Irene Preston's Blog, page 8
April 16, 2015
Kimberly Dean: Strawberry Dream Pie + Dreaming Bear Giveaway
Send to KindleIt’s all about dreams this week. The weather is getting warmer and I’m dreaming of a cool fruit dessert that doesn’t keep me in the kitchen all day. Kimberly Dean brought over just the thing – a super-simple, refreshing strawberry pie. Make sure you scroll down to check out the dreamy blurb from her new novel, Dream Man and enter her giveaway for an adorable dreaming bear decoration.
Easy Strawberry Pie!
Kimberly
I’m all about keeping things simple. I don’t have enough time or patience to make anything fancy, especially when it comes to food. It’s usually gone so quickly, it just doesn’t make sense. The funny thing is, people don’t often notice the difference. They just know what they like!
The following recipe has been a big hit for me, and it’s easy to make. It’s a refreshing dessert that looks so pretty, I even made it for Easter Sunday dinner. Now my family is dreaming about it. 
Strawberry Dream Pie Recipe
8-oz package of cream cheese, softened
1/3 c. strawberry preserves
1 ½ c. whipped topping, thawed
9-in. ready-made graham cracker crust
½ c. sliced fresh strawberries (for pie)
1 c. fresh strawberries (for topping)
2 t. white sugar
2 t. grenadine syrup
Mix the softened cream cheese and the strawberry preserves with a hand blender. Fold in the sliced strawberries and whipped cream. Pour mixture into the pie crust, smooth, and set aside.
Using a food processor or blender, blend the strawberries, grenadine syrup, and sugar until just chunky. Pour atop the pie. Chill until set in refrigerator. (Min. 2 hours)
Slice, serve, and dream.
Dream Man is available Now!
Dream Man – Dream Weavers Book 1
Each night, Devon Bradshaw dreams of him – her fantasy lover. She can feel his heated gaze on her and hear his deep breaths, yet as consuming as their shared desire is, they can’t connect.
Until she performs a love spell.
Cael Oneiros is stunned when Devon appears on his cosmic plane. For months, he’s watched over her as her Dream Weaver. As a sleeper assigned to his care, his job has been to lead the beautiful redhead into REM sleep. Visiting her each night, though, has led to deeper feelings. He wasn’t supposed to fall in love with her, but he has.
Now every night Devon visits Cael, their connection grows – but even the most innocent of spells can have repercussions. All around town, people are acting strangely. Tempers are short, and chaos is starting to reign. Nobody is dreaming. Nobody except Devon.
When her dream man shows up in flesh and blood, she has to decide if he’s really the man of her heart… or the demon of her dreams.
Where to Buy Dream Man
Amazon | B&N | IBooks | Google Play
About Kimberly Dean
When taking the Myers-Briggs personality test in high school, Kimberly was rated as an INFJ (Introverted-Intuitive-Feeling-Judging). This result sent her into a panic, because there were no career paths recommended for the type. Fortunately, it turned out to be well-suited to a writing career. Since receiving that dismal outlook, Kimberly has become an award-winning author of romance and erotica. She has written for seven publishing houses, both domestic and international, and has recently focused her efforts on the exciting world of self-publishing. When not writing, she enjoys food, movies, sports, traveling, music, and sunshine.
Visit Kimberley Online
Dreaming Bear Giveaway
Enter this adorable Dreaming Bear decoration from Kimberly using the rafflecopter below. You can enter through 04/30/2015!
April 9, 2015
Catherine Noon: Don’t Burn the Water! or, How To Make a Decent Cup of Herbal Tea
Send to KindleSo, as person who actually has burned water, the title of this post caught my eye right away! If you like hot beverages, read on. Catherine Noon is here to walk us through boiling, simmering, and steeping while we make a lovely cuppa!
Oh, hey – there is a GIVEAWAY. Make sure and check out Catherine’s latest book, Emerald Keep. If you comment on this post, you could win a free copy!
CatherineFor me, I’ve made a meal out of the fact that I adore coffee. I have written recipes, shared ideas, and generally styled myself as a coffee person. However, I also adore herbal tea. And black tea. And…
Well, let’s just say I like hot beverages and leave it at that, or we’ll be here all day trying to define what I like. It’s probably easier to say what I don’t like in terms of beverages, and that would be, “gin.” Except that my herbal instructor pointed out that there are more kinds of fine gin that you can shake a stick at and we’re back at the first problem.
So, tea. It’s a common misconception, at least here in the States, that “tea” comes out of a cardboard box in a small paper mesh envelope on a string. The truth is far richer than that. High-quality leaves from freshly dried botanicals make all the difference. If you’ve never been, try visiting a tea shop in your area and explore the loose-leaf teas. There are some amazing blends out there.
