Wednesday, October 30, 2013

She's All In--Guest Cathryn Cade!!

Cathryn Cade is a wonderful Samhain author whose new release She's All In has amazing chemistry between the couple and a romantic dom. Please join me in welcoming Cathryn back to my blog!

For her sexy Dom, she’ll open up…but only love will take her all the way.

Club 3, Book 1

When Daisy joins Big Iron Fitness, it’s to get fit and more comfortable in her skin. But what really makes her sweat is gym owner Dack Humboldt. Watching him pump iron sets off an endorphin rush that has nothing to do with exercise.

Dack isn’t looking for love, and doesn’t usually waste time on vanilla even when it’s packaged in a bombshell blonde. Until he hears Daisy’s been asking questions about the goings-on at his private sex club. He’ll be happy to show her the ropes…on his terms.

Daisy gathers the moxie to ask Dack out on a date, and gets an offer she can’t refuse. The chance to explore some of her most private fantasies and move beyond her fears about her body.

As Dack leads Daisy by the thong into the Dom/sub world, she feels as if she’s finally in her element…until Dack issues a command that brings her up hard against her last emotional barrier. And Dack must decide how far he’ll go to bring his bombshell back into his arms.

Product Warnings
Body builders showing off their physiques, blondes looking to have more fun, and members of a private club sharing more than conversation.  
 
Copyright © 2013 Cathryn Cade
All rights reserved — a Samhain Publishing, Ltd. publication


If it weren’t so hot, Daisy would have walked to the restaurant, but as she emerged from the gym, the sun slapped down on her head and shoulders like a heated blanket. She loved summer but preferred to be by a pool or a lake when it was this hot.

The air-conditioning barely had time to cool her car off before she rolled to a stop in the busy Zellaby’s parking lot. She grabbed her small turquoise purse and slung the long strap over her head and one shoulder before locking the car.

As always, she gave her new baby a pat before she walked away. The cocoa-hued Nissan Altima was a gift from her parents. She knew the purchase had sprung from the guilt and helplessness they felt at being unable to help her through her ordeal, but she hadn’t even tried to talk them out of it. She loved the sporty coupe too much.

The restaurant was busy. The small foyer was crowded with people waiting for a table. Air-conditioning, voices and pop music poured over Daisy. She sidled past a pair of small boys tussling while their seated mother ignored them in favor of her cell phone.

Next she had to duck around one of the luxuriant ferns hanging from the restaurant’s low ceiling. The decor was cheerful and old-fashioned with everything from antique toys to vintage movie posters hanging on walls and support beams. Daisy wasn’t sure where the ferns fit in the theme, but she liked them.

Her friends were waiting at a table by the street-side windows. Sara wore another Lycra tank and shorts like the one she’d worked out in, these brown, her long auburn hair bundled up on her head. Carlie had taken the time to apply fresh makeup. She wore a sleeveless cotton blouse in her signature coral pink. Daisy couldn’t see the rest of her under the table, but she knew her friend, who considered herself fat, was probably wearing conservative capris despite the heat.

As Daisy slid in beside Sara, Carlie took one look at her and pushed a tall glass of iced tea toward her. “What’s wrong, Daise?”

“Yeah, you’re all…agitated.” Sara eyed her keenly.

Daisy took a sip of the cold tea. Should she tell them what she’d overheard? It was really just gossip at this point. But as she looked into their curious faces, she gave in to temptation.

“You’re not going to believe what I heard in the locker room,” she said, leaning forward to speak in hushed tones. There was a large, noisy family on the other side of them, and the booth behind her was still empty, so she felt sure she wouldn’t be overheard.

By the time she finished repeating the locker-room conversation, Sara’s and Carlie’s eyes were wide and their mouths open in identical O’s of astonishment.

Daisy stirred sweetener in her tea and took a long drink, enjoying their reactions. She was still shocked and, yeah, fascinated herself. It was a relief to share her turmoil with her friends.

“They own a…a sex club?” Carlie whispered. “Oh…my…God.”

“Picturing Jake in leather?” Daisy asked wickedly.

Carlie’s rounded cheeks flushed a dusky pink. She pressed manicured fingers to her full lips. Then she nodded, a nervous giggle bursting through her fingers. “With one of those floggers.” She mimed cracking a small whip.

Daisy looked at Sara, who was staring at her frosty glass of soda as if trying to remember what it was. Daisy nudged her with her elbow, and Sara flinched.

