Saturday, January 24, 2015

New Release with Samanthya Wyatt, The True One





So pleased to have the wonderful Samanthya Wyatt on my blog today. Love the cover of her book and the excerpt will make you want to know more.


Thanks you Maggie for having me here today. I appreciate your helping me celebrate the release of book 2 in the‘One and Only Series’.

Ever since I can remember, I’ve loved curling up with a book. When I was young I wrote poems and short stories. When I graduated, my life changed. I married a military man, traveled across the US and abroad, settled in the Shenandoah Valley and had a family. Then I found romance novels. I fell in love with the characters and needed to know their happy ending.

When I couldn’t afford to buy them, I wrote my own stories. I’ve taken every workshop I could to improve my writing. I’ve entered many contests. I joined RWA and joined several chapters. Savvy Authors offered a pitch contest with several editors, agents and publishers. Coming up with a pitch—25 words or less—is extremely difficult when you’re in a group with thousands of other authors. But I got the attention of 3 editors and two different publishing companies. My dream paid off. I signed my first contract with Soul Mate Publishing.

My characters are fictitious. I have taken real life experiences to achieve the emotion on paper for my characters. I do a lot of research for the time period, studying the lingo / slang and culture. With appropriate details, hopefully I put the reader in the setting.

I find that I get a lot more accomplished if I just sit at the computer and write. As long as I write something, I just keep going. Later I can delete or gather tidbits together. And I have deleted whole chapters. But if I want my story to go somewhere and be a good MS, there has to be GMC. I learned this from many workshops. I learned how to do character sketches, GMC charts, plots—everything one needs to bring a story together.

I’m so excited to talk about “The True One” my sequel, book 2 in the One and Only Series. In the first book of the series, “The Right One”, Katherine’s brother is missing. Book 2 is Stephen’s story—“The True One”.

His ship in splinters and his men captured, Stephen is a broken man. Yet the torture he received by his enemies is nothing compared to the torment he bears from an angel with lavender eyes.

Jennifer left England full of a young girl’s fantasies of romance and adventure. When she cares for a near death captain, memories emerge of the family she left behind. Will the passion they share be enough? He must choose – her or revenge.

My first submission to an editor resulted in a rejection. Being a beginner, I was not surprised. And I didn’t let it get me down. The thing that impressed me the most was a comment—what happened to the brother? She told me the story had holes. All questions needed to be answered.

So I worked on my story, but decided Kat’s brother was a story all by itself.

So the sequel, book 2, is about Kat’s brother. Why he was gone for two years, what happened to him, and a love story all his own.

Is there a book 3? Of course. The third book in the series is about Giles. He was introduced in the first book as Morgan’s best friend—the duke. In the second book, he is asked to rescue Stephen.


Find out what happened to Kat’s brother in the thrilling sequel of the One and Only series.

The True One


Captain Stephen Radbourn accepts an intriguing proposition which results in horror. His ship in splinters and his men captured, he is a broken man. A band of rebels rescue their leader from a dungeon, taking the near dead captain with them. Fearing capture and thinking the tortured man will die, they leave Stephen in the care of a woman, who he believes is an angel of mercy. A man of passion, with a trail of satisfied maidens to prove it, he finds his heart captured by the lovely widow. But she forces him to choose—her or revenge.

Jennifer Faircloth departed England full of a young girl’s fantasies of romance and adventure. Her young husband dies leaving her a widow to survive alone in a foreign land. When a near death English captain is dropped at her door, memories emerge of the family she foolishly left behind. While caring for him, her curious imagination turns to an overwhelming awareness she cannot deny. He must flee for his life and he takes her with him—back to England—back to the family she’d deserted. She wants her family to forgive her, but she wants Stephen’s love even more.




I love to hear from readers. Please visit my website here:  www.samanthyawyatt.com

I invite you to lay the worries of the world off your shoulders and get lost in the pages of a romance, where you embark on a journey with the hero and heroine, become involved in a dream, plunge into a world of fantasy, and live an adventure your heart can share.

