Tuesday 8 December 2015

New Release Spotlight: Persuasion by Violetta Rand


Don't Miss the first in a Brand New MC Romance Series!


PERSUASION
Sons of Odin MC #1
Violetta Rand
Releasing December 8th, 2015
Loveswept



If you love the motorcycle romances of Joanna Wylde and Julie Ann Walker, don’t miss Violetta Rand’s irresistible novel about a sexy-as-sin biker who tempts a good girl to go bad.

Lang Anderson may be the new leader of the Sons of Odin motorcycle club, but his personal life is in shreds. He’s struggling to take care of his three young sisters in the wake of tragedy, while rumors of drug dealing within his ranks jeopardize everything he’s built.
The last thing he needs is another distraction—like a bar brawl over a woman—but Lang is a sucker for a damsel in distress. And this one gets him roaring like a finely tuned engine.

High school guidance counselor Lily Gallo is no fender bunny. So why can’t she get Lang off her mind? Lily’s head says the rugged, rough-and-tumble biker who came to her aid is bad news. Her
body begs to differ. But when Lang’s troubled kid sister walks into her office, Lily’s determined to help, even if it puts her in the crossfire of a gang war.
On a crash course with danger and desire, Lily partners up with Lang to fight for his family—and for love.




Unlike his Brothers who preferred the classic Softails or full dressers, Lang rode the sinister Night Rod Special. He chose bikes like he did women—favoring off-the-line explosive handling. Just as he mounted his bike, two news vans screeched into the parking lot, effectively blocking his exit route.
Sandy Fuentes, an investigative reporter the club was well acquainted with, jumped out of the first vehicle, straightened her ass-hugging miniskirt, and snatched a microphone from her cameraman. She scooted across the asphalt, nearly slipping on the gravel in her heels as she stopped in front of him.
Lang Anderson,” she said, throwing him her best fuck-me pout. “Corpus Christi wants to know . . .” Her tagline. “With your president on a fast track for lethal injection, what’s next for the Sons of Odin?”
She was easy on the eyes, and Lang couldn’t blame her for trying to get an exclusive. Depending on her mood, which shifted with the wind and on whether he’d fucked her right the night before, she might provide her fans with an accurate report. Regardless, he liked her aggressive personality and the way she rode him like a racehorse.
Lang crossed his arms over his chest, leaning against his bike. “Nice to see you too, Sandy.”
She grimaced, always affected by the way he spoke her name. It disarmed her every time. “No sweet-talking your way out of this one, Lang.”
He grinned. “You mean the way you sweet-talked your way into my bed last night?”
His Brothers catcalled and laughed.
Sandy’s face flushed and she spun around, signaling her crewman to kill the camera. “What the hell, Lang? Thought we agreed to keep our association a secret.”
A secret? Her bright yellow Corvette parked overnight in the club lot spoke for itself. He didn’t fuck and tell, she did. “Turn your camera on, Sandy, I’ll give you a statement.”
Really?” Her hand slipped to her hip. “Why?”
Lang edged closer, leaned in so only she could hear him. “Because you give the best blowjobs.”
The slap stung his face, but he didn’t care. A little pain reminded him of the kind of life he chose to live. “Clubhouse, eleven tonight.”
She inhaled, her pretty face a mixture of emotions. Lang didn’t trust her at all. But she warmed his bed, and he never had to ask twice. Gaze sweeping her hourglass figure a last time, he turned to go.
Wait,” she said.
Lang didn’t bother looking at her.
I’m getting tired of our arrangement. I want more.”
So did Lang. More for himself, but most of all, more for Maya, Leigh, and Trisha, his little sisters. The only ones who inspired him to hold back, to contemplate his future, to keep from diving headfirst into a life of violence that could easily swallow you whole. And as for women—he’d never found one worthy of commitment. And if he did, she wouldn’t deserve the life of being a biker’s old lady. Property.
There’s nothing more to give, Sandy.” He turned, then pounded his chest with his fist. “My family and Brothers are the only things I care about.”
Is that a quote?” she asked, doing a shitty job of masking her hurt feelings.
Don’t take it personally,” he advised. “Take it for what it is.”
People considered him many things, all the clichés: dark and dangerous, violent and crude, barbaric even. But never a liar. And with women, he told it like it was. Mutual pleasure, nothing more. And if he really liked someone, she could stay the night in his bed. But when the sun came up, don’t let the door hit you . . . Better not to tie himself down, living the life he did.
He felt the weight of her stare on his back as he climbed on his bike. The Harley roared to life underneath him, louder than a small aircraft. That thunder between his legs always made him smile. He raised his hand, gesturing for his Brothers to follow in formation, arranged by rank. He merged with traffic on North Shoreline Boulevard, wondering what the future held for the Sons of Odin.



