The Magnolia Bay Series by Kim Boykin and Erika Marks - Spotlight and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Erika and Kim will be awarding a $15 Starbucks card to a randomly drawn winner during the tour via the rafflecopter at the end of this post.

Willamena Dunn is having a lousy week. Not only is her baby sister about to marry into the family of Dunn-Right Preservation’s biggest professional rival, but the historic bungalow of her dreams has just been bought by the most infuriating (not to mention exceedingly handsome and notoriously wicked) man to ever hammer a nail in Magnolia Bay, Knox Loveless. 


But when Knox offers her a wager she can’t refuse, a bet with the coveted bungalow as its prize, Willa is sure her bad luck might finally be turning around—until Knox surprises her with a passionate kiss, and suddenly all bets are off.

Could this be just another one of Knox Loveless’ games, or will two rivals finally surrender to a long-simmering attraction and declare a truce once and for all?

Darcy Vance has sunk every cent she has into making Mimosa House the best bed and breakfast in Magnolia Bay. But the key to her success lies in the hands of the Historic Preservation Society run by the Bloom bitches who are embarrassed about their father’s connection to the storied house and they have no intention of validating it with a spot on the society’s registry.

After losing his PGA card, Trent Mauldin has come home to Magnolia Bay to lick his wounds and has no plans to stay. Until he falls for Darcy. Things heat up between the two until Trent’s good intentions to help Darcy go sideways. While Darcy works to save her house, Trent fights to win her back and keep her in Magnolia Bay for good.

Enjoy an excerpt from Sweet Home Carolina
Kim Boykin
©Copyright 2014

The ancient clock that came with the house chimed the hour. As I shinnied down the ladder, I ran through the to-do list in my head—shower at ten, hair appointment at eleven, then back to the grind of turning Mimosa House into a stellar bed-and-breakfast. My brain counted the bongs as they reverberated off of the walls of my new lease on life that came with a seven-figure mortgage. Nine. Ten. Eleven. “Eleven? Shit.”

I stepped into my good flip-flops by the front door, the ones with hardly any paint on them, grabbed my purse and keys, and sprinted toward the Jeep.

“Yankee.” The hiss came from my lovely neighbor, Mr. Hunsucker, who was somewhere between five and a hundred and five years old and wasn’t at all happy I was opening a B&B. He was watering the prize roses he’d accused me of pilfering on more than one occasion. Okay, so when I thought no one was looking, I’d pulled a spent blossom off, just to smell it, which made me a flower thief and a Yankee.

“Good morning, Mr. Hunsucker,” I called and then ducked into the Jeep before the spray drenched my windshield. Missed me.

Looking up at him in my rearview mirror, he only held up his middle finger a few seconds this time. A new record. Yep, I was definitely growing on him.

Kim Boykin is a women's fiction author with a sassy Southern streak. She is the author of The Wisdom of Hair, Steal Me, Cowboy, and Palmetto Moon (Summer 2014.) While her heart is always in South Carolina, she lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, with her husband, 3 dogs, and 126 rose bushes.

http://kimboykin.com/

https://www.facebook.com/authorkimboykin

https://twitter.com/AuthorKimBoykin

http://tulepublishing.com/product-category/kim-boykin/

Erika Marks is a women's fiction writer and the author of LITTLE GALE GUMBO, THE MERMAID COLLECTOR, THE GUEST HOUSE and IT COMES IN WAVES (July, 2014). On the long and winding road to becoming published, she worked many different jobs, including carpenter, cake decorator, art director, and illustrator. But if pressed, she might say it was her brief tenure with a match-making service in Los Angeles after college that set her on the path to writing love stories (not that there isn't romance in frosting or power tools!) A native New Englander, she now makes her home in Charlotte, NC, with her husband, a native New Orleanian who has taught her to make a wicked gumbo, and their two little mermaids.

http://www.erikamarksauthor.com/

https://www.facebook.com/ErikaMarksAuthor

https://twitter.com/erikamarksauthr

http://tulepublishing.com/product-category/erika-marks/

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Her Perfect Mate by Paige Tyler - Exclusive Excerpt and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Paige will be awarding an X-OPS Prize Pack: X-OPS Key Chain, X-OPS Button, X-OPS Trading Cards featuring the hero and heroine, X-OP Bookmarks, X-OPS Dog Tags, and Plush Cat to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour (US shipping only). Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

He's a High-Octane Special Ops Pro

When Special Forces Captain Landon Donovan is chosen for an assignment with the Department of Covert Operations, he's stunned to find his new partner is a beautiful woman who looks like she couldn't hurt a fly, never mind take down a terrorist.

She's No Kitten

Ivy Halliwell isn't your average covert op. She's a feline shifter, and more dangerous than she looks. Her feline DNA means she can literally bring out the claws when things get dicey. She's worked with a string of hotheaded military guys who've underestimated her special skills in the past. But when she's partnered with special agent Donovan, a man sexy enough to make any girl purr, things begin to heat up. He doesn't think she's a freak-and he's smokin' hot. Soon they're facing a threat even greater than anyone imagines...and an animal magnetism impossible to ignore.

Enjoy this exclusive excerpt:

Landon expected Todd and Kendra to take him to another conference room, so he was surprised when they led him into what looked like a workout room. Mats covered the floor and a heavy bag hung from a hook in one corner. Weights and workout equipment filled a good portion of the room. A woman was seated cross-legged in the center of it, her eyes closed, her hands loosely resting on her knees. At their entrance, she gracefully uncurled herself from the floor and got to her feet.

She was wearing a pair of black workout pants like his ex-girlfriend used to wear when she went to yoga class, and a form-fitting tank top. He couldn’t help but notice her curvy, athletic body, expressive dark eyes, and full lips. With little makeup and her long, dark hair pulled up in a ponytail, she looked like the girl next door. Only more exotic than any girl he’d ever lived next door to, that was for sure.

He didn’t care how tired and irritated he was, this was a woman he definitely wouldn’t mind stopping to appreciate. Hopefully, one of his new training officers would introduce them before she left to give them the room.

“Landon, meet Ivy Halliwell, your new partner,” Kendra said. “Ivy, Captain Landon Donovan, Special Forces.”

They were going to have to pick his jaw up off the floor because Landon was damn sure that’s where it was after hearing that announcement. No way was this walking wet dream his partner. She looked like she couldn’t hurt a fly, much less do any kind of covert ops. They had to be messing with him.

Paige Tyler is a USA Today Bestselling Author of sexy, romantic fiction. She and her very own military hero (also known as her husband) live on the beautiful Florida coast with their adorable fur baby (also known as their dog). Paige graduated with a degree in education, but decided to pursue her passion and write books about hunky alpha males and the kickbutt heroines who fall in love with them.

She is represented by Bob Mecoy.

Website: http://paigetylertheauthor.com/
Blog: http://paigetylertheauthor.blogspot.com/
Facebook Profile Page: http://www.facebook.com/paige.tyler.9
Facebook Author Page: http://www.facebook.com/PaigeTylerAuthor
Facebook X-OPS Page: http://www.facebook.com/XOPSSeriesbyPaigeTylerAuthor
Twitter: http://twitter.com/PaigeTyler
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/paigetylerauth/
Google+: http://plus.google.com/u/0/
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2300692.Paige_Tyler
Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/BBrEP
Buy the book at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, iTunes, Kobo, or All Romance eBooks.

