The Gasquet Princes virtual book tour

Today is the first day of my GoddessFish virtual book tour

for

- From Now Until Forever & His Chosen Bride -

the first two books in my four book Gasquet Princes series

published by Astrea Press.

June 25: A Case of Reading Insomnia

June 26: Books Are Magic

June 27: Books Read 'N' Makeup Done

June 27: Reviewing Shelf

June 28: Books Reviewed by Bunny

June 29: Sexy Adventures, Passionate Tales

June 29: REVIEW ONLY - Reviewing Shelf

July 2: Novel Moments

July 3: Kacey's Konnections

July 4: Carrie Ann Ryan's Blog

July 5: It's Raining Books

July 5: REVIEW ONLY - Reviews by Molly

July 6: Reader Girls

July 6: Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer

so please come on by these  blogs and say 'hello' . :-)

Sweet Saturday Sample

Today's sample is a short snippet from From Now Until Forever, the first book in my Gasquet Princes Series.  I hope you enjoy it, and thank you for your support.

“I’m not done with you,” he ground out. “Not by a long shot. I may have to leave you now, but I’ll be back. So don’t think you can hide from me.”

His words lashed into her more thoroughly than a cat-o-nine-tails. His grip lowered to encircle her throat.

“I may never forgive you for what you’ve done, but you’re mine, and I always keep what’s mine.

Her world turned cold. “I know you find it hard to believe me. I understand, but ask you to remember, I’ll always love you. Always.”

His fingers tightened round her neck before he pushed her back against the pillows.

“I never thought I’d love anyone the way I love you.” Disgust, not love, propelled his words in her direction. “And it sickens me to my soul.”

From Now Until forever is available at http://www.amazon.com/From-Now-Until-Forever-ebook/dp/B006GYAV44/ref=la_B0042QD6S6_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1338594263&sr=1-6

Find more Sweet Saturday Samples

A-Z Challenge Day 15 - O

 O - is for Options

so today I am choosing the OPTION to share the blurbs and excerpts from Books one and two of The Gasquet Princes four book series:-
Book 1 - From Now Until Forever
and
Book 2 - His Chosen Bride
And Amazon.com

From Now Until Forever

Blurb:-

For Prince Liam, families meant bad news, unwanted commitments, and the loss of his personal freedom. Love spawned white picket fences, slippers at the hearth with a wife and kids making demands, so why did those images disappear when he met Melanie Babcot?

Melanie Babcot fought hard to escape the horrors of her youth and vowed to remain single and free, so when paid to protect Prince Liam from insurgents why did her personal pledge fly out the window?

EXCERPT:

Liam Fitzwilliam Gasquet stared in amazement at the blooming patch of red milliseconds before the pain exploded in his arm. Some trigger-happy idiot had fired in his direction. Indignation didn’t have time to take root before another bullet kicked the dust at his feet.

Not ‘trigger-happy’.

Intentional.

The rebels had found the fourth and youngest son of Jean-Phillipe Gasquet, ruler of the tiny kingdom adjacent to the Swiss border. When had they discovered his whereabouts?

With a reluctant sigh, he faced the truth of it. They hadn’t ‘found’ him at all. They’d followed him.

What people are saying about From Now Until Forever:-
03-12-11  J. Gunnar Grey "the mystery writer"
This is a taut romantic suspense thriller, well written and edited. If you enjoy a fast-paced, sweet suspense story, then I strongly recommend it....Author Sherry Gloag allows no fluff in this novella, nor does she pander to lazy readers: if you want to keep up with her fast pace, then pay attention and keep up.

Sizzlinghotbooks Review 08-01-12 From Now Until Forever received 4 hearts.
www.sizzlinghotbooks.net
Assassinations, dangerous safe houses and royalty abound in From Now Until Forever! The fast paced story will leave you breathless while the romance takes your heart away!
~ ~ ~

His Chosen Bride - Blurb:
Prince Henri Gasquet is happy to let his father, the king, choose his bride for him until he meets Monica Latimer.

Monica Latimer is not prepared to risk letting any man close enough to learn about her Gift. A gift that normally has men running for the hills when they find out about it.

Excerpt:
She lost track of time until the flames caught her attention once more. They flickered from orange to gold, to silver, to white.

