Touch Me Not (Naughty Fairy Tales #1) by Jen Katemi-Review & Guest Post

TOUCH ME NOT (Naughty Fairy Tales) by Jen Katemi-Review & Guest Post

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO /Bookbub / Apple

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date August 3, 2018

Mia doesn’t believe in happily-ever-after. She’s spent her whole life fighting the pain of overly-sensitive skin and has never known the joy of being touched in a way that brings pleasure instead of pain. When a mysterious woman suggests her son might be the key to breaking Mia’s curse, it sounds far too crazy to be real—especially when she finds out he’s a renowned Dom in an exclusive, members-only club. But Mia is desperate enough to try anything…

Alexei knows there’s no such thing as happily-ever-after. He’s a child of the streets, rescued by a brothel queen, and the last thing he needs is another suburban princess getting in his way. Bondage is his lifestyle choice. Pain is his business. He wouldn’t know what to do with a woman who likes it subtle. What is his adoptive mother thinking, to bring an innocent like Mia into the dark heart of their infamous Club Plaisir?

A steamy contemporary retelling of the fairy tale, The Princess and the Pea.

••••

REVIEW: TOUCH ME NOT is the first instalment in Jen Katemi’s (aka Jennifer Lynne) contemporary, adult NAUGHTY FAIRY TALES erotic, romance series retelling some of our favorite childhood stories. This is Mia and Alexei’s story line.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Mia and Alexei) TOUCH ME NOT follows the quick building relationship between twenty-five year old Mia, and thirty-five year old Dom Alexei. Mia has an aversion to touch; not quite an aversion but touch of any sort causes her excruciating pain, and our heroine is determined to find someone, anyone who has the ability to take her beyond the physical limits of painful touch into the pleasure of sexual arousal. Enter Dom Alexei, the co-owner of the adults only, sex club Club Plaisir. What ensues is the quick building relationship between Alexei and Mia as Alexei’s touch is the magic needed to pull Mia down from her pain filled existence.

TOUCH ME NOT is an energetic read; an erotic story line focusing on the pleasure of touch- a reverse BDSM scenario (of sorts) in that our hero Alexei does not want to inflict pain but hopes to illicit the comfort and contentment of the pleasures of touch for the young woman that quickly calls to his heart.

The author offers up a little bit of background about our story line hero, a man whose earlier life on the streets came to an end when he met Masha, the woman who would raise Alexei as her own. Masha is a bit of a ‘fairy godmother’ in that Masha ‘rescues’ Mia from a life of unimaginable loneliness and pain, offering up a membership and potential happiness through Alexei and Club Plaisir. The premise is intriguing and entertaining; the characters are charismatic; the romance spicy and hot-on that note, I do struggle with the use of a certain four-letter word in all romance storylines but TOUCH ME NOT is a story of erotica wherein the word is commonly used throughout the story.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

New release: Touch Me Not by Jen Katemi

Thank you, Sandy and The Reading Café, for having me to visit. I’m delighted to share news of my latest release, Touch Me Not. This novella is a slightly different writing adventure, in that it’s my first foray into re-imagining a classic fairy tale.

I’m primarily a steamy contemporary romance author, so I decided to take the basic premise of The Princess and the Pea and rework it into a contemporary and very steamy version in which a woman with super-sensitive skin meets a princely Dom who delivers pain for a living.

I’m not sure what possessed me when I started writing this story. Alexei, the hero of Touch Me Not, owns and works in a brothel. That’s definitely not your average hero material, I know, but he is so deeply complex and in need of someone who can save him, that I simply couldn’t resist writing his story.

Mia is a young “suburban princess” who has spent her whole life fighting the pain of overly sensitive skin and dealing with the physical isolation that comes with such hypersensitivity.

I thought it would be interesting to pair these complete opposites and see where the story took me. As I wrote Chapter One, I had no idea how these two poor souls would ever achieve their happy-ever-after, let alone a happy-for-now. Oh, the joys of being a pantser – without a plot, you have no idea where the characters are going to take you!

Along the way, I have to admit I fell in love with Alexei and Mia. Touch Me Not has now become one of my favorite stories. I’m so pleased Evernight Publishing liked it too!

Touch Me Not releases from Evernight on August 3rd.

FOLLOW: Website / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads

Jen Katemi (aka Jennifer Lynne) is an award-winning & bestselling author of steamy contemporary romance. Jen is published with Evernight Publishing, Naughty Nights Press, and as Jennifer Lynne with Red Sage. She has also forged a successful indie career starting with her popular GODS OF LOVE and FORBIDDEN series of erotic novellas.

When she’s not writing, Jen works in admin, looks after the family, pampers various cats, and tries to find a smidgen of time for her husband. She lives in Melbourne, Australia.

Sign up for Jen’s e-newsletter to be in the running for regular giveaways, and ensure you never miss a new book release.

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Simple Misconception / Bitter Retribution by Rachel Sharpe-Reviews & Guest Post

Simple Misconception / Bitter Retribution by Rachel Sharpe-reviews and guest post

SIMPLE MISCONCEPTION
Jordan James, PI
by Rachel Sharpe
Genre: adult, contemporary, mystery, suspense
Release Date: June 20, 2018

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /

ABOUT THE BOOK: “A Trip to the Big Easy Turns into a Big Nightmare…”

When private investigator Jordan James returns home to New Orleans for Christmas, she never imagined her holiday could end with kidnapping and death. As she begins to investigate the mysterious disappearance of a childhood friend, she unwittingly stumbles upon a dangerous, international syndicate. With lives at risk and time running short, Jordan must find a connection between these seemingly unrelated events if she ever hopes to find her friend.

•••••••••

REVIEW: In true Jordan James fashion, Jordan is suffering the effects of her breakup with Rick. At the same time, Jon is letting his feelings be known for her as well. Her mother is insisting she come home for Christmas, because she missed Thanksgiving. Jordan plans a trip home for two weeks.

In typical southern family style, at least for Jordan’s family, her mother fills Jordan’s schedule with baby showers, holiday parties, and luncheons. Jordan’s older sister adds to the drama by being pregnant with her first child. To escape the constant questions on when she would be getting married, Jordan slips out for a quick cup of coffee at a local coffee shop. While there, she bumps into an old high school friend, Natalie. Natalie was the opposite of Jordan’s best friend Heather. Natalie was a ‘wild child’ and a free spirit. It seems much hasn’t changed, at least to Jordan. Her friend mentions traveling abroad and an ill-fated marriage to a Russian man named Taavi. She talked Jordan into hanging out and visiting a few bars in New Orleans.

I’m not going to spoil the story by giving you details, but only that Natalie leads Jordan into some difficult times with her family, until Natalie disappears, and Jordan must investigate to find her missing friend.

Rachel Sharpe has woven some great tales of mystery and drama. Into this she’s built wonderful and complicated family relations and friendships. The twists and turns of the plot are well done. I love the characters and feel like I know them. Well enough to sometimes want to slap them…but that’s one of the reasons this series has become a favorite read of mine.
Grab yourself a copy and settle in for a roller coaster ride!

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Georgianna S.

__________

BITTER RETRIBUTION
Jordan James, PI series
by Rachel Sharpe
Genre: adult, contemporary, mystery, suspense
Release Date: October 14, 2015

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / Chapters Indigo /

ABOUT THE BOOK: “What started out as a star-studded vacation has turned into a sensational avalanche . . .”

When private investigator Jordan James decided to join her best friend on the set of her hit television series in the Rocky Mountains, she had no idea she would become a key player in a murder mystery more suited for the big screen than the slopes. With one actor dead and a killer on the loose, can Jordan uncover the culprit before another victim makes headlines on Hollywood Minute?

••••••••

REVIEW: Bitter Retribution is the next book in the Jordan James, PI Series. A delightful collection of stories featuring the independent young female PI.

This story takes place after Jordan breaks up with her boyfriend who wants to get married and move to London. Jordan, being Jordan, spooks and says they need a break. She still believes she loves him but isn’t ready for that degree of commitment.
Not having a case to work on, Jordan decides to go on holiday skiing with her best friend Heather, instead of Thanksgiving with her family. Her assistant Jon decides to come along as well. Jordan’s family tries to guilt her into coming to them instead, but she avoids the family drama. Heather has just become the head writer of a sit-com and needs the emotional support of her friend, so off they go.

