Thursday, April 30, 2020

Release Blitz: Artful Lies

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Artful Lies, a brand new irresistible and passionate romance from the Million Copy bestselling author of the This Man series, Jodi Ellen Malpas, is LIVE!

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An irresistible connection, a desire that won't let go...
When aspiring antiques dealer Eleanor Cole is handed the chance of a lifetime to work for the Hunt Corporation, the renowned antiques dealers, she doesn't think twice. Only to discover she'll be working up close and personal with the notorious and insanely irresistible Becker Hunt. He is a man famous for getting what he wants, and Becker wants Eleanor.
But as Becker pulls her deeper into his world, she discovers there's more to him than meets the eye.
And falling for Becker goes from being foolish to dangerous…

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Download your copy today!

Add to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/39f0SJ3

About Jodi:
Jodi Ellen Malpas was born and raised in the Midlands town of Northampton, England, where she lives with her husband, boys, and a beagle. She is a self-professed daydreamer, a Converse and mojito addict, and she has a terrible weak spot for alpha males. Writing powerful love stories and creating addictive characters has become her passion—a passion she now shares with her devoted readers.
Her novels have hit bestseller lists for the New York Times, USA Today, Sunday Times, and various other international publications and can be read in more than twenty-four languages around the world.

Connect with Jodi:




Wednesday, April 29, 2020

WWBC #9: Reason Why I stopped Reading a Series that I Loved


Yes! It is that time of the ... week ... again.

In an earlier WWBC post I mentioned that one of my favorite book series was the Portland Storm.  There are seventeen (if not more) books in the series. I have read ten, five of which were audio.

When I work at a sandwich shop, I handle a lot of food prep. This included slicing the meat. I often listened to audio books while working in order to remain awake and focused. By the time I finished, the book it self was at least half way done. Since leaving, I had little need for audio books.

I guess when I really think about it, it wasn't that I made the choice to stop reading the series. It was more that I wanted to read other books just as much. I can continue reading the Portland Storm series any time I want.

This may not be an answer to the topic, but there you have it.

*** This is a weekly blogging challenge hosted by http://www.longandshortreviews.com/wednesday-weekly-blogging-challenge/.

*** I found that site through https://www.goddessfish.com/ .



Tuesday, April 28, 2020

Blog Tour: One-of-a-Kind Bride



Book Blurb:

It's a promise she plans to keep at all costs.

Taylor Preston never breaks a promise, especially to her dying mother about following her dreams to become a successful New York bridal gown designer. But when Taylor unexpectedly loses her high-profile job, she returns early to Last Stand, Texas where she happily spent childhood summers, to help with her cousin’s wedding. On Taylor’s first day back, the boy she left behind twelve years ago comes to her rescue and her sleeping heart inconveniently reawakens.
                 
All during their youth, Ryan “Coop” Cooper played Taylor’s “promise game,” and they never once broke a promise to each other, but that was years ago, and Coop, now an established contractor, isn’t the same person. Building a wedding gift she-shed brings Coop closer to Taylor. They recall their promises – silly and solemn – and realize the spark could easily once again flame.

But Taylor’s life is in New York, and Coop, a single father, won’t risk his heart or his daughter’s again…

Purchase links:
Barnes & Noble: https://bit.ly/3eAw21f




Excerpt:

    Wedding gown blues--meeting Coop again after twelve long years…
“No, Muffy!  No. Come back! Muffy, Muffy.” 
    The little tyrant didn’t hesitate, not even for a second. By the time Taylor made it to the door, the pup was zipping down the street. 
    Taylor had no choice. She didn’t have a second to spare as Julie’s words echoed in her ears. 
When she takes off, she’s too excited to know where the heck she is.  
Taylor couldn’t lose Muffy or heaven forbid, have something happen to her.  She lifted the hem of her dress, and flew down the steps, racing as fast as her legs and French taffeta would let her.  Luckily the dog was in sight, but she didn’t know for how long, Muffy was lengthening her lead. “Stop Muffy! Stop!” 
The dog raced in the opposite direction of town, to where the street became a country road. Her heart pounded, her breath came in short quick spurts.  She was losing ground. The dog was getting away. She picked up her pace, fighting dirt clods and hopping over potholes in the road.  
Just then, a shiny red pick-up truck came up behind her. She untangled the veil from her face as the truck slowed and she glanced into the cab, hoping for a miracle.   
And found a handsome, Stetson-wearing man, checking her out from the very top of her lace veil to the hand-stitched hem of her skirt, and everywhere in between.  He did a double take, then his lips lifted in a definite smirk.  
If she wasn’t entirely certain who the blue-eyed guy was, the logo on the side door gave it away. 
Cooper Construction
Shoot. 
Her heart did a little flip and her throat locked up good and tight.  Ryan “Coop” Cooper was so not her miracle. Yet he looked better than her own crazy daydreams.    
“Hey Taylor,” he drawled slow and easy like.  “What poor guy are you running away from this 
time?” 


