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I am happy to announce the WINNER of Cait O’Sullivan’s random blog drawing…R.T. Wolfe!  She has won an ebook copy of ROMANCING THE SEAS and a choice of any of my titles (click on ‘BOOKS’ to see the entire list – NOTE: Lady in the Mist is only available on the Kindle at this time).

Congratulations, R.T.!

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I am pleased to introduce author, Cait O’Sullivan…Welcome, Cait!

Hi Alicia, thanks so very much for having me on your blog today! I’m really rather excited as my debut novel, Romancing the Seas, is released tomorrow 🙂 Happy Days!

I am delighted to have you, and so glad that it coincides with your release. Thank you for traveling all the way from the U.K. to guest on my blog. Now, my readers would like to learn a little more about you…

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

Lord of the Rings. The Hobbit. Fat Chance. No that’s not a book, just a statement LOL.

I’ve never read the Lord of the Rings books, but only because fantasy isn’t my thing. However, it takes a brilliant writer to come up with a story like taht, and to write it so well.

What do you love that most people don’t like and wouldn’t understand why you do?

The rain 🙂  I know some people who when the sun shines it gives them a new lease of life. For me, it’s the rain. If it’s raining outside, I get my house clean, I work well and I enjoy my walks outside too. It was Roger Miller who said ‘Some people feel the rain, others just get wet’. I am Irish though, so I guess if I didn’t like the rain, I would never have gotten anything done when growing up! Although I have met a fellow author who likes rain too.

I LOVE the rain. Rain makes me feel content, excited, energized. I love that quote by Roger Miller. I’d never heard it.

What’s the main thing that you could get rid of in your life that would give you more writing time?

Housework and cooking. If I had a housekeeper, now that’d be just perfect!

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

Fantasy, definitely! I’m even thinking of giving it a go, too.

I think you should. As much as you love it, you would probably be very good at it.

If you were stranded on a deserted island and you could have 3 (inanimate) objects, what would they be?

iPod and speakers, kindle and a laptop. Although where does the electricity come from?! I guess the first thing would be a book on how to make energy on a desert island, then my ipod and speakers (counting that as one, that’s okay, right?) and a laptop/desktop.

LOL. This is a ‘fantasy’ wish, so I’ll give you electricity.

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

Aragorn. Not Viggo Mortenson, but Aragorn. Yummy. I’m really looking forward to this desert island now, sounds heavenly. When can I go?

Trust me, if I knew the answer to that, I’d be there, too. Not the same island, though, we’d each have our own. I would not say no to Viggo. Since I’m not acquainted with Aragorn, I can’t judge you.

Thank you so much, Cait. I enjoyed visiting with you. Best of luck on your release.

 

Blurb:

Sous-chef Pippa Renshaw thinks a change of scene will mend a bruised heart, so she swaps her job in a prestigious London restaurant to head-chef on a cruise ship sailing around New Zealand. A great plan until she meets her new CEO, the delectable Jonathon Eagleton, and discovers she has to share a suite with him.

Even though sparks fly whenever they are together, Jonathon steadfastly keeps her at arm’s length, which suits Pippa just fine because she’s still getting over the betrayal of the last time she had a relationship with the boss.

The situation is starting to feel like solitary confinement until a thunderstorm traps them in a tramper’s hut while hiking. Suddenly a different kind of storm unleashes inside the hut.

But will they be able to go back to their previous status now the line has been crossed?

Excerpt

As they entered the small canteen, a babble of noise greeted them, and Fiona stood on her tiptoes to look around and waved to someone she spotted. “Come and meet my boyfriend, David. He’s the head chef for the Chinese restaurant, and the steakhouse.”

David stood as the girls arrived. “Hello, Pippa, I’m pleased to meet you. Do let me know if there’s anything I can do to help you settle in.” He slipped an arm around Fiona’s waist. “Hey, sweetheart, have you heard who’s on board yet?”

“No?” Fiona glanced at Pippa, eyebrows raised.

“Well … ” said David, teasingly drawing it out. “You’ll know the daughter from all the celebrity magazines you buy. Our new, esteemed CEO is wining and dining her family.”

“Who is it?” demanded Fiona.

“It’s the Stevensons, from Stevenson Hotels!”

Fiona shrieked. “I don’t believe it, no way, not on board here! How cool! Is Juliet here?”

Juliet Stevenson, the heiress, was always gracing the magazines with her nonchalant style and not-so-nonchalant escapades.

David nodded.

“Wow,” breathed Fiona, yet to return to earth. “I can’t wait to see her. I wonder what she’ll be wearing.”

So that was who Jonathon was going to be entertaining. Good luck to him. Juliet was, if the magazines were anything to go by, notoriously high maintenance. Oh God. What if he had plans to entertain her in the suite they were sharing? She could just imagine coming in after her shift, greeted by low lights, sultry music, and him moving in for a kiss. Could this get any worse?