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Sullivan's Way by Wilhelmina Stolen - Book Review and Giveaway

(Historical Romance)

This review is in conjunction with a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Wilhelmina will be awarding a $25 Amazon GC to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

A single day shattered her life and set in motion, events that would change the Sullivan family for generations.

Marnie Joe Sullivan had the perfect life as the daughter of a wealthy Virginia businessman, but perfection wouldn't last. As the War Between the States ends, she is struggling to keep her family together. After a botched robbery, fleeing rebels leave her mother dead and Marnie at the mercy of a killer. The year is 1867 and Virginia is still home to Confederate conspirators and a killer that must be stopped. Loyalty and love run deep in the Sullivan family and Marnie is no exception. As the eldest Sullivan, she feels obligated to rescue her father from the hangman’s noose. But a jailbreak at midnight lands her in the arms of Marshal Mason Kane.

Death is never fair. Mason Kane is proof of that. The horror of war and the death of his brother made him a drunk. Consumed by guilt and grief, he finds himself occupying Richmond saloons and starting fights. But a forgotten promise to his brother forces him to put down the bottle and accept a friend’s plea for help. Mason has no idea that the scrawny, mud covered boy he just hit is Sullivan’s daughter and he has no idea just how tempting she is until he tries to mend her wounds. Bound by honor and promise, Mason sets out to find a killer. What he finds is the outlaw Marnie Sullivan. A woman he can’t live without and secrets that lie in the way.

Read my review:

I love big sprawling family sagas, where you can follow a family over generations, and I have just found another such series to feed my addiction. This is the first book of the Way of Hearts series which introduces the family.

The story jumps right into the action, with Marnie Joe planning a jail break. She's not had an easy life for the past year--her mother was killed and she and her sister captured by renegade Confederate soldiers. I half expected this to be the second book of the series--I was sure that there was another book which told this story. Checking the author's website I found out that I was close--there is a book that tells this story, but it's not until book six in the series (that's very sneaky, Ms. Stolen!)

Mason Kane is asked by a friend to see what's going on with the Sullivan's and he discovers more than he expects.

Filled with mystery, passion, misunderstandings, and --above all else--deep and abiding family love, Ms. Stolen has penned some characters who are very real and very engaging. They are definitely not perfect, but that's what makes them so interesting. This reader became very invested in them--to the point where she stayed up reading way too late!

The secondary characters were equally s well-drawn as Marnie and Mason. And, I was excited to see that the next book features two of these characters. There's a mystery surrounding Lucas and I can hardly wait to find out what it is. Hopefully some of it will be revealed this fall.

Good job, Ms. Stolen. With this one book, you have gone on my auto-buy list!

4.5 Flowers - This was a very good book! I'd recommend it to my friends.

Enjoy an excerpt:

Clear light made its way over the mountains, pouring into the valley, and a briskness clung to the morning air. Mason looked out over the porch railing at his first real look at the Sullivan place. Dawn had brought the land to life, and he could see at least ten houses scattered along the road. A horse and wagon galloped across the small wooden bridge. The saw mill that sat to the left began to scream as wood hit metal, and across the dirt road, children ran laughing into the church house that doubled as a school.

The land was small, but self-sufficient. With a little work, this settlement could be a thriving town. No wonder Talon wanted the place. Mason’s eyes followed the road as it curved and veered off to the right, into the tree line. Bright fingers of light climbed their way over the mountain and grabbed his attention. The top half of the mountain was nothing but massive boulders that dwindled off into the vegetation on one side, while the other side dropped a couple of hundred feet to the valley floor. He closed his eyes and lay back against the rocker. His mind went back to Marnie. That was her name. He ran his tongue over his lips, catching a hint of her sweetness. His hands opened and closed against his thighs. Thoughts of her made his hands tingle. His mind ventured back to the cabin, back to her body in the firelight. Mason could feel his body began to ache with need. Slowly, he opened his eyes and glanced down at his body. He rubbed his face and sat up. Damn frustrating!

About the Author:

Wilhelmina Stolen is the pseudonym for romance writer, Shannon Hayes. Shannon is a native of Kentucky and makes her home in small southern town close to the Tennessee line. During her adolescence, her mother's free spirited nature became restless causing the family to embark on a slew of adventurous moves across the country. The moves provoked a hunger for adventure and romance and introduced her to a wonderful world of history and beauty.

As with most writers, her stories began at an early age with long sessions of seclusion and secrecy. While her classmates and friends were outside playing, Shannon was locked away in her room hammering out ideas on an old 1940s Royal typewriter.

After finding Mr. Right, Shannon found herself wanting the comfort and security of the small Kentucky town she longed to escape as a child. Fortune smiled upon her and she became the family historian; gathering pictures,wills, marriage certificates and everything else that somehow managed to fall into her lap. Stories flooded her mind and writing quickly became an obsession that turned into the Way of Hearts Saga. The saga spans six generations and three families.

Shannon holds an Associates in Applied Science in Technology, a Bachelors of Science in Business Administration and Management as well as a Masters in Educational Leadership. Visit her author page at www.wilhelminastolen.com to learn more about the saga.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Wilhelmina-Stolen/179196792227471?ref=hl
Twitter: https://twitter.com/WStolen
Wattpad: http://www.wattpad.com/story/920976-sullivan%27s-way

Ladder to the Red Star by Jael Wye - Interview and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Enter to win a digital copy of Ice Red, the first book in the series, to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour, so answer the author's question below. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Why do you write in your genre? What draws you to it?

I write science fiction romance because I want to explore the possibilities the future holds for us. Scifi books often speculate about how scientific achievements might change humanity both individually and culturally. But by adding the fairy tale romance element, I also get to write about the fundamental human emotions like love and courage that stay the same throughout the ages. In my new release Ladder to the Red Star, my hero and heroine Jacques and Devi are surrounded by cool technology, but what motivates them to fight the evil that threatens their world is their basic decency and their and love for each other.

What world-building is required?

In building my Solar system of the future, I wanted to stay close to the real world, with technology consistent with physics as we know it today—no light sabers or warp speed, I’m afraid! But the limitations of plausibility still left me with a lot of fantastic technology to exploit, such as space elevators and super submarines. To research these and other topics, I went to sources such as NASA and other science and space organizations, futurists like Michio Kaku, science articles from reputable publications, and of course the redoubtable Wikipedia.

Name one thing you learned from your hero/heroine.

One thing I learned from my heroine, Devi, is that when travelling to another planet, one should prepare for severe culture shock. Devi was born and raised on Mars, and when the hero, Jacques, kidnaps her and takes her down to Earth, she has a terrible time adjusting to the alien environment and the strange ways of the natives. She comes to understand the common humanity of Martians and Earthers, but not without a little help from Jacques.

Do you have any odd or interesting writing quirks, habits or superstitions?

