How To Save A Surgeon by C.M. Stone….Book Spotlight

by Jilly

Book Title: How to Save a Surgeon

Author: CM Stone

Release Date: August 17, 2015

Genre: Lovestruck

Book Synopsis: He’s sworn off all women…

When he lost the girl he loved, Dr. Jackson DeMatteo shut down his heart and became the kind of perfectionist surgeon that alienated him from the residents. Now Jackson has a very coveted promotion dangling before him…but it comes with a price. Working with adorably geeky first-year resident Darla Morales is definitely going to cost him. Big time.

She’s just what the doctor ordered…

Completing her trauma residency demands confidence and Darla, who’s already pretty high on the nerd scale, is definitely not confident. Worse still, she’s forced to work with Doctor Dreamy, who makes her even more nervous and defensive. Darla needs to focus on the work and not his bedroom eyes if she ever hopes to become a trauma surgeon.

Goodreads * Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Entangled

Excerpt:

“It’s not like that,” Darla said. “It’s more like the lady version of wanting to rescue the damsel in distress.”

“The villain isn’t a damsel in distress.”

“But movies don’t make heroes emotionally vulnerable in the same way, and that’s what appeals about the bad guy. It’s not him being evil, it’s his pain. He’s hurt and looking for something. If he just let himself be loved, he could be saved.”

Jackson glanced at the screen. Had they watched the same movie? “Saved from what?”

“Himself.”

There was something in the way she said the word. This time he couldn’t resist touching her. His hand cupped her cheek, his thumb stroking her skin. “Are we still talking about the movie?”

“Well, everybody could use a little saving now and then.”

Her eyes closed as she leaned into his touch, and he had the urge to kiss her eyelids and feel the brush of her lashes.

“What do I need saving from?”

His fingers slid from her cheek to the side of her neck, lightly tracing the lines of her body to memorize them through touch. She melted back against the couch and rolled her head, exposing more of her neck to his touch.

She was quiet for so long that he began to wonder if she’d respond at all before her eyes opened a slit. “Being a stick in the mud who only ever wants to do things the same way?”

His fingertips just barely teased behind her ear and at the fine hairs of her nape. It was the lightest touch he could manage without breaking contact, but it still flooded his body with heat. “Is that what you think of me?”

“I’m not sure, but it seems like you try really hard to make people think that.”

He drew his hand away, torn between what he needed to do and what he wanted. “Maybe. I might be compensating a little.”

She licked her lips, her heavy-lidded eyes never wavering from his. “Compensating for what?”

“For occasionally being very, very unprofessional.”

Author Bio: A native to Southern Nevada, C.M. Stone found happiness as an adult living a rural life in the frigid northwoods of Wisconsin. She wrote her first book at the age of seven–selling it door to door–and decided then and there that she would never accept any other career. Though she didn’t know it at the time, that first book was romantic suspense. A lifelong love for romance novels set in at an early age, despite the fact that Cee considers herself possibly the least romantic person on earth. When she’s not writing, Cee is busy wrangling critters and inventing new recipes.

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Tour Page Link: http://sizzlingpr.com/tour-how-to-save-a-surgeon-by-cm-stone/

Giveaway Info: Gambling Hearts prize pack includes one pair of red dice, one collectible Las Vegas shot glass, a custom How to Save a Surgeon tote bag, and a digital copy of One Night in Vegas. A $30 Amazon gift card will be substituted in place of the prize pack for international winner.
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August 2015 Book Spotlight

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End of Day by Jewel E. Ann….. Release Day Blitz

by Courtney

Meet Jack & Jill in End of Day by Jewel E Ann!

Be sure to grab your copy of this uniquely dark and funny read at the following retailers:

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1TGxxgW

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1TGcu99

iTunes http://apple.co/1UEUj61

Kobo http://bit.ly/1JeJ1U6

Blurb

Earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust; in the sure and certain hope of the Resurrection to eternal life.

Four caskets. Two bodies.

Jessica and Jude Day witness their funeral and that of their parents a few yards away from mourning family and friends. Stripped of the only life they’ve ever known, the Days say goodbye to San Francisco forever.

Four months later, two thirty-year-old misfits with elite self-defense skills and penchants for alcohol, sex, and trouble arrive like an earthquake to Peaceful Woods, a retirement community in Omaha, Nebraska, that thrives on rules and gossip. Welcome home, Jackson and Jillian Knight.

Jackson celebrates his new beginning by embracing his job and wiping his cavalier past clean with a temporary oath of celibacy. But Jillian’s past is branded into her soul—the deaths, the insanity, Dr. Luke Jones, and the need to make her lovers bleed. Her chance for redemption comes in the form of a next door neighbor, one Senior Master Sergeant Monaghan. He’s sexy, dangerously alluring, and riddled with emotional issues from years of service. He’s also … So. Damn. Grumpy.

Their mission is simple: Let go, start over, don’t kill anyone, and pray that nobody wakes the dead.

Excerpt

“Come inside, AJ.” Jillian shrugged off her leather jacket as she walked in the house.

“I don’t want to see your—” The door shut before AJ could finish his protest.

Jillian snagged an apple from the counter and washed it. The grin on her face grew as she waited for the backdoor to open. She knew AJ was standing in her garage, grumpy as hell, contemplating his move. There was little doubt in her mind that he would eventually come inside. She knew underneath that seemingly impenetrable layer of stubbornness was an undeniable curiosity that made him just as human as everyone else.

“You realize half the damn neighborhood thinks you’re married, and now you’ve got them thinking there’s something going on between us—” AJ let his cheery self into the house.

“Is there not something going on between us?”

He helped himself to a seat at the table. Jillian plopped down in the chair next to him, propping her boots up on his legs. He frowned at her boots.

“What do you need, AJ?” She threw his words back at him. “Do you want to go downstairs and duke it out? Do you want to fuck me doggie style until I howl at the moon? Do you need me to suck you off to help relieve a bit of that pent-up anger you carry around all day?”

His jaw twitched as he stared at her with such intensity it nearly cracked her own façade. “Yes.” Just one word.

Jillian paused mid-chew, waiting for more, but he offered nothing. She continued eating her apple.

“What did you see that messed you up so bad?”

“Who said I’m messed-up?”

She chuckled. “Fair enough. Why don’t you ask me out on a proper date: flowers, cloth napkins, fine wine, a chaste kiss goodnight?”

AJ raised a suspicious brow. “Chaste kiss? Has a guy ever given you a chaste kiss and lived to tell about it?”

“So you won’t ask me out because you’re afraid of me?”

“I fear no one.”

Jillian’s eyes widened. “Wow. Lucky you.”

AJ shoved her boots off his legs then dusted off the nonexistent dirt. “Who do you fear?”

Jillian finished her apple, core included, then tugged off her boots before drawing her knees to her chest. “Where to begin …”

About the Author

Jewel is a free-spirited romance junkie with a quirky sense of humor.

