secrets | Author Alicia Dean

Tag Archives: secrets

January 19, 2021 · 8:36 am

“10 Moments That Changed My Life” by Monique DeVere ~ New Release: Matt’s Pregnant Runaway Wife

#AHAgrp

Please help me welcome author friend Monique DeVere with the moments that changed her life, and her latest release, Matt’s Pregnant Runaway Wife. I’ve read the book and it’s a fabulous romantic read.

10 Moments That Changed My Life

Moving to the UK with my parents and meeting my future husband at age 16, then marrying him when we were both 19. We celebrated our pearl wedding anniversary in December last year. 30 years of marriage. Not too shabby.
The birth of my firstborn. Up until that point in my life, I was going to be a doctor but I had no understanding of how much I’d love this little person at first glance, and never want to let her out of my sight.
Swapping my doctor future for a mummy-and-author future. I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t creating stories to entertain my siblings. So, deciding to pursue a writing career felt like a secret dream come true. Especially when a couple of my stories were read on local radio.
The years spent pursuing the dream of writing for Harlequin Mills & Boon. I wouldn’t say it was wasted time—although on occasion I’ve felt that way. I have to honour those years because the time spent targeting that market taught me how to write romance with emotional depth. If I could go back and speak to my younger self, I’d say: the first full-length book you ever wrote was a romantic mystery. Stick to that!
Giving up the dream of the Big Publisher contract and concentrating on writing for The Kingdom instead. For the first time in my life, I feel truly fulfilled and satisfied with my genre.
This may not be obvious, so I’ll state it. The births of each one of my other three children changed my life for the better. No one can prepare us for the depth of joy children bring to our lives. I cherish every moment of raising my children.
The births of my three granddaughters, at which I was blessed to be present.
The dreadful day we received the diagnosis that our seven-year-old had Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia. This was the saddest day of my life. What made it worse was the length of time it took before the doctors addressed my concerns. In the end, it took almost a month to get serious attention, and that was only because she began bleeding from her nose and her liver was grossly swollen. When the doctor asked me what I thought the diagnosis was, I told him I thought it was leukaemia. He said that while she had a lot of the symptoms, she didn’t have all of them so he was happy to tell me it wasn’t that. Then he went away and returned an hour later to say he was sorry, but I was right, our little girl did have leukaemia.
When Meg came out on the other side of the chemo treatment. She is now 18 and a university student studying Digital Film Production & Screenwriting. So proud of her.
My heritage as a Barbadian. It has given me the tools I need to write my new series of Christian fiction set on the island of Barbados.

When an award-winning pastry chef marries a Sicilian-born restaurateur in a whirlwind romance she thinks she has it all…until he refuses to introduce her to his family.

Blurb:

This might be the biggest risk of her life.

When her whirlwind romance with gorgeous Sicilian-born restaurateur Matteo Giordano culminates in marriage, award-winning pastry chef Sabrina Newton-Giordano thinks she has it all…until Matt refuses to introduce her to his family. Sabrina desires their baby to have the same love she knew from her grandparents, but Matt’s outright rejection of his family could result in their baby never knowing his or her paternal grandparents, something Sabrina will not accept. Until that is, she hits on the perfect solution—run away to Sicily to meet the in-laws!

Matt wants only one thing—to keep his wife and unborn child safe. For a man intent on never allowing anything to stand in his way, it should be an easy task. But Matt hasn’t bargained on how stubborn his irresistible, runaway wife can be. Despite his stern objections, she’s determined to form a relationship with his family. He knows, from past experience, they’d never accept her or the baby. Now Matt is torn between the urgent need to protect his wife and fear of causing her undue stress in her pregnancy.

Excerpt

Crystal Swan Publications

She kept him on his toes, he’d give her that. From the moment he met her he’d known she was unique to any other woman. The first hint was when he’d arrived unexpectedly to check on his London restaurant. Everyone, except Sabrina, had nervously tripped over themselves in his presence. She’d simply continued to work as though his arrival was as insignificant as a dust mote drifting past her head. The second hint had knocked him the moment she glanced up and locked eyes with his. Something he’d never experienced before had happened. His body had responded to the instant connection in a way that had been shocking and potent. He’d decided right then to make her his. Even then, she hadn’t made it easy for him. She’d resisted their attraction, had flat-out refused to have drinks, dinner, or—her words—anything else with him. To say that she’d become a challenge he’d fixated on was to understate the level of his attraction for Sabrina.

