Sunday, June 30, 2019

Texas Trouble Tour and Giveaway


Texas Trouble
Lone Star Book 2
by Gerry Bartlett
Genre: Romantic Suspense 

Scarlett Hall followed a job and a friend to Texas, but that cost her more than she’d bargained for. Now, wounded but determined to get past one of the worst days of her life, she decides she has to pull herself together. First step: cover up the physical scars left from her ordeal. That’s easy. But the emotional scars are proving harder to handle.
Then she meets Ethan Calhoun. This bad boy seems ready to make his own changes and might be just what she needs to start a new chapter in her life. When he offers her a job as manager of his new bar, she decides to go for it. A change of pace and a hot guy who makes her forget her troubles while she’s in his arms are a great cure. But it soon becomes clear that danger will be in Scarlett’s life no matter how many changes she makes. As Scarlett comes face to face with her worst nightmare, it seems happiness was just an illusion. Maybe Texas is just too much trouble.




Breathe. Turn the lock. She flipped the dead bolt and waited. Someone jiggled the knob, but it held. God. God. She sagged to the floor. Safe. Please let her be safe.
“Are you all right?” A man’s voice came from across the dark room.
No, she was not all right. What had she done? Locked herself in with him. Scarlett searched for a weapon. Shit. She didn’t even have her shoes.
“Calm down. I’m not going to hurt you.” He was coming closer.
“That’s what they all say.” Scarlett jerked her cell out of her bra. She’d started keeping it there after the attack. “Don’t come any closer. I’m calling 9-1-1.”
 “And say what? That you broke into my bar?” He was too close. He hunkered down in front of her. “Ethan Calhoun. How can I help you?”
“You own this bar?” Scarlett hit reality. Hard. He was right. What was she doing here? She tried to catch her breath, her heart stuttering as she looked around. She stared at the long wooden bar across the room as she tried to regulate her breathing. The room was empty except for the man who just sat there, still too close. She wanted to shove him away. Common sense finally returned as she gripped her phone and realized he wasn’t making a move, just staring. Of course, she was acting crazy.
“Yeah, I do. Something scared you. Do I need to go outside and kick some butt?” He still hadn’t moved.
Scarlett checked him out. Tall, good-looking, a little young, but not too young. He looked like he could enjoy some butt kicking but would prefer something more civilized in his vintage rock band tee and jeans. She waited, still breathing in and out, her heart finally settling down. If he tried anything that screamed danger, she had her fingers on her phone. But he just sat there, patient and, damn it, kind. She finally made a decision.
“You can buy me a drink.”
“That I can do.” He stood and held out his hand. “Usually, it’s no shoes, no service, but I’ll make an exception if you tell me your name.”
“Scarlett Hall.” Scarlett took his hand and let him pull her to her feet.
“I have to warn you, I’m a head case right now.”
“Honey, I’m way too used to those.” He pulled her to the bar, then walked around and put two glasses in front of her. “Name your poison.”
“Tequila. I’ve had a rough day. Rough month, rough year.” She sighed. “Told you I was messed up.”
“Then you’ve come to the right place.” Ethan smiled and poured them each a splash of top-shelf tequila. “I think I’ve lost my mind too. Never owned a bar before. Now here I am probably about to lose my shirt. Moved to Austin because I loved going to college here. It’s a common thing with Texas exes.” He picked up his glass, waited for her to pick up hers, then clinked it. “Here’s to crazy.”
“Crazy.” Scarlett threw back the shot. She wasn’t about to turn to alcohol to solve her problems, but she liked Ethan’s smile and that was a start. She needed her purse and her shoes. She had to go back and apologize to Casey. And she wanted that damn tattoo. She shook her head when Ethan offered her a refill.
“No, I’ve got to go back next door.”
“To Casey’s? You getting a tattoo?” Ethan walked her to the door.
 “If I can find my nerve.” Scarlett looked around. The only light came from the dusty windows and a laptop on the bar. No furniture yet, so obviously he wasn’t ready to open.
“Want me to hold your hand?” He grinned.
Scarlett could imagine that. For the first time since the abduction, she didn’t want to throw up a stop sign as soon as a man showed interest. And Ethan was definitely interested.
“No, thanks. This is something I have to do myself.” She handed him her phone. “Can I call you if I need moral support?”
“Hell, yes.”

Texas Lightning
Lone Star Book 1

A million-dollar idea. A city girl in the country. And a man who brings out her wild side…


Anna Delaney is thrilled to leave Boston for Austin, Texas, when her small tech company is bought out by a conglomerate. Born into a family of over-protective brothers, this is her chance at true independence—and a name-making professional breakthrough.