My odd writing quirk is my habit of talking to myself. There’s no better way to smooth out the rhythm and diction of dialog than to hear it spoken aloud. And sometimes I need to argue with myself over what motivates a character, or how to block out a scene. It earns me a few odd glances, but why write if you’re not allowed a bit of craziness?

Are you a plotter or pantser?

Ladder to the Red Star is based on the classic tale of Jack and the beanstalk, so I had a framework for my story mapped out for me from the beginning. Some of the details changed as I went along, but my major plot points were all set before I started writing. My challenge with each fairy tale retelling is to create characters with their own specific and individual motivations driving them to fulfill the requirements of their archetypal stories.

Look to your right – what’s sitting there?

First, and most importantly, there is a cup of coffee sitting to my right. I get jittery without one. There is also a pile of sticky notes and pens, because my novels often take shape on sticky notes before they get to my computer screen. Finally, there is a philodendron. I’ve found that houseplants make great critique partners, because they listen patiently and agree with everything I say.

Anything new coming up from you? What?

Right now I’m working on the next book in the Once Upon a Red World series, which will tell the story of Devi’s parents, Max and his estranged lover Sita, as they confront an insidious threat on their journey home to Mars. There are many more tales yet to be told in the Solar system of the future, so stay tuned.

Do you have a question for our readers?

What is your favorite couple in science fiction? Leia and Han? Jake and Neytiri? Spock and Uhura? (or maybe Spock and Kirk?)

Once upon a ruined Earth 300 years in the future...

Jacques Tallinn, biotech smuggler and thief, is after the cure for a brain disorder he's suffered since childhood--a disorder inflicted by a powerful tyrant. To get the cure, Jacques will need to climb the space elevator to the new Zenith space station hovering above Earth and go undercover in the lab where it's produced.

Martian head tech Devi Chandra is immediately intrigued by her sexy new lab assistant. Though she insists on keeping things professional, she finds herself charmed by Jacques. Until he betrays her trust, kidnapping her and spiriting her off to Earth.

All Jacques needed to do was steal the biotech and get back home. But when things go wrong, he can't bring himself to leave Devi behind. Now she's injured and a simple caper has become an intergalactic cause, endangering his life and the lives of millions of others. But the hardest part? Winning back Devi's trust.

About the Author:

Jael Wye grew up on the American Great Plains, went to school in the Midwest, and now lives in beautiful New England with her family and her enormous collection of houseplants. For more of Jael’s unique blend of futurism and fairy tale, don’t miss her ongoing series Once Upon A Red World.

Website -- http://www.jaelwye.net
Facebook -- https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jael-Wye/319251781482358
Twitter -- @jaelwye

Buy the book at Carina Press, Amazon, Goodreads, or eBooks.

The Pendulum Files by p.m. terrell - Interview and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Leave a comment or ask the author a question to win a beautiful Celtic cross necklace. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

If someone were writing a story about you, what would your blurb say?

p.m.terrell’s life story is inspiring. Like so many others, it has taken twists and turns that never could have been anticipated. Some were devastating, some uplifting, and all led to where she is today. From homeless to the founder of two computer companies awarded millions in government contracts… to retiring to pursue her dream of being a published author, her story resonates with anyone who refuses to give up in the face of adversity.

Would you tell us a little about your newest release that isn't in the blurb?

The plot of The Pendulum Files involves merchant vessels bringing goods from China to the United States. It’s the second book I’ve written about trade between the US and China; the first was The China Conspiracy. It’s a subject that fascinates me, because every person in America is affected in some way by the trade deficit, and yet our elected politicians (whatever your party) seem to be blind and deaf to the effect it has on our economy. I began thinking about a politician who might want to change this dynamic, which brought in a political tone to the book (though I want every reader to come to their own conclusions; I never preach my own politics) and to what extent someone might go to in order to change our present policies. In adding the high seas to the adventure, it opened up a world I’d previously known nothing about, which was fascinating—the way the ocean is laid out in grids for those traversing it, maritime laws, and how governments react to crimes on the high seas.

What was your favorite scene to write in this story?

I love ghost stories and I’d have to say my favorite scene was when Vicki and Dylan were in their bedroom; Dylan was fast asleep and Vicki awakened to find his grandmother’s ghost in front of her. Vicki is not only a psychic spy but often sees ghosts, though she is still trying to come to terms with this part of her life. And of course any scene involving Dylan Maguire is a juicy one, in or out of the bedroom.

If you could trade places with one of your characters, who would it be and why?

I would want to be Vicki Boyd. Her psychic skills are enormous, she has the complete and faithful love of Irishman Dylan Maguire, and she will travel around the world with him. Their next stop in the sixth book in the series (due out in the spring of 2015) will be Ireland for their wedding and honeymoon.

CIA operative Dylan Maguire joins forces with psychic spy Vicki Boyd to find out who is bombing merchant vessels bound for the United States from China. Their mission will lead them to Black Sites, the high seas and into covert operations. And when an assassin escapes from prison determined to finish the job he started, they find their personal lives and their missions are about to collide in ways they never could have imagined.

Enjoy p.m.'s favorite scene:

She wasn’t quite sure what roused her from sleep. But as Vicki slowly opened her eyes, she became aware of her nude body lying on one side with Dylan’s larger, muscular form curled up behind her. One arm was stretched over her protectively and her derriere rested against his lap, their legs intertwined.

Normally some moonlight found its way inside, but the room was so murky that she wondered if there was any moon at all this night. She narrowed her eyes in an effort to adjust to the darkness as Dylan’s measured, soft breathing remained against her ear.

She nearly gasped as her eyes fell upon a figure just a few feet from the bed. She frowned as it swayed in front of her; it was not flesh and blood—that much was obvious. It was almost opaque and as she continued to stare, it grew more luminous until a tiny woman stood in front of her with long, flowing white hair billowing about her as if blown by the wind.

She wore a thin nightgown that reached from the base of her neck all the way to her feet, and as Vicki continued to stare, she smiled.

“Mam,” Vicki breathed as she recognized Dylan’s grandmother.

Dylan murmured something incomprehensible and held her more tightly against him.

“Be careful what you do, child,” Mam said in a clear voice. “There are eyes on you.”

Vicki gasped and grabbed at the bed covering. “You shouldn’t be watching us!” she exclaimed.

Dylan awakened and leaned over her to look at her face. “What is it, Darlin’?”

Vicki could feel the heat in her cheeks. She half-turned to Dylan to see him watching her with sleepy eyes. “I—” She turned back to where his grandmother had stood, but she was gone.

“Another bad dream, mayhap?” he asked before settling back. “There’s nothin’ at’al to be frightened of, Darlin’. I’ll take good care o’ you.”

She tried to relax against his body once more. She kept her eyes open and her ears on alert but she was met only with silence and a darkness that reminded her that she’d had precious little sleep. Still, she pulled the bedcovers over them, covering their naked bodies.

The grandfather clock downstairs ticked off the seconds, the sound reminding her of just how silent the rest of the house really was. She finally felt herself snuggling into that warm cocoon of sleep.

She could feel Dylan’s breath against the back of her neck; it was the steady breathing of a man deeply asleep. Then she became aware of something else, something against her nose as if someone was breathing on her face.

