Falling In Fall: June 2013

Sunday, June 30, 2013

A Wedding in Valentine

A Wedding in Valentine

Author: Emma Cane

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Publication Date: June 11, 2013

Publisher: Avon Impulse an imprint of HarperCollins

ISBN: 0062264656

Event organized by: Literati Author Services

In A Town Called Valentine, Emily Murphy has an unexpected encounter (with the sexy Nate Thalberg) that changes everything. Now, in A WEDDING IN VALENTINE she and Nate are tying the knot, and it’s a celebration Emily’s best friend Heather Armstrong won’t miss—and will never forget!

Heather had never done anything out of the ordinary, but there was just something about that cowboy in the airport seven months ago she couldn’t resist. Cowboy Chris Sweet hasn’t been able to get the beautiful redhead out of his mind since that steamy night. Now to Chris’ surprise, she’s in Valentine—for his sister’s wedding!

Keeping the one night stand a secret the whole weekend will be hard, but denying their attraction for each other—nearly impossible! What’s in store for Heather and Chris? Will the romantic weekend in the charming town of Valentine sway Heather into taking another chance at love?

A WEDDING IN VALENTINE is brimming with sweet romance and sexy cowboys that will keep readers revisiting the town of Valentine time and time again.

Emma Cane was born in Erie, a small Pennsylvania town on beautiful Lake Erie, where the sunsets are some of the best in the world. Though Emma enjoyed figure skating and skiing (good sports in the northeast), she brought a book everywhere she went, usually science fiction and fantasy. Yes, Emma was a Trekkie. Early in her teen years, she decided maybe she could be a writer, and wrote passionate stories of teenagers in space, first by hand until her fingers cramped, and then on her dad’s manual typewriter, that she still can’t bear to give away. In high school she discovered historical romances, starting with Kathleen Woodiwiss’s Shanna, and Emma never looked back. The first romance she ever tried to write was a historical Western, but now she’s changed to the 21^st century, where cowboys can ride pickup trucks as well as horses. Emma fell in love with small-town, heartwarming stories, and created the fictional town Valentine Valley, a small ranching community in the Colorado Rockies, where she sets her novels. A Town Called Valentine was the first in her new series. True Love at Silver Creek Ranch followed in January 2013. Her first novella, A Wedding in Valentine, came out in June 2013.

Emma always wanted a career. She determined she wouldn’t be good at the family business, funeral directing, mainly because a funeral director is a social creature, out in society, joining lots of committees and being involved in the community. She likes to pick and choose her committees (she's served in almost every capacity in her local writers' group) She especially enjoys being at home in the evenings, her face buried in a book. When she went to college, Emma figured it might be difficult to earn a living writing, so she tried many different jobs. After majoring in aerospace engineering and taking all her electives in English, she realized writing was her future. While she learned her craft and raised her children, she worked several jobs, from fitness training to programming computer-controlled machines. She joined her local chapter of Romance Writers of America, found her best friends, and with their help, sold her manuscript to Avon Books. At last, writing has become her full-time career.

Now that her three children are grown, Emma loves spending time crocheting and singing (although not necessarily at the same time), and hiking and snowshoeing alongside her husband Jim and two rambunctious dogs Uma and Apollo.

Emma also writes as USA Today Bestselling historical romance author Gayle Callen.

~*Interview with Emma Crane*~

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

My name is Emma Cane, and I write the contemporary romance series Valentine Valley, set near Aspen Colorado. I love to crochet, sing, hike and snowshoe. I also write historical romances as Gayle Callen.

Do you have a day job as well?

Nope, I write 2-3 books a year, so it’s a full time job for me.

How did you choose the genre you write in?

As a kid, I read a lot of science fiction and fantasy, and wrote about teenagers in space throughout high school. But at a slumber party, I read a friend’s copy of Kathleen Woodiwiss’s historical romance SHANNA, and stayed up all night to finish it. I was hooked! So when I decided to get serious about trying to publish my own books, I gravitated right to historical romance, selling medievals first before I switched to the Victorian era. Contemporary romance was a natural for me to try, since really, at the heart all romances are about conflict and emotional issues keeping our hero and heroine apart until they fall in love. That happens in all time periods!

Is there a message in your novels that you want readers to walk away with? If so, what is it?

Probably the biggest message is that family is important, including the families you make with friends.

Visit her website – Emma Cane

Like her on Facebook – Emma Cane Author

Follow her on Twitter – @Emma Cane

Emma Cane at HarperCollins - Author Page

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(Paperbacks available July 2)

~*Contest*~

http://avonromance.hc.com/emmacanepinterestwedding/

The Domino Effect Review + Giveaway

The Domino Effect (The Domino Series)

Author: Jill Elaine Hughes

Release date: June 25, 2013

Genre: Erotic Thriller

Publication Date: March 24, 2013

Event organized by: Literati Author Services

Twenty-one-year-old college student and aspiring journalist Nancy Delaney’s nose for news smells a hot story idea when it comes to international playboy and artist Peter Rostovich. But as she works to get her story, she soon becomes intimately entangled with the mysterious Rostovich, who finds her irresistible. He becomes Nancy’s ticket to sexual awakening, and she soon discovers she has an appetite for bondage, too.

And there’s far more to Rostovich than just his art — he’s involved in a strange, violent criminal underworld that kidnaps Nancy and spirits her halfway around the world, where she’s held prisoner and made to serve as private Dominant-for-hire somewhere in the former Soviet Union. Will the sexual powers Rostovich helped awaken in her be Nancy’s only hope for escape?

First twenty pages into The Domino Effect and I was absolutely, positively, without an doubt, HOOKED! In the beginning we meet Nancy Delaney, a student who is asked to review an art gallery opening for her roommate Hannah. At the opening, she meets the mysterious, sexy Peter Rostovich. Peter's art work portrays bondage, something Nancy has never encountered. The two characters get to know one another and crazy events happen with Nancy because of "The Domino Effect." Nancy is innocent and a virgin. Virginal characters are a weakness of mine and how their first sexual experience is handled can either make or break a book for me. I am a total sucker for the tortured hero. Peter has a dark past full of secrets. I can't wait to learn more about Peter in the next book!

The Domino Effect is not for the faint of heart...or for those who can't look beyond a little BDSM to the character's story. Underneath the shock value, there is an intense love story that is ready to be released. I'm looking forward to the next two books, so I can read what will happen next in Peter and Nancy's relationship.

This series will be the next big thing. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a love experience that is suspenseful, thrilling, and erotic. Jill Elaine Hughes has definitely written a novel that will stay with you long after the last page is turned.

~*Casting for Nancy and Peter*~

JILL ELAINE HUGHES is a professional journalist, playwright, memoirist, and fiction author. She has written for the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Reader, Washington Post, Cat Fancy magazine, New Art Examiner, and numerous other media outlets. Her plays have been widely published and produced by theaters in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, Seattle, Boston, Atlanta, San Francisco, the United Kingdom, and Australia. She is also the author of several New Adult fiction books. Ms. Hughes also writes erotic fiction under two pen names: Jamaica Layne and Jay E. Hughes.

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Saturday, June 29, 2013

The Road to Price Review

The Road to Price

Author: Justine Elvira

Release Date: March 30, 2013

Your life can change when you least expect it, but the love of the right person can make those changes bearable.

Mia Dechino is running from her traumatic past and the death of a loved one. Heartbroken and numb, she packs a bag and is ready to escape the small town in Georgia where she grew up.

Heading off to Miami to start over, she meets Sebastian Price on an interview from hell. Sebastian is cocky, arrogant, and a womanizer but he might be what Mia is searching for.

Mia tries to keep her distance from Sebastian but the connection between them is unavoidable. Their attraction slowly builds as the line between employee and employer blurs.

At twenty-three years old, Mia has gone through more than most people have in a lifetime. Can Mia move past the pain she has in her heart and finally begin to be happy? Or will the guilt of a loved one’s death destroy her.

I rated The Road to Price FOUR AND ONE HALF LEAVES! I enjoyed this book from the very beginning. I knew it was going to be a book that was difficult to put down. Justine Elvira does not disappoint with this novel. Mia is a young 23-year-old trying to figure out who she is after already having a tough life, even at an early age. She meets a strong, sexy, and rich man named Sebastian who knows exactly who he is. Sebastian is set in his ways of sleeping around and not committing to anyone, until Mia comes into his life and turns it upside down. I was pleasantly surprised to have some unexpected twists in this book that kept me on the edge of my seat while I was reading. I absolutely cannot wait to read the second novel, The Road to Forgiveness.

