Did You Miss It? New Books, Fun Stuff, and Great Deals You May Have Missed

New Releases and Upcoming Books

Lori Foster’s fans are eagerly anticipating her Ultimate Series about MMA heroes and the women who love them, so it’s a happy thought to realize that the prequel to this series, Hard Knocks, will be released August 4th. When a woman can’t forget her affair with a rugged fighter – one who disappeared without a word for months – she’s got to protect her heart when he waltzes back into town. But our hero hasn’t been able to forget the woman who meant everything to him months ago and he has only one night to convince her that he’s back in her life for good. We only have to wait a month for the first full-length novel, No Limits, which will be coming out September 1st, so we can enjoy Hard Knocks while we tap our feet. FYI, Foster is also running a giveaway on Goodreads where she’ll be dispensing 25 copies of the book, so enter by August 7th to see if you can snag one!

Paranormal doyenne Kresley Cole is also releasing this week the fourteenth novel in her incredible Immortals After Dark series, Dark Skye, coming out on August 5th. Fans have been waiting for this installment as it features a couple with a dark past – a prince and a sorceress from rival clans who loved each other as children but were torn apart by a cruel tragedy. While they question whether what lies between them can overcome physical and emotional scars, readers don’t, because Kresley Cole’s name is on the cover!

Contemporary romance author Gina L. Maxwell has got a new series What Happens in Vegas, and is kicking if off on August 11th with the first book, Tempting Her Best Friend. Since Maxwell showed us her considerable writing chops with her wonderful MMA-focused Fighting for Love series, I’m excited to see what this new venture will bring romance readers. This first novel stars a heroine frustrated that her best friend and neighbor can’t see what is right under his nose – so she determines to go to Las Vegas to attend a romance book convention and hopefully have a fling with one of the cover models she’s bound to find. Naturally when her friend, who has commitment issues and thinks she can do better, catches wind of her plan, he’s jetting off to Sin City to make sure that he is the only one she’s going to do any sinning with.

I’m not sure it’s physically possible for me to be more of a Lisa Marie Rice fan, but I’m happy that she’s taken a minor character from my favorite series of hers – her Midnight collection – and given him a book of his own, Midnight Vengeance, which will come out August 18th. We met the tattooed, pierced Jacko in Midnight Angel when he protected the heroine per his boss’ directions, but Jacko has a secret, the beautiful elegant Lauren Dare, who he has loved in secret and whose art classes he has taken. Someone as beautiful and refined as her would never be interested in a rough former sniper like him, but when he realizes that Lauren is running from something in her past – something that may have caught up to her – Jacko isn’t letting anyone touch the woman he loves. Classic Rice! Intriguingly there is another book, Midnight Promises, listed on the Goodreads series page which will be published in January 2015, but with no description as of yet, it’s a bit of a mystery as to who it will feature.

If you are enjoying Laura Kaye‘s Hard Ink series, featuring a group of disgraced special forces soldiers and the tattoo parlor that becomes their home base as they puzzle out the mystery of who set them up, you’ll want to mark your calendar with two upcoming dates. Kaye has a novella being released on August 19th, Hard to Hold On To, starring none other than Edward Cantrell (yay, Easy!!) who has found a woman who has finally penetrated the numbness which has plagued him since his team’s attack, and he’s not about to let go of her, particularly since danger seems to follow her around. All this is the lead up to the next full length novel in the series, Hard to Come By, this time with Derek DiMarzio and a beautiful woman related to the enemy who he falls for, due out on November 25th.

Jennifer Ashley has several upcoming books and novellas in her ever-popular Highland Pleasures historical romance series. Those naughty Mackenzies and McBrides are up to their usual tricks, starting in the The Mackenzie Clan Gathering, where I am guessing we will get an update on our four favorite brothers and their families on August 18th, followed by Scandal and the Duchess on September 16th. Soldier Steven McBride is known for his drinking and wenching off duty, so its with great trepidation that widowed Duchess Rose Barclay confronts the handsome man’s prone form in her hideout. She’s tired of scandal following her everywhere, starting with her ill-fated honeymoon when her much older husband expired, and it’s just her luck that in trying to outrun the journalists she’s ended up with a much bigger problem. Both these novellas are simply the precursors to the next full-length novel in the series, Rules for a Proper Governess, which has brilliant barrister Sinclar McBride finally finding someone who can awaken his widowed heart and wrangle his two hellion children, starting on October 7th.

Kat Latham – an up-and-coming writer who is producing British rugby sports romance that surpasses any of the baseball/football novels I’ve read recently – is coming out with the third book in her London Legends series, Tempting the Player, on November 10th. This novel features a player fighting for his starting slot whose best friend, a gorgeous airline pilot, makes his heart ache. With his fear of flying and her desire for a stay-at-home partner, they both know it wouldn’t work between them, but that doesn’t stop them from making the decision to take a break from their platonic relationship and indulge in the passion which is clearly there. If you haven’t read the first two in the series (take a look at my review of the first book, Knowing the Score, to get a sense how wonderful this writer is), pick them up now so you are ready for the third book in the series.

Contests and Giveaways

Readers who love their heroes with a cowboy hat will be pleased to see that B. J. Daniels is giving away a copy of Mercy, the fifth book in her Beartooth, Montana series, due to come out on August 28th. When U. S. Marshall Rourke Kincaid finds himself on the track of a killer, he’s shocked to come to the doorstep of his prime suspect, Callie Westfield, and find himself blown away by her delicacy. Still, all clues point to her as the killer, yet Rourke fights what he knows is his duty to turn her in and his instinct which is telling him that not only is she innocent, but she’s the woman he’s been hunting for his whole life. Enter by August 7th.

If you are the campy type who enjoys a blast from the past when it comes to romance novels, you’ll want to take a closer look at RT Book Review’s hilarious giveaway – vintage romance audiobooks from the 1990s! Some of them look like they are *gasp* on cassette tape, so you may need to unearth your boom box from the attic to listen. I think I might frame the Fabio one for posterity! Enter by August 6th.

Even though I’ve pre-ordered it months ago, I’m still planning to enter Lauren Dane‘s Goodreads giveaway for a copy of her upcoming first book in her spin-off Hurley Boys series (*fans self, oh those Hurley boys!*), The Best Kind of Trouble, which officially debuts on August 26th. A former wild child, small town librarian Natalie Clayton has got her life on the right path, a path that becomes threatened when former fling Paddy Hurley, one of the famous Hurley Boys rock group, comes back into town. He’s just her brand of naughty when her head is telling her that nice is the way to go, but Paddy has a different idea of what constitutes being a bad girl, and he’s more than willing to teach her how to walk the line. Enter before August 9th for a chance to win one of 25 copies in this giveaway!

 

Fun Stuff

I still love paper books as much as ebooks, so bookmarks are a must (no dog ears or *gasp* open faced books, in a librarian’s house!) and these little triangle book corners from Sketch are as cute and fun as they come. With sayings like “to be continued…” and “eyes rested here” this page of four metal bookmarks are a great gift for your favorite reader (even if that’s yourself). $10

There is no such thing as too many reading-themed t-shirts, so I was thrilled to see T-shirt Booyah’s take off on the Major League Baseball logo with their “Major League Reading” t-shirt. If the $22 price tag is out of your league, you can always get the sticker for $5 which they claim is tough enough for a car (or okay for notebooks). I might have to get both!

Considering all the reading that happens there, the bathroom is an excellent place to highlight book-themed accessories, particularly with a captive audience engaging in mandatory hygiene. Whether it’s your kids or your guests, Zazzle’s Read a Book Bath Accessory Set at $24.95 delivers a soap dispenser and toothbrush holder that urges people to “read a book.” Literary and clean – my favorite!

Great Deals

For readers who can’t get enough military men in their lives, Hot Alpha SEALs: Military Romance Megaset is right up your alley. With twelve stories by military romance authors like Cat Johnson, Cindy Dees, Cristin Harber, and Delilah Devlin, you know you are in good hands. At only $.99 for over 1400 pages, you can consider this one of your summer bargains!

I love the writing of Vivian Arend and if you haven’t had the chance to sample it, the current deal for the first of her Six Pack Ranch series offers a terrific opportunity. Rocky Mountain Heat is free right now, and I have a feeling you are going to like Arend’s brand of cowboy – strong and hot! Blake Coleman is trying to be a responsible rancher but he’s strongly tempted by Jaxi, even though she’s always worn a “hands off” sign as the girl next door. Jaxi has wanted Blake for years and is determined to shatter whatever barriers lie between them, at least to the point that Blake can see the potential for the something more that she always knew was there.

Mastered: Ten Tales of Surrender is a wonderful boxed set with some heavy hitting erotic writers. Joey W. Hill, Portia de la Costa, Kate Pearce and Carrie Ann Ryan are just a few of the outstanding best-selling authors who have novels in this collection, making its $.99 price tag even more phenomenal. If you like a little dominance in your romance, then submit to this collection while the introductory price still holds.

For fans of mysteries, hot sex, and hilarious humor, look no further than Darynda Jones‘ fantastic urban fantasy Charley Davidson series, featuring a heroine with some rather special abilities and a hero to die for (and they don’t come any hotter, believe me). The first book, First Grave on the Right, is on sale for only $2.99 for the Kindle edition, so consider sampling this fantastic paranormal at a bargain price.

I adore Roxie Rivera‘s Her Russian Protector series, but fans of boxing/MMA fighting might want to try her writing in the form of her spin-off series, Fighting Connollys, particularly since the first book, In Kelly’s Corner, is currently free on Amazon. Kelly Connolly has finally broken free of his fighting past working security for a Russian mafia company that treats him well, but when a friend from his past, the internet millionaire Bee Langston, is threatened by a stalker and his dad’s gambling problem escalates, Kelly finds himself having to re-embrace the fighting life he worked so hard to escape.

Happy reading this week!

