Sunday, June 27, 2010

Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold

I just downloaded this book to my Kindle. I haven't read it yet but I've heard a lot of good things about it though. It is a western romance. I am very much into reading western romances at the moment because of my latest release, Second Chances, which is also a western romance. Second Chances is my first western romance release but it won't be my last. I'm hooked on the genre, at least for now. :)

Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold is a story of family conflicts set in Colorado in 1885. Anne Wells has embarrassed her rigidly proper family since she was a child with occasional but grievous lapses from ladylike behavior. They blame those lapses for the disgraceful fact that she is a spinster at 28. Cord Bennett, the son of his father's second marriage to a Cheyenne woman, is more than an embarrassment to his well-to-do family of ranchers and lawyers - they are ashamed and afraid of their black sheep. When Anne and Cord are found alone together, her father's fury leads to violence. Cord's family is more than willing to believe that the fault is his. Can Anne and Cord use the freedom of being condemned for sins they didn't commit to make a life together? Or will their disapproving, interfering families tear them apart? Kindle Locations: 4,846.

Ellen O’Connell lives in Douglas County, Colorado, with a motley crew of Rottweilers, Rottweiler mixes and a Morgan horse. She was active in Rottweiler rescue work for almost ten years, first on her own, then on the Board of Directors of Rottie Aid (www.rottieaid.org). At the present time, her rescue work is limited to transporting dogs for Rottie Aid, but she expects there will be other foster dogs in her future.

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

2 for 1 book deal!

What a deal! Not only 2 books under 1 cover but the price is only 99 cents to download to your Kindle!

A Bride for Tom
Tom Larson is having trouble finding a wife, and Jessica Reynolds decides to help him overcome his awkward and clumsy manners so he can attract women. (This romantic comedy is rated G.)

A Husband for Margaret
When Margaret Williams posted an ad for a husband, she expected Paul Connealy to arrive, but instead, his older brother, Joseph, came...and he brought four children with him. (This light-hearted tender romance is rated R.)


About Ruth Ann Nordin
When I am not playing wife and mother, I am a writer. So how do I have time to write? If I don't write, I can't sleep since the story ideas will keep me awake. I have written outside the romance genre, but that was before I took writing seriously. I try not to think of those books, though they have opened the door to where I am today. My recommendation is to stick with the books on this site. That way, you get my best work.

As for romance, I do define my stories as romance, but it's not the romance that the traditional publishing houses like, which is the reason I kept getting rejected by them. They actually said that they didn't like the fact that I have themes in my books. My romances are more of the "rubber meets the road" type of romance. That means I don't focus so much on the lust factor. I do have rated R romances, so a good sex life between the married couples in my books is important--as it is in real life. However, the key to the romances is in how the man and woman treat each other and how they overcome struggles in order to solidify their relationship. So yes, I do write romances. Mine are just not the typical romance formula because the book's theme and secondary characters play a prominent role.

Sunday, June 13, 2010

CHRISTINA DODD CELEBRATES THE FIRST TWENTY YEARS OF HER WRITING CAREER

Readers become writers, and Christina Dodd has always been a reader. As she was growing up, she read everything, but discovered, because she liked humor, that she liked romance best. In romance, the relationship between one man and one woman holds center stage, and that’s always good for a laugh.

A woman wants things like world peace, a clean house, and a deep and meaningful relationship based on mutual understanding and love. A man wants things like a Craftsman router with attachments, undisputed control of the TV remote, and a red Corvette which will miraculously make his bald spot disappear.

So while Christina was working as a draftsman, she would read during the lunch hour, go back to work to design a sawmill, and plot the conclusion of the story in her mind. The book never ended like that, and she liked her endings better. When her first daughter was born, she told her husband she was going to quit work and write a book. It was a good time to start a new career, because how much trouble could one little infant be?

Quite a bit, it seemed. It took ten years, two children and three completed manuscripts before her first novel, CANDLE IN THE WINDOW, was published.
Now she celebrates her first twenty years as a writer. All authors should read Christina's blog about this milestone. I am going to print it out and keep it on the bulletin board in my office as I continue with my own writing career. It is words for authors to live by.

 http://christinadodd.com/blog/

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Mossy Creek by Deborah Smith, Sandra Chastain, Debra Dixon, and Virginia Ellis

I just finished reading this book. It was fabulous! What an enjoyable read!

Welcome to Mossy Creek, your home town. You'll find a friendly face at every window, and a story behind every door.

We've got a mayor who cleans her own gun, and Police Chief who doesn't need one. We've got scandal at the coffee shop and battles on the ballfield, a cantankerous Santa and a flying Chihuahua. You'll want to meet Rainey, the hairdresser with a tendency toward hysteria, and Hank, who takes care of our animals like they were his children. Don't forget to stop in for a bite at Mama's All You Can Eat Café, and while you're there say hello to our local celebrity, Sue Ora. Like as not, she'll sit you right down and tell you a story. People are like that in Mossy Creek.

