I Just Wanna Sit Here And Read!

Twice Cursed by Jacqueline Page: Promo Spot {Bewitching Book Tours}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 13:00:00 +0000

Maddy is the oldest witchling to ever attend the Hidden Cove Academy, having been cursed as a teen; she’s forced to have a solitary life outside of her own magical community. With her magic so dangerously unpredictable, she rarely takes the chance on mixing with the general public.

From one harmless trip to a museum she finds herself spellbound yet again by an invisible boundary, caused by a three hundred year old curse, dictating that Maddy must stay close to the stunningly sexy Colin.

Being stuck with a tall, dark, incredibly lick-able stranger can’t be all that bad, right? Until they discover if they get too close the spirits bound with the curse will take over their bodies ... at the same time if they’re too far from one another the curse will kill them both.

Will the curse's secrets be unraveled in time or does certain death await them both?

Excerpt:

She heard him walking towards her. When she moved one arm he was standing over her, glaring down at her. “Sorry, I was right,” she said softly. Whiskers appeared beside her and without one nasty or haughty thought stretched out beside her so her head was across Maddy’s hip. Running a hand over her friend’s furry head, she looked back up at him. His facial expressions were changing so rapidly, she didn’t even want to ponder a guess at what was flying through his mind. “Might as well sit. I have some figuring out to do.”

Colin sat down a few feet from her and studied her. “So, if you’re a...I can’t believe I’m going to say this, witch or whatever, then undo this.”

Maddy frowned. “I’m more of a witchling, than a full fledged witch.” Did she really have to pour out her whole miserable existence to a man she didn’t know? “There’s been a few, um, hiccups in my abilities...”

He leaned closer and looked at her. “Did you do this to us?” She shook her head and he realized that from the upset expression on her face, she didn’t want this anymore than he did. “Define hiccups.”
Maddy bit her lip. “Well... I sometimes don’t always get the uh, desired outcome to my castings.” His eyebrows shot up.

“Desired outcome? You’re telling me you can’t then?”

Maddy leaned up on her elbows. “I didn’t say that. I know I can or would at least like to.”
Colin ran a hand through his hair. He had gone from looking mildly confused to very stressed. “Okay, so what do you mean by desired outcome?” He had no idea what he was asking, then again before today magic and witches were some-thing from cartoons and movies.

****

About the Author: Jacqueline Paige is a world class multi-tasker being a mother to five adventurous and unpredictable children, a cafe manager and having a colossal imagination that allows her to step outside of reality into a world of paranormal romance —with just a touch of suspense.

Jacqueline lives in Ontario, Canada and avoids the ever changing weather of the region she lives in by creating other worlds to fall into in her stories of all things paranormal.

Her first book was published in 2009 and since then has published ten. She is always writing and currently has more than a dozen stories in one stage or another of the writing process.

You can find all of Jacqueline’s books HERE

On the Rim of Love by Marie Astor: Interview & Giveaway {Kismet Book Tours}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 12:00:00 +0000

Who was your favorite character to write in this book? The most difficult?

I enjoyed writing Maggie’s character because she is at the point of her life where she is unsure of her choices, both personal and professional, as she transitions into a woman from a girl. While I never had to face the exact same choices that Maggie is confronted with in On the Rim of Love, I could certainly relate to the daunting undertaking of making life-altering decisions when writing Maggie’s character.

Writing Taylor’s character was challenging because he leads a life of his choosing and refuses to compromise – when creating Taylor’s character, I had to be careful not to make him unbelievably perfect. Taylor has many good qualities, but some of his strengths are also his weaknesses because, at times, he tends to take them to the extreme - this inner conflict is the aspect that I found to be both challenging and enjoyable about writing Taylor’s character.

If you had to write in any other genre than contemporary romance, what would it be?

I really enjoy women’s fiction and family sagas, so I could see myself writing in these genres.

If you could jump into the life of any of your characters who would it be and why?

Definitely Taylor Denton – when I was writing his character, I had a major crush on him!

What was your initial spark for this book?

I am always thinking of novel plots involving love stories. Two years ago I went to British Columbia for the first time and was smitten by the beauty of the region – I immediately started thinking that it would be the perfect setting for a love story. Slowly, the outline of On the Rim of Love started to materialize in my mind... I put the idea on hold for some time, and two years later, On the Rim of Love was written.

What is one book you read in 2011 that you would recommend? Any books you are looking forward to in 2012?

The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen - I absolutely loved it.

I’ve been so busy working on my next book, Dance Me to the Stars, as well as preparing for book tours for On the Rim of Love that I have not had a chance to plan my reading list for the new year – it is on my list of things to do!

What are you working on now?

I just finished working on my next novel, Dance Me to the Stars - it is a love story (of course!) about letting go of one’s inhibitions, finding true love and learning to tango. The main character, Claire, is an architect who is engaged to marry her real estate magnate fiancé, but when a handsome tango instructor moves into the apartment above from hers, Claire begins to question her seemingly perfect life.

The release date for Dance Me to the Stars has been moved up to February from March of 2012 – please visit my website, www.marieastor.com or my Amazon page.

Thanks for stopping by Marie!

About On The Rim Of Love - Goodreads, Amazon

Twenty-two-year-old Maggie Robin has been dating the irresistibly good-looking Jeffrey Preston for a year. But when Jeffrey proposes marriage to her a week after her college graduation, Maggie finds herself wondering if she wants to spend the rest of her life married to a workaholic TV show producer.

Her doubts culminate when during a ski trip to British Columbia she meets Taylor Denton, a handsome, free-spirited big mountain skier.

Maggie’s attraction to Taylor is undeniable, but she is engaged to marry Jeffrey. Will Maggie have the courage to follow her heart?

About Marie Astor - website, Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads
Marie Astor is a die-hard romantic who wholeheartedly believes in true love, which is why she writes in the contemporary romance genre.

Marie is the author of contemporary romance novels, On the Rim of Love, Lucky Charm, and a short story collection, A Chance Encounter and Other Stories.

In addition to being a writer, Marie is an avid hiker, an excellent swimmer, a good skier, and a capable badminton player.

Currently, Marie is working on her next novel – stay tuned for details!

Contest Info: Marie is offering a Kindle 3G skinned in her beautiful On The Rim Of Love cover art. Open US/Canada. See full contest rules here.

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Be sure to check out the other stops on the tour:

Monday, February 13th - Riverina Romantics
Tuesday, February 14th - Snowdrop Dreams of Books
Wednesday, February 15th - My Reading Room
Thursday, February 16th - Books Like Breathing
Friday, February 17th - Obsession with Books

Monday, February 20th - Reviews By Molly
Tuesday, February 21st - Sweeping Me
Wednesday, February 22nd - A Casual Reader's Blog
Thursday, February 23rd - Better Read Than Dead
Friday, February 24th - I Just Wanna Sit Here and Read!

Monday, February 27th - Hesperia Loves Books
Tuesday, February 28th - A Tale of Many Reviews
Wednesday, February 29th - Library Mosaic
Thursday, March 1st - The Magic Attic
Friday, March 2nd - Ce-Ce's Garden Reviews

The Earthquake Machine by Mary Lowry: Guest Post & Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 13:00:00 +0000

First I want to say thank you to Kate for hosting me here at I Just Want to Sit Here and Read. This is one of my favorite book blogs, so it’s an honor to be here! The following is my manifesto, and I hope it inspires reader girls everywhere.

Art and Adventure: A Manifesto for Women and Girls, by Mary Lowry

I believe grrrls and women should have adventures. And we should have the opportunity to experience the adventures of other grrrls and women through books, film, music and visual arts.

Too many times we have read books and watched films about a man or boy having an adventure while a woman sits at home and waits for him. In movies like Legends of the Fall, the male protagonist (in this case Tristan, played by Brad Pitt) travels the world having adventures and sex in opium dens while his true love sits at home on hisfront porch and waits for his return.

In books like Paul Coehlo's The Alchemist, the spiritually seeking man (in this case, the protagonist Santiago) goes on an odyssey while his true love, the woman in the desert, stays in the desert unmoving, unchanging until Santiago's return.

Which brings us to the word "odyssey" itself, a word derived from the name of the adventurous Odysseus who went to war and traveled the world for twenty years, while his wife Penelope stayed at home.

And even in contemporary books with female protagonists written by women, the big choice for the young woman often remains as uninteresting as "Should I chose the werewolf or the vampire to be my boyfriend?"

Puh-lease.

We as women and girls can't just demand more interesting and engaging female characters. We have waited too long already. And there's no guarantee the male dominated film industry or the imploding-as-we-speak publishing or music industries will listen. We have to write the books and -- if necessary -- publish them ourselves. We must write the scripts and storm Hollywood with them and -- if necessary -- make the movies ourselves. We must write the albums and -- if necessary -- record them ourselves. We must paint the paintings and -- if necessary -- show them ourselves.

We will no longer stand for stories that offer no more than the woman who waits on the front porch or in the desert, who plays the auxiliary wife of the man of action. We will no longer compliantly consume such art; we will, at the very least, take notice of the messages such art contains.

Statistics about women in artistic industries are daunting.

Only 17% of producers of major motion pictures are women. Only 10% of screenwriters of major motion pictures are women. Only 4% of directors of major motion pictures are women.
In the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York City, only 3.5% of the works of art on display are by female artists.

The publishing industry seems anomalous in this regard. Female editors and agents dominate the publishing industry. And most book buyers, book group members, and literary bloggers are women. And yet, to quote Lakshmi Chaudry "the gods of the literary ... remain predominately male -- both as writers and critics."

From 1921-2006, only 31 % of the Pulitzer Prizes for Fiction were awarded to women.

Females easily make up 50% of published fiction writers; and yet in the New York Times article "What is the Best Work of American Fiction of the Past 25 Years?" of the 26 books mentioned, only two were written by women. (Writers of color are radically underrepresented in this article as well).

Does this mean women aren't writing as well as men? Hardly. But it does mean their work does not receive the awards and acclaim more often bestowed upon their male counterparts.
Female fronted rock bands and female hip hop artists are still notable for their gender because rock and hip hop are also still male-dominated art forms.

These statistics and realities are daunting. But we will not spend too much time bitching about them; we will not become paralyzed by our complaints. We will instead notice them, pay attention to them; we will use our anger about them to drive dynamic and positive change. We will make that change ourselves.

We don't ask permission (or at least not for long). We write the stories, the songs, the films. We paint the paintings. We record or publish or film them ourselves if need be. We throw our own art openings. We open our own gallery spaces.

Like Ani Difranco, we start our own record label, Righteous Babe Records, and sell our music out of the trunk of our car until our records and our label take off. And we will go on to write, record and release more than 20 albums on our own label, maintaining our artistic freedom even as we garner attention and acclaim.

Like Kathleen Hannah (former lead singer of Bikini Kill) we start the underground punk rock Riot Grrrl movement even though "punk rock is for and by boys." We express our collective anger and joy loudly, for all the grrrls too afraid to do so themselves.

Like Nicki Minaj, we quit our 9-5 office job -- despite the disappointment it causes our mother -- to work on our lyrics full-time and push our career as a hip hop artist. And we write songs that say:

In this very moment I'm king/In this very moment I slayed Goliath with a sling... I wish that I could have this moment 4 life/4 life, 4 life/'Cause in this moment, I just feel so alive/alive, alive

Like Amanda Hocking, we publish our own books and make them available on our blog until the sheer buying power of our fan base drives the publishing industry to us.

Like Shauna Cross, we become a roller girl and then we write a novel about it called Derby Girl and then we write the screenplay adaptation of the novel, which becomes Whip It, the first movie directed by Drew Barrymore, a female actor brave enough to take the reins and make her own film.
The internet and social networking have brought down the barriers that once existed between art and audience; they have rendered the gatekeepers much less relevant than they have ever been before. And so we create our work and we take responsibility for putting it out into the world so that our audience can find it.

But most of all we keep having adventures ourselves.

We don't ask for permission to be granted by our fathers, our mothers, our lovers, our brothers, our husbands, our wives, our bosses, or friends. Or even from our sisters, who sometimes worry and so might like to have us sequestered from harm.

We go out into the world and live. We run through rain forests at night and swim in oceans and kayak and when we run out of money, we take the ferry from Seattle to Alaska where we wait tables at the Princess Hotel and ride our mountain bikes under the midnight sun. We busk on the streets in Bosnia. We work as cops in Palmer Lake, Colorado. We teach a boy to read or a girl to play the guitar. We give birth to or adopt a child. We take a call on the National Domestic Violence Hotline. We go to physical therapy school. We support the art other women make; we buy extra copies of books and albums we love; we give them to our friends as gifts.

We say, "You are talented."

We say, "You can do it."

We say, "Yes it can be done."

We say this to ourselves. We say this to each other.

And then we use our adventures to fuel our art and we share our art with others, to show them the way, to let them know that they are not alone. And so women and girls can see that with or without permission our art and our lives will flourish. Our art and our lives will not be stifled by the music or publishing or film industries or by gallery owners or well-meaning loved ones.

We are women and girls and we will make our art and have our adventures and we will support each other.

If this manifesto spoke to you, please share it with a friend.

Thanks for sharing your manifesto Mary!

The book every girl should read, and every girl’s parents hope she’ll never read.

The Earthquake Machine tells the story of 14 year-old Rhonda. On the outside, everything looks perfect in Rhonda’s world, but at home Rhonda has to deal with a manipulative father who keeps her mentally ill mother hooked on pharmaceuticals. The only reliable person in Rhonda’s life is her family’s Mexican yardman, Jesús. But when the INS deports Jesús back to his home state of Oaxaca, Rhonda is left alone with her increasingly painful family situation.

Determined to find her friend Jésus, Rhonda seizes an opportunity to run away during a camping trip with friends to Big Bend National Park. She swims to the Mexican side of the Rio Grande and makes her way to the border town of Milagros, Mexico. There a peyote- addled bartender convinces her she won’t be safe traveling alone into the country’s interior. So with the bartender’s help, Rhonda cuts her hair and assumes the identity of a Mexican boy named Angel. She then sets off on a burro across the desert to look for Jesús. Thus begins a wild adventure that fulfills the longing of readers eager for a brave and brazen female protagonist.

Author bio: Mary Pauline Lowry has worked as a forest firefighter, screenwriter, open water lifeguard, construction worker, and advocate in the movement to end violence against women. Due to no fault of her sweet parents, at 15 she ran away from home and made it all the way to Matamoros, Mexico. She believes girls should make art, have adventures, and read books that show them the way. Website

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If You Know Her by Shiloh Waker: Review {Blog Tour}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 10:33:00 +0000

Spoiler Alert. If you have not read Books 1 & 2 in this series, there may be spoilers ahead.

Publisher: Ballantine Books (February 28, 2012)
ARC: 352 Pages
Series: (My Review of If You See Her (#2) and If You Hear Her (#1)
Genre: Adult Romantic Suspense
Shiloh Walker's Website | Blog | Twitter

From Goodreads. A SHADOW IN THE WINDOW.

Nia Hollister doesn’t scare easily. Come hell or high water, she intends to find her cousin’s killer. She returns to Ash, Kentucky, for answers. What she doesn’t expect is to ache with desire every time she sees Law Reilly. If any man can help her escape the nightmares for a while, it’s him. But can she allow herself to take comfort in those strong arms when a murderer still roams free?

Unknown to Nia, as she quietly slips into Law Reilly’s home, is that she’s being watched—by someone who is waiting for an opportunity to strike.

Timing is everything, though he can’t wait forever. If she’s not frightened, she soon will be. Nia has made a vow to find her cousin’s killer. She should be careful what she wishes for.

Review by Kate
IF YOU KNOW HER, by Shiloh Walker, is the suspenseful conclusion to the Ash Trilogy. Although these books tend to be an overall POV from the citizens of Ash, this book focused on the romantic relationship between Law, a ten-year resident of Ash, and Nia, a photojournalist who is the cousin of the woman who was murdered in If You Hear Her.

