Category Archives: Author Blog Post

Delicious Heat: Bangers Tavern Romance 3  by Sadira Stone ~ Steamy Contemporary Romance ~ #AHAgrp #Blog

Please help me welcome today’s guest, Sadira Stone….

Please tell us a little about yourself, where are you from? Where do you live now? Family? Pets?

I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area (the fog belt), joined the Army right after high school, went to Germany, then to Georgia & Alabama where I earned my teaching degree, then back to Germany where I taught on U.S. military bases until 2014 when I took early retirement & moved to Tacoma, Washington. After seven years in the Pacific Northwest, we recently moved to Las Vegas, where I live with my darling Hubs. No pets at the moment. One gorgeous daughter, one charming stepson who, with his lovely wife, will soon furnish us our first grandchild!

Where did you get the idea for Delicious Heat?

 Anna and Diego’s Meet Cute scene happens in Bangers Tavern Romance 1, Christmas Rekindled, and readers asked for their story.

Why did you choose this genre?

My stories are always realistic contemporary romance centering around small businesses and the found family who gather there. I love the way a shared enterprise can forge close relationships.

Was there anything unusual, any anecdote about this book, the characters, title, process, etc, you’d like to share?

The story starts out with Anna’s discovery that her weasel of a husband is cheating on her. She tosses him out, then the very next day discovers she’s pregnant. Tough choice—stay in a crappy marriage for the baby’s sake, or divorce him and become a single mom? Diego’s arrival in her life further complicates her choices, of course.

What is the most difficult thing about writing a book? What was the most difficult thing about this one in particular?

I always struggle with the middle of the first draft. I started writing this book last spring, then my husband fell ill. I wrote through his surgery, recovery, and our move to Las Vegas, not to mention the pandemic. It was sloooow going.

Are there any tricks, habits or superstitions you have when creating a story?

I’m a kinesthetic learner, so I always start out by jotting scene ideas on index cards. These get arranged into a rough outline. It gives me such satisfaction to crumple and toss each card as I work that idea into the story.

What actors would you like in the main roles if your book were made into a movie?

Diego’s appearance is based on actor/musician Alfonso Herrera. He’s a hottie! Anna is half Lebanese-American on her father’s side. Lebanese actress/singer Maya Asmar would be make a perfect movie Anna.

What genre have you never written that you’d like to write?

I recently attended a panel discussion on reverse harem romance, and now I’m noodling out plans for a reverse harem series. This one will have supernatural elements, something I’ve never dabbled in before. Can’t wait to get started!

What is your favorite quote?

Life may not be the party we hoped for; but while we’re here, we might as well dance.

What celebrity would you most like to be stranded on an island with?

Whichever one had the best boat-building skills.

Is there one subject you would never write about? What is it?

BDSM. No shade on the kinksters—I believe that whatever consenting adults do behind closed doors is none of my business. But I don’t get the appeal of that kind of sexual expression, so I’d do a lousy job writing it.

What do you want your tombstone to say?

She touched lives and had a blast.

If you could spend time with a character from your book, whom would it be? And what would you do during that day? (PG-13 please 🙂

I’d love to help Diego in his food truck for a day. I’m a wannabe chef at heart.

Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?

Absolutely! This story (and my life) rejects the old-fashioned notion that in order to be a good mother, a woman must put her own needs last. Anna chooses to leave her cheating, neglectful husband, and she gets tons of push-back for that choice.

Your favorite…

Movie: French Kiss

Music: Blues

Place you’ve visited: The Loire Valley in France

Place you’d like to visit: Tahiti!

TV show from childhood: The Partridge Family (Yup, I’m old.)

TV show from adulthood: Any hospital drama, like Chicago Med

Food: Cheese!

Sports team: Meh. I’ll watch whatever Hubs is watching.

Which do you prefer: Board games/card games or television? Darts!

Thank you, Sadira. What a fun interview. I’m old too, LOL, and I also loved The Partridge Family. 🙂

Please tell us about your book…

 Blurb:

Cupid has lousy timing.

After kicking her cheating husband to the curb, nurse Anna Khoury discovers she’s pregnant. When Bangers Tavern’s hunky chef makes heart eyes at her, she dismisses that delicious thrill as the last thing she needs. Single motherhood will take all her strength and focus. Anna’s battered heart can’t take another blow.

Chef Diego Vargas is aiming higher than burgers and tater tots. His dream—his own food truck, the Empanada Angel, but he’ll need his family’s support to pull it off. Meeting Anna leaves him thunderstruck, even though his attraction to her threatens all his plans. Call it fate, call him crazy, but he’s determined to prove he’s in it for keeps.

With a belligerent ex-husband and two overprotective families set on breaking them up, Anna and Diego will need more than red-hot passion to pull them through. His career and her baby’s future are on the line.

Come back to Bangers Tavern for a spicy tale of forbidden love that will warm your heart…and other parts…and make you hungry for empanadas!

Excerpt:

He dipped a spoon in his olive and sun-dried tomato tapenade and held it to her lips. She held his gaze as her soft pink lips closed delicately around the morsel. Then her eyes closed, and her fingers fluttered to the delicate V where her collar bones met. Her soft moan brought his dick to full attention.

Note to self—cook for Anna as often as possible.

A devilish smile bloomed across Anna’s lovely face. “What Olive doesn’t know won’t hurt her.”

“Smart mom.” He slathered her feta-studded burger with tapenade, topped it with a dollop of tzatziki, and filled the rest of the plate with garlic tots.

Watching Anna eat was his new favorite thing. Perched on her stool at the center island, she attacked her dinner with enthusiasm bordering on feral. Each groan of pleasure echoed between his thighs.

She licked tzatziki from her thumb, then glanced up and caught him gawking. “Oh, jeez, I must look like a pig.”

He shook his head. “A pig could never be so pretty.” Or tempting. Or bewitching. Or fascinating…

She ducked her chin and giggled. “You’re trying to seduce me and Olive with your cooking superpowers, aren’t you?”

“Drat.” He smacked the counter. “You’ve discovered my evil plan.”

Buy link(s): https://books2read.com/deliciousheat

Bio:

Award-winning contemporary romance author Sadira Stone spins steamy, smoochy tales set in small businesses—a quirky bookstore, a neighborhood bar, a vintage boutique… Her stories highlight found family, friendship, and the sizzling chemistry that pulls unlikely partners together. When she emerges from her writing cave in Las Vegas, Nevada (which she seldom does), she can be found in belly dance class, or strumming her ukulele, perhaps exploring the West with her charming husband, or cooking up a storm, and always gobbling all the romance books. For a guaranteed HEA (and no cliffhangers!) visit Sadira at http://www.sadirastone.com.

I’d love to hear from you! Please visit me on all the socials.

