Jan Scarbrough's Blog, page 14

Cat Shaffer joines the Enchanted Lover boxed set with Man of her Dreams

ENCHANTED LOVER: Tales of Everlasting Love

Seven Novels of Mystical, Magical and Paranormal Romance

MAN OF HER DREAMS by Cat Shaffer (dreams, parallel times)

Jessi Flint has a perfectly good life with a successful business and the perfect man. So, he’s only in her dreams…until her flaky assistant goes to a New Age fair and Jessi suddenly begins receiving gifts with love notes signed by a mysterious Damian.

Cat Shaffer talks about Man of her Dreams

I love unexpected gifts. I’m sure everyone is excited by a surprise delivery of fresh flowers or a piece of jewelry that is absolutely perfect. Most of us, I figure, know the person who sent them. But what would it be like to receive presents from an absolute stranger?

And then discover the stranger is the man who’s occupied your dreams for years?

That’s what happens to Jessica Flint in “Man of Her Dreams,” part of the new Enchanted Lover set. Actually, that’s only a tiny bit of what happens to poor Jessi when she goes back to her small Michigan hometown.

The town is fictional but it’s built of bits and pieces from my past. I have had the great fortune to have been raised in a small farming community and lived or worked in small towns most of my life. What some people might see as dull or sleepy I consider a great place to hang around.

I spent the last two weekends in two different small towns enjoying their festivals. Yeah, there were funnel cakes and overpriced lemonade shake-ups but that’s not why I go every year. I love the chance to visit with people I haven’t seen for a while, pick up neat little craft items and enjoy the things that make the festivals so different even they’re only a few miles apart.

Like the skillet toss at one. Yes, people take turns tossing cast iron skillets to see which one travels the farthest. Or the other’s punkin chunkin where children toss little pumpkins at a target painted on the street.

Sometimes I set up my table and meet readers at these festivals. Other times I help with community projects like grilling up burgers for my Lions Club as I did earlier this month. It’s amazing how many people call my name as they come to purchase one, just wanting to say howdy.

Living in a city has separated Jessi from the quirks and qualities of the small town that nurtured her. Going home and despite being forced to go to her class reunion beyond her will, being trapped in a bridesmaid’s dress that defies description and falling for the stranger/fiance she found waiting at the airport with her mother and throws her back into the organized chaos of being surrounded by people who love her.

Bio:

Cat Shaffer, the daughter of a poet and a teacher/librarian, grew up in northwest Ohio, finally saw the light and moved to Kentucky, the land of beautiful horses and far better weather. She lives with a dignified but ultra-sneaky cat, and could not continue to live if coffee disappeared from the planet. Check out her website at www.catshaffer.com.

 

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Enchanted Lovers Blog Tour

Contest Starts October 7 – October 20, 2014

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Margaret Ethridge joins the Enchanted Lover boxed set with Paramour

ENCHANTED LOVER: Tales of Everlasting
Love Seven Novels of Mystical, Magical and Paranormal Romance

PARAMOUR by Margaret Ethridge (ghost)

Two men: one living, one dead, and both vying for her love. Camellia Stafford has never been alone in her room. For twenty years, she’s been engaged in a fierce power struggle with her bedroom’s previous tenant, Frank DeLuca, the ghost trapped in the light fixture above her bed.

Reviews:

“Margaret Ethridge has such a knack for developing real, living, breathing characters that are so full of energy, so full of spunk, and so easy to relate to.” – Julie, Amazon review

“Margaret Ethridge was already one of my favorite authors, but this book put her in the very TOP of the list. (Above Nora Roberts!)” – R. Vincent, Amazon review

Inspiration for Paramour

Paramour was inspired by one of my favorite old movies, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir. Like Lucy Muir, I fell in love with the ghost of Captain Daniel Gregg. The bit when Anna told her mother that Captain Gregg used to visit her when she was a little girl and they had been friends stuck with me.

How cool would it be to be pals with a ghost? What if she grew up with that ghost in her room. Would she have fallen in love with him like her mother did? I also liked the idea of a tortured young hero trapped between worlds.

