GIVEAWAY & BOOK BLITZ - MEET ME IN THE DARK by J.A. HUSS - DARK SUSPENSE CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

Meet Me In The Dark (A Dark Suspense)
 by J.A. Huss 

Publication date: April 15th 2015

Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Suspense

Synopsis:

He’s empty, inhuman, dishonest, and cruel.

She’s never wanted anyone more.

Sydney has lived in fear for eight years after freelance assassin, Merc, failed to rescue her from a cult-like militia group. Left in the hands of a sadistic man, she did whatever it took to survive. But Merc’s last words gave her hope. Hope he’d be back to finish the job.

After Merc is betrayed by her father, Sydney becomes his target. He wields sex, drugs, lies, and love like weapons. Merc knows just what to do with a fearful girl like Sydney. He’s in control. He’s always in control.

But Sydney Channing is not what she appears. And Merc’s only redeeming act—the very one that made Sydney’s life a living hell—might just be his worst mistake yet.

WARNING: Meet Me In The Dark is a STANDALONE, non-traditional, DARK ,CAPTIVE ROMANTIC SUSPENSE. It is not intended for sensitive readers. 

MEET ME IN THE DARK IS A STANDALONE, romantic suspense novel ON SALE NOW: 

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25179280-meet-me-in-the-dark?ac=1

Amazon: http://bit.ly/meetmercnow

B&N: http://bit.ly/1OBXUi1

KOBO: http://bit.ly/1DNcLml 

AUTHOR BIO:

JA Huss is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than twenty romances. She likes stories about family, loyalty, and extraordinary characters who struggle with basic human emotions while dealing with bigger than life problems. JA loves writing heroes who make you swoon, heroines who makes you jealous, and the perfect Happily Ever After ending.

You can chat with her on Facebook 

(www.facebook.com/AuthorJAHuss), Twitter (@jahuss), and her kick-ass romance blog, New Adult Addiction (www.newadultaddiction.com).

If you're interested in getting your hands on an advanced release copy of her upcoming books, sneak peek teasers, or information on her upcoming personal appearances, you can join her newsletter list (http://eepurl.com/JVhAr) and get those details delivered right to your inbox.

Author Links: 

http://jahuss.com/

https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJAHuss

https://twitter.com/JAHuss

www.goodreads.com/author/show/6446815.J_A_Huss

GIVEAWAY 

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GIVEAWAY $15 GC - BOOK COVER REVEAL - MEET ME IN THE DARK by J A HUSS - DARK ROMANCE SUSPENSE

Meet Me In The Dark (A Dark Suspense) by J.A. Huss 

Publication date: April 15th 2015

Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Suspense 

Synopsis: 

Eight years ago, Merric Case—AKA Merc, freelance assassin—was sent to rescue a sixteen year old girl from a Wyoming-based militia group on Christmas Eve. A new life, new friends, and a whole lot of new money came out of that job. But a choice had to be made that night, and the girl he should’ve saved was left behind.

Sydney Channing was collateral damage in more ways than one when the rescue she expected turned into an eight-year nightmare filled with lies, sexual servitude, and mind manipulation. Case’s last threat gave her hope that one day he’d be back—even if it was just to kill her.

And now Merc is back. But he’s not here to save Sydney. His job is to pick through her damaged psyche and find the truth using whatever means necessary. Sex, drugs, lies, and love. Those are his weapons of choice. And when Merric Case takes aim—he never misses the target.

Meet Me In The Dark is a full-length dark suspense novel due to be published on April 15, 2015.

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25179280-meet-me-in-the-dark?ac=1

AUTHOR BIO: 

JA Huss is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than twenty romances. She likes stories about family, loyalty, and extraordinary characters who struggle with basic human emotions while dealing with bigger than life problems. JA loves writing heroes who make you swoon, heroines who makes you jealous, and the perfect Happily Ever After ending.

You can chat with her on Facebook (www.facebook.com/AuthorJAHuss), Twitter (@jahuss), and her kick-ass romance blog, New Adult Addiction (www.newadultaddiction.com).

If you're interested in getting your hands on an advanced release copy of her upcoming books, sneak peek teasers, or information on her upcoming personal appearances, you can join her newsletter list (http://eepurl.com/JVhAr) and get those details delivered right to your inbox. 

Author Links: 

http://jahuss.com/

https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJAHuss

https://twitter.com/JAHuss

www.goodreads.com/author/show/6446815.J_A_Huss

GIVEAWAY

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GIVEAWAY & RELEASE DAY BOOK BLITZ - SOMETHING LIKE NORMAL by MONICA JAMES - SOMETHING LIKE NORMAL # 1 - ADULT CONTEMPORARY

Title: Something like Normal

 (Book 1 in The Something like Normal series)

Author: Monica James

Genre: Adult Contemporary

Release date: May 13th 2014

Publisher: Limitless Publishing http://www.limitlesspublishing.com/

AUTHOR BIO:

Monica James spent her youth devouring the works of Anne Rice, William Shakespeare and Emily Dickinson.

When she is not writing, Monica is busy, running her own business, but she always finds a balance between the two. 

She enjoys writing honest, heartfelt and turbulent stories, hoping to leave an imprint on her readers, and her inspiration comes from every day life. She is an Amazon best selling author in both the US and UK.