During the filming of the first scene, a stuntman’s ski comes off and he’s sent into a bunch of trees. He’s taken away in an ambulance and Heather asks Jordan to investigate the accident for insurance purposes. She discovers strange markings on the ski and believes it wasn’t an accident. When the stuntman dies in the hospital, it becomes a murder case, but the police aren’t immediately called because no one knows the stuntman died. The show’s producer asks Jordan to investigate and promises to tell the police if she finds any evidence of a crime.

This story is well written, with twists and turns. I don’t do spoilers, so I’ll leave the details for you to read. The characters are well developed, and the sub-plot of Jordan’s love life and growing feelings of her assistant Jon lend to the building of this series.

Grab a copy and your favorite beverage and curl up for a thrilling story.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Georgianna S

In honor of my latest novel, Simple Misconception, book four in the Jordan James, PI series, I would like to discuss a simple misconception about authors; namely, they actually have lives outside their work.

Becoming an author has always been my dream job. When I was little, I told my grandmother I was going to be an astronaut lion tamer who wrote books. At least one of those ambitions came true. An avid, self-proclaimed bibliophile, there are many authors I consider to be favorites, including Dean Koontz, James Patterson, and a friend of mine, Erica Spindler.

Their works open up new worlds to me and many others. Still, I often forgot that the authors who wrote these bestsellers had lives beyond the pages.

When I wrote Cold Ambition, book one in the Jordan James, PI series, I was a newly-wed. Now, I am the married mother of two very active and amazing toddlers who keep me on my feet every minute of the day. I was able to release the first three books in the Jordan James, PI series within a year of each other because that was the primary focus of my life.

Now, there are two tiny tots who come first. Still, Jordan James, being my first baby, is important to me. So, while it took a lot longer to release Simple Misconception, I pressed on. And, while it may take longer to pen Jordan’s adventures from now on, she will continue to have them. And the adventures of my everyday life may find their way into her stories as well.

~Rachel Sharpe~

Follow: Facebook / Blog / Twitter / Goodreads

Rachel Sharpe is the author of the Jordan James, PI series, including the 2015 RONE Award Finalist “Cold Ambition,” “Lost Distinction,” and “Bitter Retribution.” Although born and raised in the South, “Yankee” relatives first led Rachel to historic New England, which she has come to consider her second home and is the setting for the series.

After obtaining a Bachelor of Arts in English, Rachel began dedicating her free time to her childhood passion, writing, and in the fall of 2013, she signed with Soul Mate Publishing. An active member of Sisters In Crime, Rachel currently resides with her husband and their children in the Greater New Orleans area.

“COLD AMBITION,”  “LOST DISTINCTION” and “BITTER RETRIBUTION” available now on Amazon from Soul Mate Publishing! Book Four, Coming Soon!!! Please follow her blog for more details!

Also, like her Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/authorrachelsharpe, and follow her on Twitter @RachelCSharpe for the latest in all her literary endeavors!

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Highland Honor (Wild Thistle Trilogy #3) by Madelyn Hill-Review and Guest Post

HIGHLAND HONOR (Wild Thistle Trilogy #3) by Madelyn Hill-Review and Guest Post

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 16, 2018

The final book of the captivating Scottish Historical Wild Thistle Trilogy

Lady Honor MacAllister can heal everything but a broken heart . . .

Lady Honor does not believe in marriage. Her father’s death broke her mother’s spirit and took her from her daughters emotionally well before her own death. When Honor is attacked in the forest, she keeps the event to herself, lest her lairds search for the man and strike him down. As a healer, she’ll do anything it takes not to cause harm. Rumors of attacks in the Highlands forces the lairds to increase guards and security measures. When Bryce Calder is assigned to protect Lady Honor, she fights the burgeoning attraction for the man, knowing she’ll never risk her heart to love.

Warrior Bryce Calder trusts no woman. Women only strive to better themselves through cunning, as his father warned throughout his childhood. When he is asked to escort Lady Honor while she gathers healing herbs, he is vexed. Training the men and protecting the clan are his duties, not following the sharped-tongued lass about the wood. With each passing day, Bryce becomes enchanted by Lady Honor, despite his father’s words, but his unworthiness halts any proclamation of his desire.

An unlikely partnership develops during the frequent trips to the forest and work in the apothecary. The walls each has erected to protect their hearts and their future crumbles. Until a stranger arrives at the keep. Lady Honor’s secret is threatened to be revealed putting in jeopardy the growing romance between the ardent healer and the reluctant warrior-suitor.

•••••••••••••

REVIEW: HIGHLAND HONOR is the third and final instalment in Madelyn Hill’s historical, Highland WILD THISTLE romance trilogy focusing on Faith, Hope and Honor of Clan MacAlister. This is Lady Honor MacAlister, and Highland warrior Bryce Calder’s story line. HIGHLAND HONOR can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary.

Told from several third person perspectives including Honor and Bryce HIGHLAND HONOR follows the building relationship between is Lady Honor MacAlister, and Highland warrior Bryce Calder. Someone is stalking the forests of the Highlands surrounding Wild Thistle Keep, taking aim at the women in horrific acts of assault. As the family healer Honor MacAlister needs access to the large assortment of herbs and plants growing in the forests surrounding their home but she is no longer allowed to leave the Keep unaccompanied. Enter Highland warrior Bryce Calder, assigned as protector and guardian of Honor MacAlister, and the man with whom Honor will fall in love. What ensues is the building romance between Honor and Bryce, as the members of Clan MacAlister continue to hunt for the person responsible for the attacks against the women surrounding Wild Thistle Keep.

The attraction between Honor and Bryce does not go unnoticed by the people at Wild Thistle Keep but Honor struggles with memories of the past: how her mother suffered following the brutal death of their father; as well as her own secret and shame. Bryce’s attraction to Honor is visceral but his duty is first and foremost as a warrior, and protector of the woman with whom he will fall in love.

All of the previous story line couples play secondary and supporting characters including Lady Faith MacAlister, and Captain Graeme Ross (Highland Faith #2), and Lairds Hope MacAlister and her husband Aidan MacKerry, as well as the return of Nora and old man Connor, a former warrior battling wisdom and age.

Like the previous instalments HIGHLAND HONOR is a story of family, of honor, of hope and of faith. The premise is intriguing and captivating; the romance is clean and sweet; the characters are heart warming and inspiring.

Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Highland Hope
Highland Faith
Highland Honor

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Creating Memorable Characters

By: Madelyn Hill

Creating memorable characters is the goal of all writers and we all have our favorites from books we treasure. Mine? I love Kit from The Witch of Blackbird Pond, Jane from Jane Eyre, Ave Marie from Big Stone Gap Series. And of course Harry from Harry Potter, in fact most of the characters from Harry Potter! Well-drawn characters stand the test of time, so the task is arduous.

As I create characters, I do a word sketch of their looks, habits, endearing traits, goals, motivation and conflict. If I am still uncertain about their singular focus as a character, I complete a poem called, I Am. This helps flesh out the true nature of the character. In my opinion, these facets must be known prior to writing. Of course there may be shifts along the way when your muse decides to skew the story in some manner, but having the background information completed can help with characterization consistency.

At the beginning of each novel, I add the character sketches before chapter 1 so I have quick access as I am writing. This is done for main and secondary characters. Then I create inspirations boards in Pinterest so I have a visual and can locate research content using an organized, easy to locate tool.

In the Wild Thistle Trilogy, the characters are driven by their father’s dying words: “Through Hope, Faith, and Honor, ye can rule.” These parting words truly direct the goals of each character as well as their conflict. For Hope of Highland Hope, the statement increases her loyalty to the clan and her need to lead them to the best of her ability. For Faith of Highland Faith, the pledge is conflicting. Faith loves adventure and hunting and doesn’t want to remain at the keep, she wants to explore. Both are strong, fierce women who do not let traditional conventions stand in their way. Lady Honor of Highland Honor, is the peacekeeper between her sisters and the clan healer. Her skill directs her thoughts and actions and while her father’s death inspired her position of healer, she does her duty quietly without the fiery spirit of her sisters. But there is surprising strength in the quiet Honor.

And for the men. Ah, the men who have captured the hearts of these heroines, who are strong, loyal, and determined to forge their way in the clan as well as in the heroines’ hearts. Aidan of Highland Hope is determined to take what is rightfully his—the Lairdship—no matter if it means taking it from the beautiful Hope. Graeme of Highland Faith is conflicted between his love of the sea and his need to prove himself to his father. When he stumbles upon Faith as she hunts, he knows her ransom may be the answer to all of his prayers. He is a rogue, to be sure and finds Faith’s strength of character to be one of her best characteristics. And Bryce of Highland Honor, he is a warrior who pledges to protect the clan and clansmen at all cost. He trains the men hard and doesn’t understand why Honor refuses to see the value of his position and skill within the clan.

