Cowards, Giveaways, and Gothic Intrigue! Oh my!

♫♪♫ Alicia Keys ~ Butterflyz ♪♫♪ 

Gothic Intrigue

"There are two courses open to a gentlewoman when she finds herself in penurious circumstances," my Aunt Adelaide had said. "One is to marry, and the other to find a post in keeping with her gentility."

Thus begins Mistress of Mellyn by the fabulous Victoria Holt. I've been a longtime fan of Gothic romances and Victoria Holt (Eleanor Hibbert) was a Queen of Gothic Romance. My favorite is On the Night of the Seventh Moon but The Spring of the Tiger comes in a very close second. The twists and non-formulaic storylines in these two books are just amazing. If you haven't read them, I strongly encourage you to do so. All of VH's books are totally clean, if sexual details in romances are something that bother you.

(I suspect my love affair with the darker of clean romances was the greatest influence on my own darker Regency offerings. ☺)

On that note, the Gothicked group on Goodreads is reading Mistress of Mellyn right now. Pop on over (click HERE) if you'd like to join in the group read or discuss it if it's one you've already read.

Giveaways

Over in the Clean Romances group on Goodreads, we're having another one of our massive book giveaways. 92 books were donated this time 'round, two of which are copies of my own Honor and Deception. Click on over to the entry thread HERE.

Cowards

I've failed to keep you updated on my serial romance, My Lady Coward. Here are the links to every part of the story:

1. Clever Fiction
2. Clever Fiction
3. Clever Fiction
4. my website 
5. my website (same page, immediately following Part 4)
6. Clever Fiction 
7. Part 7 is coming soon. I have to finish transcribing it. 

That's it for now. I'll be back when I have something worth saying again. Happy reading, writing, and blogging!! 

Clean Romances Giveaway Winners

The winners have been announced! Head over to Goodreads to see if you're one of them. If you're not in the group yet, why not join so you can enter the 800 member romance giveaway when the time comes? We do this every 200 members or so and we're already at 649. :o) 

Click HERE to see if you're a winner! 

Congrats, winners!! Enjoy your "sweet" reads! lol 

Good Clean Fun

Every few hundred new members or so, the Clean Romances group on Goodreads celebrates in the best way possible. 

A MASSIVE BOOK GIVEAWAY!!! 

We've reached 600 members (Thank you, all!!) and are having the giveaway again. Nineteen titles are up for grabs, some paperback, some eBook, some historical, some fantasy, some contemporary, ALL ROMANCE. Every one in the list falls into the "clean" category, also known as traditional-style. (Think Jane Austen or Georgette Heyer. In fact, one of our members generously donated a Heyer for the giveaway!) 

To get in on all the fun, simply pop on over to the giveaway thread and put your name in the hat. It's that easy. I'll make it even easier by linking you directly to the entry thread. :o) 

CLICK HERE for the Clean Romances Giveaway Entry Thread * 

*Free Goodreads membership required. 

News and Updates and Giveaways Galore

News. 

Deception's eBook debuted in August, going live on Smashwords and in Amazon's Kindle Store. It's only $4.99, a marked contrast to the $14.95 paperback. (But with a cover that gorgeous, who wouldn't want a hold-in-your-hands copy?) ;o)

Unlocked's paperback went live on Amazon. Those of you who were awaiting the Amazon edition, now's your chance to get it!

Heartless has been picked up by TreasureLine Publishing and so will receive a new cover, interior layout, and a bit of editing. (OK, so nothing's quite "official" yet, as I've not signed the contract, but that's just a formality.) The new cover will be revealed when I'm given the OK by TreasureLine. 

Updates. 

I'm working hard on editing Honor so I can submit it to my publisher. Meanwhile, I've been distracted by Retribution and tapping away on that so it can make its way out into the big bad world by next year. Covers for both are also in the works. 

Giveaways galore. 

Jewelry is the featured giveaway this month in the Unlocked group on Goodreads. Join to find out how to win a "key" necklace in September's contest. As always, visit www.unlockedproject.com to download your free PDF copy of the anthology.