With 10 years of flossing lectures under her belt, she took early retirement from her dental hygiene career to stay home with her three awesome boys and manage the family business.

After her best friend of nearly 30 years suggested a few books from the Contemporary Romance genre, Jewel was hooked. Devouring two and three books a week but still craving more, she decided to practice sustainable reading, AKA writing.

When she’s not donning her cape and saving the planet one tree at a time, she enjoys yoga with friends, good food with family, rock climbing with her kids, watching How I Met Your Mother reruns, and of course…heart-wrenching, tear-jerking, panty-scorching novels.

August 2015 humor New Releases Release Day Event

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Lone Rider by B.J. Daniels…Blog Tour Stop & Review

by Jilly

LONE RIDER
by B.J. Daniels

Synopsis:

A cowgirl at heart, Bo Hamilton does her best thinking in wide-open spaces. So when money goes missing from the family foundation, Bo rides into the Crazy Mountains to figure things out. But a killer hiding among the sawtooth ridges takes her captive and isn’t planning on ever letting her go.

Bo’s disappearance gets folks thinking she’s the guilty one who’s run off with the money, but Jace Calder would bet his ranch that she’s innocent. Not that he has any reason to trust the beautiful, spoiled senator’s daughter. Still, Jace is going after Bo and bringing her home to face the truth. But in the wild, rugged Crazy Mountains, he finds Bo at the mercy of a suspected murderer. Jace is her only hope, and he’s about to find out what they’re both made of.

My review:

Lone Rider is book two in author B.J. Daniels’ Montana Hamilton’s Series and after moving the first in the series, I was so anxious to read this book. Well, from start to finish is was an action packed thrill ride I won’t soon forget!

This installment follows a few story lines. Bo Hamilton’s horrid tale of dealing with a potential thief in her non-profit organization and sudden abduction while spending time in the monotonous near her home which leads to her former fiancée, Jace, coming to find her is the main story. We also have the continued tale of Bo’s mother having resurfaced after her apparent death 22 years earlier and having amnesia, forgetting the last 22 years. Also, there is the continued drama with Bo’s presidential candidate father and (I have a feeling EVIL) stepmother. There are two other smaller story lines that, I believe, set us up for more to come from this amazing series.

Now, you’re probably thinking this seems like a whole lot crammed into one book but I can assure you, it was phenomenal. I loved every aspect of this book and have grown so attached to Bo and her family at this point. I was so worried for her being held in those mountains with such an insane and unstable person. I was white knuckled reading my e-reader! Luckily, Jace is one hell of a hero and, without giving too much away, holds up his end of the bargain to go find Bo and bring her home. I also have some MAJOR suspicions with the (evil) stepmom and have a feeling she’s involved in a whole lot of the nefarious deeds happening in this series. I can’t WAIT to see what happens next!

I think I should mention that while this book could be read as a stand-alone, I think you would probably gain more from reading the first in the series before diving into this one. I mean, it’s only one book! And that was also an amazing read by the way (yes, I did stalk poor B.J. on twitter while reading that one with continued updates….I couldn’t help myself!)

And I MUST give a mention to the very last scene in this book. Jace really earns some MAJOR romance points for that one! Totally movie worthy if you ask me.

All in all, this was a great romantic suspense and this will be a series I continue to look forward to. Thank you, Ms. Daniels, for another amazing read!

Four Loves

About the author:

BJ Daniels, a USA Today and New York Times bestselling author, wrote her first book after a career as an award-winning newspaper journalist and author of 37 published short stories. That first book, Odd Man Out, received a four and a half star review from Romantic Times magazine and went on to be nominated for Best Intrigue for that year. Since then she has won numerous awards including a career achievement award for romantic suspense and numerous nominations and awards for best book. Daniels lives in Montana with her husband, Parker, and two springer spaniels, Spot and Jem. When she isn’t writing, she snowboards, camps, boats and plays tennis. She is a member of Mystery Writers of America, Sisters in Crime, Thriller Writers, Kiss of Death and Romance Writers of America.

August 2015 Blog Tour Four Loves Romantic Suspense

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Better When He’s Brave by Jay Crownover….Blog Tour & Review

by Courtney

We are so incredibly excited to bring you the Review & Excerpt Tour for Jay Crownover’s BETTER WHEN HE’S BRAVE!! BETTER WHEN HE’S BRAVE is a New Adult Contemporary Romance novel being published by HarperCollins, and it is the 3^rdbook in Welcome to the Point Series. This amazing book releases on August 11^th!!