Then one day, after weeks of him putting his best moves on her and about to admit defeat, a delivery arrived at his office. It was a beautifully presented slice of his favourite dessert along with a note that read: if you want more, come and get it! He was pretty sure the soles of his handmade Italian shoes left scorch marks on his office rug in his haste to get to Sabrina. The rest had been white-hot sizzling sexy, whirlwind, and incredible. And now here he was, fighting to keep his marriage from falling apart only after eleven-and-a-half months of wedded bliss.

Matt washed his hands at the kitchen sink, then rummaged in the under counter fridge.

He chuckled. “Surprise, surprise, nothing but dessert and fruit.”

Yep, one thing he could be sure of was that he’d always find some sort of dessert in their fridge at home, thanks to Sabrina’s never-ending effort to create new and exciting after-dinner treats. And, oh look, she had his favourite dessert sitting in a small yellow and white cake caddy, as though she’d somehow been expecting him. When he grabbed the container his gaze landed on the four red apples in a bowl on the shelf below, so he snagged one of those, too.

Available on Amazon KindleUnlimited and to purchase from Amazon.

Book Purchase Link: https://smarturl.it/6mypb6

Author Bio

Monique DeVere grew up on a plantation on the beautiful island of Barbados, where her childhood was all about exploring and letting her imagination run free. She moved to the UK as a teen and soon fell in love at first sight with her amazing, strong-silent-type husband. They have four beautiful children and four incredible grandchildren.

Monique writes sweet ‘n’ spicy romance, and when she isn’t working on the next novel or movie script, she can be found spending time with hubby and family, armchair travelling, creating recipes, reading about health and nutrition, or working on her spiritual growth. She enjoys going for walks, gardening, or simply crazy-dancing around the house. Monique loves to hear from her readers. You can email her at monique@moniquedevere.com, or contact her by visiting her website: www.moniquedevere.com or blog: http://moniquedevere.blogspot.co.uk to learn more about her books. You can also visit her Facebook author page: https://www.facebook.com/moniquedevere or follow her on Twitter: @MoniqueDeVere or Instagram: authormdv

Get The Forever Deal FREE when you sign up to Monique’s New Release Newsletter.

Where to Find Monique

Embedded Media Links

Raw Media Links

Website: http://moniquedevere.com/

Blog: http://moniquedevere.blogspot.co.uk/

Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/dzRIbX

Amazon Author Page: http://hyperurl.co/moniquedevereamazon

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MoniqueDeVere

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3213844.Monique_DeVere

Facebook Fanpage: https://www.facebook.com/moniquedevere

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/monique-devere-4b996a18

Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/user/MoniqueDeVere

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/authormoniquede/

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

11 Comments

Filed under 10 Moments that Changed My Life, Author Blog Post, New Release

Tagged as 10 Moments that Changed My Life, CEO hero, chef heroine, forced proximity, marriage in trouble, married second chance romance, married to the boss, new release, pregnancy, pregnant heroine, reunion romance, runaway wife, Secret husband/wife, secrets, Sicilian hero, Sicily., UK

