Category Archives: Contemporary Romance
eARC #Giveaway Event for ACCIDENTAL VALENTINE: Get your #Romance on!
#CoverLove Cover Reveal: Accidental Valentine Anthology from @RoanePublishing #Romance #Contemporary
Valentine’s Day is right around the corner… If you have been to a department store since Christmas, you know this, since all the pink and red candies and stuffed animals are already lining the shelves. And with the arrival of this auspicious holiday of lovers, Roane Publishing is putting out another of their wildly popular romance anthologies, ACCIDENTAL VALENTINE. The release day for this one is February 13, 2015, but I have the fabulous cover to share with you all today! Woot!
Most of you know I am a freak for a good cover, and I have to say, I REALLY do like this one. Of course, it is hard to not love a cover you designed yourself. Yup, this is another of my forays into the “art” world.
Would LOVE to know what you think about it. Does it grab you? What does it say to you? If you saw it on the shelf at the book or grocery store, would you pick it up and read the back? Inquiring minds want to know. Believe it or not, your feedback helps me tremendously. Knowing what appeals and doesn’t is a huge step toward making better covers each and every time.
But, enough about me… Let’s get to the cover and details, eh? First, the cover:
Accidental Valentine
A Romance Anthology
By Various Authors
Genre: Contemporary Romance (Short Stories)
Publisher: Roane Publishing
Release Date: February 13, 2015
Description: Finding love on Valentine’s Day is the happiest of accidents.
Guiding Hearts by Claire Gillian
Is a lonely woman’s GPS sentient, or is her subconscious taking her by the hand to help heal a scarred heart?
When Jemma Ernst’s GPS malfunctions and sends her to the home of handsome and engaging Gabriel Nash, she writes it off as a fluke. But she can’t seem to reprogram him out of her thoughts, nor her GPS.
Better Latte Than Never by Katrina Sizemore
Single and cold on Valentine’s Day, Hailey Merritt is not looking forward to working all day at the coffee shop while everyone around her is cheery with romance and she’s stuck trying to figure out her next step in life.
But when a special bouquet arrives from a secret admirer, she decides to reserve judgment on the holiday and find whomever sent her the flowers.
Maybe Cupid has a plan to make this her favorite Valentine’s Day ever.
Dream Architect by S.L. Hughson
Taylor and Sons Custom Design keeps ASHLIN TAYLOR at arm’s length from her dream job. If only she were a son, she could follow her architectural dream. In the Taylor creed, girls get married and boys have careers. DYLAN CUTRIGHT focuses on finishing college and landing an architectural engineering job in a large firm. Minus emotional ties.
After an accidental encounter, their initial attraction is amplified when Dylan comes to work at her family’s firm. Unlike her family, Dylan encourages Ashlin to pursue her dream by enrolling in college. He even argues her case with Uncle Mike. His support confuses Ashlin because when she moves closer to him, he rebuffs her for reasons she can only speculate about.
Valentine’s Day might be the perfect opportunity for Ashlin to make him notice her. They are working together – alone – on the most romantic day of the year. Dylan builds her dreams of a career, but will he ever lower his walls and become more than just the man IN her dreams?
One Hot Angel by Jaylee Austin
Oblivious to Tiffany Jenkins, in three short weeks her life will end—unless she makes the perfect choice. Will she chose revenge and expose her ex-husband? Or chose love and surrender her heart to the only man who can save her?
Rock My Bones by Wendy Sparrow
Jared has been eyeing the sexy mural painter from inside the museum’s paleontology lab, but she’s way out of his league. He can’t let her paint that obviously misplaced fern, though…even if it means initiating contact.
You could call her a paleontology groupie, but Shay Meyers is interested in a more modern specimen. An adult male Homo Sapien to be exact—one who needs to be dragged out of his lab for a practical course in mating rituals. If she’s lucky, this will be the Valentine’s Day she rocks his bones.
* * * *
They all sound fantastic! Some great authors — names I know, and some new ones too. Love that about anthologies. The title should be up on GOODREADS sometime this week, so be sure to add it to your TBR list.
Can’t wait for this one to come out. You? Share your thoughts. As I always say, Sharing is Caring!
Happy New Year, everyone.