Throughout the books I've been patiently waiting for Law's turn at being the main POV and it finally came! Remy and Ezra are great characters but Law has always been my favorite. It took me a little bit to get used to Nia since her introduction to Law was anything but subtle but, as with the the rest of the characters in each book, I learned to like her too. Their chemistry was very (very very) hot and their relationship started off a lot different then others in the series. More of a lets bang then get to know each other but it definitely worked for me!

If I thought If You See Her was suspenseful, it had nothing on this book. The pieces started to fall into place about the killer relatively early in the book (thank goodness because I don't know how much longer I could have waited) and once they fell into place for the characters all hell broke loose. This person was not going down without a fight and seemed to appear on the heels of the Ash residents he wanted to hurt. By the second half of the book I literally could not stop. I blocked off time to just sit and read until I was finished. And the ending….it was goooood.

Once again Walker does not cease to amaze me and this series solidified my love for this author. I love how she is so versatile in the genres she writes and I will not not read a book she comes out with.

Overall, fantastic series. I am normally a paranormal buff but I think I will have to try more romantic suspense because I can't see to get enough now! Bravo Shiloh, bravo.

Thanks again to Shiloh Walker for supplying an early copy of the book for us to review for the tour. Much appreciated!! Check out what the others on the tour thought:

2/20 - The Book Vixen

2/21 - Under the Covers

2/22 - I Just Wanna Sit Here and Read!

2/23 - Urban Girl Reader

2/24 - Books-n-Kisses

Coming Up for Air by T.D. Jones: Interview {Sizzling PR}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:00:00 +0000

Where the idea for Coming Up For Air come from?

Maggie Dawson came to me one night talking about how Kevin Walker did her wrong.

Did you take any aspects from your life and write them into this story?

I’ve been in love and broken hearted so knew what it felt like to feel alone.

Who is your favorite romance author currently?

I’m reading Anna James right now and she knows how to make a love story great.

Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?

Never, never give up. Coming Up For Air was my first story I ever tried to publish but wasn’t published until after I already had two others…dreams do come true if you keep at it.

If you could cast your leads in a Hollywood movie who would you pick?

Hugh Jackman and Reese Witherspoon

Thanks for having me. I love to hear from readers:

Website / Blog / Twitter

Thanks for stopping by T.D.!

Maggie Dawson was left at the altar at the young age of eighteen. Now years later Kevin Walker is back in town and Maggie’s life is turned upside down. She is determined not to fall in love with this guy for a second time. He broke her heart once, she is not letting him do it again or is she?

Kevin Walker comes back to Clover, Texas to sell the family ranch and never expects to run into Maggie, who is now the town doctor. He starts to fall in love with her again, but will she let him in?

Maggie always had a secret thought deep down in her heart that someday Kevin would come back to her. He would say he was sorry for leaving, and everything would be wonderful. They would live happily ever after like in the fairy tales. Never in the fairy tale did she dream that her prince would come back to town, and bring his pregnant fiancée with him.

I'm a West Texas girl and wouldn't have it any other way. I love to see the blue sky and all the open space. At night you can walk out and see stars for miles. There's nothing like sitting on a porch and watching the Texas sky on a warm, summer night.

I've always dreamed of becoming a published writer and finally decided two years ago I was either going to make my dream come true or give it up. Luckily Melange-books decided I was worth giving a chance and published Hot Days. My dreams seem to becoming more of a reality since I will have my second story published in July 2011 and more to come out soon.

I love writing about characters who aren't perfect. They have problems and have to figure out ways to make their life better. Humor is sprinkled throughout my stories. It always surprises me that I'm able to write humor because I don't really find myself funny. I'm known to worry about things and stress out easy so maybe that's why I love writing humor, at least my characters are having fun!

Writing feeds my soul and I want to do it forever. I hope you enjoy reading my books as much as I love writing them.

*Pictures supplied by the author. I do not own anything.

Legacy of Eden by Nelle Davy: Guest Post & Giveaway {Book Trib}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:00:00 +0000

Paperback: 384 Pages
On Sale: January 31, 2012 (Buy Links)

An epic, sweeping tale of a dynasty rotten to the core, driven by ambition, lust – and hatred.

For generations, Aurelia was the crowning glory of more than three thousand acres of Iowa farmland and golden cornfields. The estate was a monument to matriarch Lavinia Hathaway’s dream to elevate the family name—no matter what relative or stranger she had to destroy in the process. It was a desperation that wrought the downfall of the Hathaways—and the once-prosperous farm.

Now the last inhabitant of the decaying old home has died—alone. None of the surviving members of the Hathaway family want anything to do with the farm, the land or the memories.

Especially Meredith Pincetti. Now living in New York City, for seventeen years Lavinia’s youngest grandchild has tried to forget everything about her family and her past. But with the receipt of a pleading letter, Meredith is again thrust into conflict with the legacy that destroyed her family’s -great name.

Back at Aurelia, Meredith must confront the rise and fall of the Hathaway family…and her own part in their mottled history.

Using personal stories in writing: do or don’t?

Of course it is a do. One of my favourite books is Oranges are Not the Only Fruit by Jeanette Winterson which is a reworking of her own childhood within a fictional format as opposed to an outright memoir. What matters is that you are true to the kind of story you wish to tell, regardless of what is the inspiration. I would also say that no writer works in a vacuum as if their books are ‘ex nihilo.’ Whether you mean to or not, you write the kind of story you are either interested in, or have been through in some way. It is all inspired by your personal past and you rework it, sometimes even try to ignore it, but then press it down and reshape it so that it can become unrecognizable from truth but it still has seeds in it. There are some stories I love to read but would never be able to write because I would never be inspired to write them because they come from a different sort of experience to the one I have had. But novels should be about trying to tell some kind of truth – either the one you wish was real or the one that is. And sometimes I think the novels that have impressed me the most and the ones that have really stayed with me as visceral works of honest art are the one that you discover had some grounding in the author’s past. You do look at them in a new light and they seem so much more informed. But this novel is not based on my own personal story in any other way than it is about the interrogation and destruction of the family unit.

Thanks for stopping by Nelle!

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Back To You by Natalie -Nicole Bates: Character Interview {CBLS Promotions}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 13:00:00 +0000

Character Interview: Lynsey Reznor tells all about Owen Mitchell

I’m pleased today to be able to interview my character, Lynsey Reznor. Lynsey will be dishing the gossip on one of Unity’s eligible bachelors, Owen Mitchell!

NNB: Welcome, Lynsey! Tell me how life has been since your move from Miami to sleepy little Unity.

LR: It’s been a bit of an adjustment, but over all I’m very happy to be home again among my friends.

NNB: A little bird has told me that Unity is chock full of eligible bachelors. Could you enlighten me?

LR: Well, I don’t like to gossip (wink! wink!) but I can share a little of my insider info with you.

NNB: I heard there is a new addition to Unity—a smashing detective named Owen Mitchell. What can you tell me about him?

LR: Ah, Owen Mitchell. We met in a most unusual way last year—over an open grave at a funeral.
Owen is “very” everything—very attractive, very sexy, very interesting.

NNB: Sounds perfect!

LR: Maybe. But Owen is a provocateur. He pushes the limits in every relationship in his life—personal and professional.

NNB: Provocateur? Sounds a bit mysterious…possible even dangerous.

LR: Owen is harmless. But it will take a certain kind of woman to tame him.

NNB: Like you?

LR: No, my heart belongs to another, and for right now, that’s all I’m going to say.

NNB: Any advice to our single women out there who may be interested in taming Owen Mitchell?
LR: Yes, watch out. I believe that Owen has a very deep, dark secret that he has hiding a long time. The woman who can break him from his secret just may well be his perfect march.

NNB: Thank you, Lynsey, for sharing your insight of Owen Mitchell. Read more about Owen in Back To You, available now at Bradley Publishing.

Publisher: Bradley Publishing

Length: 26,000 words

Sub-Genre: Contemporary

Buy Links: Amazon | B&N | Bradley Pub

On the surface, Lynsey Reznor seems to have it all. She is beautiful, brilliant, and a successful true-crime writer who has been living the past decade in Miami. But what Lynsey lacks is what she needs the most—a family.

After the death of her mother, and yet another failed relationship, Lynsey makes an impulsive decision to return to her hometown of Unity. But Unity will present its own bittersweet memories, most notably, her first love, Nick Lincoln.

Twenty years ago, Nick broke teenager Lynsey’s heart when he decided to marry another. He had his own private reasons—reasons he never explained to Lynsey. Now she is back, along with a chance to reclaim her love. But Lynsey wants answers from him that he may never be able to give out of duty and guilt.

EXCERPT:
When he heard her, he came to her, took her into his arms, and kissed her. It was a comfort that he wasn’t regretting their lovemaking. She didn’t think she could handle being rejected by him twice in her lifetime.

“Do you have to leave soon?” she asked.

“I’m sorry. I don’t want to, but I have to.” He went to the stove and prepared her a cup of coffee. “I think we should start planning our wedding. We could be married at Christmas.”
She was taken aback. Is this his proposal ? This was supposed to be so romantic and memorable, not talk about planning a Christmas wedding while he stirred a cup of coffee.

“Do you even want to get married?” She took the coffee mug he offered. “I mean, it wasn’t that long ago that you told me you weren’t sure you ever wanted to be married again. You said you didn’t see fatherhood in your future, and Nick, I want a baby…more than one. I grew up as an only child and I was so alone. I don’t want my child to have to experience that.”

“Well, I didn’t use a condom last night. You could be pregnant right now,” was his reply.
Heaviness descended upon her heart. This was so not how she wanted this morning to be, and certainly not the marriage proposal she had dreamed of. “I’m on the Pill—I won’t get pregnant if that’s all you’re worried about.”

“I’m sorry, that’s not the only reason we should get married.”

“Then why?” she asked suspiciously.

He let out an exaggerated sigh. “Lynsey, I don’t have time to get into this with you right now. What do you want me to say in the five minutes I have before I leave for work?”

She couldn’t believe his glib attitude. “How about saying something to me like…‘I love you, Lynsey, and I made a tremendous mistake by not marrying you twenty years ago?’ That would take you less than thirty seconds to say, and you could have easily gotten to your precious job on time.”

Suddenly his jaw set and his eyes narrowed. “I didn’t make a mistake by not marrying you twenty years ago! I let you go to become a success in life—and you did. I can’t regret that!”

“So, what I thought all these years was correct. I was nothing to you but a quick and easy way to shed your virginity.” Just saying the words was devastating.

“That’s not it at all,” he vehemently insisted. “You were always so intelligent. I mean, you were a sixteen-year-old senior in high school! Just how many grades did you skip over, anyway?”
“Two,” she answered in a low voice.

“Do you know what would have happened if I hadn’t married Kelly?” He didn’t wait for her reply. “I’ll tell you what. You and I would have been ostracized by everyone in this town! We would have had to be married right away, and we would have had to live with your mother, because I had no money.”

“My mother loved you. She would have been happy to have us live with her,” she interjected.
“And we were so naïve, Lynsey. You would have graduated high school with either a big belly, or a baby in your arms…if you had graduated at all.”

She crossed her arms over her breasts and looked at the floor. She was too afraid that if she looked at him she would break down. “Some of the girls in school were married. A few of them had babies.”

He lifted her chin and forced her to make eye contact with him. “And you were too smart to be stuck in this town, and just another housewife. You would have become bored and resentful.”
“I wouldn’t have known the difference,” she countered.

“I had serious doubts then. I still have doubts now,” he admitted.

Her dark lashes flew upward. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“I believe that you will become bored and restless in Unity and will want to go back to Florida or maybe California. I have a job and a family here, Lynsey. I don’t ever want to give that up. I’m afraid that we’ll have a child, and you’ll take my baby and leave. I can not allow that to happen.”

She couldn’t believe what he was saying. Nothing was further from the truth. “Do you think I would have sunk so much of my savings into that house just to abandon it? I would never, ever do what you’re saying. But if circumstances changed, I would expect you to support what was best for our family. Couples who are committed make sacrifices for each other!”

It was becoming clearer and clearer that things were rapidly falling apart between them.

“Lynsey, didn’t what happened between us last night mean anything to you?” he asked.

She chuckled unpleasantly. “I suppose that with us living in such close proximity, last night was inevitable. But don’t worry about it happening again, Nick. When you get home this evening, I won’t be here.”

“Where are you going to be?”

She wanted to hurt Nick like she was now hurting. “I’m sure that Caleb wouldn’t mind me bunking down at his house for a week or two.”

“Over my dead body,” he seethed. “I will drag you away from him kicking and screaming if it comes to it. I’ll handcuff you to my bed if need be. Believe me, Lynsey, I’ll do it!” He flopped down into a kitchen chair and buried his face in his hands.

“I have to go now, Nick. I’m meeting your sister for breakfast. Listen to me. You need to pull yourself together. In your line of work, bad things happen when you lose your concentration.”
When he didn’t reply, she let out a sigh of resignation and headed for the door. At the last minute she turned to him. “Thanks for almost making it happen between us.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Natalie-Nicole Bates is a book reviewer and author. Her passions in life include books and hockey along with Victorian and Edwardian era photography. Natalie contributes her uncharacteristic love of hockey to being born in Russia. She currently resides in the UK where she is working on her next book and adding to her collection of 19th century post-mortem photos.

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Aladdin's Samovar by Lauren Sweet: Interview

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 13:00:00 +0000

Today I have Lauren Sweet, author of Aladdin's Samovar, on the blog for an interview. Enjoy!!

Describe your book in 140 characters. {Twitter Style}

Amber Polaski finds a sexy genie in a brass samovar and wishes to find her long-lost father, only to learn he’s on the run from the Mafia.

Which came first: The plot or the characters?

That’s a tough question! I guess the characters came first, because the novel is based on an unfinished short story I wrote in grad school, where Jasper came out of the samovar and offered Amber one wish—except I couldn’t figure out what she would wish for. Finally, one of my classmates listened to Amber’s backstory and told me that, if she’d never met her father, that would be her wish. I immediately realized he was right (d’oh!) but then it seemed like too big a thing to fit in a short story, so I never finished it.

It wasn’t until a few years later that I started to wonder what would happen if Amber found her father, but he wasn’t what she expected—if he was, say, on the run from the Mob. I realized that could be the jumping-off point for a novel, and that was when Aladdin’s Samovar was born. So in a way, the plot also came first, because the whole novel grew from that one plot idea.

Which was your favorite character to write? The most difficult?

My favorite is a toss-up between Jasper the genie and Amber’s mom, Indigo, who’s a wacky hippie New Ager, wearing spangly caftans and casting magic circles of protection to keep out the Mafia. Both characters get to run around acting totally outrageous and not caring what anyone thinks, so I got to do some pretty over-the-top stuff.

Amber was probably the most difficult to write, because even though the book is a comedy, she has some emotional stuff to deal with—she finally meets the father she’s never known, and he’s mixed up with the Mafia and she doesn’t know if she can trust him. And she has this annoying, trickster genie who granted her wish in the worst possible way, but she’s developing feelings for him throughout the book. It was hard to get that emotional tone right—making her emotions feel real and important, while still maintaining the comedic tone of the book.

Did you take any personality traits from yourself or other people you know as inspiration for any of your characters?

My three major characters, Amber, Jasper, and Amber’s mom, Indigo, all have aspects of my personality. I didn’t consciously take any personality traits from other people I know. (Hopefully that doesn’t mean I’m a narcissist who thinks I’m the center of the universe. But you never know…that’s what happens when you listen to the voices inside your head.)

I kind of have this little martyr complex about feeling responsible for everything (you know, a Do-I-have-to-tell-you-everything? and If-you-want-something-done-right-you-have-to-do-it-yourself thing), and so I gave that to Amber. (Of course, I surrounded Amber with crazy people, so she probably has a legitimate reason to feel like that.) I also have a New Age hippie spiritual side, so I gave that to Indigo, multiplied by at least a thousand. Indigo lives in her own happy smiling universe, where everything all works out, which is a place I sometimes wish I could live!

Jasper just pops in and out and treats life like one big playtime--with chocolate chip cookies. So he has the playful, zany side of my personality.

Who influences your writing?

For the Amber and Jasper series, I’ve been influenced by mystery writers like Janet Evanovich and Elizabeth Peters/Barbara Michaels—they both blend suspense and humor so well! Also, YA fantasy writers like Rick Riordan and Tamora Pierce, who do a similar mix with magic and humor.

I’m also heavily influenced by TV writers, especially the incomparable Joss Whedon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel and Firefly). The man is a genius at blending horror, humor and suspense—it’s really hard to do that without either losing the sense of danger by being too silly, or being so dark that the humor seems out of place.

I’ve also learned tons from the directors, writers, and producers of Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis. They did these amazing DVD commentaries on practically every episode, where they not only talk about how their stories are created, but what technical choices the directors and cinematographers made in the way they presented the story onscreen, and why. I don’t often find novelists who talk a lot about their technical choices, so I love hearing those guys talk and seeing how what they say can translate to writing a novel. Who knew all those hours geeking out over Sci-Fi DVDs would pay off?

How do you balance your personal life and writing?

Wow, this is an interesting question, because for me the two don’t really conflict. I’m a professional freelance writer and editor, and I arrange my schedule so that the time I spend writing fiction is part of my work day. I think a lot of novelists have to do their writing on the side, scheduled around their day jobs or their family demands, so it does cut into personal time, but I’m lucky that’s not the case for me.

What is your writing space like?

My writing space is the 2nd bedroom of my apartment. It has tons of bookshelves so I can feel like I’m in a snug little book womb. It also has a desk I don’t use, because I do most of my writing in my Poang chair with my feet up on the ottoman (thank you IKEA), and my computer in my lap (they don’t call them laptops for nuthin’!). I’m all about the comfiness factor.

What are you currently working on?

I’m working on the second book in the Amber and Jasper series. The main storyline centers around one of the minor characters from the first book—Iggy the homeless dwarf, who’s been secretly living in the warehouse at the plastic bottle plant where Amber works. Iggy used to be a carnival performer, and he gets a call for help from an old friend from his carnie days. Naturally, Amber, Jasper and Indigo get dragged into this, as well as Madison, the Goth receptionist from the bottle plant.

The whole thing involves a murdered clown, buried treasure, a midget cowboy show, balloon sculptures of questionable taste, and other assorted mayhem. I’m hoping readers will like it as much as the first one!

Thanks for stopping by Lauren!

Book Links: Amazon | B&N | Goodreads

A nice, normal, boring life—that’s all Amber Polaski ever wanted. One where she’s not unchaining her flaky New Age mom from endangered trees, bailing her out of jail, or getting dragged to naked pagan rituals. But when Amber finds a sexy genie in her antique brass samovar, any hope of normal goes up in smoke.

It’s just one tiny little wish—to find her long-lost father. What could go wrong?

Plenty. Dad shows up, all right—with a computer drive full of stolen data and angry mobsters hot on his trail. Now Amber has Fugitive Dad holed up in her Manville, NJ duplex, fending off the Mafia on one side and the FBI on the other. And she has Jasper the genie lounging in her blue plush recliner, conjuring chocolate chip cookies and passing himself off as her boyfriend. While Jasper is trying to tempt Amber with more disastrous wishes—and his seriously hot thousand-year-old body—Amber and her mom are forced to fight off Mafia assassins with nothing but chutzpah and household appliances.

It’s time for Amber to call in the B-team: Iggy the homeless dwarf, Tim the ecoterrorist, and Wanda the Fairy Dogmother with her pack of Happy Puppies. Together, they need to save Dad before the Mob makes him disappear again—permanently!

Excerpt
This is an excerpt from Chapter 2, shortly after Jasper the genie first appears in Amber’s living room.

“You’re really, really a genie,” Amber said. The words sounded strange coming out of her mouth, as though they were being said by someone else. Someone who was much too much like her mother.

“Yup.”

“Okay, let’s say I believe you,” Amber said. “What’s this so-called good part?”

The genie stared at her. “Didn’t you ever read any fairy tales?”

“Ah, yes.” Amber said. “Where you and the samovar go around waiting for someone to rub your belly, so you can give them three wishes and cause mayhem in their lives.”

The genie blinked at her innocently. “Mayhem? Me? Perish the thought.” He paused. “But I wouldn’t mind if you rubbed my belly.” His shirt disappeared, showing an excellent chest and washboard abs. Wow, Amber thought. He must work out a lot inside that samovar.

She forced herself to stay focused. “So you don’t grant wishes.”

He took a slow sip of beer. The shirt reappeared. “Of course I do.”

For a brief minute, Amber longed to be the kind of person who believed, really believed, that wishes could come true and make her life perfect. The kind of person who could start turning over glorious possibilities in her mind.

But she knew better. She had, in fact, read plenty of fairy tales. There was always a catch—a big old ‘wreck your life’ kind of catch. And her life was fine the way it was. Quiet. Normal. Un-disaster-filled.

“Do I have to?” she asked. “Wish, I mean.”

The genie looked at her as if she were an exotic freak. “You don’t want a wish? Come on, everybody wants a wish.”

“Not me.”

“You’re trying to tell me that there’s nothing—nothing in the whole entire world that you want.”

Of course she wanted things, but not with a magical price tag. Amber shook her head.

The genie tilted his head, studying her. “Gucci shoes?” he offered. A pair of red leather pumps appeared in mid-air.

“No.” The shoes disappeared.

“Exotic travel?” A tiny tiger appeared, then blinked out as Amber shook her head again. “A million dollars? Fame and fortune? The perfect husband?” Miniature sacks of gold, a screaming, applauding crowd, and a department-store mannequin came and went with dizzying speed.

“Stop that,” Amber said.

“Then wish.”

“Is that the only way to make you go away?”

“We have so lately met, and already you wish me gone.” The genie laid a hand on his chest and simpered. “You pierce my heart as if with an arrow.”

Right. Amber rolled her eyes. “So what happens if I never wish?” That was one way out of this mess.

He gave her a sickly sentimental smile. “Then I never leave, my sweet.”

Yikes. Maybe not a way out. “You just stay around and annoy me?”

The genie took another swig of beer. “Pretty much.”

“You can’t be serious.”

He made a serious face and pointed to it with both index fingers. Amber flopped back on the couch and thunked her head against the wall. “Fine. Whatever. Please tell me it’s only one wish, though. Not three.”

The genie gave an elaborate shrug. “Who knows?”

Amber sat up. “You don’t even know how many wishes I get? What are you, the genie village idiot?”

The genie shook his finger at her. “Now, now, that wasn’t nice.” Amber fixed him with her best steely glare.

He went on, “It’s in the hands of destiny. You wish, I grant, I disappear back into the samovar.

If you rub it again and I come out, you get another wish. If not, I’m gone from your life forever. You give the samovar a nice wet kiss goodbye,” he paused to leer at her, “and give it away. You’re done.”

“So I might have only one wish,” Amber said. She leaned back on the couch, relieved. She could probably make it through one wish without any major disasters.

“Or you might have a hundred. I could be here for years.”

God forbid. “You can’t even be here for hours,” Amber said. “My mother is going to get here—” she looked at the clock over the mantel and sat up with a shriek. “Aaagh! She’s going to get here any minute. And you cannot be here when she comes.”

Indigo Nightshade and a real live genie. The potential for chaos boggled the mind.

“No problem,” the genie said. “Just wish and I’ll be gone. Let me know when you’re ready.” He shook open the paper and buried himself in the Arts section.

*****

Author bio: Lauren Sweet was born and raised in New Jersey, spending her formative years sneaking books under her desk to read during math class. After working in business administration for way too many years, she finally escaped to Alaska and earned a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the University of Alaska Anchorage. Lauren now lives near Portland, OR, and is a freelance writer and editor. Her other esoteric skills include astrology, figure skating, and the ability to do a perfect split. Website

Death by Chocolate: Guest Post {Bewitching Book Tours}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 13:00:00 +0000

My name is Lucy Swing and I am a YA Paranormal/ Romance author. I was originally born in Argentine, from Italian descent, and moved to the Sunny state of Florida when I was 17.

Thanks to my mother, who reads as much as me – if not more, I became a fanatic of books. I first remember enjoying everything that was stamped with R.L. Stine (Fear Street and Goosebumps) Then I went on to the likes of Danielle Steel and Nora Roberts, thanks to my mom. But I am happy to say that I have finally found MY genre and that is, of course, YA.

I am an absolute book hoarder and must always have a book at arms distance. Music is my muse, and there is always a soundtrack that plays along my life.

I have just finished my first book, "Feathermore" (first of many!) and I am also a part of "Death by Chocolate," an anthology consisting of 6 fantastic YA short stories with a chocolaty twist. Death by Chocolate will be released on February 14th, 2012!

I live in Naples, FL with my husband, our two wild children and two even wilder pups!

I am stoked to be here at “I just wanna sit here and read!” Thank you so much for hosting me today, it is an honor! *Gawks at all the followers and blushes.**Clears her throat and reads off the paper in front of her* Yes people, I am terrible at speaking to the masses. Terrible. Terrible. In school I would feign a stomach virus just to miss oral tests or presentations. Needless to say, I miss a lot of school! No bueno.

Anyway, let’s get off of Memory Lane and onto what I am here for.

I just LOVE the way when I delve into a book I can make the characters look like whoever I please (of course, with the help and details from the author.) Sometimes the descriptions will make someone you know, or a celebrity of some sort, pop up in your head take the role of that character. I have done that numerous times, and when I can’t place a description to someone, I just create them. Always gorgeous. *sighs*

So I thought it would be fun to show you what my characters in “Bloody Valentine” would look like if they were real (or at least, who would play them on TV/movie). I was a little skeptical to this, as sometimes it can affect the way one may perceive the character, but I am just having a little bit of fun!

Bailey: Malese Jow. Mah- what, you ask? She is the beautiful actress that played the role of Anna in The Vampire Diaries, Jeremy’s vampire ex-girlfriend.

Maggie: Brittany Robertson (as seen in The Secret Circle)

Jude: Steven Strait (as played in The Covenant ONLY! If you decide to google him, he looks hideous, only in the movie The Covenant does he look HOT. Just a friendly FYI)

Chance: Nick Roux (I couldn’t pick just one! He is too cute!)

Thank you once again for having me, this was a lot of fun!

Thanks for stopping by Lucy!

Death by Chocolate- The paranormal young adult anthology with a cocoa twist.

Buy Links: Amazon | Smashwords

Back in Time by Stacey Wallace Benefiel

Nothing in Aurelia Lemon's life is turning out how she'd planned. She's unemployed, unattached, and her family bakery is on the verge of closing. To make matters worse, the guy she dumped in high school is doing well and getting rich off of one of her departed mother's recipes. It would take a miracle to right everything she's done wrong. Or maybe just a phone call and the chance to go Back in Time.

Sweet Witchery by Cheryl J. Carvajal

Catalena is only one of many dreamers in a small medieval town in Romania. When the witch Ramnusia opens her chocolate shoppe, suddenly dreams turn into reality. The chocolates are divine, but their power is greater than their sweetness. Miracles abound, dreams come true, and Ramnusia's magic confections become the talk of the town. But if these chocolates can make dreams come true, will they win for Catalena the deepest dream of her heart?

Spellbound by Nikki Jefford

Two months after dying, Graylee Perez wakes up in her identical twin sister, Charlene’s body.

As the daughter of a witch, can anyone blame her mother for attempting to bring her back to life? Only now Gray’s stuck sharing her sister’s body 50/50 in 24 hour shifts.

The race is on for Gray to find a way back into her body before Charlene purges her from existence.

Warlock Raj McKenna is rumored to meddle in the black arts, not to mention he’s after Gray’s invisibility spell and worse – her heart. But Raj might be the only one powerful enough to save Gray from fading away forever.

Bloody Valentine by Lucy Swing

One by one the girls of Hollow High disappear and when Bailey receives a heart-shaped box filled with chocolates she might be next.

Sweet Torture by Kira Saito

Sixteen year old Claudia Bernstein is obsessed with two things: chocolate and Dante Torres. However, being an invisible minion to Upper East Side princess Beatrice Wildenbert isn't helping her get anywhere with her dream guy.

Everything changes over Christmas break when Dante actually starts noticing her.

But are Dante's intentions as pure as they seem? When Claudia finds herself in the middle of a cruel prank, she decides to take revenge. But is revenge enough? Or will she finally realize that her own worst enemy is herself?

The Girl with Three Heads by Suz Korb

Kate wakes up on the morning of the Death by Chocolate fundraiser event to discover she has two extra heads resting upon each of her shoulders. She is not pleased about this. She's even more displeased when she discovers the head on her right shoulder (which looks like Santa Claus, complete with fluffy white beard) is actually Zeus, lord of lightning, or something like that. The head on her left shoulder? Yeah, it's the head of Hera; goddess-of-looking-like-a-blonde-bombshell and getting on Kate's nerves by shouting in her ear all the time.

Will Kate ever rid herself of these two extra heads? Will she ever get to experience an actual kiss from a boy without extra-head-situation interruptions? Join Kate as she struggles to survive being flung into the Underworld, as well as eventually landing upon Mount Olympus.

Just because she's got two extra craniums doesn't mean either head is an extra set of useful brains.

Author Bios:

Stacey Wallace Benefiel is the author of the Zellie Wells trilogy, the Day of Sacrifice series and The Toilet Business, a collection of essays. She lives in an orange house in Beaverton, OR with her husband and their two young children. For more information about Stacey and her other works, please visit her website: http://staceywallacebenefiel.com

Cheryl Carvajal goes by the name Shakespeare at her two blogs: http://creativeartsanonymous.blogspot.com/ and http://notwritinganythinganymore.blogspot.com/ You can also contact her by email at shakespeare824@hotmail.com Over the last decade she has ventured into YA writing. She has three degrees in English, teaches Zumba and works on her writing with help from her husband who is president of Bainbridge College, Georgia.

Nikki Jefford is a third generation Alaskan now residing in the not-so-tropical San Juan Islands with her husband, Sébastien, and their Westie, Cosmo. She is the author of Entangled. Visit Nikki at www.nikkijefford.blogspot.com

Lucy Swing is a mother of two and a wife to a Firefighter/Paramedic. She is the author of the upcoming paranormal YA romance novel "Feathermore". She is a Goodreads author and you can find out more about her writing endeavours on her website http://www.LucySwing.com

Kira is a magic junkie and loves writing YA paranormal romances. Some of her heroes include: Jack the Pumpkin King, Willy Wonka, Larry David, Princess Jasmine, the vampire Lestat, Andy and her Maltese Costanza. You can email her at kirakatwritingservices@gmail.com and you can find out more about Kira on her website http://kirasaito.blogspot.com/

Suz Korb loves comedy. She also loves magic. She loves, loves to inject these key elements into her paranormal stories. She also loves, loves, loves cereal and eats way too much of it whilst novel writing. She’s an expat of the USA now living in England, a mother of two and the author of The Bedeviled Trilogy. To find out more about Suz Korb’s books visit her website at www.suzkorb.com

*Pictures used in this post are from the author, I do not own anything

Kings of Cardenas by Elise Marion: Guest Post & Giveaway {CBLS Promotions}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 10:00:00 +0000

A Writing Mother’s Manifesto, by Elise Marion

A little girl screams. A baby cries. A dark barks and runs in circles. A man yells from the back room of the house. The walls shake. A harried woman tears her hair out and curls up in the fetal position on the floor.

No, this place is not an insane asylum; it’s my house.

Most stay-at-home mothers can identify. While many who work outside the home wonder what we do all day at home with the kids, we know how it really is. The laundry is never done, the sink is always full, and the kids are always…well, being kids!