Award winning authors Debra Dixon, Donna Ball, Sandra Chastain, Virginia Ellis, Nancy Knight, and Deborah Smith (Sweet Tea and Jesus Shoes) come together once again to blend their unique southern voices into a collection of tales about the South, this time focusing their talents on the fictional town of Mossy Creek, Georgia. Chances are, you'll recognize it. But even if you don't, you'll want to come back, again and again.

So welcome to Mossy Creek, the town that ain't going nowhere and don't want to.


"The Mossy Creek Hometown Series has struck a resonant chord." —David Minnich, Director Wead Library, Malone, NY

"Delightful." —Georgia First Lady Marie Barnes, wife of Governor Roy Barnes

“The characters and kinships of MOSSY CREEK are quirky, hilarious and all too human. This story reads like a delicious, meringue-covered slice of home. I couldn't get enough.”—Pamela Morsi, USA Today bestselling author of Simple Jess

"In the best tradition of women's fiction, Mossy Creek points to a genuine spirit of love and community that is our best hope for the future." —Betina Krahn, NYT bestselling author of The Last Bachelor

"MOSSY CREEK is as much fun as a cousin reunion; like sipping ice cold lemonade on a hot summer's afternoon. Hire me a moving van, it's the kind of town where everyone wishes they could live." —Debbie Macomber

“A fast, funny, and folksy read. Enjoy!” —Lois Battle, acclaimed author of Storyville, Bed and Breakfast, and The Florabama Ladies Sewing Club And Auxiliary

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

The Crossroads Cafe by Deborah Smith

A beautiful woman, scarred for life.
A tortured man, seeking redemption.

Brought together by fate in a small town high in the majestic Appalachian mountains

Live. Love. Believe.

Beauty is in the lie of the beholder.

Heartbroken and cynical, famed actress Catherine Deen hides from the world after a horrific accident scars her for life.

Secluded in her grandmother's North Carolina mountain home, Cathryn at first resists the friendship of the local community and the famous biscuits served up by her loyal cousin, Delta, at The Crossroads Café, until a neighbor, former New York architect Thomas Mitternich, reaches out to her.

Thomas lost his wife and son in the World Trade Center. In the years since he's struggled with alcohol and despair. He thinks nothing and no can make his life worth living again.

Until he meets Cathryn.

Best book I've read in a long time! (5 stars)

I just finished reading The Crossroads Cafe. When I first started reading it, I didn't think I was going to like it. However, the further I got into it, the more I liked it. Then it got to where I literally couldn't put it down until my Kindle low battery warning came on and I was forced to stop reading for the night. Today I finished the book. It is the best book I have read in a very long time.

I don't quite get the few 1 and 2 star reviews this book has received. They must not have read the same book that I did.

I am a writer and I strive to write such a compelling tale as this one turned out to be. My hat is off to you, Deborah Smith. You rock!

Kristie Leigh Maguire
author of Second Chances and other titles



Visit Deborah Smith online.
Deborah Smith is the New York Times bestselling author of A Place to Call Home, Sweet Hush, The Crossroads Cafe, A Gentle Rain and other acclaimed romantic novels portraying life and love in the modern Appalachian South. A native Georgian, Deborah is a former newspaper editor who turned to novel-writing with great success.
With more than 35 romance, women's fiction and fantasy novels to her credit, Deborah's books have sold over 3 million copies worldwide. Among her honors is a Lifetime Achievement Award from Romantic Times Magazine and a nomination for the prestigious Townsend Literary Award. In 2003 Disney optioned Sweet Hush for film. In 2008 A Gentle Rain was a finalist in Romance Writers of America's RITA awards.

For the past nine years Deborah has been a partner in BelleBooks, a small press known for southern fiction, including the Mossy Creek Hometown Series and the Sweet Tea story collections. As editor, she has worked on projects as diverse as the nonfiction Bra Talk book by three-time Oprah Winfrey guest Susan Nethero, and the In My Dreams novella by New York Times bestselling author Sarah Addison Allen.

In 2008 BelleBooks launched Bell Bridge Books, an imprint with a focus on fantasy novels. Deborah produces book trailers for the Bell Bridge and BelleBooks titles, creates the company's podcasts, and also narrates and produces audiobooks for BelleBooks Audio.

In 2009 Deborah will launch a new professional persona as Leigh Bridger, a pen name for her edgy urban fantasy novels.

She lives on a secluded dirt road high in the mountains of north Georgia with Hank, her husband of many years, plus a herd of deer, a flock of turkeys, numerous well-fed raccoons, possums and the occasional bear, also eight cats, a dog and more than one-hundred pond-raised goldfish.