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Dec 18
Books all things paranormal and romance
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Tag Archives: Book One
AuThursday – Cee Perkins
Tell us a little about yourself and your background?
Ok, well, I’m Cee. I have a husband, three adorable kids, three giant dogs, and I write anti-heroine romances. I have a four-book series planned, the first is out now, titled “Corrupt Love: Love Is Dangerous book 1.” I started writing in high school, but like most teenagers, I needed to learn the hard way to follow what I’m good at.
How do you make time to write?
Making the kids nap. Haha. Mostly, I have my mom to thank for that- she moved in with us recently, and she’s been handling the kids so I can work.
Do you believe in writer’s block?
Oh, yes. Corrupt Love was an idea that began way back in 2016, but when I got to Chapter 7, I ran out of steam on it and couldn’t get the story out, no matter what I did. Fortunately, I was able to fall back on an old friend and she finally was able to push me through it.
Tell us a bit about the genre you write and why you love it.
Ah, romance. Who doesn’t love LOVE, really? I’ve always loved the opposites attract trope, and people who make a life together despite differences of opinion and ethics. I love when a happy ending is hard-won and the whole “smooth sailing after the Big Fight” kind of gets on my nerves, so I write (what I hope is) as close to real-life relationships as I can. People aren’t perfect, even after working through a big blow-up with their significant others, and books who portray relationships that way set a standard that I think is too much for most people wanting love. Sure, we all want the perfect wife/ girlfriend or husband/boyfriend, but the reality is, it just doesn’t exist. I don’t like books that make it look common.
I guess it’s sort of in the same vein of model-perfection. Even Jennifer Lawrence has something about her body she doesn’t like, but society makes it so that she has to pretend it doesn’t exist. It makes it so that people who are overweight or battling acne or something like that feel like they’re not “good enough”. I can’t stand that.
Disclaimer- I love Jennifer Lawrence. I don’t think she needs to change anything, I was just using her as an example.
Anyway, all of that to say that I love writing romance because I love love, but I write the way I do because I want to contribute to the growing idea that “perfect” doesn’t exist.
How are you publishing your recent book and why? (*e.g. Indie, traditional or both)
Indie because I’m too impatient and scared of rejection to go traditional haha.
Are you an Introvert or Extrovert? How does this affect your work?
Um… I’d say I’m an introvert with some extrovert qualities. I think it affects me in that I can stay at home, away from lots of people for periods of time, and write characters who are outgoing.
What is your favorite motivational phrase?
“I chose to have these children.”
Wait, that’s my meditation mantra. My favorite motivational phrase is probably
“Just keep swimming.”
No matter what happens, just keep going. The bad will pass.
What advice would you give to aspiring writers?
Remember that at the core of being a published author is writing. You are a writer first, then a marketer, decision-maker, self-editor, etc. You’re not expected to know everything immediately, but when you’re lost as to what to do, ask questions. Find groups that have experience and listen to them. They’ve been where you are and will help you cut through a lot of the bs of publishing so that you can stay a writer.
Where can readers find you on the World Wide Web?
On my website at https://www.ceeperkinsauthor.com/ or on my Facebook page.
Do you have an excerpt you’d like to share with us?
Sure. This is Dan and Corra’s first date.
***
Bottom line, I wanted in his pants that night. Likely to happen? Mmm, probably not. Would I work for that goal anyway? Definitely.
So there I was, sitting across from Dan in that sports bar, trying to sit close enough to him that my boobs brushed his arm every time I leaned over to fake reading the answers on the trivia device. Not surprising, he knew the answers. Not to toot my own flute or anything, but so did I. We made a great team, and we were in First place. Woo. I could die happy with this championship belt. Insert epic eye roll here. But Dan wasn’t taking the bait. I was trying my damnedest to flirt with him, down to pretending to absentmindedly trace my fingers along his neck. God, what would it take to get him to break?
“So, Dan, tell me a little more about yourself. Do you have siblings? Speak to your parents? Have a secret D/s fantasy?” I asked, making Dan choke on his drink. “Sorry, I can be a little off the wall sometimes,” I said to make up for it. But really, I just wanted to see his reaction.
Dan wiped his mouth and gave a little smile. “Ah, no siblings. I speak with my mom regularly, especially lately since my father passed away about a week ago and she doesn’t really have anyone now. She has…a gambling problem and if I don’t check in with her, she can go days without coming up for air.”
“I’m really sorry to hear about your dad. Were you close to him?”
“No, not really. I mean, we had a…tolerable relationship, but he was an alcoholic and sometimes couldn’t function beyond drinking. They gave me the best they could, what with their addictions, and I never wanted them to think I was ungrateful, so I tried to take care of them. Oh, and no D/s tendencies.”
I felt my eyes burn, hearing Dan talk about his parents. What the fuck was wrong with me? They were addicts, but he still spoke of them like they were at least decent. I cocked my head, studying him as a thought occurred. His parents were addicts. They couldn’t have given him a stable upbringing. Is that why he was so rigid and uptight? Because he never wanted to live the life his parents did?
“Um…Corra?” Dan was staring back at me, and I could actually see the insecurity in his eyes. I snapped out of my trance.
“Yeah, sorry. What’s the next category?” I asked, wanting to sidestep the feelings I was feeling for Dan. I didn’t do feelings like this. Especially for Dan, who was so uptight, he could probably iron clothes with his butt cheeks. He was a conquest, nothing else. Jesus Christ.
We got back to the game while munching on appetizers, trying to keep the conversation light. I’m not sure if Dan wasn’t interested in knowing anything about me or if he was too shy to ask, but he didn’t ask questions about me. Not even about what I did for a living. Regardless, I found that I was actually having fun with him. He was smart, which was not something I was used to. Normally, my hookups were dumb as rocks. It was easy to conquer the dumb ones, but with Dan being intelligent, I knew I wouldn’t be able to simply put my hand on his dick and lick my lips. Figuring out how to get around that hurdle would be just as fun as the rest of them, I think.
When the final round had played and we won the game, we high-fived and sat back in our seats, sipping our drinks.
“Now it’s your turn. Siblings? Parents? Secret society membership?” he finally asked.
I grinned. “Yeah, I have parents. They’re great, still married after thirty-six years and two or three affairs. I have an older brother— you may have seen him last night, with the leather vest? Tall, blond, man bun?— that happened from my mom’s first affair. And I have a younger sister who’s a nurse, and a younger brother, who’s in college for software development. We’re a close family, even my dad, and Salty. Hm. I never really thought about that before…my dad never treated Salty any differently than the rest of us.” I looked at Dan then and almost laughed at his expression. “What’s wrong?” I asked.
He shook his head and looked down at the table. “You speak about your parents’ affairs like they’re no big deal. Is…monogamy, not something that’s important to you?”
That drew me up short. I’d never had a relationship, so how could I really answer that? I mean…“Well, I suppose for them, it wasn’t a big deal because they knew they still loved one another best. Even if they had sex outside of their marriage, they always knew they’d come home to each other. As for me, well, I’ve never been in a relationship, so I can’t honestly answer that question.”
Dan’s head jerked up. “You’ve never had a boyfriend?”
I shook my head. “Normally, I’m not interested in someone beyond one night.” Wow, that made me sound awful. Also, made me kind of a liar since meeting him. “You’re actually the first man I’ve had to work for and the first man to make me think the work is worth it.” And that was the damn truth of the matter. The whole crux of my situation, right? Dan didn’t fit my normal, which made me want to pursue him. He was definitely the first to make me think that way.
“Are you serious?” I looked at Dan and realized he wasn’t being rude or accusing. It was genuine disbelief. “Me? You see me, right? My baggage not only has compartments but also its own separate cargo ship,” he said, then clapped his hands over his mouth like he couldn’t believe he’d said that.
“Dan…yes, I’m serious. And yes, I do see you, and I know you have issues. But,” I paused so I could say this carefully, “everyone has something about them that makes them unique, even hard to deal with sometimes. Shit, even my siblings find me hard to deal with sometimes. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I can be kind of an asshole. It’s what gives us personality. And maybe I’m crazy, but my personality thinks your personality is the bee’s knees.” God, I could be such a sap.
Dan chuckled, a slight blush across his cheeks. “Well…my personality is starting to think that your personality is the cat’s pajamas.”
So corny. So cute.
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Cover Reveal – Loving Callie by Julia Jarrett
Title: Loving Callie
Series: Lucky Strike Lovers #1
Author: Julia Jarrett
Genre: Contemporary Romance (meant to be lovers/first loves)
Release Date: May 21, 2020
Cover Design: J.M. Walker of Just Write Creations
On tap at the Lucky Strike Pub… One gorgeous doctor, and one hot bartender. Can they ignite a passion that will last?