As a writer, creating memorable characters is a tough, but paramount. What may captivate one reader may annoy another. I feel consistency of characterization is key to ensure your characters are true to their goals, motivation, and conflict. Strong characterization and a compelling plot will create a story which may land your characters on someone’s favorite character list.

To see my inspiration, for each novel of the Wild Thistle Trilogy, click on the links below.

 

Pinterest Inspiration Boards:

Highland Hope: https://www.pinterest.com/madelynhill68/highland-hope-book-1-wild-thistle-trilogy/

Highland Faith: https://www.pinterest.com/madelynhill68/highland-faith-book-2-wild-thistle-trilogy/

Highland Honor: https://www.pinterest.com/madelynhill68/highland-honor-book-3-wild-thistle-trilogy/

Highland Hope: Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk /

Highland Faith: Amazon. com / Amazon.ca / Amazon. uk /

Highland HonorAmazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /

Follow: Goodreads/ Website/ Twitter/ Facebook / Pinterest

Madelyn HillI’m a mom, wife, and writer just living life to the fullest. A Michigan native, I’ve moved from one Rochester to another Rochester to marry the love of my life. Life is exciting, exhausting, chaotic and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

I love writing historical novels with a Celtic flair. Scotland and Ireland are my favorite locations to set my novels. Nothing is better than a hero in a kilt and a strong heroine to give him the run for his money!

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Barreled Over by Jenna Sutton – Review, Guest Post & Giveaway

Barreled Over by Jenna Sutton – Review, Guest Post & Giveaway

 

 

Amazon / B&N / Kobo

 

Description:
Ava Grace Landy’s music career is humming along until a shakeup at her label jeopardizes her recording contract and curses her with the world’s worst boss. Determined to satisfy him, she partners with Trinity Distillery to access a larger male audience. To her surprise, she’s the one who’s satisfied—by none other than Jonah Beck, the gorgeous, yet gruff man behind the bourbon.

No doubt about it, bourbon runs in Beck’s blood. But it’s audacious Ava Grace who makes it run hot. When she signs on as the spokesperson for his craft distillery, he doesn’t plan on hoisting her onto an oak barrel and rocking the rickhouse. Though he’s convinced their lives don’t mix—like a terrible cocktail—he can’t keep his hands off the alluring country star.

Ava Grace and Beck try to keep their intoxicating relationship private, but the glare of her fame is too bright, revealing secrets they both want to remain hidden. With a spotlight shining on his tumultuous past, their future is at risk. Now they must decide if being together is worth sacrificing the career she loves and the company he’s poured his heart and soul into.

 

Review:

Barreled Over by Jenna Sutton is the first book in her new Trinity Distillery series.  Having read & enjoyed Sutton’s previous series (Riley O’Brien & Co.), I looked forward to starting this series, and I am happy to say I loved Barreled Over

When we meet, Ava Grace Landy, our heroine and a famous country music star, she is at a meeting with the new boss of her record label company.  Though she is one of the top selling country stars, her boss feels she needs to open her music to attract more male audiences.  Ava Grace will meet with the owners of Trinity Distillery, to become their spokesperson for a big promotional endorsement that will  benefit both of them.  Her best friend, Amelia (heroine from Riley O’Brien), is married to one of the four owners of Trinity,

Jonah Beck, our hero, isn’t crazy about bringing in Ava Grace, but his partners feel this is an opportunity to promote their great bourbon.  Beck finds himself attracted to the beautiful, outgoing & bubbly Ava Grace, but he is determined to not become involved with her, especially due to her very public life. Beck has never forgotten the scandal when he was a teenager, with his deceased father that makes him avoid the media as much as possible.

 Ava Grace previously met Beck at Amelia’s wedding and was attracted to him then.  Now as they begin to work closely together, Beck finds the attraction becoming too strong to resist, especially with Ava Grace doing all she can to seduce him.  Right from the start, we saw the sizzling chemistry between them, and I loved them together.  However, the issues they both had in their lives didn’t make things easy for them.  Ava Grace was famous, with the media always following her; she also had a father suffering from the late & violent stages of Alzheimer’s disease, which she kept secret from the public.  Beck having lived through the harsh publicity from his father, wanted nothing to do with Ava Grace’s lifestyle.  Would they find a way to stay together?

What follows is a wonderful sweet story about two people who despite their hot chemistry do not seem right for each other based on their location and lifestyles.  Beck loves his bourbon business, which his in San Francisco; and Ava Grace lives in Nashville, where her career is centered.   One of the fun parts of this book is that we get to learn a lot of the making of bourbon, and the different recipes to use with it. 

Sutton’s always creates wonderful characters that we come to love, and it is no different in Barreled Over.  Besides having already loved Amelia and Quinn previously, I really liked Beck’s other two partners, Ren and Gabe.  I also liked Kyle, the caregiver for Ava Grace’s father, which did have a number of emotional situations that stressed on this terrible disease.

Barreled Over was a great read, which also had a bit of everything; hot romance, sexy couple, great characters, music and bourbon backgrounds, as well as emotional moments.  I look forward to reading the next book in this series and I strongly suggest you read Barreled Over to start this series.

Reviewed by Barb

Copy supplied for review

10 Questions with Jonah Beck of Barreled Over (Trinity Distillery #1)

Age: 32
Height: 6’4”
Eye color: Brown
Hair color: Brown
Occupation: Founder and CEO of a craft bourbon distillery
Hometown: Grew up in Kentucky and now lives in San Francisco

*****

Thanks for stopping by The Reading Café to chat with us today, Beck.

It’s my pleasure, of course.

What do you do for fun? I work a lot, so I don’t have a lot of free time. I like to run and play basketball with friends. I also like to spend time outdoors, camping and hiking and walking my dog, Chicken.

Do you believe in love at first sight? I’ve never really thought about it. I don’t think so. I think trust is a huge part of loving someone, and that’s nothing something you can see right off the bat.

What’s your greatest fear? My greatest fear was making the same mistakes my dad made, particularly when it comes to love and marriage. Now my greatest fear is doing something stupid and losing Ava Grace.

If you could relive any moment of your life, what would it be? I would relive the first time Ava Grace and I had sex. I picked that moment for two reasons: 1) the sex was incredible and 2) I acted like an ass when it was over, and I need to redeem myself

What’s the most expensive thing you’ve ever bought? Excluding my Jeep, the most expensive thing I’ve ever bought is Ava Grace’s engagement ring. She likes sparkly things, and I bought her one hell of a sparkler.

Favorite quality in a woman? The ability to kick a little ass when necessary (figuratively)

If Ava Grace were a cocktail, which one would she be?  I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again—Ava Grace is just like good bourbon. She makes my throat burn and my chest tight, and then she settles in my belly and burns like an ember.

Do you sing in the shower? I didn’t used to, but I do now, especially if Ava Grace is in the shower with me. I love to hear her sing.

What three words would Ava Grace use to describe you? And what three words would you use to describe her? Damn, this is a hard question. I’m going to start with the words I’d use to describe Ava Grace: loyal, loving, and strong. As for the words she’d use to describe me, how about: solid, sexy, and all mine.


Favorite movie you’d be embarrassed to tell your friends you loved? If I’m embarrassed to tell my friends, why would I tell you?

Okay, then, what’s your #1 celebrity crush? Now this is an easy one—Ava Grace is my #1 celebrity crush. She has been since the moment I met her.

Lightning Round

Boxers or briefs: Neither. Boxer-briefs.

Favorite color: Green

Favorite dessert: Bourbon chocolate pecan pie

Dream vacation: I’ve always wanted to tour the whiskey distilleries in Scotland and visit the Greek island of Santorini

Favorite way to spend a Sunday afternoon: Naked with Ava Grace

 


Jenna Sutton is a former award-winning journalist who traded fact for fiction when she began writing novels. Surprisingly, the research she conducted for her articles provided a lot of inspiration for her books. She’s the author of the Riley O’Brien & Co. romances and the new Trinity Distillery series. Although Jenna calls Texas home, more often than not, she’s somewhere else. Her love’s job takes him all over the country, and she tags along, just like a groupie follows her favorite band.

