February 18, 2016

Darkness Undone by Georgia Lyn Hunter



Hey lovers of paranormal romance! Here’s a book that’ll spike your interest.



Author: Georgia Lyn Hunter
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series: The Warlords of Empyrea
Title: Darkness Undone (book1)

BLURB:
A fading realm, a warrior bound, and the woman who will save them both…

Bound to a vengeful goddess, immortal warrior, Reynner, has little time for the fairer sex. The last thing he wants is to be aligned with another female, even if she is the key to finding an artifact and saving his realm. But his stone-cold resistance is tested, his attraction undeniable for the feisty mortal, until she demands the one thing he cannot give herhis trust.
Eve Leighton avoids intimacy of any sort after an accident in her teens left her with a painful ability to see into another’s mind through physical contact. When an ice-cold warrior claims she is his world’s savior, she’s intrigued, until she dares a look into his soul and sees a man who’s been cruelly betrayed. She agrees to help him and loses her heart. But the man is an unassailable fortress. With quiet determination, she chips away his barriers and a passion darker than night pulls them under.
As his enemies close in on the hunt for the artifact, Reynner must overcome his own personal demons as battles are fought to claim the woman he loves or lose her forever. And Eve has to face her own mortality and fight for a love of a lifetime.

Excerpt
Reynner lifted his head. His skin pulled taut across the sculptured bones of his face. “You think I don’t want you? It’s been pure torture, Eve.”

“I don’t know what to think anymore,” she whispered.

He stared at her for a long second. “Undress.”

“What?”

“Undress, Eve. Now.”

At his demand, she swallowed. She would be naked in front of a man who showed no softness. Had none to give. Still, she wanted him so badly; it hurt just to breathe. With trembling fingers, she reached for the first button on her shirt, but her hands shook too much.

The next moment, he reached out and swiftly undid the buttons and peeled her top off. He tossed it aside. Warm, callused palms slid to her back and her bra followed. Goosebumps flooded her skin at the cool air. Her nipples hardened. At his dark, caressing stare, she covered her breasts with her arms. He shook his head. “Don’t.”

He moved her hands away. His gaze slowly swept down then up again. Reynner trailed his open palms up her stomach to her cup her breasts. Squeezing gently, he pressed an open-mouthed kiss on the scar on her left breast, then dragged his tongue over her nipple, leaving behind a trail of heat in its wake.

Oh, God! Eve shuddered, her body thrown into a whirlpool of sensations.

His leathers creaking, he hunkered before her and snapped open the button of her jeans. He unzipped, then parted the fly, and dragged another heated kiss down her stomach.

Eve grabbed his shoulders as he pulled the denim down her hips. She stepped out of them, and he tossed the garment aside. He bit her stomach, eliciting another shudder from her. With his teeth, he caught the edge of her panties and pulled the scrap of cotton down her thighs, yanking them off.

He was at eye level and could see her—would see everything. Instinctively, she flung one arm across her breasts and the other covered her femininity.

“Eve.” He removed her hands, keeping them in a gentle but firm hold at her sides. “Look at me.”

Heat washed her face. Her heart raced. Biting back the urge to cover herself again, Eve met his burning gaze. Sunlight filtered through the treetops and dappled his pale hair in shimmering gold and silver hues. He was so beautiful.

“You are beautiful, Eve.”

The intensity of his stare made her tremble. And just like the time in his room, he was crouched before her once more. Except there was no fear in her now. Instead, desire and a deep yearning to be in his arms took hold.

Reynner, pleasekiss me.”

Available: AMAZON | iBOOKS | KOBO | SMASH

About the Author:
I’ve been creating stories from the moment I could string two words together. No matter the tale, it always has romance woven through them. Yes, I'm a hopeless romantic.
When I’m not writing or plotting new books, I like to read, travel, painting, or troll flea markets where I usually buy things I might never actually use because they're so pretty.
After working in a few jobs all art related, a chosen career as a fashion designer, then an art teacher, I finally found my passion four years ago: writing. There really is no other job I’d rather do.
Oh, and I live in the beautiful country of South Africa.

Author’s links:



February 17, 2016

Will you be Awakened by the Wolf?



The Giveaway
Kristal is giving away a print copy of Awakened by the Wolf! Open INT.
To enter, please fill out the giveaway widget!

Book Info

Paranormal Romance, Wolves
Publisher: Harlequin Nocturne
Pages: 304
Release Date: June 1, 2016

Blurb

Who's been sleeping in the Alpha's bed?

