Help me Welcome, ALLISON MERRITT !

 A little bit about Allison.......

A life-long love of reading turned Allison Merritt into an indie author who writes historical, paranormal and fantasy romances, often combining the sub-genres. She lives in a small town in the Ozark Mountains with her husband and dogs. When she's not writing or reading, she hikes in national parks and conservation areas

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I'm thrilled to be featuring Allison today and putting the spotlight on her new e-book release, The Treasure Hunter's Lady.  Below I've included a blurb of the book to entice you.

 Blurb:

On the outside, Romy Farrington has the perfect life—a world-famous archaeologist father, a pretty dowry and an upcoming marriage to a wealthy businessman. But to Romy, her new life among the elitists is like a punishment.

For years, she traveled the world at her father's side, exploring new lands and uncovering ancient secrets. It was everything she ever wanted, until a near-fatal encounter with hostile natives forced her and her father into a life of retirement in Boston and an undesired advance into proper society.

Everything changes again when she's saved from an accident by a brash Texan in a back alley. Abel Courte may act like a carefree cowboy, but he's harboring a secret—he's searching for the Diamond of Uktena, a legendary jewel that can cure any disease known to man. He needs information Romy's father has in order to get to the jewel. When he traces the origin of the Diamond to Dakota Territory, he sets off to claim the treasure, only to find the archaeologist's fiery redheaded daughter stuck to him like a bug in sap.

In a race against time, Romy and Abel must learn to trust each other as they undertake a cross-country journey that will expose them to lands uncharted by white men, a deadly battle against the fearsome creature in possession of the Diamond and a fight to return to civilization where they might make the greatest discovery of all—love. 

Intrigued?  Then I suggest that you hop over to Barnes & Noble or Amazon and get a copy.    Still need a bit more convincing?  Drop back by on Saturday when I'll be reviewing The Treasure Hunter's Lady on the Saturday Book Review.

In the meantime, here are the links so you can learn more about Allison and maybe even leave a comment....I can tell you for a fact, authors always love to hear from readers and fans. 

Blog - Have Novel, Will Edit http://havenovelwilledit.blogspot.com

Twitter - http://twitter.com/allison_merritt

FB fan page - http://www.facebook.com/allisonmwrites?sk=app_176932522353297

Amazon author page - http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B006LZV3QS

SATURDAY BOOK REVIEW !!

BETWEEN A ROCK AND A MAD WOMAN

    by:  Stephanie Queen

This is a catchy title, but more so once you meet the two main characters.  Madeline, also known as Mad for short and Peter, also known as The Rock.

Book Blurb:

“Madeline Grace was always expected to do great things, but she discovers the price of destiny means running for governor--against a man who was once her lover.

In this world of politics, romance wins over cynicism and the good guys finish first. Not since JFK, has a political candidate used his wit and charm to such an advantage as Peter “the Rock”. On the other hand, there hasn’t been a woman so admired as a crusader against corrupt power since Joan of Arc… until “Mad” Madeline. Madeline is running for Governor of Massachusetts against Peter. Madeline and Peter were once in love—before she broke his heart.

In the midst of the campaign battle they re-ignite their volatile relationship, but on warring sides of the ticket, they can’t afford for the media to find out. As they fight each other for office they find they have an enemy in common. When their enemy drives up the stakes, Peter must decide if he’ll risk his career and fight with Madeline to overcome the political crisis. Madeline has to decide if she trusts Peter—and whether she still loves him.”

The author immediately drags the reader into the world of political campaign and makes the reader root for both sides of the ticket.  While I was reading, I wondered how she was going to allow both of her main characters to “win” when she wrote two such compelling candidates.  (Since I couldn’t imagine either of them losing) 

Well, the obvious would be for her to join him on the ticket as his Lieutenant Governor… at least in Peter’s mind, but Madeline will have none of that.  They differ on a lot of issues and she refuses to play second fiddle to a man…again.