A flurry of snowflakes masked the flames and for a second Monica watched the most beautiful, pristine snow-scene she’d ever seen. Her lips curved in longing. How she’d love to get a toboggan and slide down that slope. She knew where it was, and had done just that many times in her childhood, first with her parents and then, in clandestine manner, with her brother. Sneaking an old tin tray from the back of her mother’s walk-in pantry, she’d then grabbed Billy’s hand and they’d rushed out the back gate, heading for the lakeside track that led up into the hills.

Darkness, dense and thick with grief dropped over the scene. Startled and disconcerted by the strength of emotion emanating from the vision Monica shifted to her knees, ready to stand, when a voice, a deep male voice, sharp with fear called out her name.

“Monica!”

She knew she’d never heard the voice before, and yet—it was as familiar to her as the image she saw in her mirror each morning.

"Help me, Monica.”

Desperate for more clues, she searched the darkness within the flames until it sputtered and faded. With a curse she jumped up and ran for the phone. With her outstretched hand hovering over it she halted and let her hand drop to her side once more. What could she say? What would the police or rescue team think of her if she called them and told them she’d seen a vision of a man in distress?

They’d laugh in her face and classify her as a lunatic. Well, maybe not. It wouldn’t be the first time she’d contacted them with positive information but something—an instinctive gut reaction told her what she’d seen this time hadn’t happened yet.

What people are saying about His Chosen Bride:-
...Sherry Gloag’s story is one that picked me up and did not put me down until I finished it. Definitely a breath of fresh air.  I give this story 4 ¾ Sunflowers.

http://reviewsrmine.wordpress.com/2012/03/03/his-chosen-bride-by-sherry-gloag/

**
Tiffany rated it 4 stars 

I really like Monica and her Gift she has to help others! How cool is that? I think pretty cool. I also like Henri and understand him having a hard time being force to take a break and wanting to blame someone. I liked the tension between Henri and Monica. I did feel that Henri was a bit fickle with his feelings. But he seemed to work that out in the end. I sure hope that Ms. Gloag has plans to write the Henri's younger twins stories. I felt she did a great job of setting that up toward the end. This is a sweet romance so it does not have any swearing or sex. This was a fun read and I read it in one sitting. If you love romance and don't have tons of time then this may be the read for you.http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13519040-his-chosen-bride#other_reviews

and finally

http://www.greatmindsthinkaloud.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=romance&action=display&thread=1230 
...The characters: Henri, Liam, Melanie, Monica, Simeon, and Sacha were simply wonderful. I enjoyed how the author was able to get this story all together quickly and very smoothly. In the end will Henri and Monica  be able to get together? What does the future hold for them?

I found "His Chosen Bride" a very delightful read and if you are in for a  good romance this read is for you. This novel was one that I could not put down until I was finished.

There are nearly 1900 participants this year and you'll find a list HERE 

A-Z Challenge Day 12 'L'

L is for... emotion!!!

as in Love, Lust, Loneliness, & Laughter








LOVE
Take away love, and our earth is a tomb."  Robert Browning

"Love is a temporary madness. It erupts like an earthquake and then subsides. And when it subsides you have to make a decision. You have to work out whether your roots have become so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part. Because this is what love is. Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement, it is not the promulgation of promises of eternal passion. That is just being "in love" which any of us can convince ourselves we are.
Love itself is what is left over when being in love has burned away, and this is both an art and a fortunate accident. Your mother and I had it, we had roots that grew towards each other underground, and when all the pretty blossom had fallen from our branches we found that we were one tree and not two."
Louis de Bernieres

"You come to love not by finding the perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly."   Sam Keen

"You know you are in love when you can't fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams."  Dr. Seuss

If we can't love ourselves, why should anyone else? Anonymous

LUST“sex is the consolation you have when you can't have love”   Gabriel Garcí­a Márquez

Love is about giving and lust is only focused on taking.  Anonymous 

Lust is wanting to sleep with someone. Love is wanting to wake up next to them in the morning.  Anonymous"Lust is to the other passions what the nervous fluid is to life; it supports them all, lends strength to them all ambition, cruelty, avarice, revenge, are all founded on lust."
Marquis De Sade

LONELINESS
"Only in a house where one has learnt to be lonely does one have this solicitude for things. One's relation to them, the daily seeing or touching, begins to become love, and to lay one open to pain." Elizabeth Bowen



"A lonely man is a lonesome thing, a stone, a bone, a stick, a receptacle for Gilbey's gin, a stooped figure sitting at the edge of a hotel bed, heaving copious sighs like the autumn wind." John Cheever

