Sunday, June 7, 2015

Sunday's Safe Word Shelf: Harper's Cove Series by Deanndra Hall featuring Cheryl & Brett at 326 Harper's Cove


Written from first-person perspective of two of the characters, the Harper's Cove series novellas are quick, fun, steamy reads. They'll tickle your funny bone AND put a sizzle in your shorts! At 20K-25K words, they're perfect for a lazy afternoon's entertainment or a quick bedtime jolt to the libido. The books are not dependent on each other and can be read in any order. At their completion, the series will be at least six books (maybe even more!) and each will be just as hot and hilarious.
Visit Harper's Cove and get into the lives of the kinkiest neighborhood in town. They're up to things that your neighbors would never do.

Or would they?

Cheryl & Samuel at 323 Harper's Cove #5
Summary:
Cheryl and Samuel Danvers are the best neighbors in the neighborhood, at least according to the neighborhood’s drunken snoop, Gloria. After all, they’re the ministers at her church, which makes them above reproach.

Right?

But Cheryl and Samuel have a secret – well, three secrets, actually. They each have one, and they have one together. They share that secret with the Gholsons and no one else until one night when someone stumbles onto it, and he’s probably one of the last people in the world they’d want to have know about it. But you know what happens when one person with a secret stumbles onto another? Everybody keeps their mouths shut!

The Danvers desperately don’t want to keep their secrets anymore, but even if the political and social climate changed and let them tell their individual secrets, the big one – the one they share – will always be taboo. Sure, they could help to affect change, but what would that do to their vocations?
It’s a lot to think about, considering they can keep it all under wraps. Unless, of course, Gloria figures it out.



Karen & Brett at 326 Harper's Cove #1
Summary:
Find out exactly what the neighbors of Harper's Cove are up to when they go inside and close their doors. According to Gloria, the drunken busy-body of the cove, they're all up to something perverse, and she's determined to find out their secrets. As she sneaks, peeks, pokes, and prods, her long-suffering husband, Russell, begs her to leave all of their nice neighbors alone.

But could Gloria be right?

Every weekend, Karen and Brett Reynolds have one helluva party. It's a houseful. They've been having those parties for a long time, and Gloria can barely stand not knowing what's going on in there. Even better, she'd like to be invited to the parties at 326 Harper's Cove, but that's not going to happen. Because when she found out exactly what's going on there, she'd have a fit. Karen and Brett aren't about to give away their secret. They've been doing this a long time and they all know each other quite well - intimately, you might say. And they're not about to share that closeness with anyone outside the group, especially not a nosy neighbor. Because, quite frankly, it's hard enough to keep up with what fourteen people are doing without adding another.

But when Gloria manages to sneak a peek through their privacy fence, she might be surprised by what she sees!

Becca & Greg at 314 Harper's Cove #2
Summary:
Come and visit the neighbors of Harper's Cove. Every couple on the street is pretty sure they're the only ones doing something as kinky as they're doing, but the joke's on them!

Becca and Greg at 314 Harper's Cove continues the series. Even though they seem like your average neighbors, Becca and Greg live a lifestyle their neighbors wouldn't understand, especially the busybody of the neighborhood. Becca lives to serve, and while Greg appreciates her, he rules his domain with an iron fist - or maybe an iron cage. When Becca's asked to share Greg, she does what she has to do, even though Greg insists she'll always be first for him. And it might work out better than Becca thinks initially - that is, if the nosy neighbor will stay out of their business.

Can Gloria leave them alone?

But the arrival of another woman to their home makes Gloria sure that there's something going on that's just not right. Even Becca's explanation doesn't dissuade her from poking around to find out the "truth." And poke she does, until she gets the surprise of her life! Poor Russell, her husband, is left to listen to her nonsense while trying to keep her drinking under control, but it doesn't work. Gloria is determined to get down to the truth of what's going on in the Hendersons' house.

Will Gloria's snooping lead her to a view of life in the Hendersons' house that she's not expecting?

