Amber Belldene's Blog, page 3
March 15, 2016
Not A Mistake: Release Day & Excerpt
Due to some unforeseen circumstances, I’m up in the wilds of Northern California on my release day–not exactly the place I’d imagined experiencing Not A Mistake‘s entry into the world. In fact, my non-writing life conspired to make the week leading up to release day pretty rocky, and that left me busier than usual, and undeniably stressed out. So much so that I took heart in what a fellow clergy woman told me over email: A lot of crap had been coming her way at church, so she told herself that if Jordan (the book’s heroine) could handle it, so could she.
So I decided I too would cope with things the way Jordan did in the book. After all, I CREATED her and dreamed up her fabulous catch 
phrase, “Love them like hell”–surely I could live up to her brave, compassionate example! When I said as much online, my awesome writer pal Ruby Lang made me this little gem: WWJoD?
I’m not saying Jordan’s perfect. Who would want to read a book about a woman like that? But I put all my ideals into her, and so it was cool that when life was making me feel less than ideal, I found I could cling to her example. It got me through, and every challenge I faced worked out with much help from several of my amazing colleagues.
I sent out so may ARCs for this book, and it’s been thrilling to know it’s in readers’ hands!
Here’s a quote from one of my favorite early reviews:
“In her humorous, sexy, and above all compassionate story, Belldene combines romance and religion with a respect for the passion that lies at the heart of both. And with a respect for a woman’s agency and power that is all too rare in Inspirational Romance.” — Jackie Horne, Romance Novels for Feminists
The passion at the heart of both?–Yeah, baby! That’s why I write romance novels. Reading this review was one of those angels singing moments for me as an author 
Here’s a short excerpt from Not A Mistake:
Be warned, it might tempt you into eating a doughnut. Hopefully it might also tempt you into buying the book. We’re in Dominic’s point of 
view here, and he’s just about to give a presentation about his research into clergy sexual misconduct for a group of priests.
“I take it you’re feeling better?”
“Uh huh,” she mumbled, pointing at her full mouth and chewing, her eyes showing the tension of what might be a grimace, had her mouth been free to make the expression.
On second look, she was still a little green around the edges. He couldn’t imagine two donuts was the recommended breakfast to recover from the stomach bug.
“Should you be eating that?”
She wiped a pink sprinkle from her mouth with the back of her hand. “Doctor’s orders. Don’t get hungry. Keep something in my stomach.”
Interesting advice. But what did he know? He hadn’t had a stomach bug since he was in diapers.
“What are you doing here?” Her whisper was strained, as tense as her eyes had been.
Right. This wasn’t any easier for her. What did she feel? Shame, guilt, plain old now-that-we’ve-had-sex-everything-is-different awkwardness?
He raised his arm and pointed his laptop’s remote at the screen. The cover of Sins of the Fathers appeared.
“You’re presenting? I thought Dan—”
“He has the same stomach bug as you, apparently. Why you aren’t in bed—?”
“I’m not your student anymore. Stop bossing me around.” She set down her plate to cross her arms.
God. Why on earth was that so cute? And he’d never once bossed her around, simply advised her academically. Which had been a true pleasure—she’d been sharp and dedicated.
“I wouldn’t dream of it. I’m simply concerned for your health.”
“Oh, is that what you’re feeling?” She glanced back to the screen then leaned close. “Because I would have guessed you are feeling like Swiss cheese, eaten up by guilt and regret.”
His shirt shrunk another size, right there on his body. How did she know him so well? He who made a point of being known by very few people.
She buttoned up her jacket and hoisted her purse up higher on her shoulder. “I can’t stay here and watch you talk about this book while trying not to reveal your self-loathing.”
He scanned the crowd to make sure no one was watching them, then leaned close to whisper. That delicious sandalwood scent clung to her, stirring the parts of him deeper than reason, or right and wrong. “Then accept my apology and stay.”
To his shock, tears shone in her eyes. Oh, hell. He’d made her cry.
“I can’t, really. I’m sorry for that, and for so many things. But I just can’t be sorry about what happened. I don’t want to take it back, or call it a mistake.”
Buy Not a Mistake at these online retailers:
March 9, 2016
A Christian Romance that’s not an Inspy
Yep, it’s true.
