Beth D. Carter's Blog, page 76

TRR - Fall Into Romance Blog Hop & Giveaway!

Thanks for visiting me on TRR Blog Hop!   Be sure to visit others since there are lots of prizes to win! (Just click on the button at the end of this blog)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++MUSIC MAGIC

Music is able to create magic through emotion.  It can pump us up, it can make us laugh, or it can make us cry and make us mad.  It’s no wonder that authors often use music to set a mood or invoke a scene.  Cara Lynn Shultz creates a playlist with her novels and mentions that playlist throughout her books, even going as far as explaining in the back of the book why she used particular songs. 
For me, I usually focus on one or two songs for each of my books.  The most obvious one is “Gimme, Gimme, Gimme” by ABBA for my novella A Man After Midnight.  When I started listening to the lyrics I immediately thought it would make a wonderful story to tell.  The same happened when I heard the lyrics to Kate Voegele’s song “Sweet Silver Lining”:
But so many people are looking to me
To be strong and to fight
But I'm just surviving
And I may be weak but I'm never defeated
And I'll keep believing
In clouds with that sweet silver lining
I envisioned this bitter woman who’s completely misunderstood and I came up with Heather Hart in A Silver Lining.  I’ve had people complain that she’s too abrasive and they hated her, but she needed to be unloved to be able to be redeemed by love.  I love making readers squirm in their seats.
Not every song is as distinctive as those two, however.  In my novel In a Chord I actually mention the inspiration song by name.  When I first heard Skillet’s “Awake & Alive” I loved the female (Jen Ledger) voice interspersed with the male lead singer (John Cooper), plus the violins in the beginning.  I immediately envisioned Momo and wrote her story around her punk/goth look.
I had the song “Undisclosed Desires” by Muse in my head as I developed my character Delilah Ward for the book Once Upon a Love Story.  Caleb is this clean cut good boy but she’s had an embittered life that she’s trying to crawl out of, to be a better person.  I loved writing their love story.
Star Mates is another Muse song inspiration.  “Uprising” is all about resistance and fighting back.  I combined that with Leona Lewis’s version of “Run” for its haunting melody and those two songs drove the plot of my alien abduction story.
I listen to many different genres of music, all except rap.  I’m not much into rap.  When I heard Colton Dixon’s song “Scars” I knew it was special and I created a special man.  Dicen Burke, a man who has such an evil demon on his shoulder that he can’t get past it and ends up ODing on stage.  He wakes up in 1927 and finds a love that transforms him.  His story, “Dreamland”, will be out October 2nd.  This one actually has a second signature song, “If I Could be Where You Are” by Enya.  It’s his love them to Juliet.
One band that is my absolute favorite is Linkin Park.  Yes, I know they have some rap, but their rap I can handle. (LOL!)  I absolutely love their lyrics, from the harsh heavy metal to the melodic ballads.  (I even like Chester’s other band Dead By Sunrise)  If you’ve never listened to Linkin Park, just take a few of their songs like “Crawling”, “Somewhere I Belong”, “Given Up”, “Castle of Glass”, or “The Catalyst”…there are some very powerful lyrics here that stay with you.  In fact, I use “Somewhere I Belong” quite a bit for an inspirational song…and I’m using it right now for my current WIP.++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++To win a PDF copy of any of my titles (one that has already been released) all you have to do is leave a comment or let me know what song(s) inspires you!  The winner will be chosen at random the day after the blog hop (the 22nd) so please leave a way to contact you (no contact, no win).  Thank you so much for visiting with me!
Be sure to follow me on Twitter or Facebook for upcoming news & contests!   
@BethDCarter 
https://www.facebook.com/bethdcarterauthor
 

Cover Reveal....Another Shot at Love by Niecey Roy

Book Info-Title:  Another Shot At LoveSeries- What’s Love? Book # 1 Author:  Niecey RoyGenre:  New Adult Contemporary Romantic ComedyExpected Publication Date- November 2013




