Margo Bond Collins's Blog, page 105
July 16, 2014
Summer Reads Giveaway Blog Hop ~ Top 5 Reasons to Take that Honeymoon Trip to the Beach (even if you’ve just been dumped)
Summer’s in full swing! Come in out of the heat and check out our favorite Summer Reads! Each blog will feature their favorites and a giveaway so visit them all! Plus there’s a Grand Prize giveaway happening too!
Check out my post below, enter to win my giveaway of a new Entangled Publishing release, then HOP to the rest of the blogs. Before you go, be sure to tell me about your favorite beach reads (it’s an entry in the Rafflecopter, so post your comment before you head over to enter the giveaway!).
Top Five Reasons to Take that Honeymoon Trip to the Beach (even if you’ve just been dumped)
Summer is by far my favorite season. I love the sun, the heat, and cooling down in the water. So I love summertime beach trips! In Taming the Country Star, my heroine, Kylie, goes on a beach vacation—one that was supposed to be her honeymoon, but ends up being a solo trip. So here, I’m including the top five reasons to take that honeymoon beach trip, even alone:
1. Sun, sand, and surf. (That’s technically three reasons—but Kylie counts them all together.) There’s lots of fun to be had at the beach, even alone! And if you’ve booked the honeymoon suite, you can spend the trip in luxury.
2. A chance to get away from prying eyes. If you’ve just been dumped (practically at the altar), taking your honeymoon trip can be a chance to avoid all those people who want to offer condolences—or who just want to get a look at the jilted bride!
3. Rum punch, margaritas, pina coladas, and other excellent beach drinks. Because YUM. Add a pool with a swim-up bar, and it’s just about perfect.
4. All the beachy eye-candy. If you take your honeymoon alone, no one is going to complain if you give that volleyball player more than his share of attention.
1. The possibility of meeting someone new. Sure, it might just be a honeymoon hook-up, a rebound guy, a way to forget that you’re supposed to be on your honeymoon. But maybe, just maybe, it can turn into something more.
To see what happens when Kylie’s rebound guy shows up in her hometown, check out Taming the Country Star.
Taming the Country Star: A Hometown Heroes Novella (Entangled Bliss)
July 15, 2014
Interview with Demelza Carlton, Author of See You in Hell
Interview with Demelza Carlton
What was your inspiration for See You In Hell?
Are you sure you want me to answer that? It started on a train ride that was far worse than anything you might encounter on the London Tube – said a commuter who didn’t even make it into the sardine tin of a train carriage. Now, I did manage to squeeze in…and so did a man carrying a briefcase with hard, sharp corners.
Why the precise description of a briefcase?
Well, for the identikit photo after the assault…
The train came to a sudden stop and then started again, so that we all came close to falling over like dominoes but managed to straighten up in time. My problems started when that briefcase went straight up my skirt and wedged between my cheeks. Oh yes, those cheeks.
My first response was to kill the case’s owner, but a quick glance at the man told me he was as weary as I was and that he was completely unaware of where his bag was…and if I told him, the hundred other commuters would know that I had a badly-behaved briefcase up my bum.
So…it was either endure the discomfort only I knew about…or feel equally uncomfortable, knowing a hundred other people (who I catch the train with every day) also knew I’d had a stranger’s luggage up my backside.
Ten painful minutes later, I left the train – walking very stiffly, admittedly – telling myself only an angel would be able to put up with this sort of Hell every day without screaming or killing someone.
So when I made it home…I wrote a short story about an angel, working in a corporate Hell. Further short stories followed…until, a year later, I decided to write it into a book. Or three.
As a published author, what would you say was the most pivotal point of your writing life?
The day I realised I had to publish Ocean’s Gift. I’d mentioned in passing to a friend that I’d written the book and he expressed a wish to read it. I honestly just thought he was being polite, but I (very nervously) gave him a copy. I never expected him to read it or speak of it again.
I wrote Ocean’s Gift, my first novel, in the space of three weeks, before deciding what I wanted to do with it. I figured it’d be worth a shot to try and publish it, but there was the question of how. Whether to try and find an agent, submit to traditional and small press publishers, go vanity publishing or take the enormous step and self-publish it.
So, evening came and my friend rang me, saying he’d started reading it soon after I gave it to him and he couldn’t stop. I think he read the whole book that day and he was full of compliments that I could write something he enjoyed so much. This is a guy who’ll send back a whole case of wine because he doesn’t like the taste of the first sip – and I was stunned to discover that I’d given him his preferred literary vintage on my first attempt.