I wrote a book about priests having sex. It’s definitely not a closed-bedroom-door romance. And while I think there are some “conversions” in the story, none of them are to Christianity.
If that appeals to you—Yay!—it comes out next Tuesday
The thing is, I tagged the book as Christian, but Amazon’s category is Christian AND Inspirational. So in sales rank categories it might look to book browsers like an Inspirational (no-sex) romance (at least until they decide to read the blurb).
I’m still not sure that was the right move, but it’s one I made for a reason.
I’m a Christian, and I’m sex positive. Not just about married, procreative sex, but ALL kinds of sex that fills us with love and gives us glimmers of God’s gracious, even gratuitous love for us. I believe sex can be sacramental: a physical, tangible experience of this grace, of God’s unconditional acceptance and desire to know and be known by us. In my mind, that’s the best explanation of the awesomeness that is an orgasm. Transcendent.
That said, my sexual ethics is not lax. I believe sex should ideally be loving, mutual, life-giving, not destructive, coerced, or devoid of intimacy. I also hold compassion for the fact we sometimes mess this up in our desperation to be loved. Haven’t many of us had sex that missed the mark when it lacked these ideals? Bad–or just blech–sex can be an important part of the romance arc, just as it can be an instructive moment in our lives.
Not all Christians share my take on sexual ethics. Our religion has a history of believing sexual pleasure is sinful, or only to be experienced within very proscribed relationships. But many Christians do agree.
The Episcopal Church in which I am a priest has a wonderful history of sex-positive teachings and practices. Our marriage liturgy is deeply romantic and sensual. Our clergy have been permitted to marry since the Reformation! In the Episcopal Church of the U.S.A., women were ordained beginning in the late 1970s. Most recently, we agreed gay and lesbian people have full rights to the sacrament of marriage, just as heterosexual couples do.
That’s not to say everyone in the Episcopal Church agrees on sexual ethics—if we did, I’d hardly have fodder for a book, much less a whole series about female priests. We harbor plenty of patriarchal prudes. Within this thing called “the church” there is enormous diversity of opinion on virtually all matters of doctrine and ethics, both across history and within and between current Christian denominations. There is no single Christianity.
Religious people from all faiths wrestle with sexuality, just like most human beings. We struggle with questions of desire, appropriate boundaries, shame, and judgment. Like everyone else, centuries—no millennia—of culture shape our sense of right and wrong, what is taboo and what is tantalizing. We all struggle to live authentically while doing what we believe is moral.
I’m really not an expert on the history and various subgenres of romance. I’m just a person who wrote a book set in a world I know and adore, a world that is full of flawed, funny human beings who are full of love and often perplexed what to do about it. But I do know the book I wrote is about Christians who are motivated by their faith, that it explores Christian themes and sexual ethics, and that it most certainly does not qualify as Inspirational.
Maybe I’m asking for a whole bunch of one-star reviews from angry Inspy readers, but I just can’t bring myself to remove NOT A MISTAKE from the Christian Romance category.
NOT A MISTAKE
Hot Under Her Collar, Book #1
Sometimes a scandal isn’t a sin…
On the night she graduates from seminary, Jordan Sykes finds herself in bed with Dominic Lawrence, the ethics professor she’s crushed on for years. Two months later, she discovers she’s pregnant and is determined to hide it to protect his career. Maybe, if she loves her new church like hell, they won’t fire her for being a single mother.
Dominic knows the difference between right and wrong, and he’s filled with remorse after sleeping with his favorite student. He’s offered the job of his dreams, but he’d be a hypocrite to accept without making things right with Jordan first.
Dominic proposes marriage to save their careers, never expecting they will prove a perfect—and passionate—match. But can Jordan give her heart to a man who still believes the first night they spent together was a mistake?
You can add Not A Mistake to your TBR:
And you can preorder it here:
March 1, 2016
The Siren’s Touch is on sale!
The first book in my paranormal Siren Romance Series, The Siren’s Touch is on sale for 99 cents all month. If you haven’t read this book, now’s the time–the sequel, The Siren’s Dance releases in April!
Here are some of my favorite reviews of the book on Amazon:
I have never read anything like this before. It is so much fun, even when there is danger. –Petula Reads Romance Blog
I’m looking forward to reading more! 4 stars for a unique and entertaining romance! — Maria Rose, Straight Shooting Book Reviews
Wow. I absolutely loved the mix up of Ukrainian mobster tough guy meets otherworldly spectral beauty… and what lengths they will have to go through to get to the bottom of a murder mystery. Ms. Belldene always puts a fresh and exciting view onto the paranormal and has always kept me glued to the pages she writes….This book is at the top of my favorites list of her books. – Jillian, Read-Love-Blog
When a book revolves around revenge, it can be difficult to know how to root for your characters or if you should even cheer for them. There were certain moral questions that came to light, and I loved how Belldene handled it all, and how the ultimate plot unraveled and concluded. — Jenny, Book Sojourner Blog
I am a total lover of supernatural/paranormal reads and this one was different, and fresh. The author really took the story to places that I hadn’t thought of before. It was fast paced and intriguing. There was also some pretty laugh out loud moments. — Melissa
Blurb:
One touch can change everything…
Hitman Dmitri Lisko is determined to avenge his father. Once he takes out the man he believes is responsible for his family’s tragedies, he’s done killing for good. But a mysterious woman may tempt Dmitri to change his plan.
Sonya Truss was murdered in a Ukrainian village in 1968. Now she’s reappeared in San Francisco as a rusalka—the ghost of a wronged woman. And she’s thirsty for the blood of her killer. But she has to make things right before she’s trapped between worlds forever.
Sonya’s enigmatic siren powers stir Dmitri’s long-buried chivalry, and he finds himself compelled to help her. He also can’t resist giving her a taste of the pleasures she never experienced while she was alive. Soon they discover that touch has surprising consequences. Yet when their shared mission comes to cross-purposes,
they must choose between deadly sacrifice—or surrendering to the one act that can save them both.
You can snag a sale copy of the book at any of these retailers:
Excerpt from The Siren’s Touch
The teapot jostled like there was a frog inside.
He had to be hallucinating. Holy hell, he’d never been this hungover. Then again, he’d never been on a thirty-day bender either. Quitting cold turkey after a vodka-soaked month was bound to be rough on the system. The teapot was definitely not jittering, only his sanity. Caffeine might help.
He lifted the little round thing by the handle. A gust of steam poured out as deep-brown liquid trickled from its spout into his mug—an antique glass cup wrapped in silver filigree. In his hand, the teapot shook, jostling his arm.
Damn it. That was no hallucination.
A sudden puff of steam collided with his face. He set the teapot down and wiped his moist eyes. When he opened them again, he was certain he’d lost his mind.
Hovering over Elena’s postcard-perfect traditional Ukrainian table setting was a shimmering tea-colored woman. No, not a woman.
He reached for his weapon, knocking his chair to the floor. Scrambling across the room, he got as far as he could get from that…thing.
Back pressed to the wall, his heart drummed against his sternum. What the hell was she?
She dripped brown droplets of smoky Russian Caravan onto the table and gasped for air with her gossamer hands clasped at her neck. Her brown eyes stretched wide in her heart-shaped face.
Had he completely lost his mind? “Fuck.”
The thing yelped, flying away and leaving a sprinkling of tea droplets in her wake. As they fell to the ground, she grew whiter, becoming the soft, shiny color of a perfect pearl.
A ghost. Holy hell.
All his skin rose up in goose bumps. Could you shoot a ghost? Or a hallucination? He was damn sure going to try. He took aim.
She coughed and coughed and coughed some more, making a horrible wet retching sound. Then she darted to a spot near the window, bending her spectral shape over to hack, as if she could clear her throat. Only it didn’t seem to be working.
Without thinking, he lowered his weapon. “Breathe, girl. Be calm.”
Slowly, she straightened, and her chest rose and fell in the rhythm of breath. The sun shone through her translucent form, highlighting a smoking hot set of curves under a long, wet nightgown. Large brown nipples poked through the ghostly, damp fabric, and a dark vee between her legs drew his gaze.
Hell.
This wet dream of a sexy, drowned ghost was proof he’d jumped into the deep end.