Amazon Barnes & Noble iTunes

BETTER WHEN HE’S BRAVE – Review & Excerpt Tour

August 3^rd

Textteaser – Review & Excerpt

People Like Books – Review & Excerpt

Vilma’sBook Blog – Excerpt

Book Babes Unite – Review & Excerpt

August 4^th

Ceres Books World – Review

LuLoFangirl – Excerpt

Random Book Muses – Review & Excerpt

Martini Times Romance – Review & Excerpt

August 5^th

Greyland Reviews – Excerpt

Talk Books to Me – Review

Ficwishes – Review

Milky Way of Books – Review & Excerpt

Words with Sarah – Review & Excerpt

August 6^th

Must Read Books or Die – Review

NightOwl Reader – Review & Excerpt

From the TBR Pile – Review & Excerpt

TjLovesToRead – Review & Excerpt

August 7^th

Book Freak – Review

The Book Hoarders – Review & Excerpt

The Fairest of All Book Reviews – Review & Excerpt

Total Book Geek – Review & Excerpt

Zili in the Sky – Review & Excerpt

August 8^th

Ramblings From This Chick – Review

Nose Stuck In A Book – Review & Excerpt

Reese’s Review – Review & Excerpt

Guilty indulgence – Review & Excerpt

August 9^th

Red Hot + Blue Reads – Review & Excerpt

Oh My Shelves – Excerpt

Romance Addict Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

The Phantom Paragrapher – Review

This is the Story of My(Reading) Life – Review & Excerpt

August 10^th

Morning Books and Coffee – Review & Excerpt

Jen in Bookland – Review & Excerpt

StuckInBooks – Review & Excerpt

Belle of the Literari – Review

August 11^th

Bookalicious Babes Blog – Review & Excerpt

Literati Literature Lovers –Review & Excerpt

Love Between the Sheets – Review

Book Starlets – Review & Excerpt

Waves of Fiction – Review

August 12^th

Desert Divas Book Addiction – Review & Excerpt

Emilie’s Book World – Review & Excerpt

Biblio Belles – Review

Ali’s Reviews and More – Review & Excerpt

Reading Between the Wines Book Club – Excerpt

August 13^th

Works of Fiction – Review

kimberlyfaye reads – Review

Fiction Fangirls – Excerpt

Reading is Sexy – Review & Excerpt

Obsessive Book Nerd – Review & Excerpt

August 14^th

t’irla’s talk – Review & Excerpt

Book Sojourner – Review & Excerpt

Shameless Book Club – Review & Excerpt

Typical Distractions – Review & Excerpt

Read Love Blog – Review & Excerpt

August 15^th

Pages Abound – Review & Excerpt

2 Girls Book: An Asian & White Chick Walk into a Book Blog – Review

Girls With Books – Review & Excerpt

Cocktails and Books – Review

August 16^th

BBF BookBoyfriends – Review & Excerpt

Scandalous Book Blog – Review & Excerpt

Romance Obsessed Book Blog – Review

Four Brits and a Book – Excerpt

August 17^th

Resch Reads and Reviews – Review

Words of Wisdom from The Scarf Princess – Review & Excerpt

Cruising Susan Book Reviews – Review

Red Cheeks Reads – Review & Excerpt

August 18^th

Alii’s Book Jungle – Review & Excerpt

Mommy Reads What?! – Review

Buchjunkies (exclusively German blog) – Review

Love N Books – Review

August 19^th

Flirty Fiction Blog – Review & Excerpt

Live Read and Breathe – Review

Book Angel Booktopia – Review & Excerpt

Got More Books – Review & Excerpt

August 20^th

The Revolving Bookcase – Review & Excerpt

NC 2 DC – Review & Excerpt

Made For You Book Reviews – Review

PBC – Excerpt

August 21^st

The Book Enthusiast – Review & Excerpt

The Unofficial Addiction Book Fan Club – Excerpt

EscapeNBooks – Review & Excerpt

A Literary Perusal – Review & Excerpt

And don’t miss the previous books in The Point Series!

BETTER WHEN HE’S BAD

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BETTER WHEN HE’S BOLD

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About BETTER WHEN HE’S BRAVE:

In New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jay Crownover’s third novel in her sexy, thrilling Welcome to the Point series, a woman’s search for repentance leads her to the one man from her past she can’t forget as they join forces to save their city—and the explosive love neither can live without.

Titus King sees the world in black and white. Right and wrong. Which is why as a teenager he left behind the only family he’d ever known to make a better life for himself. Now a police detective in one of the worst cities in the country, he can’t deny his life has turned into a million different shades of gray.

The new criminal element in The Point has brought vengeance and destruction right to Titus’s front door, and the difference between right and wrong is nothing compared to keeping those he loves alive. To add to his already strained moral compass, the beautiful and mysterious Reeve Black has made her way back to town, and she might be as dangerous to Titus as the guy trying to destroy the Point because he needs her—in more ways than one.

Reeve knows all about how ruthless this new threat to destroy The Point can be… and instead of running away, she wants to help. She has a lot to repent for and saving the city, plus the hot cop that she hasn’t been able to forget might just be the only way she can finally find some inner peace.

With an entire city poised on the brink of war, Titus and Reeve stand in the crossfire—and it will take two brave souls to fight for the ultimate love.

REVIEW

Better When He’s Brave is the third installment in The Point series and with each one, I am more drawn into this world.

Titus is man who stands by law and the love of his job always comes first. It’s always been black and white for him been it comes to the law. But when he sets his eyes on Reeve, things get a little grey.

Reeve has made some shitty choices but she owns them. She’s returned to the Point and when things get even worse, she wants to do what she can to prove she’s trust worthy and end this.

These two couldn’t be more different from one another but are the perfect other half. Where Reeve can see the bending of a rule to make something work, Titus shows her where things can go wrong. Even though on the surface these aren’t good for another, their deeper connection is what pulls them together.

I love reading Jay’s books. She knows how to exquisitely bring a story together. She always has complex and intriguing characters that grow on you. Her plots are always thick and riveting with just the right amount of suspense in them. I find myself constantly blowing through her books because I can’t wait to see what happens and how everything ends.

Each book in this series can be read as a standalone but I HIGHLY recommend reading them all!! Jay is a mastermind when it comes to writing books with hot scenes, a gritty storyline, well developed characters and delivers it all in one perfect package.

Another Five star read for me from Jay Crownover!

About Jay Crownover:

Jay Crownover is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Marked Men and The Point series. Like her characters, she is a big fan of tattoos. She loves music and wishes she could be a rock star, but since she has no aptitude for singing or instrument playing, she’ll settle for writing stories with interesting characters that make the reader feel something. She lives in Colorado with her three dogs.

Website Blog Facebook ** Twitter

BETTER WHEN HE’S BRAVE Goodreads ** Jay Crownover Goodreads

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August 2015 Blog Tour Book Tour New Adult New Releases New Reviews

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Cover Reveal…America’s First Daughter by Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie

by Jilly

Tasty Book Tours is Pleased to Present…

AMERICA’S FIRST DAUGHTER

Stephanie Dray & Laura Kamoie

Releasing March 1st, 2016

William Morrow

Historical Fiction

In a compelling, richly
researched novel that draws from thousands of letters and original sources,
bestselling authors Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie tell the fascinating,
untold story of Thomas Jefferson’s eldest daughter, Martha “Patsy” Jefferson
Randolph—a woman who kept the secrets of our most enigmatic founding father and
shaped an American legacy.

From her earliest days, Martha “Patsy” Jefferson
knows that though her father loves his family dearly, his devotion to his
country runs deeper still. As Thomas Jefferson’s oldest daughter, she becomes
his helpmate in the wake of her mother’s death, traveling with him when he
becomes American minister to France. And it is in Paris, at the glittering
court and among the first tumultuous days of revolution, that she learns of her
father’s liaison with Sally Hemings, a slave girl her own age.

Patsy too has fallen in love—with her father’s
protégé, William Short, a staunch abolitionist intent on a career in Europe.
Heartbroken at having to decide between being William’s wife or a devoted
daughter, she returns to Virginia with her father and marries a man of his
choosing, raising eleven children of her own.

Yet as family secrets come to light during her
father’s presidency, Patsy must again decide how much she will sacrifice to
protect his reputation, in the process defining not just Jefferson’s political
legacy, but that of the nation he founded.

Pre-Order Now

Amazon | B&N | iTunes | Kobo

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LAURA CROGHAN KAMOIE has always been fascinated by the people, stories, and physical presence of the past, which led her to a lifetime of historical and archaeological study and training. She holds a doctoral degree in early American history from The College of William and Mary, published two non-fiction books on early America, and most recently held the position of Associate Professor of History at the U.S. Naval Academy before transitioning to a full-time career writing genre fiction as the New York Times bestselling author of over twenty books, Laura Kaye. Her debut historical novel, America’s First Daughter, co-authored with Stephanie Dray, allowed her the exciting opportunity to combine her love of history with her passion for storytelling. Laura lives among the colonial charm of Annapolis, Maryland with her husband and two daughters.