Happy Book Birthday to For the Love of Murphy (and me :P) #Romance #NewRelease #Sweet
Yes!! It’s finally release day for the sweet romance anthology, FOR THE LOVE OF MURPHY, and the debut of my tale, A Slippery Slope.
So excited to be sharing space with some fantastic authors for this one. Let me share the details, and you will see why…
FOR THE LOVE OF MURPHY
A Sweet Romance Anthology
Author: Lisa A. Adams, Michelle Ziegler, Annabelle Blume, Rebecca Hart, London Saint James
Publisher: Roane Publishing
Release Date: TODAY!!
Description:They say love conquers all, but whoever “they” are, must not have heard of Murphy’s Law — whatever can go wrong, will go wrong.
These five tales of sweet, accidental romance prove Cupid’s arrows are a lot tougher than they seem, and sometimes it pays to be unlucky.
- No Wrong Turns – Lisa A. Adams
- Falling for You – Michelle Ziegler
- Coffee and Cufflinks – Annabelle Blume
- A Slippery Slope – Rebecca Hart
- The Shamrock Incident – London Saint James
No Wrong Turns by Lisa A. Adams
Jessica Brannah is escaping from her last heartbreak with a loaded car and a new address. But, when Murphy’s Law finds her stranded in a back country town, she realizes there’s no outrunning love.
Falling For You by Michelle Ziegler
Darci’s ready to move on. Too bad the dating pool stinks. Until, a ghost from her past resurfaces—the man she missed out on in college.
Andrew was the one man she’d always loved, but neither of them ever made a move. But, old feelings aren’t the only thing resurfacing of late. Darci’s ex comes crawling back at the most inappropriate time, and with all the testosterone flying, she might not end up with either man.
Coffee and Cufflinks by Annabelle Blume
Fresh out of a failed relationship and exhausted by a constant barrage of fiascos at work, Olivia Johnson doesn’t see the man of her dreams standing right in front of her. She tells herself the morning coffee meet-ups with Daren are nothing but coincidence, but even she can’t deny his unequivocal attractiveness. When a night entertaining clients takes a turn for the worst, and Daren shows up where she least expects him, failure starts to look more like fate.
A Slippery Slope by Rebecca Hart
Anne Montgomery is psyched for her girl’s only weekend, despite her friends’ choice of vacation locale—the snowy slopes of Harris Peak Ski Resort—where someone as notoriously accident prone as she has no business being. When Murphy’s Law finally catches up with her, Anne is forced to consider there may be times when it pays to be unlucky.
The Shamrock Incident by London Saint James
Florist, Marissa Carmichael isn’t usually a klutz, but she’s in a hurry and having a bad day. In her haste, she loses her balance and tumbles from the back room of her shop, arms flailing. Her less than graceful entrance halted by a headfirst crash into a display case chock full of silk flowers.
Trey Cleary didn’t think his day could get any worse, until he finds. himself picking the side view mirror of his BMW up from the ground. On a mission to do something about it, he locates the flower shop matching the name on the back of the van that mangled his ‘baby’. But, his car is forgotten when a beautiful woman bursts into the room like an out of control whirling dervish, and takes one mother of a wipeout into the shop’s counter. Coming to her aid brings out the hero in him like no one he’s ever encountered, and leaves him with a need to know more.
For Marissa and Trey, this just might be the one time it pays to be unlucky.
Also Available at These Fine Retailers:
Print
Createspace
Amazon
eBook
Amazon
Amazon UK
Barnes and Noble
KOBO
Smashwords
Tour Schedule |
Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code. No purchase necessary, but you must be 18 or older to enter. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter, and announced on the widget. Winner well be notified by emailed and have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. The number of entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Roane Publishing’s marketing department. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.
Happy Release Day to “Old Flame” by Annabelle Blume (@annabelleblume) #Romance #NewAdult
For a good friend of mine, the day all writers love– release day–has come.
*cue fanfare and confetti*
A big fat congratulations to Annabelle Blume for her latest release, OLD FLAME–a New Adult Contemporary Romance with Roane Publishing.
As part of the release day festivities, I have wrangled Ms. Blume into stopping by the blog for a visit. (Go me.)
In her novella, the main character, Hannah, has a bit of an unhealthy obsession with her ex, James — so I thought it would be fun to pick the authors brain a bit about that aspect of Hannah’s personality.