Her eyes flew open to find Mam leaning down in front of her, her face just inches from hers.

“It isn’t me you need to be concernin’ y’self with, child,” she said. “Other eyes are watchin’.”

About the Author:

p.m.terrell is the pen name for Patricia McClelland Terrell, the award-winning, internationally acclaimed author of more than 20 books in five genres. A full-time author since 2002, Black Swamp Mysteries is her first series, inspired by the success of Exit 22 in 2008. The books include Exit 22,Vicki's Key, Secrets of a Dangerous Woman, Dylan's Song, and The Pendulum Files. Vicki's Key placed as one of four finalists in the 2012 International Book Awards. Her historical book, River Passage, won the 2010 Best Drama Award, and her romantic suspense, The Tempest Murders, placed as one of four finalists in the 2013 USA Best Book Awards.

Prior to becoming a full-time writer, she founded and operated two computer companies in the Washington, DC area. Her specialties were computer crime and computer intelligence and her clients included the CIA, Secret Service and Department of Defense. Computer technology often weaves its way through her contemporary suspense/thrillers.

She is also the co-founder of The Book 'Em Foundation and the founder of The Book 'Em North Carolina Writers Conference and Book Fair, an annual event to raise money for literacy campaigns. She also serves on the boards of the Friends of the Robeson County Public Library and the Robeson County Arts Council, and served as the first female president for the Chesterfield County/ Colonial Heights Crime Solvers.

website: www.pmterrell.com
blog:www.pmterrell.blogspot.com
twitter: @pmterrell
facebook: https://www.facebook.com/author.p.m.terrell
amazon trade paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Pendulum-Files-Black-Mysteries-Volume/dp/1935970097/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395929941&sr=8-1&keywords=the+pendulum+files
amazon Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/Pendulum-Files-Black-Swamp-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B00INC34Z0/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=8-1&qid=1395929941
Smashwords (all ebook formats): http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/412506

The Coach's Wife by Barbara Casey

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Ms. Casey will be awarding a $25 Amazon GC to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Another deafening roar exploded from the coliseum, and when it did Marla threw down her partially smoked cigarette and ground it into the polished tile floor with the toe of her shoe. Quickly she reached for another cigarette from the opened pack in her small red handbag. She lit it, sucked the smoke into her mouth, held her breath, coughed, and then slowly released it. Marla didn't smoke, but when she paced up and down the hallways of basketball coliseums, puffing on cigarettes seemed appropriate. It gave her something to do with her hands, and it helped keep her sane.

Marla Connors, recently married to head basketball coach Neal Connors, travels with her husband to Albuquerque, New Mexico, where the Piedmont State University Coyote team is playing in the NCAA Finals. Marla has not been accepted by the Coyotes, that loyal bunch of fans who follows the university team, partly because she is almost twenty years younger than Coach Connors and a divorcée, but also because the fans are afraid she will distract her husband from his duties as head coach. They see her as someone who married Coach Connors just for his money. Only Gale, the older wife of assistant coach Stu Simmons, goes out of her way to be a friend to Marla.

The Coyote team is plagued with problems from the very beginning of the season, and when they finally manage to reach the NCAA Finals, it's even worse. Their center is caught using drugs, Athletics Director Charlie Morgan, who is also in Albuquerque for the games, makes a pass at Marla in her hotel room, and Coach Connors comes down with the flu. No one believes that State can win the big game.

With so much happening, Marla can't shake the feeling that something evil is taking over her life. She tries to convince herself that it is emotional anxiety left over from the abuse she experienced during her first marriage to Dr. Martin Andrews and that the stress from the tournament has brought it once again to the surface. She soon learns, however, that the evil is real and it threatens not only everything she loves, but her very life.

Illegal drugs, illicit affairs, murder, and scandal that shakes the entire university system are woven inextricably into Marla’s life until eventually she comes face to face with her real tormentor. It is only then that she realizes the full depth of her love for her husband--and his love for her.

Enjoy this excerpt:

Christ it was cold. A blast of frigid air whistled around the door frame. He cursed again. At Morgan for getting him into this situation and at himself for doing it. This had to be the low point in Knox's career. Hanging out in darkened doorways in the middle of the night waiting to make a pay-off. To make it even worse, the guy he was supposed to meet was late. He had told Knox 2:30. Unless Knox got the directions mixed up. But the guy had said the service entrance on the east side of the coliseum. And that's where the hell he was. Freezing his ass off and dodging drunken Wolfpack fans so he wouldn't be seen.

Knox pulled out a wadded up handkerchief from his hip pocket and wiped his nose. He was probably getting sick. Morgan was going to make up for this big time if he expected Knox to keep doing his dirty work for him. No more cheap presents or token salary increases. Shit, he had enough TVs and cameras and electronic gadgets. Cheap toys from Morgan. He wanted some big money--security for when he decided to retire. And the way he was feeling now, he was ready to retire.

Knox heard footsteps, the empty beer can being kicked, and someone--a man--cuss. Knox leaned out slightly from the doorway and peered into the darkness. He smelled him--the rancid odor of nervous sweat--before he saw him.

"You got something for me, heh?"

Startled that the man was so close, Knox stepped out of the doorway wanting to get more space between them. Pressed into the doorway like that, he felt trapped. Like some kind of shit'n rat. The man was wearing a long heavy black coat. A scarf covered most of his face. What it didn't hide, the knit cap did.

About the Author: Originally from Carrollton, Illinois, author/agent Barbara Casey attended the University of North Carolina, N.C. State University, and N.C. Wesleyan College where she received a BA degree, summa cum laude, with a double major in English and history. In 1978 she left her position as Director of Public Relations and Vice President of Development at North Carolina Wesleyan College to write full time and develop her own manuscript evaluation and editorial service. In 1995 she established the Barbara Casey Agency and since that time has represented authors from the United States, Great Britain, and Japan.

Ms. Casey's two middle-grade/young adult novels, Leilani Zan and Grandma Jock and Christabelle (James C. Winston Publishing Co., Trade Division) were both nominated for awards of excellence by the SCBWI Golden Kite Award, the National Association of University Women Literary Award and the Sir Walter Raleigh Literary Award. Shyla's Initiative (Crossquarter Publishing Group), a contemporary adult novel (occult romance/mystery), received the Independent Publisher Book Award and also an award of special literary recognition by the Palm Beach County Cultural Council. The House of Kane (ArcheBooks Publishing) was considered for a Pulitzer nomination. Another contemporary novel for adults, Just Like Family, received “Special Recognition from the 7-Eleven Corporation.” Most recently, her young adult novel, The Cadence of Gypsies, was reviewed by the Smithsonian for its List of Most Notable Books. The Gospel According to Prissy, a novel for adults, has received excellent reviews and received an IPPY Award for Best

Regional Fiction. Warner Brothers Studio has also expressed interest. Newly released in paperback, The Coach's Wife (ArcheBooks Publishing), also a novel for adults (contemporary/mystery), was semi-finalist for the Dana Award for Outstanding Novel and listed on the Publisher’s Best Seller List.

Her award-winning articles, short stories, and poetry for adults have appeared in both national and international publications including the North Carolina Christian Advocate Magazine, The New East Magazine, the Raleigh (N.C.) News and Observer, the Rocky Mount (N.C.) Sunday Telegram, Dog Fancy, ByLine, The Christian Record, Skirt! Magazine, and True Story. A thirty-minute television special which Ms. Casey wrote and coordinated was broadcast on WRAL, Channel 5, in Raleigh, North Carolina. She also received special recognition for her editorial work on the English translations of Albanian children’s stories.

Ms. Casey's award-winning science fiction short stories for adults are featured in The Cosmic Unicorn and CrossTime science fiction anthologies. Ms. Casey's essays and other works appear in The Chrysalis Reader, the international literary journal of the Swedenborg Foundation, 221 One-Minute Monologues from Literature (Smith and Kraus Publishers), and A Cup of Comfort (Adams Media Corporation).

Ms. Casey is a former director of BookFest of the Palm Beaches, Florida, where she served as guest author and panelist. She has served as judge for the Pathfinder Literary Awards in Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Florida, and was the Florida Regional Advisor for the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators from 1991 through 2003. She is a frequent guest lecturer at universities and writers’ conferences around the country including the SCBWI Regional Conference, the Harriett Austin Writers Conference in Athens, SIBA (Southeastern Independent Book Sellers Association), Florida Writers Association, and the University of Auburn, Montgomery. She makes her home on the top of a mountain near Trion, Georgia, with her husband and Benton, a hound-mix who adopted her.

http://www.barbaracaseyagency.com

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Hungry Heart by Meg Benjamin - Interview and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Meg will be awarding a $50 Amazon GC to a randomly drawn commenter. Enter the Rafflecopter at the end of the post. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Welcome back to It's Raining Books, Meg! If someone were writing a story about you, what would your blurb say?

Meg Benjamin wasn’t born in Texas, but she got there as quick as she could (actually, she didn’t—it took several years of wandering around the country before she ended up in San Antonio). Thanks to all those sultry South Texas nights, she finds herself dreaming of being a romance writer even during the long, air-conditioned days of teaching English and Communication at Enormous State University. She and her lovely hubs bring up two boys without a romantic bone in their respective bodies (an accountant and a software engineer for Pete’s sake), but she still harbors hopes of joining the romance ranks someday.

And then it happens. Samhain Publishing accepts her first book, Venus In Blue Jeans, set in a mythical Hill Country town—Konigsburg, TX. But the day she gets that joyful news, she also gets some very unjoyful news: her hubs has been passed over for a promised promotion. This leads to a new job for hubs in colorful Colorado and a three-month forced separation for Meg while she packs up the house in Texas, retires from her job at ESU, and writes more Konigsburg books.

Newly established in the Rockies, Meg publishes six more books set in Konigsburgfor Samhain, along with three more set in San Antonio and a wild card (Bolted) taking place in New England. She wins some awards (the RT Reviewers Choice Award, the EPIC for contemporary romance, the Beanpot for Suspense, and the Holt Medallion). Now she’s ready with Konigsburg #8, Hungry Heart. But will her readers come back to Texas again for one more round in the Hill Country, particularly if it means a taste of barbecue? Stay tuned, gentle readers, stay tuned.

Would you tell us a little about your newest release that isn't in the blurb?

I love writing about food and cooking, and I generally have a scene or two where my characters have a meal together (which usually leads to something else they do together). But I didn’t know much about barbecue and barbecue contests until I started working on Hungry Heart. It turns out that not only does barbecue vary from state to state, but there are actually several different barbecue styles within the state of Texas. I was fascinated with the history of Texas barbecue—so fascinated I had one of my heroes, Harris Temple, give one of my heroines, Darcy Cunningham, a quick rundown when he tries to explain just why they have to serve white sandwich bread instead of the biscuits she wants to whip up (it’s all about cotton pickers and German butchers).

What was your favorite scene to write in this story?

Probably the first sex scene between Chico Burnside and Andy Wells. He’s a former pro wrestler who works as a bouncer at a local club. She’s a shy scientist who analyzes water. They’re absolutely the last people you’d expect to end up together, and getting them together was a lot of fun. But they both face their first time together with a lot of trepidation. I had to figure out ways to get them through it (not that it was much of a chore, mind you).

If you could trade places with one of your characters, who would it be and why?

Oh man, that’s a loaded question! I love both my heroines, but I’m probably closer to Andy personally. She’s someone who never really expected anything like romance to happen to her, and she has to stand up to a lot of people who want to see her relationship with Chico fail. In addition, she’s a very private person, and she has to overcome her own shyness and her fear of being “different”. But she does it. And Chico’s a hell of a guy, if I do say so myself!

Peace, love, and barbecue—with a big order of sexy on the side.

Sous chef Darcy Cunningham is less than entranced with small-town Konigsburg’s obsession with barbecue. But her future career as a chef de cuisine requires expanding her culinary horizons, so she talks the Barbecue King, a.k.a. Harris Temple, into taking her on as his apprentice.

However, learning Harris’s professional secrets wasn’t supposed to include falling for his spicy blend of smoky sexiness and laid-back charm.

Chico Burnside specializes in flying under Konigsburg’s small-town radar, but lately life has been going a little too smoothly, even for him. Hoping to shake things up a bit, he talks Harris into teaming up for Konigsburg’s first barbecue cook-off. But once shy scientist Andy Wells catches his eye, Chico’s got more on his mind than brisket. Like enticing her out of her shell to show her just how tenderly a big guy can love.

As the competition ignites, so does the romance. Until a natural disaster threatens to derail Konigsburg’s dream team before the grills even get good and warmed up.

About the Author:

Meg Benjamin is an author of contemporary romance. Her Konigsburg series for Samhain Publishing is set in the Texas Hill Country and her Medium trilogy for Berkley InterMix is set in San Antonio’s King William District. Meg’s books have won numerous awards, including an EPIC Award for Contemporary Romance, a Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award for Indie Press Romance, the Holt Medallion from Virginia Romance Writers and the Beanpot Award from the New England Romance Writers. Meg lives in Colorado with her DH and two rather large Maine coon kitties (well, partly Maine Coon anyway). Her Web site is http://www.MegBenjamin.com and her blog is http://megbenj1.wordpress.com/. You can follow her on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/meg.benjamin1), Pinterest (http://pinterest.com/megbenjamin/), and Twitter (http://twitter.com/megbenj1). Meg loves to hear from readers—contact her at meg@megbenjamin.com. a Rafflecopter giveaway

Floats the Dark Shadow by Yves Fey - Review and Giveaway

(Mystery)

This review is in conjunction with a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Yves will be awarding a Hardback copy of Floats the Dark Shadow (US ONLY) to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Floats the Dark Shadow is the winner of four Indie awards in both mystery and historical categories.