“Onto even more exciting things.” David leaned across the table with a gleam in his eyes. “I hear you’ve got some great accommodation, Pippa!”

Pippa opened her mouth to answer when she heard a commotion at the door. One of the commis chefs she’d met earlier in Corals kitchen came in, calling for her.

“I’m here,” she called, nerves starting anew.

“Hi,” he called, and made his way over, stopping to say hi to a few people on the way as Pippa’s heart skipped several beats. “I’ve a message for you from Mr. Eagleton. He’s having the Stevensons to dinner in the executive dining room and wants you to cook.”

Pippa stared at him. “What, tonight?”

“He wants to meet you in the kitchen now.”

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Romancing the Seas is now available for pre-order from Amazon.

Learn more about Cait:
FACEBOOK – Come by and ‘like’ me to stay updated with my news.
TWITTER
WEBSITE/BLOG

 12 Authors – 12 Books

FREE on Kindle December 25 & December 26:

(Click on the covers to order the books from Amazon)

FBI agent and psychologist investigate the murder of an FBI recruit and come face to face with the victim’s spirit

Historical Romance

Erotic Paranormal Romance

When the kink most forbidden is the monster that satisfies.

A psychology student takes a job caring for a mentally unstable young man on a remote coastal island and becomes embroiled in a deadly mystery

Her daughters wanted a daddy…She wanted her old life back…All he wanted was the three of them…

The duke fired the annoying governess; his mother re-hired her as a companion. Now she’s driving him crazy.

Contemporary Romance

A broken promise has consequences… (NOTE: The Dream Jumper’s Promise is free through December 27)

Payback is a bitch

Best friends turn into deadly enemies for the love of one woman

After her patrician husband sells her to a fate worse than death, Aelia must learn that in Amalfi you live by your heart, not by Rome’s laws

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Enjoy!

Feel free to leave a comment if you’d like. We love hearing from readers.

I am very honored to present a dear friend who also happens to be a wonderful author. I met her online years ago and had the privilege of meeting her face to face this past October. She was so much fun…such a delight, even more so than I expected. Now, you can meet her too. Without further ado…the fabulous Desiree Holt…

First of all, a huge thank you to Alicia for hosting me today. I hope you’ve read every one of her books. I have and they are truly fabulous.

What happens when you get seven wild and crazy erotic authors together with unlimited chocolate wine and whipped cream vodka? You come up with a series and an event. The event? The Sassy Seven Naughty Sleepover, the ultimate girls night out weekend. When? February 22-24 at the historic Menger Hotel in San Antonio, Texas. What do we have? How about hilarious erotic games? A Dom and his sub? Male dancers? An adult toys party.  Prizes galore and loads of laughs. All for the attending erotic authors and readers. Where can you find out about it?

www.sassyseven.com/naughty-sleepover. Go on. Take a peek! You won’t be sorry.

One of our first ventures as The Sassy Seven was a series called Toys 4 Us, about seven women who attended an adult toys party and what happened afterwards.

My contribution? Bound and Determined. Hope you’ll enjoy this taste enough to read the entire story. OH, wait! The entire series. As well as our Naughty Sleepover series that takes place at the Menger.

Blurb:

Alix Townsend, uptight, high-powered litigation attorney, has a wild side she rarely unleashes. Deep inside, beneath her tailored suits and frosty image, beats the heart of a woman who dreams of the kinkiest kinds of sex. Preferably with her next door neighbor,  Mack Taylor. Relaxing on her patio after a wild girls only weekend, she opens the bag of sex toys she purchased at her friend Petra’s birthday party. And who’s there to see it? None other than hot hunk Mack. Who promptly invites her over for dinner–and the night. Along with her toys. After a hot weekend Alix knows things will never be the same for her again, but is Mack in it for the long haul or just for the incendiary sex?

Excerpt:

Taking a sip of her wine, she set the glass on the concrete next to her, lifted the pink bag into her lap and began to take out the contents. Everyone had made their individual choices in private with Gianna. For Alix, her goodie bag contained two new dildos–one pink, one purple, nipple clips, lotion to stimulate her nipples and clit, a tiny butterfly clit vibrator and just for giggles, a pair of fleece-lined leather handcuffs. Not that she’d ever have a chance to use them, but she could dream, right?

“Those look interesting,” a deep voice drawled. “Planning to demonstrate them?”

Startled, Alix jerked at the voice, spilling the toys everywhere and knocking over her wine.

“Damn,” she swore and looked over to see her neighbor, Mackenzie “Mack” Taylor, leaning on the fence that divided their yard and grinning at her.

“You didn’t answer my question. Should I get a beer and settle down for the show.”

Heat crept up her face and Alix knew she blushed furiously. Damn it all anyway. Mack Taylor was one very fine specimen of man. Well over six feet tall, his body was lean and hard-muscled, and well on display since at the moment he only wore a pair of cutoffs. Dark hair worn just to his shoulders framed a rough-jawed face and accented the thick lashes that framed hazel eyes. The same dark hair was sprinkled liberally over his chest, arrowing down past his abs and disappearing in the waistband of his shorts.