Monica James resides in Melbourne, Australia, with her wonderful family, and menagerie of animals.

She is slightly obsessed with cats, chucks and lip gloss, and secretly wishes she was a ninja on the weekends.

BLURB:

Mia Lee has a secret…

A secret she’s kept hidden since she was eight years old, however, Mia will no longer allow that secret to define her.

An irrevocable decision has left Mia Lee a fugitive and on the run—a circumstance that should leave her weak and scared, yet Mia has never felt so alive.

Under the pseudonym of Paige Cassidy, Mia is ready to live the life she’s never had, and she’s determined not to allow her tainted past dictate her promising future.

Paige is on a Greyhound bus heading from L.A. to South Boston, Virginia, to start a new life. A life that includes finding her mother, who abandoned her at age three. But what she finds, is four people, who will change her life forever.

Yet no one can outrun their past…

Especially one filled with bitter memories, which refuse to remain hidden. 

Excerpt:

It feels effortless. And it feels right.

We stay hugging for a few moments, and as I nestle closer to his chest, surrounded by his smell, I know that I’m in trouble. I have feelings for someone who is going to be really, really hard to say goodbye to when the time comes. But when did this happen? When was the exact moment my world got tipped on its axis, and shaken up beyond repair?

I should have stopped it, but who am I to stand in the way of something that was inevitable?

The sound of Quinn’s heart beating steadily against my ear is comforting, and if I close my eyes really tight, I can pretend that I’m just a normal girl, being wrapped up in the arms of her normal…boyfriend? But make believe is for dreamers, and I’m a realist. I will enjoy the here and now because I don’t know what tomorrow holds.

Purchase From:

AMAZON US 

AMAZON UK 

AMAZON AU 

AMAZON CA 

B&N


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GIVEAWAY TIME

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BLOG TOUR - YOU CAN CALL ME MIRANDA by TJ HAMILTON - COMPANION NOVELLA - THYME TRILOGY

By: TJ Hamilton

Published By: TJ Hamilton

Released : Available Now

Details: Kindle for honest review, 152 Pages

RATING: 4.25 THIS IS HER STORY STARS! 

Blurb: Goodreads

I was born to dance. I may have even become the best ballerina this country has ever seen. But when you have no one to guide you as a young person, you become very lost. I craved love and attention, and I found it in men.

I’ve always had a certain allure that draws men to me. I worked that out at a very young age. At first it was fun teasing them, then a thrill … then it was just easy. Men were just too easy.

I loved the way they looked at me when I danced for them, the way they stared at my body. I danced for men who paid to watch. Then he found me. I was the next desperate girl, ripe for the picking. If only I knew what I was being picked for.

This is my story. This is how I lost the girl I once was. Now, you can call me Miranda.

BOOK REVIEW by Michelle:

You Can Call Me Miranda is a poignant look at how a young girl with hopes and dreams can have those dreams shattered in a heart beat and be left with a totally different career path.

It will lead her to a dangerous future and the men she will meet along the way in Thyme Trilogy.

I really enjoyed seeing what moments, no matter how shattering, in Mia the ballerina’s life, that started the process of changing her into Miranda the chick we know from Buying Thyme and Making Thyme.

Mia is a teenager who needs support, like any teenager. The people who should have been there for Mia... weren’t.

I cry for my father who left me. I cry for the mother, who chose to leave me, and I cry for having nothing of me left.


I really liked George. He showed me a kind man who cared.

“Aye, aye ... What’s ‘is all about, then?” He kneels down in front of me.

“My whole life is in ruins. I have nowhere to go. I have no family, and I have no money. I don’t know what to do.”I put my head back into my knees again and sob.

“Ere, come on now. Let’s get you inside, then. It’s not all that bad. We’ll sort you out, okay?”

This companion novella isn’t about sex and the dangerous world of Miranda in Thyme Trilogy. This is a short book showing us how Mia’s dreams, like so many in this world can be broken and sometimes there is only one option that looks good at the time to pursue.

It changes people.

I smile and bat my lashes. “You can call me Miranda.”

Innocence is lost.


“You’re very innocent Miranda,” he whispers.

“Sorry,” I answer slowly.

“Don’t be. I like it,” he says, as he runs his thumb along my bottom lip.

He grips tight onto my hand and leads me toward the sparkling hotel entrance.


I totally recommend reading the Thyme Trilogy and this companion novella. I did wonder why Miranda chose the path she did and when you meet Mia, your heart can break for the brilliance her ballet career could have been, but was taken away from her.

Michelle

BOOK REVIEW - SLACK by J.A. HUSS - A Day in the Life of Ford Aston (Rook and Ronin Spinoff) - NOVELLA - SELF PUBLISHED

By: J.A. Huss

Published By: J.A. Huss

Released : 18th December 2013

Details: Kindle, 88 Pages

RATING: 5 GORGEOUS FORD STARS!! HUMMA! HUMMA!

Blurb: Goodreads

Ford Aston is not too picky about what he wants out of Christmas. He’s not into this holiday—like at all. He doesn’t do presents, or family dinners, or parties, or church.