Bio:

By day, Margaret Ethridge is buried in spreadsheets. At night she pens tales of people tangling up the sheets. The product of a charming rogue and a shameless flirt, you only have to scratch the surface of this mild-mannered married lady to find a naughty streak a mile wide.

Margaret pens tales of true-to-life women’s fiction, contemporary romance, and has been known to dabble a bit in the paranormal. She also writes steamy erotic romance under the pen name Maggie Wells.

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Enchanted Lovers Blog Tour

Contest Starts October 7 – October 20, 2014



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My book Timeless is part of the Enchanted Lover boxed set

ENCHANTED LOVER: Tales of Everlasting
Love Seven Novels of Mystical, Magical and Paranormal Romance

TIMELESS by Jan Scarbrough (psychic, ghost, reincarnation)

When Beth Abbott receives a surprise inheritance from her birth mother, she travels to the family’s nineteenth century mansion in Old Louisville, KY, now a bed and breakfast. There she meets the resident ghost, a little girl whose crying not only scares, but also intrigues guests.

What I learned writing Timeless

I lived in Louisville, Kentucky, April 3, 1974, when the tornado struck the city. That means I lived through what was known the Super Outbreak of 1974—148 tornadoes that tracked across 13 states between the Gulf Coast and the Canadian Border. The storms took 315 lives while injuring 6,000 more. Two people were killed in Louisville. I was at my mother-in-law’s home when it hit, not in the public high school where I taught. That part of town was devastated by the tornado.

Until I wrote Timeless, my ghost story set in Old Louisville, I thought the 1974 tornado was the only big tornado in Louisville history. Not so. There was another one in 1890 that killed over one hundred people. I read about it in The Great Louisville Tornado of 1890 by Keven McQueen. The tornado became part of my book.

Also a young co-worker explained a drinking game to me called Flip Cup. I’d never heard of it. I went to the Internet for research. It’s strange what a novelist needs when writing. Some of the things I learned about from the Internet were Baxter Square Park—Louisville’s first park—post-traumatic stress disorder, and details of September 11, 2001. I also researched a hill in Cherokee Park where people sled in the winter, but that is still called “dog hill.” I investigated carriages from the 1890’s and period clothing.

But most of all, when I wrote Timeless, I learned to trust myself. To let the writing flow. To let the characters come alive on the computer screen and drive the action. Now I try to let it flow like that with all my books.

When I mentioned Timeless to my medium friend Dale, she told me something fascinating. My spirit guides where helping me write it! And having a good time doing it! How cool is that?

The origin of the word “inspiration” is Middle English (in the sense ‘divine guidance’): via Old French from late Latin inspiratio(n-), from the verb inspirare (see inspire).

As easy as Timeless was to write, who’s to say I didn’t have supernatural help?

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Enchanted Lovers Blog Tour

Contest Starts October 7 – October 20, 2014

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J.C. Warden joins the Enchanted Lover boxed set with her Mystic Thunder

ENCHANTED LOVER: Tales of Everlasting Love
Seven Novels of Mystical, Magical and Paranormal Romance

MYSTIC THUNDER by JC Wardon (witch, mystic)

Millennia of tempestuous ancestral history forewarn Rayne Cavanaugh to hide her ability to communicate with ghosts. But when the nephew of the man she just can’t resist goes missing in the mountains of Mystic Waters, West Virginia, she must decide between self-preservation and love.

Reviews:

“I would say that J.C. Wardon is a shining new star in the paranormal genre.” Debra Taylor, The Romance Reviews

“Wardon has crafted a page-turner with the first of the Cavanaugh Sisters Trilogy.” Karen Sweeny-Justice, RT Book Reviews

JC Wardon is the author of the Mystic Waters Books, published through Turquoise Morning Press. As a lover of the paranormal romance, the psychological thriller, and the suspense of dangerous plots, all woven into one, JC creates stories that will curl your toes, and make your heart pound. Her Cavanaugh Sisters Trilogy kicks off a thirteen-book series rollercoaster ride that will leave you captivated. Whether you’re titillated, tantalized, breathlessly horrified, or shocked to the core, JC’s books always conclude with a sneak peek into the next breathtaking trip.

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Confessions of a Facebook Addict

Yesterday a LinkedIn email popped into my work email box. It contained a list of blogs posted on LinkedIn. One caught my eye, so I opened it.

Michael Blanchette had come up with a list: When You Stop Checking Facebook Constantly, These 10 Things Will Happen

He believes many people “become almost obsessed with knowing exactly what’s going on everywhere all at once. They play all the games and participate in all of the fads (like quizzes).” In other words, they are Facebook junkies. If this is you, check out all the good things he says will happen if you quit Facebook.

But not me.

I must admit, I “like” Facebook. Here’s my list, not ten things, but all I can think of, why I’d miss Facebook if I had to go “cold turkey” and leave it.

1. I wouldn’t be able to find out what my adult children are up to. Well, you know, I don’t want to pry. That’s what makes Facebook nice.

2. I wouldn’t see as many cute pictures of my grandchildren.

3. Over the years, I’ve connected to people from my past, people who have gone out of my life. You know – like the ‘ex’s ex. We’re good pals on Facebook. Or high school classmates. I would have missed out on those connections.

4. I’d miss seeing so many cute pictures of corgis…and horses. A person’s Facebook wall is a testament to her personality. Can you guess what many of my “likes” are? Corgis and horses!

5. I enjoy the groups I’ve found. One is a group from my hometown. It’s neat seeing all the old pictures people post. A few have mentioned to me how much my parents (both educators) meant to them as they were growing up.

6. Without Facebook, I wouldn’t have a place to brag about my books.

So, are you a Facebook addict? Or can you leave it alone with no problem?

Welcome Jennifer Anderson and Ice Princess

Small town America has its charm—not to mention its fair share of romance and mystery!

SMALL TOWN CHARM, LOVE & MYSTERY  BOXED SET

Blurb: Mya Newman never minded the routine or quiet that came with living in Honey Creek, Ohio. For her senior year, she craves something exciting to happen instead of it melting into a cookie cutter routine like the previous years.

 Review: …a wonderfully emotional short story with just the right balance of sweetness and sadness. I recommend it to anyone who relishes a charming story of love and friendship. LASR Review, Great Read! 4 Stars

 

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Welcome to Honey Creek, Ohio!

By Jennifer Anderson

Take a walk around town, where there is only one stoplight, one gas station, one grocery story, many churches and one lake. But, oh man, what a lake.

Honey Creek Lake is where a lot of the magic and drama happens in the sweet, little town. Maybe take a dip in our man-made waters. Walk along the edge and watch the boaters zip by sending waves a water to lap the shores. Have a lazy day, cast out a line and wait for the fish to bite. Or maybe, grab the hand of your loved one and step inside our new gazebo. Slip under our famous Weeping Willow and steel a kiss from your sweetie. Every corner of our lake holds a story. When you’re there, create your own.

Head five miles back into town from the lake, stop by our White Cottage Restaurant, and have a slice of strawberry pie, although I’m partial to the lemon meringue. The pie display case and red-topped tables only add to the incredible yummies filling every plate. Catch 22 Pizza sets off the perfect Italian mood with soft lighting and scents of garlic, warm bread and spicy sauce. Grab a slice or an entire pizza pie. Is doesn’t matter because after one bite, you’ll be back for more.

If you’re only here for a short while, maybe plan a trip back during our summer months. We host a Strawberry Festival with music and booths full of berry fare. July plays host to a Fourth of July celebration with a parade and fireworks at the lake. Rent a cabin and stay awhile. You’re sure to find whatever you’re looking for in our charming town and rural county.

Honey Creek sets the stage for a sweet Young Adult novella, Ice Princess. In it, Mya wants to shake things up in her small town. But once she’s given what she wants, will she change her mind and crave for normalcy.

Jennifer Anderson wears the hats of Mommy, wife, cat owner, author, and marketing coordinator. She has lived either coast, but has spent the majority of her life in the Midwest, where she says her heart grows with the love of family and friends, and where she finds inspiration for her young adult and romance stories.

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Welcome Judy Alter and Murder at the Blue Plate Café

Small town America has its charm—not to mention its fair share of romance and mystery!

SMALL TOWN CHARM, LOVE & MYSTERY  BOXED SET

Blurb: Small towns are supposed to be idyllic and peaceful, but when Kate Chambers returns to her hometown of Wheeler, Texas, she soon learns it is not the comfortable place it was when she grew up.

Review: Alter serves up a delicious whodunit by stirring up a healthy serving of suspense and a splash of romance, then bakes them to downhome perfection. Add an appealing protagonist, and you have Murder at the Blue Plate Café. Highly recommended. Polly Iyer

 

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A city girl discovers small-town Texas

By Judy Alter

Coming from Chicago, where I’d been raised, I thought I’d met small towns when I moved to Kirksville, Missouri (pop. 1960s about 12,000). But I didn’t really know about small towns until the late 1970s when I started visiting Ben Wheeler and Edom in East Texas. My good friends, Charlie and Reva Ogilvie, had a guest ranch outside Ben Wheeler, and we ate at The Shed in Edom frequently.

Ben Wheeler bothered me. It was then almost a ghost town, with boarded up store fronts, though I understand it’s had a renaissance, thanks to the man who bought Arc Ridge Ranch from the Ogilvies. It was like many small towns I had driven through: it needed a coat of paint. We went once to a dilapidated roller skating rink (my kids loved it) and more often than I liked to a dismal grocery store, since boarded up, where I trusted neither the cleanliness nor the temperature of the refrigerator and freezer units. Don’t even talk about the freshness of the vegetables. For real grocery shopping, we went to Brookshires in Canton, but I guess that’s a feature of small-town life—going to the nearest good-sized town for a lot of things.

Edom, on the other hand, delighted me. We went several years to the annual craft fair, and other times we wandered the main street which featured craft shops—pottery, leather workers, jewelry makers, and a wonderful women’s clothing store. I was amazed that the main street, a state highway, had neither stoplight nor stop sign. You took your chances and you ran like hell.

The best thing in Edom to my family was The Shed.

I suppose The Shed isn’t much different from lots of small-town cafés with chicken-fried steak, fried catfish, glorious meringue pies (Charlie told me it was all air so no calories, and I reminded him about the pudding bottom), and huge breakfasts. The thing I loved most was that everyone knew Charlie and Reva and greeted them happily. We basked in a small afterglow of fame because we were their guests.

That café and that town became so firmly embedded in my mind that they formed the setting for my mystery series, Blue Plate Café Mysteries. I changed the town name to Wheeler, but no one from that part of the state will be fooled, and I was careful to note that the murders there were from my imagination and reflected in no way on Edom or its residents. But the fictional counterpart of The Shed is central to the story.

A friend who grew up in Granbury, Texas wrote me, “You nailed small-town life.” It was the biggest compliment I could have gotten.

Judy Alter, award-winning author, penned the five books in the Kelly O’Connell Mysteries series. With Murder at the Blue Plate Café, she moved from inner city Fort Worth to small-town East Texas to create a new set of characters in a setting modeled after a restaurant that was for years one of her family’s favorites.a Rafflecopter giveaway

Welcome to Suzanne Lilly and Shades of the Future

Small town America has its charm—not to mention its fair share of romance and mystery!

SMALL TOWN CHARM, LOVE & MYSTERY  BOXED SET

Blurb: Mariah Davis loves animals, running, and her hunk of a boyfriend, Kevin Creamer. Everything looks bright for her until the day she finds a pair of sunglasses that allows her to see the future.

