N.J. Walters's Blog, page 227

The voices in my head...

Welcome to friday! Edits for Damek's Redemption are done and sent back to my editor. I added quite a bit of new material to the book. Now I wait and see if she likes it.

The voices of the characters in my latest WIP have been silenced by edits for two different books over the past ten days. Time to reread what I've already written so I can get their story back into my head.

The book I'm currently writing is for Ellora's Cave. My upcoming EC release is Touch of Topaz, which is due out on June 20th. I can't wait! My latest work is about the remaining Jewel sister--Sapphire--and her former bodyguard, Jake Knight. All is not smooth on the path to love, but I'm having a heck of a lot of fun getting them there.

Hope you all have a fabulous Friday!

Touch of Topaz Coming June 20th!

Just found out that my next Ellora's Cave book--Touch of Topaz--will be released on June 20th!

BLURB:

Last summer, security expert and ex-Army Ranger John Knight broke the cardinal rule of being a bodyguard—don’t get involved with the client. One torrid afternoon of hot sex with Topaz Jewel was all they had together before his job was done, and she’s been avoiding him ever since. He’s been hired to protect her once again, and this time when the job is over, he’s not going to let her slip away.

Topaz Jewel is an independent businesswoman who has no time in her life for a permanent relationship, especially not one with a man like John—used to adrenaline rushes and danger. There is no denying the sexual attraction between them, but she’s determined to play things smart.

John doesn’t take her home when his job is finished, but to an isolated cabin. He wants time to prove they’re meant to be together, and Topaz is unable to resist the passion that sizzles between them. After all, it isn’t every day that a bodyguard kidnaps his client.

READ AN EXCERPT

Will Summer Ever Come?

I've mentioned it's been cold her the past week. It's dipped to below freezing with the windchill. Working on edits this morning, I was forced to break out the fingerless gloves to help keep my hands warm. Yes, you heard me right--fingerless gloves. Silly me, I had them put away for the summer, but winter seems to have swung back around.

Hopefully, I'll be able to put them away again soon. Hope it's a lot warmer wherever you are. :)

In the Edits Cave

Good morning and welcome to Monday! I'm in the edits cave today and probably for the next few days working on the first round of edits for Damek's Redemption. I'll be making the changes my editor wants and generally making the book better. See you when I'm done. :)

Have an excellent Monday!

Weekend at the Movies

Friday afternoon was the perfect time for hubby and I to take in a movie. And this week's choice was obvious--Snow White and the Huntsman. Now I've heard a lot of reviewers say that this is not the normal fairytale. I want to know what fairytales they've been reading. Haven't they heard of the Brothers Grimm? Fairytales were originally very dark and very scary and this one lives up to the hype.

Charlize Theron is nothing short of brilliant as the evil queen, commanding the screen when she is on it. Chris Hemsworth gives a very realistic and believable performance as the huntman. He's certainly not the stereotypical hero and, because of that, I liked him more. Kristen Stewart put in a solid performance as SnowWhite. This is no a damsel in distress willing to wait around while someone else takes care of the evil queen. She wants to do it herself.

Visually this movie is stunning! There are so many scenes that stayed with me. The acting is first-rate and the ending leaves open the possibility of another movie. All in all, in my humble opinion, well worth the price of admission. This is a movie that satisfies.

June Newsletter Now Available!

The June 2012 issue of Awakening Desires—the Newsletter of Romance Author N.J. Walters—is now available.

Be sure to check out all the latest news, contests, my husband’s popular column—Confessions of a Romance Author’s Husband—an excerpt, and this month’s interview with the amazing Cerise DeLand!

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As always, some lucky newsletter subscriber wins a prize. All you have to do to be eligible to win is go to Awakening Desires Newsletter and join. While you’re there, you can check out back issues of the newsletter.

Tuesday Teaser on Thursday--Heat Wave

Missed the teaser on Tuesday, so we'll call todays' teaser a Thursday Teaser. It's from my contemporary/erotic romance Heat Wave.