First love is forever love for Doctor Callie Scott and pub owner Jake Evans. When fate gives them a second chance to get to know each other, the sparks fly, but Callie finds it hard to trust their chemistry. Jake won’t let her get away again, so when she comes into his bar again, he knows it’s meant to be. He just has to prove that to her.
But Callie’s parents have different plans for her love life, plans that suit their ambition and not her happiness. Jake will have to work hard to get her to see that he can be the family she has always longed for. Breaking free from family expectations will not be easy for Callie, and it will take a terrifying crisis to show her that the one thing more important than her parents approval, is the steadfast truth of Jake’s love.
Julia Jarrett is a busy mother of two boys, a happy wife to her real-life book boyfriend and the owner of a rescue dog. She has a passion for writing contemporary romance novels that are full of relatable heroines and the men who fall in love with them. If she isn’t writing or chasing kids, she’s most likely drinking tea, reading a book and dreaming of a sunny vacation.
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Cover Reveal – Love the Man, Love the Club by Penny Anglene & Vera Quinn
Title: Love the Man, Love the Club
Series: Haunted Hills MC Book One
Authors: Penny Anglene & Vera Quinn
Genre: MC Romance
Release Date: Coming Soon
Cover Design: Tracie Douglas @ Dark Water Cover
Cover Model: Joe Adams
Photographer: Furious Fotog
Additional Credit: Pathway Talent Services
My club and family—by blood and by love—have been my life. My biological family taught me loyalty and love. They instilled me with the morals and showed me the important values in life. Protecting women and children is my job as a man. My club affirmed that love, and loyalty is what a good relationship is founded on. Riding hard and having my brothers’ backs comes from loyalty and love.
My life has never been easy, but I know I would never walk away from my club or my family. We have storms brewing with another motorcycle club. We are waiting for the other boot to drop, and then I meet Emma. Emma’s everything I never knew I needed, but also everything I can’t see myself letting go. Emma is beautiful, sassy, and self-reliant—things I never found attractive in a woman. She has a problem with motorcycle clubs. I have to remind her—Love The Man, Love The Club.
Penny Anglene – I am married and have 2 kids, 2 grandkids and 2 dogs. I have been reading romance since I was twelve years old. My Mom and family are one of the reasons for me writing. I have always wanted to write and finally took the plunge. I hope you enjoy my books as much as I have loved writing them.
Vera Quinn – I have always been an avid reader that loves just about any kind of book. Love my family, my state, and my country.
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Cover Reveal – His Small-Town Girl by Lacy Williams
Title: His Small-Town Girl
Series: Sutter’s Hollow #1
Author: Lacy Williams
Genre: Sweet Romance
Release Date: May 12, 2020
Cover Design: Covers & Cupcakes
She’s sweet and wholesome. And hiding something.
He’s back home, resurrecting old ghosts.
One of them is going to get hurt.
Molly arrives in Sutter’s Hollow out of gas and out of options. The rundown ranch seems like a perfect place to hide. Except the man who owns it seems just as dangerous as what’s chasing her.
Cord’s mantra growing up? Get out of Sutter’s Hollow. Now he’s back in town, but only long enough to get rid of his grandma’s ball and chain—the ranch. He doesn’t need a complication like Molly, who reminds him of an injured baby bird. He’s no protector. So why can’t he tell her to get lost?
Lacy Williams wishes her writing career was more like what you see on Hallmark movies: dreamy brainstorming from a French chateau or a few minutes at the computer in a million-dollar New York City penthouse. In reality, she’s up before the sun, putting words on the page before her kids wake up for the day. Those early-morning and late-night writing sessions add up, and Lacy has published fifty books in almost a decade, first with a big five publisher and then as an indie author. When she needs to refill the well, you can find Lacy birdwatching, gardening, biking with the kiddos, or walking the dog. Find tons of bonus scenes and reader extras by becoming a VIP reader at www.lacywilliams.net/vip .
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Saturday Spotlight – On the Fly
Title: On the Fly
Series: Love in the Air Book #1
Authors: Kate Asher and Maizie Kaye
Release: February 11, 2020
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/50636214-on-the-fly
Cover Artist: Elizabeth Mackey
Blurb:
Her unlikely love affair might just be scarier than her fear of flying…
Emma Chadwick will never fly again…no matter who’s getting married or what work meeting she has to attend. That’s the plan. Right after she gets through one last anxiety-inducing flight. When she clutches her armrest on take-off, her nails don’t dig into leather. Nope. It’s a sexy muscular arm… attached to a complete jerk. Just her luck.
