Ann Everett's Blog, page 4

How Bad is My Eyesight?

HOW BAD IS MY EYESIGHT?

 

The last time I visited the DPS to renew my driver’s license, the clerk encouraged me to read the eye chart without my glasses. When I refused, she attempted to convince me so I might get the restriction removed.

News Flash. I don’t need a restriction to tell me I’m restricted! My eyeglasses are the first thing I put on in the morning, and the last thing I take off at night. Trying to read without them is a waste of time.

However, there is one thing other than sleeping when I don’t wear them. In the shower. Normally, that’s no big deal. I have everything arranged on the tub’s ledge that I need, and I see well enough without my specs to identify each bottle.

So, the other day, I’m washing my hair and reach for the **shampoo… which my husband has just replaced. He is so thoughtful to put it in the exact spot it belongs. But, when I put it on, it doesn’t lather like it usually does. I immediately blame the company for changing the formula. I rinse and add more for a second time and it still doesn’t produce suds.

I rinse again, lean my head around the curtain and grab my glasses. He’d bought conditioner instead of shampoo! I removed my glasses again, and decided to use his which lathered okay and smelled great.

Later, when I mentioned his mistake and that I’d used his tangerine shampoo instead, he looked at me like I was crazy, and said, “That isn’t shampoo. It’s body wash!”

As I said, I can identify each bottle—I just can’t read the print!! My restriction is clear!!

**Shampoo Recommendation

If you’re looking for a good shampoo that won’t break your piggy bank, you should give this one a try. I’ll put it up against any brand.

 

Music for a Merman by Alice Renaud

Check out Alice Renaud’s new fantasy book, Music for a Merman. Pre-order for .99 until November 1. To find out more about Alice and her books, visit her website and follow her on social media.

Rob Regor knew that humans were trouble. All the shape shifting mermen of the Morvann Islands knew it. And human women were double trouble… especially when they were lying on the road in front of a digger.

Rob has a mission. Go to the mainland. Work as a policeman. Spy on humans. Report back to his father, the head of the Regor Merman Clan. It should be easy. Until he has to arrest Charlie. Rob can’t fight his attraction to the sexy eco-warrior, and it puts him on one hell of a collision course with his family and his Clan. Will he break the rules – or break her heart, and his?

Love ‘em and leave ‘em, that was Charlie’s motto. It had served her well until now. But Rob is different… Can she open up her heart to Rob – when a secret buried in her past surfaces and changes her completely?

Buy Links

https://amzn.to/2ZkU5wR

https://books2read.com/u/mdG7Bw

Alice lives in London, UK, with her husband and son. By day she’s a compliance manager for a pharmaceutical company. By night she writes fantasy romance about shape shifting mermen, water monsters and time-travelling witches. Her first book, “A Merman’s Choice,” was published in January 2019 by Black Velvet Seductions. It is the first book in a fantasy romance trilogy inspired by the landscapes and legends of Brittany and Wales. The second book, “Music for a Merman,” is on pre order now. Alice has also written a short story, “The Sweetest Magic of All,” included in the BVS “Mystic Desire” anthology, out now.

Alice loves reading and writing stories, and sharing them with anyone who’s interested!

Social Media Links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AliceRenaudAuthorRomance/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/alicerauthor

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alice-renaud-author-4219b6166/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alicerenaudauthor/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18670218.Alice_Renaud

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/alice-renaud

Amazon page: https://www.amazon.com/Alice-Renaud/e/B07L52P17B

Excerpt

Charlie clambered over the rocks and was soon looking down at the small cove, sparkling blue and gold under the descending sun. The haunting song grew louder the closer she got to the sea. Now it seemed to be outside her head, rising from the peaceful water below to weave its magic around her. The meaning shimmered, just beyond the edge of her comprehension. It was like trying to read words reflected in a mirror. If she could only break the surface of the glass, enter the other side, she’d understand it fully.

But in some obscure way, she knew that the melody spoke of love. Sexual, passionate love. And it was doing something to her. Heat was building up, deep inside her belly. She swore, in a vain attempt to let it out. “Bloody Rob!” He’d got her all worked up, and now she couldn’t calm down.

Cold water and exercise would help. She half-climbed, half-slid down the slippery rocks and hit the sand with a thud. The music sounded as though it was coming from the waves.

It couldn’t be. Maybe the stress of the past day had given her tinnitus. She’d read about it. People heard noises, or even melodies, in their head, and couldn’t get rid of them. She took off her shorts and T-shirt and placed them on a rock, weighing them down with her sandals. After a moment’s hesitation, she took off her swimsuit too. No one would see her, and she loved skinny-dipping. Nothing would come between her and the sea tonight.

The breeze glided across her body but failed to soothe the persistent thrumming at the apex of her thighs. She stepped into the surf, bracing herself for the usual Atlantic chill, but it didn’t come. The water was warm, almost like the Mediterranean. She immersed herself up to her neck. Joy broke through her gloom and lifted her mood just as a wave lifted her and bore her towards the small wooded island in the middle of the cove. A few lazy strokes were all she needed to stay afloat. The water enveloped her in its embrace, stroking her from her shoulders to her toes, as if the whole ocean wanted to make love to her.

