Monthly Archives: August 2015
INTERVIEW WITH ALANNAH LYNNE
INTERVIEW WITH ALANNAH LYNNE
How did you come up with the idea for this story?
I started COVETED back in 2011 when my husband’s health took a bad turn. He’d battled a brain tumor since 2007, but in 2011 it started to grow and change into a more aggressive kind of tumor, and I was really scared about the future. About that same time, I read an article written by a slave whose Master died during 9/11. It got me to thinking about moving on after the loss of a soul mate and what it must be like for a submissive whose entire world revolves around her Master. Fortunately, once I started writing, Muriel and Mathew took over and made the story all theirs, so it didn’t become too personal for me.
Where do you find your inspiration?
Everywhere! LOL It might be from something I’ve read, a television show, or song lyrics. I’d say 80% of my story ideas come from songs. Carmella, in DARING MASQUERADE, was inspired by Katy Perry’s song “Darkhorse” and the line, “She’s a bitch. I call her Karma.”
What are your current projects?
The next story I’m gearing up to write is EXPOSED (Pandora’s Playground #2)… Lucas Steele finally gets his HEA. After that, I’ll release STRIPPED (Pandora’s Playground #3) where Mercy from GOING ALL IN (Heat Wave Novel #3) will face her demons. I’m pretty sure there will be at least 1 more Pandora’s Playground story, but I might release one or two Heat Wave stories before the 4th Pandora’s Playground. I still have to write Heat Wave stories for Steve, Robby, and Tyler. 🙂
What is for you the perfect book hero?
For me, he needs to be a little wounded so he can realize how much better his life is with the heroine in it. I really like heroes with a sense of humor (which was a struggle for me while writing COVETED because in the beginning, Mathew had no sense of humor). And he’s got to have great eyes and a killer smile. A sexy body is good, but the smile is most important.
List three books you have recently read and would recommend.
“Hell or High Water” by Julie Ann Walker
“Playing with Pleasure” by Erika Wilde
“Alex” by Sawyer Bennett
Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?
Thank you!!! I’ve had a sporadic release schedule over the past several years, and I appreciate them sticking with me and their excitement over new releases. The outpouring of love and support and encouragement I’ve received has been nearly overwhelming at times (in the best possible way ;)).
EXCERPT
“You need more than a Dom, angel. You need a permanent life partner. I assume you’ll want to remarry. You need someone to come home to at night… You deserve to be held while you’re sleeping… To have someone take care of you when you’re sick.”
She laughed. “Ian didn’t do all that. He didn’t like to be crowded in his sleep, and he didn’t have a clue how to take care of me when sick.”
Mathew swallowed and his jaw clenched. “If you were mine, I’d hold you all night, every night. And you can be damn sure I’d be right by your side, tending to your every need, if you were sick.”
“So why can’t you be mine? Permanently?”
“Because I don’t know how to do any of the other stuff a man is supposed to do for his wife. Hell, Muriel, I’ve never, ever taken a woman on a date.”
“Bullshit, you do know how to do those things. You’re just stuck on this endless loop of false thinking.” She drew in a deep breath and forced herself to calm. “As for dating… I know you’ve never gone on a real date.” When his eyes flared with surprise, she smiled and admitted, “I know more about you than you think. I’ve always been drawn to you and paid more attention than even I realized. I can show you how to date. Just give it… give us a try.”
His head went back and forth again, but hope flickered in his eyes and his chest rose and fell with shallow breaths as he considered her words.
After a moment, he said, “I’m always amazed by feminists who argue this lifestyle sets women back a hundred years. There isn’t a more kickass feminist on the planet than a sub. You may wear my cuffs and spend a tremendous amount of time on your knees, but you fucking own me. You’re the one who has me in chains, and there’s not a goddamned thing I can do about it.”
Her stomach bottomed out as her heart soared. She didn’t think for one second this would be easy—nothing worth fighting for was—but it sure sounded like he’d agreed to being more than temporary play partners, and joy launched her off the table and into his arms.