Author Bio:

Charlene Sands is a USA Today Bestselling author of contemporary and western romance. She's been honored with the National Readers Choice Award, twice recipient of the Booksellers Best Award and RT Magazine's Best Harlequin Desire of 2014!    Charlene knows a little something about romance. After daydreaming about the cute boy with the long blonde hair and dazzling blue eyes two lockers down from her in high school, to her amazement he asked her out on a date. And he's been continually amazing her for the past forty years. Charlene's perfect day includes reading, drinking mocha Cappuccinos over ice, walking the Pacific beaches with her hubby or playing with her four adorable granddaughters.  She loves hearing from her readers. You can reach her at www.charlenesands.com or at www.facebook.com/charlenesandsbooks or Twitter. 

Connect:




Giveaway Info:

One-of-a-Kind Bride Prize Pack including the following items:
  • Brighton Bangle
  • Brighton Jewelry Bag
  • Tule Bookbag
  • Body Lotion
  • Notepad
  • $10 Amazon Gift Card 

Open to US shipping ONLY.

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Monday, April 27, 2020

Sneak Peek: Reckless Memories

I loved him before I knew what the word meant. But he was never mine to love.

Reckless Memories, an all-new emotional friends to lovers standalone from Catherine Cowles is releasing May 12th, and we have the first peek inside this not-to-be-missed romance.

Reckless Memories Cover

Prologue Isabelle

PAST
“I would rather sit on a hill of fire ants in my underwear while eating ghost peppers.” I leaned against the counter and popped a cracker into my mouth. My nose wrinkled. It was one of those multigrain ones that tasted more like cardboard than actual food.
“Isabelle Marie Kipton, I have had just about enough of your snarkiness, young lady.”
But I wasn’t a young lady, at least not in my mother’s estimation. Young ladies were poised and put-together and never questioned the dictates their parents set for them. I questioned everything, never went along easily, and was far too disheveled to gain any sort of approval from my parents.
I stared unblinkingly at my mother, not giving an inch.
“You will sit at that dinner table, and you will be composed and polite to our company.”
I let out a snort. “Like their daughter is composed and polite to me?” Lacey was more like the Devil incarnate, but she wore her pretty, polite mask perfectly. So, my mother might as well have thought she was the Second Coming.
Violet looked up from where she was arranging a platter of hors d’oeuvres. “Lacey snaps back because you bait her. Maybe you two are just more similar than you’d like to admit, and you ruffle each other’s feathers.”
I glanced up at my older sister. The perfect image of the young lady my parents wished I would be, with her impeccably styled hair and future-doctor composure. She might as well have been a stranger. When had that happened? I searched my mind for the date the switch had been flipped, when Violet had gone from friend and confidante, the sister who’d always had my back, to someone I couldn’t even begin to understand most of the time.
“You can be friends with her all you want, Vi. I’ll take a pass on having vicious snakes in my circle.” I glanced at my mother. “Or sharing a dinner table with them.”
Red crept up my mother’s neck and seeped into her face. “What is wrong with you?” I stayed silent. The list of what my mother found wrong with me would take us all night to get through. “That’s it. Hand over your phone.”
My fingers tightened around the edge of the counter. “Are you seriously taking my cell because I don’t want to have dinner with someone who’s awful to me? Who bullies my friends, and is cruel to everyone who isn’t in her little gang of followers? I’ve tried to tell you time and again that she’s not who you think she is.”
My mother held out her hand. “Perhaps if you kept better company, these things wouldn’t be an issue. You are who you spend time with, Isabelle. And those girls you run around with are not what I want for your future.”
My back teeth ground together as I slipped my hand into my back pocket, pulling out the device she’d requested and placing it in her palm. No phone meant no emergency line to my best friends, to Ford, to the people who kept me sane amidst the insanity that my mother brought about. I kept my face carefully blank. I wouldn’t give her the satisfaction of knowing that she’d impacted me in any way. She didn’t deserve to know she had that power.
“Since you insist on acting childish, you’ll be treated as one. Your curfew is now nine p.m.”
I gave her nothing. I was already a prisoner in this home full of people who’d rather judge me than try and understand where I was coming from.