The eerie song was growing louder and clearer by the minute. With an almighty jolt she understood that it was real. She wasn’t hallucinating. The enchanting melody was coming from the other side of the islet! Excitement surged, short-circuiting all other emotions. Something was there, just beyond her sight. Something beautiful and magical.

She swam up to the island and followed the sandy shore towards the heavenly sound. Some deep, mysterious instinct told her that she had nothing to fear from this being. It meant her no harm. Quite the contrary.

Luck was on her side. A fallen tree, half submerged in the water, provided the perfect cover. The anticipation blazed so high inside her, it made her mouth go dry. She grabbed the trunk and hauled herself up to peep through the branches.

A black, glistening animal swam in circles, just a few yards away. A porpoise? But the shape was wrong. A fin broke the surface. No, not a fin, an arm! Coal-black and muscular, it ended in a hand.

A webbed hand.

Astonishment sucked the air out of her lungs. Her hands shook and she almost lost her grip on the trunk. She clutched the wood so hard that a splinter drove into her finger, drawing blood, but she didn’t feel any pain. She could only stare, and listen, as the fantastical being moved through the water and poured his soul out in a stream of music.

A merman! The old legends were true. Here was the Water Horse, the Selkie, the aquatic creature that could turn into a man.

Food, Fiction, and Foolishness With Kathy L Wheeler

Today, I welcome Kathy L Wheeler to Food, Fiction, and Foolishness where she shares a delicious recipe just in time for July 4th celebrations! What’s more American than Apple Pie? For the fiction portion of the blog, Kathy’s sharing her Mail Order Bride Series. Check them out. They sound like a lot of fun, and who doesn’t like a good arranged marriage story!!

FOOD

 

Apple Pie

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

6 to 7 cups thinly sliced peeled tart apples

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Pastry for double-crust pie (9 inches)

1 tablespoon butter

1 large egg white

Additional sugar

Directions

• In a small bowl, combine the sugars, flour and spices; set aside. In a large bowl, toss apples with lemon juice. Add sugar mixture; toss to coat.

• Line a 9-in. pie plate with bottom crust; trim even with edge. Fill with apple mixture; dot with butter. Roll remaining crust to fit top of pie; place over filling. Trim, seal and flute edges. Cut slits in crust.

• Beat egg white until foamy; brush over crust. Sprinkle with sugar. Cover edges loosely with foil.

Bake at 375° for 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly, 20-25 minutes longer. Cool on a wire rack.

 

Kathy L Wheeler (a.k.a. Kae Elle Wheeler for her Cinderella Series) has a BA in Management Information Systems from the University of Central Oklahoma that includes over forty credit hours of vocal music. She was a computer programmer for the Hertz Corporation for over fifteen years and utilizes karaoke for her vocal music talents. Other passions include the NFL, the NBA, travel, musical theatre, painting, reading, and writing.

She is a member of several chapters of the Romance Writers of America: Greater Seattle chapter, Olympia and Eastside chapters, The Beau Monde Chapter and Hearts Through History.

Her main sources of inspiration come from mostly an over-active imagination. She currently resides in the Seattle area with her musically talented husband, Al, and their bossy cat, Carly, and sweet dog, Angel.

https://kathylwheeler.com

https://twitter.com/kathylwheeler

https://facebook.com/kathylwheeler

https://pinterest.com/kathylwheeler

https://instagram.com/kathylwheeler

FICTION

Mail Order Bride: The Counterfeit: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07Q7P84ZB/

After a disastrous first marriage, Will Jeffers hasn’t the stomach for another emotionally entailed union. All he needs is a wife to cook, nurse his mother, and look after the homestead. But good women are few and far between in Colorado mining country. A mail order bride is the perfect solution.

Amelia Johannasen is running for her life. Her mother has decided it’s time her daughter joined the family business, shattering Amy’s dreams of marrying for love. Imagine her surprise when she is mistaken for Will Jeffers mail order bride.

With a head for numbers and talent for spinning tall-tales but no notion of how to cook or nurse a manipulative old woman how can she reach the heart of a man once burned so badly, he’s sworn off love?

Excerpt: Mail Order Bride: The Counterfeit

“I’m happy to see you made it safe, ma’am. I apologize for being late, but as I mentioned in my letters, my ma, well, with her sick and all. I figured we oughta to start back right after the ceremony.”

She froze still as a statue. “Ceremony?”

“Our nuptials. I’m afraid I can’t leave Ma alone for long. No tellin’ what kind of—” He chuckled, but even to his own ears it sounded forced. “We can, uh, talk about that later. Your nursin’ skills and all.”

Those lovely eyes blinked up at him. And once again, he found himself drowning in bewitching sensations.

She heaved in a deep breath and let it out slow. “We’re to be … m-married? Now?”

He hardened his tone. “Yes’m.” He had no time for cold feet or feminine hysterics. “It’s what we agreed on, ma’am.” He bit out the words, tamping down the surge of irritation…and something he couldn’t define. Panic, that she wouldn’t follow through? It was ridiculous, an outrageous thought. He shook it off and pressed on, determined to see his plans fulfilled. “Er, I don’t get to the Springs all that often. And there ain’t no preacher within twenty miles of Cripple Creek.”

Her plump lips turned down. The sight coiled his insides tighter than a rattler ready to strike. “Cripple Creek? That’s a long way, right?”

