Monday, March 31, 2014

Cover Reveal and Giveaway: The Art of Keeping Faith by Anna Bloom

The Art of Keeping Faith by Anna Bloom 
(Uni Files #2) 
Publication date: April 2, 2014
Genres: New Adult, Romance

Designed by Shirer Burkett




Lilah and Ben. They are meant to be a thing.

Well they were. The best thing ever. That was until Lilah decided to teach herself a lesson, and let go of Ben as she learnt The Art of Letting Go.

Now it’s a new academic year, and Lilah has it all to play for and it all too lose as she battles scary lecturers, evil PR girls and her own inability to make the right decision at the right time.

Life has moved on for Lilah and her friends, and life off campus is more complicated than any of them would have guessed.  As the reality of being second year students sets in and the study starts to build up, cracks begin to appear in the very fabric of their friendships. There is a chance that none of them are going to complete Year Two in one piece.

Facing down her worst enemy: herself. Lilah has to try and change her own past mistakes when she realises that the only way she is going to get the future she wants is if she manages to learn The Art of Keeping Faith in herself.

The Art of Keeping Faith is the second year in The Uni File Series and continues Lilah McCannon’s diary as she searches for love, tries to find and earn trust, and ultimately discovers who she is really meant to be.

Sometimes the only way to meet your future is to face your past.

Goodreads


AUTHOR BIO
Anna Bloom is a contemporary romance writer who writes about life as it happens. Combining a busy schedule of looking after two small children whilst working in a local school and completing The Uni Files series. Anna’s main aim in life is to create the perfect book which makes a reader laugh and cry at the same time, hopefully causing a convulsive (impossible to ignore) donkey noise. It’s a work in progress!  Anna also spends a lot of time imagining kissing hot guys – all in the name of her art.


Author Giveaway
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Blitz and Giveaway: The Opposite of Nothing by Shari Slade

The Opposite of Nothing by Shari Slade 
Publication date: March 31, 2014
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance

Callie Evans would rather hide out in her DJ sound booth than face the fact that she’s in love with her best friend, notorious campus hottie Tayber King.


Tayber turns hooking up into an art form–no drama, no commitment, no lies, and nobody gets hurt. Nobody but Callie, that is. When she sees an opportunity to explore his sexier side using a fake online profile, she grabs it. Now her uninhibited alter-ego ‘Sasha’ is steaming up the screen, and Callie is breaking all of Tayber’s rules.

As Callie and Tayber get closer, online and off, she knows she has to confess. And risk losing him forever.

**For mature readers, contains strong language and adult situations.**



AUTHOR BIO
Shari Slade is a snarky optimist. A would-be academic with big dreams and very little means. When she isn't toiling away in the non-profit sector, she's writing gritty stories about identity and people who make terrible choices in the name of love (or lust). Somehow, it all works out in the end. If she had a patronus it would be a platypus.

Frequently found in a blanket fort, you can also find her contributing at Wonkomance, on twitterfacebook, or tumblr. For new release updates, sign up for the newsletter.



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sunday, March 30, 2014

Cover Reveal and Giveaway: Written On Her Heart by Paige Ryan

Written On Her Heart by Paige Ryan 
Publication date: April 23, 2014
Genres: New Adult, Romance
Designed by Najla Qamber Designs



To escape the ensuing media whirlwind after scandalous events in his novels were revealed to be true, big-time author Ford Delaney relocates to Callaway Cove.

When 21-year-old budding writer, Andi Callaway, returns home for college break, she discovers her literary idol – Ford Delaney, a world famous novelist – has taken refuge in her tiny hometown.

Andi determines to win a job as his assistant – but being hired by the handsome, reclusive author means competing with her friends for the job and ignoring the wishes of her longtime boyfriend.

As romantic sparks begin to fly between Andi and Ford, the heat they generate will either forge a powerful, enduring love or threaten everything she holds dear.



AUTHOR BIO
Paige Ryan writes contemporary urban fantasy and paranormal fiction specializing in on our obsession with things that "go bump in the night". Her casual reading in the world of the occult has lead to some interesting ideas on vampires, witchcraft, spirits and other strange beings.

She shares her home on the shores of Virginia with the obligatory pair of cats, a solid black St. Bernard, plus a 'velcro' Dane. "If I had only known Scooby Doo was a cartoon character written by someone that actually owned a Dane, I would have thought twice about getting mine!" she says.