Review: Suzanne Lilly weaves an engaging world populated with charming and eccentric characters that readers will want to visit again and again. Brenda Hiatt, Award winning romance and young adult author

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Is it a dream or a premonition?

by Suzanne Lilly

Daydreams, night dreams, dreams of the future, dreams of the past. They all affect us in some way. Everyone has dreams of what they want in their own futures. But what if you could see the future and it wasn’t what you wanted? That’s the question that inspired my book, Shades of the Future.

You see, I’ve always had inklings of things to come. I might be driving down the road and realize that I haven’t seen so-and-so in such a long time, and wouldn’t it be funny if I ran into her today? If I get little goose bumps down my spine, I know it will happen.

There was the time I was driving home from work and I just knew I was going to have a car accident. I brushed it off as stress, but sure enough, at the top of an overpass, I was accordionated along with six other cars when the driver of the car in front slammed on his brakes. Fortunately no one was hurt. The weirdest part of that one was my husband knew I’d been in an accident, almost as soon as it happened, even though he was miles away.

Then there was a time a friend told me she was going on a weekend visit with someone she’d met online. I immediately thought of her getting pregnant, and goose bumps quickly followed. She laughed at me and told me it was nothing like that, there wasn’t going to be any hanky-panky because they were just friends. I think you can guess the ending to that story.

The thing is, although I sometimes get these inklings, there’s never a darn thing I can do about it to change them. I’ve often wondered what’s the use of knowing about things in advance if you can’t control the outcomes.

That’s exactly the situation my heroine, Mariah Davis finds herself in when she puts on a pair of sunglasses that allow her to see the future. She sees some good things and some bad things coming down the road. She tries to do everything she can to stop the bad things. Instead of avoiding fate, she faces it head on and has to learn how to deal with the hard times, as well as how to trust in those she loves.

Suzanne Lilly writes lighthearted young adult stories with a splash of suspense, a flash of the unexplained, a dash of romance, and always a happy ending. Her short stories have appeared in numerous places online and in print. She lives in Northern California where she reads, writes, cooks, swims, and teaches elementary students.

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Welcome to Cheryl Norman and Rebuild My World

Small town America has its charm—not to mention its fair share of romance and mystery!

SMALL TOWN CHARM, LOVE & MYSTERY  BOXED SET

Blurb:  More than anything, Taylor Drake wants her life back. Suffering from the agoraphobia that has plagued her since a brutal attack, the once confident and successful photographer now cowers behind closed doors with a loaded pistol.

Review: …Ms. Norman is a gifted storyteller. I loved Rebuild My World and eagerly turned the pages, excited to see what event would next happen to keep this story moving. Not only is it well plotted, but the characterizations draw you into the lives of these people. Ms. Norman tells a compelling tale that keeps you guessing. Vine Voice Amazon Reviewer, 5 Stars

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Five Lessons on Forgiveness

By Cheryl Norman

REBUILD MY WORLD is romantic suspense, but its theme is forgiveness. In the course of the story, several characters must learn the power and peace of forgiveness. It isn’t a preachy story or a religious one, rather a lesson in mental health.

You read that right. Forgiveness is good mental health.

How can Taylor Drake forgive the man who attacked her and murdered her roommate? How can Adam Gillespie forgive the man who contributed to his family’s financial ruin? How can Taylor and Wil forgive the person responsible for their mother’s death? How can Adam forgive the man who abandoned his pregnant sister and later forgive a startling betrayal within his own family?

Yet, ultimately, they do forgive, and that’s the heart of the story. Have you had to forgive someone when it went against every fiber of your being? Or have you had to forgive yourself?

I’ve watched television programs about people who visit the killer of a loved one in prison and forgive them. How can they? I’ve asked myself repeatedly. Could I do that? Frankly, I hope I never have to test myself on that one!

I remember after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, when ministers called on their congregations to forgive those attackers. How’d you do with that one? I struggled. I was angry and shocked. I wanted swift justice. Forgiving those responsible for all those innocent lives asked too much. Yet I finally made peace with myself and forgave them, thanks to the five lessons I learned (and share below).

