Laura Kaye's Blog, page 77

Happy Book Birthday Hearts in Darkness!

Imagine this cover art as an 11"x17" poster! That's what you could win today by following my blog and commenting with your email address (+some fun swag)! (Open to U.S.) Contest open until 12/23 midnight EST!

I'm celebrating the 8-month book birthday of my contemporary romance, HEARTS IN DARKNESS!

Makenna James thinks her day can't get any worse, until she finds herself stuck in a pitch-black elevator with a complete stranger. Distracted by a phone call and juggling too much stuff, the pin-striped accountant caught only a glimpse of a dragon tattoo on his hand before the lights went out.

Caden Grayson is amused when a redhead literally falls at his feet. His amusement turns to panic when the power fails. Despite his piercings, tats, and vicious scar, he's terrified of the dark and confined spaces. Now, he's trapped in his own worst nightmare.

To fight fear, they must both reach out and open up. With no preconceived notions based on looks to hold them back, they discover just how much they have in common. In the warming darkness, attraction grows and sparks fly, but will they feel the same when the lights come back on?  

Accolades for HEARTS IN DARKNESS:76 Amazon Reviews!Bestselling Contemporary Romance on Amazon!885 Ratings and 200 reviews on Goodreads!EPIC eBook Award Finalist for Best Novella! (winners TBA 3/12)Fictionwise 6-Month Bestseller since June '11!4+ dozen book blogger reviews, including RT Magazine and a new 5-STAR review yesterday by Book Savvy Babe! Sizzling Read of the Month for May at Sizzling Hot Book ReviewsUp for Sizzling Read of the Year at Sizzling Hot Book ReviewsHave you given HEARTS IN DARKNESS a try yet? A great gift for yourself or a friend!
Thanks for reading and celebrating with me!Laura

Don't Miss My SnOHw Man! #Giveaway at Sizzling Hot Book Reviews!

NORTH OF NEED is the spotlighted book at Sizzling Hot Book Reviews this month, having won Sizzling Read of the Month for December, and so I'm offering this super cute giveaway! Included:Print North of NeedNorth of Need notebookSnowman stockingSnowman Hershey barSnowman PeepsSnowman picture frameRomance Trading Cards from all my booksSnow globe PenVanilla lotion (Owen says Megan smells like vanilla...)25% off Wild Rose Press couponDon't miss out! The contest runs through December 31! Head over there and enter to win! And check out the Sizzling Read of the Year contest in the upper right of that site's page!
Thanks for reading!Laura

#SixSunday #39 - Some Ancient Holiday Cheer from #NorthofNeed!

If you're looking for my Stuff Your Stockings Blog Hop Post, please scroll down one blog post! Thank you! Happy Sunday everyone. I'm happy to share six from my contemporary fantasy romance, North of Need! Megan's just given Owen a Christmas present from a man who's been dead several millenia:

"Do you recognize it?" she asked, adrenaline in the form of pins and needles tingling over her body.
"No, well, I know the symbols. It says, 'Without the death of winter, there is no rebirth of spring.' It's ancient."
"Yes…Owen?"
He pulled his gaze from the amulet.
"It was your father's."

Aw! Love this sweet holiday moment between them. Hope it brings you cheer!
Please see the Other Sixers' Posts and follow the #sixsunday hashtag on Twitter! Also, at Sizzling Hot Book Reviews: North of Need won Sizzling Read of the Month for December, and so I'm offering a SnOHw Man Giveaway over there, AND the book is up for Sizzling Read of the Year, and your consideration for a vote would be much appreciated! Feel free to check both out via the above link! :)
Thanks so much for reading (and commenting)! Happy holidays!Laura

Stuff Your Stockings Christmas Ho Ho Hop!