Exiled from his pack by his father, Brice Walker has secretly come home to visit his ailing grandmother only to discover a human and very desirable female sleeping in his bed. Their attraction is instant. But his new bed buddy seems determined to resist his Southern charm and Alpha allure. 

For Brice, fiercely independent Cassie not only represents a chance to build a new life in Walker's Run but is also his one true mate. Cassie's reluctance dissolves when a rogue shifter kidnaps her, and now she and Brice must work together to save his pack. But once she witnesses the savagery of wolfan justice, can Cassie accept Brice as man, beast and her true love?


Excerpt

The mixed feelings Brice had about his homecoming knotted into concern. Granny knew wolfan law forbade adult males and females of blood relation to share bedding, so why had she fallen asleep in his room?

“Granny?” He eased onto the edge of the mattress and touched her leg.

An unfamiliar feminine gasp prickled the skin along his spine.
“Who the hell are you?” Brice didn’t mean to sound so rough and angry, but pain and exhaustion made him edgy and terse.

“Stay away from me!” The woman kicked out of bed and grappled with the bedside lamp.

“Fuck!” The sudden brightness stung like a fistful of sand slung in his face. Shielding his light-sensitive eyes behind his arm, Brice tuned into his other senses. The air thickened. He could almost taste the sharp tang of her fear. Her breaths came hard and fast.

“Get out before I call the cops,” she demanded.

“With what? Telepathy?” To his knowledge, Granny had one telephone. A landline in the kitchen.

“I have a cell phone.” The uncertainty in the woman’s voice said she didn’t.

“Nice try.” Swiping his eyes, Brice sensed a change in the air pressure, heard a hitch in her breathing. His instinct warned that she had inched to her right.

“I don’t need my eyes to track you.” He pointed to where he knew she stood.

The woman stopped moving and quite possibly stopped breathing. Nothing but howling silence filled the space between them. Any second she would hit the floor in a dead faint. Brice forced his eyes to open.

Not that he had any doubts, but the fragile-looking young woman pressed against the wall was definitely not his grandmother. Wild spirals of red hair gave her a sexy bed-head look regardless of the cornered animal glint in her cinnamon eyes.

She wore an old Maico High baseball jersey. Wait. That was his old baseball jersey.

His bed, his clothes. What else had she claimed that belonged to him?

And why?

She was human and likely unaware of the implications of marking a male Wahya’s belongings with her scent.

As if he could smell her anyway.

Still, that this small slip of a woman had claimed his discarded clothes and his abandoned bed sparked a possessive thump in his chest. His gaze prowled the small swell of her breasts and the narrow curve of her hips cloaked beneath his shirt.
She sported the longest legs he’d ever seen on someone so petite. Soft, toned legs that inspired steamy visions of them tangled around his hips as he moved inside her until she shattered in ecstasy, breaking him with her.

The full moon had passed, so his attraction was real. Not something prompted by primitive hormones riddling him to fuck the nearest willing female. That this one didn’t look so willing was like an ice dump on his stiffening cock.

Find the Book




Southern born and bred, Kristal Hollis grew up amid cane fields and orange groves. Books fed her imagination, providing adventurous portals to ancient civilizations, medieval fiefdoms, alternate realities and futuristic worlds. Then, a friend gave her Johanna Lindsey’s FIRES OF WINTER, a historical romance which ignited a life-long love affair with romantic fiction.

After earning a degree in psychology, Kristal has enjoyed career and volunteer endeavors that have included sales, banking, social services, and animal rescue. When a family medical situation required her to take a work sabbatical, she began penning deliciously dark paranormal romances as an escape from the real-life drama. Even though the crisis passed, her passion for writing continues.

Currently, Kristal lives with her husband and two rescued dogs at the edge of the enchanted forest that inspires her stories.



February 15, 2016

Mafia in Iowa?



Mafia in Iowa?
As Chicago became overrun with mobsters, their tentacles reached to nearby states. The most infamous mobster in Iowa was Louie Fratto. He was the original Teflon Don, never convicted of a crime. He also went by the names Lewis Ferrell and Cock-eyed. He had a brother, Frank, who was an assassin for the mob and went by the nickname One Ear. (Probably not a good idea to make fun of his missing ear.)