Donna & Conner at 228 Harper's Cove #3
Summary:
Find out exactly what the neighbors of Harper’s Cove are up to when they go inside and close their doors. According to Gloria, the drunken busy-body of the cove, they’re all up to something perverse, and she’s determined to find out their secrets. As she sneaks, peeks, pokes, and prods, her long-suffering husband, Russell, begs her to leave all of their nice neighbors alone.

But could Gloria be right?

Gloria wants to know - what are they up to?

Those nice people at 228, the Millicans? They’re religious counselors, trying to help lovely couples who are having marital problems. Problem is, they’re not counseling; training, maybe, but not counseling. But no matter what Donna says, Gloria still thinks the truck that delivered large crates to the Millicans’ house in the wee hours of the morning, two weeks after they’d moved in, was pretty suspicious. Donna says it was exercise equipment that the moving company had lost, but Gloria’s not so sure. Could it be that they’re not as they appear?

Savannah & Martin at 219 Harper's Cove #4
Summary:
Welcome to Harper’s Cove! It’s a welcoming little place, after all, a street lined with beautiful homes, well-manicured lawns, and upscale vehicles in cobblestone driveways. It looks idyllic.

But there’s a fox in the hen house.

Savannah and Martin McIntosh have a lot of friends – couple friends. And when Savannah drags out the fishbowl for the keys, everyone gets excited. They certainly should. Once the ladies have chosen a set of keys, they get to spend the night with the owner of the keys. It’s a swinger’s paradise.

Until the nosy neighborhood drunk, Gloria, notices a man leaving Savannah and Martin’s house on Saturday morning, then sees Martin coming in later. And, of course, as the self-appointed neighborhood watchdog, Gloria feels it’s her sworn duty to find out what’s going on. She’s absolutely, positively sure that everyone in the neighborhood is doing something wicked and dirty, and she’s out to find out what, even though her poor, long-suffering husband, Russell, says he’ll send her back to rehab if she doesn’t leave the neighbors alone.

Leave them alone? Not a chance. She wants to know what they’re up to, but they won’t make it easy on her.

Or maybe they will. Too easy.

Author Bio:
For as long as I can remember, I've been a writer . . .
and it has served me well. I wrote for local publications, wrote marketing and advertising materials, wrote for academic publications, and eventually grew jaded with the writing profession as I often watched others take credit for my hard work. I retreated into the world of 3-D art in the fiber and textile mediums and hid out in a world of colors and textures. But, truth is, there was always a story or two in my head. It wasn't until Nikki and I met in my imagination that I decided it was time to let those stories out, and I'm glad I did. My readers now get to enjoy the fruits of my imagination and, believe me, it runs wild!

On the personal side, I've been happily married to my lover and best friend for over thirty years, and I have two wonderful adult kids who've blessed me with two excellent choices of life partners. When I'm not writing, I'm playing with my three crazy little dogs, hiking in a local recreation area, kayaking, working out at the gym, tending my herbs, cooking, or doing some kind of research.
But I'd really rather be writing! 


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EMAIL: DeanndraHall@gmail.com



Cheryl & Samuel #5

Karen & Brett #1

Becca & Greg #2(Free June 8 - June 12)

Donna & Connor #3(Free June 15 - June 19)

Savannah & Martin #4(Free June 22 - June 26)

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Ink: A Mermaid Romance by Melanie Karsak

Title: Ink: A Mermaid Romance
Author: Melanie Karsak
Genre: Paranormal Adult Romance
Release Date: June 2, 2015
Summary:
A mermaid princess destined to wed a handsome king…

It sounds like a fairy tale, but the reality is far murkier.

Ink, Princess of the Florida Atlantic mers, is slated to wed the ancient enemy of her tribe, the King of the Gulfs. After years of war that led to countless mer deaths, as well as the genocide of aquatic shapeshifters and the freshwater mers of Florida, Ink’s marriage will bring lasting peace.

Or so it seems.

Mere hours before she’s supposed to leave the ocean for her customary year as a drywalker, Ink meets Hal, an alligator shifter who warns her that a storm is brewing. There is malicious intent behind Ink’s marriage—and worse, meeting Hal has also caused a storm to rage in Ink’s heart. Nevertheless, loyal to her tribe, Ink will put aside her feelings and journey to Miami to marry the decadent King Manx.

Ink soon learns that her only hope of surviving the crashing force swelling around her is to tap into a power deep inside—a forbidden power that might destroy them all.


      I gritted my teeth and turned back, staring at those gathered on the small island. Steeling my nerve, I swam forward. My tail dragged along the sandy ocean bottom. I curled it, resting it on the sand, then closed my eyes. I had seen the transformation many times, had come to bear witness as the others left the tribe for their year in exile. I always pitied them.
     The first crash of agonizing pain washed over me. I felt as if I had been stung by an entire bloom of jellyfish. Pain swallowed me. It was like I’d been sliced from my flipper to my waist. I betrayed myself by gasping out loud.
     “Ink,” Indigo whispered softly.
     My body arched as another shooting wave of pain bolted upward. My body shook as jolt after jolt racked me. After the sharp pains subsided, I felt a warm tingling sensation. I opened my eyes. Blue and gold light spiraled around the lower half of my body. I stared down at the water in amazement, watching as my tail slowly transformed into legs.
     The glowing light then traveled up my body. It centered on the tribal mark on my back. The mark began to feel very hot. Suddenly, pain seared across my back. I felt like I’d been scraped along a coral reef. A drywalker’s tribal mark forms into its final pattern when we make our first transformation. The mark on my back, strange and large, always puzzled me. Now I learned it was renowned enough to earn me a prophecy. I hardly knew what to think of that. Had Creon known? Would he believe something like that or did he just find a way to use it to his advantage? The answer, it seemed, was obvious. At the end of the pathway, King Manx waited for me.
     The glowing light pulsated brightly once more, surrounding my body in an orb of light, then dissipated into the night’s sky. Moments later, I felt a strange sensation as cool water swished between my legs, touching my body in its most sensitive female parts which, without the protective covering of my tail scales, were exposed. It took me a moment to steady myself in the rocking waves.      My hand drifted underwater to my sides. I gently stroked my hands over my body, feeling the bastardization of myself as a mer. Now, I was just like the humans. I stood on two feet, feeling the sand between my toes. Fighting the waves on wobbling knees, I made my way toward the beach.


What is your favorite mermaid story or myth?
When I was a teen, I fell in love with the Slavic/Russian novels written by C. J. Cherryh, including her work Rusulka. Rusulka is the story about a drowned girl who becomes a haunted spirit. Rusulka are prevalent in Slavic myth. They are often depicted as spirits, but sometimes they appear as nymphs or water sprites. I was really inspired by Cherryh’s Rusulka character.

You can catch the paperback for a penny on Amazon!

What was the inspiration for your mermaid novella?


I moved to Florida about five years ago, and I was really inspired by all the sights on the coast. We’ve taken trips to Miami on a few occasions. I enjoy the architecture, but dislike the vibe of the city. It’s the same vibe Ink feels when she is there (sorry, Miami). I live on the Space Coast, not far from NASA, and I love this area. We are close to Cocoa Beach which has the feel of a “once-happening” place. There is a quaint charm to its faded, sea-side glory. I adore Cocoa Village, a quaint downtown area. There are lovely little shops and old oak trees with Spanish moss. It was the perfect setting for Ink’s eventual rendezvous with a good friend.

Cast your characters. If your novella was made into a movie, who would play your main characters?
Ink is hard to cast, but I would probably choose someone like Megan Fox.
For Hal, I would definitely cast Jason Momoa. Because, well, Jason Momoa.

What was most challenging thing writing about mermaids?
The world building! Oh my gosh, it took me forever to figure out just how “under the sea” functioned in terms of a society. There was nothing to go from so I just made it all up! It took a lot more time and brain-power than I expected.

Ursula or Ariel?
Ursula’s attitude with Ariel’s looks. Ariel is too “I need a man” for me. Ursula is too “I need power” for Ink. But they both have good qualities.

I actually really love cecaelia, mer-octopus like Ursula. They play an important role in Ink.

What else should we know about your novella?
There are alligator shifters and nyotaimori (Google it). I now know way more about alligator mating calls than a normal person would find useful. Don’t judge me by my Google searches. :)

Author Bio:
Melanie Karsak is the author of the Amazon best-selling series The Airship Racing Chronicles, The Harvesting Series, and The Saga of Lady Macbeth. She grew up in rural northwestern Pennsylvania and earned a Master's degree in English from Gannon University. A steampunk connoisseur, white elephant collector, and zombie whisperer, the author currently lives in Florida with her husband and two children. She is an Instructor of English at Eastern Florida State College.


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EMAIL: karsakmelanie@gmail.com








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Release Day Blitz: All Cried Out by Ayden K Morgen

Title: All Cried Out
Author: Ayden K Morgen
Series: All Falls Down #2
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: June 7, 2015
Cover Design: Jada D'Lee Designs

Summary:
With Jared Corbit and Savannah Martin's wedding day quickly approaching, everything should be golden for the two, but their trouble has only just begun. When the media learns of the damage Stewart Paulson has inflicted on the Talbot family, Savannah and Jared get caught in the cross-hairs.

Even worse, the past has caught up with Savannah in a big way, and nothing will prepare her or Jared for the danger headed their way or the devastating decisions they'll be forced to make as a result.

Jared's determined to protect his fiancée from the people milling in the shadows, but good intentions only go so far. When Savannah learns the truth he's desperately trying to keep from her, their future together begins to unravel. How can she trust him when he's lying to her? And just how far is he willing to go to protect the woman he loves from her past?

All Cried Out, told exclusively from Jared's POV, is the exciting follow up to Ayden K. Morgen's All Falls Down.




All Falls Down #1
Summary:
When Savannah Martin walks in on her abusive boyfriend and her best friend in bed together, she thinks life can't possibly get any worse. And then she wakes up in a hospital in Italy, scared and alone. With nowhere left to go, Savannah runs to the family who took her in when her mother abandoned her as a teenager.

But things aren't as simple as they were then.

For starters, two years of constant emotional abuse has broken Savannah in ways she's not sure can be repaired. And patriarch Matthew Talbot has been murdered, leaving his eldest daughter, Lexi, in charge of a global non-profit and her younger sisters.

Jared Corbit, Lexi's gorgeous boyfriend, is the only thing standing between her and whoever murdered her father. That doesn't stop Savannah from falling in love with him. She knows it's wrong, but she just can't stay away from him when he makes he feel like no one else ever has before.

Finding out his relationship with Lexi is a ruse should make things easier, but when the truth is finally revealed, Savannah's fragile world threatens to fall apart. There's a murderer on the loose, and he's gunning for the only family she has. To save their lives, she and Jared will be forced to make a decision that just might destroy her completely.

How is she supposed to let the man she loves be with another woman?

Author Bio:
Ayden lives in the heart of Arkansas with her childhood sweetheart and husband of ten years, and their five furry minions. When not writing, she spends her time hiking, reading, volunteering, causing mischief, and building a Spork army. Ayden graduated summa cum laude with her Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice and Forensic Psychology in 2009 before going on to complete her graduate degree in CJ and Law. She currently puts her education to use in the social services and CJ field.

Ayden also writes Young and New Adult fiction under the penname A.K. Morgen.


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All Cried Out

All Falls Down is only $0.99 




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Cover Reveal: Jesse by Jo Raven

Title: Jesse
Author: Jo Raven
Series: Damage Control #2
Genre: New Adult contemporary romance
Expected Release Date: Late June/Early July 2015
Cover Design: Jo Raven
Model: Francis Clément
Photographer: Sara Eirew


Summary:
Returning to Madison hurts. I thought I’d left my past behind, but the past goes on living. I carry it inside of me, it’s a piece of me. People have marked me in indelible ways and I drag the shreds of my soul behind me, trying to put my pieces back together. I’m not the Amber I used to be. I fly under the radar, try to be invisible.

It doesn't always work. Drawing attention scares me. It always spells trouble. Returning to my home town is a last ditch effort to lay my demons to rest and start anew, for good this time.

Meeting Jesse Lee wasn’t in the plan. Yet here he is with his heart-stopping, sexy grin, handsome like a god, shining bright. He’s full of life, full of heat, packing the energy of a thousand suns in his gaze and muscular body. Jesse burns, and the pain of being near him is sweet.

But he’s foiling my plans. It’s hard to remain a ghost when he’s around. Hard to avoid his attention, to remain invisible. He sees me, really sees me, and behind his bright radiance, I can see shadows from his own past crowding in. He’s swimming hard to stay afloat even as he reaches for me.

What is he afraid of? And how can he save me from drowning when he can’t even save himself?


     I turn on him, hands on my hips. “What do you want?”
     “That sounds like a trick question.” He winks.
     “Does it? You barged in here and you think asking you what you want is a trick question?”
     “Hey now. I didn’t barge in here. You opened the door.” He lifts his hands much like Kayla did. I think I scare people.
     Good. Better them than me.
     “You’re an ass.”
     He grins. “And a fine one, too.”
     Oh dear God. “You’re a dick.”
     He nods solemnly, but his eyes dip to my cleavage and darken to forest green. “A big, big dick.”
     Crap, I walked right into this one, didn’t I? Of course, I’ve always had trouble recognizing plays on words and jokes. I should be upset. He’s teasing me, and teasing, in my book, is a prelude to hurting me.
     But the smile lingering on his full lips takes the sting away, and what’s more, it’s hot. Way too hot. Heat rushes to my face, flames licking my cheeks, and a pulse starts between my legs.
     This is so not happening. “Stop being such a jerk.”
     “You say that affectionately.” He’s somehow moved closer to me while I was busy self-combusting and his scent engulfs me, something hot, spicy and heady like mulled wine. “Like that pet name you gave me.”
     What? I stare at the dark brows over his intense eyes, the faint stubble on that square jaw, that mouth and… Oh God. I’ve lost the thread. I tear my gaze from his face, glancing down at his bare arms. One of them is heavily inked with swirling colors and a snake.
    A cobra, I think, done in red and green, curling on his thick bicep. And underneath the riot of colored ink swathing his arm from shoulder to wrist, faint crisscrossing lines catch my eyes, some thin and some thick, dark and raised.
     Scars.
     His voice startles me. “This place sure looks different when it’s not full of people.”
     “Like what, empty?”
     He chuckles, warm and delicious like a treacle of melted hot chocolate. “Like, nice.”
     “Although there’s no blonde wrapped around you and no sucking involved?”
     He chokes and bends over hacking.
     “You…” He shakes his head as he straightens, and wipes his mouth on the back of his hand. “Shit.”
     Yeah, I’m not only antisocial, I also don’t have any control over my mouth. Double whammy. Who wouldn’t want to be around me?
     “So what do you want?” Might as well get this over with so we can both go on our separate ways – he, back to his blonde and the sucking, and me, to my room and my beads.
     He flinches, a barely there twitch that has me wondering if I even saw it. “I lost… something. A leather wrist band. I can’t find it since the party here, and I thought to ask in case you saw it anywhere.”
     I remember seeing the band on his arm that night. “It was an old thing, wasn’t it?” Old, worn and starting to fray.
     “It’s…” He rubs his forehead, frowning. “It’s important to me.”
     He’s been an ass. Sort of. He’s been pushy. Kind of. He scares me.
     But the uncertainty is back in his eyes, and now I know I didn’t imagine it. And although I’m not sure what to do with it, this glimpse beneath the sunny surface that defines Jesse Lee, I wish… I wish I could. I wish I had the courage to prod and break the brittle skin, the scab over a wound I can only guess at.
     “I haven’t seen it,” I say, and his jaw tightens. This bracelet really seems important to him. “But I’ll look around. We’re still cleaning after the party from hell.”
     “Thanks.” His mouth quirks. He shifts back and leans against the wall, and I try hard not to notice how good he looks in a faded green T-shirt and low-slung dark jeans, not to stare at the bulge between his legs.
     Oh God, I’m checking out his package. Crap, no way…


Author Bio:
Jo Raven writes New Adult erotic contemporary romance. She loves sexy bad boys and strong-willed heroines, and divides her time between writing and reading. When not cooking up plots, she putters in her cluttered kitchen and dreams of traveling to India and Japan.


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