Sunday, December 30, 2012

#samplesunday Love on the Vine

This morning Catch Me A Catch is #5 in the free kindle list in the .com kindle store, and is still free, so please if you'd like a free read, do pick it up! .com http://amzn.to/PegguS .co.uk http://amzn.to/UbGFbI

And for #samplesunday here's some skinnydipping from the beginning of Love On the Vine...
 
Chapter One
 
A naked woman swam in his lake.
She  floated on  her  back, offering her  lissome body to the sky, silver shards of light reflecting from her pale skin. Long blonde hair drifted like an exotic water plant around her head.
Etienne Durand stilled at the lakeside, leaned against one of the huge redwoods circling the hidden paradise, and watched. He should be angry to find a strange woman taking advantage. The lake hidden in the forest was his property, after all. Prominent notices posted everywhere proclaimed the lands as private. But somehow the sight of the woman luxuriating in the clear water soothed his rotten mood rather than exacerbated it. He breathed in the scent of damp woodland and let his mind wander free.
In this hidden idyll, she looked like a nymph, a truly beautiful creature at one with the magical surroundings.
Dry  leaves crackled underfoot as  Etienne pushed  away  from  the  tree.  A  creature  who’d invaded his land. Without permission.
Whatever her motives, she must have climbed the fence into the forest from the vineyard.
His  shoulders  tensed  as  he  stepped  forward. “Get out of the water,” he called.
In an instant, the nymph jackknifed. Her arms flailed as she swallowed a deep mouthful of lake water. She came to the surface spluttering. I…”
“Get out. Etienne pointed to the lake shore. “You’re trespassing.”
“I’m not,” the female shouted back. And there’s no way I’m getting out, not while you’re watching.”
Etienne pulled in a deep breath. “You are trespassing. And I’m serious. Either get out of the water or I’ll come in and drag you out.”
The blonde blushed beet-red. “I can’t. I’m not…I’m not wearing anything.”
Holding back his amusement, Etienne crossed both arms across his chest. “I know.”
She trod water, watching.
“Well, which is it?” He undid the top button of his shirt.
Her eyes widened.
“Are you coming out on your own, or…” Etienne smothered a grin at her horrified expression. He slowly undid another.
“All right.” She swam closer. “My clothes are over there.” A wet hand, index finger extended, pointed to the lake shore.
Glancing to his left, he spotted a small bundle of discarded clothing.
“You need to turn around.”
Etienne crossed his arms and glared. “I don’t need to do any such thing.” No one dictated to him. As new owner of the St. Clair Durand Vineyard on the outskirts of the Californian town of Almendra, he was the master of all he surveyed.
She smoothed back her hair with a wet hand. “Please.”
The word hung in the air between them.
Some women would play the situation for all it was worth—walking out of the lake naked, with swaying hips and a knowing look in their eyes. He’d met plenty of those. Or pretend modesty in an attempt to manipulate. Bitter experience had educated Etienne in the wiles of women.
“I can’t get out until you turn around.” The flush crept down her neck. She rolled in her bottom lip and worried it with her teeth.
Etienne shoved a hand through his hair. The flush couldn’t be faked. Maybe the innocent act was real. If so…
He paused for a long moment, then, with a curt nod, turned his back.
A rustling noise behind him indicated she had picked up her clothes. Etienne hadn’t noticed a towel in the little bundle, which meant she’d have to climb into her clothes with her skin still wet from the cool water.  Passion  stirred  at  the  thought  of  her  wet body, and he silently cursed the inappropriate response.
“I’m dressed,” she said in a voice no louder than a whisper.
He swung back to catch his first close-up look of the stranger standing an arm’s length away. She was tall for a woman, the top of her head just about level with his nose. Long wet strands of dark blonde hair hung to just below her breasts, and her eyes were clear vibrant green, like new grass after rain. Like the shoulders he’d glimpsed, her face was pale, with a light dusting of freckles across the bridge of her nose. Whatever makeup she might have been wearing had long washed away, and yet she still looked…   Etienne   blinked.   She   was   the   most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. And he’d seen plenty.
His gaze swept her head to toe. High small breasts,  slender  hips,  and  legs  which  went  on forever. Soft lakeshore sand stuck to her toes, and cherry red polish painted her toenails.
Mon Dieu, what was he doing, gazing at her toenails? Etienne cleared his throat. His gaze flicked to her face. “So, who the hell are you?”
Love on the Vine buy links US http://amzn.to/RogWOD UK http://amzn.to/10zKU60

Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Merry Christmas. everyone.