Everyone needed a legitimate business to launder their money. Frank had an aluminum siding and storm windows business. Another brother, Rudolph, had a garbage disposal business. Once prohibition was over, Lou Fratto’s ‘legit’ business was beer distribution.
In 1932, Fratto was connected to the Fiore mob in Chicago. The Fiore mob would muscle in on Speak Easies and cabarets, demanding 50% of the profits while doing 0% of the work. The owners who illegally ran these establishments had no choice but to comply.
In 1933 Fratto was listed as the Secretary and Treasurer of the Wardrobe Check, Washroom Attendant and Doorman Union. Sounds like such a boring job.
In 1934 Fratto was sent to Milwaukee Wisconsin, another suburb of Chicago. Unfortunately, he was soon arrested for gambling. To escape the charges, Lou was sent to Des Moines Iowa, where he worked for his good childhood friend and fellow Mafioso, Cherry Nose Gioe. By 1936 Lou Fratto took over running Iowa while Gioe was sent back to Chicago. (Later when Gioe tries to take control of Iowa back from Fratto, he has unfortunate accident.)
So much for ‘good friends’.
Fratto’s business front was the Iowa distributor for Canadian Ace beer. He had tentacles in the police, the prosecutor’s office, the local courts, and local state politicians. So he was sitting pretty. No one could touch him.
In 1958 he was subpoenaed by a congressional committee to bring all his financial data for their perusal. He arrives with a briefcase, only it’s locked, and because they had not subpoenaed the key, the briefcase remained locked. He took the fifth on a great deal of questions that day. At one point, Fratto got annoyed with their questions and asked the congressmen if they were getting their information from imaginative spacemen. (Generally speaking, you don’t get sassy with congressmen unless you know you are untouchable.)
In 1967, Fratto was still considered Iowa’s #1 boss. However, to be called #1 implies there were other bosses in Iowa as well. Keep that in mind as Fratto’s story turns south.
Some fellow said disrespectful things about Fratto and later ended up with a chest full of bullets. Fratto was charged with the murder, and this time he was going down. But before he could be brought to trial, he died of cancer, thus remaining the Teflon Don to his death, never convicted of a crime.
So what happened next? Did all the mafia in Iowa disappear in a puff of smoke?
I seriously doubt it. I believe over time, they simply found it more economical to go partially legit.
Are annoying people still being wacked?

In fear of being wacked, I’m not answering that.
However, in my fictional suspense romance, A Fortune to Die for, the mob still exists in Iowa, and Benito Campinelli is determined to regain the power his Chicago based Mafia boss father once had.
And as in the past, the mafia families don’t always get along. Benito’s father used fellow mobster’s daughter as a shield during his escape from an FBI bust. While Eddie escaped the FBI trap, the woman died from three shots in the chest, all meant for him. However, she was not just the daughter of a rival family, she was also the wife of FBI agent Cobbs. Instead of an eye for an, he chose not to kill Eddie’s wife, Helen. Instead, he shot Eddie while the man took a shower.
Agent Cobbs, has now retired from the FBI and is a sheriff in Iowa but his purpose in life remains to destroy the Campinellis forever!
Benito Campinelli’s mission is to gain control of the two-hundred thousand acres of white oaks his mother possesses, which he believes will bring him four billion dollars to strengthen his reach and power.
Only problem: his mother has sold the land to a woman from New Jersey.
Benito owns the governor, so he’s confident, once he kills this New Jersey woman he can retake ownership of the forest and raze it to the ground.
Seriously how hard could killing one New Jersey woman be?

Blurb
Megan Clarke had a good life until she wins the Mega Times Lottery and discovers the prize comes with a curse. Worse than the many money-hungry suitors, a serial killer has her in his sight. She changes her name and moves to Iowa with plans to buy their last major forest of white oaks and turn it into a State Park. Unfortunately, the Lottery Curse doesn't stop at state lines and someone there wants her dead, as well. Good thing a disturbingly handsome law officer is just as determined to keep her alive.
BUY LINK
A Fortune to Die For
The White Oak-Mafia Series
Free with Kindle Unlimited

About Liza
Liza O’Connor was raised badly by feral cats, left the Midwest and wandered off to find nicer people on the east coast. There she worked for the meanest man on Wall Street, while her psychotic husband tried to kill her three times. (So much for finding nicer people.) Then one day she declared enough, got a better job, divorced her husband, and fell in love with her new life where people behaved nicely. But all those bad behaviors has given her lots of fodder for her humorous books. Please buy these books, because otherwise, she’ll become grumpy and write troubled novels instead. They will likely traumatize you.
You have been warned.

