Ann Everett's Blog, page 8
August 28, 2018
Ghost of a Chance by McKenna Dean
Ghost of a Chance
Redclaw Security Book 2
by McKenna Dean
Madison has put together some really awesome Prizes giveaway during the tour. Please use the Rafflecopter below to enter. Remember you may enter every day for your chance to win one of the prize packages. You may find the tour locations here.
About Ghost of a Chance by McKenna Dean:
At sixteen, Sarah Atwell walked away from her love of horses and a promising career as a competitive rider after discovering she’d inherited the family curse. Years later, her grandmother stunned everyone by leaving Sarah her horse farm—worth millions—but with conditions Sarah might not be able to meet.
A former Redclaw agent, Casey Barnes retired when a security assignment went bad, killing his partner and leaving him as a partial amputee. His inner wolf is in hiding. He’s been living quietly as a horse trainer, but June Atwell’s death now pits him against her granddaughter for rights to the stable.
With both of them snowed in at the farm, a series of increasingly serious accidents draws Sarah and Casey closer together, but they both harbor secrets that might tear them apart.
Ghost of a Chance is a paranormal romance story.
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2nbVC33
Excerpt:
For some reason, he glanced back at Sarah where she waited by the door. The backlight of falling snow through the glass in the shadowed hallway created the suggestion of a black-and-white photograph. The only spot of color was the bright red scarf at the collar of her coat and the wine-dark lipstick she wore. She leaned against the wall with her eyes closed. Something inside him clicked, as though recognizing a scene from a movie. His heart stopped a beat, flipped over, and thudded again with increased intensity.
No. It couldn’t be. Not her.
He hurried away, head still reeling at his reaction.
When he returned with an armload of clothing, she was nowhere to be seen. Her laptop sat by her shoes, one pretty little pump turned over on its side. As expected, he discovered her in the living room, staring at the pictures on the wall. “There you are.”
She jumped at the sound of his voice.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you.” He adjusted the heap of clothing piled over one arm and held out a pair of snow boots.
“She had so many photographs of me.” Sarah took the boots almost automatically, and indicated the walls covered with pictures, ones Casey had seen many times.
That had to be it. Why she felt so familiar. Why she seemed to be the one. Relief washed over him. Obviously he’d spent too much time alone if he thought Sarah Atwell was his destined mate.
The Panther’s Lost Princess
Redclaw Security Book 1
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2LSf9UL
About McKenna Dean:
McKenna Dean has been an actress, a vet tech, a singer, a teacher, a biologist, and a dog trainer. She’s worked in a genetics lab, at the stockyard, behind the scenes as a props manager, and at a pizza parlor slinging dough. Finally she realized all these jobs were just a preparation for what she really wanted to be: a writer.
She lives on a small farm in North Carolina with her family, as well as the assorted dogs, cats, and various livestock.
She likes putting her characters in hot water to see how strong they are. Like tea bags, only sexier.
McKenna Dean’s Social Media Links:
Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/c8GDYX
Website: http://mckennadeanromance.com/
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B075CRHQ7B/
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/McKenna-Dean-Author-262328784224302/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/McKennaDeanFic
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mckennadeanromance/?hl=en
Tumblr: https://mckennadeanromance.tumblr.com/
Email: mckennadeanromance@gmail.com
a Rafflecopter giveaway
August 24, 2018
Step Back into the Civil War
Help me welcome author, Kathy Otten to Five on Friday. Today, she shares one of her books, A Place in Your Heart. I love the cover! Be sure and check out her other novels. You’ll find them and more info about Kathy at her website link listed below.
Gracie McBride isn’t looking for love; she’s looking for respect. But in this man’s world of Civil War medicine, Gracie is expected to maintain her place changing beds and writing letters. Her biggest nemesis is the ward surgeon, Doctor Charles Ellard, who seems determined to woo her with arrogant kisses and terrible jokes.
Charles is an excellent surgeon. He assumed he would be well received by an army at war. He was not. Friendless and alone, he struggles to hide the panic attacks that plague him, while the only person who understands him is a feisty Irish nurse clearly resolved to keep him at a distance.
But, Charles is sent to the battlefield, and Gracie is left with a wounded soldier, a box of toys, and a mystery which can only be solved by the one man she wishes could love her, both as a woman and a nurse.
Excerpt
“No. I want you to go home before the death of that ten-year-old boy becomes so ordinary, that one day you wake up and realize you no longer have the ability to feel.”
She squared her shoulders and stepped toward him. “Me own husband was a doctor, sir. I’ve birthed babies and stitched wounds. I stood by William’s side during surgeries and passed him instruments. I helped him clean the intestines of a man gored by a bull, before putting it all back inside that man’s belly. Me delicate sensibilities did not send me into a swoon then nor will they here. I thank ye for yer concern, Doctor Ellard, but ’tis who I am. And by the saints, as long as I have breath in me body, I will feel, and I will care.”
Their gazes locked in that moment and something flickered in his icy depths, overshadowing his usual cynicism with what she suspected might be admiration.
The harsh lines of his face softened. “Saint Jude must indeed be watching over you, Mrs. McBride.”
“That he is, Doctor Ellard, that he is.” He gave her a brisk nod and opened the door.
“You’re not going home then, are you?”
She turned. “Ye know us Irish, Doctor Ellard. We don’t know what we want, but we’ll fight to the death to get it.”
Kathy Otten is the published author of multiple historical romance novels, novellas, and short stories. She is also published in contemporary romance and historical fiction. She is a Northwest Houston RWA Lone Star winner and Utah/Salt Lake RWA Hearts of the West finalist. A Place In Your Heart is her fourth full-length novel . Currently, she is putting the finishing touches on a contemporary young adult novel.
