Carrie Ann Ryan's Blog, page 130
February 1, 2014
Blurred Expectations Nominated! : Ménage Romances 2014 Fan’s Awards
Yay! Blurred Expectations is up for the 2014 Best Shifter Ménage! Thank you!
The Redwood Pack triad, Josh, Reed, and Hannah could use your votes!
Vote frequently, there is not a limit on how many times you vote. Thank you again!
New Release: Ink Reunited (Sassy’s Story)
Montgomery Ink Book 0.6
Digitally: Amazon │Barnes & Noble
From the streets of New Orleans and the heat of Midnight Ink, comes the happy ever after for a character whose story was begged to be told.
Sassy Bordeaux is the Midnight Ink receptionist, honorary godmother, best friend to many, and matchmaker expert. In the past two months, she’s watched eight couples fall in love, make mistakes, and find their happy endings. Though she might have had hand in each of those, she’s yet to find the peace she’s desired. When the men from her past come into Midnight Ink, she’s forced to face what she left behind and what could happen if she lets go of her pain and finds a future she deserves.
Rafe Chavez and Ian Steele remember their time with Sassy like it was yesterday, yet have worked hard to move on. Or at least try to. Now they’re both back in New Orleans for the woman they loved and for the connection they shared with each other. It will take more than the usual groveling, pleading and begging for these three to overcome their history, but once they take that step, the streets of New Orleans will never be the same.
January 25, 2014
Snippet Saturday: A Taste For A Mate, Redwood Pack
Everyone loves the Redwood Pack Beta and his mate. Soon we will have more Jasper and Willow in their After the HEA novella, A Beta’s Haven, releasing on February 18th. Until then, let’s take a step back to when Willow describes her ‘mystery man’…
Available Digitally: Amazon│Barnes and Noble│ARe│kobo│iTunes
Available In Print: eStore│Amazon│Barnes and Noble│Powell’s│Book │Depository│BAM│Indie Bound
A bell’s tinkle pulled Willow from her reverie and self-pity. As she turned to greet her customer, her heart leapt to her throat. Him. Her mysterious fantasy man. As she tried to regain her senses, she took all of him in. He had to be one of the tallest men she’d ever seen, easily over six and a half feet. The tight black T-shirt he wore hugged his biceps and cut into his muscular physique, while his broad shoulders stretched and strained the seams. His body tapered down to a narrow waist and hips as they met his thighs. His long legs she wanted to grip, encased in worn jeans lead to work boots. Hmm, construction perhaps? He glanced back up his body to striking face.
He wasn’t beautiful, but he did have a face most women would dream about. A strong jaw and cheekbones gave him an aura of strength, the kind of strength that would be protective. His hair was midnight black and long enough to brush his shoulders, however, today, a band held it back, showcasing his face more. He studied her, his green eyes calm and calculating. Willow let out a surprised gasp at the sexual heat radiating from him. Could she possibly be imagining things?
January 24, 2014
Giveaway: FREE VIP Ticket to The Novel Experience in Atlanta!
I’m so excited to go to The Novel Experience in March! From 28th-30th I will be hanging out with readers and authors doing a signing, many parties and more. Jayne Rylon, Joey Hill, and I are even hosting our own party! To celebrate this, I’m giving away a VIP ticket. What does that mean? You get FREE access to all the exclusive parties and other giveaways and goodies. Enter the Rafflecopter below to win! Ticket Winner must provide their own transportation to Atlanta. They must also book a room and give us their reservation information in order to claim their VIP ticket. Ticket is not transferable.
January 21, 2014
New Release from Virginia Nelson: Runaway Groom
He’s ready and waiting. She’s wanting…but wary.
Watkin’s Pond, Book 1
Links
Amazon | B&N | Goodreads
The groom is back in town.
Abigail lost her best friend years ago when he ditched her at the altar like a loaf of stale bread. Now he’s back and determined to do whatever he has to—even lie, apparently—to get under her skin. Although he makes her hormones rev to life in a way that no one has since he left, she is equally determined not to fall for his boy-next-door charm.
His bride-to-be is somewhat reluctant.
Braxton Dean was too young and stupid to know better when he walked away. Years of trying to fill the Abby-shaped hole in his heart have left him empty, and now he’s going to win back his girl—or get over her. But first he needs answers. Particularly why she never responded to any of his letters.
It might take a whole town to make this wedding happen.
With the help of their friends, the two battle it out. The army? An entire town of busybodies. The prize? Happily ever after.
Warning: Contains indignant old ladies, steamy sex (but not with indignant old ladies), seduction cake, and condom bouquets. Yes, we went there.