Here’s what she had to say:
I was in college before the advent of social media. The internet had just started to take hold in mainstream American life. I was actually annoyed freshman year because professor demanded we sign up and use our free university-hosted email accounts to contact him. I’m pretty sure I muttered something to the effect of, “Like I’m ever going to use that.” Only rich old dudes had cellular phones. They were the size of Rhode Island and could only make and receive calls, usually for the hefty sum of $2 per minute. Chat rooms existed online, but not a lot of people I knew were participating. Oh, and you had to plug your computer modem into a phone jack to access the internet. Yes, really. Imagine how that went when you shared one phone line in a house with 5 other people.
It was a simpler time. (I’m not old, shut up!) There were a few instances where I made a mix tape for a guy I had a crush on, or what have you, but nothing extreme. We cried, we lamented, we mourned when our relationships went bust. Pints of ice cream were devoured and Sarah McLaughlin sold millions of albums. But without modern technology at our fingertips, no way to see where your ex was “checking in” or profiles to follow, it took a very, um, special, kind of person to keep tabs on their ex. I was not one of those kinds of ex-girlfriends. When we were done, we were DONE. I never got back together with a single ex, not that there were many, but you get my point.
That’s why it was so much fun, and slightly scary, to write Hannah. Imagining what it would be like to date today, with Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, and so on… is mind-boggling. Frankly, it’s a miracle more young people don’t get lost in obsessive behavior when it comes to their ex. Or do they?
Sounds like the idea for another story to me 😛
Here are all the details on Old Flame, the first in Annabelle’s Hearts Aflame Files series.
Genre: New Adult Romance (Contemporary)
Publisher: Roane Publishing
Keywords: Romance, New Adult, Contemporary, Novella, Series
Blurb: Hannah Sullivan has spent the past three months stalking her ex-boyfriend, lurking in the bushes and hiding behind fake social media personas, convinced she can eventually rekindle the love they once shared. But when she meets Marc, who is everything James never wanted to be and more, she begins to wonder if she’s got it all wrong.
Hannah must come to terms with her own demons before she can decipher between her delusional mission the man of her dreams.
Buy Links:
Amazon
Amazon (UK)
Barnes and Noble
KOBO
All Romance eBooks
Smashwords
About the Author: Annabelle is a best-selling Romance and New Adult author, that is, when she’s not checking homework or begrudgingly cooking dinner. Wife, mother, and creator of alternate worlds, Annabelle has a penchant for that which is outside the norm.
Her degree in Sociology has given her the ability to construct worlds that exist only in her head and translate them passionately to the page. The time spent studying individuals, interpersonal relationships, and particularly, women, within the constraints of our society led to Annabelle’s unabashed ability to talk about sex as it fits into our modern lives.
She’s also the author/personality of The Bombshell Mommy at Vitacost.com where she helps modern Bombshells and their families live “green”.
Harper’s Wish Blog Tour: A Christmas Visit from Krista Ames #Giveaway #Romance
Merry Christmas, folks. So glad to have you all here. Sorry this post is a bit late — not sure what happened with my amazing scheduling skills, but better late than never, right?
Today, I have a special treat for you all. I have fenagled a visit from the author of Roane Publishing’s latest release, Harper’s Wish, Krista Ames. She has gracefully agreed to come by and share her favorite Christmas gift with us all.
Take it away, Krista!
Well, there’s one Christmas and one gift that stands out above all others for me and it’s been years ago now.
It was Christmas Morning and my boyfriend and I went to my mom & dad’s house at the lake for Christmas with my family. Everyone was there, step family, my sisters, all the nieces and nephews. We had gone through a whole room full of presents and cleaned up every stitch of wrapping paper when my boyfriend came into the room while I was on the floor playing with the kids. He sat a huge wrapped giftbox on the floor in front of me. Of course that got everyone’s attention. 🙂
I got nervous right away. Confused too because it was a huge box and of course, what girl doesn’t want a ring at Christmas so I guess I was a little disappointed too. He urged me to unwrap so I unwrapped the box and opened it to find another big box inside, wrapped as well. He was quite the joker so it shouldn’t have surprised me lol.