She teaches fiction writing online and at a local adult education center, and is a regular presenter at area events. Kathy also does manuscript assessments and editing. She lives in the rolling farmland of western New York where she can often be found walking her dog through the woods and fields. She has been married for thirty-four years and is the mother of three grown children and one grandson.
Kathy can be contacted at kathy@kathyotten.com
Web site https://www.kathyottenauthor.com
Face Book http://www.facebook.com/kathyottenauthor.com
Amazon Buy Link https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CKYZ61M
Five on Friday
You open your front door and find a penguin wearing a cowboy hat. What does he say?
“Hi, my name is Leo.”
Ann: Leo the penguin!!
If you had to describe yourself in one word, what would it be?
Procrastinator
Ann: I don’t believe that because you got your information to me early!!!
What’s the one thing you do every day that you enjoy the least, but do it anyway?
Clean the kitty box.
Ann: I don’t have Kitty’s, but my son does, and I refuse to clean the litter box! I feed the cats, but draw the line at the stinky stuff!
Do you belong to a critique group?
Yes, three of them, maybe four, sort of. One is a Round Robin through the mail, with some older ladies uncomfortable with emailing files. One weekly group, which digs deep into the nitty gritty. Another once a month near home, which is more of a pay-it-forward group of newer writers, and another monthly group, which if I can get the day off from work, I try to bring pages, because they are all thorough critiquers. I don’t think I’d ever get published without their intuitiveness of characters, understanding of plot, and technical grammar skills.
Ann: I yell a hardy AMEN to critique groups!!
What would you choose as your mascot/avatar/spirit animal?
For my spirit animal I would choose a river otter. When people used to ask how to spell our name, my dad would say, “Spell otter, then put a tail on the r.” I grew up in Vermont and Otter Creek was the major waterway through the area, which flowed into Lake Champlain, and had otters in it when I was a kid. I went to Otter Valley Union High School. When I got to college my nickname was, “Otter,” because I used my dad’s explanation when people asked me how to spell my name. I had a button from school clipped to my purse, which had a picture of an otter and said, Otter Power. People still send me pictures and videos of playful otters.
Ann: That’s funny. Because I’m a Texan, my answer is always the same to this question. I’d be an armadillo!!
August 23, 2018
The Merry Men Quartet by Meredith Bond
https://www.facebook.com/132357849545/posts/10157703097629546/
Book One~~An Exotic Heir
Weaving a web of revenge can be satisfying, but dangerous to your heart.
Book Two~~A Rake’s Reward
While Sara has promised to not just search for her grandfather’s jewels, but make an attempt at fitting into society, it might just be that Viscount Reath is the treasure she actually needs.
Book Three~~Merry Marquis
Through the beauty of music, brings love and the will to live a life lost.
Book Four~~A Dandy in Disguise
Can he lose the disguise… and find himself?
Meredith Bond’s books straddle that beautiful line between historical romance and fantasy. An award-winning author, she writes fun traditional Regency romances, medieval Arthurian romances, and Regency romances with a touch of magic. Known for her characters “who slip readily into one’s heart,” Meredith loves to take her readers on a journey they won’t soon forget. She is currently living in Europe enjoying the Bohemian life.
Merry loves connecting with readers. Be sure to find her:
Website: http://www.meredithbond.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/meredithbondauthor
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Meredith-Bond/e/B001KI1SNE
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meredith_bond/
Newsletter: http://meredithbond.com/subscribe/
Formatting for Indie-Authors at http://www.anessabooks.com
August 20, 2018
Besotted~by Madison Michael
Besotted
Beguiling Bachelors Series Book 5
By Madison Michael
Madison has put together some really awesome Prize Packages to giveaway during the tour. Please use the Rafflecopter below to enter. Remember you may enter every day for your chance to win one of the prize packages. You may find the tour locations here.
About Besotted:
Time is Running Out…For Both of Them
Regan Howe, won her coveted CEO position through hard work and a willingness to buck family tradition. Now, Brandon Hockney, a handsome US Senator with his eye on the White House, wants her to give it up, along with her home, friends and family for a move to DC and marriage to him.
Regan wants marriage and family but this choice will require she leave everything she loves, including the alluring Tyler Winthrop. Regan has waited twenty years for Tyler to commit. He once promised her forever, then destroyed her trust and her hopes for a future together. Still, she cannot break the ties between them. Regan is besotted.
Tyler’s moment to win Regan is slipping through his fingers. He has remained on the outskirts of Regan’s life, reluctant to reveal his true past and expose her to danger. Despite their obvious attraction, Tyler has remained her friend and protector, keeping Regan at arm’s length for her own safety, When Regan determines to test the waters with Brandon, Tyler is tapped as acting CEO, throwing the pair together for one last chance at love.
Can Tyler shake off the thugs threatening to expose his past mistakes? Can he earn Regan’s trust and woo her away from Washington? Battling overwhelming odds and a racing clock, will Tyler be forced to release his one true love to find happiness with another man? How can he when he’s besotted?
Join Tyler and Regan as they seek their happily ever after in the conclusion of the steamy, contemporary Beguiling Bachelor romance series.
Besotted is a contemporary erotic romantic suspense story.
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2AiK2MQ
Excerpt from Besotted:
Regan was just too damn alluring in that dress for him to accept that he couldn’t have her if he wanted her.
He was an idiot. He should have told her years ago. He should have told everyone. Despite the tongue- lashing he was silently giving himself, Tyler was certainly no fool. “The professor” to his friends, he was generally serious and professional. He had the smarts necessary to obtain both an MBA and a law degree, and he was now CEO of LHRE and on hiatus from one of the fastest growing tech companies in the country. He kept his cool in general, but again and again he behaved like an idiot around Regan.
Since that damn frog almost thirty years ago, he had loved no one but Regan. Sometimes they made it work together, like in high school, but most times not. His feelings were unchanged, but something always stopped him from declaring his love and asking her to do the same. This time it was something insurmountable.
And yet Tyler couldn’t stay away. He was the proverbial moth to the flame, flirting with disaster every time he flirted with her. He had promised to stay away, to keep her safe,but the attraction was undeniable. Yep, prize idiot.
Returning to the ballroom after the latest threats, Tyler briefly considered sharing the conversation, coming clean with Regan and perhaps moving their relationship forward. He was at a fork in the road but remained silent, Tyler knew he was on the wrong path but couldn’t summon the will to fix it. Not only were his problems unsolveable, but she was involved with Brandon. Tyler felt hopeless.
He was preoccupied just as Regan accused, but Tyler tried to give Regan the attention she deserved. He failed miserably until Regan suggested they just leave. That got his attention. Who knew when he would hold her in his arms again.
“Come dance with me again. It would be a crime to waste that dress.”
Encircling Regan in his arms, his body responded to her nearness, even as his mind worried over the earlier texts. He was unaware of his hand stroking her back, fingers lightly skimming over her bare skin. He wasn’t thinking clearly when he pulled her close or when he dropped kisses on her hair. He wasn’t paying attention, just acting on instinct, Regan was responding, her breath growing uneven, her hands clinging to his shoulders.
Other Books in the Beguiling Bachelors Series:
Bedazzled (Book 1)
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2K3OL4D
Bedazzled is now on Kindle Unlimited
Beholden (Book 2)
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2AjMtPg
Beholden is now on Kindle Unlimited
Bedeviled (Book 3)
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2uUHsYu
Bedeviled is now on Kindle Unlimited
BeWildered (Prequel)
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2uXZXeu
Bewildered is now on Kindle Unlimited
About Madison:
Madison Michael traded 28 years in Fortune 500 tech and management positions for a chance to spend her days with sassy heroines, sexy, rich heroes and nothing but happy endings. Growing up the daughter of a librarian, she learned to love books, especially classics and romances, and spent winters cuddled under blankets losing herself in books.
Madison is the author of three novels in the Beguiling Bachelor series, as well as several short stories. She is a member of Romance Writers of America.
After living in the northeast, southeast and the west, Maddy returned to her Midwest roots. She lives in Evanston, IL with two feline editorial assistants and great views of Chicago’s famous skyline.
Social Links:
Website: madisonmichael.net
Madison’s Blog: madisonmichael.net/category/maddys-blog
Maddy’s Romance Madness: madisonmichael.net/category/mrm/
Maddy’s Tours and Treats: madisonmichael.net/category/tours-and-treats/
Facebook: facebook.com/madisonmichaelromance
Twitter: twitter.com/madisonmichael_
Amazon Author Page: amazon.com/Madison-Michael/e/B01EVUGG6G/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1
August 14, 2018
The Redemption of the Shrew
The Redemption of the Shrew
Scandalous Kisses Book 4
By Barbara Monajem
Barbara has some wonderful prizes to giveaway during the tour. Please be sure to enter with the Rafflecopter below. There is an opportunity every day to enter for your chance to win one of the fabulous prizes. So join us for a fun blog tour journey and be sure to enter every day for your chance to win. You may find all the blog tour locations here.
About The Redemption of the Shrew:
Nothing is more painful than rejection—particularly when completely naked!
Gloriana Warren doesn’t want to wait for marriage. Beneath her shrewish exterior is a kindhearted woman who uses her fortune for good. It doesn’t matter that the man she’s set her sights on claims impoverishment. She’s in love and determined to marry him. But her attempt at a moonlight seduction ends in disaster.
French marquis Philippe de Bellechasse has had it up to his gorgeous dark eyes with being pursued by lusty ladies. His escape to England from the violence of the French Revolution took a toll on his finances as well. Gloriana may be gloriously naked, but he’s just not ready to submit to her seduction.
But when a precious family artifact is stolen, Philippe must convince Gloriana he’s not the guilty party. He’ll steal it back for her, but on his terms. Gloriana, believing he despises her, has plans of her own. Working at odds is dangerous, but working together can be more so. Is Philippe willing to risk his heart again for a deliciously tempting shrew?
Amazon Buy Link
Excerpt:
A clandestine meeting, particularly where nakedness is involved, is best arranged for a moonless night.
Or so Gloriana Warren told herself, for her mother would never have uttered such a scandalous dictum. Unfortunately, it was tonight or never. Tomorrow, the man she had sworn to love forever would leave Lancashire and return to London—without her. They wouldn’t be able to marry for years because of his stupid scruples about money.
Men and their tedious pride! She and the Marquis de Bellechasse loved one another. They shared the same lofty ideals. She had a substantial dowry. Marrying now made sense. Not only that, her mother would die happy.
So Gloriana was taking matters into her own hands. She had planned the upcoming encounter in glorious detail—every word, every gesture. As she emerged from the summerhouse to greet him, he would stand and stare at her, transfixed by her beauty.
“Darling Philippe,” she would say, reaching for him, offering herself without reserve. “Love is eternal. It cannot, must not be denied!”
“Ah, ma belle,” he would respond, his hand on his heart, his voice throbbing with desire. “I adore you. What a fool I was to think we could wait for years. Even another minute is too long. Tonight, I shall make you mine!”
She would fling herself into his waiting arms, swept away on the tide of his passion.
