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Monday, March 14, 2016

Book Blitz + #Giveaway: Freeing Destiny (Fate #2) by Faith Andrews @jessicafaith919 @XpressoReads @XpressoTours #XpressoBookTours


Freeing Destiny
Faith Andrews
(Fate #2)
Publication date: March 14th 2016
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Words to live by: 
Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. 
Don’t break the rules. 
I’d managed to fail at both by fraternizing with the enemy’s brother. Guess I’d followed in my mother’s footsteps by ignoring all the rules when it came to love. 
Mom was marrying a man only six years older than me. A man who was also her student. But the biggest surprise that came out of their wedding wasn’t my new stepdad’s academic status or his age. 
It was Jack Davis—my stepfather’s best friend. 
Jack was the guy who could change the whole game. He was quite possibly my soul mate. But time and circumstance were against us—there was no easy way around it. I was moving back to New York in two weeks and his sister, Aubrey, was the one person my family hated most in this world. How would his sister—the enemy—deal with another Edwards girl claiming what she believed was hers? The idea of letting Jack go crippled me. Would I have to cut ties with the only man I’d ever let into my heart?

Other books in the series:
24864696 23012988


EXCERPT:

“I don’t think you’re a tease, Stella.”

“Then what do you think?” I was dying to know what was running through his mind. I wasn’t playing a game—honest to God—but I could see how it might look that way. Unlike the way I’d felt in the beginning of all this, I didn’t want him to give up on me because my actions were yo-yoing all over the place.

I wanted him to pursue me while we still had time.

Taking my hand in his, he placed one finger under my chin and turned my face in his direction.

“What I think is that you’re a phenomenal kisser. And I plan on doing a lot more of that tonight and all the other nights until you leave—maybe even some of that kissing will convince you not to go. But in the meantime, we’re going back to my place, we’re going to order whatever you want to eat, then relax and watch a movie or whatever makes you comfortable. As long as we get to spend time together . . . there’s no rush.”

The saddened look in his eyes told me that last part was a lie. It was painfully obvious that we were running out of time. I hated it. There were so many things I wished for in that moment—the ability to freeze the clock, or travel back in time, or to have an endless do-over of the last few days with Jack on a repeat reel. It felt like some odd and cruel twist of fate. What kind of messed up destiny would throw Jack in my path now?

Forgoing all the bitter thoughts playing out in my frazzled brain, I nodded in answer to Jack’s questioning eyes. “Okay. I like the sound of that.”

It was time to abandon plans and worries and strategies. The only thing I planned on doing from here on out was whatever I felt was right—in the moment. I wanted to kiss him again, and if kissing led to more then I was ready for that, too. Jack was right when he said all that mattered was that we spent the time we did have together. The memories would be worth it, even if it meant hurting in their absence.


young couple in love, kissing, studio shot, back light


Blond female relaxing on yellow autumn field.



Author Bio:
Faith Andrews is living out her dream right outside the greatest city in the world, New York City. Happily married to her high school sweetheart, she is the mother of two beautiful and wild daughters, and a furry Yorkie son named Rocco Giovanni. When she's not tapping her toes to a Mumford & Sons tune or busy being a dance mom, her nose is stuck in a book or she's sitting behind the laptop, creating her next swoon worthy book boyfriend. Coffee addict, lover of wine and cheese, and sucker for concerts and Netflix, Faith believes in love at first sight and happily ever after. 

GIVEAWAY!


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Virtual Tour + #Giveaway: Her One True Love by Rachel Brimble @RachelBrimble @GoddessFish



Her One True Love
by Rachel Brimble
GENRE: Victorian romance


BLURB:

Jane Charlotte Danes has loved the squire of her idyllic country town for as long as she can remember. He is good, kind, and alluring beyond words… and he chose to marry another. Tired of dwelling on her futile longings, Jane plans a move to Bath, where she dreams of a new beginning. But the man who has so imprisoned her heart is only a few steps behind…

Until now, Matthew Cleaves has endeavored to meet the responsibilities of his position with dignity and good spirits--including his dutiful marriage. But when his wife leaves him for another man, Matthew is at last free to pursue his one true love. Only one vital question remains: will the captivating, stubborn, beautiful Jane allow him the challenge, and the pleasure, of winning her back?