March 23, 2016 · 8:16 am

“10 Moments that Changed My Life” by Rebecca Brooks + New Release: How to Fall

Please help me welcome today’s guest, Rebecca Brooks…

When I was eighteen, I took a gap year between high school and college. I traveled to India with a backpack, four pairs of underwear, the pants I was wearing—and no return ticket. Learning to forge my own path has been essential to me as a writer. Plus, it showed me what it feels like to write every day, or as much as I can.
I feel like it sounds cheesy to say that the choice of where I went to college changed my life, but it did. I went to Wellesley College, an all-women’s college in Massachusetts. I wound up applying there on my gap year (long story!), so it really does feel like my life changed tracks to get me there. Wellesley was the first time in my life I felt truly at home in my skin. It’s a place that will always be a part of me.
My life definitely changed when I met the love of my life! My husband and I were friends from work before we were making tea in my kitchen and I realized he had every quality I could hope for in another human being. It was seriously like a lightning bolt struck me and I just KNEW. That was seven years ago, and I can’t imagine my life without his friendship, laughter, support, or his amazing editing skills.
I got a PhD in English, but what really changed my life was my decision not to stay in academia after I finished. I realized that if I became a full-time professor, I’d never get my own writing done, and I’d always feel like I was missing out on my dream. I’m glad I took the plunge into something unknown instead of staying on the path I’d been on. (I’m also glad I kept up freelance writing and editing work so I had another job to fall back on!)
I actually wrote a novel during graduate school, a YA science fiction novel that is never, ever coming out of a drawer. I was swamped with teaching and scholarship, but I committed to writing it an hour a day, every day, no more than an hour and no less. I didn’t go back and reread what I wrote—I just started at the beginning, and 400 pages later I arrived at something in the same approximate time zone as “The End.” The book is total crap, but writing it showed me how small, everyday decisions add up, and that you write each book one page at a time.
My first year of high school, I randomly enrolled in a drawing class, where I discovered that raw talent is less important than working at something and learning the skills. I kept at it, and actually became pretty good. It was my art teachers who showed me how to create, how to persist through setbacks, and how to see the world as only I can. I use these lessons in my writing all the time.
The moment I casually told my husband an idea I had for a novel, and he said, “You should write it.” I said, “But it’s a romance novel. Do I want to write a romance novel?” And he said, “See where it goes.” We were always bouncing around ideas for books, but this was the first fully viable idea I’d had, the outline already in my mind. There are lots of things that led up to the idea that became my debut, ABOVE ALL. But the moment when my husband said, “Write it” is really the moment that launched my career.
While publishing ABOVE ALL got me started as a romance author, I feel like writing and publishing my second novel, HOW TO FALL, was just as significant. I think some part of me had been afraid my first novel was a one-time thing, like I got lucky once and it wouldn’t happen again. Selling novel number two made me see that luck is only part of it. It’s really about persistence, sweat, and getting my butt in the chair.
I’d traveled so much in my late teens and early twenties that for a long time I assumed I’d live abroad for at least some amount of time after college. But I moved to New York ten years ago this summer, and I don’t see myself moving anytime soon. I do sometimes imagine all the “what if’s” and romanticize taking off and traveling the world like (some of) my heroines do… But I know that I’m happy where I am, and grateful to have such a home.
On Sunday, April 12, 2015, my mom called me while I was out for a walk. I didn’t pick up, and ten minutes later, she called again. Somehow I already knew what she was going to say before she said it. I’m coming up on the one year anniversary of my brother’s death, and while I don’t know yet exactly how my life has changed since that April afternoon, I know that it has, and that I’ve changed, too. I wish those changes hadn’t had to happen, but I’m trying to accept them, embrace them, and understand that I will be okay—even if I don’t feel the same. This is a downer to end on, but it makes me think of how open I am to the future and the changes that will continue to shape the person I am, and the one I’m still becoming.

Fascinating adventures you’ve had, Rebecca. Thank you so much for sharing them with us today. And now, about her newest release…check out her fabulous cover!

One week of adventure might just lead to love…

Julia Evans has always put others ahead of herself—her high school math students, her troubled best friend, and her ex. But with New Year’s approaching, she buys a round trip ticket to Brazil. For one week, she can put her needs first. She can meet a stranger in the hotel pool at midnight and dance all night on the beach.
Screenwriter Blake Williams has to keep moving before Oz’s latest scandal catches up to him. But the dark-haired beauty with a backpack and an adventurous streak is messing with his plans. He can’t seem to walk away from her. But secrets have a way of coming out, and when the week is up, Julia and Blake will have to decide if they’re jumping into the biggest adventure of all or playing it safe.

Excerpt:

She couldn’t stop kissing him. Literally could not. There could be an earthquake, a fire, an explosion—who would notice? The whole world could come crashing down and it wouldn’t be enough for her to pull away. She’d always wondered what other people were talking about when they got that misty look in their eyes, going on about passion and fireworks and how just kissing someone could make them entirely melt. Now she knew. There seemed to be a direct line from her lips to her thighs, because the deeper Blake kissed her the more she felt it all the way down.

Rebecca Brooks lives in New York City in an apartment filled with books. She received a PhD in English but decided it was more fun to write books than write about them. She has backpacked alone through India and Brazil, traveled by cargo boat down the Amazon River, climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, explored ice caves in Peru, trekked to the source of the Ganges, and sunbathed in Burma, but she always likes coming home to a cold beer and her hot husband in the Bronx. Her books are about independent women who leave their old lives behind in order to try something new—and find the passion, excitement, and purpose they didn’t even know they’d been missing.

Links:

Website: rebeccabrooksromance.com

Newsletter: rebeccabrooksromance.com/newsletter

Facebook: facebook.com/rebeccabrooksromance

Twitter: twitter.com/beccabooks

Instagram: instagram.com/rebeccabrooksromance

Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+RebeccaBrooksRomance/posts

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Rebecca-Brooks/e/B00ML3LWWY

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/539219.Rebecca_Brooks

Read an additional excerpt of HOW TO FALL: http://www.entangledpublishing.com/how-to-fall/

7 Comments

Filed under Uncategorized