“So that’s why Trace is so scary,” the redhead blurted. “He’s into that kind of stuff.”

Daisy grinned. “They all are, evidently.”

“And why does that make you so happy, Ms. Don’t Touch Me?” Carlie’s words were teasing, but she appeared genuinely curious.

Daisy took a deep breath. “You want the truth? I’m so freaked out about my body image now and who I am sexually that it would just be nice…” She broke off, stirring her tea, not sure she could even vocalize her fantasies. Not without at least two margaritas inside her, anyway.

“Not to have to worry about what the guy wants, or whether you’re doing it right?” Sara finished for her. She took a long drink of her soda, looking like she too wished it were an alcoholic drink. “Not to be so busy figuring out how to please him that you miss out on all the fun yourself?”

“To let him teach you what feels good?” Carlie added, her blue eyes shadowed. “And have him make you feel special, maybe even treasured?”
 
 
http://www.amazon.com/Shes-All-Club-3-ebook/dp/B00D89OGAA/ B S
 
 
 Cathryn Cade considers herself incredibly blessed to live in the Big Sky Country of Montana. She and her husband share their property with dogs (usually golden retrievers), cows and the various deer, antelope and elk that wander through their hay fields. From her computer, Cathryn looks out across the prairie at the rugged Rocky Mountains. With not much effort, she can visualize the cowboys, Indians, settlers and vigilantes who once rode the range--some from her own family.

Cathryn's fate was set from the moment she picked up her first book--The Little Red Hen. She hasn't stopped reading since. She wrote her first stories on ruled paper, with large crooked letters and plenty of eraser smudges. She began writing romance when she was home with two little boys in a very small town in the Rockies, had read every romance in the local library, and wanted more! In 2008 she published her first book with Samhain, and hasn't looked back.

When she's not inhabiting her fantasy world--um, when she's not writing, she is usually reading, quilting or trying a new recipe. In the great outdoors, she enjoys boating with her husband, hiking and exploring their home state's colorful history in museums and ghost towns. She and her husband also love Hawaii, and on their yearly visits love to snorkel, stroll on the beach and fantasize over mai-tai's about how to make the Big Island their second home.

Cathryn spends way too much time on the internet, and can often be found chatting on her BlogFacebook, Twitter, or via E-mail. She loves to hear from readers. Stop by her Website to read fabulous reviews of her books, and enjoy her Free Reads.
 
 
 

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Entangled Stories--Guest Edie Ramer--plus Giveaway!

When I didn't have a guest today, the awesome Edie Ramer stepped into the breach. Where do I start to introduce Edie? Besides being a terrific author of bestselling paranormal romance, romance and women's fiction, she's an amazingly kind and generous person. Kinda like Rocky actually, in that she doesn't even know it. But other writers are constantly saying, "I got my start in Indie publishing because of Edie Ramer." Including me. I owe her more than I can say. Please welcome Edie!

Thank you so much for having me here today! I’ve had a lot happening to me lately – publishing a new contemporary romance, Christmas at Angel Lake, the 3-book set, Miracle Interrupted Set, and I’m part of the 10-book Romance Super Bundle that’s on sale for only 99 cents.  But today I’m talking about a paranormal anthology of short stories and one novella, titled Entangled, a Paranomal Anthology, that author Misty Evans and I published a little over 2 years ago. It includes stories by at least 3 New York Times authors and another 3 USA Today bestselling authors. (The actual numbers might be higher; it’s hard to keep up with these fabulous authors.) All the proceeds are going to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (which has a 5 star rating; the highest there is). Even the cover was donated by the wonderful Laura Morrigan.

I can’t tell you how proud of it I am. Yesterday, I lunched with Mary and three other area authors. Mary had heard that we’re taking the book down after October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and she wondered why and if the Entangled book would disappear from our e-readers. First, we never planned for it to go on forever. It’s been on longer than we planned – mostly because we were all too busy to think about it.

It’s only $2.99, very much a bargain, and none of us are getting even a penny of it. To answer Mary’s second question, no, it won’t disappear from your e-readers. You bought it, you keep it. Here’s the official blurb:

Ghosts, vampires, demons, and more! Entangled includes ten suspense-filled paranormal short stories from authors Cynthia Eden, Jennifer Estep, Edie Ramer, Lori Brighton, Michelle Diener, Misty Evans, Nancy Haddock, Liz Kreger, Dale Mayer, and Michelle Miles, plus a Seven Deadly Sins novella by Allison Brennan. 