You can join the world of the Kind or contact Paige at www.thevampirekind.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/thevampirekind

Author Giveaway
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Saturday, March 29, 2014

Cover Reveal: Fingers in the Mist by O'Dell Hutchison

Welcome to the Cover Reveal for

Fingers in the Mist by O’Dell Hutchison

presented by Month9Books!
Be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!
Fingers in the Mist 1600x2400
Sixteen-year-old Caitlyn Foster never believed in the legend of the Redeemers. That was before the trees started to whisper her name. Before a murder of crows attacked the town. Before she and her family came home to find a bloody handprint on their front door, marking one of them as a sacrifice. As Caitlyn’s friends are ripped from their homes, she knows it’s only a matter of time before the Redeemers come for her. Caitlyn has the power to stop the terror, but she’ll have to decide if she’s willing to sacrifice herself to save those she loves.
add to goodreads
Fingers in the Mist by O’Dell Hutchison
Publisher: Month9Books
Chapter-by-Chapter-header---About-the-Author
O'Dell HutchisonO’Dell was born in a small rural town in Idaho. There were no Redeemers living there (that he knows of). After attending college in the Pacific Northwest, he found his way to the Houston area. By day, he is a Business Systems Analyst and at night you can either find him sitting at home, dreaming of random super powers he wishes he had, or directing plays and musicals at various theaters around Houston.
Connect with the Author: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Chapter-by-Chapter-header---Giveaway
Complete the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win!


Button

Friday, March 28, 2014

Review: The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski

Title: The Winner's Curse (The Winner's Trilogy #1)
Author: Marie Rutkoski
Source: Amazon Vine
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Release Date: March 4, 2014
Reviewed by: Jasmyn

Winning what you want may cost you everything you love 

As a general’s daughter in a vast empire that revels in war and enslaves those it conquers, seventeen-year-old Kestrel has two choices: she can join the military or get married. But Kestrel has other intentions. 

One day, she is startled to find a kindred spirit in a young slave up for auction. Arin’s eyes seem to defy everything and everyone. Following her instinct, Kestrel buys him—with unexpected consequences. It’s not long before she has to hide her growing love for Arin. 

But he, too, has a secret, and Kestrel quickly learns that the price she paid for a fellow human is much higher than she ever could have imagined. 

Set in a richly imagined new world, The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski is a story of deadly games where everything is at stake, and the gamble is whether you will keep your head or lose your heart.



The Winner's Curse is a very interesting look at war and strategy.  I have read several reviews that list this as a romance - but I saw it as more of a fantasy novel about revolution, compromise, and war.  Kestral is the daughter of the general and many expect her to follow in her father's footsteps, becoming a great soldier and leader.  But Kestral has a secret - she can't fight.  While she is excellent at strategy, she has never been able to grasp the fine art of physical combat.

Arin is a slave.  He is Herrani, one of the people captured by the empire and forced to choose death or slavery.  But he is more than just an ordinary slave.  When Kestral purchases him she discovers that he is intelligent and sly.  As her strategic mind begins to put the pieces together, she isn't quite fast enough.  Disaster strikes Kestral's people and while she may be the only chance they have of survival, she is also the reason it succeeded.

I think I loved the mental sparring in this book the best.  It was very political, with moves and counter-moves throughout society and on the field of war to be analyzed with fast minds that could make quick decisions.  Is there a romance?  Sort of.  It certainly isn't one that I would want to be a part of, but it is incredibly important to the story.  There was not a lot of physical action or conflict until after the half way point of the book, but the author managed to create a lot of tension without it.

I found this book very hard to put down.  There were a few small things that bothered me about Arin and the way he reacted and accomplished things - especially when it came to Kestral.  I'm definitely going to be watching for the next book.  While the story didn't exactly end in a cliffhanger, you can tell there is much more to come and I'm hoping some things aren't exactly as they seem.

*This book was received in exchange for an honest review*


Book Blitz Excerpt and Giveaway: Sunset Rising by S.M. McEachern

Sunset Rising by S.M. McEachern 
(Sunset Rising #1) 
Publication date: November 12th 2013
Genres: Dystopia, Young Adult


February 2024: Desperate to find refuge from the nuclear storm, a group of civilians discover a secret government bio-dome. Greeted by a hail of bullets and told to turn back, the frantic refugees stand their ground and are grudgingly permitted entry. But the price of admission is high.
283 years later… Life as a slave in the Pit had never been easy, but for seventeen-year-old Sunny O’Donnell it was quickly careening out of control. Her mother was killed in the annual spring Cull, leaving her alone with a father who decided to give up on life.  It’s not that she blamed him for grieving, but if they didn’t earn enough credits to keep their place inside the Pit, they would be kicked out into a world still teeming with radiation. That left her to earn the credits for both of them.  It didn’t help that her boyfriend, Reyes Crowe, was pressuring her to get married and abandon her father.