An environmental scientist by day, Violetta Rand has been in love with writing since childhood. Struck with an entrepreneurial spirit at a young age, she wrote short stories illustrated by her best friend and sold them in her neighborhood. Rand enjoys outdoor activities, music, reading, and losing herself in the world she brings to life in the pages of her stories. The only thing she loves more than writing is her wonderful relationship with her husband.







Spotlights: Silent Scars by Ada Frost & The Girl's Got Secrets by Linda Kage.


HUGE GIVEAWAY! TONS OF CHANCES TO WIN!


SILENT SCARS
The Surviving Series #4
Ada Frost
Releasing Nov 28th, 2015
Self-Published



Her Man.

Their Hero.

His Pain.

What happens when you pray for death and you’re ignored?

You have to live.

You have to survive.

But what if the last thing you want is to take your next breath?

To the world, Ryan is a hero, an ex-marine, brother, son and protector. He has devoted his life to keeping others safe. He will do anything and everything to ensure his loved ones are protected, even if that means destroying his very own soul. After an explosion on the battlefield ends his career in the Marine’s, Ryan is sent home with an honorable discharge. But the war hasn’t ended for him.

He is home, he is free and he’s breathing, but he’s dead inside.

He wants nothing more than peace, but the nightmares in his mind will not grant him that. They taunt him, tease him and torture his waking moments. The darkness within him is slowly consuming him, blackness has seeped into his veins and is rotting his core. Ryan is a man on the edge of destruction. For once he is the one in need of saving. He needs a saviour.

He needs her.

Ryan is commissioned as a bodyguard to Aloura Cavendish. When he initially meets her, he believes her to be a spoiled rich brat, wasting his time. But the fire inside her astounds him. When he pushes, he never expects her to push back. When he runs, she chases. For the first time in his life, Ryan has a protector willing to fight his demons. The only problem – he is too afraid to release them.



 Amazon






Hi! What to say about myself...I don't really have anything interesting to offer other than I love to read, and create stories for others to enjoy. I've always been told I have a vivid imagination, I just lacked the confidence to pursue putting it onto the the written page. But finally I embarked on making a single dream come true.

I love to read, and write. I only read romance, any genre really, but it has to have a beautiful romance. I also demand a HEA, even if it takes two or three books to get there. Reality is too broken and jaded without having to live through the trauma and angst in a book for it to end unhappily.





THE GIRL'S GOT SECRETS
Forbidden Men #7
Linda Kage
Releasing Nov 28th, 2015
Self-Published



Here’s the same old “girl posing as a boy” story but with a rock-n-roll twist.

Remy Curran dreams of one day being in a band, except the group she wants to join refuses to hire a girl drummer. So, she auditions as a guy...and makes the cut.

Becoming “Sticks,” a member of Non-Castrato, isn’t quite what she dreamed it would be, though. She spends most of her time keeping up the subterfuge and learning how to walk, talk, act, and
drink like a man.

But what’s even harder to deal with is acting oblivious when the band’s heartthrob lead singer, Asher Hart, treats her like one of the guys and not a woman. She never imagined he’d be so much more than a pretty face with a nice voice. But he’s better than perfect. He’s perfect for her.

When love and lies combine, Remy must keep up the act or lose everything. But who knew lying to reach one dream could prevent you from attaining an even bigger dream?


Remy and I bent at the same time to turn on the karaoke machine.
Sorry,” we murmured together when we nearly bumped foreheads. Then we shifted an inch apart but still both going in to get the machine up and running.
Holy shit,” she murmured under her breath, turning toward me slightly. “You smell really good.”
I didn’t want it to, but my body reacted, remembering every touch, lick, and kiss she’d ever given me. I glanced at her face, and her eyes flared as if she was in trouble for saying such a thing.
Sorry.” She lifted both hands in some kind of surrender. “It’s just...it’s new. You’ve never smelled like that before.”
Lust stirred through me. I tried to bite it back, tried to cling to the fact I was mad at her, but a need unlike any I’d ever experienced with any other person roared through my blood.
I had to shake my head and blink myself back to the present, remind myself where I really was and what I was doing. And that was most definitely not Remy Curran.
It’s, uh...Eva gave it to me as the best man gift. I figured I should wear it today.”
She nodded, agreeing. “Well, it’s amazing. I think I just got pregnant.”

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Linda grew up on a dairy farm in the Midwest as the youngest of eight children. Now she lives in Kansas with her husband, daughter, and nine cuckoo clocks. Her life's been blessed with lots of people to learn from and love.
Writing's always been a major part of her world, and she is so happy to finally share some of her stories with other romance lovers.