Young American painter Theodora Faraday struggles to become an artist in Belle Époque Paris. She’s tasted the champagne of success, illustrating poems for the Revenants, a group of poets led by her adored cousin, Averill. When children she knows vanish mysteriously, Theo confronts Inspecteur Michel Devaux who suspects the Revenants are involved. Theo refuses to believe the killer could be a friend—could be the man she loves. Classic detection and occult revelation lead Michel and Theo through the dark underbelly of Paris, from catacombs to asylums, to the obscene ritual of a Black Mass. Following the maze of clues they discover the murderer believes he is the reincarnation of the most evil serial killer in the history of France—Gilles de Rais. Once Joan of Arc’s lieutenant, after her death he plunged into an orgy of evil. The Church burned him at the stake for heresy, sorcery, and the depraved murder of hundreds of peasant children. Whether deranged mind or demonic passion incite him, the killer must be found before he strikes again.

Read my review:

Floats the Dark Shadow is a mystery set in the Belle Epoque era in France. Theodora Faraday is an American artist living in France. Children she knows begins to go missing, and she is very afraid that her cousin, Averill, or one of the other Revenants is involved.

Inspector Michel Devaux is suspicious of the Revenants. Over the course of time, Theo and Michel team together to solve the mystery and uncover a darkness in Paris that stands in stark contrast to the beauty of the era.

This story was one that was hard to put down. The characters are fully drawn and believable, and the mystery kept me guessing up to the last few pages. I loved the descriptions of the city and the period, and while the scenes involving the children were hard to read, they were also well-done (maybe that's why they were so hard to read!) I especially liked the way the relationship was changing between Devaux and Theo. I look forward to reading the next book in this series and seeing where the author takes these two oh-so-different people next.

About the Author:

Yves has an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Oregon, and a BA in Pictorial Arts from UCLA. She has read, written, and created art from childhood. A chocolate connoisseur, she's won prizes for her desserts. Her current fascination is creating perfumes inspired by her characters and by Paris. She's traveled to many countries in Europe and lived for two years in Indonesia. She currently lives in the San Francisco area with her husband Richard and three cats, Marlowe the Investigator, and the Flying Bronte Sisters.

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Bittersweet Rescue by Coleen Kwan - Excerpt and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Coleen will be awarding a $10 Amazon giftcard to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

She rescued him, and saved herself.

When Ellie Sherwood rescues her boss from drowning, she never anticipates the consequences. For three years she’s existed in an emotional limbo after a catastrophic family tragedy, but now she’s awake and ready to seize life with both hands. And that includes the sexy boss she’s been secretly infatuated with for some time.

Drake Crawford is about to achieve his lifelong goal when a car accident plays havoc with his life. Not only is his plan for revenge delayed, but his once demure personal assistant is now shockingly, irresistibly forward. Drake is against office affairs, and Ellie is vital to his success, but he can’t get her out of his mind, and besides, he does owe her...

His solution—a two-week break with Ellie at his wilderness hideout. They’ll indulge in a scorching, private affair, and when it’s over they’ll return to their normal lives. But as Drake discovers more about Ellie, he realises her quiet exterior hides a backbone of steel. When she asks him to walk away from his ultimate goal, he knows it’s time to let her go.

Read an excerpt:

Ellie’s face was a tight mask. Her skin was blanched, her eyes shadowed, and her jaw clenched. She looked just like that the night they’d crashed into the harbour. Holy shit. It hit him with renewed vengeance what she’d achieved that night. She’d been petrified, immobilised with horror, and yet somehow she’d managed to save them both. She’d singlehandedly pulled him from the sinking car and hauled him out of the water. How had she done that when she was just a slip of a girl and scared out of her wits?

A lump wedged in his throat as he stared at her with renewed awe and respect. Ellie was unique, special in every way.

“How did you do it, Ellie?” he asked softly. “How did you save my sorry arse?”

She blinked, shook her head, and squeezed her eyes shut as if trying and failing to block out the memories.

“It’s okay if you don’t want to talk about it,” he quickly added. “I know it can be difficult to—”

“Everyone thinks I’m a hero because I rescued you.” Her eyes flew open, and their tormented depths made him start. “But the truth is, you rescued me.” She stopped short.

The waves crashed endlessly. “I don’t understand,” he said when the silence got too much for him.

“You see, if you hadn’t been there—” Using the cuffs of her oversized jacket, she scrubbed at her eyes, then stared blindly out to sea. “If you hadn’t been with me in the car, I would have...I would have let myself drown.”

About the Author: Coleen Kwan has been a bookworm all her life. At school English was her favorite subject, but for some reason she decided on a career in IT. After many years of programming, she wondered what else there was in life — and discovered writing. She loves writing contemporary romance and steampunk romance.

Coleen lives in Sydney, Australia with her partner and two children. When she isn’t writing she enjoys avoiding housework, eating chocolate, and watching Criminal Minds.

Website ~ ~ Facebook ~ Goodreads Buy the book at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, or Amazon UK.

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Catch Me by Katherine Grant - Spotlight and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Katherine will be awarding a $25 Amazon giftcard to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Adam. Enigmatic. Arrogant. Unwilling to take no for an answer. Everything about him threatens my carefully constructed life. Everything about him makes me want him more.

Isabelle Jennings has it good. She’s a self-proclaimed guys’ girl (football, beers, and kicking back with her “bros”) who has worked hard for everything she’s gotten. And she’s succeeded. Only twenty-six, she already has a startup company – one that helps her atone for past sins. She has (well, had) a healthy sex life, a great apartment and an even better group of friends. No romantic entanglements. No mess. Just how she likes it.

Enter Adam Weston, a young, ambitious businessman in Chicago. Between his money, looks, and charm, he’s never had a problem with women. Until Isabelle.

Overwhelmed by her attraction to him, Isabelle does everything she can to avoid the charismatic playboy. But Adam won’t give up that easily. He dares her to be with him, promising sex sans strings. Isabelle’s burdened with a nightmarish guilt she can’t outrun. And Adam won’t settle for less than everything. He’s breaking down her walls, one touch, one look, at a time.

** Due to language and strong sexual content, this book is recommended for readers who are 18 and older. **

Although Catch Me is the first book in a series, it is a standalone novel.

Enjoy an excerpt:

There was blood everywhere.

On the sink, on the fluffy brown towels. Dripping down white porcelain and onto the bathmat. The smell of it – iron and salt and fear – threatened to choke me.

It covered his arms, his hands, turning his jeans brown in some spots. He slumped over the sink.

I screamed, screamed and screamed until my throat went hoarse, but no one came. The tiled walls with their dizzying black and white design pushed in on me, making the room smaller and smaller. I was trapped.

Couldn’t move.

Couldn’t breathe.

Couldn’t escape.

I tried to staunch the bleeding, but it only got worse. Forcing my gaze away from blood soaked terrycloth, I looked into his pale blue, accusing eyes.

“Your fault,” he said as he sank to the floor. “Your fault, Isabelle. It’s all your fault.”

About the Author: Katherine Grant is a 28-year-old avid reader, writer and soon to be author in Southern California (who likes to talk about herself in the third person in bios because it makes her feel important). Raised in a town in Michigan so small you've never heard of it, Katie used books as a way to travel. As a child, she talked so much that her family suggested she started writing her thoughts down. And thus, a lifelong dream and career was born. She has been everything from a short-order cook to a teacher to a music journalist. She's finally embarking on being a novelist full time, and she couldn't be more excited.