Even when gorgeous billionaire rancher King Sanders forms a one-man welcoming committee, Anna insists that she doesn’t need a tour guide—or another bodyguard. But after she narrowly escapes a kidnapping attempt, she can’t say no to King spiriting her away to someplace safe…and very private.

Someone wants the valuable software Anna’s developing, and King is determined to keep her safe until the culprit is caught. The hunky cowboy lights her up brighter than the Lone Star sky at night, but neither one of them is prepared for just how wild Texas can get—and just how hard they’re willing to fight to stay together…






Gerry Bartlett is a native Texan who lives halfway between Houston and Galveston. She has an antique business on the island and in Alvin. When she's not treasure hunting, she loves heading to the Texas capitol of Austin where she attended the University of Texas. She's managed to set most of her Real Vampires series there and now a new Lone Star Suspense series, coming in November. She also loves writing about her hometown of Houston in her contemporary Texas Heat series.


She lives with Jet, a whippet, who keeps her company when she's at the computer. Gerry collects cookbooks, but rarely cooks, and little boxes that she brings back from her travels. She also has a weakness for purses and posts pictures of her latest finds on Pinterest. When she has time, Gerry loves to read just about anything with a happy ending. Check out her reviews on Goodreads.

This former elementary school teacher is lucky enough to have more than twenty published novels. You can read more about Gerry at http://gerrybartlett.com and sign up for her newsletter there for news and giveaways. There are also dozens of articles for aspiring authors on her website under the Perils of Publishing tab. Once a teacher, always a teacher. Whether it's contemporary or paranormal, Gerry Bartlett writes romance with a Texas twist.






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Grey Skies Tour and Giveaway


Grey Skies
by William Becker
Genre: Horror

Roman Toguri finds himself burying the body of a nun in Boone, North Carolina. As the skies darken and it begins to storm, he is forced to shove the corpse into his trunk and take it home for the night, unaware of the torment that playing God will bestow upon him.


Enter Hell with two bonus short stories: The White Shade, an ultra-violent look into the mind of a mass shooter, and The Black Box, a psychedelic dive into weird horror.




When I came close enough, I grabbed one of the wooden planks and hoisted myself into the next room. Gazing around, this room immediately seemed fairly ‘cozy.’ The entire room was constructed from the worn wooden planks that were around the edge of the hole. Several feet across from the entrance to the tunnel was a lamp whose shade had turned an ancient shade of brown, filling the room with the orange light that I had seen from the underground, signalling that I had returned to civilization, or at least somewhere with working electricity.

Perhaps the most important feature of the room was a red velvet couch right next to the map, on which sat my familiar friend, the homeless man. A blank, soulless expression covered his face, his eyes unblinking in his focus, or lack thereof.

This was the first time I had seen him in clear lighting, and the black spots on his face resembled a growth or a scab, seeming to extend and pile up over the top of his skin like mold. It was truly disgusting.

I slowly moved to a wooden door near the couch, waiting for him to stop me, but he stared off in the distance, as if he was watching something behind me. I took another step towards the door when my foot planted down on top of something with a gentle crunch, and seemed to stick to the sole of my shoe as I bent down to examine in; hundreds of black specks scurried away from my feet. Each of these specks hurried past me in a large pack, then crawled underneath the couch where the man was sitting, disappearing from sight. My body locked up and I was forced to cringe when I realized that these specks were baby spiders, and I had just stepped on a large sac.

Don’t step on those,” the man muttered, his voice sounding hazy and distant, as if the two of us were miles apart.

“What?” I asked, unsure if I had heard him correctly.

Don’t stomp the eggs,” he replied. His eyes were still locked on something behind me. I glared back, half expecting something to be standing there.

“Why not?”

Because I like them, and they like the cold.

I watched several of the baby spiders move through the holes in his clothes, crawling into them and creating tiny bulges beneath the fabric. I shuddered, and then his head began to turn. It was a painfully slow motion that seemed to last decades, until finally, his eyes rested on me.

I’m finally free, you know.

There was a ticking noise, as if the second hand on a clock was moving, then the orange glow of the lamp was replaced with darkness. The light had been turned off. I wasn’t sure how the man had turned it off, or if the light had simply given out, but despite this, more light leaked into the room from the cracks in the wooden door leading outside, giving a dimmed view of the man on the couch. I glanced back to the floor to see that dozens of the eggs had appeared all across the ground. Had I not seem them earlier? They were a milky white color and about the size of baseballs. A handful of the eggs seemed to wriggle every few seconds, as if they were about to hatch. The light reflected off of them, giving them a shiny appearance in the light.