I wish everyone a happy, healthy and relaxing Christmas...
and a Happy New Year.

Friday, December 14, 2012

Fantastic new book of short stories by Suzanne Ross Jones!!

I'm delighted to tell you all about a brand new release on Amazon this week - my friend and fellow minx, Suzanne Ross Jones (who also writes under Suzanna Ross) has a collection of her short stories, previously published in People's Friend, out, called The Baby of the Family and Other Stories.

I've been priviliged over the past few years to read much of Suz's work - she's a very talented (and very modest) author and her stories are real, often with a dash of her trademark humour, and really tug at the heartstrings. Her novel Trust in Me written as Suzanna Ross has also just been released, and she also has a fantastic story in the new minx anthology, Blaze just out.

Here's a little about The Baby of the Family and Other Stories:

 
The Baby of the Family and Other Stories is a collection of twelve short stories previously published in the UK by the very popular British magazine, The People's Friend.
The Baby of the Family: Teenage Emma is determined to be taken seriously as an adult - despite her family's attempts to baby her.
The Accidental Smile: When a woman whose natural resting expression is a smile meets a man with the grumpiest face in history, nobody expects romance to be the result.
Football Crazy: Young Polly's love of football is at odds with her ability to kick a ball. Mum, Faith, is determined to find out why.
The Cantankerous Mr Christie: Nurse Sandra meets a variety of patients on her rounds, but Mr Christie has to be the grumpiest.
Loving Mark: When Heather marries a man with a teenage daughter, an awkward moment or two was expected, but she hadn't thought the difficulties would be caused by his mother.
A Taste of Home: When they have to relocate, Alexander is worried Flora isn't happy in their new home.
Domesticating Edward: 50-year-old Edward has resisted domesticity all his life - until he meets Mary.
Snowbound: Unable to get home for Christmas, Sylvie has to make other plans.
Arachnophobia: Penny moves into her dream home and is horrified to find she's not alone - an invasion of eight-legged guests are determined to keep her company.
Cake Worth Coming Home For: Her mother's chocolate cake is definitely that, but Sarah finds it's not the only attraction when she moves home to the village where she grew up.
A Blossoming Friendship: Widowed Rachel misses her husband and the neighbours who have moved away. Can she overcome her worries and make new friends?
Building Dreams: Annie's married to a builder, so surely she won't have to wait long for a new house on the plot of land her father gave them as a wedding present?
 
 
Here are some links: The Baby of the Family and Other Stories on Amazon UK/US
Trust in Me ( a novel) on Amazon UK/US
Blaze Amazon UK/US
 
Congratulations again, Suzanne!
 

Saturday, December 1, 2012

Love-Triangles - I love 'em!

So far, I've written mostly Romance novels which are pretty traditional. Boy - girl - struggle - love.
But what I love to watch on tv and in film are love-triangles. I have a triangle with a twist in my Christmas Read, Angel All Year, which has my angel Angela torn between two men, one alive and one with her as an angel.

Here are some of my favorite love-triangles....

Haven - Will Audrey go for Nathan or Duke?
Grey's Anatomy - well there are loads of complications in Grey's, but the Mark/Lexie/Jackson combo was great - until recently, obviously! and when they added in a serious girlfriend for Mark, that made it even more watchable!
The Vampire Diaries - I'm getting slowly sucked into VD, and am starting from Season One over Christmas to find out what I've missed-jumping in mid-stream. The Elena/Damon/Stefan triangle is just delicious!
Revenge - The question Will Emily choose Daniel or Jack kept me glued to the screen.
The Good Wife - Alicia's torment choosing whether to stay with her cheating husband, Peter, or to embrace a new, enduring romance with Will...
True Blood - Sookie - Bill - Eric...Heck, she should just go Alcide!
Twilight - Bella-Jake-Edward? Did she make the right choice?

