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1/31/2015

Get Swept Through Time with 7 Bestselling Authors

It's Release Day for

Swept Through Time

Time Travel Romance Boxed Set 
7 books by Bestselling Authors Tamara Gill, C.A. Szarek, Brenda Hiatt, Callie Hutton,  Clover Autrey, Laura Marie Altom, Louise Clark

 Kobo     Amazon     iTunes    Barnes&Noble






I asked each author who their favorite character in their book within the boxed set is?  


Tartan MP3 Player cover
C.A. Szarek 

The hero of my story, Duncan MacLeod. He’s yummy, of course, but a caring family man who fights for what’s right, as well as what he wants. He’s tough on the outside, and mushy on the inside and he loves hard. I just love him. Oh, and he wears a kilt. What’s not to adore?







A Tumble through Time cover
Callie Hutton


My Favorite character is probably Marshal Shannon. He is so perplexed by this strange woman who dresses scandalously and doesn’t seem to know her place. Women should not be doing what this woman does.






Highland Sorcerer coverClover Autrey
(Okay yeah, I asked myself too. Awkward)

I'd have to say my heroine, Charity Greves. She's an out-of-the-box thinker who rolls with being a modern woman thrown into the 13th Century and is brave enough to admit when she's messed something up and then brush her borrowed kirtle off and figure out how to fix it. I also love the thoughts that sprout in her head. I mean, traveling back to mingle with dashing Scotsmen is romantic and all, but a gal is simply going to miss plumbing and Diet Coke.
Wouldn't you?

Bridge over Time cover
Brenda Hiatt

Probably the best friend Annette, in the modern parts of the story. She's the one who gets to live my fantasy of showing the girl from the past all the wonders of the twenty-first century. She's also loosely based on an actual friend of mine, which made her great fun to write!





Smooch cover
Laura Marie Altom

Wolfe!! At first, this bad-boy Medieval prince seems hopelessly overbearing and full of himself, but over the course of the story, he ends up being a sweetheart I fell in love with, and so does his heroine, Lucy!







Ridgeway coverLouise Clark

Jaclyn Sinclair, my time travelling heroine. I love that she’s up to the challenge of surviving in a world she’s only read about and how she manages to twist all the males she meets around her finger, even though she’s a modern, liberated female masquerading as a boy. I also admit to having a soft spot for Sean O’Dell, my Fenian hero.
Defiant Surrender cover
Tamara Gill

My heroine, Maddie (Madeline). She’s feisty and no matter how much she knows she should not, she doesn’t take any bullying from her medieval husband. I just love her gumption.








Swept Through Time

Time Travel Romance Boxed Set 
7 books by Bestselling Authors Tamara Gill, C.A. Szarek, Brenda Hiatt, Callie Hutton, Clover Autrey, Laura Marie Altom, Louise Clark

 Kobo     Amazon     iTunes    Barnes&Noble

Only 99 cents

1/30/2015

Get Lost in Pam Moran's New Release: Gavin's Woman

PSI Sentinels: Guardians of the Psychic Realm
Extraordinary senses in a world full of danger.

Welcome to the world of the PSI Sentinels.

The Institute for Psychic Studies - IPS, ran inside an old, stone mansion on extensive grounds in a remote area of Minnesota - is where professors and scientists work to find answers to the whys and wherefores of human psychic ability.

However, IPS is also a cover for a private, secret agency operating in tandem with the federal government. Their agents work in the background to defend and shield unwary victims against the twisted underside of a psychic society bent on exploiting an unsuspecting, mundane civilization.

Buy link: Amazon
New Release! 
Gavin's Woman 
A PSI Sentinel Novella / Darkwater Guardians

She was his only obsession.

Gavin Dunbar, liaison between the PSI and the government, is a low-level psychic himself. A man of the present who believes the future is too nebulous, too fluid – that it can't be trusted. His reasons are mired deep in a past he has no desire to examine. After all, in his world, having a soul-mate doesn't equate to happily-ever-after.

Tragedy has brought Calea Fontaine to a crossroads and has her reassessing her future without the man she loves. A seer from a long line of seers, Calea knows, firsthand, that while Fate might try to guide a person along a path, Free Will has a way of trumping Destiny.  Or does it?