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The Secret of Pendragon Island by Judge Bayton ~ #AHAgrp #Blog #GothicMystery #FREEonKU

I am beyond delighted to host my friend, Jude Bayton. She is talented, funny, lovely, and kind. And, she has an awesome British accent. 🙂 Oh yes, and her writing is fabulous. Check out my review of The Secret of Pendragon Island… (Which is FREE on Kindle Unlimited)

The Secret of Pendragon IslandThe Secret of Pendragon Island by Jude Bayton
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Secret of Pendagron Island took me back to my days of devouring Gothic Mystery Romances by authors such as Barbara Michaels, Victoria Holt, Phyllis A. Whitney, and Daphne du Maurier. Miss Bayton has the perfect voice for the genre, and the setting and mood were delightfully atmospheric. I loved Poppy—a wonderful gothic heroine, strong but vulnerable, smart and brave. There was a nice little love triangle and I was rooting for Donovan the entire time. A compelling mystery with a few clever twists at the end, The Secret of Pendagron Island is a must read for gothic mystery lovers…or anyone who enjoys being swept away into a fabulous story.

View all my reviews

Welcome, Jude!

 Please tell us a little about yourself, where are you from? Where do you live now? Family? Pets?

 I was born in Germany into a British military family. I am from Kingston-Upon-Thames in Surrey, just outside of London. As a child, I lived in Yemen, Kenya, Wales, Scotland & Germany, until my father left the Army when I was 10.

I now live in Oklahoma with my husband John. Between us we have four sons and four grandchildren. We are empty nesters, except for our Blue Heeler. Her name is Scout.

 Tell us a little bit about how this book came about.

 This is the third book in what I call the Secret Set. I have always been fascinated with the Victorian era. Whenever I start to write, I automatically go to that time in history. As a reader, I love historical fiction, but I read contemporary also. I enjoy a thread of romance, but I always like getting my teeth into a good mystery.

The setting for this book is Cornwall, a beautiful place much beloved by us Brits. The inspiration for the title was from the old Arthurian tales of Uther Pendragon, a very well-known name in Cornwall, where the Arthurian legends run deep. It was fun coming up with a completely fictitious island! The main character, Poppy, is a lot like the younger me—curious, passionate, with a strong the desire to be a writer, always with her nose in a book. She compares people to the characters she reads about and has a strong sense of justice.

As with all my books, the main character and place drives the start of the process. Research colours in many things for me, especially with the stories being historical. To me, that can be the most difficult part. Historical accuracy is sticky. It’s horrid when you write about them being on a train, and then realise there wasn’t even a station where they are going! Keeping mysteries going without giving too much away is also hard work. The hardest part of this story was balancing more than one mystery at the same time.

What book have you read that you wish you had written?

Persuasion, by Jane Austen

Do you collect anything?

Books!

Would you rather have a bad review or no review?

A bad review can be helpful and point out real issues – If you point out a flaw though, explain why, or offer a solution.

What celebrity would you most like to be stranded on an island with?

Henry Cavill

Your most prized material possession? Why?

A locket my father bought my mother on their 60th wedding anniversary – now that my parents are no longer here.

Have you written any other books that are not published?

Yes. I have two more Gothics which will come out in 2022. I also write under the pen name DJ FitzSimons and plan to release a contemporary detective novel.

What is the toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best compliment?

The worst said that a mistake I made in one book was ‘lazy writing’ – Best said they couldn’t put the book down and wanted more.

What do your friends and family think of your writing?

They all know I’ve waited a long time to do this. They have been very encouraging, proud, and tell me to write more!

What character in your book are you least likely to get along with?

Mrs Malahide – she reminds me of my headmistress in boarding school.

How much of the book is realistic?

My work is fictional, and the situations can be far-fetched. But HOW the characters react to everything has to be realistic. It is the same in books I read. You can stretch a plot and a storyline, but people are always people, no matter what!

Blurb:

‘This secret might be the death of her…’

Working for the wealthy Nightingale family in a Cornish castle, is just the adventure budding novelist and librarian Poppy Livingstone is ready to undertake. The orphaned daughter of a convicted criminal, she is anxious to leave London and strike out on her own. But upon arriving at Pendragon Castle to a discourteous welcome, Poppy finds herself embroiled in a murder investigation, and on the trail of a woman whose mysterious disappearance twenty years earlier has captured her imagination.

Discovering evidence of an embezzler who has infiltrated the Nightingale family’s mining empire, Poppy becomes privy to their identity. Sworn to secrecy by Pendragon’s handsome heir, Clive, she inadvertently becomes a target – and the killer is watching.

When a series of catastrophes jeopardizes the family’s financial future, all evidence points to foul play. Who seeks to ruin Lord Nightingale’s family, and why? The death of another victim tempts Poppy to run for her life. But stubbornly she stands her ground, delves deeper, and boldly confronts an unknown enemy. But a lifetime reading literature is insufficient training as a sleuth. When at last she forces the killer’s hand, Poppy is unprepared for a shocking revelation and her own role in dark secrets of the past. Though the villain will finally be unmasked, ultimately Poppy will question if her entire existence has been a lie.

Excerpt:

Adjacent to the castle was the kitchen garden—a generous rectangular affair. Though summer was yet to arrive, the herbs and plants were coming along a treat. I walked the length of the garden, admiring the healthy vines and leaves of different vegetables growing from the rich brown soil. The following plot I encountered was most likely a cutting garden. I recognised Daffodils, red and yellow Tulips, Lily of the Valley and one of my favourite’s, Iris. The heady scent of freesia hung in the air, and I momentarily paused to enjoy it while I ate my toast.

“It is a wonderful morning to dine alfresco, is it not?”

I whirled around so quickly that tea splashed from my mug. I had company. A tall, dark-haired man stood several feet away from me, leaning against a tree trunk while inhaling on a cheroot. Smoke spiralled above his head and clung to the dewy morning air.

“I beg your pardon,” I stammered. “I was unaware of your presence.” I began to move back towards the castle.

He took a step towards me. “Please, do not let me scare you away. I did not mean to startle you. I was just enjoying the fresh air and trying to wake up.”

I stared at him. He was well-built and muscular. His face of hard angles was softened by a pronounced dimple in his right cheek and a generous mouth that now smiled at me. He was black-headed, with eyes the colour of coal. Yet, there was something in his expression which smoothed the rugged masculinity of his appearance.

“Thank you, sir. We must have thought alike. I too sought to escape the warmth of the castle.” Who was this man? I had not seen him before. Could he be one of the groundsmen? I glanced at his clothing. Nothing to tell there. He was dressed neither as gentleman nor labourer, but something in between.

“Are you employed by the Nightingale’s,” he asked, one thick eyebrow arched.

“Yes, well, for the moment anyway.” I chewed my lower lip, and his eyes moved to my mouth. “I am cataloguing the Pendragon library. This is my third day here.”

“Ah,” he gave an easy grin. “A mainlander.”

I nodded, and then as I opened my mouth to speak, I heard footsteps approaching. It was Mrs Malahide. She carried a flower basket and cutting shears as she strode towards where I stood, clutching my tea and half-eaten toast. Inwardly I groaned.

“Miss Livingstone?” Her frown conveyed what thoughts were in her mind at the sight of me speaking to a man without a chaperone.

“Good morning, Mrs Malahide,” I said politely.

She took a breath, but the man interrupted quickly. “Morning, Malahide.” He threw down the stub of his tobacco and ground the ember out with his boot. “Ladies, if you would please excuse me.” He strode away, and as he passed, winked at me. I was shocked. But before I could react, the burn of Mrs Malahide’s disapproving glare landed upon me once again.

“I must get to work,” I blurted, and moved away as fast as I could without running. 

Buy link:

https://smile.amazon.com/Secret-Pendragon-Island-Jude-Bayton/dp/1955441022/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=jude+bayton&qid=1642438528&sr=8-1

Bio:

I am a Londoner, but currently call the wilds of Tulsa, Oklahoma home. I grew up devouring Victoria Holt novels, loved Kathleen Woodiwiss, and adore the Victorian era. My stories are generally set in Europe, in places I have either lived or visited. I currently have three books published in the historical suspense genre, and one ready to publish this spring. I have two contemporary novels to publish in 2022 under a different pen name.

I write a monthly blog at judebayton.com – a satirical look at my life in Oklahoma.

Website https://www.judebayton.com

Twitter https://twitter.com/JudeBayton

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/judebaytonauthor/?ref=bookmarks

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/judebayton/

Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/deb-bayton-fitzsimons-b044129/

 

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January Featured Books – Find New & Amazing Authors!!! #AHAgrp #BookWorm #AmReading #Ebooks

Looking for something new and fabulous to read? Try these…

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Texas Ranger Jeb Powers and his faithful burro Tulip pursue the murderous Ned Burris across the Red River and into Oklahoma Indian Territory. After tangling with the outlaw during an ice storm, Jeb is aided an elderly Creek woman with peculiar brilliant blue eyes. Once back on the trail, Jeb stumbles across an orphaned boy named Russ. Then he encounters a beautiful woman named Lillian. Would the old Creek woman agree to take care of Russ for a while? Should he delay his search even more in order to help Lillian find her fiancé? With so many obstacles afoot, can Jeb catch Burris and his accomplices before more people are killed? — Ride the trail with Jeb, as he confronts many dangers and meets a woman who captures his elusive heart.

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Even the smallest degree of hope can spark love.

Against her wealthy father’s demands, and the usual blockades of a male dominated profession, Kylie Sanderson proves worthy of her position as lead investigator of planet Andan’s Scientific and Investigative Research Taskforce. Someone is killing Andan’s women in an attempt to mutate them into reptiles. Kylie makes it her mission to discover who’s behind the murders and prevent more grotesque deaths.

Shapeshifting lizard Griff comes to Andan to stop his brethren from mutating other planet’s women into mindless breeding stock. Overcoming Kylie’s suspicious and defensive nature proves difficult, but he must in order to help the SIRT team thwart his planet’s scientists.

When Kylie is abducted and becomes the first human to survive the transformation, it’s up to Griff to rescue her so SIRT can restore her human form. On the run and desperate to unravel the mysteries of Kylie’s past to solve the crimes of their present, can she and Griff forge a future for themselves?

WARNING: Language, Violence, Sex.

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Two exceptional novellas featuring two men engulfed in a war no one understands or wants—Vietnam. They’re both hoping for a miracle with little expectation of finding it.

Jan Selbourne lends her award-winning writing talent to Miracle in the Outback. Nick Saunders is in a hurry to escape a family argument and also to return to his Army base in Wagga Wagga. He doesn’t need another complication. Rachel Garth is a woman with a broken down car, a small girl, a deadly snake, and a baby on the way. She needs Nick’s help. He doesn’t know it, but he needs hers, too.

In award-winning author Anne Krist’s The Miracle of Coming Home, Army PFC Tom Stabler wins a trip to his parents’ Nebraska farm for Christmas. He needs the time away from the war. Lately, he’s been feeling lost and too alone. Trouble is, being home is almost as bad. Then Susan Swensen arrives, just as sweet and pretty as he remembers. Can Susan help him find himself again, or will it take a miracle?

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Former grade school bully and, later, amateur drug dealer Jeff Hudson turns his life around and is pursuing a degree in agriculture. His future, as well as a budding relationship with fellow student Sandy Harris, is threatened when a former dealer threatens to expose Jeff’s past to university authorities if he doesn’t rejoin the ring. Realizing that Jeff is no longer an angry, misunderstood boy, Sandy must take a stand against her family and friends who swear he is no good and will only cause her unhappiness. Together, can they escape the past in order to forge a future?

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Junior Detective Henry Ike Pierce is hired to reassess cold-case killings. On the third day of his new job, a dismembered body appears in a local park. The corpse’s desecration is like slayings from over two decades ago, and his boss assigns Henry to his first investigation. He must uncover the present-day killer while his boss pushes him to resolve crimes from the past.

Henry seeks a killer within a community of rival ethnic groups, refugees from the 1990s Balkan wars. Rumors point to a killer called ‘the hooded one.’

As his investigation unfolds, the young man from western Virginia’s coal country discovers that ‘trust’ has a flexible definition.

 

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KILLAMAN FALLS is living up to its name – unfortunately.

Emmalyst Whichur’s days on the mountain are numbered. Though not as fatally as Rusty Olmstede’s, the latest murder victim within the boundaries of Killaman Falls, were.

Lyst’s goal has been to have concrete beneath her feet and exhaust fumes in her lungs before snow visits the mountain. Yet, when she learns her gentlemanly werewolf crime solving partner has gone off to a crime scene without her, she’s torn. And ticked off.

It’s not like she has a job to go to anywhere. It’s not as though she wants to leave Connor Wolfe behind. With the moon forcing him to shapeshift every twenty-eight days, he has different requirements on places to live than she does. Besides, they’ve only known each other a month.

Connor is simply glad Sheriff Honeycutt told him not to bring Lyst with him to the Olmstede home further up the mountain. He wouldn’t wish the nightmares the memory of Rusty’s unidentifiably beaten face will give him on his worst enemy. That doesn’t mean he and Lyst will avoid this case though.

Particularly not when they begin to find further bodies. Or discover a cache of diamond jewelry, and stacks and stacks of cash. The only canines available to supply information about the victims are the coyotes and they’re not only acting out of character but appear to be amassing an army!

As the Whichur-Wolfe Detection series wraps up, will Connor and Lyst manage to solve the most convoluted case yet! Will they survive the arrival on the mountain of the Úlfhéðnar, the Viking berserker werewolf determined to acquire Lyst’s late aunt’s work on a longevity formula!

There’s only one way to find out! Grab When Kurt Bludgeoned Rusty!

