To Steal a Highlander's Heart

Today's special guest is Samantha Holt. Samantha resides in Warwickshire, England with her twin girls and husband. She's a romance addict and has been devouring all kinds of romance for as long as she can remember.

Having studied archaeology, Samantha likes to blend her love of the past with her passion for romance to create thrilling and passionate tales set to medieval backdrops. She thinks there's nothing sexier than a rugged warrior and a feisty maiden falling head over heels for each other.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Alana sets eyes on Morgann for the first time in several years and what does he do? He captures her! But Alana refuses to go meekly with the sexy Highland warrior. Her kidnapping will reignite the rift that’s existed between the two clans since her father accused Morgann of theft and she doesn’t want to see her father harmed in the inevitable war that will ensue.

Unfortunately for Alana, the faeries seek to interfere with her plans to escape. The sidhe have a debt to repay and Tèile, the green faery, is determined to mend the rift between the clans for good. And that means ensuring Alana and Morgann marry.

Morgann has his own reasons for taking Alana and they are nothing to do with marriage or war. He wants to use her to reveal a secret from the past, the one that had him accused of theft. If only he didn’t find his childhood friend so attractive. When circumstances force them together, Alana’s life is threatened and war is imminent. Can Morgann reveal the truth without losing Alana? And will the faeries meddling help or hinder his cause?

AN EXCERPT

Endless moments stretched on as she waited for Morgann to look away, to break the connection, but he stared brazenly on as his gaze trailed over her face. What did he see? As she gaped up at him, the irate warrior dissolved into a flesh and blood man and she recalled how much she used to adore him. When Morgann was banished from her father’s lands, she’d been heartbroken at losing her friend, but with the blazing sensation of having him flattened against her, she remembered that it wasn’t just the loss of his friendship that hurt her so. She’d always silently hoped Morgann would play a bigger role in her future.

But that didn’t change the fact that he was taking her against her will and she would not go meekly, regardless of what she once felt. If only she could ignore the sensuous pull of his lips or the darkening of his pupils as a rough finger drew a path over her cheek.

A crack ripped across the sky and they both jolted. Pushing to standing, Morgann helped her up and grimaced as he eyed her. Aware of the mud coating her, she swiped a hand across her face as her cheeks heated. Titling her head up, she hoped the rain would at least be useful for something and would not only rinse away some of the dirt but also cool her down. The way the man made her skin blister was extremely disconcerting.

Morgann muttered a curse, drawing her attention back to him as he raked a hand through his hair and yanked some rope from the leather pouch hanging from his saddle. As he turned back to her, rope held out, Alana shrank away. “Ye cannae mean to tie me up, surely?”

LEAVE A COMMENT - AND WIN A GIFT!

One randomly drawn commenter will receive a $50 Amazon gift card.

Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here:  http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2013/08/super-book-blast-hot-to-steal.html

Connect with author Samantha Holt here:

Website/Blog – www.samanthaholt.org.uk

Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/romanticfiction

Amazon page: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B008FKHIXY

The Descent from Truth

Today's special guest is Gaylon Greer. Working with traveling carnivals and itinerant farm labor gangs during his teen and early adult years took Gaylon up, down, and across the U.S. and introduced him to a plethora of colorful individuals who serve as models for his fictional characters. After several years as an Air Force officer and then a university professor with a Ph.D. in economics, Greer developed an interest in writing fiction and attended workshops at the University of Iowa, the University of Nebraska, and Bryn-Mawr College. He also studied with the U.C. Davis Extension program and the Algonquian Writers Group. His most recent novel, THE DESCENT FROM TRUTH is available at www.Amazon.com and other e-book retailers. Please visit Greer at www.GaylonGreer.com.