High-Heeled Wonder by Avery Flynn Combines Fashion and Revenge in a Suspenseful Love Story

High-Heeled Wonder (A Killer Style novel) by Avery Flynn (Entangled Ignite, January 27, 2014)

I have got to hand it to the editors of Entangled’s Ignite line, they know how to choose romantic suspense stories that have me yelling out things unhelpful to the hero and heroine during the last few pages (things like “No, look out!” and “Oh my God, be careful!”). You should see me at a Jaws viewing.

With a clear emphasis on fashion, I worried that High-Heeled Wonder would be the typical bodyguard falls for fluffy woman with a heart of gold. It’s not that there is anything wrong with this trope per se, but I did not expect the emotional and extremely well-crafted story I actually got from Avery Flynn (thank you, Avery!). Having never had the pleasure of reading anything by her before, I have my eyes fully open now. This is an author who offers the reader deep characters carting a complete Samsonite set of baggage behind them, not all of which is dealt with in the course of the novel (which I appreciate).

Sylvie Bissette is having a phenomenally bad 24 hours. She’s supposed to be a cheerful, serene bridesmaid for her sister Anya, but in actuality she’s about to yak into a potted plant due to the whiskey bender she chose after catching her boyfriend going down on a waiter…a male waiter. With two dads, she thought her gaydar was well-developed but apparently not. Being the daughter of famous fashion designers means Sylvie is as much a target of public attention as the bride, so she’s trying to put a pleasant smile on her face and just tough it out. It’s hard to do when her anonymous fashion blog, High-Heeled Wonder, is getting increasingly more violent threats. But for Sylvie, she is going to tell it like it is and operate business as usual, putting out of her mind deceptive boyfriends and someone who hates her enough to possibly hurt her.

I was worried this novel would be an homage to fashion, but it’s really pays due to women who enjoy looking good and feeling confident. Who can’t get behind that? (Public domain image via Pixabay)

Those unpleasant emails are the reason that her fathers have asked her to take on a bodyguard, none other that the uber-hottie she almost kissed on Anya’s wedding day. Tony Falcon has been hired by her family to watch over Sylvie and hopefully discover who this mystery threat is. With a list as long as her arm of important people she’s pissed off, this is not an easy job, particularly when you could boil water with the heat between them. However, Tony not only doesn’t succumb to lust for his clients (no matter how hot they are) but he also doesn’t begin to fall for a woman when he’s secretly investigating her family for murder, right?

This situation was like watching a freight train crash, yet Sylvie and Tony have so much to offer each other you just can’t look away. While my favorite character was undoubtedly the 150 pound Newfoundland dog with a hankering for peanut butter, Sylvie was the perfect blend of vulnerable and smart, a fact Tony caught on to pretty quickly. He was an excellent hero, blinded to doing things the right way by his sense of guilt and desire for vengeance. With revenge the point of the mystery antagonist bent on destroying Sylvie’s work and taking her life, there were actually some pretty big themes in this novel, all of which were well-executed.

Based on the fact that the book is being marketed as “a Killer Style novel,” I can only hope that this is the first of a series since Tony has a few security firm compatriots I’d like to see more of and Sylvie’s friends are pretty winning as well. Please note that Avery Flynn’s excellent website is having a TERRIFIC giveaway in honor of the book’s debut, with a Rafflecopter giveaway for a $100 DSW gift card, swag, and several ebooks that are part of Entangled Ignite’s recent releases.

Happy reading!

Sunday Reflections: Upcoming Books, Fun Stuff, and Great Deals You Might Have Missed, Week of January 26, 2014

Upcoming Books and New Releases

Self-publishing got a huge boost when historical powerhouse Stephanie Laurens jumped on the bandwagon and her latest novella, The Peculiar Case of Lord Finsbury’s Diamonds, came out January 6th, so go pick it up when you have a chance. Fans of her exceptional Cynster series will enjoy seeing a very pregnant Penelope Adair and her wonderful, crime-solving noble of a husband Barnaby (as well as the ubiquitous Stokes of the police force) join forces to solve a baffling mystery. That a new couple in the making is also desperate to get to the bottom of the murder forms her trademark Regency romance. Keep in mind that this book is one of her ongoing The Casebook of Barnaby Adair series featuring Barnaby and Penelope as well as new couples and I for one am interested to see the reception and type of stories which will emerge in this framework.

In just a couple of days, sensual paranormal and romantic suspense writer Cynthia Eden will be kicking off her new series, Phoenix Fire, by releasing the first novel, Burn For Me, on January 28th. Seeming to focus on paranormal creatures held against their will and the potential mates they encounter, this is a premise we’ve seen before but never with this level of sexual tension or Eden’s great writing. I was fanning myself just from the excerpts from Burn For Me and the second series book due in April, Once Bitten, Twice Burned.

Also on the 28th is the massive release of Jeaniene Frost‘s seventh book in the incomparable Night Huntress series. Up from the Grave will be her last Cat and Bones novel and she has never written anything that didn’t blow my socks off so this one has been pre-ordered since last July. Frost admits that the couple might pop up in other books in the Night Huntress world (remember we still have another book in the Night Prince series and I’ve got my fingers crossed that Ian has evolved enough to be the hero in his own novel soon). With those possible novels on the horizon (and having the utmost confidence in the creative imagination residing in Frost’s mind), I’m happy to thank her for finally offering Cat and Bones a happily ever after since they’ve been through a lot in their time together! January 28th will be a little bittersweet, but with Frost at the helm, I’m sure to enjoy every page.

Good news for military romance lovers! The next Tawny Weber Uniformly Hot! Harlequin Blaze novel featuring her sexy SEALs will be out on March 18th. Entitled A SEAL’s Kiss, this delicious story involves a SEAL on leave who agrees to be a pretend fiancee to help a woman alleviate the worry of her ailing father. You can imagine that the “no sex” rule of the arrangement becomes increasingly harder to keep as our hero and heroine become attracted to one another! Pre-order it now from Amazon so the day after St. Patrick’s Day will be a little brighter for you.

Also due out on March 18th is Jennifer Ashley‘s latest addition to her unbelievably good paranormal series, Shifters Unbound. Feral Heat is the latest novella which focuses on Jace, the son of the leader and third in command from the Las Vegas Shiftertown who visits the Austin Shiftertown (bring on the sexy Morrisseys, thank you) to discover how to remove the crippling collars which render the shifters at the mercy of humans. When a shattered, beautiful woman, Deni, volunteers to be the test subject, Jace is moved by her circumstances and drawn to mate claim her, but it’s uncertain whether her fragile state can survive the collar removal so she can be a full mate to Jace. We met Deni, the wolf shifter in the novella featuring her brother, Lone Wolf, and this woman’s road has been a heartbreaking one. I cannot wait to see her (and Jace, who is a blisteringly hot feline if ever I saw one) get a HEA.

Erotic author Paige Tyler has succeeded in practically every subgenre of romance fiction – erotic, science fiction, romantic suspense, and paranormal – so I was thrilled to see that Sourcebooks Casablanca picked it  up and will be publishing her upcoming series, entitled X-Ops. The first book entitled Her Perfect Mate not only has a killer cover but a terrific premise. A human Special Forces hero is partnered with a diminutive, seemingly gentle covert ops partner, only to discover she can switch on her feline DNA to deadly effect when necessary – and he loves it. I’ve pre-ordered this one!

Historical romance readers always seem to like the novels of Erin Knightley, so they’ll be thrilled to see that the first book in her new series, Prelude to a Kiss, is due to be published on June 3rd. The Baron Next Door has a cranky war hero recovering from his injuries using the restorative waters at Bath consistently annoyed by the music coming from next door. Discovering the beautiful young musician creating it instills a very different feeling and it’s not long before his feelings undergo a radical change.

Contests and Giveaways

Suspense fans love Cristen Harber’s Titan series, so they will definitely want to enter the Goodreads contest to win book 4 of the series, Savage Secrets, about the firm’s new second-in-command who is on an undercover mission to nab a terrorist. Sounds like an average day at the office for this crew, but unfortunately for him he’s got some strange brain hallucinations he’s neglected to discuss with anyone and is posing as the newlywed husband to a gorgeous woman bent on revenge. Things suddenly just got a lot more complicated…

For those readers who can’t get enough MMA fighters (yes, I am one with you, sisters!) should be aware that Gina Maxwell just released her third book in her Fighting for Love series, Fighting for Irish, and it looks WONDERFUL (a hard-working waitress has to come up with thousands of dollars to cover an ex’s debt and the fighter she’s always loved from a distance steps up to offer himself as collateral *sigh*). Because it was only released on January 13th, we are still enjoying the blog tour and Entangled’s giveaway. Enter before February 6th and you’ll have a chance to win a $50 gift card to B&N or Amazon (reader’s choice). Did I mention the book is also ONLY $.99 RIGHT NOW?! Run and fight for your copy before it goes back to full retail.

Those angels over at Paranormal Romance blog have put together a book giveaway of some terrific authors (Gena Showalter, Michelle Hauf, and Maggie Shayne, for example) for readers who leave a comment on the post detailing their favorite paranormal romance author. I chickened out and revealed my tie between Jeaniene Frost, Nalini Singh and Ilona Andrews (seriously, talk about a Sophie’s Choice to choose a favorite!), but get your vote in before the January 30th deadline to see if you can win.

Fun Stuff

Who knew the Consumer Electronics show could be this exciting? The personal pleasure business OhMiBod revealed that they are offering a fabulous remote controlled vibrator, The Club Vibe 2.OH (*chuckle*). This beautifully crafted electronic device is a rechargeable vibrator which comes with a remote. While obviously a person or their lover can use the remote to activate the vibrator in a more traditional way to excite the wearer, this particular vibrator has a “club mode” which has the microphone of the remote initiate vibrations to the rhythm and intensity of the ambient music (or voice, etc.). This latest edition is a nice complement to the other company products like their Freestyle W:Wireless Music Vibrator which connects to your smartphone or MP3 player and syncs the vibrations of a rabbit style vibrator to the music you are listening to. Gives a new meaning to “beats per minute,” doesn’t it?