I looked around, shrugged, then decided it was time to leave. I tiptoed to the door in a state of horrified confusion, leaving the man and his eggs behind.




William Becker is an 18-year-old horror author with a mind for weirder sides of the universe. With an emphasis on complex and layered storylines that tug harshly on the reader to search for deeper meanings in the vein of Silent Hill and David Lynch, Becker is a force to be reckoned within the horror world. His works are constantly unfathomable, throwing terror into places never before seen, while also providing compelling storylines that transcend the predictable jumpscares of the popular modern horror.


His first novel, WEEPING OF THE CAVERNS, was written when he was 14. After eight months of writing, editing, and revising, the story arrived soon after his 15th birthday. During the writing sessions for his debut novel, he also wrote an ultra-controversial short story known as THE WHITE SHADE that focused on the horrors of a shooting. Living in a modern climate, it was impossible for THE WHITE SHADE to see the light of day. Following a psychedelic stint that consisted of bingeing David Lynch movies, weird art, and considering the depth of the allegory of the cave wall, he returned to writing with a second story, THE BLACK BOX, and soon after, his second novel, GREY SKIES.




Follow the tour HERE for exclusive excerpts, guest posts and a giveaway!

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Release Blitz - Save The Date by RJ Scott & V.L. Locey -





Length: 27,000 words approx.

Cover Design: Meredith Russell

Harrisburg Railers Series

Book #1 - Changing Lines - Amazon US | Amazon UK
Book #2 - First Season - Amazon US | Amazon UK
Book #3 - Deep Edge - Amazon US | Amazon UK
Book #4 - Poke Check - Amazon US | Amazon UK
Book #5 - Last Defense - Amazon US | Amazon UK
Book #6 - Goal Line - Amazon US | Amazon UK
Book #7 - Neutral Zone - Amazon US | Amazon UK
Book #8 - Hat Trick - Amazon US | Amazon UK 

Blurb

Ever since he first set foot in Harrisburg, Tennant’s life has been a rollercoaster. Ups and downs too numerous to mention, hard knocks and championship rings. Through all of those monumental moments, one thing has been a constant for him, Jared Madsen. Now that their wedding day is drawing nearer, Ten is seriously considering eloping. He would, if not for his mother, his father, his brothers, the wedding planner, the guests, the cake, the press, and the team. Oh, and then there’s his best friend, who is vying for the job of ringmaster of the wedding circus. Would sneaking off during the night with Jared and skipping to the honeymoon part of the festivities really be all that bad?

When Jared proposed to Ten, he imagined a quiet wedding, on a beach somewhere, with family, and maybe the team. But life gets complicated with Ten’s warring brothers, a Russian goalie with a love of sequins, and a bachelor party organized by Adler. When Trent sends them a wedding planner, every spare hour is filled with choosing invitations, cake tasting, and finding a rose in the perfect shade of green. Add in Layton organizing a press conference, and suddenly their private wedding is destined to become a media sensation. Is it wrong to think seriously about kidnapping Ten and spiriting him away to a small deserted island?

Adler organizing the bachelor party, Trent supplying the wedding planner, and Stan writing a speech. What can possibly go wrong?

USA Today bestselling author RJ Scott writes stories with a heart of romance, a troubled road to reach happiness, and most importantly, a happily ever after.

RJ Scott is the author of over one hundred romance books, writing emotional stories of complicated characters, cowboys, millionaire, princes, and the men who get mixed up in their lives. RJ is known for writing books that always end with a happy ever after. She lives just outside London and spends every waking minute she isn’t with family either reading or writing.

The last time she had a week’s break from writing she didn’t like it one little bit, and she has yet to meet a bottle of wine she couldn’t defeat.

She’s always thrilled to hear from readers, bloggers and other writers. Please contact via the links below:


USA Today Bestselling Author V.L. Locey – Penning LGBT hockey romance that skates into sinful pleasures.

V.L. Locey loves worn jeans, yoga, belly laughs, walking, reading and writing lusty tales, Greek mythology, Torchwood and Dr. Who, the New York Rangers, comic books, and coffee. (Not necessarily in that order.) She shares her life with her husband, her daughter, one dog, two cats, a pair of geese, far too many chickens, and two steers.

When not writing spicy romances, she enjoys spending her day with her menagerie in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania with a cup of fresh java in one hand and a steamy romance novel in the other.