That day made the decision for me – I HAD to publish Ocean’s Gift.
It took a further three months with beta readers and editors before I self-published the book, but it did happen.
Where do you get your best ideas?
In bed. Oh, hang on, that sounds really bad. At about 5 in the morning, when I’ve just woken up and can’t get back to sleep because an idea’s taken hold I just have to play with it…no, I think that sounds even worse. It’s true, though. My best ideas come in bed, in the shower, or during some form of heart-pumping exercise. I don’t think there’s any clean way I can say this.
Incidentally, I don’t write erotica.
What is a typical writing day like for you? How many hours do you write per week?
There’s no such thing as a typical writing day! For example, this week I allocated three full days to writing a new book and I’ve written less than five thousand words of the book (when I can usually write that in a day), but the amount of research I’ve done for it is huge. Classic motorcycles, 1920s shipwrecks and tales of real-life rescue and survival, coroner’s reports from the time…down to the newspaper articles and photos of a very real shipwreck in the Indian Ocean. Oddly enough, this particular disaster occurred over ninety years ago, in the same area where they’re currently searching for MH370.
Can you describe the feeling you get when you see your published book for the first time?
Thrilled, elated, proud…actually, I think it was the first time I saw the paperback proof for Ocean’s Gift. The ebook was cool, but it was absolutely something else to be able to hold a book with my name on the front…and my photographs on the cover, too, which made it even more remarkable.
What surprised me is that it doesn’t go away for future books, either. Every time I hold the first paperback copy of one of my books for the first time…it’s just as thrilling. I think my local parcel delivery guy thinks I have a crush on him, I’m always so happy to see him arrive with one of those Createspace boxes…
If you could give one book promotion tip to new authors, what would that be?
It’s a product and not a baby. It’s perfectly legal and acceptable to pimp it out, offer it for an insanely bargain price online and give it away to people. You won’t be up on child abuse charges for making your book available and accessible to people.
What is your greatest challenge when writing a book? Do you have any tips that you could pass on which would make the journey easier for other writers?
When I get so involved in the story that it breaks my heart to write a particular scene. There’s one scene in See You in Hell that made me tear up every time and there’s a couple in the sequel, Mel Goes to Hell, that leave me absolutely bawling. Oh, and not just when I write them, either – even when I go back to proofread those scenes. I don’t give spoilers, so I’ll have to leave it a mystery as to which scenes those were.
As for tips on how to make the journey easier…keep a box of tissues handy on the desk, write those scenes when there’s plenty of time for your red, swollen eyes to shrink back to normal and listen to your characters.
Except if the character is Lucifer and he’s telling you it’s a good idea for him not to wear any pants for this scene. My advice is to tell him to go to Hell.
About The Book
A devilishly hot CEO. The angelic new office temp. A match made in Heaven or Hell?
Melody Angel takes a job as a temp at the HELL Corporation. Surrounded by eternal bureaucracy gone mad, demons who love making life miserable, and dying for a decent coffee, it may take a miracle for Mel’s mission to succeed. She must find out what evil plans Lucifer and his minions have in store and stop them, using any means necessary.
Adding trouble and temptation to Mel’s job is Luce Iblis, the damnably hot CEO, who has set his smouldering eyes on the new office angel and he’s determined to claim her, body and soul.
Can ultimate evil and angelic perfection escape a limbo of desire and find a paradise of their own?
A tiny taste of what’s in store
“Do you know how long you’ve made me wait?” Luce lifted his chin. “Close the door.”
Mel turned and kicked the door shut with the sole of one shoe. The click of it closing coincided with her eyes meeting Luce’s once more.
“Now strip and get your arse on the desk,” Luce instructed.
Mel stared at him. He couldn’t be serious, could he?
“Every other girl in this building knows how to do as she’s told. Do you know how many girls I’ve had on this desk? You should consider yourself lucky. The last one I had in here was so quick getting undressed that I managed to give her a full fifteen minutes of my time. At this rate, you’ll be lucky to have five.”
Mel became transfixed by the timber desktop. “Did you wipe it clean afterwards?”
“What?” Luce’s face reddened.
Mel Goes to Hell series
• Welcome to Hell – A Short Story (#1 in the series) – Free Purchase Links
Below
Amazon |Amazon UK |Amazon Canada |
Amazon Germany |Amazon Australia |
Apple |B&N |
Kobo |
Smashwords |
Goodreads
•See You in Hell (#2)
•Mel Goes to Hell (#3) – to be released in July 2014
About The Author
Demelza Carlton has always loved the ocean, but on her first snorkelling trip she found she was afraid of fish. She has since swum with sea lions, sharks and sea cucumbers and stood on spray-drenched cliffs over a seething sea as a seven-metre cyclonic swell surged in, shattering a shipwreck below.
