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Aubrey Wynne's Blog, page 36
July 29, 2022
It Started with a Dance by Tinia Montford with an excerpt and giveaway
It Started with a Dance
Tinia Montford
(Pacific Grove University, #2)
Publication date: July 28th 2022
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, New Adult, Romance
WILL THEY PULL OFF THE PERFECT PERFORMANCE?
It’s double time for Cami Clinton…
Dance is in Cami’s blood, but a bombshell diagnosis puts her on the sidelines. Now returning for her senior year of college, she’s determined to prove she is the dancer she once was. Each year, at the end of the semester, the campus hosts a dance festival. Cami knows this is her shot at redemption, but while at a party, things go horribly wrong and Cami suddenly has a new boyfriend: Marsh Lincoln.
Marsh Lincoln has two left feet…
He doesn’t dance. A nasty accident haunts Marsh and he’s just ready to graduate. Until he’s told he’s missing credits. The only class left to fill his missing credits? Ballroom dancing. To make matters worse, his girlfriend breaks-up with him in front of everyone at a party, leaving him with a new girlfriend he’s never met before…
It takes two to tango…
Acting like the perfect couple isn’t easy when you’ve just met. When the lines between what’s real and pretend blurs, they have to ask themselves: Can you catch feelings for something that’s all pretend?
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—
EXCERPT:
Girl, don’t do it; it’s not worth it. Don’t do it… Don’t do it, Cami. Last time was supposed to be it! Don’t…
Paper crinkled under Cami as she shifted on the exam table, facing the cabinet on the wall. It held a box of gloves, a thermometer, an otoscope, and the little disposable thingies that went with it. She exhaled shakily and squeezed her eyes shut. I swear I’m just thinking about stealing the doctor’s glove; I’m not gonna do it. Last time was it… They are good for cleaning. It would be awful if Devin had to bail me out of jail for stealing gloves in a doctor’s office. I’ll get expelled from school and be forced onto the mean streets of the Tenderloin. I’ll have to fight cats for chicken bones and steal cough syrup to stay high.
Cami’s karma was shot to hell based on her last six months of existence. She didn’t want the big man upstairs to send a bolt of lightning down to obliterate her.
She would be good…
Pushing herself up, she strained to hear any footsteps in the hall. The doctor wouldn’t notice a few missing gloves, would she?
Her phone dinged twice with a text message. It was her best friend, Deja. Saved by the bell.
Where are you?? I thought we were getting lunch? Winter and I are in the restaurant.
Cami slapped her forehead. How could she forget? It was their annual back-to-school tradition. Lunch in Japantown and mochi ice cream afterward. A staple in their friendship since freshmen year and even more important since last semester.
I had to meet with my adviser. Let’s meet for dinner?
Deja’s reply was instant.
Fine. Take a sneak pic of your adviser. Clark is foine.
Cami hung her head. Why did I lie? Deja and Winter, her best friends, knew about her hospital stint. They visited her every day until they had to go home for summer break, right before she finally received her diagnosis. Cami still couldn’t utter the words chronic disease…
She told herself she would confess to them, but when the moment came, she found herself saying viral infection instead. Each time after that, the lie flowed easier and it became harder and harder for her to backpedal. She told herself lying was for a good reason. Cami was tired of being the one people needed to look after. She was reinventing herself after this setback, presenting herself as independent and poised. Even if it was a façade.
Anxiety churned in her stomach, and she hoped her doctor would come back with the results she wanted. A glance at her phone let her know the time.
12:04 PM.
How long had she been sitting here? Twenty or thirty minutes? It was the first day of the semester, and Cami wasn’t letting it slip through her fingers. It was late August and freezing in San Francisco because of the coastal fog and wind. She tugged at the pink chunky sweater she’d paired with a skirt and combat boots. She pulled her knotless braids over her shoulder, biting her lip with a glance at the door before she pushed herself off the exam table.
“I’m just gonna take one. I’ve been through a lot,” she muttered, justifying the petty theft.
Cami plucked a glove from the box and held her breath as if alarms would sound. Once the coast was clear, she took another. Then another. Her hands were full as someone knocked at the door. She squealed, dropping some contraband as she darted across the room and shoved the gloves into her book bag, and plopped her butt back on the exam table, winded from that simple yet covert act.
“Y-yes?”
She tried placing a neutral expression on her face, hoping it didn’t reveal how fast her heart was beating, or her fear that a minor sprint consumed most of her energy.
The door opened, and her doctor’s head appeared. “Camille?”
“Dr. Aguilar.”
The last time Cami was in a hospital, besides her own illness, she found out her father had died. Of course, she didn’t remember this. She had been a toddler; her mother and brother recounted the story solemnly to her years later. It was a good enough excuse to avoid hospitals ever since.