You can find out more about Jenna and her work on her website http://www.jennasutton.com. Sign up for her newsletter at http://bit.ly/1K8MaCH to access the latest news and monthly contests.

WEB/SOCIAL LINKS

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2khu0v3

Author website: www.jennasutton.com

BookBub: http://bit.ly/2jacup6

Facebook: www.facebook.com/jennasuttonauthor

Goodreads: http://bit.ly/2nkoSaw

Instagram: www.instagram.com/jennasuttonauthor

Newsletter: http://bit.ly/1K8MaCH

Twitter: www.twitter.com/jsuttonauthor

 

 

 

Jenna  is offering an e-copy or paper of BARRELLED OVER to TWO (2) lucky commenterS at The Reading Cafe.

1. If you have not previously registered at The Reading Cafe, please register by using the log-in at the top of the page (side bar) or by using one of the social log-ins.

2. If you are using a social log-in, please post your email address with your comment.

3. Please LIKE us on FACEBOOK and click GET NOTIFICATIONS

4. Please FOLLOW us on Twitter for an additional entry.

5. Please FOLLOW us on GOODREADS for an additional entry.

6. Follow Jenna Sutton   on Facebook.

7. Giveaway is open US Only

8. Giveaway runs from March 17 – 20, 2018

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Phoenix Burning (A Veranda Cruz Mystery #2) by Isabella Maldonado-Review & Guest Post

PHOENIX BURNING (A Veranda Cruz Mystery #2) by Isabella Maldonado-a review and guest post

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo / Google Play

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date March 8, 2018

The battle between Veranda Cruz and the Villalobos cartel turns Phoenix into a war zone.

Homicide Detective Veranda Cruz will stop at nothing to take down the Villalobos cartel. But when a wave of violence in the city escalates, she fears that the secrets of her past will take her down instead.

Adolfo Villalobos is a crime boss who’s determined to stake his claim. To prove that he’s ready to run his family’s sprawling criminal empire, he devises a plan to silence his siblings and destroy Veranda, leaving a trail of destruction through downtown Phoenix that makes national headlines. Veranda believes the task force she’s been assigned to lead will end the cartel’s reign of terror, until Adolfo’s revenge takes a cruel–and highly personal–twist.

••••••••••

REVIEW:  PHOENIX BURNING is the second instalment in Isabella Maldonado’s contemporary, adult VERANDA CRUZ MYSTERY crime thriller series focusing on Phoenix homicide detective Veranda Cruz. PHOENIX BURNING can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty but I recommend reading the series in order as there is a continuing premise throughout.

Told from several third person points of view including Veranda Cruz, PHOENIX BURNING follows Phoenix homicide detective Veranda Cruz as she and her fellow police detectives continue to struggle in the wake of a notorious Mexican Cartel headed by Hector Villalobos and his adult children (Adolfo, Bartolo, Carlos & Daria) whose illegal activities including arms dealing, drugs and human trafficking are wreaking havoc in the Phoenix area.

In the first instalment BLOOD’S ECHO Veranda’s fifteen year old sister Gabriela was kidnapped by the Villalobos family, and her mother’s restaurant burned to the ground in a violent act of retribution and revenge against our story line heroine. Fast forward six weeks, and Veranda is named to a special task force alongside the Phoenix Police Department Homicide Squad and Gang Unit, the FBI, DEA, US Marshal, Homeland Security and the Mexican Federal Police as they put a plan into motion to take down the Villalobos Cartel. What ensues is a series of set backs, and threats aimed at our story line heroine as Hector Villalobos tries establish his power and authority against everyone involved.

PHOENIX BURNING contains some scenes of violence that focus on the brutality of the Mexican cartels; their cruelty and destructiveness as it pertains to human life, and their single-minded ruthlessness of domination and control. The Phoenix Police are outsmarted; our heroine’s family and the people of Phoenix are blindsided; the Villalobos family structure and dynamic will continue to change.

Author Isabella Maldonado, a retired police captain, and graduate of the FBI National Academy, draws on her experiences and real life in her endeavor to create a fictionalized world of corruption, crime and violence in Phoenix, Arizona. PHOENIX BURNING is an intriguing thrill ride; a gripping and realistic tale of choices and tragic consequences; of retaliation and retribution; entitlement, family, dominion and power.

:Copy supplied by Netgalley for review

Reviewed by Sandy

TOEING THE THIN BLUE LINE by Isabella Maldonado

Police officers are afforded a lot of discretion in how they perform their duties. This is both necessary, and a potential pitfall. After more than twenty years on the force, I’ve made my share of judgment calls during rapidly evolving situations. When I became a police captain later in my career, I had to hold others accountable for their decisions. It’s not something most cops like to discuss, but it’s a very real part of the job. There are times when you’re put in the position of knowing a guilty person has escaped justice based on a technicality. You must let them go. We used to have a saying on the force: “The world is round.” It means that the person who gets away with a crime today will doubtless come full circle and end up getting caught for something else tomorrow. Kind of “bad guy karma.”

In fiction, whether on the screen or in print, heroes are sometimes portrayed as vigilantes who ensure justice is served. This is one of the reasons why fiction can be so much more satisfying than real life, where sometimes evil seems to prevail. This begs the question: Should good guys do bad things in the name of fighting crime? We know what Machiavelli would say, but then again, he didn’t swear an oath to serve and protect. In real life, the answer is not just no, but hell no.

Having sat on both sides of the commander’s desk, I could deeply sympathize with an officer who colored outside the lines in an honest effort to lock up a criminal. But I couldn’t allow it. I disciplined those officers when they violated policy or procedure. During the review process, I always explained to the officer that the police are held to a higher standard. The fact that we are empowered to take away people’s freedom – and yes, sometimes their very lives – means that we cannot ever allow ourselves to cut corners or skip ahead, even if that means getting to the end point more quickly. My officers knew me to be firm, but fair.

In fiction, however, it’s just so much more fun to make sure evil gets its comeuppance. Preferably in a spectacular and wholly satisfying way. If that requires our hero to bend or break a few pesky rules, then so be it. I write a police procedural series featuring the Phoenix Police Department. My protagonist, Detective Veranda Cruz, strays from the line, but she ends up paying the price for doing so. It’s important to me to show the repercussions cops face when they use deadly force, whether subsequently deemed justifiable or not. Aside from those kind of judgment calls, officers routinely make many other decisions when they investigate cases that can have long-reaching ramifications for suspects, victims, and the entire community. Using my background, I try to portray as accurately as I can what happens to police who do the wrong things for the right reasons, but not to the point of bogging down the story with endless Internal Affairs interviews. Fast-paced stories need to keep their momentum, after all. Hopefully, readers enjoy an engaging story that keeps them on the edge of their seat. If my characters sometimes resort to extreme measures to get the job done, there will be a price to pay. But, after all, that’s what makes them the good guys!

Isabella Maldonado is a published author, a retired police captain, and a regular contributor on television News Channel 12 (Phoenix NBC affiliate) as a law enforcement expert. Her last police position was Commander of Special Investigations and Forensics. During her long career, she served as a hostage negotiator, department spokesperson, and precinct commander among many assignments. She was recognized with a Meritorious Service Award and a Lifesaving Award, and was selected to attend executive management training at the FBI National Academy in Quantico. Maldonado is a past president of the Phoenix Metro chapter of Sisters In Crime, and currently sits on the board. She lives in Mesa, Arizona, where she is currently writing the third book in the Veranda Cruz series, which features a Latina Phoenix police detective.

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Every Deep Desire (Deadly Force #1) by Sharon Wray-Review, Interview, Excerpt & Giveaway

EVERY DEEP DESIRE (Deadly Force #1) by Sharon Wray-Review, Interview, Excerpt & Giveaway

Amazon | Amazon.ca | Books-A-Million | Barnes & Noble | Chapters | Indiebound

 

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date March 6, 2018

He’s taking it all back
His honor, his freedom, and the woman he loves

Rafe Montfort was a decorated Green Beret, the best of the best, until a disastrous mission and an unforgivable betrayal destroyed his life. Now, this deadly soldier has returned to the sultry Georgia swamps to reunite with his brothers, and take back all he lost. But Juliet must never know the truth behind what he’s done…or the dangerous secret that threatens to take him from her forever.

