Featured Author

Guest Post: The Opposite of Hew

I’m very excited to welcome author Lisa W. Tetting with her latest release: The Opposite of Hew. Read on for the blurb and a great excerpt!

The Opposite of Hew

A BWWM Novella by Lisa W. Tetting

Kay McQueen is different from the women in her family. She lives her life for her, not for a man. Though she enjoys an occasional romp with a sexy man, she is not looking for Mr. Right. Her goals in life are to build her home health care business, and to travel the world. Well, at least she has her business life together. The travel thing, not so much. That is until her favorite aunt passes away, leaving a journal with her final wishes.

As far as Kay knows, Aunt Gigi is the ultimate single girl, the life of the party, even pushing eighty years old. What she finds in Gigi’s journal causes her to rethink her position on love and marriage. She embarks on a dual purpose journey; to scatter Gigi’s ashes and to discover love. Along the way, she encounters a man named Heath who is tall, sexy, and has magical hands. His kisses set her body on fire, but when she finds out his true identity, she wants to set him on fire, literally.

Find out how Kay handles the situation and see exactly who Heath is and what it means to Kay’s family. When these two worlds collide, the outcome is explosive. Heath’s lies and deception finally catch up with him, as Kay finds that what she was looking for, she already had. Discover why Happily Ever After isn’t always what it seems.

Read an excerpt here:

I allowed my alarm to blare into the room for three minutes before I begrudgingly unearthed myself from the mountain of covers on my California King. My bed is super comfy, but that’s not the reason I didn’t want to leave it. This was the most dreaded day of the year! This was the day when ALL of my family members got together, for the sole purpose of finding me a man. The McQueen family reunion!

You may think I was overreacting, but I swear, ever since I turned forty they have been coming out of the woodwork. Aunties, uncles, cousins, play cousins, brothers that I don’t have and sisters that I wish I didn’t all congregated under the guise of family, just to torture me. If I had to hear ‘Kay, when are you gonna find you a man and have some babies?’ one more time, I think I might join a convent. That would shut them up. On second thought, the nuns would probably be giving me the side eye too.

I finally made it onto my feet in a standing position and stumbled into the bathroom to take care of my business. Before the water could even heat in the shower my big sister, Tessa, was blowing up my phone. Mind you, I had a gas water heater, so the water was always hot. I should let her old melon head go to voicemail, but she will keep calling until I answer.

“Good morning Tess. What’s good?”

“What’s good? What young boy did you learn that from? You sound like your nephew when he’s talking to his friends.”

“Did you call to give me lessons on millennial phrases and culture, or was there a purpose to this call?”

I rolled my eyes and removed my toothbrush from its holder, spreading toothpaste on the bristles. I may as well brush while she ranted. There would be no way for me to get a word in edgewise. Putting the call on speaker, I placed my phone on the counter so I could groom properly without being rude.

“Eww, who pissed in your cornflakes this morning? Anywho, I just wanted to make sure you were up. You can’t be late for the festivities this year. Auntie Gigi has been asking for you since everyone arrived last night. You should have seen that woman trying to twerk. I swear, Kay, if you don’t get your act together, you will turn out just like her. Old, sad and alone, trying to shake your behind with the young folk.”

Tessa never did get along with Auntie Gigi, but she was my favorite aunt. Somehow, Tessa thought comparing me to her would be an insult, but I would love to live the kind of life Gigi had. Pushing eighty years old and could twerk? Are you kidding me? #lifegoals

My older sister made a habit of asking me when I was going to settle down and get married. That was her way of showing me that she cared, but her inquiries annoyed me. As a forty something strong African American woman I did not need a man to validate my life! Though, if I was being honest, I definitely want one sometimes.

Available on Amazon , FREE with Kindle Unlimited.

https://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Hew-Lisa-W-Tetting-ebook/dp/B07FKR672T/

Fame is Murder – Freakquency by Caddell Brown Review

Welcome to Caddell Brown’s Book Tour. I am so pleased to host her today on my blog.

Blurb: Rick Chamberland had it all, fame, fortune and women. Until a phone call from his mother forced him to come home and confront the dark secrets of his family’s past. With club singer and small-town girl Song Peters at his side, Rick discovers a demonic presence connecting their families that threatens to destroy all that they hold dear.

My Review:

I had the distinct pleasure of reading an advance copy of Ms. Brown’s book. First of all, this is not a romance, but an erotic supernatural thriller, and it lives up to its promise.