Dr. Aguilar almost changed her mind about hospitals. The older woman’s aura of calmness and matronly appearance never failed to put her at ease. Bracelets adorning both arms and rings on all fingers. Plump. Graying hair. She smiled and her eyes went to the blue glove lying on the floor.
“The gloves fell out of the box…” That was a lame excuse.
Author Bio:
Tinia (TUH-NIA) Montford is a Pisces who’s a sap for romance, especially when there’s (tons of) kissing. Loves eighties sitcoms and will consume anything with chocolate. She graduated from the University of San Francisco with a degree in English and Graphic Design.
She is a world traveler having climbed a volcano in Nicaragua, scaled Angkor Wat in the blistering sun, and roamed the Acropolis of Athens. Oh, she also dabbles in short stories occasionally.
If you can’t catch her writing, you can bet she’s overindulging on poke bowls, listening to the same four songs, or chilling with her adorbs doggie. She is currently pursuing her MFA in Fiction.
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July 28, 2022
Never Enough Cowboy by Jennie Marts plus a giveaway
Never Enough Cowboy
Jennie Marts
(Creedence Horse Rescue, #4)
Published by: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Publication date: July 26th 2022
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
“A swoon-worthy, must-read romance.” –SARA RICHARDSON, National bestselling author
Fans of Carolyn Brown, Maisey Yates, and Jennifer Ryan will fall head over cowboy boots for this second-chance romance from USA Today bestseller Jennie Marts.
Single mom Jillian Bennett barely has a moment to herself between raising her ten-year old son, volunteering at the horse rescue ranch, and working her new job as head librarian of Creedence, Colorado. She doesn’t have time for romance either, even though she and the cute deputy, Ethan Rayburn, have been doing a lot of flirting the last few weeks. But when he also forms a bond with her son, Milo, Jillian falls hard, and Ethan soon realizes he would do anything for the feisty librarian who’s won his heart.
Praise for Jennie Marts:
“Full of hope, humor, and undeniable swoon.”—A.J. Pine, USA Today bestselling author
“Funny, complicated, and irresistible. Sometimes a cowboy isn’t perfect but you got to love him anyway.”—Jodi Thomas, New York Times bestselling author, for Caught Up in a Cowboy
“The perfect blend of humor, grit, and sexy cowboy spice. Delicious!”—Kari Lynn Dell, award-winning and bestselling author, for Wish Upon a Cowboy
“Deliciously steamy but still sweet, with a secret at its heart.”—Joanne Kennedy, award-winning and bestselling author, for Wish Upon a Cowboy
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—
Author Bio:
Jennie Marts is the USA TODAY Best-selling author of award-winning books filled with love, laughter, and always a happily ever after. Readers call her books “laugh out loud” funny and the “perfect mix of romance, humor, and steam.” Fic Central claimed one of her books was “the most fun I’ve had reading in years.”
She is living her own happily ever after in the mountains of Colorado with her husband, two dogs, and a parakeet that loves to tweet to the oldies. She’s addicted to Diet Coke, adores Cheetos, and believes you can’t have too many books, shoes, or friends.
Her books include the contemporary western romance Hearts of Montana series, the romantic comedy/ cozy mysteries of The Page Turners series, the hunky hockey-playing men in the Bannister family in the Bannister Brothers Books, and the small-town romantic comedies in the Lovestruck series of Cotton Creek Romances.
Jennie loves to hear from readers. Follow her on Facebook at Jennie Marts Books, or Twitter at @JennieMarts. Visit her at www.jenniemarts.com and sign up for her newsletter to keep up with the latest news and releases.
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July 27, 2022
The Last One by A.S. Kelly – read an excerpt and enter the giveaway
The Last One
A.S. Kelly
Publication date: July 25th 2022
Genres: Adult, Comedy, Contemporary, Romance
Allow me to introduce myself.
My name is Anya O’Donnell, and I’d like to declare myself guilty beyond all reasonable doubt.
Guilty of what, you ask?
Well, for starters, I’m guilty of lying to everyone for years; of pretending when I should have been showing them all who I really was, what I really wanted. I’m guilty of pushing away the only person who wanted to stay, convinced that, one day, he’d have left, anyway.
I told him we were a mistake.
I told him I was better off without him.
I told him that I didn’t love him.
And now I miss him. I miss his cups of tea and his stupid cheese crackers. I miss his clothes, strewn about the house. I miss the way he would watch me sleep. I miss his arms, holding me tightly each night, making me feel at home.
But now we’re both alone. And I’m scared.
I’m scared that he believed everything I told him; that he has no intention of coming back.
Allow me to introduce myself.
My name is Owen McKenna, and I’m furious.
Why, you ask?
Well, because I decided to follow my heart and not my head. Because I didn’t listen to my friends or to their far-fetched theories. Because I left anyway – even when everyone was telling me to stay.
And now she doesn’t want me back. But I want her, desperately.
