Lisa Chalmers's Blog, page 2
October 20, 2017
Holly Bargo on the #Ghost #Bookhugs exchange
Russian Pride by Holly Bargo #BookHugs #hot #mafia #romance
The fourth and final book in the Russian Love series. Discounted e-book launch price of $0.99 good thru October 15, 2017.
Tag – The marriage alliance between the Russians and Italians embroils both organizations in a deadly war with the Chinese Triad. Can love grow in such circumstances?
Book Description
A victim of domestic violence, Inessa recuperates in the home of mafia captain Giovanni Maglione. Her parents, Bratva chief Maksim Andrupov and his wife Olivia, learn that Inessa’s recently deceased husband double-crossed the Chinese Triad and they’re coming after her for reparation. Thinking to save their daughter, Maksim and Olivia convince Giovanni to marry Inessa, who doesn’t particularly want to marry again and yet finds herself agreeing to the scheme.
The ruse fails and the Chinese pursue their target with bloodthirsty determination. Giovanni draws upon the resources of his own colleagues and rival mobs to engage with the Triad, avoid prison, and save his family, which now includes Inessa. The most dangerous man in Cleveland displays a surprisingly tender and gentle aspect of his character as he engages in terrible violence to protect what’s his… and Inessa is most definitely his.
Buy Link
Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0756ZR13R)
Excerpt
“You won’t send us away?”
“I want you where I can protect you.”
When do you expect this to come to a head?”
“Days.” His arms tightened around her and he inhaled the sweet, warm scent of white tea and ginger and woman. If only she were willing.
“How can I help, Giovanni?”
He rubbed his cheek against her hair. It felt like coarse silk against his skin, some of the fiery strands catching on the stubble already shadowing his cheeks. He pressed another kiss to her head and settled a hand over the flare of her hip. She felt warm and soft in his lap and smelled like a woman should. He ran his other hand down her neck and arm, then back up again. Tangling his fingers in her hair, he tilted her head back and lowered his lips to hers. She sighed into his mouth as his lips pressed lightly to hers, a touch of unbearable tenderness.
Inessa didn’t know where the tears came from. Or why, really.
Giovanni tasted warm salt and pulled away. He wiped away a tear with his thumb and apologized, “I am sorry, Inessa. I am a beast to you.”
She shook her head and raised her hand, resting it against his cheek. “No,” she protested, “you are good to me, so good.”
His blood surged. His thumb stroked her cheek again. Lowering his mouth to hers, he brushed his lips over hers and nibbled the corner of her mouth. Her back arched beneath his hand, pushing her soft breasts against his chest. Her hands traveled behind his neck, fingers brushing against the short hair at the nape.
“If we don’t stop, Inessa, I won’t be able to,” he warned her, lips brushing against hers as he spoke.
She pressed her body closer against his and replied, “I like the way you touch me. So gentle. Sweet.”
A shudder rippled through Giovanni, straining his control. He did not want to be gentle and sweet. He wanted to slam into her body and pound his frustrations into oblivion as she screamed his name. His hands tightened on her, then released her as he drew back.
Inessa blinked in surprise, noting the pulse throbbing at the base of his jaw.
“I cannot be gentle. Not now,” he rasped, his voice thick and guttural.
“I—I—”
He pressed an index finger over her lips to quiet her. “Do not offer what you do not truly want,” he said. “And I know you want—and need—gentle and sweet. Perhaps some other time when you do not show fear when I walk into the room.”
About the Author
Holly Bargo is the author’s pseudonym and really did exist as a temperamental appaloosa mare fondly remembered for watching over toddler children and grinding a brand new pager into dust. Holly lives on a hobby farm in southwest Ohio with her husband, a clowder of cats, an elderly llama, and an even more ancient horse that looks and acts half her age. Until recently, Holly and her husband’s two children also lived with them, but kids grow up and leave home.
Holly has published 17 fiction books since 2014—many of them steamy romances—and works full-time as a freelance ghostwriter and editor. All her books can be found on Amazon.com.
October 18, 2017
Daryl Devore on the #Ghost #Bookhugs Exchange
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Between Despair and Ecstasy by Daryl Devoré #BookHugs #hot #romance
The finale of Erika and Darien’s epic rollercoaster romance.
Cover
Tag – How can Erika prove to herself and Darien that she loves and trusts him? Simple. All she has to do is jump out of a plane.
Concerned for his fiancée, Erika Bailey’s safety, rock star Darien Scott races to Bangkok to protect her, only to discover his brother is missing. Fearing the worse, he contacts his nemesis, Gan, and makes a repulsive deal that will free his brother and protect Erika’s club, The Pink Flamingo. Or so he thought. When a python and Gan are involved, things go sour, and Darien sinks into a deep depression.
Erika is disheartened by the betrayal of her parents. Her father’s destruction of her club, and the humiliation of her mother’s drunken behavior have her feeling down, but those are the least of her worries. She has a wedding to plan, but won’t. Having been betrayed too often, she’s scared to trust Darien.