February 24, 2016
Cover Reveal — The Siren’s Dance
Wow! My head is spinning with two releases coming in the next two months! Not A Mistake is out to reviewers and available for pre-order (here’s a sneak peek), and it’s already time to tell you about The Siren’s Dance.
I’m thrilled to show you the beautiful cover for the next book in my Siren Romance series:
I just love this cover–it totally captures Anya and Sergey, and I cannot tell you how much I adore this pair. She is sassy and talks smack, and he is everything that she needs. They have great dialogue and awesome chemistry. Sometimes people shy away from ghost story romances, because, well, NO BODY = NO SEXY TIMES. No spoilers, but I PROMISE my ghosts get to touch their guys!
Here’s the blurb:
The performance of their lives is about to begin…
Death has transformed former ballerina Anya Truss into a vila—an alluring wind nymph—but her need for revenge has kept her trapped on the riverbank where she was drowned. Now, after fifty years of waiting, she finally has a chance to break free by getting even with her cruel dance instructor, the man who betrayed her and broke her heart. But for her plan to work, she must place her trust in a handsome but unlikely ally.
Straight-laced police investigator Sergey Yuchenko has spent years searching for the father he never knew, and he finally has a solid lead. Problem is, that lead comes in the form of a ghost—a gorgeous but stubborn vila with destructive powers she can’t control. Anya’s graceful beauty awakens a desire in Sergey like he’s never felt before. But when past secrets are brought to light, the lovers will have to face an evil that could tear them apart forever.
This book contains ballet, a tour of Odessa that will leave you feeling like you’ve been there, and an adorable Good Cop who will make you swoon!
Reviewers can request an ARC on Netgalley or contact me.
Readers can add to your Goodreads TBR or Pre-Order:
amazonkindle, Apple, Google, Kobo, Nook
AND…Good news!If you’re new to this series, the first book, The Siren’s Touch will be on sale for $0.99 all of March.
If you take a peek at the reviews (I know, I know — I’m not supposed to read them, myself!), you’ll see a consistent theme: this book is unlike anything you’ve read before. Dark and yet funny (I really let my absurd side out), sexy and sweet.
This is the book landed me my wonderful agent Becca Stumpf, and I worked on it for YEARS. It’s very dear to my heart, and I love sharing it with readers!
If you’d like to get an email reminding you when this book goes on sale or new about my releases, sign up for my woefully infrequent newsletter!
And if you can’t wait, you can grab a copy now:
February 11, 2016
Valentine’s Rewind: Not A Mistake sneak peek!
I’m breaking the Valentine Rewind rules just a smidge to give you a peek into my upcoming release Not A Mistake. Ages back, I cut a short version of this Valentine’s Day flashback from my draft, so it seemed ripe for revival in this blog hop. This scene is Jordan’s rewind to an old memory of Dominic from when she was his student nursing an epic crush.
Jordan glanced around the bustling café and saw no familiar faces. Thank God. She sank deeper into the battered sofa and raised the book higher to hide her face. Surely, with this particular paperback in her hands, anyone who caught a glimpse of the flaming blush on her cheeks would know exactly why she’d turned church-door red. More slowly, she reread the mortifying passage in Professor Lawrence’s book.
To indulge in sexual fantasies about a colleague, friend, or acquaintance is undoubtably a form of sexual abuse, rendering them an object with no opportunity to consent. Whether romantic or explicit, the fantasy inevitably alters the relationship—innocence and mutuality are lost. Furthermore, as reported in the case studies cited above, nearly all illicit transgressions begin with fantasies of breeching the appropriate boundaries of the relationship. The fantasy is the first step, the story that rationalizes the unethical behavior to come.
Was he right?
She’d certainly let her mind, and the middle two fingers of her right hand, go wild imagining him without his permission. In an absurdly porn-esque scenario, she’d fantasized about him approaching her after class with a stern, “There’s something I need to speak to you about in private.” Once they were alone in his office, his gray eyes would burn with feral hunger and he would say, “I can’t resist anymore. I have to have you, just this once. Tell me you feel the same way.”
Jordan would step near his lean, powerful torso, feel the heat radiating off him, and say “You know I do,” before she kissed him.