Ander Jorgenson is nobody’s hero. He’s made a career of dismantling companies, and he’s prepared to take apart the failing airline that his father built. If only the shackles of family obligation would let him. The last thing he needs interrupting his brooding is the tempting woman freaking out in the seat next to him. It’s just a plane, for heaven sake.
Finding true love on an airplane happens more often than people think, but that’s not the case with Ander and Emma. It’s what happens after they land that leads to sparks…
On the Fly features a confident CEO determined to avoid the shadow of his father’s legacy, a smart-as-a-whip heroine unwilling to put up with her boss’s antics, and enough chemistry to make you rush to book your next flight on this family-owned airline today!
Full-length stand-alone stand-in date romance novel.
Buy Links (Kindle Unlimited):
Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2UcKuVg
Amazon CA: https://amzn.to/2GF9MUa
Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/2RE4jmF
Amazon AU: https://amzn.to/2u3GPhR
Social Media Links:
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/MaizieKayeAndKateAsher/
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/kate-asher
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Saturday Spotlight – Run With It by ML Nystrom
Title: Run With It
Series: MacAteer Brothers #1
Author Name: ML Nystrom
Cover Designer: BookSmith Design
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release: February 1, 2020
Goodreads: http://bit.ly/319dm1X
Blurb:
The struggle is real. Beverly spends so much of her time juggling her four kids, a dead-beat ex, and two jobs that she never has time for herself or another man in her life.
Then Connor moves in next door.
Connor is healing from a hard break from his family and is working to find his own identity. He has no interest in joining another one.
Then he meets his neighbor.
Two people building new lives. Two people with no time or energy for love. Bev and Connor are determined to stick to their plans, but life has other ideas—now they just have to run with it.
“Run With It” is a Dragon Runners motorcycle romance spin-off, featuring Connor from “Stud.”
Buy Links:
AMAZON US: https://amzn.to/37F26gd
AMAZON UK: https://amzn.to/2GxoUCZ
AMAZON AU: https://amzn.to/318B66I
AMAZON CA: https://amzn.to/2REYS72
ITUNES: https://apple.co/2S1oYA5
KOBO: http://bit.ly/36KLAKI
UNIVERSAL: http://bit.ly/38Ozgu8
Author Bio:
ML Nystrom had stories in her head since she was a child. All sorts of stories of fantasy, romance, mystery and anything else that captured her interest. A voracious reader, she’s spent many hours devouring books; therefore, she found it only fitting she should write a few herself!
ML has spent most of my life as a performing musician and band instrument repair technician, but that doesn’t mean she’s pigeon-holed into one mold. She’s been a university professor, belly dancer, crafts-person, soap maker, singer, rock band artist, jewelry maker, lifeguard, swim coach, and whatever else she felt like exploring. As one of her students said to her once, “Life’s too short to ignore the opportunities.” She has no intention of ever stopping… so welcome to her story world. She hopes you enjoy it!
Social Media Links:
https://www.goodreads.com/uhavmel
https://twitter.com/ml_nystrom
https://www.facebook.com/authorMLNystrom/
Excerpt:
The man turned and looked at the wide front porch where my kids were holding the welcome wagon. Just my luck to have them squabbling loudly when our new neighbor was moving in. As we moved to the driveway, I noticed he was a large man, broad and solid. I wore “mom” jeans with elastic at the waist, sneakers and an over-sized hoodie with a picture of our school mascot peeling from age. My hair sat scraped back in its usual ponytail and any scrap of makeup I had on from earlier today had worn off hours ago.
Please don’t be handsome too, please don’t be handsome too, I prayed. It would be more of my luck to have a real hottie move in when I looked every bit of my age.
“I blocked you in, didn’t I?” His voice was deep and slightly accented. Ya ain’t from around here, are ya? floated through my mind in a deep Southern twang.
“Um… yeah. We were just leaving for the football game and you’re makin’ us late.” Mattie spoke up. Not a shy bone in that kid’s body.
“Mattie, don’t be rude.”
The man didn’t seem to mind my son’s bold statement. “Sorry about that lad. I didn’t realize you were leaving. Get on in your car there and I’ll move my truck for you. Yeah?”
As I got closer, his dark hair came into view and the lower half of his face sported a short beard of the same color. He wasn’t classically handsome, but he certainly wasn’t bad to look at either. His bright green eyes had small lines that radiated from them, making him around my age. He was definitely rugged and his tanned skin made me think he worked outdoors a lot.
“That’s very fair Mr.-?” I hedged.
“MacAteer. The name’s Connor MacAteer.
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