EXCERPT:

Jane’s heart ached to see such deep anguish in his gaze. There was no rage, no anger, not even a trace of the moroseness she had seen so many times in his eyes during the preceding months. He stood in front of her as the true, loyal, and honest man she’d always loved and admired.

All the months she fought her feelings for him and now he wished to be with her. Tears escaped and rolled over her cheeks. He brushed his thumbs under her eyes, and it took every ounce of her strength not to collapse against him and damn the right and wrong of her yearning.

“Jane, please understand how hard it is for me to see you cry and not fix things to be with you overnight. What is starting between us, what I am feeling, cannot be ignored.”

Jane took a strengthening breath. “I am not the same woman I was a year, even six months ago, Matthew. I’ve changed. You’ve changed. Neither of us should rush headlong into the idea of us being together when there are so many other people involved.”

He frowned. “Like Elizabeth?”

She nodded. “And the villagers. And for me, the children at the boardinghouse. I can’t stop my dream to do good now that I have found the courage to pursue it.”

“Everything will work out. I will ensure it.”

He smiled softly, the gentle determination in his gaze seeping deep inside her until impassioned hope squeezed like a vise around her weakening heart.

He brushed the curls from her temple and pressed his lips to her forehead. “I have been blind. My sense of pride and loyalty to my father, a man who thought of me as little more than a cog in his ambitious wheel, has meant I wasted two years with a woman I tried hard to make happy. I refuse to waste any more of my life.”

His words twisted and tore at Jane’s heart. The last thing she wanted him to do was act impulsively and jeopardize anything that might be good for the people of Biddestone. “So what are we to do now?”

Character Blog:

Do the characters all come to you at the same time or do some of them come to you as you write?

I love this question! Many readers assume a novelist has all their characters established and ready to go BEFORE they start writing. This is rarely the case for me.

Right now, I write Victorian romance for eKensington and contemporary romance and romantic suspense for Harlequin Superromance. All the books are linked through the characters and the setting…although, fear not, I consciously write each book so they can be read stand-alone.

The link came because as I wrote THE SEDUCTION OF EMILY (Victorian) and FINDING JUSTICE (Harlequin), the two debuts in my series, characters appeared that were in danger of taking over the story. Very soon, I knew these characters would need their own book if they were ever to be silenced, lol!

So as lucky as I feel to have the hero and heroine more or less established for my next book, new characters continue to appear whether I wanted them in the story or not. I’m a plotter and tend to write a full-length synopsis and chapter plan before I start to write. Both the synopsis and chapter plan will only feature the hero, heroine and villain, if I have one.

There is no mention of any secondary characters or other characters from previous books at this stage.


Yet, lo and behold, a new or old character will nudge their way into the book as I write. The more vocal they are or the easier they are to write whenever they appear on the page, leads me to know pretty quickly how long, or how often, they will appear in subsequent books.

I love it when a character appears unexpectedly because it means I am truly listening to the characters and letting the story flow how it’s supposed to be told rather than how I THOUGHT it should be told. A wholeheartedly believe an author has to have a certain amount of trust in her characters for a story to read authentically and realistically.

In romance, characters drive the story rather than the plot, so it’s vital that the characters are understandable, even if not always likeable.


Characterization is key – always!

AUTHOR BIO:


Rachel lives with her husband and two teenage daughters in a small town near Bath in the UK. After having several novels published by small US presses, she secured agent representation in 2011. Since 2013, she has had five books published by Harlequin Superromance (Templeton Cove Stories) and recently signed a contract for three more. She also has three Victorian romances with eKensington/Lyrical with a fourth due for release in March 2016.

Rachel is a member of the Romantic Novelists Association and Romance Writers of America, and was selected to mentor the Superromance finalist of So You Think You Can Write 2014 contest. When she isn’t writing, you’ll find Rachel with her head in a book or walking the beautiful English countryside with her family. Her dream place to live is Bourton-on-the-Water in South West England.

She likes nothing more than connecting and chatting with her readers and fellow romance writers. Rachel would love to hear from you!

Links:



Facebook Street Team - Rachel's Readers


Giveaway:

$25 Amazon/BN




Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning.


Virtual Tour + #Giveaway: Cassandra by J.M. Anton @backyardhorse @GoddessFish



Cassandra
by J.M. Anton
GENRE: Contemporary Romantic Suspense


BLURB:

Cassandra Hoffman orphaned at the age of five was raised by her maternal grandmother. Two decades pass when she is confronted with a letter from her father’s Denver based attorney. She's shocked to learn that her dad lived through the car crash that took her mother and brothers in 1985. 