Was she trying to renege? He steeled his spine. He’d done wasted enough time and money getting’ her here. More than anything he wanted, no needed, to secure this marriage.

Something banded his chest, squeezing out every square inch of air, at the same time, softened him inside. Desire rippled through him. “I’m working the mines near there,” he said gently. “The homestead isn’t quite that far out.”

The small breath and small nod she gave, released his own held breath.

He cleared his throat. “Yeah, it’s a long way.”

Mail Order Bride: The Breakaway: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07Q7R46CF/

Tragedy sent Sherman Elias McHuay west twelve years ago. But his troubled past barrels in like a runaway train or—more appropriately—smacks him over the head in the form of a violet-eyed miss without a lick of common sense to her name. If one could actually determine her name.

Amaris Johnston’s carefully laid plans to head west as a mail order bride ratchet up when an announcement for her impending nuptials to the son of a prominent US Senator are set to go public. Not that she’d agreed to marry in the first place. A forced engagement and her family—a conniving slew of ambitious and power-hungry tyrants—send her running for the Colorado hills.

Can a slow talking sheriff and a headstrong girl bent on recklessness outwit her powerful family?

Excerpt: Mail Order Bride: The Breakaway

“Who are you, Mari Jones?”

She didn’t disappoint, leaning into him and whispering, “Aw, Sheriff, you don’t really want to know.” He couldn’t tell if she was teasing him as an interminable silence blanketed them before she seemed to come to her senses. She squared her shoulders and stepped back, clinging to his damn cat. She turned her back to him, clearing her throat. “The truth is, Sheriff. I’m a mail order bride. Already bought and paid for,” she said primly.

The words didn’t penetrate until she was halfway down the path. An unexplained fury roared through him and he was on her, grasping her upper arms spinning her around. “The hell you are,” he bit out before he crashed his mouth over hers with an unleashed violence he hadn’t experienced since Johnston held his hand over fire coercing his promise to leave town.

The desire to invade this beauty’s mouth threatened his ability in remaining upright. Her shock softened into the sweetest response. It was life-changing, life-saving. How was it possible?

Comprehension ricocheted seeped through a veil of fog. A single searing bullet that imploded his chest. Innocent. She was an innocent and he was in the worst danger of violating her. He tore his mouth away with a sharpness that left him gasping for breath, his lungs burning with need. His scarred hand throbbed.

The only sound in the still night was the harsh intake of their breathing. Relief flooded him. He was not the only one affected. Her large purple eyes glowed like ice in the slivered moonlight.

FOOLISHNESS

Food, Fiction, and Foolishness With Kathy Wheeler

Today, I welcome Kathy Wheeler to Food, Fiction, and Foolishness where she shares a delicious recipe just in time for July 4th celebrations! What’s more American than Apple Pie? For the fiction portion of the blog, Kathy’s sharing her Mail Order Bride Series. Check them out. They sound like a lot of fun, and who doesn’t like a good arranged marriage story!!

FOOD

 

Apple Pie

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

6 to 7 cups thinly sliced peeled tart apples

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Pastry for double-crust pie (9 inches)

1 tablespoon butter

1 large egg white

Additional sugar

Directions

• In a small bowl, combine the sugars, flour and spices; set aside. In a large bowl, toss apples with lemon juice. Add sugar mixture; toss to coat.

• Line a 9-in. pie plate with bottom crust; trim even with edge. Fill with apple mixture; dot with butter. Roll remaining crust to fit top of pie; place over filling. Trim, seal and flute edges. Cut slits in crust.

• Beat egg white until foamy; brush over crust. Sprinkle with sugar. Cover edges loosely with foil.

Bake at 375° for 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly, 20-25 minutes longer. Cool on a wire rack.

 

Kathy L Wheeler (a.k.a. Kae Elle Wheeler for her Cinderella Series) has a BA in Management Information Systems from the University of Central Oklahoma that includes over forty credit hours of vocal music. She was a computer programmer for the Hertz Corporation for over fifteen years and utilizes karaoke for her vocal music talents. Other passions include the NFL, the NBA, travel, musical theatre, painting, reading, and writing.

She is a member of several chapters of the Romance Writers of America: Greater Seattle chapter, Olympia and Eastside chapters, The Beau Monde Chapter and Hearts Through History.

Her main sources of inspiration come from mostly an over-active imagination. She currently resides in the Seattle area with her musically talented husband, Al, and their bossy cat, Carly, and sweet dog, Angel.

https://kathylwheeler.com

https://twitter.com/kathylwheeler

https://facebook.com/kathylwheeler

https://pinterest.com/kathylwheeler

https://instagram.com/kathylwheeler

FICTION

Mail Order Bride: The Counterfeit: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07Q7P84ZB/

After a disastrous first marriage, Will Jeffers hasn’t the stomach for another emotionally entailed union. All he needs is a wife to cook, nurse his mother, and look after the homestead. But good women are few and far between in Colorado mining country. A mail order bride is the perfect solution.

Amelia Johannasen is running for her life. Her mother has decided it’s time her daughter joined the family business, shattering Amy’s dreams of marrying for love. Imagine her surprise when she is mistaken for Will Jeffers mail order bride.

With a head for numbers and talent for spinning tall-tales but no notion of how to cook or nurse a manipulative old woman how can she reach the heart of a man once burned so badly, he’s sworn off love?

Excerpt: Mail Order Bride: The Counterfeit

“I’m happy to see you made it safe, ma’am. I apologize for being late, but as I mentioned in my letters, my ma, well, with her sick and all. I figured we oughta to start back right after the ceremony.”

She froze still as a statue. “Ceremony?”

“Our nuptials. I’m afraid I can’t leave Ma alone for long. No tellin’ what kind of—” He chuckled, but even to his own ears it sounded forced. “We can, uh, talk about that later. Your nursin’ skills and all.”

Those lovely eyes blinked up at him. And once again, he found himself drowning in bewitching sensations.

She heaved in a deep breath and let it out slow. “We’re to be … m-married? Now?”

He hardened his tone. “Yes’m.” He had no time for cold feet or feminine hysterics. “It’s what we agreed on, ma’am.” He bit out the words, tamping down the surge of irritation…and something he couldn’t define. Panic, that she wouldn’t follow through? It was ridiculous, an outrageous thought. He shook it off and pressed on, determined to see his plans fulfilled. “Er, I don’t get to the Springs all that often. And there ain’t no preacher within twenty miles of Cripple Creek.”

Her plump lips turned down. The sight coiled his insides tighter than a rattler ready to strike. “Cripple Creek? That’s a long way, right?”

Was she trying to renege? He steeled his spine. He’d done wasted enough time and money getting’ her here. More than anything he wanted, no needed, to secure this marriage.

Something banded his chest, squeezing out every square inch of air, at the same time, softened him inside. Desire rippled through him. “I’m working the mines near there,” he said gently. “The homestead isn’t quite that far out.”

The small breath and small nod she gave, released his own held breath.

He cleared his throat. “Yeah, it’s a long way.”

Mail Order Bride: The Breakaway: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07Q7R46CF/

Tragedy sent Sherman Elias McHuay west twelve years ago. But his troubled past barrels in like a runaway train or—more appropriately—smacks him over the head in the form of a violet-eyed miss without a lick of common sense to her name. If one could actually determine her name.

Amaris Johnston’s carefully laid plans to head west as a mail order bride ratchet up when an announcement for her impending nuptials to the son of a prominent US Senator are set to go public. Not that she’d agreed to marry in the first place. A forced engagement and her family—a conniving slew of ambitious and power-hungry tyrants—send her running for the Colorado hills.

Can a slow talking sheriff and a headstrong girl bent on recklessness outwit her powerful family?

Excerpt: Mail Order Bride: The Breakaway

“Who are you, Mari Jones?”

She didn’t disappoint, leaning into him and whispering, “Aw, Sheriff, you don’t really want to know.” He couldn’t tell if she was teasing him as an interminable silence blanketed them before she seemed to come to her senses. She squared her shoulders and stepped back, clinging to his damn cat. She turned her back to him, clearing her throat. “The truth is, Sheriff. I’m a mail order bride. Already bought and paid for,” she said primly.

The words didn’t penetrate until she was halfway down the path. An unexplained fury roared through him and he was on her, grasping her upper arms spinning her around. “The hell you are,” he bit out before he crashed his mouth over hers with an unleashed violence he hadn’t experienced since Johnston held his hand over fire coercing his promise to leave town.

The desire to invade this beauty’s mouth threatened his ability in remaining upright. Her shock softened into the sweetest response. It was life-changing, life-saving. How was it possible?

Comprehension ricocheted seeped through a veil of fog. A single searing bullet that imploded his chest. Innocent. She was an innocent and he was in the worst danger of violating her. He tore his mouth away with a sharpness that left him gasping for breath, his lungs burning with need. His scarred hand throbbed.

The only sound in the still night was the harsh intake of their breathing. Relief flooded him. He was not the only one affected. Her large purple eyes glowed like ice in the slivered moonlight.

FOOLISHNESS

Lacewood by Jessica James

Help me celebrate the release of Lacewood, by author Jessica James. Check it out on one of her purchase links, and be sure to follow her on social media. Take advantage of the reduced price of $3.99.

 

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PW8BQJ4

Apple itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1447749646

Universal Link https://books2read.com/u/mYoj2P

 

Sometimes love is just too powerful for one lifetime…

MOVING TO A SMALL TOWN in Virginia is a big change for New York socialite Katie McCain. But when she stumbles across an abandoned 200-year-old mansion, she’s enthralled by the enduring beauty of the neglected estate—and captivated by the haunting portrait of a woman in mourning.

Purchasing the property on a whim, Katie attempts to fit in with the colorful characters in the town of New Hope, while trying to unravel the mystery of the “widow of Lacewood.” As she pieces together the previous owner’s heartrending story, Katie uncovers secrets the house has held for centuries, and discovers the key to coming to terms with her own sense of loss.

The past and present converge when hometown hero Will Durham returns and begins his own healing process by helping the “city girl” restore the place that holds so many memories. As the mystic web of destiny is woven, a love story that might have been lost forever is exposed, and a destiny that has been waiting in the shadows for centuries is fulfilled.

A powerful and poignant tale that vividly conveys the heartache of war, the tragedy of loss, and the fulfillment of destiny…even when souls are separated by centuries. Lacewood takes readers on a journey that connects the past with the present—and the present with eternity.

Rich in emotion and poignant in its telling, Lacewood is an unforgettable story about love and loss, roots and belonging…and spirits of the past that refuse to be quieted.

