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Musings From An Addicted Reader

Musings From An Addicted Reader

Monthly Archives: March 2014

Bite Me by Shelly Laurenston

31 Monday Mar 2014

Posted by ehmusings in 5 stars, Humorous, Paranormal

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Shelly Laurenston, shifters

Bite Me (Pride, #9)Bite Me by Shelly Laurenston

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

No one messes with a honey badger, they are one of the most unpredictable and terrifying shifters out there. Having seen Livy Kowalski in action, Vic Barinov has respect for her more than others. In fact he tolerates Livy more than anyone else, that is why when he asks Livy to get information about a man who has been on the run and hard to find, he knows something has gone terribly wrong. Vic has Livy’s back through it all and finds himself looking at her more as a his woman than his friend.

I was not sure at first when I read the first chapter, but the next chapter got me hooked. Vic and Livy are a new favorite couple for sure, they are dynamic and both a bit cutthroat. You get some Bo and Blayne love too which is always a highlight in every book they are in. Another fantastic read from Shelly Laurenston.

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Cover Reveal: Melted & Shattered by Emily Eck

31 Monday Mar 2014

Posted by ehmusings in Cover Reveal

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Cover Reveal  

Melted & Shattered by Emily Eck

 
Melted & Shattered (L & J #2)
By: Emily Eck
Publication Date: April 21, 2014
Genre: Romance/Trilogy
Cover Designer: Melody Simmons
Ebook Indie Covers
 
 

Synopsis

Elle was never broken.

She wasn’t shattered.

And she sure as hell never needed to be saved.

That is,

until she found out what the aftermath of love was capable of causing.

Doing her best to stay afloat amidst the sh!t storm that has become her life, Elle is hanging on by a thread. Between worrying about Fernie’s precarious future, an incident with a Shemar Moore look-alike gone terribly wrong, and an inability to let go of her feelings for J, Elle just can’t seem to get her head straight.

Deciding a change of atmosphere is what she needs, Elle heads to Mexico to study abroad for a semester.

She has no idea that she is walking into an even worse storm.

One that involves a pissed off MC President, a ruthless drug cartel, and a man willing to die to have her light.

***This is the 2nd book in the series L&J – cannot be read as a stand-alone***

Purchase Links

Steel & Ice (L&J #1)
Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Smashwords / Kobo
Amazon UK / Amazon CA
J Speaks (L&J #1.5)
Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Smashwords /  Kobo

Amazon UK / Amazon CA

Excerpt

“I came here, baby, to tell you I love
you. I love you. I love you. I love you.”
He inhaled sharply, but said in an even voice. “And I can’t lose you
before the greatest fight I will ever wage.”
Redemption. Could I absolve him? I lay in
a hospital bed for two weeks. All of it at his hands. I’d been marred, though
the scar on my skin was not the worst damage. It was a reminder of the scar I’d
carried inside. Could he erase that scar? Could he heal a wound one could not
see?
There was silence, deafening silence. I
tried to keep it together. I used every ounce of energy I had to keep the fire
at a low flame, but it blazed through me. He would’ve shot my kid, and I
couldn’t let that happen. These kids, they’d become my lifeline. My light.
“Without those kids, I’m just as dark as
you.” I said emotionlessly, empty. These last few weeks of pretending during
the day, only to come home and sob until sleep graced me was maddening. “I’ve
got nothing left to give you, J. Nothing.”
 I hung
my head, losing the fight with the tears that had been threatening to erupt
since J arrived. “I can’t be your light, when I have none.”
We lay on the floor, two damaged bodies
searching for the light. J pulled my head into his hands, bringing us face to
face. I could feel his breath against my lips. “You were a comet that bust into
my life out of no where” he whispered. “I begged for you. On my knees in the
dirt, I groveled to the sky to bring me light. And there you were, at Eight Oh
Eight, staring up at me, even though I knew you couldn’t see through the
window. I saw you, though. Elle, I saw you long before you saw me.”
“How could I love a killer?”
“How much pain was worth loving this man?
“Please, baby.
Please. I need you. I love you. I can’t go into this without knowing you’ll be
here when I return.”
“I’m not sure what
to say. I want to tell you I’ll wait. That I’ll be here, waiting like a good
girl for you. I want to because I love you. Fuck, I love you.” I turned,
finally ready to look him in the eye. “I don’t know where I’ll be. I can’t tell
you that. But I can tell you that I love the fuck out of you, and no matter how
much I try to stop,” I paused. Fuck this mother fucker. Fuck! God, why was he
doing this to me? Angry tears, sad tears, hopeless tears, tears filled with
longing fell from my eyes. J caught then with his thumb, but there were too
many. They ran over his fingers like a waterfall.
“Fuck, J. I don’t
want you to die.”
He pulled me to him,
and I inhaled his scent. I’d never be able to smell Acqua di mother fucking Gio
again and not think of him. Today it was mixed with the smell of exhaust, like
he’d been riding around all night. For what felt like the gazillionth time, I
crumbled into his arms. How did two times come to be a number exponentially
higher?

 

“I don’t want to
die, baby. I want to fall asleep next to you. I want to wake up next to you.
I’m fighting this war for you. To be with you.”


Teasers

(place your choice of teasers here)
 

Author Bio

Emily is a Midwestern Gal, but could be anywhere as you read this. She gypsy’s the country, as well as south of the border. Adventure feeds her soul, and offers great writing material.

She loves kids and working with kids, but can only handle caring for four-legged furry friends. A crazy dog and laid back cat have trained her to be their partner in life.

Vices include Swedish Fish, ignoring chores in favor of reading, and caring too much for people in her life. She chose to write this bio in third person as she is an Aries, and found writing in first person ended up with her writing an excessively long life story.

Aries like to talk about themselves. It is something Emily is working on being more mindful of.

Connect with Emily

Facebook * Goodreads * Twitter  
1 ebook of Steel & Ice will be given away, to enter leave a comment 

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To Trust A Wolf by Kate Steele

30 Sunday Mar 2014

Posted by ehmusings in 4 stars, Paranormal, Series

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Kate Steele, shifters

To Trust a Wolf (Whispering Springs Werewolves, #1)To Trust a Wolf by Kate Steele

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Bryn Roydan has sworn off men, after a failed marriage and a series of bad dates, she has decided it is safer to just forget men all together. Logan Sutherland is ready to claim his mate, he has been patient understanding her fear of bieng hurt again, but as an Alpha Wolf there is no deeper commitment than claiming your mate. Now he just has to entice Bryn into taking a chance on him.

Great story, perfect book for the beginning of a series.

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Indulging in Irelyn by D.L. Raver

30 Sunday Mar 2014

Posted by ehmusings in 4 stars, Contemporary Romance, Series

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Indulging in Irelyn (Indulging, #1)Indulging in Irelyn by D.L. Raver

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Former NFL quarterback Zolt Hamil had it all at one point, now injured and rebuilding his life he has become a lawyer and ready for a fresh start. Zolt isn’t interested in building ties, nor does he do personal commitment but when he meets his law partners daughter Irelyn Wilkes, Zolt finally sees the one woman who has haunted his dreams.

Riveting story, there are so many layers to this story that the reader is constantly caught off kilter. When you meet Irelyn she is attached to another man and trying to figure out the bet way to sever that relationship, the chemistry between Zolt and Irelyn is cataclysmic and has you reeling from the rest of the story that unfolds. As a reader if you are wanting to delve into a story that keeps you on your feet, this is the book to pick up.