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Release Blitz - Recipe For Romance by Ari McKay





Blurb

Four couples, four different stories -- and one spicy Recipe for Romance from author Ari McKay!

Welcome to Montgomery House, Charleston’s finest restaurant. When you walk in the front doors of the stately former mansion, you’ll be surrounded by true Southern charm. Owner Rhys Montgomery will personally welcome you, while the tantalizing scents of Executive Chef Stephen Pierce’s latest culinary masterpiece linger in the air. Enjoy a walk in the gardens or an elegant meal in the dining room, as you watch the love stories play out around you...

Bay Leaves and Bachelors -- Clay Turner’s heart was broken by a wealthy man who said he was boring. When rich, outgoing restaurateur Rhys Montgomery sets his sights on the quiet academic, drawn in by Clay’s intelligence and sex appeal, he finds he has an uphill battle to win Clay’s trust. Can Rhys burrow his way into Clay’s heart, or will Clay’s insecurity become a wall between them that not even true love can break down?

Fennel and Forgiveness -- Seven years ago, Max Boyd broke Darius Cooper’s heart. Darius wanted a commitment, and Max wanted to focus on his career in Georgia’s television industry. Their ten year difference in age and experience tore them apart, but fate throws them back together when Max arrives at the Montgomery House, where Darius now works. Will Southern Wedding Belles bring them a second chance for love or is Darius’s trust too shattered for Max to heal?

Ginger and Gentlemen -- Ian Pierce has lived in his older brother Stephen’s shadow his entire life, always feeling second best. His best friend, Matt Davis, is the only person he trusts to be on his side. Despite being in dire financial straits, Ian wants to refuse Stephen’s request to film an episode of Mouth of the South at Ian’s restaurant, but the bonus money offered in the contract is too much to resist. He accepts without knowing the hefty bonus comes from Matt, not the production company. Will Ian feel betrayed by the one person he trusts above all others when he finds out, or will Matt’s desire to help Ian succeed even at his own financial risk take them from friends to lovers at last?

Cinnamon and Seduction -- Chef Stephen Pierce has talent and a determination to succeed that is matched only by his fierce temper and prickly personality. Yet his long-suffering personal assistant, Robert Logan, has carried a torch for Stephen since the day they met. Everyone around Montgomery House knows Robert is in love with Stephen -- everyone, that is, except Stephen himself. Can Rhys, Clay, Darius, Max, Ian, and Matt find a way to make Stephen see that Robert is the perfect man for him, or will even Robert’s legendary talent for matchmaking fail to win him the man he loves?

Ari McKay is the professional pseudonym for Arionrhod and McKay, who have been writing together for over a decade. Their collaborations encompass a wide variety of romance genres, including contemporary, fantasy, science fiction, gothic, and action/adventure. Their work includes the Blood Bathory series of paranormal novels, the Herc’s Mercs series, as well as two historical Westerns: Heart of Stone and Finding Forgiveness. When not writing, they can often be found scheming over costume designs or binge watching TV shows together.

Arionrhod is a systems engineer by day who is eagerly looking forward to (hopefully) becoming a full time writer in the not-too-distant future. Now that she is an empty-nester, she has turned her attentions to finding the perfect piece of land to build a fortress in preparation for the zombie apocalypse, and baking (and eating) far too many cakes.

McKay is an English teacher who has been writing for one reason or another most of her life. She also enjoys knitting, reading, cooking, and playing video games. She has been known to knit in public. Given she has the survival skills of a gnat, she’s relying on Arionrhod to help her survive the zombie apocalypse.

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Blog Tour: Aftermath by Tanya Chris

❣️ Aftermath (Ever After Book 3) is LIVE! ❣️



“I love everything about this story and I could not put it down.” ~Sarita, GR Reviewer

“Five stars all round.” ~Jean, GR Reviewer 



~BLURB~
The Ever After series concludes in Aftermath. Tragedy, redemption, love… Ever After

Once upon a time, Casey flirted with a pretty boy at a bar, and that changed everything. Recently released from jail, he’s starting to rebuild without the family who raised him to hate himself. He’s got a new job, a room at his aunt’s, and community service hours at an LGBTQIA community center. But his biggest challenge is figuring out how to live as the one thing his father and brother drilled into him he could never be: a gay man.

Once upon a time, Brooks was a confident Dom with a particular taste for bigger men. But since his run-in with a dangerous homophobe, he’s lost his touch. Big, buff guys are hot but scary, and hurting people isn’t as much fun as it used to be.