EXCERPT:

Turning in a circle, Katie studied the room again. Faded wallpaper curled and peeled above the dusty wainscoting, but the walls themselves appeared sturdy. On the far side of the entryway, and dominating the wall, stood a mammoth fireplace with an ornately carved hearth. Her attention was immediately drawn to a painting of a woman in nineteenth century dress that hung prominently over the mantel.

“Who is she?”

The sheriff turned to the dusty, sun-bleached portrait in the heavy carved guilt frame. “One of the previous owners, they say.” He shrugged. “The family history kind of got lost with the house. Everyone around here calls her the Widow of Lacewood.”

Katie stood spellbound. The woman was clothed completely in black, but the magnificence of the gown gave the impression of sophistication and class. Her chin was slightly elevated as if to project strength, yet there was more than a hint of sorrow and pain in her eyes.

“She looks so sad.” Katie spoke without removing her gaze. “And so young. How could she be a widow?”

The sheriff had already started to walk away, but he turned back and glanced at the painting. “Not sure, but they say she never remarried.”

Katie’s heart suddenly struggled to beat. The anguish in the woman’s eyes kept her riveted. She could see the pain. Feel a heart ripped apart. Something was missing that could never be replaced. Katie had felt such loss before. In a way that’s why she was here.

Jessica James believes in honor, duty, and true love—and that’s what she writes about in her award-winning novels that span the ages from the Revolutionary War to modern day. She is a three-time winner of the John Esten Cooke Award for Southern Fiction, and has won more than a dozen other literary awards, including a Readers’ Favorite International Book Award and a Gold Medal from the Military Writers Society of America. Her novels have been used in schools and are available in hundreds of libraries including Harvard and the U.S. Naval Academy.

 

Jessica James Contact Links:

Website: https://www.jessicajamesbooks.com

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B001IYTXOG

BookBub : https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jessica-james

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/southernromance/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/586216.Jessica_James

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RomanticHistoricalFiction

A Foundation of Fear by Kim McMahill

Today, I welcome Kim McMahill to Food, Fiction, and Foolishness where she shares a delicious recipe and her latest book, A Foundation of Fear.  Don’t forget to follow her on social media, and always review the books you read because reviews mean everything to authors!! Her recipe contains one of my favorite ingredients…Sesame seeds!! 

 

Food

 

 

Recipe: Spicy Tofu with Bok Choy

16 oz. Firm Tofu (drained and cut into ½ inch cubes)

2 lbs. Bok Choy (cut into one-inch pieces and steamed until just limp)

Cooked rice (brown or white work well, so your preference)

Sesame seeds for garnish

Sauce:

1 medium onion minced

2 cloves garlic minced

1 cup vegetable or chicken broth (I like chicken)

¼ teaspoon dry red pepper flakes (start out with less if you don’t like it as spicy)

2 Tablespoons soy sauce

1 teaspoon Maple syrup

1 teaspoon Sesame oil

1 Tablespoon Cornstarch

Combine all of the sauce ingredients except for the cornstarch in a medium saucepan and simmer until onions are translucent. In a separate small dish, combine the cornstarch with a couple of tablespoons of cold water and mix well and then slowly add to the sauce mixture and stir until thick. Add tofu and continue to simmer stirring frequently until tofu is heated thoroughly.

To assemble, place desired amount of rice in a shallow bowl (about ¾ to 1 cup), cover with bok choy, and top with tofu sauce mixture. Garnish with a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds.

This recipe makes approximately 3 servings.

 

Fiction

 

FBI Special Agent Devyn Nash is obsessed with taking down Coterie, a deadly group out to control the multi-billion-dollar diet product industry. The FBI’s plan to expose Coterie places Devyn’s best friend and her partner’s fiancé in the crosshairs of this ruthless organization. Can Devyn protect her friend and bring the coldblooded killers to justice before they strike again while distracted by injury, a sexist bully, and a long-distance relationship with a handsome Wyoming sheriff?

Lobbyist and Coterie assassin Sofia Wilks wants nothing more than to regain control of her life. Sofia knows Agent Nash is nipping at her heels, but the FBI agent isn’t the worst of her fears. She is drawn to a man who has the power to destroy her.

Buy links:

Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PVL4391 

Barnes and Noble Buy Link: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1131000069?ean=9781522398547

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/a-foundation-of-fear/id1457767041

Social media links:

Blog: http://www.kimmcmahill.blogspot.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/kimmcmahill

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/KimMcMahillAuthor/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kimmcmahill/

Goodreads author page: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/849945.Kim_McMahill

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Kim-McMahill/e/B007IK0EJW/

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/kim-mcmahill

 

Foolishness

Once Upon a Murder Book Tour and Giveaway

 
 

 
 

Once Upon a Murder
A Fairy Tale Mystery Book 1
by D.E. Dennis
Genre: Cozy Mystery
 

In the town of Castle Rock, many residents live a fairy life but not all

get a fairy tale ending.
The home of Michael Grimm is a unique place where the line between the

haves and the have-nots might as well have been a canyon. The gated

community of Fairy Tails houses the wealthy, royal, and connected

while the simple townsfolk they ignore putter about their lives on

the other side.
Despite the embittered classes, not much happens in their divided town and

Michael, along with his sister Monica, struggle to keep the doors of

Grimm Investigations open.
That is until Preston Charming, the wealthy son of one of the most

powerful families in Fairy Tails, is found murdered in Siren Woods.