She made sure always to wear a skirt to this particular fantasy, even though jeans were her standard seminary attire, so he could reach under it to cup her butt as he pulled her close, stroked her (by this point in the fantasy) very wet slit, then bent her over the desk and said filthy, un-professorial things in her ear while he fucked her.
Sure, maybe she’d felt a little awkward the next time she saw him, but so what? No way were those lusty daydreams the first step leading anywhere. Dominic if-your-eye-causes-you-to-lust-gouge-it-out Lawrence would never sleep with a student, and she wouldn’t want him to. His principles, if somewhat rigid, were also entirely admirable.
Someone coughed and her skin tightened. Could a throat clearing sound familiar? Because, if so, that might very well be…She lowered the book just enough to peek over the top.
Crap.
Professor Lawrence towered over her, a red demitasse in his hand, his golden eyebrows arched, his sandy hair in that perfectly sculpted swoop back from his forehead.
He took a seat on another shabby sofa across a narrow coffee table from her and rested his ankle on his opposite knee. “A little pleasure reading?”
The blush radiated from somewhere deep inside to smolder under her skin. But she tried to shake it off. Even if he’d caught her in flagrante delicto, rehashing her allegedly immoral fantasies about him, he couldn’t read her mind. In fact, that’s why his whole ethical argument was bogus. Thoughts were private and secret, and almost always harmless.
She closed the paperback, using her ballpoint pen to mark the page. For a churchy book, the cover wasn’t bad. An artsy close up of a man’s neck clothed in a clerical collar, and the title in large white block print: Sins of the Fathers. In it, he’d detailed his studies of clergy who’d abused their spiritual authority by conducting affairs with parishioners or church employees.
Her thumb rested on the L of his name. “It’s not exactly a beach read, but it’s fascinating.”
“And informative, I hope.” He brought the espresso to his lips. The mug was ridiculously small in his big hands, and yet he looked perfectly suave and sophisticated drinking from it while wearing one of his designer suits, his free arm draped over the back of the ratty, salmon-colored sofa.
She couldn’t believe this lowbrow café even stocked demitasses. Perhaps they kept only one of the fancy little cups, under a sign that read For the Sole Use of Professor Dominic Lawrence.
“Yes, very informative.” She shrugged, knowing her answer wasn’t what he’d intended in writing the book and yet also how very much he valued honesty. “I feel sorry for the victims, but honestly, I pity these priests too. Their stress, their isolation, their longing to be fully loved.”
“Of course you do.” His tight smile was either affectionate or patronizing—she was never quite sure.
“Your analysis of their motivation is…” She was no expert, but it seemed ethically flawless, only it was missing something. “It’s a little unsympathetic.”
A flash of white teeth tipped his smile in the direction of warm affection and she wanted to bask in it, to fan the flickering feeling that just maybe he found her special, interesting, pretty.
“I’d love to argue this with you,” he said. “But I have precisely two minutes to drink my espresso, and I wanted to respond to the paper proposal you emailed me.”
“Oh, okay.” Every conversation with him felt rushed, like he was always on the way somewhere, leaving her with unspoken questions and embarrassingly futile desires.
“Your outline is very solid and you’re taking an interesting direction.”
“You don’t think including the example of my brother is too personal?”
He swallowed a sip of the coffee, his Adam’s apple bobbing. Even after reading his damn book, she wanted to lick it.
“Not at all,” he said. “I think it’s very moving, and perfectly appropriate to the assignment.”
Very moving? It was always the little glimpses of his heart that made her most curious. “Thanks. I’ll go ahead with it, then.”
“I look forward to reading it.” He tipped the last of the coffee to his mouth, the red cup a match for the tie he wore—mottled with penny-sized red hearts.
Even if it was the day before Valentine’s Day, the tie was so unlike his usual power stripes or tasteful paisleys that she leaned forward and squinted to be sure she hadn’t mistaken the pattern.
He smoothed it with his fingers. “Ugly, isn’t it?”
“Not at all. It’s just not your usual style.”
He held her gaze, and his stare felt like a silent commentary on the fact she paid attention to his style, but it was probably just his typical cranked-up intensity.
“Well, I’m off.” He set the little saucer and mug down with a clatter. “I’m preaching on the Feast of St. Valentine in chapel today. Retelling the story of his martyrdom at the hands of the Romans as an antidote to all the saccharine romantic love greeting card and chocolate manufacturers want us to associate with the day.”
“Wow. Sounds festive. Sorry I have to miss it—paper to write.”
He chuckled from deep in his throat, tapped his watch, stood and walked away.
She reopened the book and underlined the passage she’d been pondering. To indulge in sexual fantasies…is undoubtably a form of sexual abuse.
She found herself doodling one of the hearts from his tie in the margin, carefully inking in the crosshatch pattern that gave it a plump, 3-D look.
Poor, hot Professor Lawrence. Maybe she should send him chocolates and a romantic greeting card with an anonymous note reminding him that God made us with bodies, and desires, and that he might feel better if he indulged his once in a while. Lord knows, they probably both needed to get laid. The difference was, if Jordan could ever dislodge the fantasies of him from her mind, she might meet a nice if less hot guy to love her, while Professor Lawrence seemed dead set on denying himself that, and any pleasure.
Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed this little preview of Jordan and Dominic’s story! The next stop on the hop is Jodie Griffin Be sure to comment on each story to be eligible for the massive giveaway at the end. Full Schedule Here.
Leave me a comment here for a chance to win a signed print copy of one of my backlist books in the Blood Vine or Siren series.
Thanks for joining us for #ValentinesRewind! ♥
Not A Mistake (Hot Under Her Collar, #1)
Sometimes a scandal isn’t a sin…
On the night she graduates from seminary, Jordan Sykes finds herself in bed with Dominic Lawrence, the ethics professor she’s crushed on for years. Two months later, she discovers she’s pregnant and is determined to hide it to protect his career. Maybe, if she loves her new church like hell, they won’t fire her for being a single mother.
Dominic knows the difference between right and wrong, and he’s filled with remorse after sleeping with his favorite student. He’s offered the job of his dreams, but he’d be a hypocrite to accept without making things right with Jordan first.
Dominic proposes marriage to save their careers, never expecting they will prove a perfect—and passionate—match. But can Jordan give her heart to a man who still believes the first night they spent together was a mistake?
Now Available for Preorder: Amazon | iBooks | Goodreads
February 8, 2016
Kicking off the Valentine’s Rewind Blog Hop
I’m thrilled to be participating in the Valentine’s Rewind Blog Hop this week. Along with posting a new, original Valentine’s scene, I’ll be doing a giveaway on my Friday post (An eARC of my upcoming release, and a signed paperback from my backlist, winner’s choice!).
But before then, you get to enjoy 20 original stories from these amazing authors!
Some authors will have their own giveaways, but we’ll also have one massive prize pack at the end of the week! One lucky winner will be the recipient of a huge gift bag, including gift cards, signed paperbacks, ebooks, and other V-day swag.
For a chance to win, all you’ve got to do is leave one little love note on each author’s post. On Valentine’s Day, we’ll pick one commenter at random to get the whole shabang. So start today and stay tuned all week for the Valentine Rewind–the links are posted below, but they won’t go live until the day they are scheduled.
Monday 2/8
Tamsen Parker
Nicole Helm
Julia Kelly
Rebekah Weatherspoon
Adriana Anders
Tuesday 2/9
Zoe York
CJ Lemire
Alexis Anne
Jennifer Blackwood
Wednesday 2/10
Rebecca Grace Allen
Emma Barry
Audra North
Kelly Maher
Jeanette Grey
Thursday 2/11
Karen Stivali
KK Hendin
Rebecca Paula
Alexandra Haughton
Kasey Lane
Friday 2/12
Amber Belldene
Jodie Griffin
Alyssa Cole
Suleikha Snyder
Teresa Noelle Roberts
January 27, 2016
Cover Reveal — Not A Mistake (Hot Under Her Collar, Book #1)
I’m so excited to reveal the cover of my upcoming release Not A Mistake (Hot Under Her Collar, Book #1).
To me, the most important thing about a cover is that it captures the feel of the book, and so I love this couple — their chemistry is a perfect match for Jordan and Dominick’s!