Blurb-Imogen Gorecki has a problem—her twin sister just got engaged, and guess who’s the best man? That’s right, her scum-of-an-ex-boyfriend whom she caught cheating with a bottle-blonde, with fake breasts and a stripper’s flexibility. There’s a disturbing possibility her eyes will never recover. Gen needs a date for the engagement party, but finding Mr. Perfect in a time crunch is proving impossible. Just when she’s about to give up, she face-plants into the crotch of the sexiest guy she’s ever met.
Matt Sesnick is everything Gen wants in a man —except he’s not interested in a relationship. Can she convince Matt to take another shot at love, or will Gen’s pregnant, hormonal older sister, her bridezilla twin, and all of her past Mr. Wrongs get in the way of their happily-ever-after?
Goodreads- http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18480144-another-shot-at-love?from_search=true

About the Author-Niecey Roy knew she wanted to be a writer from a very young age, but her moment of enlightenment came after watching the movie You’ve Got Mail. It was then she realized her place in life, and happily parked her butt on writing romance. Her dream was to create sexy vixens, hunky, half-naked heroes, and above all, romance; lots and lots of butterflies in the belly, breathless first kisses and happily-ever-afters.
When she’s not at her day job where she works as a legal assistant, she can be found at home at a cluttered desk, pounding her tired little fingers away on a keyboard with nothing but black pepper flavored sunflower seeds and Visine as her weapons for mass-romance-novel-creation. When her fingers need a break, you’ll find her at a table with friends, drinking a few martinis and showing off a new pair of (sometimes ridiculous) high heels. She’s usually the loudest at the table and most often the one snorting with laughter.   
Niecey is the author of Fender Bender Blues, a contemporary romantic comedy published by The Wild Rose Press. Her new novel to be released November 2013, Another Shot At Love, is the first novel in the What’s Love??? series.
Links-Website:  http://www.nieceyroy.com/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NieceyRoyRomanceAuthor Twitter:  https://twitter.com/NieceyRoyBlog:  http://www.nieceyroy.com/blog/Goodreads- http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6905991.Niecey_Roy?from_search=true
Rafflecopter Code- a Rafflecopter giveaway

Welcome Alexandra Christian…The Southern Belle from Hell!

Hello Lexxx!I must say, I’ve been delighted reading your bio and getting to know all about you!  I especially loved your anecdote about you and your husband being the Herman and Lily Munster of your neighborhood! 
You mentioned that the superstition that tends to linger throughout the Southern culture influenced your writing.   Where do you get your unique story ideas to keep the paranormal genre fresh and exciting?

A)     The South is like a breeding ground for crazy people.  As Julia Sugarbaker once said, “We don’t hide our crazy people in an attic or an institution.  We display them proudly on the front porch.”  All I have to do to find interesting characters or plot lines is look at people and events in my own home town.  Southern Gothic, as a genre, has always been of interest to me because of the idea that a place that seems so idyllic can have a really nasty underbelly.  There’s something inherently creepy about a place where everybody knows everybody and has for generations. 

OMG!  I just read your September 4th blog “The Objects of My Affliction, or When I Realized I was a Weirdo” and had to roll my tongue back in my mouth.  You and I have the same tastes in men!  Besides hunky English and Scottish men, what else gives you inspiration?

A)     Well what do you need besides hunky Englishmen?  My favorite meme of the moment says “Save a horse, ride an Englishman.” How true.  But I find inspiration in the world around me.  Art and music are essential for me as a writer.  Sometimes a turn of phrase, an instrumental passage of music or a small detail in a painting can set off a whirlwind of creativity.  I look for people and things that give me a clear picture in my mind or perhaps just frame something I’ve already got cooking.  I’m also a HUGE movie and television buff, so I find so much inspiration in those things as well. I’m always glad to share those little inspirational tidbits—come see me on Pinterest and Spotify.
 Your newest book is “Beast of Burden” is a reimagining of the classic tale “Beauty and the Beast”.  Can you tell us a little more about Cianan and how he became a werewolf?