Justine Elvira is an independent author who currently resides in Chicago, Illinois. Her love for reading and writing stems from her childhood. Justine would constantly come up with elaborate stories in her head and put them to paper.

Her first novel was published in April 2013. The Road To Price follows Mia Dechino during a turning point in her life. It is a love story at heart.

When Justine is not writing, she is spending quality time with her children. She also loves to hike, read, and dance.

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The Road to Forgiveness

Sneak Peek

Release Date: June 29, 2013

Sebastian pushed me back against Jonathon’s car with desperation in his eyes. His left hand grabbed my hip and he thrust himself forward so every part of our bodies touched. I inhaled slowly trying to take him all in.

He wasn’t leaving town.

He wasn’t leaving without a fight.

On the outside I showed no emotion, but inside I felt relief spreading throughout my body. I didn’t want to admit it but I needed him. His touch made me feel alive again. I had missed that these past weeks. I wasn’t sure if these feeling were going to break me but I was going to grab hold of it. Even if just for a moment. Even if I knew it couldn’t last.

His other hand wrapped around the back of my neck as he pulled my forehead to his. I could smell the remnants of his mint gum and feel his breath on my skin. His mouthed moved closer to mine.

“Kiss me,” he whispered onto my lips.

I wanted to but I couldn’t. I didn’t want to give him the wrong impression again. I didn’t want him to think he had a chance.

“No.” I said firmly.

His lips moved closer to mine and lightly brushed against me. “Kiss me, Mia. Let me show you how good it feels. Let me help you forget the pain and just be in this moment, with me.”

His mouth lightly touched mine in a quick tender kiss. My lips burned from his touch and it took everything I had to not make a sound, to look indifferent. I was giving in. Caving. Another few seconds and I would be his for sure.

His lips left mine but still hovered over my mouth. “God I’ve missed you. I’ve missed this, us, just being together. Kiss me, please.”

I looked up into his eyes and saw the desperation there. He looked tired. He looked like he hadn’t slept in weeks. His gorgeous blue eyes had dullness to them that I hadn’t noticed yesterday. I wanted to comfort him. I needed to make sure he was okay. It made no sense but I knew I couldn’t be okay if he wasn’t.

Ignoring the inner battle going on between my head and my heart, I leaned forward and connected my lips with his. His response was immediate. His hands gripped me tighter as his tongue slipped into my mouth.

The Last Boyfriend/Husband Reviews + Giveaway

The Last Husband

Author: J.S. Cooper

Series: Forever Love #2

Genre: New Adult

Event provided by: Book Crush

Lucky wanted a guy to be her last boyfriend but she never counted on love not being enough.

Lucky Morgan fantasized about the hot guy from her diner for months. And when he offered her a dream job, she jumped at the chance to get to know him better.

Zane Beaumont was skeptical about love and guarded his heart. Even though he was falling for Lucky, he was still scared to fully let go. So he makes a decision that may ruin their once chance at happiness.

Both of their lives are turned upside down by some unexpected news and Lucky has to decide, once and for all, if Zane is the guy she wants to spend her forever with.

I licked the last drops of syrup from the corners of my mouth and grinned at Zane. “I can’t believe I’ve never noticed the way you eat before.”

I watched as he put his cutlery down on the plate. “You’re so prim and proper, Miss Emily would be so proud.”

“Who’s Miss Emily?” He looked at me in confusion.

“The etiquette queen, duh.”

“Oh you mean Emily Post?”

“Yes!”

“I’ve never heard her called Miss Emily before. It must be a Southern thing.”

“I’m not Southern,” I growled.

“You’re from the South.”

“I’m from Florida.”

“Florida’s the South.” He grinned. “Or do you need a Geography lesson?”

“I know it’s the South, but we’re not the South like South Carolina and Arkansas. Now they are the South.”

“What about Alabama and Mississippi?”

“Well, them as well.” I rolled my eyes at him as if to say Duh.

“So all the states in the South are the South aside from Florida?”

“That’s not what I mean.”

“So are you telling me I’m not dating a Southern Belle?”

“I’m telling you that if you’re looking for Scarlett O’Hara, you’re dating the wrong girl.”

“Did your grandparents live on a plantation? Did they have slaves? Did your mother have a mammy?” Zane cocked his head at me and I reached over and slapped his hand.