There are twists and turns and even the secondary characters are compelling.  I could easily see a couple of them having their own story.  (Loved the Special Ops guys)

I was captured immediately and read straight through without stopping.  I didn’t want to put it down until I found out what was going to happen!

For me, the kiss of death or the two thumbs up depends on whether or not I love the characters enough to want to continue reading about them after the story ends.  In this case, I would love to read a sequel to Between A Rock and A Mad Woman. You owe it to yourself to buy and read this book.

Want a suggestion?  Right now you can get Between A Rock and a Mad Woman and her second book, Throwbacks, for $ .99 and I have to tell you...that's a bargain that a girl just can't pass up.  Oh, and after you read about Rock and Madeline, you'll want to read more stories written by Stephanie, so save yourself some time and go ahead and get Throwbacks while you're at Amazon and B&N.

 Amazon

Barnes and Noble 

Happy Reading and Merry Christmas!

SATURDAY BOOK REVIEW

"When Anna LeBonte's estranged husband is found murdered, she becomes the main suspect.  Only one person is willing to help her, her mysterious neighbor, Brent Stirling.  Brent knows the only reason he's helping Anna is to ease the festering guilt inside of him.  But when the events turn personal, and he finds himself falling for Anna, Brent knows he can't walk away.  But he may be risking their lives."

When I first asked Barbara Phinney to be a guest author on my blog, I had not read any of her books.  Since then, I've read two and enjoyed them both.

Souvenirs is about two emotionally scarred people who have "souvenirs" from past hurts--hurts that they can help each other overcome.  Anna is the victim of a husband who controls by intimidation and Brent feels guilty about the death of men under his command--and has scars to remind him daily of his mistakes.

I like Anna because she is at the point in life where she is ready to stand up for herself and leave her husband...but before she can file for divorce, he is found murdered.  Whoops, not good.  When everything looks grim for her future--when the police focus in on her as the suspect and stop looking elsewhere, she has one man willing to believe her and help.

Brent, although he sports some physical scars, is an Alpha hero who makes you forget his scars as he does what an Alpha hero does best--he does whatever is necessary to save his lady.

Barbara has given the characters in her book real-to-life issues and is true to them by writing a story of how love can heal wounds and build bridges of trust. Like any well-written suspense, Barbara Phinney has included interesting twists that keep the reader guessing until the end and I was not disappointed when her husband's killer was exposed.

Souvenirs   (Amazon)  For a list of all her books... (Amazon)   Barnes & Noble

If you'd like to read more about Barbara Phinney or follow her, click on her name and check out her personal website.

SATURDAY BOOK REVIEW!!

Today I'm featuring Debbie Kaufman's debut novel, The Doctor's Mission.  It's a Love Inspired Historical by Harlequin and it's located in Liberia, a setting that I've never seen used before, but one I found fasinating since Debbie brought some of the tribal customs into her book for...flavor.  Oh, did I mention that there are cannibals in this jungle?

Maybe you've never thought of a missionary as an alpha male...well, Debbie stepped outside the sterotype and  gave us (Pastor) William Mayweather.
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In the story, Mary O'Hara is a red-haired doctor and she's in a caravan through the jungle to the outpost hospital.  A shot has been fired, so she rushed to the front of the procession, even though William has told her to stay to the back and remain out of sight.
            