Since I have a dodgy tummy, I’m forever getting tummy aches. A super easy, quick way to make a stomach tonic is to get a fresh ginger root from the grocery store, (most large stores have them in the root vegetables section; they look like small, misshapen dolls). Use a carrot peeler to slough off the outer skin. Slice two or three disks off the root and put them in a pan with two cups of boiling water. Boil for ten minutes or so, and then cool. Serve fresh or add some honey if the ginger is too strong to your palette.
What’s the difference between boiling the botanicals and letting them steep? As a general rule of thumb, you boil roots (at a rolling, bubbling boil) for longer than ten minutes, even up to twenty. For leaves and blossoms, you boil the water and then add the botanicals just before the boiling point, and just barely simmer for up to twenty minutes. You boil the roots because they’re tougher and need the longer time in the hotter water; you’ll basically overcook the leaves or flowers if you do that to them.
We had a lot of fun with this in our forthcoming book, Emerald Keep. The hero, Hunter Quill Mayer, is known for burning the leaves. It’s a recurring theme in the book and it makes me giggle whenever I see we’ve added it. I’m sure everyone knows at least one person who’s hopeless in the kitchen and can “burn the water.”
Emerald KeepWhen Emerald Keeper Teeka returns to the city of Reghdad and leaves the harsh desert behind, he finds that not all dangers come from the Great Valley. The dangerous Daymonth is nearly upon them and no one can survive on the surface of the planet — but Senior Hunter Quill Mayer is trying to get to Reghdad, and Teeka, before the start of it. Even if he makes it, Emerald Keep denies Teeka’s Contract with Senior Hunter Quill, and Teeka discovers his enemy is more powerful than any of them suspected and he will stop at nothing to separate Teeka and Quill — even by striking in the very heart of the city.
Where to Buy Emerald Keep:
About Catherine
For author and textile artist A. Catherine Noon, it’s all about the yarn, both metaphorical and literal – spinning a yarn, knitting with yarn, weaving, sewing, painting, sharing stories and good times over a cup of coffee with dark chocolate. She teaches creative writing, creative expression and textile arts.
Visit Catherine online:
Blog | Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon | LinkedIn | Pandora
Knoontime Knitting: Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Ravelry
Noon and Wilder links: Blog | Taurus and Taurus (NSFW) | Website | Facebook
Don’t forget to LEAVE A COMMENT for a chance to win a copy of Emerald Keep!
April 2, 2015
Cassandra Carr: 5 Mac n Cheese Recipes You Need to Try Today
Send to KindleSay CHEESE! Y’all know I’m a huge cheese fan. When I found out Cassandra Carr had set her latest release in a Mac-n-Cheese food truck right here in Austin – I knew I had to get her on the blog!
Cassandra:Hi everybody! I’m Cassandra Carr, and I’m going to talk to you today about macaroni and cheese. *Yawn*, you say. Nay, I say. For lowly macaroni and cheese can be elevated to a culinary art form- provided you have a great recipe.
The first two books in my new Savor Series revolve around a food truck named Macarollin’. Guess what they sell? During the course of writing the books, I, of course, had to do research into possible combinations for mac n cheese to see what the truck might have on the menu. Here are some delicious combinations I found:
Lobster Mac n Cheese: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/lobster-mac-and-cheese-recipe.html
Macaroni and Cheese with Carmelized Onions and Bacon: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Macaroni-and-Cheese-with-Caramelized-Onions-and-Bacon/Detail.aspx?evt19=1&referringHubId=509
Corn Chowdah Mac n Cheese: http://www.rachaelraymag.com/Recipes/rachael-ray-magazine-recipe-search/rachael-ray-30-minute-meals/corn-chowdah-mac–n–cheese
Four Brie Cheese and Buttery Ritz Cracker Mac n Cheese: http://www.halfbakedharvest.com/creamy-brie-four-cheese-mac-cheese-buttery-ritz-crackers/
Chipotle Macaroni and Cheese: http://www.cookinglight.com/food/top-rated-recipes/best-macaroni-cheese-recipes/chipotle-macaroni-cheese-recipe
And there you have it. Five delicious, proven recipes. For more, pick up Melting Into You, at the following links:
Amazon | iBooks | Nook | Kobo | Google Play | ARe
Melting Into You
Seth Mason’s life as a macaroni and cheese food truck owner in Austin, Texas, is pretty good, except for one thing: he’d like to find a man to share that life with. As part of an organization Seth founded, he donates leftovers to the local homeless shelter, and meets Ben, a new employee. He’s a preppy guy, and very much not Seth’s usual type, but the attraction is strong and not going away.
Ben’s just moved to Austin from Connecticut to take a job as a case manager at the Austin City Mission, the first time he’s left home and family. But only a short time after he starts work, he meets a man who, though he looks like an extra in a surfing movie, intrigues him. He’s hardly seen what life in Austin has to offer, and yet finds he wants to discover that with Seth’s help.