Along the storm ravaged Oregon coast, a predator stalks Calea with an obsession born of a dark ache, an overwhelming need to control and possess at any cost. The only obstacle standing in his way is Gavin Dunbar.

Available Now:


Buy link: Amazon
Elsie's Secret 
A PSI Sentinels Novella

His secrets tore them apart. Hers might get them killed.
A PSI agent, Sebastian Alexander has secrets that once came between him and the woman he still loves. Finding her prowling around where she doesn’t belong turns his simple reconnaissance into a rescue mission threatening to blow everything apart. Is he willing to risk his secrets to save her life?
Elsie Quartermaine has one goal. Save her nephew from a sadistic kidnapper. Sebastian is the one man who can help her. But divulging her secret puts more than her life in jeopardy. Can she trust Sebastian with her nephew’s life? Her own? What about her heart?
As dawn creeps over the horizon, can they find enough trust in each other to stay alive?
Available Now:

Buy Link: Amazon

Stolen Spirit 
PSI Sentinels: Guardians of the Psychic Realm /Book One

Hearing his dead ex-girlfriend’s voice in an empty room is enough to make a man question his sanity. Worse is when that ex insists she shouldn’t have died. Broken cop Jake Carrigan has no interest in delving into a past full of heartache and regrets. But he can’t deny she still matters, even if she’s simply a voice in his head.

Hannah Dixon is having a hard time believing she’s dead. How can she be when she feels so much inside? She can see Jake, can talk to him, but she can’t touch him. And right now, touching Jake is all she wants.

Jake’s probe into Hannah’s death stirs up a sinister psychic link, something dark that will stop at nothing to keep its secrets. To protect her own heart, Hannah left Jake once. Can she leave him again to protect his life?



Buy link: Amazon
Available Now:
Blind Sight

Death plagues Gabe Nicholetti’s dreams. But he can’t save the people in his visions. The most he can do is bring their killers to justice. This time, though, this victim makes it all personal.

Rily Carrigan is a dead woman, or she will be in a matter of days as her past rushes forward to shatter her carefully constructed world. But Rily doesn’t believe fate is absolute. How is she going to convince the man who’s seen too many die that it’s possible to save her life?

Just outside a small, Oregon town, something malevolent lurks, waiting to seize what was once promised then stolen. Together, Gabe and Rily need to find a way to deny fate and keep Rily alive.


Interview with Pam Moran


Whether painting, out on a photo shoot or writing, Pam Moran has always had a bend toward the creative side of life. Her favorite is when she can combine any of those with travel. Places get into her blood and she loves to explore the possibilities, always with characters and a story in mind.

An astrologer for most of her adult life, Pam has been known to see auras & the occasional ghost. Considering she lives in a haunted house in the mountains of southern California, this keeps life interesting.

Jillian: How often to you get lost in a story?
Pam: I get lost in my own stories all the time. They stay with me, always right there, teasing the edges of my mind, even when I’ supposed to be doing something else (like the day job).

But, getting lost in someone else’s world is one of the best escapes from everything. When a story stays with me in that way, haunting me, leaving me in a need to get back to that story, that’s when I hunt up everything I can find by that author, then I relish the stories, piecemealing them out, interspersing them with others, stretching that pleasure and having something to look forward to, better than good chocolate or wine!

Jillian: Is there a playlist you’d recommend for reading your latest release?
Pam: I was raised on country music and it’s still my favorite type. As for playlists, I don’t really have one for certain books, but I do have a playlist that I’ll occasionally put on in the background while I’m writing. I say occasionally because I’ve had to learn how to write anytime, nearly anywhere, with lots of distractions.

But when I’m alone and writing, I’ll turn my old iTouch on with my favorite playlist on low and on shuffle. Those songs include a whole lot of Kenny Chesney (my favorites are his Island music), Lady Antebellum, Toby Keith, Brooks and Dunn. I adore Gary Allen’s rough, smoky voice. Also included on that playlist, however, are Elvis Presley, Dean Martin, Enya, Loreena McKennit and Straight No Chaser.

Some favorite songs:

Kenny Chesney: Spirit of a Storm, Song of a Sailor, You and Tequila, Somewhere With You, Somebody Take Me Home.

Toby Keith: Dream Walkin’, I Can’t Take You Anywhere, Rock You Baby, Strangers Again.