It wasn’t until after my son was born eight months ago, that I realized just how difficult it would be to manage a writing career while staying at home with TWO children. I wear many hats: chef, maid, nanny, boo-boo kisser, dog walker…and those are just my mommy/wife hats. That doesn’t even include my writer hats: writer, marketer, blogger, tweeter, Facebooker….the list goes on.

There are days when the kids are perfect angels and the writing flows like a rushing river. Those days come about once or twice in a month. Most of the time I’ve barely gotten a paragraph in before someone’s crying, whining, bellowing, or in the case of my Blue Heeler, ‘Boots’, barking.

Yet somehow, entire books get written. Call me crazy, but it’s almost like taking a long road trip without stopping to see the sights. By the time I get to the end of the trip, I can’t even tell you what I passed along the way. But still, the end result is just as satisfying, if not more so. There’s nothing like taking a long deep breath after finishing a manuscript, and allowing yourself to relax. It’s like that feeling of relief a woman feels after giving birth. The only difference is, I don’t get much time to rest before the contractions start again and another baby starts making its way down the birth canal of the mind. With a resigned sigh, I throw my feet back up into the stirrups and push.

Thanks for stopping by Elise!

Publisher: Self

Length: 113,000 words

Sub-Genres: Historical, Mystery/Thriller, Suspense

VBT Dates: Feb 13-Feb 22

Buy Link: Amazon

Rake. Rogue. Scoundrel. Each of these words has been used to describe Damien Largess, youngest prince of Cardenas, most frequently by his ridiculously somber eldest brother. Damien is perfectly content to spend his days drinking at the card tables, and his nights in the bed of his scheming mistress, especially since doing these things seems to vex his high-handed brother to no end. But when he steps into a glittering ballroom on the night of his twenty-fifth birthday, the roguish young prince’s life will be forever changed.

Beautiful. Graceful. Sensual. When Esmeralda steps into the center of the King’s ballroom to perform for his youngest son’s birthday, every eye in the room is glued to the tall, lithe Gypsy dancer. One pair of eyes seems to burn straight through her, and though she has worked endlessly to shield her heart, she finds her defenses slowly slipping away in the presence of the handsome prince. She cannot resist his devastating charm, nor is she immune to the earth shattering desire in his kiss. As she falls rapidly under his spell, Esmeralda dares to hope for a future she would never have thought possible.

With a deadly plot against the royal family surrounding him in danger and intrigue, Damien will face a decision he never thought he would have to make. Would he step up to claim a responsibility that should never have fallen to the third son? Or will he abandon it to risk all for love?

EXCERPT:
“Tell me about that thing you were looking into earlier.”

Damien stood and grabbed the long black instrument from the balcony rail. “This? You’ve never seen a telescope before?” He smiled when she shook her head again.

“My father told me about them,” she said wistfully, thinking of the stories her father used to tell her of his travels. “I’ve never seen one in person though.”

“Well, allow me to demonstrate how it works,” he said handing her the portable telescope and pointed out various constellations. Esmeralda noticed the way his face softened and his eyes lit up as he showed her each cluster of stars and the history behind them.

“I would not have guessed that you were interested in something as intellectual as astronomy.” Esmeralda regretted the words the moment she said them. She had not wanted to offend him. But he merely shrugged and returned the telescope to its case.

“It is not common knowledge,” he said, rejoining her on the chaise. “My less reputable hobbies are more known than my intellectual ones. I have several telescopes, of varying sizes and for different purposes, kept in the observatory in the east wing of the palace. My personal library contains several volumes on astronomy, poetry, botany, and biology.”

“The rumors I’ve heard about you make you seem so superficial,” she said, unable to believe that this man before her who spoke so eloquently of science and poetry could be the same drinking, gambling rakehell she’d heard so many stories about. “How is it that no one seems to know of your many other interests?”

“That is mostly my fault,” he admitted, toying with his signet ring to keep from touching her skin. “I have kept these interests mostly to myself, though my family and servants know of them. Publicly though, I have only allowed people to see one side of me.”

Esmeralda nodded. “I know exactly what you mean,” she said sincerely. “Being a Gypsy who dances in a tavern gives people certain ideas about me all the time.”

Damien knew he was guilty having misguided thoughts of his own about her. “Yes but you are innocent, where I am not. People have the right idea about me.”

“Then why don’t you change it?”

Damien shrugged. “Because for all the gossip that exists about me, people are more concerned with the heir to the throne than with me. Lionus will be king, Serge will be general of Cardenas’ military, and I will be the third son. No one really expects much from me.”
“But surely you must want more than that? To be known as more than just the last son?”
It was like she had read his mind, Damien thought. How could she have known of his desire for a more fulfilling life?

“Of course I want more. It is just that no one has ever expected anything of me, and so I’ve never expected anything from myself.”

“But there must be something,” she prodded.

“I have often thought of founding a university, perhaps even naming it for my father.”
Esmeralda smiled, and her entire face nearly glowed. Damien felt that smile tugging at his insides, twisting at his heart. “That’s a wonderful idea!” she said, her excitement contagious, sparking something in him now that he had given voice to his dream. “I see no reason why you shouldn’t do just what you’ve said.”

Damien studied her face, illuminated by the pale moonlight. “You are a marvel,” he said softly, cupping her cheek with his hand. He had resisted long enough, the urge to touch her had finally overcome his will. “Such freshness and passion,” he murmured, reaching up to slide the white cap from her head. Her hair tumbled around her shoulders; the scent of jasmine grew even stronger. She stiffened slightly when he leaned toward her, but relaxed when he pressed his face to her thick locks and inhaled. “That fragrance is intoxicating.”

“My mother makes perfumes and soaps,” she said. Or at least she thought she said it aloud. Damien brushed his lips lightly up her neck, moving up over her chin, and finding her lush mouth. The moment his lips touched hers, she was lost.

Title: The Second Son (Kings of Cardenas, Book 2)
Author: Elise Marion
Publisher: Self
Length: 105,000 words
Sub-Genres: Historical, Mystery/Thriller
Buy Link: Amazon

Princess Isabelle has spent her entire life bending to the will of those who have planned her life out for her. Sent into hiding when she was just an infant to protect her from the rebellion in her own homeland, Barony, she was betrothed to Prince Lionus from the neighboring province Cardenas when she was just an infant. Despite the forced engagement, Isabelle has loved Lionus all of her life. When a devious plot against the royal family results in her husband’s death, Isabelle is left with a broken heart and an uncertain future. Only one year after his brutal murder, she has no choice but to choose a new husband and return to her homeland to take her place as queen and repair the war-torn land.

Prince Serge has secretly loved Princess Isabelle his entire life. The fact that she was promised to his brother has brought him no end of pain and suffering. The second born son of the king, he has resigned himself to a life of living in his brother’s shadow. After a deadly plot against the royal family leaves Serge hovering on the edge of death, he awakens from a coma one year later to find that his older brother has died and his youngest brother has taken the throne in his stead. His future is now uncertain, but Serge is determined to find his own way in the world now that he has been given the gift of new life. When it is suggested that Princess Isabelle take him as her husband, Serge begins to hope that all of his most secret dreams will now come true.

Despite unexpected spark of desire between them, Isabelle resists the new path her heart is taking as she clings desperately to Lionus’ memory. Can Isabelle let go of her past and learn to Serge return, or is she destined to a life tied to one man as she still mourns the other?
Once united as king and queen, Isabelle and Serge face the monumental task of rebuilding her broken homeland and rescuing it from the clutches of those seeking to destroy it. Can the pampered princess find the strength to stand beside her husband and fight for her people? Will the second son of a king finally get the chance to prove his worth? Can either of them learn to let go of the ghosts of the past and find love?

Set in a world of kings and queens, palaces and royal courts, warriors and battlefields, book two of Elise Marion’s ‘Kings of Cardenas’ family saga continues with a story of love, passion, and destiny.

EXCERPT:
Isabelle dipped her hands in the cool water of the stream, grateful to be out of the carriage after a long day of riding. They were only a few more days from Barony and she would be ecstatic when they finally reached their destination. For the first three days there had been nothing but dirt, rocks, and the occasional tree to look at through the carriage window. Today, the bordering mountains between Cardenas and Barony finally came into view, signaling the half-way point of their journey. Isabelle splashed some cold water on her face and turned back toward camp which was only a few feet away through a line of trees.

As she made her way up the embankment, she saw Primus coming toward her.

“I trust that the journey was not overly hard on you, my lady,” he said as he approached.
Isabelle smiled. “I found myself a bit restless being stuck inside the carriage all day. Do you think it would be all right for me ride a bit tomorrow?”

Primus frowned. “I do not think that would be a very good idea, Princess. We could encounter danger at any moment and I believe that His Grace will agree with me in saying that it will be much safer for you inside the carriage.”

Isabelle nodded reluctantly. “I suppose you’re right.”

Primus glanced pointedly at Francis, who stood guard a few feet away. “A few moments alone, my lady?”

Isabelle turned to Francis and waved him off. “I’ll be perfectly safe here with Lord Primus, Francis,” she assured him.

Once he was gone, Primus turned back toward her with a smile. “I was hoping we could discuss the subject of husband hunting while we have a few minutes alone. Have you given any more thought to your possible candidates?”

“I can assure you I’ve been considering the matter very carefully. I hope to have made a decision by the time we reach Barony.”

“If I may be so bold I’d like to offer a suggestion.”

“It certainly couldn’t hurt.”

He paused for a moment. “Me,” he said quickly, as if trying to get the words out before he changed his mind. Isabelle felt as if the ground had fallen out from under her. He held a hand up to silence her before she could respond. “Allow me to plead my case before you say no.”
Isabelle forced a smile despite the uneasy feeling at the pit of her stomach. She wasn’t sure how she felt about Primus proposing to her. “I wasn’t going to say no,” she assured him. “Please continue.”

“I hope you know how much I admire you,” he said, grabbing one of her hands in both of his. “I hope that you at least feel the same for me.” She nodded, which only encouraged him to continue. His thumb was drawing slow circles against her hand and he was moving closer with every word. Isabelle held her breath and waited. “I know I could make you happy, my lady, and I know that I could rule Barony well.”

“I have no doubt of that,” she said, finding her voice finally. “You have been doing so these last twenty years.”

“Please do not think that this is an attempt on my behalf to gain the crown. I really feel that we could be good together, Isabelle,” he said, using her given name for the first time. “I care for you very much, and in time I hope you could come to care for me too.”

Before she knew what was happening, he was tugging her hand until she was in his arms and kissing her gently. Rather than fight him, Isabelle allowed him to kiss her and attempted to participate in the kiss as well. If she was going to consider him for marriage, she might as well see whether or not she could even be attracted to him.

The kiss was nice enough. His lips were soft and gentle, and while she had been worried that his mustache and beard would tickle her, they did not. His hands rested respectfully on her shoulders and his mouth opened only slightly. When it was over Isabelle felt fine. Not good, not bad. Just fine. She couldn’t help but compare the experience to another kiss and hated herself for it.

“Primus,” she began, “I am very flattered but I-“

“What the devil is going on here?”

Isabelle turned in Primus’ arms to find Serge standing a few feet away, his hands balled into fists at his sides, his expression murderous. Isabelle stepped away guiltily.

“The princess and I were having a private conversation,” Primus said, grabbing her hand possessively.

“I did not hear very much talking,” Serge countered, stepping closer.

“I hardly see how it is any of your concern.”

Isabelle looked back and forth between the two of them, certain she had been all but forgotten in this little drama.

“As Isabelle’s brother-in-law, I would have to say that it is my concern. I hardly think your advances are appropriate considering that she is to be choosing a husband soon. Have you no care for her reputation?”

“How dare you insinuate that I would sully my lady’s character?”

Isabelle, who at this point was quite annoyed at having been accosted by both these men in the last few days and then having to watch them fight over her like two rutting stags, growled in irritation. “For God’s sake, both of you shut up!”

They both grew silent and Isabelle inwardly smiled in satisfaction.

“Primus, I will most certainly consider all that you have said. I hope you will excuse me for a moment so that I can have a word with my brother-in-law.”

Primus, still glaring at Serge venomously, left reluctantly. Isabelle turned on Serge the moment he was out of sight.

“What on earth is the matter with you?” she practically screamed, poking him in the chest with her index finger.

“Me?” he shouted back. “What about you letting that fool kiss you? How long has that been going on?”

“Why should it matter to you?”

“You know why!”

“I never agreed to marry you!”

“You damn well will, mark my words,” he said, taking a step closer and lowering his voice.

“Your arrogance is astounding. You certainly are sure of yourself.”

“Does he make you tremble the way I do, Isabelle?” he said softly, reaching up to stroke her cheek. “Did you kiss him like you kiss me?” His fingertips traveled down to her throat and he lowered his head until his lips hovered inches from hers. “Do you want him like you want me?”

Isabelle swayed and fought to keep her balance. Her lips were tingling, and she was but a breath away from leaning into him. His scent enveloped her and his towering presence weakened her. Her lips parted. “I don’t want you,” she said hoarsely against his mouth.

His lips brushed her lightly. She trembled. “Liar,” he whispered.

******

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: As a child I always had my nose in a book. From R.L. Stine to Chronicles of Narnia to The Babysitter's Club and Sweet Valley High, I read it all. When I started Junior High and found out that the school library had over 400,000 books, my goal was to read every single one! Of course I didn't achieve that particular goal, but I sure had fun trying!

In high school I developed a talent for writing and discovered romance. Needless to say I combined my love for both and am now a published Indie author. After almost a year of peddling my book from agent to agent with no success I decided that my work was good enough despite the constant rejection. That's when I discovered the world of indie publishing through e-books. I couldn't have made a better decision than stepping out on faith and doing something for myself instead of waiting around for someone else to do it for me.

A litle bit more about me: My husband Kevin and I have been married for 4 years and have two beautiful children, Haley (4) and Gavin (4 months). We are a military family, which means I spend a lot of my time alone with two children. People often ask me how I deal with the military life. I simply say, someone's got to do it, right? I am proud of my husband for serving his country.

When I'm not reading (which is almost always) or writing (I try to every day), I am watching movies (which I love), cooking (which I love even more) or watching someone else cook on TV (love me some Paula Deen). I have been singing my entire life and enjoy being my church's choir every Sunday. My large, extended family is close and means the world to me.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Email

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Agorafabulous! Dispatches From My Bedroom by Sara Benincasa: Guest Post, Review & Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 13:00:00 +0000

Publisher: William Morrow (February 14, 2012)
Hardcover: 272 Pages (Excerpt)
Genre: Autobiography/Memoir
Sara Benincasa's Website | Blog | Twitter

From Goodreads. “I subscribe to the notion that if you can laugh at the shittiest moments in your life, you can transcend them. And if other people can laugh at your awful shit as well, then I guess you can officially call yourself a comedian.”

In Boston, a college student fears leaving her own room—even to use the toilet. In Pennsylvania, a meek personal assistant finally confronts a perpetually enraged gay spiritual guru. In Texas, a rookie high school teacher deals with her male student’s unusually, er, hard personal problem. Sara Benincasa has been that terrified student, that embattled employee, that confused teacher—and so much more. Her hilarious memoir chronicles her attempts to forge a wonderfully weird adulthood in the midst of her lifelong struggle with agoraphobia, depression, and unruly hair.

Relatable, unpretentious, and unsentimental, Agorafabulous! celebrates eccentricity, resilience, and the power of humor to light up even the darkest corners of our lives. (There are also some sexy parts, but they’re really awkward. Like really, really awkward.)

Review by Kate
AGORAFABULOUS! by Sara Benincasa, is a hilarious and at times hard journey to read about. Sara writes about her battle with anxiety that turns into agoraphobia. Her comedic timing makes this book really fun to read even for someone who went and overcame so much.