She’s the woman I’ve been waiting for. She’s incredibly sexy, and can make you laugh, even when you least want to. She’s never let anyone in, apart from me; and when she crumbles into my arms, it makes me feel like the only guy in the world.
But I ruined everything.
I let the L-word slip, and she panicked.
She told me things she didn’t even think – I know that. I know her.
I know that she’s scared, that she doesn’t want to take this risk. But I do. I’m ready.
I’m her exception.
I just need to make her see that, too.
—
EXCERPT:
“Ms. O’Donnell.”
“What?”
“My surname. O’Donnell.”
“Mine is…”
“I didn’t ask. I’m telling you mine. You can call me Ms. O’Donnell.”
“Are you serious?”
“Good morning, Ms. O’Donnell. Or good evening, depending on the circumstance.”
“Can I wish you goodnight, too?”
“You’re not helping yourself.”
I laugh. I like winding her up – mainly because she doesn’t flinch.
“Are you telling me I can’t even say your name?”
“Only friends use my name.”
“And I’m not a friend?”
“No.”
“And I’ll never become a friend?”
“Absolutely not.”
“Why not?”
“Because you’ve seen me naked. And usually, friends don’t see each other naked.”
“Is that one of your rules?”
“It’s just become one.”
“A special rule for me?”
“Don’t flatter yourself. You’re not even my type.”
“What is your type?”
“That’s something I don’t share with strangers or acquaintances. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have work waiting for me.”
She slowly walks to the entrance, under my watchful gaze. I can’t help but fixate on the slinky, sensual movement of her hips.
“Ms. O’Donnell?” I call. She stops and looks around at me again.
“I hope you have a great day.”
“I thought it would be. Now I’m not so sure.”
Author Bio:
A. S. Kelly writes Rom-Com, Romantic Fiction and Family Saga.
Avid reader, hopeless romantic, lover of yoga, knitting and home baking.
She was born in Italy but lives in Ireland with her husband, two children and a cat named Oscar.
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July 26, 2022
Love is for the Dogs by Annee Jones with excerpt and giveaway
Love is for the Dogs
by Annee Jones
GENRE: Clean contemporary romance
BLURB:
A coveted award…a missing Maltese…and a cheating ex… Can Trisha Campbell survive this year’s dog show competition in Last Chance Beach, much less walk away without a broken heart?
If there’s one thing vet tech Trisha Campbell knows, it’s dogs. Men, however, not so much. Especially ever since catching her ex-boyfriend, Miami P.D. Landon Prescott, kissing her arch-nemesis, Blythe Baker, at last year’s dog show after Blythe’s pup Princess took home the grand prize. Needless to say, Trisha’s not looking forward to seeing either of them again at this year’s competition in Last Chance Beach, even if her beloved Maltese, Chloe, is a front-runner for the coveted trophy.
Soon after arriving on the island for the week-long event, Princess goes missing and everyone fingers Trisha as the dog-napper since her pooch is Princess’ main opponent. With not only the prize money but also her reputation at stake, Trisha’s willing to join forces with none other than her cheating ex. Can she and Landon figure out a way to work together to catch the culprit and find the missing Maltese before the whole competition goes straight to the dogs? And what happens when they find themselves alone together at last?
Excerpt
“I can’t believe this!” Trisha said as Landon steered her back toward the boardwalk. “Am I really a suspect?”
“No,” he said firmly. “I know you, Trisha. You love animals and you believe in fairness. I know you’d never steal, much less harm, Blythe’s dog. I’m sure your name will be cleared officially once Graham has a chance to touch base with Mrs. Butterworth.”
“Thank you,” she said, relieved. “At least you believe me.”
“Of course,” he said. “Always.”
They walked a little while in silence, processing the turn of events.
“So, I guess you’ve probably figured out that Blythe and I are not together?” Landon asked, breaking the silence.
Trisha nodded. “Yes, I got that,” she said. “But I still don’t want to talk about what happened last year.”
He blew out a breath of frustration. “I really wish you’d let me explain.”
“Look, I’m suddenly being investigated as a dog-napper!” she cried, eyes filling with tears. “I’m a veterinary technician! This is my reputation! And you know the rumor mill – people are going to suspect that I had something to do with this no matter what until Princess gets found. This could jeopardize my career!”
“Okay, okay, you win,” Landon said. “I’m sorry. You’re right, finding Blythe’s dog and clearing your name is the main priority right now. Please say you’ll least let me help?” His dark eyes were pleading. How could she resist?
“I think I need all the help I can get right now,” she said. “Even from you.”
He smiled in response. “You won’t regret this,” he said.
But the pull in her heart told her she already did.
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Author Annee Jones loves to write all things romance, fantasy, cozy mystery, & more. She is passionate about writing stories where dreams come true, and love wins in the end!
Professionally, Annee works as a disability counselor where she helps her clients navigate through complex medical and legal systems while rediscovering their wholeness in Spirit.