Sensationalist spin? No – Demelza tends to take a camera with her so she can capture and share the moment later; shipwrecks, sharks and all.
Demelza now lives in Perth, Western Australia, the shark attack capital of the world.
The Ocean’s Gift series was her first foray into fiction, followed by her suspense thriller Nightmares trilogy. She swears the Mel Goes to Hell series ambushed her on a crowded train and wouldn’t leave her alone.
Author Links
Website |
Facebook |Facebook Page |
Twitter |Goodreads |
Amazon Author Page
Purchase Links
Amazon |Amazon UK |
Amazon Canada |Amazon Germany |
Amazon Australia |
Apple |B&N |Kobo
| Smashwords | Goodreads
Spotlight On: Summer’s Temptation by Ashley Lynn Willis
Title: Summer’s Temptation
Author: Ashley Lynn Willis
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary Romance
Series: Vandeveer University #1
If there are only three truths in life, they are these. Women will always try to change a man. Men will always say anything to get a girl in bed. Tyler Mason will always have a long line of girls trying to domesticate him, and none will succeed. If one of these ceases to be true, the world will cease to exist.
These are the rules as college student Cassie Faye knows them, so when she gives up on dating in favor of a man who can satisfy her without tempting her heart, her next-door neighbor Tyler tops the list. Tyler isn’t the type of boy Cassie would fall for, but he’s the perfect guy to teach her how to claim her sexual independence without losing her heart in the process. Too late, Cassie finds out that under his womanizing exterior is an attentive, considerate lover who brings out passions in her that she’d barely glimpsed before.
What if she’s wrong about the third truth? What if the world as she knows it is about to cease to exist?
Amazon | B&N
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
.
Ashley lives in the Midwest with her husband of twelve years. For eight years, she worked as an engineer in general aviation but quit her job to be a stay at home mom to three precious children. She began writing in September of 2009 and has been penning her imagination ever since.
Website | Goodreads | Facebook | Twitter
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
“Why do you call me cupcake?” I ask.
Tyler’s hands slide to my hips, and my breath catches. He pulls me against him, my rear pressed into his crotch. It’s a tiny movement, and the room’s dim enough that nobody seems to notice. His body is hard where I’m soft, and I clench my hands to keep from touching him.
His hand twists in my hair, and he gently tugs my head back until his lips are almost touching my ear. His hot breath shudders against my skin. “Because you’ve got chocolate hair and chocolate eyes and a creamy middle I want to delve my tongue into.”
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
Hosted by Good Choice Reading Blog Tours
Spotlight On: MAD WATER (Pearseus, Book 3), by Nicholas Rossis
Yesterday’s crimes. Tomorrow’s retribution.
Book Synopsis:
In the third book of the best-selling Pearseus series, the incessant scheming of the various players and their nebulous puppet-masters has brought about major change. Cyrus is now the new ruler of the Capital, struggling to fight Jonia’s revolt along with his own demons. Gella strives to keep abreast of Teo’s devious plans in order to end the war with Jonia. David returns to the First in an effort to overcome his loss of the Voice. Lehmor’s struggle to reunite with Moirah brings him to uncharted territories, where the enigmatic Iota play with minds, senses and the future of the entire planet.
Old foes and unlikely new friends appear as invisible forces continue to pry humanity apart. Masks drop to reveal the ultimate truth: on Pearseus, everyone has their own agenda. And they’ll stop at nothing to achieve it.
What people say about Pearseus:
“He simply tells a story of corruption, people struggling as pioneers seeking to do with what they have… The measure of this book is that the triumph is not a textbook description, but a sense of a living struggle.”
“A cross between Game of Thrones and Dune”
“Astonishing, intriguing, thoughtful”
“It will be hard to put this book down long enough to eat and sleep, never mind doing responsible things like going to work and taking care of the kids”
“[It] hits on those big archetypal themes of invasion, loss, leadership, death… and high tech. It gives the reader plenty of material for discussion.”
“Warning: May cause loss of sleep, lowered work productivity, and missed meals”
Nicholas C. Rossis bio:
Author. Avid reader. Web developer. Architect by training, holder of a PhD in Digital Architecture from the University of Edinburgh.