Alix’s mouth watered at the site of him. She wanted to lick every delicious inch of his exposed skin.

Down, girl. I really do need to get out more.

She also wanted to run into the house and hide. Of all people to see her new playthings. She and Mack had been neighbors for two years, but they’d never done more than chat over the fence or in the driveway. There was definitely some chemistry between them but nothing either of them had ever indicated a desire to act on.

They were each busy with their own lives. She knew he was single and worked for the DEA, many times on an undercover assignment. Sometimes he’d be gone for weeks at a time. And she was always busy with one high profile client or another. Her big secret was that he had a starring role in some of her over-the-top fantasies and each time she saw him it was harder and harder to remain casual.

Like now.

Especially with his interest in her little pink bag of toys. Not that she wouldn’t like a chance to try them out with him. She ducked her head in case her thoughts were written on her face.

“It’s…nothing for you to look at,” she stammered, pressing the Velcro tab on the bag closed and setting it on the ground beside her chair. She needed to get something to clean up the spilled wine, but somehow she couldn’t make herself move. Her body seemed disconnected from her brain.

“You look like you need a little help,” Mack teased. “Hang on.”

He vaulted lightly over the fence, pulling a rag from his back pocket as his feet touched the lawn and jogged over to where she was sitting. In seconds he had the wine blotted up and tossed the rag aside. Alix thought he’d say something else smartass then go back to his own yard, but instead he sat down on the side of her lounge chair, facing her.

“Thank you,” she told him. “I’m not usually so clumsy.”

“No problem.” His eyes landed on the pink bag next to her. “As my reward maybe you could show me all those goodies in that bag again.”

His grin could best be described as erotically lethal, she thought. Slightly crooked with–oh, god–a dimple at the left corner of his mouth. Reflexively she squeezed her thighs together. Unfortunately Mack noticed that tiny flexing of muscle and widened his grin. His big hand rested on her leg just below the knee, his fingers stroking lightly.

At once the air around them was charged with so much sexual electricity Alix wondered it didn’t incinerate them. From the look on Mack’s face she realized he felt it, too.

Uh oh.

http://www.amazon.com/Bound-and-Determined-Toys-4-Us-ebook/dp/B0062UD0FY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1355506770&sr=8-1&keywords=Bound+and+Determined+desiree+holt

Where can you find me?

www.desireeholt.com

www.desireeholttellsall.com

Facebook: desireeholtauthor

Twitter: @desireeholt

And you can follow me on Pinterest and LinkdIn, too.

Email me at desireeholt@desireeholt.com

First, thank you so much, Alicia, for having me on your blog today and giving me the opportunity to share my latest news!

You’re most welcome. You know you’re one of my favorite writers. I’m pleased to have you on my blog, and to help spread the word about your wonderful new book.

What made you decide to depart from your usual genre, and for a holiday story at that? What do you like most about Christmas Dance? What do you think will appeal to readers about it?

I love stories of romantic love. I love reading them and writing them, but for a while now, I’ve felt constrained by the formulaic nature of the romance genre, as defined by the industry (meaning the main story must revolve around the characters falling in love, there must be an emotionally satisfying/HEA ending, etc.). There are so many great love stories that don’t fit into the genre’s definitions: Gone with the Wind and Casablanca, just to name a couple. At the same time, I love exploring the intricacies of relationships, and the modern husband/wife relationship is one of the most complex. So many things can affect how happily that “ever after” becomes for a couple: finances, children, caring for elderly parents, whether one or both work outside the home. It’s easy (so easy) to become overwhelmed, to look at someone else who might offer what you find missing in your life, sometimes to the point that you decide to chuck what you have. I decided I wanted to write a story that acknowledges and tackles those challenges, and expresses love at the same time.

 Christmas Dance is about a man and a woman (each married to other people) who meet at a church dance during Christmas, and struggle against their attraction. I set it during Christmas, at a church, to put a laser beam on the moral issue, and because I like torturing my characters. 🙂

The story takes at least a glancing look at those thorny issues of marriage, like money (the power struggles, who makes it, who spends it), the way children take over your lives (if you let them), and how easy it is to miss the blessings right in front of us.

I think it’s unique because the “romance” is told from the perspective of “the other man” and ‘the other woman.” I think it will appeal to women (and possibly men) who may relate to what this woman and man experience.  Hopefully, in the end, it’s a story of hope and finding your way back to that HEA spark.

It is definitely unique. And gripping. I was drawn into these characters and their emotions and dilemma from the start. 

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

That when you’re unhappy in a committed relationship (marriage or otherwise), sometimes it helps to step back and do a mental role-reversal, try to see through your mate’s perspective. I don’t mean to imply that sometimes marriages/relationships simply don’t work for many, many reasons. I know far too many women who have stayed with a spouse/mate for financial reasons, or because of children, when leaving would have made their lives far better. But if that love, that spark, still exists, if there’s respect and honor on both sides, the relationship might be worth fighting for, and stepping outside the box of our own perceptions can help.