She wasn’t sure exactly how it would go after that, apart from plenty of kissing, but judging by her previous experience of Philippe’s kisses, it would be the most thrilling experience of her life.
She sneaked out the French doors, arms full of blankets, and glanced back up at Garrison House. Not a glimmer of candlelight showed in the windows. She hurried through the rose garden and skirted the lawn, keeping to the bushes and out of the moonlight. In the secret room under the summerhouse, she and her darling Philippe would be safe. Tomorrow they would announce their engagement to Mama. They would send for a special license and be married within a week.
Ten minutes later, she had set up a makeshift bed under the summerhouse and removed all her clothes. Shivering more from excitement than from the chilly night air, she waited for Philippe to arrive.
Tonight would be the most perfect night of her life.
~~~
The Marquis de Bellechasse left his horse in a convenient copse and made his careful way forward, pausing at the edge of the trees. Garrison House was reassuringly dark, but moonlight reflected off the ripples on the lake. The summerhouse gleamed white on its little knoll, exposed on all sides. He paused, listening. No sound disturbed the darkness except a nightjar complaining from a nearby oak. He hoped and prayed no one else was up and about tonight. He couldn’t afford to get caught with Gloriana Warren, but nor could he bring himself to ignore her passionate plea to see him once more before they parted.
He loved her—to the point of folly, judging by his current behavior. He had already said farewell, and yet here he was, trespassing on her brother’s estate at midnight to say it again. He dreaded her inevitable tears.
The door to the summerhouse stood wide open, which meant Gloriana was here already. Fine. Best to get it over with now. He took a deep breath and set out across the lawn.
He had almost reached the doorway when she came into view, rising from out of nowhere, her face pale, her hair loose around her bare shoulders. He halted, staring, his heart thundering. She continued to rise, her breasts round and luscious in the light of the moon. His eyes slid helplessly down the curve of her hips to the darker patch at the apex of her thighs . . .
Mordieu. He shook his head and began to back away. “No, chérie. We must not do this.”
She set her feet on the floor—she must have emerged from a trapdoor—and beckoned with those sweet arms, smiled with those lush lips. “Philippe, my darling, please come to me. I love you so much.”
“No, ma belle, I cannot.”
“But love—” She faltered, then continued toward him, arms wide. “Love is eternal. It must not be denied.”
Sacrebleu, she was declaiming like a shoddy actress on the stage. The thought revolted him. Surely his idealistic Gloriana could not cheapen herself so. Anguished, he put up his hands to fend her off. “It is not possible, Gloriana. Not yet. It would not be right.”
She hurried forward, her breasts jiggling enticingly. “Truly, we mustn’t delay. My mother may not have long to live, and seeing me married well is her dearest wish.”
He didn’t care in the least about old Lady Garrison, who was the worst sort of snob. He shook his head. “No. To wait is best.”
“Philippe, I cannot wait. I need you now.” She reached for him, her nakedness inches away.
He gritted his teeth and took another step backwards. His imbecile cock was reacting to her, but he had long ago gained control over its demands. “I am sorry, but I must go.” He turned away.
She wailed, a sharp, keening sound, and immediately a shout came from nearby. Her brother? No, he was in London. A gamekeeper?
Whoever the man might be, he was lurking here on purpose. So much for love, Philippe thought. Gloriana was just another lust-crazed woman trying to trap him into marriage. He turned and ran. Pursued by shouts and then shots, he reached his horse and galloped away.
About the Author:
Winner of the Holt Medallion, Maggie, Daphne du Maurier, Reviewer’s Choice and Epic awards, Barbara Monajem wrote her first story at eight years old about apple tree gnomes. She published a middle-grade fantasy when her children were young, then moved on to paranormal mysteries and Regency romances with intrepid heroines and long-suffering heroes (or vice versa).
Barbara loves to cook, especially soups. She used to have two items on her bucket list: to make asparagus pudding and succeed at knitting socks. Asparagus pudding proved to be pretty horrible, and she is too fumble-fingered to make socks. Now she just sticks with writing books. She lives near Atlanta, Georgia with an ever-shifting population of relatives, friends, and feline strays.
Social Links:
Facebook: facebook.com/barbara.monajem
Twitter: twitter.com/BarbaraMonajem
Goodreads: goodreads.com/author/show/3270624.Barbara_Monajem
Website: BarbaraMonajem.com
a Rafflecopter giveaway
August 10, 2018
Kim McMahill, A Taste of Tragedy
Today, I’m featuring Kim McMahill and her latest book, A Taste of Tragedy, Book two in her Risky Research Series. But, before we get to that, let’s see the five questions Kim chose to answer for Five on Friday.
Name three things that make you cry
Any movie billed as a, “Feel Good Movie,” is likely to make me cry and I avoid those like the plague. “Feel Good,” is code for something horrible happens to someone, but at the end they find a way to cope. Actually, I’m an easy crier and almost everything makes me cry, but to complete my list of three I’ll go with any child suffering with any medical condition, and onions (just to throw in something on the lighter side).
Ann: I’m like you, Kim. I cry about a lot of things. When someone wins on the Price is Right. Hearing the song, I’ll be Home for Christmas. Any sad scene in a love story!
Name the last three books you read.
The Demon Crown by James Rollins, Dark Star Africa by Paul Theroux, and Odessa Sea by Clive Cussler. I’ve read every book in James Rollins’ Sigma Force Series and Clive Cussler’s Dirk Pitt Series, and I’m always anxiously awaiting the next book. I throw in a little Paul Theroux or other non-fiction every now and then just to mix it up a little.
Ann: I’ve not read any of those. I’ll have to check them out.
What is one of your favorite quotes?