Enjoy an excerpt from The True One


He was dead.
He had to be. For serenity enclosed him. Fresh air cloaked him. A cloud of softness wrapped him. Comfort would mean he’d gone to heaven, when he had been destined for hell. Slowly, Stephen became aware of soreness, then stinging, then blinding pain. Sure signs of hell.
The lilting voice of an angel drew him to an unbelievable place of calm. The honeyed sound soothed his mind to a state of ease. Alleviating his anxiety. Diminishing his pain. The most enchanting dream he’d ever held.
 He opened his eyes with excruciating sluggishness. The first glimpse of light splintered his skull with a sharp stabbing. He slammed his eyes closed with a long groan. He’d been denied sunlight for so long, he thought never to see the light of day again.
His insides still stuck to his backbone. He breathed as deeply as his broken ribs allowed, then grounded his teeth over the agonizing ache. Slashing pain shot through his jaw stirring more memories. Oh yes. That had been broken too.
A bed? He took a moment to grasp his surroundings. Unfamiliar hands. Gentle hands. He thought he’d felt movement at one time, dreamed he was in a wagon.
 Flashes of torture penetrated his skull—men with curved knives and jeweled handles, shackles, a pit for a prison cell. He struggled with the bonds squeezing him when the sweetest sound of an angel pulled him from the dark fog. Reassuring hands swabbed a wet cloth over his feverish skin and coaxed him to swallow. Blessed relief to his parched lips. Now he lolled in a bed.
With a sense of unease he pondered his situation, wondering what state of play brought him to this consequence. He inhaled, taking in pleasant air. No stench. No slimy creatures. Where was he? At this point he didn’t care. As long as he no longer suffered the Raj’s torture.
Slowly, and more cautious this time, he lifted one lid to a narrow slit. The swelling around his eye had gone down considerably. He glanced down to find a hand-sewn quilt, like the ones his mother made. Definitely a bed. Which also resembled his English heritage. Had he somehow been transported back to England?
He rolled his head against the pillow’s softness. His mind wandered restlessly through a mirage of shadows. His ribs were on fire. He searched the room. A window stood open and the thin covering wavered as if the wind blew gently to make it dance. A crude piece of furniture beyond the bed with items scattered about. To the right a door. He wondered who was on the other side. Friend or adversary? He closed his eyes for a moment, seeking relief. Ignoring the pain in his skull, he turned his head to the right and saw the delicate creature in his dream. An angel of mercy, with dark hair falling about her shoulders. Long sweeping lashes brushed velvety cheeks. Instant awareness surged through his body. At least the devils hadn’t killed that part of him.
On the heels of that thought, he wondered if she were a maid or the wife of some possessive husband. If she were his wife—perish the thought—he would never leave her alone in any room with a strange man, incapacitated or no. Especially not in close proximity of a bed.
And he was naked. Bare as a new baby’s bottom.



You can also find Samanthya Wyatt on Soul Mate Publishing, Hearts Through History, Facebook, goodreads and amazon.




Buy links:
The True One          http:amzn.to/1uSAlFl
The Right One        http:amzn.to/1lEk2qY
Something More     http:amzn.to/1mhTqw4




Friday, January 23, 2015

Friday Pen Pals with Tima Maria Lacoba and her book Bloodgifted






Bloodgifted
Book Description:

Being unable to age is only the beginning.

Laura Dantonville is shocked to learn her strange genetic mutation, is linked to a dark family secret—a centuries-old curse that turned her Roman ancestor into a vampire. Now that she has come of age, she is the key to breaking that curse. But she’s also the prey of rogue vampires who inhabit the city’s frightening and violent underworld, as her blood gives them the ability to daywalk. For her protection she’s assigned a guardian—the handsome, sexy and dangerous Alec Munro.

And he wants nothing to do with her. If not for her family, Alec Munro would never have been transformed into a vampire. He owes them nothing, yet he also knows his own fated role in breaking the curse, and the unthinkable consequences should he not accept.

To the Brethren, the ending of the curse spells disaster. Among a powerful few malice grows . . .




BLOODGIFTED EXTRACT #1


I spun around to face him, but as I was still out of breath all I could do

was stand there, with my hands clenched by my side, and glare at him. He

moved away from the door and came slowly toward me. I took a step back.

‘It occurred to me I don’t like the idea of becoming a single mother,’ I

managed to say between breaths.

‘You should have thought of that sooner.’ He pulled his T-shirt over his

head and dropped it on the floor.

I stared open mouthed at his chiselled body, the rippling muscles of his

torso and the sword and serpent tattoo on his left breast. It was identical to

the image on the stained glass window. On impulse, I reached out and

touched it.

‘All the men have one. It marks us as belonging to Luc’s clan,’ he said.

‘Does he have one too?’

‘Yes.’ The look in his eyes intensified. ‘Keep touching me, Laura.’

My hands traced the hard planes of his chest, stomach and the

delectable trail of dark hair that disappeared below the tops of his jeans.

‘You told me never to touch you again. You still feel that way?’

‘If I did, I wouldn’t be agreeing to this. It’s only sex, nothing more. A

means to an end.’

‘Did I promise anything more?’

No, he didn’t. This was, as he so succinctly put it, a business

arrangement.