Sunny didn’t think life could get any worse, until she was forced upstairs to the Dome to serve and entertain the elite at a bachelor party. That's where she met Leisel Holt, the president's daughter, and her fiancé, Jack Kenner. Now Sunny is wanted for treason. If they catch her, she'll be executed.  

She thought Leisel's betrayal was the end for her…but it turns out it was just the beginning. 

Sunset Rising is Book One of a series. 




AUTHOR BIO
S.M. McEachern (also known as Susan) comes from the rocky shores of Canada’s East Coast.  As a resident of Halifax during her early adult years, she attended Dalhousie University and earned an Honors Degree in International Development Studies with a focus on ocean development.  Throughout her academic studies and early career, Susan had the privilege to work with many developing countries on resource management projects.

Becoming an author has been a lifelong dream for Susan. “Sunset Rising” is her debut novel and the first of many she plans to write. 


Excerpt from Sunset Rising:
“Oh, Summer. If you weren’t so picky, you could have been married by now. But whenever a boy is interested in you, you’re suddenly not interested in him. I think you like flirting more than actually having a boyfriend.”
“That’s not true. I just haven’t met the right one yet.”
“Though you do bring up a good point. You’re running out of time.”
Summer could have had her pick of any boy in the Pit. A full head shorter than me, her small stature and delicate limbs gave her an elegant, feminine quality. I always felt large and clumsy next to her.
“You know, we’re always talking about me,” Summer said. “How are you? How’s your dad?”
She might regret asking that question, but I gave her an honest answer. “Dad lost his job yesterday because he didn’t show up for work.”
“Oh, Sunny. What are you going to do?”
I heard sympathy in her voice, and exasperation, too. My father had always been a little self-destructive. My mother had done a fairly good job of protecting me from it, but without her, I was on my own with him. “I told Reyes last night I couldn’t marry him until after the next Cull.”
“You’re postponing? Again?” she asked. “That’s a bit drastic. I’m sure your father can get another job. He’s had a lot of experience in the mines.”
“He’s barely been eating since Mom left, and now he’s too weak to get out of bed.”
“But you’ve put your marriage on hold once before, and I can’t imagine Reyes is happy with postponing again. And you’re not getting any younger, Sunny. You’re almost eighteen. Aren’t you afraid Reyes is going to get fed up with waiting and move on to someone else?”
I had never thought about Reyes being with someone else. We had been together forever. And at our age, it was getting kind of late to go looking for a new partner. Of course he would wait for me. If I gave him enough time, he would eventually understand that my father needed me right now, and I couldn’t leave him.
But there was wisdom in her words. At seventeen, I was middle-aged, and that didn’t bode well for getting approval to have a child. Population control in the Pit was getting stricter all the time. Reyes really wanted a child, but if I was being honest with myself, I didn’t. I guessed that was why I didn’t feel an urgent need to get married right away.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal: Paradox by Kelly Carrero

Paradox by Kelly Carrero 
(Unearthly Paradox #1) 
Publication date: April 2014
Genres: Romance, Urban Fantasy, Young Adult



Never in a million years would I ever fall for the son of a drug lord. Or so I thought until I moved two doors down from Jett.
Zara thought her life was over when she had to move just days before graduation. The situation went from bad to horrible, when she discovers just how cruel the kids at her new school can be.

When Zara is set up by some bullies and almost raped, she somehow gets free, but she’s haunted by the eyes of the one she believes rescued her.

Later, bad boy Jett is only too willing to step in and help. In fact, Zara can’t seem to get rid of him or his family, who all seem to have a strange obsession with her.

Will letting down her guard be one of the biggest mistakes of her life, or is Zara destined to become a part of his life, an existence that no human could ever understand?


Author Links:


Thursday, March 27, 2014

Blog Tour Character Profile: Secret of the Corpse Eater by: Ty Drago


Title: Secret of the Corpse Eater (The Undertakers #3)
Author: Ty Drogo
Release Date: March 25, 2014
Publisher: Month9Books


The Corpses are up something.

U.S. Senator Lindsay Micha had been kidnapped and replaced with a “dead” ringer, the sister to Lilith Cavanaugh, the Queen of the Dead. Now Will Ritter must go undercover in our nation’s capital to ferret out the truth and try to stop this ambitious deader. But his mission becomes even more dangerous when he learns of a mysterious ten-legged monster that prowls the halls of the Capitol Building — a lethal monster with a taste for Corpse flesh.

Can such an alien “enemy of his enemy” truly become Will’s friend?