She’s his heaven and his hell…
Muriel Stewart has spent the past year grieving the loss of her husband. Now that time has passed, her inner submissive demands Muriel find a new relationship to fulfill her need to love and serve. But there’s only one man who makes Muriel yearn for the intimate Dom/submissive connection the way her husband did, and that’s his best friend, Mathew Galindo … a man who can barely tolerate her presence.
Matthew Galindo buried his own heart and needs the day Muriel Stewart married his best friend and business partner. He’s spent the last eleven years keeping Muriel at a distance, tortured by his love for a woman he could never have, and filled with shame for coveting what wasn’t and would never be his. Not even his best friend’s unexpected death could change that fact. Until Muriel decides she’s ready for a new Dom and wants Matthew to fill that role.
Having Muriel in his life is all Mathew has ever wanted. She’s his heaven and his hell, and could be his salvation if he can get beyond his past, his shame, and the guilt he feels for not having saved Ian’s life.
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About the Author
Alannah believes there’s nothing more magical than finding the other half of your soul, experiencing fiery passion, and knowing you’ve found happily-ever-after.
She loves going to work each day (in sweats and a T-shirt) and writing about hot heroes and feisty heroines who torment each other in the most delicious ways before finding their happy ending.
She lives in the coastal region of North Carolina with her husband, who also happens to be her best friend and biggest fan. They have two sons, a dog, and two cats.
Find Alannah Online at:
Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | GoodReads
GIVEAWAY!
Alannah is giving away two (2) $25 Gift Cards as part of this tour. Enter below.
Audio Review: Lost Embrace by Kym Grosso
Lost Embrace
Kym Grosso
The Immortals of New Orleans Series, Book 6.5
Narrator: Ryan West
Release date: July 28, 2015
Dominant vampire leader, Kade Issacson, is devastated when his fiancée, Sydney Willows, is nearly killed by a demon and her transition into the supernatural tests the limits of their bond. Deep in the heart of New Orleans, they struggle to keep her alive while searching for an escaped killer who promises to end Sydney’s life once and for all.
4.5 Stars
Life Changes even for Immortals.
Once again Ms. Grosso gives her readers an intense, sexy and on the edge of your seat read. Lost Embrace has Kade and Sydney hitting a wall hard. Strength, trust and bonds are stretched and made deeper through love, friendship and passion. Fast paced and action packed this novella packs the punch of a novel. Action or passion will keep you turning the pages. Oh, the epilogue had my jaw on the floor and speeches.
Ryan West gives a excellent performance. Bringing a warmth and sensuality to Lost Embrace that intensifies the story.
Most people know I truly love the Immortals of New Orleans Series. Lost Embrace is a great addition to the series. Really leaving this reader wanting more.
ARC Review: Lukas by Carian Cole – Blog Tour
Book Title: Lukas (Ashes & Embers #3)
Author: Carian Cole
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: July 30, 2015
Hosted by: Book Fancy
Storm’s younger cousin.
Vandal’s little brother.
You’ve met him in the background.
The sweet one.
The nice one.
The one they can all rely on.
The good one.
He’s a tattoo artist. He plays metal and classical music – on the violin.
He’s got a body built for sin.
He’s 24.
In comes Ivy. She’s a 36 year old single mom who hasn’t dated in 18 years.
All she wanted was a tattoo.
She got a helluva lot more 🙂
Being good has never been so bad.
Storm (Ashes & Embers #1) Buy Links:
Vandal (Ashes & Embers #2) Buy Links:
I have a passion for the bad boys, those covered in tattoos, sexy smirks, ripped jeans, fast cars, motorcycles and of course, the sweet girls that try to tame them and win their hearts. My debut series, Ashes & Embers, follows the lives of rock band members as they find, and sometimes lose, the loves of their lives.
My first novel in the Ashes & Embers series, Storm, was published in September of 2014 and book 2, Vandal, was published in February 2015 with several more of this series planned throughout 2015.