Review: Do You Believe In Santa by Sierra Donovan


Enter to Win a Print Copy of  DO YOU BELIEVE IN SANTA?


DO YOU BELIEVE IN SANTA
Evergreen Lane #1
Sierra Donovan
Released Sept 29th, 2015
Kensington: Zebra



Miracles don’t just happen on 34th Street. They can happen right in your living room—if you’re willing to believe…

What grown woman claims to have seen Santa Claus? Mandy Reese, for one—on a very special Christmas Eve when she was eight years old. These days, Mandy works at a year-round Christmas store in Tall Pine, California, where customers love to hear about her childhood encounter with Saint Nick. But when Jake Wyndham arrives in town—charming, gorgeous, extremely practical—Mandy faces a dilemma. Deny what she saw, or let Jake think she’s sugarplum crazy?

Jake scouts hotel locations all over the country, but he’s never met anyone quite like Mandy before. Her warmth and sparkle are irresistible, but…meeting Santa? Really? Jake’s no Scrooge but he’s definitely skeptical. Then again, there are all kinds of things Jake never experienced until he came to Tall Pine. Like autumn snow. Mind blowing kisses. And the magic of falling head-over-heels, madly in love…



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 “Then he laid a finger aside his nose . . .” Mandy told the wide-eyed four-year-old boy.
From her crouched position, she glanced past the brown-haired boy’s shoulder for just a moment. His mother, standing behind him in the little shop, was smiling with a touch of the Christmas glimmer in her eyes, even though it was the middle of August.
. . . and, whoosh! He went right up the chimney.”
Did he drop anything?” About half of the children asked her that.
Nope. He was very careful.”
Did he bring you what you wanted for Christmas?”
A lot of them asked her that, too.
There were a lot of presents under the tree,” Mandy said carefully, glancing past the boy at his mother again. “But after he left, I couldn’t even remember what I wanted that year. You know why?”
Why?”
Because seeing Santa was the best Christmas present I ever got.”
Mandy straightened, smiling at them both. She didn’t often have the chance to tell the story in the heart of summer; this visit was a treat. One of the nearby store owners must have sent them over.
Did you ever see—?”
Robbie.” The little boy’s mother patted his shoulder. “We’ve taken up enough of this lady’s time.” She met Mandy’s eyes. “Thank you. We’ll take these.”
The woman handed Mandy a pair of peppermint-striped salt and pepper shakers, and Mandy took them behind the counter to the cash register. “I love these. I have a set at home.”
As Mandy wrapped the shakers in tissue paper, Robbie’s mother fished in her purse for her wallet, still glancing over the necklaces, key chains and other Christmas knickknacks displayed on the countertop. “It must be hard not to take the whole store home with you.”
Oh, I think I already have.” Mandy grinned as she rang up the sale.
The North Pole was the kind of store that wouldn’t stand much of a chance outside of a mountain town: ninety percent Christmas merchandise. But when visitors to Tall Pine wandered the shops on Evergreen Lane, most of them stepped inside for a quick look, and many left with a knickknack or two. Mandy thought it might be something about the mountain air and the scent of pine that helped people catch the Christmas spirit, even in the off-season.
As Mandy handed the customer her bag, Robbie said, “Hey, that’s you! Are you famous?” He was pointing at the two framed newspaper clippings on the south wall. One was the original story the paper had run the year Mandy told the television reporter about Santa Claus. The other was from six years back: SANTA SIGHTER GOES TO WORK AT CHRISTMAS STORE. The photo showed an eighteen-year-old Mandy standing in nearly the same spot she was right now, smiling behind the counter. She didn’t know if anyone else could see the slight discomfort beneath the smile.
No, I’m not famous,” she said, feeling a trace of a blush warm her cheeks. “They just wrote a couple of stories about me. Because not everyone gets to see Santa.”
The framed clippings were the only part of the job Mandy didn’t care for, but it was the reason Mrs. Swanson had hired her. And Mandy had wanted, with all her heart, to work at The North Pole. It was filled with the things she loved, and she loved telling her story to the kids who occasionally came in to hear it. The clippings reminded her of the hard part, the kidding she’d taken all through school. But if it meant being here every day to share the magic, then so be it.
Robbie took his mother’s hand as she led him toward the door.
Hey.” Mandy reached into the crystal bowl on the countertop. “Want a candy cane for the road?”
A candy cane? In the summer?”
Sure, why not? They’re still fresh, I promise.” Mandy winked at him. “I had one earlier this morning.”
Mother and son stepped forward, and each of them took one of the short, cellophane-wrapped candies.
Merry Christmas,” she said.
The little boy waved, and the sleigh bells hanging from the door jingled behind them as they left.

