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CURVEBALL NOW AVAILABLE!!

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Some of you know that in addition to my historical romances, I also write sexy contemporary romances with my hubby under the pen name of VK Sykes.  I’m pleased to announce that book four in our USA Today Bestselling series, The Philadelphia Patriots, is now on sale at Amazon, Kobo, Smashwords, and Barnes & Noble. 

Curveball is also available in the iTunes store.

Here’s the blurb for Curveball:

Taylor Page has never wanted anything but a career in major league baseball. Through talent and guts, she’s finally landed a position as Assistant General Manager of the Philadelphia Patriots. But she wants the ultimate prize—General Manager. The only problem is that most men in baseball still don’t take a woman exec seriously, especially a thirty-year old blonde with no on-field experience. She needs to do something big to convince her bosses she has what it takes to run a team.

Veteran Pittsburgh outfielder Ryan Locke’s career is in jeopardy when a suddenly unreliable throwing arm comes on top of rehab from a major injury. He’s had a solid run but he’s not a star with a mega-contract. A single parent with a troubled daughter and an alcoholic mother to provide for, retirement is out of the question. Ryan’s best hope is for a trade to an American League team as a designated hitter, allowing him several more years of play.

When Taylor needs to find a replacement for an injured first baseman, she comes up with an innovative but risky idea: convince her boss to make a trade for Ryan Locke, and then convince the still talented slugger to play first base for the Patriots. With Ryan dead-set against that plan and both their careers on the line, neither Taylor nor Ryan can afford the explosive physical attraction between them. But despite Taylor’s best efforts to resist Ryan’s campaign of seduction, she’s not sure she’s got to willpower to keep from playing along.

And for a limited time, the first three books in the series are available in anthology form, for only 99 cents!  Zounds!  You can’t beat that for a deal.  So, please hop on over to your preferred digital vender to pick up a copy of Curveball and The Philadelphia Patriots 3 Book Box Set.

Happy reading!

 

 

Free Kindle Book!!

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My pal Mia Marlowe writes truly luscious historical romance.  And for you Kindle readers this week, her latest book, Stroke of Genius, is now on free from May 1st to May 5th.  This book has been getting great reviews, including this one from Booksmonthly:

Georgette Heyer with ripped Bodices!

“Crispin Hawke is awkward, dashing, self-assured, rude, everything you’d expect from Georgette Heyer, or even Jane Austen. Grace Makepeace is American. She’s tall, beautiful, and knows what she wants. But she falls for Hawke in a big way and decides that she wants him above everything else. Mia Marlowe is the mistress of saucy historical romances, and Stroke of Genius is pure delight!”

Here’s the blurb for this delightful book:

Can artistic genius…

Crispin Hawke, a brilliant sculptor, is revered by the ton. His works are celebrated in every fashionable parlor, and tales of his fiery bed skills whispered behind every fashionable fan.

transform an awkward heiress…

Grace Makepeace is determined to wed a titled lord, but her Bostonian bluntness leaves much to be desired among the well-heeled London crowd. So to gain their acceptance, she commissions the incomparable Crispin Hawke to sculpt her hands—and asks for love lessons on the side.

into the most sought-after original…

Crispin agrees to school Grace in flirting and the delights of the flesh. But when she catches the eye of a marquess, he realizes he’s done his job a little too well. And suddenly he knows Grace is the one masterpiece he cannot bear to be parted from.

without falling for her himself?

Check out Mia’s website for an excerpt and for the download links on Amazon!

We Have A Winner!!

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The winner of Jennifer McQuiston’s new book is Maureen.  Congratulations!  I’ll be in touch.

Thanks to everyone for stopping by the blog.  I’ve got some great guests lined up for the month of May and I’ll also be posting some exclusive excerpts from my soon-to-be-released VK Sykes book, Curveball, book four in the bestselling Philadelphia Patriots contemporary romances that I write with hubby.

Be sure to stop on by!

Guest Author: Cheryl Bolen & Giveaway!!

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I’m so pleased to have acclaimed historical and romantic suspense writer Cheryl Bolen on the blog today.  Cheryl is the author of more than a dozen Regency-set historical romance novels. Her books have placed in several writing contests, including the Daphne du Maurier, and have been translated into 11 languages. She was named Notable New Author in 1999, and in 2006 she won the Holt Medallion (Honoring Outstanding Literary Talent) for Best Short Historical Novel. Her books have become Barnes & Noble and Amazon bestsellers.

Cheryl also writes romantic suspense as well as Regency romance, so let’s find out about that, too.

You had a distinguished career as a journalist before you began writing romance.  Why the switch and why the Regency Period?

I didn’t consciously decide to switch. I wrote the two simultaneously for many years. My first efforts at fiction were romantic suspense, but I wasn’t able to sell those. After I sold my first book, a historical romance titled A Duke Deceived, in 1997, I just decided I’d rather write fiction exclusively. I still like doing articles and blogging about Regency England, which is all non-fiction.