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

The Help by Kathryn Stockett. I’m awed not just by Stockett’s story-telling, but by the way she wrote each character’s voice, so unique and perfectly consistent, from beginning to end. I laughed, I cried, and by the time I finished, I felt like I’d made a couple new best friends. As a reader, what more could I ask?

Would you rather have a bad review or no review?

Can I say I’d rather have all good reviews? No, huh? 🙂 I suppose I’d have to say a bad review because you can learn from it, if it’s written with the intent of pointing out flaws as the reviewer sees them. My goal as a writer is to get better with each book, each story. So as much as they hurt, if the “bad” reviews are done honestly, I appreciate the lessons they bring. That’s presuming the reviewer knows what he/she is talking about though, and that’s not always the case! 🙂

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

Last Christmas, my office “adopted” a little girl to provide gifts from her mom and dad who were down on their luck, and all we knew about our little girl was her first name, her age, her clothing sizes, and that she loved princesses. Being the mother of two boys, I jumped on the chance to shop for a girl, especially one who liked princesses, and a bunch of women in the room jumped in too. Soon we had an accumulated a pile of clothes, dolls and toys that glittered and sparkled, but I thought it would be fun if we could do something personal for her. Since I work at a newspaper, in the newsroom (full of writers), I asked if we could write a story, design it on a front page (with a fun news headline), then print it out and frame it for her. Everyone said, “Sure, Leah, go right ahead.” So I wrote a story based on her name and enlisted the help of our page designer to add illustrations and put the page together, and someone else who has craft-y skills to frame it. (It looked wonderful!) The main character was a princess with our little girl’s name (of course), and there were fairies and even a young prince who becomes her friend. (I just can’t stop with the budding romances!) I had such a good time, I thought it would be fun to write children’s stories like that. Who knows, maybe someday I will!

I bet you will! What a fantastic story. How rewarding that must have been. Thank you again for being a guest on my blog. I enjoyed getting to know things about you that I didn’t before. Readers…rush out and get a copy of Christmas Dance…you won’t regret it. Wait…you don’t have to ‘rush out,’ you can get a copy right in the comfort of your home. 🙂

Blurb

Christmas Dance

Alexandra Anderson has a loving husband who provides for her every need, a beautiful home in the suburbs, and money to fulfill her slightest whim. But after a lonely childhood, what she wants more than anything is a baby, a family of her own. 

Sam Herrmann is married to his college sweetheart, and together they have three healthy, boisterous boys. Sam spends his days running numbers as a government accountant, and his nights and weekends trying to keep up with the grueling family schedule set by his wife – a wife he can barely remember.

 What happens when two married people take a look at the perfect lives they’ve created and decide it’s not enough? What happens when those same two people catch the eye of a stranger, and like what they see?

Excerpt:

Her voice had risen to something close to a shriek, and she knew she was perilously close to hysteria. Worse, she didn’t give a flying fuck.

“What the hell is wrong with you people? It’s Christmas! Supposedly a time of giving, joyfully, to others. Peace on earth, good will toward men, and all that horse hockey. Animals are God’s creatures, too. Open up your frickin’ wallets.”

That she’d managed to control the “f” word, at least to some extent, pleased her, despite the realization that she’d ranted herself far over the line of grace. If her own internal barometer hadn’t told her that, the screaming silence that met her outburst did. She gulped and viewed the group. Some frowned, looking even angrier than before she’d opened her mouth. Some averted their gazes, as if they’d been caught in the act of something foul and dirty. And others moved to escape, probably off to buy their own wrapping supplies.

“Good going, Alex,” her booth-buddy said. “You chased them away.” And she didn’t sound the least bit grateful.

Before Alex could respond, she heard a chuckle, low and sinful-sounding, from the back of the dwindling crowd, followed by, “Bravo. Well done.”

Her gaze raced to find the source, although she’d already recognized the voice. Then she found him. Sam Herrmann, leaning against a fake potted tree that dripped twinkling white lights that made him look like he was wearing a halo. He stood in a relaxed pose, his legs crossed at the ankles, his arms crossed over his chest, like he felt easy, and happy to be there. One of those half-smiles that did funny things to her stomach deepened the dimple on the right side of his face, and she felt her mouth curl in response.

Until she remembered what she’d just done, and what he’d just seen.

Oh Lord, he’d seen her melt down in the most un-Christian, ungracious manner, and he was laughing. At her. Shame nearly flattened her, and she slapped her palms to her face and said, “I am so sorry. I don’t know what’s come over me. I’ve never done anything like that.”

“We believe you, Alex. But why don’t you take off now? We’ll get someone to cover your shift. I’ve already placed the call for a replacement.” This from their shift leader, Ellie, an older woman who’d probably seen it all, although certainly not done it all, if Alex guessed correctly.

