life, offering her son freedom and a nobleman's life if she will betray Wryn. Will Libya place her trust in the father of her son or the master whose kindness never ceases to amaze her? What will Wryn sacrifice for love?
Wow...sounds like a whole lot of great reads! Thanks for sharing with us.
Anne is a mental health counselor, military spouse, and mama to an opinionated preschooler named "Joe-Joe" and a very dramatic baby named "Chip." Reading Rosemary Sutcliff as a middle school student and taking Latin in college instilled in her a love of the Roman Empire, leading to her Love & Warfare series. Moving to the CO Rockies inspired her to write the Lawmen & Suffragette series, romantic comedies set in the Old West. Working in mental health got her interested in writing women's fiction.When not writing or reading, you can find Anne introducing her boys to the outdoor wonders of colorful Colorado.
Find out more about Anne and her work by visiting her Amazon Author Page, Blog and connecting with her on Facebook.
Hope you enjoyed today's spotlight and that you'll drop by each week for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time, take care and God bless.
PamT
March 8, 2018
#ThursdayThoughts with DiAnn Mills!
Good Morning Friends,
Today's guest is a very dear lady and I'm proud to know and be a friend of hers. DiAnn Mills is a multi-award winning author and has graciously shared thoughts and treasures with us before so please give her a great, big, warm, WELCOME!
We’ve heard quotes about time:
“Hey, all you people who use emojis, what are you doing with the time you’ve saved?”
“The problem with saving time is that as soon as we get it, we spend it.”
“Time is a great teacher, but unfortunately it kills all its pupils.” Hector Louis Berlioz
“The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.” Michael Altshuler
If we’re disciplined and scheduled people, time management is part of our operating process. It falls in line with the way our brain works. We’re on time with all we do, and we’re quick to tackle the next project.
But if we struggle with procrastination and lack the ability to stay productive, then we need tools . . . sharp ones. Our families are disappointed because we’re always late. Our employers are frustrated because we can’t meet deadlines. And we’re frustrated with ourselves for upsetting others.
Here are 10 ways to increase productivity:
1. Organize and calendar tasksInvesting in a calendar allows us to record tasks, appointments, due dates, and whatever else stalking us. I suggest an online calendar in which the user can request an audible alarm. For those who prefer a hardcopy calendar, we must examine it throughout the day.
2. Establish goals We need goals to keep us moving in the right direction. They need to be attainable with measurable steps. Goals can be fun and rewarding as well as work oriented.
3. Commit to do the workUnless we are determined to learn how to manage our time, no amount of reading helpful blogs, books, or investing in tools will prove successful.
4. Enlist an accountability partnerChanging habits is hard, and sometimes we need those whom we respect to keep us on task. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.
5. Make a list Write down each item that needs to be done in the order of due date and most difficult. Then cross through what has been accomplished. 6. Sleep 8 hours each nightNo one is productive, creative, or able to apply new habits unless the person is alert and well-rested.
7. Learn to say “No” to time-zappersEach one of us has a time-zapper. Mine may not be yours. Perhaps it’s social media, TV, other people, or unhealthy activities stopping us from managing our time. Saying “No” is difficult but we can master the art of priorities.
8. Eliminate multi-taskingI’m most guilty of this . . . doing several things at once and not quite finishing one before starting another. We call it multi-tasking when research shows we aren’t doing any of the tasks well. Finish what we start then move on to the next item.
9. Practice healthy nutrition and exerciseThis is a biggie for me. The more we devote to taking care of our bodies, the more our bodies reward us with strength and energy. Neurons snap to attention when we decide to eat nutritionally sound and move our bodies. Here’s a great article from the Mayo clinic about exercise: http://mayocl.in/2nNGcB7
10. CelebrateMark your successes with a festive occasion. It doesn’t have to be a party, but then again why not? Adding time management into our lives adds value and importance self-esteem.
Breaking from old habits and establishing new ones isn’t easy, but with the right tools, it can be done.
What is your favorite tip for managing time?
Wow...all GREAT tips DiAnn! One thing that helps me manage time is to remember "Time is an illusion." Albert Einstein said that so when I've done all of the above and still feel as though I'm running out of time I take deep breaths and repeat... "Time expands to meet my needs." Might sound crazy but it works!
Thanks for sharing with us today.
DiAnn Mills is a bestselling author who believes her readers should expect an adventure. She combines unforgettable characters with unpredictable plots to create action-packed, suspense-filled novels.
Her titles have appeared on the CBA and ECPA bestseller lists; won two Christy Awards; and been finalists for the RITA, Daphne Du Maurier, Inspirational Readers’ Choice, and Carol award contests. Firewall, the first book in her Houston: FBI series, was listed by Library Journal as one of the best Christian Fiction books of 2014.
DiAnn is a founding board member of the American Christian Fiction Writers, a member of Advanced Writers and Speakers Association, Sisters in Crime, and International Thriller Writers. She is co-director of The Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers Conference and The Mountainside Marketing Conference with social media specialist Edie Melson where she continues her passion of helping other writers be successful. She speaks to various groups and teaches writing workshops around the country.
DiAnn has been termed a coffee snob and roasts her own coffee beans. She’s an avid reader, loves to cook, and believes her grandchildren are the smartest kids in the universe. She and her husband live in sunny Houston, Texas.
DiAnn is very active online and would love to connect with readers on Facebook: www.facebook.com/diannmills, Twitter: https://twitter.com/diannmills or any of the social media platforms listed at www.diannmills.com.
Readers can read about DiAnn's latest release, High Treason , view a trailer, find resources for their book club, and even take a test to see if they are a true heroine. https://diannmills.com/books/high-treason/
Hope you enjoyed today's post and that you'll check back each week for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight!
Until next time take care and God Bless. PamT
Today's guest is a very dear lady and I'm proud to know and be a friend of hers. DiAnn Mills is a multi-award winning author and has graciously shared thoughts and treasures with us before so please give her a great, big, warm, WELCOME!
We’ve heard quotes about time:
“Hey, all you people who use emojis, what are you doing with the time you’ve saved?”
“The problem with saving time is that as soon as we get it, we spend it.”
“Time is a great teacher, but unfortunately it kills all its pupils.” Hector Louis Berlioz
“The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.” Michael Altshuler
If we’re disciplined and scheduled people, time management is part of our operating process. It falls in line with the way our brain works. We’re on time with all we do, and we’re quick to tackle the next project.
But if we struggle with procrastination and lack the ability to stay productive, then we need tools . . . sharp ones. Our families are disappointed because we’re always late. Our employers are frustrated because we can’t meet deadlines. And we’re frustrated with ourselves for upsetting others.
Here are 10 ways to increase productivity:
1. Organize and calendar tasksInvesting in a calendar allows us to record tasks, appointments, due dates, and whatever else stalking us. I suggest an online calendar in which the user can request an audible alarm. For those who prefer a hardcopy calendar, we must examine it throughout the day.
2. Establish goals We need goals to keep us moving in the right direction. They need to be attainable with measurable steps. Goals can be fun and rewarding as well as work oriented.
3. Commit to do the workUnless we are determined to learn how to manage our time, no amount of reading helpful blogs, books, or investing in tools will prove successful.
4. Enlist an accountability partnerChanging habits is hard, and sometimes we need those whom we respect to keep us on task. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.
5. Make a list Write down each item that needs to be done in the order of due date and most difficult. Then cross through what has been accomplished. 6. Sleep 8 hours each nightNo one is productive, creative, or able to apply new habits unless the person is alert and well-rested.
7. Learn to say “No” to time-zappersEach one of us has a time-zapper. Mine may not be yours. Perhaps it’s social media, TV, other people, or unhealthy activities stopping us from managing our time. Saying “No” is difficult but we can master the art of priorities.
8. Eliminate multi-taskingI’m most guilty of this . . . doing several things at once and not quite finishing one before starting another. We call it multi-tasking when research shows we aren’t doing any of the tasks well. Finish what we start then move on to the next item.
9. Practice healthy nutrition and exerciseThis is a biggie for me. The more we devote to taking care of our bodies, the more our bodies reward us with strength and energy. Neurons snap to attention when we decide to eat nutritionally sound and move our bodies. Here’s a great article from the Mayo clinic about exercise: http://mayocl.in/2nNGcB7
10. CelebrateMark your successes with a festive occasion. It doesn’t have to be a party, but then again why not? Adding time management into our lives adds value and importance self-esteem.
Breaking from old habits and establishing new ones isn’t easy, but with the right tools, it can be done.
What is your favorite tip for managing time?
