Travel – Vanessa Kelly, Author

Only 5 Sleeps Till Lost in a Royal Kiss!

March 15, 2016November 21, 2013 by VanessaKelly

Lost in a Royal Kiss, the introduction to my new series, The Renegade Royals, will be out next Tuesday. There’s an excerpt on my website, but here’s another little teaser to whet your appetite!

Anthony reached out and trailed a finger along her shoulder to her neck. “I can think of one other reason why you couldn’t sleep, can’t you?”

“Um, no, I cannot.” Linnet needed to get away from him before she did something rash and foolish. “Now, if you don’t mind, I’ll return to my room.”

She started to wriggle away, but when his hand clamped down gently on her shoulder, she froze. He bent his head, looking her in the eyes, and she lost her breath all over again.

“Don’t you want to select something to read before you go?” he teased as one finger softly stroked her neck.

If he kept touching her like that, she might very well melt into the window seat. It terrified her to think what would happen if he placed both hands upon her body.

At a loss for words, she settled for shaking her head.

“No? Well, I have another suggestion for you. One that will be sure to help you sleep, at least afterward.”

She tried to swallow, but her throat went tight. “What’s that?” she managed.

“This.” His mouth covered hers with a hot fervor she felt all the way to the marrow of her bones. One of his hands remained clamped on her shoulder, but the other slipped around her waist. He leaned into her, bending her gently back over his brawny arm.

Linnet moaned as the tips of her breasts brushed up against his linen shirt. When her lips parted, his tongue slipped inside,tasting her with a bone-melting kiss that had her digging her nails into his arms. She wanted to rub against him, and she shook with the force of will required to hold back. But the walls against him would no longer hold, and she finally surrendered to the desperate yearning she’d battled for so many long months. She didn’t resist his kiss, although her dazed mind and body still held her passive in his embrace.

But when one of his big hands settled on her, cuddling her breast, Linnet jerked in his arms. Sensation streaked down to coalesce between her thighs. It seemed her body was not her own, instinctively arching into his hand as she moaned into his mouth.

Unexpectedly, Anthony broke the kiss. The hand at her back moved up, fingers sliding into her loose braid. He gently gripped her head, holding her still as he gazed at her. His eyes were heavy-lidded and dark with passion, but his mouth—his beautiful, strong mouth—was pulled tight, as if he were in pain.

His jaw looked hard as stone and tense enough to shatter. “I’m not stopping, Linnet,” he growled. “Not unless you order me to. Right now.”

Be sure to stop back tomorrow, since I’ll be posting another teaser AND I’ll also be giving away an Advanced Readers Copy of book one in The Renegade Royals, Secrets for Seducing a Royal Bodyguard.

Guest Post: Phoebe Conn & Giveaway!

March 15, 2016February 10, 2012 by VanessaKelly

Multi-published, multi-talented author Phoebe Conn is back on the blog with us today, guest blogging about her latest books. Phoebe has written so many wonderful novels over the course of her distinguished career, and I would urge my readers to check out her extensive backlist on her website. Right now, I’m going to turn the blog over to Phoebe, who’s going to tell us how she researches the settings for her wonderful books.

People often ask me if I travel to do research. When there’s an opportunity, I quickly pack my bags. When my husband served as an Army officer, we lived in Germany and used every day of his leave each year to tour Europe. We took photos and I made notes in a journal. The Internet is terrific for research when I can’t visit the site of a book for colorful detail. I also use travel guides with plenty of photos and essential facts to base my stories in reality.

For DEFY THE WORLD TOMATOES, a Samhain contemporary, I chose a town up the coast from Santa Barbara for the setting and named it Monarch Bay. I crisscrossed the downtown, which was filled with shops catering to tourists. I bought frozen yogurt and watched the people passing by. There is a beautiful outdoor nursery and gift shop there, and it was the inspiration for the Defy the World Tomatoes nursery my heroine and her best friend open. I used a historic mission style inn in Riverside for the inn Griffin and Darcy visit. I had a fictional town, so anything needed for the story could easily be shifted to a new location.

There is a stately Langham Hotel in Pasadena, I chose the setting for a reunion party in TANGLED HEARTS. I visited on a rainy afternoon in my trench coat carrying a clipboard. I walked around the hotel making notes on the décor and bought postcards in the gift shop. (I once heard no one questions someone with a clipboard because they appear to be working.) Favorite restaurants appear in my books. There’s no reason to invent a café when there are so many delightful ones, and it’s a perfect excuse to dine out! Takeout menus provide tasty ideas for meals and are a wonderful resource.

Setting a scene in an actual location adds to the readers’ experience. When a scene is rich in detail, the story comes alive. I toured Scandinavia to collect background for my February Samhain Retro release, CAPTIVE HEART, a passionate Viking adventure. I’ll give a free copy, print or ebook, to one of the people who comment. It’s one of my most popular books and a New York Times bestseller. I love to hear from readers. Please send me an email at:

phoebeconn@earthlink.net, or visit my website.

