The Romance Reviews

The Romance Reviews

Monday, December 31, 2012

Pick Me Up Monday - Happy New Years

Happy Monday!
 
I can't think of a better way to start New Years than with a hot guy with a come hither vibe. Something to keep you warm on cold winter nights.
I hope everyone has awesome New Years. For me, it's going to be all about watching the ball drop in Times Square and the fireworks light up the Las Vegas strip via the television in the comfy surroundings of my warm home.
I want to do a special shout-out to Ashley, who won both PDFs of my Knights of Excalibur series. Thanks so much for your participation in the Gifting Christmas Blog Hop. I had so many wonderful comments, I found it hard to pick just one person. If I could have I would have picked them all.
 
I'm finishing the last edits to The Kings Lady, and off it will go to my publisher. The trilogy was fun to write, and though I am sad to have it end, there are other books waiting for my attention. The Dark Breeds third installment has a title now, Dark Desire and the fourth book is still untitled but in outline stage. I also have a small historical dragon shifter novella I'm working on along with some other things in the works.
2013 promises to be a big year, and I can't wait to get it at it. Well back to work since these stories don't write themselves.
 
See you in 2013!

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Gifting Books Christmas Blog H0p!

Merry Christmas!
 
When asked to join this wonderful blog hop I jumped at the chance. I LOVE Reading Romance and try to get involved with everyone  they put on. Through them, I have found some awesome readers who share the same passion for books that I do. And some of you have even picked up one or two of my books, of which tickles me no end, especially when you have been kind enough to tell me how much you loved them.
 
 Since this blog hop is about gifting books I wanted to share with you all the book that started me on the path to writing. I have always loved books, reading whenever I could get the time, then a friend gave me Gone With the Wind and at first the sheer size of it left me excited and daunted. I would read a chapter and discuss it with my girlfriend every day after school and soon found myself at the final chapter. At the last page as Rhett is walking out of Scarlet's life I knew I had to write. To this day I tribute my writing to that one book which changed my life.
 
 I hope to pen such a compelling book some day and who knows maybe someone will be inspired to write just as I was.
Please feel free to tell me about your favorite book, I would  love to know and perhaps put it on my to be read pile.
 For this hop, I am gifting your choice of either the first two books of my Dark Breed series in or the first two of my Knights of Excalibur series. These books are e-book and in PDF form.
Here's a bit about both series
 

Dark Passion Rising: A Dark Breed Novel
 
Tambra Ellis has just had her world turned upside down! Surviving a bite from a Lycan, attracted to one hot vampire guy and now she has to look forward to turning into something from some bad werewolf movie.
 Marcus Valerian has enough on his plate without the added complication of Tambra Ellis. Fiery and independent? Sure. Beautiful with a body made for sin? Oh Yeh. And a human cop. Tambra is everything he needs to stay away from.
    
 As leader of the Tribunal’s enforcers it’s up to him to find out why the Dark Breeds are going feral and killing humans in ever increasing numbers. Tambra’s life is in the balance as the secrets of her past place her in the middle of old deceits and a betrayal that will change the world forever.
 Will Marcus and Tambra’s love survive or will it be too late.
 
Passions Flight: A Dark Breed Novel

Blurb:
With ferals attacking the human populace in greater numbers than ever before, Tegan Murin has his hands full these days. When he is ordered to find and destroy a deadly artifact known as Oman’s Seal, deal with his estranged step-father and find a missing archaeologist. He’s a bit irritable. Add into the mix a recurring dream of one sexy seductress leading him to his death… well, you get one very pissed off were-panther.

Kyra Navarone is an archaeologist who is more than what she seems. Escaping from the ferals who captured her, she ends up running into the brooding, irritating man who makes her blood run hot just with one look. Her life depends on the betrayal of this compelling man, but how can she live with herself afterward?

With ferals, An Atlantean Tracker and Lucien closing in on them, they are running out of time, Tegan and Kyra must learn to trust each other in order survive. More hangs in the balance than their lives. Their actions could very well spell the end of everything for not just their world, but the world hidden beneath the waves as well.
  


 
Beloved Wizard: Knight of Excalibur One

Arthur and his Knights are back and ready to kick ass!