It took Juliet Capel eight long years to put her life back together after her husband was taken from her. Now Rafe is back, determined to protect her at any cost, and it’s not just her heart that’s in danger. The swamps hold a secret long buried and far deadlier than either of them could have imagined.

••••••••••

REVIEW: EVERY DEEP DESIRE is the first instalment in Sharon Wray’s contemporary, adult DEADLY FORCE romantic suspense series focusing on a group of former Green Beret’s betrayed by someone in charge. This is Rafe Montfort, and Juliet Capel’s second chance story line.

NOTE: EVERY DEEP DESIRE contains scenes of graphic violence that may not be suitable for some readers.

Told from several third person perspectives including Rafe and Juliet VERY DEEP DESIRE is a complex and multi-layered story line that focuses on the rekindling romance between former and dishonourably discharged Green Beret Rafe Montfort, and the woman he loves, landscape architect Juliet Capel. Eight years earlier Rafe Montfort went AWOL leaving the woman he loves struggling to survive. Fast forward to present day wherein a changed Rafe returns seeking revenge against people who destroyed his life-a life he no longer controls as his own. With continuing threats against Juliet, and the return of two of the men he once called friend, Rafe’s mission becomes more complicated as the ‘Brotherhood’, a secret organization known as the Fianna, seeks payment and retribution for sins of the past. What ensues is the second chance romance between Rafe and Juliet, and the potential fall-out as one-time friends become enemies, and enemies become future friends, and the Brotherhood refuses to let go of one of their own.

Sharon Wray has loosely adapted Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliette with the release of EVERY DEEP DESIRE wherein brother is pitted against brother, family against friendship in a war not of their making. From betrayal to secrets, poison to promises, EVERY DEEP DESIRE is a complicated mosaic of double cross and treachery, heartbreak and confession, power and control. The ‘Brotherhood’ speaks in Shakespearean prose referencing life and death with every message and note. There are heroes and anti-heroes, villains and sinners, black sheep and rogues such that the line between good and evil is constantly blurred. With the introduction of Rafe’s former Green Beret Team, I am hoping the author has plans for future story lines.

EVERY DEEP DESIRE is not an easy read due to the numerous intersecting and complex plotlines; the introduction of a diverse cast of secondary and supporting characters; and the mysterious Fianna-a group of ‘mythological’ Irish warriors dating back hundreds of years. The overload of information is, at times, confusing and chaotic, but I recommend reading EVERY DEEP DESIRE until the end. The premise is unique, intriguing and cleverly written; the characters are passionate and tragic; the romance is palpable and intense. EVERY DEEP DESIRE is a thrilling and fascinating take on Romeo and Juliet- the hidden ‘Easter Eggs’ are only the beginning.

Copy supplied by Netgalley through the publisher

Reviewed by Sandy

Juliet’s house had disappeared.
Rafe Montfort scrubbed a hand over his face. A strangling ache invaded his chest, filling the empty space that once held his heart. He shifted the Army duffel he’d shouldered for the past six miles, moving the burn from one arm to the other. Why had he assumed her father’s trailer would still be standing? That she’d be living there? Waiting for him?
Because he wasn’t only a bastard who made assumptions. He was a fool who once believed the Prince’s brutal goals justified Rafe’s ruthless actions.
Or, as Escalus used to say, “a fool whose violent delights have violent ends.”
Summer cicadas hummed in the Isle of Grace’s surrounding woods, their mournful drone filling Rafe’s head with rhythmic disapproval. Sweat soaked his T-shirt, pooling low in his back above his waistband. Where he used to keep his gun.
He wasn’t just a bastard. He wasn’t just a fool. He just wasn’t the man he’d once hoped to become. With a nod to his broken past, he left the overgrown property and headed home.
Keep it moving, Montfort. That’s right. One boot in front of the other.
He kicked an empty beer bottle into a ditch, shattering the brown glass, and marched toward Pops’s trailer tucked between the towering Georgia pines a half mile down the Isle’s dirt road. He’d given up his honor, his wife, his men. Thank God his mother had died before he betrayed everyone he loved. In the years he’d been away, he hadn’t just cut out his heart; he’d sold his soul.
Despite the breeze, questions about Juliet’s departure burned his blood.
Why had she left? He climbed the pine steps to the deck alongside the double-wide.
Where’d she go? He jumped the last two steps to avoid the missing planks.
Did she ever think of him? The Capels had arrived on the Isle long before the American Revolution. It’d never occurred to him that her family would leave. For eight long years, he’d been counting on that.
His duffel landed with a thud next to an outboard motor and buckets of fishing gear. He rubbed the knotted muscles in his shoulder and faced the broken screen door. His vision faded until all he could see was the blurry mesh.
What the hell was he doing? Why had he even come home? Because he’d had no choice. Everything depended on him remembering that. With renewed determination, he raised his fist and hit the metal door.
No answer. He closed his eyes, took another breath, and knocked again.
Juliet’s family was gone. Had his left as well?
He heard a banging around back, pulled out his leather jacket, and covered the tattoos on his arms. He’d rather die of heat stroke than start an argument. Then he jumped over the deck rail. His combat boots made it easier to walk through the tall weeds to the red barn a hundred yards behind the trailer. Three times larger than the home, the barn and surrounding yard held remnants of every American classic car ever made.
Everything stood as if he’d never left, except for the cell boost antenna on the barn’s roof. From the height and distance, it probably provided a cell signal the width and depth of Pops’s property. Pops had joined the twenty-first century? Maybe miracles were possible.
He drew closer and saw his daddy’s gray head bobbing up and down beneath the hood of a black 1958 Chevy Impala. He stopped on the other side of the car and exhaled until his lungs ached. “Pops?”
His dad raised his head, his eyes squinting. “Who’s there?”
“It’s me. Rafe.”
A man, shorter than he remembered, stood. In a stained red T-shirt and overalls with one strap hanging down, his father waited a few moments before nodding. At least he wasn’t holding a beer. Or his shotgun.
Rafe waved at the car. “She’s a real beauty. She yours?”
“No.” Pops wiped his dirty hands on an oily rag, and Rafe focused on the remaining finger on his father’s right hand. He’d given the other four to the Marines. “She belongs to your brother.”
“Good for him.”
Pops tossed the rag onto the engine and gripped the side of the Chevy’s frame. His hard stare took in Rafe’s leather jacket in what had to be triple-digit heat. “What you doin’ here, boy?”
He held out his hand. A hug would only be an invitation to an ass-kicking. “The Army released me from prison.”
“Released?” His father picked up a dirty wrench, his face brown beneath a haircut the Corps would salute. “What the hell for? Good behavior?”
“No, sir.” He dropped his hand. If disapproval were a color, it would be the dark, muddy brown in his father’s grim gaze. “I don’t know why.”
Since he’d spent two years in a Russian jail and then the last nine months locked in isolation in Leavenworth, he wasn’t sure what to think. “I was told to return to Savannah and wait for a call.”
While it went against every one of his hard-earned instincts urging him to run, he’d come home to find out what the hell was going on. Besides, it wasn’t like he had anyplace else to go.
“You still a sergeant?”
A sharp ache hit Rafe’s back molars, and he eased off the teeth grinding. On his left, he noticed a band of magnolia trees surrounding a white glory cross. He shoved his hands into his jacket pockets and forced himself to meet his father’s reproach. “I don’t know what I am.” Sergeant? Prisoner 061486? The Prince’s warrior? Hell if he knew.
“I know what you are,” Pops said. “Damn traitor. Not to mention adulterer, liar, thief.”
Rafe’s exhale sounded more like a hiss. While he wasn’t all of those things, he’d done other things—worse things. “I was also dishonorably discharged.”


 

TRC: Hi Sharon and welcome to The Reading Café. Congratulations on the recent release of your debut book EVERY DEEP DESIRE

Sharon: Thank you so much for having me here today.

TRC: We would like to start with some background information. Would you please tell us something about yourself?

Follow Sharon: Goodreads / Website / Facebook / Twitter / Google Plus

Sharon: I’m a librarian and archivist who worked in the pharmaceutical and news industries, as well as in art and public libraries. I’m also a wife and a mother of twins who also used to design wedding gowns. But many years ago, when I decided to stay home with my twins and give up my design business, I was looking for a new creative venture and my sister-in-law gave me a copy of the Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron. As I worked through the book, I decided to become a romance author.

TRC: Who or what influenced your career in writing?