How can Erika prove to herself and Darien that she loves and trusts him? Simple. All she has to do is jump out of a plane.
At – eXtasybooks
Excerpt –
Sweat streamed off Darien’s brow. Some dripped into his eyes. It stung. His heart throbbed against his ribs. Fire inched down his throat. Every muscle in his body ached. His head pounded from the pandemonium. The explosions. The screams. The pain threatening to split his skull. Dropping his head back, he closed his eyes. His chest heaved as he gulped air. He needed a moment. Get some strength back.
The screams grew louder.
Damn.
He inhaled and released a long breath.
They wanted him. He had to continue. To perform. Like a trained monkey. Do people even do that anymore? Train monkeys? He peeled his eyes open. The glare of the overhead lights blazed down at him. He lifted his head. The screams grew louder.
“Oh. So, you want more?”
But what if I don’t have any more? What if I just can’t continue? Twelve weeks. Four shows a week. I’m beat.
The roar from eighty thousand Parisians was tumultuous. Fans yelled at the top of their lungs. They pounded their feet on the floor, raising their hands in the air, clapping. Glow sticks, cell phones, and lighters swayed like flowers in a breeze.
He grinned. Eighty thousand Parisians and one fiancée. He glanced to his left. Seated on the top stage step was Erika. She’d arrived just minutes before the show started. Just enough time for a passionate, but quick, hello kiss. He needed more. He needed her, and he knew it. She smiled at him. He loved that smile. He could stare at it all day. The way her soft lips curved up. A hint of sassiness in her expression.
Just finish the show. Grab Erika and run. Dodge the fans. Just get out of here.
He looked out over the crowd. “But what if I’m too tired to continue?”
“No,” the crowd wailed.
He grinned. “Well, maybe I could go on if you told me you loved me.”
The cacophony of sounds was deafening. “Je t’aime. Love you.”
He lifted his hands. “Do you love me?”
“Oui. Yes.”
He ripped his black t-shirt over his head and threw it into the fans. “Do. You. Love. Me?” He yelled out as he glanced at Erika.
She jumped up and down, screaming with the crowd.
“I can’t hear you.”
The building shook with the fans’ frenzy.
“Five. Six. Five. Six. Seven. Eight.”
Fireworks exploded. Lasers shot around the stadium. Cass, the drummer, crashed the symbols as Darien spun, posed then inhaled a deep breath and opened his mouth to sing.
About the Author
Daryl Devoré lives in an old farmhouse in Ontario, Canada, with her husband, a black cat named Licorice and some house ghosts. Daryl loves to take long walks up her quiet country road or snowshoe across the back acres, and in the summer, kayak along the St. Lawrence River. She’s touched a moon rock, a mammoth and a meteorite. She’s been deep in the ocean in a submarine, flown high over Niagara Falls in a helicopter and used the ladies room in a royal palace. Life’s an adventure and Daryl’s having fun living it.
Where to find Daryl Devoré
An Inspirational Thought
Friendships are important. How do they start? CS Lewis knows
Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: “What! You too? I thought that no one but myself…”
October 16, 2017
Kathleen Rowland on the #Ghost #Bookhugs Exchange
Ghost #BookHugs #Tirgearrpublishing #RomanticSuspense Unholy Alliance and message about friendship @RowlandKathleen
Kathleen believes a friend is kind to another’s dreams. Everyone struggles, and a friend who tries to understand is priceless. When things go well, a friend shares the joy.
Blurb, Unholy Alliance:
The worst happened. Her cousin is still missing. Just released from jail for a murder she didn’t commit, thanks to attorney, Grady Fletcher. Tori has no clues. No destination. Just fear for the cousin she believes is held captive by an Irish mob boss, Seamus McGinn.
What if Tori were to park a food truck in the seedy waterfront neighborhood where the mob operates and hunt for this sadistic killer? Grady must protect the strong woman he’s come to adore. With emotions on a knife edge, Tori runs on instinct, on the desperation of affection between cousins. With adrenaline pumping, this is it. Tori identifies an island hideout, but Grady warns her to anticipate who her cousin is now.
Excerpt for Unholy Alliance– takes place when her attorney, Grady, visits Tori’s food truck, Deep Fried to Taste, for the first time.
She’d walked out of the Gladstone Prison a decade before she’d walked in. After ten years she was free. Free because of Grady. The effects of imprisonment scarred her but also strengthened her resolve. Her heart swelled with gratitude for freedom.
She had a home in her food truck and proved in one day she could make money. She had friends who worked within two blocks of the lot. Her former cellmate embalmed at a funeral home. Down the street, Grady appealed cases of the wrongly accused, and his detective, Maeve, not only found evidence to support his efforts, but she also wanted to know if her cousin was living in terror or dead and at peace. Earlier from her office desk Maeve texted her the link for MissingWomen25to30.com. Friends Amy and Finn were a phone call away. Her parents disappeared on the day of her conviction and bought a house in Carlow, Ireland. She trusted they longed for her as she did them. She mourned the loss of her brother but worried nonstop over Vivienne.