"In our extreme youth, in our most humiliating sorrow, we think we are alone. When we are older we find that others have suffered too." Suzanne Moarny

"To most people loneliness is a doom. Yet loneliness is the very thing which God has chosen to be one of the schools of training for His very own. It is the fire that sheds the dross and reveals the gold." Bernard M. Martin

LAUGHTER
"The sound of laughter has always seemed to me the most civilized music in the universe." Peter Ustinov

"Laughter -- An interior convulsion, producing a distortion of the features and accompanied by inarticulate noises. It is infectious and, though intermittent, incurable." Ambrose Gwinett Bierce


"Close friends contribute to our personal growth. They also contribute to our personal pleasure, making the music sound sweeter, the wine taste richer, the laughter ring louder because they are there." Judith Viorst

"People who laugh actually live longer than those who don't laugh. Few persons realize that health actually varies according to the amount of laughter." Dr. James Walsh.

There are nearly 1900 participants this year and you'll find a list HERE

A-Z Challenge Day 11 - K

K is for Know, Knot, and Kernal

or are they all the same thing?






I often use the expression 'A sort of Knowing' when I 'know' something I've never known before, never heard of, never read, never researched.  I mean how could I if I never knew about it?  And yet, suddenly, that 'knowing' is there, fully formed and in an unexplicable way, totally logical and practical.
It may be I meet someone, and I get that kind of 'I know you, from somewhere,' and yet at the same time I know I've never physically met them in my life before.

Story plots can be a little bit like that.  At least for me, they are.  They often turn up out of the blue, fully formed, but that doesn't mean I'm a plotter!  Oh no! If I try to go down that route the idea evaporates into a mist of disallusions and confusion.

And what about my characters? They, too, usually turn up full of their own importance and determined to have their own way.  I can almost see them approaching, huddled together in a knot of goals, plots and subterfuge.  Oh, and don't forget about love.  After all I am an author of romance!

With the third choice, I cheat, oh yes, I'm becoming more like my characters every day.  They turn up and say one thing and turn out to mean something else entirely!
So for 'Kernal' read 'seed'.  The 'seed' of an idea, given to me by my characters who then delight in turning everything upside down when I start following the seed they've planted in my mind!

Are you a 'plotter' or a 'panster' kind of author?
Who controls the sory, you or your characters?
Do you deviate from the original 'design' of your story and if so, what are the consequences?

There are nearly 1900 participants this year and you'll find a list HERE

A-Z Challenge - Day 7 'G'

Is the brainchild of Arlee Bird, at Tossing it Out. The A to Z Challenges to post the letter of the alphabet every day during the month of April, with Sundays off for good behavior. Since April 1 falls on a Sunday, that will be the day we start with A. Whether you go with a theme or freestyle, your post must match the letter of the alphabet for that day. And this year nearly 1900 signed up for the challenge.

Today's letter is 'G'

so I decided - probably like hundreds of others to start with Google.

Did you know Google was chosen because  the word Google is a play on the word “googol,” a mathematical term for the number represented by the numeral 1 followed by 100 zeros?

Did you know that Google's founders, Larry Page and Sergey Brin are reported to have disagree about almost everything during this first meeting in 1995?

Did you know that one year later these two began collaborating on a search engine called BackRub?

Did you know it took them another year to come up with the Google name that is a part of everyday life in most internet users' lives today?

Did you know that in August 1998 Sun co-founder Andy Bechtolsheim wrote a check for $100,000 to an entity that did not exist... a company called Google Inc. and that a month later this company began its life in Susan Wojcicki’s garage? 

The rest, as they say 'is history'.

If you look up the word 'google' at http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/google?s=t you will find it has become not only a household word, but a way of life.

This is what is said at http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/google?s=t

Word Story

Founded in 1998, the Web site Google.com has become such an institution that in its short existence, it has changed not only the way we process the endless data found on the information superhighway, but also the way we think and talk about the Internet.


The term google itself is a creative spelling of googol, a number equal to 10 to the 100th power, or more colloquially, an unfathomable number. Googol was coined in the 1930s and is attributed to the nine-year-old nephew of American mathematician Edward Kasner.


Soon after Google was created, the trademarked company name became a popular verb. People were “googling” all sorts of information, including their own names. When users google themselves, unless their names are absurdly rare, they may find their “googlegangers” (a portmanteau word combining “google” and “doppelgänger”), or their namesakes, listed in the Google search results.