The Australian Romance Readers Association was kind enough to put one of their banquet’s most popular speakers, the wonderful Julia Quinn, online (in three parts) giving fans about 45 minutes of pure Julia, who has a wonderful back and forth with the moderator and fans and answers questions about her various series and characters, and her outlook on romance writing. You’ll find even more to love about her!

I know I’m not alone in freezing like a popsicle these last couple of weeks (I celebrated yesterday because it was a whole 6 degrees in my car when I got in it – and I was just ecstatic it wasn’t a negative number anymore!). What do you need to keep warm and make a fashion statement? A literary themed scarf, naturally! Those wonderful people at Book Riot have assembled a terrific list of book-related scarves, several of which look both warm and trendy, so go take a look.

A terrific article in The Atlantic details some recent research showing that regular sex actually improves brain function and long-term memory (while viewing pornographic images has the opposite effect) even making a connection that older adults with early onset Alzheimer’s disease are more likely to not have had sex recently. All the more reason to make that meaningful connection and improve your brain health!!

Great Deals

Donna Kauffman is not only a terrific author who moves the heartstrings but she also makes you hungry as delicious food (usually dessert) features prominently in her writing (thank god). Lucky for all of her devoted fans, Sugar Rush, the first book in her Cupcake Club series, is on sale for the ebook edition, currently only $2.51 on Amazon. When a baker returns to her small town is astonished that her former boss, a British powerhouse she nicknamed Chef Hot Cakes decides to film his cooking show in her storefront, she’s baffled as to why. He knows why he’s there, and it’s not to steal recipes..just her heart.

The first book in Lynda Aicher‘s well-rated Wicked Play erotic series is only $.99 right now, so BDSM fans might want to head over and pick up Bonds of Trust while it’s still at a great price to see if they want to try the other novels in the series. This first one features a heroine who ended a bad marriage and is more than ready to try out all the fantasies she was denied with her ex. Heading to the nearest sex club is naturally the next step (how many of those are there around the country, anyway?). She finds a Dom intrigued by introducing her to the lifestyle but what starts as instruction quickly becomes something much more emotional, and neither party knows if they are ready for that level of commitment.

Readers who love shifters as much as I do will want to take a look at the bundle, Shifter Seduction Box Set, which has novels by Eve Langlais, Mandy Harbin, Tressie Lockwood, S. K. Yule, Crymsyn Hart, and LeTeisha Newton. This wonderful collection definitely falls on the erotic end of the spectrum with this line-up with many of the books focusing on menage relationships that truly are unleashing the animal within. Mrrrooowwww.

Readers of this blog know how much I love the military romance chops of writer Kaylea Cross, particularly her fabulous Titanium Security series. In honor of the latest book of the series, Rekindled having been released just last week, the first book in the series, Ignited, is currently on sale for only $.99. Fans of well-written, detailed and emotional military romance will not be disappointed by Cross, so I’d recommend you pick up this book ASAP!

Happy reading this week! 🙂

Sunday Reflections: Upcoming Books, Fun Stuff and Great Deals You Might Have Missed, January 19th, 2014

Upcoming Books and New Releases

It’s getting to be that time of year, when publishers tantalize us with novels that will be released in the late spring and summer. This always seems cruel, making me think of “beach reads” and hammocks and fruity drinks while in reality I need to put on seventeen layers before shoveling out my car. Yet, it                                                                                                                                                                                                              doesn’t stop my pre-ordering, which is I’m sure the desired result.

One book I’m looking forward to reading is Tawna Fenske‘s upcoming novel, Frisky Business, (publication date May 6th) starring a t-shirt wearing, wealthy chairman of the board and the development consultant who has sworn off wealthy men after a lifetime of pushy fiancees and fathers who do nothing but disappoint her. While working together to acquire funding for a wildlife sanctuary, our hero has to wonder what the gorgeous woman with whom he regularly butts head is hiding under her chic suit while our heroine keeps remembering her mantra that it’s working class guys only from now on. With what seems like more than a few colorful animal sidekicks, I think this is going to be a heart-warming, lusty novel. Haven’t sampled Fenske’s writing? Do yourself a favor and pick up her wonderful novella Eat, Play, Lust to get convinced she needs to be on your to-read pile!

Speaking of favorite author discoveries in 2013, Kat Latham, author of the wonderful Knowing the Score, has the next book up in her London Legends series starring uber-hot rugby players, Playing It Close, already available for pre-ordering. Coming out on April 14th, this book promises to focus on the sexy captain of the team, Liam Callaghan, who was an awesome secondary character in the first book, so I’m dying to know more about him ASAP. No cover art as of yet, but I couldn’t resist plugging this one since her first book knocked my socks off!

We all know that Jaci Burton has the oiled six-pack book cover market completely cornered, so it’s nice to see that her eighth Play-by-Play novel, Straddling the Line, which has a hero so awesome he’s both a baseball and a football star with enough heart to try and help his mentor’s daughter when her sportscasting career hits the skids after the death of her father. Naturally our hero has a few secrets he wants to keep to himself to supply the conflict, but I’m sure it will have the usually Burton brand of steamy hot love to keep us turning the pages for that bonus as well. With a July 1st publication date, this book is bound to be as hot as the temperature that time of year.

Maya Banks announced that her next KGI novel, When Day Breaks, the ninth in this incredibly successful suspense series about an independent group of former military personnel who take on the impossible jobs and bring people home safely, will be out on June 24th. This particular novel stars Swanson, who has come back from his last mission in Afghanistan wounded and scarred and the overwhelming attraction he has for a supermodel client desperately running from the evil stalking her.

Lori Foster has a new book on the horizon with a May 6th publication date, Unexpected, which turns the typical bodyguard story around. With a hero who hires a deadly female bodyguard and gets a sexy woman when he expected a hulking guy with tattoos. She’s more confident handling a gun than handling the scorching feelings being around her client inspires, but when they give into their urges and finally connect, some startling repercussions result. But the danger hasn’t gone away…A reissue of her 2004 novel of the same name, reviewers rave about the characterization, so Foster fans who haven’t read it should definitely check out this re-release (kudos on the cover, Zebra publishing!).

Contests and Giveaways

RT Book Reviews is sponsoring several giveaways right now, including Candi Wall‘s Primitive Nights, a modern-day Tarzan story featuring a young activist whose helicopter crashes in the South American jungle while she is wearing the jumpsuit of the oil company she planned to infiltrate, only to be dragged in front of the light-eyed, lighter skinned tribal leader who speaks perfect English. Naturally, he doesn’t necessarily believe her innocence but he can’t bring himself to kill her even though he knows the safety of his people depends on eradicating the oil company’s influence on their land. The magazine is giving away five e-copies of the book to lucky winners who use the Rafflecopter interface and enter prior to January 25th.

The wonderful people over at the Vampire Book Club blog are sponsoring a lovely giveaway of When Blood Calls by J. K. Beck, Wicked As She Wants by Delilah S. Dawson, and Hearts of Darkness by Kira Brady, for people who enter their Rafflecopter interface prior to January 25th.

In honor of the Katee Robert‘s latest book, In Bed with Mr. Wrong, the first book in her new Out of Uniform series, Fiction Vixen is sponsoring a giveaway of a $50 e-bookstore card for people who enter their Rafflecopter giveaway by the end of January. Featuring a sexy Air Force Pararescuer who gets sets up on a blind date with a demure librarian who fascinates him with her buttoned up looks and sassy mouth, this couple feels they have nothing in common except their off-the-charts chemistry until they get trapped in a cabin together and are forced to decide if this can work or not. Based on the numerous terrific reviews (and this book isn’t even a week old yet), it sounds like this series is going to be as successful as her Come Undone books!

The wonderful Australian Give Me Books blog is hosting a massive giveaway in conjunction with publisher Samhain books, which they are calling the Samhain Publishing International Paperback Giveaway. Including a $50 gift card to the Samhain store, a bag of swag, and over 32 of their paperbacks, this is quite the haul, so enter the Rafflecopter giveaway by January 28th to earn chances to win. With authors like N. J. Walters, Jayne Rylon, and Mari Carr in the mix, this is a quality giveaway bound to make someone very, very happy.

There is no one who writes SEALs the way Tawny Weber does, and her latest book, A SEAL’s Salvation (due out on February 1st), is currently part of a Goodread’s giveaway which is gifting 50 paper copies of the book to random lucky winners who enter the contest by February 15th. Please note that an earlier book, A SEAL’s Seduction, is currently free in ebook form on Amazon, so you can get a taste for these hard-bodied, determined heroes right now.

Fun Stuff

Are you grumpy before that first cup of coffee in the morning? If your neurons aren’t firing on all cylinders at the people busy interrupting you at the crack of dawn, consider investing in The Library Shop’s the Shakespeare insult mug, so you have some ready made (and highly colorful) epithets to throw the way of anyone coming between a coffee drinker and their morning caffeine hit.

I’m a real sucker for a funny t-shirt and Human’s latest take on reading and exercise is definitely chortle-worthy in my opinion. In addition to my claim to cardio, they have other geek-worthy lines for romance readers, like “I Don’t Want a Relationship, I Want a Starship” (complete with Enterprise) and a buff Belle powerlifting while stating, “I Only Date Beasts“.

Okay. Woman to woman, let’s talk honestly here. There is a LOT of super hot shower sex going on in romance novels today and it’s awesome, right? To read, that is. The reality is something different. If you’re not being slowly waterboarded while maintaining a certain position, you’re in danger of a date with a traction apparatus (and not the sexy BDSM kind) because you’ve lost your footing. Never fear! Sex in the Shower is an actual catalog with various implements which will make your shower sex hot and safe. While some of the items look like they could be used for handholds for granny while she bathes (and let’s not go there), other accessories are extremely racy, so please make sure you are not at work while you take a look! 🙂

Great Deals

Much of the time, the books in this section are meant to give us a sampling of the author’s writing so we’ll go back and buy more of their work, so what’s better for paranormal romance readers than a collection from Entangled’s Covet line featuring excerpts from every single one of their books since they started this imprint? Covet: Sampler 2013 is 232 pages offered at no cost, so if you do like things a little spookey-poo or with the occasional shifter or vampire, take two seconds and get this one on your ereader before the moon is full.

Many paranormal readers (not just me) have devoured Terry Spear‘s wolf shifter series, but did you know she has a young adult romance series based on the intrigue surrounding the Fae and the human world? I’m a sucker for sexy fairies (Melissa Marr’s Wicked Lovely series is my favorite) so I’m tempted to try this one. Luckily for me, Spear owns the rights to the World of Fae, and has just released them as a The World of Fae Bundle for only $6.99, not bad price for almost 800 pages. This is probably in honor of the sixth book of the series, The Hawk Fae, which just came out this past week.

I know on my blog, any of the posts related to Bella Andre‘s The Sullivans series is an automatic hit, so please note that her book, The Way You Look Tonight, is currently free in ebook form, so this is a good time to snap it up. Starring Rafe Sullivan, one of the Northwest cousins to the California Sullivans, this private investigator doesn’t believe in true love, having caught one too many cheating spouses. He decides to take some much-needed time off by heading to the lake house that gave him many a great summer memory, only to encounter a sexy local truffle maker who decides to walk on the wild side with her favorite Sullivan. What seems like the best temporary fling becomes much more quickly, but the question remains if someone who doesn’t believe in love can recognize something worth fighting for when he sees it.

Shelly Laurenston’s Pride series is one of my absolute favorite shifter series (if you love to laugh, this is your series!), and if you haven’t had a chance to sample her sexy beasts and gritty humor, you now have a chance with the first book in the series, The Mane Event, being on sale for only $1.99 right now. A wealthy lion fresh out of the military returns to Manhattan to find the one woman who has fascinated him since he was a freshmen in high school. The half-Irish, half-Puerto Rican, double D-cup smartmouth human is all grown up with a voice that makes him instantly think of sex, and there is no way he’s letting her out of his bed or his life. But first there is the pesky detail of explaining that there is a whole world right under her nose of which she has no clue…

Acclaimed contemporary romance writer Kristen Proby is debuting a new series, Love Under the Big Sky, on January 21st and right now you can pre-order the first book, Loving Cara, for a mere $1.99 for the ebook version. When a sexy rancher and a troubled nephew who needs a tutor meets the shy girl from his past who is all grown up and sassy-mouthed, these two men discover exactly what they both need to seize their future. With two other books in the series scheduled for release this year, fans won’t have to wait very long to enjoy the setting and characters again!

Lora Leigh is best known for her Breeds series, but her Wild Ops line of books has got more than its fair share of fans. If you’d like to sample this series, start with the first book, Wild Card, featuring a Navy SEAL who was declared dead by the government three long years ago when an operation went very, very wrong, and who desperately wants his beautiful wife back. But he can’t give away who he is (or was) but can he manage to win her heart while keeping secrets? Currently on deep discount at only $2.99, this novel is rated an emotional page-turner by fans, so take a look.

Well, I’m going to go don my Cumberbitch t-shirt in honor of the American debut of Sherlock, Season 3 (thank GOD), but I hope everyone has a super week of reading!

Sunday Reflections: Upcoming Books, Fun Stuff and Great Deals You Might Have Missed, December 29, 2013

Upcoming Books and New Releases

Courtney Milan fans have probably already purchased The Countess Conspiracy, the third book of her The Brothers Sinister series, but in case you haven’t, this full-length novel is only $3.99 on Amazon since its publication on December 17th, and hopefully will stay at that great price for a little while. With a hero who is a brilliant rake promoting scandalous revolutionary scientific theories and the heroine the woman to whom those theories actually belong, this is bound to have plenty of conflict and tension (sexual and otherwise).

Fans of Karen Marie Moning‘s urban fantasy Fever series should be aware that the seventh book in the series, Burned, is available for pre-order with a July 22, 2014 publication date. Because of the enormous popularity of these books, be warned that even the ebook price is steep at almost $12 (but that’s still a bargain since the paper version will be in hardcover format).

Yet another summer release to plan for re: beach reading is the next Kate Daniels book by the powerhouse writing team of Ilona Andrews. Magic Breaks will be available as of July 29th, so check your vacation dates to make sure you are somewhere you can get a copy at midnight to begin reading the next installment of this amazing urban fantasy series.

Also falling under the category of “series books I will cheerfully pay full price for” is Darynda Jones‘ next book in her Charley Davidson series, Sixth Grave on the Edge, which will be released May 20th. This urban fantasy series starring the hilarious and irrepressible Charley – who happens to be an irreverent grim reaper helping departed souls get to the other side – and her love interest, Reyes (the sexiest Son of Satan you’re ever going to meet), is always alternately funny, hot, and heart-stopping. I’ll be posting an entry on the whole series in honor of Darynda doing a workshop for my local Romance Writers Association chapter (woo-hooo PLRW Chapter!) For fans who would like an autographed copy of the hardcover version, Darynda has announced on her website that she has made arrangements through Author, Author, so if you order before the end of April, you can get the autographed book right around the release date.

Cat Johnson has quite a following for her hot military romance series, Red, Hot & Blue, and it was wonderful to read recently on the Samhain publishing blog that the next book, The Commander, features the leader of all those sexy, Special Ops guys we’ve seen find their HEA. Not only is this older hero in his forties, but he finds love with a sexy, older woman who is fifty and a single mom. It’s about time! The Commander comes out on New Year’s Eve and won’t take any prior knowledge of the series to enjoy it (she always writes these so you can pick up any one of them with no difficulty).

Gena Showalter recently blogged about her uber-enthusiastic reaction to the cover reveal of her latest Angels of the Dark paranormal series and – holy crap! – we can see why she loves it. Burning Dawn is now available for pre-order with a release date of April 29, 2014 and please note that the paperback version is significantly less right now than the Kindle version if you are open to the format you receive it. This series features violent angels on the brink of darkness who each find a woman who helps them find meaning in their fight for goodness and light – so good!

Harlequin’s partnership with Cosmo has produced their high quality (and successful) Red Hot Reads line and fans are eating up these steamy contemporary romances. To add to the success of such incredible stories like Cake by Lauren Dane and Ripped by Sarah Morgan, we can now add category romance superhero writer Heidi Rice whose story, 10 Ways to Handle the Best Man debuts on January 14th so pre-order now. Since it’s Rice, you’ll get a guarantee that you’ll want to be one getting handled by her hero, I promise!

Contests & Giveaways

If you’ve been intrigued by Harlequin Presents multi-author Sicily’s Coretti Dynasty series, you’ll definitely want to enter their contest to win all the books in this extremely successful series featuring a wealthy Sicilian family with more than the usual amount of scandal and vendettas to go around. Just leave a comment on the post about what you are most looking forward to in 2014 before January 6th for a chance to win!

The always wonderful blog TheBookPushers is clearing their shelves and offering a giveaway for readers who might be interested in some of their themed bundles of books. From contemporary to historical, erotic to New Adult, there’s something here for everyone, so comment before January 1st on what bundles look interesting to you to see if you could win!

Fun Stuff

Nalini Singh Psy-Changeling fans should be sure to take a look at her website in order to enjoy her bonus stories for Heart of Obsidian, which are now up on her story page. Keep in mind that newsletter subscribers got an incredible Christmas present from Singh this year, a bonus epilogue to her amazing novella, Declaration of Courtship, starring the hunky dominant SnowDancer lieutenant Cooper and his shy mechanic Grace, now mated and going to the celebration of their alpha’s mating (so it’s post Kiss of Snow). Such a great epilogue (be warned, you’ll go out and re-read Declaration of Courtship again – I did!)

Speaking of great presents, Ilona Andrews have put out a new, fully re-edited version of their Curran stories (specific scenes from the Kate Daniels novels told from the hero, Curran’s perspective) and are offering it to fans for free on their website for a time, available in all ebook formats, for devoted fans. No new stories as of yet, but it makes for a great read.

It’s not too late to give something to the reader in your life and what do they want more than uninterrupted reading time? Trust me, nothing. Smart Bitches, Trashy Books have a fantastic downloadable free gift certificate that you can make out for the reader in your life offering them a certain number of minutes (30, 60, and 90 minutes are the options and remember you can give a ton of the certificates to add up to whatever amount you want) devoted solely to their reading, all in a very attractive certificate form bound to appeal to romance readers. Show your romance reader how much you love them by offering them this particular gift for the New Year!

Business Insider magazine has made a wonderful interactive map of the U.S. featuring the most famous book set in that particular state, and it’s gotten a few of them on my to-read list for sure! Check out your favorite states while pondering what people who’ve never visited are gleaning about your home.

Harry Potter fans have always been annoyed that you can’t easily buy ebook versions of the series via retailers due to J. K. Rowling’s restrictions on them, but now Amazon users can purchase the whole series via the author’s Pottermore business and have them delivered in the proper file format right to their Kindle! For $57.54, this is actually a great deal for all seven books (over 4000 pages of Harry). With almost every possible format (I didn’t see iBooks, but pretty much every other reading app is an option), once purchased you can send your books to any and all your reading devices. Fans of the series who find the hardcover books too heavy for their bubble baths (What? It’s just me?) may want to indulge in the super cool collector’s paperback version which forms a fantastic image designed by artist Kazu Kibuishi when placed together.

Great Deals

Virna DePaul’s excellent Bedding the Wrong Brother novel is currently available for only $.99 and fans of friends to lovers have a lot to love in this story about a young woman who has been good friends to one twin brother while crushing on the other. After an ex tells her that she’s tepid in the sack, she asks her friend to help her hone her technique but ends up with her crush instead – a man who has interpreted her easy way with his brother and stiffness with him as disinterest. He decides to seize the opportunity to “tutor” her in the ways of the bedroom while convincing her she’s everything he could ever want, but her feelings of inadequacy when combined with her long-standing feelings for him might get in the way of any happiness they could have.