About the Author:
In addition to the first two books in UNDERTAKERS series, RISE OF THE CORSPES and QUEEN OF THE DEAD, Ty Drago is the author of PHOBOS, a Science Fiction whodunit and THE FRANKLIN AFFAIR, an historical/mystery about Benjamin Franklin. His short fiction has appeared in numerous venues, including the 2009 anthology YESTERDAY, I WILL ..., and he has written articles for WRITERS DIGEST.  His first UNDERTAKERS novelette, NIGHT OF MONSTERS, is currently available for FREE on Smashwords.com and barnesandnoble.com.


Character Profile: Tom Jefferson
Seventeen-year-old Thomas Jefferson is the Chief of the Undertakers.  He’s served in that role for more than two years, ever since Karl Ritter, Will’s father and the founder of the Undertakers, was murdered by the Corpses.  Since then, Tom has done his best to follow in his mentor’s and surrogate father’s footsteps.  He runs Haven with a firm but gentle hand, always in control and always seeming to know what to do next.
Tom and his twin sister Sharyn grew up in the Philadelphia foster care system, moving from temporary home to temporary home.  When they finally had enough, the two of them ran away from the last one and took to the streets.  There, they became first rate cat burglars—until Karl Ritter found them and turned them into something more.

Tom and Sharyn are spectacular fighters, and have been training the other Undertakers in the Street Karate that they’ve both mastered.  Tall and broad-shouldered, Tom cuts an imposing figure. His leadership of the Undertakers is unquestioned, though his authority and decisions are often challenged by Susan Ritter, who insists on seeing him as a boy in need of adult guidance. 
Tom is patient with her.

He’s a natural commander, a brilliant strategist, and selfless to a fault. His primary concern is the safety of the kids in his charge, more than a hundred of them, as well as the final defeat of the Corpses.  Toward this end, he has learned to rely on Will Ritter’s insight and often remarkable luck.  While he doesn’t yet understand it, Tom senses that Will holds the key to winning the war.


Click the button for a full list of tour stops.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal: The Wild Hunt by Ron C. Nieto

The Wild Hunt by Ron C. Nieto 
(Faerie Sworn #1) 
Publication date: June 2014
Genres: Paranormal, Young Adult
Designed by Mathia Arkoniel


Magic still lingers in the mist-covered corners of the world, wherever the Old Ways are remembered. However, as civilization and reason scoff at the Fair Folk, the paths to power have been forgotten by all but a few.

Lily Boyd was meant to become a faerie doctor, a warden of humans and a keeper of balance, until disbelief and pragmatism led her away from the hidden world and into a mundane life. But truth has a way to be Heard and she will be forced to face it if she wants to save her family.

Armed with nothing but her childhood memories and protected by a debt of gratitude she doesn’t understand, Lily must decide who to trust while she navigates a world that is darker and more twisted than she is prepared for.

And should she make the wrong choice, should she mistake friend and foe… the eternal balance between the Faerie Courts may shatter, and then there will be more than Lily’s life on the line..


AUTHOR BIO
Ron C. Nieto is a fantasy and romance author who has been writing in her secluded fortress for the longest time. Recently, she had a talk with her cat and decided that she should share her creations, because it was selfish to hoard them all for herself.

If you would like to know more about her, please visit her website.

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Cover Reveal: Collide by Christine Fonseca

Collide by Christine Fonseca 
Publication date: April 29th 2014
Genres: Thriller, Young Adult

Designed by Book Cover Machine


The most dangerous secrets are the ones that kill.

When a surprising mental breakdown draws too much attention from a secret government group call the Order, 17-year-old Dakota discovers that her so-called boring life isn’t so boring after all. Between the lies, secrets and assassins out to kill her family, Dakota discovers there’s more to paranormal activity than ghosts and cheap mind tricks. Now she must uncover the truth before a new breed of terrorism takes everything away – including her life.



AUTHOR BIO
Critically acclaimed nonfiction and YA author Christine Fonseca is dedicated to helping children of all ages find their voice in the world. Drawing on her expertise as an educational psychologist, her nonfiction titles address issues of emotional intensity, resiliency and giftedness. In fiction, she explores the darker aspects of humanity and delivers gothic thrillers that take you on a rollercoaster ride of emotions. In life, she teaches her own children to embrace their unique talents and find their voice by being a force of positive change in the world.
When she’s not writing or developing programs to support children with exceptional needs, she can be found spending time with her family, sipping too many skinny vanilla lattes at her favorite coffee house or playing around on Facebook and Twitter. For more information about Christine Fonseca or her books, visit her website – http://christinefonseca.com or her blog http://christinefonseca.blogspot.com.

