Happy Canada Day!

HAPPY CANADA DAY TO ALL MY CANADIAN FRIENDS! HOPE YOU ALL HAVE A SAFE AND HAPPY HOLIDAY WEEKEND!

Book of the Week--Colters' Lady by Maya Banks

This weeks book is Colters' Lady. Now, I've read this one before, but every now and then I like to revisit a book I particularly enjoyed. If you enjoy a tender, heart-wrenching love story with some really steamy love scenes, then you should check out this book. Heck, do yourself a favor and check out the entire series!

BLURB:

Colters’ Legacy, Book 2

When police officer Seth Colter sees the delicate, shabbily dressed beauty in line at the soup kitchen where he’s serving, he’s gut shot over the idea of her being on the streets cold and alone. More baffling is the dark, possessive instinct that tells him she belongs to him.

For Lily Weston, home is a secluded nook in a back alley—until Seth offers her a place to stay. She’s wary of his offer, but even one night out of the cold is too much temptation to resist.

Seth is convinced Lily is his. The problem is, when his brothers lay eyes on her, the same primitive instinct comes roaring to the surface. The Colters never imagined they’d follow the unconventional path of their fathers, but they can’t ignore their mutual need to offer Lily their protection—and their love. But before Lily and the brothers can forge a future together, they must heal the deep wounds of her past.

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Product Warnings This title contains the following: explicit sex, graphic language, multiple partners, ménage a quatre, violence.

Spotlight Author at Reader's Edyn

I'm thrilled to be the Spotlight Author over at Reader's Edyn today. Stop by and check out my books and the excerpt.

Seductive Musings Interview and Giveaway

Want a chance to win a download copy of one of the books in my Legacy series?

Drop by Seductive Musings and check out my interview. Be sure to enter their contest for a chance to win.

Under the Covers Book Blog Interview

Want a chance to win a download from my Samhain backlist?

Check out my interview over at Under the Covers Book Blog. While you're there, be sure to fill out the form for your chance to win!

Foggy Sunday

 This morning was both sunny and foggy when hubby and I were out driving around. Look at the fog rolling in. It was actually lovely where we were standing, but about fifty feet away it was like stepping into a cloud.

 There is ocean out there. Really there is!

I looked for the Atlantic ocean, but I couldn't see it. The fog was like a curtain, blocking all ocean and land for as far as I could see in an easterly direction.

Over at Self Publish or Die!

Be sure to stop by the Self Publish or Die Blog and check out my interview!

Book of the Week--Wicked Beast by Gail Faulkner

Somehow along the way, I'd missed reading Wicked Beast by Gail Faulkner, which is strange because I'd wanted to read it ever since I first read an excerpt. (That's what a great excerpt can do!) This week, I remedied the situation and downloaded the book onto my Sony Reader.

The book delivered on the excerpt's promise! If you love dragons, hot sex and a loving family, then you'll enjoy this book. I hope Ms. Faulkner lets us know what happens to the other dragons... 

BLURB:

Cord had waited a damn long time for the end of the world. He’d starved for most of those eons and was frankly pissed it had taken so long to get here. Relief at last, time to go kill. An animal designed to destroy, Cord wasn’t prepared for the astonishing instincts that overpowered everything he had thought he was. What he wanted more than life, more than the freedom of death was something he couldn’t gather, command or capture—Kelly.

There wasn’t anything Kelly wouldn’t do to protect her precious, gifted daughter. No act too humiliating, no job too difficult. Being the one thing the air dragon could not live without wasn’t exactly hard labor, and the humiliation part so shockingly sensual it changed who she was. The problem she was having were the new items on her “to do” list—

Dispense evil wizards
Dispose of vicious dragon army
Save world
Right.

READ AN EXCERPT

Touch of Topaz NOW Available!

Touch of Topaz is available today from Ellora's Cave. This is a stand alone book, but if you've been reading the Awakening Desires series, you will recognize the female lead--Topaz Jewel--from the book Jackson's Jewel.

BLURB:

Security expert and ex-Army Ranger John Knight broke the cardinal rule of being a bodyguard—don’t get involved with the client. One torrid afternoon of hot sex with Topaz Jewel was all they had together before his job was done, and she’s been avoiding him ever since. He’s been hired to protect her once again, and this time, when the job is over, he’s won’t let her slip away.

Topaz is an independent businesswoman with no time in her life for a permanent relationship, especially not one with a man like John, who’s used to adrenaline rushes and danger. There’s no denying their sexual attraction, but she’s determined to play things smart.

John doesn’t take her home when the job is finished, but to an isolated cabin. It isn’t every day that a bodyguard kidnaps his client, but he knows they’re meant to be together—and he’ll use their sizzling passion to prove it.