 Merci Tramaine is not happy to be called back into service by her old boss Arthur, especially when she is charged to find her missing ex lover. Drake Monroe is Merlin reincarnated, with his powers bound by the Goddess Nimue he has become a skilled fighter, but no match for Nimue who kidnapped him determined to destroy him forever.

The bloodline of Morgan Le Fey taints Merci keeping her on the edge between light and dark, the Goddess’s wicked trap springs shut leaving both Drake and Merci racing against the clock. Passions ignite once again, but are they too late to plan a future or will they be torn from each other?

This time for eternity.




The Knights Druid Blurb:
What’s worse than a pissed off Knight? Colin Hennessy.
Shifter, Knight and quick tempered Irishman, Colin remembers vividly his past life as Sir Kay. Haunted by the woman he once loved and lost, he has spent his lives searching for his lost love to no avail. Now Arthur is back and his life once again is filled with purpose. Joined by a common goal, he lives only to protect Arthur and his fellow Knights from the twisted, black magic of Mordred.
Juliet Boyd moves among societies rich and pampered, but she holds within her a terrible secret. One Vance Hollister is determined to exploit. Mordred is back in a new skin, now as Vance Hollister and the old evil is alive and well.
Colin and Juliet are unprepared for the flare of attraction that ignites between them from across a moonlit parking lot. Dare she open herself and expose her cursed gift? Can he save Juliet from Vance’s twisted manipulations or will he lose his second chance at love? A showdown between good and evil is coming to a head with Colin and Juliet right in the middle.
Looking forward to hearing from you all and look for more books coming very soon from me. 2013 is promising to be a big year!
 
 

Monday, December 17, 2012

Pick Me Up Monday - Merry Christmas!

I just figured out what I want beneath my tree this year *evil grin*
 
It's hard to believe we are almost done with 2012. The years seem to go so fast these days. I have just plotted  next year's books, and I think we need to add a few more months to 2013, so I can get it all done! Wow, if I don't sleep but five hours for, then next twelve months, I may be able to get everything done. Lol!
 I finished up the Evernight Holiday Blog Hop and wish to congratulate Beckey for winning a copy of Passion's Flight. Hope you enjoy it and have a wonderful holiday.
In other news, I am finishing editing The Kings Lady and am now writing Zeke's book, tentatively named Dark Desire. I hope to have more on when The Kings Lady will be released early next year. I also have The Summoning which I hope to have out in a few months, plus I'm starting the outline for the fourth installment of the Dark Breeds and will reveal who's book this will be later next year. Also, I am working on a historical...yep, I just said historical and of course it's got a paranormal twist to it. It's a reincarnation tale which starts out in Rome in 2 AD and will finish in 1920. Intrigued? I sure hope so since I've been buried in research for this one every moment I'm not writing.
As for what's up this week I have another Blog Hop for you guys which will start on the 20th. So stop by and see what you can win.
Last but not least in honor of the world ending on 12-21-12 I wanted to share my bucket list with you.
1) Eat one last time at Joe's Crab Shack
2) Get a back Massage
3) Finally watch The Dark Knight Rises
4) Stay in bed all day having sweaty, wonderful sex with my hubby.
5) Repeat number 4 if the world doesn't immediately end on the 21st.
 
What's your bucket list?
 
 
 
 


Monday, December 10, 2012

Evernights Holiday Blog H0p

I want to start out my blog with a message from Evernight.
 
Welcome to the Evernight Holiday Blog Hop!
We love the holidays, we love making our readers happy and we love giving away swag. What better way to do that than to hold a blog hop?

Here's how it works... the more blogs you hop to (shown below) the more chance you have of winning prizes. Each site on the hop is offering a prize and Evernight is offering an iPad 2 as the grand prize! To be in with a chance of winning the site prize simply follow the blog you're visiting and leave a comment which includes your email address. Each entry on each blog is then counted towards the grand prize draw. The more entries you have, the better your chance of winning that iPad 2! You also get extra points for liking the Evernight Facebook page
http://www.facebook.com/#!/evernightpublishing. Just make sure you let us know in the comments that you've done so.

Happy hopping!
 
Now you know what you need to do to win the IPad2. I am offering up the second book in my Dark Breed series Passion's Flight.  All you need do is leave me a comment on this blog. I'll be picking the winner and posting the result on Friday.
 