Here’s the blurb:
Not A Mistake
Hot Under Her Collar, Book One
Sometimes a scandal isn’t a sin…
On the night she graduates from seminary, Jordan Sykes finds herself in bed with Dominic Lawrence, the ethics professor she’s crushed on for years. Two months later, she discovers she’s pregnant and is determined to hide it to protect his career. Maybe, if she loves her new church like hell, they won’t fire her for being a single mother.
Dominic knows the difference between right and wrong, and he’s filled with remorse after sleeping with his favorite student. He’s offered the job of his dreams, but he’d be a hypocrite to accept without making things right with Jordan first.
Dominic proposes marriage to save their careers, never expecting they will prove a perfect—and passionate—match. But can Jordan give her heart to a man who still believes the first night they spent together was a mistake?
Here’s how you can be sure not to miss this book!
Request an advanced ebook copy for review.
January 21, 2016
Coming Out of My Cave in 2016
I spent most of 2015 in my writing cave, which is totally my happy place. I was working hard on several projects that I’m super excited about. Some of them are still top secret, but now that it’s a new year, some of them get to see the light!
That’s right—the books are coming! I’m planning a release schedule of 4-5 novels this year.
The first release, Not A Mistake (March 15), is my first foray into self-publishing, and it’s been really fun! It’s book one in my new contemporary series, Hot Under Her Collar, about young women clergy. Its uptight but swoony hero, of all the characters I’ve written, is the one I most wish I could magically make real. (Keep in mind, my Blood Vine series vampires actually are real, so I’m not offending them.)
You can read the blurb for Not A Mistake and add the book to your Goodreads TBR here.
Two Siren Romances are also scheduled to release with Lyrical this year as a follow up to The Siren’s Touch. Those books are ridiculously fun to write and I hope equally fun to read!
And now for a New Year’s Resolution…
Like a lot of authors, putting words on the page makes me happy. Inviting other people to read them makes me itch. Frankly, marketing is a skill set they don’t teach in seminary (which may explain the declining attendance in so many churches).
Also, I’m a raging extrovert. Surprisingly enough, trying to think through marketing plans mostly alone, with occasional panicked phone calls to my expert author friends was not the right approach for me (though my friends were always really nice about it J).
So, this year I asked for help.
I’m working with the awesome Lizzes at Liztastic Author Services to make some marketing plans, so that I feel less itchy and anxious about inviting others to read my book. It’s already working!
Now I feel like this:
Instead of like this:
You’ll probably see me around a lot more online. Liz Blue promises to be a little Dommey about prodding me not to disappear back into the writing cave. Oh, here she is now, cracking the whip! I better get back to work!
January 13, 2016
Coming Soon! — Not A Mistake
Hi friends,
I am so excited to announce the first book in what will be a big year of releases for me. Not A Mistake will release on March 15! It’s the first book in the Hot Under Her Collar series.
Yep, you guessed it! In the Hot Under Her Collar books, Sex in the City goes to Seminary! Four ordinary young women, who happen to be newly ordained ministers, will fumble through their first jobs and find love, whether they want to or not. Although the women are clergy, these books do not qualify as Inspirational Romance because they have plenty of steamy sex in them. In fact, I hope they will inspire readers with all sorts of romantic feelings, because desire is divine!
Here’s the blurb:
Not A Mistake
Hot Under Her Collar, Book One
Sometimes a scandal isn’t a sin…
On the night she graduates from seminary, Jordan Sykes finds herself in bed with Dominic Lawrence, the ethics professor she’s crushed on for years. Two months later, she discovers she’s pregnant and is determined to hide it to protect his career. Maybe, if she loves her new church like hell, they won’t fire her for being a single mother.
Dominic knows the difference between right and wrong, and he’s filled with remorse after sleeping with his favorite student. He’s offered the job of his dreams, but he’d be a hypocrite to accept without making things right with Jordan first.
Dominic proposes marriage to save their careers, never expecting they will prove a perfect—and passionate—match. But can Jordan give her heart to a man who still believes the first night they spent together was a mistake?
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July 21, 2015
The Siren’s Touch release day!
My blog is pretty much officially in hibernation mode while I write my booty off and work at mommyhood and the day job, but it’s going to peek its head out of the cave today!