Subscribe to Annee’s newsletter to stay up to date on new releases, sneak peeks, author parties, and exclusive giveaways: https://www.anneejones.com/newsletter
Find Annee’s books here:
Annee’s website: https://www.anneejones.com/
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/~/e/B08KSFSHX1
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/authorannee...
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/annee-jones
Want to join Annee’s private Facebook reader group, Annee’s Angels? Request your spot now:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/anneesangelgroup
You can also connect with Annee on her FB author page:
https://www.facebook.com/AuthorAnneeJones
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Cut Action Murder by Rebecca Kalyani
Welcome to the book tour for Rebecca Kalyani’s murder mystery novel, Cut Action Murder! Read on for more details!
Cut Action Murder
Publication Date: August 13th, 2020
Genre: Mystery
Publisher: Absolute Author Publishing
Find out who is committing the perfect murders in this debut mystery novel…
In a city where people are dying to be famous, Hollywood detectives Emma Blade and Matt Parker are searching for a killer. Somebody’s written a deadly screenplay—and life’s beginning to imitate art. Can Emma and her partner find the murderer before it’s too late? Cut Action Murder is a gripping Christian suspense novel. Adults and teens alike will enjoy this wholesome page-turner. Faith is tested and love blossoms in the midst of this cat-and-mouse tale that you won’t be able to put down.
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Available on Amazon
About the Author
Rebecca Kalyani is an author, singer, actress and voice-over artist living in Los Angeles. I love a good mystery novel. There is something about reading a great book that takes me away from all the craziness life can bring. For music, fun videos and more visit her website at http://www.rebeccakalyani.comRebecca Kalyani
Book Tour Organized By:
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July 22, 2022
Gilded Butterfly by Leslie O’Sullivan – read an excerpt and enter the giveaway
Gilded Butterfly
Leslie O’Sullivan
(Rockin’ Fairy Tales, #2)
Publication date: July 30th 2022
Genres: Adult, Fantasy, Romance
Gilded Butterfly is the second book in the Rockin’ Fairy Tales adult romantasy series by Leslie O’Sullivan. King Midas and the Golden Touch meets King Lear in a slow-burn, friends to lovers, romance set against the backdrop of a fictional Hollywood music scene.
Chorda Lear is a mega-hot pop artist, Internet influencer, and Irish witch who’s poised to inherit a magical family legacy, the Golden Guitar. She’s the fan favorite on a wildly popular reality television show, “Kickin’ It With Midas,” a trendy chronicle of three Hollywood influencer sisters and their aging rock star father, Midas Lear.
Adair Holliday, a Hollywood producer wunderkind, is slated to step up as showrunner of the Lear’s lucrative TV franchise. He must constantly temper his skepticism over best friend, Chorda’s, practice of magic, but his biggest challenge is denying romantic feelings for her.
When Chorda goes disastrously off-script during the live broadcast of the season finale, Lear banishes her from the show and his life. Adair follows his friend into exile with a plan to reconcile father and daughter. Away from the pressures of Hollywood, a steamy encounter under a waxing moon, deepens friendship into romance. Now, the two must reverse Midas’ edict to save both their professional futures and new-found love.
—
EXCERPT:
This book is in the world of Rockin’ Fairy Tales with some character carryover from Pink Guitars and Falling Stars, Book 1, but it does work as a standalone.
Windshields are a dark destiny for butterflies. As I wind up the drive to Midas Lear’s Waterfall Palace in the Hollywood Hills, my windshield becomes one such destiny for a vibrant blue butterfly. The poor critter traveled to Hollywood in search of fame and fortune with plans to name its cover band Wing Spread.
The driver’s side glass of my deep blue, Tesla model 3 had other plans. In a single fatal moment, the band, Wing Spread became Smush, which sounds more like a pop-up night club than a cover band. In Hollywood, it’s all about the name.
I pull as far off the road in front of the mansion as the narrow drive allows. There are those who would mock me for bemoaning the death of a bug. In my humble opinion, sadness should be mandated when something lovely is destroyed. I, Adair Holliday, am to blame for a drop of beauty gone from the world.
I retrieve an index card from the leather messenger bag my half-brother, Desmond, gave me last month on my thirtieth birthday with the directive: “Time to upgrade from your folksy backpack look, Adair.”
Across the road, I pick my way down a steep bank landscaped as a butterfly garden to the shore of a narrow stream fed by cascading water features of the mansion. It’s ironic the intentional flora attracts winged beauties only to threaten death via windshields and waterfalls.
Before me, the final brushstrokes of a California sunset reflect off Midas Lear’s Waterfall Palace, three stories of glass framed with stacked stone walls. The president of Golden Pipes Records runs his music empire from this Frank Lloyd Wright’s Falling Water House meets Irish castle.