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Review: Black Spring by Alison Croggon

Title: Black Spring
Author: Alison Croggon
Source: Amazon Vine
Genre: Fantasy, Gothic
Release Date: August 27, 2013
Reviewed by: Jasmyn

Inspired by the gothic classic Wuthering Heights, this stunning new fantasy from the author of the Books of Pellinor is a fiercely romantic tale of betrayal and vengeance.

In a savage land sustained by wizardry and ruled by vendetta, Lina is the enchanting but willful daughter of a village lord. She and her childhood companion, Damek, have grown up privileged and spoiled, and they’re devoted to each other to the point of obsession. But Lina’s violet eyes betray her for a witch, and witches are not tolerated in a brutally patriarchal society. Her rank protects her from persecution, but it cannot protect her from tragedy and heartbreak. An innocent visitor stands witness to the devastation that ensues as destructive longing unleashes Lina’s wrath, and with it her forbidden power. Whether drawn by the romantic, the magical, or the gothic, readers will be irresistibly compelled by the passion of this tragic tale.







I have always been a lover of Wuthering Heights so I thought this would be right up my alley.  The writing style, very formal and journal like, did remind me of the classic and it was well done.  However, the story itself didn't do as much for me as I had hoped.

It starts with a noble, Hammel, traveling to the far and uncivilized north for a change of scenery.  The story sort of begins here with him having a horrible run-in with his landlord.  I was incredibly confused because the characters in the book did not seem anything like the back blurb at this point.  But then we jump back in time quite a ways as the housekeeper tells Hammel the story of Lina and Damek.  This is the majority of the story is told from Anna's perspective, looking back and telling her story.  

Lina and Damek's story is the perfect tragic romance and fits the gothic description very well.  Doomed from the start by so many things.  There was just too much to it though.  The story seemed to drag on too much, the history being told with many rambling sidetracks.  The story is intriguing and wanting to know how it ended kept me going, but at times it was hard to do.

*This book was received in exchange for an honest review*


Cover Reveal: At Any Turn by Brenna Aubrey

At Any Turn by Brenna Aubrey 
(Gaming the System #2) 
Publication date: April 15th 2014
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance
Designed by Okay Creations



So You Want to Be a Hero? 

Millionaire CEO Adam Drake overcame a tortured past to take control of his life and build his own gaming empire. The final piece falls into place with his newfound love for brilliant geek girl blogger, Mia Strong. Now Adam is at the top of his game.

Your Princess Is in Another Castle.

Until Mia suddenly breaks things off, leaving Adam in the dark. He senses she needs his help but that she's too stubborn or scared to ask. The more he tries to take control, the further she shies away. This is one problem he can’t solve by writing a check or a few clever lines of code.

He will have to dig deep and put himself at risk…or else risk losing her forever.

This New Adult contemporary romance is intended for readers over the age of 18 due to adult language, sexual content and adult situations.



AUTHOR BIO
Brenna Aubrey is an author of New Adult contemporary romance stories that center on geek culture. Her debut novel, At Any Price, released December, 2013.

She has always sought comfort in good books and the long, involved stories she weaves in her head. Brenna is a city girl with a nature-lover’s heart. She therefore finds herself out in green open spaces any chance she can get. A mommy to two little kids and teacher to many more older kids, she juggles schedules to find time to pursue her love of storycrafting.

She currently resides on the west coast with her husband, two children, two adorable golden retriever pups, two birds and some fish.

Brenna’s short story “The Love Letter” was the Grand Prize winner of the Jane Austen Made Me Do It Short Story Contest. As such, it was included in the anthology of the same name (Ballantine, 2011)



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Monday, March 24, 2014

Cover Reveal: Prophecy of the Most Beautiful by Diantha Jones

Prophecy of the Most Beautiful by Diantha Jones 
(Oracle of Delphi #1) 
Publication date: March 1st 2012
Genres: Fantasy, Mythology, Young Adult


She has a destiny so great that even the gods fear her.

Constant hallucinations and the frequent conversations with the voices in her head, have earned eighteen-year-old Chloe Clever the not-so-coveted title of “Whack Job” in her home town of Adel, Georgia. With the onslaught of prescription medications and therapists threatening to push her over the edge, she wishes for a life far away from the one she has, a life where she is destined to be more than the butt of everyone’s jokes and mockery.

Be careful what you wish for has never rung more true.