The Grimm siblings eagerly take the case, but soon Michael finds

himself on a collision course with the scars of the past and people

who inflicted them.
Amid old enemies, abandoned shoes, hardened servant girls, and infamous

parties; will Michael solve this homicidal puzzle before the killer

sees to it he doesn’t get his happy ever after?
 
 
**only .99 cents!!**
Goodreads * Amazon
 
 


 
D.E. Dennis grew up in the United States but has spent most of her life

within the pages of a book. A great novel has the ability to

transport you to another time or place and she loves all the worlds

she has had the opportunity to visit.
 
Now, she spends her time

traveling the world and visiting new (and real) places and cultures

as her love of being transported to another place only grew as she

got older.
 
When D.E. Dennis is not writing, she is reading,

eating cheesecake, and changing countries.
 
 
Website * Facebook * Twitter * Amazon * Goodreads


 
 

Follow the tour HERE

for exclusive content and a giveaway!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 

Wicked Wager Blog Tour and Giveaway

Wicked Wager

By Beverley Oakley





GiveAway  

Beverley is giving away a signed print copy of The Duchess and the Highwayman during the tour. Please use the Rafflecopter below to enter. Remember there is a chance to enter everyday so be sure to follow the Blog Tour. You may find the tour schedule and locations here https://goo.gl/XTRwwr

About Wicked Wager:

Can innocence survive the machinations of a malevolent society beauty and a charismatic rake?



Two weeks before her nuptials to her cold, harsh cousin, virtuous Celeste Rosington finds herself in the arms of notorious libertine, Lord Peregrine.



The unexpected encounter is, at first, shocking, but as Peregrine’s charm weaves its magic, becomes a welcome distraction from Celeste’s troubles. Isn’t she already the subject of whispers due to her involvement in the mysterious disappearance of a wealthy plantation magnate? It was a role orchestrated by her demanding husband-to-be in which Celeste had failed spectacularly.



Nevertheless, Celeste has no intention of sacrificing all of her scruples for a man she knows is only toying with her. One kiss from handsome, charismatic Viscount Peregrine will surely be enough to give her the strength to fulfil her marital obligations?



But what if one kiss is not enough?



With her reputation in the balance, Celeste must navigate the treacherous waters of envy, intrigue and deadly secrets, unaware she’s the unwitting pawn in a wicked wager between a ruthless society beauty and delicious, dissolute Lord Peregrine.



Could Peregrine really be a party to such perfidious plans? Will his reckless charm be the final undoing of a young woman once respected for her virtue and piety?



Or will Peregrine discover that true love is more powerful than greed and ambition in time to save Celeste from the terrible fate that otherwise awaits her?

Genre: Georgian Historical Romance

Buy Links:

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2Wz1Mtx
all eBook formats: books2read.com/u/49WoqW
Paperback: https://amzn.to/2Wz2jM3
Large Print paperback: https://amzn.to/2WA22bI

~~~~~~



Excerpt:

The last of the applause drifted away and for a few seconds the shrill cries of the orange sellers held sway. Rising from his ironic bow for the benefit of his companion, Lord Peregrine held back the red velvet curtain that had afforded them privacy so that Xenia could pass through and join the throng of theatregoers descending the sweeping staircase.



He saw that she had fallen into conversation with a club-footed general whose more than interested eye swept appraisingly over Xenia’s abundant assets, and once again Perry felt again the familiar heating of his loins that only Xenia could inspire with a mere incendiary glance.

The contours of her sack-back gown, adorned with a row of bows the length of her stomacher, recalled the more lascivious of those thoughts he’d entertained for the past decade: what it would be like to undress her, layer by layer by layer. He could only imagine how many layers there might be, but the prize would be worth the exquisite torture of restraint. He’d not revealed quite how much her proposition tonight had taken him by surprise, and the fact he’d agreed fuelled him with an odd combination of conflicting sensations: raging lust tempered by the knowledge that he’d just sunk to depths of moral depravity that might make even his uncle squirm in his grave: seduce an innocent on the eve of her nuptials.



Except that Xenia maintained the young woman’s ingenuousness was a ploy. Still, Miss Rosington retained her standing in society as a paragon of virtue. What right had he to assume otherwise, just because it was convenient?



He was diverted by a squeal to his left. Xenia was moving ahead, caught up by the crowd, her head bent to absorb the admiration of her club-footed general. Peregrine meanwhile found himself unable to continue, due to the fact the young woman in front of him had snagged her skirts on what appeared to be a nail or splinter protruding from one of the supporting beams. No one could move until she’d freed herself, and as Peregrine was directly behind her it was incumbent upon him to act the gentlemen and so enable the rest of the pulsing crowd to forge ahead.



‘Please be careful, sir, it’ll tear and it’s the first time I’ve worn it,’ the young woman warned as he took a handful of stiff silk in one hand. ‘It’s my finest.’ She twisted her head round to address him.

As her lips parted, revealing a set of near perfect small white teeth, and her worried blue eyes bored into his, Peregrine felt a jolt of something unidentifiable plummet like a stone to the pit of his stomach. No, further than that, for without a doubt his groin was reacting with something akin to roiling hunger. And, surprisingly, with an intensity that exceeded the dull throb of ten years of wanting Xenia like a frustrated schoolboy.



Close to, Miss Rosington was exquisite, her pale white and rose-blushed skin far more lustrous than when seen from a distance through opera glasses. Her powdered coiffure, dressed to fashionable heights, accentuated high, rounded cheekbones; and with growing excitement he followed the sweep of her graceful neck to a bosom that was rising and falling with surely greater rapidity than fear of what peril her gown might face. He liked to think that was so, as her candid look met his and the connection between them seemed like the sharp tug of some inner cord, forcing him forward, his hand brushing hers, nestled beneath a froth of silken furbelows, as they both reached for the undamaged silk petticoat, now released.



‘No harm done,’ he murmured as she drew herself up, her companion, the black-eyed viscount to whom she was affianced, returning to claim her, drawing her away with the barest of thanks.



All over in a matter of seconds, and at what cost? For while silk skirts and dignity had escaped with minimal damage, Peregrine was the first to concede, as he watched her graceful back with pounding heart and aching groin, that a great deal of harm had indeed been done.