Want more? Click here: https://bit.ly/2xb9naQ

Synopsis

I loved him before I knew what the word meant. From skinned knees to first dates and everything in between. But he was never mine to love. I settled for friendship, even though I always wanted more.
That was before. Before he ripped my world apart and didn’t bother sticking around to help me pick up the pieces. I knit every last shred back together all on my own. And I’ve all but forgotten his name.
Now, he’s back, and everything is torn apart once more. But he’s not the only one doing the tearing this time. And there might be no stopping the person who has it out for us both.

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Pre-order your copy today! 

Add to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2FdqQzB
Be notified FIRST when Reckless Memories is live: http://bit.ly/2JZE0DH

About Catherine

Writer of words. Drinker of Diet Cokes. Lover of all things cute and furry, especially her dog. Catherine has had her nose in a book since the time she could read and finally decided to write down some of her own stories. When she's not writing she can be found exploring her home state of Oregon, listening to true crime podcasts, or searching for her next book boyfriend.

Connect with Catherine

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2IEQXSw Facebook: http://bit.ly/2Lc4mU0 Twitter: https://twitter.com/catherinecowles Pinterest: http://bit.ly/2RFY7Jv Instagram: http://bit.ly/31TE3rJ Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2xdUZLn BookBub: http://bit.ly/2J3dWWF Website: https://www.catherinecowles.com/ Stay up to date with Catherine by joining her mail list: http://bit.ly/2JZE0DH

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

WWBC #8: My Silliest Pet Peeves


I hope this week's WWBC post finds you safe.

I actually have two pet peeves.

I used to work in a couple sandwich shops. One topping was banana peppers. Customers often call banana peppers "peppercinis", saying that the two were the same. The two peppers actually are not the same.

Banana peppers are yellow.
Peppercinis are light (at least) green. They are slightly spicier than Banana peppers

My second pet peeve is the one that actually makes me cringe. I can't stand it when people pronounce Italian as "Eye-talian". The reason why is simple. The name of the country is not "Eye-taly".

There you have my pet peeves. See you all next week.

** This is a weekly blogging challenge hosted by http://www.longandshortreviews.com/wednesday-weekly-blogging-challenge/.

I found that site through https://www.goddessfish.com/ .

Blog Tour: To Win a Wicked Lord


Book Blurb:


Lord Percival Bretagne is used to playing games. He survived being a spy for a decade using his wits alone. But that was just life and death, now he’s playing for the most important prize of all—love.


He’ll Stop at Nothing……


Ten years after his family gave him up for dead, British spy Lord Percival Bretagne is back home, but his mission is far from over. Playing the aristocrat in London gambling dens and at country house parties is just a cover for Percy’s real quest. He’s hunting the man who stole everything from him—his family, his marriage, even his identity. And this time nothing, and no one, will stand in his way.


She’ll Risk it All……


But one night with Isabel Galante changes everything. She’s willing to gamble a woman’s most intimate prize in order to save her imprisoned father, but she didn’t expect a devilishly handsome opponent with a dangerously attractive wicked streak. Isabel would do anything for her family, including betraying Percy, but she has no idea that she’s stumbled into the middle of a decade-long quest for revenge.


Who Will Win in the Game Called Love?


Percy has been betrayed before, and now the man who destroyed his life is using Isabel to strike again. With the fate of the government and his new life in the balance, he’ll have to keep Isabel seductively, scandalously close. They begin a passionate game of truth and lies, deception and dalliance, uncovering the heart of who they really are and realizing that winning might mean losing what matters the most—each other.



Purchase links:
Barnes & Noble: https://bit.ly/2XQ4gHQ



Giveaway:

Tuesday, April 21, 2020

Book Blast: The Edge of All Worlds


This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Enter to win a physical copy of the paperback of Carson of Venus: The Edge of All Worlds (continental US only). Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Carson of Venus is back in the first novel of groundbreaking Edgar Rice Burroughs Universe series!

When a mysterious enemy attacks his adopted nation of Korva, Earthman Carson Napier discovers his own arrival on Venus years ago may have unknowingly triggered the strike. The invaders' trail of death and destruction leads Carson and his beloved princess Duare headlong into battle against a seemingly invincible, primordial race. But that is not Carson's only challenge, for an uncanny phenomenon has entangled him with two strange individuals from beyond spacetime. Will Carson be able to solve the mysteries of his past and the enigmatic visitors before the entire planet descends into chaos?

Also includes the bonus novelette "Pellucidar: Dark of the Sun" by Christopher Paul Carey, introducing Victory Harben, the ERB Universe's newest heroine:

The very principle of physics behind the Gridley Wave has mysteriously failed, cutting off all communication between the hollow world of Pellucidar and the outer crust, and now inventor Jason Gridley must seek help from his brilliant young protégé, Victory Harben. Together they recover timeworn records from deep in the ruins of a dead Mahar city, hoping to use knowledge of Pellucidar's former reptilian overlords to jumpstart the Gridley Wave. But when their experiment goes terribly wrong, Jason and Victory suddenly find themselves drawn into the inscrutable machinations of an ancient evil.

THE FIRST UNIVERSE OF ITS KIND

A century before the term "crossover" became a buzzword in popular culture, Edgar Rice Burroughs created the first expansive, fully cohesive literary universe. Coexisting in this vast cosmos was a pantheon of immortal heroes and heroines--Tarzan of the Apes, Jane Clayton, John Carter, Dejah Thoris, Carson Napier, and David Innes being only the best known among them. In Burroughs' 80-plus novels, their epic adventures transported them to the strange and exotic worlds of Barsoom, Amtor, Pellucidar, Caspak, and Va-nah, as well as the lost civilizations of Earth and even realms beyond the farthest star. Now the Edgar Rice Burroughs Universe expands in an all-new series of canonical novels written by today's talented authors!

Read an Excerpt

“You should not have come here,” Yron interrupted. He looked over my friends and then opened his mouth repeatedly, as if he were straining for air. “You should turn around now and go back home in that strange flying vessel of yours.” He waited, as if he truly expected us to go.

Duare broke the awkward silence. “We are here to ask for help, or at the very least, some information.”

“I have none of that,” Yron said.

“Help or information?” I asked.

“Neither. Both.” The jong appeared flustered by the request, and by our very presence. I wondered why our appearances here had so obviously upset this usually cunning and devious leader. Had I known that it was Yron we were dealing with, I certainly would have thought twice about meeting with him so far down in his own element.

“What are you doing out here?” I asked. Yron and his people lived thousands of miles to the north in the city of Mypos, so what had prompted them to establish such a far-flung outpost? And who had built it? I had been to Mypos and seen firsthand the fish-people’s poor sense of art and architecture. They certainly hadn’t constructed this outpost on their own.

Before Yron could respond, Ero Shan stepped forward and demanded to hear anything that Yron knew about Nalte and the strange soldiers who had taken her. Duare interjected and described the creatures we had encountered, their craft, and how they had absconded with our companion.

Yron looked anxious, if his rapidly flapping gill slits meant anything, and said, “It sounds like you’ve run afoul of the Linneauns.”

Copyright © Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. All rights reserved. All logos, characters, names, and the distinctive likenesses thereof are trademarks or registered trademarks of Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. Used by permission.

About the Author:
Matt Betts worked for years in radio as an on-air personality, anchor and reporter. His fiction and poetry have appeared in numerous journals and anthologies. His work includes the steampunk novel, Odd Men Out, urban fantasy crime novel Indelible Ink, and his recent cryptid/horror novel White Anvil: Sasquatch Onslaught. His current release Carson of Venus: The Edge of all Worlds continues a series begun by Edgar Rice Burroughs.



Sales links:

ERB: https://bit.ly/3cmkrAU
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2RFrcGa

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Betts_Matt
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mattbettswrites
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mattbetts_author/
Website: http://www.mattbetts.com

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Monday, April 20, 2020

Cover Reveal: Unforgettable

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"If I've said it once, I've said it a million times--Melanie Harlow is the quintessential romance author."
-- Laurelin Paige, New York Times bestselling author

Unforgettable, an all-new small town second chance romance from USA Today bestselling author Melanie Harlow, is releasing May 4th, and we have the gorgeous cover!

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Back then, I had it all.
Wicked fastball. Killer instinct. Cocky grin. Full package.
(And believe me, I knew how to score.)
My senior year, I was a first round draft pick with a two-million-dollar signing bonus. Before I could even legally buy myself a beer, I made my Major League debut.
Point is, I was invincible.
Until one day I wasn’t.
After tanking my career—during the World Series, no less—the last thing I want to do is return to my hometown, where every jerk in a ball cap has an opinion about what went wrong with my arm. So when my sister drags me back to town for her wedding, I vow to get in and out of there as quickly as possible.
Then I run into April Sawyer.
In high school we were just friends, but I’d always wanted her, and I’d never forgotten her—the red hair, the incredible smile, the crazy, reckless thing we did in the back of my truck the night we said goodbye. It’s been eighteen years, but one look at her and I feel like my old self again. I can still make her laugh, she can still take me down a notch, and when the chemistry between us explodes, it’s even hotter this time around—and I don’t want it to end.
But just when I think I’m ready to let go of the past and get back in the game, life throws me a curveball I never saw coming.

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Pre-order your copy today! 


Add UNFORGETTABLE to Goodreads:

READ CHAPTER ONE of Unforgettable here: https://bit.ly/2RPMtgp

Cover Designer: Hang Le Photographer: Regina Wamba

About Melanie

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USA Today bestselling author Melanie Harlow likes her martinis dry, her heels high, and her history with the naughty bits left in. When she's not writing or reading, she gets her kicks from TV series like Schitt’s Creek, Homeland, and Fleabag. She occasionally runs three miles, but only so she can have more gin and steak.
Melanie is the author of the CLOVERLEIGH FARMS series, the ONE & ONLY series, AFTER WE FALL series, the HAPPY CRAZY LOVE series, the FRENCHED series, and the sexy historical SPEAK EASY duet, set in the 1920s. She lifts her glass to romance readers and writers from her home near Detroit, MI, where she lives with her husband, two daughters, and pet rabbit.

Connect with Melanie

Instagram: http://bit.ly/2NW3UtA 
Pinterest: http://bit.ly/2sVOz55 

Stay up to date, sign up for Melanie’s mailing list: http://bit.ly/2P7MATT 

Tuesday, April 14, 2020

Review Tour: Fated Souls


FATED SOULS
by Becky Flade

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GENRE: Romantic Suspense

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BLURB:

Shamed investigative journalist turned tabloid scribe Maggie O’Connell convinces her editor to let her go to Minnesota to research alleged werewolf sightings. Her first night in the woods, she gets trapped in an old sleeping bag, unintentionally attracts the attention of a bear, and is saved by the most unlikely of heroes: the very wolf she had come to investigate!

When she meets horse rancher Aidan Gael in the town market days later, she recognizes his eyes as those belonging to her champion.

Aidan tries desperately to avoid her; he both fears Maggie and fears for her. Neither man nor beast can resist her curious mind and courageous heart. One kiss threatens to break Aidan’s tenuous self-control but furthers Maggie’s resolve.

Danger lurks at every turn. The curse Aidan fights to keep secret is only one of the obstacles that will test the strength of their bond. Together they will navigate the violence of both nature and of man in pursuit of their destiny.

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Excerpt:

“You get that from playing poker?” Aidan asked.  Maggie smiled before answering. People always underestimated what could be learned at a quiet game of Texas Hold’em.  

“Sure. Johnnie Carson is reckless, can’t bluff to save his life, shoots for the moon on every hand, and cheats to compensate. Red plays the odds, his risks aren’t as risky as they seem; he keeps it close to the vest and bluffs like a pro. Barry’s ego is his downfall. He’s too busy playing at being better than everyone else to bother playing better than anyone else. Old Man is cautious; he bets small even when he’s got the best hand. He gains the least but loses the least and seems all the happier for it. And Sly,” Maggie’s smile grew from ear to ear, “is aptly named. That man is one sly card player. Honest to a fault too, except when he’s bluffing of course. But that’s not dishonest, that’s just strategy.” 

“You got them all pegged to a T.” He laughed. “Maybe I should play sometime?” 

“I already know what kind of card player you’d be.” At his blank stare, she smiled. “You’d want to play it balls to the wall, but you’d put instinct in check and take the safest, quietest hand, make the most reserved bets, and fold rather than risk chance.” She saw his walls come down like she knew they would, and was irritated at herself for doing it. But she hadn’t lied. He reached into his pocket and pulled out enough to cover both their orders and a decent tip. 

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Author Bio and Links:

A city girl, born and bred, I tend to place my stories in and around southeast Pennsylvania, or at least have a character or two from the area. Home is where the heart is and I make mine with my very own knight in slightly tarnished armor, three beautiful daughters, my son-in-law and two grandsons. When I’m not busy living my own happily ever after, I’m writing about someone else’s.

I’d love to have you visit with me at any of my virtual homes or write to me directly at beckyfladeauthor@gmail.com 

CONTACT INFO
http://www.pinterest.com/BeckyFlade/

The book will be on sale for only $0.99. 
Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/Fated-Souls-1-Becky-Flade-ebook/dp/B07XWF65XJ/ref=sr_1_1  

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My Review

There were moments in the book when it seemed Maggie had almost looked at the wolf as a confidant. This added a bit of lightheartedness to the story.

The story was not as predictable as I thought when I came to Aidan, his life or his curse.
I had mixed feelings at a point in the story regarding Aidan and Gealach. I don't know whether that was intended by the author. However, I think that it gave aidan more depth.

Rating: 😃😃😃😃😃

GIVEAWAY

Becky Flade will award a randomly drawn winner a $20 Amazon/BN GC.