Spray from the waterfall spilling from the cantilevered stone shelf at the mansion’s base dots the butterfly’s wings. I crouch at the water’s edge to release the creature and its paper ship into the current, a Viking funeral in miniature. The card flips, sending broken blue wings beneath the surface.
A bend in the stream disappears into shadows underneath the peppy blossoms of overhanging purple and pink crepe myrtles. Were I slightly metaphoric, I’d define the waterway as a parallel to the new turn my life is about to take. Maybe the fact I’m figuratively pondering means I possess a drizzle of the poet in my soul. A good showrunner needs such drizzle in the ole creative toolbox.
I’ll leave poetic musings to Midas Lear and his three red-headed daughters. Rubata, Glissanda, and Chorda Lear will be my trio of responsibilities when I step into the executive producer spot on their reality TV show, Kickin’ It With Midas, after we shoot tonight’s season finale. I’m primed to step up my creative splash on the Golden Pipes Network.
I emerge from clusters of crimson columbine and lilac to the roar of an approaching engine. Desmond’s vintage red Ferrari 360 Modena zips around the corner, screeching to a stop inches from my toes.
“Shit, Adair. You nearly ended up on my windshield.”
The timeliness of his comment is not lost on me. I decline to share deets of my Viking butterfly funeral. “Cooling my jets for a sec by the water.”
Des shakes his head. “Cooling your jets? My little brother, crowned prince of outdated idioms and clichés.”
I celebrate and perpetuate the resurrection of sayings I’ve absorbed from the classic and not so classic movies and television programs I adore. More than one person has accused me of time traveling to the present from a black and white 1960s sitcom.
I tap a finger to my chin. “Are colorful phrases ever outdated?”
Rubata, the middle Lear sister, springs through the open pop top of the car. Her dyed cherry-red hair clashes with the Ferrari’s paint. She raises her phone to grab a selfie with a green, white, and red striped bag. “Gelato. I gotta gelata,” she sings and waves a handle bag stamped with the Gelato Buono logo.
I dive to catch the phone she tosses to me.
“Adair, get a shot of me with the gotta gelata and the car.” Rubata holds the bag next to her cheek and puckers her lips. As I snap pictures, she flips her hair and kisses the bag. “Did you get the shot? Wait, switch to video of me singing gotta gelata, gotta gelata.” Through the window, I catch her gold painted toenails dancing across Desmond’s shoulder. “Oooo, Desi, feed me gelata. That’ll look sexxxxy.”
Author Bio:
Leslie O’Sullivan is the author of Rockin’ Fairy Tales, an adult romance series of Shakespeare/fairy tale mash ups set against the backdrop of Hollywood’s music scene. Coming soon is her Behind the Scenes contemporary romance series that peeks into the off-camera secrets of a wildly popular television drama. She’s a UCLA Bruin with a BA and MFA from their Department of Theater where she also taught for years on the design faculty. Her tenure in the world of television was as the assistant art director on “It’s Garry Shandling’s Show.” Leslie loves to indulge her fangirl side each year at San Diego Comic Con.
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July 20, 2022
Love You Again by Julia Kent – read an excerpt and enter the giftcard giveaway
Love You Again
Julia Kent
(Love You, Maine, #2)
Publication date: July 19th 2022
Genres: Adult, Comedy, Contemporary, Romance
Set in the woodsy small town of Luview, “Love You,” Maine – a tourist favorite where every day is Valentine’s Day – local police officer and single dad Luke Luview has spent the last two years making his young daughter his priority after his wife’s death. When first-love Kylie Hood comes back into town under bizarre circumstances, he learns that nothing’s a coincidence – and maybe second chances are possible after all.
If you’re looking for a fun read about first kisses, second chances, featuring a hot single dad small town police officer and his accidental nanny, set in a small town in New England, with a golden retriever named Jester, a heroine whose dream in life is to run a fairy camp, and a hero who wants to build a place where everyone belongs – then this is your book.
Grab a cup of coffee, tea, and maybe some edible glitter, and get your happy meter ready as you read the second book in the Love You, Maine series – where love isn’t just a feeling – it’s a way of life.
✓Single Dad
✓Second chance
✓Small town romance
✓Local police officer and his last-minute nanny
…and a Golden Retriever named Jester
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—
EXCERPT:
A white puff of air filled the space between him and the steering wheel, and he realized he’d sighed. How long had he been sitting here, mind and memory in the past? Shoving his hands into gloves, he opened the rear door, grabbed the white plastic bag, and made his way to the front of the bin.
Determined, focused, and grim: That was Luke Luview these days. A bad match for a town that existed to make people feel good about love.
Living in Love You, Maine–heck, being a Luview–was never harder than when you had a broken heart.
Time to let go of some of the pain.
“AAAAAAooooooooo,” called out a band of coyotes in the distance, making Luke jolt. His personal weapon was at home. He didn’t carry it in the glove compartment or on his body when he was off duty, but as the coyote population grew in the area, maybe he should.