Author Bio:




Tima Maria Lacoba is a former ancient historian and archaeologist who accidently smashed a 3,000 Egyptian vase while on her first dig! Her supervisor made her glue it back together again. It took a week. From there she went on to specialise in late Roman-British archaeology, and the military forts along Hadrian’s Wall, because buildings don’t smash as easily. Now she’s combined her love of history with another passion—story-telling—to create a dark tale of Roman soldiers cursed by a British witch.
Tima always been a storyteller, but it wasn't until five years ago that she seriously ventured into writing. The result was Bloodgifted. In 2011 it was shortlisted in the Atlas Award and eventually came fourth place. In 2012 it was listed among the top ten in the Choclit Search for an Aussie Star Competition. In 2013, she was offered a publishing contract but declined in favour of going indie, preferring the idea of being in charge of her own creation
Bloodgifted is just the start of a four-part series I've entitled, The Dantonville Legacy. Book 2, Bloodpledge, was released four months ago, and Book 3, Blood Vault, is due for release June 2015. She also intends to satisfy her fans requests by writing individual books on the other characters in the series. So Terens, Cal Jake and Sam will each have their own story.
Tima currently lives on the Central Coast, an hour's drive north of Sydney in Australia. Her little house is surrounded by bushland, possums and seed-dropping Rosellas on one side, and waterways on the other.
Between bouts of writing, she can be found in the kitchen baking yet another chocolate recipe. This activity is responsible for forming more gothic, urban fantasy stories in her mind for future books






Twitter – http://www.twitter.com/timamarialacoba


Facebook – http://www.facebook/TimaMariaLacoba


Goodreads – http://www.goodreads/TimaMariaLacoba


My website – http://timamarialacoba.blogspot.com


Amazon Author page - http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B00FIZXFJA


Tsu - https://www.tsu.co/timamarialacoba

Friday, January 16, 2015

Friday Pen Pals with Kim Hotzon








Teaser for Hands Full of Ashes, by Kim Hotzon

A sensual, romantic suspense novel inspired by a journey of love in Africa.


Blurb


Olivia promises to fulfill her dying husband's wish - to scatter his ashes around the world. Wading through grief and depression, she journeys to a remote orphanage in Uganda. Living amongst the children in their threadbare surroundings, she vows to fight for the children's lives as she begins to fight for her own. While Olivia develops a passion for humanitarian work, the lonely director of the orphanage develops a simmering passion for her.

Just as time begins to heal the wounds of Olivia's fragile heart, her world is shattered when she is involved in a violent encounter with an armed rebel group in the picturesque mountains of Uganda. Olivia flees to the safety of Rwanda, where she learns the truth of her husband's unimaginable betrayal.

As Olivia hovers on the brink of an emotional collapse, her broken soul is reawakened with a startling new love - but her life is about to take another dramatic turn as she struggles to survive in a region left torn apart by civil war. It will take every ounce of Olivia's courage to hang on to those she loves the most but it may come at a great cost to all of them. She didn't want to miss a single breath, any slight movement. It was so hard to see him as he was now, skeletal and pale, his veins prominent against the sickly pallor of his face, and yet she couldn't look away.

Excerpt


Jack opened his eyes, straining to focus on his wife. “Don't forget your promise,” he whispered.

Olivia swallowed hard as she tried to steady her trembling lips.

“I won't.” She laid her cheek against his dark stubble. “I love you, Jack,” she said quietly, though she feared he couldn't hear her. “And I will keep your promise.”

In response, the monitor emitted a terrifying, steady beep. Its line coursed straight across the bottom of the screen. Olivia let out a whimper and plunged forward, burying her face in his neck.

“He's gone,” the nurse said.

Olivia's eyes went to her husband's face again. He looked peaceful. No more pain. She ran her hand along the cheap cotton blanket, and it folded in her fingers against the outline of his leg. Still warm.

Grief surrounded her, and she willingly fell into its depths. Images of their wedding swirled around in her head. Olivia remembered the excitement of being with Jack, the heat that reached out from his muscular arms whenever he embraced her. Snapshots of their home, their ski trips, and quiet nights with their dog Scruffy floated vividly in her mind. Her future now loomed over her, bleak and lonely. She would never have this kind of love again.


Bio.



Kim Hotzon


Born in beautiful British Columbia, Kim developed a passion for writing at an early age. Her interest in people led her all over the globe, including a two year stay in Japan and a humanitarian trip to Rwanda.

She loves to write romance stories with a twist, usually involving a dangerous and dramatic backdrop. Her first novel, Hands Full of Ashes, was inspired by her trip to Africa.

Kim spent many years teaching young adults with learning disabilities at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, and she currently resides in the sunny Okanagan with her husband and two children. When not writing, she can be found plying the local ski hills, or getting lost in her kayak in the surrounding lakes.

You can get in touch with Kim by visiting her website http://www.kimhotzon.com/ or follow her on:





Amazon link below: