Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Nicola Marsh Cover Reveal

Good girls finish last? Screw that.

Being a small town girl isn’t so bad. Unless Mom’s the town joke and I’ve spent my entire life shying away from her flamboyance. College in Las Vegas should be so much cooler. But it’s not. Bad things happen there. Real bad.

So when my big brother Reid offers me an all-expenses paid vacation to Australia for a month, I am so there. Discounting the deadly snakes on the outback cattle station, I should be safe. Until I meet Jack.

Jack defines bad boy and then some. And the guy can cook. He’s big, buffed, bronzed, and hotter than any guy I’ve ever met. And his sexy Aussie accent makes me melt.

But he’s my brother’s new bestie and he lives on the other side of the world. There’s no future for us.
Is there?


Thursday, October 17, 2013

Montana Born

Do you love a cowboy? Four of my very favourite authors have just produced a series of novellas - Copper Mountain Rodeo and I've been working my way through them as they've appeared in the UK.

First up is Tempt Me, Cowboy by Megan Crane.

This is an absolute firecracker of a book. I loved it from the moment the hero sees the heroine standing on the sidewalk. He knows he's in trouble. We know he's in trouble. Loved it and rushed to download the second in the series,  Marry Me, Cowboy from Lilian Darcy.

Lilian's book is centred around the Copper Mountain rodeo and there was a whole lot of stuff that I hadn't a clue about. Barrel racing? Nope... But none of that mattered. It was all about the emotion, the connection of two people who'd been walking around their feelings for a very long time. Utterly gorgeous.

Third in the series is Promise Me, Cowboy by C J Carmichael which isn't out in the UK yet, but I'm keeping a watch for this, because I know CJ will give me an equally good time.

And I'll be queuing up for Take Me, Cowboy from Jane Porter when it's published shortly.
Check out all the news on these and a Christmas special from Katherine Garbera at Montana Born Books

Friday, October 11, 2013

The Magic of Cookies


It's my great pleasure to welcome Jennifer Faye to my blog today - who is going to share her love of cookies, and how making them together creates a special bond.

Over to Jennifer - 
I’ve always had a fondness for cookies. As a kid, my aunt couldn’t bake enough of them at the holidays to fill me up. ;-) I can remember trays and trays of them filling my grandmother’s dining room. It brought the family together in the evenings as they perused the large assortment and tried to narrow down their choice. But being a kid, I wasn’t the least bit worried about my waistline and as kids do I was going with the adage, first come first served. ;-)
 
But I remember how it would bring the family together. The kids would sit around with their milk and cookies. And the grownups would have theirs with coffee and good conversation. It’s amazing how some dough and sugar draw people together. The conversations start with something like, “You know the other day…” Soon the smiles and belly laughs follow.

A similar event happens for Kara and Jason in my current release, SNOWBOUND WITH THE SOLDIER. Instead of them reaffirming family bonds, they find themselves realizing what they could have if they could resolve their issues.

 Kara was in charge of rolling out the already made and chilled cookie dough, as well as working the oven. That left him and Samantha to do the decorating. Bowls of various colors of icing lined the table. In addition, there were red, green and white sprinkles of varying shapes and sizes. Kara certainly seemed to think of everything 
 
“What’s that?” he asked, gesturing to the cookie Samantha was about to decorate. “A pony?” 

She giggled. “Mommy, he doesn’t know what a reindeer looks like.” 

“He doesn’t. Well, I guess you’ll just have to teach him these things.”

“See? These are the antlers.” Samantha grew serious and pointed to the cookie. “And if I put this red ball on its nose, then it’s Rudolph.” 

Every time the child smiled it was like warm sunbeams hitting Jason’s chest. He couldn’t resist a bit more teasing. “I don’t know. Still looks like a pony with a bad cold.”

The sweet chimes of Samantha’s laughter pealed through the kitchen. Even Kara was smiling and shaking her head. He had no idea until that moment how rewarding he found the sound of laughter from these two special ladies. So why was he hesitant to lay the whole truth on the line with Kara? Why couldn’t he take the next step necessary to ensure he didn’t lose her, now that he’d broken through her stony barrier?


I thought I’d share this really yummy recipe that Kara used to make those magical cookies. ;-) They are easy, fast and tasty. How could you ask for more?


Rolled Sugar Cookies
8 oz Cream Cheese, softened
¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
3 tsp vanilla
2 ¼ cups flour
½ tsp baking soda


Preheat oven to 350°F
Beat cream cheese, butter, sugar and vanilla until well blended.
Add baking soda. Blend. Slowly add flour, blending after each small addition until all flour is blended.