“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.”
– Innocents Abroad, Mark Twain
Ann: Well, you can never go wrong quoting Mark Twain!
Name three of your pet peeves.
My pet peeves are people who text and drive, liars, and hypocrites.
Ann: I have so many I wouldn’t be able to narrow to just three, but your choices would certainly make my list.
Name three of your favorite TV shows. Past or present.
I enjoy The Voice and the Big Bang Theory, and I really miss Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown. Rest in Peace.
Ann: I also love The Voice!
Kim McMahill grew up in Wyoming, which is where she developed her sense of adventure and love of the outdoors. Kim started out writing non-fiction, but her passion for exotic world travel, outrageous adventures, stories of survival, and happily-ever-after endings soon drew her into a world of romantic suspense. Along with writing adventure novels Kim has published over eighty travel and geographic articles and contributed to a travel anthology and cookbook. Kim currently resides in Colorado, and when not writing, she enjoys gardening, traveling, hiking, and spending time with family. Learn more about Kim and what she’s up to at:
https://kimmcmahill.blogspot.com
https://twitter.com/kimmcmahill
https://www.facebook.com/KimMcMahillAuthor/
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/849945.Kim_McMahill
https://www.instagram.com/kimmcmahill/
Kim’s most recent book is A Taste of Tragedy (Risky Research Series, Book 2), blurb below. Book 1 is A Dose of Danger and Book 3, A Foundation of Fear, will be released May of 2019.
Morgan Hunter sacrificed everything for her career. She had yet to encounter anything she wasn’t willing to do to succeed . . . until now. When she uncovers evidence that the healthy foods she’s been hired to promote may be dangerous, she must reevaluate her priorities. As questions mount and the body count rises, she finds herself caught in the crosshairs of an organization that will stop at nothing to hide its secrets and protect its profits. With no one else to trust, Morgan is forced to seek help from the man she drove away, but whom she never stopped loving.
Buy Links:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01DTE29U2/
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-taste-of-tragedy-kim-mcmahill/1123655306?ean=2940155246169
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/824842
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/a-taste-of-tragedy-risky-research-series-book-2
August 7, 2018
Unforgettable Reads Blooming in Mary’s Garden
Unforgettable Reads Blooming in Mary’s Garden
Mary Martinez
Mary is giving away 2 $20 Amazon GC’s during this tour. Mary’s Cover designer, LDMGraphics.com is giving away one cover design for one lucky author. Please use the Rafflecopter below to enter. Remember there is a chance for you to enter the giveaway every day. So join us all through the tour for fun posts, interviews, and prizes. You may find the locations to all the tour stops here.
The Beckett Series:
The Beckett’s have a strong sense of family and honor.
When one of their own is threatened, their bond is as strong as a badge of steel.
The Beckett Series Trailer: youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=h8LLRR5hfGU
The Beckett Series Website: marymartinez.com/the-beckett-series.html
Disappear
The Beckett Series Book 1:
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2O95979
Innocent
The Beckett Series Book 2
All Jessica wants is a home and family. So how did she suddenly find herself falsely accused of a felony and then kidnapped by a hit man?
Jessica Beckett loves teaching high school algebra. That is until Coach Brinley makes her life miserable because she actually has the audacity to fail his three staring football jocks. Maybe if they’d done their homework they would have passed. She refuses to be intimidated. He on the other hand refuses to admit defeat and manipulates the boys into accusing her of sex in exchange for passing grades.
Gabriel Despain loves being an FBI agent. But falling for his partner’s sister has complications. It would be easier to ignore his feelings if Jessica hadn’t found herself in trouble. Now he must keep her safe. If he can’t remain objective, they might end up dead.
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2uEyX3i
Quiet
The Beckett Series Book 3
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2O7r7Hz
Illusion
The Beckett Series Book 4
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2O8tUAD
Profit
The Beckett Series Book 5
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2NAnyZE
Abandoned
The Beckett Series Book 6
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2Lsz6At
~*~*~*~*~*~
Watching Jenny
Hot on Jenny’s trail, Dan soon learns ‘Runner’ is not one of the usual suspects.
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Trailer: youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=a0Sn8dnNa3s
Website: marymartinez.com/watching-jenny.html
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2NBE37t
~*~*~*~*~*~
Classic Murder: Mr. Romance
Making a date with a billionaire can be murder.
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Trailer: youtube.com/watch?v=y1SGCZXmxhM
Website: marymartinez.com/classic-murder-mr-romance.html
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2Nww2B2
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Chick Magnet
He’s recuperating from a devastating wreck.
She’s recuperating from a broken heart.
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Trailer: youtube.com/watch?v=aApYVIp957Y
Web Site: marymartinez.com/chick-magnet.html
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2Lr8foB
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Romance and Misconceptions
Twin sisters. Two Billionaire Boyfriends. One big Misunderstanding
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Trailer: youtube.com/watch?v=jJCEDtTqbSc
Website: marymartinez.com/romance-and-misconceptions.html
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2NyhwbK
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Three Brides and A Dress
My journey is more of a zig zag than a top stitch along a straight seam as I search for the perfect bride who is my soul mate.
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Trailer: youtube.com/watch?v=06ypXHUeWmk
Website: marymartinez.com/three-brides-and-a-dress.html
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2NyhwbK
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Four Sisters
It was the 60’s, she found love…
but started a war.