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Thursday Teaser:


The lights flickered once, and then she was jolted as the elevator jerked to a sudden stop. Only Tucker’s quick reflexes kept her from ending up in an undignified heap on the floor. One of his thick forearms was banded around her waist, keeping her upright.
The elevator went pitch black and her fingers dug into his arm.
“Everything is okay, his deep voice steadied her. “I’ve got you.”
Striving for some control, she released her death grip on his arm and forced herself to take a step away. She thought she heard him sigh, but couldn’t be sure. “I wonder what happened?” Even though she knew it was useless, she stabbed at the buttons on the control panel.
“Rolling blackouts. The entire city has been having them all day.” The tiny security light finally flicked to life.
“Great,” she muttered. That’s all she needed to cap off what had been a long, hot, frustrating day.
 “Could be worse.” Tucker’s calm voice irritated her further.
 “How?” she snapped back.
 “The longest one today was only about a half hour. It shouldn’t take them too long to get the power back on. We’ll be fine.”
Great, she’d practically snapped the man’s head off and he was doing his best to reassure her. Taking a deep breath, she let it out slowly, before turning to face him. “Once again, I owe you an apology.” Taking a step towards him, she held out her hand to try and find the wall.
 Her hand was caught in his solid grasp as he drew her steadily towards him. “Apology accepted.” Slowly, he raised her hand to his lips and kissed each knuckle slowly, one at a time, until he’d done the honors to all five of her fingers.
 The tingles started in her fingers, ran up her arm, and eventually encompassed her entire body. His tongue licked the slight indents between her fingers, and she sucked in her breath as he slowly took one of her fingers into his mouth.[image error]

5 Blue Ribbons for Finding Chrissten

  Romance Junkies has given Finding Chrissten a 5 Blue Ribbon Review!

Here's a snippet of what the reviewer has to say:

"Ms. Walter’s excels herself with this novel. She created the perfect romantic hero, strong yet sensitive, willing to do anything to protect and cherish his mate.

I am not ashamed to confess that I have been devouring N.J. Walters' Legacy series with great relish. Ms. Walters has served up the perfect platter for romance lovers; gripping action packed plots, featuring beautifully emotive romances, fascinating subplots, taut tension, chilling realistic villains and characters I love to revisit. Did I forget to mention the scorching hot sex?"

~Claudette, Romance Junkies

Read Entire Review

Only a few days left in Brenda Novak's Annual Auction

I'm thrilled to be part of this year's Brenda Novak's Annual Auction for the Cure of Diabetes. I've got two print books up for auction--A Touch of Magick and By the Book. Be sure to check out all the great books and other things up for auction. It's a great cause.

Weekend at the Movies

Hubby and I have taken in four of the summer blockbuster movies so far, and while some have been better than others, I've found something to enjoy in all of them.

The best, without doubt, is The Avengers! This is movie  making at its best. And I saw the 2D version, not the 3D or IMAX. I find the latter two give me a headache and I really don't miss anything in the regular movie version.

Tom Hiddleston is brilliant as the villainous Loki. He is diabolical, yet charming, and even as you despise what he is doing you find yourself liking him from time to time. And of course Thor, Ironman, Captain America and all the rest of the superheroes are wonderful. They all get their chance to shine.


Next up is Dark Shadows starring Johnny Depp. Now this movie is not for everyone. You have to enjoy the campy and absurd if you're going to have a good time at this one. Personally, I thought it was a decent popcorn movie for cheap Tuesday. As always, Johnny Depp is brilliant!


Battleship is the next movie we saw. I have to admit that I had zero expectations for this movie. I might have loved the game as a kid, but I didn't see how they could translate it into a movie. Maybe because my expectations were so low I actually thought it was okay. It has aliens, explosions, heroism, not to mention a couple of hollywood hunks and a pop star. It had a couple of good moments and lots of action. A summer afternoon popcorn movie.


Finally, today we went to MIB III. Josh Brolin is absolutely brilliant as the younger Agent K! It goes without saying that Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones were fabulous. This movie was action-packed, but it had some quiet moments too. I think it might be the best of the three. Definitely worth seeing. Once again, we saw it in 2D, not 3D, and didn't find it lacking.


What movies have you seen so far this summer?