The passion burns hot between them–hotter even than Austin in the dog days of summer, and neither man can deny it. As they grow closer, both must decide if they have the necessary ingredients for lasting love, or if the relationship will go up in smoke.
About CassandraCassandra Carr is a multi-award winning romance writer. When not writing she enjoys watching hockey and hanging out online. Cassandra’s books have won numerous “Best Book Of” awards and her novella Unexpected Top was nominated in the E-book Erotic Romance category of RT’s Reviewers’ Choice Awards.
She thinks the best part of being a writer is penning stories about love and sex while most others struggle with commutes, micro-managing bosses and cranky co-workers.
Visit Cassandra Online:
March 31, 2015
Romancing Austin Cover Reveal and Giveaway
Send to KindleROMANCING AUSTIN – Coming May 5, 2015I’m so excited to reveal this new cover! The Romancing Austin anthology is close to my heart because this was a project I did with my friends. This book is set in Austin, Texas during SXSW and all the stories are by Austin writers. Beyond that… well, as the stories reflect, we are an eclectic bunch. We stuck to contemporary romance, but within that broad category is something for everyone: heat levels from mostly sweet to very spicy, m/m, m/f, v/v (that’s vampire on vampire luvin’), NA, UF – it’s all in there!
If you can drag your eyes away from this gorgeous cover, scroll down and check out the blurb. If you make it to the bottom of the page, there are TWO RAFFLECOPTERS. One shorty (ends 04/01) for a $10 Amazon Gift Card. Then a big prize pack giveaway including a $75 Amazon Gift Card and a bunch of free books from the authors (ends 05/16). You can also join us for a Facebook party 03/31 where there will be even more prizes (we’re excited)!
Enjoy!
Seven Romances. One Wild Party.
Former rock star Dex Reed throws a wild comeback party in his Austin penthouse, and seven romances heat up the night.
No Quitting Allowed by Rebecca Royce
One last assignment and then Lana is quitting her job, quitting Austin, and moving on with her life. Until Jake stumbles into her and changes the direction of her whole world.
Twisted by Cara Carnes
Caleb “Colt” Douglas agreed to close out Twisted Delirium’s sold out world tour with a gig at SXSW for one reason–win back the woman he left behind.
Do Over by Chandra Ryan
When life offers Juliana a fresh start, will she follow her heart or play it safe?
Consortium by Riley Bancroft
Record exec Holt Michaelson married the enigmatic Chloe to keep his assets safe from a vindictive competitor, but after a fiery encounter with his new wife, he’s determined to claim her as his own, body and soul.
Tall Order by Irene Preston
Dylan made the worst mistake of his life when he chose his career over Aston, but tonight he’ll take a risk on Aston even if it’s too late.
Enchanted by Evelyn Berry
Stripped of her magic, fairy princess Aurora is torn between her duty to her imperiled family and to a brilliant musician who holds the key to their freedom…and her heart.
One Night with the Vampire by Jax Garren
Tonight Alex will finally possess the woman he’s craved, but Sofia’s dangerous family secrets threaten to tear them apart.
Where to Buy Romancing Austin
Amazon
Kobo
All Romance E-Books
Amazon UK | Amazon Canada | Amazon Australia | Amazon Germany | Amazon France | Amazon Japan | Amazon Spain | Amazon Italy | Amazon Netherlands|Amazon India | Amazon Brazil
Coming Soon
iBooks
Barnes and Noble
$10 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway
I’m celebrating my new cover with a $10 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway. Just use the Rafflecopter below to enter!
NOTE! Don’t forget – if you’re already a newsletter subscriber or have done some of the other things in the past – those are FREE ENTRIES. Just enter the information in the rafflecopter for your extra entries!
$75 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway
Big prize pack from all the authors includes a $75 Amazon gift card and lots of free books!
Enter this giveaway between 03/31/2015-05/16/2015
NOTE! If you have already subscribed to my email, you have a FREE entry – just enter your email in the rafflecopter for us to verify!
March 29, 2015
Parties and Giveaways All Day Long on Tuesday 03/31
Send to KindleParty! Better yet, PARTIES! And YOU’RE INVITED!
I’m not usually this much of a party animal, but I’m actually going to be at TWO events on Tuesday, March 31st. There are going to be lots of other authors at both of them and we’ll be tossing out free books and prizes along with sneak peeks and excerpts.
Here are the deets!
Romancing Austin Cover Reveal 6pm-10pm
I’m super excited about this one. Come get a first look at the anthology I did with my friends! We’re a group of Austin writers, so we thought it would be fun to set all the stories in Austin during SXSW. One wild SXSW party. Seven hot romances. Yes, we had LOTS of fun!