As LAURA KAYE, she is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling
author of over a dozen titles in contemporary and paranormal romance. Her books
have won numerous industry awards, including the EPIC eBook Award, the Golden
Leaf award, the PRISM award, and the HOLT Medallion Award of Merit. She is a
frequent panelist at national writing conferences and a frequent instructor of
craft and social media workshops. Laura lives just outside the nation’s capital
with her husband and two young daughters.

Find Laura Here

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

STEPHANIE
DRAY is a bestselling and award-nominated author of historical women’s
fiction. Her series about Cleopatra’s daughter has been translated into six
different languages, was nominated for a RITA Award and won the Golden Leaf. As
STEPHANIE DRAVEN, she is a national bestselling author of paranormal romance,
contemporary romance, and American-set historical women’s fiction. She is a
frequent panelist and presenter at national writing conventions and lives near
the nation’s capital. Before she became a novelist, she was a lawyer, a game
designer, and a teacher. Now she uses the stories of women in history to
inspire the young women of today.

Find Stephanie Here

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

August 2015 Cover Reveal

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Marry, Screw, Kill, and an Audio Snippet with Jacey Conrad & Gia Corona

by Jilly

How about a little fun this Friday with a game of Marry, Screw, Kill with Jacey Conrad and Gia Corona, authors of Seared, Burned, Poached, and From Russia With Claws releasing this summer! Oh, and we have a snippet of this amazing book in AUDIO!

Enjoy!

Audio Book Clip:

Round 1: Adorable Brits: Luke Evans, Tom Hiddleston, Colin Firth

Jacey:

I can’t believe I came up with this conundrum for myself. I love all three of these lovely gentleman so much. But I’m going to have to say

Marry: Colin Firth. He’s Mr. Freaking Darcy, how could I NOT want to spend the rest of my imaginary life with him? I would make him wake me up every morning with the ‘I love you most ardently” speech.

Screw: Luke Evans. You know what they say about men with unnaturally long canine teeth.

Kill: I’m sorry, Tom Hiddleston, I’m sure you would make a remarkable sexy, menacing supervillain exit speech while I took you out.

Gia:

This is not even a contest. Weak sauce is what this is.

Marry: Tom Hiddleston. I mean, hello, he’s Tom Hiddleston. He’s my ideal casting choice for Neil Gaiman’s Sandman (especially after seeing him as Adam in Only Lovers Left Alive). He’s LOKI for heaven’s sake. He’s a Shakespearean actor. Yes, please.

Screw: Colin Firth. He would not have been my choice before I saw Kingsman. Specifically, the church scene. Throw in a little homicidal mania and I’m a happy girl.

Kill: Bye, Luke Evans. You are not forgiven for Dracula Untold. EVER.

Round 2: Down and Dirty Brits: Mark Strong, Idris Elba, Luke Goss

Jacey:

Dude, I am mean to myself.

Marry: Idris Elba. Because of his voice. I would want to listen to him talk for the rest of my life. He could read me a phone book and I would be enchanted.

Screw: Luke Goss. Because I’ve based like three heroes on his physical description and I would have to know whether I’d over-estimated his imaginary prowess.

Kill: I’m sorry, Mark Strong. You will be a worthy adversary.

Gia:

Still not a contest. This one’s another easy one.

Marry: Mark Strong. Dear God, this man. Sigh. His eyes. I’ve had a thing for him since that horrible A&E version of Emma. Mr. Knightley indeed.

Screw: Idris Elba. Oh yes.

Kill: Sorry Luke. You just don’t do it for me.

Round 3: People Who Might Be Irish or Scottish: Michael Fassbender, James McAvoy, Gerard Butler

Jacey:

This round was inspired by Gia’s plaintive wail of “Why no Fassbender??!”

Marry: Gerard Butler, not just because he’s beautiful and I have memorized the way his bottom lip quirks when he sings. (Totes normal.) His interviews make me laugh and I think that would be pretty essential to an imaginary marriage.

Screw: James McAvoy, he’s an adorable little minx and I love his filthy mouth when he’s on the more liberal chat shows.

Kill: Fassbender. He’s gorgeous, but when he smiles, I have this irrational fear that he would bite my face if I got too close. Also, Gia would kill me if I touched her precious.

Gia:

Another easy one.

Marry: James McAvoy. He’d be like a pocket husband. We’d curse like longshoremen together!

Screw: FASSBENDER. He’s not the kind of guy I’d want to have making me breakfast. He’s the kind of guy I keep in my basement sex dungeon. You know. If I had one. Which I don’t. Anyway, the man is hellsa hot and his smile makes me want to do very BAD things to him.

Kill: Sorry Gerard. This is NOT Sparta.

Jacey: You’ll notice that while Gia’s rounds weren’t exactly excruciating dilemmas, I don’t openly MOCK them. Also, ignore her sex dungeon denials. Because, honestly.

Round 4: Killers: Mads Mickelson, Richard Armitage, Jamie Dorman

Jacey:

Easiest round yet.

Marry: Richard Armitage. He’s gorgeous, seems to have nice manners and listening to him read an audiobook of classic love poems almost made me pass out. Again, apparently, I’m a voice whore.

Screw: Mads Mikkelson, but I would have to make him wear the Lecter mask or be holding an Uzi the whole time, because his cheekbones are very intimidating.

Kill: Jamie Dornan. Just. Because.

Gia:

I suggested this one because of Hannibal (Mads and Richard) and The Fall—both shows about serial killers.

Marry: Richard Armitage. Damn, son, you even made dwarves look hot. Thorin Dreamboatshield, hello! (I take no credit for that moniker—that was Sarah Rees Brennan). Also I loved him in MI5 (originally titled Spooks) from waaaay back in the day. His voice is amazing and he seems like he’d be a pleasant companion.

Screw: Mads. Have you seen A Royal Affair? Go ahead. I’ll wait. Mads forever.

Kill: Jamie Dornan. You might be amazing on The Fall, but that doesn’t mean you are able to compete with the big bads above.

Round 5: Lord of the Rings: Viggo Mortensen, Orlando Bloom, Karl Urban

Jacey:

Seriously, Gia, you know me so well.

Marry: Karl Urban. He could be my Horse Lord. And I would say thank you.

Screw: Viggo Mortenson. Eastern Promises. That’s all I’m sayin.

Kill: Orlando Bloom. I need a big guy. I’m pretty sure that if I hugged him too hard, I would snap him in half.

Gia:

I feel like this one was way too easy.

Marry: Viggo Mortenson. Aragorn was one of my fictional crushes. And Viggo will always hold a place in my heart for his portrayal of Lucifer in The Prophecy. He’d slay orcs for me too, always a plus.

Screw: Karl Urban. I remember him as Cupid on Xena. Wow. I’m having issues now.

Kill: Orlando Bloom. You are still the prettiest, but pretty doesn’t do it for me. Sorry, elf.