Jake Wyndham strolled the sidewalk of Evergreen Lane, peering in the occasional window. He’d already checked out a T-shirt store and a sporting goods shop. He’d looked over the menu posted in the window of a sandwich shop, but it was too early for lunch. The street had a lot of foot traffic, a healthy sign on a Saturday morning. So far, everything he saw supported his company’s research: Tall Pine looked like a town that drew a fair number of weekend visitors.
Up ahead, two red-and-white-striped poles supported the awning over the entrance to another store. It didn’t quite look like a barber shop. . . . No, wait, those were supposed to be big peppermint sticks.
Jake got close enough to see the display in the nearest of the two windows flanking the entrance to the store. The large sill was decked in cotton that passed for snow, with a miniature Christmas village laid out on top. Tiny children on little toboggans pretended to slide down an improvised hill.
The red letters on the shop window read THE NORTH POLE.
Okay, this could be interesting.
He pulled open the door, to be greeted by the jingling of the bells that hung on it. From speakers overhead, Jake recognized a voice that he never heard any time of year but December: Bing Crosby.
May your days be merry and bright. . . .”
They weren’t kidding around about this. Reindeer, snowmen and nutcrackers filled the shop: figurines on shelves, pictures and plaques on the walls, jewelry and key chains hanging from display hooks in front of the counter. Artificial Christmas trees, large and small, poked up from corners and alongside rows of shelves, decorated with price-tagged ornaments. It was a world of red and green, peppermint and pine. Jake had never seen anything like it back home in Scranton, that was for sure.
He stepped slowly forward, the old tenet of “you break it, you bought it” echoing in his head. Thankfully, the rows of shelves weren’t so close together that bumping into them was a hazard. What had felt like a manic clutter at first glance was actually arranged rather nicely. A cluster of mugs here, candleholders there . . . and, Jake was astonished to see, a whole shelf devoted to salt and pepper shakers. Did people really—
Hi.”
Jake turned to see a pretty, dark-haired woman step from behind one of the Christmas trees a few feet to his left. “Can I help you find anything?” she added.
Not at the moment.”
She had a warm, ready smile, and her eyes were a deep blue. She held an ornament that looked like a little wooden rowboat. Jake’s eyes went from the ornament to the tree, and he saw it was decorated with other outdoorsy items: elk, geese, pinecones, even a snowman with a fishing pole.
I see you’re going with a theme,” he said.
It’s fun.” The girl hung the boat on a branch and reached into a box resting on a nearby stool. She fished out another ornament—appropriately enough, a fish. “I could never stick to one thing on my tree at home. There are so many personal memories that go with Christmas decorations. But it’s fun to do it here.”
Jake watched deft fingers with unpainted nails hang up a dark-furred grizzly bear. “How does your store do when it’s not Christmastime? Is it pretty slow?”
Oh, it’s quieter, for sure.” She gestured around the store, empty of any other customers, with a little shrug. “But people trickle in. And when they do, they usually buy something.”
Locals? Or tourists?”
I guess you’d say local tourists. People from maybe an hour or two away. During the summer they like to come up for the day because it’s cooler up here in the mountains. And in the winter it gets pretty crazy. We’re the first town people hit when they drive up to go to the snow.”
“‘Go to the snow’?”
Sure. Down the hill, it never snows. You usually have to be at least four thousand feet up to get snow in Southern California.” She studied him with a quizzical frown.
He stepped back, feeling as if he’d been found out. “Sorry, I’m from Pennsylvania. The idea of driving somewhere to visit snow never occurred to me.”
She grinned. “I guess so. If you never get snow, it’s a novelty. Up here we have to dig our way out of it sometimes. But it’s so beautiful.”
She looked almost starry-eyed. Clearly, she hadn’t gotten over the novelty of snow. “Have you lived here long?” he asked.
All my life.” She picked up the box and stepped back to view her handiwork. It brought her one step closer to Jake, and he sneaked a look at her contemplative profile. Her blue eyes had a soulful look he couldn’t remember seeing on any adult.
He took his eyes from her face before she caught him staring, and noticed a silver bell earring dangling from her earlobe.
Silver bells . . . Oh. Right. Got it.
Apparently satisfied with the tree, she walked past him with a smile, taking the box behind the counter and setting it down. “So,” she said, “what brings you here from Pennsylvania?”
Do you have anything for a seven-year-old girl? My niece,” he added, not sure why he felt the urge to clarify.
Her eyes went ceilingward as she contemplated the problem.
The reason he’d come to town wouldn’t be a secret for long, but Jake found he usually got better answers to his questions if people didn’t know why he was asking. Regal Hotels had sent him to set up their next location, and the demographics of Tall Pine looked great. But getting the perspective of locals often came in handy.
The woman’s eyes roamed over the store. “Really, just about anything, except maybe for the glass breakables,” she said. “Are you looking for something a little less seasonal? For a souvenir?”
Jake nodded. “Exactly.”
Does she like jewelry?”
He hesitated.
Oh, I don’t mean diamonds and rubies.” That smile reached her eyes every time. “Just a little bauble.”
Bauble?
She reached over to a display rack of necklaces on the countertop, turning it to show the different designs. Bears, Santa hats, Christmas trees . . . Her fingers came to rest, cupping a tiny pinecone about the size of a thimble. His niece, Emily, would like that.
We sell a lot of these,” she said. “They’re real pinecones, but they’re treated with lacquer so they’ll last. Pinecone . . . Tall Pine?”
Got it. Jake eyed the price tag on the chain: ten dollars. “That’s perfect. Thanks.”
She wrapped the necklace in tissue paper as gently as if it were a crystal vase. Meanwhile, Jake became aware of the music from the speakers again. It had left Bing Crosby and moved on to Nat King Cole. “Do you ever get tired of Christmas music?”
You’d be surprised how often people ask me that.” Not really. “But I never do. There’s so much good Christmas music. I bring a lot of it from home.”
She rang up the necklace and handed him the bag, silver bells glinting below her ears. “Merry Christmas.”
Merry Christmas,” he said before he thought. With Nat King Cole in the background, it came as a reflex.
He walked out the door, bells jingling behind him. The warm summer day came as a shock after being surrounded by mistletoe and holly.
An unexpected voice piped up in his head, as if it were chiming in with the bells: You should have asked her out.
The multipaned door swung shut. Too late.
Besides, he had work to do, and he knew where to find her.