At this party we will:
Unveil the Cover
Open entries for a prize pack including a $75 Amazon Gift Card + lots of books
Play games, chat, and give out some sneak peaks of the stories
And yes, give out MORE prizes!
Authors attending are Jax Garren, Rebecca Royce, Cara Carnes, Chandra Ryan, Evelyn Berry, Riley Bancroft and…ME!
Time is 6pm-10pm US CENTRAL
I’ll be hosting from 6:30-7!
Melting into You Release Day Party Noon 3/31 – Noon 04/01
Another fun foodie romance! I was super excited that Cassandra Carr and I both had m/m foodies out in the same month from Fated Desires, so of course I wanted to be at her release party for Melting into You!
I don’t have the scoop on ALL the events for this one, but trust me, there will be swag!
Attending authors include Cassandra Carr, Rebecca Royce, Annabeth Albert, Lia Davis, Jeff Adams, Virginia Nelson, and again…ME!
Time is Noon 03/31 – Noon 04/02 US EASTERN
I’ll be hosting 03/31 5pm-6pm
March 26, 2015
Maggie Le Page: Life’s Uncertain. Eat Dessert First
Send to KindleMaggie Le Page is here today. With ice cream. And chocolate. And a motto after my own heart.
Oh, and a giveaway! Make sure to comment below to enter and don’t forget to check out her latest book, The Trouble with Dying. I’m told it has nothing to do with ice cream and chocolate, but I plan to enjoy it, nonetheless.
Maggie:
I live in New Zealand—y’know, that cute little country people think is part of Australia; where Kiwis, jandals, and rugby fanatics abound. And ice cream.
Oh, the ice cream. Creamy, delicious, one-scoop-is-never-enough, ice cream.
Summer ended here last week. I know it because my fingers and toes are suddenly cold. And suddenly we were all pining for hot chocolates instead of beer, roast dinners instead of barbecues, heat pump instead of air conditioner, puddings instead of ice cream.
Okay, maybe not the last one. Where there’s a Le Page there’s always a tub of ice cream. Summer, winter, rain or shine, you won’t go short of a bowl (or tub) of ice cream in our house—and if you do, it’s an all-out emergency.
Because when winter sets in, we add a special ‘extra’ to our bowls of ice cream: my grandma’s hot chocolate sauce. {swoons}
Grandma Maggie, after whom I was named, passed away a few years ago but her hot chocolate sauce lives on (as do the hips that come with said sauce). It’s so easy to whip up, uses everyday ingredients, and is ready to serve in less than two minutes. It suits my chaotic life perfectly.
Grandma Maggie was forever telling me, “In your mouth for a moment; on your hips for a lifetime.”
And I always responded with, “Life’s uncertain. Eat dessert first.”
Because, actually, life is uncertain. That’s what my latest release, The Trouble With Dying, is all about. And that’s what Grandma Maggie’s Hot Chocolate Sauce is all about, too. So keep reading, because today I’m giving you the opportunity to taste both!
BOOK GIVEAWAY! Maggie is giving away five free digital copies of her latest release, The Trouble With Dying, to five lucky commenters. To be in to win, answer this question:
Do you have a family recipe that’s been passed down the generations? What is it? Dare you to share!
Maggie says sorry. She’s not a great photographer. That’s why she sticks to writing.
Recipe: Maggie’s Hot Chocolate Sauce
Ingredients
This is for two people – double/triple/quadruple for more people (or serious piggy factor LOL)
½ Tablespoon butter
½ Tablespoon sugar
½ Tablespoon Golden Syrup*
½ Tablespoon water
½ Dessertspoon cocoa
Few drops of vanilla essence
Directions
First off, I need to explain Golden Syrup. I don’t know if it’s available in all countries. Golden Syrup is a little like maple syrup in consistency, but is man-made. (Think sugar in liquid form!) It has a slightly sharper taste than maple syrup. If you don’t have Golden Syrup, rest assured the recipe will still work if you substitute something similar. I’ve used maple syrup and honey successfully, and even tried treacle once. (Treacle wasn’t quite as good.)
1 Heat the first five ingredients in a saucepan over a low heat, stirring until butter is melted.
2 When sauce begins to bubble, simmer for 30 seconds. Note: the timing is important, and may vary from stovetop to stovetop. Err on the side of shorter cooking time if you’re unsure. (Less than 30 seconds will give a runnier sauce, more will give a sauce that turns into toffee when it hits the ice cream).
3 Take off heat, add vanilla essence, pour over ice cream.
4 Eat! Yum!
Free on Kindle Unlimited
The Trouble With Dying
When Faith Carson wakes up on a hospital ceiling looking down on her body in a coma, it’s a bad start to the week. A very bad start. She has no idea who she is or how she got there or why, and the biggest mystery of all is why she married the schmuck who wants her ventilator switched off.