A gaping hole in her heart ached to find her. When she did, she’d take a full breath. Her search began where it left off. Seamus McGinn, the thug who’d framed her.
What did Viv look like now? Was she using the new last name, Valentine? Fairy tale beautiful with waves of blonde hair and a rosebud mouth, her flair for adventure sometimes led to trouble with wild boys.
Grady double-arm waved at her. It was as if he were a two-dimensional character in a dream. Handsome. As upstanding as any man could be. Her legs gave way. The figure in the distance did that, and she grabbed the counter. Dizzy and short of breath, she chastised herself for holding on to the romantic notions she fantasized about a hundred times a day. She stuck her head out the window. “I’m coming out.”
Grady met her on the stairs and offered a hand. The closer he got, the harder it was to concentrate on stepping down. His killer smile showed off two sexy dimples when he said, “It’s noon.”
“Good noon to you.” She gulped. Readying herself for conversation, she took his hand, rose on her toes, and sniffed. “Hmmm, what is that? Shaving lotion? Man perfume?”
He chuckled, and a weird electric awareness went off in her chest. In slow motion, it cracked open slowly, sent out sparkly runners to forgotten girl parts, and pulsed there.
She pulled her shoulders back and lifted her chin. Their gazes locked. Her hair loosened from her bandana. “Drat, I’m a chef. Hair is supposed to stay put.” She took it off, placed the center of the bandana on the nape of her neck and tied a knot on the top of her head.
He reached to help tuck the ends under. “You’re so darn cute.”
“Oooo, that scent. Are you going to tell me what it is?”
“Eau des Baux Eau.” The warm, deep sound of his voice sent more sensations of want right through her. Behind him, the sun stretched a bit higher and seemed to shine just on him. “You like it?”
“I sure do. Vanilla. You smell like a cookie.” Her heart thudded harder than it should.
“Do you like cookies?” He bent his head for a kiss.
She kissed Mr. Good Noon with the wavy reddish-brown hair and body made to lose sleep over. Her breath hitched, and she took a step back from heartbreak. No reason to set sights on a man way out of her league. The glow dimmed, and the warmth backed off. “Care to look at my menu?” She stepped closer to the blackboard.
“Now you’re speaking my language. I’m starving.” He raised his eyebrows and the corners of his mouth lifted. “Pimento cheeseburger corn dog.”
“That’s my great food mash-up.”
“I can see why. It blends two favorites, the cheeseburger, and the corn dog.”
All purchase links are below:
http://www.tirgearrpublishing.com/authors/Rowland_Kathleen/unholy-alliance.htm
Meet the author, Kathleen Rowland, and her dark and dangerous world of romantic suspense.
Award-winning author Kathleen Rowland is devoted to giving her readers fast-paced, high-stakes suspense with a sizzling love story sure to melt their hearts. Writing a romantic suspense series for Tirgearr Publishing, Deadly Alliance is followed by Unholy Alliance. Bittersweet Alliance in the works. Keep an icy drink handy while reading these sizzling romantic thrillers.
Kathleen used to write computer programs but now writes novels. She grew up in Iowa where she caught lightning bugs, ran barefoot, and raced her sailboat on Lake Okoboji. Now she wears flip-flops and sails with her husband, Gerry, on Newport Harbor but wishes there were lightning bugs in California.
Kathleen exists happily with her witty CPA husband, Gerry, in their 70’s poolside retreat in Southern California where she adores time spent with visiting grandchildren, dogs, one bunny, and noisy neighbors. While proud of their five children who’ve flown the coop, she appreciates the luxury of time to write. If you’d enjoy secrets behind books, signup for Kathleen’s newsletter on her website:
http://www.kathleenrowland.com/
https://twitter.com/rowlandkathleen
https://kathleenrowland.wordpress.com/
http://www.kathleenrowland.blogspot.com
https://www.facebook.com/romanticsusp...
October 13, 2017
Sharon Buchbinder on the #Ghost #Bookhugs Exchange
Ghost #BookHugs from Romance Authors: Legacy of Evil: The Hotel LaBelle Series, Book 2
by Sharon Buchbinder
Release date: October 13, 2017
Keywords: Paranormal, Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Fantasy, Psychics, Undercover Agents, Small Town, Native American Heroine, Biker Hero
Blurb: When a wild mustang is shot in Montana, renowned horse whisperer and telepath, Emma Horserider, is called in to calm the herd and find out what happened. Once on scene she is almost killed by a bullet-spewing drone, and calls her black ops brother for back-up.
Emma’s help roars into her life covered in tattoos and riding a Harley. Remote viewer Bronco Winchester takes the assignment because he is ordered to, but he wonders what type of assistance, his boss’s sister needs. That is until he sees Emma, a valiant Warrior Woman proud of her Crow heritage.