ABOUT THE BOOK

Alex Bryson is patrolling Rocky Mountain backcountry in his job as a security guard when he discovers a woman with a baby wandering alone in the snow far from the nearest road. He takes them to shelter in a weekender cabin and sees a newscast that suggests the woman, Pia Ulmer, kidnapped the baby from its rightful parents and that it is the sole heir of Peru’s wealthiest and most corrupt family. Pia claims that she is the baby’s mother, and Alex doesn't know what to believe. After turning her in, he continues to struggle with his budding feelings for her and remains unsure of the true story. He becomes more and more involved until finally there is no turning back—lives are on the line. He helps Pia get free from a brutal world that values money over life, and together they devise a plan to reclaim the baby. Just when it looks like they might succeed, they discover an international conspiracy that changes the game entirely.

AN EXCERPT

“Is Frederick really safe?” Pia asked. Dawn had turned the darkened hotel room a dirty gray. Though she frequently shifted, tossed, and moaned, she had not spoken for several hours.

“Absolutely.” Alex wondered  how long had she been awake. “We’ll soon be with him. My dad has—”

“Don’t,” she said, interrupting him. “Don’t tell me where he is.”

“You don’t want to know where we’ll be living? We’re going home this afternoon.”

“What if Theo catches us? He has a device he pushes inside me. It’s a . . . something electric. When he does that, I will say anything, do anything. I might even tell him where to find Frederick.”

 “Hush, sweetheart.” Alex laid a finger across her lips. “Your son is absolutely safe, and Theo won’t be hurting you ever again. Go back to sleep.”

She relaxed into slumber, but her eyes popped open again minutes later. A look of horror twisted her face.

She needed a sedative, and enough time had passed so that business and professional offices would be open. Alex called the hotel's concierge and arranged for a medical doctor to visit the room. He sat in his chair, one hand resting on Pia’s shoulder, the other on his semiautomatic, and watched the door until a knock signaled the doctor's arrival. Still nervous, he paused before opening the deadbolt. “Who is it?” he asked.

“Doctor Ferdinand Mandinez. The hotel called me. Do you require medical assistance?”

Squinting, Alex peered through the peephole in the door. A short, balding and chubby man with a medical case stood in the hallway. Relieved but cautious, Alex clicked off the Colt's safety. He opened the deadbolt on the door but left the safety chain in place. With the door cracked open the two inches that the chain permitted, he said, “Pass me your ID.”

Boots thudded against the door. The safety chain popped from its mooring, and the door's outer edge slammed against his head. It sent him reeling backward to sprawl on the carpet. A lashing boot hammered his side. Only half conscious, he saw the foot swing again. It connected with the side of his head. Black nothingness engulfed him.

LINKS

A randomly chosen commenter will receive an autographed hardcover version of the author's previous book, The Price of Sanctuary.


Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here:  http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2013/07/excerpt-tour-descent-from-truth-by.html

The Last Straw

Today's special guest is Nia Simone. Nia grew up on the side of a ski slope in Squaw Valley, USA. Later, while learning the craft of story writing, she worked in nonprofit and then high-tech.

The best part of working in the computer field was meeting her husband. He took up skiing and she helped him document his computer inventions! They live in "Silicon Valley" in California where their favorite thing to do is cook together for friends. Nia’s specialties are dessert and veggies while her husband’s are entrees and sourdough bread.

Their only pet at the moment is the sourdough starter, which lives in the fridge and requires bi-weekly feeding.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Ally Tobin left New York after one too many bad dates, determined to rebuild a stable life and career as a private investigator in Silicon Valley. But when the man she knew as one name walks into her office with another, will her curiosity once again lead her to risk her heart?

The last thing Special Agent Jared Green needs is "security risk" stamped on the resume of his latest undercover identity. Especially by the woman his job forced him to leave in New York without any explanation. She may threaten his cover, but it's his heart on the line. 

He's good at playing a part. She's good at catching a fake. Can they trust enough to give love another chance?

AN EXCERPT

He sauntered through the door, a white, button- down shirt tucked into belted khakis. When his dark gaze found her, he stopped. Stared. Her throat dried and a rustling motion stirred in her abdomen.

“Hi. I’m Darren Ray.”

Keep your cool, she commanded herself, standing and reaching across the desk. His hand was rough.