As if that’s not enough Faith has a dead gran haunting her, a young daughter missing her, and one devilishly delicious man making her wish she could have a second chance at life. And maybe she can, if she finds a way back into her body and wakes up by Friday. But if she doesn’t, this will be her last bad week—ever.
Nate Sutherland decided long ago he’d settle for friendship if he couldn’t have Faith’s heart. But now, as she nears death, he’s going to have to listen to his feelings in a whole new way—and act. Because if he doesn’t, this week will be the worst damn week of his life. He’ll lose everything he’s ever loved.
Buy On Amazon
(Or The Trouble with Dying is FREE on Kindle Unlimited!)
About Maggie
Maggie Le Page lives in Christchurch, New Zealand. She juggles kidstuff, home stuff, and part-time work, so generally writes in the dead of night. She writes chick lit—albeit with serious undertones—and, being a bit of a ditz herself, has no trouble writing her characters into embarrassing situations.
Visit Maggie Online:
MaggieLePage.com
Amazon | Facebook | Goodreads | Twitter
Don’t forget to answer Maggie’s question to enter the book giveaway!
Do you have a family recipe that’s been passed down the generations? What is it? Dare you to share!
March 19, 2015
Grace’s Cream Puffs with Lime and Cardamom
Send to KindleSo, last week I promised you cream puffs, and I am here to deliver. Cream puffs sound fancy, but they are actually really easy to make. As always, if I can do it, you can do it.
These are a little bit of an experiment. I wanted to make you something from A Taste of You. In the book, Grace’s cream puffs are flavored with blood lime and cardamom. Now, I’ll be honest, I’m a bit of a cream puff purist. I don’t really go for flavors. I like a basic pâte à choux filled with sweetened whipped cream. Also, I totally made that shit up in the book – so no recipe. (In case you didn’t know, novel writers are just people who lie for a living.).
Anyway, let’s get started.
For the choux dough you’ll need:
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup milk
4 Tbsp butter
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup flour
2 eggs
You can also make this with just water instead of water and milk and you can add a little sugar if you want a sweeter pastry.
Combine the water, milk, butter and salt in a saucepan and heat until it reaches a full boil. Dump the flour in all at once and stir vigorously until the dough pulls away from the sides of the pan. Don’t worry about recognizing when this happens. It is very obvious. Keep cooking for about another minute so any excess liquid can evaporate.
Move the pan off the heat and let it cool for five minutes. Then stir in the eggs, one at a time. You want to beat the mixture hard by hand or on the lowest speed on the blender. Make sure the first egg is completely incorporated before adding the second. Then keep beating until you have a glossy, smooth dough.
Now you can make your pastries immediately, or you can cover and refrigerate for up to four hours. Because I am constantly trying to multi-task (usually to disastrous effect), you can guess what I did.
When you get ready to cook the pastry, heat the oven to 400 degrees.
Form the dough directly on an ungreased baking sheet. If you like, you can use a pastry bag and pipe these out. But for cream puffs, I just use a spoon. This recipe makes about 16 cream puffs (well, I suppose you can make them any size you want, but I made 16). Once you glob the dough onto the cookie sheet, you can sort of tidy it up with your fingers. Make sure to moisten you fingers with a little water so they won’t stick, then just pat-pat-pat into shape.
Now, the baking is two steps. Cook at 400 for about 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350 and cook about another 20 minutes. You might want to keep an eye on them. I got distracted (multitasking) and got this batch slightly over browned.
When they are nice and golden, turn the oven off. Turn all the pastries over and poke a little hole in the bottom. Then let them sit in the oven (off) for about 10 more minutes to dry out. After that, stick them on a rack to cool completely.
So that’s the pastry – and this is a basic pâte à choux that you can use to make éclairs, cream puffs, or even stuff with something savory. (Don’t add sugar for anything savory).
For the filling:
1 ½ cups heavy cream
Sugar to taste
Whip.
Easy, huh?
I’ll give you a little tip – stick your mixing bowl and beaters in the fridge before you do this to help your cream stay cold and whip easier. Also, if you have any whipped cream left over, scoop it into a sieve and set it over a bowl in the fridge to keep it from getting nasty and runny. I’m not sure where I picked up that trick, but it works a charm.
Cut the tops off the pastries and fill with the cream.
Now – how am I going to make these blood lime and cardamom flavored, like Grace’s? Well, I am going to cheat so Bones and I can have some plain ones, too. I made a simple glaze. Also, I used key lime (sorry, my local grocery didn’t have blood limes, so you don’t get any either).
Glaze:
Powdered sugar
Key lime juice
(cardamom)
Mix to taste.
