Thank you so much for joining us in celebrating our 2nd anniversary!
We hope to continue bringing your interesting books and great authors in the next year. Stop by the Forum and chat with others about the books you read, or just to look for recommendations.
I've been talking this weekend about the fun parts of being a blogger. It can be late nights. Computers can be frustrating (especially when they crash). But blogging truly is a labor of love. I love working with TinkNCognito and the authors I meet along the way. I love reading all these wonderful books.
Another great thing about blogging is how wonderfully nice and generous the authors are. We often have authors stop by the Forum to drop off excerpts and c over reveals. When I ask for contest prizes, they quickly respond. And when a charity comes calling, the bring in their friends.
My Rockstars are Authors!
We have a few more snippets for you, but first a shout out to all the authors who donated to our Birthday Basket of Prizes!
The Rafflecopter will continue to be run until June 4, so keep stopping by!
AB McKinley - e-books of Kilted Desire 1 & 2, Scotsmen do it Kilted Tank, Mug, Magnet, Pin, Teddy bear, Scottish biscuits ( cookies ), Scottish Tea
Alicia Sparks-- an ecopy (kindle) of Primitive Fix and a tarot reading
Amanda McIntyre - paperback of The Master & The Muses
Beth D. Carter - pdf of Otherworldly
Brenna Zinn - ecopy of Iron Rods
Caitlyn O'Leary -tba
Carrie Ann Ryan - signed paperback of Ink Reunited
Corinne Davies - ecopy of Chasing Peace Love & Fur
Dina Redmon- an ecopy (kindle) of To Speak of it Again.
Elle Boon - an ebook of Selena's Men and Two For Tamara
Emily A Lawrence - Unforgettable Hearts ecopy (kindle)
Erika Reed - ebook of Double Her Chances.
Grace Burrowes - ARC paperback of The Captive
Gracie Wilson - an ecopy (kindle) of Lonely Girl
Heather Rainier - pdf of Divine Charity (June 13 release)
Heather Snow - signed paperback of Sweet Deception
Hennessee Andrews - Tattoos and Cupcakes ebook
Honor James - choose from her backlist
Izzibella Beau - ebook (kindle) Broken
J. Kenner - signed paperback of Wanted
Jeaniene Frost -ARC paperback of The Beautiful Ashes
Jill Shalvis - paperback of Always on My Mind
Katherine Rhodes- an ecopy (kindle) of Not Quite Juliet
Kristen Ashley - paperback of Fire Inside
Laurie Roma - ebooks of 3013: MATED and 3013: CLAIMED
Lisa Renee Jones - Tote bag and a print copy of Hot Secrets
Lori King - ecopy of Weekend Surrender and ARC of short story Watching Sin releasing June 15
Maisey Yates - paperback of Avenge Me
Monica Burns - paperback of Love's Portrait
Natalie J. Damschroder - paperback of Fight or Flight
Randi Alexander - signed paperback of Chase and Seduction
Rose Gordon - paperback of Secrets of a Viscount
Sabrina Jeffries - What the Duke Desires (paperback)
Sable Hunter - Green with Envy (It's just sex) and Bad as s (sweeter version (both Kindle copies)
SE Jakes (Stephanie Tyler) - paperback of Free Falling
Sherri Hayes - signed Slave booklet of chapter 1
Sophie Jordan - paperback of Foreplay and signed ARC paperback of Tease
Susan Hayes - ecopy of 3013: Renegade
Sydney Logan -an ebook from her list of released titles.
Tara Rose - 3 ebooks from her backlist
And Now For MORE Snippets!
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On the Forum, we often have a Spotlighted books or series--our version of Book of the Month. Corinne Davies was one of the first authors to join us. Of course I was fangirling her the whole time because I love her 3Xtacy Lake series. This year she brought us book 8 in the Menage Shifter romance series with Chasing Peace Love & Fur. She is donating an ecopy to the prize pack.
Chasing Peace Love & Fur (3xtasy Lake 8)
“It looks like they have kept the property taxes up to date if that makes you feel any better?” She’d been about to start a pile for the current year when Nouel stepped up behind her. Lightly grasping her wrist, he lifted the page up a bit so he could see it and bent close to her face to read it. Having a man this close to her was a bit disconcerting, especially after the way Luc had made her feel upstairs yesterday. During dinner last night, Luc and Georges hadn’t said anything else about them sharing a woman and she wasn’t about to ask. Both of them had given her a gentle kiss on the cheek when she’d said she was going to turn in early but hadn’t given any inclination of being interested in more.