Until he meets Casey, the big guy with the problematic past. Casey’s willing to do anything, but does his submission stem from healthy kink or from an unhealthy need to be punished? And is Brooks doling out release or revenge? Two people who share a past as violent as theirs could never fall in love. Unless, somewhere in the aftermath, there’s forgiveness.

Content warning: internalized homophobia, homophobic language, and references to homophobic hate crimes that have occurred in the past



Add to your TBR here: http://bit.ly/tcAftermathGR

Aftercare (Book 1): mybook.to/tcAftercare
Aftershock (Book 2): mybook.to/tcAftershock

~Also on Kindle Unlimited~

Excerpt
“Casey.” Brooks waited until Casey glanced up at him. “I’m not shaming you, okay? I’m just saying there’s safer ways of getting that feeling. Assuming you liked the feeling.” He wouldn’t ask if Casey had liked it. It wasn’t his business, and besides, he could guess.
Casey still didn’t say anything, so Brooks stood up. “All right, good talk. If you ever have any questions….”
“You’ve done it?” Casey’s words stopped him just as he was about to escape from the room. Apparently they were going to talk, after all. He shut the door and leaned back against it.
“I don’t choke people. There’s really no way to do that safely. Safer, but never safe. It’s not a risk I’m willing to take.”
“But other stuff?” Casey asked his boots. They were work boots, well-worn and hideous. Huge. Which of course didn’t mean anything.
“I’ve been in the scene since I turned eighteen, so yeah, I’ve done stuff. I could point you to some resources, give you a few links.”
Casey shuffled those large boots of his across the floor. “Which one are you?” he asked with a quick upward glance, curiosity brimming in his eyes. “Are you the one who hits people or the one who gets hit?”
“That’s personal.”
“Oh.” And there went the eyes back to the floor again.
“Fine. I’m a Dom. Does it matter? I’m going to point you to the same resources either way.”
Casey opened his mouth, and Brooks suddenly knew what was about to come out of it.
“No,” he said, before Casey could ask. “Definitely not.”
“Why not?”
For a moment, Brooks was tempted. God, imagine laying into this slab of a man, putting his marks all over him. Or just getting him to kneel. It didn’t even have to be physical. The emotional high of having his enemy kneeling at his feet would carry Brooks for a month.
But, God. No. Enemy. That wasn’t at all what BDSM was about. He couldn’t go into a scene literally wanting to hurt the person subbing for him.
“You said it wasn’t safe,” Casey said, “what I did. So show me safe.”




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Saturday, June 29, 2019

Once Upon a Death Tour and Giveaway


Once Upon a Death
Days of Death Series Book 1
by Dzintra Sullivan
Genre: Cozy Mystery 

I never chose death—death chose me.
Now I choose change.

Kaah Maah had been the reaper for over a millennia. The mundane repetition of collecting souls night after night from an ever-increasing population was beginning to grind on him. Kaah had witnessed an ocean of unique faces, all confronted with their final moments on earth. Though different in appearance they all showed one final emotion—fear.

Kaah wanted a change. He craved quiet serenity, where he could perfect his yoga poses while listening to his favorite singer Michael Bublè. Kaah wanted nothing more than to retire and become a ‘no one special’ in a ‘nowhere special’ town.

When strange things began happening in Deadend, Ohio, the question had to be asked.

You might be able to take the reaper away from death, but can you ever actually take death away from the reaper?





“Deadend has a reputation for being the most understanding of towns. When it comes to accepting people at face value and tolerating the differences in everybody this town ranks in the top three.” Rork saw Kaah’s mouth open with a question he expected, so he answered it before the words came out. “The other two were in Norway, a tad colder than you prefer.”
Kaah’s mouth shut with a nod of understanding.
“Deadend, the friendly town?” Kaah laughed lightly, sitting back relaxed on the wooden bench once more.


My name is Dzintra Sullivan and I am an international best selling author based on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia. I fell in love with books as a young girl, reading Judy Blume and Enid Blyton. Progressing onto loving the supernatural genre as a teenager and never left. I write paranormal romance, romantic comedy and cozy mysteries. I love to laugh and making my readers laughsnortfart is my primary goal. I won't apologise for who I am, I was born to stand out.




Follow the tour HERE for exclusive content and a giveaway!





Kissing Kin by Karen Hulene Bartell NBTM Virtual Book Tour

KISSING KIN by Karen Hulene Bartell The following scene is one of my favorites in Kissing Kin because it embodies the paranormal romance’s c...