I do not read non-fiction that often but after reading the synopsis I knew I had to get my hands on this book. I have personal experience dealing with someone in my life with anxiety and this book helped me in some ways understand this person better. I felt so bad when I read about Sara's trip to Sicily when she was in high school and had a massive panic attack. Her pain and mental instability was tangible and I wondered how she would recover. Her trip to Sicily was the start to something harder for her to deal with, agoraphobia. Her actions may have seemed strange to an outsider but I understood how having panic attacks turned into a fear of certain place and situations.

Benincasa has a knack for recreating situations and making them very real (and quite hilarious). I enjoyed watching her grow and deal with her issues to make the woman she is today. I liked her ability to turn her situations into something funny that others who have no idea about the disorder can relate to. There were so many quotes that I loved that I dog-eared almost half the book! Most of them are not appropriate for this venue but I can say topics right? (to those who have read it)..."Planned Parenthood" "One night stand" "Urine under bed" "Scissors!"

Overall, this is a wonderful book that I think everyone (18+) should read. I do think that those suffering from panic disorders or the like might get something out of this book, even if it is the fact of realizing you are not alone. But even without the underlying agoraphobia in this book, most situations that Sara gets into I think anyone can get a good laugh out of it. And isn't laughter the best medicine?

*****

For Valentine's Day, Sara did a guest post on why books make the best gifts. Check it out:

5 Reasons Books Make the Best Valentines, by Sara Benincasa

I've spent a fair number of Valentine's Days with gentleman callers, and have even scored a few gifts over the years. Maybe I'm biased because my own book, Agorafabulous!: Dispatches From My Bedroom, comes out on Valentine's Day this year, but it recently occurred to me that a book would make the best possible present for the most romantic day of the year. Here's why.

1.) It's incredibly sexy. I mean, duh. Is there anything hotter than a guy who reads? How about a guy who reads Pablo Neruda's love poems, realizes they're the perfect aphrodisiac, purchases a volume of them, wraps it in pink and red paper and presents it to a swooning lady love?

2.) It's incredibly affordable. Diamonds are boring and often come from ethically suspect sources. Chocolate makes you fat and sluggish. Books have the potential to make you smarter, more interesting, fitter, richer, and better in bed! At the very least, a good read will improve your dinner party conversation.

3.) It lasts forever. Or at least for the rest of your natural life, which is more than I can say for some stinky pile of flowers or some soon-to-be stale red velvet cake.

4.) It won't leave you with a headache in the morning. Reading a book is an inherently good choice, and while its content may vary, the book itself can't make you do crazy things. A bottle of champagne, on the other hand…that's a different (and potentially far more
salacious) story.

5.) It’ll help you weed out an unsuitable suitor. Two words: “The Fountainhead.” You’re welcome.

Now go forth and get some! (Books, that is.) And a happy, happy Valentine’s Day to you.

Click here to watch the book trailer.

Connect with Sara on Facebook and Twitter.

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Moon Over Alcatraz by Patricia Yager Delagrange: Book Spotlight {Sizzling PR}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 12:00:00 +0000

Following the death of their baby during a difficult birth, Brandy and Weston Chambers are grief-stricken and withdraw from each other, both seeking solace outside of their marriage; however, they vow to work through their painful disloyalty. But when the man Brandy slept with moves back to their hometown, three lives are forever changed by his return.

Excerpt:
Three days later we were standing at the edge of a hole in the ground at Holy Sepulcher Cemetery in Hayward, the silence so thick, the insides of my ears buzzed like a distant swarm of angry bees. Mr. Peralta and another gentleman stood off to the side while Weston and I held hands next to the tiny casket.

Weston had chosen a simple mahogany box with gold handles, a bouquet of white lilies graced the top of the small box. I knelt down and laid a kiss on the smooth wood then wiped off the tears that had fallen on the wood. Weston joined me and placed a single red rose in the middle of the lilies.

He helped me up and we stood side-by-side in silence, my guilt over her death like a stone in my empty belly. I missed everything I’d dreamed would be happening right now, yearned for all that could have been.

Weston nodded at the man standing next to Mr. Peralta and our baby was slowly lowered into the gaping maw. She reached the bottom, and a bird landed on the rich brown dirt piled next to the grave. It pecked around, chirping a little song, then flew off - as if saying goodbye. My heart squeezed inside my chest.

I picked up a small handful of soft dirt. “Goodbye, Christine,” I whispered, throwing it on top of her casket.

Weston wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me in close to his side. Why her? Why my baby? Was this supposed to make sense? And, if so, to whom?

We drove home in silence. No words existed to express my grief.

Fascinated by broken-hearted couples and atypical families, Patricia weaves engaging tales of men and women who create cohesive families where love reigns supreme. She sprinkles her books with intriguing characters who struggle to find balance in life after tragedy. Whether an unwed teenager, desperate widow, abandoned father, or a couple who stray from their marital vows, her characters form relationships impacted by their desire to create a family.

Aside from writing, her favorite things to do include riding her Friesian horse, Maximus, dot-to-dot for adults, and watching Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington movies. She spends a majority of her days writing while her two very large Chocolate Labs lounge on the couch cuddled next to her and her MacBook.

She writes a blog every Wednesday, so if you're interested, sign up to be on the mailing list and she'll notify you after she posts her blog on this website. Or just drop by Wednesday mornings and leave a comment. Website / Facebook

Overbite by Meg Cabot: Review {Paperback Release}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 22:00:00 +0000

Spoiler Alert. If you have not read Insatiable there may be spoilers ahead.

Publisher: Harper Collins (Paperback release: February 7, 2012, Original release: July 5, 2011 )
Paperback: 278 Pages
Series: Insatiable #2 (My Review of Insatiable)
Genre: Adult Chick-lit/Paranormal
Meg Cabot's Website | Facebook | Twitter
Buy Links: Hardcover | Paperback | Kindle

From Goodreads. Meena Harper has a special gift, but it's only now that anyone's ever appreciated it. The Palatine Guard — a powerful secret demon-hunting unit of the Vatican — has hired her to work at their new branch in Lower Manhattan. With Meena's ability to predict how everyone she meets will die, the Palatine finally has a chance against the undead.

Sure, her ex-boyfriend was Lucien Antonescu, son of Dracula, the prince of darkness. But that was before he (and their relationship) went up in flames. Now Meena's sworn off vampires for good ... at least until she can prove her theory that just because they've lost their souls doesn't mean demons have lost the ability to love.

Meena knows convincing her co-workers — including her partner, über-demon-hunter Alaric Wulf — that vampires can be redeemed won't be easy ... especially when a deadly new threat seems to be endangering not just lives of the Palatine, but Meena's friends and family as well.

But Meena isn't the Palatine's only hope. Father Henrique — aka Padre Caliente — New York City's youngest, most charming priest, has also been assigned to the case.

So why doesn't Meena — or Alaric — trust him?

As she begins unraveling the truth, Meena finds her loyalties tested, her true feelings laid bare ... and temptations she never even imagined existed, but finds impossible to resist.

This time, Meena may finally have bitten off more than she can chew.

Review by Kate
OVERBITE, by Meg Cabot, is the highly anticipated sequel to Insatiable. I was swept up in the romance and intrigue with Book 1, but this book is on a whole other level. Cabot starts the story off with a bang and throws Meena, Alaric, and Lucien into a whirlwind of action in a very short amount of time.

There is so much I want to say about this book and how it ended but I don't like spoilery reviews so I'm afraid you will have to settle for an unbiased one. :)

This book was non-stop action. It took place over a few short days and I wondered if anyone would ever get any sleep or just pass out from exhaustion! Meena was in the center of the action once again but this time the stakes were higher. Lucien changed a lot since he went into hiding and I feared the worst for Meena when she was around him. I am (and forever will be) an Alaric shipper. Even though he is handsome and rugged, he has cared deeply for Meena right from the start. I hated (in a good way) that they kept misunderstanding each other's actions and feelings for the other. As a reader I wanted to shout at the book something to the effect of: "She/He loves you, just get together already!"

A lot of backstory of vampires and Lucien came forth in this book and I found myself in awe of the tremendous work Cabot put into this series. Everything came full circle and I have to say I was pleased at the bittersweet & sweet ending.

Chock full of mystery, romance, and action, I would recommend this book to adult readers who love a great paranormal book.

River of Time by Lisa T. Bergren: Interview & Giveaway {Teen Book Scene}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 12:00:00 +0000

Did you always intend to create this story through a series? Why? If not, why made you want to make a series?

I knew it was more epic in scope, and would take more than one book to tell the tale. Now that I’m through the first three books, I know there is still more to tell!

What type of research did you do for the books?

I’d done a great deal of research, years ago, in this time period of Italy, for another series, The Gifted (The Begotten, The Betrayed, The Blessed). So fortunately, I could draw on that. Everything I knew about medieval times was really post-Renaissance, so I had to delve pretty deeply.

If you had a chance to be transported in time where would you go and why?

Turn-of-the-century, to Switzerland and Norway and Scotland, to see my ancestors in the midst of deciding to move to America. I would love to know what motivated them, what they had to overcome to do so. That kind of move demands serious strength and faith and optimism. I would love to see them in action.

What is your writing space like?

I mostly write at the library. In one certain chair. When someone’s in it, I sit near them until they leave and then occupy it. I slip on my headphones, listen to soundtracks, and write like crazy. At home, all I seem able to write is on Facebook, Twitter, and email.

What are some books you read in the last year that you love and would like to share?

My favorites were Ruby Red, Unearthly, The Girl of Fire and Thorns, The Iron King, Entwined, and The Help. I review my favorites on my own site, www.LisaBergren.com. If I think a book is just okay, I don’t review it. My goal is to point readers to books I love, not trash those I don’t.

Thanks for stopping by Lisa!

Links: Goodreads | YouTube Trailer | Excerpt

While most American teens would kill for an Italian vacation, the Betarrini sisters have spent every summer of their lives there with their archaeologist parents. And they’re not happy to be back. Stuck on yet another hot, dusty dig, they are bored out of their minds…until they place their hands atop handprints in an ancient tomb and find themselves catapulted into the Fourteenth Century. Gabi emerges in the middle of a dream–or nightmare?–with hot Italian knights in a fierce battle. And so begins her quest to return home…while wondering if she wants to at all.

Links: Goodreads | YouTube Trailer | Excerpt

Gabi knows she’s left her heart in the fourteenth century and she persuades Lia to help her to return, even though they know doing so will risk their very lives. When they arrive, weeks have passed and all of Siena longs to celebrate the heroines who turned the tide in the battle against Florence—while the Fiorentini will go to great lengths to see them dead. But Marcello patiently awaits, and Gabi must decide if she’s willing to leave her family behind for good in order to give her heart to him forever.

Gabi and Lia Betarrini have learned to control their time travel, and they return from medieval Italy to save their father from his tragic death in modern times. But love calls across the centuries, and the girls are determined to return forever—even though they know the Black Plague is advancing across Europe, claiming the lives of one-third of the population. In the suspenseful conclusion of the River of Time series, every decision is about life … and death.

AUTHOR BIO: Lisa T. Bergren is the author of over thirty books that have sold more than two million copies combined. She’s written fiction of all sorts (romance, historical, contemporary, suspense, YA), nonfiction and children’s books. She divides her time between writing, editing, traveling and co-parenting her three children (16, 13, and with her husband, Tim. The Bergrens reside in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Website | Bergrens’ Travel Site | Facebook | Twitter

Giveaway Prizes:
~20 River of Time books (1 book of choice to each winner; autographed if in USA; unsigned if international winner)
~3 Kindle Readers ($79 each, or USD equivalent in a gift card for international winners)

Enter HERE

A Wrinkle In Time by Madeleine L'Engle: Reading for the first time {50 Years, 50 Days, 50 Blogs Tour}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 12:00:00 +0000

Facebook Page | Participating Blogs

It was a dark and stormy night; Meg Murry, her small brother Charles Wallace, and her mother had come down to the kitchen for a midnight snack when they were upset by the arrival of a most disturbing stranger.

"Wild nights are my glory," the unearthly stranger told them. "I just got caught in a downdraft and blown off course. Let me be on my way. Speaking of way, by the way, there is such a thing as a tesseract".

A tesseract (in case the reader doesn't know) is a wrinkle in time. To tell more would rob the reader of the enjoyment of Miss L'Engle's unusal book.

Kate's Thoughts
To be completely honest I am a bit embarrassed at the fact I've never read A Wrinkle In Time. It was one of those books recommended to me time and time again but I never took the leap. Then I thought, "Well I'm too old for that book now…" until I was approached with the chance to read it for my first time. While reading I was fascinated with the world that L'Engle created and I wondered what I would have thought of it if I read it as a child. The complexity of the world was phenomenal, dangerous, and utterly compelling.

Immediately I identified with Meg. At the beginning of the novel she hadn't realized her potential in a society that put her in the "not normal" category. She was awkward and dorky which made me love her even more! She was a girl with braces and glasses (not unlike myself at that age) who just wanted to fit in but knew she never would, at least not where her classmates were involved. Then there was her absolutely adorable and genius baby brother, Charles Wallace, that I just wanted to scoop out of the book and hug! His retorts made me giggle and I found myself caring so much for him. And I think if I read this book when I was younger I would have definitely fell for Calvin. His strength and courage made the little Meg inside of me feel safe in his care.

Besides the characters, I loved the different settings that L'Engle created along with the science fiction elements. It amazed me that this was a children's book and I think it is perfect for any age because I think every reading level will get something different out of it. Overall, I am pleased to actually have read a book I've been meaning to read for many (many) years and I would recommend it to anyone, even if you have or haven't read it before!

Also, with this edition there are a lot of extra features to enjoy, listed below.

The 50th Anniversary Commemorative edition features:
•Frontispiece photo*†
•Photo scrapbook with approximately 10 photos*†
•Manuscript pages*†
•Letter from 1963 Caldecott winner, Ezra Jack Keats*†
•New introduction by Katherine Paterson, US National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature †
•New afterword by Madeleine L’Engle’s granddaughter Charlotte Voiklis including six never-before-seen photos †
•Murry-O’Keefe family tree with new artwork †
•Madeleine L’Engle’s Newbery acceptance speech

* Unique to this edition † never previously published

Drawn by Marie Lamba: Guest Post & Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 12:00:00 +0000

Caught in a Bad Romance, by Marie Lamba

Suddenly I feel like I’m wearing that huge “KICK ME” sign on my back again. Only I, Michelle De Freccio, could manage to be played and then dumped by someone who isn’t even from this century!
(from Drawn, the new paranormal YA novel by Marie Lamba)

Since it’s almost Valentine’s Day, this seems as good a time as any to talk about those bad romances in our lives. I’ve had plenty over the years. The possessive guy. The guy who wouldn’t notice me. The guy who wouldn’t leave me alone. And then there was Mr. Ambiguity, the one who I never really understood and who made me constantly doubt myself.

Yeah, it’s you and me, caught in a bad romance. (Cue the Lady Gaga!) Honestly, I think chocolate and Valentine’s Day are forever linked, because when you see those sappy commercials showing those nauseatingly enamored couples, well, it’s enough to drive you straight to the Godiva’s.

In my new paranormal novel Drawn, teen artist Michelle De Freccio isn’t looking for love. Coming from a high school where she was constantly ridiculed, she’s long past expecting love or friendship in her life. And when she moves with her dad to England, all she’s really hoping for is a fresh start and a little slice of normal. But some unknown guy starts showing up in her drawings. Then she meets him and falls for him: Christopher Newman, the hot medieval ghost with a sketchy past.

Talk about relationship problems. On top of the age difference (a few hundred years), he’s unreliable (showing up and disappearing at the worst of times), he has a temper, and he harbors secrets that involve treachery and murder. There’s plenty of good stuff too, though. An undeniable attraction and bond. A closeness between them. So what’s a girl to do?

As the writer, I pulled from my arsenal of past experiences when creating Michelle and Christopher. NOT that I have any experience with hot medieval ghosts, but I have had my share of shady boyfriends. And I know what it’s like to be as untrusting as Michelle. I’ve been hurt too.