Nouel, on the other hand…He’d wrapped his arm around her waist as he bent over her to reach for another paper. The stretch of his body over her back made her heart flutter and sent tingles of awareness along her skin, arrowing straight for her pussy. She shifted her hips, hoping to create enough friction between her legs to alleviate some of the ache she felt, but the movement made her ass slide back and forth across the front of his jeans. He stepped closer and she could feel the hard ridge of his erection press against her spine. She froze, uncertain what to do next. Do I ignore it? She hadn’t meant to arouse him but now that he was…“I’m sorry if I make you feel uncomfortable or embarrassed you, Nouel.”
He dropped the paper on to the table in front of them and wrapped his other arm around her chest, directly below her breasts, trapping her back against him. “Sweetheart, you’re making me feel all sorts of things, but uncomfortable isn’t one of them.” He shifted his weight slightly side to side, moving her body with him as if they were slow dancing together. “You feel absolutely perfect in my arms and I love the smell of your skin.” He brushed his cheek against hers.
“Maybe because I smell like your bed?”
Nouel chuckled against the shell of her ear. “Maybe, but there is more to your delectable scent than a reminder of my second favourite place in the world.”
“Like what?” The question was out before Clara could press her lips together. She’d never felt like this before. It was like the universe had collapsed in on itself and only the two of them remained. She reveled in the feel of his warm breath on her ear and the way his thumb had started stroking the underside of one of her breasts. She took in a shuddering breath and felt the effort vibrate through her body. Nouel pressed the hard ridge against her again and this time she moved counter to him, pressing back against him.
“You keep doing that, Clara, and we’ll never finish this conversation.”
“I thought we were dancing?” Clara grinned when he moaned against her temple. It was fun teasing him and she didn’t feel as though he was pressuring her to do anything she didn’t want to. If anything, it was the opposite. She wanted him to demand more, give her what she felt she wanted but didn’t know how to ask for. Having never been in this situation before, she wasn’t certain what to expect or what he might be expecting and that set her to worrying.
“Whatever is going through that head of yours, I want you to stop thinking about it.”
“What do you mean?”
“You went from being soft and flowing to rigid and locked down.” Nouel continued to stroke under her breast with his thumb but didn’t make any further moves. He slid his hand over her hips and pulled her back against him. “Think of your favourite song, something slow, something that makes you wet.”
He whispered the last word and Clara felt her cheeks heat up as her pussy grew slick. The more she rocked her hips back and forth, the wetter she felt.
“What song are you thinking about?”
“Never Tear Us Apart.” Clara used to fantasize about a man who would sweep her off her feet and stand up to her father. But, any male that looked in her direction would grovel and snivel at her father’s feet. She’d thought that Eddie would stand up to her father, but discovering his betrayal destroyed that dream…until now.
“I remember that one.” He hummed the melody against her temple as they moved and she relaxed back against him again. Being held like this made her feel warm and cherished. This was uncharted territory for her. Usually anytime a male got near her, her inner darkness would snarl and slam against its prison walls, but ever since the moment she stepped foot inside this house it had become unusually quiet.
“Are you trying to seduce me, Nouel?”
A soft chuckle feathered the hair at her temple. “I thought you were trying to seduce me.”
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Re-enter the Rafflecopter each day
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Beth D. Carter had never met us when she heard about one of our events and immediately offered a copy of her title Paper Kisses. and then a week later, offered snippet from "Otherworldly", book 1 in the McKnight, Perth & Daire series. AND she's giving away a pdf copy! See: Authors Rock!
She sees ghosts who have been murdered and he solves cases with good ole detective work. But together, they make a little magic of their own!
Snippet
As she continued, the light managed to stay just out of reach, and she respected its wishes, following at discreet distance. It turned a corner, so Charlotte hurried up, not wanting to lose sight of it.
But when she went around the corner as well, she stopped suddenly. There was a large crevice in the ground, filled with water. Charlotte’s heart thundered heavily, and her feet would not allow her
to walk forward. There was absolutely no way she would go near that pool of brackish water.
But the light flared brighter, morphing until Zach Braddock-Masters’ ghost stood staring down into the smooth depths.
“Are you in that water?” she asked.
Zach nodded.
“Do you know who did this to you?”
Zach didn’t answer. She wasn’t sure if either he didn’t know or just didn’t know how to show it.
“We’ll find you, Zach.”