Posing as a married couple, Emma and Bronco go undercover to infiltrate and stop a hate group. Both are anxious enough without the now growing attachment they feel for one another. When the lives of many are on the line, they are not sure if they will live or die—let alone have a chance at love. One battle, one outcome. Who will win? Good or evil?
Excerpt:
Bronco now stood squinting in the late afternoon sun, knocking at a door with no bell, and waiting for a response. Dogs barked and a window curtain twitched. Good. Someone was home. He adjusted his pack, leaned his head back, closed his eyes, and said, “Any time now.” As the words slid out of his mouth, he heard the unmistakable sound of a shotgun being pumped.
Uh. Oh.
He raised his hands. “Don’t shoot. I’m unarmed.”
Turning slowly to face his fate, his jaw fell open, and his heart rate kicked up a notch from being on thewrong end of a shotgun or from the weapon holder’s looks, he wasn’t sure. A raven haired Amazon in a tank top, jeans, and metal tipped cowboy boots held the Mossberg 500 in a perfect military stance. Long strands of hair blew across her face in the hot breeze. A large purple bruise bloomed on her left cheek. She squinted her dark brown eyes and gave him a laser-beam once over from his dusty black boots to his sweat soaked do-rag.
“Who are you, and what do you want?”
If he hadn’t been so intent on not getting killed, he would have spent more time staring at those full, luscious, kissable lips and thinking about how she would taste. As it was, he guessed he had less than a minute to respond before getting blasted into the next county.
Book Trailer: https://youtu.be/qBbgsW_GiMI
BUYLINKS:
The Wild Rose Press https://catalog.thewildrosepress.com/all-titles/5290-legacy-of-evil.html
Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0755RFJFG
Sharon Buchbinder has been writing fiction since middle school and has the rejection slips to prove it. An RN, she provided health care delivery, became a researcher, association executive, and obtained a PhD in Public Health. When not teaching or writing, she can be found fishing, walking her dogs, or breaking bread and laughing with family and friends in Baltimore, MD and Punta Gorda, FL.
Author Links
Facebook: Sharon Buchbinder Romance Author https://www.facebook.com/sharon.buchbinder.romanceauthor
Twitter ID @sbuchbinder https://twitter.com/sbuchbinder
Instagram: https://instagram.com/sharon_buchbinder/
Blog http://sharonbuchbinder.blogspot.com/
Website http://www.sharonbuchbinder.com/index.html
A Message from the Author
One of the things I have learned in my life as an author, professor, wife, sister, mother, aunt, grandmother, great-aunt, and pet lover is that we are more alike than not. For me, romance is not only about the story of people falling in love, but also about connecting with readers and their lives. We are living in challenging times and at times those challenges can feel overwhelming. I call on each of us to take a moment to reach out and connect with other people. Let someone know they matter. It only takes a few words of kindness to lift someone up. You may be the one person who helps someone get through a rough patch.
Hugs,
Sharon
October 12, 2017
Lyndi Lamont on the #Ghost #Bookhugs exchange
New: Tova’s Dragon Ghost #Bookhugs by @LyndiLamont
Lyndi Lamont’s inspirational message: I believe love is a powerful force in this world. It brings lovers together, creates families and lives on after death in the hearts of those left behind. It may not make the world go ’round, but love makes the world a better place.
Tova’s Dragon
Steamy Paranormal Romance
By Lyndi Lamont
Blurb:
Seek help of the Lord of Drakkenberg. Only he can aid you. You must fly with the dragon.
Tova Svensdottir, an earth mage, is on a mission to save her homeland, the Kingdom of Velosia from the evil wizard Bruno of Grimmdorn. Her grandmother tells her to seek help of the Lord of Drakkenberg, but the old lord is dead. In his castle, high on a mountaintop, she instead encounters his son, the Outlaw Kane.
Kane fled Velosia after a futile attempt to rescue his father and his mate from Bruno’s cruel prison, killing the head guard in the process. Now that Bruno has been banished, Kane has returned to clear his name, but his purpose changes when he meets Tova. Tova’s warmth stirs his passions and her courage touches his heart, but he dreads telling her of his true nature, certain she will recoil. But Tova is made of sterner stuff.
Together, Kane and Tova have the power to save Velosia. If they survive the coming battle. But can an earth mage find happiness with a dragonshifter?
Excerpt 1
CHAPTER 1
Seek help of the Lord of Drakkenberg. Only he can aid you. You must fly with the dragon.
Her grandmother’s words rang in Tova’s head as she climbed the path into the mountains. Why had Mutti Zee sent her out of her way on a fool’s errand? Everyone knew the dragonfolk had fled Velosia years ago, driven away by Bruno of Grimmdorn’s crusade against them. Until he’d been driven from power. Now Bruno had returned at the head of a mercenary army, if Mutti Zee’s vision could be believed. And Tova had no doubts. She’d felt the vibrations in the earth.