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Erin Shipley grew up on Keystone Lake before moving to Tulsa and becoming an associate attorney. Now, she’s back, representing a client who is concerned about the flooding and property values around the lake. Properties underwater are being bought and sold for pennies on the dollar by someone called T & H Realty. When her friend’s uncle, Jeff, dies mysteriously on the lake, Erin wonders if it has anything to do with the real estate scam and launches an investigation.
The dam is old and zebra mussels are clogging it, not allowing enough water to flow out. If the dam breaks, it will flood downtown Tulsa and areas around it. But that’s not the only danger…whoever killed Jeff isn’t finished with their diabolical plan, and Erin and those she loves are at risk from more than just a dam break.

 

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An outstanding new voice in memoir, Christine Herbert takes the reader on a “time-machine tour” of her Peace Corps volunteer service as a health worker and educator from 2004–2006 in Zambia. Rather than a retrospective, this narrative unfolds in the present tense, propelling the reader alongside the memoirist through a fascinating exploration of a life lived “off the grid.”

At turns harrowing, playful, dewy-eyed and wise, the author’s heart and candor illuminate every chapter, whether she is the heroine of the tale or her own worst enemy. Even at her most petulant, the laugh-out-loud humor scuppers any “white savior” mentality and lays bare the undeniable humanity—and humility—of the storyteller. Through it all, an undeniable love for Zambia—its people, land and culture—shines through.

A must-read for the armchair adventurer.

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Seventeen-year-old Josh has prepared for any emergency or storm, but when the storm of the century hits, he learns no one is ever prepared enough. Sixteen-year-old Emma is on a mission to protect the environment, but she gets caught in the colossal storm, and her fight for the planet turns into a struggle for her survival.

Desperate to rescue themselves and the people they love in a world forever changed by the cataclysmic storms, they forge through an unrecognizable landscape where the rules have changed, and it takes more than luck to survive.

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December Featured Books – Find New & Amazing Authors!!! #AHAgrp #BookWorm #AmReading #Ebooks

Looking for something new and fabulous to read? Try these…

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Competitive, work-obsessed Bella Simonetti has just been fired from her high-paying job at a Manhattan law firm. At an all-time low, she returns home and helps her parents at their small-town gift shop, but the business is failing and may not make it past the Christmas holidays.
Successful landscape architect Dean Jackson is like a son to Bella’s parents. But he’s a persistent annoyance to her—he seems to have forgotten his unforgivable blunder thirteen years earlier.
When Bella transforms her parents’ gift shop into a cookie cottage, Dean’s generosity and magnetic smile are hard to resist, and those feelings of unrequited adolescent love come rushing back. But can Bella let go of the past and accept Dean for the man he is today?

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Up-and-coming mommyblogger and single mom Marisol Herrera Slade returns to her old hometown in western Pennsylvania for her 20th high school reunion in 2005, reluctant and yet compelled to see her high school sweetheart, Russell Asher, who dumped her for the homecoming queen.

Russell’s marriage to the golden girl, however, ended in a nasty divorce, and he has been systematically excluded from his sons’ lives. In his Internet wanderings, he’s found feminist blogger named Jerrika Jones, who glorifies single motherhood, essentially putting a stamp of approval on what’s happened to him. His group of single dad advocates have vowed to take this woman down.

What Russell doesn’t know, when he thinks to rekindle what he had with Marisol, is that Marisol and Jerrika are one and the same. When his group discovers the truth, will their drive for revenge derail any chance the couple have to reunite? Or will they find they have more in common than they ever expected?

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The first romance novel in a brand new Western series from Susan Payne!

Vince wanted a family, a friend and a lover. Daisy desired the same. Could the two young people make a lasting marriage when neither knew how to be what the other needed? One knew what a family should be, the other only thought he knew. Could Vince save his marriage after his disastrous mistakes in the beginning? And would Daisy find peace with her choice?

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Rose Kaplan and her sidekick Ida are at it again. It’s the holiday of Purim, and almost everyone at the Julius and Rebecca Cohen Home for Jewish Seniors is in costume for the Purim play. All except one, who will instead have to be fitted for a shroud. Once again, “Mrs. K” and Ida are called upon to solve the puzzle of a mysterious death at the Home. Described by Chanticleer Book Reviews as “at times more Lucy and Ethel than Holmes and Watson, with a soupcon of Miss Jane Marple,” these geriatric amateur sleuths will keep you laughing, guessing, and maybe even learning a bissel Yiddish!

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Diana Rubino ~ The One That Got Away ~ #AHAgrp

Please help me welcome today’s guest, author friend Diana Rubino…

About Diana

I write about folks through history who shook things up. My passion for history and travel has taken me to every locale of my books: Medieval and Renaissance England, Egypt, the Mediterranean, colonial Virginia, New England, and New York. My urban fantasy romance FAKIN’ IT won a Top Pick award from Romantic Times. I’m a member of the Richard III Society and the Aaron Burr Association. In my spare time, I bicycle, golf, do yoga, devour books, and live the dream on Cape Cod.Visit me at www.dianarubino.com, www.DianaRubinoAuthor.blogspot.com, https://www.facebook.com/DianaRubinoAuthor

and on Twitter @DianaLRubino

About THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY

I’ve been a Civil War and Lincoln buff since I was eight years old. I don’t know what got me started, but it might’ve been a book which I still have titled The Life of Abraham Lincoln, Volume 1, written in 1895. When I was in 3rd grade, my teacher asked us to bring in a book from home, for a show & tell. My mother suggested I bring this Lincoln book, which even in 1966 was in rough shape—yellowed, stiffened strips of Scotch tape barely held the covers to the spine. With the wisdom of an 8-year-old that sadly, all of us outgrow, I demurred:

“This old book? She’ll think we’re poor!”

My mother corrected me: “No, she’ll think we’re rich. Books like this are rare.”

Then she proceeded to tape it up some more. Those tape fragments adhere to the book’s spine and pages to this day. My teacher, Miss Cohen, was duly impressed. I treasure that book, one of many on my “Lincoln shelf” which holds books about our murdered president, his wife Mary, his assassin John Wilkes Booth and his family, the “Mad Booths of Maryland” and the conspirators who faced the gallows or years of hard labor because Booth, their charismatic leader, sucked these poor impressionable souls into his insane plot.

In 2017 I wrote A NECESSARY END, a romance thriller about Booth’s plot to kill President Lincoln, with a touch of the paranormal. My new historical novel, THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY, features John Surratt, a loyal Southerner embroiled in Booth’s plot. As Booth and his other cohorts meet in the Washington D.C. boarding house of Mary, John’s mother, John begins to struggle with a dilemma that soon tears him apart emotionally: should he avenge the South as a hero, or back out as a coward to avoid an unforgiveable sin?

Mary Surratt was hanged as one of the conspirators, although no one will ever know the degree of her involvement. It was in her house where Booth and his crew met to hatch their plot. Her son John is a footnote to history, but he also was one of Booth’s most trusted followers.