Lady Antebellum: Love Don’t Live Here Anymore, One Day You Will, Things People Say, Need You Now.

Gary Allen: Watching Airplanes, Smoke Rings in the Dark, Puttin’ Memories Away, Right Where I Need To Be.

I think it’s the ‘hurting songs’ that get to me the most. Those words of longing, pain, being lost or haunted. Like the stories I write.

Sigh. I think I’m going to go play some music, now.

Jillian: Where do you read and how often?
Pam: Every single chance I get! Being bored is something I don’t handle well. Usually I have a notebook of some type with me so I can work on my stories, but there are times I’d rather get lost in someone else’s world. Now that I have a Kindle and Nook app on my phone, it doesn’t matter where I am, I have a book with me.


Jillian: What sound or noise do you love?
Pam: I’m a rainy day kind of girl. Lifting my face to a gentle rain while I’m walking,  listening to a hard rain on the roof, watching it hit the kitchen window while I do dishes. I absolutely love the rain.

Going back to that playlist, several of my favorite songs deal with rain.

Both Toby Keith and Gary Allen have a song entitled Yesterday’s Rain. Although both songs deal with memories that hurt, pain that fills the heart and haunts their lives, these are two different songs. And I love them both.

Some favorite rainy songs:

Kenny Chesney: Something Sexy About the Rain
Keith Urban: Raining On Sunday
Gary Allen: Songs About Rain, Yesterday’s Rain
Toby Keith: Yesterday’s Rain

Jillian: What was the first story you remember writing?
Pam: I've always written, but the first one I can remember was in high school, about a mountain, from the mountain's point of view. It was interesting to put myself into the mindset of a mountain watching humanity progress over thousands of years.

Jillian: What’s your favorite movie of all time?
Pam: I'm not the type to watch a movie over and over again, so I don't have a single favorite movie. That said, all the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, the Star Trek movies (old and new), Stardust, all the Indiana Jones movies are all up there in the favorites category. You know, those adventure, swashbuckling types of movies.

Jillian: If you couldn’t be a writer anymore, what profession would you take up?
Pam: Photographer. When I was in high school my dad came home one day with a 35mm SLR camera. Love at first sight for me. I've always been creative, but until then my passions were painting and writing. That camera changed the way I saw the world. Today my camera goes just about everywhere with me. My stories are always set in places I've been (even if I make up names for the towns) and I often refer back to photos I've shot when I'm writing.

If you check out the cover of Gavin's Woman, I shot the three photos that comprise the cover. So exciting to be able to combine my photography with my writing in such a tangible way. On Blind Sight, the background photo is also mine.

Jillian: Which of your characters would you most/least like to invite to dinner, and why?
Pam: I'd love to have Ben Garrett to dinner. As a secondary character, he's the head of the PSI and of the Institute of Psychic Studies, and has seen and done a lot in his lifetime. He's completely fascinating, autonomous, with his own version of a strong moral code when it comes to using psychic abilities. He refuses to waver and I believe Ramon's grandmother may be giving him a run for his money in upcoming books.

As for who I'd least like to have for dinner, that would be Roy Hoffman in Gavin's Woman. He's scary. But you'll have to read the book to find out why. ;o)

Just Released! 
Sexy to Go. 
An anthology of sexy stories.  


Buy link: Amazon
Dreamwalker: Key to Paradise by Pamela Moran 
Pulled together through a world of dreams, Lena and Davis might have found the Key to Paradise. Can he convince her to take a chance, to believe in impossible possibilities, to hold on to their dream? 

Pam's question for readers: Do you have an obsession? What is it you obsess over? Pam has an ebook copy of Elsie's Secret to giveaway to one luck commenter chosen at random. Remember to leave email contact information with your comment to be entered in the Randomizer. Good luck!


Contact Pamela Moran:
www.PamelaMoran.com
www.facebook.com/PamelaMoranAuthor
https://www.goodreads.com/PamelaMoran
Twitter: Pam_Moran

1/29/2015

Get Swept Through Time with Tamara Gill

Unlucky in love, Maddie St. Clair hides behind an antique store and her mudlarking hobby. That is until she finds a medieval ring that throws her back to 1102 Cumberland and into the life of Lady
Madeline Vincent, heiress to Norman lands and about to be married to an autocratic Baron, William Dowell, nine hundred years her senior.