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Website: marymartinez.com/four-sisters.html
Amazon Buy Link: https://amzn.to/2LFtMXl
Mary’s new covers were designed by LDMGraphics.com
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About the Author:
Mary and her husband love to travel, especially to the Caribbean for relaxing, and Italy for the wine. And most recently she discovered she was Irish and Scottish, of course they had to visit Ireland and Scotland. Mary fell in love with both, but the green hills of Ireland felt like home. With the experience from the exotic places she has visited, she is able to fill her books with colorful descriptions of cities, painting a colorful backdrop for her characters. One of her favorite US destinations is New York/Brooklyn, where her beloved Beckett’s live. When she visits, she can wander their neighborhoods, favorite parks, and visit their favorite pub, Putnum’s.
They are avid concert ‘Ho’s’! Yes, they pretty much want to do them all. They love outdoor amphitheaters the best and attend as many during the warmer months as possible.
Mary writes mostly romantic suspense, romance, women’s fiction, and she has just begun to dabble in young adult mystery. She is a member of Romance Writers of America (RWA). During her writing career she has been a conference coordinator, workshop presenter, and chapter president for the Utah Chapter of RWA. In 2007 she was presented with the Utah RWA service award in acknowledgment and appreciation for outstanding service. Mary has also participated in numerous library panels on writing and co-presented a workshop on writing a series at the League of Utah Writers conference.
Mary and her husband are also enthusiastic college football fans. They have season tickets to the UTES, University of Utah Football and they tailgate every game. They love tailgating so much, that they were married at a tailgating in 1999.
GO UTES!
Mary’s Social Media Links:
Amazon Author Page: amazon.com/Mary-Martinez/e/B006MWJ1T6
Website: marymartinez.com
Facebook: facebook.com/AuthorMaryMartinez
Twitter: twitter.com/marylmartinez
Instagram: instagram.com/mlmartinez3/
Goodreads: goodreads.com/author/show/1646623.Mary_Martinez
YouTube: youtube.com/channel/UCTww3B2ofa11UPFrSe0WGAg
Pinterest: pinterest.com/marylmartinez3
Mary’s Garden Blog: marysbooksblogger.blogspot.com
The After Work Cook: theafterworkcook.blogspot.com
Google+
August 5, 2018
Linda Nightingale and The Summoning
Today, I welcome Linda Nightingale to my blog. Check out her new book and enter the giveaway at the end of the post!! There’s a $15 gift card up for grabs.
Born in South Carolina, Linda has lived in England, Canada, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Atlanta and Houston. She’s seen a lot of this country from the windshield of a truck pulling a horse trailer, having bred, trained and showed Andalusian horses for many years. Linda won several writing awards, including the Georgia Romance Writers Magnolia Award and the SARA Merritt. She retired from a career as a legal assistant and loves events with her car club. The stars in her crown are two wonderful sons. In a former life, she must have had to walk everywhere because today she is into transportation with fine taste in expensive horses and hot cars! She likes to dress up and host formal dinner parties.
Years ago, back in the dim days of the last century, The Summoning was conceived. Desperation is the mother of invention. I needed a piece to enter in a contest for a conference in one of those beautiful small developments near Destin, FL. I lived in South Carolina at the time.
While I was writing, editing and polishing that first chapter, the idea took hold, desperation’s child Eryael began talking and the story developing. I liked the simplicity with which the hero initially spoke, growing more adult as the book progressed. I didn’t finish ‘Summons’ until much later, but along the way, it won several awards. An author friend suggested the title change to The Summoning.
The setting for the excerpt is that a couple, followers of Eyrael, have asked him for a child. Heather, the heroine, is coming to the realization that since she is so intensely jealous, that she might be falling for the spirit she summoned from goodness knows where. Heather is a witch who refuses to believe she’s a witch.
Heather Morique is a witch. The problem is she doesn’t know it. Her husband Jahill was a refugee from an obscure branch of the Arawak Indians. After his death, mysterious whispers lure Heather to his homeland of Jamaica. Soon, she finds herself in a web of secrets, lies and illusions.
Jahill’s people worship Eyrael, the God of Wind and Sea, and his brother Sofiel, the God of Fire and Earth. The new Shaman has pitted brother against brother, and these two powerful spirits from an alternate universe fight to become the tribe’s ruling deity. Will light or darkness reign?
When Heather unwittingly summons Eyrael, these two unlikely soul mates face a dangerous fate. The chemistry between them is more disturbing than the long-buried secrets.
Excerpt
“You mean it wouldn’t be only sex with us?” She recalled Eyrael dressed only in seaweed. Imagination supplied her images of him naked and erect..
“It would never be merely sex between us.” He kissed her again, the new, unholy fire scorching through her at a simple touch. “I shall go now and return if you allow me.”
She longed for him to stay, couldn’t bear for him to go to Liana. “Of course, you may come back.” Fresh from another woman’s arms? “What if Sofiel—”
“You are right.” He clasped her hand. “Then you will accompany me?”
“No.” She’d absolutely love waiting while he gave Liana a good shafting. As much as she’d enjoy having her fingernails removed one by one.
Gripping her shoulders, he demanded, “For your safety you must. Alone, you are at risk. I shall not linger.”
Which would be worse walking the floor at home or at the log cabin? Either way, the experience would be hell. The realization was slow in coming, but she was falling in love with Eyrael. Knowing he was buried to the hilt in Liana would hurt worse than losing Jahill. Yes, much worse than finding Jahill with Melinda! All afternoon, the dead hadn’t haunted her. Was she finally ready to crawl out of the bottle and live again? She’d been looking at Eyrael, but suddenly he came into sharp relief—an exquisite man who wanted her, yes, poor ignored Heather, more than the beautiful Indian woman. If she stayed with him, and it appeared she had to, she might at last escape the abyss of grief.
She delved to the heart of her characters’ emotions but avoided her own. Tonight, she was being forced to examine her feelings in depth. This incredible man—and he was all man—had changed and would continue to alter her entire existence. She could never go back, couldn’t imagine returning to her mundane life.
“Will you refuse?” He asked softly.
“I have to go, don’t I?” She blinked to hide tears.
“Yes, you must.” He kissed her cheek. “Please do not suffer, my beautiful Heather.”
She wove her fingers into his hair, forcing him to meet her gaze. “I’ll know what you’re doing. Even if we are friends bound together…”
He stiffened, his eyes hardening. “If we are only friends, you have no reason to be wounded.”
Her hands dropped to her sides. He was absolutely right. Why did she think he’d bow to her wishes? “I’m not asking you…not to do…it. I…well, I can’t…I’m trying to understand you. Please try to understand my reticence.”
Twining their fingers, he gazed deep into her eyes. “If we are friends, I cannot understand. If you are my woman, I understand and wish I could spare you this distress.”
A tear escaped her lashes. “Oh, Eyrael, I don’t know what I’m doing here, scarcely know who I am, but I do know there’s no way back home.”
Buy link: https://www.amazon.com/Summoning-Ancient-Gods-Book-ebook/dp/B075ZJWS9J/
Where to find her:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LNightingale
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LindaNightingaleAuthor
Web Site: http://www.lindanightingale.com – Visit and look around. There’s a free continuing vampire story.
Blog: https://lindanightingale.wordpress.com/ – Lots of interesting guests & prizes
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4839311.Linda_Nightingale
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/lbnightingale1/
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Linda-Nightingale/e/B005OSOJ0U
Other books:
Love For Sale
Gambler’s Choice
Morgan D’Arcy: A Vampyre Rhapsody
Gylded Wings
Her General in Gray
The Summoning
Sinner’s Obsession
Cardinal Desires
Giveaway: Linda will be giving away a $15 Gift Card through Rafflecopter! Winner will be announced 8/30. Follow her on tour for more fun and chances to win!
August 4, 2018
Are You Interested in Voodoo?
If you’re interested in voodoo or magic, then check out the new book by Sorchia DuBois, Zoraida Grey and the VooDoo Queen, her newest release. You’ll find it on Sorchia’s Amazon page (link listed below) as well as the buy links noted. Also, visit her website, it’s quite lovely, and follow her on social media.
Buy link: https://books2read.com/ZoraidaGrey2
Magic may save Zoraida’s skin, but what about her heart?
Zoraida Grey needs help. With the witchy Logan clan holding her best friend hostage in a haunted Scottish castle, she can’t trust anyone—certainly not beguiling but dangerous Shea Logan. And Al, her overprotective boyfriend, doesn’t believe in magic.
Only one creature strikes fear in the blackened hearts of the Logan witches. Trouble is Jock disappeared five centuries ago leaving a trail of destruction across the Gulf of Mexico. Now he’s stepped into a steaming pile of Voodoo.
Can Zoraida drag wayward Jock back to Scotland? And what’s she supposed to do with two men who promise completely different futures?
A Scottish wizard, stripped naked and painted blue—a Voodoo priestess bent on immortality—a yacht-load of Caribbean pirates. What can possibly go wrong?
Excerpt:
From Chapter 7: Azili’s Little Shop of Hypnotism
Her dry, cool hand on my arm guides me through the store, steadies me when I trip on uneven boards, pulls me through the blue-curtained doorway. Red lips blow sparkling powder from long, elegant fingers. The particles hang in the air, spinning and swirling. I inhale instinctively.
My knees give way and down I sink. Down onto the red velvet chair. Past the weathered floorboards, down into the silt and mud of the Delta. Down to the center of the earth. Satin folds of mesmerizing ensorcellment coil around my shoulders, pulling me deeper still into the space between time. Reality wastes to silence.
“Don’ fight, my girl. You can’t do it. Let it take you,” she whispers. We face each other, sitting in matching red velvet chairs. Our knees touch. She holds my hands, massaging my palms with her broad thumbs.
Fresh sweat pops out on my forehead. The powdered drug slows my heart, my breathing, my mind. Each second stretches into infinity. Colors spiral around a green face. My eyelids weigh fifty pounds each. I yield to the irresistible need to let them slam shut. Cigarette smoke on her breath. A cold hand on my forehead. I’m helpless, bound, and sedated.
This won’t do.
My toes dig deep into the rich Mississippi silt and curl around the bones of the earth. Ancient, patient life grounds me, reminds me who I am. A molecule at a time, I transmute the drug to saline, a trick I did not learn in high school chemistry. A trick I didn’t know I could do. The effort leaves me gasping but my mind is once again my own. I open my eyes.
“You got de juju in you, bébé.” Azili laughs, red lips wide, teeth white. Her coils tighten. “But I got de juju in me, too.”
This time, I can’t keep her out. Like rising floodwaters, she seeps into every corner. A scream gurgles in my throat and dies.
Award-winning author Sorchia Dubois lives in the piney forest of the Missouri Ozarks with seven cats, two fish, one dog, and one husband.
A proud member of the Scottish Ross clan, Sorchia incorporates all things Celtic (especially Scottish) into her works. She can often be found at Scottish festivals watching kilted men toss large objects for no apparent reason.
Author Social Media:
Website: http://www.SorchiaDubois.com
Blog: https://www.sorchiadubois.com/sorchias-universe-the-bloga/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SorchiaDubois
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/SorchiaDubois/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SorchiaD
Amazon author page: http://www.amazon.com/SorchiaDuBois/e/B00B60NOUQ/
Goodreads author page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6879978.Sorchia_DuBois
Google +: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+SorchiaDuBois
Email: SorchiaDuBois@GMail.com
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/sorchia-dubois
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sorchiad/
August 3, 2018
Take the Body and Run by Jada Ryker
Thanks to Jada Ryker for sharing her books with me today. Be sure and check them out. They look like a lot of fun!!
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“TAKE THE BODY AND RUN is a fast-paced ride with a sparkling character and written in a new, original voice. This is a don’t-miss debut.”
-Carolyn Haines, USA Today bestselling author of Pluto’s Snitch and Sarah Booth Delaney
~*~ The Kindle Scout Winner is FREE through PRIME and Kindle Unlimited ~*~
Macey’s first day in the college employee relations department ends with a knife at her throat.
Macey is certain things can’t get any worse. She’s wrong. An angry employee vows to put her on an online hit list. When he turns up dead, she’s a suspect–and on the hit list.
To keep her secrets and her life, Macey partners with two unexpected allies who cause her pulse to race with steamy attraction–and exasperating annoyance. Vince, a handsome, driven lawman, digs up more than just clues to the brutal murder. Brett, a fun-loving pathologist with a deadly sense of humor, drives everyone crazy with his have fart machine-will travel. Macey’s supersized black cat Wikket, possessing courage, curiosity, and crankiness in equal portions, assists in his own grumpy, feline fashion, golden eyes open and claws extended.
Macey Malloy Mysteries with a Chick-Lit Twist Series
Sassy Macey Malloy and her grumpy cat Wikket debuted in Take the Body and Run. The Kindle Scout winner is about a hunted woman, a handsome lawman, a have fart machine-will travel doctor, and a crime-solving cat.
The series is fun to read in any order. Here’s the list in chronological order.
#0 – Prequel: Two Tickets to Paradise
Macey risks her life when she’s embroiled in a brutal murder, and meets her feline, crime-solving partner. The novelette appears in the Kindle Scout winners’ anthology, Winter Solstice. The story is also included in Gone Cat and Other Stories.
#1 – Take the Body and Run
The Kindle Scout winner is a “goofy thriller” about a hunted woman, a handsome lawman, a have fart machine-will travel doctor, and a crime-solving cat.
#2 – Take a Walk on the Dead Side
Macey and Wikket, her crabby cat with a nose for crime, plunge headlong into danger when a stalker targets an innocent college student. Terrified for the girl, Macey tries to help her, only to be trapped in the web of deceit with tangled links to missing women.
#3: Take Her to the River
Macey has to solve a murder, and find her missing friend, Leila. The investigation hurtles Macey and Wikket into a desperate killer’s path. Will they survive, even with Wikket’s unusual brand of help?
#4: Gone Cat and Other Stories
In the prequel novelette Two Tickets to Paradise, Macey risks her life when she’s embroiled in a brutal murder and meets her feline, crime-solving partner. The novella Runnin’ with the Devil Cat resumes the story right after Take Her to the River. The action continues with the short story “What the Cat Dragged In,” and the novelettes Cat Scratch Fever and Gone Cat.
KINDLE SCOUT WINNER Jada Ryker snagged the Kindle Press publishing contract for her book, Take the Body and Run, through Amazon’s Kindle Scout program. The “goofy thriller” is about a hunted woman hiding under a dead friend’s identity, a handsome lawman, a have fart machine-will travel doctor, and a cranky cat with a nose for crime.
Jada is also the author of Die and the Family Stone, a Kirbie Stone mystery; Dog Days of Karma, the first Carr-Maah Consulting mystery/paranormal novel; A Pink Zombie, with a Mist, a Shaken, Not Stirred, mystery/horror adventure; and Murder Takes a Dare, the first book in the Takes a Dare mystery series. The books combine humor and murder in a total package of entertaining and fun southern adventures. At the same time, Jada sketches in addiction/recovery issues and childhood angst with a deft and compassionate touch.
Jada spent the first twenty-odd years of her life in rural Kentucky, many of those years without electricity or running water. In her writings, Jada draws upon her early years of deprivation.
She now lives in central Kentucky with her wonderful husband and their cat, rescued from the animal shelter. In her day job, Jada works in higher education. She holds a masters degree in public administration.
Jada’s mystery adventures are available on Amazon in electronic and paperback formats.
Jada loves feedback from readers, both one-on-one and through customer reviews on Amazon.com. Connect with Jada to share your thoughts about her books by emailing her at jada_ryker@yahoo.com or by visiting her website.
Here are the links:
http://jadaryker.com
https://www.facebook.com/jada.ryker.author
https://twitter.com/jadaryker
Sign up for her newsletter to receive updates about once a month or so:
https://gem.godaddy.com/signups/211744/join
Five on Friday
Name three things you always have with you.
Wikket is the black cat who insists on helping Macey with her investigations (Take the Body and Run). My husband gave me a small, stuffed black cat. I keep Wikket in my backpack, which serves as my purse. Wikket goes everywhere with me. The security person at the airport in Orlando thought the cat was funny . . . I think funny-peculiar, not funny-ha-ha.
I always have my Kindle. Waiting in line or stuck in traffic? No problem, I’ll take a walk on the wild side with True.
The third thing I always have with me is my imagination. If I can’t whip out my Kindle, then I’ll check in with my characters. Lately, Wikket is intent on leading Macey into another spot of trouble that might get her killed, while blatantly interfering with her love life.
Ann: If you’re talking about my book, True, be warned, it may set your hair on fire!
Do you laugh at your own jokes?
Yes, I laugh at my own jokes. Sometimes I’m the only one laughing. Here’s an example of a joke that I think’s funny. How do you get a handkerchief to dance? Put a little boogie in it.
Yeah, I don’t hear you laughing right now 