John may have joined Booth out of need for approval and recognition as a war hero, which he never got from his alcoholic father. As Booth’s cohort, he took dangerous risks for his beloved South. But as Booth’s plan to abduct Lincoln changed to assassination, a mystery arises—was John Surratt there in Washington to assist Booth in the murder, or was he in New York? No one knows for sure, as witnesses claim to have seen him in both places. We do know that he agreed to carry out Booth’s order to shoot General Grant, but backed out at the last minute. We will never know why, but this story explores the possibilities—did he have an attack of conscience, of cowardice, or did he just promise to obey Booth, without any intention to carry out the deed?

We witness the inner workings of John Surratt’s mind—and his heart—tormenting him, tearing him apart. His dilemma—whether to carry out this deed for his love of the South, or back out and be branded a coward, but live free from sin—consumed his thoughts, prayers and dreams throughout this part of his life.

He never achieved his wish of being a famous war hero. He’s a rather obscure historical figure. But this isn’t about the failed efforts of a would-be hero; it’s the story of an emotionally torn young man devoted to his beloved country. On one level, avenging the South was a noble deed. But deep down, his fear of God’s wrath prevailed.

We see how a backwoods Maryland boy comes of age during the Civil War, starting out as a courier, and becomes embroiled in one of the most notorious plots in American history. Students and adults will learn the more intricate details of the Booth plots, from the point of view of one of his most faithful followers.

Purchase THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY on Amazon:

Getbook.at/GotAway

 

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Author Jill Piscitello ~ New Release: Tinsel and Tea Cakes, a sweet holiday romance ~ #WRPbks #AHAgrp

Please help me welcome today’s guest, Jill Piscitello…

Book blurb:  

Hair stylist Scarlett Kerrigan lost her job and her apartment. To alleviate a touch of self-pity, she succumbs to her stepmom’s pressure to attend a wedding in the New Hampshire White Mountains. Unfortunately, she runs into the vacation fling who promised the moon but disappeared without an explanation. Months have passed, but she is not ready to forgive and forget.

After a chaotic year, executive Wes Harley settles into his family’s event venue, The Timeless Manor. His carefully structured world is shaken to its core when Scarlett arrives for the Victorian Christmas wedding weekend. The feelings he never quite erased flood to the surface.

When secrets are revealed, will a magical chateau and a sprinkle of tinsel be enough to charm Scarlett?

Purchase Links:

Amazon           Nook

About the Author:

Jill Piscitello is a teacher, author, and an avid fan of multiple literary genres. Although she divides her reading hours among several books at a time, a lighthearted story offering an escape from the real world can always be found on her nightstand.

A native of New England, Jill lives with her family and three well-loved cats. When not planning lessons or reading and writing, she can be found spending time with her family, trying out new restaurants, traveling, and going on light hikes.

 Social media links:

Website ~ Twitter  ~ Facebook Instagram

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November Featured Books – Find New & Amazing Authors!!! #AHAgrp #BookWorm #AmReading #Ebooks

Looking for something new and fabulous to read? Try these…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lady Jane Lenwood is abandoned and left penniless and alone at Rathborne Castle in the middle of a dark, twisted forest. She yearns to live a normal life and blames her misfortunes on the current duke. But Lady Jane has a secret, a voice in her head warning her of the future, which brings unwanted visitors to her gates.
Wounded, Max Radley is found inside the gates of Rathborne. He is intrigued and drawn to the beautiful red-haired woman the locals call a witch. After spending the winter snowed in, Max must resume his search for a traitor but finds he cannot forget Lady Jane.
Treason, enemies, lies and deception surround them. Jane must give everything to save them both, as well as Rathborne.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

THE GRIM REAPER CONTINUES TO HANG OUT IN KILLAMAN FALLS!

The dynamic . . . well, maybe mismatched, mystery solving duo of journalistic witch Emmalyst Whichur and dashing werewolf Connor Wolfe are back on the case when a self-aggrandizing designer of women’s apparel is found strangled under strange circumstances. Strange because he was strangled twice. And there’s a chance that a werewolf is the murderer.

Or not. The more digging Lyst and Connor do, the more likely it appears that Saltikoff Pharmaceuticals is behind the murder. Could be Lyst’s recently resurfaced biological father did the hit.

Could be Brisco Abernathy’s husband, Kenedy Zahn, did it.

With Abernathy’s celebrity status driving things, journalists throng to the mountain, among them two former colleagues of Lyst’s. Ones she definitely sees as rivals even if she’s between jobs, still dealing with her late aunt’s estate.

Considering Zahn is a hunter with a pack of dogs, there should be plenty of canines for Connor to interview, except the most recently acquired hounds greet him with threats to rip his throat out. Definitely not the type of welcome he’s ever received from mutts at any time in his 170 years.

Dire circumstances are ahead! Lyst and Connor have solved two previous murders in record time, but can they work the same miracle a third time?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Competitive, work-obsessed Bella Simonetti has just been fired from her high-paying job at a Manhattan law firm. At an all-time low, she returns home and helps her parents at their small-town gift shop, but the business is failing and may not make it past the Christmas holidays.
Successful landscape architect Dean Jackson is like a son to Bella’s parents. But he’s a persistent annoyance to her—he seems to have forgotten his unforgivable blunder thirteen years earlier.
When Bella transforms her parents’ gift shop into a cookie cottage, Dean’s generosity and magnetic smile are hard to resist, and those feelings of unrequited adolescent love come rushing back. But can Bella let go of the past and accept Dean for the man he is today?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Looking for a Happily Ever After? How about fourteen of them?! Romancing the Holidays, Volume 2 is a collection of romantic short stories all with the happy ending you crave. Genres include: contemporary, historical, paranormal, romantic suspense and young adult.

And what better time to find romance than during the holidays? Escape into these Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s Eve, Three Kings Day and Valentine’s Day adventures, and swoon anew with each couple as they fall in love.

Proceeds from this anthology benefit First Coast Romance Writers, a non-profit chapter of Romance Writers of America that helps writers hone their craft and expand their knowledge of the publishing industry.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How far would you go to find love?

Sami and Jimmy have devoted their lives to uniting couples across time. Women, whose search for happiness eludes them, pin their hopes on the promise of a perfect match in the past.

But someone is watching. And he isn’t following the rules.

As Sami and Jimmy near completion of their contract, disaster strikes a third time. They seek guidance from predecessors long dead, only to uncover dark facets of a process they once believed in. Are they truly doing these women a favor by sending them back, or are they meddling with a fate not meant to be?

As the clock ticks down, they find their own relationship in jeopardy. Can this menace be stopped before he eliminates their future happiness?

Time will tell.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Trell Langois escapes a thousand-year-old curse. Being trapped as a tree wasn’t on her bucket list, but now she can continue as a healer. Traveling with her dragon, Torkel, she seeks out new cures to help others and meets Gren. An unfortunate soul who suffers from a dreadful disease.