She yanked her hand back and waved at the chair. “Please, have a seat.” He waited for her to sit before settling in the visitor’s chair. “So, Darren, according to this, you’re being considered for a programmer position in the IT department. Tell me about your background.”

A professional mask settled over his features. “As you can see on my résumé, I have several years of consulting experience.”

“Tell me something about your experience as a mechanic.” Working on his prized old Mustang had been a favorite hobby.

The corner of his mouth twitched. “What do you mean? That’s not in my résumé.”

“You don’t have the hands of a programmer. More of a mechanic.” Oh, his hands.

“Okay, you got me.” He was going to confess. This should be good. “When I’m not programming computers I’m working on my car.”

“And what were you doing in New York City?”

He reached across her desk for a piece of paper, plucked a pen from its stand and scrawled something.  When she took the note their fingers brushed. Meet me for dinner at Pico’s at 7. I’ll explain everything. Can’t talk here.

LINKS

Nia will be giving away a $25 Amazon gift card to one randomly drawn commenter.

Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here:  http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2013/08/super-book-blast-last-straw-by-nia.html

Nia blogs every day about travel, food, writing, books, skiing and photography at niasimoneauthor.com (where she won the Versatile Blogger Award and Inspiring Blogger Award).​

Buy link: The Last Straw (http://amzn.to/164srhC)

Website: niasimone.intuitwebsites.com

Facebook: facebook.com/niasimoneauthor

Twitter: @niasimone4

Accidental Affair

Today's special guest is Leslie McKelvey. Leslie has been writing since she learned to write, and her mother still stores boxes of handwritten stories in the attic.  Leslie read her first romance at 12 and was hooked.  When her high school Creative Writing teacher told her she needed to be a novelist, she decided to give it a try.  Finally, at the ripe old age of...forty-something...her debut novel, Accidental Affair, made it into print through Black Velvet Seductions Publishing.  The publisher has also contracted two more manuscripts, which will follow Accidental Affair shortly.

Leslie is a war-veteran who served with the U.S. Navy during the Gulf War, and she was among the first groups of women to work the flight deck of an aircraft carrier.  During her five years tour she was stationed at NAS Miramar and was an F-14 Tomcat mechanic and plane captain.  While in San Diego she spent time on the carriers USS Independence, USS Ranger, USS Lincoln, and the USS Nimitz.  The final two years of her enlistment were spent on Guam and her squadron frequently deployed to Japan and the Middle East.

She learned everything she knows about firearms and tactics from her police officer husband, who is a weapons expert, range master, and firearms instructor for one of the most highly-respected law-enforcement agencies in the world (and one he wishes her NOT to disclose).  He is her biggest supporter and her unpaid consultant on everything law-enforcement and weapons related.  She has three boys who keep her very busy and contribute daily to her growing number of gray hairs.  Her oldest son is a United States Marine and the younger two have vowed to follow in their brother’s footsteps (OOH RAH!).  She spends her off-time (kidding...WHAT off-time?) reading, taking pictures, and sending lead down range (that's shooting, for those who are unfamiliar).  One of her favorite scents is the smell of gunpowder in the morning.... 

ABOUT THE BOOK

Jack Vaughn is sure his life is over as he tumbles down the wooded hillside onto the deserted two-lane stretch of asphalt. Years of work ended with a single gunshot. Yet, it’s not over.

A good Samaritan stops to help him, despite the danger he poses to her.

Laine Wheeler knows better than to stop for strangers on the rural Montana highway near her home, but her conscience won’t allow her to leave an injured man behind.

What she doesn’t know is the man is an undercover ATF agent tasked with infiltrating a domestic terrorist group. His cover has been blown and helping him will put her life in danger.

Though there is an instant attraction, Jack knows that beginning a romantic relationship with Laine would be both unfair and unwise. Yet the farther they run, the harder it gets to ignore the feelings that are surging between them.