Round 6: Game of Thrones: Jon Snow, Jaime Lannister, Khal Drogo?

Jacey:

When Gia sent me this, my response was, (whispers) … I love you…

Marry: Khal Drogo. Because pillow talk in Dothraki would be so hot it would be sort of evil. I do seem to have a thing for Horse Lords.

Screw: Jaime Lannister. But I would feel really conflicted about it afterwards and spend every minute afraid Cersei was going to murder me.

Kill: Sorry, Jon Snow, you know nothing of pleasing Southern Girls.

Gia:

So when I told another friend of mine about this round, she said, “What, no Tyrion?” And I hung my head in shame because I adore Tyrion so much, and not just because he’s loosely based on Richard III.

Marry: Jon Snow. He just seems like he’d make a good house husband. He’d take care of the cleaning, get the kids off to school on time, he has a direwolf—all things I’d look for in a husband if I still wanted one. He’s a keeper. And I could shout, “You know nothing, Jon Snow!” whenever we’d argue.

Screw: Khal Drogo. I don’t think I need to explain that one.

Kill: Let’s be honest, Jaime. You have been sleeping with your TWIN sister for years. That not only says you have a REALLY flexible moral compass, but also indicates you are so self-absorbed you actually kind of want to screw YOURSELF. Also, who the hell knows what kind of medieval fantasy version of the syph you’ve got mutating inside of you, you human petrie dish. Also also, the way you handle grief is deeply upsetting. I’m taking you out of the gene pool.

Jacey: Judging you so hard right now. For your omission of Tyrion and marrying, Jon “I openly avoid asking vital, life-altering questions of a Targaryen who literally lives three feet from my door” Snow.

Gia: Look, I never said Snow was a braintrust. He’s pretty and good with a sword and comes with a wolf that will EAT YOUR FACE OFF. At least he isn’t Jaime Lannister, Mr. “I Shove Small Children Out of Windows Because They Catch Me Banging My Twin!”We’ll do another one with Tyrion, I promise.

BONUS ROUND:

Battle of the Marvel Chrises: Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Chris Pratt

Gia:

I hate myself so much for thinking of this. I seriously am paralyzed with indecision. But I’ll try.

Marry: Chris Evans. This giant DORK. I love him so much. I think we’d do nothing but laugh and make questionable life choices.

Screw: Chris Hemsworth. Those arms. Yes, please.

Kill: I love you, Pratt. And since nobody actually dies in the MCU, I feel assured that you will only be mostly dead and be brought back to life via some deus ex machina. Siege Perilous anyone?

Jacey:

Why would you do this to me? WHY? I thought we were friends!

Marry: Chris Pratt. I love his sense of humor and how down-to-earth he seems. Also, he’s not afraid of carbs. We could eat cookies and watch stupid YouTube videos all day.

Screw: I think Chris Hemsworth’s massive biceps would make me feel like a dainty lady.

Kill: This is so unpatriotic, but Chris Evans. On the other hand, he seems entirely too perfect, so I suspect he might be a robot. I may be doing us all a favor.

Thanks so much for stopping by, ladies! I certainly don’t envy you in the least for having to make these choices! I’m having all sorts of palpitations and the shakes just thinking about having to choose…man, I need a drink. Is it too early to drink? Eh, it’s five o’clock somewhere! ~Jillian

About FROM RUSSIA WITH CLAWS:

When Alpha female Galina Sudenko agreed to attend her distant cousin’s birthday party, she wasn’t counting on meeting the devastatingly handsome and powerful Rom Alpha, Andrey Lupesco, or having her sexy times with him interrupted by the murder of her idiot brother-in-law, Sergei. But such is life when your father is one of the most powerful werewolves within Seattle’s supernatural Russian organized crime syndicate.

Not content with being just a pretty face and good breeding stock, Galina sets out to make her mark within the family. But in doing so, she runs afoul of her eldest brother, Alexei, the heir apparent to the family dynasty. He has no intention of ceding his position without a fight.

Andrey and Galina’s burgeoning romance is threatened when she discovers that before his death, Irina’s husband, Sergei, hijacked Andrey’s shipment of the werewolf drug, Bullet, a synthetic drug that gives the supernatural creatures a cocaine-like high. Sergei’s theft means that Andrey had a reason to have Sergei killed, leaving Galina to decide whether to risk trusting Andrey even as her feelings for him deepen.

As her brother Alexei’s behavior becomes more erratic, Galina must find the missing shipment, prove to her family that she’ll be a capable leader, and decide whether her lover Andrey can be trusted before she can hope to challenge her brother for his position as head of the family.

A tale of sexy werewolves, forbidden love, family power struggles, and danger closing in, Gia Corona and Jacey Conrad’s From Russia With Claws will leave you howling for more!

Add to Goodreads

About the authors: Jacey Conrad is a sushi-loving, pop culture nerd living in the South with her high school sweetheart. She delights in horribly made mutant shark movies and watching Sean Bean die in his various cinematic incarnations. To keep up with Jacey on twitter, go to https://twitter.com/JaceyConrad Gia Corona loves boots, boys, and bourbon, not necessarily in that order. When she’s not actively stalking Michael Fassbender and his abdominals, she’s watching questionable television or reading comics. You can find her at twitter.com/Gia_writes

June 2015 Special event

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Tyrant by T.M. Frazier…. Blog Tour

by Courtney

King and Pup are back in this exciting conclusion to the King Series by T.M. Frazier releasing August 17th!

NOW AVAILABLE

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1TtMpKd

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1LZbxpO

Blurb

I. Remember. Everything.

Only now I wish I didn’t.

When the fog is sucked away from my mind like smoke through a vacuum, the truth that has been beyond my reach for months finally reveals itself.

But the relief I thought I would feel never comes, and I’m more afraid now than I was the morning I woke up handcuffed in King’s bed.

Because with the truth comes dark secrets I was never meant to know.

I will put the lives of those I love most at risk if I let on that my memory has returned, or if I seek help from the heavily tattooed felon who owns me body and soul.

I don’t know if I’m strong enough to resist the magnetic pull toward King that grows stronger every day.

He’s already saved me in more ways than one. Now it’s my turn to do whatever it takes to save him.

Even if that means marrying someone else…

Excerpt

He cupped my ass and lifted me up, wrapping my legs around his waist. “There was one point I’d made the decision to tell you the truth. I owed you that much. But then all the shit went down with Isaac and Preppy, so when I made the deal with your father for Max, I thought I was doing you a favor by giving you your life back and getting you out of all the shit that came with being in mine.”

I squeezed my thighs around his waist, rubbing myself against his hardness. I moaned. “But you weren’t giving me my life back.” I corrected. I placed my palms on his cheeks and held his face in my hands, searching for any sign in his eyes that what I felt for him might have been wrong, but instead what I found was a resounding need to fix what was broken between us. Tears formed in my eyes. “You were taking it away.” King’s lips parted. He ran his thumb across my lower lip, turning his head he kissed his way up my arm.

“Goosebumps,” King observed, running his fingertips across my already stimulated skin. I bit my lip and stifled a moan.

“It’s just the heat,” I lied.

“You’ve got that fucking right,” King growled, bending my wrist behind my back, his lips came crashing down over mine. We were a tangling of lips, clanking of teeth, sloshing through the water to better line ourselves up with each other. It wasn’t pretty.

It was need.

“I’m still fucking mad at you for letting me go,” I said into his mouth, while our tongues did things other parts of me throbbed to do.

King stilled and held my face away from his, our chests heaving in unison, my erect nipples rubbing against his hot hard skin as we panted together. Our breaths mingled in the air. He ran his hand down the side of my face and cupped my cheek in his palm. “I didn’t give you away, Pup. I released you.”

I stilled. “You released me?” I couldn’t hide the hurt in my voice. For some reason, releasing me sounded worse than letting me go.

King ran his tongue across the tip of my earlobe, holding me tightly against his warmth. Chills ran down my spine and into my very core and they had nothing to do with the temperature of the rain.

“I tried to release you, Pup. For Max. But there was a major problem with that plan, and no matter what happened, it would never have worked,” King confessed.

“Why is that?” I asked, needing to know, but at the same time acutely aware of the pulsing between my legs. Relief and release was only a scrap or two of fabric away. Throbbing for me.

“The problem was…you never released me,” King growled, crashing his lips to mine. He moaned into my mouth when I rubbed myself up against his straining erection. He pushed the fabric of my shorts aside and the second he parted my folds with his index finger, I shuddered. He plunged a long index finger inside of me, and for a second my eyes rolled back in my head until he withdrew it. I cried out in frustration, wiggling myself against him, needing him to make me feel anything other than empty.

Haven’t read this series yet?

Meet King & Pup in King (Book One)

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1ALhF4i

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1AOJb0q

iBooks: http://apple.co/1KreL6J

Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/1B7H73R

About the Author

T.M. (Tracey Marie) Frazier resides in sunny Southwest Florida with her husband and three feisty fur kids.

She attended Florida Gulf Coast University where she specialized in public speaking. After years working in real estate and new home construction, she decided it was finally time to stop pushing her dreams to the back burner and pursue writing seriously.

In the third grade she wrote her very first story about a lost hamster. It earned rave reviews from both her teacher and her parents.

It only took her twenty years to start the next one.

It will not be about hamsters.

Stalk Her: Website, Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, and Goodreads.

GIVEAWAY

(Signed Set of King & Tyrant)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Beneath Blood and Bone by Madeline Sheehan & Claire Riley…..Blog Tour

by Courtney

It is the end of the world.

They call him Eagle, like the grand and beautiful bird that symbolizes freedom. During these dark times, when humanity is experiencing nothing but suffering, a man with such a powerful name should be a beacon of hope, yet he is anything but.

Her name is Autumn, but she hasn’t said this name or much of anything else in the four years since the fall of civilization. A shell of her former self, living wild in a cave at the bottom of a ravine, Autumn is accustomed to being alone. She prefers it, actually, especially when her only options for company either try to kill her, or worse, to lock her up inside their walls.

Captured by Eagle’s people, Autumn is suddenly thrust back into the land of the living, but she would hardly call it living. The community of Purgatory is full of sinners, the most evil of whom seem to have set their sights on her.

In an act born of anger and defiance, Eagle becomes Autumn’s unexpected savior, forcing these two solitary people into each other’s broken worlds. Neither knows quite what to make of the other, but one thing is certain. To survive Purgatory, they must learn how to rely on each other, a feat that could possibly teach them both how to live again.

BUY LINKS:

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1McS9rp

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/beneath-blood-and-bone-claire-c-riley/1122478698?ean=2940152079890

Review

I have been staring at my screen and keyboard for the last oh so many hours, yes hours, trying to put together all the rampant thoughts and emotions that I have running through my head and body.

Madeline and Clarie are powerhouse writers that really bring so much more to a story than just the words. They are able to make you feel something towards one character in a previous book and have you contemplating those thoughts in the next book.

We meet Eagle in the first book, Thicker Than Blood and he was an effing pompous ass who I wanted to die. He has no morals, cares about no-one but himself. The aftermath of this disease and living in Purgatory has turned this man into a monster. But as we read Beneath Blood and Bone, we actually get a tiny glimpse into who this man was before.

Autumn has been living on her own in the wild for the last four years. Battling the weather and biters since the world was destroyed. She kept herself hidden and obscure in anyway she found feasible and that has kept her alive this whole time.

“None of us is innocent, and sooner or later we’ll all get what’s coming to us.”

These two are survivors in the cruel hand they were dealt. Nothing is pretty or easy in the world of Purgatory. Yet these two somehow are able to see beneath the dirty and gritty surface to find the speckle of beauty in each other.

This book is different than TTB in that there is a bit more of romantic side to it. But don’t think it’s all roses and rainbows. This is Purgatory – it’s ugly, hard-nosed and down right scary.

And the scariest of them all comes in a tiny package with hot pink hair – Liv. She can and will make anyone’s life in purgatory worse than it already is.

“The Vaal fever might have killed our fellow man, but it was we who had destroyed ourselves.”

Beneath Blood and Bone is one book that you do not want to miss out on this year. Madeline and Claire prove that beneath the blood and bone, there just might be something worth the sacrifice of saving.

August 2015 Blog Tour Book Tour New Releases New Reviews Paranormal Romance Thrillers

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Exposing The Heiress by Jennifer Apodaca…..Book Tour Stop & Review

by Jilly

Synopsis:

This Marine will protect her at all costs…
When wealthy heiress Alyssa Brooks finds out her stepfather has been paying her fiancé to marry her, she’s humiliated and betrayed. She quickly breaks the engagement, only to be blackmailed by her nowex-fiancé, who threatens both Alyssa and the son she gave up for adoption. With nowhere to go, she turns to the one man she can trust.
Former Marine sniper Hunter Reece’s lethal skills could save Alyssa’s life. But his little sister’s best friend has turned into a woman, who is an irresistible mix of secrets and sexiness. And while Hunter can trust himself to protect her, he can’t trust himself to keep his attraction hidden…or even pretend to be the man that Alyssa remembers.
Because the only way to keep the lovely heiress safe is to become the one thing he knows she could never love…a killer.

My review:

Exposing the Heiress is book number three in author Jennifer Apodaca’s Once A Marine series. When I stared this book I had no idea it was part of a series and now that I’ve finished it, I will certainly be reading the others in the series. I loved this book!

I love friends to lovers stories, romantic suspense, and stories with a damaged hero. This fell into all of those categories and was packed with heat, emotion, and tons of suspense. Two childhood friends who went in very different directions end up together in a suspenseful situation and soon realize the attraction they both felt, but thought to have been one-sided, was in fact very much a mutual one.