Here’s a short excerpt from my short story, “The Fat Cat”:

Of all the cat houses, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into mine.

Tory locked eyes with a fat, black cat and shivered. It wasn’t really misquoting Casablanca at her, was it? She was a witch, not a cat whisperer.

It had to be in her mind. The cats she knew wouldn’t lower themselves to speak human.

“I don’t like this place.” Sorcha’s gaze around the cat playroom in the Humane Society was as scornful as if the place was violating the Geneva Convention instead of crammed with carpet-covered climbing thingies and scratching posts, plus strategically placed litter boxes that looked barely used.

Tory glanced around, too, from one cat to another, twenty or more. All colors, all sizes, all ages. Even the fat, black one who’d been staring at her since she walked into the oversized cat cage.

Or, as Sorcha called it, their prison.

“It’s clean,” Max said.

Sorcha stared at her husband, Tory’s brother, her expression as horrified as if he’d said she needed to stop eating ice cream. “So are hospitals. I don’t like them, either.”

Tory sniggered. She could always count on her sister-in-law to cheer her up, even after a break-up with her boyfriend.

She was replacing him with a cat.


A B 
B&N: http://bit.ly/1cPwnXZ  
Kobo: http://bit.ly/19oMI4p  
Apple/itunes  http://bit.ly/15Yl123  
All Romance eBooks http://bit.ly/RayaPA

I’m giving away a copy of my Miracle Interrupted Set to a commenter. Two of the authors are breast cancer survivors. (I’m one of the two.) Every author in this anthology knows someone else who had it or is going through it. What’s your experience with this disease?

Edie Ramer

A B  

Thursday, October 17, 2013

My Author Tool Bag

The Internet is a dangerous place for authors. Here are some great tips on how to weather the storm.

http://annerallen.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-laws-of-amazon-jungleeight-rules.html

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

3T Writing Tidbit

Published since 2009, over the years I've accumulated various items of writing wisdom. The Third Tuesday Writing Tidbit showcases these items in no particular order. Click here to see all 3T Tidbits.
Assorted editing stumbling blocks.
  • sidetrack is one word
  • bloodsucking is one word
  • check all helping verbs and modals (he had rescued, she would love) to make sure they're absolutely necessary. Verbs are often sharper and cleaner without the added words (he rescued, she loved).
  • don't hyphenate -ly adverbial phrases (nearly whole love, not nearly-whole love)
  • ... = trailing off
  • — = interruption
  • Current practice is to italicize present-tense thoughts.
  • Black market is the noun, black-market is the verb and black-market blood is a compound adjective

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Evil is in the Eye of the Beholder--Guest Vivi Andrews--plus Giveaway!

One of my most popular guests, Vivi Andrews, returns with a post that will blow you away. She's visiting to celebrate the release of her much-anticipated Karmic Consultants book, Karma's own story, Naughty Karma. An amazing author and great person. Please help me throw confetti to welcome Vivi!

Thank you so much for having me here today!  I’m thrilled to be celebrating the release day for Naughty Karma, my latest paranormal romantic comedy release with you!
There’s a great quote by one of the original paranormal authors, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley: “No man chooses evil because it is evil; he only mistakes it for happiness, the good he seeks.”  That’s Prometheus, the hero of Naughty Karma, all over.  He’s not a bad guy… but he’s not particularly good at being good either.  He’s got a definite every-man-for-himself, survival-of-the-fittest attitude.  Until he meets Karma.  (And, yes, okay, even for a little while after he meets her.) 
Prometheus played the villain role in several of the earlier Karmic Consultants books – providing the catalyst for all manner of havoc that was wrought on the consultants as they fell hopelessly in love – but he was also the only one I could think of who could be the hero to Karma’s all-powerful heroine.  The only one who could really match her.
So how do you turn a villain into a hero?  It’s all about perspective, baby.  Like Madame Shelley said, no man sets out to be evil.  And Prometheus is no different.  It was important to me that he not be constantly apologizing for his actions.  He had to think he was in the right – and when both he and Karma are certain they are on the high ground, oooh, baby, is it ever fun to watch. 
Here’s a short excerpt of Karma and Prometheus going toe-to-toe. 
“You ass.” She stalked into the heart of his shop, the rap of her heels sharp on the hardwood floor. “I was willing to overlook the medallions you’d sold all over town, causing all manner of magical havoc.”