AN EXCERPT

It wasn’t hard to get the outlet to short out, and Jack waited as sparks and smoke started to curl from the plug.  There were more sparks and a soft whoosh as a small finger of flame lazily explored the wall.  The finger grew and multiplied and Jack didn’t wait any longer.  He returned the dresser to its original position, quickly crossed the vacant room and went back through the connecting doors, locking each as he went.  After snapping off the latex gloves he’d taken from Laine’s bag, he flushed them then moved to the side of the bed.

She had actually fallen asleep, and he smiled as he eased down on the edge of the mattress.  He wished she could always look so peaceful, her face soft and untroubled with just a hint of a smile.  Jack wondered what she was dreaming about, and if he might be part it.  He shook her gently and she bolted upright.

“What? Are they back?” she asked, her eyes hazy with sleep.

He gripped her shoulder and forced her to look at him, then pressed a hand to her cheek.  “It’s okay, Laine.  We just need to get ready to get out of here.”

She squinted at him and rubbed her eyes.  “What’s going on?”

He gave her a grim look.  “I don’t think you’re going to be getting your deposit back.”

LINKS

Leslie will be giving away a $50 Amazon Gift Card to a lucky tour follower!

Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here:  http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2013/08/virtual-book-tour-accidental-affair-by.html

http://www.amazon.com/Accidental-Affair-ebook/dp/B009ZP5MV8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1352673266&sr=8-1&keywords=accidental+affair+leslie

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/accidental-affair-leslie-mckelvey/1113750316?ean=2940015936421

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/250538

Blog

www.amazonred.wordpress.com

Book Blurb Booboos

Today's special guest is Carolyn Howard-Johnson, the author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. The Frugal Book Promoter is the winner of the USA Book News award and the coveted Irwin Award . Learn more about Carolyn including her fiction and poetry at www.howtodoitfrugally.com. And don’t forget to check out the Writers Resources pages on her Web site, too.

Book Blurb Booboos

Or Nine Ways To Avoid the No-Sales Book Blues

By Carolyn Howard-Johnson

Subscribers to my Sharing with Writers newsletter sometimes ask me questions for the "Q&A a la Ann Landers" section. One of my favorites was on blurbs (also called endorsements!). They are so important to the health of our books that I got excited anew!

THE AUTHOR ASKED

Do you accumulate quotes as people mention your book?

How do you use them? 

AND I SAID, OR PRACTICALLY BLURTED!

Oh, how I love this topic. Until recently I didn’t ask for quotes from really famous authors, so I’m eager to keep new or emerging authors from making that same mistake. Also—even with a background in journalism and publicity—I didn't have any blurbs put on the back of my first novel because I thought my publisher would do that for me. They didn't! Those were my two biggest blurb booboos! And I made them because the book business is very different from industries that seem similar, industries that I have experience in like PR, journalism, and marketing.

Other than those two biggies here are some tips I’ve gleaned since my booboo days.

Keep positive comments (from any source). They can be about our expertise or about our books. In The Frugal Book Promoter (http://budurl.com/FrugalBkPromo), I suggest that authors begin to keep folders that will eventually make up the innards of their media kits very early on. I tell how to do it in detail, but for the purpose of blurbs, you just need a folder titled BLURBS or PRAISE—and then remember to pop the quotes into it as they occur. That’s actually the hard part. It’s hard to remember to pay attention so we can identify positive comments that can be converted to blurbs. Hard to get up the courage to ask permission to use them.

Here’s how we can use blurbs:

1. Vary the blurb you use in your e-mail signature or the credit line of your freelance articles. (There is more on the importance of using e-mail signature and articles to promote in The Frugal Book Promoter, too!)

2. Put your blurbs on a special page in your media kit titled something like "Praise for The Frugal Book Promoter." Actually, I sometimes use a page that says, “Unsolicited Praise for The Frugal Book Promoter" because the word "unsolicited" carries so much more clout.

3. Blurbs may sometimes be used in a query letter.

4. Use blurbs  on your postcards, bookmarks, even business cards. (You do use postcards for special events, don’t you? )

5. Put blurbs on the poster you take with you to book signings. 

6. Use a blurb as a footer on your stationery.

7. Use one or more blurbs on handouts you give when you speak or appear at book fairs or signings.

8. One author who writes books for business people even has a blurb printed on her checks.

9. When you publish your book in another format or in another edition, put a page of your favorite blurbs either at the very front of the book or in the backmatter. This may sound brassy to you, but it’s  often done by the most prestigious publishers.