~~~~~~



About the Author:

Beverley Oakley is an Australian author who grew up in the African mountain kingdom of Lesotho, married a Norwegian bush pilot she met in Botswana’s Okavango Delta, and started writing historical romances to amuse herself in the 12 countries she’s lived as a ‘trailing spouse’ (in between working as an airborne geophysical survey operator, a teacher of English as a Second Language, and writing for her former newspaper).



Her Scandalous Miss Brightwell series was nominated Best Historical Romance by the Australian Romance Readers Association. She is also the author of the popular Daughters of Sin series, a Regency-era ‘Dynasty-style’ family saga laced with intrigue and espionage.



Under her real name Beverley Eikli, she writes Africa-set romantic suspense, and psychological historical romances. The Reluctant Bride won Choc-Lit’s Search for an Australian Star competition and her Regency tale of redemption The Maid of Milan was shortlisted in the Top Ten Reads of 2014 at the UK Festival of Romance.



Beverley lives north of Melbourne (overlooking a fabulous Gothic lunatic asylum) with the same gorgeous Norwegian husband, two daughters and a rambunctious Rhodesian Ridgeback.

You can read more at beverleyoakley.com

Herbed Bread and author Ann Raina

Today, I welcome Ann Raina and feature her latest release, Famous Murders. She also shares a bread recipe…and Lord knows bread is one of my favorite things! If you like steamy romance, then check out her book! The recipe measurements are in grams, but I’ve included a conversion link.

FOOD

Ring-shaped Herb Bread

What you need:

40 g fresh yeast

1 tsp sugar

¼ l lukewarm water

500 g light wheat flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 tbsp oil

400 g raw ham

300 g onions (or 150 g dried onions)

4 bunches of mixed herbs (chervil, basil, chives, rosemary, thyme)

100 g pumpkin seeds

Also: 1 egg yolk, 3 tbsp milk

Here’s a link to convert grams to US measurements

https://www.convert-me.com/en/convert/cooking/

What to do:

1. Mix the yeast with the sugar and the lukewarm water and leave to rise for about 15 minutes.

2. Knead the flour with salt, oil, and the yeast mixture. Cover the dough and let it rise for about 30 minutes.

3. Dice the ham finely, peel the onions and dice them finely, too. Wash the herbs, shake them dry, and chop finely. Mix everything with the pumpkin seeds.

4. Knead the herb mixture evenly under the yeast dough. First, form a round loaf from the dough, then, starting from the middle, a ring.

5. Place the herb ring on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Whisk the egg yolk with the milk and spread it on the ring. Bake in the preheated oven on the middle shelf. Bake for about 30 minutes at 225°C in an electric oven (preheated).

FICTION

After three murders in the Washington, DC, vicinity, the FBI Agents Hayes and Beckham are assigned to solve the case. Although the murders seem incoherent at first, it becomes clear that there are connections between them. It turns out that the murderer is far from having reached the end of his deadly list.

Aside from the investigation, Agent Hayes has to find a way to get on with his demanding girlfriend and her challenging love games. Can he do both and not lose himself?

https://www.extasybooks.com/978-1-4874-2036-9-famous-murders/

Ann Raina on FB

https://www.facebook.com/ann.raina.7

FOOLISHNESS

scene from book one of the series – Twisted Mind

“Hell, Jason, can you for once be serious?”

Jason pursed his lips, and the flicker of amusement left his eyes. “She asked you to be frank from the first moment on, right? Right. She’s been frank with you and asked you about kinky games in the bedroom. It’s something she wants. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have asked. Why not play along? She’s fond of you, on the way toward coming to love you. Don’t think…too conservatively. As an FBI agent, you’ve learned to think outside the box. Only when it comes to a love affair, you want to do it strictly by the book? Get real! Jacklyn wants to have fun with you, and her fun includes some toys. As long as she stops when you…chicken out, you’ll both be fine.”

“Till the last sentence, I was close to believing you.”

Jason folded his arms and tried in vain to remain serious. “In my humble opinion, you’ve been overrun by her self-confidence so badly you’re still struggling to crawl out and get back in shape.”

“Right now, I see Wile E. Coyote.”

“You’re afraid she’s going to dictate every part of your relationship.”