A whole new industry has sprung up around Google, including the new field of search-engine optimization, or SEO, which works to boost the ranking of a name or term in Google and other search-engine results. In 2005, the newly-minted term Google bomb became popular, to describe the intentional skewing of Google search results by creating links to misleading Web pages. Whether we like it or not, we now live in a Google-centric world.

Citations

“Google has come to represent all our hopes, dreams, and fears about the disruptive promise and dangers of the Internet.”

  —Rob Hof, “Is Google Too Powerful?,” Bloomberg Businessweek  (April 9, 2007) http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_15/b4029001.htm

“Google's uncorporate slogan—‘Don't be evil’—appeals to Americans who embrace underdogs.”
  —Ken Auletta, Googled: The End of the World As We Know It  (2009) http://books.google.com/books?id=-oZY9GJW7YgC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

“Show us a man or woman who’s never Googled an ex, and we’ll show you someone without an Internet connection.”
  —Em & Lo, “You, Again: Reconnecting with the ex is a dicey proposition,” New York  (September 24, 2006) http://nymag.com/relationships/mating/21634/

“I know nothing about this man, except for what I Googled.”


  —Irene Zutell, Pieces of Happily Ever After  (2009) http://books.google.com/books?id=FqhWm4GYHxMC&lpg=PP1&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false 
 

There are nearly 1700 participants this year and you'll find a list HERE



A-Z Challenge - Day 6 F

 

F is for Funny

So I went looking for some of the funnier quotes out there online.

Do you have a favourite quote you'd like to share?

 

The only reason people get lost in thought is because it's unfamiliar territory.

(http://www.coolfunnyquotes.com/)

"Duct tape is like the force. It has a light side, a dark side, and it holds the world together."
(http://www.coolfunnyquotes.com/)



The road to success is always under construction.
((http://www.coolfunnyquotes.com/)




A selection from http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/topics/topic_funny.html

A child of five would understand this. Send someone to fetch a child of five.

Groucho Marx

Be obscure clearly.
E. B. White

There cannot be a crisis next week. My schedule is already full.
Henry A. Kissinger

Any idiot can face a crisis - it's day to day living that wears you out.
Anton Chekhov