Enjoy the following excerpt for Runaway Groom:
July 7, 2005
Abby,
I’m sitting in a diner in the desert. The sun peeking over the mountain lights up everything in these reds so bright they almost hurt the eyes. You’ve never felt a hot like this, all dry, nothing like the days that we went swimming over at Watkin’s pond…
I don’t really know why I’m writing you. I don’t have answers and right now you probably want them. I just know I couldn’t do it.
I miss you though.
Love, B
Knuckles white, Abigail put her beat-up Ford Focus in Park, and glanced at her best friend. “I can’t do this.”
“Pussy.” Applying a coat of lipstick to her lush red lips in the mirror, Carnie shot her a glance. “You can do this. It isn’t like you’re about to face a firing squad. It’s just a bonfire.”
Shoving her hand through her short, pixie-cut brown hair, Abigail blew out a frustrated breath. “I would rather face a firing squad. If you ditch me to go running off with the new boyfriend…”
Carnie gave her a dirty look, tucking her red hair behind her shoulder. “I would never do that. I know how bent out of shape you get every time we go anywhere that Braxton might be. Really, though, it will be fine. The crap happened a thousand years ago. You’re adults now.”
Abigail didn’t feel like an adult. She felt like the rejected teenager even thinking of Braxton Dean.
It didn’t help that he’d become sexier with age. Heartbreakingly handsome, Braxton made her thighs clench with just a glance. She needed to remember the pain and humiliation rather than how it felt to be pushed into a bed by him. Better to remember the chest-constricting, blinding terror when he’d ditched her and vanished rather than remember his face a mask of unleashed passion and his green eyes wild with need. The former would keep her knees together.
The terror of that time—it wasn’t something she shared with anyone, not even Carnie.
Remembering gave her the strength she needed to peel her fingers from the wheel. “You’re right, of course. I can do this. No big deal. We’re both more mature now. He probably won’t even say a word to me.” The last came out a bit hopeful, even to her own ears.
“Yeah, at his birthday bonfire, he isn’t going to say a word to the woman he dated for years and ditched at the altar like a loaf of stale bread. Really, Abs, you need to get pissed off rather than feeling pissed on. You’re totally the injured party here.”
“He had his reasons. I’m sure he did.” Why was she defending his dumb ass?
“What reason could be good enough for that grand act of douchebaggery?” Carnie raised one well-plucked brow at her. “Besides, these are our friends. You need to remember why we’re here. He took off. He stayed gone. This is our town. You’re going to walk in there and show him what he is missing. Rub in his face what he can’t have.”
“I don’t know. He really wasn’t a jerk…not most of the time.”
“Let’s just go find Mike and the crew, and have a good time. All of our friends from high school are here and it’ll be good to catch up with them.”
Nodding, stomach still a bit of a knot, Abigail opened her door and stepped out into the muggy Ohio night. Stars hung like tiny lanterns above the recently mowed field and the sound of laughter carried on the breeze. The bonfire, a huge conflagration, was surrounded by what looked like hundreds of folding chairs, coolers and other party miscellany that beckoned Abigail onwards. Who knew? Maybe she would meet someone new and end up being really happy she wasted the extra five minutes to make sure everything was shaved and neat?
Carnie strode with her usual impulsive bravery into the melee. Abigail stuffed her hands in her jeans and resisted casting her head down to avoid any stares that might be coming her way. Instead she held her head high, but refused to meet anyone’s eyes. In small-town Ohio, everyone knew she hadn’t seen Braxton since that fateful day when he left her standing, flowers in hand, waiting for a runaway groom. Everyone knew that instead of marrying her, Braxton—golden boy and football hero—ran off to parts unknown, and she’d neither heard from him nor caught a glimpse of him when he’d come to town until a few weeks ago. He only returned home now to help his father with his tool store after his father’s stroke made it hard for the old man to get around like he used to.
Everyone watched to see how she’d handle it.
She wouldn’t give them a show to chew over for the next decade. She’d act like it was ancient history, like she hadn’t spent years wondering how a man could go from saying he loves her to leaving her to stand alone against a whole swarm of gossips with nothing better to do than tear her to shreds for being moronic enough to think he would stay.
She concentrated so hard on what she wouldn’t do, she slammed to an abrupt halt against a firm chest. His firm chest. Braxton. He smelled the same, damn him.
Even over the scent of wood burning, the ripeness of summer and the bitter tang of someone’s spilled beer, she inhaled his soap, familiar cologne and under it all, simply Braxton.
Her stomach clenched. Part of her wanted to smack him and demand answers. Part of her wanted to run away. Part of her wanted to pull his face down and kiss him because she’d missed him so much.
Instead she hid behind an armor of polite civility and gave a short, sharp nod. “Braxton.”
“Abby.” The word came out almost a plea. His eyes held a sad look she quickly identified. He pitied her.
Double damn him. “Happy birthday.”