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Andromeda’s Fall by Abigail Owen Book Tour and Review

30 Sunday Mar 2014

Posted by ehmusings in 4 stars, Book Tour

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masquerade andromedas

andromedasoverTitle: Andromeda’s Fall

Series: Shadowcat Nation #1

Publication Date: February 25, 2014

Genre: Adult Paranormal Romance (18+)

Synopsis

Andie Reynolds is being hunted. After witnessing her mother’s violent death at the hands of a pack of wolf shifters, Andie has devoted her life to protecting her community of cougar shifters from a similar fate. But now, a greater threat lies within her own dare, and she must run. If she stays, Kyle Carstairs will try to force their Mating, seeking the added power their union would provide.

Andie would rather chew off her own foot than end up with Kyle. Though, knowing him, she won’t live long either way. Andie’s only hope of survival is to Mate the Alpha of the Keller Dare with which she is seeking asylum. But before she can get to him, Andie must first go through A.J., one of the Alpha’s Protectors. The incredibly frustrating shifter insists on challenging her story, her skills, her trust… and her heart.

Andie is running out of options and out of time. But risking the life of someone she loves – just to save herself – goes against every instinct she has.

Buy Links

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Review

Andromeda Reynolds needed refuge with the Keller clan, but the woman is riddled with mystery.  Meeting Arthur Jr. on her initial meet, Andie knows she has t prove herself to the pack before gaining their trust.  All is not as it seems though as A.J offers to take Andie as his mate, he is not what he seems and he also knows that she is the key to his future.

Exciting story, I felt for Andie she has had a tough life from the get go but with the Keller she sees a chance at something different but is hesitant to believe in it. I can’t wait for future books, looks to be an intriguing series.

Author Bio

Award-winning author, Abigail Owen was born in Greeley, Colorado and raised in abigailAustin, Texas. She now resides in Northern California with her husband and two adorable children who are the center of her universe.

Abigail grew up consuming books and exploring the world through her writing. A fourth generation graduate of Texas A&M University, she attempted to find a practical career related to her favorite pastime by obtaining a degree in English Rhetoric/Technical Writing. However, she swiftly discovered that writing without imagination is not nearly as fun as writing with it.

Social Media Links

Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Goodreads  |  Pinterest
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When Angels Fall by Lachelle Redd Blog Tour and Guest Post

28 Friday Mar 2014

Posted by ehmusings in Book Tour, Guest Post

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whenangelsbanner 

whenangesRelease Date: 02/14/14

 When an ancient evil grows bored and slips topside all hell breaks loose. A young exec with a company in turmoil and millions at stake is on the edge of losing it all.

What happens when these two meet? Find out When Angels Fall.

Genre: Erotic Horror

 

One Sentence Description: When an ancient evil grows bored and slips topside all hell breaks loose.

 

Available here: Amazon US, Amazon UK

 

THE WRITING PROCESS

LACHELLE REDD

 

When asked to submit a post about writing and its process, the first thing I thought of was coming up with the story. When I am writing, a number of my characters, plots, and dialogue come from my experiences. I also discovered that the more I write, the more I pay attention to my surroundings and find bits and pieces that I can use. It is interesting what you can come up with using a little imagination and a lunchroom full of women of various ages. Let’s not forget the wealth of material waiting at Wal-Mart on a Friday after payday.

For me, horror is my first love, but I have recently stretched my wings into the erotica genre. When Angels Fall is my first venture into this new arena. In the beginning, I had no idea that this book would end up in an erotica setting. My idea was to write a demon who takes over the life of a rich brat and does things his way. In addition, his salacious ways are in some ways, over the top, but that is what I meant. This story is the what would you do, if you could rip through anyone at your job type of tale. This includes going off on fellow sycophants, having wild sex with the office slut, you name it and it’s there. It may not be your cup of tea, but the story is meant for escaping from reality and that’s what I want the reader to do.

I have also written a few fantasy stories as well. They involve dragons, quests, wood sprites, and far off kingdoms. My early writings mostly reflect my love of quests, the handsome prince and a wicked evil. I enjoyed writing these because I wanted to create the kind of stories that I grew up reading and watching. I was a huge fan of The Hobbit series, Legend and The Eyes of the Dragon. These stories are all about the fight against evil and those who rise to the occasion when called.

For me, writing is a great escape and being able to tell the stories I like and have people say they enjoy them is a thrill. Who knows, maybe I will be able to inspire someone to pick up a pen and get to work.

As for going into the writing field, there are a number of rules. Honing the skill is the most important piece. My earlier stories were clumsy and clunky. I had no idea of how to pace the story and make it flow so that the reader isn’t lost. There is also this little thing called grammar. Even though we speak to people every day and use verbs, adjectives, and pronouns, when writing, you have to curb the overuse of these precious commodities. Too many pronouns and the story is lost. You can also confuse the reader. Too many “be” verbs and the story becomes awkward and cumbersome. Researching proper grammar and practicing every day can make one a better writer and it helps to develop your style. So good luck and I hope to continue to entertain you in the future.

 

Lachelle Redd

Lachelle Redd is an Indie author with works on Amazon and Smashwords. She lachellecurrently resides in Lake City, Florida where she continues to write horror, fantasy and erotica at her own pace. With a love of all things horror, she began writing as a teen and before long had a small library of stories of her own. With many rejections under her belt, she kept those stories on a flash drive for many years. Within the last year, Lachelle found her audience through the evolution of social media and the Internet. With many more tales to tell, this author looks forward to enticing and scaring readers for years to come.

Site: The Hot Cauldron

 Facebook: Lachelle Redd

 Twitter: Follow Me!

 

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The Vanguards by Annie Nicholas Book Blitz

28 Friday Mar 2014

Posted by ehmusings in Book Blitz

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theomegasThe Omegas

The Vanguards

Book One

Annie Nicholas

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Publisher: Lyrical Press

Date of Publication: Jan 2010

ASIN: B00IGFXCTM

Number of pages: 97

Word Count: 25,000

Cover Artist: Renee Rocco

Amazon

Book Description:

Only a vampire is man enough to teach werewolves how to fight.

Pretty librarian Sugar wants her life to stay quiet. That’s hard enough when friends and neighbors turn into furry werewolves every full moon. But when a hot vampire gets involved, life’s bound to get complicated.

The Omegas have always been the pansies of the paranormal. Now Chicago’s top werewolf pack has issued them a life or death challenge. Their only option: hire a vampire warrior to teach them the moves.

Daedalus has been a powerful vampire for ages. Intrigued by the chance to train the geeks of the underworld, he wasn’t bargaining on losing his heart to a human. Can he make the Omegas a success, fit into Sugar’s quiet life, and avoid being ripped to shreds in the process?

 

The Omegas Excerpt:

Chapter One

Eric strode into the living room holding an envelope. “I found the solution to our problem.”

Sugar uncurled her legs from under her and sat straighter as she watched Eric’s lanky form approach. They had both survived growing-up in the same low income neighborhood. Friendship forged in such fires never died.

He handed her a letter and joined the rest of his pack lounging on her mismatched furniture.

Sugar examined the front, then the back of it. “Pal Robi Incorporated. What’s this?”

“It’s our salvation.” Eric shifted in his seat to lean forward. “Read it to everyone.”

She glanced at him with a questioning look. What was he up to?  Slidding her fingernail under the corner, she tore it open. The letter was printed on good quality paper with a huge golden company emblem stamped at the top. An errant blond curl slid in front of her eyes and she shoved it back behind her ear.

 

To the Omega pack:

I have reviewed the details of your plight. Pal Robi Incorporated deals mostly in security issues, but I find your problem worthy of my personal attention. Enclosed you will find a non-negotiable contract. Please review it closely, and have your signature notarized. The return fax number is listed on the contract so proceedings can begin. Mail the original to my office. Thank you for your business.