The book formerly known as…
I am so excited that The Siren’s Touch releases today! It’s a book very dear to my heart and the beginning of a fun new project!
The idea was born during my research for the Blood Vine series, as I was steeped in slavic folklore. It’s a dark fairytale with a solid dose of humor, as readers who know my books will expect from me.
But there’s something about that mix of dark and playful that makes it damn hard to market a book. Once upon a time, this story was called Temptress in a Teapot, and I often still think of it that way, even though it was really too silly a title for this sexy siren story.
If you decide to read The Siren’s Touch, please consider taking a few minutes afterward to post an honest review. Whether it’s good, bad, or meh, honest reviews help authors get discovered by readers and help readers find the books they’ll love.
Buy The Siren’s Touch at these online retailers:
Blurb:
One touch can change everything…
Hitman Dmitri Lisko is determined to avenge his father. Once he takes out the man he believes is responsible for his family’s tragedies, he’s done killing for good. But a mysterious woman may tempt Dmitri to change his plan.
Sonya Truss was murdered in a Ukrainian village in 1968. Now she’s reappeared in San Francisco as a rusalka—the ghost of a wronged woman. And she’s thirsty for the blood of her killer. But she has to make things right before she’s trapped between worlds forever.
Sonya’s enigmatic siren powers stir Dmitri’s long-buried chivalry, and he finds himself compelled to help her. He also can’t resist giving her a taste of the pleasures she never experienced while she was alive. Soon they discover that touch has surprising consequences. Yet when their shared mission comes to cross-purposes, they must choose between deadly sacrifice—or surrendering to the one act that can save them both.
60,000 Words
Excerpt from The Siren’s Touch
The teapot jostled like there was a frog inside.
He had to be hallucinating. Holy hell, he’d never been this hungover. Then again, he’d never been on a thirty-day bender either. Quitting cold turkey after a vodka-soaked month was bound to be rough on the system. The teapot was definitely not jittering, only his sanity. Caffeine might help.
He lifted the little round thing by the handle. A gust of steam poured out as deep-brown liquid trickled from its spout into his mug—an antique glass cup wrapped in silver filigree. In his hand, the teapot shook, jostling his arm.
Damn it. That was no hallucination.
A sudden puff of steam collided with his face. He set the teapot down and wiped his moist eyes. When he opened them again, he was certain he’d lost his mind.
Hovering over Elena’s postcard-perfect traditional Ukrainian table setting was a shimmering tea-colored woman. No, not a woman.
He reached for his weapon, knocking his chair to the floor. Scrambling across the room, he got as far as he could get from that…thing.
Back pressed to the wall, his heart drummed against his sternum. What the hell was she?
She dripped brown droplets of smoky Russian Caravan onto the table and gasped for air with her gossamer hands clasped at her neck. Her brown eyes stretched wide in her heart-shaped face.
Had he completely lost his mind? “Fuck.”
The thing yelped, flying away and leaving a sprinkling of tea droplets in her wake. As they fell to the ground, she grew whiter, becoming the soft, shiny color of a perfect pearl.
A ghost. Holy hell.
All his skin rose up in goose bumps. Could you shoot a ghost? Or a hallucination? He was damn sure going to try. He took aim.
She coughed and coughed and coughed some more, making a horrible wet retching sound. Then she darted to a spot near the window, bending her spectral shape over to hack, as if she could clear her throat. Only it didn’t seem to be working.
Without thinking, he lowered his weapon. “Breathe, girl. Be calm.”
Slowly, she straightened, and her chest rose and fell in the rhythm of breath. The sun shone through her translucent form, highlighting a smoking hot set of curves under a long, wet nightgown. Large brown nipples poked through the ghostly, damp fabric, and a dark vee between her legs drew his gaze.
Hell.
This wet dream of a sexy, drowned ghost was proof he’d jumped into the deep end.
The Siren’s Touch on Pinterest
I find Pinterest one of the most helpful research tools when writing. I can capture the people and places that inspired me and return to the images to double check details. The bonus is a fun photo board to share with readers. Check it out to see beautiful Kiev, Ukrainian teapots, and the very handsome prize fighter Vladimir Klitschko, who inspired Dmitri.