      Looking down the hill to the spot where the path widdened at the village edge, Mary saw William.  Hanabo was on one side and another porter, Jabo maybe, stood on the other.  She stopped were she was to take in the scene.  No one lay on the ground or clutched a wound.  Who or what had been shot?
      All of her dramatic worries and it was just a serious discussion with a group of natives.  No one was at war here.
      All of them were deferring to the one native in a worn black bowler hat and bright red loincloth standing with his arms folded across his chest, a chest hung with some type of decorative necklace.  Must be the chief.
      Whoever he was, she knew the moment he became aware of her.  He put out a bony finger and pointed.  Was he ponting at her?  All conversation ceased.
     William turned to see what Bowler Hat was pointing to, and if there had been any doubt in her mind she was the object of attention, the glare from William removed it.
     Bowler Hat began to speak.  Mary wasn't close enough to hear anything.  By the frequency of gestures, there was a debate or perhaps a trade.  She knew that trading was one way a missionary made inroads into a tribe's favor.
     The conversation ended abruptly.  Bowler Hat's arms were back in place across his chest.  William and Hannabo turned and headed toward the caravan.  Hannabo looked on stolidly, but William's face morphed from blank and emotionless to raw fury.
     When he drew near, his voice came out in a low hiss.  "I told you to stay put.  Turn around and follow behind me."
     "I beg your pardon.  I..."
     "If you don't want to be that old man's newest wife, you'll do as I say and you'll do it right now."
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Then there's the moments when Mary is wondering what's in the stew and, quite frankly, that's where I would have made the decision to run for home.

Debbie has proven to be an engaging writer, one who weaves facts into her story and leaves the reader wanting more about William and Mary when the story ends.  I can only hope that there will be more stories set in Liberia because the first book is a very interesting trip through the jungle.

ROAD TRIP!!!!

Hi Everyone,

This morning Debbie Kaufman and I are heading West on a road trip.  Sounds exciting, right?  Well, we're excited about it, but it's only a few-hour drive...over to Birmingham, AL... and only for one night.

Yes, we're both leaving our hubbies to fend for themselves while we head to a Reader's Luncheon where we'll hostess a table of readers during the luncheon and then we'll be signing books afterward.  Since we're driving over today (Fri) it will give us time to get in a lot of writing where we're away from the household distractions and then we'll be fresh and smiling in the morning for the Luncheon.

I'll be sure to tell you more about the luncheon after I return...and I'll include some pictures, but in the meantime, don't forget that tomorrow (Saturday) is the Saturday Book Review and I'm featuring Lisa Mondello's book, The Knight and Maggie's Baby.   DON'T MISS IT!!!
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My Special Guest, today is author, LISA MONDELLO !!

Hi Everyone!
 I'm excited about my guest today.  She's a fabulous writer and despite being snowed in without power, she got this blog to me so noone would be disappointed.  This lady deserves a medal...and a cup of hot chocolate and a nice fire in the fireplace.   After you read her post, be sure to leave a comment ....the least we can do for her is to warm her heart.   So, take it away, Lisa! 

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Hello from Lisa Mondello.  I want to thank Sandra for having me here today!

                       

I am sending this post from my cell phone because 18 inches of snow that fell Saturday knocked out my power. So this will be short and sweet.

I want to talk about determination. If blogging from a cell phone isn't determination I don't know what is!

As a writer you need determination as much as you need talent to survive in publishing. So often I hear of a writer getting a rejection or two and then just quitting. That writer will never survive the publishing industry with a give-up attitude!

To survive you need to be tenacious. Allow yourself tine to feel bad about rejection. But have a plan and then move on.  I have a 24-hour rule. I get to mope and eat chocolate for 24 hours and then it’s right back to work.  What do you do to survive the publishing industry’s ups and downs?

Thank you for stopping by.

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Lisa has graciously offered to give away a copy of The Knight and Maggie's Baby to one lucky commenter today, so leave your comment!

 

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ALSO, as an added bonus for those of you who own a Kindle, below is a link to go to Amazon to get a free copy of ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU.

Amazon

For a listing of all Lisa's books, click on one of the two links below...and Happy Reading!
                                Barnes & Noble
                                Amazon 



Don't forget that on Saturday I'll be posting the SATURDAY BOOK REVIEW and my featured book is THE KNIGHT AND MAGGIE'S BABY.  I can't wait to tell you about it, so don't forget to drop by and leave a comment on Saturday.