I'm one of nearly 200 authors participating in the biggest, bestest holiday blog hop of them all! 
That's nearly 200 ways to win!
WIN HERE: WHAT YOU COULD WIN: You could win one of my four ebooks AND an authentic 2011 White House Christmas Ornament. New in beautiful box with booklet. Image below. MINIMUM ENTRY: Name, Email Address, Comment EXTRA ENTRIES: See Form
Reverse has Teddy Roosevelt scene

AT OTHER STOPS ON THE BLOG HOP:Prizes Galore:$400+ In Gift Cards to Amazon, B&N, ARe, and Other Publisher Sites150+ In Ebooks of all heat levelsJewlery, Gift Baskets, Christmas Ornaments, and all kinds of goodiesEach participating author is going to hold a contest on their blog with so many treats up for grabs it's enough to make every reader's Christmas just that much happier! In each contest post the author will link the others participating in the blog hop to help you find each and ever stop to increase your chances to win.

 RULES
1) The contest will start Friday, December 16, 2011 and go til midnight EST Sunday, December 18, 2011; 2) Must leave e-mail address; 3) Open to international; 4) Winner will be chosen by random.org; 
5) What to comment? Share your favorite holiday MOVIE! 
I'll start: mine is Love Actually!

Now, my books for your consideration:
Forever Freed   |   Hearts in Darkness *NJRW Golden Leaf Best Paranormal of 2011!*NJRW Golden Leaf Finalist for Best First Book!*Gothic Romance Amazon Bestseller!  EPIC eBook Award Finalist for Best Novella!*Contemporary Romance Amazon Bestseller!*Sizzling Read of the Month (May) at Sizzling Hot Books!*Up for Sizzling Read of the Year at Sizzling Hot Books!*  600+ 4- & 5-star Goodreads ratings!*
Just Gotta Say   |   North of Need 

  Fantasy Romance Amazon Bestseller!*On Amazon's Hot New Fantasy Romance List!*Sizzling Read of the Month (Dec) at Sizzling Hot Books!*Up for Sizzling Read of the Year at SHBR! Plz VOTE!*  Picked by Paperback Dolls as THE romance for holiday gift-giving!*
Thanks so much for visiting me during the hop! And happiest of holidays!
Laura

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Join Me & @StephanieDraven at A Novel Idea Bookstore, Bridgeton, NJ 12/17!

If you live in driving distance of Bridgeton, NJ, Stephanie Dray/Draven and I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to see you there! This Saturday, 2-4 p.m.! Good reads, good food, good fun!
Thanks for reading! And please spread the word if you have any Philly/Wilmington or New Jersey friends!:) Laura

17 Authors, 26 eBooks, 1 Kindle Fire - Will it be yours?

[image error] I'm one of 17 authors giving away a brand spanking new Kindle Fire, along with a bundle of eBooks to get you started, including all FOUR of mine! Just enter to win, through midnight PST on 12/15! Don't miss out on this great gift--for yourself or someone you really, really love!
Click here to go to the entry form!
And good luck!
Thanks for reading,Laura

Photos from a Great Weekend: Booksigning, Surprise Getaway, Holiday Fun!