Sincerely,

Daedalus Pal Robi

 

Cold claws of fear gripped  her stomach. What had Eric done? “You hired a vampire?” Her shout shattered the silence around them.

The other wolf shifters responded to her outburst with low growls directed at Eric.

What had she gotten herself tangled in? She wasn’t pack, just a plain vanilla human. The Omegas were her neighbors and also her closest friends, each of them an outcasts from their old packs.

Driven by loneliness, Eric had solicited Sugar to help him search for others like himself. Werewolves with no attitude. Geeks of the underworld. Pansies of the paranormal.

Their friendship spanned years, since high school, when he’d rescued her from a home of drug abuse. Eric had treated her like a little sister, advising her on life in general. When he survived his werewolf attack, both their worlds shattered and their roles reversed.

Eric found four others to join him: Sam, Tyler, Katrina and Robert. No alphas ruled in this pack. They needed each other, so they became a family. All five lived in the apartment next to her.

Eyes wide, Eric held his hands out in front of him. “Mr. Pal Robi is offering to teach us how to fight.”

Sugar tilted her head as she surveyed her friend. “Yeah, for a substantial fee. How can you guys afford this?” He always thought with his heart.

Eric looked at his pack, pleading. “Before you make any judgments, let’s have Sugar read the contract out loud.”

She held it in front of her.

 

This is an agreement between Pal Robi Incorporated and Eric, Sam, Katrina, Tyler, and Robert, from here forward to be known as the Omegas.

 

Scope:

1. Pal Robi Inc. will provide to the Omegas, training in defense, hand-to-hand combat and small weapons use.

2. Training will take place for the duration of the period beginning with the trainer’s arrival until the challenge date.

3. Combat training is inherently dangerous. Pal Robi Inc. is not responsible for injury or death sustained during such training.

4. Trainer will not intentionally hurt and-or kill any Omega during the period of this agreement.

 

Responsibilities of the Omegas:

1. Omegas will provide trainer from Pal Robi with appropriate lodgings.

2. Omegas will provide daylight security of said trainer.

3. Omegas will submit to the direction of the trainer without question for the duration of the training.

 

Fees:

1. Omegas agree to pay Pal Robi Inc. $8,000 in cash prior to the beginning of training.

2. In addition, Omegas will provide the trainer with fresh, consumable blood upon request.

 

Penalties:

1. Failure to provide payment renders this agreement null and void.

2. Failure to abide by the terms specified represents a breach of contract which renders the agreement null and void.

3. Breach of contract will result in an immediate investigation. Vengeance will be swift and unmerciful.

 

Sugar placed the contract on her lap while waiting for their reactions.

Robert held up his hand to speak, like a kid in a classroom.

She sighed. How could this pack of puppies fight a pack of wolves? “Robert, speak up. You don’t need to ask permission to talk anymore, remember?”

He grinned sheepishly. “What do they mean ‘vengeance will be swift and unmerciful?’”

They turned to Eric, but it was Tyler who answered. “It means if anything happens to the vamp, we can kiss our asses goodbye.”

Sugar folded the letter closed. She agreed with Tyler. Vampires were bad news. Literally, all over the news swearing they had turned a new leaf and won’t hunt humans anymore. Wouldn’t catch her becoming a donor any time soon.

Eric stood and faced his pack mates, staring at each one in turn. “How can we not hire him? The Ayumu pack officially challenged us. One of us has to fight and beat one of their alphas in a month. There’s no other way.”

“We will be absorbed again,” Katrina whispered in her thick Asian accent, as she hugged her knees tight against her chest. Being a submissive female in a pack equated to being anyone’s meat. Sugar had tried to help Katrina come to terms with those old wounds, but they kept her captive.

Tyler shuffled closer to Katrina, petting her long, black, silken tresses. She shrank from him, fear etched on her delicate features.

He looked at Sugar and shrugged.

She crumpled the letter in her hand. How did preying on weaker members of the pack equate to strength? She just couldn’t understand shifter culture.

“You should run away.” The weight of Sugar’s words hung in the sudden silence.

Eric crossed his arms. “There will always be another Ayumu pack wherever we go. We’re finally happy. We have jobs, friends, and a home. It’s all worth fighting for, right guys?”

Sugar watched her friends’ expressions harden and her heart sank. So it would be a fight.

They nodded to each other, sealing their fates.

There went their quiet life.

Worst of all, a vampire would be moving in next door.

* * * *

Daedalus Pal Robi strode across the foyer of his house and tossed his car keys to a passing vampire. “Can you park it the garage for me? I’m done hunting for the night.” He pointed to a piece of wood protruding from his abdomen. That was a close call. He would let the others think the vampire-gone-bad he’d been hunting and finally killed had done this. In truth, a clumsy fall almost ended his long existence.

The human police were discovering decapitated bodies in the river. They thought a serial killer responsible so far. Daedalus knew better, decapitation was an excellent way to hide bite marks, as well as burning the bodies or shredding the flesh to make it look like a shifter kill. As Nosferatu Prime of Northeastern America, it was his responsibility to take care of these issues before the humans did. Vampires didn’t need more bad publicity. History did that for them.

Daedalus killed the lazy son-of-demon. It didn’t take much effort tracking and staking him. In his over-confidence, Daedalus had spun around to leave and tripped on a fucking extension cord. It sent him flying face forward onto an antique wood chair, hence the chair leg sticking out of his stomach. A little to the left and two inches higher and a pile of dust would all that would have been left of him.

His nest mate stared at the injury. “Do you need help, Master?”

“Nah. Just a flesh wound. It won’t take long to heal.” He closed the door to his study behind him and crossed the room to the fireplace. Leaning against the mantle with one hand, he wrapped the other around the wood shaft. He took a deep breath and yanked the son of a bitch out.

“Fuck.” Wood burned. It didn’t matter where in the body it stabbed him. He tossed the piece into the fire and rested his forehead against the mantle. Blood trickled from the wound in a steady thin stream. He’d have to feed to finish the healing process.

He pressed his hand to the wound and retreated to his comfy chair close to the fireplace. That was too close. If he’d perished, how would people remember him? The Infernal Champion of the Brotherhood, Vile Butcher of Babylon, and Subjugator of the Accords, to name a few of his titles.

For the last two hundred years he’d been trying to be good.  Whatever that meant. It started out as an experiment but over the last century it had transformed into a true desire. After an age of depravity and lack of role models, he still wasn’t clear what he should and shouldn’t be doing.

The Vampire Council ordered no killing of humans so he enforced that law to the best of his ability. If a few unsavory ones vanished in the night and nobody missed them then he turned the other way. Ridding the human race of evil doers seemed good.

Someone knocked on the door.

He jerked in his chair at the sharp noise and stifled a moan at the stabbing pain. Careless again. Too lost in his thoughts, he hadn’t heard the footsteps. He’d grown complacent in job surrounded by his loyal nest. “What?” Yanking his leather jacket closed, he hid his healing injury.

The door cracked open and Clementine, his vampire secretary, stepped inside, her eyes downcast as always. She hurried across the room and handed him a large business envelope. “This arrived while you were gone, Master.”

“Thank you.” He glanced at the return address, glimpsing the word Chicago, and fingered the edges of the seal. It wouldn’t behoove a Prime to tear it open like a boy on Christmas morning. “Could you call for a donor to attend me, Clementine? I feel like eating in tonight.”

She bobbed her head and backed out of the room. One day she’d stop fearing him, he hoped.

Ripping open the envelope, he saw what he’d been hoping for. The shifters signed the contract. He could afford to leave his nest for a few months and take this small side job. He grinned and buzzed his personal security team.

“Yes, Master?”

“We’re going to Chicago tomorrow night. Come by my study so we can make arrangements.” Training a few shifters to defend themselves seemed like a good thing to do.

The Alpha  thealpha

The Vanguards

Book Two

Annie Nicholas

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Publisher: Lyrical Press

Date of Publication:  June 2010

ASIN: B00IGFXDCI

Number of pages: 92

Word Count: 25, 000

Cover Artist: Renee Rocco

Amazon

Book Description:

Someone is about to get some Spice in his life.

Spice has nothing but the clothes on her back when she returns to Chicago. She’s looking for a better life, and that means reuniting with her estranged twin sister, Sugar. She isn’t thrilled to find out Sugar’s boyfriend is a vampire. But then she meets Eric, once the bottle-cap-glasses wearing nerd next door – now grown into the kind of man she’d love to snuggle with on this cold winter night…and he’s offered her his room in Sugar’s house.

Eric can’t believe Spice has returned. He’d given up hope of ever seeing her again, let alone having her stare at him as if he’s sex on a stick. But now that all of his fantasies for them are coming true, reality rears her ugly head and Eric must tell Spice his intimate secret; he’s actually an Alpha werewolf looking for his mate and he thinks he’s found her.

Content Warning: Graphic sexual content.

 The Alpha Excerpt:

Chapter One

Tyler followed Eric into the kitchen with Robert and Sam in tow. “What’s wrong with you, Eric? You almost lost control of your beast.”

Running his fingers through his hair, he tried to hide the blush heating his cheeks. Spice is home. He’d lost hope of ever seeing her again. The desire in her eyes when he loosened her jacket and the smell from her pussy set his beast-side on a craze.

I, Eric Turner, the geek next door, turned her on. The sexiest, most confident girl he’d ever met, his high school obsession.

“Sorry, she took me off guard.” He looked at Robert, his calm, overly serious second in command of the pack, who shook his head at him. “Damn, I almost changed in front of her. What a disaster.” Eric’s mouth went dry.

Sam handed him a glass of water. If anyone understood losing control of his beast, it was him. Ever since the Omegas conquered the Ayumu werewolf pack, their females kept knocking on the door. The bodybuilder had trouble refusing them, and his beast liked the attention. He didn’t completely transform mid-intercourse anymore but they heard his howls.

Eric needed to stop thinking of the pack as Ayumu. They were all Omegas now and he their alpha. The sip of water he tried to swallow went down the wrong way and blocked his windpipe. Nothing came out, not a cough and not a breath.

“Eric?” Sam asked.

Katrina scurried into the kitchen. “I make tea. You want some?” She stopped. “What is wrong with Eric?”

He coughed out a manly squeak and pointed to his throat.

Redheaded Tyler pushed pass Sam and pounded on his back.

Not a moment later Spice sashayed into the room. Even in his distress, her presence drew him like a magnet to iron.

A solid smack on his back set off a cough. He expelled the water from his throat, and it landed on her generous, rounded chest.

She stood with arms out at her sides, and her mouth hung open.

“Smooth, real smooth.” Sam patted him on the shoulder and exited the room. The others followed in silence but a few seconds later, Eric heard their restrained laughter from the direction of the living room.

He grabbed a dish towel from the rack by the sink and raced over to her. “I’m sorry.” Without a coherent thought in his scrambled brain, he dried her tight, white sweater.

Tension in her shoulders as he bent over to stroke around her curves clued him in that he’d done another boneheaded maneuver.

Her intense stare weakened his knees as he glanced up with her breast cupped in his hand. The urge to fondle it sent a shiver up his spine, but the ingrained gentleman inside of him beat down the beast, who wanted more than just a touch.

He jerked his hand away. “Sorry.” Alphas shouldn’t apologize that much. Daedalus would kick his ass if he heard him.

Eric straightened and swept the annoying hair out of his eyes. Why did he decide to let it grow? Who cared if all those guys in romance books had long freaking hair?

“Don’t be.” She gave him a small, seductive smile.

He kept waiting for this wet dream to end.

“Who’s Daedalus?”

Nothing more deflating to a man’s ego than to ask about the resident stud vampire. “Sugar’s boyfriend.”

“The one she has to ask permission to cut her hair. Then you’re not together?”

“No.” That question showed how much she paid attention to them as kids. He and Sugar had been best friends since sixth grade. Dating her would be like dating a sister. Even though they were identical twins, Spice got placed in a different category from Sugar. She topped the list for the five-finger-knuckle-shuffle when he needed it.

She leaned closer and ran her finger down his chest. It left a trail of heat along his skin. “What’s happened since I left two years ago?” Gesturing around the room, she raised an eyebrow. “New house, new boyfriend, new friends, and…” She stepped to press against his body and gazed at him with green sparkling eyes. “New Eric.”

Where did he start? We hired a Nosferatu vampire to teach us how to fight about a year ago, who by the way, is banging your twin sister. Oh yeah, all of us are werewolves, except Sugar, and I defeated the local alpha in a fight to the death so it made me top wolf in Chicago.

“Nothing much. We pay rent to Sugar and live here.” The old Eric she referred to still resided inside of him. He still liked Star Trek, ‘live long and prosper,’ worked from home for a computer software company, and read as much as Sugar.

His heart twisted a little. She didn’t like him; she liked the changes the beast made inside of him. After the werewolf attack, his eyesight returned to twenty-twenty. He got stronger and faster, which meant leaner and more muscular.

She moved back and placed her hands on her hips. “Six of you live under this roof?”

“Seven. Daedalus lives here too.”

Shaking her head, she grinned and looked at the floor. “Unbelievable.”

He heard the front door open and close. “I’ve got Thai.” Sugar’s voice, higher and more musical than Spice’s, called out.

“What’s going on?” Daedalus must have given her a ride from work. “Why are you guys so serious?”

beta The Beta

The Vanguards

Book 3

Annie Nicholas

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Publisher: Lyrical Press

Date of Publication:  May 2011

ASIN: B00IGFX5JY

Number of pages: 97

Word Count: 25,000

Cover Artist: Renee Rocco

Amazon

Book Description:

Three days of hell, in charge, and running out of antacids.

As the pack’s Beta, Robert needs to watch over the Vasi werewolf pack for a few days. He hates the responsibility, but his job is to dissolve any problems while his Alpha honeymoons. Nevertheless, trouble comes to town and her name is Esther. She’s beguiling, beautiful and picks his pocket. Although Robert doesn’t trust her, he still wants to possess her.

Esther arrived in Chicago with the intention of slaying a vampire named Daedalus. While trailing her quarry, she encounters Robert who unhinges her world. He doesn’t know her trade, and she doesn’t know his connection to the vampire. Disturbed by her attraction to this unusual werewolf, she can’t decide which prey to hunt—the one who’s stolen her heart or the one who’ll fill her bank account.

Content Warning: Hot graphic werewolf sex, growing body parts, and one pissed off Nosferatu vampire.

The Beta Excerpt

Chapter One

Another man exited the building not long after the vampire. He wore a rumpled button-down, short-sleeved shirt tucked into loose jeans. His mouse brown hair cried for a cut and a comb.

He pushed his glasses up his nose and bent to tie his running shoes.

Recognizing him as the person who had accompanied Daedalus earlier, Esther heard opportunity knocking. He didn’t look like a threat being thin and weak. She crossed the street and approached him from behind. “Excuse me. Do you have the time?”

Glancing over his shoulder, his gaze traveled along her bare legs, to her knee length loose skirt, and finally met her stare. Her breath caught in her throat. The irises of his eyes reflected a non-existent light and shone pale amber. He blinked and it vanished, must have been the glasses that gave such a strange effect.

He rose in a single fluid motion that set her predator alarm off. Checking his cellphone, he gave her a shy smile. “It’s ten after two.” He scanned the area around them. “This is a dangerous part of town, ma’am. You shouldn’t walk around alone. Trouble is going to find you.”

Or maybe find him. She eyed his wiry arms and changed her assessment of him. Lean, tight muscles slid under his skin as he moved. He wasn’t weak, more like a cross between a martial artist and a geek.

“Are you offering to walk me home?” Flashing him her most flirtatious smile, she toyed with a piece of her hair.

He swallowed. “S-sure.” Shuffling to her side, he fell in next to her, eyes darting around them.

Men were so easy to manipulate, but this one actually wanted to protect her. So cute, she could have pinched him. Trying to be discreet, she took quick peeks at him. Nice strong chin and straight nose. Maybe a hint of freckles? It was difficult to tell in the dark.

“I’m Esther.” She held out her hand. What the hell prompted her to use her real name?

Wrapping a firm hand around hers, he shook it. “I’m Robert.”

His touch sent tingles along her arm. The name seemed too mature for him. “What are you doing out so late, Rob?” How did such a polite man like him get involved with a Nosferatu? She checked his neck for bites and didn’t see anything, but there were more places on the body to feed from besides the neck. It would be a shame if he was a blood slave.

“Robert is fine. I was checking on a…friend.” He stuffed his hands in his pockets. “And you, Esther?”

She laughed. “I’m up to no good.” And she winked at him.

A rosy blush surfaced on his cheeks as he stumbled.

Something in this man attracted the devil inside of her. She entangled her arm around his and leaned into his hard body. The strength hidden under the geeky exterior sent a pleasant shiver through her body. Not all things were as they appeared. She hated surprises but not this one. If this was an act then he deserved an Emmy. She glanced at him, pleased that she needed to arch her neck back slightly to meet his sharp green gaze.

God, what was she doing? She assessed him like a potential lover instead of a possible avenue to get her mark. Stupid, focus. Once Daedalus was out of the picture she’d come back for Rob if she still wanted him. Until then…she stopped in front of a duplex. “This is my place.” She lied with the ease of an expert.

 

Omegas in Loveomegas

The Vanguards

Book 4

Annie Nicholas

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Publisher: Lyrical Press

Date of Publication: March 2012

ASIN: B00IGFXF0I

Number of pages: 100

Word Count: 30,000

Cover Artist: Renee Rocco

Amazon

Book Description:

Some things are best to forget. But what if the past won’t be forgotten?

Born in China of a pure shifter bloodline, Katrina was raised with only one purpose–to breed. Abused by her alpha, she runs away to America as soon as she can. With a new pack and her true mate, she thinks the nightmare is behind her, but when she is abducted on the streets of Chinatown, Katrina must face her past and fight for her freedom.

It took Tyler a year to earn Katrina’s love, another to build her confidence and pride, and only a moment to lose her. Broken-hearted, Tyler won’t give up his search for Katrina. But he never trained as a warrior like the other shifters. What chance does a real estate agent have in the fight for his mate?

WARNING: Explicit shifter sex, heartbroken torment, and an unstoppable shifter in love.

Omega’s In Love Excerpt:

An antique red archway covered the entrance to the tourist trap to keep evil spirits away and good luck in. Sticking his hand in his jacket pocket, he rubbed the small, velvet jewelry box he’d placed there earlier today. He could use all the luck he could get–just because Katrina was his mate, didn’t mean she’d agree to get married.

Raised in an all-wolf-shifter community in rural Mongolia, she didn’t think like American shifters. Like him. He took a deep, shaky breath. Marriage was a foreign ritual to her.

He’d chosen this location not just for his superstitions, but for its significance. Katrina worked in the area, a place where the old Asian world met the new, as an interpreter for some of the local companies.

She waited under the arch, facing him, her delicate eyebrows furrowed. An Asian man he didn’t recognize spoke with her.

Facing the stranger’s back, Tyler could only see his short black hair and long fall trench coat.

A sharp stab of jealousy drove him to quicken his pace. He couldn’t help it. As a shifter, possession was nine-tenths of the law, and Katrina belonged to him.

Passing half a dozen souvenir shops offering cheap trinkets, Tyler trotted along Wentworth Avenue. Katrina’s raised voice reached his ears, but he couldn’t understand Mandarin. He growled low in his chest. His mate didn’t yell often.

Three other men broke from the crowd and surrounded the arguing couple.

Tyler’s heart rate took off like a locomotive on a downhill slide. He smelled shifters. Non-Vasi shifters on their territory. Surrounding his mate.

The Asian stranger grabbed her arm and yanked her into his embrace.

“Hey!” It took every ounce of Tyler’s control to keep his beast from busting out on the tourist filled streets of Chicago’s biggest attraction. He shoved the stranger from behind, knocking Katrina from his arms.

She stumbled and landed hard on the ground. Tears stained her cheeks. The cold wind blew strands of long, black hair across her face.

“Get your hands off her.” He bent to help her, but the stranger blocked him. Straightening, Tyler glared at Katrina’s assailant and met a cold, dark stare.

His beast rose closer to the surface and clouded his thoughts. She belonged to him and this male thought to block his way. The only solution was to tear this asshole limb from limb. “Get out of my way.” He spoke each word separately and clearly to get his point across.

“This is none of your concern.” The stranger spoke with a thick accent like Katrina’s.

“You’re on Vasi territory. Anything that happens here is my concern. And she belongs to me.” Tyler pointed to Katrina, then back to himself.

“Chinatown is not Vasi territory. Never has been and never will be. And this female mated me before she ran away.” Crossing his arms, the stranger planted himself in front of Tyler. “She still belongs to me and has never been yours to take.”

Tyler’s jaw hung as if on broken hinges. He shot her a questioning look, but she stared at the ground, not meeting his gaze. Katrina hated to speak about her past. Now, he knew why.

She wiped her face, huddled on the ground, and didn’t deny a thing.

Every bit of joy in his life lay with Katrina, but truth’s claws dug into his heart. He didn’t know which hurt more, the lies or the way she hunched on the ground, submitting to this stranger like an omega all over again.

 

sigmaSigma         

The Vanguards

Book 5

Annie Nicholas

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Publisher: Lyrical Press

Date of Publication: August 2012

ASIN: B00IGFXFCQ

Number of pages: 97

Word Count: 30,000

Cover Artist: Renee Rocco

Amazon

Book Description:

To defend and protect, at any cost.

Sam is Sigma of his pack, defender of the innocent and frail. Too bad the one time it mattered most, though the urge to guard the weak runs strong in his shifter blood, he failed to protect his best friend from an attack. Just when his self-confidence can’t go any lower, he becomes entangled in a vampire skirmish and is left with an injured female in his arms.

Vampire accountant for Pal Robi, Inc., Clementine can’t believe her master would ask her to commit corporate espionage. She’s shot when discovered, but a shifter comes to her rescue. It’s as if he’s made of her fantasies, and in the few hours with him she lives more than the decades she’s spent among her clan.

Hiding with him on the streets of Chicago, in the midst of fighting together to stay alive, can a petite vampire break through her hero’s jaded heart?

WARNING: Hot dominating sex, an action packed evening, and a first date gone all to hell.

Sigma Excerpt:

Sam ground his teeth at Clementine’s stubbornness and hovered around her in case she fell.

Blood soaked the back of her pink t-shirt and dripped, leaving a gruesome trail as she walked along the exterior balcony toward their motel room on the second floor.   “You paid with cash like I told you?” She weaved on unsteady feet.

“Yes, ma’am.” He barely had enough money in his wallet to buy a soda now. “No credit card to track.” He reached out to grab her elbow, but she swatted his fingertips. Reflexively, he shook the sting away. “Playing tough and insisting on walking doesn’t get you brownie points if you pass out.”

He unlocked and opened their room door. The scent of cheap air freshener and stale sweat swept over him. He turned and sneezed.

“Bless you.”

He wiped his mouth. “Thanks.” Wasn’t there some supernatural law against vampires being polite?

“It smells odd in here.” She leaned against the door frame and pointed to the faded yellow bed. “Can you pull off the blanket?”

“We got what we paid for, a cheap-ass room. At least they don’t charge by the hour.” He winked and did as Clementine asked, then watched as she crawled onto their bed, lying on her stomach. “What can I do to help?” The deep red stain continued to spread under his scrutiny. “When Daedalus was staked, he didn’t bleed like this.”

She twisted around and whispered, “You were there?” With her blue eyes wide, she appeared very young, but vampires were experts at fooling people. Clementine could be five hundred years old, for all he knew. With a wig, Daedalus looked twenty, younger than Sugar.

He chuckled at the memory and recalled the expression of horror on Sugar’s face. “It happened in my old apartment.”

“You’re one of the original Omegas?”

“You make it sound like a bad thing.” They’d had five pack members at the beginning, before Daedalus came and changed everything. Now they numbered in the triple digits and were called the Vasi. He pointed at her wound. “Can you bleed to death?”

She rolled back onto her stomach. “No, but I’ll need to feed before the blood lust takes over me. You have to remove the bullet.”

He grabbed the edge of her shirt and tore it open, exposing her back.

She hissed and glared at him over her shoulder. “I could have taken it off.”

Pasting mock surprise on his face, he laid a hand on his chest. “Where’s the fun in that?” Not waiting for her response, he went into the bathroom and washed off his pocketknife. A pair of tweezers would have been handy. And some gauze. He grabbed a face cloth instead. “Do I need to sterilize my knife or find some antiseptic?”

“I’m a vampire. Disease doesn’t plague us.”

He shrugged off her prickly tone, betting she was as gentle as the sound of her name on his lips. “Good, because I can’t provide either.” On his knees, he straddled her legs and leaned forward to examine her wound. He planted his palm between her shoulder blades.

“What–” She struggled under him. “What are you doing?”

“I don’t want you to move.” Using his shifter strength, he shoved her flat against the bed and wiped the blood away. “Stop wiggling so much. It’s distracting.”

“Not like you can do more damage.” Her words came out muffled.

“No, but you’re turning me on.”

She went limp, her breathing heavy and strained.

He couldn’t help but chuckle. This shitty day was getting better. Using the tip of the pocketknife, he gently probed her wound. “Tell me if it hurts.” The hole in her flesh was deep. It appeared as if her backbone had absorbed the impact of the bullet. Damn, vampires were tough.

Primaprima

The Vanguards

Book 6

Annie Nicholas

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Publisher: Lyrical Press

Date of Publication: Feb 2013

ASIN: B00CFXOXZI

Number of pages: 215

Word Count: 40,000

Cover Artist: Hailey Edwards

Amazon

Book Description:

Shattered in forgotten memories.

Sugar survived a shifter attack but it left her broken. Paralyzed on the left side, she fights for her independence in her day-to-day life. Her worst injury, the scars on her soul, has her pushing Daedalus away. How could he still love her when she is just a shadow of herself? But a new threat on Daedalus’ life yanks the veil of self-pity from her eyes and she’s resolved to protect him, even precariously balanced with her cane.

The vampire council sends an emissary to Daedalus. His clan brother, another Nosferatu, hands him an ultimatum. Return to his post as Prime in Pal Robi or he’ll kill Sugar and her shifter friends. Daedalus has brought enough trouble into Sugar’s life. He won’t be responsible for more, so he agrees to leave Chicago.

To both warriors surprise, Sugar’s not willing to remain behind, and with her own shifter guards she’s ready to help Daedalus regain control of Pal Robi.

Prima Excerpt:

As soon as he closed the sliding glass door shut, Daedalus would bet his bank account that his conversation with Pallas would only have a pretense of privacy. Shifter hearing could be miraculous, especially when pressed to cracked-open windows. The distant sound of a chair clattering to the floor in the dining room reached his own sensitive hearing. He could picture his housemates scrambling to find the best places to eavesdrop.

Pallas strode to the center of the moonlit garden. “So the rumors are true. You’ve lost your mind.”

Daedalus chuckled. The other Nosferatu hadn’t changed. They’d been close once. “Maybe. I wish the one about you was true.”

Pallas spun around. “Which one?”

“You being dead.”

“That would be too convenient.” A familiar crooked smile bloomed on his ugly face.

Daedalus laughed louder and shook Pallas’s hand, squeezing his fingers together as hard as he could.

“You’re such an ass.” Bearer of bad news or not, he was still a brother, a tie to his past, and a comrade at arms.

Pallas returned his strong grip. “I learned from the best.” His clan brother, and he used that term loosely since they weren’t born from the same parents, bore the trademark appearance of their people—bald, pale, and deadly. “You’re creating quite a stir in the council, enough for them to coerce me to wake and seek you out.”

They released the painful handshake, and Daedalus shook his numb fingers, grinning as Pallas did the same. “You can tell them, for once, I’m happy.”

He snorted. “Like they care. I can’t believe you’re living with shifters again.” He made a distasteful noise.  “Nasty habit. They said you left your post.”

“I did, and I left it in good hands.” Then the fools were killed and the traitors who took over tried to have him assassinated, but Pallas didn’t need to know that.

“Your company is in chaos. I went there before arriving here.”

“No.” Pal Robi Inc. was his private security company, hence it being named after him. What better than hiring an almost indestructible vampire as a guard? The company also served as a front for the vampire political structure in his area. Vampires had revealed themselves, with the other supernatural creatures, to humans fifteen years ago. Vampires were expected to follow human laws and their government, but vampire society had had these things in place long before humans had figured out how to organize themselves. The Vampire Council didn’t expect their people to follow human laws, but Pal Robi Inc. was developed to give his people legal jobs and to police their hunting. In other words, if a vampire couldn’t feed without killing, it was his responsibility to stop that person before humans were aware of it.

“I didn’t assign those who presently think they are running my company.”

Pallas sighed. “Are they under your command?” He gave Daedalus a pointed stare. “Currently.”

“No.” Daedalus shrugged. “How much damage can they do? The last thing they want is to draw the Council’s attention. I haven’t truly lost control.”

“Your estate is abandoned.”

“It’s not abandoned. I dispersed my staff to other tasks, and there’s a shifter house sitter. You probably scared the shit out of him.” He’d have to call Stephen and check on him. The young shifter didn’t like company, let alone drop-ins from hell.

“A little scare never killed anyone. The council wants you to straighten things out at Pal Robi Inc. and return to your post as Prime. Things are falling apart in the area.”

An alien sourness curdled his stomach. He examined the odd sensation and decided he didn’t like the source. “Or what?” This visit was expected. Not Pallas himself but someone the council would send. The Prime kept the peace among vampirekind in his area. Sort of like a sheriff. If those traitors hadn’t been so greedy and tried to kill him, things would still be fine.

“They’ll make me kill everyone at Pal Robi Inc…” Pallas’s gaze wandered to the house, “…and here.”

“Do you think you can defeat me?” It had been ages since he’d fought one of his own kind. Living among the Vasi pack had softened him.

A hard shield fell over Pallas’s eyes. “Yes.”

About the Author:

Annie Nicholas writes paranormal romance with a twist. She has courted vampires, anniehunted with shifters, and slain a dragon’s ego all with the might of her pen. Riding the wind of her imagination, she travels beyond the restraints of reality and shares them with anyone wanting to read her stories. Mother, daughter, and wife are some of the other hats she wears while hiking through the hills and dales of her adopted state of Vermont.

Annie writes for Samhain Publishing, Carina Press, and Lyrical Press.

Website: www.annienicholas.com

Blog:  www.annienicholas.blogspot.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorannienicholas

Twitter: https://twitter.com/annienicholas

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3132972.Annie_Nicholas

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/annienicholas/

Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/yt8Kv

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Dare To Believe by Dana Marie Bell

27 Thursday Mar 2014

Posted by ehmusings in 4 stars, Paranormal

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Dana Marie Bell, shifters

Dare to Believe (Gray Court, #1)Dare to Believe by Dana Marie Bell

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Leo Dunne has waited patiently hoping that oone day he would find his bondmate, a rarity but if found a lifetime of love is guaranteed. Leo had not realized his mate was right under his nose the whole time, but now that he has caught her scent he has tried valiantly to ge her attention but to no avail.

Ruby Halloway has had a crush on her boss since the first moment she saw him, but her insecurities from her past have her running in opposite directions whenever he is near. When Leo approaches her at an empolyee party, Ruby has no idea that she has just sealed her fate and Leo has all sorts of plans to keep her in his arms, that is until a family emergency has them both heading to Nebraska and Ruby’s world is about to get shaken.

I had not realized this was a fantasy book when I picked it out. It is pretty good, there are a couple of things that I thought huh but overall had some funny moments and good chemistry between Leo and Ruby.

*** reread, liked it better the second time.

View all my reviews

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Perfectly Broken by Prescott Lane Book Review and Giveaway

27 Thursday Mar 2014

Posted by ehmusings in Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

 

Contemporary Romance
Date Published: March 2014
Blurb

Even after years of trauma therapy, Peyton still believes she’s broken.  She has little desire to date or show off her natural beauty, content simply to hang out with her best friends and run her pie shop in New Orleans.  But her world turns upside-down when a handsome architect and self-confessed player shows up in her shop and thinks she’s perfect, much more than the usual hook-up.  While Peyton does her best to resist his charms, believing she could never be enough for him, she can’t deny the obvious heat between them.  With Reed determined to have her, Peyton must decide whether to continue to hide behind her apron and baggy clothes or take a chance and share her scars with Reed, a man with a playboy reputation and scars of his own — a dark past he can’t possibly share with Peyton, not after learning the horrors she’s endured.  But if they can find a way to trust each other, and themselves, they just might be able to heal, to save each other, to live perfectly broken together.

 

 

Perfectly BrokenPerfectly Broken by Prescott Lane

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Peyton didn’t know if she could start over again, after a traumatic event she had rebuilt herself but she wasn’t sure she could ever trust again. That is until she meets Reed who is the epitome of bad boy.

Reed is trying his best to be self prophesied after his tumultuous life with his father. He is living up to the reputation until he meets Peyton who walks away from him. Reed decides she is worth the work, but slowly he begins to realize she is his everything and he will do whatever he can to keep her in his life.

Wonderful read, it was about strength, love, and perseverance. Perfectly Broken takes it’s time to build the character and lets the story naturally unfold. I was rooting for Peyton and Reed..

View all my reviews

EXCERPT:

“Sometimes it’s better to push people away, so you don’t hurt them,” Peyton said, “and they don’t hurt you.”

“Bullshit!”

Peyton shook her head.  “I’m never going to be whole again.”

“That’s bullshit, too.  I won’t have talk like that, Miss Peyton.  I just won’t have it.”  Dr. Lorraine cocked her head to the side.  “It’s time for a change in direction — a serious change of direction.  This is what we are going to do.  You made a lot of progress with Reed – lots of good oral and other stuff.  But now you’ve cut him off, and I see you backsliding.  I don’t like to see it.  I won’t allow it.”  She stroked her chin then cracked her knuckles in preparation for some great declaration.  “I’m prescribing a little retail therapy.”

“What?” Peyton cried.

“Yes, that’s what I’m prescribing.  You get that friend of yours, Quinn, and hit the shops – Canal Place, Magazine Street, St. Charles Avenue, wherever,” Dr. Lorraine ordered, her whole body bouncing.  “I don’t want to see you in those sad, baggy ass clothes anymore.  Just looking at them, they mess with my head, and they screw up my whole day.  You ever think about how they make me feel?”

“No,” Peyton said with a laugh.

“Makes me sad.  I hate them.  So I want new shoes, clothes, athletic wear, undergarments!  Everything new.  Got it?”

“How is this therapy?”

“Honey, you’re hiding again.  You’ve flipped your sex switch back to off, and I’m not about to let it hibernate in some frozen tundra again for years.  We’ve worked too damn hard.  You need to get in touch with your sexuality without a man helping you do it.  You have to do it.  And clothes are the perfect place to start.”

Peyton shrugged.  “I don’t feel like it.”

“You don’t feel like it?  Tough shit!  I didn’t feel like getting my pap smear last week, but I did.”

Peyton smiled.  “It just seems like a waste of time and money.”

“Well, if you don’t want to do it through clothes, I can prescribe something else.  Maybe a pole dancing class?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Or daily masturbation?”

Peyton rolled her eyes.  “Fine, I’ll get the clothes.”

“Good,” Dr. Lorraine said, writing in Peyton’s chart, as if filling out a prescription to take to the drugstore.  “Among other things, I want you to get some power panties.”

“Power panties?”  Has she been talking to Bret?

“Sexy underwear,” Dr. Lorraine said, still writing.  “They can make a woman feel very powerful.”  She put down her pen and looked at Peyton.  “When a man wants to be taken seriously, he usually wears a red tie.  Ever notice that in presidential debates?  Lots of red ties.  Red is the color of power.”  Dr. Lorraine waved her hand and snapped her fingers.  “So get yourself some red panties, girl!  Take back your power!  Do it for yourself!”  She handed Peyton her prescription.

“I didn’t realize my power was in my underwear.”
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Second Chances by PJ Fiala Book Tour and Giveaway

26 Wednesday Mar 2014

Posted by ehmusings in 4 stars, Book Tour, Contemporary Romance

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secondchancebanner

secondchancecoverSecond Chances

PJ Fiala

Genre:  Romance/erotica

Publisher:  Archway Publishing,

a division of Simon & Schuster

ISBN: 978-1-4808-0563-7

ISBN: 978-1-4808-0564-4

ISBN: 978-1-4808-0562-0

ASIN:  B00IPONXA2

 

Number of pages:  426

Word Count:   163,375

 

Archway Publishing   Amazon Paperback   Kindle

 

BN Paperback     Nook    Hard Cover

 

 

Book Description: 

 

After a nearly 30 year marriage to a man suffering from depression, Samantha Powell has decided a nice quiet, drama-free life is for her.  She has demons to combat and self-esteem issues to overcome.  She has decided to sell her house and find a nice little condo that places virtually no maintenance demands on her and allows her to work on herself for a while.

 

Grayson Kinkaide has waited his whole life, all 55 years of it, looking for his soul mate, the other half of himself.  He suffered through an awful marriage with a manipulative selfish woman that almost brought him to his knees.  The only things that kept him strong were his children and his growing business.

 

When Gray meets Sam both of their lives are changed drastically.  Sam’s dream of a drama-free life is jerked from her grasp as Gray’s exes do everything in their power to tear them apart.  Gray finds himself having to fight, hard, to convince Sam they are meant to be together.

 

Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/pQBY36w0pdA

 

Excerpt:

…Just then, Mrs. Koepple said, “Mr. Kinkaide, she really is a wonderful person. Don’t let this chance pass you by.”

She said it with a wink at him and he smiled a little bigger.

Sam couldn’t imagine any woman could resist that smile. Grayson told Mrs. Koepple, “I promise you I will make every effort to not let the opportunity pass me by.” Sam’s eyes were huge as she gaped at the three of them, mouth ajar. Jessie giggled and Sam looked at her with that same look on her face.

Jessie’s smile was huge. She winked at Sam and said, “That Mrs. Koepple sure knows how to make an exit.”

As Grayson turned to walk back into the room, Bill Chase walked into the room from behind Sam. He saw Grayson helping Mrs. Koepple and Alfred out the door and smiled.

“I see you met Mrs. Koepple and Alfred. They’re a cute couple, aren’t they?”

Grayson smiled again. Oh my God, that smile! He nodded at Bill, then looked at Sam. His eyes were so beautiful—dark like black coffee with thick lashes surrounding them. A sigh escaped Sam and Bill gave her a sideways glance. She blushed again and said a mental Crap.

Bill walked forward and shook hands with Grayson and Jackson. Sam was rooted to the spot just watching them, him.

Bill said, “Gray, it’s about time I got you to come to me for legal assistance. I was beginning to wonder if I could ever talk you into it.”

Grayson smiled and looked at Jackson, who was smiling as well.

Jackson finally spoke up and said, “Well, Grandpa was really insistent that we use his attorney over the years, but now that he’s retiring, we felt we could make the move.”

Grayson and Bill talked like they were friends. Finally, Bill turned and started leading the way to the conference room, which was a cue to stop gaping and go back to work. Sam looked over at Jessie, who had a huge grin on her face.

Sam shook her head and started to turn and walk back to her office when Grayson said, “Sam, may I have a word with you?”

Sam froze in her tracks, took a deep breath, and slowly turned back around to face him. Bill looked first at Grayson and at Sam with a furrow in his brow.

“Is there anything wrong, Gray?”

Jackson put his hand on Bill’s shoulder and chuckled as he said, “I’ll fill you in on our interesting morning.”

Bill and Jackson continued walking to the conference room.

Sam was a bit at a loss as to what to say or do when Grayson spoke and said, “Is there somewhere we can speak in private?”

Sam opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

After clearing her throat, she tried again, putting a smile on her face. “Sure, we can go into the small conference room.”

Sam walked the few steps to the small conference room, turned the light on, and walked in. Grayson, behind her, walked through the door and closed it. Sam heard the latch click and turned around to face him. With the door closed, she could smell him. Oh, he smelled so good. Wasn’t there anything wrong with this man?

He smiled and stood staring at her for a little while.

Sam was getting nervous at the silence and blurted out, “I’m sorry about Mrs. Koepple, I hope she didn’t embarrass you or make you feel obligated to…”

Gray cut Sam off, a smile on his face, and said, “I think you were the one that was embarrassed, and if you don’t mind me pointing out, I thought you were adorable.”

Sam’s eyes flashed up to Gray and she looked at him with brows furrowed and said, “Adorable?”

He chuckled and began, “The reason I wanted to speak with you privately is that I noticed how embarrassed you were and didn’t want to continue to put you on the spot. But, I would like to invite you to dinner. Would you have dinner with me this evening?”

Sam was stunned, but didn’t want him to think he had to ask her out.

“Please don’t feel obligated to ask me out because of Mrs. Koepple. It really isn’t necessary.”

Gray smiled and said, “I don’t feel obligated at all. I would love to have dinner with you. We both have to eat, and it would be nice to get to know you a little better. What do you say?”

Speechless…that was the only word to use. She was being asked out on a date by this gorgeous man. What would they talk about? What would they say? How could she eat in front of him and not make a fool out of herself? Sam didn’t feel like a very interesting person. She just lived a quiet life and didn’t do much else. She used to live a different life, but once Tim got sick, she had holed up in her house and did little else except motorcycling. That was the one thing Tim continued to do, even when he was feeling his worst.

Gray’s smiled widened and he cocked his head to the side a little, at the same time raising an eyebrow, waiting for Sam to respond.

Taking a shaky breath, she said, “I would like that very much.”

God, he had a beautiful smile.

He smiled again and added, “Excellent.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and asked Sam for her phone number so he could enter it into his phone. Sam’s phone was sitting on her desk.

Gray handed her his business card. “Put my number into your phone as soon as you get back to your desk.”

Gray smiled again and said, “I’ll pick you up at seven tonight. Once you have my phone number in your phone, please text me your address.”

Review

Grayson Kinkaide had spent his life hoping he would meet his one, his soul mate.  At fifty-five he has all but given up hope, it doesn’t men his life has been empty but he never had that one person who he knew would own him heart and soul.  The instant he sees Samantha Powell, he believes he finally found her.

After a thirty year marriage to a man suffering from depression, Sam knows if she stats dating again it will have to be a relationship built on honesty and where she is always a priority.  Sam believes she has found that with Gray, but with a vengeful ex and a few hiccups in their relationship, Sam knows if they are going to work they have to make honesty their main focus.

Impassioned story.  Gray is head over heels in love with Sam.  I liked that he is slightly dominant and very vocal about his desire for Sam, you don’t read to many books where a man in his fifties is so loveable.  Wonderful story.

About the Author:

I was born in a suburb of St. Louis, Missouri named Bridgeton.  During my time in secondchanceauthMissouri, I explored the Ozarks, swam in the Mississippi River, played kickball and endless games of hide and seek with the neighborhood kids. Spending summers in Kentucky with my Grandmother, Ruth, are the fondest childhood memories for me.

At the age of thirteen, my family moved to Wisconsin to learn to farm.  Yes, learn to farm!  That was interesting.  Taking city kids and throwing them on a farm with twenty-eight cows purchased from the Humane Society because they had been abused, was interesting.  I learned to milk cows, the ins and outs of a breeding schedule, feeding schedule and the never ending haying in the summer and trying to stay warm in the winter.  Our first winter in Wisconsin, we had thirty-six inches of snow in one storm and were snowed in our house for three days!  Needless to say, I wasn’t loving Wisconsin.

I am now married with four children and two grandchildren and a new one on the way this summer.  I have learned to love Wisconsin, though I still hate snow.  Wisconsin and the United States are beautiful and my husband and I travel around by motorcycle seeing new sites and meeting new people.  It never ceases to amaze me how many people are interested in where we are going and what we have seen along the way.  At every gas station, restaurant and hotel, we have people come up to us and ask us about what we are doing and offering advice on which roads in the area are better than others and great rides others have been on if we are interested.

I come from a family of veterans.  My grandfathers, father, brother and two of my sons and one daughter-in-law are all veterans.  Needless to say, I am proud.  Proud to be an American and proud of the service my amazing family has given.

Author web links: (web, blog, twitter, facebook, goodreads, etc)

Website: www.pjfiala.com

You Tube http://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0_BBjvOwu8akytlEN8VQNw

Facebook: www.facebook.com/pjfiala1

Twitter: www.twitter.com/pfiala

Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/pattifiala/second-chances

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7866768.P_J_Fiala

Amazon Author Page:  http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00IL8OA04

Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/116973848613644291786/posts

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/pattifiala ‎

Music Playlists on Spotify

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Follow the links for the playlists for each book:

Second Chances

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Review Links

 

Archway Publishing:

http://bookstore.archwaypublishing.com/Products/SKU-000678446/Second-Chances.aspx

Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Second-Chances-P-J-Fiala/dp/1480805645/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1393679347&sr=1-1&keywords=pj+fiala

Barnes & Noble:

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/second-chances-pj-fiala/1118731355?ean=9781480805620

Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20869617-second-chances

Tour giveaway:

5 eBook copies of  Second Chances
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