Alright, aside from over-browning the pastries, this was my second kerfufle experimenting with this on the fly. The cardamom is likely to turn your glaze a slightly unattractive grayish color. I think if I did this again, I would just put the cardamom in the whipped cream. Anyway, mix your glaze up more or less to taste and drizzle it over the cream puff. Zest a little lime peel over the top and sprinkle with powdered sugar.
Voila! Grace’s cream puffs. (Or a Mom’s kitchen version of them, anyway).
March 16, 2015
Book Spotlight: Alpha’s Truth by Rebecca Royce
Send to KindleI’m thrilled to feature this new release by my friend Rebecca Royce today! Alpha’s Truth is the second book in the Fallen Alpha’s series. I loved the first one, but I have to tell you, the teaser for Alpha’s Truth at the end of Alpha’s Strength really spoke to me. This book on my e-reader now, and I think I’m going to like it even better than the first. No matter what else happens, Rebecca always manages to surprise me with her plots. Digging in….!
Alpha’s TruthMontana Alpha Beaux Nelson believes in living his life the way werewolves were meant to—as naturally and free as possible. He honors the moon with every hunt and breath in his body. When he discovers his true mate is the healer of another pack, he’s determined nothing will come between them—not even her kidnapping. Pursuing her across the continent, Beaux will take any risk to claim the woman meant for him…but surviving her rejection is another matter.
Lake Fennell has never thrived as a healer should, her gift acts out, she changes others without their permission and has failed to save those precious to her. When she discovers Beaux may very well be her true mate, she flees rather than face the possibility. In her haste, she falls into the arms of the True Believers. Months of torture later, she can barely believe it when she wakes to find herself with the one man she shouldn’t want and can never have. In order to save them both, she must leave her true mate, knowing she might not leave his heart in tact. But if she doesn’t do what she was born to do everything will be lost…including the world she’s fought the hardest for.
Excerpt
The moon shone over the land, illuminating the night-drenched terrain before him as though it were daylight instead of minutes past midnight. Beaux Nelson padded forward on four feet, his nose lifted to sample the winter air. In his wolf form, he tasted all the flavors on the breeze. The snow on the ground possessed a gentle sweetness, winter’s kiss not yet disrupted by the pollution of humans. Undoubtedly, they would soon spoil the purity of the season’s white blanket.
He scented the pine trees, the fir, and the spruce, all tangled together on the wind. Their unique aromas tickled his nose. Nearby, bats flew, whipping their wings on the wind as they left their caverns. His ears picked up the whoosh of their passage as they danced through the night.
Beaux raised his head for a moment to smile at the moon in her fullness. He would need the blessing of his creator to live through the night. More and more warmth flowed through his body the longer he stared. The moon’s blessing coursed in his veins, granting him the strength to do what needed to be done.
He would rescue his mate.
At long last, Lake would be free of her captors, and those who had harmed her would pay. Their blood would flow through the caverns before the morning came.
The irony of the True Believers bringing Lake—finally—to Montana, his home territory, hadn’t escaped him. Beaux had followed her trail everywhere—Maine, where some local lone wolves went above and beyond the call of duty when they spotted her by attempting rescue at considerable personal cost. From there, her captors fled across the country to California, where she lost her female-werewolf totem necklace. It had been found by the Napa Valley’s Alpha after an attack by the True Believers. From California, they angled south to the Gulf and the city of New Orleans, where witnesses reported a woman matching her description actually running down the street of Napoleon Avenue before being recaptured by men who got out of a black van, wielding guns. The bold daylight attack had incensed the local human authorities.
All the places they took Lake, Beaux had found them—always one step behind, one day too slow. He growled, baring his teeth at the cavern he would soon enter. If Lake’s brother had told him of her kidnapping one day earlier, everything might have happened differently.
Beaux was a tracker. It had taken him longer to hunt down his mate than it had taken him to catch any other prey. Locating Lake, rescuing her, and bringing her home was the most important challenge of his life. He. Would. Not. Fail. Again.
He cocked his head to the side, the signal to his pack it was time to move forward. He longed to howl, to announce to the moon their battle had begun. But making any noise would tell the humans inside of their arrival as well, and, since he trusted the moon already knew his plans, he saw no reason to give away the imminent battle to his enemies.
Silence remained vital until he entered the cavern. The time for howling would come later, when his mate stood at his side and his enemies lay defeated and destroyed.
He padded forward, glancing at the moon one last time. Mother and Father Moon, she and he who guide us, I ask for your blessings on our battle. I place my life and that of my pack in
your hand. It will be a glorious battle to do honor to your name and to reclaim the mate you have gifted to me.
With one last entreaty, he ran forward. His pack would be in place. Normally, on full moon nights his pack embraced the night together, running, hunting, living as the animal residing within them.