Well, you heard the lady! Let’s start leaving those comments. Just tell me what country or place you dream of visiting more than any other to have a chance to win Captive Heart.

Hanging Out With My Pal

March 15, 2016September 28, 2011 by VanessaKelly

Hubby and I will be doing something fun this weekend. We’ll be in Atlanta, hanging out with some pals and spending time at the fabulous Moonlight & Magnolias Conference, sponsored by the Georgia Romance Writers (GRW). My second book, Sex And The Single Earl, has been nominated for Best Historical Romance in the GRW’s prestigious contest, The Maggies. Naturally, I was THRILLED to be one of the finalists, but the best reason for finaling was that it gave me an excuse to visit with all my friends in the Atlanta area!

Along with putting on a dynamite conferenece, the ladies of the GRW sponsor a fantastic book fair and autographing session, which is open to the public. I’ll be signing along with some phenomenal authors, including Sherrilyn Kenyon, Eloisa James, Karen White, Shiloh Walker, and Haywood Smith. Zounds! What a line-up! The signing will take place on Oct. 1, from 4 to 5:30 pm in the ballroom of the Decatur Hotel and Conference Center. If you live in the Atlanta area, you really should stop by. The session is free, and I know it’s going to be a lot of fun. Details are available on the GRW website.

I’d also like to announce the winner of Marie Force’s latest book, Georgia On My Mind. It’s Gail S. Congratulations! I’ll be in touch. My next guest on the blog is New York Times best-selling historical romance novelist, Sophie Jordan. She’ll be here this Friday, so be sure to stop on by!

Guest Author: Angie Fox & Riding With The Harley Dogs!

March 15, 2016August 10, 2011 by VanessaKelly

I’m thrilled to welcome New York Times best-selling author Angie Fox to the blog! Angie’s paranormals are sexy, adventurous, and a whole lot of fun. I’m going to turn things over to her now, and she’s going to tell us all about riding with the dogs.

Riding with the Harley Dogs: One Author’s Adventure

I’d always known writing would be an adventure, but I never predicted my writing would put me on the back of a coal black Harley Davidson, with an Irish Setter in tow. I’d set out to write a paranormal about a straight-laced preschool teacher turned demon slayer who has to run off with a gang of geriatric biker witches. But my heroine has a smart-mouthed dog that, thanks to her new powers, can talk…and talk…and talk. And I really loved that dog. What’s a writer to do? Well, I went online and learned that there is a nationwide club of Harley bikers who ride with their dogs. So my heroine could have her pink Harley, and her Jack Russell Terrier too.

And of course I had to meet these Harley riding dog lovers. I called up a few of the members of a Biker Dogs Motorcycle Club and the adventure began. They invited me into their homes, introduced me to their dogs and, like my heroine, the bikers hoisted me up on the back of a Harley, with a dog in tow.

Things I learned right off the bat:

1. After an hour on a Harley, you’ll walk like John Wayne for a week

2. Helmets hurt when they are worn backwards

3. Dogs love riding motorcycles

Stone, the biker who spent the most time making sure I didn’t fall off his hog, showed me how to ride, invited me to some biker rallies (note to self: don’t wear pink next time), and helped make the Accidental Demon Slayer series as real as it can be (for books about a somewhat sheltered preschool teacher turned demon slayer).

So just when I thought I was writing fiction, it seemed my made-up characters from the Accidental Demon Slayer books weren’t so imaginary after all. One of the bikers I met even has a wife who is a biker witch. I’m wondering if she, like my heroine’s biker witch grandma, wears a “Kiss my Asphalt” T-shirt and carries a carpet bag full of Smuckers jars filled with magic. Maybe I’ll find out on my next adventure.

Want to win a copy of The Accidental Demon Slayer?Just take the What’s Your Biker Witch Name? quiz. Post your biker witch name in the comments and you’re entered to win. Good luck!

Vanessa, here. Just for the record, my Biker Witch Name is Hog Wild Harriett Wheelie-Gig! So hop on over to Angie’s quiz and find out what your kick-ass name really is!

Angie Fox is the New York Times bestselling author of several books about vampires, werewolves and things that go bump in the night. She claims that researching her stories can be just as much fun as writing them. In the name of fact-finding, Angie has ridden with Harley biker gangs, explored the tunnels underneath Hoover Dam and found an interesting recipe for Mamma Coalpot’s Southern Skunk Surprise (she’s still trying to get her courage up to try it).

Angie earned a Journalism degree from the University of Missouri. She worked in television news and then in advertising before beginning her career as an author. Visit Angie at www.angiefox.com.