Lord William Dowell protects his own. Usually, from his closest neighbor and long standing foe the Baron of Aimecourt. Forced to marry his dead enemy’s daughter, Lady Madeline, by King’s decree, he hides his growing respect for his wife behind a wanton mistress. Yet when Madeline’s life is threatened, William’s loyalty to his kin is tested by the astonishing desire that flares between them. Not to mention the love that Madeline ignites that would last an eternity. If fate will allow . . .

Let's get to know Tamara

Tamara is an Australian author who grew up in an old mining town in country South Australia, where her love of history was founded. So much so, she made her darling husband travel to the UK for their honeymoon, where she dragged him from one historical monument and castle to another. A mother of three, her two little gentleman's in the making, a future Lady (she hopes) and a part-time job keep her busy in the real world, but whenever she gets a moment's peace she loves to write romance novels in an array of genres, including regency, medieval and paranormal. Tamara loves hearing from readers and writers alike.



CLOVER: How often do you get lost in a story?
Tamara: Oh, good question. I get lost in a story quite often these days, as I seem to be writing a lot more prolific than I used to. To me, there’s nothing better than attending a masquerade, walks in Hyde Park or a highlanders castle where who knows who you’ll meet. *g*

CLOVER: What’s the first thing you do when you finish writing a book?
Tamara: Believe it or not, I usually have a little cry. LOL. But I do, truly. Normally at the end of the book the angst, all the problems are fixed, everything’s settled between the hero and heroine and they finally get their HEA. But I must admit, I cry also due to the fact I’ve written those fabulous words, THE END!

CLOVER:  If you were given a chance to travel to the past where would you go and specifically why?
Tamara: I would want to travel back to Regency London and attend a ball. I’ve always loved the Empire Style gown, and would love to own one, even if just to sit in it while I write. *g* So that’s where I’d go.

Website      Facebook     Twitter     Goodreads     Pinterest      Blog 


So what do you have coming out next?
It’s In His Kiss: 11 Authors Share Their Favorite Scenes


CLOVER: I love that we are also in a boxed set together with books focusing on time travel. Tell us a little about the book you have in this set.
Tamara: Defiant Surrender is based on a woman who’s a mudlark in her spare time, she also runs an antique store. She’s thrown back into medieval England and into the life of another woman, and to make matters worse, on this other woman’s wedding day. My poor heroine doesn’t get off to a good start, that’s for sure.





Swept Through Time

Time Travel Romance Boxed Set 
7 books by Bestselling Authors Tamara Gill, C.A. Szarek, Brenda Hiatt, Callie Hutton, Clover Autrey, Laura Marie Altom, Louise Clark

Pre-Order at    Kobo     Amazon     iTunes    Barnes&Noble

Tamara is offering a $10.00 Amazon Gift Card to one of our wonderful commenters.


Note: Please leave an email address for notification. Offer void where prohibited. Prizes will be mailed to North America addresses only unless specifically mentioned in the post. Odds of winning vary due to the number of entrants. Winners of drawings are responsible for checking this site in a timely manner. If prizes are not claimed in a timely manner, the author may not have a prize available. Get Lost In A Story cannot be responsible for an author's failure to mail the listed prize. GLIAS does not automatically pass email addresses to guest authors unless the commenter publicly posts their email address.


1/28/2015

Lauren Canan--Debut Author

I'm so excited to introduce my friend, Lauren Canan!  Lauren and I have been writing buddies for several years and last year she SOLD her first book to Harlequin Desire. She also won the prestigious Romance Writers of America Golden Heart Contest for Short Contemporary romance. And if that's not enough, Romantic Times Magazine gave 4 Stars to Lauren's February debut, Terms of a Texas Marriage.

Read an excerpt and buy the book.

 “What's the matter?” Alec asked, tilting his head in mock innocence.  “Wedding night jitters?”
            “No.”  Shea shook her head.  “No.  It's just that...well, we ah...we don't know each other.  I mean—” She took a step back from him, placing her just inside the bedroom.  
            “I think I know a way we can remedy that problem.”  He began to unbutton his shirt.  With his other hand, he reached out and flipped off the bedroom light leaving only the soft beams of moonlight streaming through the window to challenge the darkness that now surrounded them.  Through the dim glow, he watched her, his eyes focused on her lips.
            Shea slowly backed away but Alec advanced toward her, matching step for step.  With the last button released, his shirt fell open to reveal the muscular wall of his chest.  She hadn't realized he was so powerfully built; so solid.  Definitely not the body of a man who sat behind a desk every day.    
            “You surprise me, Mrs. Morreston.  I had expected you to come down the stairs wearing boots and jeans.  Instead, you walked into the room in that gown.”  The deep, velvety texture of his voice reached her through the dim radiance in the room.  “If that was for my benefit, to ensure I knew what a beautiful and desirable woman I was about to marry, you can rest assured, it worked.”  
            “No.  I mean...it...it was my mother's.”  
            “It's very nice.  Very elegant.”  He continued to advance toward her.  “But now it's time to take it off.”
            “No.”  
            “No?” he mocked her.  “Why Mrs. Morreston, are you saying you intend to deny your husband on your wedding night?”
            “I...I just think we need time to—”
            “Don't worry, sweetheart,” he cut in. “We have all night, and I certainly intend to take my time.”
            “No!”
            “No?  Might I remind you, Mrs. Morreston, I paid a very high price for the...pleasure...of your company.  You’re now a very wealthy woman.  Why don’t you show me if this entire fiasco was worth it.”
            “No.”
            “Ah...there's that word again.”  Alec didn't even bother concealing his devious smile.  “Are you saying you want to have our marriage annulled and give up so soon?  I honestly believed your resolve to keep this place, no matter what, would last longer than the wedding night.”
            “And I hoped, as a gentleman, you would afford me an opportunity to get to know you before...before...”
            “Who said I was a gentleman?”
Biography:  Lauren Canan was born and raised in Texas, where her love of horses and propensity for telling stories came at an early age.  She credits her dad who regaled her mind with tales of the old west and Brothers Grim and encouraged her to let her imagination soar.  When she isn't writing sexy, modern day romantic stories for Harlequin Desire, Lauren enjoys jamming on the guitar, piano or dulcimer and grooming/showing her Wire Fox Terriers.  

Jan Schliesman: How often do you Get Lost In A Story?
Lauren Canan: Every chance I get.  I’m an avid reader and end most every day propped up in bed reading a good book.  I read when I travel, when I stop to eat… I can think of very few things I enjoy more than getting lost in a great book.

Jan: Terms of a Texas Marriage has an interesting premise: The heroine can’t be single or the land rights revert to the hero. How did you go about researching this?
Lauren: I love history and this area is rich with it.  They are still finding arrowheads and pottery from Native American villages; relics from Civil War encampments.  A tiny community named Tulip was the one of the first trading posts on the Red River.  Land was claimed and had to be protected.  It was life 200 years ago. The outlaw John Wesley Hardin was born and raised here.  So…it all just kinda came together.

Jan: Do you remember the first romance novel you ever read?

Lauren: Yes!  I 'discovered’ Linda Howard.  By the time I’d read four of her books, my dream was formed.  I knew what I ultimately wanted to do in this life.

Jan: As a new Harlequin author, can you share a word or two of advice about what finally helped you make that first sale?


Lauren: Don’t give up.  No matter how long you've been writing, no matter how frustrated you might feel at times- do not stop.  A wise person once told me- the only writers who don’t get published are those who give up.  Believe in yourself and your abilities.  Know you can do it.  Focus on your goal and keep writing.

Jan: I know you love your dogs and used to show Fox Terriers. Any chance that future books might include more furry friends?
Lauren: What a great idea!  Wish I’d thought of it!  Definitely a future consideration!

Jan: What other careers have you had?  Did any of them steer you toward writing?  Anything you would have done differently?
Lauren: I worked in the medical field, reading when I got a break and desperately wishing I could stay home and write!  With 2 kids, a barn full of horses, 3 cats, 2 dogs and a parrot named Casey- it just wasn’t gonna happen.  All I could do is get here as fast as I could!  But honestly, I don’t think I would have changed a thing.

Jan: Are you a neat freak or does your office look like a tornado went through? (Not that I have any clue what that would look likeJ)
Lauren: Two tornadoes and a hurricane would more adequately describe the appearance of my office.  What’s funny is all the mess has formed this weird kind of clutter system.  Usually I can go straight to any document I need.  Bizarre but true.

Jan: What has surprised you the most about being published?
Lauren: Everything.  Seriously.  I never realized how much my life would change and in so many different directions.  For me, it’s absolutely the best thrill ride one could ever hope for and one I hope never ends.

Jan’s GOTTA ASK:  
Lauren’s GOTTA ANSWER:  I love ice cream.  Any flavor that’s sugar free.

Lauren's next book, Lone Star Baby Bombshell, is a July 2015 release for Harlequin Desire.

Huge thanks to Lauren for sharing a bit of her world with us! Lauren is giving away a copy of TERMS OF A TEXAS MARRIAGE so be sure to scroll down and leave an answer in the comments section, along with your email:

Sunshine or Snow in your part of the world?

FIND Lauren Canan:
Contact     Website       Facebook      Goodreads
Twitter  @Lauren Canan1

1/27/2015

Get Swept Through Time with Louise Clark

When Jaclyn Sinclair researches the Fenian Invasion of 1866, a little known incident in US and Canadian history, strange things start happening, until she is flung back in time to the day the invasion began. Taken prisoner, she is questioned by Sean O’Dell, one of the invading Fenians. Now she’s stuck in 1866, in the middle of a historical event she knows far too much about, being interrogated by one of the most gorgeous men she’s ever met….


Uh-oh.                   









Louise Clark
Get to know Louise Clark

Louise is the author of both contemporary and historical romance novels. These two genres are combined in Fighting Fate, a time travel story set in contemporary Boston with an 18th century time traveller who comes forward into his future, and Ridgeway, a historical time travel that takes place in post-Civil War North America. Ridgeway is available as part of the seven book time travel boxed set, Swept Through Time. In 2014 Louise was a quarter finalist in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest. Please visit her website or Facebook page. She’d love to hear from you.


CLOVER: How often do you get lost in a story?
Louise: Every day, once I’m into a story. It’s getting started—developing the characters and plot, working out the scenes—that’s hard to get into.

CLOVER: What’s the first thing you do when you finish writing a book?
Louise: I shred and recycle all the printed manuscript pages of my many drafts. I take my time, often reading snatches of the completed book here and there. It’s a way of saying good-bye so I can go forward.

CLOVER:  That's really interesting. I seem to save all my copies for years. Maybe I'll try the shredder. If you were given a chance to travel to the past where would you go and specifically why?
Louise: Ancient Rome—if I could speak and understand Latin. Unfortunately I don’t, so until a universal translator is invented, I guess I’m stuck in the 21st century. Why would I want to visit the Roman empire? Our culture is built on what Renaissance and post Renaissance people believed Rome was all about. I’d like to know if they were right.

CLOVER: I'd like to know that too. From the comfort of my easy chair. Ha! I love that we are in a boxed set together with books focusing on time travel. Tell us a little about the book you have in this set.
Louise: University student Jaclyn Sinclair has a summer job researching the Fenian Invasion of 1866, a little known event in Canadian history. As she digs through the newspapers and personal papers from the time strange things start to happen. She hears the voice of a distant ancestor, feels the emotions of a stranger, imagines how it would feel to be on a battlefield fighting an invading force. Worried that she is losing it, she decides to visit the place where the invasion occurred.

On the morning of June 1, 1866, a thousand or more ex-pat Irishmen who call themselves the Fenian Brotherhood land on the Canadian shore of the Niagara River. Their goal is to free Ireland from British rule by forcing the citizens of the Britain’s Canadian colony to rise in rebellion. Sean O’Dell is one of them. A former Union cavalry officer, now demobilized, he can’t find a job and his life is a shambles. The Brotherhood has promised free land and a future for all once the invasion is complete.

Sean believes them, until he meets the strange Canadian boy who calls himself Jack. Jack knows everyone in the area and what they think, which makes him useful. But Jack also knows an awful lot about what is going to happen.

Then Jack becomes Jaclyn and everything changes …

Ridgeway is a sweet romance that leaves the door open for further stories from Canada’s past. 