I bet I got through five boxes, all wrapped and varying sizes before I got to a tiny box. The kind of box a ring does come in. I started to get nervous again and fought a little at the tears. I unwrapped the box with shaky hands to find a velvet jewelry box inside. I looked up at my boyfriend and he was just smiling at me. So focusing again, I opened the velvet box and where a ring SHOULD have been tucked, was a note instead.
I seriously had a range of emotions all in about ten minutes so I played along and opened the note. He had written me a long letter talking about the 4 years we had dated and all the ups and downs we’d gone through and how much he loved me and at the very end he’d asked me to marry him. When I looked up at him, he was holding the ring that had been missing from the box. Of course, I said yes. 🙂
Pretty hard to top a Christmas like that !
Nice! Sounds like a great guy — certainly a romantic one!
Since we are all here talking romantic men — let’s have a look at Krista’s story, Harper’s Wish. I hear her leading man, Fin, is quite a cowboy romantic, himself.
Publisher: Roane Publishing
Release Date: December 20, 2013
Key Words: Adult, Romance, Contemporary, Sweet, Novella
Blurb: Christmas is supposed to be a joyous time of year, but for Harper Donaldson it’s just another day. Orphaned at an early age, she doesn’t have a single good memory of Christmas.
But, when a Santa’s Mailbox mysteriously appears in the lobby of the post office where she works as postmistress, Harper wonders what it could hurt to send her own letter to Santa.
Could he bring her the family she’d always wanted?
BUY LINKS:
Amazon | Amazon (UK) | Barnes and Noble
Kobo | Smashwords | All Romance eBooks
Now, in the spirit of Christmas giving, and of, course, to promote the release, Roane Publishing is offering a giveaway to celebrate the release. To get in on that, just hit the link below and enter for your chance at a free copy of Harper’s Wish or a $10 Amazon gift card.
About Krista Ames:
Born and raised in Northern Indiana, Krista now resides in Northern Lower Michigan. She is married to a very supportive man who allows her to follow her true passion of writing and never complains when she is pirated away on her computer for hours. He is excellent at bouncing ideas around with and even helps the occasional writers block. He’s also a terrific “in house” editor. Krista is also a mother of 4 ornery children who keep her plenty busy. With an addition of 2 beautiful chocolate lab sisters and a playful kitty, there is never a dull or spare moment in her household.
Krista has always loved to read and would often sit up for hours into the night not able to put down a book until she was finished. She still reads when she can but her main focus is creating her own stories to share with the world.
She loves to communicate with her readers so please feel free to drop her a line anytime.
Krista Ames’ Links:
Happy Release Day to Harper’s Wish and Krista Ames #romance #Novella #Christmas
Harper’s Wish
A Montana Series Christmas Novella
by Krista Ames
Genre: Contemporary Romance (Western)
Publisher: Roane Publishing
Release Date: Today!!
Description:
Christmas is supposed to be a joyous time of year, but for Harper Donaldson it’s just another day. Orphaned at an early age, she doesn’t have a single good memory of Christmas.
But, when a Santa’s Mailbox mysteriously appears in the lobby of the post office where she works as postmistress, Harper wonders what it could hurt to send her own letter to Santa.
Could he bring her the family she’d always wanted?
Buy Links:
Amazon
Amazon (UK)
Barnes and Noble
Kobo
Smashwords
All Romance eBooks
Roane Publishing is hosting a rafflecopter giveaway to celebrate — so swing by there to enter for your chance to win an eCopy of Harper’s Wish and a $10 Amazon gift card.
Good Luck!!
Cover Reveal – Old Flame by Annabelle Blume (@AnnabelleBlume) #Romance #Novella @Roanepublishing
Very excited to have the chance to share friend and fellow author, Annabelle’ Blume’s latest cover. As you know, I LOVE me some covers… and this one is especially special to me since I am the cover artist 🙂
Here she is…
OLD FLAME
by Annabelle Blume
Genre: Contemporary New Adult Romance
Publisher: Roane Publishing
Release Date: January 15, 2014
Keywords: Romance, New Adult, Contemporary, Novella
Blurb: Hannah Sullivan has spent the past three months stalking her ex-boyfriend, lurking in the bushes and hiding behind fake social media personas, convinced she can eventually rekindle the love they once shared. But when she meets Marc, who is everything James never wanted to be and more, she begins to wonder if she’s got it all wrong. Hannah must come to terms with her own demons before she can decipher between her delusional mission the man of her dreams.