Wow...all GREAT tips DiAnn! One thing that helps me manage time is to remember "Time is an illusion." Albert Einstein said that so when I've done all of the above and still feel as though I'm running out of time I take deep breaths and repeat... "Time expands to meet my needs." Might sound crazy but it works!
Thanks for sharing with us today.
DiAnn Mills is a bestselling author who believes her readers should expect an adventure. She combines unforgettable characters with unpredictable plots to create action-packed, suspense-filled novels. Her titles have appeared on the CBA and ECPA bestseller lists; won two Christy Awards; and been finalists for the RITA, Daphne Du Maurier, Inspirational Readers’ Choice, and Carol award contests. Firewall, the first book in her Houston: FBI series, was listed by Library Journal as one of the best Christian Fiction books of 2014.
DiAnn is a founding board member of the American Christian Fiction Writers, a member of Advanced Writers and Speakers Association, Sisters in Crime, and International Thriller Writers. She is co-director of The Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers Conference and The Mountainside Marketing Conference with social media specialist Edie Melson where she continues her passion of helping other writers be successful. She speaks to various groups and teaches writing workshops around the country.
DiAnn has been termed a coffee snob and roasts her own coffee beans. She’s an avid reader, loves to cook, and believes her grandchildren are the smartest kids in the universe. She and her husband live in sunny Houston, Texas. DiAnn is very active online and would love to connect with readers on Facebook: www.facebook.com/diannmills, Twitter: https://twitter.com/diannmills or any of the social media platforms listed at www.diannmills.com.
Readers can read about DiAnn's latest release, High Treason , view a trailer, find resources for their book club, and even take a test to see if they are a true heroine. https://diannmills.com/books/high-treason/
Hope you enjoyed today's post and that you'll check back each week for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight!
Until next time take care and God Bless. PamT
March 6, 2018
#TuesdayTreasures guest post by Paula Mowery!
Good Morning!
I hope today's post finds you blessed and happy!
Our guest, Paula Mowery has visited us before but hasn't shared something she treasures in quite a while so please give her a great big warm welcome back and let's see what she's got for us....
My paternal grandmother’s Bible was given to me several years after she passed away. One day I was flipping through it and found passages underlined in First John. As I read through the verses, my arms crawled with goose bumps. Basically it was the answer to why I write Christian fiction.
Later I began to notice many other verses and passages highlighted or underlined. That’s when I started imagining a story in which a young woman gains her grandmother’s Bible after her death. Upon perusing the Bible, the woman realizes that her grandmother had highlighted and commented on certain passages and then numbered them for her granddaughter to follow.
Upon further “what if” journeys in my mind, I imagined the verses guiding the woman’s life specifically, almost eerily.
I’m hoping readers will discover as Kenzie and I did that God’s Word can be trusted and will guide lives.
God’s Word is a treasure. But this copy of His Word with my grandmother’s notes and highlighting makes this particular copy of the Bible a true personal treasure. As I read this copy I feel a sense of connection with my grandmother and her Godly legacy.
Oh Wow, Paula, you're grandmother's bible is certainly something to treasure and what an interesting premise for a book!
Paula Mowery is a published author and speaker. Her first two published works were The Blessing Seer and Be The Blessing from Pelican Book Group. Both are women’s fiction, and their themes have been the topics of speaking engagements. Be The Blessing won the Selah Award in 2014 in the novella category. In November of 2013 her first romance released in the anthology, Brave New Century, from Prism Book Group. This book went to number five on Amazon’s bestseller category, historical Christian romance. Legacy and Love was her first solo romance and was a finalist in the Carolyn Readers Choice Awards in 2015. Her other titles include a Christian romantic suspense called For Our Good, a Christmas romance called Love Again, and a romance inspired from the Love Chapter called The Crux of Honor.
Reviewers of her writing characterize it as “thundering with emotion.” Her articles have appeared in Woman’s World, The Christian Online Magazine, and the multi-author devotional blogs, Full Flavored Living and Putting on the New. She wrote a section for Join the Insanity by Rhonda Rhea. She has devotionals included in several collaborative books.
She is a member of ACFW and has also been on the faculty for the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference.
Paula is a pastor’s wife, a mom, and an interpreter for the deaf. She homeschooled her daughter through all twelve years, and they both lived to tell about it. Before educating her daughter at home, she was an English teacher in public school.
Learn more about Paula at her blog as well as find other links to connect with her at www.paulamowery.blogspot.com
Lamp Unto her Feet can be purchased at Amazon.
Hope you enjoyed today's post and that you'll stop be each week for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time, take care and God bless.
PamT
PS: Paula will be dropping by to interact with you this evening so leave a comment! - THANKS!
I hope today's post finds you blessed and happy!
Our guest, Paula Mowery has visited us before but hasn't shared something she treasures in quite a while so please give her a great big warm welcome back and let's see what she's got for us....
My paternal grandmother’s Bible was given to me several years after she passed away. One day I was flipping through it and found passages underlined in First John. As I read through the verses, my arms crawled with goose bumps. Basically it was the answer to why I write Christian fiction. Later I began to notice many other verses and passages highlighted or underlined. That’s when I started imagining a story in which a young woman gains her grandmother’s Bible after her death. Upon perusing the Bible, the woman realizes that her grandmother had highlighted and commented on certain passages and then numbered them for her granddaughter to follow.
Upon further “what if” journeys in my mind, I imagined the verses guiding the woman’s life specifically, almost eerily.
I’m hoping readers will discover as Kenzie and I did that God’s Word can be trusted and will guide lives.
God’s Word is a treasure. But this copy of His Word with my grandmother’s notes and highlighting makes this particular copy of the Bible a true personal treasure. As I read this copy I feel a sense of connection with my grandmother and her Godly legacy.
Oh Wow, Paula, you're grandmother's bible is certainly something to treasure and what an interesting premise for a book!
Paula Mowery is a published author and speaker. Her first two published works were The Blessing Seer and Be The Blessing from Pelican Book Group. Both are women’s fiction, and their themes have been the topics of speaking engagements. Be The Blessing won the Selah Award in 2014 in the novella category. In November of 2013 her first romance released in the anthology, Brave New Century, from Prism Book Group. This book went to number five on Amazon’s bestseller category, historical Christian romance. Legacy and Love was her first solo romance and was a finalist in the Carolyn Readers Choice Awards in 2015. Her other titles include a Christian romantic suspense called For Our Good, a Christmas romance called Love Again, and a romance inspired from the Love Chapter called The Crux of Honor.
Reviewers of her writing characterize it as “thundering with emotion.” Her articles have appeared in Woman’s World, The Christian Online Magazine, and the multi-author devotional blogs, Full Flavored Living and Putting on the New. She wrote a section for Join the Insanity by Rhonda Rhea. She has devotionals included in several collaborative books.
She is a member of ACFW and has also been on the faculty for the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference.
Paula is a pastor’s wife, a mom, and an interpreter for the deaf. She homeschooled her daughter through all twelve years, and they both lived to tell about it. Before educating her daughter at home, she was an English teacher in public school.
Learn more about Paula at her blog as well as find other links to connect with her at www.paulamowery.blogspot.com
Lamp Unto her Feet can be purchased at Amazon.
Hope you enjoyed today's post and that you'll stop be each week for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time, take care and God bless.
PamT
PS: Paula will be dropping by to interact with you this evening so leave a comment! - THANKS!
March 3, 2018
#SaturdaySpotlight is on Carla Laureano and The Saturday Night Supper Club!
Good Morning Friends!
It is with extreme pleasure I welcome Tyndale author, Carla Laureano into our spotlight. Carla shared some thoughts with us last month but today we'll get a sneak peek into her novel.
Denver chef Rachel Bishop has accomplished everything she’s dreamed and some things she never dared hope, like winning a James Beard Award and heading up her own fine-dining restaurant. But when a targeted smear campaign causes her to be pushed out of the business by her partners, she vows to do whatever it takes to get her life back . . . even if that means joining forces with the man who inadvertently set the disaster in motion.
Essayist Alex Kanin never imagined his pointed editorial would go viral. Ironically, his attempt to highlight the pitfalls of online criticism has the opposite effect: it revives his own flagging career by destroying that of a perfect stranger. Plagued by guilt-fueled writer’s block, Alex vows to do whatever he can to repair the damage. He just doesn’t expect his interest in the beautiful chef to turn personal.