Gren Oyg Har is a prince on a mission. In order to rule his father’s kingdom, he must find a healer. Not just any healer, mind you, but one with a dragon. Yet, it is Trell who finds and rescues Gren, but wants nothing more to do with him. If not for Torkel, she would leave him behind.

Separate goals soon become entangled, and both Trell and Gren are on their way to falling in love until secrets better kept hidden become known–and threaten to destroy all they hold dear.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pre-Ordere here: Amazon

First grade teacher Desiree Tucker is on the brink of winter holidays with her new, romantic boyfriend when danger encroaches on her joy. Ominous, untraceable texts buzz on her cell phone. Terrifying secret Santa gifts show up for her in the classroom. As the stalker moves closer to the prey, Desiree doesn’t know who she can trust. Her charming new man is a prime suspect. Is he a deadly stalker? If not him, who? What can she learn from the legend of the snow kiss cookie? Just when she’s starting to believe in magic again, she finds herself fighting for her life.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

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#HobbyCareerPassion: Maria Imbalzano ~ Baking May Not Be My Forte, But I Love It! & New Release: Red Velvet Crinkles and Christmas Sprinkles #WRPgrp #Blog #AHAgrp

Welcome to my weekly feature where authors share about the hobbies, careers, or passions of their characters.

I’m pleased to introduce today’s guest, Maria Imbalzano…

Baking May Not Be My Forte, But I Love It!   I’ve always hated to cook, but I love to bake. The reason is simple: I have a sweet-tooth and licking the bowl, beaters, spoon or spatula is far superior than tasting some sauce or chicken and veggie concoction. Every year during the holidays, my mom, daughters and I bake Christmas cookies. When my mom was in charge, they all came out perfectly. We made butter balls, chocolate walnut, chocolate chip and kiefle (a square of thin pastry dough stuffed with a nut mixture, lekvar or apricot jam). While my mom, who is now 94, still supervises, she doesn’t jump in and help. Unfortunately, my cookies never come out as good as hers did, and after a few years I gave up on the kiefle. My dough was never thin enough and I didn’t have the patience to keep rolling it out after it stuck to the rolling pin or cutting board. The problem with my baking in general is that I’m a little casual with quantities. My mother, daughters and husband have all commented on my methods of measuring water, flour, sugar etc. and my response to anything that doesn’t come out quite right is “oh well.” My heroine, Bella, in “Red Velvet Crinkles and Christmas Sprinkles” has a little bit of me in her. She’s a lawyer who lost her job in Manhattan and returns home to Princeton over the holidays to regroup. She learns that her parents’ gift shop in town is failing and she comes up with the idea to turn it into a cookie cottage. Her parents bristle at the idea at first, but realize they may not have a business if they don’t change. In an effort to bolster the new cookie cottage during the holidays, Bella suggests that her father video her and her mom baking—with Bella making all kinds of mistakes. These videos will be posted on TikTok in an effort to reach a broader audience. In order to write this scene, I researched common mistakes in baking – most of which I make. Who knew there was a proper technique for measuring flour? Apparently, you spoon it into the measuring cup instead of dipping the measuring cup into the flour bag, because no one wants excess flour causing a crumbly cookie. And too much sugar makes cookies brittle. You wouldn’t want others to break their teeth on over-sweetened treats. Not thoroughly creaming the butter and sugar results in flat, dense cookies instead of the more appealing light and fluffy ones. Not chilling the dough when called for means the batter will spread quickly and aggressively once in the oven. Presumably no one wants an aggressive cookie. And the mortal sin of baking—using liquid measuring cups to measure dry ingredients. Or vice versa. So much to learn. Perhaps Bella and I will take heed. Perhaps not. But one thing is for sure. “Red Velvet Crinkles and Christmas Sprinkles” is a heartwarming holiday romance that will squeeze your heart and make you smile. And it might even make you head to the kitchen to make Christmas cookies.

Maria’s cookies in Santa Plate

Find the recipe here: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/231745/red-velvet-crinkle-cookies/    Blurb: Competitive, work-obsessed Bella Simonetti has just been fired from her high-paying job at a Manhattan law firm. At an all-time low, she returns home and helps her parents at their small-town gift shop, but the business is failing and may not make it past the Christmas holidays. Successful landscape architect Dean Jackson is like a son to Bella’s parents. But he’s a persistent annoyance to her—he seems to have forgotten his unforgivable blunder thirteen years earlier. When Bella transforms her parents’ gift shop into a cookie cottage, Dean’s generosity and magnetic smile are hard to resist, and those feelings of unrequited adolescent love come rushing back. But can Bella let go of the past and accept Dean for the man he is today?  Excerpt:  “I agree with Dean. Barb’s Gift Cottage has been in Princeton for thirty years. You don’t decide one day to revamp the entire business. Get rid of the old, make way for the new. It doesn’t make any sense to me.” Bella bit her tongue before responding, reminding herself to stay cool. “Okay. I’m open to anything. Let’s talk about your ideas to stay afloat.” She sat, poised with her pad in front of her, pen in hand. Silence. She looked directly at her dad first, eyebrow arched. “I’m listening.” Then she scanned over to Dean. Her gaze moved up to his eyes—sea green in the harsh kitchen light but beautiful just the same. His gaze locked with hers and held her hostage— an unwilling prisoner to his warden. All ire morphed into a swirling eddy of primal lust, and she felt herself disappearing into his aura. She needed to save herself as well as her ego. Fighting the pull, she surfaced, blinking to clear her eyes, inhaling to bring her back to the present. She disconnected and glanced at her parents. Had they noticed she’d been missing? The smallest smile quirked Dean’s lips—surely acknowledging her lapse into Dean-land. She reached for the annoyance she’d let slip from her grasp and pulled it back into her arsenal. Buy links:  Amazon https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09FYVGDWR Barnes and Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/red-velvet-crinkles-and-christmas-sprinkles-maria-imbalzano/1140147130?ean=2940162321644 Apple https://books.apple.com/us/book/red-velvet-crinkles-and-christmas-sprinkles/id1585527197   About Maria: Maria Imbalzano is a retired matrimonial lawyer who now writes full time. Instead of drafting motions, legal memoranda, and briefs, although fascinating, she now spends her days creating memorable characters and taking them on their emotional journeys through her contemporary romance novels. Her novel, “Unchained Memories,” won the Wisconsin Romance Writers Write Touch Readers’ Award and the ACRA Readers’ Choice Heart of Excellence Award. “Sworn to Forget,” the first of the four-book Sworn Sisters Series was a finalist for the illustrious RONE award as well as the Book Buyers Best Award. Two of her novellas, “The Blueberry Swirl Waltz” and “A Song For Another Day” won first place awards in their categories in the NEST (National Excellence in Story Telling) contest. Both of these novellas were also finalists for the Beverley Award. Visit Maria at http://www.mariaimbalzano.com Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/mariaimbalzanoauthor Twitter http://www.twitter.com/mariaimbalzano @mariaimbalzano Instagram: Mariaimbalzano_author Blog Link http://www.mariaimbalzano.com/category/blog/ Website Link http://www.mariaimbalzano.com Goodreads Author Page https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7276749.Maria_Imbalzano Book Bub Profile page https://www.bookbub.com/profile/maria-imbalzano Mailing List Sign Up form https://mariaimbalzano.com/sign-up-for-my-newsletter/ Amazon Author Page https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00FG9RI5K  

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Filed under Author Blog Post, For Writers, Hobbies...Careers...Passions, New Release

Author Interview with Wendy Rich Stetson ~ New Release: Hometown ~ #AHAgrp #WRPbks

Please help me welcome today’s guest, Wendy Rich Stetson…

Good morning, Wendy, thank you for joining me. Please tell us a little about yourself, where are you from? Where do you live now? Family? Pets?