If you expected Santa to bring you a Kindle and his lines got crossed, you should know that Amazon is offering some pretty good deals where you can order one, paying only 25% of the cost up front (and they send it to you!) with reasonable installments spread out over the next year. I’ve also seen some great deals on the 2nd generation iPads and iPad Minis (Apple is on the third generation as of the latest release) on QVC and HSN, with installment plans and deep discounts available as well. If you’re looking for some basic apps, video and a great ereader, one of these deals might be useful. For romance readers, so many books are only available in ebook form, or the cost is so much lower, I definitely feel that purchasing a device could potentially pay for itself over a couple years for an avid reader. Just a thought!

Royal watchers and fans of movies like The Prince and Me are loving Megan Mulry’s Unruly Royals series, especially when you can get the books at a great discount. Right now, If the Shoe Fits, the second book in the series is on discount for only $2.99 for the ebook edition. When a modern playboy Earl becomes fascinated by a no-nonsense American not interested in his fast lifestyle, our hero finds himself having to dig deep for meaning in the hope of charming a woman who just might be everything to him, if he can get her to see beyond his reputation.

Happy reading and have a book-filled New Year in 2014!

Sunday Reflections: Upcoming Books, Fun Stuff and Great Deals You Might Have Missed, December 21, 2013

Upcoming Books and New Releases

Jacquelyn Frank‘s next book in the Nightwalkers series, Forsaken, will be debuting on January 7th and fans are chomping at the bit. Mercenary Leo Alvarez is dealing with his best friend now embodying an ancient pharaoh and he now needs to protect his friend from supernatural beings more dangerous than he could ever imagine. His unlikely ally is the Night Angel, a stunning creature who sets him aflame while also wielding power like he has never seen.

It’s now less than 10 days until the anthology Turn Up the Heat is published, and readers who snatch up books by Lori Foster, Christie Ridgway, and Victoria Dahl have already pre-ordered (and you should, too). Alpha males, beautiful woman and a love worth winning are a common theme of each hot, contemporary novella and I for one cannot wait. Pre-order it and have a great New Year with this book on your doorstep or delivered to your e-reader.

This past week gaslight fans all breathed a sigh of happiness as Kristen Callihan released the fourth book in her successful Darkest London series with Shadowdance. Mary Chase is happy in her work for the Society for the Suppression of Supernaturals and when tasked with bringing down the vicious murderer labeled the Bishop of Charing Cross, she is determined to be successful. Her annoying rival Jack Talent also appears to be on the case and while it would make sense to work together, this lone wolf never does. Mary doesn’t realize that Jack would like to work closer…much closer…with her but the temptation she offers combined with the danger has him worried that if their killer doesn’t hurt her the ghosts from his past may.

Fun Stuff

‘Tis the season for finding awesome gifts for readers, and a truly unique gift can be found at Spineless Classics which offers the entire text of a book in a single poster with a unique design which manages to evoke the story. From children’s classics like the first Harry Potter book, James and the Giant Peach, among others, historical classics, nonfiction works like The Origin of the Species, to the New Testament, there is something for any kind of reader. At just under $70 these unframed posters are an investment but make a truly awesome gift.

I bet you have probably used the phrase “kick-ass” in reference to a strong woman (hopefully yourself!) but did you ever wonder when this phrase became part of our lexicon? The outstanding Romance Novels for Feminists blog has an outstanding analysis of when we started saying this (the late 1970s, a key time period for women) and has some great examples of which heroine it has been applied to in the post, “From Whence the Kick-Ass Heroine?”

Did you know Microsoft is working on a bra that will help read our body cues to alert us if we are going to begin eating emotionally? Prevention Magazine recently announced that the prototype, which measures heart rate, breathing rates, skin temperature and movement, still won’t be able to account for the holidays as a factor (what, they can’t add in a clock?) but should help people be more aware of their habits. So my immediate questions are 1) how to wash it and 2) what are men going to do?

Contests and Giveaways

From the Fresh Fiction blog, the author who actually invented the military romance, Lindsay McKenna, is the focus of a fantastic contest to win her entire Wyoming series, which appears to encompass both her Jackson Hole series as well as her Shadow Warriors series, in addition to others. Enter before Christmas to have a shot of getting most of this legend’s oeuvre.

Another holiday motherload of books contest can be found at The Rock Stars of Romance website which is hosting a contest to win a $100 gift card and a TON of ebooks and paperbacks from terrific authors. Hurry over there to enter, however, as this contest ends tomorrow.

The romance industry’s major publication, RT Book Reviews, is hosting a giveaway for all the books in the Baskerville Affair Trilogy, the series by Emma Jane Holloway which focuses on the niece of Sherlock Holmes and the steampunk world she inhabits as she attempts to live up to her family’s reputation for solving mysteries. The contest ends 12/27/2013, so use the Rafflecopter interface and enter to win!

Under the Covers Book Blog is giving away a copy of Jaci Burton’s Holiday Games, the wonderful holiday novella tied to her Play-by-Play series which stars the members of the incredibly talented Riley family. Enter by Christmas to see if you can win a copy of this terrific addition to the series.

Harlequin is celebrating the holidays by offering a unique bundle of historical romances (from all time periods and settings) as a giveaway and you become eligible to win by simply leaving a comment before December 29th. With authors like Nicola Cornick, Jeannie Lin, and Susan Wiggs, historical romance readers are bound to think that Harlequin headquarters is actually at the North Pole (well, they have to read something to keep warm, right?).

The blog Hesperia Loves Books is a having a wonderful giveaway for paranormal readers who love dragon shifters, offering the three current books in Jamie Rush‘s The Hidden series, but also ARCs for the next two books in the series, and a custom dog tag. Go over today and enter as the contest closes at midnight!

You’ll have to move fast but fans of Jeaniene Frost‘s Night Huntress series have a chance to win an ARC of the final Cat & Bones novel, Up From the Grave, if they send an email to Frost no later than midnight on the 23rd (tomorrow!). Details are up on her website, so get those fingers moving to let this wonderful author know you are interested in a leg up on reading this long-awaited novel.

Tawny Weber is having a great giveaway for her holiday book, Naughty Christmas Nights, and all you have to do is go use the Rafflecopter entry form by Christmas Eve to be considered. About two rival lingerie companies and the man and woman who are fighting for their future, the heat between them begins to mean more than getting the account.

Great Deals

Available for free right now is a collection of nine short stories, each from a different author, and encompassing a variety of romance genres and heat levels. Gratis: Midwinter Tales just came out on December 19th and clearly has a holiday theme, so give yourself a totally free present and see if you can find a new author to enjoy.

Also currently free is the steamy short from Alexandra Ivy and Laura Wright, Bayou Noel, about a Louisiana woman who is tired of waiting for the man she’s loved from afar to notice her. After five years, it’s clearly not going to happen, but she couldn’t possibly anticipate what a simple letter informing him that she’s leaving would unleash. This story falls between the eighth and ninth books of this shapeshifter series and as always, it’s as hot and steamy as a Louisiana swamp, so enjoy!

Elisabeth Naughton‘s first Eternal Guardians book, Marked, is currently available for free on Amazon, so snap it up. About a woman marked to die and the 200-year-old descendent of Hercules whose job it is to bring her in order to save his people, this paranormal romance has tortured alpha males and beautiful women who have the power to bring them back from the brink, all set in a political world with its own agenda.

Jennifer Skully (aka Jasmine Haynes) has reissued her book, Sex and the Serial Killer under its new title She’s Gotta Be Mine, and it’s currently free! The first of her Cottonmouth series, fans of zany romance and eccentric characters will definitely want to take a look at this story which features a divorced woman who bounces back from her husband leaving her for his high school sweetheart by undergoing a massive makeover. Not content with simply changing her appearance, she also decides to take up with the town’s sexy bad boy who is rumored to be a serial killer. Exactly. Go get it, now!

Courtney Milan‘s first novel of her The Brothers Sinister series (really a prequel), The Governess Affair, is also free right now on Amazon, and it’s a book that’s gotten kudos from historical romance readers around the world. When a hero who started off as the son of a coal miner and rose to be the right-hand man of a duke and feared throughout the country can’t get rid of a governess, well, love is clearly in the air.

One of my favorite novellas of all time is on sale for only $.99 – Laura Kaye’s Hearts in Darkness! About two people trapped in an elevator who never got a good look at one another but who are drawn together as they talk and um…do other things…it’s truly characteristic of Kaye’s hot, sweet writing style. Similarly, her fascinating stand-alone vampire tale, Forever Freed, is also only $.99, so check them both out so Laura Kaye can make your holiday a little brighter.

Suzanne Brockmann‘s novel, The Unsung Hero, the first book in her Troubleshooters series, is on sale for $.99, a great price for 416 pages of romantic suspense with a Navy SEAL hero. Lt. Tom Paoletti spots a terrorist when at home recovering from a head injury but the powers that be dismiss it as the product of his concussion. He assembles an eclectic team of his friends and experts, including Dr. Kelly Ashton, the girl-next-door who has grown into a compelling and beautiful woman. But all of them may not be enough to take down this bad guy and Tom begins to realize that protecting Kelly might be even more important than taking down this particular tango. Can he manage both?

Lynsay Sands seems to have enough Argeneau novels that one of them is always on sale (lucky for us) and this week’s deal is Immortal Ever After about a woman captured by a psychopath who seems to have fangs and the vampire savior who claims she is his mate. Only $1.99 it’s a great deal for a full-length novel from this excellent paranormal author.

Cherry Adair‘s book Hush from her wonderful Lodestone trilogy is on sale for $1.99 and has two thrill-seeking brothers who experience a kidnapping and a woman who is kidnapped along with them. When Zak and the woman’s escape reveal a new ability for him, he needs to figure out how to use it to find his missing brother. Quite a…um…large machete he’s wielding on the cover, yes?

That’s it for this week. I’ve got a review of a terrific anthology coming up this afternoon, but I hope you have a great Christmas with lots of amazing books as your present.