Alex agrees to help rebuild Rachel’s tarnished image by offering his connections and his home to host an exclusive pop-up dinner party targeted to Denver’s most influential citizens: the Saturday Night Supper Club. As they work together to make the project a success, Rachel begins to realize Alex is not the unfeeling opportunist she once thought he was, and that perhaps there’s life—and love—outside the pressure-cooker of her chosen career. But can she give up her lifelong goals without losing her identity as well?
EXCERPT: (Taken from The Saturday Night Supper Club by Carla Laureano. Copyright © 2018. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.)
There was definitely something going on. If they hadn’t already dragged her out of her apartment, Rachel would think they’d staged an intervention. Except Melody and Ana were the only ones who really cared about what happened to her. She might think of her kitchen staff as her family, but they were more like countrymen—a shared citizenship, outsiders among the larger mainstream community, bonded by their weird hours and neuroses and gallows humor. They were probably sad to see her go, but they wouldn’t think of her much beyond what her departure meant to them during work hours.
“You okay?” Melody nudged her. Rachel sucked it up, straightened her shoulders, and pushed away the beginnings of self-pity. “I’m fine. Just hungry.”
Their food came up next—enormous helpings of thick-cut fries piled with shredded duck, piled incongruously in red-and-white checked paper boats. They took their food and then wound their way back through the ever increasing crowd to where Ana had managed to snag one half of a table in the back corner. Melody slid in beside Ana, and Rachel squeezed into the small space between the fence and the table.
“I’ve been craving these for weeks.” Rachel took a fry from her basket and bit into it with a sigh. They were perfect—crisp on the outside with a creamy interior, at once both salty and sweet from a double bath in boiling duck fat. Not exactly the healthiest of choices, but oh, was it worth it.
“So . . .”
Ana’s tone immediately pegged Rachel’s intervention-meter. Rachel put her entire attention on her food. “So what?”
“What are you going to do now?”
Rachel put down her French fry before she could even finish it. No sense letting the conversation sour her enjoyment of such deliciousness. “Do I really have to have a plan?”
“You know I understand the need to mourn. But I also know that you’re going to go crazy if you’re not working. You need something to occupy your time.”
“I don’t know what I want to do yet,” Rachel said. “It feels like you’re telling me to start dating before the ink is even dry on the divorce papers.”
“We really need to get you a boyfriend,” Ana said.
“I’m not interested in a boyfriend.” She avoided their knowing gazes, scanning the patio behind them, and felt her muscles freeze.
She might not want a boyfriend, but that didn’t mean she was immune to the specimen of pure male beauty walking toward them. She’d had plenty of experience with Tall, Dark, and Handsome, especially in the manscaped streets of Manhattan, but the guy walking toward them could have stepped straight out of a Colorado outdoors magazine. Tall but not too tall with mussed brown hair, light eyes that looked either green or blue from this distance, and a chiseled jaw shaded with just the right amount of stubble. He wore jeans and a light canvas jacket over a T-shirt tight enough to hint at toned muscle beneath.
And he was looking right at her.
She was suddenly finding it hard to breathe, and the unaccustomed bloom of heat in her cheeks meant nothing good. “Holy . . . ,” she murmured beneath her breath.
“What?” Melody asked.
“Don’t look!” she hissed, but it was too late. Both Melody and Ana were swiveling toward the guy, who hadn’t wavered from his trajectory toward their table.
“You know, I think we need to go get drinks.” Melody rose abruptly. Too abruptly. “Do you want anything?”
“Other than to sink into the concrete? Fine. Something non-alcoholic. Surprise me.”
They were off faster than she’d ever seen them move, a few seconds before the man arrived at her table. She steeled herself against her inevitable, involuntary reaction and still felt a little tremor. Hazel. His eyes were hazel, and a dimple flirted at the corner of his uncertain smile.
Uncertain?
She composed herself and looked up at him again, waiting for the introduction. Or more likely, an inquiry about the time because his girlfriend was late. A man like that had to have a girlfriend. Or a wife.
Instead, he shoved his hands in his pockets and asked, “Rachel Bishop?”
A bucket of cold water doused the lovely glow she was feeling. “Who are you? Press? I have nothing to say.” She began to gather their meals together, until he thrust a hand out.
“Wait. I’m not press. Not really. My name is Alex Kanin.”
Kanin. She stared at him for a moment, wondering why that sounded familiar, sure that she would have remembered him if she’d met him before. No matter how busy, she wouldn’t have forgotten that face. Then it dawned on her. The article in The New Yorker. Alexander Kanin. She straightened and sent her best glare his direction, the one that made her cooks cower in apprehension. “I have nothing to say to you.”
“Please.” He seemed to be gathering himself, his expression pained. “You don’t have to say anything. Just listen.” When she still didn’t relent, he pleaded, “I’ll only take a couple of minutes. I promise.”
Rachel looked for her friends in the crowd, but they were still standing at the outdoor bar, waiting for their drinks. The crowds had piled in even thicker now, and if she gave up their table, there was no telling when they might nab another one. She clenched her jaw while she considered. “Fine.” She pulled her phone out of her pocket, set the timer, and plunked it on the table between them. “You have exactly two minutes. Go.”
Get your copy of The Saturday Night Supper Club from Amazon in all formats!
Hope you enjoyed today's guest and that you'll drop by each week for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time, take care and God Bless.
PamT
It is with extreme pleasure I welcome Tyndale author, Carla Laureano into our spotlight. Carla shared some thoughts with us last month but today we'll get a sneak peek into her novel.
Denver chef Rachel Bishop has accomplished everything she’s dreamed and some things she never dared hope, like winning a James Beard Award and heading up her own fine-dining restaurant. But when a targeted smear campaign causes her to be pushed out of the business by her partners, she vows to do whatever it takes to get her life back . . . even if that means joining forces with the man who inadvertently set the disaster in motion.Essayist Alex Kanin never imagined his pointed editorial would go viral. Ironically, his attempt to highlight the pitfalls of online criticism has the opposite effect: it revives his own flagging career by destroying that of a perfect stranger. Plagued by guilt-fueled writer’s block, Alex vows to do whatever he can to repair the damage. He just doesn’t expect his interest in the beautiful chef to turn personal.
Alex agrees to help rebuild Rachel’s tarnished image by offering his connections and his home to host an exclusive pop-up dinner party targeted to Denver’s most influential citizens: the Saturday Night Supper Club. As they work together to make the project a success, Rachel begins to realize Alex is not the unfeeling opportunist she once thought he was, and that perhaps there’s life—and love—outside the pressure-cooker of her chosen career. But can she give up her lifelong goals without losing her identity as well?
EXCERPT: (Taken from The Saturday Night Supper Club by Carla Laureano. Copyright © 2018. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.)
There was definitely something going on. If they hadn’t already dragged her out of her apartment, Rachel would think they’d staged an intervention. Except Melody and Ana were the only ones who really cared about what happened to her. She might think of her kitchen staff as her family, but they were more like countrymen—a shared citizenship, outsiders among the larger mainstream community, bonded by their weird hours and neuroses and gallows humor. They were probably sad to see her go, but they wouldn’t think of her much beyond what her departure meant to them during work hours.
“You okay?” Melody nudged her. Rachel sucked it up, straightened her shoulders, and pushed away the beginnings of self-pity. “I’m fine. Just hungry.”
Their food came up next—enormous helpings of thick-cut fries piled with shredded duck, piled incongruously in red-and-white checked paper boats. They took their food and then wound their way back through the ever increasing crowd to where Ana had managed to snag one half of a table in the back corner. Melody slid in beside Ana, and Rachel squeezed into the small space between the fence and the table.
“I’ve been craving these for weeks.” Rachel took a fry from her basket and bit into it with a sigh. They were perfect—crisp on the outside with a creamy interior, at once both salty and sweet from a double bath in boiling duck fat. Not exactly the healthiest of choices, but oh, was it worth it.
“So . . .”
Ana’s tone immediately pegged Rachel’s intervention-meter. Rachel put her entire attention on her food. “So what?”
“What are you going to do now?”
Rachel put down her French fry before she could even finish it. No sense letting the conversation sour her enjoyment of such deliciousness. “Do I really have to have a plan?”
“You know I understand the need to mourn. But I also know that you’re going to go crazy if you’re not working. You need something to occupy your time.”
“I don’t know what I want to do yet,” Rachel said. “It feels like you’re telling me to start dating before the ink is even dry on the divorce papers.”
“We really need to get you a boyfriend,” Ana said.
“I’m not interested in a boyfriend.” She avoided their knowing gazes, scanning the patio behind them, and felt her muscles freeze.