I could go on and on. Because everything I watch seems to have compelling triangles in it.

I guess the love-triangle addresses a fundamental issue. Does the heroine want the steady, good-for-her man who's in the wings, or will she choose the wilder love interest, that she just can't resist? What makes it even more interesting is when she starts with one, moves on to the other, and then the first love moves on, and she wants him back! Or the scenario when she catches the wild one, he becomes devoted, and in true human-nature fashion, the other lover (who doesn't need/want her any more) becomes the human equivalent of catnip!

I love love-triangles. I think I'd like to write some. But the only way to write love-triangles is to give enough space to show all the relationships, and conflicts, so instead of a stand-alone book, I reckon a series would be the way to go, to show all the different permutations and love affairs that make up a complex life with love lost, love found, love rediscovered.

Surprises are the icing on the cake, the cherry on the top, the element that makes ordinary extraordinary.

Now, tell me what love-triangles you've loved that I've missed?

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Christmas Reads with added firemen!

More updates for my Christmas Reads page.
Sally Clements, Suzanna Ross, Rae Summers, Rachel Lyndhurst, Maya Blake, Talli Roland, Diane Alberts, Stacey Joy Netzel, Jennifer Probst and Kitty French all have books on the Christmas Reads page - and now I'm pleased to announce they've been joined by a whole station house of firefighters!

Blaze by the Minxes of Romance is available now-
Pop on over, and have a look!

Friday, November 16, 2012

Psst!

My newest release, Angel All Year,(Amazon com and co.uk)  is having its first ever free run NOW!
(Monday 19th) and tomorrow (Tuesday 20th) November.

Do pop over to Amazon and grab it!

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Two new Minx releases this week!

The Minxes of Romance are having a productive year, and this week (by Tuesday!) two minxes had new releases on Amazon! Congratulations to Suz, writing as Suzanna Ross, and Romy, writing as Rae Summers. Here's a bit about their new releases, do pop over to Amazon and grab them, they are both great reads!

Suz's book is:

Trust in Me by Suzanna Ross.

 
When faced with the prospect of being thrown out her home by a handsome stranger, Rosie Farnham's solution is to refuse to budge. Never mind that multi-millionaire Theo has every right to demand vacant possession - or that he's as gorgeous as sin - she will not leave her home just because he's brandishing ownership papers.

As Rosie refused to move out of the Manor, Theo decides he'll move in. This is no great hardship - even though she's prickly as a hedgehog, there's something about Rosie he finds intriguing.

Can the undeniable attraction between them bring their lives into a new stage?
 
Trust in Me is available from Amazon and Amazon UK.
 
Suz's blog is http://suzanne-sj.blogspot.com/ - pop on over for more news, and a giveaway!
 
Romy's book is:
 
 

Isobel Harrington, fresh from her English finishing school in the summer of 1922, is sent to visit cousins in Italy for just one reason: to catch the eye of their wealthy and eligible house guest.

But the man who awakens Isobel's passion is not the respectable British heir to a nobleman -- it is local Italian Stefano, an enigma who doesn't fit any of the "boxes" she's been taught to expect.

In Stefano's arms she experiences a sexual awakening. He dares her to follow her dreams, but is she brave enough to defy convention, and her parents' expectations, to pursue her own happiness?
 
An Innocent Abroad is available from Amazon and Amazon UK
 
and Romy's blog is http://www.romysommer.com/

Pop on over to both Romy and Rae's blog to read more about An Innocent Abroad!

Congratulations Romy and Suz!

There are more new releases from the Minxes of Romance coming up in December and I'll report when I have 'em! I'm very proud to be a Minx. It's great to see my friends and critique partners, the Minxes, doing so well. For more minx news, and regular picture postings of hot heros, check out our Minxes of Romance Blog too!

Friday, November 9, 2012

The Next Big Thing - Blog stop...