When not hard at work, Katie enjoys hanging out with her dog, lying on the beach, promising herself she'll one day learn how to surf (although it will never happen), making her boyfriend crazy by refusing to do the dishes, and getting lost in books. Also, cookies. She really, really likes cookies.

Blog ~ Twitter: @comecloserbooks ~ Facebook ~ Goodreads

More Than a Feeling by CJ Carmichael - spotlight and giveaway!

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. The author will be awarding an E-copy of "Frost Family Christmas Anthology" - which includes the first 3 books in the Frost Family & Friends Series as well as a bonus short story - to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour. Remember, the more stops you visit, the more chances you earn to win.

NOTE: More Than a Feeling is on sale for only $0.99 at Amazon! Pick up your copy today by clicking here.

A dangerous twenty-year-old secret is about to be uncovered in the quaint Vermont town of Carol Falls, where not everyone is who they seem to be.

At first meeting, Spencer Frost appears to be a simple farmer who enjoys reading and quoting poetry. In fact he’s a criminal law attorney from Boston on sabbatical at Frost Family Farm. When he meets Robin Redmond, the lovely new sales clerk at the local independent bookstore, he has no idea he’s about to step into a drama to rival even his toughest legal case.

Robin moved to Carol Falls in pursuit of the man who destroyed her sister’s life. Driven to face him—as well as her own guilt about her sister--falling in love with Spencer is not part of her plans. But as they partner up to unravel the twisted truth behind the crime, she discovers love is the strongest weapon of all.

This is the fourth book in a small-town romance/cozy mystery series that began with The Frost Family Christmas trilogy. These three titles are:

Book 1: What Child Is This by C.J. Carmichael

Book2: Home For Christmas by Roxy Boroughs

Book 3: The Holly & The Ivy by Brenda M. Collins.

Now enjoy an excerpt:

(From Chapter Two)

Robin turned on the radio. Loud.

She did not want to think about the magical evening she’d just had. The wagon ride, the stars, the nice Frost family, Spencer whispering poetry in her ear, then looking at her like he wanted to kiss her when they were finally alone.

Worst of all had been the seedling of hope that had awoken in her heart. That she could be happy. Maybe even, one day, loved. And, most of all—normal.

It was like an early April Fool’s joke. She’d been completely taken in. Despite the signs to the contrary—his upper crust accent, his unhardened hands—she’d thought Spencer was a poetry-loving farmer, a modern-day Robert Frost.

Only to find out he was an advocate for the sort of criminal who had stolen her family from her. He defended the bad guys, getting them off, twisting the evidence to try and make victims look guilty, fighting for shorter sentences and arguing mitigating circumstances.

He was the champion of men like the one she hated most in the world.

Intellectually Robin understood that the justice system required those charged with a crime to have an advocate and a fair hearing. But emotionally, she simply couldn’t deal with it.

Robin pulled over to the side of the road. She must have been driving in autopilot. Somehow she’d passed the heart of Carol Falls, traveled over the covered bridge, down Red Bridge Avenue to the Fix-It Shop.

It was a narrow, two-story wooden building on the south side of the highway, hemmed in on one side by a pawn shop and a vacant building on the other. Further down the strip was a glass repair shop, a garage and a car dealership.

Beyond the strip of shops was a residential area with small homes on small lots for people who couldn’t afford the more expensive homes in Carol Falls proper.

She’d already figured out that there was an apartment over the Fix-It Shop where the McGuires lived. At least one light was on up there now. She could imagine Alistair in an overstuffed chair, feet up on a stool, reading The Brothers Karamazov. Maybe he’d be sipping a cup of tea, or a brandy, with classical music playing softly in the background.

But what about his brother?

The other McGuire, she simply could not imagine. Since she’d arrived in Carol Falls, she hadn’t caught a glimpse of him. Did he ever leave the apartment? Surely his years spent in prison must have made him yearn for his freedom. But so far she’d seen no sign of him enjoying it.

No sign of him at all. The only reason she knew he was living here was because, as she was the sole surviving family member of his victim, the authorities had notified her of Allan McGuire’s release and intention to live and work in Carol Falls with his brother.

If Robin had been a normal person with a life of her own, she probably would have filed the information under “better off forgotten.” But she wasn’t “normal.” And she didn’t have much of a life, either. Since her mother’s death in September, she’d been barely hanging on to her job at the big chain bookstore in the mall near her home. She had zero social life. And no interests other than running and cycling—both solitary pursuits.

She wished she could have found the strength to leave Vermont. Strike out someplace totally new, with her only concern being making the most of the future before her.

Instead, the idea of Allan McGuire, free to start over when her own family had been destroyed, had festered in her brain. She thought of him constantly, wondering if he had regrets. Did he ever think of Faye? Of the rest of them?

Most importantly of all—was he going to hurt another innocent child?

National bestseller, CJ Carmichael, has published over 35 novels and has twice been nominated for a RITA award. She likes to write stories about romance, family and intrigue, usually in small town or rural settings. She’s currently working on the next book in “The Carrigans of the Circle C” trilogy for Tule Publishing, as well the next “Frost Family & Friends” cozy mystery/romance for a multi-author series set in Carol Falls, Vermont.

When it’s time to take a break from the computer, she heads to the Rocky Mountains near her home in Calgary where she lives with her partner Michael. If you’d like to learn more about her books, sign up for her newsletter on her website: http://cjcarmichael.com . (C.J. likes to reward her loyal readers on this list with regular draws for free, autographed books.)

Facebook: authorcjcarmichael

Twitter: cj_carmichael

Amazon Kindle Edition: http://www.amazon.com/More-Than-Feeling-Family-Friends-ebook/dp/B00J6NGPIS/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1397035113&sr=1-1&keywords=more+than+a+feeling

Kiss the Enemy by Dianna Love - Spotlight and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Dianna will be awarding EITHER the ebook box set of the first 3 Slye Temp OR a signed copy of ONE of the first 4 Slye Temp books. (Print Books are Continental US Only - Amazon/iTunes/Nook ebook equivalent for international) to one randomly drawn commenter at each stop during the tour, and a GRAND PRIZE of Signed copies of all 4 Slye Temp books – LAST CHANCE TO RUN, NOWHERE SAFE, HONEYMOON TO DIE FOR – plus a MONOGRAMMED SLING BACKPACK, and swag pack of surprise goodies. (Continental US only for print books - Amazon/iTunes/Nook 3 ebook box set for international) will be awarded to one randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Her only hope is in the hands of her enemy. Slye Temp operative Margaux Duke is chasing an international terrorist who murdered the last of her family. But her plans go up in smoke when her agency is in the crosshairs of the dangerous killer, forcing her to turn rogue to protect the only family she has left - her team. This is no time to get involved, especially with an enemy who steps between her and the terrorist she has to stop.

Logan Baklanov has been known by many names in the underbelly of international terrorism and will do whatever it takes to shield those he loves from the treacherous world he lives in. When his brother’s life is in jeopardy, Logan takes on a role that places him at the top of the most-wanted lists of government security agencies in every country. He accepts the no-win situation, willing to make the ultimate sacrifice until a long legged beauty draws the attention of his deadly target and screws Logan’s carefully planned mission.