She might not want a boyfriend, but that didn’t mean she was immune to the specimen of pure male beauty walking toward them. She’d had plenty of experience with Tall, Dark, and Handsome, especially in the manscaped streets of Manhattan, but the guy walking toward them could have stepped straight out of a Colorado outdoors magazine. Tall but not too tall with mussed brown hair, light eyes that looked either green or blue from this distance, and a chiseled jaw shaded with just the right amount of stubble. He wore jeans and a light canvas jacket over a T-shirt tight enough to hint at toned muscle beneath.
And he was looking right at her.
She was suddenly finding it hard to breathe, and the unaccustomed bloom of heat in her cheeks meant nothing good. “Holy . . . ,” she murmured beneath her breath.
“What?” Melody asked.
“Don’t look!” she hissed, but it was too late. Both Melody and Ana were swiveling toward the guy, who hadn’t wavered from his trajectory toward their table.
“You know, I think we need to go get drinks.” Melody rose abruptly. Too abruptly. “Do you want anything?”
“Other than to sink into the concrete? Fine. Something non-alcoholic. Surprise me.”
They were off faster than she’d ever seen them move, a few seconds before the man arrived at her table. She steeled herself against her inevitable, involuntary reaction and still felt a little tremor. Hazel. His eyes were hazel, and a dimple flirted at the corner of his uncertain smile.
Uncertain?
She composed herself and looked up at him again, waiting for the introduction. Or more likely, an inquiry about the time because his girlfriend was late. A man like that had to have a girlfriend. Or a wife.
Instead, he shoved his hands in his pockets and asked, “Rachel Bishop?”
A bucket of cold water doused the lovely glow she was feeling. “Who are you? Press? I have nothing to say.” She began to gather their meals together, until he thrust a hand out.
“Wait. I’m not press. Not really. My name is Alex Kanin.”
Kanin. She stared at him for a moment, wondering why that sounded familiar, sure that she would have remembered him if she’d met him before. No matter how busy, she wouldn’t have forgotten that face. Then it dawned on her. The article in The New Yorker. Alexander Kanin. She straightened and sent her best glare his direction, the one that made her cooks cower in apprehension. “I have nothing to say to you.”
“Please.” He seemed to be gathering himself, his expression pained. “You don’t have to say anything. Just listen.” When she still didn’t relent, he pleaded, “I’ll only take a couple of minutes. I promise.”
Rachel looked for her friends in the crowd, but they were still standing at the outdoor bar, waiting for their drinks. The crowds had piled in even thicker now, and if she gave up their table, there was no telling when they might nab another one. She clenched her jaw while she considered. “Fine.” She pulled her phone out of her pocket, set the timer, and plunked it on the table between them. “You have exactly two minutes. Go.”
Get your copy of The Saturday Night Supper Club from Amazon in all formats!
Hope you enjoyed today's guest and that you'll drop by each week for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time, take care and God Bless.
PamT
March 1, 2018
#ThursdayThoughts #EggcerptExchange with Kathleen Rowland
Good Morning!
Yep, it's time for another Eggcerpt Exchange. Today's guest has visited often so please welcome her back....One note of importance, Reader Friends, Kathleen writes hot, steamy, erotic romance so please be aware if you check out her books!
Book Buyers Best finalist Kathleen Rowland is devoted to giving her readers fast-paced, high-stakes suspense with an erotic love story sure to melt their hearts. Her latest release is One Night in Havana, #34 in the City Nights erotic romance series.
Kathleen also has a steamy romantic suspense series with Tirgearr Publishing, Deadly Allianceis followed by Unholy Alliance. Keep an icy drink handy while reading these sizzling stories.
Kathleen used to write computer programs but now writes novels. She grew up in Iowa where she caught lightning bugs, ran barefoot, and raced her sailboat on Lake Okoboji. Now she wears flip-flops and sails with her husband, Gerry, on Newport Harbor but wishes there were lightning bugs in California.
Kathleen exists happily with her witty CPA husband, Gerry, in their 70’s poolside retreat in Southern California where she adores time spent with visiting grandchildren, dogs, one bunny, and noisy neighbors. While proud of their five children who’ve flown the coop, she appreciates the luxury of time to write. If you’d enjoy news, sign up for Kathleen’s newsletter at http://www.kathleenrowland.com/ or connect with her via one of her blogs (Wordpress or Blogger), on Amazon, Good Reads, Twitter, and/or Facebook
HAVANA BAY CUBAAuthor Kathleen Rowland picked the setting of Cuba for a reason. She wanted to trap her proud Cuban professor there. He survives because of his flamboyant personality and opportunistic nature. Cuba is a fascinating mid-century time warp. The 1950s cars still run due to amazing mechanics. No matter how hardworking, Cubans exist under strict communistic rules such as the inability to move from one section of the country to another. Without free-enterprise they can’t make much money. If they do leave, they can only bring ten thousand dollars with them, but this would be a huge amount of money for most Cubans. Big business such as cigar manufacture is government-run.
One Night in Havana—blurb: A desperate competition and sizzling attraction leads to dangerous desire.
New York Marine biologist Veronica “Roni” Keane is attending the Havana Bay Conference in Cuba. Tomorrow only one grant will be awarded which will provide the winner with professional recognition, resources for a project, and living expenses for two years. She hopes to continue her deceased father’s work, but smooth operator, Carlos Montoya, has won many grants in the past.
Carlos, a freelancer for the Havana Port Authority, works to help protect Havana’s reputation as a bastion of safety. As international travelers flock to the island, attracted by its 1950’s time-warp and colonial architecture, the drug business is running rampant, particularly on Roni’s cruise ship. Something’s not right, and when her scuba tanks are tampered with, Carlos brings in the military police to investigate. For her safety, he keeps her close, but he craves her body.
Their attraction leads to a fun night with a bit of kink. But Roni finds herself in more trouble than she bargained for when the criminals blame her for alerting the military police and come looking for her. Can Roni trust Carlos to protect her? Will she stay in Havana if Carlos wins the coveted grant, or kiss her lover goodbye?
Excerpt-- Chapter One
“Why, Veronica Keane.” A voice heavy with a Spanish accent drawled from behind her. “A dive bar?” A taunting tsk. “What do we have? A slumming New Yorker?”She stiffened and closed her eyes. She knew that voice and its owner, Dr. Carlos Montoya, a finalist like her, competing for the same damn grant at the biggest Cephalopoda conference of the decade. Her heart pitter-pattered against her ribs. To turn toward him would intimate distress, or worse yet, weakness. She wouldn’t fail to win this grant, not when she was a final contender. “I like this funky little place.” Sia Macario Café, smack in the center of Havana, allowed her to observe locals and their daily lives. “You need to eat with all the mojitos you’ve downed.” The big tease wasn’t counting. This was her first drink, but his rumbling, sexy timbre hinted at all kinds of dark, hot promises. She’d rubbed shoulders with the Cuban scientist all week. This splendid specimen of Latin male brought on a physical ache that punched low. A flare-up stirred fear. For her own good, she needed to resist. “I ordered camarones enchiladas.” By now she knew the menu on the chalkboard by heart. She tipped her head back to whiff grilled shrimp soon to arrive in sofrito sauce with fried sweet plantains. “The flan is good. Just like my abuela makes.” “I bet. Your grandmother would be happy to hear that,” she said, knowing he brought out the best in most people. Two days ago he'd invited her and a handful of others scuba diving. The chance to ogle him had been one of the perks. He’d worn nothing but swim trunks, his bare chest on display. Every glistening muscle was finely etched. Not a drop of fat on him. Since he’d not given her the time of day, she’d checked him out without him noticing.The hard-bodied host had led the way toward habitats of soft-bodied creatures. To find where invertebrates lived was never an easy task. Octopuses squeezed into narrow passages of coral for protection and gave females a place to keep their eggs. She’d discovered the remains of a few meals nearby. Octopuses scattered rocks and shells to help them hide. This grant meant so much to her and no doubt to him as well. Veronica mindlessly toyed with the gold necklace around her neck, but anxiety crackled through her brain. Unlike this man of action, she lacked the flamboyant personality necessary to talk people into things. Carlos had that ability. He'd made friends with judges on board while she’d conversed with an older woman about a box of scones made with Cuban vanilla cream. That day the wind had picked up to a gale force, and this woman named Bela with Lucille Ball red hair needed help walking to her home. The half mile down the seaside promenade, The Malecón, had provided her with time to practice her Spanish. Turned out Bela was Carlos’s grandmother. She’d worked as a maid when the Castro government came to power. When private homes were nationalized, titles were handed over to the dwelling occupants. Bela owned a crumbling home in the respected Verdado district and rented out rooms. What Veronica detested about Carlos was his abnormal level of talent for schmoozing. Not that he wasn't charismatic; he drew her like a powerful magnet with emotions hard to untangle. Why was a self-assured woman who ran her own life thinking about a man who commanded everyone around him?