And even though she promised herself she wasn’t going to give everyone a show, promised herself she wouldn’t feed the rumor mills…
The sound of her slap rang out across the field. Even in the flickering light from the bonfire, her handprint marked his strong jaw and she couldn’t ignore the pleasure it gave her. Silence seemed to spread across the night as he touched his cheek. Her mouth hung open, shock rippling through her as his gaze locked on hers.
“I deserved that.” The timbre of his voice seemed to stroke across her skin, stirring up a potent cocktail of emotions—lust, love, fury and pain. The worst part was disgust at herself for feeling anything.
“You deserve worse.”
Instead of arguing with her, which almost would have made her feel better, like it meant something to him, he simply nodded. “Wanna go somewhere to talk?”
About the Author
Virginia Nelson believed them when they said, “Write what you know.” Small town girl writing small town romance, her characters are as full of flaws, misunderstandings, and flat out mistakes as Virginia herself. When she’s is not writing or plotting to take over the world, she likes to hang out with the greatest kids in history, play in the mud, drive far too fast, and scream at inanimate objects. Virginia likes knights in rusted and dinged up armor, heroes that snarl instead of croon, and heroines who can’t remember to say the right thing even with an author writing their dialogue. Her books are full of snark, sex, and random acts of ineptitude—not always in that order.
Links
Website | Blog | Facebook | FB Author | Amazon | Pinterest | Tumblr
January 18, 2014
Social Media and all that Jazz
Howdy!
I’m deep in the writing cave but I thought I’d stop by and tell you where I’m at. Facebook is going a bit crazy with all of their hiding and not sharing. I have over 4000 Likes and yet only 200 of you see what I post. How is that fair? So what am I doing? I’m not leaving Facebook, but I am adding things to my list. I’ll be posting updates, questions, links, giveaways, and all of that jazz on Facebook still, but I’m also going to use the other social media things I had signed up for but have neglected for too long. I’m not going to be posting the same things on each site since that seems boring, but I’m going to do my best to reach y’all in the best ways possible. My assistant, Charity, and I will be running these. I don’t know what I’d do without her because I can’t write 500,000 words a year and do all of this since sites seem to hide things!
So how do you know where to go?
The best way to know when my books come out and how to buy them is to sign up for my NEWSLETTER: http://bit.ly/18aFEqP
Also, you can follow this BLOG here to keep up to date. The follow is on the right side of this post.
FACEBOOK will have giveaways and some updates. Not as many since the place like to hide things: https://www.facebook.com/CarrieAnnRyanAuthor
I use TWITTER daily to talk with authors and readers. I do post buy links and other news on there, but it’s hard to find unless you are online at the same time as me. So I use Twitter to get to know people. I also do giveaways and novel lines over there. https://twitter.com/CarrieAnnRyan
I just reopened my TUMBLR account. Here I will post excerpts and images. It’s a little edgier over there so we can go a bit crazier. http://carrieannryan.tumblr.com/
I’m also going to use my GOOGLE + account more. I’ve had it for years and have been a bad author with it. So you will see updates, giveaways, and other things there. https://plus.google.com/u/0/112977982798513905792/about
I also just opened an INSTAGRAM account. It’s an image site so I will be posting images there. http://instagram.com/carrieannryanauthor
I’m going to try to keep things consistent in terms of information, but unique in terms of fun. One of the best parts of my job is the fact I get to talk with readers and with Facebook changing things, I couldn’t do that properly. So I’m going to be all over the internet and will do my best to make sure we don’t lose that connection.
Now I’m going back to the writing den because TANGLED INNOCENCE won’t write itself. OMG y’all, this dragon and bear menage is so much fun! And dirty. LOL
January 17, 2014
Hidden Destiny: Exclusive Excerpt 3
Available Digitally: Amazon | Barnes and Noble | ARe | kobo
Here’s an exclusive excerpt from HIDDEN DESTINY in case you haven’t had a chance to read it yet. *wink*
His wolf howled, and he fought the urge to howl right along with him.
“North? What’s wrong?” his mother said from the open door, a frown on her face. She looked just like she had all his life. Young, fair, and yet with an underlying strength that would make most bow under it.
He went to her and wrapped his arms around her. She was short enough that she curled right in. He pressed his nose to her neck, needing the scent of sugar and home surrounding him.
His mother patted his back then pulled away slightly. “What’s wrong, North?” she repeated.
He scented his father in the living room, and he moved, but kept his hand on hers. “We need to talk.”
She blinked, her wolf coming to the surface with the gold in her eyes. There was a reason she was the Alpha’s mate.
She was fucking strong.
“Okay, honey. Let’s get going then.”
He made his way to the living room and lowered his gaze in front of his father. No matter how strong North was, his father was even more powerful.
“You’ve been fighting,” Edward said. “What happened?”
A demand.
“This was just letting out frustration with Logan.”