Add it to your Goodreads TBR Pile today!
Cover Reveal: Harper’s Wish by Krista Ames #Romance #Western @RoanePublishing
Today I have the opportunity to share a lovely new cover with you all. This one is for an upcoming Christmas novella being released by Krista Ames and Roane Publishing. I have to say I am quite partial to this cover… really like it 😛
(Of course, that may be in part because I am the one who made it)
But, I will let you all decide. Feel free to share your thoughts in the commments section at the end of the post. But, of course, you can’t judge if you don’t see the cover, right?
Well, here it is…
HARPER’S WISH
by Krista Ames
Genre: Contemporary Romance (Western)
Publisher: Roane Publishing
Release Date: December 20, 2013
Blurb: Christmas is supposed to be a joyous time of year, but for Harper Donaldson it’s just another day. Orphaned at an early age, she doesn’t have a single good memory of Christmas.
But, when a Santa’s Mailbox mysteriously appears in the lobby of the post office where she works as postmistress, Harper wonders what it could hurt to send her own letter to Santa.
Could he bring her the family she’d always wanted?
Add it to your Goodreads TBR list today!
About the Author: Born and raised in Northern Indiana, Krista now resides in Northern Lower Michigan. She is married to a very supportive man who allows her to follow her true passion of writing and never complains when she is pirated away on her computer for hours. He is excellent at bouncing ideas around with and even helps the occasional writers block. He’s also a terrific “in house” editor. Krista is also a mother of 4 ornery children who keep her plenty busy. With an addition of 2 beautiful chocolate lab sisters and a playful kitty, there is never a dull or spare moment in her household.
Krista has always loved to read and would often sit up for hours into the night not able to put down a book until she was finished. She still reads when she can but her main focus is creating her own stories to share with the world.
She loves to communicate with her readers so please feel free to drop her a line anytime.
Email: krista@kristaames.com
Website: http://www.kristaames.com
Book #Review: Need by Stephanie Lawton (@Steph_Lawton) @InkspellPublish #New Adult
Blurb: Isaac Laroche is cursed. All he wants to do is hide out and feel sorry for himself. Never mind that he got caught sleeping with his seventeen-year-old piano student, or that he abandoned her when the truth was exposed.
Isaac’s feisty high school sweetheart has different plans. Heather Swann has returned to their hometown of Mobile, Alabama, to regroup after breaking up with her troll of a fiancé. She’s restless and looking for a diversion, but she bites off more than she can chew when she sets her sights on rehabilitating Isaac with her unorthodox sexual, mental, and physical plans.
The two quickly reconnect, but their happiness is threatened by family secrets, old vendettas and the death of a beloved father-figure.
Can Heather handle Isaac’s baggage, or will her own come back to haunt them both?
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars for this decidedly grown-up sequel.
My Review: After reading and enjoying the first book in this series, WANT, I wasn’t entirely sure how I would feel about a sequel featuring Issac after the events that closed the first novel. As someone who really rooted for Dave when it came to Julianne (yes, I like nice guys), I was concerned I wouldn’t be able to really relate to or sympathize with Issac as a main character.
I need not have worried. Ms. Lawton was able to draw me into Issac’s angst and really feel for him, despite what a cad I thought he had been. By the time he’d run into Heather again, the author had me squarely on his side and feeling badly enough for him to want to root for him to find happiness.
I don’t do spoilers in my reviews, so I will keep the plot points talk to a minimum, but I will say that this book is definitely more maturely written than WANT. There are some interesting “adult” oriented themes here that would appeal to a more mature audience. Saying that, I did feel the shift to an NA genre from the original’s YA stamp was warranted, and made sense for the story when you consider Issac was a great deal older than Julianne in the original story.
I really enjoyed getting another glimpse into Stephanie Lawton’s skewed deep south society. Being born and bred in Upstate New York, I’ve often wondered if life in the south is really that interestingly dysfunctional.
NEED earned 4.5 stars from me. Shy of five, mostly because despite my general “like” of Heather, I never really felt connected to her the way I was to Julianne in the first novel. I am, however, willing to concede that some of that is my own bias — having enjoyed WANT so much.
I would not hesitate to recommend this one, and if you read the first novel, it is a MUST READ.
View all my reviews (Goodreads)