Good morning everyone, I've been tagged by Rachel Lyndhurst to continue The Next Big Thing Blog Tour - thank you, Rachel! I have a couple of great authors to follow and find out about at the end of my post - do continue on and check them out!

The idea of the blog stop is that we talk about our current or next release

What is the title of your latest book?
My latest book is called Angel All Year. Here's a little about it:
Being dead sucks.
Angela Reilly doesn’t like being an Angel. She’d much prefer to be the bride she was on the day she died. Instead of the life she’d dreamed of, she gets to watch her heartbroken husband fall to pieces in the year after her death, without a hope of offering comfort.
Lucen Bright is new angel Angela’s mentor, a job he’s finding increasingly difficult as he falls in love with his ward. Tasked with helping Angela move on in the afterlife, he must be there for her as her husband falls in love with someone new – not an easy task considering he tried to kill the man who replaced him in his own wife’s affections.
Romance’s flame flickers as Lucen and Angela grow closer. But when her husband Tom dies, will Angela re-unite with the love of her life – or pledge herself to the love of her afterlife?

Where did the idea come from for the book?
 I thought to myself that whereas we all know the effect that losing someone dear to us has on the living, it might be equally traumatic and difficult for the person who has died to make the transition...

What genre does your book fall under?
It's set in the present day - but she's an angel - as is her sexy angel mentor, so I guess it's contemporary romance with paranormal elements!

What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?
Angela would be played by Amy Adams, Her husband Tom would be played by James Marsden, and the gorgeous, long suffering hero, Lucen - well, Hugh Jackman (and the link features a wet and wonderful Hugh) would do a great job!

What is the one sentence synopsis of your book?
Death separates Angela from the one man she's ever loved, but new love beckons in the form of angel Lucen, her angel mentor.

Is your book self-published or represented by an agency?
This one is self-published.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?
It took me four or five weeks to write the first draft.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
Angel All Year is a warm contemporary, with a lot of banter between Angela and Lucen. I don't normally write paranormal, so have no idea what it compares to within that genre, but of my other books, I think Angel All Year compares most closely to The Morning After in 'mood.'

Who or what inspired you to write this book?
The idea - what if the one you loved died young - and you met someone new, married them, and spent a lifetime with them. When it comes time to re-unite in death, do you re-unite with your first love, or your later one?

What else about your book might pique the reader's interest?
Angel All Year is a quick read of 12,000 words. Although it sounds like a heavy topic, it really isn't. Of all my books, it is the one that everyone seems to love. Lucen is a black winged, torso baring angel...He's been generating some fan mail all of his own!

I've some news about a release next year, I'm dying to share but am waiting until I have completed the contract signing before sharing, and am working on Embers in the Sand, which is a companion story to The Morning After, featuring Cara's brother, Ryan.

To see what some of my other writer friends are doing, I'm tagging...
Maya Blake and Kitty French.

Check them out this day next week!

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

National Novel Writing Month - A decade on

I've taken the plunge just now, and at the last moment have signed up for National Novel Writing Month - aka Nanowrimo. For those who haven't heard of this, it's an online month of encouragement to keep bums on seats and fingers on keyboards, but giving you a goal to write to in order to finish a book in 30 days. For me, that will be a first draft, and I'll be working on finessing and polishing that draft for a month or so after.

30 days - 50,000 words.

I remember the first time I did Nanowrimo - back in 2002, 10 years ago now. I really doubted that I'd be able to write volume, the thought of writing that amount ever was so daunting I needed a challenge and Nano gave me one. I was a writer who wrote for one month a year. Now I'm a writer who writes all the time.

The support from the forums, the little rising word count meter, and the deadline helped me achieve my goal of writing a full book in 30 days. And when, back in 2002, the deadline rolled to a close and I had completed my target, I'll never forget the feeling of achievement it gave me. Yes, the book wasn't great, but it was the first time I'd written more than a couple of thousand words of anything. I could do it!

I nano under an assumed name. I don't join in with all the fun things that go along with nano, for me it's all about self motivation and I'm a lurker. This year, nanowrimo is just one thing that I'm doing, and after a couple of years away, I'm glad to be back!

Sunday, October 28, 2012

A thank you to those who take the time to leave a review

The absolutely best thing about being a writer, in my opinion, is getting feedback from readers - those people who grab a book when it's on free, or buy it. I write books because I sort of am compelled to. But of course, I really hope that my readers like them, and every so often I have a look on Amazon and see how the reviews are. I've now reached a total of 99 reviews for my various books on Amazon (one more to go to 100! woo!) and I'd like to thank everyone who leaves me one. It means a lot to me to know that people enjoy (or occasionally, don't enjoy) them!

So a heartfelt thank you from me to those who have given me a review.

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Self publishing sales in 2012 - milestone!

 
There are many authors out there who are selling by the shedload, and I'm small beans by comparison, but I'm celebrating today, because I've just exceeded my own milestone in self-publishing for the year, and I'm happy!
 
Since the beginning of January 2012, I've sold just over 13,000 books.
 
I'm hoping for a few more sales before the year is out, but delighted to have got this far. And to celebrate, I'm including a picture of lovely Colin, my hero inspiration for Ethan Quinn in The Morning After. Woo!

Thursday, October 18, 2012

Ooh! A visit from a hot Spanish Billionaire!

I'm very excited to introduce my friend Rachel Lyndhurst's most recent release for Entangled Publishing's Indulgence series: The Spanish Billionaire's Hired Bride. If you've read Rachel before, you'll know that she writes hot, alpha heros, and Ricardo is another one to add to her stable. Tomorrow, Rachel will be gifting an ebook copy to one lucky reader, so pop along to her blog, read all about it, and leave a comment!

Here's the blurb:

He bought her with cold, hard cash, but can she stop him from stealing her heart?
Blackmailed to marry against his will, Ricardo Almanza needs a wife before he’s thirty, and time is running out. A notorious playboy, marriage is the last thing he wants, but his stepmother’s sexy, debt-ridden personal assistant is the perfect solution. He makes her a business deal she can’t refuse—one million euros for three months as his wife. He might even enjoy being married to her … if she doesn’t kick the crap out of him again.
Helen Marshall can’t believe she’s considering Almanza’s outrageous proposal, but she must help clear her parents’ debts or they face financial ruin. The small print on the marriage contract changes to read three months as his wife in every way—including in the bedroom. Has she gotten in too deep, or will she need a new contract addendum, extending their marriage forever?

The Spanish Billionaire's Hired Bride is available now from Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk and Barnes and Noble.
And you can find out more about Rachel and her books at her blog, facebook, goodreads and she's @RachelLyndhurst on twitter.

Congratulations, Rachel!

Friday, October 5, 2012

Free read, anyone?


Catch Me A Catch is free from 5-7 October (e.g. NOW!).

 This story is about a chocolatier turned reluctant matchmaker, and the yummy man who sails into her town in the west of Ireland, and is mistaken for a love hungry batchelor....

In the words of my latest review 4 days ago on Amazon.com.... (thank you, Kerrin)

Oh, i love this story by Sally Clements. A touch of chocolate makes this story between the hero and heroine pure decadence. I love a good story where it seems impossible for the main characters to get together. Sally writes such a deep romance. Please read it!

I usually get 20,000 freeloads every time this book goes on a two day giveaway, and this time I have a three day giveaway, and would love to top that total, so please if you would like a free read, download it! Here are the links on .com and .co.uk. Hope you all love it too!

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Just out - my new Book - Angel All Year

My latest story, Angel All Year,  is a shorter than normal one for me, it's 12,000 words, so longer than a short story, and shorter than a novella... It is new on Amazon today and available now.

Here's the blurb and my lovely new cover... the cover was designed by Angie-O Creations.



Being dead sucks.
Angela Reilly doesn’t like being an Angel. She’d much prefer to be the bride she was on the day she died. Instead of the life she’d dreamed of, she gets to watch her heartbroken husband fall to pieces in the year after her death, without a hope of offering comfort.

Lucen Bright is new angel Angela’s mentor, a job he’s finding increasingly difficult as he falls in love with his ward. Tasked with helping Angela move on in the afterlife, he must be there for her as her husband falls in love with someone new – not an easy task considering he tried to kill the man who replaced him in his own wife’s affections.

Romance’s flame flickers as Lucen and Angela grow closer. But when her husband Tom dies, will Angela re-unite with the love of her life – or pledge herself to the love of her afterlife?

Available at Amazon UK and .Com  now!


  

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Revamping New Beginnings

New Look! Woo!
My very first 'go' at self publishing was a collection of short stories called New Beginnings, which has been on Amazon since February 2011, and over the past few days, I've had a new cover done for the ebook, and I've gone out of KDP Select with this title, so that I can make it ...
Permanently Free
 
It may take a day or so for the new cover to replace the previous - uh - snowdrop cover, but this is what will be there when it updates.
Over the next week or two, New Beginnings will start populating through the ebook retailers with a free price tag, and eventually Amazon will also make it free.
 
I'm delighted to do a reveal here - I've got my very own Jimmy Thomas cover, and I couldn't be happier with it!
 
I normally commission custom artwork, but broke with my usual cover tradition this time the moment that I saw this pre-made cover on Ramona Lockwood's site:
 
As New Beginnings is a collection of three very different short stories, I couldn't choose a specific look for the cover, but I think the couple and the pose, echoed by the pleasing use of curves in the typeface do exactly what I wanted them to.
 
I think Ramona did a great job, do click on the link to her website above and have a look at her other work!
 
New Beginnings will be available free on Amazon and everywhere else in a couple of weeks. But if you absolutely can't wait and must have it now - it'll cost 99c!

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Congratulations to Sri!

Many congratulations to fellow Minx of Romance, Sri Pammi, who got 'The Call' from Mills and Boon/Harlequin yesterday, has sold her book - book one of a two book contract!



2012 is turning out to be a pretty good year for the Minxes - now pop over to Sri's blog (if you haven't been there already) and read her call story...

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Am writing

I wish I could write like this man - the perfect, lyrical, romantic writing of Leonard Cohen...

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Revenge




One of my favourite TV shows at the moment is Revenge. I'm in Ireland, so I still have 4 more episodes to go before the end of the first season (don't tell me any spoilers!) but so far, I'm completely addicted to this tale of money, priviledge and (of course), revenge.

This is a series that is filled with people who are beautiful on the inside, and no so beautiful inside, and I've been trying to analyse why exactly I find it so compelling.

The plot is straightforward. Amanda Clarke played by the excellent Emily Van Camp, assumes a false identity and infiltrates the monied world of the Grayson family, who are ensconced in their Hamptons' getaway. The locations are pure eye-candy, beautiful houses and beaches, fabulous boats and a bar I'd like to hang out in. Emily has one overriding goal, to bring down all of the people involved in setting up her late father for a crime he didn't commit. Along the way, she seduces yummy Daniel Grayson, and reconnects with her childhood friend (who of course, doesn't know she's Amanda) Jack Porter.

The interpersonal relationships are complex. The characters for the most part are damaged, many of them are totally ruthless in hiding the truth and playing dangerous games. It's really, really, watchable. Addictive even. Each episode adds another piece of the puzzle, throws up a new twist to consider. The main character, Amanda, is constantly faced with inner conflicts, will she continue down the path she's chosen, even if it means she will suffer emotional pain as a result? Every time I think she's going to back down, something comes along to strengthen her resolve, makes sure she keeps on her revengeful path.

Can't wait for next week. Is anyone out there suffering from revengeitis?

Sunday, August 5, 2012

Something for Sunday

I have updated my page above for Sample Sunday - now showing the first chapter of Love On the Vine, my newest book.
Do click on the #samplesunday page tag above to have a read or click here.

Monday, July 30, 2012

See out July with a smile - Freebie alert!

Today - 1st August The Morning After is free on Kindle.  While the sun is fleetingly out, why not lie out in the garden with a glass of pimms and have a read?

You can pick it up if you are in the UK here http://amzn.to/MO86br

Or if using .com, the link is http://amzn.to/x34IOZ

Enjoy!