Nicholas loves to write. Mad Water, the third book in his epic fantasy series, Pearseus, was just published, while his first children’s book, Runaway Smile, is currently being illustrated. He has also published The Power of Six, a collection of short sci-fi stories.
He lives in Athens, Greece, in the middle of a forest, with his wife, dog and two very silly cats, one of whom is always sitting on his lap, so please excuse any typos in his blog posts: typing with one hand can be hard…
Book links:
The Power of Six: 6+1 Science Fiction Short Stories can be found on http://amzn.to/1kKVduI
Pearseus: Schism, Book 1 in his epic fantasy series is available on http://amzn.to/1aDgXDA
Pearseus: Rise of the Prince, Book 2 in his epic fantasy series is available on http://amzn.to/1jlXLj6
Pearseus: Rise of the Prince, Book 2 in his epic fantasy series is available on http://amzn.to/1jlXLj6
You can also read Books 1 & 2 (special edition) on http://amzn.to/RqjNbU and
Books 1 to 3 (box edition) on
Also available: Tao Te Ching (translated into Greek) on http://amzn.to/1ovrc4n
Web presence:
https://twitter.com/Nicholas_Rossis
http://www.nicholasrossis.me
https://www.facebook.com/NicholasCRossis
https://plus.google.com/+NicholasRossis
https://www.goodreads.com/nicholasrossis
International Authors’ Day Giveaway Blog Hop ~ Vampire Fiction
Welcome to the International Authors’ Day Blog Hop! This hop is sponsored by Bookish Indulgences with Book Reviews.
For this hop, I’m giving away a copy of Beyond the Count, an edited collection of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century vampire stories, poems, and plays. Check out my post below, leave a comment letting me know about your favorite vampire fiction, enter the Rafflecopter for my giveaway, then HOP to the rest of the blog entries!
I love, love, love vampire stories. I always have, ever since I read Bunnicula as a child. When Buffy the Vampire Slayer was on television, I was an avid fan (still am, really). When Laurell K. Hamilton began writing her Anita Blake series, I tore through them. As a college English major, I read all of the gothic literature I could find. And as a college professor, I taught a course on vampire literature. So it’s perhaps no surprise that I would end up writing my own vampire novel–and that the vampires in it would be more horrific than sexy. In the excerpt below, Elle Dupree, the heroine of Legally Undead, sees the result of a vampire’s feeding habits up close.
_____________________________________________
Excerpt
We walked all the way to the end of the hall and Deirdre pulled a key out from between her breasts. She caught my look and said, “I don’t want it to be too easy to get to, pet.” Then she turned the key in the lock and opened the door on one of the most horrible scenes I could ever have imagined.
Malcolm’s completely naked body hung from chains against the back wall. His knees sagged so that his arms, stretched to their utmost, took most of his weight. His head drooped to one side. His eyes were closed; he didn’t try to see who had entered the room. I wasn’t sure he was even conscious.
The bed in the middle of the room was a tangle of sheets and blankets, all smeared with old bloodstains. The carpet under Malcolm’s body was also darkened with blood.
Worst of all were the wounds. His entire body was covered in bite marks. Big purple bruises spread out from the worst of them, painful looking quarter-inch puncture wounds, white and ragged around the edges. Several wounds ringed his nipples, another one punctured either side of his bellybutton. There was one particularly livid mark on his neck and what looked like the edges of another one on his inner thigh, though I couldn’t see it well enough to tell how bad it actually was. His wrists had been rubbed raw by the shackles holding him, and underneath the chains he was pale.
Legally Undead (Vampirarchy Book 1)
July 14, 2014
Beyond the Count ~ Only $.99 in Kindle ~ 18c. & 19c. Vampires
Beyond the Count is available for $.99 in the Kindle Countdown!
Beyond the Count: The Literary Vampire of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries
July 13, 2014
Spotlight On: Challenging Destiny by Cherie Colyer
Book Blitz Organized by:
Sneak Peek Sunday: Taming the Country Star
Welcome to this week’s Sneak Peek Sunday!
Check out the sneak peek of Taming the Country Star below, then HOP to discover new romance authors!
Still in her yoga pants and tank top after her class that afternoon, LeeAnn hitched herself up on top of the counter beside the cash register and crossed her legs lotus style. She stared off into the distance for a moment, then flicked her gaze back toward Kylie.
“You had sex with Cole Grayson?” she finally asked. “As in the Cole Grayson?”
Kylie nodded. “Yes.”