“You’re an idiot, you know that?”

~*Fun Facts*~

Lou's Burger Joint is based on a real diner a friend and I used to frequent in Miami Beach

Los Feliz is one of my favorite parts of Los Angeles and where I wrote my first book

All of my books are set in cities and States I have lived in.

I've always wanted to be a screenwriter

I love Bradley Cooper

I was born in London, England

I'm addicted to a website called blindgossip

~*Playlist*~

I Don't Love You Much Do I?- Guy Clark and Emmy-Lou Harris

If I Knew- Bruno Mars

Cupid- Sam Cooke

Breakeven- The Script

Lucky- Jason Mraz and Colbie Caillat

A Moon Song- David Berkeley

Here Comes The Sun Again- M Ward

Strangers in the night- Frank Sinatra

~*Author Favorites*~

Favorite TV Shows- Big Brother, Revenge, Scandal, The Client List, Law and Order: SVU, Psych, Only Fools and Horses

Favorite Books- The History of Love by Nicole Krauss, Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Favorite Movies- The Sound of Music, The Usual Suspects, Twilight, The Silver Linings Playbook

Favorite color- Yellow

Favorite place to relax- ocean

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At the beginning of this story, we meet college student, Lucky Morgan. She works at Lou's Burger Joint and attends college full-time while supporting herself. After a very bad breakup and going from boyfriend to boyfriend, Lucky makes a vow to find "The Last Boyfriend." She decides the next guy she dates will be her true love, but then she meets Zane Beaumount. He is everything on her list to avoid. He's also drop-dead gorgeous, filthy rich, and used to getting any woman he wants. He comes into Lou's Burger Joint every Friday with a new girl on his arm. Zane is not looking for a relationship and never wants to get married. He asks Lucky to be his assistant while filming a documentary. Now, Lucky wants Zane. He's unlinke any other man she's ever met, and she knows he won't be easy to persuade because he doesn't give his heart up for anyone. Lucky and Zane's relationship was really confusing at times and a bit rushed in my eyes. I couldn't understand why Zane was so guarded. It all made sense in the end though, and it was a really good story that kept me hooked all the way through.

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The Last Husband starts right up where The Last Boyfriend left off. In this book, it's written in dual point of view. This gave me a better idea of Zane's personality. I think it's so fun to read in dual point of view. It made this story all the more fun to read. Through this book, Lucky and Zane are dealt some crazy information. While dealing with the story's drama, the two find their forever love in each other. There were so many unanswered questions in The Last Boyfriend, but they were answered in the sequel.

Let's talk about Zane Beaumont for a moment. We should without a doubt judge these books by their covers, because this cover model is hot and sexy. In the beginning of the story, I thought Zane was a kind of a creep. I wasn't for sure I was going to like him. Then oh my, I fell in love with him. Zane is protective and a bit bossy, but it worked well with Lucky. One minute I wished he was mine, and the next, I wanted to kick him to the curb. After reading the sequel, I have declared that Zane is my new book boyfriend! The cover model is just so hot! Call me, I'm single! *winky face*

Here's some quotes that sealed the deal for me ;-)

"I've never made love to someone with a pussy as sweet as yours, my dear."

"I want to throw you down on the sand and kiss you all over, and then take you from behind. I want to hear you crying out my name to the wind so that the birds can hear."

"There is nothing I wouldn't do to make this relationship work. Nothing I wouldn't give to make this a Forever Love. I want to prove my love to you Lucky. I want the birds in the sky to chirp of my love for you. I want the pygmies in Africa to talk of my love for you. I want the fish in the bottom of the ocean to feel the depths of my love for you."

The Forever Love Series is a fun read and is written amazingly well. Both books are filled with surprises and a little bit of drama that keeps it well balanced. I must say it was a job well done, J.S. Cooper! You have a made a fan out of me!

J. S. Cooper was born in London, England and moved to Florida her last year of high school. After completing law school at the University of Iowa (from the sunshine to cold) she moved to Los Angeles to work for a Literacy non profit as an Americorp Vista. She then moved to New York to study the History of Education at Columbia University and took a job at a workers rights non profit upon graduation. She enjoys long walks on the beach (or short), hot musicians, dogs, reading (duh) and lots of drama filled TV Shows.