A few feet from the donation bin’s front, he looked at the lever to pull down, squeezing the bag slightly. A whiff of Amber’s perfume caught his nose, so faint he almost imagined it.
Colleen had washed all the clothes a few weeks ago, so he knew he imagined Amber’s scent. Didn’t matter. He’d take the illusion. That was how much he hurt.
A skitter inside the box made him frown.
Damn animals. They got in those bins all the time. He felt sorry for the poor sap who emptied these metal boxes, carting all the goods to the warehouse in Manchester where they cleaned and sorted, getting it all ready for the second-hand retail stores.
Just do this, he thought, swallowing hard as the coyotes mated in the distance. The sound was violent and creepy, but for whatever reason, it felt fitting.
Throwing the tangible reminders of that terrible day into the donation box felt dangerous, too.
“I love you, Amber,” he murmured. “But I have to let you go. Have to let that day go. Harriet needs a daddy who isn’t tied down by grief. Just because I’m doing this doesn’t mean I love you any less, though.”
Tears pricked his eyes. “Why is this so hard? Because it’s hard,” he said with a huff. “That’s what you would say if you were here. You’d hug me and comfort me and tell me feelings are meant to be felt or they’d be called something else. You’d have all the right words. I don’t have any. I just have a big hole in my life, Amber. And you’re never going to fill it. Colleen says I can’t feel guilty for moving on. I don’t. But I sure do feel weird.”
And then he reached for the handle, pulled it down, and threw the bag in while calling out loudly, “I love you.”
To his utter shock, she replied from the darkness of the box, “I’m in here!”
Author Bio:
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Julia Kent writes romantic comedy with an edge. Since 2013, she has sold more than 2 million books, with 4 New York Times bestsellers and more than 21 appearances on the USA Today bestseller list. Her books have been translated into French, German, and Italian, with more titles releasing in the future.
From billionaires to BBWs to new adult rock stars, Julia finds a sensual, goofy joy in every contemporary romance she writes. Unlike Shannon from Shopping for a Billionaire, she did not meet her husband after dropping her phone in a men’s room toilet (and he isn’t a billionaire she met in a romantic comedy).
She lives in New England with her husband and three children where she is the only person in the household with the gene required to change empty toilet paper rolls.
She loves to hear from her readers by email at julia@jkentauthor.com, on Twitter @jkentauthor, on Facebook at @jkentauthor, and on Instagram @jkentauthor. Visit her at http://jkentauthor.com
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July 16, 2022
Excerpt: Love Everlasting by Michelle Helen Fritz
Love Ever Lastingby Michelle Helen Fritz & E.A. Shanniak
Publication Date: July 14, 2022
Genre: Historical Romance/Regency
Series: Bramley Hall Regency Romance, Book 3
Miss Grace Buchanan has given up any hope of marrying. She’s been too occupied raising her younger siblings while her drunkard father spends all of their funds. When a horrid sickness envelops the cottage, she meets the new Parson of Bramley, whom she’s never forgotten. All she desires is an everlasting love, but with her family dynamics, it makes any sort of relationship a touch complex.
When tragedy is set to strike, Matthew Morten is called home suddenly. It’s time for him to take his place as the parson of Bramley. With his meddling mother and a sickness that is sweeping through the town, Matthew has to lean on his faith to get him through. But when he sets eyes upon one industrious woman, he can’t seem to keep her, nor her hazel eyes, far from his thoughts.
Will these two wounded souls find a Love Ever Lasting, or will responsibilities and family drama keep them forever apart?
Love Ever Lasting is a clean Regency Romance and the third book in a three-story series that will entertain and delight you with its swoon-worthy heroes and the compelling leading ladies that capture their hearts. Each book can be read as a standalone, but are best read in release order.
Available on AmazonAbout the Authors
Michelle Helen Fritz was born and raised in Maryland and Arizona with lots of traveling throughout the States. She began her literary career as a personal assistant to Indie authors and loves to see the process of an idea turn into a finished book. Michelle loves to write about dashing heroes, and the compelling women that tempt them, with a dash of intrigue, an abundant amount of romance, and scenes that hopefully make her readers swoon. She is the mother of four children whom she homeschools and currently resides in Maryland with her own jaunty hero who makes all of her dreams come true.Author Facebook Page | Twitter | Instagram
E.A. (Ericka Ashlee) Shanniak is the author of the successful fantasy romance series – A Castre World Novel. She is hobbit-sized, barely reaching over five feet tall on a good day. When she wears her Georgia Romeo’s not only does she gain an inch, she is then able to reach the kitchen cabinets. Ericka loves to write at her desk that her daughter’s cat destroyed. Fortunately for everyone, she can see over it.Ericka resides in the small town of Coldwater, Kansas with her husband, two kids, two dogs and two grumpy cats. The cats were her kids’ idea.
Excerpt: “I never knew what I was missing in my life until I saw you again that night at your cottage. Your resilience and love outshone the darkness in that oppressive dwelling. And in that moment, I swore to myself that if I were ever blessed to merit such a woman, it must be you. But I did not let myself hope in earnest until you came to stay with us. And ‘twas firmly fixed within my mind when Dr. Carrow sought your company, that I was a greater fool than even I knew, as you might be lost to me forevermore. ”Not giving a single care, Grace leaned forward in her seat and claimed his warm lips. She held him against herself there a moment with a hand on the side of his face, deepening her kiss. His hot, soft lips sent a shiver up her spine. His warm breath tingled her nose as she inhaled all that he was. She committed this moment, his tenderness to heart; for as long as she lived, she would never forget this.
Author Facebook Page | InstagramBlog Tour ScheduleThursday, July 14
Review at Books, Cooks, Looks
Saturday, July 16
Feature at Passages to the Past
Excerpt at Aubrey Wynne: Timeless Romance
Monday, July 18
Review at Bookworlder
Tuesday, July 19
Review at Ms. Darcy Reads
Friday, July 22
Excerpt at Heidi Reads
Monday, July 25
Feature at Lisa Everyday Reads
Review at Gwendalyn’s Books
Tuesday, July 26
Review at Pages and Paws
Wednesday, July 27
Review at Cover Lover Book Review
Enter to win a $25 Amazon Gift Card!
The giveaway is open to the US only and ends on July 27th. You must be 18 or older to enter.
July 15, 2022
A Dream of Democracy by Helmut Siewert and Cheryl Bartlam du Bois
Welcome to the book tour for A Dream of Democracy by Helmut Siewert and Cheryl Bartlam du Bois!
A Dream of Democracy
Publication Date: April 25th, 2022
Genre: Historical Fiction/ WW2
A DREAM OF DEMOCRACY is a ten-year-old boy’s escape from the Russian invasion of East Prussia at the end of WWII in January 1945. With his mother and sister aboard his aunt’s horse-drawn wagon, they fled with thousands of refugees from the barbaric Red Army. Since Hitler and the German Army failed to evacuate or protect German civilians on the Eastern-Front, they ran for their lives on the wagon train west with Russians soldiers on their heels who were determined to seek revenge from Hitler’s previous invasion of Russia–pillaging as they went, raping women of all ages and killing the men and boys.
Available on Amazon
About the Authors
Helmut Siewert was born in East Prussia in 1934 and survived the Russian invasion at the end of WWII at the age of 10. He emigrated to America where he became a successful businessman. He now lives in Florida with his third wife after his second wife died.
Cheryl du Bois is a writer and screenwriting instructor who has written many books and screenplays during her career. She has a BFA from VCU and took graduate courses at UCLA and AFI in film and writing. She lives in Florida, where she writes fulltime.
Book Tour Schedule
July 11th R&R Book Tours (Kick-Off) http://rrbooktours.com
@2manybooks2littletime (Review) https://www.instagram.com/2manybooks2littletime/
@thrillersandcoffee (Spotlight) https://www.instagram.com/thrillersandcoffee/
July 12th @hodophile_z (Review) https://www.instagram.com/hodophile_z/
Riss Reviews (Review) https://rissreviewsx.wixsite.com/website
Nesie’s Place (Spotlight) https://nesiesplace.wordpress.com
Rambling Mads (Spotlight) http://ramblingmads.com
July 13th @amber.bunch_author (Review) https://www.instagram.com/amber.bunch_author/
Bunny’s Reviews (Spotlight) https://bookwormbunnyreviews.blogspot.com/
Reads & Reels (Spotlight) http://readsandreels.comJ
uly 14th @fariha_binte_islam (Review) https://www.instagram.com/fariha_binte_islam/
Latisha’s Low-Key Life (Review) https://latishaslowkeylife.com/
@latishaslowkeylife – https://www.instagram.com/latishaslowkeylife/J
uly 15th @brandidanielledavis (Review) https://www.instagram.com/brandidanielledavis/
Liliyanna Shadowlyn (Review) https://lshadowlynauthor.com/
Timeless Romance Blog (Spotlight) https://aubreywynne.com/
Book Tour Organized By:
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July 13, 2022
Read an excerpt from Below Torrential Hill by Jonathan Koven
Welcome to the book tour for Jonathan Koven’s novel, Below Torrential Hill. Read on for more info!
Below Torrential Hill
Publication Date: October 18th, 2021
Genre: Literary Fiction
Length: 190 Pages
Jonathan Koven, author of the beloved poetry collection Palm Lines, returns with a stunning fiction debut. Breathtaking in scope, intimate in its detail, Below Torrential Hill is a coming-of-age about family, memory, and reconciliation.
It’s Christmas, and strange occurrences are plaguing the small town of Torrential Hill: a supernatural comet, undead insects, exploding streetlights, and a presence luring people into the woods. But when the mother of Tristen—a wistful, fatherless sixteen-year-old boy—hears voices from the kitchen sink, all he can think of is running away.
A WINNER OF THE 2020 ELECTRIC ECLECTIC NOVELLA PRIZE
A FINALIST OF THE 2020 CLAY REYNOLDS NOVELLA PRIZE
“Remarkable in its empathy, successfully conveying the difficult realities of death, first love, single parenting, alcoholism . . . Both an ode to loss and to growth, a dialectic that produces a singular tone and a dynamic plot. Within these pages, Koven has constructed an entire universe, and we are left homesick by story’s end.”—Shannon Greenstein, author of Pray for Us Sinners
“Captivating, awash in poetry and sensual detail . . . beautiful, sad, and full of hope.”—Charlotte Dune, author of Mushroom Honeymoon
Excerpt
With one’s mouth agape, there is always more to swallow. And Tristen always wished to be filtered, chewed, and spit out bodiless as a dream, to be the raindrop plunging into white sea, to not shatter and spread wide the body, to pour out like the hungriest wound and demand to be filled at once. Happiness is to be loved to death. No matter how strange, the leap into silence demanded a sacrifice of the highest order. He came to relinquish his life for a different one.
His muddied shoes stepped through the brightly lit division in the trees. A hillside not far ahead oversaw the great abyss which nurtured the lowest regions of the wood, where the city limits were eaten alive by pine and lichen, where the meteorite fell just days before.
Canine laughter sprawled out against the void, just near enough to hear. Then, spoken slowly and dully like a voice from the sink, in the middle of the raspy sunrise, his name seemed to hum within an acute ringing: “Trist-en.”
The ringing grew and took hold of his arms and pulled him to the ground. The sky pealed his name unto him as he bowed over the whitening earth. He coughed into his chest. Frostbite and blood covered his skin from wrists to elbows. Curling his fingers into the snow, his knuckles cut deep; using them, he lifted his body and swung forward. He moved with determination, each spring forward going farther than the last. Everything was a cry to continue moving. It even echoed from fractures in the bark. Eternity was waiting for Tristen. His ankles were set in a motion too hypnotic to break.
Torn trunks pointed their roots toward the hillside where old snow whistled with old wind. At the hillside’s ledge, deformed trees met the capsizing sky, longing back to the morning’s jaw. Mist peeled back to reveal the ledge.
Tristen walked to it slowly.
The sound bawled from everywhere, two drawn-out torrents of energy. They droned the essence of shared solitude, unmasked arousal of vulnerability and, at the center of the sound, consonants proudly shattered and burst. “Tri-sten.” A cry so lowly, lovingly, morbidly exasperated— stretched open, crackling. All around him coursed a magnitude of feeling. Catching a deformed tree’s lowered branch, he waited at the ridge. These—these long waves, this sheer density—this heavy slowness were the years of his life that hadn’t happened yet.
“Tri-st!-enn.”
Then, pushing down on the branch, it snapped halfway, and Tristen tumbled fast into a scar in the earth.
About the Author
Jonathan Koven grew up on Long Island, NY. He holds a BA in English and Creative Writing from American University, works as a technical writer, and reads chapbooks for Moonstone Arts. He lives in Philadelphia with his best friend and wife Delana, and their cats Peanut Butter and Keebler. Read Jonathan’s poetry debut Palm Lines (2020), available from Toho Publishing. His fiction debut Below Torrential Hill (2021) is also available, a winner of the Electric Eclectic Novella Prize.
Book Tour ScheduleJuly 11th R&R Book Tours (Kick-Off) http://rrbooktours.com
@hodophile_z (Review) https://www.instagram.com/hodophile_z/
@brandidanielledavis (Spotlight) https://www.instagram.com/brandidanielledavis/
Rambling Mads (Spotlight) http://ramblingmads.com
July 12th Riss Reviews (Review) https://rissreviewsx.wixsite.com/website
@rissreviews_xx – https://www.instagram.com/rissreviews_xx/
The Faerie Review (Review) http://www.thefaeriereview.com
July 13th Reads & Reels (Spotlight) http://readsandreels.com
@fariha_binte_islam (Review) https://www.instagram.com/fariha_binte_islam/
Timeless Romance Blog (Spotlight) https://aubreywynne.com/
July 14th Jessica Belmont (Review) https://jessicabelmont.com/
@gryffindorbookishnerd (Review) https://www.instagram.com/gryffindorbookishnerd/
Nesie’s Place (Spotlight) https://nesiesplace.wordpress.com
Liliyana Shadowlyn (Spotlight) https://lshadowlynauthor.com/ @Fle_d (Spotlight) https://www.instagram.com/fle_d
July 15th @thrillersandcoffee (Spotlight) https://www.instagram.com/thrillersandcoffee/
Book Tour Organized By:
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