The wealthy and successful Alyssa is being stalked by her now ex-fiancee and is some serious danger. The damaged and multifaceted ex-Marine sniper Hunter is her savior. Together they are positively delicious. Hunter is strong, determined, broken from the war and is clawing his way back to normal. I loved everything about him. He has a soft side we get to see about halfway in and I adored it. He is also very intense and dirty talks like a champ. Total yum! Alyssa is also strong and a tough cookie when it comes to dealing with the man threatening her very existence. The suspense aspect of this book had me on the edge of my seat and I was so worried for these two amazing characters!

Overall this book has it all and I highly recommend! And as soon as I finish typing this, I will be heading over to buy the other two in the series. Thank you, Ms. Apodaca, for a wonderful read!

Four Loves

Book links:

Amazon | B&N

About the author:

Award winning author Jennifer Apodaca grew up in Southern California and met her very own hero at the dog pound. She worked there, he came in on business, and it was puppy love. They married and had three wonderful sons.

While her husband worked on his master’s degree, Jen did the mom thing by day and went to college at night with the intention of pursuing a marketing degree. But her true passion was writing. With time at a premium, she had to make a choice.

Choosing writing, and with the full support of her husband, she poured herself into her dream. A mere eight years later, she published her first book DATING CAN BE MURDER. In her career, Jen has written a fun and sexy mystery series and a variety of contemporary romances. Taking the pen name of Jennifer Lyon, she also created a dark, sizzling paranormal series, and most recently, The Plus One Chronicles, an emotional and sexy adult contemporary series.

Jen has achieved many of her dreams except for attaining a self-cleaning house, a latte delivery service, and finding the holy grail of nonfattening wine and chocolate. She can live with those disappointments as long as she can keep writing the stories she loves to share with readers.

For More Information
Visit Jennifer’s website.

August 2015 Book Tour Four Loves Romantic Suspense

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Pointe of Breaking by Amy Daws & Sarah J Pepper…. Blog Tour & Review

by Courtney

Meet ivy league socialite, Leo Richards, and struggling ballerina, Adeline Parker, in this angsty, emotional page-turner.

POINTE
Getting screwed over backstage by my married-ex tears my heart into a million tiny pieces.
Sitting in the audience at the ballet with my former fling wasn’t my idea of fun.

I live in my pointe shoes, not even my ex can taint my love for ballet.
I hate the ballet. This on again/off again crap was getting old.

And then my whole world changes when I notice the smoldering gaze…
Then I look to the stage, and I can’t take my eyes off…

OF…
Leo Richards.
Adeline Parker.

Concentrating on anything except his sexy…everything, is impossible.
Her presence commands my attention…I’ve never experienced this before.

He makes me second-guess everything I’ve ever dreamed about.
She makes me question everything I’ve ever known.

Fighting him is a strategic sport—no clothes allowed.
All I can think about are her sexy ballerina legs wrapped around me—tutu definitely on.

BREAKING
Our scandalous rendezvous is plastered all over NYC’s tabloids.
Because of my status in Manhattan, now I’ve dragged her into the limelight.

My ex will stop at nothing to tear us apart.
Seriously powerful people forbid me to be with her.

Rumors about his past keep building.
I can’t tell her this secret.

When it came to Leo, I only knew the big things.
When it came to Adeline, I knew nothing about the little things.

But uncovering those things about him [her] may push us past our breaking point.

I really had not known what to expect when I started Pointe of Breaking because I had not read books by either Amy or Sarah (please forgive me!). But that is definitely going to change.

Pointe of Breaking was beautifully and seamless written. The plot was just dead-on right for this book and it flowed at the perfect pace. Everything played out with a continuous flow and held your attention.

“Fighting for love, losing love, finding love…that’s what helps the weak survive. That’s what helps the weak find strength.”

Adeline may come across as weak but she is quite the strong and courageous young woman. She never once lets anything make her give up and just quit altogether. Her vivacious attitude is what won me over.

Leo, Leo, Leo. At his young age, he’s probably seen more disturbing things within his high society than I ever care to in my whole life. But it’s because of what he’s seen, that he wants to be nothing like them. He knows that there is more to life than money, social status and private clubs.

Adeline and Leo breath life into one another like never before. But they are in completely different worlds. She is working class and he is high society. But they both defy what is deemed by all as unacceptable. However, there are others who don’t want them to be together and stop at nothing to prevent that from happening.

“Numbness was a blessing compared to the hell of a tortured heart.”

As I said before, you totally forget that this book is written by two people. However, these characters do not blend at all. They all hold their own and are very distinct. I love their different characteristics and how each of them pull different emotions from me.

Amy and Sarah wove together the perfect story. The dance sequences in this book – they are just magnificent. They are written so unbelievably well that you feel what they are expressing through their moves. When an author is able to make me feel something that normally needs to be seen with my own eyes – that right there says EVERYTHING about their talent.

Pointe of Breaking has it all – heat, angst, love, jealousy, hatred – so much more. The authors did a fantastic job of putting you there in the scene and feeling everything these characters went through. I could easily visualize what was going on and that just made the book more real to me.

“Love wasn’t always gentle. Sometimes it was ugly. That was the beauty of it.”

Bravo Amy and Sarah!! You definitely just earned another fan in me!

Join us on Facebook for our party where we’ll be giving away loads of paperbacks and so much more!!!

US
UK
AU
CA

10 Fun Facts You Might Not Need to Know About #DaPep:

From KIMYE to BENNIFER. From BRANGELINA to TOMCAT.
Now we introduce to you…..DAPEP.
Amy DAws and Sarah J. PEPper.
Indie Authors. Best Friends. And now, Co-Authors.

Fun Facts:
1. They both love ranch. Sarah would bathe in it if it didn’t risk an infection.
2. They have little to no boundaries with each other…as became apparent at a book conference in Phoenix. They can’t share the details, but just know it was #MuchTooMuch
3. Sarah actually has a very small amount of ballet experience.
4. Amy once pretended to have ballet experience at church camp so she could get the dance solo. Jesus knew the truth.
5. Sarah has won three dance offs, aside from one. That eleven-year-old haunts her to this day.
6. Sarah & Amy live three minutes apart. And they measure all distance in time.
7. While writing the romantic scenes in Pointe of Breaking, Amy & Sarah couldn’t look each other in the eye.
8. They had no outline for Pointe of Breaking.
9. Amy takes notes in a Hello Kitty notepad. Sarah takes notes in her head.
10. Amy is convinced that Sarah has a folder in her email account labeled “I hate Amy”. Sarah just laughs every time Amy asks her about it…The fact that she’s not denying it hasn’t escaped Amy’s attention.