A)     Beast of Burden is set in a fairy tale like world with noble knights and lonely princesses.  Cianan Marek is the king’s most trusted and fierce knight.  In a war far beyond the farthest reaches of the kingdom, he is attacked by a mercenary, fighting for the enemy.  The mercenary is a werewolf and though Cianan escapes with his life, he doesn’t escape the curse of becoming a vicious creature of the night.  To keep his “condition” a secret, he is sent home to be the Lord Governor of the tiny village of Kaspar.  Everyone in the town fears him, having heard rumors that he is cruel and grotesquely scarred.  Of course, once our heroine Sascha comes on the scene we see that he is quite the opposite. 
Well… except for that werewolf thing…


Thank you so much, Lexxx, for visiting with me today! 

Email:  lexxx.christian@gmail.comBlog:   http://lexxxchristian.wordpress.com/Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/alexandra.christian.12Twitter:  https://twitter.com/LexxxChristianGoodreads:  www.goodreads.com/author/show/4684601.Alexandra_ChristianPinterest:  www.pinterest.com/lexxxchristian/

Blurb:
Sascha had been a slave of Kaspar all her life.  Having never known love, she sought refuge in the pages of books and the kindess of her old master.   When he goes off to the marketplace in a neighboring town, he offers to bring her a gift.  All she asks is a single, red rose.  Little does she know that such a simple treasure will change her life forever. 

Rumored to be a scarred and cruel man, Cianan Marek has been searching for a kindred soul.  His life as warrior came to an abrupt end when he was attacked by werewolves in the Outlands.  Bitter and alone, he has been hiding a terrible secret since returning to Kaspar as Lord Governor.  In this adult retelling of the classic fairy tale, Beauty and the Beast, Sascha and Cianan learn the power of destiny and that some beasts lurk in the most unlikely of places.

Excerpt: He shouted, pushing her forward again. She fell forward hard and struck her head on a root from the oak tree, feeling the warm blood bead on her skin and then start to weep down her forehead. She crumpled to the ground, clutching her head and whimpering groggily. She couldn’t even respond as he pulled her up on her knees, but could hear the rustling of fabric behind her as he fumbled with the laces of his pants. She closed her eyes, steadying herself for the inevitable, when she heard the low growling.            Lescoux must have heard it too, as he paused, letting Sascha go and walking toward the trees. “Who’s there?” he shouted into the dusky darkness of the forest. Another growl answered, this time louder and more threatening. Whatever it was closer now, stalking them. Suddenly Sascha wasn’t sure of the lesser of the two evils. Raped and beaten by Lord Lescoux and left for dead, or devoured by whatever that creature was. “It seems,” she began breathlessly, still holding her head, “that you’ve awakened something in the dark more evil than yourself, Lord Lescoux.”            “Shut up,” he hissed, creeping around the edge of the clearing. “Whatever it is will go away if you keep quiet.”            Obviously Lescoux didn’t see the towering black wolf that trotted into the clearing. Sascha shrank, afraid to make a sound for fear of the animal seeing her. She suddenly remembered the story Anya had told her about Lady Isabella and her blood ran cold. She made a small noise and tried to back up on her knees behind a tree, but the wolf detected the movement and turned his head toward her. She froze, locking eyes with the animal. Its amber eyes stared at her with an almost human-like intelligence. Curls of breath emanated from its open mouth as it let out another growl of warning.             Ioin stood motionless and Sascha could see his hands shaking. What a coward, she thought. So brave while assaulting an innocent girl on her own, but pissing down his leg at the sight of a wild animal. He looked at her, his eyes pleading. She knew the beast had him cornered and would spring if he moved so much as a muscle. And though she wasn’t too keen on watching a man torn to shreds, she was certain this may be her only escape from Lord Lescoux’ designs.             “Sascha,” he said, his voice calm but quivering. “My dagger…” She looked down by her side and noticed that his sash and dagger lay on the ground where they’d been discarded in preparation of his attack. The sight filled her with rage and power and she fixed her gazed in a stoic expression. “Slave! Do as I say!” he hissed. “We’ll both be killed, you stupid whore!” He took a step toward her and the wolf sprang, landing between them. Its roar was deafening and Sascha screamed, covering her ears. She thought that surely it was going to tear her throat out then, but instead the beast turned, taking a protective stance in front of her and snorting at Ioin. It was as if the wolf was waiting for the man to make another move. Sascha could see the powerful muscles of the animal’s back moving up and down with its breath and for a moment she was sure she could hear its heart beating. It made almost a barking noise at Lescoux as if to challenge him. Sascha could see that the man was terrified, still as a stone, afraid even to breathe. Ioin reached out for Sascha again, but the wolf roared again, indicating that this was as close to the girl as he was allowed to get. He backed off slowly, keeping his eyes on the wolf as he picked his way through the clearing and into the forest behind. The last thing Sascha remembered before swooning was the icy blue eye of the wolf, staring down at her.