Sharon: My father was my biggest influence and one of my biggest supporters until his death. His grandparents came from Ireland (my maiden name is Brennan) and he was always telling me stories about Irish kings and warriors and, of course, fairies. When I was trying to decide which creative track I should take, I remembered my father’s stories and that help me decide to become a writer.

TRC: What challenges or difficulties have you encountered writing and publishing your first novel?

Sharon: I don’t want to depress any new writers out there, but it took me fourteen years from the day I decided to become a romance writer to having a book on a bookshelf. 🙂 I joined Romance Writers of America on March 2, 2004 and my debut novel will hit bookstores March 6, 2018.

In those fourteen years, I’ve written eight full manuscripts and two partials. I also have alot of outlines for other books. It took me six years to find an agent and another six to sell my first books. And along the way I’ve received over a hundred rejections. But all of this taught me invaluable lessons about patience, perseverance and gratitude. It’s also taught me how to be a better writer. As long as this journey has been, it’s also been wonderful. And it makes my release of EVERY DEEP DESIRE that much more amazing.

TRC: Would you please tell us something about the premise of EVERY DEEP DESIRE and the DEADLY FORCE series?

Sharon: The DEADLY FORCE series is about a team of ex-Green Berets and their sexy, smart heroines who redeem Shakespeare’s greatest love stories.

When a group of ex-special forces soldiers, under the leadership of Colonel Kells Torridan, are accused of vicious war crimes and dishonorably discharged, they find themselves in the middle of a war between a vicious arms dealer and the secretive Fianna army.

Kells’s men now work in a cheesy, pirate-themed gym in Savannah, GA, desperate to prove their innocence before their enemies comes after them again. But as these men struggle to rebuild their lives and redeem their honor, it’s the women they love who teach these alpha males that Grace always defeats Reckoning.

EVERY DEEP DESIRE is a contemporary romantic suspense retelling of Romeo and Juliet. When Juliet Capel, a woman determined to protect the life she’s built for herself, becomes the target of an arms dealer who believes she holds the key to a 17th Century secret, her only chance to stay alive rests within the arms of Rafe Montfort, her ex-Green Beret husband who abandoned her eight years earlier.

TRC: From where did the idea come to integrate Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, and the mythology of the Fianna Irish warriors?

Sharon: Honestly, I’m not sure. I didn’t think about any of this when I started the book. At first, I started writing about a character named Jack Keeley (he’s a colonel from the hero’s Green Beret unit who’s in prison for most of the series) and Jack started telling me about the series premise, about a group of ex-Green Berets caught in the middle of war between a brutal arms dealer and the Fianna army. Then, after the first rough draft, Rafe (the hero) told me he was a Fianna warrior, and Juliet (the heroine) told me she always felt her love story with Rafe was a tragedy. And the two ideas came together. Except then I had to start the book over.

This book would’ve been easier to write if I’d know all of this before I started writing. LOL.

TRC: What kind of research/plotting did you do, and how long did you spend researching /plotting before beginning EVERY DEEP DESIRE?

Sharon: Wow. A lot. It didn’t help that I’ve been a reference librarian all of my adult life. 🙂
I’ve been working on this series for about seven years. First, I re-read the entire Fenian cycle of poetry and all of the stories about the mythic Irish warrior Fionn Mac Cumhaill who formed the Fianna army to fend off the Roman invasion of Ireland. Then I re-read Romeo and Juliet and read as much literary criticism as I could find.

My parents lived in Savannah for a while, and my husband is from Charleston, so I did hundreds of hours of hands-on investigative work in these cities. I went to archives, took history tours, and ate in restaurants. 🙂 My brother-in-law is from one of the oldest families in the south, as well as a lawyer, and he was incredibly helpful with the legal aspects in this story.

My husband went to West Point and was an army officer for many, many years and now works for the DoD. He helped me with all of the military/weapon/action stuff and answered all of my crazy questions with patience and in terms I could understand. And if he didn’t know, he asked people who did know.

But for as much research as I did, I deliberately fictionalized certain things. I took famous stories about pirates and privateers and changed them to fit the story. I even made up my own island and my husband’s rendition of it made it into the book!

TRC: What was the hardest scene to write?

Sharon: It’s a tie between the first meet scene between Rafe (the hero) and Juliet (the heroine) as well as the first meet scene between Rafe and Nate (Rafe’s ex-Green Beret buddy from his former unit). Both of these scenes were difficult to write for the same reason: They were highly emotional.

Rafe abandoned his wife and his men, including Nate, so both Nate and Juliet feel completely betrayed. Even after 8 years, that kind of betrayal is hard to recover from. Although one character is a wife and the other is a friend, the emotions of betrayal, anger, and sadness were similar. Both scenes took me months to write, and many, many rounds of revisions to hit the emotions properly. And now they’re two of my favorite scenes in the book. 🙂

TRC: How will publishing EVERY DEEP DESIRE affect your writing style going forward?

Sharon: The editing process for this book taught me a lot about what scenes are really necessary and which ones aren’t. I am a very long and very slow writer, and my hope is that the process I went through with this book will teach me how writer leaner and faster writer going forward.

TRC: Do you believe the cover image plays a deciding factor for many readers in the process of selecting a book or new series to read?

Sharon: As a librarian, I do believe that covers help readers select a book. I’ve spent too many years in libraries where people would bring in books, point to the cover, and say, “give me something like this”. And I’m incredibly grateful to Sourcebooks for giving EVERY DEEP DESIRE such a fabulous cover. I also think that a strong cover on the first book of a series helps set the tone for the series and hopefully attracts readers who are seeking that kind of story.

TRC: When writing a storyline, do the characters direct the writing or do you direct the characters?

Sharon: I don’t do any directing of the characters in the first few drafts. I write down everything they say and do and want and feel and see. Then, as I begin to revise, I start cutting and moving and redirecting. But If I do too much redirecting. The characters stop talking to me. I can edit them, but I can’t change them. They don’t like that!

TRC: The mark of a good writer is to pull the reader into the storyline so that they experience the emotions along with the characters. What do you believe a writer must do to make this happen? Where do you believe writer’s fail in this endeavor?

Sharon: I always feel like I can improve in this area. First of all, knowing the characters is key. You can’t evoke emotions in readers if you don’t understand the emotions your characters are feeling. I spend a LOT of time with my characters, trying to learn everything I can about them, before I start my drafts.

To evoke emotion—and keep the tension on the page—an author must understand the interplay between dialog and narrative in both scenes and sequels. And then know when to layer in backstory, setting, and descriptions. It’s like trying to balance five bricks on a high wire. It can be done (I saw someone do this once!) but only if everything is in perfect balance.

If I fail in this balance (and I have many, many times), I always make sure I understand the type of scene it is (scene or sequel, action or love scene, etc). Then I look to the narrative to see if it’s overburdened with extra stuff, and then to the dialog to see if it’s rambling. I have some characters who love to talk and even though it may be witty and fun, it often needs to be cut. Balance is the key to everything.

TRC: Do you listen to music while writing? If so, does the style of music influence the storyline direction? Characters?

Sharon: I do listen to music while I’m drafting and will build a playlist as I draft. I collect songs of all genres from classical to heavy metal, depending on the scene I’m writing. Each scene has a feel to it, as do each character, and I use the music to help me pace the scene. Then, when I’m ready to revise, I pick a few songs that I feel embody the tone and “beat” of the book and will play those over and over again until I’m done.

When I’m doing final read-throughs, everything in the house needs to be silent. Even the dog’s snoring annoys me! Lol.

TRC: What do you believe is the biggest misconception people have about authors?

Sharon: That our lives are really glamorous. Mine’s really not. I write seven days a week, and between revising and marketing and writing new books, it’s easily a 60-hours a week job. I rarely leave the house if I’m in draft-mode or revise-mode which is almost all the time! But I wouldn’t change it for anything. I’m so much happier now than I was when I working in an office.

TRC: What is something that few, if anybody, knows about you?

Sharon: I used to work in the American Red Cross office in Uijongbu, South Korea.

TRC: On what are you currently working?

Sharon: I am revising book 2 in the Deadly Force series and writing book 3.

TRC: Would you like to add anything else?

Sharon: It’s still seems so surreal that EVERY DEEP DESIRE is out in the world. My book’s debut proves that if you have a dream you can’t ever, ever, ever give up. Dreams do come true.

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food
BBQ ribs

Favorite Dessert
Oreos (seriously!)

Favorite TV Show
The Colony (it’s a sc-fi show with Josh Holloway)

Last Movie You Saw
I re-watched Casablanca with my family.