Still, I’m an eternal optimist, and I like to think of those very terrible relationships I’ve endured as training. Army boot camp for the heart. That crappy boyfriend. That awful break up. The long times when there wasn’t anyone at all. These are all just there to learn from. So that you’ll appreciate the nice guy who does treat you right. So that you’ll recognize the one who will always be there for you.

In Drawn, Michelle doesn’t know if Christopher is “the one” or not. Frankly, she has had so little love and friendship in her life that she doesn’t know who to believe in or trust. It takes a lot to really give up your heart to someone, to make yourself vulnerable. Those of us who have been truly hurt know what I mean.

The following scene from the novel takes place after Christopher nearly dies from battle wounds. While he lays unconscious, his life in the balance, Michelle rests beside him and realizes that she really does love him. The following morning she wakes to singing:

The singing is deep and sweet and warm. I smile in my sleep as an arm tightens around my shoulders. I nuzzle into him. It’s a wonderful dream.

“Sing it again,” I mumble.

“What,” he whispers, “without a lute?”

I blink awake. Morning sun fills the room. I’m lying beside him in his bed and his light-green eyes are half-open, his face weary with exhaustion and pain, but he manages a faint smile and says, “So, you love me?”

I bite my lip and at once I’m filled with warmth and a weight in my chest, and it’s far warmer and heavier than last night. I nod and bury my head on his shoulder, wetting his skin with my tears.

“Hush, do not cry. I will heal fine.”

“It’s just…” I sniffle.

He kisses my hair. “I know.”

I force a smile and I suddenly know something with a certainty. “That’s it. I’m not going anywhere. Being normal is overrated. You got that?”

“Overrated. Right. Wait. You can stay? So do you bring news from your time that will help me, then?” His expression brightens.

Warning bells clang in my head. I sit up. “What do you mean?”

“News of the future. We need to work our advantage.” He reaches for my hand.

I pull away. “And without that news, I’m not welcome to stay?”

“What do you mean, not—” Christopher moves to reach for me but winces and falls back onto his pillow. He closes his eyes. “Who did this to you?” he whispers. “Who made it so hard for you to accept my complete devotion unto you?”

Michelle is really the one who is wounded here. Throughout the novel, her feelings for Christopher are seriously challenged as her doubts about him grow. Is he a liar? A murderer? Is he in love with her, or just playing her? And she wonders if it’s “foolish or wise to believe in someone just because you love them so very much.”

Is it foolish? Or is it wise? That’s the thing about love: you just don’t know. You don’t know if the person you fall for will love you back or be there for you in the way you need him to be. Past experiences can destroy our sense of trust, but somehow we need to keep an open mind. To believe past reason. To be brave.

So on this Valentine’s Day I ask that you continue to chase that ghost of love, and to believe that you are worthy. That you deserve it. And I also ask that you remember to appreciate all the people in your life who care about you and support you, because love is never far away.

Happy Valentine’s Day to you all.
xo
Marie

Thanks for stopping by Marie!

Tour Link | Amazon (Only 0.99!)

NJ teen artist Michelle DeFreccio moves with her dad to England in search of a fresh start and a normal life. But then someone starts showing up. And he appears in her artwork, invades her dreams…

Michelle finds herself intensely drawn to him. Is he a stalker, a ghost or a delusion? Is she falling in love, or losing her mind? Only one thing’s for sure: nothing will ever be normal again.

Marie Lamba (marielamba.com) is author of acclaimed young adult novels including What I Meant… (Random House), Over My Head, and Drawn. When she isn’t writing or eating Godiva chocolates, she is working as an Associate Literary Agent at The Jennifer DeChiara Literary Agency in NYC.

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Barking Mad by Jamieson Ridenhour: Guest Post & Giveaway {Kismet Book Tours}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 10:00:00 +0000

Hello everyone! Thanks to Kate and Jess for having me here at I Just Wanna Sit and Read. They’ve asked me to talk about five books that inspired my writing, and I’m going to cheat. Limiting this to single books seems a nearly inmpossible task. So instead I’m going to talk about five authors that inspire my writing, and then I’ll suggest a book by each one. ‘Cause I’ve got the keyboard, that’s why.

#1 Charles Dickens. This may not be as evident an influence in Barking Mad, but I’m in a constant state of admiration of Dickens. No one else can shift so fluidly between styles and moods, no one else can maintain multiple plotlines and characters as adeptly. Is he sentimental? Hell yes, and that’s another reason I love him. I can go back to him again and again and always find more. And he’s funny. Laugh out loud funny. Grand and epic and small and intimate all at once. Read Bleak House and see if you don’t agree. (Or Little Dorrit. Or Our Mutual Friend. See, I told you I couldn’t choose just one). Just avoid Hard Times, to my mind the least Dickensian of all Dickens.

#2 E.M. Forster. I read at least one Forster novel a year. He has a lighter touch than Dickens, and his characters are a little more accessible to modern readers, I think. But his talents, such as using personal relationships to explore social ills, making important points while making us turn pages, are just as deep as dickens. Howards End is simply gorgeous—check out the opening of Chapter Five. And if you’ve done Austen and still want a romantic comedy fix? A Room With A View is a small masterpiece, and is the book I’ve read more than any other in my life. Lucy Honeychurch is one of my literary crushes. You should meet her.

#3 P.G. Wodehouse. Here we get to the most direct influence on Barking Mad. Wodehouse is one of the funniest writers in English, and Jeeves and Wooster are two of the most enduring and endearing characters in literature. Pure joy, these books, and Wodehouse packs more wit per page than any other writer I can think of. If I had to pick one, I’d say The Code of the Woosters, but you’ll want to keep going, I mean to say!

#4 Peter Straub. Again, this one might not be immediately evident, but there is no word I write that isn’t informed somehow by this master stylist. When I got heavy into horror fiction in high school and college, Straub quickly became the writer I most admired. Peter Straub is one of the finest prose writers working, a virtuoso of the finely crafted sentence. His background as a poet bleeds through in the way he uses language not just as a tool for conveying story (though he does that, in spades) but as ambience and soundscape. As a bonus, he also taught me to love jazz. Oh yeah, and he can easily scare the pants off even the most hardened horror readers. His elder statesman status is well-earned; he’s the best out there. Start with the early tour de force Ghost Story, and then move on to the disturbing and brilliant Blue Rose trilogy: Koko, Mystery, and The Throat. He’s still writing, still as good or better than ever.

#5 Neil Gaiman This might be an easy one, and of course I love Gaiman for the same reasons you do—his stories. But the reason I feel particularly inspired by Gaiman as a writer is because the man can seemingly do anything, in any genre. Neil Gaiman refuses to be tied down to novels, or short stories, or comics, or screenplays, or songs, or whatever. He simply does it all. Good storytelling is good storytelling, and Gaiman knows that various media are merely different ways of telling a story. I want to have that kind of effortless facility. I can’t imagine you haven’t been exposed to Mr. Gaiman, but if you’re just starting out, read American Gods, and then the entire run of his astonishing 2000 page comic epic The Sandman. Just do it.

Oh, dear, is that five? But I haven’t even talked about Kazuo Ishiguro’s quiet desperation, or the man-crush I have on Michael Chabon, or the way Sarah Waters makes me green with envy. What about H.P. Lovecraft and the Bronte sisters? Robert Aickman’s strange stories? Ah, well. Drop by for coffee some time. I’ve got some books to loan you.

Thanks for stopping by Jamieson! :)

Goodreads, Amazon, Typecast Publishing, Book Trailer

The year is 1931. The scene is werewolfishly classic English fare. And tonight the moon hangs as full as a royal pie plate in this inaugural Reginald Spiffington mystery when the none too obsequious playboy, Reggie, sets out for a delectably long weekend at Huffsworthy Hall to assist his dear friend, Moony, in his failing endeavor to take the hand of his lady-love and to partake in the culinary talents of the genius chef running the kitchen. With no one reason more important than the next, he ll be off straight after breakfast. Reggie s itinerary for the weekend turns abruptly less toothsome when he decides to solve the unexpected murder of another of the Hall s guests, a guest whose luggage is secretly packed full of nefarious plans. Soon, all Huffsworthy s inhabitants are potential suspects, including Reggie s saucy, quick-witted love-interest, Mimsy Borogrove. Aided by his invaluable valet, Pelham, and armed only with his knowledge of detective novels and a newly acquired set of keener, canine senses, Reggie sets out to find the killer before another meal falls to ruin.

Website, Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads

Jamieson Ridenhour is the author of Barking Mad: A Reginald Spiffington Mystery, available from Typecast Publishing in June of 2011. He is the editor of the Valancourt edition of Sheridan Le Fanus 1872 lesbian vampire novella Carmilla, as well as creator of the award-winning short fairy-tale horror film Cornerboys.

The South Carolina native now lives in Bismarck, ND, where he writes poetry about movie monsters and murder-mysteries with werewolves in them. He also plays wicked lead guitar with Bismarck-based rock and roll band Blind Mice, lectures on vampires and Charles Dickens (though not at the same time), and generally frolics on the plains. He lives with his wife Gwyn and their two children Ian and Eva.

Check out the rest of the tour:

Monday, February 6th - Reels Well Blog

Tuesday, February 7th - A Casual's Reader Blog

Wednesday, February 8th - Evie Bookish

Thursday, February 9th - My Bookish Way's

Friday, February 10th - Bewitched Bookworms

Monday, February 13th - I Just Wanna Sit Here and Read!

Tuesday, February 14th - Books and Things

Wednesday, February 15th - Books and Other Creative Adventures

Thursday, February 16th - Sweeping Me

Friday, February 17th - Reviews by Molly

Monday, February 20th - Unabridged Andra

Tuesday, February 21st - Buried in Books

Wednesday, February 22nd - Hooked on Books

Thursday, February 23rd -Glorious Books

Friday, February 24th - A Cupcake and A Latte

Prize Info: A signed copy of Barking Mad, 4 unique signed character cards and a DVD. Open US/Canada. See full contest rules here.

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The Legacy of Eden by Nelle Davy: Scavenger Hunt {Book Trib}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 13:00:00 +0000

Paperback: 384 Pages
On Sale: January 31, 2012 (Buy Links)

An epic, sweeping tale of a dynasty rotten to the core, driven by ambition, lust – and hatred.

For generations, Aurelia was the crowning glory of more than three thousand acres of Iowa farmland and golden cornfields. The estate was a monument to matriarch Lavinia Hathaway’s dream to elevate the family name—no matter what relative or stranger she had to destroy in the process. It was a desperation that wrought the downfall of the Hathaways—and the once-prosperous farm.

Now the last inhabitant of the decaying old home has died—alone. None of the surviving members of the Hathaway family want anything to do with the farm, the land or the memories.

Especially Meredith Pincetti. Now living in New York City, for seventeen years Lavinia’s youngest grandchild has tried to forget everything about her family and her past. But with the receipt of a pleading letter, Meredith is again thrust into conflict with the legacy that destroyed her family’s -great name.

Back at Aurelia, Meredith must confront the rise and fall of the Hathaway family…and her own part in their mottled history.

Excerpt:
They are a place of work and where I come from, the farms that were considered the most impressive were those that embodied this: well-tended fields, a full harvest, up-to-date machinery. This was the attitude of our fellow farmers and their own farms reflected this. If there had been such a thing as Farm Lore, this would be it.

But my grandmother wanted more. She didn’t see why she shouldn’t and somehow, to the puzzlement and then mockery of their neighbors, she succeeded in convincing my grandfather, the son of a seasoned farmer who had been raised on all the principles I have just described, to ignore what he had been taught and bend to her will.

The result was months of gossip, whispers in the grocery store, lingering stares and tight smiles when they were passed on the street. The farmers themselves made fun of my grandfather behind his back; lamented his impending ruin to each other and begged him to his face to curtail his wife’s madness. You must understand, our town was a community, and that meant that everyone had a small stake in everyone else’s business.

Check out the next stop on the Scavenger Hunt: My Book Addiction and More
And for the rest of the tour, click HERE

Arcadia Awakens by Kai Meyer: Review

noreply@blogger.com (Jess) — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 13:00:00 +0000

Publisher: Balzer + Bray (February 14, 2012)
ARC: 464 Pages
Series: Arkadien #1
Genre: YA Fantasy
Kai Meyer's Website
Buy on Amazon!

From Goodreads.To Rosa Alcantara, the exotic world of Sicily, with its network of Mafia families and its reputation for murder and intrigue, is just that—exotic and wholly unknown. But when her life in Brooklyn begins to fall apart, she must travel there, to her family’s ancestral home, where centuries of family secrets await her.

Once there, Rosa falls head over heels for Alessandro Carnevare, the son of a Sicilian Mafia family, whose handsome looks and savage grace both fascinate and unsettle her. But their families are sworn enemies, and her aunt and sister believe Alessandro is only using Rosa to infiltrate the Alcantara clan. And when Rosa encounters a tiger one night—a tiger with very familiar eyes—she can no longer deny that neither the Carnevares nor the Alcantaras are what they seem.

Hidden caves, dangerous beasts roaming the hills, and a history of familial bloodlust mean that Rosa can’t trust anyone. Torn between loyalty to her family and love for their mortal enemy, Rosa must make the hardest decision of her life: stay in Sicily with her new love…or run as far and as fast as she can.

Review by Jess
ARCADIA AWAKENS, by Kai Meyer, is full of action and mystery and captures this readers attention and does not let it go. Set in Italy it is exotic and unknown and impossible to put down. A new and original tale of Romeo and Juliet.

I really loved this book. It was unique with the tie in of the Mafia and the supernatural. The Mafia theme is mostly underlying and the different families feud against each other not only because they are Mafia families but because they are all different shape-shifters. I really liked the mix of Mafia and supernatural, it was unique.

I liked Rosa as a character, but I felt like she was too closed off from anyone. True it is her personality and a result of experiences in her life but it was just frustrating because with Alessandro in the picture I just wanted them to be together but she would shut him out despite her feelings for him.

Alessandro was a great character! He was of course a dream guy, and also the enemy. He was just awesome. Kind and caring but also a soon to be boss. Unlike everyone else in his family that we get to meet he cared not only for himself but for others. He and Rosa's relationship is an incredibly slow start but I look forward to reading more and seeing their complicated relationship develop.

This was a very original story and I am excited to read more and see what conflicts arise in the next installment. I could not put this book down, it was amazing.

With This Kiss by Victoria Lynne: Giveaway {CBLS Promotions}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 13:00:00 +0000

Buy Links: Kindle | Amazon | B&N | Smashwords

Beauty and the beast: they were the scandal of the town. All eyes feasted on the beautiful flame-haired gambler in London’s most infamous club. But Julia Prentisse was interested only in the rake-turned-recluse whom they now called “The Beast.” She lured him out of the crowded club to a deserted warehouse, where she made her scandalous offer: If he married her and protected her from her uncle, she would help him capture the arsonist who had ruined his life.

An act of heroism had left Morgan St. James burned, scarred for life, but Julia’s bold gaze lit other fires he had long suppressed. And now this glorious stranger was his bride. But when he tried to claim his husbandly rights, she demanded three months grace—three months to know a stranger’s mind, to touch a stranger’s soul, to go where no woman had ever gone before. Into his heart…

EXCERPT:
"Why did you come here?" he asked.

Gathering her courage, she ventured hesitantly, "If you're not too busy, I thought we might do something today. Together. As man and wife."

He released a bored sigh. "What did you have in mind, a waltz? Ordinarily I'd indulge your whim, but as you can see, the orchestra has temporarily abandoned its post."

"I've missed you."

The statement hung in the air between them. Morgan studied her face for a long moment. "There is a term in fencing for toying with one's opponent."

"Are we opponents?"

"Are you toying?"

"I'm not sure what I'm doing."

"Forgive me if I find that difficult to believe. I've never met a more purposeful woman in my life."

A small smile touched her lips. "Is that good or bad?"

"What do you want, Julia?"