Without giving too much away, Ms. Brown weaves a tale of generational secrets come to light with the return of rock star Rick Chamberland to his hometown. Called home by his mother for the funeral of his childhood pet, Rick crosses the path of Song Peters, an up and coming singer who works part time as a waitress. From then on, the story takes you down a winding road of closet skeletons, promises made and debts (not necessarily money) owed.

When you begin reading, you are sure you are reading one story, but Ms. Brown cleverly switches gears and pulls you even deeper into the supernaturally rich tapestry entwining the families of Song and Rick.

It’s not an easy read—there’s nothing light and fluffy about the subject matter—but it is an engaging narrative that showcases the author’s ability to take us to the dark places in the human psyche.

Highly recommended.

Author bio:

Caddell Brown, born and raised in East Texas, authors a range of speculative fiction. Among her early influences are artists Rene Magritte, film director Andrei Tarkovsky and authors Dan Simmons, Toni Morrison and Ai. It wasn’t until after taking a course in Creative Non-Fiction that she grasped what writing could be as a form of expression and while most of her works are fiction, there’s always something inside each story that touches on her years as an observant youth. Freakquency, her first novel under this penname, was inspired by the storytelling of her uncles, and other legends and folklore from around the world.

Check out the book trailer…..

Featured Author RaeLynn Blue

I am pleased as pink punch to welcome RaeLynn Blue to my blog today. I was fortunate enough to meet RaeLynn through Mocha Memoirs Press. a busy epress that offers “new flavors in fiction”. RaeLynn was sweet enough to give us some insight into title Native Hearts, part of the Native Heart series. Let’s take a look!

And how gorgeous is that cover, dahling!

Blurb: Lee Stone didn’t want a heart-shaped box of boring chocolates for Valentine’s Day. She didn’t want a trip to Vegas. She’d been there and done that. What she longed for was one Valentine’s Day that didn’t invite tragedy and chaos. The last three years with her boyfriend, Tank Begaye, had been host to a blizzard, a fire, and a heart attack. For once, she wanted to spend the day nestled in her lover’s arms.

Tank Begaye had weathered the long-distance relationship with Lee for years. Now, he meant to make her a permanent fixture in his life—as his wife. Avoiding the cliché Valentine Day’s proposals at restaurants and public landmarks, Tank knew exactly where to go—his family’s Hogan, deep in the heart of the Navajo Reservation. Surrounded by his ancestors’ spirits, he would ask Lee to join their family’s circle.

Excerpt:

© RaeLynn Blue 2014

Scarlet streaks flushed to pink and vibrant orange as the day bled from dawn to dusk. The colors painted the horizon along the burnt dust of the northern edge of the Navajo Nation’s reservation land. At over a mile high, this section of the high desert stretched out in all directions, racing toward its postcard edges. Picturesque, perfect, and patient, the land had witnessed death, destruction, and desperation. So why the H.E. double hockey sticks did Tank have her out here? The bright sunlight, crisp air, and fluffy white clouds belied the near twenty-three degree temperature. February became cold around these parts. The season didn’t care at all that today was Valentine’s Day.

Lee Stone frowned as the bite of another cold blast tore across the mesas and threatened to tear through her coat. Shuddering inside her parka, she could not fathom another Valentine’s Day mired in tragedy or random acts of chaos. Slivers of icy wind streaked through her ebony parka and her sweater, directly to her very bones. With her fingers growing numb inside her leather gloves, she yanked her hat farther down over her ears, and not for the first time, cursed the Valentine’s Day gods. It appeared that for the fourth year in a row, her sweetheart day would end in utter disaster. She looked around.

What could possibly be out here?

Biting her lip, she cast a glance at Tank Begaye. One eyeful of him never satisfied her. It never quenched her constant craving for him. His cowboy hat was tugged low over his eyes, and his arrow-straight black hair tied in a ponytail that hugged the nape of his neck. After four years, most couples’ fires had cooled to a comfortable temperature. Not theirs. Her desire burned blue-hot for him, just like the first day they met. Feeling the familiar tug of hunger skirt across her clit, she squeezed her thighs together before taking the next step forward. Her gaze moved downward from his neck to his leather-clad back, wide and delicious.

Whatever plans he had, she knew that the calloused hand of Fate would knock them off, scattering them into oblivion and the Navajo desert. They crested a ridge that looked out over the valley below. Speckled with Western-style houses, Hogans, and mobile homes, the sheep and yuccas outnumbered the living structures.

“Tank…” She detested the whine threading through her voice, but the suspense threatened to overtake her.
He gazed out toward the valley below and hummed. “It’s beautiful here.”