I’m a city girl with a hometown heart.  I grew up in Central Pennsylvania, the setting of my Hearts of the Ridge series, but I’ve lived in New York City for over 25 years.  Although I’m a wee bit scared of heights, I live on the 16th floor of a high-rise in Upper Manhattan with my husband, teenage daughter, and very naughty Maine Coon kitty. 

 Where did you get the idea for Hometown?

I guess you could say Oprah made me do it!  Just out of acting school and twiddling my thumbs while I waited for the phone to ring, I saw an episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show featuring romance writers.  “I could do that,” I thought, every bit as naïve as I was to think a starring role on Broadway would land on my doorstep, wrapped in shiny paper and tied up with a satin bow.  Still, inspired by those Oprah writers with the often-heard advice to “write what I knew” I came up with a simple premise: what would happen if a girl moved back to her hometown in Pennsylvania and fell in love with an Amish guy.  Twenty years and endless edits later, Hometown is now in the hands of readers.

Do you have another occupation, other than writer? If so, what is it and do you like it? 

I’m a professional actress, audiobook narrator, and theater teaching artist.  I’ve played saucy maids, longsuffering spinsters, and quirky leading ladies on and off-Broadway and at regional theaters around the country. I’ve worn no makeup onscreen with some of Hollywood’s most gorgeous stars, and Rick Sordelet (Broadway’s premier fight director) once told me I drove a cop car as well as any stunt woman.  I love what I do, and I’m so excited about the reopening of theaters around the country. 

Do you collect anything?

Like many redheads, I’m a huge fan of the Anne of Green Gables series by L.M. Montgomery.  I collect early editions of her books and display them in my office for inspiration. 

What was your first job?

As an actor, I’ve had a lot of odd jobs to make ends meet.  When I moved to New York, one of my first jobs was helping legendary children’s book author R.L. Stine answer his fan mail just as the Goosebumps series was taking the world by storm.  It was extremely important to Mr. Stine that all the fans who took time to write to him got letters in response.  Though I write in a completely different genre, he remains a big inspiration.

What do you want readers to come away with after they read Hometown? 

Through Tessa’s journey in Hometown, the reader grapples with how two people from vastly different backgrounds can create a life together.  Each book in my Hearts of the Ridge Series is a love story between an Amish and a non-Amish character and explores what happens when differing cultures mingle, clash, and ultimately merge.  Themes of forgiveness, self-acceptance, and the healing power of love run through all three stories.  When she turns that final page, I want my reader to feel all those things…and that along with Tessa, she’s finally come home. 

What actors would you like in the main roles if your book were made into a movie?

Oh, this one’s easy!  Debra Messing would play Tessa Meadows, Patrick Dempsey would play Dr. Richard Bruce, and Sam Heughan would play Jonas Rishel.  Dream team!

What genre have you never written that you’d like to write?

I’m dying to write a middle grade ghost story with just the right amount of creep factor.  I’ve just started playing with some ideas, and I’m super excited to give it a whirl.

What is your favorite quote?

I love the JRR Tolkein quote, “Even the smallest person can change the course of the future.”  It just fills me with hope.  And he and I share the same birthday.

Are your characters based off real people or did they all come entirely from your imagination?

As a tall, curly-haired redhead, I see some of myself in Tessa, but she is braver and ultimately more generous than I am.  Her best friend Jenn is definitely inspired by my spunky college roommate of the same name.  All the rest of the characters are entirely made up. 

What do your friends and family think of your writing?

I was so lucky that my parents were incredibly supportive of all my artistic endeavors.  They always told me to do what I loved and to do my very best.  These days, my daughter is my biggest fan.

 

Wonderful interview, Wendy. You’ve led a very interesting life.  Thanks again for joining me!

 

When Tessa’s big-city plans take the A Train to disaster, she lands in her sleepy hometown, smack in the middle of the most unlikely love triangle ever to hit Pennsylvania’s Amish Country.

Hot-shot Dr. Richard Bruce is bound to Green Ridge by loyalty that runs deep. Deeper still is Jonas Rishel’s tie to the land and his family’s Amish community. Behind the wheel of a 1979 camper van, Tessa idles at a fork in the road. Will she cruise the superhighway to the future? Or take a slow trot to the past and a mysterious society she never dreamed she’d glimpse from the inside?

 Excerpt:

The girl entwined her fingers in her skirt and tugged the fabric tight. “Your hair is the same color as my cat, and she’s the best cat in the world.” In a heartbeat, she fled and buried her face in the man’s lap.

“My goodness.  What a compliment.  Thank you.” She fumbled with the clasp of her wallet, discovering only then she smooshed her thumb deep into the whoopie pie.

The elfin child giggled and bounced on bare toes.

Standing, the man swept her into his arms and smiled down at Tessa. “Rebecca has not seen many women with ginger hair.”

Ginger hair. For years, she was tormented by boneheaded boys shouting, “Carrot Top” and “Flame.” No one ever called her mane ginger. Beneath his candid gaze, her curls heated like embers, warming her from top to toe. Who was this man?

The girl wriggled, knocking askew his straw hat.

He tossed her under one arm like a sack of flour and righted it, loosening a tawny curl that escaped the wide brim and fell over one brow. His gaze passed over Tessa’s face.  

Her unruly hair and short shorts tweaked at her consciousness. What did the Amish call outsiders? English? She was definitely dressed like an English woman. And not one from a Jane Austen novel.

He deposited the giggling girl right-side up on the floor and approached the table. “I’ve rarely seen hair that color myself. Like a copper penny.”

She stared at the mangled whoopie pie and blushed even deeper. For a brief moment, she felt his gaze trail down her body like a caress. Or did she?