And somehow she was supposed to save the kingdom?
She raised her gaze to the sky and asked, “Why me? I’m no hero.” The heavens gave no answer, though she saw clouds form to her left. She shook her head. Now she was talking to herself, like mad Magnus, the village idiot.
She stopped to catch her breath and rest her tired legs in a level area. The path ahead grew steeper and narrower the higher it wound into the mountains. She groaned. After walking all day, her legs ached. She was glad she’d worn men’s breeches and a tunic with her sturdy boots. A gown and petticoats would be but a hindrance.
After a deep breath, she started to climb again. Dusk came early in autumn, and she needed to find shelter before dark. Castle Drakkenberg, abandoned and forlorn, perched high above on a cliff, its turrets silhouetted against the leaden sky. Almost as if mocking her with its remoteness. Too much was at stake and her chances of reaching the capital in time to warn the king were slim at best. Even without this detour, she estimated the journey to Castle Novita would take three days or more.
For centuries, the dragon lords had resided in the castle, ruling the isolated mountain communities. People in this area were known as dragonfolk, though Tova knew not why. A great puzzle, but one she had no time to ponder. With luck, she had but to find the dragonlord, and he would take charge of the quest.
A shadow blocked the sun, and she looked up at an enormous bird silhouetted against the sky. Goddess, she’d never seen such a large raptor. It turned and the sun’s rays glinted on its shiny red-gold wings and barbed tail. She stopped and stared after it, shaken to the core of her being.
No, impossible . Dragons didn’t exist. They couldn’t.
Available at Amazon for pre-order:
US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07635W1SR
AU: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07635W1SR/
CA: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B07635W1SR/
UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07635W1SR/
About the Author:
Lyndi Lamont is the racy alter ego of romance author Linda McLaughlin. Writing sexy stories gives her a license to be naughty, at least between the pages of her books! She has written several full-length novels plus numerous short stories and novellas, ranging from historical to futuristic. She believes that love is unending and universal, and enjoys transporting her readers into a different world where her characters learn that, in the journey of life, love is the sweetest reward.
Connect online:
Website: https://lindalyndi.com
Reading Room blog: http://lindalyndi.com/reading-room-blog/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LyndiLamont
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/LyndiLamont
Twitter: @LyndiLamont
October 11, 2017
Marlow Kelly on the #Ghost #Bookhugs Exchange
Sun Storm (The Gathering Storm Book 1) Marlow Kelly #BookHugs #RomanticSuspense
Can a cynical soldier and a naive scientist learn about love and trust in order to survive?
Available on Amazon
Blurb
Dr. Marie Wilson is a scientist on the verge of a breakthrough. She has come to Montana on the eve of a blizzard to prove her small, portable solar panel can generate electricity even in the harshest environment. But when four men invade her remote cabin with plans to kill her, she knows she’s in trouble.
Ex-Special Forces soldier, David Quinn, has had enough of danger and death. All he wants is to be left alone on his Montana acreage to pursue his dream of being a beekeeper. But when his old mentor convinces him to help retrieve a stolen solar panel, he thinks it will be a simple job. But the moment he sets eyes on Marie, he knows their assignment is all kinds of wrong.
Together, they escape. Chased by a businessman with unlimited resources, a gunman and a corrupt police force, they are thrust into the frozen Montana landscape. Can a cynical soldier and a naive scientist learn about love and trust in order to survive?
Excerpt:
A crack of splintering wood and the door crashed open. Marie jumped to her feet, her heart pounding. A scream lodged in her throat as four men burst in, filling the tiny space. She raced to the fireplace and grabbed the poker.
A handsome blond-haired man led the way. He was so good looking he could be an actor. He had a square jaw and wore a well-tailored leather jacket. Even his fair hair was perfectly trimmed. Two burly men followed, both with dark, short-cropped hair. They could be twins. Their thick bodies and the way they swung their arms reminded her of a pair of gorillas. They also had the same flattened nose and malicious, small, dark eyes. They moved to the back of the room near the sink. The last man had unkempt, long, sandy-colored hair. He wore a crumpled, hooded camouflage jacket and baggy gray pants. A long scar ran across one side of his face, starting at his ear and running through his beard, parting it with a jagged white line. He didn’t say a word. He simply nodded at the poker in her hand and shook his head, silently telling her to drop her weapon.
Sensing that any attempt to fight him would be futile, she let it fall to the ground. “You can take the money. I don’t have—”
“Shut up,” the handsome blond barked. A vein on his forehead bulged as he scowled.
Her heart hammered against her ribs. She prayed they would take what they wanted and leave.
Handsome stepped in front of her and placed the barrel of his handgun between her eyes. “Tell us where it is.”
“What are you doing?” The man with the scar strolled over and stood next to her. In her peripheral vision, she could make out his intense, pale, lifeless eyes.
