B.L. Blair's Blog, page 47

Monday Excerpt: Notice Me (Holton Series #2)

As always, her heart stopped when she saw him. Victoria knew she had seen better looking men, had even dated better looking men, but Andrew always moved her. For a moment, she enjoyed the simple pleasure of just looking at him. His broad shoulders filled out the conservative blue suit and his powerful arms and legs made him a lean, dominant picture. His thick brown hair had fallen across his forehead, and Victoria’s hand itched to brush it back. He was talking softly to his sister explaining the papers in his hand. Victoria watched his mouth move and waited for the smile that always made her toes curl. It happened and Victoria took a deep breath. She thought she should be used to that reaction by now, but it still caught her by surprise. She quickly closed the door behind her.
Andrew looked up at the sound, and Victoria found herself looking into his piercing green eyes. They had narrowed and trained on her immediately. The intense green gaze locked her into place. She stood very still while his eyes roamed over her.
She now walked slowly across the room with his eyes following her. She watched him straighten and his back stiffen. He was uncomfortable around her, and Victoria hoped this was progress. She had waited twelve years for him to notice her as something other than a child.
"Hi, Drew. How are you?" she asked softly.
As always, he stiffened at her shortening of his name. No one called him anything except Andrew, but Victoria had decided she needed to be different. She wanted to make sure Andrew knew she was unlike anyone else.
"How many times have I told you not to call me that?" he asked impatiently, raising one eyebrow. Victoria’s heart skipped a beat. She had always found that gesture very sexy.
She smiled again. "I don’t know. How many times have you told me not to call you that?"
She laughed at the frustrated look that crossed his face. At least, he wasn’t ignoring her. She knew she could irritate him. She just hoped she could also attract him.
"Come on, Drew, lighten up." She walked over to him, placed her hand on his shoulder, and stood on her toes to kiss his cheek. He accepted the salute but did not return the gesture. Apparently nothing had changed.
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Notice-Me-Holton-Series-ebook/dp/B00BFCM5RSApple: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/notice-me-holton-series-2/id689557714?mt=11B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/notice-me-b-l-blair/1116761884?ean=2940045217057Kobo: http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/notice-me-holton-series-2Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/346414 CreateSpace: https://www.createspace.com/4210983Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=xHEiBgAAQBAJ

Sunday Quote

To celebrate Mother's Day, this month's Sunday Quotes will be about mothers. 

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Wealth & Privilege and Brains & Beauty by Jeanette Watts - Giveaway

Book One (Wealth & Privilege)
Boy meets girl, falls in love at first sight. Oops, she's already married. Bad planning. She becomes a friend and a muse, helps him find his voice. He knows that no one gets to capture their own muse, but he can dream, can't he...?
Book Two (Brains & Beauty)Girl meets boy, falls in love at first sight. Kind of unfortunate for a married woman. He becomes her best friend, the only man in her life that she can really count on. She wishes there could be more to it. There can't be, but she can dream, can't she...?
Excerpt from Wealth & PrivilegeThe troops had achieved their objective. The tracks at the crossing were clear. They stood in formation, at attention, their arms at their sides, guarding the tracks. Their faces were impassive, and not one of them looked down.
The dead and dying lay scattered about the rail yard. There were men, women, even children lying face down in the dirt. A young man in the uniform of the 14th National Guards, one of the Pittsburgh regiments, was crawling away from the scene, his right arm and leg both covered in blood.
From his elevated viewpoint, Thomas could see movements beyond the rail yard, as people half-dragged, half-carried dead and wounded away from the crossing. He could see the shock on people’s faces – he could also feel the anger. It was a burning, deadly anger. These Philadelphians shot down protesters in cold blood. By God, this wasn’t over yet.
Thomas and Regina both sat down on the hard metal deck of the water tower. They sat in silence, too appalled by the scene below to say anything.
“They could have shot over people’s heads, and probably had the same effect without killing anybody,” Regina said eventually.
“Could be,” Thomas answered, only half paying attention. He’d seen movement on the streets below. Yes, indeed: the protesters were returning. He nudged Regina – easy to do, since she’d been leaning against him - and pointed. She looked, and a grim, glad smile reached her lips, if not her eyes.
Purchase LinksAmazon: Wealth and Privilege: https://www.createspace.com/4352661Brains and Beauty: https://www.createspace.com/5865403Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/wealth-and-privilege-jeanette-watts/1115581019?ean=9781490934518

Jeanette Watts is a dance instructor and performer of many different kinds of dance, a costumer, a former television producer, and a big softie who can't learn to say no when people need help with their festivals. It makes it really difficult for her to get time to write.
Website: www.JeanetteWatts.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/jeanette.watts.94Twitter: @JeanetteAWatts