Dark or Milk Chocolate
Both!

Secret Celebrity Crush
Laurence Olivier (when he played Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights)

Last Vacation Destination
Jamaica with my husband

Do you have any pets?
Yes, a one-eyed rescue dog named Donut (He’s an Australian blue-heeler)

Last book you read
Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge. It’s a YA retelling of Beauty and the Beast.

Sharon: Thank you so much for having me here today!

TRC: Thank you Sharon for taking the time to answer our questions. Congratulations on your the release of EVERY DEEP DESIRE. We wish you much success.

Dear Readers,

As an author, I both love and fear release days. I’m thrilled that the book I’ve spent years on is entering the world, ready to find readers. Yet terrified because the fictional world I’ve spent so much time in—dreaming about, thinking of, planning for—is no longer my own.

The story and everything in it, especially the characters, now belong to you. All the feels you experience, whether I intended them or not, will be filtered through your own life’s events. Your memories, your dreams, your joys, and losses will determine what you take away from the story. And that’s the way it should be.

Yet, while reader reactions are completely out of my control, it’s also scary. Especially when one makes changes to the genre. Every Deep Desire, and the other books in the Deadly Force series, are all romantic suspense stories—yet they’re also different. And we all know how the world feels about change.

The Deadly Force series is about a group of ex-Green Berets, under the command of Colonel Kells Torridan, who were charged with a crime they didn’t commit and dishonorably discharged despite their innocence. Some of the men from the unit are in prison, but the men in the series, including Kells, are living in Savannah, GA, managing Iron Rack’s, a run-down, pirate-themed gym in a not-so-nice part of town, and working as bouncers at a goth strip club. They’re hiding in plain sight, teaching Krav Maga classes, tossing drunks, desperate to find any information that can lead them to who destroyed their lives, and why.

But these books aren’t just about the men and their weapons. They are also romances. To be more specific, each love story is a retelling of one of Shakespeare’s greatest love stories. Just add in sexy, down-and-out Green Berets, dangerous arms dealers, and strong heroines who teach these alpha males that Grace always defeats Reckoning.

Every Deep Desire, a contemporary retelling of Romeo and Juliet and first in the Deadly Force series, is about Rafe Montfort and Juliet Capel. Rafe, a man in Kells’s unit, left his men and his wife to join the Prince and his Fianna army only to end up in prison. Now, eight years later, Rafe finds himself released without explanation. His only clue is a note telling him to return to the remote sea island off the coast of Savannah where he and Juliet grew up. It doesn’t take long for him to realize that his wife Juliet, the woman he’s adored his entire life, is in danger.

Juliet, a landscape architect, has struggled for eight years to recover from Rafe’s abandonment and disappearance. Their early marriage had been a disaster both their families had warned them about, but they’d been too young and too in love to understand. Now she’s determined to live her life on her own terms without help from anyone. And the last thing she needs is her ex-husband returning home with vague warnings of danger.

But when vague warnings become real threats, Rafe and Juliet realize that both of their enemies, the Prince and Remiel Marigny, know a 17th century secret about the Isle where they both grew up, a secret both of their families have kept for hundreds of years. Now, in order to figure out why an army of assassins, a brutal gun runner, and a team of ex-Green Berets are interested in Juliet’s ancestor—a Puritan woman accused of witchcraft—Rafe and Juliet must face their past together.

Now they’re running out of time. And not only is Juliet’s heart and Rafe’s freedom in jeopardy, the secret they uncover is far deadlier than anyone could’ve realized.

I hope you all enjoy this first book in the Deadly Forces series. It’s a world where sexy, smart heroines must teach these ex-Green Berets bent on redemption that physical strength and combat experience isn’t always enough to win. Sometimes a person’s greatest weapon—true courage—comes from seeking forgiveness and accepting love.

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New Jersey Noir by William Baer-Review & Guest Post

NEW JERSEY NOIR (The Jack Colt Murder Mysteries #1) by William Baer- Review and Guest Post

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date February 26, 2018

On the bridge over Paterson’s Great Falls, a retired state trooper is murdered by a girl in a grammar school uniform. The victim was the beloved uncle of Jack Colt, a private investigator descended from the inventor of the revolver. While investigating his uncle’s murder, Colt realizes that it is intertwined with two other cases of his. These involve the family secrets of extremely powerful New Jersey figures, including the governor, a judge, and a mob boss.

  In New Jersey Noir, William Baer reinvigorates the detective genre while exploring the Garden State’s rich cultural history, glamor, and gore. Baer’s novel is fast-paced and utterly gripping, brimming with intrigue and suspense.

••••••••••••

REVIEW: NEW JERSEY NOIR is the first instalment in William Baer’s complex and intriguing contemporary, adult THE JACK COLT MURDER MYSTERIES focusing on private investigator and descendant of the inventor of the Colt revolver Jack Colt.

Told from first person point of view (Jack Colt) using present day and memories from the past, NEW JERSEY NOIR follows Jack Colt as he hunts for a killer. When his beloved uncle, a retired state trooper Tom Colt, is murdered along side a man with a criminal past our protagonist Jack Colt begins an investigation of his own wherein murder continues to follow in the wake of his discovery and research.

New Jersey has a densely rich population of crooked individuals: incest to adultery, betrayal and revenge, secrets and lies, and corrupt politicians such that Jack Colt, with his PA Roxanne Faulkner, uncover and decipher the backgrounds and histories that connect victims to survivors with dark and complicated pasts. The reader is inside the head of a man whose own nocturnal dalliances are questionable but there is no denying his ability to expose the truth, and unwrap the tightly wound secrets of everyone involved.

NEW JERSEY NOIR is a decadent look at an elaborate and multi-layered orgy of murders and revenge. The premise is intriguing imaginative and startling: the characters are numerous, dramatic and edgy. Like watching a crime drama unfold but the reader becomes one with the man in charge.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Influences, Mysteries, and Noirs by William Baer

Before my family moved to New Jersey when I was twelve, we lived in the Bronx, not far from Poe Cottage, and Poe has remained a primary inspiration in my life. At the time, when I was reading Poe, I was also reading Alfred Hitchcock’s various collections of mystery stories and watching reruns of Alfred Hitchcock Presents and Twilight Zone. Eventually, I started reading Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories, along with the other classic mystery writers (Agatha Christie, etc.). I enjoyed them all, especially the noirists, Dashiell Hammett (The Maltese Falcon) and Raymond Chandler (The Long Goodbye), but my absolute favorite was (and is) Ross Macdonald and his Lew Archer novels (The Chill and The Galton Case). Macdonald was a master plotter and a masterful writer, and I still consider him one of the best novelists of the twentieth century, along with Graham Greene, Fitzgerald, and Faulkner (who also wrote mystery stories!).

By the time we moved to New Jersey, I’d also discovered film noir, which I was able to study much more closely years later when I attended U.S.C.’s Graduate School of Cinema. My favorites were John Huston’s The Maltese Falcon and Jacques Tourneur’s Out of the Past. (I also loved Tourneur’s weirdly atmospheric horror classics, I Walked with a Zombie and Cat People.)

Much of my adult life has been spent as a literature and creative writing professor, and my books have been quite varied (short story collections, translations, interviews, plays, and poetry collections). But I’ve always wanted to write mysteries, especially in the noir mode, and when I’d finally created the opportunity, I realized that New Jersey was a natural setting for a noir mystery. Like California (where Hammett, Chandler, and Macdonald set their mysteries), New Jersey has beautiful countryside, lakes, mountains, beaches, etc., but it also has cities that, like Los Angeles and San Francisco, have a noirish underside. I believe that I was even more aware of this than most people since my younger brother Robert is a criminal lawyer and a former New Jersey prosecutor and judge.

For the initial setting of the book, I chose the New Jersey city that I know best, Paterson, which was once an important industrial center and was originally founded by Alexander Hamilton. The novel’s main character, Jack Colt, is a direct descendent of Samuel Colt, whose gun factory was once located in Paterson. As Jack attempts to unravel three concurrent mysteries, he travels to many other parts of the state, but he always returns to Paterson. I must admit that I had a wonderful time writing New Jersey Noir, and I hope readers will enjoy it as well.