After living through an attack from her worst nightmare, she awakens to find herself far from home, surrounded by glorious riches and servants…and a few demigods who enjoy killing things. Upon learning that her favorite rockstar is an Olympian god, she is thrust into her new life as the Oracle of Delphi, the prophesier of the future, and the great Pythia that the gods have been anxiously awaiting to arrive for centuries. Setting out to fulfill the prophecy she has been given and to keep her family safe from a demigod Princess that wants her dead, Chloe learns of how great she is to become, all the while fighting mythical monsters, evading divine assassins and trying to outwit the ever-cunning Greek gods who harbor secrets of their own. In the hopes of discovering the Most Beautiful and the truth of her destiny, she strives to uncover the mysteries of the demigod Prince who has sworn to protect her with his life…and threatens to win her heart in the process.



AUTHOR BIO
Diantha was born on Thanksgiving Day so that explains why her mother calls her a "turkey." She spent the first 16 years of her life as an official Army brat (now she's a retired one), and has spent the last twelve years living in Georgia (Atlanta, then Savannah). She now resides in Washington D.C. She loves to read and watch movies (Quentin Tarantino is her fave director), and she loves cold weather and french fries (with cheese if possible).


Cover Reveal: Just You by Jane Lark

Just You by Jane Lark 
(Starting Out #2) 
Published by: Harper Impulse
Publication date: May 2014
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance


The morning after the New Year’s Eve before…

Waking up to a new year with a killer hangover and hazy memories of a seriously hot hook-up the night before leaves Portia in an awkward situation… Did I, or didn’t I? The only way she’s going to find out is by standing up to the guy in question.

With no regrets, Justin is willing to play the gentleman and save Portia her embarrassment. Only then he gets a text saying, come over… and he’s not gonna lie – this is friends with a lot of benefits!

But no matter how good the sex is, there’s one thing Justin’s not down with: being this shallow rich girl’s dirty little secret…


AUTHOR BIO
Jane is a writer of authentic, passionate and emotional Historical and New Adult romance and author of a No.1 bestselling Historical Novel,'The Illicit Love of a Courtesan, as well as a Kindle overall Top 25, bestselling author.

She began her first historical novel at sixteen, but a life full of adversity derailed her as she lives with the restrictions of Ankylosing Spondylitis.

When she finally completed a novel it was because she was determined not to reach forty still saying, I want to write.

Now Jane is writing a Regency series as well as contemporary, new adult, stories and she is thrilled to be giving her characters life in others' imaginations at last.

You might think that Jane was inspired to write by Jane Austen, especially as she lives near Bath in the United Kingdom, but you would be wrong. Jane's favourite author is Anya Seton, and the book which drew her into the bliss of falling into historical imagination was 'Katherine' a story crafted from reality.

Jane has drawn on this inspiration to discover other real-life love stories, reading memoirs and letters to capture elements of the past, and she uses these to create more realistic plots.

'Basically I love history and I am sucker for a love story. I love the feeling of falling in love; it's wonderful being able to do it time and time again in fiction.'

Jane is also a Chartered Member of the Institute of Personnel and Development in the United Kingdom, and uses this specialist understanding of people to bring her characters to life.

Saturday, March 22, 2014

Book Blitz Excerpt: Kiss Me Twice by Lauren Hawkeye

Kiss Me Twice by Lauren Hawkeye 
(Three Little Words #3) 
Publication date: TBD
Genres: New Adult, Romance

The sequel to the New York Times bestselling Three Little Words… a steamy new adult rock star romance!
(love story, new adult romance, contemporary romance, alpha males, heroes, sexy romance, bad boys, falling in love, college)

Can three people have a happy ever after in a world that runs two by two?

After two years of hiding, Adele Cavanaugh has finally found happiness with her first love, serious law student Malachi Hunter… and with sexy Australian rocker Dorian Marshall, the lead singer of the band Three Little Words.

But the universe doesn’t seem to want Adele to be happy. Just when she thinks she can finally be free, the demons from her past make a devastating reappearance… and so does Malachi’s ex-girlfriend. Combined with an opportunity for the band that will take Dorian away from her, Adele wonders if she has been fooling herself all along.

Will Adele find the strength to let love win, even when it comes in a non-traditional form?

The third book in the Three Little Words series, Kiss Me Twice is a steamy New Adult romance that explores the love between two men who would rather share their woman than let her go. Two years ago Adele’s world fell to pieces… this books asks if she’s strong enough to put herself back together again.


AUTHOR BIO
Lauren Hawkeye/ Lauren Jameson is a writer, yoga newbie, knitting aficionado and animal lover who lives in the shadows of the great Rocky Mountains of Alberta, Canada. She's older than she looks--really--and younger than she feels--most of the time--and she loves to explore the journeys that take women through life in her stories. Hawkeye's stories include erotic historical, steamy paranormal, and hot contemporary. Make sure to check out her work as Lauren Jameson, where her erotic romances take a walk on the wild side.