Buy Links:  
Purple Sword Publications:  http://www.purplesword.com Ellora’s Cave: http://www.ellorascave.comMocha Memoirs Press:     http://mochamemoirspress.com/ Amazon:     http://www.amazon.com/Alexandra-Christian/e/B009QU3UD4Barnes & Noble:  http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/alexandra-christian

Welcome M.R. Murphy!

Here's an exciting excerpt from M.R.Murphy's The Last Kiss:
“Hey, man, did you get everything done?”Staring back at his roommate, Aidan smirked and nodded his head to answer Michael. “Yup, finishing touches are in here. Just hope she likes it.”“Damn, dude, since when are you the romantic type?” he chided.   “You don’t know her; trust me she's worth it.” Zipping up his bag, he set it against the door and turned to the mirror for one final inspection.“So what time does her flight get in?” Hanging back on his bunk, Michael watched as his friend fretted over his shirt. “Dude, seriously, you look fine. Stop being such a pansy.”Cocking a skeptical brow, he whipped a pair of rolled up socks at Michael, hoping he'd get the point and piss off. “She gets in at three. Heading out now. So don't fuck with my shit while I'm gone.”“You gonna bring her back here?”               “Fuck no. Why would  I?”“Why not? Or are you afraid I'll steal her from you? Probably a dog anyways.” He barked out a laugh.Aidan instantly regretted showing Michael Raeve's picture, and allowing him to speak to her. Deep down, Aidan knew Michael totally understood his head over heels love for her.“Sure…you and Raeve?” cocking his brow once again, Aidan reached down to grab his bag, “That'll be the day.” With that, he left the small room and walked to his truck. His hands grew slicker with sweat with very step he took. The air was thick and humid even in the Texasdesert as sweat beads trickled down his brow.It had been a few months since he last saw her, and only on a whim chance, he had arranged for her to fly down to his base. His heart tripped into overdrive as he imagined her in his arms again, kissing her urgently, feeling her body pressed against him. He had spent the better part of the day setting up their hotel room littering the bed and floor with flower petals and scattering candles all over the room. He had meticulously staged it for the perfect seduction. Aidan would do whatever it took to make her forget the haunting darkness of the past that lingered in her eyes. He vowed to free her from those nightmares, at least for the night.The drive to Austindragged as traffic flooded the highways. His nerves were on edge, and he prayed he'd make it in time. He could picture the look on her face when she saw him waiting coyly at her gate, flowers in hand, ready to pull her into his arms for a long awaited kiss. Her eyes wide, as her smile and a resplendent blush deepened the closer she stepped toward him. His cock twitched as he imagined the feel of her lips on his. He dreamt of bringing her closer still as he slid his hand to the small of her back to keep her locked in his embrace for however long she'd allow. Smiling at the idea of staring deep into her eyes for the first time in months, he tightened his grip on the steering wheel and gunned the accelerator.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++Blurb: When time and distance had separated them, Raeve and Aidan look back to the past and clear the way for their future. Once again, time threatens their love as Aidan prepares to leave for his next mission.
Can two star-crossed souls learn to overcome the past in just a few days and pick up where they left off? Or are the doomed to travel the same road once again?