He does pets. And he’s got one lined up for Christmas Eve. In fact, it’s the highlight of his day. And if he can get through drop-in visits, nosy twelve year olds, an inappropriate conversation with his best friend’s girlfriend, dinner with a family that’s not his, and a party at his mother’s house—well, he might just get home in time to enjoy himself with a stranger and make it all OK.

SLACK: A Day in the Life of Ford Aston, is a prequel to TAUT: The Ford Book, and can be read as a standalone novella.

SLACK releases on December 18, 2013

TAUT releases on January 20, 2014

BOOK REVIEW by Michelle:

After reading Manic, Rook & Ronin # 2 where we are introduced to Ford Aston, I was intrigued to know more about this lad.

Ford, now this lad is the oldest , around 24- 25 yrs old and he is the producer of this whole campaign. He likes to play mind games and stuff around with you, but at the same time is he really? Lots of layers to this boy. He may also need a spinoff series for me to read, heheee . He grew on me. One minute I thought he was an ass and the next he was giving little bits of himself away and appearing to want to connect with Rook. But what are his true motives?

Is he good guy or trouble maker or both?

Then I read Panic, Rook & Ronin # 3...

I take my hat off to J.A. she writes Ford so well in this book. He caught my eye in Manic, but , I was not understanding him. What was his game? He is something else in this book. He takes more of a front row seat. Yowzer, what the lad gets up to and it is only touched on. Like, tippy toe touched on.

I am intrigued. I'm not sure if Ford makes me nervous, he certainly is a stand out character. Ford is such an intelligent character. He kind of blows my mind the way J.A. writes him. I am almost drooling for his book.

Ford. Ford. Ford. The words that come out of his mouth...

He has an intenseness , but there is something else under all that.

Then I spotted Slack on Goodreads.

WT ?

Where did Slack come from?

I knew Taut was Ford’s full sized read coming in January 2014, I'm on the blog tour.

The minute I found Slack I raced over to Amazon as only my fingers could race and snapped it up.

Best .88c I have spent.

Love the titles, by the way. 

Slack and Taut.

I will have to read Taut slowly as it is the only full sized read from Ford L

I am already wanting...needing more novella’s from Ford as he is such an interesting character.

In Slack we are following Ford around on Christmas Eve... and what a day it is.

I did not want his day to end. When it did I was all $%^#%&@!!! 

He just captivates me.

What we learn is there is another surprising side to Ford which opens up another set of novella’s ...well I am hinting here, people. I just totally made that up about more novella's.

We could have an Easter, Birthday, Camping...?? Hey , I am throwing ideas out here. But, seriously, what went on in this novella, just lends itself to more... * whispers * novella's, more books.

J.A. knows I am a fan of her Rook & Ronin trilogy and ALL her lads. I also know when she adds another character into the mix...and this character is intriguing, but also adds to Ford’s ever growing long list of intrigueness ( is that a word?) then count me in for more spinoffs... novellas...books.

Just write away :)  

I am sitting here waiting with open arms.

What can I say, Ford makes me make up words for him because he is such an enormously appealing character. It is hard to express without reading Rook & Ronin what J.A. can do with Ford’s character.

He is a genius.

He can play with your mind.

He is Alpha.

He is trouble??

He is a jack of a lot of trades that are ...

He doesn’t stop surprising me.

He has a heart that feels pain.

He does have a conscience that sits on his shoulder and eventually makes him do the right thing.

Ford is ever evolving in my mind.

He is different. 

He is smexi, Ford style.

I am the first to admit that my rules are unreasonable. My behavior is atrocious. My indifference is derogatory. But if the pets don’t care, why should I?

Ford wants that HEA. He wants it more than I think he understands at the moment.

I’m a freak looking for a freak. A freak that can relate to me. And the pets are the closest thing I’ve come to so far.

I would read anything in a novella that Ford did in a day as his days are like no other as I found in Slack.

Slack was a five star read because it felt like a full sized read. We see Ford’s sexual side, we see his conscience, we see his loyalty.

He is no Grinch know matter how hard he tries.

I LOVED the twelve year old in this novella.

“Archery. I’m the Wyoming State champion in both trap and .22 rifle but I’m not a good enough archer yet.” She looks wistfully at a bow on the wall. “There’s always next year.”

I just stare at her. She’s like a twelve-year-old La Femme Nikita.

Brilliant work J.A. Huss.

“What’s your name?” I ask her, as she busily ties ribbons to the jewelry bag.

“Sasha Alena Cherlin.”

“Not Nikita then?” She laughs, like she got the joke, and that makes me like her even more.


I can so see this kid being one of J.A's awesome female leads when she is old enough.

Bring. It. On.

I want to say more about this kid, but then that would be telling too much. She simply suits being Ford's friend.

What J.A. can do with the lads in her Rook & Ronin series is just damn smexi, but she brings much more. She keeps pages turning and she brings intrigue. I will simply pick up anything she writes and read it.

No hesitation.

She is honing her writing craft and keeps stepping it up with the lads in her series. They really do I think, drive it. Rook is the gal they all love in some way, but she is Ronin’s heart and soul.

I’m not against the fairytale. I’m not against marriage and all that shit. I’m just picky. I want what I want and I refuse to settle. I’d rather be alone than settle.

But, I sigh, there is only one Rook and her heart belongs to Ronin.


I can’t wait to discover along with Ford his heart and soul because she is going to have to be somebody pretty spectacular. Someone more than his Rook.

"You've changed me, Rook. You make me weak, you make me stumble, you make me fall, and even though I know you'll pick me up if I ask you to, it's not enough. I want you to make me stronger, just like I made you. I want it all or I want nothing. And since I can't have it all, I'll take nothing."


Then we get Spencer’s book, Guns. Whahhhh!!!

Bouncy...Bouncy...

So hint...hint... do we get a day in Spencer’s life, novella?

HINT!!!!!

Seriously, read Rook & Ronin Trilogy and then Ford's spinoff, you won't be disappointed. 

Seriously!!!!!

So much happened today and I have no one to share it with. No one. I just want someone to listen to me for once. 

Michelle

Tentative release date: January 20, 2014

Ford Aston is getting the f*ck out of Denver. He does not give a shit about blizzards, getting his old-ass Bronco over the Rocky Mountains in one piece, or a girl knocking on his hotel door looking to be saved.

Ford Aston is known for many things. Being an emotionless, messed up bastard, a freakishly smart social outcast, and a cold, domineering master who keeps “pets” instead of girlfriends.

And after Rook broke his heart, he plans to keep it that way.

******

Ashleigh is getting the f*ck out of somewhere, but she’s not quite sure where she’s coming from, let alone where she’s going.

Ashleigh is known for nothing, and that’s exactly what she’s got going for her. She’s broke, stranded in the mountains with a three month old baby, and Ford Aston is f*cking with her head.

Big. Time.

And she plans to f*ck with his right back.

****** 

It’s a coy game at first, filled with flirting, and innuendo—but Ford soon realizes something is not quite right with Ashleigh. In fact, something is seriously, seriously wrong and the closer they get to their final destination, the closer Ford gets to the truth.

One night of devastation, self-loathing, and emptiness turns into the best thing that ever happened to Ford Aston. But one day of in-your-face reality threatens Ashleigh's whole existence.

KATE BELLE - THE YEARNING - CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE - SIMON & SCHUSTER - AUSSIE AUTHOR ROAD TRIP - DAY 8

Day 8 : I'm swinging the Kombi back around and heading off to Victoria to visit Kate Belle. Check out her 6 sneaky things and have a read of her synopsis for her contemporary romance, The Yearning, published by Simon & Schuster. You can check out a couple of her other reads and their sample chapters.

Have as sing-a-long to The Presidents.

Welcome Kate.

Author Bio

Kate is a multi-published author who writes dark, sensual contemporary women’s fiction. She lives, writes and loves in Melbourne, juggling her strange, secret affairs with her male characters with her much loved partner and daughter and a menagerie of neurotic pets.

Kate holds a tertiary qualification in chemistry, half a diploma in
naturopathy and a diploma in psychological astrology. Kate believes in living a passionate life and has ridden a camel through the Australian desert, fraternized with hippies in Nimbin, had a near birth experience and lived on nothing but porridge and a carrot for 3 days.

Kate is the creator of The Ecstasy Files blog, a light hearted look at
love, lust and the experience of the modern woman. She loves to blog and does it EVERYWHERE. Just google her and see.

Sneaky 6 Questions:

A quote that means something to you.

"You only live once but if you do it right, once is enough.' 

- Mae West

In my books Mae knew how to make the most of life!

A song that describes you.

My heart's saying 'Baby I'm a Star' by Prince

My head's saying 'We're not Gonna Make it' 

by Presidents of the United States.

 Who is your book boyfriend? 

At the risk of sounding up myself - Ramon Mendez from my Master of Love series novellas (Breaking the Rules and Bloom). I invented him so in my mind he's utterly perfect in every way. When I'm writing him I seriously can't stop thinking about him.

All. The. Time.

 Who is your book girlfriend? 

Alice from Alice in Wonderland by CS Lewis.  She's a nice mix of vulnerable and sassy and she doesn't take any crap from that mad old queen.

 Author that inspired you and why?

All the great ones. Alice Munro. Sonya Hartnett. Tobsha Learner. 

Tim Winton. Anais Nin. Kate Forsyth. Chloe Hooper.  Kim Scott. Alexis Wright. And my teachers Andrea Goldsmith, Toni Jordan, Arnold Zable. The list truly is endless.

Will you be attending the Indie Author Down Under Gold Coast event 22nd March 2014?

Facebook Link

No, but you can find me on The New Romantics panel

 (myself, Margareta Osborn, Kathryn Ledson, Jennifer Scoullar)at these 2014 events - Emerging Writers Festival, Woodend Winter Arts Festival, Victorian libraries and possibly The Wheeler Centre.

I will also be presenting 'Writing Convincing Sex' workshop as part of Writers' Victoria Summer School program in January. 

Check Writers Victoria or the Pillow Talk tab on my website for event details.

 What's coming up next?

My second controversial and compelling novel ‘Saint’

(working title) is the story of faithful Banjo's undying love for wild, polyamorous Jade, a woman born with the absolute courage and audacity to be herself.

To be released in 2014 through Simon & Schuster.

Title of Book : The Yearning
Author: Kate Belle

State: Victoria
Published By : Simon & Schuster
Date Released: May 2013
Genre : Contemporary Women's Romantic Fiction with erotic themes

It’s 1978 in a country town and a dreamy fifteen year old girl’s world is turned upside down by the arrival of the substitute English teacher. Solomon Andrews is beautiful, inspiring and she wants him like nothing else she’s wanted in her short life.

Charismatic and unconventional, Solomon easily wins the hearts and minds of his third form English class. He notices the attention of one girl, his new neighbour, who has taken to watching him from her upstairs window. He assumes it a harmless teenage crush, until the erotic love notes begin to arrive.

Solomon knows he must resist, but her sensual words stir him. He has longings of his own, although they have nothing to do with love, or so he believes. One afternoon, as he stands reading her latest offering in his driveway, she turns up unannounced. And what happens next will torment them forever – in ways neither can imagine.

Read an extract here: 

http://issuu.com/simonschusteraustralia/docs/the_yearning_by_kate_belle

Buy The Yearning: 

Ebook: Amazon or iTunes or Kobo 

Print book:

Target, Kmart, Myer, Collins, Dymocks, Big W, Eltham Bookshop and other independent bookshops and major airports. 

If not in stock just ask.


Breaking the Rules:

Grace is a beautiful woman in complete control of her world. A long time ago she chose a career over children and marriage, and has never regretted it. Then Ramon Mendez walks into her office. Ramon is about to commence his PhD, a work on erotic literature, and from the outset there is something about him that makes Grace’s blood run hot. Aware of the need to maintain her professional reputation, she rejects his advances, but he persists. And during their intimate supervision sessions, her defences start to crumble, for Ramon’s work is exposing desires within Grace she never knew existed.

Follow this link for a sample chapter: 

http://www.randomhouse.com.au/books/kate-belle/breaking-the-rules-9781742758343.aspx


Breaking the Rules Purchase From:

 iTunes & Amazon 

Bloom:

Thirty-six-year-old Emma’s life looks as perfect as could be. She loves her solid, straight-laced husband Gary, who has given her three beautiful, if spoilt, children and a secure life. But something is missing. Gary hardly notices her anymore and she feels frumpy and invisible. Her friend, Lisa, talks her into joining a social boot camp class at the local gym. Emma immediately recognises their instructor as the gorgeous runner she sees each evening while walking her dog in the park. He introduces himself as Ramon Mendez. In spite of herself Emma is besotted.

Before long her mind is filled with guilty fantasies of him. One evening, when things at home have become too much to bear, she bumps into him alone in the park. An opportunity presents itself and no one need ever know. Ramon promises and delivers everything that’s missing from her marriage – passion, romance and excitement – but Emma must discover if they are the things she really wants. 

Follow this link for a sample chapter:

 http://www.randomhouse.com.au/books/kate-belle/bloom-9781742758350.aspx


Bloom Purchase From:

 iTunes & Amazon 

Reading group questions here 

(http://books.simonandschuster.com.au/Yearning/Kate-Belle/9781922052643/reading_group_guide#rgg)

Blog/website: http://www.ecstasyfiles.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/katebelle.x

Twitter: @ecstasyfiles https://twitter.com/ecstasyfiles

Goodreads: 

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6572571.Kate_Belle

Tomorrow on the road trip I shall be visiting Jacinta Maree and hanging about a bit longer in Victoria. The Great Ocean Road in the Kombi sounds a nice little side trip for myself.

BOOK COVER REVEAL - CONVICTED by ALEATHA ROMIG - CONSEQUENCES # 3 - PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER - CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE - ADULT - SELF PUBLISHED

I am reading Consequences and I gotta say...whahhhh!! Not your typical lead guy. I am feeling all kinds of things. Quite an understatement really, lol! I can see why this is a very popular series. Very outside the box. 

Michelle

CONVICTED DETAILS:

Convicted

Consequences 3

Aleatha Romig

Self-published

October 8, 2013

Psychological Thriller/Contemporary Dark Romance

BLURB:

There were still lessons to learn and consequences for the truth!
When Claire Nichols met Anthony Rawlings, she didn’t know they had a past, or that he had plans for her future. Over time, the role of teacher changed—games became reality—and domination turned to desire. Despite an insurmountable history, Claire and Tony found their way back to one another.
Just when they seemed to have it all—love, respect, and the promise of a family—the game master exposed the truth. Claire’s world once again spun out of control. Unwilling to allow her child to suffer the consequences of an old vendetta, Claire fled...
At one time, Claire was held captive in an opulent mansion—then her incarceration was a cell inside a state penitentiary. Was her new prison—a tropical island—truly less lonely? Perhaps that was the game master’s plan, all along?
Who will save Claire from her oldest nightmare and her newest reality? Will it be Tony? Can he forgive her for leaving him—again? Harry? Will he utilize previously unknown connections to save the woman who infiltrates his thoughts? Maybe Phil? Will his devotion in keeping Claire and her child safe be rewarded?
As the cards are played—sins of the past, innocent victims, and truths are revealed. With compartmentalization no longer an option, is the reality too much? Could there be an even worse isolation?
With the game master dealing from a stacked deck, can this new high-stakes game possibly be won?
When it’s all over and their cards are on the table—SOME will discover their bets were too high—they have nothing left to lose—ALL will learn the crucial lesson—the most important rule—there are CONSEQUENCES for the TRUTH!

Aleatha Romig’s CONVICTED!

Book links:

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16150996-convicted

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Aleatha Romig is a bestselling author, who has been voted #1 "New Author to Read" on Goodreads July 2012 - Present! She was also #9 most followed author on Goodreads - July / August 3013.

Aleatha has lived most of her life in Indiana growing-up in Mishawaka, graduating from Indiana University, and currently living south of Indianapolis. Together with her high-school sweetheart and husband of twenty six years, they've raised three children. Before she became a full-time author, she worked days as a dental hygienist and spent her nights writing. Now, when she’s not imagining mind-blowing twists and turns, she likes to spend her time with her family and friends. Her pastimes include exercising, reading and creating heros/ anti-heros who haunt your dreams!

Aleatha enjoys traveling, especially when there is a beach involved. In 2011 she had the opportunity to visit Sydney, Australia to visit her daughter studying at the University of Wollongong. Her dream is to travel to places in her novels and around the world.

CONSEQUENCES, her first novel, was released August 2011 by Xlibris Publishing. October 2012 Ms. Romig rereleased CONSEQUENCES as an Indie author.

TRUTH, the sequel, was released October 30, 2012 and CONVICTED, the final installment of the Consequences Series, is scheduled for release in October of 2013!

Aleatha is a “Published Author’s Network” member of the Romance Writers of America and represented by Danielle Egan-Miller of Brown and Miller Literary Associates.

AUTHOR LINKS:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AleathaRomig
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5131072.Aleatha_Romig
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BOOK BLITZ - PROMO & GIVEAWAY - CONVERSION by S.C. STEPHENS - NEW ADULT - PARANORMAL CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

Today on Novels On The Run I have a Book Blitz for Conversion by S.C. STEPHENS. Checkout the synopsis and giveaway. 

S.C. Stephens wrote the beautiful character Kellan Kyle in Thoughtless, Effortless & Reckless. 

Throw this one on to your TBR pile. I did a while back. 

Michelle

Title: Conversion (Conversion #1)

Author: S.C. Stephens

Genre: Romance/Paranormal/Contemporary Ages 18-82

Publication Date: September 3, 2013

Book Cover Design: Okay Creations

Event organized by: Literati Author Services, Inc.

Synopsis

Emma is happy. She's got a promising career in front of her, great friends, and a pretty amazing family. But her social life has been a little lacking lately. That's when fate stepped in, and crashed her into a tall, dark and handsome man. Sure, he has his secrets...don't we all, and, yeah, maybe his secrets are a little more unusual than most - like he's a partial vampire who can walk around during the day, but also enjoys a little plasma nightcap now and again - but to Emma, he's single, successful, and an extraordinary gentleman. That makes up for a lot. Of course, his condition is a bit more serious than he first lets on, and living a life with him will require some sacrifices that most just aren't willing to make. Will she? Is love enough to compensate for a life that will never be anywhere near the realm of normalcy? But then again...what's normal anyway?

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9368291-conversion

About the Author

S.C. Stephens is a bestselling author who enjoys spending every free moment she has creating stories that are packed with emotion and heavy on romance.

Her debut novel, Thoughtless, an angst-filled love triangle charged with insurmountable passion and the unforgettable Kellan Kyle, took the literary world by storm. Amazed and surprised by the response to the release of Thoughtless in 2009, more stories were quick to follow. Stephens has been writing nonstop ever since.

In addition to writing, Stephens enjoys spending lazy afternoons in the sun reading fabulous novels, loading up her iPod with writer's block reducing music, heading out to the movies, and spending quality time with her friends and family. She currently resides in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with her two equally beautiful children.



Connect with the Author: Facebook | Twitter | Blog | Goodreads

TOUR SCHEDULE

GIVEAWAY 

Tour-Wide Giveaway:

Five (5) copies of Conversion (with five different winners), reader’s choice of signed paperback or ebook. 

Giveaway starts on the 8/28/13 to 9/8/13. 

Open Internationally.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

BOOK REVIEW - THE FIRST THIRD by WILL KOSTAKIS - PENGUIN AUST - 5 HEART & SOUL STARS!

By: Will Kostakis
Published By: Penguin Aust
Released: Available Now
Details: Paperback for review from publisher, 248 Pages

RATING: 5 HEART & SOUL STARS!

Blurb: Goodreads

Life is made up of three parts: in the first third, you're embarrassed by your family; in the second, you make a family of your own; and in the end, you just embarrass the family you've made.

That's how Billy's grandmother explains it, anyway. She's given him her bucket list (cue embarrassment), and now, it's his job to glue their family back together.

No pressure or anything.

Fixing his family's not going to be easy and Billy's not ready for change. But as he soon discovers, the first third has to end some time. And then what?

It's a Greek tragedy waiting to happen.


BOOK REVIEW by Michelle:

I was fourteen when my grandmother taught me about love and the difference between moussaka and lasagne.

I was fifteen when I fell in love with lasagne. 

I was sixteen when I met moussaka. 

And I was seventeen when I realised it didn’t matter. Lasagne or moussaka, being on the other side of love hurt.

What an emotion filled read!

I laughed out loud, I cried and I did that weird giggle/cry combo.

Will Kostakis did for me what, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, did for me. 

I got pure enjoyment from his story and some lessons learnt along the way.

Will brought real characters to the page that resonated so well with me. He made me stop and think about my part in being the ‘glue’ for my family. Maybe I need to stop and think about doing some gluing myself. When I think about it, my nan was the glue, without realizing she was glue. She has passed on, no doubt as we speak, conducting a Scrabble tournament with somebody.

Will took me through an almost Greek Seinfeld story of laughs...and some tears.

One scene in particular had me swallowing down the lumps. The learn how to ride a bike scene. It was more than Bill not having been taught how to ride a bike because his father was absent in his life. It was what his friend did for him. Very touching. It was one of those weird giggle/cry combo’s for me.

‘It’s a dad’s job to teach you to ride,’ he said. ‘Consider this a loan.’
Mr P walked me and the bike onto the road.
‘I’m expecting tumbles, by the way,’ Sticks added. ‘You flipping over the handlebars at least once.’ 

.... ‘Thanks for this,’ I said, before he turned away.
‘The helmet? It’s no big deal.’
‘No, I mean, for coming to teach me.’
Mr P shrugged it off. ‘No worries.’
‘Stop bonding and start falling!’ Sticks called from the curb.
Mr P flipped him the finger. ‘You want to have a go?’
‘At flipping him off? No, I do it all the time. Oh. At this. Yeah, okay.’

....’There. Easy, isn’t it?’ he asked. ‘Now, you’re going to pedal.’
‘Don’t let go.’
‘I’m not going to let go.’
‘Okay.’
I pedalled forward slowly. Mr P walked with me. The bike swayed.
‘Just focus on pedalling. Don’t worry about your balance, I’ve got you,’ he said, raising his hand off the back seat and placing it on my back. ‘Go faster.’
‘Don’t let go,’ I warned him as I quickened the pace.
‘I won’t.’
‘I know your game. I’ve seen this on TV,’ I said, voice laced with panic. ‘You push them while they’re riding and you say you’re going to hold on, then secretly you let go and see how far they get.’
‘I would never,’ Mr P said, releasing the handlebar and giving me a push. 

‘Wait! No! You shifty-‘

I felt like this book was an omen for me to read, just with all the things that resonated in it for me. I got a lot from it.

I did chuckle at the places the characters visited or lived , they all meant something to me. Rockdale, I used to call it Rock-a-dale( my version of an accent) when I lived in Brighton Le Sands before I moved to Oatley. I was waiting for Oatley to pop up...sadly it didn’t. Hubs worked in Bexley and I now live couple hours from Brissie aka Brisvegas aka Brisbane. Ha! Not that any of that meant anything really. Just thought I would tell you.

Will has such honest humour that it sometimes had me crossing my legs in laughter and sometimes I put my hands on my hips ( figuratively speaking) and stated out loud , ‘Will’ in a mum type admonishing voice. But guys are guys and they see things in a guy way. I must say Will, you have permanently recorded in my memory bank some of Bill’s visual thoughts on his Yiayia and mother’s physical appearances. 

That would be when I put my hands on my hips, figuratively speaking.  I still laughed out loud, but felt a bit naughty doing it. Ha!

In last night’s cocktail dress and makeup, she looked like a re-animated corpse at a fancy dinner party.

Mum was standing in her underwear and heels. That close to naked, her body frowned.

‘What do you think?’
I was honest. She looked like a bin liner.

WILL!!

Sticks, is an awesome character. He has Cerebal Palsy. I loved how Will wrote his character.

Honestly.

Totally endearing.

A friend you would want for your son. Sticks aka Lucas rocked the Kazbah with his attitude. 

If there was one thing that the past couple of weeks had taught me, it was that no matter how heavy and weird life got, Sticks was a constant.

You really only see Sticks down when it comes to finding a boyfriend. He is a realist when it comes to what people see in him before they can see past his crutches, his sticks.

‘Why not just put it straight into my phone?’ Dean asked.
‘This gives you the chance to throw it away,’ Sticks said.
He smirked. ‘Why would I want to?’
Sticks didn’t reply.

.... On the way out the door, I looked back. Dean slid the coaster off the table and scrunched it into a ball.

Bill and Sticks have an awesome friendship. Nothing stands in their way. They are each others wingman.

We weren’t the exact same person, he was three times four and I was two times six. We both equaled twelve; we were just made of different parts.

I had Stick’s advice. I had to go slow, not swirl my tongue, open my mouth as much as she opened hers, be gentle, breathe through my nose and close my eyes.

Piranhas. Eating. Me. Alive.

This was one of my fave lines that had me all sniffly:

‘He really is the greatest guy you will ever meet,’ I said. ‘Sure, you’ll have to walk a little slower when you’re with him and stairs are a total bitch, but he is one in a million.’

I learned many things from Will’s story about a boy named Bill who may or may not be his alter ego and a family that may or may not be his alter..err...family.

I loved Yiayia. She is a gem of a character. She was so real to me. The whole lunch-meets Jenga was hilarious and I could so see it happening in a hospital room.

It was lunch-meets-Jenga, one wrong move and it all fell down.