Excerpt from Kiss Me Twice
Seeing Mal had unsettled me more than I cared to admit, even to myself. I found myself shaking as I walked, my muscles trembling like one of the orange leaves that danced in the wind around me.
I had never imagined that he had come for me, that he’d gotten over our stupid, stupid fight just as I had. It made what had happened to me at that horrific party all the more tragic.
If I’d know I still had Mal, I might have been able to get through the taunts, the humiliation that had been heaped on top of the pain of what had already been taken from me. I might have found the guts to stay.
No one had ever gotten under my skin like he had, and it was beyond annoying that time had failed to diminish his effect on me. When he’d wrapped me in a hug, it had felt like coming home. When he’d cupped my face in his hands…
The touch had startled me with its intensity, with the need that it pulled from my very core. Half of me had wanted to jump right back in, to pull him down to that ugly couch and lose myself in the bliss I knew he could provide.
The other half of me hurt. Malachi Hunter was a reminder of who I’d once been, back before that one night had changed my life.
And to top it all off, I was horny as hell, which blew my mind. I didn’t even think about sex anymore—I wanted nothing to do with it. But while Mal had been gorgeous two years ago, now…
Damn. He looked like sin, like a man any and every woman would kill for a chance to be with.
“Forget about him, Adele.” I lectured myself as I hurried around my condo, stripping off my jeans and hoodie and replacing them with the spandex shorts and snug pink T-shirt that I wore to roller derby practice. Though I would wear a jacket or hoodie with long sleeves on the way there, derby was the one place where I felt comfortable exposing the tattoos that colored my arms.
The ones that reminded me, as Mal had, of the wild, carefree girl who had once lived inside my body.
Once at the school gymnasium where we practiced, I threw myself into practice with even more vigor than usual. I’d always loved to roller skate, had been drawn to the solidity of four wheels beneath my feet even after my mom had decided that skating was no longer an appropriate activity—and when I say she had decided, really I meant her husband.
I’d gotten into derby just over a year ago after seeing a posting for tryouts on a flyer at Java the Hut.
Derby was wild and unpredictable, full of strong women who didn’t take any shit. When I skated with my team, I basked in that strength, pretending that some of it was mine. Rounding the corners of the track again and again was hypnotic, nearly sexual in its intensity. Feeling the burn in my muscles, the quivering in my thighs as I pushed my way around the track just one more time…
It was an outlet for so many things.
“Watch out for fresh meat!” One of my teammates called to me, and I feinted to the side just in time to avoid tripping over one of our newer teammates, who had clearly not yet learned to fall small. I smiled at her reassuringly as I whirled past.
I noticed that her attention was fixed on the bleachers of the high school gymnasium. Trying to focus as I continued to push past the burn in my thighs, I made out the good looking face and long, rangy build of some random hottie who was otherwise alone on the bleachers.
For the second time that day, I felt my libido perk up. Huh. Maybe I wasn’t dead down there, after all. Still, just noticing him made me feel guilty, like I was cheating on Mal or something.
And that made me panic. Finding out that Mal hadn’t abandoned me after all had thrown me for a loop, but I was no longer the kind of girl who could even contemplate a relationship... and I knew, deep down I knew, that Mal would settle for nothing less.
The look on his face had told me that while he’d once fucked things up between us, now that he’d found me again he’d do whatever it took to fix things.
It excited me as much as it terrified me, so I focused on the hottie.
Maybe... maybe I was ready to think about having sex again. Of touching, of being touched. After what I’d been through, surely no one could blame me for that. And so I found my gaze narrowing, zeroing in on the stranger in the stands.
He was sex on a stick. No wonder Marianne had tripped over her own feet. I could feel my own interest percolating as I skated, no doubt an overflow of the lust that Mal had stirred up in my gut that afternoon, but still.
I was feeling something other than the chill of the ice that had coated me for so long. I’d been cold for two years, and I didn’t think anyone could blame me for reaching towards the warmth.
Still... if he was here watching practice, then he was probably somebody’s boyfriend. And you didn’t mess with a teammate’s man—derby girls were fucking vicious.
Completing the last circuit of the drill, I skidded to a quick, neat stop beside the water cooler. Grabbing my bottle, I filled it and then chugged greedily, the icy liquid spilling down my cheeks as I drank.
When the bottle was empty I slammed it back on the table and wiped my mouth off with the back of my hand. It was then that I caught movement out of the corner of my eye. I turned to find the hottie watching me intently.
He was better looking than any guy had the right to be.
Arching an eyebrow at his blatant stare, I bent to refill my water bottle. When I straightened back up, the blond god of sexiness was ambling over to me casually, a rakish smile curving his lips.
Despite my own better sense, despite the confusing sensations that Mal had churned up in me only a couple of hours ago, I felt interest stir, hot and tangled in the pit of my belly.
“You’re ace on those things.” He nodded to my feet, on which my skates were still tightly laced, edging into my personal space like he had every right to. “You look good.”
Usually if someone moved closer to me than I liked I would give them a ferocious glare while retreating post haste.
This guy, however… he wasn’t setting my nerves to screaming. And he smelled good. Like, really fucking sexy good. And he was eyeing me with undisguised interest.
You’ve got to get back out there sometime, Adele. And no matter that Mal was still able to peak my interest, there was too much history there. Heartbreaking history.
Swallowing deeply, I turned and offered a cautious smile. The satisfaction that crossed his face was panty-melting in its intensity.
“We don’t get many spectators at practice.” I tried to throw some flirtation into my tone, and the words felt heavy with rust. “Are you with someone?”
He shook his head, running his tongue over his lips.
“I like derby girls.” The stranger shrugged, unabashed, as heat shot straight to that space between my legs. “Actually I was walking by and saw the sign. Never heard of derby before and I was curious. Apparently I don’t get out enough... ‘cause now I know that I like really derby girls.” He wiggled his eyebrows at me lasciviously. Damn it, he had an accent. British or Australian, I never could tell, but combined with the thick, messy gold hair that looked like he’d just rolled out of bed, the densely lashed hazel eyes, the scruffy chin, the devil may care expression and look that said he got whatever he wanted, when he wanted it…
Something churned in my gut, a kind of need that I hadn’t experienced for a long time. The kind that had once led me to approach hot guys at parties and the bar for no reason other than hot sex.
“I’m Dorian.” He held out a hand for me to shake. I stared at it for a beat before offering my own, which he lifted to his lips for a hot, moist kiss.
“Smooth, aren’t you?” The rustiness was receding, and I felt a hint of my old tendency to flirt pushing through the layers with which I’d surrounded myself. “I’m Adele.”
“I try.” He grinned and kept hold of my hand, like he had every right to. The prolonged contact should have made me freak out, and instead I felt pleasant little frissons of heat radiating outward from the touch.
I’d spent two years avoiding the males of the species entirely, and now here in one afternoon were two who not only didn’t completely freak me out, but who made my body respond.
Maybe it was a sign. It was time for me to try to move on with my life.
“Nice tats,” Dorian massaged the tender spot between my thumb and forefinger. I shivered, partly from the touch, and partly because my instinct was to grab my sweatshirt and hide the ink, the symbol of who I used to be.
Fuck it. Let him look. I wanted to bring that old me back.
“Thanks.” Not sure what, exactly, had come over me, I leaned forward and lowered my voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “I have more.”
Oh my God. Where were those words coming from? Surely then weren’t mine.
My heart thudded in my chest when Dorian whistled, long and low. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep, sweetheart.”
I couldn’t help it—I grinned. Something about this guy’s ridiculously overt style of flirtation was irresistible, though I sensed a core of steel underneath. Maybe it was the fact that I couldn’t have found someone more different from Mal if I tried.
Or maybe I was just ready to move past that awful night, to take control of my life again. This guy was a stranger, but he made me feel relaxed, like the girl I’d once been.
“What are you doing after practice?” The teasing was gone as Dorian looked down into my eyes, and I shivered at the intensity I read there.
The last guy I’d been this attracted to had been… well… Mal. And though I’d admired him from afar for a bit before finally deciding to approach him, the attraction had been a slow burn compared to what I felt right now.
Instant heat, the kind that might burn me but would be intense and amazing before it did.
Pulling my hand free, I considered, still not able to make a snap decision like I once would have done. On a normal day I would never have considered encouraging attention from any guy, not even one as hot and overtly sexual as this one. But seeing Mal had stirred me up, and I was feeling all kinds of reckless.
All kinds of needy.
“You tell me.” I smiled slowly before skating backwards, away from Dorian, giving him time to peruse my body with his eyes, which he did. Blatantly. A tremor of nerves made my knees shake when I realized what I’d just done, but I set my resolve and stayed the course.
I’d fought my way through some serious shit, and had triumphed. But I was an empty shell of what I’d once been.
Was it so bad to welcome a little bit of recklessness back into my life? Just a bit? I’d be careful of course, but the events of the day had teased out a need to do something a bit wild, something that would remind me that I was still alive.
Surely if anyone deserved just a moment of happiness, it was me.