You’ve recently taken another branch in your career – writing for Amazon’s Montlake imprint.  Was it hard to switch gears from historical romance to romantic suspense?

When Montlake originally approached me to write for them, it was on the strength of my historical romance sales, but then when they said they were looking for serial authors, I instantly thought romantic suspense was a better fit for serials. Before I sold my first book, I’d had a lot of success with romantic suspense in contests for unpublished authors, but after I sold a historical, I put all my eggs in one basket, which isn’t the best thing to do for job security. After I started indie publishing some of my out-of-print historicals, I decided to publish some—but not all—of the romantic suspense novels that had never found a publisher. Not every one was well written enough, but surprisingly, the first book I ever wrote (Capitol Offense) when I was in my early twenties didn’t suck too badly. After re-editing it and updating it a lot, it’s now out, and the reviews have been favorable.

What can you tell us about the new book.  It’s in serial form, right?

So glad you asked about my serial, Vanessa! In my Kindle Serial I’ve combined two of my favorite things: traveling to see England’s stately homes with researching English history. My lighthearted romantic suspense, Falling for Frederick, is about a lovely doctoral student who comes across the dead body of the curator of archives in the basement of Siddley Manor, owned by Frederick Percy, Lord of Rockford. Together, my heroine and Frederick have to crisscross England, searching stately homes for a priceless medieval artifact which may lead them to the murderer.

I’d like to say a word here about the Kindle Serials. At present, they offer a new episode of approximately 10,000 words (3 chapters for me) every two weeks. They may be changing the frequency to every week. Whenever someone purchases one of these serials, they pay a one-time fee of $1.99 and automatically get all episodes that have thus far been published. Then each new installment is free. When mine is finished at the end of April, Falling for Frederick will be available as a full-length novel as well as an audio book. It won’t be available internationally until that time. Currently, it’s only available at Amazon.

What’s up next in Cheryl’s writing world?

I’ve been catching my breath. I just finished writing the serial. I had two books come out in October, including a Regency-set inspirational romance (Marriage of Inconvenience) for Love Inspired Historical, a division of Harlequin. Like with Montlake, the senior editor there asked me to write for Love Inspired. She was a joy to work with, and I’ve found a huge market of readers who don’t necessarily want their romances sexy. I need to do proposals for a second stately home murder featuring Frederick and Antonia as well as Book 3 in my well-received Regent Mystery series.

Sounds great!  Folks, Cheryl is graciously giving away a copy of her new Harlequin book, Marriage of Inconvenience.  To be eligible to win, just tell us which genre you prefer, historical romance or romantic suspense, and a bit about why.  Or do you like both?

And by sure to stop by Cheryl’s website for info on all her books!

Guest Author: Laurie London & Giveaway!!

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I’m so pleased to be featuring romance author Laurie London.  Laurie writes the Sweetblood and Iron Portal series—dark, sexy paranormal romances, set primarily in the Pacific Northwest. Publisher’s Weekly calls the Sweetblood series “sexy” and “sizzling.”  And here’s what Joyfully Reviewed had to say about Seduced by Blood, book 4 of the Sweetblood series, which was a recommended read:

“Get ready to be blown away by powerful romance and action in Seduced by Blood.  I am so excited about this book I can hardly stand it.”

Wow!  High praise, indeed.

Laurie is starting a new series with her Iron Portal books.  She’s kicking things off with her Assassin’s Touch novella, which is already getting great reviews:

“Ms. London begins her Iron Portal series in style! Assassin’s Touch grabs the reader from page one and gives us a fierce and passionate story…The plot line keeps you on the edge of your seat aching to find out what will happen next. I cannot wait to visit the Iron Portal series again!” Joyfully Reviewed, Recommended Read

Here’s the blurb for Assassin’s Touch:

Two worlds. Two enemies.

Haunted by loss, Cascadian assassin Rickert D’Angelus is on a mission of vengeance. Determined to stop the Pacifican army from finding a portal to his world, he leads a group of warriors into New Seattle with one goal—to kill Pacifican soldiers.

Neyla Trihorn had the perfect life until a deadly accident revealed her latent para-abilities. Now, the former fashion designer is the Pacifican army’s hottest commodity in their fight against the invaders.

When Rickert discovers a beautiful, unconscious soldier on a cold mountain ledge near the portal, he realizes she’s a Protection-Talent and cannot be killed. To prevent the army from using her skills again, he takes her as his prisoner instead.

One fated touch…

But when he pulls her into his arms, a sexy and compelling vision appears, awakening something inside him. Something he can’t ignore.

Torn between duty and passion, Rickert must decide if the vision is a Talent trick designed to foil the enemy or the answer to his deepest desires…

Sounds excellent, doesn’t it?  And what a great cover!  To read an excerpt, be sure to visit Laurie’s website, where you’ll also find the buy links to all your favorite retailers.