Forgiveness isn’t easy. It can be one of the hardest emotional decisions you’ll make. If you aren’t able to forgive, the price you pay is high. The Drake and Gillespie families find this out for themselves until they learn these five lessons:

1. Forgiveness isn’t earned. You don’t forgive an offender because he deserves it.

2. Forgiveness isn’t necessarily wanted or requested. The offender need not ask you for forgiveness. In fact, he may be indifferent to your feelings.

3. Forgiveness isn’t approval. You aren’t endorsing the behavior by forgiving the offender.

4. Forgiveness can be anonymous. Just because you forgive an offender, doesn’t mean he or she will know about it (i.e. he may even be dead).

5. Forgiveness is healthy. Itrelieves stress. (Remember, resentment is an acid that eats away at its container).

In conclusion, forgiveness is about the forgiver, not about the forgiven. Do it for your own health.

I hope you enjoy the mystery and romance that unfolds in REBUILD MY WORLD. Although its theme is forgiveness, the story is much more. Enjoy.

Cheryl Norman lives in the Suwannee River Valley area of Florida, near her fictional Drake Springs. She writes romance in several genres: romantic suspense, time-travel, inspirational, and sweet series romance, including the upcoming Drake Springs category romance series. She also writes cookbooks and hosts the award-winning blog, hastytastymeals.com . For more about Cheryl, follow her on Twitter (cherylnorman) and visit her site ( cherylnorman.com ). Her author blog is at http://cherylnorman.blogspot.com .

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Welcome to Julie Anne Lindsey and Bloom

Small town America has its charm—not to mention its fair share of romance and mystery!

SMALL TOWN CHARM, LOVE & MYSTERY  BOXED SET

Blurb: In a town filled with her past, she never expected to find her future. Seven years ago Cynthia left Honey Creek with a broken heart. Three years ago Mitchell arrived with one. If they let it, love will find a way to Bloom.

Reviews: Julie Anne Lindsey really brought me back to the books that made me love to read. Amazon Reviewer, 5 Stars

Bloom is one of those romances that transports you back in time. Amazon Reviewer, 5 Stars

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Feisty Heroines Make Me Smile

by Julie Anne Lindsey

I love a good romance. Who doesn’t? What I don’t love is a heroine who’s too waify. Too proper. Too snorey. When I set out to write my first sweet romance, I hoped to create a woman who’d make readers smile. For me, that meant making my heroine relatable…and again…for me, that meant she needed to be kind of exuberant, perhaps even a well-meaning hot head. *Looks in mirror* *waves*

Hey, I like big personalities. I can’t help myself. They make me smile. I couldn’t help wonder what a slow speaking, hay baling, small town hero might do if faced with an uptight, displaced former local? It was this course of thought that led to my first sweet romance heroine. Voila! Cynthia Potter was born.

In Bloom, my heroine Cynthia says what she means…at the moment… and causes a problem or two as a result. She’s feisty. I like her. She puts her foot in her mouth. A lot. Gets caught kissing someone she didn’t intend to kiss.  (Who hasn’t been there?) And makes an embarrassing discovery of biblical proportions. 

Writing sweet romance opened a whole new world for me. I learned what mattered most was the chemistry, banter and will-he, won’t she of it all.  I get screwed up in a knot on my couch writing every “Kiss her already!” moment, and I LOVE it. In sweet romance, every sentence leads up to the all important confession, “I love you.” And getting there is SO much fun. CYnthia finds a lot more than romance in Honey Creek, but you’ll have to take a peek for yourself to see what else. *insert winky face*

If you’re in the mood for a sweet & sassy heroine , I hope you’ll visit Honey Creek. It’s a beautiful place where anything can happen. Kick off your shoes, relax into that porch swing and cuddle up to a steamy hot toddy. Take a trip to Honey Creek. They’re just a click away : ) See you there!

Julie Anne Lindsey is a multi-genre author who writes the stories that keep her up at night. Julie writes sweet romance for Honey Creek Books, the Calypso series with Lyrical Press/Kensington and pens the The Patience Price Mysteries for Carina Press/Harlequin.

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