Born and raised a Jersey girl, I now reside in beautiful New Hampshire with my husband and our multitude of furry pets and spend most of my time writing, reading, and vacuuming.
5 Stars
Lukas. That man has the soul of a saint after playing on a road paved to hell for too long. How is heart is so big and filled with compassion is the making of miracle. Smart, caring, and extremely talented. With scars that lay deep, Lukas is star shining is the blackness. He is the glue that helps hold his brother and cousins together, all while breaking apart inside. Not an Alpha, but a bit more than a Beta, if Lukas doesn’t warm his way into your heart, you just don’t know how to feel.
Ivy’s life changed in the blink of an eye. Leaving her a single mother and a bit lost. Left with fears and insecurities that any woman would be feeling, Ivy takes a leap of faith on herself and starts to live for her. Who knew that getting a tattoo would put into motion a chain of events that puts this average thirty something mother in a tail spin of pleasure, love and freedom.
Carian Cole set a very different tone with Lukas that had every hair on my body standing. Raw and real emotions fill every page of Lukas and Ivy’s story. Passion, lust, insecurity, feeling lost and being found. Written so well you can’t help to get sucked into this realistic story. Ms. Cole makes me feel and that is what I love. Whether it be happiness, sorrow or excitement woven into her words that make up her stories, I am able to feel that. That’s the making of a damn good writer.
Cover Reveal: Gypsy Heat by Jillian Neal
Gypsy Heat
Jillian Neal
Gypsy Beach Series, Book 3
Blurb:
Nadya Montgomery was Gypsy Beach’s own personal wild child. There was nothing she wouldn’t do, especially when it came to Grady Havens. Until disaster struck and tore them apart. Desperate to protect Grady, she ran away from everything and everyone she’d ever known.
Fourteen years later, Nadya returns to the beach to try to rebuild some semblance of her life out of her ex-husband’s shadow, but that means returning to her past and seeing Grady Havens again.
Now a charter boat captain constantly trying to put his past behind him, Grady doesn’t know what to make of Nadya’s return. All he knows is she was always meant to be his, and he intends to make his claim. He wants her back in his life and most certainly back in his bed.
When his entire family is threatened, he’s caught between rekindling his relationship with Nadya and protecting what belongs to him.
Together they try to rebuild what always should have been, but their pasts are determined to keep them ensnared. As passions ignite between them, they realize that even Grady may not be able to keep her safe this time.
Buy Links:
Amazon – http://amzn.to/1P71f8P
About Jillian Neal
Jillian Neal is a Romance author that manages to blend her imagination, Southern sass, and loving heart in every novel she pens. She showed her talent for weaving intricate plot lines and showcasing dynamic characters in her seven-book, urban fantasy, series, The Gifted Realm. Her skillset continues to shine in her contemporary series, Gypsy Beach, which will leave you with a longing to pack your bags and move to a tiny beach town full of bohemian charm.
She lives outside of Atlanta with her husband and their children.
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/JillianNealAuth
Facebook: http://facebook.com/jilliannealauthor
GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7142355.Jillian_Neal
About the Gypsy Beach Series:
Book #1
Gypsy Beach
Single father Ryan McNamara returns to the only place he’d ever been happy, Gypsy Beach. This time he’s divorced, broken, but determined to make something of his life. Sienna Cooper is determined to forget Ryan, the last decade, and all of the hurt he’d left her with. She’s got enough spunk and gypsy fire in her soul to make this work. She’s going to run her grandmother’s inn and make it a success. But when a chance encounter throws them back together, the passions ignite and the past doesn’t feel so far out of reach. Can they rekindle the love they’d once had? Can he convince her that he never intends to walk away again? Will a potent dose of unending lust, a lifetime of love, and enough hot-blooded Gypsy spirit be enough to save them both?