Summer Solstice

Welcome to the Summer Solstice!

Today is the longest day of the year and the "official" start of summer. Be sure to get out and enjoy yourself today.

Touch of Topaz Cover!

Check out the cover for my book releasing tomorrow!

Tuesday Teaser: Embracing Silence

This week's Tuesday Teaser is from Embracing Silence, book 1 of the Project Alpha series. It's a futuristic/erotic romance that was nominated for a Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice Award.

TUESDAY TEASER:

His voice was closer now, coming from the deep shadows behind her. The last restraint fell away and she lurched from the chair. She whirled around to face where she thought he was. She couldn’t see a thing.

“Stay away from me. I’ll kill you if I have too.”

No reply. But she knew he was there in the dark watching. Tucking her short blade in her jacket pocket, she grabbed up her larger one. She wished she had a gun but they were in short supply and given to the men and women who went out daily on patrol in the outer city. Somehow she felt all the weapons in the world wouldn’t do her any good against this man.

“Who are you?” she demanded. Her voice was little more than a croak. Her throat was slightly swollen bruised and fear made it close even more.

“Who are you?” he countered. She circled slowly. He sounded as though he was on the other side of the room. She damned the shadows that made it impossible for her to track him. There should be some indication of his movement—a stray sound, a breath, a wavering of the air. But there was nothing.

The man was a phantom.

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to all the wonderful fathers out there who do their best for their children every day!

My father passed away almost 30 years ago, two weeks after my 18th birthday. I still miss him. This graphic reminded me of him as he was a snappy dresser, almost always in a shirt and tie. :)

The family will get together tomorrow to celebrate at my brother's place. Today is my brother's birthday, but he was actually born on Father's Day back in the seventies. My father always said he was the best Father's Day gift he ever got. :)

Have a fabulous Father's Day!

Book of the Week--Ral's Woman

I love Laurann Dohner's books, especially her New Species and her Cyborg series. But she also has another Futuristic/SciFi series--Zorn Warriors. Now, I've read Kidnapping Casey, Tempting Rever and Berrr's Vow. But for some reason, I'd somehow missed Ral's Woman, the first book in the Zorn Warriors series.

Well, right now it's being offered for FREE at Ellora's Cave. That's right, free! Don't know how long this offer will last, so you should download it and try it out. As good as the Zorn Warriors are, I love her Cyborgs and New Species series even more. You can't go wrong with a Laurann Dohner book.

BLURB:

Book one in the Zorn Warriors series.

Ariel never knew aliens existed until she finds herself kidnapped and taken from Earth. When the Anzon declare humans useless, she learns her fate—prize for the winner of a brutal fight between large, muscled alien men.

Ral is a Zorn warrior. He has also been kidnapped by the Anzon, along with his crew. Forced into slavery, he’s got one thing on his mind—freeing his people. That is, until he sees the small human woman he’s willing to fight to win. He doesn’t just want her body, he wants her heart forever.

In the hands of a hot alien, Ariel is about to discover how pleasurable captivity can be.

Tuesday Teaser: Past Promises

This week's Tuesday Teaser is from Past Promises , available in E-book and in the print anthology (Jamesville Affairs). It's is part of the Jamesville series, but is a stand-alone book.

TUESDAY TEASER

“Are you okay?” A low, male voice startled her out of her daydreams of the past. Linda whirled around, hand on her chest, heart pounding.

He stood just behind her. Watching. Waiting.

She had no idea how long he’d been there. It should have been impossible for a man his size to sneak up on her. At six-and-a-half feet tall, Levi Mann took up a lot of space. His body was massive, but it was all solid muscle. There wasn’t an ounce of fat on the man. He was wearing his usual uniform of jeans and a T-shirt. The faded denim clung to his thick thighs like a second skin. The soft cotton of the shirt molded to his biceps and chest, leaving little to the imagination.

And she had imagined him. A lot.

The Voices in My Head...Part 2

So, the plan this week was to get back to work on my WIP. I put in a full morning and things were going well. I got through about half of the manuscript, making changes as I went. I'd planned to finish going through what I already had written this afternoon and be ready to start writing fresh tomorrow morning.

The best laid plans...

Just after lunch, I recieved the second round of edits for Damek's Redemption. I'm about halfway through the manuscript again and hope to finish tonight. So tomorrow I'd get back at my WIP. Right?

Not so fast.

Just before supper, I received galley proofs for Finding Chrissten (which will be releasing in print next April). Since this is time-sensitive, I will do these first. Hopefully, I'll be able to do them in two days. Which means by Thursday I'll be back at my WIP. Right?

Nope.

Thursday morning, we have to head out of town. Hubby has a speaking engagement to promote his own work. It's in his hometown and since we haven't been there in more than a decade we decided to go. We'll be back home on Friday since he has other professional obligations.

So I'll be back at my WIP by Friday. Right?

Probably not. By the time we get home, I'll probably be exhausted from the drive. I do my best work early in the morning. I don't mind doing edits in the afternoon, but fresh writing is much harder for me then. Who knows, maybe I'll get inspired. Maybe I'll curl up with a book. Maybe I'll take a nap.

Saturday, right?

Probably not. It's the one day of the week I try to take off. Hubby and I go out for breakfast and run errands. I figure if I'm in this job for the long haul, which I most definitely am, I need to treat it like a regular job, and that includes some time off every week. It's too easy to get burned out or work all the time.

Sunday? Sunday is a family thing, combining my brother's birthday with father's day.

Monday? Absolutely! I'll be back, hard at work on my WIP by Monday morning, and hope to finish the rough draft by Friday.

Lest any of you think I'm complaining, I'm most definitely NOT. I love being this busy. It means I am a working writer.

And this is the best job in the world!

The voices in my head...

Welcome to friday! Edits for Damek's Redemption are done and sent back to my editor. I added quite a bit of new material to the book. Now I wait and see if she likes it.

The voices of the characters in my latest WIP have been silenced by edits for two different books over the past ten days. Time to reread what I've already written so I can get their story back into my head.

The book I'm currently writing is for Ellora's Cave. My upcoming EC release is Touch of Topaz, which is due out on June 20th. I can't wait! My latest work is about the remaining Jewel sister--Sapphire--and her former bodyguard, Jake Knight. All is not smooth on the path to love, but I'm having a heck of a lot of fun getting them there.

Hope you all have a fabulous Friday!

Touch of Topaz Coming June 20th!

Just found out that my next Ellora's Cave book--Touch of Topaz--will be released on June 20th!

BLURB:

Last summer, security expert and ex-Army Ranger John Knight broke the cardinal rule of being a bodyguard—don’t get involved with the client. One torrid afternoon of hot sex with Topaz Jewel was all they had together before his job was done, and she’s been avoiding him ever since. He’s been hired to protect her once again, and this time when the job is over, he’s not going to let her slip away.

Topaz Jewel is an independent businesswoman who has no time in her life for a permanent relationship, especially not one with a man like John—used to adrenaline rushes and danger. There is no denying the sexual attraction between them, but she’s determined to play things smart.

John doesn’t take her home when his job is finished, but to an isolated cabin. He wants time to prove they’re meant to be together, and Topaz is unable to resist the passion that sizzles between them. After all, it isn’t every day that a bodyguard kidnaps his client.

READ AN EXCERPT

Will Summer Ever Come?

I've mentioned it's been cold her the past week. It's dipped to below freezing with the windchill. Working on edits this morning, I was forced to break out the fingerless gloves to help keep my hands warm. Yes, you heard me right--fingerless gloves. Silly me, I had them put away for the summer, but winter seems to have swung back around.

Hopefully, I'll be able to put them away again soon. Hope it's a lot warmer wherever you are. :)

In the Edits Cave

Good morning and welcome to Monday! I'm in the edits cave today and probably for the next few days working on the first round of edits for Damek's Redemption. I'll be making the changes my editor wants and generally making the book better. See you when I'm done. :)

Have an excellent Monday!

Weekend at the Movies

Friday afternoon was the perfect time for hubby and I to take in a movie. And this week's choice was obvious--Snow White and the Huntsman. Now I've heard a lot of reviewers say that this is not the normal fairytale. I want to know what fairytales they've been reading. Haven't they heard of the Brothers Grimm? Fairytales were originally very dark and very scary and this one lives up to the hype.

Charlize Theron is nothing short of brilliant as the evil queen, commanding the screen when she is on it. Chris Hemsworth gives a very realistic and believable performance as the huntman. He's certainly not the stereotypical hero and, because of that, I liked him more. Kristen Stewart put in a solid performance as SnowWhite. This is no a damsel in distress willing to wait around while someone else takes care of the evil queen. She wants to do it herself.

Visually this movie is stunning! There are so many scenes that stayed with me. The acting is first-rate and the ending leaves open the possibility of another movie. All in all, in my humble opinion, well worth the price of admission. This is a movie that satisfies.

June Newsletter Now Available!

The June 2012 issue of Awakening Desires—the Newsletter of Romance Author N.J. Walters—is now available.

Be sure to check out all the latest news, contests, my husband’s popular column—Confessions of a Romance Author’s Husband—an excerpt, and this month’s interview with the amazing Cerise DeLand!

As always, some lucky newsletter subscriber wins a prize. All you have to do to be eligible to win is go to Awakening Desires Newsletter and join. While you’re there, you can check out back issues of the newsletter.