Blurb:
 

Tegan Murin has his hands full these days. Feral attacks are increasing, targeting humans, and now he is ordered to find and destroy a deadly artifact known as Oman’s Seal, deal with his estranged step-father and find a missing archaeologist. He’s a bit irritable. Add into the mix a recurring dream of one sexy seductress leading him to his death… well, you get one very pissed off were-panther.

Kyra Navarone is more than what she seems. Escaping from the Ferals who captured her, she ends up running into a brooding, irritating man who makes her blood run hot just with one look. Her life depends on the betrayal of this compelling man, but how can she live with herself afterward?

More than their lives hang in the balance. In order to survive they must learn to trust one another before the world they know and the one hidden beneath the waves are destroyed forever.

4.5 Stars!

This enchanting tale tells the story of Tegan, a were-panther warrior on a righteous path, and of Kyra, an archaeologist with her own secrets. When Tegan is sent to rescue Kyra, he is totally and completely unprepared for the wild, unpredictable, spunky woman he finds. Little does he know that Kyra has a history as long and complicated as his own, and as they travel down the path of love together, trying to survive, they must face her past hand in hand to survive.

 
The story flows very fast, bringing all the characters rapidly to life. All of the characters and their pasts are beautifully explained, and the characters themselves are thoroughly developed and engaging. As this is the second book in a series, I am eagerly searching out the remaining books, as I most definitely enjoyed this novel. It was a little short, but the length of the story was entirely perfect for the story to be told. All in all, this was a very fun book to read, and I would definitely recommend it to romance lovers anywhere

 
 
 
 

Thursday, December 6, 2012

Next Big Thing

I received a wonderful invitation from Helena Fairfax to join her on The Next Big Thing Blog Hop and couldn't wait to be a part of it. You can see what her next big thing is at www.helenafairfax.com. Helena gave me quite a list of interview questions and I had a great time with the answers. I've done quite a few interviews, but I admit this is one of the best I've had.
 
 
1. What is your working title for your book?
     Dark Desire
 
2. Where did your idea come from for the book?
     The concept came when writing the first book in the Dark Breed Series  Dark Passion    
      Rising. I was with friends at the Fremont Experiance in old town Las Vegas when the
      whole idea came to me. As soon as I got home I did a loose outline on how I wanted this
      series to go. So far it's be a great ride.
 
3. What genre does your book fall under?
     This is a Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy.
 
4.  Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
 When I do up my charater bio's I must admit I always think of who I would love to play them. For Zeke I immediatley thought of Jensen Ackles. He has the same edgy energy and intense focus that Zeke has.
For Laris it could only be Holly Berry. Not only in looks but in her spirit. Both are strong women who can mix both their femininity and survival instinct into what I would call a "Steel Magnolia".
Laris may well start as a victim, but you can be sure she won't end up that way. She is a kick ass take no prisoners type of Lady.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5. What is the one sentance synopsis of your book?
     Zeke must trust an old enemy to save the lives of Dark Breeds and mankind alike, but can
     he forgive a deadly betrayal and give his heart to the woman he loves?
 
6. Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
     This book is a part of a series published through Evernight Publishing.
 
7. How Long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
     Almost three months.
 
8. What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
      Oh boy, that's a tough one. I can't think of anyone that this would compare to.
 
9.  Who or what inspired you to write this book?
       I'm an avid reader as well as a writer so every author I read inspires me. As part of my
       local chapter of the RWA I get inspired by the wonderfully supportive members I am
       lucky enough to have around me.
 
10. What else about your book might pique the reader's interest?
        There are strong memorable characters and a fast paced story where you don't know
         what's coming next. For this installment you will find out who the mastermind behind
         the uprising is. The enemy is no less dangerous and the stakes are higher that ever
         before.
 
Want to know more next big things? Here are the links of five very talented authors.
 
 
 
Deserie Comfort - www.authordcstone.com/blog
 
Nicky Penttila - http://nickypenttila.com     
 


Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Author Spolights Sandra Bunino

I'm pleased to have Sandra Bunino here today. One of Evernight Publishing's very talented authors.


Bio:

Sandra Bunino began a love of romance stories while penning a creative writing assignment in high school. The story ended with the heroine receiving a long stemmed red rose in her locker on Valentine’s Day. Since then, all of her stories feature the hero presenting the heroine with roses. Sandra is constantly searching for different ways to achieve a heart-pumping, stomach-flipping, breath-catching reaction from her readers.