Mostly humorous books by Liza:
Ghost LoverTwo British brothers fall in love with the same young woman. Ancestral ghost is called in to fix the situation. And there’s a ghost cat that roams about the book as well. (Humorous Contemporary Romance)
Saving Casey— Cass wakes up in the body of a troubled teen who has burned every bridge imaginable. Her only choice is to turn this life around, but that’s much harder than she ever imagined.
Untamed & UnabashedThe youngest of the Bennet sisters, Lydia, tells her story. A faithful spinoff from Pride & Prejudice.

A Long Road to Love Series: (Humorous Contemporary odd Romance)
Worst Week Ever — Laugh out loud week of disasters of Epic proportions.
Oh Stupid Heart — The heart wants what it wants, even if it’s impossible.
Coming to Reason — There is a breaking point when even a saint comes to reason.
Climbing out of Hell — The reconstruction of a terrible man into a great one.
The Hardest Love Is to love oneself. Sam’s story.

The Adventures of Xavier & Vic Sleuth series: (Late Victorian/Mystery/Romance)
The Troublesome Apprentice — The greatest sleuth in Victorian England hires a young man who turns out to be a young woman.
The Missing PartnerOpps! The greatest sleuth in Victorian England goes missing, leaving Vic to rescue him, a suffragette, and about 100 servants. Not to mention an eviscerating cat. Yes, let’s not mention the cat.
A Right to Love — A romantic detour for Jacko. Want to see how amply rewarded Jacko was when he & Vic save an old woman from Bedlam?
The Mesmerist The Mesmerist can control people from afar and make them murder for her. Worse yet, Xavier Thorn has fallen under her spell.
Well Kept Secrets — The problems with secrets is that they always come to light, no matter how you wish to silence them.
Pack of Trouble — Changes are a part of life, but these changes almost kill Vic.
The Darkest Days — Muddled cases make Vic very grumpy.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT
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February 8, 2016

Share The Love!




Welcome to the annual Share the Love giveaway hop!

This hop is a little different and all about sharing our favorite bloggers and authors with you! There’s a giveaway at every blog, so visit them all and find out who we adore.

I’m blog-bombing some of my favorites with lots of new Likes! To qualify to win a $5 gift certificate from either Barnes & Noble or Amazon, you’ll need to Like my friends’ pages listed below.

First up is my critique partner and all-around awesome blogger
Melissa Limoges!



To enter the contest, join her website and Like her books here. She writes fantastic Paranormal Romance I know you’ll love. If you want to visit her on Facebook, check Melissa out here.



Second is another friend whom I met through my online crit group. 
Say hello to Starfox Howl!



While hunkered down in bunkers wearing protective body armor and a helmet, Starfox’s steely nerves found time to write a few Science Fiction Romance novels. 

To qualify for my giveaway, give his Facebook page a like here. You can find out more about his unique stories here.



I have one more author I’d like to introduce.

My good friend and bestselling author:
Natasza Waters!


If you love nail-biting, on the edge of your seat HOT military romance, you’ll adore Natasza’s books. 

Check out her website here and subscribe to her Newsletter. Also give her Facebook page a like here.



Thank you for joining in on blog- and Like-bombing a few of my friends. I can’t wait to see their reactions! 

Have a fabulous Valentine’s Day!




February 2, 2016

Meet Mairi Campbell


Book One: Tara's Wolf
Tara and Kale met as teenagers, Tara was the literary the outsider to all the village kids, mocked and shunned by her peers she sought peace in her family’s farm, that was nestled on the outskirts. Kale was the families new hope for the future, stuck into doing what his family required, he had nothing to look forward to. Tara and Kale fell in love and learned everything from each other about love. But age and time were against them, their families were both pulling them apart with their own agenda's, Now Kale has to leave and attend a special school for four years, will the time apart bring these two lovers back together, or would the wedge always be there between them. And there was a small matter of family loyalty and secrets that Kale and Tara hid from each other. To make their relationship work they would have to cross so many obstacles to be together. Read and find out if these two lovers make it, book one of the Rivere Du Loup Wolf Series.

Amazon     B&N

 KALE'S LEGACY BOOK TWO
The story continues .....with Kale and Tara, Kale has finished with School and its been four long years, still there are secrets to unfold. With each new challenge that faces them, they feel at times that the world is against them. They are both strong and willing to fight for their love, will this be the final battle? and will there be a happy ever after?



MAIRI CAMPBELL

Born in Stirling, Scotland, Mairi wrote a series of poems and short stories before finally writing her first book. Her hobbies include rugby, riding her Harley, and working in cross-stitch.

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