Tonight, his people had to stay human in their minds while their bodies remained fur-covered. As Alpha, it was his job to keep the pack from going fully animal. Whatever energy he sent, his followers would behave accordingly.
Beaux trusted every single one of them with him life. They had honored him when they decided to give him the gift of serving them as a leader during his time here on earth.
They were his family and had all gladly volunteered to lay down their lives for Lake, if it came to it. He would do the same for any of them if they needed.
Pack fought for each other. At least, his pack did.
He charged. Lewis and Clark Caverns State Park featured a number of ancient caverns accessible for tours for the public. The True Believers had brought his mate to one of the caves not available for regular viewing. The cavern was remote, hard to get to, and hidden away from all of the trails.
The secret nature of the place worried him. What did they want to do with her here? He didn’t smell lab equipment, which is what the other, more public places she had been held, contained. Were they planning on killing her? Leaving her to die? Why here? Why now? Why on his territory?
Answers would have to wait. He tested the air, bringing her cinnamon and vanilla essence into the forefront of his mind.
Once he caught her scent, he never lost it. For the rest of his existence, he would always be able to find her—especially in his own territory.
He doubted her captors’ motivations included drawing him out. To do so would require awareness of his existence. Lake never claimed him as her true mate. In fact, she’d drugged him to get away before they could discuss it. Anything could happen under torture. She might have told them about him. However, as a target for attack, he didn’t warrant much attention from the True Believers.
Her brother would be, in their view, a high profile kill.
Beaux growled. Maybe he should let them have Cyrus. It would be fitting payback for the way Cyrus neglected her safety.
Two men stood guard at the entrance. He could smell the rank stink of gunpowder. Their weapons had been recently fired. If Lake were hurt, he would hunt down the perpetrators’ families and eat them alive—sink his canines into their soft human flesh and tear them into unrecognizable shreds.
Maybe he’d do it anyway. Just for fun.
Where to Buy Alpha’s Truth:
Amazon | iBooks | Nook | Kobo | Google Play
Fallen Alpha Reading Order:
Alpha Rising (Fallen Alpha 0.5)
Alpha’s Strength (Fallen Alpha 1)
Alpha’s Sacrifice (Fallen Alpha 1.5)
Alpha’s Truth (Fallen Alpha 2)
About Rebecca
Make sure to visit Rebecca at any of the sites below!
RebeccaRoyce.com
Rebecca’s Blog | The Decadent Divas | Twitter | FaceBook | Pinterest | Amazon
March 12, 2015
Foodie Friday #Fail
Send to KindleIn celebration of A Taste of You releasing this week, I was going to make cream puffs, or maybe pasta, or maybe (but probably not) braised lamb. Anyway, I was going to make something from the book and share it with you. Instead, I was massively sick for release week. This really spoiled my fun at hitting a couple of Amazon’s best-seller lists. (Although I wasn’t too sick to stop refreshing the book page every 5 seconds to gloat, woozily, over the numbers).
The point is, I was the kind of sick that precluded cooking, if by cooking you mean more than warming up soup and then wondering if I could keep it down.
So, I promise I will make it up to you soon with some cream puffs, or maybe pasta. You can keep dreaming about that lamb.
Instead, I’m going to invite you over to my Pinterest Boards where some other people have already done all the work for me.
Many of the inspirations for A Taste of You are on this board:
Follow Irene’s board A Taste of You on Pinterest.
And there is a lot more food on my Food Porn board.
And, because I’m feeling a little guilty, here is an exclusive excerpt from A Taste of You. Enjoy!
The fourth course was seared duck breast made, unsurprisingly, with the heritage breed Garrett had found. Garrett’s commentary, detailed before, became a full-out sales pitch. Had Carlo ever heard of an Indian Runner? Much leaner meat than usual for duck. Garrett thought it tasted closer to wild duck than any domestic duck he had ever found before. And the farm? Beautiful. Terroir was so important, didn’t Carlo think? The same breed from somewhere else would be completely different. As soon as he had tasted this one, he knew he had to have it for Ransom.
Garrett continued on about diets, breeding, exercise, the soil conditions of the ground the birds were hopping around on, and more facts about ducks than Carlo knew existed while he cooked and plated.
Carlo let him ramble, happy to see him so excited about something even if it was a duck, but the soil thing finally prodded his manager brain awake. There had never been duck on the menu before.
“Garrett?”
“Yes, Carlo?” Garrett had started to plate and sounded distracted.
“What’s wrong with the duck?”
Garrett turned guileless blue eyes toward him. “What do you mean? I just told you, the duck is brilliant.”
“How much does it cost?”
“Hardly anything compared to most of our fish. Anyway, it’s not like we can’t afford it.”