Every man dies. Not every man really lives.
William Wallace

Creativity is the sudden cessation of stupidity.

~~~

You'll find more information about the following books at http://www.sherrygloag.com/

    




There are nearly 1700 participants this year and you'll find a list HERE

The 2012 A-Z challenge begins today

What is the A-Z Challenge?
 The A to Z Challenges to post the letter of the alphabet every day during the month of April, with Sundays off for good behavior. Since April 1 falls on a Sunday, that will be the day we start with A.

This is my fist year of participation so I have decided to to 'wing it'.   As long as I post the matching  letter of the alphabet for that day.

So, to day, my 'A' is about Angels.

What are angels?  Are they real, are they myth, and if so why do the play such important roles in all of the wolrd's major faiths, where they are depicted as 'messengers of god'.

The best known in everyday life are the Guardian angels.  Whether parents tell their children they have a Guardian Angel as a form of comfort or from belief doesn't really matter.  The child, at an early age is introduced the the angelic realm of reality.

In today's society angels are big business.  Workshops art work, meditation to name just a few areas where they  have become so important to people.

Do you believe in angels?  Have you ever seen one? Do you have an angelic tale to tell and would like comment on?

There are nearly 1700 participants this year and you'll find a list HERE

“When there is an original sound in the world, it makes a hundred echoes.”

“When there is an original sound in the world, it makes a hundred echoes.”

John A. Shedd

Words are a bit like this.

One of the gremlins that so often slip through the editing net while preparing a manuscript for submission to a publisher is what is termed ‘echoes’ by the editors who plough through those lucky enough to make it onto the editors piles.

‘Echoes’ is another word for ‘repetition’. And it is surprising how many times ‘echoes’ creep into your work.

It may not be the same word that echoes through the whole story. You may find certain words litter several chapters and then the echoes change in the following ones.

Today I was working through a particular chapter searching out two words. ‘Season’ and ‘children’. ‘Season’ turned out to be under control, but ‘children’? In one particular page the word was everywhere. In almost every sentence.

And the horrifying thing was I’d ‘read’ over the echoes several times and only discovered them when I went in and used the ‘find’ facility.

Some echoes are permissible, but too many, and they simply become an annoyance that disrupts the writing flow, and pull the reader out of the story.

As I use all these awesome gadgets within the program and other software available I give thanks I do not have to struggle through the days of the typewriter, and my respect for those authors rises with each mistake my computer ‘gadgets’ discover and correct.

From Now Until Forever

WINNER of From Now Until Forever Contest

GIVEAWAY

At the end of December I am giving away a PDF version of From Now Until Forever and will use random.org to choose one lucky winner from all the SSS comments received.

And the winner December's Giveaway is...

  Zee Monodee

Congratulations Zee

Six Sentence Sunday

Best wishes  for 2012 to you all.

Thank you to everyone who leaves comments, and visits every week.  

What better way to start the New Year than to start with a new story? So  Today I am sharing the opening six lines of my Valentine Story about the brother of the hero in my current novella, From Now Until Forever, published by Astraea Press.

Henri Pierre Gasquet hesitated before knocking on his father’s office door. They’d shared breakfast together less than an hour ago and talked over many things, including Henri’s killer schedule for the next several months. The king had given no indication of the need for a formal meeting this morning. With a fatalistic shrug, he knocked, waited a second, then turned the handle and entered the room.

“You wanted to see me?”
Henri waited for his father to indicate he sit before dropping into the chair in front of the king’s desk.

You'll find plenty more great offerings at Six Sentence Sunday

Tuesday Tales #4 -Wishes

Welcome back to this week's Tuesday Tales. And thank you to everyone who visited and left a comment last week.  I hope you all had a wonderful holiday.

This week's prompt is 'Wishes'

“A source close to Pattie Cratchet revealed the film star told everyone at the New Year’s Eve party she wished she’d never entered the competition that brought her to the attention of today’s leading film director,.” The radio announcer’s plumy voice filled the elegant bedroom.

“According to the source, who wishes to remain anonymous, the world famous film star declared she missed her family and regretted that fame made it impossible to see them as often as she’d like.

“Records show that Ms. Cratchet comes third in the list of the most highly paid female film stars. For those who enjoy a less lucrative life this may seem surprising, as Ms Cratchet is often considered as the lady that has it all. Apparently, according to our informant, this is not the case.

“For someone who spends so much of her time in the public eye, very little is known about her personal life, and her family in particular."

“Turn that thing off.”

Her voice, muffled by the closed bathroom door, James took his time in responding. He’d lived with Pattie for seven years now, and the radio presenter’s comments brought home to him how little he too, knew of his partner’s life before they met.

“Why don’t you talk about them?” he asked when she entered the bedroom, one towel wrapped round her body and another round her head.