Get a copy of One Night in Havana at Amazon or from Tirgearr Publishing.
Once again folks, I hope you enjoyed today's post and that you'll check back each week for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time, take care and God Bless. PamT
Yep, it's time for another Eggcerpt Exchange. Today's guest has visited often so please welcome her back....One note of importance, Reader Friends, Kathleen writes hot, steamy, erotic romance so please be aware if you check out her books!
Book Buyers Best finalist Kathleen Rowland is devoted to giving her readers fast-paced, high-stakes suspense with an erotic love story sure to melt their hearts. Her latest release is One Night in Havana, #34 in the City Nights erotic romance series.Kathleen also has a steamy romantic suspense series with Tirgearr Publishing, Deadly Allianceis followed by Unholy Alliance. Keep an icy drink handy while reading these sizzling stories.
Kathleen used to write computer programs but now writes novels. She grew up in Iowa where she caught lightning bugs, ran barefoot, and raced her sailboat on Lake Okoboji. Now she wears flip-flops and sails with her husband, Gerry, on Newport Harbor but wishes there were lightning bugs in California.
Kathleen exists happily with her witty CPA husband, Gerry, in their 70’s poolside retreat in Southern California where she adores time spent with visiting grandchildren, dogs, one bunny, and noisy neighbors. While proud of their five children who’ve flown the coop, she appreciates the luxury of time to write. If you’d enjoy news, sign up for Kathleen’s newsletter at http://www.kathleenrowland.com/ or connect with her via one of her blogs (Wordpress or Blogger), on Amazon, Good Reads, Twitter, and/or Facebook
HAVANA BAY CUBAAuthor Kathleen Rowland picked the setting of Cuba for a reason. She wanted to trap her proud Cuban professor there. He survives because of his flamboyant personality and opportunistic nature. Cuba is a fascinating mid-century time warp. The 1950s cars still run due to amazing mechanics. No matter how hardworking, Cubans exist under strict communistic rules such as the inability to move from one section of the country to another. Without free-enterprise they can’t make much money. If they do leave, they can only bring ten thousand dollars with them, but this would be a huge amount of money for most Cubans. Big business such as cigar manufacture is government-run. One Night in Havana—blurb: A desperate competition and sizzling attraction leads to dangerous desire.
New York Marine biologist Veronica “Roni” Keane is attending the Havana Bay Conference in Cuba. Tomorrow only one grant will be awarded which will provide the winner with professional recognition, resources for a project, and living expenses for two years. She hopes to continue her deceased father’s work, but smooth operator, Carlos Montoya, has won many grants in the past.
Carlos, a freelancer for the Havana Port Authority, works to help protect Havana’s reputation as a bastion of safety. As international travelers flock to the island, attracted by its 1950’s time-warp and colonial architecture, the drug business is running rampant, particularly on Roni’s cruise ship. Something’s not right, and when her scuba tanks are tampered with, Carlos brings in the military police to investigate. For her safety, he keeps her close, but he craves her body.
Their attraction leads to a fun night with a bit of kink. But Roni finds herself in more trouble than she bargained for when the criminals blame her for alerting the military police and come looking for her. Can Roni trust Carlos to protect her? Will she stay in Havana if Carlos wins the coveted grant, or kiss her lover goodbye?
Excerpt-- Chapter One
“Why, Veronica Keane.” A voice heavy with a Spanish accent drawled from behind her. “A dive bar?” A taunting tsk. “What do we have? A slumming New Yorker?”She stiffened and closed her eyes. She knew that voice and its owner, Dr. Carlos Montoya, a finalist like her, competing for the same damn grant at the biggest Cephalopoda conference of the decade. Her heart pitter-pattered against her ribs. To turn toward him would intimate distress, or worse yet, weakness. She wouldn’t fail to win this grant, not when she was a final contender. “I like this funky little place.” Sia Macario Café, smack in the center of Havana, allowed her to observe locals and their daily lives. “You need to eat with all the mojitos you’ve downed.” The big tease wasn’t counting. This was her first drink, but his rumbling, sexy timbre hinted at all kinds of dark, hot promises. She’d rubbed shoulders with the Cuban scientist all week. This splendid specimen of Latin male brought on a physical ache that punched low. A flare-up stirred fear. For her own good, she needed to resist. “I ordered camarones enchiladas.” By now she knew the menu on the chalkboard by heart. She tipped her head back to whiff grilled shrimp soon to arrive in sofrito sauce with fried sweet plantains. “The flan is good. Just like my abuela makes.” “I bet. Your grandmother would be happy to hear that,” she said, knowing he brought out the best in most people. Two days ago he'd invited her and a handful of others scuba diving. The chance to ogle him had been one of the perks. He’d worn nothing but swim trunks, his bare chest on display. Every glistening muscle was finely etched. Not a drop of fat on him. Since he’d not given her the time of day, she’d checked him out without him noticing.The hard-bodied host had led the way toward habitats of soft-bodied creatures. To find where invertebrates lived was never an easy task. Octopuses squeezed into narrow passages of coral for protection and gave females a place to keep their eggs. She’d discovered the remains of a few meals nearby. Octopuses scattered rocks and shells to help them hide. This grant meant so much to her and no doubt to him as well. Veronica mindlessly toyed with the gold necklace around her neck, but anxiety crackled through her brain. Unlike this man of action, she lacked the flamboyant personality necessary to talk people into things. Carlos had that ability. He'd made friends with judges on board while she’d conversed with an older woman about a box of scones made with Cuban vanilla cream. That day the wind had picked up to a gale force, and this woman named Bela with Lucille Ball red hair needed help walking to her home. The half mile down the seaside promenade, The Malecón, had provided her with time to practice her Spanish. Turned out Bela was Carlos’s grandmother. She’d worked as a maid when the Castro government came to power. When private homes were nationalized, titles were handed over to the dwelling occupants. Bela owned a crumbling home in the respected Verdado district and rented out rooms. What Veronica detested about Carlos was his abnormal level of talent for schmoozing. Not that he wasn't charismatic; he drew her like a powerful magnet with emotions hard to untangle. Why was a self-assured woman who ran her own life thinking about a man who commanded everyone around him?
Get a copy of One Night in Havana at Amazon or from Tirgearr Publishing.
Once again folks, I hope you enjoyed today's post and that you'll check back each week for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time, take care and God Bless. PamT
February 27, 2018
#TuesdayTreasures #EggcerptExchange with Tina Gayle!
Hello and Welcome to another edition of Tuesday Treasures!
Today's guest is the lady who came up with the Eggcerpt Exchange promo idea, Tina Gayle.
Tina has been a guest on our blog numerous times but it is always a great pleasure to welcome her back.
What I treasure most....
My family means the world to me. They are my inspiration and the reason behind almost everything I do.
Being from a family of all girls, I learned how much women depend on women. It was my inspiration for writing the Executive Wives Club Series. Each woman is struggling with what is happening in her life. With the help of her friends, she weathers the storms and comes out better in the end.
BIO: Tina Gayle grew up a dreamer and loved to escape into the world of books.
After years of working in the business world doing a variety of jobs, she decided to try her hand at writing and hope to incorporate the joy of being a woman into her books.
Married thirty years, she and her husband love to travel and play golf. She can’t wait to do more of both. Read the first chapter of any of her books by visiting her website.
Find Tina Gayle everywhere
Home - www.tinagayle.net
Blog - www.tinagayle.blogspot.com
Twitter - https://twitter.com/#!/AuthorTinaGayle
Goodread - http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1641826.Tina_Gayle
Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/tina.gayle
Brie Sullivan has a new baby girl and there are a million things to do, but Brie doesn’t have the energy to keep up. Why? She’s still grieving for her husband and suffering from baby blues, but she won’t let that stop her. She’s come up with the answer--find a new husband to be the father of her kids.
Jason Clark has been doing everything he can to help Brie. He loves her but can he accept her proposal of marriage knowing she’s not thinking clearly about the future?
Comments from Reviews for IT Exec’s Baby (2nd book of the Executive Wives Club series)
“IT Exec’s Baby is almost a love story in reverse. The marriage comes first, then the sex, and finally the love - at least from Brie's point of view. It is tender and poignant at times, and full of strong descriptive passages.”