Swept Through Time

Time Travel Romance Boxed Set 
7 books by Bestselling Authors Tamara Gill, C.A. Szarek, Brenda Hiatt, Callie Hutton, Clover Autrey, Laura Marie Altom, Louise Clark

Pre-Order at    Kobo     Amazon     iTunes    Barnes&Noble


1/26/2015

Favorite Book...Favorite Child

Good Morning, Folks! I'm so glad you've decided to join me for the last day of my new book celebration! Today I want to share with you my favorite books of my own. Now, I think this would be like someone asking which is my favorite child. I don't have children but I imagine there are specific things to love with each child. (Parents, am I right?) So yes, I love all my books, but here are my choices:

Dance Away, Danger:

Sensible dance instructor Tessa Gage likes her life organized, risk-free and on her own terms. When her cop brother goes missing, his crooked partner tries to kill her, and a handsome stranger claims he’s come to protect her, she’s forced to leave her comfort zone. With more dance and business sense than survival skills and no idea who to trust, Tessa has no choice but to rely on this man who’d rather be anywhere but by her side.
When carefree carpenter Matt Rylan gets a late night call from an Army buddy who once saved his life, he finds himself where he never again wanted to be—responsible for someone else. Honor demands Matt cooperate, but he never expects his simple babysitting job to test the limits of his self-control. Nor does he expect it to explode into a race against time for his very freedom.

As Tessa and Matt get closer to the truth, and to each other, Tessa learns to step outside the safety of her world to help set the wheels of justice in motion. For Matt, supporting this courageous woman suddenly becomes everything to him.  Yet, his biggest challenge remains sharing his closed-off heart with her before the danger silences them both forever.

***This story was my first one I ever thought was good enough to get published. I'd worked on the story on and off for a couple of years and came close to getting a contract for it only to lose out in the end. (Until Fated Desires offered me a contract!) It was the culmination of all I'd learned as a writer.
 
Carry Me Home:
After six months in the city, Mary MacDougall returns to the Scottish Highlands to finalize her divorce. Because of a past tragedy, she doubts her husband Jamie can possibly love her with the same unbridled passion as before and insists ending the marriage is best for both of them. But Jamie has other ideas….

Jamie MacDougall has no intention of letting his bonnie lass go. At least not without a fight. Aye, they’ve suffered heartache, and she may be ready to call it quits, but he refuses to throw away the partnership they’ve built since they were children. Instead, he’ll remind her they were meant to be together, forever.
Can this marriage survive pride and grief to allow love to carry them home?
***This story was tough to write. An editor had asked me to write and of course I wanted to make a good impression. I had 4weeks to finish it (but it took 5 1/2 weeks) and the pain often had me wanting to cry. But I think my feeling so connected to the characters and the story is what made it as special as I believe it to be.
 
Liar, Liar
Unable to protect her mother from her father as a child, Devin McQueen has made it her mission as an adult to protect as many abused women and children as she can. The rare moments she’s not consumed with work as a victims’ advocate, she limits her involvements to safe, predictable men….until she meets bounty hunter Grady Cooper. He is big, bold, brash, and has no problem speaking his mind.
Growing up in a broken home, Grady realized early on that good deeds had a price.  To survive, he learned to weigh every decision by what he could gain. Unfortunately, the successful, solitary life he’s worked so hard to create spins out of control when demons from his past shake his confidence. His boss has given him one last chance—bring in Devin’s latest client quickly, and quietly and maybe he’ll still have a job. It didn’t sound unreasonable until he met Devin.
Suddenly, Grady must make a decision: save his career or follow his heart?
***Grady was soooooo much fun to write. He came into my brain based off one of my favorite movie characters and when I started really getting into this story he had no problem steering me in the direction he wanted to go. And Devin...wow, she is my first really kick-ass heroine. These characters were so perfect for each other, but getting them to realize that was fun, frightening and frustrating. With both the hero and heroine so tough (which was hard enough), finding their gentle sides was a challenge. They're definitely not perfect and they even annoyed me at times, but in the end we all kicked-arse.
 
My fourth favorite of my books is my current one, Chasing Gold. I can't even tell you how well this story flowed as I wrote it. I can't explain how writing a light-hearted adventure story (as opposed to a heavy suspense) felt, how it made me seriously excited to sit down and work on it. These characters, this plot gave me no trouble at all. 
 
Okay, people! Today is my last day with you. Remember I'm giving away a $10 Amazon gift card & some other treats to one commenter from this 4 day party. I'll choose a winner tomorrow morning & post the name in today's comments! In the meantime, come find me and my books!
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