Margaux and Logan must join forces in a dangerous game to save a major city from a powerful psychopath, but their ruse escalates out of control when the heat smoldering between them threatens to explode.

Enjoy this excerpt:

 Margaux gazed around the elegant room, taking in the mundane, wealthy men shopping for an expensive party girl for the night. All of the clients here were middle aged and ordinary. On the other hand, Dragan’s bodyguard was anything but uninteresting. He stood off to her right, with Secret-Service-looking eyewear and a coal-black designer suit that had to be custom-tailored to fit shoulders as wide as his. That was one big man. Just her flavor, if she had any interest in a taste.

Surprisingly, he still managed to blend into the shadows, motionless as a tiger waiting for his dinner to stroll by. Power rolled off him in silent waves. She couldn’t tell much about his face with that thick, but neat, black beard and his eyes hidden. Handsome was too simple a word to describe him, too civilized. Like admiring a wolf for its lush coat or a shark for its grace in the water, a woman would find this man attractive in a deadly way. A woman who enjoyed playing with fire or dancing with lightning. A woman who was a fool. Nothing about that man invited sexual banter, which she found even more appealing. No, he was not one to play with and that presented a problem. Because right now she had to get to Dragan and that bodyguard was her only route.

  About the Author: New York Times bestseller Dianna Love once dangled over a hundred feet in the air to create unusual marketing projects for Fortune 500 companies. She now writes high-octane romantic suspense, thrillers and urban fantasy.

Her new Slye Temp romantic suspense series launched its first four books in 2013 to rave reviews and more will follow in 2014. Her books are available in print and ebook.

 On the rare days she’s not in her writing cave, Dianna enjoys touring the country on her BMW motorcycle. She lives in the Atlanta, GA area with her motorcycle-instructor husband and a tank full of unruly saltwater critters. Read excerpts of her books at www.authordiannalove.com or join her Dianna Love Street Team on Facebook and get in on the fun!

Website ~ Street team ~ Facebook ~ Twitter
Buy the book at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, iTunes, or Google Books. For other buy links, to read an excerpt, or to purchase an autographed copy, visit the KISS THE ENEMY page on Dianna’s website: http://www.authordiannalove.com/bookshelf/77/kiss-the-enemy---book-4. a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Maggie Ryan Series by PM Carlson - Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. One randomly chosen commenter will win a $50 Amazon/BN gift card. Click on the tour banner to see the other stop on the tour.

WARS, ASSASSINATIONS, AND FLAKY DUDES

Why do people turn to violence against each other? What effects does violence have on survivors? How can we respond helpfully? These questions intrigued me as a psychologist and as a writer when I was working on the Maggie Ryan mysteries, and they continue to haunt me today as I see wounded veterans or traumatized survivors of school shootings attempting to rebuild their lives.

The Maggie Ryan books are set in the Vietnam era, and the war and the social upheaval of the times loom over the characters in the series. Civil rights marches, peace marches, riots, the universal draft,showed angry divisions between Americans who believed in the causes and those who were opposed. Even people in supposedly peaceful academic settings, such as AUDITION FOR MURDER (set in 1967), MURDER IS ACADEMIC (1968), MURDER IS PATHOLOGICAL (1969)–– had to deal with the war and the shifting social situation.

In MURDER IS ACADEMIC, Maggie is running from bad memories, immersing herself in her graduate studies. But the chaos of the times forces itself into the ivory tower. In 1968, many academics believed the Vietnam war harmed US interests more than it helped them. As time went on everyone became more and more frustrated–– supporters of the war because the US was not winning, anti-war marchers because the war still went on.

Women had a new frustration, too. They began to notice that, whether they supported the war or protested it, in both camps they were treated as less than equal. In the military they couldn’t officially be front-line soldiers, so they were denied the promotions open to men who served. Even in the peace movement, they weren’t supposed to be the leaders, just the coffee-fetchers for the leaders. Soon women too began to organize for their rights.

Besides the devastation in Vietnam and the clashes at peace marches and civil rights demonstrations, there were assassinations. President Kennedy had been assassinated in 1963; in 1968, when MURDER IS ACADEMIC is set, his brother Bobby Kennedy was assassinated too, and Martin Luther King Jr.

And of course the everyday non-political crimes continued. Whether there are wars and social upheavals or not, crimes are committed by people who fear losing jobs or money or prestige or loved ones, or by people who have not dealt with trauma in healthy ways. In MURDER IS ACADEMIC, a serial killer is raping and murdering women on the highways near Maggie’s university–– including a fellow student. She and a group of women ask a woman psychology professor for help:

“Professor Freeman, can’t we do anything?” Terry Poole was vivacious, black, intelligent, usually smiling but today very grim.

“You mean for a memorial?”

“Hell, no!” said Maggie. “We want to find out how to stop guys like that. Why do they do it? How can we fight back?”

“Right!” agreed Terry. “This is just the last straw. Vietnam and assassinations and riots, maybe we can’t do anything about those. But why the hell can’t we stop just one flaky dude?”

They form a group called Women Against Rape to study the psychology of rapists and the police and court responses to rape. They begin to study self-defense, practising with each other. Maggie asks her brawny actor friend Nick O’Connor to play the villain for a few moments. Despite the lessons and her determination and athleticism, he’s able to win the first rounds, and she wants explanations. Nick says:

“You can try a feint to the eyes or the throat first to distract him, then grab. But don’t just stand back and kick. You can be flipped back off balance.”

“Yeah, I know, you just demonstrated.” Maggie looked at him resentfully. “Where did my sweet, pacific Uncle Nick learn all these dirty tricks?”

“Contact sports. Army. Stage combat lessons. Working as bouncer in a bar.”

“All the things women aren’t supposed to do. Because we might get hurt.”

“Yep.”

“All right, then.” Maggie bounced to her feet resolutely. “Private Ryan reporting to Parris Island, sarge. What’s lesson three?”

As I wrote these mysteries, I didn’t find out how to abolish violence. But as I investigated how good people attempt to deal with it, facing it to increase their understanding and skills, my hope and admiration for human resilience grew.

In the book, Maggie and her friends don’t stop the war, or assassinations, or riots. But they do figure out how to stop one flaky dude.

MURDER IS ACADEMIC (Maggie Ryan 1968)
An Anthony Award nominee

Vietnam, assassinations and riots. In the spring semester of 1968, a series of brutal attacks draws campus women together to study self-defense and the psychology of rape. Graduate student Mary Beth Nelson struggles to keep the Lords of Death at bay by immersing herself in researching Mayan languages. Her new housemate, Maggie Ryan, has her own secrets. When murder strikes close to home, Maggie investigates with a little help from her friends.

About the Author:

P.M. Carlson taught psychology and statistics at Cornell University before deciding that mystery writing was more fun. She has published twelve mystery novels and over a dozen short stories. Her novels have been nominated for an Edgar Award, a Macavity Award, and twice for Anthony Awards. Two short stories were finalists for Agatha Awards. She edited the Mystery Writers Annual for Mystery Writers of America for several years, and served as president of Sisters in Crime.

Author Website: http://www.pmcarlson.net
Publisher Website: http://www.crumcreekpress.com/carlson

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