Casey’s haunted nights begin with the death of her father. Who is the shadow man in her dreams? Could it be her dad whom she had believed dead? She discovers he had another family, and some dark secrets Casey sets out to solve the mysteries of her abandonment, and find the answers to the nightshades that threaten her sanity.

Our heroine runs afoul of a previously unknown nemesis as she searches for answers, but she also finds the love of her life. He too abandons her, as he struggles with physical and mental wounds from multiple tours in the Middle East. Can Casey forgive him as they confront a mutual enemy?

 Buy Links:

Smashwords ~ Janton's Square Market


EXCERPT:

Stokes was already at the bar when Big Joe arrived. The PI was a smidgen under six foot, and not very impressive. That fact and his patient persistent nature served him well and enabled him to blend in almost anywhere. His light brown receding hairline and brown eyes framed by wire-rimmed glasses didn’t garner much interest.

An overly attentive young hostess escorted Big Joe to his usual table at the back corner of the dining room where he had an excellent view of who came and went. He had more than a few enemies. That was to be expected. He was a rich, ruthless, powerful man who was about to move JD to the top of his enemy list.

He ordered another bourbon when Stokes joined him and waved off the waiter as he returned for their lunch order. “Get on with it.”

Stokes disliked Big Joe, but he paid well and had a lot of well-heeled connections. Things were tight, so he took on the assignment to follow Cassandra Hoffman. “Not much happened after she got back from Denver. She works at her studio and spends a lot of time at home with her grandmother. Other than a couple of altercations with her ex fiancé, not much to interest you until JD showed up, but it is all in the report.”

Big Joe took the packet with the report, complete with photos, and set it aside. He would review it in private. “Get to the part about JD.”

“He must have arrived by cab. I didn’t know he was there, but stuck around a while when she got home. It was obvious that something was out of the ordinary that Friday evening. She broke the speed limit and then some. A short time later she, her grandmother, and JD went out to eat. He stayed the night, but before dawn they were on the road. I followed them with the little tracking beacon I’d placed on her vehicle when I’d first taken on the assignment. They spent the day at a horse sale with some of her friends. Early Sunday morning, the pair of them went to a local boarding stable where her purchase of the prior day was delivered. They returned home to escort her grandmother to church.”

Stokes placed a flash drive in his laptop and activated the file he wanted, and then he slid it over for Big Joe to view. “Sunday, the lights went out around eleven. I stayed for a while and figured they were in for the night. It was raining, and I was ready to pack it up when JD opened the door and seated himself on the small covered porch. Things got interesting when Miss Hoffman joined him.”

 Big Joe closed the laptop. “Stokes, I want that flash drive.”

Stokes ejected it and gave it to his client who dropped it into the packet with the rest the results from his assignment.

“Go back and keep an eye on her. I will take care of JD.”


Stokes didn’t like the sounds of the implied threat, but he caught the next flight back to Cleveland. 


AUTHOR BIO:


Author Jackie Anton lives in rural Ohio with her husband, two horses, two dogs, and abundant wildlife. Years of experience with horses and youth riders lend a unique perspective to her Backyard Horse Tales, and crop up in unexpected scenes in her adult works written with the pen name J.M.

Ms. Anton is the author of the award winning children’s series Backyard Horse Tales. In her 2015 award winning adult novel  "Wind River Refuge" she turns her attention to the difficulties in overcoming childhood abuse. Set in the turbulent sixties and early seventies. This romance / who done it comes from a time before child advocacy, cell phones, and PCs.

Cassandra Hoffman begins her search for justice in the early decade of the twenty first century in Anton's latest adult novel Cassandra: Night Shades.
           

Other Books by J.M.

2015 saw the release of the first two books in the Troubles in Love-Land Series. Book One: "Fateful Waters" was released as an e-book and paperback May of 2015. Book Two: "Panhandle Mayhem" was be released November of 2015. There is more to come in the series for 2016.
           

AUTHOR LINKS:





Giveaway:

A "Wind River Refuge" autographed paperback (US ONLY), or a Smashwords coupon for a "Wind River Refuge" E-book (International)




Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning.