Category Archives: Excerpt
COVER REVEAL – Taming Alaska by Diana Downey
Title: Taming Alaska
Series: Duology
Author: Diana Downey
Genre: Romantic Thriller
Cover Design: Books on the Edge
Release Date: April 5, 2016
Blurb
Shane O’Flannery is no Prince Charming.
He is uncouth, uncultured, untrainable.
Damn this man! How dare he humiliate Texas heiress Cynthia Diaz by turning her down, even if she was underage at the time?
When Shane first meets Cyn, his attraction to this frustratingly hot, flirtatious spitfire almost gets him into trouble when he discovers she’s only sixteen. He cannot forget the temptingly sweet taste of this woman-child, so for two years he does his damnedest to avoid this young siren.
Even though Shane’s body was chiseled from granite and Cyn compares every man’s caress to Shane’s panty-melting kiss, she dreams of her true knight in shining armor. So shortly after meeting charismatic, well bred, and breathtakingly handsome Mr. Waits, the perfect man in every way, she marries him. She fully expects a fairytale honeymoon in Bora Bora, Fiji, or Maui. Much to her chagrin, he whisks her off to the Alaskan Interior. When her life is threatened, she must rely on the ill-mannered Shane to survive—a man who has never read the Prince Charming manual.
Taming Alaska is a full-length standalone novel and is tied into a duology. Steamy thriller with a dash of satire and humor for 18 and older, including a strong alpha male and friends to lovers romance.
Excerpt
Mrs. Duncan sitting on the other side of Shane chokes on her asparagus. After she recovers, she asks, “How did it go today with you and Trevor?”
She’s bringing up my ex-boyfriend on purpose. Bitch. I put on my game face before wiping off the disdain from my lips and turning toward her. I lean across Shane, so only he and Trevor’s mom can hear, letting my breast sheathed only in silk rest on his bare arm. He literally stops breathing, and I smile at my small victory.
“Trevor and I broke up. He stole my virginity, and the sex sucked and maybe a real man, like Shane, could make up for it.”
“Cynthia,” she scolds. It takes her a full minute to recover while Shane laughs heartily.
“Trevor really likes you,” she says, but I know my sister Fay has the suitable pedigree.
I smile. “No, he doesn’t. Otherwise, he would’ve satisfied me.”
Shane’s not sorry at all. He’s grinning and slips his hand onto the back of my chair, which sends a flurry of evil eyes my way from Fay and Mrs. Duncan and the other women in the room. Shane isn’t even Fay’s type, let alone mine.
He leans down and whispers, “You’re certainly a spitfire. If your mom weren’t here, I’d take you home and guarantee your satisfaction.”
My body lights up at the promise of sexual gratification. Shane definitely thinks I’m older. I gaze up and down this man’s stealth-like body and know he can deliver. I wiggle in my seat to open up a bit more breast flesh for Shane’s enjoyment, and he does take a few unrepentant peeks.
“What year are you in college?” Shane asks, his fingers leaving a trail of burning coals on my skin while he uses his other hand to swig his beer.
Fay laughs while I glance at Mom to see if I can get away with a white lie. She gives a small shake of the head.
I sigh. “I’m sixteen, but I turn seventeen in another two months.”
“Sixteen?” he spits out a mouthful of beer. “Fuck,” he mutters under his breath. He’s so flustered he tips over a water glass, yet saves it before hardly any spills.
When he looks at me, like I just contracted herpes, I want to crawl under the table, but instead, I sit up straighter. He started this or maybe I did, but he joined right in.
Author Bio
Diana loves steamy sex that sizzles off the page but also well-developed characters and a solid plot that keeps the readers guessing. Strong, masculine men with endearing qualities and motivated, determined women always get to her. Diana’s work has earned several awards including first place Paul Gillette, Colorado Gold finalist, and two semi-finalists in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award.
Diana loves to travel and meet interesting people whose character traits often provide important fodder to her stories. She loves to read and the outdoors, either hiking among the aspens or relaxing on a remote beach with a good book.
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PROMO TOUR ~ Luck of the Cowgirl by Sarah Cass
🍀 Luck of the Cowgirl 🍀
Holidays in Lake Point Series
by Sarah Cass
Promo Tour February 28th – March 19th
Calli Ryley lost everything when her last relationship went south—her job, her lover, and she hightailed her way all the way to Lake Point to escape. She’s steeled her heart against love, and most certainly wouldn’t get involved on the job again. The best thing she can do is keep working with her head down and no sights on love.
Dee Parker has spent the past year away from Lake Point dealing with illness and death. She returns home ready to dive back into life. When she first sets eyes on the sexy cowgirl Calli, she’s instantly smitten. The cold reception Calli gives her leaves Dee ready to move on.
Could one seemingly simple business trip turn their luck in love around? Or will love get snowed in?
Deanna rubbed her eyes with the heels of her hands. All of the information in front of her made her eyes cross. She knew eventually she’d get a handle on the whole breeding business, but at first glance it was a complicated mess of bloodlines and pure money.
The money she could handle, the pedigrees were convoluted and confusing to a newbie. She pondered asking Calli for help, but then thought better of it. After the first couple of days of overt flirtation, Deanna had pulled her head out of her ass. Maybe she’d read Calli wrong, maybe not, whatever the reason flirting clearly put the girl off. Instead, Deanna had settled into a routine that didn’t involve much contact with the sexy cowgirl.
When she had seen Calli, Deanna had been the consummate professional. After all, she was an adult and knew how to act with some decorum when she needed to. Didn’t mean she liked it any. Having fun was a much better way to pass the day.
She groaned in frustration and leaned back in her seat to stare at the ceiling. “I am smart enough to do this. I really am.”
“Uh, okay.” Calli’s cute little drawl interrupted Deanna’s self-chastising moment. If Deanna wasn’t completely delusional she would have sworn there was a hint of laughter in Calli’s voice. “Don’t recall saying you weren’t.”
“Oh, no. You didn’t.” Deanna sat upright and remembered her resolve to not act like a fool around the woman in front of her any longer. “I was yelling at myself. Maybe I’m just trying to think too much.”
“Wouldn’t be the first person to do that. Most of us do.” Calli’s gaze settled on the papers scattered on the desk. “Hank wouldn’t have hired you if you couldn’t do it. That man’s got a good business head on him.”
“Yes he does, everything is in great order for me. It’s this breeding info. The family trees and such are making my eyes cross.” Deanna flipped through a few of the folders on her desk. “And Hank said something about one of the broodmares no longer being able to breed, and having to replace her and finding a few more for the ones that are aging out.”
“You don’t have to worry about that so much. I know the circuit and the horses well enough. I’ll let you know what we need.”
“But I need to understand it.” Deanna pursed her lips. “I’m not your boss and you aren’t mine, so we’re going to have to work together on this. I need to know what I’m spending the businesses money on.”
“Fair enough.” Calli hesitated at the door a minute longer before she entered to sit across from Deanna. “Did Hank tell you who I’ve got my eye on to bring in?”
“Yes, let me find the list.” Deanna pulled open a drawer and pulled out the pad she’d written notes on in her lengthy talks with Hank. “Sorry, I haven’t had time to transfer all my notes to the computer. Let’s see, there’s one in California that’s going to cost a pretty penny to ship.”
“But she’s not bred yet and her line hasn’t touched any of the ones we usually work with. It’ll widen our birth and bring back some repeat business we might have lost in the next few years. It’s worth the money.”
Deanna nodded at the logic. “Are there any others like that?”
“Probably not on the list he gave you. I have a lead on another in Colorado. She’s not ready yet for breeding, but I’d like to bring her in anyway.” Calli leaned on the opposite side of the desk, her face brightening the more they talked about the horses. “She’s a beauty, too. Unfortunately, she’s also fast so they’re thinking of training her to race instead.”
“That’s unusual, isn’t it?”
“Yes. Like I said, she is fast. That could also drive up how much she’d be worth on the breeding circuit. Get a fast stud and a fast broodmare and that ups the ante.”
“Interesting. What’ll it take to convince them to sell her to us?”
“I’m working Carl over best as I can. He’s waffling, though.”
Deanna pursed her lips as she thought it over. From what she knew, a young mare with a long life of foaling ahead of her could be good for business. “Would it help if we went and met him directly?”
“We?” Calli grew cold immediately and sat back. “I can handle it myself.”
“I’d like to see how this works.”
“Then you can come with when I go over to the next county and talk to the Billings. No need for both of us to go flying.”
Deanna couldn’t comprehend the attitude change in Calli over the simple suggestion. “You do business with the Billings all the time. This Carl is new. I’d like to be involved.”
Calli’s lips thinned and she turned her gaze away.
“I promise not to step on your toes.”
“Fine.” Calli rose with a heavy sigh. “Let me know what you work out so I can let Carl know we’re coming.”
“All right, then.” Deanna furrowed her brow as Calli left the office without ceremony. Well that went downhill fast.