I had the best weekend! I just had to share!
First, I had my first bookstore signing at Ukazoo Books in Towson, Maryland. There were 9 Maryland Romance Writers authors there. The crowd was small but attentive, and they asked questions and bought some books. So it was pretty cool and a lot of fun! And it was awesome seeing my books on shelves, too!
After the booksigning, MRW had its annual holiday party at president Sharon Buchbinder's house. The food was wonderful and the company even better! Plus, I received four awards for First Novel-length Publication, Publishing Multiple Novels in a Year, Publishing a Short Story, Publishing a Novella. The chapter gives out pins for each of these awards, which was pretty awesome!
After the party, my husband swept me away on a surprise getaway weekend. We spent the night at the luxurious Hotel Monaco in Baltimore. We had a premiere suite that was totally yummy! The next morning, we went to breakfast at the Blue Moon Cafe, which has been featured on the show Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, which is how we first learned of it. And we dived into a huge plate of Captain Crunch French Toast. No, I could not finish it, but it was fun trying! Afterwards, we browsed the Hampden neighborhood of Baltimore, which we'd never visited before. It's several blocks of cute shops and restaurants. I treated myself to several handmade pieces of jewelry (I'm a total jewelry hound!), we shopped for a few hours, and then had lunch. We also couldn't miss the "Miracle on 34th Street" - a block in the neighborhood where the residents go all out decorating! It was really cool!
When we got home in the evening, we decided to keep the holiday celebration theme going and took the girls to a local drive-through holiday lights display. We go every year, usually on Christmas Eve, but we couldn't help ourselves and just had to go early! The display always makes me feel like a kid! And this year they passed out super cool 3-D glasses!
Then, I get the news that NORTH OF NEED is up for Sizzling Read of the Year! This was the result of the book winning Sizzling Read of the Month for December, and it would just be so awesome to earn such a big honor for the book!
So, I'd say that was a dang good weekend, wouldn't you? Tell me something great about your weekend! Thanks for reading,Laura

#NorthofNeed is Up for Sizzling Read of the Year! Please V*O*T*E!

I would very much appreciate your vote for NORTH OF NEED in the Sizzling Read of the Year competition at Sizzling Hot Book Reviews. The book won Hot Read of the Month for December, and now is in the pool for the yearly contest!
Thank you for considering and for voting!Laura

Welcome Guest Author Jeanette Grey & Her Debut Cyperpunk Romance!

I'm so excited to welcome  debut author  Jeanette Grey  to the blog today!

Look down below for her giveaway!

Welcome, Jeanette!  Please share a little about yourself, your genres, any other pen names you use.
Hi! I'm a northern girl, currently living in the south. I'm a former teacher and a life-long reader and writer of romances, but I'm brand-new to actually putting them out there for other people to read. I write sizzling hot contemporaries and action-packed science fiction romances.
Awesome! And congratulations on your first book! Tell us a little about your latest or upcoming release.
Unacceptable Risk is a cyberpunk romance about an ass-kicking heroine trying to save the world, and her best friend Edison, who is always trying to save her. It's set in a not-so-distant dystopian future and features lots of tech, lots of adventure, and probably my favorite love story I've ever written.
Ooh…definitely intrigued here! Which character is your favorite and why?
Edison, for sure. He's the sort of hero who doesn't mind that his girl is strong and independent, or that her convictions come first. But he's strong in his own right and refuses to sell himself short when he thinks Plix isn't being fair. He's smart and strong and sexy and incredibly unselfish in his love.
Me likey! As the author, what surprised you about this story?
This was one of those stories where I plotted out the ending about a hundred times, but I could never seem to come up with a solution that did the characters justice. Taking a big leap of faith, I kept writing anyway. And boy was I ever surprised when just as I was hitting the end of my outline, the characters told me exactly where the story needed to go.
I LOVE when that happens! Good for you! Will there be any sequels or other books in the same series?
I've been playing with the idea of writing another book involving one of the side characters, but I haven't made any firm decisions yet. I do have another work in progress that's set in the same universe. Not sure if it'll end up being part of a series yet or not.
Good luck! What was the hardest thing for you about writing this story?
Balancing the futuristic, high-tech elements of the story with the human, romantic elements which are really its core. The setting is critical to the story of course, and I wanted to paint a vivid picture of this world, but without getting too technical and keeping the reader from the emotions and the characters. It was a tricky balance!
I have a lot of respect for authors who take on scifi or steampunk, etc., for just this reason! What are you working on right now?
I'm editing up a super-hot contemporary novel full of sarcastic humor, dark pasts, and cross-cultural miscommunication. The hero and heroine meet at a three day-long Indian wedding, and then have to figure out how to make their relationship work once it's over.
I'm also writing another cyberpunk romance novella involving a tormented mercenary and a beautiful scientist.
It's fun having a couple of very different projects going. Means I always have something I can write on, no matter my mood.
These sound awesome! What happened to the first book you ever wrote?
Oh gosh, I wrote it when I was seventeen, so it's probably in the back of my closet at my dad's house! I hope he never looks there!
LOL! What do you find easiest and hardest to write?
I find love scenes easiest. When I'm in the zone, they just flow. Action and dialog are much more difficult, but I like pushing myself, and I usually end up happy with the outcome because of the struggle.
Always interest to hear different authors' takes on that! So, have you incorporated actual events or people from your own life into your books?
Never wholesale, though little glimmers of real people and real moments sneak in from time to time. Back when I was younger, I used to write a lot of real-life events into my stories, but I tended to get caught up in being faithful to the events and was hindered in my story-telling. The departure into pure fiction is really what gave my story-telling wings and freed me up to write more compelling people, worlds and narratives.
Is there a theme or message that runs through your work?
I write a lot of different kinds of stories, but I think the common thread is the idea of love as a redemptive force. My characters are often lonely, damaged people, and it's through love and connection that they find happiness and healing.
Love that! What would your readers be surprised to learn about you?
That back when I used to teach, I was a physics/chemistry teacher. People seem to assume that because I write I used to reach English.
I can see that. Which romance book or series (or other genre, if you don't write romance) do you wish you had written?
The Demonica series by Larissa Ione. What an amazing world she made!
Good pick! Of all the characters you've ever written, who is your favorite and why?
Oh, I love them all! But if I had to choose, probably the heroine from the contemporary novel I mentioned earlier. She's sarcastic and damaged and just so much fun to write.
Can't wait for that one! Okay, now, just for fun: Milk chocolate or dark chocolate? Dark. Always.
Salty or sweet? Both. Preferably at the same time. Chocolate-covered pretzels are my kryptonite.
Bed or kitchen table? Bed, but only because walking there to cuddle after is such a hassle.
Beach or mountains? Ooh, close call, but I'll go with mountains – assuming there's a cabin with indoor plumbing and electricity. I don't camp.
Give or receive? Give. (But always with the hope of reciprocation. I am human.)