Only time will tell…
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Links to find M.R. Murphy:

Facebook Fan Page:  www.facebook.com/M.R.Murphy3
Twitter @M_R_Murphy
Amazon Author Page: www.amazon.com/M.-R.-Murphy
Goodreads: www.Goodreads.com/M.R.Murphy
Website: http://authormrmurphy.wix.com/m-r-murphy

Where to buy links:
Amazon PB:  http://www.amazon.com/The-Last-Kiss-M-Murphy/dp/1490505164/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1377802506&sr=8-4&keywords=M.R.Murphy
Amazon Kindle:http://www.amazon.com/The-Last-Kiss-ebook/dp/B00DOE0H5M/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=8-4&qid=1377802506
Amazon UK PB:  http://www.amazon.co.uk/Last-Kiss-M-R-Murphy/dp/1490505164/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1377803562&sr=1-1&keywords=The+Last+Kiss+M.R.Murphy

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 What's happening this week at Written Butterfly:
September 17 - M.R. Murphy Blog Tour
September 18 - Guest Alexandria Christian 
September 19 - Cover Reveal with Niecey Roy
September 20 & 21 - Fall Into Romance Blog Hop (& Contest)

Fall Into Romance Blog Hop - Music Magic

Be sure to visit the others on this blog hop!

Thanks for visiting me on TRR Blog Hop!   Be sure to visit others since there are lots of prizes to win!  The blog goes on all week but on the 17th, 18th & 19th, I will be hosting three different Blog Tours/Cover Reveals, so please check in with me on those days as well.  I’ll repost this TRR blog hop post again the 20th.  (Sorry for any confusion- I’ll be giving away a PDF ebook of any one of my titles on this post only, not for the tours/cover reveal posts)

Now...onto Music Magic! +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++Music is able to create magic through emotion.  It can pump us up, it can make us laugh, or it can make us cry and make us mad.  It’s no wonder that authors often use music to set a mood or invoke a scene.  Cara Lynn Shultz creates a playlist with her novels and mentions that playlist throughout her books, even going as far as explaining in the back of the book why she used particular songs. 
For me, I usually focus on one or two songs for each of my books.  The most obvious one is “Gimme, Gimme, Gimme” by ABBA for my novella A Man After Midnight.  When I started listening to the lyrics I immediately thought it would make a wonderful story to tell.  The same happened when I heard the lyrics to Kate Voegele’s song “Sweet Silver Lining”:
But so many people are looking to me
To be strong and to fight
But I'm just surviving
And I may be weak but I'm never defeated
And I'll keep believing
In clouds with that sweet silver lining
I envisioned this bitter woman who’s completely misunderstood and I came up with Heather Hart in A Silver Lining.  I’ve had people complain that she’s too abrasive and they hated her, but she needed to be unloved to be able to be redeemed by love.  I love making readers squirm in their seats.
Not every song is as distinctive as those two, however.  In my novel In a Chord I actually mention the inspiration song by name.  When I first heard Skillet’s “Awake & Alive” I loved the female (Jen Ledger) voice interspersed with the male lead singer (John Cooper), plus the violins in the beginning.  I immediately envisioned Momo and wrote her story around her punk/goth look.
I had the song “Undisclosed Desires” by Muse in my head as I developed my character Delilah Ward for the book Once Upon a Love Story.  Caleb is this clean cut good boy but she’s had an embittered life that she’s trying to crawl out of, to be a better person.  I loved writing their love story.
Star Mates is another Muse song inspiration.  “Uprising” is all about resistance and fighting back.  I combined that with Leona Lewis’s version of “Run” for its haunting melody and those two songs drove the plot of my alien abduction story.
I listen to many different genres of music, all except rap.  I’m not much into rap.  When I heard Colton Dixon’s song “Scars” I knew it was special and I created a special man.  Dicen Burke, a man who has such an evil demon on his shoulder that he can’t get past it and ends up ODing on stage.  He wakes up in 1927 and finds a love that transforms him.  His story, “Dreamland”, will be out October 2nd.  This one actually has a second signature song, “If I Could be Where You Are” by Enya.  It’s his love them to Juliet.
One band that is my absolute favorite is Linkin Park.  Yes, I know they have some rap, but their rap I can handle. (LOL!)  I absolutely love their lyrics, from the harsh heavy metal to the melodic ballads.  (I even like Chester’s other band Dead By Sunrise)  If you’ve never listened to Linkin Park, just take a few of their songs like “Crawling”, “Somewhere I Belong”, “Given Up”, “Castle of Glass”, or “The Catalyst”…there are some very powerful lyrics here that stay with you.  In fact, I use “Somewhere I Belong” quite a bit for an inspirational song…and I’m using it right now for my current WIP.++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++To win a PDF copy of any of my titles (one that has already been released) all you have to do is leave a comment or let me know what song(s) inspires you!  The winner will be chosen at random the day after the blog hop (the 22nd) so please leave a way to contact you (no contact, no win).  Thank you so much for visiting with me!