“Overlook? If no one was causing supernatural problems, you wouldn’t have any to solve. I’m the best thing that’s ever happened to your business. I should get a commission.”

She didn’t appear to hear him. Her smoky, sex-kitten voice rasped over his words, gaining volume. “I chose not to respond to the pranks around Samhain and Beltane, and I ignored what I suspect was a curse of some variety designed to prevent me from being able to keep a receptionist for longer than a week.”

“I lifted that curse weeks ago.” Immediately after he’d semi-accidentally summoned a demon to harass her. It seemed the least he could do.

She went on as if he hadn’t spoken, though her hands clenched, rewarding him for the comment. “I refused to sink to your level, decided not to engage, but this? Siccing a demon on my brother’s wedding. A demon.”

“You have an exorcist on staff.”

“You sent a demon to stop my brother’s wedding!” she shrieked in an admirable impression of a banshee.

“It was a minor demon. And it wasn’t tasked with stopping the wedding. Just disrupting it a little.”

A little? You almost killed my wedding planner!”

“Are you always this concerned with things that almost happen? I almost rescue orphans from burning buildings on a regular basis. Then I remember I don’t particularly give a shit about orphans.”

“You want things that actually happened? He actually possessed the wedding planner’s car and crashed it. He stalked her for three weeks. He kidnapped her!”

“What’s a little kidnapping among friends?”

“We are not friends. You’re—” She broke off, reduced to sputtering her rage.

“Dashing? Magnetic? Unscrupulous?”

If she could have lit him on fire with her eyes, he would have been a smoldering pile of ash. “There are no words vile enough to describe you.”

“You realize all of this could have been avoided if you’d let me hire you in the first place.”

“My people don’t work for ethical black holes.”

“Ethics.” He flicked his fingers dismissively. “Rules we make for ourselves are easily changed, bent or broken. Survival of the fittest is the truest law. Unbreakable.”

“I’m not going to debate morality with you.”

“What are you going to do? Punish me?” He smiled wolfishly. “That could be fun. I have been a bad, bad boy.”

**
When a do-gooder matches up with a certified bad boy, I think they both get what they deserve.  Who’s your favorite semi-redeemed villain?

Comment through Friday to enter.

From Mary: Hey!! Can you believe it? Vivi is offering any of her ebooks--*including* Naughty Karma if the winner hasn't already picked it up ;) What are you waiting for? Comment today!
Thanks again for having me, Mary!  My pleasure as always, Vivi!

BOOK BLURB: Double crossing the devil is a dangerous business.

Karmic Consultants, Book 7

Nearly two decades ago, Prometheus sold his beating heart to a devil in exchange for epic power. That contract is about to expire—and so is he. There’s only one woman with the power to help him see his next birthday. And he’s willing to use every manipulation in his arsenal to pry that power from the ice queen’s grip.

Karma, who values order above all else, has had enough of the unscrupulous warlock’s pranks endangering her people. But when she confronts the wily trickster to demand a cease-fire, his terms throw her for a loop. The bastard wants her to save his life—and he wants her in his bed.

Clinging to her hard-won control is the only way Karma knows to keep her abilities from overwhelming her. If anyone can tempt her to embrace the chaos of her magic, it’s Prometheus.

One kiss brings her defenses crashing down. But can she trust Prometheus…or has she lost her own heart to a warlock with a hidden agenda? 

Warning: This book contains scheming, manipulation, bargains-with-the-devil, and meddling consultants. All’s fair in love and magic.


A B S


BIO: Vivi Andrews is the award-winning author of over a dozen paranormal romance novels and novellas.  A nomad at heart, she lives in Alaska when she isn’t indulging her travel addiction.  For more about Vivi and her books, please visit her website (www.viviandrews.com) or blog (Ramblings from the Road, www.viviandrews.blogspot.com).

 

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Amber's Five Top Tips for Getting It On with a Hybrid--guest Roxy Mews--plus Giveaway!!