“What? Who?”

In the mirror he caught the shuttered expression on her face.

“Your family.” Stating the obvious, he sat up from where he’d been lounging against the pillows on the bed. “It’s true what that guy said. You never talk about them.”

“So?”

It wasn’t anger he heard in her voice, nor was it indignation. She sat with her back to him and released the towel capping her wet hair, and dropped it on the floor. Her eyes, normally brimful with laughter were dark with emotion. The colour had drained from her face and without the mask of makeup, he noticed her pallor. Her throat bobbled.

Nerves, he wondered, or something more?

“Who was at the party last night that knows you so well they know something about your family, you don’t want revealed?”

“You have that backwards, James.”

A coldness he’d never heard in her voice before chilled him to the bone, and for a moment he regretted starting this conversation. But, he reminded himself, he’d suggested tonight’s dinner at a top restaurant to propose to her, to make their life together permanent. He dug his hand into his pocket and fingered the ring box tucked in there.

“Sheryl Stagwell is sore because she asked me if I had any brothers and I told her if I had I’d make sure she didn’t ever manage to get her avaricious claws into them.”

“That was asking for trouble,” James agreed with a grin, and rose from the bed and crossed the room to stand behind her and feather his fingers down her neck and over her shoulders and arms. “I don’t see them.”

Looking into the mirror, Pattie’s puzzled gaze met his satirical one.

“Claw marks, my dear. I don’t see any.”

With a gurgle of laughter, Pattie raised her arms, hooked her hands round the back of his neck and pulled his mouth down to meet hers.

“Randall pulled her away before she said anything else.” She switched on her hair dryer, and for several moments James watched her tease her hair into her preferred ‘naturally tousled’ look.

“Randall Stockman was there?” The presence of the world renowned classical pianist, and son of a former president, surprised him. He’d have been there himself if he hadn’t been wrapping up the final shoot of his own film, in London. He’d made it home to LA at four in the morning.

“Why not?” She tossed her head, sent him a defiant glare, inhaled a deep breath and added. “He’s my brother.”

The bottle of Pattie’s favourite scent he’d just picked up, slipped through his fingers, and fortunately, landed in the crumpled heap of damp towel.

“Randal Stockman is your brother?” Stunned into silence, his hand connected with the ring box. His partner was the daughter of a former president and he’d almost asked her to marry him. How had she managed to evade the publicity for so many years?

“See?” Sadness filled her voice and darkened her eyes. “Already your attitude to me is changing.” She clicked off the dryer. “All I’ve ever wanted is for the man in my life to see me for who I am, not for who my parents are.”

He couldn’t deny it. They’d lived together for seven years and in a second he’d begun to think of her differently. His fingers firmed round the little box and he pulled it from his pocket. Waiting for the right place, the right time, no longer mattered. Only Pattie mattered.

He dropped to one knee, took the dryer from her hand, tipped her chin up until she looked him in the eye.

“You’re right, I can’t deny it. For a second there, the thought of your influential family nearly sidetracked me. But in every other respect you are wrong. Nothing will deter me from asking you to marry me. I intended to ask you after dinner, but here and now feels more right.”

Her eyes rounded in surprise, narrowed with laughter and gleamed with delight.

Without a word she grabbed his head closer and kissed him, hard. “I love you so much. And for almost as long as I’ve known you I’ve wished to marry you. Now you’ve made my wish come true. Yes, I’ll marry you.”

A reminder, you can find more awesome stories at Tuesday Tales

TRS Cristmas Party 19th - 23rd December

http://trsparties.com/

The Romance Studio Christmas Party19th - 23rd December

Day Four

Leave a comment here and at TRS telling me why you'd like to win a pdf copy of From Now Until Forever.

The winner will be drawn tomorrow 24th (UK) time.

Day Three

Today I am sharing more about From Now Until Forever

Day Two

All day today I am talking about different aspects of my writing life over at The Romance Studio Party hop on over there and then return and leave a comment here TOO for a chance to win another great prize today.

Win a pdf copy of Duty Calls

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Day One

Hop on over to The Romance Studio Christmas Party for another chance to wind a pdf copy of From Now Until Forever

All you have to do is leave a cemment here and at The Romance Studio Party site.

Plus there are lots of other authors also offering fabulous giveaways.

Six Sentence Sunday

Today's 'Six' moves o  a little bit from yesterday's Sample, and as alway I appreciate your comments and thank you all for you company and support every week.

To celebrate the release of my new book From Now Until Forever by Astrea Press, I am sharing samples with you throughout December.

“Won’t it be easier if I sit at the table?”

“Our assailants may have left someone behind to watch this place. I see no point in making ourselves easy targets for our uninvited visitors.” Gently, she removed the bloodied cloth he’d pressed against his arm. “Let’s look at your wound,” she added, pushing forward onto her knees. She curled her tongue round her upper lip in a way so familiar, his love for her swamped him, leaving only wonder he’d found the other half of himself.