“What I love about series books. Every book gives you more about the characters that you've fallen in love with during the first book.”
“IT Exec’s Baby is a riveting story of a woman with numerous problems.”
Excerpt:With the warmth of the sun beating down on her head and the sound of her children’s laughter ringing in her ears, Brie spread her arms and spun in a circle.She raised her voice and called to her kids as she walked to the railing of the upper deck. “You better find a good hiding place because ready or not here I come.”With Isabella down for a nap, Brie drew in a deep breath, enjoying the fresh air and the freedom from being stuck inside the house. The kids had convinced her to play with them outside. She loved the easy game of hide-and-go-seek. Glancing over the rail, she scanned the backyard, searching for Ethan’s and Allison’s young forms.A giggle sounded from below the deck.Brie stepped down a few stairs to search the patio below. Still unable to catch a glimpse of her children, she continued down the staircase, listening for sounds that might give her a clue to their whereabouts.Not seeing either one of them, she hugged the back wall and silently slipped to the corner of the house that had concrete steps, which led to the front yard.Determined to catch one of her kids heading for home-base, Brie refrained from peeking around the corner. The squeak of a tennis shoe alerted her to someone’s arrival.Ready to grab them the minute they rounded the corner, Brie stayed out of sight. A shadow fell across the patio, and Allison’s young form raced past.Jumping out to grab her, Brie touched her daughter’s shoulder.Allison’s wail of surprise vibrated off the bottom of the deck and pierced through Brie’s brain. Undeterred by the noise, she caught her daughter’s arm and spun her around.“I got you.”“No,” Allison screamed again.
Read the 1st chapter at http://www.tinagayle.net/BirthChpt.html
Purchase at Amazon
Pick up Tina’s Free Read at http://www.tinagayle.net/
Hope you enjoyed today's Eggcerpt Exchange and that you'll drop by each week and check out Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time, take care and God Bless. PamT
Today's guest is the lady who came up with the Eggcerpt Exchange promo idea, Tina Gayle.
Tina has been a guest on our blog numerous times but it is always a great pleasure to welcome her back.
What I treasure most....
My family means the world to me. They are my inspiration and the reason behind almost everything I do.
Being from a family of all girls, I learned how much women depend on women. It was my inspiration for writing the Executive Wives Club Series. Each woman is struggling with what is happening in her life. With the help of her friends, she weathers the storms and comes out better in the end.
BIO: Tina Gayle grew up a dreamer and loved to escape into the world of books.
After years of working in the business world doing a variety of jobs, she decided to try her hand at writing and hope to incorporate the joy of being a woman into her books.
Married thirty years, she and her husband love to travel and play golf. She can’t wait to do more of both. Read the first chapter of any of her books by visiting her website.
Find Tina Gayle everywhere
Home - www.tinagayle.net
Blog - www.tinagayle.blogspot.com
Twitter - https://twitter.com/#!/AuthorTinaGayle
Goodread - http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1641826.Tina_Gayle
Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/tina.gayle
Brie Sullivan has a new baby girl and there are a million things to do, but Brie doesn’t have the energy to keep up. Why? She’s still grieving for her husband and suffering from baby blues, but she won’t let that stop her. She’s come up with the answer--find a new husband to be the father of her kids.Jason Clark has been doing everything he can to help Brie. He loves her but can he accept her proposal of marriage knowing she’s not thinking clearly about the future?
Comments from Reviews for IT Exec’s Baby (2nd book of the Executive Wives Club series)
“IT Exec’s Baby is almost a love story in reverse. The marriage comes first, then the sex, and finally the love - at least from Brie's point of view. It is tender and poignant at times, and full of strong descriptive passages.”
“What I love about series books. Every book gives you more about the characters that you've fallen in love with during the first book.”
“IT Exec’s Baby is a riveting story of a woman with numerous problems.”
Excerpt:With the warmth of the sun beating down on her head and the sound of her children’s laughter ringing in her ears, Brie spread her arms and spun in a circle.She raised her voice and called to her kids as she walked to the railing of the upper deck. “You better find a good hiding place because ready or not here I come.”With Isabella down for a nap, Brie drew in a deep breath, enjoying the fresh air and the freedom from being stuck inside the house. The kids had convinced her to play with them outside. She loved the easy game of hide-and-go-seek. Glancing over the rail, she scanned the backyard, searching for Ethan’s and Allison’s young forms.A giggle sounded from below the deck.Brie stepped down a few stairs to search the patio below. Still unable to catch a glimpse of her children, she continued down the staircase, listening for sounds that might give her a clue to their whereabouts.Not seeing either one of them, she hugged the back wall and silently slipped to the corner of the house that had concrete steps, which led to the front yard.Determined to catch one of her kids heading for home-base, Brie refrained from peeking around the corner. The squeak of a tennis shoe alerted her to someone’s arrival.Ready to grab them the minute they rounded the corner, Brie stayed out of sight. A shadow fell across the patio, and Allison’s young form raced past.Jumping out to grab her, Brie touched her daughter’s shoulder.Allison’s wail of surprise vibrated off the bottom of the deck and pierced through Brie’s brain. Undeterred by the noise, she caught her daughter’s arm and spun her around.“I got you.”“No,” Allison screamed again.
Read the 1st chapter at http://www.tinagayle.net/BirthChpt.html
Purchase at Amazon
Pick up Tina’s Free Read at http://www.tinagayle.net/
Hope you enjoyed today's Eggcerpt Exchange and that you'll drop by each week and check out Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time, take care and God Bless. PamT
February 24, 2018
#SaturdaySpotlight is on Mary Alford and her book, Christmas in Delaney Mountain
Good Morning Friends and WELCOME to the last Saturday Spotlight in Feb 2018!
It goes without saying I can't believe how fast this year is moving along. I'm sure many of you feel the same way. I'm so glad you joined us today to welcome fellow Pelican Book Group author, Mary Alford back to our blog.
Welcome Mary....please tell us a little about yourself....
I grew up in a small Texas town famous for, well not much of anything really. Being the baby of the family and quite a bit younger than my two brothers and sister, I had plenty of time to entertain myself. Making up stories seemed to come natural to me.
As a teen, I discovered Phyllis Whitney and Victoria Holt and knew instinctively that was what I wanted to do with my over-active imagination.
I wrote my first novel as a teen, (it’s tucked away somewhere never to see the light of day), but never really pursued a writing career seriously until a few years later, when I wrote my first inspirational romantic suspense and was hooked.
Today, I still live in Texas, and still create people facing dangerous situations. In fact, I can’t think of anything else I’d rather do.
Learn more about me at www.MaryAlford.net, or send me an email at maryjalfordauthor@gmail.com. You can also find/follow me on Facebook, Twitter (@maryalford13, Google+, Pinterest, YouTube and GoodReads.
Wonderful! Now please tell us about Christmas in Delaney Mountain.....
Kara Edwards has been looking over her shoulder for years. After being kidnapped and held hostage by a man who claimed to be her late husband’s friend, she’s no longer in the “trusting” business. She moves to Delaney Mountain with one expectation: to outrun her stalker. Never does she expect to meet a man like David Delaney—one who not only makes her want to trust again, but to love again, too. David Delaney is drawn to Kara from the first moment he meets her. There’s an attractive strength behind her no-nonsense caution and independence. He knows Kara is running from something, but nothing prepares him for what she has to say.
Excerpt:
Two months. She’d spent the last two months looking over her shoulder and yet the expected nightmare hadn’t returned. There’d been no word from him. No sightings. Only silence.
So why couldn’t she relax? Begin to enjoy life once more?
Because this routine was a familiar one. The last time had been four months. The time before six. The only variable in the equation was that there was no variable. The routine‒his routine‒never faltered.
He always found her.
So, no matter how tired, or frustrated, or fed up she became, she couldn’t let her guard down because it had only been two months; and she was convinced, even after moving to a remote village in Colorado, he would find her again. At times, Kara felt like a ghost without a past. Transparent. She barely remembered the woman she’d once been…before him.
Kara glanced out the window at the gathering darkness. It came quickly at this time of the year in the shadow of the mountains. The news had been broadcasting a huge winter storm on the way. It was almost six. Amy would start to worry if Kara didn’t pick up her four-year-old daughter, Maya, soon.
But Kara couldn’t afford to upset her boss. She needed this job. She was barely hanging on financially. Kara picked up the phone to call Amy. Before Amy had a chance to answer, Kara’s boss stepped out of his office and into her personal space. Immediately, she dropped the receiver back into its cradle to the sound of Amy’s “hello.”
A familiar nervousness slithered down into the pit of her stomach. It reared its unwelcomed head every single time David Delaney came within twenty feet of her.
It didn’t help that he was handsome and had bad- boy-troubled-past written all over him.
Sounds like a great story, Mary! Thank you so much for sharing in our spotlight. Where can we get a copy of Christmas in Delaney Mountain ?
Christmas in Delaney Mountain can be purchased at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Pelican Book Group.
Well folks, I hope you enjoyed today's spotlight as much as I did and that you'll stop by weekly for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time, take care and God Bless. PamT
It goes without saying I can't believe how fast this year is moving along. I'm sure many of you feel the same way. I'm so glad you joined us today to welcome fellow Pelican Book Group author, Mary Alford back to our blog.
Welcome Mary....please tell us a little about yourself....
I grew up in a small Texas town famous for, well not much of anything really. Being the baby of the family and quite a bit younger than my two brothers and sister, I had plenty of time to entertain myself. Making up stories seemed to come natural to me.As a teen, I discovered Phyllis Whitney and Victoria Holt and knew instinctively that was what I wanted to do with my over-active imagination.
I wrote my first novel as a teen, (it’s tucked away somewhere never to see the light of day), but never really pursued a writing career seriously until a few years later, when I wrote my first inspirational romantic suspense and was hooked.
Today, I still live in Texas, and still create people facing dangerous situations. In fact, I can’t think of anything else I’d rather do.
Learn more about me at www.MaryAlford.net, or send me an email at maryjalfordauthor@gmail.com. You can also find/follow me on Facebook, Twitter (@maryalford13, Google+, Pinterest, YouTube and GoodReads.
Wonderful! Now please tell us about Christmas in Delaney Mountain.....
Kara Edwards has been looking over her shoulder for years. After being kidnapped and held hostage by a man who claimed to be her late husband’s friend, she’s no longer in the “trusting” business. She moves to Delaney Mountain with one expectation: to outrun her stalker. Never does she expect to meet a man like David Delaney—one who not only makes her want to trust again, but to love again, too. David Delaney is drawn to Kara from the first moment he meets her. There’s an attractive strength behind her no-nonsense caution and independence. He knows Kara is running from something, but nothing prepares him for what she has to say.Excerpt:
Two months. She’d spent the last two months looking over her shoulder and yet the expected nightmare hadn’t returned. There’d been no word from him. No sightings. Only silence.
So why couldn’t she relax? Begin to enjoy life once more?
Because this routine was a familiar one. The last time had been four months. The time before six. The only variable in the equation was that there was no variable. The routine‒his routine‒never faltered.
He always found her.
So, no matter how tired, or frustrated, or fed up she became, she couldn’t let her guard down because it had only been two months; and she was convinced, even after moving to a remote village in Colorado, he would find her again. At times, Kara felt like a ghost without a past. Transparent. She barely remembered the woman she’d once been…before him.
Kara glanced out the window at the gathering darkness. It came quickly at this time of the year in the shadow of the mountains. The news had been broadcasting a huge winter storm on the way. It was almost six. Amy would start to worry if Kara didn’t pick up her four-year-old daughter, Maya, soon.
But Kara couldn’t afford to upset her boss. She needed this job. She was barely hanging on financially. Kara picked up the phone to call Amy. Before Amy had a chance to answer, Kara’s boss stepped out of his office and into her personal space. Immediately, she dropped the receiver back into its cradle to the sound of Amy’s “hello.”
A familiar nervousness slithered down into the pit of her stomach. It reared its unwelcomed head every single time David Delaney came within twenty feet of her.
It didn’t help that he was handsome and had bad- boy-troubled-past written all over him.
Sounds like a great story, Mary! Thank you so much for sharing in our spotlight. Where can we get a copy of Christmas in Delaney Mountain ?
Christmas in Delaney Mountain can be purchased at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Pelican Book Group.
Well folks, I hope you enjoyed today's spotlight as much as I did and that you'll stop by weekly for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time, take care and God Bless. PamT
February 22, 2018
#ThursdayThoughts #EggcerptExchange with Diana Rubino!
Good Morning Friends,
Today's guest is no stranger to our blog but always a pleasure to bring back so please give Diana Rubino along with her co-author Piper Huguley, a great big welcome and settle in to find out about her novel, Oney My Escape from Slavery part of this year's Eggcerpt Exchange!
Serendipity at Work
In May 2014, popular romance author Brenda Novak had her annual auction for diabetes—authors donate books, critiques, etc., and people bid on them, similar to Ebay. I donated one of my other books, and I also donated a free manuscript critique. An author named Piper Huguley won the critique auction, but the auction ended and I never heard from her. I thought oh, well, she doesn't want it after all. About 3 months later, she wrote me and sent me her story, A CHAMPION’S HEART, to critique. It's a romance about an African American girl, set in rural Georgia in the 1910s. Very moving and powerful story. I loved it. It was published in 2016 by Liliaceae Publishers.
getBook.at/AChampionsHeart
I'd been wanting to find an African American author to go over my Oney novel, but never looked for anyone. I thought of asking one of my grade school classmates, but just didn't get to it...well, one day I decided to ask Piper.
Right after I asked her, she wrote back and said she'd be happy to help. Then I went on Facebook and saw that Piper just posted that her mother passed away that morning. So I sent her a message of condolence. Then she wrote this back to me:
And I appreciate your kind comments about my mother. You see, I see your request as "heaven sent" for I think I told you about how my mother told me about Oney. I know that she would want me to work on anything, do anything to forward that story. So, even in the midst of a difficult time, I look forward to helping you--something I really didn't expect after you had helped me so much. Thank you for that.
I don't remember her telling me that her mother told her about Oney. I've heard so many stories about people who pass away, and send 'signs' etc. to their loved ones, this was just too strange to be coincidence. Piper helped me a great deal with Oney’s story and became my co-author. We dedicated the book to her mother.
Oney’s Story…
Teenaged Oney Judge was Martha Washington’s ‘favorite servant.’ Oney and Martha both longed for freedom, but in very different ways. Martha hated being confined to the president’s house, forced to entertain politicians and foreign diplomats. Oney hated being someone else’s property, forced to do labor and wait on her owners day and night.
After President Washington served one term as president, he wrote his farewell speech. He and Martha started packing for their retirement at Mount Vernon, but it was not meant to be. He was elected again—unanimously. He did not want to serve another term, but gave in under pressure.
Martha had no say in it whatsoever. But as she hosted her tea parties and levees, she became close friends with several forward-thinking women, such as Abigail Adams and Judith Murray, feminists of the time. Their radical ideas rubbed off on Martha—education and job training for women to be self-supporting instead of depending on husbands. By the end of George’s term, she experienced a steep character arc. She even changed her attitude toward slavery. When Oney escaped at age 20, at the end of George’s final term, Martha was very resentful: “She was more like a child to me than a servant.” The Washingtons knew that she’d escaped to Portsmouth, New Hampshire and made several attempts to recapture her. But in a sudden act of lenience, Martha gave up on Oney and let her remain free. During her husband’s presidency, Martha complained, “I am more like a state prisoner”, so perhaps she put herself in Oney’s place and realized she deserved liberty, too.
As our first First Lady, Martha Washington evolved from a grandmotherly wife and homebody to an outspoken champion of women’s rights. She provided freedom for her slaves at her death.
While living in Portsmouth, Oney married a sailor, Jack Staines, and had three children. She outlived her husband and children, and lived her remaining free life in Greenland, New Hampshire. Somewhat of a local celebrity, she lived in poverty, but the locals supported her and she took in sewing to supplement her meager income. She declared in an 1847 interview, “I am free now and choose to remain so.”
An Excerpt from ONEY, MY ESCAPE FROM SLAVERY
The hour finally came—while they ate dinner.
Nothing heavied my heart—not remorse, not guilt, not sadness upon fleeing my master and mistress. Raw thirst for freedom overcame all that. I walked straight past the Washingtons and out that door. When I shut it, I left them—and my forced bondage— behind me.
I tore through the muddy streets in pouring rain. Gasping for breath, soaked to the skin, my heart slamming in terror, I glanced behind me, again and again. No one pursued me—yet. I dreaded and expected pounding footsteps, a clap on my shoulder. But, I asked myself, who would chase me through the driving rain? No, it is not possible, I affirmed—they didn’t even know I’d left the kitchen.
At the Jones house I slowed and caught my breath. When Absalom opened the door, I staggered inside, laughing, sobbing, gulping for dear life.
I spent the night pacing the attic room, hands clasped. “I beg of you, dear God, walk beside me on this journey. See me through this safe. Don’t let them capture me. I only want to be your servant, no one else’s.”
As daybreak nudged away the darkness, I fell to my knees, weary with fatigue. “Thank you, dear God, for ending my final night of bondage.”
About Diana and Piper:
Diana writes about folks who shook things up. Her passion for history and travel has taken her to every locale of her stories, set in Medieval and Renaissance England, Egypt, the Mediterranean, colonial Virginia, New England, and New York. Her urban fantasy romance FAKIN’ IT won a Top Pick award from Romantic Times. She is a member of Romance Writers of America, the Richard III Society and the Aaron Burr Association. When not writing, she runs CostPro, Inc., an engineering business, with her husband Chris. In her spare time, Diana bicycles, golfs, plays her piano and devours books of any genre. She spends as much time as possible just livin' the dream on her beloved Cape Cod.
Piper Huguley is a two-time Golden Heart ®finalist and is the author of the “Home to Milford College” series. The series follows the building of a college from its founding in 1866. Book #1 in the series, The Preacher’s Promise was named a top ten Historical Romance in Publisher’s Weekly by the esteemed historical romance author, Beverly Jenkins and received Honorable Mention in the Writer’s Digest Contest of Self-Published e-books in 2015.Her new series “Born to Win Men” starts with A Champion’s Heart as Book #1. A Champion’s Heart was named by Sarah MacLean of The Washington Postas a best romance novel selection for December 2016. She blogs about the history behind her novels at http://piperhuguley.com. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia with her husband and son.
Connect with Diana and Piper:
www.dianarubino.comhttps://www.facebook.com/DianaRubinoAuthor/Twitter: @DianaLRubino
www.piperhuguley.comhttps://www.facebook.com/piper.huguleyTwitter: @PiperHuguley
Purchase ONEY:http://getBook.at/ONEY
Hope you enjoyed today's post and that you'll check back often for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time take care and God Bless.
PamT
Today's guest is no stranger to our blog but always a pleasure to bring back so please give Diana Rubino along with her co-author Piper Huguley, a great big welcome and settle in to find out about her novel, Oney My Escape from Slavery part of this year's Eggcerpt Exchange!
Serendipity at Work
In May 2014, popular romance author Brenda Novak had her annual auction for diabetes—authors donate books, critiques, etc., and people bid on them, similar to Ebay. I donated one of my other books, and I also donated a free manuscript critique. An author named Piper Huguley won the critique auction, but the auction ended and I never heard from her. I thought oh, well, she doesn't want it after all. About 3 months later, she wrote me and sent me her story, A CHAMPION’S HEART, to critique. It's a romance about an African American girl, set in rural Georgia in the 1910s. Very moving and powerful story. I loved it. It was published in 2016 by Liliaceae Publishers.
getBook.at/AChampionsHeart
I'd been wanting to find an African American author to go over my Oney novel, but never looked for anyone. I thought of asking one of my grade school classmates, but just didn't get to it...well, one day I decided to ask Piper.
Right after I asked her, she wrote back and said she'd be happy to help. Then I went on Facebook and saw that Piper just posted that her mother passed away that morning. So I sent her a message of condolence. Then she wrote this back to me:
And I appreciate your kind comments about my mother. You see, I see your request as "heaven sent" for I think I told you about how my mother told me about Oney. I know that she would want me to work on anything, do anything to forward that story. So, even in the midst of a difficult time, I look forward to helping you--something I really didn't expect after you had helped me so much. Thank you for that.
I don't remember her telling me that her mother told her about Oney. I've heard so many stories about people who pass away, and send 'signs' etc. to their loved ones, this was just too strange to be coincidence. Piper helped me a great deal with Oney’s story and became my co-author. We dedicated the book to her mother.
Oney’s Story…
Teenaged Oney Judge was Martha Washington’s ‘favorite servant.’ Oney and Martha both longed for freedom, but in very different ways. Martha hated being confined to the president’s house, forced to entertain politicians and foreign diplomats. Oney hated being someone else’s property, forced to do labor and wait on her owners day and night.
After President Washington served one term as president, he wrote his farewell speech. He and Martha started packing for their retirement at Mount Vernon, but it was not meant to be. He was elected again—unanimously. He did not want to serve another term, but gave in under pressure.
Martha had no say in it whatsoever. But as she hosted her tea parties and levees, she became close friends with several forward-thinking women, such as Abigail Adams and Judith Murray, feminists of the time. Their radical ideas rubbed off on Martha—education and job training for women to be self-supporting instead of depending on husbands. By the end of George’s term, she experienced a steep character arc. She even changed her attitude toward slavery. When Oney escaped at age 20, at the end of George’s final term, Martha was very resentful: “She was more like a child to me than a servant.” The Washingtons knew that she’d escaped to Portsmouth, New Hampshire and made several attempts to recapture her. But in a sudden act of lenience, Martha gave up on Oney and let her remain free. During her husband’s presidency, Martha complained, “I am more like a state prisoner”, so perhaps she put herself in Oney’s place and realized she deserved liberty, too.
As our first First Lady, Martha Washington evolved from a grandmotherly wife and homebody to an outspoken champion of women’s rights. She provided freedom for her slaves at her death.
While living in Portsmouth, Oney married a sailor, Jack Staines, and had three children. She outlived her husband and children, and lived her remaining free life in Greenland, New Hampshire. Somewhat of a local celebrity, she lived in poverty, but the locals supported her and she took in sewing to supplement her meager income. She declared in an 1847 interview, “I am free now and choose to remain so.”
An Excerpt from ONEY, MY ESCAPE FROM SLAVERY
The hour finally came—while they ate dinner.
Nothing heavied my heart—not remorse, not guilt, not sadness upon fleeing my master and mistress. Raw thirst for freedom overcame all that. I walked straight past the Washingtons and out that door. When I shut it, I left them—and my forced bondage— behind me.
I tore through the muddy streets in pouring rain. Gasping for breath, soaked to the skin, my heart slamming in terror, I glanced behind me, again and again. No one pursued me—yet. I dreaded and expected pounding footsteps, a clap on my shoulder. But, I asked myself, who would chase me through the driving rain? No, it is not possible, I affirmed—they didn’t even know I’d left the kitchen.
At the Jones house I slowed and caught my breath. When Absalom opened the door, I staggered inside, laughing, sobbing, gulping for dear life.
I spent the night pacing the attic room, hands clasped. “I beg of you, dear God, walk beside me on this journey. See me through this safe. Don’t let them capture me. I only want to be your servant, no one else’s.”
As daybreak nudged away the darkness, I fell to my knees, weary with fatigue. “Thank you, dear God, for ending my final night of bondage.”
About Diana and Piper:Diana writes about folks who shook things up. Her passion for history and travel has taken her to every locale of her stories, set in Medieval and Renaissance England, Egypt, the Mediterranean, colonial Virginia, New England, and New York. Her urban fantasy romance FAKIN’ IT won a Top Pick award from Romantic Times. She is a member of Romance Writers of America, the Richard III Society and the Aaron Burr Association. When not writing, she runs CostPro, Inc., an engineering business, with her husband Chris. In her spare time, Diana bicycles, golfs, plays her piano and devours books of any genre. She spends as much time as possible just livin' the dream on her beloved Cape Cod.
Piper Huguley is a two-time Golden Heart ®finalist and is the author of the “Home to Milford College” series. The series follows the building of a college from its founding in 1866. Book #1 in the series, The Preacher’s Promise was named a top ten Historical Romance in Publisher’s Weekly by the esteemed historical romance author, Beverly Jenkins and received Honorable Mention in the Writer’s Digest Contest of Self-Published e-books in 2015.Her new series “Born to Win Men” starts with A Champion’s Heart as Book #1. A Champion’s Heart was named by Sarah MacLean of The Washington Postas a best romance novel selection for December 2016. She blogs about the history behind her novels at http://piperhuguley.com. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia with her husband and son.
Connect with Diana and Piper:
www.dianarubino.comhttps://www.facebook.com/DianaRubinoAuthor/Twitter: @DianaLRubino
www.piperhuguley.comhttps://www.facebook.com/piper.huguleyTwitter: @PiperHuguley
Purchase ONEY:http://getBook.at/ONEY
Hope you enjoyed today's post and that you'll check back often for Tuesday Treasures, Thursday Thoughts and Saturday Spotlight.
Until next time take care and God Bless.
PamT