“The ‘Call Me Tomorrow’ Cole Grayson?” she paused and then broke into enthusiastic, if discordant, song. “Go ahead and leave me tonight … just call me tomorrow.” Her voice wobbled a bit on the last word. “That Cole Grayson?”
Kylie ran her fingers through her light brown hair, pulling it back into ponytail for a moment, then dropping it to fan out around her shoulders. “That Cole Grayson.”
“The one we’re going to see in concert tonight?”
Taming the Country Star: A Hometown Heroes Novella (Entangled Bliss)
July 12, 2014
Spotlight On: AGAINST THE CAGE by Sidney Halston
Request a Review Copy :::: HERE :::::
ebook, 256 pages
Published May 27th 2014 by Loveswept
In her Loveswept debut, Sidney Halston turns up the heat as a sexy cage fighter shows a former bookworm how delicious a few rounds between the sheets can be.
For Chrissy Martin, returning to her Florida hometown always seems to bring bad luck. The day starts with a breakup text, followed by a jailhouse phone call from her troublemaker brother. Now a routine traffic stop has ended with her accidentally punching an officer . . . in a delicate place. Then Chrissy realizes that the hot cop on the receiving end of her right hook is none other than the man from her teenage fantasies.
Jack Daniels knows how to take a hit. After all, when he’s not chasing reckless drivers, he’s kicking ass in a mixed martial arts ring. So what takes his breath away isn’t the low blow, but the woman who dealt it: a gorgeous knockout with legs Jack wouldn’t mind being pinned under—who just so happens to be his best friend’s nerdy little sister, all grown up. Soon their instant chemistry leads to a sizzling affair, but Jack and Chrissy are fighting an uphill battle if they want to make love last beyond the final bell.
Includes a special message from the editor, as well as excerpts from other Loveswept titles.
>>> Add to GoodReads <<<
AVAILABLE ON
AMAZON † B&N † iBooks
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sidney Halston lives her life by one simple rule: “The secret of getting ahead is getting started” (Mark Twain). Or even simpler: “Just do it” (Nike). And that’s exactly what she did. At the age of thirty, having never written anything other than a legal brief, she picked up a pen for the first time to pursue her dream of becoming an author. That first stroke sealed the deal, and she fell in love with writing. Halston lives in South Florida with her husband and children.
Website † GoodReads † Twitter † Facebook
July 11, 2014
Chapter by Chapter Book Rave
ARE YOU GOING?
Chapter by Chapter Book Rave is only two months and a half away!
It’s going down!
The day kicks off with a book signing from 11 AM to 3 PM.
If you are a V.I.R Pass holder you get to enter the signing area at 10:30 AM and meet & greet with some of your favorite authors before the doors open to the public. There are 50 passes available, 28 of which have already been reserved!
Not only do you get to enter the signing area early, you also get a special VIR bags filled with books, swag, and more that no one else attending will have! :)
After the signing, you can bowl with some of your favorite Young Adult authors from 4 PM to 6 PM.
You can find the teams here: http://www.cbcevent.com/2014/06/cbcbr-ya-bowling-teams.html
You will get the chance to choose which team you would like to be on. It is first come first serve, so if you are attending make sure to stalk your inbox for the sign-up form!
Then the evening will end with a billiards party featuring some of today’s kick-butt New Adult/Romance authors!
The party kicks off at 7 PM and ends at 9 PM.
There will be giveaways running during both parties & lots of raffles!
You will also receive a little goodie bag for attending. (Limited)
Join the events page for more updates: https://www.facebook.com/events/158950147649004/?fref=ts
EXTRA EXTRA
WANT TO BE A SECONDARY CHARACTER IN AUTHOR JENNIFER L. ARMENTROUT’S NEXT BOOK?
LEARN HOW YOU CAN >>HERE<<
JOIN US EVERY FRIDAY TILL JULY 25th ON FACEBOOK FOR
A LIVE CHAT WITH THE AUTHORS!
https://www.facebook.com/events/682428008495003/?fref=ts
Giveaways and more!
TICKETS ARE STILL AVAILABLE!
http://cbcevent.eventbrite.com
Help spread the word and you could win THREE signed copies of ANY of Jennifer L. Armentrout’s books. A second winner will win a $25 gift card to ANY store of their choice!
Giveaway is open to US & CANADA ONLY
Must be 13 or older to enter
Good Choice Reading & TrinDee Events are not responsible for any lost, stolen, or damaged mail.
Winner has 48 hours to claim prize once announced or else a new winner will be chosen.
Please keep in mind that all books will be signed & shipped in August.