Also, be sure to follow me or friend me to keep up with my upcoming novels!
 https://twitter.com/BethDCarter
 https://www.facebook.com/bethdcarterauthor

Snippet Sunday 9/8/13 – A Man After Midnight

I decided to go back to one of my older novella’s titled A Man After Midnight.  If the title sounds familiar it should.  I got it from ABBA’s song “Gimme Gimme Gimme”.  When I listened to lyrics I thought they would make a great story. 
A little known fact about this novella was the MacGuffin of the story.   In the original version, I put my experience of being in Times Square when the potential bomber who planned to blow it up was there.  Yes, the May 1st, 2010 attempted car bombing.  I was staying in the New York Marriott Marquis hotel and had walked out to go to a Broadway show of “Billy Elliot” when I saw police and the NYFD on the street.  I stopped and asked what was going on and the answer I got was fire hydrants were being checked.  Right.  I walked by that Nissan Pathfinder and remember it clearly, but I headed for my show and after a delay it started and I really enjoyed it.  It wasn’t until afterwards that I learned my hotel was evacuated and the potential danger I had been in.
When I turned the story into my publisher, they wanted me to take all this out of the story and so I did, which caused me to come up with another ending.  I’m not disappointed how this story turned out and I’ve kept what I wrote, so maybe it’ll pop up in another story somewhere.+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 “Excuse me, Miss,” said one of the theater ushers. Caroline looked up from her Playbill and blinked at the smiling man. “Yes?”“I’m afraid we’ve shown you to the wrong seat. If you come with me I’ll take you to the right one.”He gestured to follow him down the almost vertical stairway from the upper mezzanine section, otherwise known as the nosebleed seats. “Oh,” she said, frowning. “Are you sure? I’m pretty positive this is my seat.”“Right this way,” the usher repeated with a patient smile and another wave of his hand.Caroline smiled benignly to the people watching, gathered her purse, and stood. He led her down and through the back, using a side hallway that led to a curtained room. When he held the curtain open, Caroline took a step back.“Isn’t this an orchestra box? I didn’t purchase this seat --”“No, I did,” came Wren’s deep voice from the private room. “We wouldn’t have been able to see anything from outer space.”Caroline smiled weakly at the usher and then hurried inside. The curtain closed behind her. “How did you know I was here?”He held up Aldy’s unused ticket. “I upgraded.”+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
(As you can see, much different from a bomb threat!)
Blurb:
When her friend, Aldy, invites her for a weekend vacation in New York City, Caroline Grace jumps at the chance.
She meets the handsome and sensual Wren Calder, and is immediately swept off her feet by the powerful attraction she feels toward him.  She doesn’t hesitate to indulge in a one night stand, but Wren has other ideas.  He proposes a no strings weekend fling and Caroline decides it’s just what she needs to get over her divorce. 
Wren slowly frees her inhibitions, opening her to a sexuality Caroline has long denied herself.    He shows her a world of voyeurism, the thrill of sex in public, and how she loves to be lightly dominated.  Overshadowed by the mistake she made in the past, Caroline leaves at the end of the weekend vowing to forget him. But she soon comes to the conclusion that getting over Wren is going to be a little more difficult than she thought, because she realizes just how much she’s fallen in love.   
http://www.loose-id.com/a-f/a-man-after-midnight.html 
http://www.amazon.com/A-Man-After-Midnight-ebook/dp/B004R1QBKG/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&qid=1378624035&sr=8-16&keywords=beth+d.+carter
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-man-after-midnight-beth-d-carter/1029659385?ean=9781607379300
https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-amanaftermidnight-521471-149.html

Cover Reveal - DREAMLAND (Time Travel Romance)

My first time travel romance was a book called "Timeless Passion" by Constance O'Day Flannery back in 1986.  I was in heaven because I was a lover of history so combining the two things I loved most (history and romance novels) was pure nirvana.  Of course, Ms. O'Day Flannery is considered by many to be the woman who jump started the paranormal & time travel genre, so I feel honored that I was able to buy the first printing of this book at my local Wal-Mart.