“What caused you to need to let go of that frustration? Did he do something to Cailin?” he growled.
Pat rubbed her husband’s arm. “Honey, if that’s what it was, I don’t think North would look so broken. Yes, he’d be hurt, but this is a different broken, my love. Tell us, baby, what’s the matter with Lexi?”
Gods. No matter how old he was, his mother knew exactly how to get to the heart of the matter. He’d always envied the way his parents knew each other and their children. They knew what to say, what to do…just how to be…
January 16, 2014
Hidden Destiny: Exclusive Excerpt 2
Available Digitally: Amazon | Barnes and Noble | ARe | kobo
Here’s an exclusive excerpt from HIDDEN DESTINY in case you haven’t had a chance to read it yet. *wink*
He blinked then stalked toward her. He gripped her chin, and she froze, her body ceding to him even though her mind wasn’t quite there.
“What have they been saying to you, my Lexi?”
“I’m not your Lexi,” she whispered, broken. She blinked, her body going oddly numb at the words she’d spoken, the hollowness within her opening like an aching chasm of nothingness.
He traced her cheek with his other hand, keeping a firm grip on her chin. “You could be. You fucking could be.”
“No, no I can’t.”
“Lexi,” he rasped out, “let me help, baby. Please, let me help.”
She tried to pull away, but he held her place. Despite herself, she liked it. The warmth of his touch on her skin radiated through her, filling the chasm for only a moment before the pain of remembering why they couldn’t be one slammed into full force.
“There’s nothing you can do. You can’t change the minds of others. None of you can. We’re dealing with what we have to, North. Just let it go. If they hurt my baby again, though, I won’t be responsible for my actions.”
He sucked in a breath. “I won’t hold you back if they come at Parker, Lexi. You have to tell me what’s happening. I’ll take care of it, baby. Let me help.”
“You can’t help.”
“You know as well as I do that we have that connection. You know we’re potential mates.”
She sucked in a breath as well at his words.
Fuck, he’d said it.
He wasn’t supposed to say it.
Her chest shook as she choked back a sob. She felt the tears she’d held back so long slide down her cheeks.
January 15, 2014
Hidden Destiny: Exclusive Excerpt 1
Available Digitally: Amazon | Barnes and Noble | ARe | kobo
Here’s an exclusive excerpt from HIDDEN DESTINY in case you haven’t had a chance to read it yet. *wink*
Adam walked out of the clinic, leaving North to his thoughts, which frankly, he didn’t need. He didn’t want to think about the fear and shame that had hit him like a train when Lexi ran away from him. He didn’t want to see the sorrow in her gaze when she looked at him with those wide hazel eyes.
He didn’t want to picture the look of confusion on Parker’s face when he watched his mom run away. Or the way the little boy had shied away from him when Lexi ran—as if Parker knew it was North’s fault his mom had fled.
North sucked in a breath at a sharp, lancing pain arching across his palm and cursed. He’d clenched his fist and forgotten he’d been holding a fountain pen. Out of control, and with his werewolf strength, he’d smashed the damn thing and had even stabbed himself with the pointed edge.
Great.
Just fucking great.
He threw the pen in the trash and washed his hands. Sure, wolves couldn’t get normal diseases like humans, but getting ink in a wound didn’t seem like the best idea.
He didn’t bother bandaging it because it was healing on its own, and in within the next twenty minutes, he’d be good as new again.
Fuck. He couldn’t believe he’d lost control like that.
Again.
North was considered the calm one, the brother who was there to help the others but never on the front lines, never making waves. And he was good at it.
He had to be that person.
If he wasn’t, the others might find out exactly what he was.
He’d hidden it from them for so long he knew he had to keep it buried.
January 14, 2014
Release Day: Hidden Destiny
It’s the official Release Day for Hidden Destiny!
Available Digitally: Amazon | Barnes and Noble | ARe | kobo
It’s here! It’s here! North and Lexi’s story is here! Are you excited?!
Keep on the lookout this week for excerpts, giveaways, and parties!
HIDDEN DESTINY (Redwood Pack Book 6) Read the entire first chapter HERE.
Blub:
North Jamenson has always held his wolf closer to the surface then others. He’s the quiet one, the one no one really knows about yet he holds the darkest secret. He’s watched his brothers find their mates and start families, and now it was his turn. He knows Lexi could be his and her son could be part of his family, but he doesn’t know if he’s ready to share the darkness that’s entwined with his soul.
Lexi Anderson is a mother, a sister, a latent wolf, and a new member of the Redwood Pack. She’s also holding secrets so close to her heart she’s not even sure she knows the truth anymore. When North takes another step closer to wanting to cement their bond, Lexi must come to grips with her past and what it means for her future. The Centrals’ war isn’t over yet and Lexi’s life is on the line as the paths they’ve chosen takes a drastic turn.