For my readers today, Laurie is giving away a copy of her new novella.  To be eligible to win, just tell us what qualities you like to see in your romance heroes in general, and your paranormal heroes in particular!

And be sure to look for Laurie on facebook and Twitter!

 

We Have Winners!!

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The winner of Ashlyn Macnamara’s book is Barbara Elness.  And the winner of Meredith Bond’s book is Maria.  Congratulations, ladies!  I’ll be in touch.

Thanks to everyone for stopping by the blog.  My guest author tomorrow will be the fabulous Laurie London.  Be sure to stop by!

Guest Author: Meredith Bond & Giveaway!!

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I’m so pleased to have fellow Kensington author Meredith Bond visiting the blog today.  Meredith writes my first love – Regency Romance – as well as YA Fantasy and Regency-set paranormal romance.  She’s a very interesting person as well as an accomplished writer and teacher.  I’m eager to find out more!

I see that you’re a writing teacher. Do you teach fiction or non-fiction, and how does that affect your own writing life?

I teach fiction writing – I take my students, through a series of courses, from how to organize yourself to write and start a novel in a class called “Start Write”, through the bigger concepts in fiction writing (developing characters, setting, story structure, etc.) in “Chapter One”, to the narrower aspects (POV, dialogue, show and tell, etc.) in “Craft of Writing”, to editing, right on through to publishing. I’ve even got a book out so that others can “take” two of my writing courses (Chapter One and Craft of Writing) called Chapter One.

Teaching is fantastic because as I teach each a class, I go through my own writing to make sure I’m applying the lesson I’m teaching. It really keeps me on my toes!

Tell us about your series, The Merry Men Quartet. Which book is up first, and what’s it about?

The Merry Men Quartet is a really fun series of Regency romances about four friends and how each find love. They were first published by Kensington Publishers, but now I’ve gotten the rights back to two of them, and in another few years I’ll get the rights back to the other two. They were published out of order to begin with, and unfortunately will be again just because of the way I’m getting them back (so disappointed!).

The first book to be re-published will actually be the first book chronologically – An Exotic Heir (originally published as Love of My Life). It’s the story of a sweet English girl, Cassandra Renwick, who flees to her parents in Calcutta, India, when she is treated badly by a member of the ton. She soon finds herself fascinated by the city – and her guide, the dark and mysterious Julian Ritchie. Julian has always faced discrimination for being only half-English, especially from Lady Renwick. When he meets Cassandra, he sees her as the perfect opportunity to get back at her mother – by making Cassandra fall in love with him. He soon finds that payback can be painful when you get caught in your own trap.

We all have different reasons for loving the Georgian and Regency periods. What are some of yours?

I love the juxtaposition of strict rules and the amount of flouting of those rules that goes on in Regency novels – it creates so many opportunities for some great stories.

What’s up next in your writing life?

I’m actually working hard on three projects, if you can believe it! I’m desperately trying to finish a short story (the third story of my Storm series), which I’m going to submit to the next WG2E anthology. (I published a short story in their last one, Tales From The Mist.) I’m editing the next book in the Merry Men Quartet, A Dandy in Disguise, which I hope to publish in April. And I’m working on a New Adult Paranormal trilogy (two books are done, but for some editing and the third is half written) – it’s a medieval tied to the Arthurian myths and loads of fun! If I can get those done, I’ll be the happiest person because I’ve been working on them for about four years now!

Thanks so much for that great interview!  Readers, Meredith is giving away a copy of Book One in her quartet, An Exotic Heir.  Since Meredith’s book is a historical not set in England, let’s talk about that.  What other countries would you like to see a historical romance take place in?  One person who comments will win a copy of An Exotic Heir.

Exciting News & Some Winners!!

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On Thursday, I was gobsmacked and absolutely thrilled to find out that my VK Sykes contemporary romance anthology, The Philadelphia Patriots, cracked the USA Today Bestsellers list at #128.  Woot!  These books are the sports romances that I write with hubby under the VK Sykes pen name.  This is the first time I cracked the list under any name, so I’m pretty chuffed about it.  The anthology has also been in the Top 100 in the Kindle Store for twelve days, which is also cool.  I’m VERY grateful to our readers for all their support.

For a short time, this anthology is on sale for only 99 cents – that’s three full-length books for less than a buck, one of which won the Kindle Book Review Best Indie Books of 2012 Contest in the romance category (Hardball).  So, if you haven’t yet downloaded The Patriots, what are you waiting for?  The anthology is currently available on Amazon, B & N, Kobo, Apple, and Smashwords.  And you can find out about our other VK Sykes books on our website.

And now to those winners!  The winner of Sally MacKenzie’s book is Sheila M.  And the winner of the Monica Burns giveaway is May.  Congratulations, ladies!  I’ll be in touch.

Thanks to everyone for stopping by the blog.  My guests next week will be historical romance authors Ashlyn Macnamara and Meredith Bond.  Be sure to stop by!