Place in a Ziploc bag.
Refrigerate for an hour minimum.
Roll and cut into your favorite shapes. And decorate.
Bake 6 to 8 minutes.

And enjoy!


P.S. if you are wondering, yes, I really did bake those Christmas cookies in October. Just for you. :-) When my family heard what I was up to, they rolled their eyes and snickered. They said, who bakes Christmas cookies in October? I must admit I never had before now. But the family quit laughing when the cookies came out of the over and they got to eat them. ;-) BTW, I totally understand if you want to print the recipe and save it for December…like normal people. LOL.

P.S.S. I apologize that the cookies aren’t decorated better, but my helpers were otherwise occupied. So that left me to do it all. Normally I make the dough, roll them out and bake them, but I do not decorate. So I did my best. ;-)




Available at:

Amazon   |   Amazon - UK   |   Barnes & Noble   |   Harlequin  |  iTunes  |  Waterstones



There is also a Rafflecopter with 10 Fabulous Prizes! Enter now to win. (2) autographed copies of Snowbound With The Soldier + swag / (1) $10 Starbucks GC / (7) Snowbound With The Soldier ebooks / OPEN INTERNATIONALLY! 


Author Bio
Jennifer Faye is a two-time RT Book Reviews TOP PICK author. Maybe that’s partly due to the fact that she has spent most of her life with her nose in one book or another. It was only natural that she dreamed of becoming a romance writer and spinning the tales of the imaginary people running around in her mind. But first life took her on a couple of detours. Refusing to give up on her dreams, she finally succeeded in getting her name on a book cover. She currently resides in Pennsylvania with her very, very patient husband, one amazing daughter (the other remarkable daughter has flown the coop to chase her own dreams) and two spoiled rotten cats. When she’s not glued to her laptop writing another contemporary romance (which isn’t often) or enjoying some family time, she loves to get lost in a good book, cross-stitch, embroider, quilt, knit, watch hockey (go Pittsburgh Penguins!), and garden. Jennifer loves to hear from readers--you can contact her via her website.
Author Links

Saturday, October 05, 2013

A Life Less Lonely



Last time I visited Liz, my Toni Sands hat was tipped saucily over one eye. As Liz has kindly invited me to call again, wearing my Jill Barry hat this time, I’d like to tell you about my contemporary romance, A Life Less Lonely, published by Endeavour Press. 

Like many authors, I’m often asked where I find ideas or why I chose to write a particular story. In this case, I’d written Chapter One of a book original entitled Twice a Bride. I uploaded my work to the Mills and Boon New Voices competition website in 2012, rose to the top of the list, but didn’t progress to the next stage. That’s life! Certainly it applies to a writer’s life and I decided, having received so many lovely, positive comments about Chapter One, to write the full story of Andrea, young military widow. Sadly, we’re all too aware of the real life Andreas, forced to deal with the trauma of their late husband’s repatriation, often putting on a brave face in order to help family and friends cope.

Dr Andrea Palmer has a young son and I’ve also given her an elderly mum, whose increasing confusion causes concern. Before you reach for the Kleenex, there’s also humour and hope for the future in the shape of a fresh challenge involving a delicious consultant called Keir Harrison. Sparks fly. Of course. Keir has a broken marriage behind him. As for Andrea - well, I do hope you’ll download the book and see what happens.

I enjoy a challenge but writing about memory loss and problems many of us have to confront, all wrapped up in a romantic jacket could have been more daunting than it actually was. Fortunately my other half refused to pass me the smelling salts and gave me some insight into pharmaceutical trials though the book is more contemporary romance than medical. I also received valuable advice from a dear friend who for some years did the job which Keir’s PA does.

What next for Jill Barry? I’m delighted to say there’s a sassy, spicy contemporary romance, this time with two younger main characters than Andrea and Keir. Devilish Delights is scheduled for publication by Accent Press on 19th December 2013. The title refers to a fictitious musical and the action takes place partly in an idyllic part of Wales and partly in London’s theatre land.

As I write, I’m waiting to hear whether my second pocket novel, Girl with a Gold Wing, is to be published. This one’s set in the 1960s and as the title suggests, has an aviation theme.

So thanks again for inviting me along, Liz. And thank you, followers of this lively blog, for putting up with me.

Love
Jill  x

It's always lovely to have you drop by Sandra/Jill :) and tell us about your latest projects.  Liz x

Here's an Amazon link to A Life Less Lonely
Follow Jill @barry_jill and @tonisands
Like her at Facebook