Alex removed her hands and attempted to smooth her face, tried to retrieve some of the dignity she’d had when she arrived that morning, then pivoted to face the booth. Ellie’s brows were scrunched in a frown, her mouth twisted at one corner, and she was breathing so fast little gusts of air were coming out of her nose like she was a bull getting ready to charge.

Another bubble of hysteria moved through Alex, but she managed to swallow it while she grabbed her purse from under the booth. “I am so sorry. I don’t know what’s come over me,” she said as she stood. “Maybe it would be best if I called it a day.”

She removed her wallet from the purse, thumbed through the bills she’d stuffed in there earlier, and pulled a couple out. “I hope this will help defray some of the trouble I’ve caused.” She passed the notes to Ellie, whose eyes rounded as if it had been million instead of a couple hundred.

“Thank you,” Ellie said, then paused as if debating what to say next. “That’s very generous of you, Alex.”

“Thank Ben. He makes the money.”

Alex hadn’t intended to make such a snarky remark, but there it was, the root of her marriage problems. Ben made the money and didn’t much care about anything else, except maybe looking like a good provider and righteous man.

Her head throbbed now, along with her neck and feet, and she could feel Sam Herrmann’s stare as surely as if he’d pointed a laser beam at her skull.

Figuring it was always better to meet a challenge head on, she turned, and there he was, closer than ever and looking as if he could eat her for lunch.

The air sucked from her lungs in one giant squeeze, and her heart dropped like it was on a one-way trip to hell.

Stop it! she scolded herself as she tried to force air back into her body. She was imagining things. The notion had been only frustration talking. Frustration, and disappointment that despite all the money, all the trappings of wealth, she wasn’t happy. Unhappy didn’t even cover it. Lonely. Miserable. Those might do. But that’s what she got for placing all her hopes on another human being, her husband, to bring her that happiness.

Everyone knew another person couldn’t make you happy. And if that’s what you were waiting for, you’d have a long wait.

Still, the lure of this new hope drew her, like a kid to a lit firecracker, and she found herself moving in his direction, one tentative step after another until they stood face to face, inches apart, so close she could see the dilation of his beautiful green eyes, the quickening of his breaths, as if she affected him the same way he affected her.

“What are you doing here, Sam?”

“I came for you.”  

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Christmas Dance

A story of love and marriage. A story of hope.

To learn more about Leah, please visit her on the web at www.LeahStJames.com, or catch up with her on Facebook, Pinterest, Goodreads (Leah St. James) or Twitter (@LeahStJames).

I was tagged by the talented Su Halfwerk for the ‘You’ve Got the Look’ blog game. (Su created my amazing book trailers for Death Notice and Death Offerings – she’s a genius)

You’re supposed to find the first use of the word ‘look’ in your WIP and provide an excerpt of the surrounding paragraphs. Below is mine from my very rough draft of Liberty Awakened – Isle of Fangs, Book 1.

I’m also VERY pleased to unveil my brand new cover created by Clary Carey:

Blurb:

Evil lurks beneath the surface in the beauty of the tropics…

After graduation from her small, Oklahoma high school, Liberty Delacort is looking forward to a fun-filled summer before college. But when the people she trusts the most betray her, and a letter arrives claiming her deceased father is still alive, she jumps at the chance to travel to an exotic island to meet him.

But her excitement is short-lived. In spite of its outward tranquility, the island is filled with danger and ominous secrets. The secrets soon begin to unravel, and she learns she is a descendant of Van Helsing, the vampire hunter.

The one up side is her budding romance with the sweet and sexy Ryan Chambers. But even that is threatened when—in spite of her fear of him—she finds herself attracted to a formidable vampire who is the only one with the ability to train her to fulfill her destiny—to save humans from a faction of vicious vampires.

Here’s an excerpt. It’s not a very exciting part of the story, but I had to go with the first use of ‘look’ – No vampires in this scene, darnit.

“Come on, babe.” Cam’s sandy brown hair flopped on his forehead, covering one of his gorgeous blue eyes. “I’ve waited a long time. You can’t keep doing this to me.”

Liberty bit her lip, torn between wanting to please him and knowing she wasn’t ready. “I-I can’t. I’m sorry. We said we’d wait.”

“We have waited.” A hard edge tinged the words. “But we graduated tonight. We’re adults now. We’ve been together four years. What’s the big deal?”

“I’m just not ready.”

His mouth turned down in a bitter frown. “I’m starting to wonder if you’ll ever be ready.”

Misery weighted her chest. “Me too.”

He grunted and shook his head. “I don’t get it. What are you waiting for?”

“I don’t know.”

But she did know. She’d read a romance once where the heroine said the hero’s touch made the blood rush to her head. Made her weak with desire. She couldn’t think straight when he touched her. Everything inside her cried out for him to make love to her. That was what Liberty wanted. If that ever happened to her, then she’d be ready. Yeah, sure. It was fiction. And she might die a virgin, but she wasn’t willing to give up on that dream. Not yet.