She may learn to live for love…if vengeance doesn't kill her first.

Plix spends her lonely, gritty life trying to solve the mysteries her father left behind. Armed with a variety of cybernetic enhancements and a talent for getting into places she shouldn't be, she searches for clues to his murder—and who's responsible for poisoning her city.

Waking up on a street corner with her brain wiring fried to a crisp, she figures she must have gotten close this time. There's only one man she trusts to pull her back from the brink: a tuner who can retrieve the evidence hidden deep in the recesses of her mind. A man she dares not let too close to her heart.

When Edison downloads a secret SynDate schematic from Plix's burnt-out circuitry, he knows with dreadful finality that nothing—not even the fiery kiss he's been holding back for years—will stop her from pursuing her quest past the point of insanity.

All he can do, as he helps her plan her final mission, is ease her pain, watch her back…and hope one of them doesn't pay with their lives.

Read an Excerpt!

Thanks for being coming on the blog! Where can we find you on the web?
Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads Amazon Author Page | Publisher's Author Page

GIVEAWAY!One commenter who leaves their email address will win an ecopy of Unacceptable Risk! Open to international! Winner to be chosen by random.org. Contest closes midnight EST on Sunday, 12/11! Good luck!

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR BEING MY GUEST, JEANETTE! And thanks for reading everyone!Laura & Jeanette

9 Hot Authors This Saturday at @UkazooBooks! Readings! Food! Fun!

Join me and my good Maryland Romance Writers friends Stephanie Dray/Draven, Kate Dolan, K.D. Hays, Eliza Knight, Afton Locke, Janet Mullany, Sherri Neilson and Kate Poole offering readings, fun, food, and prizes at Ukazoo Books in Towson, Maryland! Would LOVE to see you there!
Thanks for reading,Laura