Her books and short stories include Marooned in Miami, Lusted in Las Vegas, Sara’s Smile, The Satin Rose Experience (short story in the Keyboards and Kink anthology) and Mia’s Submission.


BROOKE’S WISH (The Satin Rose Experience series)

from Evernight Publishing

Release: November 2, 2012

 

Blurb:

 A failed relationship and long hours at her flourishing practice have Dr. Brooke Allaire running on empty. When Brooke accepts a girlfriend’s gift of some holiday pampering at New York City’s posh Satin Rose Experience, she assumes she’s in for a weekend of facials and massages. Brooke soon realizes there’s more to SRE than meets the eye.

Ty Venice is a team player. He’s used to sharing submissives with fellow Dom Jackson Reid. However, if there was ever a game changer, Dr. Brooke Allaire was it. That is, until he gets a glimpse at her ultimate fantasy, to be possessed by two men at once.

The Satin Rose Experience, New York’s elite BDSM club residing on the twentieth floor of Rosebud Resorts, contains ten uniquely themed suites, each with its own story to tell. Fulfill your fantasy at SRE.

Excerpt:

“W-who’s there?” Brooke croaked. She put her hands on her hips and straightened her back.

A low chuckle erupted. “Don’t panic, princess. It’s just me.”

Ty. She took a deep breath and smiled.

“Sorry, love. I got carried away taking in the sight of you like this. You look magnificent, Brooke.” His southern drawl was more distinct than the night before.

Warm hands stroked the bare skin under the negligee between the corset and her lace panties. She shivered from the light touch traveling up her back. He untied the ribbon at her neck and slipped the negligee off her shoulders. Heat radiated from his body as he moved to face her and pulled the blindfold from her eyes.

“Hi there,” he said huskily.

Her stomach fluttered when she looked into his eyes. It was a different look for Ty Venice. Thick stubble covered his cheeks and the area above his lip. She recalled how his whiskers scratched her cheeks the previous night and her face heated when she anticipated his stubble abrading the skin of her inner thighs. She lowered her eyelids to his bare shoulders. Her breath caught at the sight of his muscular chest and arms. Reaching out, she traced her fingertips over the outline of a detailed rose tattooed on the muscular curve of his bicep. A combination of musk and manliness filled her senses. She continued her gaze downward and followed a line of soft hair to the unfastened button of rumpled khaki pants. Brooke looked back to his face and he smiled seemingly enjoying watching her visual journey down his body.

“Hi.” She smiled back.

Ty hooked his thumb under her chin and lifted her face to his.

“I heard you requested me, love.” His lips were just a whisper away from hers. “Everything okay?” There was concern in his voice.

Brooke opened her mouth to speak but closed it again and nodded. Her heart beat wildly as his hand gently stroked her cheek.

BROOKE’S WISH is available here:


Contact Sandra:

 

Monday, December 3, 2012

Pick Me Up Monday - Author Spotlight, Next Big Thing and More!

 Happy Monday Everyone!

 Here is one beautiful man to get you through the week. Hum wonder if he needs his back washed?

 Well, I survived the week and have been crazy busy between my day job and writing. I did squeeze some time to get with one of my wonderful author friends who came into town. I had a blast at Dinner with Lizzie T. Leaf and her hubby. As always, the time together was far too brief, but then when we get together the time seems to slip away far too fast.

What do I have in store for you? Well, first up I have an author spotlight with Sandra Bunino on Tuesday  where she will be talking about her latest release Brooke's Wish. 

On Thursday the sixth, I have a very different type of blog hop called next big thing where I will be sharing my latest book on the Dark Breeds series with you. You will get an inside look on Zeke's book, which will have quite a few surprises in store. His story is a game changer where enemies once hidden are revealed.
 
 Then Starting on Monday of next week I have a special blog hop with Evernight Publishing that will run from the 10th to the 14th. So Pick Me Up Monday will be interrupted next week. Instead, I will be posting a special Friday edition.

As we come to the end of this year, I have several books nearing completion along with a very erotic novella for you early next year. I will have the ending of the trilogy, Knights of Excalibur along with two installments of the Dark Breeds series. I will have the first book in another series called The Summoning - Rise of the Sentinels coming out, plus I'm working on a historical with paranormal elements. 
Well, I had better get back to work, and we will talk next Friday.

Have a wonderful and productive week all.