Samhain author Roxy Mews writes 'em hot and sassy, just how I like 'em. I'm thrilled she's visiting today with her debut Top Pick book! Please welcome my good friend Roxy...wait. Wolf shifter Amber is here!! Now this party's really rocking :)

Roxy can’t keep me quiet! I got to talk once before, and I liked it. We are taking over this place from Mary Hughes, and I have to admit, I like it here. She doesn’t have any hybrids, but there are some big blond vampires that look like they spent their lives pillaging and lifting weights. Don’t get me wrong. I love my mate Jake, and there is not a vampire alive…er…undead? Whatever…I might be mated, but I can appreciate a good looking man. Maybe I can introduce Shelly to some of the dudes around here. Shelly is a little blond Barbie-looking chick. I don’t like her, and she seems to lean a little too close to my Dad at times. She needs something a little more bitey to chew on.

Speaking of something to chew on, I am late for a wolfy run in the woods with my clan, so let me give you what I came here to share. It’s my top five tips for getting it on with a hybrid. For anyone who is thinking of mating with a vampire/werewolf hybrid, I thought I would share some things that would have helped me and my mate. Jake and I also had a homicidal vampire leader after us, so that might have been an issue too, but anyway here are my top five tips.

Top 5 tips for getting it on with a hybrid
  1. Solid wood bed.
    Dude. When a hybrid loses control, cheap furniture breaks. And trust me when I say, you totally want him to lose control. NOM.
  2. Mini Fridge at the Ready
    The last thing you want to do when you are in afterglow is go out for a sandwich. Keep some grub around. A LOT of grub. Sex tends to tweak an appetite.
  3. High Iron Snacks
    So, you have found a hybrid. No matter what side of them you are dealing with, biting happens. Trust me when I say, you want it. Oh man. It’s so good, but you do tend to get a little drained. Heh heh. Drained. So keep the spinach meatballs in the cupboard for the after those long glorious bitey times.
  4. Toss out the toys
    Just like beds don’t hold up, neither do the cheap plastic things they sell in the stores. If someone out there knows where there is a supernatural rabbit vibe, I am all for it. I like rabbits.
  5. Extra Clothes
    This is self-explanatory. When you need to venture out where people live, it pays to have more than Sponge-Bob pajama pants at your disposal. Trust me on this. Just…Trust me.

Thanks for letting me play over here, Mary. Roxy is busy freaking out over becoming an author. Personally, I think she needs to fight off an angry horde of vampires before she can talk to me about nerves. I am taking her bacon and cookies. Don’t worry. She’ll be ready to venture out of her writing cave soon. She won’t last long against the sweet meat candy and chocolate.

She told me to say she will give a copy of my story away to one lucky commenter. You might want to keep a cool drink nearby. It’s my story so you know it gets pretty hot. (Mary jumping in here. Comment through Friday! Roxy--or maybe Amber--will announce the winner here this weekend. :) )
 

A Love Worth Biting For

Who’s afraid of the big bad hybrid?

Hart Clan Hybrids, Book 1

Amber Paulson’s wolf has chosen a mate for her, but Amber is not amused with its pick. Jake Meyers might look amazing in a wet T-shirt and have the cheekbones and strong jaw that artists drool over. Too bad he is missing a pulse.

Jake is a vampire, well, mostly. Then a tall, curvy redhead pops up on his radar and something awakens in him. Even though he tries to stay away, Amber gets under his skin, and his vampire/werewolf heritage starts to become more bark and less bite. For the first time, he feels the call of the moon, and he knows it’s all because of Amber Paulson.

Amber’s trying to stay away, and Jake’s trying to not turn furry. They both fail miserably—and with a lot of sweaty and enjoyable property destruction.

By giving in to her mating call, Amber finds out more than she ever wanted to know about herself, her family, and the rogue wolf who took so much from her so long ago. As her past comes back to bite her, she’ll have to decide what she’s willing to give up for her mate. Her home? Her pack? Her…heartbeat? 



Product Warnings
This book contains a snarky shifter heroine who could give Sookie a run for her money, a hot hunk of a vampire with a soft (and furry) side, and sex so sizzling that even an inter-species war can’t get in the way.
 
AmazonB&NSamhain 


Roxy Mews wrote her first story at age six on an electric typewriter. It was about a cat and a haunted house. Thankfully, her stories and technology have matured since then. Roxy spends her days fighting the evil day job in hopes of conquering the stories that run rampant in her head.  To connect with Roxy Mews, find her babbling on Twitter, friend her on Facebook, visit her Blog, or find all these links on RoxyRocksMe.com.