Gee, I think you get the idea. Blurbs, even if they aren't from the most famous people, help sell books. But please don’t avoid asking for famous blurbs. I asked Dan Poynter to endorse the second edition of The Frugal Book Promoter and he was back with a blurb within the day. That is the kind of a validation that no one should hesitate to stick their necks out for.

CONTACT CAROLYN

/ The Frugal Book Promoter: http://budurl.com/FrugalBkPromo
/ Web site: http://www.HowToDoItFrugally.com
/ E-mail: CarolynHowardJ@AOL.com
/ Facebook: http://Facebook.com/carolynhowardjohnson
/ Twitter: http://Twitter.com/FrugalBookPromo
/ Pinterest: http://Pinterest.com/chowardjohnson

Red Flame

Today's special guest is Pamela Shine. Pamela is 13 years old and wrote Red Flame: Wizards' School and the sequel, Red Flame: Twin Flames while she was 12.  Both books are part of an intended series of seven (may be eight).  Pamela loves reading and writing and hopes to be a screenwriter when she is older.  Having read many books written by adults for children has made Pamela more determined to write a book that is written by a child aimed for children.

ABOUT RED FLAME: TWIN FLAMES

Red Flame: Twin Flames is the sequel to Red Flame: Wizards’ School. 

This book (the sequel) is told in narrative style which is different from the first and the twins from the first book are now telling the story. 

This book takes the twins back to a past they tried to forget and with the help of their teenage wizard friends they are able to confront their fears from their past.

Aiden meets an old friend who turns out not to be as friendly as Aiden had thought. Kat finds out about a special magic that she had been using for the last seven years of her life without even realising it.  Kat is terrified about her ‘magical power’.  Then they have a train ride from hell that brings back memories they would much rather forget, resulting in a visit from someone Kat knows to be dead. Aiden has to overcome some barriers he has ignored for seven years and learn to be strong enough to stand by his sister’s side without being protected while Kat has to face her fears of an old enemy and learns to take control of her magic again before it’s too late for herself, her friends and even Wizland.  Kat, Aiden and their friends (Resha, Malica and Lucas) are dragged into a battle of life and death where good versus evil.

Can the Red Flame gang stop the dark wizards school Dark Star? Or will they win and take magic from Wizland forever?


AN INTERVIEW WITH THE AUTHOR

Thank you for joining us, Pamela. Can you tell us what reading and/or writing means to you?

For me I love reading and writing.  I like writing about fantasy because it takes me to different place and helps my mind escape from the real world.  However, I do also like reading books with humour because I enjoy a book that makes me smile.

Reading is fun for me and I feel that reading should mean the same to everyone even though everyone is interested in different genres.  When people have understood my books and have given me good or bad feedback, I enjoy improving so people will enjoy my books more and I get a sense of self accomplishment.

CONNECT WITH THE AUTHOR

Pamela's Official Website: www.pamelashine.com

Twitter: @redflamebooks

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/redflamebooks?ref=hl

Buy links:

http://www.amazon.com/Red-Flame-Flames-Pamela-Shine/dp/178035648X/ref=pd_rhf_se_p_img_2

or

http://www.fast-print.net/bookshop/1373/red-flame-twin-flames

The Door Through the Grandfather Tree

Today's special guest is June M. Pace. June lives with her soon to be husband and best friend Ray, with his youngest son and their two dogs, seven chickens and two ducks, in Santa Cruz Ca.  Ray’s two older kids live respectively in LA and San Francisco.

June spends her days writing and sometimes painting her well known series of Rock n Roll icons.  June and Ray are designing a line of unique, one of a kind, hand-made furniture/accessories, coming out the winter of 2013, Madrona Rust.  

This series of work, the McTish characters, are a part of June in every sense of the word.  “This work brings a deep sense of joy and passion for me in a very profound way, like nothing else that I do.”