Cam ran a hand through his hair. He opened his mouth, but before he spoke, a loud crash like breaking glass sounded, followed by a male scream and female shrieks.

“What the hell?”

Cam ran into the living room, and Liberty rushed in behind him.

Dell Collona lay in a bed of broken beer bottles, writhing and screaming. Half a dozen people stood around him, mouths gaping open. The rest of the crowd seemed oblivious to the accident and continued partying.

Blood seeped from beneath Dell’s body. Liberty froze, covering her mouth with her hand to hold in a scream. Nausea cramped her stomach. Her legs went weak, and black spots danced before her eyes.

“For God’s sake, someone call 9-1-1.” Cam squatted beside Dell, gently rolling him to inspect his injuries.

Liberty couldn’t move. Her cell was in her pocket, but she couldn’t make her hands work.

Blood. She shuddered. The sight of blood terrified her, made her want to vomit, but she couldn’t seem to look away.

Voices rose around her.

What happened?

Evan dared him to dive into those beer bottles.

And he did it? What a dufus.

“Are you okay?” Her best friend, Alyssa, took her arm and gave it a shake. “Liberty, are you all right?”

Liberty nodded. “We need to-to call…”

“I called 9-1-1. They’re on their way.”

“Okay. Good.” Liberty found the willpower to turn away. She clutched her stomach and doubled over. I will not throw up. I will not throw up.

Alyssa rubbed her back. “It’s okay. He’ll be fine.”

How did she know? He might not be fine. He could die.

In moments, the sound of sirens penetrated her numbness. The front door flew open and two EMT’s entered, wheeling a gurney between them. Liberty didn’t turn around, didn’t want to watch as they treated Dell. As they wheeled him past her and out the door.

Once they were gone, guilt set in. What kind of friend was she? She hadn’t even called for help.

*****************************************************************************************

And, I am tagging…(All but Judy knew this was coming. Sorry, Judy…Love ya!)

Cait OSullivan

Patti Shenberger

Calisa Rhose

Kathy L Wheeler

Judy Ridgely

Valerie Clarizio!!! Her name was drawn at random, and she has won her choice of an ebook or print copy of Faere Fool. Congratulations, Valerie…enjoy! (If you would like, I’m sure Silver would love a review). Thanks to all who stopped by to comment.

Thanks for inviting me, Alicia. Today is an exciting day for me. It’s Launch Day for my new book, The Pilot, and you’re my first stop along The Pilot Launch Tour. The Pilot is the first of the Outer Rim novels. The Outer Rim is comparable to our 19th century Wild West. As on any frontier, women on the Rim have to be strong enough to make their own way without–sometimes in spite of–men. The Pilot is about cargo hauler, risk taker Celera d’Enfaden who must work with rule-bound official Trevarr Jovano to save her brother from a galactic gangster.

Sounds fascinating, Diane. Even though I’m not into Sci-Fi, you always pique my interest. Thank you so much for allowing me to be your launch spot for your tour. And thank you for taking the time to answer my questions so we can get to know more about you.

What do you love that most people don’t like and wouldn’t understand why you do?

I love science fiction and fantasy movies. My sisters think I’m nuts and my husband (who introduced me to Star Trek, btw) indulges me by taking me to see movies he doesn’t get (e.g., Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter). Fantasy stretches the imagination as does sci-fi. I think I like sci-fi best because it shows the possibilities for our future. I’m not crazy about dystopian movies even though I loved the Matrix series and I think my reason is the hope for mankind at the end.

I agree with your sisters, LOL. But, I guess the sci-fi fantasy thing is working for you. I am also not crazy about Dystopian movies. I find them a little depressing.

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

That they had a fun adventure and enjoyed a satisfying romance.

I’m sure you’ll deliver on both counts. You usually do.

If you were stranded on a deserted island and you could have 3 (inanimate) objects, what would they be?

My Kindle, fully loaded so I wouldn’t run out of things to read; a satellite phone to talk to my family, oh, and to call for rescue; and a solar-powered charger to keep both operating.

I think you cheated a little with the call for rescue thing, but I’ll allow it. <g>

Share with us your favorite…

Movie:  Star Wars IV, A New Hope (the very 1st movie)

Music:  oldies (1960’s)

Place you’ve visited:  Colorado

Place you’d like to visit:  Alaska

TV show from childhood:  Lunch with Soupy [Sales], a local kids’ program in Detroit

TV show from adulthood:  NCIS

Food:  seafood

Sports team:  Detroit Tigers

Which do you prefer: Board games/card games or television?  card games, esp. Cut Throat Rummy, a family favorite

Now, tell us a little about The Pilot…

Determined to bring order to the frontier, rule-bound official Trevarr Jovano refuses to tolerate those who disrespect the law. So when an indie pilot refuses to obey, he seizes her ship and cargo. If he backs down, he’ll lose respect. If Celara can’t deliver her cargo, she’ll default on her loan and lose the only home she’s ever known—her ship. In this excerpt, she’s at a tavern enjoying a drink with her friend who just praised him.