When she sighed, a stream of condensed air flew from her lips. They’d met at a freak party in Las Vegas and she’d lassoed his heart. He lived in Colorado and she resided in New Mexico. Each year they planned to meet on Valentine’s Day, and each year Fate fucked it up. The first year a blizzard tore through the Southwest and dumped a foot and a half of snow on the Four Corner region. The second year, a fire exploded in Tank’s ranch-style home the day before he’d planned to leave. Last year beat the mother of all tragedies. Tank’s ancient grandmother died two days before V-day. He was devastated. Maybe that was why he had them out here on the rez.

Road weary and exhausted from hiking through the high hills and low valleys of the reservation, Lee put her freezing hands into her pockets and fondled the thin, gift-wrapped box. She’d bought Tank a necklace, one with turquoise and silver crafted by a Zuni silversmith. As a Navajo, Tank had access to Native American crafts, but she’d had this piece crafted just for him. One of her students in Gallup was Zuni and her father a silversmith. Despite the cold outside burning her nose and making her ears sting, the gift warmed her.

“Where are we going?” she asked, calling above the sharp whistle of the wind.

He turned to her in that slow, seductive manner of his. “It’s a surprise.”

She bit back the retort she had in her throat. His sable-brown eyes peered out from beneath the shadow of his cowboy hat. Heat washed over her as if he’d touched her. Feeling better, Lee smiled and found her hope reassured. He did that all the time, sometimes with his voice over the cell phone, and other times with his eyes via Skype. The long distance between them had made maintaining their love a challenge, but when they were together, like this, it was all worth it—every mile, every minute, and every bit of money to keep and nurture what they had. She huddled deeper into her coat. Still, this hiking thing was not how she’d intended to spend her Valentine’s Day.

“This had better be good,” she mumbled.

He nodded and took her hand into his big one. His much larger hand engulfed hers.

“How much farther?”

“Just down this side path.” He inclined his head to the west.

Through the sparse grouping of trees, she saw the small, single-story structure. The door faced east, and puffs of fluffy smoke huffed out of a black circular chimney. Tank stepped in front of her, and led her down the narrow pathway that wound through the desert’s untamed brush. Lee had taught in New Mexico for the last fifteen years, so she recognized the Navajo Hogan when she saw it. A five-sided structure sat alone on the flattest section of the land. Packed adobe covered some of the walls, but harsh New Mexico winters had worn some of it down. The gusty winds whipped it down over the decades.

Lee had no idea what to expect and her feet failed to move. Tank must have felt her hand fall away, and he turned to her, concern on his face.

“What’s going on?” She couldn’t shake her rearing. There were places black folks just didn’t go. Besides, sacred places like Hogans and cemeteries were not normal destinations for Valentine’s Day.

Tank sighed. “It’s Valentine’s Day…”

“Not a sacred Navajo day…” she interjected.

He grinned at that. “No, no it isn’t.”

“So…”

“So follow me and I’ll give you a surprise.”

Buy it now for $0.99 cents until February 28th.

Mocha Memoirs Press, LLC: http://mochamemoirspress.com/native-hearts

All Romance Ebooks: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-nativehearts-1416555-149.html

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Native-Hearts-RaeLynn-Blue-ebook/dp/B00IAUKEIU/

Sexual Harrassment and Racism…in a Romance?

Do Sexual Harassment and Racism Belong in Fiction?

Sexual harassment and racism…pretty taboo topics, right? That’s why I chose to tackle
them. I don’t like to read, nor do I like to write mindless entertainment. Most readers
nowadays want a fluffy romance with minor complications and a HEA. While I do
concede to Happy Ever Afters, I make sure it’s a rocky road to get there.

You will find sexual harassment and racism both in Afterburn. Having been an aircraft
mechanic for eleven years, I was dying to write about a woman grease monkey. Nobody
else is!

And let me tell you something about harassment…it’s ugly, but it’s there. Sexual
harassment happens to women in male-dominated professions on an everyday basis.
So, it’s an issue in Afterburn. It’s a fact of life and fiction isn’t real if it doesn’t portray
real life.

Racism: Another ugly, but sadly, real life issue. Even in 2013, it’s there. I’m sure many
of you have worked side by side with someone for years…never thought of the person
as a racist and suddenly one day you get to talking about some married couple who
happens to be interracial…and they say those horrible, offensive words, “I’d never let my
daughter marry a….”

That moment you realize you’ve been working with a bigot? Yea. I’ve had those and it
totally changes how I see the person in front of me.

These issues exist and they need to be eliminated. In a perfect world, we’d never have
these problems. Women would go to work not worrying about who is going to smack her
rear and make an inappropriate comment. And couples with different skin tones would
never get looked at funny.

So, Afterburn isn’t a piece of fluff. I lay it out there. It’s life.

Blurb:

The love between them burns hot, but their relationship won’t stay fueled if they
can’t beat the obstacles in their way. Besides breaking the fraternization rules,
Grant and Crystal have the difference of race between them…but can they prove to
the rest of the world, and to each other, that love is color blind?

Afterburn is about overcoming one’s past, not judging others, learning to forgive,
and what it’s like to be a woman in a “man’s world.”

Buy on Amazon

***

Tara Chevrestt is a deaf woman, former aviation mechanic, writer, and an editor. She is

most passionate about planes, motorcycles, dogs, and above all, reading. That led to her love of

writing. Between her writing and her editing, which allows her to be home with her little canine

kids, she believes she has the greatest job in the world. She is very happily married.

Her theme is Strong is Sexy. She shares a website with her naughty pen name:

http://tarachevrestt.weebly.com/index.html and they have a Facebook page: https://

www.facebook.com/pages/Tara-Chevrestt-Sonia-Hightower/218383211513877.

Featured Author – Juliet Chastain

I’d like to welcome Juliet Chastain to my blog today. A little about Juliet:

As an ex-fashion photographer, Juliet Chastain says that, in a way, writing fiction is a lot like photography. She takes a few elements—models and clothes in photography, characters and setting in her writing—and makes them come alive in a compelling story.

And now to the interview….

What is the easiest part of writing for you? What is the hardest part?

There is no part I’d describe easy. The hardest is usually getting that first draft on paper. But once in a while magic happens and it practically writes itself.

Do you have any advice to aspiring writers?

Just go ahead and write as though you were talking to a friend. Don’t get tied up in knots trying to sound literary.

Name some of your favorite books.

Pride and Prejudice, the first Harry Potter, Moby Dick, anything by Jane Smiley

Do you have a writing regimen?

Get up in the morning, go for a walk and think about what I am going to write, come back, get something to eat and take it to the computer and fiddle with e-mail and generally try to avoid writing but eventually get to work. When I run out of steam in the writing department, I switch to revising and PR and the annoying must-dos of daily life

What are the perks of being an author?

You never have to wear uncomfortable clothes to work—in fact you can work in your pajamas if you want. Sometimes I skip my morning walk and get right to work in my pjs. And it’s fun imagining people from different times or cultures. I’ve been working on a series about Gypsies and I’ve learned so much about those rather mysterious people. Then there are totally imaginary creatures, like the man-wolf in Cry of the Wolf. I’m writing another story about him and the woman he loves in which he explores the difference between his animal and his human nature.

You are having a dinner party. You are able to invite one literary character, one president, one musician, one sports figure and one movie villain.

Literary Character: Elizabeth Bennet

President: Lincoln

Musician: John Lennon

Sports Figure: Jesse Owens

Movie Villain: the vampire Lestat (although I liked him better in the book)

Quickies:

Fuzzy socks or slippers? Neither. Flip flops—I live in Florida

What’s your favorite shape? round

Crayons, markers or paint? Paint

Spanish or French? French—I studied it for four years and have never been to France–yet

Word Association:

Writer: Madness. Oh dear, that was my first thought.

Cheese: wine. Crackers would be good too.

Bestseller: I wish

Supermarket: hatred and loathing. I hate shopping for food. Now clothes, that’s different!

Now you get to ask me a question:

How on earth do you find time to run this great blog you have? I drink a lot of coffee and stay up until ungodly hours of the night!! BTW, thank you for the compliment!

Thanks so much for taking the time to answer these questions!

And thank you—it was fun!

For the Love of a Gypsy Lass is Juliet’s latest book, from Breathless Press –

Blurb:

While trying to woo Gypsy singer Talaitha Grey, Lord Harry Beresford does everything wrong. Is her attraction to him strong enough that she can forgive him?

Lord Harry Beresford is used to having everything his way—that is, until he falls in love with Gypsy singer Talaitha Grey. Proud Talaitha is as unimpressed by his title as she is by his wealth, but can she fight her powerful attraction to the man behind those things?

breathlesspress.com/juliet chastain

Amazon.com Cry of the Wolf

Amazon.com/The-Captain-Courtesan

You can learn more about Juliet and her collection of out-of-the-ordinary heroes at julietchastain.com, and contact her at juliet@julietchastain.com or on Twitter or Facebook