To celebrate the release of my new book From Now Until Forever by Astrea Press, I will share samples with you throughout December.

GIVEAWAY

At the end of December I am giving away a PDF version of From Now Until Forever and will use random.org to choose one lucky winner from all the SSS comments received during December.

Sweet Saturday Samples

Welcome to another Sweet Saturday Sample. And thank you to everyone who stops by every week. I hope you enjoy the sample my my latest release today.
There will be more tomorrow.



“Use this to stop the bleeding.” A dishtowel landed on the floor in front of him. “And put some pressure on the wound.” She slammed the outer door shut, cutting off the sunlight.
“It’s true.”
“What’s true?”
For a second a ghost of a smile tilted her lips before it faded again. Guilt for the loss sat heavily on his shoulders.
Because of his obsession to live a ‘normal’ life, he’d endangered Melanie. The ache in his arm threatened to steal his concentration. In his arrogance, why had he thought he’d manage to keep his identity and location hidden?
“You can smell your own blood.”
It warred with the forgotten bacon congealing on their breakfast plates on the table above him, the toast going stiff in the toaster, and the coffee that never made it to their mugs.
He pressed the cloth more firmly against his arm. He expected Melanie to join him, to seek safety. Instead she stalked to the window, rammed the gun butt against the lower windowpane, and focused her attention on the road.
“Care to explain why someone’s got you in their sights today?”
If he anticipated sympathy, he didn’t get it. The woman at the window had morphed into a hard, disciplined stranger before his eyes. Until this moment he’d assumed her to be his friend, his lover. Instead she’d covered his butt, protected him—.
A tenuous memory tapped his brain, demanding attention, only to vanish beneath the sound of Mel’s sudden approach.
He stared at the blood-­soaked cloth and wondered if he’d ever see his home and family again.

To celebrate the release of my new book From Now Until Forever by Astrea Press, I will share samples with you throughout December.

GIVEAWAY

At the end of December I am giving away a PDF version of From Now Until Forever
and will use random.org to choose one lucky winner from all the SSS comments
received during December.

HO! HO! HO! HOLIDAY SPICE: CHOOSE YOUR FLAVOR NAUGHTY OR NICE BLOG HOP TOUR (DEC 12-19)

 HO! HO! HO! HOLIDAY SPICE: CHOOSE YOUR FLAVOR NAUGHTY OR NICE BLOG HOP TOUR (DEC 12-19)

It was revealed on the news last night that the beckhams purportedly paid £35.000 for their Christmas trees.

While this is not the tree in question, it did get me thinking.  The newscaster - inspite of the roling ticker at the bottom of the screen stating 'trees' - implied they'd paid that amount for one tree, and maybe some people do.

But it got me thinking. We here talk every year about the commercialism of Christmas and yet we seem to be compelled to go out and shop until we drop every year, in order to offer gifts to our nearest and dearest.
Children's wish lists these days are enough to turn our hair as white as Santas



Sadly, I no longer have it, but my son carved a beautiful animal out of wood while at school and gave it too me for Christmas.  I treasured it at the time and still mourne the loss all these years later.  But... I still have the memory. I can still remember the anticipation on his face when he handed me the parcel.  I can still remember the overwhelming love surrounding the gift and all it represented.  So it iwas a bit scew-wiff, but I didn't care, to me it was beautiful, and worth more than a sleighful of gifts.

Several years later it was his father's turn to ''fill up'.  For several years, he'd been searching for a single jazz record.  He'd taped it off the radio, but didn't get the name of the tune or the artist.  On this particular Christmas our son handed him his gift, and when DH opened it, he cried, it meant so much to him.

No amount of money could or would better the value of those gifts to us.  In both cases our son spent time ensuring we received gifts we'd treasure. 

to you all, and thank you for being a part of my life.

Hop on over to Enchanted Muse Press to read some more fantasic blogs

TOUR RULES!

1) HAVE FUN!!!

2) INVITE ALL OF YOUR FRIENDS!!! SPREAD THE WORD!!!
3) THIS TOUR STARTS: Monday, December 12, at Midnight (Arizona Time)

THIS TOUR ENDS: Monday, December 19, at Midnight (Arizona Time)
***Winners will be drawn and posted December 20th! ***

4) MEET AND MINGLE WITH ALL THE AUTHORS & BOOK PAGES! EXPERIENCE A NEW DESTINATION AT EVERY STOP! PARTICIPATE IN EVERY BLOG CONTEST AND BE ENTERED FOR CHANCES TO WIN MULTIPLE PRIZES! EVERY BLOG VISITED IS ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY TO WIN!!

5) PARTICIPATION AT ALL BLOGS IS RECOMMENDED, BUT NOT REQUIRED. REMEMBER, THE MORE BLOGS YOU HOP, THE BETTER YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING PRIZES. EVERY AUTHOR & BOOK PAGE IS WAITING TO MEET AND INTERACT WITH YOU, SO PLEASE BE SURE TO SHOW THEM SOME LOVE!

6) DID I MENTION TO HAVE FUN? WHOO! HOO!! HERE WE GOOOOOOOOOOOO!

***Authors & Book Pages have full discretion to choose an alternate winner in the event any winner fails to claim their prize(s) within 72 hours of their name being posted or after notification of win, whichever comes first. Anyone who participates in this blog hop tour is subject to these rules***

GIVEAWAY

Answer the question below to win a copy of my hew novella,

From Now Until Forever

Leave a comment sharing your favourite Christmas Day memory, it can be something physical, an action, a thought, a picture, anything. Please remember to include your email.

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