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Sunday Quote

Checkmate by Blair Howard - Giveaway

Checkmate is the fourth standalone novel in the Harry Starke series of mysteries.
Angela Hartwell lay dead in the shallow waters beside the golf course. There was not a mark on her, yet she had been strangled. How could that be?
Once again, it’s up to Harry Starke to find out. The investigation takes him into a world he’s very familiar with, a world of affluence, privilege, and corruption.
To solve the mystery, he must deal with three murders, a beautiful used car dealer, her lovely twin sisters, and a crooked banker.  Not to mention Burke and Hare, two crazy repo men who will stop at nothing to protect their employer’s interests. There's also the matter of an ingenious, sadistic killer. But nothing is ever quite what it seems....
Harry Starke is a hard-boiled private detective, an ex-cop, a tough guy from the right side of the tracks with finely tuned senses, good instincts, and friends in high places. He’s single, successful, well educated, and yes, he will hurt you if he needs to.
Excerpt:Judge Strange was teeing his ball when we heard a shout.
“Hey Harry! Over here!” It was Greg Holloway. He was standing by his cart on the right side of the seventh green, in the rough close to the river’s edge, waving both arms over his head. I figured he must have put his ball in the water. I waved back, then turned to watch the judge make his shot.
“Harry! Harry Starke!”
What the hell? I turned again. He was still waving his arms.
“C’mere, Harry. Now. We’ve got a body in the water!”
I turned to the others. “Did he say ‘body?’”
“I think he did, “August said. “Better go take a look.”
We ran to the carts, threw our clubs into the bags, and raced off down the fairway toward the still-waving Greg Holloway.
“Over there.” He pointed as he ran toward the water’s edge.
“Hey. Whoa,” I yelled. “Don’t go down there, Greg. Stay away. Don’t disturb anything.”
The woman was just a few feet from the riverbank, lying on her back in six inches of water. She looked peaceful, but there was no doubt about it: she was dead.
At first glance she appeared to be in her mid-twenties. She was wearing dark blue shorts and a white, long-sleeve shirt over a black bra, and a wrist watch—no shoes. From where I was standing, there didn’t look to be a mark on her. No cuts or bruises. Her skin, a dirty gray color, told a story all its own. Oh hell, what a way to go…. Hang on. I think I know her.
Available on Amazon: http://amzn.to/1SQhf4q
About the Author:Blair Howard is from a small town in England, near Stratford-upon-Avon, on the edge of the English Cotswolds. He is Kentucky Colonel, an honor bestowed upon him in 2008 by the then Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, Steven L. Beshear. Until 2015, he wrote sweeping historical epics, and is the author of five historical novels. In July of 2015 he decided to try his hand at writing mystery novels, thus we have Harry Starke. The first in the series, Harry Starke, was released in mid-September 2015. The second novel, Two for the Money, was released October 19 the same year, Hill House, in mid-December 2015, and Checkmate in February 2016, and there are more to come.
Blair is the author of more than 40 books and more than 4,500 magazine, newspaper, and web articles. His work has appeared in many national and international publications, including Delta's Sky Magazine, PHOTOgraphic magazine, The Mail on Sunday, The Walking Magazine, Petersen's Hunting Magazine, The Boston Herald, The Detroit Free-Press, The Anchorage Times and many more.
Website: http://www.blairhoward.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/blair.howard.77Twitter: @bcwhowardBlog: www.blairhoward.com/blogAmazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B001KHQS30

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Sunday Quote

April Giveaway

The giveaway for April is a $10 Barnes and Noble Gift Card. You may enter each day, but please note that entering the giveaway will also register you to receive my quarterly newsletter. You may unsubscribe at any time. Good Luck! 
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Yours Truly, 2095 by Brian Paone - $20 Amazon/B&N Gift Card Giveaway

Jeff Blue - the victim of a time-travel conspiracy - wakes up trapped in the year 2095. The only familiar face is J0, a robotic copy of the wife he left behind in 1981. But can she be trusted? J0 could be the only key to unlock Jeff's journey home, but it will require her to do something against her programming, something human.
During Jeff's perilous journey through the future, he will have to discover the truth about J0's origins, and solve the mystery behind how he wound up in 2095, in order to uncover the reality of his own destiny.
Armed with a one-way ticket to the moon, Jeff must race against the clock to seize what might be his last chance to return home to his time. A time without hover cars, Justice Computers, or TeleSkins - a time over 100 years ago.

EXCERPT:“Is there any way we can go back to the house on West Winter Street?” I asked. “Maybe it’ll help spark some more memories.”
      “Sure, sure,” she said. Her voice was back to its normal tone.
      “Really? What was the address again?”
      “Nine-twenty-nine,” she answered. “Hey … are you okay?”
      I felt all the blood rush from my head and collect itself in my stomach. I had to sit down. I wish I had thought to swing by 929 West Winter Street when I had the chance. It would have been interesting to see what that house had looked like too.
“I just needed a moment to sit down.”
“We could go there tomorrow after breakfast.”
“I was thinking more along the lines of this afternoon. That way we would be home in time for dinner and I could help you cook.”
J0’s face lit up. I could see that the suggestion brought her a lot of warmth. Plus it was probably my last opportunity to see the house.
“That works too, I suppose,” she said. “Would you like to drive the Higgs?”
“The hover car?” I repeated and laughed out loud. “I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”
“Why not?” J0 asked and grabbed her purse off the end table.
It was different from back at the Avalon Hotel, when flying seemed to be the only form of escape from her. This time, there was no sense of danger or urgency. The thought of driving and flying actually scared me.
“I just think it would be much safer if you drove.”
“Nonsense! It’s like riding a bike. You never really forget once you’ve learned.”
How could I tell her that the problem was I had never learned?
“Fine, fine. You’re off the hook this time, Mr. Blue,” she said and pointed a finger at me playfully.
“Thanks.”
We got into the Higgs Boson, and the engine roared to life as soon as J0 swiped her driver’s license. She put it in Reverse to back out of the driveway, and we floated to cruising altitude.
We drove out onto—or rather, above—Greenwood Avenue to visit my old house that was never really mine in the first place.

Available on website, Amazon, and Audible.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:Brian Paone was born and raised in the Salem, Massachusetts area. An award winning author, his love of writing began through the medium of short stories at the young age of twelve. After almost 20 years of consistently writing short stories for only his friends and family to read, Brian's first full-length novel was published in 2007, and he has published two more since then. Brian is married to an Officer in the US Navy, and they have 3 children. Brian is a Police Officer for the St. Mary's GA Police Department and has been working in Law Enforcement since 2002. He is also a self-proclaimed roller coaster junkie, and his favorite color is burnt-orange.
www.BrianPaone.comwww.facebook.com/BrianPaonesNovels@PaoneBrian
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Killer Pursuit byJeff Gunhus - $10 Amazon or B/N Gift Card Giveaway

BLURB:After a high-society call girl is brutally murdered in her Georgetown home, investigators find two cameras hidden in the walls of her bedroom. One has its memory erased, presumably by the murderer. The second is a webcam with an encrypted connection...and no-one knows who's on the other end. Whoever has the recordings has embarrassing leverage against some of the most powerful men in DC, not to mention a video of the murder showing the identity of the killer.
FBI Special Agent Allison McNeil is asked by beleaguered FBI Director Clarence Mason to run an off-the-record investigation of the murder because of the murder's similarity to a case she worked a year earlier. Allison knows the most direct path to apprehending the killer is to find the videos, but rumors that the victim's client list may include some of Washington's most powerful men makes her doubt the director's motives. As she starts her investigation, she quickly discovers that she's not the only one pursuing the recording...but that the most aggressive person racing against her might be the murderer himself.
Excerpt:“Alpha team in position,” said a voice through the small speaker in her ear. She noticed Garret put a finger to the side of his head and nod. He looked over at her.
“You better be right about this,” he whispered.
Allison shook her head. For all his brilliance—and, regardless of how she felt personally about him, she recognized that he was brilliant—Garret’s transparency could border on the inane. What he was really saying was that if the lunatic Allison’s research had tracked to this location wasn’t holed up in this backwoods cabin, if the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team had been activated and deployed for no reason, then the blame would drop on her like a bag of bricks. If Sam Kraw was in there, Allison knew it would be Garret standing in front of the cameras taking credit for the HRT mission and the capture of America’s most wanted fugitive.
She pushed the thought away. As long as they caught the bastard and ended his multi-year killing spree in the Southeast, she didn’t give a damn who got the credit.
Allison moved her binoculars. The tactical team was in place around the cabin, peering through scopes with infrared capabilities. If there was someone hiding in the shadows of a window or doorway, they wouldn’t be hiding for long.
On some signal unseen by Allison, the men began a steady, crouched advance to the building. She realized she was holding her breath so she blew out her air slowly between pinched lips.
“Relax, McNeil,” Garret muttered. “You’re making me nervous.”
The book is on sale for $0.99!Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Killer-Pursuit-Allison-McNeil-Thriller-ebook/dp/B017AC8KSYApple: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1099616597Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/killer-pursuitB&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/killer-pursuit-jeff-gunhus/1123259509?ean=2940153187501
AUTHOR Information:Jeff Gunhus is the author thriller and horror novels for adults and the middle grade/YA series, The Templar Chronicles. The first book, Jack Templar Monster Hunter, was written in an effort to get his reluctant reader eleven-year old son excited about reading. It worked and a new series was born. His books for adults have reached the Top 100 on Amazon and have been Foreword Reviews Book of the Year Finalists.
After his experience with his son, he is passionate about helping parents reach young reluctant readers and is active in child literacy issues. As a father of five, he leads an active lifestyle in Maryland with his wife Nicole by trying to constantly keep up with their kids. In rare moments of quiet, he can be found in the back of the City Dock Cafe in Annapolis working on his next novel.
Website: http://www.jeffgunhus.com/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jeffgunhusauthorTwitter: https://twitter.com/jeffgunhusGoodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/963702.Jeff_Gunhus
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