Cali, a cowgirl with a painful past and Dee, an office manager with patience and a killer smile are the focus of this story. Fate lends a helping hand in this relationship with a needed business trip coupled with a surprise blizzard. It was a treat seeing Cali begin letting down her defenses and allowing herself to trust her feelings and accept the love flowing her way. I was given a free copy in exchange for an honest review. ~ ★★★★★ Dee of SNSBAH Promotions & Reviews
The story of Calliope and Deanna is breathtaking and not one of my normal reads. You will not only be wanting to laugh but you will feel their trust issues. I also like how it adds the series Dominion Falls into this book. The details are written well and leave nothing out. It is a very fast paced and easy read that will play through your head like a movie. This series will keep you interested and highly entertained. Each book is placed around a holiday. The title goes along with each holiday. This book Luck of the Cowgirl goes with St. Patrick’s Day. Each book can be a stand alone and will not need to be read in order. ~ ★★★★★ Amanda Hamilton
Sarah Cass‘ world is regularly turned upside down by her three special needs kids and loving mate, so she breaks genre barriers; dabbling in horror, straight fiction and urban fantasy. She loves historicals and romance, and characters who are real and flawed, so she writes to understand what makes her fictional people tick. And she lives for a happy ending – eventually. And enough twists to make it look like she enjoys her title of Queen of Trauma Drama a little too much.
An ADD tendency leaves her with a variety of interests that include singing, dancing, crafting, cooking, and being a photographer. She fights through the struggles of the day, knowing the battles are her crucible; she may emerge scarred, but always stronger. The rhythms to her activities drive her words forward, pushing her through the labyrinths of the heart and the nightmares of the mind, driving her to find resolutions to her characters’ problems.
While busy creating worlds and characters as real to her as her own family, she leads an active online life with her blog, Redefining Perfect, which gives a real and sometimes raw glimpse into her life and art. You can most often find her popping out her 140 characters in Twitter speak, and on Facebook.
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PROMO TOUR ~ ACROSS THE HALL by Kylie Walker
Across The Hall
by Kylie Walker
Date of Publication: February 24, 2016
Blurb
Jude Falken has just been released from prison on good behavior.
He’s hot as hell, owns one of the largest fashion empires & has women coming and going day and night.
A delivery girl that shows up at his loft leaves him intrigued.
She’s gorgeous, shy & totally off limits.
She’s his best friends little sister.
Jude knows better, he swore he wouldn’t go there.
————————-
After returning from a year long internship in Paris, Jillian Warren is back in her hometown of Manhattan and steering clear of men.
Her new neighbor has her curious, wanting to know more. Her roommate & brother keeps telling her stay away but she can’t.
As their worlds collide, Jillian soon finds out there is a darker side to Jude and she will soon be fighting her own emotions and memories of the one man she left in Paris.
Her past will soon catch up with her. She will be forced to decide.
Big brother’s best friend or the hurtful memories of her past in Paris.
Excerpt:
“Have you met our new neighbor?”
Ethan raised an eyebrow. “The guy across the hall? Jude?”
“Yeah! That’s his name. You know him?” She remembered Marcy saying it now. When she’d been ogling him last night, she’d barely remembered her own name.
“Where did you meet him?” Ethan asked suspiciously.
“I didn’t meet him, actually. I delivered some food to him for Marcy last night. I just wondered if you knew him. When I left last fall the place was still empty.”
“Yeah Jude just moved in right before you came home.”
“Oh…his apartment looks really nice for just moving in.”
Ethan drew his brows together. “You went inside his apartment?”
“No…I just saw it from the door. Why are you acting weird?”
Ethan laughed. “You’re one to talk. Last night you looked like you saw a…” he stopped. He had an “oh shit” look on his face.
“What?”
“Nothing. Why are you asking about Jude? What did he say that got you so interested?”
She shrugged. “He didn’t say anything. You’re being really weird. I was just curious about him. I see women coming and going a lot from over there but I’ve never seen him leave his apartment.”
“He’s working from home,” Ethan said. He got up to refill his coffee cup.
“How well do you know him?”
She saw his shoulders move up and down as he sighed. He turned towards her and said, “Answer my question first, why are you so curious about him?”
“He lives across the hall from us. It’s nice to know who your neighbors are, don’t you think? He could be…I don’t know, anybody.”
“He’s not that interesting,” Ethan said with a scowl.
“Do you not like him?”
“Yeah…I actually like the guy a lot. I just don’t get your interest in him.”
“Are you being weird because you’re afraid I want to date him?”
“Do you?”
“I delivered food to the guy Ethan, sheesh! I was really just curious. You’re the one making it a big deal.”
Ethan looked like he knew she was right. Finally he said, “I went to college with him and he’s actually a fraternity brother. We were really good friends but I hadn’t seen him in a couple of years before he moved in here. He’s been…away. Does that satisfy the curiosity?”
“Sure.” But now she was curious about why Ethan was being so curt with her about it.
“Good. I’m going to take a shower. Are you working today?”
“Nope. Having breakfast at E.A.T. with Maddy.”
“Okay, have fun…and don’t bother the neighbors.”
About Kylie Walker
A true Canadian at heart, although I love to travel anywhere warm.I am a book addict, coffee addict, a wine addict and a writer!
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