And I've always wanted to write a time travel story but had never really thought out the logistics.  And besides, I felt the genre eventually became overused.  So when I had this vision of a rock star who traveled in time, my mind immediately latched onto the mechanism on how to get him to the past.  I wanted something organic and came up with him falling into a coma.

Music is often a theme in my books.  It was the backdrop for my characters in "In a Chord" and it was the profession of Emmarie in "Star Mates".  So I had two songs in mind when I began to develop Dicen's story.  The first was "Scars" by Colton Dixon and the second was "If I Could be Where You Are" by Enya.  "Scars" became Dicen's anthem and the other became his love story.  I've always wanted to write a man who was full of fear and addiction and have love redeem him, so I pictured him as this drugged out asshole who goes too far and almost dies. The coma lets him explore a world quite unlike the one he's used to, and I sent him the Roaring Twenties.  It's a time period not often written about in time travel and I just loved the frenetic energy of then, the whole "Live Like We're Dying" mentality.  The book is entirely from his POV, but I wanted it that way because this is his story, his redemption.

I just got the cover today and I'm not sure how I feel about the girl.  I had in mind a different type of Flapper, so please give me your opinion.  The book is set to release on October 2nd and I hope you enjoy Dicen as much as I enjoyed writing him.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Blurb:

Dicen Burke had it all.  As lead singer in the world famous rock band, Dark Army, the world lay at his feet.  But the path to super stardom warred with a painful past and during a performance the demons haunting him finally descended.  Unable to stop the self destructive path of alcohol and drugs, when he fell, he fell hard.

He wakes up in a world he doesn’t know.  The Twenty-first century rocker is now in the 1920’s, lost and bewildered.  He’s taken in by Juliet Fox, a beautiful woman trying to be a positive influence in her brother’s wild lifestyle among the Hollywood Motion Picture elite. 
Dicen does his best to adapt, and with Juliet by his side, he discovers a world that offers him a clean slate.  But when he’s pulled back to the present, separated by time from the one person that gives him a reason to live, will he find a way to push past his demons as well as find Juliet again?

Movie Review "3" - German Ménage Film

Movie Review “3”
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1517177/
I don’t watch many movies at home because it’s takes me hours and hours due to my son who wants me to play Wii all the time.  But when I read the synopsis of the German movie “3” I bite the bullet and streamed it from Netflix.
Six hours later….
I finish!  And was really surprised by this film.  It’s a true MMF story all the way.  I half expected to find out this was a book turned into a live action because the plot succulently falls into an erotica romance category.
Some SPOILERS below and yes, I might spoil the surprise, but hey…it’s ménage.  As I said earlier, it is a German film so if you don’t like reading subtitles then be warned.  It starts out with Hanna and Simon, a couple that has been together for twenty years.  As with any long term relationship, they’re more friends than lovers.  Buddies, really, supporting each other through life, and there are some intense situations right away.  Simon’s mother tells them she has pancreatic cancer and takes valium a week later to kill herself.  Then Simon is diagnosed with testicular cancer and is taken immediately for surgery.  (Which, by the way, would NEVER happen here in the states so that was weird to see.  Literally, he’s wheeled into surgery within five minutes)
Anyway, what changes for both of them is one man named Adam (or as I like to call him the German Gordon Ramsey).  Hanna meets Adam through work and through a series of unusual circumstances.  And on the day Simon gets his surgery, Hanna starts an affair with Adam.
Feeling like half a man, Simon goes to his swimming spot and meets…Adam.  The two men talk and Simon tells him about his surgery and Adam wants to see the scar but ends up giving Simon a hand job.  This, of course, throws Simon in a tailspin with a crisis of sexual identity.
I should note that Adam does not realize that Simon and Hanna know each other, and he carries on affairs with both of them.  And their time with Adam also rejuvenates their own sex life.  So when Hanna ends up pregnant, she doesn’t know who the father is and goes to tell Adam…only to find Simon with him.
In true ménage fashion, the Simon and Hanna realize they don’t want to live without Adam and Adam has fallen in love with both of them.  And the ending is truly wowser. 
It’s an artistic film, with bits of noir thrown in to help show the feelings of the characters.  It takes the stereotype of a mid life crisis and throws in a twist. If you love M/M action as well as a good ménage story, you should give this film a try. 