Sounds fantastic. Please share an excerpt:

Celara pushed her chair away from the table and climbed up on it. “Quiet down, you Rimmer scum.”

The patrons laughed then quieted. Someone paused the Seinfeld vid.

She lifted her drink again. “A toast, Rimmers. Let’s hear it for the wonderful, fantabulous, yada, yada, yada, Administrator Jovano. May he live long enough to enjoy good health.”

To her surprise, silence met her toast. No one raised their glasses or mugs, even in jest. Everyone was looking at her, standing on the chair.

No, they were looking past her. Only thing behind her was the door. Kleema groaned and buried her head on her arms on the table. Booted footsteps rapped on the rough-hewn plank floor then stopped behind her.

“Thank you for the compliments and the good wishes for my longevity.” The baritone-and-chokiris voice sounded just over her shoulder.

If ever there was a need for a personal cloaking device, it was now. Or a magic ring with which to disappear. Sec Admin Trevarr Jovano stood behind her. Waiting. She swore she could feel him breathing.

Undaunted, she turned around. As the room tipped, she reached for the back of the chair. “Whoa, those mudslides sneak up on you.”

Missing the chair, she grabbed the closest thing—Trevarr Jovano’s black-clad shoulders. Beneath her fingers, the strong muscles contracted. “Hey there, Admin Man. Heard my toast, did you?” She grinned down at him.

He wasn’t smiling. “You should sit down before you fall down. Or better yet, go home and sleep it off.”

A dark fury swept away the sweet tranquility of two, tall Kruferian mudslides. “I can’t go home, you snake. You stole my home.”

She swung a round-house punch at him, missed her objective and would have fallen ignominiously off the chair had he not caught her. For several long secs, he held her tightly against his chest, her feet dangling off the floor a good twenty-five centimeters. His green eyes caught hers and darkened.

The heat in the room rose ten degrees. Her heart tripped, the air leached out of her lungs. His eyes. She could drown in those green depths.

The Pilot is available at: http://amzn.com/B00AE6OH4K

See Diane’s website http://www.dianeburton.com/ for other retailers for The Pilot and Diane’s other books.

Bio:

Diane Burton combines her love of mystery, adventure, science fiction, and romance into writing romantic fiction. She’s a member of Romance Writers of America as well as the Mid-Michigan, Young Adult and Fantasy, Futuristic, & Paranormal RWA chapters. She is the author of the Switched series, about twins exchanging places—from Earth to a starship and the reverse. With The Pilot, she begins a new series about strong women on the frontier of space. She is also a contributor to the anthology How I Met My Husband. Diane and her husband live in Michigan. They have two children and two grandchildren.

Diane can be found around the Internet at:

website: www.dianeburton.com

blog: http://dianeburton.blogspot.com/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/dmburton72

Facebook: http://facebook.com/dianeburtonauthor

Goodreads: Diane Burton Author

I am pleased to introduce Silver James as my first ever guest blogger Not only is she a fantastic writer, she’s a great friend. Silver has come through for me in many, many pinches, and I’ll be forever grateful. I’ve had the privilege of reading the first two Faere books, and they were wonderful. Silver has a gift for weaving heart-pounding romance and nail-biting suspense into her uniquely creative paranormals. Can’t wait to read Faere Fool!

Take it away, Silver….

I don’t know whether to feel honored or like a guinea pig to be Alicia’s first guest blogger. I’ve known her for several years now and I’m lucky enough to get to call her friend. She offered me a lot of options but since I have a new book out, I figured I’d talk about how it came into existence.

FAERIE FOOL is the third book in my “series that isn’t a series” based on Celtic legends about reincarnation, soul mates, and the Irish fae known as the Tuatha de Danaan. The first two books, FAERIE FATE and FAERIE FIRE, introduce the reader to the world of Manannán mac Lir, the king of Tir Nan Óg, and the humans he’s taken special interest in. As faerie royalty, Manannán rules over the Land of Ever Young, the magical place where souls go to live happily ever after. Only sometimes, the humans aren’t all that happy to be there, stuck for the rest of time. They’ve left behind unfinished business. Or true love.

When I started writing FAERIE FATE, I knew there would be three books. FATE and FIRE almost wrote themselves and once they sold to The Wild Rose Press, they released within months of each other. While I knew FOOL would be Riordan MacDermot’s story, I didn’t know how the story would start, how it would evolve, or how it would end. I turned to other projects, writing two novellas for Wild Rose’s Class of ’85 anthology series. I wrote my Moonstruck series about a group of werewolves who are in the military. I wrote the first book in an urban fantasy “epic” series, and the beginnings of a Gothic romantic suspense series.