“Isn’t it always like that? The woman controls the relationship? If she doesn’t want what the man proposes, you don’t stand a chance.”

Jason rolled his eyes and blew out air. “That’s too philosophical for lunch.” He continued eating his hamburger.

“So you think I should let her tie me up?”

Jason’s expression changed from amused to mock compassion. “Nick, if that woman screws you blind and sends you to heaven just because you’re tied up and gagged—why the hell not?”

Malak Desert Child Book Tour

 

Malak, Desert Child
The Boy Who Sailed to Spain Book 2
by Paul Ogarra
Genre: Magical Realism Fiction
 

The first time I saw her she melted the ice in my soul.
Malak is a tiny beautiful five-year-old girl child. She lives in a cave in

dire poverty with her drunkard father and her Saharoui mother and

sister. Her enemies are all the towns children who victimize her and

her sister because of their race and condition. Her only friend is a

single mother named Latifa, and Malak´s grandmother Jeeda Hazzah who

dies of cancer.
But Malak is the champion of her family against a violent father and the

children of the Zoco who she fights singlehandedly. This is a magical

and often mystical story of a young girl and the people she stumbles

upon, as she is rushed away by her uncertain destiny, to the land in

which her mother was born, the Sahara Desert. The unravelling of

Malak’s story is also the unsnarling of the web of intrigue

surrounding the North of Africa, and it´s peoples and history, and

the reasons for many current dilemmas in this land of witchcraft and

mystery.
The tale begins in earnest when a wandering ex-warrior happens on the

child and is struck by her magnificent courage and beauty. After a

significant episode with her drunken father and his cronies, having

interceded on the family´s behalf, he flees with them on a stolen

high-speed cruiser heading for Western Sahara and freedom. In the

course of their errant journey, they are taken into threatening

custody by the Algerian police. Malak´s personality and mystic

nature make of her the flux in an adventure which begins as a race to

return her to her maternal grandfather´s family. A flight of mercy

will become a race against time as Malak and her friends take on the

impossible. In this, they enlist the help of many tribespeople. Some

tribes known to all and others lost in the wastes of the mysterious

desert and the annals of history.The story comes to an emotional and

pent up conclusion in the least expected possible fashion.


 
**read as a standalone**
 
 
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Paul O´Garra was born in Gibraltar on the 8th May 1952. Paul and his three siblings were the

children of schoolteachers and were reared with English discipline, immersed in romantic

literature on the one hand, and a large local family of uncles,

aunts, cousins and a doting grandmother, who was Spanish from Cadiz,

on the other.
Childhood was spent roaming across the Up South,

Rosia, and Europa point areas of Gibraltar engaging in childish games and

adventures, reading extensively books such as Enid Blyton’ adventure series, ‘Famous Five,’

‘Secret Seven,’ ‘Swallows and Amazons Forever,’ John Buchan and the ‘Gorbals Die-hards.’

Saturday mornings were a day for avoiding the displeased grimaces of

monocled and overweight colonels, delving and searching through the shelves of the old

Garrison library to discover new horizons, characters, and

stories. The journey of discovery that had begun with Baba the

Elephant eventually began to grow richer as the classics were devoured.
In 1967, he looked on as fellow students of Jewish persuasion prepare to leave for Tel Aviv

to defend Israel. Shortly after, the arrival of General Moshe Dayan at the gates of Cairo, signaled to the world

that Israel´s direst moment had been overcome. Paul, at the earliest time

possible, set off in a steamer from Tangiers, sailing to Southampton.

After a spell in London, he left the UK to discover his roots in Malta.

He alternated callings as a tour guide of Morocco and recoverer of

broken down rented cars in the desert, tour guide of south Spain and

eventually running a flamenco club on the Costa del Sol, in the days

when the Costa was still a new and exciting place to visit.
Eventually, he set off again to discover new places in the Middle, the Far

East and the Philippines, and when Perestroika and Glasnost finally arrived at the hands of

Mihail Gorbacheff and the Soviet Union was open, set off to discover

the East there. He studied Russian at St Petersburg and spent time

travelling to the Republic of Udmurtia, Kazan, Siberia and up an

uncharted river to meet Tribes that still lived in the area. Later to

Nizhny Novgorod and the South Volga, then to the Ukraine travelling from city to city,

falling more and more in love with the great Russian writers and

painters as he went. Seventeen years ago at the age of fifty, Paul

contracted renal cancer.

He was operated on successfully at the Bullfighters Hospital in

Pamplona in North Spain. Metastasis was practically impossible the

surgeons happily reported. Two years later the cancer metastasised to his lungs on which

he was duly operated, and half of his lungs were removed.

Later for reasons undefined he suffered strokes in both eyes and lost

partial sight in one eye and total in the left which he duly

recovered by swimming and praying. Seventeen years have gone by since

the renal cancer was first discovered, and seven years since his last operation and
everything is fine, remission seems to be total.
Paul’s still swims at least one or two kilometres per day all year round,

travels, practises martial arts and fervently believes that the Lord

leads him by the hand. After leaving the hospital

he spent some time in Tangiers, hairless, gaunt and on crutches, but

enjoying the warmth and affection of many new friends there. Then off

to Prague to study filmmaking, made several shorts but finally

decided that he would first write and then make movies when the time came.
 
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