She couldn't remember him ever using her name be¬fore. The sound of it rolling off his tongue sent an unex¬pected rush of pleasure racing through her. Idly wondering if his reaction would be the same if she spoke his name, she said, "I thought it might be nice if we spent a little time together, Morgan."

She saw something flash in his eyes, but the emotion, whatever it was, vanished too quickly for her to properly define. "Ah. So that's it." A small, cynical smile curved his lips. His gaze moved over her body with scorching inten¬sity, as though he were able to see right through to her drawers. He straightened and glanced around the empty room, then back at her. "Interesting timing."

Heat flooded her cheeks. "I didn't mean—"

"Didn't you."

"Certainly not. Must you always be so base?"

"You're the one who came to me."

"With the simple proposition that we attend Lord Attmark's boating party this afternoon," she said, seizing upon the sudden inspiration. "That's all I had in mind."

"Lord Attmark's boating party?"

"I thought it would be quite diverting."

"Floating along a river that smells like rancid sewage in this sweltering heat. That's what you came to see me about."

"Yes."

A knowing smile curved his lips. "Liar."

"I don't know what—"

"Liar," he repeated softy.

******

READER REVIEWS:
With This Kiss — A Romantic Times ‘Top Pick’!

“Ms. Lynne weaves her magic to bring the reader a bit of poignancy along with a sexually charged romance in this very satisfying historical romantic suspense. Find a place for this one on your special shelf.” —Romantic Times

Nominated for Romantic Times “Best Historical Romance”

“A smoldering Victorian era romance.” —Booklist

“The unexpected twists in Ms. Lynne’s newest historical entertain and satisfy.” —Publisher’s Weekly

AUTHOR BIO: Victoria Lynne is the author of five historical romance novels. She’s received two RITA Award nominations, and has consistently earned Romantic Times’ “Top Pick” award. Called “A Fabulous Storyteller!” by Rendezvous Magazine, her work consistently draws rave reviews and continues to attract new readers. Her books have been translated into German, Italian, and Spanish, and are currently available online through Kindle and Nook.

Ms. Lynne lives in Vermont with her husband and two children. When she’s not plotting her next novel, she loves to get away from her keyboard to ski and hike.

Visit Victoria on Facebook

Be sure to check out the rest of the TOUR for more great posts, reviews, and giveaways!

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Lovesick by Spencer Seidel: Guest Post & Scavenger Hunt

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:00:00 +0000

The Terrifying World of a Writer By Spencer Seidel

Ask anyone who knows me, and they'll tell you that I can be overly scheduled, neurotic, a tad eccentric . . . Well, I won't go on. You get the picture. Let's just say that sometimes I'm not real good with going with the flow.

Show me a writer who isn't a little strange, and I'll show you a mediocre writer. Writers throughout history have been weird. Hemingway was weird. Same goes for F. Scott Fitzgerald. Do I even have to mention Truman Capote?

I think there's a simple reason for this.

For those of you who don't write, let me describe the concept with an analogy. Suppose you woke up one day with a sense of smell as keen as a bloodhound. Can you imagine how awful that would be? You'd smell everything vividly. Every cleaning product on every surface, your own BO, or worse, everyone else's BO. And I won't even mention that cat box or God forbid, the old cat herself. And that's just the beginning. What about the garbage, the laundry hamper, or the week-old milk in the fridge? Even sex would be a challenge. You'd go mental.

But there's a flip side. Imagine how wonderful freshly baked cinnamon rolls would smell. Or bacon in the morning. No wonder dogs are always begging around for food or dying to get outside. The complex and sometimes overwhelming smells must drive them nuts.

Being a writer is a lot like that, except instead of smells, it's motivations, emotion, and possibilities. When I get into the car to drive to work every morning, it isn't hard for me to make my writer voice say things like, "His last day on earth began just like any other." Yikes! Even on that short drive to my day job, I'm always seeing possibilities. Things that could happen, little things that change lives forever, events that books are made of, like a dropped cellphone on the passenger-side floor that makes someone stray into oncoming traffic, or a blown tire. The more complex the situation, the worse this effect gets. I think this can make writers a little crazy and regimented in their ways as they seek to control their environments.

But, like with our newly found bloodhound senses, there is a flip side. Although some can be extremely introverted, writers are very good at sniffing out people's angles and motivations. I contend that this makes writers very difficult to lie to. Think your writer spouse could never find out that you're having an affair? I'll bet she already knows. Or suspects, anyway. We can be hypersensitive and detect subtle verbal clues and facial expressions people aren't even aware they're using. We do that because that's in part what makes good characterization. That's a powerful thing.

People are always telling me I would have made a great psychologist. I'll bet that's true of most writers. That's because you really need to understand people at a gut level to make believable characters.

That also gets a little hairy. You can't just think about all the good things people do, although there is plenty of that around, despite what you hear on the news. Sometimes you have to live inside the head of a killer or rapist or worse, trying to understand how a character like that would think. It can be frightening.

I mean, what if I find out I sort of like it in there? Damn, there I go again.

Scavenger Hunt Excerpt:
The simple question seemed to calm him somehow, bring him back into reality. He looked down at the body he was holding as if he’d never seen it before. He let it slide from his knees and crumple to the ground in a bloody pile.

Bruce said, “Get him cuffed, Jimmy. And don’t touch anything. Especially that knife. Play everything by the book, just like they taught you. Don’t forget to Mirandize him, now.”
Jimmy approached the kid cautiously, feeling jumpy.

The kid looked up at Jimmy as the siren from another squad car announced the arrival of their backup. Jimmy heard two, maybe three, more police officers jogging up the path. One of them gasped and retched behind him.

Flashing blue and red lights danced on the ground and off the side of the overpass.

Check out tomorrow's stop at Metro Reader and check out the rest of the tour HERE!

A murder rocks Portland, Maine after police discover an incoherent teen sitting in a pool of blood late one night. Paul Ducharme is found with a murder weapon in one hand, the dead body of his best friend in the other, and no clue how he got to the Eastern Promenade Trail.

A teenage love triangle gone wrong brings Spencer Seidel back with a vengeance in LOVESICK (PublishingWorks; $14.95; June 2012), the follow up to his breakout novel Dead of Wynter. Seidel deftly illustrates the trying relationship amid a friend and love interest – each with their own desires, issues and shocking agendas.

Wendy, the girl of Paul’s dreams, has been missing for weeks. Her boyfriend Lee has been murdered–apparently by Paul. It’s an open and shut case–or so most of Portland thinks.

When forensic psychologist Dr. Lisa Boyers is asked to interview Paul, who claims to forget the events leading up to the murder, she reluctantly agrees. In her jailhouse interviews, Lisa helps Paul to recover his memories, but the murder’s circumstances force her to recall her own troubled past.

Media attention mounts. Reporters stream into Portland. All eyes turn to Lisa. She seems intent on exonerating the “brutal teen killer” but quickly finds herself the focus of an over-zealous reporter with a knack for digging up dirty secrets. But the killer who has Lisa in the crosshairs already knows them all.

Thicker Than Water by Sharon K. Owen: Guest Post {Sizzling PR}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:28:00 +0000

CREATING THE CAST FOR YOUR NOVEL, by Sharon K. Owen

Like a movie or TV show, a novel will usually become popular because of five things:

1)The audience likes the plot
2)The audience likes the characters
3)The audience likes the writer/director/producer
4)The audience likes the genre (action adventure, romance, mystery, thriller, horror, young adult, children, documentary, etc)
5)The audience likes the reviews

Often, when they later describe the movie or TV show to a friend, they may not remember the name of the show or even all the elements of the plot but they will probably remember the characters. Again, they may not remember the character’s name but if the actor is fairly famous they will remember him or her.

For example, a friend called me because I’d recommended a movie and she wanted to thank me because she really enjoyed it.

This was her first comment:

“Thanks for telling me to go to that movie. It was great.”

“Which movie,” I asked.

“You know, the one about the bounty hunter from Jersey. The one made from the book written by that woman with the funny last name. The one about Stephanie whats-her-name.”

After a short pause, she continued, “The one with Katherine Heigl—you know, Izzy from Gray’s Anatomy”.

Okay, then I knew. She’d seen One For the Money, the movie adapted from Janet Evanovich’s first novel in the Stephanie Plum series titled—you guessed it—One For The Money.

A few years ago, when I recommended Evanovich’s books to someone, they might have made a similar response:

“Thanks for telling me about that book. It was great.”

“Which book,” I asked.

“You know, the one written by that woman with the funny last name. The one about Stephanie whats-her-name and the sexy cop and the hunky bounty hunter and the hooker and the old lady.

Got it.

The point is, people usually may not remember the creators of a movie, TV show or novel, they may not even be to clear on it’s plot, but they do remember memorable characters and, in movies and TV shows, the actors playing those characters.

So don’t you think it’s important for writers to make developing those main characters one of their first priorities.

I do. In fact, I do a really in-depth development of those characters before I do anything else with the creation of the novel.

In my first novel, I had a vague idea of a plot. More along the lines of an independent woman pursues a music career in Nashville because she wants to succeed without financial or social assistance from her wealthy powerful Texas family. She’s attracted to her sexy landlord and is also trying to make that relationship work. Then, a family crisis occurs and she abandons career and romance to return to Texas and solve a mystery.

That was it.

But I had a clear idea of who my protagonist was and eventually all the main and supporting characters in the novel.

To make those characters believable, I had to know all about them. Not just what they looked like. I needed to know them inside and out: their goals, their personalities, their hopes and fears, their insecurities. Everything down to their favorite food, music, movies, clothes, pets. I needed to know what they’d carry in their purse, what they kept in their refrigerator and medicine cabinet.

This may seem extreme. But the truth is, until you know those characters so well you know how they will react in any situation where you place them, they will not come to life for the readers.

In Thicker Than Water (Brands Crossing Series), Taylor Swift became the role model for my protagonist. Like Taylor, Kate O’Donnell is tall (5’10) run-way model slender (some would call her lanky), attractive, athletic, sometimes a little awkward and a great performer on stage. Kate has red-hair and green eyes unlike Taylor who has blonde hair and blue eyes, but that could be fixed in the movie with Taylor wearing a wig and contacts.

For Phillip Norwood, the computer game designer and object of Kate’s affection, I chose Chis Daughtrey, another musician/songwriter. Chris’ closely shaved head, narrow beard and rocker image was perfect for Phil.

For the antagonist, Troy McTaggart, I chose Timothy Olyphant from the TV show Justified. Troy is a good-looking (complete with dimples) small town cop with all the swagger, skewed dedication to law and order and southern charm of Olyphant. There is also a dark side to Troy.
Okay, there are the leading characters in my book.

Who would you cast in yours?

Thanks for stopping by Sharon!

Thicker Than Water (Brands Crossing Series) is the first in a series of novels set in Brands Crossing, Texas. It chronicles the lives of the Kincaids, a prominent family in this mythical town, and focuses on a mystery that extends back to the mid-eighteenth century and the young Texas Republic.

As a child, KATE O'DONNELL spends summers at her grandparents' estate in Brands Crossing, Texas where she battles make-believe monsters, rescues endangered victims and a saves a mythical kingdom.

At twenty-five Kate is a singer/songwriter living in Nashville and pursuing a promising relationship with computer game designer PHILLIP NORWOOD. There, her only battles are fought in Aidenne's Revenge, Phillip's online fantasy game based on her childhood adventures.

When her grandfather is critically injured in a suspicious car crash, Kate abandons career and romance to return home to solve the mystery.There, she searches for incriminating documents, investigates a centuries-old family feud and confronts an anonymous rose-bearing admirer who stalks Kate in both real and virtual universes.

Sharon K Owen is a fiction writer, a university professor, an online writing instructor, a freelance writer, a copy editor and a consultant for social media and self-publishing projects.

Her first novel: Thicker Than Water (Brands Crossing Series) was published in 2011 and the second book in the series, Whatever Goes Around, will be published in March, 2012.

Sharon’s short stories and poetry have been published in Descant, Concho River Review, Iron Horse, American Literary Review, Trinity Writer's Workshop newsletter and collections of Christmas stories.

She shares a cozy sanctuary in a small lakeside town in North Texas with her two cats (Matt and Cinders).

E. Van Lowe Valentine Giveaway Tour {Bewitching Book Tours}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 13:00:00 +0000

How I Became A TV Writer, by E. Van Lowe

People always ask me how I got started writing for television. Growing up in New York I had no desire to write for TV or film. I knew I was destined to become a playwright/novelist. I’m lucky enough to say I am a playwright and a novelist, but most of my career has been spent writing for TV and some film.

This started when I finished college. I had written my first horror novel Child’s Play under the pseudonym Sal Conte. My mentor/professor from USC, Shelly Lowenkopf had high hopes for the novel. And since he did, so did I. I envisioned getting one of those dream advances. I would become a media darling, taking up the author’s seat on late-night couches. That did not come to pass.

After Child’s Play was rejected by all the major houses, I got the manuscript back from my agent. Dejected, I went to a newsstand and was looking over paperback original horror.

Many of them seemed to be similar to what I was doing. I sent letters to a number of the publishers, and heard back from Dorchester. I sent them the manuscript and a few weeks later I received a contract in the mail. The advance was $5000. If I wanted to write full time I needed a writing gig that paid a whole lot more.

I was lamenting my situation to a friend who said “why don’t you try writing for TV?” My brother and I watched lots of TV when we were kids. I mean LOTS of TV. LOL. Having watched so much, I felt I had a good handle on TV, but I’d never seen a teleplay. I’d spent two and a half years at USC and not bothered to look at anything dealing with television.

The calling card for a TV writer is his/her spec script. This is an episode of a popular show that you write. You have to make sure you don’t write subjects the show has already covered, and you have to sound exactly like the show. That was the challenge for me: fresh idea on a popular show, while capturing the characters voices exactly. It’s not as easy as it seems. You need a good script, and a lot of luck to get the right people to read it.

Eleven spec scripts in, my luck kicked in. I met a producer at MTM, one of the major production companies back then—Taxi, Bob Newhart and The Mary Tyler-Moore Show. It was Mary’s company—MTM. The producer was honest enough to tell me I was doing everything wrong. He mentored me on writing a new spec script. The script caught the eye of a few big companies. Both wanted to sign me. Happy days. I signed with Universal in 1985, and haven’t looked back. For Universal TV I wrote, He’s The Mayor, Charles In Charge and Knight Rider. One thing I knew when I started working was one day I would return to writing books. Books were my first love. What I didn’t realize is it would take twenty-two years.

That’s how it happened for me. I kept writing and eventually got lucky. That, to me, is the formula for success as a writer—if you keep working hard, eventually you will get lucky. The first four chapters (pdf) of Boyfriend From Hell are available for free right now on my website. Readers can go to http://evanlowe.com/ and click on the Boyfriend From Hell Sample link to get them. If you like them, both Boyfriend from Hell and Earth Angel are available on the purchase page. I hope you will give my books a try.

Thanks for stopping by E!!

Aww, Hell No!

Fifteen year-old Megan Barnett and her single mom, Suze, have a special relationship—they are friends, close friends, who do almost everything together.

“But come on, guys, she’s my mother… Can I really tell her that while we’re snuggled up on the sofa watching Spider Man Three, I’m secretly undressing James Franco with my eyes? Of course not…”

The special bond takes a turn for the worse when Suze decides to start dating again. She hasn’t had a man in her life since Megan’s father left ten years ago.

Enter two mysterious young men, Megan’s new classmate, sinfully attractive bad boy, Guy Matson, and the dangerously handsome art dealer, Armando. Before long Megan and Suze both wind up in steamy relationships. But neither of the handsome guys is quite what he seems. In fact, one of them is Satan, with his sights set on a new bride. Megan has precious little time to figure out how to stop him. If she doesn’t, either Megan or Suze are quite literally going to HELL.

Heaven Can Wait!

Just because Megan Barnett recently defeated Satan, has a fantastic new best friend, and has won the love of deliciously handsome, Guy Matson, doesn’t mean her troubles are over. Far from it. For Megan doesn’t realize it, but in her possession is a powerful weapon, a weapon sought after by both angels and demons and everything in between. They will do ANYTHING to get it.