Buy:
Amazon: http://amzn.to/1NaGFTF
BN: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/gypsy-love-jillian-neal/1122291041?ean=9781940174228
iTunes: https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/gypsy-beach/id1003545593?mt=11
Book #2:
Gypsy Love
Arley Copeland vows never to trust anyone, much less a man, ever again. After her fledgling career as a romance writer grinds to a halt and her ex blabs to the press about her preferences in bed, she heads to Gypsy Beach, desperate to regain some anonymity and maybe figure out what to do next.
Divorce attorney John Rowan has been in on the explosive end of more marriages than he can count. Love never lasts. Of that he’s certain. Sick of barely existing inside the concrete jungle of Atlanta with the endless traffic and endless noise he heads towards a two-week reprieve in Gypsy Beach, North Carolina.
From the moment he lays eyes on Arley Copeland, John is determined to prove that not every guy on the planet is out to hurt her, and maybe teach her a thing or two about herself in his bed and out. With every sinfully sweet caress, they’re falling more and more in love. Their pasts may be fading away, but will John ever be prepared to risk it all on a lifetime love when he doesn’t believe such a thing could ever exist?
Buy:
Amazon: http://amzn.to/1P72xAB
BN: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/gypsy-love-jillian-neal/1122284190?ean=2940151199902#productInfoTabs
iTunes: https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/gypsy-love/id1013590660?mt=11
Review: Gypsy Love by Jillian Neal
Gypsy Love
Jillian Neal
Gypsy Beach Series, Book 2
Arley life has taken a downfall in more ways than one. Career on hold, family pushing her go give up a part of who she is, throws caution to wind and finds herself driving hours to Gypsy Beach. A smart woman whom I had a instant liking for. Her life is hanging on a whim and she goes to the beach. So my kind of girl. Strong in ways that make Arley seem real. She may not see the light at the end of the tunnel, but she will laugh along the way.
John has only seen the the dark side of love. Being a good divorce lawyer, has only proven his theory on love. John is sexy beyond belief and has the perfect dominance to make just about girl melt. Love is not a part of his world. When work has become too much and what he does best has failed, John realizes with a push from friend, a relaxing break is what is need from the stress of life. Gypsy Beach opens John’s eyes to something he never we knew he wanted.
Jillian Neal has a wonderful gift of showing the magic of love. John and Arley are a fun couple. With chemistry and passion flowing, they make a beach fling into something neither of them want to let go of. For people who don’t care for love they have a funny way of showing it.
Jillian Neal has created this amazing little beach town that I have come to love.
ARC Review: Dare To Rock by Carly Phillips
Dare to Rock
Carly Phillips
Dare To Love Series, Book 7
Avery Dare lives a quiet life in Miami as an online fashion/makeup video blogger. She has good friends, a close, large family and if her love life is lacking, she likes it that way. But when she receives an invitation to one of her ex’s concerts along with an invitation to meet him back stage, she decides to take the risk… and comes face to face with the reality of his rock star lifestyle – the press, the crowds, and the half naked groupies.At eighteen, Grey Kingston left everything he knew and loved behind to seek fame and fortune as a rock star, and he found it as the lead guitarist and singer for the band, Tangled Royal. Fans adore him, women throw themselves at him, and he can afford everything he couldn’t growing up. Yet at the height of his career, he’s ready to walk away and return home to a simpler life… and the woman he left behind, if he can convince her to give him another chance.
Except moving on isn’t as easy as Grey would like. When Avery is threatened by a stalker, it becomes evident Grey’s fans not only don’t want him to retire, they don’t want Avery in his life either. And Avery isn’t sure she wants the pressures that are part of Grey’s life… but she doesn’t want to lose him again, either. Can their recently renewed love survive the fallout?
But Meg’s future is one Scott has accepted he’ll never have, even if his growing feelings say otherwise …
4 StarsAvery Dare is an introvert and stay at home video blogger for makeup and fashion. Enjoying living her quiet life in Miami.Grey Kingston is a rockstar who fulfill his dream and is ready to settle down. His talents for music are more than what’s on the stage.