Happy reading!!

Sunday Reflections: Upcoming Books, Fun Stuff and Great Deals You Might Have Missed, December 15, 2013

Upcoming Books and Recent Releases

It’s well known that I feel Stephanie Laurens’ Cynster series is one of the best Regency romance series out there, so I’m pleased to see that Avon Publishing is cleverly releasing the first three books of it (and they are AWESOME) as a e-bundle for people wanting to try it. Available as of December 17th, Cynsters: The Beginning includes Devil’s Bride, A Rake’s Vow and Scandal’s Bride and will cost only $13.59, a massive discount from the $7.99 for each book which is the standard retail price.

Angela Knight announced the prequel to her successful Magverse series, Wicked Games, will be released as of April 1, 2014. Containing not only the story that started this fantastic reinterpretation of Arthurian tales (think sexy vampires as knights and plenty of magic), it also bundles several previously released e-tales which have been revised and expanded for this anthology.

Vivian Arend’s next novel in her Thompson & Son series, Baby, Be Mine, will be published on February 25, 2014. This book combines a friends to lovers trope along with a surprise baby and amnesia when Gage Jenick takes advantage of long-time friend and hottie Katy Thompson kicking her boyfriend to the curb, even if his work is going to make him incommunicado for a couple of months. What he didn’t anticipate was that his girlfriend would have no memory of him or their incredible night together after she is involved in a car crash. While Katy wonders why Gage returns acting so territorial around her, she’s way more interested in how on earth she could be pregnant? In Arend’s hands, this is bound to be pure gold, so pre-order now!

Arend is going to win the busy bee award in February, considering that earlier in the month she also has the next installment of her Adrenaline Search & Rescue series, High Seduction coming out on February 4th. Armchair adrenaline junkies will definitely want to pre-order this puppy, a sexy chopper pilot looking for someone else to take control in the bedroom and the old flame paramedic who is more than happy to give her exactly what she needs.

Contests and Giveaways

Hustle over to Goodreads today for a chance to enter the historical romance anthology At the Duke’s Wedding, featuring stories by such powerhouse authors as Caroline Linden, Katharine Ashe, Miranda Neville and Maya Rodale. Enter by December 15th for a chance at these stories in print form for the first time!

Vampire Book Club, a blog whose reviews can always be counted on to inform, is offering a fabulous Urban Fantasy giveaway, with books by Adrian Phoenix, Jess Haines, Christina Henry and Eileen Rendahl to populate your bookshelves. Get over there before December 19th to enter for your chance to win!

With a mid-week deadline, another giveaway worth entering is for the first book of Emma Barron‘s Tropical Nights series, Exposed, which ends on December 18th. When a reporter is assigned the interview of a reclusive CEO, she thinks it’s a run-of-the-mill assignment not realizing her boss has led the company to believe that it’s a write up for a major economics journal and not the gossip magazine she works for. But both this sexy businessman and determined reporter have had their heart burned before, so as they realize that this interview is revealing their desire for one another as well as the facts, the question remains if they can get past their trepidation to find something real together.

Contemporary author Leah Braemel is participating in the Mistletoe Madness Blog Hop, offering a $10 Amazon or B&N card as a present to a lucky visitor who participated in her Rafflecopter giveaway by December 19th. For an even bigger prize (and a bit of guide through the Mistletoe Madness Blog Hop) head to P. J. Schnyder‘s blog and look at her giveaway which garners you entries via tweeting and commenting at the various participants blogs. In addition to Braemel and Schnyder (two excellent authors) they’re joined by such wonderful authors as Laura Kaye (of Hard As It Gets fame), Christine d’Abo, Christi Barth, Cat Johnson, and Dana Marie Bell among others. Enter before December 20th to see if Santa is going to give you something electronic under your tree via a $200 gift card to Best Buy if you manage to win this one!

Speaking of the Cynster saga (see the Upcoming Books and New Releases entry above), Goodreads is having a giveaway of one of the spin-off books from that Regency saga, Where the Heart Leads, the first in The Casebook of Barnaby Adair series. Currently the only entry in that series, Laurens recently announced she’ll be adding several books to it and I’m elated, as Barnaby, the aristocrat with a penchant for investigation via London’s burgeoning police force is a favorite of mine! This book is the one where he falls for the cerebral yet beautiful Lady Penelope Ashford, and it’s a doozy with some of my favorite characters making appearances. Enter before December 20th for your chance to win!

New York Times Best-Selling author Donna Grant is having a Twelve Days of Christmas giveaway on her Facebook page where she is posting lovely daily prizes for commenters (like $50 bookseller gift cards!), so head over there and start contributing! I imagine they’ll just keep getting better and better the closer to Christmas we get. 🙂

It’s tough not to giggle at some of Harlequin’s titles and the Intrigue novels are usually the most chuckle-worthy. That does not stop this imprint from periodically hitting a home run, and I have to confess to putting Secret Agent Secretary , the second book in Melissa Cutler‘s ICE: Black Ops Defenders series, on my to-read list. When a desk jockey is catapulted into the arms of a handsome agent, they need to work together to foil a nefarious plan. Luckily for all of us, it’s also being offered in a Goodreads giveaway for people who enter prior to the end of December.

The erotic romance author group collectively known as the Smutketeers (R. G. Alexander, Eden Bradley, Rachel Grace, Eve Berlin and Robin L. Rotham) on their blog of the same name have begun their Twelve Days of Christmas giveaway with not only daily prizes and fabulous highlights of recent books you’ll want under your tree, but a cumulative prize of a $300 gift card for a dedicated reader who posts a comment on each day of the celebration. That’s a lot of books….

Fun Stuff

‘Tis the season for finding gifts for all the readers in your family, and game enthusiasts might want to take a gander at all the book-related board games out there geared toward readers. Flavorwire has a terrific list of 10 board games for book nerds (why are we always nerds?) including ones based on Pride & Prejudice and Beowulf, or you can get a classic like Bookopoly, geared toward middle school kids but great for readers of all ages.

I usually don’t post stuff about YA romance (probably because I think about it all the time in my day job as a young adult librarian) but I had to share the wonderful post by author Diana Peterfreund on the RITA awards and their perhaps misguided treatment of YA romance. Peterfreund has numerous successful books under the belt, many of which should be award-winners in multiple categories, but this thoughtful analysis of the Romance Writers’ Association and YA is worth a read and re-read.

Great Deals

The full-length erotic novel (gracious, that sounds dirty!) Sexual Persuasion by Maryn Sinclair is currently free on Amazon. When a woman is rescued from an uncomfortable encounter with an ex, she can’t deny the heat between her handsome rescuer and herself. But when that gorgeous man is revealed to be an attorney with one client (the local mob head), and she hears the rumors that this same man who is clearly interested in getting her in bed also was the lover of his male mob boss, she’s confused. Will his past come between them or can she be persuaded?

Erotic historical author Kate Pearce currently has the prequel to her Sinners Club series also available for free, The First Sinners. The series features men who belong to a private gentlemen’s club filled with men who have either sketchy pasts or specific predilictions – and the need to keep both quiet. In this novella, an Earl investigating possible treason deploys all his wiles at a house party in the hope of uncovering valuable evidence. What he is surprised to uncover is one innocent young miss determined to find a man who can teach her carnal pleasure (and his lordship knows exactly who can fulfill that role).

Following in today’s erotic historical romance bargains trend is Samantha Kane‘s Regency menage novel, The Courage to Love, the first of her Brothers in Arms series which is also available for free on Amazon as of right now. A dress shop owner is still recovering from a vicious rape but feels safe when surrounded by two men who served with her late husband on the Peninsula – two men she’s been in love with for quite some time. Shocked they feel the same toward her (and have a relationship with one another), her past nevertheless intrudes on them moving forward.

The holidays always come with bargains if you know where to look, and the A Naughty Little Christmas (Cowboys, Cops and Kilts) Bundle, featuring a smorgasbord of authors across genres (cowboy, romantic suspense, small town contemporary, paranormal, Highlander, etc.) is the ultimate bargain at $.99 for eight novellas. With authors like Paige Tyler, Ann Bruce and Dawn Halliday in this grouping, I’ve already got it sitting in my Kindle app to warm my holiday nights!

If you haven’t had a chance to run and buy The Theory of Attraction by erotic romance author Delphine Dryden, go run to Amazon and grab it while it’s free. With a slightly autistic scientist who happens to be a serious Dom (and definitely high on the hottie) scale and the next door neighbor who decides to help him get a promotion by being his girlfriend who can read departmental situations, this sexy nerd romance is simultaneously erotic and sweet. It would be worth paying full price for, but free? You don’t need a genius IQ to figure out that’s a bargain.

Sunday Reflections: Upcoming Books, Fun Stuff and Great Deals You Might Have Missed, December 7, 2013

Upcoming Books and Recent Releases

Tracey Devlyn, whose Nexus series combines amazing historical romance AND romantic suspense, debuted the cover of the fourth book in that series, entitled Latymer. Not available until early January 2014 and worse, not available yet for pre-order (!), this volume represents Devlyn’s personal journey to continue to her series without her previous publisher of Sourcebooks, and I’m damn glad she decided to continue it (and it looks like Avon picked up the series for its digital line – woohoo!). The snippet she included in her newsletter (check out her website to subscribe to it) shows us our hero is a lord with a son he loves determined to ferret out a spy, something he should be quite good at considering his previous work for the Foreign Office. At the mercy of both French and British authorities who want him dead, I have a feeling that Nexus is going to have to help Lord Latymer and his son, and I’m guessing it might be a female spy (perhaps one he knew before?) who is going to lend a hand. Cannot wait!

Jill Shalvis is beloved by contemporary romance fans everywhere, particularly for her Lucky Harbor series. Those readers will be pleased to note that she’s just announced the 9th full-length novel, Once in a Lifetime, will be published on February 11, 2014 (oh, ho! Just in time for Valentine’s Day) and will star the tortured soldier Ben McDaniel and the “trouble with a capital T” Aubrey Wellington who is trying to set her life on the right path with Ben the perfect person to help. Okay “helping” him might involve a bit more with such a hot, brooding guy but making amends involves getting a little dirty, doesn’t it? Pre-order it for a great price ($5.40 right now for the paperback edition!) right now.

Tawny Weber just released her Christmas novel, Naughty Christmas Nights, this past week, which brings together two excellent things – Christmas and lingerie. When two people attempt to land the sexy underwear account for a major department store, rivalry is a natural outcome. But Hailey’s Merry Widow lingerie line is all about playfulness and sensuality while Gage Milano wants out of his family’s business so he needs to prove it’s all about sex, period. Is the heat between them simply lingerie induced, or is their more this holiday season? Things are certainly heating up…

Also released this week is the novella in Katherine Ashe‘s The Prince Catchers series, Kisses She Wrote, about a scandalous earl who discovers that a wallflower’s diaries are filled with the fantasies of him kissing her, and he’s damn intrigued. This holiday season might be filled with wishes granted if they both can surrender to the potential between them. At only $.99, this novella belongs in everyone’s present pile!

Contests and Giveaways

Adrianne James‘ The Enlightening (Book #2 in the Mackenzie Duncan series) is part of a package available for you to win via your Goodreads account. The Tempering (Book #1) is actually also included in paperback edition as well as some lovely Adrianne James swag to celebrate the series. Featuring a Harvard freshman, Mackenzie Duncan, who is attacked by a wolf and changed against her will, this series deals with the aftermath of her change, with book 1 showing the sinister underbelly of the pack who welcomes her with open arms and book 2 illustrating that life on the run with two werewolves who both want to win your heart can be more complicated than it sounds. Enter before December 9th for your chance to read this series for free!

S. E. Gilchrist, the science fiction romance author of Dark Warriors fame, is offering a giveaway in honor of the 1st anniversary of her first publication, including such prizes as gift cards and books from her backlist, so go check it out and join in the celebration and enter before the 23rd of December to see if you could have a little something extra in your Christmas stocking. Congratulations, S. E. Gilchrist!

Category romance fans who like their millionaires of Russian extraction and their princes remote bastards waiting to be melted by the right woman will want to be sure to enter the giveaway for Kate Hewitt‘s The Prince She Never Knew, a Harlequin Presents about an arranged marriage that could become something much more, bundled with Kholodov’s Last Mistress, about a scarred wealthy Russian completely ensnared by an innocent American tourist, so much so that he tries to push her away only to realize that he needs to get her out of his system. Submit your entry before December 11th to win.

For readers who love their small-town romances near the ocean, you’ve probably already read and loved Rachel Herron‘s Cypress Hollow Yarn novels, but in case you haven’t gotten to the fourth book of the series, Cora’s Heart, or you’ve been wanting to dip a toe into this series, it’s available via a Goodreads giveaway if you enter before December 13th. With the heroine a farmer who has lost her mother and husband to the point where she tries to plan everything in her life, a hero – her late husband’s cousin and the man she loved before – is bound to mess up her agenda, particularly when he has a plan of his own.

It’s hockey season and people know how much I love Jaci Burton’s Play-by-Play series, so I’m naturally looking forward to the February release of her next novel, Melting the Ice. About a fashion designer whose brother suggests she use her college flame, now a hot NHL player, to showcase her latest creations, I’m going to enjoy seeing this successful player prove to his former girlfriend that he’s changed for the better. The best news? I might be able to win a copy early (and so could you) by entering the Goodreads giveaway before December 13th.

Another upcoming book you could win an early copy of is the eighth book in Shayla Black’s Wicked Lovers series, Theirs to Cherish, which isn’t due to be published until March 4, 2014. This BDSM romance has an element of romantic suspense threaded through its sensual tale as the heroine is an heiress who has been on the run for years, finding Club Dominion the perfect hideout. She’s fallen in love with the club’s Master but when her plan to make him jealous with a Dom who wants her submission backfires and she finds herself falling for two men, she ends up endangering her heart along with her life when a killer comes calling. Enter before December 13th to win!

Ranae Rose just published the fourth book in her Inked in the Steel City series, Abiding Ink, but fans of tattooed heroes and heroines can win a copy if they enter the giveaway before December 15th. Perfect for the holiday season, this story centers on a tattoo artist who volunteers in a hospital ward and the hot nurse who doesn’t want to fall for him, but can’t help herself, even when it makes her want to run away. Gimme!

Fun Stuff

Take a look at the great video clip from Popular Romance Project featuring an interview with Princeton postdoctoral fellow, An Goris, a wonderful Dutch woman who went from failing English as a 15 year old to writing analyses about romance fiction, a turnaround she largely credits to her love of Nora Roberts, at the time more available in English than in Dutch. Guess who is her featured author of her dissertation?

Did you know that category romance doyenne Caitlin Crews has been releasing a new Presents novel, His Wife by Christmas, chapter by chapter on Harlequin’s website…for free? That’s quite a Christmas present – use your Send to Kindle app (which can be installed in your browser’s bookmarks) to get it on your e-reader if you prefer reading on that screen.

Great Deals

Best-selling author Cynthia Eden has the first book in her Purgatory series, The Wolf Within, currently on sale for $.99 (and free for Prime members who want to have it as their loaned book for this month). FBI Agent Duncan McGuire is committed to defending the world from monsters as part of the Bureau’s Para Unit, but when he survives a werewolf’s attack only to begin to change into a monster himself, he’s more than horrified. He fights tooth and nail not to have Dr. Holly Young be the one assigned to care for him – the attraction between them is fierce and his feeling has only intensified with his body’s changes, and she’s the last person he wants to hurt. Except that Holly has been hiding her own differences, but their situation is about to get even more complicated as the monsters circle around them, and it’s unclear if their new feelings for one another can survive the onslaught.

Mary Jo Putney‘s Lost Lords series is hugely popular, so historical romance readers who would love one of her book in ebook form or who simply want to sample her writing should run and grab Loving a Lost Lord, currently only $1.99 on Amazon. This novel, the first in her series, has everything a historical romance reader could want – a duke, amnesia, a fake marriage, and two very sexy protagonists – so grab it now!

Since readers of Mary Jo Putney are often also fans of Sabrina Jeffries, cross-over readers will want to check out What the Duke Desires, the first in her new series, The Duke’s Men, currently down to $1.99 on Amazon. With the overarching theme of a disinherited younger son of a viscount who opens an investigative agency with his illegitimate half-sister Lisette, the first book focuses on a duke who receives word that his older brother, presumed dead after a kidnapping, might still be alive, and traveling with Lisette posing as his wife reveals much more than information about his long-lost sibling.

It must be the season for discounted historical romance, as Lorraine Heath‘s final installment in her Lost Lords of Pembrook trilogy, Lord of Wicked Intentions, is also on sale for $1.99. A lord who has been on the run since he was young escaping a nefarious uncle determined to rob him of his birthright and a young, innocent woman who is the illegitimate daughter of an earl is a recipe for a satisfying romance, particularly when the lord in question makes her his mistress and she’s determined to have all of his love.

In time for the holiday season is the paranormal deal of Selena Blake‘s novella, Fangs, Fur and Mistletoe, currently free on Amazon. The first in her highly rated Mystic Isle series, set on an island which is a playground for paranormal creatures wanting to relax. When a vampire meets up with the hunky werewolf who was her enemy a century ago, her sexual drought is just about to end, especially when the werewolf in question realizes he has a chance with the blue-eyed temptress he hasn’t been able to forget over the decades. It’s free, people!

Laura Griffin‘s suspense novel, Twisted, the fifth book in her Tracers series, is also only $1.99 right now and fans of romance fiction featuring police and FBI protagonists need to hustle over and grab it. A lovely rookie police officer in a small Texas town worries that the case that seems like it’s tied with a bow isn’t all that it seems, an instinct confirms when a handsome FBI profiler appears with new information. But just when it seems they are in hands distance of catching a killer, the hunters may become the hunted.

Have a great week and happy reading!! 🙂

Gina Gordon’s Recipe for Attraction Is Delicious – With Author Interview!

Recipe for Attraction (Madewood Brothers #2 – Carson and Neil) by Gina Gordon (Entangled Brazen, November 25, 2013)

I love Entangled Brazen’s books (as you know) and today I’m promoting two of them in particular, Gina Gordon‘s Recipe for Attraction (the second book in her Madewood Brothers series) and the next in Tessa Bailey’s amazing Line of Duty series (do you remember how much I love this one?), Asking for Trouble.

Gina Gordon was a completely new author for me, so I actually went out and bought the first book in the series, Recipe for Satisfaction and then tackled the ARC of Recipe for Attraction I received from Entangled.

The Madewood Brothers series has a fresh premise in the world of contemporary romance. Four foster brothers are bound together by the woman who adopted them out of heinous conditions – the millionaire philanthropist and widow Vivian Madewood. Having recently passed away, the four adult men are still reeling from her loss but are staying busy with the many restaurant businesses that have become their livelihood. Vivian made their heart of their home the kitchen and the boys grew into men who felt that the culinary arts offered them the challenges and opportunities they wanted, not just in business in helping other disadvantaged children find a profession through their charity which goes into schools to prepare them to work in a kitchen.

Having been adopted as older children, these men – Jack, Neil, Finn and Cole – still have quite an edge. Tattoos and motorcycles abound, but they are extremely caring, committed workholics clearly just waiting for the right woman to come along. In the first book, Recipe for Satisfaction, readers have the joy of watching the reformed playboy Jack Vaughn fall for professional organizer Sterling Andrews and it’s nothing short of delicious! Now in Recipe for Attraction, it’s pushy, driven oldest brother Neil’s turn.

Recipe for Satisfaction (Madewood Brothers #1 – Jack and Sterling) by Gina Gordon (Entangled Brazen, December 31, 2012)

Neil Harrison been incredibly busy over the last year working to get the family’s biggest project off the ground – a deluxe restaurant and farm which will showcase the Madewood farm to table philosophy. That he’s had to deal with the infuriating, but talented architect Carson Kelly has been an extra thorn in his side, but he can’t argue with her results – their vision has come to life.

Despite immersing himself in work, Neil has been battling his demons since his mother’s death, with the only thing that seems to erase the anger he feels over his loss being the rush of illegal street racing on his motorcycle. He’s shocked when a mysterious new rider shows up to his latest race and by her world-class ass he knows that it’s none other than Carson. His secret is out, but Carson has her own boatload of baggage, including way too much insider knowledge about street racing. When she offers to help him battle his desire for speed with working out his frustration between the sheets with her, it seems like a perfect solution, except both of them discover way more than they bargain for, in one another.

While all the brothers have the emotional baggage of their past, Neil is carrying one of the heavier loads as he was the oldest when he came to Vivian, old enough to remember his abusive father and slow to trust the woman who became his mother. Like in the first book of the series, the heroine is dealing with her own family situation as Carson has a demanding father as head of the family architecture firm who not only is never satisfied, but who actively distrusts her judgement and defers regularly to the other major architect, a total asshole who wants to marry Carson. I appreciated (even if no one else did in the novel) that the project was literally in the last couple days of tying everything up, so Carson and Neil’s affair didn’t feel like it crossed any professional line for me. The villain is sooo awful that you are thrilled to see him get his comeuppance (although I felt like police prosecution would have been a good idea). The heat between Carson and Neil is outstanding and most important was watching the evolution of Neil’s character as he realizes what a total jackass he’s been to the people he loves most in his life as he changes for the better.

I did have a couple questions for Gina Gordon, which she was kind enough to answer. Take a look!

It’s terrific to see the romance fiction trope of a band of foster brothers who do NOT automatically open a security firm! What gave you the idea to have them be talented chefs? Did you use any actual celebrity chefs as inspiration?

LOL! The idea for the Madewood Brothers came from a real life hot chef sighting. A friend of mine was at a food event and one of the catering companies was owned by two hot, tatted-up chefs. When she told me about them my imagination immediately ran wild. Although the Madewood brothers weren’t inspired by any celebrity chefs, I’d have to say my favorite male celebrity chef is Chuck Hughes. If you like tats, you MUST google him.

There are some pretty awesome sexy times in this series (motorcycles as foreplay will appeal to plenty of readers, I’m sure). What do you think is the most important element when writing a good sex scene?

I think the most important element when writing a sex scene is the emotion. It’s great to have the dirty talk and the rubbing body parts but if there isn’t any substance behind it, I don’t think the scene has the same effect.

In your author bio, you tout yourself as a “cupcake connoisseuse” (which is awesome, and not just because you use the proper French). What would be your perfect cupcake?

My perfect cupcake is Red Velvet. Well, to be honest, anything with cream cheese icing on it would be my number one pick.

Thanks for having me, Tori!

And thank you readers for visiting!! Make sure you enter my blog tour grand prize — a Rafflecopter giveaway for a $50 Amazon gift card. 

I for one am pleased there are two more brothers to see get their HEA (and what is going on with Cole and the Madewood’s employee Penn?). This is a hot, emotional series with a unique twist which has carved a special niche for itself in the world of contemporary romance. Don’t forget to follow Recipe for Attraction‘s terrific blog tour for more great information and giveaways!

Sunday Reflections: Upcoming Books, Fun Stuff and Great Deals You Might Have Missed, Week of November 17, 2013

Upcoming Books and New Releases

Pamela Clare‘s latest edition to her romantic suspense/military romance I-Team series, Striking Distance, came out on November 5th and early sales show readers are snatching it up. Fans of Maya Banks and M. L. Buchman might find themselves enjoying this series which combines major romantic angst with sensual characters and adrenaline-inducing suspense. The Kindle edition is also only $4.79 right now, so this could be a good time to try Clare if you haven’t already.

Fans of Carrie Ann Ryan‘s erotic paranormal Dante’s Circle Series get more for their money with her latest installment in the anthology Ever After, published on November 9th. With the novella “His Choice” listed as #3.5 in the Dante’s Circle collection, Ryan leads off this grouping of paranormal novellas, all of which tie into other successful series by authors Marie Harte, Rebecca Royce, Lia Davis and Leia Shaw. As always, quality anthologies are a great way to see if there are other authors and series that might interest you, particularly when the book sticks within the same genre.

Historical readers who enjoy Elizabeth Boyle‘s Rhymes With Love series, need to pre-order the next book in that series, If Wishes Were Earls, since it’s not only ready to order for a December 31st delivery, but the paperback version is currently discounted to $3.77. Harriet Hathaway has always wanted the Earl of Roxley and is convinced he will propose to her after they share a passionate interlude. But all signs point to him as ready to propose to another which might break Harriet’s heart if she didn’t see the emotion in his eyes every time he looks at her.

Contests and Giveaways

I’m always a little leery of romances involving Native American elements as you know, but I’d be willing to give Genevieve Graham‘s Somewhere to Dream (the third in her McDonnells series) a try, particularly since all her books are so well rated. Luckily for me, I might actually win a copy, since this novel about a young woman adopted as a child by the Cherokee and a captured man who hates Indians looks very interesting. Enter on the book’s Goodreads giveaway page before November 20th to see if you can win a copy.

The wonderful blog Hesperia Loves Books (you’ll remember her outstanding Breast Cancer fundraiser I featured in October) is promoting several authors with yummy boxed sets with a “Hoppin’ the Boxes” terrific giveaway. Enter the contest before November 19th and you could win not just eight boxed sets but also a gift card to your favorite ebook retailer!

Paranormal romance readers love Lara Adrian‘s Midnight Breed series (and who can blame them) but do you think they know that Adrian has a terrific companion guide to the series out? The Midnight Breed Series Companion came out this summer to good reviews, but it’s now also available via a Goodreads giveaway, so head over there before November 20th to enter and see if you can win a copy. Don’t want to wait? The book’s Kindle version is only $3.99.

I loved Zoe Archer‘s first book in her Nemesis, Unlimited series, and am therefore waiting with baited breath for the next book, Dangerous Seduction, about this group of undercover agents determined to right society’s wrongs. Luckily for me, this book featuring an aristocratic agent and the working class woman fighting for the rights of copper miners is going to be out in a mere eight days. Interested readers might want to head over and also enter the Goodreads giveaway before the deadline (and publication date) of November 26th.

Fun Stuff

I’m not really sure why, but the U.S. Postal Service is issuing awesome Harry Potter stamps featuring stills from the original movie. You can order them now (and I will) because who wouldn’t love a frenetic Hermione raising her hand on their holiday card? Seriously, who?

The 21st Annual Award for Bad Sex in Literature (billed as “Britain’s Most Dreaded Prize”) will take place on December 3rd and you have got to read some of these entries! Sponsored by Literary Review magazine, these tireless men and women comb otherwise good books for really awful descriptions of sex. While I’m sure plenty of literary authors and editors disparage romance, the fact remains that writing good sex isn’t easy, even for otherwise great writers – it’s a skill that not everyone has. Please note a commonality is always that the writers who make the final cut are usually 1) men and 2) don’t seem to understand that 20 minutes of clitoral stimulation is the average for a woman to achieve orgasm. Just sayin’.

Prologue Tea Company is a line of teas based on classic literature, just perfect for your favorite book lover, English teacher or librarian. Delicious combinations along with a retro package design make this an easy and popular gift for the holidays. With the opening lines of the novel featured on the back of the canister, this could make waiting for your water to boil go a lot faster. Designed by graphic artist Flora Chan there is still no word on where to buy this beautiful product, so I’m hoping this isn’t just an intellectual exercise but an actual potential present.

Great Deals

Jennifer McQuiston (love that name) is known for her historical romances with more than a little romantic comedy in them, so fans or curious readers will be pleased to know that her book, What Happens in Scotland, is on sale for $.99 right now on Amazon. Billed by many reviewers as an 1842 version of The Hangover, the book is praised for its lighthearted banter between a beautiful widow and the second son of an Earl who wake up in small Scottish village in the same bed – and the heroine is wearing a wedding ring.

Lara Adrian’s Heart of the Hunter, previously published under her other pseudonum of Tina St. John, is now out in ebook and available for only $.99. Considering that this book is the first in her Dragon Chalice trilogy, it’s a nice way to ease into this series filled with knights and dark magic. Paranormal and/or historical romance readers may want to consider trying this collection by sampling this first book.

Paranormal suspense writer Maggie Shayne‘s short Dream of Danger is currently free on Amazon, which gives readers an opportunity to see in person the tensions between blind self-help writer Rachel De Luca and Detective Mason Brown, both brought together in Shayne’s first suspense novel, Sleep with the Lights On, when Rachel undergoes a cornea transplant and begins to see visions. When Rachel distrusts her assistant’s new boyfriend, her instincts go on high alert when the woman doesn’t show up to Thanksgiving dinner, and Rachel is forced to turn to the man who harbors secrets keeping them apart, Mason Brown. With the first book only $.99, this short free, and the second full-length novel, Wake to Darkness, due out on November 26th (and available as a giveaway on a Goodreads contest), you could be enjoying these books for a pittance while your turkey roasts in the oven.

Regency fans ready to take out their Christmas decorations will enjoy the deal they can get on the anthology, A Grosvenor Square Christmas, featuring short stories from historical romance powerhouses like Shana Galen, Anna Campbell, Vanessa Kelly and Kate Nobel. And the best part? It’s available for free right now. Happy Christmas, indeed!

We just celebrated Veteran’s Day this past week, so what better way to consider the sacrifice and work of our nation’s heroes than reading military romance? Considering that there is a fantastic new box collection, Uniform Desires, with 625 pages of stories from authors like Sharon Hamilton, Melissa Schroeder, Elle James, Delilah Devlin, J. M. Madden, and Cat Johnson for only $.99 it’s practically unpatriotic not to buy it.

Happy Reading this week!