In E. Van Lowe’s humorous, romantic and thrilling sequel to Boyfriend From Hell, Megan winds up in a gripping life or death battle to save herself, the boy she loves, and all of mankind from unthinkable evil.

Megan Barnett has recently defeated Satan, found a fantastic new best friend, and has won the heart of deliciously handsome, Guy Matson. But that doesn’t mean her troubles are over. Far from it. For Megan doesn’t realize that she is in possession of a powerful paranormal weapon, a weapon sought after by both angels, demons and everything in between.

On the night of her middle school graduation, Margot Jean Johnson wrote a high school manifesto detailing her goals for what she was sure would be a most excellent high school career. She and her best friend, Sybil, would be popular and, most important, have boyfriends. Three years later they haven’t accomplished a thing!

Then Margot and Sybil arrive at school one day to find that most of the student body has been turned into flesh-eating zombies. When kooky principal Taft asks the girls to coexist with the zombies until the end of the semester, they realize this could be the perfect opportunity to live out their high school dreams. Now all they have to do is stay alive…

About The Author: E. Van Lowe is an author, television writer, screenwriter, Playwright and Producer who has written and produced such shows as The Cosby Show, Even Stevens, and Homeboys In Outer Space.

He has been nominated for both an Emmy and an Academy Award. Van Lowe recently stepped into the young adult fiction genre with his comedic novel, Never Slow Dance With A Zombie. It was a selection of the Scholastic Book Club, and a nominee for an ALA Award. Boyfriend From Hell is Van Lowe’s second YA novel.

Website | Blog | Facebook

E Van Lowe is giving away a signed set of his books: Never Slow Dance With A Zombie, Boyfriend From Hell and Earth Angel.

Along with a fun Valentine theme YA Gift Basket containing a plush puppy, a heart mug, an ARC of Wintertow by Stephen Emond, devil socks, devil and angel duckies, RockStar Sweethearts, Red Hots Lip Balm, Bath and Body Works pocket bac, and travel size Pink Chiffon lotion, pencils and a Bewitching Book Tours bookmark.

*The giveaway is open to US Only*

LINK TO GIVEAWAY FORM

Bodyguard of Lies by Donna Del Oro: Guest Post {Sizzling PR}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 13:00:00 +0000

THE FUN AND CHALLENGE OF ON-SITE RESEARCH

Is there a correlation between a novel’s verifismilitude and the on-site research that the author does to make the story come alive? You bet there is. Having boots on the ground, so to speak, affords a writer the opportunity to soak in the atmosphere of a place: The sights, sounds, smells, micro-weather changes, and the flow of traffic and people. In essence, the local color and vagaries.

Moreover, being on-site inspires a lot of ideas for plot and characterization. In June of 2009, my sister and I took a 12-day Globus motorcoach tour that began in London and took in southwest England, Wales, Cornwall, the Republic of Ireland and eventually parts of Scotland. As the motorcoach, full of passengers from all over the English-speaking world, toured from country to country, our escort guide regaled us with the history, economics, politics and local lore of the area. In addition to learning a lot, we tasted the various fares, tipped a few pints of the local ales and beers, and realized the unique qualities of each region. From the beauty of Cornish farms to the Welsh red-dragon flag, each area bespoke its own quaint history.

This trip was strictly a vacation but before long, ideas for a spy mystery-thriller began spouting like a fountain of muses. Imagine, I thought to myself, an FBI agent recruited by MI-5 to go undercover and investigate an elderly, naturalized American grandmother, suspected of war crimes during World War II. I knew my World War II history, knew that the Republic of Ireland was neutral during the war and that German U-boats sometimes surfaced in the Irish Sea, occasionally dropped off Nazi spies, and even stopped to share some pints of ale with the local Irish. I also knew that the Allied countries of the war had never stopped hunting for Nazi war criminals, and that some of those very Nazis had immigrated to the U.S. under false identities.

Imagine that an elderly woman and her granddaughter could be passengers on a similar motorcoach tour, visiting the grandmother’s home country of Ireland one last time. What if the grandmother, due to coincidences of name and origin, is suspected of being a ruthless Nazi spy, never caught by the Allies, and who allegedly has spent the past sixty-five years of her life in a cocoon of lies?

What if the handsome, single FBI agent, Jake Bernstein—a Jewish-American whose German-born grandfather had narrowly escaped the death camps—finds himself attracted to the suspect’s beautiful granddaughter, Meg? To what extent is Jake tempted to compromise his investigation because of his budding relationship with Meg? Yet, by-the-book Bernstein considers himself fair-minded, and wouldn’t let anything or anyone interfere with an objective investigation. What if the clever, cagey grandmother stays one step ahead of Jake’s investigation? How does she manage that?

Thus was born my first spy thriller, A BODYGUARD OF LIES. *

The sights and smells I experienced made their way, of course, into the story. In fact, the very personal experiences I had during that tour evoked so many plot points and scenes that my notebook was smoking at the end of each day. First-hand experiences, not nearly as exciting as the story I envisioned, were sometimes not enough. In certain chapters, for example, such as Cardiff, Killarney and the Irish Stud Farm, I supplemented first-hand experiences with city maps and tourist brochures.

In capturing the dialect of the local people, however, on-site experience was vital. I doubt the local jaunty cart driver realized that I was capturing nearly word-for-word his little, humorous spiel. Yep, his schtick showed up in my novel and still makes me laugh when I read it. Had I not walked the streets of Killarney, I would never have known that two Saint Mary churches were located near each other. One was a Catholic cathedral and the other was a small, Episcopalian church. That distinction played an important role in my story and helped to convince Jake Bernstein that Mary McCoy Snider wasn’t who she claimed to be. I kept filling my notebooks as the plot and characters crystallized in my mind, each little detail of local life inspiring another plot point or character quirk.

Our later visit to Hannover, Germany to visit our good German friends, the Sandrocks and their daughter, Steffi, resulted in the chapters set in Berlin and Hannover. Learning that Hannover, in northern Germany, was 90% destroyed by Allied bombs during WW II helped me to add nuances of sympathy and depth to otherwise stock neo-Nazi characters. The Engesohde cemetery in Hannover became the site of the story’s shattering climax. I could not have written those scenes without walking the very steps taken by Meg and her grandmother.

Researching the history online or in books, for me, is never enough. For me, the story and characters come alive more believably—and more enjoyably as a writer—when I can travel in my characters’ footsteps. See what they see, hear what they hear, and so on. I know that my stories benefit greatly from going the extra mile.

Thanks for stopping by Donna!

Buy Link: Amazon

A BODYGUARD OF LIES (release: Jan. 13th) has a dual setting, a contemporary one and a WWII/London setting. It's a blend of romance, mystery and WWII espionage. I researched it while in England, Ireland and Germany in 2009. The story involves a Jewish-American FBI analyst, who's recruited by MI-5 to go undercover and investigate a naturalized American grandmother. The elderly woman is suspected by MI-5 of being a notorious Nazi spy never caught by the Allies during the war, who caused the deaths of thousands and is wanted for war crimes. Jake Bernstein runs into a series of unexpected obstacles and complications: This spy knows a secret that could endanger the royal family; the old woman has a beautiful granddaughter who threatens to derail his investigation; a neo-Nazi group in Ireland known as the Celtic Wolves; and a clever, cagey old woman who's not as weak as she looks.

Excerpt:

The major handed Jake a secure mobile phone, which he tucked into his jacket’s inside pocket. Acknowledging the older man’s military background and bearing, Jake gave a quick half-salute, biting back the sarcastic retort that sprang to mind. I’m thirty-two, Major, not thirteen.

“Will do, Major,” he said and grabbed the handle of his suitcase. “Where the hell is this motor coach going, anyway? Besides the Republic of Ireland?” Major Temple’s bushy gray eyebrows arched. “No, didn’t have a chance to read the itinerary. Too busy with the files.”

Temple chomped on his pipe, one side of his mouth upturned in another wry smile. Jake sensed the man was holding something back.

“Southwest England, Wales, Republic of Ireland, a bit of Scotland. Two weeks’ worth.”

“And if I conclude this investigation in less time?”

“Then we debrief and back home you go. We’ll handle the filing of charges and arrest warrants if needed. Extradition, if necessary, for Mrs. Snider. Well then, good luck, ol’ man.”

Jake nodded and took his leave. Outside, he hailed the guide, a friendly, outgoing sort who introduced himself as Robert Morse. The man quickly turned the suitcase over to the driver, who stowed it in the storage bin at the side of the motor coach. As soon as Robert checked him in and indicated that he could take on board his carryon, Jake moved to the coach’s front door. He suddenly stepped aside as a young, very pretty blonde climbed down, spun around and helped an elderly woman descend.

“Sorry, Robert, my grandmother has to visit the restroom.”

The blonde glanced over at Jake, grinned in greeting, then took her grandmother’s arm and followed the direction of Robert’s sweeping arm. The two women entered the glass-fronted hotel lobby and walked slowly around the corner of the lobby’s counter. Jake’s gaze clung to them.

So there they were. Mary McCoy Snider and her granddaughter, Meghan Larsen. What a hottie!

“Quite a looker, that one,” Robert murmured them, his eyes following their progress as well.

An understatement, Jake thought as he nodded to the man in agreement. The granddaughter was lovely—had the face and figure of a Hollywood starlet. She had a wholesome but sexy look about her. The red lipstick she wore accentuated her full, sensual mouth; her deep-set blue eyes were large and luminous. A boxy navy-blue pea jacket concealed some of her curves, but the overall effect of a beautiful, symmetrical face, a tanned complexion, long blonde waves partly covered with a large, black beret, and graceful motion was powerful. Like a slap of warm sunshine in this cold, damp country. Seduc—er, schmoozing that girl was going to be a perk, not a chore.

Already, he was warming to this assignment.

The grandmother, bulky in a long wooly coat, looked attractive despite her purported eighty-five years of age. The elderly woman was well preserved, he decided, and must have been quite a beauty in her youth. Like her granddaughter, she would’ve turned men’s heads and carried her power over them like a Hollywood pinup girl.

“Would you care to board, Mr. Schoenberger?”offered Robert, the tour guide, interrupting his reverie.

“Call me Jake. I’ll wait until the women return.”

The tour guide tossed him a knowing smirk.

A few minutes later, Jake was helping the elderly womb up to the steep first step. Mary McCoy Snider paused on the steps, holding onto the railing on the coach’s door, and looked back at Jake, her dark blue eyes sharp with intelligence.

“Thank you, young man. What’s your name?” she asked, a slight Texas drawl softening her naturally strong, clear voice.

“Jake. Jake Schoenberger from Virginia.” He smiled up at the elderly grandmother, who then nodded and moved up into the coach. He slid his gaze down to the granddaughter, who’d paused at the coach’s door. The top of her head came to his jawline.

“Thanks for helping, Jake,” she said, blinking up at him before climbing the steps herself. Her long honey-blonde hair brushed his shoulder when she moved past him. There was a self-conscious shyness in her manner. Which Jake found odd, for such a beautiful woman. Wow. His pulse revved up.

Dude, you’re on duty.

Wasn’t that why they chose him? Get close, peel off the layers of distrust…

He proceeded up after Meghan Larsen, appreciating the rear view. Too bad, he thought, when the two women took seats near the front of the packed coach. The one vacant double-seat was in the rear of the coach. He nodded a friendly greeting to all of the passengers as he passed them on his way to the back. They were mostly couples but another single man, an older guy in his fifties, sat alone at the halfway point in the coach. Two women of about the man’s same age—maybe mid-forties—were behind him. They perked up as he walked by, shot him wide smiles beaming with anticipation.

He knew that look.

After stowing his carry-on underneath the empty seat next to him, Jake sat down. His long legs brushed against the seat in front. Damn, like traveling in coach. Two weeks in this freakin’ bus—how was he going to stand it?

He leaned over. From his vantage point, he could see the blonde’s wavy locks falling about her shoulders. She was sitting on the opposite side of the coach in the aisle seat, her grandmother in the window seat. Damn, he’d have to find a way of sitting closer to them. Maybe their seats on the coach weren’t fixed ...or he could feign motion sickness and ask Robert to place him further forward.

As he was plotting a way to chat up Mary Snider and her granddaughter, the blonde swiveled her upper body and looked down the aisle. Their eyes locked together briefly and she smiled. Despite a night without sleep and heavy with jet lag, his pulse kicked up. Something lurched in his chest. His groin clenched. Jake returned the smile.

Good, he thought, she noticed me. Contact with targets made.

*******

Donna Del Oro spent her childhood in two places, Silicon Valley, CA and the countryside of East Texas, as her father tried several job opportunities. Finally settling in Silicon Valley, she grew up in a bilingual, bicultural world--Spanish on her mother's side and English on her father's. Comfortable in both worlds, she decided upon retiring from teaching to write about her Hispanic side. Four women's fiction books resulted and a series about professional singers, their careers and love lives. Retired and devoting much of her abundant free time to exercise, writing, singing and her grandson, Donna has finally reached a point in life that totally satisfies her. Life is good and she has no complaints, just a lot of gratitude for her many blessings. Website

Girl Meets Boy: Guest Post {Blog Tour}

noreply@blogger.com (Kate) — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 10:29:00 +0000

Girl Meets Boy is a “he said-she said” collection of stories by twelve of the best YA authors in the business. They explored how a boy and a girl can see the same event quite differently in story pairs.

Chris Crutcher and Kelly Milner Halls explored how a dangerous girl named Wanda could turn a handsome guy named John’s world upside down. Joseph Bruchac and Cynthia Leitich Smith introduced basketball warrior Nancy Whitepath and the shy boy, Bobby Wildcat who secretly loves her. Ellen Wittlinger and James Howe captured a boy named Cal’s yearning for love, and his puzzling meeting with a girl named Alex. Terry Davis and Rebecca Fjelland Davis proved love can be tough for a Muslim boy and a Christian farm girl. Sara Ryan and Randy Powell proved things aren’t always what they seem with Gavin and Steph.

We asked each of the authors to give us one more glimpse into their characters’ personalities by answering a quirky question. Check out their answers below.

If your character in GIRL MEETS BOY got a tattoo, what would that tattoo be?

Chris Crutcher – John -- Since he's a kid he would probably have tattooed the girl’s name to some visible part of his body and then spent the rest of his life trying to find a girl with that same name so he didn't have to remove the tattoo.

Kelly Milner Halls – Wanda – A broken heart, carefully hidden where no one could see it, without invitation.

Joseph Bruchac – -- He’d get an arm band tattoo of Cherokee or Choctaw design around his left bicep.

Cynthia Leitich Smith – Nancy -- Smurfette, spinning a basketball.

Ellen Wittlinger – Alex -- Alex would get an arrowhead on the small of her back.

Terry Davis – Rafi -- It would be RIDE FAST, LIVE FOREVER. But I need to rewrite
and give him a motorcycle, so he has something to ride fast on.

Rebecca Fjelland Davis – Kerry -- A flying pig--to represent free, organic life for pigs.
Randy Powell – Gavin -- A fierce looking knight holding a shield and sword.

Sara Ryan – Stephanie – A semicolon

Book Trailer | Buy Link | Tomorrow's Stop: Addicted 2 Novels

Wattpad Contest

The Girl Meets Boy writing contest is now live on Wattpad!

Wattpad is featuring the guy’s side of the story, and inviting their members to write same scene from the girl’s perspective. Stories should be no more than 300 words long, and the deadline is February 8th. Winners will be announced on February 14th.

One Grand Prize winner will get:

· A copy of Girl Meets Boy signed by all 12 contributors
· A critique of 25 pages of writing by editor Kelly Milner Halls
· A 30-minute Skype consultation with Kelly
· A copy of Kelly’s favorite how-to book on writing

Four runners-up will win a copy of Girl Meets Boy signed by all 12 contributors

ENTER HERE