Snippet Sunday – “Sleeping Beauty”

He began looking around for an escape route. They were too far from the elevators and already boxed in from the rear. The only other thing was the trash chute.Ah, fuck!He squeezed her hand. “Do you trust me?”“Yes,” she answered without hesitation. Her quick response warmed his blood but also made him pause. He’d never had someone’s unquestioning loyalty before, except for Noah’s. It made his heart pound in his chest.“Then trust me that you’re not going to like this,” he said grimly.“What?” The next second he turned and ran for the trash chute. It opened when he got near and he picked her up, throwing her in feet first. The next instant he grabbed the door frame and hoisted his own body through it, sliding headfirst into the nastiest-smelling tube in the universe.++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Blurb:
Ronan Hark and Noah Kabot are deep space salvagers, partners in business as well as in life.  While investigating an old ship they discover a cryo chamber holding the frozen body of a beautiful woman who’s been asleep for thirty-one years.  Against Ronan’s better judgment, they take the chamber and wake her up.

Alivia Carian has spent her life living as a sheltered yet unloved princess, until the day she is forced into cryostasis.  It was only supposed to be for a short time, but somehow her ship crashed and she became nothing more than a memory.

But now everything has changed.  A hunter is after her and killing anyone who knows she’s alive.  As they race across the expanse of space, can Ronan and Noah keep her safe?  And what happens when she finally returns home to confront a life that forgot about her?
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Available for Pre-Order!  http://www.bookstrand.com/sleeping-beautyBuy now & save 15%!

Snippet Sunday- Lawless Hearts MFM Historical Romance

Snippet Sunday is a blast from the past…literally.  Lawless Hearts is set in 1888 in Missouri, and tells the story of two men who come to tell Scharlie Thorn that her beloved brother has been murdered.  Worse, he was an outlaw and now, she’s falling in love with her brother’s accomplices.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++“The storm’s coming in fast,” Garrett said as he followed them in.
Just then, the hail and wind abruptly died, and an eerie silencedescended. The room felt charged, electric, and a flash of lightsuddenly ignited the dark. Cassidy opened the door again with Garrettand Scharlie on his heels.
Outside, Scharlie saw the sky was a greenish-black color, theclouds hanging thick but moving rapidly. More bright flashes of lightstruck the ground not too far in the distance. And then, suddenly, thewind picked up so quickly Scharlie had to grab hold of Garrett tomaintain her balance.
“Scharlie, do you have a cellar?” Cassidy urgently asked.
“In the kitchen, under the rug,” she answered and watched as heran to uncover it.
If possible, the wind outside picked up speed, slamming into thehouse with monstrous force. She realized that this wasn’t just a drill,that a tornado was bearing down on them and she’d done nothing tosecure the livestock she had.
“My animals!” Scharlie cried and ran for the door.
“Scharlie!” Cassidy called out.
But his warning came a little late. The wind caught hold of thedoor and ripped it from her hands. The wind whipped mercilessly ather hair and skirts, pulling her forward into the whirling nightmare.She frantically reached for the doorframe and screamed just as Garrettgrabbed her around the waist and managed to slam the door shut.
“Move!” Cassidy yelled.
She saw Garrett grab his and Cassidy’s gear, as well as aWinchester rifle. They all hurried down the cellar steps and had justmanaged to secure the door when a ferocious sound blasted over them.Garrett still held on to her waist and dragged her back from the stairsuntil he bumped into the wall. The cellar was pitch black and smelledof rich earth. Scharlie shivered a little despite being wrapped inGarrett’s warm arms.+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++Available at Amazon.com, B&N, and Siren.  http://www.bookstrand.com/lawless-heartswww.bethdcarter.com