In the meantime, Rory and I fought. A lot. In my head. I should probably mention that writers have people and voices living in their heads and we talk to them. Often. 😉 Determined to get his story told, I thought he should be a military sniper. After all, he’d been an Irish warrior in the 9th century, and an Irish Army Ranger in the 20th. But he just wouldn’t cooperate. Time slipped away. Other projects came into being. And I left Rory behind.

Then I attended an OKRWA meeting where a member of the sheriff’s department SWAT team presented the program. Rory stirred in my imagination. He stretched and yawned while I scribbled copious notes. Pages and pages and pages. The next morning, I woke up, sat down at the computer but instead of checking email, twitter, and blogs, I started writing, his voice whispering incessantly in my ear. I didn’t stop. I couldn’t. Rory never gave me a chance to write myself into a plot corner. He never doubted this was his story, his heroine, and his battle with Abhean, the faerie harper who lived to create problems for Manannán mac Lir and the humans under the king’s protection. I made myself laugh. And cry. And when I finished and turned the book over to my editor, I knew Rory was proud of me for getting his story right. As a writer, that’s the highest compliment I can receive—that my characters approve of their story. It doesn’t hurt when readers let me know they love the story, too.

Blurb for FAERIE FOOL:

If you had one shot—just one opportunity to seize everything you ever wanted in one defining moment, would you capture it or let it slip away? In a previous life long forgotten, Rory MacDermot vowed never to lose his heart. But then he meets Delaney Burns. Again.
In life after life, the man Rory was slips beyond Delaney’s grasp, and she falls for the wrong man. This time, Delaney turns to Rory for solace and discovers she’s loved him in every lifetime. So why the barriers between them?

Neither believes in reincarnation, but as their dreams reveal the past, they realize their memories hold the key to the future. To keep history from repeating itself, they must pronounce the binding words before the Faerie feud spills into the mortal realm, but the words dance beyond Rory’s memory.

When the fae harper arrives to collect Rory’s old debt–his life for Delaney’s–he’s dragged to Faerie, leaving Delaney the hostage of a disturbed man. Can Rory escape and save her? Or will he lose her…this time forever?

Just remember, without the words, history is doomed to repeat itself when you deal with magic, the Fae, and true love. What about you? Do you believe in reincarnation? Faeries? Magic? No? But as a romance reader, surely you believe in true love, right? One commenter will be chosen at random to receive a copy of FAERIE FOOL, either in print (available now) or in the digital form of their choice when it releases in ebook on November 30th.

You can buy all the Faerie books from THE WILD ROSE PRESS and from Amazon. Please check out FAERIE FOOL on Amazon.

Bio: With a rampant imagination aided and abetted by a Muse who runs with scissors, Silver James loves to share the stories created in that vast cosmic void pretending to be her mind. Over the course of her lifetime, she’s been a military officer’s wife, mother, state appellate court marshal, airport rescue firefighter and forensic fire photographer, crime analyst, technical crime scene investigator, and writer of magic and mystery. Retired from the “real world” now, she lives in Oklahoma and spends her days at the computer with her two Newfoundland dogs, the cat who rules them all, and myriad characters all clamoring for attention. To find out more about Silver, visit her at http://www.silverjames.com

I know I recently participated in something similar, but I was tagged by Monique De Vere so I’m playing again.

The Next Big Thing is a blog circle where authors tag each other, giving fellow authors an opportunity to share their current Works in Progress (WIP).

Here are the questions I was asked to answer….

What is your working title of your book?

Liberty Awakened – Isle of Fangs – Book 1

Where did the idea come from for the book?

It just popped into my head. It was a different take on the usual vampire novels, so I ran with it.

What genre does your book fall under?

New Adult Paranormal, from what I understand. My characters are out of high school, so it’s not really Young Adult.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

Chace Crawford and Lindsy Fonseca.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

A high school graduate travels to an exotic island to meet her dying father where she discovers her destiny is to continue his legacy as a Hunter and save humans from a faction of vicious vampires.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

Self-published.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

Probably 3 or 4 weeks. It’s hard to say since I put this aside to write a Christmas short story.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

It’s similar to many books in that it’s about vampires, but vastly different since it’s set on a tropical island. I’ve gone back to the traditional vampire lore where they turn into bats, and they can’t walk in sunlight or eat garlic or drink holy water. J

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

My grown kids and I share a love of The Vampire Diaries and True Blood. They’ve always wanted me to write a vampire story (as have my nieces), but I didn’t want to until I found a premise that would be a little bit different. They inspired me to come up with something that I felt would work.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

My protagonist is a descendant of Van Helsing who is 18 years behind the curve on acquiring the skills she needs to battle vampires, and has a crippling fear of blood. Her only hope of learning what she needs to know is a sexy vampire who doesn’t think she’s capable and wants her to leave the island.

 Tag, you’re it…

Toni Anderson

Joya Fields

Jessica E Subject

Kristina Knight

Callie Hutton

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!