He leaned close to her face so his warm breath touched her cheek. “This is all wrong.”
A small squeal emanated from her throat. He was too close. Too scary. Killer. The word rang through her mind. The scar, those dead eyes, and his demeanor gave the impression of a lethal, terrifying man.
“What do you mean? Our intel is good.” The vein on Handsome’s forehead throbbed to life.
With one finger, Killer nudged the pistol away from her head. “First, how can she tell us where it is when she’s too frightened to talk?”
Handsome shrugged, revealing a smile with perfect white teeth.
Marie released a huge breath. She needed to do something, but couldn’t focus, couldn’t form a coherent thought.
“Second,” Killer continued, “what do we really know about this situation?”
Handsome sneered. “You were in the army. You know how it is. We don’t make the decisions. We follow orders.”
“And what exactly are our orders?” Killer asked, his voice low and calm.
“We’re to retrieve what was stolen and eliminate the girl.”
There had to be a misunderstanding. She was a scientist, not someone who needed to be eliminated.
About Marlow
After being thrown out of England for refusing to drink tea, Marlow Kelly made her way to Canada where she found love, a home and a pug named Max. She also discovered her love of storytelling. Encouraged by her husband, children and let’s not forget Max, she started putting her ideas to paper. Her need to write about strong women in crisis drives her stories.
Marlow is an award-winning author, and a member of the Romance Writers of America.
Social Media Links
Website: http://www.marlowkelly.com
Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/Marlow-Kelly/e/B00MZE72CS
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marlowkelly?ref=hl
Twitter: https://twitter.com/want2write
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/Marlowkelly14/
#BookHugs Author Exchange
Hugs are powerful. Receiving a hug can give you the strength to continue, but giving one will make you happy.
Here is the full buy link in case the hyperlink doesn’t work.
Amazon Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07466K711
October 10, 2017
Melanie Robertson King on the #Ghost #Bookhugs Exchange
Will a reckless moment from her past come back to haunt her?
Devastated by the death of her husband, Colin, in the London bombings on July 7, 2005, Katherine Murphy-Whithorn builds a wall around her heart determined to never let anyone in again. Settling in to a comfortable routine, her life becomes mundane, until five years later when someone from her rebellious past returns to the city and begins stalking her.
As the curtain falls on 2010 her first love, Jared Martin, walks back into Katherine´s life. Despite him being her first love, he must tear down the barrier she´s created to protect herself. Finally seeing a second chance of a life with him, Katherine couldn´t be happier until another cruel twist of fate strikes. The helicopter returning from the Alpha Ecosse platform, on which Jared is a passenger, ditches in the North Sea. Can he survive the ordeal? Will they get their chance for happiness? Or is fate still not done its dirty deeds? Katherine’s stalker may have his own agenda.
Prologue
1st December 2010
The ScotRail service to Aberdeen pulled away from the platform at Stonehaven. The next stop would be his destination. As the train accelerated, the carriage swayed from side to side. The action reminded him of his mum rocking him after a bad dream. He drifted into a light slumber. When the compartment he was in crossed through a switch, it lurched waking him.
Less than thirty minutes to go. He settled back but was too excited to relax. When the Girdle Ness Lighthouse came into view, he knew he was almost back to the place he was born.
New, to him, construction dotted the landscape. Fresh graffiti adorned the stone parapets of the bridge over the River Dee. The Mitchell Tower at Marischal College, the clock tower of the Aberdeen Town House and the Salvation Army Citadel, vied for attention over the tops of the cluster of newer buildings.
He fooled the medical staff at the secure forensic unit in the south of England. After feigning rehabilitation, they released him into the community but he didn’t stay there long. He did a runner. He had unfinished business in the north east of Scotland.
Adrenalin coursed through him. Giddy with excitement, it was hard for him to remain calm. He shook his hands to try to stem some of the fidgetiness. Now, he was back in Aberdeen where it all began. How much of the city would he recognize? What changed since his departure?
Were the authorities looking for him yet? He would have to act normal so as not to attract attention. Stepping off, he adjusted his Fedora and strode across the concourse to the exit. Diesel fumes hung in the air and caught in the back of his throat. He coughed.
With the exception of the Union Square shopping complex adjacent to the railway station, Guild Street stayed more or less unchanged. Some of the storefronts in the granite buildings transformed, but overall, not a huge difference since he left.
The pavement ended at Market Street forcing him to cross over the road. He continued eastward. The location he sought should be nearby. He stopped for a breather – pressed his back against the building. The ships that supplied and supported the offshore oil industry occupied the available berths on this side of the harbour. Through a gap, the ferry to Lerwick and the terminal were visible on the far side.
The familiar Maritime Museum dominated the head of Shore Brae. Beyond that, the artery curved and became Shiprow. The cobbled road surface and pavement were difficult to traverse. Even the larger stones nearer the buildings were uneven. When he rounded the corner at Provost Ross’s House, another well-known building peeked out. He had come so far now, he couldn’t go back. He strode with purpose up the hill.
The Aberdeen Town House clock tower stretched above the roofline but that was the place he sought. Nestled between Henry’s Bar and the pedestrianized portion of Shiprow stood the As the Pages Turn bookshop.
When a customer exited holding a carrier bag emblazoned with the same signage as over the door, his heart skipped a beat. He hoped the establishment’s ownership hadn’t changed. That would defeat the purpose of his returning to Aberdeen.
The voices in his head only told him to come back. He had unfinished business with the woman with ginger hair – the one with no soul – who ran the retail outlet in front of him.
Now, to find a suitable place to wait and watch and bide his time until the moment was right.
YESTERDAY TODAY ALWAYS is available at amazon for pre-order for the kindle at myBook.to/yesterday-today-always
“Don’t let the fear of success hold you back…”
MELANIE ROBERTSON-KING
Melanie Robertson-King has always been a fan of the written word. Growing up as an only child, her face was almost always buried in a book from the time she could read. Her father was one of the thousands of Home Children sent to Canada through the auspices of The Orphan Homes of Scotland, and she has been fortunate to be able to visit her father’s homeland many times and even met the Princess Royal (Princess Anne) at the orphanage where he was raised.
October 4, 2017
Becky Flade on the Ghost #BookHugs Exchange
#BookHugs #ALoveRestrained
Philadelphia police officer Kylee Parker is dedicated to protecting and serving. She sees the work in absolutes: right and wrong, black and white, good guys and bad guys. That is, until she chases a drug dealer into a dead-end alley and finds the bad boy she had a painful crush on throughout her teen years has turned into a more dangerous and more attractive man.
Jayson Donovan knows he doesn’t deserve someone as good as Kylee Parker. As the right hand man to a local drug-pushing mobster, he’s solidly on the wrong side of Kylee’s moral compass. But he can’t help reaching for her time and again when he knows he shouldn’t.
Even when his secrets threaten them both.
Where to purchase A Love Restrained
Amazon US | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords | iBooks | Kobo
Enjoy the following excerpt from A Love Restrained:
Spring in the city brought people out of winter hibernation like a siren song, but as the temperature rose, so in turn, did the crime rate. Cops had to be sharp as they walked the streets of Philadelphia. In her ten years on the force, on these streets, she’d seen a lot of crazy and often stupid criminals do a lot of crazy and often stupid things. But to be so brazen, or so plain dumb, as to do a hand-to-hand drug buy right in front of two uniformed officers rode high on her list of top ten.
“Tell me you saw that?”
“Saw what?” Hunks of half chewed soft pretzel fell from Sherman’s mouth.
Pete Sherman’s not a bad cop, just not an observant one whose paunch portrayed his love of all things fried and his reupholstered recliner. He hadn’t seen a thing in the last six months. But he took direction well, despite the fact he had seniority.
“There, across the street.” She pointed. “The junkie walking east just scored off the guy in the leather bomber heading west. I swear the dealer looked right at us before the exchange. Call it in, Pete, and grab the junkie. I’m going after the dealer.”
Sherman didn’t argue. She took off into a quick lope, kept her footsteps light so as to not alert the man she pursued. The spring day had drawn people out and the complaints of the pedestrians she weaved through grew loud. The guy glanced over his shoulder, and the edge of his mouth tipped into a grin before he sprinted around the corner.
“Cocky jerk.” She turned the corner, and shouted, “Stop! Police.”
She ran clean and fast, closing the distance between them with little effort. The dealer ducked into an alley she knew to be a dead end. She slowed and put one hand on the butt of her service pistol as she approached. He had his back to her, his hands on his hips as he stared at the brick wall in front of him.
“Philly PD, you’re under arrest. Slowly put your hands above your head and against the wall to your left.” She closed the few feet between them, using her free hand to release the handcuffs from her belt, the other remaining on her weapon. She cuffed him, with practiced efficiency, and then read him his rights before leading him out of the alley, preferring to do the pat down with her partner present.
“Kylee Parker, I’ll admit I daydreamed a time or two about you cuffing me, but it was never in this context.”
For more information, including cover art, trailer and buy links, see:
http://www.tirgearrpublishing.com/authors/Flade_Becky/a-love-restrained.htm
About the Author:
Home is where the heart is and Becky makes hers with her very own knight in slightly tarnished armor, their three daughters, son-in-law, two grandsons, and their psychotic cat Jaxon. When she’s not busy living her own happily ever after, she’s writing about someone else’s.
Contact Details:
http://www.beckyfladeauthor.com/
https://www.facebook.com/BeckyFlade
https://twitter.com/beckyflade
http://www.amazon.com/Becky-Flade/
http://www.goodreads.com/Becky_Flade
#BookHugs
Jim Henson once said, “My hope is to leave the world a bit better than when I got here.” I live my life by that same ideal; it’s posted in my office, on my media stand in fact, so that I never forget to be kind, thoughtful and considerate in every interaction. May your every dream be a reality and every day a poem.
October 2, 2017
Kris Bock on the #Romance #Ghost #BookHugs Exchange
Please welcome guest author Kris Bock!
People have mixed feelings about autumn – that “back to school” anxiety can last well into adulthood – but it’s my favorite time of year in New Mexico. The temperatures are finally dropping, and the smell of roasting green chile fills the air. (Stop by my blog for information on the New Mexico chile and some Southwestern recipes.) It’s the perfect time to curl up with a good book. Of course, ANY time is the right time for a good book! I hope you’re staying safe, warm, and dry, with plenty of good books to read. ~ Kris
Counterfeits
Jenny returns to her grandparents’ art camp in a remote New Mexico town after her grandmother’s sudden death. That night she wakes to the noise of intruders. What do the strangers want? As more bizarre events unfold, Jenny realizes the people she thought she knew are not what they seem – least of all Rob, an old friend whose past may be coming back to haunt them all.
Counterfeits is romantic suspense in the Southwest that will interest fans of Mary Stewart, Lillian Stewart Carl, and Barbara Michaels.
“Counterfeits is the kind of romantic suspense novel I have enjoyed since I first read Mary Stewart’s Moonspinners…. 5 Stars” – Roberta at Sensuous Reviews blog
Chapter 1
Jenny’s rolling suitcase bumped up the porch steps. Once, twice, three times, like a knock that would never be answered. Tears stung her eyes in the cold night air. How many times had she rushed to this door with a sense of coming home? Growing up, she had spent every summer at her grandparents’ art camp. She hadn’t been back as often in the last ten years, but it still felt more like home than any place else in the world.
She took a shuddering breath and turned away to gaze up at the dark sky. Stars splashed across the moonless night, so many stars she could hardly pick out the constellations. The band of the Milky Way sparkled like a streak of glitter paint on velvet paper. She had gazed up at that sky a million times, and yet it filled her with awe. After a decade living among the lights of New York City, it was easy to forget that nature had her own Great White Way.
She shivered. During her summers in the northwestern New Mexico mountains, nights had typically been mild, even at over 6000 feet elevation. Now the temperature had to be dropping toward freezing. Maybe that was why the vast, chilled sky seemed so distant and lonely.
Jenny leaned back against the door and closed her eyes. She was so tired. Maybe she’d take a few extra days and rest. But she couldn’t bring herself to enter her grandparents’ house and go to bed, knowing she’d be alone. When her grandfather had died two years before, her heart had broken. Now her grandmother was gone as well.
Jenny tried not to imagine her grandmother’s last moments, when the car she was driving had skidded off the twisty mountain road two days before. She tried to blank out all thoughts, all grief. She took a ragged breath, the frigid air searing her lungs, and released it slowly, hoping to empty her mind as well.
Her thoughts refused to quiet, while her heart ached with emptiness, a dark hole as vast and cold as the night sky.
***
Jenny rose from sleep slowly, her body resisting. She could see nothing in the pitch black. Where was she? She blinked, trying to make sure her eyes were really open.
Memories broke through the fog. The phone call, the rush across country, the late arrival. Crawling into bed in her grandparents’ upstairs guest room. She groaned and pulled up the blanket. Morning must be hours away, given the darkness.
The old house creaked, but no sounds drifted in from outside. Maybe that’s what woke her; she was used to the murmur of city sounds all night long. Who’d have thought that would become normal?
Her head pounded. Probably dehydration from the high elevation and dry air. She should get up, drink a glass of water, take a couple of aspirin. Her head would thank her in the morning. If only she could make herself move.
The house creaked again, followed by a rhythmic sound – like footsteps. Jenny jerked upright, her ears straining. Had she heard a voice?
She shook her head. She must still be half asleep, dreaming. Imagining her grandparents were still here. Wishful thinking.
Downstairs, a door closed. Jenny clutched the blanket. Imagination be damned. She was not alone.
Kris Bock writes novels of suspense and romance with outdoor adventures and Southwestern landscapes. The Mad Monk’s Treasure follows the hunt for a long-lost treasure in the New Mexico desert. In The Dead Man’s Treasure, estranged relatives compete to reach a buried treasure by following a series of complex clues. In The Skeleton Canyon Treasure, sparks fly when reader favorites Camie and Tiger help a mysterious man track down his missing uncle. Whispers in the Dark features archaeology and intrigue among ancient Southwest ruins. What We Found is a mystery with strong romantic elements about a young woman who finds a murder victim in the woods.
Read excerpts at www.krisbock.com or visit her Amazon page. Sign up for the Kris Bock newsletter for announcements of new books, sales, and more.
The Mad Monk’s Treasure, “Smart romance with an ‘Indiana Jones’ feel,” is currently free at all e-book retailers.