ABOUT THE BOOK

It’s Harry Potter meets the Celestine Prophecy in this magical and thrilling ride! The McTish Series is an explosive adventure through a dimensional Gateway into another world, a world of beauty and magic, Coranim...a land of insight, thought and possibilities, that sits beneath the enchanted Gilley Forest.

There is local legend in the small town of Grandlochcheshire that has been passed down for a 100 years about the mysterious disappearance of the Chickering family, that trails on the coat tails of the equally shocking  abduction of the Skeffington Union Rails heirs, Connor and Shelbe. The circumstances that follow this notorious tale enter into the modern world of Benjamin and his two best mates.  

One day Benjamin watches from behind the Rhododendron as a mysterious little woman steps out of a taxi in front of the cream colored house with the forest green trim next door and in one synchronistic moment their eyes lock and a series of visual snippets of unfamiliar events unfold in his mind’s vision. His razor sharp sixth sense allows him the freedom to explore the extrasensory messages coming at him in a frenzied speed, like a derailed freight train.

And when Benjamin finds a peculiar old relic of a key in his grandmother’s garden shed, he could never know his world was about to change forever.

Annabel and Mathilda, two sisters who have moved to Grandlochcheshire from America, have become more than mere friends to Benjamin, they have all become the three Muskydeers (Mathilda’s mispronounced version of Musketeers, which was a huge laugh and of course it stuck), as they are plunged head first into this curious journey.  

In the Gilley Forest they discover that the path they have chosen is inundated with many obstacles as well as intrigue.  Alliances are made with the Forest clan of Gnomes known as the Set, and with the aid of the Vila sisters, Sethina and Morel, as well as some surprising and unexpected allegiances, the three friends take on the test that is the Grandfather Tree.  They must stay on the pre ordained Path of prophecy, portended by the ancient seer Pajah Set, whose ancestry comes from the home of the oldest living beings on the planet, the Elves of the Darmon    However, this is no easy task for the Muskydeers as they have the foulest of sorcery hunting their every move, the powerful dark beauty known to all as Tar Vigorn.

This ruthless Queen is not without humor however, and loves a good game of cat and mouse, as long as she’s the cat. With her biting sense of sarcasm and calculated taunting, she knows just how to unnerve the young Benjamin. Her phantom army known as the Blunt are searching for a way into the Grand Tree and will stop at nothing to infiltrate the pristine world beneath his giant roots.

Once in Coranim the children make the acquaintance of the greatest Medicine Elder alive, Esmerelda Fet.  A most powerful Light Sorceress with a brazen in your face attitude and a thick Irish brogue, who guides the trio on their Path of destiny.  “All tings be possible ya wee chil’ren, if’en ya put yer mind to it!  Thar be nothin ya can’t accomplish.  Ya just need ta be placin all yer carage inta tha middle of yer core whar yer Spirit shines...an ya can do anythin! Ha!”

Filled with many wonders, and home to the Fet clan of Gnomes, Coranim is a magical world of art, sound, thought, invention and discovery....and home to the World Library of Identity, with none other than Dunston Tibbitts at the helm.

Every being on the planet has a book dedicated to the entirety of their lives.  Dunston reports to Benjamin, “according to what I see here now, this very minute, whatever it is that you are seeking will show itself today and change your Path immediately.  It will put you into a whole new dynamic as they say.”

What could alter the overpowering trajectory Benjamin has followed to Coranim?  How will it change his life?

Find out as our three heroes delve into the mystic, as well as their own inner character, as you watch from the edge of your seat.

Book Two, Benjamin Mctish and the Wizards of Coranim, coming 2013

LINKS

Goodreads- http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17984619-benjamin-mctish-and-the-door-through-the-grandfather-tree?ac=1  

Amazon Kindle- http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DVUBZU0

Goodreads- http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7105888

Blog- http://www.benjaminmctish.blogspot.com/

Facebook Events-

Book Blast- https://www.facebook.com/events/485528998207247/