Resisting the urge to look back through the glass, Jake set off to continue his fact-finding foray up the street.



 This is a cute and sweet Christmas themed story set in the Californian mountains.

As an eight year old, Mandy Reece saw Santa Claus on Christmas Eve. A year later she becomes a local celebrity after her experience is shared with the local press. She knows it wasn't her imagination, but not-one in the town really believes her. So, it's fitting that as an adult, she begins working in the local theme store The North Pole, which sells Christmas goods, picking up the nickname Mandy Claus from the town folk who now see her has a local treasure.

Jake Wyndham is on a fact finding mission to the small town of Tall Pine on behalf of his employer Regal Hotels. Once he's gotten rid of his preconceived ideas, Jake falls under the spell of the charming mountain town after meeting the intriguing, beautiful woman at the Christmas store. Now he needs to convince the town that they need a chain hotel, so he has a reason to stay.

This is a sweet, slow burn romance, which may not suit everyone, but is perfect for the tempo of the book, akin to an old-fashioned courtship. Mandy is a rather naive twenty-four year old and Jake recognises and respects that. He's determined not to take their tentative relationship beyond it's current level until he has more concrete confirmation about the prospective hotel plans. The protagonists interaction with each other is interesting...Mandy who believes in what she saw-Santa Claus and Jake, who's scientifically minded and tries to find a logical theory and formula to explain and understand Mandy's phenomenon. In the end, the proof is in the seeing!

The writing style is jarring at times as we flit from one point of view to another without any clear indication. But then there are other times when the scene setting and descriptions are beautifully written, making it easy to visualise the town of Tall Pine and The North Pole store.

Overall Do You Believe In Santa is an enchanting, heart-warming story that gets you into the festive spirit.

3.5 stars


***arc received courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley***






Sierra Donovan is a wife, a mother of two and a writer, though not always in that order. Her greatest joy is helping people find true love on the printed page. She is a firm believer in Christmas, classic movies, happy endings and the healing power of chocolate. Sierra’s first novel, Love On The Air, was a Holt Medallion finalist. Her 2014 Kensington debut, No Christmas Like The Present, won the Golden Quill Award for Sweet Traditional Romance. Her 2015 novel, Do You Believe In Santa? marks the beginning of Sierra's new Evergreen Lane series. You can email Sierra at sierra_donovan@yahoo.com, or visit her website at www.sierradonovan.com.





Tuesday Teaser: by Stylo Fantôme




Go to Stylo’s FB page as she is giving away an e-book ARC of this book!


Teaser Tuesday: The Storm by Samantha Towle




Go to Samantha’s FB page as she is giving away an e-book ARC of this book!
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