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William Baer, a recent Guggenheim fellow, is the award-winning author of twenty-two books, and his various plays have been produced at over thirty American theaters.  He grew up in the Bronx and Wayne, New Jersey, where his family was actively involved in “little theater.”  A graduate of Rutgers (B.A.) and New York University (M.A.), he completed his dissertation in creative writing at the University of South Carolina under the direction of James Dickey.  After attending the Johns Hopkins’ Writing Seminars (M.A.), he served as a Fulbright at the University of Coimbra in Portugal.  He then attended the University of Southern California’s Graduate School of Cinema (M.A.), where he received the Jack Nicholson Screenwriting Award.  The recipient of a Creative Writing Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, he currently lives in North Jersey.

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Highlander Entangled (Highland Adventure #9) by Vonda Sinclair-Review, Guest Post & Giveaway

Highlander Entangled (Highland Adventure #9) by Vonda Sinclair- Review, Guest Post & Giveaway

HIGHLANDER ENTANGLED
Highland Adventure #9
by Vonda Sinclair
Release Date: December 8,2017
Genre: adult, historical, Highland, romance

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date December 8,2017

Lady Kristina MacQueen suffered devastating injuries at the hands of a ruthless Highland chief, Blackburn MacCromar. Two years later, he kidnaps her for a journey across the chilly, windblown Scottish Highlands to flush out her sister, Anna—the woman Blackburn forced to wed him. Red Holme, Blackburn’s second-in-command, is equally brutal and determined to possess Kristina.

A Highland warrior and future chief, Colin Cameron has no intention of becoming entangled in the whims of another highborn lady. However, upon witnessing Lady Kristina being held hostage by the enemy, a knife to her throat, he resolves to rescue her and bring her to safety. When R

ed Holme sees Colin Cameron, he recognizes his enemy from a decade earlier and craves revenge even more than he lusts for the lady. But he is determined to have both.

Colin is the most charismatic and heroic man Kristina has ever met, and he awakens her woman’s instincts. He might be her only chance to experience a brief moment of passion. Even so, she holds no illusions about marriage, for no worthy man will find her blindness and scars appealing, or see them as beneficial traits in a wife. But she can’t see how he looks at her. Though Colin has sworn to never fall in love again, he cannot defend his heart against the strong, spirited and lovely lass who is like none other he has ever met.

••••••••••

REVIEW: 5 out of 5 for this reader folks!

FANTASTIC BOOK! I have not read any of the other books in this series, but I am very eager to dive in and perhaps get some back stories on other characters. I did not feel this took away from any enjoyment I had reading this story, it was very easy to follow.

Highlander Entangled by Vonda Sinclair is the ninth book in the “Highland Adventure” series and let me say one thing … ADVENTURE is the perfect word they could of used. A highland historical romance, you will find yourself completely immersed into the past, where men were gruff, unapologetic, prideful, egotistical, full of revenge, passionate and so much more, and the ladies made sure they have met their match. The side of sexy love completely sold me and solidified my “must read more” attitude for this author.

Lady Kristina McQueen is our leading lady and I completely adore her. She is the kind of character you will be all in with, and your heart will break a hundred times, but you deep down will know she will make it through. She is carrying many scars, both emotional and physical and this has left her blind. She is kidnapped by the man who gave her her scars to try and get to her sister. Kristina possess a strength that I am uncertain many woman can achieve in that time and under these circumstances. She is resigned to what she has been dealt with in life, and believes she is fated to live tortured and lonely. Her attitude isn’t woo is me however, she threw no pity party. She has mourned what she has gone through, but it hasn’t completely consumed her and when her leading man comes into the picture, she doesnt recognize him as her partner, but as a strength she can draw from.

Colin Cameron is the future chief of his clan, and a fierce enemy of the men that have kidnapped Kristina. When he sees her kidnapped he does right by her and gets involved. He saves Kristina from more than physical harm, he saves her from a future of loneliness. Colin is the real deal. He is a good man, cares strongly but is no pushover. He is enchanted by this woman that has crossed his path and while there are certain attributes that a chiefs wife must possess, he doesn’t seem to give two cares about it. He is protective and loving of Kristina, and she openly embraces this caring and love and finds herself returning it.

This book is full of adventure and emotion. You will feel like you have been on the most intense roller coaster ride of your life, and I as an emotional read love that! Vonda is an excellent historical romance author and I say this because she writes vivid images and makes me feel like you have been thrown back in time, living this story with the characters.

I am very interested in reading more from Vonda, and certainly am going to go back and snag this series. I am completely impressed and really looking forward to more!

HAPPY READING! 🙂

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Rachel T.

Researching on Location in Scotland
By Vonda Sinclair

There’s nothing I like better than exploring castle ruins in the remote areas of Scotland. On one such research trip, I drove 25+ miles beyond Glenfinnan with my friends to visit Castle Tioram. We passed through sparsely populated, wild areas with amazing scenic beauty, and drove along narrow winding roads, most of them single track. There were a few houses, crofts, and tiny villages or communities here and there. The drive took twice as long as it should have because we had to stop several times along the way for photo ops. We passed lochs, mountains, and old bridges. We could’ve seen the Jacobite steam train (aka “Hogwarts Express”) if we’d been willing to linger in a certain spot long enough. We didn’t, but we did see the train the next day as it passed over the Glenfinnan Viaduct.
We wanted to get to Castle Tioram (pronounced Cheeram) as quickly as possible. This is a privately owned castle in a dangerously ruinous state. It was unsafe for us to go inside because of the hazards of possible falling stones from the masonry. But what a spectacular location! The castle sits on a small island called Eilean Tioram (meaning ‘the dry island’ in Gaelic) in Loch Moidart near where the River Shiel empties into it.
I had craved visiting this castle for years, from the first time I saw a photo of it online. It had always captured my imagination. I wanted to use it in a story but was unsure how until I started writing My Captive Highlander.

When I was writing a shipwreck (or technically a galley wreck) scene for the story, I thought, okay, where could the hero’s galley crash during the storm and where could he be taken hostage and tossed into the dungeon? It needed to be on the west coast of Scotland somewhere between Inveraray and Isle of Skye. I decided that even though my castle would have a fictitious name, Bearach Castle, I would base it on Castle Tioram, a MacDonald stronghold back through history. And the heroine would be a MacDonald—the chief’s sister. About twenty years earlier in actual history, the hero’s clan, the MacKenzies, had experienced a conflict and a battle with these MacDonalds. Perfect for drama, conflict and action.

I’ve since set two more books there including Highlander Unbroken and, my newest, Highlander Entangled. Highlander Unbroken features the new chief of the MacDonald clan, Neacal, while Highlander Entangled features his friend and foster brother, Colin Cameron, as the hero. All three stories are stand-alone but are linked.
Castle Tioram occupies a place, near the River Shiel, which was strategic for Scotland’s defense centuries ago, because it allowed easy travel by boat toward the Great Glen and the center of Scotland, along Loch Shiel and other inland lochs. Even during the Iron Age, long before the current castle, this site was important. Artifacts from the time have been found. There is also much evidence of Vikings’ presence in the area during medieval times. The beaches around the island would’ve been ideal for sheltering galleys, ships and other boats.

Even though I couldn’t explore the inside of the castle, I walked almost all the way around it. In some areas I was close enough to touch it, but in other areas I had to climb rocks or walk along the sea loch’s shore and view it from a distance. It was a nice, sunny day and I took several hundred photos. Because I was able to explore the rough and rocky terrain around the castle, I could accurately describe it in many of my books’ scenes, including battle scenes. I absolutely love to bring the readers fully into my scenes and make them feel a part of the story.

Vonda Sinclair writes wildly romantic Highland adventures about brave Highland warriors and their unconventional ladies. She takes readers back through the mists of time into a different world—17th century Scotland.

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Vonda Sinclair is the USA Today bestselling author of award-winning Scottish historical romance novels and novellas. Her favorite pastime is exploring Scotland and taking photos along the way. She especially loves ancient castle ruins! She also enjoys writing about hot Highland heroes, unconventional ladies and the healing power of love. Her series are the Highland Adventure Series and the Scottish Treasure Series. Her books have won the National Readers’ Choice Award, the CRW Award of Excellence, the Winter Rose Award of Excellence in Published Romantic Fiction–1st Place Historical, and an EPIC Award. She lives in the mountains of North Carolina where she is crafting another adventurous, wildly romantic Scottish story. Please visit her website at www.vondasinclair.com

Vonda Sinclair is graciously offering a paper copy of MY CAPTIVE HIGHLANDER to ONE lucky commenter at The Reading Cafe.

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