Dare To Rock, the seventh installment of the Dare to Love series, gives Avery and Grey a second chance at something they started years ago. Sparks still fly, the want and need raise quickly as Grey and Avery get to know each other all over again. Their lives as changed in many ways making them both different people. Over the years they still kept each other close to the heart. With the temptation right in front of them, wading through the obstacles of the past and press, show love, passion and compassion are what worth fighting for.
Carly Phillip rocks her readers to the core!
Reconnection, chemistry, insane passion and a bit of mystery. Great characters with talent, personality, charisma, vulnerabilities and st charisma, vulnerabilities and strength. A great story that will make you laugh and feel. Dare To Rock is fully involved, hot read!
I love the continuing saga of the Dare family! Dare to Rock can be read alone, however this series in deep and emotional that I feeling the full series bring much more meaning to this book!
Review copy provided by netgalley.
Cover Reveal: His Contract by Rebecca Grace Allen
His Contract
Rebecca Grace Allen
A Legally Bound Novel
Release date: November 10, 2015
Blurb:
Lawyers know when to play by the rules…and when to break them.
Harvard law professor Jack Archer once balanced his professional life with the private world of dominance, surrender, and trust he shared with his wife. Since cancer stole her a year ago, finding love again—her final wish for him—is the furthest thing from his mind. From his empty house to the classroom, grief follows his every move. Until he meets a young woman with shadows in her eyes even darker than his own.
Once a shining star at law school, Lilly Sterling’s dreams died when the Dom she trusted left her heartbroken and lost. She’s starting fresh in a new city as a paralegal, but meeting Jack reawakens all her old demons—and her lingering desires.
Jack offers to become Lilly’s mentor for both the courtroom and the playroom, but tells himself it’s not a relationship. Their carefully worded contract guarantees that. But when their trial agreement starts heating up, both Jack and Lilly must decide what will tip the scales: the letter of the law…or love?
Warning: All rise for a book that contains a wounded submissive and a Dominant who wants to retrain her while retaining control of his heart. Discovery phase may involve spankings, bondage, edging, and blindfolds. Is it hot? You be the judge.
The Widows Choice by Hildie McQueen-Release Day Excerpt
The Widows Choice
Hildie McQueen
Brides of Coler Valley
Colter Valley calls to Rafe Preston, who decides to purchase land and settle there. When he accepts a temporary job at a beautiful widow’s ranch, he has no idea how much it will impact his plans.
Passion, deception and treachery, blend into a beautiful love story, set in 1860s Montana Territory.
Excerpt
Something in him stirred. In that moment a feeling of wanting to protect her lodged in his chest. A need to look over Charlie Kennedy, get to know her became strong. At the same time, he knew it wouldn’t come easy. Not good timing, either. Whatever had happened in her past, made her distrustful and aloof. “Will you be joining us for dinner tonight, Misses Kennedy? Or continue to avoid our company?”
She straightened and frowned. “Why do you ask such a thing? Surely it’s my choice when and who to eat with.”
“So you prefer to eat alone then?” he prodded, finding amusement when she bristled, scowling at him.
“Mr. Preston, is the wood not getting heavy in your arms?” Once again she returned to her sewing and pulled the needle through the fabric with deft smooth motions.
When Rafe put the wood on the edge of the porch, she looked up with a questioning expression, then frowned.
“Why do you mistrust me?” Rafe pulled his handkerchief from his back pocket and wiped the perspiration from his face. “Have I given you reason to?”
Charlie let out a huff. “I don’t know you, Mr. Preston. Of course, I don’t trust you. Around here it’s best to sit back, give people time to show who they really are. You’d best learn that if you plan to stay. Not everyone is trustworthy.”
“I understand that. But I rather give people the benefit of a doubt. Like you said, time will tell, but I trust that most people are good. And there is a difference between trusting fully and giving people the benefit of a doubt.”
She looked out into the distance, it was obvious her mind went elsewhere for a few moments. “I tried that, Mr. Preston, and paid a high price for it.”
Coffee Books Life 