Garrett came around the island and set the plate in front of Carlo. Garrett had never cooked anything in his life that could be described as “rustic,” but the dish on the counter came closer than anything else Carlo had ever seen him produce.
A lone piece of duck breast, whole young carrots with tops attached, jus.
The meat might actually require two bites to eat.
Carlo circled a finger in the direction of the plate. “What’s this?”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t know, where are the five pomegranate pearls, three bean sprouts, and one tiny fennel seed in the corner? You didn’t make duck foam or something?”
“You always tell me it’s too much.”
“You always tell me you’re the chef and know best. Tell me again where this duck came from.” But he bet he knew. Family farm. All the talk about terroir. Had there been kids on the farm? Was the family struggling? Garrett would see only that he could help. Carlo would be the one with the supply issues down the road.
“I do know best.” Garrett pulled a chair up, turning it sideways so he faced Carlo.
The position also put him right in Carlo’s space. Warm vanilla overlaid the aroma of savory duck, shifting Carlo’s attention to Garrett and his blood flow away from the manager brain and slightly farther south.
“Close your eyes.”
Now that was unusual. Mr. Eats-With-Eyes-First wanted him to eat something without marveling at its beauty?
“Why?”
Garrett hesitated. “This is something special. I want you to focus on the taste.”
Garrett’s knee brushed Carlo’s thigh as he moved closer and picked up a fork. “Close your eyes, Carlo.”
As soon as Carlo did, vanilla and sugar surrounded him, seeped under his skin like a drug, made his limbs heavy and his heart pound. The only sensations left in the darkness were the scent of Garrett, the touch of Garrett’s knee, and the blood pounding into his own groin.
Garrett’s thumb brushed Carlo’s lower lip. Carlo held back a moan as his lips parted. Garrett’s touch on his lips. Then warmer flesh on his tongue. Succulent jus. Spices. Holy fuck the duck was good.
And not the flesh he wanted.
He chewed. Swallowed. Eyes closed because it was too delicious. Because he was afraid to open them and find Garrett focused only on the food.
“Nice,” he managed.
“I thought of you when I made it.”
Garrett’s breath whispered against his lips, the words barely audible. His mouth closed over Carlo’s lower lip, teeth scraping slightly as he sucked, then a slight nip just before his tongue slid into Carlo’s mouth. Garrett. Warm and moist and delicious. So much better than the duck. Garrett’s hands were in Carlo’s hair, Garrett’s tongue in Carlo’s mouth, and Carlo couldn’t hold back the moan any longer.
Learn More About A Taste of You
Hell’s Kitchen has nothing on the flames Giancarlo and Garrett ignite at Restaurant Ransom…
Blurb | Read a Chapter | What People are Saying
March 9, 2015
A Taste of You: Release Week Appearances
Send to KindleIt’s release week for A Taste of You – pre-order now and it will be on your e-reader when you wake up tomorrow!
Here’s a taste!
“You want dinner? There’s plenty.” Carlo put a slab of prosciutto on the counter and began shaving off slivers of meat.
Garrett watched Carlo’s big hands expertly gliding the knife through the cured meat. Carlo mostly stayed out of the kitchen at Ransom. Garrett sometimes forgot that his partner was the product of four generations of Rotolo restaurateurs and an accomplished cook in his own right.
The aroma of cured ham filled the air, rich and sweet, exactly the way the meat would taste.
His imagination automatically took him further, looking for flavor combinations, but all he could think about was the way Carlo’s fingers would taste after touching the meat. He imagined drawing them into his mouth slowly, sucking the sweetness off warm flesh.
Here is where I’ll be this week:
I decided against a huge blog tour, but I am popping in a few places around the web.
Deadline Dishes with Heather Thurmeier
03/09/2015
My (well, Gourmet’s) super-easy, make-in-under-30-minutes tuna & linguine recipe.
Release Day Chat with the Fated Desires Book Club
03/10/2015 7pm-8pm
We’ll talk about A Taste of You, men, cats, food, and whatever else you want. There will most likely be giveaways!
This is a book club exclusive event – just join here!
Interview and Excerpt at Coffee and Porn In the Morning
03/10
We talk writing, food, and travel. I try and weasel out of answering some things.
Author Interview by Molly Lolly
03/10/205
Molly asks me about my writing process. I pretend I have one.
Comfort Food
03/11/2015
Character panic! My hero might not be lovable!?! I should probably keep that to myself – instead I blog about it at Because Two Men are Better than One
I’ll also be updating review excerpts and links here as they come in, if you want to see what others think of Carlo and Garrett.
Learn More About A Taste of You
Hell’s Kitchen has nothing on the flames Giancarlo and Garrett ignite at Restaurant Ransom…
Blurb | Read a Chapter | What People are Saying