One minute Zach stood near the water and the next he stood in front of her, practically touching her nose with his. His eyes were cloudy, as if death had already started eating at him in the afterlife,
but the panic shining from them couldn’t be misinterpreted. He shook his head and held a finger to his lips then flashed out of sight. The brightness had her shielding her eyes, and when she opened them the warehouse had disappeared and Charlotte found herself back in Alice Braddock-Masters’ house, only she was no longer in the den but in the formal dining room. Her belly rested against the mahogany table. Mrs. Braddock-Masters and Jonas stood behind her.
“So Zach is dead?” Mrs. Braddock-Masters clarified, her shoulders slumped.
Charlotte took a deep breath and tried shaking off the vision. “I’m so sorry. His spirit is strong. He wants to be found.”
She sees ghosts who have been murdered and he solves cases with good ole detective work. But together, they make a little magic of their own!
Snippet
As she continued, the light managed to stay just out of reach, and she respected its wishes, following at discreet distance. It turned a corner, so Charlotte hurried up, not wanting to lose sight of it.
But when she went around the corner as well, she stopped suddenly. There was a large crevice in the ground, filled with water. Charlotte’s heart thundered heavily, and her feet would not allow her
to walk forward. There was absolutely no way she would go near that pool of brackish water.
But the light flared brighter, morphing until Zach Braddock-Masters’ ghost stood staring down into the smooth depths.
“Are you in that water?” she asked.
Zach nodded.
“Do you know who did this to you?”
Zach didn’t answer. She wasn’t sure if either he didn’t know or just didn’t know how to show it.
“We’ll find you, Zach.”
One minute Zach stood near the water and the next he stood in front of her, practically touching her nose with his. His eyes were cloudy, as if death had already started eating at him in the afterlife,
but the panic shining from them couldn’t be misinterpreted. He shook his head and held a finger to his lips then flashed out of sight. The brightness had her shielding her eyes, and when she opened them the warehouse had disappeared and Charlotte found herself back in Alice Braddock-Masters’ house, only she was no longer in the den but in the formal dining room. Her belly rested against the mahogany table. Mrs. Braddock-Masters and Jonas stood behind her.
“So Zach is dead?” Mrs. Braddock-Masters clarified, her shoulders slumped.
Charlotte took a deep breath and tried shaking off the vision. “I’m so sorry. His spirit is strong. He wants to be found.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As much as authors jump in to help us, we like to help them out when we can. When an author decides to build strip club for ladies in your hometown, you jump at the chance to get involved, even if it is fictional! Inner Goddess has been working to build a release party for Brenna Zinn's new Ellora's Cave release: Iron Rods-The Best Little Fictional Strip Club for Ladies in Texas. We hope you will join us at the FB party on June 4! Until, here is an excerpt:
Wed., 11am-9pm
Excerpt:
Watered-down
drinks were the last straw. The wild concoction of emotions brewing within her
bubbled over. The time for calm had passed. She needed action. Something to
release the rage and hurt trapped inside. She’d had enough of being stomped on
by life, and by God she would not sit still while this seedy little club
stepped on her as well.
Tatum
picked up both drinks and marched to the bar, fury feeding her temper.
Something in her day was going to go right, and having a decent drink to dull
her pain wasn’t too much to ask for. So what if Conan the bartender looked as
though he could snap her in half. If he so much as blinked the wrong way, she’d
jump over the counter and make him wish he’d never poured a drink in his life.
The
bartender had his broad back to her and appeared deep in conversation at the
end of the bar with another man she hadn’t noticed before. How she could have
overlooked the stranger was a mystery.
The man
looked up and made eye contact with Tatum. Out of nowhere, fire popped
and sizzled through her, scorching senses that had been dulled by the
oppressiveness of the club. For a mesmerizing moment, she stared at the
stranger, unable to look anywhere else.
Black hair
groomed to perfection, a handsome face with an honest-to-God square jaw and
wearing the kind of slick suit and tie she’d only seen in magazine ads, he
looked like a modern-day aristocrat. Some big shot who was completely out of
place in a dive like Iron Rods.
Why such a
good-looking man was here to do anything beyond strip she didn’t know and
didn’t give a flip, she reminded herself. Tonight she was on a mission to
forget her troubles and find some kind of satisfaction. If the stranger
couldn’t help her in either regard, then he was little more than eye candy.
She
plunked down the cocktail glasses. A harsh thud
sounded as they hit the wood counter. The bartender glanced over his shoulder.
His face still appeared impassive, though his eyebrows now arched a bit higher
on his forehead.
“Yes?” he
asked.
Tatum
steeled her resolve and straightened her spine, hoping all six feet of her
looked formidable to a man who probably crushed boulders with his bare hands.
“If these drinks have a shot of pure vodka in them, then I’m the governor of
Texas.”
The
bartender said something to the stranger then turned around and made his way to
where Tatum stood. Her skin grew cold as she noticed the hint of a grin pull at
the corners of his lips. How could a person look more intimidating with a smile
on his face?
“You
saying I watered down your drinks?”
Though the
music in the club was loud enough to vibrate through the floor and up her
calves, she easily heard his deep bass voice. A tremor of fright added to the
quaking in her legs. Scared or not, she’d started this and she wouldn’t stop
until she had two cocktails to her liking.
“I’m
saying there’s no more alcohol in these glasses than there is in the Colorado
River down the street.” Allowing the full impact of her feelings to give her
strength, she took a step closer and pressed her stomach onto the padded vinyl
that trimmed the bar. “My friend spent a lot of money for these drinks and I
aim to make sure we get what we paid for. So how about you taking that unopened
bottle of vodka there on the back shelf and trying one more time?”
The large
bartender’s nose flared and the muscles in his thick neck and arms flexed.
Before he had a chance to say a word, the man at the end of the bar spoke.
“It’s
okay, T. Do as the lady asks.”
The big
man shot her a look that could have frozen hell. “Fine. As the lady likes.”
Without breaking his glare, he roughly grabbed two glasses and dropped them on
the counter before reaching for the vodka.
And just
like that, the polished stranger in the fancy suit single-handedly shut down
her attempt at blowing the steam she’d built up.
In a
perverse way, Tatum didn’t feel appeased. She might have gotten her way, but
pumped-up energy still surged in her system. If only she could punch a wall or
kick over a chair. She needed to do something, anything, to relieve her
bottled-up tension and lock down the pheromones that unexpectedly
decided to show up to the party.
The
good-looking man wasn’t making her struggle to calm down any easier. Over the
stacks of papers littering the end of the bar, he stared at her, and not in a
pleasing way. He appeared amused, almost smug, as though she had just provided
his evening’s entertainment.
She pushed
her attraction aside and allowed her irritation to hitch a half notch.
“Are you
the manager here?” she asked, making her way down to the end of the bar.
He punched
the end of the pen he held and tossed it onto an open file. “I guess you can
say I am. Is there a problem?”
His tone
sounded a little too bored for her liking. He might not be hard to look at, but
he had pompous ass written all over him. “As a matter of fact there is. Have
you taken a good look at this place lately? It’s a dump. The lighting sucks,
the dancers aren’t good-looking and couldn’t dance to save their souls, and the
bartender is serving lousy drinks.”
He tilted
his head. “You don’t say.”
His
prissy, holier-than-thou attitude provided just the spark she needed to stay
ignited. “Yes, I do say. You should be ashamed of yourself and this place. It’s
the worst club in Austin.”
“And yet
you’re here.”
“I—” Tatum
started, but faltered in the wake of his unexpected retort. She blinked several
times, too flustered to speak. Weren’t managers supposed to be nice to their
customers? Even rich, snobby managers?
The
stranger stood and Tatum’s gaze continued up until her head tilted back.
Powerfully built, he not only stood several inches taller than her, he
dominated the space around her. Though he might not be as humongous as the
bartender, he radiated a fierce but intelligent intensity that commanded her
attention. Here was a man used to getting what he wanted.
“You think
someone else can do better?” he asked.
Her mouth watered as she watched the play of muscles behind
his snug shirtsleeves and listened to the deep voice that poured over her like
warm molasses. Good Lord, the man was virile.
Not
permitting herself to be influenced by intimidation or lust, she raised her
chin and said the first thing that came to her mind. “I think a drunk monkey
could do better.”
“You
looking for a job?”
Her mouth
fell open at his audacity. She might be fast on the uptake, but he was faster
and better.
Perturbed,
Tatum planted her fists on her hips. “You calling me a drunk monkey?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Anniversary Bash Giveaway
The Giveaway --> 4 Winners!
Contest runs May 31 - June 4, 2014
1st Place - Chooses from half the list of authors and their titles, plus SWAG
2nd Place- Receives remaining half of the list of authors and their titles, plus SWAG
TWO 3rd Places - A Bucketful of SWAG a piece
2nd Place- Receives remaining half of the list of authors and their titles, plus SWAG
TWO 3rd Places - A Bucketful of SWAG a piece
Re-enter the Rafflecopter each day
for multiple chances to win!
I can't wait for Iron Rods!
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