I couldn’t help but go down memory lane with my nanna while reading this book. It was impossible not to. We affectionately called her, little nanna, for obvious reasons. She was little. I was her Scrabble opponent, I took her on her first ever holiday at 72 yrs of age. We did Cairns, The Daintree Forest, Port Douglas, Palm Cove and Daydream Island like we owned them. There was a fifty year age gap at the time, but that didn’t stop us rocking the Kazbah. We rocked it at nan’s pace, but none the less we rocked it. I became very familiar with her over-shoulder- boulder-holders, aka the brassiere. It was a monster. She could get it on, with a special spin it around, fasten the beast and then spin it back to where it should be. Well, it wasn’t quite a spin, but you get my drift. It was in the unfastening, I became intimately attached to that chore every night while on vacation and the nights I slept over spooning nan when we visited her regularly at her small house.  It was one of those thousand hook beasts. You burned up a sweat unfastening it.

My parents still have the same Croatian neighbours for the past 34 years. Yiayia reminds me of Maria ( my old neighbour) . The way she spoke in that short English. I was fifteen and being offered slivovitz, it is an apricot liqéuer, tastes like rocket fuel. Well, to a fifteen year old it did.

My point is, when reading Will’s story, you can’t help stop and think about your life, your family, where you are all at. Peter made me think about my sixteen year old son who has become emotionally detached from the family. I was waiting for some pearls of wisdom on how to deal with this in the book. Maybe I need to make Lasagne with him? Or maybe I will give this book to my middle son, he can read it and give it to my eldest son and maybe it could work like moussaka and something will click.

If Simon was a bushfire, then Peter was a lit cigarette - all smoke and no pleasant.

And, those sheets! I laughed until my face leaked. I was pulling quotes for hubs to listen to and he was chuckling ( I wrote giggling but that didn't sound very manly) at the sheets.

‘The best though,’ I said, standing back and relaxing into it, ‘is when my grandmother goes shopping for sheets. She calls them “shits”. But she doesn’t just walk in and say she wants “shits”, no, it’s always “high-quality shits”, “comfortable shits”.

But even those 'shits' that I was laughing so hard at, well, Will had a way of making you realize that the things you find funny and endearing about your grandmother, can also hurt their feelings.

‘I want new shits,’ my grandmother said. ‘High quality shits.’
Yes, I could have just helped her find them, but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to make at least one member of the floor staff feel incredibly uncomfortable.
‘I’m sorry?’ he stammered.
‘Shits. Where I find the shits?’ She exhaled and turned to me. ‘Yiti yelas?’ She wanted to know why I was laughing.
‘Sheets,’ I said.
‘Yes, shits.’ She couldn’t hear the difference.
‘No, sheets.’

.... ‘One day,’ Yiayia said, shaking a fistful of fabric at me, ‘someone will laugh at you and you no feel good.’

... ‘In first part,’ she said, ‘your family embarrass you. Then - pff - they die.’

... ‘In number two, you find agape, you find love, you make baby, you want to have family like before.’

... ‘Then , one day, you old. You try to give, and your family,’Yiayia shrugged, ‘they embarrassed. And then-pff-you die.’

And then you are pulled up by your tighty whities and you remember all those things you used to laugh at that your nan did, and it makes you wonder, did it upset her? Those times I got the giggles when she would put a foot on a step while climbing on the bus and let rip a fart and she told me to stop giggling and be quiet, but I couldn't help it. It was funny. I was young.

And... Will made me stop and think for a minute...again.

I could so see this book on the big screen. A very honest story that read like it was straight out of Will’s life. If we all looked to our own families we may have a story in us we could write that is full of heartfelt moments and laughter, but Will actually did it.

When all said and done, this is quite a powerful read injected with much humour along the way.

I totally, highly , absolutely recommend this contemporary read about a Greek boy who has been given a bucket list by his Yiayia, a simple list at first glance, not so easy to put into practice. I have had one of those for a long while now, they are quite fun. Yiayia chose him , not his brothers to complete the list. To fix what needed fixing in Yiayia's eyes.

Watching Bill try to complete this list for his much loved grandmother was as much entertaining as it was filled with heart squeezing moments.

Along the way Bill is looking for that first kiss, that first girlfriend, all those things boys think about and need their wingman for. Listening to hormonal Bill was hilarious. What guys think when looking at a girl they are interested in, well you really have to read this book.

I stared at the spot past the curtain where the freckled girl had been. I’d fallen as deep in love as I could in ten seconds.

Bill is a smart, funny, loyal character on several missions for his Yiayia, there are hormones flying about and family issues in Will’s story.

I personally am saying NO! taking a stand against ever in the future using chicken fillets or speed dating at the over 40’s RSL night if anything ever happened to my much loved hubs and my children thought it was time to get back out there. If it is meant to happen, it will. That just sounds frightening.

The chicken fillets are just wrong, ha! I will also be seriously thinking about doing a hundred sit ups a day from now on so that my body never frowns. Gahhhh! Also, stretch marks, need I say more, gahhh! 

The last page...well it gave me hope, and it made my face leak...again.

A story that touched me emotionally in all the right places, and it made me miss my nan all that much more.

Will has written a story with a lot of heart and a lot of soul. A true gem of a read.

‘You spend the first third getting embarrassed by your family. When they pass away, you spend the next part trying to make a family like the one you had. And then you’re old, you just embarrass whatever family you’ve made.’

Michelle