 Buy links:

Amazon  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B097NVNFDF/

Barnes and Noble

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/hometown-wendy-rich-stetson/1139719240

Apple

https://books.apple.com/us/book/hometown/id1573329404

Kobo

https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/hometown-11

Google Play

https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Wendy_Rich_Stetson_Hometown?id=JSo7EAAAQBAJ&hl=en_US&gl=US

About Wendy:

Wendy Rich Stetson is a New York City girl who still considers the Central Pennsylvania countryside to be her home.  She grew up road tripping in a 1979 VW camper van, and she keeps a running list of favorite roadside attractions from coast to coast.  Now an author of sweet, small-town romance, Wendy is no stranger to storytelling.  She’s a Broadway and television actress, an audiobook narrator, and a mom who likes nothing more than collaborating on children’s books with her teenage artist daughter.  Wendy lives in Upper Manhattan with her family of three and rambunctious Maine Coon kitty.  Follow Wendy’s journey at www.wendyrichstetson.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/StetsonRiches

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WendyRichStetsonRomance

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wendyrichstetson_author/?hl=en

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58504083-hometown?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=Svcjev2iMD&rank=1

 

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Author Interview with  Susie Black ~ Death by Sample Size, a Cozy Mystery #AHAgrp #WRPbks

Please help me welcome today’s guest, Susie Black…

Good morning, Susie…Please tell us a little about yourself, where are you from?

I grew up in the greater Los Angeles area.

Where do you live now?

Now I live in Palm Desert, California, close to Palm Springs. 

Tell us about your family.

I am married, have one adult son, and a younger brother and sister.

Pets?

No, regrettably after our last dog passed away, it was too painful to get another one.

Where did you get the idea for Death by Sample Size?

I got the idea of Death by Sample Size after a challenging meeting with a difficult buyer and visualized murdering her.

Why did you choose this genre (is it something you’ve written in before)?

This was the first book I’ve written in this genre. I chose this genre because it is the one I read and enjoy the most. I love to solve puzzles, I am curious and ask a lot of questions…some say I am nosy, LOL.

Was there anything unusual, any anecdote about this book, the characters, title, process, etc, you’d like to share?

I am an apparel sales exec and all my stories take place in the LA garment center. I keep a daily journal chronicling the quirky people I’ve encountered as well as the crazy situations I’ve been in. The journal is the core of my research and is the foundation of all I write. All of the characters I write about are based on real people. I enjoyed re-creating these real people into characters that were my image of them.

What is the most difficult thing about writing a book?

The most difficult part of writing a book was being careful not to change the point of view. I write in the first person, so if the main character wasn’t in the room, she  couldn’t comment on what happened since she wasn’t there. I had to create a group of women called the yentas to fill the main character in on things she had not witnessed on her own.

What was the most difficult thing about this one in particular?

The most difficult part of writing this one in particular was to have enough believable red herrings to throw the reader off. So far, no one has figured out whodunit.

Would you rather have a bad review or no review?

I would rather have a bad review than no review. I write for an audience, not for myself. If you don’t get a review, you have no way to gauge where you shined or where you need to improve.

What is your favorite quote?

“When the going gets tough, the tough get going.”

What do you want your tombstone to say?

WHODUNIT??

What is the toughest criticism given to you as an author?

If you can say it in five words, the author says it in ten.

What has been the best compliment?

The book was so well-written, you’d never know it was the author’s debut publication.

Who is your favorite author and what is it that really strikes you about their work?

The late great Joan Hess. I love her irreverence, her sarcasm, her wit, her ability to poke fun at the society she grew up and lived her life in by caricaturing it.

 

Thanks for joining me. Ha, love the tombstone answer. :D. Please tell us about your book.

Everyone wanted her dead…but who actually killed her?

Blurb:

The last thing swimwear sales exec Holly Schlivnik expected was to discover ruthless buying office big wig Bunny Frank’s corpse trussed up like a Thanksgiving turkey with a bikini stuffed down her throat. When Holly’s colleague is arrested for Bunny’s murder, the wise-cracking, irreverent amateur sleuth jumps into action to find the real killer. Nothing turns out the way Holly thinks it will as she matches wits with a wily killer hellbent on revenge.

Excerpt:

When the elevator doors opened, I had to stop myself short not to step on her. There was Bunny Frank-the buying office big shot-lying diagonally across the car. Her legs were splayed out and her back was propped against the corner. Her sightless eyes were wide open and her arms reached out in a come-to-me baby pose. She was trussed up with shipping tape like a dressed Thanksgiving turkey ready for the oven with a bikini stuffed in her mouth. A Gotham Swimwear hangtag drooped off her lower lip like a toe tag gone lost. Naturally, I burst out laughing.

Before you label me incredibly weird or stone-cold, let me say genetics aren’t all they’re cracked up to be. If you’re lucky you inherit your Aunt Bertha’s sexy long legs or your father’s ability to add a bazillion dollar order in his head and get the total correct to the last penny. Without even breaking into a sweat, it’s easy to spout at least a million fabulous traits inheritable by the luck of the draw. Did I get those sexy long legs or the ability to add more than two plus two without a calculator? Noooooooooo. Lucky me. I inherited my Nana’s fear of death we overcompensated for with the nervous habit of laughing. A hysterical reaction? Think Bozo the clown eulogizing your favorite aunt.

I craned my neck like a tortoise and checked around. Then I clamped a fist over my mouth. Cripes, how could I possibly explain my guffaws with Bunny lying there? The disappointment was simultaneously mixed with relief when there was no one else in the parking lot. Where was security when you needed them?

I toed the elevator door open and bent over Bunny. I’d seen enough CSI episodes to know not to touch her. She was stiff as a board and I attributed the bluish tinge of her skin to the bikini crammed down her throat. I was no doctor, but I didn’t need an MD after my name to make this diagnosis. Bunny Frank was dead as the proverbial doorknob.

It was no surprise Bunny Frank had finally pushed someone beyond their limits. The only surprise was it had taken so long. The question wasn’t who wanted Bunny Frank dead. The question was who didn’t?

Buy link(s):

Amazon

barnesandnoble

Book Bub

goodreads

Googleplay

itunes

kobo

Target

About Susie:

Born in the Big Apple, Susie Black now calls sunny Southern California home. Like the protagonist in her Holly Swimsuit Mystery Series, Susie is a successful apparel sales executive. Susie began telling stories as soon as she learned to talk. Now she’s telling all the stories from her garment industry experiences in humorous mysteries.

She reads, writes, and speaks Spanish, albeit with an accent that sounds like Mildred from Michigan went on a Mexican vacation and is trying to fit in with the locals. Since life without pizza and ice cream as her core food groups wouldn’t be worth living, she’s a dedicated walker to keep her girlish figure. A voracious reader, she’s also an avid stamp collector. Susie lives with a highly intelligent man and has one incredibly brainy but smart-aleck adult son who inexplicably blames his sarcasm on an inherited genetic defect.

Contact links:

Twitter

Linkedin

Pinterest

Facebook

Instagram

Susie has a giveaway for each of you… CLICK HERE to get your FREE copy of her Swimwewar Fit Guidebook.

 

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Filed under Author Blog Post, giveaway, New Release