Click here to win a copy of Pointe of Breaking! –> a Rafflecopter giveaway

Amy Daws lives in South Dakota with her husband, Kevin, and their miracle daughter, Lorelei. The long-awaited birth of Lorelei is what inspired Amy’s first book, Chasing Hope, and her passion for writing. On most nights, you can find Amy and her family dancing to Strawberry Shortcake’s theme song or stuffing themselves inside children’s-sized playhouses because there is nothing they wouldn’t do for their little miracle.
For more of Amy’s work, visit: www.amydawsauthor.com

Sarah J. Pepper specializes in dark, paranormal romance – think “happy ever after” but with a twisted, dark chocolate center. Real-life romance isn’t only filled with hugs, kisses, bunnies, and rainbows. True-love can be more thoroughly described in times of darkness and tribulation. It’s in those harsh moments where you see what a person is truly capable of – both the good and bad. Sometimes prince-charming isn’t always on time, and the glass slipper is a little snug. However, it doesn’t mean Charming is not Mr. Right, and who says every shoe is the perfect fit?
Get a glimpse inside her head at www.sarahjpepper.com

August 2015 Blog Tour Book Tour Contemporary Romance Excerpt New Releases New Reviews Trailer

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The real life boxing hunk behind The Siren’s Touch by Amber Belldene…guest post and GIVEAWAY

by Jilly

Blurb:

Hitman Dmitri Lisko is determined to avenge his father. Once he takes out the man he believes is responsible for his family’s tragedies, he’s done killing for good. But a mysterious woman may tempt Dmitri to change his plan.

Sonya Truss was murdered in a Ukrainian village in 1968. Now she’s reappeared in San Francisco as a rusalka—the ghost of a wronged woman. And she’s thirsty for the blood of her killer. But she has to make things right before she’s trapped between worlds forever.

Sonya’s enigmatic siren powers stir Dmitri’s long-buried chivalry, and he finds himself compelled to help her. He also can’t resist giving her a taste of the pleasures she never experienced while she was alive. Soon they discover that touch has surprising consequences. Yet when their shared mission comes to cross-purposes, they must choose between deadly sacrifice—or surrendering to the one act that can save them both.

The Real Life Boxing Hunk…. by author Amber Belldene

I’m a sucker for a bad boy on a road to redemption, and so I went all-in imagining the character of Dmitri Lisko from my new release, The Siren’s Touch.

Dmitri is a former heavyweight fighter who suffered a humiliating defeat. Having lost his chance at that career, he winds up doing his uncle’s dirty work as a hitman and enforcer for the family business. Since Dmitri is Ukrainian, the very first thing I did was google Ukrainian heavyweight fighters, and look who popped up:

Wladimir Klitschko. Yum. To be honest, I live under a rock, especially when it comes to sports, and so I realize lots of people already know about this hotty. He’s the reigning international heavyweight champion, and he’s engaged to the adorable Hayden Panettierre. And—this is the sort of thing that makes me swoon—he has a PhD in sports psychology, he speaks many languages, he’s hands down SMART, and a big brain really is the sexiest trait on a man. He’s from a hard-working family that values education. His brother is the current mayor of Kiev, the capitol of Ukraine, which is a tough job, given the civil unrest in that country. If you want to get a sense of Wladimir, you can watch this video of boxer Tyson Fury talking trash to him, while Klitshcko, clearly not threatened, just keeps on smiling that panty-melting smile:

Sure. As a type, a brash, trash-talking thug can have appeal, but between these two, I have a clear favorite. The one with hair, who can clearly out think the other guy by a factor of ten and will, I hope, also beat the shit out of him come October when they face off. (Wow! Who knew I could get so blood thirsty? I just really dislike Fury, after watching that video.)\

Physically, and in terms of smarts, Wladimir Klitschko was the perfect inspiration for my Dmitri. But my character was not as fortunate as the real-life champion. Raised by a violent, drunk father and with few options in life, Dmitri takes a path he’s not proud of. The poor guy can’t even smell pretty scents, after a blow to the nose damaged his olfactory nerves. To make matters worse, at the opening of the book, he’s been on a month-long drinking binge, riddled by guilt over accidentally killing an innocent woman.

In my imagination, Dmitri is like Wladimir’s doppelgänger—either one might have ended up like the other in different circumstances. And from the moment my heroine Sonya meets her hero, she sees hints of the honor and kindness Dmitri has had to suppress his whole life. She sees a hero.

Have you ever had one of those moments when you realize someone loves you far more than you think you deserve? If so, you know the way it breaks you open, and humbles you, and makes you willing to do anything for that person.

Sonya makes Dmitri feel like that, and it was a delight to watch him grow into the man he was meant to be as I typed him onto the page.

Giveaway:

Who’s your favorite bad-boy-turned-good in romance? Share a great book to enter the giveaway and win an ebook of The Siren’s Touch. Comment on this blog post!

Buy The Siren’s Touch at these online retailers:

Amazon | B&N | iBooks | Kobo

About the author:

Even as a kid, romance writer Amber Belldene could never pull herself away from a book. She hid her Nancy Drew novels inside the church bulletin to read during sermons – an irony that is not lost on her when she preaches these days. Amber is an Episcopal priest who believes sexuality is vital to spirituality, love is beautifully messy, and stories are the best way to explore human truths. Evidence of these convictions can be found in Amber’s steamy paranormals and quirky, hot contemporaries, which have been published by Omnific, Entangled, and Lyrical/Kensington. She lives with her husband and two children in San Francisco and can be found at www.amberbelldene.com.

August 2015 Giveaway Guest Post

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Book Promotion & Review

Synopsis:

My review:

Four Loves

Amazon ** Barnes & Noble ** iTunes

BETTER WHEN HE’S BRAVE – Review & Excerpt Tour

And don’t miss the previous books in The Point Series!

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REVIEW

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BETTER WHEN HE’S BRAVE Goodreads ** Jay Crownover Goodreads

Enjoy!

Audio Book Clip:

Jacey:

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Jacey:

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Jacey:

Gia:

Gia:

Jacey:

Review

Synopsis:

My review:

Four Loves

Book links:

Meet ivy league socialite, Leo Richards, and struggling ballerina, Adeline Parker, in this angsty, emotional page-turner.

10 Fun Facts You Might Not Need to Know About #DaPep:

From KIMYE to BENNIFER. From BRANGELINA to TOMCAT. Now we introduce to you…..DAPEP. Amy DAws and Sarah J. PEPper. Indie Authors. Best Friends. And now, Co-Authors.

Giveaway:

Amazon Barnes & Noble iTunes

Amazon Barnes and Noble iTunes

Amazon Barnes and Noble iTunes

Website Blog Facebook ** Twitter

From KIMYE to BENNIFER. From BRANGELINA to TOMCAT.
Now we introduce to you…..DAPEP.
Amy DAws and Sarah J. PEPper.
Indie Authors. Best Friends. And now, Co-Authors.