I will be holding my own giveaway for Unlocked just as soon as my brother (of JaysDesign Jewelry) has finished the key necklace I've ordered from him. Oh, and after I've ordered/received a few copies of the book itself. I'm excited to see it!

I will hold another contest when I reach 100 blog followers. I have yet to decide what the prize will be but it will be a good one, I promise. Only 10 more followers to go!

That's it for me...for now. Happy reading, writing, and blogging!!

Unlocked: Games and Giveaways

For those of you who LOVE eBooks, multi-genre anthologies, or just plain reading, there's a new eBook available for FREE download. Unlocked was released yesterday to much fanfare and excitement. Well, those of us in the anthology were pretty excited. 

Unlocked is ten tales by nine authors; the only thing that binds them is a "key."

Back cover blurb:

Treachery in old London, a crop circle mystery, and a cyborg punished for gazing at the night sky open this collection of new stories that will intrigue teens and adults alike.

Fantasy, sci-fi, mystery, and fanciful versions of school life--the motif they share is a key. Which key will unlock a mystery, free the trapped, comfort the rejected, or bring new resolve to a boy who has taken a wrong path? What treasures can we discover if we only find the right key?

Assassin's Keeper by Jaimey Grant
Crop Circles by Wendy Swore
Symbiote by Rita J. Webb
Where They Belong by Paige Ray
Survival by Jaimey Grant
Unlocking William by Jeanne Voelker
Shoshanna by K.G. Borland
The Key to a Good Education by Gwendolyn McIntyre
The Bookseller by Katrina Monroe
Her Father's Eyes by S.M. Carrière

To download, visit www.unlockedproject.com and click the "download" button.

For some fun games, "ask the author" discussions, giveaways, and more, join the Goodreads group dedicated to Unlocked. You must be a member of Goodreads to join but membership is free. 

There is still time to enter Wendy Swore's paperback giveaway. She's giving away three copies of Unlocked. Check out her contest on Goddess of the Corn.

I will be hosting my own paperback giveaway, probably in September. To go with the paperback will be a charm bracelet, featuring a replica of the key Sable had (the main character from my story Assassin's Keeper). The bracelet will, of course, be made by my brother, the owner of JaysDesign Jewelry.

AN UPDATE: The reviewer mentioned in the post "I Made a Mistake. I'm Sorry" hit upon a solution to the confusion issue regarding my books. If each book included a chronological booklist, there would be far less in the way of confusion. As far as current titles go, it will be some time before this list can be added. For upcoming titles, there will be a list at the beginning of each. (I seriously don't know why I never thought of this before. *doh*)

That's it for my news today. What's new in your neck of the woods?

100 Members Book Giveaway Celebration

Hello! I posted about this on my reviews blog but thought I should mention is here as well.

Over at Goodreads, we are having a celebration in our Clean Romances group. We just reached 100 members (106 as of this post) and want to celebrate by giving away books. 14 books have been generously donated for the giveaway. We are accepting book donations until September 7th (not required, by the way); the drawing takes place September 8th with the winners announced on the 9th.

How can you be entered to win? First, you have to join Goodreads. It's fun and free. If you are already a member of goodreads, you're halfway there! Then, you have to join the Clean Romances group. Also free. If you do those two things, you are automatically entered to win. It's that simple.

Hope to see you there! Happy reading, writing, and blogging!

I Caved...

The Mackinac Bridge. I took this pic the day after the Corvette show in Mackinaw City last year. I love the Corvette show...

To get back to the subject of this post...

I caved. My author photo poll still has a week to go but the majority vote is for "so-so" on up to "essential." I have started uploading a photo of myself to my various profiles. Some of you may have already seen it on Goodreads and AuthorsDen.

Something you should know about my profile pic. Yes, it is me. The me of ten years ago, the me I want to be again. Someday, someday...

Meanwhile, the poll is still open. I am still curious to hear your views on author photos and you can still enter to win my upcoming release, Deception. Simply post your opinion in a comment on the appropriate blog post.